I was able to watch a Cinemalaya 2008 film last weekend with my girlfriend and I was lucky enough to catch Chris Martinez' entry 100. I say lucky because I really didn't have any expectations on 100 when I came to the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Heck, I didn't even have a clear idea which movies were showing for that day, so it was really a serendipitous thing.
On to the film: it is about a lady (played by Mylene Dizon) who decided to take control of her destiny when she learned she had cancer and the movie got its title from the 100 things a dying woman would do before her fateful day would come. The film has the good stuff: humor (thanks to Eugene Domingo and Tessie Tomas), a good dose of Filipino satire and of course, a nice poignant story about closure and life's meaning.
Like any other indie film, 100 has some rough edges in terms of the production and the movie seemed to get absorbed in itself (the film ran two hours). I was imagining that there were a few scened that could have been cut from the editing room to make 100 a more lean and tight movie. But maybe that's commercial movie-bred brain talking.
100 is very, very likable-- It's not artsy and it's pretty accessible to a wide spectrum of audiences. It even won the Audience Choice plum in the recently concluded Cinemalaya film fest awards. And speaking of awards, film stars Mylene Dizon won the Best Actress award, Eugene Domingo ran of with the Best Supporting Actress trophy and director Chris Martinez won Best Director and Best Screenplay in the Cinemalaya film festival's competition.
But if the movie ever do get to be distributed in the mainstream cinemas, I would recommend it. If it doesn't, then I sure hope the producers come up with a DVD.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: 100
This summer of 2008 is turning out to be a banner year from comic book superheroes. First there was Iron Man, then Wanted, and the natural progression into new cinematic heights continues with The Dark Knight.
The Dark Knight revives the Batman versus Joker match-up from 1989's Batman, and boy, it that rivalry better than ever. Getting director Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale were a good decisions in Batman Begins two years ago, but getting the late Heath Leadger as The Joker was a major coup. He brought his own touch to the role Jack Nicholson made popular and made The Joker more vile and sadistic-- the contrast of Batman's cerebral nature and the Joker's chaotic abandon is played on prett well. Very good job by Ledger if you ask me, but an Oscar-clincher? Let me first see what he will be up against...
The fiom also elevates the story-telling in comic book superhero movies-- The Dark Knight tackles human nature and motivation in a deeper manner and relies more on the tension generated by the story than the pyrotechnics. This is same as saying that the film has hastened the maturity of the superhero genre in Hollywood. So some teeners may actually find the movie boring in a few stretches. One more peeve: Bale does not speak but growls when he's donning the Batman outfit.
My only problem is the length of the movie: it's two and a haf hours long. There was a time I thought the movie should have ended, but it still went on. After the film, you will most likely feel its length. But then again, the movie does have a lot to show. So, sit back and enjoy The Dark Knight, a definite must watch movie.
Rating: 4.5/5
Tags: The Dark Knight
Based on Jules Verne's sci-fi classic, the movie follows the journey of an offbeat geologist (Brendan Fraser), his teenage nephew (Josh Hutcherson) and a beautiful Icelandic mountain guide (Anita Briem) who accidentally find a way to the center of the earth while searching for the geologist's brother. The quest takes them to the world Verne envision in his book and a thrilling ride through volcanic tubes, winding gem mines, and underground oceans.
Like the title says, the movie is a journey, so expect a very linear story with lots of thrills but little plot twists. The movie is really intended to be that way, especially the 3-D version being the recommended one for viewing. I only saw the 2-D version and it was good enough. But I'm sure the movie looks prettier in 3-D.
I like the Journey to the Center of the Earth for the sheer thrill it provides. But if you're expecting more, you'll be better off going to an amusement park.
Rating: 3.5/5
Tags: Journey to the Center of the Earth
The Incredible Hulk is a huge improvement over Lee's 2003 film for one simple reason: it doesn't take itself too seriously. This current iteration focuses on the Hulk as an angry brute that likes to smash military equipment and gives him a worthy adversary in terms of strength and power. The movie also draws more from the familiar-- more elements from the television series in the 1970's were incorporated into the movie. (Actors from the old series make cameos in the film). No doubt, more people will like this "reset" of the franchise.
Edward Norton plays Bruce Banner with a clear sense of what's motivating him: Banner does not want to be kept isolated by the effect of the Gamma radiation experiments he performed on himself and is driven by the pursuit of finding a "cure." Norton is complemented well by Tim Roth (who played the villain), William Hurt and Liv Tyler.
The movie could be seen as standard sci-fi fare, but the story gets a bit dull in stretches. If you are not familiar with the Hulk universe in the comics, some things in the story will fly over your head. But given succeeding films about the Hulk will follow this thread of reality, I'd say The Incredible Hulk is a very good place to start.
Rating: 3.5/5
Tags: The Incredible Hulk
A lot of people (read: women) will not agree with me but Wanted is the best movie this summer of 2008. (Of course, I've only watched a few movies this summer and the two films that come the closest for getting the top spot are Kung Fu Panda and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull).
I like Wanted for a couple of reasons: (1) the action, although violent, is very envisioned and very well helmed by Russian-Kazakh director Timur Bekmambetov (of Night Watch fame) and (2) Angelina Jolie. I seriously believe that the movie won't be as good if another Hollywood actress is playing the part of "Fox," a skilled assassin.
Speaking of assassins, the movie centers on the ascent of Wesley Gibson (played by James McAvoy) from a complete 9-to-5 nobody to an merciless killer who can "bend bullets" and eliminate targets with ease. Of course, that transformation is not possible without the help of "The Fraternity," a clandestine organization led by Sloan (played by Morgan Freeman). Wesley is trained and tortured by Fraternity assasins with cool call names: Fox, Gunsmith, The Repairman, and The Butcher, among many others. We see Wesley subject himself to the hazing because of his desire to avenge the death his father, who was also a member of The Fraternity.
As far as action movies go, Wanted is very visual and highly unbelievable (you will see a lot of bullets deflecting other bullets). But that is what makes the movie an enjoyable fun. This thrilling high-wire act should be on the top of any action film buff's list this summer.
Rating: 4.5/5
Tags: Wanted
Look at this list: Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, and Jackie Chan. Pretty impressive huh? Those Hollywood stars all share their voiced in the Dreamworks' latest animated offering Kung Fu Panda.
It was the first movie I watched since arriving back from my stint in India and it was a good decision. Kung Fu Panda is a nice take on the Chinese Kung Fu genre with an animated twist. If you haven't watched the film, here are some things to look forward to: The opening dream sequence was something I really liked and the animation durring the fight scenes were superb.
The story is fairly shares a vein with most of Asian action movies-- a seemingly incompetent character is thrust into a hard situation, then undergoes a physical and emotional transformation where he becomes someone of immense skill and great wisdom, then saves his community and his loved ones. From the way I describe it, it seems to be appropriate for the kiddie crowd, but Kung Fu Panda has enough depth and humor to keep the adults entertained.
The only thing I did not like is how everything just unravels so easily in the end-- the main villain was ferocious in the first 95% of the film but degenerates into a comic act in the last few minutes. But other than that Kung Fu Panda was a fun ride.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: Kung Fu Panda
Geeks are often depicted in Hollywood movies as socially inept geniuses who write software, hack computer networks and just slack off. 21 is a movie about geeks who don't use technology but use pure brain power to take on the world. And that world is the glittery place called Las Vegas.
Starring Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe), Kate Bosworth (Superman Returns) and Kevin Spacey (American Beauty), 21 shows the life an MIT college student leads as he joins an elite group of campus math geniuses who is trained by their math professor how to count cards and beat the Las Vegas odds in the game of Black Jack. Of course, a lot of drama and casino happen in th e movie, but the heart of the movie centers on the transformation of a simple Harvard Medical School aspirant into a greedy, high-rolling, Black Jack gambler.
The story is truly fascinating, especially the process of card-counting and the how the students and the professor use this legal technique to game the Vegas system. However, the story was hard to follow in the beginning because a lot of jargon about card playing was introduced and the "system" the team follows is a bit complicated as well. This would be a frustrating for people who dislike math or numbers. Director Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde) had no choice but to go take a safer route in terms of creating a believable story because the concept was complex. One more thing: I think Jim Sturgess and Kate Bosworth are an odd choice for the lead couple, she too old looks for the role for me.
21 is definitely a movie math geeks will enjoy, and I have reason to believe non-geeks will enjoy as well. Just ignore the jargon and the math, you'll find the film a jackpot.
Rating: 3/5
Tags: 21
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull marks a couple of firsts for me-- it's the first Indiana Jones movie that I watched, and it's the first movie I watched in a cineplex in Bangalore. (Yes, I'm currently in India).
Indiana Jones has been the gold standard in action-adventure movies and the latest incarnation is proof to that. Harrison Ford and director Steven Spielberg know how to cook up a great journey that starts with a simple artifact and ends in a grand ancient city.
In his latest mission set inf the 1950's, Indiana Jones must unravel the mystery of the Crystal Skull, an ancient artifact Russians are lusting over. The skull holds powers of unearthly capabilities, that's why the the Russian forces led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) coerced Indiana Jones to start the search for clues to find an ancient city that holds the key to the skull's true nature. The story also introduces Indiana Jones, Jr., played by Shia LaBeouf, and I sensed that this film is the launch pad for adventures for Jones' young son.
People who have not watched the previous movies can be assured that the story of "Crystal Skull" is stand-alone, but there a few references to the past movies as well as appearances by past characters. I also think that Ford as Indiana Jones has probably seen its last installment, as he's not as dynamic as most action heroes (obviously, he's already in his 60's.) Given LeBouf's performance in this film, I think he can adequately carry the franchise in the future.
No doubt, a movie like Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull deserves a follow-up, but it may likely be Indiana Jones, Jr.'s first full adventure.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Imagine a horror movie that takes The Ring and The Grudge together. Should be good, right? But what if you take those Japanese horror classics and leave out the best parts? What you have is One Missed Call.
One Missed Call is bad across the board-- the execution was weak, the story was convoluted and the acting, like most Hollywood horror movies, was practically non-existent. Lead actors Shannyn Sossamon and Ed Burns did the movie a disservice by following most cliches movies like the Scary Movie series would like to pick on.
I really have nothing good to say about this movie except that it provided me with good conversation with people, telling them to avoid this movie at all cost.
Rating: 0/5
Tags: One Missed Call
Finally, after three weeks here in India, I've finally watched my first movie in a proper theater. The movie I was able to catch was the Wachowski Brothers' adaptation of Speed Racer, originally a Japanese animated series in the 1960's.
Speed Racer is movie that exemplifies style over substance-- the Wachowskis' vision of the movie is a bright and colorful future world where racing is a huge sport (and business) and race tracks are of various shapes sizes. The hues of the movie is vibrant and slick, and the atmosphere is undoubtedly influenced by cartoons. Speaking of cartoons, the movie also integrates some animation inspired by from Japanese anime (for example, the fight scenes).
The visuals of the movie is impressive and I could see the creators really making an effort to bring the quirky nature of the animated series to real life. However, while it helps create the backdrop and racing sequences of the film, the non-linearity and choppiness of the plotting set in the very fast pace hurts the movie in a whole lot of ways. The acting is not bad as Emile Hirsh in the titular role is very likable and the rest of the cast (John Goodman, Christina Ricci, Matthew Fox and Susan Sarandon) do their best to put some humanity in the machine-dominated film. There is humor peppered all-over the movie, but it relies heavily in situations involving a chimpanzee.
So what's the final verdict for Speed Racer? It's one of the best movies that I could remember in translating the spirit of an animated series into real life and the look and feel of the movie is stunnigly top-notch. But the Wachowskis bit focused too much on the action and forgot to put in a better paced story to make this an instant classic like the animated TV series.
Rating: 3.5/5
Tags: Speed Racer
I've followed a lot of superheroes from collecting comic books and I have to admit Iron Man was one superhero I never got to like. But the Iron Man movie is making me change my mind.
Not to surprisingly, the Iron man as a film hero works in almost all levels. First, viewers get to appreciate the mechanized beauty of the suit-- something the comic book can't really give total justice to. Todays computer generated graphics really make Iron Man very believable and scientifically/mechanically plausible.
Second is the alter-ego/secret identity element has been freshened up. Tony Stark is what Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins should have been-- the comics always have always wanted to show a charmed life that contrasts the burden of being a super hero. In the case of Iron Man, Tony Stark fits the contemporary billionaire who realizes he must contribute more to society, something Bill Gates and Warren Buffet did, but Stark decided to use his mechanical engineering genius to save the world.
Third and finally, the film is a very good "reset button" to everyone who knew about Iron Man before the movie. The hero's origin has been updated (instead of dealing with the Nazis, Stark faced problems with an Al-Qaeda-like group) and the corporate aspect of Stark Enterprises resembles the big corporations nowadays, from the public relations to the board room battles.
Robert Downey, Jr. gives his spin to Tony Stark as a fast-talking, wise guy that is quite different from Tony Stark in the comic books. Make no mistake, Downey is superb in this movie, but I guess I was still adjusting to the "new" Tony Stark. Director John Favreau balances the humor, action and commentary with a nice pace, and thankfully doesn't get too caught up in the "hero rescues the damsel" trap.
Iron Man is a great addition to the comic book superhero movies and a definitely a must watch this summer. Heck, you might even get to start liking Iron Man from this film.
Rating: 4.5/5
Tags: Iron Man
I once read that a story could be done two ways: put ordinary characters in a very interesting situation or put interesting characters in an ordinary situation. The Savages can be classified in the latter group.
The Savage family the movie focuses on is composed Jon (Philip Seymour Hoffman), younger sister Wendy (Laura Linney) and their elderly father Lenny (Philip Bosco). Each were living their own separate lives until Lenny suffers from dementia brought about by old age. Siblings Jon and Wendy then come together to go through the process of looking for an adequate nursing home for their father while dealing with their own hangups-- Jon is a theater professor with a romance issues while Wendy is a struggling playwright who is in an illicit affair.
Director-writer Tamara Jenkins has created a family drama that is not as quirky as Little Miss Sunshine and not as outright weird as The Royal Tenenbaums. There is witty situational humor and a healthy dose of real issues most people face and experience great pains and deal with them beneath the surface. The strong actors' performances seal the deal for this finely written film.
From an Asian perspective, the concept of sending your elderly seems a far-fetched idea to a lot of families and the way Jon and Wendy handled their situation could be a good cultural exposition to lot of people. The movie is just a story about taking care of an aging father, but also a story of two people growing up.
Note: Starting with my review of The Savages, I'm adding a portion in the post called "Liza's One-Liner," where my girlfriend shares her thoughts on the movie with just one or two sentences.
Liza's One-Liner: "the acting was very good but the story was sad, even if the movie ended on a good note. i never really thought of how getting old will affect me and the people around me before i saw this movie. it's scary and sad :("
Rating: 4.5/5
Tags: The Savages
The spoof movies as of late have been generally lame, yet I still watch them hoping to catch a gem. The last one I watched was Meet the Spartans and that was lame.
Superhero Movie! is not the gem I'm looking for, but it's definitely a notch above the recent films. The film borrows its story from Spider-Man, where a teenage kid gets bitten by a radioactive dragonfly and develops super-human abilities. The movie is decent because its source material is superb-- Spider-Man as a superhero film is just near-perfect. The humor is still slapstick and there are a lot of toilet humor gags, but that's pretty much the standard for spoof films these days.
Another thing I liked about the movie is its loyalty to the campy nature of comic book characters. A good example is the villain in the movie, Hourglass (played my Christopher McDonald). His power is sucking the life out of people to survive, and he must do so periodically every 24 hours, like, well an hourglass. Another thing, notice that most of characters in the movie are aliterations or have the same first letters for their first and last names (example, Ricky Riker, Lou Landers. I remember an anecdote Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee mentioned before that they name characters that way (e.g. Peter Parker, Reed Richards, Scott Summers) so that they are easy to remember.
If Superhero Movie! is an indication of the quality of the spoof movies, then we're all in luck. The story is decent, there are funny parts (albeit slapstick) and nice pop culture references (the Tom Cruise guy is just hilarious).
Rating: 2.5/5
Tags: Superhero Movie!
I finally was able to catch the most recent Oscar winner for Best Picture: No Country For Old Men. I've been quite busy lately and this movie was the perfect "reward" for the stuff I've been doing.
Now on to the film: The movie won an Oscar deservingly-- The Coen Brothers were able to translate Pulitzer-winning author Cormac McCarthy's work into a tension-filled film. Although set in a rural Texas town near the U.S.-Mexico border in 1980, it's not your typical Western shoot-em-up. On the contrary, the movie lays down themes like chance, justice and fate. I find it the thinking man's action movie, if you know what I mean.
Rather than relying on big bangs and grand gun fights, the movie uses silence and makes the viewer imagine the action since a great deal of the movie shows what happened after the action. The pacing of the movie is almost perfect-- I personally didn't like the anti-climactic epilogue. The movie also has a very memorable baddie played by Javier Bardem. He's probably the villain with the worst looking set of weapons.
Over-all, the movie for me is near perfect: a gripping movie with great cast acting and memorable characters. Really a great movie to cap my week.
Rating: 4.5/5
Tags: No Country for Old Men
Dr. Seuss would be proud with this adaptation of Horton Hears a Who, a whimsical animated feature highlighted by the comic talents of Jim Carrey and Steve Carell.
Horton the Elephant (Carrey) is a determined but kind elephant in the Jungle of Nool who teaches the community's children on various biology and life lessons. One day, he hears a voice from a little speck and he soon discovers that a world exists in that speck-- the city of Who-ville. The city is inhabited by a happy race called the Who's and they are being led by a city council and a Mayor (Carell). The Mayor soon interacts with Horton and asks him to protect their city and bring them to a safe location, which Horton obliges. Horton faces ridicule from the community and the anger of their leader, Kangaroo (voiced by Carol Burnett). Horton and the Who's must convince the community of the value of "a person is a person, no matter how small" before it's too late for Who-ville.
I haven't read the children's book that first appeared in 1954, but the movie was able to flesh out lovable characters and breathe life into the supporting characters. The story is good for kids with a good and clear moral-- the value of life, perseverance and trust on other people. The ridicule Horton and The Mayor faced in their respective domains is a nice touch. The animation is also fluid and colorful. It apparent that the creators learned a lot from animating Ice Age, where a similar pachyderm character figures heavily in the story.
What makes Horton Hears a Who truly enjoyable is the work of Carrey and Carell. They bring great energy to Horton and the Mayor and they work well for over-the-top characters. A must watch for the family this summer.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: Horton Hears a Who
Will Ferrell continues his string of sports spoofs with Semi-Pro, a movie about a 1970's basketball team with dreams of getting absorbed into the NBA.
Jackie Moon (Ferrell) is a one hit wonder who scored his best single in 1970 with "Love Me Sexy." He used his earnings to buy the Flint Michigan Tropics, a hapless franchise in the (noe defunct) American Basketball Association. As owner, he designated himself as the coach and the starting power forward of the team. He was satisfied with being a league sideshow until the news of a merger with the NBA was confirmed and the top winning teams with decent attendance numbers were agreed to be the ones to move up to the NBA. The events prompt Jackie to hire a former Boston Celtic Ed Monix (Woody Harrelson) to improve the team and implement very creative promotional stunts to keep the interest on the Tropics high.
The movie could be the weakest in Will Ferrell's pool of sports spoofs, with Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Blades of Glory being the other movies. The movie does have its moments, but the humor gets spotty in the latter half of the film. Some of Ferrell's usual co-stars are there, but Outkast frontman Andre Benjamin is not that bad as the kid with prodigious basketball talents.
Expect more of the same from Will Ferrell-- physical comedy with lost of goofiness while wearing "short" basketball shorts. The movie doesn't go for a slam dunk-- that's why it ends up as an airball.
Rating: 2/5
Tags: Semi-Pro
I previewed Walk Hard last December and I got the impression that the movie was going to be a funny one. My senses didn't fail me -- I watched Walk Hard in the theater and came out laughing.
The movie is a combination of two things I'm very in to: music and parodies. Walk Hard obviously draws a lot from Walk The Line, the biopic of country legend Johnny Cash. Director Jake Kasdan's treatment of the movie is a mix between the over-the-top spoofs like Scary Movie to the Will Ferrell parodies like Talladega Nights. John C. Reilly is OK at the titular role of Dewey Cox, although I honestly feel Will Ferrell could have been a better choice.
The R-rating for the film is also justified. The depiction of the rock n' roll lifestyle of groupie sex and drugs are explicit (some frontal nudity), but done with humor. The music Dewey Cox plays have playful lyrics and could even have double meaning. The music sequences with Darlene Madison (played by The Office's Jenna Fischer) are filled with sexual tension of "friends."
If you like a movie with a good sense of humor and a good ear for music, Walk Hard is defintely for you. It's nice musical journey from the rock 'n roll era all the way to the hip-hop mashup era. Watch out for cameos of Judd Apatow regulars such as Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: Walk Hard
I was under the weather when I watched Supahpapalicious-- so I didn't know if my head hurt because of my condition or because of the movie.
This Vhong Navarro comedy is really not funny and I think it was really made to rake in box office money from the kids who just started their summer vacations. Seriously, it was that bad, even considering I have high tolerance even for the standard fare "commercial" flicks.
The movie does have a story, albeit thin as paper. A group of orphans children were living fine until one, Ateng (Valerie Concepcion), of them got adopted and went to the city. The remaining friends of Dodong (Vhong Navarro), Inday (Pokwang), Kwatog (Empoy Marquez) and Macho (Mura) decided to follow her but in vain. Ten years pass and the group movies on and is now in the food cart business, with Inday moonlighting as a special effects make-up artist. Dodong meets a lovely single mother who, unbeknown to him, is Ateng. He must please the young son (Makisig Morales) by showing his large family. Since he is an orphan, Dodong creates presonas from Inday's make-up and costumes to pass off as relatives to the son.
The movie is really a stab at Eddie Murphy's Nutty Professor-- one actor playing different characters thanks to costumes and prosthetics. But there's really few to like and laugh about Supahpapalicious-- unless you're a fan of corny noon time variety shows.
Rating: 0.5/5
Tags: Supahpapalicious
I loved Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, they were able to exude on-screen chemistry almost perfectly. In Fool's Gold, not even 100 years of alchemy can turn their tandem to on-screen gold.
The story is already a staple in treasure-hunt fare-- An intrepid treasure hunter and his brainy flame embark in a journey in search of royal riches, face baddies who are after the same thing, piece together the centuries old puzzle that leads them to the treasure, the baddies reach the treasure to set-up the climactic finale. The heroes win, and take home the treasure. Sounds like most adventure film, huh?
At least director Andy Tennant (Hitch, Sweet Home Alabama) tries to differentiate Fool's Gold by giving more than enough attention to the "rekindling the romance" angle between Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. The focus on this aspect shows two things: the director is deft in incorporating a decent romance thread in to the adventure genre; second, this eventually eats up on the action and adventure the movie should have had.
The producers were probably looking for a gem that would appeal to both males and females in terms of action and romance. What they got was Fool's Gold.
Rating: 1.5/5
Tags: Fool's Gold
After watching Atonement, my girlfriend asked me what I though of the movie. I said, "What a sad, sad movie."
A sad movie it is. While I wasn't able to read the novel by Ian McEwan the film was based on, I could imagine it's a fine piece of work. The story itself is simple, but the weight of the unfolding events and the performances by the Keira Knightley, James McAvoy and newcomer Saoirse Ronan probably made this period drama Oscar-worthy.
Speaking of the story, Atonement is about a romance between a British heiress (Knightley) and an up and coming Cambridge fellow (McAvoy) and how a young, perhaps too imaginative pre-teen girl (Ronan) puts everything in a very unfavorable situation. A few years after their life-changing encounter, the three meet again and the drama of redemption and retribution happens. Anybody watching the movie should look out for the scene towards the end where the young girl is now a nurse and she confronts the couple in their derelict flat. Good stuff.
I wouldn't be surprised if you feel the need pop a Prozac after watching Atonement. It's a tragic romance that doesn't twaddle in the melodramatic.
Rating: 4/5
Tags: Atonement
