Movie Review: Knowing (2009)

A lot of movies in the past has explored life as a series of pre-determined events and events that happen for a reason. This fatalistic outlook is very romantic in the sense that films tell us that no matter what the odds are, fate would find a way to put us in a better situation.

Knowing is a movie that looks into the possibility that life is already written and also looks at the other side-- where life is just a complete mess of randomness, a big glop of accidents and coincidences. Also throw a lot of apocalyptic and extra-terrestrials mumbo-jumbo, then you have a film that tries to say a lot of things. And that makes Knowing a big disappointment, despite Nicolas Cage's subtle performance.

Watching Knowing is like watching a patchwork of different genres-- thriller, action, and sci-fi, only that the pieces don't fit well. The films start of a mystery, where you wonder what the heck is going on with the predictions a girl made in the 1950's that all came true. Then it becomes an action-thriller where the disaster scenes are just riveting and, even disturbing. But when it devolves into a sci-fi "end of the world" epic-- all bets are off.

If I knew beforehand that Knowing would disappoint... well, you get the picture right?


Rating: 1.5/5


Technorati: Knowing

Movie Review: Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)

Dreamwork's Monsters vs. Aliens seem to be poised to be a major player in the CGI animation movie space this year with a very interesting concept, but it falls really flat... like the the blue blob character that always gets flattened. (Well, that character is named B.O.B., and he is voiced by Seth Rogen.)

The film has a couple of good things going for it: (a) the voice actors are just superb, with the aforementioned  Seth Rogen, Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett, Kiefer Sutherland, Stephen Colbert, and Rainn Wilson; (b) the concept of bringing together a rag-tag team of Classic sci-fi monsters a la The Justice League or X-Men is just irresistible. So why do I think the movie is so-so?

The story is just too plain, nothing out of the ordinary for me: The film deals with the transformation of bride-to-be Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) into "Ginormica," the 49 foot woman, and her joining the elite team of monsters that the U.S. government is keeping. She initially hates her situation, but thanks to the bond she develops with the other monsters and their mission to save the planet earth from an alien attack, she learns to love herself as a "monster." Ho-hum.

The film does have its share of laughs, courtesy of B.O.B., but other than that, it's really standard fare family entertainment humor. If you probably don't expect much as you enter the cinema, you'll be fine with Monsters vs. Aliens.


Rating: 2.5/5


Technorati: Monsters vs. Aliens

Movie Review: Taken (2008)

A conversation that took place in my head:


"Liam Neeson unleashes a full can of whoop-ass in the action film Taken."

"Hey, isn't that the movie where Neeson vows revenge on a group of kidnappers who took his daughter? Isn't that too anachronistic of an action film? Like 1980's anachronistic?"

"Yeah, but it works. Liam Neeson channels his inner 'Dirty Harry' and Steven Segal and brings action back to basics-- no big explosions, but high on broken bones and twisted necks."

"Fine. How about that Maggie Grace girl? She played that bitch Shannon in 'Lost,' and I heard she sucked big time in the film."

"Well, unfortunately, yeah. She was supposed to play a 17-year old girl, but she wounded up portraying a lanky, uncoordinated 13-year old who wishes for ponies on her birthday."

"Ugh. Sounds bad. But I still can't over the death of her character in 'Lost.'"

"Yeah, but good thing the story is plausible and it's set in Paris. So you'll see a lot of baguettes and the occasional scenic shot of the Eiffel Tower."

"Mmmm... baguettes..."


Rating: 3.5/5


Technorati: Taken

Slumdog Millionaire - Jai Ho

I'm listening to Slumdog Millionaire's Original Soundtrack and I've grown fond of A.R. Rahman's "Jai Ho." It's a nice song and it won in the 81st Academy Awards for Best Song.

In the video I posted above, it's the initial ending credits of the award-winning movie where leading actors Dev Patel and Freida Pinto dance Bollywood-style to the tune of "Jai Ho."


Technorati: Slumdog Millionaire

Movie Review: Revolutionary Road (2008)

Despite the unglamorous suburban story setting, Revolutionary Road is a very interesting movie with great acting performances by Kate Winslett and Leonardo DiCaprio.

I was gripped by the film's pace and story that even though I watched the 11:15pm screening after playing basketball for three hours, I never slept a wink. Revolutionary Road is that good.

But I think I'm a bit biased because I fit the target demographic in which the film can have the maximum impact: the 25-35 crowd and/or folks who have families and/or folks who are undergoing a quarter-life crisis.

The story is about the perennial dilemma of pursuing one's dreams versus maintaining a stable family life. April Wheeler (Kate Winslet) had dreamt of becoming an actress but her domestic life with husband Frank (Leonardo Di Caprio) had mired her in "hopeless emptiness." Their family gets a crack at breaking free of the vicious cycle of boredom until a series of events derails their plans and grounds them almost permanently to suburbia. April resents the whole situation and copes in a very dysfunctional manner.

The film is thought-provoking and it made me think about my own personal life, in terms of my life goals and the idea of "settling down." Revolutionary Road is one of the best films I've watched so far this year.


Rating: 5/5


Technorati: Revolutionary Road

Movie Review: Watchmen (2009)

"Who watches the Watchmen?"

From a simple question, writer Alan Moore was able to write the most celebrated graphic novel of all time. And after numerous hitches (like the Watchmen Fox lawsuit) and years of delay, the movie version of that graphic novel is now on the silver screen.

The years of waiting was very much worth it: Zack Snyder's version of Watchmen is an absolute must-watch, a great adaptation of a great work. From the visual effects, to the production value, to the story, Watchmen is an instant classic.

Watchmen the film is not different from the graphic novel-- it's dark, textured, and complex. Snyder was very loyal to the material and he was able to get the spirit of Watchmen in two and a half hours. Had it been longer, it could have ruined the film.

You can search the web for resources on Watchmen because I think some appreciation of the source material will enhance the movie-watching experience. I think the film will make fans happy, but make some clueless folks scratching their heads ("What's their powers?," "Who's the bad guy?, "Who's the stronger character?")

But nonetheless, Watchmen is one of the better superhero films in recent memory. If every comic book superhero movie were like Watchmen, the world will be a better place.


Rating: 5/5


Technorati: Watchmen

Farewell Francis M

Philippine rap music cornerstone Francis M (Francis Magalona) succumbed to leukemia just a few hours ago. He was 44.

I was a big fan of Francis M almost 20 years ago when he revolutionized local music with "Mga Kababayan," arguably the most popular rap record in the Philippines. I remember during my elementary school days where we would have a "rap off"-- a duel who can rap "Mga Kababayan" with no mistakes. I recall winning a couple of challenges. :P

His 1995 album "Freeman" was a huge influence in my garage-band, high school days. Songs like "Kaleidescope World," and "Three Stars and A Sun" were not only big hits, but also game-changing rap-rock songs.

Thank you and farewell Francis M.

--

Filipino Bloggers on Francis M's passing (Thanks to Aileen Apolo for the list):

• Aileen Apolo 
• Tonyo Cruz
  
• Flowell
  
• Single Parent Talks
  
• Dean Lozarie
  
• Sarah Cada
  
• Laya
  
• Tiborsho
  

Technorati: Francis M

Tang Fruit Teaz Teazperiments

Tang Fruit Teaz is the newest drink from Tang and it is a cross between iced tea and a fruit drink. It's intended for the "tween" market (9-12 years old) and it's positioned as a drink that you can remix and match.

Tang launched its newest product last night to bloggers at the Top Shelf, Bonifacio High Street. An Improv Everywhere-style performance from some "members of the audience" kicked the evening off with a spontaneous musical number. This set the tone for the playful and whimsical mood of the evening.

The launch was dubbed as the first "User-Generated Youth Online Show," as it showcased the different flash mob performances from different college groups all over Metro Manila. (The videos of the performances are uploaded at http://www.tangfruitteaz.com).

As for the product itself, I found the lemon and orange flavors of Tang Fruit Teaz great, but I think they should be server chilled.

Bloggers I saw:

• Mica
  
• Fritz
  
• Arpee
• Markku
  
• Hana 
• Jayvee
  
• Juned
• Batang Yagit 
• Carl
• Jonel
• Leira 
• Richard 
• Ronald 
• Sire 
• Kenneth 
• Trixie 

Technorati: Tang Fruit Teaz

Movie Review: The Reader (2008)

As expected, The Reader was shown here in Manila after the 81st Academy Awards, where it was nominated for the Best Picture award and lead star Kate Winslet won the Best Actress award (Film distributors usually would time critically acclaimed films after it gets some Oscar publicity here).

And true enough, the ploy worked-- my girlfriend & I had to change cinemas because The Reader on the first cinema we went to was sold out! I could't believe that The Reader would generate that much interest here.

But on to the review: The Reader is a subtle drama about a May-December love affair set in Germany. Like most of the nominated films, the story spans decades as we see the journey and tragedy of Hanna Schmitz and Michael Berg. The film has three acts, and it the feel of each differ-- it jumps from sensual, to intense, to depressing. Director Stephen Daldry does a fine job, but hits the brakes during the second act.

Kate Winslet's performance was great and she really set the tome for the film. She didn't have a consistently intense performance (unlike Meryl Streep in Doubt), but I guess the Academy saw the undercurrent and pain in her performance.

The Reader is no feel-good film by all means (hint: It's a film that touches on the Holocaust), but it's the tragedy that makes it good.


Rating: 4/5


Technorati: The Reader

Kim Chiu & Gerald Anderson in Why Men Love Whisper

Whisper has a new campaign targeted not for ladies, but for men!

Aptly called "Why Men Love Whisper," the campaign is a multimedia endeavor that has online and radio components.

For the online, the campaign his its own Multiply website (what Filipino product doesn't have a Multiply site these days? :P), music videos uploaded to YouTube, and a contest that lets folks remix the videos and an online photo contest.

The campaign has a song that hopes to follow the success of "Walang Sabit" and "Sunod sa Galaw" (both songs were for a different product, though).  "Whisper I Love You" is a love song that has a nice hook. Here's the video



If you like the song, you can make it top the local radio charts in the following ways:

1. iFM 93.9 Pwede! (live streaming at RMN.com.ph )
   
• thru text: ifmrequest Whisper I Love You and send to 2299
  
• thru landline: 584-5545
  
2. DWRR 101.9 For Life!
   
• thru text: 4LIFESONGWhisper I Love You and send to 2366
  
• thru landline: 415-1111 or 924-2684
  
3. Barangay LS 97.1
   
• thru text: RADIO GREETLSFM and send to 2311 (for globe, sun and TM) and 350 (for Smart and Talk N Text) 
  
• sample: RADIO GREETLSFM  pls air the song Whisper I Love You
  

Technorati: Whisper