20 Best Indie Movies Of 2016

Matt Ross might be better known as an actor, appearing in the likes of American Psycho and HBO’s hit TV show Silicon Valley, but judging by the quality of his second feature length film Captain Fantastic it’s time he got more attention as a director.

The indie dramedy stars Viggo Mortensen as an idealistic father living off the grid with his large brood of children in the wilds of America’s Pacific Northwest who must re-enter society after the suicide of the family’s matriarch and scooped Ross the Un Certain Regard award for Best Director after its screening at Cannes last year.

Mortensen is brilliant as the grieving father forced to reconsider whether his alternative lifestyle is right for his family, at once both arrogant in his principles but also self-doubting and concerned with creating a better life for his kids. He already lost out on a Golden Globe to Casey Affleck this year but with the results of his BAFTA nomination for Best Actor still pending, Mortensen could still see awards success yet.