Cynthia Nixon gives one of her best performances in new Emily Dickinson biopic, A Quiet Passion

Released: April 7 (UK & Ireland, selected cinemas)

Born and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts, where she spent most of her adulthood and died at the age of 55 in 1886 from Bright's disease, poet Emily Dickinson evaded the grubby fingers of fame in her reclusive lifetime.

A heavily edited first collection of her poetry emerged four years after her death and it was a further 65 years before her complete works were published, solidifying her status as one of the most important American writers of the 19th century.

Liverpudlian writer-director Terence Davies clearly feels a deep affinity with Dickinson and his labour of love, A Quiet Passion, paints a richly detailed portrait of a misunderstood woman.

His script appropriates some of Emily's own words, but is a subjective fictional account that captures both his subject's solemnity and her caustic wit, like her throwaway barb about hypocrisy - "In America, we cherish it" - or her withering assessment of her chances of finding a husband: "I am a kangaroo amongst the beauties. Let us hope the man who courts me will have an interest in zoology."

The film follows young Emily (Emma Bell) from her time at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary to her later years (now played by Cynthia Nixon), when she writes her poetry late at night with the blessing of her pious father, Edward (Keith Carradine).

In early scenes, Emily's reluctance to slavishly follow teachings - her soul is her own, not God's - prickle her educators.

"You are alone in your rebellion," warns a teacher.

She returns home less than a year into her studies and repeatedly clashes with her father, a prominent politician, who stridently imposes his will on his children.

He does agree, however, that Emily can write verse behind closed doors in the dead of night and she is published anonymously in the Springfield Republican.

Supported by her doting sister Vinnie (Jennifer Ehle) and frequently visited by their friend Vryling Buffam (Catherine Bailey), Emily settles into an almost hermetic existence at the family home, where she observes the minutiae of society life and passes judgement on the work of the Brontes.

"If they wanted to be wholesome, I imagine they would crochet," quips Emily.

While her brother Austin (Duncan Duff) embarks on an adulterous affair with Mabel Todd (Noemie Schellens), Emily remains alone and aloof, untouched by Cupid's arrow.

A Quiet Passion is a dense and exceedingly wordy tribute to a trailblazer at odds with the prevailing moods of the era.

Nixon's mannered, yet emotionally layered performance is among her best work, embracing all of her subject's foibles and flaws as she pours herself onto the page.

Ehle brings warmth and boundless optimism to her sibling, who appreciates the goodness and compassion in Emily even when the writer cannot see it herself.

:: NO SWEARING :: NO SEX :: NO VIOLENCE :: RATING: 7/10

GOING IN STYLE (12A, 96 mins) Comedy/Drama/Romance/Action. Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Alan Arkin, Ann-Margret, John Ortiz, Joey King, Josh Pais, Peter Serafinowicz, Maria Dizzia. Director: Zach Braff.

Released: April 7 (UK & Ireland)

Help the aged... or they might just help themselves, armed with handguns and withering put-downs.

So sayeth Going In Style, director Zach Braff's warm-hearted remake of the 1979 comedy starring George Burns, Art Burney and Lee Strasberg.

The Academy Award-winning trio of Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Alan Arkin gel beautifully in the new version, trading quips with twinkles in their eyes courtesy of scriptwriter Theodore Melfi, who was Oscar nominated for the splendid Hidden Figures.

His ear for snappy dialogue provides the leads with some delicious verbal grenades to toss at each other, and one of the chief pleasures of Braff's film is watching these accomplished performers - average miles on the clock: 82 - riff and ricochet off each other with effortless grace.

"It always works out in the end," chirrups Caine optimistically. "Then you die," counters Arkin.

Admittedly, some aspects of the plot wheeze and puff like the octogenarian characters as they train for the physical rigours of robbing a bank, and the glaze of syrupy sentimentality is laid on thick.

But for all its blemishes and cheerful predictability, Going In Style is a guilty pleasure that pickpockets generous laughs.

Joe (Caine), Willie (Freeman) and Albert (Arkin) are lifelong friends, who all worked for the same steel company and are now mellowing in retirement.

Willie and Albert are housemates and live across the street from Joe, his daughter Rachel (Maria Dizzia) and spunky granddaughter Brooklyn (Joey King).

During a meeting between Joe and his unsympathetic bank manager (Josh Pais), three masked men with guns walk into the branch and confidently steal 1.6 million US dollars.

Soon after, their old employer announces it is freezing company pensions.

Joe is apoplectic - without the money, he will lose his home - and decides to rob the Williamsburg Savings Bank, which is managing the liquidation of the pension fund.

"We got experience, smarts," grins Joe.

"Arthritis, gout, shingles..." adds Willie.

The friends eventually agree to steal the money they are owed and donate additional funds from the heist to charity.

A dry run at a local supermarket ends in humiliation and Joe realises they will need help from a criminal lowlife (John Ortiz) to pull off their ludicrous scheme.

Going In Style is a resolutely old-fashioned yet charming comedy of men behaving badly in direct response to corporate greed.

So often, these kind of irascible, straight-talking characters are relegated to the periphery, or used cheaply as a blunt force plot device, whose death in the second act facilitates tearful reconciliation.

Braff's picture cherishes them, introducing a delightful romantic subplot for Albert with a flirty supermarket worker (Ann-Margret), and conflict between Joe and his wastrel former son-in-law (Peter Serafinowicz).

By the time the end credits roll, Joe, Willie and Albert have stolen our hearts too.

:: SWEARING :: SEX :: VIOLENCE :: RATING: 6.5/10

THE BOSS BABY (U, 97 mins) Animation/Comedy/Action/Romance. Featuring the voices of Alec Baldwin, Miles Christopher Bakshi, Jimmy Kimmel, Lisa Kudrow, Steve Buscemi, Conrad Vernon, Tobey Maguire. Director: Tom McGrath.

Released: April 7 (UK & Ireland)

A virtuoso vocal performance from Alec Baldwin as a tyrannical infant, who wears a black business suit, carries a briefcase and pulls the wool over the eyes of his sleep-deprived adult handlers, almost carries Tom McGrath's colourful computer-animated fantasy to full term.

It's a neat conception though not a smooth delivery and Michael McCullers' screenplay, loosely based on the award-winning picture book by Marla Frazee, has pregnant pauses where plot and gags should be.

Boss Baby suckles on its neat premise, feeding Baldwin infrequent zinging dialogue like when his pint-sized corporate lackey swats away taunts about having to wear a nappy: "You know who else wears diapers? Astronauts and NASCAR drivers!"

Seth MacFarlane has been traversing this rich comic territory with greater acuity since 1999 in his animated TV series, Family Guy, through the character of megalomaniacal toddler genius, Stewie Griffin.

Evidently, there are only so many genuine laughs to go round before McGrath's hare-brained caper has to resort to toilet humour and shameless emotional manipulation to pad out the 97 minutes.

Every night, seven-year-old Tim Templeton (voiced by Miles Christopher Bakshi) enjoys three bedtime stories, five hugs and a special song from his parents Ted (Jimmy Kimmel) and Janice (Lisa Kudrow), who make time for their boy despite demanding jobs for Puppy Co.

This bond is severely tested with the arrival of a brother called Boss Baby (Baldwin), who conceals his status as a fast-rising executive at BabyCorp until Tim catches the new arrival talking business on a toy 'phone.

"If people knew where babies really came from, they'd never have one. A bit like hot dogs," Boss Baby tersely informs his sibling.

It transpires that Boss Baby is on a secret mission to stop Puppy Co's CEO, Francis E Francis (Steve Buscemi), from launching a new product that could weaken humankind's enduring love for babies.

"If this new puppy is as cute as we think, it could put the baby business out of business, baby!" warns the smartly suited infant with an overinflated sense of self-importance.

Tim initially rages against Boss Baby, but he soon realises that helping his nemesis to complete the mission, thereby earning promotion, would be the quickest route to ridding the family home of a second child.

The Boss Baby ties itself in knots blurring fantasy and reality.

If the wise-cracking title character is supposed to be a product of Tim's overactive imagination, it's hard to accept that a seven-year-old boy would have a rich and detailed grasp on the cut and thrust of suited corporate America and rampant capitalism.

Baldwin's bone dry delivery is a masterclass in split-second comic timing and he repeatedly elevates the hit-or-miss material in McCullers' script.

"There's not enough love to go round," laments Boss Baby at one point.

My affection doesn't quite stretch to McGrath's picture.

:: NO SWEARING :: NO SEX :: VIOLENCE :: RATING: 5.5/10