The BFG (PG) Empire, Odeon, ABC ***
THE final collaboration of Steven Spielberg and Melissa Mathison, director and screenwriter of E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, is a gloriumptious rendering of Roald Dahl’s fantasy, peppered with the author’s gobblefunk lexicon of jumbly words.
“Quite often, I is left instead of right,” comments the title character to explain his muddled vocabulary, which rechristens two animals hippodumplings and jiggyraffes.
Sweetness and childish wonder glister in every frame, including a towering motion capture performance from Mark Rylance as the eponymous hulk, who blows bottled dreams into bedrooms using his phizz-whizzing metal trumpet.
On-screen rapport between the Oscar-winning actor and young co-star Ruby Barnhill galvanizes the picture, building to a rousing crescendo at Buckingham Palace, where a swig of frobscottle, the BFG’s effervescent green brew, induces rip-roaring bouts of whizzpopping that prove you can’t beat a well-delivered fart gag.
The heroine is a precocious orphan called Sophie (Ruby Barnhill), who is snatched from her bed at the witching hour by a hooded 24-feet tall figure.
Directed with verve by Spielberg, The BFG is a visually arresting ride that gently tugs heartstrings in between rollicking set pieces.
Star Trek Beyond (12A) Empire, Odeon ***
DEDICATED to Anton Yelchin, who died in a freak accident in June, and Leonard Nimoy, the third instalment of the rebooted Star Trek is a familiar conflation of past and future present that fails to set its phasers to stun.
JJ Abrams vacated the director’s chair to make Star Wars: The Force Awakens, so Justin Lin, who helmed four turbo-charged entries of The Fast And The Furious franchise, steps into the fray.
He orchestrates action set pieces with confidence although some of the interstellar skirmishes are reduced to a dizzying blur by gyroscopic camerawork and overly enthusiastic editing.
Though it’s still a very good sequel.
Andre Rieu’s 2016 Maastrict Concert (U) Tivoli, Regent ***
RECORDED live in the Vrijthof in Maastricht, one of the most romantic city squares in The Netherlands, this open-air concert has become an annual showcase for the Dutch violinist and conductor Andre Rieu.
Nicknamed the King of Waltz, Rieu shares the stage with the 60-piece Johann Strauss Orchestra and performs a lively and varied programme in the company of sopranos, tenors and famous guest artists.
The music is complemented by light shows and spectacular fireworks.
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