Search: Starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers

What really makes the film work is the ambiguity around its central character.

The film's sugar content is off the scale and it doesn’t help that everyone who comes in contact with Evan are sooo nice it reaffirms your belief in human nature – well, almost.

Bend It Like Beckham understands the rules of feelgood and will do well for that reason.

Daniel Zelk Berk’s feature has all the essential ingredients of a political thriller - a moody grey-blue filter, a tingling, foreboding score and people throwing back whiskies while staring drearily into space.

Haussman can't quite decide between vérité and romance, ending up with an awkward middle ground.

Minnie Driver has the best time. She is a positive performer, who loves to act.

Owen is fine when looking moody, but not so good when given dialogue - it seems too staged, too deliberate.

This is comedy in the Shakespearean sense, the whole story revolving around the importance of luck.

Abrams combines kinetic action sequences with internal logic-fuelled storytelling to give us an impossible mission head, shoulders and a rabbit's foot above the previous two instalments.

There are arduous stretches, between ill-organised sorties, in which conversation dries in the mouth.

The screenwriter's approach to story seems to have prioritised quantity over quality. It's an attempt to dazzle the audience, throwing in so many twists that it might be hoped we don't notice how predictable most of them are or how little sense they make.

Though the film had its moments - mostly in the deliciously playful nature of Shakespeare's dialogue - it's hard to see it matching the success of other recent adaptations of the Bard.

Unfortunately, with a weak central actor, the interactions of those around him suffer as a result.

The film looks magnificent and the performances, particularly from Witherspoon and Atkins, are exemplary.

This is the closest you'll come to experiencing the allure of fame and the power of illusion.

The action is nicely choreographed and despite the lengthy running time most of the film is nicely paced, with a number of genre in-jokes to help it hold viewer attention.