6. The Lives of Others (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006) – ranked 31 in poll

When The Lives of Others came out in 2006, it was a revelation. Despite being a debut film, it was so assured in its plotting and pacing that it could have been the work of a veteran. And despite the fact that its director, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, was in his early thirties, his depiction of Communist-controlled East Berlin in 1984 was so precise and atmospheric that it could have been autobiographical. For most viewers who hadn’t lived in East Germany, this melancholy story of a Stasi agent (Ulrich Muhe) spying on a playwright (Sebastian Koch) was a chilling insight into a state where the secret police watched and listened to your every move. Not surprisingly, it won the Oscar and the Bafta for best foreign language film. More surprisingly, von Donnersmarck’s follow-up was The Tourist with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie.