Jamie Neish

Astronaut is a sweet film that could have done with more fire under its belly earlier on.

To follow-up a successful film is a daring achievement in itself, but to surpass it is something else, and that’s what DuBois does here.

Mercier has a presence about him that’s unshakable.

Spall and Redgrave are both magnificent, rising above the material in a way only talented actors can. One wonders what they could have done with more interesting and passionate material.

Sure, Detective Pikachu is messy and predictable, but the fact that director Rob Letterman and his team embrace the inherent absurdity of the Pokémon franchise as a whole means it’s a hoot.

The script, credited to no more than three screenwriters (one of which being Vanessa Davies, who came up with the idea), is predictable and innocuous, yet peppered with comedic moments that are deserving of a chuckle or two, if only for the way they’re played by the talented cast.

It may not be what everyone expects from a sequel to The Lego Movie, but in some ways that’s the best thing about The Lego Movie 2. It presents something different, wrapped in a familiar outer core.

The real success to Ralph Breaks the Internet is how, while having the most amount of fun possible, it’s also able to be cleverly subversive (no longer should the iconic Disney princess be reliant on men to strive) and deeply rooted in its themes of friendship, and all the ups and downs that follow.

Calibre is a thriller, but one that’s rooted in reality rather than the fantastical or absurd; edgy and tragic.

The ingredients of a quality film are all here. It just could have done with being a bit shorter and a bit snappier.

It won't be for everyone by any means, but Captain Underpants: The First Movie would be easy to overlook as another kids-only waste of money. But that's not the case. The film subverts this every step of the way and constantly turns in new, unexpected directions in order to surprise and entertain its audience from the start to the end.

Killing Ground isn't terrible. Far from it, in fact. It uses the non-linear narrative structure well to toy with the audience and create a sense of mystery around the duel arcs of the characters involved.

The script is well-paced and packed with twists and turns that offers little in the way of respites to the beautiful mayhem. The characters, too, are wonderfully realised through the performances from the entire cast, each making a big impression no matter how long they're on screen.

What the director and writers have done is turn something that's considered by many to be dumb-but-fun into an overlong, unfunny film that's just plain dumb.

My Life as a Courgette is a tender, funny and wise-beyond-its-years stop-motion animation that takes on tough subject matter through the eyes of a child.

It's hardly original nor necessary, but it's a fun and absorbing escapade on the Seven Seas.

Mindhorn is a ridiculous comic creation taken to extraordinary, laugh-a-minute heights.

Oldroyd has made a film here that's incredibly tied to its nineteenth century setting, yet modern at the same time in the way it addresses femininity - more importantly, the power women have no matter how they're viewed by society or expected to behave by their male counterparts.

Led by a trio of tremendous performances from its female leads, Wright, front and centre as Jamie, is the stand-out.

The Founder is a solid biopic but not one that will go down in history - unlike the multi-million dollar-making fast food chain at its core.

This is a sequel that advances on its predecessor in a way that's incredibly satisfying - and not only for the body count and beautifully constructed action scenes it delivers.

It's as if the writers have set out with the most basic plot imaginable, hoping to cover the cracks with distractions and colourful set pieces. It works, but the lack of depth and emotional heart is noticeable when the film hits some of its less than spectacular moments.

Boyle has made an admirable effort that captures the melancholy of being right back to where you started from. But it's not what it used to be - or what it could have been.

Zootropolis is a real delight - an entertaining and endlessly inventive comedy and something with more insight than anyone could have anticipated.

The film doesn't simply work, it trumps expectation and lingers long in the mind.

Carney, who wowed everyone with Once, has a knack for this kind of film. Sing Street promotes his best attributes, and succeeds in delivering toe-tapping, head bobbing thrills, heartfelt, if cheesy romance and big laughs.

It's a finely made thriller that's a little bit more contemporary than other le Carré adaptations before it, and allows the central trio a chance to shine and Lewis to do some weird things with his accent and mouth as a weirdly laid back and unconcerned British agent.

Even with many of the original voice cast involved it's a tired effort that sadly - and it really is sad - doesn't live up to expectations.

The stakes are upped and character count doubled, but this doesn't mean attention to detail is spared. The visuals are sublime with different animation styles used to tell different stories.

The Legend of Barney Thomson has a few redeeming features scattered throughout, but for Carlyle it's much too bland and undefined.

Triple 9 becomes a victim of its own inane script. All the usual cop tropes are there - and that's part of the problem. Rarely does screenwriter Matt Cook throw anything at the page that hasn't been done better elsewhere.

Adopting a laid-back, effortlessly charming approach from the start, Moomins on the Riviera drifts through its short but sweet run time at a welcome pace.

Hotel Transylvania 2, much like its predecessor, never aims too high, so the fact that it comes as such a pleasant surprise makes it all the more entertaining.

What starts out as creepy descends into a creature feature that's more laughable than scary.

Hitman: Agent 47 is tedious, soulless and, for a film with a relatively trim runtime, seemingly never-ending.

Mistress America is, despite it's wobbles and preference for humour over depth, a delightful diversion from Baumbach's typically weighty output and a star-show for the pair of performers at its centre.

An unconventional biopic that's masterfully executed and fascinating to watch.

Home is funny, colourful and fast-paced.

Looped around a paper-thin narrative that makes hardly any sense, Secret of the Tomb displays signs of fatigue right from the start.

Horrible Bosses 2 is by no means an atrocity, but it's tired and unexceptional, which is perhaps worse.

The humour is scant and there's no real risk of peril (Grant George's nephew and his dastardly plans seem more psychopathic than threatening). Yet when you have a film that's colourful, easy on the eye and full of positive messages about friendship and trust, then kids will be happy.

As much as the sequel aches to remind audiences of what they liked first time round, it struggles to establish itself as its own unique entity.

Hughes' sequel fails because it makes no attempts whatsoever to rise above its predicable formula, even with the new cast additions and a promising director.

If there's a positive to be taken away from Hector and the Search for Happiness, it's that British cinema doesn't get much worse than this.

Postman Pat: The Movie is a disappointment; a modern-day reinvention of a traditional, much-loved classic that differs so far from its comfort zone that it'll have a difficult time winning audiences, let alone maintaining there attention.

It's essentially a collection of shoddily edited action sequences, underpinned by a monotonous narrative that has no purpose, let alone moral heart to reward viewers' waning attention.

It's a muted affair all in all; the script thin and relatively drama-free, which proves irritating considering the assured performances and flashes of brilliance that do flair up.