Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (dvd)

The divine Angelina

When released in cinemas this is one of those films that was to usher in a new era of filmmaking, breaking new ground, freeing the imagination. The dawn of CGI and green screen saw an end to wooden sets replaced instead by wooden acting (or Gwyneth Paltrow as she's also known).

Those green screens are transformed into a visual smorgasbord of comic book homage and B-movie kitsch. The B movie feel doesn't stop there however: the actors, now miming with invisible robots and against still-to-be-painted backdrops, might as well be interacting with stop motion dinosaurs or aliens. While the scenery is top notch, direction of performance falls a little short.

Jude Law supplies a slightly too understated swashbuckle, Mrs Coldplay just whines her way from beginning to end while Ms Jolie doesn't get enough opportunity to smoulder. Her Tomb Raider-practised British accent is still OTT but so sumptuous you could wrap yourself up in it.

Green screen so often leaves me cold; the Matrix sequels, while technically accomplished, just felt like a computer game. Sky Captain, as with the recently released Sin City, use this new-found visual freedom for artistic effect and dramatic purpose. Despite its faults, this is a really fun film with magnificent production design and concluding with a great line to a running gag.