It’s messy, with a middle section that sags, but Birds Of Prey has vibrancy, anarchy and balls to spare. Harley and Joker are dead. Long live Harley Quinn.

With a predictable central story, what might have been a distinctly average film is greatly improved with stellar performances from Garcia, Thurman and, in particular, Malkovich as well as some incredible cinematography that keeps the atmosphere tense.

A sportsman biopic that concentrates more on the man than the sport, this offers food for thought for those who can stand the languorous pace.

A competent procedural rather than the ground-breaking cybersaga we’d hoped for. But as with Miami Vice, Mann’s boundless style does a remarkable job of disguising the lack of substance.

It might follow a linear storytelling path a little too strictly, but Sylvester Stallone is a bracingly honest documentary subject, and fans in particular will take much from this look at a life and career well lived.

A solid, bare-knuckle action-thriller.

It’s no masterpiece and admittedly slight at 85 minutes long. But Idiocracy is that rarest of things in this age of lazy laughs — a gutsy comedy with something to say. More importantly, it’s funny.

Madder than a bag of cats. Quentin Dupieux’s latest is even more absurd — and more pointless — than his film about a sentient car tyre. But it’s cheering to know he is still being allowed to make this sort of bollocks.

One of the most legendary tear-jerkers of the 20th century.

Wonderful to look at, this is a more adult, more complex affair than its animated, and more entertaining, forebear. Still, it’s Disney’s best live-action adaptation yet.

The Neon Demon pulls off the unique feat of being both boring and bravura all at once. Like the world it depicts, it’s a feast for the eyes but little else.

More sentimental, less spiky than Mihaileanu's stock-in-trade, Le Concert is an enjoyable take on the underdogs genre. And Laurent and the music are sublime.

It’s a promising idea that starts well, and although it starts to flounder by the end, Kunis and McKinnon do sterling work making sure it never completely runs out of energy.

Guy Ritchie’s defiantly ahistorical romp is part derring-do spycraft, part bullet-riddled action, part impish comedy, and all-parts silly.

This is actually better than it may sound, though rather less charming than it would like to, and needs to be.

Exasperatingly trite, but also rather sweet.

Jennifer Aniston lifts an addiction drama with a committed but never showy performance. It’s a pity the rest of the film can’t cut as deep.

Technically ambitious, dramatically basic. Still, it's a major step up from an AvP sequel and delivers all the Saturday night whizz-bang and Sunday morning brain-ripping you could want.

A largely inventive and energetic portrayal of a past-their-prime music legend that’s let down by its unnecessary trad biopic beats.

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

Ostensibly, a lovingly made study of homemade cooking and old-fashioned values, this beautifully played drama also contains a mordant denunciation of the lack of compassion that shapes Japanese attitudes to social stigma.

Gentle, unchallenging drama for people who already know they like it, this is a nostalgic and rosy depiction of an England that was, surely, never so innocent.

By turns impressive and oppressive, Petrov’s Flu combines technical razzle-dazzle with obtuse storytelling. Bravura and baffling in equal measure.

Shot over three years, this is one of the more considered and insightful Iraqi documentaries - although some may find its stylistic contrasts a little self-conscious and distracting.

These teens may be a bit messy (who isn’t?) but it’s a joy to have Diablo Cody back to telegraph a new kind of adolescent horror, with a smile full of teeth.

Falls into the "interesting failure" category.

There are highs and lows here, with a fair amount of shoe leather required before you get to the good stuff. Pretty much like a real festival, appropriately enough.

Madonna knocks herself out and deserves cheers for the emotional range and humanity with which she sings in Alan Parker's spectacular film. But whether you think the movie is great or grisly, rests in large part on your palate for Andrew Lloyd Webber's music.

Eric Elmosnino is terrific as the louche French icon in Joann Sfar's vivid biopic. Shame about that second hour.

The Stooges’ story is a natural fit for the silver screen. Unfortunately, superfan Jim Jarmusch’s love letter to them does not quite do it justice.

Formula rules, as Ferrell applies his schtick to another sport. But there's enough silly spectacle and eye-popping costumes to compensate.

If the script lays the broken heart metaphor a tad too thick and the ending has a fatal inevitability that you can spot a mile off, Bill, to his credit, plays it all straight from the heart (pun intended). Go armed with a very large box of Kleenex.

A great idea is weighed down by an over-egged screenplay, but the setting and cast bring out its best.

Danny DeVito's ambitious and violent biopic nonetheless paints an intriguing portrait of a complex and angry man while effectively exploring his uses and abuses of power.

Charming performances from both leads and insightful vignettes makes up for occasional clumsy writing and plot developments.

Pugh is superb, while Wilde confidently steps up to a bigger subject and budget to deliver a slick, beautiful film. It doesn’t quite stick the landing, but its flight to that point is fascinating.

The late, great Robin Williams brings great nuance to the anguished Nolan’s inner struggle in a slight but sensitive story about a man facing a life-changing choice. It’s a worthy legacy for a beloved, talented and much-missed actor.

Great on his early life, but doesn’t really illuminate his genius as a filmmaker.

Emphasis has been placed on extravaganza, when it should really have been placed on getting good performances out of a talented cast.

It’s hard not to get swept up in some evocative, gorgeously staged filmmaking here. But Empire Of Light often seems a little confused about what it is trying to achieve.

A blistering, brutal Iraqi Scarface. You do wonder what the point of it all is, but Cooper is fantastic. Twice.

The three lead characters end the film as isolated as they began it. As with the plot, there isn't quite enough in the throwaway humour to hold them together.

A Dame To Kill For shares some of the downsides of the first, particularly dubious female characterisation. But this retains the gritty, gruelling vice-grip on graphic-novel noir that made Sin City so enjoyable.

Imagine "The Lion In Winter" set at a Kylie gig. You can have too much of a good thing, but it is a good thing.

Creepy and clever but rarely surprising, this horror hits its marks well enough, but fails to surpass its more rough-and-ready predecessor.

A touch twee at times, but the use of classic and original animation is admirable, while Owen emerges as the king of sidekicks.

Fairly routine western makes a disappointing swansong for Hawks. Still good fun though, if you like this kind of thing.

The likeable veneer of the film never threatens to evaporate, which is both a good and a bad thing; the comedy is plentiful but the dark laughs are never quite dark enough, given the subject matter.

It’s always a good story, this time told more creepily than usual. Good, but not as good as The Muppets’ Christmas Carol, Scrooged, Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol or some great, classic live action classic versions.

Whilst this takes itself a little too lightly it has a lot going for it.

It doesn’t quite successfully balance its warring tones, but a winningly grumpy performance from Tom Hanks — and a winningly sunny one from Mariana Treviño — ensures for a very watchable take on the ‘giving life another shot’ subgenre.

The song and dance scenes are hard to beat in terms of sheer energy and atmosphere, but the dramatic storylines leave several loose ends.

Not the most sophisticated psychological thriller, yet slick fun.

A flawed but fascinating (and frequently funny) insight into a culture seldom explored on film from an insider's point of view.

It’s the sort of picture you'll either queue all night in the rain to see twelve times or avoid like a Wayans Brothers Retrospective for the rest of life.

It suffers from ADD, but there's some terrific stuff in here. Leaving 15 minutes from the end and saving yourself a lumbering coda may improve enjoyment.

An enjoyable foray into JK Rowling’s imagination, bolstered by a more appealing Eddie Redmayne, but you can’t help feel The Crimes Of Grindelwald is still treading water until future chapters.

Without rising star DiCaprio and Mark Wahlberg this would have been considerably more turgid and unappealing. But their charm allows sympathy and involvement with the characters, despite their efforts towards self-destruction.

Russell Tovey gives a layered, career-best performance in an intense interior drama that never quite shakes its theatrical origins.

We've seen it all a million times before, but there are abundant (foul-mouthed) funnies, and debut director Michael Bay shows his commercials expertise propelling the noisy nonsense into a frantically slick and thoroughly enjoyable extravaganza.

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.

Late Night is sharply written and warmly enjoyable, with Kaling and Thompson on endearing form. But a few extra knock-out gags and a clearer focus would really help it in the ratings.

A long, sometimes broad film, but one that tackles an important and prescient subject, especially considering the ever-increasing numbers of asylum seekers crossing seas in dangerous circumstances.

Judy Garland is magnificent in this charming musical with a number of star turns from the impressive cast.

For all it boasts in ingenious style, this genial American yarn lacks the delicious bile of Jenuet’s early days.

Gorgeously realised, gripping and doused in De Palma’s familiar technical wizardry, this is only let down by the director’s equally familiar uninterest in the humanity of his characters.

Taika Waititi’s most daring film isn’t his most successful. But among the tonal clashes there’s real hope, humanity, and no-bones-about-it Nazi-bashing at a time when that’s depressingly necessary.

Persuasively played by fine leads and a well-cast ensemble, this thoughtful treatise captures provincial life and the medical mindset with authenticity and tact.

The Ocean’s Eleven: The College Years mood makes for a breezy good time, even if there is, like Vegas, precious little substance beneath the glitz.

Rinko Kikuchi's superb core performance and some striking photography stand out in the latest feature from the Zellner Brothers.

There are flaws aplenty, but also some effective, old-fashioned Western style performances and a spectacularly over the top finish.

Grotesque rather than scary and severely underplotted – but certainly strong meat.

Despite some shaky moments, Chuck Chuck Baby is an endearing tale of self-acceptance, wearing its heart fully on its sleeve thanks to the affecting central romance and joyous transformation of its protagonist.

An old-school film about an old-school crime that brings together an impressive array of British legends. Solid, but sadly the results don’t exactly blow the bloody doors off.

A blockbuster that offers enough quirky pleasures to feel fresh and unpredictable.

Aided by a dialled-down Gordon-Levitt, Stone skilfully demystifies one of the Obama era’s most compelling stories. It’s a welcome return to form for a cinematic sleeping giant.

It’s thinner than the paper it’s written on, and full of questionable choices — but in a switch-your-brain-off kind of way, this will adequately activate your heist glands. Light the fuze!

The script is weak and obvious and the direction disappointingly unimaginative. But stars are stars, and the old boys are terrific - enough to make this a funny and sometimes moving buddy picture.

The Electric State loses some of the quiet profundity of the original text, but as a breezily watchable retrofuturistic jolly, it has just enough juice.

Best of all, an astonishing sequence in which Bugs, Daffy and Porky Pig leap from painting to painting in a breathless chase through the Louvre sufficiently demonstrates just how much life modern animation techniques can breathe into these timeless characters.

Fun for kids, but, despite some adult references, appeal for the over 10s is limited.

It's fun spotting stars under cakes of make-up and the panache, great supporting cast and good-natured, old-fashioned feel make for a better movie than you remember.

Quite a nice little relationship comedy-drama, but essentially for an audience of what the French charmingly call ‘women of a certain age’. Totally not the Superbad set, then.

Nothing you haven’t seen done better elsewhere, this one’s a missed opportunity. McConaughey’s hard work is impressive, but that’s the only message Gold is interested in conveying.

An Alpine study of ageing and creativity that’s as fresh and bracing as the mountain air, although occasionally just as chilly.

Like good whisky, Loach is mellowing and becoming subtler with age — though a swift chug still has a bit of a kick.

There's no lack of style or pace from Noyce, just the sense that it isn't quite gelling together.

Same old sequel squanderings.

Writer / director team Kureishi and Michell add to their partnership with an insightful look at life-long commitment.

Ridley Scott finally gets to put Cormac McCarthy on the screen. It’s no No Country, but despite its less successful elements is shocking, powerful and — this just in — more gorgeously written than any movie you’ll see this year.

A sharply observed but bleak examination of family dysfunction, anchored by solid performances.

A beguiling work of some beauty, this is a further move into a world of hypnotic, observational cinema for Gus Van Sant. But in the end, the detached style has the power to alienate as much as to enthral.

This documentary feels too stuffed and not insightful enough to be the definitive article — but few skinny-jeans-wearing Millennials will be able to watch without getting nostalgic.

A daft idea perfectly calibrated to Black’s pop mania, then hermetically sealed by a director who thinks he’s making a Hal Hartley movie.

It’s a fun premise, one that this treats seriously, but it never quite reaches the highest levels of the genre.

Vikander and Fassbender are riveting in a handsome period drama that begins beautifully, but becomes increasingly contrived as it tries to wring as much drama as possible from its set-up.

Unsurprisingly, considering the circumstances, this is less a meticulous study of photojournalist's art than an privileged and emotional look at the life of a friend and colleague.

Cute, clean, camp fun, full of sunshine and toe tappers. Guaranteed to put grins on tweenies who are in to High School Musical, grans with a pair of platforms still at the back of the wardrobe, and a lot of people in between tone.