In the wintry setting of a prestigious boarding school in the early 1970s . . . ‘The Holdovers’ brings together the unlikely pair of rebellious student Angus and the loathed classics teacher Mr. Hunham for an unexpected Christmas stay . . .

Thomas Babington is drawn into a dangerous game of smuggling diamonds and hunting a former SS dentist named Szell, after his secret agent brother is murdered before his eyes . . .

After his master dies, gardener Chauncey Gardiner (played by the wonderful Peter Sellers), is left to fend for himself . . .

The Oscars are still an important event for film & filmmaking . . . particularly for smaller films, largely unseen by mainstream audiences. Here are our suggestions for the winners to be announced on Monday 13th March . . .

This isn't strictly a film . . . but it does star Hollywood A-listers . . . Colin Firth & Toni Collette. If you have Netflix, you may have already be familiar with the documentary also entitled – The Staircase . . .

After losing her job in Empire, Nevada, widowed Fern (played by Frances McDormand) heads off in a small van and decides to travel around the American West, working odd jobs and sharing experiences with fellow travellers on the fringes of society . . .

Ok, this isn’t strictly a film . . . but I thought I’d bend the rules slightly for this stunning documentary. “The Andy Warhol Diaries,” is a six-parter based on Warhol’s own journal from 1976 till his death in 1987. This startling biopic is told with the artist’s own words through a re-created A.I. voice, which sounds strange and alien – and sometimes human but not. It’s aesthetically jarring, but so brilliantly done . . .

The Oscars may not be as popular as they once were . . . as the lines have blurred from cinema to home viewing. But the Oscars are still relevant particularly for showcasing smaller films to larger mainstream audiences. Here are our suggestions for the winners to be announced on Sunday . . .

A son returns from war and doesn't want to get mixed up in the family business . . . organised crime. When his father is gunned down, he commits murder and is bound by blood, heritage, and ‘honour’ through a course of vengeance and power maintained through fear. Eventually he takes on his father's mantle as the big shot and family head . . .