All right, so the comic book-inspired premise - which sees the last surviving members of the human race living within the confines of a compartmentalised train that never stops moving - is a little hokey, but somehow South Korean master Bong Joon-ho manages to craft a consistently absorbing and relentlessly crazy blockbuster extravaganza; a movie mostly built out of creative set-pieces and unexpected twists. Chris Evans offers up a compelling performance as the de facto leader of a band of rebels who revolt against the bourgeoise - led by Tilda Swinton in a deliciously hammy role - who have imprisoned them at the tail end of the train. The social commentary that goes hand and hand with the narrative is a little muggy, and some added explanation could have gone a long way, but otherwise this is modern sci-fi at its delirious best.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
