Glasgow Film Festival — A–Z of films

There is so much to admire in All About Eve, even for those too young to be drenched in nostalgia for the spectacle of Bette Davis unleashing her sharp tongue.

Lucy Russell in particular puts in a fascinating and nuanced performance.

Sometimes cinema tickles the senses, sometimes it tugs at the heartstrings, sometimes it exercises the intellect – but La Antena transmits to all three at once.

The fun in the film comes from the heroes' banter, and one can't help but think that watching them take a bus trip to Alton Towers might have been just as enjoyable.

What might sound vibrant or at least quirky on paper ends up falling very flat on screen.

The story of five women working in and around a Beirut beauty salon may not, at first glance, seem especially intriguing, but Caramel is something special.

Allen's most morally challenging work since Crimes And Misdemeanors, this takes what is in essence a simple story and finds depths within it which will continue to haunt the viewer long after the closing credits have rolled.

Taken as a straightforward comic horror movie, this feels too derivative and clichéd. Taken as homage or pastiche, it's not nearly funny, knowing or camp enough.

Yelchin is a charismatic and believable anti-hero, smart but insecure and neither a walking wisecrack-machine nor a stereotypical ‘mixed-up kid’.

This is not a very nuanced view of the situation, but it really doesn’t pretend to be.

The whole movie has a slightly flat “filler episode of a BBC political drama” feel to it.

It has been a long time since I’ve heard such an affecting tale of abuse.

In contrast with today's studiously dignified portrayals of the dying, Bette Davis' portrayal of Judith as angry and confused is perhaps more honest, more humane.

Death Proof is as much an experience as it is a movie for those who love movies.

Romero has started all over again as though his other films exist in some parallel universe. Just to prove anything a younger director can do, he can do better, the whole thing is shot cinema-vérité style.

There is an energy to this low-budget film

An absorbing, disturbing and exceptionally composed filmic fable.

Haneke once again delivers intellectual, challenging and bravura filmmaking.

This is a brilliant work, capable of speaking to a variety of audiences.

Garage is one of the most depressing films I have seen in a long time, a scathing indictment of the way we treat the mentally subnormal, but it's enlivened by its own brand of dark humour.

Although Danny Glover gets first billing and delivers a complex, compelling performance, this is really an ensemble piece, with great work all round.

Menzel has crafted a visual extravaganza.

Road movies come with clichés attached. Thanks to dialogue that strips convention to the bone, they have no effect here because they wouldn’t survive the verbal onslaught.

This is a dark, perverted, gritty, romantic comedy that, like a new relationship, comes with big indie warts-and-all.

The proverbial buzz surrounding Juno is, like, totally justified.

The soundtrack is, of course, superb, and the television appearances and bootleg live videos testify to how charismatic Joy Division were as live performers.

The gentle pace and even-handed curiosity of King Corn will come as a shock to many viewers, especially in light of its disturbing subject matter.

Every performance in it is perfect.

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.

Some excellent performances and some gorgeous opening shots raise Lonesome Jim above average gentle-indie-dark-comedy standards.

Margot ought to be a plum rôle, but Kidman withers it to a prune.

This is Depardieu's strongest performance for years.

The glorious sight of a flying nun, an image Korine has said was one of his inspirations for the film, is both a moving and a joyous one.

Aesthetically this film is an absolute joy to watch. Somehow though, my satisfaction with the story didn’t match my sensory pleasure.

A tough, compelling tale of just how unhappy families can get, given the wrong circumstances.

My Nikifor rises above the average biopic because it seems to have a real purpose to the telling of its tale, a purpose which goes beyond simply documenting the life of a famous person.

The personal story is recounted against a cityscape that leaves bare the warmth of human kindness.

Glorious, a hilariously stupid zombie fest that spoofs and honours grindhouse so much better than the tenuously related Death Proof.

Unlike most of the films about Iraq, Redacted portrays a military that’s a catchall for the uneducated and unsocialised; and while many may find this offensive, it’s perfectly in line with the draft-deferring lowering of recruitment standards.

An engrossing and very terrifying experience.

Always engrossing, at times decidedly uncomfortable viewing, Savage Grace is accomplished cinematic storytelling that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.

A bold, disturbing and powerful montage.

This is clever writing, smart filmmaking and excellent acting. It grasps your nerve endings and gives them a twist.

By keeping the central theme simple, Edgar and his team are free to explore the nature of the relationships and the characters in the classroom alongside bigger themes such as attitudes to disability from within the community and without.

The slow-burning Arkansas vista is beautiful and harrowing at the same time, a panorama interrupted only by tractors dotting the horizon, but one where a car parked in the wrong place can attract a mob of pitch fork bearing men.

The script sizzles with humour, but more importantly, like Danny Boyle's Millions, it carries an emotional weight.

One of the best children's films for years.

As a picture of Polish society specifically it becomes even more interesting.

Thieves suffers from a story which is really too slight for its length, but explores its metaphorical aspects in some depth.

Lichtenstein takes the myth of vagina dentata and gives it a kitsch horror/comedy makeover, to surprisingly smart and sassy effect.

An object lesson in less is more, it makes an absolute virtue of its small cast and diminutive budget.

There are moments of joy, so sublime you feel your heart swell with the sound of the children’s voices and segments of sadness as sharp as a scalpel.

This is focused filmmaking, not so much elegiac as lyric.

Towering performances from two of the twentieth century's greatest stars, a mercilessly witty script and direction which pulls no punches - quite simply the greatest melodrama of its era.

Darin... again proves that he can break your heart with a look, conveying unspoken emotion with a glance that taps you into his pain.

If Andersson is good at using the visual to create links, then he accompanies this with a strong aural sense.

Not quite enough braaaaaains to go round.