Review: After Earth

Even going in with the lowest of expectations its hard not to be disappointed by After Earth. Of the its many problems, the biggest hurdle the film faces has is that Jaden Smith is just a really bad actor, ruining each scene he's in - when you realise he's in virtually all of them, that gives you a scope of what you're up against.

Those hoping Will Smith's presence and charisma on screen can save After Earth are out of luck - playing a character who survives by being to hide his fear and emotions, Will plays this like he's been sedated with a distant look on his face like he's doing an eye test just off screen.

M. Night Shyamalan directs, though you'd be hard pressed to notice - everything looks nice enough in a sub-Avatar kind of way, but whatever you think of his diminishing results, one of his trademark twists would've livened up a dull script that just ambles along with even the actors looking bored.

Review: World War Z

Plagued with production problems, even going as far as having a completely new final act filmed - World War Z is better than you'd think but still ends up as less than the sum of its parts.

The main problem is that the new ending, written by Lost's Damon Lindelof feels like a completely different film to what has gone before, as somehow Brad Pitt ends up in an office in Cardiff with Peter Capaldi after an hour of massive disaster movie set pieces. As well as the massive stylistic change, matters aren't helped by it looking much, much cheaper too, like Charlie Brooker has somehow managed to cast Pitt in Black Mirror or Dead Set.

The first hour is far from a flop, though after a stunning set-piece in Philadelphia to kick things off the reasons for Brad Pitt's Gerry to fly all-over the world trying to halt the zombie apocalypse do become a little contrived and just excuse for some more impressive CGI stunts in front of another landmark - but as the stunts are well done, evoking memories recent stuff like Contagion and Cloverfield for a similar sense of chaos, you can't complain too much.

Matthew Fox turns up for a couple of seconds, and you wonder if he had a bigger role in the original ending, which re-iterates the film's main problem - you never feel like you've watched a whole film, just the start of one and the finish of another.

Review: Fast & Furious 6

If you were a fan of the previous installment in the Fast & Furious films, then you'll love part six of the series - as it takes all of the chaos of the previous Rio heist and adds more of pretty much everything.

Those who weren't a fan will find that whilst its an improvement on the the last one, some of the same flaws still remain. Whilst the story is slightly less flimsy this time (just) and unlike the last one actually tries to place events somewhere in the timeline, it still suffers problems from trying to cram too many characters in alongside token car races every now and then just to stay true to the franchise's origins.

Gina Carano stands out of the huge array of characters and even manages to outshine The Rock in their double act, which is no mean feat considering how he made the film his own the last time around. Luke Evans is the main villain is a bit of an afterthought as he tries to get a computer chip for nefarious reasons that are never really delved into that much, as a result of having such an undeveloped character the tension is never really there to keep your attention as to how and when the good guys will come out on top. Hopefully that isn't the case for Fast & Furious 7, as the post-credit sequence teases the appearance of a new character that will leave all action move fans on the edge of their seats.

Review: Man Of Steel

There's plenty to like about the opening half of Zakk Snyder's take on the man from Krypton's origin story - it's a shame that it descends into a long mess of a final fight scene that tries to outdo Avengers Assemble, but ends up a boring sequence of CGI spearing and punching through buildings that goes on forever.

You can feel the influence of Christopher Nolan, whose watchful eye Snyder was under in the films first half, giving the film a similar feel to Batman Begins (with added dragons). Whilst Russell Crowe hams it up (with aforementioned dragons) as Jor-El , Superman's birth father on Krypton - Kevin Costner steals the show as Jonathan Kent, his father figure on Earth full of world weary wisdom and advising the restraint of Clark's powers - whether he sneakily used them to knock up a baseball pitch in the corn fields though we'll never know.

I'm not sure whether the fact that General Zod looks like Paul Robinson from Neighbours actually improves this latest Superman reboot or not, but Michael Shannon manages to stay on the right side of scenery chewing throughout.

For the most past Man of Steel deserves credit for mixing the fantastical elements of the story with a modern day setting, but its a shame that the films finale is its weakest part, as its the films abiding memory leaving the cinema, not all the good stuff that came before it.

Spot the Difference #9 New Liverpool Kit

WWF Wrestler Crush

Liverpool FC Third Kit 2013-2014

Well they did say it was based on a classic Nineties design.

Reviewl Killing Them Softly

Killing Them Softly features Brad Pitt as a hitman who prefers to kill his targets softly, but also features a script that drives its point comparing Washington and Wall Street to the gangster underworld home a little too hard at times.

By the 4th or 5th time a excerpt from a Bush or Obama speech is played in the background the point starts to become a little laboured and the lack of subtlety shown is in contrast to the performances from the cast, with several stars like Ray Liotta and James Gandolfini playing against their charismatic calling cards shown in previous gangster classics to portray a cast of slimly, sleazy and crass characters.

Unlike The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward, Killing Them Softly comes in at just over 90 minutes, but still manages to go along at a slow pace - the world created is a compelling one, but the simple story feel like it would be better suited forming part of a longer story arc in something similar to The Sopranos, not quite working a single film.

Review: Gangster Squad

It's hard to call Gangster Squad anything more than a disappointment when after putting an impressive cast with an interesting choice of director (Zombieland's Ruben Fleischer), all you get is a poor man's version of The Untouchables.

Sean Penn is the film's highlight as the over the top villain, but the squad assembled by Josh Brolin's good cop suffer from next to no character development in favour of simply looking good in hats. Ryan Gosling in particular is wasted alongside Emma Stone, with Crazy Stupid Love proving a much better example of the chemistry the pair have.

It might've been okay for Gangster Squad to shun story for shoot-outs if the action itself was a little more memorable but that's far from the case, leaving a film that looks full of forties flash on the surface, but is instantly forgettable.

Review: Jack Reacher

The problem isn't that Tom Cruise is too small to play Jack Reacher, its that his performance as the drifter/detective is far too similar to his turn as Ethan Hunt to make the film stand out.

That said, being reminiscent of the Mission Impossible films means that what you do get from Jack Reacher is more than decent, but in place of huge action set pieces and aerial stunts you get lots of hand to hand combat and a few chase scenes thrown in, meaning this also has echoes of the Bourne series of films - and this is definitely a class above the recent Bourne Legacy reboot.

The film's trump card could've been Werner Herzog as the elusive über villain, but the problem is he's just too darn elusive - only popping up for 2 or 3 scenes. When he does appear, he oozes menace and you find it hard to believe you're watching a 12a with some of the grizzly stuff he gets up to.

The film slightly overstays its welcome with a running time over 2 hours and a story that finishes about 15 minutes before the film actually does, but Jack Reacher is worthy of another shot at starting a series, even if its managed to scale the heights of other similar films so far.

Films of 2012: 21 Jump Street

Jonah Hill is the most likeable he's been in a comedy for ages, but Channing Tatum steals all the scenes he's in, sending up his beefcake image and showing a natural ability for physical comedy and timing.

Films of 2012: Argo

Ben Affleck is often the butt of many of Kevin Smith's jokes - but with Argo he is now 3 for 3 in films that are better than anything Kevin Smith has ever done.

Films of 2012: Avengers Assemble

The most fun of the superhero blockbusters this year - if you can overlook the fact the first 20 minutes are a bit dull and that the whole plot kind of contradicts everything that happened in Thor, The Avengers was an experience made to be enjoyed on the big screen.

Films of 2012: End of Watch

End of Watch is everything Michael Mann's 2006 remake of Miami Vice should have been. There's actually chemistry between the two leads, an exciting plot and a shooting style that complements the down to earth, gritty feel.

Films of 2012: Headhunters

Lumped in with the rest of Nordic Noir, Headhunters is actually a welcome return to those 90s films where Tommy Lee Jones was always hot on someone's trail.

Films of 2012: The Hunger Games

While other franchises aimed at the teen market have struggled with their first films, The Hunger Games nails it right from the start, with plenty of thrills that never patronise - and another great performance from Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss.

Films of 2012: The Imposter

I would normally say this documentary's story is so good they should make a movie out of it, but it appears that there was a movie where the story was so good, they made a documentary out if it.

Films of 2012: Moonrise Kingdom

Despite casting Bruce Willis and Ed Norton, who've been more used to roles in action movies as of late - Wes Anderson has still managed to master his craft that he's still able create the most typically Wes Anderson film of his career so far.

Films of 2012: The Muppets

The feel-good family film of the year. the Muppets doesn't try and reinvent the series, realising the timeless appeal of Jim Henson's characters.

Films of 2012: Skyfall

Skyfall manages to mix the modern Bond with enough flashbacks to its 60s & 70s heyday to make this the best film so far in the rebooted series. Javier Bardem steals the show as the flamboyant counterpart to Daniel Craig's stern-faced spy.

Albums of 2012: ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - Lost Songs

As striped-down as your ever going to get from Trail of Dead, Lost Songs is more punk than prog and sounds all the better for it.

Albums of 2012: Dinosaur Jr - I Bet On Sky

Pretty mellow for a Dinosaur Jr. album, I Bet On Sky still contains plenty of fuzz and J Mascis guitar solos with a surprisingly upbeat feel.

Albums of 2012: DZ Deathrays - Bloodstreams

It might be a bit obvious to call them DZ Death from Above 1979 - but for anyone awaiting the return the Canadian duo this will tide them over nicely.

Albums of 2012: Frank Ocean - Channel Orange

For anyone whose missed The Neptunes and N*E*R*D since the drowned under Pharrell's ego, Frank Ocean has taken a similar spaced-out R&B formula and improved it so it actually works over the course of an album.

Albums of 2012: Graham Coxon - A+E

Graham Coxon albums usually come in one of three forms: folk, the best albums The Libertines never made or Weird & Noisy. This album falls into the latter category with lots of synths, feedback and angry guitar growls all over the place.

Albums of 2012: Hot Chip - In Our Heads

Thought of as a cool dance act, there's always been a poppiness to Hot Chip's sound to suggest they're actually more Pet Shop Boys than Pitchfork.

Albums of 2012: Japandroids - Celebration Rock

Bands like The Gaslight Anthem, The Hold Steady and even Fucked Up have led the growing number of bands that owe an increasing debt to Bruce Springsteen in their sound - Japandroids are the latest with The House That Heaven Built sounding like The Boss fronting The Hives.

Albums of 2012: Nada Surf - The Stars Are Indifferent To Astronomy

Sounding completely different to the band that wrote Popular, Nada Surf now can be relied on for another album of Anglophile-influenced sounds.

Albums of 2012: Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania

The two most surprising returns to form in 2012 were the new series of Red Dwarf not making you want to bleach your eyes - and this latest album from The Smashing Pumpkins. Unlike the over-produced dirge of Zeitgeist, you can actually hear this time that Billy Corgan can still write a good song when he puts his mind to it.

Albums of 2012: Tame Impala - Lonerism

As with The Black Keys' El Camino, there's a stomping glam rock quality alongside Tame Impala's usual prog sound that makes it a lot of fun to listen to.

TV Moments of 2012: Arrow

Batman meets Smallville sounds a bit rubbish on paper, but Arrow is the surprise hit of 2012, throwing in a nice mix of action, twists and drama that remains an easy watch but never straying into being too dumb. Add in the casting of John Barrowman in a recurring role for a rare case of nominative determinism in television drama.

TV Moments of 2012: Adam Buxton's BUG

If you didn't like Adam Buxton's mix of his his own jingles, the most innovative music videos from up and coming directors, and the even more weird YouTube comments that went with them, you must be an ALIEN OR SUTIN!

TV Moments of 2012: Drugs Live

13 minutes in and Jon Snow promising to take us DEEP INSIDE YOUR BRAIN and swinging open the middle of a giant model brain was the moment I was convinced I had accidentally stumbled onto the return of Brass Eye.

TV Moments of 2012: Homeland

Season 1 of Homeland was a smart and suspenseful thriller which was hard to believe came from the creators of 24. Season 2 made those origins a little more obvious, with plots becoming increasingly far-fetched that you wouldn't have shocked to see Jack Bauer pop up for one of his infamous integration scenes - even though some of the initial intrigue has gone, Homeland knew how to drop a 24-style cliffhanger to keep viewers coming back.

TV Moments of 2012: Line Of Duty

With Neil Morrissey as part of the cast and a story focusing on dodgy police officers, the could've been the plot for the greatest comedy spin-off that never was - Policemen Behaving Badly.

But in reality Line of Duty followed in a similar vein to last year's The Shadow Line and added in a splash of The Departed, resulting in one of the year's finest dramas - Even if Martin Compston looking like the double of Michael Owen was a hard visual to shake at times.

TV Moments of 2012: Olympic Opening Ceremony

Though we didn't quite get The Queen and Daniel Craig recreating the start of For Your Eyes Only, the danny Boyle directed Opening Ceremony set the mood for arguably the whole summer of sport.

London 2012 was such a success that it meant everyone forgot the closing ceremony which was a bit of a car crash (which might have been preferable considering some the names they had on vehicles at various points).

TV Moments of 2012: Phil On Remand

It's no surprise at 3 mins 50 seconds Phil makes his cellmate turn of the Katy Perry song - we all know from his time on crack the only CD Phil owns is by The Who.

TV Moments of 2012: Sherlock

Sherlock avoided any second series syndrome, upping the quality from an already awesome first series. The first episode gave the Daily Mail something to get wound up about with Lara Pulver's Irene Adler in the buff before 9pm, whilst the second episode was a fantastically creepy reworking of the Hound of the Baskervilles that had some convinced they'd seen a TARDIS.

But the highlight was the series finale that had viewers on the edge of their seats and Sherlock on the edge of a rooftop, notable for a stellar turn by Andrew Scott as Moriarty - who after a 2012 which saw him cast alongside Martin Freeman (Dr Watson), Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who) and Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) is surely set to star alongside Dr Legg in something at some point in 2013.

TV Moments of 2012: The Thick Of It

Maybe expectations were too high for Armando Iannucci and co. sticking it to the coalition Government, but the fourth series of The Thick Thick Of It relied a bit too much on slapstick-style humour for laughs - the 3 Stooges style running down corridors jokes were overdone in particular.

On the plus side however, we saw a lot more of Peter Mannion as a central character and the hour long Goolding Inquiry, spoofing recent events at Chilcott and Levison hearings was one of the show's, let alone series stand out episodes.

TV Moments of 2012: Welcome To The Places Of My Life

The pick of the Partridge specials (Open Books was a bit rubbish really) - Welcome To The Places Of My Life expanded on Alan's guide to Norwich from Knowing Me, Knowing Yule - delving into his East Anglian upbringing, those the omission of Puppet Man from his guide to Norwich was a slight letdown