White Dog (1982)
Directed by Samuel Fuller, co-written by Curtis Hanson, with a score by Ennio Morricone. Young white actress takes in stray white Alsatian but it turns out to be a dog trained to kill black people. Like 'Jaws', if Chief Brody got Quint in to re-train the Shark to be nice, instead of to kill it. Paul Winfield (Wrath of Khan) plays the African-American dog-whisperer determined to undo the damage racists have done. Shocking and powerful film-making but I didn't buy why they didn't put the dog to sleep after it savaged the first person (never mind when it starts killing).
Faust (1926)
VisFX laden Silent version of the Faust story from F.W. Murnau (Nosferatu). Some astonishing FX, costumes, model shots and puppetry for the time. I'd bet money Terry Gilliam watched this before making 'Brazil'. The age makeup is so good I didn't even realise the lead actor wasn't old until he turned into a young man.
Gate of Hell (1953)
Spectacular colour photography in this Samurai film, as if the vibrant silk threads of the Kimonos are woven into the screen. The Emperor grants a loyal Samurai any favour he asks but things descend into tragedy and madness when he asks for another Samurai's wife. I was a bit disappointed when it didn't all end in an epic blood-soaked Samurai duel.