Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy Box Set: Directed by Peter Jackson (2001, 2002, 2003)
The early 21st century and northern European equivalent of the 'sand and sandal' widescreen epics of the 1950's-Ben Hur, Spartacus and the Ray Harryhausen monster pic-just what cinema was invented for.
Sunset Boulevard: Directed by Billy Wilder (1950)
1950's Hollywood artifice seen through a gothic lens. A huge influence on David Lynch and the Coen Brothers-a film noir about faded glory, entrapment and insanity.
Exterminating Angel: Directed by Luis Bunuel (1962)
Guests at a bourgeois dinner party inexplicably find themselves unable to leave and 'civilized' values and upper class mores begin to crumble. Luis Bunuel's surrealist film is a sort of science fiction disaster movie confined within one room with no explanation of causes.
Eraserhead: Directed by David Lynch (1977)
A darkly humorous nightmare about parenthood and other things. Calling this film weird is an understatement.
The Shining: Directed by Stanley Kubrick (1980)
My favourite horror film starring my favourite male actor, Jack Nicholson. From the opening helicopter shot of the Torrance family car moving along the mountain roads, overlaid with brilliantly eerie music, to Nicholson's unhinged performance as axe wielding writer Jack Torrance, this is atmospheric horror at its best.
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