The game is afoot! Following the hotly divisive Star Wars: The Last Jedi, writer/director Rian Johnson sets his subversive sights on the murder mystery. Paying tribute to the likes of Agatha Christie, Johnson crafts a star-studded whodunit that stays true to the genre’s mainstays whilst also going its own way. Satisfying and crowd-pleasing, Knives Out is an enjoyable ride full of twists and turns that’s fun for the whole family.

Director Todd Haynes (Wonderstruck, Carol) returns to cinemas this weekend with Dark Waters, a sleek and tightly drawn thriller. The film is an eye-opening true-life tale about the perils of living in the corporate age and one of the “little guys” who choose to fight their corruption and lies against all odds.

Martin Scorsese’s latest mob epic, The Irishman, reunites him with usual suspects Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, and also marks his first collaboration with Al Pacino. Despite standing at a whopping three and a half hours, the film is a brisk, breezy, and entertaining thrill ride that reaches deeper than any of Scorsese’s previous crime films, arriving at a surprisingly profound and contemplative conclusion that lingers with a quiet sizzle.

Director Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow, Black Snake Moan) brings Rudy Ray Moore’s incredible and inspirational story to wide audiences with Netflix’s Dolemite Is My Name. The film illuminates viewers on the hilarity and importance of Moore and his beloved Dolemite character, but most of all, it gives us the kind of quality Eddie Murphy performance that audiences haven’t seen in a very long time.

Four long years after his debut, The VVitch, acclaimed writer/director Robert Eggers returns with another haunting tale of disturbing terror — this time of the nautical variety. The Lighthouse pits Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson in a twisted two-hander full of isolation, seagulls, sirens, secrets, superstitions, bodily fluid, booze, and flatulence. This searing force of nature will ring your bell in ways that films rarely do these days.

New Zealand writer/director Taika Waititi funnels his Thor: Ragnarok money into a self-professed “anti-hate satire” about Nazis, which we think is the cutest little misfire we’ve seen all year. Jojo Rabbit — or Inglorious Moonreich Kingdom as we like to call it — wants to be make light of WWII and the Holocaust while also showing its grim consequences, and it just doesn’t work. Its tone may be wonky, and its satire may be soft, ineffective, and surface-level, but it’s not without its moments of Kiwi charm.

Writing/directing duo Jocelyn DeBoer and Dawn Luebbe are making big waves with their feature film debut, Greener Grass, which was a surprise hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Based off the duo’s short film of the same name, this refreshingly offbeat, delightfully absurd, and totally unpredictable satire unleashes a never-ending barrage on suburban living, and it has all the makings of an instant cult classic.

Writer/director/comedian Tyler Cornack’s second feature, Butt Boy, is a film that should not be judged entirely by its title. It might be as “cheeky” as you’d think, but it’s certainly not as silly or compelling as you’d initially suspect. This irreverent poker-faced thriller goes all in, and it must be seen to be believed.

Argentinian directors Martín Blousson and Macarena García Lenzi deliver a twisted chamber piece full of family dysfunction with their debut, Rock, Paper, and Scissors (Piedra, Apel y Tijera). The film takes a small story about a sibling power struggle and churns it into a quietly engaging and charmingly odd three-hander with a decent set of fangs.

Directors Kelly Copper and Pavol Liška take on Elfriede Jelinek’s epic and “unfilmable” novel, Die Kinder Der Toten, in their debut feature of the same name. This quasi-silent political satire with zombies is a peculiar exercise in experimentation, but it’s one that never fully stacks up to anything substantial, making it a collection of semi-intriguing images and not much more.

Writer/director James Gray’s previous quest through the Amazon in Lost City of Z must have made him weary of terrestrial adventures because his latest film, Ad Astra, takes us “to the stars” to explore the humanity that may (or may not) reside on the outer reaches of the cosmos. The film is a visually stunning meditative work that was just a little too emotionally unavailable to completely resonate.

South Korean director Bong Joon-ho’s latest film, Parasite, is going to infect audiences in ways they can’t even begin to anticipate. This wickedly entertaining amalgam of comedy, thriller, and social drama with have you instantly enamored with the surgical precision of its unexpected unraveling.

Come to Daddy is the directorial debut of acclaimed producer Ant Timpson (The ABCs of Death 1 & 2, The Greasy Strangler, Deathgasm), and it is sure to take audiences on a topsy-turvy thrill ride. This darkly comedic thriller ventures into some very unexpected terrain, but underneath it all rests a deeply human story that’s as resonate as it is invigorating.

Mark Patton is a name you probably wouldn’t recognize (unless you’re a Nightmare on Elm Street fan) and for pretty good reason. As closeted gay actor working in Hollywood in the throes of the AIDS epidemic, he was driven into obscurity after being unwillingly outed by his big break, Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge — a film that has since been forever immortalized as “the gayest horror movie ever made.” With Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street, first time directing duo, Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen, chronicle Mark’s personal journey as he attempts to come to peace with the demons of his past.

Stories and their message are the focus of writer/director Ryan Spindell’s directorial debut, The Mortuary Collection. This gothic anthology provides an atmospheric mélange of horrific delights that deliver nice bends and twists to the familiar.

The Wave is the feature directorial debut from Gille Klabin, and it takes you on a chaotic head trip across space and time to show you the harmony of the universe. This vibrant and jittery romp is one part buddy comedy and one part psychedelic quest, wrapped up in an existential adulthood crisis that is punctuated by dazzling visuals and comedic twists.

Takashi Miike shows no signs of fatigue. Even with over 100 features under his belt, the prolific Japanese auteur continues to prove that he’s full of life and hasn’t lost his penchant for surprises. His latest feature, First Love, a noir-tinged, genre-blurring Yakuza film, is delightfully feral, frequently great, and everything one could want out of a Takashi Miike joint.