Review: Lawless

Despite sticking him on the poster, Gary Oldman probably gets more screen time in those new O2 adverts than he does in this, so those wanting to see another Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy acting master class will be left disappointed.

Fans of Tom Hardy mumbling are in luck though, as despite delivering another convincingly menacing performance, it would be nice to be able to hear what he was saying more often. Shia Labeouf gets the most screen time as the youngest of three moonshine-selling brothers in Prohibtion-era America, trying to win the heart of the local preacher's daughter, as well as the respect of his two big brothers - and coming from the pen of Nick Cave, you can guess there's a few grisly moments along the way.

In a similar way to Public Enemies, Lawless has to count as something of a disappointment considering the names involved, but the general air of negativity around the reviews so far underplaying the many things the film does well. So adjust your expectations accordingly and you'll find another decent crime thriller lies within.

Review: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Tomas Alfredson came to our attention with Let the Right One In, a vampire film that wasn't really about vampires. Here at the helm of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - the latest adaptation of the John le Carre novel, he does something similar, making a spy thriller that isn't actually that thrilling.

That's not to say the film isn't good, just that its the polar opposite to Bond and Bourne's kinetic energy we've become used to - the film progresses at an funeralistic pace throughout giving the excellent ensemble cast plenty of time to show the internal torture a life of subterfuge can bring as opposed to Daniel Craig getting his nuts cracked in Casino Royale.

In amongst several great performances, the highlight is arguably Tom Hardy following on from his turn in Inception as the best Bond there never was (yet) as the slightly rogueish Rikki Tarr, looking resplendent with some of the best/worst wig work of recent times.