Conan The Barbarian Movie Review

80's nostalgia should sometimes stay in the 80's. Momoa is certainly no Arnie either. Again the story is pretty basic, baddy wants to rule the world kills Conan's dad (Pearlman) while he's a kid, grows up and seeks revenge. The baddy is also seeking the "pure one's" blood with his weirdo daughter so they can resurrect his wife. The pure one also happens to be a damsel in distress for Conan to rescue. And thats about the sum of the story. For a 15 certificate this film is pretty gory, lots of slashing, blood flying, leg chopping and skull mashing. It's the action scenes that keep the film alive as the story, acting and everything else around them is pretty flimsy. This is definitely a DVD job, and I wouldn't bother with 3D either.

Ben 6 out of 10
Barry 6 out of 10

http://www.conanthebarbarianin3d.com/

Batman LIVE Theatre Review

For my early Birthday present we went to the O2 Arena to see Batman LIVE! Billed as an action spectacular, we were thinking along the lines of the Indiana Jones show in Disney Hollywood Studios. However while they have clearly spent alot of money on the show, the "action" seems a bit slow-mo and tame, over choregraphed and it just didn't seem to flow. There are a few acrobatic and magic moments thrown in, but nothing that you won't have seen before. The Batmobile and Joker's giant head were good set pieces and the Arkham Asylum was creepy! On the whole the effort was there, but the thrills were lacking. One for the younger Batman fans.

• See all the photos here...

Ben 3 out of 5
Barry 3 out of 5

Cowboys and Aliens Film Review

Been waiting for this film for a long time, as saw the trailer a while back and was looking forward to it. Its a shame then that it was a bit naff! The story is pretty basic, Craig wakes up with no memory with a device strapped to his wrist, the aliens turn up and start abducting humans, thing on his wrist activates, the remaining town's people go and rescue the others. Thats pretty much it, nothing really special, no real set pieces, no real explanation as to why they are there, hmmmm.

Ben 5 out of 10
Barry 6 out of 10

http://www.cowboysandaliensmovie.com

Inbetweeners Movie Review

Running like an hour and a half episode of the TV program, this is what you'd expect from an Inbetweeners movie, but slightly toned down to a 15 certificate. The exams are over, Simon and Carly split, so its off on a lads holiday to Malia. However they end up in a complete dump of an unfinished hotel with a dead dog in the well! They get conned into a deserted night club, but end up meeting four girls, and typical comedy pairings ensue. The holiday ends on a giant boat cruise, where Carly turns up to throw a spanner in the split-up works, poo is snorted and the vomit flys. The laughs come flying in this 1.5 hour TV episode.

Ben 7 out of 10
Barry 6 out of 10

http://www.film4.com/minisite/the-inbetweeners-movie

Off to Manchester

Barry is off up north again to Manchester on business at the schools up there, so this time I decided to go with him! Our first attempt wasn't so great as for a 45min flight we got delayed 4.5hours! I think this is the biggest delay we've had in all the time we've been flying! Anyway we didn't wait around and tried again the next day! While Barry was at work I visited the Trafford Shopping Centre, which is a huge elaborate mall, and one of the poshest I've seen in the UK!

• See all the photos here...

Beryl and Ray's 40th Wedding Anniversary

It was Beryl and Ray's ruby wedding anniversary, so to celebrate we went with them plus Keith and Jamie to the Harbour Lights for a very nice meal out!

Rise of the Planet of the Apes Film Review

This movie is all about the monkeys, how we treat them, how we fiddle with nature, and ultimately how we mess things up! The movie starts out with a son, Franco, wanting to cure his father, but a greedy pharmaceutical company's ultimate goal is to drive it through and make a load of cash. This greed as we know from Planet of the Apes doesn't have good consequences for the human race! However this movie concentrates on the apes, how they evolve and how Caesar and the rest of the apes rise up. Focusing on the apes was a brave move, as they are fully CGI believable characters and speak with grunts and crude sign language for the majority of the film. But somehow you are captivated by them, and ultimately end up supporting their cause. A great film, and far better than the first Apes remake.

Ben 9 out of 10
Barry 8 out of 10

http://www.apeswillrise.com/