MID YEAR MOVIE REPORT

It's time for a mid year review of what I've seen at the cinema so far in 2016. I have been able to attend once a week which has meant some good some bad and some indifferent.

The Revenant- A journey for the protagonists and the viewer, impressive stuff
Spotlight-The Year's best film?: can't say I agree but this investigative journalist movie is well crafted
Green Room- Slick and efficient. A concept well delivered
The Lobster-Lynchian to say the least, this is one movie that I would recommend to anyone who likes leaving the Cinema with more questions than answers
Room- Great performances from the small cast, Room is a movie that revels in the quiet moments
Louder Than Bombs-Enjoyable family drama that gets under the skin of family politics
Creed- does exactly what it says on the tin

Captain America : Civil War-Lean and efficient with a healthy dose of action and just plain entertainment.
X-Men : Apocalypse-Flabby and full of exposition: far too long
Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice-Affleck's Batman is good (and unfairly criticised) as is Gadot's Wonder Woman, however Cavill has as much screen presence as an Ikea sofa.
Deadpool- Fourth wall fun

Triple 9-Almost could have been a contender, but this heist movie has it's moments
Midnight Special-I expected more but this slow burn movie has plenty of good things about it
Money Monster- Chanelling Dog Day Afternoon, Jodie Foster directs with some nice twists but you sense there was a more complex movie somewhere
Eye In The Sky- War as video game but with moral decisions to be made
High Rise- Ben Wheatley has established himself as a great film maker but this time around there are too many missteps
The Nice Guys- Old School Buddy movie high jinx reminiscent of The Last Boy Scout

Hail, Caesar!- Didn't work for me. The Coen's failed to nail the screwball homage this time
Grimsby- Awful: a Holiday On The Buses for 2016.