A wordless Ukrainian drama, a raunchy rom-com, Pixar's latest opus and more — THR's chief film critic Todd McCarthy picks his five favorite films from the first half of the year.

This story first appeared in the July 24 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.

Todd McCarthy picks his 5 favorites.

1. The Tribe

Ukrainian director Miroslav Slaboshpitsky's startling, unnerving and madly accomplished feature debut is about deaf and speechless teens who turn a school into a headquarters for crime.

2. Inside Out

Pete Docter's latest, which ingeniously personifies the sensations of early adolescence as a bunch of competitive cartoon characters, pulls off the classic Pixar trick: It's captivating fun for kids while also smart and challenging for adults.

3. Trainwreck

Judd Apatow's best to date also is an excellent writing-acting power-punch combo from Amy Schumer, who underlays her uninhibited comic antics with real feeling and character insight.

4. Mad Max: Fury Road

George Miller's reboot of his classic postapocalyptic action-fantasy franchise, starring the ideally cast Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron, energetically kicks more ass than any film ever made by a 70-year-old.

5. White God

Hungarian director Kornel Mundruczo's ferociously effective and involving update on the perennial child-and-dog story is scarier than Jurassic World because it's real.