This is the third film in the Knives Out series written and directed by Rian Johnson, with Daniel Craig returning as Benoit Blanc. He is joined by a superb cast, with Josh O’Connor’s Fr. Jud Duplenticy – a wonderful name – a particular highlight. Josh Brolin is all fire and brimstone as Mons. Wicks. Father Jud arrives in a quaint small town hoping to serve God but finds only suspicion when the community’s pillar is suddenly murdered. Branded an outsider and prime suspect, he is forced to join forces with Detective Blanc to expose the real killer. The supporting characters are a little understated and it could cut to the chase earlier, but it’s still an entertaining 144 minutes… just.

Ricky Gervais… you either love him or loathe him; there’s no middle ground. His irreverent humour has always upset someone, and here he tackles life, death, the state of the world and his own mortality in a brutally honest stand-up special. No topic is spared. If you are easily offended, err on the side of caution and give this one a wide berth.

Maggie Gyllenhaal writes and directs the brilliant Olivia Colman in her debut feature. The story meanders and can be ambiguous at times, but it is well worth the journey. Leda is a middle-aged divorcee devoted to her work and her children. When her daughters leave home, she takes a holiday by the sea in Greece, where an encounter with a brash family unsettles her. What begins as a serene rediscovery soon becomes a ferocious confrontation with a deeply unsettled past.

It’s nearly Christmas when an unexpected turn in their mother’s health throws four adult siblings and their exasperating father into emotional chaos. But their quick-witted mother, June, insists on orchestrating her decline on her own terms, with biting humour, blunt honesty and a great deal of love.

Guillermo del Toro adapts Mary Shelley’s tale of Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant but egotistical scientist whose monstrous experiment leads to the undoing of both creator and creation. Del Toro departs from Shelley’s original text, which hasn’t pleased everyone, but the film boasts a striking visual style, an excellent soundtrack and a formidable ensemble cast. Did we really need another Frankenstein? Perhaps not — but it’s an ambitious one.

If you’ve been a reader of The New Yorker, this documentary will be of interest. Marking the magazine’s centennial, it offers behind-the-scenes access to editors, writers and archives, and examines how this culturally vital publication has evolved while remaining one of print journalism’s last great survivors.

I’m an admirer of Josephine Park and Dar Salim and enjoyed their chemistry in this romantic comedy. Park plays Lærke, an ambitious hotel manager sent to Malaga to develop a luxury hotel on a mango farm. Salim plays Alex, the farm’s owner, a former lawyer haunted by a tragic past. It’s formulaic, but still fun — and I wouldn’t mind a mango farm of my own.

This is an absorbing documentary on Seymour Hersh, one of the most formidable investigative journalists in the United States. His reporting exposed many of the country’s most damning constitutional wrongdoings and cover-ups. Much of this history is well known, but it remains unsettling to see how much is still concealed by those in power.

Paul Giamatti steps far away from his Billions persona in this poignant drama about a couple navigating the emotionally draining world of fertility treatment and domestic adoption. Written and directed by Tamara Jenkins, the film explores how far people are willing to go to build a family — and the toll it can take on love, dignity and resilience.

Set in Bangkok, this Thai drama follows Aoy, a talented young cook running her family’s noodle shop, who is invited to join the elite world of a luxury chef’s table. What begins as opportunity quickly turns ruthless as egos clash and ambition sharpens. Stylish, strange and entertaining — knives are very much out.