"Voted for by the entire Empire staff, it's a list that reflects an array of thrilling voices – returning filmmakers displaying bolder visions that ever before and debut directors blazing fresh trails, creating films that thrilled, shocked, delighted, terrified, and inspired us through another tough year. There are streaming gems and none-more-cinematic epics, small-scale character pieces, international favourites, wildly unpredictable works, and songs dedicated to seagulls on tyres. And, as ever, it's based on UK release dates."
