Corny but cute

Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel And Lawrence (15)

Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel And Lawrence (15)

Like Sliding Doors (reviewed last week), this cumbersomely-titled romantic comedy is set against the backdrop of '90s Swinging London, but is far less engaging. Monica Potter plays a troubled young American woman adrift in England who becomes separately embroiled with best friends Tom Hollander, Rufus Sewell and Joseph Fiennes, through a series of coincidences guaranteed to stretch the credulity of even the most broad-minded audience.

Red Corner (15)

Red Corner aims to do for the Chinese legal system what Gorky Park did for the preglasnost Moscow police, with Richard Gere as a high-flying television executive flung into a Beijing jail for a murder he didn't commit. Despite some moments of pure corniness, and the kind of ending that gives melodrama a bad name, this is a well-crafted legal thriller, which tries harder than most American films not to be condescending about the society it depicts, and Chinese actress Bai Ling is excellent as the idealistic young public defender.

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The Man Who Knew Too Little (15)

Despite his manifest talents, Bill Murray seems to find difficulty in choosing the right sort of cinematic vehicle. For every sublime choice he makes, there's always a stinker to balance it out. This Anglo-American farce falls into the latter category, with Murray as a gauche American tourist who becomes embroiled accidentally with a spy conspiracy, and finds himself faced with assassins, torturers and call girls.

Hugh Linehan

Hugh Linehan

Hugh Linehan is an Irish Times writer and Duty Editor. He also presents the weekly Inside Politics podcast