Trumbo (15)
(Jay Roach, 2015, US) Bryan Cranston, Michael Stuhlbarg, Diane Lane. 124 mins
Putting memories of Walter White behind him, Cranston gets his teeth into the eloquent, dapper, chain-smoking screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who defied his Hollywood blacklisting by ghost-writing a string of 1950s hits, usually from his bathtub. There’s little curiosity about Trumbo’s communism here; it’s more of a self-congratulatory tribute to Tinseltown nobility, celebrity impersonations and all. But Cranston deserves his Oscar nod.
Dad’s Army (PG)
(Oliver Parker, 2016, UK) Toby Jones, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Bill Nighy. 100 mins
Like the original sitcom, this very British farce finds itself all kitted out but for no real purpose. There’s laughs to be had, though, as the old duffers get into a lather over German spies, D-Day plans and the arrival of Zeta-Jones’s glamorous reporter. And Toby Jones is a perfect Captain Mainwaring.
Rams (15)
(Grímur Hákonarson, 2015, Ice/Den/Nor/Pol) Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theodór Júlíusson. 91 mins
Another quintessentially Icelandic scenario: two lonely brothers love their prize sheep more than each other, until an outbreak of scrapie forces them into contact. Epic landscapes, efficient storytelling and some fine-looking livestock.
Janis: Little Girl Blue (15)
(Amy Berg, 2015, US) 104 mins
The queen of 1960s counterculture gets the bio-doc she deserves. Letters, testimonies and archive material build a detailed picture of the anguished personality behind that powerhouse voice.
Point Break (12A)
(Ericson Core, 2015, US/Ger/Chi) Edgar Ramírez, Luke Bracey, Ray Winstone. 114 mins
The extreme sports are suitably extreme, but this lacklustre remake only confirms the widely accepted belief that the cult Keanu-Swayze action thriller was beyond improvement.
Goosebumps (PG)
(Rob Letterman, 2015, US) Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush. 103 mins
RL Stine, author of bestselling kids’ monster books, is at the centre of this meta-fictional family ride, in which reatures from his books (werewolves, yeti, gnomes) escape to cause mayhem out in the real world.
Miss Hokusai (12A)
(Keiichi Hara, 2015, Jap) 90 mins
Beautifully detailed anime about the Japanese painter’s independent-minded daughter.
Taking Stock (15)
(Maeve Murphy, 2015, UK) Kelly Brook, Jay Brown, Lorna Brown. 75 mins
Channelling Bonnie Parker, unemployed Brook plans an amateur heist in this low-budget London caper.
Lee Scratch Perry’s Vision Of Paradise (NC)
(Volker Schaner, 2015, Ger/UK/Swi/Jam/Eth). 100 mins
A visit to the dub visionary’s personal planet in the form of a scrappily eccentric “fairytale documentary”.
Strangerland (NC)
(Kim Farrant, 2015, Aus/Ire) Nicole Kidman. 112 mins
Kidman leads an Outback thriller revolving around the disappearance of her kids.
Amazonia (NC)
(Thierry Ragobert, 2013, Fra/Bra) 83 mins
Adventure about a monkey stranded in the Amazon.
Out from Friday
Uzumasa Limelight A samurai actor confronts mortality. Out from Tue
Deadpool Ryan Reynolds’s Marvel superhero 2.0 (pictured). Out from Wed
Pride And Prejudice And Zombies Splattery take on Austen. Out from Thu
Zoolander 2 Ben Stiller returns to the catwalk.
A Bigger Splash Tilda Swinton and Ralph Fiennes in a sensual Italy-set drama.
Concussion Will Smith uncovers the real dangers of American football.
The Green Inferno Eli Roth’s Amazonian horror.
The Survivalist Post-apocalyptic thriller.
Jem And The Holograms A pop sensation learns the true meaning of sisterhood.
Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip The juvenile slapstick keeps on coming.
Welcome To Leith Trip to a plagued Dakota town.
Noble Irish heroine helps Vietnam’s orphans.
Oddball And The Penguins Feelgood about a penguin-saving dog.
I’ll See You In My Dreams Coming of old age drama.
Meru Climber doc.
Coming soon
In two weeks... Rebel Wilson explains How To Be Single… Another western ride for Kurt Russell in Bone Tomahawk…
In three weeks... Sacha Baron Cohen in spy spoof Grimsby… Chiwetel Ejiofor leads the remade Secret In Their Eyes…
In a month... The Coens pay homage to 1950s Hollywood in Hail, Caesar!… Gerard Butler picks up the pieces after London Has Fallen…
