As the year reaches its close, it is time to celebrate with the annual rankings. Without further ado, here are our ten best of 2018 – let us know if you agree in the comments!

The runners up…

All terrific but just missing out on the top ten. Speaking of which…

10. You Were Never Really Here (Lynne Ramsay)

A brilliantly conceived story met its perfect director and leading man in Ramsay and Joaquin Phoenix. The atmosphere and score only did to heighten the experience. Read our review here.

9. The Breadwinner (Nora Twomey)

As thought-provoking as it is gorgeous, Twomey’s Angelina Jolie-produced adaptation of Deborah Ellis’ book was, for our money, the animation of the year. Read our review here.

8. Blindspotting (Carlos López Estrada)

Terrific wordplay and an impressive sense of place distinguish this rhythmic drama. Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal deliver a pair of exceptional performances and the style here is on point. Read our review here.

7. Cold War (Paweł Pawlikowski)

Pawlikowski’s intimate and lyrical tragedy of love is both a joy and pain to experience. The Polish director’s handling of contemporary political currents, meanwhile, is ingenious. Read our review here.

6. A Prayer Before Dawn (Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire)

Only just missing out on a top five spot in our list, Sauvaire’s film is brutal. Don’t be fooled, though, A Prayer Before Dawn is a wise and oddly poetic gem. Read our review here.

5. Roma (Alfonso Cuarón)

Cuarón poured his heart into Netflix and we lapped it up. Non-actor Yalitza Aparicio dazzles in the leading role but every ounce of the film is impeccable. Read our review here.

4. A Fantastic Woman (Sebastián Lelio)

Powerful in delivery and exquisite in design, A Fantastic Woman deserved every plaudit it received. That Lelio’s other 2018 film – Disobedience – also features in our top twenty is a testament to his cinematic skill. Read our review here.

3. Hereditary (Ari Aster)

Far and away, Hereditary was the scariest film of the last twelve months. If you’ve seen it, you’ll know exactly which scene we still haven’t gotten over. Toni Collette has never been better. Read our review here.

2. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Martin McDonagh)

At the Oscars, Three Billboards‘ only Academy Awards were for Best Actress – Frances McDormand – and Supporting Actor – Sam Rockwell. Both were highly deserved but we can’t help but feel it deserved more. Few films were this powerful in 2018. Read our review here.

1. The Shape of Water (Guillermo del Toro)

After just one viewing, we knew that our favourite film of the year could be no other than Guillermo del Toro marina masterpiece. Everything works. Alexandre Desplat’s music is outstanding, Sally Hawkins is phenomenal and Dan Laustsen’s cinematography is the cherry on the cake. Read our review here.

What was your favourite film of 2018? Let us known in the comments!

You can find our top ten film posters of the year here, top ten film quotes here, top ten soundtracks here and top ten performances here too!