reviewId int64 363k 588k | userId int64 33.9k 15.9M | itemId int64 1 1.42M | rating float64 1 10 | title stringlengths 1 10.9k ⌀ | content stringlengths 81 11.6k ⌀ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
514,772 | 317,399 | 1,260,937 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Cheer Cheer Cheer ! | Cheer Cheer Cheer ! is your typical zero to hero student based movie , as the formula never ceases to churn out stories but under different student groups . My personal favourites to date have been Swing Girls and Water Boys , and although Cheer Cheer Cheer ! has much of the formula applied , it still falls short of becoming great . Momoko Momoyama ( Yui Aragaki ) is a romance novel buff , and one day she got hit by a baseball thrown by star player Hideki Oshima , who's also the school heartthrob . Infatuated with him , she starts to try out for the school baseball team , and the cheerleading team to cheer the baseball players on , but unfortunately just sucks at both . Undeterred , she befriends Ryutaro ( Kento Nagayama ) and becomes one of two members of the traditional cheer squad in the school . Mind you this is no pom-pom girls with short skirts twirling batons . I too wasn't aware that such a curricular activity exists until this movie opened my eyes to it . It involves some really structured shouting of slogans , foot drills , drum beats and flag waving , where booming voice is required to inspire fellow cheer members , and extended members made up of the general school population . The band of five have an arsenal of cheers to choose from , which sometimes involves very specific invocation of appropriate cheers that seem to incorporate some of the unorthodox such as the powers of Heaven , Earth and Heart . So formula dictates that both Ryutaro and Momoko have to round up the misfits and outcast and convince them of the virtues of devoting time to their cause in a recruitment drive , before realizing that they indeed are ill-prepared for the challenge ahead . At this stage you can insert as many stereotypical jokes of geeks in school being bullied by the alpha-counterparts . The makeshift team once assembled , can't cheer to save their own lives , and get external help comes in the form of alumni cheer squad members who don't want the latest edition of the cheer squad to ruin the art , and thus enlist them in a boot camp at a beach temple , much to the school children's dislike . While there are comedic scenes to pepper the montage of training sequences , and fun analogies on tradition and rationale behind such an activity , it does get a little too repetitive , and especially struggling through since this aspect forms the bulk of the movie , before devoting approximately 30 minutes for the finale . These long training scenes sagged the middle portion , which treaded on aspects such as walking the talk , and to find true meaning in the role they are about to perform . It's the usual building of the team spirit , and you somehow just can't wait for them to graduate so that they can show off their new found confidence and skills . The choreographed cheer of the Sakuragi school is indeed something to behold , but there seemed to be a distinct lack of fresh ideas , thus lapsing quite frequently into things we've already seen before . The individual actors ' charisma also helped to ensure that one-dimensional characters are quickly addressed , and each of the actors bring something different to the table in their respective roles . Don't expect anything special to be conjured , though the trailer did make it look as if there would be some street-fighter syled special effects that will be incorporated into the fight . If anything , this film is recommended to those who are new to the zero-to-hero genre and storyline , or those who don't mind spending time watching the tried and tested , with little adventure outside the genre's comfort zone . |
515,403 | 317,399 | 384,793 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) Accepted | The premise of this film is as ludicrous as it sounds , but I guess it takes a lot to try and mold a character into the next Ferris Bueller or Van Wilder . Justin Long stars as Bartleby Gaines , and the name will already tell you that it's not catchy enough with certain vibes as to the quality of this teenage comedy dwelling on the fantasies of students who well , don't meet the grade to further their studies . Justin Long seemed to languish in the doldrums and perhaps one of the few actors these days to seem satisfied with taking on rather mediocre roles , considering that he did headline flicks such as Jeepers Creepers , partnered Bruce Willis in Die Hard 4 , and had a whole hosts of supporting roles in movies , but still is unable to truly make everyone sit up , still waiting for that breakthrough role that other guys ( such as one called Shia ) have all the luck for . Some guys get all the luck as the song goes , while others just have to make do and wait for their time . And of course , the role of Bartleby Gaines is perfect for Long , given the character waits and gets rejected by just about every school out there , only for him to hatch a hare brain idea to start his own university , so that he can shake his parents off his back . With the help of good friend Sherman Schrader ( Jonah Hill , being incredibly fat here ) , they start a university aptly abbreviated as - South Harmon Institute of Technology , only that there's no proper support structure and administrative function , and what they think was just an empty shell in order to pull off their bluff . But of course , for a comedy to function , they soon realize that their website attracted like-minded and students facing similar rejections with no school to belong to , and with hundreds of students paying 10 grand each for an education , why not make the best of it ? It's a comparison on what real life is , and what the fantasized version has the potential to become , in being able to learn what you want to learn , and given plenty of room to experiment . It goes a long way in showcasing how everyone in charge of their own destiny , can actually benefit from taking a keen interest to further their respective expertise and skills in areas not taught solely in books , and frankly speaking , are able to excel by working on their strengths . Don't expect the usual slapstick or outright comedy here , as it does provide some food for thought , but only quite . It's really a juvenile story suitable for a lazy evening , as you partake in the dreams of a slacker who makes good his unintended promise to educate himself and his peers . Generally acceptable , but not great . The bare bones Code 3 DVD by Universal Home Video comes presented in anamorphic widescreen and audio is available in either English , Spanish or Portuguese Dolby Digital 5 . 1 . Subtitles are available in English , Spanish , Portuguese , Chinese , Cantonese and Korean , and has scene selection available over 16 chapters . |
515,317 | 317,399 | 412,019 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Broken Flowers | Folks from my generation will always associate Bill Murray with Mr-stay-calm-know-it-all Peter Venkman from Ghostbusters , along with fellow comedians and collaborators Dan Ackroyd and Harold Ramis . Of late , he has been playing nonchalant characters , and probably would be better remembered for his role in Lost in Translation opposite Scarlett Johansson . Maybe it's his style , that he projects he's sleepwalking through his roles , And this written-for-him role in Broken Flowers as Don Johnson , oops , I mean Don Johnston ( with a T , there's a running joke about the Miami Vice fella ) , a Don Juan type character , seems to have cemented that opinion . Don changes girlfriends like he changes his underwear . Not that he wants to , but his character makes him a difficult person to be with . We're led to believe that he has made enough from his computer business , and is in semi-retirement mode , doing nothing but watch television at the comfort of his home . His latest squeeze , played by Julie Delpy , has left him ( gee what a cameo ) , and so did countless others before her . But the pace picks up slightly ( it moves terribly slow throughout the movie ) when he receives a pink envelope , and inside a typewritten note , telling him that he has a son from an affair twenty years ago , and that son is now on a road trip looking for his father . However , the writer doesn't sign off , there is no return address , and the postmark is faded . Putting it off as a prank , Don's best friend Winston ( Jeffrey Wright ) tries so hard to infuse interest and curiosity into Don ( he's always putting on the deadpan facial expression ) , before Don finally , and reluctantly , accepts the itinerary given to him . Which is to revisit his old flames from around that time , to determine if they have in possession a typewriter , which probably was used to type that anonymous letter . You might think that the premise is interesting , though nothing new , like Chris O'Donnell's The Bachelor , or John Cusack's High Fidelity , where the protagonist revisits his ex-lovers to discover various happenings and encounter various weird situations . Here , we have a load of talent playing Don's girlfriends from the past , like Sharon Stone , Frances Conroy , Jessica Lange , and even Tilda Swinton ( the White Witch from Narnia ) with dark hair . Winner of Cannes Film Festival 2005 , be warned that this film is an acquired taste , and may not appeal or be enjoyed by many . Firstly , the pacing is slow . There are plenty of moments where the plot doesn't propel forward , and shots just stay where they are . Almost every transition from scene to scene utilizes the fade-to-black technique , and each scene is surprisingly short . Perhaps these techniques fit the Don character like a glove , highlighting his short relationships with each girl , and his indifference to the outcome of each relation . We see that each girl has moved on with her life , some married , some having children , some already successful in their business , and all totally in contrast with Don's laid back character . It is during these scenes of character interaction that we get to experience some comedy , otherwise the other half of the time , we see the usual repetitive shots in airplanes or inside a Ford Taurus , as if to highlight the monotony of travelling alone . Though it's rated NC-16 for some nudity here , the only nudity you get is from a character called Lolita ( Alexis Dziena , who plays Sharon Stone's daughter ) , and that's only a butt-shot . The entire scene ( which I think is full frontal ) gets edited out , and along goes the dialogue with it , which somehow screws up the entire episode . There are nuances and implications towards the end of that particular visit which will make you go " Huh ? " . Pity . Given the crowd in today's screening , I don't think an M18 or R21 is gonna hurt box office takings ( school's reopening as well ) . Now , with that bad edit , I'm sure many will steer clear . The ending is open ended , and is totally up to your interpretation . My take would be that while one half of the mystery is solved ( or perceived to be solved ) , the other half of the mystery is still out there . And by leaving it as such , it paves way for discussion , which always enrich the experience of watching a movie . |
514,757 | 317,399 | 1,182,972 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Bachna Ae Hasseno | Ranbir Kapoor in his debut leading man role as Ranbir in Saawariya , didn't have the luck to snag the lady of his dreams , maybe because he was kind of a cad too , where karma had a part to return and haunt him . In his second feature film here , his Raj Sharma is again a cad , and credits himself being a " lady killer " , able to woo any woman when he turns on his charms . We journey with him as he learns the true meaning of romance and love , and the first half of the movie before the intermission , gives the audience three situations over the course of 11 years where he toys with the emotions of different girls , broadly the sweet , sexy and sassy type , until of course , Karma catches up with him again for that all important lesson . Girl 1 : Sweet . 1996 . Switzerland . In what would seem like a Before Sunrise storyline , Raj meets Mahi ( Minissha Lamba ) on board a Euro-train , and engineers his way to be able to spend time alone with his mark , on the pretext of sending her to Zurich to reunite with her family for their trip back to India . This episode sets the stage for Raj as the manipulative casanova , while Mahi is a very girly girl who harbours dreams of that perfect man , the perfect romantic encounter , and that perfect romance coming out just like her favourite movie . Only to discover that her puppy love , with sweet nothings and dedicated poems , resulted to naught when Raj's game is exposed . Broken Heart 1 . Girl 2 : Sexy . 2002 . Mumbai . Raj seemed to have moved on to another target , though it may seem from the onset he's already been domesticated by Radhika ( Bipasha Basu from Dhoom 2 ) , a hot model and aspiring actress who's his neighbour and they're living in together . Raj would have thought that a woman like her , stereotyped of course , would be easy and loose , living the fast life , and wouldn't want to be tied down to marriage because it will hamper her career . So when an opportunity to work in Sydney comes knocking and presents itself as a perfect moment to ditch her , to his surprise Radhika contemplates marriage , which he tries wholeheartedly to avoid . She's willing to sacrifice her career for him , but suffers the unthinkable in being left at the altar . Broken Heart 2 . Girl 3 : Sassy . 2007 . Sydney . It's actually quite a no-brainer to cast Deepika Padukone here given that she too , like Ranbir Kapoor , had 1 feature film under her belt , and are relatively successful newcomers to the industry ( her first effort was in Om Shanti Om , and more recently , Chandni Chowk to China ) . And ( ok Gossipy news ahead ) this film actually was the catalyst for their much touted romance ( and you can see the dynamics at work with some of the behind the scenes and interviews included in the 2nd disc ) . Anyway her role here as Gayatri , a business school student who works her way through school as a supermarket check out girl and a taxi driver , impresses Raj a lot , enough to romance her in Venice , and give up his gallivanting ways . Only of course for him to have met his match , and got spurned on his marriage proposal . She's a modern girl wanting to live life on her own terms , so being someone else's wife has never featured in her plans . What goes around finally comes around . Broken Heart 3 . Raj's . While the first half of the movie before the intermission was pretty plain sailing romantic stuff , the second half proved to be more powerful , because the protagonist finally has his eyes opened by his new experience , and realized he's been quite a bastard . So off he goes to make amends with the girls whose hearts he had broken , and mind you , in both real and reel life , this is never easy . Especially when you have to go back and face the women who had one point in time truly love you , and your actions had single handedly destroyed their belief in romance , and change or scar them for life . We get a lot more jet-setting as well , all worked into the plot , such as the visits to Amritsar , Capri and Rome , as we follow Raj on his mission impossible to seek redemption and forgiveness from a housewife with a protective husband , and another who's now a renowned model with success to her head . I had enjoyed this section more because trying his best to be honest now , Raj has to strip his ego and really crack his head to device his forgiveness plan . Also , we get to see the different demeanours that both Bipasha Basu and Minissha Lamba had to tackle given their characters ' failed romance with Raj , which had changed them either for the better , or worse . The songs here proved to be catchy and fitting to each of the sweet , sexy and sassy persona that the girls bring to the table , and the beautiful locales they were shot in again were draws . Other than the very first musical number Bachna Ae Haseeno which opens the film , you don't get to see everybody on the same scene together , as each storyline took place under mutually exclusive terms , in timeline as well as locations . If there's something to take away from the film , then it's the lesson that Raj learns , with the past being over and there's no longer control over it , but we can rectify things for the future if we take action in the present . Call me a sentimental fool , but somehow this works on me . |
514,485 | 317,399 | 375,210 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : White Noise | I skipped this in the cinemas for the sole reason that the trailer spooked me out ( hears chants of " chicken " ) but I grabbed this DVD when I saw it at the library , because partly I'm curious about the phenomenon , and partly because it's a long time since I last saw Michael Keaton on screen , given that not all his works , scarce they may be , make it here to Singapore ( the last perhaps could be either this , or the new Herbie movie starring Lindsay Lohan , which I also passed over ) . And I was pleasantly surprised at the way this movie turned out to be . EVP , or Electronic Voice Phenomenon , may be poo-pooed by skeptics , but the believers actually in all earnestness think they are assisting grieved folks in seeking the closure they are looking for . And their craft , though not perfect , does seem to take up enormous amounts of time in recording , playback and various digital manipulation ( hence throwing the doors open that it's subject to meddling ) . But if for one second , you were to believe it to be true , what then , as you'll probably be spooked out by that possible whisper not within natural audibility , as and when the hair on your back stands . It might seem like a dabbling with the occult , akin to the Ouija board where you communicate with spirits deliberately to seek answers , and get a response through the movement of a pointer on a board . You'll never escape from either skepticism , or warnings not to participate in games like these , because while there are benign spirits ( if you were to believe ) in the mold of Casper , then there would be those which are nasty and send you not too sublime , threatening messages to put you at your place . Michael Keaton plays an established architect Jonathan Rivers , who lost his beloved writer wife Anna Rivers ( Chandra West ) . Looking for closure , he takes up a chance offering by a stranger Raymond Price ( Ian McNeice ) , who exposes him to the world of EVP , and assists him in trying to open the doors of communication to the other / nether side . We follow in Jonathan's quest to get out of his grief , and dive into his obsession to reach out . But alas while the messages start to come through , they seem to be messages of instructions , and this makes him a little bewildered as to what's happening , as well as getting interference from some shadowy figures who seem to want to stop him . It's easy to understand why this movie wasn't well received , because of the subject matter , and how it all played out to the end . I thought it presented a thriller-mystery relatively well , combined with some elements of the supernatural , without much unnecessary jinks to try and throw you off the track . It's simple in delivery , and effective as well , though it didn't really take a stand on EVP . Also , some might find fault as to say that it really isn't a movie about EVP to begin with , as it skews a little on the phenomenon , but to that I say , whatever it takes to make an entertaining movie . Much of the movie hinged on Michael Keaton's performance , and it was nice to see him in a lead role again . When you talk about dark obsession , then he's the man , ever since he convinced fanboys that he's the right choice for the Dark Knight . Sharing screen time with him is Deborah Kara Unger as the bookstore owner Sarah , who's also a recent convert to EVP , and who finds herself intricately linked to Jonathan's quest and EVP findings . It might not deliver enough to spook you out , but in my opinion , it deserved to be rated far better than it was . |
515,514 | 317,399 | 483,726 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Man of the Year | Imagine the likes of popular talk show hosts becoming the most powerful man on Earth . What do you think of the Lettermans and the Renos taking over the Oval Office ? Will their humour and mass appeal pull in the votes , and give them enough to win ? Or will they be in the mix solely for entertainment value , unable to put on the table serious issues that the fate of the country depends on ? There was a line used in the movie , which I thought was so true . The " perception of legitimacy is more important than legitimacy itself " . Like giving hope when you know things are rigged ( which in my opinion , every lottery is ) , that statement forms the crux in the story , and brings to mind whistle blowing events in recent history , and the effort taken to silence critics and detractors . Nothing reeks more than dirty politics , where it seems like the only way to play the game , and having no place for an honest man . Written and directed by Barry Levinson , the story is layered somewhat with some exploration into dirty corporations and ethics , or the lack thereof , and looks at the current political system in the US ( though the thoughts shared could be modified for almost every democratic election campaign ) , that candidates chalk up huge campaign funds , and where does the money come from ? The supporters of course , those who can contribute , and the unsaid word being some expected favours should be returned when the horse they back crosses the finishing line in first place . I'm a fan of Robin Williams , so Man of the Year was a no-brainer must watch for me . However , Williams did seem to be quite restrained in the introduction , where as political talk show host Tom Dobbs , he entertains the masses through his television show , produced by a very capable team behind him , led by manager Jack Menken ( Christopher Walken , in a role that fit him to a T ) . He jumps into the campaign trial by announcing his candidacy during one of his shows , and unlike his screen persona , he led the charge with a stoic nature , bringing up ( boring ) bread and butter issues as his agenda , repeating his mantra that he doesn't serve special interest groups like the others , but serves the common folk . But of course , don't expect Williams to be gagged for too long . As the strategy isn't working , he had to adopt his persona to engage audiences , and that's when the fun starts , with his poking fun at himself , the political system , and the process . There were genuinely funny bits , spread throughout the movie , though most seemed to have been centered within his awakened election strategy , and sadly too , only in a montage of sorts . And yes , do expect some parts to be censored as he crosses lines deemed to sensitive by the censors here . Accompanied by a great soundtrack ( you have to pay attention ! ) , it was the attempt to actually layer the story that seemed to dragged much of the pace . Without going into details , it had to do with the concerns for electronic voting , as well as a romance bit with Laura Linney's Eleanor Green , the system developer , that wasn't convincing enough , and sagged , as it can't decide if it wanted to be a romance , or a conspiracy action thriller , well you get the drift . Jeff Goldblum plays a supporting role here as a corrupt legal adviser , again in a stereotypical role that condemns company lawyers as conniving , sneaky and dishonourable . All in all , it's still an enjoyable movie not without its flaws , but for a rainy evening , something good enough to sit through while you wait out the rain . |
515,109 | 317,399 | 479,952 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Madagascar : Escape 2 Africa | Ben Stiller , Chris Rock , David Schwimmer and Jada Pinkett Smith are back in their animated animal roles which 3 years ago saw their zoo animals being transported to Madagascar in a typical fish out of water tale , where they had to rely on their street smarts and friendship to survive in an environment they do not fully understand . While it's the usual pop-culture jokes and witty one liners that plague recent animated films , there were some gems in that movie , the ones which stuck suck as the crowd favourite penguins stealing the whole show , as well as the madcap rave party tune Move It ! Beginning directly where we last saw Alex the Lion ( Stiller ) , Marty the Zebra ( Rock ) , Melman the Giraffe ( Schwimmer ) and Gloria the Hippo ( Smith ) , the penguins have finally built a plane that ought to bring our merry crew back to New York , together with Julien the lemur ( Sacha Baron Cohen ) and his sidekick ( Cedric the Entertainer ) , but of course should that happen , there'll be no sequel to begin with . So we have the crew crash land into the continent Africa , thereby guaranteeing yet another tale of being from the outside , but now having a habitat that's much closer to their natural environment , one which sees the animal types in question grouped together into one reserve for storytelling convenience . Directed by Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath , who also provided the voice of Skipper the head penguin , the storyline might seem like a poor man's cousin to Disney's The Lion King , what with exiles and alpha-lions battling it out to be king of the habitat . The filmmakers had taken the opportunity to craft the backstory for Alex a little more , so that the main plot of his return to his home could be dwelled upon , with sub plots for the others to fall into place . You have Alex's return and reunion with his parents , with adversary coming from an earlier generation , there's Marty who discovers that he's no longer unique but the same as every other hundredth zebra out there , Glora looking for love with other hippos now that there's no lack of suitors , and Melman fighting his own cowardice to reveal his feelings for Gloria , as well as being appointed the witch doctor for the land . And if you think that the primary voice cast is already A-list , the film piles on to that list with the likes of the late Bernie Mac voicing Zuba the alpha-lion , Alec Baldwin again in a villainous role as his rival Makunga , and Will . i . am of Black Eyed Peas in a hilarious role of hippo-Casanova Moto Moto ( the name's so good you have to say it twice ! ) The songs department falls up a bit short this time round , though thankfully " Move It ! " wasn't conveniently and lazily played ad-nauseam . Given the army of illustrators working on the project , you can't expect quality to drop from its predecessor , though there's nothing new to be injected into a mature presentation . Despite the plundering of the same old family values / theme / storyline and the importance of establishing strong friendships , this new Madagascar managed to deliver on multiple fronts , joining the ranks of the few whose sequels are superior than the original . The comedy which got piled up here managed to work through the punchlines , leading to a number of characters like the monkeys and even the tough-cookie granny to steal some limelight from the lovable penguins . If you liked the original , then you'e likely to fall in love with this one . |
514,656 | 317,399 | 281,912 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Hock Hiap Leong | The title of Royston Tan's short film refers to a coffeeshop by that name , which has since closed its doors . Like an ode to the shop and its owners / stallholders , memories of the 60s heydays are brought back in a song-and-dance routine which includes the beehives and a-go-go moves . The beginning looked similar to Moveable Feast , with its protagonist taking in the sights and sounds of the aged-old coffeeshop , and laughter abound when he breaks into a song , complete with high pitched girlie voice , kinda like a bollywood movie with numerous male and female dancers going through their paces in the cramped setting . Enjoyable short clip , leaving you wanting more . |
515,435 | 317,399 | 359,513 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Appassionata | The Japanese Film Festival this year had a number of biographies in its lineup because of its theme , and it's no surprise that Appassionata falls into this category , telling a summarized life story of Japan's female painter Uemura Shoen , who was the first woman to have earned the Order of Culture , Japan's highest award for cultural achievement . Most of the narrative had focused on her humble beginnings , and it went as far back as tracing her mother's roots , as it is this relationship between mother and child that also took the spotlight . Born Tsuya Shinamura ( Yuko Natori ) , her talent for painting was discovered at a young age , and was brought under the tutelage of renowned artist Shokei Takagi ( Kei Sato ) , who in a scene , was shown to be capable of painting 1000 drawings in a marathon session , using only black ink and a thick brush . And while Tsuya herself begin to win awards for her works , tongues get wagging that she's sleeping her way to the top of her game . Now this is something that did seem a little strange and I felt was left ambiguous at best , because a most it's only an allegation , which the story and the film took and ran with it . On one hand it showed that Tsuya had every opportunity to escape the indecent proposal , but she didn't , and in the ensuing " rape " scene , might seem to have enjoyed ( ? ! ) it knowing very well what it can do for her career . But I would prefer to have looked at another angle , that she had no choice , given the circumstances of the society of the time , where women were characteristically submissive and have absolutely no say whatsoever in society , most of the time looked upon for sexual favours . She's stuck in a damn-if-you-do-or-don't situation , unfortunately . And Shokei was a man you'd love to hate , right down to the core . Without a doubt the central " villain " , here's a man who had abused his position , status and power , to satisfy his lust . A liar and a man of questionable honour , these are the kinds of folks that any society just can't seem to get rid of . Each time Kei Sato appeared on screen , trust me , I swore and cursed at his character . But it's not just about these sexual dalliances . What was more powerful here were the themes of family , love and forgiveness . Society at the time dictates that family is of utmost importance , and chastity is held in high regard . Illegitimate children born out of wedlock is perhaps one of the greatest sins that a woman can commit , and here , the emotional tussle between Tsuya and her mother Sei ( Mariko Okada ) was the best amongst all the scenes in the movie . It's never easy for a single parent ( already a handicap in Japanese society , without a man as the head of the household ) to raise children on her own , and what more when additional , unnecessary challenges present themselves , one which bring shame to family and ancestors ? The themes of love , and forgiveness , especially in the finale , will probably move you , after all , blood is thicker than water . Jo No Mai refers to the dance of a young geisha , one of the more prominent works of Uemura Shoen , and in this movie , most of the award winning paintings were up on display for the audience to gain a slight introduction to her collection of paintings . What I thought was quite sad was that in order to earn a living and make money when turned away by most people , she had to resort to compromising her philosophy for the art by degrading her works into erotic pornography in order to make a quick buck . Desperate times call for desperate measures , but s till , it's quite sorrowful . |
515,314 | 317,399 | 120,714 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) The Interview ( 1998 ) | Most audiences around the world would by now know who Austrialian actor Hugo Weaving is , after appearing in big budgeted Hollywood trilogies like The Matrix and The Lord of the Rings . The Interview presents one of his earlier works in an Australian film , and my , does he show off his acting chops in this . Hugo Weaving plays Eddie Fleming , a simple man whose just been retrenched from his job , separated from his wife and living off state welfare . The film begins with him being literally yanked off his sofa chair at home , when the cops barge in and arrested him with strong arm tactics . Later he's told , that he's in for a car jacking incident . However , Fleming pleads innocence to chief interrogator John Steele ( played superbly too by Australian actor Tony Martin ) , who has a reputation of solving crimes , regardless of the methods used . It's one man against the other , as Fleming initially begins as an innocent helpless man , clueless to why he's bring held in a police station , undergoing an interrogation . As we go along , we see a power play between the two men , as each try to gain one up against the other . We start to question Fleming's innocence , as he begins to drop various hints that he might be involved in the crime Steele is investigating , and perchance , might be the serial killer Steele is looking for . The tension built between the two is tremendous , and both hold court against each other . Also added to the subplot is the exploration of ethics into Steele's techniques , and the politics of policing , investigations and the conducting of interrogations and interviews . It's excellent storytelling if you're willing to put up with little or no action , but laden with plenty of insightful dialogue . Weaving adds a beautiful dimension to the character of Fleming - innocent man , guilty sinner , schizophrenic , or just manipulator ? You'll also learn a bit about the Australian police and justice process at the evidence gathering stage , and one in which Fleming takes advantage of quite skillfully . So for fans of Hugo Weaving , you might want to pick up this DVD to check out his performance . This Code 1 DVD contains the theatrical trailer , cast biographies , cast interviews with Hugo Weaving and Tony Martin , an audio commentary by the director / writer Craig Mohanan , and deleted scenes , one of which features an alternative ending . |
515,275 | 317,399 | 193,458 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Orphan | As a fan of Bruce Lee , I've seen his landmark movies countless of times , from The Big Boss right up until Game of Death . However , he's appeared in non martial arts roles before , and I wouldn't have missed the festival's screening of The Orphan for the world , being projected in 35mm glory from the Hong Kong Film Archives , though with some colour correction irregularities that had the film sitting in a lab for 30 years . But that's another story altogether . The first few minutes already got my interest piqued , not because my idol had appeared , but for its documentary value in seeing Hong Kong in the 60s , fronted by an almost unrecognizable harbour front . Outdoor shots though were few and far between throughout the movie , and for a 60s movie like the locally made Lion City , one chief reason besides nostalgia , is to gawk at how advanced a city has progressed through the lens of a movie camera . I thought something of value here , which I wasn't aware , was how even Dragon Dance has evolved ? it wasn't as if the entire dragon piece was stitched together in one seamless fabric , but was rather quite fragmented , with sections of the head to the body connected by rope , looking as if it was a really nasty and mean looking creature with protruding skeletal structure . Interesting . The story wasn't something to shout about , largely centered upon a director of an orphanage school , Ho Si-Kei ( played by Ng Cho-fan , who also wrote the story ) , who had lost his family during the war , where the daughter and wife perished from a collapsing wall , and the son and nanny disappeared , whereabouts unknown . While he may have lost his family , in return he got a new one through his care of the many orphans in the school . It's not that difficult to see that the film was intended to address some of society's ills and indifference , especially to youth and youth crimes . There was lengthy discourse between characters about what affluent society should do to attempt to arrest the root of juvenile delinquency , and of society at large shirking responsibility in the pursuit of wealth . The wealthy , though stereotyped , get to be put on the spot , and probably reflected what the working class's perception of their unwillingness to lend a hand . In fact , they don't really redeem themselves even in the end , probably largely reflecting on their reliance on the good Samaritans to do what is right , and to combat juvenile crime single handedly . That got personified through Ho Si-Kei , and at times you can feel his loneliness at such an uphill battle . He got brushed aside by wealthy families who probably alluded his presence to asking for donations , he has difficulty in trying to attract and retain teaching staff ? it isn't easy trying to teach and inspire wayward youths ? and actually becomes the sole decision maker in the running of the school , as if lacking administrators . In all , a one man show , and for someone who prides himself at teaching and obtaining results , the last act has him in shock when a surprising discovery turns out to be sort of a slap in the face for all he stood for . Besides a short sub-plot about possible romance between him and a fellow teacher , the star of the show is undoubtedly Bruce Lee as Ah Sam , a petty thief fashioned after Oliver Twist , whose inclination for thievery stemmed from a need to belong to a larger family , where he's doing not so bad in terms of hierarchy ( No 3 in the gang ) . And you'd have a chance to discover that he's quite the dancer too with his mean cha-cha moves , linked to delinquent lifestyles to be frowned upon at that era . While he's usually stoic and a man of few words in his more renowned movies , here he's got plenty to talk about in presenting himself as a street corner gangster , and it's really rare to see him being really loose with his mouth where swear words fly , and I don't really recall his lighting up of cigarettes in those movies too . There were two sides of his character here , the filial one in front of his nanny , and the real , confused him when out there in the real world . Given storytelling techniques of the past not being too refined or subtle ( the music usually lets the cat out of the bag ) , you would just know the big important secret when both Ah Sam and Director Ho cross paths . Although the final act might seem a little messy and hastily reconciled , the fun factor in the movie still belongs to Bruce Lee in a role that is not often seen by contemporary fans of his , and for that , like the other movies in his filmography , should be seen more widely when opportunity presents itself again . |
515,380 | 317,399 | 964,539 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Pathology | From the West with the latest Saw installment or the indie Unrest , to the Asian counterpart in Body # 19 , dead bodies / cadavers continue to be milked for cinematic horror , not that you'd expect them to turn into zombies and start craving for human flesh , but for the amount of gore that an autopsy can provide when it's shown in your face , with skin and fat pulled back using tools of the trade , coupled with internal organs on display to challenge your stomach . Pathology provides a narrative reason , using forensic science in allowing bodies to be piled on screen for the working pleasure of pathologists in training to hone their craft in determining causes of death . Milo Ventimiglia stars as Ted Grey , the best of the best amongst his cohort , joining a new fraternity with his glowing credentials , only for the local boys and girls to feel threatened with his arrival , and setting up a keen rivalry . Besides involving some one-upmanship amongst themselves in proving their worth in class , something also seemed to be brewing beyond the confines of the classroom , and geek pride coupled with loneliness away from fiancée Gwen Williamson ( Alyssa Milano ) makes Ted vulnerable to the seduction of power play from chief rival Jake ( Michael Weston ) and from the opposite sex courtesy of Juliette Bath ( Lauren Lee Smith of Lie with Me fame ) . Now from the onset , I thought this would be your usual frat-boy falling into the doldrums and then crawling his way back up again kind of story . Surprisingly , Pathology offered a little more , and was close enough to achieve greatness , if not for some very glaring suspension of disbelief required on the part of the audience . The students had to perform the perfect murder in round robin fashion , and then allow for their peers to determine from the bodies , evidence to support their theories on how the crime was committed . All this while , the cops have no idea what's going on , but that's only because of the lack of a cast member playing characters upholding the law . It was interesting though to follow Ted's fall from grace and succumbing into the world of sex , drugs , and the thrill of putting their medical knowledge to use in becoming murderers . Yes , it's that kind of a movie with loads of moral ambiguity , especially when the character of Jake got seduced into crossing the line of no return , becoming , in their own words , a serial killer of sorts . Stakes of course get raised as the movie went along , and the finale brought on things quite unexpected , relying on the perennial twist to provide sweet satisfaction , with mixed results . But don't approach this expecting loads of intelligence being lavished upon the story . It works for a while but doesn't hold up much under scrutiny . The great looking casts help too in roping in its target audience , and I thought Ventimiglia resembled Tobey Maguire enough to wrestle the mantle of the spider should the latter decide not to continue the lucrative franchise . |
515,159 | 317,399 | 105,415 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Singles ( 1992 ) | Love . Sex . Friendship . Companionship . These are the themes obviously explored in Cameron Crowe's early movie Singles , which revolve around the love lives of singles ( naturally ) living in a common apartment . We follow each of the protagonist Steve ( Campbell Scott ) , Janet ( Bridget Fonda ) , Cliff ( Matt Dillon ) and Linda ( Kyra Sedgwick ) through their ups and downs in dealing with the weird little emotion called Love . Well , not quite . As we know early in the film , each have problems and their own peculiar viewpoints on the dating scene . We see Linda meeting and breaking up with a Spanish student she was so into , after seeing through his lies and sweet talk . It hurts , and she doesn't want to be hurt again . Steve too have had a bad experience , and ( I can identify with this ) swears off relationships for the next few years , deciding instead to focus on career . As Fate would have had it , these two will meet at the unlikeliest places and get into a relationship . Cliff , an aspiring rocker , seemed to have taken his girlfriend Janet , for granted . And I think this is something that most people can identify with . When efforts go unappreciated , or when things go mundane , the question is , do you want to bail out ? And when you do , what next ? Would you give the ex another chance ? If you do , how would you approach it ? It's fun watching a movie that was made 13 years ago , and you wonder about how the initiating and sustaining of a relationship back then happened without technology which we are so used to these days . Back then , a mobile phone was a cordless one , and there is no such thing as an instant message , but an answering machine . Where Speed Dating was unheard of , but Video Dating was the rage ( check out the funny Tim Burton cameo ) . You wonder too about the career of the leads . Campbell Scott was noticed by many after his pairing with Julia Roberts in the movie Dying Young , but after this , seemed to have vanished into obscurity . And so has Kyra Sedgwick . Only Matt Dillon and Bridget Fonda are still around , somewhere . Oh , the music . Peppered throughout the movie is the wonderful musical tracks that always seem to punctuate a particular moment succinctly . I like Tarantino and Crowe movies because music plays an integral part of the entire experience , and Singles too had excellent ballads blended with grunge rock , say , Pearl Jam ( before they made it huge ) , which also made an appearance . It's a beautiful , quirky little movie with excellent identifiable dialogue , music , humour , and a younger cast of stars whom we know today , thrown into situations that everyone in love would have experienced . |
515,293 | 317,399 | 116,386 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : A Class To Remember II : The Learning Circle ( Gakko II ) | Gakko II , or The Learning Circle , is not a sequel to Gakko in the strictest sense . While Toshiyuki Nishida returns in this Yoji Yamada directed movie , he is not the same respected teacher that was introduced to us and we fell in love with in the original movie . The school's different too . Here , he plays teacher Ryu , and teaching in the Ryubetsu Handicapped High School , a school for the intellectually and mentally challenged . It's a very different look and feel from the original . While it had fewer key characters to focus on , it didn't mean that the story would be less rich than the first . In fact , in terms of content and depth of the story , this one is a notch better than the first . There are a few plot points running concurrently . Two boys from the school , Yuya ( Hiroshi Kanbe ) and Takashi ( Hidetaka Yoshioka ) , leaving and embarking on a journey of bonding , bringing out the best in each other , and having to fend for themselves while being out in the strange world . There's also a look at a new teacher's inability to handle the highly volatile Yuya ( yes , this kid literally shits and pisses in his pants ) , and of Ryu's road trip in search of our missing students . The first movie had its premise look episodic with its different compartments for different characters , rarely crossing the line between one sub plot to another . Here , this constraint disappears as we venture into the vast outdoors with the characters , and even at one point , up into the air . And something to note , that Toshiyuki Nishida's Ryu isn't the infallible sensei as we would expect him to be ( though I miss his nose picking teacher in the first ) , as he grapples with having to find a solution to handling his family problems , and the difficulty in connecting with his estranged daughter . Oh , and is that Ayumi Hamasaki who opened the film in a less than 5 minute appearance as the daughter Ryu ? |
515,447 | 317,399 | 342,258 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Unleashed | Unleashed , aka Danny The Dog ( the original title , and the name of Jet Li's lead character ) , is the latest of a Euro-production meant for the Hollywood market , this one being a French-UK collaboration , with a mainly European production crew , of which the most recognizable name is French director Luc Besson , as the writer of this story . Known for his gritty tales like The Professional and Kiss of the Dragon ( also starring Li ) , you'd expect something special from Danny The Dog ( " Unleashed " was just typed over the main credits , you'd know what I mean ) . However , the premise is a bit ludicrous and please , leave your brains at the door . Otherwise you'll have trouble understanding why Danny chose to be treated the way he is , given his incredible fighting prowess when his collar's off . A title with " the dog " , and references to dog-calling names like " attaboy " , " bitch " , etc , obviously do not go down well , and probably won't be tolerated by the Asian market , given the derogatory connotations , hence the classier name " Unleashed " . Actually everything has doggie connotations - from the collar to Danny's new surrogate father being a blind man . Some characters bark occasionally too . But the plot is a bit of a let down , given the main theme which it tries to dwell upon - Family , without much success . Danny lives in a world of thugs and violence , and this world turns upside down when he experiences the sweeter side of life - the normal ones that you and I lead , with Sam ( Morgan Freeman ) and Victoria ( Kerry Condon ) . Of course when the thugs threaten the new family , you'd expect all hell to break loose as Danny fights to defend the opportunity of leading a new life . While the action is stylized in the trailers , there isn't much to offer in the movies , despite its explosive start . You can plenty of throwaway characters that Jet dispatches without much sweat . Given the plot straddles between action and melodrama , the former somehow has less screen time - if you want to make an actioner with Jet Li , the action must stand out , no ? All you get are basic street fights with Jet hammering away , and hammering , and hammering some more . You get the drift . The soundtrack is done by Brit trip-hop masters Massive Attack ( one of my fav groups ) , and I actually enjoyed their music being featured in the movie - I think I'm gonna enjoy it more as I identify the tracks being played at particular points in the movie . I'm not sure if Jet Li had actually opted to do a more dramatic piece , but this film's premise offers him a weak chance to show his acting skills - the audience , in my opinion , as bloodthirsty as those in the underground fight club , secretly hopes that the drama be minimized . It does drag at times , and offers little depth to plot . Reommended for Jet Li fans only , and even then you might come out disappointed with this effort . Luc Besson , surely you can write better stuff ! |
514,722 | 317,399 | 418,753 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Inside Deep Throat | This is not a porn movie . It is a documentary about an adult movie ; not just any adult movie , but the one which you can answer " who's your daddy ? " to . Deep Throat premiered in 1972 , in an era of sexual awakening on film , where highlighting and building a film around that one sexual act is a novelty , bringing in an enormous Return On Investment ( 600 million revenue from a cost of 25K ) for the filmmakers , who somehow never got rich from it , monetary and otherwise . Inside Deep Throat brings us back to that era , exploring what was , and how this one film revolutionized the adult film industry in the USA . This documentary , narrated by Dennis Hopper , interviews both the filmmakers behind the scenes , as well as the lead actor . We only get to watch archived interviews of the lead actress " Linda Lovelace " , as she has passed away in 2002 from a road accident . Nonetheless , from the footage , we can see her enjoying her 15 minutes of fame ( infamy ? ) , before transforming herself from sex siren to victim to feminist and back to fire one last salvo in Playboy magazine . The interviews by the cast and crew are earnest , and at times comical , given their reminiscence of the role they had played in contributing to the industry . Even when they came up with the idea of revolving a film around one sex act , they weren't really convinced that it might pull off . In fact , given the government's crackdown on the film , which premiered in NY's Times Square , curiosity from the masses start to propel the film into its legendary status . We're brought from pre-production all the way to film distribution , which had shady links with the Mob , to censorship , crackdown and prosecution . We also see the ( negative ? ) impact that the film brought on to its filmmakers and cast - life isn't really a bed of roses given the film's huge box office success , and we wonder , did they become victims of their own success . Viewers in Singapore would still not have the opportunity to see some " action " from Deep Throat , even with the R21 rating - you'll only get to see the safer portions of Deep Throat , and jarring cuts leave the rest to your imagination . So for those who just want to know a bit more on the adult film industry ( hey , I didn't know they had an equivalent of the Oscars ! ) , discussion on censorship and freedom of speech , then you might want to consider this documentary . For those who want to leave your moral values intact , give this one a miss . |
515,452 | 317,399 | 470,420 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Leap Years | The Leap Years , aka Leap of Love , was a long process in the making . Having tracked this movie for a number of years now , it is going to make its debut this year premiering exactly on Feb 29 no less . While there were the usual production woes , I thought that this was one of those projects that remain in development hell , and given the overlong trailers being played in the cinemas - I didn't time it , but it was more than 3 minutes long - I thought it would be one of those that would sink immediately upon release , despite having international flavour with the casting of Joan Chen and Ananda Everingham . Well , the good news is the Singapore's first English language romance movie passes the litmus test . Based on the novella by Catherine Lim , The Leap Years tells 2 stories in parallel , but both centered on Li-Ann and her friends through a period of 16 years ( 4 leap years in total ) , consisting almost every boy - finds - girl - loves - loses - etc plot point you can think of . And for the most parts , it was almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy of a fortune teller's advice to Li - Ann on her love being one like the wind , which delivered yet another set of clichés like Windows Cafe , mini toy windmills , and moments where long hair gets swept away like Bollywood movies . Li-Ann actually had three actresses portraying her . The first is Beatrice Chia , who only provides the narration . The second , Wong Li-lin as Li-Ann in her 20s-30s , and Joan Chen playing the same character , now much older . Chen had only a bit role though , which probably didn't challenge her in the acting department , and the short story is about her trying to find some reconciliatory factors with her teenage daughter , and you realize that she probably missed the kind of close-knit mother-daughter relationship that she had when younger , and trying very hard to replicate . Wong Li-lin anchors the entire movie with her heartfelt portrayal of Li-Ann . Forget about her dismal big screen debut in the horrid German movie which had her almost sleepwalking through it like a zombie . This one showed what she can do , without succumbing to acting cute unnecessarily . Her Li-Ann has never dated and has been holding out for someone special , and chances upon Ananda's Jeremy at an al fresco cafe one day . So the usual games people play begins , with her putting some Irish 29th Feb tradition to the test , and he plays along , towards the goal of setting up a blind date . Naturally not everything is as rosy as it seems , since the games ended after a magical outing together , with their pledge of meeting at the same place at the same time , every leap year on her birthday . Cliché lines get thrown about , like the frequently used one about better to have loved and lost than to never had loved at all , but the key theme here is about patience . If you deem him or her special , it's well worth the wait , isn't it ? Only fools rush in , as they say . So do expect lines being spouted explicitly which might make you cringe a little , or implicitly suggests something that you'd probably already know of , from the wise old sayings of those who have been there and done that . It's almost like a typical romantic chick flick with the whispers of sweet nothings , promises made , and the quintessential scenes of shopping and lots of clothes . The soundtrack is chock full of lovely ballads by Corrine May , and you'd probably would be enthralled by how familiar locations become quite the romantic backdrops in the movie . Familiar also applies to the supporting cast , with the likes of Nadya Hutagalong and Vernetta Lopez playing good friends , as does Qi Yu Wu as KS ( Kiasi ? Kiasu ? Kana Sai ? Anything but actually ) . I thought KS was a source of inspiration for those out there still carrying torches for others . It was an easy anchor point for me to dive right into the movie , with the classical example of loving someone who obviously doesn't love you back , and there comes a point in time where you have to wake up and realize your futile efforts . The reality of it is harsh and cruel at that point in time , but to be able to find strength and pick yourself up , that's quite an achievement in itself . The Leap Years borrows its strength from Catherine Lim's story , and goes to show that no doubt the clichés are abound , this is something of a Singapore movie to be proud of - with a mix of homegrown and international talent , and a story that's purely on love and romance , and not hybrids like romantic-comedies or romantic-tragedies . Love is in the air , and for gimmick's sake , I would recommend this to be watched on the 29th of Feb , and see if you buy into that Irish folklore . I would play along though . . . but now to have someone make that proposal . . ha ! |
515,392 | 317,399 | 237,471 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Moveable Feast | Who would have thought this short film , directed by Sandi Tan in 1996 , would begin my venture into Screen Singapore . And it didn't help that it featured gastronomical food when I hadn't had my dinner prior to the screening . Narrated by a teenage boy , he brings us through to the various sights , sounds and characters ranging from a coffeeshop , to a Chinese wedding dinner in a traditional Chinese restaurant . Sprinkled with a generous dose of comedy , this filmlet will touch you in many ways . The bustling scene of the coffeeshop captured its essence , and the wedding dinner scene will surely be familiar territory to those who have attended one before . My only gripe with it will be the tacky narrative , but the sight of food will set to satisfy . |
515,337 | 317,399 | 1,032,755 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : RocknRolla | Guy Ritchie is probably right at home with his own brand of English crime capers , which is full of machismo over the top action sequences , tough talking , black comedy , and an all round edgy feel to it , not to mention the frequent casting of Jason Statham , who has since moved on from the Smoking Barrels , Snatch and Revolver days . In fact , it's been a good 8 years since we last saw Ritchie's feature films on screen , since Revolver had a straight to DVD release here , and Ritchie's widely panned effort with Swept Away starring his wife Madonna being avoided with a ten foot pole . So with RocknRolla , Guy Ritchie can announce and signal his comeback to the much loved genre where he's probably a master of , except that this film still had much to be desired , albeit containing elements of his signature style . We go back to the usual crooked czar where Tom Wilkinson's Lenny Cole heads a small team of gangsters who fleece unsuspecting land / home buyers in real estate , until such time where he thought he had a big fish for the kill in the coming of a wealthy Russian mobster . But after the same pot of gold , knowingly or unwittingly getting themselves embroiled in the big scheme of things , include Thandie Newton's accountant Stella , Gerard Butler's small time hoodlum One-Two , and a rock star Jonny Quid ( Toby Kebbell ) , a druggie who fakes his own superstardom death . While you can't fault the good ol ' almost watertight linking of everyone to everyone else , the narrative did feel that it needed some nip and tuck as it does tend to indulge in itself a little by getting too meandering in its presentation , throwing up a chock full of supporting roles by Ludicrous or Jimi Mistry the corrupt Councillor . One example of such an indulgence happened to be one of the more entertaining action sequences involving some hard to put down Russian gangsters , who were much like robotic Terminators with Energizer fuel cells that keep going on and on , though it did serve its purpose with self-deprecating humour for a character to trumpet his own horn . And the characters here are a mixed bunch , most of whom were the stars in a relatively simple black versus black plot . The lead narrator Archie ( Mark Strong ) tends to stay out of the picture most of the time , seemingly comfortable to passing the baton to Butler who relatively has more star power , but Wilkinson single handedly steals the show with his gangster who made it big through the misfortune of others who fall for his cunningness . Thandie Newton as the seductress never really get much to do here except to pout and roll her eyes , despite touting to be the best in the business in creative accounting . You can count on Ritchie to conjure some really visually attractive scenes and sequences , coupled with some memorable dialogue . Though I must admit that RocknRolla here did seem a little bit homophobic , especially when there's a running joke that runs throughout the film involving One-Two and fellow peer Handsome Bob ( Tom Hardy ) that went on for a tad too long , although I must admit some of it were genuinely hilarious in its own right , especially when left to your own devices to imagine what transpired given the deliberate omission of crucial details stemming from character embarrassment . And running along the same idea of a gag in letting your imagination run wild , is the make up of a valuable lucky painting that you just don't get to see . All in all , RocknRolla still proved itself to be quite an entertaining feature , and for fans of Ritchie , the wait is finally over . Not his greatest work to date , but nothing too shabby either . |
515,401 | 317,399 | 164,882 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Ninjas | I suppose many of us would have loved the romanticism associated with ninjas , with their famed skills of invisibility , swordsmanship , cunning and a whole host of weaponry and gadgets that add to their element of surprise . If you'd think you know a lot of their modus operandi , then perhaps The Ninjas , aka Shinobi No Mono , would contribute to that wealth of knowledge , and at the same time dispel some of the myths and stories that add to the stature of these masked assassins . If you'd wonder what a ninja does when out of his mask , then the film would have painted a rather mundane picture of the practicing ninjas , who hone their skills in enclaves , and frankly look no more like your usual Samurais , except sans status , and honing their skills ala rebels in hiding at their fortified base , and being skilled assassins for hire to Samurais who need someone to do their dirty work for them ( yes , even back then you can outsource your dirty laundry ) , as they themselves are bounded by the honor code of bushido . The movie doesn't waste time in building up a proper background , but throws you thick into the action . With characters loosely adapted from history , you have Oda Nobunaga , a ruthless warlord on rampaging victories across Japan in an effort to unify the country . Needless to say such aggression doesn't sit well with the able bodied , and 2 clans of ninjas are pitted against each other to see who can carry out a successful mission to stop the warlord . The story centers upon Goemon ( Raizo Ichikawa ) , an up and coming , though ambitious and impatient ninja , who is recognized and granted a promotion ( to the back office , away from the battlefield , as an accountant ! ) but in a moment of lustful folly , becomes the pawn of his master Sandayu ( Yunosuke Ito ) , pledging his life to his master's bidding . So begins Goemon's mission , which includes a ruining of his reputation , and committing acts which defy even the ninja's code of conduct ( yes there is one ! ) . In fact , we learn and observe many rules and regulations of ninja-dom , what with the need to disfigure oneself prior to death , and how torture must be endured and death always an option . All these get interpreted through Goemon's ultimate shame in living with his guilt , up until he meets a prostitute called Maki ( Shiho Fujimura ) , who gives him new cause to live , setting the stage for the truth of his double-headed master to be revealed . Shinobi No Mono was credited as the first film to popularize the ninja series of films , and had relatively low key special effects , decided to root itself in more realistic elements , rather than have things like tunnelling through sand dunes , and blink and you miss puffing of smoke . Secret passages , booby traps , poison and darts still remain staple , but don't expect any fancy swordplay as targets get dispatched rather quickly . If you're looking for a climatic ending , then you'll likely be sorely disappointed , as everything goes into a big shebang , lacking in any mano-a-mano opportunities . That said , this film is still rather enjoyable for its shedding of light on these mysterious group who operate in the shadows , and it's not always they have to dress up in black for their operations . It'll look rather dated , but somewhat a refreshing change from current films in its presentation sans the easy way out using tons of computer aided imagery . |
515,148 | 317,399 | 97,372 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : For All Mankind | Yes , it's strangely surprising that the next DVD I would pop in the player would be NASA related as well . The previous was mission specific , looking back at the Apollo 13 mission , but this documentary by Al Reinert consists of many first hand account as well as rarely seen footage caught by various moon-bound astronauts over the series of successful Apollo missions . And it isn't really surprising that the astronauts all have a film camera with them when they blasted off into space . After all , who better than to record some never seen before visuals , either en route to the way up to outer space , or to the lucky few who got to land on the moon , the view from out there looking back on Earth . They become filmmakers in documenting their lives too living inside a cramped space craft , to bring to us some National Geographic moments of the lunar surface , and plenty of picturesque shots of our planet . Covering the viewpoints of multiple astronauts , most have confessed that it's easy to get distracted by the view from up there . You get to listen to their thought process , and plenty of unseen footage of the surface that while on one hand fascinating , on the other it may be a bit monotonous because frankly , there's nothing up there except miles and miles of rock and dust . You can tell the enthusiasm of all the astronauts as they frolic around in tumbles and falls , thrilled by the gravitational pull , with the nagging fear that should they spring a leak in that suit because of a sharp edge , it'll mean instant goodbyes . If you'd think it's all grim and serious there , then this documentary would change your mind . |
514,655 | 317,399 | 347,970 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Secret Heaven | A little girl dislikes and has no interest in her piano and her piano lessons , and devices different ways to try and skip classes or play her piano at home . But things don't go smoothly with a strict disciplinarian of a mother , and a hen-pecked father . Her only happier times are with her sister as they make pit stops to play when en route to their lessons . Desperate to end her suffering , she unwittingly gets ideas from her Dad , the film Romeo and Juliet , and starts questioning about Death . Will she do it , and join the various happy people in Heaven ? What most audiences will find enjoyable is the adorable little girl's antics , definitely the star of the show . |
514,499 | 317,399 | 493,164 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) One More Chance | While billed as " A Jack Neo Film " , the undisputed commercially successful local director actually shares the scriptwriting and directing duties and credits with other collaborators - Du Nan Xing and Michael Woo ( directing ) , and Boris Boo and Ho Hee Ann ( story ) . If I recall , this movie was made in conjunction with the Yellow Ribbon Project , which encourages the public and employers to provide a chance for rehabilitated ex-convicts . Watching this off the heels of Just Follow Law , and despite other collaborators on board , this movie undoubtedly embodies everything you can identify with in a Jack Neo film . The regular faces of Mark Lee , Marcus Chin and Henry Thia allows the film to reach out again to the heartlander fans of their successful television series Comedy Night , and it did have decent returns at the box office . You can't fault the story for having a contemporary clichéd plot for the three protagonists . For the film to reach out to the common masses , familiar stories which you hear from the grapevine , or from newspaper reports , are harvested for the back stories of the characters , the issues they face while inside prison , and the prejudice they encounter when they're released . Mark Lee's Youhuang was jailed for commercial fraud , leaving behind a pregnant fiancée played by Apple Hong ( who looked real photogenic at every camera angle ) for 7 years . Upon his release , his issue is a rival in love , as well as the connection with a daughter he hardly knows . Marcus Chin's Weiguang is a compulsive gambler , and together with wife Meilian ( Lina Ng ) , they face problems with loan sharks and bad debts ( albeit this subplot was already done to death in Jack Neo's earlier film , Money No Enough ) . Henry Thia plays a good for nothing serial housebreaker Hui , who has to fulfill his dying mother's last wishes . Naturally all 3 narratives will come together , but perhaps only Youhuang's story was something relatively refreshing from a Jack Neo movie angle ( i . e . not done before ) , as compared to the other 2 stories . There are a few liberties given to the movie , since it's out to support the government's initiative of accepting those with a criminal past . For example , the story assumes that most who go to the slammer are uncouth and dialect speaking ( although this is a " Chinese " movie , there are some weak attempts into portraying the multi-racial elements of society , having token prisoners from other races put into the shots of Changi Prison ) . It goes to show that sometimes Hokkien vulgarities are given the green light , or that dialects are spoken at great lengths , contradictory to the Speak Mandarin campaign objectives , which results in Cantonese movies being dubbed . Of course the more valid reason will be not everyone here speaks Mandarin in their everyday life , and when in Rome , do as the Romans do , otherwise the entire movie would have fallen flat should everyone be speaking in perfect Mandarin . The main draw of the movie is the first 20-30 minutes ( akin to Just Follow Law ) , where you get to take a look at the main crux of the story . Here , we get to glimpse the internals of our own Alcatraz - the fabled Changi Prison , and having the movie filmed on location , raises its profile . You get to see the cell , the amenities , and of course , the story had to weave in montages of what inmates do on a daily basis , from exercise to studies , and the rooms used for family visits . Comedy is still sprinkled in this relatively serious movie , and given the seasoned comedians , these are pulled off with ease . There are still ample time given to criticize certain policies of the authorities , like the jab on the casino issue , but again , nothing too critical ( still toting the safe line ) , regurgitating much coffee shop talk . The dreaded caning scene was stripped down to just the aftermath , and turned to comedy instead , which I thought if it was filmed and shown in its full gory , I mean glory , would make a somewhat good deterrence for would be lawbreakers . And what's a Jack Neo movie without explicit product placement ? A prominent sushi company , as well as a regular BBQ pork company were so obvious , as their shops were worked into the sets , as well as a jewellery company providing one " perfection " diamond ring . You might think it's easy for Jack to have worked with sponsors to have them featured in a movie , but in reel mimicking real , he too had difficulties convincing them to be featured in a movie like this . Expect song montages , and an ending so fantastical , it borders on the absurd to come out with a happy ending ( again akin to Just Follow Law ) , somehow I wish that one day we won't experience anymore cringe worthy , contrived finale , which highlights the inability to end off a movie in believable satisfactory fashion . |
514,922 | 317,399 | 373,074 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Kungfu Hustle | I missed the Stephen Chow movies of old , before his forays into the US Market with Shaolin Soccer and now Kungfu Hustle , where his movies were inane , slapstick and filled with witty dialogue that entirely made no sense . But don't misread me , I'm not saying that this flick is no good . There are classic Chow moments , but somehow I feel that they ain't enough . The Kungfu and its effects remind you of The Matrix Trilogy , with its bullet time effects , and even Axe Gang members and fight scenes that resemble the Burly Brawl , no surprise though , as the fight choreographer is Yuen Wo Ping . Character development , like all Chow movies , are zilch and cartoony , and the female lead in this film , although va-va-voom , is classic flower vase material , and she doesn't even say anything , how's that ? ! Put your brains at the door and you'll have an entertaining time . |
514,540 | 317,399 | 386,140 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Legend of Zorro | Finally , after 7 years since the last Hollywood Zorro movie hit the big screen , director Martin Campbell is back with his original cast of Antonio Banderas in the title role , and Catherine Zeta Jones as his wife Elena de la Vega . Set 10 years after the last movie , The Legend of Zorro wastes no time in plunging the audience thick into trademarked action pieces that many associate with the Spanish Fox - the acrobatic lunges , flips , swordfights , whip action and horseback riding . It's all familiar territory with the romanticized Old California , now at a crossroads where the state is in decision to join the rest of America . Things have changed for the de la Vega family too , as they have a new addition to the family , a son named Joaquin , who takes on traits of his father , but not knowing his father's secret identity . Naturally , family takes the central theme in this movie . Why do vigilantes wear masks - simply to protect their loved ones as they enroll in the crusade for justice . This film explores the dilemma of the avenger as he struggles to be there for the general public in their hour of need , and the balance of spending enough quality time with his own family . Relationships aren't rosy with husband and wife , and it's no surprise , they bicker again on screen . And when this concealment and protection of identity is compromised , what could be exploited from it ? Plenty of action in this movie to keep Zorro fans happy , and it's a marked improvement from the predecessor too . Zorro moves with guile and swift agility that will raise your eyebrow at the style of his acrobats , befitting his name " the fox " . The use of the whip has increased , and so is the intensity of the swordfights . However , the plot might be a bit of a letdown . It's the usual James Bondish storyline of some Euro-knight baddie in some highly secret underground organization trying to achieve the total destruction of America . One forgot to remind him that he'll need a lot more smarter accomplices in order to fulfill his desire for world domination . With 4 writers credited for the story , it does seem convoluted somewhat to include too many scenes which clocked the movie slightly longer than 2 hours . Some comedy was injected , but those with Tornado seemed a bit contrived ( a horse that smokes and drinks ? Come on . . . ) The pacing too is somewhat erratic , dragging some scenes unnecessarily and introducing subplots that in my opinion , went against the motivation of characters . There's a stab at the high-handed tactics of a certain government agency , and it's like watching a precursor of spy-versus-spy games . The soundtrack seemed to rehash the love them from the earlier movie too , playing it each time Elenor comes on screen , and the camera still soft-focuses her a lot too . But what could have been given longer screen time is the on-screen banter between Banderas and Zeta Jones . That was what made the first film likable and popular , and while this movie had flashes and moments of it , we could have had more . One could have also expected the effects to be seamless given today's technology , and nothing new presented on screen , but while the end result was impressive , there are certain frames that were obviously blue-screened and superimposed . Despite its drawbacks , this is still a worthy Zorro movie , and with the signature shot of Zorro on Tornado hoisting its legs high in the sky in an all-ready posture ready to strike , with sword drawn , all can be forgiven . |
514,761 | 317,399 | 451,079 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Horton Hears a Who ! | I've got to make a mental note that movies that have trailers playing in the cinemas for the longest time , do not a boring movie make , even if the first half of the movie plays like the extended version of the trailer , telling us things we already know , spelling out the premise all over again . Jim Carrey and Steve Carell unite on the big screen again after their short pairing up in Bruce Almighty , although this time they're animated as animals / creatures from Dr Seuss ' fictional world . Jim Carrey voices Horton , an elephant who in moments where you least expect , spew lines of poetry as dialogue . We're introduced to his character from the onset , though his backstory isn't really fleshed out , except that there are those ( like the Kangaroo ) who hates all for what he stands for . And simply put , Horton exudes all qualities typical of what elephants are made out to be - excellent memory , frightened about the unknown , and trustworthiness . These qualities are put to the test when he chances upon a speck on a clover . That speck turns out to be home for an ecosystem populated by Whos , minute creatures who seem to live very mundane , repetitive lives in their very own little paradise . Things start to go awry , especially with severe environmental changes , and despite the Mayor of Whoville ( Carell ) warning of the great unknown out there , like all predictors of impending doom , get ridiculed by the population . So begins the friendship between HOrton , trying to protect the world of his new found friend by relocating the speck to safe haven , and the Mayor , who must warn his disbelieving population about more dangers to come . For a while it drags on , with childish banter between the two lead characters , and the plot by Horton haters to bring him down by destroying his toy of the moment , not acknowledging his mantra that a person's a person , no matter how small . They want proof , and they're not getting any , since the Whos are also laughing at the fact that there are bigger creatures out there , outside the realms of their known atmosphere . It's as if one's trying to convince a large group of atheist that there is a supreme being up there and he's up there watching our every move ( ok , so Horton doesn't actually get to see them , but you get my drift ) . But the struggling with existentialism , is what made Horton Hears a Who shine brightly , and made the ticket worthwhile . A pity we have to really wait out for it , but at least these tense moments came , better late than never , that really brought out enough drama and excitement that I never saw coming my way . Otherwise , the animation's pretty standard fare in 2D , and chock full of supporting characters ( voiced by Seth Rogen , Carol Burnett , Dan Fogler , Isla Fisher , Amy Poehler and Jaime Pressly et al ) just to ramp up the cute factor , without giving them much to do anyway , though I must admit the gorillas almost always crack me up ( you should see what they can do with their bananas ! ) Smart to debut this during the school holidays this week to catch hold of school going kids . Oh , and get yourself into the hall early as you'll get to see Ice Age's Scrat up to his antics to promote Ice Age 3 , due on in Summer 2009 ( yes , 2009 ! ) |
515,102 | 317,399 | 340,147 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Happily , Even After | Happily . Even After is a tale directed by Singapore born director Unsu Lee , a neat little sibling drama , with a surreal fairy tale inject into the narrative . It's pretty amazing I suppose for any Singaporean director to have had his hands at making a movie in the USofA , and one which stars Jason Behr , of Roswell the television series fame too . With their parents ' unfortunate demise , siblings Elizabeth ( Fay Masterson ) and Jake ( Behr ) are left to fend for themselves . Taking upon herself to look after her brother , she falls for an all too familiar role of being the naggy , overly concerned big sister role , a relatively successful career woman , with quite a pathetic love life . Jake , on the other hand , is a character who seemed to have everything going his way as a kid , until he decided to clam up and shut himself to the outside world - the quintessential under-achieving slacker , the disdained anti - social with a mission to bust his liver with alcohol . However , everything changes ( as always ) when Katie ( Marina Black ) enters their lives . Knowing Elizabeth through a roof top encounter , having Katie offer her services as a nanny - fairy-godmother of sorts , to look after Jake and get his life back on track , it seems like it's one of many films with similar plots , of having a girl teaching a guy how to live life . Katie and Jake don't hit it off from the start , given their bad encounter with each other at a laundromat at the start of the movie , but it falls into predictability as our guy falls in love with the girl , sending Jason Behr's groupie fans amongst the audience into ecstasy . Predictability though , is not on the menu , so some twists are expected towards the end . It might be contrived to some , in the vein that it had to go down the course it was chosen , to be different . But it is indeed this difference that makes this movie truly unique , and having it open ended , allows for various interpretations of what could be , or could have been . Set in San Francisco , the movie has superb music done by Kid Galahad , which adds an excellent layer accompanying the pleasing visuals . The cast , including those in supporting roles , did an adequate job in fleshing out their characters , and allows you to easily identify the struggles that each of them go through , to overcome doubt , gain confidence , and more importantly , to live life . |
514,793 | 317,399 | 403,407 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Perfect Creature | Written and directed by Glenn Standring , Perfect Creature falls into one of those fantasy , alternate universe timelines where because of genetic engineering and the likes , humans now are living side by side with the more powerful vampires with whom have forged a truce , that is , to never feed on the blood of humans , but instead , get their dosage of plasma through religious rites of sorts . Which serves as an intriguing premises to begin with , except that it had so much going for it , that it failed to capitalize on the wealth of its potential , instead choosing to coast through the expected until a finale made up of standard fare , with too many plot elements than it could handle , with mistrust between the two species of homo sapiens , an influenza virus , and a murderous vampire hell bent on creating havoc by unleashing his own brand of justice to the world . With movies like Underworld and various other genre incarnations that dwell on super - beings , Perfect Creature at best was on par in terms of the visuals , where the filmmakers have created a stunningly looking dark city , which seemed like a cross between Victorian England , except for the vehicles such as zeppelins which crowd the sky . Special effects was rudimentary , and you can feel the lack of slickness in the movements of the vampires , not so much as they couldn't fly , but their essence of speed wasn't properly brought across , and looked quite clunky . The story , bared down to the basics , is about how human detective Lilly ( Saffron Burrows ) has to team up with a high ranking vampire / priest ( yes , you read that right ) called Brother Silus ( Dougray Scott , who walks really stiff here and nary breaks into a smile ) , despite her and her team's discrimination against the vampire race . And their common adversary Edgar ( Leo Gregory ) happens to be a researcher of sorts gone renegade , and with blood relations to Silus , puts a dampener on so called conflict of interest . As an action-fantasy piece , don't expect any award winning acting here , because what thrills are the set action pieces in claustrophobic spaces within dark and dank apartment blocks . However , unlike its contemporary peers , there aren't any fancy gadgets , weapons or moves to wow you , well , maybe perhaps the cool stunt gun that Silus carries which fires off projectile rounds to immobilize his kind . And of course something tells you it's not quite right when the mid-point action sequence trounces the finale which had a distinct lack of excitement . But on the whole , for its mood , settings , and imaginative spin on the vampire genre , Perfect Creature does deserve a watch . |
515,482 | 317,399 | 472,268 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Flying Scotsman | The Flying Scotsman is a formula sports biographical movie , based on the book written by a champion cyclist Graeme Obree . As with sports biopics like Cinderella Man and The World's Fastest Indian , Scotsman tells the story of the underdog's triumph against himself and his adversaries through innovation in technique , technology , and of course , perseverance sprinkled with grit and determination . But of course , like A Beautiful Mind , there are inner demons that have to be worked out , before assailing to the summit . Graeme Obree ( Jonny Lee Miller ) is a bike enthusiast who works as a courier and owns a bike shop . Life's pretty plain , until he inspires to break an aged old World Hour record for longest distanced pedalled on a bicycle . But record breaking is an expensive ambition , and he realizes that aerodynamics will play an important factor . What I liked about the movie is to witness his keen observation and experimentation at work , to design the perfect sports bike , and riding techniques which some of us would have observed on television in the 90s . Thus the movie begins charting the ups and downs of his career , starting with his built from scratch and from spare washing machine parts bike affectionately called The Old Faithful . It's something that man and machine , when united seamlessly , is able to go the distance . But of course , what I also liked is perhaps the stereotypical boardroom suits , of the powers that be , who are dead set in making life difficult for Obree , introducing absurd rules , regulations and terms in order to upset the spirit of innovation , and maintain their absolute control over the sport . There are some moments which seem to mar the movie , despite understanding that they have to be introduced to give our on screen character more than one dimension . Struggling with injustice from the past affected Obree's EQ , but a good support structure in his wife Anne ( Laura Fraser ) , manager Malky ( Billy Boyd ) and good adviser Douglas ( Brian Cox ) , it makes a constant reminder that no man is an island , and that with good people supporting and believing in you , that's one of life's greatest gifts . The theme track is excellent in itself , but unfortunately , none can replace the contemporary classic theme composed by Vangelis from Chariots of Fire . Recommended movie despite its formula , if you're in need for some perk up when you're feeling down and low about yourself . |
514,593 | 317,399 | 268,380 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) Ice Age ( 2002 ) | I've missed this animated movie when it was out in Singapore a few years back . Since the sequel is hitting our shores real soon , I thought I'd better get myself up to speed with the original movie , lest I miss out on some references used in the sequel . You see , must do homework mah ? It has been 4 years since this movie was released , but I am marveled at the level of animation detail that was already incorporated - the ice never looked as white or as menacing , and the scenes of water in this movie , could have been the real thing . It really is that good . Which is quite surprising , considering that Ice Age was only Fox Animation Studios ' attempt after their initial offering of Titan AE . The beginning of Ice Age comprised of that extra long trailer featuring Scrat ( the part squirrel part rat animal ) trying to bury its acorn into the ice . Yes , it's the same one , which lead directly to a scene which looked straight out of A Land Before Time . The prehistoric animals are making their way down south , but somehow , Manny the Mammoth decides to leave the herd , and head up north instead . He meets Sid the Sloth , and they begin an uneasy alliance - you know , the usual bored character meets witty-but-irritating character routine . At the same time , some sabre-tooth tigers have ambushed some early-humans ( they don't speak ) , and their prized target , a human baby , escapes . Diego gets appointed by the pack to hunt the baby down and deliver it , so that they can exact revenge . But alas the baby gets saved rather reluctantly by Manny and Sid , and Diego has to use its cunning to infiltrate the group , and complete its mission . It's a simple movie with mature themes , infused with madcap comedy . I especially enjoyed the crazy sequence with the dumb dodo birds - after watching this , you'd think that they deserve to be extinct ! But anyhow , central to the themes is that of sacrifice and friendship . It got played out really well , since you have a double agent amongst the group of unlikely friends . And it is precisely this that the sequel can be born . As with most animation flicks these days , look out for some spoofs , especially in the cave ( with the UFO ) , and pay close attention to the dialog - lots of gems to listen out for . It's an interesting caper , and the sequel , yes I'm awaiting . This Code 1 , two-discs special edition comes with features filled to the brim . The first disc contains an audio commentary , interactive games , both widescreen and fullscreen formats , and the usual audio selection and subtitles . The second discs comes with an animated short Scrat's Missing Adventure , an HBO behind the scenes special , a making-of documentary , 6 deleted scenes , 6 production featurettes , trailers , and a clip from Blue Sky Studio's Oscar winning film " Bunny " . Whew ! |
515,412 | 317,399 | 418,647 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Dreamer : Inspired by a True Story | The premise of this movie is so similar to 2003's Seabiscuit , you'd think you're watching yet another biography of a real horse in some extraordinary , inspiring film that might just make you want to head down to the nearest race course and observe a real race . But Dreamer ( or Sonador as the horse is named ) takes a slightly different angle in this tale about second chances and comebacks . If compared to Seabiscuit , yes , we have a horse with great potential faced with the troubles of breaking a leg during a competitive race . As with all race horses , this means instant death , as they have no future value , and are bred for the sole purpose of racing . We also have a superb trainer , Ben Crane , played by Kurt Russell , and the doctor ( Holmes Osborne ) , the written-off jockey ( Freddy Rodriguez ) , the stable-hand ( Luis Guzman ) , etc . But here's where the similarities end . Dreamer is a more personal film , with family friendly characters , like the daughter ( Dakota Fanning ) , the wife ( Elizabeth Shue ) , and the grandfather ( Kris Kristofferson ) . Nursing the horse back to health had actually brought the family closer together , and that in itself makes this film quite cliché in its many " been-there-done-that " before moments to touch . Dakota Fanning has held her own against " father-figure " heavyweights like Robert De Niro , Denzel Washington , and Tom Cruise , though many would have pointed out that she had rivaled Naomi Watts for the 2005 Scream Queen honors with her performance in War of the Worlds . Here , Fanning has returned to more credible acting , albeit in a safer role . Dreamer : Inspired by a True Story , is a heartwarming tale about believing in oneself , having dreams , believing that you can achieve , and take action to achieve those dreams . While watching the movie , I can't help but chuckle at the parallels in seeing how my team and I are sticking together , just like those characters , in wanting to see our dream of making a short film , and entering it into competitions ( in this case , the Breeder's Cup ) come to a reality . It's that kind of film , an inspiring one . It might be clichéd , the premise might be too good to be true , but hey , success might come to those who dare to dream , believe , and more importantly , do . |
515,073 | 317,399 | 464,636 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Innocent Steps | Na Young-sae was once touted as the best dance trainer in Korea , and was in contention for another trophy during the national dance competition , until dirty underhand tactics by rivals ruined it all for him . Seeking a comeback , his manager and him hatched a plan to import a foreign talent from China , Jang Chae-rin , to partner with him and reclaim his spot at the top . Alas , Chae-rin turns out to be the inexperienced teenage sister of the real mccoy , and Young-sae goes into a frenzy as the championships is only 3 months away . Reluctantly , and realizing the lack of time , Young-sae has no choice but to make do with what he has , and put his training skills to the test in turning a rookie into a professional ballroom dancer . The storyline sounds familiar , like Dirty Dancing's , exploring the situational device of having a teacher and his protégé go through their lives together experiencing new found relationships through the language of dance . They start off awkwardly , and most of the time the plot focuses on the rigorous training in which Young-sae puts Chae-rin through . There is an unnecessary subplot though , of the marriage investigators who probe into the fake marriage between Young-sae and Chae-rin ( that's the rouse used to get her to Korea ) , just to add to some laughs . Dance has always been associated with passion , feelings and love . This movie doesn't stray from these themes , and the main leads heat up the screen with their sensual dance moves , albeit too little screen time . Just when you thought it's time for them to take on the championships and arch-rivals , the plot takes a twist , which I thought was probably an attempt to avoid being predictable . Ladies might want to prepare your hankies for the emotional scene towards the end , where Young-sae and Chae-rin declares their love for each other indirectly at the marriage bureau . Extremely touching that , especially when you think back on their attempts to fabricate a fictional story on their relationship , which has taken on for real . It is of course helpful that the two leads are eye candy . Park Keon-hyeong as Young-sae seemed to have the easier role of the mentor , snarling most of the time with a diva-ish , yet tender attitude towards his protégé . Mun Guen-yeong has the tougher role to flesh , transforming herself from simple naive girl into chic professional dancer , with a heart pining for Young-sae . The chemistry between the two is superb , and their dances together once they got their groove right , just magical . Which of course brings me to my main gripe - I want more ! But the attempt to make the story unconventional turned my request down , although the end credits featured a clip of them dancing , serving as some kind of compensation for the lack of dancing screen time . It's not the partner , but the partnership that mattered , said Young-sae . It rocked , and left me wanting more ! Some might find it " been-there-done-that " , but I recommend this for those who which to get jiggy with it on the dance floor . I found myself tapping to the soundtrack as we get whirled around the ballroom , and I'm sure ballroom dance lovers , or romantics at heart , will do the same too . |
515,465 | 317,399 | 266,407 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Chicken Rice War | Actually , it's not a far fetched idea having 2 stalls coexisting in the same hawker center in close proximity , as there was one ( or maybe still there ) at my interchange , where both sides employ their own minders to try and pull business to their stalls , where any passers-by will inadvertently be asked if Chicken Rice is their meal of choice . Things are a little civil of course , compared to the full blown verbal barbs and physical violence , with plenty of colourful vulgarities thrown in for comedic effect here in the film . In fact , my favourite scenes involve the brawl between the Wongs and the Chans , as they trade insults in dialects , which degenerate from hilarious touting to vulgarities flying . So the stage is set with each side being on the warpath , and their offspring fated to fall in love with each other . Only that CheeK planned on his Shakespeare within a Shakespeare to be rather different . Yes it's a story about the star-crossed lovers Fenson Wong ( Pierre Png ) and Audrey Chan ( Lum May Yee ) , but also about them having to star in a faculty play in an experimental punk rock version of Romeo and Juliet , where Audrey is in the lead role , and her boyfriend Nick Carter ( Randall Tan ) being the stud who can't deliver his lines , only to be unceremoniously replaced by Fenson the stuttering nerd / geek , much to Audrey's disdain . CheeK had probably distilled some observations of the Singapore Girl here in crafting a Juliet that's materialistic from the onset . And that actually paints the heroine in a very bad light . In one fall swoop , we get to see that she prefers Leonardo DiCaprio-wannabes ( such as Orked's best friend in Malaysian movie Sepet , something about the Caucasians having it easy should they be in this part of the world ) , likes to party hard , play childish mind games , and best of all , is totally materialistic through and through . For the infatuated Romeo to start wooing his lady love , he has to break the bank and get her Tiffany diamonds first , before getting some attention showered in which he maximizes with his language skills courtesy of Shakespeare . Alas the falling in love bits in the film , which is supposed to be central to the story you might think , was nothing more than a very flimsy portion of the entire narrative . Sure you know that they will , but it was a little bit abrupt , and what's with that cheesy sounding song each time they eat each other's mouth ( yeah , that's how each kiss between Fenson and Audrey actually looked like ) . Not to discredit them both , but while they look the perfect couple on screen , they're very much upstaged by the other characters easily each time they come on screen , such as Catherine Sng's Wong Ku ( The Fat Woman ) , Gary Yuen's Vincent Chan the Chan patriarch , Kelvin Ng's Sydney Wong the brother of Fenson , and The Su Ching's Penelope Chan the highly sex-charged teenage sister of Audrey . Cheong Wui Seng and Irene Ong rounds up the family members of Wong Terr and Wendy Chan , spouses of Wong Ku and Vincent respectively . So while this is actually not much of a love story , there's still a lot going on in the film that kept it interesting at almost every turn in large part thanks to the supporting characters pulling their weight in delivering the crazy scenes crafted by CheeK . Like most early Singapore comedies , the authorities are almost always not left spared in being lampooned to look stupid and to speak improperly . Some other unavoidable clichés are how homo-erotic undertones are not too subtly presented , and some rather convenient plot development involving sidekick wannabes . The somewhat childish antics between the feuding families worked wonders in delivering the laughs , as do the translations that fly on screen to translate local colloquialism from vulgarities to meanings of Chinese horoscope which describe succinctly the characters they represent . There were a number of moments where the 4th barrier was broken in part due to the semi - documentary / news fashion that Chicken Rice War adopted , no doubt allowing the Muppets - like old men in Muthiah ( Mohan Sachden ) and Ahmad ( Alias Kadir ) to muscle in with their commentary . But the real star of the show I feel , is the hilarious hamming it up by Jonathan Lim as the sleazy go-go dancing , chicken supplier Hugo A Go Goh , in a role that has to be seen to be believed . If I could but name one character in the spate of Singapore movies that personifies all that is zany , then this character is it , besting even all those created in Talking Cock the Movie . Watching this now , I felt it was probably a little ahead for its time , but managed to pull it off given some creativity in production . You could tell when innovation was used in telling a story with little money , with costumes and off-focused shots being employed to mask details . The humour here would set the stage for many relatively newer local films today to employ , and so is the predominant use of dialects too ( Cantonese ) that would be the staple in many local films that make a dent in the box office , as are some cunning social observations fused into the narrative like how wealthy hawker centre operators can be , with a Mercedes being their vehicle of choice . Without a doubt , Chicken Rice War comes recommended , not that it's a perfect film , but it's one that is unfortunately seldom seen , and deserves a lot more credit than the initial flak that it received . For starters , it has shown that we've come a long way , and in some ways ( to the detriment of the current state of affairs ) , this still comes through as a more entertaining production than some of those produced today . |
515,192 | 317,399 | 375,154 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Tristan + Isolde | As touted , before Romeo and Juliet of Verona , there was Tristan and Isolde of England-Ireland . Director Kevin Reynolds ' projects have included before , re-tellings of folk legends , like his Robin Hood : Prince of Thieves and the Count of MOnte Cristo . And as with all Hollywood-ized retelling , there's always the bastardization of the storyline , whether you like it or not . Then again , them being legends , it will depend on who's telling the story . So if you'd like a different take on the series of events in this love story , you might want to search the web . Set during the time when the Romans withdrew from England , and when Ireland was ravaging the English because of the power vacuum , we see a young Tristan ( Thomas Sangster , the same kid from Nanny McPhee ) owing a life debt to Lord Marke ( Rufus Sewell ) , who saved Tristan from impending death at a sacrifice of his right hand . Orphaned , Tristan serves Lord Marke dutifully , and becomes more favoured than Marke's nephew Melot ( Henry Cavill ) , with his fighting skills and fierce loyalty . In one of their revenge missions , Tristan ( now James Franco ) secures victory at the expense of being poisoned , and thought to have died . As Fate would have it , his body in a flaming boat survives the vast seas to get himself onto the beachhead of Ireland ( which I thought was a bloody ridiculous plot loophole , oh well ) , where he's found by Isolde ( Sophia Myles ) and her maid . Nursing him back to health and at the same time giving her ahem honour to Tristan ( I believe also that if Tristan was some burly soul , this would not happen . Very shallow , I know ) , it doesn't take a genius to realize that owing 2 life-debts with only 1 life to live , is a problem which will manifest itself later . So when Tristan later discovers he won a competition on behalf of Lord Marke , and the prize being Isolde's hand , our lovers are stuck in a rut , despite having opportunities earlier to leave their respective kingdoms and live a life of their own . For Tristan , he's torn between duty and love . Like I said , two different life-debts to repay , how do you choose ? He chose to be the lover on the side , for their nightly secret trysts in darkened fields . You'll see shades of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet here , with our star crossed lovers , Juliet's Nurse , the feuding families , deaths of Tybalt and Mercutio , and of course , the inevitable ending . HOwever , Romeo and Juliet were married , as opposed to the adulterous couple of Tristan + Isolde , which seemed more like Troy , in having Isolde as a Helen-like character sowing the seeds to the downfall of the fragile kingdom alliance . Fans of James Franco must have been swooning in their seats as they get to see their idol undressed and getting it on ( yes , I swear in today's screening , everyone heard a girl gasping for air ) . Franco did quite a spectacular job brooding , with his love lorn looks , and plenty of angst stemmed from Tristan's losing his parents at an early age . Sophia Myles was pleasing to the eyes , but I thought she looked a bit pudgy - people in the past must have loved their females with plenty love handles , otherwise it must be the unfashionable layers of clothes . It's a pretty decent love story with some nifty action sequences thrown in , though the contest for Isolde's hand looked like it took place in a poor man's version of Gladiator , and the final battle felt like a cheaper ripoff of The Two Towers ' assault of Helm's Deep . And not to forget , there's also enough of the usual medieval-politics ( betrayals , power struggles , corruption , etc ) to provide enough buoy to keep the movie afloat . Strictly for die hard fans of love stories set in the medieval past , for those who have never heard this story and would make do with a Hollywood version , or for groupies of James Franco . May I hear a squeal now please ? |
515,536 | 317,399 | 403,358 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Night Watch | After Bimmer , which I enjoyed , this is the other Russian film that has hit our shores . Simplistically put , this is the first of a fantasy-thriller trilogy , about the eternal fight between good and evil forces . A truce is called centuries ago , where battle lines and jurisdictions are drawn . The breed of man known as the Others , are divided into the light side , and the dark side . The light Others form the Night Watch , while the dark Others form the Day Watch ( the title of the second part of the trilogy ) . There will be Others who will be discovered and have to decide to join either side , and the light / dark side cannot influence their decision . Hence , the watch groups set up to ensure the truce and this requirement is met . However , with any of such arrangements , you can be sure of rogue elements trying their luck to go against regulations . Prophecy states that there will be one Other who will tip the balance in favour of the side he joins , and like Episode One , this prophetic Other forms the basis of this movie , as with the quest to entice this Other to join their respective sides . We follow the tale of Anton Gorodetsky , a newly discovered light Other who has the power to peek into the future . On a routine mission , he chanced upon a cursed woman who has unwittingly unleashed catastrophic mayhem unto Moscow , and another sub plot involving Anton's accidental killing of a dark Other , a terribly bad no-no , given the truce . That's about as far as I would say about the plot , as any more will destroy the surprises in store for the viewer - the ending when revealed , will make you rethink what you have seen . What's more important are the themes discussed , like the perceived corruption in the system of bureaucracy , and the notion that well-meaning intentions are sometimes not well appreciated nor interpreted as such . The movie is stylishly shot , with set action pieces making you exclaim WOW . At times , it brings to mind an old TV series called " Manimal " , as there are no lack of characters here who take on the form , or can transform to and from animals like an owl or a leopard . For the international version , even the subtitles are not spared special effects , and I eagerly anticipated when the next effect filled subtitle will appear . Look out for the spinal-cord-sword , which I think is extremely cool . I could go on about characters going into the " Gloom " or the effects of the vampires slipping into and out of peripheral vision , but any more ravings will probably be a trip into spoiler zone . The soundtrack is an interesting blend of rock and electronica , and fans of The Bravery will be pleased that the band lent their track Fearless to the international trailer , and is played at the end credits . The villains are somewhat muted in Night Watch , but watch this anyhow because of the strong setup for the trilogy , and prepare for the Day Watch , which I think will turn the spotlight on the characters of the dark Others . |
514,418 | 317,399 | 112,950 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Empire Records Remix ! Special Fan Edition ( 1995 ) | This quirky take with memorable characters take place in a span of 24 hours in a record store known as Empire Records ( Tower Records anyone ? ) It highlights a day in the life of the store employees , made up of teeny boppers like proverb spewing Lucas ( Rory Cochrane ) , suicidal rebel Jane ( Debi Mazar ) , slutty Gina ( Renee Zellweger ) , smarty pants Corey ( Liv Tyler ) , amongst others . The story starts off with Lucas taking nine thousand dollars from the cashier at night before he closes the store , and loses it all in a hilarious sequence at Atlantic City . Joe , the co-owner , learns about this , and the recovery of this amount of money forms the running theme in this movie . Thrown into the plot is an equally hilarious character Rex Manning , a has-been singer who's due at the store for an autograph session with his fans . You'll definitely dig one of his cheesy music videos . Corey has a crush on Rex , and tries to seduce him , but falls flat in embarrassment . Of course she's shocked when good friend Gina manages to pull the seduction off , and me-ow , a catfight ensues . As if the day isn't bogged down with too much activities in serving customers and spinning good music in the store , the employees learn that their beloved Empire Records will be absorbed by Music Town , a larger competitor . Therefore it's also a race against time to preserve the identity of their store . But it's a feel good movie , with feel good songs sprinkled with the occasional metal , so the ending is somewhat predictable with all threads and sub plots merging into one grand finale . Needless to mention , my primary objective is actually to watch Liv and Renee in one of their earlier movies : - ) |
514,590 | 317,399 | 795,493 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Cassandra's Dream | Woody Allen's final movie in his loose London Trilogy , with Match Point and Scoop preceding it , but without Scarlett Johansson's participation . Instead we get great chemistry between Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell who play two brothers caught up in a moral tale that unfolds in Greek tragedy and operatic n proportions . The draw of the movie is no doubt the main leads . Ewan McGregor stars as Ian , who works in his father's restaurant but dreams of participating in some real estate opportunities . Only catch is he has no funds to make any form of investment . However he has this showy streak , and often borrows from his brother Terry ( Colin Farrell ) , the fast cars from the latter's workshop , or money when Terry makes some extra income from gambling , which is his major vice in life . We follow the story of the brothers for a bit , with Ian falling for small time theatre actress Angela Stark ( Hayley Atwell ) , who's quite high maintenance , while brother Terry has his winning streak at the tables being abruptly ended , and turns out to be owing tens of thousands to illegal creditors . Both naturally run into financial difficulty , but then their family has a benefactor , a rich uncle ( played by Tom Wilkinson ) who swears by family and blood , and offers to bail them out , just like before , and just like how he had helped their family with everything . Of course there's no such thing as a free lunch , and this time round there is a catch , as the brothers , in order to obtain their money , have to help their uncle in dispatching one of his business rivals . So begins the dilemma of committing the perfect crime , and the moral tussle between the brothers , one whom sees it as an obligation to repay their uncle for what he has done for them , and going to do of course , while the other just finds it wrong , and has to constantly battle the guilty conscious . While they look like unlikely brothers , Farrell and McGregor play off each other rather well , in particular , Farrell . We seldom see him in a role that's not the alpha male type , and the last I know of watching him look scared , on the edge , and depressed , was in the movie Phone Booth . Most of the time , his on screen persona always is very cock sure of himself , but not here , and allows for some excellent results . Other than that , the movie just chugs along until the finale , and doesn't offer any intriguing twists or tickle your brains any further once the dilemma is over and the decision to head down the slippery slope chosen . A decent movie for its star power , but definitely not one of Allen's best , even amongst the London Trilogy . |
514,687 | 317,399 | 478,087 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : 21 | While Las Vegas is Sin City personified , having been there in person actually stripped away much of the glitz and glamour that comes courtesy of various movies and television series . Maybe because I'm not a high roller ( or even a simple punter to begin with ) that I don't get to enjoy the sexiness that comes with attention lavished at their well-known , well-paying customers . But in any case , the mathematics of it is that the house always win , and it is not a zero sum game , always in favour of the house . A bus driver in Vagas once told me that it's simple logic - look at the hotel above the casino . The larger it is , the higher the overheads , and guess where their revenue is coming from ? You guessed it . Based on a true story about a group of MIT students who utilized their smarts from what the textbook never taught them , you can trust Hollywood to sex it all up , especially with a professor in the mould of Kevin Spacey , and teammates who look like they jumped right out of glamour magazines . Being naturally smart and the cream of the crop , they get seduced by Spacey's Professor Micky Rosa , who rationalizes that they aren't cheating , but beating the system on their own numbers game through card counting . That means back to basics probability and statistics , together with some tools of the trade such as disguises , fake IDs and a whole elaborate rouse of communication using secret words and sign language . And here's the flaw of the movie , perhaps to dumb it down for an audience because it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that signs and codewords should change each time you hit a different casino so that you won't be caught repeating the same trick over and over again to the eyes in the skies , which provided a separate sub plot dealing with the threat of security personnel being outsourced and downsized by technology , and therein making old school folks like Laurence Fishburne's Cole Williams obsolete . Jim Sturgess is slowly getting his profile raised , last seen in these parts with Across the Universe . Here , his Ben Campbell is the A student who's just like every other A student trying their best to get to Harvard Medical School , and that sole scholarship up for grabs will be awarded to just one fella with the most impressive resume . Knowing that his chance is slim , he has to figure out how to cough up US$300K just to get himself into his dream institution , so as the tale would have it , that rationale and figure required became his excuse to take up gambling as a means to his end . Joined by fellow students Jill ( Kate Bosworth ) , Choi ( Aaron Yoo ) , Kianna ( Liza Lapira ) and Jimmy ( Jacob Pitts ) under Prof Mickey's tutelage , they hone their mathematical and social engineering skills in an expected montage , before hitting the gaming floors of Vegas to rake in the dough . And in between they will find time for romance , and constantly battle the urge of easy money , emotions running high , and all the trappings from the lifestyles of the rich . However , don't expect a lot from the supporting characters , as Kate just got to preen around looking like a pretty vase , while the token Asians get caricature roles , like a kleptomaniac . While Spacey is his usual chilling self and Sturgess managed the pretty boy charismatic presence well , 21 still found it necessary to explain everything , from detailing every bit of plot development including laying out all necessary twists and turns out on the table neatly , and how the mathematical rouse actually worked . However , don't expect to pick up a tip or two from the movie , because it actually requires a step one for you to be a mathematical genius for mental gymnastics to be performed at the top of your head . Otherwise , you can just forget it , and just pick up a lottery ticket and hope for the best . But what I enjoyed from the movie , is all the wink-winks with regards to the corruption that permeates through the education system , be it getting grades from your tutors , or admissions requiring exorbitant amounts of cash . Granted that the tuition fees are not cheap because of rising salaries and cost of maintaining the school , sometimes these can be contributed in nice ways which are quite above the board , in cases of having to scratch your back and having you scratch mine back . Still , 21 made for an enjoyable heist / gambling type of movie , sans those comedic ones which HK used to put out continuously at one point in time . It has a decent , Hollywood-hyped up story to tell , with the usual message that crime does not pay , and to use your smarts wisely in the right direction . |
515,440 | 317,399 | 385,017 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : In My Father's Den | Once in a while , Cathay @ Orchard screens their exclusive showcase selection of films which are not part of your mainstream Hollywood offering . In My Father's Den is one such film , and it is not often that I dive head on into a film without knowing at least a bit of the background or production details . This film is an NZ-UK production , and it sure is set in NZ alright when I saw the " Pump " brand of bottled water in one of the scenes . Can't get anymore authentic than that ! However , I'm in two minds as to how to rate this film . The narrative is painfully slow ( butt-numbing 2hrs 10 mins ) , but necessary to allow you time to think through what is going on , and the revelation of the ending , shocking yet somewhat expected . Paul Prior is a renowned war photo-journalist who's back in NZ to attend his father's funeral . Although he missed it , being back home gave him the opportunity to touch base with his estranged brother and his wife ( Lord of the Rings fan will recognize Miranda Otto here ) , his nephew , and hook back up with his ex-flame who's now married to somebody else . During this time , he hooks up with one of his students , 16 year old Celia , whose outlook in life , and passion for writing , brought back memories of himself , as well as memories of his ex-flame Jackie . However , an old photograph triggers suspicion that Celia might be the child Jackie bore him , before he literally walked out on his family , and Jackie . Meanwhile , you get a feeling that Celia is beginning to develop feelings for Paul , which all the more should sound alarm bells . But things turn for the worse when Celia goes missing , and Paul becomes the prime suspect for her disappearance . It is during the portion of the film that time is juxtaposed , which might make it a little confusing or irate the viewer . There are many characters in this film , and your mind will race as to sieve out the red herrings , and decide who's involved , and who's not . The " den " in the title refers to a shed that Paul's father has , which is stashed with good books , and good vinyl music discs . Quite a number of good songs are played throughout , which makes the soundtrack appealing . Many pivotal events take place in this shed , being a place of refuge for Paul , to being a key element of suspense and shock to the audience when the twist is revealed . The multi-faceted relationships between the characters form the theme of this film , and the cast put up excellent performances in bringing their roles to life . The ending , when revealed and when you think through it in its proper chronological order , is fulfilling , yet laced with a heavy dose of sadness . So if you're in for some classic story-telling , from a plot that really takes its time to unravel , then this is recommended for you . If you'd prefer to get on with action , then you should stick to the blockbuster summer offerings . |
514,470 | 317,399 | 451,176 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Quinceanera | In local culture , it's a big deal when you hit 21 years of age . Being legally allowed to watch R21 movies is just but a blip , but what I suppose the usual celebrations will include some hard core partying . It marks a coming of age , of a transition to young adulthood . In Latin American culture , Quinceañera refers to the young girl's reaching of age 15 , celebrating maturity , with the fusion of food , dance , religion , and of course partying with family and friends . And from what the movie portrayed , it's indeed a very big deal , with beautiful gowns , elaborate customs and plenty of trinkets of gifts . The movie however , is not about the custom per se , but about young Magdalena ( Emily Rios ) , who's finding it tough to try and assert celebrating her 15th birthday the way she wants to . It's your usual rage against the system from a teenage perspective , especially from strict upbringing by her minister father . The huge clash comes when she can't control her ranging hormones , and in a huff goes off to be with her great grandfather Tomas ( Chalo Gonzalez ) . There's a separate storyline running parallel though , and that is of her cousin Carlos ( Jesse Garcia ) , who's also putting up at Tomas ' abode . With a tough exterior - tattoos , attitude and all , he finds himself attracted to two gay neighbours as they share their little trysts in secret , and you'll be kept guessing for a while just which way Carlos swings . It's a clash of cultures - conservatism , liberalism , and the changing of attitudes . But not to worry that this movie is heavy . Surprisingly , it's rather poignant , yet has this sense of fluff and light-heartedness thrown in at various points to lighten up the mood . And it manages to pack a punch despite its compact 90 minutes . The leads of Emily Rios and Jesse Garcia help too , in making their characters believable , and not too contrived . A movie like this introduces us to different cultures , but as we learn , the lessons of life are truly universal . Quinceañera is currently showing at GV VivoCity's Cinema Europa theatre exclusively . |
514,621 | 317,399 | 765,120 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : My Blueberry Nights | My Blueberry Nights is made up of 3 distinct stories put together by having a character , Norah Jones ' Elizabeth , journey through them all . Somehow , the strength is in its parts and not as a whole , and possibly references to Wong's earlier works were put in to mask the weak storyline . I have to give credit when it's due , and I thought the shorts go from strength to strength , bookended by Elizabeth's encounter with Law's Jeremy . It began with Elizabeth reeling from a bad case of having her boyfriend cheat on her , and in the ensuing break up , finds herself a regular at a diner operated by Jeremy . The first part might serve to be confusing as it transcends time , much like the need for taking visual cues from Maggie Cheung's cheongsam in ITMFL , and before you know it , a relatively intimate encounter makes Elizabeth journey off in a road trip . Norah Jones adds a certain vulnerability to her Elizabeth , and I admire her character for taking time off to find herself and just to be sure , instead of plunging head long to another potential relationship ( c'mon , it's Jude Law , you know ? ) . And the part where she worked 2 jobs as a distraction so that her mind had less time to wander and wonder , is something I can totally agree with . To that , her character I do like and can identify , but the second short , while I thought narratively was OK , just had to have her interact with Strathairn's cop character Arnie , who himself is suffering from the pain of separation from his wife played by Rachel Weisz . Her Sue Lynne just had to ring a very close bell to Su ( e ) Li ( n ) Zhen , in namesake and character wise , but how the short transpired and wrapped up , with a mention of love being stifling , earned my respect for it . But at this point , you'll probably be looking at your watch , wondering just how long more the flashbacks to Wong's earlier movies will take . However , the coup de grace was Natalie Portman's Leslie , a card shark with trust issues . And it's a refreshing departure from boy-girl relationships , by having parental love put into play here . Of all the characters , I like her carefree , smooth / trash-talking one the best , and with her character keeping her cards close to her chest , I thought the confession to Elizabeth somewhat takes the cake too . The cast all did a great job in fleshing out the WKW characters , but none I felt could touch the emotional richness that the Asian stars in wKW movies manage to bring out . As I mentioned earlier , this could be in a big part because of language . I would like though to commend on Jones . Not an actress by profession , she had done pretty well and Blueberry Nights , while she journeys with the characters through life and love issues , turns out to be more of an exercise for her in learning from the various thespians in the movie . Her Elizabeth can be cruel and heartless though , by leaving in a huff , and keeping in touch through one way channels in the writing of postcards , without way of a return address . While the movie might be running on an emotional tank testing the limits as the needle approaches E , I just love that million-takes lip lock between Law and JOnes , and I thought that pretty much was worth the price of a ticket , really . My Blueberry Nights is still delectable , except that when compared to the greatness of WKW's filmography , this seemed like pandering himself to Western audiences ( there's no need to actually ! ) by ( re ) introducing them to his works done thus far , and in doing so , becomes a blip in the radar . With due respect to WKW , My Blueberry Nights should be treated like the Blueberry pie in the movie - made just in case , but most likely headed for the bin , unless you have a newbie come over , and you can find reason to serve it as an introduction to other soulful WKW epics . |
515,489 | 317,399 | 380,609 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : P . S . | At first glance the premise of the movie seemed a little like Nicole Kidman's Birth , where someone who's already dead gets reincarnated into a boy who seemed to know all her / their dirty little secrets . Anyway that was my first thought when I heard about the plot outline for P . S . , but that said , this story couldn't be anywhere near Birth . It's a story about second chances , and how you would choose to seize this chance to make up for what you didn't do the first time around . On a more personal note , it reminded me of what I did once , doing something which I didn't do initially , but here opportunity was presented with someone else , not as a substitute though , but it served as a catalyst to not allow things to not happen , but to take that leap of faith and give it a shot . Didn't turn out the way I wanted , but I guess I should be satisfied that I tried . Louise Harrington ( Laura Linney ) is head of admissions for an art faculty , and in an admission letter , noticed someone who shared a similar name as a deceased old flame . Breaking protocol , she arranges for him to meet , and soon enough , more protocol gets broken as she initiates a sexual relationship with F . Scott Feinstadt ( Topher Grace ) . Which of course should set tongues wagging given the power of her status , about keeping persona and business separate , about that lack of professionalism and danger of mixing business with pleasure . But there are no lack of stories about a younger man falling for an older woman , and earlier this year , we've seen Uma Thuman in Prime in the same boat as well . Here though there is a distinct lack of humour and frills in storytelling , as the dry delivery befits the theme and character of Louise as she constantly , and perhaps unconsciously , pities herself and warrants the same pity from others . And it is the breaking out of this mould and mindset that keeps the narrative together in an exploration of how , despite Louise learning about how her marriage to her ex husband , Peter Harrington ( Gabriel Byrne ) broke down . Making matters worse is her best friend Missy's ( Marcia Gay Harden ) meddling into her personal business , with a revelation making you wonder why she hasn't turned into a fiend instead . I've actually watched this movie not because of Laura Linney , even though she carries this movie on her shoulders , and that her Louise character is the central figure where things revolve , and characters interact around . Rather , it's more for Topher Grace , whose performance I enjoyed in In Good Company ( his character there I could relate to ) , and keeping in mind that he did this movie first . Next up would probably be his biggest commercial challenge yet , as he takes on the role of Eddie Brock / Venom in Spiderman 3 . P . S . is actually a postscript , and here , the characters are afforded that little extra to add on to their past history , to be accorded that moment in the present , to make amends and salvage a past they are ashamed of . The pacing might be trying for some , but it still makes for satisfying viewing if you're in the same boat looking for your own P . S . . |
515,480 | 317,399 | 147,800 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) 10 Things I Hate About You | 10 Things I Hate About You is one of your typical teenage romantic comedy , loosely based on William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew . Taking place over a semester with the introduction of new kid on the block Cameron ( Joseph Gordon-Levitt ) and culminating in the school prom , the movie has a surprising number of sight gags and plenty of pop music throughout , so much so that it really does have a bloated soundtrack which seem to give a whole extended music video feel to it all . As with plenty of the Bard's stories , there's quite an ensemble cast assembled , starting with the Shrew herself Kat ( Julia Stiles ) and Bianca Stratford ( Larisa Oleynik ) , two sisters who are living under their father's strict house rules of no dating until graduation . Despite Dad's ultra protective nature in having his daughters live out his worst fear of being impregnated , the rules do get modified - Bianca can date if Kat dates , and that in itself is a tall order given Kat's nasty I-don't-give-a-damn attitude . And the suitors in competition are none other than Cameron , who's after Bianca , and his rival the school heartthrob Joey ( Andrew Keegan ) . As with Shakespeare's stories , expect a little strategizing and some mistaken intentions at certain points , with Patrick Verona ( Heath Ledger with that trademarked frizzy hair ) being roped by the two men to woo Kat , thereby freeing them to go after the girl of their dreams . Without gazing into the crystal ball , you'll know that Patrick will probably fall for Kat for real , and thereby complicating matters , affecting even his own chances . For the most parts I thought where in the movie will the title be referenced , because it doesn't seem to be the case , but when it finally is included into the plot , it's actually quite an emotional , moving piece . The introduction perhaps inspired Pretty Persuasion , with the orientation of the rookie in the school premises , pointing out the various cliques and school politics . The supporting casts , especially the school teachers , were fun and totally opposite what you might consider proper conduct . And I thought it was pretty fluffy material until the romance between Patrick and Kat touched upon impressions , and the building of walls as a defense mechanism to fragile hearts . I thought that was a pretty frank outlook , with the characters mentioning it as a matter of fact . Still , don't expect the masterpiece although it's based on a classical play . The editing and narrative flow do seem to be choppy at times , with transitions proved to be quite abrupt , allowing me to suspect that some scenes ended up on the cutting room floor for some reason , except to smoothen the flow . It's quite jarring and sticks out like a sore thumb , but nonetheless it's still a fairly enjoyable movie for a lazy weekend afternoon . |
514,520 | 317,399 | 479,773 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : You are My Sunshine | Touted as the biggest love story in Korea in 2005 , it is no surprise why the hype . Based / Inspired by a true story ( there had been a handful of such movies in the recent weeks ) , You are My Sunshine is your typical melodramatic romance , with leads so cute and pretty , you can't help but be captivated as you embark on their journey of love . It brings to mind a frequently asked question , whether it is better to love , or be loved . Seok-joong ( Hwang Jeong-min ) is a affable , simple minded hillbilly farmer , who dreams of getting married to the woman of his dreams , and settling down in a cattle ranch . Luckless in love , he contemplates going abroad to look for a Filipino wife , just as one of his buddies did . But anyhow soon after , he meets Eun-ha ( Jeon Do-yeon ) , a " coffee " girl who also moonlights as a karaoke hostess , and falls head over heels with her . Eun-ha is a complex woman with a shady past , but although we were not told exactly what , from Do-yeon's portrayal , it doesn't take a genius to warrant an accurate guess . She's extremely guarded and frosty , having lost hope in men , but eventually gets touched by Seok-joong's sincerity . Who says your average joe couldn't snag that hot babe , if he tries doggedly hard , and is thick skinned about it ? And thick skinned he sure is , as he forges ahead in marriage despite objections from his aged mother . The movie then moves onto a different plane , looking at societal prejudices against people of certain trades , as well as misinformation about the disease AIDS . Eun-ha's past catches up with her ( shades of Banderas-Jolie's Original Sin here ) , and Seok-joong learns of her being inflicted with the disease . Eun-ha disappears , and the village folk gets flustered in having to undergo HIV testing , putting the blame of the introduction of the disease on Seok-joong . It's always difficult when you want to shake off the past , but yet get haunted by its ghost . You're seeking a new and ideal life , and it's always blissful to be with a loved one . You know the romance bit pauses and the melodrama sets in after the introduction of the ex-boyfriend , and the pacing of the movie suffered with the discovery of the illness thereafter . I was waiting for scenes which will turn on the tear ducts . There were ample potential ones like the uneventful searches , the longing , the loss , but they were all building up the emotions to that one scene near the end , where you really feel the love lost , of being so close yet so far , the longing feeling to hold your loved one in your arms , to embrace them in warmth , to keep them safe from harm and to shower them with your love . Damn power , and really heart-wrenching , although it sort of looked comedic at the start . As the alternative to another Korean romance Daisy , this one tended to be a little more intimate mature , and being less flashy . If you're up for some good old fashioned weepy , then You are My Sunshine is your choice between the two . |
515,336 | 317,399 | 765,142 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : If You Love Me Follow Me | We probably have the wildest of dreams during our youths , where the skies the limit and enthusiasm knows no bounds . Full of boundless energy and a daring to try out the unknown , a society like ours gets us all pragmatic and in living up to expectations of the elders , where success equates to getting a well paid job which comes from a set of good academic papers to show for . If we've achieved all those and gone through a soulless period , what happens if we get seduced again with Maslow's hierarchy of needs , and seek self-actualization by revisiting those youthful dreams again ? For Max ( Mathieu Demy ) , he becomes the head of a hospital at the age of 33 , a feat he gets congratulated for by friends and family in the opening of the movie , with his parents beaming with pride . But we soon find out that he's unhappy , despite having a job many would kill for , and a beautiful wife Praline ( Julie Depardieu ) at his side . He's burnt out , and no longer finds saving lives a joy , but a chore , down to a point where he flares up at an uncooperative patient . In a drinking spree , he notices a bar singer Chine ( Eleonore Pourriat ) and watching her do her gig , it revived some memories of a rock band he used to front . Getting all excited , he recruits Chine into his band , and calls up ex band members in Felipe the drummer ( Fabio Zenoni ) and Apache the bassist ( Warren Zavatta ) and sets up frequent jamming sessions at the cellar of his long time friend Anna ( Romane Bohringer ) who actually after all these years , is still holding a torch for him . Co-written and directed by Benoit Cohen , this film tried to examine the price of sacrifice , and actually touches on a real subject that I believe many working adults would have asked themselves at one point or another - what am I doing here , and what's my purpose in life ? Being in a rat race , it's relatively easy to recognize our fantasy of walking away from a regular job in pursuit of a lifelong dream , but how many of us actually have the courage to step away from our comfort zone , and battle it out in a new environment of opportunity ? And that of support too , which is important , as many a times we have those who depend on us to bring home the dough , and that the pursuit of dreams could put those arrangements into disarray . In Max's case , he engages his colleague Jojo ( Mathias Miekuz ) to cover for him and hide his intent from his wife , because he understands how it would upset her , though there's an entire backstory that works on this aspect as well . Besides the marital strength between Max and Praline being tested , there were other minor developments amongst the other supporting characters that come into play , especially during the retreat all of them had , with new relationships being forged and revealed , some for the better , others just being a spanner thrown in to mix things up a little . But it is still that between Max and Praline that questioned again , the reality of a marriage , whether you really know what you're in for , or are you hooked onto the illusion of someone who doesn't exist , or worse , being together only because of convenience , or gratitude . Despite being labelled a comedy , this movie is anything but that with some real nagging issues constantly provoking your mind . There were some light comedy though , but some which I felt were somewhat lost in translation . The music on the other hand , was a joy to sit through and listen to , and just right up my alley with its rocking , edgy sound . |
515,418 | 317,399 | 385,002 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Green Street Hooligans | You've seen them on television , and you've read about them in the news . Europe is particularly aware of folks who travel for football games amongst neighboring countries , only to have them create trouble or duke it out with the locals or one another , if the results don't go their way . While 2005 had a look at professional Premiership football with the movie Goal ! , it's time the cameras took a look too at the supporters of the game . Not just any plain old armchair supporters , but really passionate ones , who live , breathe and eat football , and bond together to form Firms ( i . e . gangs ) . Similar to mafias , triads , what-have-yous , Firms thrive on reputation . The bigger the stunt , or the fight , the bigger the reputation gets spread . And it's usually ( as explained in the movie , though of course , in better light for West Ham United ) the better teams having weaker Firms . I'd like that acknowledgment that Arsenal is the better footballing team , but having a terribly weak Firm , while Spurs are poor in both haha ! We also learn what irks the Firms most , besides rival Firms . Elijah Wood plays Matt Buckner , a Harvard journalism dropout for a misdemeanor he did not commit . He flies to London to meet up with his sister , and gets introduced to his brother-in-law's brother ( duh ) Pete Dunham . Pete's the head honcho of the Green Street Elite ( GSE ) , the Firm of West Ham United , and I'd like the beginning of their budding relationship where Pete educates Matt on aspects of football ( not soccer , mind you ) . The pot-shots at UK-US relations are hilarious , as we see Matt get introduced to the other core members of GSE . Of course him being a Yank doesn't endear him to GSE , but they're willing to overlook the point and give the rookie a chance to prove himself since he's brought in by Pete . We only have one football match to watch ( ala Goal ! ) , as the rest of the movie focuses on Matt's transformation from wide-eyed newbie , to mean fighting machine . Elijah Wood didn't have much of a difficult job to do , as all he did was to continuously wear that scowl on his face for the second half of the movie . And it actually degenerates into some sort of UK-football version of Fight Club , where members of rival Firms whack the living daylights out of one another to prove their point . Perhaps co-star Charlie Hunnam did a better job as Pete , ringing home his performance as a leader , and a surrogate big brother . The plot , to me , was engaging material , though it came with some predictable subplots like betrayals . It tries to make the point that violence begets violence , but doesn't offer any suggestions otherwise , because fanaticism in football is real and continuing issue that might seem to mar the sport . Some might deem this movie as romanticizing hooliganism , but it tried to balance those attempts by having a major character ( pardon the pun ) rationalize and play the devil's advocate . I'm not sure why we had to rename this movie locally to " Football Hooligans " . I know Green Street Hooligans might make some go Huh ? But this is the internet age , where information is at the tip of your fingers , and all you have to do , is just to google it , or go visit IMDb . com ( not as if I'm promoting it , but yeah , common sense ) . It's one thing having movies renamed worldwide ( like Danny the Dog aka Unleashed ) , and another having a fiasco like " The Spy Who Shioked Me " . It's an interesting movie , with grand themes about not letting your buddies down , and for standing firm in what you believe in . Though the premise is controversial ( brutal gang fights and all ) , it did seem like you're watching an updated , Caucasian remake of movies like A Better Tomorrow and Prison On Fire . Just remember to keep whatever inert tempers in check after leaving the theater . CLAP CLAP CLAP UNITED ! ! |
515,111 | 317,399 | 1,050,739 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Roadside Romeo | I guess the number of dogs in Disney's repertoire isn't enough , and this year they're looking to grow the kernel which houses the likes of the 101 Dalmations , Goofy , Pluto , Lady and the Tramp with Bolt , Beverly Hills Chihuahua and of course , Roadside Romeo and his pooch friends hailing from India . Touted as the first Indian full length CG-animated film , the end credits reveal just how much Disney's participation here likely amounted to , being primarily consultants to what was mostly work done by Tata Exlsi Visual Computing Lab . And it's a pretty fine job those guys there are doing , because if you were to strip away the Hindi language and end credit roll so as not to cue in on production details , you're more than likely to think that this was made by Disney themselves . So it's absolutely not a bad effort at all , for a first film . Animation aside , this is as Bollywood a movie as it can get , with distinct song and dance sequences rooted in Bollywood spirit . Storywise , it's kept really simple with one main plot running and no sub plots trying to complicate matters . The characters too seem to leap out of a typical Bollywood film with over the top villains and their slimy incompetent henchmen , err , dogs , coupled with the propensity to switch to English with constant plurality and grammatic errors in efforts to impress everyone . Saif Ali Khan voices the titular character of Romeo , once a dog living the life of luxury , before given the boot onto the streets when his owners take off to settle overseas . Left to fend for himself , he relies on his street smarts , suave ways , quick wit and smooth talking to garner himself a posse of abandoned dogs and one cat , putting into use his fashionable skills with the scissors to open a salon for the neighbourhood hounds . Adversary comes in the form of a Don Corleone Godfather type bulldog named Charlie Anna ( Javed Jaffrey ) , who has three " angels " for protection ( and to fuel plenty of tired Charlie Angels jokes and references ) and to dish out torture , running a protection racket which Romeo and gang run afoul of given their new enterprise , and on a personal level , the rivalry for the affections of Laila ( Kareena Kapoor ) , which becomes the centerpiece in the second half of the film . The first half did seem a bit of a drag though , especially with the expanded introduction of Charlie Anna and subsequent scenes just to demonstrate what he's capable of , together with some repetitive threats of torture that definitely tested patience . Otherwise , once the seeds of romantic rivalry has been sown , with Laila being marked as Charlie Anna's romantic target , it led to a number of hilarious playful cross-exchanges between Charlie , Romeo and his gang Guru ( Vrajesh Hirjee ) , Interval ( Suresh Menon ) , Hero English ( Kiku Sharda ) , and cat Mini ( Tanaz Irani ) , which the victim given its focus on these characters was Laila , being reduced to an unfortunate supporting presence . For some strange reason , Roadside Romeo needed some getting used to as the dogs prance around on two hind legs most of the time , which brought back some memories of The Barnyard . But once you come to terms with it ( just like how the Barnyard's bulls all have udders ) , it's quite an enjoyable and light piece of animation that should do well with its intended demographic , though to an international audience , some nuances because of one pooch's frequent impersonation of Bollywood legends might be woefully lost in translation . |
514,903 | 317,399 | 460,792 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Fast Food Nation | At first glance , my impression of Fast Food Nation is that it'll take a more documentary approach in highlighting issues about the fast food industry . It did look like it had room for satire with a provocative style , but should you be expecting something along the lines of Super Size Me , then this is the wrong movie for you . For starters , it's got an appeal like Thank You For Smoking , but its narrative choice of attaching characters to mouthpiece different issues , seemed to make the movie feel very scattered in its presentation of ideas . While this approach had its merits , giving different ideas appropriate focus and dedicated screen time , it didn't make a very compelling , thorough argument as a whole . Something along the lines of having too many cooks spoiling the broth , and it really kept the best for the last , building an anticipation which got glossed over too quickly . Fast Food Nation contains an excellent ensemble cast assembled , and characters ranged from illegal immigrants crossing over the US border from Mexico , to cattle ranchers , food processing plant workers , fast food outlet workers , and all the way up to the corporate boardroom of a fictional fast food chain . The entire supply chain of the fast food industry gets addressed , and every perceived skeleton from the closet gets its fair share of air time . You have doctored reports , tales from the production floor , sexual favours , poor work conditions and lack of benefits , and tons of lies . Richard Linklater movies have dialogue which rock , and there is no lack of those in Fast Food Nation . In particular , pay attention during the scene with Bruce Willis ( yes ) and Greg Kinnear . It meanders around , trying to reason , before coming down like a sledgehammer . That conversation itself is a worth the price of an admission ticket , seriously . The book ( I managed to scan through it ) probably packed a lot more theories and figures which should make it a compelling read , but the movie , whose screenplay is also co-written by the author Eric Schlosser , in having to adopt a different approach to present those ideas , somehow diluted some of them . But the movie should make you want to pick up the book for more . And yes , I'm swearing off burgers and fast food for a while . |
514,918 | 317,399 | 464,141 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Orphanage | I thought that the Orphanage had employed just about every clichéd premise out there in horrorland , where the first 5 minutes probably set up an inevitable series of events that you could have seen from 10 miles out . A creepy looking mansion which functions as an orphanage , children ( who are popular characters in many horror movies ) , and the return to a place called home . To make things worse , the story took its time to unfold , with what I perceived as a nod toward Poltergeist and Dark Water combined . However , you can't deny that The Orphanage was somewhat of a fresh breeze amongst recent horror releases . Sure I did not like the snail's pace , but I appreciate the technical details employed to craft mood and tension , without relying on the usual bag of tricks . So what you have are extremely atmospheric pieces , but don't go waiting out for cheap sound effects or sudden quick jumps to send thrills down your spine , or laughable attempts at that . Belen Rueda plays Laura , an orphan from the Orphanage who returns to the same house many years later with husband Carlos ( Fernando Cayo ) and son Simon ( Roger Princep ) in tow . Standard horror movie rule # 1 will say that things are expected to go bump in the night , and soon enough Simon starts to interact with what is brushed aside by his parents as imaginary friends borne out of his loneliness . Laura , during her childhood , got adopted and off she goes from her friends , and rule # 2 will state that she'll soon find out what had happened to the rest , weaved together quite nicely when Simon starts to disappear . I've come to casually notice that with horror movies , female protagonist are now standard fare . They will find inner strength to confront demons , believe the extraordinary and just never give up hope , whereas their male counterparts always seem whiny , disbelieving , and unsupportive . And that continues here as well . There are some nice touches here which I felt held up the plot development when it was going downhill , and that scene involving " ghostbusters " was certainly one of the best I've seen in a long while , where everything worked perfectly in providing crucial clues to further the story . But don't go to The Orphanage expecting a lot . The story's rather cliché though cleverly multi-layered in its presentation . It has its moments in key scenes , and for a horror movie , it possesses technical merits in not wanting to be just another run off the mill production , but ultimately felt quite empty despite its very glossy veneer and its headline of having Guillermo del Toro's name attached to the project . |
515,503 | 317,399 | 492,835 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : King and the Clown | King and the Clown was South Korea's best selling film of 2005 , having sold more than 12 million tickets over a span of 7 weeks . But after watching it , it's difficult to fathom the craze , nor about the New York Times hype that it " may be the equivalent of ' Brokeback Mountain ' " . Not that it is a bad movie , it is actually entertaining and tells an intriguing story in the courts of the Korean emperor . Perhaps anything to do with the gay theme will suffer inevitably comparisons to Lee Ang's acclaimed Brokeback Mountain . But somehow , the way this film developed , I saw it in a different light - a story between two male best friends , even though one of them might look and behave more effeminately than even some girls do . Instead of jumping to the straight conclusion that both the protagonists are gay , why can't it be a platonic relationship , and that the more effeminate one had chosen what he had to do , i . e . sell backside , because being poor minstrels , they cannot afford to put food on the table ? Literally capitalizing on his looks , to bring back the dough . Sure his friend might not like the idea , and it could be interpreted as either being jealous ( as a lover ) , or disapproving ( as a friend ) . Then again , because of culture , this movie might have decided to be more subtle about the theme . Ambiguous to say the least , but it makes for interesting debate if you watch this with a friend . Two friends , Jang-seng ( Kam Woo-sung ) and Gong-gil ( Lee Joon-ki ) , are impoverished street performers who dream of having their entertaining performances reap rewards they should be getting . They come up with a wildly popular and bawdy performance poking fun at the emperor and his consort , and it's not long before they get arrested , only to have Jang-seng proposition a dare , that if the King doesn't laugh at their skit , they can be put to death . As fate would have it , their jittery performance brought on a favourable response from the tyrannical King ( Jung Jin-young ) . Having now become official court jesters , their subsequent plays , whose content they obtain from coffee-shop talk of those days , about the royal family and other court scandals , serve as suggestive fuel for the King to break free from his constrictive shackles , and take some serious action according to his whims . But dictator attitudes aside , he casts a lustful eye at Gong-gil , and turns almost childlike when in his presence , in private . The most powerful man in the kingdom , reduced to a vulnerable kid in the presence of a lowly minstrel . What ensues is an interesting look at the relationship dynamics amongst the three men , and with the people around them . Set during the Chosun Dynasty , King and the Clown has some of the most gorgeous sets bringing to life an era long gone , and beautiful costumes that drown the movie in a myriad of colours . The songs are also fairly pleasing to the ears , and the skits , I believe , are likely to be many times more enjoyable if you understand Korean , instead of having to rely on subtitles . The movie also makes discreet jibes at those in power , and their ability , or inability , to accept satires about themselves . It is always easy for men in power to dismiss harshly the satires and their creators , but it takes a lot more to be able to look past the comic and understand the issues made fun of . There are brief scenes at courtroom politicking and on corruption , but these scenes are too short to leave any lasting impression or distract the audience . The cast is a delight to watch as they carry their roles with aplomb . The chemistry between the 3 main leads was almost perfect , especially Jung Jin-young as the temperamental King - childish at times , serious at others , and the androgynous looking Lee Joon-ki truly owned the role of Gong-gil , that even as a guy , I thought he was beautiful to look at ( ahem ) . All in all , King and the Clown is a story of friendship , how good friends fend for each other , how , despite shortcomings and misunderstandings , the best medicine is always laughter , and it's the strength of the bonds between men that can ultimately stand up against fear and overcome any adversary . If only the opening didn't spoil the entire movie . |
514,478 | 317,399 | 301,777 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Robot Stories | Robot Stories is an anthology of 4 distinct segments which premiered in the Singapore Fantastic Film Festival this evening , with a common theme of advanced technology or robots taking centerstage . My Robot Baby In the future where career minded couples have no time to conceive and turn to adoption , they will have to go through a " baby trial " period , whereby they will be tasked to take care of a baby-like Tamaguchi robot , which looks similar and beeps just like Star Wars ' Artoo-Deetoo , sans legs . The robot records how it is treated by the couple , and without proper care , feeding and cleaning , once the evaluation period is up , the couple will be deemed unsuitable to adopt a human child . So when career gets in the way of childcare , desperate times calls for desperate measures . While a robot can be hacked and reprogrammed , the same cannot be done for a human child , and critical sacrifices has got to be made . It makes you think if what had been done to outsmart the system is ethical , and reflect upon a statement made by one of the characters early in the film on " never fall in love , never get married , and never have kids " if these sacrifices cannot be made . The Robot Fixer A man is lying comatose on a hospital bed , while a mother clings onto childhood memories of her time with her kid . While waiting for her child to wake up from his coma , she inevitably goes through his stuff , with most of her memories being linked with his robotic toys . While she scours all around town to re-assemble the broken and lost pieces ( in the hope that it will jog his brain waves when she speaks and presents them to him ) , it parallels her determination and never-say-die spirit that her son will one day be able to be with her again . My guess is any son or mother in the audience , will be able to identify with the characters . As a son , I did , and I know that my mom will go through all lengths to wake me up from that deep sleep , with similar methods and determination . A mother's love is always strong . Machine Love Director Greg Pak stars as the protagonist in this segment , a ( probably subtle approval to Apple ) model G9 iPerson , who's able to self-deliver himself to the company he is bought for . This segment perhaps dreams of what the future may hold for Artificial Intelligence - that of never-tiring workers who can work at their desks all day without the need for breaks , always responding eagerly to " you got work " calls and striving to accomplish all assigned tasks in the fastest possible speed . And with AI , this segment inevitably explores the " what ifs " that these lifeforms could have or developed in terms of emotions , and love , as they learn through interactions with humans . Being the perfect worker , it also brings forth fear into humans on things that we don't understand , and the usual name calling / chiding happens . Abuse also follows with female versions of the iPerson , with lecherous males openly fondling and commenting on why the racks ain't being bigger . I shan't finish this segment for you , except to comment that these robots sure know the right buttons to push ! Clay This is , in my opinion , the weakest of the four stories , but the one which has the most potential , and features the most human of emotions , that of love , longing and the anticipation of death . It is an era where the human brain can be mapped onto a computer , so that man can finally beat death , and while the physical person wastes away , the consciousness will forever be alive in an electronic form . The protagonist , however , refuses to use this technology , being a clay-artist , he loathes the thought of designing his craft without feeling or emotions . However , he uses technology to interact with his dead ( ? ) wife , and with the proper plug in , could also get intimate with her . There is nothing new with this technology feature as it was also shown on screen in Tom Cruise's Minority Report . But interwoven into the narrative is a strong sense of his wanting to be back in the arms of his wife again . Do stay for the end credits . There is a slide at the end which states that production started on September 10th 2001 , and the crew lost one of their own in the WTC attacks . Also after the end credits , one of the dancing robots ( featured in the opening credits ) will appear with a message on New York . For those who wish to catch this film , you can do so on Monday where the evening show will be screened at GV Marina . |
514,437 | 317,399 | 116,163 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Ebola Syndrome | Back in the early 90s , I recall widespread concern about incurable diseases such as the Ebola virus , and Hollywood taking the premise and churning out movies such as Outbreak and the such . In Hong Kong cinema , director Herman Yau cemented his cult status for films with excessive graphic depiction of sex and violence with this movie - Ebola Syndrome . As compared to the other cult hit The Untold Story , you can spot various similarities in terms of presentation style , and certain plot elements and development . Again the lead role , Kai San , is played by Anthony Wong , this time with long frizzy hair , and begins the movie with both sex ( with his boss ' wife ) and violence ( yet another gruesome massacre played out in full on screen , coupled with sexual violence ) . Naturally he becomes a fugitive and escapes to outside Hong Kong - this time to South Africa , and becomes an employee at a local Chinese restaurant . The similarities do not end there . You just cannot wait for the next dismemberment and the making of the new " char siew bao " , now termed African Buns for local flavour . Expect more hard unflinching violence , and this time too with the camera unmoved from the decapitation of animals like chickens and frogs - heart still pumping , and the slicing out of innards , or the chopping off of legs . Sure puts you off your next bowl of frog leg porridge . And serving as another reminder , is not to offend your cook , as he has the power to include unwanted ingredients , including bodily fluids ! Rapid fire profane dialogue is a standard , and sometimes comical as the characters rattle off combinations of vulgarities with ease . But just in case you wonder if Ebola Syndrome is The Untold Story rehashed in a different setting , rest assure that only the good gory bits from Untold get squeezed into the first half of Ebola . Unfortunately the second half seemed to want to move away tangentially from its predecessor , and kept its focus on the contact with , and spreading of the disease . Stemming from Kai San's inability to keep his pants on , he takes advantage of a comatose African tribe woman , who unknowing to him , is a victim of the Ebola virus . With an incredible stroke of luck , he survives the infection and becomes a virus carrier , spreading the disease in South Africa no thanks to his African Buns , and amongst prostitutes when he returns to Hong Kong . The rest of the movie becomes a comedy somewhat with the police attempts to contain the virus as well as to apprehend Kai San . Nothing too fancy in its second half treatment . One more thing , look out carefully at the cameos and extras ! |
514,669 | 317,399 | 488,380 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Closing The Ring | Never make promises you can't fulfill , otherwise you'll find that nagging feeling coming back to haunt you , and it can be quite uncomfortable , unless of course it doesn't bother you as far as integrity and trustworthiness are concerned . Then again there's the living a lie , of not being true to yourself , which sometimes can be tricky when it deals with affairs of the heart , where ignorance may be bliss . Closing the Ring throws its hat into the WWII era inspired romance stories , where boys turn into men , and have to leave their lady love behind at home while they ship off to the warfront . With events that unfold across two different continents , and unfolding between two different timelines with the necessary flash backs , flash forwards , and nicely edited transitions , the movie isn't that bad although the story might be at times clichéd . Jack ( Gregory Smith ) , Chuck ( David Alpay ) and Teddy ( Stephen Amell ) are three buddies who join the air force , and are training to be pilots , navigators and gunners , whatever it takes to bring them to the skies . Mischa Barton stars as young Ethel Ann who's the flower amongst the group , but only having romantic feelings for Teddy , whom she married in secret before the trio got shipped away to join the war . That's the arc of the past , where we see how their relationship with one another hold up during mankind's darkest hour . The arc of the present has Shirley MacLaine and Christopher Plummer take up the senior roles of Ethel Ann and Jack respectively , and on the other side of the continent in Northern Ireland , we follow Michael Quinlan ( Pete Postlethwaite ) and Jimmy Reilly ( Martin McCann ) , where the latter is a simple minded teen helping the former fireman dig around Black Mountain in search of something of value . I guess by now you can piece together a little bit of what could possibly happen , and added to the fray is the IRA's struggle for independence in 1991 . Characters interact by crossing continents , mysteries and confirmation of what happened during those faithful and pivotal moments in WWII get revealed and explained , and feelings slowly get revealed , demolishing some long held denial and unawareness . Although given what would transpire , you wonder if it's remotely possible to pine for someone for so long , or to lock away your heart so cruelly that you shut off affections even for your own child . It's still an enjoyable movie , though not exactly a great one but it does get to its point quickly . You might find yourself being a step ahead of the characters and piece together all the information provided way in advance , but still , if you'd enjoyed movies like Atonement and Evening , then you wouldn't find this that bad at all . Oh , and the English subtitles did help in deciphering some thick Irish accent . |
514,415 | 317,399 | 399,146 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : A History of Violence | Finally , a movie based on a source material that I've read ! Based on the graphic novel of the same name by writer John Wagner and artist Vince Locke , A History of Violence is David Cronenberg's latest film starring Viggo Mortensen ( don't know why , but I'm always seeing Elessar in his new character . . . ) I'm usually OK with film adaptations not sticking closely to the material it's based on , basically because they're on different mediums , and it's a bore to have the movie follow the book word for word , scene for scene . Although this review will be working on the premise that it is a stand alone film , I can't help to notice that , unfortunately , the book told the better story , in terms of characterization ( ok , so the movie is relatively short , clocking in about 90mins ) and the back story on Tom's ( Viggo ) history . If you'd bear with me , I'd highlight some of the major departures from the book - Tom's son now has a beefed up role , Ed Harris's wounded eye is on the wrong side ( as shown in the trailers and movie , it's on his left , but it should be the right ) and Tom's last name from McKenna has been changed to Stall . The story and ending of Richie has been totally changed . The book has 3 chapters , but it's only the first that the movie dwells upon , and completely changing and summarizing the last 2 chapters . The introduction is one incredibly long , and slow scene which showcases the 2 killers that Tom dispatches in his diner thereafter . I like this scene which is superior to the book , but somehow it sets the pace of the entire movie - slow and measured . The story tells of an everyday all American Family , the Stalls , who live in a small town of Millbrook , Indiana , being brought to the limelight when head of the household Tom , guns down 2 violent thugs who robbed his diner and threatening his customers . Tom , a soft-spoken man , becomes the town's hero , and soon after , more thugs from the East Coast come and stalk him and his family . But is Tom the man he claims he is , or has his past finally caught up with him ? Playing Tom , Viggo Mortensen puts up a credible performance as the unassuming Tom Stall , and does an about turn as a violent character of his past . While the theme talks about violence and the debate on the necessity of it , it gets brushed away pretty quick towards the last act , which degenerates this movie into a short actioner . Needless to say , the psyche of the Family plays an important role between contrasting the relationship between Tom and his wife and kids , which changes as the movie progresses , and that between Tom and Ritchie ( completely re-written for the movie ) , which I thought was a pity . The R21 rating is for violence ( gruesome shots of heads blown off etc ) , but if they'd stuck to the book , there'll be more scenes like the one with the drill-in-the-leg torture scene , etc . But Cronenberg decided to include sex scenes between Tom and his wife , which figured some cheerleading role play , a 69 , and a totally out of character rowdy staircase romp . Hello , this is not a History of Sex . ( I know it's Cronenberg , but still ) While I liked this film for its slow pace ( no frantic MTV styled quick cuts , or scenes which appear and disappear at the bat of an eyelid ) , I can't shake off the feeling that this film had the potential to be way , way better . Excellent I do not think so , but it still is an enjoyable movie to catch on a weekday . |
515,434 | 317,399 | 53,111 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Nianchan | Actress Yoshiyuki Kazuko was at today's screening to present the movie to the audience . She mentioned it was a special day for her , and that Nianchan was the second movie she had made in her career of 50 years . Shohei Imamura had actually told her to become rounder and fatter for the role , and she thought that since it's only her second film , the acting here is not on par yet and felt that it probably might be the last role she'll ever star in ! She told the audience she was excited about today's screening , and shared that while Imamura was fierce in his directing of the film , it is thanks to him that she has been acting for the last 50 years . She thanked the audience for turning up , and told us that it was great to watch the movie again ( and she did stay until the end of it ! ) Nianchan is the film that brings together both the director-in-focus and the actress-in - attendance for this year's Japanese Film Festival . The movie is directed by Shohei Imamura , and just last week , we had seen a series of his movies , like the excellent Ballad of Narayama , and the World Cinema Series kickstarted with his Profound Desire of the Gods . In Nianchan , he directs Yoshiyuki Kazuko to an award winning performance . Set during Japan's depression years in the 50s , Nianchan ( read : My Second Brother ) tells the story about a family of 4 orphans , who are forced by circumstances to fend for themselves . Being in a mining town where the mining company is beginning to right-size its operations , jobs are getting scarce , and wages are getting lower with frequent cuts . Sticking together trying to find a way out of the vicious circle is close to impossible , and they realize that they have a better chance at carving a living if they split up . Imamura again proved his deftness in handling a piece treading on the lower rungs of society . Here , he puts the spotlight on the minority of Koreans who were left in dire straits after the war when they decide to remain in Japan , only to lose their livelihood to returning Japanese soldiers . We see how in a depressive state , help is not always readily available , and if that extra hand is extended , it may at most be temporary , most times with the disapproval of somebody else , of an opinion that these extra resources should go into their own pockets rather than to someone else's . There are some references from more contemporary movies which I was drawing references from when viewing this old black and white film . With the mining town setting and the depression it faced , it brought to mind the movie Hula Girls , where the female inhabitants of the town pick up a new skill , and with it set about transforming their town into an integrated resort with the Hawaiian theme . Also , with the younger siblings taking care of each other , it somehow brought to mind Majid Majidi's Children of Heaven . Maybe not quite the same premise , but the dynamics and relationship between the brother ( the titular Nianchan ) and his sister , reminded me of the dynamics of the siblings in Majidi's movie . While the movie print has aged , the spirit of the themes still ring through well . But I felt it's not exactly A material , but one that's still quite passable , which I thought ended on a good note of hope rather than with despair . |
515,334 | 317,399 | 1,155,705 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : 20th Century Boys | I had earlier written about comic books being rich material for filmmakers to raid and adopt them into a cinematic version , and with the success of the Death Note franchise , it's more than apparent that such movies will have its built in audience , and in this case , to skyrocket the movie to box office success . Depending on how the story is adapted , some will take liberties to gear the material for non - fans , to introduce it to a new audience . Death Note for instance , does this quite perfectly , drawing those unfamiliar with its mythos , and at the same time entertaining the fanboys . Mushishi on the other hand , assumed that one goes in with a bit of background knowledge , as it doesn't dwell too long , if at all , on the character backstory . 20th Century Boys however managed to take the middle ground , though I felt its presentation was somewhat left wanting . We're introduced to Kenji ( Toshiaki Karasawa ) , a supermarket manager who's about to be thrown into the adventure of his life . In a school reunion , he gets acquainted with his old pals , most of whom he already cannot recognize , before they launch into a discussion of a strange series of happenings which involve the emergence of their secret logo created during their childhood . As they catch up with one another , we also learn that collectively amongst the group , they vaguely recollect their 9 members , and hence sowed some suspicion as to the identity of who the new cult leader is , one who always hide behind a mask and calls himself Kira , oops , wrong movie - " Friend " . Throw into the plot yet another device in the form of a book called the Book of Prophecies , which Kenji is chief author , in somewhat of a create your own adventure with his pals , as they dream of the world coming to an end at the turn of the millennium , what with strange plagues , terrorist attacks , and a giant robot taking the place of the stay puff marshmallow man . They realize that world disasters are unfolded as per the sequence in their childhood book , and thus , with their sense of responsibility , work to try and put an end to the madness . For the first half of the movie , the story really plods on , as it took great pains to try and introduce to us the array of characters important to the series , including an infant heralded as the Chosen One . While most of the characters remain rather one-dimensional with nothing much revealed about their background despite the frequent flashbacks ( some which do get repetitive ) , Kenji is the focus of this installment , as we see an emergence of a resistance fighter from within a mild and meek , and often clueless supermarket manager . He doesn't really strike you as charismatic or well skilled to lead a group of do-gooders , but the second half would address all those concerns . In wanting to remain unconventional , the story moves forward and back so frequently , that it'll give you a headache . It seemed to be wanting to shovel down character backgrounds incessantly , as every opportunity found to go into flashback mode , will be utilized , so much so that it becomes mentally tiring after a while to keep track of current time . Time plays an important part in the story as it hinges everything on D-Day of 31 December 2000 , where a foretold apocalypse is expected to happen . And here's where it really shines , even when the arrival of D-Day involved plenty of droning pep-talking . Looking at the locations , sets , and big action sequences throughout the film , it's indeed a relatively big budget production with no qualms about throwing money to achieve some form of visual perfection . The finale is nothing short of breathtaking , and with well filled tension , though if you're not expecting this to be the first episode of an franchise , you'll find yourself swearing at its cliffhanger ending . It's not a complete story per se even though it managed to remain self-contained , as it retains just about as much mystery as it did from the onset , with nothing much revealed or addressed . For those looking into something more , I thought it had drawn some interesting parallels about the dangers of cults , and how enticing the promises made by preacher could be , with the followers blinding adhering to every word like it's the gospel . There are enough false prophets in the world , but those who can command a huge following , could grow and if their aspirations do find their way to the political arena , then just as how a manga-turned-movie would have its ready audience , then these political parties would already come with their congregation as ready supporters and voters . For the eager beavers , it's not until January that you can watch the next part , so do remember to stay until right after the end credits roll for the trailer to Part 2 . |
514,446 | 317,399 | 1,049,405 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Other End of the Line | Much has been said about the outsourcing of call centers to India , but so far I haven't seen one portrayed in a film in this manner , where Ifelt the portrayal of its inner workings was one of the better moments in his romantic-comedy . As far as I can recall , those who make cold calls to me for surveys , credit sign up and the likes , seem to sound local , or have that distinct regional accent that wasn't disguised , but if things happen per the movie , I won't be surprised that I was duped to believe they're calling from somewhere locally , rather than from abroad . So welcome to the world of tele-marketers / helpdesks agents / salespersons , where in-house training centres established take their employees through continuous training in order to ensure their accent are masked , their pop-culture knowledge brought up to speed , and they're well-versed in local colloquial terms , so that they seem to be your friend from next door when they talk to you , rather than a feeling of resentment knowing that their neighbours job has gone offshore . It's no easy training , and naturally one that calls for great measure of patience for facing phones being slammed down , or worse to stand up to verbal abuse in many forms . The Other End of the Line is your standard romantic comedy , which in my opinion got lifted from mediocrity thanks to this aspect of the story that I had a peek into . However , like most east-west fusion films made by Hollywood on Indian culture or aspects of India , it does get romanticized a great deal , and shots of Mumbai looked far too much like it's being lifted from a tourism board promotional video , or some tourist's excitable travel video of an exotic locale that he came back from . Think along the lines of Mistress of Spice , and Bride and Prejudice , and you have an idea how this story by Tracey Jackson had been approached by director James Dodson . Priya Sethi ( Shriya ) works in a call centre in Mumbai belonging to CitiOne Bank ( no prizes here ) , and her daily night shift ( to be on the same timezone as the USA ) gets frowned upon by her conservative family ( Anupam Kher from Victory as Dad , and Sushmita Mukherjee from Dostana as Mum ) , even though she's earning good money to become the chief breadwinner , versus than her insurance salesman dad . She adopts her Jessica David profile for calls she makes to CitiOne's customers , putting on a perfect American accent as she speaks to strangers every night , only to call on a handsome young man ( she knows because she Googles ) Granger Woodruff ( Jesse Metcalfe of John Tucker and Desperate Housewives fame ) who had his identity stolen and a whole host of credit card transactions erroneously billed to him . The both of them strike up a friendship as they speak frequently to clear up and verify his credit card transactions , and with one thing leading to an impulsive another , they set up a date , even though she knowingly lives on the other side of the world in India , while fibbing that she's actually in San Francisco , a city which Granger would be going to for a make or break advertising deal with a hotel chain . As with any romantic movie , the chemistry between the couple is important for it to be believable that they're falling for each other , and in this aspect both Jesse Metcalfe and Shriya excelled in , looking good on screen as they share plenty of romantic moments the plot had thrown at them . You'd find yourself inevitably rooting for them as they overcome expected challenges , knowing that these issues will probably not be show stoppers , since they conflict with the type of characters they are , strong-willed and stubborn as a mule toward tradition that the modern generation do not buy into , or just don't buy into spending time with someone they don't believe in . Possessing some amazing powers and ability to hear from a distance , The Other End of the Line is a long-distance infatuation that took on a life of its own , where characters step out of their comfort zones to pursue what their heart tells them . Since it's just a few days after Valentine's , this movie got made and released now for a reason , to have you partake in some lovey-dovey movie with comedy courtesy of a traditional family thrown in for good measure . Need a movie for a romantic night out ? Then The Other End of the Line will satisfy that objective . Nothing fancy , but it works . |
514,889 | 317,399 | 988,595 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : 27 Dresses | Katherine Heigl probably captured the imagination of the many geeky boys out there when she gave Seth Logan's Ben Stone a one night stand in Judd Apatow's Knocked Up . It's a ridiculous premise some might add , but it propelled her to mass consciousness as the beautiful girl who would , and provided her an elevation of status she would recently decide to loathe . Anyway , all is forgiven , and she's back to grace our screens in a role that demonstrates you can attempt to dress her up in a sack , and even that would still make her look oh-so-sexy . Yes she's a clotheshorse , and Aline Brosh McKenna , whose earlier work was adapting The Devil Wears Prada for the screen , wrote a story filled with clothes and accessories that would do her no wrong , try as they might . This in fact is the draw of the movie , hitting out at the target audience just as Prada did with the many fashionable clothes , and this time , wedding gowns fit for a bridesmaid . Heigl plays a plain Jane , who discovers that her goal in life is to ensure that others celebrate their unforgettable wedding day with everything going like clockwork . She's the maid of honour , and organizes everything from early preparation like food tasting right down to actual day menial tasks , like holding the bride's gown while she's taking a pee . Like the trailer suggests , her perfect world is about to turn topsy turvy as the man of her dreams , her boss actually - George ( Edward Burns ) , get smitten with her sexy-kitten sister Tess ( Malin Akerman ) , thus allowing the green eyed monster to rear its ugly head , while at the same time , a mysterious lurker Kevin ( James Marsden ) becomes a perpetual irritation by trying very hard to crawl into her life . It's your classic recipe for a romantic comedy with love triangles , repressed feelings , and the most cliché of all , having the one you love standing right in front of you without you even knowing it . However , 27 Dresses played out like how the dresses themselves get quickly discarded into an overflowing cupboard . It has tons of potential in its material , but decide to bite off too much more than it can possibly chew . Like In Her Shoes , there was stuff of sibling rivalry ripe for the picking , but easily get glossed over in fleeting , unmemorable moments when the sisters go up against each other . And the love loss moments , while clearly there to milk emotions of the sentimental ones , did highlight a certain truth - that when we act on our impulses of negativeness , be it anger or envy and the likes , while we get our short term satisfaction when dishing out sweet revenge at that moment , more often than not we'll very soon find that we're flooded with feelings of regret and remorse , that actions when done , are spilt milk that cannot be cried over . I liked the beginning though , as it succinctly highlights the commercialization of the solemn marriage ceremony in modern times . These days , you can't tell one wedding moment apart from another , and don't get me started on those wedding dinners , where the same old formula gets repeated until they become stale , and you realize this starkness when you get invited to different weddings at the same venue , no doubt being packaged by the same offering . Such events are supposed to be unique and special , but they turn out like factory assembly lines . In my opinion , Katherine Heigl would probably be able to cement her leading lady status , and probably able to marquee movies on her own soon enough . Perhaps it would be refreshing if we could see her take on more diverse roles , if she breaks out of the rom-com genre . James Marsden continues his bad run of supporting roles , from Hairspray and Enchanted . Here , he combines elements from both , continuing his himbo status , and makes it three in a row in exhibiting his singing voice . Edward Burns plays the male bitch , taking over Meryl Streep in Prada , though there's a subtlety in the difference here that he doesn't show that he's an ass outwardly in an explicit manner , but rather seemed to be like the one in Singapore Dreaming . And Heigl is not only the one here making an impact though , as Malin Akerman herself probably , and hopefully not in a permanent manner , boxed herself as the new ditzy blonde ( remember The Heartbreak Kid ? ) , clearly taking over the mantle from Cameron Diaz . 27 Dresses is a movie that's meant to be a filler during a date , and one which doesn't shy away from trying hard to satisfy those who have come to pay tribute to woman's fashion . Especially when they're modelled by a statuesque beauty like Heigl . Come to think of it , while the gowns get their fair share of screen time , all 27 of them , the ones that stand out are the ordinary ones worn by Jane . And that's what 27 Dresses actually is . Ordinary , and saved by the beauty . |
515,325 | 317,399 | 358,273 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Walk the Line | How uncanny . Today is the day that Walk the Line won big at the Golden Globes , winning Best Motion Picture - Musical / Comedy , as well as snagging the Best Actor and Actress - Musical / Comedy for both Joaquin Phoenix and Resse Whiterspoon . Today is also the day that I attended my first GV Surprise Screening , and Walk the Line was shown . You've got Elvis , and you've got Johnny Cash . Walk the Line chronicles the life of country music legend JOhn R . Cash , who performed alongside other music legends like Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis . It also tells of the struggles of one man's determination to make music his life , the reliance and subsequent battle against drugs , and looks into his various relationships . Sound familiar ? Of course it does . Walk the Line is in 2005 ( locally 2006 ) what Ray was in 2004 ( locally 2005 ) . I know it's probably unfair at making the comparison , given that both musicians ' music are so different . But the way the narrative is structured for Walk the Line , resembled that of Ray's quite a bit , that you might think you know what would go next when you substitute Jamie Foxx with Joaquin Phoenix . Both had to pick up music , both won nods for their accurate portrayals , and both had to sing in their actual voice . Drawing parallels , we see how both draw inspiration from their life encounters and encompass them into musical lyrics , how stardom grew in their heads , how succumbing to drugs screwed everything up , and how they harness creativity in making comebacks . While Ray was a more personal look into Ray Charles ' extraordinary career , Walk the Line seemed to have tried to cover more ground , but somewhat loses its focus occasionally . Too many subplots just got tied up at the end without much detailed exploration , like the strained relation between Johnny and his father ( played so stoically by Robert Patrick ) , whom the former is blamed for the death of his beloved brother , or the struggles June Carter ( Resse Whiterspoon ) has to face being a divorcée in days were marriage is sacred . Equally glossed over too is the matrimony development and deterioration between John and his wife Vivian - we know he loves her and managed to provide her material needs , but all she longed for is his presence . Sigh , sometimes you can't have the cake and eat it too . He works hard to build up his career ( therefore spending a lot of time on the road ) , and can't seem to juggle and find the work-life balance . Where does Resse come into all this you say ? She plays his best friend and fellow performer on the road , June Carter . It's like the third ( married ) party coming into the life of a lonely married man giving in to temptation . She tried her darndest best to reject Johnny , but ultimately caved in to his persistence . But both of them , when paired up on screen singing their songs , have the exact same power as Ray's in having you tap / sing / groove along to the tunes . Their chemistry is a delight to watch . If you're not too acquainted with Cash's music , this is as good an opportunity to do so . Until the drugs rear their ugly head and the tunes just stopped while he undergoes some soul-searching rehabilitation . A pity that his comeback at recording live at Folsom Prison , was too short , otherwise it would have been a really good way to cap it all off . It's a good film nonetheless , though I felt that those who have watched Ray might have sensed a deja-vu . |
514,929 | 317,399 | 382,189 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : My Summer of Love | My Summer of Love , as the title implies , is about a romance during the summer holidays . Perhaps one of the draws of this movie in release now in Singapore , is indirectly from the popularity of The Devil Wears Prada , with Emily Blunt playing the role of an uncooperative , bullying colleague to Anne Hathaway's Andrea . Yet another GLBT movie to hit our shores ( somehow I think lesbian love films make it here more frequently than gay ones ? ) , this movie , based on a novel written by Helen Cross , and directed by Pawel Pawlikowski , has won the BAFTA award for Best British Film , amongst other movie awards . The protagonist is Mona ( Nathalie Press ) , a young orphaned girl on the verge of losing her brother Phil ( Paddy Considine ) to his rediscovery of Christianity . They own a bar , but with his turn for the supposed better , he has converted their joint to a meeting place for his cell group of reborn Christians . Lonely , she chances upon Tamsin ( Emily Blunt ) , a girl back from boarding school for the holidays , and the two soon strike up a fast friendship . It makes you wonder how one develops feelings for members of the same sex , or if such harbouring of feelings is innate in the first place . Mona becomes the surrogate sister of Tamsin , who is a typical poor pitiful rich girl looking for thrills , who had lost her own sister , and found a substitute in Mona . Coming from families who seemingly don't care for them , their hanging out together draws them closer to each other . Much of the movie shows this development of friendship into something more , of the forging of friendship amongst lonely people , and devotes much screen time to this . However , there is another side observation on a separate theme , and that's of religion . I found that this film bold in its depiction of the hypocrisy amongst men who assume they have godly powers over mere mortals , and how their bigoted views often seem misguided . It doesn't mince its message on speaking in tongues , or having the Lord speak through oneself in the judgement of others . Of course it's always tough being the good and holy person , given sinners are we all , but there are plenty of scenes in this movie that probably suggests that there is always a veil of hypocrisy surrounding those who use the name of the Lord in vain . Through Phil , we see how hard he tries to be accepted back to society , how hard he tries to imagine that he has changed for the better because of his devotion to religious cause , and how easy it is to fall back into the path which totally contradicts every well-meaning effort trying to change oneself . On a lighter note , there is a little hint of mystery that nags you throughout the film about possible deception . And with the twist revealed at the end , it somehow makes your blood boil a bit , never mind if you don't swing for the same side . Perhaps sometimes , it's always best to heed advice from blood which is always thicker than water , or stick to the notion that summer flings should always begin and end as the season comes and goes . |
515,000 | 317,399 | 485,976 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Rob-B-Hood | Jackie Chan is undoubtedly one of the few Asian stars whose name alone can open a movie , probably worldwide now . With his latest offering for the Chinese National Day holiday in Rob - B-Hood , he has again done back to basics , together with one of his collaborators of late Benny Chan ( New Police Story , Who Am I ) , with his mantra of " no sex no violence " , but just pure action . In his recent movies , while staying true to his brand of action together with his band of merry men from the Jackie Chan Stunt Team , there is no denial of his attempt to infuse a little more drama into his role so as to showcase his acting chops . While his acting in slow moments might not appeal to fans of his action , it looks like dramatic moments are here to stay . However , if you'd notice there's a progression in his willingness to move away from one - man-army type of roles , to sharing the limelight with his fellow co-stars . Here , his screen time is almost equally shared with co-lead Louis Koo , with the both of them playing unsavoury characters - thieves with vices , with Chan as Thongs , a hardcore gambler with family issues , and Koo as Octopus , a married womanizer and fast car lover . They turn to their current profession of thievery to sustain their lifestyle , and the brains behind the duo's brawn is Landlord , played by veteran Michael Hui , a man whose wife is devastated by the loss of their only child . See the plenty of moments for some serious drama yet ? It is perhaps these moments where an exploration into the character's background slowed down the pace of what could've been a rip-roaring ride from start to end . Clocking in at 135 minutes , the movie felt that it could've been shortened as certain scenes were just too trying . The action scenes too were few and far between , though each scene is still carefully choreographed and felt that it lasted longer than the usual . The comedic element came in full swing with the introduction of the baby , which probably is the movie's trump card in luring the crowds ( my friend and I didn't think he was that adorable actually ) . It's nothing new as the antics of soiled diapers , refusal to stop crying , and various moments of what baby would do , have already been touched upon in movies like 3 Men and a Baby , or even Raising Arizona . However , having one actor play daddy , and the other play mommy , does call for some genuine laughs sometimes . Louis Koo has been playing the bad guy role to aplomb with his Election movies , and here , it's a nice change to see him tackle both comedy and action . I truly welcomed Michael Hui's return to the big screen , as one of my favourite comedies as a kid , was his Chicken and Duck Talk . Here though , there aren't many moments where he exhibited his classic bossy demeanour full of wit and sarcasm , probably hampered by the script . The supporting casts consists of actors past and present in roles that either brought back some good memories , or are milked just for laughs . Yuen Biao was the other supporting role that compelled me to watch this movie , as he seemed to have faded from starring in movies for some time now . He doesn't have much to do here , save for some limited screen action . Actresses like Charlene Choi , Teresa Carpio and Gao Yuanyuan add balance to the testosterone on screen , but probably the best cameo appearance belongs to the duo of Nicholas Tse and Daniel Wu ( totally different from what you see now in The Banquet ) ! As always , stay at your seats while the end credits roll , for the usual out-takes included . My only gripe would still be to have this shown in Cantonese , somehow the dubbing of the out - takes sounded really too artificial . |
514,563 | 317,399 | 963,743 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Angus , Thongs and Perfect Snogging | I guess Angus , Thongs and Perfect Snogging is the female equivalent of the teenage male sex comedies , without the sex or gratuitous nudity that is , because this is firmly in chick lit territory and based upon two books written by Louise Rennison - Angus , Thongs and Full - Frontal Snogging and On the Bright Side , I'm Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God . If you may , this aligns itself more toward Sue Townsend's Adrian Mole series , where we get a glimpse of the titular character's daily life and anxieties through episodes of growing pains . Directed by Gurinder Chadha who brought us Bride & Prejudice and Bend It Like Beckham , this movie centres upon 14 year old Georgia Nicholson ( Georgia Groome ) and her three girly pals whom Jas ( Eleanor Tomlinson ) is her best pal of the lot . Both have major infatuations with new boys in school Robbie ( Aaron Johnson ) and Tom ( Sean Bourke ) , and naturally jealousy ensues when Jas manages to hook up with Tom , but for Georgia , she's stuck with having to battle for Robbie's affections with rival Wet Lindsay ( Kimberley Nixon , last seen in Wild Child ) , who's the school's flower with cover girl looks . And while " boylingual issues " occupy the bulk of Georgia's time , she also has major freak - outs with trying to figure how to throw the most memorable birthday party ever , as well as trying to save her own family from disintegrating , with Dad ( Alan Davies ) being sent to New Zealand because of a major promotion at work , and Mom ( Karen Taylor ) seems to be having a flirty good time with their home interior decorator . It's quite a ditzy film and I guess for all the girls out there , the events as they unfold in the movie will probably be easily identifiable , and I guess the boys too will have a field day with some of the situational humour which came by the bucketloads . And what I thought to be really quite accurate , is the way how everyone second guesses each other when it comes to the affairs of the hearts , and sometimes dwell onto stuff a little too much to the extreme , incessantly finding meaning in something as simple as a word or phrase . This naturally brings out the ugliness that stem from desperation , and we observe how Georgia slowly degenerates from nice girl next door , to uber Ms Insensitive . It's a fairly light and breezy chick flick that is peppered by some insane characters , such as Georgia's sister who thinks that she's a cat , and probably who I thought to be one of the most innovative fellas out there who would outplay , outlast and outwit the likes of Stifler and McLovin , is Peter Dyer , the self-professed expert who offers lessons and opportunity in allowing girls to experiment in achieving the perfect snog . Talk about being sly ! Ultimately , this is a feel good movie which has all its loose threads tied up very conveniently , which you could see coming from a mile away . But it doesn't dwell on its problems for too long , because there's always a solution that springs up for Georgia and gang to tap on . Peppered by some good music in the soundtrack , and generally likable characters who remind all of us of some dreaded issues when growing up , Angus , Thongs and Perfect Snogging is a surprisingly well designed teenage comedy that doesn't have to rely on cheap gimmicks like incessant foul language , sex and nudity to draw the crowds . And for that quality , this is somewhat refreshing for comedies targeted at that demographics . I might go one step further and say I won't mind ploughing through the books as well ! |
514,524 | 317,399 | 785,035 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Ong Bak 2 | There's no doubt I've been a fan of movies starring Tony Jaa with the likes of Ong Bak and Tom Yum Goong being showcases for the Muay Thai brand of martial arts , and I fondly remember those hard hitting action sequences that left me gaping , as well as the numerous replays just to drum it through to you that it's all Jaa and it's all as incredible as can be . And who can forget the latter film with that amazing single take where Jaa had to pound his way from the bottom of a building right to the top ? Ong Bak 2 is a film fans like myself have been waiting for , despite it being marred by some really strange controversy , which also included Jaa walking off the set and disappearing from production . But everything's been sorted I guess , for the film to be completed and finally released . While it's rocking the box office in Thailand , I wonder whether it's because of the controversies that had piqued everyone's interest , or it's because the long break of 3 years had made everyone salivate at Jaa's long awaited return to the big screen . I wonder because while there are numerous moments in the film that I thoroughly enjoyed , I felt that it fell short too on other areas that had left me shifting in my seat , especially during the first hour . And the biggest culprit of it all , would be the ending . Tony Jaa wrote this story , and credit to him too in trying to weave together some semblance of a worthy story instead of the more obvious and easier whack-fest end to end . But the ending was somewhat of a cop out , and a disappointment , as it leads potentially and very directly to a third movie to resolve the issues the storyline had left hanging . It could have easily stretched it to say , 20 minutes more to get everything settled , but I guess there were grander plans to the tale that needed another movie to tell . One only wishes that it does get made sooner rather than later , and without the production woes that plagued this one . So Ong Bak 2 is actually half a movie , and given that it's a totally new story to begin with , I thought it would make better sense in retitling it , rather than to have a misnomer that it's a sequel . After all , the setting is now back in 15th century Thailand with totally new characters , with Jaa playing Tien , a man of royal lineage who's trying to avenge the death of his parents and entire household under the hands of rival warlords , and a masked man who delivered the killing blow to his dad . The first half of the movie had him learn from a band of bandits called the Garuda Wing Cliff , where a number of highly skilled exponents teach him all there is to know about their respective fields . I remembered having read somewhere that there's supposed to be some fusion of dance and martial arts , which didn't transpire in this film as far as I can tell ( the dance / action sequence here doesn't make the cut ) , so it might be left for the next movie instead . Compared to the other Tony Jaa movies , you can see that the production values here have been ramped up tremendously . Techniques have also matured , and gone are the repetitive playbacks . But that doesn't mean you're going to lose out , because like any self-respecting martial arts film , the camera stays still when it should be and at a sane distance away to capture all the action comfortably , and the editing doesn't cut in and mess up the sequence . While the filmmaker in Tony Jaa would have matured with this outing ( he co-directed this ) , his maturity as a martial artist on film is now without a doubt . We only get flashes of his Muay Thai when it calls for some close combat involving elbows and knees right smack in the kisser , otherwise we see Jaa as a more complete martial arts practitioner with the employment of a vast array of weapons , from swords to three-section-staffs , and a host of recognizable kung-fu moves , one which also pays homage to the Drunken Fists , and I applaud Jaa's rendition of it too . As for the revered elephant , you know it's never far behind , and there's one thrilling battle atop the large mammal , with Dan ( ce ) Chupong no less , albeit hidden behind a mask . Ong Bak 2 picked up very slowly , and spent significant time developing the back story of Jaa's Tien . And unfortunately , I do admit unabashedly that I was waiting for action sequence one after another , and those in the same boat will have to be patient . For action junkies , your appetite will only be satiated in the last act of the film , where it's vintage Jaa as he dishes out punishment , and receives much of the same in return . I detested the ending which wrapped everything up so conveniently ( I don't buy the Karma bit ) , or left subplots such as the romantic angle as something to be dwelled upon later ( though I believe romance never really was an issue at all in Jaa's movies ) , leaving doors wide open for another film . Perhaps I should reserve my judgement of it until the next movie completes the story ? So at this moment , we can still enjoy what Tony Jaa has prepared for action fans worldwide ? a showcase that he's not just all about Muay Thai , but a bona fide action hero who's the real deal , crafting a myriad of incredible fight sequences that would still leave your mouth gaping wide open . |
515,103 | 317,399 | 269,217 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) Tears of the Black Tiger ( 2000 ) | I've borrowed this DVD from the library twice before , but never had the chance to watch it , until now . The appeal is actually to see some of Thai director Wisit Sasanatieng's past works , before his up and coming made-in-Singapore flick called Armful . And I've heard some good things about this movie too . The story combines two different genres into one , the first being a cowboy western , ( set in Thailand no less ! ) and the usual star-crossed lover romance . Perhaps the novelty of the first genre type is having Thai folks dress up as cowboys , riding on their steed and somehow , becoming the villains as they plunder and kill . Yup , they're not the good guys , against the usual stereotype . Here , the cowboys are bandits , and the good folks are naturally , the cops . But amongst all the bad hats ( pardon the pun ) , there's always the hero who's forced by circumstances to join the group . Dum ( Chartchai Ngamsan ) , also known as the notorious Black Tiger , renowned fastest and deadliest draw in all of Thailand , has a childhood sweetheart in Rumpoey ( Sttella Malucchi ) . However , their difference in status ( he's the son of a servant , while she , the daughter of the governor ) meant that it's a forbidden romance to begin with . Knowing his place in her world , he could only admire from afar , becoming her protector , shielding her from harm ( like numerous approaches by lechers and bandits ) . A man gotta do what a man gotta do , and during one of his missions , he failed to meet up with Rumpoey presumably to elope , while she took it as a sign that he didn't want to . Like Romeo and Juliet , she's betrothed to Kumjorn ( Arawat Ruangyuth ) , a police captain captured by Dum's notorious gangster boss Fai ( Sombat Metanee ) . And like all star crossed lovers whose lives are played by Fate , these events start to spin and take on a life of its own , changing the course of our characters lives forever . It's a beautifully shot movie , with plenty of pastel colours draping the sets , which at times make you cringe and beg for it to stop . As if to complement its saccharine sweet and sentimental love story , it elevates the movie to a surreal dream like level . The action sequences can be quite cheesy , with the reminiscence of old spaghetti cowboy western gun fights . But the best bits about the film , are the songs . I don't understand Thai , but even if without the subtitles interpreting the lyrics , I thought that they were beautiful enough to accentuate scenes in the movie . Perhaps my only gripe about the movie in this version of the DVD , is that the bloody violence had been censored , depriving me the bloody glee of watching the Black Tiger dispatch his opponents with his accuracy . There were scenes where footsoldiers bled by the bucketloads of ketchup , but the crucial one-on-ones were totally censored , and you wouldn't know the nitty gritty details of the death . Truly marred my enjoyment of the movie . What gives ? Code 3 DVD contains some extras , like Extracts from the Book - Black Tiger's Philosophy and Rumpoey's Guilt , explaining a bit more about the lead characters , Insights into the Film Aesthetic takes a look at the Sala Raw Nang , or " Awaiting the Maiden " , the quintessential Thai shelter , and how Rattana Pestonji ( indie Thai filmmaker ) had influenced the set design , especially the colours . The extras is topped off with a one static screen Director's Inspiration , and the list of awards which this film has won . |
515,238 | 317,399 | 410,297 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Lake House | I haven't watched Il Mare , the Korean original starring Jeon Ji-hyun , in which this Hollywood remake is based upon . I refuse to watch the original on VCD , and had no luck in tracking down a DVD copy . I guess it's just a matter of time before I order it online , some box-set no less . In any case , what probably excited audiences to the remake , is the pairing of Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock , one which has been long overdue since their very first pairing which sizzled with chemistry , and that being on an action movie no less - Speed . While both had moved on to star in various romances with other counterparts such as Charlize Theron , Cameron Diaz , Bill Pullman , Ben Affleck and Harry Connick Jr . , the wait is over as they now reunite on screen in The Lake House . But throughout the 100 minutes movie , they share not more than 15 minutes of screen time together , and those are precious minutes which will have the audience inevitably rooting for something to happen . Especially so with the time-travel note-in-the-letterbox plot device where comedic , smart alecky words slowly turn into mushy terms of endearment . Reeves and Bullock , considerably aged from their first outing together , are perfectly cast as the unlikely lovers separated by time . However , to fit into the typical Hollywood finale , there's a huge plot loophole in the time travelling piece , which I find a pity , then again , it's probably an ending that most people would expect , and crave for ? As the story progressed , there were no issues with time travelling being in the way of the narrative . Keanu's Alex is an architect in the year 2004 , and Sandra's Kate is a doctor in the year 2006 . They are occupants of a house on a lake in Chicago , and slowly find that through a strange twist of Fate , they are communicating with each other through an old fashioned mailbox . And because one person is ahead of the other in time , Alex is able to see and come to know the Kate of year 2004 , except that at that point in time , she doesn't know him yet . It's one of the usual story techniques used to work an emotional reaction from an audience , and here , it's executed perfectly too , as they work towards a reunion meeting in the year 2006 , then 2008 . Good things , ought to wait , no ? Eagle eyed viewers though , will spot a key plot revelation early in the movie , and will be able to unravel the entire plot thereafter . However this probably wouldn't mar the enjoyment of the film , as the focus will be on how the story gets told , and admittedly , that's the draw which turned out fine , until the end where the film decides to go heck with the time travel crutch it has to rely on . Modern day stuff and devices are not included , like email and cameras , as modes of communication between the lovers , which will obviously remove a lot of romanticism from the movie , and shorten the duration too . To fill time in what could essentially be a short movie , and to vary the kind of scenes instead of the usual voice-over communications and reading of letters , there is a subplot involving Alex's dad ( played by veteran Christopher Plummer ) . The Lake House , in my opinion , is a reasonably wonderful romance movie to take a date too . It's full of clichés , warm moments , and enough tension built up towards the end to satisfy , and with that plot loophole , provide enough material for you and your date to discuss it over . |
515,462 | 317,399 | 1,093,908 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Confessions of a Shopaholic | Welcome to the Isla Fisher show , where despite her diminutive size she holds court throughout and I thought she's finally getting the recognition she deserves in being able to marquee a film herself . One cannot forget how she burst onto the scene in The Wedding Crashers as the psychotic stalker after Vince Vaughn , and from there some other bit parts like those in The wedding Daze , and one of my favourites from last year , Definitely , Maybe . She has this indescribable aura , that goofy grin , and that incredible perfect timing for physical comedy , without looking stupid . One can easily dismiss Confessions of a Shopaholic as just another chick flick , and its premise is nothing not already attempted by the East ( in the film The Shopaholics starring Cecilia Cheung before her fall from grace ) , even though this film is based on a best selling novels by Sophie Kinsella . It's an interesting illness that Rebecca Bloomwood ( Fisher ) suffers from , where she lives a Jackyl and Hyde lifestyle , having fashion labels as close friends whom she addresses intimately by first names , and owns plenty of clothes , shoes , and enough accessories that can fill her entire room . Her Hyde hears mannequins at shop windows call out to her , and interaction with animated objects is just part of her everyday life . Hyde too comes with a magic ( credit ) card that grants instant happiness delivered as soon as a magnetic swipe at the cashier's . But her Dr Jackyl is what makes the film a draw actually , because in times like this of economic hardship , it just hits home the fact that quick credit is the path to the shambles that many would readily share their experience . Joining a financial magazine as a stepping stone toward her real objective in writing for a fashion mag in the same umbrella of publishers , Rebecca soon finds herself making the best use of her opportunity in combining her zilch knowledge in finance with the pizazz and flair she has for fashion , and writes under the moniker of The Girl In The Green Scarf , dispensing some real life financial advice that even a layman ( or woman ) would understand and make sense of . Which of course is complete irony for Rebecca , as she doesn't practice what she preaches . As we know from the onset she's someone who can't balance her financial , and is already deep in debt no thanks to her impulses to buy . The ditzy klutz teaching everyone how to live a financially responsible life , and slowly realizing her influence and clout amongst her readers , winning new fans from the woman on the streets to the suits in boardrooms . But what's a movie without an adversary ? So we have a stereotypical bean counter in Derek Smeath ( Robert Stanton ) , complete with slicked back hair , ugly glasses and a dogged attitude of a debt collector . This provides avenue for a number of laughs , besides those in the self-help therapy group , or cat fights amongst those looking for cheap bargains . Yes , there are the inevitable clichés , unfortunately . Besides Fisher's charismatic turn , she's surrounded by a supporting cast whom you can broadly categorize under the great lookers , and those with gravitas . Luke Brandon ( Hugh Dancy ) as Rebecca's object for affection ( other than fashion labels ) and Alicia ( Leslie Bibb ) as a long legged rival belong to the former , not very interesting other than being eye candy , while the powerhouses of Kristin Scott Thomas and John Goodman bring some extra oomph in their roles as a French magazine editor ( really hamming it up ) and Rebecca's dad respectively , in addition to others like Joan Cusack and John Lithgow . The soundtrack provided extra lift too , with some of the latest pop acts contributing bubble gum tracks that will leave you tapping your feet to . Confessions of a Shopaholic treads a fine balance between fluffy entertainment and a film with a strong message of what really matters in a materialistic world like ours . Friends and family come first , in addition to an everyday careful examination of needs versus wants . Sure there's no need to watch the film , but you know you just want to . Enjoy this rom-com , and girls will find the numerous outfits here a thrill to drool over . At least those in my screening did ! |
514,901 | 317,399 | 843,287 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : My Name is Fame | My friend Richard has lent me the VCD in the last week of 2006 , has constantly raved about it , but it took me this long to finally pop it into the player . Not that I'm not heeding his recommendation , but a whole slew of events and bad time management prevented me from watching it in 2006 . Nonetheless I just did , and boy , I've got no regrets watching it ! Of late , there have been many movies which hit the VCD / DVD shelves without having a whiff at the theatres . My Name is Fame is one of them , starring HK veteran actor Lau Ching Wan in a role all too familiar with the has-beens of the industry . He plays Fai , an actor who doesn't compromise his acting beliefs , and doesn't mince his words when it comes to criticizing the industry - be it fellow actors , directors , the scripts , and even the crew . His ideal morals on the state of the industry are subtle digs at the real deal , in an industry where looks are championed over true abilities . It is no wonder that , without being blessed with idol looks , and given his attitude , he soon finds himself in the doldrums of the industry despite being an award winning actor . Yes , both the industry and the public are fickle creatures . While helping his ex-wife , he chances upon an ingénue Faye ( played by Chinese actress Huo Si-Yan ) , who impresses him with her raw talent and energy , coupled with a gung ho spirit . Without a doubt , he unwittingly takes her under his wing , becoming her manager , honing her craft , as well as seeking out true , genuine opportunities for his protégé , nevermind if they happen to be bit roles , in a field where sleaze is part and parcel of the game plan . Highly protective of his charge , he finds it increasing dangerous as his emotions get the better of him , and he starts to develop feelings for her . Sounds familiar ? Yes actually , the basic plot followed similarly to Innocent Steps , where a has-been wallowing in self pity looks to a rising star , grooming her for greater heights , at the same time rediscovering oneself and one's passion , while at the same time falling in love . However , for movie buffs , this one would tickle your funny bone at the same time as Fai unleashes his barbs against those in the industry . Some concerns highlighted were familiar grounds , especially those on sleaze , while others are reflective pieces about the current state of things . Making plenty of appearances here in the movie are has-beens themselves , or rather , those that have taken a backseat and faded slowly from the limelight , like Ekin Cheng and the Grasshoppers . See if you can spot many more actors and premise of movies adapted and put on screen here . But the gig belonged to Lau Ching Wan in his earnest portrayal , and the chemistry with co-star Huo Si-Yan is fabulous . Oh yes , having a pretty face helped loads too . The film industry isn't all glamour . There are plenty of hard work put into making a movie , and for someone looking for that big break , a certain amount of luck , plenty of contacts , the willingness to start from the bottom and plough in lots of hard work , seem like a recipe for a chance at success . Then again , which career doesn't start off in a similar fashion ? Recommended stuff ! The VCD comes with 2 audio tracks , one in Cantonese and the other in Mandarin , though I suspect that in the Cantonese track , Huo had her lines voiced over by someone else . It sure didn't sound natural . |
515,512 | 317,399 | 473,028 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Dasepo Naughty Girls | The myriad of colours , song and dance all bring about a very madcap feel to Dasepo Naughty Girls , based on an internet comic strip . In essence a series of short stories or skits woven together , it tells the story of the students of No Use High , a multi-religious schools where monks , nuns , priests , and atheists all study common general subjects under one roof . The opening credits sequence had brought a smile to my face , and throughout the movie , the injection of song and dance made Dasepo Naughty Girls resemble Grease , albeit weaker in the flow of story lines and subplots , and of course not as polished , at times disjointed even with weak transitions . Other than that , the movie does live up to its being " naughty " , and is thoroughly cheeky with its bizarre multitude of characters - like the girl with a " poverty " doll sticking behind her back , an exchange student from Switzerland , the mysterious principal , a one eyed cyclops , a cross dresser , a girl born with a male member , and the list goes on . Most of the skits had the usual expected punchlines to its scenes , no doubt similar in style and delivery like the 80s Hong Kong " mo-lei-tau " comedies with sexual innuendos . However , it's breezy and light , and without a doubt , it fulfils the goal of being pure entertainment . |
514,980 | 317,399 | 424,365 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Promised Land | Promised Land is one part of the so-called Borders Trilogy that Amos Gitai has crafted , the other two being Free Zone and Disengagement . In this film , he tackles the issue of women trafficking across borders between Egypt and Israel , in which there seems to be no problems , obstacles or conflict between the peoples of both sides engaged in this illegal trade , which still persists , with various filmmakers around the world taking on the issue head on in their respective geographies , in films such as Lilya 4-ever and Your Name is Justine . This film can be broken down , I believe , into three parts , and on the whole it's like Gitai taking the audience on a journey to witness first hand the ordeal that the female victims are put through . The shaky cam technique helped in putting oneself there in the first person perspective , though it could be somewhat unsettling , as if the perspective and point of view seem to come from being one of the perpetrators of the trade , being able to partake in , yet only standing by like an eyewitness , but unable to reach out and help the girls . It's not a documentary , but the effect made it look like one , with conversations up close , and plenty of tight shots choosing to disorientate the viewer , just like how the victims are suffering , as they are moved constantly from place to place in hurried fashions , under the blanket of night , trekking across deserts to their final destination , which at the end of the film , you wonder just exactly where you have ended up in . One scene that'll definitely stir some upsetting emotions , is how the women get herded up and inspected like cattle , having their assets exposed and prodded , chided , stripped of their dignity and clothes , while listening to an auction going around them for the best price from the highest bidder . Before that the girls do look as if they're clueless about their impending ordeal , until it's too late . The second act dealt with an underground club of sorts , which brings the entire film to the one hour mark . Here the girls are prepared , again in quite undignified terms of being hosed down with water to clean themselves , akin to being a prisoner ( well actually yes ) , and the first step toward their sexual slavery , including making up to beautify themselves for their clientèle later . As mentioned , again the audience is put in the spot , standing by to watch but unable to do anything about it . Perhaps yet again we're thrust into the spotlight , because I think the message is clear that should there be no demand , the supply would naturally dry up . I suppose this approach here is like getting people to swear off meat , to varying degrees of success , by having the person witness how meat is being slaughtered and prepared . Now the third act I believe was pure Gitai genius , though it may irk many to think , that's it ? I had very much enjoyed the ending of Free Zone , and this could rival that as being equally powerful . Without giving anything away here , I felt that on one hand the plight of the women were raised , and there doesn't seem to be anything in sight that could rescue them . Then comes that major event that brings us up and about , presenting an opportunity to be grasped and exploited . It isn't impossible of course , given the environment Israel finds itself in from time to time . On the other hand , the Deus Ex Machina approach here may not go down well in being something like a cop out of a finale . But if you dwell on it deeper , it's the honest truth that there's simply no quick and easy solution to have it solved , especially not on film , hence the approach that unless some form of miracle happens , we're not going to see the problem disappear anytime soon . Promised Land is one long process from beginning to end that hopes to elicit some response from the audience in either raising their awareness of the problem outside of their comfort zones , or for those who are fueling the demand side of things , to perhaps stop and think if they're contributors to a totally inhuman and undignified process . Oh , and fans of Rosamund Pike who might be drawn to the film because of her presence , you're likely to be disappointed as she only as a very limited supporting role in the film . |
514,813 | 317,399 | 419,984 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Mr . Woodcock | Take a lap ! " Set of 10 ! " With a name like W-o-o-d-c-o-c-k ( roll it off your tongue slowly for maximum effect ) , you'd have expect the jokes to come fast and furious about the appendage . Well there are , however , the best parts of Mr Woodcock are not the sexual innuendos , but come from the various gymnasium scenes , where Jasper Woodcock ( Billy Bob Thorton ) the PE teacher runs his classes like a sadistic drill sergeant , and all the misfits tremble in fear and loathe as he puts them through the paces , with physical , mental and emotional abuse dished out in deadpan manner . The filmmakers know this , and set the bar high enough from the get go , but only for the movie to spiral in the general southwards direction . Thirteen years after his unforgettable years of growing up under Mr Woodcock's insults , John Farley ( Seann William Scott ) becomes a renowned self help guru and published a bestseller called " Letting Go : How to Get Past Your Past " , because it takes one successful loser to teach the rest how to move on . During a journey back home where you're hit with a barrage of literally corny jokes , John realizes to his horror that his mother Beverly ( Susan Sarandon ) is now dating Mr Woodcock , and he makes it his mission to dissuade her from giving him a new stepdad , one who has been the bane of his childhood . That basically becomes the premise of the movie , and a highly predictable one at that . You'll see from a mile away every conceivable plot development coming toward you , and it doesn't help that the short run time of under 90 minutes probably meant some material were reserved for the DVD release . You can tell by some of the continuity errors , helped in no part by John's bad haircut episode . Billy Bob Thorton owns the movie as Woodcock , delivery his deliciously acidic remarks with aplomb . Alpha-male type roles are nothing new to Thorton , and bullying or whipping losers to shape are part of the game , just like School for Scoundrels . And here he plays the unapologetic teacher with EQ problems , taking perverse delight in seeing his charges suffer . Sean William Scott is better known unfortunately for his loud and over the top Stifler from the American Pie movies , but given a rather muted character like John Farley , he fades away quicker than you can spell l-o-s-e-r . Susan Sarandon rounds up the lead cast as the woman caught between two men , and frankly I thought it was like an extension of her mother's role in Elizabethtown . Look out for more Sarandon in an upcoming movie called Enchanted , which takes the mickey out of a Disney movie . Most of the other supporting cast like Amy Poehler and Ethan Suplee got wasted , with the former being a self-professed alcoholic Barbie doll , while the other a fanatic who had read John's book 900 times and counting . Mr Woodcock isn't laugh out loud or laugh a minute , but it has its moments . Sadly , most of the best bits made their way to the trailers , making the movie seem like an empty shell . And given the editing fiasco of late , Mr Woodcock suffers from censorship too , with what I thought was just verbal expressions of ecstasy being snipped off and left on the cutting room floor . Pity . |
514,875 | 317,399 | 492,956 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Game Plan | American football team Boston Rebels ' star quarterback Joe Kingman ( The Rock ) has only two loves in his life - Football and Elvis Presley . Like all successful sports superstars at the top of their game , he's living the good life , with his swanky penthouse apartment fitted with the latest luxuries , a sportster that screams " Mo Jo ( e ) " , and endless parties with beautiful women . But alas one fine day he finds little Peyton Kelly ( Madison Pettis ) at his doorstep , claiming to be his daughter , and thus putting the brakes in his fast life . It's convenient to start weaving woeful family drama and comedy about the complete opposites being struck by Fate to live under the same roof . As the trailers would have suggested , everything comes off quite predictably , and at times you feel that such scenes where the young girl tosses Kingman's life upside down , to be a little too contrived , and mostly having fall flat at its attempts to be funny . When funny doesn't work , it switches gears to cute . However , The Game Plan possesses a certain charm , helped in loads without a doubt by the charisma of Dwayne The Rock Johnson . WWE entertainers perform their craft perfectly in the wrestling ring , but extremely few have made the transition to the big screen almost seamlessly . Dwayne Johnson happens to be one of the lucky few , with his megawatt smile and very personable demeanour , bringing him across as the big buddy you would like to hang out with . And while we know he can do action - The Scorpion King , Rundown , Walking Tall and Doom , he has shown a range of his ability through dramas like Gridiron Gang , and comedy , with his extremely hilarious turn in Be Cool . In The Game Plan , he rolls all those into one without breaking a sweat , and this movie is almost single-handedly saved from the doldrums by resting itself on his broad muscular shoulders . Gridiron Gang had American Football elements in it , though The Rock now crosses from being the coach to the star player . He's the action sports hero with trademark moves ( every respectable star would have one of those ) , the arrogant himbo who let success go into his head , and through the movie , we see a transformation to sensitive dad . What you don't see The Rock do , is best kept under wraps as probably THE BEST SCENE in this movie , which you have to watch to bear witness . Talk about extreme flexibility ! Some credit of course has to go to his co-stars in making the movie more palatable to a wider audience outside the fan base , though most of them , like Kyra Sedgwick as the bimbo , and Roselyn Sanchez as the hot latino instructor , are more caricatures without much personality injected , as expected . Madison Pettis shines in her role as the precocious kid , but sometimes she pouts too much and comes across more irritating than cute , though still managing to hold her own opposite Johnson . There are some heartwarming scenes between her and The Rock , and you'll probably be trying to hold back that teardrop . This is still a star vehicle for Dwayne Johnson , and I hope that he will not ditch his action roles for drama or comedy , given a distinct lack of action movie stars that I humbly think he can fill . We all know how Arnie fared when he dabbled with comedy before going back to his Terminator roots , or Vin Diesel for that matter when he traded stunts for the milk bottle in The Pacifier . Filled with plenty of Elvis songs ( director Andy Fickman is reportedly a fan ) that you can hear Johnson serenade with , there are enjoyable moments in The Game Plan , and its predictable Zacherie sweet messages on family , determination and the likes , will no doubt make this movie achieve a decent box office success here . As a fan , I can't wait for his debut in Get Smart , and crossing my fingers he'll be casted in the much rumored production of Shazam ! as The Big Red Cheese ! |
514,971 | 317,399 | 98,213 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Roger & Me | Before Farenheit and the award winning Bowling For Columbine , this is the movie that filmmaker ( director , writer , producer ) Michael Moore started off with . Filmed in his hometown of Flint , Michigan , we follow the chronicles of ( what he wants you to believe ) the town's love-hate relationship with General Motors . General Motors started off in that town , before it became the automotive giant that it is today . Michael Moore's from that town too , and start off the documentary fusing together his family's career ( most were GM staff ) together with the rise of GM . That is , until massive layoffs were made . At some points in the movie , you can't help but feel that that is the way corporations go about , worrying about their bottom line , and outsourcing jobs to the cheaper alternative . But from Moore's point of view in the movie , he's taking it from an everyday working class person's , who naturally , will not be happy with being laid off . We follow him , in his now familiar guerrilla styled interviews , to various families in Flint , to see the conditions they live in , and following the deputy sheriff to evict those who are too poor to pay their rent . His main motive in this movie , besides showing us the working class America , is actually to interview the General Motors chairman Roger Smith , and get him to go down to Flint to take a look at the situation himself . Naturally , being a new independent filmmaker with no credentials , he's being turned away each time he's at the GM head office attempting to make his way to the 14th floor . Staking out the chairman's regular haunts did not rake in any results , but it's kinda hilarious in the canned response that he gets each time he engages with a spokesperson . State officials and their seemingly enthusiastic attempts in lifting Flint out of its depression , like getting evangelists to bless the town out of its current mood , and trying to build its tourism industry , while in good faith , somehow became ineffective , and of course , subtly laughed at . It's seriously not a bad first attempt , sprinkled with the style , humour and satire that you'd come to expect from a Michael Moore movie . |
514,716 | 317,399 | 107,426 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Little Buddha ( 1993 ) | I haven't seen much of director Bernardo Bertolucci's films , the only one in which I could recall vividly was The Last Emperor . In Little Buddha , Bertolucci attempted to tell the story of Siddhartha , Buddha himself , but somehow I felt it was a bit too little , as this film also told a separate story about a reincarnated Lama . Bridget Fonda and Chris Isaak star as the Conrad couple Lisa and Dean , whose son Jesse is believed to be a reincarnation of a Lama from Bhutan . This led to a visit by the Lama's disciple Lama Norbu , who introduces Buddhism to the Conrad family . However , he's not sure if Jesse is the one , but indications have made the case strong . The tale takes all of them back to Bhutan where they meet up with another 2 potential candidates , and contemplate just who was the actual reincarnate . At the same time , the story of the origins of Buddha is weaved into the narrative , which was what appealed to me when watching this movie . I am not an expert in Bhuddist studies , but I felt that the story was well told , and the cinematography for this segment , just wondrously majestic . I believe many at that time balked at Bertolucci when he casted Keanu Reeves in the role of Siddhartha , as he was better known for his surfer dude image . But I thought Reeves did credibly well , and suffered for his art in making a credible Prince , though some would cringe at this attempt to speak with an accent . Buddhism doesn't get shoved down your throat , so for those who are staunch in their respective religions , no worries , this movie doesn't attempt to be preachy . It makes interesting the journey to Nirvana and Enlightenment , through the Middle Way , and I would say it would make interesting general knowledge ( I am not vouching on the accuracy as I can't ) in which to build upon . Perhaps what I felt was a let down was the other major segment on the search for the Lama reincarnate , as there were minor sub-plots which got introduced but not further developed . I would be more interested to learn about Siddhartha's path to Nirvana in more detail through film , but probably that's another story for another filmmaker to make . |
514,362 | 317,399 | 997,157 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Hero | Movies based on successful television series are natural progressions to make a quick buck , mainly because of the more instant box office dollars it gets translated to . But what I apprehend the most , is when the approach is to not worry whether non-television series followers would be able to get it , so it decides not to afford the time to explain matters , expecting the bulk of the audience to be coming with background knowledge from the series . When you are one of the series ' followers , you'll make camp on the side to forgo previous cinematic time on explanation so that the pace does not get slowed , but if you are not , then you'll probably cry foul , not that you don't get to enjoy the movie though , but are lusting after a more complete experience . For example , the X-Files movie requires pre-requisite knowledge , as did the Japanese movie Mushishi . But there are some which still managed to only require the most basic level of understanding , and to use a Japanese reference , I enjoyed the Bayside Shakedown movies tremendously . Did I enjoy Hero ? Sure , but there were enough moments in the movie where you can't help but want to pull your hair in frustration , especially when it comes to bit appearances by minor characters , whom you'll most certainly deem important enough to warrant significant subplot time in the narrative . Hero is similar to structure with Bayside Shakedown , in that on the surface , it contains one major plot , with the rest of the supporting subplots inevitably linked to the one big one , thereby giving reason for the ensemble cast to exist . Takuya Kimura , whom we last saw as a samurai in Yoki Yamada's Love and Honor , returns to his 2001 television role as Public Prosecutor Kohei Kruyu , a devoted go-getter who is unorthodox in his ways ( aren't they all ? ) . Assisting him is his trustworthy legal clerk Amamiya Maiko ( Takako Matsu ) , and together they take on a rather routine open-and-shut case involving manslaughter , especially with a written confession provided . But there's more than meets the eye to the supposedly simple case , and soon enough , they find their legal battle spiral to involve scandals of government officials , and have to go up against a top legal eagle who used to be on the payroll of the Public Prosecutor office . Bayside Shakedown provided some criticisms to the police system , highlighting the struggles and battles between the bureaucrats in the department , and those on the beat handling day to day , routine and sometimes mundane police work . I thought Hero could have upped the ante if it debated on the judicial system , providing some insight on how things work rather than just a basic introduction . It lapsed into moralistic viewpoints should this be a perfect world with perfect systems , and very often reminded the audience that Justice is Blind with the frequent shots of a statue of Justice holding up the scales . But not everything's serious and full of legal jargon and mumbo-jumbo . Credit has to be given in weaving a more than compelling investigative and legal drama , with romantic tension between Amamiya and Kohei , as well as plenty of comedy . Those television sell-a-vision ads are so funny they are a highlight in the movie ( I'm not sure if these are regular features in the television series ? ) , and it managed to work into its narrative an explanation of its absence for 6 years since the television series ended , and the characters naturally being aged . Familiar to me in this movie are the actors Hiroshi Abe and Korean actor Lee Byung-hun , who has so minor a role ( combined screen time of less than 5 minutes ) , I'm not sure why the trailer had to hype about it , rather than to keep it a guessing game ( is he ? or isn't he ? ) . However , that is not to say that Hero is a bad film . It still offers decent entertainment , especially for those who are fans of the many stars it has in its ensemble , and for those who like this genre of legal investigative movies . Recommended . |
515,071 | 317,399 | 456,912 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : A Bittersweet Life | This is a revenge movie , pure and simple . When it comes to this genre , the protagonist usually has some injustice ( loosely used here ) done unto him , and therefore unleashes hell upon those who incurred his wrath , who of course , failed to finish him off in the first place . Sun-woo ( Lee Byung-hun ) is a hotel manager . Or so he seems . On the surface , he's calm , cool and collected . But step out of line , he brings upon his fury without remorse , and without sympathy . His cockiness earns him no admirers , but he gives his utmost loyalty towards his boss , President Kang . He leads a lonely existence without friends , and in his latest mission , strikes a forbidden friendship with his prey that led to his ostracizing from the clan he belongs to . Relying on his personal judgement , in contradiction with his boss's , he consciously interpreted his mission ambiguously , and this led to his downfall . In the mob , as a servant , you do not think , but carry out orders like a faithful dog . Such is his life for seven years , until now . As with revenge films , those who go against you must die , and you soon find yourself up against impossible odds , and with incredible luck . At times the movie stretches its realism to the limit , but for the purpose of good violent fun . The violence is gratuitous - shootings up close , bleeding by the buckets , hand-breaking , fist-fighting , at times making the audience cringe at too much crimson . But thumbs up for the action pieces , which were well choreographed , especially the escape fight scene ( you must learn , never to give a few minutes to a hit-man ) , and the climatic shoot out finale . Poetry in motion some might add , at times shot like John Woo's slow-motion style with classical music in the background . Various bad characters are up for our anti-hero's dispatch , and you'll find yourself rooting that he does so with as much pain as possible . On the other end of the spectrum , this film also had incredible amounts of silence and non-action , which punctuated between the action sequences well . Sort of like a breather - the calm before the next storm . The relationship element between Sun-woo and Hee-soo ( Shin Min-a ) however was never fully explored . It was hinted that the cause of the rift between servant and master was the woman , but because of the lack of explicit narrative and dialogue , this was never brought across in a clear manner , and left open to interpretation . Another element that somewhat fell flat was the forced attempts to inject humour with bumbling characters . Felt a bit out of place and the pacing suffered a tad bit . Nonetheless , as a revenge movie , this film delivered . But there's somewhat a nagging thought in me that it could , and should have reached its full potential given the superb cast , stylish action and of course , bloody violence . |
515,271 | 317,399 | 1,055,300 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Painted Skin | Based upon the classic literature of Liao Zai , Painted Skin is an adaptation of one of the stories that dwell on fox spirits . If you're someone expecting either a supernatural spook fest , or an amalgamation of ghosts and kung fu , you might be disappointed to find out that it's actually a romance through and through , with complicated relationships all around that you can weave a complex web of love and lust amongst the players involved . Chen Kun plays Wang Sheng , a general whose army recently overrun the camp of a group of barbarians . In their battle , he rescues a beautiful girl from the grasp of the enemy , and brings her home out of pity and suggestive lust , given that she looks like Zhou Xun . OK , so Zhou Xun plays Xiao Wei , who unknowing to everyone else , is a fox spirit ( touted always as beautiful beings in their human form ) with an appetite for human hearts in order to maintain her beauty and youth . Thus begins a tussle for General Wang's heart by both Xiao Wei and Vicky Zhao's Pei Rong , who is the dutiful and demure wife of Wang Sheng . Pei Rong is indeed wary and beginning to suspect Xiao Wei's supernatural abilities when a spate of killings surface with her arrival , but with no proof , Xiao Wei starts to sow discord between the man and wife in order to try and become the new Mrs Wang . It's quite an interesting attempt through the characters to tell of the varying degrees and types of love , one of possession in Xiao Wei's ruthless means to reach her objective , and one of sacrificing for the love and well being of the other half , as established through Pei Rong's selfless courage . But that's not all . Throw in Donnie Yen as an ex-general Pang Yong , who also shares the hots for Pei Rong , and one time rival of Wang Sheng for her affections , a bumbling lowly ghostbuster Xia Bin ( Sun Li ) who is in possession of a fabled mythical weapon ( opportunity to show off some special effects here , and quite a sight to behold too in its temporal usage ) and denying her affections for Pang Yong , and Qi Yuwu as a lizard spirit whose infatuation with Xiao Wei ensures that she gets her fair share of food without the need to get her hands dirty . Connected the dots yet ? Fans of Donnie Yen will probably be a tad disappointed by his limited screen appearance , and for the most parts he's either playing the joker , where his jokes will likely be lost in translation , going by the English subtitles that didn't manage to truly capture the essence of his lines , and the remaining screen time having to see him execute some action , but nothing groundbreaking and not seen before . We know what Donnie Yen can do , and perhaps in seeking some form of redemption , the story has a flashback scene where he dons armor yet again ( anyone remember the dismal result of An Empress And Her Warriors ) and does battle in a scene which Jackie Chan has already stamped his authority on . One could have expected the Gordon Chan is familiar with shooting decent action sequences , but you don't really get a lot of that in Painted Skin , save for some generic rooftop chase in the night , and a be all and end all finale where no punches got pulled , though it really got marred by all the tight shots that all you'd probably get to see is a blur . The narrative also got a little choppy in the mid section , and you do feel that a huge chunk of detail got summarized to keep it running generously under two hours , with subplots dropped that I suspect involved the growing affection and admiration between Pang Yong and Xia Bin , in order not to distract the audience from the main love triangle of Pang Yong , Xiao Wei and Pei Rong . All in all , this is recommended for Zhou Xun's face off with Zhao Wei , especially with the former playing the temptress role to perfection . The last where we saw two prominent Chinese actresses square off was between Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li in Memoirs of a Geisha . Otherwise , Painted Skin held a lot of promise , but didn't deliver that level of oomph in its final product , lapsing into mediocrity throughout . |
515,557 | 317,399 | 408,839 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Heartbreak Kid | I'm a fan of Ben Stiller and his brand of comedy , and I rate his insanely good looking ( heh ) Derek Zoolander as one of my contemporary favourites , alongside his Dodgeball opposite Vince Vaughn , and his Meet The Parents / Fockers combo . But perhaps the most memorable and highly rated laughfest will be his starring in the Farrelly Brothers ' There's Something About Mary , with Matt Dillon and Cameron Diaz as the ditzy blonde the two guys are trying to go after . The Heartbreak Kid brings Stiller back to the Farrelly Brothers ' fold , joining forces again to bring in the laughs in a situation that unmarried guys my age fear . While we may be nonchalant about staying single and enjoying the status to sow our wild oats , there's always this nagging thought about what would happen when we seem to have met that special someone who could be just the very person to spend the rest of our life with . Thinking about " forever " , that it's a long time , make us go into weighing in the pros and the cons of giving up our freedom , and we just want to be darn sure ( and suicidal ) to be giving up our singlehood . And for forty year old Eddie ( Stiller ) , he shares the same sentiments , but on the advise of best buddy Mac ( Rob Corddry ) , who himself is a hen-pecked husband , and Casanova dad Doc ( Jerry Stiller , Ben's real father ) , he marries Lila ( Malin Akerman ) , the blonde akin to Cameron Diaz's Mary in the earlier Farrelly-Stiller collaboration , on a whim after six weeks of courtship . While on the surface , she's physically da bomb , and might seem all nice and dandy inside , little does Eddie know the nightmare is about to begin , as he discovers ( say what ? ) they share very little interests , she's the archetypal dumb blonde always made fun of in blonde jokes , and she's a sexual nymph who likes it very rough ( ok , so some of us out there might take this as a plus point ) . If there's a moral to the story , that will be to consider very carefully , and to take your time before you commit to that matrimonial vow . You might call me old-fashioned , but I believe that once you walk down that aisle , you'll just have to stick with the woman you marry , for better or worse , and learn to accept her faults . After all , nobody's perfect . But this is a movie , so if anyone is holding onto such real-world ideal notions , then you'll probably not have a good time , and start to frown at every Eddie antic at his horror of discovery , and worse , when he starts to develop feelings for Miranda ( Michelle Monaghan , last scene on the big screen playing Ethan Hunt's wife in MI : III ) , an equally attractive woman who probably shares more of the same interests as Eddie , whom he met while on honeymoon . Wait a minute , cheating on your wife during honeymoon ? Yes , which is why the conservatives out there will leave with a bad aftertaste . But for the rest of us , it examines the type of dilemma for someone having second thoughts ( after all , these are fertile grounds for affairs ) . The narrative starts to junk the comedy and move into romance-drama gears , but lest you forget this is still a Farrelly Brothers ' movie , their trademark sexually vulgar scenes and jokes come and surprise you when you least expect . Body parts ( there's this scene involving bodily fluids which you just have to see to believe the insane audacity of it all ) and orifices are no longer sacred . Comedy of errors are standard fare , as are the increasing inserts of gay jokes whenever possible . However most jokes were still on Lila , and plenty of that were already included in the trailer , so if you haven't watched it , don't . As a comedy , The Heartbreak Kid somehow didn't live up to its promise . Sure it has its moments , but they were few and far between , and in reality , you'll probably enjoy the Eddie - Miranda romantic scenes ( and those with her family ) a lot more than you would the Eddie - Lila comedic scenes . Does it have an ending and resolution to Eddie's dilemma of which girl to choose ? Yes , but it turned out to be extremely clunky and unfunny ( try as it would want to ) , dragging out the last act unnecessarily to put this movie close to a two hour runtime . It's still a comedy after all , so don't expect a very powerful and emotional close ala dramatic fare like Castaway , which it tried to ape , with a comedic slant of course . Deinitely not one of Stiler's , or the Farrelly Brother's best work to date . Stay tuned for the cameo appearance of one prominent TV actress at the close , and stay tuned during and after the end credits . There's a scene involving Lila , which probably isn't in very good taste , showing how she managed to get satisfied , and the other bringing you back to 1975 to confirm a certain event which was mentioned in passing . |
514,464 | 317,399 | 810,827 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Death Note : The Last Name | A warning to all who attempt to watch this without watching the first movie - you'll be lost , totally . It doesn't come with a summary or a montage , and dives right into where the first film left off . You'll probably have plenty of questions , and there is almost zero character introduction . Even the brisk recap of the Death Note capabilities quickly flips by , offering you no time to complete reading what's on screen . So you've been warned . LIght Yagami ( Tatsuya Fujiwara ) now becomes part of the team hunting down Kira , and a reluctant L ( Ken'ichi Matsuyama ) still refuses to drop his assumptions of Light being Kira himself . However , a new Kira emerges , thereby casting doubts on L's theory , and its seems that this new Kira is more powerful than the last . Another battle of wits ensues , but this time , who's playing who , and at what price ? The cast here is basically the same , just that bit characters Misa Amane ( Erika Toda ) and Tota Matsuda ( Sota Aoyama ) get expanded roles here , to balance the strong testosterone flavour seen in the 1st movie ( ok , not quite , since both Light and L are exactly hunks ) , and given that they're beautiful , I sure am not complaining . Their roles as the television celebrity and the news reporter respectively aren't flower vases by design , and are totally involved in the plot , though still pawns in the entire scheme of things . What made the first movie interesting , even though for the most parts it's devoted to setting up the premise , was that there were many bits of surprises and revelations along the way . Here , all the bits and pieces are sacrificed for one major plot , with Sacrifice being the recurrent theme here , and although we learn more of the capabilities and limitations of the Death Note , it lacks the freshness of its predecessor as everything was hinged on that grand central scheme . And being just one scheme , it had the weight on the entire movie hinging on it to make , or break . Also , there were many moments which made it too contrived , and largely dependent on plenty of coincidences and lucky breaks , even up to predicting how others would behave . Compared to the first , it just didn't cut it , and came across as lazy storytelling on the filmmakers ' part . Even though the ending of the first movie was made of predicting what others would do , and involves being ahead many steps of the way , the same technique as presented in the sequel , is far too complex with many determinants hanging in limbo , for it to work as it should . The pacing didn't help , and its dragged out finale was almost laughable , adhering to the tragic villain soliloquy for far too long . However by then , you'll be glad that it's just all over . I suspect if the two movies are watched back to back , it'll be more enjoyable than watching both as standalones . Still , it makes for some good harmless entertainment on lazy afternoons . |
515,305 | 317,399 | 382,077 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Hide and Seek | Would Dakota Fanning be the next Natalie Portman , or Christina Ricci ? It's not a longshot , given the credible performance here in Hide and Seek . I still remembered that she managed to stand on her own against the enigmatic Denzel Washington in Man on Fire , and here , she does a commendable job beside veteran Robert De Niro . The premise of the show suggests suspense , thrills and maybe something of the supernatural perhaps ? It explores the relationship between a psychologist and his daughter , after their wife / mother died in a suicide , or is it ? What is the impact to a child who witnesses the death of a parent ? Whilst the blood and gore are kept to a minimum , what you can't see actually sends shivers to you . The buildup shows a lot of potential , but too many red herrings and the pacing at the end leaves much to be desired . Any alert movie goer will anticipate and guessed the twist that is offered halfway through the film , and once that is done , the narrative seems to drag itself into an ending . Robert De Niro breezes through his role - nothing new to offer here , whilst Famke Janssen and Elizabeth Shue up the babe factor . Watch this not expecting a tight narrative or a shocking ending , but watch this for Fanning's performance . |
514,502 | 317,399 | 477,348 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : No Country for Old Men | The second movie watched today is also released by Paramount Vintage and Miramax , and shares with There Will Be Blood , eight Academy Award nominations , in a fight for most of the major honours . The brothers Coen's new film have been gathering wave after wave of honours , but somehow it didn't really quite work for me , despite the premise being something I would go for , and most likely to have enjoyed . Don't get me wrong though , there are again brilliant moments in the movie that I enjoyed , but on the whole , it was the unsatisfying anti-climatic finale that did it in for me , with too convenient a coincidence arising from a random act , and a frustrating interpret-it-if-you - please treatment that those who are more actively cerebral will get a field day deciphering and debating all the underlying meaning that make up the movie . Much is said about Javier Bardem's Anton Chugurh , and I'm agreeable with the nods to his understated portrayal as a modern day , flesh and bones Terminator , who's armed with a gas powered hammer gun used to send cattle to heaven , and a high powered rifle with silencer attached . His target is 2 million dollars in a suitcase , coming from a deal with Mexican druglords turn awry , which Josh Brolin's Llewelyn Moss happened to steal away when he chanced upon a zero sum game in the middle of an open plain . So it's somewhat cat and mouse chase , with Terminator Chugurh after Moss to seek out those stacks of 100 dollar greenbacks , and sending those unfortunate good natured folks to heaven / hell should they come crossing his path . But I have to admit that the gun battling duels and confrontation between Chugurh and Llewelyn are tension filled enough to leave you at the edge of your seat . If There Will Be Blood talks about money , No Country for Old Men talks about violence , or the random senselessness of it all . Through Chigurh's extremely focused quest , we become bewildered and numbed when he dispatches his victim without batting an eyelid , with little opportune of mercy being shown . As Tommy Lee Jones ' Sheriff Bell , in a supporting role as yet another jaded cop who is world weary , notes in his daily reading of the news , wacky incidents often get reported because of the help of curious onlookers , but those which often involve a crime , somehow never get the all important second look . This is not your usual narrative story with expected conventions . You come to expect something in the way the movie is built up by the Coens , but more often than not , it stops short , deliberately of course . There are some wonderful moments on its own , with scenes that are witty , and filled with a wicked sense of black humour . But ultimately , it's quite open ended for vast interpretation , and leaving you with questions that don't get answered . The ending is one of frustration for me , but come Oscar time , there isn't a doubt why this movie has been the darling of so many critical circles , and is probably expected to bag an Oscar award , or two . |
514,723 | 317,399 | 366,627 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Jacket | Based on the trailer alone , The Jacket looks like a clone of Ashton Kutcher's The Butterfly Effect , with the protagonist able to transport himself through time in the hope of changing his past / present / future , only that the premise and effect is different - the " jacket " refers to a mental patient's straitjacket . However , Jack Starks ( Adrian Brody ) is not criminally insane . Sure , he may have died once in Desert Storm , and miraculously survived , but circumstances a year later back home in a horrific homicide condemned him into an asylum . The out of body experience in this film is never explained , no whys , no hows - it seems that it's due to the effect of a cocktail of drugs administered , together with the unorthodox and experimental practice of confining the patient in the morgue's dead-body closet ( the claustrophobic effect sort of reminded me of Beatrix's in Kill Bill Vol 2 , where she was buried alive in a coffin ) . So Jack suddenly finds himself 15 years ahead in the year 2007 , where he chances upon Kiera Knightley's Jackie Price , whom he once helped on that faithful day of the homicide ( again , how he came to meet her is never explained - it just happens ) . After gaining her trust as a time-traveller / dead man " resurrected " , she helps him in a journey to discover the events that led to his apparent death in the asylum , and at the same time falling in love with her good Samaritan , while he flits in and out of future time . Also , it seems he can only travel between the two time periods , and nothing beyond either , beyond his control . As with all time-travelling films , there is always the paradox which one should never ever ponder ( it's the huge plot holes exposed if you do ) - what you know in the future , when applied in the present , surely will change the way the future is presented the next time you visit it , no ? I think only the Back To The Future trilogy dealt with this paradox in a convincing manner , and shown on screen as well . The 2 leads give convincing performances , as do the supporting cast of familiar faces like Jennifer Jason Leigh and Kris Kristofferson as doctors in the asylum . My only gripe in the local screening was the unwelcome abrupt interruption ( read : poor censor workmanship ) of the love scene between Brody and Knightley . The ending , like The Butterfly Effect , is your typical Hollywood cop-out ending , but something which I feel the audience would expect as they secretly root for the protagonist to emerge victorious . But again , given the many unexplained plot devices and an ending which still leaves you with ONE major question ( probably up to your discretion ) , this is a film that could have been a time-travel classic , but turned into one of mediocrity . |
514,401 | 317,399 | 871,512 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Disengagement | For an Amos Gitai film , I thought this had the most impactive prologue amongst those that I've watched to date , which succinctly sums up the political themes that his films often explore . While it might have thrusted you right into the thick of ( in ) action , you'll soon realize that he has a tremendous ability to gift wrap his points amongst the most mundane and ordinary . A Dutch-Palestinian lady gets chatted up by a French Israeli man on a train . They share a cigarette moment , and soon realize that they have a lot more in common than they initially realized . The two strangers's chance meeting soon turn into lust / love at first sight , probably a nod in the direction that even amongst what would be perceived as the most irreconcilable groups of people , can find common ground and understanding , and kiss and make up . Only that there are those in the world like the authorities wielding some power , could make unreasonable demands to try and derail peace efforts , like that train soldier who might have stepped out of his boundary in asserting and demanding that he be listened to and complied with . Alas the movie failed to keep the pace with its wonderful opening , and for the most parts the build up to the finale sagged heavily under very dire straits stemming from an uninteresting plot which failed to capitalize on the Israeli man Uli ( Liron Levo ) whom we got introduced , but shifted its attention to the more illustrious Juliette Binoche's Ana , Uli's half sister whom he is meeting in France because of their father's demise , and to discover just what his will entailed . The story found it necessary to go through an entire backstory for nothing , only for us to know little red herring nuggets of information such as Ana's estranged relationship with her separated husband whom we do not see on screen , and that slightly incestuous ( well , not exactly ) temptations that both Uli and Ana go through , with the latter being the temptress . It tried to address issues like staying with someone who you don't love , only out of convenience , which Ana confessed to be doing , because she's a lazy soul . But in fact her character flits into mood swings one end to the other , that it's not tough to understand how unappealing she can get , good looker or not . Things start to pick up slightly midway through the film when the actual seed of the story was sown , with the reading of the deceased's will , having to instruct Ana to travel to Gaza to pass on her dad's inheritance to her abandoned daughter Dana ( Dana Ivgy ) in person . So begins a road trip for the siblings , which is convenient anyway because Uli was beginning to fade away like a side show , and his return to Israel gives him a chock load of things to do , since he's a police officer , and have been given orders , together with the army , to clear Gaza of its Israeli settlers since Israel has pulled out of the Gaza Strip . Ordering your fellow men off their plot of land and homes are never easy , and this story arc provides that " action packed " moment in Disengagement . The other thread would be of course Ana's quest in locating her daughter , like finding a needle in the perennial haystack , made more difficult because she doesn't speak the language of her countrymen . The story arcs tangent off at this point , but you know there'll definitely be moments for a collision course later in the film . Through Uli's eyes we see how their evacuation operation gets carried out , having to be compassionate , yet stern in a thankless job that involves ejecting by any means possible the settlers who are protesting their rights . One involves grabbing the people and forcing them onto chartered buses to take them back to the mainland , and on the other having heavy machinery either bulldoze everything insight , or the utilization of cranes to literally lift homes off the soil . One can imagine if one is forced away from your home at the snap of a finger , and that is definitely something difficult to swallow . Disengagement unfortunately is like a self-fulling prophecy , having the middle portion starkly dragging against the powerful prologue and finale . If only it could find a better gel to stick both ends together in a more engaging fashion . |
515,014 | 317,399 | 757,139 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : 49 Days | It's crazy to be doing a movie marathon of 4 movies in a row , and having 3 of which are from the horror genre . However , having completed those 3 first ( the last being Spielberg's Munich ) , they again prove that the horror genre is diverse , and all 3 are different - the mystery-thriller , the ghouls-spirits , and the slasher flick . Onwards , shall we ? This Hong Kong horror movie has 2 titles , one the Chinese one which means the rhino's horn , while the other in English refers to the seven by seven equals forty-nine days of the initial afterlife , in which the body's spirit will roam the earth before proceeding to the nether-land . And this movie actually talks about both in a rather interesting manner . It's my second Stephen Fung - Gillian Chung pairing in a movie , the first being their take on martial arts in last year's House of Fury . This time , they take on the supernatural , with Fung playing a Chinese physician who had to leave his village , wife and daughter to try and make a comeback in his medical hall business . It took him four years to build a brand , but jealous opposition got him framed and imprisoned . Gillian Chung plays his lawyer who investigates and tries to prove his innocence , yet getting entangled romantically to the leading man . Thankfully the romance bit is tossed aside midway to focus more on the mystery of the story . It's no M Night Shyamalan , but the influence from the writer-director is nonetheless heavy . The movie relies and references the mystical powers of the rhino's horn - the many uses that it has for Chinese medicine like acupuncture , and its ability when lit to see spirits . To those unfamiliar with Chinese afterlife , this movie too explains to certain depth what those forty-nine days are . To brand this film as an outright horror movie is incorrect , while it has certain standard aspects like the building of atmosphere , this movie plays more like a thriller-mystery , and its theme of Fate and Retribution . Which somehow , plays a bit like one of my favourite movies , Frequency ( Jim Caviezel-Dennis Quaid ) . While the production looks like a straight-to-television movie , the story is surprisingly above average . The spatial jumps that happen every now and then could be there for narrative sophistication , which could catch you offguard , but please hold your horses about potential plot loopholes when you notice them . I was finding fault with them , and they irritated me ( thought it was slip-shoddy work ) , but as the movie progresses , you'd come to appreciate when the loopholes are addressed . Not all though , but most , and that's good enough by me . The acting however , was below par . It's clearly a Stephen Fung vehicle considering the amount of screen time he has , but he didn't manage to flesh out his character thoroughly . Gillian Chung's role was also one-dimensional , considering that hers was a lead role too . There are plenty of smaller characters in the movie , but their roles were either to lend comic effect , or are the villains . Being a PG rated film , it's a pity this movie has its gory scenes censored . But if you're looking for a mystery-thriller with a touch of the supernatural thrown in , then this movie would be my recommendation this period . |
514,410 | 317,399 | 199,683 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Kikujiro | The last Kitano Takeshi movie for the day , Kikujiro is very much unlike the previous two movies . If anyone would think that Takeshi is only famous for , and can make only violent movies , then this one would make you do an about turn . Even the narrative style is quite different from the limited few of his movies I've been exposed to . Being PG rated ( Hana-Bi was NC16 ) , the queue of those expected to watch this film was again snaking , even though most of the ( free ) tickets were already snapped up . The story centers on the deep friendship which develops between a quirky , mean and uncouth middle-aged man , and a young boy . It doesn't start off rosy , as Kikujiro ( played by Takeshi himself ) gets assigned , against his wishes , chaperon duties to assist and ensure that the young boy Masao ( Yusuke Sekiguchi ) gets to find his mother . So begins a road trip of sorts , with the duo encountering a host of situations and characters ( aren't road trips all like that ? ) The movie can be seen as two distinct halves , with the first half in my opinion the more superior portion of the film . It centers upon the journey , on the quest to seek out Masao's mother in another county . We get to follow our mismatched duo through various escapades through their hitchhiking adventures , with one involving racing amongst cyclists ( in a betting game ) , which is one of my favourite moments in the story . Everything else afterwards in this half is built up from that one incident , adding much to the comedic aspects that actually , although predictably , bring on some genuine laughs . The second half is perhaps what disappoints , with its introduction of over the top characters in 2 biker gang type guys , and a farmer . Here , the sequence of events sticks out unconvincingly , even though it's possibly trying to tug at your heartstrings and bring back memories of the days of childhood , where you have adults engaging in children's games , just to keep the children entertained . The play acting with strangers take its toil as it wore on , and became a bit of a drag with repetitive childish scenes of play acting . Takeshi isn't adorable , try as he might , and some may cringe at his " act cute " moments . Somehow Yusuke Sekiguchi , who plays Masao , doesn't seem to act cute at all , and I thought it was kind of mirroring real life - imagine between a baby and an adult , who's the one playing the fool most of the time in their interactions with each other ? Nonetheless , Kikujiro is still an admirable story on friendship , amongst the unlikeliest of couples , with Kikujiro cutting a father like figure to Masao's little child . Come to think of it , it's like a road trip movie between father and son , and the braving of odds to cement some credible ties by the time the end credits come rolling . |
514,726 | 317,399 | 329,774 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : xXx2 | Watching this film is like being with your current beau and yet constantly reminded of your ex . We all know that Xander Cage ( Vin Diesel ) is not the xXx in this show , and he's being replaced by Darius Stone ( Ice Cube ) . Heck , I think the producers make the mistake of killing Xander Cage - mentioned in the movie as being killed in action in Bora Bora , Afghanistan , because in my opinion his character makes an excellent action hero . That's reminiscence number one - being reminded of what could have been if the charismatic Vin Diesel continued for this film . Throughout the film , we see some similarities with Xanda or scenes from the original xXx . Like a scene in a diner with Gibbons ( good IL mo-fo Samuel L Jackson , who's given more screen time this time around ) , a sea-craft ride down a river , wisecracks on the moniker xXx ( " I sound like a porn star " ) , the reluctance of being drawn into the game of cloak and daggers , and ( mis ) quoting one of my favourite lines in the original - " The things I would do for my country " ! But while Xander Cage's an extreme sports person , Darius Stone is more " in your face " , given his military background in covert ops , with a penchant for some fries and a shake . The original film's delivery is more subtle , more elegant , while this one's more direct and in a way , nothing different from another action flick . The action is standard Hollywood-blow-em-up fest , right from the beginning and never lets up throughout the film . Everything's bigger ( M1 Abrams Tank , Aircraft Carrier , Choppers ) , noisier ( guns and explosions everywhere ) and faster ( modified cars and humongous wheels ) . No doubt the movie looks good given that the action pieces looks expensive , and effects well done by Industrial Light and Magic . Did I mention the girls ? We get 2 in this one , but their roles are merely decorative , unlike Asia Argento's meatier and eye - " candier " chick role in xXx1 . And the villains are your good old one-dimensional foes who tend to lapse into monologues , and I feel that Willem Dafoe is a bit underutilized . My only gripe with this film is that xXx has to rely on his boyz n the hood - it's actually quite hilarious to see street gangs take on military might , " carjacking " a tank and actually winning . Not too credible , but hey , it's only a movie . Did you know this film is called " xXx : State of the Union " in the US ( referring to the President's State of the Union Address , which forms the finale ) , but I guess for those outside who don't care less about US politics , we're pretty OK with the dumbed-down title of " xXx2 : The Next Level " - makes it sound like some arcade game . So buckle up and enjoy the ride , and if this is proved as popular as the original , we might see xXx3 ( given the setting up of a sequel at the end ) , and the possibility of seeing a new face as the new xXx . Now if the producers just stop killing them , I'd think it's pretty cool to see a couple of xXxs teaming up . Ooh . . . the potential for more mayhem ! " Wars come and go , but my soldiers are eternal " - 2Pac |
514,963 | 317,399 | 454,776 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Amazing Grace | Summer season means the latest blockbuster in town will take up 90 % of the screens in any multiplex , leaving little room for movies other than the highlight of the week , or be scheduled for screening in a dinghy theatre with bad screens and sound systems . Nonetheless some movies might have that one hall screening , and Michael Apted's Amazing Grace managed to squeeze past the Pirates of the Caribbean off a small hall . I was curious about the film as it offered a look behind a familiar song , which has now become a hymn naturally because of the message contained in the lyrics , written by John Newton ( Albert Finney ) . But the movie doesn't tell you that story about the writing of the song per se , much as I thought it would , but instead told of a certain William Wilberforce ( Ioan Gruffudd ) , who embarks on a political journey in 19th Century England to abolish the slave trade in Britain and her territories . As such , much time is spent in Parliament , and the wheelings and shady dealings in Pirates ' are familiar themes again in a similar timeline . William is an idealist , who's at the crossroads of his life contemplating whether to become a man of the church , or to dabble in politics , and it didn't take too long before good friend Pitt ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) , who aspires to be Prime Minister , to convince him that his quick witted brain and charismatic speeches are much needed arsenal in his campaign . And to do so , he provides William a cause to fight against , and that's slavery . For William , he's a man torn between paying lip service to God , or doing God's work to aid mankind in general . We see for the most parts in his banter with his chum Pitt , that politics and friendship do mix , on the sly of course , as they navigate through the murky waters of the House of Commons , which is somewhat an experience of sorts watching the politicians argue their points , and either supporting or bringing down bills they are opposed to . The film centers around William , his motivations , energies , illness , love life , almost the whole works , while John Newton as a character managed just a few interactive scenes . The song does get featured a few times in the movie , but I thought the better rendition was when Gruffudd sings it solo and with great gusto ( he has an amazing singing voice ) . You can understand it better as to how it's used in the context of slavery abolishment , and the narrative's told rather as a matter of fact . The introductory act does get a little confusing , especially with its shifting timelines which are spliced together quite haphazardly , with only Gruffudd's hairstyle as a guide when the titles disappear . Used to tell the backstory of his romance with future wife Barbara ( Romola Garai ) , don't expect a great love story weaved into the movie , as it actually acted as a subplot instead in its vanilla plain account . Given it's inspired by true incidents ( of course with certain liberties taken ) , Amazing Grace does seem to indulge in itself in its last act toward the inevitable end . But as a choice of sorts to break away from too much summer blockbuster hype , this movie does provide some valuable lessons to take away , especially that of never giving up when the tough gets going . Oh , and Youssou N'Dour has a bit role here , see if you can spot him ! |
514,825 | 317,399 | 488,120 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Fracture | If you were salivating at the prospect of Ryan Gosling and Rosamund Pike getting hot and heavy under the sheets as suggested by the trailer , well , just so you know , all those uber sexy scenes got snipped off . Not that it's the work of the local film censors , as it's passed clean without cuts here , and watching the film transition between the scenes , it's gone without a hint of a bad edit . Somehow it's good to rid of the distractions to focus on the much touted cat and mouse game between Sir Anthony Hopkins ' character and Gosling's , vis-a-vis a face off between a multi-award winning actor , and a young up and coming rising star . Anthony Hopkins ' Ted Crawford seemed very much like Hannibal Lecter , no matter how anyone , even Hopkins , tries to disprove the notion . Perhaps it's after the recent dismal and disappointing Hannibal Rising , that audiences would do just anything to suspend disbelief and imagine it to be Lecter's return to the big screen done right , with that glint in the eye and the wry smile . I won't be surprised that someone in the crowd would have half expected Crawford to eat his wife after shooting her in the head . And Hopkins would have to showcase his acting chops once again , having done so with his Hannibal going up against the likes of luminaries like Judie Foster , Julianne Moore , Edward Norton , and now , Ryan Gosling . Gosling too had his fair share of playing a character obsessed with committing the perfect murder . In 2002's Murder by Numbers , he and peer Ben Chaplin did just that , and had to contend with Sandra Bullock's detective . Here , Gosling crosses over to the DA's office , his Willy Beachum a high flying scheming legal eagle who can't wait to spread his wings and soar over to the private sector for the fatter paycheck . Given his successes and reputation for wins , he takes on the State versus Ted Crawford case , in what is believed to be a simple open-and-shut legal suit , with signed confessions and what not , only to have his arrogance serve his downfall , and his redemption at eating the humble pie . As the old Chinese proverb says , " the older ginger is hotter " . Courtroom dramas are nothing new to director Gregory Hoblit , having helmed films like Primal Fear and Hart's War . However , those who are expecting sparks to fly between defendant and prosecutor in the courtroom will be a tad disappointed . Hopkins and Gosling spend too little time together sharing the same scene and playing off each other's energies , and perhaps rightly so , otherwise everyone will be thinking it's yet another Hannibal tale . The spotlight is firmly set on Gosling , as we see him struggle against being soundly beaten by his adversary , and the fight against succumbing to temptation ( OK , so he gave in and did it with his boss , but that we don't really see . So . . . ) . His Beachum is all about the seeking of redemption , in doing what's right , to try and put things right , nevermind if the result doesn't turn out the way it should be . There are a number of themes put forth in Fracture , some of which are topical , even to our own city state . Things like the lure of the private sector and that distinct smell of money , the imminent departure of the civil servant etc . What I thought was intriguing enough is the entire perversion of justice , laws , and the exploitation of loopholes which Crawford milks to perfection , that technically one can really walk away from a crime if you do your sums right . Those who are alert might find the revelation a bit wanting , and it's a full circle kinda lesson learnt about being overconfident leaning towards arrogance . It sets up the fall perfectly , but becomes anti-climatic given the dogged need for closure and doing so in too quick a time and coincidence . Then again , you might also consider that perhaps this is the most politically correct , face saving way to settle a stand off between a veteran , and a promising star . |
515,160 | 317,399 | 408,790 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Flightplan | It's Panic Room in the skies ! This is the second inflight entertainment ( pardon the jab ) movie from Hollywood this year , the other being Wes Craven's recent Red Eye . Jodie Foster again plays a vulnerable yet tough as nails mum , who is on a flight with her six year old daughter from Berlin to New York , taking with them the body of their recently deceased husband / father in a coffin ( in the cargo hold of course ) . However , before you can taste the airline food , her daughter is missing , and Mommy goes frantic in trying to look for her . But it seems that nobody on the airplane has seen the little girl , and it's all up to Mom to discover just what the heck is happening 30000 feet in the air , Of course things are made more difficult in a post 911 world of aviation , with bulletproof vault like cockpit doors , US Marshalls , and edgy passengers . The first 5 minutes of the film is kinda confusing , as time is juxtaposed and not really explained much , besides trying to show the relationship between husband and wife , and suggesting that the tragedy might have led to Foster's deteriorated mindset . But if compared to Red Eye , certainly this film takes the honour of being in the air a lot more , and on a state-of-the-art ( read : fictitious airplane and airline ) jumbo plan with many nooks and crannies . Rather than settle for an obvious villain upfront , this movie opted for more subtlety , which leaves you guessing who , and definitely want to know the why , though I must warn you by the time you're told the why , you might roll your eyes at probable absurdity ( i . e . why go through all that trouble ? ) Big names are attached to this project , and we all know that Foster is aptly able to carry a movie on her own . Joining her are Peter Sarsgaard ( last seen in Skeleton Key ) , and Sean " Boromir " Bean as the Captain of the flight . Erika Christensen stars as one of the flight attendants without many lines and much to do ( pity ) , and Kate Beahan came across as a Jennifer Lopez-Sarah Jessica Parker clone as one of the leading attendants . POTENTIAL SPOILERS Watch this film and you'll know why many flight attendants were so upset with the roles - they would all be out of a job if they behaved like their screen counterparts . Also , stereotypes are abound with the Arab passengers being accused of being part of the kidnap - hands up those of you who thought they had something to do with the dirty deed . And as if to rub salt into the wound , there was one American character who was all ready to pounce onto them . SPOILERS END The first half of the film built up the entire premise successfully , only to be brought back to normalcy by the usual Hollywood wham-bang action in a claustrophobic airplane . But nonetheless a thriller which satisfies up until the creative closing credits . |
515,561 | 317,399 | 940,770 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Playing Solo | The debut feature film of Finnish director Lauri Nurkse , Playing Solo tells the story of three individuals who are just that - selfish people who have to learn how to change themselves in order to live with one another . Based on the novel by Katja Kallio , it brings to mind the constant tussle in the modern world of how one can be so easily caught up with work , that relationships often take a back seat , for better or worse . We have Emma Huilu ( Saija Lentonen ) , a reporter in a long distance relationship that recently ended , and in a stroke of luck from an occupational hazard , gets to meet possibly the sexiest orchestra conductor alive in Joel Abrahamsson ( Lari-Pekka Toivonen ) to conduct a last minute interview . Needless to say , sparks fly immediately , they go on a whirlwind romance , and before you know it , he soon loads her up with his personal problem - that of taking care of his aged mom Lea ( Kristiina Elstela ) who is beyond control in the nursing home's she put up in . The character of Joel is your typical alpha-male type whose jet-setting career and reputation puts him in the clear path of temptation , and how he battles that would naturally have repercussions in his relationship with Emma . Toivonen plays this role with ease because of his stature and good looks , and exudes enough pathos given the frustrations of his childhood and his difficult mom . We think that he's the poor victim here when we see how he gets dumped by a pregnant ex-girlfriend , but there's more than meets the eye to this handsome man . Saija Lentonen on the other hand had a deeper role to play , though nothing unexpected since we see a strong , independent woman succumb to being needy , and you're likely to feel that she had made a number of missteps and was being blatantly silly . But then love is blind , and you would like to trust the best in your partner , though ultimately I still think that the finale didn't do the story , and her character , justice at all . Stealing the show every step of the way is of course Kristiina Elstela as the strong-willed mom who doesn't accept any nonsense from anyone . Clearly missing her son who's never emotionally there for her , much of the comedy stems from her razor sharp wit . With Joel being out of the picture for the most part , the story then takes on the spin of bonding amongst women , who between them at first was full of animosity , but nothing beats some earnestness in holding out that olive leaf . Both have lessons for each other , and their dynamics brought to life by the actresses are one of the key highlights of the film . And there's a particular scene which I enjoyed , as it dealt with the notion of time , devotion and returns . It brought about the thought of having to understand someone , a stranger perhaps , in order to have some form of meaningful conversation . But like in many scenes which involve Joel , life in itself is one where it's easy to take things for granted , and usually we devote time to pursuits which translate to economic gains , rather than to spend that same amount of time , or even a quality fraction of it , with the people we love , just to understand them a little bit more , and to spend time because we simply want to . Playing Solo reinforces the reminder that there should always be time to stop and smell the roses , and that family should always come first . It's true that we sometimes cannot stand the little idiosyncrasies of loved ones , but ultimately we should never take things for granted , and nobody should be flying solo in his or her lifetime . This comedy-romance comes recommended for that theme alone , despite an ending that I just couldn't agree with completely . |
514,782 | 317,399 | 382,385 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Zameen | Zameen doesn't restraint itself in its exploration of transnational terrorism , and doesn't mince its words in the inclusion of Pakistan in state sponsored terrorism by radical army elements , in their support of the mujahedeens battling in Pakistan Owned Kashmir . Being a fictional piece of work , the movie works on two fronts , that by the army in its fight to capture a wanted terrorist Baba Zaheer ( Mukesh Tiwari ) , and on the home front , where 4 operatives enter India to do their dastardly deed . Ajay Devgan stars as Colonel Ranvir Singh Ranawat , a soldier of vast experience in counter - terrorism operations , and his latest capture is of Baba of the Al Tahir terrorist group . The movie begins with a ra-ra patriotic song , before launching into full scale war . But the plot thickens when Baba's men plot to rescue Baba , and in the process bring disgrace to India . Not if supercop ACP Jai ( Abhishek Bachchan ) can help it , in his no-nonsense style of high octane action . Adding to the mix is Bipasha Basu's Nandini , wife of Jai , serving as an air stewardess , and as the complimentary love token who provides the cause for some songs , you'll more or less figure out what the terrorist plot will involve . The action might look a little cartoony and staged , but it still brings about some element of fun for action fans . Having the two male leads from different uniformed groups also serve to highlight the difference in tactics employed , and eyebrows will surely be raised if you're an advocate of human rights . Torturing during interrogation is nothing new , and to see the way they do it , you'll be pretty surprised , though my personal opinion is that sometimes these tactics would have to work - no point fighting with one hand tied behind your back , and these guys are hiding behind civilians and going after innocent soft targets anyway . And besides pointing fingers at Pakistan on state sponsored terrorism , the movie also points its fingers and pokes fun at the inept Indian politicians who have a total lack of integrity , and are the worst kind of humans around - selfish , full of hot airs and empty promises , and dumb . Also , it points out on the terrorists ' hijacking of religion to further their cause in the name of " jihad " , and such scenes are usually dramatic for effect , and at times infused with an action scene , like the fist battle between Ranvir and Baba , representing a country and the subversive elements it faces . All in all , it plays for entertainment , while pounding its fist in the air with patriotism swelling . And hey , Abhishek Bachchan did attempt to sing a few lines from that Krabhi Krabhi song I last heard in Yasmin Ahmad's Gubra . Code 9 DVD by Rainbow Films comes in anamorphic widescreen , but the visual transfer is mediocre , seemed to have been done from an old VHS-quality like source . The audio though is clear , presented in Dolby Digital 5 . 1 . There are only English subtitles available , and scene selection comes in 19 chapters . There are no other extras except for a section where you can zoom into each of the 4 songs in the movie - Title Song , Tere Sang , O Mitwa and Pyar Tera Dilli Ki . |
515,241 | 317,399 | 481,369 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Number 23 | Joel Schumacher re-teams with Jim Carrey in the latter's latest attempt to tangent away from the comedic genre , trying to seal himself as being capable of pulling off a dramatic role time and again . I thought he had decent outings with The Majestic and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ( my favourite 2004 movie ) , though I must admit his brooding , obsessive character in The Number 23 totally wiped out traces of that trademarked smirk off his face . You don't see him smile in this movie . Carrey plays Walter Sparrow , an Animal Control Department employee with a beautiful functional family , who on his birthday , was given an independently published book by his wife ( Virginia Madsen ) called " The Number 23 " . He reads too much into it , and suddenly , everything else in his life adds up to this magic number , fueling an obsession of trying to get down to the bottom of the mystery , and to locate the book's writer , who seemed to have understood and written about Sparrow's own life . Running parallel to the main narrative , like a story within a story , is that from the book itself , where a man known as Fingerling ( also played by Carrey , with mean body tattoos ) , pens down his thoughts like a diary , as a detective undergoing some strange series of investigations pertaining to the number . You can argue that the characters in the book look like their " real life counterparts " , because that's probably an angle you adopt when you read a novel - trying to picture the character in real life , and in this case , Sparrow sees very much of himself in Fingerling , and plucks the others in his life , into the other characters . Naturally there is a reason to all the madness , as the story on the number works its way to the finale . In fact , you'll probably guess the outcome midway in the movie , though you'll wonder about the exact ending , dwelling on morality , a what-if you can cover up your mistakes , or to choose to own up kind of situation . It's quite refreshing an idea , with the story centered on the plausibility of conspiracy theories involving the number 23 . In fact , there are interesting associations with the number , however , this becomes tired during the times when it is contrived - you know how when dates and times involving the fictional characters suddenly all add up . It's too much of a coincidence . But no doubt you'll have fun in trying to discover the easter eggs of the number 23 , when it appears in the frame of the movie . There are so many , you'll begin to lose count . The special effects and editing also play an important part in the movie , transitioning between current and events with scenes from the book . The opening credits were reminiscent of Se7en's , and the entire mood of the film was dark and mysterious enough . It's a reasonable mystery thriller , so long as you don't poke your nose too far deep into the number 23 . Remember , it's all fiction , and for all intents and purposes to make the movie work , just take it as it is , superficially at face value . The only pitiable gripe about the screening here is , in the name of profits and a general PG rating , much of the crucial scenes , some involving important snippets of dialogue , were left on the editing room floor - for reasons of nudity , violence and bloody gore . So if you're a stickler for such things , and mind you the censoring was badly done , you might want to opt for the DVD instead . Be sure your sin will find you out - Numbers 32 : 23 |
514,578 | 317,399 | 831,888 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Tekkonkinkreet | Tekkonkinkreet opens this year's Animation Nation festival , running from today until 1 Dec 07 , showcasing a selection of animated feature films , shorts and documentaries from around the world . Last year , the festival scored a coup in having Paprika screened just after its Japan premiere I believe , and had the noir styled Renaissance screened too . This year , both Tekkonkinkreet and the highly acclaimed 5 Centimeters Per Second were sold out in days when tickets when on sale , and it's a pity I may not be able to catch the latter due to conflict in schedules . Nonetheless , Tekkonkinkreet lived up to its hype , although I found the story to be a little too perplexing for my liking . I guess with Japanese anime , some come with a huge dose of the fantastical , and you might not catch all in one screening , leading to longevity as you discover something new each time you view the movie . The story centers on 2 orphans , Black and White , who are essentially the Cat clan , guarding their city Treasure Town from perceived external threats . But they soon find that the big boys such as the Yakuza are slowly muscling their way in to establish money spinning business in the form of theme parks ( heh ) , and inevitably discover they are within the crosshairs of a major turf war . The attention paid to detail is simply amazing , as it seems like not a pixel on the canvas was wasted . Treasure Town itself is a sight to behold , with its dizzying levels that don't seem to end , and the camera playfully whizzing through buildings , bridges , nooks and crannies giving sense to claustrophobia . It's like Gotham City , only brighter , messier , and of course , without the Dark Knight , now instead , having Black and White play vigilante , Batman and Robin style . Being just boys , they possess ( and here's where its fantastical ) superhuman skills , putting martial arts swordsman to shame with their ability to scale buildings with the ease of a simple leap . Yes , our boys have skills like the Yamakasi , only that it's magnified ten thousand times . The set action pieces are excitingly crafted with excellent sound effects and design going into overdrive . The action pieces are spaced out quite well , starting with the satisfying chase sequence with Dusk and Dawn , with the flight-for-your-life battles with robotic assassins , and topped off with the urban legend Minotaur justifying his status . In between the fights are the quieter moments of course , with subplots that put the spotlight on the myriad of Yakuza characters , and the brotherly love shared between Black and White , who share a dream of an idyllic life at the beach house , where they can live in peace from the unnecessary bustle of the city , and from the trouble that comes looking for them . Based on the manga by Taiyo Matsumoto , I suspect there being a need to read up and do some research in order to appreciate this movie more . Akin to a cyberpunk movie where you can read its multiple layers , Tekkonkinkreet is first and foremost a visual spectacle , hands down , and doesn't fail in providing a Wow factor with its presentation . |
514,597 | 317,399 | 384,286 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Cry _ Wolf | And so the shepherd boy cried " Wolf ! " , but alas , because he had given one too many false alarms , this time round , there wasn't any help rendered at all . It's a familiar fable that Cry _ Wolf has based itself on loosely . A lone girl is found murdered in a woods , and a group of students take it upon themselves to spread some rumours about that incident over the internet through chain mail , and fictionally create a serial killer called The Wolf , and his modus operandi , linking that incident to a series of killings replicated from the past . Why do they do that ? They're a bunch of bored frat kids , who's late night game of lies needed an innovative boost to prevent stagnation , hence the expansion set to include the entire student population's involvement . But little do they know that the real killer had chanced upon their stories , and adapts them for his own sick pleasure , by executing what was told to the T . Although most of the characters may seem fairly one dimensional , like the Scream Trilogy's , it's actually quite an interesting take into the facades one puts up in one's life , of masks and hidden intentions , of betrayals and telling of lies in order to survive , or convince . But what happens if your truth still gets misconstrued as an elaborate lie ? The truth will set you free , but if it doesn't , then what ? The cast is varied with loads of unknowns , the familiar face being rocker Jon Bon Jovi who plays a teacher . But the leads in Owen ( Julian MOrris ) and Dodger ( Lindy Booth ) did relatively OK in their roles as the English boy with a dark past , and Ms Beautiful-Popular ( oh yeah she is ) with a touch of mystery . And probably with unknowns casted , your attention would be focused more on the events that transpire , along with the rocking soundtrack to boot . This is no bloody gory slasher flick and it doesn't rely heavily on cheap thrills to excite . The camps will be divided into halves - those who love it for the cunning plot twists , or those who hate it for trying too hard and for being too contrived , with implausible situations played out . Me ? I thought it was satisfying , a compact 80 odd minutes , without the sacrificing of pace . |
515,032 | 317,399 | 60,472 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) Grand Prix | In recent times , our shore was abuzz with concrete rumours of a Formula 1 street circuit being held in Singapore , and a night one at that . I was a Formula 1 spectator fan ( from the television set of course ) for some time , until Schumi came along , won almost everything with the Prancing Horse , and actually made it predictable , and boring for the most parts of each race circuit . Pole position , race day , 50 odd laps and podium finish . While advancement in technology has made driving a car at 300kmph seem like an hour long arcade game , and safety standards have ensured that dangerous stunts and outcomes are reduced to a rare minimum , the sport somehow lacked that danger and edgy randomness in having things go wrong , and to see how drivers use their skill to react to them . Finding that balance between safety and spectacle , without unnecessary endangering the lives of the drivers , is a tough one . For many , watching the cars go through their paces round and round a circuit , may seem to be boring spectator sport , and just how a movie like this can engage , remains a challenge . Clocking in close to 3 hours , it tells the story of 4 grand prix drivers , naturally of different nationalities - American Pete Aron ( James Garner ) , French Jean-Pierre Sarti ( Yves Montand ) , Brit Scott Stoddard ( Brian Bedford ) and Italian Nino Barlini ( Antonio Sabato ) , with their allegiance sworn to the different manufacturers they drive for , which includes Ferrari . They come together on race day to outperform one another , and more often , the movie focuses on their love lives , with Sarti in a budding relationship with writer Louise ( Eva Marie Saint ) , Scott having to deal with an accident caused by Pete , and facing the prospect of losing his model wife Pat ( Jessica Walter ) to that same man , and Nino just being the playboy he is with his latest squeeze Lisa ( played by French singer Francoise Hardy ) . Rounding up the international cast is Toshiro Mifune , who plays the Japanese businessman whom Pete Aron drives for . When their love lives take a break from the screen , the story tries to explore why they do what they do , and what makes them tick during races , knowing well that it is a dangerous job . But the length of the movie also is contributed by the extent in which the races are featured in the movie , from the various grand prix circuits . The thrill in watching this is not for the race scenes per se , but for a trip down memory lane on how F1 was done in the past . There are no paddle gears for shift changes , only those that comes with the stick , and plenty of mechanical parts compared to the computer on board for that " fly by wire " drive in today's cars . Engineering has come a long way , and this movie makes you appreciate that advancement . The tracks featured too are a sight to behold , with a mixture of existing and retired circuits seen . And the strong technical aspect of the film is what makes it entertaining , with features like split screens ( up to 6 at times ) , montages , and plenty of nifty camera angles that make you wonder how they did it back in the old days . The camera shifts perspective often enough , and my favourite would be the one that follows the road , like the Daytona game , sans dashboard . Grand Prix might look dated in its treatment of the narrative , but it probably formed the basis and benchmark on how to film a racing spectator sport , for other race movies like Days of Thunder , Driven and even Pixar's Cars . |
514,857 | 317,399 | 1,196,714 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Run Papa Run | As far back as I can remember , Sylvia Chang was playing the tomboyish female inspector character opposite Karl Maka and Sam Hui in the Aces Go Places franchise , and it's been quite a transition for her from actress to acclaimed director . I haven't been watching a lot of her films lately , the last being Princess D and saw her in person during the local gala of the film . So in all honesty , I had decided to watch Run Papa Run based on her directing pedigree . Run Papa Run reunites Louis Koo and Rene Liu again for the big screen , after their initial leading pairing in Happy Birthday . Here , they too play a couple that are polar opposites , Koo being in familiar territory as triad chief Lee Tin-Yun , and Liu as Mabel , an aspiring lawyer who decided to junk her high flying career to start a family with Tin-Yun , given after all , a shotgun wedding to begin with . As most would say , fatherhood will begin to change a man , and for Tin-Yun , the arrival of daughter Hai-Yi begins an uphill battle within himself to change for the better . Gone are the recklessness of youth where fights and getting injured are part and parcel of territorial disputes , and begins to rebrand his illegal business to more legitimate ones , albeit some being a front for the same seedy business , but drugs is something he would not touch . Sylvia Chang managed to present quite a sympathetic tale weaved primarily for the Tin-Yun character , and with deft touch provides multiple layers to his triad character , with ample comedic moments to lighten up the mood . Being essentially a superstitious character who has prophetic dreams ( which we will see in an animated opening credits sequence ) , I thought Tin-Yun had provided some very interesting insights on his take of religion , having to convert to Catholicism , while yet maintaining his ties to Guan Gong , the deity of choice of many triad members out there . But more importantly , it tells of the growing up of the Tin-Yun character over a period of many years , chronicling his ups and downs , rise and fall within the triads , though with good buddies Big Mouth ( Lam Suet , check out his incredible hairstyle in the beginning ) , and Big Eyes , starring Max Mok in a welcome return to the big screen , even though both of them really didn't have a lot to do . As such , this movie is primarily a Louis Koo vehicle , and provided him a platform to showcase his acting range , while at the same time , crafting a very likable character . Rene Liu on the other hand , whilst given the meatier role in their previous collaboration Happy Birthday , clearly takes the backseat in this movie , as the long suffering wife whose pride and joy slowly drifts to become more like the father , who has spend a lot of time getting into and out of police stations , and finding it difficult to keep what Tun-Yun is doing , from their daughter . However , the movie does take its time to tell its story , and toward the last act you do feel a little hard pressed for things to move a notch faster , as it creates a lot of subplots that you'd see coming from a mile away , which while nice to have , doesn't really contribute a lot to the story's depth . For Louis Koo fans , I know that this is one movie that you shouldn't miss ! |
514,498 | 317,399 | 474,791 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : ( DVD ) The Maid ( 2005 ) | It's not that difficult to understand why The Maid was successful during its run at the local theatres , and have garnered international attention . I did not catch the movie when it premiered in the theatres ( that's another story for another day ) , but one of the many reasons / excuses I had was that the horror genre of late from Asia were usually laughable efforts , with mediocre story lines , sometimes bordering on the ludicrous . Not that The Maid didn't have its fair share , but somehow it was tolerable , and actually tried to tell a decent story , which I enjoyed . While some might say it's influences have come from movies like The Sixth Sense and Ju-on , I thought it was a decent effort for our current generation of directors to have spun a yarn from the horror genre , currently monopolized by the Japanese and the Koreans . Curiosity about the effort locally had me borrowing this DVD , and I shall unabashedly say I'd enjoy every moment of it , though not without some gripes of course . The premise is set entirely during the Lunar Seventh Month , which is the month where the Chinese believe the denizens from Hell are released for their holiday on Earth , where they can roam around , and spook folks who do not observe the rules . Rules like not returning home late , not stepping on offerings , not turning back when someone calls you out , and so on . The Maid , seen through the eyes of domestic worker Rosa Dimano ( the very beautiful Alessandra de Rossi from The Philippines ) , introduces audiences and refreshes those familiar with the strange customs , about the do's and the don'ts . New to Singapore , her employment comes from an elderly couple , the Teos ( television veterans Chen Shu Cheng and Hong Hui Fang ) , who head a Teochew opera troupe . While the Hokkien dialect has made its fair exposure in local cinema thanks to Jack Neo movies , it's refreshing to hear the Teochew language being the lingua franca of choice in the movie . It doesn't take long for Rosa to violate some of the unwritten laws , and therefore , she starts to experience things that go bump in the day and night . Yup , strange things happen in the day as well , which I find peculiar . Anyway , be it in limited lighting , or broad daylight , the cinematography by Lucas Jodoigne was beautiful , and probably added a positive dimension to the overall feel of the movie , as did the art director Daniel Lim . Were there moments of disappointment ? You bet , and the major one is with the spirits themselves . They just stand around doing nothing ! Despite relying on the usual tricks up the sleeves of horror filmmakers , like the passing shadows , musical crescendos , creaking furniture , and close up fast cuts , the technique used never go beyond that , and the spirits just hang around . What gives ? Some editing needed to be tightened as certain scenes were inserted without much thought to narrative flow , and looked a bit out of place as a transitional scene . That said , I'm still of the opinion that Kelvin Tong's The Maid has its niched appeal , and more importantly , cemented his ability to make commercial films that can be enjoyed by the masses . If his Love Story had put me off , The Maid had shown what he is capable of , besides his debut with Eating Air , which I also enjoyed . The visual transfer is decently done , and allows for details to be seen even in scenes with little lighting , rather than becoming all black . The colours were vibrant during the opera scenes , while maintaining the dull atmosphere of the Teo family . English and Mandarin subtitles are available , though for the first 2 minutes of the film where there was a dialect voice-over , somehow the much needed translation explaining some Seventh Month superstition was missed . While subtitling was good , there were some noticeable grammatical errors in the beginning . You're given a choice of either Dolby Digital 2 . 0 or 5 . 1 , so depending on how spooked you want to be when the music by Joe Ng and Alex Oh comes on , you might want to tweak it for that surround sound capability . The Code 3 DVD by Scorpio East comes with the standard offerings like scene selections , and contain special features like the 1min 55s theatrical trailer , as well as the Making Of , with both English and Mandarin subtitles . containing interviews with the principle cast , Kelvin Tong the writer-director , and Daniel Yun , executive producer . Running 22 minutes , there's a decent amount of information revealed on the art direction , and some behind the scenes look during shooting , where I thought a scene showing the cast having a heck of a time dancing during their break , was hilarious . |
514,546 | 317,399 | 386,741 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Renaissance | Daniel Craig is making another impact on our screens , though a limited one , besides the latest grittier installment of the Bond Franchise . In this year's Animation Nation Festival opening film , Renaissance , he lends his voice as a lead detective character in perhaps THE animated movie of 2006 . Created using motion capture technology and done entirely in black and white , some reckon it to be similar to reading a Sin City comic book that moves . While Sin City itself was filmed by Rodriguez in live action mode , Renaissance is done in animation , and what beautiful animation it is . Without colour , the entire look and feel is hinged on the clever eye for lighting and shadows , to create the dark futuristic looking atmosphere of Paris 2054 . Hardcore fans of science fiction will probably find the story a yawn , as it rehashes tired plots of mighty futuristic conglomerates and the power that they exert on the commonfolk . Formula dictates that these successful companies are successful because they hide deep dark secrets , if once revealed , could bring about their downfall , and along with it , their grip on the future . Here in future Paris , the largest company Avalon makes its business in youth and beauty , where huge billboards with beautiful models tout the latest in Avalon products . However , a promising young Avalon scientist gets kidnapped , and its up to maverick suprecop Karas ( voiced by Craig ) to recover her . In the future , all cops have awesome tools to assist in their detective work , and Craig , like his Bond character , brings about a angst lone ranger character to his Karas , as tables are turned , the roles between hunter and prey get blurred , and with the usual expected twist at the end to add some flavour to a tired tale . But hey , while the plot might be uninteresting , we're all here for the animation no less . And it's simply amazing to see how , with just splashes of black and white , and superb control in shadow play , what may look easy to produce actually passes off in a sophisticated manner . What's amazing is the creation of the look of Paris of the future , and the characters when they interact , seem like blotches of black ink merging into and separating from one another . It is easy to mash everything up in an incoherent manner , but here , there is clear distinction within the barrage of blur . A joint French-UK-Luxembourg production , Renaissance boasts some excellent voice talents in " recognizable " names like Craig , Jonathan Pryce ( also a Bond alumni ) , and Catherine McCormack in the English soundtrack . There's also a French soundtrack , but that's not the version put on screen today , though I am curious to see how it actually sounds like . Given the sold out sessions of this movie in Animation Nation , it wouldn't be a surprise if it gets picked up for general release here . And what will be the icing on the cake , is Richard Linklater's A Scanner Darkly also hitting our shores . That'll be sweet ! |
514,466 | 317,399 | 420,223 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Stranger Than Fiction | Director Marc Forster has a really diverse filmography , with Monster's Ball , the touching Finding Neverland , and the science fiction thriller Stay , all under his belt . The trend continues with Stranger Than Fiction , a film which is quite difficult to categorize , as it's really a mixed bag , bringing memories of Adaptation ( 2002 ) , along similar lines where fiction crosses into reality . Will Farrell is Harold Crick , an IRS auditor who lives live by the clock . Everything is precise , and he has this fixation with order . Some might term it obsessive compulsive , but that's the way this closet mathematician lives , doing seemingly mundane things like counting the number of brushstrokes when he brushes his teeth . His ordered life goes awry when he happens to start hearing a female voice narrating his life as it happens , and that is bizarre enough to freak out anyone since an ultimatum was issued . I appreciate the parts where fiction and ( screen ) reality collide in some weird twists of fate , and contemplate moments where reminders about living life to the fullest , the way you want it to be , get drummed up in the narrative . Taking it to the extreme , it's about the power some of us wields over others , be it employer-employee , or master-slave , or relationships of such . Given that you have the ability to cause hurt , will you continue to go with the decision on the basis of the greater good , or will you seek out a win-win situation , or in less selfish cases , allowing yourself to back down on the negotiations ? The closest I can think of when watching Stranger Than Fiction , in the event of the course of work we remove someone from a position , will you be emotionally detached and end your concern at that , or ponder what will happen to people around the victim ? Those expecting a comedy by virtue of it being a Will Farrell movie , will be severely disappointed . Similar to Ben Stiller's Night at the Museum , Stranger Than Fiction does contain funny moments , but these are not intentionally funny . It's filled with dark humour along the veins of fellow comedian Jim Carrey's Truman Show , with another being having supreme control over the life of the protagonist . But Will Farrell doesn't disappoint in his dramatic ability to carry the film through as the bewildered , desperate man , and that is essentially what made this movie , which plodded along at times , bearable . Assisted by a strong supporting cast , it's perhaps one of the strongest this year end . It's been sometime since we last saw most of them . The script allowed Dustin Hoffman to make some references to The Graduate , and it's indeed since Meet The Fockers was he seen on the silver screen . Emma Thompson too , given the last outing she had was under heavy disguise and makeup in Nanny McPhee . Here , she's sans makeup most of the time , as the writer Kay Eiffel , suffering from a bad mental block . Queen Latifah didn't have much to do , while you'll probably be distracted by Maggie Gyllenhaal's huge arm tattoo , as she's the token eye candy in the movie . Stranger Than Fiction contains nifty special effects but it's something already seen before . The soundtrack is nice , but nothing memorable . That pretty sums up my sentiments of the movie . It's something , but yet something else at the same time , never being bold enough to stick to what would probably work better , allowing itself to surrender its potentially brilliant strength for a typical finale . |
514,778 | 317,399 | 1,201,143 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : Love Exposure | I think I had absolutely no clue as to how high the " chick " factor of this chick flick would be , as it primarily centered upon two women who share different philosophies and attitudes toward love . Think Sex and the city , but instead of a quartet , we have a duo of best friends forever ( sheesh ) who are buddies because their conflicting attitudes means they are unlikely to fall for the same type of persons , avoiding situations where both would want to go after the same guy . Jeong-wan ( Lee Mi-Yeon ) is a rising star photographer who just couldn't keep her hands off the married Young-hoo ( Kim Jun-Seong ) , husband of a rich wife who owns the building Jeong-wan works in . They meet in secret in hotel rooms for their frequent trysts , and to Jeong-wan , one who doesn't believe in long term relationships and commitment , this is something of a perfect arrangement to have someone at your beck and call to talk to during lonely nights , or for no strings attached pleasure . Hee-su ( Lee Tae-Ran ) on the other hand , is married to an average Joe , because she thinks that being average , he would be faithful to her since she's attractive , and that he would not be willing to risk their marriage by flirting with other women who made a pass at him . She prides herself at being someone who is non-jealous even if her husband were to have an affair , but we see how this nonchalance gets put to the test when the husband does incessantly pursue a pretty young thing . We'll observe some peeling of the onion to reveal , not surprisingly , some lack of self-confidence given her need to feel wanted . In some ways , the movie highlights the modern woman's insecurities toward love and relationships , and at some points , the somewhat hypocritical nature of how friends would practice double standard in dispensing " good " advice , so long as it doesn't mirror or become parallel to their own personal predicament . Hee-su encourages and wistfully dreams of the carefree life that Jeong-wan has in her non-committal relationship with a married man , but when she learns of her husbands infidelity , turns on Jeong-wan and riles her as a typical home-wrecker . The first half of the movie was the more engaging section , before it coasts through for the usual satisfying finale that dumbed it down a notch or two . Although rated M18 , this movie steers clear of any blatant parade of flesh . Perhaps it is the message from within the movie that got it slapped with a higher rating for mature audiences , given after all it isn't really conventional relationships that the movie deals with . In actual fact , it plays out almost like two separate films , each following a particular lead character through their respective trials and tribulations , occasionally having the characters interact to exchange notes . Nothing fancy in its presentation , so for those who can't get enough of watching some alpha-females strut their stuff and assert their individuality in relationships , or for those who enjoy chick flicks , then Love Exposure would probably be your choice when you hit the cinemas . |
515,237 | 317,399 | 463,985 | 7 | A Nutshell Review : The Fast and the Furious : Tokyo Drift | The Fast and the Furious franchise relies on the simpleness of 2 factors to attract an audience from boys to men - sexy cars and fast babelicious chicks , topped up with plenty of testosterone and adrenaline in overdrive . Racing cars of all makes , be they the European , American or Asian models , one thing's for sure , the stunt driving team deserves all the credit . The first movie made a huge star out of Vin Diesel , while the rest had relatively smaller shots at glory , from Paul Walker , who returned for the second , to babes like Eva Mendes , Michelle Rodriguez and Devon Aoki . The third installment decided to insert refreshing elements , and set itself in the land of the rising sun . Presumably influenced by the driving technique called drifting , which made it to mainstream consciousness via the Japanese manga Initial D , it's just too bad that the Hong Kong movie by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak , adapted from the manga , got to it first , like almost a year ago . Perhaps if the latest shenanigans of racers from both sides of the Causeway were widely publicized , this film could even be made closer to home ! ( In case you're wondering , the Malaysian police had recently conducted a dragnet rounding up illegal racers on its North South Highway . Flashy cars with raunchy stakes - the winner gets to take home the loser's chick for a night's worth of lurve ) There will be no doubts , comparisons between the East's Initial D , and this one from the West . In my opinion , this one edged out Initial D . There are many aspects in which Tokyo Drift is superior , and naturally having a bigger budget means that the filmmakers can afford to put more cars on showcase , more cars involved in races , and more races in varied locations like a tight car park , on the streets of Tokyo , and as a homage too to the source , they couldn't miss the mountain range . Scenes were for both day and night , unlike Initial D's predominantly night scenes . It's never about the acting , though Tokyo Drift will lose out in terms of having relative rookies helm the show throughout , unlike Initial D's stellar supporting cast of Chapman To , Anthony Wong , to established popular teeny-boppers like Edison Chen and Shawn Yue . But Tokyo Drift did have veterans like Sonny Chiba lend a hand , and the coup was the casting of Keiichi Tsuchiya , the original inspiration for the manga , in a cameo . Taking over the lead role from Paul Walker and Vin Diesel is relative newcomer Lucas Black as Sean Boswell , a good for nothing troublemaker with the inborn need to speed . He comes from a broken home , and is the root cause of his and his mom's moving from city to city , because he cannot get out of trouble from the law . When the final straw broke the camel's back , he gets sent reluctantly to live with his father in Tokyo . Thinking that the Asian city has nothing to offer , before you can say " drift " , he finds himself drawn into the world of underground racing , with plenty of flashy cars , hot chicks and mean Yakuza-linked punks itching to challenge anyone to a race . As clichés rule over this movie , Sean falls for the Drift King's ( Brian Tee ) main squeeze Neela ( Nathalie Kelly , thought she looked like a cross between Paula Abdul and Rosario Dawson ) , while unwittingly got brought under the wings of Han ( Sung Kang ) , business partner of Drift King , who teaches him the true meaning and purpose of drifting ( which is a no-brainer purpose of snagging hot chicks ) . Anyway , to a gaijin , Sean is ignorance personified , from culture to racing , he takes these challenges head on , stupidly . And surprise ! A movie like this offered some one-dimensional character development of troublemaker turned good , who learns the meaning of brotherhood , although fame did get into the way of course . But herein lies another strength against Initial D , the lead did not turn out to be " all powerful " - here he has to learn the basics of drifting in an incredible short period of time , and turn out well of course , at the expense of expensive tyres , and cars ( always a pain to see them being wrecked ) . Any racer worth his salt must pimp his ride or zhng his car , and this one offered no less . The star attraction in the franchise are the vehicles . From the Nissans to the Mustangs , it seemed that the Mitsubishi Evo will be a mainstay , and the hero always drives one . It's almost a no - brainer to film movies like these , having stunt drivers to do the actual stunt driving , then cut to actors looking as if they're driving , and insert multiple cuts of hands on steering , foot on pedal , looking mean , etc . Instead of just incessantly focusing on drifting , there are the standard zig-zagging car chases , and some usage of Nitro for that quick boost of horsepower , which the first two movies frequently used . Given its ending by an uncredited cameo which will send fanboys of this franchise into highs , this movie still has potential to be relatively popular and the franchise can indeed continue . It wouldn't be far out if there's an announcement of The Fast and the Furious : North-South Highway , and yes , you heard it here first ! So race away , and unabashedly indulge in this movie that makes no apologies for being fast and furious to the loud sounds of its contemporary soundtrack ! |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.