JACK, THE GIANT SLAYER **

Don't expect any of the philosophical or psychological insights of Sondheim's "Into the Woods" in "Jack, the Giant Slayer". This is strictly a CGI generated adventure yarn with a nod back to the good old days of Ray Harryhausen and while the special effects are state of the art you might just hanker after those old stop-motion movies while watching this one but then, as we all know, nostalgia is a thing of the past so we may as well buckle down and enjoy director Bryan Singer's big, widescreen extravaganza, (and it certainly looks good).

Jack is up-and-coming young British actor Nicholas Hoult who actually manages to be both good-looking and a decent actor though, of course, decent acting is the last thing you expect in a film like this. Still, an above average script, ( in part written by Christopher McQuarrie), and a top-notch cast, (Ian McShane, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Eddie Marsan), not to mention a Grade A director ensure that this is a kid's film that grown-ups can enjoy as well. Surprisingly good fun then, enough perhaps to make this a future classic of its kind.