UK Top 10 Games: 27th February 2012

The Playstation Vita launches and scores the top 2 places as well! Uncharted: Golden Abyss is in at No. 1, followed closely by EA's FIFA Football which follows at No. 2.

They knock last week's No. 1, UFC 3, down 2 places to No. 3.

Rayman Origins also sees a boost in sales as the Vita version is released. It climbs an impressive 31 places up to No. 5.

The other top 10 new entry is FPS reboot, Syndicate which debuts at No. 7.

Outside the top 10, other Vita launch titles dent the top 40: WipEout 2048 is at No. 11, Ridge Racer at No. 28, Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition at No. 30, and Everybody's Golf is at No. 32.

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 also enters the top 40 at No. 33 - boosted by the Vita version.

Other new entries are the Wii's, The Last Story at No. 15. Fallout: New Vegas - Ultimate Edition (which features all the DLC of the original NV) at No. 17, the PS3's Jak and Daxter Trilogy is at No. 27, and finally, Sega's new IP, Binary Domain debuts at No. 35.

UK Top 10 Games (All Formats, All Prices):

1. (-) Uncharted: Golden Abyss
2. (-) FIFA Football
3. (1) UFC Undisputed 3
4. (2) FIFA 12
5. (36) Rayman Origins
6. (4) Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
7. (-) Syndicate
8. (3) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
9. (5) Battlefield 3
10. (6) Final Fantasy XIII-2

*Phew* What a week, eh? Come back next week for more news! Here's a trailer for this week's new No. 1: Uncharted: Golden Abyss:

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US Box Office Top 10: 27th February 2012

This week, Act of Valor debuts at No. 1 making nearly $25 million, it knocks last week's No. 1, Safe House, down 3 places to No. 4.

You can read our review of Safe House by clicking here!

It also beats fellow new entry, Good Deeds, which settles for No. 2 with $16 million.

The other 2 new entries of the week don't make quite an impact. Wanderlust, a comedy starring Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston is in at No. 8 with $6.63 million. And, thriller starring Amanda Seyfried, Gone, at No. 9 making a measly $5 million.

All the other chart films drop places because of the new entries, with the exception of Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, which actually climbs one place to No. 3 making another $13 million.

US Box Office Top 10:

1. (-) Act of Valor - $24.7 million
2. (-) Good Deeds - $16 million
3. (4) Journey 2: The Mysterious Island - $13.5 million
4. (1) Safe House - $11.4 million
5. (2) The Vow - $10 million
6. (3) Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance - $8.8 million
7. (5) This Means War - $8.5 million
8. (-) Wanderlust - $6.63 million
9. (-) Gone - $5 million
10. (9) Arriety - $4.5 million

That's all the box office news this week. Here's a trailer for this week's new No. 1, Act of Valor:

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Safe House Review

It's difficult to describe how I feel about Safe House. It has its good points, but ultimately it has too many flaws to be a must-see. The biggest one being the story itself.

The film doesn't exactly have an original story. A CIA agent goes rogue. A younger, more impressionable agent has to protect him and take him in. Questions get raised over who's the real bad guy: the rogue agent or the CIA themselves.
It's a plot that has been done before, and that would be forgivable if it wasn't for Safe House's clumsy way of re-telling it.

First, the camera drove me mad. It was jumping around all over the place during action sequences particularly, making it hard to know what was going on. This was a real shame because there is no reason for it to be like that. Simply having a more stable camera would have improved this film greatly.

The script was also below-par - just adding to Safe House's problem of barely being able to tell a story. I found the film hard to follow for the most part, luckily there were times that I was able to catch up and get some enjoyment out of the story - but this just didn't happen often enough.

But it wasn't all bad. Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington both deliver strong performances and play off each other well. It's annoying to think they could have done better with an improved script.
The supporting cast are also OK and secure acting as one of the films strong points.

Unfortunately, not many other strong points come to mind. The story is unoriginal and clumsily told - this is made even worse by the thin script and jumpy camera. The performances of Reynolds and Washington seem to be one of the only redeeming features - meaning Safe House is one for action movie nuts alone.

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UK Box Office Top 10: 21st February 2012

This week, Daniel Radcliffe's The Woman in Black keeps the top spot making £3.5 million. That's even more than last week's debut - mainly due to half term holidays last week.

The Muppets has also increased its box office takings this week, but remains at No. 2.

The only new entry this week is Nicholas Cage's Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, which comes in at No. 3.

Silent movie tribute, The Artist, also re-enters this week at No. 9 making another £500,000. Are we the only people who don't see what the fuss is about? Comment.

UK Box Office Top 10:

1. (1) The Woman in Black - £3,501,601
2. (2) The Muppets - £3,411,698
3. (-) Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance - £1,340,000
4. (3) Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace - £1,077,302
5. (6) Journey 2: The Mysterious Island - £1,061,550
6. (4) The Vow - £953,165
7. (5) Chronicle - £727,871
8. (7) The Descendants - £564,536
9. (11) The Artist - £527,358
10. (8) War Horse - £450,073

Here's a trailer for this week's highest new entry: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance:

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UK Games Top 10: 20th February 2012

This week THQ's UFC Undisputed 3 claims the top spot. Something I was happy about, because it would be a shame to see THQ go bust. More No. 1's for them can only be a good thing!

It knocks last week's No. 1, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning all the way down to No. 12!

Meanwhile, a bombardment of special offers sees Modern Warfare 3, Mario & Sonic 2012, and Skylanders climb the charts.

Just Dance 3 also re-enters the top 10 at No. 10.

UK Top 10 Games (All Formats, All Prices):

1. (-) UFC Undisputed 3
2. (5) FIFA 12
3. (7) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
4. (10) Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympics
5. (6) Battlefield 3
6. (2) Final Fantasy XIII-2
7. (14) Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
8. (3) The Darkness II
9. (9) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
10. (12) Just Dance 3

That's all this week! Here's a trailer for new No. 1: UFC Undisputed 3!

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US Box Office Top 10: 20th February 2012

This week, in a slightly unusual turn of events, Safe House climbs from it's debut position at No. 2 last week, to the top spot - knocking The Vow down to to No. 2.

The highest new entry is Marvel hero, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance which comes in at No. 3 making $22 million.

Meanwhile, spy rom-com This Means War comes in at No. 5 with over $17 million made.

Star Wars 3D seems to be getting a luke-warm reception by the public in the US as it falls another 2 places this week - making less than $8 million.

It manages to beat found footage super flick, Chronicle at No. 7.

You can read our review of Chronicle here!

The Woman in Black is one place lower at No. 8.

You can read our review of The Woman in Black here!

The other new entry is the latest offering from Studio Ghibli, Arriety. It's made over $6 million on it's opening weekend.


US Box Office Top 10:

1. (2) Safe House - $24 million
2. (1) The Vow - $23.6 million
3. (-) Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance - $22 million
4. (3) Journey 2: The Mysterious Island - $20.1 million
5. (-) This Means War - $17.6 million
6. (4) Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace 3D - $7.87 million
7. (5) Chronicle - $7.5 million
8. (6) The Woman in Black - $6.64 million
9. (-) Arriety - $6.38 million
10. (7) The Grey - $3.03 million

Here's a trailer for this week's new No. 1: Safe House.

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The Woman in Black Review

The Woman in Black is Daniel Radcliffe's first movie since Harry Potter ended. Because of this I was worried that whenever I looked at Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe's character in this movie) I would see a certain boy wizard staring back.
Thankfully, the tense atmosphere and jumps of this movie give you no space to think about anything else other than where the next scare is coming from.

The Woman in Black centres around Arthur Kipps - a widowing solicitor who is called upon to handle the estate of Alice Drablow who owned Eel Marsh House before she died. Unwelcoming locals are the least of his problems when he goes to the house and sees the ghostly figure known as The Woman in Black.

As soon as Kipps gets to the house the scares start coming. Most of the time they're just things that make you jump e.g. a bird flying out from nowhere. But they succeed in making you have a little accident almost every time.

This is aided by the tense atmosphere the film carries with it for the duration. You never feel safe, you always feel there is something round the corner. This is a film that doesn't need gore. The subtle things like seeing a ghostly shape in a mirror just for a second are enough to keep you on the edge of your seat until the climax where things start to really get scary.

Daniel Radcliffe for the most part does a good job in leaving his potter past behind, but at times I still find his acting a little wooden. Then again I've always thought that about him from the beginning of the HP days, so it wasn't a big deal.

There isn't a huge supporting cast, but the few who have substantial parts all do expertly well - I particularly enjoyed watching the couple who were the victims of the woman's work before - played by Janet McTeer and Ciaran Hinds.

The only real problem I had with this movie was the ending. It wasn't the worst ending I've seen this year (see Chronicle) but it was still a little disappointing.

In the end though, The Woman in Black is a scary film that is sure to make you jump and shiver again and again! The acting is mostly great, albeit the odd robotic line from Radcliffe - but this is a minor set back. The only real flaw is the slightly disappointing ending.

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The Muppets Review

I love the muppets. There's something about their charm, humour and character that have captured my imagination both as a child and an adult.

This year (or last year if your in the US), they come out of retirement after many long years left muppet-less. But now I can tell you that it was worth the wait! The Muppets movie is one of the best films I've seen in a long time!

The story goes that The Muppets have broken up and haven't put on a show in a long time. Because of this Tex Richman (who has discovered that there's oil underneath the Muppet Theatre) is planning to buy it - only to knock it down and drill for oil. The Muppets have to reunite and work together to raise $10 million and save the muppet theatre!

Tex Richman

The strong (human) cast of Jason Segel and Amy Adams are brilliant - Adams proves once again how versatile she is. She seems to be able to portray any character well, and has great chemistry with on-screen partner Jason Segel who also does a great job breathing life into his role.

Segel also did a great job writing (with help from Nicholas Stoller). The script here is brilliant. It makes enough time for both humour and emotional moments, with jokes that will please the young and the old alike. And the way the fourth wall is constantly broken with lines like "This is going to be a really short movie," never stops being entertaining.

I have to mention the songs as well. The first song to feature in The Muppets I couldn't help but cringe at. It's not that it was bad, but it was very cheesy and I worried that they would all be like that.

Thankfully, my fears were unfounded. The songs are brilliant and broken up by some gags to keep you entertained.
In fact, the songs turn out being one of the film's biggest strengths.

And for all you muppet fans out there, don't worry, none of the (original) muppets are over-used or lose their dignity from this film. The script treats them with respect and makes the best out of all of them!

The only muppet I could take or leave was new addition, Walter. He's a fine addition to the muppet line-up, but just a little dull. This isn't a huge problem though, and definitely didn't limit my enjoyment of the film.

Walter and Kermit

And if your a fan of celebrity cameos, you won't be disappointed here is all I'll say...

I find it difficult to find much to fault the Muppets with. It's funny, it's filled with catchy songs and also more emotional moments. It's ending is actually amazing, and signs the film off on a high! Whether your young or old, a muppet fan, or a newcomer to the series - you need to see this.

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Movie News with David Craig: Tintin 2/Transformers 4, Twisted Metal Movie, TMNT Reboot and More!

It's episode 1 of our new series! David Craig goes over the week's biggest movie news.

What did you think? Give us suggestions for improvements below.

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UK Box Office Top 10: 14th February 2012

This week, Daniel Radcliffe's The Woman in Black takes the top spot beating 3 other new entries. The stars first post-potter movie brought in over £3 million on its opening weekend. It knocks last week's No. 1, Chronicle down 4 places to No. 5.

You can read our review of Chronicle by clicking here!

The other 3 new entries this week are Jason Segel's The Muppets - which you NEED to see if you haven't already. Our review will be up in the next few days, and the score is going to be rather high I can tell you now.

At No. 3 is George Lucas' 3D conversion of the first Star Wars prequel - The Phantom Menace.

The final new entry is mediocre romantic drama, The Vow, which is in at No. 4.


UK Box Office Top 10:

1. (-) The Woman in Black - £3,153,020
2. (-) The Muppets - £2,650,664
3. (-) Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace - £1,528,156
4. (-) The Vow - £1,091,469
5. (1) Chronicle - £1,024,583
6. (2) Journey 2: The Mysterious Island - £902,857
7. (3) The Descendants - £743,017
8. (4) War Horse - £580,984
9. (5) Jack and Jill - £521,925
10. (6) Man on a Ledge - £419,979

That's all this week. To keep updated, like our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter.
Here's a trailer for this week's new No. 1, The Woman in Black:

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