Ray feels like a real person plunged into an increasingly absurd situation, which is ultimately the source of a lot of the film’s comedy and its sometime tragedy.
After discovering his wife’s affair, Ray Jepsen plans to kill himself, but fate intervenes. Through a bizarre turn of events, he is mistaken for a low-rent hired killer and decides to become one.
Jóhann Jóhannsson has created something that successfully captures the spirit of the book whilst feeling like a memorial to humanity.
Loosely based on the 1930 Olaf Stapledon novel of the same name, Tilda Swinton voices a human from its 18th distinct evolution from some two billion years in the future (the Last Men), reaching back to the First Men (us) for help, as the end of time approaches.
Brooks balances her documentary well, bringing together a web of intersecting stories and ensuring that what's emotive is also informative.
As the single-digit population of the Northern White Rhino ticks closer to extinction, Brooks exposes the epidemic of poachers and trafficking syndicates, and the heroic efforts of conservationists.
These sharks behave more like the real thing, curious to begin with, observing and then swooping in for test bites rather than going straight for the kill.
A group of old college friends reunite on a Caribbean scuba diving trip exploring the wreckage of a WWII battleship and find themselves trapped inside the underwater labyrinth of rusted metal surrounded by great white sharks.
Establishing shots of boats and docks and archive footage are not only more genuine than the film's version of events but more convincing.
A true story that follows seasoned deep-sea divers as they battle the raging elements to rescue their crewmate trapped hundreds of feet below the ocean's surface.
Based on actual events, this historic drama unravels long-held assumptions about France’s last sanctioned duel between Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris, two friends turned bitter rivals.
On one level the film is pretty simple, though nicely put together - but what makes it more interesting are its moral and philosophical twists and turns.
An evangelical preacher sets out to debunk myths of exorcism with a documentary crew... only to be faced with the real deal.
Bolognesi achieves a bracing hybrid that changes the usual dynamic between documentary viewer and subject.
In powerful images, alternating between documentary observation and staged sequences, and dense soundscapes, Luiz Bolognesi documents the Indigenous community of the Yanomami and depicts their threatened natural environment in the Amazon rainforest.
As Brucie bursts into yet another room and unloads his automatics into yet another group of anonymous heavies you’ll find it hard not to think that this has all been done before – and better.
A mysterious stranger arrives in a small town and begins to play two rival gangs off against one another...
Depardieu's role feels underwritten, although you can't fault Truffaut for an accurate assessment of not just his character but the star when someone describes Bernard as being "a little like Jean Gabin, physical yet gentle".
The wife of a Jewish theatre director forced into hiding tries to keep a production afloat in occupied Paris.
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.
Exploration of aristocratic fidelity in 18th Century France.
It’s a film which some viewers will find exhausting to watch, hammering home its emotive points rather than letting us explore on our own. Within this, however, there are some surprisingly delicate performances.
Eloise, an aspiring fashion designer, is mysteriously able to enter the 1960s where she encounters a dazzling wannabe singer, Sandie. But the glamour is not all it appears to be.
The whole place feels dislocated, not just in its sense of place but also of time.
A struggling mine owner supplies his workers with drugs so they'll forget a tough existence. Nearby, a small community of reindeer breeders also struggles.
Carlobianchi and Doriano, two broke fiftysomethings with a “never skip the last drink” philosophy, meet Giulio, a shy architecture student adrift in life. What starts as a chance encounter turns into a chaotic road trip through the Venetian plains.
The structure of the documentary itself is formulaic but well executed.
The incredible story of the greatest cycling race in history, the 1989 Tour De France, and how American Greg LeMond faced down betrayal, childhood sexual abuse and death, completing one of the most inspiring comebacks in history.
Interestingly, it eschews the use of drab colour filters to let us know when we’re witnessing flashbacks to the conflict. These are obvious enough, and the fact that they take place in bright sunlight makes them much more visibly a part of the real world.
A WWII veteran escapes his care home in Northern Ireland and embarks on an arduous but inspirational journey to France to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, finding the courage to face the ghosts of his past.
In this tangled tapestry, Russell has captured the soul of a nation.
A documentary about the real-life 1945 witchcraft killing of Charles Walton - the terrifying event that inspired The Wicker Man and birthed the folk horror genre.
The Last Stop In Yuma County tells a simple story but does so in an extraordinary way. It’s a film you won’t forget for a long, long time.
A traveling knife salesman is stranded and forced to wait at a rural rest stop and suddenly finds himself in the middle of a violent hostage situation upon the arrival of two bank robbers who are on the run after a recent heist.
Arson, sabotage and intimidatory tactics involving kangaroo penises all get their moments, and although the film is crammed full of incidents and ‘accidents’, one can’t help but feel that the filmmaker has only seen the tip of the iceberg.
It was December 16th, 2017 in the remote Australian Outback town of Larrimah when Paddy Moriarty and his dog Kellie left the local pub and vanished, never to be seen again. As the investigation unfolds, a portrait is painted of this curious town and its 11 eccentric residents, but what ultimately matters is everything that happened before that fateful day.
News and features
News & Features
Going ape
Antonin Niclass on character creation, empathy and animated short Into The Forest
Freeform
Will Niava on grief, new immigrant experiences and Jazz Infernal
In silence
Emir Kumova on child marriage in Türkiye, moral challenges and making The Witness
