Emancipation can’t avoid the well-trodden hallmarks of slavery stories, nor offer a particularly fresh perspective on them. It’s best when it leans into other modes — and when it centres on Will Smith’s outstanding, understated performance.

Good fun in places, but dull for the most part, Violent Night is serviceable Christmas viewing. It’s a shame, because with such a fun riff on the Santa story, it should’ve been good for goodness sake!

A strange brew. While the family dynamics and capitalist satire work a little better than the outlandish spectacle, White Noise at least appears to herald an ambitious new phase in Noah Baumbach’s career.

Meticulously controlled, but simmering with a tension that is suffused with fury, this treatise on dignity and depravity, aspiration and apathy is the Dardennes at their most accusatory and damning.

A sugar-fuelled thrill, this boasts a fine young cast and pleasantly pantomime adult roles. It may be too long for younger kids, but tweens are going to love it.

No frills are needed to tell this once-in-a-generation story. Any concerns for a film about the unglamorous world of journalism are avoided thanks to sharp performances, sensitive direction, and one irrefutable truth: these women won.

A sweepingly romantic take on the D.H. Lawrence classic that, while not offering anything revolutionary to the period drama genre, is a satisfying and engaging watch.

The ideas don’t always cohesively fall into place, but Diop’s nuanced performance and Jusu’s sublime direction make this a compelling entry in the horror genre.

Fast, fun, and full of freaky creatures, Strange World shows that Disney can do all-out action-adventure just as well as fairytale fare – while, hopefully, nudging the studio further towards the future.

Guillermo del Toro’s perspective runs through every frame of this unique retelling, which isn’t afraid to tackle troubling themes. A sincere, soulful exploration of what it means to be human.

A fizzy, gaudy, joyfully entertaining couple of hours. If there’s any right in the world, Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig will continue making films in the Benoit Blanc Cinematic Universe forever.

Part arthouse-Twilight, part John Hughes-ian coming-of-age romance, part Bonnie And Clyde cannibal remix, part dreamy Wim Wenders-esque road trip. This is gorgeous, gruesome work from Luca Guadagnino.

If you liked Enchanted, this is a dependably familiar serving. In an era where Disney is constantly raiding its archives for intellectual property to remake, this is a sequel that feels unusually original by comparison.

Both a coming of age and an exploration of an era, this self-biographical reminiscence feels both regretful and hopeful – a filmmaker trying to make peace. It’s not sugar-coated, but it’s full of love.

Even if you’re wholly unfamiliar with the franchise, Confess, Fletch will find fans among anyone who likes mystery-comedies, wickedly dry humour, and the sight of Kyle MacLachlan twirling glow-sticks to club music.

Bardo sees director Alejandro González Iñárritu looking at the man in the (hall of) mirrors; the result is visually sensational but sometimes lethally patience-testing.

Rare and special is a film capable of summoning this much poignancy: a feeling which lingers well beyond the film’s final, achingly moving moments on screen. That Aftersun is the debut from British filmmaker Charlotte Wells only adds to its accomplishment.

The Menu’s straight-faced depiction of absurd culinary violence may not be imaginative or thrilling, but the film is rarely boring. It’s deep-fried junk disguised as gastronomy; it may not fully satisfy, but it’ll fill a hole.

A long, sometimes broad film, but one that tackles an important and prescient subject, especially considering the ever-increasing numbers of asylum seekers crossing seas in dangerous circumstances.

Another smash from Cartoon Saloon, at once heartily funny and heartfelt. With this and The Breadwinner, director Nora Twomey is now two-for-two.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever stands out from a somewhat formulaic era of Marvel movies: held together by its compelling sense of place, and by acting as a passionate eulogy for Chadwick Boseman.

Not a write-off, but more like a respectful homage than a 2020s update in the manner of Candyman (2021). Perhaps a little disrespect would have been truer to the Clive Barker/Pinhead spirit, which is curiously muted in this outing.

Despite the almost caricatural Frenchness of the premise, this is a superbly acted and intricately directed drama that makes a virtue of its very human feelings and follies.

Despite following the same formula as its predecessor, Enola Holmes 2 keeps up the charm and humour with a crafty mystery filled with entertaining twists and turns.

Really quite something: a rare remake that only augments and enriches the original. For Bill Nighy, meanwhile, it feels in every sense like the role of a lifetime.

A darker turn for the sensitive Sebastián Lelio, and yet more proof that Florence Pugh is among our greatest treasures. Plenty of food for thought among the emptier moments.

Hardly as revolutionary as the activists it draws inspiration from, Call Jane is nonetheless a charming, big-hearted story of a fight for justice, and might just change a few minds along the way.

While not quite on a level with The Endless, this is another pocket lint sci-fi from the current masters of such. A welcome sign that Benson and Moorhead haven’t gone fully respectable just yet.