The Plot: A young man, Jay Cavendish (Kodi Smit-McPhee), travels across the American West in pursuit of the object of his affections, while hiring a bounty hunter, Silas Selleck (Michael Fassbender), as his protector. Why It's Awesome: A stellar debut for director John Maclean, Slow West is paced as unassumingly as you might expect from the title, but mines violence, romance and unexpected humour to deliver one of the best westerns in ages. Smit-McPhee and Fassbender are a tantalising double act, the cinematography is outstanding and at just 84 minutes in length (despite its slow pace) it won't be keeping anyone too long. Plus, it features possibly the best salt-related gag in cinema history.