Film: The five best revivals

1

The Fountainhead (Curzon Soho, NFT)

Gary Cooper plays a visionary architect who refuses to buckle under mob pressure in King Vidor's astonishing adaptation of the Ayn Rand novel. Patricia Neal smoulders opposite him.

2

The Philadelphia Story (Curzon Soho, NFT)

As civilised and graceful as any romantic comedy ever made, it features a once-only pairing of Cary Grant and James Stewart, who play opposite each other like two great jazzmen in a spirit of mutual regard.

3

Manhattan (Mon 6.0pm, NFT)

What a treat: tunes by George Gershwin, glistening black-and-white photography by Gordon Willis, gags of a lifetime by Woody Allen. A masterpiece, by any other name.

4

A Night to Remember (Fri 8.40pm, NFT)

Long before James Cameron's Oscar-gobbling Titanic, Roy Ward Baker's 958 movie recounted the liner's doomed 92 voyage with smaller resources but also less pomposity. Kenneth More heads a great cast.

5

It's A Wonderful Life (Curzon Soho)

Despite its reputation as a national treasure, Frank Capra's hymn to small-town selflessness is fraught with all kinds of contradictions and blind spots. James Stewart is magnificent in the lead role.