kieran's - BFI: 50+15 films to see by age 15 List

Show moreShow less

"Être et Avoir" is a charming and intimate portrait of a single-class primary school in rural France and its inspirational teacher.

Ranging in age from four to ten, the small handful of pupils are taught by the remarkable and wise Georges Lopez, whose patient and enlightened methods highlight a genuine affection for his young charges. Offering a touching and absorbing look at the heart of a village community, director Nicolas Philibert's film was a surprise cinema hit which was warmly received by critics and won numerous awards including a BAFTA and a European Film Award.

Show moreShow less

In a culture steeped in tradition, one young girl challenged the past and found hope for the future. The Maori living in a small village on the coast of New Zealand claim their descent from Paikea, the Whale Rider. In every generation, a male heir has succeeded as chief. That time is now.

When twins are born and the boy twin dies, Koro the chief is unwilling to accept his grand-daughter, Pai, as a future leader. As Pai matures, KIoro remains convinced that the tribe's misfortunes began at her birth and calls for his people to bring their sons to him, in the hope that the new leader is among them. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must stand up to him and a thousand years of tradition to reveal the true way forward.

Show moreShow less

Chihiro, a headstrong 10-year-old girl, is unhappy that her family are moving house and that she will have to make new friends. As they make their way to the new home, Chihiro's father takes a detour to explore a mysterious tunnel in the woods.

On the other side is what seems to be a deserted theme park but is in fact a ghostly town. Unwittingly, they have strayed into the Land of the Spirits, a world of dreamlike scenery inhabited by ancient gods and magical beings, ruled over by the sorceress, Yubaba. With her parents held captive and Yubaba set on enslaving them forever, Chihiro must use all her energy to survive in this strange new place. With the help of Haku, a brave young spirit, she is forced to overcome her Pears and join an epic battle for her family's freedom.

Show moreShow less

"Billy Elliot" is a heartwarming tale of an 11 year old coal miner's son (Jamie Bell) in the north of England who's life is forever changed when he stumbles upon Mrs Wilkinson's (Julie Walters) ballet class during his weekly boxing lesson.

Before long, he finds himself immersed in ballet, demonstrating a raw talent never seen before and reaching for a dream that changes the lives of everyone he touches.

Show moreShow less

Something huge is on the horizon. Hogarth Hughes just rescued an enormous robot that fell from the stars to Earth.

Now young Hogarth has a very big friend and an even bigger problem: How do you keep a 50-foot-tall, steel-eating (junkyard cars are especially tasty) giant a secret? It's even harder when a nosey government agent arrives in town to hunt down the 'alien invader' and the combined land, sea and air might of the U.S. military is sent to demolish the giant. The result: an incredible adventure that's part metal, part magic, all heart.

Show moreShow less

"Show Me Love" is the comic and heartbreaking story of Agnes (Rebecka Liljeberg), Elin (Alexandra Dahlström) and their teenage friends growing up in the small town of Amal. Nothing ever happens until Elin snows up at Agnes' birthday party and Elm's life takes an unexpected turn.

Stuck in the middle of two love interests, Elin tries to come to terms with her real self - and the courage it takes to be different.

Show moreShow less

This brilliant and contemporary retelling of the World's most tragic love affair makes this wildly inventive "Romeo and Juliet" unforgettable. Baz Luhrmann's dazzling and unconventional adaptation of William Shakespeare's classic love story is spellbinding.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes portray Romeo and Juliet, the youthful star-crossed lovers of the past. But the setting has been moved from its Elizabethan origins to the futuristic urban backdrop of Verona Beach.

Show moreShow less

Razieh (Aida Mohammadkhani) wants a fat goldfish for the Iranian New Years celebration instead of the skinny ones in her family's pond at home, because the fat fish looks like it's dancing when it swims.

After many attempts she and her brother convince their mother to give them her last bit of money. Between their home and the fish store, Razieh loses the money...She finds it, but it is temptingly just out of her reach.

Show moreShow less

Woody (voice of Tom Hanks), an old-fashioned cowboy doll, is Andy's favourite.

But when Andy gets Buzz Lightyear (voice of Tim Allen) for his birthday, the flashy new space hero takes the playroom by storm! Their rivalry leaves them lost with a toy's worst nightmare - Sid, the toy-torturing boy next door. Woody and Buzz must work together to escape, realising along the way that they've got a friend...in each other.

Show moreShow less

It's a special garden where friendships blossom, illnesses fade away and sorrows flee. There, troubled orphan Mary (Kate Maberly), her spoiled, sickly cousin Colin (Heydon Prowse) and kindly country boy Dickon (Andrew Knott) discover that a world of caring can make a world of difference.

Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic story blooms anew in this enchanting new version lovingly adapted by Caroline Thompson and directed by Agnieszka Holland, also starring Maggie Smith and John Lynch "If you look the right way" Mary says, "you can see the whole world is a garden."

The spell of an enchantress opens this classic fairy tale, turning a cruel prince into a hideous beast. to break the spell, the Beast must win the love of beautiful, book-loving Belle before the last petal falls from an enchanted rose.

Show moreShow less

Once upon a time in a castle high on a hull lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands.

Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind of Avon lady took him home to live with her family. Ando began Edward's fantastical adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.

Show moreShow less

While their mother recovers from an illness, Satsuki and her little sister Mei (voiced in English by Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning) get away from it all in an idyllic rural retreat.

Far from the bustle of the city, they discover a mysterious place of spirits and magic, and the friendship of the Totoro woodland creatures.
Conceived as a family film devoid of conflict and suffused with the carefree pleasures of the summertime, My Neighbour Totoro sees Hayao Miyazaki create a parable of friendship and imagination populated with unforgettable characters. A universal classic for all generations, My Neighbour Totoro shows Japanese animation's famous Studio Ghibli at its very best, and is an elegy to two ever-fading miracles: the fairytale world of childhood and the disappearing countryside.

Show moreShow less

Based on a traditional West African folk tale, the film tells the story of the 10cm Kirikou, a small boy who delivers himself from his mother's womb to emerge walking and talking.

Kirkou undertakes a perilous journey in order to discover the secret of the evil sorceress, who has cursed his village, eating up the men-folk and drying up the spring.

Show moreShow less

With a career spanning over thirty years, Louis Malle was one of the giants of French cinema.

After he burst onto the scene as one of the pioneers of the French New Wave with Lift To The Scaffold, Malle quickly achieved a reputation as a great director who was unafraid to embrace a wide array of subjects - many famously controversial. Working both in Hollywood and his native France, Malle imprinted his films with subtlety, intelligence and a sharp eye for the mores of human behaviour that set him apart from his contemporaries. This collection brings together classics from Malle's later career. Au Revoir Les Enfants, earning Malle a BAFTA for Best Director, and Lucien Lacombe are two very different tales about troubled youth set during the Second World War. Milou en Mai is a chamber comedy set against the backdrop of the 1968 Parisian uprisings and Le Souffle Au Coeur a taboo-breaking coming-of-age satire. Together with the dreamlike Black Moon, these films are proof that age did not dim Malle's humanism or commitment to experimentation.