Rating: 3/5

Rating: 2/5

Rating: 4/5

Rating: 3.5/5

Rating: 4/5

And you thought Matt Berninger, the oddly charismatic mate of President Obama and singer in the National, was an introverted type.

Rating: 3/5. Verdict: Smoking, drinking, singing, sex - sometimes all at once.

Rating: 2.5/5. Verdict: Life is a cabaret, but this sure isn't

Rating: 2.5/5. Verdict: Fun, frivolous and forgettable.

Rating: 4.5/5. Verdict: Top of the pops

Rating: 2.5/5. Verdict: He might be smarter than your average ursine. His film isn't

Rating: 3/5. Verdict: The Louisiana spirit evoked by those who know the territory

The Gaia hypothesis - a theory of planet-as-a-whole-organism propounded by James Lovelock in the 1970s - was the underlying theme of the Gaia Galactic New Year's Eve party, Prana.

Books editor Linda Herrick checks out what's cooking in the international market.

Scott Kara on Public Enemy's Auckland show.

Get blown away with mafia hit Period crime drama Boardwalk Empire lives up to all the hype, writes Deborah Hill Cone.

Plan B's soulful, uplifting and edgy sophomore album was one of the biggest-sellers of 2010 in the UK, but here it barely registered on the Richter.

A year ago, fans had all but given up on Kiwi rockers Steriogram - not surprising given the band's members had embarked on solo projects, like Bradley Carter's Pistol Youth.

Joanna Lumley adds another string to her bow with this two-part series that examines people's relationships with cats.

A sunlit Gallic Brief Encounter, this French film of love confounded remains mostly on the right side of the line between exquisite and excruciating, thanks largely to the pitch-perfect performances of its two leading actors.

As an idea, an unmanned speeding freight train carrying highly explosive toxins and destined to derail in a densely populated city might sound like one contrived for the big screen.

While this doesn't disguise that the story still follows a generic romantic drama/comedy route, it does mean you don't feel bad about falling for it.

Deposited as you are in a kind of Deadwood saloon it's surprising how much sense the futuristic and modern music of Ladi 6 and Shapeshifter make in this setting.

Rating: 3/5. Verdict: Fun but the Focker-Byrne feud might have run its course

Rating: 3.5. Verdict: All in the family.

The virtual band are beamed on to the giant screen and act out Hewlett's intriguing and twisted stories.

Aidan is a thirty-something professional blogger, living a low-rent version of the high-life in post-9/11 New York. His relationship with his journalist girlfriend, Cressida, is strained; he's stuck in a bit of a rut.