Jackdaw (2023)
★★★★☆
Jackdaw directed by Jamie Childs is a fast-moving action thriller that beautifully exploits the northeast’s brutal post-industrial landscape and breath-taking country.
★★★
Padre Pio (2022)
★★★★☆
Abel Ferrara’s Padre Pio links religious fervour, the growth of fascism and socialism, and the Ukraine invasion, and is based on true events culminating on 14 October 1920.
The Lost Boys (2023) (Le Paradis)
★★★☆☆
Two teenage boys in a juvenile detention centre develop a passionate bond which is tested when one of them approaches his release in director and co-writer Zeno Graton’s The Lost Boys.
Traces (2022) (Tragovi)
★★★☆☆
Traces (Tragovi) is a sensitive portrayal by first-time feature director Dubravka Turic of a Zagreb academic’s journey through grief to identity. It is Croatia’s entry for the 2024 Oscars.
A Stitch in Time (2023)
★★★☆☆
A Stitch in Time, a heart-warming Australian film directed by Sasha Hadden, stars Maggie Blinco.
Good Boy (2023)
★★★☆☆
The ironically titled Good Boy, a semi-comic short written and directed by Tom Stuart, demonstrates once again what a good actor Ben Whishaw is.
BFI LFF 2023: In Camera (2023)
★★★★☆
In Camera, written and directed by Naqqash Khalid, is a debut satirical drama full of pain about the racism experienced by second-generation Asians in Britain.
BFI LFF 2023: Chasing Chasing Amy (2023)
★★★★☆
In Chasing Chasing Amy director Sav Rodgers explains in a moving documentary of self-discovery what Kevin Smith’s iconic 1997 romcom Chasing Amy has meant to LGBTQ+ people over the years.
BFI LFF 2023: Wilding (2023)
★★★☆☆
Wilding, based on Isabella Tree’s book, directed by David Allen, is a lyrical hymn to the self-healing of the English countryside.
Ballywalter (2022)
★★★★☆
Northern Ireland-set Ballywalter, directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah and written by Stacey Gregg, is a moving little gem that stars Seána Kerslake and Patrick Kielty.
Fremont (2023)
★★★★☆
Fremont directed by Babak Jalali is an absurdist but moving look at displacement and the immigrant experience.
Apocalypse Clown (2023)
★★★☆☆
Apocalypse Clown directed by George Kane is bizarre and and anarchic: it won Best Irish Film at the Galway Film Fleadh.
Bobi Wine: The People’s President (2022)
★★★ώ☆
Bobi Wine:The People’s President: an illuminating Uganda-set National Geographic documentary about the hugely popular musician turned politician who challenged the incumbent, long-serving President.
The Innocent (2023)
★★★★☆
The Innocent (L’Innocent), Louis Garrel’s fourth film, is a César-winning caper with a French accent.