The Magic Faraway Tree (2025), directed by Ben Gregor

The beloved Enid Blyton tale has been tastefully updated for this film that features a stellar cast and appealing children. Polly quits her job as an industrial designer on ethical grounds and she and house husband Tim uproot their three city kids and move to the country to pursue an old dream. No surprises that the kids are not impressed, especially moody teen Beth. But the youngest, Frannie, discovers magic in the woods, literally finds her voice and leads her siblings to accept and even embrace their new life in the natural world. The best children’s films operate on several levels to provide entertainment for all ages. This is not that film, with messages that are worthy and a little heavy-handed. Claire Foy and Andrew Garfield are lovely as the parents , the kids are great and the supporting cast includes Nicola Coughlan, Jennifer Saunders and a string of well-known actors, such as Rebecca Ferguson, Lenny Henry and Judi Dench, in tiny roles. There are a few laughs, the cinematography is beautiful and the magical lands at the top of the tree are brought to life well for the most part in a sweet, but ultimately forgettable film.

Ghostbusters, (2016) directed by Paul Feig

So often a film with a good premise and a strong cast is let down by the script. There was a lot of hoo-ha and fanboy outrage about this all-female remake of the original, so it’s sad to be unable to completely dismiss it because of a script that is lacking in coherence and wit. The special effects are great and sometimes genuinely scary. The four leads – Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones - work well as an ensemble, with McKinnon especially good. Chris Hemsworth as their sidekick is suitably attractive and there are some nice inversions of the stereotype, but he has to work too hard. The problem is partly one of expectations – you are waiting for four such strong comedians to be funnier. But they are let down by the dialog, some of which is truly lame. It is a highlight to see cameos from all the major players of the original and overall the film is enjoyable, it just could have been better.

That Sugar Film (2015), directed by Damon Gameau

Despite having a name that sounds like something delicious to eat, Damon Gameau has some important points to make about the devastating health effects of consuming too much sugar and how big business had a vested interest in hiding this fact. Even if you think you are across nutrition, this documentary offers some eye-opening facts that justify the public health crusades of campaigners like Jamie Oliver. It tries a bit too hard to mitigate the dull facts with lame overkill. It really didn’t need Stephen Fry declaiming in rhyming couplets to get the message across, or superhero outfits. Gameau demonstrates the effect of an average daily intake of 40 teaspoons of sugar over two months on his own body. The tactic is derivative but effective, as you see the rapid deterioration of his health. Despite the silly bells and whistles, this is a serious film that is worth taking seriously.

Queen of the Desert, (2015) directed by Werner Herzog

Filmed on location in Morocco, Jordan and England, the cinematography is outstandingly beautiful, with sharp contrast between the isolation of the Arabian desert, the green of England and the gracious architecture of the various cities. The story of English explorer and archaeologist Gertrude Bell’s independent travels through what became Iraq, Jordan, and Syria, in the early 20th century is fascinating and worthy of a much better film than this. At its best, the dialogue is expository and didactic, more suited to a documentary than a drama. At its worst, it is stilted and laughable. The film is extremely fuzzy with its timeline, causing confusion and mucking around with history. Nicole Kidman’s performance is patchy; she is more convincing as the increasingly confident desert traveller, but is undermined by the film’s insistence on the capable Bell being portrayed as a kind of femme fatale, which apparently requires lots of panting and heavy breathing to express deep emotion. Some of the casting is odd. James Franco should be romantic as Bell’s first love, Cadogan, but he comes across as a bit oily and creepy. Robert Pattinson is better than expected as TE Lawrence, and he and Kidman work well together. Damian Lewis is as solid as ever as Bell’s later love. The actor who plays Winston Churchill can’t suppress his cockney accent, which just sounds stupid. A few genuinely laugh-out-loud moments are scattered through the film, but the humour sits a little oddly among all the desert intensity. The costuming is as glorious as the scenery, but it all adds up to a film that looks good but is not much more than this.