Five star - Latest Top Rated Film Reviews from the Guardian

Hamnet review – Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley beguile and captivate in audacious Shakespearean tragedy
Chloé Zhao’s film version of Maggie O’Farrell’s myth-making novel powerfully reimagines the agonising loss of a child as the source of Hamlet’s grand stage drama - Peter Bradshaw
Marty Supreme review – Timothée Chalamet a smash in spectacular screwball ping-pong nightmare
Following every dizzying spin of Chalamet’s table tennis hustler, Josh Safdie’s whip-crack comedy serves sensational shots – and a smart return by Gwyneth Paltrow - Peter Bradshaw
The Devil’s Backbone review – rich, rousing ghost story is early gothic gem from Guillermo del Toro
Executed with trademark technical flair and empathy, this part-horror, part-fairytale set in a haunted orphanage from 2001 is one of the director’s best - Steve Rose
Light Needs review – a blooming lovely meditation on plants and their people
Houseplants appear to make conversation and yearn for lost friends in a witty yet luminous documentary from Jesse McLean - Leslie Felperin
Sunset Boulevard review – Hollywood never looked more glorious or more tragic
Gloria Swanson is extraordinary as faded film-star Norma Desmond in Billy Wilder’s cameo-packed self-referential masterpiece about tinseltown ghosts and delusions - Peter Bradshaw
Paddington: The Musical review – they’ve looked after this bear quite splendiferously
State-of-the-art animatronics, imaginative staging, fabulous performances and some marvellous songs about marmalade make for an evening that will fill you with joy and melt your heart - Arifa Akbar
The Ice Tower review – Marion Cotillard focus of obsession and idolisation in death-wish fairytale
Cotillard plays a movie actor starring in a production of The Snow Queen in Lucile Hadžihalilović’s unwholesome story of yearning - Peter Bradshaw
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple review – Ralph Fiennes is phenomenal in best chapter yet of zombie horror
A murderous Clockwork-Orangey gang take on the zombies in this gruesome and energised fourquel. It’s the finest of the 28 franchise by a blood-curdling mile - Peter Bradshaw
Escape review – notorious Japanese revolutionary tells story of country’s most wanted criminal
Director Masao Adachi – formerly of the Japanese Red Army – on the infamous Satoshi Kirishima, who went on the run in 1975 after a series of corporate bombings - Peter Bradshaw
High Noon review – Billy Crudup brings classic Hollywood western back with a bang
Crudup and Denise Gough lead a tense adaptation that turns the film into a debate play whose McCarthy-era roots resonate powerfully today - Arifa Akbar
Primate review – pet chimp gone wild makes for giddy, gory good time
There’s a great deal of unpretentious B-movie fun to be had in this brief, brutal and slickly made creature feature - Benjamin Lee
Labyrinth review – Jim Henson and David Bowie make beguiling magic in charmingly eccentric 80s classic
Jennifer Connelly plays a teenager having whimsical Alice in Wonderland-ish adventures in this 1986 family fantasy - Peter Bradshaw
Song Sung Blue review – Neil Diamond tribute act gets sweet treat of movie thanks to Jackman and Hudson
Film that follows a Milwaukee married couple as they rise to fame with a real-life band called Lightning and Thunder is undeniably entertaining - Peter Bradshaw
The Housemaid review – Sydney Sweeney takes the job from hell in outrageous suspense thriller
Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar co-star as Sweeney’s secretive bosses in an upstate New York mansion, and director Paul Feig ramps up the sexual tension with evident gusto - Peter Bradshaw
Paranormal Activity review – this fright night leaves you spellbound and spooked
With expert direction and eye-catching stagecraft, the tension is ramped up in a new play inspired by the film franchise - Kate Wyver
Silent Sherlock: Three Classic Cases review – on the hunt with Holmes in restored 1920s mysteries
From stealing a photo for the King of Bohemia to battling the Napoleon of crime on a clifftop, Holmes is witty and watchable in these early Conan Doyle-approved dramas - Peter Bradshaw
The Tale of Silyan review – farmer adopts stork in delightfully cockle-warming mud-caked folk tale
This film set in North Macedonia follows a farming family trying to survive in a cockle-warming story - Leslie Felperin
It Was Just an Accident review – Jafar Panahi takes us on a nightmare trip into a land of bribes and brutality
An unfortunate encounter with a dog sets off a chain of surreal, grotesque events that expose the corruption and tyranny at the heart of Iran - Peter Bradshaw
Cover-Up review – atrocity exposer Seymour Hersh, journalist legend, gets a moment in the spotlight
Hersh’s record on uncovering the big stories, from My Lai to Abu Ghraib, speaks for itself. This documentary watches him at work: dogged, nonconformist and combative - Peter Bradshaw
Life in One Chord review – the Dunedin sound through the eyes of a music maverick
Based on a memoir by Straitjacket Fits frontman Shayne Carter, this documentary maps out the New Zealand town that birthed an indie movement - Andrew Stafford
Prime Minister review – portrait of Jacinda Ardern shows a fully human being in charge for once
Documentary about New Zealand’s former leader records a shrewd but likable premier who did without the usual politician’s defences - Peter Bradshaw
Dreamers review – deep sense of empathy powers emotionally vivid refugees’ drama
A traumatised Nigerian woman seeking asylum in Britain meets a kindred spirit in Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor’s evocative tale - Leslie Felperin
I Only Rest in the Storm review – beguiling postcolonial blues in Guinea-Bissau
A disaffected Portuguese NGO worker dallies with a drag queen as he wrestles with white man’s privilege in Pedro Pinho’s intelligent drama - Phil Hoad
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery review – Josh O’Connor excels in another deadpan delight
Daniel Craig is joined by a sparkling array of talent including O’Connor, Glenn Close and Josh Brolin in this latest murder mystery with a religious undercurrent - Peter Bradshaw
The Saragossa Manuscript review – cult Polish period-costume comedy is outrageous head-spinner
Wojciech Has’s slice of 1960s surrealism is set in 18th-century Spain, as an officer careens through farcical encounters and erotic episodes in a wild ride that could be a series of Monty Python sketches - Peter Bradshaw
Testimony review – a devastating exposé of the Irish church’s brutal Magdalene laundries
A searing documentary on the laundries sees a determined young human rights lawyer join survivors and campaigners in a fight for truth and accountability - Cath Clarke
Sisu: Road to Revenge review – Finnish hero takes on a Red Army butcher in terrific sequel
Punchy, old-school stunt work, inventive baddie-splattering and a simple plot as our grizzled Finish prospector finds a new foe in his Soviet-occupied homeland - Mike McCahill
Wicked: For Good review – Cynthia Erivo sweeps the field in explosive second chunk of Oz prequel
Bringing her black-belt screen presence to the role of Elphaba, Erivo leads a fine cast in a zingily scored conclusion to the hit origin story - Peter Bradshaw
Bone Lake review – holiday rental house of horror is fun for everyone
You don’t need to be a fright flick aficionado to enjoy this smart and witty tale of a romantic weekend break going gruesomely wrong - Catherine Bray
Fiume o Morte! review – darkly comic reconstruction of D’Annunzio’s Yugoslavian coup
Igor Bezinović uses local residents of what is now Rijeka in Croatia to re-stage the vainglorious Italian protofascist’s ragtag takeover of the Adriatic port city - Peter Bradshaw
The Rip review – Ben Affleck and Matt Damon tear through flashy Netflix bro thriller
The longtime friends and colleagues add weight to Joe Carnahan’s enjoyably boisterous Friday night crowdpleaser - Benjamin Lee
Clickbait review – gripping drama about the human cost of moderating the internet
A social media content moderator becomes obsessed with a violent video in this restrained, unsettling workplace thriller starring Lili Reinhart - Catherine Bray
Bulk review – Ben Wheatley’s quirky sci-fi brings small-budget charm to big questions
Wheatley’s engaging tale sends Sam Riley’s tough-guy reporter to the home of a reclusive oligarch who has invented a ‘Brain Collider’ - Peter Bradshaw
The Knife review – audaciously taut film about police encounter is intense drama of mutual suspicion
A crime committed in the home of a regular black American family results in paranoia on all sides in this 81-minute film from Nnamdi Asomugha - Leslie Felperin
State of Statelessness review – Dalai Lama presides over intimate dramas about Tibetans’ life of exile
Tibetan directors, who all live outside Tibet, deliver a quartet of films that explore the pain of separation and migration - Cath Clarke
Guián review – celebration of multicultural identity through a Chinese grandmother in Costa Rica
Director Nicole Chi Amén embarks on a journey to learn more about her own mixed cultural heritage after the death of her Guangdong-born grandma - Phuong Le
Becoming Victoria Wood review – intimate and hilarious portrait of the trailblazing standup
Featuring Wood, her famous sidekicks Julie Walters and Celia Imrie and other female standups, this documentary is tender, moving and an absolute hoot - Cath Clarke
Dreams Travel With the Wind review – communing with the spirits to preserve Indigenous culture in Colombia
This intensely personal film follows Colombian director Inti Jacanamijoy’s grandfather to the ancestral lands of the Wayuu people - Phuong Le
We Bury the Dead review – Daisy Ridley tackles the undead in solid zombie twist
Star Wars alum gives an impressively modest performance in this slightly smarter-than-average survival tale - Benjamin Lee
I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not review – abundant talent showcased in profile of SNL’s champion insult comic
Archive material shows Chase’s abilities but the times have changed around the self-aggrandising actor and comedian – and not always to his benefit - Leslie Felperin
Menus-Plaisirs: Les Troisgros review – Frederick Wiseman’s mammoth feast for the eyes
Over four hours, cinema-verite demigod Wiseman takes a gastronomic tour through the minutiae of running a triple-starred Michelin restaurant - Phil Hoad
A French Youth review – bullfighters grapple with the horns of valour and acceptance
Jérémie Battaglia’s captivating documentary follows two north African raseteurs battling bulls and systemic racism in southern France - Phuong Le
The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants review – swashbuckling, snicker-inducing silliness
With a turn by Mark Hamill and a saltily suggestive catchphrase for Patrick, the fourth SpongeBob film shows that anything can still happen in Bikini Bottom - Mike McCahill
Bowie: The Final Act review – moving and enjoyable tribute to music legend’s last stand
Singer’s final decades can’t really be called his creative golden years but there are touching contributions from his collaborators - Steve Rose
Anaconda review – Jack Black and Paul Rudd charm in unusual meta-comedy remake
The 1997 creature feature gets a self-referential redo that works best when it allows its two stars to lean into silliness - Jesse Hassenger
Hong Kong Mixtape review – dissident artists keep hope alive in the face of China’s crackdown
San San F Young’s passionate documentary records a vibrant creative scene that continues to resist Beijing’s repression - Phuong Le
The Great Flood review – Korean apocalypse movie swerves into sinister sci-fi territory
The storytelling is brittle, but there is still enjoyment to be had from this story of a mother and child and rescue from a catastrophic flood in Seoul - Phil Hoad
Merv review – a dog steals the show in Amazon’s by-the-book Christmas romcom
Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel co-parent a depressed dog in a serviceable attempt to appeal to animal lovers during the festive period - Adrian Horton
Christmas, Again review – laidback tale of a forlorn Christmas tree seller has authentic charm
Charles Poekel’s directorial debut has taken a decade to reach the UK, but its indie take on seasonal cinema brings low-key warmth - Cath Clarke
Preparation for the Next Life review – deeply felt story of love among the marginalised in New York
Bing Liu’s debut feature is an unflinching portrait of an undocumented Uyghur immigrant and a traumatised US veteran whose fragile connection is strained by their pasts - Peter Bradshaw
Food Delivery: Fresh from the West Philippine Sea review – gripping trip along supply lines in China standoff
A gripping film captures the fraught contests, lonely outposts and human toll of the Philippines’ struggle to assert sovereignty against China - Leslie Felperin
Animalia review – megaflood strikes in haunting, eerie debut about liberation and the unknown
A pregnant woman’s journey becomes a surreal exploration of class, gender and spiritual transformation in Sofia Alaoui’s striking debut - Cath Clarke
Baby review – an astute portrait of queer Brazilian hustlers lost in the system
Abandoned by his parents and fresh out of juvenile prison, the wide-eyed Wellington meets a charismatic hustler on the restless streets of São Paulo - Phuong Le
Who, If Not Us? The Fight for Democracy in Belarus review – activists display their defiance
Collateral comedy spins out from underneath the repression and violence charted in this sobering documentary that follows three indefatigable women - Phil Hoad
Fackham Hall review – Downton Abbey spoof is fast, funny and throwaway
Period drama parody has some decent and often smart gags and benefits from a game cast including Damian Lewis and Thomasin McKenzie - Adrian Horton
Magazine Dreams review – powerful bodybuilding drama dogged by star Jonathan Majors’ assault conviction
The actor was convicted in 2023 leaving this a film maudit, and though he is convincing, it only draws uncomfortable parallels with his own life - Peter Bradshaw
Folktales review – taking on tyranny of social media as teens learn to live like hunter-gatherers
In this documentary, high schoolers camp out in subzero temperatures, making their own fires and driving sledges in the wild - Peter Bradshaw
Son of the Soil review – bone-crunching Lagos revenge thriller with bruising swagger
Razaaq Adoti writes and stars in this scrappy gangland action romp, mixing Nollywood energy with bloody set pieces and a dash of 80s-style grit - Phil Hoad
Onlookers review – snapshots of a south-east Asian country shaped by tourism
Through static compositions and observational detail, the documentary explores how Laos’s visitors and residents inhabit the same spaces in very different ways - Phuong Le
Jingle Bell Heist review – Netflix comedy is slight cut above standard festive filler
A game cast and some decent twists help to elevate this passably entertaining London-set Christmas offering about a department store robbery - Benjamin Lee
Rhino review – Tom Hardy channels David Attenborough in mission to save Kenya’s rhinos
The actor is a slightly distracting narrator in this documentary about a local ranger’s efforts to protect a group of rhinos from poachers – and from killing each other - Cath Clarke
Dracula review – Luc Besson’s romantic reimagining of Gothic classic is ridiculous but watchable
While we don’t necessarily need another film version of Bram Stoker’s story, Besson’s has ambition and panache, and Caleb Landry Jones and Christoph Waltz are perfectly cast - Peter Bradshaw
Primitive War review – it’s Green Berets vs dinosaurs in cheerfully cheesy Vietnam war gorefest
Set to an on-the-nose soundtrack of Creedence Clearwater, an elite squad of soldiers are suitably unprepared for their large-toothed assailants in this jungle thriller - Leslie Felperin
Still Pushing Pineapples review – Black Lace trouper on sad disco circuit from Blackpool to Benidorm
Kim Hopkins’ documentary follows Dene Michael, of 1980s novelty pop act Black Lace, as he belts out the band’s hits – though it misses out a key part of his life - Peter Bradshaw
Bila Burba review – how recreating brutal battles helps pass history down the generations
A vibrant community tradition to theatrically restage a decisive moment in their independence struggle is vital to Panama’s Guna people - Phuong Le
Desperate Journey review – Nazi-fleeing Jewish boy heads for the glamour of wartime Paris
A young Austrian Jew hides out in the nightclub scene in this 1930s-set drama based on a real story – and inspired by countless other tales of Jews in exile in Europe - Leslie Felperin
The Session Man review – Mick Jagger joins look at amazing life of keyboards ace Nicky Hopkins
The pianist played with the Beatles, the Stones, the Who and more, but remains little known beyond insider circles. This loving doc asks why – but leaves some questions unanswered - Peter Bradshaw
Wes Anderson: The Archives review – Wesophiles will relish this deep dive into the detail-obsessed director
The Fantastic Mr Fox’s snappy outfits, an intricate model of the Grand Budapest Hotel and dozens of stop-motion puppets are all among the 700 objects in this sugarcoated quirkfest - Catherine Slessor
A Desert review – high art meets trailer trash in Americana-aesthetics horror
A photographer’s road trip into the Californian desert takes an unexpected turn in director Joshua Erkman’s bewitching feature debut - Leslie Felperin
Apple Cider Vinegar review – a kidney stone leads into whimsical geology doc
Sofie Benoot’s film opens out from the film-maker’s medical problem to a diverting reflection on humankind’s deep roots in ancient minerals - Peter Bradshaw
Game review – Sleaford Mods’ Jason Williamson poaches a role in sceptical take on 90s rave culture
Williamson stars in a debut feature that feels more like an elongated music video than a fully realised drama, but it’s redeemed by some hilarious moments and strident imagery - Phil Hoad
Rule Breakers review – rousingly feelgood real life story of Afghan girls’ robotics team
This story of emancipated young women escaping draconian social strictures brims with enthusiasm and features a cameo from Phoebe Waller-Bridge - Phuong Le
One Shot With Ed Sheeran review – well-planned spontaneity from all-smiling singer
Philip Barantini’s single-take special follows the star mooching around Manhattan, guitar ever ready for ad hoc turns, ahead of his evening show - Peter Bradshaw
A Gangster’s Life review – funny in parts, but not always deliberately
Despite some interesting visuals, not even Tony Cook and Jonny Weldon can lift this poorly produced tale of a pair of dodgy lads hiding in Greece from a gangster - Catherine Bray
People We Meet on Vacation review – Netflix travel romcom is a dull journey
Emily Henry’s hit book has been adapted into a glossily made yet charmless attempt to resurrect the friends-to-lovers formula - Benjamin Lee
Greenland 2: Migration review – disaster sequel is disastrously self-serious
Gerard Butler returns to keep his family safe from post-apocalyptic chaos in a glum and misjudged follow-up to the superior 2020 adventure - Jesse Hassenger
Back to the Past review – everybody’s still gun-fu fighting in time-travel sequel
Louis Koo is the modern-day cop still trapped in the Qin dynasty in this cinematic reprise of the hit 2001 Hong Kong TV series - Phil Hoad
No Time for Goodbye review – well intentioned drama about the loneliness of the asylum-seeker
Journalist Don Ng’s debut feature raises interesting questions about the asylum experience – but his film is too sentimental and superficial to truly answer them - Cath Clarke
Stork of Hope review – Belarusian Holocaust drama paints a flattering portrait of its citizens
Cliche-ridden, excessively sentimental and lacking in historical rigour, this film is an act of nationalist self-soothing - Leslie Felperin
Avatar: Fire and Ash review – witchy new sex interest can’t save this gigantically dull hunk of nonsense
The third Avatar chapter erupts with volcanic world-building and thunderous action yet remains a vast, dazzling spectacle in search of an emotional arc - Peter Bradshaw
Omniscient Reader: The Prophecy review – life gets gamified in one-note Korean sci-fi
Big K-pop stars and a teen-skewed subtext aims this squarely at a particular audience but this fantasy never really levels up - Leslie Felperin
Europe’s New Faces review – a punishing immersion in the migrant journey
A four-hour documentary observes life in a Paris squat and perilous Mediterranean crossings – but its non-narrative structure tests the limits of endurance and empathy - Leslie Felperin
Tell Me Softly review – high-school romance of bad boys and blurred boundaries
Social-media fame and sexual intrigue collide in this part-Twilight, part-OC romantic drama whose provocative dramatic set-ups feel as glib as porn scenes - Catherine Bray
The Christmas Dream review – Thailand’s first musical in decades is big on sentimental spectacle
A festive musical blends fairytale optimism with lush orchestration and Sound of Music sweetness – even if this often overwhelms a thin storyline - Phil Hoad
Silent Night, Deadly Night review – killer Santa remake is overstuffed
There are too many competing and overfamiliar ideas in this busy slasher reboot that’s sorely lacking in style - Benjamin Lee
Goodbye June review – Kate Winslet’s Christmas heartwarmer is like a two-hour John Lewis ad
Star turns from Helen Mirren, Andrea Riseborough and Toni Colette can’t stop cartoony sentimentality smothering this film directed by Winslet and written by her son Joe Anders - Peter Bradshaw
Ella McCay review – James L Brooks returns with a sorry mess of a movie
Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Albert Brooks, Rebecca Hall and Woody Harrelson are among the stars lost in the writer-director’s baffling misfire - Adrian Horton
Oh. What. Fun. review – Michelle Pfeiffer leads Amazon’s underbaked Christmas turkey
Starry cast, including Felicity Jones and Chloë Grace Moretz, can’t save misfiring cross between Home Alone and The Family Stone - Benjamin Lee
Troll 2 review – mythical Scandi-kaiju runs amok in mayhem-filled mockbuster
An enraged behemoth breaks free from a government black site bent on revenge, but there is not much here aside from some monster action - Phil Hoad
Sirāt review – rave in the desert leads to exasperating quest in the sands of Morocco
Oliver Laxe’s Cannes prize winner about a father’s search for his missing daughter starts impressively then descends into Pythonesque perdition - Peter Bradshaw
Christy review – Sydney Sweeney pummels a boxing pioneer’s story into lifeless cliche
Underpowered David Michôd film fails to land the story of the groundbreaking 90s female boxing champion and the horrendous abuse she faced at home - Peter Bradshaw
Zootropolis 2 review – just-about-passable family comedy sequel might as well be AI generated
Follow-up to 2016 animation about talking animals living in a utopia is a soulless film-by-numbers affair filled with corporately approved jokes - Peter Bradshaw
The Creeps review – reference-heavy mashup of Gremlins and American Pie is stupid-funny
On paper, ‘horny teens do battle with mini demon snowmen’ sounds fun, but the jokes are dumb and the references to better films only draw attention to its weaknesses - Catherine Bray
The Thing With Feathers review – well-intentioned adaptation of Max Porter novella about grief
Benedict Cumberbatch gives an honest performance, but this is too self-conscious to challenge or work through loss with same power as the book - Peter Bradshaw
Champagne Problems review – Netflix’s latest Christmas romcom lacks fizz
The streamer continues its annual onslaught of forgettable festive films with a mostly charmless romance set in France - Adrian Horton
3 Wishes for Christmas review – seasonal romcom has all the personality of a supermarket voucher
Unimaginative British fable has a credible lead in Christine During, but otherwise it’s the movie equivalent of receiving socks as a present - Leslie Felperin
John Cleese Packs It In review – former Python goes on the road in sickness and in health
Such is his grumpiness, it isn’t clear why the 85-year-old wanted to make the film – though ‘I need the money’ is a running gag - Mike McCahill
Nuremberg review – Russell Crowe is top notch as an on-trial Göring but Rami Malek lets side down
Crowe is wittily cast as the pompous Nazi in this tale from behind the scenes at the Nuremberg trials, but Malek is deeply silly as army psychiatrist Douglas Kelley - Peter Bradshaw
Rental Family review – Brendan Fraser seeks meaning in pointless Japanese role-play drama
Fraser plays a hapless Tokyo-based actor working for a firm that offers bespoke therapeutic role-play services in director Hikari’s silly and saccharine film - Peter Bradshaw
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 review – inept game-based horror is one of the year’s worst
The box office smash of Halloween 2023 gets a shoddily made follow-up written carelessly and devoid of an actual ending - Jesse Hassenger