New Year’s Eve (2011) 6/10

Starring : Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Jon Bon Jovi, Abigail Breslin, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Robert De Niro, Josh Duhamel, Zac Efron, Hector Elizondo, Katherine Heigl, Ashton Kutcher, Seth Meyers, Lea Michele, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michelle Pfeiffer, Til Schweiger, Hilary Swank, Sofia Vergara
Director : Garry Marshall
Running Time : 118 mins

Two couples compete for the chance to win $25 thousand dollars for having the first baby born on New Year’s Day. Rock star Jensen (Bon Jovi) revisits a romance with caterer Laura (Heigl), who hates him for leaving her. Office worker Ingrid (Pfeiffer) quits her job after a near death experience. Teenager Hailey (Breslin) worries about telling her mum Kim (Parker) that she wants to send New Year’s with her friends. Randy (Kutcher) and Elise (Michele) get trapped in elevator together for the night. Sam (Duhamel) finds himself broken down at the side of the road, desperate to get back to town for an important speech. Stan Harris (De Niro) is dying and wants nothing more than to spend his final hours in Times Square. And Claire Morgan (Swank) is given the task of organising the Times Square celebrations for the residents of New York City.

I wonder what the next holiday will be to be given the ensemble random story treatment. Don’t get me wrong, they’re watchable. I’m just worried that next year someone will make Easter Sunday or Memorial Day. It’s fun to see the little vignette’s play out, but it does feel like a lazy way of making money because there’s bound to be at least one actor in this film that people like and will sit through two hours to watch the ten minutes that they’re in.

You’ll like this if you liked : Valentine’s Day

For A Good Time, Call… (2012) 7/10

Starring : Ari Graynor, Lauren Miller, Justin Long
Director : Jamie Travis
Running Time : 86 mins

Lauren Powell (Miller) is tricked by her friend Jesse (Long) into moving in with his friend Katie Steele (Graynor) – a girl Lauren has despised since college – but when she finds herself out of work and discovers that Katie runs her own sex chat line, Lauren decides to get involved for a cut of the take by streamlining the organisation.

This movie reminds me Zack And Miri, and even features Seth Rogen and Kevin Smith! The characters are likeable, though their progression into friendship was a little too fast for my liking. Fans of gross out comedies will chuckle at the wanking scenes, but there aren’t as many disgusting scenes as you might imagine – probably the stand out is the spilt cup of urine.

You’ll like this if you liked : Zack And Miri Make A Porno

Made In Dagenham (2010) 7/10

Starring : Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike, Andrea Riseborough, Daniel Mays, Jaime Winstone
Director : Nigel Cole
Running Time : 114 mins

It’s 1968, and the machinists working at the Ford factory in Dagenham are disgusted to learn that they are being paid as unskilled labourers so they get the union to fight for them, but when their arguments fall on deaf ears, factory girl Rita O’Grady (Hawkins) decides to lead the rest of the girls in strike action until they receive the same pay as their male counterparts.

I actually thought this was quite an entertaining little yarn, which shows just how recently it is that women finally got pay equality for doing the same jobs as men. Hawkins thankfully isn’t annoying like she was in Happy Go Lucky which was a blessing, and the supporting cast put in some solid performances. Coupled with the light hearted approach to what could be quite a serious topic, and you’ll find a likeable and enjoyable romp.

You’ll like this if you liked : Kinky Boots

Rise Of The Guardians (2012) 7/10

Starring : Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Isla Fisher, Hugh Jackman
Director : Peter Ramsey
Running Time : 98 mins

Jack Frost (Pine) discovers that he has been chosen by The Man In The Moon to become one of the guardians of childhood, along with North (Baldwin), Tooth (Fisher), Bunny (Jackman) and Sandy. He’s doubtful about his place amongst them as so few children believe in him, but when the guardians are threatened by the bogeyman himself, Pitch Black (Law), Frost must decide which side he will fight on.

I wouldn’t say this was favourite animated feature of the year, but it was certainly well thought out. Unlike Dreamworks more popular cartoons, such as Shrek, this is far darker and has scenes of true fearfulness that don’t have resolutions that would satisfy children. What did happen to Jack’s sister after he dies? Did she become depressed, turn to drink, die even? Nothing is said about her, and it might have been nice to make his character a bit younger so that we could see his sister as an old woman and that she was okay. I also wasn’t a big fan of Chris Pine’s voice for the role – he just sounded too old as I pictured him as a young boy. Aside from that, this is an action packed family film that will keep most kids on the edge of their seats.

You’ll like this if you liked : The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest (2009) 7/10

Starring : Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Lena Endre, Annika Hallin, Georgi Staykov
Director : Daniel Alfredson
Running Time : 141 mins

After almost dying at the hands of Zalachenko (Staykov), Lisbeth Salander (Rapace) is recovering in hospital when someone tries to kill her, but only after killing her attacker. With the help of Millennium editor Mikael Blomkvist (Nyqvist) and his sister Annika (Hallin), Salander goes on trial for murder and must decide if she is willing to share the details leading up to her attack on Zalachenko , details that she is ashamed of revealing in public.

I did prefer this to The Girl Who Played With Fire, even though there is far less action and the second half of the film is basically a poorly scripted court case. It’s good that a lot of lose ends are tied up, especially considering this wasn’t supposed to be the last in the series, and fans of Lisbeth and Blomkvist will love seeing them finally win a round.

You’ll like this if you liked : Lady Vengeance

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012) 8/10

Starring : Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller
Director : Stephen Chbosky
Running Time : 103 mins

Introverted 15 year-old Charlie Kelmeckis (Lerman) has few friends as he enters his freshman year, what with his best friend having committed suicide, but one day reaches out to extroverted senior Patrick (Miller) and his friend Sam (Watson). They soon become firm friends and Charlie finds himself drawn into their world, but his struggles with mental illness soon seem like they could ruin his chances of a normal life as he suffers a breakdown following their graduation.

This film could easily be retitled The Abuse Movie; Charlie was molested by his aunt, Sam was molested by her father’s boss, Charlie’s sister is physically abused by her boyfriend and Patrick’s secret boyfriend is physically abused by his father, and it all feels so over the top that at one point I thought Paul Rudd was going to try it on with Charlie! That aside, this is a good movie that is both witty and dark and brings some important topics to light, albeit in a slightly overt way.

You’ll like this if you liked : Pretty In Pink

Cars 2 (2011) 8/10

Starring : Larry The Cable Guy, Owen Wilson, Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer, Eddie Izzard, John Turturro
Director : John Lasseter
Running Time : 102 mins

Race car Lightning McQueen (Wilson) is invited to take part in the World Grand Prix and invited his best pal Mater (Larry The Cable Guy) along for a much earned getaway, but when Mater is mistaken for an international spy by British spy cars Finn McMissile (Caine) and Holley Shiftwell (Mortimer), he finds himself involved in an investigation into a group of terrorist lemon cars that are causing cars using the latest oil substitute to explode.

I don’t know why so many people hate this movie so much. Maybe it’s because the lead role moves from Owen Wilson to Larry The Cable Guy, and Larry has never made a great movie. Usually it is the supporting actors in his movies that improve things, but here we don’t have to look at him which helps. Granted, there isn’t enough of the supporting characters, and a lot of the characters brought into this movie are simply there as plot device, but at least there was a plot, and the plot was actually pretty good, I enjoyed seeing the cars operating in the spy world, and fans of spy movies will love this, although there could have been more in jokes relating to things like Bond and Bourne.

You’ll like this if you liked : Megamind

The Hobbit : An Unexpected Journey (2012) 7/10

Starring : Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage
Director : Peter Jackson
Running Time : 170 mins

Quiet conservative Hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Freeman) is forced by wise wizard Gandalf (McKellen) into taking up the challenge of being a thief in part of a quest with thirteen dwarves who need him to travel to the Lonely Mountain to help rid the area of the deadly dragon Smaug who has stolen the dwarves home from them.

I guess I expected so much from this movie that I set myself up for disappointment. I always preferred The Hobbit novel to the Lord Of The Rings trilogy as it felt more innocent and was far more aimed at children, as well as being self-contained and shorter. However, expanding it to three movies, which is pretty much like translating the book as one page to every two minutes - which you could read quicker – made me get really bored really quickly, even though the effects were stunning and the acting fun and lively.

You’ll like this if you liked : Willow

13 (2010) 6/10

Starring : Sam Riley, Ray Winstone, Curtis Jackson, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham
Director : Gela Babluani
Running Time : 94 mins

Vince Ferro (Riley) is strapped for cash and overhears a man talking about a money making scheme that’ll earn him millions in the next few days. When the man dies of a drug overdose, Vince finds instructions on how to get the money so assumes his identity. What he discovers is that the man is part of a deadly game of literal Russian roulette in which a number of men hold guns to each other’s heads for the chance of winning a cash prize.

This is a pretty stupid movie that, like many recent British gangster movies, has one of those endings that really get on my nerves, but it did have some interesting moments and some reasonable acting, mainly from Riley and Winstone in the lead roles. Fans of pointless

You’ll like this if you liked : The Experiment

The Babymakers (2012) 6/10

Starring : Paul Schneider, Olivia Munn, Kevin Hefferman
Director : Jay Chandrasekhar
Running Time : 96 mins

Tommy Macklin (Schneider) and his wife Audrey (Munn) have been trying for a baby for a long time. When they finally realise that this is due to Tommy’s lethargic sperm, they are faced with having to adopt, but when Tommy reveals that he has in the past made deposits to sperm banks, he and his friend Wade (Hefferman) hatch a ridiculous plan to try and get his last remaining sample back.

This wasn’t the best sex comedy I’ve ever seen, but it was nowhere near the worst. Schneider’s deadpan look helped make the over the top scenes feel more believable and more outrageous, but the concept itself didn’t have enough believability to make it truly funny.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Switch

Munich (2005) 5/10

Starring : Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Ciaran Hinds, Mathieu Kassovitz
Director : Steven Spielberg
Running Time : 164 mins

Following the assassination of a number of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, a team of expendable Mossad agents – lead by a man named Avner (Bana) - is brought together to take out anyone who was involved in the deaths, while keeping their eyes out for any foreign agents that might be out to stop their assassination attempts..

I really couldn’t concentrate on this movie – I constantly found myself wondering how much longer there was to go and if anything exciting was going to happen. The problem with this movie is that there is little or no passion, and this clearly comes across through both the actors and the director, as well through the ridiculous run time that feels like someone just couldn’t be bothered to edit it. If you’re looking for an engaging movie from Spielberg, stick with Raiders Of The Lost Ark.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Constant Gardener

Ruby Sparks (2012) 9/10

Starring : Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Annette Bening, Antonio Banderas, Chris Messina
Director : Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris
Running Time : 105 mins

Struggling writer Calvin Weir-Fields (Dano) has a bad case of writer’s block so he draws on a vision of a girl he saw in a dream to help him with his creative process. As he writes, he finds himself wanting more and more to spend time with his creation, Ruby Sparks (Kazan), until one day he wakes up and finds his fictional characters in his house. He thinks he’s gone insane, until he realises that other people can see her too.

I can’t quite say why but I absolutely loved this movie. At no point are we meant to feel sorry for the friendless, loveless writer who somehow creates his perfect women then tries to change her to make her more perfect and only succeeds in losing her unique qualities and forcing her into what is basically a slave, but this doesn’t stop the movie from being thought provoking and entertaining. Kazan is wonderful as Ruby, with Dano as Calvin putting in a believable and interesting performance.

You’ll like this if you liked : Mannequin

The Son Of No One (2011) 6/10

Starring : Channing Tatum, Tracy Morgan, Katie Holmes, Ray Liotta, James Ransone, Jake Cherry, Juliette Binoche, Al Pacino
Director : Dito Montiel
Running Time : 90 mins

Thirty year old rookie cop Jonathan ‘Milk’ White (Tatum) is assigned to the district where he spent much of his childhood. When he discovers that some letters have been sent into the local newspaper regarding a double homicide that occurred when he was a child, White starts to worry that the new captain, Marion Mathers (Liotta), might start looking into the details of the deaths as he had been involved.

This tense thriller tries not to keep too many secrets from the viewer which in some ways can spoil a good cop drama, even the identity of the person sending messages to the newspapers is revealed less than half way through the movie. I guess the purpose of the movie is to show the cover up rather than tease us with who is revealing details of the murders, but the slow pacing of the movie really drag things along at a snail’s pace that for some might cause them to give up, seeing as they already know the killer and who is sending the letters before the movie ends, although that turns out to be a bluff.

You’ll like this if you liked : We Own The Night

Alex Cross (2012) 6/10

Starring : Tyler Perry, Matthew Fox, Rachel Nichols, Edward Burns, Jean Reno
Director : Rob Cohen
Running Time : 102 mins

Alex Cross (Perry) is brought in on a case where a young woman has been brutally beaten, tortured and murdered by an unknown subject who becomes known as Picasso (Fox). As he gets more involved in the case, he discovers that Picasso plans on killing again, and pretty soon he finds his colleagues and his family might be in danger from the crazed killer.

I’m not ashamed I don’t like Tyler Perry. When he writes or directs a movie they tend to be formulaic and repetitive, and also make very little sense. Here we get to see him following someone else’s direction and someone else’s script, and clearly he isn’t very good at it. His rendition of Alex Cross is boring and flat, as are the performances of supporting cast members Nicholls and Burns, and it is only thanks to a good performance from Fox that this wasn’t a total wash.

You’ll like this if you liked : Kiss The Girls

Burlesque (2010) 6/10

Starring : Cher, Christina Aguilera, Eric Dane, Cam Gigandet, Julianne Hough, Alan Cumming, Peter Gallagher, Kristen Bell, Stanley Tucci
Director : Steve Antin
Running Time : 119 mins

Small-town girl Ali Rose (Aguilera) moves to Los Angeles in the hope of becoming a performer. Failing all of her auditions, she finally takes a waitressing job at The Burlesque Lounge, run by retired dancer Tess (Cher), and there she finally succeeds in fulfilling her dream of performing on stage but things take a major step for her when her voice becomes the club’s main attraction.

This is pretty much a standard rags to riches style movie that shows the put upon lead, Aguilera, finally given a chance amongst people who dislike her and managing to become the most important cog in the wheel that keeps their lives going. Aguilera is okay in the lead, with Bell very much underused as the nemesis of the piece, but the basic plot of saving the Burlesque club from being closed down has been done to death.

You’ll like this if you liked : Coyote Ugly

Now Is Good (2012) 8/10

Starring : Dakota Fanning, Jeremy Irvine, Paddy Considine, Olivia Williams, Kaya Scodelario, Egdar Canham
Director : Ol Parker
Running Time : 103 mins

Tessa Scott (Fanning) is diagnosed with leukaemia and is told by her doctors that there is nothing than can do to stop the cancer from spreading. Her only wish from that day forward is to live her life to the fullest and to do everything she’s ever wanted to do, including having sex. When she falls for Adam (Irvine), the boy next door, she finally finds something in her life that can make her happy.

This is a surprisingly emotional movie that really shows that Dakota Fanning has progressed from her early cutesy movie career in such movies as Charlotte’s Web. Her English accent is actually pretty good, and her portrayal of a dying teen is both touching and well observed. There’s no get out of jail free card with this movie, so have the hankies at the ready for this witty look at how people cope with the idea of an imminent death.

You’ll like this if you liked : My Sister’s Keeper

Death Sentence (2007) 7/10

Starring : Kevin Bacon, Garrett Hedlund, Kelly Preston, Aisha Tyler, John Goodman
Director : James Wan
Running Time : 106 mins

When Nick Hume (Bacon) witnesses the murder of his son as part of a gang initiation, he is told that by identifying the culprit they may get three to five years imprisonment. Instead Hume tells the court that he couldn’t identify the youth and takes the law into his own hands, but the repercussions are that the gang come after him and the rest of his family in full force.

Most films about people seeking revenge will end with the vengeance being exacted upon those that have done wrong. Instead this has Bacon get his revenge around the halfway mark and the remainder of the movie has the gang trying to get their revenge, then Bacon getting his revenge again. There’s just so much vengeance in this movie it’s like watching three movies starring Jean Claude Van Damme! Fans of vengeance movies (obviously) will love this, but some viewers might get tired of the repetitive nature of the violence, which I suspect is the point of the movie – that vengeance never ends.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Brave One

Silver Linings Playbook (2012) 7/10

Starring : Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, Chris Tucker
Director : David O Russell
Running Time : 122 mins

Pat Solitano (Cooper) has been released into the custody of his parents after an eight month stint in a mental health facility after he blew a fuse when he found his wife naked in the shower with another man. In his efforts to win his wife back he forms an unlikely friendship with a widow named Tiffany Maxwell (Lawrence), believing that if he enters a dance competition with her his wife might become jealous and take him back.

This is a sweet movie that tries to keep us interested by having the lead characters suffer from various neuroses, but the overall effect wasn’t as good as it could have been. Although Lawrence does a great job in her role, I only believed Cooper’s character when he was being angry – at other times he just felt like every other character he has ever played. Still, it’s definitely worth a watch.

You’ll like this if you liked : It’s Kind of A Funny Story

Winnie The Pooh (2011) 7/10

Starring : John Cleese, Jim Cummings, Bud Luckey, Craig Ferguson, Jack Boulter
Director : Stephen J Anderson & Don Hall
Running Time : 61 mins

In Disney's 51st Animated Classic, Winnie The Pooh (Cummings) helps his good friend Eeyore (Luckey) who appears to have mislaid his tail, but when Owl (Ferguson) misinterprets a note left by Christopher Robin (Boulter) he jumps to the conclusion that the boy has been kidnapped by a creature called a Backsoon!

Disney returns to its classic animated look for this revival of Winnie The Pooh – the first Pooh movie to be classed as a Disney Classic since 1977. All our favourite characters are there, and the usual misunderstandings lead to fun that very young children will enjoy. The plot isn’t complicated, and I was shocked when the end credits started to run only 50 minutes in, but for kids with short attention spans this movie is perfect.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Tigger Movie

Argo (2012) 8/10

Starring : Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman
Director : Ben Affleck
Running Time : 121 mins

It’s 1979, and when the American embassy in Iran is invaded and a number of Americans are taken hostage, six hostages manage to escape and seek shelter in the Canadian embassy. The CIA is challenged with getting the six out of the country, and exfiltration expert Tony Mendez (Affleck) comes up with a plan that involves smuggling the six out of the country under the guise of the production crew on a fictional sci-fi movie.

This was an entertaining movie that, although based on true events, manages to make those events feel simultaneously humorous and serious. The acting isn’t anything special, but the approach to the scenario is handled very well and it’s not surprising this is up for Best Picture at next year’s Oscars.

You’ll like this if you liked : Fair Game

Love And Other Drugs (2010) 8/10

Starring : Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, Oliver Platt, Hank Azaria, Josh Gad
Director : Edward Zwick
Running Time : 113 mins

Pharmaceutical salesman Jamie Randall (Gyllenhaal) will stop at nothing to get a sale, even going as far as paying a doctor so that he can sit in on his consultations, so when Parkinson’s patient Maggie Murdock (Hathaway) walks into his life he takes the opportunity to get to know her as a way in with the various doctors she’s been consulting. It isn’t long before the two fall for each other, but can Jamie manage to focus on love and his career as he is given a hot tip about new wonder drug Viagra?

I was expecting this to be yet another silly sex comedy, but it is in fact a touching look at illness and relationships and how the two can cause major problems for couples. Gyllenhaal and Hathaway have great chemistry on screen and their characters are vibrant and real in every scene. Sadly Josh Gad’s comic relief character was a little uninspired and fell flat at times.

You’ll like this if you liked : No Strings Attached

Taken 2 (2012) 6/10

Starring : Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen, Maggie Grace, Leland Orser, Rade Sherbedgia
Director : Olivier Megaton
Running Time : 93 mins

History repeats itself when retired CIA operative Bryan Mills (Neeson) invites his ex-wife Lenore (Janssen) and daughter Kim (Grace) to spend some time with him in Istanbul where he is working. It isn’t long before Bryan and Lenore are kidnapped by a man named Murad Krasniqi (Sherbedgia), the father of the man Mills killed when his daughter was kidnapped years earlier, and now their only hope of escape is Kim, who managed to evade capture.

For some reason Liam Neeson looks like he’s not even trying in this odd sequel. I just couldn’t fathom why there would be a sequel to Taken other than the fact that it made so much money that the producers though that making another would be guaranteed profit. This movie is a little weak, and having Maggie Grace trying to defeat the bad guys was almost laughable, but fans of random action movies that don’t make sense should get a kick out of this.

You’ll like this if you liked : Die Hard 4.0

Monster’s Ball (2001) 6/10

Starring : Billy Bob Thornton, Heath Ledger, Halle Berry, Peter Boyle
Director : Marc Forster
Running Time : 109 mins

Racist prison guard Hank Grotowski (Thornton) finds himself falling in love with a black woman named Leticia Musgrove (Berry) when they get to know each other after her son is involved in a hit and run accident. To make things worse, Hank is also the man who executed Leticia’s husband as part of his Death Row duties, but neither of them realise that this is the case.

The fact that Hank has had a racist upbringing doesn’t even really seem to get touched upon; granted his dad uses the n word, but Hank talks to black people and doesn’t say anything outrageously derogatory about them. The main focus should have really been on the fact that Hank killed Leticia’s husband, which would be a mjor obstacle for the two of them to overcome – even bigger than race – and the fact that race is even brought into the equation tends to water down the overall message of the movie. Throw in some over the top sex scenes and hammy acting from Berry, and this turns out to be a pretty mediocre flick.

You’ll like this if you liked : Black Snake Moan

Anna Karenina (2012) 6/10

Starring : Keira Knightley, Jude Law, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Matthew Macfadyen
Director : Joe Wright
Running Time : 130 mins

It’s 1874, and aristocrat Anna Karenina (Knightley) has journeyed to Moscow to help save her brother Prince Oblonsky (Macfadyen) from a failed marriage, but when she meets Count Vronsky (Taylor-Johnson) and starts an illicit affair with him, she finds that her own marriage to Count Alexei Karenin (Law) might be in jeopardy.

Jude Law does do a really good job in this latest adaptation of Tolstoy’s melodramatic work. Sadly, Knightley doesn’t feel like she is acting anymore and seems to play the same character in everything and as for Taylor-Johnson in a serious role? I can’t take him seriously since Kick-Ass, even though he did dramatic roles prior to that, and I sense that Kick-Ass may have ruined any career he may have planned on having. Fans of Tolstoy might enjoy this, or they might think that there is too much going on in the background for such a simple and dark story.

You’ll like this if you liked : Marie Antoinette

J Edgar (2011) 7/10

Starring : Leonardo DiCaprio, Naomi Watts, Judi Dench, Armie Hammer, Josh Lucas
Director : Clint Eastwood
Running Time : 137 mins

While being interviewed for a biography of his life, J Edgar Hoover () recounts his career as head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, from his early days as a man obsessed with taking action against those he feel oppose the American way of life right up to his involvement in certain cases where he embellished his role in certain captures to make himself looking like a great man to both politicians and the public.

Although a little slow, and aside from the fact that there isn’t really any action, this is still an interesting movie that manages to address Hoover’s relationship with fellow bureau official Clyde Tolson without openly saying they were gay. DiCaprio brings Hoover to life with an incredible sense of belief that is heavily promoted by Eastwood’s great directing, but sadly there isn’t really enough here to make this a truly great biopic.

You’ll like this if you liked : Milk

The Campaign (2012) 8/10

Starring : Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Jason Sudeikis, Dylan McDermott, Katherine LaNasa, Sarah Baker, John Lithgow, Dan Aykroyd
Director : Jay Roach
Running Time : 109 mins

In a desperate attempt to gain influence over their North Carolina district, two dodgy businessmen – the Motch brothers (Lithgow & Aykroyd) – come up with a plan to get rid of the existing congressman, Cam Brady (Ferrell), by organising a competitor for his position who will do what they say, but they need someone malleable that they can mould to their needs, so they decide on using local tourism operative Marty Huggins (Galifianakis), a naïve family man with no political experience but who has always wanted to get into politics.

It’s been a long time since Will Ferrell has made what I’d class as a laugh-out-loud comedy, but this manages to perfectly balance slapstick comedy with a plotline! Jay Roach (of Austin Powers fame) has done what few have done for Ferrell since Anchorman and directed him in a movie that is consistently funny. It may also be in part thanks to writer Adam McKay who co-wrote both films, but either way Ferrell and Galifianakis make a wonderful pair in this funnier than usual comedy.

You’ll like this if you liked : Anchorman : The Legend Of Ron Burgundy

Arrietty (2010) 7/10

Starring : Saoirse Ronan, Tom Holland, Olivia Colman, Geraldine McEwan, Mark Strong
Director : Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Running Time : 91 mins

Pod (Strong) and his wife Homily (Colman) are four inches tall and live secretly in a human-sized house with their only daughter Arrietty (Ronan), but when a young boy with a heart condition named Sho (Holland) moves into the house and discovers Arrietty in the garden, the family’s life is turned upside-down and the start to fear that others may discover them as well.

Like all of the Studio Ghibli movies this is beautifully animated and doesn’t talk down to kids. This might not have the cute characters some might associate with Ghibli, but it is still fun filled and action packed without having action for action’s sake. The ending is a little open ended, but I don’t expect there to be a sequel as that is sort of a rarity for Studio Ghibli, so it does lose a few marks for having no real conclusion.

You’ll like this if you liked : Ponyo

The Five-Year Engagement (2012) 8/10

Starring : Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Chris Pratt, Alison Brie
Director : Nicholas Stoller
Running Time : 132 mins

One year after meeting at a New Year’s Eve party, Tom Solomon (Segel) decides to propose to his girlfriend Violet Barnes (Blunt), but when Violet gets offered a position as an experimental psychologist at a university that will involve them having to move, the wedding gets put on hold for two years until she can complete her work, with Tom deciding to quit his chef job in order to stay with her. But when the two years turns into four, Tom starts to get annoyed with how much of his life has been put on hold for Violet.

I actually really enjoyed this movie which looks at the kind of things that can delay a wedding, most of them being related to career opportunities. I thought, judging by the runtime and the bad press I’d heard about it that it would be awful, but it is actually very entertaining with some realistic comedy that doesn’t go too over the top, although the rushed wedding at the end felt a little tacked on to me.

You’ll like this if you liked : Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Bernie (2011) 6/10

Starring : Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine, Matthew McConaughey
Director : Richard Linklater
Running Time : 100 mins

Bernie Tiede (Black) is an extremely popular mortician in his small Texan home town, where he is known for throwing the best funerals in town and making even the worst person sound and look good. He starts a relationship with a wealthy local widow, Marjorie Nugent (MacLaine), who is known to be bitter and mean, but she soon turns her attitude around when she starts taking Bernie with her on vacations and he becomes part of her everyday life. But when she decides she doesn’t want to share Bernie with anyone else, Bernie is faced with a dilemma.

Jack Black is likeable in a self-serving sort of way in this light-hearted drama, but when he accidentally kills Shirley MacLaine I was kind of thrown. The acting isn’t up to much, but the overall feel of the movie made it reasonably likeable although – as with most things based on true events – the ending was a bit sad and not what you’d expect.

You’ll like this if you liked : Cedar Rapids

Get The Gringo (2012) 5/10

Starring : Mel Gibson, Kevin Hernandez, Daniel Gimenez Cacho
Director : Adrian Grunberg
Running Time : 96 mins

When he is arrested by Mexican police, a man known simply as Driver (Gibson) is sent to a tough Mexican prison where prisoners are permitted to carry weapons and where there seem to be no rules. The Driver meets a kid (Hernandez) who lives in the prison, and together they form a bond through which they try to put a stop to the corrupt running of the prison.

Personally I didn’t enjoy this movie. Yet again Hollywood has decided to make a movie about a criminal who defeats other criminals and is thereby redeemed. What a load of rubbish. In spite of some okay performances from those involved, and a reasonable script that doesn’t go too over the top, but the combination just didn’t work well for me.

You’ll like this if you liked : Safe House

Scooby-Doo And The Goblin King (2008) 6/10

Starring : Frank Welker, Casey Kasem, Mindy Cohn, Grey DeLisle
Director : Joe Sichta
Running Time : 74 mins

In the twelfth of the direct to video Scooby-Doo series, Scooby-Doo (Welker) and Shaggy (Kasem) find themselves transported into a world of magic where they must find the magical sceptre of the Goblin King before an evil magician can claim them and gain supreme power over the world of magic.

I have to say I much prefer the Scooby-Doo movies that have fake monsters. This admits right from the get go that the ghosts involved are real, and this has always been something of a spoiler for me. Fair enough if we go through the whole movie and then the ghosts are real, but this just felt like an episode from the eighties and the only thing that would have ruined it completely would have been if Scrappy-Doo showed up.

You’ll like this if you liked : Scooby-Doo And The Cyber Chase

Skyfall (2012) 8/10

Starring : Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris
Director : Sam Mendes
Running Time : 144 mins

Whilst on a routine mission, James Bond (Craig) is accidentally shot down by one of his own people and presumed dead. He survives, but while he is missing his boss M (Dench) finds herself under pressure to retire, using Bond’s death as an excuse. Bond eventually returns when he hears of an attack on MI6, and his investigation leads to a man named Silva (Bardem) who wants M dead.

I’m breathing a sigh of relief that this wasn’t another Quantum Of Solace. Granted, it doesn’t feel like a Bond movie, and clearly Bond wants to give up his job and isn’t his usual cheerful quippy self, but fans of Craig in the role will really love this gritty instalment that leaves the audience second guessing at every turn.

You’ll like this if you liked : Casino Royale

Ca$h (2010) 7/10

Starring : Sean Bean, Chris Hemsworth, Victoria Profeta, Mike Starr
Director : Stephen Milburn Anderson
Running Time : 109 mins

Sam Phelan (Hemsworth) finds a suitcase filled with money in the back of his car, and he and his wife Leslie (Profeta) can’t believe their good luck. Sadly, the money belongs to criminal Reese Kubic (Bean) who was being chased by the cops when he got rid of the bag, and his identical twin brother Pyke (Bean) has tracked down the Phelans and wants the money back.

This starts off slowly, and the whole twin thing was irrelevant to most of the movie, but this did get entertaining when the Phelan’s start working with Kubic to get the money back. Fans of heist movies will like this and it really concentrates on the planning more than the execution, but it would have been better if it was a little faster paced.

You’ll like this if you liked : Bandits

Changeling (2008) 7/10

Starring : Angelina Jolie, Jeffrey Donovan, John Malkovich, Jason Butler Harner, Colm Feore, Devon Conti, Gattlin Griffith
Director : Clint Eastwood
Running Time : 141 mins

Christine Collins (Jolie) is devastated when her son Walter (Griffith) disappears without a trace. The police spend five months trying to track him down and finally bring Christine good news – they have found a young boy (Conti) who says he is Walter, but Christine knows instantly that this is not her son, but in spite of her protests the police – namely Captain Jones (Donovan) – try to silence her by declaring her mental unstable and an unfit mother, and have her committed to an asylum.

Apparently based on true events, it’s amazing how dodgy the police can be just so that they can close a missing persons case. The idea that the police could do this rather than trying to track down a serial killer is a little frightening, as were their methods in dealing with Christine Collins, but Eastwood manages to direct this in a way that keeps us believing the actions of those involved and keeps the intrigue going from start to finish.

You’ll like this if you liked : Unknown

Hotel Transylvania (2012) 8/10

Starring : Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Kevin James
Director : Genndy Tartakovsky
Running Time : 92 mins

Dracula (Sandler) has built a hotel where monsters can stay without fear of attack from the human world and his operating it for over 100 years. When his daughter Mavis (Gomez) turns 118, she decides she wants to explore the human world, so he fakes a human village to deter her from this desire, but when human Jonathan (Samberg) happens upon the hotel, Dracula has to ask him to pretend to be a monster in order to hide the idea that not all humans are bad from his daughter and his friends, but tragedy strikes when Mavis falls in love with Jonathan.

This is actually a pretty touching morality tale that not only shows that even a monster can love someone, but that judging people based on past experience is something we should never do. The voice casting was good, and the development of the story was enjoyable, plus the animation was fluid and fun to watch.

You’ll like this if you liked : Despicable Me

Paranormal Activity 3 (2011) 7/10

Starring : Lauren Bittner, Christopher Nicholas Smith, Chloe Csengery, Jessica Tyler Brown
Director : Henry Joost & Ariel Schulman
Running Time : 94 mins

It’s 1988, and cinematographer Dennis (Smith) moves in with his girlfriend Julie (Bittner) and her two daughters Katie (Csengery) and Kristi (Brown) and while making a sex tape discovers that there appears to be a strange figure lurking in their bedroom. He sets up cameras around the house to catch sight of anything else out of the ordinary, and discovers that Kristi has an imaginary friend she talks to at night called Toby.

In this instalment of the ever increasing Paranormal Activity Saga, we are informed that the ghosts from parts one and two were not the family’s first encounter with the other side. With the setting being 1988, and with young versions of Katie and Kristi, it seems that they’ve been haunted since birth, and that the ghosts want to steal their kids as part of a satanic ritual which their grandmother seems to be part of. Fans of the series will enjoy this extension of the series, but God only knows where they’re going to go from here.

You’ll like this if you liked : An American Haunting

The Possession (2012) 7/10

Starring : Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Kyra Sedgwick, Natasha Calis, Madison Davenport
Director : Ole Bornedal
Running Time : 93 mins

Divorcee Clyde (Morgan) has divorced from his wife Stephanie (Sedgwick), and their two girls Hannah (Davenport) and Emily (Calis) live with the mother, visiting Clyde on the weekends. One weekend, the three stop at a yard sale where Emily buys an antique carved box. Becoming obsessively protective of the box, Emily finally finds a way to open the lock and unwittingly releases an evil spirit that takes over her body and her behaviour starts to concern her father, but no one will listen to his suspicions.

Em’s ‘unusual behaviour’ is completely beyond the realm of having a problem and way into the area of your daughter being a devil child. Her lack of reaction to a room filled with bugs and her lashing out with a fork at her father for no apparent reason all spell possession to me, but useless Sedgwick doesn’t want a hear about it. Surely she would have listened to her other daughter even if she didn’t want to listen to her ex-husband. There seem to have been an awful lot of these child possession movies in recent years – I can remember when The Exorcist was an original idea – but as far as possession movies go, this is one of the better efforts, thanks in part to Morgan’s intriguing performance and no thanks in part to Sedgwick’s ridiculously hammy carrying on.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Exorcism Of Emily Rose

I Spit On Your Grave (2010) 6/10

Starring : Sarah Butler, Jeff Branson, Andrew Howard, Daniel Franzese, Rodney Eastman, Chad Linberg
Director : Steven R Monroe
Running Time : 109 mins

When writer Jennifer Hills (Butler) takes a retreat to a remote cabin in the woods in order to start on her new book, she attracts the attention of the city hating locals who, one night, break into her cabin in order to scare her, but things escalate out of control and they soon turn to sexually assaulting her and plan to kill her. She manages to escape and survive, and decides to seek vengeance against the men that have ruined her life.

Practically the first half of this movie involves Hills arrival at the cabin and her subsequent sexual assault, and this is very uncomfortable viewing. Her eventual escape from her attackers felt a little bit ridiculous – I couldn’t see how she could just slowly wander off and they wouldn’t be able to find her – and her eventual overpowering assault on the men beggars the question how she couldn’t have overpowered them in the first place. This isn’t the best rape-revenge movie around, and as a remake it lacks what the original has going for it – the shock effect.

You’ll like this if you liked : Run! Bitch Run!

Sinister (2012) 7/10

Starring : Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Dalton Thompson, James Ransone
Director : Scott Derrickson
Running Time : 106 mins

True-crime writer Ellison Oswalt (Hawke) moves his family into a house where a bizarre murder took place. When he discovers a collection of fifty year old 8mm snuff films in the house, he starts to get the idea that the murder he is investigating stems back to at least the 1960s and may in fact be the work of a serial killer rather than just a one-off event.

What starts of as a slightly creepy thriller soon evolves into an out-and-out horror as we are introduced to the supernatural child manipulator, Bughuul. This is well paced and makes for some slightly uncomfortable and jumpy viewing, but a lot of the subtleties are just not subtle enough and could have been handled far better with a little less of the supernatural in the opening to really give the viewers a shook when Bughuul starts to show up.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Skeleton Key

The Phantom Of The Opera (2004) 6/10

Starring : Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum, Patrick Wilson, Miranda Richardson, Minnie Driver
Director : Joel Schumacher
Running Time : 142 mins

When a mysterious ghostly figure haunts a French Opera House, causing havoc to the cast and crew, lead soprano Carlotta Giudicelli (Driver) quits the show, fearing for her life. Taking her place is young chorus girl Christine Daae (Rossum), who has been secretly tutored by The Phantom (Butler), a hideously disfigured man who hides beneath the opera house, who has been staging accidents and mishaps with the aim of boosting Christine into a lead role. But when Christine falls in love with the Vicomte de Chagny – a man named Raoul (Wilson) – The Phantom becomes jealous and kidnaps Christine in order to make her his bride.

For the first time the musical version of The Phantom Of The Opera is brought to the big screen. There have been other non-musical versions, but it is interesting to get to see how this would play out in the West End. The singers are able, the sets are reasonable, and Minnie Driver adds a little humour, but sadly the majority of the cast – specifically the three leads – have very little personality and make this a slightly dull movie to watch.

You’ll like this if you liked : Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street

Frankenweenie (2012) 8/10

Starring : Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Charlie Tahan, Atticus Shaffer, Winona Ryder
Director : Tim Burton
Running Time : 87 mins

When schoolboy Victor Frankenstein (Tahan) unwittingly causes his dog Sparky to get run over and killed during a baseball game, he decides to bring the beloved pet back from the dead, but when his school friends find out about Victor’s success in reanimation they start trying it out for themselves in the hope of winning the school science fair.

You’d think that Tim Burton’s love of stop-motion horror cartoons would get old, but this is just as good as Corpse Bride or The Nightmare Before Christmas. Granted it starts off slowly with a gradual introduction to the world of Victor and Sparky, but once Sparky dies and Victor has brought him back, the mayhem soon hits its stride. There’s lots going on for kids and grown-ups alike, and I think the whole family will enjoy this latest offering from Burton.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Nightmare Before Christmas

The Artist (2011) 7/10

Starring : Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, James Cromwell, Missi Pyle, John Goodman
Director : Michel Hazanavicius
Running Time : 100 mins

When Peppy Miller (Bejo) accidentally runs into screen legend George Valentin (Dujardin), she is inspired to audition for a small role in the movies. She soon becomes an overnight success and starts moving further up the billing at the cinema, but when 1929 and the advent of the talkies hits, Valentin finds himself becoming less and less popular as he refuses to move with the times and start speaking in his films.

I grew up on old black and white movies, though the only silent ones I ever watched were Laurel and Hardy, as I've always found Chaplin to be a bit too boring (controversial?). This is a perfect homage to that era, with some great use of cinematography and a clever nod to the transition to sound period of 1929. Personally I’d attribute George’s reluctance to make talkies to the fact that he may have been worried that his visual acting style may not translate well if his vocal skills didn’t match, though many thin it was due to his French accent. Either way, this is a nice conceit of a movie, but don’t expect to enjoy it unless you have at least a passing familiarity and fondness for the silent era.

You’ll like this if you liked : Citizen Kane