Amy & Isabelle, by Elizabeth Strout

Small town America is beautifully evoked in Strout’s tale of a fraught mother-daughter relationship. Desperate for love, Amy is almost 16, shy and sullen with a burgeoning sexuality, on the cusp of beauty. Repressed and uptight Isabelle is a natural outsider who both loves and resents her daughter, reacting with fear to her painful transition to adulthood. The timeframe moves back and forth over several months of a sweltering summer, for no apparent purpose but to create artificial tension. The result is some confusion about exactly what is happening when. The period is also a little vague; some references place it around the 1970s, but it could be later Sympathy switches between mother and daughter as the story progresses; there are no black and white heroes and villains here. Even the repulsive grooming maths teacher elicits some understanding. The environment and climate are almost extra characters, with lives of their own that contribute to the narrative. In some ways what Amy and Isabelle go through is common to most adolescent rites of passage, but their own particular demons of past and present, secrets and lies, inform the love and loathing of their relationship. Elements of the town of Shirley Falls are hyper-real, which serves to highlight the very real relationships within it.

Captain Fantastic (2016) directed by Matt Ross

In an idyllic and remote rural location, Ben is raising his six kids aged from eight to 18 to be fit, smart, creative and self-sufficient. They are home schooled and have minimal experience of the outside world. It’s an extreme lifestyle and there are some signs of rebellion, which come to a head on a road trip to a family funeral. Mental illness, family conflict, adolescent angst and flying the nest are just a few of the themes explored and most are done well. Viggo Mortenson is wonderful as Ben and all the kids are great, but the youngest girl, Shree Crooks, and the oldest boy, George MacKay, especially stand out. The film is deeply sad, but also celebratory with many questions asked and lessons learned. It has its flaws but is ultimately both moving and enjoyable.

Jean Harley Was Here, by Heather Taylor Johnson

A tragic accident on her way to work leaves Jean Harley in a coma. Apparently based on a real story, Johnson uses poetic language in her examination of the effect of Jean’s illness and death on friends, family and random others. It is refreshing to read a book set in Adelaide, although this does allow locals to nitpick on any incorrect details. The story is told from multiple points of view, which is interesting to a point. The perspective of the man driving the vehicle that hit Jean is fascinating in the aftermath of the accident, but has little impact 11 months later. There is a curious lack of the voice of her closest friends until years later, while inclusion of the perspective of the dog is ludicrous. The story meanders in the second half and seems to be running out of steam as the years drift by, except for the thread following Jean’s husband and son. Fortunately Johnson draws the threads together nicely, in a way that explains some of the earlier digressions, to form a satisfying conclusion.

Peaky Blinders series 3 (ABC)

The softer side and the psycho side of arch gangster Tommy Shelby are both on show in this third incarnation of the post WWI Birmingham crime gang. It is the 1920s and Tommy has married his true love. For her and for the family’s future he is trying to take the business legit but he is again caught between a rock and a hard place. The early 20th century version of the dark state is making demands and threats on one side, with decadent and demanding White Russians adding extra spice. The mishandling of old rivalries is the other problem, sparking a tragedy from which Tommy may not recover. Sister Ada is back in the fold with a potential expansion of the family business to America. Brother Arthur has married a bible basher and finds himself conflicted between work and home. Aunt Polly is determined to enjoy the spoils of success, but she proves to be a hot mess who may just be the agent of Tommy’s downfall. Will family prevail? Cillian Murphy remains mesmerising as Tommy in a brutal and bloody six episodes. In a great ensemble cast there is no doubt he is the star of the show. Thank goodness there will be a season 4.

Zootopia (2016), Disney

Energetic bunny Judy Hopps is determined to overcome prejudice and the concerns of her carrot-farmer parents to become the first rabbit cop in Zootopia. Ambition achieved, she finds herself relegated to parking duties instead of fighting crime and making the world a better place. But someone is abducting mammal predators and Judy enlists the talents of scamming fox Nick Wilde to solve the mystery and bring peace back to Zootopia. The metropolis of Zootopia, where animals live (mostly) in harmony is wonderfully imagined. Ginifer Goodwin and Jason Bateman are just right as Judy and Nick, while Idris Elba makes a great buffalo police chief and Shakira is pop diva Gazelle, who sings the theme song Try Everything. Winner of the 2016 Oscar for best animated film, Zootopia is a colourful and entertaining romp with an exciting crime story and small notes of amusement along the way. It makes nice points about tolerance, inclusion and striving to do your best, even if you make mistakes.

The Fifth Letter, by Nicola Moriarty

Fluid, vivid writing moves this story along at a cracking pace, but no element of the plot is credible, starting with the set-up of the story being told to a priest in the confessional. As with so many books in recent years it needed a damned good edit, which would have picked up and fixed the incoherent timeline and may have sent it back for a rewrite to flesh out the thin characters. But the almighty dollar rules and presumably the publishers thought such a basic investment was unnecessary as the book would sell on name alone, never mind the quality. Heavily manufactured twists and turns do little to disguise who done what and by the end you barely care because it’s all so stupid.

Three Wishes, by Liane Moriarty

It can be problematic looking up the back catalogue of an author at the height of their success – expectations are almost certain to be unrealistically high. Three Wishes was Moriarty’s first published novel and inevitably fails to measure up to Big Little Lies. The bones of success are there and it’s clear that she was always good at depicting relationships, which ring very true, but a rather meandering storyline lacks direction. The story revolves around triplets – uptight perfectionist Lyn, brash rule-breaker Cat and daffy dreamer Gemma. To some extent all three are playing out their assigned roles and are trapped by them, especially Gemma and Lyn, who have secrets they keep from everyone. Short vignettes that give an outside view of the triplets over the years by independent observers punctuate the narrative. This intrusion of other viewpoints doesn’t quite work; it is often unnecessary, and sometimes creepy. It is a strength that Moriarty’s characters are less than perfect, making them more identifiable, but in Three Wishes the flaws are possibly taken a bit too far. While all three sisters engender huge sympathy they are not very likeable, especially Cat.

The Big Sick (2017), directed by Michael Showalter

Billing this film as a comedy sets it up for false expectations. While it is often wryly amusing, the storyline is more sad than funny despite being set in the world of stand-up comedy. It follows the story of how comedian Kumail Nanjiani got together with his wife Emily V Gordon and, as the couple wrote the screenplay, it does ring true, with warmth and humour informing the narrative. Playing himself, Nanjiani does a great job of depicting the difficulty of defying family expectations around career and relationships, especially when that family is Pakistani and Muslim. Zoe Kazan is perfect as Emily, her brand of quirky appeal making her seem just right, despite being in a coma for a good portion of the movie. Among a universally solid supporting cast Holly Hunter and Ray Romano add tragi-comic depth as Emily’s stricken parents, while Bo Burnham and Aidy Bryant help bring to life the world of struggling stand-up comics. So many issues are touched on lightly beneath the overarching story of love, illness and commitment, making this a fully fleshed film with some laughs along the way that is far more than just a comedy.

Frogkisser, by Garth Nix

Princess Anya is a bit over being the responsible sister, but someone has to save the kingdom from the evil sorcerer duke Rikard. Initially setting out to find the ingredients for a lip balm that enables recovery of people transformed into frogs, Anya finds her quest expanding beyond anything she could have imagined in her cosy library in the castle. Along the way she finds help from royal dogs and robbers, wizards, dwarfs and otters and hindrance from sorcerers, witches and weasels. Can she rescue her sister, save the kingdom and transform a growing number of frogs? And will her lips ever recover from all the kissing? In a delightfully fractured fairytale Nix creates a flawed but loveable team of heroes, led by a capable and admirable princess.

Equals (2016), directed by Drake Doremus

An excellent cast faces an uphill battle to achieve a coherent narrative from this slow and beautifully shot sci fi tale. In a futuristic society people are genetically modified to suppress emotions. It is never made entirely clear why, but presumably life runs smoother and more efficiently without them. Coupling and even touching is forbidden; individuals must serve conception duty. Every aspect of life is regulated and controlled; aberrations must be reported. Transgressors are considered diseased and are treated until the inevitable requirement for them to be put down. Suicide is encouraged. The genetic modification appears to be a dismal failure as those pesky emotions keep cropping up and suicides abound. Nicholas Hault and Kristen Stewart make a good fist of the star-crossed couple Silas and Nia, despite having to convey emotions almost entirely via his intense blue eyes and her intense green ones. Guy Pearce and Jacki Weaver provide solid support, but all battle with an inadequate and careless screenplay with giant plot holes. Hault and Stewart manage to make it moving nevertheless, extracting the maximum possible from thin material and looking lovely amid a gorgeous production design.