Life, Nelson, But Not As We Know It

New Releases: Friday, September 4, 2009

A double whammy of critical wows this week, first with the Kevin Jackson-produced, South African alien flick, District 9, and also in the shape of inventive romcom, 500 Days Of Summer. District 9 and its alien crustaceans gets raves across the board, a "prawn cracker" according to the Daily Mail. 500 Days, meanwhile, does receive a couple of cynical knock-backs from The Times and Sunday Times, Rupert Murdoch's cockles failing to be warmed on this occasion.

Elsewhere it's the usual smorgasbord of late summer stock, a harvest festival of the unusual, including two critically-panned WW1 Euro-epics, Passchendaele and Red Baron (where's Snoopy when you need him?), a documentary about a London rent boy, Greek Pete, and Big River Man, about a bloke who swims up the Amazon — though presumably not after coating himself in lard, on account of all the piranhas. An acclaimed surfing chronicle, too: Bustin' Down The Door.

All the week's reviews follow below ...

Big River Man

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times

Bustin' Down The Door

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times



District 9

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times



500 Days Of Summer

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times



Greek Pete

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times

Passchendaele

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times

Red Baron

The Daily Mail/Mail On Sunday
The Daily Telegraph/Sunday Telegraph
The Guardian/Observer
The Independent/Independent On Sunday
The Mirror/People
The Star
The Sun/News Of The World
The Times/Sunday Times