Adventure Reviews and Features | Little White Lies

Genre Adventure

Young boy in a blue shirt sitting in a blue, glowing boat on a dark, shadowy lake, with a small white creature floating nearby.
Review

Elio review – a touching treaty on the search for belonging

by Yasmine Kandil

A social­ly awk­ward young boy dis­cov­ers alien life in Pixar’s sweet new inter­galac­tic adventure.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
A person skydiving in mid-air, surrounded by green countryside below.
Review

Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning review – delivers the big swings

by David Jenkins

Ethan and the team take anoth­er crack at foil­ing a self-learn­ing AI mon­ster that’s hell­bent on a glob­al apocalypse.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
A woman with short, curly blonde hair gazes intensely at the camera, wearing a black jacket.
Review

Thunderbolts* review – the best Marvel film in a while

by Fatima Sheriff

There’s a lot of super­fi­cial fun to be had with this super­hero romp, which hasn’t been the case in the MCU for a long while.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
A young girl with blonde plaits wearing a yellow jacket holds a blue-eyed furry creature against a rocky backdrop.
Review

The Legend of Ochi review – well-crafted but tame family adventure

by Isaac Feldberg

A shy young girl embarks on a mis­sion to save a mys­ti­cal crea­ture in Isa­iah Sax­on’s throw­back to the days of Amblin greatness.

2
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Bearded man and woman embrace passionately, their faces close together.
Review

The Return review – skirts on the am-dram

by David Jenkins

Ralph Fiennes and Juli­ette Binoche star as Odysseus and Pene­lope in Uber­to Pasolin­i’s retelling of Home­r’s epic.

4
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Cartoon character in yellow and blue outfit holding a microphone and wearing a crown, surrounded by a vibrant, colourful urban setting.
Review

Dog Man review – zippy, beautifully constructed family fun

by Callie Petch

Dream­Works’ sec­ond fea­ture-length Dav Pilkey adap­ta­tion is a lot of bark and sol­id bite.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Vibrant anime-style characters, including a woman with long red hair, a bearded older man in ornate robes, and a blonde man, seated in an ornate, dimly lit chamber.
Review

Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim review – not canon-level

by David Jenkins

This ani­mé-style jour­ney to Mid­dle Earth dials back on risk and charm to robust­ly tell a sim­ple tale of good ver­sus evil.

4
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Two female characters in tropical setting, surrounded by palm trees and water.
Review

Moana 2 review – a tidal wave of joy on the big screen

by Yasmine Kandil

Although it doesn’t quite soar to the heights of the orig­i­nal, there’s a lot to enjoy in this delight­ful sequel.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Teddy bear in red hat and blue jacket against mountainous backdrop.
Review

Paddington in Peru review – a very well-executed threequel

by David Jenkins

It’s three for three in the beloved bear fran­chise, as our mar­malade-scoff­ing scamp heads off for an adven­ture in his South Amer­i­can homeland.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Close-up of a bearded man with a weathered face, wearing a dark, wet jacket, standing in a dark, rainy environment.
Review

Venom: The Last Dance review – air-headed escapism

by David Jenkins

Tom Hardy seems tired and con­fused in this com­ic book sci-fi sequel that hasn’t got an orig­i­nal bone in its alien sym­biote body.

2
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Illustration of a grey robot with large, expressive eyes against a vibrant purple background with sparkles.
Review

The Wild Robot review – a moving ecological parable

by Kambole Campbell

Chris Sanders crafts an expres­sive, visu­al­ly strik­ing fable about a robot forced to adapt to the envi­ron­ment of an unin­hab­it­ed island.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Diverse group of characters in futuristic costumes and masks, including a woman with a rabbit-ear headpiece.
Review

Borderlands review – rage-quit worthy video game slop

by Juan Barquin

Eli Roth’s slap­dash adap­ta­tion of the brash video game series is a joy­less slog despite the pres­ence of Cate Blanchett.

1
Anticipation
1
Enjoyment
1
In Retrospect