The Queen of Spades is truly a lost gem of British cinema from much admired director Thorold Dickinson (Gaslight, High Command), not seen in UK cinemas since its original release in 1949.

A fascinating macabre fantasy based on a short story by Alexander Pushkin, this Poe-like tale is set in 1806, when Imperial Russia and especially St. Petersburg are in the grip of gambling fever. No card strikes more fear in the hearts of the soldiers than the evil Queen of Spades. Captain Herman Suvorin (Anton Walbrook) is a lowly German engineer: an outsider obsessed with making his fortune, his peculiar manner isolates him from the revelries of the other bawdy soldiers. He is intrigued, though, by the soldiers' gossip that tells of the legend of an ancient Countess (Dame Edith Evans), who supposedly sold her soul to the devil years before in exchange for the secret of success at the card game du jour: Faro.

Deliciously macabre and sumptuous in its design, The Queen of Spades is a testament to Dickinson, who throughout his career refused to compromise his artistic integrity in the face of commercial pressures. Martin Scorsese, a long time champion of Dickinson’s work, spearheaded this restoration, and he has kindly recorded a brief introduction which will be screened before the film.