Cemetery Junction (15)
(Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant, 2006, US) Christian Cook, Jack Doolan, Tom Hughes, Felicity Jones. 95 mins
Those averse to Ricky Gervais's "white-man overbite" will see surprisingly little of it in his second co-directed movie. Set in suburban 70s Reading, this rites-of-passage drama stars newcomers Cook, Doolan and Hughes as three mates growing apart on the threshold of adulthood. The ending may be formulaic, but Gervais and Merchant carve a neat middle path between comedy and pathos to get there.
The Ghost (15)
(Roman Polanski, 2010, Fr/Ger/UK) Pierce Brosnan, Ewan McGregor. 128 mins
While he remains in chokey, Polanki's latest release is an old-school political thriller, starring Brosnan as a slick ex-PM with guilty secrets and McGregor as the hack hired to launder them.
Beeswax (NC)
(Andrew Bujalski, 2009, US) Tilly Hatcher, Maggie Hatcher. 100 mins
Mundane mumblecore about the travails of twins.
The Heavy (18)
(Marcus Warren, 2010, UK) Gary Stretch, Vinnie Jones. 102 mins
Macho gubbins from the British gangster-flick sector.
Dear John (12A)
(Lasse Hallström, 2010, US) Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried. 108 mins
Sickly weepie about a girl, a soldier and 9/11.
Crying With Laughter (18)
(Justin Molotnikov, 2009, UK) Stephen McCole, Malcolm Shields. 93 mins
A stand-up comic stirs up ghosts from his past in this assured Scottish indie.
Repo Men (18)
(Miguel Sapochnik, 2010, US) Jude Law, Forest Whitaker. 111 mins
Sci-fi silliness in which Law and Whitaker demand body parts with menaces.
Bananas!* (NC)
(Fredrik Gertten, 2009, Sweden) 87 mins
Controversial doc about the fruit trade in South America.
The Manchurian Candidate (12A)
(John Frankenheimer, 1962, US) Laurence Harvey, Frank Sinatra. 126 mins
Reissue of the cold war classic, about a plot to turn soldiers into assassins.
City Of Life And Death (15)
(Lu Chuan, 2009, China) Liu Ye, Gao Yuanyuan. 135 mins
Drama about the 1937 occupation of Nanking.
Boogie Woogie (15)
(Duncan Ward, 2009, UK) Danny Huston, Heather Graham. 94 mins
Flabby art world satire with a cast of thousands.
The Market (NC)
(Ben Hopkins, 2008, Ger/UK/Turk/Kazakh) Genco Erkal, Tayanç Ayaydin. 93 mins
Offbeat drama about an aspirant Turkish trader.
Paathshaala (NC)
(Milind Ukey, 2010, Ind) Nana Patekar, Shahid Kapoor. 138 mins
Bollywood's answer to High School Musical.
Give Me Your Hand (15)
(Pascal-Alex Vincent, 2008, Fr/Ger) Alexandre Carril, Victor Carril. 77 mins
Gay-themed French drama about conflicted brothers.
OUT FROM FRIDAY
Life During Wartime
Sequel to Todd Solondz's Happiness.
Date Night
Nightmare coupling comedy with Tina Fey and Steve Carell.
The Calling
Convent drama, heavy on the nuns.
Centurion
Roman action thriller, heavy on the Picts.
Cherrybomb
Coming-of-age stuff with Rupert Grint.
Extract
Mike Judge's new high-concept cult flop.
La Danse: The Paris Opera Ballet
Documentary by Frederick Wiseman.
Dance With Me
Marital drama with a tango topping.
Agora
Egyptian slave epic, starring Rachel Weisz as a foxy philosopher.
The Joneses
Suburban satire about a seemingly perfect American family.
Dogtooth
Anarchic black comedy from Greece.
Sky Crawlers
Timeless anime from Mamoru Oshii.
It's A Wonderful Afterlife
Slapstick comedy about a pushy Asian mum.
Vote Afghanistan!
Election doc from the Afghan Star team.
COMING SOON
In two weeks ... Robert Downey Jr straps on the metal suit again for Iron Man 2… Vikings go in search of the new world in Valhalla Rising …
In three weeks ... Chris Morris unleashes Four Lions … The Hot Tub Time Machine takes us back to the 80s … Freddy gets rebooted in A Nightmare On Elm Street …
In a month... The story of a comedy legend is told in American: The Bill Hicks Story … Russell Crowe takes a bow in the epic Robin Hood …
