This Week's Cinema

Lady In The WaterDon't head off to the flicks before you've checked out Tim's reviews of this week's new movies.

There's the fishy tale of The Lady In The Water with Paul Giamatti, kiddies' animated horror Monster House and Nacho Libre, starring funnyman Jack Black as a Mexican friar trying to help orphans.

Read more below...

THE LADY IN THE WATER
Certificate: PG
Running time: 109m

What's it about? Apartment block manager Paul Giamatti finds a water-nymph trespassing in his pool and gets embroiled in a fishy tale involving the fate of the world. As you do.

What's good? Giamatti is a reliable pair of hands and Sixth Sense director M Night Shyamalan can spin a yarn with the best of them.

Monster HouseWhat's bad? It's too silly for grown-ups and too darkly elaborate for the nippers. Shyamalan also doesn't do himself any favours by casting himself in a key role.

Worth a look? Probably. Shyamalan is always worth a watch... although the lustre of his early career is wearing thin with increasingly dicey offerings.

Click for full skymovies.com LADY IN THE WATER review

MONSTER HOUSE
Certificate: PG
Running time: 91m

What's it about? A decrepit old clapboard house lived in by a crotchety old widower takes on a malicious life of its own when he's carted off to hospital.

Nacho LibreWhat's good? Practically everything. This is top-notch kids' entertaiment. The three teens charged with investigating the spooky pile are fully fleshed out and the look and feel of the movie is everything a horror yarn should be.

What's bad? Not a lot. Nippers with a fragile disposition should, perhaps, stay away but it's a rare children's movie that can so effortlessly please grown-ups and kids alike.

Worth a look? Definitely. Miss it and the decision will haunt you all your life.

Click for full skymovies.com MONSTER HOUSE review

NACHO LIBRE
Certificate: 12
Running time: 92m

What's it about? Jack Black plays a lowly Mexican friar and orphanage chef who moonlights as a wrestler to raise funds and boost the diets of the waifs in his care.

What's good? It's not the gags (there aren't that many) but the performances - particularly from Black - ensure this low-fi comedy outing keeps the titter valves working nicely.

What's bad? Those looking for Hollywood-style humour, look elsewhere. This cockle-warming comedy - directed by Napolean Dynamite's Jared Hess - moves at its own pace.

Worth a look? Yes. It's defiantly off-kilter and sneakily manipulates your heart strings as well as your chuckle muscles.

Click for full skymovies.com NACHO LIBRE review