Beginners (15)
(Mike Mills, 2010, US) Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Mélanie Laurent. 105 mins
Mills doesn’t iron out the hipster-auteur quirks here ? a subtitled dog, freeform photomontages, felt-tip illustrations ? but he puts them to the service of an authentic drama. McGregor is an LA loner whose widowed father (Plummer) came out as gay and enjoyed a few hedonistic years before his death. Not your standard indie baggage, this warm, smartly told story deals with it sincerely, and gets the sweet/sad balance just about right.
Horrible Bosses (15)
(Seth Gordon, 2011, US) Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis. 98 mins
Clearly aiming for the post-Hangover fratcom market, this sees three guys’ plan to off their bosses go awry from the outset, with occasionally amusing, but often crude consequences. Colourful big-name cameos gloss over some political dodginess.
The Big Picture (15)
(Eric Lartigau, 2010, Fra) Romain Duris, Marina Foïs, Niels Arestrup. 115 mins
Duris proves his leading man capabilities amply in this year’s answer to Tell No One. His accidental murder of his wife’s lover presents the option to assume his identity and photographer lifestyle ? but can he pull it off?
Cars 2 (U)
(John Lasseter, Brad Lewis, 2011, US) Owen Wilson, Larry the Cable Guy, Michael Caine. 112 mins
Possibly Pixar’s least adult- (or girl-) friendly film so far, though petrolheads will be in thrall to the animated vehicular spy japes. A plot hinging on biofuels offsets the heavy carbon tyreprint.
Break My Fall (15)
(Kanchi Wichman, 2011, UK) Kat Redstone, Sophie Anderson, Kai Brandon Ly. 106 mins
Messy modern-day east London lives captured in the raw in this unpolished drama, centred around a disintegrating lesbian relationship, with music, drugs, and nighttime lowlife to the fore.
Gilda (PG)
(Charles Vidor, 1946, US) Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready. 105 mins
Hayworth delivers poison-tipped double entendres like they don’t write any more in this classic noir love triangle. Ridiculous but brilliant.
One Life (U)
(Michael Gunton, Martha Holmes, 2011, UK) 85 mins
BBC Earth pulls out its big telephoto lenses and high-speed cameras for a global showreel of amazing wildlife moments (culled from its Life series), with Daniel Craig on narration duties.
Singham (12A)
(Rohit Shetty, 2011, Ind) Ajay Devgan, Kajal Agarwal, Prakash Raj. 143 mins
Styled like an extra from the Beastie Boys’ Sabotage video, Devgan takes on a gangster villain in this Bollywood action thriller.
The Violent Kind (18)
(Mitchell Aliteri, Phil Flores, 2010, US) Cory Knauf, Bret Roberts, Taylor Cole. 85 mins
A thrill-killing biker gang bites off more than it can chew in this nasty horror, which pulls out some seismic, bloody surprises, but lacks conviction.
The Lavender Hill Mob (U)
(Charles Crichton, 1951, UK) Alec Guinness, Stanley Holloway, Sid James. 81 mins
Restored version of the Ealing perennial, elegantly laying out a very British heist by genteel Guinness and his criminal associates.
Out from Friday
Horrid Henry: The Movie
Anjelica Huston, Richard E Grant and Noel Fielding pitch in for a 3D Brit kids’ movie.
Henry IV
Filmed Globe theatre staging, with Roger Allam as Falstaff.
Out from Mon
Captain America: The First Avenger
Chris Evans wields the shield as Marvel’s wartime superhero.
Arrietty
Bright Japanese animated take on Mary Norton’s The Borrowers.
A Better Life
Father-son immigrant drama with a Bicycle Thieves-ish plot.
Our Day Will Come
Vincent Cassel takes the fight to France in Romain Gavras’s hard-hitting feature.
The Light Thief
Arthouse fable addressing electrical supply problems in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan.
Poetry
Life, death and poetry as experienced by a Korean grandmother.
Zookeeper
Kevin James talks to the celebrity-voiced animals in this kids’ movie.
Whisky Galore
Reissue of Ealing satire about the restorative properties of Scottish alcohol.
Coming soon
In two weeks ? JJ Abrams’s Spielbergian monster movie Super 8 ? Charlotte Gainsbourg leads family drama The Tree ?
In three weeks ? Double monkey trouble with chimp doc Project Nim and prequel The Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes ?
In a month ? Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford lead genre mashup Cowboys & Aliens ? The TV teens hit Crete for The Inbetweeners Movie ?