Recovered from a long career hiatus, Leos Carax’ return is our favourite movie this week, and so far this year. ‘Holy Motors’★★★★★, an uniquely personal work from the director of ‘Pola X’ and ‘The Lovers Of The Bridge”, blends multiple genres and references to the history of cinema on a series of episodes defying the conventions of logical narrative and shaping up a beautiful homage to cinema. Denis Lavant gets in chameleon-like shape to portray several different roles as a mysterious limo drives Mr. Oscar around Paris, taking him from project to project. Ultimately a love it or hate it affair, ‘Holy Motors’ won’t leave anyone unchallenged. We’ll be lucky if this season brings any work that can rival its formidable qualities.
Other strong new releases this week are smart sci-fi thriller ‘Looper’★★★½ and taut German drama ‘Barbara’★★★★. Former films of the week ‘Killing Me Softly’ and ‘About Elly’ hold their place in our recommended Top 5. Don’t miss any of them!
Check the full Top 20 here.