Putting family life under a microscope has long been a popular device for filmmakers, but very few do it quite like Roman Polanski. In Carnage he takes four civil, up-standing New-Yorkers and reduces them, in the space of 79 minutes, to their true unapologetic selves.

With a name like Carnage, you’d be forgiven for expecting a slasher film to rival the Saw franchise. On the contrary the film is a ‘warts and all’ portrayal of parenting, that is bitingly funny and disturbingly accurate.

Here are a few subjects you should not broach in a social situation with another family: you should not insult their children, criticise their parenting, their careers, or mention leaving your daughter’s hamster out on the pavement because you were sick of it.

Everyone agreed these are big no nos? So what happens when these rules are ignored? Carnage explores this with brilliant wit.

Polanski had genius material to work with: the film is based on the comedy play ‘The God of Carnage‘ written by Yasmina Reza, and he also drafted her in to adapt it for the screen. The play has enjoyed successful runs in Paris, London and on Broadway since its premiere in 2006 and Polanski reportedly saw the play’s potential immediately.

The film certainly lives up to its source material. There is never a pause in what so easily could have been mundane and boring. Instead we have two families, the Longstreets (Foster & Reilly) and the Cowens (Winslet & Waltz), locked in a showdown over their children. Set in the Longstreet’s apartment, the four adults get together to discuss the issue at hand. Passive aggressive banter soon escalates, revealing each adults’ contradictions and hypocrisy.

Much of the genius lies in the unpredictable nature of the story. Of course there are certain aspects that you do see coming. Alan Cowen’s (Waltz) phone will go off every other minute, and the impending explosion from four strong personalities clashing is inevitable, but you can’t predict each adult’s reactions to one another. It’s delicious to find out. Alan reprimands the Longstreets for implying his son ‘disfigured’ their son, but in the next breath describes his own son as a maniac. It’s these contradictory moments that the comedy is at its most powerful and we get many of the biggest laugh-out-loud moments.

The film is in real-time just like the play, which is possibly Polanski’s biggest triumph. As an audience you are made to feel like you are in the room with them, although at a safe enough distance to observe without implication. Polanski cleverly toys with those basic human instincts that make us judge others and laugh at our own failings. The only detriment I could find was, the entire film takes place in one setting, which becomes a little tedious after a while.

A lot of credit has to go to to the four actors. They play off each other so well. Polanski reportedly scheduled them for weeks of rehearsal, performing the screenplay like the play it’s based on. It shows; the scenes flow very naturally.

Despite our reluctance, we gradually feel empathetic with each character. Kate Winslet (The Reader) for example, gives an outstanding performance as the demure and aloof Nancy. At first she seems cold , but by the end, after she has stopped trying to mediate proceedings, you might find you don’t mind her after all. Unlike Jodie Foster’s (Panic Room) character; the liberal writer Penelope, who seems pleasant in the beginning but by the end is a hysterical sobbing wreck. John C Reilly also deserves a mention too, for his comedic timing, and Waltz is deliciously nasty throughout.

The most amusing thing though, is so much of the conflict could have been avoided. A bite of the tongue here and there, and avoiding certain subjects would have caused far fewer problems. But where’s the fun in that?

Carnage is out in cinemas across the UK from the 3rd February 2012.

Written by Dan Fogelman and directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, Crazy Stupid Love has echoes of Love Actually as it follows multiple love stories. However, it has a more realistic edge to it and the comedic moments are brilliantly updated.

Steve Carell’s plays Cal Weaver, an unfortunate man whose life is falling apart. This is the sort of role we’ve come to expect of Carrell recently, he seems to have carved out a niche as the awkward character who you root for even when he keeps doing stupid things. It all started when he starred in the American version of The Office, but he plays these likeable losers well and gets us all laughing, so why not?

When Cal’s childhood sweetheart, played by Julianne Moore (Far From Heaven), says she wants a divorce he does not know where to turn. Until, that is, he turns to the bar where Ryan Gosling’s character reigns supreme over the ladies. Gosling is Jacob Palmer, the polar opposite to Cal. If Cal is a lady’s man whose lady has left him bereft, The Notebook actor is all suave sexiness as a smooth-talking ladies man. Emma Stone’s character puts it more simply, he’s the “hot guy from the bar”.

Jacob takes Cal through a transformation in both clothes and attitude. He teaches him the ways of the smooth-talker, while taking home countless women of course, until he realises that he may have learned a few things himself from Cal. Luckily for us, Jacob is likeable and isn’t too self-obsessed to crack some great jokes. He takes his role as ladies man very seriously though and wears a flashy ring and sports rock-hard abs – which prompt Stone’s character to exclaim, “Seriously? It’s like you’re photoshopped!” Carrell and Gosling bounce off each other well. The laughs are surprisingly funny, so much so that some feel as though they could have been improvised on the spot.

Meanwhile, Cal’s wife Emily is involved in her own teetering relationship with David Lindhagen, who is played by Kevin Bacon (X-Men: First Class). They slept together once, prompting her to want a divorce from Cal. However, it is clear that moving on from her husband to her office co-worker will not be as simple as she may have thought. Their relationship is like most of the others in the show – awkward yet somehow containing a fuzzy centre. Then we have Cal and Emily’s 13-year-old son Robbie who is played by Jonah Bobo. He is in love with his babysitter, played by Analeigh Tipton. Unfortunately for Robbie however, that babysitter is 17 and in love with Cal who has no idea until, well…let’s just say hilarity ensues with some fantastic twists and turns.

While Crazy Stupid Love is not your typical cheesy romantic comedy, that is a good thing. It manages to find the right balance between comedy and reality, while still being a fantastic feel-good film in its own way. The cheesiness is handled skilfully and avoids being too annoying: it is very refreshing to be able to laugh out loud at a romcom without cringing at its predictability. There are so many great lines in this film that just keep coming, making perfect quoting material. If you want to be able to practice, you can pre-order it now on Blu-ray and DVD, before it is released on 30th January.

Arthur Christmas is a fun and festive film, perfect for children and adults alike. The 3D Sony Pictures animation – written and directed by Sarah Smith – has a voice cast of top British actors including James McAvoy (Gnomeo and Juliet, Narnia), Hugh Laurie, Jim Broadbent (Bridget Jones) and Bill Nighly.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse. But if that mouse had woken, it would have seen the high tech S1 space ship silently hover over the town, before hundreds of athletic, Santa agent elves bungee onto the roofs of the sleeping neighbourhood. Back flipping and cartwheeling, they silently swing through windows and cat flaps, dodging obstacles with their high-tech gadgets. This is what happens when Mission Impossible meets Santa. It is a fantastic opening scene which cleverly takes the traditionally quiet night before Christmas and turns it into an action-packed, futuristic few minutes.

Bumbling, overweight Santa is now only a figurehead, who is only good at getting in the way of the present-delivery mission. So you can’t help but laugh when poor, naive Santa is treated by his elf helpers like an overweight toddler; he proudly waddles over to a Christmas tree, guided by the elves waving glow sticks, and lays down a single present. It’s his one job of the night but he does it with such pride and effort. Luckily, he has his two sons, Arthur and Steve, to help out too.

You can’t help but love Arthur Claus; not only is he caring and sweet but he can pull off one of those terrible festive jumpers pretty well. He is passionate about Christmas, but despite being Santa’s son, he is shoved in the background and is put in charge of the ‘letters’ department. Poor bumbling and clumsy Arthur seems to draw chaos wherever he goes, tripping over elves and setting things on fire. He feels neglected and ignored compared to the attention his older brother Steve gets.

Steve Claus (Hugh Laurie) is a military organised, coffee-addicted macho man, who has a good heart but his work always seems to come first. Arthur believes that Steve has stripped Christmas of its real magic, by throwing out the old tradition of a sleigh and reindeer (like their Grand Santa used) and replacing it with space ships and mobile phones which Grand Santa (Nighly) describes in one of the funniest quotes of the film,’There you go again, texting on your calculator!’

When a little girl named Gwen, has her present left behind, Arthur is determined to deliver it in time for Christmas. However, to Steve the mission is complete and the missed child is simply a tiny glitch in the system which should be ignored. Arthur ignores his stubborn brother, takes the present and embarks on his adventure to Gwen’s house in Cornwall with Grand Santa, where they let Evie (the old mothball-covered sleigh) fly one more time. But a sleigh can’t fly without the reindeer and it’s up to Grand Santa to call them to the sleigh.

This side-splitting scene is one of the most memorable. Grand Santa slowly approaches the reindeer who are standing majestically, awaiting their master’s call. Uplifting music begins to play as Grand Santa calls some of the reindeer forward, ‘Come on dancer, prancer…’. Everything is beautiful, moving and magical; that is until his old age kicks in ‘…err, what are the rest called? Err.. John, Bambi and you with the white ear’.

They set off on their adventure to England unaware they have a stowaway: Bryony, the Chief Wrapping Elf who can ‘wrap anything with three bits of sticky tape. Three!’, which after a while, becomes her annoying quote of the film. After getting lost, the group crash-land in Africa where they distract hungry lions with kitten-like games. A red laser pen suddenly becomes the most amazing thing in the world. This entertaining scene sees the lions playfully chase after a tiny red dot and clamp their claws around it. And just like every cat does, upon opening their paws, the confusion kicks in. Where’s it gone? How could it have escaped? These very important questions distract the lions and allow the group to escape, before finally making it to the British coast. But they still have to beat the sunrise to Gwen’s house and deliver the present.

Arthur Christmas is certainly the best Christmas comedy of 2011 and Grand Santa’s hilarious antics will keep you laughing for days. For me, he was certainly the star of the show.

‘Cheggers’, as he is somewhat affectionately known, is one of those celebrities for whom public nostalgia towards 1970s’ TV presenters seems to have worked wonders. He’ll be the reason why the majority of people go to see this film and, to his credit, he is probably the best thing in it.

Chegwin plays the presenter of an outdoor segment on a live breakfast TV show, reminiscent of his days as the real-life host of The Big Breakfast‘s ‘Down Your Doorstep’. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he’s great at it – many of his scenes feel like they could have been lifted straight from Chegwin’s show-reel, and it is invariably his on screen appearances which tend to lift the pace of this entire film.

The plot, however, which was written by the film’s director Andy Thompson, is almost unbearably tongue-in-cheek at times, and centres around fictional breakfast TV show, ‘The Crack of Dawn’. The presenter is, of course, called Dawn (played by 4.3.2.1‘s Susannah Fielding), giving rise to a plethora of ‘crack’ puns, which seem to set the standard for much of the humour in the film. Dawn’s co-presenter is leaving the show, and a number of other well-known personalities are rumoured to be lined up as his replacement – except that, one by one, they begin to be gruesomely killed off by a murdered, dubbed the Breakfast Cereal Killer (another pun, geddit?).

Kill Keith perhaps suffers from the comparisons which will undoubtedly be made with films such as Shaun of the Dead – whose shoes it is far from filling in terms of offering that seamless blend between horror and comedy. The film’s been given a 15 certificate, which seems about right given the torturous nature of radio DJ Tony Blackburn and comedian Joe Pasquale’s on-screen murders. The trouble is that the comedy aspect of the film pitches it’s humour at a level which is, for the most part, aimed at an age much younger than this.

It’s not that the jokes aren’t there, it’s just that they aren’t particularly sophisticated – but then, from a gore-fest centred around Keith Chegwin, what did you expect? Admittedly, there are one or two which simply don’t work – Tony Blackburn actually playing his double, rather than himself, being just one example – and these become rather laboured after about twenty minutes or so. The film also relies far too heavily on Chegwin’s casting as an upbeat and squeaky-clean celeb’ – something which may have been slightly tainted by his (much funnier) appearance on Ricky Gervais’ Extras back in 2006, if nothing else.

The sub-plot, which sees The Crack of Dawn runner, Danny – played by Marc Pickering, who was last seen on the big screen in Calendar Girls – desperately trying to win the heart of the lovely Dawn certainly has its endearing moments. On the whole, however, Kill Keith is slightly clumsy affair, and despite a few mildly amusing cameos, it is unlikely to achieve the cult status to which it might have aspired without far more sophisticated scripting, and perhaps slightly less reliance on Cheggers himself.

Kill Keith hits UK cinemas on 11th November 2011.

Check out our interview with Keith Chegwin here.

Not only will Johnny English: Reborn make you laugh out loud, it will make you coil up in cringe-inducing horror, sigh at the predictability of the plot. Ultimately however, and quite unbelievably, the film will leave you with the most cheerful, euphoric, slightly manic, smile you’ve had since you departed the screening of Johnny’s last outing in 2003.
Since we last saw him, things haven’t gone too well for him, (did they ever?). He’s been kicked out of the fictitious MI7 and (perhaps taking a leaf out of Batman’s book) is living in an Asian mountain, learning martial arts and meditation – queue lots of laughs . Inevitably, he gets called back to the secret service to help them with a case which is the basis of the two hours of hilarity and horror that follow.
Mr Bean, or rather Rowan Atkinson, is fantastic as the idiotic English secret agent, and though playing a role that is far from likely to win him an Oscar, he shows exactly why he has become one of the most respected British comedy actors of the last 50 years: an amazingly rubbery face, peerless physical comedy and great timing. These qualities make this sequel what it is. Another gem of this film is Daniel Kaluuya, replacing Ben Miller as Johnny’s sidekick, who does a fantastic job of being the calming and sane influence to Johnny’s manic insanity.
The first 20 minutes of the film are very obviously a spoof of the opening sequence of Casino Royale, with a comical street jumper scene and bright and beautiful casinos. Director Oliver Parker, who is best known for his very classically English dramas such as The Importance of Being Earnest and Dorian Gray, as well as comedies such as St Trinians 1 and 2, once again does what he does best by celebrating all that is England and Englishness. After all imitation is the greatest form of flattery and Bond is England personified.
This film may not please everyone, if slapstick and exaggerated comedy isn’t your thing then avoid this like the plague, if you do like the simple pleasures of buffoonery however, then you will undoubtedly love the heart, familiarity and laughter this film has to offer, and it will be you dragging the kids back to the cinema for more.

This is not another Meet The Parents-esque calamity film that the classification of ‘family comedy’ can sometimes involve. Although it does bring reluctant members of a family together with explosive results and the jokes are just as cringe-worthy, but at times it is because they are a little too obvious. Saying that though, the comedy in Reuniting the Rubins is clearly meant to be this type of stereotypical British humour and once you realise this, you can enjoy it for what it is and welcome the laughs.

Spall played Winston Churchill in The King’s Speech and you will probably also recognise him from his performance as Wormtail in the Harry Potter films. It is a little difficult to remove the image of Scabbers the rat from one’s mind, however once you get past that you can appreciate his role as the tedious head of an uncooperative family.  Spall plays the role of the uncharismatic, pressured son and father who just wants a quiet life and has a lot of opportunity to perfect his exasperated ‘sigh’. He is forced by his sick mother, played by Honor Blackman (Pussy Galore in the Bond film Goldfinger), into bringing his family back together and basically the hilarity stems from there.

The Rubin children are all extreme stereotypes. You have the highly-strung businessman played by James Callis (Battlestar Galactica, Bridget Jones’ Diary). Then there is the passionate activist who lives in the Congo and is trying to save the world, played by Rhona Mitra (Underworld: The Rise of the Lycans, The Number 23). Of course, there is also a Rabbi and a Buddhist, completing one generation of the diverse family. While it is clearly a recipe for comedic disaster, these characters are all so different that it can sometimes be a bit too much. The comedy that would have been created in more subtle circumstances may have worked better, and it seems to be trying a little too hard to be funny.

The obvious humour in Reuniting the Rubins is not necessarily a bad thing however. It enhances various boldly drawn characters and pits them against each other. Will the uptight business-man ever loosen up and spend more time with his son? Will he stop bossing his assistant Nick around (played by Neil from The Inbetweeners)? Will the passionate activist ever save the world? What on earth is the Rabbi doing and will the Buddhist turn up and save everything?  The moral in the end is heart-warming as well as extremely cheesy, but if you like that in a film then this is one to watch.

Reuniting the Rubins comes out on October 21st in selected cinemas.

Kind Hearts and Coronets is not only a ‘classic’ movie, it is also very enjoyable. From the title card to the credits, it is nitrous oxide funny but also clever. It is the well-mannered comedy Martin Scorsese claims gave him the idea for the Ray Liotta’s weary voiceover in Goodfellas. The film is also the only comedy in the top ten of the BFI 100 (the British Film Institutes’s hundred best films of the 20th century). It must be one of the funniest films about a serial killer ever made.

Dressed in a silk dressing gown, Louis Mazzini (Dennis Price) narrates the story from his prison cell (with a lot more wit than Ray Liotta’s Henry Hill). Born the son of an Italian opera singer and the daughter of an English aristocrat, his parents and childhood defines his fate. Although his mother is one of the wealthy and ancient D’Ascoyne family, of the Duchy of Chalfont, she was disinherited for marrying beneath their exulted social standing. So, rather than money and prestige, poor Louis grows up beyond the social pale in Clapham of all places and develops a chip on his shoulder of regal proportions.

It becomes clear that the only thing to do is kill ‘em all. The eight D’Ascoynes who stand between him and the ducal seat, that is. Being so far down the family tree might mean lots of work for Louis, but it also adds up to lots of fun for the audience because Alec Guinness plays each of the intervening heirs to the dukedom. Each character is a delight, they range from a Young Henry D’Ascoyne a sensitive photographer with a beautiful wife to ramrod stiff Admiral Lord Horatio D’Ascoyne, and even Lady Agatha D’Ascoyne, the indomitable suffragette.

Alec Guinness is brilliant and it’s easy to see why George Lucas wanted him for Star Wars, but Dennis Price is equally entertaining as Louis, the homicidal draper’s assistant. Kind Hearts and Coronets was written and directed by Richard Hamer and his script sparkles with Wildean epigrammatic wit, mostly delivered by Price. Price has great fun with the lines; who wouldn’t enjoy, “It is so difficult to make a neat job of killing people with whom one is not on friendly terms.”? If Oscar Wilde had written a tale of murder and intrigue, this is what it might have looked like.

To complicate things, Louis’s childhood sweetheart Sibella (Joan Greenwood) marries successful businessman Lionel, but never quite gets over her little half-Italian playmate, Louis on the other hand takes a fancy to a member of the D’Ascoyne family, Edith (Valerie Hobson). So, as well as scheming and murdering, Louis must also juggle the attentions of two striking-looking women. All while he drops elegantly waspish lines with suitably droll relish – referring to Sibella’s dull fiancé, “I must admit he exhibits the most extraordinary capacity for middle age that I’ve ever encountered in a young man of twenty-four.”

It is a shame Dennis Price was dead before any of the young Hollywood directors of the 1970s could find a role for him in their films, as Lucas did for Alec Guinness. Who knows, his name might now be whispered by geeks in the reverent tones reserved for Obi-Wan Kenobi. As it is, we have an almost flawless film built on a series of great performances.

Kind Hearts and Coronets currently has a re-release in cinemas.

Let’s face it life can get pretty dull, especially when you’ve got a dull job in an uptight, fussy workplace, where they pay you pittance – who wouldn’t get fed up? Henry Holland (Alec Guinness) feels undervalued, “I was a potential millionaire, yet I had to be satisfied with eight pounds, fifteen shillings, less deductions.” Unfortunately although his boss thinks he’s “dependable to the last” he also believes he’s a man who does not have enough ambition.

Henry Holland works in the “good old bullion office” at the Bank of England, where he is responsible for moving the gold bars from the vault to the mint. He’s being doing the job, with monotonous regularity, for twenty years and in the evening he returns to Lavender Hill, SW11 where he whiles away his time by reading pulp fiction to his elderly landlady. However, all the while Mr Holland has been scheming (or at least dreaming about) how to get his share of the loot he sees gleaming before him everyday. So begins a hilarious heist movie in which the little man strikes back.

Heist movies tend to organise themselves – planning, heist and aftermath – and in The Lavender Hill Mob these elements float into place with remarkable grace. The trouble with Henry Holland’s plan is he needs an accomplice, luckily he finds one in the confident hands of the ever charming Stanley Holloway. Having recently moved into Holland’s digs, Holloway’s Alfred Pendlebury runs a foundry business manufacturing souvenirs. Pendlebury is perfectly primed for a life of crime as he isn’t best pleased with his job either, “I propagate British cultural depravity.” Together they recruit two proper, cockney, crooks, Lackery Wood (Sid James in an early role) and Shorty Fisher (Alfie Bass) to help out.

This DVD comes with a short introduction to the film by Martin Scorsese, and it’s easy to see why such an accomplished film maker would love it. The characters are all likeable (losers), and the film is an object lesson in how to build up tension and create excitement while keeping a grin as wide as London Bridge on the faces of the audience. There’s even enough space for a car chase, which also gives us an inkling of what bombed out London looked like soon after the blitz. Of course, being an Ealing film, there are plenty of nice little comments on the English class system.

This is an essential DVD for any collection. Let’s hear it for the little man, the meek man, the fusser and the worrier – let’s hear it for Henry Holland!

As well as the introduction by Martin Scorsese, the DVD also comes with a behind the scenes stills gallery, an excerpt from BECTU (Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union) interview with the director Charles Crichton (who later directed A Fish Called Wanda), a digitally restored trailer and Good Afternoon: Mavis interviews the film’s writer TEB Clarke who won an Oscar for his screenplay.

The name may be bad, but this film definitely does what it says on the tin. A bit like Snakes on a Plane, it doesn’t disappoint with the content – the bosses are definitely horrible, just as there were certainly snakes on the plane.

Other than the truly appalling name, there really isn’t much to love or hate about this run-of-the-mill Friday night comedy. The cast is okay. Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey, and the hilarious Colin Farrell who definitely steals the show, are the ruthless employers of the film’s three protagonists. There are moments of pure comedy gold, though they might be few and far between, and the plot is original enough. The idea is that apparently most people will have fantasised about killing their bosses, (hopefully the latest winner of The Apprentice won’t be getting any ideas.)

This being said, as there are thousands of people worldwide struggling with unemployment, many of them may find it hard to sympathise with these disgruntled employees – at least they have jobs. They will feel especially annoyed that the on-screen personas of Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis fruitlessly throw around thousands of pounds worth of kit to eradicate their bosses, while they themselves are wedged in cramped cinemas, clutching their discount tickets and a bag of Sainsbury’s own-brand onion rings, ahh the high life.

This film is yet another example of the Seth Rogen legacy – awkward, self-conscious comedy interspersed with high-octane car chases and lots and lots of drugs. Although hilarious in places, it may struggle to hold your attention for the whole 98 minutes. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself wondering what you’ll be having for tea when you get home and if you locked the front door… only to be snapped out of it by images of a very foxy looking Ms Aniston.

Horrible Bosses okay, but it’s definitely nothing to write home, or even anonymously to your boss, about. One thing’s for sure, if you do have a job, you’ll be a lot more appreciative of your boss come Monday morning.