THE HANDMAID’S TALE – SEASON TWO (18)
auction website and have 24 hours to raise just over $27,000 to honour their outlandish bid.
Ralph raises funds as a meme star on the Buzzztube channel run by algorithm Yesss (Taraji P Henson), and Vanellope puts the pedal to the metal in the Grand Theft Auto-esque Slaughter Race, which is the digitised dominion of sassy petrol head Shank (Wonder Woman’s Gal Gadot).
Ralph Breaks The Internet warms the cockles of our hearts then breaks them in tiny pieces with a sob-inducing finale that nods to the 1980s arcade classic Donkey Kong. A wealth of visual gags demands a second viewing and a protracted interlude in the Oh My Disney! fan site, populated by a bevy of animated princesses and characters from the Marvel and Star Wars stables, is a self-referential hoot. Reilly and Silverman beautifully convey the central friendship through various trials and tribulations. “Me and the kid are like shoes and socks, peanut butter and bacon. One cannot exist without the other,” beams Ralph. We emerge from the cinema with similarly broad grins and tearglistened cheeks. ★★★★★
THE second series of this excellent dystopian drama based on Margaret Atwood’s best-selling novel continues to follow the living nightmare of handmaid Offred (Elisabeth Moss), one of the castes of women who are forced into servitude. In these instalments, Offred is pregnant and manages to escape from the clutches of Commander Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) and his wife Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski) with the help of the commander’s driver Nick Blaine (Max Minghella), who is also the father of her baby. But how long will she remain free?
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