Alien: Covenant ***
Covenant does inject new blood and purpose into the Alien series with the focus on character rather than effect. It’s still just a nail biting.
Category: Fantasy
Monster Trucks (3D) ***
Nothing profound – in fact, as to alerting young minds to environmental issues go, all-time classic WALL.E beats hands down. However, Monster Trucks does things in an immensely fun and loud fashion and in a way that kids will instantly connect to.
Moana (3D) ****
A blaze of colour and a cool refreshing summer breeze on a chilly December day. Moana is a role model any parent would actively encourage their offspring to have.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them ***
As a festive family offering, Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them has all the charm needed to make it a satisfying viewing – and a must-see for Potter enthusiasts, kind of like a history lesson in Potter origins.
Doctor Strange ****
Some of the slower parts of the film go unnoticed because Cumberbatch always commands a presence and is immensely enthralling to watch.
Star Trek Beyond ****
Its big emphasis on ‘team spirit’, which doesn’t require you to be a Trekkie or to have seen the other films to fully engage. It is a standalone space ride of thrilling entertainment.
Alice Through The Looking Glass (3D) **
A feast for the imagination, so the design team has well and truly done its job. It’s Carroll’s eccentric storytelling that’s woefully missing, even while revisiting the individually unique characters.
X-Men: Apocalypse (3D) ***
Apocalypse, though perfectly watchable, should feel like the beginning of the end (with more episodes to come) and invigorate the series. It really does feel like the emphasis lies firmly on the youthful new characters’ shoulders to keep things fresh.
Ratchet and Clank ***
An enjoyable but too safe reproduction designed to introduce us to the characters. Now we’ve met them, can we please give our unlikely heroes a meatier, more substantial adventure to go on next time around?