As a new trailer revealed this week shows, veteran actor Sir Ben Kingsley is playing the mysterious and villainous Mandarin in the much anticipated Iron Man 3, which hits cinemas this summer. So to celebrate what looks like another terrific performance, we thought we’d round up some of his best films, all available to enjoy on high-definition Blu-ray this weekend.
Schindler’s List
Sir Ben Kingsley starred as Itsak Sterhn, the Jewish accountant and right hand man to industrialist Oskar Schindler (the German businessman who saved over a thousand Jews from the concentration camps) in Spielberg’s award-winning Schindler’s List. This devastating portrayal of the Holocaust won seven academy awards when it was first released, including Best Movie. The special features on the Blu-ray version include Voices from the List, a series of heart wrenching interviews with survivors, witnesses and descendants of the men and women depicted in the film.
Hugo (also available on Blu-ray 3D)
Another hit at the Academy Awards, Sir Ben Kingsley stars as the cantankerous shopkeeper Georges Méliès, in Martin Scorsese’s Hugo. The story follows twelve-year-old Hugo (Asa Butterfield) a child who lives inside the walls of a Parisian train station in the 1930s. His very survival depends on anonymity, but after he is caught by Georges stealing and encounters the enchanting Isabelle (Chloë Moretz), the film quickly takes a dramatic twist and Hugo’s most closely guarded secret is put at risk. The first film to be shot by Scorcese in 3D, this film dazzles on Blu-ray.
Shutter Island
Featuring one of Sir Ben Kingsley’s finest recent performances, Shutter Island – also directed by Martin Scorsese) took the box office by storm when it was released in 2010. US marshal Teddy Daniels is assigned to investigate a missing patient from Shutter Island, a high security prison for the criminally insane. With a stellar cast including Leonardo diCaprio, Michelle Williams and Mark Ruffalo, many compare Scorsese’s direction to Alfred Hitchcock’s, with his lingering shots and chilling choice of score. Extras include Behind the Shutters which features extensive interviews with cast, crew and author Dennis Lehane, discussing the movie’s themes and the cast’s preparations for their roles. Into the Lighthouse also stands out, giving viewers a look at the film’s construction, the dark psychological elements interwoven in the plot as well as real-life insight into psychiatric care in the 1950s.
What’s your favourite Ben Kingsley movie? Let us know in the comments below.
