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Search: Starring Benedict Cumberbatch

  • 12 Years A Slave (2013)
    Review preview for 12 Years A Slave

    One of this year's must-see films, this is not simply a worthy tribute of a subject too often ignored by Hollywood; it's also a remarkable piece of cinema in its own right.

    Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
    A free black man is abducted and sold into slavery.
  • August: Osage County (2013)
    Review preview for August: Osage County

    We witness the best ensemble acting in a film with actresses in leading roles that Hollywood has produced this year.

    Anne-Katrin Titze · 4.5 out of 5
    A dysfunctional family comes together to deal with a crisis.
  • Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
    Review preview for Avengers: Infinity War

    Infinity War is a clearing of the decks: opportunity for new characters and plots to emerge; opportunity too for some characters to move on.

    Jane Fae · 4.5 out of 5
    The Avengers and their allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.
  • Amazing Grace (2006)
    A dramatic look at the legal and cultural processes which led to the abolition of slavery.
  • The Book Of Clarence (2023)
    Review preview for The Book Of Clarence

    Simply put, I don't know what it's trying to do, and I don't know if it does either.

    Andrew Robertson · 2 out of 5
    A man tries to turn the rising celebrity of Christ to his own advantage.
  • Black Mass (2015)
    Review preview for Black Mass

    It's true what they say about violence. Too much and you become immune.

    Angus Wolfe Murray · 3 out of 5
    The true story of violent criminal turned FBI informant Whitey Bulger in Boston.
  • The Courier (2020)
    Review preview for The Courier

    What makes the ensuing story special, besides Cooke’s elegant direction, are the relationships between the characters.

    Jeremy Mathews · 4 out of 5
    The true story of a British businessman unwittingly recruited into one of the greatest international conflicts in history. Forming an unlikely partnership with a Soviet officer hoping to prevent a nuclear confrontation, the two men work together to provide the crucial intelligence used to defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis.
  • Creation (2009)
    Review preview for Creation

    This is a film which seeks to convey emotional truth rather than historical accuracy.

    Val Kermode · 3 out of 5
    A look at the personal conflicts Charles Darwin experienced when deciding whether or not to publish his theory of evolution.
  • Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness (2022)
    Review preview for Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness

    It might not leave you spellbound but you're likely to be charmed.

    Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
    Dr Strange tries to protect a girl who can jump between points in the multiverse.
  • Doctor Strange (2016)
    Review preview for Doctor Strange

    The most mind-bending, spectacular visuals of the entire series.

    Owen Van Spall · 3 out of 5
    A former neurosurgeon embarks on a journey of healing only to be drawn into the world of the mystic arts.
  • The End We Start From (2023)
    Review preview for The End We Start From

    If you take it for what it is rather than what it was marketed as, The End We Start From is an interesting watch.

    Donald Munro · 3 out of 5
    A woman who along with her newborn try to find their way home as environmental crisis that submerges London in flood waters and sees a young family torn apart in the chaos.
  • The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies (2014)
    Review preview for The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies

    More combat means less time for character interaction, and by the third act, Jackson has already shoehorned in more characters than the film can handle.

    Owen Van Spall · 3 out of 5
    Bilbo and his pals do battle at the Lonely Mountain as the trilogy draws to a close.
  • The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug (2013)
    Review preview for The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug

    Benedict Cumberbatch lends this cruel, ancient dragon all the gravitas and otherworldliness that Sean Connery utterly failed to in Dragonheart.

    Max Crawford · 3.5 out of 5
    The dwarves and their companions continue their quest to rid their homeland of the dragon, Smaug.
  • The Imitation Game (2014)
    Review preview for The Imitation Game

    The kind of period drama that screams “festival launch” but doesn’t trust its audience enough to tell its story subtly or with any surprises.

    Owen Van Spall · 3 out of 5
    Alan Turing helps crack the Enigma code.
  • The Last Enemy (2008)
    Review preview for The Last Enemy

    Into this miasmic mess of muddled make-believe stumbles mathematician Stephen Ezard, surely the most inept protagonist ever invented.

    Angus Wolfe Murray · 2 out of 5
    A futuristic security force attempts to contain and cover up a man-made deadly virus.
  • The Mauritanian (2021)
    Review preview for The Mauritanian

    Despite Rahim's excellent work, the real standout here is Benedict Cumberbatch.

    Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
    A detainee at the US military's Guantanamo Bay detention centre is held without charges for over a decade and seeks help from a defence attorney for his release.
  • Mowgli (2018)
    Review preview for Mowgli

    The characters are crudely drawn in more ways than one..

    Jennie Kermode · 2 out of 5
    The story of a boy raised by animals who comes back into contact with humans as he grows up.
  • The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
    Review preview for The Other Boleyn Girl

    Portraying a woman of such character is no easy task, and it's unfortunate that the task has fallen to Natalie Portman.

    Jennie Kermode · 3 out of 5
    A dramatisation of the Boleyn sisters' competition for the affections of King Henry VIII.
  • Penguins of Madagascar (2014)
    Review preview for Penguins of Madagascar

    The pace accelerates through 15 stages of excitement without stopping to refuel

    Angus Wolfe Murray · 4.5 out of 5
    Four young penguins become embroiled in an animated power play between an evil octopus and a grey wolf.
  • The Phoenician Scheme (2025)
    Review preview for The Phoenician Scheme

    The real challenge is to keep up with the pace as well as the information overload.

    Richard Mowe · 3 out of 5
    The story of a family and a family business.
  • The Power Of The Dog (2021)
    Review preview for The Power Of The Dog

    Campion treats the material with such well-mannered reverence that you begin to wish that not just the characters, but she too, would loosen up a bit.

    Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
    A widow and her son are tormented by her new husband’s sullen and bullying brother.
  • Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
    Review preview for Spider-Man: No Way Home

    The film maintains an excellent blend of the domestic and the dramatic

    Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
    Peter's attempts to make the world forget him help villains fall into his world from elsewhere in the Multiverse.
  • Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
    Review preview for Star Trek Into Darkness

    The baddie's been beefed up, the plot's been pared down, but the emotional core which really sold the first film—the magnificent character interaction—remains unscathed.

    Max Crawford · 4.5 out of 5
    With Starfleet in chaos and other ships destroyed, the crew of the USS Enterprise must venture alone to a dangerous world where one man could hold the fate of the galaxy in his hands.
  • Third Star (2010)
    Review preview for Third Star

    It seemed all horribly downhill until the end scenes – which, in total contrast, induce a state of shock.

    Chris · 4 out of 5
    Four friends go on holiday to Barafundle Bay in this gentle, affectionate comedy with an unexpected end.
  • To The Ends Of The Earth (2005)
    Review preview for To The Ends Of The Earth

    It would seem that The Ends Of The Earth has everything going for it. Unfortunately, it's interminably boring.

    Keith Dudhnath · 3 out of 5
    Talking the long route under sail to Australia in the 19th century.
  • The Thing With Feathers (2025)
    Review preview for The Thing With Feathers

    A sometimes compelling, often baffling work that doesn’t really solve the inherent problem of its subject matter, but swings for the fences trying.

    Jeremy Mathews · 2.5 out of 5
    Struggling to process the sudden and unexpected death of his wife, a young father loses his hold on reality as a seemingly malign presence begins to stalk him from the shadowy recesses of the apartment he shares with his two young sons.
  • Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
    Review preview for Thor: Ragnarok

    This really is the funniest, campest mainstream superhero film I can remember since the Adam West incarnation of Batman.

    Jane Fae · 4 out of 5
    Imprisoned, Thor finds himself in a lethal gladiatorial contest against the Hulk, his former ally.
  • Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011)
    Review preview for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

    The cool colours and muted emotions of this John Le Carré adaptation fit the 1973 Cold War backdrop perfectly and are appropriate for the murky world of moralistic shades of grey.

    Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
    A spy has to root out a mole at the top of the civil service.
  • The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar (2023)
    Review preview for The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar

    For fans of Dahl or the director, this is unmissable.

    Jennie Kermode · 5 out of 5
    The tale of a gambler who develops magical powers.

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