Film: Fast X

Oh F&F, how ridiculous you are. Not only does your name shrink as time goes on (I expect the next film to just be referred to by a grunting sound), but you really did yourself a disservice by going into space the last time around. How can any subsequent film top that? Well the answer is of course with time travel - but don't worry, there's no Deloreans in this film.

The truth is though that it doesn't need to top anything. Even if you did consider 9 the peak of incredulity, knowing that doesn't harm FX - in fact it allows it actually allows it to focus on being its own film. And it was actually pretty good.

Yes, you have to suspend your disbelief a little and yes, a lot of it is just convienient excuses to run the next set peice... But that's F&F's raison d'etre so if you're going to complain about that then it's your fault for being here in the first place.

Ultimately FX is the beginning of the end of the F&F franchise and seems to know it enough to go out willingly. If that means having to pull the dial back slightly then I'm here for it. Recommended.

Film: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

I wouldn't call GotG3 a turning point in the recent decline in MCU form, but it was a decent flick. That said, it did feel more like an extended TV show episode than movie - that was more to do with the Hallmark vibes than the quality of the film though.

Because yes, GotG3 wasn't about the big bad or gods or end of the worlds, but more about the Guardians themselves - Rocket in the main, but also the wider group, including the reanimated Gamora which by the way didn't feel laboured at all. Much.

So yeah - there's nothing here that marks the return of the MCU as a force, but given the mediocrity of the recent entries anything this entertaining should be taken as a win. Recommended.

Film: Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves

D&D achieves exactly what it sets out to do - it literally has both dungeons and dragons, and is full of adventure and callbacks to the source material. It plays things safe, gets from A to B and is largely unoffensive.

If it sounds like I'm being passive aggressive about the film, that's not my intention - I genuinely enjoyed the film and have little about it to complain. It was well built, paced perfectly and had some very charming characters. The action was cool and the special effects more than adequate. The plot wasn't complicated but was enough.

The thing is I think it would have been just as enjoyable at home as it was on the big screen - which I suppose is both a boon and a curse. Was it an epic tale? Not really. Could it be part of an epic series? Quite possibly. Either way I recommend D&D, even if you do manage to catch it on the small screen.