American Hustle (2013) 7/10

Starring : Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence
Director : David O Russell
Running Time : 138 mins

When con artists Irving Rosenfeld (Bale) and Sydney Prosser (Adams) are caught by the FBI, agent Richie DiMaso (Cooper) cuts them a deal that requires them to help the FBI catch those accepting their crooked deals. Their primary target: Carmine Polito (Renner), a New Jersey mayor who they plan to entrap by offering him donations in return for him helping to grant citizenship to an Arab Sheikh, but things fall apart when Irving’s wife Rosalyn (Lawrence) opens her big mouth...

This movie is basically a fun heist movie in reverse, with the main characters trying to give away the money to catch crooked politicians and the like. The story starts off strong, but falls apart in some ways with them trying to catch these guys out with a fake Sheikh offering money in return for citizenship. The performances were pretty strong, and Lawrence’s house-cleaning to Live And Let Die was fun, but this could have been better.

You’ll like this if you liked : Ocean’s Eleven

Batman : Under The Red Hood (2010) 8/10

Starring : Bruce Greenwood, Jensen Ackles, John Di Maggio, Neil Patrick Harris, Jason Isaacs, Wade Williams
Director : Brandon Vietti
Running Time : 76 mins

Batman (Greenwood) is faced with a new menace in the form of the mysterious Red Hood (Ackles). As he investigates, Batman discovers that although drug trafficking has increased since The Red Hood showed up in Gotham, crime has actually dropped, and it transpires that Red Hood is also cleaning up the criminal aspect of the city – just without the ethical code that Batman follows. When Batman finally does discover The Red Hood’s identity, it becomes clear what his true intentions really are...

Even though this is about as predictable as you can get, this is still an entertaining Batman story. Of the recent animated adaptations it is probably one of the strongest I’ve seen, with the most suitable animation style used for the content. The characters feel much more in line with the comics, and true Batman fans will find little to fault with this movie.

You’ll like this if you liked : Justice League : The New Frontier

Much Ado About Nothing (2012) 8/10

Starring : Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Nathan Fillion, Clark Gregg, Reed Diamond, Fran Kranz, Jillian Morgese, Sean Maher
Director : Joss Whedon
Running Time : 109 mins

As preparations take place for the wedding of Claudio (Kranz) and Hero (Morgese) the governor of Messina, Leonato (Gregg), conspires with his visiting friend Don Pedro (Diamond) to trick Beatrice (Acker) and Benedick (Denisof) into falling in love, seeing their bickering rivalry as a sort of romantic game.

Whedon takes actors from all of his most popular shows and sticks them into roles in Shakespeare’s iconic romantic comedy. Acker and Denisof are likeable in the lead roles, though I always found the characters of Beatrice and benedick a little too unbelievable to be true, and the supporting cast of actors from the likes of Agents Of Shield, Firefly, Dollhouse, Angel and Buffy put in some good performances that make this a fun adaptation that can only really be overshadowed by Kenneth Branagh’s 1993 version.

You’ll like this if you liked : Romeo And Juliet

Win Win (2011) 8/10

Starring : Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale, Jeffrey Tambor, Burt Young, Melanie Lynskey, Alex Shaffer
Director : Tom McCarthy
Running Time : 107 mins

Failing small town lawyer Mike Flaherty (Giamatti) decides to take on guardianship of Leo Poplar (Young), an old man with apparently no family who is slowly developing senility, in order to make some extra cash, but when Leo’s grandson Kyle Timmons (Shaffer) shows up, Mike finds himself looking after him, too. Kyle proves himself to be a great wrestler, and Mike decides to enter him in the school wrestling team, which he helps coach on the side, but when Kyle’s mum Cindy (Lynskey) shows up, things start to take a downward spiral.

The realism of the characters in this is what makes it such a strong movie. The fact that the so-called problem teen is actually quite polite and well behaved makes him likeable without being roguish, and the misbehaviour of the adults is what is most interesting. Having the teenager be the voice of reason really helped, and fans of Giamatti’s usual fare will enjoy his performance in this.

You’ll like this if you liked : Silver Linings Playbook

Escape From Planet Earth (2013) 7/10

Starring : Rob Corddry, Brendan Fraser, Sarah Jessica Parker, William Shatner, Jessica Alba, Jane Lynch, Craig Robinson, George Lopez, Sofia Vergara
Director : Cal Brunker
Running Time : 89 mins

When famed astronaut Scorch Supernova (Fraser) from the planet Baab travels to Earth in response to an SOS, he is captured by a group of humans led by the evil Shanker (Shatner), and the only person who can save him is his nerdy big brother Gary (Corddry).

For a kids cartoon this was pretty slow going to start, but it soon got going and was actually pretty entertaining. The voice actors do good jobs in their roles, with both Corddry and Fraser playing the rival siblings with believable aplomb. The background to the story itself – that just because people have set places in society doesn’t mean that they can’t expand their horizons - is one that will teach kids an important lesson in how they shouldn’t judge people.

You’ll like this if you liked : Space Chimps

Crazy Heart (2009) 7/10

Starring : Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Colin Farrell
Director : Scott Cooper
Running Time : 112 mins

Now that he is fifty-seven years old. once well-known country and western singer Bad Blake (Bridges) has fallen on hard times. He can’t get any decent gigs any more, and his alcoholism and womanising are leading him to an early grave. So when he meets reports Jean Craddock (Gyllenhaal), a much younger woman, he starts a relationship with her and starts to think about trying to turn his life around.

Bridges and Gyllenhaal make an interesting team-up, and both do their best to bring their characters to life, but there isn’t really anything to this love story of sorts. Bad’s attempt at fixing his life is half-hearted to say the least. But it’s his love of Jean and her son Buddy that lend real charm to this otherwise mediocre movie.

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

Quartet (2012) 5/10

Starring : Maggie Smith, Tom Courtenay, Billy Connolly, Pauline Collins
Director : Dustin Hoffman
Running Time : 99 mins

In a retirement home for musicians, a trio of retired musicians, Reggie (Courtenay), Wilf (Connolly) and Cissy (Collins), are eager to prepare for the annual concert held in honour of Verdi’s birthday, but when Reggie’s ex-wife Jean (Smith) arrives in the home, they find their equilibrium thrown off kilter, and when she proves to be the same old diva that Reggie broke up with, things take a very uncomfortable turn.

I expected this movie to be something along the lines of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, but instead I was faced with 100 minutes of dull melodrama with little or no comic relief to speak of. The plot is so far beyond anything I could actually care about that I felt myself zoning out and not even paying attention to what little was going on. The characters were dull and unimaginative, and a terrible waste considering the acting talents that were on offer.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Lady Death (2004) 5/10

Starring : Christine M Auten, Mike Kleinhenz, Andy McAvin, Rob Mungle
Director : Andy Orjuela
Running Time : 80 mins

When Hope (Auten) is accused of consorting with the devil, she is sentenced to be burned alive at the stake. Her father Matthias (Kleinhenz), who is secretly a demon, convinces Hope that he can give her back her life in return for her joining him in hell, but when she realises what his scheme is she fights back and is transformed into Lady Death.

This was a pretty disappointing adaptation of the popular comic book, although the animation is pretty decent and the acting is okay. The problem is the storyline which lacks any sort of punch, and sadly that is what a cartoon aimed at grownups really needs in the end. Fans of the comic might enjoy seeing their heroine up on the big screen, but inevitably they will be disappointed that this wasn’t handled better.

You’ll like this if you liked : BloodRayne

Monsters University (2013) 8/10

Starring : Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Helen Mirren
Director : Dan Scanlon
Running Time : 104 mins

As a young monster, Mike Wazowski (Crystal) dreamed of nothing more than becoming a scarer, so he works hard and gets into Monsters University, but after he and fellow classmate James Sullivan (Goodman) damage a scare canister belonging to Dean Hardscrabble (Mirren), they are both kicked out of the scare programme. Their only option; enter and win the annual Scare Games and prove that they are the scariest monsters on campus or face being kicked out of university entirely.

This prequel to Monsters Inc is great in its showing of how Mike and Sulley eventually became firm friends, even though they started out as bitter rivals. The slow development of them being forced into an alliance in order to stay in school makes for a fun background to the movie, and their eventual proving of themselves makes this an upbeat family movie that shows how perseverance can lead to success.

You’ll like this if you liked : Monsters Inc

Scooby-Doo! Legend Of The Phantosaur (2011) 7/10

Starring : Frank Welker, Mindy Cohn, Grey DeLisle, Matthew Lillard
Director : Ethan Spaulding
Running Time : 73mins

In the sixteenth of the direct to video Scooby-Doo series, Scooby-Doo (Welker) and the gang travel to a remote town so that Shaggy (Lillard) can recover from a terrible affliction caused by excessive inducement of fear, but they soon discover that the town is haunted by a prehistoric ghost that coincidentally starts attacking the town upon their arrival.

This was a pretty cute look at 43 years of being terrified can harm a man’s emotions. The idea that Shaggy is basically having a nervous breakdown is funny enough, but then when he is hypnotised into being braved whenever he hears a secret key word that no one else is sure of makes this one of the more character driven Scooby-Doo movies of recent years.

You’ll like this if you liked : Scooby-Doo! Camp Scare

Jack Reacher (2012) 6/10

Starring : Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Richard Jenkins, David Oyelowo, Werner Herzog
Director : Christopher McQuarrie
Running Time : 131 mins

Jack Reacher (Cruise) is called in to investigate when an expert sniper kills five seemingly unrelated people, then asks specifically for Reacher to be called in. Although convinced the man is guilty, Reacher looks further into the case and discovers that everything is not as it first appeared...

If it wasn’t for the poor comparison between this and the series of novels by Lee Childs, this would be a pretty decent thriller with Cruise playing an unlikely yet affective monosyllabic bounty hunter of sorts, but the fact that the character in the books is so different to Cruise does kind of spoil the effect, even if you haven’t read them. Fans of Cruise will enjoy the action, and fans of action movies will enjoy the fight scenes.

You’ll like this if you liked : Gangster Squad

Gone In Sixty Seconds (2000) 7/10

Starring : Nicolas Cage, Angelina Jolie, Giovanni Ribisi, Robert Duvall
Director : Dominic Sena
Running Time : 128 mins

When his little brother Kip (Ribisi) gets into serious trouble with some gangsters, former car thief Memphis Raines (Cage) is forced into making a deal – steal fifty cars in three days or his brother dies. In order to achieve this goal, he is forced to make contact with all of his old crew and try to persuade them to help him out one last time.

This is an entertaining enough romp that paved the way for similar ensemble flicks such as the Oceans movies and the remake of the Italian Job, but if you enjoy mindless action movies, then this might take a little too long to get going to be of any interest. The cast manage to pull off almost every cliché you could ever imagine in a heist movie, but that does keep it fun for the most part.

You’ll like this if you liked : The Fast And The Furious

The Hobbit : The Desolation Of Smaug (2013) 7/10

Starring : Martin Freeman, Ian McKellan, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch
Director : Peter Jackson
Running Time : 162 mins

Lone Hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Freeman) and his company of dwarves continue their journey to the Lonely Mountain, facing dangers in the form of giant spiders, angry elves, malevolent orcs and, of course, a dragon. Along the way, Bilbo’s temptations from the ring increase as he finds himself forced to use it more and more.

This starts off better than the previous instalment, with some much needed action with the spiders and the elves, but then falls into a lull for about an hour. Thankfully, once Bilbo meets Smaug, things get a bit more interesting and we get back on track with the story. I still think this story could have been told in much less time, and that Jackson has gone overboard with the idea of making another Lord Of The Rings trilogy, but fans of the original movies will enjoy this extension of the franchise.

You’ll like this if you liked : Reign Of Fire

Bronson (2008) 7/10

Starring : Tom Hardy, Kelly Adams
Director : Nicolas Winding Refn
Running Time : 89 mins

Nineteen year old Michael Peterson (Hardy) wants nothing more than to be famous, but he can’t sing and he can’t act, so he decides the logical conclusion is to turn to crime. He robs a post office, is caught, and gets sentenced to seven years in prison, but that seven years soon turns into thirty-four as he becomes Britain’s most notorious and expensive prisoner, and the years he spends in solitary lead to him adopting a what he calls his fighting name – Charlie Bronson.

Hardy comes across as a poor man’s Ray Winstone at times, and I’d like to have seen what the real Charlie Bronson was like to see how well he captures him. If it wasn’t for the fact that this is based on true events, you might think this was nothing but a rip-off of Chopper, but sadly Bronson is real.

You’ll like this if you liked : Chopper

The Liability (2012) 7/10

Starring : Jack O’Connell, Tim Roth, Talulah Riley, Peter Mullen
Director : Craig Viveiros
Running Time : 86 mins

Teenager Adam (O’Connell) agrees to do a job for his mum’s gangster boyfriend Peter (Mullen) – a job that involves driving around a man named Roy (Roth). It isn’t long before Adam discovers that Roy is a hitman, and that Peter is involved in people trafficking and knows that Adam discovered one of his many sadistic videos on his computer.

Even though the characters are stunted and one-dimensional, this is still an entertaining crime caper that thankfully doesn’t have the sort of ending I’ve gotten used to in British thrillers. O’Connell, who I remember as being that annoying bloody kid from Eden Lake, is pretty good in this and manages to be a little bit likeable in spite of his intrinsically unlikeable personality, but Roth is a little weaker than I’d expect from him.

You’ll like this if you liked : Blitz

Ultimate Avengers 2 (2006) 7/10

Starring : Justin Gross, Grey DeLisle, Michael Massee, Marc Worden, Olivia D’Abo, Nan McNamara, Nolan North, Andre Ware, Dave Boat, Fred Tatasciore, James K Ward, Jeffrey D Sams
Director : Will Meugniot & Richard Sebast
Running Time : 73 mins

When the Black Panther is killed by a shape-changing alien calling himself Heir Kleiser (), his son T’Challa (Sams) takes on the mantle of Black Panther and seeks the help of the Avengers in defeating the aliens that are attacking his home nation of Wakanda. When Captain America (Gross) hears who is attacking the Wakandans, he reveals that he has fought the formidable Kleiser in the past, and presumed him dead since the 1940s, but now that he has re-emerged Cap starts to doubt his abilities to take him on.

There’s a lot going on in this almost instantaneous sequel to Ultimate Avengers. It would have helped if this had been a little longer to explorer more of the character storylines, and like the first movie this felt disjointed in places, but it was marginally better and had a more enjoyable story that actually felt like it wrapped things up at the end.

You’ll like this if you liked : Doctor Strange

This Is The End (2013) 9/10

Starring : James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson
Director : Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen
Running Time : 108 mins

Jay Baruchel makes one last ditch attempt to rescue some of his oldest friendships by attending a party at James Franco’s house, but things take an unusual turn when people start to get sucked up into the sky. When the ground starts to erupt and open around them and it seems like the world is coming to an end, Jay and a handful of celebrity survivors start to suspect that the rapture is upon them.

To be honest, this will probably not appeal to people who aren’t fans of Seth Rogen and co, but if you do like their movies and know their history, then this will really hit the spot. The plot starts off as a simple tale of actors who were once friends but have fallen out over the years, then devolves into an apocalyptic comedy that really does a cracking job of tickling the funny bone while lampooning the actors involved into caricatures of themselves.

You’ll like this if you liked : Shaun Of The Dead

Mars Needs Moms (2011) 8/10

Starring : Seth Green, Dan Fogler, Joan Cusack, Elizabeth Harnois, Mindy Sterling
Director : Simon Wells
Running Time : 88 mins

Milo (Green) is an ordinary mischievous young boy who finds his life turned upside down when his mom (Cusack) is kidnapped by Martians who want to tap into her brain and use her techniques to help raise their Martian children, they female of which are currently raised by robots. Milo stows away on board the Martian spaceship and discovers that male Martian babies are dumped at birth, deemed unnecessary by the Martian over lord supervisor (Sterling).

I really thought this was going to be terrible, what with it being made by the same production company as The Polar Express which was a bitter let down, but I actually liked this. The title is awful, but once you look past that this is a likeable romp with some very interesting characters and some nice visual effects.

You’ll like this if you liked : Astro Boy