Biutiful (2010)
★★★☆☆
Dying of prostate cancer and struggling to put his house in order, Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Biutiful sees shady Javier Bardem melt away.
★★★
Somewhere (2010)
★★★☆☆
With Stephen Dorff as Sunset Boulevard’s latest fading star and a put-upon debutante daughter, Somewhere is Sofia Coppola’s most autobiographical film to date.
On Tour / Tournée (2010)
★★★☆☆
Like neo-burlesque dancer Dirty Martini, Mathieu Amalric’s On Tour is a fictional cocktail with a documentary twist.
Rare Exports – A Christmas Tale (2010)
★★★☆☆
Turning Santa into the ultimate horror movie villain, Jalmari Helander’s Rare Exports dishes the dirt on the man coming down your chimney with Christmas relish.
Easier With Practice (2009)
★★★☆☆
Centred round a geeky fantasist’s phone-sex relationship, Kyle Patrick Alvarez’s Easier With Practice flirts with the danger of wet dreams coming true.
The Thorn in the Heart / L’Épine dans le Coeur (2010)
★★★☆☆
Franco-Hollywoodien director Michel Gondry’s latest, L’Épine dans le Coeur, turns the camera en his own famille in this heartfelt documentary.
The American (2010)
★★★☆☆
With George Clooney playing the strong and silent type, Anton Corbijn’s photogenic The American has Tinseltown set firmly in his sights. All chestnuts blazing.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)
★★★☆☆
A hypnotic journey into reincarnation, monkey gods and talking catfish, Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee is a puzzling but award-winning controversy.
Another Year (2010)
★★★☆☆
A four seasons symphony of age-worn contentment and unhappy boozers, Mike Leigh’s Another Year conquers and divides into haves and have-nots.
The Hunter (2010)
★★★☆☆
Like an Iranian Falling Down, Rafi Pitts’ The Hunter pushes one man over the edge in a city seething with male anguish and state violence.
Involuntary / De Ofrivilliga (2008)
★★★☆☆
Ruben Östlund’s quirky Involuntary juxtaposes five snapshots of silly season in contemporary Sweden, challenging the audience to create their own connections.
Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow (2010)
★★★☆☆
Roving the labyrinthine world of artist Anselm Kiefer, there’s more to Sophie Fiennes’ documentary Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow than just watching paint dry.
Buried (2010)
★★★☆☆
One man, one coffin and 90 minutes’ oxygen, Rodrigo Cortés Buried is a deliciously claustrophobic one-hander for Ryan Reynolds. But can Cortés play by the rules?
Winter’s Bone (2010)
★★★☆☆
Set deep in the bone-chilling Ozark woods, Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone rides high on the national spectre of repossession and will make Jennifer Lawrence a star.