The Bélier Family (out Dec 26) is a French comedy centered on a teenage girl with deaf parents who discovers she is a beautiful singer. A subplot involving the father's bid to become town mayor goes nowhere but aside, this is an entertaining coming-of-age tale with more than a few unexpected laughs. Grade: B+.

Daddy's Home (out Dec 26) is a lowbrow comedy about two competitive guys (Will Ferrell & Mark Wahlberg) trying to win the affections of two kids and their single mother. There are a few laughs early on but the film makes plenty of tonal missteps (such as a moment where one is electrocuted) on the way to the finish line. Grade: C+.

The Good Dinosaur (out Dec 26) follows in the same vein as the Shaun The Sheep Movie and is a creative animated feature that relies more on visuals and facial expressions than dialogue. It's the cute tale of a young dinosaur who teams up with a small kid to find his way back home to his family. Grade: B+.

Youth (out Dec 26) stars Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel as two friends holidaying in the Swiss Alps who reflect on their past and deal with issues that will shape their future. It's clear that Italian director Paolo Sorrentino (The Great Beauty) is trying to say something deep and profound. I struggled to grasp it through. Grade: C+.

Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Road Chip (out Dec 26) is the 4th instalment in the franchise. Very young audiences will lap it up but for everyone else, there are other family films that offer much more in terms of story and laughs. This time around, they three Chipmunks travel to Miami to prevent their beloved Dave from proposing to his girlfriend. Grade: C.

Suffragette (out Dec 26) is set in London, 1912 and looks at the tactics adopted by a group of British women in pressuring the Government for the right to vote. It's an important piece of history and the film does a solid job illustrating both the pain (both physical and emotional) that they endured. Grade: B+.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (out Dec17) is entertaining. The safe screenplay shares a few too many similarities with the earlier movies (we have another bad guy in a black suit and mask) but the injection of new characters (particularly star Daisy Ridley) will keep you interested all the way through. Grade: B+.

The Night Before (out Dec 3) is a comedy about three middle aged guys who get together on Christmas Eve and go in pursuit of an amazing party. It takes a while to warm up but as the situations become more and more outlandish (such as a moment in a church), the laughs start to flow. Grade: B.

Truth (out Dec 3) has been criticised for its factual inaccuracies (ironic given the title) but it's still a thought provoking drama about loyalty, office politics and the role of the media. It based on a 60 Minutes story that aired in the United States in 2004 which questioned President George Bush's military history. Grade: B+.

In The Heart Of The Sea (out Dec 3) recounts the true story that helped inspire American author Herman Melville to write Moby Dick. There’s an odd pacing to the film that’s difficult to shrug off and the action sequences feel over edited with confusing camera angles. It wants to be a gripping adventure but it just couldn’t pull me in. Grade: C+.