American Pie: Reunion

The cast regroup for a fourth time, and still manage to raise some laughs

The cast of American Pie may have matured since we last saw them nine years ago at Jim and Michelle’s wedding but their antics remain juvenile for this latest slice of raunchy comedy - and for the most part that’s a good thing. Written and…

The Lucky One

Unconvincing, one-dimensional drama starring Zac Efron and Taylor Schilling

(12A) 101mins The latest adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel is as schmaltzy as ever but also hopelessly contrived and unconvincing. Stretching credibility from the start, Zac Efron stars as a US Marine who comes across a photo of an unknown blonde…

Battleship

Michael Bay-inspired blockbuster burdened by bog-standard plot and uneven tone

(12A) 131mins Inspired by the Hasbro board-game, Battleship is part Michael Bay-inspired planet-trashing mayhem and part love letter to the US Navy, with whom director Peter Berg shares an intimate family history (his father was both a former Marine…

Wrath of the Titans

Sloppy sequel with poorly defined characters, starring Sam Worthington and Liam Neeson

From its flimsy concept to its similarly sloppy use of post-conversion 3D, Wrath of the Titans is a sequel that fails to improve on the original in any way. Set 10 years after the events of Clash of the Titans, this pointless follow-up invents a…

The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists 3D

An enjoyable, if occassionally laboured, family animation from Aardman

(U) 88min Aardman's Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists is the most ambitious undertaking yet from the Bristol-based clay-mation specialists but while often enjoyable it's not all plain sailing. The madcap story of a pirate captain, who…

21 Jump Street

Deceptively smart big screen revival of the once popular TV show, with Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill

(15)109min Taken at face value, 21 Jump Street is another mis-matched buddy cop outing that mixes elements from the original television series, Superbad coming-of-age values and the gung-ho rhetoric of Michael Bay's action movies. But there's a…

This Means War

Unsuccessful mash-up of the rom-com and spy action genres

(12A) 97min McG attempts to satisfy both sexes in This Means War – a testosterone-driven action meets girl-pleasing rom-com, that ends up not being good in either genre, despite featuring two of the hottest young actors around (Tom Hardy and Chris…

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance

OTT second outing for Nicolas Cage's flaming-skulled anti-hero

(12A) 95mins Nicolas Cage’s latest stab at lending Ghost Rider mainstream credibility suffers from the decision to employ Crank duo Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor as co-directors. For while certainly high on manic energy, Spirit of Vengeance lacks…

Safe House

Brutally slick but flawed action thriller starring Denzel Washtington and Ryan Reynolds

(15) 115mins Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds make a formidable partnership in Daniel Espinosa's Safe House, a brutally slick, if flawed, action thriller.

Man on a Ledge

Well paced, high concept thriller starring Sam Worthington, Jamie Bell and Elizabeth Banks

(12A) 102mins Sam Worthington’s latest is an occasionally tense but mostly silly thriller that at least realises its own absurdities. The Hollywood debut of former documentary filmmaker Asger Leth (Ghosts of Cité Soleil), the film follows a…

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Solid crowd pleaser despite disappointing villain and some dodgy CGI

(12A, 132mins) Pixar director Brad Bird makes the leap from animation to live action in spectacular fashion with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, a frequently awe-inspiring entry into the franchise. As he did with The Incredibles and…

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Expertly mixes intelligence and spectacle to hugely impressive effect

(12A) 106min After the folly that was Tim Burton’s remake of Planet of the Apes in 2001 many questioned the wisdom of trying to breathe new life into the franchise when this prequel was first announced. But Rupert Wyatt’s Rise of the Planet of…

Super 8

JJ Abrams sci-fi a loving homage to the way blockbusters used to be

(12A) 112min Lost creator JJ Abrams’ Super 8 may be heavily inspired by the early films of Steven Spielberg but if you’re going to borrow from someone, why not make it a master? It’s a science fiction adventure that harks back to the…

Trust

David Schwimmer’s powerful movie should resonate with every parent and teenager in some way

A hard-hitting look at the dangers posed by internet predators, as witnessed by a family whose lives are torn apart by the grooming and eventual rape of their teenage daughter, the film stems from Schwimmer’s decade-long involvement with Santa Monica’s…

Zookeeper

Kevin James stars in woefully bad family rom-com

(PG) 101min Part rom-com, part Doctor Dolittle style family comedy, Zookeeper, starring lardarse comic actor Kevin James (The Dilemma, Grown Ups), is a wholly unsatisfactory experience for all but the most juvenile minds. The latest offering from…

Thor

It’s hammer time! Kenneth Branagh's Thor has a theatrical charm

(12A) 130min Kenneth Branagh may have seemed like an unlikely choice to direct Marvel's Thor but he pulls it off with considerable style to kick-start the summer in fun fashion. By no means perfect, and inferior to both Christopher Nolan's genre…

Source Code

Jake Gyllenhaal and Michelle Monaghan star in body-swapping thriller

Duncan Jones’ dazzling debut Moon is, by any standard, a tough act to follow, but while sophomore effort Source Code can’t quite match up, it does ensure the director’s career remains on the right track. The film is an intriguing race-against-time…

The Adjustment Bureau

Philip K Dick-inspired sci-fi thriller starring Matt Damon and Emily Blunt

The work of Philip K Dick has inspired some of cinema’s great sci-fi films, from Blade Runner to Minority Report via Total Recall. The Adjustment Bureau, which is derived from one of the author’s short stories, doesn’t quite measure up to the former or…

Chalet Girl - Crowd-pleasing film marks arrival of Felicity Jones

Watchable despite sitcom-style humour and stereotypical characters

(12A) 96min Felicity Jones is hitherto best known as the voice of Emma Carter on The Archers but by the end of 2011 she could well be regarded as one of Britain's most talented young movie stars. A winner at Sundance for indie drama Like Crazy…

Gnomeo & Juliet's British cast add charm despite pop culture references

Shrek 2 director's animation big on visual jokes but lacks standout sequence

(U) 84min The idea of turning William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet into an animated movie featuring gnomes sounds like a tragedy in its own right, but thanks to a star studded British voice cast and some fun visual jokes, Gnomeo & Juliet almost…

It's Kind of a Funny Story

Impressive exploration of mental health doesn’t compromise its indie values

(12A) 101min Having impressed with Half Nelson and Sugar, indie stalwarts Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden complete a commendable hat trick with It’s Kind Of A Funny Story. Based on the novel by Ned Vizzini, the film follows suicidal 16-year-old Craig…

Due Date

(15) 100min Having collaborated to winning effect on The Hangover, director Todd Phillips and comedian Zach Galifianakis endure a bumpy reunion on road movie comedy Due Date. Designed as a sort of anti-buddy movie, Phillips’ latest follows…

The Social Network

(12A) 120min David Fincher’s The Social Network, aka ‘the Facebook movie’, is a film about smart people that arrives with the intelligence to match. Based on a script by Aaron The West Wing Sorkin and inspired by Ben Mezrich’s book The Accidental…

Dinner for Schmucks

Remake of 1998 film doesn't echo sentiments of original

On paper Jay Meet the Parents Roach’s new film sounds appetising. But this remake of Francis Veber’s passable 1998 French comedy Le dîner de cons squanders a cast headed by Steve Carell and Paul Rudd, and supported by Lucy Punch, David Walliams, Chris…

The Expendables

The Expendables is as much an A to Z of every action movie cliché as it is a who’s who of the leading men who used to populate them. Boasting a line-up of Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts and Steve Austin, as…