The CG does its part of the bargain, but even more than the brighter, breezier original this is a pale imitation of Potter.

Not perfect, but a much more satisfying Earth-in-ruins film than Oblivion or After Earth. It is a little more conventional than District 9 (what isn’t?), but confirms Blomkamp as one of the potential science-fiction greats of this decade.

Talk about a pleasant surprise! Real storytelling, well thought-out and beautifully, at times insanely, executed, with excitement, laughs and fun to make you feel seven years old again.

With Cage as a harried cop, Cusack as a serial killer and 50 Cent as a pimp, we're assuming the casting department kicked off early on this one. Still, there's plenty in this taut thriller for you to stick around for, not least the reuniting of the Con Air duo.

Not on a par with Ghibli's greatest work like Totoro or Spirited Away but not without charms of its own. A solid second effort from Miyazaki Junior.

A fun, frothy return for Frank and his creaky commandos.

Experimental and uncompromising, Winding Refn and Gosling’s Drive follow-up is a tripped-out riff on the crime family movie in which The Grifters — literally — go to hell.

Although the monochrome photography will invite comparisons with Manhattan, Frances Ha is closer in spirit to Godard than Woody Allen. Anchored by a charming performance from Greta Gerwig, it’s as light and breezy as a walk in Central Park, and just as refreshing.

Impassioned and disturbing, this documentary matches "The Cove" for marrying cool intellect with real fire.

An improvement on the last outing for Jackman’s not-so-merry mutant. If only it trusted enough in its unique setting to forgo a descent into aggressively awful formula.

Bravely refusing to rigidly adhere to a formula that has been so successful, Wright, Pegg and Frost’s Cornetto Trilogy closer has tonal shifts you won’t expect, but the same beating heart you’ve been craving.

Very physical, with intense performances and half-serious period talk, it’s an impressive, haunting picture — though the sort of thing you have to meet at least halfway to enjoy.

Made Of Stone somewhat brilliantly sees the individual moments and faces in the crowds, making this the best, most immersive concert film since Jazz On A Summer’s Day.

Alex Gibney adds to his forensic examinations of Enron and Abu Ghraib with another fine documentary. Undeterred by grey areas or the hostility of his subject, the filmmaker tackles one of the stories of our times with dynamism and smarts.

Dazzlingly clever and hugely funny, it succeeds both as a broadening of the Monsters universe and as a film in its own right. Monsters University had a tough task, and it’s passed with honours.

Del Toro is giving scope to a boyhood lust for mayhem, the multi-million-dollar equivalent of kicking over sandcastles and torturing insects. There is something infectiously juvenile in that.

Bold and beautiful, this is a mystery worth puzzling over.

Girls meets Ocean’s Eleven, The Bling Ring might be a film for right now rather than the ages, but Sofia Coppola’s heist movie is visually arresting, well acted, capricious fun.

It falters in the middle and hesitates unnecessarily in setting up the love story, but Gru still has charm and kids will adore the Minions.

An awkward mix of realist social drama and Statham actioner, this doesn’t quite convince as either.

Polley’s fearless personal journey is a huge achievement, a genuine revelation — but the less detail you know beforehand, the better. Go in cold, come out warmed.

Well-acted and suspenseful, with a great deal of editorial content, this feels a little awkward and earnest, and perhaps not angry enough.

A solid, straightforward biopic about a fascinating individual and his destructive relationships, with strong performances and a healthy sense of naffness.

Now practically an exile from his homeland, Kiarostami follows Certified Copy with another film-literate relationship drama with the enigmatic overtones of Hitchcock.

A bit tarter than its predecessors, but not skimping on their woozy, chatty charm, this perfectly played, gently incisive film is a welcome new chapter in one of cinema’s most beguiling ongoing romances. See it with someone you’ve loved for some time.

It’s no masterpiece, but this is a promising debut from Boone and a good showcase for his entire cast.

It aches for more depth and warmth and humour, but this is spectacular sci-fi — huge, operatic, melodramatic, impressive. It feels the right Superman origin story for our era, and teases what would be a welcome new superfranchise.

Occasionally charming but mostly bland fare from Weitz, despite the reliable cast. About A Boy remains the best showcase of his talents.

It will require no conspiring to make you fall for this one; Whedon and Shakespeare are a perfect match.

A near-irresistible Friday-night-out monster picture in the tradition of Lake Placid or Tremors, with a boozy Irish charm that makes it a distinctive addition to the catalogue of alien invasions.

This solemn, blood-soaked thriller lacks the dynamism of its star, but is an impressive showcase for him nonetheless: it’s as hard to look away from Shannon’s performance as it is to look directly at it.

A stylistic departure from the shaky aesthetic of the first film. Sadly, most of its nervy shocks and creeping sense of unease go the same way.

Prepare to cringe and snicker whenever the characters are talking, but gasp when Shyamalan just shows amazing stuff.

This nightmarish travelogue is coy about gore, but it’s still an effective thrill-ride. If the sequel happens, let’s hope it delivers some actual combat.

As angry and unflinching a piece of documentary filmmaking as you'll see this year.

Dreadful.

Loopy, film-literate and full-bore, it's a sadistic '70s thriller in modern-day garb.

Ben Barnes as a Colombian? Really?

The sight of this elderly bunch hobbling around the table may well make you laugh, but the passion with which they play each game as if it might (and probably will) be their last will also make you cry.

It's a stark vision of humanity in a hellish world. Tough and thought-provoking.

There's plenty here to show why director Daniel Espinosa caught Hollywood's eye, even if this pre-Safe House crime drama holds few surprises.

Mortensen is on top form - twice over - but while the noir mood gathers like a black cloud, the story frustrates.

While it’s not a crossover classic, this has enough wit and charm to entertain both big and little people.

Tonally a complete departure from the rest of the series, which is at once laudably brave and disappointingly unfunny.

Like Spinal Tap's more seriously older brother, Jay Bulger's fond but unsparingly honest film is a treat for fans and music lovers. A juicy slice of rock history.

Despite DiCaprio’s prize performance, purists will fume, but even as lit-crashing razzle-dazzle entertainment Luhrmann’s adaptation is a candelabrum too far.

The jokes are strong and delivered by a very talented cast, but the heart isn’t there. It’s easy to laugh, but hard to care.

No film that includes a Vin Diesel flying headbutt could remotely be called a write-off, and Furious 6, like its predecessors, is a big screen no-brainer that’s objectively terrible but undeniably pleasurable. A reversal from Fast 5, it’s still a gear above all the other sequels. And an end-credits teaser promises much for the future.

A mixture of tough and wistful and reflective and brutal, this is the ideal vampire movie for Twi-hards who’ve had their hearts broken for the first time and want to move on to a less cosy vision of eternal romance with a side order of addiction.

With a debut film, Katalin Varga, shot entirely in Hungarian, Strickland isn't one for the easy option. This excellent follow-up plunges into equally unusual terrain with similarly pleasing results

Lustrous photography and a fine cast make this dark drama a compelling one.

Ahmed excels and the set-up is compelling but ultimately this is middle rank stuff from the Monsoon Wedding director.

A slow burner; intense, utterly engrossing and believable.

A bold, intelligent, 21st century take on Mark Twain — with added occult tendencies.

Whether or not the metaphorical aspects excite you, an unshakeable tolerance for high camp and lowbrow humour may be required to fully appreciate Almodóvar’s broad, bawdy comedy — even for fans of his early, funny films.

In some sense, the title is misleading. Into Darkness is a blast, fun, funny, spectacular and exhilarating. The rule of great even-numbered Trek movies continues.

Funny and freewheeling, it's a joy.

A pleasingly intricate double (or is it triple?) revenge plot anchored by excellent acting, with a terrific burst of action at the climax.

Black proves the perfect blacksmith, forging smart new tech and scenarios for the swaggering super-genius. If this does turn out to be Downey Jr.’s final solo outing, it’s a very strong exit.

A tough, impactful film that offers a sometimes uncomfortable but always gripping examination of cause and effect.

All the boys might love Mandy Lane - discerning horror fans, however, will not.

Much more than just a witty title, this is a very genuine, very British send-up.

It's hard to imagine that the prodigiously gifted Dolan is still in his early twenties. This is another work of marvellous maturity and assurance.

Beautifully performed and tough as nails, Vinterberg's social drama could not be any more timely.

Ozon weaves another spellbinding tale that mingles the real and imaginery with terrific effect.

Prepare yourself for a shock: a horror remake that, at its best, manages to recapture the original’s hardcore nastiness. It could certainly do with laughing at itself a bit more, though.

Lacking a single honest laugh, this is shoddy by comparison with the other Scary Movie sequels… which throws it in a pit with Transylmania, Breaking Wind and Stan Helsing.

Reygadas' big ideas translate with mixed results.

As beige as an old PC, but beneath the surface the blood pumps bright scarlet. An intelligent and emotionally charged spy drama.

Kosinski has again built a fantasy world that feels real to its core, but once more put most effort into the scenery and too little into the people.

A uniquely British blend of excruciating comedy of embarrassment and outright grue, not quite as disorientating in its mood shifts as Kill List but just as impressive a film.

Insightful, revelatory and profound, Moreh's Oscar-nominated documentary combines riveting interviews, archive footage and - yes - state-of-the-art photographic effects to offer a unique perspective on the Israel-Palestine issue.

Black-veined and dark-hearted, this is another persuasive character study from Campos.

In trying to tell an enormous amount of story it can spread itself too thin and leave some strands feeling unfinished, but when it’s at its best, this is beautiful and bold filmmaking.

The performances are solid - Goodbye Lenin! actor Florian Lukas is the standout - but ponderous pacing makes this true-life tale a lot less enthralling than it might have been.

A smart, subversive but rather cold debut from Brandon Cronenberg that's short of the dark wit that lit up his father's early work. Then again, comparisons are hardly fair, especially when Cronenberg Jr. clearly has plenty of ideas of his own.

Thanks to Rushdie's sensitive handling of his own material, this is an adaptation big in both ideas and heart.

The midway point between "A.I." and "Diary Of A Wimpy Kid." It has quirky charm and a tender heart, but the treacly sentiment may become wearisome.

While not the balls-out action movie the marketing suggests, this Rock-powered family drama is not with its moments.

Measured performances from the seasoned cast balance out a script that errs towards the melodramatic. Hours sweating over those instruments pay dividends too.

A lurid, luminous teen-bender movie, as ludicrous as it is stylish, and Harmony Korine’s best film in years.

Visceral and inquisitive, this well researched movie offers a punchy insight to prison life. Unfortunately, it is a familiar and tepid storyline.

Fast Five was a good example of how applying The Rock to a tired series could bring it back to life. G.I. Joe, by opting for self-seriousness instead of knowing daftness, has squandered its secret weapon.

Though it rings ever so slightly hollow as cool shades into callousness, this exercise in sexy suspense and brain-scrambling mystery is a dazzling, absorbing entertainment which shows off Danny Boyle’s mastery of complex storytelling and black, black humour.

Already a compelling gangland saga, this vastly promising debut turns into something more surprising when social prejudice becomes the characters’ weapon of choice. If that sounds too much like a lecture, El Hosaini’s voice remains crisp, cool and consistently street-smart.

Superbly judging tonal shifts and juggling disparate storylines, this snapshot of a Refice street reveals the class, gender, racial and historical fissures in Brazilian society, while also making for riveting drama right down to the shocking sting in the tail.

It features more weed than a pot-warming party at Bill & Ben's but offers little more than spliff-glazed promotion for Snoop's reggae reincarnation.

Gonzo freakiness in such doses that cult status is practically ensured.

As a satire on the seduction by media and our infatuation with celebrity, it's hardly "The Truman Show," but Garrone’s Gomorrah follow-up is wry and witty. Plenty of fun.

Clever premise, witless execution.

Far from the giant mess you’d expect from the delayed release, late title change and a production history as muddled as the source material, Singer’s tall tale is snatched from disaster by an all-hell-breaks-loose third act.

Deeply icky on many different levels, with Ross Noble's feature debut illuminated by stomach-churning effects.

A bruising psychodrama from the Palme d'Or winner that taps into the dark heart of central European superstition.

A superb Kidman takes off the handbrake, and most everything else, in Daniels' southern-fried follow-up to "Precious." Watch it with "Killer Joe" for the ultimate sweaty, twisted double-bill.

The inconsistencies in tone - is it an Anchorman-style farce or something more serious? - distract from likeable turns from the leads.

Long-delayed. Arguably not long enough.

A confident, ambitious and action-rich Brit thriller, albeit one whose characters and clarity suffer from the frantic intensity of its pacing.

A French comedy that pitches for wit over broad comedy, it's successful in salting what could be a over-sugary confection with healthy dose of wryness. The result is always entertaining and rarely mawkish.