Tragic and tender Fuller classic. Way ahead of its time.

Typical James Stewart defeating bullies with integrity stuff.

Passionate and expertly crafted, this black-and-white opus is well worth seeking out.

Captivating and poignant portayal of life on the edge for the disregarded of our societies.

Magnificent absurdist crime drama from the master of suspense.

Bleak brilliance.

This is LaBeouf at his best, stripped down to his bare elements and bookended by two luminous performances from Gottsagen and Johnson. A lightly flawed script may lack Huckleberry Finn epicness, but warms the heart with its parental tenderness.

The vocal cast are great fun, and the animation is smooth and vibrant. Except for a few treacly songs, this is great entertainment for all.

July's second film, while not quite as perfectly realised as her debut, nimbly avoids the 'sophomore slump', providing the curious with another window into her highly idiosyncratic world.

Satirical Samurai action of the highest order.

Weirder than Ragnarok, but incredibly sincere in its outlook, Taika’s Thor-quel is a big, beautiful blast. You’ll love it, and probably thunder it too. What a classic Thor adventure!

Both assuredly funny without being forced, and smart without being smug, this is one comedy that deserves to go forth and, indeed, multiply.

A stand-out romantic fantasy and surefire hit of Ghost-ly proportions. But all you cynical and smart-arsed brethren, beware: this is definitely not for you.

When Gunn took on Guardians Of The Galaxy, he turned nonsense into gold for Marvel. By giving The Suicide Squad the same sense of mischief and an equally surreal streak, he’s done the same for DC.

A relatively subtle yet moving entry into the Dolanverse, where explosive love is sublimated beneath the ebb and flow of friendship rhythms, and characters are revealed in tender observational details.

A classic screwball comedy that draws its inspiration from the 1930's genre. The jokes are quick and amusing enough to carry it through it's hour-and-three-quarters. Russell and Hawn have fun with the characters which comes through and makes it all the funnier.

Jack Nicholson as The Joker helpfully provides all the colour.

Mark Jenkin is still Mark Jenk-ing: the most stubbornly analogue filmmaker out there has produced another satisfyingly baffling film about Cornish communities and the supernatural tension between past and present.

An Amityville for the YouTube age: potent, primal and genuinely frightening.

A uniquely British blend of excruciating comedy of embarrassment and outright grue, not quite as disorientating in its mood shifts as Kill List but just as impressive a film.

This animated treatment does it absolute justice too. The spooky bits are suitably scarey - the production dates back to a time before anybody worried about mentally scarring the little mites, thus the "Have a bite, dearie" scene means a lot of excited peeping through fingers - the slapstick humour content is high and it contains none of the period references that crept into later Disney cartoons, thus doesn't appear to have dated. But largely it succeeds because it really is a great deal of fun.

Sweet, witty and exquisitely observed, In A World... sees the emergence of an exciting talent: any agents looking for a new triple threat should ring that Bell.

Strong performances anchor a series of unforgettable scenes. Breathtaking and unfathomable.

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.

A defiantly avant-garde take on commercial chart-toppers. It’s not for everyone, but it deserves to be: a gorgeous fusion of film, fashion, faith, and certified bangers.

An instant gangster classic.

Forget the sci-fi trimmings and sentimental pay-off — this is a gleefully subversive character study of a charming but unapologetic rogue.

Merry Little Batman has every potential to become a new festive favourite: a delightful Bat-gift that will have viewers longing for future holiday specials featuring Little Batman.

A great debut from a promising talent.

This Neil Simon-scripted pastiche of an array of much-loved detective characters is surprisingly charming.

This is more a favourite of the children than adult Disney fans. It has a few memorable songs and has spawned a very popular stage production.

Unnerving and compelling in equal measure, Amy Seimetz’s film is an exploration of how fear and paranoia can spread like a disease, and how the acceptance of one’s mortality remains the most terrifying thing of all.

All cast and crew do an impressive job in making this unlikely proposition such an engaging, thought-provoking and darkly funny watch.

This is lots of fun and the actors definitely look like they're having a good time.

The long and devastating fallout from a senseless act of violence affects almost everyone in this compelling reality-inspired account, which lingers in the mind in a way that few crime stories do.

A pitch-black, punchy satire on capitalism and care homes with lip-smacking performances from Rosamund Pike and Peter Dinklage.

Combining farce and tragedy in equal amounts, DiCillo has made a film that should appeal to anybody who has ever had a particularly rotten day.

Switching from dour humour to humanist drama without seeming contrived, this is a masterclass in combining character and landscape that is played with deceptive poignancy by the excellent leads.

A sequin-encrusted delight. On paper it reads like a by-the-book biopic; on screen it explodes with the kind of colour and energy that only Elton John himself could invoke.

Making full use of Cillian Murphy’s emotional range, Steve is a rallying, railing portrayal of a broken education system — and contemporary cinema’s worthy answer to Dead Poets Society.

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

Shot in magisterial black-and-white, veteran director Trueba's drama is a welcome return from the Belle Epoque man.

There's the fact that First Blood is a first-rate, taught action thriller.

So quirky that it’s almost in danger of collapsing under the weight of its own antic whimsy at times, but a comic delight destined for cult adoration.

A strangely affecting romance with real heart -- and another sign that Gosling is one of the best young actors around.

A highly quotable, visual treat that’s packed with in-jokes but is entertaining enough on its own terms to work for fans and non-fans alike. The best Batman film in years.

Eddie The Eagle turns a long-running joke of British sport into a crowd-pleasing story of inspiration. It’s a solid gold winner.

The execution could be improved, but the sheer zip of the real life story just about carries this wartime tale along.

For sheer old-fashioned, childhood rekindling adventure you really can't go past it - just don't take the rose-tinted glasses off.

An impressive sift through one of the UK’s weirdest pop-cult phenomena, even if it doesn’t manage to unpick the strange relationship between Sievey and Sidebottom.

The ideas are good enough for you to allow for some risible performances.

Already a compelling gangland saga, this vastly promising debut turns into something more surprising when social prejudice becomes the characters’ weapon of choice. If that sounds too much like a lecture, El Hosaini’s voice remains crisp, cool and consistently street-smart.

Guerra and Gallego offer a masterful, compelling reimagining of the crime drama within the specific ethnographic milieu of a tribal people weathering dangerous change. Unforgettable images in service of a strange, poignant story.

A surprisingly fun, effervescent against-the-odds drama that offers an upbeat moral without the usual punishing survival-story clichés. Not for the faint-hearted, mind.

Statham and Johnson hold even the faltering moments up through sheer charm, their chemistry never better than when the film lets them lean into the slapstick of two macho doofuses having to work together.

Occasionally slides into a breathless fan tribute, but nonetheless an affectionate and candid portrait of a troubled artist.

It suffers occasionally from self-consciousness and over-indulgence in its own oddity, but Gondry’s grasp of emotion and visuals is enchanting. Even if he seems several sandwiches short of a picnic.

Some Host or DASHCAM fans might be disappointed that Rob Savage has opted for something ostensibly more conventional — but The Boogeyman shows he can also make an involving, ungimmicky ghost story with perfectly constructed menace and mayhem.

At once a frenzied fairy tale and a tender-hearted character study, Anora is an intoxicating pairing of director and star. Baker’s unique, humanistic approach to filmmaking is as riveting and rewarding as ever.

Storytelling of breathtaking scale and grandeur, even if the complex plotting may twist your synapses along the way.

With two astonishing child performances, Capernaum is a real heart-breaker. It can make Ken Loach look happy-go-lucky but it’s a gripping, sympathetic cry for the dispossessed.

More an introduction to the erotic-thriller genre than an immediate classic, Fair Play is a slickly made tale of twisted love that keeps you holding your breath until the end.

Blomkamp’s prawn cocktail has more than enough stylistic chutzpah and originality to make District 9 an essential date.

A satisfying and grown-up flick that boasts all of James L. Brooks' strengths. It's good to welcome back a unique, low-key voice.

Culturally rich and emotionally raw, Mogul Mowgli is a brilliant showcase for Riz Ahmed’s bevy of talents, and speaks visceral truth to the British-South Asian experience so rarely explored on screen.

Bigger action, more amazing deserted (and devastated) London sequences and biting contemporary relevance, if a touch less heart than the original.

These episodic adventures are a joy to watch and although not all of them are as memorable as each other, each has an entertaining quality that means the film as a whole will stick with you for a long time. Feore is excellent as the pianist, even though you never actually see him play.

A delightful first instalment in a planned quartet of short films, Anderson and Dahl’s sensibilities continuing to be a match made in heaven.

Bleak and compelling.

Caine leads an impeccable cast in a story that is as touching as it is funny, turning the mundane minutiae of fading lives into a vibrant display.

Once again seizing control of the medium, Nolan attempts to alter the fabric of reality, or at least blow the roof off the multiplexes. Big, bold, baffling and bonkers.

Brutal in its depictions of violence, Brimstone is tough to watch at times, but never less than gripping, even as the clock creeps up to the 150-minute mark.

Tense, powerful and considerably less crass than "Crash," Elah may be jammed with ideas that don’t all connect, but Jones’ devastating performance makes this a compassionate and very human look at the Iraq conflict.

A small, personal indie with a huge cinematic and intellectual appetite. It may be too lo-fi for some tastes but it sparks the brain and moves the heart. It also introduces Marling as a bright new star - singular.

Silly, strange, and very funny, Dream Scenario is a psycho-comic-drama with a peak Cage Renaissance performance powering it. Don’t sleep on it.

Jessie Buckley impresses again in the story of a woman who wants and needs so much more. A seemingly well-worn narrative becomes a more interesting look at the responsibilities and rights of being a mother with a dream.

This summer's most satisfying, spectacle-packed movie. Like its predecessor, it offers a strong story rather than a feeble excuse to connect set-pieces.

Ghoulish, tense and utterly fantastical, John Carpenter's tale of shipwrecked spectres squelching their way through a fluorescent fog to wreak vengeance on a seaside town is a classic campfire yarn.

Without doubt, Jaa's a star — a man very possibly worthy of the 'new Bruce Lee' tag.

With some incredible stunts and Gosling and Blunt on top form, this gloriously entertaining comedy is a love-letter to the unsung heroes of cinema.

Another humane, odd and highly accomplished Yorgos Lanthimos film, one that sees him returning to the tone of his earlier work after The Favourite and Poor Things.

Part psychological horror, part erotic thriller, with none of the conventions of a biopic, Shirley will keep you enthralled (and guessing) until the very last second.

A witty and touching father-son tale. And at its centre: a startling debut from Will Tilston, whose compelling performance ensures its emotional moments land successfully.

Less audacious than A Bout de Souffle, this is, however, one of Godard's most accessible pictures. A good place to learn how much of a debt modern cinema owes him.

A smart, tragic take on just how dark the American Dream can be, with award-worthy work from Stan and Strong.

That the fact they come to appreciate one other, the grudging respect of a million clichés, feels so satisfyingly, shows just how successful the film is.

It’s not a reinvention of the wheel, but in 3D this is an astonishing experience that borders on ‘must-see’, and raises the bar for what James Cameron is planning with Avatar. And you’ll be glad to know that the creepy dead eyes thing has been fixed.

First Cow is archetypal Kelly Reichardt, slow, small and perfectly formed, elevated by stellar but understated performances from John Magaro and Orion Lee.

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.

One of the funniest films of the year, this is a wonderful mix of old-school Carrey outrageousness with a genuinely touching - and very modern - love story.

A classic of the weepy genre so have some toilet roll handy.

A raw but beautiful picture of love uniting and dividing: tender, real and heartfelt.

Genuinely creepy, satirical and occasionally daft horror tales with a distinctly moral bent.

Deceptively courageous and perceptive on parasocial celebrity culture — and on the fallacy that women have expiration dates — The Idea Of You has good, clean fun with two characters it’s impossible not to love.

A thoughtful, affecting debut feature from Tremblay that puts a necessary spotlight on Indigenous peoples — featuring another exceptional performance from Lily Gladstone.

Don’t call it a comeback — but this is really strong stuff from Pixar: funny, thoughtful, sweet, making for a heartfelt paean to nature, and beavers in particular. Dam good.

A gift of great storytelling, this is the best film Chris Sanders has made.

A superb thriller and a worthy biopic of a real hero. It’s also simultaneously an encouraging follow-up for Headhunters’ Morten Tyldum, an impressive debut for screenwriter Graham Moore, and a big-screen career highlight for Benedict Cumberbatch.