Our Own Correspondent: Arts/Culture writer Esther McCarthy’s picks of the year

The Dublin-based film writer didn't get to meet as many stars as usual, but still enjoyed a bumper crop of movies from Ireland and abroad

Arracht, Passing and Sound of Metal features in Esther McCarthy's highlights of the year.

Favourite International Film: Sound of Metal blew me away. Darius Marder’s remarkably moving and inventive first feature focuses on a punk drummer (a brilliant Riz Ahmed) whose life begins to unravel when he loses his hearing. As well as showing enormous heart, Marder’s film uses sound to immerse viewers in a first-hand experience of what it is like to be deaf.

Favourite Irish Film: It was a really strong year for Irish film with contenders including Rose Plays Julie, Herself, Wildfire and fine documentaries like Songs for While I’m Away and To the Moon. But Arracht, Tom Sullivan’s Irish-language documentary set during the Famine, was exceptional. The tale of a fisherman whose life is turned upside down following a night of violence is a beautifully shot thriller about courage and grace in tragedy.