★★
Twerking doves. So, that’s what the greatest story ever told was missing! Who knew? Carlos Kotkin and Simon Moore apparently. It’s their script, at any rate, that Timothy Reckart directs in The Star: an occasionally sweet, intermittently amusing, but ultimately dim take on the Nativity tale, which places the animals front and centre. ‘Revisionist’ doesn’t cover it, stick with the school plays.
★★★★★
What a joy it is to be alive and live to see another exceptional cinematic outing for Paddington Bear. Painted in pastel bright colouring, and overflowing with the heartfelt charm of its predecessor, Paddington 2 is a pure delight. Here are boundless layers of family fun, each one lavishly spread with the finest homemade marmalade.
★★★
The journey to Justice League has been a gruelling one. Those who complained that Batman v Superman required bums of steal to experience from start to finish, know nothing of endurance the film has had to muster, having first entered production back in 2007. A decade of ‘development Gotham City’ plus one mixed bag of preluding offerings later, and the final product…isn’t bad. No, it’s not great – far too messy, a tad soulless – but it has got plenty of promise. There’s a start.
The Film Blog 