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.

Blur was responsible for our generation’s initiation into British rock music. That’s why many nostalgic Gen X’s and Y’s will go to see this new documentary that chronicles the band’s rise and fall and their temporary reunion for a series of tour dates in 2009. It’s a little hero-worshippy, but charmingly filled with ’90s Britpop nostalgia and the concert scenes are brilliantly shot. A worthy tribute to the band that began our musical education.

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.

It’s always a risk when film-makers decide to try and attach heavily religious messages to blockbusters, and it doesn’t get more heavy-handed than in The Book Of Eli. Overall, though Eli is willing to trek across the world to save a story, we’re not sure we’d do this same with this one. It’s The Road with a book instead of a kid, and frankly, that’s not enough of a reason to spend your money.

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.

From the writers of Sexy Beast comes 44 Inch Chest, a new Brit gangster flick starring Ray Winstone, Ian McShane and John Hurt. It’s the story of Col, a cuckolded mob who gathers his friends together to take revenge on his wife’s French lover. But with the loss of his wife imminent, Col starts to reassess his life, suddenly unsure of the abject masculinity he’s surrounded himself with all his life.

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.

Chance Pe Chance is Bollywood’s answer to School of Rock…kind of. Struggling actor Sameer (Shahid Kapoor) works several jobs to keep on top of life’s expenses but soon realises that..

K. Selvaraghavan is Tamil cinema’s answer to James Cameron. His action-packed epic Aayirathil Oruvan (in English, ‘One Man in One Thousand’) generated a similar buzz to Avatar prior to release in its home country of India, and now after a record-breaking international rights deal, the film has landed in the UK. The over-the-top goings-on can be a bit exhausting, but visually, the film holds its own against any Hollywood adventure epic.