Bryan Cranston gives a cracking performance as Dalton Trumbo, the Hollywood screenwriter who was blacklisted after refusing to testify in the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1947.

The ‘Hollywood Ten’ remains one of the most sensational stories of the McCarthy era and Trumbo is one of its most enduring names, a bitter irony given that he was not initially credited for his Academy Award winning screenplays – Roman Holiday and The Brave One – both of which were penned whilst the blacklist was in effect. This absurdity is not lost on director Jay Roach or writer John McNamara, whose engrossing script takes plenty of dramatic (and comedic) licence with the potent historical subject matter. Together they have created a thoroughly entertaining biopic that ripples with a palpable love of Hollywood in its heyday, whilst revealing the hypocrisies and moral turpitude of the time. Diane Lane is superb as Trumbo’s loyal wife Cleo, with Elle Fanning equally captivating as the feisty elder daughter who inherits her father’s political conviction.

Amongst the film’s many pleasures are truly memorable performances from Helen Mirren as the infamous gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, John Goodman as an unscrupulous B-movie producer and Louis C.K. as the film’s most poignant and affecting character, a friend and fellow writer who refuses to compromise his principles.

• The screenings of Trumbo on Tue 16 Feb are part of our Cinébites deal: Get 30% off any main dish in the Café/Bar with a valid cinema ticket.

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