X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)
Genre: Fantasy
Certification: N/A
Duration: 144 minutes
Directed by: Bryan Singer
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Oscar Isaac, Rose Byrne
KRS Releasing Ltd

The ninth instalment of the X-Men film series, based on the Marvel Comic Books characters, sees  Hollywood stars Jennifer Lawrence and James McAvoy reprising their roles as powerful mutants who join forces against a new supervillain.

Oscar-winner Lawrence returns as the blue, shape-shifting  Mystique, while McAvoy plays the younger, mind-reading Professor Charles Xavier, a role portrayed by Patrick Stewart in the franchise's first films.

In the film, the world's first mutant Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) awakes in 1980s Cairo after  hibernation in ancient Egypt  and embarks on a mission for global power with his new  recruits, including Magneto (Michael Fassbender), a mutant pacifist and the world's most  powerful telepath.

Professor Xavier seeks to defeat him with the help of Mystique and other mutant students from his school – characters introduced in the original X-Men movies and brought to life here by a younger generation of actors.

The franchise may have lost  a bit of its novelty, however, as a number of critics stated.

Geoff Berkshire of Variety  wrote: “The latest entry in one  of the more reliable comic- book franchises around, this time  disappointingly succumbing to an exhausting case of been-there-done-that-itis.”

Helen O'Hara of Empire commented on the same lines: “Messier and heavier than Days of Future Past, this is not so much the next step in the X-Men’s evolution as a failed callback to past glories.”

While Rotten Tomatoes’ critical consensus reads: “Overloaded action and a cliched villain take the focus away from otherwise strong performers and resonant themes, making X-Men: Apocalypse a middling chapter of the venerable superhero franchise."

The film is the latest superhero action flick hitting screens as Hollywood continues to expand its comic book cinematic universe. It opens worldwide on Friday and in North America on May 27.

This month, screenwriter Simon Kinberg said that the next X-Men film will be set in the 1990s. He  has talked about redoing The Dark Phoenix Saga,  an extended X-Men storyline, while Singer said he wanted to do an X-Men film in space.

Ratings
IMDB: 8.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 59%
Empire Magazine: 2 stars

Our Kind Of Traitor (2016)
Genre: Thriller
Certification: 15
Duration: 107 minutes
Directed by: Susanna White
Starring: Ewan McGregor ,  Damian Lewis, Stellan Skarsgård, Naomie Harris, Jeremy Northam, Mark Gattis
KRS Releasing Ltd

The thriller, based on British novelist John le Carré’s novel of the name, follows an ordinary English couple, Perry (Ewan McGregor) and Gail (Naomie Harris), who  befriend a flamboyant and charismatic Russian, Dima Stellan Skarsgård, while on holiday in Marrakech.

Unbeknownst to them, Dima is a kingpin money launderer for the Russian mafia. When he asks for their help to deliver classified information to the British  Secret Services, Perry and Gail get caught in a dangerous world of international espionage and  dirty politics.

The film, directed by Susanna White, who is better known for her work on TV mini-series, earned mixed reviews.

Dan Jolin of Empire says that it’s a different kind of thriller but that the main protagonists do not fully engage or convince the audience, “falling too quickly and easily into the plot’s machinations, with their emotional baggage feeling ultimately empty”.

However, he adds  that Damian Lewis and Skarsgård “rescue it from complete blandness”.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 81%
Empire Magazine: 3 stars

Ratchet & Clank (2015)
Genre: Animation
Certification: 12
Duration: 94 minutes
Directed by: Kevin Munroe, Jericca Cleland
Voices of: James Arnold Taylor, Sylvester Stallone, Jim Ward, Rosario Dawson, Paul Giamatti, John Goodman
KRS Releasing Ltd

The 3D computer-animated science fiction film is based on the first game of the platforming video game series of the same name.

It tells the story of two unlikely heroes as they struggle to stop a vile alien named Chairman Drek from destroying every planet in the Solana Galaxy.

When the two stumble upon a dangerous weapon capable of destroying entire planets, they must join forces with a team of colourful heroes called The  Galactic Rangers in order to save the galaxy. Along the way they learn about heroism, friendship  and the importance of discovering one's own identity.

The film received poor reviews. Mike Reyes of Cinemabland sums up the comments: “Ratchet & Clank lives up to its name, as those are the sounds your mind will make when trying to wrap your head around how this movie got made in the first place.”

The film has grossed about $9 million in the North American  box office since its release  on May 29.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 16%
Empire Magazine: 2 stars

Mustang (2015)
Genre: Drama
Certification: 12
Duration: 97 minutes
Directed by:  Deniz Gamze Ergüven
Starring: Günes Sensoy, Doga Zeynep Doguslu, Tugba Sunguroglu , Elit Iscan
Eden Leisure Group

The award-winning film is set in  a Turkish village where five orphaned sisters (Günes Sensoy, Tugba Sunguroglu and Elit Iscan) live under strict rule while members of their family prepare their arranged marriages. As the eldest sisters are married off, the younger ones bond together to avoid the same fate. The fierce love between them empowers them to rebel and chase a future where they can determine their own lives.

The film was showered  with praise, especially for its  talented cast.

The critical consensus on  Rotten Tomatoes reads: “Mustang delivers a bracing – and thoroughly timely – message whose power is further bolstered by the efforts of a stellar ensemble cast.”

Nicolas Rapold of the New  York Times wrote: “Mustang is  full of life even as it depicts lives  in lockdown.”

The film was nominated  for an Oscar  and a Golden Globe for best foreign language film  this year.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Empire Magazine: 3 stars

Taking Stock (2015)
Genre: Comedy
Certification: 15
Duration: 75 minutes
Directed by: Maeve Murphy
Starring: Kelly Brook, Georgia Groome, Scot Williams
Eden Leisure Group

Directed by Maeve Murphy – an award-winning theatre and film director whose debut feature Silent Grace (2001) was a tough drama about Irish Republican hunger-strikers in women’s prisons – the British film tackles the subject of recession and unemployment in a funny way.

The comedy caper follows a shop assistant/out-of-work actress Kate (Kelly Brook) who fantasises about robbing a bank.

When she is made redundant from her shop job, Kate is inspired by photos of Bonnie Parker of Bonnie and Cylde fame, gathers a gang from her shop assistant friends and comes up with a plot to rob the shop. The only thing she needs is a ‘Clyde’ to help her commit the crime.

Around this story of shop robbery, the film intertwines seven stories that run in parallel with heart-warming performances. The film received warm reviews.

Mark Kermode of The Observer wrote: “It’s fluffy, sunny fare, shot in breezy London locales that go some way towards disguising the ropey plot and televisual contrivance.”

Sumeet Grover of The Huffington Post praised the talented cast: “Kelly Brook plays a very authentic character: in her loss, her madness, Bonnie Parker obsession and, finally, in some romance. She is candidly gorgeous.

“Scott Williams's performance is powerful and appealing; he is a fine British actor whom we deserve to watch in more films. In Taking Stock, he is intense, funny and romantic.”

Ratings
IMDB: 7.9/10
Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
Empire Magazine: N/A