Rapunzel/Easy A/Megamind

Rapunzel: A Tangled Tale
I'm glad Mandy Moore did the voice over for Rapunzel. I think she did a great job and her singing was nice. This Rapunzel story is a spin-off from the classic fairy-tale. I thought, Magic Hair? What a stupid plot. It is actually much more entertaining than I thought and the story unfolded quite nicely which made the magic hair storyline sounds more acceptable. Plus, the Rapunzel in this story is so gorgeous. Definitely prettier than Snow White/Cinderella/Jasmine/Pocahontas??? Great animated film. Definitely a must-watch.

4 stars

Easy A
This movie is about how a small, innocent lie became a rumour that was hugely blown out of proportion. The victim enjoys the new-found infamy, but soon realises that things are not quite going the way she expected. She sets out to set the record straight, and also found love along the way.

This is a very average movie. There was nothing particularly funny about it, and halfway through it gets really boring.

2.5 stars

Megamind
Megamind is about a villain turned hero. I thought the start of the movie, which was featured in most part of the trailer, was quite funny and interesting. Then it got a bit boring from there. The whole show feels quite cliche. Boy likes girl, girl does not like boy, boy does something heroic, girl falls in love with boy, happily ever after.

3 stars

Red and Harry Potter 7

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
The first part of this movie was 2.5 hours long yet many details were not covered. More so for this movie than the first 6, you have to be a reader to understand it. To a non-reader, it's probably a very average movie. I read book 7 twice and I could only remember the gist and not the finer details as there was just so much content. The movie was a little bit confusing even for me. Also, it would have been nice if the air fight (after Harry left his home) was covered more in detail as it was a pretty exciting part of the book. Other than that, the scenes were pretty much similar to how I imagined it to be. Part 1 ends after Dobby's death.

3.5 stars  

Red
Red stands for "Retired: Extremely Dangerous". Lol. I love this movie. It's not everytime you come across an action movie that is acted by old folks. Fave quote:"Kordeski trained you? I trained Kordeski." Too often young people undermine old folks, and we disregard their wealth of experience. I think this movie says it all. I love the humor. It was really entertaining.

3.5 stars

The Social Network and Unstoppable

Unstoppable
Unstoppable is about a cargo train carrying hazardous chemicals, going at full throttle towards the heart of the city. The police and train operators race against time to try and stop this unmanned train which was irresponsibly left behind by one of the engineers. Before watching this movie, you probably know how it's going to end. Nevertheless, I thought it was a pretty exciting movie, with an early climax that never came down.

3.5 stars

The Social Network
Frankly speaking, I don't think Mark Zuckerberg was as bad as the movie portrayed him to be. First of all, he has a girlfriend of 7 years, and not some IT geek freak that completely doesn't get girls. Secondly, I didn't think what he did was completely wrong. If it weren't for him, certain people wouldn't even be getting millions for doing nothing. I think he was merely protecting his own interests. I feel that this movie was not very accurate or unbiased in its recount of the events, but nevertheless, it was worth watching, just to see how Facebook came about, how far it has come, and the amazing transformations it has brought to our lives.

3.5 stars

4 nearly action movies

The thing about watching movies with Kh is that he refuses to watch anything that is lovey dovey or arty farty. So I guess I'm stuck with guns and bombs for now. Here's 4 recently watched nearly-action movies which all contains guns and bombs.

Okay I'm having trouble remembering which movie is which since they are quite similar. Will start with TOW...

The Other Guys
(The one with Will Ferrell) Will Ferrell cracks me up everytime. The Other Guys is a typical "underdogs win" movie. Stupid and timid cops triumphing over stupid and attention-seeking cops. The plot is pretty lame and stupid but the humour makes up for all the flaws.

3.5 stars

Takers
(The one with Hayden Christensen) When it comes to movies about bank robberies, I actually like to see the bad guys triumph. I'll want to see them break into a super high-profile bank and not get caught, and I'll want to be impressed by their complex strategies/techniques. Takers is another bank robbery story about a group of professional bank robbers who after a string of success, meet with trouble, and how their lives pretty much go downhill from there. How unfortunate. The starting scene on how they carry out a bank robbery wasn't impressive, and the ending equally dull. Everything else in between are what I call "fillers". They're just there to waste time.

3 stars 

The Town
(The one with Ben Affleck) Another movie about bank robbery. Another bank robbery gone wrong. It feels kind of cliche already. In this movie, Ben Affleck's character falls for a hostage they took at a bank robbery. At least, this bit is unseen in Takers, which makes this movie more interesting. As the story unfolds, this hostage comes to realise the truth of her boyfriend's identity, and we, the audience, are left to wonder if she's on his side or not. I'll say the story is pretty exciting.

3.5 stars

The American
(The one with George Clooney) I would consider this a bit of an arty farty film. Though it involves guns, there isn't much action. Much of the tone is set in melancholy, much like that in The Pianist, as George Clooney (Jack) tries to retire as an assassin and start a new life, while still having to live with the heart-thumping memory of nearly being killed. George Clooney, not so cool as an assassin after all. Unlike The Pianist, which has historical value, The American is just a made up story which seriously bores me.

2.5 stars

Piranha

Piranha
With so much hype going on about it, I really thought this is a must-watch blockbuster. GV even postponed the release date for a Piranha movie event. Clarence is right. This is a B-flick after all. In fact, I would classify this as "Gore" more than "Thriller". Thrillers generally focus on plot and suspense. This, more gore than anything. What you'll see is people screaming in half-skeletal bodies, bodies getting split in half, etc. It reminded me too much of Final Destination. At the very least, Kh, Yt and I agreed that its plot is better than FD. It is more realistic in a sense. Piranhas, as we all know it, do chew on human flesh. However, if this were to happen in real life, surely we won't find people screaming as they did. Most people will generally faint from the shock before they can even scream. Some shark attack survivors also claim that they don't feel any pain at all when their limbs are bitten off because the body goes into such state of shock that it doesn't know how to react anymore. Oh well, I can't say I didn't enjoy all that drama though.

3.5 stars  

Reign of Assassins, Buried, Chen Zhen

Long delayed movie reviews.. lol... Certainly, this streak of lousy movies isn't making me excited to blog about it.

Reign of Assassins
Watched this movie at GV Vivocity and there was what seemed like a 3-min delay in screening. During that time, all of us were sitting there waiting patiently in total darkness. The great thing about it is, we were all given complimentary movie passes by GV management as a form of apology. And that's good because, I didn't think it was worth it to pay $7 to watch this movie at all. All I can say is, this movie is very average by standard. There was nothing particularly appealing about it. I probably wouldn't even watch it if it's free. Time is precious!

2.5 stars

Buried
I think most of us in the audience thought there was a technical fault at the beginning of the screening. Apparently, this is how the movie starts- in total darkness. After that, you start hearing some heavy breathing. And then you see a dim light which goes on and off. And it practically stays like that for the rest of the movie. I couldn't believe how budget this is. I thought they would at least do some flashbacks to show what happen etc. Coincidentally, about a week before watching this, I was watching an old episode of CSI where one of the leads was kidnapped and buried alive 6 feet underground in a glass coffin, and I have to say it was one of the best episodes of CSI. This movie here could have turned out much better. I think one person said it best,"This movie has no head and no tail."

2 stars

Legend of the Fist: Chen Zhen
What a disappointment. I know now not to trust that every Donnie Yen movie is a good one. I was told that this is a true story. But looking at the way the story played out, I wasn't sure how much of it is actually true. Lousy script aside, too much of the action looks too similar to that in Ip Man. And in a few scenes, Donnie Yen actually made that Bruce Lee trademark shriek. I was shivering in disgust. Ew. More originality please.

2 stars

Stool Pigeon

Stool Pigeon
This movie is about how the HongKong Police uses Stool Pigeons (usually commoners/ex-criminals) to act as spies for them in triads/drug rings. This is an extremely dangerous job, where once caught, death is almost a certainty. However, these people, untrained and all, do it because they don't have a choice. The HongKong Police would resort to blackmailing them if they want to back out, and the Police don't always honour their cash agreement, which is essentially making these people risk their lives for nothing. This movie portrays the struggles of stool pigeons, and how a police officer who deals with them copes with his moral conscience.

I didn't like this movie very much to begin with. Why use commoners to do the job? Whatever happened to undercover agents, infiltrators, and high-tech spying gadgets? Not only is the HongKong Police (in this movie) inefficient, they also lack moral conscience and have a brain the size of a pea. Let Jack Bauer show them how to catch these amateur gangsters.

3 stars

Grown Ups

Grown Ups
I'm not a fan of Adam Sandler. Felt that his past few movies comedies are, ironically, not funny. However, Grown Ups kinda gave me a renewed perspective of an Adam Sandler comedy. It is light-hearted and hilarious, and has a pretty good plot backing it. I thought it was funny to see grown ups acting like kids as they reflected on their childhood. The act itself is funny, but it's something we can relate to as well. Loved the drama and the jokes.

4 stars

Liar Game: The Final Stage

Liar Game: The Final Stage
This movie is based on the Japanese TV series, Liar Game. Liar Game is a fictional game which involves the art of deception. In the game, participants tried to cheat their way to earning millions, and those failing to do so (aka got cheated), will have a debt equivalent to their losses, which they must pay, without failure, to the LGT (organisers of the game). Season 1 of the TV series shows participants competing in Round 1 to Round 3 of the game. Season 2, Round 4 and semifinal. The movie, final stage as the name suggests. Watching the first 2 seasons of Liar Game before watching the movie will certainly help you understand some little details, but it is not necessary to understand the movie. In fact, the movie is exactly like how the TV episodes are filmed- like a 2 hour special. Since the movie is just like another TV episode, I'd comment on Liar Game as a whole.

I thought there was way too much hype over it then it deserved. Liar Game is all about mind games and a foolish girl's dream for "world peace", or Utopia, whatever, a place where everybody can live happily ever after, no lies, no cheating, faith and trust. What I like about LG is that some of the tricks they used in the games are pretty cool and sometimes fun. What I did not like, is that the tricks are kind of predictable, sometimes too obvious to the point where I feel like they are constantly dropping hints. If I made the effort to think about those hints, it wouldn't be hard to pull off an Akiyama. What I really really hate, is Kanzaki Nao's pure stupidity. Seriously, she should wake up her idea. If not for "heavenly intervention" (aka scriptwriters), she would have lost long ago, carrying the burden of everyone's debt. Yet now suddenly she's like an angel who came down from heaven to save mankind. Kanzaki Nao annoys me. I wish this character is killed off. Just like Tweety Bird.

3 stars

Aftershock

Aftershock
This movie is based on the 1976 Tangshan earthquake. The event is real but the story is fictional. During the earthquake, a young girl and her twin brother were trapped under a huge concrete slab. Rescue workers told their mother that she can only choose to save one, as lifting the slab on one side would crush the other. The mother chose to save the boy and this conversation was overheard by the girl. Miraculously, the girl survived but suffers from the painful memory of her mother's decision. She left Tangshan to be under the care of her foster parents, who thought she was orphaned. 32 years later, Tangshan was met with another earthquake and the girl went back to help the rescue workers. Coincidentally, her twin brother was also there and she overheard his conversation about how their mother had suffered emotionally all these years from having to make that decision. She finds forgiveness in her mother and was reunited with her family.

I thought this movie was very touching and the performance by the leads was praise-worthy. However, I thought it lacked a certain oomph factor to be deserving of a 4 stars.

3.5 stars  

Salt

Salt
One word: Huh? Yep. My reaction at the end of the movie. Although I didn't pay for the movie ticket, I feel like I've been robbed of 8 bucks. First of all, what is with the mysterious "Who Is Salt" tagline? It was pretty clear to me who she was from the start so I don't get the hoo-ha about that. Secondly, 100 mins for an action movie? Are you kidding me? Salt has a storyline that is generally acceptable for most people. But the action scenes are really fake. Unless she's spiderwoman or is wearing some suction pads, I don't think anyone can really scale a wall 15 storeys above ground without having anything to hold on to. Lastly, the movie ended so abruptly, I'm like, what, it's over already? Having said that, Angelina Jolie played her role brilliantly. I couldn't think of anyone else who can pull it off like she did.  

3 stars

Letters to God

Letters to God
This is based on a true story about 8-year old Tyler who was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, Tyler looks at life positively, believing that God sent him to be a spiritual warrior. Everyday, he writes a letter to God as a prayer for himself and for the people around him. These letters soon reached out to the people he wrote about. Word spread, and thousands of people came to know about Tyler and his letters to God. Tyler taught everyone that, in whatever circumstances you may find yourself in, you can always find strength and hope in God.  

This is a truly inspiring story. I must admit a shed quite a bit of tears watching this, and there hasn't a movie which made me cry the way I did in a long while. Tyler makes me want to write a letter to God too!

5 stars

Repo Men

Repo Men
Repo Men is set in the future where people use artificial organs as a desperate means of survival, and these organs are charged at exorbitant prices, often unaffordable for most people. As a result, the Union (the company who runs this program) sends Repo Men to repossess these organs. What these men do is to chase after these "debtors" who are way past their due dates and cut them up to retrieve their organs. How is this even legal? And why does the movie make it look like it's legal? So you can break into people's house, cut them up, take their organs and leave them on their own to die?

I did not expect the movie to turn out the way it did. Certainly did not appreciate the gore and violence. Nor the twist at the end of the movie. What really puzzles me is the scene where Jude Law and his mate were cutting themselves up and scanning their organs when they had no way of escape at all. How does this even help to eliminate the system?  May I also note that while they were cutting themselves up, they also found time to make out?!

This is an absolutely bizarre film. It's an interesting idea, but it lacks depth and realism. And it also left me wondering what's the whole point of it all.

2.5 stars 

Inception

Inception
Another mind-boggling movie by Christopher Nolan (director of The Dark Knight), starring Leonardo Dicaprio as the lead. As always, Leonardo Dicaprio pulls off his role quite nicely. He's great with psycho films. Inception is about getting into people's dreams, planting or stealing an idea, to make the "victim" think that their dreams are actually a reality. It is an interesting concept, though very unrealistic. I like how the story unfolds, including Leonardo's mini-episode with his wife. Nice movie but try not to think too much about it because it will drive you crazy. haha.

3.5 stars

Despicable Me

Despicable Me
I see that there are 2 extremes to general opinions of this movie. Either you love it, or you hate it. Well, for me, I'm leaning more on the 'like' side. Despicable Me is fun and cute. The initial part of the story could be a bit boring to some, but as the story develops further, it becomes somewhat funny and heartwarming. Unfortunately, it is also very cliche and predictable. Great animation. Just need a bit more creativity.

3.5 stars

Sorority Row

Sorority Row
I would never have guessed that this is a thriller, and the story revolves around an accidental murder. Based on the title, I thought it would be something like Mean Girls. Couldn't be more wrong! The murders were gory, the plot unrealistic and boring. The acting was bad, and there was little to look forward to. This is one movie you don't wanna waste your time watching.

1.5 stars

Ecplise

Eclipse
Once again, a movie from the Twilight Saga left me wondering what's the hype about it. Kristen Stewart's acting is as bad as usual. And Robert Pattinson was just plain awful. The only people probably worth looking out for are Taylor Lautner and Dakota Fanning. Maybe Kristen and Robert should pick up some acting tips from their juniors.

I can't complain about the story, because apparently, this movie did not do the book any justice. What I can say though, is that, the movie was so boring that I nearly fell asleep. Probably the most exciting part of the movie (if I can call it exciting), is when the werewolves and vampires team up to fight against the evil newborns. But even that is too short-lived.

2.5 stars   

The Legend Is Born: Ip Man

The Legend Is Born: Ip Man
2 main characters in this movie portrayed different roles in the other 2 Ip Man movies, hence their characters are not to be confused! Initially, I wasn't quite keen on the idea that the producers are not using Donnie Yen for this prequel. After watching, I'm like, hey this guy (his replacement) is good too (whoever he is, apparently some martial art champion). The action scenes are great but I can't help feeling that the story is a little too made-up.

3.5 stars

A-Team

A-Team
Yet another movie about a highly specialised team of combat soldiers with superhuman abilities to avoid death. This movie has TOO much action packed into it. Too much stuff going on, too many unrealistic moments (ever heard of tank-flying?). I did enjoy some bits of it, but I guess the highlight of it was that there was an Indian man in our theater snoring REALLY loudly. LOL.

3.5 stars

Karate Kid

The Karate Kid
(Watched this at GV @ KLCC for only RM9. Woot!)
Kh reckons this is better than Ip Man. I love Ip Man and Ip Man 2, but I think I'll have to agree. The difference is this movie is set in a modern setting, meaning we get to see current and fantastic scenery of China- love the old-looking neighbourhood, the temple-like school architecture, kungfu on the top of the Great Wall of China- and most of all, all of the great action scenes are done by KIDS. I'm glad Jackie Chan has learned to step aside and let the younger generation take over. And also this is probably the first movie which wasn't about him, and didn't show him getting involve with a young and pretty woman. +20 points for him- he's earned some of my respect back. Look at all that muscle packed on that kid Jaden. Impressive kid. Great acting, great kungfu. Will Smith must have taught his son well.

4 stars