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BIGGEST DVD & Blu Ray WAREHOUSE SALE EVER!!Posted on 20 Sep 2012 |
Genre: Drama
Director: Curtis Hanson
Cast: Gerard Butler, Elisabeth Shue, Leven Rambin, Abigail Spencer, Leven Rambin, Scott Eastwood, Taylor Handley, Channon Roe, Jenica Bergere
Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: Cathay-Keris Films
Official Website: http://www.livelikejay.com/
Opening Day: 15 November 2012
Synopsis: CHASING MAVERICKS is the inspirational true story of real-life surfing icon Jay Moriarty (played by newcomer Jonny Weston). When 15-year-old Jay discovers that the mythic Mavericks surf break, one of the biggest waves on Earth, is not only real, but exists just miles from his Santa Cruz home, he enlists the help of local legend Frosty Hesson (Gerard Butler) to train him to survive it. As Jay and Frosty embark on their quest to accomplish the impossible, they form a unique friendship that transforms both their lives, and their quest to tame Mavericks becomes about far more than surfing. Chasing Mavericks was made with the help of some of the biggest names in the surfing world, and features some of the most mind-blowing real wave footage ever captured on film.
Movie Review:
Today’s cinema hasn’t had many movies based on true inspirational events. So when a movie like Chasing Mavericks comes along, telling the real-life story of famed but short-lived surfer Jay Moriarity and promising the kind of uplifting entertainment that has been far removed from the hurtling pace of modern filmmaking, I can’t help but take notice. This feature, though, has been both a blessing and a bit of a curse. The blessing, of course, surrounds the realism of the whole persist-in-the-face-of-overwhelming-odds chicanery. The curse, unfortunately, can come into play when the movie fails to stretch its subject’s appeal and lessons across the general audience.
This explains why Chasing Mavericks is so grossly uninteresting, plummeted into the ocean’s depths by problems of its own careless doings. Picking up on Jay’s life when he was just 15, the movie traces his quest to conquer gigantic five stories-high waves called Mavericks. To prepare for the waves, he enlists the help of local surfing legend Frosty Hesson (Gerard Butler). The latter could hardly conceal his sadistic streak as he punishes Jay’s enthusiasm with regimental training. Between Jay glowing in a ludicrous child-like glee and recounting the complicated statistics of the waves with laser-like accuracy, it’s easy to judge his passion for the waves, but it’s far harder to really capture his passion.
In a sense, Chasing Mavericks is the most honest and ornate episode of how somebody can easily turn a blind eye to seemingly insurmountable odds as long as there’s a passion running deep. But in not revealing the motivations behind the risk Jay’s willing to bear, the movie struggles to break out of the only-surfers-will-understand-this bubble it has holed itself into and connect with audiences who are less familiar with surfing. Gerard’s character does not help matters, dispensing a panoply of jargon, further enclosing the movie in its overly-engrossed take on the strength of the human spirit and alienating non-surfers.
Given the high entry level already required to really appreciate the movie, the surrounding drama here becomes more important than it should be. Which means it’s more than disappointing to see the material executed in an astonishingly disconcerting fluff. The lack of continuity is apparent as the movie jumps from scene to scene without much in the way of natural progression. Frosty’s healthy wife suddenly dies from a stroke while a girl suddenly falls for Jay even though she has been ashamed of her on-and-off relationship with the younger-aged Jay. One easily suspects that these scenes were shot to facilitate faux emotion-pulling and give Jay’s near-mental obsession with the waves vague meaning.
Which leaves us with the Mavericks as the only real saving grace of the movie. A fierce beauty drives the cinematography here, and it isn’t surprising because there was an insistence on manually recreating the five stories-tall waves instead of embellishing them with CG details. One of the results of which is the magnificent imagery of a determined Jay tearing across the side of the wave as it attempts to crush down on him. It’s a scene that only a sizeable cinema screen can effectively portray and I would recommend no less.
That said, you aren’t going to watch Chasing Mavericks for the waves. And while the cinematography is pleasing, the overall movie leaves much to be desired. Chasing Mavericks had a chance to make a statement about what it means to overcome odds and use its premise to inspire others to fulfill their passions, but like a child showing off his first toy, the movie is overly-excited and married to the foibles of overzealous surfers so decisively that it will never appeal to the general audience. The surrounding drama is also forgettable at best. Unless you’re a surfing enthusiast, don’t bother.
Movie Rating:
(It’s easy to judge the guy’s passion for waves, but far harder to really capture his passion in this overly-engrossed but miscalculated take on the familiar against-all-odds story)
Review by Loh Yong Jian
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A Separation DVD [Singapore exclusive limited edition]Posted on 22 Sep 2012 |
Genre: Comedy/Musical
Director: Jason Moore
Cast: Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp, Rebel Wilson, Alexis Knapp, Adam DeVine, Freddie Stroma
Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins
Rating: PG13 (Sexual References)
Released By: UIP
Official Website: http://www.pitchperfectmovie.com/
Opening Day: 8 November 2012
Synopsis: Beca (Anna Kendrick) is that girl who’d rather listen to what’s coming out of her headphones than what’s coming out of you. Arriving at her new college, she finds herself not right for any clique but somehow is muscled into one that she never would have picked on her own: alongside mean girls, sweet girls and weird girls whose only thing in common is how good they sound when they sing together, in the new out-loud comedy Pitch Perfect. When Beca takes this acoustic singing group out of their world of traditional arrangements and perfect harmonies into all-new mash-ups, they fight to climb their way to the top of the cutthroat world of college a cappella. This could wind up either the coolest thing they’ll ever do or the most insane, and it will probably be a little of both. Loaded with new takes on old favorites to hits of right now that are seamlessly mixed together, mashed-up and arranged like you’ve never heard before, Pitch Perfect is directed by Jason Moore, who opened our eyes to the very misbehaved life of puppets in the surprise Broadway sensation Avenue Q.
Movie Review:
Pitch Perfect is as close a send up to Glee as you could ever hope for, buoyed by a hotch-potch of catchy musical mash-ups, dozens of pretty faces, piercing comedy and genuine moments of emotion. Like other song-and-dance movies, Pitch Perfect tends to map to a certain bell curve: a troubled new girl comes to town, tries to find an identity by joining a music group, experiences more problems after joining, falls in love for support, and eventually inspires the group to victory. It’s a simple and fairly predictable movie, but Pitch Perfect is charming in its own right, borrowing from a sea of contemporary tunes for light-hearted family entertainment.
The troubled new girl in question here is Beca, a budding music producer who believes that she can launch her career in Los Angeles. Her father forces her to attend college, though helpfully attaching it with a caveat: if she still hasn’t adapted to school in a year after joining an extra-curricular group, she will be allowed to pursue her dreams. Initially feeling misplaced, Beca auditions for and successfully joins The Bellas, an all-girl a capella group that is set to go up against their all-male rival The Treblemakers again after the last face-off ended in a vomit-laden fiasco. Against the wishes of bumptious group leader Aubrey, Beca reinvents the group’s usual song list, and break-ups and make-ups happen before anything gets resolved.
In a world where people speak to each other with lyrics and characters randomly break out into songs, it’s easy to forget that those issues ever existed. Pitch Perfect seems like the kind of show that focuses solely on head-nodding and finger-tapping fun, but that’s okay. In fact, that’s the whole point of the movie. By taking real-life urgencies out of the picture, the movie creates this fantastical world where all that matters are the music and the charisma of the actors. And charisma is what Anna Kendrick, portraying Beca, has. The former Oscar nominee, largely cast in supporting roles before this, piles on her bombshell appearance and livewire presence to a brilliant vocal performance.
With such cheerfulness on display, it’d be a pity if there isn’t any comedy. Which explains many of the characters that Pitch Perfect has chosen to surround Beca with. Fat Amy, played by the plus-sized Rebel Wilson from Bridesmaids, is at once hilariously self-deprecating and smart, on the one hand revealing that she calls herself fat because she knows that she is and on the other hiding under a row of chairs to escape from the group’s cardio training. Lilly fills in as the shy Asian stereotype, speaking more softly than a whisper while Cynthia is a black lesbian, far too interested in putting her hands on others’ butts. Their roles here, matched in equal measure by the script’s sharp comedic timing, are so clearly defined that it’s hard to go wrong.
Instead, what’s hard to buy into is the relationship between Beca and Jesse, another new student from The Treblemakers. While there’re a handful of emotional moments near the end of the movie, much of the romance is too fleeting and patchy to be truly believable. Granted, both Beca and Jesse look like they’re well-suited given the similar tastes in music and the support that they constantly heap on each other, but asking the audience to accept that Jesse is willing turn Beca away the moment she apologizes for her tantrum is a line that’s a little too far to reach.
That said, even with a well-scripted romance, I don’t think Pitch Perfect is going to appeal to anyone who isn’t already into musicals or okay with them. Like most of the other movies in which actors are judged more on their singing or dancing talents than their acting abilities, Pitch Perfect carries off exactly what it attempts to do: that is, providing simple fun and laughter for the whole family. The songs performed here run the gamut of the most recent and common tracks, so anyone who has ever spent a night at K-box or Party World KTV is undoubtedly going to know something here.
Movie Rating:
(A song-and-dance movie that dishes out simple, light-hearted entertainment for the whole family)
Review by Loh Yong Jian
Genre: Drama/Musical
Director: Tom Hooper
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks, Aaron Tveit, Colm Wilkinson
Runtime: 2 hrs 40 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Sexual Scene and Some Violence)
Released By: UIP
Official Website: http://www.lesmiserablesfilm.com/
Opening Day: 25 December 2012
Synopsis: Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, Les Misérables tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption—a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit. Jackman plays ex-prisoner Jean Valjean, hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert (Crowe) after he breaks parole. When Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine’s (Hathaway) young daughter, Cosette, their lives change forever.
Movie Review:
Despite what its title suggests, ‘Les Miserables’ – based on the longest-running stage musical by Cameron Mackintosh which is in turn based on the Victor Hugo novel – is really a story about hope. Hope here manifests itself in different forms – hope for redemption as expressed through the lead character Jean Valjean, hope for change as expressed through the French revolutionaries who bravely sacrificed their lives, hope for love as expressed through Marius and Eponine, and most of all, hope for a better future.
You’d do well to keep the above in mind as you sit through Tom Hooper’s faithful – if a little too slavish – big-screen adaptation of the Mackintosh musical, especially if you have yet to be acquainted with either Hugo’s novel or for that matter, the West End and Broadway musical. Brought to the screen by writer William Nicholson, it inherits nearly every one of its source material’s strengths as well as some of its weaknesses – the most significant of the latter being its narrative deficiencies.
In translating the novel for their stage production, Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schoenberg made sure that each one of the characters – and therefore each one of their actors – get his or her turn under the spotlight, hence the respective solo musical numbers. Such constraints therefore meant that any thematic exploration would likely be superficial, with some being even more fleeting than others – so in the context of ‘Les Miserables’, the viewer is expected to accept at face value the struggle between reformation and justice between Valjean and Inspector Javert that eventually consumes the latter, or the love triangle between Marius, Eponine and Cosette that leads to physical and emotional tragedy for one of the threesome.
A lot goes on between a multitude of characters in the musical, and for better and for worse, all of it is squeezed into a two-and-half-hour running time for this movie. Beginning as the musical does with the “Work Song” that introduces the plight of Jean Valjean as well as his nemesis Javert, Hooper dives straight into the story’s most compelling theme of grace and redemption, both of which Javert does not subscribe to – which is integral in understanding his dogged chase for Valjean and his subsequent predicament when the latter shows him mercy. All through Valjean’s years as mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer and later on in Montfermeil as father to Cosette, that running theme is easily the most riveting aspect of the tale.
Sharing thematic association with the central one between Valjean and Javert is that of Fantine’s wretched circumstances, whose life intertwines briefly but irrevocably with Valjean as the latter takes it upon himself to look after her daughter Cosette at a young age. Fantine does not last long in the movie – more a supporting character than a lead one – but her factory worker turned prostitute character is lent potency and poignancy by the strength of Anne Hathaway’s career-defining performance. It’s no secret that the character’s solo ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ is one of the highlights of the entire musical, but here Hathaway truly knocks it out of the park through a deeply affecting delivery that will leave you in tears – and thanks to the intensity of her portrayal, you’ll end up feeling even more for Valjean when he extends both mercy and compassion to Fantine.
Against such a heartfelt emotional climax early into the film, the subsequent relationship between Marius, Eponine and Cosette just seems too trivial. Little explanation is given why Eponine is in love with Marius, nor why Marius falls so deeply in love with Cosette at first sight. A good part of the movie hinges on how much the audience buys into Marius’ love for Cosette and Eponine’s unrequited love for Marius – and because both are only so weakly delineated, Eponine’s supposedly tearful solo ‘On My Own’ comes off histrionic rather than affecting. Ditto for Valjean’s subsequent number ‘Bring Him Home’ – meant to express his sincere hope for Marius to be well on the eve of the student revolution after being moved by the latter’s love for Cosette – which fails to achieve the emotional resonance it should.
At the risk of sounding blasphemous to fans of the musical, we’d like to think that the love triangle could have been simplified to just a simple and heartfelt romance between Marius and Cosette for the film, which would not be deprived the viewer of that intended sense of dread for the couple as the day of the revolution dawns. Thankfully, the film gets back on much surer footing once that day comes along, depicting the bravery of the revolutionaries – especially the precocious but oh so adorable Gavroche (Daniel Huttlestone) – as they face the full military might of the King’s army.
There is also surprising heft to be found in the ensuing but inevitable confrontation between Valjean and Javert where the latter’s obstinate beliefs about justice and character ultimately prove to be his own fatal undoing. We won’t spoil the turn of events for those unacquainted with the story; suffice to say that Javert’s soliloquy is one of the most intensely emotional parts of the movie, and star Russell Crowe’s moment of crowning glory that should put to rest any doubts you might have had of his casting in the movie – in particular given his thinner voice and limited vocal range.
Still the movie rightfully belongs to Hugh Jackman, and that becomes ever clearer as both Marius and Cosette come to realise the immense depth of humanity in Valjean. His epilogue might seem too subdued compared to the earlier scenes with gallantry and sacrifice, but the restraint allows for a beautifully touching farewell which reunites him with the people whose lives he has touched with his generous acts of kindness.
In turn, Jackman gives one of the very best performances of his career, starting off by playing Valjean as a scorned individual filled with rage and then softening as he is shown mercy and eventually maturing into a man of nobility and dignity. Given the vast time span over which the story unfolds, Jackman’s multifaceted performance of Valjean that evolves with the circumstances he has seen is utterly stellar, and anything less than an Academy Award recognition would be nothing short of a travesty. Jackman’s Broadway inclinations also make him well-suited for the singing demands of the role, but even the limits of his voice is tested with the daunting ‘Bring Him Home’ where the strain is very much noticeable.
Also worthy of mention is Eddie Redmayne, the British stage and cinematic actor who proves to be equally adept at a captivating performance as Marius as providing his character a warm and robust voice. We shan’t repeat our ebullient praise for Hathaway, but her exit leaves a hole in the picture that neither stage veteran Samantha Banks (as Eponine) nor Amanda Seyfried (as Cosette) manage to fill. If Hathaway doesn’t get an Academy Award nomination next year, the Academy most certainly must be blind.
Of course, holding all their performances together is Tom Hooper, who follows his Academy Award win for ‘The King’s Speech’ with what is definitely an ambitious undertaking given the weight of the expectations of countless fans of the stage musical. Even so, Hooper’s even bolder move was to get the actors to sing directly on camera, a risk that ultimately pays off in the richness and complexity of the emotions expressed through their singing that brings out the intensity of the drama unfolding on screen.
Presumably to get his audience intimately acquainted with the characters, Hooper also demonstrates a propensity for medium close-ups, and though the consistency of the framing may seem a little peculiar, it does allow for us to observe more carefully the outstanding acting from the cast. The scenes where cinematographer Danny Cohen pulls out to convey the scope of the set design however prove to be slightly underwhelming, as Eve Stewart’s production design seems to have a staged rather than realistic quality in recreating the landscape of France in the 1800s.
That very flaw encapsulates what is wrong about this big-screen adaptation of Mackintosh’s beloved musical – it remains very much stage bound. Of course we’re not talking about the sets alone, but really the whole storytelling – which seems obliged to retain every single character relationship in the musical and every one of the numerous themes within. But what works in the context of a stage musical doesn’t work as well in a movie, and we had hoped most importantly for greater exploration of the cornerstone relationship between Valjean and Javert – instead of say some sappy love triangle between Marius, Eponine and Cosette.
No doubt the acting is flawless and the singing as best as the actors are able to accomplish – but the directing and adaptation is what ultimately makes this less impressive than what the adulation so far would have set you up to expect. It’s certainly a good big-screen musical no doubt, but we would hesitate from calling it great – still, by the time it rolls along to the stirring finale of ‘Do You Hear the People Sing’, it will succeed in bringing a lump to your throat, though probably not quite nearly enough for a tear in your eye.
Movie Rating:
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(The performances are flawless, the singing is on the most part impressive, but this big-screen adaptation of the musical remains too stage-bound to soar to greatness)
Review by Gabriel Chong
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THE ASSASSINS THEME SONG BY LIU YIFEI & MAKING OFPosted on 24 Sep 2012THE THEME SONG OF THE ASSASSINS BY LIU YIFEI: THE MAKING OF SPECIAL: ... |
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ALREADY FAMOUS OPENS ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL IN TAIWANPosted on 25 Sep 2012 |
SYNOPSIS: United States Special agent Leon S. Kennedy sneaks into a small Eastern European country to verify rumors that Bio Organic Weapons (B.O.W.s) are being used in war. Right after his infiltration, the US government orders him to leave immediately. Determined to uncover the truth, Leon ignores the order and enters the battlefield to end the chain of tragedies caused by the B.O.W.s.
MOVIE REVIEW:
We’re confident enough at this juncture to proclaim that you’re better off anticipating the next animated feature film of the ‘Resident Evil’ video game than another Paul W.S. Anderson live-action movie. Indeed, the latter – with its most recent disappointment ‘Resident Evil: Retribution” – have largely been letdowns for fans and neophytes alike, while the former – with this latest – have been largely successful at distilling the spirit and form of the games into adrenaline-pumping narrative features.
Instead of Alice – which frankly if not for Milla Jovovich’s to die for body would have been an utter complete bore – ‘Damnation’ chooses two of ‘Retribution’s’ supporting characters as its leads. The first is series regular Leon S. Kennedy (voiced by Matthew Mercer), whom for the uninitiated is a United States Special Agent sent here to a small Eastern European country known as the Eastern Slav Republic to investigate rumours that bio-organic weapons (or BOWs) are being used by resistance fighters in their long-standing struggle against the Government.
It goes without saying that the rumours are true, but upon his capture by two freedom fighters Buddy (voiced by Dave Wittenberg) and JD (voiced by Val Tasso), Leon also learns that the resistance has been infected with ‘las plagas’, which not only gives them the power of rage but also allows them to control the BOWs. Apparently the ‘las plagas’ were a gift from the resistance’s elders, but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that they were no more than a science experiment.
Into the melee comes the second supporting character from ‘Retribution’, Ada Wong (voiced by Courtenay Taylor), adopting the same mysterious persona as she pretends to support the rule of President Svetlana Belikova (voiced by Wendee Lee). Fans will know the history between Ada and Leon, details which the screenplay by Shotaro Suga don’t bother to incorporate here. Instead, the battle between the Government and the resistance (with Leon and Ada as allies) is the highlight, evident too from the extended half-hour climax that director Makoto Kamiya sets within the President’s office (modelled unabashedly after The White House).
Neither plot nor character have been the series’ (whether animated or live-action) strong suites, and ‘Damnation’ is really no different. What plot exists serves to bring the action from Point A to Point B, and what character development is largely kept to a minimum in favour of non-stop unrelenting action. Nonetheless, both elements are relatively more serviceable here than they were in any of the live-action films, which helps the numerous action sequences cohere together better as a movie.
Speaking of the highlight of the series, we are willing to state categorically that they do not disappoint. In fact, the motion-capture animation here is as good as any big-screen release, and Kamiya keeps the action flowing seamlessly and relentlessly. Clearly catering to his demographic, much of the action happens from a first person point of view – and though it does make you feel as if you were playing the game, the technique is nonetheless effective in getting you immersed in the thick of the action. Thankfully, Kamiya sticks to the hard R-rated roots of the game, so there is blood and gore in abundance.
So really if you’re looking for an exhilarating ‘Resident Evil’ movie that gives the kind of adrenaline-pumping experience you would get from playing the game, then ‘Damnation’ will certainly satisfy your thirst for such visceral pleasures. That’s already far more than we can ever say for any of the ‘Resident Evil’ live-action movies that have come by so far.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
The best extra here is the 30-minute making-of documentary ‘The DNA of Damnation’, which is a surprisingly insightful look at the story of this movie against the larger ‘Resident Evil’ universe as well as the thought that went into the visuals of the film. Continue from that into ‘Las Plagas’, a roughly 7-min clip specifically dedicated to the creatures in the film. A ‘Gag Reel’ caps the extras, but offers little more than the occasional amusement.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is robust and lively, especially when the bullets and ballistics go flying around. Otherwise, dialogue is crisp and clear from the front and centre speakers. Visuals are just as sharp, and the colours always look dynamic.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Romance/Drama
Director: ML Bhandevanop Devakula
Cast: Mario Maurer, Chayapol Julian Pupart, Sakarach, Rirkthamrong, Bongkot Khongmalai, Savika Chaiyadej, Ratha Pho-ngram, Sho Nishino, Nat Dhebhasdin Na Ayutthaya, Radklao Amaradit, Ruangsak Loychusak
Runtime: 1 hr 54 mins
Rating: R21 (Sexual Scenes)
Released By: Clover Films & Cathay-Keris Films
Official Website:
Opening Day: 11 October 2012
Synopsis: The lifelong tragedy of Jan Dara (Mario Maurer) begins the moment he was born. The year is 1915, and one stormy night in the Pijitwanich Residence in Bangkok, a mother dies while giving birth to her son. The boy is Jan Dara, and his father, Wisnan Decha, believes that the child is the reason for the death of his dear wife. He curses the boy and vows to punish him with utmost severity. The name Jan is given to the boy, a short form Jan Rai – or The Scum. Jan grows up in a small house in the garden of the Wisnan House under the care of his Aunt Wad (Bongkot Khongmalai) and his best friend is Ken (Chayapol Julian Pupart), the son of a house servant. Aunt Wad soon becomes Wisnan’s new wife and they have a daughter, Kaew (Sho Nishino). Kaew is the apple of Wisnan’s eyes and he taught Kaew to share his hatred for Jan. The dark and disturbing secret is that the Wisnan House is a playground of sexual excess. Wisnan is a man obsessed with carnal pleasure. Fornication is his sport and routine, and Wisnan would perform sexual acts of different kinds with any female in the house… The children in the house – Jan, Ken and Kaew – grew up in the giddy atmosphere of erotic indulgence, and soon they begin to seek pleasure of their own…
Movie Review:
Does sex really sell? We certainly hope so for ‘Jan Dara: The Beginning’s’ own benefit, for there is really little else that this ham-fisted adaptation by writer/ director M.L. Bhandewanop “Mom Noi” Devakula offers. Touted as a remake of Nonsi Nimibutr’s 2001 version which starred Christy Chung, Mom Noi goes back to the original 1966 book by Usana Plerngtham to deliver a faithful, if ultimately too slavish, recreation of the story of love, lust and consequences set in period Thai society.
Unfolding through the eyes of our titular character in his twilight years, it begins right from the day of his birth when his father, Lord Wisanan (Sakarat Rithamrong), gives him the name ‘Jan’ - short for ‘janrai’ or scum. Wisanan blames Jan for causing the death of his wife or Jan’s mother during childbirth, and only agrees to spare the child after his guardian Aunt Waad (Bongkoch “Tak” Kongmalai) agrees to have sex with him. Despite promising over his wife’s deathbed that he will stay faithful to her, Wisanan takes Waad as his mistress, and beds the rest of the servants in the house to win over their loyalty.
Yes, it does sound ridiculous – and the worse part is “Mom Noi” appears too daft to realise it. Apparently all the housemaids are immediately mesmerised by his ‘endowment’ the moment he opens his sarong – and that includes the head manservant of the house, who to be exact is really more a ladyboy than a manservant. Skipping ahead where convenient, “Mom Noi” shows Jan maturing into a young boy and then a teenager, all the while living in fear and deference to his imposing father. Jan is also verbally abused by his half-sister Kaew (Cho Nishino), whom he fathered with Waad.
Fortunately, Jan has a friend in Ken (Chaiyaphol Poupart), the son of one of the many housemaids (Chudapa Chantakhet) – though the latter’s voracious appetite for sex eventually gets the both of them into trouble. Filled with vengeance after catching Ken having sex with one of the other servants in the household, Kaew entraps him by getting him to tie her up in bed and then accusing him of rape. The fallout from that setup essentially caps the end of the first movie, and sets things up for the second, as Jan and Ken embark on a new chapter of their lives apart from the place they had grown up in.
That’s a lot to try to squeeze into a 2-hr movie, but “Mom Noi” is even more ambitious than that – so aside from what we’ve already mentioned, there’s also Jan’s romance with a Muslim girl from school, Hyacinth (Pinky Savika), as well as Wisanan’s marriage of convenience with an old flame Boon Lueng (Ratha “Ying” Pho-Ngam) he runs into while on business in Singapore (yes, our island state is mentioned thrice in the movie). The sheer amount of exposition “Mom Noi” tries to pack into his movie, as well as the melodrama he attempts to squeeze out of it, ultimately turns the proceedings into farce.
The fault is not just “Mom Noi”, but also that of his cast. Mario Mauer may be known as a pretty teen heartthrob, but this movie pretty much proves that is all there is to him. Furrowing his brows and putting on a pained expression throughout the film, Mauer offers no depth to a character which through ‘Mom Noi’s’ telling already has little. Poupart is equally terrible as Ken, wearing the same silly smile on his face for a good part of the movie for some inexplicable reason – though to his credit, he does manage the occasional Muay Thai scene (choreographed by Panna Rittikai no less) convincingly enough. Even the older actors can’t hold their weight - Rithamrong’s shallow overacting is unintentionally funny; while Kongmalai and Pho-Ngam are unimpressive in their thinly written roles.
And yes, if you’d notice, we’ve avoided any mention of the sex until now – which is supposed to be the selling point of this movie, seeing as how its raciness was meant to capitalise on the introduction of film ratings by the Thai film classification board. Frankly, though there are boobs and simulated sexual activity to be seen, none of it is particularly titillating, and if you ask us, you’re better off without it if these scenes turn out so unfulfilling. Indeed, sex on film isn’t particularly exciting if it’s devoid of passion, and “Mom Noi’s” limp storytelling just sucks out what passion there is in the tale.
It’s even more disappointing considering the potential there was in the source material, evident too in Nonsi Nimibutr’s previous screen incarnation. It seemed “Mom Noi” was either too referential of the original novel or just too lazy to distil the elements that would work for a feature film adaptation – we’d like to think it’s the latter. A sequel is supposed to be in the works, the storyline of which would be more in line with the events of Nimibutr’s ‘Jan Dara’, but if putting two warm bodies gyrating in unison is only what “Mom Noi” is concerned with, we’d much prefer this beginning to be the end.
Movie Rating:
(Ham-fisted and shockingly inept adaptation of the classic Thai erotic novel that boasts some sex scenes but nothing else)
Review by Gabriel Chong
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SHAW THEATRES IMAX FACEBOOK CHALLENGEPosted on 02 Oct 2012 |
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