Film Guide - July 13, 2012

Lock Out: Action packed Sci-fi drama about a man wrongly accused of espionage against the US. Effective with a humorous tone. *** TG

The Amazing Spider-Man: You have seen this story before but you have never seen it told this way. Director Marc Webb chooses character development over meaningless CGI giving you a heartfelt story. The superb acting helps too. ***** MV

Vincent Wants to Sea: Deftly building on some quirky scenes, director Ralf Huettner manages to get beyond the clichés of the beginning sequences to tell a believable and charming story about not always being able to save everyone. *** WP

Best Exotic Marigold Hotel: Seven British retirees discover a newfound lust for life when they retire to India. Beautiful character study, even if the plot is a bit clichéd. *** TS

Friends With Kids: Two single friends decide to have a baby together but keep seeing other people. This will not end well. ** HH

Ice Age: The prehistoric crew is back for a side-splitting adventure of fun, humour and heartfelt messages that make for winning family entertainment. **** TG

LOL: Demi Moore plays Miley Cyrus’s mother in this coming-of-age film set in the well-heeled side of America. It’s bland and clichéd and already starting to date. ** TS

Madagascar 3: Europe’s most wanted: Bright, highly detailed with a gorgeous set piece which sees the Bronx zoo escapees join the circus. *** TS

Mad Buddies: Leon Schuster teams up with Kenneth Nkosi for a slapstick road trip movie. Crass humour and poo jokes abound. *** if you’re a six-year-old boy; * if you’re not. TS

Men In Black 3: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and now Josh Brolin kick alien butt and save the world – as usual. *** HH

Rock of Ages: Ensemble cast featuring Tom Cruise, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Russel Brand and Alec Baldwin in mommy jeans in an adaptation of the Broadway musical. *** HH

Set Up: Ryan Phillipe, Bruce Willis and… 50 Cent… in a heist drama. Better than you think. *** HH

Shame: Michael Fassbender plays an emotionally vacant sex addict. ** HH

Snow White And The Huntsman: A beautifully lensed retelling of the favourite fairy tale goes for a dark edge. *** TS

Snows of Kilimanjaro: An elderly French couple’s ordered life is thrown into disarray when they are burgled. The problem is compounded when they realise they’ve been robbed by someone they know. (Not reviewed)

Sound of My Voice: A journalist and his girlfriend stumble upon a cult in this psycho-thriller. ** TG

The Dictator. Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest character is a witty one-liner despot who is part Gadaffi, part Hussein and all sorts of crazy. *** HH

The Lucky One: Nothing compared to The Notebook, but Zac Efron and Taylor Schilling still try to pull off the romance for the cameras. ** TG

The Romantics: Anna Paquin, Josh Duhamel, Elijah Wood, Katie Holmes and Candice Bergen in a posh wedding romcom. (Not reviewed)

The Rum Diary: Johnny Depp brings to life the novel of legendary journalist Hunter S Thompson’s pre-gonzo days. *** TG

The Vow: Sadly, no Nicholas Sparks spark here. A disappointing love drama which doesn’t deliver the acting suited to Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. *** TG

Think Like a Man: It’s battle of the sexes in this ‘how to get a man’ flick. Predictable, lame and slightly enjoyable if you take it for what it is. *** KM

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy: Excellent ensemble cast and tight directing turns John le Carré’s Cold War spy novel into a classy puzzle of a thriller. **** TS

W. E.: Madonna directs Andrea Riseborough and Abbie Cornish in a film about how King Edward VIII abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson and a woman who was affected by the act of love in the 90s. *** HH

What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Expecting more from this movie, based on the fact that it has a stellar cast and is a New York Times best-seller, will see you labour through unrealistic, almost farcical plots. ** DT

Younge Goethe in Love: German director Philipp Stölzl’s film falls gently between the stools of high-brow camp and genuine seduction by its many period charms, fine actors and lovely landscapes. The highbrow pedigree is mostly window dressing for a commercial period romance about Germany’s literary giant.

*** HR