A bluffer's guide to famous films
Everyone's talking about The Silence of the Lambs now that it's being re-released. Don't know what it's about? Fear not, here's a bluffer's guide to five famous films
What's it about: In a word: 'Rosebud'. It's the last word uttered by Charles Foster Kane, a newspaper tycoon, on his death bed. As a journalist tries to discover what it could mean, we're taken back through the whole life story of this compelling man.
Why all the fuss: Orson Welles' lead performance and his direction are immaculate. What's really impressive though is how it hasn't dated anywhere near as much as other films from the 1940s. The acting and script is lively and its meditations on greed and corruption are timeless.
Do quote: 'I run a couple of newspapers. What do you do?'. A fantastic putdown that can be adapted for almost any situation.
Don't put your foot in it: If any of the story seems familiar it might be because you saw The Simpsons' parody of the film as a kid. Best not bring that up among snobby cinephiles.
Wow your friends with this fact: Orson Welles was only 26 when he made this, one of the greatest films of all time. Impressive and thoroughly depressing in equal measure.
