Genre: Adventure

Ultimately viewer satisfaction with ‘Summons to Death’ will arguably be measured by one’s affinity for both the Sean Connery-period Bond films or sixties era sensibilities and filmmaking stylings.

The style of this sequel is just as frenetic as its forerunner, combining visual cues from video games and anime along with the steam-punk vision of 19th century China.

‘The Admiral’ is often thrilling and stirring, if a little over stretched on the running time, and it’s refreshing to see a war film not just rely on lots of huge battles scenes for entertainment.

‘The Adventurers’ itself is a breezy romp with a good cast, some smart action sequences and enough momentum to make its duration enjoyable on a standard level.

A unique coming of age tale and a wonderfully creative and fully realised fantasy world combine to deliver a rewarding and touching anime.

Beginning somewhat sombre and low key before exploding into a cavalcade of colour and crazy (talking) creatures, ‘The Boy And The Heron’ is pure unbridled Miyazaki.

Although it can often be overlooked by Ghibli enthusiasts simply because of the ‘Lupin’ label, ‘The Castle Of Cagliostro’ is a film that should really be seen by all Miyazaki or anime fans in general.

What makes it work so well, at least for me, is the ease with which it taps into the child in all of us and creates a rip-roaring adventure that is fun for all the family.

If you’re in the mood for a crazy adventure filled with amusing characters and extraordinary ideas, then you can’t go far wrong with any of the films in this quartet.

Very 1980s in its tone, a factor which adds to a lot of the fun, ‘The Forbidden Kingdom’, is flashy and harmless and shows the two Hong Kong stars still have charisma to burn.

‘The Good, The Bad, The Weird’ is a great achievement and another success for Kim Jee-woon and is most importantly big, bright and ballistic entertainment that should be seen on a screen as big as possible.

‘The Great Wall’ packs in a monster amount of large scale action as Damon, Jing et al take on the horde of monsters in ever increasingly elaborate ways.