A Royal Affair / En Kongelig Affære (2012)
★★★★☆
Something is revolting in the state of Denmark, Nikolaj Arcel’s A Royal Affair is an intriguing insight into a royal romance and a bloodless revolution.
Mark Wilshin
The Turin Horse / A Torinói ló (2011)
★★★★☆
An apocalyptic tale of human survival in a godless world, Béla Tarr’s The Turin Horse is a graceful rebuke to the hypnotic temptations of nothingness.
Sing Your Song (2011)
★★★☆☆
Charting fifty years of prejudice and injustice, Susanne Rostock’s biopic documentary Sing Your Song is a serenade to Harry Belafonte and the philanthropy of celebrity.
Angel And Tony / Angèle Et Tony (2010)
★★★☆☆
A miscellany of cinematic influence from Visconti to Pagnol, Alix Delaporte’s Angèle Et Tony is a slow-burn love story with a lot of soul.
Café de Flore (2011)
★★★★☆
Twisting through two love stories in Sixties’ Paris and modern Montreal, Jean-Marc Vallée’s Café de Flore is a devastating tornado of story and image.
Beloved / Les Bien-Aimés (2011)
★★★☆☆
A razzledazzle musical reprise of Man At Bath, Christophe Honoré’s Beloved is a fractured but enjoyable romp through the swinging Sixties and the nervous Noughties.
Elles (2011)
★★★★☆
A devastating bedroom battle of the sexes, Malgorzata Szumowska’s Elles offers a glimpse into the secret lives of women behind closed doors.
This Must Be The Place (2011)
★★★★☆
His first English language feature, Paolo Sorrentino’s This Must Be The Place turns the U-turn into a narrative art as a has-been popstar turns Nazi-hunter.
Headhunter / Hodejegerne
★★★★☆
Based on the bestselling novel by Jo Nesbø, Headhunters is a taut Norwegian thriller of slick art thefts, aggressive male rivalry and big inferiority complexes.
Wild Bill (2011)
★★★☆☆
Set in Stratford’s badlands, Dexter Fletcher’s debut feature Wild Bill has Olympian dreams of turning a wayward father into a family hero. So very London 2012.
Babycall (2011)
★★★☆☆
Pål Sletaune’s Babycall is a hall of ghostly mirrors and fantasy reflections as a mother and victim of domestic abuse tries to keep a fracturing reality together.
The Kid With A Bike / Le Gamin Au Vélo (2011)
★★★★☆
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne return to heartbreaking form with The Kid With A Bike with a little boy lost looking for love with all the kinetic anxiety he can muster.
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia / Bir Zamanlar Anadolu’da (2011)
★★★★☆
An epic night-time police investigation, Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Once Upon A Time In Anatolia exhumes an inconvenient truth from the soul’s darkest recesses.
How To Re-establish A Vodka Empire (2012)
★★★☆☆
How To Re-establish A Vodka Empire is a creative look at Dan Edelstyn’s attempt to retrace his lost Ukrainian heritage and relaunch the family vodka brand.