It really has been the year for depressing farming dramas hasn’t it? First-time UK filmmakers gave us THE LEVELLING and GOD’S OWN COUNTRY, now comes France’s offering, BLOODY MILK. Director Hubert Charuel must have drawn on some of his own experiences growing up on a dairy farm, though you have to hope his family never had to go through the soul-crushing experiences depicted here, his camera capturing every emotional beat and jolt of pain in both man and cow. Pierre (Swann Arlaud) makes bad judgement after bad judgement to save his herd and livelihood when disease starts to spread, but only ends up digging a deeper hole for himself, his friends and his family. He’s not a particularly likeable protagonist, but you can understand the terrible choices he makes even as you wince on his behalf. Bloody Milk has got a smattering of nominations from film festivals this year, but it really deserves to be widely seen for its unfussy presentation and heartbreaking central performance. SSP