127 Hours (Cert 15, 89 mins, Pathe Distribution Ltd, Drama) Starring James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara. *****

Adapted from Ralston’s memoir, Between A Rock And A Hard Place, 127 Hours is a gut-wrenching account of a man who fully expects to die in the baking earth. Director Danny Boyle opens in hyperkinetic fashion with split screens and insistent music courtesy of composer AR Rahman. He employs a mosaic of flashbacks, memories and dreams to achieve the seemingly impossible feat of bringing energy and movement to a film that is set, almost entirely, in one location. Franco’s fearless performance holds us spellbound, not least in the gory final scenes when Aron lops off his arm, bit by bit. We witness tendons being severed, but cannot look away, willing him to survive at any cost.

Gnomeo & Juliet (Cert U, 80 mins, Entertainment One UK) Featuring the voices of James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, Ashley Jensen, Jason Statham, Matt Lucas, Stephen Merchant. ***

Shakespeare’s tale of star-cross’d lovers is given a new lick of paint in Kelly Asbury’s fast-paced computer animated comedy set to a soundtrack of classic and original songs by Elton John. Asbury’s film tries to distinguish itself with visual gags (a laptop computer with a banana logo) and the obligatory pop culture references like the gnome, joined at the base to his mate, who sighs, “I wish I could quit you” a la Brokeback Mountain. McAvoy and Blunt are both sweet, but the only vocal performance that stands out is Jensen as an overly-dramatic amphibian, looking for someone to share her lily pad.

The Mechanic (Cert 15, 88 mins, Lionsgate Home Entertainment UK Ltd) Starring Jason Statham, Ben Foster, Tony Goldwyn, Donald Sutherland, Mini Anden. ***

Based on Michael Winner’s 1972 film of the same name pairing Charles Bronson and Jan-Michael Vincent, The Mechanic is a predictable tale of revenge and retribution that intercuts limp banter with well-orchestrated action sequences. Simon West’s muscular thriller is everything you expect from a film bearing Statham’s name: loud, simplistic and bruising for a brawl. A brief sex scene unfolds as valentine to Statham’s chest, accentuating the hero’s macho credentials. The leading man isn’t saddled with too much demanding dialogue, leaving Foster to deliver something close to a three-dimensional performance. They dispatch Sutherland’s rogue in a wheelchair with little fanfare then signpost the glaringly obvious deception that will set Arthur and Steve on a collision course to self-destruction.