FILM: Kingsman - The Secret Service IMAX (dir: Matthew Vaughn, 2015)

"That is sick!"

Kingsman sees Vaughn cutting loose and having fun, back to the indie route (thankfully, as it is not hard to imagine what some of the notes from a major studio would be like) and producing a riotously fun and enjoyable romp.  This is basically the James Bond-in-training movie that has never been made - the character models are obvious - served up with delicious self-awareness, extraordinary action sequences and a very cheeky swagger.  Taron Egerton makes for an extremely likeable new recruit, Colin Firth is clearly having the time of his life, Michael Caine plays it utterly straight to great effect, and even Samuel L Jackson's lisping villain has sufficient insane menace to not derail the enterprise.  Everything from the villain's mountain lair to the stupendously enormous soundtrack are spot on, and whilst frequently obvious in its targets, Kingsman is delivered with such verve and energy that it is never less than supremely entertaining.

FILM: Big Hero 6 IMAX 3D (dirs: Chris Williams and Don Hall, 2015)

 "Fist bump!"

Big Hero 6 is an immensely engaging and very successful animation.  Animation, design and characterisation are all a deft blend of East and West.  The storytelling is very much at the children audience level - all simple exposition and verbally signposted feelings -  but the script is brisk and lively, there are three huge emotional wallops (think Up!) and the finale is surprisingly epic.  The film also introduces its younger audience to a whole slew of nods to the history of sci-fi movies,  from Metropolis and Blade Runner to Iron Man, Spiderman, the Star Treks and more.  The titular gang is fun to watch, Baymax out-cutes the Minions and is very amusing, and the high standard of CG animation together with exemplary 3D and IMAX presentation all make Big Hero 6 a very enjoyable film.