Subscribe to watch - 14-day free trial, then £4.99 a month
Mystery Road
An Aboriginal cop returns to his hometown to solve the brutal murder teenage girl, uncovering a web of corruption and a growing body count, in Ivan Sen's acclaimed Australian riff on the Western genre.
Crime 2013 121 mins
Director: Ivan Sen
Overview
When Aboriginal detective Jay Swan returns to his home town to solve the brutal murder of a teenage girl, he is immediately thrown into a web of lies and deceit. Alienated by the white-dominated police force to which he is attached and ostracised by the local Indigenous community, Jay must stand alone and attempt to unravel the truth before tensions boil over.
Magnificent in its scope and incisive in its social commentary, Mystery Road is both a compelling riff on the Western genre and a biting exposé of indigenous Australian experience. Featuring a terrific cast, which includes Hugo Weaving (The Matrix), Ryan Kwanten (True Blood) and Jack Thompson (The Great Gatsby), the stunning cinematography, editing and broody, rumbling score are, incredibly, all Sen's own work.
Strong language, violence, bloody injury detailRelated
Crime
The Goalie's Anxiety At The Penalty Kick
Crime 1971 103 mins Director: Wim Wenders
Unavailable for three decades, Wim Wenders’ 1972 classic about an errant footballer who turns to crime; restored and remastered in stunning 4K.
Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler Part 1 (The Great Gambler - A Picture of the Time)
Crime 1922 155 mins Silent Director: Fritz Lang
Fritz Lang's legendary epic of silent cinema, following the diabolical crimes of the titular arch-villain, is a masterpiece of conspiracy, fear and paranoia.
Dr Mabuse, the Gambler Part 2 (Inferno, A Game for the People of Our Age)
Crime 1922 115 mins Silent Director: Fritz Lang
The second part of Fritz Lang's legendary epic of silent cinema, following the diabolical crimes of the titular arch-villain.
Frozen River
Crime 2008 93 mins Director: Courtney Hunt
Nominated for two Oscars (Best Actress – Melissa Leo - and Best Original Screenplay) Frozen River is a riveting thriller that raises questions about the borders we construct, between countries, communities and each other.
King of New York
Crime 1990 103 mins Director: Abel Ferrara
Christopher Walken is the dogged drug-lord determined to keep his empire together, in Abel Ferrarra's brutally gritty crime thriller.
L'Assassino
Crime 1961 98 mins Director: Elio Petri
Elio Petri’s dazzling first feature stars Marcello Mastroianni as dandyish antiques dealer arrested for murder by a Kafkaesque police force.
Kermode introduces
Betty Blue
Drama 1986 185 mins Director: Jean-Jacques Beineix
Jean-Jacques Beineix’s story of a volatile, highly sexual relationship was one of the most successful French films of the 1980s.
Unrelated
Drama 2007 96 mins Director: Joanna Hogg
On a Tuscan break a fortysomething woman finds herself drawn to the company of a group of partying teens, including a young Tom Hiddleston (in one of his earliest roles).
Blithe Spirit
Comedy 1945 96 mins Director: David Lean
A séance results in a man’s first wife returning from the dead in Noël Coward’s wonderful comedy.
Celine and Julie Go Boating
Drama 1974 194 mins Director: Jacques Rivette
Jacques Rivette's exhilarating combination of theatricality, paranoia and 'la vie Parisienne' follows two young women as they enter a mysterious realm upon eating a magic sweet.
The Ipcress File
Crime 1965 108 mins Director: Sidney J. Furie
The coolest spy of all – Michael Caine’s Harry Palmer – makes his brilliant big screen debut in this landmark British spy thriller.
A Matter of Life and Death
Fantasy 1946 104 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s timeless romantic fantasy, with David Niven as an airman trapped between life and death.
Featuring Aaron Pedersen
Goldstone
Thriller 2016 110 mins Director: Ivan Sen
Ivan Sen follows his acclaimed Australian thriller Mystery Road with another distinctive, 'outback noir', with troubled indigenous detective Joe Swan (Aaron Pedersen) again on the trail of murder and corruption.
Directed by Ivan Sen
Goldstone
Thriller 2016 110 mins Director: Ivan Sen
Ivan Sen follows his acclaimed Australian thriller Mystery Road with another distinctive, 'outback noir', with troubled indigenous detective Joe Swan (Aaron Pedersen) again on the trail of murder and corruption.
New
New Town Utopia
Documentary 2017 81 mins Director: Christopher Ian Smith
From Utopian dreams to concrete realities; charting the challenging, funny, and sometimes tragic story of the British new town of Basildon, Essex.
The Old Dark House
Comedy 1932 72 mins Director: James Whale
A group of weary travellers arrive at a spooky mansion with a madman on the loose, in this classic horror-comedy from James Whale (Bride of Frankenstein)
Cold Weather
Comedy 2009 96 mins Director: Aaron Katz
An amateur sleuth investigates his ex-girlfriend's disappearance in Aaron Katz's mumblecore take on the detective mystery.
Island of the Hungry Ghosts
Documentary 2018 98 mins Director: Gabrielle Brady
A therapist helps traumatised refugees detained on a remote island where powerful natural and tribal rituals prevail, in this extraordinary mix of fact and fiction.
Why We Fight
Documentary 2004 99 mins Director: Eugene Jarecki
An unflinching and award-winning look at the anatomy of American war-making.
Ballast
Drama 2007 96 mins Director: Lance Hammer
Three haunted souls are thrust into co-existence in this searing debut work from Lance Hammer, a double prize winner at the Sundance Film Festival.