Roma (2018)Īlfonso Cuaron’s most personal film is also his finest – an affectionate portrait of his childhood as well as modern Mexico City through the eyes of a young nanny. It’s beautiful, intelligent and unforgettable. Pawel Pawlikowski’s sweeping monochromatic love story is the first and last word in post-war romance and artistic desire. More importantly, it’s a stone-cold masterpiece. Nadine Labaki’s Lebanese drama, based on a 12-year-old boy who decides to sue his parents for “child neglect,” is the highest-grossing Middle-Eastern film of all time. Okja (2017)Ī heart-warming and deeply empathetic fantasy feature from the one and only Bong Joon-ho, Okjauses the story of a girl and her best friend, a large, weird animal called Okja to making powerful statements about the modern meat industry.
Two legendary British thespians in a movie largely limited to their lengthy conversations becomes so much more in Fernando Meirelles’ The Two Popes. Anthony Hopkins plays doubt-ridden, conservative Pope Benedict XVI and Jonathan Pryce is Cardinal Bergoglio, his reluctant and progressive successor resulting in a masterclass in drama.Ī gut-bustingly hilarious cult classic which remains just as funny and wonderfully ridiculous, the Monty Python crew’s comic exploration of the Dark Ages has lost none of its silly charm. Throw in a career-best performance from Shahid Kapoor and our case is made. Vishal Bhardwaj concluded his much-discussed Shakespeare trilogy with this modern-day adaptation of Hamlet, and transposed the story to Kashmir, masterfully using the Bard’s work to explore insurgency and conflict. Noah Baumbach’s heart-wrenching relationship drama, starring an excellent Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, follows the undoing of a married couple, exploring the joy, love and searing pain of a relationship like few before him have. It’s Pesci, Pacino, De Niro and a fantastic 3 hours.
Martin Scorsese’s sprawling gangster epic remains one of the finest testaments to Netflix’s commitment to putting talent first and making the kinds of films the studio system has turned its back on. Tender, soulful, and thought provoking, Spike Jonze’s film starring Joaquin Phoenix uses its bizarre sci-fi scenario to both comment on the modern reliance on technology as well as impart wisdom about the state of human relationships.