★★★★★
There have been so many cinematic depictions of war-weary London, May 1940, that one might be forgiven for momentarily believing that they were actually there in the flesh rather than the stalls. Few of these, however, have come as close to conveying the contemporary emotional turmoil as Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour. At the beating heart is Gary Oldman and an all-time great performance.
★★★★
Three films in and nostalgia just won’t cut it anymore for third wave StarWars. If The Force Awakens marked a celebration of the past, Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi harks a new era of unpredictability and exploration in a galaxy far far away. Not all is successful here but for the most part the film is one of derring do and increasingly spectacular set pieces.
★★★
We always knew it wasn’t over. Back in 1995, Joe Johnston’s Jumanji, starring the late-great Robin Williams, concluded on a beach in France with the deadly, titular board game washed up and still beating its drums. Twenty-two years later and they’re still banging away, in Jake Kasdan’s flawed but fun sequel.
The Film Blog 