The Hurt Locker

Helen Mirren and Alan Rickman (in his last role) play the military commanders caught in the ethical crosshairs of drone warfare, in Gavin Hood’s gripping military thriller.

This technically brilliant, multi-award winner from Sam Mendes was inspired by his grandfather's memories of fighting in the First World War.

A small Baghdad community searches for hope in the face of unpredictable violence, turmoil, and loss.

Steve McQueen’s cinematic commemoration of the Holocaust offers a multidimensional experience full of gravity and sublimity.

An embittered bomb disposal expert is driven to drink in Powell and Pressburger’s compelling insight into the mental anguish of the alcoholic.

Gemma Arterton stars in acclaimed theatre director Jessica Swale’s moving Second World War drama, as a woman rediscovering her ability to love.

The winner of Best Foreign Language Film at the 2007 Academy Awards is a rich and intriguing political mystery.

Isabelle Huppert gives an unforgettable performance in Paul Verhoeven’s provocative thriller about one woman’s response to a violent attack.

Lynne Ramsay journeys with Joaquin Phoenix into the mind of an ex-soldier gun-for-hire whose own demons are as brutal as the actions of his adversaries.

Revenge is served ice-cold in this visceral thriller, in which a neolithic hunter seeks vengeance against those who decimated his tribe.

Coralie Fargeat's gloriously bloody tale of one woman's retribution; a razor-sharp feminist subversion of the revenge-thriller.

Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner star as the humans who make first contact with extra-terrestrial visitors in this richly textured sci-fi from director Denis Villeneuve.

Marion Cotillard plays a Polish immigrant struggling to survive in 1920s New York, in this acclaimed drama from James Gray (We Own the Night).

Chiwetel Ejiofor, Casey Affleck, Kate Winslet and Woody Harrelson make up the heavyweight cast for John Hillcoat’s (The Proposition) stunning heist thriller.

Anthony Mackie and Jamie Dornan star as a pair of New Orleans paramedics who encounter a series of bizarre deaths linked to a new designer drug with otherworldly effects.

John Boyega excels as the security guard caught up in a violent conflagration during the riots of 1967, in Kathryn Bigelow's blistering thriller.

Acclaimed Palestinian director Annemarie Jacir’s most ambitious work is a powerful exploration of the events leading up to the Arab Revolt of 1936.

Tense, morally complex political thriller about a man hunting down fugitive war criminals from the Assad regime in Syria, inspired by true events.

Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey lead a Sundance-prize winning ensemble in this knockout cruising drama from debut director Carmen Emmi.

Paul Kelly’s second collaboration with pop band Saint Etienne traces the hidden history of East London’s Lower Lea Valley before its Olympic makeover.

A gentle and sincere story of queer love between two young teenage boys, told with warmth and humour.

A journey from London’s suburbs to its heart, charting the influence of the city on indie pop band Saint Etienne.