FILM: Dumb And Dumber To (dirs: Bobby and Peter Farrelly, 2014)

"No need to apologise."

Some critics need to lighten up, and this is a film that needs to be seen with an up-for-it audience: Dumb And Dumber To is one of the funniest if daftest films of the year.  In spite of the twenty-years gap, this sequel is literally more of the same.  Very American Pie in its humour, the gags very much follow the template of the original and come thick and fast, and with Daniels's wonderful slapstick and Carrey's undimmed impeccable timing most of the gags work.  It is relentlessly childish and unsophisticated - like its lead duo - but on that level it is also hugely entertaining.

FILM: Night At The Museum - Secret Of The Tomb (dir: Shawn Levy, 2014)

"Thank you, dangly bells!"

This third and concluding entry in the Night At The Museum trilogy is surprisingly thoughtful, entertaining, well-written and poignant (the latter not just because of Robin Williams), and it is certainly more fun than the self-consciously bloated second film.  There is actually a solid premise to the story, the London locations give it interest, and Dan Stevens is a riot as Lancelot.  There are apt references to the series' (limited) mythology, the regulars (such as Steve Coogan and Owen Wilson) are fine, although Rebel Wilson and Ricky Gervais remain an acquired taste, and even Ben Stiller doubling up as a Neanderthal (an idea that sounds like a bad Adam Sandler movie) is tolerably entertaining.  Whilst it offers little new, Secret Of The Tomb is a proper and entertaining ending to a pleasant series.

FILM: The Hobbit - The Battle Of The Five Armies D-BOX 3D (dir: Peter Jackson, 2014)

"I'm not a warrior - I'm a hobbit!"

It does what it says on the (title-changed) tin - five armies battle - and it does it most effectively.  Whilst The Desolation of Smaug ended not so much on a cliffhanger as crowd-baiting expectation, the final part of the film trilogy picks up where its predecessor left off, and interestingly in retrospect it might have been more effective to have seen through Smaug's attack on Lake Town fully at the end of the previous film.  All the characters are given a suitable airing, Martin Freeman's work should not be underestimated here, and there is fine work from Evangeline Lily, Aidan Turner and Richard Armitage.  It is a relatively lean film with good momentum, and it is thankfully bereft of a more-farewells-than-Frank-Sinatra ending, which links to the Rings trilogy beautifully.  For all its good work, The Hobbit films will never quite stand up against the Rings trilogy, but this final Hobbit film rounds off the series very successfully.

FILM: The Imitation Game (dir: Morten Tyldum, 2014)

"Thank you."
"You're welcome."

As a biopic and period piece, The Imitation Game shines with quality from start to finish.  Cumberbatch is impeccable to watch in the lead role, but there are also excellently-delivered character roles for Mark Strong, Keira Knightley, Charles Dance and Matthew Goode.  Alexandre Desplat's score is occasionally a little too whimsical for what is ultimately an intellectual thriller, but the whole film is lushly shot and the period settings lavishly recreated.  The pace is a little too stately at times, but overall this a fascinating and significant story told beautifully.

FILM: Paddington (dir: Paul King, 2014)

"Ketchup the Bear?"

This movie version of Paddington is utterly, utterly charming.  It has a lovely balance of real-life London and rose-tinted middle-class cosiness that makes it a very comfortably appealing film to watch.  Hugh Bonneville is at wonderful 2012-level of dry humour, and whilst Nicole Kidman veers perilously close to being miscast as the villain of the piece she is not too detrimental overall.  The bear himself is beautifully realised and convincing as an actual character, and the voice replacement of Colin Firth with the younger Ben Whishaw does indeed prove a wise move.  In fact, the bear carries a lot of Bean/Hulot-style slapstick so effectively that this lovely family film is hugely energetic fun and a real treat.

FILM: The Hunger Games - Mockingjay Part 1 (dir: Francis Lawrence, 2014)

"It takes ten times longer to pull yourself back together than it does for you to fall apart."

Right from the start, Mockingjay Part1 presents a very different tone from its predecessors: bleak, sombre, shattered.  The traumatised Katniss finds herself no longer a symbolic figurehead of rebellion but increasingly its actual leader, discovering the true horror of President Snow's dictatorship.  Apart from the tonal difference, this entry also places a range of characters in interesting and unexpected places, and finally Josh Hutcherson's Peeta is given something interesting to work with, leading to a genuinely shocking late moment in a film that already pushes the limits of a 12A/YA feature.  Jennifer Lawrence's terrific acting ability still elevates the material but this should not be taken for granted, as she owns the character and dominates the screen with genuine credibility.  The smaller-scale action set-pieces are well-staged and work in their own right, but this Part 1 will obviously sit well next to the upcoming finale.

FILM: Interstellar (dir: Christopher Nolan, 2014)

"....but very efficient."

The grand slow-burn promo campaign raised real expectations for Interstellar, and for the most part it delivers.  Matthew McConaughey undoubtedly carries this eco-friendly 2001, providing the everyman point of view with as consummately watchable performance.  The film takes its Earth-bound time to set up its premise with a reasonable near-future grounding, and soars when the space exploration part takes flight.  As expected, the film is visually and aurally stunning, the challenges of space and time are interestingly conveyed in thought and narrative terms, but it is over-long and the final sequence ion the story proves a bit hard to swallow.  Nevertheless, Interstellar is ambitious, imaginative and very well executed overall.

FILM: Nativity 3 - Dude, Where's My Donkey? (dir: Debbie Isitt, 2014)

"This whole school seems to centre on Mr Poppy and that stupid donkey!"

From a simple charming first entry, the Nativity series now seems to rival Saw in that appears annually and is a genuine horror.  This third entry is perhaps marginally better overall than the the previous one, but the frantic story makes even less sense, the increasingly sinister Mr Poppy is even more irritating, and the stalwart British TV cast (Catherine Tate, Martin Clunes, Celia Imrie) have so little with which to work that it is painful.  One particular musical number (out of a singularly workmanlike bunch) that gathers a number of low-level TV faces as 'the family' is probably the most excruciating thing you will see/hear in the cinema this year.  Little children love these films, but not even Christmas can save this one.

VOD: Seance The Summoning (dir: Alex Wright, 2012)

"Dare to play."

This very-low-budget horror takes four old-looking students to the local mortuary to try to prove or disprove that one of them is a medium, with the unfortunate side-effect of a demon possession as a result.  A couple of narrative surprises just about maintain interest in this weakly-shot enterprise that benefits from two manically spirited performances (Bobby Campo and Nazneen Contractor) and two puzzlingly bizarre ones (Devon Ogden and Chris Olivero).  It all amounts to very little overall.

FILM: Nightcrawler (dir: Dan Gilroy, 2014)

"Why you pursue something is equally as important as what you pursue."

It does not take long for you to realise that Nightcrawler is something special.  More than just an easy modern media satire, the beautifully-controlled script, glorious cinematography and pin-sharp performances and direction keep the viewer hooked right to the end.  The backdrop of a neon-soaked night-time LA (reminiscent of Drive) is wonderfully shot, reflecting the darkness and hyper-reality of the chase for accident-news footage.  Jake Gyllenhaal gives possibly his career-best performance, more than ably supported by Riz Ahmed, Bill Paxton and a stellar Rene Russo, and Dan Gilroy handles the small and large narrative moments with aplomb.  Nightcrawler is an absorbing, demanding and immensely satisfying film to watch. 

FILM: The Babadook (dir: Jennifer Kent, 2014)

"It doesn't work unless you see me."

Mis-sold as a horror, The Babadook is a terrific (mostly) two-hander psychological thriller.  Completed in a race against budget, the focus remains firmly on the increasingly world-weary and dislocated mother and her troubled six-year-old son, with two quite remarkable performances by Essie Davis and Noah Wiseman.  Director Jennifer Kent creates a claustrophobic theatrical feel with inventive and creative direction throughout, creating a film that lingers after viewing.

FILM: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IMAX 3D (dir: Jonathan Liebesman, 2014)

"So they're aliens?"
"No.  That's stupid."

In spite of the early American reviews, this is a serviceable if unremarkable reboot for this bizarre franchise.  As a big dumb spectacle based on a children's comic, the movie offers nothing more than that, with reasonable big set pieces and simplistic characterisations (Megan Fox provides an appropriate April O'Neil and William Fichtner makes for an acceptable baddie).  Of course the plot and script are both silly, but what else do you expect?  This is a kids' film about teenage...mutant...ninja...turtles...!