VIDEO REVIEWS

U-turn (18)

Columbia, rental HHH

Oliver Stone sends up his own genre in this thriller starring Sean Penn and Jennifer Lopez. Penn is on his way to deliver some cash when he breaks down at a forlorn desert town. Introducing himself to the locals, he soon becomes involved in the murderous activities of Lopez and her desperado husband, Nick Nolte, and finds himself pursued by a love-sick Clare Danes. Penn's exasperation, seen in a range of facial expressions, provides endless entertainment while Billy Bob Thornton's mutant car mechanic is Stone's most disgusting creation to date. Best of all, there's none of Stone's usual sermonising.

Dark City (15)

Entertainment, retail HHH

This surreal fantasy thriller from Alex Proyas reveals a netherworld where sunlight is unknown and thousands of Nosferatu look-alikes glide around the streets at night resetting resident's memories and rearranging the architecture. Rufus Sewell becomes privy to their activities and, after an experiment goes wrong, is left in possession of strange powers. The only one that realises something is amiss in the dark city, he sets out to unmask the alien puppet masters. A perfectly cast Keifer Sutherland plays a limping madman while Richard O'Brien's alien dictator is a sight for sore eyes.

Addams Family Reunion (PG)

CIC, retail HH

America's most macabre homestead gets a make-over as Tim Curry becomes a disappointing Gomez and a surprisingly satisfactory Daryl Hannah plays his gorgeous spouse, Morticia. This third Hollywood instalment of the ghoulish family's antics sees Gomez ordering a family get-together after spotting an agency that traces long-lost relatives. Confusion ensues as they are sent to the wrong reunion party and the real relatives arrive at the Addams family mansion. Christina Ricci is sorely missed as the deadpan Wednesday. Not a patch on the previous feature films or the TV series.

The Wishmaster (18)

Columbia, retail H

Wes Craven's tacky horror flick deals with the mythology surrounding the Djinn, in order to indulge in some gratuitous brain-sucking and dismembering. Antiquity expert Tammy Lauren is lumbered with the task of grappling with a thousand-year-old genie who tricks people into making murderous wishes. One poor fool wishes that his annual party would go down in history. As a result, his guests are garroted by piano strings and skinned alive. This awful picture will entertain only those with a serious blood lust and serves as a powerful argument for the end of these so-called ironic slasher flicks.