Set in 1968, The Sapphires tells the story of four aboriginal girls who are plucked from the outback and perform a whirlwind tour for troops across Vietnam. Chris O’Dowd anchors much of the fun, but things get a little slippery when the film’s feel-good factor is forced to come to terms with the social, racial and political climate of the time.

With superb performances, nail-biting tension and a commitment to recreating the world of 1979 that borders on the obsessive, Argo shows Ben Affleck truly coming into his own as a director. There are a few glaring problems that seem to plague any film attempting to dramatise a true story, but the film builds up such good will that most of the negatives can be forgiven.

Thomas Vinterberg’s latest is a troubling meditation on the damage done by a single lie, upending a rural village and unearthing some dark truths at the heart of its close-knit community. Mads Mikkelsen won Best Actor at Cannes for his performance as Lucas, a nursery teacher who becomes a pariah when he is wrongly accused of terrible crime.

A touching, often heartbreaking documentary on the conditions that women around the world are forced to give birth in, as well as looking at the life chances of the babies lucky enough to survive childbirth. With incredible access, Welcome to the World shows us how fortunate we are to have made it even past our first birthday.

Winner of the Palme d’Or for 2012, Amour is a film that truly lives up to its name. Casting aside the fiery passion that most of the rest of cinema is obsessed with, it takes an uncompromising look at a love so deep and enduring that it becomes a prison. Never contrived or manipulative, Amour will wrench something deep inside you and not let go. Bring tissues and bring a lot. You’re going to need every last ply.

It’s not scary, it’s not funny, it’s not even very bloody. Aside from a few interesting set designs, the only revelation here is how bad it is. Silent Hill: Revelation is in the running for worst film of the year, and at the moment the odds are in its favour. Run from it.

Hovering somewhere between a teenage sex-romp comedy and Clarissa Explains it All lies Fun Size, an awkward, inoffensive and ultimately meandering tale attempting to target the abandoned 12-14 y/o market. This film lingers and loiters like a greasy teenager at the mall, and is about as appealing to anyone who is not themselves a greasy teenager.

Much, much better than the tiresomely earnest endeavor you might expect given the nature of the independent production, art-house values and risque subject material, Lawrence Anyways is an engaging and powerful look at identity and acceptance, sexuality and love, all told with incredible performances and some interesting – but not alienating – direction.

Someone once said ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. Well the old rom-com formula isn’t really broke, but this film tried to fix it anyway, by inserting a huge lump of cancer into the plot. Romance, laughs, dates and cancer- oh dear, who honestly thought this formula was ever going to work?

A cute but predictable rom-com with a decent line up, How Do You Know might not set the world on fire, but it will warm the cockles of your heart and bring a smile to your face. Unless you are actually a machine, in which case this will just annoy you.