The Cynical Cinephiles

Originating in earnest back in 2008 with Iron Man, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has so far spanned across over a decade and produced 20 action-packed instalments, all featuring a male character at the forefront. For the franchise's 21st outing, the character of Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel takes centre stage, making it Marvel's first female-led superhero film. Kree warrior Captain Marvel (Larson) finds herself caught in the crossfire of an intergalactic battle between her people and the Skulls, other extraterrestrial beings. After crash-landing on Earth during an escape mission, Danvers memories of her life there come flooding back and with the help of Nick Fury (Jackson), she reassembles her identity and hones her powers to end the war between the Kree and the Skulls. Akin to other stand-alone MCU entries in many ways, Captain Marvel differs from the likes of origin stories  Iron Man, Captain America: The First Avenger and Doctor Strange as our titular character is al...

Director: Stephen Merchant Cast: Florence Pugh, Jack Lowden, Nick frost, Lena Headey, Vince Vaughn, Dwayne Johnson Co-creator of The Office and Hello Ladies Stephen Merchant has demonstrated time and time again that he can mine character-based comedy out of any scenario and he does so again with Fighting with My Family, the true life story about WWE favourite Paige's rise to fame and super stardom. Siblings Raya/Paige (Pugh) and Zak (Lowden) are born into a family of ardent wrestling fans and begin training in the sport at a young age. Zak and Paige are invited to try out for the WWE but after only Paige earns a spot on the competitive training program, she must leave behind everything she knows in Norwich and head to America where she is pushed to her limits. Writer-director Stephen Merchant abides by all of the screenwriting rules, with each act and sequence hitting the appropriate beats. This culminates in a foreseeable experience where you can see the outcome of event...

Director: Sean Anders Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne, Isabela Moner, Margo Martindale, Julie Hagerty, Octavia Spencer, Tig Notaro From the same team that brought you Daddy's Home and its sequel Daddy's Home 2 comes Instant Family ; the themes of dysfunctional families and the hazards of parenting run through all of Anders' aforementioned work but Instant Family draws from the director's own experiences of fostering children in this cloying and comedic flick. Married couple Pete (Wahlberg) and Ellie (Byrne) Wagner start to consider adopting a child, prompted by snide comments made by Ellie's family. After attending an adoption fair, they find themselves taken with headstrong teenager Lizzie (Moner) and choose to foster her and her two younger siblings, changing the couple's lives in all of the best and most chaotic ways. Having found success in home renovation and cultivated a comfortable lifestyle, Pete and Ellie are inspired by the realms of children o...