Oliver Parker’s adaptation of the classic Oscar Wilde novel has everything you’d want from a gothic bodice ripper; sex, gore, and darkly chiselled cheekbones. Young Dorian Grey wishes to stay young forever, and so binds himself in a deal with the devil to always retain his beautiful good looks. But what is the cost? This dark and smoky tale is a great warning against vanity everywhere However, amongst all the Burton-esque moody shots of Victorian England, the biting essence of Wilde’s classic story gets slightly lost.

Set in the 1950s, Revolutionary Road centres on the relationship between Alice (Kate Winslet) and Frank Wheeler (Leo DiCaprio); a married couple in their late twenties. Seen as the shining example of wedded bliss by their friends and neighbours living on Revolutionary Road, they have two children, a secure future and a beautiful home. But beneth their flawless exterior both Alice and Frank feel as though their lives are being wasted. Revolutionary Road is a poignant, heartbreaking and piercing look into what makes up a relationship, and how it is that deep love can turn to hatred.

“Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. Girl doesn’t.” Marc Webb’s 500 Days of Summer is refreshing because as its tag-line suggests, it tells the truth about love. Sometimes things just don’t work out. Simple. And that’s fine.

Catholic schools. Priests. Sexual abuse allegations. Does this equal a film we’d want to see? Probably not. At best, it would be dull, at worst quite disturbing. Nevertheless, given the Oscar hype surrounding this adaptation of John Patrick Shanley’s play last year, we decided it couldn’t be that bad. In fact, this 1960’s-set drama centring around a nun’s mission to prove a progressive priest guilty of sexual abuse of a student turned out to be quite a unique and thought-provoking film experience.

Gran Torino is vintage Clint Eastwood at his best. From Dirty Harry to Million Dollar Baby, he’s made his signature character into an art form, a hypnotising, hardened beast of a human that you can’t take your eyes off, and yet one that’s never without redeeming qualities either. In this self-directed tale of a bigoted retiree coming to terms with his Asian neighbours in middle America, Eastwood gives us enough bad-ass attitude, along with poignant drama to stand Gran Torino alongside his earlier Oscar-winning efforts.

The British talent for satire is brilliantly displayed in In the Loop. This film spin-off from the BBC series The Thick of It chronicles the life and times of several US and UK government figureheads in the days before the invasion of Iraq. The cracking script and brilliant cast keep the laughs coming hard and fast, while director Armando Iannucci’s hand-held camera techniques create an almost uncomfortably close-to-the-bone sense of realism. If you missed this film at the cinema, it’s well worth grabbing on DVD for the best laughs you’ve had in ages and one-liners you’ll be repeating for weeks.

Denzel Washington crashes onto DVD with the remake of the 1974 Taking of Pelham 123, also starring John Travolta in another of his couldn’t-care-less villain roles. What happened, John? You used to be cool, and you ain’t gonna get another gig like Pulp Fiction anytime soon. Sort it out. And lose some weight.

Sandra Bullock stars as Mary Horowitz – a socially inept crossword compiler who falls for Steve (Bradley Cooper) – a cameraman for a news channel. Her obsessive oddball behaviour drives him away but can she win him back with words?

After the stunner that was Spider-Man 2 (in our humble opinion one of the best superhero films ever made), Spidey 3 certainly had a weight of expectation against it. And unfortunately, it’s not really the send-off the franchise – not the mention the considerable talents of Maguire, Dunst, Raimi et al – deserved.

We’re pleased to report that Up in the Air lives up to its press. This romance-comedy-drama from Juno director Jason Reitman is intelligent, soulful, keeps you laughing, keeps you guessing, and leaves you with that lump-in-your-throat feeling that you’ve experienced a truly lovely moment in cinema. Clooney’s emotionally detached jetsetter is perfectly (and surprisingly) matched by Twilight newcomer Anna Kendrick, and Reitman’s narrative expertly weaves witty comedy into beautiful moments of poignancy. If you only see one film this month, make it this one.