Maggie Lovitt

With neat, concise storytelling, and a skilled cast, Rogue Agent is a compelling film that will appeal to thriller and true crime lovers alike.

Moving On is yet another tour de force for Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, who once again prove that they are a force to be reckoned with.

Once again, Daisy Ridley proves she has the charm and star power to make even the shakiest scripts a thoroughly enjoyable watch. Like Protégé, Cleaner has a lot of compelling storylines, action sequences, and intention, but the execution leaves something to be desired.

While Devotion may not look to reinvent the genre, it does carve out its own space in this year’s impressive slate of war films. It’s a solid, straight-laced story, that doesn’t shy away from the realities of war or the 1950s. Once it finds its wings in the final act, it soars to a place of real power.

Rather than embracing the more nuanced themes, the film shies away from deeper introspection.

War is hell and for a little over two and a half hours, All Quiet on the Western Front displays its ghastly horrors without ever venturing into voyeuristic consumption, opting instead to unsettle its audience with bleak realities and sobering truths.

On the heels of Girl on the Third Floor and Jakob’s Wife, Stevens continues to prove that he is one of the best indie horror directors to emerge into the mainstream. He has a deft understanding of the genre and is keenly aware of when to dole out jumpscares, visual cues, and just the right amount of gore to delight horror lovers who favor psychological thrillers just as much as bloody horror.

She Is Conann is not for the faint of heart, weak of stomach, or morally pious. It plays upon the most provocative ideas imaginable—pushing the boundaries of not only sexuality, gender, and self-image, but societal norms too.

For me, it’s the film to beat this year, easily taking the crown as my favorite scary movie of the last several years — even if all the scares come from the idea of what might happen when your closest friends turn on you.

Race for Glory: Audi vs. Lancia is a compelling and rewatchable film though it feels as though some elements have been cut out.

At its core, Vesper feels like a dark fairytale, like something born from the haunted tales of Grimms' Fairy Tales.

Jethica feels like the middle act of a much more compelling film and is a rare example of a film that could have done with a smidge more exposition. If this were a proof-of-concept I would love to see a much deeper, broader look at this story.

How to Train Your Dragon is the gold-star example of how to do a live-action remake right.

Breaking is a powerful film that will leave audiences reeling as the credits roll. Corbin and Armah neatly adapted a tragic reality and presented it with grace and understanding, which will hopefully force audiences to think about the reality they live in.

It’s not that Mothering Sunday is a bad film, it’s far from it, but it never reaches the echelons of true greatness that it should have been able to achieve with such a who’s who cast.

Where the script falls short, Norton and Dunne pick up the slack and carry these characters through to the finish line.

This adaptation captures the atmospheric and sorrow-laden storytelling that comes with turning the pages on Richard’s final days.

Words of War may not be a film that does anything stylistically or creatively to reinvent the wheel, but it has a message that transcends the bounds of art.

The script might have glaring flaws and painfully ambiguous morals, but The Creator is a truly remarkable piece of original science fiction storytelling. Even when it borrows from ideas established in films that preceded it, Edwards manages to make it feel fresh and new. The Creator is a beautifully crafted, albeit imperfect, science-fiction thriller that tries to unravel what it means to be a good human in a bad world.

For all its visual polish and strong performances, Faces of Death remains caught between commentary and replication. It wants to critique our obsession with violence, but it can’t quite resist indulging in it, too. The result is a film that feels acutely aware of the cultural moment it inhabits, yet strangely hesitant to push beyond it.

With Phyllis Nagy at the helm, Call Jane had all the potential in the world to be something revolutionary, but it ultimately chose to take the path of least resistance. It leans into a very glossy feel-good “girl power” energy, ensuring that its audience never once feels true discomfort when discussing uncomfortable truths.

All The Old Knives attempts to convince its audiences that it is a tawdry game of chess, but in reality, it’s a game of checkers. Pine and Newton are its saving grace, with their performances elevating it just above the waters of drowning in its own self-importance.

The Thursday Murder Club is a delightfully charming movie that hits all the highs of the cozy murder mystery genre without any of the negatives.

Mali Elfman’s directorial debut Next Exit, sets out on a journey towards death, but along the way, it is filled to the brim with life and questioning about what it is to really live. What’s fascinating is that Elfman penned the script over a ten-year period, yet it so perfectly encapsulates the here-and-now.

On paper, Late Bloomers may not be a revolutionary tale, but its execution makes it a clear standout within this specific sub-genre of nihilistic millennial dread.

It’s funny, bizarre, uncomfortable, and an absolute cringe-fest for all the best reasons.

It summons the magic of nostalgia with laughs, heart, and music, and perfectly satisfies the heart of audiences trying to rekindle the past.

While The Last Front struggles with its stylistic choices and lack of substance, it is still an entirely watchable and almost enjoyable war drama.