1. Sunset Strip 4/10

Stars : Anna Friel and Simon Baker

After a short time it transpired that this movie had little to engage me. It was just like watching a stoner version of Almost Famous with none of the great music the latter had to offer. A poor imitation though Baker and Friels try hard.

2. Iron Man 3  8/10

Stars : Robert Downey Jnr, Gwyneth Paltrow and Guy Pearce

A strong storyline and great cast made this move an enjoyable experience.  Downey Jnr and Paltrow reprised their roles from the other movies in the franchise with excellence and Pearce was suitable menacing as the villain. A standout for me was Ben Kingsley.

3. Edison  2/10

Stars: Morgan Freeman, Justin Timberlake and Kevin Spacey

The cast meant that this should have been a good movie as it has so many who have been good in other movies.  But this moved slowly and had little to redeem it.

4. High School Musical 3 7/10

Stars: Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale

As a fan of musicals I enjoyed the singing and dancing. The storyline was predictable but it was still an entertaining movie with quite a talented young cast.

5. Lawless 8.5/10

Stars:Guy Pearce and Shia Lebouf

What a good movie! Pearce is stunning as the lawman turned villain.  I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Well worth watching for it;s look at Prohibition era USA.

6. Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt 6/10

Stars: Tom Selleck and Kathy Baker

This made-for-tv movie has moments of excellence but drags at times. Baker is very good and Selleck gives a reasonable performance. But it has a bit of the Magnum PI feel about it without as much action.

7. The Devil’s Double 7/10

Stars: Dominic Cooper and Ludivine Sagnier

An excellent performance by Cooper in the dual roles of Uday Hussein and his body double Latif with a chilling insight into some of the atrocities of the Hussein regime.  A little gory in places but a good movie.

8. The Princess Diaries  7/10

Stars: Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews

Julie Andrews is suitably regal as the queen of Genovia in a funny and entertaining ugly duckling story. Hathaway gives a strong performance as the young girl who is transformed when she discovers she is heir to the throne.

9. The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement 5.5/10

Stars: Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews

As with most sequels this does not live up to the standard of the original movie but it is still a reasonably entertaining afternoon’s diversion. The high point was Julie Andrews singing.

10. Sherlock Holmes 2/10

Stars: Ben Syder and Gareth David-Lloyd

A made-for-video take on the Sherlock Holmes story. This movie is quite awful.  The effects are poor, the actors overact and the story is very weak.  It pales into insignificance in comparison to the Hollywood version of the Sherlock Holmes story.

11. Star Trek    8.5/10

Stars: Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto

This is an excellent addition to the Star Trek franchise with sterling performances by the leads.  The casting is extraordinary in that the actors cast for all the major characters in this prequel to the original TV series resemble look like younger versions of the actors in the TV show.

12. Star Trek Into Darkness 8.5/10

Stars: Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto

Another great addition to the franchise with a cast that excels. Special mention should go to Simon Pegg who provides the humour in the role of Scotty.  Benedict Cumberbatch gave a reasonable performance as Harrison/Khan but seems to only be able to play one character which he plays consistently.

13. The First Night  2/10

Stars: Sarah Brightman and Richard E. Grant

This should have been a good movie as the cats is quite good but the storyline was too loose and the cast seemed bored.  I was disappointed as I expected it to be better.

14. Hook  7/10

Stars: Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman

This is a good movie with something in it for audiences of all ages. Hoffman and Williams give the sort of strong performances on expects from both actors. I quite liked the way the script also referenced other Williams movies.

15. Song for Marion (aka Unfinished Song) 10/10

Stars: Vanessa Redgrave and Terence Stamp

This movie is beautifully moving, funny and sad. The cast is excellent, the story is touching and there was nothing that I disliked about it.  This is one of my standout movies for the year,

16. Murder 101: New Age   6.5/10

Stars: Dick Van Dyke and Barry Van Dyke

A made for TV movie in the style of Diagnosis Murder.  Dick Van Dyke is likable as a criminology professor and amateur sleuth. Not a challenging plot line but still an entertaining movie.

17. Girl Happy 5/10

Stars: Elvis Presley and Shelley Fabares

Not a particularly great movie but the songs are good.  As with most of the movies like this, it is basically a vehicle for Elvis to sing.  The storyline is thin but there’s a lot of good musical numbers.

18. On Moonlight Bay  7/10

Stars: Doris Day and Gordan McRae

A fun, entertaining movie with some great songs.  Day and McRae give their usual excellent performances and the supporting cast give strong performances as well. The movie is a typical example of the 1950s musical genre.

19. Grease  8/10

Stars: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

Even after all these years this movie is still entertaining. Great music and dance routines and strong performances by all the cast make it an enjoyable movie to watch. It has something for everyone.

20. Under Suspicion  6.5/10

Stars: Liam Neeson and Laura San Giacomo

This movie is a fairly decent representative of the crime genre with a good performance by Neeson as a disgraced former cop turned P.I.  It held my interest without all the glitz and special effects of more recent movies.

21. Eastern Promises  7/10

Stars: Naomi Watts and Viggo Mortensen

This movie, though it has some slightly gory scenes, has a great storyline and a strong cast. Mortensen is enigmatic and likable as the chauffeur for  the Russian mafia and Watts is good as the midwife who tries to follow the clues in a dead patient’s journal.

22. Nine  3/10

Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cottilard

This was not as good as I had expected it to be.  It has a good cast and the music is fairly good but there seemed to be too many weak points in the delivery of something that had potential.

23. Rebel Without a Cause   7/10

Stars: James Dean and Natalie Wood

Although a lot of time has passed since it was made the issues in this movie are just as relevant today. A strong cast portrays weak parents and delinquent teenagers who would be better people if the adults we better role models.

24. The Triumph of Love  6.5/10

Stars: Mira Sorvino and Ben Kingsley

A reasonably entertaining film with good performances by the cast.  The music set the mood very well and the incorporation of the modern ‘audience; in the garden helped to create the feel that this was a play within a film.

25.  The Son of No One 6/10

Stars: Channing Tatum and Al Pacino

A cop story with lots of flashbacks. Not a great movie but also not too bad.  A few gory bits but good performances by Tatum and Pacino make it worth watching.

26. The Great Gatsby  6/10

Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan

An opulent spectacular with unnecessary 3D effects. Great performances by Tobey Maguire and Joel Edgerton.  DiCaprio is suitably decadent and besotted. Director Baz Luhrmann overdid the 3D. Might have been more impressed if I had seen it in 2D.

27. Mystery Woman: Sing Me a Murder 5/10

Stars: Kellie Martin and Clarence Williams III

An entertaining made-for-tv mystery movie with likable characters.  With an appearance by Ellen Greene, some humorous moments and Williams doing well as the enigmatic Philby, it’s quite enjoyable though not a great movie.

28. Gideon’s Daughter  7.5/10

Stars: Bill Nighy and Emily Blunt

A very strong cast with excellent performances by all. The story is good and the relationships between the characters are well-developed.  References to the death of Princess Di help to establish the social context.

29. Carnage 7.5/10

Stars: Jodie Foster and Kate Winslet

This relatively short movie is an excellent depiction of how friendships between families can be impacted on by problems between the children.  Strong performances by the whole cast.

30. Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses 5.5/10

Stars: Dick Van Dyke and Barry Van Dyke

The father and son acting team are re-united in another made-for-tv mystery movie.  The characters are likable and the story flows evenly.

31. Freedom Writers  8/10

Stars: Hilary Swank and Patrick Dempsey

I really enjoyed this movie because the characters were well-developed and the story is inspiring.  It was thought=provoking. well-directed and well-cast.  Although I am not a Hilary Swank fan I felt she was excellent in this movie.