A triumph of pure cinema and wonderful visual storytelling from Chandor, who must now be considered the real deal, while Redford is sublime in what could well be the performance of his career.

The film is engrossing and beautifully mounted, and is sure to not disappoint anyone who’s enjoyed McDonagh’s previous rough rides.

The funniest, most deliciously venomous Jane Austen movie ever made, and conclusive proof that, a) Kate Beckinsale has been seriously undervalued by the movies and, b) Whit Stillman is a major, distinctive talent.

A raw horror masterpiece from a first-time director that deserves to be mentioned in the same frantic breath as the genre’s greats. Even the most jaded viewer should find something in Hereditary to disturb and distress them.

There is delight and distress in equal measure: for his talent, mischief, waywardness, for the disillusionment and tragedy of his later years. Unique.

The performances transform this otherwise orthodox cat-and-mouse movie into a gripping experience.

Rungano Nyoni is one of the most exciting voices in cinema today and On Becoming a Guinea Fowl is abject proof: a disquieting, blistering examination of a family where social status trumps blood ties.

Long, but engrossing and frequently enraging drama that not only exposes the flaws in the Romanian health service, but also in modern humanity.

Suspense gives way to metaphor in a stark thriller that hints at the work to come from master Carol Reed.

Not for anyone with a sensitive gag reflex. Joshua Marston provides a harrowing depiction of drug- muling for dummies. The raw, revolting, dangerous details of such an undertaking are graphic.

Holocaust drama shot like costume drama, creating a sense of aesthetic disharmony.

Happy As Lazzaro is s-l-o-w and its narrative twist will alienate some. But this is deliberate, singular filmmaking, at once poetic and down-to-earth, from an unsung talent. Let’s be clear: Alice Rohrwacher should cherished.

The film's status as must-see documentary of the year is indisputable.

A gentle trance-out and the strangest Palme d'Or winner in a while.

The real revelation here is Heath Ledger as the bruised and sometimes brutal Ennis. His tortured secret is the tragedy and the ecstasy of this powerful and moving film, a smart study of relationships that could but can't and never will be.

In outline it sounds trite - a disenfranchised kid is turned around by a kindly stranger - but the Dardennes' make it so much more. Raw but compassionate, naturalistic but compelling. If you're looking to get into the Dardennes, this is a great place to start.

Fresh, funny and frequently bonkers, Into The Spider-Verse is an astonishing shot of cinematic superhero adrenaline. For such an over-familiar character, somehow, this feels original and entirely new.

It isn’t always subtle, but Blue Jean is a gorgeously presented, stirringly performed slice of British queer history that announces director Georgia Oakley and actor Rosy McEwen as major talents to watch.

The Wicker Man is, more than anything else, a film about what people can do in the name of religion or, more generally, belief. Its power comes not from appeals to the supernatural but from a deep understanding of our own undeniable nature. Horror doesn't get much closer to home than that.

Stark but utterly compelling, this chilling take on Macbeth is a visually stunning tour de force. It’s as good as you’d expect from this cast and crew, which is saying something.

For all the courage and ingenuity of this extraordinary film, it's clear that Caouette has actually resolved few issues and that his life is still very much a work in progress.

Beautiful and original.

A mesmerising, wondrous example of animation’s potential; a thoughtful allegory about ecocide and death; and an adorable ode to four-legged (and two-legged) friends. No ebbs here: Flow is the real deal.

A leftfield sports documentary that's as insightful and thought-provoking as it is fast and furious.

A clear-eyed celebration of a giant of film writing. We’ll refrain from the thumb jokes, but consider this a hearty recommendation.

Describe it and this sounds completely weird and a bit creepy, like some extremely niche fetish porn with a budget. Watch it and it’s magical; fantastic in all senses. It’s the biggest risk of del Toro’s career and it could not have paid off more.

Whether viewed as a political allegory or a domestic drama, this is the most accessible film yet from one of Europe’s very finest filmmakers.

There’s beautiful visual and verbal comedy, and the film has the creative spontaneity of a dream, foreshadowing Spirited Away (it influenced Miyazaki). However, the lack of momentum and focus may end up boring children, while the English dub actors sound a little stilted.

It is also, of course, quite unrelentingly cool.

You don't need to understand anything of baseball to get behind this, a chest-swelling story about second chances and flipping a finger up (even a giant foam one) to The Man.

Of course, this is a film you have to meet half-way. If you’re willing to enter its world, it’s an immensely rewarding, amusing, wise, melancholy and involving experience.

A brittle black comedy that has plenty to say about modern manhood and the human survival instinct.

One of the greatest (and sadly most forgotten) romantic comedies ever, which has not a cracking script, but some trademark-terrific visuals.

Crammed with wonderful De Palma showboating and a wonderfully crackpot turn from John Lithgow as a right-wing loon.

Showing that "the little man" CAN make a difference. Marvin is exceptional.

A claustrophobic portrait of pre-adolescent turmoil, this is an exceptionally taut drama. It’s Wandel’s debut feature, and it feels like she’s been preparing for it her whole life.

Startling is the fact that a film so light on action and heavy on chat can be so achingly funny without having being crafted by a young Woody Allen.

Tough, but resilience is amply rewarded. If last year’s larky Frank suggested Abrahamson was a director to watch, this makes him a director to be cherished.

Pacino simmers in this daring and brilliantly constructed treatise on the many facets of a crime.

Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé achieves total Beyhem, a riot of colour, spectacle, inventive staging, stunning vocals and gorgeous grooves. As a self-portrait, it might not delve as deep as you’d like, but it offers a thrilling lesson in what it takes to be a pop icon.

Surprisingly gripping for a film devoid of real action, this family drama masquerading as a murder-mystery touches on universal marital tensions; it is both enigmatic and very human.

Drolly scripted, impeccably designed and photographed, and played to succinct perfection, this may only be a slender drama, but it's also a cherishable summation of what makes Aki Kaurismäki special.

A charming road movie that develops into a full-blown study of life and roots, offering a beautiful insight into the way families migrate and change.

An enchanting story played out by a great female cast, particularly Cavazos as the poor Tita, and unique visuals from Arau. With equal parts melodrama, comedy, tragedy and cookery, Like Water For Chocolate adapts well from script to screen, unlike most Hollywood attempts.

This is thoughtful and beautifully observed work, from the social backdrop and the tell-me-what-you're-feeling analysis sessions to the painful performances including Mary Tyler Moore playing against type as the chillingly repressed mother.

Though glossy, Sirk's film is tightly structured, with a creative manipulation of light and reflection, and heavy with the symbolism of male destructiveness. Unflinching in its often ugly revelation of character and consequence, it's an intense and powerful film.

Across The Spider-Verse cranks every dial to 11, and somehow doesn’t collapse in on itself. Visually astonishing, emotionally powerful, narratively propulsive — it’s another masterpiece.

Taut, clever, and fronted with two excellent performances, this is a clever choice for Jackson's first step into mainstream filmmaking.

A sensitive, sincere and humbling profile which is truly inspirational.

Rigorous adaptation of the notoriously "difficult" play.

A war movie with enough honour and heroism to make a grown man weep.

Sexual tension hangs in the air as the wind blows and native drums beat, but it's on a visual level that the film excels.

To steal from Ali, this one floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee.

Before John Woo went all Hollywood on our ass with the likes of Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II, he made several films in his native Hong Kong, this being arguably the pick of the bunch. Although not as slick as his later films, it's more inventive and stylised and with great early performances from Fat and Leung.

Perhaps without the shock and suspense of subsequent work, this is nevertheless another undoubted masterpiece from the atmospheric film maker, and just as essential.

One of the strongest, most effective horror films of recent years — with awards-quality lead work from Essie Davis, and a brilliantly designed new monster who could well become the break-out spook archetype of the decade.

Following up Love Is Strange with another slice of urban bohemia, Sachs’ latest is another gem that's full of heart and warmth.

A witty, warm exploration of family life that's conventional and unconventional in equal measure.

The final act of The Great Escape is a masterfully sustained piece of action and tension as the various escapees struggle for freedom via train, bicycle, motorbike, row boat and hitchhiking. The Great Escape should always be seen. It reminds us of a history that is all too quickly forgotten.

A typically quixotic documentary in which great unknown artists from 35,000 years ago collaborate with one in 2011. Profound, mysterious and utterly absorbing.

Bogart as Marlowe is compelling in this classic thriller that is complex but triumph of atmospheric cool.

The reason Carrie is still held in such high regard as a horror classic is very simple: it's all in the sheer directorial bravado. De Palma at the top of his game.

Appealing, emotional and with a strong enough performance by Rice-Edwards as the boy in his own little war-free world.

A moving treatment of a deeply personal subject (France's own partner died of an AIDS-related illness in 1992), and an enthralling depiction of a seriously fired-up popular movement.

Come for the near-endless rows that convincingly carry the venom of a collapsed, resentful marriage; stay for the extended critique of Russia’s contemporary spiritual vacancy.

Tense and slick, this early thriller remains a true masterpiece.

The offstage elements may slightly underwhelm, but Luhrmann’s kaleidoscopic exploration of Elvis’ Vegas residency is one of the most thrilling musical experiences you can have at a cinema.

Tough and tender, it's the best Iron Curtain drama since "The Lives Of Others."

One Cut Of The Dead is a true original, a fresh take on the zombie apocalypse drama and much more besides.

Mesmerising, magical portrait of smalltown America, dominated by a performance from Paul Newman so outstanding it must surely make him front-runner to hoist the Best Actor statuette come Oscar night.

Bleak, brutal and quite possibly brilliant, this is a triumphant return to form for Lumet and further proof that Hoffman is on an incredible winning streak.

Jim Jarmusch tried to create the essential road movie and although he didn't manage that, he has still created a classic that captures perfectly the life of a drifter in New York.

For better or worse, American cinema changed forever the day Bonnie And Clyde was released. Almost every aspect of it was revolutionary.

This really is the musical for people who don’t like musicals.

Visceral and intensely moving, this film feels like something you’d stumble across on TV in the small hours and never forget. It might herald a new era for queer cinema.

Surface-level funny but with a well of deeper meaning brewing, May December is not just a skilful satire of suburban propriety; it’s a unique and uncanny affair about the nature of performance itself.

Courageous and indelible account and an invaluable perspective of the protests.

Avoiding the 80s staple of angsty adolescence, Crowe has constructed an intelligent, witty yet undeniably cute tale, showing the potential that would be realised in Singles and Jerry Maguire, and giving Cusack's warm-hearted Lloyd the perfect foil in Skye's prissy model of student perfection.

Sumptuous and self-indulgent, Sorrentino's latest is a Fellini-like feast for the eyes.

Lemmon and Mathau's finest hour.

Sturges' no-holds-barred comic cristicism of American Forces abroad is still challenging and funny.

More than a biopic or period-piece, this is a stylish time capsule reaching into the present with unnerving clarity. Abortion care is still so hard — this film makes that fact sink into your bones.

Scott is simply awesome as the one-of-a-kind General George Patton, the brilliant campaigner and man among men renowned for the rage he directed at the berks in authority and the adulation he inspired in his men.

What could have been little more than an acting showcase for a reliable ensemble fully sings: a sophisticated, seductive, slightly unwieldy and often very sad study of the instability and upsets of motherhood.

Edgy and hilarious, Nanjiani and Gordon’s true story of cross-cultural love is a Trump-baiting marvel that’s worth the hype.

An old-school espionage thriller with a movie-biz comedy twist, all the better for being (almost) entirely true. It is to Ben Affleck's credit that the tension and laughs complement rather than neutralise each other.

The simmering implication of incestuous emotions between Lili and Roy, leading to the shocking denouement, is badly underdeveloped and mishandled, leaving a lingering sense of anti-climax.

Deftly played and beautifully photographed, this may lack depth, but its observations on human transience are deeply moving.

An often brilliant '50s-throwback character drama that never feels nostalgic, with terrific central performances and a luminous, unforgettable visual beauty.

Exposing the bleak reality of a supposedly more innocent time, this inspired blend of musical and melodrama succeeds in being both fond and forlorn, artistic and authentic.

Dreamlike Ghibli animation that's well worth seeking out.

The movie that brought a hip new sensibility to animated features and which still stands up in the age of Pixar and DreamWorks thanks largely to a blistering improv turn from Robin Williams.

Andersen makes a far from inspiring guide, intoning his humourless points in a dry-as-powder monotone.

Ultimately, overlapping notions of family, cinema and healing are neatly tied up in an arresting and heartrendingly gentle finale that will leave an ache in your chest. Stripping dialogue and editing flourishes away, Sentimental Value’s final note is a showstopper.

If not Hamaguchi’s best, this is a gracefully performed and expertly detailed collection of stories, revealing the delicate and unassuming magic to be found in simple conversation.

Verdict City Of Ghosts wears three hats with aplomb — a summation of the tragedy that’s befallen Syria, how horror can be resisted with just laptops, phones and courage, and the importance of shining a light into the darker corners of the world.

Beautifully photographed by Mark Lee (who also co-shot Wong Kar-Wai's In The Mood For Love), and delicately played by an untried cast, this confirms Tian as the Fifth Generation's unsung master.

A modern classic.