Big Hero 6 (G) ****

Baymax is a so-called “healthcare companion” who has been designed by the talented big brother of an adolescent boy, Hiro (Potter). 

When his inventor dies in tragic circumstances, the devastated Hiro potters around his whizzkid brother’s inventions and discovers Baymax, designed to be the perfect healthcare robot but a little wobbly around the edges in every sense. 

It’s in their developing relationship that Big Hero 6 is truly magical, and the boy falls in love with the unconventional robot, who’s bouncy, awkward and adorable. 

And the extended scene where Baymax’s battery runs low - the effects of which, parents will realise, are coincidentally similar to the effects of a big night out - is a highlight of the film. 

The second half of the movie, where Hiro, Baymax and a team of superhero-style friends join forces to find out who was behind his brother’s death held me less. But it’s undeniably entertaining and the fantasy city of San Fransokyo is beautifully rendered on the big screen. 

Disney’s first animated film inspired by a Marvel comic book could have gone so badly wrong in trying to marry a superhero movie with a more intimate story. But it’s sweet and very witty - not quite The Incredibles, but pretty darn close. 

Inherent Vice (16) *** 

JOAQUIN PHOENIX is the best thing about this movie which is hilarious to watch one moment, deeply frustrating the next. 

Paul Thomas Anderson has adapted Thomas Pynchon’s wordy novel for the big screen and while hardcore fans of Pynchon will be pleased with the faithfulness of the adaption, your average filmgoer could well wonder what the hell is going on. 

We’re in 1970s Los Angeles, where Doc Sportello (Phoenix) does a strong sideline in investigations, usually while stoned. 

He’s pleased when his ex-girlfriend shows up out of the blue, less so when she reveals she wants him to investigate a plot to lock up a billionaire land developer that she’s in love with. 

Throw in a cast of characters including a murderous loan shark, a peeved deputy DA and most amusingly of all, a top cop (Josh Brolin) who’s determined to bring Doc down, and you’ve got a story made all the battier by the fact that everyone seems to be on drugs. 

Phoenix and Brolin make terrific sparring partners and the sun-drenched setting should make this movie an easy one to fall for. 

But it all falls apart in the execution. The plotting is messy, overly wordy and shamefully incoherent given the talent involved. 

The components, and the laughs, are there - but the movie fails to come together as a whole.