Limitless (2011) 7/10

Starring : Bradley Cooper, Anna Friel, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro
Director : Neil Burger
Running Time : 98 mins

Unemployed writer Eddie Morra (Cooper) finds a stash of drugs when his friend is murdered that allows him to use 100 per cent of his brain power, but as he discovers just what kind of a man he can be if he used his full potential, others hear about the drug and will stop at nothing to acquire its power.

Cooper manages to make this movie about using your potential interesting from start to finish, even though a lot of what happens in the movie is predictable. His change from being a useless slacker into an intelligent hard working man about town is fun to watch, and the supporting cast in most part manage to keep the action alive throughout.

You’ll like this if you liked : Minority Report

The Girl Who Played With Fire (2009) 6/10

Starring : Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace
Director : Daniel Alfredson
Running Time : 125 mins

As Mikael Blomkvist (Nyqvist) investigates a sex trafficking ring through which some high ranking officials have been abusing young girls, two of his researchers are murdered and his acquaintance Lisbeth Salander (Rapace) is framed for their deaths. As Lisbeth is forced to go on the run from the authorities, Mikael races against time to clear her name and find out who is trying to keep the sex trafficking ring a secret…

Probably the best thing about this movie is that we learn a little more about the background of the character of Lisbeth. There’s a lot going on in this movie as we are taken in two directions by Blomkvist and Salander, and go deeper into the criminal world of sex trafficking. Fans of the original will enjoy this second instalment, though it doesn’t have quite the appeal of the first.

You’ll like this if you liked : Run Lola Run

Season Of The Witch (2011) 7/10

Starring : Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Stephen Campbell Moore, Claire Foy
Director : Dominic Sena
Running Time : 95 mins

Disgraced 14th Century knights Behmen von Bleibruck (Cage) and his comrade Felson (Perlman) return to their homeland to find the country overrun with the Black Plague, and the church deciding that the source of the plague is witchcraft. As punishment for their desertion they are charged to deliver a young girl named Anna (Foy) to a remote monastery in order that a specific religious rite can be enacted to destroy the plague.

Why these English Crusaders have American accents is beyond me. Even the English actors are putting on a yankee twang. Despite the Americanization of this movie, it is still an action filled drama that tells the story of the plague, and how the church reacted to it, in an interesting and provocative way.

You’ll like this if you liked : Constantine

The Wolfman (2010) 7/10

Starring : Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt
Director : Joe Johnston
Running Time : 120 mins

Shakespearean actor Lawrence Talbot (Del Toro) returns from America to his ancestral English home when he is given the news from his brothers’ fiancée Gwen Conliffe (Blunt) that his brother has vanished. As he investigates, Talbot discovers that a strange creature has been attacking nearby villagers and may have been responsible for his brothers’ disappearance.

I’d heard some pretty bad things about this reworking of the classic horror story, but I actually thought it was pretty good. Some of the twists were predictable, but the pacing was good and the action, though sometimes a little hammy, was well done and fun to watch, especially the werewolf transformation scenes.

You’ll like this if you liked : From Hell

Paul (2011) 8/10

Starring : Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig
Director : Greg Mottola
Running Time : 99 mins

British sci-fi fans Graeme Willy (Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Frost) decide to take the trip of a life time to Roswell, New Mexico in the United States. There they run into an alien that calls himself Paul (Rogen) who has been living in a government facility for the last sixty years, little realising he was being held captive. Now he’s excaped and, with the help of Graeme and Clive, hopes to try to make his way back to his home planet.

I really enjoyed this latest movie from Pegg and Frost. Granted, it wasn’t as good or original as Shawn Of The Dead or Hot Fuzz, but it still has all the energy and good humour that you’d expect from this pair. Rogen maked an interesting addition to the team as the voice of alien Paul, and his laid back voice and personality are perfect in the role.

You’ll like this if you liked : Fanboys

Open Season 2 (2008) 6/10

Starring : Joel McHale, Mike Epps, Jane Krakowski, Billy Connolly, Crispin Glover, Cody Cameron
Director : David I Stern
Running Time : 74 mins

Just when he’s about to get married to Giselle (Krakowski), the doe of his dreams, Elliot the deer (McHale) gets distracted when Mr Weenie (Cameron) is apparently kidnapped. With the help of Boog the bear (Epps) and a whole host of other woodland creatures, Elliot sets out to rescue the poor unfortunate dog.

This sequel to the reasonably popular 2006 original suffers badly from not having the original voice cast. The absence of Ashton Kutcher and Martin Lawrence is noticeable, especially as Epps sounds nothing like Lawrence, but the simple plot of the gang trying to rescue their friend is mildly entertaining and will easily amuse small children.

You’ll like this if you liked : Over The Hedge

Battle Los Angeles (2011) 5/10

Starring : Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Bridget Moynahan
Director : Jonathan Liebesman
Running Time : 111 mins

On the day that he is due to retire from the marines, Michael Nantz () is reassigned to a new platoon that are being sent to investigate some mysterious meteors that have entered the Earth’s atmosphere. They have been reported as slowing down as they are about to hit the surface, and strange aliens have emerged from them and started to kill anyone they come across.

This action movie was, in my opinion, pretty disappointing. A reasonably imaginative premise is almost completely ruined by focussing on the All-American military forces rather than the aliens, which would have been much more interesting, and going in the usual direction that American action movies do. The characters were one-dimensional, and Aaron Eckhart in the lead role of an action movie just felt wrong to me.

You’ll like this if you liked : Armageddon

Prince Of Persia : The Sands Of Time (2010) 7/10

Starring : Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley
Director : Mike Newell
Running Time : 116 mins

Adopted Prince Dastan (Gyllenhaal) and Princess Tamina (Arterton) are forced to join forces despite their initial enmity to stop the forces of evil from possessing the power of an ancient dagger that is capable of controlling The Sands Of Time – a Godlike power that allows any who possess it to control time itself.

Yet another computer game gets adapted for the big screen, but at least this one is at least slightly entertaining. There is a semblance of a plot that manages to encompass the action, but it is the action alone that makes this a fun filled family movie. Very young kids might not like this very much, but fans of movies like The Mummy will appreciate the mythical feel of this film.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Mummy Returns

Hall Pass (2011) 7/10

Starring : Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Jenna Fischer, Christina Applegate, Stephen Merchant
Director : Bobby & Peter Farrelly
Running Time : 105 mins

Rick Mills (Wilson) and Fred Searing (Sudeikis) are two married men who miss their single lives so, realizing this, their wives Maggie (Fischer) and Grace (Applegate) agree to give them a hall pass, allowing them one week in which they can whatever they like and not suffer any of the consequences.

The Farrelly Brothers are back on form with this gross out comedy filled with the kind of humour you would expect from the makers of There’s Something About Mary and Dumb And Dumber. There are some very funny scenes interspersed throughout the movie, and probably the funniest thing is that the two friend’s first instinct isn’t to go looking for women but to just do what they like to do, like playing golf and eating and drinking too much at bars.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Heartbreak Kid

True Grit (2010) 7/10

Starring : Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Hailee Steinfeld
Director : Ethan & Joel Coen
Running Time : 111 mins

Following the murder of her father, stubborn 14-year old Mattie Ross (Steinfeld) enlists the aid of Texas Ranger Rooster Cogburn (Bridges) to track down his killer. Unusually for Cogburn, young Mattie insists on accompanying him on the journey, wanting to see the face of the man who killed her father and see him confess before he dies.

Fans of Westerns will enjoy this remake of the 1969 John Wayne classic. Bridges is perfect as the drunken Cogburn, while Steinfeld’s angry young Mattie Ross resonates on the screen, stealing the thunder of many of the other actors involved. Her characters anger primarily drives the action in this slow paced revenge movie which sadly doesn’t have any of the humour of the original, but thanks to a sterling supporting cast the slow pacing and lack of humour is barely noticeable.

You’ll like this if you liked : 3:10 To Yuma

The Adjustment Bureau (2011) 7/10

Starring : Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Michael Kelly
Director : George Nolfi
Running Time : 106 mins

When up and coming politician David Norris (Damon) falls for ballet dancer Elise Sellas (Blunt), he finds that a mysterious group of men are desperately trying to keep them apart. As he digs deeper, Norris discovers that the men work for an organization known as The Adjustment Bureau – an organization that are there to ensure that the correct paths of destiny are walked down and not deviated from, not matter what the cost.

Basically this is a chase movie combined with a love story; Damon and Blunt spend the whole movie running away from the powers that want to keep them apart, all the while driving them closer together. This is actually an interesting story, that poses the question of whether destiny can be changed in the pursuit of true love, but the real question should be concerning which destiny is the true one as the two lead characters seem to be destined to be together as everything actually seems to be throwing them together while the Bureau are forcing their will on them to keep them apart.

You’ll like this if you liked : Minority Report

Balls Out : Gary The Tennis Coach (2009) 7/10

Starring : Seann William Scott, Randy Quaid, Brando Eaton
Director : Danny Leiner
Running Time : 87 mins

Former tennis pro Gary Houseman (Scott) has been living out his life working as a high school janitor, but when he gets the chance to coach a ragtag team of wannabe tennis player, he jumps at the opportunity, eventually leading them to the Nebraska State Championships.

Scott once again manages to steal the limelight in this average comedy where every scene seems to be set up for him to shine whilst the rest of the cast just watch. There aren’t many sports left for the comedy writers of America to lampoon, and tennis isn’t the most obvious one to choose, but there are a few funny moments that make this a fun movie to watch.

You’ll like this if you liked : Dodgeball

Rango (2011) 6/10

Starring : Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Timothy Olyphant
Director : Gore Verbinski
Running Time : 108 mins

Much-loved pet chameleon Rango (Depp) spends much of his time pretending he is the hero in various action movies of his own imagining, but following a car accident he finds himself in a wild west town called Dirt where he pretends to be a hero and ends up becoming the towns Sheriff. His first course of action : to find some much needed water to replace the towns dwindling source.

I don’t think kids will enjoy this movie – a chameleon doesn’t seem like the most likely choice for the lead in a children’s movie – bit I might be wrong. I personally thought this was okay, but couldn’t really get into what little story there was. It was almost like someone was trying to make an animated version of The Three Amigos, but with just one Amigo!

You’ll like this if you liked : The Wild

MacGruber (2010) 6/10

Starring : Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, Ryan Phillippe, Val Kilmer
Director : Jorma Taccone
Running Time : 96 mins

When evil criminal Dieter Von Cunth (Kilmer) steals a Russian nuclear warhead, the US military track down and find MacGruber (Forte), an ex-green beret whose wife was murdered by Von Cunth. MacGruber reforms a crack team to track down the criminal, including his long-time friend Vicki St Elmo (Wiig).

What starts off as a seemingly serious action movie soon slides into farce as Will Forte embodies the spirit of MacGyver and parodies him to high heaven. It’s a shame when a perfectly good character from Saturday Night Life unjustly gets a big screen movie adaptation – it’s not always easy to stretch out a 3 minute sketch to 90 minutes – and this is no exception to the rule.

You’ll like this if you liked : Tropic Thunder

Transformers : Revenge Of The Fallen (2009) 6/10

Starring : Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson
Director : Michael Bay
Running Time : 150 mins

Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) thinks his problems with the Decepticons are over, but little does he realise that they are trying to find him so that they can access some information that has some been imprinted in his mind. Once they have this information, they will use it to destroy the sun!

Although it seems ridiculous to continue to make Transformers movies – I was never really a big fan of the 80s cartoon, though I did have more than a few of the toys – it seems as if the general public can’t get enough of these shape-changing robot aliens and their action packed, though feebly plotted escapades. Fans of the original will probably enjoy this, but if you like a bit of substance in your movies then steer clear.

You’ll like this if you liked : Independence Day

No Strings Attached (2011) 7/10

Starring : Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher, Kevin Kline, Cary Elwes, Greta Gerwig, Lake Bell
Director : Ivan Reitman
Running Time : 108 mins

Emma Kurtzman (Portman) and Adam Franklin (Kutcher) have bumped into each other frequently over the years since they first met in summer camp at the age of 15, so when Adam discovers that one of his exes is dating his dad, and Emma’s father dies leaving her an emotional pariah, they decide to start up a no-strings-attached, sex-only relationship.

There seem to be a few of these movies around at the moment, what with Friends With Benefits on its way in a few months. The idea for this movie is a simple one that, in many ways, has been done before, but Kutcher and – unusually in a comedy – Portman manage to keep the comedic moments alive while still intermingling dramatic moments.

You’ll like this if you liked : Love & Other Drugs

Youth In Revolt (2009) 7/10

Starring : Michael Cera, Portia Doubleday, Jean Smart, Zach Galifianakis, Steve Buscemi
Director : Miguel Arteta
Running Time : 90 mins

Lonely teenager Nick Twisp (Cera) is forced to go camping with his mother Jean (Smart) and step-father Jerry (Galifianakis) – their idea of camping is staying in a trailer for a few days. There he meets Sheeni Saunders (Doubleday), the girl of his dreams, and Nick decides that if he is going to be able to make a future with Sheeni, he needs to misbehave so that his mum will send him to live with his father George (Buscemi), who happens to live near Sheeni...

This light hearted comedy-drama is actually pretty fun to watch. People who enjoy coming-of-age dramas might enjoy this twist on the tale. Cera is perfect for this underplayed role, managing to play his usual wide-eyed obliviousness to the hilt.

You’ll like this if you liked : Adventureland

I Am Number Four (2011) 4/10

Starring : Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Teresa Palmer, Dianna Agron
Director : DJ Caruso
Running Time : 110 mins

John Smith (Pettyfer) is an alien, forever on the run from bounty hunters that are out to destroy him and his kind. When he moves to a small town in Ohio, he meets and falls in love with a girl called Sarah Hart (Agron), an occurrence that leads him to some life changing decisions…

This movie was pretty weak. The acting was poor, the plot was trite and the visuals were less than amazing. True sci-fi fans will be disappointed by this subpar effort which makes little or no effort to entertain – it’s almost like watching an inverse version of Twilight, but with aliens.

You’ll like this if you liked : Race To Witch Mountain

Yogi Bear (2010) 6/10

Starring : Dan Aykroyd, Justin Timberlake, Anna Faris, Tom Cavanagh
Director : Eric Brevig
Running Time : 81 mins

As Jellystone Park celebrates its 100th Anniversary, park ranger Smith (Cavanagh) receives the disturbing news that the park isn’t make enough money and may be closed at the end of the season. When local bears Yogi (Aykroyd) and Boo Boo (Timberlake) hear that their home may be closed to the public – which will mean no more picnic baskets – they decide to join forces with their historical enemies, the park rangers, and try to save the park.

I didn’t expect this to be brilliant, and it wasn’t. The Warner Brothers style animation hasn’t really improved over the years, and the slim plot was barely noticeable. Casting Tom Cavanagh as Ranger Smith seemed like a half-hearted effort to find someone to match the cartoon character, but Aykroyd and, surprisingly, Timberlake were perfect as Yogi and Boo Boo.

You’ll like this if you liked : Garfield