Aquarela – ‘Aquarela’ means watercolour in English, but that is too delicate a word to describe this stunning, sensory cinematic experience by Russian master Victor Kossakovsky.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs – This anthology of a half-dozen western tales is a six-shooting delight from the Coen brothers.
Been So Long – Chewing Gum star Michaela Coel leads a talented cast in Tinge Krishnan’s contemporary London musical, which reimagines Camden as a romantic neon-soaked wonderland.
Dear Son – When Sami begins to suffer migraines, his parents’ concern for their withdrawn son increases. Their anguish forms the unnerving backbone of Mohamed Ben Attia’s astute drama.
Freedom Fields – Charting six years of Libya’s nascent women’s football scene – a journey never short of obstacles – Freedom Fields celebrates the determination of an incredible team.
Happy New Year, Colin Burstead – A pared-down approach shows off a quieter side to Ben Wheatley’s prodigious talent in this poignantly funny and razor-sharp observation of English family dysfunction.
Mirai – LFF favourite Mamoru Hosoda’s (The Boy and the Beast, Wolf Children) rapturous and fantastical take on childhood is an animation of great beauty and insight.
Mr. Soul! – This is a heartfelt and politically engaged profile of Ellis Haizlip, the openly gay host of the groundbreaking PBS all-black variety show SOUL!
Peterloo – Mike Leigh orchestrates a superb ensemble cast in this rousing tale of working class uprising and its violent suppression in Manchester in 1819.
Ray & Liz – In this astonishingly personal film, Richard Billingham delves into his Black Country upbringing to recreate visceral family memories and desperate living in Thatcher’s Britain.
Roma – Straight from the heart of Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity, Children of Men), this glorious reminiscence of a momentous year is a sumptuous black-and-white ode to the woman who shaped his early life.
Suspiria – Luca Guadagnino (I Am Love, Call Me by Your Name) pays homage to Dario Argento’s horror classic with this delicious feminist update.
The Vice of Hope – This is a gritty, gripping and ultimately uplifting depiction of a woman desperately striving to escape a life of vice and criminality.
Yomeddine – Egyptian filmmaker A.B. Shawky makes his feature debut with this utterly unique road movie which charts the friendship between a leper and a young orphan.
