It Follows

UK Release Date: 27th February 2015

For nineteen-year-old Jay, Autumn should be about school, boys and week-ends out at the lake. But after a seemingly innocent sexual encounter, she finds herself plagued by strange visions and the inescapable sense that someone, something, is following her. Faced with this burden, Jay and her friends must find a way to escape the horrors that seem to be only a few steps behind (www.imdb.com).

Director: David Robert Mitchell

Starring: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi, Lili Sepe, Daniel Zovatto

The greatest aspect of a tenacious horror film is its ability to scare its audience with the smallest detail. It Follows manages to hone in on all the ethereal details. Jay (Monroe) is plagued by a spiritual being that follows her to no end. The boy she had a fling with transferred via their consummation. The only way she can be rid of its presence is by passing it on to someone else. It won't stop following her, and if it touches her, it'll be the end for her. The creature's presence, whether on screen or off screen, is felt utterly an entirely.  Doesn't sound very harrowing, but throw in some chilling music (a soundtrack similar to the 80's), painstaking jumps and the scares and the young, naive cast and It Follows is a spine-chilling pleasure.

4/5

The Boy Next Door

UK Release Date: 27th February 2015

A newly divorced woman falls for a younger man who has recently moved in across the street from her, but their torrid affair soon takes a dangerous turn (www.imdb.com)

Director: Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious, xXx, Alex Cross)

Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Ryan Guzman, Kristin Chenoweth

The Boy Next Door has plenty of promise, but falls the opposite direction when it hits its peak. Jennifer Lopez is an aspiring lead, getting the best out of an uninspiring storyline. The 19 year old youngster she has her wicked way with looks about 30, so her worries feel somewhat exaggerated. The-cat and-mouse chase between the idiosyncratic 'boy next door' (Guzman's Noah) and the susceptible Claire (Lopez) is distressing and uncomfortable to watch. After their one night stand, Noah's Freudian obsession become fully psychotic within a matter of days. The Boy Next Door attempts to abuse our ignorance with its implausibilities.

2/5

Paul Blart: Mall Cop

UK Release Date: 20th March 2009

When a shopping mall is taken over by a gang of organized crooks, it's up to a mild-mannered security guard to save the day (www.imdb.com).

Director: Steve Carr (Next Friday, Dr. Dolittle 2, Daddy Day Care)

Starring: Kevin James, Keir O'Donnell, Jayma Mays, Bobby Cannavale, Stephen Rannazzisi

Paul Blart: Mall Cop is your average, run-of-the-mill movie. Think Die Hard without the tension and the tenacity, and in a mall instead of the Nakatomi plaza. The humour will either dead-pan or thrill, depending on your taste. The story's simple, an easy-going security guard of a mall gets locked in with a group of bmxing and free-running criminals who are powered by their greed for money. They've taken hostages, and they won't give them up until they get what they want. Blart (James) is there to save the day. It takes a good third of the film to get the ball rolling, Kevin James makes a better lead than the monotonous Sandler we expect to front every Happy Madison production. The script relies on James' clumsy demeanour. Awkward conversations are his forte and trips and falls are his get out clause. Still, there's nothing like seeing a nice guy winning, especially after watching pen-geek Stuart (Stephen Rannazzisi) bully's Blart so much it's cruel and even awkward to watch. Blart kicking some ass though, is far exceeding in choices of viewing these days. 

3/5

The Wedding Ringer

UK Release Date: 20th February 2015

Two weeks shy of his wedding, a socially awkward guy enters into a charade by hiring the owner of a company that provides best men for grooms in need (www.imdb.com).

Director: Jeremy Garelick

Starring: Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting

Kevin Hart, you've got to love him or hate him. In previous roles (Ride Along, Grudge Match) he's a full-on eccentric, like he's permanently electrocuted up the jacksy. Thankfully The Wedding Ringer sees his hyperactive state toned down to a more natural one. It's an interesting concept, a groom hiring a best for his  wedding, and it's one that's pulled off well, with the hired best man Hart and groom Josh Gad making a delectable duo. The antics they get up to are amusing, and the lying they continue to uphold throughout the film is even funnier. Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting's bride has little going for her other than her looks. It's obvious to see that Doug (Gad) is pushing well above his weight (yes, pun intended) but that's not the issue. There's one clear loophole from the get go: what bride-to-be doesn't know their fiance's friends? It's a difficult one to get past, but The Wedding Ringer is good fun if you can.

3/5

Blackhat

UK Release Date: 20th February 2015

A furloughed convict and his American and Chinese partners hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta (www.imdb.com).

Director: Michael Mann (Heat, The Insider, Collateral)

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Viola Davis, Wei Tang, Leehom Wang, Andy On

Michael Mann is back in the director's seat after 6 years off the scene. 2009's Public Enemies did not receive the reception it desired. We expect a lot from the man. Blackhat is no exception. It opens with a camera panning and zooming around circuit boards of a computer. The user is doing his or her business, intent on doing no good. It doesn't seem like much, but it emphasises the rush and the adrenaline not expected with computer hacking and nerds. Hemsworth's main man, Nick Hathaway, is out of prison to help find a cyber-criminal whose intentions are unclear. One sentence sums up his past. Not enough for us to feel his pain. Hemsworth seems like an odd choice for this role but he more than stands on his own two feet. Crimes in the cyber world are elusive and ambiguous. It's only known to those who've studied computing, so it's easy to get lost in the technical mumbo-jumbo. Thankfully a tight script and astute acting help us with our ignorance. What Mann excels in is turning the mundane into something utterly engaging. Blackhat sounds boring on the outside. It's easy to get lost in the technical mumbo-jumbo and all the keyboard tapping, but throw in some of Mann's signature gun battles and a host of physicality you'll find a few treats to appreciate.   

4/5 

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

UK Release Date: 15th March 2013

A veteran Vegas magician tries to revive his career after his longtime partner quits, he gets fired from his casino act, and an edgy new "street magician" steals his thunder (www.imdb.com).

Director: Don Scadino

Starring: Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin, Jim Carrey

Now You See Me is the only film about magicians to spring up in recent years. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone has nothing of NYSM's pazazz or cleverness. Instead it takes the mickey out of itself. Long time partners Burt (Carell) and Anton's (Buscemi) show at Bally's casino, Las Vegas is boring and out of date; shadowed by street magician Steve Gray (Carey, in unusual but cool form). What should follow for Burt, after losing everything he has, is a sense of direction. Scriptwriters Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley add too many factors to follow, whether it's finding the magician he idolises (Arkin), a romantic partner (Wilde), mending the friendship with his best friend or taking on Carey's contemporary magician. TIBW juggles them all at once, loosing vigor and strength on the way. The laughs are few, mainly because Carell's character is a nonchalent arsehole to everyone around him. Buscemi and Carey do well in a hit and miss script as most of the laughs coming from them.

2/5