Famed for his work with Powell and Pressburger, legendary cinematographer Jack Cardiff’s peerless use of light and composition were as inspired by Caravaggio and Vermeer as they were by his filmmaking peers. In this atmospheric drama, Cardiff’s unique eye captures not only the glory of ‘40s Rome, but also the radiance of one of cinema’s great screen beauties.

Ava Gardner stars as the eponymous Pandora, an American singer both beguiling and beautiful in equal measure. Men fight and die for her, but none can possess her heart. When a mysterious Dutch freighter appears, Pandora is curiously drawn to its lone melancholy sailor (Mason). He regales her with the tale of a man doomed to sail the oceans forever – unless he can find a woman who would die for him.

Cardiff’s stunning photography and its duo of incomparable movie stars makes Pandora and the Flying Dutchman the quintessential lost classic. Reclaim it.

Rory Bonass, JDIFF