Olivier Assayas directed Kristen Stewart to a history-making César Award win in Clouds of Sils Maria, but it’s La Binoche who really steals the show: on career-best form as the fading star at the slippery center of this Bergmanesque tale of dualities, mirror reflections, and brooding power dynamics.

Brady Corbet’s acting career was quietly developing with roles in the likes of Melancholia, Simon Killer, and Force Majeure, when he surprised us all with his directorial debut: this stunning and ambitious rumination on violence scored by Scott Walker. A visually arresting period fantasy!