Explosion Before Dawn

Putin

January 2025 •English

A portrait of a formidable political figure, unraveling the contrasting facets of an iron-fisted tyrant and a man haunted by fear.

The Turning of Wheels

July 1975 •Chinese

Under the Shadow

September 2016 •Persian

After Shideh's building is hit by a missile during the Iran-Iraq War, a superstitious neighbor suggests that the missile was cursed and might be carrying malevolent Middle-Eastern spirits. She becomes convinced a supernatural force within the building is attempting to possess her daughter Dorsa, and she has no choice but to confront these forces if she is to save her daughter and herself.

Carla's Song

October 1996 •English

A Glasgow man visits war-torn Nicaragua with a refugee tormented by her memories.

Salvador

April 1986 •English

In 1980, an American journalist covering the Salvadoran Civil War becomes entangled with both the leftist guerrilla groups and the right-wing military dictatorship while trying to rescue his girlfriend and her children.

Captain Miller

January 2024 •Tamil

In the 1930s, during the British Raj, Analeesan "Eesa", a former soldier of the British Indian Army called Captain Miller, is on a mission to protect the people from the British after witnessing an atrocity.

Reykjavik

Invalid date •English

At the most dangerous point of the Cold War, political enemies Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Iceland over one long, tense weekend to decide if there will be peace or war. They sit across from each other, choosing to unclench their fists and instead extend their hands — a triumph of overcoming fear, differences, egos, and consequences.

Shanghai Express

February 1932 •English

A beautiful temptress re-kindles an old romance while trying to escape her past during a tension-packed train journey.

Moffie

March 2020 •Afrikaans

A young man in 1981 South Africa must complete his brutal and racist two years of compulsory military service while desperately maintaining the secrecy of his homosexuality.

The Final Countdown

January 1980 •English

During routine manoeuvres near Hawaii in 1980, the aircraft-carrier USS Nimitz is caught in a strange vortex-like storm, throwing the ship back in time to 1941—mere hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Innocent Voices

January 2005 •Spanish

A young boy, attempting to have a normal childhood in 1980s El Salvador, is caught up in a dramatic fight for his life when he desperately tries to avoid the war that is raging all around him.

To Live

May 1994 •Chinese

Married couple Fugui and Jiazhen endure tumultuous events in mid-20th century mainland China as their personal fortunes move from wealthy landownership to peasantry.

Buffalo Soldiers

October 2002 •English

A criminal subculture operates among U.S. soldiers stationed in West Germany just before the fall of the Berlin wall.

沙家店粮站

December 1954 •Chinese

Jue Sha

January 1993 •Chinese

Secret Order Intercept

January 1986 •Chinese

Set in the anti-Japanese war, a Japanese commander who killed a lot of Chinese receives an order to return to Japan. Scouts from the eighth route army must intercept the executioner before he leaves China.

Ten Thousand Li Ahead

January 1941 •Chinese

Driver Ko Wah (Lee Ching) refuses to transport ammunitions for the enemy, and is sent to jail after a scuffle with his traitorous boss. Although down and out, Ko takes in Siu-fung (Yung Siu-yi), an unwilling erotic dancer who has fled the war to Hong Kong. They may lead destitute lives, but their conscience remains intact. Director Cai Chusheng co-founded the National Salvation Association of Cinema. When Ko makes a uproar at the dance parlour and rips apart his friend's zombie costume, it represents Cai's criticism on the muddling-along attitude of Hong Kong society at the time. The characters' decision to return to the mainland to join the resistance effort also foretells Cai's decision to do the same in real-life.

Kitchen Sink

May 1989 •English

From the bowels of the kitchen sink, comes a dark and tender love… An original and full-blooded short film that combines humour with surrealism and leads the viewer towards the fantasy of horror.

Birthday Bash

April 2018 •English

It's 1987, and Kristin is the new girl in town. With the insistence of her cousin, Natalie, Kristin is swayed to attend the birthday party of Jennifer- the most popular girl in school. But tonight, high school reputations are the least of their worries. With recent news of a homicidal maniac escaping a nearby hospital, party guests begin to disappear one by one.

Vekslák aneb Staré zlaté časy

April 1994 •Czech

Even a college education does not protect against temptation—the young hero ceases to distinguish between right and wrong, but strangely enough, even his education does not help him to detect the fraud committed against him in time. Michal Najman, a student at the University of Economics, earns extra money as a pest controller. After being accused of exterminating expensive nutria, he signs a bond for a considerable amount of money. He naively agrees to repay the large debt without verifying its validity. He does not have the money and decides to obtain it through currency exchange and later through theft. And so, the initially blameless young man sinks deeper and deeper...