Friday 18 June, 2010

Avatar

Cert 12A - 162 min Doors open 7.30pm Film starts 8pm.

Set in the future when Earth's resources have been depleted, director James Cameron's film tells the story of a corporation trying to mine a rare mineral on a distant plant, Pandora.

The humans clash with the natives - a peace-loving humanoid race with their own language and culture called the Na'vi, who exist in perfect harmony with nature. Those from Earth find themselves at odds with each other and the local culture.

This world of fantasy, with its weird and wonderful plant and animal life, is brought to life using stunning special effects.

3 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 53 nominations

Admission Adult £4.50, under 16 £3.00

Friday 7 May, 2010

The Hurt Locker

Cert 15 - 131 min Doors open 7.30pm Film starts 8pm.

6 Academy Awards including Best Picture

The Hurt Locker is a riveting, suspenseful portrait of the courage under fire of the military's most unrecognized heroes: the technicians of the bomb squad, who volunteer to challenge the odds.

Kathryn Bigelow's 'The Hurt Locker' led the winners of the BAFTAs. The film took honors for best picture, director, original screenplay, editing, cinematography and sound

Iraq. Forced to play a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse in the chaos of war, an elite Army bomb squad unit must come together in a city where everyone is a potential enemy and every object could be a deadly bomb.

Sunday 9 May, 2010

The Man Who Never Was

Cert U - 103 min Doors open for tea at 3pm, Film starts 4pm.

This true story of ingenious deception is a riveting tale of wartime espionage - a daring intelligence operation designed to mislead the Nazis prior to the 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily.

On 30 April, 1943 the body of a Royal Marines officer was found drifting off the coast of Huelva, Spain. Attached to his belt was a briefcase containing a number of classified letters, among them a top-secret letter from Sir Archibald Nye, then Vice Chief of the Imperial General Staff in the War Office, to General Sir Harold Alexander, the British commander in North Africa under American General Dwight D Eisenhower, identifying Greece and Sardinia for invasion by the Allies.

Copies of these precious documents quickly made their way into German hands and by May 1943, Hitler had taken measures to defend both places, sending his troops to fortify their position in Sardinia, Corsica and Greece, and further ordering two additional panzer divisions to prepare to move from Greece to Russia. Two months later, the Allies stormed into Sicily with hardly any resistance from German and Italian defenders, whose eyes were turned northwards to Sardinia. The operation was a success – probably the greatest deception in the game of modern military strategy.

House of Flying Daggers
Cert 15 - 119 min Doors open 7.30pm Film starts 8pm.

Swords buckle and emotions tangle in this second wuxia (swordplay and chivalry) outing from Chinese director Zhang Yimou. A blind revolutionary, Mei, is tricked by two policemen (Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro) into leading them to the headquarters of a band of secret assassins. An epic love triangle ensues as duty and passion become locked in mortal combat.

The trio's trek across the ravaged beauty of Tang Dynasty China (actually shot in the Ukraine, bizarrely) sets the scene for some truly incredible action scenes as CGI daggers cut through the air at improbable speeds, cavalry charge through fields of flowers and a bamboo forest erupts into a gloriously intricate vertical battle.

Zhang Yimou uses the landscape as a mirror of his character's predicaments: Green bamboo forests, white snowdrifts, golden leaves and silver birches suggest different emotions such as truth and deception. A dense forest captures the characters' confusion; a snow storm suggests ruthless, icy intentions.

Martial arts have rarely been filmed with so much artistry. In High Definition.

Admission Adult £4.50, under 16 £3.00

UP
Cert U - 96 min Doors open 4.30pm Film starts 5pm.

A comedy adventure about 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. From the Academy Award-nominated director Pete Docter (Monsters, Inc.), Disney/Pixar’s Up invites you on a hilarious journey into a lost world, with the least likely duo on Earth.

3rd Anniversary Celebration Special: Admission only £1.00

With the Sixties just beginning to swing, bright 16-year-old Jenny (Carey Mulligan) is bored to tears by school and suburbia. Then along comes an older man (Peter Sarsgaard) to take her away from it all. And what's a place at Oxford next to a life of romance and travel? Alfred Molina and Rosamund Pike shine in a terrific supporting cast, but it's Mulligan's career-making performance and Nick Hornby's pitch-perfect script that turn journalist Lynn Barber's coming-of-age memoir into something rather special.

Nominated for 8 BAFTA Awards

3rd Anniversary Celebration Special: Admission only £1.00

Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
Cert PG - 224 min

Considered to be a modern classic of Indian cinema, LAGAAN is a musical drama which tells the story of a central Indian farming village in 1893.

Lagaan is the biggest-budget Bollywood movie ever, the first to shoot entirely on location and the first to use a large number of British actors - among them the female lead Rachel Shelley.

Awhirl with colour and magnificence - it is beautifully shot - and long but never stretched, this is a film that will contradict every prejudice you might have against that most elusive of worlds - Indian cinema. It isn't subtle, it doesn't want to be, but a better entryway into the alien complexities and designs of Bollywood, or, for that matter, the dizzying rules of cricket (if even stops to clearly explain the vagaries of spin bowling) you will not find.

With an equally stunning soundtrack, this rollicking yarn is a must for all film lovers.

Combined cost with food £10 - without food £4.50.

N.B. FAMILY FILM

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Cert PG - 108 min

"Showcasing a glittering array of comedy talent from Ben Stiller to Ricky Gervais, Night At The Museum is a rare family treat."

"There's nothing brilliant or groundbreaking with "Night at the Museum," but it's one of those high concept childhood fantasy films that will stay in your heart long after watching it."

"It's a better than average CGI-fest, more often silly than funny. But it makes some good points about courage, self-respect, and the importance of learning about history."

N.B. FAMILY FILM - STARTS 4pm SUNDAY

A Christmas treat for all the family!

Ice Age 3
Cert U - 94 min

Manny, Sid, Diego, and Ellie are back in this third film in the computer-animated Ice Age series. With those creatures in starring roles, fans also get another dose of the vocal talents of Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, and Queen Latifah, who are joined by SHAUN OF THE DEAD’s Simon Pegg.

Manny and Ellie are expecting their first baby, while Sid the sloth tries an unconventional way of starting a family that gets him into trouble. With all this talk of babies, Diego might be losing his saber-toothed edge, but a journey to save Sid may just turn the whole group into heroes. In addition to all that adventure, it wouldn’t be an Ice Age film if Scrat weren’t on a desperate hunt for an acorn, but he might get distracted by a shapely female squirrel.

Children of Men
Cert 15 - 109 min

Starring: Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofore, Claire-Hope Ashitey, Pam Ferris, Danny Huston, Peter Mullan

Children of Men envisages a world one generation from now that has fallen into anarchy on the heels of an infertility defect in the population. The world's youngest citizen has just died at 18, and humankind is facing the likelihood of its own extinction. Set against the backdrop of London torn apart by violence and nationalistic sects, the film follows disillusioned bureaucrat Theo (Owen) as he becomes an unlikely champion of Earth's survival.

"Children of Men is Cuarón's run for freedom, with a riveting story, fantastic action scenes and acting so universally solid that even the dogs perform masterfully under his direction."

"This futuristic London thriller is so well filmed and acted that it grabs hold of us and never lets go."

Sex and the City
Cert 15 - 145 min

Ten years after meeting "Mr Big", New York "sexpert" Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) finally gets closure on her dating dilemmas in this big-screen spin-off from the iconic TV show. As ever, Parker brims with infectious whimsy — doubly so when Big (Chris Noth) pops the question. There's rather too much cooing over dresses and shoes for half-an-hour afterwards, but then Carrie and her gal pals are forced to reassess life's priorities beyond bagging the latest Manolo Blahniks. It's the ups and downs between friends that resonate more than the love story, and although some gags veer into American Pie territory, there is plenty of dry humour, too — Kim Cattrall is especially wicked as saucy Samantha. Fans will relish all the urbanite introspection and colourful girl talk, even if the ending doesn't really add much to the 2004 series finale.

High Fidelity
Cert 15

"From Nick Hornby's best-selling novel "High Fidelity", director Stephen Frears brings an amusing, true-to-life look at the trials and errors of dating and relationships.

Set in Chicago (as opposed to the novel's North London) during the 80s, the film centres around thirtysomething, music fanatic, record shop owner Rob (John Cusack), whose life falls apart when his latest girlfriend Laura (Iben Hjejle) walks out on him. With a string of ex-girlfriends behind him, Rob decides to track down his past lovers and find out what it is that makes him such a hopeless partner.

Rob's voyage of self-discovery brings us an entertaining insight of failed relationships, creating hilarious results and cringingly truthful scenes that most of the male audience would certainly relate to.

With such great performances from Cusack and his two oddball employees (Black and Louiso), and a gorgeous collection of ex-girlfriends (Bonet and Zeta-Jones), the film easily gets away with its American transition without jeopardising Hornby's original.

Music plays a big part in the film (Cusack and his colleagues have a top-five list of songs to match every mood) and the well chosen 80s soundtrack is sure to give the viewer a trip back down memory lane."

"This is a wonderful movie about real people, real problems and real fixations, that beautifully captures the texture of alternative culture."

La Vie en Rose and The Red Balloon
Cert 12A

FRENCH EVENING WITH FOOD

Marion Cotillard's staggering performance is the main event in this Edith Piaf biopic. Edith's life was rough from the start, discarded by her prostitute mother (Courau), her madam grandmother and her circus contortionist father (Rouve), she grows up on the rough streets of Paris, singing with her friend (Testud) for money. Then a music producer (Depardieu) launches her career, which hits bump after bump, usually involving even more tragedy. And sometimes love, such as when she falls hard for a boxer (Martins). By the time she's in her 40s, she's a shattered wreck of addictions and injuries. And yet she has to keep singing.

Piaf is played at ages 5 and 10 by Chevallier and Burlet, respectively, then from 16 to 47 by Cotillard. All three are terrific, but Cotillard's sheer range is breathtaking, as is the way she holds each scene in the palm of her hand, capturing the diva of all divas and keeping her edgy, witty, cruel and deeply likeable, all at the same time. Her supporting cast is also superb, and the film's terrific production design holds it together beautifully.

Watching her fall into ill health due to an addiction to pain killers and booze strongly echoes Judy Garland. Seeing her desperation for fame and control over her artistic choices is reminiscent of Madonna. It's a little simplistic to reduce her life to these elements (and to leave out, for example, her amazing work for the French Resistance), but this is still a lushly produced, fascinating film about one of the 20th century's most remarkable artists.

The Red Balloon

The only short film (34 minutes) ever to win an Oscar for best original screenplay, Albert Lamorisse's little wonder tells the story of young Pascal (Lamorisse's own son Pascal), a nine-year-old Parisian boy living an ordinary life in a sketchy but absolutely gorgeous and cinematic Parisian neighborhood until the day that a large red balloon mysteriously floats into his life… and stays. Magical - and appealing to young and old alike.

Bolt
Cert PG

FAMILY FILM:

Featuring the voices of John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie Essman, Malcolm McDowell

A cute little dog named Bolt (voice of John Travolta) and his loving tween-girl owner, Penny (voice of Disney It Girl Miley Cyrus), are the stars of a hit action TV show about a small white German shepherd with superpowers. The producers of the show believe the program's success stems from Bolt's realistic "acting," so to that end, they never let the canine star in on the fact that he's on a TV show, hiding all the cameras and crew so that Bolt grows up thinking he really does have heat vision, a super bark, and the ability to stop trucks with his head.

One day, thanks to a series of misunderstandings and misfortunes, Bolt accidentally gets mailed to New York City, sending him on an adventure-filled cross-country journey back to Penny in Hollywood. During his trek, Bolt learns the truth about himself, and makes new friends in the form of a streetwise alley cat and an overly enthusiastic hamster.

The opening of the movie brilliantly establishes the TV show's fictional world -- the one Bolt thinks is real -- with a superb ten-minute action sequence straight out of a family-friendly Jerry Bruckheimer movie. Bolt, with his super-speed, and Penny, atop her tricked-out scooter, evade helicopters, motorcyclists, and a ticking time bomb, all while speeding along a busy California freeway. There is a kinetic pop to the whole scene, especially when the occasional slow-mo shot lets you see exactly how much time is left before the bomb explodes.

This opening does such a good job of setting the fun and snappy tone for the rest of the movie that the generic family-movie elements that come later on don't feel so tedious to grown-ups or boring to kids. And as the story unfolds, Bolt's slow acceptance that he doesn't have special powers provides twists on the old finding-your-way-back-home plot, so the movie amuses both those who make up the film's target audience and the parents along for the ride.

This winning mix of exciting action, heart-tugging sentiment, and gentle character comedy makes Bolt yet another solid addition to Disney's history of family-friendly fare.

Slumdog Millionaire
Cert 15

"Hugely enjoyable and bursting with energy, this is a superbly directed, brilliantly written and beautifully acted drama that packs a powerful emotional punch.

Danny Boyle's warmhearted rags-to-riches fairy tale presents an endearing hero: a young Mumbai man (played by Dev Patel), competing on India's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" in hopes of putting together his shattered life. After enduring some rather nasty torture he tells the police officer (Irrfan Khan) the story of his life, where incredibly, each episode holds the key to one of the questions he's answered.

Boyle's direction is genuinely impressive; every scene crackles with energy and he really captures the vibrant atmosphere of the various Indian cities. He also orchestrates some truly astonishing sequences, from a thrilling chase through the slums to a nail-bitingly tense sequence with some Fagin-like gangsters and the gross-out humour of young Jamal braving a cesspit in order to get an autograph from a Bollywood star.

Won eight Academy Awards — for best picture, director, cinematography, film editing, original score, sound mixing, adapted screenplay and original song.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Cert 12A

Starring: Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett

Heading the Oscars nominations this year, with votes in 13 categories (including best film, director, and best actor) is David Fincher's (Se7en, Fight Club, Zodiac) lavish romantic drama, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Based loosely on a 1922 short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Brad Pitt plays Benjamin Button, a man who is born old and ages backwards. Full of ground-breaking computer generated effects, the tale is told in flashback as Benjamin, growing younger every day, experiences life, love and loss in the first half of the 20th century.

The film focuses on his thwarted love affair with his childhood sweetheart, Daisy (Cate Blanchett). They must reconcile a relationship where they are forever ageing in opposite directions. 3 x Oscar Winner

The Dark Knight (2008)
Cert 12A

Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman. Directed by Christopher Nolan

Number 1 in the Times Online's top 50 films of 2008 and Won 2 Oscars. Another 62 wins & 57 nominations.

The title sets out the stall, both in theme and ambition. This isn’t Batman 2 (or 6 or 7 or however you tally it up), it’s a stand-alone picture with its own heart and integrity. Christopher Nolan isn’t interested in franchise; he’s fascinated by character, by story, by people. Of all the superheroes Batman is the only one who isn’t, in fact, super. No powers supernatural or extraterrestrial: he lives in a world only a sliver of reality away from our own. Muscle, training and technology are his allies; aches, breaks and faltering will are his foes. When Alfred (Michael Caine) tends to Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale)’s post-fight contusions, he warns his master to know his limits. “Batman has no limits� comes the flat reply. Only, of course, Batman is limited by his beliefs. He’d rather break his own neck than snap the rule that has steered his crim-bashing excursions away from blunt Death Wish morality. He will be the judge and the jury, but he will not be the executioner. He will not kill. But if Batman’s morality is a construct, The Joker (Heath Ledger) is a wrecking ball.

Just as Wayne is contemplating an end to his crime-fighting endeavour – seeing hope in the arrival of Gotham’s “White Knight�, District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) – along comes this anarchic, mischievous terrorist daubed in “war paint�, outwitting and then uniting the underworld in one aim: kill the Batman. Desperate crimes call for desperate measures, but just how far will Gotham’s Caped Crusader go to save himself, his city and everyone he loves?

Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)
Cert 15

Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan, Alexis Zegerman, Samuel Roukin. Directed by Mike Leigh

Mike Leigh draws a bravura performance out of Sally Hawkins, and she in return makes Poppy one of Leigh’s best characters yet - up there with the likes of Vera Drake or Beverly from Abigail’s Party.

On paper Poppy, (Sally Hawkins), could sound deeply irritating. She is the sort of person who sits down next to you on the bus and proceeds to make cheery small talk for the whole journey. She wears layers of colourful new-age hippy clothes, short skirts and low cut tops without self-consciousness. Poppy talks in a sing-song voice and turns every conversation topsy-turvy with a stream of word play and surreal jokes.

Poppy is the perfect primary school teacher. Her character is born out of the memories we all have of that supply teacher who let you do projects on space aliens and collect woodlice. Yet somehow you remember every word she said while the rest of those years are a Tudors-and-fractions blur.

Leigh packs the film with thoroughly well-observed moments between Poppy and her best friend (Zegerman), her boyfriend (Roukin) and the other teachers. She is compassionate, caring, and insightful as a result.

That Poppy isn't just plain annoying is down to both the realism of Leigh's scenes and the depth of Sally Hawkins' performance. Far from upping the kookiness in her character, Hawkins makes you feel quite silly and self-involved to not be as happy as Poppy. The way she confidently slips into a new relationship after a long stint of content thirtysomething single life makes Bridget Jones look like a neurotic of questionable mental faculties. Poppy's sister is pregnant, mortgaged up and replete with a dullard husband. In response to prodding at Poppy's carefree life, our heroine giggles, "My five year plan? What, like Stalin?"

The observational humour Leigh gleans from Poppy's driving lessons makes for stretches of spot-on comedy. Driving instructor Scott (Marsan) is an uptight control freak, embittered by his experience of life. He's a racist and homophobic. He's the sort of character we are more used to seeing from Leigh. Except that Leigh pits this miserabilist against Poppy, and thankfully she wins. Poppy's no simpleton in her contentment and runs rings around Scott's rants.

Verdict
A film that should be required viewing nationwide. A good blast of fresh air that sweeps you off your feet.

Frida (2002)
Cert 15

Starring Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina. Directed by Julie Taymor

Based on the life of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907 - 1954) the film conveys the pain and the passion with which Frida and her husband, painter Diego Rivera lived and loved.

Early in her life Frida suffered a terrible accident which began a lifetime of physical suffering. She overcame this with incredible strength of character supported in her worst moments by liberal amounts of Tequila.

Perfect soulmate but imperfect husband, Diego Rivera was incapable of being faithful and Frida herself had many lovers, both men and women, including the communist, Leon Trotsky, played by Geoffrey Rush. Magical film sets in 1920s-1940s Mexico, wonderful costumes, vibrant colour, haunting Mexican music and a roller coaster of emotions.

The film features the aged but spirited singer Chavela Vargas (a Mexican Edith Piaf) who in real life had an affair with Frida.

We will be serving Mexican food - but we need to know numbers so would you please let us know if you will be attending - tel 01566 782352 - Thanks.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom
of the Crystal Skull
Cert 12A

Spectacular action! The fourth and latest film in the Indiana Jones series, created by George Lucas and directed by Steven Spielberg. Released nineteen years after Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the film acknowledges its star Harrison Ford's age by setting itself in 1957.

It pays tribute to the science fiction B-movies of the era, pitting Indiana Jones against Soviet agents – led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) – for a psychic alien crystal skull. Indiana is aided by his former lover Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) and their son Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf). Ray Winstone, John Hurt, and Jim Broadbent are also part of the supporting cast.

Wall-E
Cert U

What if mankind had to leave Earth, and somebody forgot to turn the last robot off?

Charming, audacious, and timely, Wall-E's lighthearted magic and stellar visuals testify once again to Pixar's ingenuity.

Academy Award®-winning writer-director Andrew Stanton (“Finding Nemo�) and the inventive storytellers and technical geniuses at Pixar Animation Studios (“The Incredibles,� “Cars,� “Ratatouille�) transport moviegoers to a galaxy not so very far away for a new computer-animated cosmic comedy about a determined robot named WALL•E.

Juno
Cert 15

A teenager coping with pregnancy needs a strong backbone so it's no wonder that director Jason Reitman cast Ellen Page as Juno. After her steely turn in Hard Candy (2006), the young actress carries the weight of this film with consummate ease and no small degree of charm. She cuts straight to the bone with scathingly sharp dialogue (scripted by professional blogger and ex-stripper Diablo Cody), but she also brings warmth and vulnerability to soften the edges.

Holding his own with Page is Superbad's Michael Cera doing his 'deer in the headlights' bit as the father of the baby. It's Juno who wears the trousers in this relationship (elasticised of course) and keeps him dangling whilst she tries to get a handle on her feelings. Aside from the hormonal rush, that process is further complicated by Juno's budding friendship with older man Mark (Jason Bateman) who plans to adopt the child with his sullen wife Vanessa (Jennifer Garner). He offers Juno refuge from sniggering schoolmates and anxious parents.

"DARING AND DEVASTATINGLY FUNNY"

It's daring and devastatingly funny, but Reitman doesn't rely purely on shock value for laughs. The unusual balance of power in Juno's relationship with the adoptive couple tickles the ribs more than her witty oneliners and also heightens the intrigue. When she struts into their tidy, squeaky-clean home and brashly states her terms - to "kick this old school" like "Moses and the reeds" - it only pops the tension for a moment before highlighting the couples' growing discomfort. Juno's loss of innocence doesn't hinge on having sex as much as it does on uncovering the truth behind these awkward silences. Still, whilst the gradual stripping down of each character is carefully done, the film isn't always credible. Juno's father (JK Simmons) is too glib to be taken seriously and the ending comes wrapped in impossibly cute bows. Except for this self-conscious indie branding, Reitman has delivered a bundle of joy.

Mama Mia!
Cert 15

Review courtesy TimesOnline

Musicals are bonkers, Mamma Mia! perhaps more than most. It has an Italian title but is set in Greece and it centres on songs written by a pair of Swedes. But we aren’t allowed to care about that.

Meryl Streep plays a single mum who is the impoverished owner of a dilapidated island taverna, about to celebrate the wedding of her only daughter. This daughter (Amanda Seyfried) wants her dad to take her down the aisle but because Meryl was once the island bike she doesn’t know who the father is.

Anyway, the daughter invites all the possible candidates (Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård), while her mum invites her two best friends (Julie Walters and Christine Baranski) for a bit of (im)moral support.

Throw in a groom, bridesmaids, a vicar and a chorus of picturesque Greeks and you have an awful lot of people who need to say exactly the right thing at exactly the right time in order to have just the right excuse to break into the right song, which is barely in English anyway. It should be beyond bonkers. It should be a mess.

It isn’t. They’ll probably revoke my membership of the Straight Men’s Sneering Association for this, but Mamma Mia! is actually rather wonderful. It is sharp, hilarious and so beautifully shot that you can almost smell the Ambre Solaire.

Streep slams wonky, wooden shutters and leads her mob of bridesmaids, ageing sluts and lumpy Greek peasant women on a rampage through that sleepy village like a sun-kissed, middle-aged parody of Cyndi Lauper.

Walters cackles away like the old pro she is, and even though Colin Firth is in full Bridget Jones awkward mode, you never properly want to beat him to death with an oar.

Streep is the real star here, and she does serious acting, too, investing a cliff-top rendition of The Winner Takes It All with far more teary gravitas than should be possible for a song that contains the line: “I figured it made sense/ building me a fence�.

Brosnan, meanwhile, is at his funniest and most unBondish. Bless him, but the man cannot sing at all. It’s not that he can’t hold a tune, exactly, more that you can really hear him trying. I hope he is in on the joke.

Maybe it is the mature cast that makes Mamma Mia! work so well. The film is hectic but relaxed. It doesn’t take itself too seriously. Every act of breaking into song is a gag and every dance move an undignified scramble.

In the right sort of way, it is also gloriously subversive. Three sexual partners in a week is a bit of a laugh and the older a woman gets, the more likely she is to drink, leer and lust.

With the exception of Baranski’s rather gruesome duet with a young barman on Does Your Mother Know? the film is almost completely without campery. For a musical full of Abba songs, that is truly remarkable.

There is, however, an important caveat to make here before I get carried away, and that is to admit that I saw this film in a little screening room in Soho. In your average multiplex you’ll have people twirling and singing along, which may, if you are of a certain bent, spur you to murder.

But even so, if you can resist a smile as 30 muscular chaps in tiny Speedos and huge Technicolor flippers bop away to Dancing Queen on a rickety Greek pier, then you are a straighter, even more sneering man than I ever was.

The Kite Runner
Cert 12A

The Kite Runner tells the story of Amir, a boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, who is haunted by the guilt of betraying his childhood friend Hassan, the son of his father's Hazara servant. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of the monarchy in Afghanistan through the Soviet invasion, the mass exodus of refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the rise of the Taliban regime.

Adapted from the best-selling novel by Afghan-born American writer Khaled Hosseini, this accessible, deftly-directed and moving tale of childhood regret and adult atonement courses through three decades of war-torn Afghan history in personal terms. In 1978, preceding the Soviet invasion, privileged seven-year-old Kabul boy Amir (Zekeria Ebrahmi) witnesses the rape of his friend and fellow kite-flyer, lower-class Hazara servant Hassan (the expressive and contained Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada) by the malevolent Assef. Confused and angered by his own powerlessness, guilt, and shame, Amir frames his erstwhile companion for theft and is further admonished by the morally pure, loyal and self-abnegating behaviour of his victim, something that troubles the aspirant-writer Amir through his 20-odd years of exile in the US. In the present, a visit to Pakistan to see his dead father's dying friend, offers news of Hassan's fate, and prompts the older, now-married Amir (Khalid Abdalla) to a dangerous visit to his now Taliban-controlled home.

The film's belief in the power of redemption and its subtle assertion of the need for moral courage in personal (or political) conflict, is never allowed to get in the way of its boldly told, intelligent, informed and affecting story.

Hairspray
Cert PG

With  Nikki Blonsky, John Travolta, James Marsden, Michelle Pfeiffer, Queen Latifah

A combustible mix of sassy humour and brassy showtunes makes Hairspray one of the hottest musicals to come along in years. After bland family comedies like Cheaper By The Dozen 2 and The Pacifier, director Adam Shankman is gifted with great source material in the form of John Waters' 1988 cult film, plus award-winning musical numbers from the Broadway production. And as chubby dance freak Tracy Turnblad, newcomer Nikki Blonsky simply bursts at the seams with charm.
Tracy is obsessed with The Corny Collins Show, a daytime dance-a-thon that has 60s Baltimore swinging. When the host (played like a refugee from a toothpaste ad by James Marsden) announces a vacancy in the troupe, Tracy hotfoots it to the audition. Sadly her bulbous figure is a turn-off for icy blonde station manager Velma (Michelle Pfeiffer), who also has a thing against the 'Negroes' threatening to sully her output with unseemly 'bump-and-grind'. Cue the dance-off!

"A JOYOUS CELEBRATION OF BEING DIFFERENT"

Not surprisingly given Hairspray's roots, the comedy cuts very close to the bone. But like Waters' original, the sly innuendos are balanced by a warm portrayal of people on the fringe. John Travolta is a scream as Tracy's balloon-bottomed mom, but his scenes with Blonsky are very poignant too. Their song-and-dance number at The Hefty Hideaway dress shop is one of the standout moments, not only for JT's dainty footwork in a fat suit, but because of their sparkling rapport. It also embodies the spirit of the film as a joyous celebration of being different. Later scenes depicting the Civil Rights movement may seem inappropriate, but the silliness only mirrors the absurdity of racism - ref. Queen Latifah's cringing endorsement of 'NapAway' hair cream. Spot-on performances all round contribute to a musical that, like Tracy, is just a great big ball of fun.

(review BBC)

Bucket List
Cert 12A

Academy Award winners Jack Nicholson and
Morgan Freeman star in the comedy drama
directed by Rob Reiner, a touching,
no-holds-barred adventure that shows it's
never too late to live life to its fullest.

If anyone can laugh convincingly in the face of
death it's Jack Nicholson fronting The Bucket List
as a corporate bigwig whose horizons are suddenly
narrowed by terminal illness. Morgan Freeman co-stars
as the broken down car mechanic who finds himself in
the same boat, or as it happens, the same hospital room,
where they both hatch a plan to live their last days to the fullest.
It's a shamelessly old-fashioned if somewhat creaky
crowd pleaser from director Rob Reiner.

The Waterhorse
Cert PG

Based on the novel by BABE author Dick
King-Smith, THE WATER HORSE
is set in Scotland during World War II, and
focuses on Angus (Alex Etel), a young boy who
discovers an unusual egg at Loch Ness. He soon
realises it's a magic egg and finds himself
raising an amazing creature, a mythical
"waterhorse".

As he and his friend, who he names Crusoe, form a
bond of friendship, Angus begins a journey of
discovery, protecting a secret that gives birth
to a legend.The Waterhorse begins when a young
boy takes home a mysterious object he finds on
the beach. He soon realises it's a magic egg and
finds himself raising an amazing creature, a
mythical "waterhorse".

"A fine family film, with imagination and heart
to spare".