Cockfighter, The

Aroview: A typically raw-boned performance by Warren Oates centres this cult gem of 1970s American cinema, playing a cockfighting specialist who refuses to talk until he's won the title of Cockfighter of the Year in a bloody showdown of feathers, claws and beaks.

Combining a sympathetic eye for the older, seamier side of the American South, with a deliberately 'verite' texture results in a uniquely amoral mix. Animal lovers should beware the real-life cockfights. Based on the cult Charles Willeford novel.

Adopt-a-Movie Kindly Adopted by Elric Kane