Mr Wong, Detective (1938)

The first of a series of films on the Chinese detective Mr Wong starring the somewhat non-Chinese Boris Karloff. Mr Wong investigates the murder of the owner of a chemical company who has been apparently killed by poison gas. Grant Withers plays the police chief who blunders all over the place until Mr Wong solves the case for him.

Although a pretty low-budget affair this is a highly entertaining detective film. There are quite a few twists and the crimes are quite ingenious.

Karloff's Mr Wong is an interesting character, lets just say there are quite a few old stereotypes on show.

Alice in Wonderland (1903)

Lewis Carroll's classic story has been made into a film many times but this is the first and is a very impressive piece of early cinema, restored by the BFI. Starring May Clark as Alice, she follows a large rabbit down a rabbit hole and... well I'm sure everyone knows the story.

The use of special effects, especially when Alice shrinks and grows to full size again is very impressive. It was, at the time in 1903, the longest film yet made in the UK.

The film has a real charm about it (especially the army of children as playing cards), portraying the somewhat trippy tale with the right amount of dreaminess.

The Black Abbot (1934)

The Black Abbot is a highly enjoyable quota quickie. As it is a film of that type then of course it was rather cheaply made and sometimes a bit rushed in the case of this crime drama it makes it all the more enjoyable.

A criminal gang use the legend of a ghost in the home of stately home of John Hillcrist (Farren Soutar) to lure him into a position where they can kidnap him for ransom.

Assisted by an American detective who just happens to be on holiday over here (Ben Welden) the plan is to pretend to pay the ransom then catch the gang in the act. However suspicion falls on Frank Brooks (John Stuart), the fiance of Hillcrist's daughter Sylvia (Judy Kelly), is he really behind the plot and was he just with Sylvia to arrange the terrible crime? As the hilarious toff Lord Jerry (Richard Cooper) might say, "What a rotter!"

It is a fun little film, light hearted and silly rather than dark and menacing. The tiny budget means that most of the action takes place in just a couple of different scenes and action is saved in favour of talking most of the time. It doesn't detract from the film in this case.

Action Stations (1959)

Quite a bizarre little (indeed it is rather short) film where random action is soundtracked by what sounds like a hammond organ. The story involves the daughter of a top forger being on the run from the bad guys and helped by a couple of smugglers (including Paul Carpenter) with a heart of gold.

If the story sounds reasonable the execution is hilariously bad and very low budget. The dialogue seems to have been dubbed post-production, unfortunately at times it seems like the actors were given a different script to the dubbers. Then there is the sheer randomness of some of the scenes, including a strange man on a bicycle. A very odd and confusing film, unfortunately not in a good way. The organ music is good though.

Silkwood (1983)

Silkwood is a biographical film about the nuclear industry whistle blower Karen Silkwood, starring Meryl Streep in the title role. Silkwood is working at a nuclear plant and becomes involves in the union and an activist when she starts to get suspicious about safety at the plant and witnesses the brutal de-contamination of a colleague.

Ultimately Silkwood dies in mysterious cirumstances, firstly she is somehow contaminated with plutonium, her life thrown upside down and then dies in a road accident - the implication however being that it wasn't an accident. Though considering how much her body was being contaminated with plutonium she was sadly probably doomed anyway.

Supported by Kurt Russell and Cher this is a hard hitting and often harrowing film. One of the scariest films you'll see, with savage de-comtamination scenes, the ability of "Them" to destroy a person and the ever present and invisible menace of plutonium hanging over everyone. The courage of Silkwood in the face of such adversity and against the power of big business and the government will also humble you.