FILM: Bernie (dir: Richard Linklater, 2013)

"This is my life....!"

Linklater treads a very fine line between black comedy and true-life tragedy with real control and balance in this bizarre, slight but intriguing and very watchable tale.  Based on real events, and using talking heads of the actual townspeople throughout, Bernie (with some very good character work by Jack Black) becomes a hugely popular figure in the town of Carthage, befriending Shirely MacLaine's mean widower, living the high life and ultimately shooting her and hiding the body as her demands get too much.  Black conveys Bernie's unceasing and seemingly genuine goodwill, MacLaine brings some shading to a two-tone role, and Matthew McConaughey delivers another winning turn as the D.A. out to bring down Bernie.  It is rarely laugh-out-loud, but the tale is quirky and a lot of joy is to be had from the anecdotes and reactions of the real people involved.

FILM: The Look Of Love (dir: Michael Winterbottom, 2013)

 "I want you to have my children.  Seriously, they're out in the car - you can take them now if you want."

There is an air of sadness that haunts this surprisingly breezy movie, which follows the last six decades of one of Britain's first and biggest modern entrepreneurs.  As an old and lonely Paul Raymond looks back at the rise and fall of his soft-core exotica empire and his relationships, the film charts the changes in sexual morals and tastes over the years in conjunction with a man whose ambition and self-belief failed to move fully with the times.  Michael Winterbottom romps across the years (sometimes a little too fleetingly for some of the characters' changes which at times seem a little abrupt) and brings his usual sense of realism to events, but he also knows when to let the camera linger and for the actors to do their part.  Steve Coogan does a very strong job of conveying the man's arrogance and vulnerability, and copes with portraying the passing of years well.  In a film littered with many recognisable British actors and comedians, there are many impressive performances, notably Anna Friel as Raymond's wife and Imogen Poots as doomed daughter Debbie.  The nudity now seems almost quaint - there is nothing to shock here - but the (self-)destructive relationships feel contemporary; a standout scene is the meeting between Raymond and his illegitimate grown-up son, which ends with pitch-perfect timing and delivery by Coogan.  The 50s, 60s and 70s are recreated wonderfully - the 50s are, of course, in black-and-white! - and overall The Look Of Love provides a fairly brisk but seemingly honest and sincere account of this larger-than-life man.

FILM: Iron Man 3 IMAX 3D (dir: Shane Black, 2013)

"I loved you in A Christmas Story, by the way."

Iron Man 3 is - quite simply - insanely entertaining.  To follow Avengers Assemble was always going to be a tough act, but the strategy here of starting small and personal gives the film and the key relationships a real grounding, with sufficient well-made nods to set it firmly in the current Marvel  film universe.  After what seems like a rather simplistic opening with seemingly clumsy in-your-face narrated story-setting, which places the events nicely in the trilogy's timeline,  this device pays real dividends by the very end.  Shane Black handles both big and small scenes faultlessly, and his real ear for dialogue shines through.  He also creates a very good balance between 'new Bond' realism and fantasy/comic-book elements.  Downey Jnr and Paltrow are on absolutely top form (and impressively so), with the latter being given considerably more to do in this instalment, and Guy Pearce and Sir Ben Kingsley make effective villains (even though a sharper goal would not hurt).  There is so much more here than even the trailers displayed; the destruction of Stark's house in particular has the same iconic impact as the original Enterprise's destruction in The Search For Spock, and there are so many moments that are genuinely heartstopping, heartbreaking, jaw-dropping and utterly fan-pleasing.  Brian Tyler delivers a superb musical score, the visual and physical effects are astonishing, and the frantic huge-scale finale is a complete joy to watch.  The usual post-credits scene this time does not set up any future Marvel productions but is well worth the wait, as it is beautifully played and genuinely funny.  If this does prove to be this cast's final outing in an Iron Man movie, Iron Man 3 is a fantastic way to go.

FILM: Evil Dead 2013 (dir: Fede Alvarez, 2013)

"Hopefully this still works."

It depends from where you are coming with this 2013 part-remake of The Evil Dead: if you are new to the franchise, Alvarez provides a reasonably stylish and atmospheric horror that gets considerably more gruesome and outrageous as it progresses and provides some good shocks; if you are old enough for Raimi's original to be embedded in your own film culture, there is little here that is original or scary enough to make this take truly distinctive.  The original film's familiarity and lasting influence within the horror genre is clear - as The Cabin In The Woods served as a pointed reminder - especially in the more pronounced J-horror moments here, and Alvarez's use of physical effects as opposed to CGI here (a blight of many modern horror remakes) is definitely in its favour.  Updating with a storyline that nicely interweaves drug withdrawal, family madness and even good old-fashioned demonic possession, icons and key events are played effectively with some positively used new twists on the material, particularly in the latter stages.  Whilst missing Ash/Bruce Campbell markedly, Jane Levy does well as the key character and proves to be an effective Final Girl.  Evil Dead 2013 is played very straight, lacking the humour and manic energy of the original, but as an exercise in old-school horror it plays well.

FILM: Olympus Has Fallen (dir: Antoine Fuqua, 2013)

"Is he alive?"
"Ask me a serious question."

Olympus Has Fallen is a full-on action thriller, essentially a big-screen version of the middle of 24 Season 7 (complete with on-screen time graphics), putting Washington firmly in the middle of the North/South Korea tension and extrapolating it to an almost convincing degree.  The action is big, loud and extremely violent (an amazing body count and number of head-kill-shots), and apart from some cheap-looking CGI, it is very well staged.  Gerard Butler (as the President's ex-bodyguard who gets caught up in the attack on the White House) and Aaron Eckhart (as the President) play this for all they can muster (Eckhart even does a great "Noooooooo!"), and a strong cast includes Morgan Freeman, Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell and Rick Yuna all playing it very straight and serious.  At times, the terrorists' lack of humanity is uncomfortable to watch, and the endgame is very generic (complete with a countdown to be stopped), yet there are a number of wonderful one-liners and overall Olympus Has Fallen keeps up pace and interest and certainly entertains.

FILM: The Place Beyond The Pines (dir: Derek Cianfrance, 2013)

"You ride like lightning, you're gonna crash like thunder."

The Place Beyond The Pines has echoes of the more mainstream elements of David Lynch in its intertwining lives of a motorcycle stunt rider (Ryan Gosling), an idealistic cop (Bradley Cooper) and their two sons.  Told over a sprawling but clearly-defined three acts, the opener is by far the most compelling, but the remainder are worthy, even if the final section is predictably but necessarily contrived.  The film is a dazzling and absorbing watch: cinematic composition is frequently lovingly created, and Cianfrance elicits impeccable performances from the leads and subsidiary actors almost right across the board.   In particular, Gosling inhabits his character completely, Cooper shows real attention to detail, and Eva Mendes plays against type wonderfully, with great support from the likes of Dane DeHaan, Bruce Greenwood and Ray Liotta.  The long running time enables the central theme of actions and consequences to be played out fully, and whilst the engrossingly unpredictable start is not sustained all the way through, The Place Beyond The Pines is a superbly-crafted and expertly-delivered film.

FILM: Scary Movie 5 (dir: Malcolm D Lee, 2013)

"How did I think you could be intelligent?  You're just a dumb animal!"

Written by the once mighty Zucker and Proft, this is the weakest entry in the series since the deplorable second film.  The film delivers exactly what is expected, but Number Five sorely misses Anna Faris and Regina Hall (Ashley Tisdale and Erica Ash, their unsubtle replacements, do not even come close).  The parodies are surprisingly accurate - Mama, Black Swan, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes and the Paranormals form the basis of the plot, and there are some reasonable Inception and Evil Dead sequences, but so much falls flat and leaves little impression.  When the movie's highlights are slapstick violence inflicted on a game Simon Rex, you know you are in trouble.

FILM: Oblivion (dir: Joseph Kosinski, 2013)

"I know you, but I've never met you."

This is a visually gorgeous film to watch.  Whilst an originally-conceived story, Oblivion takes in a huge array of sci-fi tropes and references, from Solaris to 2001 to Independence Day to Moon.  The future is Apple-shiny in crisp blues, whites and greys, and everyone talks in measured tones, but this purposefully allows the bursts of action and the grimy underworld to have greater impact.  Some of its internal logic stretches credulity, but the huge twists work well and a satisfactory conclusion is reached.  Cruise and Riseborough are terrific and make for a very 'effective team', the 'empty world' scenario is wonderfully realised, and m83's glorious soundtrack matches Daft Punk's superb work on Kosinski's Tron Legacy.  Oblivion demands patience, and its over-familiarity grates at times, but its particular vision, style and concept are all effective.

FILM: The Host (dir: Andrew Niccol, 2013)

"DO something!"

This tedious teen re-tooling of Invasion Of The Body Snatchers is perhaps notable for creating the dopiest and least interesting on-screen love rectangle in memory.  Niccol excels at creating yet another cold, emotionless future without conflict, the problem being that it also makes for rather turgid viewing.  The solution to the novel's internal conversations between alien 'soul' and human 'host' does work but it becomes tiresome quite quickly.  Saoirse Ronan disappoints here, and her two bland A&F human suitors lack the emotional humanity that is surely the whole point of them being there.  At least the Twilight movies occasionally acknowledged the ridiculousness of Stephenie Meyer's source material, unlike this dull and humourless adaptation.

FILM: The Odd Life Of Timothy Green (dir: Peter Hedges, 2013)

"Why are you smiling?"
"I can only get better."

In many ways this is classic Disney live-action fantasy, raised above TV-movie standard by two utterly engaging performances from Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton as the childless parents who literally wish their ideal son into existence.  Set in an idyllic and beautifully-shot small rural town where - honestly - pencils provide the local industry (here, under threat - times are hard), huge themes such as discovery in childhood and parenthood, responsibility and even death are packaged in a non-threatening and child-friendly manner.  Strong character work from a reliable cast including Dianne Wiest, M Emmet Walsh and Shohreh Aghdashloo props up this whimsical but heartfelt tale, which may be rather too pleasant and predictable overall but is well-made and sensitively played.

FILM: Spring Breakers (dir: Harmony Korine, 2013)

"This isn't supposed to happen."

Even if Spring Breakers were meant to be a parody of 80s indie movies - which sadly it is not - this witless, immature and unconvincing film would still be nearly impossible to sit through.  The young actresses, who saw this as an opportunity to break away from their usual screen personae, are exploited rather than liberated, and James Franco's rowed-and-grilled Scarface-wannabe performance is quite frankly inexplicable.  The simple positive moral message that the girls finally work out ("Be good!") hardly justifies anyone having to watch the painful hour-and-a-half it takes to get there.

FILM: Finding Nemo 3D (dir: Andrew Stanton, 2003/2013)

"A fish can breathe out here."

Finding Nemo looks beautiful in pristine 3D on the big screen.  Ten years on, it stands up remarkably well as a film, and it does not put a foot wrong.  The pacy dialogue and sheer range of character-driven scenarios means that it constantly engages, and Finding Nemo may possibly prove to be the pinnacle of Pixar's Golden Age.  The accompanying Toy Story Toons short, Partysaurus Rex, eschews the usual sentimentality and is delightfully bonkers!

FILM: Dark Skies (dir: Scott Stewart, 2013)

"Aliens?  That's insane...right?"

This is Close Encounters of the less pleasant kind for the Paranormal Activity generation.  The slow-burn set-up of an 'ordinary' family struggling with everyday life helps to establish a reasonably realistic grounding, aided by two credible and sympathetic performances by Keri Russell and Josh Hamilton as the parents and unshowy turns from Dakota Goyo and Kadan Rockett as their sons.  Apart from one almighty throw-your-popcorn-in-the-air shock moment halfway through, the low-key approach makes the increasing suspicion of alien visitation all the more believable, plausibly confirmed by a gravitas-bringing cameo from the reliable J.K. Simmons.  Whilst rarely more than predictable, Dark Skies offers a reasonably thoughtful take on rather familiar material.

FILM: The Croods in 3D (dirs: Kirk Demicco and Chris Sanders, 2013)

"Still alive!"
"It's early yet."

After an alarmingly hyperactive opening salvo (in dizzying 3D), The Croods settles down to become a pleasant, harmless and very well-mounted adventure for the young audience.  By juxtaposing eternal family/generational struggles and the impending 'end of the world', the story drives along well and the characters/voice-cast spark off each other nicely.  The use of 3D and CG detail/texturing are very high quality, with some unusual and brave use of angles and moves, making this Flintstones-on-speed enterprise and very innocuous but fairly enjoyable watch overall.

FILM: Trance (dir: Danny Boyle, 2013)

"Does he strike you as greedy?"
"Everyone is."

Like Stanley Kubrick, Boyle's flit around cinematic genres here settles on the British urban heist thriller, with the USP of hypnosis thrown into the mix.  All of Boyle's trademarks are deployed successfully here, notably the masterful control of the visual and audio elements(including another winningly-selected soundtrack), great use of colour, terrific coverage and tight editing.  James McAvoy gives yet another magnetic leading performance (and scenes without him do flag noticeably), Vincent Cassel's delivery is pin-sharp, and Rosario Dawson's character is a role well-suited to her typically flat acting style.  The film is always interesting if at times a little unclear, particularly as the veracity of what the audience sees becomes less reliable, but clues - some rather heavy-handed - are there and the bitter-sweet resolution provides a good pay-off.  The overall tone of Trance is close to Boyle's early work, and whilst not up there with his absolute best, this is  well-made, accomplished and enjoyable thriller.

FILM: G.I. Joe Retaliation 3D (dir: Jon M Chu, 2013)

"Don't worry.  You're gonna forget everything, so your conscience will be clear."

G.I. Joe - The Rise Of Cobra was a slice of daft, cheesy fun.  The current trend for 'going darker' disappointingly sees this sequel become a rather soulless and unengaging action-fest.  The battle scenes are efficient, and the 3D conversion is extremely good, but both dialogue and narrative clunk along and Retaliation sorely misses the Tatum/Wayans buddy act from the first film.  Jonathan Pryce is clearly enjoying himself, The Rock does what The Rock does, Willis seems shoehorned in and overall the team lacks the spirit of the original film.  The film perks up when the world's entire nuclear arsenal is unleashed in a curiously non-satirical Dr. Strangelove-style summit, and the money-shot - here, the destruction of London - packs a brief punch.  Overall the film is perhaps so resolutely generic that it lacks its own identity and makes it hard to see who might really enjoy it.

DVD: Sleep Tight (dir: Jaume Balaguero, 2011)

"Well, I wouldn't swap this for anything."

This relentlessly sinister and melancholy film offers much to admire and to enjoy.  As a reflection on the insularly individual nature everyday lives, Sleep Tight relishes our ignorance of others and revels in the moments when it shatters those socially-constructed barriers.  Balaguero's direction shows beautiful control throughout, Lucas Vidal's score is fragile and haunting, and in the two contrasting lead roles, a sunny Marta Etura as the unknowing victim and Luis Tosar as the troubled building manager are immaculate.  The extraordinary heartbreaking ending is both shocking and disturbingly raw, a fitting conclusion to a film that is both challenging and exquisite.