Friday 12th July has been quite the launchpad for a host of new and exciting films, showcasing the genre spectrum. From action blockbusters to indies, political thrillers to kids animation films, there'll be something to suit all tastes and ages as the summer of film gets hotter.

Well, we'll start off with Trap For Cinderella first because it's the underdog erotic thriller indie with an interesting premise. The Iain Softley film will star young, up-and-coming British actresses Tuppence Middleton and Alexandra Roach as vivacious Micky and shy Do: two girls who are reunited after years apart and reignite a secret passion despite the disapproval they are faced with.

Trap for Cinderella
Tuppence Middleton & Alexandra Roach In Trap For Cinderella.

Whilst on holiday in a French villa a fire breaks out with disastrous consequences. It's up to badly burned Micky to piece back the memories of the life - and the people - she once thought she knew.  However, The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw's not convinced Trap for Cinderella is up to Softley's usual standards, yet Total Film admits that although the plotline needs to be taken with a pinch of salt in places, it's "stylish" and employs "a solid cast."

Watch The Trap For Cinderella Trailer:

Next is Pacific Rim, a monster-smashy-New York film with a difference: it's directed by Guillermo Del Toro; a verifiably intrepid master of cinematographic suspense who's the big name behind Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy (del Toro regular Ron Perlman also seen here) and one of the screenwriters for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. This guy knows how to make his special effects and CGI monsters chillingly realistic with a poetic beauty that touches the human soul of his movies. Pacific Rim - titled because the monsters come flushing out of a rift in the Pacific ocean bed - reveals a race of monstrous beings waging war on humankind who have developed in retaliation the mighty Jaegers: robots operated by two soldiers and capable of taking on the huge and terrifying Kaiju aliens. Monster Vs. Robots, eh?

Pacific Rim
The Terrifying Kaiju Are Here To Destroy Humans.

Like most action movies, expect constant deafening explosions and edge-of-your seat fight scenes. The Daily Mail buzzes about the movie, hailing it as "a blockbuster that delivers the goods" and "the most colossal monster movie of all time" but The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw didn't like this one either with grumbles for most aspects of the film: "the action is distended with all kinds of solemn character journeys, laugh-free comedy figures, lumbering set-pieces, tiresome sub-Christopher Nolan innerspace adventures, unzinging dialogue, and really little of the imaginative and visual flair that Del Toro has shown in the past." Nope? On to the next one...

Watch The Pacific Rim Trailer:

If you'd rather get your teeth into something a little more psychologically substantial this weekend then look no further than We Steal Secrets, the true-story documentary of website WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange, as his controversial organisation facilitates and publically leaks a massive piece of US military intelligence that brought the freedom of expression campaigner to the attention of the world's governments.

Julian Assange
Julian Assange Has Ruffled A Few Feathers Through His WikiLeaks Site.

In We Steal Secrets, aside from the gripping political events, Assange's unique character comes through, soon to be played by Sherlock actor Benedict Cumberbatch in the dramatised The Fifth Estate. The documentary got in there first though, bringing the story of the Australian journalist to the screen whilst the events are still being played out in real life as Assange hides out in London's Equadorian Embassy, putting off his extradition. The 15-rated piece is described by The Financial Times as "Hamlet without the prince," but the FT has more beef with Assange himself than the Alex Gibney directed documentary.

Watch The We Steal Secrets Trailer:

Lastly and not leastly, Monsters University is finally here, bringing its larger-than life Pixar monsters back to cinemas in the sequel to 2001's successful Monsters Inc. Mike, Sully, and friends old and new are here to show us what life was like when they were angsty students at college. Mike: the cyclopic tennis ball with something to prove initially hates Sully, his rival and fellow scare major, for the furry blue beast's arrogance but the two become friends after they go chasing after a pig mascot Sully has stolen from a rival college.

Billy Crystal
Two-Eyed Billy Crystal Next To One-Eyed Mike.

The Telegraph's Robbie Collin adores the "heart-melting" secret short animation (this time, The Blue Umbrella) that plays at the beginning of every Pixar flick and praises the Billy Crystal and John Goodman-voiced animation: "the film what the plot may lack in innovative fizz, it makes up for with charm and quiet wisdom."

Watch The Monsters University Trailer:

There you have it: a weekend in film. Big scary monsters, small cute monsters, old friends, new friends, erotic tension and political controversies. Summer cinema 2013: you'll come for the monster CGI big-budget blockbusters, but you'll probably stay for the idyllic indies and loveable children's films.


Trap for Cinderella
Trap For Cinderella Depicts Two Friends Who's Friendship Turns Into Obsession And Jealousy.

Pacific Rim
Luckily For Humankind, The Robotic Jaeger Are Here To Protect Us In Pacific Rim.