CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (12A)
GERMAN defector Dr Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) is spearheading a secret programme to create the ultimate soldier. He chooses asthmatic weakling Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) as the perfect candidate for the treatment. Steve is transformed into a muscle-bound hunk. Steve joins forces with playboy inventor Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) and officer Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) to parachute in behind enemy lines as Captain America and single-handedly take on the Germans.
STAR RATING: ***
COWBOYS & ALIENS (12A)
JAKE Lonergan (Daniel Craig) wakes in the desert with a gunshot wound, a large metal bracelet on his wrist and no memory of who he is or how he came to be in the dirt. He struts into town and is unmasked as a killer with a sizeable bounty on his head. Arrested by the sheriff and bound for prison alongside Percy Dolarhyde (Paul Dano), Jake makes his escape from the prison coach during a devastating attack by extraterrestrial craft. Percy is abducted and the boy's powerful father, Woodrow (Harrison Ford), vows to rescue his son and he press gangs Jake into accompanying his posse on the perilous mission. Beautiful cowgirl Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde), publican Doc (Sam Rockwell) and a fatherless boy called Emmett (Noah Taylor) join the hunt for the aliens.
STAR RATING: ***
THE DEVIL’S DOUBLE (18)
LATIF YAHIA (Dominic Cooper) is the spitting image of Saddam Hussein’s son, Uday (also Cooper). Uday, the eldest child of Saddam Hussein (Philip Quast), makes Latif an offer he cannot refuse: pose as a decoy or sign the death warrants of his entire family. Latif is drawn into the inner circle of the Iraqi presidentwhere he falls under the spell of Sarrab (Ludivine Sagnier), Uday’s mistress.
STAR RATING: ****
GLEE: THE 3D CONCERT MOVIE (PG)
GLEE fans – aka Gleeks – can rejoice as their favourite characters from the award-winning TV series are brought in full 3D glory. The full cast – with the notable exceptions of Glee club leader Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) and acerbic cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) – take to the stage on the mammoth Glee Live! In Concert! tour. Most cast members get their opportunity in the spotlight, with Brittany (Heather Morris) living up to her namesake in I'm A Slave For You, and Rachel (Lea Michele) gets to shine in Barbra Streisand's Don't Rain On My Parade. There's also a special surprise when Gwyneth Paltrow appears as substitute teacher Holly Holliday to perform Cee Lo Green's Forget You. The real-life stories of four die-hard Glee fans are interspersed into the songs, as we discover how the show has had a huge impact on their lives.
STAR RATING: ***
THE INBETWEENERS MOVIE (15)
THE boys from BAFTA award-winning television series The Inbetweeners have made the move to the big screen. We're reintroduced to pompous Will (Simon Bird) as he is being berated by his father (Anthony Head); the gormless but perpetually happy Neil (Blake Harrison) packing up his supermarket shift mid-service; the ever boastful and lusty Jay (James Buckley) getting discovered by his mum in a compromising position involving ham; and a heartbroken Simon (Joe Thomas), in tears because he has been dumped. As the four wave goodbye to Rudge Park Comprehensive, they decide they need a proper lads' holiday in Malia, Crete, to reinvent themselves. Of course, nothing goes according to plan. Their accommodation is a hell-hole, they wind up in the saddest club on the resort strip, get in scrapes, get drunk and then get naked. There's humiliation on a regular basis – but somehow the chums actually meet some girls.
STAR RATING: ***
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (12A)
SCIENTIST Will Rodman (James Franco) is determined to find a cure for Alzheimer's, the disease which has slowly consumed his father Charles (John Lithgow). Will feels certain he is close to a breakthrough and tests his latest serum on chimpanzees, noticing dramatic increases in intelligence and brain activity in the primate subjects. However, a high-profile showcase with shareholders goes spectacularly wrong and Will's profit-driven boss, Steven Jacobs (David Oyelowo), demands the project is shut down. Will smuggles a baby chimp called Caesar out of the lab and raises the infant with his father. As the years pass and Caesar blossoms, Will falls in love with veterinarian Caroline Aranha (Freida Pinto). Caroline warns Will that he cannot keep Caesar as a pet forever and meddling with nature has repercussions.
STAR RATING: ***
THE SMURFS 3D (U)
AS THE Blue Moon Festival approaches, Papa Smurf (voiced by Jonathan Winters) experiences a horrifying vision of arch-nemesis Gargamel (Hank Azaria) imprisoning the entire Smurf village in cages. Soon after, lovable Clumsy (Anton Yelchin) accidentally leads Gargamel and his cat Azrael to the village and the Smurfs flee for their lives. Papa, Smurfette (Katy Perry), Clumsy, Brainy (Fred Armisen), Gutsy (Alan Cumming) and Grouchy (George Lopez) stumble upon a portal, which sucks them into present-day New York. Luckily, kind advertising executive Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) and his pregnant wife Grace (Jayma Mays) are on hand to help the Smurfs return to their village.
STAR RATING: **
SUPER 8 (12A)
TEENAGER Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) is struggling to come to terms with the death of his mother. The youngster is making a low-budget zombie film with his friends. They head to the local rail station to shoot a night-time sequence. Just as the camera starts rolling they witness a truck drive on to the tracks and derail an oncoming freight train. As they escape, they are oblivious to the monstrous creature crawling free from the wreckage.
STAR RATING: ****
