Films: I

I AM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GANG
1932
****
An innocent man is made to suffer the terrors of the chain gang.
Superb, powerful diatribe against the legal system, persuasively and suspensefully put over by expert old-time Hollywood.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy
Stars: Paul Muni, Glenda Farrell, Helen Vinson

I AM ALFRED HITCHCOCK

2021

*

Documentary about the greatest film director of them all.

Serviceable, fairly lightweight film on the Master, probably a decent introduction to the man's work for newcomers. There are lots of talking heads (none shown), some nice footage and, curiously, no mention of Bernard Herrmann.

Dir: Joel Ashton McCarthy

I AM BRUCE LEE
2011
*
Documentary about the martial arts and movie legend.
Interesting, but not a complete success: the emphasis is on remembrances and tributes from testosterone-fuelled fellows, making it a little off-putting, and some of their knowledge is questionable too. It works best, of course, when Bruce himself is on screen in archive footage, but one gets the feeling that the ultimate Lee feature has yet to be made.
Dir: Pete McCormack

I AM FRIGID… WHY?
1971
0
A young woman has trouble coming to terms with sexual relationships.
The viewer may say: 'I am watching this... why?'; a rum old flesh flick.
Dir: Max Pecas
Stars: Sandra Julien, Marie-Georges Pascal, Jean-Luc Terrade

I AM LEGEND
2007
*
A virus has wiped out most of the world’s population and turned others into marauding zombies; one man, a scientist, has survived and attempts to find a cure.
One of the most downbeat Hollywood products to come along in some time, this third adaptation of Richard Matheson’s novel (see also The Last Man On Earth and The Omega Man) is a sombre, taciturn movie that may well disappoint star fans expecting something brighter; one problem is that it doesn’t really inspire affection and there’s little to get the teeth into because the plot is so simple.
Dir: Francis Lawrence
Stars: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Emma Thompson

I AM MARTIN PARR

2024

**

Documentary about one of Britain's greatest photographers, Martin Parr, who has specialised in chronicling English people in their leisure time.

It's a pleasure to finally see a film about Parr, even if it's only just over an hour long, because his work is among the most valuable visual work of his era - and this doesn't stint on displaying his delightful, evocative imagery; the England he logs is disappearing fast, which makes it extra valuable. One is pleased to discover that Parr himself doesn't look down on ordinary people but, if anything, celebrates them (whether that's truly the case we can't say). Those discussing their admiration of him in this always interesting feature include Grayson Perry and David Walliams.

Dir: Lee Shulman

I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER
2016
*
A troubled teen believes that an old man in his town may be a serial killer.
Low key indie pic strong on sense of place and brooding atmosphere, not especially original (until the conclusion) but well acted by Records and admirably restrained. A little stretched out though.
Dir: Billy O’Brien
Stars: Max Records, Christopher Lloyd, Laura Fraser, Karl Geary

I AM SAM
2001
0
A mentally retarded man attempts to bring up his young daughter.
Mawkish drama whose crimes include unbelievable plotting, misconceived attempts at sympathy, heavy-handedness and disastrous lead performances.
Dir: Jessie Nelson
Stars: Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fannning, Dianne Wiest, Laura Dern

I BOUGHT A VAMPIRE MOTORCYCLE

1990

*

A young man buys a bike which has been possessed by a vampire.

Laudable attempt to make a comedy horror and not Americanise it; several madcap ideas and knowing jokes shine through, even though it's about quarter of an hour too long. The cast is game, the budget is small, the gore is gory.

Dir: Dirk Campbell

Stars: Neil Morrissey, Amanda Noar, Michael Elphick, Anthony Daniels, Burt Kwouk

I BURY THE LIVING

1958

*

A cemetery worker realises he can kill people if he changes the pins denoting the plot where they will be buried.

Great title! And this Corman-esque horror is pretty fun. Its Twilight Zone-type story may largely take place in small offices but there are striking visual interludes - some verging on Hitchcockian - and the map of the graveyard almost grows into a big-eyed monster. Bikel isn't convincing as an elderly Scotsman but this is a decent little feature that's a bit different; zombies might have topped it off.

Dir: Albert Band

Stars: Richard Boone, Theodore Bikel, Peggy Maurer

I CONFESS
1953
***
A priest hears a confession of murder and is unable to tell the police about it.
One of Hitchcock's more difficult pictures - quite talkative; shot in black and white; concerning, in part, the Church - this is nevertheless a rewarding experience which showcases not just the master's ability to handle very human themes but his skill with camera movements to draw out the maximum tension. It's also highly atmospheric and full of interesting faces.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock
Stars: Montgomery Clift, Anne Baxter, Karl Malden, Brian Aherne, OE Hasse

I, DESIRE
1982 (TV)
0
An undertaker tracks down a voluptuous female vampire.
Scant horror with no interesting detail whatsoever.
Dir: John Llewellyn Moxey
Stars: David Naughton, Dorian Harewood, Marilyn Jones

I DO
1921
0
A young couple babysit a pair of tiny terrors.
Very basic Lloyd short consisting of mainly trivial actions - one long sequence has him attempting to pour out some milk. The only real novelty is the brief animated sequence near the start.
Dir: Hal Roach
Stars: Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis, Noah Young

I DON’T WANT TO BE BORN

1975

0

An ex-stripper is cursed by a dwarf and gives birth to a demon.

Silly horror whose refusal to give any sort of explanation or moral case is stupefying - what right (or power) does the dwarf have to curse Lucy just because she refused his advances? And the whole premise is laughable: we see this cute little baby and then - without seeing the violent act itself - someone is badly injured by him! In between the horror we get pretty mundane things happening, like people visiting Fortnum & Mason. Joan as usual gives it her all - including during the opening credits in which she gives birth - but this is terrible nonsense with a few compensations like London scenery and some exploitation elements to get a few more punters in. No wonder it was released under lots of different titles.

Dir: Peter Sasdy

Stars: Joan Collins, Eileen Atkins, Ralph Bates, Donald Pleasence, Caroline Munro

I DREAM OF JEANNIE: 15 YEARS LATER
1985 (TV)
0
Jeannie and her astronaut husband fall out when he goes on one last mission.
Feeble reprise of a series whose episodes were long enough at 30 minutes.
Dir: William Asher
Stars: Barbara Eden, Wayne Rogers, Bill Daily

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER
1997
0
Four teenagers don't own up when they accidentally run a man over.
All hopes that this could be a post-modern, slick, ironic slasher movie quickly dissipate, as it proves to be as absurd, clichéd and unbelievable as its predecessors.
Dir: Jim Gillespie
Stars: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Freddie Prinze Jr, Anne Heche

I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!

1945

**

A young woman struggles to reach her fiance in the Outer Hebrides.

Lilting, quite likeable Powell-Pressburger take on a romantic drama, greatly enhanced by several robust performances, unusual sets and striking local scenery, beautifully shot. There's certainly a lot going on beneath the surface; with its nods to nature and mythology, it's almost like a non-horror The Wicker Man.

Dir: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger

Stars: Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey, George Carney, Pamela Brown

I LIKE BIRDS
1967
0
A London fashion columnist takes up with a 'moral crusader', but he is not as he seems.
Pete Walker’s first film is slight and artless, to say the least, consisting of wooden acting, crude slapstick and numerous dolly birds wandering around in bikinis.
Dir: Pete Walker
Stars: Derek Aylward, David Kernan, Andrea Allan

I LOVE YOU, ALICE B TOKLAS
1968
*
An LA lawyer embraces the hippy lifestyle.
Likeable, well played comedy that perhaps lacks a bit of 'oompf'.
Dir: Hy Averback
Stars: Peter Sellers, Jo Van Fleet, Leigh Taylor-Young

I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS
2009
*
A gay con man goes to prison but meets the love of his life.
One of Jim Carrey’s least likeable characters inhabits a curious film, a comedy with almost no laughs and a romance in which the central romance doesn’t convince, but as a drama it’s quite intriguing, especially considering it’s based on the true-life tale of a con artist who pulled off schemes of remarkable audacity. The way it was advertised, as a bright and breezy comedy, will lead many viewers to be disappointed, and parts of it are not especially palatable, but effort has clearly gone into it, and it’s got a catchy soundtrack.
Dir: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Stars: Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro

I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE
1958
*
A young bride discovers that her husband has been taken over by an alien.
Mainly formulaic sci-fi with a few surprises; low budget, but not as cheesy as the title suggests.
Dir: Gene Fowler Jr
Stars: Tom Tryon, Gloria Talbott, Peter Baldwin

I MARRIED A WITCH
1942
**
A witch and a sorcerer plague a man whose ancestor had them both burned.
The filmic inspiration for the 1960s TV show Bewitched has probably survived the years better than its successor; snazzy in style and concocted with a light touch.
Dir: Rene Clair
Stars: Frederic March, Veronica Lake, Robert Benchley, Susan Hayward

I MISS YOU, HUGS AND KISSES
1978
0
A woman is brutally murdered – did her rich husband do it?
Bewildering crime drama (with nasty undertones) whose inane use of scores of flashbacks and a finale that explains nothing stupefy the viewer.
Dir: Murray Markowitz
Stars: Elke Sommer, Donald Pilon, Chuck Shamata

I, MONSTER

1971

*

A version of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde using different names.

Amicus's adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson story boasts two horror greats - and one wannabe horror great - with Lee in particular throwing himself into his role. The budget can't accommodate too much else - even a wordy script, since there are a few long sequences without dialogue - but it's reasonably enjoyable, with the Victorian London architecture and tropes all present and correct; the mentions of Freud are also a piquant touch.

Dir: Stephen Weeks

Stars: Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Mike Raven, Richard Hurndall

I SAW WHAT YOU DID
1988 (TV)
*
Two girls telephone numbers at random saying 'I saw what you did', but it backfires when one of the men they call has just murdered his girlfriend.
Remake of the William Castle shocker which holds the attention.
Dir: Fred Walton
Stars: Shawnee Smith, Robert Carradine, David Carradine

I SEE ICE
1938
*
A man accidentally photographs criminals at work.
Pleasant Formby frolics.
Dir: Anthony Kimmins
Stars: George Formby, Kay Walsh, Betty Stockfeld

I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE
1979
0
A woman takes bloody revenge on the men who brutally raped her.
Essentially a violent sex film; the sordid story is told completely straight with no frissons, and will alienate all but a few audiences.
Dir: Meir Zarchi
Stars: Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor, Richard Pace

I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE

2010

*

A remake that tapped into the era's craze for 'torture porn', an unpleasant moniker for an unlovely genre, but one that could take the viewer on a scary ride. Not surprisingly, this has much less nudity than the original but perhaps even more horror, as it revels in people doing horrible things to one another - in the first half to the woman, in the second half to the men; but scene after scene is unwisely stretched out so we get a film at least 20 minutes too long (some might say 105 minutes too long). How come she turns into an all-powerful superhero to extract her revenge?

Dir: Steven R Monroe

Stars: Sarah Butler, Jeff Branson, Andrew Howard

I START COUNTING
1969
0
A girl suspects that her stepbrother is the local murderer.
Definitely not in the ‘horror’ category (as at least one writer has put it), and barely a ‘thriller’ either, this interesting but underwhelming film is crisply shot extensively on location (in Bracknell) but the script isn’t particularly original and includes much domestic detail that could have been excised (and replaced by some suspense and chills).
Dir: David Greene
Stars: Jenny Agutter, Bryan Marshall, Clare Sutcliffe, Simon Ward

I, TONYA
2017
***
American figure skater Tonya Harding becomes embroiled in a scandal involving an attack on her rival Nancy Kerrigan before the 1994 Winter Olympics.
A based-on-real-life tale related by various unreliable narrators, this is an energetic film that is both funny and touching, adorned by some great performances and, most importantly, just a really good story. Robbie portrays Harding as a three-dimensional character who was always around bad people and thus was probably always heading for trouble, with the resulting big incident becoming world famous, one of the many scenes the movie does right - the skating sequences also impress with their elegance and physicality. This should have been among the Oscars Best Film noms, not Lady Bird (qv).
Dir: Craig Gillespie
Stars: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney, Paul Walter Hauser

I VAMPIRI
1956
*
When girls are found lifeless in Paris, an ancient duchess may have something to do with it.
Mario Bava apparently completed the filming of this notable Italian horror, having also performed cinematography duties: the result is an effective blending of the gothic and the modern, with impressive special effects employed for the duchess's sudden ageing (it was done by different coloured lights, as in 1931's Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde). It's known by several different titles and the original version was once thought lost.
Dir: Riccardo Freda
Stars: Gianna Maria Canale, Carlo D'Angelo, Dario Michaelis

I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE
1943
*
A nurse in the tropics becomes acquainted with voodoo.
Mild and slender horror with a plot borrowed from Jane Eyre.
Dir: Jacques Tourneur
Stars: James Ellison, Frances Dee, Tom Conway

I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND
1978
**
In 1964, a group of teens try everything to see The Beatles on their first visit to America.
Frantic, buzzing, ebullient comic drama which captures the phenomenon of Beatlemania through zestful performances and joyous Beatles originals on the soundtrack.
Dir: Robert Zemeckis
Stars: Nancy Allen, Wendy Jo Sperber, Theresa Saldana, Eddie Deezen

I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN

1957

0

A descendant of Dr Frankenstein experiments on dead teens.

Flat, talkative and ridiculous horror more likely to induce sleep than shivers. Terrific exploitation poster artwork, though.

Dir: Herbert L Strock

Stars: Whit Bissell, Gary Conway, Phyllis Coates

I WAS A TEENAGE VAMPIRE
1988
*
A youth turns into a vampire after being seduced by a beautiful woman.
A surprise this, a refreshingly fast and funny horror spoof; rare indeed.
Dir: Jimmy Huston
Stars: Robert Sean Leonard, LeeAnne Locken, Cheryl Polak

I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF
1957
0
A teenager, attempting to have his temper controlled, is turned into a primate by a doctor.
Guff which really has to be seen to be believed.
Dir: Gene Fowler Jr
Stars: Michael Landon, Yvonne Lime, Whit Bissell

I WAS MONTY'S DOUBLE
1958
**
During World War Two, the British employ a lookalike of General Montgomery to mislead the enemy.
Easily enjoyable war drama based on fact, it has an amicable, pleasant air but manages to turn on the tension when need be. It's remarkable that the film uses the actor who actually was the Montgomery impersonator, James.
Dir: John Guillermin
Stars: John Mills, Cecil Parker, ME Clifton James

ICE COLD IN ALEX
1958
**
Despite numerous hazards, an army ambulance attempts to cross the North African desert during World War Two.
Involving war drama which resolves itself into a succession of suspenseful episodes underneath the burning sun, the most agonising of which is the attempt to get the ambulance up a hill; longish, it was chopped in half for American release. Cinema has rarely seen more lovely faces than Sylvia Sims' here.
Dir: J Lee Thompson
Stars: John Mills, Sylvia Sims, Anthony Quayle, Harry Andrews

THE ICE KING
2018
*
Documentary about British figure skater John Curry.
The main audiences for this film will be those interested in skating, and those interested in gay matters; no doubt there is a crossover. Some issues, like Curry's 'melancholy', are only briefly touched upon, but this is a touching film with affection - but not total reverence - for its subject.
Dir: James Erskine

THE ICE PIRATES
1984
*
In a galaxy short of water, pirates will do anything to get it.
Snappy and colourful sci-fi with tongue firmly in cheek.
Dir: Stewart Raffill
Stars: Robert Urich, Mary Crosby, Anjelica Huston, Ron Perlman, John Carradine

THE ICE STORM

1997

**

In 1973 Connecticut, two families experiment with sex and drugs.

In every sense a chilly drama, one that captures the priapic feelings of people of different ages even if it is relentlessly gloomy, uneasy and angsty about such things. Sex is meant to be fun! Not to these filmmakers. One expects a bigger storm, literally speaking, than that which eventually arrives, but by then we've been if not seduced then flattened by the occurrences we've witnessed. A solidly well-made movie with some keen period detail. 

Dir: Ang Lee

Stars: Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Christina Ricci, Tobey Maguire, Elijah Wood

ICEMAN
1984
0
Scientists discover a primitive man in a block of ice.
Over-earnest fantasy with modest ambitions.
Dir: Fred Schepisi
Stars: Timothy Hutton, Lindsay Crouse, Danny Glover

I.D.
1994
0
A policeman gets caught up in the anti-football hooligan operation he is involved in.
Vile drama; not boring, but offensive, dated, unbelievable, depressing and repugnant instead.
Dir: Philip Davis
Stars: Reece Dinsdale, Richard Graham, Warren Clarke, Claire Skinner, Saskia Reeves

IDIOCRACY
2006
*
Thanks to an army experiment gone wrong, two people wake up hundreds of years in the future where everyone else is extremely stupid.
There's bags of promise in this sci-fi comedy, only part of which is fulfilled: perhaps a moderate budget held it back, or the studio's lack of confidence in its own product (it feels like it's been cut down from something longer). But there are laughs here and, more importantly, a fairly keen eye on what's wrong with modern America - Donald Trump haters would seize on it with relish a decade later.
Dir: Mike Judge
Stars: Luke Wilson, Maya Rudolph, Dax Shepard, Terry Crews

THE IDIOTS
1998
****
A group of people go around pretending to be retarded.
Hugely fascinating Dogma project, unlike any other film ever made.
Dir: Lars von Trier
Stars: Bodil Jorgensen, Jens Albinus, Anne Louise Hassing

IDIOT’S DELIGHT
1939
*
During World War 2, a girl meets an old flame at an isolated Swiss hotel.
Cosy little drama with a likeable cast.
Dir: Clarence Brown
Stars: Norma Shearer, Clark Gable, Edward Arnold, Charles Coburn

IF....
1968
***
Rebellion turns into violence at a strict boys' public school.
Allegorical drama made with a keen eye and a quirkiness that has seen it retain much of its freshness. Oddly hypnotic, it has a highly distinct, marvellously raw quality and remains one of the stand-out British films of the Sixties, which it does so well to reflect.
Dir: Lindsay Anderson
Stars: Malcolm McDowell, David Wood, Arthur Lowe, Mona Washbourne

IF YOU DON'T STOP IT... YOU'LL GO BLIND!!!
1975
0
A series of comic sketches with a sexy theme.
Dated comedy. Most of the sketches relate the sort of thing you used to see on Playboy's jokes page - a few raise a smirk but it's tiresome well before the end.
Dir: Keefe Brasselle, Bob Levy
Stars: George Spencer, Patrick Wright, Jane Kellem

IKARIE XB 1
1963
*
In 2163, a multi-national spaceship crew journey out to the stars.
Commended Czechoslovakian science fiction that may have influenced the likes of 2001 and Star Trek, but is a mite dull to watch. Drama is near the back of the queue - instead it concentrates on the relationships of the crew and the often mundane life on board - meal times, chess, petty arguments. Set design is clean and chilly, the cosmonauts' uniforms have a certain austere Eastern European allure, but the special effects depicting action outside the ship are less impressive. It was heavily re-edited, dubbed and titled Voyage To The End Of The Universe in the US by AIP, and that version is likely less worthy but perhaps more entertaining.
Dir: Jindrich Polak
Stars: Zdenek Stepanek, Frantisek Smolik, Dana Medricka

IKIRU
1952
**
Diagnosed with stomach cancer, a council official decides to do something good with his last months.
Kurosawa’s film says much about life and death but labours the point in its long ‘epilogue’ section consisting of the officials’ discussion of their late colleague.
Dir: Akira Kurosawa
Stars: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Kyoko Seki

I’LL BE SEEING YOU
1944
**
During World War Two, a shell-shocked soldier falls in love with a woman with a secret.
Sentimental drama that would have offered succour to ladies at matinees and still exhibits some charm despite its artificialities.
Dir: William Dieterle
Stars: Joseph Cotten, Ginger Rogers, Shirley Temple, Tom Tully

THE ILLUSIONIST
2006
*
In 19th century Vienna, a magician uses his power to win his true love.
While not in the same labyrinth league as The Prestige (qv), this is a fair time-passer with a twist that can be easily guessed; plus, Norton’s tricks would be more impressive if we knew they weren’t just CGI.
Dir: Neil Burger
Stars: Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Paul Giamatti, Rufus Sewell

THE ILLUSTRATED MAN
1969
0
A wanderer tells strange tales based on the tattoos that cover his body.
Way-out and at the same time very boring fantasy.
Dir: Jack Smight
Stars: Rod Steiger, Claire Bloom, Robert Drivas

ILSA, HAREM KEEPER OF THE OIL SHEIKS
1976
0
A brutal harem keeper trades in beautiful foreign women for the pleasure of Arabs.
Grubby tat with a few choice moments, but rarely pulse-racing.
Dir: Don Edmonds
Stars: Dyanne Thorne, Max Thayer, Jerry Dalony

ILSA SHE WOLF OF THE SS
1975
0
A Nazi concentration camp is home to a brutal female warden.
First of the Ilsa films is probably the most squalid of all of them, featuring scenes that must have made audiences' jaws drop then, and would do now too (for very slightly different reasons); it's just a pity there's little drama or suspense added to the relentless parade of barbarism and nakedness.
Dir: Don Edmonds
Stars: Dyanne Thorne, Gregory Knoph, Tony Mumolo

ILSA THE TIGRESS OF SIBERIA
1977
0
Ilsa is now one of the instigators of Stalin's crimes against humanity.
Vaguely amusing exploiter with a penchant for violent death; the second half at least goes in an unexpected direction, but it's never anything approaching dynamic.
Dir: Jean LaFleur
Stars: Dyanne Thorne, Michel-Rene Labelle, Gilbert Beaumont

ILSA, THE WICKED WARDEN
1977
0
A woman tries to find out what happened to her sister in a disreputable mental hospital.
Super-sleazy Franco awfulness, one of his slightly better movies. Spoiler alert: the inmates eat Ilsa (aka Greta) at the end!
Dir: Jess Franco
Stars: Dyanne Thorne, Eric Falk, Lina Romay

I’M ALL RIGHT JACK
1959
****
An innocent, middle class young man starts in industry at the bottom and causes a national strike.
Brilliantly conceived satirical comedy which doesn't spare any side; it is a priceless historical document yet retains its freshness and vitality, and is peopled by one of the finest casts ever assembled for a British picture.
Dir: John Boulting
Stars: Peter Sellers, Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas, Richard Attenborough, Dennis Price, Margaret Rutherford, Irene Handl, Liz Fraser, John Le Mesurier

I’M NOT FEELING MYSELF TONIGHT
1975
0
A janitor at a sex research institute invents a ray which makes people frisky.
'Of its time' saucy comedy, now only fit to be sniggered at by the PC generation. Not very good.
Dir: Joseph McGrath
Stars: Barry Andrews, James Booth, Sally Faulkner, Graham Stark, Rita Webb

I’M STILL HERE
2010
**
Joaquin Phoenix gives up acting to become a rap singer, but goes off the rails.
This film is fascinating just for its very existence, if not always for the way it dramatically develops, because it fooled many critics – including Roger Ebert – into believing it was real. It isn’t (probably!), but is instead an extended prank, although it’s debatable who the biggest laugh is on: Phoenix may never fully escape the ramifications of playing this ghastly ‘character’ (but probably deserved an Oscar for it). A truly peculiar and really rather daring movie, some will hate it with a passion, but it is frequently hilarious if you realise that it’s all faked, and could provide conversational debate for many an hour, which is surely one of the points of art. Starting question might be: so who was in on it, who wasn’t?
Dir: Casey Affleck
Stars: Joaquin Phoenix

I'M STILL HERE

2024

***

In early 1970s Brazil, a father is torn from his family by the military dictatorship.

A true-life story about a military takeover lends itself to an affecting drama about the strength of the family and how bad ideas, most notably totalitarianism, explicitly break families up, families being the bedrock of civilisation. With strong acting from the mother and all of her children, plus a vivid sense of time and place, it's a fine film, if one that sometimes lacks propulsion, that hoovered up awards globally. Modern-day Brazilians (and other nationalities) should remain wary of the state that governs them.

Dir: Walter Salles

Stars: Fernanda Torres, Fernanda Montenegro, Selton Mello

IMAGES
1972
0
A woman imagines her former lovers are visiting her.
Tiresome pretentious drivel from a director who revelled in such things.
Dir: Robert Altman
Stars: Susannah York

IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON
1988
***
The life of the assassinated Beatle.
A must-see for fans, but it’s a great shame none of the others Fabs contribute.
Dir: Andrew Solt
Stars: John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr

THE IMITATION GAME
2014
***
The story of Alan Turing, the British scientist who broke Germany's Enigma code but was later prosecuted for homosexuality.
Flawed but engrossing account of some of the true heroes of World War Two, with particular emphasis - through flashback and flashforward - on a man who was a true genius; one regrets the dramatic licence that is sometimes taken, usually for manipulative purposes, but overall this is British cinema doing what it does best.
Dir: Morten Tyldum
Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Charles Dance, Mark Strong, Rory Kinnear

IMITATION OF LIFE
1934
**
A woman becomes successful in business with the help of her black maid, but trouble follows.
Some strands of this notable drama keep the attention more than others, chiefly the one concerning race, which represents one of the first times Hollywood stuck its hand into what would later become an even more furious hornets' nest, although it's essentially a solid 'woman's picture' in which the sentimentality can be forgiven.
Dir: John M Stahl
Stars: Claudette Colbert, Louise Beavers, Warren William, Fredi Washington, Rochelle Hudson

THE IMMIGRANT
1917
**
A hobo comes to America and helps a little girl.
Nicely balanced short with sentimental edges.
Dir: Charles Chaplin
Stars: Charles Chaplin, Edna Purviance, Eric Campbell

IMMORAL TALES
1974
*
Four unusual erotic tales: The Tide, Therese The Philosopher, Erzsebet Bathory and Lucrezia Borgia.
Arty anthology with literary pretensions among the acres of flesh.
Dir: Walerian Borowczyk
Stars: Lise Danvers, Fabrice Luchini, Charlotte Alexandra

THE IMPERSONATOR
1961
*
Tensions arise in a small northern town when an American serviceman is suspected of murder.
Superior quickie which spruces up a 'wrong man' story with creepy night sequences, commentary on a social situation - Americans unwelcome in a provincial town - and key scenes at a pantomime. It even manages to be a little moving in parts, and isn't routine in its plot development.
Dir: Alfred Shaughnessy
Stars: John Crawford, Jane Griffiths, John Salew, Patricia Burke

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST
1952
**
In the 1890s, two gentlemen have difficulties getting married.
Stagey filming of the epigramic play; but Wilde's words are beautifully delivered by the fine cast.
Dir: Anthony Asquith
Stars: Michael Redgrave, Richard Wattis, Joan Greenwood, Margaret Rutherford

THE IMPOSTER
2012
***
Documentary about a French-Algerian who convinced an American family that he was their son who had been missing for three years.
If this was fiction you'd complain that it was too far-fetched - as it is it's a fascinating documentary which takes many twists and turns and is presented in a rich cinematic style. Interesting themes are touched upon, and the less you know about it the more it will grip you.
Dir: Bart Layton

THE IMPOSTORS
1998
0
Two would-be comic actors accidentally stow away on a cruise ship.
Abysmal farce that does everything wrong in every way on every level. To identify but two flaws: the leads are unbearable and the swearing is incongruous.
Dir: Stanley Tucci
Stars: Oliver Platt, Stanley Tucci, Alfred Molina, Billy Connolly, Steve Buscemi, Isabella Rossellini, Woody Allen

IMPULSE
1984
0
Something in the water makes a small town go crazy.
Disappointing melodrama which might have worked better if it was more light-hearted.
Dir: Graham Baker
Stars: Tim Matheson, Meg Tilly, Hume Cronyn, Bill Paxton

IN A LONELY PLACE
1950
**
A Hollywood screenwriter with a violent temper is suspected of killing a young woman.
A modestly budgeted but intelligent psychological drama which elicits another good performance from Bogart and largely holds the attention until the final downbeat moments; some of the dialogue crackles.
Dir: Nicholas Ray
Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, Frank Lovejoy, Carl Benton Reid

IN BED WITH MADONNA
1991
0
Documentary following Madonna's world tour.
The queen is in full control throughout, mugging for the camera, being pretentious and mixing with her unlikeable companions. The concert scenes just about redeem it.
Dir: Alek Keshishian
Stars: Madonna, Warren Beatty, Sandra Bernhard, Pedro Almodovar

IN BRUGES
2008
***
Two Irish hitmen are sent to Belgium after a job has gone wrong.
Extremely well judged comic thriller that successfully juggles several different elements and has enough witty lines and strong characters for more than one film.
Dir: Martin McDonagh
Stars: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes, Clemence Poesy

IN COLD BLOOD
1967
**
Two drifters murder a family after breaking into their house to look for a safe.
Icy filming of Capote's novel which treats every occurrence with equal sobriety, resulting in a sombre and unsettling experience.
Dir: Richard Brooks
Stars: Robert Blake, Scott Wilson, John Forsythe, Paul Stewart

IN FABRIC
2018
*
A red dress that is 'haunted' passes from owner to owner.
The third film in a row from this director that has him as the nearly man: he can nearly make a fine film, but not quite. Like its predecessors, there are quirky ideas and distinctive cinematography but in the end it's just too ridiculously obscure in meaning to inspire much affection, despite certain scenes having a near-hypnotic effect. Maybe one day he'll make the masterpiece he hints at making.
Dir: Peter Strickland
Stars: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Leo Bill, Gwendoline Christie, Julian Barratt

IN FADING LIGHT
1989
*
A girl joins a fishing ship's crew in the unforgiving North Sea.
With a salty atmosphere so thick you could almost cut it with a knife, this defiantly Geordie drama may be too parochial for general consumption.
Dir: Murray Martin
Stars: Joe Caffrey, Maureen Harold, Dave Hill

IN HIS LIFE: THE JOHN LENNON STORY
2000 (TV)
*
The life of the Beatle, roughly going from his teenage years to the Beatles conquering America.
Decent enough plod through material that will be familiar to any fans who've read about these incidents many times over; production values are very much commercial TV standard, and star wattage is low. The soundtrack features an underwhelming covers band who only perform one Beatles original, She Loves You.
Dir: David Carson
Stars: Philip McQuillan, Daniel McGowen, Mark Rice-Oxley, Jamie Glover, Blair Brown

IN LIKE FLINT
1967
0
Agent Derek Flint foils a plot by an all-woman group to take over the world.
Seeing Bond imitators like this – along with Matt Helm, Charles Vine, Bulldog Drummond and UNCLE efforts – makes you appreciate the original so much more; this slothful pap, a sequel to Our Man Flint (qv), embalms the silly plot to the point of somnambulance and generally makes a mess of everything, including the fights, music and dollybirds.
Dir: Gordon Douglas
Stars: James Coburn, Lee J Cobb, Jean Hale

IN LIKE FLYNN
1985 (TV)
0
A novelist is pulled into one of her hero's adventures.
A TV 'homage' to Romancing The Stone, not especially compelling.
Dir: Richard Lang
Stars: Jenny Seagrove, Eddie Albert, Murray Cruchley

IN OLD ARIZONA
1928
*
A cheery bandit attempts to evade capture.
Apparently the first sound picture shot outdoors, this wowed audiences of the day - technically, it must have been way ahead of most of the rest of the pack - but viewed now is little more than a historical curio, mostly a succession of talk scenes that don't do much to advance the plot. Some pleasures for movie buffs remain.
Dir: Irving Cummings
Stars: Warner Baxter, Edmund Lowe, Dorothy Burgess

IN OLD CHICAGO
1937
**
Family, politics and disaster in late 19th century America.
Pretty successful mix of personal and public drama, music and a little comedy, it exhibits old-style Hollywood professionalism, particularly in the climactic fiery scenes.
Dir: Henry King
Stars: Tyrone Power, Alice Faye, Don Ameche, Alice Brady, Andy Devine

IN SEARCH OF DRACULA
1975
0
Dracula actor Christopher Lee narrates this documentary about Bram Stoker's creation and vampirism in general.
A curious little project that was presented as a Swedish TV special and as a longer film - that version is strangely padded with material on Frankenstein and footage from a couple of silent movies, including a non-supernatural Bela Lugosi one. There are also clips of Lee in Franco's Count Dracula and Hammer's Scars Of Dracula, and he appears as Vlad the Impaler; it is in fact, a film only likely to be of interest to Lee/Dracula completists (the British VHS release is especially sought after).
Dir: Calvin Floyd
Stars: Christopher Lee

IN SEARCH OF THE CASTAWAYS
1962
**
Children search the seas for their father, the captain of a ship.
Disney adventure with a cabin full of pleasures.
Dir: Robert Stevenson
Stars: Maurice Chevalier, Hayley Mills, George Sanders, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Wilfrid Brambell

IN THE BEDROOM
2001
**
A couple's marriage takes the strain when tragedy strikes.
Slow and mournful but intelligent and absorbing drama that shows what it's like when life becomes a living hell - perhaps it is more successful on this level than its latter delving into thriller territory.
Dir: Todd Field
Stars: Tom Wilkinson, Sissy Spacek, Nick Stahl, Marisa Tomei

IN THE COMPANY OF MEN
1997
*
Two men plan to seduce and then humiliate a woman in order to get revenge on female-kind.
Jet black comic drama narrowly lacking the courage to see its concept through, it has a unique look and style, but loads a good deal of its scenes with too much dialogue.
Dir: Neil LaBute
Stars: Aaron Eckhart, Stacy Edwards, Matt Malloy

IN THE DOGHOUSE

1961

0

A London vet has a few misadventures.

Rambling comedy with a few high spots, not necessarily the lighter bits: two sequences with an elderly woman who can't bear to have her deteriorating dog put down are quite emotional. In fact that may be the film's greatest strength - its belief in kindness towards animals.

Dir: Darcy Conyers

Stars: Leslie Phillips, Peggy Cummins, Hattie Jacques, James Booth

IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT

1967

***

A black policeman investigates a murder in the Deep South.

Something of a milestone movie, this must have seemed quite electrifying at the time, and still retains power now - the clammy, oppressive atmosphere is certainly still pungent, while Poitier and Steiger deliver impressively layered performances. Some of us get a little confused in the latter stages of the mystery but there's no denying it's a tight, sophisticated script that combines a message and a mystery with aplomb.

Dir: Norman Jewison

Stars: Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates, Lee Grant

IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE
2000
*
In Hong Kong in 1962, married neighbours fall in love but do not consummate their desires.
Languorous, obtuse drama with many sagacious touches, such as keeping the pair’s other halves completely out of view. It’s arguable that the film is too understated, but it does successfully convey the sense of longing for one you can’t have.
Dir: Kar Wai Wong
Stars: Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung, Ping Lam Siu

IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER
1993
***
Gerry Conlon is unjustly imprisoned for the Guildford pub bomb of 1974.
Mainly gripping account of a miscarriage of justice, full of great performances and a successful drama because of the variety in its narrative, not to mention its remarkable based-on-life story. It can almost be forgiven its few absurd partings from the truth.
Dir: Jim Sheridan
Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Pete Postlethwaite, Emma Thompson, Corin Redgrave

IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES

1976

*

In 1930s Japan, a woman and her master conduct an intense affair.

Notorious erotic drama that goes to extremes in order to illustrate that love can go to passionate extremes; as a viewing experience it's obviously quite uncomfortable if undeniably memorable.

Dir: Nagisa Oshima

Stars: Tatsuya Fuji, Eiko Matsuda, Aoi Nakajima

IN THE YEAR OF THE PIG

1968

**

Documentary about the Vietnam War, and what caused it.

The fact that this was made as the conflict still raged gives it some pertinence, while also meaning that it lacks historical framing; whether the director would have used the extra time to reevaluate his anti-war, anti-American opinions is unlikely. Some will claim that events proved him correct, and there may or may not be some truth to that. Whatever, much of the footage is valuable, a mix of Vietnamese citizens trying to get by, a horrific self-immolation, and American politicians talking (there's a lot of talking - it can sometimes be difficult to keep up).

Dir: Emile de Antonio

IN WHICH WE SERVE
1942
***
Survivors of a torpedoed destroyer recall their navy life.
A penetrating insight into a nation-at-war's psyche, with Coward's speeches to his crew especially emblematic of the country's temperament of the time, like Kipling's If made real. Highly cinematic if not absolutely free flowing, it's remarkable that this rich and honest film was made as the enemy bombers were flying all around, and it's worth its flag-waving weight in gold.
Dir: Noel Coward, David Lean
Stars: Noel Coward, John Mills, Bernard Miles, Celia Johnson, Kay Walsh, Richard Attenborough

THE INBETWEENERS MOVIE

2011

*

Four 18-year-olds go looking for a good time in Crete.

The movie spin-off from the TV series does the familiar thing of relocating in sunnier climes, with predictable results. To those coming to it without knowledge of the show it really does seem remarkably crude, with unfathomably gauche characters, but despite all the vulgarity and inanity it has a certain something that doesn't make it 100% unendearing - maybe because it speaks of basic human wants and involves a form of comradeship.

Dir: Ben Palmer

Stars: Simon Ward, James Buckley, Blake Harrison, Joe Thomas

THE INBETWEENERS 2

2014

**

Jay, Neil, Simon and Will reunite in Australia.

A sequel in many ways better than the first film - it flows a bit more smoothly and there is less unbelievable inanity. If anything, there's even more foul language and foul incidents, but it's not heartless and does sometimes puncture pretentiousness. Several times you laugh out loud even if you feel bad about doing so - the water chute incident, the dolphin, the rape alarm - and even for those who never watched the series there's a slight feeling of being sorry it's all over between these four; and bawdy male-centric comedies like these were soon to become endangered species.

Dir: Damon Beesley, Iain Morris

Stars: Simon Ward, James Buckley, Blake Harrison, Joe Thomas

INCENDIES
2011
*
A brother and sister make some surprising discoveries concerning their late mother.
An intensely dour drama that may be one of the gloomiest ever made in Canada - although it largely focuses on Middle-Eastern hellholes where religion has made life miserable - and isn't content with a straightforward narrative, constantly flitting backwards and forwards, often confusingly; it has a kind of gritty resolve but so many of its scenes are woefully slow and elongated that it loses your sympathy. The almost comically glum Radiohead provide a couple of fittingly morose songs on the soundtrack.
Dir: Denis Villeneuve
Stars: Lubna Azabal, Melissa Desormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette

INCEPTION
2010
***
A special agent who can infiltrate dreams is asked by a businessman to implant an idea into the mind of one of his rivals.
Possibly the director’s most thrilling outing yet, a good old fashioned heist thriller given whole new layers by its ingenious sci-fi structure, made magnetic by its own supreme self confidence. In a movie where all are operating at the highest level it’s also worth noting the music score which offers a constant, sonorous accompaniment to the action.
Dir: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine

THE INCIDENT

1967

**

Two thugs terrorise a carriage of subway passengers.

A film that makes its presence felt: perhaps part of a sub genre of the time, that of young hoodlums making others' lives hell, with a whiff of Hitchcock's Lifeboat and even An Inspector Calls, it's an intense and frighteningly well made drama that captures a moment in time of New York's diverse, divided, violent history. It contains occurrences that most of us can, unfortunately, relate to.

Dir: Larry Peerce

Stars: Tony Musante, Martin Sheen, Beau Bridges, Brock Peters

INCIDENT AT MIDNIGHT
1962
0
Armed criminals take over a late-night chemists.
Wearisomely overplotted second feature, a frequent problem with the Edgar Wallace Mysteries, of which this is one. At least there's some footage of Piccadilly Circus tube station near the end.
Dir: Norman Harrison
Stars: Anton Diffring, William Sylvester, Justine Lord, Warren Mitchell

THE INCONFESSABLE ORGIES OF EMMANUELLE
1982
0
A married woman has flings with available females.
Plotless rubbish in which the choreography of the carnal couplings is even worse than the shooting of them (and is that a big bruise or a birthmark on the leading lady's left leg?). No wonder Franco doesn’t like his own films!
Dir: Jess Franco
Stars: Muriel Montossé, Antonio Mayans, Asunción Calero

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
2006
***
Documentary featuring Al Gore's smooth, persuasive lecture on the dangers of global warming.
In its own way, masterful movie-making with an important message; one of the most significant documentaries of its year, without question. Only in later years were many of its claims - including the infamous 'hockey stick' - largely debunked.
Dir: Davis Guggenheim
Stars: Al Gore

AN INCONVENIENT SEQUEL: TRUTH TO POWER
2017
**
A follow-up to the above film, in which Al Gore reports on continuing environmental damage but finds hope for renewable energy.
This documentary didn't have the impact of its predecessor, but it's another compellingly made polemic that - more or less - offers a great deal of positivity for the world. Yes it may lionise Gore a little too much, and why not offer up the arguments of the sceptics (and then refute them)? But it's mostly persuasive and definitely passionate: some viewers will feel inspired.
Dir: Bonni Cohen, Jon Shenk

THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE
2013
*
Two Las Vegas magicians find that their act is being eclipsed by a street performer.
Watchable but unfocused comic drama that can't decide which element of the plot to most focus on - they should have chosen the rivalry with the Jim Carrey character, as his appearances are the absolute highlights and by far the funniest bits here. Apart from that things are pretty average despite some neat magic tricks.
Dir: Don Scardino
Stars: Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Jim Carrey, Olivia Wilde, James Gandolfini, Alan Arkin

THE INCREDIBLE HULK
1978 (TV)
*
A scientist periodically turns into a green monster when he is angry.
Acceptable comic strip fun which led to a series which always relied on slow motion action sequences for fear of looking silly.
Dir: Kenneth Johnson
Stars: Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno, Jack Colvin

THE INCREDIBLE HULK
2008
*
Bruce Banner heads to Brazil but is pursued by vengeful General Ross.
Better than the previous attempt to bring the Hulk to the screen, this version has a bit more oomph and better CGI battles, but still doesn’t fully emotionally engage (perhaps Banner should have been given a bit more dialogue, for starters). It’s reasonable comic book fun, though, honestly enough done.
Dir: Louis Leterrier
Stars: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt

THE INCREDIBLE INVASION
1971
0
Aliens pay a visit to a 19th century scientist who has invented a death ray.
The last film that Karloff shot, released, like the other three (all qv), after he died - the most that can be said for them is that they are fairly different from one another, although they are all terrible; this is particularly jumbled and directionless (one hilarious moment has Karloff dubbed by an actor who sounds nothing like him). It's also sad to see one of the great horror stars so unwell, so close to real death.
Dir: Jack Hill, Juan Ibanez
Stars: Boris Karloff, Enrique Guzman, Christa Linder

THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY
1963
***
Two dogs and a cat undertake a lengthy journey to find their masters.
Remarkably made yarn that will melt all but the misanthrope's heart.
Dir: Fletcher Markle
Stars: Emile Genest, John Drainie

THE INCREDIBLE PETRIFIED WORLD
1959
0
Divers get trapped in a weird world under the ocean.
Pipsqueak sci-fi which is a better viewing experience if you count and relish the absurdities as opposed to being critical in any way at all.
Dir: Jerry Warren
Stars: John Carradine, Robert Clarke, Phyllis Coates, Allen Windsor

THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN
1957
***
After passing through a radioactive cloud, a man shrinks to minute size - and goes on shrinking.
Obvious but enthralling sci-fi with a sombre pay-off.
Dir: Jack Arnold
Stars: Greg Williams, Randy Stuart, April Kent

THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING WOMAN
1981
0
After using a new perfume, a housewife begins to shrink.
Misguided comedy which doesn't succeed as a satire or a fantasy, partly because the special effects are so poor.
Dir: Joel Schumacher
Stars: Lily Tomlin, Charles Grodin, Ned Beatty, Henry Gibson

THE INCREDIBLES
2004
**
A family of undercover superheroes come out of retirement to save the world.
Semi grown-up cartoon feature that looks stunning but is a bit sour in tone. More heart and humour and less violence would have been nice.
Dir: Brad Bird
Voices: Craig T Nelson, Helen Hunt, Jason Lee, Samuel L Jackson

INCREDIBLES 2
2018
*
Mr Incredible looks after the kids while his wife saves the world.
Tardy, not-really-necessary follow-up that goes on for too long and has a curious agenda, although it's sometimes unclear what that actually is, apart from an unsubtle feminism. Spectacular action sequences partly atone for the longeurs. In cinemas it was preceded by a strange, obtuse short animation entitled Bao.
Dir: Brad Bird
Voices: Craig T Nelson, Helen Hunt, Sarah Vowell, Samuel L Jackson

INCUBUS
1982
0
Girls are raped by a demonic force.
Shocker which only comes alive when there’s death on the screen; nasty stuff from the director of three Disney films.
Dir: John Hough
Stars: John Cassavetes, John Ireland, Kerrie Keane

INDEPENDENCE DAY
1996
**
Huge UFOs appear over the great cities of the world... and their inhabitants aren't friendly.
The blockbuster of the summer of '96; fast, frightening, funny and fantastic in the modern Hollywood manner.
Dir: Roland Emmerich
Stars: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Randy Quaid, Adam Baldwin

INDESTRUCTIBLE MAN
1956
0
An executed man comes back from the dead to wreak vengeance on his enemies.
'Free with a packet of cereal' schlocker which could do with the lead talking more and the narrator talking less - but perhaps Chaney wouldn't have been able to remember his lines: he certainly looks like a fellow who likes the drink. An artless flick.
Dir: Jack Pollexfen
Stars: Lon Chaney Jr, Max Showalter, Marian Carr, Ross Elliott

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL
2008
*
In 1957, part-time teacher, part-time adventurer Indiana Jones attempts to stop Russians from discovering the secret of a skull that may not be of human origin.
Belated fourth in the series that attracted big audiences because they thought they were pretty much guaranteed a good time, and a good time is what most of them would have had. Of course many fanboys had their expectations too high and got their claws out straight away, but this big-scale fantasy adventure is decent enough popcorn entertainment that, for a couple of hours, transports you to another world where the more dangerous the endeavour, the less likely you are to be hurt.
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Harrison Ford, Shia LaBeouf, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent

INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE
1989
**
Indy searches for his father and the Holy Grail.
Entertaining third in the series which finds time for plenty of humour among the stunts.
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Denholm Elliott, Alison Doody, Julian Glover, River Phoenix

INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM
1984
**
The prequel to Raiders Of The Lost Ark has Indy on the hunt for precious stones.
A mix of aridity and amazing action. The film to blame for the creation of the US rating, PG13.
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Jonathan Ke Quan

INFAMOUS
2006
*
While researching his book In Cold Blood, about a pair of killers, Truman Capote develops a close relationship with one of the accused.
Covering the same ground as the previous year's Capote, this is a bouncier, more emotional but less affecting effort which begins as a light comedy and ends after a journey through despair and darkness. Through no fault of its own, it lacks the surprise factor of its predecessor.
Dir: Douglas McGrath
Stars: Toby Jones, Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig, Peter Bogdanovich, Jeff Daniels, Isabella Rossellini, Juliet Stevenson, Sigourney Weaver, Gwyneth Paltrow

INFERNAL AFFAIRS
2003
**
Police attempt to discover which cop is in league with the local crime boss – and inadvertently assign the treacherous cop himself to find out.
The film that Scorsese turned into The Departed, so it therefore becomes difficult not to compare the two: the original is leaner, less bloody, less angry and with far less detailed characterisations. Slickly made and extremely clever, it can thank the Hollywood director for extra attention and possibly making the story a tad easier to follow for Western audiences.
Dir: Andrew Lau, Alan Mak
Stars: Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Andy Lau, Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang

INFERNO
1978
*
A man comes to New York to look for his sister who has become involved in black magic.
Flashy, stylish shocker, mostly shot in bright red and blue hues; basically a series of long build-ups to murders.
Dir: Dario Argento
Stars: Leigh McCloskey, Irene Miracle, Daria Nicolodi

INFERNO ROSSO: JOE D'AMATO ON THE ROAD OF EXCESS

2021

*

Documentary about Italian director Joe D'Amato (Aristide Massaccesi), who made masses of mainly horror and sex films, including Porno Holocaust, Erotic Nights Of The Living Dead and several Emanuelle instalments.

The Blu-ray that this film is on may be worth getting for fans of the director because it not only has this documentary, it has half an hour's extra footage (which probably should have been included in the main feature), a chat between the directors and the film Scandalous Emanuelle (aka Christina, aka Peep Show). This film itself is tightly packed and a fair watch, but like Zanin's Tinto Brass one, we could do with much more footage of the director's films, in part to break up the incessant talk, most of which is in Italian; there is the curious technique of flashing up, lightning quick, images from his films. D'Amato wasn't a great director but he was a madly prolific one, and his output is catnip for sleaze hounds - he also wasn't as disgruntled with being in porn as this film likes to make out (one of the contributors is his daughter; others include Eli Roth, George Eastman and Michele Soavi).

Dir: Manlio Gomarasca, Massimiliano Zanin

THE INFORMER
1935
*
An Irishman informs on his Republican friend, and pays for it.
Impressive cinematography elevates this studio-bound production which doesn't feature a single sympathetic character; it has qualities but a one-note lead performance isn't among them.
Dir: John Ford
Stars: Victor McLaglen, Heather Angel, Preston Foster, Wallace Ford

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
2009
***
A band of Jewish-American fighters slaughter Nazis in occupied France, while a Jewish woman who owns a cinema hatches her own plan to end the war.
As you’d expect, an indulgent film, but also as you’d expect, one that’s not easily dismissed: beautifully shot and scored, it rarely gives the viewer what they’re expecting, so we get little of Pitt and his band of warriors, not that much violence, and a climax that takes it into the realms of fantasy. We also get, on the bad side, too many garrulous talk scenes that could have been excised (most of which are subtitled), but on the bright side, some deliciously performed and tense set-pieces that draw on the notion that Nazi authority figures know more than they initially let on and gently roast you until they get what they want. As ever with Tarantino it’s all about the power of cinema, and here his final message is: cinema can even destroy the Third Reich.
Dir: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Eli Roth, Michael Fassbender, Diane Kruger

INHERIT THE WIND
1960
****
A lawyer defends a teacher put on trial for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution.
Superb, enriching courtroom drama that shows the sort of mindless devotion to God that still blights much of the world today. It has everything you could ask for from a motion picture: brilliant, meaningful dialogue, great camerawork, a stifling atmosphere strongly evoked and some scintillating performances - Tracy and March in particular, but Kelly's casting was inspired too.
Dir: Stanley Kramer
Stars: Spencer Tracy, Frederic March, Gene Kelly, Dick York, Donna Anderson

INHERIT THE WIND
1999 (TV)
*
This made-for-TV version of the classic play isn't too badly done, but both the main actors are probably too old for their parts - both were near death - and it fails to capture the clammy literal and metaphorical atmosphere of the 1960 film.
Dir: Daniel Petrie
Stars: Jack Lemmon, George C Scott, Lane Smith

THE INITIATION OF SARAH

1978 (TV)

0

A college girl with psychic powers takes revenge on her tormentors.

Fatally watered down Carrie lookalike - so, for example, we get one telekinetic sequence that involves a falling piano that is completely botched. Otherwise the nasty girls aren't convincingly etched in; nor most characters, really, and the effect is annoying and tiresome, with slow pacing until its confusing climax after it's gone all Satanic. The Blu-ray extras try to give it value by examining it through an identitarian lens. 

Dir: Robert Day

Stars: Kay Lenz, Shelley Winters, Tony Bill, Morgan Fairchild

L'INIZIAZIONE

1986

**

In 1914, a teenager returns home for his summer holiday and becomes aware of the charms of the female staff who work for his parents.

They don't like them like this any more, and more's the pity because this is a good-natured and good-looking film from the continent that will speak to any male about the awakening that is puberty - of course this is something of a too-good-to-be-true fantasy but that makes it more, not less, watchable. It has a very French attitude to sex, at least the French attitude back then, which is also quite refreshing.

Dir: Gianfranco Mingozzi

Stars: Fabrice Josso, Serena Grandi, Claudine Auger, Virginie Ledoyen

INNER SANCTUM

1948

*

A murderer hides out in a boarding house in a small town.

One of the director's less hacky efforts (accidental?), a fairly tight little noir, all shadows and foggy minds, a bit like a small-scale Shadow Of A Doubt. Not remarkable but with nice touches and a good ending (and interesting posters).

Dir: Lew Landers

Stars: Charles Russell, Mary Beth Hughes, Billy House

INNER SANCTUM
1991
0
A disabled woman suspects her husband of adultery and attempted murder.
Awful and over-melodramatic thriller, a showcase for actors with faltering careers.
Dir: Fred Olen Ray
Stars: Tanya Roberts, Margaux Hemingway, Joseph Bottoms, Valerie Wildman

INNERSPACE
1987
*
A miniaturised air force pilot is set to be injected into a rabbit, but ends up in the body of a grocery shop worker.
A Fantastic Voyage for the '80s and an obvious choice of material for Spielberg and Dante, it's adequate entertainment for the holiday season.
Dir: Joe Dante
Stars: Dennis Quaid, Martin Short, Meg Ryan, Kevin McCarthy, Fiona Lewis

INNOCENT BLOOD
1992
0
A cop and a female vampire get involved with gangsters.
Clumsy, unappetising horror with a few choice moments set against soulless surroundings.
Dir: John Landis
Stars: Anne Parillaud, David Proval, Anthony LaPaglia

INNOCENT MOVES
1993
*
A young chess prodigy attempts to follow in Bobby Fischer's footsteps.
Nice to see a chess movie, but this probably isn't for non-players. Very well done even though its portrayal of the game is a little hyperbolic.
Dir: Steven Zallian
Stars: Max Pomeranc, Joe Mantegna, Joan Allen, Ben Kingsley, Laurence Fishburne

THE INNOCENTS

1961

**

A nanny begins to believe that the two children in her care are possessed by bad spirits.

Elegantly mounted and elaborately photographed adaptation of James's slim, not entirely satisfying novella The Turn Of The Screw, this is chilling and chilly stuff that may enthral viewers up for scares, rather than those looking for more character-led drama. Are you on team 'ghosts', or team 'all in her sexually repressed mind'? Possibly the makers would have preferred you were in the former.

Dir: Jack Clayton

Stars: Deborah Kerr, Megs Jenkins, Martin Stephens, Pamela Franklin, Peter Wyngrade, Michael Redgrave

INSEMINOID

1981

0

A female astronaut is raped by an alien.

A quickie Alien imitation which manages not to look totally cheap, but despite the best efforts of some of the cast - Geeson tries hard - it manages to be uninvolving. It's like a gory Blake's 7; at least the promotional images were quite arresting.

Dir: Norman J Warren

Stars: Judy Geeson, Stephanie Beacham, Robin Clarke, Jennifer Ashley, Victoria Tennant

INSERTS

1975

*

In 1930s Hollywood, a former movie director has hit the bottle and spends his time making porn films at his house.

A real oddity perhaps typical of the decade it was made in, this is a heavy-going odyssey that occasionally shocks and titillates with its imagery and subject matter. Performances are committed, and quite theatrical, as is the film. You'd never guess it was made in England if you didn't know it.

Dir: John Byrum

Stars: Richard Dreyfuss, Jessica Harper, Veronica Cartwright, Bob Hoskins, Stephen Davies

INSIDE DEEP THROAT
2005
**
Documentary looking at the pornographic 1972 film Deep Throat, the first mainstream hard core feature.
Always interesting if not fully rounded exploration of the effect one grubby little movie had on the decade; the contributors are predictably colourful and a great deal of interest comes from seeing the Religious Right's efforts to stifle human sexual behaviour.
Dir: Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato
Narrator: Dennis Hopper

INSIDE JOB
2010
**
Documentary examining the reasons for the 2008 global financial crisis.
Sobering stuff, clearly and convincingly presented; only some possibly mischievous editing of the interviews and a couple of manipulative musical cues damage the passionate filmmaker’s attempt to explore why the banking system went so horribly wrong. Not totally cinematic of course, but more intelligent and controlled than most of Michael Moore’s output.
Dir: Charles Ferguson
Narrator: Matt Damon

INSIDE OUT
2015
****
When an 11-year-old girl has to move to a different city, the figures who represent emotions in her head go through a tumultuous time.
The animation that might be Pixar's finest is most definitely a film for all the family, a truly fantastic looking odyssey with deeper themes about how it's important to let go of older memories and embrace sadness as a valuable emotion. The narrative is split between the girl Riley's real-life trials and the adventure her inner characters have, and it works like a dream: funny, sad, thrilling and brilliantly inventive, it's cinema at its apex. The icing on the cake is the short Lava that precedes it, concerning a lonely volcano who's looking for love.
Dir: Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen
Voices: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind, Kaitlyn Dias

INSIDE OUT 2

2024

***

Riley hits puberty at the same time as attending an anxiety inducing hockey school.

Almost equally high-achieving sequel, not dissimilar to the first, cleverly introducing some new emotions in Riley's head - Anxiety, Embarrassment, Ennui and Envy - that propel the story in directions that please and resonate. You could almost claim this was essential viewing for children around the age of the protagonist, and there is much else to admire (for all ages), from the sumptuous, varied visuals to the quirky gags. Intelligence and talent is strong in this one, and a return to form for Pixar (notably, it's not quite woke, even if it's PC, with algorithmic diversity). They could do a third one, and it'd no doubt be fab, but it wouldn't be a children's film!

Dir: Kelsey Mann

Voices: Amy Poehler, Maya Hawke, Kensington Tallman, Liza Lapira

THE INSIDER
1999
**
A scientist is persuaded to tell all about the dark secrets of the tobacco industry.
Meaty drama based on fact, done in the director’s usual overheated fashion.
Dir: Michael Mann
Stars: Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, Christopher Plummer, Diane Venora, Philip Baker Hall

INSIDIOUS
2010
0
Family life goes wrong when the young boy is taken over by evil spirits.
A polish-up of lots of old fright film ideas that did surprisingly good box office; not one for the jaded horror veteran.
Dir: James Wan
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey, Lin Shaye

INSIDIOUS CHAPTER 2
2013
0
This time it's the father causing most supernatural problems...
Sequel that opens things up, with more characters, settings and time zones, but is still most reliant on sudden bangs and familiar horror tropes; it has ambition but in a wearying manner, especially given its length.
Dir: James Wan
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey, Lin Shaye

INSIGNIFICANCE
1985
0
One night in 1953, a professor, an actress, a senator and a ball player meet in a New York hotel room.
Tedious peculiarity with lofty ambitions not met.
Dir: Nicholas Roeg
Stars: Theresa Russell, Tony Curtis, Gary Busey, Michael Emil

THE INSOMNIAC
1971
*
A man fantasises about an escape from his drab life.
Intriguing short film which contrasts a life of quiet desperation with one of erotic hedonism; it might be better if it was shorter still but it has value and Ost is very beautiful. After years in a dusty vault it finally emerged on the DVD of BFI Flipside release Sleepwalker (qv), attractively restored.
Dir: Rodney Giesler
Stars: Morris Perry, Valerie Ost

AN INSPECTOR CALLS
1954
***
In 1912, a wealthy family are visited by a policeman who accuses them of driving a girl to suicide.
Solid version of Priestley's blue chip play which becomes less theatrical by having proper flashbacks to incidents involving the girl, and also differs from its source by having a vaguely supernatural twist at the end. Sim is terrific in a quietly efficient production that is rarely less than compelling.
Dir: Guy Hamilton
Stars: Alastair Sim, Arthur Young, Jane Wenham, Brian Worth, Olga Lindo

INSPECTOR CLOUSEAU
1968
0
The useless French policeman investigates a train robbery.
How many must watch this only to feel deflated! Sellers' absence leaves a drab void.
Dir: Bud Yorkin
Stars: Alan Arkin, Frank Finlay, Patrick Cargill, Beryl Reid, Michael Ripper

INSTANT SEX
1980
*
A bachelor buys sexual happiness from a supermarket.
Possibly Godfrey's most interesting 'sextoon' (ironically so, as it went unreleased); the story actually progresses.
Dir: Bob Godfrey

INTERIORS

1978

**

Three sisters are upset when their father divorces their mother for another woman.

Allen's first 'serious' movie is a curious beast it's difficult to make the mind up about: so humourless as to be almost funny, it's austere and spare, like a Bergman without the Swedish people, that at times seems like a drama school production, although the performances and photography elevate it. Whether Allen, at this stage of his career, was proficient enough to make such a film is open to question, with another being: what exactly is the movie trying to say? It should never be cast aside but it's not a very sympathetic movie.

Dir: Woody Allen

Stars: Diane Keaton, Mary Beth Hurt, Geraldine Page, Kristin Griffith, E G Marshall, Maureen Stapleton

INTERMEZZO
1939
**
A married violinist falls for a young concert pianist.
Neat, brief love story with class.
Dir: Gregory Ratoff
Stars: Leslie Howard, Ingrid Bergman, Edna Best

INTERNAL AFFAIRS
1990
0
A cop is investigated by his superiors who suspect that he is a murderer.
Overheated, under-nourished thriller which takes too long over a story that doesn't warrant it.
Dir: Mike Figgis
Stars: Richard Gere, Andy Garcia, Nancy Travis, William Baldwin

INTERNATIONAL HOUSE
1933
*
A group of eccentrics gather at a hotel to view a new invention: television.
Wacky farce whose unconventionality will surprise viewers today.
Dir: A Edward Sutherland
Stars: W C Fields, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Bela Lugosi

INTERNATIONAL VELVET
1978
0
An orphan eventually becomes a horse riding champion.
Belated sequel to 1944's National Velvet which falls at the first hurdle.
Dir: Bryan Forbes
Stars: Tatum O'Neal, Christopher Plummer, Anthony Hopkins, Nanette Newman, Dinsdale Landen

INTERSTELLAR
2014
**
A team of astronauts travel through a wormhole with the aim of finding a more habitable planet than Earth.
This ambitious sci-fi film walks a tricky tightrope, attempting to develop ideas rooted in hard science and enmesh them with a tear-stained plotline about family. While it doesn't completely work - because this is a director who always struggles to tell a human story - there is predictably impressive spectacle and an obvious effort to push the boundaries. But it's a pity that McConaughey is so unlikeable, most of the rest of the cast grey shadows, and that it has a final hour that largely fails to satisfyingly cap the intrigue that has been set up; 2001 was much better, even without much of an explanation.
Dir: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, John Lithgow, Matt Damon

INTIMACY
2000
0
Two people meet once a week purely for loveless sex.
Sexually explicit drama which features tedious, unattractive people spouting pretentious, meaningless dialogue in dismal settings. Awful.
Dir: Patrice Chereau
Stars: Mark Rylance, Kerry Fox, Timothy Spall, Marianne Faithfull

INTIMATE GAMES
1976
0
Students are set the task of exploring sexual fantasies.
Cheap sex comedy with weird changes of mood and much bizarre padding.
Dir: Tudor Gates, Martin Campbell
Stars: George Baker, Felicity Devonshire, Suzy Mandel, Anna Bergman, Heather Deeley, Queenie Watts

INTO THE BLUE
2005
0
In Barbados, treasure hunters inadvertently get mixed up with drug smugglers.
Weirdly superficial, uninteresting 'thriller', in turns old-fashioned, nasty and absurd.
Dir: John Stockwell
Stars: Paul Walker, Jessica Alba, Scott Caan, Ashley Scott

INTO THE NIGHT
1985
0
An insomniac finds himself involved with a dizzy girl and her stolen jewellery.
Tired and tiresome thriller.
Dir: John Landis
Stars: Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dan Aykroyd, David Bowie

INTO THE WILD
2007
*
A college graduate gives his money to charity and travels around America by himself.
This based on fact drama does not fully succeed because it’s difficult to empathise with the shallow, self-centred lead character and the narrative style is fragmentary and often pretentious.
Dir: Sean Penn
Stars: Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Jena Malone, Vince Vaughn, Hal Holbrook

INTOLERANCE
1916
**
Four stories about intolerant behaviour through the ages.
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there. And there are no films much more different than this one, an amazing, insane, preachy, unrestrained epic that tests the patience of the modern viewer as much as it occasionally dazzles with its spectacle, in particular the Babylon siege and the final, cross-cutting montage with the emphasis on the race to the hanging. The bitty Judean and French stories might have been excised as the Modern and Babylonian ones would have been strong enough on their own and clarity and succinctness would have been enhanced, but these days this movie is not watched for pleasure, but by historians keen to observe one of the cinema’s earliest and most influential mega-pictures. A DVD release in 2000 gave the viewer the option of watching the four stories separately, a pretty good idea.
Dir: D W Griffith
Stars: Mae Marsh, Lillian Gish, Constance Talmadge, Robert Harron

THE INTRUDER

1962

**

In the South of the US, a 'social reformer' stirs up racial trouble.

One of Corman's most unusual and better films, this is quite a time capsule that hasn't been seen as much as it should have been. It feels raw and naturalistic, makes its points fairly well, and Shatner is especially great in the lead role (Emhardt is as reliably nasty as ever, too).

Dir: Roger Corman

Stars: William Shatner, Frank Maxwell, Beverly Lunsford, Robert Emhardt

INVADERS FROM MARS

1953

**

Martians use hypnotised humans as saboteurs.

Sci-fi elevated well above the norm by imaginative, dream-like production design - memorable imagery includes the boy's backyard, the police station, inside the Martian saucer and the diminutive leader of the aliens. The first 20 minutes or so are superb, as the boy discovers authority figures can no longer be trusted - after that it becomes a bit more rough and ready when the army come on the scene and do stuff for too long, but as a nightmarish tale told from the perspective of a small boy it's something of a triumph in its own moderate way.

Dir: William Cameron Menzies

Stars: Arthur Franz, Helena Carter, Jimmy Hunt, Leif Erickson

INVADERS FROM MARS
1986
*
Perhaps not the wisest choice of remake ever - the makers were presumably engulfed by fuzzy nostalgia. It has its moments but is far less memorable than the original.
Dir: Tobe Hooper
Stars: Karen Black, Hunter Carson, Timothy Bottoms

INVASION
1966
*
Aliens land in the English countryside and cause problems at a local hospital.
Neat little low budget sci-fi with a certain charm, it is a tad muddled and underpowered but conjures up a spooky atmosphere, with its choice of Asian aliens an interesting one - is it suggesting the threat of a foreign invasion? Reworked by Robert Holmes into a Jon Pertwee Doctor Who script, it's the sort of film Britain would soon stop making and, indeed, it shows a now almost vanished Britain. Quite slow, it nevertheless has two or three moments that make you sit up straight.
Dir: Alan Bridges
Stars: Edward Judd, Yoko Tani, Valerie Gearon, Lyndon Brook

INVASION OF THE ANIMAL PEOPLE
1959
0
Strange aliens land in Lapland.
This abominable flick was a re-edit of a Swedish film, but to even note that awards this more words than it deserves. Avoid.
Dir: Virgil W Vogel, Jerry Warren
Stars: John Carradine, Barbara Wilson, Sten Gester

INVASION OF THE ASTRO MONSTERS
1965
*
Aliens fool Earth into thinking they are friendly - then attack.
Highly coloured tosh, alright for those out for a laugh.
Dir: Ishiro Honda
Stars: Nick Adams, Akira Takarada, Jun Tazaki

INVASION OF THE BEE GIRLS
1973
0
In a small Californian town, men are dying from what appears to be excessive sexual activity.
Not nearly as much fun as the trailer suggests: dull police procedurals and a permanently murky look spoil whatever levity the original script promised. And why does no one ask the women why they’re wearing sunglasses?
Dir: Denis Sanders
Stars: William Smith, Anitra Ford, Victoria Vetri

INVASION OF THE BLOOD FARMERS
1972
0
A group of rural workers are more interested in bleeding people to death than looking after their crops.
Come back Ed Wood, all is forgiven.
Dir: Ed Adlum
Stars: Norman Kelley, Tanna Hunter, Bruce Detrick

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
1955
***
Seed pods from space land on Earth and hatch duplicates of the inhabitants of a small town.
Of the many hundreds of movies about aliens taking over our planet, this may well be the very best, creating as it does an air of brooding paranoia that grips right until the end, when its spell is broken by the epilogue tagged on by the producers. After all these years it remains one of cinema's wisest soundings against the dangers of mindless conformity.
Dir: Don Siegel
Stars: Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates, King Donovan

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
1978
**
A remake set in the city of Los Angeles.
A successful updating, this builds nicely to its finale which this time offers no hope.
Dir: Philip Kaufman
Stars: Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, Leonard Nimoy

INVASION OF THE BODY SUCKERS
1988
0
A plant injects a parasite into a man which he then spreads.
Spoofy horror set in a hospital which only picks up near the end.
Dir: William Fruet
Stars: Ivan E Roth, Steve Railsback, Don Lake

INVASION OF THE SAUCER MEN
1957
0
Bulbous-headed aliens come to Earth and inject teenagers with alcohol.
Jocund sci-fi in which the monsters aren't much of a real threat.
Dir: Edward L Cahn
Stars: Steven Terrell, Gloria Castillo, Frank Gorshin

INVASION USA

1952

0

The US is invaded by communist soldiers.

Made smack bang in the middle of McCarthyism, this shaky, bitty sci-fi drama about the threat from the East might be more arresting if it wasn't made up of between 30 and 40% stock footage. It's of minor historical interest, but only very minor.

Dir: Alfred E Green

Stars: Gerald Mohr, Peggie Castle, Dan O'Herlihy 

THE INVENTION OF LYING
2009
****
In a world where everyone tells the truth, one man discovers that he can lie, which has both good and bad consequences.
A deliciously high concept is the bedrock of this excellent film, one of the most rational and clear-headed ever made, and among the most important of the early 21st century. It's by far and away Gervais' best movie, one in which he creates touching, funny and meaningful drama in perfect balance - the scene where he's reading out the commandments on pizza boxes should go down as a classic.
Dir: Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson
Stars: Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Louis CK, Jonah Hill, Rob Lowe

INVISIBLE AGENT
1942
*
An inventor uses the secret of invisibly to help in the war.
Lively hokum.
Dir: Edwin L Marin
Stars: Jon Hall, Peter Lorre, Cedric Hardwicke

INVISIBLE GHOST
1941
*
A well respected man becomes a murderer by night, thanks to appearances by his ‘dead’ wife.
One of the better Lugosi Poverty Row chillers (which isn’t saying very much), this cheapie has a strange plot which appears to make no sense – why does seeing his wife make him do these things? Why is everyone in the house so relaxed about the murders? Why is it necessary for one of the characters to have a twin brother? – but is oddly likeable, a not unpleasant old-school frightener for a dark winter’s evening.
Dir: Joseph H Lewis
Stars: Bela Lugosi, Polly Ann Young, Clarence Muse, John McGuire

THE INVISIBLE GUEST
2016
**
An entrepreneur is on trial for murder, but the case is vastly more complex than initially appears.
Onion-like thriller that unpeels to reveal ever more layers, some of which stretch credibility; it isn't quite as clever as it thinks. There isn't really much depth or message - 'everyone lies' seems to be the main one - but it's an enjoyable if intense film that revels in flashy flashbacks.
Dir: Oriol Paulo
Stars: Mario Casas, Ana Wagener, Jose Coronado, Barbara Lennie

INVISIBLE INVADERS

1959

0

Invisible aliens reanimate human corpses to attack our planet.

Barmy stuff: it's another case of the scriptwriters of a Fifties sci-fi movie writing cheques the production can't cash, while the cast is also a mite better than the material deserves. The scenes of the dead men on the loose (which is like Attack Of The Insurance Salesmen) foreshadows Romero's 1968 horror, while the pick of the sheepheaded scenes - oft accompanied by a sonorous narrator - have to be the ones in the sports stadium. (And isn't that the commentators' studio that later turns up in the UN?)

Dir: Edward L Cahn

Stars: John Agar, Jean Byron, Philip Tonge, John Carradine

THE INVISIBLE MAN
1933
***
A scientist discovers the secret of invisibility, but then starts to go mad.
Landmark horror which effectively mixes menace and comedy and impresses with its trick photography.
Dir: James Whale
Stars: Claude Rains, Gloria Stuart, E E Clive, Henry Travers, Una O'Connor

THE INVISIBLE MAN
1975 (TV)
*
While working for the US government, a scientist cracks the invisibility formula which he then attempts to hide from his superiors.
Little more than a lead-in to the short series that followed, this version hasn't worn well.
Dir: Robert Michael Lewis
Stars: David McCallum, Melinda Fee, Jackie Cooper

THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS
1940
*
A man convicted of killing his brother uses the secret of invisibilty to find the real culprit.
Decent sequel which builds to an exciting climax.
Dir: Joe May
Stars: Cedric Hardwicke, Vincent Price, Nan Grey, Alan Napier

THE INVISIBLE MANIAC
1990
0
A pervert scientist makes himself invisible and spies on his girl students showering.
Despite attempts at comedy, a tasteless and unpleasant fantasy that will only alienate its very small audience.
Dir: Adam Rifkin
Stars: Noel Peters, Melissa Moore

THE INVISIBLE MAN’S REVENGE
1944
0
A killer on the run takes refuge with a scientist who has discovered the secret of invisibilty.
Flavourless final entry in the series proper.
Dir: Ford Beebe
Stars: Jon Hall, Leon Errol, John Carradine, Gale Sondergaard

THE INVISIBLE RAY
1935
*
A scientist discovers a super-powerful element which makes him homicidal.
Enjoyable small scale sci-fi with some tasty horror touches.
Dir: Lambert Hillyer
Stars: Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Frances Drake, Frank Lawton

THE INVISIBLE WOMAN
1941
0
A model tries out a professor's new invisibility drug.
Hammy and laboured comedy.
Dir: A Edward Sutherland
Stars: Virginia Bruce, John Barrymore, John Howard

THE INVITATION

2015

*

A man attending a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife begins to suspect that something very bad is afoot.

An intriguing idea put across quite well, with plenty of dread and darkness, though a little ponderous perhaps. Possibly there are too many characters, but then this does add to its 'capture by groupthink' theme.

Dir: Karyn Kusama

Stars: Logan Marshall-Green, Tammy Blanchard, Michiel Huisman

INVITATION TO HELL
1982
0
A virgin is captured by a group of diabolists.
Amateurish horror only a little bit above home-movie standard; around 45 minutes long, it was paired with the director's The Last Night on home video and received some notoriety due to its gore. Collectors unwisely pay a fortune for that video, when they could just watch this on the internet, albeit a version with very bad sound and picture.
Dir: Michael J Murphy
Stars: Becky Simpson, Joseph Sheahan, Colin Efford

INVITATION TO HELL
1984 (TV)
0
A family move into a town where mighty strange things are going on underneath the surface.
Lukewarm, pretty-darned-obvious horror in which the director is made supine by television limitations.
Dir: Wes Craven
Stars: Robert Urich, Joanna Cassidy, Susan Lucci, Kevin McCarthy

IP MAN
2008
**
Semi-biographical account of a master of martial arts who defied the Japanese invasion of China.
One of the sturdiest martial arts films of recent years, this recalls the glory days of Bruce Lee, except that now we get the fights shot by superb cameras in super-clear high definition. We also get a solid story that they can sit in.
Dir: Wilson Yip
Stars: Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Siu-Wong Fan

IP MAN 2
2010
**
Ip Man tries to start a teaching class in Hong Kong, but has to face various obstacles.
Not quite up to the standard of the first, but a fairly likeable sequel equally beautifully shot. The English guys are a bit boo-hiss pantomime - and their performances are pretty terrible - but it's an easy to watch drama jam-packed with impressive physical action. Nice final scene with Bruce Lee too, which acts as a suitable full stop for the story.
Dir: Wilson Yip
Stars: Donnie Yen, Lynn Hung, Simon Yam, Darren Shahlavi

THE IPCRESS FILE
1965
**
A British agent discovers that one of his superiors is a spy.
James Bond with specs (and a few other differences); well made spy thriller of some influence, still absorbing today.
Dir: Sidney J Furie
Stars: Michael Caine, Nigel green, Guy Doleman, Sue Lloyd

IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS
2006
**
Documentary in three parts - Mohammed Of Baghdad, Sadr's South and Kurdish Spring - about the state of the country in the months following the downfall of Saddam Hussein.
The director acquired astonishing access to his subjects in this vivid film and they hardly seem to notice the camera, making it appear almost like fiction. The first two sections are the most remarkable, as the viewer feels like he's inside a buzzing hornet's nest, witnessing people permanently on the edge of crisis.
Dir: James Longley

THE IRISHMAN
2019
*
A mob hitman recalls his role in the disappearance of corrupt union boss Jimmy Hoffa.
Not a film, not really, and not just because it is a Netflix production - this self-indulgent three-and-a-half long crime epic has all the rhythms of a television mini-series rather than a movie, and while the first hour is full of good things after that it begins to massively drag, and we just get Scorsese’s done-to-death fetishising of horrible people who made the world a worse place and his usual basking in extreme violence and foul language. De Niro and Pacino, who are weirdly de-aged for much of the story, give wearily over-familiar and obnoxious performances while the rest of the cast go through predictable motions - it’s certainly no GoodFellas, or Casino, or even The Departed.
Dir: Martin Scorsese
Stars: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel

THE IRON GIANT
1999
*
In the 1950s, a large alien machine is befriended by a young boy, although the military aim to destroy it.
Animated fable which somehow just doesn't click - it was a commercial failure.
Dir: Brad Bird
Voices: Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr, Vin Diesel, Cloris Leachman

THE IRON LADY
2011
*
Margaret Thatcher, now apparently gripped by Alzheimer's, remembers her remarkable life.
An odd film, and one which would probably resemble bad karaoke were it not for Streep's imperious performance: it's certainly not a biopic, and it perhaps doesn't work as a drama either - political types would likely mock it, and others might just get confused. Somewhat surprisingly, it largely shows Maggie in a good light, although the fact that it was made while she is still living seems somewhat tasteless.
Dir: Phyllida Lloyd
Stars: Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Olivia Coleman, Richard E Grant, Anthony Head

IRON MAN
2008
*
A super-wealthy industrialist who makes armaments decides to build himself a powerful battle suit instead.
One of Marvel’s more intriguing, but not top drawer, superheroes gets the fantastic special effects and impressive cast treatment; the result is a reasonably involving romp, a little thin plot-wise perhaps, but with enough wide appeal to make it one of the box office hits of the year.
Dir: Jon Favreau
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard

IRON MAN 2
2010
*
Tony Stark is targeted by a homicidal Russian scientist with a grudge against him.
Considering that this looked like being one of the great superhero sequels, this has to be judged a disappointment: it’s perfectly watchable and well made, but it doesn’t break any new ground and lacks an especially compelling storyline. Rourke’s Whiplash isn’t effective because he’s indecipherable, Johansson’s Black Widow seems like an afterthought and only War Machine packs a punch; if only there could have been more sequences like the one at the Monaco car race.
Dir: Jon Favreau
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Mickey Rourke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L Jackson

IRON MAN 3
2013
**
A terrorist named the Mandarin threatens world peace and attacks Tony Stark's home base.
The best of the trio is a confident and polished superhero movie which frequently does the unexpected; incredible and inventive action sequences leap off the screen but it's the mostly excellent human cast who give it weight and humour. In a film of many canny moments, the nice final touch is having the end credits look like the start of a Seventies TV show.
Dir: Shane Black
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley, Don Cheadle, Rebecca Hall

THE IRON ROSE
1972
0
A canoodling couple get locked in a cemetery overnight.
There’s really not a lot that happens in this spooky tale that could have been satisfactorily told in 15 minutes; you want to like it more but this is an anorexic horror even by this director’s standards.
Dir: Jean Rollin
Stars: Mireille Dargent, Francoise Pascal

IRON SKY
2012
0
Nazis who have been living on the Moon since 1945 decide to invade America.
Partly made thanks to fan contributions, this sci-fi comedy is a disappointment: the idea behind it is suitably wacky but the overall tone is uneven, and it never manages to be either funny or thrilling - perhaps this Finnish-German-Australian-American production is an example of too many cooks spoiling the broth. At least it looks pretty good, albeit somewhat grey for a lot of the time.
Dir: Timo Vuorensola
Stars: Julia Dietze, Peta Sergeant, Stephanie Paul, Udo Kier

IRONMASTER
1983
0
In prehistoric times, an outcast from a tribe finds a weapon that makes him super-powerful.
This has the germ of a good idea - the first 15 minutes pack a bit of promise - but it goes nowhere interesting and becomes a bungling bore. Another video from the Eighties sold with deceiving artwork, of which there were many...
Dir: Umberto Lenzi
Stars: Sam Pasco, George Eastman, Elvire Audray

IRRATIONAL MAN
2015
***
After overhearing a conversation, a tormented philosophy professor hatches a plan which invigorates him.
Critics may have been generally sniffy, but this is the sort of movie that makes viewing Allen's output such a pleasure: we get the highly professional filmmaking craft, the philosophical musing, the humanist outlook, the great acting from esteemed actors, and we also get a healthy dash of thriller dynamics. Yes, the dialogue might sometimes be clunky, especially in the voiceovers, but this is a very enjoyable entertainment from a master director we'll miss when he's gone.
Dir: Woody Allen
Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Parker Posey

IS IT ALWAYS RIGHT TO BE RIGHT?
1970
*
Short cartoon about tolerance.
Lauded animation which makes its point well.
Dir: Lee Mishkin
Voice: Orson Welles

THE ISLAND AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD
1974
*
In 1907, a rich Englishman searches for his lost son in the Arctic.
Fantasy frolic which sags in the middle before recovering its impetus.
Dir: Robert Stevenson
Stars: David Hartman, Donald Sinden, Jacques Marin, Mako

ISLAND OF DEATH
1975
0
A psychotic brother and sister visit a Greek island where they slaughter those they feel are not righteous.
Amateurish sleaze-fest which throws bestiality, incest, hippy rapists and heroin-injecting lesbians into the brew but doesn't generate a modicum of suspense or tension. Sadly still unavailable uncut in the UK, but the 2003 DVD release features an enlightening interview with the unrepentant director.
Dir: Nico Mastorakis
Stars: Bob Behling, Jane Lyle, Jessica Dublin

THE ISLAND OF DR MOREAU
1977
0
A shipwrecked sailor finds himself sharing an island with a mad doctor.
Dull remake of Island Of Lost Souls, lacking in atmosphere.
Dir: Don Taylor
Stars: Burt Lancaster, Michael York, Nigel Davenport, Richard Basehart, Barbara Carrera

ISLAND OF DOOMED MEN

1940

*

An undercover agent is sent to a tropical island run by a cruel tyrant.

Lorre is suitably malevolent in this minor noir that punches above its weight; further darkness is hinted at that can't be shown. A 'thrown into prison' type film pepped up by the star (and Middleton).

Dir: Charles Barton

Stars: Peter Lorre, Rochelle Hudson, Robert Wilcox, Charles Middleton

ISLAND OF LOST SOULS
1932
*
A scientist conducts grotesque experiments in evolution on a remote island.
This famous horror film is actually fairly bland dramatically speaking, but the twisted subject matter, strange atmosphere and Laughton’s exceptional performance have boosted its reputation. In the hands of a better director it could have been up there with the likes of Frankenstein and Bride Of Frankenstein.
Dir: Erle C Kenton
Stars: Charles Laughton, Richard Arlen, Leila Hyams, Bela Lugosi

ISLAND OF TERROR

1966

*

On an island off Ireland, a scientist mistakenly creates monsters that eat human bones.

Methodical, measured, likeable shocker from the era where horror films were really rather nice and cosy; it certainly serves up quite a few unintentional laughs - the monsters are more amusing than scary, like something out of this era's Doctor Who or Fifties creature features. The very end raises an eyebrow and the island setting is quite well utilised; Father Ted never had these sorts of problems.

Dir: Terence Fisher

Stars: Peter Cushing, Edward Judd, Carole Gray, Eddie Byrne

ISLE OF DOGS
2018
*
In a future dystopian Japan, diseased dogs are exiled to a place away from everyone else.
A typically peculiar effort from this director, this weird fantasy is visually unique and striking but, as ever, not emotional in any way - we don't care what happens (and it's certainly not funny or cute either). The combination of Anderson's style, the animation and the submersion in Japanese culture will make it triply hard to penetrate for some.
Dir: Wes Anderson
Voices: Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Koyu Rankin, Bob Balaban, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum

ISLE OF FURY
1936
0
On a South Pacific island, the survivor of a shipwreck threatens to break up a marriage.
Weak adaptation of Somerset Maugham's The Narrow Corner which fails to convey any of the book's subtleties or passions; a scene with a giant octopus is particularly un-Maugham like.
Dir: Frank McDonald
Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Margaret Lindsay, Donald Woods, EE Clive

ISLE OF THE DEAD
1945
*
Inhabitants of a Greek island contract a deadly plague.
Glum semi-horror which was banned in Britain because of effective sequences like a woman being buried alive.
Dir: Mark Robson
Stars: Boris Karloff, Ellen Drew, Marc Cramer, Alan Napier

ISN'T IT ROMANTIC
2019
*
A woman takes a knock on the head and wakes up in a world which is like a movie romantic comedy.
Diverting, er, romantic comedy which ribs the genre, but not enough to put fans of it off. Enough targets are hit and performances just right for it to be entertaining, light viewing - but you wonder whether audiences who pay $10 to see it in movie theatres and ones who get it for 'free' on Netflix might evaluate it differently; it'd be intriguing to find out.
Dir: Todd Strauss-Schulson
Stars: Rebel Wilson, Liam Hemsworth, Adam Devine, Priyanka Chopra

ISN’T IT SHOCKING
1973 (TV)
*
A sheriff suspects that the deaths of several old people are not by natural causes.
Airy shocker in which we know who the murderer is from the start, and that it's only a matter of time till he's caught.
Dir: John Badham
Stars: Alan Alda, Louise Lasser, Edmond O'Brien, Ruth Gordon

ISTINTOBRASS

2013

*

Documentary about Italian film director Tinto Brass, known for being a master of erotica.

There's way too much talk and way too little film footage in this profile of a creative who made Benny Hill look like a vicar, with endless chatter about his skill as a filmmaker (concentrating more on his early movies). While some of this is interesting - and Helen Mirren and Ken Adam speaking in English is welcome - fans would surely have liked more about later years, and especially more footage of the gorgeous actresses he employed. Brass himself is a larger-than-life character whom it's easy to like, what with his anti-censorship views and predilection for the good stuff in life: Mirren says that he loved London's Soho because it had sex, food and cinema, his three favourite things. 

Dir: Massimiliano Zanin

IT
1927
*
A shopgirl with 'it' - sex appeal - falls for her boss.
Clara Bow certainly has 'it' in this box office monster of its day, still reasonably watchable today - it has a lightness of touch, much of the dialogue is spry, and sequences like those at Coney Island are nicely shot.
Dir: Clarence Badger
Stars: Clara Bow, Antonio Moreno, William Austin

IT!
1966
0
A twisted museum curator uses a powerful golem to do his dirty work.
Verbose, flat and absurd horror with the star at his most camp.
Dir: Herbert J Leder
Stars: Roddy McDowall, Jill Haworth, Paul Maxwell

IT
2017
*
In 1980s small-town America, children take on an evil clown who conjures up terrifying visions.
Horror hit that's like a thousand others all squashed together (the small town with something sinister; the evil clown; the Goonies-type gang etc), competently done, but, weirdly, at the same time both too long and too short - too long because there isn't quite the quality here to justify it, too short because the multitude of characters are mostly thinly characterised (the book is a ton weight and has a second half). Those keen on Stephen King's familiar shtick, or who don't mind obnoxious kids, will like it most.
Dir: Andy Muschietti
Stars: Bill Skarsgard, Sophia Lillis, Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor

IT ALL GOES TO SHOW
1969
0
Margate puts on a bluer than expected summer show.
Comedy short quite well performed by familiar faces, but not very exciting; it comments on the old-fashioned prudery that was still then widespread.
Dir: Francis Searle
Stars: Arthur Lowe, Bill Maynard, Sheila Keith, Tim Barrett

IT ALWAYS RAINS ON SUNDAY
1947
**
Life is disrupted for a Bethnal Green housewife when her former lover, now a convict on the run, comes to her family home.
Persuasively put over slice of London life portraying a community spirit that more or less ended a few years after this film was made: it's not quite one of the greats because the early, domestic stuff doesn't have much bite now, but the tension builds and the final chase scenes are strikingly shot in a wet East End, and may have influenced The Third Man. Our housewife is lucky her husband chooses not to enter his bedroom all day long, where the criminal is resting.
Dir: Robert Hamer
Stars: Googie Withers, John McCallum, Jack Warner, Edward Chapman, Susan Shaw

IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA
1955
0
A giant octopus invades San Francisco.
Run-of-the-mill monster movie which suffers from one of those dated voice-overs explaining the plot.
Dir: Robert Gordon
Stars: Kenneth Tobey, Faith Domergue, Donald Curtis

IT CAME FROM HOLLYWOOD
1982
*
A collection of clips from mostly unidentified fantasy movies of yesteryear. They include everything from The War Of The Worlds and The Day The Earth Stood Still to the barrel-scraping likes of Plan 9 From Outer Space and Robot Monster (all qv).
Not one for the connoisseurs thanks to the incessant and often disrespectful commentary, but worth something because it brings together a varied bunch of golden sci-fi moments.
Dir: Malcolm Leo, Andrew Solt
Stars: Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Gilda Radner

IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE
1953
**
An astronomer witnesses a spaceship land in the Arizonan desert, but no one believes him until it is too late.
A sci-fi milestone, being the first to utilise the body-borrowing theme and the desert location, it was also one of the first genuinely good 3D movies. Effectively shot both in the desert and on studio sets, it’s largely subtle and eerie, even though the central story now seems unsurprising.
Dir: Jack Arnold
Stars: Richard Carlson, Barbara Rush, Charles Drake, Joe Sawyer

IT CONQUERED THE WORLD
1956
0
A monster from Venus lands on Earth and causes trouble.
Awkwardly plotted quickie devoid of atmosphere.
Dir: Roger Corman
Stars: Peter Graves, Beverly Garland, Lee Van Cleef

IT COULDN'T HAPPEN HERE

1987

*

The Pet Shop Boys do something or other.

The pair actually take a road trip from the south coast to London, but you could be forgiven for thinking there's no plot at all, as this is an exercise in art film surrealism, not conventional narrative. It's for a select audience, not even Pet Shop Boys fans, but it does provide a few valuable snapshots of English life - albeit the likes of saucy postcards, big breakfasts, ribald landladies and red telephone boxes - and some great songs by the group (mostly the A-sides). In fact, it's not that much more than a series of pretentiously linked music videos.

Dir: Jack Bond

Stars: Neil Tennant, Chris Lowe, Joss Ackland, Gareth Hunt

IT FOLLOWS
2014
**
A deadly curse is passed on through teenagers having sex.
One of the more original horrors of its time, this is an often bracing film that has much going for it: lean on dialogue and modernisms, its cinematography is excellent, its sounds spine-tingling, its approach daring - set in no particular period of time and refusing to do what's expected, it's something quite different. Some might find it too slow and too shallow character-wise - but set-pieces like the swimming pool climax demand viewer attention.
Dir: David Robert Mitchell
Stars: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi

IT HAPPENED HERE
1965
*
What might have occurred in Britain had the Nazis succeeded in invading.
A film of historical value but not a solid slice of drama: some scenes have a sort of raw power (one of the most arresting has a pair of men venting their hatred of Jews, and was, unfortunately, cut out of some prints), but the acting is mostly amateur dramatics and the viewer’s attention wanders before the end. It’s certainly low budget - apparently the American trailer cost more to put together than the original film!
Dir: Kevin Brownlow, Andrew Mollo
Stars: Pauline Murray, Sebastian Shaw, Bart Allison

IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT
1934
***
An on-the-run heiress is befriended by a wily journalist.
Classic example of a top drawer romantic comedy, brimming with wit, style and suspense, setting the standard for all such things made after it.
Dir: Frank Capra
Stars: Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert, Walter Connolly

IT HAPPENED TOMORROW
1944
**
A reporter receives copies of the following day’s newspapers and attempts to benefit from the information.
A fantastic idea for a movie makes for a good movie if not a great one, as the story occasionally wavers (the surrounding setup is unnecessary, for example) and the supporting cast are a little irksome or, in Darnell’s case, bland; it’s skilfully photographed though, and has a fair degree of flair. A modern-day remake could be a cracker, especially with Jim Carrey in the lead role.
Dir: Rene Clair
Stars: Dick Powell, Linda Darnell, Jack Oakie, Edgar Kennedy

IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE
1958
*
A monster from Mars terrorises a spaceship from Earth.
Sometimes scary, sometimes laughable, generally loveable sci-fi whose plot Alien saw fit to nick 20 years later.
Dir: Edward L Cahn
Stars: Marshall Thompson, Kim Spalding, Ray Corrigan

IT WAS FIFTY YEARS AGO TODAY! THE BEATLES: SGT PEPPER AND BEYOND
2017
*
Documentary charting the Beatles in the mid-to-late Sixties.
A curious little doc with no Beatles music, no new interviews with Paul and Ringo and even no picture of the album cover. It's cheap then, but does it engage? In part. There are a small handful of anecdotes that even keen fans might not know, and it's always bracing to see extensive footage of the Fab Four at the time, but the focus is way off: there are overlong sections on Brian Epstein, Apple, the Maharishi and the problems they had on their final tours, and they become a bore. Surely one of the most magical albums of the 20th century deserved a more inspiring and musically enlightening film?
Dir: Alan G Parker

THE ITALIAN JOB

1969

***

Crooks plan a massive bullion robbery to coincide with an England football game taking place in Italy.

One of the key British films of the 1960s, this is a film to treasure because it captures the wonderful era it was made in, because of the star somewhere near his peak, because of the terrific cars in action, and because it's a pacey caper-comedy with lots of memorable lines and characters. Plus it ends on the greatest literal cliffhanger ever and the song just before it is brilliant.

Dir: Peter Collinson

Stars: Michael Caine, Noel Coward, Benny Hill, Raf Vallone, Irene Handl

IT'S A GIFT

1934

**

A grocer plans to move to California to grow oranges, despites his wife's complaints.

Rough and ready and a bit faded this comic vehicle might be, but it still manages to tickle the funny bone with its off kilter, odd bursts of humour, such as the scene in the shop with the blind man, and Fields trying to get some sleep on his porch. He was certainly a unique character, and this is among his best pictures.

Dir: Norman Z McLeod

Stars: WC Fields, Kathleen Howard, Jean Rouverol

IT'S A SICK... SICK... SICK WORLD

1965

0

Documentary featuring 'sick' footage of strippers, gays, prostitutes and drug addicts in America and Europe.

One of the very worst mondo films, it's not only incredibly cheap but every scene is staged; the emphasis is very much on the nudity (which isn't even especially titillating), that might have shocked at the time. Now it bores. Credited roles include 'Spanking Brunette', 'Fighting Guy' and 'Woman raped in park'. 

Dir: Antonio Scarpati

Narrator: Joel Holt

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
1946
****
A small-town businessman stumbles upon misfortune after a lifetime of helping people.
Capra's last great film has acquired near mystical status, in part due to it entering the public domain for a period and being played on television incessantly at Christmas. The funny thing is that not only does it not go festive till towards the end but it doesn't become a true tour de force until the final 45 minutes when Stewart, in his most amazing and committed performance, fears he has lost everything and meets the angel - before that there's a lot of build, a lot of larking about, a fair bit of business; but it'd be churlish to pick fault with a movie that has given so much pleasure to so many and displays sheer, shining American professionalism and spirit.
Dir: Frank Capra
Stars: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Travers, Thomas Mitchell

IT’S ALIVE
1974
*
A newly born baby turns out to be a little monster, literally.
We're never told exactly why the baby is a vicious killer, but this shocker is well enough done and was followed by a couple of sequels.
Dir: Larry Cohen
Stars: John P Ryan, Sharon Farrell, James Dixon

IT’S ALIVE
2008
0
Juno-flavoured remake that’s neither particularly bad nor especially good, but just is.
Dir: Josef Rusnak
Stars: Skye Bennett, Raphael Coleman, Ty Glaser

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND
1937
0
An evil squire cunningly attempts to win a reluctant girl's hand in marriage.
The usual Tod Slaughter antics, amusing enough, with some vague social comment about the horrors of prison thrown in.
Dir: David MacDonald
Stars: Tod Slaughter, Jack Livesey, Marjorie Taylor

IT'S TRAD, DAD!

1962

0

The Mayor wants to shut the jazz bands down; the youth want to keep them going.

Oh my, how Britain and the world needed the Beatles! Released just before the Fabs hit the charts, this is an exhibition of rubbish music and anodyne personalities - no wonder the culture was about to change. It of course has a direct connection to those Liverpool lads - they supported Helen Shapiro on her 1963 tour, which turned into her supporting them, and Lester went on to direct A Hard Day's Night: he does show a few quirky touches here, especially early on, that got him the job - but he can't have been a shoo-in, as he struggles to make this 80 minutes you'd want to sit through for anything other than historical reasons.

Dir: Richard Lester

Stars: Helen Shapiro, Craig Douglas, Chubby Checker, Gene Vincent, Del Shannon

IVANHOE
1952
*
A knight seeks to free the captive King John.
Rather uninspired swashbuckler with occasional sequences of arrow-heavy excitement, but much that is dull and dated.
Dir: Richard Thorpe
Stars: Robert Taylor, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders

IVAN’S CHILDHOOD
1962
*
A 12-year-old boy becomes an army agent after his mother is killed by the Nazis.
How war affects the young: a well photographed but largely uninvolving drama which is enlivened by visual flourishes.
Dir: Andrei Tarkovsky
Stars: Kolya Burlyaev, Irma Takovskaya, Valentin Zubkov