FILM: Solo - A Star Wars Story IMAX 3D (dir: Ron Howard, 2018)

"...a little rough around the edges, but good!"

Definitely a love letter to the fans, Solo proves to be (mostly) another winning entry in the ever-growing Star Wars collection.  Its bumpy production period is in little evidence here, but it is definitely a three-act experience.  The first act is immediately engaging, a non-stop thrill-ride that takes us to the down-and-dirty side of the Star Wars universe, effortlessly and breathlessly setting up the key plot and character elements of the film, and seamlessly taking in the chase, war and heist genres in swift succession in a thrilling opening.  The second act is more leisurely, developing characters and relationships and adding depth to the main plot, and it is only the final section that feels more uncertain in pace and tone, perhaps taking a little too long over the ending but ending on a high.  Ehrenrich is joyous in the title role, and a strong support cast adds much to the film's success.  John Powell's score is hugely successful, and the film's staging of 'first times' for meetings of characters and icons pushes all the right buttons - indeed, the use of classic iconography from the franchise in new and interesting ways (as Rogue One also achieved) is evident right from the start and very effective.  Third act wobbles aside, Solo is a hugely entertaining romp that might not be very deep but is extremely well crafted, and the possibility of further adventure(s) in this corner of the franchise timeline would indeed be welcome.

FILM: Deadpool 2 IMAX (dir: David Leitch, 2018)

"That's got some zip!"

What a relief - Deadpool 2 is a very entertaining sequel.  It feels a bit more serious than the fresh and more carefree original (but does not go DC-dark), yet this sequel has a manic energy that will bear a repeat viewing to catch everything.  It retains the small-scale focus and storytelling that worked in the first film's favour, but more cash is splashed on the more generic-looking frantic big-league extended set pieces which Leitch handles very effectively.  More jokes hit than miss, and there are plenty of chuckles to be had, including the most excruciating bad pun in recent memory (in the 'baby legs' scene).  Reynolds is simply spot-on in the lead role again, with the returning cast all great fun, especially the magnificent Dopinder, and Josh Brolin makes for a highly effective Cable.  Stay seated for the two mid-credits scenes - the second is particularly funny - but only stick it out to the very end of the credits for a brief music gag if you want to indulge your immature side.

VOD: Jeepers Creepers 3 (dir: Victor Salva, 2018)

"You can do better."

This low-rent threequel - a direct prequel to the second film - finally emerges, telling the threadbare tale of The Creature attacking two remote farms. It is alarmingly cheap in every respect, yet the limited effects do have ambition and occasionally come off well, and there is an attempt at a couple of interesting twists on the mythos.  The cast barely registers, especially the younger actors.  There is nothing to match the magnificent tension of the first half of the original film, but Jeepers Creepers 3 does its best with what little it has.

FILM: I Feel Pretty (dirs: Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein, 2018)

"That's not real."

There is a real tension throughout this movie between making a genuine and affecting statement about body image and its position in that weird realm of ridiculous stereotypical female movie fantasy, with both aspects creating problems for each other.  A little reminiscent of What Women Want, the whole scenario is of course ridiculous and leads to a lot of nonsensical events, but the core issue is handled with some thoughtfulness and awareness.  This is very much the Amy Schumer show, just about proving that Trainwreck was not a one-off, and she occasionally nails a scene or a speech with real impact and emotion, but there are many times that the delivery feels rather off-time or underpowered, suggesting that a tighter script (and less improvisation?) might be in order.  I Feel Pretty is therefore sometimes funny and sometimes thought-provoking, but it remains a strangely inconsistent viewing experience.

FILM: Sherlock Gnomes (dir: John Stevenson, 2018)

"Oh, fertiliser!"

The charming zaniness of Gnomeo & Juliet is all but lost in this oddly serious follow-up, which jettisons most of the wonderfully silly comedy and energy of the original in favour of a rather straight mystery adventure.  Whilst the makers are perhaps to be applauded for not simply repeating the first film, the surprising lack of humour in Sherlock Gnomes is noticeable.  It is animated well, and the voice cast is again solid, with James McAvoy and Emily Blunt again doing engaging work in the lead voice roles, but this is definitely a case where more Gnomes and less Sherlock would have been welcome.

FILM: Avengers Infinity War IMAX 3D (dirs: Joe and Anthony Russo, 2018)

"Cool?"
"Cool."
"So cool."

The reward to loyal Marvel fans who have painstakingly sat through all the films over the last decade pays off superbly, and is a fitting way to celebrate ten years of the studio's hit filmmaking.  It hits the ground running - picking up from the ending of Thor Ragnarok - and immediately establishes Thanos as a genuine threat (not perfect, but certainly one of the better superhero movie villains of recent years), with the momentum kept up for most of the film.  Indeed, the pace is frantic, but the storytelling is superb, the introduction of characters regularly raises a smile, the scale is enormous, but the Russos handle it all almost effortlessly.  We see the characters and the cast at their peak, there are some truly wonderful new toys and upgrades on display, and the film is surprisingly very funny, with the combinations of characters not only providing much butting of heads to comedic effect but also genuine interest in how they work together.  Although the story is a routine 'gather the stones' through line, familiar characters are given some interesting arcs with some surprises and shocks along the way.  There are many highlights from small moments and one-liners to the huge battles, but the comedy genius of Drax and Thor is excellent, there is one particular heartbeat-skipping special effect that is truly awesome, and the swift return to Wakanda is very welcome indeed. Alan Silvestri's terrific score is also worth mentioning.  The bold and tonally unexpected final few minutes held the packed audience absolutely immobile, and yes, you have to sit through every single credit for the single but necessary final scene.  It will be very interesting to see where Avengers 4 (as yet untitled) and the conclusion of the MCU's Phase 3 goes, but for now Infinity War is utterly ambitious, hugely entertaining and a real event movie.

FILM: Truth Or Dare (dir: Jeff Wadlow, 2018)

"Just...follow the rules."

Truth Or Dare is another simple-concept Blumhouse cheapie that has an instant familiarity for its main target audience - undemanding teenagers - and thus, like the Final Destination movies, it is all about the 'how it happens' rather than 'what is going to happen'.  Once the premise is set, the narrative inevitably runs like clockwork, and in spite of the contemporary trappings of mobile phones and social networks, its limitations give the film an unexpectedly old-fashioned horror feel.  The main players are adequate but do not make much of a mark, the film relies too heavily on the aggressive foregrounding of everything in the sound mix, and the ending feels reminiscent of other recent horrors, making Truth Or Dare a rather run-of-the mill affair overall.

FILM: Rampage (dir: Brad Peyton, 2018)

"That happened."

Rampage does not pretend to be anything other than a very noisy, very silly and very big creature-feature, and as such it delivers on that promise, especially in the sometimes genuinely spectacular carnage wreaked on Chicago in the final act.  Other than that, this is a typically pointless and unimaginative blockbuster that at times cannot even be saved by Dwayne Johnson's cinematic charms - here, he plays it somewhat too seriously for the material, even by his standards.  Indeed, all of the performances consist of very large broad-strokes acting in an attempt to match the scale of the effects and the noisiness of the soundtrack.  WETA once again work their magic on the wonderfully-realised creatures with excellent work on display, but some of the other CGI work, such as integrating actors over CG backgrounds, is disappointingly and jarringly not up to the same standard.  As big Friday-night popcorn entertainment, Rampage does its best to please, but do not look for any more than that.

FILM: Ghost Stories (dirs: Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman, 2018)

"STAY!"

If you have seen the hit West End play, this film is a surprisingly sympathetic and effective expansion of that experience.  Regardless, Ghost Stories is a lovingly-crafted homage to the old 70s portmanteau chillers, which obviously expands on the theatrical use of light and sound and employs very good location work to make for an extremely effective cinematic experience, which follows a professor's quest to disprove the paranormal across three different cases.  The lead performances are all very strong, the narrative links together the seemingly disparate ideas so well in the unexpected ending, and depending on your point of view and previous experience of the material, it is either a well-mounted collection of classic genre conventions or/and a very smart and atmospheric thrill ride.

FILM: Love, Simon (dir: Greg Berlanti, 2018)

"Is this a Make A Wish situation?"

The latest YA-lit hit adaptation is heralded as being a bold, honest (for Hollywood) depiction of the ordinary gay teenage experience - ordinary if you happen to live in a huge beige house with three cars in the drive and Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel as your parents - and it at least represents some small if notable steps forward.  It is earnest and sincere, but it is also featherweight and feels somewhat long to watch.  As Simon, Nick Robinson is a very capable and likeable young actor who carries the movie extremely well being in almost every scene, and the rest of the cast is effective, the only jarring character being a dreadful comedy vice-principal who feels completely out of place and tone.  With friends and family proving to be, of course, exceptionally liberal and supportive, the more traumatic moments of Simon's (enforced) coming out are overcome relatively easily, and the identity of Simon's online friend Blue is not too hard to work out.  Love, Simon is well-meaning and enjoyable enough overall, but more dramatic heft would have been welcome.