Cold Eyes (Korean)

Ratings: 8.5/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Action Thriller

I've been hit by a spell of awesome movies lately and I'm so glad I went to my local video store to have a quick look around... cos that was when I found this movie, sitting on an obscure shelf almost escaping my scrutiny with its deceivingly dullish DVD cover.

I picked it up.. because it kinda reminded me of Aaron Kwok's Cold War (a pretty good Chinese movie). The sypnosis drew me in; a new female recruit with an impeccable memory and keen obseravations joins the Korean Police Forces Special Crime Unit (SCU) led by yet another outstandingly intelligent character, her veteren chief officer. However, it takes more than the 2 of them to track down the main villian for this movie... a stealth-like mastermind behind the top crimes in the city. The villian is off-the charts cool... his flaire mirrors that of Javier Bardem in No Country For Old Men and his likeability that of Liam Neeson's Taken; he's such a formidable foe he'll probably outmatch both of them blindfolded. 

Thankfully, it's 6 (or more from SCU) vs 1... levelling the playing field. Now that's how Cold Eyes, with its crappy movie title is a notch above all the other Korean thriller movies I've caught. There's a slight advantage on the good guy's side, cos of the numbers, yet, at the same time you find yourself cheering on for the villian. It's a feel good movie both ways. It's not so much about which side to cheer for but more on being blown away by the intellect and intensity of this hidden gem. 

Though the start was rather confusing, it didn't take more than 10 mins into the film for things to clear up. From start to end, it was a mental rollercoster ride - engaging, top speed. Couldn't even allow myself to be distracted because I was afraid of missing the subtitles. 

The actors and actresses were well cast, and everyone was super convincing in their roles. Thanks to their acting, filming style and the actions scenes, and despite having a few obviously CG-ed scenes, it felt like an grade-A movie. Mild humour that's not cheesy and the scripting, cinematography, camera angles and scene flows were all well thought of. To be frank, there's almost no flaws in this. It exceeded my expectations by leaps and bounds, however the only wall it didn't leap over is my biasedness towards Western films over Asian films. All these while I've refused to believe an Asian film can reach "Hollywood Blockbuster" calibre, well it's time I reach such an epiphany. 

Till date, definitely one of the best Korean Blockbusters I've caught - while it didn't gain immense popularity in the movie industry, it sure topped my Korean library of movies. The English movie title should be more attractively named ... "Shadow".

A true battle of the wittiest! A true gem not to be missed!

Captain Phillips

Ratings: 9.5/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Action Drama

Easily one of this year's best movies. Had my reservations at first. How good can a movie be considering its entire plot has been disclosed in the trailers? Furthermore, it's based on a true story - a fact that's difficult to tackle. Make it too exaggerated and the audience will feel insulted by being taken in by the director riding on a publicity stunt. Make it too realistic and the audience will probably be bored to tears due to the lack of intensity.

So will balancing both sides give you the "perfect" concortion for a movie based on a true story? Well contrary to what I believed, apparently not. This movie opened my eyes to another possibility... character empathy. If one is able to skilfully and masterfully draw us into a stranger's world we just met on the big screens, all this while subconsciously being influenced by the fact that it's based on a true account, it delivers more than just a great movie experience, it delivers a personal privilege. The former has the audience being superior to the film, that the film has to "serve" the owner, "us", while the latter makes the audience at the mercy of the film - having the audience think that they are being given a great privilege to be watching the film. 

Captain Phillips is the captain of a US Cargo ship which was hijacked by Somali pirates. The entire film is about his encounter with them, from start... till end... 

*major spoilers ahead* I'm extremely impressed with the pacing, and the overall format of the film. It's not a one-sided film... at the start it also shows the "origins" of the pirates, letting the audience experience both sides of the shore. There's slight twists in the storyline here and there, which I shan't disclose, to preserve the impact of this great gem. At no time was I able to expect what's coming up, or at least I was too engrossed to want to. There were many quick-witted "outs" Captain Phillips had to churn up to protect his crew and himself. 

As for the ending... it was a blast. Till the very end, I didn't know if Captain Phillips would be able to survive the ordeal or not, but all I can say is that the last scene was very emotional for me. I almost teared. It has been a while since a scene has been able to leave such a strong impression, and I know I'm going to keep talking about it in time to come. 

I tried to find faults in the logicality of some parts of the film, only to find myself answering most of the questions... Ie. to say the scenes and situation he was in was realistically portrayed. While I'm tempted to share my insights, I find this movie too good to disclose anything which might jeopardise your viewing privilege. All I can say is that there's a legit reason why the rescue mission seemed to be an overkill, and that every little action helped lead up to the much-awaited finale. 

Thanks to the A-grade acting of Tom Hanks, the movie was made more convincing, and more engaging. The only 2 jarring flaws with this movie is the acting of the antagonist, the Somali pirate captain, and the shaky style of filming. Initially, the film techniques created a little sea sickness for me, but overtime, my adrenaline was pumping so much I lost sense of actual reality, and was shadowing Tom Hanks throughout his ordeal... not having a breather only until he couldn't speak coherently... 

Strong strong film. Captain Phillips has my vote to win the next Oscars. 

Thor: The Dark World

Ratings: 7.9/10

Film Class: A

Genre: Superhero Action

Jane foster (Natalie Portman) discovers an anomaly in the fabric of the universe and enters another realm where the matter, called Aether, responsible for the universe's creation was secretly kept away by Asgard's (Thor's world/kingdom) ancestors to protect the destruction of the universe from a deity-like race, called the Dark Elves. 

Unknowingly acting as the host of the Aether, the rediscovery of it reawakens the Dark Elves who sparks a catastrophic hunt for it with devastating consequences both to Asgard and potentially to the universe. 

This Marvel sequel is of cosmic proportions, nothing like the other superhero movies and is the main reason Thor triumphs as my favorite Marvel superhero franchise. The graphics is state of the art, realistic enough to draw you into their realms. 

There's lotsa focus on Loki this time round as well, and though he's a badass villain, he's a likeable one, one of my favourite villians due to the charismatic Tom Hiddleston. Anthony Hopkins reprises his role as the mighty Odin, exceptional as always. The rest of the cast complemented the leads very well, especially Natalie Portman's intern and Thor's Asgardian female warrior.  

The only complain I have was the overloading of funny scripting. It was refreshing and light hearted, but on the downside, lessened the severity of the situation... I mean for christ's sake we're looking at the end of the world, not some catastrophic damage to a city, country or even a continent. End of the world, obliteration of the entire universe!! It felt like a live action kids cartoon. 

*spoilers ahead* Overall, Thor: The Dark World wasn't that dark after all, and the killing off of one the leads mid-show was enough a climax to get my undivided attention. A great sequel, opening doors to potentially even greater ones.

PS.: There's a stinger at the end so do stay behind after the first part of the credits. 

Byzantium

Ratings: 7.5/10

Film class: B 

Genre: Drama 

Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan) and her mother, Clara (Gemma Arterton) are vampires who seek refuge at a coastal town in a deserted hostel named Byzantium, after their whereabouts were discovered by a mysterious brotherhood vent on hunting them down. 

*spoilers ahead* Unlike other vampire movies, this one stands out in terms of novelty of the origins of vampires. No one vampire who was supposedly the maker of the others, the only way to convert into a vampire is to locate a secret cave found only by a map passed on to a selected few. 

Also, the scriptwriters dealt away with the usual cliches such as garlic and exorcism-like holy water sprinkling. No crosses to ward the vampires off... because.. it's  not neccessary. These vampires only have the 2 most definitive traits of vampires, their craving for blood, and their immortality. They don't have superhuman strengths, nor do they go around attacking innocent victims. Instead they lead rather normal lives, feeding off humans only when necessary - and only when they have given their consensus.

Byzantium is a vampire movie not meant to scare, but one to skilfully portray the emotional burden of carrying an unorthodox secret and the loneliness of immortality. Elaeanor is emotionally trapped with this secret and decides to share it with a local boy, leading to dreadful consequences. Realistic playout, credible storyline. 

This movie has the finese, a literary rendition of a classic vampire story which stands out in modern day cliche vampire flicks where love and desire doesn't dominate as the main themes. Just like Interview with the Vampire, there's such a strong focus on the main leads due to the demands of good acting that you cannot not feel for them... making it more than just a "movie-watch", an experience worth craving for.