Blackkklansman (16) ****

SPIKE LEE’S latest is a joy, a film based on the crazy true story of a black police officer who infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan. But there is a rage behind all the sass and comedy, and Lee is surely aiming his camera at Trump-era politics. 

John David Washington, son of Denzel, has inherited his father’s charisma and screen presence in what will surely be a star-making performance. 

Set in Colorado Springs in the early 1970s, the movie tells the story of Ron Stallworth (Washington) a young black police officer who, after being moved from filing to investigative works, spots an ad for the KKK. 

On a whim, he rings the published number and spots some racist bile, to his bemusement landing a meeting within days. It’s obvious that Ron can’t attend in person, so he continues to work on the case by phone while tasking his colleague (a very good Adam Driver) with the face-to-face meetings. 

It’s a story that’s almost too crazy to be true but Lee peppers the tale with terrific lines of dialogue and some audaciously funny moments. 

The Children Act (12A) ****

EMMA THOMPSON is terrific as a lawyer undergoing a personal crisis in The Children Act, a drama that is nicely complex even when it wobbles. 

Adapted by Ian McEwan from his own novel, the movie tells the story of a no-nonsense family court judge, Fiona Maye, whose mindset and workload have left her with little time for her increasingly alienated husband (Stanley Tucci). 

She’s tasked with making judgement on the case of a teenage boy, three months from his 18th birthday, who is refusing to accept a blood transfusion on the grounds of his Jehovah’s Witness faith. 

His parents support him but the hospital wants to intervene to save his life, prompting Fiona to visit him in hospital before passing judgement. The meeting has a profoundly emotional impact on them both, leading to both of them having to question their motivations and emotions in this stirring drama directed by Richard Eyre.