Easy A (Cert 15, 88 mins, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment). Starring Emma Stone, Amanda Bynes, Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson, Lisa Kudrow, Thomas Haden Church, Alyson Michalka, Penn Badgley, Cam Gigandet, Dan Byrd ****

Hard-working student Olive (Stone) tells a tiny white lie to best friend Rhiannon (Michalka) about losing her virginity to a mystery man – and Bible-bashing classmate Marianne (Bynes) spreads the salacious news around the school. Olive embraces her new lowly reputation for the good of others. She manufactures a hook-up with classmate Brandon (Byrd) to dispel whispers about him being gay and confesses to giving Marianne’s dim-witted boyfriend Micah (Gigandet) a sexually transmitted disease in order to protect the real culprit. Will Gluck’s film has us in the palm of its hand and rooting for an unconventional heroine.

Paranormal Activity 2 (Cert 15, 87 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment). Starring Sprague Grayden, Brian Boland, Molly Ephraim, Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat ***

Kristi (Grayden) and husband Daniel (Boland) welcome baby Hunter into their home, which they share with Daniel’s teenage daughter from his first marriage, Ali (Ephraim). Soon after we learn Kristi’s sister is Katie (Featherston), the ill-fated heroine from the first Paranormal Activity. Kristi senses a dark force in the family home. Watch it with the lights off and prepare for a sleepless night.

Due Date (Cert 15, 91 mins, Warner Home Video). Starring Robert Downey Jr, Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan, Juliette Lewis, Danny McBride, Jamie Foxx, RZA ***

Due Date is a romantic, cross-country comedy, which takes a simple premise and goes nowhere with it. Four screenwriters attempt to marry slapstick with soul-searching, dealing awkwardly with bereavement and the fear of impending parenthood as the film journeys from Los Angeles towards an obvious emotional crescendo in Atlanta. There’s no on-screen chemistry between the leads and we don’t believe for a minute that enmity would mellow into companionship by the end of the trek.