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TimestampYour NameOrganisationNumber 1Number 2Number 3Number 4
What films have surprised you this year and why?
Number 5
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11/22/2018 14:33:42Tara JudahWatershedThe Rider - This is what cinema's are for: stunning and intimate cinematography, stories that question everything we think we know about humanity and performances so fierce we can feel it.Ex-Libris: The New York Public Library - Wiseman is a master filmmaker and Ex-Libris is a masterclass in how to look and what to see. Exceptional.Sweet Country - This film is an education and everyone in Britain should sit up and pay attention.Western - Valeska Grisebach has crafted a brilliantly tense examination of masculinity and national identity in the face of an ever-changing Europe. Zama - this film really needs to percolate in your brain, meaning it just gets better the more you see it.
My Friend Dahmer - I wasn't expecting much but was very pleasantly surprised by the pacing and tone in this film. A very considered work and one that I wholeheartedly recommend.
Marlina, the Murderer in Four Acts - I was completely bowled away by this film, which demands a big screen for its revisionist western vistas and ferocious narrative. A totally kick-ass flick.
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11/22/2018 16:12:28Holly TarquiniFilmBath / F-RatingA Deal With The Universe - SO pleased that this has now got theatrical, it is a wonderful film which bings the audience from tears to laughter and back again, everyone should see itRBG - not officially out in the UK, but on at FilmBath Festival and ADORED by the whole audience: the perfect antidote to depression over Trump et alThe Breadwinner - such a joy to have such a great movie - beautiful, engaging, well told, wonderfully creative - which the whole family can enjoy, and opens west country children's eyes to the wider world.Skate Kitchen - I wanted to send this film down the line to my 17-year-old self who NEVER had films reflecting her/my lifeThe Old Man & The Gun was deadly dull; I have no idea why I watched Solo; Jumanji was surprisingly enjoyable and Beautiful Boy broke my heart.
Lady Bird - it's been a good year for non-hyper-sexualised teenaged girls on screen, hasn't it? A gentle joy.
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11/26/2018 13:31:23Luke DoranCurzon Cinema & ArtsIn the Fade. I was BLOWN AWAY! The Nile Hilton Incident- (incorrectly included in my 2017 list, so here it takes its true place). Genre crime thriller film with a fascinating context of the Arab Spring in Egypt. I Tonya. Funny. Self reverential. Loved the pink colour/ poster. A Quiet Place- Deliciously simple premise. Simplicity as it's most perfect. King of Thieves, because I liked it and everyone else hated it.
Notable mentions: Under the Tree/ You Were Never Really Here/ Dogman/ BlackKklansman/ Fantastic Woman
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11/27/2018 22:10:44Donna AntonHayle Film ClubPHANTOM THREAD -- With its perfect cast, a bizarre psychological love story that grows ever more suspenseful, gorgeous frocks and a dazzlingly lush score, not to mention some arch humour, it's no wonder that I've now seen this masterpiece 10 times -- definitely the best film of the year. LADY BIRD -- A perfectly judged coming-of-age comedy-drama whose mother-daughter relationship, so beautifully depicted by Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf, had me laughing and crying in equal measure. And to think that Greta Gerwig used to annoy me!BLACKKKLANSMEN -- As an expat American who grew up in a multiracial neighbourhood, I was bowled over by Spike Lee's brilliant satire. It reminded me that while race relations have come a long way in the US, simmering racial tensions and inequality still exist, made far worse with Trump stoking the flames of far-right white racial resentment.FIRST REFORMED -- Ethan Hawke, already one of my favourite actors (along with Daniel Day-Lewis; see Number 1 above), simply astonished me with his depiction of a suffering priest in upstate New York, in this Paul Schrader drama that was utterly unconventional and gripping and bleak and marvellous.I was surprised by how much I didn't like several films I'd highly anticipated. THE WIFE, despite the fine cast and reviews, was annoyingly predictable. The zero chemistry between the male leads in CALL ME BY YOUR NAME made me stop caring about them and the story halfway through the film. And sadly, though I adore Mike Leigh's films, PETERLOO made me restless -- a great history lesson but a bit of a slog unless you're in a very comfy cinema chair.
THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS -- I was thoroughly fascinated by the way the story was spun of New York triplet boys who were separated at birth and accidentally reunited 18 years later. Don't read too much about this documentary, avoid spoilers at ALL costs, the story is simply incredible.
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12/2/2018 16:54:14
woody harding andrea etherington
purbeck film festivalThe wifecold WarIn the fadeThree billboardsPin Cushion The director sent a long personal message on her I phone from N. Y. and the audience loved itThe Guardians
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12/2/2018 16:58:17
woody harding andrea etherington
purbeck film festivalfaces placesPin CushionBeast120 BPMA Fantastic Woman
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12/4/2018 22:03:24Holly TarquiniFilmBathFaces Places(sorry - had to add it in, and worried that I listed films which don’t have uk theatrical till next yr - apols!)
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12/8/2018 19:58:12Gareth NegusElectric Picture House CinemaLady BirdLeave No TraceShopliftersThe GuiltyBlackKklansman
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12/10/2018 14:40:17Graham ColeThe Phoenix Southampton Film TheatreLA VILLA (THE HOUSE BY THE SEA). Robert Guédiguian can do no wrong imho; the location is simply beautiful, with fab cinematography, and it has a lovely, typical RG storyline with all his favourite actors (Gérard Meylan, Ariane Ascaride, Jean-Pierre Darrousin, etc.) in it.LUCKY. The wonderful Harry Dean Stanton at his most laconic, with all his trademark humour and acting skills, working out his final days. Comes close to rivalling REPO MAN. What will we do now that we have no more Harry Dean Stanton movies to come?FILMWORKER. A great insight to Stanley Kubrick's Mr. Fixit.THE OTHER SIDE OF HOPE. Typical lugubrious deadpan humour from Aki Kaurismaki.Not really a surprise, but honourable mentions to THE OLD MAN AND THE GUN (cos it looks like being the last time we shall see Robert Redford in a newie) and BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY, mainly for the fab Queen soundtrack.
CITIZEN KANE (on the big screen, again). But you know why, don't you!
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12/10/2018 15:47:02Helen OstleLong Ashton Community CinemaLeave no Trace - slow, yet incredibly powerfulThe Wife - Glen Close had better get an OscarA star is born - I know, I know it's cheesy but it was so much better than I thought it would be.Isle of Dogs - because it's Wes Hereditary was really disappointing. I psyched myself up to go and see it then it all got a bit silly at the end.
Sorry to bother you - so fresh and different; managing to highlight so many current issues without being heavy handed.
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12/10/2018 16:35:28Daniel BroadbentPDSWCold WarBohemian RhapsodyMIA/Matangi/MAYAIncredibles 2Cold War - Shockingly stunning, beautiful and so sensitively considered.
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12/10/2018 16:35:41Oliver Treasure-SmithCurzon Cinema & ArtsPin Cushion. An engaging and original take on the harsh chaos of puberty and losing the innocence of childhood. Psychedelic dreamscapes flash between suburban banality in a heady mixture of excitement, ambition, guilt, regret and the wish to belong.A Star is Born. Raw and compassionate love and loss story done justice by brilliant performances all round.Annihilation. Unpredictable and totally absorbing, intelligent sci-fi with beautiful visuals that consider the power of nature and the definition of consciousness.Summer 1993. Beautifully evocative landscape of rural Spain that works as a gentle hand to hold for a young girl whose mother has recently passed away in a cathartic film that reminds you of the joys of being a child.Two films that I enjoyed much more than I was expecting were A Star is Born and A Quiet Place and I thought Venom was going to be a bomb which ended up doing ok. I also thought Cold War was, although visually nice, a bit of a stinker, especially after all the good reception it got.
American Animals. Inventive blending of true crime, comedy and documentary that achieves in all three respects. The charismatic performances from the leads and an unconventional approach to revealing the story makes for a captivating watch.
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12/11/2018 10:14:13Adrian PickeringThe Phoenix (Southampton Film Theatre)The Eagle HuntressJourney's EndQueen of KatweIn the FadeThe films here are based on our audience votes. You can see our audience/members have wide tastes! Full results for 2018 based on our audience results slide presentation style in an email to you.The Promise and Tanna (equal votes)
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12/12/2018 11:54:16Brian ClayCinema for All South WestCold War - classic combination of taut story telling, beautifully composed images and wonderful use of music. Took me back to the back and white Eastern European classics from my student days discovering the power of cinema, Leave No Trace - brilliant follow-up to Winter's Bone with superb under-palyed performances from the two leadsCustody - over-looked thriller of the year, made all the more gripping by its everyday setting.Lady Bird - Greta Gerwig's debut was a delightful, sweet and truthful comedyPeterloo - big disappointment from Mike Leigh. The moving climax did not make up for the preceding ninety minutes of boring meetings and grotesque caricatures of the ruling classes.
Shoplifters - one of Hirokazu Koreeda's best, revisiting his family theme with inspired subtle story telling
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12/12/2018 14:34:40Neil RamjeeMoviola LtdRoma - Every shot is picturesque and considered. I feel Cuaron offloads some colonial guilt in this very personal film. In addition, it has the best soundscape of any film released this year.The Wild Pear Tree - Nuri Ceylan Bilge proves once again that the 3 hour+ format is not dead and can be used to great immersive effect to take you to into living and breathing parts of his beloved homelands. A beaut!BURNING - When bae wants Fitzgerald and all you have is Faulkner. A breathtaking stalker's manifesto with a wonderful subtext and imaginatively captured.Hereditary - Measured and earned horror which side-steps cheap modern technique for something esoteric and intelligent.How To Talk To Girls At Parties - on paper, a Neil Gaiman -penned script, directed by John Cameron Mitchell about punks in 1970's Croydon who encounter aliens in the form of Nicole Kidman, Elle Fanning & Ruth Wilson - should be amazing right? Complete mess. And not in a cool spit-on-the-wall anarchistic way.
BEAST - Remarkable debut from a first time director buoyed by two excellent leads in Johnny Flynn & Jessie Buckley, through a smart, seat-gripping 90's inflected British thriller.
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12/12/2018 18:03:27Liz ChegeCome the RevolutionThe Rider / Apostasy - Both are stunning capsules depicting what happens when the things that give us a sense of purpose must evolve, and how to regain control of what we perceive to be the center of our identities.
The Rider is extraordinary and brave in how it melds real life with fiction. Apostasy is a film that doesn't shy away from the realities of indoctrination, but is more interested in examining the humanity of the characters than condemning their choices. Also based on true stories, the film accomplishes a great balance of fiction and non-ficition.
Sweet Country - An epic that offers a vital Indigenous perspective and even in the midst of brutal violence, keeps traces of humanity and kindness on the surface. Black Panther / The Nile Hilton Incident
This is a close tie because both films deal with double consciousness in the Black diaspora in unique ways and are both potent portraits of corruption and political power. 'Nile Hilton' is an effective snapshot of how corrupt governments have a ripple effect on each other globally; 'Black Panther' is a powerful glimpse into what is possible when we don't veer too far from important traditions but maintain a firm grasp on the modernities of the present.
Cold War - Despite its immense sadness, this film lifted my heart in the way that modern love stories in cinema have stopped doing. A stunning soundtrack that enhanced and perfectly melded with it's visuals and a great case study on the effectiveness of simplicity.Sorry to Bother You, Widows, Blindspotting and Blackkklansman all get memorable mentions because they were brave in their scope and execution. I enjoyed and liked all of them, but they fell short in one way or another in their promise.

Loveless and Crazy Rich Asians surprised me in leaving a mark; Loveless for its relentless moroseness etched some scenes in my mind that will never disappear and Crazy Rich Asians for its light and fun ride. More Asian American films need to get made!
Ex Libris / Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda - Both films are about extraordinary accomplishments in scope, depth and breadth. They are also about preserving memory and the arduous creative process.
Ex Libris reminds us about the value of keeping our egalitarian networks of institutions and how we are in danger of losing these spaces that foster exploration, learning and safety. They are also spaces where class and other markers of society don't matter.
Coda is an extraordinary portrait of an ailing composer still on the search of the next great sound, made with moving compassion and humour.
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12/13/2018 9:36:54Three Billboards Ebbing Missouri (Brilliant performance by Frances McDormand and other support actors)Summer 1993 (Beautifully shot and engaging child actors)Mama Mia! Here We Go Again (Great fun, great music)Loveless (engrossing and thought provoking)Loveless - has not heard of Zvagintsev until seeing this film and have since sought out his other 4 films. We did a Q&A with times film critic Kevin Maher which went down well - interesting discussion. Darkest Hour (Gary Oldman tour de force)
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12/13/2018 10:51:44Susannah ShawCurzon Cinema & ArtsBlackkklansman - is it a buddy movie? Retro cop show? NO It's shocking, sophisticated and very clever.Ameriga. Moving documentary about an elderly woman being cared for by affectionate grandsons. Tender, and very honestly it somehow all falls apart at the end.Incredibles 2 - well what can I say. End credits stunning (musically)Shows how few films I've actually watched this year. Ghastly.
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12/14/2018 17:51:40Lorena Pino Getting Together Through FilmsRoma. A cinematic experience of love, set in Mexico in the early 70s, portraying two social clases in Mexico through the eyes of a young indigenous nanny. Cold War. A stunning love story, beautifully performed and very relevant today. The Silence of Others. Powerful documentary exploring the concept of justice with echo in many nations today. La Familia. Venezuelan film not released in the UK despite being around important film festivals. Father-son relationship in a dramatic context of a nation in decay.
Voices of the Sea. Cuba today from the eyes of a young mother in a fishing village who dreams with a better life.
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12/14/2018 21:56:47Anne HarrisonWatchet Community CinemaSummer 1993Lost in ParisMaudie
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12/20/2018 9:56:19Anna NavasPlymouth Arts CentreI, Tonya - not the film I was expecting at all! Performances were outstanding and the sly humour was pitch perfect. Bonus feature - Allison Janney chanelling Deirdre Barlow c.1979. Summer 1993 - clear eyed, open hearted, devastatingly emotional. Showed the fragility and the ruthlessnes of children (when she 'lost' her toddler cousin in the woods I recognised every sibling relationship everywhere!). Had to sit in the cinema for half an hour after the film finished to have a good cry.The Rider - beautiful, stark and pared-back to the bones. A Fantastic Woman - one of the most powerful films of the year for me. A study of grief, love and defiance. Performance of the year from Daniela Vega.All of the above but the Reclaim the Frame project run by Bird's Eye View has been a revelation for audiences who have completely engaged with films by female directors. It has made audiences take risks and helped them trust our choices and come to see everything we've screened in this project. It's been bloody brilliant!
Faces Places - for the sheer joy of Agnes Varda and JR dancing through the Louvre (in a wheelchair), for Varda's eternal curiosity and for the simple (and rare) understanding of the power of the image.
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12/20/2018 10:38:39Claire MarshallCarn to CoveThe RiderMamma Mia - Here We Go AgainBohemian RhapsodyDeadpool 2Under the Tree
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12/20/2018 10:57:13John SealeyFabian's FilmYou Were Never Really HereSorry To Bother YouWidowsRevengeSorry To Bother You. A film which showed that you can make comedy while still addressing serious issues - rampant unchecked capitalism, racism, the erosion of communities, etc) Leave No Trace
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12/20/2018 10:57:20Timon SinghFilm Hub South West BlacKKKlansman: In a time when people are trying to pussy foot around the fact that the President of the United States is a racist, trust Spike Lee to not only come out and say it but boldly end his film by showing footage from the far right Charlottesville rally and 45 refusing to condemn it. A great film with wonderful performances across the board.Mission: Impossible - Fallout: Say what you want about Tom Cruise (and I believe the man sleeps in tupperware and drinks the blood of virgins in order to stay looking so young), but he throws himself in to making the best possible films he can. In a landscape full of CGI and digital doubles, one-man stunt team Tom Cruise showed us this year how action should be filmed by running, jumping and falling everything he could in order to entertain. God bless Xenu.First Man: What could have easily been a jingoistic, chest-beating exercise in American exceptionalism (especially in this day and age) was a wonderful and touching portrayal of an icon, who at his heart was simply an engineer and a father. Chazelle and Gosling don't care so much about the mission to land on the moon, but the men involved in and why they would risk their lives for such an endeavour. A wonderful film and a breathtaking score from Justin Hurwitz.A Quiet Place: Clearly 2018 was the year of A-list stars becoming A-list directors as John Krasinski delivered one of the best cinematic experiences of the year. Audiences were silent, noises were amplified and the film personified why seeing films in an auditorium is the only way to see certain movies as Krasinski, Blunt struggled to survive in a world where noise equals death.Obviously with everything happening in the world right now and the state of politics and journalism, I expected The Post to have had more of an impact, but apart from award nominations early in the year, it seems to have been largely forgotten. What was a big surprise was the number of films that studios got cold feet about and sold to Netflix in order to avoid potential box office flops in the face of main stream competition. As such, the likes of Annihilation, The Cloverfield Paradox, Mowagli: Legend of the Jungle all found themselves on Netflix despite their big-budget and big-screen ambitions.
Black Panther: Sure, it made over a billion dollars worldwide but Black Panther's impact can't be understated. For years, actors of colour have been told that their stories don't "play oversees" (despite numerous examples of this being wrong), so in a year when Wakanda Forever was eternally solidified in popular culture and Crazy Rich Asian was also a big hit, 2018 has been a banner year for diversity in film.
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12/20/2018 11:21:47Ellen Cheshire Kings Theatre Portsmouth The Rider. Watched it not knowing how made or who actors were. Loved it. But when I read about lead actor was even more impressed. Wajib. A lovely father and son story. Learning a lot about other cultures. The Eyes of Orson Welles. Mark cousins love letter to Orson Welles. Learning more about both directors. Pin Cushion. Such a visually interesting film about a troblued mother and daughter relationship. (preferred it to Lady Bird) Spiderman Into the spider verse. Turned out to be the best comic book film of the year.
The Shape of Water. Gorgeous to look at, a real home to film genres of the past. Sally Hawkins amazing.
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12/20/2018 11:42:56Maddy ProbstWatershedA Fantastic Woman
Director: Sebastián Lelio
Daniela Vega's electrifying performance especially that dazzling dancing sequence.
The Rider
Director: Chloe Zhao
Stunning, contemplative, inspired direction by Chloé Zhao which immersed me in a world I know little about... I think that Brady Jundreau's presence just took the experience to another level.
Sorry To Bother You
Director: Boots Riley
Radical, fresh and thought-proving. Pure hip hop with a healthy dose of surrealism.
Jeune Femme
Director: Leonor Serraille
Loved this raucous and playful portrait of a exuberant and chaotic young woman, reminded me how fragile we all are.
Cold War
Director: Pawel Pawlikowski
Pure cinema; beautifully captures the intensity of impossible love.
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12/20/2018 11:59:12Neil FoxThe CinematologistsYou Were Never Really Here - the work of three masters (Ramsay / Phoenix / Greenwood) at the top of their respective games working in perfect harmony.Phantom Thread - The best romantic comedy of the year.Zama - A majestic poetic examination of masculinity, colonialism, power and bureaucracy. First Reformed - A devastating endurance test, beautifully filmed and ultimately uplifting and hopeful.Bunch of Kunst - who knew a music documentary about Sleaford Mods could contain the most potent and poetic examination of contemporary Britain released in recent times?
The Dreamed Path - Cinema as the perfect site for examination, through small moments, of humanity and its capabilities is alive and well in the work of Angela Schanelec.
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12/20/2018 12:07:42Malisa SledmereNo6 CinemaThree Billboards, beautifully written and acted, breathtaking, could even bear to leave to go to the toilet.American Animals, loved the format with the real characters interplayed with the reconstruction, very clever.Faces, Places. So thoughtful and sensitive. Loved the intergenerational exchange of ideas and life experiences.Ladybird. Great acting, writing and directing by the women. Susperia. Could do better!
Blackkklansman. Love Adam Driver (He is brilliant i The Man Who Killed Don Quixote which I saw in Holland)
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12/20/2018 13:09:45Tim SmithiesC FylmFahrenheit 11/9 - provocative, partial, gripping, shockingKinshasha Makambo - incredibly brave footage of street protesters in CongoDemain - inspiring and community building message for a brighter greener futureSilas - Great programming from Afrika Eye Film Festival Les Gardiennes - won over by a much slower paced art house approach to a familiar topic
The Red Turtle - weird unstructured, animation, flawed but beautiful in parts
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12/20/2018 13:19:45Patrick BlissThe RosesArcadia. Exhilarating use of archive footage. Fantastic soundtrack. As soon as it finished It wanted to watch it all over again.Roma. Another rare film that I will treat myself to a second viewing of. I would have liked this to be on the Roses screen, but will have to make do with Netflix instead.Cold War. A thrillingly seductive cinematic experience that demands to be seen on the big screen.Searching. Small screen meets the big screen in in the most original mystery thriller of the year.Wonderstruck. I seem to be a lone champion for this (I saw i three times). I thought it was a captivating celebration of cinematic magic and childhood curiosity, I can't understand why there was no love for this in the industry.

Black Panther. I can honestly say that this is the only Marvel film that I enjoyed!
The Breadwinner. An exquisitely rendered tale of self-empowerment and survival. Go Pavana!
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12/20/2018 15:51:16Tiffany HolmesFilm HubThe Rider - this film destroyed me, I loved it so much, So beautiful,Cold War - what can you say, it's just breathtaking. I would have every shot turned into a print to have on my wall.You were never really hereA quiet placeShoplifters
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12/21/2018 9:43:50Curtis Fulcher Bridport Arts Centre The Rider - Excellent story, moving contentThree Billboards Outside Missouri - Excellent acting and excellent story A Star is Born - Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper what a combo! Def did justice to the other two filmsPeter Rabbit - Great take on a classicA Star is Born - didn't expect it to be that good! Incredibles 2 - I am personally a massive Pixar fan
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1/2/2019 12:40:53Martin CampbellThe Pound arts centre
The Square - for the ape scene/moment
Lady Bird - both moving and gloriously funny
Isle of Dogs - because Wes Anderson!
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri - Frances McDormand
The Shape of Water - a wonderfully immersive world + piece of cinema
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