Lola (Franka Potente) has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 marks in this German triptych that shows three possible versions of the same scenario.

One of the most instantly striking movies ever made, Run Lola Run (Lola rennt) becomes immediately iconic with just a few images in only 80 minutes. The fact we see them three times helps sear these shots into our brains, but the bold simplicity of its visuals (coupled with the pounding techno soundtrack) ensure these pictures will be forever running through your head.

Though the emphasis is on Tom Tykwer’s experimental style (including animated sequences and proto-Matrix camera tricks), the 1998 thriller equally stimulates the mind through its clever butterfly-effect plotting. Each scene is a fresh roll of the dice, every action triggering variations of events like the domino run that opens the film. We even glimpse the spiralling effects on characters who cross paths with our flame-haired heroine, their lives all connected by chance and circumstance.

Ironic and iconic, colourful and kinetic, Lola rennt is a German Trainspotting; a pulse-racing collision of underground cool and unapologetic entertainment that cuts a red-hot swathe through the grey of mainstream cinema. To enjoy it is inevitable.