The Independent Recommends: The Three Best Films

Gods and Monsters (15)

A droll speculation on the last days of 1930s horror auteur James Whale (Ian McKellen). Director Bill Condon won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Shakespeare in Love (15)

This enjoyable, Oscar-laden historical romp suggests how romance fired Shakespeare with the creative inspiration for Romeo and Juliet. Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow (Best Actress) head an impressive cast.

Affliction (15)

Paul Schrader's bleak, Oscar-winning study in fatherhood and fatalism (left) stars Nick Nolte as a man struggling to escape the influence of his violent dad - James Coburn (Best Supporting Actor).