This year’s 69th BFI London Film Festival was full of incredible, poignant titles. We saw a brilliant double-bill from Richard Linklater, as well as the UK premiere of Kristen Stewart’s feature debut. As the festival comes to a close, it was perfect timing to compile a list of my top 10 films seen over the past couple of weeks in the capital city.
Train Dreams
We spend our days searching for life’s true purpose. Robert Grainier (Joel Edgerton) found his when he met Gladys (Felicity Jones) and decided to devote his life to her and their child. Train Dreams is about the adoration we have for one another, and how we react in times of anguish when it seems like the world may be against us.
A stellar lead performance from Edgerton makes Clint Bentley’s latest feature an absolute hit, as well as a beautiful, transcendent score from Bryce Dessner. Landscapes of beautiful sunsets, raging fires, and vast woods fill the runtime; there’s something in every scene to take your breath away. I found it to be one of the most captivating films of the year that moved me in so many ways.
You can read our full review here.
Jay Kelly
Noah Baumbach rarely comes up short when it comes to his filmmaking, and Jay Kelly is no exception. It’s a delight from start to finish, with performances from George Clooney and Adam Sandler that will have you smiling ear to ear. It plays out like a fake biopic of the title character, Kelly, as we travel with him through Europe in an atypical week in his life. With so much depth and a witty, heartfelt script, Jay Kelly is a standout in both Baumbach’s work and Clooney’s long, magnificent career.
Is This Thing On?
There’s so much to love in Bradley Cooper’s latest feature, Is This Thing On?. From a remarkable script to two standout performances from Will Arnett and Laura Dern, Cooper is three for three in the directing world. The ups and downs of marriage are documented in Is This Thing On? with a uniqueness that makes it enjoyable. It has the edge of the two vulnerable leads (both deserving of Oscar noms), but also genuinely funny jokes that land every time. I have already found myself recommending it to everyone I know, telling them to keep their eyes out for it when it finally gets a wide release.
You can read our review from NYFF here.
Blue Moon
Ethan Hawke is at the top of his game in Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon. His portrayal of Broadway lyricist Lorenz Hart is delightful and is aided by a charismatic script from Robert Kaplow. Margaret Qualley is equally charming as Hart’s love interest, who delivers a career best in her short but sweet scenes. One-location films are sometimes hard to execute, but Hawke’s monologues are nothing but spectacular, and the utilization of various rooms in a singular bar makes for a really astounding watch.
You can read our full review here.
Nouvelle Vague
Linklater is two for two at this year’s London Film Festival. Nouvelle Vague is a retelling of the events that took place whilst Jean-Luc Godard filmed his first feature, Breathless (À Bout de Souffle), in 1959. We’re transported back to those very 20 days where the filming of Breathless took place, where Godard wrote scenes on set in coffee shops in between takes. Nouvelle Vague is full of phenomenal performances, particularly from the lead trio of Guillaume Marbeck (who plays Godard), Zoey Deutch (Jean Seberg), and Aubry Dullin (Jean-Paul Belmondo). As a big fan of Breathless, it could have been hit or miss for me, but I ended up having complete devotion to every minute of the runtime.
Wake Up Dead Man
Never did I think that a third in a trilogy would be the best of the series. Wake Up Dead Man, of the Knives Out universe, is a wild, entertaining ride. Josh O’Connor leads this time in his role as a priest Jud, with Benoir Blanc (Daniel Craig) taking a little bit of a backseat. Rian Johnson is incapable of writing a bad script. It’s funny, but it also leans more into a horror vibe that hasn’t been seen before in this franchise.
Read our review from TIFF here.
The Thing with Feathers
The Thing with Feathers is a story of how grief can manifest itself into all sorts of weird and wonderful things. Here, it’s portrayed as a crow (it looks like a human inside of a crow suit, sometimes funny, sometimes scary), which follows the characters around, whispering into their ear and hiding in the corners of every room. Benedict Cumberbatch delivers an incredible lead performance that is both emotional and powerful.
Pillion
Both Alexander Skarsgård and Harry Melling are magnificent in Harry Lighton’s debut feature Pillion. It’s a touching tale of a man’s adoration for a new man he’s met very briefly at a pub. The two begin to spend more time together, striking up a complicated relationship. One begins to fall deep and hard, unable to keep his emotions at bay, whilst the other sees it as more of a transactional situation. Pillion is a standout relationship film of the year.
The Chronology of Water
Kristen Stewart’s long-awaited feature debut, The Chronology of Water, is worth all the time that has passed since it was first announced. Imogen Poots embodies the lead role of Lidia, a woman at a crossroads in her life, like it were a biopic of her own life unfolding. It’s raw and complex, but the film manages to ground itself at the end of every chapter.
H is for Hawk
There seemed to be a theme of exploring grief at this year’s London Film Festival. H is for Hawk is one of the most impassioned films of heartache, which includes an exceptional lead performance from Claire Foy. When Helen (Foy) loses her dad (Brendan Gleeson), she finds comfort in training a hawk, an animal she befriends and spends every day with. A story that may allow you to grieve your own loss and realize everything will be okay. It definitely resonated with me a lot.
List Courtesy of Guest Correspondent, Bethany Lola (Find her on Instagram here.)
Feature Image from ‘Nouvelle Vague,’ Courtesy of Netflix / London Film Festival 2025