Sight & Sound 2016

1. Toni Erdmann

Germany
Maren Ade

Lists: Cinema Scope (1, 2016) | Film Comment (1, 2016) | New York Times (2 - Dargis / 3 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

2. Moonlight

USA
Barry Jenkins

Lists: Cinema Scope (Special Mention, 2016) | Film Comment (2, 2016) | New York Times (3 - Dargis / 1 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Rotterdam (Black Rebels, 2017) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Platform, 2016)

3. Elle

France, Germany
Paul Verhoeven

Lists: Cinema Scope (4, 2016) | Film Comment (3, 2016) | New York Times (10 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

4. Certain Women

USA
Kelly Reichardt

Lists: Cinema Scope (6, 2016) | Film Comment (5, 2016)

Festivals: New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Sundance (Premieres, 2016) | Toronto (Masters, 2016)

5. American Honey

UK, USA
Andrea Arnold

Lists: New York Times (6 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2017) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

6. I, Daniel Blake

UK, France, Belgium
Ken Loach

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | Locarno (Piazza Grande, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

7. Manchester by the Sea

USA
Kenneth Lonergan

Lists: Film Comment (7, 2016)

Festivals: New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Sundance (Premieres, 2016) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

8. Things to Come

L’Avenir
France, Germany
Mia Hansen-Løve

Lists: Film Comment (9, 2016) | New York Times (10 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Berlin (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

9. Paterson

USA
Jim Jarmusch

Lists: Film Comment (6, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2017) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

10. The Death of Louis XIV

La mort de Louis XIV
France, Portugal, Spain
Albert Serra

Lists: Cinema Scope (5, 2016) | Film Comment (7, 2017)

Festivals: Cannes (Special Screenings, 2016) | New York (Explorations, 2016) | Rotterdam (Signatures, 2017) | Toronto (Wavelengths, 2016)

11. Personal Shopper

France
Olivier Assayas

Lists: Film Comment (3, 2017)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2017) | Toronto (Masters, 2016)

11. Sieranevada

Romania
Cristi Puiu

Lists: Cinema Scope (2, 2016) | Film Comment (1 - Undistributed, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2017) | Toronto (Masters, 2016)

13. Fire at Sea

Fuocoammare
Italy, France
Gianfranco Rosi

Festivals: Berlin (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Masters, 2016)

13. Julieta

Spain
Pedro Almodóvar

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Toronto (Masters, 2016)

13. Nocturama

France
Bertrand Bonello

Lists: Cinema Scope (3, 2016) | Film Comment (3 - Undistributed, 2016 / 5, 2017)

Festivals: Rotterdam (A Band Apart, 2017) | Toronto (Platform, 2016)

16. Cameraperson

USA
Kirsten Johnson

Lists: Cinema Scope (Special Mention, 2016) | Film Comment (14, 2016) | New York Times (4 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Sundance (New Frontier, 2016)

16. La La Land

USA
Damien Chazelle

Festivals: Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016) | Venice (In Competition - Opening Film, 2016)

18. Love & Friendship

Ireland, France, Netherlands
Whit Stillman

Lists: Film Comment (13, 2016)

Festivals: Rotterdam (Voices, 2016) | Sundance (Premieres, 2016)

19. Aquarius

Brazil, France
Kleber Mendonça Filho

Lists: Cinema Scope (9, 2016) | Film Comment (8, 2016) | New York Times (7 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Competition, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Toronto (Contemporary World Cinema, 2016)

19. Victoria

Germany
Sebastian Schipper

Festivals: Berlin (Competition, 2015) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2015)

21. Embrace of the Serpent

El abrazo de la serpiente
Colombia
Ciro Guerra

Festivals: Berlin (Native - Indigenous Cinema, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2016) | Sundance (Spotlight, 2016) | Toronto (Contemporary World Cinema, 2015)

21. Everybody Wants Some!!

USA
Richard Linklater

Lists: Film Comment (17, 2016)

21. Evolution

France, Spain, Belgium
Lucile Hadžihalilović

Festivals: Rotterdam (Bright Future, 2016) | Toronto (Vanguard, 2015)

21. Hell or High Water

USA
David Mackenzie

Festivals: Cannes (Un Certain Regard, 2016)

21. O.J.: Made in America

USA
Ezra Edelman

Lists: New York Times (4 - Dargis / 2 - Scott, 2016)

Festivals: Sundance (Special Events, 2016)

26. Lemonade

USA
Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Kahlil Joseph

26. Neruda

Chile, Argentina, France, Spain
Pablo Larraín

Lists: Film Comment (19, 2016)

Festivals: Cannes (Directors' Fortnight, 2016) | New York (Main Slate, 2016) | Telluride (2016) | Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016)

26. Nocturnal Animals

USA
Tom Ford

Festivals: Toronto (Special Presentations, 2016) | Venice (In Competition, 2016)

26. The Ornithologist

O Ornitólogo
Portugal, France, Brazil
João Pedro Rodrigues

Lists: Cinema Scope (Special Mention, 2016)

Festivals: Locarno (International Competition, 2016) | New York (Explorations, 2016) | Rotterdam (Voices, 2017) | Toronto (Wavelengths, 2016)

26. Raw

Grave
France, Belgium
Julia Ducournau

Festivals: Cannes (Critics' Week, 2016) | Rotterdam (Limelight, 2017) | Sundance (Spotlight, 2017) | Toronto (Midnight Madness, 2016)