Daniel Kaluuya is in electrifying form as a doomed Black Panther: BRIAN VINER reviews

Judas and the Black Messiah (12) Verdict: Stylish and compelling  Rating: Locked Down (15)  Verdict: Deserves a health warning   Rating: The inclusion of Daniel Kaluuya in this week’s Bafta nominations will come as no surprise to anyone who sees his electrifying performance in Judas And The Black Messiah. What does seem slightly odd is the category: … Read more

Beware Murphy’s Law: BRIAN VINER reviews comedy sequel Coming 2 America

Coming 2 America (12) Verdict: Hit-and-miss sequel Rating: Moxie (12) Verdict: Cliched but smart Rating: At what point does an overdue sequel become an ill-starred sequel? It doesn’t seem to be simply a matter of years. More than half a century after the original, Mary Poppins Returns (2018) yielded box-office numbers to please everyone at … Read more

These Dahls in despair are too darned wholesome: BRIAN VINER reviews To Olivia 

To Olivia (PG) Verdict: Watchable, but flawed Rating: I Care A Lot (16+)  Verdict: Black-as-pitch comedy Rating: Forty years ago, a made-for-TV film called The Patricia Neal Story chronicled the aftermath of a series of devastating strokes suffered by the Oscar-winning American actress in 1965, and the uncompromising way she was cared for by her husband, author … Read more

Tom Hanks makes his western debut: BRIAN VINER reviews News Of The World 

News of the World (12A) Verdict: Hanks for the memory  Rating: Malcolm & Marie (15) Verdict: Almost unendurable  Rating: Director Paul Greengrass has made some terrific feature films about dark real-life events, such as United 93, Bloody Sunday, 22 July and, for television, The Murder Of Stephen Lawrence. So a British audience might assume that … Read more

From Slumdog to a big cat that roars: BRIAN VINER reviews The White Tiger 

The White Tiger (15) Verdict: Roaringly enjoyable adaptation Rating: Baby Done (15) Verdict: Pre-Natal comedy  Rating: Consider the calibre of films that have been adapted from Booker or Man Booker Prize-winning novels: Schindler’s List, The English Patient, The Remains Of The Day and Life Of Pi were all festooned with awards of their own, and … Read more

A shattering tour de force that captures a mother’s agony: BRIAN VINER reviews Pieces Of A Woman 

Pieces Of A Woman (15) Rating: Verdict: Harrowing but compelling Yellow Rose (12) Rating: Verdict: Stand by your ma The first day of January always feels to me more personal than other days — a day for introspection and making private resolutions (just as January 8 or thereabouts is usually about breaking them). So forgive me … Read more

It’s grandaddy versus hillbilly as Kevin Costner goes on the warpath: BRIAN VINER reviews Let Him Go

Let Him Go (15) Verdict: Very watchable curiosity  Rating: Come Away (PG) Verdict: Misbegotten whimsy  Rating: One Night In Miami Verdict: No knockout  Rating: For much of this year, the pandemic has cruelly kept grandparents away from their grandchildren. Well, Let Him Go is set in the early Sixties and has nothing to do with … Read more