Grace Is Gone (2007) 8/10

Starring : John Cusack, Shelan O'Keefe, Gracie Bednarczyk, Alessandro Nivola
Director : James C Strouse
Running Time : 86 mins

Stan;ey Phillips (Cusack) finds himself a widower when his wife Grace, a soldier in the United States Army, is killed in action in Iraq. Left to look after his two daughters, Heidi (O'Keefe) and Dawn (Bednarczyk), he can't bring himself to break to them the news of their mothers death so instead takes them on an impromptu road trip in the hope of summoning the courage to tell them some where along the way.

This is an incredibly sad movie, with Cusack putting in a very touching performance as the husband and father who is unable to face up to his wife's death. The two girls bring a warmth to the movie that could quite easily have been absent, but it is Cusack and his manic attempts at not breaking the bad news that really keeps this movie flowing.

You’ll like this if you liked : PS I Love You

Classic Friday : Rock-A-Bye Baby (1958) 7/10

Starring : Jerry Lewis, Marilyn Maxwell, Connie Stevens
Director : Frank Tashlin
Running Time : 99 mins

When Hollywood actress Carla Naples (Maxwell) finds herself pregnant with triplets, she decides that in order to protect her career from being destroyed she will send her children off to live with her childhood sweetheart, Clayton Poole (Lewis). Clayton finds himself having to take care of the three lively toddlers, and people start to ask questions about where the children have come from...

Not one of Lewis's best outings, but still very entertaining. Although a little schmaltzy in places - obviously because of the babies being involved - there is still enough slapstick to keep any Lewis fan entertained, and believe me you won't be disappointed if you enjoy his usual antics.

You’ll like this if you liked : Cinderfella

Race To Witch Mountain (2009) 6/10

Starring : Dwayne Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, Alexander Ludwig, Carla Gugino, Ciaran Hinds, Tom Everett Scott
Director : Andy Fickman
Running Time : 99 mins

Las Vegas cabbie Jack Bruno (Johnson) picks up two kids, Seth (Ludwig) and Sarah (Robb), who ask to be driven a considerable distance across the desert, and soon he finds himself pursued by government agents who believe the children in question are aliens from outer space trying to get back to their crashed space craft.

This didn't have the same family feel that the 70s Witch Mountain movies had. It wasn't a colourful or as fun or even as young feeling. Johnson does a good job as the cabbie dragged into an intergalactic war, though it feels like he may have gotten himself trapped in one of the infamous Disney contracts, and Gugino isn't bad, but the kids themselves, even rising star AnnaSophia Robb, seem to care little about their roles and play it far too straight.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Chronicles Of Narnia : Prince Caspian

Grow Your Own (2007) 8/10

Starring : Benedict Wong, Eddie Marsan, Omid Djalili, Philip Jackson
Director : Richard Laxton
Running Time : 90 mins

Big John (Jackson) and his local gardening friends are appalled when they find their allotments invaded by asylum seekers from all over the globe, but it isn't long before the diverse groups of green fingered foes join forced to fight against a mobile phone company who want to erect a signal mast near their precious fruit and veg.

This wasn't the comedy I was expecting, but there are plenty of good characters to enjoy throughout the movie. The moral message isn't lost, even though the conclusion of the movie isn't necessarily what you might expect, and it was nice to see the asylum seekers given their own character and not portrayed in a stereotypical way.

You’ll like this if you liked : Inside I’m Dancing

Elizabethtown (2005) 8/10

Starring : Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst, Susan Sarandon, Alec Baldwin, Bruce McGill, Judy Greer, Jessica Biel
Director : Cameron Crowe
Running Time : 124 mins

After a failed campaign to produce a new type of athletic shoe, Drew Baylor (Bloom) is feeling suicidal. Then he is asked to travel across America to collect the dead body of his father, and he meets air stewardess Claire Colburn (Dunst) who teaches him that failure doesn't come from trying but from not trying at all.

The message of this movie is a little hokey, but there are some good laughs and some decent performances that manage to remain lively without being over the top. Crowe seems to have few ideas left, with this feeling almost like an extension of Jerry Maguire, but I think most people would find this enjoyable, though perhaps a little over long.

You’ll like this if you liked : Jerry Maguire

Big Bad Wolf (2006) 4/10

Starring : Trevor Duke, Kimberly J Brown, Richard Tyson
Director : Lance W Dreesen
Running Time : 94 mins

A group of very stupid teenagers go on a road trip into the woods for a weekend of sex and debauchery only to find themselves attacked by a giant werewolf that's come straight out of The Three Little Pigs. This werewolf can talk and thinks itself quite the wit, and enjoys disembowelling thick kids and having sex with girls. But he two survivors from its last attack suspect they might know who the werewolf might be.

This was possibly one of the worst scripted horror movies I've ever seen. The pun telling werewolf was absolutely ridiculous, the make-up was pretty bad, and the acting was simply appalling. With most of the kids raped, molested and murdered in the first half hour, it's hard to believe that the makers managed to sustain this for another hour. Clearly this movie is trying to be funny, but for whatever reason it just doesn't hit the right tone and falls miles from the mark of actually being any good.

You’ll like this if you liked : Halloween 3

10,000 BC (2008) 6/10

Starring : Steven Strait, Camilla Belle, Cliff Curtis
Director : Roland Emmerich & Harald Kloser
Running Time : 105 mins

Prehistoric hunter D'Leh (Strait) embarks on an epic journey when Evolet (Belle), the love of his life, is kidnapped by a mysterious group of invading forces. As he travels across the country in search of her, he finds himself enslaved by the same warriors and he has to fight for his own life in order to save hers.

There are some pretty decent special effects in this pointless adventure movie, with some interesting takes on woolly mammoths and sabretooth tigers. A cross between Apocalypto and 300, this movie has little in the way of character progression or storyline, and the hammy acting doesn't help to keep this going. But, as it is only an action movie, the acting doesn't need to be good, so if you try to concentrate on the visuals and not the story you might enjoy this a little more.

You’ll like this if you liked : Apocalypto

Classic Friday : Stir Of Echoes (1999) 8/10

Starring : Kevin Bacon, Kathryn Erbe, Illeana Douglas, Liza Weil, Kevin Dunn, Jennifer Morrison
Director : David Koepp
Running Time : 95 mins

Tom Witzky (Bacon) begins to suffer from terrifying visions after he is hypnotised at a neighbourhood party by his sister-in-law Lisa (Douglas). This is all bad enough, but when his visions start to be reflected in reality he tries to rid himself of his new found powers, all the while still finding himself compelled to dig deeper into some of the mysteries his powers have brought to the surface.

This is a great little psychological horror-thriller that doesn’t rely on scares to get a reaction from the audience. Sadly it was somewhat eclipsed by the popularity of The Sixth Sense, in spite of this being based on an original story from the 1950s and The Sixth Sense actually seeming to get some of its inspiration from Richard Matheson’s novel. I’d definitely recommend checking this out – I personally think it’s better than The Sixth Sense.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Sixth Sense

The Guardian (2006) 6/10

Starring : Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher, Melissa Sagemiller, Bonnie Bramlett, Clancy Brown
Director : Andrew Davis
Running Time : 140 mins

After his crew are all killed in a catastrophe at sea, Coast Guard Ben Randall (Costner) is transferred to a training facility to help with the next generation of coast guard wannabes. There he meets Jake Fischer (Kutcher), a trainee coast guard who desperately wants to prove his worth, even if it means outshining his trainers, and who has more in common with Randall than even he would have thought.

This isn't the best movie ever made, and it tries its best to use every cliché going, but there is something in this movie that makes it watchable. It's probably Costner's role that eventually makes this movie worth while, but Kutcher is hopelessly miscast in this and it shows. Worth watching, if only to see Costner beat people up, but it's very long and could have done with cutting at least a third of the movie - it felt like the end 90 minutes in to the film!

You’ll like this if you liked : Cliffhanger

Teacher's Pet (2004) 6/10

Starring : Nathan Lane, Kelsey Grammer, Shaun Fleming, Debra Jo Rupp, David Ogden Stiers, Jerry Stiller, Paul Reubens
Director : Timothy Bjorklund
Running Time : 70 mins

Spot Helperman (Lane) is a talking dog that wants nothing more than to be a real boy, and he prepares himself for such a life by disguising himself as a boy and attending school, so when he hears about a scientist who has perfected the formula for turning household pets into human beings he sets out on a road trip to Los Angeles to try to become one of the doctors test subjects.

This isn't the finest of Disney's movies, and it looks more like SpongeBob SquarePants than anything else, but it has its own distinct charm. The characters are very stereotypical, with mad scientists and eager mothers, butt his doesn't stop the film from being at least enjoyable for very young children.

You’ll like this if you liked : Pinocchio

Observe And Report (2009) 7/10

Starring : Seth Rogen, Ray Liotta, Michael Pena, Anna Faris
Director : Jody Hill
Running Time : 83 mins

Mall security guard Ronnie Barnhardt (Rogen) takes his job very seriously, so when a flasher starts terrifying the customers at his mall he takes it very personally, especially when he targets Brandi (Faris), the make-up counter girl that he is secretly in love with. Following an encounter with Lieutenant Harrison (Liotta), the cop in charge of the flasher case, Ronnie decides that maybe it's time he became a proper cop.

I didn't expect much from this as I'd heard some really bad reviews about this movie, but it wasn't really that bad. Granted, it came along a little close to Paul Blart : Mall Cop, and shared a lot of similarities with it, but it did have a fair few enjoyable moments, and Rogen's delivery was perfect for the character he plays.

You’ll like this if you liked : Paul Blart : Mall Cop

Matchstick Men (2003) 7/10

Starring : Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, Alison Lohman
Director : Ridley Scott
Running Time : 117 mins

Roy Waller (Cage) and Frank Mercer (Rockwell) are con men that sell people water filters at ten times their value under the pretence that the customer has won a high value prize, but when Waller’s OCD and phobias start to affect his ability to con he decides to start seeing a psychiatrist. During his sessions, Waller discovers that he has a teenaged daughter named Angela (Lohman), and when she hears about her father she decides to come and stay.

As far as con movies go, this had considerably more in the way of character development than your average Ocean’s movie. Nicolas Cage is actually pretty good as the obsessive compulsive con man that discovers he has a daughter who wants to follow in his footsteps, and the pacing of the movie and the plot twists involved are expertly achieved in the way only Ridley Scott could manage.

You’ll like this if you liked : Catch Me If You Can

What Just Happened (2008) 7/10

Starring : Robert De Niro, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Bruce Willis, John Turturro, Robin Wright Penn, Stanley Tucci, Kristen Stewart
Director : Barry Levinson
Running Time : 100 mins

Hollywood producer Ben (De Niro) has a lot to deal with, from having a movie made with an ending no one likes and a dircetor unwilling to change, to a movie that won't even get made unless Bruce Willis can shave his beard off, and if that doesn't happened then Ben will get sued by the movie studio that employed him.

This is a very silly movie that takes a dark look at the world of Hollywood and how almost everyone there is permanently on the verge of losing everything. De Niro is his usual wonderful self in the lead role, with a fine cast of supporting actors that parody the industry perfectly, even with WIllis playing something of a diva.

You’ll like this if you liked : Big Fat Liar

Classic Friday : The Golden Child (1986) 7/10

Starring : Eddie Murphy, Charles Dance, Charlotte Lewis, James Hong
Director : Dennis Feldman
Running Time : 89 mins

Chandler Jarrell (Murphy) is a social worker who is asked by Kee Nang (Lewis) to help find The Golden Child, a young boy who holds the survival of civilisation in his hands and has been kidnapped by a satanic cult that wants to poison him to their evil ways so that they can shape the future of the world.

In spite of being one of my favourite childhood movies, this film is really quite often frowned upon by Murphy fans. Fair enough, the role doesn't feel like it was necessarily intended for him in the lead, but Murphy manages to make the role his own, and Charlotte Lewis definitely uses her good looks and charm in one of the most subdued performances by a female lead that I can think of.

You’ll like this if you liked : Big Trouble In Little China

The Brothers Solomon (2007) 5/10

Starring : Will Arnett, Will Forte, Chi McBride, Kristen Wiig, Malin Akerman, Lee Majors
Director : Bob Odenkirk
Running Time : 93 mins

When their father Ed Solomon (Majors) falls into a coma, perpetually cheerful brothers John (Arnett) and Dean (Forte) get it into their head that the only way to help him to wake up is if he has something to wake up for, so they make it their mission to get their father a grandchild.

This is a pretty poor movie as far as comedies go. The characters themselves are what ruins the film - their permanent cheerfulness starts to grate very early on in the movie, and in spite of the best of efforts by the cast, there is very little that can be done to rescue this poor effort from being anything more than simple minded and crass.

You’ll like this if you liked : A Night At The Roxbury

Ray (2004) 7/10

Starring : Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Clifton Powell, Aunjanue Ellis, Harry Lennix, Terrence Dashon Howard
Director : Taylor Hackford
Running Time : 153 mins

Ray Charles Robinson (Foxx) went d at the early age of seven, but never let this hold him back from his dream career of being a musician. As he tries to overcome prejudice against his perceived disability, he finds his music sky-rocketing up the charts with his unique combination sound of rhythm and blue and gospel music, whilst having to cope with his addiction to drugs.

This biopic on the life of Ray Charles holds no bars. Ray is shown in a realistic light as both a womaniser and a drug addict, but he tries to do what’s best by the people on his life. Jamie Foxx is very affective in the lead role, and the supporting cast of rising stars really do help to keep the story grounded in reality.

You’ll like this if you liked : Walk The Line

Perfume : The Story Of A Murderer (2006) 7/10

Starring : Ben Whishaw, Alan Rickman, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Dustin Hoffman
Director : Tom Tykwer
Running Time : 142 mins

In 18th Century Paris, perfumer's apprentice Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Whishaw) was born with a powerful sense of smell, and this ability has turned him into something of a monster, obsessed with preserving the odours of young women in any way he can. His attentions soon turn to Laura Richis (Hurd-Wood), the young daughter of wealthy merchant Antoine Richis (Rickman) who makes it his lifes ambition to avenge his daughters death by finding her killer.

Very strange yet oddly amusing, this movie is both visually pleasing and intriguing, with Whishaw giving a startlingly frightening yet endearing portrayal of the serial murder who preserves scents in a most unusual way. Granted, the closing scenes felt ridiculously over the top, even for a film with such an unlikely plot, but on the whole they work quite well with the feel of the movie.

You’ll like this if you liked : Casanova

Stop-Loss (2008) 6/10

Starring : Ryan Phillippe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rob Brown, Channing Tatum
Director : Kimberly Peirce
Running Time : 113 mins

Decorated war hero Brandon King (Phillippe), having returned from a tour of duty in Iraq, receives orders to return to the front line, an American governemnt policy known as stop-lossing. Traunatised by his past experiences, King goes on the run in a vain attempt to avoid reliving the terrors of war.

The misleading opening sequences will make most viewers believe this is a standard war movie with all of the action taking place in Iraq, but the truth is this is a melodrama set almost wholly in the States, with Phillippe on the run from the military and the governemnt with his friends offering various levels of advice and assistance as he tries to avoid being sent back to war. A reasonable enough movie, and about what you'd expect from a Phillippe flick.

You’ll like this if you liked : Home Of The Brave

The Haunting In Connecticut (2009) 7/10

Starring : Virginia Madsen, Kyle Gallner, Martin Donovan, Amanda Crew, Elias Koteas
Director : Peter Cornwell
Running Time : 103 mins

The Campbell family move to a new house to be closer to the hospital for their son Matt (Gallner) who is suffering from cancer, but soon they start to witness strange goings on in the house and, upon investigation, they discover that the house used to be the home of a funeral parlour owner who dabbled in the occult.

This is an effective horror that doesn't rely too heavily on scares to make it work. Its claims to be based on true events may sound a little far fetched, and I'm sure the makers have embellished the truth a tad, but there is a nice mystery here that unfolds as the movie progresses, although a lot of the mystery is spoiled by being blatantly spelled out to the audience.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Amityville Horror

Classic Friday : Carry On Cowboy (1966) 8/10

Starring : Sidney James, Kenneth Williams, Jim Dale, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Angela Douglas
Director : Gerald Thomas
Running Time : 93 mins

It’s the time of the Wild West, and a sanitary engineer by the name of Marshall P Nut (Dale) travels to Stodge City in the hope of finding some plumbing work, but when he is mistaken for the new city marshal, due to his first name, he finds himself faced off against the Rumpo Kid (James) and his gang of wily cut-throat rustlers. But, with the help of sharp shooting femme fatale Annie Oakley (Douglas), Marshall hopes to rid the town of Rumpo and his men!

This is possibly one of the best western spoofs ever made. The basic plot of mistaken identity leads to a French farce of epic proportions, and Sid James’ villain is one of his most memorable, as is the closing scenes where Dale uses the town sewage system to get the best of James and his gang.

You’ll like this if you liked : Carry On Cleo

The Wind That Shakes The Barley (2006) 7/10

Starring : Cillian Murphy, Padraic Delaney, Liam Cunningham
Director : Ken Loach
Running Time : 128 mins

In 1920s Ireland, brothers Damien (Murphy) and Teddy (Delaney) have different views on how to achieve Irish independence, but when medical student Damien witnesses some terrible acts of violence he joins forces with Teddy’s resistance group. However, when a truce is eventually signed between England and Ireland, some members of the resistance don’t agree with the terms and Teddy and Damien find themselves fighting on opposite sides of an Irish civil war.

This is a very slow story that takes a long time to get going, but the pacing just makes the ending of the movie all the more effective. Murphy and Delaney do a fine job as the politically opposed brothers whose lives are torn apart by the terrible life they live in Ireland, and the violence surrounding their lives helps add to the inevitable disasters that are just waiting to happen.

You’ll like this if you liked : Michael Collins

The Tale Of Despereaux (2008) 7/10

Starring : Matthew Broderick, Robbie Coltrane, Frances Conroy, Tony Hale, Ciaran Hinds, Dustin Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Kevin Kline, Frank Langella, Christopher Lloyd, William H Macy, Charles Shaughnessy, Stanley Tucci, Tracey Ullman, Emma Watson, Sigourney Weaver
Director : Sam Fell & Robert Stevenhagen
Running Time : 94 mins

Following the death of the queen of Door, the king decides to make both soup and rats illegal throughout the kingdom. This leads to the rats having to live in a darkened dungeon where one rat, Roscuro (Hoffman), dreams of leaving the darkness of the dungeon and venturing back out to sea. He soon meets a brave mouse named Despereaux (Broderick), who having read a fairytale about the kingdom of Door wants nothing more than to rescue Princess Pea (Watson) from her imprisonment.

In spite of there being plenty of animated movies around that might be funnier or cuter, this really does have a solid plot which manages to make the most of the vocal talents involved to deliver a very good story that should appeal to all ages. There are a few problems with the story, and Sigourney Weaver's narrator isn't perfect for the tale, but this is still an enjoyable little romp that may actually appeal more to grown ups than to children.

You’ll like this if you liked : Shrek 2

Watchmen (2009) 9/10

Starring : Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Patrick Wilson, Carla Gugino
Director : Zack Snyder
Running Time : 187 mins

In an alternate version of America in 1985, where superheroes have existed since World War II, the world is permanently on the brink of nuclear war. When one-time hero The Comedian (Morgan) is murdered in cold blood, masked vigilante Rorschach (Haley) makes it his duty to find out who killed him, and why they are trying to discredit all heroes as nothing but potential murderers in the making. As he digs deeper, and joins forces with some of his former colleagues, Rorschach soon finds out that the misguided plot to finally bring the world into a nuclear war may have much further reaching affects than even he first realised.

I was surprised that I found this to be such an effective adaptation of the classic graphic novel by Alan Moore. The writers and director have stuck closely to the original story, even going so far as to keep costumes as close to how they were originally conceived as possible. Although a little over long at more than three hours in duration, the time does honestly fly by, and there's so much going on it's hard to find a moment where you really get a chance to look away from the screen and at your watch.

You’ll like this if you liked : V For Vendetta

Capote (2005) 8/10

Starring : Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Chris Cooper, Clifton Collins Jr, Mark Pellegrino
Director : Bennett Miller
Running Time : 115 mins

Having travelled to Kansas with his writer friend Harper Lee (Keener) to do research for an article for the New Yorker, Truman Capote (Hoffman) develops a close relationship with suspected murderers Perry Smith (Collins) and Dick Hickock (Pellegrino), and this friendship leads Capote into a conflict of interest – does he want them to be found innocent of their crimes, or does he was his article, which is slowly becoming a novel, to have the satisfying ending that can only be achieved with their executions?

Hoffman manages to combine a comic performance with some emotionally dramatic moments in this true story of Capote's relationship with two convincted criminals. The non-fiction novel that stemmed from this relationship, In Cold Blood, was Capote's final completed written work, and it's easy to see from this why he was unable to finish anything else after the ordeal he went through trying to keep his work and his private life seperate.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Green Mile

Waitress (2007) 8/10

Starring : Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Shelly, Jeremy Sisto
Director : Adrienne Shelly
Running Time : 108 mins

Small town diner waitress Jenna Hunterson (Russell) is horrified to discover that she is pregnant by her abusive and controlling husband Earl (Sisto), and she has to decide whether she wants to keep the child in his presence or get away from him as fast as she can. When she goes for a standard checkup at her local hospital she meets Dr Pomatter (Fillion) and, after a shaky start, the two start an elicit affair with each other.

This is a very sweet movie that manages to remain sweet in spite of the undertone of spousal violence and extra-marital affairs, which is a great testament to the memory of writer-director Adrienne Shelly. Russell keeps her character both likeable and realistic even though she is basically cheating on her husband, but who can blame her when you see what a terrible person Sisto's character really is, especially in the scene where he makes her promise not to love the baby more than she loves him!

You’ll like this if you liked : Candy