The Mission (1986)

A remarkable drama directed by Roland Joffé and written by Robert Bolt.

Plot (borrowed from online): "18th century Spanish Jesuits try to protect a remote South American Indian tribe in danger of falling under the rule of pro-slavery Portugal."

Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons star. 

The jungle setting is visually stunning.

It's powerful and moving, especially given that it's based on true events.

The stirring music is by Ennio Morricone. 

The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)

Romantic drama adapted by Harold Pinter from the John Fowles novel and directed by Karel Reisz. 

Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons play two couples: one in Victorian times and one in the present day. They are different people but their relationships, then and now, have many parallels exploring the nature of obsessive love. 

I’m not entirely convinced that the interweaving of the two stories works. Both would have been enough for a film in themselves, and the present-day narrative is sketchier, meaning that motivations and character are less fleshed out. Also, it's distracting that the some of the same actors (but not all of them) appear in both stories, but in unrelated roles that I imagined would be connected. I would have hoped to see more of Penelope Wilton (who bafflingly only appears in one of the two tales), but that might just be because I like Penelope Wilton. 

Despite some tricksy aspects, it’s compelling and the acting is first rate. 

Margin Call (2012)

Finance thriller set at the beginning of the 2008 monetary crisis. 

When a management division head (Stanley Tucci) is fired from a Wall Street investment bank, he passes a memory stick to a junior banker (Zachary Quinto). It turns out that he has uncovered the perilous state of the company. The matter is escalated up through the ranks of bosses played by Paul Bettany, Kevin Spacey, Demi Moore and Jeremy Irons. 

Set in a 24-hour period, the film builds its drama from the human situation alone. There are no car chases or guns, no explosions or fights. It examines the ethical issues of the company selling off worthless packages in order to save its own privileged few. 

Spacey is brilliant as seemingly the only employee with a conscience, not coincidentally making him the one character you can emphasise with. Bettany is highly watchable as the (possibly suicidal) head of credit trading.

It’s very nicely shot, too: lush and stylish in a way that really understands the faceless aesthetics of the corporate world.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Ridley Scott is responsible for at least six great films (Alien, Blade Runner, Black Hawk Down, Body of Lies, Gladiator and Thelma & Louise), so it’s difficult to articulate just how disappointing this tepid 12th-century historical epic turns out to be. It’s a muddled account of power and politics set during the Crusades. 

Orlando Bloom underwhelms as the blacksmith hero descended from Baron Godfrey of Ibelin (Liam Neeson). After just one lesson from his dad, he becomes a master swordsman. There’s too much of him wandering around, ponderously contemplating his destiny and feeling “significant”. 

Eva Green (as Sibylla of Jerusalem) and Jeremy Irons (Raymond III of Tripoli) both try to do their best with the material, but – as with everyone in this film – their “characters” are sketchy outlines at best. They both look like they wish they were elsewhere. 

Even the visuals aren’t particularly impressive as the big battle scenes are ruined by endless slow-motion shots that take you out of the action rather than enhancing it.

Plot-wise, it’s confusing. Not only does it fail to provide any historical context about the Crusades, but it’s also completely lacking in terms of character motivations. You’re left unsure why anyone is doing whatever they are doing, and not really caring either.

The ending is a mess, too. The film peters out with very little resolved. A director’s cut adds 45 minutes that supposedly improve the film and help it to make sense, but if this standard edition wasn’t good enough it probably shouldn’t have been issued in the first place.