Inferno

Roy Ward Baker's 1953 film is one of the few serious dramas shot in three dimensions. When the selfish millionaire Donald Carson breaks his leg on a desert holiday, his wife and their friend leave on the pretext of fetching help; they are lovers and mean for him to die in the heat. Realising he has been abandoned, Carson starts crawling to survive. The film's strength is showing the effort of survival almost in real time and in detail: finding water, making a splint, getting down a rock face. Robert Ryan's performance dissolves the character's arrogance into physical labour. The use of 3D was designed for depth and distance; even watched flat, the scale of the desert comes through. The combination of noir and survival narrative is rare in the genre. Who it's for: viewers who like 1950s Hollywood thrillers and survival stories. Who it's not for: anyone wanting a fast-moving plot, or who will find a structure with one character alone for long stretches dull.