The Gift (2000)
Jan 23, 2001Clairvoyant Murder Mystery
An uncommon misstep from Sam Raimi. Despite the fact he has a sterling cast onboard and a script from Billy Bob Thornton, the medium thriller plot rehashes old ground and comes out fairly bland
Cate Blanchett
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Dec 19, 2001Epic Fantasy Adventure
Peter Jackson wowed the world with this first part of his adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy. This is epic filmmaking and one that shows Jackson in full command of his craft
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Dec 23, 2003Epic Fantasy Adventure
The weakest of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films. This is the most variant from the source material and the one where Jackson allows his tendency to visual effects bloat to take over
The Missing (2003)
Mar 10, 2003Western/American Indian Sorcerer
Ron Howard makes a Western that has some horror overtones featuring an evil Indian sorcerer. In the hands of a classic director like John Ford this could have been an epic work but Howard’s plodding predictability kills interest
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
May 25, 2008High Adventure/Alien Artefacts
The fourth of the Indiana Jones films, returning after a 19 year gap to general disappointment. Largely a film about Indy getting old, this tries but the action scenes pale against what the series was in its heyday
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Dec 30, 2008Man Ages in Reverse
David Fincher makes a surprisingly positive and upbeat Academy Awards crowd-aimed film in which Brad Pitt is a man who ages in reverse, born as an old man and progressively getting younger as he goes through life
Hanna (2011)
Apr 16, 2011Teenage Girl Assassin
A film about a genetically tinkered teenage girl assassin that never lives up to its potential. Saoirse Ronan is great in the title role but director Joe Wright never gives the action scenes the kick they need
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Dec 14, 2012Epic Fantasy Adventure
Peter Jackson returns to J.R.R. Tolkien and epic-sized adventure in the first of his Hobbit films. The visual sweep is there but the film feels over-extruded and over-burdened by its own self-importance.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
Dec 20, 2014Epic Fantasy Adventure
After two bloated and over-padded Hobbit films, Peter Jackson finally gets it together and produces what everyone was expecting him to deliver, even if it means dragging one battle scene out to last an entire film
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
Jun 20, 2014Animation/World of Dragons
This is a film that leaves you in two minds – one that is constantly going wow at the animated artistry and detail before us; the other that is realising that this is yet another formula animated film
Cinderella (2015)
Mar 14, 2015Fairytale Adaptation
Live-action remake of the Disney animated film. This varies little from the well-worn elements of the story to the point of over-familiarity but director Kenneth Branagh manages a lush and beautifully staged effort
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Feb 3, 2018Marvel Comics Norse God Superhero
The third of the MCU's Thor films. This time Kiwi director Taikia Waititi gives much more of a comedic emphasis where you get the impression the intention has been to push the film in the direction of Guardians of the Galaxy. On the other hand, the superheroics are routine
Spielberg (2017)
Oct 23, 2017Steven Spielberg Documentary
Documentary made for HBO about director Steven Spielberg in which he reflects on his life and films. The documentary tends to focus more on his major hits and skips his minor films but does give worthwhile insight into Spielberg, his life and formative years
The House With a Clock in Its Walls (2018)
Mar 10, 2019Boy and His Eccentric Warlock Uncle
Eli Roth is a director associated with the Torture Porn cycle and one does a double-take at him making a family-friendly film. The results emerge somewhere between Harry Potter and a Goosebumps film
Mowgli (2018)
Apr 26, 2019Jungle Boy
This Andy Serkis directed version of The Jungle Book with motion capture animated animals had its thunder stolen by the more high-profile Disney remake of 2016 but is a far superior film
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)
Apr 20, 2019Animation/World of Dragons
One of the most beautifully made formula animated films of recent vintage but at the end of the day no more than a film that is by the numbers where the artistry is unsupported by the banal script
Don’t Look Up (2021)
Jan 8, 2022The End of the World/Satire
The perfect film for the Covid era. A devastatingly on the ball satire on the ineptitude of people’s response in the face of an extinction level threat to the Earth from an oncoming comet as government agencies tries to minimise the news
Nightmare Alley (2021)
Feb 12, 2022Fake Clairvoyant/Predestination
Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, Guillermo Del Toro’s remake of the 1947 film noir tale about a fake clairvoyant is an exquisite piece of mood and design
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)
Dec 17, 2022Living Puppet Boy/Stop-Motion Animation
Guillermo Del Toro offers up his dark, more adult take on the classic children’s story in this beautifully made stop-motion animated film. Winner of that year's Academy Award for Best Animated Film.
Borderlands (2024)
Sep 14, 2024Videogame Adaptation/Planetary Adventure
Eli Roth adapts the popular videogame and corrals a surprisingly high-profile cast in a knockabout planetary adventure. Alas, that met a very mixed reception and was widely regarded as a bad movie