Apocalypse Clown (George Kane, 2023) A group of clowns find themselves stuck in the Irish midlands when society unexpectedly collapses. Will they be able to survive and achieve their personal goals, or will they fall victim to their sworn enemies, the human statues?
Aurora’s Sunrise (Inna Sahakyan, 2022) A beautiful film combining interview footage and rotoscoped animation, but about a terrible subject: the Armenian Genocide perpetrated by Turkey around the time of the First World War. I saw it at the IFI's documentary film festival.
Asteroid City (Wes Anderson, 2023) There's a predictable and comforting quality to Wes Anderson films, although his work is definitely something that people either love or hate. I think the sheer beauty of his films should be more remarked upon.
An Cailín Ciúin (Colm Bairéad, 2022) For a quiet girl she does talk a lot, but the film neverthless packs a considerable emotional punch and may single-handedly have rehabilitated the terrible mikado biscuit.
Cairo Conspiracy (also known as Boy from Heaven) (Tarik Saleh, 2022) Tense political thriller set in the Al-Azhar mosque and university in Cairo and the Egyptian government's attempt to rig the election of a new Grand Imam.
Fallen Leaves (Aki Kaurismäki, 2023) A romantic comedy, Finnish style. Funny in a droll way, also moving.
In the Court of the Crimson King: King Crimson at 50 (Toby Amies, 2022) Somewhat niche music documentary about long-running prog band King Crimson, which mainly focuses on the oddness of their only permanent member, Robert Fripp.
Lies We Tell (Lisa Mulcahy, 2023) An at times quite intense adaptation of Sheridan Le Fanu's heiress-in-danger novel Uncle Silas.
LOLA (Andrew Legge, 2022) Appealing low budget film about two sisters in 1940s Britain who invent a device that allows them to see the future. Initially they are able to use it to help in the war against Nazi Germany, but then things go horribly wrong.
Modelo 77 (also known as Prison 77) (Alberto Rodríguez, 2022) Intense prison drama set during an upsurge of prisoner activism during transition to democracy in 1970s Spain. I saw it at the Dublin Film Festival and am surprised that it has not thus far received a general release as it is a stunning piece of work.
Pray for Our Sinners (Sinead O’Shea, 2023) Documentary about the long period of Catholic dominance of Ireland, centred on one town, but a bit less miserable than these things usually are thanks to its focus on resistance to Church power.
Reality (Tina Satter, 2023) Film reconstructing the interrogation and arrest of Reality Winner, who had leaked confidential documents on Russian interference in US elections, with all the dialogue taken from transcripts of her conversations with the FBI agents. Features a stunning central performance from Sydney Sweeney.
Róise & Frank (Rachael Moriarty & Peter Murphy, 2022) This was the other big Irish language film that came out in 2022 and deals with a bereaved woman who becomes convinced that a stray dog is the reincarnation of her late husband. Poignant and funny.
Rye Lane (Raine Allen-Miller, 2023) Likeable romantic comedy set in south London. Notable for its avoidance of stereotypes about its almost entirely black cast of characters and for moving beyond manic pixie dream girl clichés.
Sick of Myself (Kristoffer Borgli, 2022) Funny but dark Norwegian film about a woman who starts faking ever more bizarre illnesses to upstage her boyfriend, a popular but terrible artist. It feels like it is set in a similar milieu to The Worst Person In The World but is far edgier.
Squaring the Circle: the Story of Hipgnosis (Anton Corbijn, 2022) A documentary about the guys who designed almost all the memorable 1970s rock album covers. Features lots of cool music from the 1970s. Also features Noel Gallagher for no obvious reason.
Readers may notice I have not included either of last year's event films, Barbie or Oppenheimer. I liked them both well enough, but I liked other things more.
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