jwc's - Rented List

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"Senna" is the true story of Brazilian motor-racing legend, Ayrton Senna, whom many believe was the greatest driver who ever lived.

Spanning Senna's titanic Formula One career, the film charts his physical and spiritual journey, both on track and off; his quest for perfection and his ultimate transformation from a supremely gifted novice, who exploded into F1 in 1984, to myth after the tragic events of Imola in 1994. Made with the full co-operation of the Senna family and Formula One Management, feature is the first official documentary feature about his life, featuring astounding archive material, much of which is previously unseen.

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Prince Charles (Tim Pigott-Smith) has waited his entire life to ascend to the throne. But after the Queen's death, he finds himself wrestling his conscience over a bill to sign into law.

His hesitation detonates a constitutional and political crisis and divides his family, with William (Oliver Chris) and Kate (Charlotte Riley) realising his actions may threaten their future. Meanwhile an unhappy Prince Harry (Richard Goulding) starts a relationship with a 'commoner', just when the press is looking to attack... With the monarchy's future under threat, protests on the streets, and his family in disarray, Charles must grapple with his identity and purpose, to decide whether the Crown still has any real power.

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During the year 1961, the influential German-Jewish philosopher Hannah Arendnt reported for the 'New Yorker' magazine on the Nazi war crimes trial of Adolf Eichmann. Her articles introducing her now-famous concept of the "Banality of Evil" triggered off an unprecedented controversy.

Using footage from the actual Eichmann trial and weaving a narrative that spans three countries, Margarethe von Trotta turns the often invisible passion for thought into immersive dramatic cinema.

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Safe their picturesque chateau behind the front lines, the French General Staff passes down a direct order to Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas): take the Ant Hill at any cost. A blatant suicide mission, the attack is doomed to failure.

Covering up their fatal blunder, the Generals order the arrest of three innocent soldiers, charging them with cowardice and mutiny. Dax, a lawyer in civilian life, rises to the men's defense but soon realizes that, unless he can prove that the Generals were to blame, nothing less than a miracle will save his clients from the firing squad.

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"Jojo Rabbit" follows a lonely German boy Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis), whose world view is turned upside down when he discovers his mother Rosie (Scarlett Johansson) is hiding a Jewish girl Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie) in their attic.

Aided by his wildly idiotic imaginary friend, Adolf Hitler (Taika Waititi), Jojo must confront his blind nationalism.

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"Letters from Baghdad" is the story of a true original, Gertrude Bell, sometimes called the "female" Lawrence of Arabia. The film tells the dramatic story of this British spy, explorer and political powerhouse.

Using stunning, never-seen-before footage of the region, the film chronicles her extraordinary journey into both the uncharted Arabian desert and the inner sanctum of British colonial power. The story is told entirely in the words of Gertrude Beil and her contemporaries, excerpted from their intimate letters, private diaries and official documents. It is a unique look at both a remarkable woman and the tangled history of Iraq. The film takes us into a past that is eerily current.

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Under the direction of new editor Marty Baron the team of tenacious investigative journalists at 'The Boston Globe' known as 'Spotlight' begin to delve into allegations of abuse within the Catholic Church and the wilful ignorance of those in power who have done nothing to stop it.

Facing political opposition and resistance from the far-reaching influences of the Church and government, the reporters put together an explosive expose revealing that the truth is much darker than they could have ever imagined.

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Vienna, winter. Johann, a guard at the grand Kunsthistorisches Art Museum encounters Anne, a foreign visitor called to Austria because of the poor health of a friend. Never having been to Austria and with little money, she wanders the city in limbo, taking the museum as her refuge.

Johann, initially wary, offers help, and they're drawn into each other's worlds. Their meetings spark an unexpected series of explorations - of their own lives and the life of the city, and of the way artworks can reflect and shape daily experience.

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Film centres around Jasmine (Cate Blanchett), a former New York socialite teetering on an emotional tightrope, balancing between her troubled east coast past and a fresh start in San Francisco.

Having moved into her sister's humble apartment, Jasmine ricochets between the tumultuous acceptance of her new limitations and the dreams of reclaiming her past life's glamour.

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In the late '60s, a musician was discovered in a Detroit bar by two celebrated producers who were struck by his soulful melodies and prophetic lyrics. They recorded an album that they believed was going to secure his reputation as one of the greatest recording artists of his generation.

Despite overwhelming critical acclaim, the album bombed and the singer disappeared into obscurity amid rumours of a gruesome on-stage suicide. But a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid South Africa and, over the next two decades, it became a phenomenon. Feature follows two South African fans who set out to find out what really happened to their hero. Their investigation led them to a story more extraordinary than any of the existing myths about the artist known as Rodriguez. This is a film about hope, inspiration and the resonating power of music.

It's 1961 and attractive, bright 16-year-old schoolgirl, Jenny (Carey Mulligan) is poised on the brink of womanhood. Stifled by the tedium of adolescent routine, Jenny can't wait for adult life to begin.

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During the early days of post-colonial India, a company of nomadic actors travel across the country performing Shakespeare.

When a young troupe member, Lizzie (Felicity Kendal), falls in love with playboy Sanju (Shashi Kapoor), the pair must overcome cultural differences and the scheming of film actress and rival for Sanju's affections Manjula (Madhur Jaffrey).

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From acclaimed director Pawel Pawlikowski comes "Ida", a poignant and powerfully told drama about 18-year-old Anna, a sheltered orphan raised in a convent, who is preparing to become a nun when she discovers that her real name is Ida and her Jewish parents were murdered during the Nazi occupation.

This revelation triggers a heart-wrenching journey into the countryside, to the family house and into the secrets of the repressed past, evoking the haunting legacy of the Holocaust and the realities of postwar Communism. Powerfully written and eloquently shot, "Ida" is a masterly evocation of a time, a dilemma, and a defining historical moment.

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Ben (Viggo Mortensen), a devoted father of six, dedicates himself to raising his children in an unconventional lifestyle that is far removed from society.

When they are forced to leave their self-created paradise and drive across the country to reunite with family, both Ben and his children find themselves mystified and intrigued by the outside world. As Ben is forced to question what it means to be a parent, his children begin to discover a new and extraordinary world that they never knew existed.

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A taxi driver is driving through the streets of Tehran. Various passengers enter the taxi, each candidly expressing their views while being questioned by the driver who, it transpires, is no one else but the film director Jafar Panahi himself.

His camera placed on the dashboard of his car transforms the space into a mobile film studio, and captures the spirit and contradictions of Iranian society through this comedic and dramatic drive with a sting in its tail.