Movie Review - 127 Hours

Rating: 9/10

Aron Ralston was a mountaineer and outdoorsman. He was very much experienced. However, he did not see the rock falling and pinning his right hand and wrist against the canyon wall while on a hike in Utah. 127 Hours is a movie adaptation of his best-selling book Between a Rock and a Hard Place that describes the hell he went through for five days.

The movie is told in a mostly restricted narration - which means we hardly have the chance to get into the mind of Aron (played by James Franco) while he is trapped in the canyon. This restriction makes his actions more surprising; we don't know what will happen next. That exactly, is the point of the film: Aron didn't know what was going to happen him but he saw it through, he survived and lived to tell the experience.

My sister was complaining about the quality of the video, but I think the not-so-HD quality was done to impress the timeframe when it happened (year 2003, to be exact).

Anyway, I think James Franco did a great job. The musical score was great, courtesy of A.R. Rahman. The direction is, of course, brilliant. You can't expect anything less from Danny Boyle (of Slumdog Millionaire fame).

Movie Review - Black Swan

Rating: 10/10

Black Swan is the story of a young ballerina named Nina (Natalie Portman) who was cast as the Swan Queen in the company's version of Swan Lake. However, the presence of a prodigy (Mila Kunis) threatens Nina, knowing that the newcomer could very well take the role from her.

I admire everything about this movie. Darren Aronofsky is a genius. The score, setting, and even the shots are great. Add Natalie Portman's stellar and convincing performance and you've got a brilliant mix. Black Swan definitely deserves an Academy Award.

Movie Review - Tangled

Rating: 10/10

Tangled is the 50th animated movie by Disney. It's a re-telling of the story of Rapunzel, a girl with long hair who was trapped in a tower.

There are actually two protagonists: Rapunzel, the girl with the magic hair, and Flynn Rider, a thief. In an effort to run away from the soldiers, Flynn climbs the tower, not knowing that there was someone in it. Rapunzel, who had never seen a man before, hits him with a frying pan and hides him in her closet. When the fugitive wakes up, she strikes a deal with him: she'll give him back the crown he stole, but he must fulfill her dream - to go to see the "lights" on her birthday. He agrees, and their adventure begins.

I wouldn't normally go see an animated fairy tale movie, but I did with this one. It wasn't a waste of money, either. I enjoyed every minute of the movie. Criticisms aside, it's a great movie. I appreciate everything about it. Nice, nice, nice. :)

Movie Review - Easy A

Rating: 6/10

Olive Penderghast is a nobody. That is, until a little white lie spreads - about her losing her virginity to an imaginary "George". Catapulted into "fame", she naturally wants to keep her reputation, and so she starts receiving money and gift checks so others could pretend they had sexual encounters with her. But even fame has its dire consequences...

Contrary to what other reviewers say, I personally did not like Easy A. Emma Stone's acting is not bad but I'm not crazy about it either. Sometimes she looks too mature to pass as a high schooler. It's just weird. I also have an issue with how Christianity was portrayed - more like obsessive fanaticism or something. Sorry, but I just didn't like the film.

Movie Review - Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

 

 Rating: 8/10

Scott Pilgrim, bassist of The Sexbob-ombs, was relatively living a peaceful life until he meets Ramona Flowers, a mysterious girl who delivers items from Amazon.ca. His life turns topsy-turvy when he learns that he must defeat Ramona's seven evil exes in order to have her.

The movie uses oozes a game-like atmosphere, with the evil exes dissolving into coins when they're defeated. I find the plot a little slow moving. The fight between Scott and the Katayanagi twins seemed too fast. But, still, this does not change the fact that it's a very funny movie.

Movie Review - Princess Mononoke

Rating: 10/10

Ashitaka, prince of the Emishi tribe, was wounded during a battle with a demon-possessed boar attacking his village. The wisewoman of the village informed him that the wound will spread over his body, eat his flesh, and kill him eventually. But there is still some hope left: Ashitaka must travel to the world of the spirits to seek a cure. However, he was soon caught in an epic battle between humans and the raging force of Nature.

Princess Mononoke is directed by Hayao Miyazaki, acclaimed director of Academy Award winner Spirited Away. The word mononoke in the title actually means "monster" in Japanese and princess refers to the San, the human girl who was raised by the wolf leader Moro, one of the gods in the movie. It was given a rating of PG-13 due to some scenes of violence.

I personally liked this movie because it is a deviation from the movies usually directed by Miyazaki. Most of his films tell the story of young girls and the atmosphere is light, fun, kid-friendly. Mononoke is not that. It's so much different, in a relatively good way.

For starters, the main characters are older, and wiser. The themes explored are more mature and the animation is incredible. There's nothing childish. Even the characters have undergone a change. They're more complex and the shifts of sympathizing between the residents of Iron Town and the forest gods makes it all the more exciting.

Personally, Princess Mononoke was a delight to watch. :)

(I watched the English dubbed version, by the way.)

Movie Review - The Pirates of the Carribean 3: At World's End

Rating: 9/10

Captain Barbossa leads a crew of pirates aboard The Black Pearl to world's end in order to rescue Jack Sparrow. The English fleet is steadily gaining on the capture of pirates, and things must be done to stop them. But with The Flying Dutchman at the English side, can Jack and his handful of crew survive?

(Err. Yes, that is a very cheesy summary. :P)

I liked At World's End very much. It's quite interesting and it satisfied my movie-going self. Of course, there's Johnny Depp as the rum-loving Jack Sparrow. His performance is as good as ever. Sometimes it's hard to tell what Depp really looks like from all the odd characters he's played... :D

Movie Review - The Lovely Bones

Rating: 9/10

Susan "Susie" Salmon died on December 6, 1973, murdered by one of her family's neighbors. When she wakes up, she finds herself in an in-between world. From there, she could see her family and friends on Earth. As Susie watches on, the lives of the people she loves unfold as they struggle to cope with her death.

I think The Lovely Bones was a very lovely movie. No wonder. It's directed by Peter Jackson, who also directed The Lord of the Rings trilogy and the 2005 remake King Kong. Saoirse Ronan was a good actress. She did a neat job. The story is beautiful and everything is just breathtaking.

If you're watching for a movie to watch with the whole family, I strongly recommend The Lovely Bones.

Movie Review - (500) Days of Summer

Rating: 10/10

In (500) Days of Summer, Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) reminisces his past relationship with Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel).

The story is told in non-linear fashion, which is quite interesting and serves the film well. It's one of the best romantic comedy movies I've watched so far. The characters just seem so "real". (500) Days of Summer is a great, great, great movie with a wonderful soundtrack.

(And, no, I'm not angry at Summer or anything.)

Movie Review - A Country Doctor

Rating: 7/10


A country doctor is asked to attend to a sick boy ten miles away one winter night. However, his sole horse died the night before. His serving-girl, Rosa, runs from house to house asking for a horse. In his frustration, the doctor kicks the door of his pig sty. A groom mysteriously appears from inside. He gives the doctor two magnificent horses and hitches them to his carriage. Once he is on the carriage, the doctor asks the groom to come with him. The latter refuses, wanting to be with Rosa, and spurs his horses on, leaving the doctor on his own. What follows is a whirlwind of mysterious and fascinating events.
A 21-minute film adaptation of Franz Kafka's short story, A Country Doctor is directed by Yamamura Koji. The animation is err... Disturbing. But it fits in well with the world of Kafka. I didn't like it much because, for one, I don't really know what this is all about. I mean, I can't get the meaning of the symbolisms in the film. So there's that. Second, I'm not in for this kind of weird animation. I'm so much more used to Studio Ghibli, or even MadHouse. Yamamura Kojis animation is just so queer and "vertiginous".

Movie Review - Megane (Glasses)

Rating: 10/10

In Megane, Takeo (Kobayashi Satomi) is a stressed out profesor who goes on an island vacation. She arrives at a hotel named "Hamada" run by Yuji (Mitsuishi Ken). She is surprised when her host sits down to eat with her. More so when she is woken up in the morning by an old woman named Sakura (Motai Masako), who comes to the island only during spring. She also finds the "merci taiso" queer. Takeo decides to check out and look for another hotel. But Marine Palace did not prove helpful so she returns to Hamada, a little awkwardly. As the days pass, she befriends the locals and learns how to "twilight", keeping up with the island's pace.

Megane is a really simple film but, as expected, its meanings are very deep. That is exactly one of the things I like in Japanese movies - they're not as superficial as... Others. Anyway, it's a feel good film with a lot of nice lessons. Watch it! :)

Movie Review - TOKYO TOWER: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad

Rating: 10/10

Nakagawa Masaya (Odagiri Joe) narrates his life, from his childhood up to the present time. As a child, his parents split up and he lived with his Mom (younger: Uchida Yayako; older: Kiki Kirin), but visits with his Dad (Kobayashi Kaoru) proved to be exciting. His dream is to enter art school. When he leaves his province to study in Tokyo, Masaya wastes his time and mother's money on women, drinking, smoking, and gambling. His mother begins running a restaurant to support him back home. At one point in the movie, while playing mahjong, he turns his life around and works hard. When he has enough money, he asks his mother to come to Tokyo and live with him, as her health continued to decline. His mother befriends his friends and cooks meals for them in Masaya's house. For a while, life is good. But his mother develops gastric cancer and she has to go through chemotherapy. After a few sessions, she asks him to stop the treatment because of the excruciating pain. The doctor informs Masaya that she only has a few months to live...
TOKYO Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad is a beautiful drama film. I'm so happy I was able to watch this. Odagiri Joe and Kiki Kirin were great in their portrayals. There were a lot of memorable scenes. The one I remember the most is the scene where Masaya hid his head in his hands, refusing to see his mother go through such pain. It's just a nice, nice mother-son movie. Watch it! :)

Movie Review - The Book of Eli

Rating: 9/10

The world is in a post-apocalyptic age. Food and water is running out. Other resources are also scarce. There is fighting and violence all around. The sun has grown hotter, too hot for human eyes to be able to see without sunglasses. A lone man named Eli has walked the earth for many years, bringing a book with him that he must take West. Carnegie, a ruler of a town, wants that book and will stop at nothing to get it, but Eli would protect it with all he's got.

I liked the movie. It's cool, really. I liked the color scheme, all gray and grim (in contrast to the harsh glare of the sun, maybe?). The fight scenes were awesome! Denzel Washington is a great actor and it was just a great cast. I think the plot was well-written and the twist at the end was really surprising. So it's a good movie, for me at least.

One last thing: the book that Eli is taking West and Carnegie wants the most is a King James version of the Bible. How's that? :D

Movie Review - Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

Rating: 8/10

Dastan, an orphan in Persia, is adopted by the king after showing courage in the marketplace. Fifteen years later, the empire wages war against the city of Alamut because it is rumored to be selling weapons to Persia's enemies. In spite of his doubts, Dastan leads a surprise attack that succeeds in the breach of the city's walls, allowing his countrymen to attack it. The princess of Alamut, Tamina, instructs a soldier to bring a dagger to a safe place. Dastan, however, defeats the soldier and the dagger falls into his hands. During the feast for the successful capture, Dastan brings an ornamented robe as a gift to the king. After a few minutes, the king dies because the robe is poisoned. Branded a murdered, Dastan escapes, with the help of Princess Tamina, and undertakes a journey to prove his innocence to his uncle, Nizam. He soon discovers the ability of the dagger to reverse time. When the truth about the attack and the real murderer is revealed, Dastan must protect the dagger at all costs. If it falls into the wrong hands, an apocalyptic event will take place and this must be prevented.

A movie adaptation of a video game, I think Prince of Persia: Sands of Time did fairly well. I liked the fight scenes and the stunts. The background music was also nice ( I've come to like Persian music because of MuL 13...); it really puts you there. The movie entertained me a lot and the plot was pretty exciting. I think Jake Glylenhaal did a god job with the role (probably some bias here :D). Gemma Arterton, who plays Princess Tamina, was good (-looking) also.

So I think Prince of Persia is an entertaining movie. Not as good as the others, maybe, but I appreciated it.

Movie Review - Salt

Rating: 9/10

Angelina Jolie plays the role of Evelyn Salt, a CIA agent who is accused of being a Russian spy by a man referred to as Orlov. He says that she is tasked to assassinate the Russian president during the American vice president's funeral. Thus begins an action-adventure movie you will most likely not forget.

First of all, when I knew that the movie's title was Salt, I thought it was going to be a wee bit similar to Madhouse Studio's Paprika because, well, they're both named after spices so... *shrugshrug* Anyway, it was Inception, I think, that turned out to be similar to Paprika because of all that dream thing.

Okay, so, I think Salt is a good movie. Angelina Jolie is really making her mark as a female action star and she's quite good at it. It's also cool to see a [gorgeous] woman doing those amazing stunts, getting beat up, and kicking bad guys' butt all around. And it leaves you wondering how she keeps her sultry look while doing those...

The storyline is a tad bit confusing since it alternates between two identities of Evelyn Salt, but I think that's what makes the movie great. It just shows how human Salt can be.

So, before I give anything away, I'll be ending this review. :)

Movie Review - The Last Airbender

Rating: 4/10

The Last Airbender is the movie adaptation of the highly rated Nickelodeon series, Avatar. Basically, it is set in an elemental world composed of four nations: Air, Water, Earth, and Fire. There are some people who are gifted with the art of bending their natural element. The Avatar, looked upon as the peacemaker, is able to bend all the elements. However, the Fire Nation wants power and begins to conquer the world. The Avatar, though, disappears. Water Nation siblings Sokka (Jackson Rahtbone) and Katara (Nicola Peltz) "discover" an airbender, Aang (Noah Ringer), and his flying bison Appa frozen in ice. They find out later on that this boy is the Avatar, and that he has disappeared for nearly a hundred years.

I think the movie sucked because of  a number of reasons:
1. M.Night Shyamalan packed the whole first season in a 1 hour and something minute film, rendering people who have no idea about the cartoon series unable to comprehend it. Even I, who watched the series, am a bit confused about the turn-out of events. :/
2. Jackson Rathbone as Sokka DID NOT work. Nuh-uh. He just doesn't exude that kind of humorous aura that the cartoon Sokka has. He's too serious and the punch lines just don't work.
3. Uncle Iroh's funny lines are missing. Okay, so there was only one line that made me laugh: "I told them you were on vacation with a girl." But that's about it. Oh well.
4. The casting just didn't work. I mean, Dev Patel's okay (coughbiascoughbiascoughbiascough) as Zuko but I have problems with the others. Noah Ringer can't act. Nicola Peltz is okay but she's not as awesome as Summer Bishil (Azula). The Fire Nation citizens are Indians, Earth Nation citizens are Koreans, and Water Nation citizens are Caucasian. I don't think I have problems with the Air Nomads.
5. Momo has a small role. HAHA! I personally think Momo should have had more screen time.
6. The movie could have been longer. A lot longer. :/

The Last Airbender could have been improved. M.Night Shyamalan did great movies before but this just didn't work. The special effects are awesome, though.

But Twilight's a lot worse, don't worry. :D 

Movie Review - The Cat Returns

Rating: 10/10

The Cat Returns is the story of Haru (Anne Hathaway), a girl to whom the cats feel indebted to because she saved their prince. To repay her kindness, the Cat King (Tim Curry) decides to have her marry his son. Haru thinks it is a ridiculous idea but she knows that the cats will definitely do it. While pondering her situation, she hears a voice telling her to "find the Cat Bureau" by first looking for a white cat in the cross roads. She does so (a bit skeptically, I should think) and soon finds herself in a world where creations come alive. She meets two such creations: Toto (Elliott Gould), a crow statue, and The Baron (Cary Elwes), a cat figurine (first seen in Whisper of the Heart). She also meets a fat, white cat named Muta (Peter Boyle). Together, they try to escape the clutches of the Cat King. With these three uncommon companions, Haru learns an important lesson: believing in oneself.

NYAA~ I think it's a fabulous, fabulous, fabulous, meow-tastic movie! (I could say that I liked this better than Whisper of the Heart.) It's not just because Studio Ghibli produced it, but because it is a beautiful story. It's light and very much heart-warming. There were a dozen or more times when it made me smile (like a fool in front of the laptop), laugh, and feel real good. The Cat Kingdom concept is really nice and the entertainers are really funny! Plus, the throw-out-of-the-window thing is so hilarious!

For favorite characters... I liked them all! Then again, I think the Baron is a little arrogant but he's so cool! I think, like Haru, I may have a crush on him. Nyaa~ I want my own Baron now! Muta is also cool (and fat)! The jokes are usually directed towards him (such as his always being bait). Another cat that I liked is Natoru. Nyaa~ He's really cute. Haru is also an awesome heroine. I like her character very much. :)

For favorite scenes... I really liked the one where Prince Lune (Andrew Bevis) said to Yuki (Judy Greer): "Yuki, would you accept these fish crackers as a symbol of my love for as long as we have nine lives?" or something like that. Nyaa~ That was incredibly sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeet~

So yeah, obviously, I like The Cat Returns a lot. An hour and fifteen minutes spent watching this isn't time wasted, I'm telling you. It's really entertaining and just about fun with a whole lot of lessons in it!

Movie Review - Laputa: Castle in the Sky

Rating: 6/10

Laputa: Castle in the Sky is about, well, Laputa the castle in the sky. Err... It follows the story of Sheeta (Anna Paquin), a princess in Laputa whose ancestors came down to live on Earth. The film starts off with her as a prisoner of Muska (Mark Hamill), some bespectacled guy from the intelligence agency (I think...). A group of pirates, led by Dola (Cloris Leachman), attack the airship. Their main objective is to steal the etherium necklace which Sheeta owns. While the army is busy with the intruders, Sheeta knocks Muska unconcious and climbs out of the window. The pirates try to grab her but she falls down. Instead of plummeting to Earth, though, Sheeta floats down slowly with the power of her necklace. A young boy named Pazu (James van Der Beek) "catches" her and takes care of her. The next day, both the pirates and the army are back to capture Sheeta. The two of them try to escape but they are eventually caught by Muska. He lets Pazu go because Sheeta agreed to help him find the legendary Laputa. Pazu goes back to his home, dejected, and finds Dola and her gang there. They tie him up but, as they were leaving, Pazu urges Dola to take him. She does and they go to the army's base to take Sheeta back. When they reunite, Sheeta tells them that she would like to see Laputa for herself. Dola agrees, under the pretence that she's doing it for the treasure...

(Err... So that's a pretty long summary but it kind of composed the first hour of the film. I guess I was in the mood to write a long one.)

Okay, so it's directed by Hayao Miyazaki and, as usual, distributed by Studio Ghibli. I like Miyazaki's films but I feel that this one is just too cliche. It's not bad; it's just that things are getting a wee bit too tiring to see the same things over and over again. (I liked the look of Laputa, though.) For one, there's the stereotype of the bad guy: wears glasses and a suit, tall, thin, mysterious AND part of a secretive government agency. The pirate friendship thing was pretty much predictable. I personally thought Sheeta and Pazu were too young to be real close like that. :P

So yeah. Laputa is okay but it's kind of old-fashioned. It's not exactly my thing, but in some instances it is. That's pretty much weird but I think Laputa hangs precariously over the edge of boredom.

Movie Review - Juno

Rating: 9/10

Juno is the story of a sixteen year old girl, Juno MacGaff, who gets pregnant by her bestfriend, Paulie Bleeker. At first, she wanted to abort the baby but she couldn't go through with it, so she decides to give it up for adoption instead.

Basically, the film is about what a teenager goes through with pregnancy, love, friends and school. Don't be fooled, though. It's not quite your average "chick flick" or whatever you call it. Juno is so much more than that. It's real hard to put it into words but it's a great, great movie. Check out the cool soundtrack, too. :)

I think Ellen Page did a great job. Jennifer Garner is so pretty. -sigh-

Movie Review - Because of Winn-Dixie

Rating: 8/10

Based on the novel by Kate diCamillo of the same name, Because of Winn-Dixie is the story of the friendship between a young girl and a dog. India Opal is the new kid in the block. She and her preacher dad just moved from Watley to Naomi, a small rural town. Opal can't make friends easily but this all changes when she meets Winn-Dixie, a dog she "adopted" after she saw it in the Winn-Dixie grocery store.

I didn't like the book much (in comparison with The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane) nor did I like the movie... At first. (It's not only because it stars  the young AnnaSophia Robb...) The first thirty to forty minutes of the film was kind of boring and the acting was a little lacking, I guess. But as the movie progressed, Robb's acting improved greatly and so did everyone else's. That must look really weird but that was it for me. :)