THE TOP TEN

ED WOOD (1994)

Dan: “Everything came together in just the right way here: Burton’s sense of humour, his visual flair, his love for quirky cinema, his chemistry with Johnny Depp. A film so good it’s, um, good.”

BATMAN (1989)

Nick: “Martial-arts minions, Prince jams, Jack Nicholson’s all-caps acting: the most fun Bat-film ever.”

EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (1990)

Helen: “Arguably Burton’s most personal film, the story of a Goth outsider with uncontrollable hair.”

BATMAN RETURNS (1992)

Helen: “The finest depiction of Batman’s rogues’ gallery to date and his best romantic match.”

SLEEPY HOLLOW (1999)

Nick: “Burton at his liveliest, it’s also thick with both dread and fog a stylish Gothic hoot.”

MARS ATTACKS! (1996)

Helen: “A gleefully apocalyptic B movie that plays like Gremlins on a worldwide scale. Ack ack ack.”

BEETLEJUICE (1988)

Chris: “Pretty much the lodestone of all things Burton, this is deeply bonkers and very, very funny.”

BIG FISH (2003)

Dan: “A lovely, tall tale-telling curio with Albert Finney and Billy Crudup. Also includes a literal big fish.”

PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE

(1985)

Dan: “Still one of my favourite Burtons, even if Herman’s wacky charms are something of an acquired taste.”

MISS PEREGRINE’S HOME FOR PECULIAR

CHILDREN (2016)

Chris: “Has enough quirks to make you wish for a Timbo X-Men movie.”

SHAZAM!

OUT NOW / RATED M / 132 MINS

Finding the fun has been lucrative for the DC movie universe, and while Shazam! may not have hit the box-office highs of Wonder Woman or Aquaman, it’s still a crowd-pleasing delight, poking fun at superhero tropes like a less-vulgar Deadpool (the phrase “dead kiddie pool” comes to mind, then is immediately dismissed for creepiness). Director David F. Sandberg, known for the horror likes of Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation, shows a lightness of touch here, revelling in the chance to inject some weirdness, but handles the origin story without overplaying the camp. His secret weapon is star Zachary Levi, who inhabits the enthusiastic/troubled role of the titular hero with gusto. Paired with an appealing, unpretentious young cast, he’s all fizzy energy and wide-eyed enthusiasm, and gives the film a lift as easily as his character can chuck a car into the sky.

JAMES WHITE

Wild Rose

OUT 18 SEPTEMBER / RATED M / 101 MINS

There is a thunderous strength to Jessie Buckley in Wild Rose that emanates from her like nuclear radiation. As aspiring country singer Rose-Lynn, with her Glaswegian growl and crooked grin she is already fearless, but onstage something larger than her modest frame rolls through the room, electric and captivating. We join Rose-Lynn fresh from a 12-month prison sentence, her fringed jacket matching a court-ordered anklet. Upon returning home to two children left in the care of mum Marion (Julie Walters, steely but loveable), it’s clear that everyone sees Walters as the preferred matriarch. Torn between motherhood and stardom, Rose-Lynn inches towards self-indulgence, but Buckley implores you to stick with her. A born performer as worthy of the screen as Rose-Lynn is the stage, her unbridled energy is infectious, and climaxes in an original closing song that will summon goosebumps and tears alike.

BETH WEBB

Mid90s

OUT NOW / RATED MA15+ / 85 MINS

Scrappy boys, battered knees, bashed-up boards the kids in Jonah Hill’s fresh and sharp directorial debut, Mid90s, are alright, even if they’d probably think that doesn’t quite sound cool enough. Hill revisits memories of his boyhood spent skateboarding in LA, and brings them into focus with achingly trendy nostalgia. A super-16mm frame finds a pack of early adolescent boys, focusing on Stevie (wunderkind skateboarder-cum-actor Sunny Suljic) he’s smaller and younger than the others, but will put himself through anything just to fit in. At home, he ducks the punches from his older brother Ian (Lucas Hedges) and avoids the overbearing protection of his single mother. It’s not a coming-of-ager about romance or self-actualisation, but Mid90s embraces the imperfect angst of youth in revolt and lets it scream as loud as it needs to.

ELLA KEMP

Lords Of Chaos

OUT NOW / RATED R18+ / 118 MINS

A grimy little film about Norwegian black metal murder and suicide was always going to be an acquired taste, but one as unpolished and as gruesome as this seals that deal bigtime. Jonas Åkerlund, the Swedish director who made his name with provocative music videos (most notoriously for The Prodigy’s ‘Smack My Bitch Up’), is on fighting form here, binning his usual stylistic indulgences for a more grounded drama. He presents this true story as a bunch of rebellious young men trying to one-up each other, pioneering and perfecting their aural skuzz, but getting rather carried away with a slew of church burnings and a whole lot of violence. It is nasty but never less than compelling, and surprisingly emotional Åkerlund imbues the characters with relatable frailty and vulnerability, his leads Emory Cohen and Rory Culkin selling every second. It’s all terrifically upsetting.

ALEX GODFREY

Aladdin

OUT 18 SEPTEMBER / PG / 128 MINS

Tim Burton and Disney were famously not a good fit when the director was starting out in animation. But time is a great healer, and now h r h is with this liv -action tak on beloved 1941 animation, Dumbo From the lovely wordless montage that opens it, Burton is as playful and emotionally honest as he has been since 2003’s Big Fish, as Colin Farrell, Eva Green, Danny DeVito and various circus folk (Burton onc again d lighting in painting ‘freaks’ as heroes) try to protect the title star, the cutesy flying elephant, from the avaricious clutches of Michael Keaton’s billionaire theme park owner. And there’s the rub: while this may seem unusually sweet and d void of satirical sting at first glanc , consider this: Burton has made a Disney movie in which the bad guy is, essentially, Walt Disney. Maybe they’re still not quite a good fit.

ROD YATES