Big guns come out for holiday family viewing
IF IT’S just too cold outside, then the cinema is a great way to keep the kids entertained for the remaining few days of these school holidays.
Studios always save some of their big guns for when families have the time to see an extra movie or two, and there’s plenty on offer to keep the little ones through to the teenagers entertained.
Here is your school holiday movie guide:
Despicable Me 3
Gru meets his long-lost charming, cheerful, and more successful twin brother Dru who wants to team up with him for one last criminal heist.
Like Toy Story and Shrek, Despicable Me is a film franchise that keeps getting better with age. Illumination’s story about a villain-turned-good-guy navigating the pitfalls of a career change, fatherhood and romance manages to entertain young and old alike.
The third instalment continues the formula and settling in to watch it in the cinema is like cuddling up with a comfy blanket.
You know what you’re going to get.
Stars: Kristen Wiig, Jenny Slate, Steve Carell.
Rating: PG In cinemas: Now Verdict: 4 stars
Wonder Woman
Before she was Wonder Woman she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained warrior. When a pilot crashes and tells of conflict in the outside world, she leaves home to fight a war to end all wars and discovers her full powers and true destiny.
With so much at stake, thank Zeus that Wonder Woman didn’t fall into the same trap as its DC Extended Universe predecessors.
Instead of taking the dull, dark and dreary path laid out before it, Wonder Woman took a full run down the byroad to somewhere warm, funny and properly entertaining.
Stars: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright. Rating: M
In cinemas: Now Verdict: 3.5 stars Cars 3 Lightning McQueen sets out to prove to a new generation of racers that he’s still the best race car in the world.
In his struggles to get back into pole position, McQueen meets a group of characters who provide a link to Lightning’s late coach, mentor and friend, Doc Hudson.
Perhaps the content is a bit over the heads of those younger than eight but the
brilliant animation and entertaining elements of the movie are worth watching.
Stars: Owen Wilson, Cristela Alonzo, Armie Hammer.
Rating: G
In cinemas: Now Verdict: 3 stars
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul
Greg convinces his family to take a road trip to attend his great grandmother’s 90th birthday as a cover for what he really wants: to attend a nearby gamer convention.
Things do not go according to plan. The franchise may have an all-new cast but, unfortunately, it has retained the same juvenile humour.
Stars: Alicia Silverstone, Tom Everett Scott, Alexa Blair Robertson. Rating: PG
In cinemas: Now Verdict: 2.5 stars
Transformers: The Last Knight
Humans are at war with the Transformers, and Optimus Prime is gone.
The key to saving the future lies buried in the secrets of the past and the hidden history of Transformers on Earth.
Now, it’s up to the unlikely alliance of Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg), Bumblebee, an English Lord (Anthony Hopkins) and an Oxford professor (Laura Haddock) to save the world.
Director/producer Michael Bay’s last hoorah is the sci-fi equivalent of an all-you-can-eat banquet dinner. The flavours sometimes clash, but there’s no doubting its value for money
Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Gemma Chan, Anthony Hopkins.
Rating: M
In cinemas: Now Verdict: 2.5 stars
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Peter Parker tries to balance life in high school with his career as the web-slinging superhero Spider-Man.
If his scene-stealing introduction in Captain America: Civil War is anything to go by, this could be the Spider-Man reboot fans have been waiting for.
Stars: Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr, Marisa Tomei.
In cinemas: Today
This could be the Spider-Man reboot fans have been waiting for.