Cinema lovers can see two of the most emotionally charged films of the year at Ely Cinema next month.

Both 12 Years a Slave and The Railway Man portray the emotional wreckage left by man’s hatred of those that are different to us and both display the horrors that are practised upon other humans as a result.

The nine-time Oscar nominated 12 Years a Slave will be shown on Thursday, March 13, and Thursday, March 20, both at 7.30pm, at Ely Cinema, at The Maltings.

The emotional heart-wrenching and enlightening film follows the life of Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man who is captured and sold into the slave trade of the southern states of 18th century America.

The film is an epic watch but be warned – it will leave you uncomfortable at points as the barbarity and brutality of the treatment of black men, women and children is uncompromisingly shown.

While Ejiofor is brilliant in his role, for the most part silent in his despair, it is Lupita Nyong’o who stands out in her role as the abused slave girl, Patsey.

The Railway Man is another tale of heartbreak as a woman falls in love with a former soldier who is obsessed by trains.

Unfortunately their lives are ruined by the trauma of his experiences as a prisoner of war in Burma in the Second World War.

When he is offered the chance to get revenge for the torture he faced he has to weigh up what action he wants, or is able to take.

The Railway Man will be shown on Thursday, March 6, at 3pm.

For tickets or information you can call the box office on 01353 616991.