In our latest survey, critics and filmmakers pick the best films of 2019, from Portrait of a Lady on Fire to Hustlers to Blinded by the Light.
Giulia Ausani (@giuau), Film Critic
Despite the Golden Globe nominations failed to recognise it, 2019 has truly been a great year for movies. So I’m still gutted I had to leave out of this list films I viscerally loved, such as the raw yet delicate Honey Boy and the bad-boyfriend-gets-what-he-deserves Midsommar (my 11th and 12th place respectively). I even had to leave out the best ending to a saga that left me grossly sobbing at a press screening (to be fair, something that tends to happen quite often; and yes, I am talking about How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, of course).
Anyway, here’s the ten movies that eventually made the list. They accompanied me through a rather difficult year (2019, you will not be missed) and made me laugh, cry, sweat in anticipation, anxiously bit my lip, and long for tenderness. They filled me with joy and fondness and love and passion and fear and nostalgia and adrenaline and awareness. They all belong to different genres (seeing the exhilarating coming-of-age comedy Booksmart right before The Lighthouse is… something), yet they’re all a big reminder of just how much we need stories in our lives. To a new year of great ones.
1. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-Ho)
2. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
3. Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
4. And Then We Danced (dir. Levan Akin)
5. Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)
6. Booksmart (dir. Olivia Wilde)
7. The Lighthouse (dir. Robert Eggers)
8. Uncut Gems (dir. Josh & Benny Safdie)
9. Hustlers (dir. Lorene Scafaria)
10. Knives Out (dir. Rian Johnson)
Sofia Bohdanowicz (@SofiaGolightly), Filmmaker
Aquí y Allá (dir. Lina Rodriguez)
Fourteen (dir. Dan Sallitt)
I Was at Home, But… (dir. Angela Schanelec)
The Portugese Woman (dir. Rita Gomes)
Rushing Green with Horses (dir. Ute Aurand)
Those That, at a Distance, Resemble Another (dir. Jessica Sarah Rinland)
Varda par Agnès (dir. Agnès Varda)
Vitalina Varela (dir. Pedro Costa)
Vulture (dir. Phil Hoffman)
Zombi Child (dir. Bertrand Bonello)
Cathy Brennan (@TownTattle), Film Critic
As the world descends into hell, the most vital films about our historical moment seem to be coming out of Latin America.
Yesterday (dir. Danny Boyle)
A melancholy reflection on the social value of popular culture
Lingua Franca (dir. Isabel Sandoval)
One of the few films to truthfully explore a trans woman’s sexuality and illustrate the psychological toll of a hostile environment on immigrants.
The House of Us (dir. Ga-eun Yoon)
I cried );
The Cordillera of Dreams (dir. Patricio Guzmán)
From one of cinema’s great poets comes this vital piece on where Chile has been and where it may go.
Again Once Again (dir. Romina Paula)
My fave of the year. Examines the roles of motherhood and daughterhood in a truly compelling way.
Primeiro Ato (dir. Matheus Parizi)
Short film about the fight for culture in Brazil. Demands to be sought out by artists everywhere.
The Wandering Earth (dir. Frant Gwo)
At the moment when all hope seems lost, one of the characters fires his minigun at the sky screaming “Screw you Jupiter!” Iconic, and historically pertinent disaster movie
Fire Will Come (dir. Oliver Laxe)
Cow + Leonard Cohen = poetic cinema
Lucky Grandma (dir. Sasie Sealy)
Badass, funny, heartfelt. Seek it out!
Let It Burn (dir. Maíra Bühler)
Powerful doc about the importance of a social safety net.
Ben Flanagan (@manlikeflan), Film Critic
1. The Souvenir (dir. Joanna Hogg)
2. Atlantics (dir. Mati Diop)
3. Bait (dir. Mark Jenkin)
4. High Life (dir. Claire Denis)
5. Diamantino (dir. Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt)
6. Us (dir. Jordan Peele) / Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
7. The Nightingale (dir. Jennifer Kent)
8. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
9. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
10. Transit (dir. Christian Petzold)
Brad Hanson (@hadbranson), Film Critic
2019 UK releases:
Booksmart (dir. Olivia Wilde)
The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
High Life (dir. Claire Denis)
If Beale Street Could Talk (dir. Barry Jenkins)
Knives Out (dir. Rian Johnson)
Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)
Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)
The Peanut Butter Falcon (dir. Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz)
Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
The Souvenir (dir. Joanna Hogg)
2019 horror films (including festival releases):
Bliss (dir. Joe Begos)
Color Out of Space (dir. Richard Stanley)
I Trapped the Devil (dir. Josh Lobo)
The Lighthouse (dir. Robert Eggers)
The Lodge (dir. Severian Fiala, Veronika Franz)
Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)
Ready or Not (dir. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett)
Saint Maud (dir. Rose Glass)
Sator (dir. Jordan Graham)
Wounds (dir. Babak Anvari)
Alex Heeney (@bwestcineaste), Editor-in-Chief of Seventh Row
1. Mouthpiece (dir. Patricia Rozema)
As my pick for the best Canadian film of the decade, it should come as no surprise that it’s also my top film of 2019: a tour de force about a woman at war with herself, struggling with her identity, her relationship with her mother, and her grief. It made me laugh and cry, and few films have hit me this deep.
2. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
As a long-time Céline Sciamma fan dating back to Water Lilies, it’s exciting to see her tackle her first adult characters in this breathtaking romance that pulls at your heartstrings, works your brain, and makes you angry that more stories about women like this don’t exist. How much do I love it? Well, we wrote a book on it…
3. Sergio & Sergei (dir. Ernesto Daranas)
I first saw Sergio & Sergei at TIFF in 2017, and I haven’t stopped raving about this delightfully bonkers Cuban film, which uses a story about outer space to talk about geopolitical space. It’s the closest descendent to Bill Forsyth’s movies: both brutally real and an escapist magical realist fantasy. And who wouldn’t want to stumble upon a cosmonaut in space with their ham radio?
4. Transit (dir. Christian Petzold) / End of the Century (dir. Lucio Castro)
Transit is technically a 2018 release in Canada, so I’m cheating here, but this film was so so smart in the way it reframes how we think about refugees and the holocaust that it made it onto Seventh Row’s best of the decade list. I’ve paired it with End of the Century because the film also plays with time, but more explicitly as the story of a brief encounter gay romance, which may have more history than they’d initially realised. I’ll sing its praises more in Seventh Row’s best of the year list.
5. Peterloo (dir. Mike Leigh)
I saw Peterloo at TIFF18, forced our executive editor Orla Smith to see it ASAP, and well, we wrote a book about it. It reminds me of Julius Caesar if only the masses were thinking, feeling people who weren’t so easily swayed.
6. 1917 (dir. Sam Mendes)
I’ve been a Sam Mendes fan since his Cabaret fundamentally changed how I thought about both the musical and the possibilities of theatre. 1917 is the kind of film that only a theatre director who also directed Skyfall could make; it owes a debt to Dunkirk, and yet is so much more expansive, emotionally involving, and gripping.
7. The Souvenir (dir. Joanna Hogg)
8. Giant Little Ones (dir. Keith Behrman)
It’s so great that it features in our Canadian Cinema Yearbook!
9. The Nightingale (dir. Jennifer Kent) / One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk (dir. Zacharias Kunuk)
Two great films about colonialism in action: The Nightingale is about violence and systems of oppression in Australia; One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk is about failures of communication and translation, and the insidious ways colonialism quietly becomes violent. Both films are exquisitely blocked and framed.
10. Jeune Juliette (dir. Anne Émond)
One of the great teen comedies of the decade from Seventh Row fave Anne Émond. Read my review.
Jesse Knight (@Superfluously), Film Critic
1. Too Late to Die Young (dir. Dominga Sotomayor)
2. The Last to See Them (dir. Sara Summa)
3. Fugue (dir. Agnieszka Smoczyńska)
4. To the Ends of the Earth (dir. Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
5. Ivana the Terrible (dir. Ivana Mladenović)
6. Blonde Animals (dir. Maxime Matray, Alexia Walther)
7. Transnistra (dir. Anne Eborn)
8. All Cats Are Gray in the Dark (dir. Lasse Linder)
9. All Good (dir. Eva Trobisch)
10. Family Members (dir. Mateo Bendesky)
Valeria Villegas Lindvall (@morenadefuego), Film Critic
1. Pain & Glory (Dolor y Gloria, dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
2. Las Sandinistas! (dir. Jenny Murray)
3. High Life (dir. Claire Denis)
4. The Chambermaid (La Camarista, dir. Lila Avilés)
5. Bixa Travesty (dir. Kiko Goifman, Claudia Priscilla)
6. Lucky One (dir. Mia Engberg)
7. Theatre of War (Teatro de guerra, dir. Lola Arias)
8. Us (dir. Jordan Peele)
9. The Nightingale (dir. Jennifer Kent)
10. Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)
Willow Maclay (@willow_catelyn), Film Critic
1. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
2. Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood (dir. Quentin Tarantino)
3. Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
4. Ash is Purest White (dir. Jia Zhangke)
5. Uncut Gems (dir. Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie)
6. Dark Waters (dir. Todd Haynes)
7. The Beach Bum (dir. Harmony Korine)
8. Three From Hell (dir. Rob Zombie)
9. So Pretty (dir. Jessie Rovinelli)
10. Ad Astra (dir. James Gray)
Graciela Mae (@notgracielamae), Filmmaker and Film Critic
1. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
2. Deerskin (dir. Quentin Dupieux)
3. Booksmart (dir. Olivia Wilde)
4. Varda by Agnès (dir. Agnès Varda)
5. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
6. The Lighthouse (dir. Robert Eggers)
7. Hustlers (dir. Lorene Scafaria)
8. Lucky Grandma (dir. Sasie Sealy)
Additional mentions: Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig), If Beale Street Could Talk (dir. Barry Jenkins)
Emily Maskell (@EmMaskell), Film Critic
And Then We Danced (dir. Levan Akin)
I film I cannot, and will not, stop talking about. Levan Akin has made a masterpiece that I cannot recommend enough.
Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
Dear reader, I sobbed at this absolute perfection.
The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
Scorsese made me sit still for three hours and thirty minutes and I thank him for it.
Benjamin (dir. Simon Amstell)
I’m a fool who missed this in the cinema. However, Benjamin has quickly become my comfort film, perfect to watch while wrapped in blankets with a cuppa.
Varda by Agnès (dir. Agnès Varda)
Agnès Varda is one of those individuals that reached beyond the screen and took us all under her wing. This is her last hurrah and what a perfect one it is.
Apollo 11 (dir. Todd Douglas Miller)
A real standout documentary of this year, experiencing the moon landing with renewed picture quality the Apollo mission is surprisingly intense and visually stunning.
Little Women. (dir. Greta Gerwig)
Greta Gerwig will never disappoint me. Little Women is an emotional rollercoaster of laughter, tears and joyous sisterhood.
Matthias and Maxime (dir. Xavier Dolan)
Dolan is back with a stunner. A heartfelt story of love that is entangled in the complications of friendship, a group of talented young actors being consistently excellent.
Booksmart (dir. Olivia Wilde)
Booksmart is so much fun, everything about this film dances with uncompromising and infectious energy. Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever bring such magnetic energy to this fabulous film.
The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
Lulu Wang opened up her heart in this beautiful ode to family, acting as a reminder to hug your loved ones tight.
Per Morten Mjølkeråen (@mjolkeraaen), Film Critic
1. Zombi Child (dir. Bertrand Bonello)
Bertrand Bonello’s latest, Zombi Child, may not be as immediately captivating as Nocturama or House of Tolerance, but it is nonetheless a Bonello film with all the intricacies and challenges that has come to mean. Zombi Child functions in many ways as a direct response to some of the philosophical and historical questions posed by Bonello’s previous features, and even some of his shorts, but it is mostly about a girl, and the way we see her.
2. America (dir. Garrett Bradley)
Garrett Bradley is best known for her documentary shorts, and while America fits neatly into this genre, it is also her first film that ventures into the expressionistic and poetic, while retaining her unflinching political edge. It’s a quiet meditation on cultural loss and erasion, and the process of excavation. Sara Gomez would be proud.
3. Dead Princess of Jacui (dir. Marcela Ilha Bordin)
A short that evokes the entire library of Jorge Luis Borges and Fernando Pessoa, as well as Annihilation (both the adaptation as well as VanderMeer’s original), while remaning fully unique. I was shaken by Marcela Ilha Bordin’s formalism when I first saw it in May, and haven’t been able to get it out of my mind since. It has occupied my consciousness and my dreams for months, and will continue to do so for a long, long time.
4. House of Hummingbird (dir. Kim Bo-ra)
When you Google “Best Directorial Debuts of All-Time” the search result is predominantly male, which is a shame. Kim Bo-ra’s House of Hummingbird is without a doubt one of the best debuts of the decade, if not century so far, and she’s not alone in being forgotten or ignored. This is a a tender and subdued tale of friendship and family, and the difficulties of finding your way through life as a young girl. It’s been a long time since I’ve been as moved by a friendship as I was here, and Bo-ra is certainly one to watch (her short film The Recorder Exam is available for free on Vimeo)
5. Atlantics (dir. Mati Diop)
As someone who’s been a huge admirer of Mati Diop since I saw her in 35 Shots of Rum and Simon Killer when I was maybe 16 or 17 (I am now 25), this was one of my most anticipated movies of all time, and it did not disappoint. Such a spellbinding and personal tale, where Diop’s own vision and heart is apparent in everything from the screenplay to the costume design and the compositions. A cinematic language that is wholly unique, and one that Diop has been developing throughout her brilliant shorts for a decade now.
6. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
Céline Sciamma has made four feature films, all of them a borderline masterpiece in their own right. Portrait of a Lady on Fire is certainly her most accomplished and self-assured, and although I’m not sure it’s my personal favourite, it’s one of the best of the year. One of the most ferocious uses of Vivaldi I have ever experienced.
7. Dead Souls (dir. Wang Bing)
Director Wang Bing has been recognised as one of the best of the best when it comes to slow cinema for decades now, but this is sadly my first exposure to one of his feature length documentaries. Eight hours and 27 minutes of interviews about a brutal part of China’s history. The length is fully deserved as Director Bing allows each of his subject to speak their mind, uncensored and unlimited. This should be shown in every school around the world.
8. Burning (dir. Lee Chang-dong)
Lee Chang-dong is perhaps one of the best male directors working today, and Burning is a testament to this. Its slow and meticulous crawl to a brutal and painful and beautiful and pathetic and desperate and shockingly political climax is a masterclass in direction. The film’s climax is all these things at once, and sometimes none of them. It shapes and shifts each time you watch it, which is what makes it such a fulfilling movie—as well as such a divisive one.
9. No Crying at the Dinner Table (dir. Carol Nguyen)
A devastating short about intergenerational trauma, and the insurmountable grief that can manifest between people who love one another when silence takes precedence over communication. This lasts only a handful of minutes, but the sorrow and emotional release director Carol Nguyen manages to fit into her frame is nothing short of extraordinary. Works well as a companion piece to Sarah Polley’s wonderful Stories We Tell.
10. A côte du volcan (dir. Elina Löwensohn)
A short behind the scenes look at Bertrand Mandico’s 2018 masterpiece The Wild Boys, shot and edited by Elina Löwensohn on her personal super 8 camera. An entity of its own, capturing the stunning locations of the original film in warm colors, breathing a whole new life to the world presented by Mandico’s stark black and white contrasts. Löwensohn’s immaculate sense of frame and subject is what makes this work as well as it does.
Rahul Patel (@RahulReviews), Film Critic
1. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
Every detail counts in Bong’s exhilarating criticism of capitalism and inequality. Amongst the many excellent aspects of Parasite is the way its director flits dexterously between different tones.
2. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
Almodóvar imbues this artist’s story with a deep sensitivity and passion, and Antonio Banderas’ extraordinary performance brings Salvador to life with aching beauty.
3. And Then We Danced (dir. Levan Akin)
This gorgeous partnership between expressions of physicality and sexuality is made all the more unique by its politically conscious outlook.
4. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
Sciamma shows a superb grasp of her craft as she delicately builds the sensual intimacy between Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant, and the striking cinematography makes Portrait one of the year’s most beautiful films.
5. Bad Education (dir. Cory Finley)
Armed with Mike Makowsky’s slick screenplay, Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney prove to be magnificent match as they both deliver career-best performances as a diabolical duo.
6. Babyteeth (dir. Shannon Murphy)
Babyteeth is a breath of fresh air as it defies the its genre’s tropes. The film’s witty, tender screenplay and perfect performances make this one of 2019’s most memorable films.
7. Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
This latest adaptation of Alcott’s novel overflows with charm and love, and with the help of perfect casting, each of the March sisters’ unique personalities shine.
8. Hustlers (dir. Lorene Scafaria)
Constance Wu’s and Jennifer Lopez’s evolving chemistry is just one sparkling jewel in Scafaria’s necessary female perspective on the financial crisis. Other jewels in the necklace include Lopez’s dance skills, a stellar Lorde needle drop and that fur coat.
9. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
Adorned with many personal touches, Lulu Wang’s film offers us an emotional tapestry of a fully realised family. One of The Farewell’s finest legacies will be introducing us to the range of Awkwafina’s talent and charisma.
10. Homecoming (dir. Beyoncé)
Not only was Beyoncé’s iconic Coachella performance an impressive physical feat, but also a spectacular display of culture and empowerment.
Jake Pitre (@jake_pitre), Film Critic
1. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
Put aside the discourse and this is simply sublime.
2. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
Capitalism has never been so entertaining.
3. Ad Astra (dir. James Gray)
Earnest man feelings in space, what’s not to love?
4. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
No one does queer eroticism like Sciamma.
5. Steven Universe: The Movie (dir. Rebecca Sugar)
The culmination of the show’s compassionate futurity.
6. Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood (dir. Quentin Tarantino)
Nostalgic revisionism, and one of Tarantino’s best.
7. The Lighthouse (dir. Robert Eggers)
Two bros chillin in the lighthouse five feet apart cuz they’re not gay.
8. A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood (dir. Marielle Heller)
Rejects every biopic cliché and thus packs a deeper wallop.
9. Knife+Heart (dir. Yann Gonzalez)
The more I kill you, the more I love you.
10. Alita: Battle Angel (dir. Robert Rodriquez)
Performance and transformation, and reckoning with an engineered personhood.
Christopher Schobert (@FilmSwoon), Film Critic
1. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
2. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
3. Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood (dir. Quentin Tarantino)
4. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
5. Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
6. Uncut Gems (dir. Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie)
7. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
8. Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)
9. Us (dir. Jordan Peele)
Jourdain Searles (@jourdayen), Film Critic
1. The Nightingale (dir. Jennifer Kent)
2. Hustlers (dir. Lorene Scafaria)
3. Uncut Gems (dir. Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie)
4. Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
5. Charlie Says (dir. Mary Harron)
6. Little Woods (dir. Nia DaCosta)
7. Amazing Grace (dir. Sydney Pollack, Alan Elliott)
8. Honey Boy (dir. Alma Har’el)
9. Homecoming (dir. Beyoncé)
10. In Fabric (dir. Peter Strickland)
Fatima Sheriff (@reaffirmsfaith), Screen Queens Staff Writer
A hybrid of UK cinema release and festival watches from me.
1. If Beale Street Could Talk (dir. Barry Jenkins) / Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
Both can be described as transcendental, hopeful and heart-breaking, and their use of colour is unmatched.
2. Blinded by the Light (dir. Gurinder Chadha)
Relatable, earnest, just a sunshine film with the bonus of being the closest representation to me I’ve seen on the big screen. After Bend It like Beckham of course.
3. Woman at War (dir. Benedikt Erlingsson)
For the anti-institution message and its intriguing incorporation of the instrumental
4. A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood (dir. Marielle Heller)
Originally approached and open-hearted.
5. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
Soft, emotionally complex, important. Love you Nai Nai!
6. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
Cynical, convoluted, fascinating. I knew Morse Code would come in handy one day
7. Anthropocene: A Human Epoch (dir. Jennifer Baichwal, Edward Burtynsky, Nicholas de Pencier)
Sublime visuals that emphasise our overpowering impact on the planet. Elevated by Vikander’s statistical ASMR.
8. Knives Out (dir. Rian Johnson)
An amusing, quick-witted rollercoaster. Cast Ana des Armas in everything!
9. Minding The Gap (dir. Bing Liu)
Such spirited subjects and a truly honest deconstruction of masculinity. Love when films like this help me feel the elation of sport without having to do it, the skating scenes feel like freedom.
The rest of my list can be found on here.
Orla Smith (@orlamango), Executive Editor of Seventh Row
1. Mouthpiece (dir. Patricia Rozema)
2. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
3. Wild Nights with Emily (dir. Madeleine Olnek)
4. Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)
5. Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)
6. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)
7. The Nightingale (dir. Jennifer Kent)
8. Peterloo (dir. Mike Leigh)
9. Us (dir. Jordan Peele)
10. Clemency (dir. Chinonye Chukwu)
Millicent Thomas (@MillicentOnFilm), Film Critic
1. Avengers: Endgame (dir. Anthony Russo, Joe Russo)
2. I Am Easy to Find (dir. Mike Mills)
3. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)
4. Apollo 11 (dir. Todd Douglas Miller)
5. Honey Boy (dir. Alma Har’el)
Mike Thorn (@MikeThornWrites), Author and Film Critic
1. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)
2. Tommaso (dir. Abel Ferrara)
3. To the Ends of the Earth (dir. Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
4. The Halt (dir. Lav Diaz)
5. Gemini Man (dir. Ang Lee)
6. Martin Eden (dir. Pietro Marcello)
7. Atlantics (dir. Mati Diop)
8. Sibyl (dir. Justine Triet)
9. Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes (dir. Joe Berlinger)
10. In Dog Years (dir. Sophy Romvari)
Fiona Underhill (@FionaUnderhill), Editor of Jumpcut Online
1. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
2. The Man Who Killed Don Quixote (dir. Terry Gilliam)
3. The Souvenir (dir. Joanna Hogg)
4. Love, Antosha (dir. Garret Price)
5. Tigers Are Not Afraid (dir. Issa López)
6. Swing Kids (dir. Kang Hyeong-Cheol)
7. 1917 (dir. Sam Mendes)
8. Animals (dir. Sophie Hyde)
9. And Then We Danced (dir. Levan Akin)
10. In Fabric (dir. Peter Strickland)
Marina Vuotto (@sobmarina_), Film Critic
Hustlers (dir. Lorene Scafaria)
The film that made me scream in pleasure as soon as I heard the words ‘It’s Britney, bitch’.
Little Women (dir. Greta Gerwig)
The film that made my heart grow three sizes.
Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)
The film I liked so much I watched it twice in a day: once sobbing, once laughing.
Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-ho)
The film that got me as close as I ever was to believing there is a god, and that god may very well be Bong Joon-ho.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
The film that made me sit on the pavement outside the cinema and sob for a while before I could (partly) recover.
Honourable mentions: Booksmart (dir. Olivia Wilde), Honey Boy (dir. Alma Har’el), The Lighthouse (dir. Robert Eggers), Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster), Uncut Gems (dir. Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie)
Lena Wilson (@lenalwilson), Film Critic
1. The Last Black Man in San Francisco (dir. Joe Talbot)
2. Under the Silver Lake (dir. David Robert Mitchell)
3. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)
4. Honey Boy (dir. Alma Har’el)
5. Swallow (dir. Carlo Mirabella-Davis)
6. Us (dir. Jordan Peele)
7. In Fabric (dir. Peter Strickland)
8. Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)
9. Black Christmas (dir. Sophia Takal)
10. Knives Out (dir. Rian Johnson)
