Una diva del cine mudo 

'The Mad Woman and the Feminist': This Spanish entry for the MiamisFF directed by Sandra Gallego handles a difficult conversation in a smart, memorable way.

A refreshing twist is that all the kids’ powers are…kind of useless. There’s a kid who can only move in slow motion, a kid who has every power in the world but can only use them randomly, and our main character Missy who has no powers at all. The thesis of the film seems to be that it doesn’t matter what kind of powers you have, its the way you use them, which is good for the warm and fuzzies.

The message to take away from 'Causeway' is that toxic masculinity can manifest in anyone, no matter what their gender identity is.

This current year, as well as the past several, has seen a slowly building increase in something the horror genre has required for quite a while in this critic's opinion...originality. I've stated before that I am very hard to please when it comes to this vein of the film industry's offerings, always leaning more towards that which sends chills through my very being in lieu of buckets of blood and gore.

You'd better buckle up, pack spare underwear, & maybe lay off the drinking for a night, for a gnarly ride in New York!

This list was made with the intention of celebrating comedic craft and a love of seeing more women of colour and newcomers on the scene.