We count down the 10 best movies released in the UK from June to August.
While there's been much bemoaning of the low quality of this summer's crop of 'blockbusters' (an ironic label, given how many of this year's bigger budgeted movies failed to register at the box office), overall, thanks to some outstanding indie and foreign language releases, it was a highly satisfying summer. Here are 10 movies we hope you got a chance to see, and if not, make sure to look them up when they hit your living room.
10. Sweet Bean
We said: "Sweet Bean isn't quite up there with the best of recent Asian drama, but it's not far off, and like all good drama, it leaves us longing to spend more time in the company of its characters. It's a confection as sweet as its titular treat."
9. Queen of Earth
We said: "This just might be Elisabeth Moss's best performance to date. All snot and runny mascara, she resembles a clown hit by a car and left for dead in the rain. We'd give her a hug if we didn't believe she'd stab us in the back."
8. Remainder
We said: "For most of its running time we're witnessing a protagonist attempt to deconstruct and reassemble a narrative, and while this may test the patience of casual viewers, anyone with a passing interest in the mechanics of storytelling will find Omer Fast's directorial debut a fascinating and immersive watch."
7. The Nice Guys
We said: "Shane Black is back to doing what he does best, a buddy action comedy, with characters of his own imagining, and the result is one of the most deliriously enjoyable movies to come out of mainstream American cinema since... well, since Iron Man 3."
6. The Violators
We said: "English author Helen Walsh's filmmaking debut is not only one of the best movies made by a novelist, but one of 2016's best British movies, boasting one of the year's finest central performances to boot."
5. The Keeping Room
We said: "There are no extended shootouts - this isn't an action movie by any means - but every time a bullet is fired the consequence is made explicit; this is a film more concerned with the gruesome aftermath of violence than the cinematic thrills of the act itself."
4. Forsaken
We said: "The father/son casting may seem a gimmick, but it adds an extra layer of discomfort to the tension between the two characters, and a late emotional breakdown by Kiefer in Donald's arms will have the toughest of male viewers reaching for the Kleenex."
3. The Neon Demon
We said: "The Neon Demon is pornography without the sex, designed to engorge or moisten the loins of arthouse fans. Refn's past work has merely hinted at his ability to produce something that combines this much substance, style and sleaze."
2. Suburra
We said: "Combining the tough, violent crime thrillers of 1970s Italian exploitation cinema with the gloss and sophistication of modern day European TV, Suburra is intelligent but explosive, a feast for the synapses and the adrenaline."
1. The Childhood of a Leader
We said: "This is clearly the work of a director obsessed with cinema, yet it's so idiosyncratic it could equally be the product of someone who never set foot in a movie theatre. America may have just found its next great filmmaker."
Read our review