New DVDs

This week's DVD releases reviewed

Star Trek ****

Directed by JJ Abrams. Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy, Winona Ryder, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Ben Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg 12 cert

Wonderful, witty reinvention of the classic series. Abrams, taking care to entertain both Trekkers and the uninitiated, takes us back to Starfleet Academy and the first meeting between the crew. The action is non-stop, but the film is most notable for its sensitive handling of the developing relationship between Spock (Quinto) and Kirk (Pine). The two-disc edition is packed with unsurprising featurettes.

Moon ****

Directed by Duncan Jones. Starring Sam Rockwell, voice of Kevin Spacey 12 cert

The low-budget debut feature from Duncan Jones proves to be a thought-provoking gem. Featuring Sam Rockwell as the lone inhabitant of a grimy moonbase, the film gestures towards such classics as 2001 and Solaris, but still feels agreeably fresh and unpredictable. It’s worth checking out the public interviews with Jones on the DVD extras.

Angels & Demons *

Directed by Ron Howard. Starring Tom Hanks, Ayelet Zurer, Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgård, Armin Mueller-Stahl 12 cert

The Pope is dead. Several of the main contenders for the job have been kidnapped and a potentially apocalyptic device, fashioned from antimatter, has been placed beneath the streets of the Vatican. The sequel to The Da Vinci Code is shorter than its predecessor, but every bit as preposterous, clunky and dramatically inert. Make it stop.

Coco Before Chanel / Coco Avant Chanel **

Directed by Anne Fontaine. Starring Audrey Tautou, Alessandro Nivola 12 cert

The early life of Coco Chanel. Twitchy Tautou stars as the fashion designer whose sleek, unfussy designs defined mid-20th-century couture, but, a few clumsy nods towards later developments aside, you will discover little about Cocos signature innovations in this dull, uneventful film.