Movies by Flixster review

Movies by Flixster allows you to view where a film is playing in your area, plus information about all the latest movies

While Google Maps may be able to tell you exactly where the nearest cinema is, knowing what is showing and when - and therefore if it is worth going in the first place - is something it finds a lot trickier.

Enter stage left 'Flixster'. The most popular cinema guide on the App Store partly because it is free and partly because it is excellent. It also has far more functionality than you are ever likely to need, so much so the term 'comprehensive' seems a little on the conservative side.

At the heart of Flixster is its movie listings. Every major cinema in the UK is held within its database, its location, phone number, select online ordering and complete film showtimes for the next seven days. Cinemas can also be searched for via current location or postcode with the results sorted by proximity and venues can be stored to favourites for quick checks.

So far, so good but then Flixster takes things to another level. If you'd rather search by movie you'll find details of films opening that week, top box hits and a complete searchable database of every title showing in the UK which can be sorted alphabetically or by rating. Select any film and you'll find the synopsis, cast list, (Flixster or Rotten Tomatoes) rating, genre, running time and even its trailer. Interested in films not out yet? A section in Flixster offers the same detail for upcoming films all ordered by their prospective release dates. Considering a DVD instead? The same data is also available though you will need to resort to Google Maps to find your nearest video rental store unless you simply use a download service.

You'd think that just about exhausts every option you could want with an app like this but Flixster still has another trick up its sleeve: social networking. Thanks to the newly open Facebook API, Flixster can connect with the application it also provides to the social networking site. This means you can synchronise your movie ratings and view the ratings and opinions dished out by your Facebook friends.

In essence then Flixster is a wonderfully comprehensive but also beautifully designed app that's surprisingly easy to navigate which will do more than you'll ever likely need. Sadly what knocks off some gloss is rather ponderous performance with jerky scrolling and slow load times. This is something the developers are aware of and the current version (2.2) does claim to significantly boost start up times and responsiveness but it still needs work.

Funny as it may sound it is also frustrating that there isn't a paid version of Flixster. The sole free edition supports itself via in-app advertising that can be quite annoying and frankly it proves such a good service I'd happily pay a small fee to have it removed - were it only an option. That said, to conclude with such a statement in itself can only be seen as a ringing endorsement.

Flixster info

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Platform: iPhone/iPod touch

Price: Free

Developer: Flixster

Website/Demo: Flixster website

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