Tron: Legacy

Ratings: 8.4/10

Film Class: A

Genre: Sci-Fi

Terrific! Revolutionary! Outstanding! No Joke!! 4 simple words to describe Tron: Legacy (maybe 5). Never knew there was a prequel until I started browsing through imdb about it. Watching the trailer for the earlier film really tickled me, tough to fathom how revolutionary it was back then... but today, at this very present moment, Tron: Legacy really brings the genre of Sci-Fi three notches higher.

What appealed to me were the neon lights and how it was so prominently prevalent throughout the entire movie. The movie delivered more than what was featured in the trailer (which isn't always the case for critically acclaimed movies), the only complain I have of that movie is that it's a little technical... or a little too abstract for the layman to understand. The concept of the Grid, and the "imperfect perfection" still confuses me till now.

There's quite a deep storyline behind the movie, which won extra popcorn points in my heart because it wasn't just your mediocre gimmicky movie with exceptional CG... almost tipping over to the artistic scale.

The ending was a little far-fetched but forgiving since this movie in itself isn't that realistic in the first place. Casting wasn't perfect, and because of that, veteran actor Jeff Bridges stole the limelight. This movie has really opened a new light to movie productions and has indefinitely opened my eyes to the endless possibilies of what movies could potentially deliver to its audiences. Tron has truly left a legacy... and from the looks of it, a sequel looks promising.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Rating: 7.2/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Fantasy

Personally, I'm not a fan of Narnia. The first two installations were so-so... and so was this. The overall feel is pretty kidish to me, not that I'm that matured but typically this kinda genre doesn't appeal to me. With no intention to offend anyone, I think Narnia and Harry Potter movies are quite similar in fashion, Just that Harry Potter is like the juvenile version of Lord of the Rings whilst Narnia is like the juvenile version of Clash of the Titans.

Lucy and Edmund are brought back to Narnia with their cousin Eustace to stop an evil from manifesting. They have to bring 7 swords to Aslan's sacred table before its too late. And the dawn treader is Prince Caspian's ship by which they embark their journey on.

I shan't divulge too much about the storyline, but was quite impressed by how adult the content of the movie was. Adult meaning abstract and not *ahem*. I didn't like the cast at all, I thought generally most of them didn't bring out their relevant roles but quite frankly, I was impressed by the new addition... the irriating and grumpy Eustace (whose name sounded like "useless" which generated several giggles every now and then). I thought he was the only one who acted surprisingly well, makes you hate him and love him at the same time.

I love the ending "pet" talk by Aslan to the children... and the ending scene was really "beautiful" in its own standing. With many subtle references, I can only urge audiences to really think about the skilfully crafted settings, words and character flaws in this movie. Isn't exceptional, but overall, good stuff. Of its 3 installations, this certainly ranks number 1 even though they were only snippets of the other 2 leads in the first 2 prequels.

The Haunted House Project

Rating: 6.8/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Horror

It has been a long while since I've blogged about a "true" horror movie (have been avoiding them) so here goes... Many have been led to a haunted house standing at the outskirts of Korea, be it out of curiosity, satisfaction or exploration, they were all drawn by the alluring temptation to document the spirits lingering at that place.

Perhaps the greatest goof about the movie is that it's not even a house in the first place.. but an old abandaned cookie factory and it's surrounding buildings... squatters and entertainment centre if I didn't remember it wrongly. We are taken on a documentary style journey to the haunted house together with a crew of 6 people, including a camera man, a director, the sound girl and 3 other paranormal seeking enthusiasts.

Their camera footage was supposed to be recovered years later and what we will be watching is their footage... similar to Blaire Witch Project and Haunted Changi, just that it's a movie made in Korea. Haven't caught the latter, but told myself to stay away from such styles of movies since they would evidently result in nauseousness... which it did. So for those who can't stomach shaky video-caming, you'll probably want to stay away from this.

The opening scene was quite engaging, where they actually showed footage from another group of "explorers". But confused the entire development a little since there wasn't any explanation about it. Then it moved on to the "interviews" which looked authentic. Truth be told, I went there hoping it was based on a true story... the development and the lead up almost convinced me of that only until during the middle of the movie where things really went out-of-hand. It became ridiculously horrifying which took away the realism of the entire movie. *spoilers ahead* For those of you who have caught it, I'm referring particularly to the scene where the girl was bending her back backwards and forward but yet the camera man was still so calm to be filming the entire scene and didn't offer a hand. From then on, every scary event which popped up just took away the realism bit by bit. The ending was the ultimate killer. Ri-Di-Cu-Lous.

I'm demeriting the movie because of that because if you want to make a realistic movie, I believe one should stay true to it throughout. It's almost like watching Earth and having the animals talk at the end of the movie. The other flaw about the movie was the music which played up before each terrifying encounter... well, if it's supposed to be "real", there shouldn't be music in the first place...

But it wasn't that bad a movie, the buildup was engaging and like all documentary-styled, first person camera shot movies, the mood was intense. I was gasping at every restricted peripheral shot I experienced. Casting delievered a good performance but they were "wiped" out too quickly towards the end... which kinda detached me from the characters after all that hard earned character buildup at the start.

Pretty decent movie, scare factor prolly rates 7.5/10 with a couple of unforgettably disturbing scenes. Good buildup at the start, but pace picked up too fast towards the end and the ending was rather crappy.

Red

Rating: 8.0/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action

If you're looking for a movie to destress, packed with senseless action scenes and witty/wacky lines and doesn't use up too much brain, Red is the movie for you. A retired black-ops agent is forced to come out of retirement after a failed attempt at his life. Gathering his old team, and hunting down the organisation that wants him dead, he must face the greatest challenge of any outstanding agent... his greatest liability, his new found love.

Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren makes a superb team of old school agents and this movie turned out much better than I had imagined. I was expecting something similar to The Expendables, it was equally as good (action packed and corny humor), but slightly more light-hearted compared to the former. And the best part about this movie is that they still had space to accomodate a decent storyline.

Red is just hands down cool and the casts really made this movie more than an old-school-actor movie... indeed... they were all still armed, still dangerous and they definitely still got it. Rocks!!!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

Ratings: 7.5/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Fantasy

I'm not a huge Harry Potter fan, cos I haven't seen most of the middle few movies in this decade long sequel but comparing it to the first 2 I've seen as well as the more recent Half-Blood Prince, I think this movie ranks 2nd. I particularly love the Half-Blood Prince for the storyline, buildup, the genre as well as the independence of the movie. For the Deathly Hallows, not surprisingly, it falls short of being an independent movie because it's only part 1, but I honesty didn't expect the end to have such an unwelcoming cliff hanger.

Not much action in this film, a handful of scares and overall a pretty dark film. No more "broomstick" flying games in this movie (can't rem the name of the game), and the franchise has indeed sprouted a more matured theme with awkward romantic scenes filled with uncomfortable tension. If it's as what the book portrays, then it's forgivable I guess, but if not, it could be that the cast were not professionally equipped in that genre yet.

After graduation, and the revival of Voldemort, the hunt for Harry Potter begins. It is up to his friends and those who hold a noble cause to protect him whilst he searches the remaining Horcruxes (which holds bits of Voldemort's spirit) and destroys them. The magic world has been taken over the villians and time is ticking as the trio undegoes a series of challenges which both threatens their friendship and their survival.

The male protagonist is this sequel is just not as "invincible" as most other movies... instead Harry Potter is portrayed as someone who is extremely vulnerable and even his spellcasting skills is inferior compared to Hermione. He's so "lost" in this film which really makes him undesirable to watch. He's like Fredo in Lord of the Rings, but he's not even close to his "purity". Weasley was the usual funny guy who managed to lighten up tense moments and Hermione was as usual, the eye candy of the entire franchise who lighted up the screens, metaphorically speaking.

I did enjoy the movie experience, but was slightly disappointed by the lack of action scenes and even the ending action scene lacked "magic" power. Storyline was engaging, and the villians really stole the show. Let's just hope for Part 2, the heroes can steal back the limelight from them. 1 more year to go... darn it's a long long wait...

The American

Rating: 7.8/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Drama, Thriller

The American is a cream of the crop. It's been a while since I last used my favourite tagline... "a hidden gem". An American hitman hides out in Italy awaiting his next mission and gradually fills up the missing spaces in his life.

The budget for the film might be low, with low resolution and grainy cinematography, and though the storyline wasn't anything spectacular, this movie won my heart with the subtle and heart-felt portrayal of the main lead, George Clooney. George Clooney once again brings that "glow" to mediocre films with his realistic acting and his overall mannerism. This movie wouldn't be such a success without the apt choice of casting, and because of the grainy appearance of the film, it brought an unexpected realism to the experience.

In Bruges still tops my list of hitman movies, but The American comes a close second (in the same category of film class that is). A pity it's a R21 movie, because there wasn't anything explicit about the storyline (though neccesary nude scenes)... No explosive car chase scenes, nor any 30-second long hand fight duels, it's just a rough and raw, straight to the point hitman movie.

The Social Network

Ratings: 7.5/10

Film Class: B-

Genre: Drama

"You don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies"... A truly apt tagline for a movie all about the creators of Facebook, the contraversies which arose and which led to the groundbreaking success of the social network.

It's not a blockbuster movie for sure... it lacks action, suspense, cinematography and "grandeur". No awesomeness in this film, just a whole ton of intellectually witty dialogue with a handful of occasional humor. The cast delivered an outstanding performance and the screen was filled with many eye-candies (with the exception of Mark Zuckerberg). What I liked about the movie was its seemingly realistic portrayal of the harshness of entrepreneurship. I'm sure many great ideas have been stolen and claimed as their own but I still believe it takes that one person to really make it happen. Without Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook wouldn't be what it is today... and each and everyone in his life played a major role to his epic contribution to the cyber world.

I loved the ending, and the irony behind the last scene. The movie left several open-ended questions which I thought enhanced the "depth" of the storyline. How much of it is true, I wouldn't know, but one thing I'm sure of is that Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook with his 2 bare hands.

Life as We Know It

Rating: 7.4/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Romantic Comedy

A sheer delight for young couples and a nightmare for those thinking of settling down soon. The comedy in this movie was a real treat, despite the every once in a while "lost" in translation due to their quick American accent and the lack of subtitles. I was straining my ears here and there hoping not to miss out on anything.

Two individuals with very different personalities are forcefully brought together by a twist of fate when their best friends leave their only daughter in their care. Even though I had a rough idea of the plot, and kinda expected the inevitable departure of the baby's parents (already exposed in the trailer), when it actually came down to that moment, it was applaudingly touching. It reminded me of the Pixar animation Up, because there are only a handful of movies which I can think of that were able to bring out the sadness and empathy that early in the movie. This movie defied that challenge and I believe a huge portion of that success goes to the incredibly convincing performance by the leads.

Both of them felt like they were in total control of their roles and were able to fully bring out the detestable and likeable traits of their characters. Though it was funnier than it was romantic, the last confrontation scene between the two contained a couple of really touching lines. The baby girl was extremely adorable and I appreciate how much of a challenge it is to make a movie involving babies, and in other cases, animals as well due to their uncontrollability. The title didn't quite link with the movie and though the ending was cliche, the last camera shot was one to sing praises of. Definitely made my evening, hope it made yours.

Babies

Rating: 6.7/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Documentary

An almost silent documentary on 4 babies of different origins; African, Japanese, Mongolian and American. The film takes you on a journey with them through their first year in life. Filming was highly commendable, there were some really memorable moments which I could only assume that the film team was able to put on screen owing to their long hard hours of filming.

The irritating part of this documentary is how quickly and how often they switch screen times among the 4 babies... even before I could begin to sink into the moment, the moment has already moved on without me. And the "boring" part of this documentary is about how silent it was. Not recommended to catch it after a long day at work, but preferably when you're all psyched up about life or about being a parent.

The best bits of the documentary? *spoilers ahead* The African baby in total. I could watch him all day, and even if 80% of the screentime was dedicated to him, one would never be bored. Possibly because of the culture, and the environment that he lives in which makes it so interesting. Of course, I won't demerit the Mongolian baby in this aspect as she too lived in a "different world" with domesticated cattle. It would almost seem that the documentary was trying to drive across one important point... that the speed of development is dependent on the degree of civilisation. It seemed as though the African baby developed faster than all the rest because of the harshness of the enviroment he was brought up in.

As for the Japanese baby and the American baby, nothing too interesting about them... since possibly the "life of babies" that I know is simply being reiterated to me as I too am living in a developing yet somewhat developed city. Still there were a couple of astounding moments such as the Japanese baby being brought to a zoo by his mum and the American baby spitting out her banana and swallowing it back in again. It might sound disgusting, but the idea behind it is truly a classic one. We have lost the ability to "understand" what we are putting into our mouth and we just take it for granted. Anything that tastes nice, we pop them into our mouth... anything that tastes awful we spit them out and will never give them a 2nd look.

Despite the slow pacing and the almost hypnotising soundtrack of the movie, it was an eye-opening experience for me. Ranks alongside the other award-winning documentaries such as the Cove and Food Inc.

Letters to Juliet

Rating: 7.2/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Romantic Drama

I love it! Not the lead actress, nor the cliche ending but the overall feel it gave me. It was more than a light-hearted girl flick movie, it was heart-warming and at times even touching. Story was a little exaggerated in reality (due to the fairytale-like bits) but in the context of a fictional on-screen film, it carried a hope-giving message to anyone out there who still wonders about the "what ifs" regarding our first love.

An american journalist wannabe goes on a honeymoon trip with her chef boyfriend to Italy. However, instead of spending quality alone time together, he takes her to visit places which would help in the opening of his new restaurant. That resulted in each doing their separate things and was when she came across Verona's courtyard where many heart-broken girls would write letters to "Juliet", and the letters would be answered by her secretaries. Volunteering to help out, she chances upon a 50 year old love message and decided to help bring the two lovers together despite all odds.

Great acting performances delivered by the cast and the scenic cinematography was totally awesome. Almost felt like a hybrid of a travelogue and a movie, all in all, a good watch!!

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

Ratings: 6.0/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Crime, Thriller

The budget and quality of the much anticipated Stieg Larsson's trilogy seemed to be declining with each sequel. I had wanted to give up on following the last of its installment since they simply took too much time (2.5hrs of screentime), but managed to convince myself that it might follow the same trend as Lord of the Rings. Wrong, I was.

This time, apart from the metaphorical meaning of the title, kicking the hornet's nest, there's simply no link to the story whatever. Lisbeth, the girl with the dragon tattoo, the wiped-out disturbed hacker girl is back again... this time recuperating in the hospital, taking off from where it stopped in its prequel, The Girl Who Played with Fire. Charged with several murder charges, it's up to Mikael, her beau reporter to get her out of the ordeal.

*spoilers ahead* The robotic villian is back in this sequel but plays a minor role in the entire movie. Though there were several spillover characters from the previous series, they didn't enjoy much screentime, yet will potentially be able to confuse anyone who skipped the previous installments. To sum it up, it's not a movie you wanna start off with if you haven't caught the previous 2, heck, it's not even a good movie to spend your time on. Even after watching all 3 parts of it, I'm still quite lost in the storyline, and it's not even interesting enough to spur my curiosity to research about it.

Only refreshing part of the movie? It's swedish.

Buried

Ratings: 6.8/10

Film Class: D

Genre: Suspense Thriller

Possibly one of the lowest budget films I've ever seen - 2nd to blaire witch project. I think 90% of the film's budget probably went to the lead actor, Ryan Reynolds. Because... there's just no one else featured on screen!! *spoilers ahead* I had initially expected the story to "surface and get out of the box" but no... the entire movie was shot in a single setting.

Paul Conroy is a US citizen working as a truck driver based in Iraq. His convoy was attacked, was knocked out and woke up to find himself buried underground in a coffin with just a zippo lighter, a canister and a cell phone. Using everything he has, how is he going to survive the ordeal?

*major spoilers ahead* I was utterly disappointed with the ending. When the credits rolled, it left me in a gloomy mood... a truly depressing movie indeed. There were many loopholes in the movie; the lack of fighting spirit on the lead's part, the calls he made out using his cellphone, his lack of ability (or the director) to come up with "better" solutions, the contents of the canister is still extremely puzzling to me, the excessive use of the zippo lighter even though oxygen is low and many others. This movie lacked the "elegance" of what constitutes a good low budget film, a smooth and ingenious plot. Instead, this movie threw at its audience the incapability of the US government (almost felt as it was mocking the system and a wake up call to them by showing how incompetent they are) and the only salvaging part of the movie was the ironically disappointing ending.

The ending was disappointing to my expectations but it did justice to the movie overall. Wasn't such an unpredictable twist but at least the subtle hint of deceit was there. I'll advise you not to read on if you still haven't caught the movie because I shall attempt to explain it from my point of view. Many would think that the ending was just an "aww.. too bad, it wasn't Paul they found but someone else...", but I believe there was more to that. It also showed how the person (Dan Brenner) which Paul called deceived him into believing there was still hope even though any hopes of rescue was bleak.

But that's also not all... It was Dan's job to do so. As hard as it may have felt for the lead himself, I'm sure the person on the other side of the call wanted to help Paul as much as he could and he probably felt guilty for lying to him. It wasn't just from Paul's point of view, as the ending described it otherwise from the tone of Dan's voice. Contrary to most reviews, I think this movie didn't feature Ryan Reynold's at one of his best performances. I didn't feel that emotionally attached to him. Could be the fault of the scripting, but all in all, wasn't that great a movie.

An unnecessarily long opening credits (perhaps to prolong the screentime), a lack of plot ingenuity, perhaps too many black out scenes and too depressing a movie for me. It is indeed suspenseful, but nothing too nightmarish, terrifying nor claustrophobic.

Robin Hood

Ratings: 7.2/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Action Drama

Enter the life of Robin Longstride before he became the famous Robin Hood. This movie brought the fictional character to life, because the setting and era was exceptionally realistic. I'm not sure where the director Ridley Scott dug up Robin Hood's history from, but it sure was an eye opener for me. Even though the movie didn't quite turn out as I had expected; there wasn't an exaggerated display of archery skills, it was still fairly action packed.

This movie glorifies the prince of thieves by showing how honorable and capable he was as a great leader. In simpler words, this movie is all about him. I found his "merry men" equally as admirable and there were some reminiscence of Troy in this movie... like the King being so incapable and detestable. The storyline behind the entire movie was filled with deceit and how England turned against itself because of one traitor amongst them. That's where Robin Hood, the hero comes in to save the day...

Initially, I wasn't aware that the director of the movie was Ridley Scott, hence the level of impressiveness I had for the CG and the grandeur of the film. The horses and the calefares in the movie were in abundance, and the settings were realistically breath-taking. However, what this movie lacked was the inability to keep its audience engaged and there were just too many elements covered in a single 2.5hr movie, many of its subplots were touch and go. Isn't a bad movie, objectively, it's quite a blockbuster... but subjectively, it failed to sweep me off my feet.

Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame

Ratings: 7.5/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action Suspense

Set in 690 AD, an exiled detective is resummoned by Empress Wu to investigate a series of mysterious cases involving spontaneous human combustion. Detective Dee teams up with Officer Shangguan and Commander Bei to uncover the truth behind the murders.

This movie felt like a chinese version of Sherlock Holmes fused with a chinese martial arts film. Storyline was easy to follow and though it wasn't as suspenseful as Sherlock Holmes, the action scenes compensated for it. I was impressed with the CG as well as the engaging plot which didn't fail to keep the excitement up throughout. Love the "supernatural" aspect of it which made this film distinctive in its own right. I have to commend, whether it was intentional or not, the director for making a subtle effort in concealing the twist in the movie.

Despite the ridiculously-looking eyebrow makeups for the lead ladies (Empress Wu and Officer Shangguan), the casting wardrobes were impressively elaborate. For the entire 2 hours of screentime, the film was able to take me on a journey back to the dynasty era with a hint of mystery in it. One of its kind, been a while since a mandarin movie was able to deliver such a spectacle of delight and awe.

Outrage

Rating: 7.2/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Mafia, Drama

A film about the bloodbath among the Yakuza gangster groups in Japan. I got to learn more about them, about their "culture" and about how influential they are in Japan. The take-home message from this movie is that the Yakuza gangs are ruthless, unreasonable, and have a s***load of time on their hands.

Treat this movie like a documovie (hybrid of movies and documentaries) and you'll be in for a good time. But if you expect something like Eastern Promies, you'll be gravely disappointing. Senseless violence, irrational consequences and an utter lack of "story". But it's quite an oxymoron, because it's what makes this film unique in its own sense. I believe it was the intentional message of the director, as what he was trying to bring across to the audience was to understand the way the Yakuzas work.

*major spoilers ahead* At the end of it, it felt like the entire movie was going around in circles, with no purpose... almost as if one would have wasted 109 mins of their time. But on closer scrutiny, it was more educational than squirmish or senseless. The Yakuza's main boss is in charge of looking over the different yakuza groups. All of the groups run independently, but are governored by the main boss (kinda like a royal family). The different groups have to answer to the main boss, and yet he plotted a blood feud between the clans. As to his exact purpose of doing so, I can only assume he's just so high up on the hierarchy that he just wants to see what would come out of the little dispute, at the same time to prove that his foresight was right.

What started from a molehill blasted into a mountain, before you knew it, everyone was killing off each other's clan members despite the clans being "sworn brothers". It just really showed me how there's no such thing as "blood/sworn" brothers in the gangster business... There's backstabbing everywhere and everyone else is plotting ways to move up in the hierarchy. I was lost during the first 30 mins of the movie, with all the different clan names and character names... but was gradually able to piece together the "big picture".

The Yakuzas are so influential even the police are working for them. They have so many connections there's just no way you can run, or hide from them. The seemingly most useless character in the movie reigned supreme at the end. So bottomline is, always understand the system, cos' by doing so, even if you're a seemingly worthless dog, there's always a door of opportunity for you to seize complete control. And if you wanna survive in Japan, don't be a Yakuza, be a corrupted policeman instead.... Warped take-home messages but the main idea of this movie I hope, is simply for squirmish education.

You don't have to be too affected with the gore because most of the time, they are cut away scenes, without visual but with sound. And yes, it's definitely more of a guy movie becaue I doubt any females will speak fondly of it.

The Other Guys

Rating: 8.0/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action Comedy

Two New York detectives who are complete opposites pair up to uncover a conspiracy after the city's top cops went out of action. Period.

Simple plot, made confusing by the "conspiracy" and weak twists in the movie. At the end of the movie, even though I didn't quite understand the development, the one thing which really blew me away was the synergy between Will Farrell and Mark Wahlberg. I'm not a fan of Will Farrell, in fact I used to believe all his movies were flop until this film. Mark Wahlberg, on the other hand, is a star which I really like and its so refreshing to see the lamest side of him in this movie.

The humor was simply explosive!! I kept laughing throughout and not only were there tears of laughter, there was also cheek and stomach cramps from the mixture of lame and witty humor. Fitting for most audience, those bored, those having a bad day, those who wants a good time, those chilling out with friends, even good for couples and those who can't tolerate spoofs but loves a movie which doesn't require too much thinking. It has been a while since a movie of such explosive humor has been out, so don't miss it!! Oh oh, and did I mention that Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson were equally as corny as well?

The Karate Kid

Rating: 7.6/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action

A Detriot mother and son moves to Beijing because of Mrs Parker's job. Young Dre Parker finds it hard to fit in in a country that doesn't speak his native language and to make matters worse, is bullied by the local students. With the help of his apartment's technician, Jackie Chan, he was able to fend off the bullies... while under the guidance of Jackie Chan trains himself up for a coming Kung Fu tournament to settle the "feud" caused.

Being a 2 hour movie, it adequately covered the important aspects of a good movie such as character development and a decent story plot. I was kept engaged throughout the movie, and the movie didn't feel draggy or lengthy... on the contrary it kept me wanting more. Though the only downside of the movie was the nearly abrupt ending due to the lack of character follow ups, everything else about the movie was a huge thumbs up. This movie exceeded my expectations, as I was ignorantly affected by the general public's ratings.

Good mix of light-hearted humor, bits of romance, a good load of action, a fair deal of emphasis on family ties and friendship, couple of scenic cinematography and most importantly, it touches on the true nature of Kung Fu. Even though it was set in Beijing, unlike most Hollywood movies which veered out of its "home", this movie didn't feel like a cheap production. Though I'm not a huge fan of movies with features adolescence casting, this is an exception.

Possibly one of Jackie Chan's strongest performances in a Hollywood movie, and this movie definitely marks the rise of the young stars, Jaden Smith, Han Wen Wen (his crush) and Wang Zhengwei (the leader of the bullies). My last opinion of it is that this movie shouldn't even bank on the Karate Kid franchise, since its not really the fighting styles of Karate which are featured inside but more of Kung Fu. So don't expect any Karate, (only 1 scene about it, only 10 secs about its mention) expect scaled down Kung Fu (only appropriate since the casts are all still so young!)!!

Resident Evil: Afterlife

Rating: 6.5/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action

Before Resident Evil: Afterlife, all the resident evil sequels defied convention... because unlike most sequels which rarely top the first in its series, Resident Evil just got better and better. That was before Afterlife came out that is. Personally, I didn't like the first 2 installments. The 3rd was pretty good, surprisingly, and for the forth and newest installment, sadly it was pretty disappointing.

Alice, supposedly "invincible" because she had managed to effectively control the T-virus inside of her, turned more human in this movie. After turning up at the safe haven Acardian and finding no one but Claire Redfield, she was about to give up all hope of finding survivors when she came across a group of survivors stranded on top of an abandoned prison. Not sure if it was a pun intended, but Wentworth Miller is once again "imprisoned" momentarily in this movie.

I didn't like the graphics at all, even though they claimed in their movie trailer that it was based on new technology (no idea what it is but I thought what it was publicising was more of making the first ever live-action video-game movie in 3D). CG looked faked, and the slow-mo matrix style of filming was anything but cool. Perhaps the greatest disappointment for all Resident Evil fans out there was how Chris Redfield was portrayed. There was absolutely zero hype about him... no credit made to him, he didn't even have his own action scene. All of this despite him being one of the most "outstanding" characters in Resident Evil. Even Jill Valentine was out of the picture (cant' remember where she disappeared to).

This installment plays a pivotal role in the Resident Evil franchise because it steers the RE series away from the horror genre and more towards the action genre. And guess what, there's an enormous cliffhanger at the end of the movie... Will definitely be watching part 5 in the near future, but it's not so much of interest anymore, more of "completion's" sake. Sure hope the director will up the standards for the next sequel to please the dismayed Resident Evil fans out there.

VIllon's Wife

Rating: 6.8/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Drama

A slow-moving tale of a wife's benevolence despite her obnoxious yet talented husband. Takoko Matsu stars as the perservering, magnanimous wife who atones for her husband's thef by working at the bar which he stole money from, run by an elderly couple. Her husband, Otani, though extremely talented in poetry writing, treats his wife like little respect and is paranoid about a make believe scandal.

This is a movie that's melodramatic, slow-pacing, and even at times, unrealistic and extremely twisted. It kinda reminded me of the famous artist, Vincent Van Gogh.. talented yet eccentric... Unlike Van Gogh, Otani isn't suffering from mental illness, but more of depression... which once again reminded me of the "sekai-kai" concept from Evangelion. The japanese term "sekai-kai" sinply means that the protagonist in the anime or manga mirrors their creator life. So it was such a "dark and twisted" film that it almost felt the director himself was suffering from depression... to have been able to come up with such a warped perspective.

The movie which centers around the female protagonist, unfortunately lacked good acting. The female lead wasn't convincing in her role and she was unable to bring out her character's emotional torment. Too much forced smiles, and unsettling facial emotions which wasn't quite in synch with the scene's mood. Well, all is not loss as the most important factor in pulling me to catch the movie wasn't so much the story or the cast, but the setting. One can never get enough of such a "classic"-styled setting. It really brings you to another era of Japanese culture... and deserves high praise based solely on that (another such movie which is able to accomplish that is Ip Man 2 - old chinese era). It brought me to another world, a world of stillness, silence and despair.

But that's about it. The setting and its ability to zap me into their world, not the professional acting, nor the engaging scripting or storyplot. Didn't quite understand the purpose of adding the first scene... probably the director wanted to attempt to explain the husband's messed up childhood and the basis behind the movie title... Villon... wasn't even explained. Well, it could just be me... might work for you, but I'm sure chances are, it won't work for most. A boring movie is hard is pull off as an arty farty one unless one's delusional enough to insist on a second opinion.

Frozen

Rating: 7.4/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Thriller

Three friends are stranded on a chairlift during a weekend skiing get-together. It will take a week before the ski resort opens again and to make matters worse, no one knows that they are stuck up there. What will they do to survive the ordeal?

A terrifying and intense film about what one of the worst case scenarios to be in. Similar genre movies such as Rogue Crocodile and Open Waters have managed to deliver, but hardly astound. This is possibly one of the better movies under such categories because not only was it able to keep me at the edge of my seat, there was a good deal of character development. The story development was equally as impressive... it started from a light-hearted mood and gradually twisted into a high-paced emotional roller coster ride.

Throughout the film, the backgrounds behind the characters were revealed and though seemingly unnecessary since by then I was already feeling so much each individual character owing to the tactful buildup, it added that extra element to it. I was all prepared to give this movie an unexpected high rating but was held back when my anxiety went downhill from 3/4s of the movie. The last quarter of the movie was anti-climaxal, and I personally think it didn't do justice to the top-notch acting the cast contributed.

It may not be a totally awesome plot, but it brings realism to the situation they were in. And to really distinguish this film from similarly genre-ed movies, the casts pulled off their roles convincingly and commendably. This movie kinda felt like a meek slasher "gore" film (with all the frostbites) mixed with a good load of emotional suspense.

*spoilers ahead* The "humiliation" the lead actress felt when she had to pee in her pants and how a simple mistake of resting her bare hands on the cold bar when she was sleeping were not overly played. Despite several goofs in the movie, it's still one that is decently realistic and not overly exaggerated. Even though this is clearly a Grade C movie, as it's a fairly low-budget film with only 4 actual different settings, it delivers more than a punch... it's sure to leave you with a gritting "frozebite"...

Tekken

Ratings: 5.5/10
Film Class: C

Genre: Action

Video game remakes rarely excel... because firstly, bringing CGI characters to life with their rightful outfits might seem too flamboyant and most if not all the time, there's just no storyline to adapt. My cousin told me this movie was a brainless action-pack film... Well, I would agree to the former, but not the latter. My summary for it, this is a brainless, low-budget, plotless weak-actioned movie.

A young man by the name of Jin, living on the harsh streets of who knows where witnesses the death of his mother by an evil corporation, Tekken. Thus, he enrols himself into a yearly tournament in hope to avenge her. Well, that's as good and as detailed a sypnosis I can provide for the vague and weak storyline. I didn't even get what the director was trying to bring across, other than just senseless fighting and the idea of a Tekken tournament.

The best bits of the movie were those which featured Christie, yet another Tekken character which really spiced up the big screens. The rest of the characters looked ridiculous and an extreme turn-off. Kazuya was quite cool as the villain, but how Jin rose from being a "street fighter" to a "prestigious tournement champ" was too far-fetched. There were so many "sudden boosts of strength scenes" that it worsened the quality of the movie and its storyline.

Bottomline is, Jin is invincible because of the teachings by his late mum... cos whenever he's almost out of strength or breath, all he has to do is to think of what his mum taught him since young, and like swallowing an elixir of condensed steriods, he will be able to beat the crap out of anyone. Opps, did I expose too much? Well... you gotta know how ridiculous it sounds or will be if you're gonna watch it to waste your precious time, at least you heard it from me first.

Date Night

Ratings: 7.0/10
Film Class: B

Genre: Comedy

A bored married couple who has been together for a long time goes into the city in hope of getting seats at one of the top restuarants. However, the restaurant was fully booked but the husband Phil (Steve Carell), not wanting to spoil their "date night", decided to take the reservation of a couple who didn't turn up. An innocent date night turned out to be a nightmarish adventure for the two due to a mistaken identity and how they had to pit their wits against a crime lord and his underlings.

It was a fairly light-hearted movie despite its heavy storyline, all thanks to the hilarious couple Steve Carell and Tina Fey. Tina Fey is the bimbolic wife of an unreliable husband, Steve Carell. But through this unexpected demise, they gradually learn to see the strengths of each other and to rekindle the dying passion which once brought them together. Don't get me wrong, the couple isn't on the verge of breakup (unlike most other movies), but it carries with it a hint of truth behind the mandanity of a long-term marriage and how each partner tends to be more fixated on the weaknesses and start being oblivious to the strengths of each other (just like in a relationship).

Though the situation they were in seemed a little exaggerated, I really liked the heart-warmingly predictable storyline and most importantly, the "aw" moments and the numerous laughables scenes in this movie. Not fantastic, but an excellent movie to light up a bad day.

The Girl Who Played With Fire

Ratings: 6.5/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Crime, Thriller

The team duo is back again, computer hacker Lisbeth and journalist Mikael "teams" up yet again in this thriller after the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo to uncover a sex-trafficking organisation. To complicate matters, Lisbeth is wrongfully accused for 3 murders she didn't commit...

This movie would make a bad stand-alone, independant movie because it doesn't really devote much screen time to character development despite it being a 2hr long movie. But I can't really demerit the movie because of that since it's "supposed" to be a sequel and the relationships between the characters should already have been laid out in the previous movie.

Still, because of that, it feels like it's a movie without head or tail... There were several re-enactment scenes but none too involving. They were like short trailers to piece up the major gaps in the current story plot. My advice, catch the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo before setting your eyes or spending your time catching this. That way you might be able to follow more closely with the storyline.

Just like its prequel, the movie is divided into 2 major parts, Lisbeth's life, and the main case to solve. However this time, it didn't work for me. They felt like extremely separated matters and the director somehow tried to forcefully link them together at the very end. Despite having a twist in the ending, it wasn't one worth applauding. Mediocre swedish film. Didn't feel much for the characters, didn't feel much for the plot, and didn't feel much for the movie.

There were several absurdities in the movie, *major spoilers ahead* like how Lisbeth "rose from the dead" and why the "robotic" villain didn't just kill Lisbeth's 2 friends straight away with the chainsaw lying on the ground but had to burn the place down. The fight scenes weren't too exciting cos of the lack of any soundtrack to go along with it and there wasn't much of a climax in the movie. Towards the end, the mood took a twist and it almost felt like a horror movie. Its not as good as its prequel, even though the prequel wasn't that fantastic in the 1st place.

Took me a while to piece together the rationale of the title, and though it was quite an intelligent use of pun, it wasn't enough to piece together this "broken" movie. Worth a miss.

Step Up 3D

Rating: 6.8/10

Genre: Dance

Overall value for time and money: 7.0/10

Step up 3...D suffers from 3 main demerits. Weak story and development, weak scripting and weak acting. But its expected. I haven't caught a dance movie which had a better storyline than its dance moves, so I wouldn't mark it down because of it. When watching a dance movie, I expected awesome dance moves which would take my breath away... and it did deliver.

Probably my last 3D movie because the 3D glasses at the local cinemas are deteriorating in quality and hygiene, but Step Up 3D must be watched in its intended form. Don't you catch this movie in 2D because you'll miss out on the intended effects it have in 3D. And though the dance moves got to a plataeu after a while, the last dance scene is sure gonna stick in your mind for a long long time because its like no other you've ever seen.

A group of "homeless" dancers get together and compete in the World Jam, the most recognised dance competition there is, hoping to win the grand prize so that they can pay off the loan where they stay. This movie had lotsa eye-candies, both the main leads as well as the "bad guys" in this movie. It's like a mix of parkour, martial arts and dance... so competitive it reminds me of the intense competition of the rapping world portrayed in the 8 Mile by Eminem.

The lead actress really made the movie worth watching, because of her demure and exceptional dance moves. Main lead Luke didn't act well, and the other lead Moose had the moves but just didn't have the looks. Recommended for dance fanatics and for those who loves a good 3D movie, but not for those who can't swallow movies with weak plots and weak acting.

The Expendables

Rating: 8.0/10

Genre: Action

Overall value for time and money: 8.5/10

The expendables is an explosive (figura-terally), hardcore action-packed film which would most certainly live up to anyone's expectations. With the star-studded cast, I would have watched it even if it recieved negative reviews... well I'm a sucker for such movies.

Storyline wasn't that fantastic, though the flow was pretty decent and acting was nothing less than professional. No "weak links" in the movie for each character were optimally fitting in their roles and the scripting was packed with cheesy yet witty humor. Loved the wayward humor and though there was a lack of "actress" devolopement in this film, this movie was supposed to be a "guyish" movie anyways. Personally, I thought Jason Statham landed the coolest character in the movie... but still, Dolph Lundgren stole the limelight as the ex-team member gone rogue. The cameo scene featuring Arnie and Bruce Willis was such a classic scene I'm sure it's gonna be much talked about and much remembered for years to come, since this is probably gonna be Arnie's last movie appearance.

I didn't like Sylvester Stallone's face cos of all the plastic surgery (which I assume he went for since it looked pretty fake... was so ever since Rambo IV) but he did an exceptional job as the director and writer of possibly one of the best star-studded movies of all times. Jet Li added weak comic relief, to my dismay since he would have packed a good punch or 2 to the action scenes.. whilst relatively unknown casts such as Randy Couture and Terry Crews were given more awesome screen times. The last action scene was utterly senseless, yet utterly jaw-dropping and seat-gripping.

A team of mercenaries go on a "suicide" mission to liberate a city from a vicious dictator. Join them on their mission in their first fight for a good cause... Well, the storyline is as simple as that. It's a no-brainer movie no doubt, but as an explosive action movie, the expendables is truly commendable. As the tagline goes, Heroes today, Legends forever.

Salt

Rating: 7.5/10

Genre: Action Suspense

Overall value for time and money: 7.5/10

Who is salt? The trailer discloses quite a bit about her... how she was "framed" as a Russian spy and how she's trying to prove her innocence. Well, at least that's what the trailer intended to set you up for. A CIA agent accused of being a Russian spy goes rogue and the movie is all about unravelling her true identity. So... who is salt? The good news, the movie answers that question. The better news, it's not that simple a question.

Massive car chase action scenes, which have never really blown me away (this time being no exception) and lots of climax pauses. It always seems to set you up for a "sub" climax then it goes downhill again. Still, it did keep me at the edge of my seats throughout the movie and the story just gets better as it progressed. *spoilers ahead* Initially, I didn't like the fact that everyone was chasing after Salt when they should be focusing their attention on a Russian defector who escaped their custody. Well, he was the one who accused Salt of being a Russian spy yet nothing bothered to look for him when he escaped and he got it the easy way out whereas Salt was frantically running around the entire state. Doesn't make that much sense but if you're able to overlook that major flaw in the movie, you're in for a good surprise.

This movie is like a less impressive action version of Inception. Inception brought you a dream in a dream... even a dream in a dream in a dream in a... you get the idea. Salt brings you on another level of theatre. A twist in a twist in a twist in a... Well, I have to admit it did impress me because I'm always a sucker for twists in movies... never really liked watching a no-brainer movie. *major spoilers ahead* Though the major twist in the movie might be predictable (wasn't so only until towards the end), the biggest question mark about why Salt would be carrying Spider poision around was not disclosed only until the later part of the movie.

Angelina Jolie has the flaire and the look of a secret agent, has seen her excel in movies such as Mr. and Mrs. Smith as well as Wanted. But this movie is not one of them. She looked desperate, amateurish and didn't fully portray the appropriate vibe of a professional agent. Don't believe it was intentional, the way she ran, the way she jumped from vehicles to vehicles made her look so pathetic. These probably attributed to her lack in involvement in her character. But with her in any movie, what could go wrong? Even if the story sucks, the acting sucks, the cast sucks, there's always her to look at. (Not saying that this movie is anything like that)

Well, I'm pretty impressed with the plot, and the twists they had installed for its viewers. Though the ending was anti-climaxal, at least there's promise for a competitive sequel. Not quite the female version of Jason Bourne (as compared in critics from imdb.com), less formidable but definitely a hotter version.

Watchmen

Rating: 9.1/10

Genre: Superhero Action

Overall value for time and money: 9.4/10

A truly remarkably visionary movie about an alternate 1985 where superheroes did indeed roam the planet, paticularly in US, and where superheroes aren't exactly looked up upon. I stayed away from this movie for quite a while, and my only regret was that... Nowadays, 3-hour movies just don't appeal to me as much as they used to. They take too long to watch, and 2 such movies would enable us to catch 3-4 movies with shorter runtimes.

But generally, longer movies receive better critics because they allow more time for character and plot development... whoop in a visionary concept with great acting and CG and you'll get Watchmen. Watchmen isn't your average superhero movie, it's probably the most abstract one I've seen. There are elements of coolness in the directing and the slow-motion action scenes (trademark of the director who brought you 300), but the most impressive element of it was the plot.

It touches on what being a "superhero" really means, even though they are not well respected, despised and hated even, yet they strive towards a greater cause. You can't really put a finger on the "main" lead of the movie, for all the superheroes were unique in their own way. Rorschach, the assassin -like crankiest, scariest and most "delusional" superhero, you either love him, or hate him... Then there's the "comedian", not quite the funny man but unorthodox in his own disgruntled ways. Then there's the ultra-fast Ozymandias, who's the most accomplished of them all; rich, famous and tech savvy. Also introducing Silk Spectre, nothing fascinating about her, just that her mum belonged to an older team of superheroes which were disbanded. And Night Owl II, the most "human" superhero of all. Finally, the most important superhero in this movie, Dr Manhattan, the god-like superhero who is America's deterrence against attacks.

The best thing about the movie is that the superheroes are just a small part of best bits. Everything was professionally directed; cinematography, action scenes, scriptings, and the choice of the casts. The ending was truly revolutionary. Many a times superheroes movies will never be able to churn out such a "matured" plot, and this movie is a fantastic mix of art, science, politics, and idealogy. I won't divulge anymore of the story because it's gonna be well worth your viewing.

Though the movie isn't perfect (of course), it doesn't drag and it never fails to keep me at the edge of my seat the whole time, saving the best for last, for one of the most memorable and thought-provoking conclusions I've ever seen. A simple sentence of advice, Men, you've just gotta watch the Watchmen.

Ong Bak 3

Ratings: 0.5/10

Genre: Action

Overall value for time and money: 0.0/10

This movie defnitely ranks as one of the worst movies I've watched. An utter waste of time, and money. Can't believe I was so naive into paying $8.50 for this piece of rubbish movie. This sequel of Ong Bak 3 takes you to what happens after Ong Bak 2. The main lead, Tien gets captured by the evil Highness, gets tortured and have all his limps broken, was on the brink of death but through mediation managed to miraculously heal both his physical body and ominous karma.

After Ong Bak 2, probably one of the best action movies I've caught which didn't rely much on CG, I was so psyched about its sequel. But after watching Ong Bak 3, I can only shake my head with extreme disgust and say that the director is extremely delusional. Both movies are worlds apart, or universes apart... This movie has too much CG, too much fake CG as a matter of fact, which makes it look like a low budget, low class movie. Story development was like a rollercoaster ride, and story plot was a total flop.

I won't even include my "*major spoilers ahead*" warning this time, because I will lay everything right here right now so to save your precious time and money. Even if you're an Ong Bak fan like I am, or was, don't let curiosity lead you to commit one of the worst watches of all time. So many times throughout the movie I wanted to simply walk out of the theatre... but stayed in my seat hoping that things would change for the better... only to come to terms with the sad fact that everything went downhill as the movie progressed.

I mentioned that the director was delusional because in this movie, he portrayed himself like a god, or deity, in particular like Buddha... meditating and recieving enlightenment and divinity. Well, deities are not supposed to use violence, so, the main appeal of the Ong Bak franchise is already no longer there. Instead of action packed scenes, you'll be greeted with a s***load of disturbing horror scenes and draggy romantic scenes. The horror scenes were present because the Highness was hexed by his previous mentor whom he poisoned, so he started hallucinating and the only remedy he knows of is to seek the help of a demon crow fighter (also featured on Ong Bak 2), who later killed the Highness and took his role.

The draggy romantic scenes were such because they added no additional merit to the plot of the movie... and the scenes kinda made me feel that the director wanted to have a go at a different genre but failed epicly. There were many other redundant and draggy scenes, such as the dancing of the female lead, and Tien's mediation scenes. Even the comic relief (this mad man) was an epic flop. I could only force myself to fake laugh at certain no-brainer lines.

The reason this movie failed terribly was because of a number of factors. But most importantly, it didn't accomplish what "Ong Bak" movies were supposed to... satisfy its audience with senseless fighting. I shared the theatre with many, almost 90% of guys, which I assume were all there to relax and enjoy a good action pack movie. But no, there was little action, instead, there were horror scenes (which totally didn't add any meaning to the film but redundancy) and forced romantic scenes. Too much focus on Tien's rehabilitation, showing him practise fight stance like dance moves. The ultimate villian in Ong Bak 2, the Highness was nothing more than a wimp in this episode and died off so easily... Such an extreme change of plot.

At the ending scene, Tien was wearing a white robe and carrying a staff, reminded me of Moses, which I was sure Tony Jaa wanted to impersonate intentionally. He wanted to make himself look divine, and this movie was his platform for doing that. There was even a Buddha-like statue with his facial features on it. I couldn't believe how ridiculous and delusional this movie was, I almost puked with disgust in the midst of the movie and the saving grace for this movie was the ending theme song. Even the starting scene was like a torture slasher movie, which made viewing very uneasy and the prolonged torture scenes didn't do anything other than extending its runtime.

This movie really defined what a bad movie is, and set the benchmark and threshold level for myself. Ong Bak 3 makes other flop movies like May and House of the Dead seem like epic successes. This movie truly is the godfather of flop movies.

Inception

Rating: 9.2/10

Genre: Action Thriller

Overall value for time and money: 9.0/10

The lives of a top dream information snatcher (Leonardo Dicaprio) and his partner are put into danger when their recent dream invasion mission failed. However, they recieve an unlikely proposal from the supposed target, Ken Watanabe for another mission, which promises to solve all their problems and have them return to their normal lives... in exchange for successfully accomplishing a near impossible mission of planting an idea into a target's (Cillian Murphy) mind.

As much as I would like to brag about how near perfect this deep sci-fi movie is, it's not. It is indeed very thought-provoking, but because of its genre, it forces us to think... and when I think... I tend to overthink and find loopholes with such movies. But it could easily be one of the best movies of the year. It gave me a similar vibe to Shutter Island when the credits rolled but I still preferred Shutter Island because of the cinematography and the unexpected twist within a twist... *major spoilers ahead* This movie had a twist at the end, but only introduced a new concept of a dream within a dream.

What I really liked about the film is that it allows for "impossibilities" since the concept of dreams and fantasies provides a legitimate window for them. So when you see your entire world becoming distorted and if there's like a random train derailing and coming out from nowhere, it's acceptable. If dinosaurs were to pop out, or a volcanic eruption in the middle of your apartment, its still acceptable. The concept allows it to explore new boundaries and has a ring of Matrix-ness in it. Good choice of actors except Leonardo Dicaprio's wife which I personally felt wasn't very compatible to him.

And thanks to its 2.5hr runtime, we get to draw into the characters' emotions and to feel for them, especially Leonardo Dicaprio's character. Joseph Gordon-Lewitt also delivered a top-notch performance as Dicaprio's partner (you'll recall seeing him in Third Rock from the Sun and have moved on to more serious roles... a similar path taken by Aston Kutcher and Topher Grace) and he added "character involvement in the movie". He was in one of the best action scenes of the movie, the anti-gravity scene which featured Gordon-Lewitt fighting off bad guys and trying to find a way to wake his team up. That is true for Ellen Page as well (from Juno and Hard Candy). What I'm trying to say is that though the main focus is Dicaprio's character, there is also a good amount of focus on Dicaprio's team members... which makes viewing more involving.

Finally, let's get down to the true finesses of the movie. Ken Watanabe might be a refreshing face to the big screen (since I've only recalled seeing him in Last Samurai and in the Cannon ads), he seriously need to articulate his words more clearly. Most of the time, I had trouble figuring out his speeches and even the mandarin subtitles provided little help. As a result, I had to infer most of what he said... which was very important since he was the employer and the rationale of the mission is what drives the movie plot.

Took me a while to figure out what they were actually doing... to implant a new idea of having a billionaire's son break up his company after his father's death and to set up his own. The dream within a dream concept is cool and convenient in such that it allows them to orchestrate a series of events to lead up to "planting the idea" since they cannot do it forcefully and have to work their way through the "layers" of the dreams. Its convenient because every layer down, the time difference increases since the deeper you go into the brain, the faster it functions... so a 3rd layer dream of 10 years would only equate to 1 hour of sleep time. This gives the team, and the movie more reason to extend its scenes and yet make sense after it all.

Initially, I thought the explanation of Leonardo Dicaprio's "inner demon" (which is his wife) was a little vague since he said he implanted an idea into his wife's mind of not being in reality and it manifested... but thumbs up for the more detailed explanation at the end which really tied things up. The first part of the movie which featured his wife sabotaging his mission was a great subtlety in throwing you off the road since they didn't explain it only until the middle of the movie... at the start you might think that Ken Watanabe employed Dicaprio's wife to prevent him from succeeding because apparently its created by Dicaprio himself...

The feeling of free-falling to wake a person up from deep sleep is a very interesting notion since most of the time when we dream of free-falling, we actually wake up. For someone like me who did experiment on my dreams before, I wouldn't totally agree with that because I have tried to control my dreams and I did reach the end of the free-fall... as a result I no longer have those kinda dreams. But for those of you who still dream of free-falling and it freaks you out by waking you up... then this idea would make sense.

*irrevelant critique* Since I'm already at it, if you're someone who has constant nightmares of free-falling, it means you're very stressed and your subconscious mind is telling you that. To counter it, you have to tell yourself every night to be aware of it being a dream... it's tough but possible (I was only successful after dreaming up 3-5 identical dreams) and when you're finally aware of it... then tell yourself you want to know where is the end. Don't wake yourself up and when you hit the ground.. and it doesnt hurt you, you know its a dream.. and the best irony in that it reinforces that you are in a dream. Enjoy that moment because after that, you'll never dream of another free-falling dream ever again.

Back to the movie... I was thinking it more of a loophole since Cillian Murphy was not "trained" or "conditioned" to wake up after feeling the sensation of free-falling, but he did anyway. So the above would provide a good explanation for that.

Perhaps the most "cool" and thought provoking moment of the movie was the ending... where the top (Dicaprio's totem to keep track of reality) kept spinning... which signified that he was still in a dream. It makes sense since there was a scene of him explaining to Ellen Page that he was lost in Lomo (like a black hole in your dreams) and I was finding it peculiar how he managed to get out... So it kinda leads up to that ending even though some may not like it... especially since back then when I was in secondary school my teachers would always dissuade us from writing compositions that were of dreams because it would mean that your entire compo was.. was.. "redundant". Well, Christopher Nolan did the unthinkable by bringing that idea to the big screens, and getting an impressive rating and compliments from its viewers. This movie really tells us that we should challenge ourselves to attempt breaking conventions.

And like I've said, no movie is perfect.. now for the lows about the movie which I didn't like. Didn't quite get why Dicaprio would be able to enter Ken Watanabe's Lomo (opening sequence) towards the end since he was in his own subconscious dream. Is Lomo the same for everyone? How did he manage to get there right after his wife died in his hands? It makes sense for Ken Watanabe to be an old man and Dicaprio being still young because of the time-layer concept but it doesnt explain how Dicaprio could "magically" enter the same dream of Watanabe's. But.. but... ironically, it would make sense if... everything is a dream. Because that way, you don't have to link everything up since conveniently, in dreams, you don't remember how you get to a place, or how you get out, or even how stuff don't link in dreams... But I believe that can't be the case because if it was intended that way, then you don't even need to make sense out of the movie... such an oxymoron.

That's why when the director dabble into such concepts of dreams and fantasies, it allows leverage on the rationalism and logic and even if something, or some link doesn't makes sense, its acceptable since its just a dream...

There were times when I tried to stay focus since the jargons used were pretty deep and it makes it hard to keep track of logic... and made it slightly draggy at times. Overall, a highly recommended movie, but be prepared to have your mind "tortured" since it's one movie which requires lotsa attention and involves lotsa thinking.

From Paris with Love

Rating: 7.4/10

Genre: Action

Overall value for time and money: 7.5/10

An employee of the US embassy gets his big "promotion" when his boss teams him up with a top American secret agent, Charlie Wax, played by John Travolta. Not knowing what his mission is about, yet wanting to serve his country, the young employee enters a whirlpool of trouble and gradually learns the ropes of what it's like being a secret agent.

One of the biggest fault of the movie was its publicity... for those of you who have caught Taken, you would expect much from this movie since its from the same director. Despite the fairly cheesy movie title, the movie succeeds in drawing in its audiences since there's John Travolta, is directed by the same director from Taken and is presented by Luc Besson. I brought down my expectations since the online reviews voiced much disappointment.

But, after catching this movie, all I have to say is that one man's meat is another man's poison, and vice versa. It was surprisingly good, way way better than what the title "promises". On one hand, we have John Travolta, a kickass and formidable secret agent which certainly brings the action a whole notch up, while on the other, we have the meeker young employee, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, a down-to-earth and righteous male protagonist. Meyers' role was the engaging factor of the movie while Travolta's role was the cool action factor of it.

A well mix of characters, which evokes different emotions in the film. What I liked about it is that Travolta role wasn't the "I hate this guy" stuck up zai guy, but he was more of a crude hero which doesnt really go by the book. *spoilers ahead* Unlike most other action pack films, this movie also draws you in gradually and have you feel for the main protagonist as he realises the person closest to him is also his enemy.

The last scene was magnificently plotted as it evoked a strong empathy for Meyers' character. Not just your average brainless action packed film, it packs good acting, good casting and most importantly a good plot. Whoop in a couple of twists here and there and wala, what do you get? From Paris with Love.