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Directors Alexandre de La Patellière and Matthieu Delaporte breathe new life into the classic revenge tale for a new age.

The year is 1815 in Marseille, France. A 22-year-old Edmond Dantès (Pierre Niney) is promoted to the captain and eagerly awaits marrying his fiancée, Mercédès. But when jealous peers frame him for a crime he didn’t commit, he winds up in the Château d'If dungeons for over a decade. Following a daring escape, he discovers a vast fortune and returns to France under the guise of the "Count of Monte Cristo," a persona he adopts to seek revenge on those who destroyed his life.

Every second of 180 minute runtime screams epic. Niney carries the film with ease, managing to depict Dantès’ journey from young charmer through righteous crusader to jaded old man wondering if revenge was what he should have lived for. The relentless push of his story ensures that you’re riveted to the bitter end.

Just like last year’s fantastic two-part adaptation of The Three Musketeers, this is an expert adaptation of a huge tale, told with appropriate passion and scope, and certain to ensure the French film industry continues to have a great time bringing its classics home.

Jane Fonda’s career-defining performance enriches Alan Pakula’s gritty New Hollywood thriller classic.

Set against the the unforgiving landscape of 1970’s New York, the film follows Bree Daniel (Fonda), a call girl working in the city who finds herself entangled in a case involving the disappearance of a high-profile business executive. Detective John Klute (Donald Sutherland) is assigned to shadow her, and as their professional relationship evolves into a romantic one, it becomes evident that Bree is not the only one being pursued. As the threat against her intensifies, Bree and Klute must uncover who is after her before time runs out.

The film is meticulously made, offering a swirling, nail-biting atmosphere of tension. Pakula's greatest films feature phenomenal female leads. Like those before her, this is really a Jane Fonda picture, and it's impossible to forget it. Calling her performance powerhouse would be a grand understatement. Sutherland is on top form, too, playing the gentle small-town detective who teaches her the difference between love and sex as he closes in on the killer.

Klute captures its era with an undeniable, surging energy. It’s a cliché, but they simply don’t make thrillers like this anymore.

Writer-director Josh Margolin playfully explores the human need for independence, support and self-confidence.

At 93, the widowed Thelma (June Squibb) enjoys her quiet life in Los Angeles and is particularly close to helpful grandson Danny (Fred Hechinger). When a scammer calls claiming to be Danny in trouble, she quickly sends cash to bail him out. Naturally, she feels embarrassed when she shares this with Danny and his parents. The police won't do anything, but she's inspired to take action herself. Turning to old friend Ben (Richard Roundtree), she heads out on his two-seater scooter to retrieve her cash on the other side of town.

Inspired by his own grandmother, Margolin keeps things close to home and grounded. And because it's so easy to see ourselves and our loved ones reflected in its characters, the film finds frequent moments of emotional connection. Squibb is magnetic as a woman who is laser-focussed on her task but pushing the boundaries of her physical abilities, with strong support from Roundtree and Hechinger, who bring depth and humour to their roles.

A sharp, comical adventure that balances hearty laughs with deeper themes of self-reliance and cognitive decline.

Francis Ford Coppola’s last dance is an epic, sprawling odyssey of mad artistic ambitions.

Part of Coppola’s reputation as a filmmaker paints him as an adventurer, prepared to risk everything, to defy the studio suits, to go to the brink of ruin and insanity, all for the sake of art. The making of Apocalypse Now cemented that legend. Now, it seems, the 85-year-old is putting all his chips on the table one last time, with his long-awaited sci-fi epic Megalopolis, a film 40 years in the making.

Set in a reimagined modern America, the story centres on Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), a visionary artist, dreaming of propelling “The City of New Rome” into a utopian future. In opposition stands Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), who clings to a regressive status quo characterised by greed, special interests, and partisan strife. Caught in the middle is Julia Cicero (Nathalie Emmanuel), the mayor's daughter, whose love for Cesar challenges her loyalties and compels her to confront her own beliefs about what humanity truly deserves.

Playing like a reckless surreal dream, it’s one of the most chaotic and captivating entries in the director’s six-decade career. A thundering magnum opus, or a beautiful disaster?

Pixar’s follow-up to their 2015 mega hit glimmers with the diamond-hard truths about growing up.

Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust have been running a successful operation by all accounts. However as Riley’s childhood innocence fades and Anxiety shows up, they aren't sure how to feel. Unprepared for this rapid change, Joy and the other emotions soon discover that Riley is far more volatile than ever before.

Spicing things up a notch with more than a sprinkle of teenage angst, this is a really solid sequel to arguably one of Pixar’s very best works. Tapping into what it means to leave childhood behind, things feel a little more mature this time around, fitting given the dawn of Riley’s teenage years. It’s incredibly relatable, driving home a heartfelt message about the truth of what it is to be human in all its beautiful complexities. Breezy and light on its feet, there are also lovely little nuggets of insight into what makes us all tick.

This is one of those franchises that could naturally run forever, exploring pivotal life moments as Riley transitions her way towards and through adulthood. But for now, it’s just nice to be reunited.

Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum star in this sharp, stylish comedy-drama set against the high-stakes backdrop of NASA's historic Apollo 11 moon landing.

Brought in to fix NASA's public image, sparks fly in all directions as marketing maven Kelly Jones (Johansson) wreaks havoc on launch director Cole Davis's (Tatum) already difficult task. When the White House deems the mission too important to fail, Jones is directed to stage a fake moon landing as back-up and the countdown truly begins.

In a current era when it seems like every other thing is a conspiracy story, does truth still hold the same weight? Playing up to the concept of whether or not we faked it all, Fly Me to the Moon tackles this very question head-on.

A fine supporting cast alongside Tatum and Johansson (surprisingly their first time working together) includes other acting heavyweights such Woody Harrelson (as NASA top-dog Moe Berkus), Ray Romano and Jim Rash.

Meticulously crafted to reflect the ambiance of the 1960’s, it’s a fun and welcoming work of fiction that hooks into the real-life efforts to market the moon landings to the American public and the world

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The unforeseen arrival of unhoped-for happiness infuses this wonderful Iranian drama with heartwarming romance.

Encouraged by her fellow pensioner friends to pursue new romantic beginnings, 70-year-old widower Mahin (Lily Farhadpour) decides to put herself out there again. A run-in with Iran’s morality police further reinvigorates Mahin’s confidence in standing up for what she believes in after she successfully defends a girl who is accused of not properly wearing her hijab. Learning that an elderly taxi driver named Faramarz is also unmarried, Mahin invites him over to her home and they share a glorious rollercoaster of an evening.

Farhadpour shines as the sincere and relatable 70-year-old, and anyone familiar with current events in Iran will recognise the political and personal significance of Mahin’s story. All eyes were on writer-directors Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha (or, rather, their absence) at the film’s premiere. The duo’s passports were seized by the Iranian government and their travel halted. Their 2020 film Ballad of a White Cow also premiered in the Competition strand of the Berlinale but remains banned in Iran. The regime of their country and its ongoing repression is one thing but, as Mahin proves, the heart still wants what it wants

The ever reliable Kate Winsliet is commanding as Lee Miller, who went from fashion to war photography, in this biographical drama.

This all begins with Lee who lives a life of luxury with her artist lover Roland Penrose (Alexander Skarsgård) before becoming a war correspondent during World War II and a highly celebrated photographer for Vogue Magazine. While travelling through war-torn Germany, Miller works alongside the Jewish New York journalist David Scherman (Andy Samberg) who assists her in capturing the atrocities that are occurring. While the daring photographer initially struggles to get her images out to the world because of stubborn US politics, the images she captures soon become some of the most recognizable and haunting photographs to come out of the war, showing the world the injustices and sheer hatred that was taking place in Nazi Germany.

Andrea Riseborough plays her editor, the actor once again fully disappearing into her character, and one of the more interesting wrestles in the film is between what Miller thinks people need to be aware of and what Vogue magazine thinks is acceptable. Lee is a captivating and thrilling drama

The ever fascinating filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan returns with another high-concept thriller. This time we follow an infamous serial killer, through his perspective, as he attends a pop concert.

Cooper (Josh Hartnett), also known as “The Butcher” attends the Taylor Swift-esque “Lady Raven” (Saleka Shyamalan) concert with his daughter, Riley (Ariel Donoghue). Unbeknownst to him, the FBI has learned that he will be in attendance and has set up a trap to catch him. Most of the film is treated in the classic cat-and-mouse fashion, where Cooper is in complete control of the situation and is one step ahead of the FBI’s operation, led by Dr. Josephine Grant (Hayley Mills).

The fun is watching Hartnett scout the area for weaknesses and exits in the venue, all the while trying to be a good father. His surprisingly creepy turn as the killer makes for a great against-typecasting, and it leaves you wondering where on earth the actor has been all these years. While the film isn’t as strong once it leaves the venue, it’s still a very engaging, albeit very silly thrill-ride. Just leave your suspension of disbelief at the door.

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Virtual reality is taken to new heights in this winning Eternal Sunshine-esque French romance.

Daniel Auteuil plays cartoonist Victor Drumond, marooned in his sixties and gently withdrawing from an alien world of endless iPad and phone interaction. Kicked out by his wife Marianne (the eternally gorgeous Fanny Ardant) who finds him insufferably boring, he desperately reaches out to friend Antoine who runs a high-end re-enactment service, whereby a client can be transported to any era they desire and live out their fantasy life.

When offered the opportunity, Victor doesn't hesitate, wishing to return to a smoke-filled bistro in 1974, the moment he first met Marianne. However, there are complications, as Victor finds himself falling for Margot, the actress playing young Marianne, who also happens to be Antoine's on-again-off-again girlfriend.

Auteuil is great in the lead role, remaining sceptical of the charade but unable to resist its allure.

Writer-director Nicolas Bedos also has endless fun, packing the film with moments of joie de vivre to deliver an escapist fantasy as topical as it is touching. An immaculately constructed, achingly romantic joy, exploring both the seductive pull of nostalgia as well as the dangers of living in the past. (Research Chris Coetsee) Come for Fanny Ardant… Don’t miss.

A delicious performance as a catty gay theatre critic in 1930s London elevates this Patrick Marber-scripted drama.

Jimmy Erskine (Ian McKellen) is the most feared and famous theatre critic, saving his most savage takedowns for Nina Land (Gemma Arterton), an already unsure leading lady.

As a gay man forever at the mercy of laws that prohibit his very existence, Jimmy is living life on the edge, indulging in sex with strangers while showboating his flamboyance in writing. But when his newspaper’s proprietor dies and his son (Mark Strong) takes over, Jimmy is told to be careful, to avoid falling foul of his new boss by cutting down on the cattiness, and when his job security becomes precarious, he’s forced to turn to Nina for help.

It’s a darkly comic premise, making use of the old cinematic conceit of the critic as some kind of egotist puppet master, with little regard for mere mortal laws and moralities. Despite all this nastiness, the film has a teatime glow of cosy-crime sentimentality which reduces the effect;  McKellen’s glorious star quality and dash make him the only possible casting.

Writer-director Coralie Fargeat’s audacious body horror is one of the most electrifying films in recent memory.

Popular TV aerobics show Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) is extremely famous. Billboard famous. And has been for decades. But when leering network executive Harvey informs her that she’s being put out to pasture, she turns to a cell-replicating substance that promises the temporarily benefits of inhabiting a younger, better version of herself: Sue (Margaret Qualley). Fuelled by low self-esteem, hatred and envy begin to grow between Elisabeth and her alter-ego and as an unhealthy psychological dependency on the drug takes hold, horrifying side effects begin to emerge.

Ripping into her best big-screen role in decades, Demi Moore is fearless in parodying her public image, glueing it all together with a vanity-free performance full of bruised ego, dawning horror and vulnerability. She’s a necessary anchor as this is not a subtle movie. The filmmaking is aggressive. The metaphor is a blunt object. The music is loud and thumping, and the colour palette is bright enough to peel the film off of your eyeballs. It’s animated by a white-hot internal rage that escalates throughout its epic 140-minute run time. Demented and absurd in the best ways possible, it’s an absolute revelation.

Tim Burton’s long-imagined follow-up to his 1988 horror freak show revels in some gleefully silly moments, while avoiding that dated feeling.

Right from the ghostly title sequence and iconic Danny Elfman theme, you know exactly where all this is going. Formerly rebellious teen Lydia (Winona Ryder) is now the insecure, pill-popping host of a TV show about the supernatural. Her stepmother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) remains a pretentious conceptual artist. Her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), meanwhile, is a schoolgirl at a posh boarding school where she is horribly bullied. Lydia is also being preyed upon by her sleazy business manager Rory (Justin Theroux), who is trying to push her into marriage.

Meanwhile, in the afterlife, Michael Keaton’s predatory Betelgeuse – think an inverse exorcist – is being relentlessly pursued by his vengeful ex-wife Delores (Monica Bellucci), who wants to steal his soul.

As Betelgeuse is called back into the land of the living once again, all hell breaks loose, and all bets are off. This is a horrific, yet horrifically fun romp with flashes of messy, B-movie brilliance. A real Halloween treat.

Old-school blockbusters are back! Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell are the charismatic leads of a sharply edited, rollickingly good weather-based romp.

The original Twister was the smash-hit 90s disaster film about tornado chasers. Now, nearly 40 years later, we’re treated to a second helping of gutsy, and gusty, summer fun.

Two breeds of nerd, brow to brow in a crisis – makes for endearing protagonists. One is Kate Cooper (Edgar-Jones), a gifted meteorologist, still distrought by a disastrous field experiment in which a tornado claimed the lives of three friends. The other is Tyler Owens (Powell), a swaggering self-styled ‘tornado wrangler’ with a million followers on YouTube, and an ego that could out-blow most of the storms he pursues. Kate has a new scientific plan to fire chemical reagents up into the twister to halt its terrifying spiral and thereby save lives and communities.

It’s expressive and, at times, intense to the point of being frightening, but you can always keep a good handle on who’s where and what’s going on. The film’s climactic tribute to the original’s movie drive-in sequence will go down as one of the year’s best action sequences. Buckle up.

This is the big one - just as Fellowship of the Ring revitalised the fantasy epic a year later – swords and sandals got a huge boost with Ridley Scott's sprawling, enthralling Roman orgy of blood, passion, betrayal and revenge.

A career best for Russell Crowe, Maximus' troubles begin after he has conquered the rebellious tribes of Germania and learns that Caesar (Richard Harris) has chosen him as his successor. When Caesar's son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) the cowardly, sly runt of the family; finds out, he grabs power overnight with breathtaking brutality. Maximus escapes but is sold into slavery, ending up in the gladiatorial arena pits of Ancient Rome.

It's Spartacus on steroids; with the tools of modern filmmaking at his disposal (unparalleled cinematography, digital crowds, a resurrected Colosseum and a dead Oliver Reed, during filming 1999) Scott unleashes hell.

It is monumental, big-screen movie-making: visually thrilling, technically astonishing, and emotionally engaging. And, most people seem to forget, actually bagged the best picture award, a rarity for such a crowd pleaser. "Are you not entertained?” yes, Russell, we are. (research Jack Whiting) Must be seen once on the big Rex screen in August. So come.

Our first film at the newly restored Rex in December 2004 The Third Man remains a huge global favourite. This BFI restoration brings the long shadows back to life.

‘Although his screen time is famously scanty Orson Welles’ Harry Lime haunts every scene. Everywhere but invisible, he’s a smirking Cheshire cat of a villain, a superb case study in shameless charisma as poisonous contagion. It is suffused with irony yet ultimately serious-minded: without personal responsibility, it says, there is no hope for civilisation – however charming the smirk.’ (assorted clever clogs crits)

“In Italy, for 30 years under the Borgias, they had warfare, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they have brotherly love. They had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? - The cuckoo clock!” (the smirking Welles improv line..?) Cary Grant was down for the lacklutre Joseph Cotton role as the awkward hero - Noel Coward was to be Harry Lime, what a waste and what a fabulous character film that would have made. The best things about this Third Man are Trevor Howard, Anton Karas’ haunting zither, the cat and the girl’s long closing walk. The rest is cookoo.  

Those irksome cartoon banana bugs are back in business. After 14 years and six films, Illumination’s animated franchise shows no sign of slowing down.

Gru (Steve Carrell) begins with his arrival at a high school reunion in Europe; a castle in the mountains, where the Class of ’85 has assembled. Gru, who has long ago converted to working for the powers of light, confronts a new nemesis: former classmate Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell). Maxime has a weapon that turns everyone into cockroaches, and when he goes all out to attack Gru and his wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig), their family must relocate to a new city with fake names. And it is in this new suburban dullness that Gru is discomfited to meet the kid next door: Poppy (Joey King) who has a proposition for him. Meanwhile, Silas Ramsbottom (Steve Coogan), has developed fancy tech  for evolving the little yellow minions up to a new level of crime-fighting excellence.

Speaking of Minions, everyone’s favourite yellow critters are turned into superheroes — dubbed the Mega Minions. They’re presented with a clever twist that allows for a fair amount of chuckles

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Fawzia Mirza’s exceptional debut is a story that crosses time, space and even genre.

Azra (Amrit Kaur), a queer MFA grad student, has had a strained relationship with her parents since coming out. When their father dies suddenly in Pakistan, Azra and her brother Zahid catch the next flight to support their grieving mother Mariam (Nimra Bucha). Though both mother and daughter want to be there for each other, high emotions only worsen the tension between them. Flashing back to 1969 Pakistan, we meet a young Mariam (also played by Kaur). She is a completely different woman from the present day. But as we skip from the past to the present to the past again, we discover that Azra and Mariam are more alike than they realise.

While diaspora cinema often uses the trope of a Western-raised child exploring their parent’s past for a more compassionate perspective, writer-director Mirza offers a fresh take. Her sharp focus on the nuances of Azra and Mariam’s relationship, the external factors affecting it, and the exploration of two cultures on the brink of change provide a sensitive and uplifting portrait of womanhood, family, and evolving identities.

Haley Bennett stars in this swirly, swoony bio-pic of undying love, fine wine, property and madness during the Napoleonic Wars.

Following her husband's François’ sudden death, Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin Clicquot defies societal expectations by taking charge of the struggling wine business they had built together. Despite facing immense political and financial challenges, she silences her critics and transforms the champagne industry, establishing herself as one of the world's pioneering businesswomen.

It's beautifully assembled. Lush design, softly glowing cinematography, a strings-heavy score and non-linear editing add surging passions to what is essentially a straightforward tale of a strong, intelligent woman who succeeds in a culture stacked against her. Dreamy flashbacks and earnest voiceovers heighten the pinched emotions and pointed gender politics.

Bennett gives a yearning performance that flickers back and forth between Barbe-Nicole's marriage and the tenacity, skill and innovation that revolutionised the wine industry in Champagne. Continually cutting to wistful memories of her life with François, there's a strong sense of what's now at stake for Barbe-Nicole, and why transforming this business is so important to her.

A timely account that raises a glass to the grande dame of Champagne.

Animation wizard Hayao Miyazaki re-emerges after a decade with another strikingly beautiful, yet mournful tale of a young boy coming to terms with his mother’s death.

It’s the one Miyazaki came out of retirement to make, and it’s arguably one of his most personal. The backdrop is 1940s wartime Japan. The boy of the title is 12-year-old Mahito (Luca Padovan). Shortly before the main action takes place, Mahito loses his mother in a hospital fire after a bombing raid on Tokyo. The still grieving Mahito is forced to relocate to the country estate after his father remarries.

It also has another resident: a strange heron (Robert Pattinson) that seems to be taking an interest in Mahito. At the behest of this mysterious bird, Mahito enters a forbidden tower and finds himself drawn into a netherworld where timelines are knitted together. Fellow inhabitants of this world include Kiriko (Florence Pugh), a dashing sailor and fisherwoman who is skilled in magic, and the fire maiden Himi (Karen Fukuhara) and a community of giant man-eating parakeets. A slow-burn at first, this stunning film unfolds into a dimension hopping adventure

John Carpenter’s seminal slasher classic.

If there's one John Carpenter film which is a must-see, it's Halloween. Made on a tiny budget of $300,000, and shot in only 20 days, it set the gold standard of the slasher genre while single-handedly shaping the future of horror filmmaking.

The plot: on Halloween night 1963, six year old Michael Myers brutally murders his 17-year-old sister, Judith. Sentenced and locked away for 15 years, he escapes on Halloween night 1978. Hunted by his psychiatrist Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence), he heads home to the quiet town of Haddonfield, Illinois, looking for his next victims, including unwitting high-school student Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Scary, suspenseful, and viscerally thrilling, it’s iconic from one end to the other in every way. From its masterful opening shot to the terrifying use of voyeurism in the daytime, to it’s instantly recognisable score, to Curtis’ natural breakthrough performance that brings to life one of the best final girls ever, to Pleasence masterfully playing a doctor who will stop at nothing to capture his most dangerous patient.

One of the most influential, imitated, and commercially successful independent films in history, it’s still the quintessential popcorn chiller with very few equals

Edgar Wright’s pitch-perfect apocalyptic comedy.

Shaun, a North London loser, is a disappointment to his girlfriend, family, friends and flatmate. Only his mate Ed, an even bigger loser, looks up to him. Then flesh-eating zombies overrun the city and Shaun is forced to take responsibility for the survival of his corner of humanity.

Bordering on 20 years, this is still pretty much flawless. From the zombified mundane plodding through life before turning into flesh-eating monsters, to the cream of of British comedy descending into madness, it’s all here.

Dylan Moran, Bill Nighy and Penelope Wilton bolster a sensational supporting cast list while Simon Pegg and Nick Frost simply kill it in the leads. It’s one of those guilty pleasures that you can see over and over and over again.

Another two decades can run on but we’ll probably still be watching this. A product of post-9/11 anxiety initially, this is still Edgar Wright’s most loved, most enduring film, on both sides of the Atlantic.

The first and finest instalment in the Cornetto Trilogy, it simply cannot be missed.