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In this luminous, tender tale about education, integration, and the greater good, a school day in wintry Montreal starts off like any other, until an isolated tragedy occurs. While the principal and teachers scramble to help students and staff cope, Bachir Lazhar, an Algerian immigrant who sought political refuge in Quebec, arrives at the school as a substitute teacher. Though his old-school pedagogical methods quickly—and comically—prove ineffective, Lazhar manages to gently guide his charges through their grief, developing a close relationship with two students in particular. Meanwhile, he must come to terms with some emotional baggage of his own. Touching, charming, eloquent — and often very funny — this beautifully crafted character study demonstrates that coming to terms with loss, whatever its magnitude, is a journey best shared. 
Canada's official Oscar submission for Best Foreign Language Film. (Canada, 94 min., Not yet rated. Print courtesy of Music Box Films)

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In the much-anticipated encore to his superb first feature, Hunger, British artist Steve McQueen reunites with the extraordinary Michael Fassbender in this daring psychological drama. Brandon (Fassbender), a 30-year-old sex addict, drapes a shroud of regular-guy normalcy over his compulsion, even as he prowls the streets of Manhattan each night looking for quick hookups. By day, he manages to assimilate seamlessly into his dull corporate workplace—letting an intern take the blame for the copious Internet porn on his computer—while avoiding real relationships with women. Brandon's solitary existence is shaken by the unexpected arrival of his sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan, in a fearless performance), whose insecurities crack open issues of his own. Stylistically brilliant and erotically explicit, McQueen's beautiful, unsettling film provides a highly provocative snapshot of information-age desire and disillusionment. (UK, 99 min., NC-17, Print courtesy of Fox Searchlight Pictures)

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