1. An Education: Nick Hornby's sensitive adaptation of journlaist Lynn Barber's excellent memoir of her first boyfriend.
2. Tales From The Golden Age: Portmanteau film with five stories about the horrific final 15 years of the Ceausescu regime in Romania.
3. Fantastic Mr Fox: Wes Anderson’s take on Roald Dahl is full of quirky magic — with a sly George Clooney voicing Mr Fox.
4. Bright Star: Jane Campion's imaginative portrayal of the Keats/Brawne love affair.
5. Disney's A Christmas Carol: Starring Jim Carrey as Scrooge.

Critics' Choice

Fay Maschler

quote With a single dessert and just two glasses of wine our bill was kept in check - but the effort of doing so was not much fun quote

Babbo Film

Andrew O'Hagan

quote This is a film with beautiful performances and a visual style that urges you towards reflection quote

Bright Star Theatre

Henry Hitchings

quote Although the first half of Kwei-Armah’s production is pacy, funny and intelligent, the energy level then drops off quote

Seize The Day

Reader reviews

Film

Squiz, Islington

quote I loved this film from start to finish. Take the girlfriend, tell your mum - I'd see it again tomorrow and will buy the dvd. quote

An Education Theatre

Joe, London

quote I saw this last night and can't remember the last time I was so moved in the theatre. quote

This Much Is True Restaurants

Hiroshi Sugiyama

quote I have been to many of London's so-called best Japanese restaurants and none have been as good as the food that I've had at Aqua Kyoto quote

Aqua Kyoto

Films to rock your world

By Zenat Alkayat, Metro 27.09.06

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Festival highlight: Luke and Harry Treadaway play conjoined twins Tom and Barry Howe in Brothers Of The Head

Look here too

Only film fans with staying power need apply for the whole 14th annual Raindance Film Festival: it promises 90 screenings of movies, shorts and documentaries in just 12 days.

As the self-proclaimed "voice of indie film", Raindance prides itself on supporting first-time film-makers, touting independent films and digging up the cream of budget movies: the premiere of The Blair Witch Project and the discovery of Memento are just two of the feathers in its cap.

This year looks to be an equally enlightening programme, kicking off with a screening of the Edinburgh Film Festival winner Brothers Of The Head, a fictional account of a 1970s music promoter who pushes conjoined twins into rock'n'roll stardom.

The opening week also includes a screening of A Clockwork Orange to mark the 35th anniversary of the release of Stanley Kubrick's notorious film and Mark Hammond's Johnny Was, starring Vinnie Jones; week two features the world premiere of British budget comedy Scenes Of A Sexual Nature.

This year's festival leans toward the rockumentary, with Neil Young: Heart Of Gold, and Too Tough To Die: A Tribute To Johnny Ramone among several films that offer exclusive footage of live gigs and explore the onstage persona of musicians.

The best thing about this British festival is that, unlike Cannes and its ilk, it's open to the public and, though there is a jury (including the venerable Lou Reed, Judi Dench and Marky Ramone), the emphasis is firmly on fostering unknown talent, rather than celebrating glamour.

Tonight until Oct 8, opening and closing nights at Cineworld Haymarket, 63-65 Haymarket SW1, otherwise Cineworld Shaftesbury Avenue, The Trocadero, 7-14 Coventry Street W1, various times, £6 to £8.90. Tel: 0871 200 2000. www.raindancefilmfestival.org Tube: Piccadilly Circus

Reader views (1)

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Film: Black Dahlia.

This film is terrible! The music is way over the top. There is no substance to it. No feeling for the actors. So many twist and turns, you are fighting to stay awake!

Don't Bother!

- Steven Kingett, Fulham