Despite being occasionally hilarious, director Goran Dukic should have toned down the wackiness.

This never reaches the heights of Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer or The Snowman in terms of classic seasonal fare. But there are a lot of laughs lurking within the shiny 3D wrapping and snow-covered silliness.

Not only do the pair have to prepare for the upcoming race, but, hey, they also have to deal with a hysterical mother, a dying father, and the knowledge that one brother is destined for the same fate as pops. Not quite as sickly as it sounds, with a fair few hints of the onscreen magnetism to come.

It goes nowhere fast and Kechiche’s camera consistently ogles his female cast but he remains a terrific director of actors, the intimacy and authenticity conveying a real lust for life to sweeten the hefty running time.

It’s a lesser Jarmusch, yes — but it’s still a Jarmusch.

The forceful imagery and acute sound design make Natural Light worth surrendering to, but a frail narrative may leave you feeling like you’re in no man’s land.

A by-the-numbers boot camp drama elevated by resonant emotional truth and seen through the revealing lens of all-too-lived experience.

Superb supporting performances from Polley and Baulk go some way to making up for our hero's lesser qualities.

A potentially trite tale of an unlikely relationship is lifted immeasurably by Sophia Loren and is best viewed as a testament to the true power of the movie star.

By no means the disaster many might have expected following its years-long delay. You’ll like it. Not a lot, but you’ll like it.

Once the pop sensibilities are out of the way, this clever foursome becomes more than the sum of its part.

It feels terrestrial rather than cinematic, but the joy of Trumbo is in the heroism of its subject and an amazing performance from Cranston.

Jellyfish is a familiar but compassionately drawn portrait of hardscrabble lives, centred by a terrific performance by Liv Hill.

The action is enthralling even if the storyline doesn't always have the ring of truth about it.

Delivers an effective double-sting ending.

John Woo’s first American film in 20 years is not the filmmaker at his peak — but it has its moments, with energetically filmed action enough to distract from a melodramatic tone and sometimes silly concept.

Not for everyone, but fans of Dario Argento will find plenty to like about this otherworldly study of sex and sensuality.

If you liked Enchanted, this is a dependably familiar serving. In an era where Disney is constantly raiding its archives for intellectual property to remake, this is a sequel that feels unusually original by comparison.

For fans of the Big Bug movies in the 60's this will come as a pleasant surprise with not only the first to made in a while but also the first good one for a long time. Ticks is enjoyably fluff which contains unexpectedly convincing effects and enough of the required screaming of innocent victims.

A thumpingly didactic script, but Palcy has crafted a watchable - if not particularly important, given its competition - one.

Arguably the most imaginative of the horror franchise, with a fair number of truly resonant scenes.

One of the sillier series entries in terms of plot, but still scary enough and funny enough to leave you hoping Ghostface might yet kill again.

The Campaign gets by on its stars' comic compatibility and a relentless stream of jokes, many of which are laugh-out-loud funny. The only real downer is the ending, which feels tacked on like a hanging chad.

Already a hit in America, 42 is a well-told but square biopic doing justice to Jackie Robinson rather than exploring him.

Complex, poised and beguilingly earthy. Stephane Brizé’s decade-spanning epic is a sensitively performed, memorably fragmentary look at one woman undone by the feckless men in her life.

Both women are impeccably played by Maria Bonnevie.

One for the die hards. The saving grace here is a knowing sense of humour so lacking in its predecessor, For Your Eyes Only.

This director's cut might smack of self-indulgence, but it also says much about love and loss and the language of an artform that flirts with realism while remaining an illusion.

A dedicatory, sometimes sombre recreation of the career of 50s teen-throb Richie Valens, which feels like a personal project by director Luis Valdez.

It has a tendency to drift aimlessly and, having said all there is to say on the subject long before the two hours are up, loiters around when it really ought to have gone to bed.

Small kids will love the waddlesome dancing and colourful animation, but older viewers will likely be disturbed by the story’s darker elements.

With its predictable story unlikely to leave a lasting impression, it’s left to Chaplin and Tena’s natural chemistry and performances to make Carlos Marques-Marcet’s second feature-length film worth your while. Which they do. Just.

The cute puppy almost steals the show but Hardy is ace and quite the watchable chameleon in his surprising switch from lovable dumb ox to cannier-than-we-thought.

An okay paranormal mystery, with solid work from the regulars – but please Mr Carter, next time, could we have liver-eating mutants or post-modern comedy like the really good episodes of The X Files?

A vital, if slight, study of selfishness and fractured relationships, Leaving is illuminated by the odd, off-balancing twist.

In the grand pantheon of Sinbad movies, those pleasurable Arabesques of silly beasts, big swords and scantily clad maidens, this lower league Ray Harryhausen stop-motion thriller squeezes between the better Eye Of The Tiger and the worse Seventh Voyage.

A small, slight window into a mixed-up soul, this is more intriguing than engaging. Its restraint, though, is admirable, resulting in a mood-piece with an ongoing sense of unease.

The end result, although entertaining and well-crafted, certainly isn't on the same breathtaking scale of, say, Alan Parker's epic "Evita."

If it weren't so darned "sincere" this would be an unmitigated bird-brained delight, but it undoubtedly remains a genial crowd pleaser.

Holly Hunter goes toe-to-toe nicely with the superbly understated Al Pacino loner obsessed with a long-lost love — one of his most rewarding outings in a very long time.

Hardly must-see Wenders, but for fans of his road movies, it remains a treat.

Black 47 lacks the seriousness and rigour of other displaced Westerns like The Proposition and Sweet Country. But Lance Daly’s film is gripping enough to suggest Ireland’s tragic backstory is a frontier full of resonant riches.

This sprawling epic rewards patience with an emotional pay-off and non-triumphant ending that reminds us all too starkly of the sacrifices made during war.

A typically engaging performance from Johnny Lee Miller takes this slightly above the usual underdog movie cliche.

Although packed with compelling archive footage, this never quite gets into Joplin's head, heart or soul.

A simultaneous celebration and subversion of popular surfing culture, Girls Can’t Surf makes for a dynamic cinematic experience, celebrating the real badasses and unsung heroes of the sport: women.

Tautly scripted by director Per Fly and bullishly played, this is soap for the ciné-sophisticate.

Though it may be derivative, Smile still manages to be a scary, unsettling ride that’s powered by an impressively committed Sosie Bacon performance and some assured direction. Finn is one to watch.

Gilliam at his best and his worst.

Superbly styled in techno-Gothic space-grunge chic, this sci-fi/horror cross-breed is a directorial triumph of reference and homage.

Superb star turn from Maria Alexandra Lungi but this doesn’t grip as it might.

Election Year maintains the nervy tension that made the first films entertaining, but doubles down on the political metaphors, overwhelming you with its soap-box rhetoric.

It doesn’t have the surprise factor of the last film and sometimes feels rough around the edges, but The Next Level pushes its body-swap antics even further to deliver just as many laughs.

The true story of a revered general instigating one of the most daring ploys in military history might seem like the perfect vehicle for Liam Neeson to return to more serious fare, but even he cannot breathe life into some truly terrible dialogue. It’s left to the Korean actors to save the day.

Another coming-of-age tale about three boys and their quest to become men, which invariably revolves around having sex and puerile behaviour but then changes tack completely by giving us lush scenery. If the director had remained with one idea then perhaps the end product wouldn't seem so varied.

A sturdy by-the-numbers legal drama that really belongs on the small screen.

A decent snapshot of pre-Beatle Britain, this is much more a fact-based gay melodrama than a trenchant portrait of Joe Orton's life, loves and art.

Stanton has built a fantastic world, but the action is unmemorable. Still, just about every sci-fi/fantasy/superhero adventure you ever loved is in here somewhere.

Atmospheric and chilling, Out Of Darkness doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but adds some thoughtful twists to a well-worn genre. It’s an intriguing sign of things to come from a new filmmaking voice.

Fellowes’ dewy-eyed swansong isn’t likely to make many Film Of The Year lists, but it still does Downton proud, closing the book on his Faragian utopia of stiff upper lips and British brio in a way that would do Cousin Violet proud.

It's enjoyable and visually impressive, but this is a slender trifle of a film, one which charms you as you're watching it and then is all too quickly forgotten.

For all its self-conscious pizzazz, this is irresistibly entertaining.

The Prom is a loud, proud glitter-ball of a film, and doesn’t pretend to be anything else. It stumbles in the second half and the relentless cheer is a little exhausting, but its energy and wit remains infectious.

Well-crafted and well-acted, but ever-so-slightly worthy and strangely unaffecting. Given the track record of the CIA, it probably ought to be angrier.

The sharp economic filmmaking of this meta-textual satirical mystery is ultimately weighed down by its cleverness.

With more thorough editing this could have been on a par with Greenwald's previous films. His source material is gripping, but not life-changing.

A crime thriller with no interest in thrills and not much in crime, this is an at times frustrating character study of a guy who can’t get out of his own way.

Good ideas. Average film.

Half-an-hour too long, but still a fun ride.

Its wackier moments sometimes feel like they have more bark than bite, but as an uncommonly honest and authentic depiction of motherhood, Nightbitch will come as sharp relief to mums everywhere.

A positive and personal look at the Israel/ Palestine divide through the quest of one woman to maintain her own property.

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.

The film soft-peddles any sense of controversy but what emerges is an entertaining portrait of a generous, funny, larger-than-life figure. And the music is sublime.

Morally dubious it may be, but this gory melange of torture, terror and darkly humorous depravity appeals to the sick puppy within us all.

Two of cinema's most iconic stars on top form make this worth a good look.

Though occasionally undone by its Sunday-teatime tendencies, this is a spirited and gently entertaining slice of wartime espionage, with sharp, wry performances from the ensemble cast.

If you like your satire incisive you should perhaps look elsewhere, but the state of the world looks even more laughably absurd through Maddin and the Johnsons’ wickedly warped lens.

The 50th anniversary of the moon landings has brought a welter of reminiscences and Armstrong, while entertaining enough, does little to distinguish itself from the pack.

Funny, agreeable and thoroughly enjoyable, if a little bit too neat and fortuitous in sorting out its entangled strands.

Buoyed by riveting lead performances, and driven by a compelling real-life story, this is proof that Phillips can handle grown-up material. All without a naked Ken Jeong.

Zac Efron makes a convincing bid for movie stardom — and Ratajkowski proves she’s more than just a pretty face — in this flawed but fitfully entertaining film, even if it all goes a bit Pete Tong at the end.

Forgettable, innocent, old fashioned fairy tale with not nearly as much sexual chemistry as is required.

Refreshingly free of the gangs, guns and drugs clichés associated with the milieu, this is a satisfying, spicy little picture.

Short, sharp and mostly satisfying, this is a thriller that sticks to the stripped-back fundamentals of the genre — no more, no less.

Reassuringly formulaic, this is a straightforwardly inspirational-by-numbers sports movie, made watchable thanks to Jharrel Jerome and Jennifer Lopez.

If it doesn’t hit the Top Gun: Maverick heights of legacy sequels, Jurassic World Dominion is scattershot but entertaining, delivering fun, familiar set pieces. Come for the delight in seeing Neill, Dern and Goldblum together again, stay for the bit where a bloke on a scooter gets eaten.

The Occupant is a slow burn of a thriller that never catches fire. Looking to skewer the pursuit of perfection during late capitalism, it misses both its satiric targets and a sense of kitsch fun.

A solid haunting-possession movie with good character work and unusual local colour, this works in a few surprises, sufficient scares and a nicely barbed punchline.

Beyoncé proves her Dreamgirls turn was no fluke in this so-so Blues melodrama.

This might not be the venerable animation house at its very best, but it is a reminder of why they have endured for so long. Why change a formula when it’s a winning one?

As elegant as the man's clothes, this handsome biopic traces 20 incident-filled years in the life of the designer.

Neither good nor bad. Scales dizzying new heights of okay. Aims for mediocrity... and nails it.

Pacy thrills are doled out in a solid Sam Raimi-approved pulse-raiser with a few nifty ideas up its sleeve. Shall we try ‘Don’t Smell’ next?

Minus delightful stars, this would be laboured indeed. Thanks to them, it scrapes along as modestly appealing fluff.

The film falls into the gap between the manifestly unique qualities of the musician in performance and the near complete mystery of an intensely withdrawn private life.

Not exactly genre-bending innovation or anything but a decent documentary about an important episode in history of oil company exploitation.

Clever cybernatural thriller.