10 Most Divisive Films Of All Time

Boyhood was shot over a period of twelve years by Richard Linklater, retaining the same cast and showing them grow along with their characters, in particular the central protagonist Mason, played by Ellar Coltrane between the ages of six and eighteen.

There's no argument regarding the impressive nature and ambition of the project - it's a unique film for obvious reasons, although whether or not the end result is actually any good is open to often furious debate. With no central narrative thrust, Linklater opted instead to show how life unfolds, sometimes with moments of drama, at other times with that vague continuity which we're all familiar with.

The lack of melodrama is often cited by fans as one of the film's crowning achievements. It captures the mundane rhythms of life perfectly, they say, just as the passing of the seasons blur into each other. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be cherished, and unlikely to ever be repeated.

"Thank God", its detractors might respond, happy to be spared being put through a film in which nothing happens and takes three hours doing it. Life is boring and tedious, yes, but why pay good money to watch life being boring and tedious on the cinema screen when it's the daily experience for most people?