Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Nobody Knows is one of my all-time favourite films; on paper, it sounds like one of the world’s most depressing films (five children must fend for themselves after their reckless mother leaves them in a small studio apartment, hardly anyone’s idea of a feel-good film!). However, Nobody Knows is a masterclass of simplicity and genuine tenderness, a film where the characters are authentic and real, and I am glad to tell you that Shoplifters is just as good…

Pedro Almodóvar exploded onto the big screen with “Pepi, Luci, Bom” (1980) but it wasn’t until 1988 that he had his first major critical and commercial success on a global level with his film “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown” which coincidentally introduced the world to actor Antonio Banderas. Almodóvar has remained at the top of his game for the last thirty years and he continues to dazzle us all with his visually stunning, original and often darkly…