The Imitation Game

Ratings: 8.6/10
Film Class: B
Genre: Suspense Drama (Biography)

Alan Turing, a gifted mathematician who during the 2nd World War helped break a seemingly impossible German code pattern used to relay secret messages within their own military daily. The codes were generated by a machine called Enigma, which would create secret messages in a form of cryptograms but what made it so difficult was that the "key" to solving the messages would change everyday. There's a good 158 million million million different combinations to solve Enigma, and Alan's team's only given less than 24 hrs each day to solve it before all their efforts for that particular day would have been wasted. That's the cool part, explained effectively briefly at the start of the film. 

The Imitation Game is a fast paced movie which puts my mind on the edge of my brain (say what?!). It wasted no time in relationship build ups, though there were flashbacks now and then, the focus still remained largely on the EQ-lacking (and as a result there were several awkwardly funny scenes) genius mathematician trying to break the codes. Not having prior knowledge on who Alan Turing was, I was slapped by 2 major plot twists in the movie, one was about his personal life, the other was about his achievement in today's modern world. These I shall not disclose here but I do urge you to not google/wiki them if you haven't the slightest clue so at least there's a few more punches this movie can throw at you to make it even more unpredictably impressive.

*major spoilers ahead* I thought the way they managed to break the code was ingenious, though simple, it was something most of us would have overlooked. It wasn't a stunning discovery, but more of a Eureka, "Why didn't I think of that!" moment. The relationship between Alan Turing and his fiancée suffered slight "gappy" blows to the plot progression because there you have a touching scene of Alan's confession to her about his personal secret but reciprocated by magnanimity of a different kind of love from her, the next scene showed that they were no longer together. 

There were many eye-gaping quotes and though one of them was said a whooping 3 times throughout the movie, the incoherence of it and the tongue-twisting words used downplayed it a little. Still, it makes for a good "aw"-sifying quote, "Sometimes it is the people who no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine."

It's not perfect, but it's beautiful. Sad, and heartfelt. Complex, yet enigmatically simple.

The Theory of Everything

Ratings: 7.4/10

Film class: B

Genre: Drama (Biography)

The life story of Stephen Hawking and his wife, Jane Hawking. From their days of courtship to marriage, and till present, The Theory of Everything triumphs in portraying their relationship but fails in addressing the theory of everything. Well, that's the only disgruntlement I have of this well acted melodrama of the rise and fall of our legendary physicist. 

The movie portrays him more of a cosmologist than a physicist (I thought he was more of a physicist, did read up several of his theories back during my younger days), but as for his relationship with his wife, I was totally clueless until this movie came along. It shed light on one of our few remaining geniuses still alive, his fame consistently radiating through guest TV appearances like The Big Bang Theory etc. He suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a motor neuron disease which paralyses his entire body except his mind, and despite doctors' diagnosis of his life span of 2 years, he has long outlived his supposed life expectancy. Not sure if he's still actively constructing theories with his beautiful mind, but this movie wasn't so much that of his genius, but more of his love story with Jane Hawking, his "prime days" before his condition impaired him. 

There were many eye-souring scenes, and the multiple blows of sadness is sure to break even the toughest of men. I thought Jane Hawking and him weren't the best of pairs, one a devote believer of religion, the other, a scientist sceptic of even the existence of God. It's a perfect example of opposites attract, and I hope that one fine day some genius scientist will be able to prove that... Not physically as in magnets, but emotionally and who knows spiritually (if the concept of spiritually even does exist and not just merely a figure of speech). 

Their acting prowess (the 2 leads of course) is the main contributor to the success of this film, while it's not blockbuster material, it sure is a memorable indie film. 

*major spoilers alert* In case anyone picked up on the "wife" part, I had intentionally changed it to protect the outcome of the movie, but to be accurate, factually, it should be "ex-wife". 

Taken 3

Ratings: 6.0/10

Film Class: C

Genre: Action Thriller

Shaky camera work, shallow plot and mediocre fight scenes. One of Forest Whitaker's worst performances, and something major was lacking - coolness. Liam Neeson wasn't as kickass this time round, and because of the forced twist in the story (which was pretty obvious), it made his role less cool, less invincible. To top it, the showdown with one of the major villains felt like a Hollywood version of Ultraman. There you see Liam Neeson being "owned" big time... and just when he was about to get killed, somehow he gained full life and owned the s*** out of the villain, like some computer game character. Boooooooo...

Needless to say, I was utterly disappointed. Liam Neeson had a team of his old pals to help him out, which again negated the expectations of Taken fans. Though his team consisted of a couple of likeable characters, isn't the Taken franchise supposed to be about a super-cool lone ranger taking out a whole syndicate of bad guys, single-handedly (I reiterate)?

I do hope that as the tagline goes, "It ends here". Because I would have hated to see the fall of such a great franchise. 

Liam Neeson is once again caught up in an against-all-odds-situation when he's framed for the murder of his wife. Afraid that his daughter would be harmed, he goes all out to uncover the conspiracy behind the murder, and to exact revenge, Taken-style. Instead of just "hunting", this time he's also hunted by the FBI - a love triangle gone bad. 

I realised the script whereby he said "Good Luck" to Forest Whitaker over the phone, as seen in the trailer, was cut short in the actual movie. It wasn't as what was shown in the trailer, a seemingly trivial, but critical point. That whole chunk load of dialogue was supposed to be the essence of Taken, and yet in the movie, it's importance was downplayed massively. 

Even though there wasn't a particular scene that was memorable, I would still have given it a go for completion sake, since I'm a self-proclaimed Taken fan. It was bad, but thankfully not bad enough.

Interstellar

Ratings: 9.8/10

Film Class: A

Genre: Sci Fi Action

Interstellar is an intergalactic mix of stellar storyline, stellar performances and stellar soundtrack. The movie's about a gifted astronaut who was tasked to lead a team into a newly found wormhole which would allow humans to travel light years away to find another habitable planet. Set in a futuristic world where humans are threatened with frequent dust storms, Interstellar is guaranteed to make you laugh, cry and be blown away by the script and cast performances. The movie spans over a few dimensions, mentioning up to even the 5th dimension, and the dreary, at times sinister sounding soundtrack completes this blockbuster with a "6th dimension".

I was surprised to be laughing quite a bit, with the witty one-two liners throughout the entire movie, a much needed relief, because most of the time, I was either teary-eyed or clenching my fist balling myself into a corner of my seat because it was a rollercoaster ride alright. The believable chemistry sparked by the stellar cast was really crucial in touching that "chord", and once the director nailed it, he knew he could focus on the sci-fi part and ultimately the seat-gripping action part. Explanations were quick, but precise, and director Christopher Nolan wasted no time in progressing the storyline.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar face, actually many, but that one particular actor who wasn't featured in any of the trailers helped add brownie points to this already amazing movie. There were a couple of twists here and there and my advice is to stop now, if you haven't already watched the movie to go catch it first because it's best viewed not knowing what you're in for.

Interstellar is my number one sci-fi movie. Hands down, and I'm confident it will stay at the top of my list for a long while. The CG wasn't "Gravity" like, it wasn't state-of-the-art, at some point, I thought I even saw traditional props being used to create the space effects. But it was obviously a deliberate, well thought-of decision because the seemingly grainy graphics added realism to the out-of-the-world storyline, and in that, sucking the audience into a blackhole of the unknown.

Relativity, wormholes, the 4th dimensions are all tricky topics to address in any movie because it's bound to be subjected to criticism, but Christopher Nolan was so bold he literally "threw" the concepts right smack at our faces, take it, or leave it. But in doing that, he managed to create a movie experience like no other. I was so impressed with the storyline my reactions towards it was converted into denial... that I could not believe a movie of this calibre could even be made.

A definitely must-watch. A masterpiece.

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*warning, major major spoilers ahead. Do not read on if you haven't caught the movie*

To be extremely critical, there were a couple of "loopholes" I hope will be covered as added footage when the blue-ray DVD comes out, such as the backstory of Matthew McConaughey and how in the end everything seems to right itself - him waking up to a whole new world. 

Christopher Nolan has his "trademark" scenes, reminiscence of "Inception", the floating around (extremely apt cos it's in space!) and the warping of the landscapes. I have an inverted commas for trademark because I think they're only seen in Inception and not his other well known movies such as The Dark Knight... though the cast featured familiar faces, such as Ann Hathaway and Michael Cain.

I thought the main theme of the movie wasn't about saving the world, that's only secondary to "love". It wasn't until towards the end when Ann Hathaway took off her astronaut's helmet to get a breath of fresh air in another world that got me thinking... perhaps the ultimate moral of the story was love. That it can be felt, but not proven, just like religion, the so-called "feel", which was why I term it the "6th dimension" as above, thanks to the soundtrack.

There were 3 options for them to choose from, and all 3 were chosen by the time the credits rolled. The choices of which seemingly liveable planets to shuttle to given the lack of space fuel. The first was a bad choice, an interesting world of water, but they were supposedly only given 1 other choice to choose from. Of the other two, there was a more logical and practical choice, which the crew ultimately did go to, but the 3rd and last planet was only visited by Ann Hathaway at the end. Rem the removing of the helmet part? There was a particular scene in which she explained she felt was the right choice because it was love that drove her to make that choice. Well, apparently it seemed, that the choice was right afterall - a different, alternate route, with the same outcome - the preservation of humanity. Both Matthew McConaughey and Ann Hathaway eventually took different routes, but with similar desirable outcomes.

Also, I believe there's also a part about the bond with robots. It wasn't until re-checking out of the trailers just (cos I wanted to see if that well-known actor I mentioned above did appear in any of the trailers) that I was able to revisit this particular scene at the start that Matthew McConaughey said that robots can't adapt. That statement of his proved that he lacked empathy towards machines, or robots, and can be seen with his earlier conversations, but eventually a friendship with robots was built, seen towards the end.

At the beginning of the film, it started with a narration of an elderly woman (and some others), assumed to be the daughter of Matthew McConaughey which kinda "spoilt" the ending because I figured out a crucial twist in the movie, the "ghost" the younger her spoke of. However, even though it turned out as I had predicted, it was the build up that got to me. The so-called possibilities seemed so bleak that at some point I doubted that it could even lead to that outcome, but it did.

Though full attention has to be given to ensure that you're able to grasp the storyline (try not to miss their conversations), but overall it wasn't too taxing a film as long as you're not an over-thinker or a major critic of interstellar travel. 

I thought it was a digestible mainstream blockbuster which is set to impress both the young, and old, regardless of gender and knowledgeability.

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(PS.: On second viewing, I realise there's almost no jarring loopholes. The backstory was such that Matthew McConaughey crashed during his flight into the stratosphere (dream scene at the start, and there was a line about it somewhere in the film about the rest of the "astronauts not even going pass the simulators"), and that when he was finally found at the end, it was because the Cooper station was orbiting near Saturn, where the wormhole was. He apparently was floating around in outer space when two blinking lights (the station) found him after the "tesseract" (extra dimensional space after passing through the blackhole) collapsed.

The lines in the "tesseract" were gravity lines, subjected to manipulation and where the connection to the watch which he gave his daughter was possible since gravity was supposedly a constant in time. So eventually time didn't alter or anything of that sort in the end, all that happened was that the so-called anti-gravity equation was solved, hence lifting the station into space, which would eventually orbit around Saturn, and hence, save Matthew McConaughey.

Also, the 2 different sets of robot voices I thought I had initially heard wasn't due to a change in voice-over... but because there were 2 robots on board the ship. One was the "auto-pilot", the other was the one following the astronauts around - the humorous one.

The time-loop paradox was still prevalent, that if in the first place had he succeeded in communicating to his daughter in the "tesseract", he wouldn't have ended where he would in the first place - none of the past would have happened. And if he had indeed gone into the "tesseract" the first time round and not succeed, it would mean that his "2nd time" there, was possibly an alternate reality. But if it was indeed an alternate reality, then there would have been too many variables to factor in. However, I'll close my case on this chicken-and-egg reasoning and bask in the beauty of this one-of-a-kind space odyssey...)

Gone Girl

Ratings: 8.0/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Suspense Thriller

Gone Girl is a disturbing film about the disappearance of the wife of Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck), your seemingly average Joe living in a small town community. Things started to get interesting when the story gradually unfolded, but took a turn for the twisted, yes twisted, not just twist, when the 2nd half of it slit opened like a can of worms. There was one particular in-you-face gross scene, Hostel-style but for most parts of it, it was mental, psychological.

When I walked out of the cinema, it made me appreciate the mundanity of our world. It was such a relief to step out of the warped reality I was sucked into. Yup, it's that kind of film which makes you more sane after. Let's just say that if all marriages are this delusionally twisted, I bet no sane person will ever wish to get married in the first place. It exaggeratedly portrayed an extreme side of marriage only a sadist would enjoy. 

It's the epitome of sociopathic films, kinda reminds me of Mulholland Drive and Blue Velvet, the same feel, just that it's more mainstream. Definitely falls into the category of my "wall of weird", mentally creepy movies. 

I didn't like the overpowering use of background sound and music during a couple of flashback scenes, and most parts of the nudity was uncalled for. They neither built sexual tension nor added any value to the plot, more like awkward quickies here and there. 

What I did like was how the film seems to be like a 2-part anthropology series - the first part is what we see from the trailer, and what we think we know, but the 2nd part just went totally "off" course... It was unpredictable for me, and I'm sorry that without warning, I've kinda spoilt the 2nd part for you. But don't let what you think you know stop you, because the mental and "feel" aspect of it can only be experienced, not explained. 

Acting wise I thought Carrie Coon, Ben Affleck's on-screen sister, was one of the best. As for Rosamund Pike, the vanished wife, I have mixed feelings about. It was weird to watch her intended "false" acting, more soap opera-ish than spooky, but there was a segment which I thought she nailed it. To protect whatever suspense is left, I shan't elaborate on but let's just say the ending is definitely gonna be one you won't expect. While it left most of the audience flabbergasted, I thought it was the best possible outcome to bring back the realism of failed marriages.

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*Warning, major spoilers ahead. Do not read on if you don't want the storyline spoilt for you*

I need to get it off my chest... the part that I liked most about the film, the reason why it has a rating of 8.0 even though it doesn't sound that fantastic is because of the reason that Rosamund Pike returned to her husband - delusioned love. Well, at least that's the direct reason given in the film.

When she came back to him after disappearing for that long, after killing and framing her ex-lover who helped her, it was just weird to me. It was too sudden and the flow felt hasty, as if the director needed to end the film quickly after dragging for so long... But that one scene, close to the ending scene by which she explained her reason for doing so, though warped, was pretty sweet. Though delusional, who would have thought a sociopath could actually really fall in love? And when you bring a sociopath into the picture, almost conveniently, you wouldn't need much explanation because the things that they do and their rationalisms are all warped in the first place.

Not sure if I'm overthinking things but indirectly, perhaps the director is trying to tell us that Ben Affleck is a sociopath as well, more subtle, more hidden. Thinking back, even though his wife has vanished, him having sex with his affair in his sister's house and blatantly lying about it the next day in front of the hundreds of volunteers was further proof that he was perhaps a sociopath himself. As much as the audience would like not to see it, the deal breaker was the part where he convincingly allowed himself to be interviewed on-screen (though not live but one-take nonetheless) that he yet again blatantly lied about his wife, to his wife, to the rest of the world. And it was that same scene which convinced her that he does indeed love her.

To finally back it up, the choice of Ben Affleck for the very last scene might just prove my theory right - that he decided to be with her still after all that she had done to him. In a way, like attracts like. Maybe, just maybe, "Gone Girl" refers not just to the literal meaning of Rosamund Pike being gone, but also that sociopathic part of her who hated her husband so much, yet was able to finally let it go...

The Fault in Our Stars

Ratings: 7.8/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Romantic Drama

Both the leads' performances were commendable. But it was Shailene Woodley who really shined in this romantic drama about a teenage girl stricken with cancer but struck by love. It's the love story of Hazel and Augustus, a boy she met at a cancer support group who's overly optimistic about life. Their chemistry was undeniable, and while the plot wasn't exactly "Imba", that one pre-eulogy scene about little infinities was, with a lack of a better description, mind blowing. 

*major spoilers ahead* I have heard of Zeno's Paradoxes (though I only found the exact term of it by googling just) from a series of youtube videos by Numberphile (and possibly Vsauce), especially the Achilles and the Tortoise Paradox, and I'm no stranger to romantic movies loaded with unfamiliar "aww" touching lines, but I have to say this movie packs one of the best. It was so sweet and uncliched-like that instead of experiencing goosebumps, I felt euphoric. I know it's untypical, I should be feeling sad, but the "sugar high" I experienced was a feeling like no other. "Wow" was the word that had eluded me for a long long time... but it finally came back at that one scene. 

Quite frankly, I didn't like the movie that much. Aggravated by the lack of explanation of the title (Yes, I'm extremely anal about this), however it was salvaged by great acting and great scripting. Though credit has to go to the author who actually wrote the novel on which it is based on. From a layman's point of view, I had thought "the fault in our stars" refers to how unfair life was for Hazel and Augustus, individuals who cherished life and were happy to be alive despite being diagnosed with cancer. Cos there was a particular scene when Hazel made such a remark. 

However, it was thanks to my wife who had read the novel beforehand, who told me that it was made in reference to a quote in one of Shakespeare's works. "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings." In the book, it was brought up in an email correspondence between Augustus and an author by the name of Van Houten, whom Hazel adores. As to the meaning of its references, I guess you'll have to check it out yourself it you really want to know the answer because I'm not too sure myself to even comment on it. 

I'm going out on a limb here to say that there's an "infinite" number of movies out there to be watched, and there can only be a "finite" number on your to-watch list - The Fault in Our Stars, should be one of them.

Edge of Tomorrow

Ratings: 8.4/10

Film Class: A+

Genre: Sci-Fi Action Thriller

Through the film, we get to witness Tom Cruise's transformation from a cowardly Major officer into a heroic one, when he unknowing gains the ability to relive the day after death. Set in a post apocalyptic world where an invincible alien race has taken over part of the world, it is up to him to utilise his new-found gift to change the fate of mankind. 

As with any time travelling Sci Fi films, it's inevitable that logical flaws would emerge eventually. Edge of tomorrow does succeed in covering its tracks well, by spending minimal time on explanation and directing the attention towards the battle of wits between humans and aliens. Before the logical side hits me, I was already awe-struck by the super alien's abilities and how Tom Cruise even came about to "gain" such an ability himself. I especially liked the nomenclature of the aliens chiefs, 'Alpha' and 'Omega' - straight to the point, simple and intuitive. The aliens species are called Mimics, the 'Alpha' is the leader of the pack, with just a few of them around to take the lead, and the 'Omega' is the brain, the "Mothership". 

I shan't disclose too much here, because I thought the day-looping ability explanation was extremely cool and novel. There was no lack of deadpan, almost dark humour when Emily Blunt, an elite military sergeant, keeps killing Tom Cruise over and over again to reset the day. But it gives a clue as to how she became such an elite fighter herself. 

*major spoilers ahead* The only thing I didn't like about the movie was the happy ending. It's not that I'm a grumpy old man who detests happy endings because they're always never an accurate portrayal of the realities of life, but because this happy ending felt too indulging. It was as if the director chose a "happy" and "clean" ending so that his audience could all go home happy and chose to close an eye on the illogicalities of it. Perhaps, there's a deeper meaning behind that last scene, as explained on screenrant.com (I thought Ben Kendrick's post on the explanation of the ending was rather impressive), but taking into account how straightforward the plot is, I doubt that's the case. 

Even so, the damage is minimal, because the state-of-the-art CG easily wins over any grievances I have over it. It was so realistic, especially on the battlefields that I could almost imagine myself being there with Tom Cruise. Some of the scenes were pretty dark though, so the CG didn't impress as much there, but its that "grandeur" and impressiveness of the film as a whole that really blew me away... not ever since Starship Troopers or District 9 have there been an alien Sci-Fi film this good.