Kick-Ass 2

This second outing for teenage superheroes Kick-Ass and Hit Girl doesn't quite press all the buttons of its predecessor, but nevertheless it delivers a high level of action and comedy. Dave Lizewski (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Mindy Macready (Chloë Grace Moretz) are trying to adjust to the growing pains of normal high-school life but are forced to revive their alter egos when they're targeted by the vengeful, rich brat son (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) of the crime lord they defeated in the first film. Director Jeff Wadlow joins the franchise, but brings a more pedestrian tone compared with the lively and inventive original, and now that Moretz is a few years older, the shock of her spouting foul-mouthed dialogue is also dampened. Arguably, too much time is also spent reiterating the cheesy mantra of there being "a hero in all of us", but the violent set pieces and edgy humour remain the same. Plus Jim Carrey as another would-be vigilante gives the pot a pleasing stir.