Robert Rodriguez allegedly made his first film for $7000, but spent most of the next ten years making big-budget Hollywood movies. His latest film marks a return to his roots, and revives the Mariachi character which made his name. Jon Ashton reports
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Espionage, intrigue, computer viruses and government cover-ups – it could be the latest Bond film or an episode of the X-Files, but instead it’s just the latest Colin Farrell film. But isn’t this just Top Gun set in spy school, asks Bob Carroll?
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The Dogme manifesto revitalised Danish cinema, and its effects are still being felt eight years on in independent filmmaking across the world. Antonio Pasolini gets to grips with a new take on the Dogme movement
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The graphic novel has always enjoyed a much greater reputation in France than in other countries, and now one of its foremost artists has made his first feature-length film. Andy Murray enjoys a "genuinely unusual and imaginative" animated film which shows Disney the door
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Lars von Trier’s The Idiots was one of the key films which defined the Dogme 95 manifesto. Antonio Pasolini reports on a new critical appraisal of the film in the bfi’s Modern Classics series
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Okay, we all know he’s the greatest martial arts film star since Bruce Lee – but what do we know about the real Jackie Chan? This much-loved documentary traces his roots back to rural China, and reveals a different side of the drunken master. John Gorick reports
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For years, Carl Dreyer has been largely forgotten by critics and cinema goers alike, but following a recent retrospective at the NFT, his films are undergoing something of a revival. Antonio Pasolini looks back over the career of one of Denmark’s great directors
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The French critics loathe him, the film establishment ignores him, but somehow Patrice Leconte continues to make his peculiar brand of movies. Ben McCann reviews his latest effort – a skewed buddy story between a small-time crook and a literary professor
»Korean cinema has never been known for its subtlety, but this violent crime drama must have had the censors quaking in their seats. It might not be easy viewing, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth watching, says Bob Carroll
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After directing the caustic high-school satire Election in 1999, Alexander Payne returned with this late-life crisis movie starring Jack Nicholson. Paul Clarke applauds a comedy about age, actuaries and the American dream
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Written and directed by debut filmmaker Peter Sollett, this acclaimed low-budget indie focusses on life amongst the Latino communities of New York. Antonio Pasolini enjoys a different bite of the Big Apple
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The new range of British film guides from the independent film publisher I.B. Tauris has covered some intriguing titles in recent months. Colin Odell and Michelle le Blanc salute a retrospective of an overlooked classic by Tony Richardson
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Amores Perros was hailed as the Mexican Pulp Fiction thanks to its use of fractured timeframes, multiple characters and overlapping narratives – but this new book from the bfi shows there’s much more to the film than that, say Colin Odell and Michelle le Blanc
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In the sixties and seventies, Hammer Studios were the undisputed kings of oddball British horror – but Captain Kronos was weird even by their standards. Andy Murray reviews a vampire movie with a difference
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You may already have seen the Matrix – but never quite like this. The bfi IMAX cinema in London is currently showing a new version of the film, complete with rejigged visuals and sound for a truly futuristic cinema experience. Paul Clarke reports
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The Edinburgh Film Festival is one of the most respected names on the cinema circuit, and has a reputation for bringing exclusive films and events to its discerning audience. Bob Carroll reviews the highlights of the 2003 festival
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Second movies are hard enough at the best of times, but British writer-director Paul Morrison doesn’t believe in an easy life. Charlie Phillips enjoys his new film which mixes up religion, race relations and cricket
»Trainspotting might not have been the new dawn for British cinema which many critics claimed, but almost ten years after its original release, it’s still "a formidable piece of work", says Andy Murray
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Peter Mullan’s scalding exploration of life in a convent school may have won awards and acclaim for its director, but it made him few friends within the Catholic Church – which is exactly the idea, says Bob Carroll
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Brian de Palma was the movie brat who never quite lived up to his promise – but against the odds, he’s still directing, while most of his contemporaries have burned out or faded away. Neil Jackson gets happily lost in his latest film
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