Movie News

It's a family friendly week at the cinema

Thu 25 Oct 4:20 PM

Family films picked off the two top spots at cinemas as half term commenced for most of the country.

Ratatouille's Remy remained impenetrable as the budding chef in the Pixar created frolic by clearly leading and holding onto the number one spot. Brit director Matthew Vaughn's Stardust, that features a stellar cast including Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro and Clare Danes, rightfully picked up second in the popularity poll of bums on seats.

The kids holiday season also saw the release of the risible Daddy Day Camp - the follow up to Eddie Murphy's Daddy Day Care, but noticeably minus Murphy and the very US-oriented Nancy Drew - which just made into the Top 10 movies of the weekend.

The other big release of the week was Rendition entering the top ten at number 3. A strong cast lead by the now dating Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal with Meryl Streep, Peter Sarsgaard and Alan Arkin all in fine support. It's the story of the CIA's underhand abduction of Reese Witherspoon's husband on suspicion of his terrorist connections.

No doubt these will all come under heavy pressure with the release of Michael Moore's Sicko, Cronenberg's brilliant new London-based thriller, Easter Promises that reunites him with Viggo Mortensen and, of course since it's nearly Halloween, Saw IV.

London screens will also be filled to the rafters as we enter the final weekend of the 51st London Film Festival with some top films on show including the innovative Bob Dylan film, I'm Not There from Todd Haynes; The compelling drama Reservation Road starring Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Ruffalo and Jennifer Connelly plus the already critically acclaimed Ralph Waldo 'Petey' Greene biopic Talk To Me that stars Don Cheadle, Chiwetel Ejiofor.