Silent Light is a powerful, technically excellent piece of cinema.

~ Andrew Robertson -

Silent Light is a powerful, technically excellent piece of cinema.

~ Andrew Robertson -

It is unlikely you are going to see a more palpable portrayal of grief this year than Jeon Do-yeon's magnificent perfomance as Shin-ae in this Korean drama of the heart.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

It is unlikely you are going to see a more palpable portrayal of grief this year than Jeon Do-yeon's magnificent perfomance as Shin-ae in this Korean drama of the heart.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Unlike most of the films about Iraq, Redacted portrays a military that’s a catchall for the uneducated and unsocialised; and while many may find this offensive, it’s perfectly in line with the draft-deferring lowering of recruitment standards.

~ The Exile -

Unlike most of the films about Iraq, Redacted portrays a military that’s a catchall for the uneducated and unsocialised; and while many may find this offensive, it’s perfectly in line with the draft-deferring lowering of recruitment standards.

~ The Exile -

Seen purely in aesthetic terms, Persepolis is an object of rare beauty, with no obvious precedents or parallels in the history of anime.

~ Anton Bitel -

Seen purely in aesthetic terms, Persepolis is an object of rare beauty, with no obvious precedents or parallels in the history of anime.

~ Anton Bitel -

There are many remarkable things about this unusual movie.

~ Chris -

There are many remarkable things about this unusual movie.

~ Chris -

Sanchez and Bayona never lose sight of the requirements of the genre, providing plenty in the way of seat-gripping tension and finding suitable shocks in the everyday.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Sanchez and Bayona never lose sight of the requirements of the genre, providing plenty in the way of seat-gripping tension and finding suitable shocks in the everyday.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Against the whisper of wind and buzz of flies, the Coens manage to find tension in the subtlest of movements and cut the dialogue through with humour as arid as the landscape.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Against the whisper of wind and buzz of flies, the Coens manage to find tension in the subtlest of movements and cut the dialogue through with humour as arid as the landscape.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The feel of this film is sumptuous - convincingly recreated mid-century sets, an evocative soundtrack, gorgeous gowns for the women and smart suits for the guys.

~ Martin Gray -

The feel of this film is sumptuous - convincingly recreated mid-century sets, an evocative soundtrack, gorgeous gowns for the women and smart suits for the guys.

~ Martin Gray -

Margot ought to be a plum rôle, but Kidman withers it to a prune.

~ Anton Bitel -

Margot ought to be a plum rôle, but Kidman withers it to a prune.

~ Anton Bitel -

The forlorn beauty of The Man From London might inspire you to question the assumptions we make about cinema.

~ Chris -

The forlorn beauty of The Man From London might inspire you to question the assumptions we make about cinema.

~ Chris -

Quirky directorial touches – such as Vellini’s blowing of smoke rings, or a dimming of sound at key moments - put the audience into the head of the protagonist and help us connect us fully with the characters.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Quirky directorial touches – such as Vellini’s blowing of smoke rings, or a dimming of sound at key moments - put the audience into the head of the protagonist and help us connect us fully with the characters.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

You feel your will to live give a whimper, make its excuses and start heading for the bar.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

You feel your will to live give a whimper, make its excuses and start heading for the bar.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A beautifully shot, brilliantly acted incoherent mess, ranking up there with David Lynch’s Inland Empire as one of the most inscrutable films of the year.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A beautifully shot, brilliantly acted incoherent mess, ranking up there with David Lynch’s Inland Empire as one of the most inscrutable films of the year.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Colours and style ooze from the screen.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Colours and style ooze from the screen.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A contemplative and visually dulcet experience.

~ Paul Griffiths -

A contemplative and visually dulcet experience.

~ Paul Griffiths -

A macabre fairy tale in black-and-white without fairies is superficial enough to be frivolous.

~ Angus Wolfe Murray -

A macabre fairy tale in black-and-white without fairies is superficial enough to be frivolous.

~ Angus Wolfe Murray -

Truly cutting-edge cinema, daring and imaginative, quite unlike anything else you'll see this year.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Truly cutting-edge cinema, daring and imaginative, quite unlike anything else you'll see this year.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Chaotic, funny, beautifully shot and performed with a childlike deadpan.

~ Anton Bitel -

Chaotic, funny, beautifully shot and performed with a childlike deadpan.

~ Anton Bitel -

The way the plot manipulates every worst case scenario is fiendishly clever. Seldom has an ensemble cast meshed so effectively.

~ Angus Wolfe Murray -

The way the plot manipulates every worst case scenario is fiendishly clever. Seldom has an ensemble cast meshed so effectively.

~ Angus Wolfe Murray -

Beg, borrow or steal a ticket to see it on the biggest screen you can find.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Beg, borrow or steal a ticket to see it on the biggest screen you can find.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Ponderings on the effects of war become distinctly ponderous.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Ponderings on the effects of war become distinctly ponderous.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Takes hold of the audience and never lets go.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Takes hold of the audience and never lets go.

~ Jennie Kermode -

A surprisingly droll deconstruction of crime reconstruction.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The circumstances of women are central to the film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Kurosawa's masterful synthesis doesn't stop with the script. He weaves a late Edo period samurai film, in its painstaking historic detail, into modernity.

~ Donald Munro -

The film is at its most effective when we feel the urgency of their boredom – the athletic one pacing in circles like a trapped animal – juxtaposed with the languid charm of their environment.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It doesn’t quite hit the mark, but that’s not to say that it isn’t a pleasant way to while away an hour and a half.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The difference here from more familiar selections allows us to appreciate different qualities in the art.

~ Jennie Kermode -

In what is probably Côté's most straightforwardly observational film to date, the fictions come baked in.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

While Verseau talks about how crucial the surgery was to her mental health, the complexity of the emotions experienced afterwards is also made clear.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The delight of the drama stems from the well crafted characters, while its heft hinges on toxicity that may not be immediately obvious.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

The script is lean, the sword edges keen and the characters mean.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

An extraordinarily thorough film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

It’s the acting that carries it, and naturally Farahani, one of the finest talents of her generation, does not disappoint.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Subtle observations about the racism that underpins this superficially idyllic society pepper a film which repeatedly forces its hero to question his assumptions.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The film concludes with what is probably the most influential special effect in the history of cinema.

~ Donald Munro -

Bethmann understands the situation well, but her closeness to the teenager and the personal character that the film takes on as a result is something else.

~ Jennie Kermode -

So carefully balanced is this that the film could almost have emerged as a romcom, and it’s that possibility, that clash between the absurdity that cinema has taught us to expect and the bitterness of real life, that makes it so effective.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Through the lens of the men’s romance, Onir takes in a good deal more, exploring the complex realities behind assumptions of prejudice and the myriad factors that go into making each of us who we are.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Throughout the film there is a sense of play, and even as the story evolves to take on darker material, something of that lightness, that happy-go-lucky quality remains.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The film hinges on amazing vocal work by Lalama.

~ Jennie Kermode -

There’s a genuine unpredictability to Honey Bunch, both structurally and thematically.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The delight of the drama stems from the well crafted characters, while its heft hinges on toxicity that may not be immediately obvious.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Every frame feels like the product of conscious decision-making, with nothing merely carrying us from one point to another.

~ Jennie Kermode -

An extraordinarily thorough film.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Writer/director Sandhya Suri - who has a documentary background - is keen to show that everyone plays their part in the prejudices and corruption of the legal system.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Ashcroft’s interpretation steers the story away from simple tragedy as we see Mortensen making gains as well as losses.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Comic invention rides shotgun on a screenplay that runs wild.

~ Angus Wolfe Murray -

The director shows how it’s not just Julie’s tennis skills that have been groomed by the coach but large aspects of her life.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

Cat’s viewpoint predominates, and Zilbalodis has an acute understanding of how the world looks from its point of view, of what catches its attention and how its body follows instinctively.

~ Jennie Kermode -

The difference here from more familiar selections allows us to appreciate different qualities in the art.

~ Jennie Kermode -

Lin and Sun studiously maintain the enigma around Shuo so that we are left guessing as to whether he’s just a disadvantaged teen trying to make his way in the world or a cuckoo in the nest.

~ Amber Wilkinson -

A sophisticated palate will discern any number of flavours running through Black Bag, but these are glosses on a traditional recipe.

~ Andrew Robertson -

It doesn’t quite hit the mark, but that’s not to say that it isn’t a pleasant way to while away an hour and a half.

~ Jennie Kermode -