Jamie Graham

An impressively cinematic drama that fully immerses viewers in a time and place but offers links to our divided present.

The gleeful nastiness will be too much for many. Fans, meanwhile, will rejoice as Art wraps intestines around a Christmas tree like tinsel.

Don’t be put off by the long wait. This is a little slimline but a lot of fun.

It’s a triumph of design, offering a creepy twist on such classic monsters as living dolls, the mummy and, in particular, the golem of Jewish folklore, a large clay figure that can be brought to life to do its creator’s bidding...

Boasting great music cues, vivid 35mm lensing (by, of all people, Avatar actor Giovanni Ribisi, who here makes his classy debut as director of photography), and engaging gender politics that establish Mollner’s interest in more than just the thrill of the chase, Strange Darling is a slick game of cat and mouse.

The Crooked Man is at its best in a flavoursome first half that serves up crepuscular, shallow-focus photography (take a bow, DoP Ivan Vatsov) and backwoods dialect as tangy and prickly as wild gooseberries.

The best horror remakes are not afraid to push the source material in new directions – exhibit a) The Thing; exhibit b) The Fly – and while Watkins’ movie is nowhere near the level of those masterpieces (few are), it’s shrewd, engrossing and pleasingly nasty.

The action’s routine (as is the norm for this sub-genre) and the spy plot skimps on mystery and twists. But Bautista and Coleman maintain their winning rapport from the first film, and Schaal’s inappropriate comments never fail to amuse. It’s just about enough.

Glen Powell’s whirlwind ascent continues in a film that does pretty much all you could ask for from a Twisters movie.

Much more fun than Coming 2 America. Don’t be surprised to see a fifth film greenlit.

As time passes, a real sadness creeps in as we suspect that we might be witnessing the extinction of a species, though an inspired sight gag is never far away. This is a film that needs to be seen to be believed.

Marking Harlin’s trumpeted return to a genre in which he established himself as something of a journeyman (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, Exorcist: The Beginning), The Strangers: Chapter 1 makes decent use of its contained setting – the house itself, to wheel out the cliché, is its own character – but can’t cut through the sense of fatigue.

Is Furiosa as magnificent as Fury Road? No, though not because it’s the first Mad Max movie without Max, whose absence barely registers. At 140 minutes minus credits, it’s a touch unwieldy, while its lament for the inevitability of war and the emptiness of revenge feels hollow given the giddy excitement it stirs from just these things. But what can’t be disputed is that Miller, the Mad genius, has done it again, once more refusing to simply repeat himself and instead choosing to kick up dust rather than gather it as he forges a new path through the Wasteland in often spectacular fashion.

A savage triumph.

This franchise is never happy to cruise - and M:I 7 goes all-out. It judders at times, but when it delivers, it delivers big time.

The fast and furious action is a bit plasticky, but the two starry leads bring some real sparks.

While it hardly stays with you like The Invisible Man, Renfield is a fun Friday night at the movies.

This easily surpasses Fede Alvarez’s overrated 2013 reboot and suggests there’s plenty more life – and death – in the franchise yet.

A propulsive thriller that’ll appeal to die-hard fans and newbies alike.

Despite its 95-minute running time, Banks’ wild adventure feels drawn out. Never sure if it wants to conjure real suspense and scares (it fails) or embrace riotous comedy in a full-on bear hug, Cocaine Bear also suffers from moments of cartoonish CGI.

While some might have preferred this story with its edges unsmoothed, The Fabelmans is better viewed as the tale of how Spielberg’s personal values inform his every artistic decision, and how he became who he is: The Greatest Showman On Earth.

It’s the filmic equivalent of a Penn and Teller magic trick: amaze, show the mechanics, amaze again.

It’s a delight to watch Amy Adams do Jekyll and Hyde as she incrementally transforms from cheery Giselle to noxious stepmother, while Maya Rudolph is a whole heap of fun as the ultimate control-freak soccer mom who - of course - becomes queen when Monroeville turns into “one big fantasia”.

Fans, naturally, might simply want what they came for, and leave licking wounds. But they should be partially sated by some grisly kills and nods to Carpenter classics Christine and The Thing. And besides, let’s not fool ourselves that it really ends here. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter was followed a year later by Friday the 13th: A New Beginning.

It's a rocky, at times patience-testing ride that plays something like a screwball riff on The Plot Against America, but Amsterdam is ultimately worth the trip.

Peele is three for three. You’ll spill out into the night jawing with your friends and gazing at the stars.

Favoring charisma over character, this action-espionage thriller hangs lots of action – some solid, some ace – on a threadbare plot.

Andy’s favourite sci-fi movie won’t be yours. But it’s a fun adventure with animation that sucks your eyeballs from their sockets.

No cynicism, just on-point sentiment and scintillating set-pieces. Top Gun: Maverick scores a direct hit on its twin targets of nostalgia and adrenaline.

After pretty much inventing the modern-day comedy drama, Judd Apatow here gets frivolous, to patchy effect.

It’s a bonkers, ballistic, brain-numbing ride.

An intergenerational family drama, a search for self, and a big, bouncy comedy sure to entertain.

Jackass Forever has laughs and thrills and will goose your nostalgia, but it’s like a modern-day Rolling Stones gig – the hits are replayed but satisfaction is elusive.

The stalk ‘n’ slash sequences, though decent, can’t match Craven’s mastery of mood and mechanics, but the new guys understand that Scream movies are sick as well as slick.

Performances pop as Earth gets the chop, with US politics, big business and social media going up in flames.

Trumpeted by Netflix as a ‘new-school western’, The Harder They Fall in fact takes the staples of old-school westerns (bandits, bank jobs, train robberies, rowdy taverns, shootouts) but blends them all together in a manner that feels fresh and vibrant.

Some entertaining bicker-banter, but you may feel like Venom craving human heads: undernourished and angsty for what could’ve been.

Something of a companion piece to the superior Finding Nemo, this is one of Pixar’s weaker efforts but still worth catching.

It's overlong and laboured in places, but worth a bite for the money-shot set-pieces. Plus... zombie tiger!

While some viewers may want more explosions and twists, there's no denying Michael B. Jordan makes for a riveting action hero in Without Remorse

Watching these famous monsters share the screen for the first time since 1963’s King Kong Vs. Godzilla, in a series of expertly choreographed battles, packs real wallop, even if you can’t help wishing that screen was 30ft high at your local cinema.

Malcolm & Marie is a film of the moment, powered by Covid, BLM and #MeToo – but good enough to stand the test of time.

We’ve all been waiting for Gadot, and it was worth it. A much-needed blockbuster full of humour, spectacle and optimism.

No ray guns, no tentacular beasties, just gravitas in a film that goes boldly about its business but never quite lands.

After 30 years of gestation, Mank emerges one of the great films on the machinations of Hollywood

An emotionally tough watch – though an exhilarating one tahnks to Aaron Sorkin's reliably taught script and direction

OK, so the ‘Nam firefights are more routine than we’d expect from Lee and the treasure hunt element almost feels it belongs to a different film, but this is a frequently fierce, fascinating picture. The world needs it right now.

The animation is spellbinding as Onward builds into a galloping adventure full of amusement, excitement and enchantment.

Bong has once more proved what an exciting filmmaker he is, and Parasite is strong contender for Oscar Best Picture.

Delivers as a Friday-night actioner, with some smart moves and good banter. Smith and Lawrence are on crackerjack form.

Tries to fit in so much it threatens to tear apart at the seams, but ultimately rises to the impossible occasion.

Some of the vibrancy has worn off but this Rock-solid sequel has enough giggles and gasps to attract herds of viewers.

Don’t overlook this spiritual sequel to "The Shining." But don’t expect it get close to Kubrick’s original, either.

The ghosts of Scorsese’s past can be found in these gaunt GoodFellas. An engrossing and, yes, haunting epic.

Come for the technical innovations, stay for… hmm. Two Will Smiths for the price of one just ain’t worth it.

Awkwafina and Zhao shine in a deft comedy-drama with a higher US per-screen take than Avengers: Endgame.

A mix of the intimate and cosmic that shoots for the stars. You’ll float… and sometimes bump back to earth.

A World Cinema Dramatic prize winner at Sundance, Hogg’s best film yet is an instant British classic.

Making his feature debut after directing a couple of Pixar shorts and co-writing Inside Out, Josh Cooley proves there’s life beyond the trilogy.

Not quite as good as Infinity War, but wears its three-hour running time with ease and rewards the fans. Part of the journey is the end, and this goes out with a bang that’ll make you whimper.

There are thrills and feels but this reimagination of the delightful animation doesn’t take flight often enough.

It’s no Parenthood. It’s tonally messy. But Instant Family’s made with excellent intentions and chunks of it work.

Neeson’s knees hold up in an oddball thriller that’s more interested in smirks than smashing things to smithereens.

So damn charming it makes your heart twinkle like Redford's eyes.

Fleischer made a better comedy-horror with Zombieland, but Venom’s a decent buddy actioner. You might even laugh your head off.

“YOU RIPPED MY FAVOURITE SHIRT!” Cage loses it in a bloody, druggy, superbly crafted revenge thriller. Astonishing.

A retro science-fiction actioner with both brains and brawn – quite a lot of brawn, actually. Surely destined for cult status.

Furious, relevant, and funny as hell.

McQuarrie brings grace and grit, and Cruise brings it, period. This quick-witted, fleet-footed franchise shows no sign of flagging.

Paul Schrader’s best for 20 years. A stunning study of one man’s flaws and an apocalyptic vision of mankind’s fate.

Be sure to make family time for Bird’s flawed but dazzling sequel. “Superheroes suck,” says Violet. No, they most certainly don’t.

After a first half that suggests franchise fatigue is setting in, Fallen Kingdom zooms in for some scarily good set-pieces.

Far better than we had any right to expect. Thrilling set-pieces, spine-tingling iconography and a Han/Chewie bromance to savour.

A decent adaptation of McEwan’s excellent novella. Forget Fifty Shades – this is sex to make your cheeks blush.

Like Pacino’s Shakespeare rumination Looking For Richard (1996), Wilde Salomé is passionate and absorbing, though the insertion of lengthy clips from the film might irk viewers who’ve just watched it.

Not in the Bridesmaids league but a very funny female-centric comedy with big laughs and spot-on attitudes.

Vikander packs a punch but this Tomb Raider is a long way off the Holy Grail of the first three Indy movies.

An exploitation movie that, paradoxically, exhibits too much good taste. Still, expect “Saws all!” to become a 2018 catchphrase.

No small achievement. Alexander Payne re-confirms his position as one of US cinema’s premier filmmakers.

It’s hardly fresh, but the spectacle is decent and the relationship dynamics absorb just enough to fill the lengthy run time.

McDormand is an unstoppable force in a fiercely intelligent, profanely poetic movie that shifts tonal gears at breakneck speed.

Fans will find just enough heart-swelling moments involving friendships and family to enjoy one last group hug.

An excellent middle chapter bursting with wit, wisdom, emotion, shocks, old-fashioned derring-do, state-of-the-art tech, and stonking set-pieces.

This is also a Christmas horror-comedy – and one of the best since Gremlins.

Poverty and poetry, delinquency and deluxe wonder… this child’s-eye view of lives on a knife-edge is terrific.

Kenneth Branagh finds interesting ways to grease the wheels of this new take on the oft-filmed novel.

This funny, touching adap of Shrabani Basu’s 2010 biography has its own chemistry, withering wit and unsentimental message of acceptance. A royal treat.

The plotting is tangled, the emotional undertow slight, but the action keeps on coming, including a blistering multi-player sword fight on speeding bikes.

Thrilling and haunting, pitching the power of adventure and friendship against the day-to-day horrors of childhood and a chilling Pennywise. An absolute scream.

The doc-flavoured approach lends both urgency and tedium, while the blend of miniatures, stop-motion and CGI references the various looks of his 63-year history.

OK, so enough time is spent on the fairways to put some viewers off, but Tommy’s Honour scores a hole in one with its unpacking of the class wars at play.

Much mellowing and life-learning ensues in a plodding dramedy, though the glint in MacLaine’s eyes makes it almost worth your while. Almost.

No Badlands, but the best of the recent minor Malicks. And it features Val Kilmer with a chainsaw.

"Dunkirk" has a rival in the intensity stakes. Expect Bigelow’s deep-cutting drama to be part of the conversation come awards season.

Hilariously infectious and full of hope, Spider-Man’s return to Marvel couldn’t be more welcome.

While there’s little here to jangle the nerves, The Mummy does wrap up enough adventure, action and quips to make it, if not a scream, a worthwhile Friday night out.

Handsomely shot but rather inert adap of mid-19th-century play A Month in the Country.

This is a tonal misfire, its characters cut down by a blitzkrieg of whip pans, CGI and thunderous percussion. And with Ritchie again rummaging in his increasingly threadbare bag of tricks, the result is a movie more jaundiced than jaunty.