Tower Heist

Tonight I have been to see Tower Heist.

It's a high-rise heist as Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller head the cast in this hilarious action-comedy.

Josh Kovas (Ben Stiller) is the proud manager of one of the most luxurious and secure high-rise blocks in New York. With his dedicated staff, he ensures that everything runs smoothly for the benefit of the rich residents. And none of them are richer than Wall Street billionaire Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda), who occupies the penthouse apartment. But Shaw's under house arrest for a massive $2 billion swindle - and his victims include Josh and his team, whose pensions he was entrusted to handle. Now they want their money back - and to help get it, Josh has recruited career criminal Slide (Eddie Murphy). 'Rush Hour' director Brett Ratner puts two great comedy stars together for the first time, with Murphy making a welcome return to the odd-couple action buddy-movie genre in which he scored his earliest successes.

Contagion

Tonight I have been to see Contagion.

A lethal airborne virus decimates an A-list cast in this terrifyingly realistic thriller.

Two days after Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) returns from a business trip in Hong Kong, she's dead - and the medics can't tell her husband Thomas (Matt Damon) how or why. But before long, the virus that killed Beth is out of control. As panic spreads, scientists battle to control the global pandemic. Dr Erin Mears (Kate Winslet) is a researcher at the US Centers for Disease Control, working under Dr Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne), while Dr Leonora Orantes (Marion Cotillard) is an investigator for the World Health Organisation - and Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law) is a crazy blogger peddling misinformation. One of the most consistently creative directors to grace the movie mainstream, Steven Soderbergh delivers a meticulously researched disaster movie. 'Contagion' dramatises the deadly outbreak with the same scary realism that Soderbergh's classic 'Traffic' brought to the global drugs trade.

Johnny English Reborn

Last Night I went to see Johnny English Reborn.

Rowan Atkinson's unlikely super-spy returns to cause more hilarious chaos in the espionage world

Since we last saw him, secret agent Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) has been honing his martial arts skills in a remote region of Asia. But now the call has come through: Her Majesty's Secret Service needs him back! Summoned by Pamela Head (Gillian Anderson), the cat-loving boss of MI7, Johnny is set to work hunting down a gang of international assassins who plan to bump off the Chinese premier at a heads of state conference. With just days to prevent the world being plunged into chaos, Johnny must master the latest hi-tech gadgets and unravel a conspiracy that goes to the heart of the CIA, KGB and even MI7. Dominic West and Rosamund Pike join the cast of this eagerly-anticipated second adventure for Rowan Atkinson's phenomenally-popular comic creation. As the famously accident-prone man himself would say: "Let's kick some bottom!"

Jane Eyre

On the 27th September I went to see Jane Eyre.

A bold, atmospheric, stunningly filmed new adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's classic love story.

After fleeing the imposing Thornfield Hall, Jane Eyre (Mia Wasikowska) runs across the eerie, foggy moor until she arrives at the door of young clergyman St. John Rivers (Jamie Bell). While recuperating, Jane reflects on the experiences that formed her, from a Dickensian childhood to her employment as governess for the cruel, cold Edward Rochester (Michael Fassbender). Anyone who's familiar with Charlotte Bronte's much-filmed classic will recognise that this is a brave departure from the text. Director Cary Fukanaga ('Sin Nombre') frames the story as a series of flashbacks, underlining how Jane is haunted by her past. He also gets the best out of a to-die-for cast. There's a stand-out central performance by 'Alice in Wonderland' star Mia Wasikowska. Michael Fassbender makes a memorable Rochester. And the great Judi Dench is on excellent form as Thornfield's all-knowing housekeeper, Mrs Fairfax.

I Don't Know How She Does It

Tonight I have been to see I Don't Know How She Does It.

Sarah Jessica Parker stars in a sparkling comedy about a mum juggling marriage, children and a high-powered job.

"I don't know how she does it!" That's what everyone says about Kate Reddy (Sarah Jessica Parker). Trouble is, nor does she. Hubby Richard (Greg Kinnear) is a recently 'downsized' architect, leaving Kate the family's main breadwinner while raising the couple's two children. At the Boston financial management firm where she holds down a high-powered job, her ultra-capable, child-phobic junior assistant Momo (Olivia Munn) views her as a role model to avoid. Acerbic best friend Allison (Christina Hendricks), however, performs a similar juggling act with ease. Then Kate lands a major account that entails working with seductive new business associate Jack Abelhammer (Pierce Brosnan)... Adapted by Aline Brosh McKenna ('The Devil Wears Prada') from the bestseller by top British columnist Allison Pearson, Douglas McGrath's film finds comedy gold in the stresses of modern life.

Friends With Benefits

Friendship plus S-E-X adds up to a raunchy comedy starring couple Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis.

Dylan (Justin Timberlake) and Jamie (Mila Kunis) are young, attractive and successful. Jamie's a New York-based headhunter. Dylan's a graphic designer she lured from LA. They get on really well, but have both been through plenty of failed relationships and are naturally wary of getting involved. So why not just have sex? After all, they both agree that love is a fantasy promoted by Hollywood romantic comedies. There's no reason why a physical relationship should be complicated and emotional. How could their experiment in casual, no-strings rumpy-pumpy possibly go wrong? Hot from her stunning performance in 'Black Swan', Mila Kunis sizzles opposite Justin Timberlake (equally hot after 'The Social Network') in this thoroughly modern relationship comedy. Director Will Gluck ('Easy A') also gives great comic supporting roles to Patricia Clarkson as Jamie's mum and Woody Harrelson as Dylan's best mate.

Cowboys & Aliens

Last night I went to See Cowboys & Aliens

Yes, that's right - cowboys take on marauding aliens in this genre-bending sci-fi Western!

1875, New Mexico Territory. A stranger (Daniel Craig) arrives in the sunbaked outpost of Absolution with a mysterious shackle on his wrist and no memory of his past. He soon finds that the townsfolk don't take kindly to outsiders. What's more, Absolution is ruled with an iron rod by Colonel Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford). But the climate of fear gets a whole lot worse when mysterious alien invaders start to swoop down at astonishing speed, blinding residents with bright lights as they snatch them one-by-one. As the outcast gunslinger begins to recall his past, he realises that he holds the one secret that could save this desolate town from devastation. With the help of the elusive Ella (Olivia Wilde), he pulls together former opponents - townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors - for an epic showdown.