SYNOPSIS: A savvy lawyer (Fassbender) known for doing the right thing for the wrong people dives into a treacherous drug deal for some quick cash...but he soon learns that having it all could mean losing everything.

MOVIE REVIEW:

"At the understanding that life is not going to take you back. You are the world you have created. And when you cease to exist, this world that you have created will also cease to exist. But for those with the understanding that they're living the last days of the world, death acquires a different meaning. The extinction of all reality is a concept no resignation can encompass. And then, all the grand designs and all the grand plans will be finally exposed and revealed for what they are…"

If you can stomach two hours of dialogue that reads like the one above, then you probably love The Counselor otherwise you can wisely filter this title out of your viewing list.

The acclaimed novelist Cormac McCarthy (The Road, No Country for Old Men) himself penned the screenplay with the prestigious Ridley Scott at the helm together with five high profile stars in the picture, what on earth could go wrong? 

In reality, McCarthy’s script is far detached as a cinematic piece; it’s wordy, talky and essential weird in some instances. For a crime drama that involved ruthless, dangerous drug cartels, the end result require far more patience than substance to sit through. It’s hard to really describe the story because we are still digesting all that tedious poetic dialogue and cheetahs. We promise to come to that later.

When his shady friend, Reiner (Javier Bardem) offers him a lucrative drug deal, the counselor (Michael Fassbender), a successful lawyer who has a beautiful girlfriend Laura (Penelope Cruz) decides to join him. But when double-crossing causes the deal to go awry, the counselor and his associates including middleman Westray (Brad Pitt) finds their lives in great danger.

Shot during the tragic death of his brother, The Counselor reeks little of a Ridley Scott movie. Visually it’s boring to look at. Scenes linger on forever, worst of all it has little connections to subsequent events. The only worthy things to watch are Cameron Diaz’s character, Malkina screwing a yellow Ferrari. Yes you read that right. Malkina is a steamy hot but scheming evil woman and Diaz is an eye-opener here. Next, an unexpected bloody violent end to a major star towards the end of the movie and glorious shot of cheetahs chasing down jackrabbits and cheetahs in car as if the specie is common as pets in Texas.  

The above are just some of the highlights of The Counselor, not that it has a lot anyway. At the end you can summaries this as a grim tale about human greed and ultimately an odd one. The assorted stars and drug cartel setting are mere condiments to a piece of fat undercooked steak.    

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Viral Pieces Uncut consists of three beautiful shorts featuring Laura, The Counselor and Malkina. A Trailer is also included. 

AUDIO/VISUAL:

Lots of color grading is involved, other than this, the visual on the DVD looks great. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack boasts an excellent listening experience with vigorous sound effects and dialogue. 

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee

SYNOPSIS: While still in his teens, Donny (Adam Sandler) fathered a son, Todd (Andy Samberg), and raised him as a single parent until Todd's 18th birthday. Now, after not seeing each other for years, Todd's world comes crashing down on the eve of his wedding when an uninvited Donny suddenly shows up. Trying desperately to reconnect with his son, Donny is now forced to deal with the repercussions of his bad parenting skills. Co-starring Leighton Meester and featuring incredible cameos from a cavalcade of stars including Susan Sarandon, Vanilla Ice and James Caan.

MOVIE REVIEW:

No doubt about it, even with his skills as a comedian diminishing over the years with duds liked Jack & Jill and Just Get Over It, Adam Sandler is still one big Hollywood star. He plays the same character in every movie of his and audience still pays to see him on the big screen.

In That’s My Boy (a title that surprisingly skipped the local theatrical release), Sandler once again played a smirk crude asshole by the name of Donny Berger. By the age of 14, Berger has fathered a son with his Math teacher. While the teacher is sentenced to 30 years of prison for statutory rape of course, Donny has to raise his son, Han Solo Berger till he reaches the age of 18. Risking being sent to jail for evading taxes, the only way for Donny is to seek help from his now adult son (Andy Samberg) but will the estranged Han reconcile with his father?  

A teacher being impregnated by a schoolboy? Obviously, you don’t expect That’s My Boy to be a smart piece of social commentary despite the promising premise. Sure you heard stories about it on the news but a Sandler comedy means there are barrel and barrel of lowbrow comedy and vulgarities coming your way instead of a genuine heartfelt comedy about the pair of father and son.

However the flick does have its funny moments. Sporadically. The movie starts to indulge in a series of repetitive gags which involve erections, semen jokes, masturbation and even incest as Donny crashes Han Solo, now known as Todd Peterson’s upcoming wedding to his girlfriend, Jamie (Leighton Meester). If you thought the above are tasteless, wait till you see one recurring joke about an old grandmother in her vintage old bathing suit. In short, there are no boundaries in this Sandler comedy written by newcomer David Caspe and directed by Sean Anders (Sex Drive).

The only truly entertaining portion happens to be the cameos. Keen to know what ever happen to Milo Ventimiglia and James Caan post Heroes and Las Vegas? The former appears as Jamie’s buff-up military younger brother and Caan, an ex-boxer turned father. Likewise, Susan Sarandon is hilarious as the older teacher and 80’s white rapper Vanilla Ice plays himself. Samberg always the reliable impressionist on SNL has little to showcase his talents though he is pretty good at playing the helpless Todd.   

Adam Sandler definitely is not back in top form yet. That’s My Boy is an offensive, raunchy comedy that is loaded with way too much juvenile gags and running 30 minutes too long. It’s not Sandler’s worst and just a minor step up from Grown Ups.   

SPECIAL FEATURES:

There 6 minutes of Gag Reel and 13 minutes of Deleted Scenes. 

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The DVD gives you amazing visuals and the sound clarity is just as good. 

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee

The soundtrack to 2011’s The Muppets starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams is such a joy to put on repeat mode, we declared it our favourite album of the year. The song “Man or Muppet” went on to win an Oscar, and The Muppets return three years later for a sequel where they find themselves unwittingly involved in an international crime caper while on tour in Europe.

While missing the charming and sentimental moments like “Life’s a Happy Song”, “Pictures in My Head” and “Rainbow Connection”, the songs in this 51 minute are chockfull of puns and jokes - so kudos to the album producers for including lyrics to all the tracks.

The CD contains six original songs, two re recordings of popular Muppets songs, three cover versions of familiar pop songs, eight dialogue tracks, an orchestral suite by composer Christophe Beck and five rather disposable demo tracks conveniently packaged as “bonus tracks”.

Academy Award winner Brett McKenzie returns to write music for this sequel. Opening the soundtrack is the big number “We’re Doing a Sequel” poking fun at Hollywood’s addiction of producing sequels. Leading man Ricky Gervais teams up with the villain Constantine to perform “I’m Number One”, a song which tests Gervais’ tap dancing skills (you have to watch the movie to appreciate this one). The movie’s female lead (nope, not Miss Piggy) Tina Fey sings “The Big House” and puts on her best Siberian accent.

Another amusing track better appreciated after watching the James Bobin directed movie is “I’ll Get You What You Want (Cockatoo in Malibu)), a cue with very amusing lyrics. The movie’s third human cast Ty Burrell performs a funny duet “Interrogation Song” with Sam the Eagle, while Miss Piggy gets her big number with, gasp, Celine Dion, in the track that hit our spot on this album - “Something So Right”.

Elsewhere, there’s the familiar “The Muppet Show Theme” with a Spanish makeover and “Together Again” from The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984). Covers of the songs “Working in the Coal Mine” (a 1980s song by Allen Toussaint), “Moves Like Jagger” (Maroon 5) and “Macarena” (Los del Rio) are also chuckle worthy.

Like the movie, the fun of this soundtrack is really spotting the cameo performers. Here’s the list of artistes to listen out for: Lady Gaga, Tony Bennett, Josh Groban, Jemaine Clement, Danny Trejo and Ray Liotta. This is where the lyric booklet comes in handy again. 

ALBUM RATING:

Recommended Track: (13) Something So Right – Miss Piggy, Kermit, Celine Dion and The Muppets

Review by John Li

Genre: Comedy
Director: Chen Sicheng
Cast: Tony Leong Ka-fai, Carina Lau, Siqin Gaowa, Tong Liya, Yu Nan
RunTime: 2 hrs 1 min
Rating: NC16 (Sexual References and Scenes of Intimacy)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 27 March 2014

Synopsis: Five couples are brought together by an accident. Their relationships can form one complete life story: Impoverished Chen loves Shen. He proposes marriage. Shen’s wealthy former lover woos her anew. In the end, who will win Shen’s heart? Wu and Zhang seem to live a placid life but Zhang has been tolerating her cheating husband for years. When she finds photographic evidence of his affair, she learns to face her shattered marriage with courage. Middle-aged merchant Liu and his wife try to salvage their passionless marriage with a “tryst”. It almost failed but a phone call from their daughter reminded them of their love. Teenager Liu is upset because her parents refuse to pay the entrance fee for a cello competition. Song, who has a crush on her, works to earn the entrance fee. When he is ready to surprise her, he discovers her parents already paid, but what promise did Liu make to her parents in order to take part in the cello competition? Elderly woman Gao arranges a date for elderly man Wang. She hooks him up with Xie. Xie expresses much interest for Wang, but guess what she found out just as she confesses her love for him.

Movie Review:

It’s probably daresay on this reviewer’s part, but he can confidently say most of his countrymen do not have good impressions of Mainland Chinese. Words like “rude”, “loud”, “unreasonable” and “pushy” would come to mind if a group of Singaporeans gather to discuss the rather controversial topic of foreign talents. This writer had spent a good two weeks in Chinaa while back, and while he can’t proclaim to be a know it all of the Chinese way of life, but he’s well aware of the difference in cultures between the two countries.

After watching writer director Chen Sicheng’s debut feature, he would even go to the extent of stating that he’s proud of his ancestral country.

A spin off of a hugely popular Chinese TV series of the same name, this 122 minute movie features five interwoven stories that talk about, yup, you’ve guessed it – love. There are no returning characters or sotry threads in this production, so one doesn’t need to worry about requiring prior knowledge to enjoy the movie.

Chen, who is a member of the TV series’ ensemble cast, plays the male protagonist in the first tale. He portrays a somewhat unsuccessful young man who quickly falls in love, impregnates and proposes to Tony Liya’s character (the two are an item in real life). The second thread focuses on Wang Xuebing’s married man whose wife (Yu Nan) discovers his infidelity and becomes determined to seek revenge by having a wild night out. Most of us would enjoy the third segment, simply because of Tony Leung Ka Fai and Carina Lau’s presence. They play a couple seeking a different sort of wedding anniversary celebration in Greece.

The fourth and fifth stories are this columnist’s favourites – one is a sweet and idealistic tale of a high school student (Liu Haoran) who finds himself wanting to go the extra mile for a young cello prodigy (Ouyang Nna), while one is a bittersweet account of a matchmaker (Siqin Gaowa) who goes all out to find the right life partner for Wang Qingxiang’s elderly man.

It is no wonder that the movie set a single day record for a 2D film in Chinawith $102 million RMB, given its immense likeability. While some characters are more pleasant than others, you find yourself agreeing with the quotable quotes spouted by the characters. And this is what this reviewer feels is the Mainland Chinese’s way of life. A simple discussion on love can take place over a few bottles of beer and a boiling steamboat, or an exquisitely prepared dish and a pot of fine Chinese tea. And most issues and perspectives discussed are poignantly true enough for you to reflect on your own life.

The movie sets the cosmopolitan Beijingin the background, and puts its characters to life’s test of discovering love in various sorts of ways. While some segments may be more appealing than the others, the ensemble cast is a capable one, with particularly touching performances from the veterans.   

You may be reminded of Richard Curtis’ Love Actually (2003), but we’d advise you not to regard this effectively moving movie as a cheap imitation (the co-relation is admittedly there, considering this is a product from China), and you’d find yourself walking out of the theatre suitably impressed with this commercial and critical hit.   

Movie Rating:

(Moving performances and reflective storylines make this accessible Chinese production highly recommended)

Review by John Li

Genre: Sci-Fi/Thriller
Director: Wally Pfister
Cast: Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Rebecca Hall, Kate Mara, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Clifton Collins Jr., Josh Stewart, Cole Hauser, Cory Hardrict
RunTime: 1 hr 59 mins
Rating: PG (Some Violence)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website: http://www.transcendencemovie.com

Opening Day: 17 April 2014

Synopsis: Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is the foremost researcher in the field of Artificial Intelligence, working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective intelligence of everything ever known with the full range of human emotions. His highly controversial experiments have made him famous, but they have also made him the prime target of anti-technology extremists who will do whatever it takes to stop him. However, in their attempt to destroy Will, they inadvertently become the catalyst for him to succeed-to be a participant in his own transcendence. For his wife Evelyn (Rebecca Hall) and best friend Max Waters (Paul Bettany), both fellow researchers, the question is not if they can...but if they should. Their worst fears are realized as Will's thirst for knowledge evolves into a seemingly omnipresent quest for power, to what end is unknown. The only thing that is becoming terrifyingly clear is there may be no way to stop him.

Movie Review:

‘Transcendence’ might not be the first movie to cast doubt on mankind’s love affair with technology, but it could quite possibly be the first to fail so tremendously on the back of such promise. Billed as the debut feature from longtime Christopher Nolan d.p. Wally Pfister (and executive produced by Nolan as well as Nolan’s wife Emma Thomas), it has an all-star cast in Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall, Paul Bettany, Cillian Murphy, Kate Mara and Morgan Freeman not unlike the kind of star power that Nolan assembled for his blockbuster sci-fi thriller ‘Inception’.

And yet to hope that ‘Transcendence’ could be the kind of smart, thought-provoking sci-fi that ‘Inception’ was is indeed foolhardy, for as much as it wants to be about artificial intelligence and expound ideas like singularity, It ultimately displays little - or for that matter any sign of intellect - throughout its extremely tiresome 119-minute duration. Blame it on Jack Paglen’s excruciatingly dumb script, whose only stroke of genius might be to try to cull from the theories of singularity glorified by the likes of Ray Kurzweil the film’s titular premise of transcendence, no matter the fact that it pretty much crashes and burns all the way through.

As such cautionary tales are oft to have, there are the proponents and opponents of technology. On the former, there’s Dr Will Caster (Depp), his wife Evelyn (Hall) and their colleague Dr Max Waters (Bettany), whose work on artificial intelligence has been recognised as one of the most cutting-edge throughout the country. On the latter, there’s the anti-tech terrorist group called Revolutionary Independence From Technology (or RIFT in short) led by Bree (Mara), who in the opening minutes of the film is shown to have choreographed a series of coordinated attacks across multiple AI labs, including that of researcher Joseph Tagger (Morgan Freeman).

RIFT is also responsible for the shooter who fatally wounds Will with a radiation-laced bullet, who is given weeks to live by his doctor. And so, together with Evelyn and Max, Will makes the previously unthinkable choice of uploading his entire consciousness onto a super-computer known simply as PINN (which stands for Physically Integrated Neural Network). Therein lies the catch of Paglen’s story - is the amalgamation of PINN and Will man or machine? Even as the AI talks and thinks like Will, can we trust that it is operating by the mind of Will or by its own will (pardon the pun)? What exactly is it up to? Should we wait to find out or take the pre-emptive step to destroy what is essentially yet another deeply flawed creation by mankind in its blind zeal to play God?

Intriguing ideas and questions no doubt; unfortunately, Paglen’s execution is anything but. Despite its ambition, it doesn’t transcend the kind of bad 1990s movies like ‘Virtuosity’, ‘Lawnmower Man’ or ‘The Net’ in developing the extent to which a self-aware human/computer hybrid intelligence could evolve, grow and change the world; after all, Will’s plan to escape detection from the Feds (led by Murphy’s Agent Buchanan) is to build an enormous data centre powered by thousands of solar panels in a deserted town in the California desert, a recourse which doesn’t take a genius to figure out is plain unrealistic to assume would escape detection by any Government authority. Where it does try to be revolutionary, it ends up being laughable. Not only does Will’s plan involve healing the sick and infirmed by turning them into his nanotechnology slaves, he is apparently able to use that same technology to become one with Nature – and giving new meaning to ‘cloud storage’ in the process.

Even if one is able to suspend disbelief for such hocus-pocus, Pfister makes it such a difficult sell. There is little coherence to the way scenes are assembled, or how characters fade in and out of the picture, and it is immediately glaring just how devoid of staging or narrative momentum Pfister seems to have a grip on. Even more problematic is how Pfister seems to have little grasp of the passage of time in the movie, such that events jump ahead with little sense of how they fit in with what we had seen earlier and inadvertently resulting in the kind of logic gaps that make the overall film even more disengaging. Such fundamental issues are no doubt challenges first-time directors face, but you probably don’t expect that of someone who has practically been crowned Nolan’s protégé.

Pfister is not helped by his lead actor’s literally lifeless performance. Yes, Depp may have rode on kooky roles in Tim Burton’s films and of course the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise to popularity, but he is entirely out of his depth when it comes to portraying less eccentric individuals that doesn’t require him to ham it up. As wooden whether in human or machine form, Depp seems entirely disinterested in the whole venture, and shares absolutely zero chemistry with his female co-star Hall. Neither do the supporting cast do any better in fact, and whether Bettany, Murphy or Freeman, each just seem to be doing his dues in order to gain favour for Nolan’s next gig.

As harsh as it may sound, Pfister is no Nolan, and it is evidently clear in ‘Transcendence’ that he lacks the vision to pull together a layered poignant blockbuster the way Nolan did with ‘Inception’. The parallels are there – not only are both cautionary tales, they are also meant to be big-budget action spectacles built on an emotional core. But the action here rarely thrills - even the finale where the Feds join forces with RIFT to launch an assault on Will’s compound straight out of a 1950s B-movie - and the melodrama confused and muddled. Considering the talent, pedigree and consequent expectations, this is unquestionably an utter disappointment. 

Movie Rating:

(Hailed as Nolan’s protégé, this directorial debut from his regular d.p. Wally Pfister is dumb sci-fi masquerading as intelligence, its intellect as artificial as the acting, the action and the love story)

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action
Director: Doug Liman
Cast: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton, Charlotte Riley, Jeremy Piven, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Tony Way
RunTime: 1 hr 53 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence & Brief Coarse Language)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website: https://www.facebook.com/EdgeofTomorrowMovie

Opening Day: 5 June 2014

Synopsis: A soldier fighting in a war with aliens finds himself caught in a time loop of his last day in the battle, though he becomes better skilled along the way.

Movie Review:

Never has a film more closely resembled a computer game than the latest Tom Cruise sci-fi action thriller ‘Edge of Tomorrow’, which in its cycle of ‘live, die and repeat’ mimics both its form and structure. Don’t be mistaken though – the resemblance in itself isn’t a bad thing; indeed, by steeping itself in the culture and logic of a video game, it offers the same kind of edge-of-your-seat excitement that the best video games do for their players. And yet, this high-concept movie isn’t just a video game substitute - on the contrary, it uses that template to become quite something on its own, a brilliantly-executed piece of summer entertainment that is surprisingly witty, clever, thrilling and oh, one of Tom Cruise’s best movies in recent years.   

Adapted by Cruise’s regular screenwriting muse Christopher McQuarrie and brothers Jez and John-Henry Butterworth from the 2004 Hiroshi Sakurazaka novel ‘All You Need Is Kill’, Cruise plays Major Bill Cage, the U.S. Army’s PR man who leverages on his role in the propaganda corps to avoid being sent to the front line. The war in question is laid out in a rapid-fire montage of news reports, which tell of an invasion by a nearly indestructible alien race known as Mimics that has levelled pretty much most of Europe and now threatens to decimate London - unless the international coalition known as the United Defense Force can successfully establish a beachhead against the extra-terrestrials on a French beach that immediately evokes comparisons of Normandy.

Cage is baffled when the leader of the Force, General Brigham (Brendan Gleeson) insists on sending him right into the heart of battle, going to the extent of arresting him as a deserter and inserting him into the ragtag J Squad under the command of a rah-rah bellowing Master Sergeant Farell (Bill Paxton). The very next day, Cage is strapped into the military’s new exo-skeleton armour and dropped onto the beach where the fiery battle is taking place. Turns out it is more of a massacre - not only are the humans outnumbered, they also find themselves ill-equipped to deal with a far superior enemy, and even their one hope, the Force’s star soldier Rita (Emily Blunt), is killed in the onslaught.

Due to sheer dumb luck, Cage manages to kill one of them bigger alien lifeforms, distinguished from the rest of the Sentinel-looking (think The Matrix) ones by a hideous metallic face and its bluish pulse. Unfortunately, he isn’t quite able to escape getting killed after, though his death only resets the clock to when he wakes up at Heathrow and meets Farell for the first time. As the trailer suggests, Rita becomes a crucial piece of the puzzle, and Cage’s ability to reset the sequence of events ultimately turning him into a key weapon against the Mimics’ critical advantage of manipulating time. It all sounds a little confusing we know, so kudos to director Doug Liman and his scribes for keeping the narrative tight and engaging.

Most crucially, Liman ensures that the repetitiveness of his character’s predicament never becomes a quality of his film. Each replay of Cage’s journey from Heathrow to the battlefield never feels tired or even familiar, differentiated either by a small touch of tongue-in-cheek levity or by small but significant variations that get Cage closer to his ultimate mission of finding the nerve centre of the alien intelligence. James Herbert and Laura Jennings’ editing deserves special mention here, for their stitching together of the various scenes is not only intuitive but propulsive, lending the storytelling a momentum that never lets up from start to finish.

Another reason why the time-loop concept doesn’t ever get weary despite the repetition is the wit with which Liman and his scribes build into the material. It may not occur to you the first time, but repeated, such lines as “Battle is a true redeemer; tomorrow morning you will be baptised. Born again.” and “I think there’s something wrong with your suit... Yeah, there’s a dead man in it!” acquire newfound meaning. Once Rita starts training Cage, one recurring - but somehow effective all the same each time - joke is her willingness to press the restart button every time he doesn’t seem to be up to her mark. And then of course, there is Cruise, who injects dry humour into the ‘rinse-repeat’ premise with his refreshingly guileless delivery that upends his alpha-hero image.

Yes, Cruise is at his most charismatic in a role which doesn’t require him to put on any Hollywood vanity. Playing the anti-hero after a string of characters in ‘Mission: Impossible’, ‘Jack Reacher’ and ‘Oblivion’ fashioned out of the same heroic mould, Cruise seems to be having as much fun playing the coward who never wanted to be a saviour in the first place but stumbles into the part out of plain coincidence. Next to Cruise’s nicely underplayed performance, Blunt comes off less engaged than we would expect of the actress’ cast-against-type as a Sigourney Weaver-like character, going about the film in a steely poise that portrays athleticism and determination but little else.

She does however look perfectly suited for the high-octane action, which Liman directs with boldness and imagination not seen since ‘The Bourne Identity’. Cage’s beach landing unfolds in eye-popping combat spectacle, the gunfire, mud and panic of war depicted with realism, urgency and immediacy, i.e. like ‘Saving Private Ryan’ but with aliens. Even with the same battle repeated over and over again, Liman finds new action within it every time, adding new outcomes and reinventing old ones that keeps things fresh and gripping. Through inventive backdrops that evoke the Battle of Britain or the occupation of Paris, Liman keeps the adrenaline pumping, culminating in a grim showdown right in the heart of the French capital.

Sure, you may recognise elements of ‘Edge of Tomorrow’ from other movies like ‘Groundhog Day’, ‘Starship Troopers’ and ‘Source Code’, but the point is still how Liman uses the narrative device from the former in a smart and satisfying piece of science fiction that works as an immensely entertaining summer star vehicle. It might not seem much against the pantheon of Marvel superheroes this summer, but this is truly one of this season’s best, a blockbuster with brains which you won’t mind being caught in a time loop seeing it again and again. 

Movie Rating:

(Smart, intense, thrilling and gripping, this ‘Groundhog Day’ meets ‘Starship Troopers’ sci-fi actioner is immensely entertaining stuff that you won’t want to be left out of its loop)

Review by Gabriel Chong

Genre: Comics/Action
Director: David Leitch
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Jack Kesy, Shioli Kutsuna, Julian Dennison, Leslie Uggams, Morena Baccarin, Brianna Hildebrand, Stefan Kapicic, Zazie Beetz, Terry Crews, Karan Soni, T.J. Miller
RunTime: 2 hrs
Rating: M18 (Violence and Coarse Language)
Released By: 20th Century Fox
Official Website: https://www.facebook.com/DeadpoolMovie/

Opening Day: 17 May 2018

Synopsis: Marvel’s motormouth mercenary is back! Bigger, better and occasionally more pantless than ever before. When a super soldier arrives on a murderous mission, Deadpool is forced to think about friendship, family and what it really means to be a hero - all while kicking 50 shades of ass. Because, sometimes, to do the right thing you need to fight dirty.

Movie Review:

Let us get this out of the way: we love Deadpool 2 more than Avengers: Infinity War.

While these characters had their origins on the colourful pages of Marvel comics, the foul mouthed merc with a mouth is definitely a more fun dude than the sometimes self righteous superheroes in the other cinematic universe. Yes, while Deadpool may not be what you call an ‘A grade’ hero (he is an anti hero, not a superhero), but we are pretty sure we’d want to hang out with him more than the Avengers.

In this sequel to the 2016 hit produced by Fox (no, Disney hasn’t owned everything – yet), the red suited mercenary is faced with a personal loss that leaves him dejected. Before he becomes all emotional, the screenwriters have him meet a mutant boy who shoots fire from his hands. Enter Cable, a super soldier from the future who is hell bent on killing the boy. Deadpool then gets his act together and forms an X Force team to save the boy.

Why X Force? Because ‘X Men’ has been taken, and also because, ahem, that name is not gender neutral.

Yup, this is the kind of humour you can expect from the 120 minute movie directed by David Leitch (Atomic Blonde). If you are a fan of the first movie, you would already know what to expect. But trust us, this instalment is wackier, fouler and bloodier. If this is your kind of entertainment, you will lap it up in no time.

From the get go, Deadpool references a certain clawed superhero and how the hairy dude had an upper hand. He then pulls a rather unexpected stunt and the story heads towards a direction we didn’t see coming. There are tons of pop culture references and jibes at other movie franchises. The jokes are genuinely funny - one can only imagine how much fun the writers had putting this together.

Amidst the laughs, there are also some nice heartwarming moments. Didn’t expect that from Deadpool? It’s nice to note that he is not out to save the world. Like us mere mortals, he just wants to make today better than yesterday.

Of course, it helps that the titular character is played Ryan Reynolds, a charming actor himself. Nothing is spared from being poked fun at. From the Canadian celebrity’s country of origin to the bad choice of movie roles he has taken on, there isn’t a single boring moment during the movie’s two hour runtime. Just as you thought Josh Brolin has done a great job playing Thanos, the MVP of this summer blockbuster season delivers again by portraying the anguished Cable.

Stefan Kapičić's Colossus, Brianna Hildebrand's Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Karan Soni's Dopinder Morena Baccarin, Morena Baccarin’s Vanessa and T.J. Miller’s Weasel from the first movie return. Julian Dennison (Hunt for the Wilderpeople) is well cast as the fiery tempered boy, Zazie Beetz (Geostorm) plays a spunky addition to the team, while other familiar names like Terry Crews and Bill Skarsgård portray other X Force members.

Without giving too much away, we can only advise you to keep your eyes peeled for Easter eggs and cameo appearances. In fact, the highly entertaining movie is worth a second trip to the cinema (yay for the movie studio!) just to catch things you may have missed the first time.

Movie Rating:

(Deadpool is back, and he has lots more wacky and foul fun in store for you!)

Review by John LI

Genre: Thriller
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Claire Foy, Joshua Leonard, Jay Pharoah, Juno Temple, Aimee Mullins, Amy Irving
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Violence and Coarse Language)
Released By: 20th Century Fox
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 19 April 2018

Synopsis: A young woman leaves her hometown to escape a troubled past and begin a new job. But when she is involuntarily committed to a mental institution she is confronted by her greatest fear - but is it real or just her delusion? With seemingly no-one ready to believe her and the authorities unable or unwilling to help, she must confront her fears head on. With twisting perspectives and a shocking narrative, Unsane asks questions about our perception of reality, our survival instinct and the system that is supposed to take care of us.

Movie Review:

An expert at the human condition, Steven Soderbergh launches a new psychological thriller Unsane- shot in secret in 2017 - and surprises with a gritty, experimental tale that challenges the mental faculties of both characters and audience alike.

Sawyer Valentini (Claire Foy) is the company’s new data analyst. New to the city, she digs in her heels not only in her job (telling a customer if another analyst tells them differently, it’s because they are doing a bad job), but also into her colleagues, who call her names behind her back. Even her sexual predator of a boss can’t slice through her defences.

But the nervy lady is clearly high-strung over something. After a disastrous Tinder date, Sawyer reveals the source of her anxiety to a local psychiatrist - a stalker. 

Things escalate quickly when it turns out that she signed a form for voluntary commitment to the local institution, thinking them to be standard paperwork. And when you force a high-strung, left-brain workaholic into a ward, well, it’s like putting a feral cat in a cardboard box.

Her reactionary claws come out, and her violent streaks impugn her sentence to a week. Bad enough as it is, but when a fellow ward-mate Nate Hoffman (Jay Pharoah), of seemingly sound mind, advises her to comply so that she may leave earlier, Sawyer complies. That is until a night orderly is the splitting image of her stalker, which proves too much for her to take.

Convinced that it is the same David Strine (Joshua Leonard) working under a false identity, she gains no empathy or investigation from the hospital staff, now accustomed to her rants. What follows after is a swashbuckling battle of wit and reveals that is as disturbing as it is exciting.

Soderbergh’s grasp of believable portrayal comes not only from the realistic lines and as-is settings, but also from his excellent casting.

Foy shoulders Unsane upon her thin shoulders, and hefts the performance through like a tense wire tied to a boulder. Her energy is always burdened yet not heavy, and her ticks and manners so imbued, it’s almost endearing. Which makes for a fun watch for the first hour, as she struggles to find someone to believe her, viewers included.

Another contribution to the brash, bold vibe is based on the fact that the whole film was shot on the iPhone 7. The unconventional boxed-up aspect ratio amplifies the trapped conditions, while warped lens attachment distort everyday reality, making it suspect.

Even though there are sequences that harken to Soderbergh’s avant-garde roots, such as the added pill episode and unforgettable blue solitary confinement quarters, the film always stays relevant and practical, delivering a trail of breadcrumbs that lead us to the proverbial big bad wolf of an ending.

While there are some minor plot loopholes, Unsaneremains evenly-keeled enough to stay afloat. Even though Soderbergh cheekily changed his name for his contribution in cinematography and editing, the director’s hand in film-making is remarkably sober.

Movie Rating:

(Compelling thriller with experimental touches. Foy delivers a masterful performance and Soderbergh finesses a sinewy psycho-drama)

Review by Morgan Awyong

Genre: Comedy
Director: James Griffiths 
Cast: Nick Frost, Rashida Jones, Chris O’Dowd, Ian McShane, Kayvan Novak, Wendi McLendon-Covey
RunTime: 1 hr 38 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Some Coarse Language and Sexual References)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 10 April 2014

Synopsis: In 1987 a 13-year-old, natural-born dancer with fire in his heels and snakes in his hips is working himself up to explode all over the UK Junior Salsa Championships. But when a bullying incident on the mean streets of London robs him of his confidence, our young hero finds his life diverted down a very different path. 22 years later, an adult Bruce Garrett finds himself out of shape and unloved, trapped in a downward spiral of self-pity, repression and Nando's take-outs. Only Julia, his smart, funny, gorgeous new American boss, gives him reason to live. But she's out of his league. Luckily for him, she also has a secret passion. Thus, Bruce is once again brought face-to-face with the darkest and most powerful of his inner demons. Somehow, someway, Bruce must learn how to unshackle his dancing beast, regain his long lost fury and claim the love of his life...and he's going to do it all on the dance floor.

Movie Review:

The writer associates Nick Frost with the following: British accent, comedy and roly poly. The last of the three has a jolly connotation, and anyone whose body is “roly poly” should be pretty popular with the masses. Just look at the 42 year old English actor, what do you not like about him? The guy is dead funny (no pun intended) in Shaun of the Dead (2004), fast talking hilarious in Hot Fuzz (2007) and a macho hoot in The World’s End (2013). His latest role in James Griffiths’ movie is funny as well, but the more this reviewer thinks about it, the more the tinge of sadness he feels creeping up his veins.

You see, this writer isn’t the fittest human being, and after seeing this movie, he fears what is in store for his future years. Frost plays an under confident individual working in the corporate world. It doesn’t help that he is out of shape, overweight and emotionally inert. Yup, he is single. Things weren’t that sad to begin with though – the oversized man was once a natural born salsa dancer when he was young. Things took on a different, and unfortunately, sad path when a bullying incident went awry.

Every man has the right to love, and his comes in the form of his boss. Eventually, our protagonist will pick up his feet (no pun intended again), rid his path of bullies and win the girl of his dreams by doing what he does best – salsa dancing.

The premise of this romantic comedy is rib tickling. The screenplay written by Jon Brown (with an original idea by Frost himself) puts a fat man in an outlandish context to have audiences laughing their hearts out. It is not hard to imagine the Essexborn Frost dressed in sequin, sashaying across the dance floor with his partner in hand. You’ll chuckle and tap your toes to the catchy music. Ultimately, you’re enjoying this because of Frost’s engagingly sincere charm and charisma. How can you not root for a guy who seems to have nothing to look forward to (read: L-O-S-E-R) except salsa dancing?

Frost is a winner in this 98 minute movie. The actor delivers a very likable performance that reminds you of the best friend you’ll pour your heart out to whenever your other half upsets you. Yup, Frost is perfect in playing that friend you’ve often taken for granted.

Our leading man is joined by Rashida Jones (The Social Network, The Muppets) as the rather bland female lead character, Chris O Dowd (Bridesmaids, This Is 40) as his rival in love (watch out for the very well executed dance showdown between the two) and Ian McShane (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Snow White & the Huntsman) as his mentor. The funniest bits come from British actor Kayvan Novak’s performance as an outrageously flamboyant salsa mate.

The movie’s pacing is breezily enjoyable, and while there is nothing hysterically funny, it is amiable enough to have you smiling throughout. But why does that make this reviewer worry? As he stepped out of the theatre, he could only wonder how he can ever impress any girl with his increasing waistline and zero knowledge on salsa dancing. 

Movie Rating:

(Nick Frost’s winning charisma and likable charm makes this movie a breeze to sit through)

Review by John Li

Genre: Drama/Mystery
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore 
Cast: Geoffrey Rush, Jim Sturgess, Sylvia Hoeks, Donald Sutherland, Philip Jackson, Dermot Crowley
RunTime: 2 hrs 11 mins
Rating: M18 (Sexual Scene and Nudity)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 3 April 2014

Synopsis: This is the simple, touching tale of a solitary, cultured man, no longer young, whose reluctance to engage with others is matched only by the dogged obsessiveness with which he practices his profession of art expert and auctioneer. Asked to handle the valuation and sale of a mysterious woman’s priceless heirlooms, the antiques dealer finds himself enveloped by a passion that will transform his grey existence forever. It can be explained as a film about art, seen as the sublimation of love, but also as a film about love, seen as the product of art.

Movie Review:

Giuseppe Tornatore offers up his first English-language feature in the form of an uneven but mesmerising romantic thriller set in the elegant world of high-end antique art dealers. Set in a place that is never named but has hints of the Italian cities of Fidenza, Milan and Bolzano, the Tornatore written-and-directed feature builds itself around the cold-hearted art auctioneer Virgil Oldman, whose run-in with a reclusive heiress Claire Ibbetson (Sylvia Hoeks) whom insists that he be the one to evaluate and auction off her family estate becomes an obsession that turns his perfectly manicured life upside down.

As one quickly discovers, the pleasure in watching ‘The Best Offer’ lies in the tense and suspenseful way in which it unfolds. Indeed, you’ll never really quite know just where it is headed, in part because Tornatore refuses to let the narrative be hemmed in by convention; instead, he delights in keeping his audience on tenterhooks not knowing what to expect, in particular Claire’s motivation for engaging Virgil’s services in the very first place. There is mystery all right, and a distinct sense of discovery as things develop that keep you glued to every little detail on screen.

But first things first, Tornatore starts off with an intimate character study of Virgil. Played excellently by Australian actor Geoffrey Rush, Virgil turns out quite the engrossing character in himself. Cranky and pompous, he dyes his hair black and has a whole cupboard of gloves which he religiously puts on when conducting valuations or auctions. On most days, he shows no emotion and interacts with no one, preferring to spend his time at home staring at the dozens of women’s portraits hanging on the walls of his private vault. Though he never acknowledges it, there is hardly any doubt that his imperious attitude towards employees and clients indicates an abject loneliness inside.

Virgil’s closeted world is transformed when he meets Claire, whom he is at first irritated with for insisting to communicate only via phone and behind the walls of her sprawling mansion. Yet at the same time, he is also intrigued by the mercurial Claire, whose “very strange illness” which keeps her locked at home turns out to be no more than a case of agoraphobia. In the meantime, Virgil is also drawn to the bits of gear he picks up at her home, bringing them to his repairman pal Robert (Jim Sturgess) in the hopes of piecing together some long lost piece of antique machinery.

As he goes back and forth between Virgil’s relationship with Claire and Virgil’s interactions with Robert, Tornatore drops hints that the two might be related to a much greater extent, the surest confirmation of that when Robert’s girlfriend makes an unannounced visit to Virgil to warn him not to trust Robert. The constant talk of art and forgery is yet another definite sign that something is not quite as it seems, culminating in a late third-act twist that pretty much confirms our worst suspicions of just what Virgil has gotten himself into.

To reveal anything more would indeed be spoiling the surprise lying in wait at the end of some superbly mounted old-school tension, which relies on plenty of Old World atmospherics to draw its audience in. This is filmmaking of a certain elegance not usually seen in today’s motion pictures, with Tornatore making use of traditional but effective storytelling techniques and an evocative score from composer Ennio Morricone to recreate a distinct sense of mood and place.

In the midst of all that is Rush, whose emotionally grounded performance is the reason why Tornatore’s film never veers off into camp. With sarcasm and a professional veneer, he conveys the supercilious nature of his character, but in scenes with Dutch actress Sylvia Hoeks, lets enough tenderness seep through such that we have no doubt that the man is lonely and in love with the younger and strangely beautiful woman. Rush’s fascination with Claire never hits a false note, and thoroughly convinces just how deep and how completely someone of his nature could fall in love.

Those who are familiar with Tornatore’s works will also recognise the similarities between Virgil and Philippe Noiret’s Alfredo in ‘Cinema Paradiso’ or Marcello Mastroianni’s Matteo in ‘Everybody’s Fine’. Despite being the first time he is filming in English, ‘The Best Offer’ fits snugly into his body of classic cinema, a gripping exploration of obsession, delusion and alienation from a unique individual’s point of view. It is absorbing stuff, much like staring into a piece of artwork and waiting for it to reveal its underlying secrets to you. Our advice? Take this offer, you’ll find it quite worth the while. 

Movie Rating:

(An old-school piece of cinematic work from ‘Cinema Paradiso’s’ Giuseppe Tornatore that rides on genuine suspense to deliver an gripping tale of romance and intrigue)

Review by Gabriel Chong