There are so many striking moments, and Tiran’s performance is just so gosh darn terrific, that any hiccups that do arise are few and far between. Best of all, Wrona builds things to the type of shattering, emotionally catastrophic climax that lingers in the mind long after the curtain has closed, making Demon a paranormal descent into madness and mayhem that’s hauntingly good.

Under the Shadow cannily uses a fairly standard, if also expertly staged, ghost story to obsess over a character-driven story arc involving issues of marriage, motherhood, religious fundamentalism and feminism in ways that feel raw, visceral and altogether groundbreaking.

Moorhouse’s willingness to push the envelope and dive into the darkest aspects of the tale with such macabre relish allows the emotions swirling within this maelstrom to resonate all the deeper, The Dressmaker an haute couture Aussie barnburner that’s dressed to the dark comedy nines.

Beautifully animated in its own, eye-popping, stylistically colorful way, Long Way North is like some blissful combination of early Studio Ghibli crossed with the writings of Jack London. It is a timeless tale, one universal in scope and in resonance, building to a heartfelt conclusion that had me wiping away tears while at the same longing to rise to my feet in lively ovation.

“I think the ‘boys will be boys’ mantra is still alive and well in some corners of society. These hazing rituals still happen, so that expression, boys will be boys, it’s clearly a dangerous one.”

While far from perfect, Neel’s latest is a magnetically compelling ride into the depths of human depravity that feels like an absolute necessity, especially right now. Goat is a movie that needs to be seen, and as hard as it can be to watch here’s hoping audiences take the time do so all the same.

“We know where Barack and Michelle are heading. We know what this spark is going to turn into. For me, that spark, that idea, it gave the story a richness that a fictionalized love story maybe couldn’t have had.”

Here’s hoping those predisposed to stay away because the “Obama” name is associated with Southside with You have second thoughts as far as those are concerned; they might just be surprised to discover just how blissfully entertaining this particular story ends up proving to be.

“For a specific group of people, maybe a bigger one than I let myself imagine it to be, [Don’t Think Twice] could be a film that gets watched multiple times, viewers finding things inside of it that I didn’t even know were there. How great would that be?”