The Kid Who Would Be King reviewed, plus Gráinne Humphreys selects some VMDIFF hidden treasures

★★★ Dir: Joe Cornish. Starring: Rebecca Ferguson, Patrick Stewart. PG 120m

Following his success with Attack The Block, the 2011 movie that showcased the talents of young John Boyega and possibly encouraged the Doctor Who producers to look closely at Jodie Whittaker, writerdirector Joe Cornish has returned with his sophomore effort. Boasting a huge budget and a grand theme, The Kid Who Would Be King has much in common with the first film, notably the central premise of a bunch of London kids banding together to fight off a seemingly undefeatable enemy. In this variation of the Arthurian legend, the enemies in question are demonic knights summoned by malevolent Morgana (Ferguson) to defeat the young boy Arthur (Louis Ashbourne Serkis), who has recently pulled that sword from that stone.

While it does boast strong performances, notably those of young Serkis (son of Andy) and Angus Imrie (son of Celia) as an impish young Merlin; and while it does offer some strong visuals, there is something underwhelming about the whole story. For all of their flaming swords, the knights offer no peril to our young protagonists and the emotional storyline involving the boy and his mother (Denise Gough) is not given enough space to flourish. Meanwhile, the always excellent Rebecca Ferguson is under-used and the film is a bit too long. You suspect that Cornish was hoping for a Goonies vibe with this one; it has neither the danger nor the humour to really pull it off.