Allan Hunter has worked for Screen since 1990. He is based in Edinburgh and recently retired as co-director of Glasgow Film Festival.
Read our other critics’ top tens here.
Top 10
1. Killers Of The Flower Moon
Dir. Martin Scorsese
A majestic, flawlessly crafted history lesson from Scorsese in which he confronts the dark deeds that scar the soul of America. Working with some of his most trusted collaborators, he has created a careful balance between dramatic sweep and individual experience, expansive landscapes and claustrophobic interiors, crime and punishment. Lily Gladstone’s wise, gentle Mollie is the quiet heart of a film unflinching in how it calls out the greed and duplicity of white men who believe they should rule the world.
2. Past Lives
Dir. Celine Song
Absence makes the heart grow fonder in Song’s remarkably assured debut feature. Her delicate reflections on what might have been illuminate the story of two people whose childhood friendship never fades and never blossoms, as life and love take them in different directions. Tender and melancholy with an understanding of the emotional stakes for everyone and a lingering regret that gently melts the heart.
3. Poor Things
Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos
A dazzling adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s Frankenstein-inspired feminist novel, which Lanthimos translates to the screen with ferocious energy, wit and daring. Hammer horror, gothic fantasy, German expressionism and eye-popping production design are folded into a film that sacrifices none of the director’s trademark idiosyncrasy while remaining wickedly funny and endlessly provocative.
4. Anatomy Of A Fall
Dir. Justine Triet
An unexplained death and a high-stakes courtroom drama are unremarkable starting points, but Triet elevates them into a gripping exploration of loss, guilt, trust and complicity in which nothing is clear-cut. Sandra Hüller’s tour de force as a woman facing the judgment of others is matched by Milo Machado Graner as her son.
5. The Holdovers
Dir. Alexander Payne
Payne’s warming winter tale is full of wit and wisdom about the trials of being human. Vulnerability, shared humanity and second chances are the themes where the dialogue sparkles, the emotions are heartfelt and there are pitch-perfect performances from Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and newcomer Dominic Sessa.
6. Oppenheimer
Dir. Christopher Nolan
7. All Of Us Strangers
Dir. Andrew Haigh
8. Rye Lane
Dir. Raine Allen-Miller
9. Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell
Dir. Pham Thien An
10. The Delinquents
Dir. Rodrigo Moreno
Best documentary
1. 20 Days In Mariupol
Dir. Mstyslav Chernov
The hell of war finds a powerful expression in Chernov’s compelling documentary. He remained in Mariupol to capture the escalating horrors when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Bearing witness to history creates an urgent, thriller-like narrative alert to the suffering of individuals and the responsibilities of frontline journalism.
2. Smoke Sauna Sisterhood
Dir. Anna Hints
A woodland sauna is refuge and confessional for a group of Estonian women in a documentary marked by its intimacy, deceptive simplicity and the bond of trust between the filmmaker and the subjects.
3. Tish
Dir. Paul Sng
A portrait of photographer Tish Murtha, whose sympathetic images captured life in post-industrial Britain. Made with her daughter, this is a celebration of her work and of the struggle facing working-class voices.
Performance of the year
Emma Stone in Poor Things
Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos
As Bella Baxter, Stone roars through Poor Things like a hurricane reaching the shore. She plays a woman-child constructed from a combination of Frankenstein’s monster and feminist warrior. Stone invests her with impish petulance and a brazen curiosity as she experiences the wonders of the world and her sexuality. Subtly evolving throughout the film, she is a force of nature. An honourable mention goes to Koji Yakusho, operating at the other end of the spectrum with his warm, minimalist turn in Perfect Days.
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