Reviews

The Weitz brother's adaptation of Nick Hornby's bestseller can't help falling into the sugary-sweet Notting Hill trap. Hugh Grant's genuinely impressive as responsibility-free Will, who strikes up an unlikely friendship with weird 12-year-old Marcus and his troubled hippie mum. It's crucial that the brat isn't annoying: but boy, he is. Hornby's jokes and Badly Drawn Boy's songs add some edge.

Agent 00 soul, licensed to thrill

Grunge kings' best-of is sanitised yet magnificent. Includes previously unreleased track

A quarter-century of baroque-rock 45s

American and African stars combine to pay tribute to the late Fela Kuti

Shaming secret history of the war on Iraq, soundtracked by Aphex Twin, Orbital and co

Promising, optimistic debut from 21st-century Prefab Sprout

Fabulous neo-MBV guitarfest from happening Berlin electronica label