DUE DATE (15)
EXPECTANT father Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr) is a workaholic, who keeps in touch with his pregnant wife Sarah (Michelle Monaghan) via his omnipresent mobile phone. With her waters expected to break in only a few days, Peter prepares to fly home to make sure he is at Sarah’s side for the birth. A bag mix-up with fellow passenger Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis), an aspiring actor who carries his dog in his hand luggage, leads to both men being thrown off the flight. In the absence of his passport or wallet, Peter reluctantly accepts a lift from Ethan and his pooch, who are travelling to Hollywood to seek fame and fortune.
STAR RATING: ***
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNETS’ NEST (15)
LISBETH Salander (Noomi Rapace) stands accused of multiple murders in the final chapter of the Millennium trilogy, based on the award-winning books by Stieg Larsson. The police, led by Inspector Jan Bublanski (Johan Kylen), are convinced that she is guilty but tenacious journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) scents a cover-up. So he sets out to prove her innocence and expose the shocking truth on the pages of his magazine, Millennium. He races against time with editor Erika Berger (Lena Endre) to unearth incontrovertible proof of the hacker’s innocence. The stakes couldn’t be higher: If Lisbeth is found guilty, she will be sent back to a psychiatric ward under the care of abusive physician, Dr Teleborian (Anders Ahlbom Rosendahl).
STAR RATING: ****
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1 (12A)
THIS follows on from the shocking events of Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince with Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) facing the renewed threat from Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and the Death Eaters. The nefarious Lord Voldemort and his followers continue to grow in power, threatening everything that Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) and his followers hold dear. With Hogwarts in disarray, Harry, Ron and Hermione embark on a perilous quest to track down the mysterious Horcruxes and stop the forces of darkness from taking a stranglehold over the wizarding world.
STAR RATING: ****
MACHETE (18)
DANNY Trejo cuts a swagger as Machete, an assassin for hire who barely escaped death at the hands of drug lord Rogelio Torrez (Steven Seagal) and now lives under the radar in Texas. As his name suggests, he is skilled with a blade and can scythe through a crowd of gun-toting men without suffering a bruise. Desperate to make ends meet, Machete accepts a job offer from spin doctor Michael Booth (Jeff Fahey) to assassinate xenophobic Senator John McLaughlin (Robert De Niro), who is on the presidential campaign trail. As he prepares to pull the trigger, Machete almost takes a bullet and realises that he has been set up by Booth and McLaughlin. On the run and with few places he can hide, Machete seeks refuge with his priest brother, Padre Cortez (Cheech Marin).
STAR RATING: **
MOTHER (15)
AWARD-winning film from director Joon-ho Bong exploring the psyche of an over-protective mother determined, at any price, to prove the innocence of her vulnerable son after he’s arrested for murder. Showing at Clwyd Theatr Cymru in Mold from November 30-December 1.
STAR RATING: ***
THE RUNAWAYS (15)
VIDEO artist Floria Sigismondi directs this ode to an era following the adventures of the 1970s girl band. Starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning. Showing at Clwyd Theatr Cymru in Mold from November 27-29.
STAR RATING: ***
SKYLINE (15)
JARROD (Eric Balfour) and his girlfriend Elaine (Scottie Thompson) fly to Los Angeles to celebrate the birthday of Jarrod’s best friend, Terry (Donald Faison). They stay in Terry’s plush penthouse suite, which he shares with materialistic girlfriend Candice (Brittany Daniel). At the end of the raucous party, both couples collapse in their bedrooms while Terry’s pal Ray (Neil Hopkins) and assistant Denise (Crystal Reed) crash in the living room. In the early hours of the morning, pulses of bright blue light fall from the sky and Terry and his friends stare horrified out of the penthouse windows as they witness the mass harvesting of the city’s denizens. If Jarrod, Elaine and co are to evade capture and a grisly fate, they will have to make stark choices.
STAR RATING: ***
WINTER’S BONE (15)
DEBRA Granik directs this adaptation of Daniel Woodrell’s novel about 17-year-old Ree (Jennifer Lawrence) who journeys across the American mid-west in search of her no-good father who’s put the family home in jeopardy by jumping bail on yet another drugs charge. Showing at Clwyd Theatr Cymru in Mold on December 2.
STAR RATING: ****
YOU AGAIN (U)
MARNI (Kristen Bell) secures a promotion to vice president of the New York office of her public relations company, and returns home jubilant to northern California to attend the wedding of her beloved brother, Will (James Wolk). En route, her mother Gail (Jamie Lee Curtis) reveals that Will’s blushing bride-to-be is none other than the very same Joanna (Odette Yustman) who made her high school years a misery. Except that rather than being the sneering bully of old, Joanna has reinvented herself as an earthbound angel and do-gooder, who has her in-laws wrapped around her little finger. Determined to prevent Will from making the biggest mistake of his life, Marni vows to expose Joanna as a fraud.
STAR RATING: **
