BFI London Film Festival

One of the most interesting innovations was the "debate" strand, headed by The Pervert's Guide To Ideology, Sophie Fiennes's engrossing documentary sequel to The Pervert's Guide To Cinema. 

It reunites Fiennes with Slovenian philosopher and cultural critic Slavoj Zizek who provides witty and illuminating analyses of films from The Sound Of Music to Titanic.

Aided by simple but imaginative visual imagery which reinforces Zizek's take on how cinema reinforces prevailing ideologies, it's completely gripping. 

The strand also included Thomas Vinterberg's The Hunt, a powerful and disturbing depiction of how a lie can spiral out of control, induce mass hysteria and ruin an individual's life.  

Like his critically acclaimed debut feature Festen this too looks at child abuse.

But here the focus is on a kindergarten teacher falsely accused by a young girl in his class of inappropriate behaviour. 

Mads Mikkelsen, in a performance which won him the best actor award at this year's Cannes Film Festival, is extraordinary as the teacher.

Robert Connolly's Underground, on Wikileaks founder Julian Assange's early years as a teenage hacker, is a riveting drama starring Rachel Griffiths and Antony LaPaglia.

Set in Melbourne in 1989 it explores the 18-year-old Assange's hacking exploits and raises the question, in the era when hacktivism began, whether he is hero or villain.  

Matteo Garrone's new film
Reality is a dark, tragicomic satire on the growing influence of reality TV.

It tells the tale of Naples fishmonger Luciano whose unhealthy obsession with becoming a contestant on Big Brother develops into a self-delusion which takes him and his long-suffering family to the brink of financial ruin.

Intriguing and highly amusing, it's a refreshing contrast to Garrone's previous work Gomorrah.

Set in 1982 war-torn Beirut, Zaytoun focuses on the unlikely friendship between Yoni, an Israeli fighter pilot, and the young Palestinian refugee Fahed as they attempt to cross Lebanon in order to return home.  

Stephen Dorff gives the performance of his career as Yoni and Abdallah El Akal is mesmerising as Fahed in this non-sentimental yet endearing tale imbued with irony and tragedy.

Two other films which should have been included in the debate section - but which confusingly weren't - were Mira Nair's The Reluctant Fundamentalist and Craig Zobel's Compliance.

The former is a fascinating and intense drama about a young and ambitious stockbroker from Pakistan who is happily living the American Dream in New York when it is shattered in the wake of the Twin Tower attacks.

Suddenly he is persona non grata and, totally disillusioned by his treatment, he returns to Pakistan where years later he is suspected by the US military of being a terrorist.

A compelling story unfolds.  

Some people reportedly walked out of a screening of Compliance which admittedly is very uncomfortable to watch, particularly as it is based on bizarre real-life events. 

A man, whom we later learn is pretending to be a police officer, calls a fast food restaurant and informs the manager that one of her young employees has stolen money from a customer.

He then embarks on a series of mind games that result in the staff being forced to commit acts that can only be described as immoral. 

It is a film which will haunt you long after the end credits have rolled.