The Raven (15)

HHH

Dir: James McTeigue

With: John Cusack, Luke Evans, Alice Eve

JAMES McTeigue's The Raven offers an imagined account of the final days in the life of Edgar Allan Poe that sees the writer being forced to investigate a series of murders inspired by his own grisly tales. It's as gruesome as one might expect from an author whose books include The Pit & The Pendulum but nowhere near as fiendishly clever, although it does provide a popcorn standard of entertainment that keeps you gripped in spite of an underwhelming conclusion. In John Cusack, it also boasts a suitably engaging leading man who channels both the acid-tongued charisma and self-destructive nature of Poe in pleasingly dark fashion, and some taut, stylish direction from McTeigue that's in keeping with his last film, V For Vendetta. Hence, while never coming close to creating the sort of lasting, macabre masterpiece that Poe is more commonly associated with, The Raven is still worth a look.

Reviewed by Rob Carnevale

John Carter 3D (12A)

HHH

Dir: Andrew Stanton

With: Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins

Running time: 131 minutes

IF you can ignore the all-over-the-shop story, the confusing characters and the excessive running time, there's a cracking yarn to be found in Andrew Stanton's take on the Edgar Rice Burroughs classic. It's a big ask, but there are some terrific scenes and come the last half hour the picture shows flashes of what might have been. Taylor Kitsch is impressive as the American Civil War soldier who finds himself in the middle of a war on Mars, but most of the cast, including Willem Dafoe and Samantha Morton, are hard to spot under the special effects. Concentrate on the latter and you'll have a ripping time.

Robert Mugabe: What Happened? (N/C 12+)

HHHH

Dir: Simon Bright

THE fate of Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe, left, is a tragedy in a continent not short of them. The question director Simon Bright sets out to answer bubbles to the surface regularly as former colleagues, activists, and those affected by his rule try to fathom what became of the young independence fighter. The archive footage is excellent and the talking heads are worth listening to. It's a pity the film, as is the nature of documentaries made for the screen, didn't bring the story more up-to-date. A riveting tale of power corrupting.

March 14, 18.30, Glasgow Film Theatre

Booked Out (12A)

H

Dir: Bryan O'Neil

With: Mirren Burke, Sylvia Sims

Running time: 86 minutes

JUDGING by the number of thanks in the end credits, Bryan O'Neil's slight British drama involved lots of cheering from the sidelines. There are almost as many supporters as there are cliches as Ailidh (Mirren Burke), a kooky kind of chick gently pursues the boy next door. He, alas, seems to have a mysterious girlfriend in tow. Even more mysterious is how they can all afford to live in such nice London mansion flats. Sylvia Sims is wasted as the dotty neighbour upstairs as the young folk take their first faltering steps in romance. Strictly amateur hour.

March 12, Glasgow Film Theatre; March 13, Inverness Eden Court; March 14, Macroberts, Stirling; March 15, Edinburgh Dominion; May 9, Adam Smith Theatre, Kirkcaldy.