60/ MR HOLMES
Much praised, this Sherlock Holmes fan expected to love this effort, but ended up being rather disappointed by an overly depressing and simplistic film which could pretty much have been about anybody and ended up not making much sense. The flashback scenes did show signs of a fascinating movie much more worthy of the great man, and Ian McKellen’s meticulous performance was undoubtedly one of the years very best. I do have the feeling that this will improve with another viewing. 6.5/10
59/ SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD 
Having not seen even a minute of the TV series, I went into Spooks: The Greater Good not knowing what on earth to expect. I also didn’t expect to understand anything, though luckily the film really surprised me on that score. The result was a well plotted, pacy, if minor and forgettable spy thriller that still felt like it belonged on the small screen, and, though fans will disagree, Kit Harington seemed to me to be rather lacking in charisma. 6.5/10
58/ RETURN TO SENDER
Rather better I feel than the majority of the reviews may suggest, this odd variation on the old rape/revenge formula never really fulfilled its potential and refused to explain why its two main characters do much of what they do, while at times seeming to be trying to induce sympathy for its rapist, but had some very effectively conveyed scenes, did feel brave enough to go to some interestingly dark places, and had a superb performance from Rosamund Pike. 6.5/10
57/ THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT
I haven’t read the books, but I find these Divergent films rather fustrating. They seem to forever be on the verge of becoming really intriguing, intelligent and exciting, but chicken out at the last hurdle and remain a bit bland and don’t seem to be trying very hard while failing to explain alot of necessary things which for me would have made sense of the world in which they take place. This one was a marked improvement on the first film, and I remain curious as to how things will unfold. 6.5/10
56/ POLTERGEIST
This really could have been a whole lot worse, and it did muster a few genuine scares and good ideas amidst all the rehashing, but for the most part it didn’t seem to be trying very hard to match the wonder and fear of the original, let alone top it. Some decent performances helped a lot, and taken on its own it was a solid jump scare fest, but too many horror films these days seem to be trying to do little else. Still, it was considerably better than Poltergeist 3. 6.5/10
55/ LEGEND
This second cinematic go at the Kray twins actually had less depth than the first, and was rather unbalanced by Tom Hardy’s comical performance as Reggie, the actor perhaps going too far to distinguish him from Ronnie. The attempt at a British Goodfellas seemed to glamourise the gangster life style too, though many films of this genre can also be accused of that, and Legend remained fascinating and entertaining for the most part, really evoking the feel of the times and providing some powerful moments. 6.5/10
54/ TOMORROWLAND: A WORLD BEYOND
The sort of film you want to really like in an ocean of remakes and rehashes, Tomorrowland: A World Beyond had a very pleasing sincerity and positivity about it, and occasionally did provide the right sense of elation and was even genuinely inspiring in places, but its poorly structured, progressively silllier script [partly by Damon Lindelof, no surprises there] badly needed work and there was a distinct lack of imagination in the future scenes. 6.5/10
53/ BROOKLYN
This was a very pleasant watch, especially with its terrific 50’s look, and it’s one of those films that you can’t really actively dislike, but it never really went anywhere and seemed to chicken out of anything resembling dramatic conflict, while I find it a bit of a shame that, even though she’s great in it, the brilliant Saoirse Ronan has done far more interesting and difficult roles which I feel were far more worthy of widespread praise and recognition. 6.5/10
52/ VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN
Despite making some serious mistakes which undermined its effectiveness, such as making Igor ‘normal’ looking fifteen minutes into the movie, this attempt at a ‘bromance’ version of the oft-told tale was reasonably enjoyable and just about justified its existence. The set design was often stunning when it wasn’t being chewed by James McAvoy, and the Monster, when he was finally brought to life, ranked as one of the best ever in terms of look. 6.5/10
51/ SINISTER 2
I wasn’t really a fan of Sinister truth be told – it was goodish but could have been so much better considering its premise. This sequel was sillier and more over the top as it threatened at times to become a Saw movie, but was faster, nastier and more frightening, though the latter more so with its human villainy than its supernatural threat, which diminished in effectiveness as the film wore on. Overall, an okay sequel that just about did its job. 6.5/10
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