MR POPPER'S PENGUINS

Yes, you guessed it, summer and the inevitable kid's holidays are here once again.

It's been over 14 years since Carrey has done a live action family comedy film (1997's Liar, Liar) and despite his success with his more serious roles, he has returned to the type of movie that made him a household name.

With the likes of March Of The Penguins and Happy Feet proving profitable (Happy Feet 2 is due out soon) it's not too hard to see why Carrey's issue to overcome this time round was chosen to be the flightless birds as opposed to playing God or unable to lie.

Essentially this is a rehash of the plot of Liar, Liar where Carrey plays a father who, due to his obsession with over-achieving at work, finds himself becoming more and more distanced from his children and his ex-wife. Here though it's the arrival of 6 penguins into his ordered life and swanky New York apartment that helps him to see the light and change his ways before it becomes too late.

What stops this from ending up as a throw-away flick is quite simply, the penguins. With a sometimes hard-to-tell-apart mix of real and CGI'd feathered friends, all six are given enough different character traits to appeal to the audience - the clumsy one and farting one for the kids and the "I have a dream of flying" one for the aspirational parents. Even if they don't get a whole lot of screen time, when the penguin plot is not being explored up on the screen, the film lags slightly.

If the Carrey of old from The Mask and Ace Ventura worried or annoyed you, then the man on display here will not upset you. Here he is more reserved with no outbursts, allowing the prattfalls to be supplied by one of the penguins. Surprisingly, this lack of absurdity is missed and you long for at least one "alllrightyy then!" to liven up the average human part of the story.

An easy-to-watch movie for a family outing, you'll find that there will be more "ahh's" than "haha's" but sweet fun none-the-less.

UK release date: 05.08.11

Certificate: PG

ARRIETTY

With the wonders that computers have done to the field of animation, it's easy to forget that traditional animated films are still made. And nobody does it better than Studio Ghibli.

Based on the classic The Borrowers, Ghibli's version is as far removed from the last movie adaptation - 1997's action-adventure starring John Goodman - as you can get with the same source material.

Without large set-pieces, or frantic dashes to rescue loved ones from certain peril, Arrietty still takes a hold of you, and frame by frame, draws you head and heart into it's world of Borrowers and Human Beans.

For those who are not new to the world of Ghibli, subtle reminders of previous works will nudge you whilst watching it - the large-eyed nurse here looks like a character from Spirited Away - while first-timers will just drink in the wonders on display. As with all previous adaptations, the clever use of everyday objects by the Borrowers is there to be discovered by the audience - a safety pin on the wall used to hold kitchen utensils; double-sided tape on hands and feet to help scale such obstacles as table legs; nails and tacks in walls to create stairways; stamps as framed posters to decorate rooms - the cleverness is a sight to behold.

However, this cleverness is not its defining factor. As always it's the characterisation and their interactions that engages, putting it on the highly recommended list to watch. Here, Arrietty's confidence and curiosity that sparks the movies plot when she is seen by the new arrival of the sick boy, Sho, is the driving force of the beautifully realised, but ultimately doomed relationship between the two of them. Borrowers must not be seen by Human Beans and their initial awe and wonder at each other can never go any further but their meeting will always stay with them. If you don't feel moved or want to shed a tear at their goodbye scene (this year's best visual scene so far with Arrietty on a bamboo fence with Sho looking down at her) then book your heart transplant now my friend.

With two versions playing - the original Japanese language version with subtitles and the Disney-backed Hollywood dubbed version with the likes of Mark Strong and Saoirse Ronan - there is no excuse for you to not introduce any child, or yourself for that matter, to one of this years most delightfully beautiful cinematic experiences.

Here's hoping this will finally open up more Western eyes to the world of Studio Ghibli.

UK release date: 29.07.11

Certificate: U

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER 3D

And so the march to the biggest movie franchise since George Lucas or J K Rowling's efforts continues with the latest installment of Marvel Studio's claim to fame with the story of the original Avenger...

With the success of Iron Man and Thor, the goldmine that is The Avengers due next summer seems to be the deadline for Marvel to unleash all its key players with only two characters left to have their go in the limelight. So step up Captain America...

After the huge success of Nolan's Dark Knight series, superheroes plights are expected to be grittier but Marvel has moved away from this and director Johnston's "1940's origins" tale of Steve Rogers has swung squarely into the camp of fun and cheesy rather than dark and moody.

To help with this objective we have Evans who has brought his confident charm to other comic book roles such as Fantastic Four's The Torch. However here, his natural charm is stifled to allow the weak nerd character of Steve to project throughout his transformation from 7 stone weakling to 7 nation's saviour whilst retaining his meek and mild sensibility.

Although understandable, this means that the hero of the movie is, once the experiment kicks in and gives him muscles and abilities, is fairly bland, especially when compared to Tommy Lee Jones who comes across as the grandfather of his The Fugitive role, chewing up scenery and actors alike.

Now the villain would normally take centre stage over a under-developed hero, but Weaving's Red Skull doesn't get that opportunity - he only gets to do an Arnie-type vocal impression whilst occasionally appearing now and then to drive the well-worn plot along its predictable route. What it does bring though is a fun futuristic view 1940's life, giggly jokes involving "fondue" and Jones being grumpy all the time.

What is disappointing though is the obligatory end credits sequence that brings all the other heroes together for their first outing due next year. Here it feels like the original sequence was shoved to and tacked onto the normal ending of the film to allow them to put a hastily-edited trailer for Joss Whedon's The Avengers as the surprise ending. All this does is make Captain America feel like it's been rushed to get it out before the main deal next year. Any good work done during its running time is undone in those last few minutes which is sad, and also says alot about the whole movie in general. Fun but flawed.

UK release date: 29.07.11

Certificate: 12A

CARS 2 3D

Back in 1995, a company appeared on the world stage and blew everyone - audiences and other companies alike - away. Since then, that small company has consistently delivered box office-breaking and critic-pleasing movies to a point where no one can equal or top them.

Much has been spoken about how they, Pixar, will go back to the beginning and start again on a film if they don't feel that it's working - case in point being Toy Story 2 which up till now was the studios only sequel.

Both Pixar and Disney have etched themselves in history when they've hit the magical balance of fun and laughter for all ages. When there's jokes for the children and the accompanying adults, all enjoy the experience and most importantly, enables them to do repeat viewings. The reason I say all this is because all Pixar productions will have a massive uphill battle on their hands, created by their own success - expectations will always be high concerning their movies.

And, for once, it seems that expectation was too high. Cars 2 leaves you feeling like you've just watched what should have been a short film that you find on their DVD/Bluray releases that's been padded out to a full length animated feature's running time. Stories tend to be well-worn ones but the characters, their interaction and the multi-layered jokes excuse that. Here, the tale of a not-the-sharpest-tool-in-the-shed being mistaken for a super spy rattles along but it doesn't sit well with the race-rivalry between Wilson's still cocky NASCAR and Turturro's equally cocky F1 car plot. It should have been one or the other to allow the kind of quotable dialogue and laugh-out-loud moments that Pixar normally delivers.

With no zing for the older audience member and, for once, more attention to how the view looks (still beautiful as ever of course) rather than how the story progresses, it seems that Lasseter's pet project is just that - something that feels like it only appeals to him rather than a toy fighting for his right to be with his owner or a fishy father searching for his only son.

Obviously, Pixar firing on half cylinders is still streets ahead of most of the competition but it's hard not to feel abit let down by the team that always charmed the socks off you.

UK release date: 22.07.11

Certificate: U

HORRIBLE BOSSES

There's always that worry that a trailer is the best parts of a new movie shoved into a 3 minute sequence leaving a whole pile of steaming" waste-of-time" filling out the other 115-odd minutes for you to watch. This mostly happens with sci-fi epics and comedies.

But then most of the "funny" movies don't have a director who's cut his teeth on such noteworthy delights as TV's Modern Family, Community and the US version of The Office. Gordon it would seem, knows how to do laughs, big, small, childish and dangerous.

Essentially, what you have is an ensemble piece where 6 main actors get their fair share under the spotlight and not only each bring laughs with them, but they then bring a whole type of different giggles on the screen when their paths cross each others.

It's been long said that it's the villain that has the most fun in their role (especially since Nicholson's Joker back in 1989) and here the evidence is insurmountable! Spacey, Farrell and Aniston, all pretty much playing against type, are the bar that has to be beaten from now on when it comes to scumbags on screen. Each viewer will have their fave" hater" (mine is Spacey for his role of absolute "off-the-chart" office bastard) but whether it's Aniston's sexy sexual predator, Farrell's nearly unrecognisable cocaine-head lazy boss's son or Spacey's manipulative aggressive office boss, there's something for everybody.

Out of the 6 main characters only 1 slightly rubs (not bad odds) up the wrong way and that's Charlie Day's dental hygienist who has to put up with his Aniston. Out of the 3 "heroes" his high-pitched voice and over-exuberance at everything can wear thin. However, he does get one of the biggest laughs with his cocaine-fuelled rendition of The Ting Tings "That's Not My Name."

With jokes for all folks, Horrible Bosses is a rarity where you won't feel let down from the trailer - there's so much more to see ranging from cats (jump-out-of-your-seat), defiling toothbrushes (cringey), the use of Jamie Foxx's characters first name ("Mutha...."), middle-aged white guys thinking that they're down with it (dangerously foolish) and the ultimate satnav from India ("Gregory").

All bosses should pay for their staff to go see this to help remind them that, compared to the ones on screen, they're not that bad! Mostly! Hugely enjoyable.

UK release date: 22.07.11

Certificate: 15