plastic-teaspoon's - Rented List

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Long out-of-circulation and unavailable for home viewing, Jean-Luc Godard's 1964 masterpiece Une femme mariée, fragments d'un film tourné en 1964 en noir et blanc (A Married Woman: Fragments of a Film Shot in 1964 in Black and White) has, until now, represented the ostensibly 'missing' key work

from the first, zeitgeist-defining phase of JLG's filmography. The feature which bridges the gap between Bande à part and Alphaville, Une femme mariée is, nevertheless, a galaxy, or gallery, unto itself — a lucid, complex, profoundly funny series of portraits, etched with Godardian acids, of the wife that represents either a singular case, or a universal example, of "a"/"the" married woman, and the men in her orbit. Designed with Raoul Coutard's breathtaking cinematography, Godard's picture captures a moment in time — but all its mysteries, its truths, its beauty, comedy and grace, serve to resolve into a work of art for the ages.

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Written and directed by Godard, 'Alphaville' is the strangely beautiful futuristic tale of Lemmy Caution (Eddie Constantine), an American private eye sent to a planet ruled by Von Braun (Anna Karina), a malevolent scientist who has outlawed human emotions in favour of logic.

The film deals with the fight between individualism in the face of inhumanity and blind conformity...

Steven Shorter, the biggest pop star of his day, is loved by millions, his endorsement influencing the actions of the masses. But, in reality, he is a puppet whose popularity is carefully managed by government-backed handlers keen to keep the country's youth under control.

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A later collaboration between James Mason and Carol Reed, 'The Man Between' is often considered a companion piece to The Third Man thanks to its atmospheric portrayal of a city struggling to survive in a grim post-war reality of poverty and mistrust The action is transposed to a divided Berlin, and

to the beginning of the Cold War. Unlike the devilish Harry Lime, Mason's world-weary dealer Ivo Kern is ultimately still a decent man, compelled by his love for a naive schoolteacher (Claire Bloom) to make one last misguided trip through the Brandenburg Gate, with potentially tragic consequences.

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When ex-con Johnny Clay (Sterling Hayden) says he has a plan to make a killing, everybody want to be in on the action. Especially when the plan is to steal $2 million in a racetrack robbery scheme in which "no one will get hurt".

But despite all their careful plotting, Clay and his men have overlooked on thing: Sherry Peatty (Marie Windsor), a money-hungry, double-crossing dame who's planning to make a financial killing of her own...even if she has to wipe out Clay's entire gang to do it!

Shirley Anne Field gives an unforgettable, fiery performance as a young designer on the brink of an affair with a married male executive (Robert Stephens) at the company where she works.

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The Girl at the Monceau Bakery (1962)

The first in the 'Moral Tales' series, narrated by filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier, is a charming short shot on the streets of Paris in Rohmer's naturalistic style. Barbet Schroeder plays a young man whose affections are divided between two beautiful girls - one he meets on the street and another who works in a local bakery - but finds himself faced with the dilemma of choosing between them.

Suzanne's Career (1963)
In Rohmer's tale of adolescent naivete, Bertrand, a shy and reserved student, finds himself consumed with jealousy and resentment as he observes his roguishly confident best friend Guillaume exploit the generosity of the sweetly seductive Suzanne.

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Gino Monetti (Edward G. Robinson) is a self made man, an Italian immigrant who has dragged himself up from the slums of New York to be president of his own bank. The struggle has made him hard and bitter - alienating him from three of his sons.

Monetti is still close to his fourth son Max (Richard Conte), a sharp lawyer with an even sharper society girlfriend (Susan Hayward). As Monetti's banking empire begins to crumble, tensions within the family reach boiling point - and thoughts turn to revenge - and murder...

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Dai Number 9 (Donald Houston) and his brother Twm (Meredith Edwards) win a newspaper contest: £100 each and a trip to London to see Wales play England at Twickenham.

But when the two colliers arrive at Paddington they miss their contact and fall in with an attractive blonde who just happens to overhear that they're in the money...

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Based on a novel by George Bernanos, 'Diary of a Country Priest' marked the first in Director Robert Bresson's so-called "prison trilogy" (followed by 'Pickpocket' and 'A Man Escaped').

The film begins with the arrival of a young, sickly priest (Claude Laydu) at the godless parish of Ambricourt in Northern France. Here he becomes drawn into the complex domestic life of a wealthy Count (Jean Riveyre), his tormented wife, his manipulative daughter and his mistress, Miss Louise (Nicole Maurey). Narrated by excerpts of the priest's diary, the film follows his efforts to awaken the villagers from their spiritual lethargy, with their struggles, suffering and triumphs representing in a microcosm those of humankind itself. Bresson's intensely personal style, minimalist approach to dialogue and music, and use of non-professional actors marked a new kind of filmmaking, which was to influence such diverse directors as Paul Schrader, Richard Linklater and Andrei Tarkovsky.

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Salvador Mallo (Antonio Banderas) is a veteran film director, afflicted by multiple ailments, the worst of which is his inability to continue filming. His physical condition doesn't allow it and, if he can't film, his life has no meaning.

His mixture of medications, along with the occasional flirtation with heroin, means that Salvador spends most of his days prostrate and forlorn. This drowsy state transports him back to reflect on his childhood in the 60's, when his family emigrated to Paterna, a village in Valencia, in search of prosperity, through to the appearance of his first desire and his first adult love in the Madrid of the 80's. In recovering his past, Salvador finds the urgent need to recount it, and in that need he may also find his salvation.

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When the out of control Betty (Marie Trintignant) meets the recently widowed Laure (Stephane Audran) in a bar, they seem to have an instant bond.

But when Laure decides to take her in and Betty begins to reveal a sad and sometimes horrific life story of betrayal and self destruction, something snaps. What follows is one of the most intriguing cat and mouse battles ever witnessed.

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Cliff Stern (Woody Allen) is an idealistic filmmaker…until he is offered a lucrative job shooting a flattering profile of a pompous TV producer (Alan Alda).

Judah Rosenthal (Martin Landau) is the pillar of his community…until he learns that his ex-mistress (Anjelica Huston) plans to expose his financial and extramarital misdeeds. As Cliff chooses between integrity and selling out, and Judah decides between the counsel of his Rabbi (Sam Waterson) and the murderous advice of his mobster brother (Jerry Orbach), each man must examine his own morality, and make an irrevocable decision - that will change everyone's lives forever.

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Enrol at the wacky College of Lifemanship where a senior host of great British comedians teach a completely uproarious course on how to come out tops in any social situation. Study with Alastair Sim and learn his valuable hints on the art of comic One-upmanship.

Follow his expert advice to victimised Ian Carmichael about romance and you'll be a top class pupil fully equipped to cope with life's hilarious humiliations without really cheating.

Intrigue and espionage abound when a young woman travelling aboard a transcontinental express train strikes up an acquaintance with a charming elderly English governess, who then disappears without a trace. Is the young woman hallucinating, or is something altogether more sinister afoot...?