Babel/Munich/A Mighty Heart

Triple bill of acclaimed film dramas. In 'Babel' (2006), a young American couple, Richard (Brad Pitt) and Susan (Cate Blanchett), go to Morocco on holiday to restore their fragile relationship following the death of one of their children.

However, they are catapulted into disaster when a rogue gunshot fired by a Moroccan farmer's young son brings Susan to the brink of death.

Meanwhile, the couple's other two children have been left at home in San Diego in the care of their housekeeper Amelia (Adriana Barraza), who cannot find anyone to mind the children while she attends her son's wedding across the border in Tijuana, Mexico.

She decides to take them with her, a decision that nearly costs all three their lives.

In the third storyline, set in Tokyo, a teenage deaf-mute rebel, Chieko (Rinko Kikuchi), is reeling after the apparent suicide of her mother.

Her attention-seeking behaviour makes her increasingly vulnerable, but can she attract the attention of the person she feels most isolated from: her father?

The implications of language, whether unspoken or misunderstood, are the recurring theme in this set of interlocking tales of love, prejudice and the connections between us all. 'Munich' (2005) follows the actions of a team of Mossad agents dispatched by the Israeli government to seek revenge against the Palestinian terrorist organisation that funded and carried out the assassinations of eleven Israeli athletes during the 1972 Munich Olympics.

In the days after the assassinations, young and enthusiastic Mossad operative Avner (Eric Bana) is asked by President Golda Meir (Lynn Cohen) to lead Israel's response.

With the help of his handler Ephraim (Geoffrey Rush), Avner assembles a team, comprising bomb expert Robert (Mathieu Kassovitz), experienced sweeper Carl (Ciaran Hinds), unpredictable Steve (Daniel Craig), and dependable Hans (Hanns Zischler).

Plugging itself into Europe's terrorist network, the team operates undercover and relies on information provided by the mysterious 'Le Group', headed by the avuncular Papa (Michael Lonsdale).

As the team assassinates its targets, using methods that range from sophisticated explosives to up-close shootings, Avner and the others begin to question the morality of their actions, and whether vengeance can ever be a just motive.

As Avner starts to miss his wife Daphna (Ayelet Zorer), the mission takes a deadly turn when the Mossad squad is itself targeted, and Avner finds himself becoming increasingly paranoid and suspicious.

Finally, 'A Mighty Heart' (2007) gives a harrowing account of the life and death of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman), who was kidnapped by Islamic fundamentalists in 2002.

Based on the memoirs of Daniel's widow Mariane, played by Angelina Jolie, the film examines Pearl's reasons for being in Pakistan at the time of his abduction, and the subsequent events leading up to his tragic death.