El Secreto De Sus Ojos / The Secret In Their Eyes (2009)
★★★☆☆
Putting Argentina’s past on trial, Juan José Campanella’s El Secreto De Sus Ojos is a whispered love story amid cries of bloody murder. It’s a rough kind of justice.
2009
I Am Love / Io Sono L’Amore (2009)
★★★★★
I Am Love is a feast for the senses. The partnership between Luca Guadagnino and Tilda Swinton creates the perfect dish in this capolavoro of Italian cinema.
Kakera – A Piece Of Our Life (2009)
★★☆☆☆
Jellied in postpubescent malaise, Momoko Ando’s debut feature Kakera is a lesbian love story with a dusting of fantasy sprinkles. But is it all sweet nothings?
Dirty Oil (2009)
★★☆☆☆
Exposing Canada’s toxic Dirty Oil industry, Leslie Iwerks’ documentary investigates the casualty list at Athabasca’s tar sands and beyond. There will be blood.
Storm / Sturm (2009)
★★★☆☆
Unpicking the wheels of justice at The Hague’s International Criminal Court, Hans-Christian Schmid’s Sturm is a very European thriller. And it’s kicking up a storm.
No-one Knows About Persian Cats (2009)
★★★★☆
Battling an oppressive regime, Bahman Ghobadi’s semi-fictional documentary is a rousing anthem to the power of music. But does it struggle to hit the high notes?
Sons of Cuba (2009)
★★★☆☆
Packing a real punch, Lang’s beautifully crafted, heartfelt documentary Sons of Cuba follows three young boxers against a backdrop of political uncertainty in this unique island-nation.
Lourdes (2009)
★★★★☆
With wry humour and religious austerity, Jessica Hausner’s Lourdes explores female potency as hopeful pilgrims jostle for a miracle. O, come all ye faithful.
Micmacs à tire-larigot (2009)
★★★★☆
Taking on the arms trade with customary quirk, Jeunet’s Micmacs launches another political bombshell. But can all this salvage ever hope to hit the bull’s eye?
Mugabe And The White African (2009)
★★★☆☆
By their very nature, documentary films live and die by the power of the stories they tell. Mugabe And The White African tells a story of the most powerful kind.
A Single Man (2009)
★★★★☆
Colin Firth mesmerises as a grieving gay college professor, but can dressing Isherwood’s novel up in a sharp new suit say anything about 21st century queerdom?
Un Prophète / A Prophet (2009)
★★★★★
Thrills-and-spills jailbird Bildungsroman or darkly poetic gangster thriller? Whatever it is, Audiard’s Un Prophète is the arthouse blockbuster par excellence.
Kynodontas / Dogtooth (2009)
★★★☆☆
In a darkly humorous coming-of-age tale, Yorgos Lanthimos’ wickedly acerbic Dogtooth takes the institution of the family literally. Dangerously so.
A Serious Man (2009)
★★☆☆☆
In A Serious Man, their most autobiographical film to date, the Coen Brothers lay bare their Jewish identity, as a mentsh of constant sorrow.