The 5 Must-See Movies of January

12th February 1972: American actress Debbie Reynolds with her daughter Carrie Fisher. (Photo by Dove/Evening Standard/Getty Images)

The presents from Christmas have been opened and put away. New Year’s Eve has come and you’re probably still nursing a hangover. What to do? Why not go see a movie? Actually, January is the month commonly regarded as a dumping ground for films. Hollywood needs to get certain off their books from the previous fiscal year – many of the titles released this month hopped from release date to release date – and/or the films they need to get out of the way quickly so you forget them by the summertime. The box office tends to look bleak until March, when the first wave of big-budget actioners come out to play in the sun.

Either way, I was hard-pressed to find the five films below, and at least two can be procured without leaving home. In the long run you should catch up on any expanding awards contenders like Fences or Silence. But just in case you’ve already watched those, and because you want to enjoy my writing, here are five titles worth braving the cold to go see this month. Whether you enjoy bittersweet documentaries, bizarre genre experiments or late-breaking awards contenders, it was hard finding something for everyone.

Next: Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds