There are no shortcuts in this film, no conventions and nothing careless.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

There are no shortcuts in this film, no conventions and nothing careless.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

On the visual front, the camera moves harmoniously with the workers' unpredictable gestures.

~ Dalesia Cozorici -

On the visual front, the camera moves harmoniously with the workers' unpredictable gestures.

~ Dalesia Cozorici -

The writer-director team of Mathieu Neart and Stéphan Castang shows a repeated willingness to take risks which really elevate the film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The writer-director team of Mathieu Neart and Stéphan Castang shows a repeated willingness to take risks which really elevate the film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The idea of different things being in and out of focus for the various generations runs through a film that has sweetly comic moments and poignancy in equal measure.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The idea of different things being in and out of focus for the various generations runs through a film that has sweetly comic moments and poignancy in equal measure.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A film built on the repeated turn of the seasons and the idea of leaving and returning.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A film built on the repeated turn of the seasons and the idea of leaving and returning.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

While the end result is important, Hùng’s film is all about savouring the moment, something that becomes more urgent as it progresses - although talk of speed has little place in a film that unfolds with the pace and beauty of a flower.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

While the end result is important, Hùng’s film is all about savouring the moment, something that becomes more urgent as it progresses - although talk of speed has little place in a film that unfolds with the pace and beauty of a flower.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The brutality of the abuse is never played down or shied away from, but nor is it considered insurmountable.

~ Sunil Chauhan -

The brutality of the abuse is never played down or shied away from, but nor is it considered insurmountable.

~ Sunil Chauhan -

Stopmotion is not a film that strives to keep secrets or deliver surprises. It wants us to understand what’s happening, at least to an extent, and still be helpless to prevent it.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Stopmotion is not a film that strives to keep secrets or deliver surprises. It wants us to understand what’s happening, at least to an extent, and still be helpless to prevent it.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Tejpal’s debut may be uneven but it's certainly not short of momentum.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Tejpal’s debut may be uneven but it's certainly not short of momentum.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

An unusually intimate, exploratory film underscored by dry humour, Sky Peals has an atmosphere that you won’t find anywhere else.

~ Jennie Kermode -

An unusually intimate, exploratory film underscored by dry humour, Sky Peals has an atmosphere that you won’t find anywhere else.

~ Jennie Kermode -

What really drives the film is the quietly powerful central performance.

~ Jennie Kermode -

What really drives the film is the quietly powerful central performance.

~ Jennie Kermode -

While attempting to describe the crux of Samsara is, essentially, as impossible as catching lightning in a jar, join me on a journey of imagination and we’ll give it a go.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

While attempting to describe the crux of Samsara is, essentially, as impossible as catching lightning in a jar, join me on a journey of imagination and we’ll give it a go.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Its unreliable geographies, human and physical, make it even more beguiling.

~ Andrew Robertson -

Its unreliable geographies, human and physical, make it even more beguiling.

~ Andrew Robertson -

The feeling that something bad could happen at any moment permeates the mood.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The feeling that something bad could happen at any moment permeates the mood.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A well told tale, funny and poignant and more emotionally complex than it initially appears.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A well told tale, funny and poignant and more emotionally complex than it initially appears.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It is an assured and relentless exposé.

~ Richard Mowe -

It is an assured and relentless exposé.

~ Richard Mowe -

Patriarchal and paternalistic structures at both a family and country level are put in the spotlight.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Patriarchal and paternalistic structures at both a family and country level are put in the spotlight.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Mirza may sometimes over-indulge in sentiment, but there’s a warmth to the film that makes it easy to like, and she handles its more chaotic scenes with flair.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Mirza may sometimes over-indulge in sentiment, but there’s a warmth to the film that makes it easy to like, and she handles its more chaotic scenes with flair.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Coppola paints pictures of mid-century Americana and the codes and moral shortcomings that go with it.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

Coppola paints pictures of mid-century Americana and the codes and moral shortcomings that go with it.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

While much of the visual humour works perfectly thanks to good timing and framing, some of the running gags seem more suited to a sprint than the marathon Rejtman takes them on.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

While much of the visual humour works perfectly thanks to good timing and framing, some of the running gags seem more suited to a sprint than the marathon Rejtman takes them on.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Lanthimos skillfully transforms this lustful carnival into a coming-of-age drama, emphasising the protagonist's mastery of sexuality as a connotation of her mental evolution.

~ Levan Tskhovrebadze -

Lanthimos skillfully transforms this lustful carnival into a coming-of-age drama, emphasising the protagonist's mastery of sexuality as a connotation of her mental evolution.

~ Levan Tskhovrebadze -

The only mystery is why anyone would stay to the end of Poolman.

~ Donald Munro -

The only mystery is why anyone would stay to the end of Poolman.

~ Donald Munro -

The 4:3 format, preferred by Yasujirō Ozu, is the perfect frame for paying attention to the small mysteries that are often overlooked.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The 4:3 format, preferred by Yasujirō Ozu, is the perfect frame for paying attention to the small mysteries that are often overlooked.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

Peeping Tom is a film all about watching and identification, a film whose real horror hinges on the way it implicates the audience in its dark voyeurism.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Peeping Tom is a film all about watching and identification, a film whose real horror hinges on the way it implicates the audience in its dark voyeurism.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Just as Reymont’s book immersed itself in the metaphorical colour of Polish peasant life, so the Welchmans’ film delivers a flood of literal colour.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Just as Reymont’s book immersed itself in the metaphorical colour of Polish peasant life, so the Welchmans’ film delivers a flood of literal colour.

~ Jennie Kermode -

With a background in documentary, director Mika Gustafson captures something that, though not always coherent, feels fresh and raw and real.

~ Jennie Kermode -

With a background in documentary, director Mika Gustafson captures something that, though not always coherent, feels fresh and raw and real.

~ Jennie Kermode -

No matter that the plot development is deliberately murky, it’s the mood that catches you in its tides.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

No matter that the plot development is deliberately murky, it’s the mood that catches you in its tides.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The powerful forces of family and fable, old and new, intertwine and vie for supremacy in Belgian-Congolese director Baloji’s visually striking debut.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The powerful forces of family and fable, old and new, intertwine and vie for supremacy in Belgian-Congolese director Baloji’s visually striking debut.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The film undercuts the pop psychology associated with sporting success, clearing the space in which to attempt a more honest account.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The film undercuts the pop psychology associated with sporting success, clearing the space in which to attempt a more honest account.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There’s not a great deal here that we haven’t seen before, but it’s well delivered.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There’s not a great deal here that we haven’t seen before, but it’s well delivered.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Handsomely mounted in terms of both the wide open landscapes and the confines of the church, Thornton allows the mystery surrounding the boy’s powers to remain that way, unknowable perhaps even to the youngster.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Handsomely mounted in terms of both the wide open landscapes and the confines of the church, Thornton allows the mystery surrounding the boy’s powers to remain that way, unknowable perhaps even to the youngster.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A beautifully constructed piece of work in which every detail serves the whole, putting the tools of the epic at the disposal of a story which is intimate and delicately realised.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A beautifully constructed piece of work in which every detail serves the whole, putting the tools of the epic at the disposal of a story which is intimate and delicately realised.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It’s a slight thing but nicely delivered.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It’s a slight thing but nicely delivered.

~ Jennie Kermode -

As indicative as John's story is, there's barely room in nearly two hours to cover much beyond the basics.

~ Andrew Robertson -

As indicative as John's story is, there's barely room in nearly two hours to cover much beyond the basics.

~ Andrew Robertson -

One of the most moving portraits of childhood seen recently on the screen.

~ Richard Mowe -

One of the most moving portraits of childhood seen recently on the screen.

~ Richard Mowe -

The balance held between creepiness and fascination, sheer fun and lingering disturbance is held throughout.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The balance held between creepiness and fascination, sheer fun and lingering disturbance is held throughout.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The film is compellingly, playfully wayward, a documentary-leaning piece so sincere you might not entirely believe it to be a fictional construction until the credits roll.

~ Sunil Chauhan -

The film is compellingly, playfully wayward, a documentary-leaning piece so sincere you might not entirely believe it to be a fictional construction until the credits roll.

~ Sunil Chauhan -

Maestro is a starry affair on all fronts.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

Maestro is a starry affair on all fronts.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The film feels surprisingly modern but never anachronistically so.

~ Rebecca Naughten -

The film feels surprisingly modern but never anachronistically so.

~ Rebecca Naughten -

It’s Dastmalchian’s light touch which really makes it work.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It’s Dastmalchian’s light touch which really makes it work.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It is Scorsese at his, one hesitates to say peak, but absolute.

~ Andrew Robertson -

It is Scorsese at his, one hesitates to say peak, but absolute.

~ Andrew Robertson -

There's a disassociation between the original's ennui and what might be the consequences of sleep deprivation. There's also a rebalancing of its violence, and it might be that which most discomfits.

~ Andrew Robertson -

There's a disassociation between the original's ennui and what might be the consequences of sleep deprivation. There's also a rebalancing of its violence, and it might be that which most discomfits.

~ Andrew Robertson -

This cinematic exploration, a manifestation of Christian bigotry, speculates with cinematic icons and religious imagery, laying bare the power-hungry clergy.

~ Levan Tskhovrebadze -

This cinematic exploration, a manifestation of Christian bigotry, speculates with cinematic icons and religious imagery, laying bare the power-hungry clergy.

~ Levan Tskhovrebadze -

By the end you might not only ask yourself if someone is losing their marbles but whose marbles, in fact, are the ones that are being lost.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

By the end you might not only ask yourself if someone is losing their marbles but whose marbles, in fact, are the ones that are being lost.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

There’s a freshness to this world, as if one had just stepped out of one’s own door and arrived in an unexpected place.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There’s a freshness to this world, as if one had just stepped out of one’s own door and arrived in an unexpected place.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A sort of soft-faced tyrany abounds.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A sort of soft-faced tyrany abounds.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A fresh spin on territory that has been frequently explored.

~ Richard Mowe -

A fresh spin on territory that has been frequently explored.

~ Richard Mowe -

For all the apparent chaos, this is a tightly controlled piece of work which fully delivers on the promise of Stolevski’s earlier films.

~ Jennie Kermode -

For all the apparent chaos, this is a tightly controlled piece of work which fully delivers on the promise of Stolevski’s earlier films.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Hoard goes further, creeps around, becomes something you can start to smell, to taste.

~ Andrew Robertson -

Hoard goes further, creeps around, becomes something you can start to smell, to taste.

~ Andrew Robertson -

A fascinating piece of work, mixing glamour and darkness and a lot of uncertainty.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A fascinating piece of work, mixing glamour and darkness and a lot of uncertainty.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Kordofani uses the greater intimacy offered by the camera to bring us close to the characters and reveal the complex layers of relationship developing between them.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Kordofani uses the greater intimacy offered by the camera to bring us close to the characters and reveal the complex layers of relationship developing between them.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A documentary-drama of hypnotic power.

~ Richard Mowe -

A documentary-drama of hypnotic power.

~ Richard Mowe -

Although the issues of trauma and recovery being dealt with here are not exactly easy watching, Onashile shoots the film with a fluidity and grace.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Although the issues of trauma and recovery being dealt with here are not exactly easy watching, Onashile shoots the film with a fluidity and grace.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Whatever structuring the directors are doing is achieved with the lightest of touches, so that we feel as though we’re just along for the ride with these guys.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Whatever structuring the directors are doing is achieved with the lightest of touches, so that we feel as though we’re just along for the ride with these guys.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The exposure of the film’s underlying structures...invites audiences to think about the processes of storytelling and interpretation, which is important, because it’s a story which took the missing women away.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The exposure of the film’s underlying structures...invites audiences to think about the processes of storytelling and interpretation, which is important, because it’s a story which took the missing women away.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There’s something inherently endearing about the way that Nikou always managed to conjure timelessness in his worlds. They’re more analogue than futuristic but ultimately hang in a sort of limbo of ‘here but not quite now’.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

There’s something inherently endearing about the way that Nikou always managed to conjure timelessness in his worlds. They’re more analogue than futuristic but ultimately hang in a sort of limbo of ‘here but not quite now’.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

An emotionally engaging portrait of the struggles of life on a Native American reservation in Oklahoma

~ Jeremy Mathews -

An emotionally engaging portrait of the struggles of life on a Native American reservation in Oklahoma

~ Jeremy Mathews -

An amuse-bouche of a film, Aki Kaurismäki’s latest comedy romance may leave you wanting more but it’s also a fully rounded, good looking experience packed with all the flavours we’ve come to expect from the master of deadpan down the years.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

An amuse-bouche of a film, Aki Kaurismäki’s latest comedy romance may leave you wanting more but it’s also a fully rounded, good looking experience packed with all the flavours we’ve come to expect from the master of deadpan down the years.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Hamaguchi isn’t scared to completely change the rhythm of his film on a dime, something that is likely to frustrate as many people as it delights.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Hamaguchi isn’t scared to completely change the rhythm of his film on a dime, something that is likely to frustrate as many people as it delights.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Striking in its intimacy.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Striking in its intimacy.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

If you take it for what it is rather than what it was marketed as, The End We Start From is an interesting watch.

~ Donald Munro -

If you take it for what it is rather than what it was marketed as, The End We Start From is an interesting watch.

~ Donald Munro -

There are so many shots through things, boundaries, borders, thresholds, that we are primed for other barriers crossed. Those transgressions are not light ones, but in them is an abject honesty.

~ Andrew Robertson -

There are so many shots through things, boundaries, borders, thresholds, that we are primed for other barriers crossed. Those transgressions are not light ones, but in them is an abject honesty.

~ Andrew Robertson -

Jude masterfully keeps the audience attached to the screen for almost three hours without relying on heightened tensions or conventional plot twists.

~ Liza Alpaidze -

Jude masterfully keeps the audience attached to the screen for almost three hours without relying on heightened tensions or conventional plot twists.

~ Liza Alpaidze -

Moreno isn’t shy about his use of symbolism...What this effects to disguise, however, is the degree to which [the men's] own thinking has been shaped by symbols and by the belief system which surrounds them.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Moreno isn’t shy about his use of symbolism...What this effects to disguise, however, is the degree to which [the men's] own thinking has been shaped by symbols and by the belief system which surrounds them.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Though aimed at children, it’s so beautiful that viewers of all ages will find themselves enraptured.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Though aimed at children, it’s so beautiful that viewers of all ages will find themselves enraptured.

~ Jennie Kermode -

As Copa 71 goes on to show, it’s not the players that are the problem but the lack of a level playing field.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

As Copa 71 goes on to show, it’s not the players that are the problem but the lack of a level playing field.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Its pastiches of mid-20th Century Korean cinema are beautifully observed and a lot of fun.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Its pastiches of mid-20th Century Korean cinema are beautifully observed and a lot of fun.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A meditation on both memory and movies as well as ageing and a hankering for the past that is informed by the melancholic knowledge that nostalgia is inevitably rose-tinted.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A meditation on both memory and movies as well as ageing and a hankering for the past that is informed by the melancholic knowledge that nostalgia is inevitably rose-tinted.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The action element of the film has the enjoyable verve of the original, particularly when the mechanics of the nugget-maker are involved, but the lack of a tight focus on characters in one place makes the emotional heart of the matter more diffuse.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The action element of the film has the enjoyable verve of the original, particularly when the mechanics of the nugget-maker are involved, but the lack of a tight focus on characters in one place makes the emotional heart of the matter more diffuse.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A multi-layered journey into the filmmaking process.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A multi-layered journey into the filmmaking process.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The hand-drawn beauty of the images always connects to ideas, something grander that we have yet to find out about.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The hand-drawn beauty of the images always connects to ideas, something grander that we have yet to find out about.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

Simply put, I don't know what it's trying to do, and I don't know if it does either.

~ Andrew Robertson -

Simply put, I don't know what it's trying to do, and I don't know if it does either.

~ Andrew Robertson -

There is great chemistry between them and Jaques knows when to tread lightly, letting their natural humour take over.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There is great chemistry between them and Jaques knows when to tread lightly, letting their natural humour take over.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The unadorned observation of the physical aspects of the relationship in which middle-aged bodies are shown without artifice is one of the most hypnotic aspect of Naveriani’s vision.

~ Richard Mowe -

The unadorned observation of the physical aspects of the relationship in which middle-aged bodies are shown without artifice is one of the most hypnotic aspect of Naveriani’s vision.

~ Richard Mowe -

Young Lister is a marvel, showing a remarkably sophisticated understanding of what her role requires as Lila, having suffered significant brain damage, gradually begins to require verbal and motor skills.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Young Lister is a marvel, showing a remarkably sophisticated understanding of what her role requires as Lila, having suffered significant brain damage, gradually begins to require verbal and motor skills.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The Beast explores what Henry James diagnosed so devastatingly. The chill of egotism and the feverish dance around the void are so desperately relevant today that it leaves one breathless.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

The Beast explores what Henry James diagnosed so devastatingly. The chill of egotism and the feverish dance around the void are so desperately relevant today that it leaves one breathless.

~ Anne-Katrin Titze -

Glob confesses that she initially thought of Apolonia’s life as a fairy tale, something more like fiction than reality, but over the course of 13 long years she comes to recognise not only the humanity of her subject, but her own.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Glob confesses that she initially thought of Apolonia’s life as a fairy tale, something more like fiction than reality, but over the course of 13 long years she comes to recognise not only the humanity of her subject, but her own.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The aerial shots of the forest and the believable transformations with feathers, wings, beaks and claws as well as fish scales, make for riveting viewing.

~ Richard Mowe -

The aerial shots of the forest and the believable transformations with feathers, wings, beaks and claws as well as fish scales, make for riveting viewing.

~ Richard Mowe -

Pregnancy is often depicted as a state of enhanced vulnerability, and one which points the way to increased dependency. Here, Alaoui turns that around.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Pregnancy is often depicted as a state of enhanced vulnerability, and one which points the way to increased dependency. Here, Alaoui turns that around.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Protagonist Adam (Andrew Scott) lives in a neatly furnished home, no longer feels the need to hide his sexuality, and tells himself he’s fine, but the music says otherwise.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Protagonist Adam (Andrew Scott) lives in a neatly furnished home, no longer feels the need to hide his sexuality, and tells himself he’s fine, but the music says otherwise.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Otero, who is in almost every scene, carries the film with her fresh and naturalistic performance, which is perfectly complemented by Solaguren’s impressionistic style.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Otero, who is in almost every scene, carries the film with her fresh and naturalistic performance, which is perfectly complemented by Solaguren’s impressionistic style.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The film, directed by feature debutant Shaun Dozier, retains the density of dialogue you might expect from a stage play but, by leaning into the theatrical nature of the proceedings, Dozier is in some ways able to make this into a virtue.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A very effective piece of low budget storytelling.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Coogan is well cast in this tricky role, moving easily from humour to heartbreak..

~ Jennie Kermode -

Manizha Bakhtari may not be a household name but after watching Natalie Halla’s documentary you’re likely to think she ought to be.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Sung’s own camera plays tricks, placing objects too close in the foreground so that parts of an image are out of focus, like an incomplete memory.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The concept, narrative, dialogue, cinematography and action sequences are elements of Scanners that can't be faulted.

~ Donald Munro -

The film hangs on Pemberton’s performance, and he imbues Doug with a sweetness that makes us feel for him despite his deeply misguided actions.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The screenplay written by the filmmaker and Andrea Piva is a proper masterwork, from the basic plotting to the intelligent, insightful dialogue.

~ Marko Stojiljkovic -

From the start, there is something different about this film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Despite the anger at the unfairness of what has gone before, this is ultimately a warm-hearted, life-affirming film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It is a ride, okay, and it is a bit nauseating and therefore not sterile.

~ Marko Stojiljkovic -

It’s also striking to think that when Leila is looking forward into the future, she is already, in some senses, looking at our recent past, which only reinforces the sense of the cyclical and ongoing nature of her themes.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Thorne still comes across as being at the stage where many aspects of her work are experimental. She’s yet to settle into her style.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The characters work well...but there’s never quite enough energy to events.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Ahmed doesn’t need to include war footage for us to feel its weight and understand its shadow.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The colour elements prove all the more striking when in contrast to black and white.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The beautiful cinematography, the bluesy jazz score and the gentle pace of the film are beguiling, but Masciari makes sure that we don’t lose sight of the ridiculous.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Shot over 17 years, it mingles intimate personal moments with visceral concert footage, its musical sequences knitted together with some of the best editing you’re likely to see this year.

~ Jennie Kermode -

History comes alive in the voices of those who remember it.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The choice of hand-drawn animation and its ability to demonstrate a magical realism allows the film to find the right distance from what is being depicted.

~ Richard Mowe -

Having set up all the elements of a thriller, the film proceeds to untangle them in a refreshingly different and mature way.

~ Jennie Kermode -

[Hart] doesn’t turn up the volume, but uses tone and repetition so effectively that the film becomes a microcosm of the real experience.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Anime at its very finest - lightning paced, visually stunning, feverishly creative and overrun by a logic all its own.

~ Anton Bitel -

The action is pacy but that doesn’t mean Courvoisier skims the surface.

~ Amber Wilkinson -