Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Rating: ★★★½
Jul 5, 2004Comic-Book Superhero
Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire get it just right in the second entry in their trilogy of Spider-Man films. The writing team deliver a fantastic Soul of the Superhero script while Raimi delivers some superheroic action sequences that are about as exciting as it is possible to get (*)

The Da Vinci Code (2006)

The Da Vinci Code (2006)
Rating: ★★
Jun 21, 2006Secret History of Christianity/Historical Conspiracy
Ron Howard directed film version of Dan Brown's phenomenally best-selling book. The book is historical nonsense woven into a fancifully absurd conspiracy theory (that people at the time managed to take seriously); Howard does no more than offer an illustrated version of the book

The Lodger (2009)

The Lodger (2009)
Rating: ★★
Dec 13, 2010Modern-Day Jack the Ripper Killings
Fourth version of the classic tale, originally filmed by Alfred Hitchcock, about a family who believe their boarder might be Jack the Ripper. This updates the setting to present-day and abandons most of the story, winding it in a mind-bending pretzel of identity speculations

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)
Rating: ★★
May 28, 2010Videogame Adaptation/Arabian Nights Adventure
Adaptation of the popular videogame that ventures into Arabian Nights adventure, this was a box-office flop. It swashbuckles entertainingly but Jake Gyllenhaal feels badly miscast as a buffed adventure hero

Monsters University (2013)

Monsters University (2013)
Rating: ★★
Jun 21, 2013Pixar Animation/Monsters in the Closet
Pixar's creative decline has been the point they started making these sequels to their hits. This is a disappointing prequel to Monsters, Inc. that largely recycles the cliches of the Revenge of the Nerds films and seems lacking in any of the wacky humour or moments of cuteness we expect of a Pixar film

Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)

Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)
Rating: ★★★
May 12, 2019Disney Animation/Videogame Characters Venture Onto the Internet
I had a lot of liking for Disney's Wreck-It Ralph, a depiction of the inside of a videogame from the viewpoint of the characters. This expands the concept to the internet. Despite being the ultimate product placement film, this also rather appealingly shows Disney poking fun at themselves

Frozen II (2019)

Frozen II (2019)
Rating:
Feb 22, 2020Disney Animation
Frozen was the most successful animated film of all time. It also felt the most formulaic and least inspired Disney film of the 2000s. As part of Disney's new business policy of wringing all they can out of everything that bears their name, this is a sequel.