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Graham Young

Graham Young

The Hoax (15)

DIRECTED by Lasse Hallstrom and featuring Richard Gere at his best, The Hoax is the riveting story of how Clifford Irving claimed he had interviewed reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes for his memoirs - and then secured a lucrative publishing deal. Rich in period touches, Hallstrom shows how we're all suckers for audacious people - and for a good yarn. It's also available to buy for £15.99. Read

Ratatouille (u)

IN WHAT is something of a classic week, Pixar's new blockbuster is the top family choice. Oscar nominated for both best script and best animation, it's the story of Remy the rat who works in... a hat! Bringing a whole new meaning to the term 'little chef', Remy learns from a book how to cook. But before he can try to impress the toughest critic in Paris (Peter O'Toole's Anton Ego), he has to earn his place in a kitchen belonging to the late, great Gusteau. Great fun for all ages and also available to buy on DVD from £22.99, with extras including deleted scenes and Gusteau's Gourmet game. Read

Control (15)

NEWCOMER Sam Riley is superb in one of the best British films for years. A biopic charting the demise of Joy Division's frontman Ian Curtis, Control is a mesmerising interpretation of life as well as death. It's also about what makes a band tick and threaten to implode and the impact all of this can have on personal relationships. Also available to buy for £19.99, with extras including extended performance scenes. Read

The Brave One (18)

THIS film is so violent it would have fallen apart in less-skilled hands. But, in what is only Jodie Foster's fourth starring role in ten years, her mixture of inner strength and tragic vulnerability as radio journalist Erica Bain keeps us just on the right side of her revenge-seeking character. Also available to buy for £20.99 (Blu-ray £27.99/HD DVD £27.99) with extras including additional scenes. Read

Definitely, Maybe

Definitely, Maybe (12a)

HERE'S the romantic comedy of the year... well, at least until 27 Dresses (March 14) and Priceless (March 28) open. Read

Juno

Juno (12a)

PERHAPS this year's most unlikely best picture candidate at the Oscars, Juno is the name of a teenager who becomes pregnant. Read

National Treasures 2

National Treasure 2 Book of Secrets (pg)

THIS film is as silly as Osama Bin Laden trying to run for the US presidency. Read

Osler Street

Osler Street, Ladywood

IF Fabio Capello wants to learn more about England's demise as a footballing nation, he should come here to this brilliant facility on the Ladywood / Edgbaston borderland. Read

The MAC

The Mac - before it closes

LET'S do the time warp, yeah! That's effectively the message for visitors to one of Birmingham's best-loved buildings. Read

The Water Horse Legend of the Deep

The Water Horse Legend of the Deep (pg)

BASED on the book by Dick King-Smith and made by the producers of The Lord of the Rings, children should enjoy this new take on the Loch Ness monster. Read

The Diving Bell and The Butterfly

The Diving Bell and The Butterfly (12a)

ORIGINALLY not set to arrive until March at the MAC, this extraordinary French movie is now opening here simultaneously with London thanks to Cineworld Broad Street. Read

The Ugly Duckling and Me (u)

ADAPTED - and expanded - from the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, this is a surprisingly watchable animation considering it's a Danish-Irish-French co-production. Read

And when did you last see your father (12)

ADAPTED from Blake Morrison's novel of the same name, Colin Firth plays the adult son in this reflection on parent-child bonding. Director Anand Tucker delivers a fine conclusion when old Arthur (Jim Broadbent) finally pops his clogs. But, with Firth failing to match Matthew Beard's portrayal of the teenage Blake, and the director relying too heavily on flashbacks, the film is never as moving as expected. Just like Atonement.Also out to buy for £17.99 (Blu-ray £26.99). Read

Atonement (15)

JOE Wright's adaptation of Ian McEwan's novel has been Oscar nominated for best picture. In the summer of 1935, precocious 13-year-old Briony Tallis (Oscar-nominee Saoirse Ronan) accuses housekeeper's son Robbie Turner (James McAvoy) of a crime he did not commit. Forcibly removed from the house, will he uphold his promise to return to love Briony's sister Cecilia (Keira Knightley)... even if it's years later? With McAvoy and Knightley sharing little screen time, the handsomely-shot film has everything except real emotion. Also out to buy for £19.99, or as a box set with Wright's Pride And Prejudice (£24.99), the extras include seven deleted scenes. Read

Hallam Foe (18)

THIS film almost disappeared without trace last summer yet it's a 'proper' British movie with director David Mackenzie echoing Peeping Tom crossed with Dirty Pretty Things. Billy Elliot star Jamie Bell takes on his toughest role to date by spying on his physically-adventurous blonde hotel boss, Kate (Sophia Myles). What really gives this creepy film an edge is that Kate looks like his mother, whose suspicious death turned Hallam's life upside down. An unflinching exploration of how adolescents can be driven to extremes when their sex drive combines with teenage grief, Hallam Foe is also available to buy for £17.99, with extras including deleted scenes. Read

Halle Berry

Things we lost in the fire (15)

The Mail's Graham Young reviews the film starring Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro. Read

Penelope (u)

THE movie industry is a really, really strange beast. Read

Cloverfield (15)

TRANSFER the basic concept of The Blair Witch Project from the Black Hills Forest to the streets of Manhattan, introduce a few aliens to knock the head off the top of the Statue of Liberty and what do you get? Read

Before the Devil knows you're dead (15)

WHEN the revered director Sidney Lumet (Dog Day Afternoon / Network / Serpico) makes a film as good as anything in his career, then you know you are on to a winner. Read

Coombe Country Park

RIGHT out of the blue came the brightest, sunniest, warmest January day imaginable. Read

Author Profile

Award-winning Film Editor Graham Young has covered the Midlandsý radio and TV scene for two decades. The father of three is also the Mailýs reviewer of pubs, parks, family days out and chips and a keen photographer.

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