The Painter and the Thief
Dir. Benjamin Ree
The Painter and the Thief opens with a great hook: an artist tracks down and confronts the man who stole…
David Byrne's American Utopia
Dir. Spike Lee
Legendary Talking Heads frontman David Byrne returns with this enigmatic stage show, and with Spike Lee in tow, the film…
Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets
Dir. Bill Ross & Bill Ross IV
This stirring peek into the final days of a shuttering Las Vegas dive might be one of the finest odes…
Apollo 11
Dir. Todd Douglas Miller
What makes Apollo 11 stand out is its sharp minimalist approach, allowing the archival footage of the mission to the…
Crystal Swan
Dir. Darya Zhuk
A nostalgic look at ’90s Belarus brings to bear a sharp generational divide. Evalina is a young DJ living in…
The Wolf House
Dir. Cristóbal León & Joaquín Cociña
This mortifying stop-motion fairy-tale is inspired by the very real horrors of Chile’s Colonia Dignidad: a cult colony turned torture…
Wendy and Lucy
Dir. Kelly Reichardt
Wendy (Michelle Williams) is a drifter driving up to Alaska in hopes of finding work. When her car breaks down,…
To Sleep with Anger
Dir. Charles Burnett
An old friend shows up on the doorstep of a happy family home and brings a whirlwind of trouble with…
All or Nothing
Dir. Mike Leigh
Grounded by Lesley Manville and Timothy Spall’s powerhouse performances, this gut-wrenching family drama from Mike Leigh is an acting juggernaut.…
Kaili Blues
Dir. Bi Gan
This startling debut from Chinese director Bi Gan is a mesmerizing synthesis of cinema and poetry. A man searching for…
Living in Oblivion
Dir. Tom DiCillo
A young Steve Buscemi leads this wry farce about a calamitous film set where nothing goes right. The sardonic script…
A Dry White Season
Dir. Euzhan Palcy
Ben du Toit (Donald Sutherland) is a patriarch of an upper-class white family insulated from the roiling protests and violence…
Big Night
Dir. Campbell Scott & Stanley Tucci
There are comfort food movies, and then there are films like Big Night: comfort food movies about comfort food. Stanley…
Crooklyn
Dir. Spike Lee
Spike Lee’s semi-autobiographical film is a loving and nostalgic ode to the Brooklyn of his childhood. It also happens to…
Muriel's Wedding
Dir. P.J. Hogan
Muriel is a young social outcast who spends her time obsessively planning a dream wedding without ever having been on…
Clockers
Dir. Spike Lee
Spike Lee’s adaptation of Richard Price’s novel might appear lesser next to his best work, but it still a gorgeous…
The Watermelon Woman
Dir. Cheryl Dunye & Female director
This drama was the first feature written and directed by an out Black lesbian, Cheryl Dunye, and it is an…
Beau travail
Dir. Claire Denis
Often considered Claire Denis’ best film, Beau Travail is an epic exploration of both masculinity and colonialism. Inspired by Melville’s…
High Hopes
Dir. Mike Leigh
Mike Leigh’s films have always touched on class politics, but seldom as directly as in this lowkey portrait of Thatcher-era…
Mother and Son
Dir. Aleksandr Sokurov
Alexander Sokurov might best be known for Russian Ark, his grand single-take jaw-dropper featuring over 2,000 actors. In a way,…
Right Now, Wrong Then
Dir. Hong Sang-soo & Sang-soo Hong
In the West, South Korean film is largely defined by the ingenious (oft violent) bombast of directors like Park Chan-wook…
Daddy Longlegs
Dir. Benny Safdie & Josh Safdie
The Safdie Brothers spent over a decade making films before their mainstream breakout with Good Time and Uncut Gems. Their…
Tom at the Farm
Dir. Xavier Dolan
What starts as an unsettling drama quickly morphs into a searing psychological thriller. The film, based on a play of…
Perfect Blue
Dir. Kou Matsuo & Satoshi Kon
Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue is a chilling psychological thriller and a fantastic next step for those looking to explore anime’s…
Long Day's Journey Into Night
Dir. Bi Gan
A man returns to a town chasing the memory of a woman he loved years ago. Poet turned filmmaker Bi…