Olly Richards

Judged against previous form, this is not Pixar firing on all cylinders, lacking the sophisticated comedy we've come to expect. Judged against fare from other studios, however, it's a triumph.

It may look like a documentary but Gibney's film is a horror film in every sense. Essential, uncomfortable viewing.

Intelligent, classy and skin-crawling. You won't see a better acting masterclass this year.

Potent and visceral in its depiction of street life and blinged-up excess alike, Straight Outta Compton delivers big beats of both kinds.

Terrific performance alone can't mask the lack of originality.

This true-life tale takes some believing in the era of global warming (too much ice? Really?) but the sledgehammer emoting should let you know you're in a family drama.

Maclean has made a Western of such confident ease that it’s hard to believe this is the director’s first feature film.

When Gunn took on Guardians Of The Galaxy, he turned nonsense into gold for Marvel. By giving The Suicide Squad the same sense of mischief and an equally surreal streak, he’s done the same for DC.

The smart visual trickery lifts what might otherwise have been a fairly conventional thriller, but it also lets Chaganty say some interesting things about our online lives. Technophobes should stay away.

It’s a tremendously enjoyable type of horror, full of giggle-inducing jump scares, but sending you off with some intelligent questions to gnaw on.

Strong performances and direction make the most of a lightweight tale.

It cleverly pulls at the supposed laws of the series in a way that makes it more interesting without diluting the fearsome nature of the title character. Trachtenberg is making the franchise richer with every instalment. And if the film’s final shot is any reliable indication, he’s far from finished.

A very smart take on the stalker movie, which resists easy laughs for harder truths, and might make you think twice the next time you’re lining up a photo for social media.

It’s extremely antic for the most part, covering a lack of real story with a lot of distracting quirk. Yet when Petit’s foot slips out onto a wire thousands of metres from the ground, it’s quietly mesmerising.

It may sound dismissive to call a film ‘nice’, but that’s exactly what this is. It’s beautifully produced, entirely uncynical niceness. If you’re after just a lovely time, come on in and put your feet up.

A fascinating documentary that captures all the glamour and grubbiness of the 20th century’s most famous nightclub. All the thrill of being there with none of the hangover.

A story with all the qualities of a classic LA noir is given a very effective spin by transposing it to politically charged Cairo. It’s angry, frustrated and thrilling.

As both teen comedy and mid-life crisis comedy it’s terrific. It feels honest and modern in a genre that so very often uses dick jokes and gross-outs to cover old-fashioned morals.

A great, big joy. Even if you're a bit bah humbug, just delight in the supremely clever Aardman comedy.

21 Jump Street has that "Anchorman" experimental-chaos vibe, with all the hit-and-miss moments that implies. It's completely lunatic and sort of a mess. It's also the funniest high-school comedy to come out of Hollywood in ages.

The Outfit follows a pattern set by countless gangster flicks of the past, but its freshness is in the intelligence and surprise of the script. Like a well-made suit, it’s not old-fashioned — it’s classic.

As thrilling and smart as it is terrifying. There have been a number of big-gun literary series brought to screen over the past decade. This slays them all.

A wonderful comedy of romance, pain and getting it all wrong until somebody makes you do it right. The kind of film that makes you want to call someone the minute it's over, even if just to tell them to go see this movie.

It's a collection of cop-movie clichés but presented with sufficient flair and strong performances that the ride is enough, even if it's on rails.

An absolute treat of an interview with a man who has told other people’s stories wonderfully for decades and tells his own just as well.

It's not on a gasp-inducing making-the-Statue-Of-Liberty-disappear level, but with its opulent presentation and confident storytelling, The Illusionist has the power to keep an audience rapt like a good old-fashioned card trick.

A film for every age, whether you’re an awkward kid, former awkward kid or awkward kid-adjacent. Funny, real and uplifting. A film that reaffirms your belief in the human spirit.

A gripping, moving, sometimes frustrating portrait of a man consumed by a need to speak up, even as he wonders if anybody’s watching.