Rob Carnevale
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A Night In The Woods
3 Sep 2012
By-the-numbers supernatural horror from director Richard Parry
Richard Parry's Dartmoor-set A Night In The Woods was inspired by a real-life incident experienced by the director. While out camping alone in Wistman's Woods Parry awoke to feel someone's hands pressing upon his throat and a figure standing over him…
[REC]³ Génesis
28 Aug 2012
Dark laughs and outrageous violence feature in the third film in the [REC] series
Where the first two [REC] films relied on claustrophobic tension and shaky camera to impress, the third film goes for a more conventional format that's backed by dark laughs and in-your-face violence. Directed with over the top relish by Paco Plaza…
The Three Stooges
22 Aug 2012
The Farrelly Brothers' homage to the original threesome is dim-witted and lame
Reviving The Three Stooges for modern audiences has long been a labour of love for the Farrelly brothers but, sadly, the film that results is the type of dim-witted comedy that makes their own Dumb & Dumber look sophisticated. Chris Diamantopoulos…
The Expendables 2
13 Aug 2012
Fun but dumb sequel from Stallone and co
Sylvester Stallone all but guaranteed himself a new franchise by making 'the expendables' of the first film nowhere near as expendable as the title suggested. But while their return in this bigger, bloodier, more star-studded sequel is enjoyable enough…
Step Up 4: Miami Heat
4 Aug 2012
The dancing great, but the film is let down by flashy editing, poor acting and a clichéd script
If half as much attention was paid to story and character as it was to dance choreography then Step Up 4: Miami Heat might be something worth shouting about. Sadly, the latest entry in the seemingly interminable franchise offers more of the same…
Ted
17 Jul 2012
Seth MacFarlane's filthy feature debut is one of the comedies of the year
Anyone familiar with TV comedy Family Guy will know that Seth MacFarlane, the show’s creator, specialises in both hilarity and vulgarity. His first big screen outing Ted offers more of the same and is one of the comedies of the year. Mark Wahlberg…
The Amazing Spider-Man
29 Jun 2012
Marc Webb breathes new life into this Marvel comic favourite
Originally envisaged as the fourth film in the Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire franchise, The Amazing Spider-Man became a re-boot once those two names departed. Rather than a weak imitation however, incoming director Marc Webb succeeds in breathing new life…
American Pie: Reunion
4 May 2012
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
17 Apr 2012
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
11 Apr 2012
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
2 Apr 2012
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
27 Mar 2012
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
12 Mar 2012
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
1 Mar 2012
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
17 Feb 2012
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
8 Feb 2012
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
23 Jan 2012
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
12 Dec 2011
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
9 Aug 2011
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
29 Jul 2011
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
18 Jul 2011
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
13 Jul 2011
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
20 Apr 2011
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
18 Mar 2011
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
2 Mar 2011
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…
