That's a wrap on this year's BFI London Film Festival – and it left critics with plenty to be excited about.
Whether you want to be moved, surprised, repulsed, confronted or simply entertained, there are new films coming your way that you won't want to miss.
Here are five different feature films that critics are already calling 'film of the year', as well as when they are out in the UK and how you can watch them.
The top rated films from BFI London Film Festival
The Debut
Grazia's deputy editor Hanna Woodside declared The Debut her favourite film from this year's festival. Written by Jesse Eisenberg, it follows shy New Jersey housewife Mona Friedman (Oscar-winning actress Julianne Moore) as she auditions for a part in the Brook Arts Centre production of the fictional musical Nosy Neighbours.
Gradually, following the guidance of the enigmatic director Jerry (Paul Giamatti) she becomes consumed with playing the part. Robbie Collin at The Telegraph also called it 'the film of the year', awarding it five stars.
Out in cinemas 15 January 2027.
Club Kid
Asyia Iftikhar at the Metro described Club Kid as '2026's most astonishing debut' after watching it at LFF. It is Instagram comedian turned actor Jordan Firstman's feature directorial debut. He plays a washed-up underground party promoter whose life changes when he discovers he has a 10-year-old son.
Out in cinemas 8 January 2027.
La Bola Negra
La Bola Negra, also known as The Black Ball, was another contender for top film at the festival this year. It has been selected as the Spanish entry for Best International Feature Film at next year's Oscars.
The historical epic weaves together a tripych of stories across three distinct periods in Spain, exploring queer desire, political persecution and generational trauma.
Out on Netflix 6 November 2026.
Elsinore
Andrew Scott's turn in Elsinore is already being tipped for awards show glory. The Fleabag actor plays Scottish actor Ian Charleson who is in the midst of his final run as Hamlet at the National Theatre in the weeks leading up to his death.
'The London Film Festival has kicked off with groans of sadness and rivulets of snot and tears as this weapons-grade weepie announces itself, immediately, as the year's Oscar frontrunner,' wrote Kevin Maher in The Times, giving the film five stars.
Out in cinemas on 29 January 2027.
Paper Tiger
Paper Tiger has been described as 'the year's best crime movie'. It sees Marriage Story co-stars Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson reunite to play members of a suburban American family who become entangled with the Russian mob.
James Learoyd at UK Film Review called it a 'tense, perfectly measured crime drama' and one of director James Gray's strongest releases to date.
Out in cinemas on 5 February 2027.
Nikki Peach is a senior writer at Grazia, working across news, entertainment, features. She has also written for the i, i-D and the New Statesman Media Group and covers all things pop culture for Grazia (treating high and lowbrow with equal respect).