john-t's - Rented List

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In his signature black turtleneck and blue jeans, Steve Jobs' image mas ubiquitous.

But who was the man on the stage under the giant iPhones? What accounted for the grief of so many across the world he died? In 'Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine', Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney presents a critical examination of Jobs, revered both as an iconoclastic genius and denounced as a barbed-tongued tyrant. The film is a candid telling of the Apple legend through interviews with a handful of those close to Jobs at different stages in his life. 'Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machineis an evocative portrait of his legacy, and our relationship with the computer. It unravels the larger than life myth he so deliberately crafted, and examines the endurance of his values which continue to shape the culture of Silicon Valley to this day.

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The story of the fragile sentimentalism of a former prostitute who visits her sister only to be taunted mercilessly by her childish brother-in-law.

A Streetcar Named Desire: The Original Director's Version is the Elia Kazan/ Tennessee Williams film moviegoers would have seen had not Legion of Decency censorship occurred at the last time. It features three minutes of previously unseen footage underscoring, among other things, the sexual tension between Blanche DuBois (Vivien Leigh) and Stanley Kowalski (Marlon Brando), and Stella Kowalski's (Kim Hunter) passion for husband Stanley.

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Master filmmaker, auteur, poet, truth seeker, explorer, brand, meme, actor, lauded voice artiste, doomsayer, legend...Werner Herzog is all of these.

This is the man, now 81, who had a 320-tonne steamboat hauled over a hill in Peru, who hypnotises his actors, climbs into volcanoes, talks to murderers on death row, cooks and eats his own shoe and was once shot mid-interview. It's these moments, along with other stories and his appearances in everything from 'The Simpsons' to 'The Mandalorian', that have made him a cult figure the world over. With exclusive behind-the-scenes access into Herzog's everyday life and rare archive material, plus in-depth interviews with the man himself and celebrated collaborators (including Christian Bale, Nicole Kidman, and his wife Lena Herzog), we are given an exciting glimpse into his work process and personal life. Also appearing in the film are Joshua Oppenheimer, Robert Pattinson, Patti Smith, Carl Weathers, Wim Wenders and Chloe Zhao.

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Humphrey Bogart stars as Dixon Steele, a screenwriter who is faced with the odious task of scripting a trashy best-seller. He enlists hat-check girl Mildred Atkinson to tell him the story in her own words.

Later that night, Mildred is murdered and Steele is a prime suspect; his record of belligerence when angry and his macabre sense of humour implicate him. Fortunately, lovely neighbour Laurel Gray (Gloria Grahame) gives him an alibi. Laurel proves to be just what Steele needed. and their friendship ripens into love. m Will suspicion, doubt, and Steele's inner demons come between them?

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A dreary prison cell is shared by two men who, in terms of lifestyle, could not be further apart. Molina (William Hurt) is a homosexual convicted for obscene behaviour, the other, Valentin (Raul Julia), is a revolutionary who has been continually tortured by the same totalitarian authorities.

As the minutes slowly pass, Molina invents a story based on the glamorous cinema of yesteryear - a Nazi propaganda film involving an unlikely love affair. At first, this extravagant display of personality doesn't bode well for the cellmates' relationship but as time and the story progresses a new kind of friendship begins to blossom.

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Whilst on holiday, young timid ladies companion (Joan Fontaine) meets handsome and wealthy widower Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier) whose wife Rebecca has recently died in a boating accident. The two fall in love and marry.

However, her joy is short lived when she returns to the de Winter estate and soon discovers that Rebecca still has a strange, unearthly hold over everyone there.

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"Black Peter" is the debut feature from Oscar-winning director Milos Forman (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus). A wry comedy set in 1960's Czechoslovakia, the film explores the passions and confusions of teenage life.

Peter is tentatively taking his first steps into the adult world; he has a new job and a new focus for his burgeoning erotic fantasies -provoking conflict with the older generation. With a cast of mainly non-professional actors, Forman conjures up a naturalistic and witty portrait of everyday life under totalitarianism. Full of charming performances, youthful spontaneity and a rock n roll soundtrack, 'Black Peter' helped launch the internationally acclaimed Czech New Wave.

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The Holdovers follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go.

Eventually he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker (Dominic Sessa) — and with the school's head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da'Vine Joy Randolph).

Where to find your favourite fast-food hamburger in Paris? How many laundry soap packets does a trip to Atlanta require? Ask Macon Leary (William Hurt), whose guidebooks are revered by home-loving business travellers who loathe being in transit. About matters of the heart, don't ask Macon. he doesn't have a clue. At least, not yet.

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A fanatical billionaire called General Midwinter (Ed Begley) devises a failsafe plan to destroy Russia. For many years he has channelled his vast resources into the construction of a fantastic computer complex which, when complete, will be used to trigger the Third World War.

Then, in the ensuing madness, Midwinter's private army will tip the balance in favour of the West. At the last moment Colonel Ross (Guy Doleman) of MI-5 stumbles across the plan. He knows that only one man can save the world from certain doom - Harry Palmer (Michael Caine). But Palmer doesn't want to know. Ross blackmails Palmer using the gorgeous Signe (Francoise Dorleac) and the dull-witted Newbegin (Karl Malden) as pawns in a little charade. It is no surprise then that Palmer finally finds himself matching wits with the devilish Colonel Stok not to mention the insane General Midwinter in a confrontation where the stakes are the future of the human race.

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Michael Caine stars as Harry Palmer, the ex-army corporal, who unwillingly serves as a spy for Her Majesty rather than serve a long stint behind bars. Palmer is sent to Berlin where he is to extricate a Russian general who wants to defect.

After reluctantly accepting the assignment, he arranges for an escape plan which includes a fake funeral…unfortunately, the wrong body is transported out of Russia. Caine keeps his cool and there's plenty of scenery as Caine wanders about Berlin and in and out of the arms of some beautiful women.

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Cynical and rebellious ex-army sergeant Harry Palmer (Michael Caine) has been blackmailed into working for Britain's security service.

Hot on the trail of a kidnapped scientist, Palmer finds himself enmeshed in a sinister conspiracy involving horrifying brainwashing techniques, murder and treachery that reaches up to the highest levels of the security service itself.

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Martin Durnley (Hywel Bennett), who has a childish alter ego "Georgie", lives with his mother Enid (Phyllis Calvert) and his nouveau riche stepfather (Frank Finlay) whom he resents intensely.

Enid dotes on Martin, largely because her first son Pete is a "mongol", and she is afraid that Martin may inherit a similar affliction. One day whilst shopping martin encounters Susan Harper (Hayley Mills), an attractive student currently working as a librarian. When he is caught shoplifting a toy duck baby-faced Martin adopts the guise fo retarded Georgie, consequently Susan takes pity on him and offers to pay for the item rather than create a fuss. This moment of kindness captures Martin’s interest, sowing the seeds of a deadly obsession.

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As up and coming press secretary Stephen Myers (Ryan Gosling) battles tirelessly for Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) in a frantic election race he becomes distracted by sexy young intern Molly (Evan Rachel Wood).

Whilst concealing their affair he agrees to meet the opposition's campaign manager (Paul Giamatti), who offers hhim a job on his staff. Stephen neglects to inform his boss of the meeting and as his silence is revealed he discovers a dirty personal secret that could sink Morris' political career. Stephen must then decide whether to enact revenge or use the secret to his advantage.

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An intoxicating mixture of fact and fiction, Ragtime recreates the real-life scandal of chorus girl Evelyn Nesbitt, whose rich husband famously shot her former lover in public.

Brilliantly essaying the outbreak of urban-terrorism in the early part of the Twentieth Century, Ragtime perfectly captures an age that encompassed both dire poverty and fabulous wealth.