Genre: Drama
Director: Karen Moncrieff
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Nick Nolte, James Cromwell, David Lyons, Clancy Brown, Mark Pellegrino, Taye Diggs, Isaiah Washington, Dale Dickey, Kathy Baker
RunTime: 1 hr 33 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Some Coarse Language)
Released By: Cathay-Keris Films
Official Website:
Opening Day: 19 June 2014
Synopsis: A former hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and estranged from her family, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder in order to be reinstated at the bar and regain custody of her daughter.
Movie Review:
Kate Beckinsale has struggled to find a defining film role outside of the ‘Underworld’ franchise, and that unfortunately isn’t something which her latest courtroom drama ‘The Trials of Cate McCall’ is likely to change. Written and directed by Karen Moncrieff, it is an utterly forgettable tale of fiction about a troubled criminal lawyer who takes on the appeal of a woman seemingly wrongfully convicted of murder. And as evidence of just how bland it is, the movie did not even see the light of day in US and UK cinemas; instead, it headed right straight for the US telly channel Lifetime, where it had an equally unremarkable premiere.
To be sure, Beckinsale isn’t the reason why the film is that dull. Indeed, as the titular criminal lawyer, she makes for a somewhat engaging female lead not unlike that which she is better known for playing - both in ‘Underworld’ and here, she is a tough and ‘gung-ho’ female character whom one should know better than to mess with. Despite Beckinsale’s committed performance, the film is ultimately let down by Moncrieff’s ham-fisted scripting and equally inept directing, both of which we are sad to say hardly justifies the rest of the acting on display.
Yes, Beckinsale isn’t the only one you should pay attention to here; veteran actor Nick Nolte shines in a limited capacity as a fellow lawyer and AA sponsor who gives Cate McCall the moral and physical support she needs when the going gets tough. Ditto for Anna Anissimova, who pulls off an interesting hat trick first by pushing all the right buttons to earn your sympathy and then making you question just how culpable she is of the charge she has been convicted and is serving sentence for - Anissimova is Lacey Stubbs, whose case Cate is assigned to pro bono while attempting to get her life back on track.
But hey whether Beckinsale or Nolte or Anissimova, neither surmount the obvious flaws of the movie. For one, there’s the depiction of the US judicial system, which according to Moncrieff is no more than a contest for liars. Not only is it too easy for Cate to poke holes at the state’s case, it is laughable to think that the judge on the retrial - a certain Judge Sumpter played by James Cromwell - would in fact be a lecherous S.O.B. who is simply using the case as a means of getting himself a seat on the bench. Moncrieff hardly respects her audience’s intelligence in trying to paint how effortlessly Cate overthrows an earlier verdict handed down by another judge’s courts.
Just as quickly it seems, Cate realises the folly of her own actions, as Lacey turns out to be more than meets the eye. In between deciding whether to choose her career or her family, Cate then decides to engineer an opportunity for the state to revisit the same case again, this time providing them with the crucial evidence necessary to prove that Lacey is in fact lying. By the time Cate steps back into the courtroom to ‘defend’ Lacey, the movie has already lost any shred of credibility, and it doesn’t help that Moncrieff doesn’t seem to have a handle on how to craft a compelling sequence on film.
Like we said, if there was ever a reason why the film remains watchable, that is because its actors manage to carry the weight of the movie on their shoulders. It is also probably of their names that this direct to telly movie is even getting a cinematic release here, but not quite enough that you won’t be able to see through the many faults of the storytelling. There hasn’t been a good courtroom drama of late, but we suspect ‘The Trials of Cate McCall’ is scant reason for a revival of interest in the sub-genre.
Movie Rating:
(Some strong acting from Kate Beckinsale and her co-star Nick Nolte can’t quite redeem this courtroom drama from its made-for-cable TV quality)
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Comedy
Director: Jake Kasdan
Cast: Jason Segel, Cameron Diaz, Jack Black, Rob Lowe, Ellie Kemper, Rob Corddry
RunTime: 1 hr 30 mins
Rating: R21 (Sexual Scenes)
Released By: Sony Pictures Releasing International
Official Website:
Opening Day: 7 August 2014
Synopsis: When Jay (Jason Segel) and Annie (Cameron Diaz) first got together, their romantic connection was intense – but ten years and two kids later, the flame of their love needs a spark. To kick things up a notch, they decide – why not? – to make a video of themselves trying out every position in The Joy of Sex in one marathon three-hour session. It seems like a great idea – until they discover that their most private video is no longer private. With their reputations on the line, they know they’re just one click away from being laid bare to the world... but as their race to reclaim their video leads to a night they'll never forget, they'll find that their video will expose even more than they bargained for.
Movie Review:
Sex and humour. Sex Tape sounded like it had potential to be sexy and funny, or at least one of the above. However, it falls short of both, though that is not due to the lack of trying.
As the Jay (Jason Segel) and Annie’s (Cameron Diaz) sex tape is inadvertently is synced to the numerous iPads Jay (Jason Segel) gives away, the couple go to great lengths trying to recover them. Their journey of trying to recover the iPads took up way too long of the film, and this is one of the reasons why the film is so hard to watch. There is only that much slapstick humour one can take, and 90 minutes of it is very much above quota. Much of this humour comes from Segel’s portrayal of Jay – a large, sweet man, who comes across as a tad simple-minded. Which is, I suspect, the character Segel has been typecasted into due to his role of Marshall Eriksen from How I Met Your Mother.
The same typecasting befell on Diaz – the blond, not-too-intelligent bombshell, making her bear the blunt of the blonde bimbo jokes. This stereotype, however, was weakly overthrown when Annie was revealed to be intelligent, and more tech-savvy than Jay. For most of the film, however, it felt like Diaz was simply there to draw male audiences. The thinly veiled objectification was also off-putting to some audiences.
Other than the sex, technology was probably central to the film. Without auto-syncing and cloud storage capabilities of devices, the film would probably not have been made. It might be a long stretch, but the film can be seen as satire on current society and technology – how users do not totally understand it, but yet are so dependent on it. That impression lasts until the Siri joke, when any attempt of the film to sound vaguely intelligent is somewhat discarded.
Perhaps the only highlight of the movie, or rather what was easier to sit through, were the parts on Jay and Annie’s friends, Robbie (Rob Corddry), Tess (Ellie Kemper) and their son, Howard. Robbie and Tess portray the suburban, bored, married couple to a T, whose idea of an anniversary celebration was to catch up on old TV series without their children. Unexpectedly, Howard (Harrison Holzer) arguably performed best in the film. Playing the largest villain of the show, he outwits Jay with his deviousness and cunning. That said, his abrupt change of character comes as across as awkward, and seems to be used as a way to end the film.
Jack Black plays the owner of YouPorn, the porn website which Jay and Annie’s sex tape nearly gets uploaded onto. Black, being Black, is naturally funny, and it is a pity that his character comes out late in the film, and for such a short time. His character then takes a 180-degree turn to lecturing them about love and sex, making it extremely hard to believe. Similar to Howard, this change comes across as forced, and feels like it took place only because the film needed a turning point and morally upright message after all the nudity and drugs.
Sex Tape attempts to include all the elements of a successful rom-com – romance (or sex, in this case), humour and a popular pair of lead actor and actress. However, the movie is let down by the one-dimensional characters and unimaginative script, which earns more cringes than kudos.
MOVIE RATING:
(The Sex Tape's tasteless portrayal of sex, and tired humour makes the movie painful and awkward to watch)
Review by Goh Yan Hui
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TRANSFORMERS ROLL OUT AT THE CATHAYPosted on 02 Jun 2014 |
Genre: Drama
Director: David Michôd
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Guy Pearce, Scoot McNairy, Susan Prior, Gillian Jones, Anthony Hayes, David Field
RunTime: 1 hr 43 mins
Rating: NC16 (Violence and Some Coarse Language)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://therover-movie.com
Opening Day: 18 September 2014
Synopsis: Ten years after a collapse of the western economic system, Australia’s mineral resources have drawn the desperate and dangerous to its shores. With society in decline, the rule of law has disintegrated and life is cheap. Eric (GUY PEARCE) is a cold and angry drifter who has left everything and everyone behind. When his car – his last possession – is stolen by a gang of desperate desert hustlers, Eric embarks on a ruthless mission to track them down. Along the way, he is forced into an unlikely relationship with Rey (ROBERT PATTINSON), the naïve and injured younger brother of gang member Henry (SCOOT MCNAIRY) who has left Rey behind in the bloody aftermath of the gang’s most recent robbery.
Movie Review:
No thanks to a certain franchise known as The Twilight Saga, Robert Pattinson hasn’t received the kindest critic response for the past few years. You see, playing a pale vampire may not be that good a thing for your showbiz career if you want to be taken seriously. Sure it may have brought in the fat paycheck (yay for the movie studio for milking the teen novel series dry), but if you’re thinking of staking it out in the entertainment industry, you’d better start looking around for credible productions to star in.
Pattinson has dabbled in films like How to Be (2008), Water for Elephants (2011), Bel Ami (2012), but none of that made a big impact to break him out of his pale skinned Edward Cullen persona. With his latest involvement in this Australian drama film written and directed by Favid Michod (whose brilliant work Animal Kingdom we never got to see in cinemas here), the 28 year old English actor may just begin getting offered casting projects that will bring him far in showbiz. While we can’t say his Twilight co star Kristen Stewart will be as well loved as the critics anytime soon (Snow White and the Huntsman, anyone?), that’s another commentary for another day.
Pattinson plays Reynolds, a simple and naïve southern American youngster who crosses paths with Guy Pearce’s Eric, a violent and bitter former Australian soldier who has lost his farm and family. The backdrop is set 10 years after a global economic collapse, and the world as the two men know it is in a mess. Eric’s sole mission is to track down the men who stole his last remaining possession – his car, and when he meets Reynolds, he takes things into his own hands to make the needy young man an accomplice.
The 103 minute movie is a slow, measured and meticulous chase across a desolate landscape, and we see a future is so messed up you can’t even depend on getting shot. It is a bleak setting where one super power rules the world; medical assistance is lacking, prostitution is everywhere, guns make the rules and American currency is the preferred method of payment. Yes, there is military presence, but even the soldiers do not know what their cause is.
Michod has perfected a contemporary western of sorts, with a Clint Eastwood style character driving the story through his singular desire. He co wrote the story with actor producer Joel Edgerton (you may remember his wonderful screen presence in 2012’s Zero Dark Thirty and 2013’s The Great Gatsby), and the result is a different sort of buddy movie (call it Rain Man if you will). There is violence here, but the movie offers an odd bond between two damaged human beings who have little in common beyond the damage.
Pearce (Lockout, Iron Man 3) delivers an impressive performance as usual, having impressed the film community with his roles in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, L.A. Confidential and Memento. He connects with audiences with his portrayal of a man who has seen the world collapse, still remembers a time when things were different but is living life in a murderous and dangerous way. Pattinson, on the other hand, surprises us with his emotionally engaging performance as a dependent individual who has experienced more than a few complications in his life.
The result of this chemistry is a very watchable drama that gives more satisfaction that your usual popcorn blockbuster.
Movie Rating:
(The engaging chemistry between Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson makes this tense drama an odd buddy movie worth your time)
Review by John Li
SYNOPSIS: Sent to a convent against will, Suzanne, a young nun finds herself taunted by her fellow Sisters and subjected to sadistic punishments after breaking her vows. Taken in by a kindly Mother Superior, she soon finds that her affection comes at a price, but despite her suffering, Suzanne refuses to accept her fate and her desire for freedom never diminishes.
MOVIE REVIEW:
Through the eyes of Suzanne Simonin (Pauline Etienne), The Nun takes a controversial peek into the world of Catholicism in the olden days specifically France.
Simonin is a 17-year-old teen being forced by her mother to be ordained as a nun to “expatiate” the sins of her family. We must say it’s actually a pretty convenient excuse to get rid of a family member just to lighten the financial burden of the household. But in actual fact, Simonin is an illegitimate daughter as a result of an affair committed by her mother. For whatever reason, the cover up is essential thus Simonin is reluctantly sent to a nunnery but the gutsy young lady refuses to give up hope to leave the place.
Guillaume Nicloux’s The Nun is a relatively affecting and easy to follow arthouse drama. Beneath lies a message that religion and faith regardless of their form doesn’t constitute a person. Simonin’s refusal to accept the Order doesn’t qualify her as a bad person. Her faith in God lies in her heart pure and simple. Similarly those who accept it are devils in disguise as Simonin suffered unbelievably pain and torture under Sister Christine (Louise Bourgoin), the authoritarianand nasty in-charge who replaced the previous kind-hearted head Mother.
If being treated as a POW is not atrocious enough for her rebelliousness, Simonin continues her streak of bad luck when she encounters a loony, sex-craving Mother St-Eutrope (Isabelle Huppert) at the next convent. You can say she has her own unique way to welcome a new girl. The tone of the movie changes from all seriousness to dark comedic in the last act but yet the message remains stoic.
The production design on the whole is handsome, the costumes well designed and the cinematography by Yves Cape conveys a consistence mood of helplessness. Belgian actress Pauline Etienne basically carries the entire drama with full aplomb and certainly a delight to watch. Recommended.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
NIL
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The DVD comes with a serviceable French audio track and the visual passable.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Linus Tee
SYNOPSIS: A handful of teenagers make the mistake of baring their souls to the wrong person in this thriller. Eva (Imogen Poots) is a young model whose good looks and poise disguise her aching doubts about herself and her wishes she could be more like others. Jim (Matthew Beard) is still wrestling with the demons brought on by a painful childhood and tries to beat back his fears with drugs. Emily (Hannah Murray) feels plain and unattractive and is filled with resentment towards her ambitious father and mother. And Mo (Daniel Kaluuya) struggles with his sexual desires for children, in particular the sister of a close friend. These four young people are frequent visitors to an internet chat room, where they can talk about their fears and anxieties while being drawn out by the compassionate moderator. But the man who runs the chat room is not all he seems. William (Aaron Johnson) is the unstable and neglected son of a successful author (Megan Dodds); he's grown to hate his more confident brother Ripley (Richard Madden) and has established the chat room in order to manipulate others to his own ends by getting them to share their secrets and using this knowledge against them.
MOVIE REVIEW:
The only plausible reason why this 2010 Brit movie, Chatroom is released on DVD here is the presence of it’s leading man, Aaron Taylor Johnson who just appeared in Godzilla and will star in next year’s Avengers 2. And yes he is also Kick-Ass!
Directed by Japanese horror maestro Hideo Nakata who redefines the horror genre with Ringu unfortunately fumbles with the material that originates from a stage play. Chatroom never feels like it’s meant for the big screen and the result: a soulless cyberspace thriller that never excites and incredibly static.
English actor Johnson plays a troubled and depressed teen, William. The younger son of a popular children’s book writer, William has just completed his therapy sessions with his psychiatrist. Shortly after, he sets up an internet chat room called “Chelsea Teens!” attracting the attention of four other teens, Emily, Eva, Mo and Jim all having emotional problems of their own. As William becomes psychologically unstable and manipulative to Jim in the end, the rest decides to step in before it turns fatal for the latter.
The movie touches on a few relevant aspects in today’s fast-moving society, teens’ depression, medication, cyber-bulling, social status, suicide and such. Sadly, every issue is presented in the most boring way possible (i.e. endless copious amount of talk) and to think it comes from the man who created a ghost crawling out of a TV set. The virtual cyberworld is beautifully represented physically in a hotel with long corridors and graffiti-decorated doors, this one I should give credit to.
You probably have seen Imogen Poots (Emily) from The Awkward Moment and Daniel Kaluuya (Mo) from Johnny English Reborn but it’s Matthew Beard’s heart-wrenching performance as the tortured Jim whose abandonment by his father has left a huge emotional scar on him that leaves you impressed. And if you are buying into the whole Chatroom thingy because of Aaron Taylor Johnson, well his presence is equally believable as the twisted teen.
Chatroom is potentially an interesting movie with the wrong execution. Hideo Nakata probably needs a better translator for his non-Japanese gigs.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
NIL
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Visual and audio is serviceable for this title that doesn’t require much sophistication in both departments.
MOVIE RATING:
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DVD RATING :
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Review by Linus Tee
SYNOPSIS: Inseparable from a young age, Lil and Roz live in perfect harmony with their children, two singularly graceful young boys who seem to be an extension of their mothers. Their husbands are absent. Inexplicably and yet inevitably, both women grow closer to each other's sons, forming passionate relationships with them. Hidden from view, in an almost supernatural seaside Eden, the quartet live an unconventional story until age puts an end to dissoluteness. Or at least, that's what it appears to do...
MOVIE REVIEW:
Perfect Mothers to the conservative crowd might just be a sick movie despite a lush cinematography of New South Wales, Australia and a bunch of good-looking cast. The drama based on a story by British writer Doris Lessing falls short in every attempt to convince audience that this is actually a story worth telling.
Plausibility aside, Naomi Watts and Robin Wright plays two childhood friends/cougars, Lil and Roz. Both married with a son each, they lived close to each other near the beach and their relationship remains tight after the death of Lil’s husband. Years later, Lil’s son Ian (Xavier Samuel) falls in love and initiate a sexual relationship with Roz. With the initial intent of revenging his best friend for involving with her mum, Roz’s son, Tom (James Frecheville) too started a sexual relationship with Lil.
French filmmaker Anne Fontaine (Coco Before Chanel) and screenwriter Christopher Hampton brought no justification to the morally questionable tale. I guess for the almost two hours duration they are contended in presenting the two well-built young men surfing and Watts and Wright frolicking in their swimwear. And of course some classily staged sex scenes. Why on earth is Ian attracted to the mum of his best friend? Is she the best person for him to confide in when he is sorrow or is the older woman just makes a good sex partner?
The setup fails to convince the complex relationship between the foursome other than the casual sexual approach. The drama went on the extent of portraying Ian and Tom being married and having kids on their own at the later stage of their lives while at the same time the latter is still hooking up with Lil. How ridiculous is that.
Perfect Mothers is a complete joke as compared to flicks liked Brokeback Mountain and The Reader, both featuring characters with complicated sexual relationships. As hard as you muster, there’s hardly an ounce of pain or love you feel for the main characters. It remains nothing except being a wonderful shot movie that features powerful performances from Ms Watts and the ex-Mrs Sean Penn.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
NIL
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The audio is rich with ambient effects, clear dialogue and music tracks. The visual showcases some nice colors and details and looks good enough for the Australia tourism board.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Linus Tee
Genre: Musical/Romance
Director: Max Giwa, Dania Pasquini
Cast: Annabel Scholey, Hannah Arterton, Giulio Berruti, Katy Brand, Greg Wise, Leona Lewis
RunTime: 1 hr 38 mins
Rating: PG (Some Sexual References)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://www.walkingonsunshinethemovie.co.uk
Opening Day: 10 July 2014
Synopsis: After a whirlwind romance, Maddie, fresh from a long term relationship, is preparing to marry gorgeous Raf and has invited her sister Taylor to the wedding in Italy. Unbeknownst to Maddie, however, Raf is Taylor's ex-holiday flame, and the love of her life...and that is just one of the set-backs on their road to happy ever after…
Movie Review:
From the moment Hannah Arterton appears on screen at a sun-kissed beach in the seaside Italian town of Puglia to the strings of Madonna’s ‘Holiday’, you know exactly what sort of time you’re in for. Yes, if you don’t yet know, the title of this musical is taken from the hit song (and album) of the same name by Katrina and the Waves, but why the filmmakers decided to name their movie after this song and not say the fifteen other 1980s tunes which its actors sing and dance to is anybody’s guess.
Anyhow, it’s no secret that ‘Streetdance’ directors Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini are banging on nostalgia to lure audiences to their fairy tale summer romance, packing it wall to wall with classic pop hits including ‘It Must Have Been Love’, ‘Eternal Flame’, ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ and ‘If I Could Turn Back Time’. Intuitively, it seems that Max and Dania (as they are billed in the movie) are specifically targeting the middle-aged crowd who grew up with these tunes and probably still sing them at KTV sessions; but even those for whom the tunes are a generational gap away will probably have heard them at least once or twice playing on some jukebox.
There are no originals here; instead, like the big-screen version of ‘Mamma Mia!’, Max and Dania boldly get their cast to do the covers for these tunes, although the result of that is somewhat mixed. Among them, Hannah (sister to Gemma) Arterton is positively unremarkable, no better than what you would expect from your neighbour in the shower. Ditto for Italian star Giulio Berruti, whom it is apparent was clearly chosen for his swoon-worthy looks than for any actual singing or acting ability. Thankfully, the supporting stars Annabel Scholey, Katy Brand and 2006 X Factor winner Leona Lewis pick up much of the slack, each one better singers than Arterton and Berruti combined.
The same can be said of their dancing, which has half the energy of any one of them ‘High School Musical’ or ‘Glee’ routines. None of the actors are dancers in their own right, and to their credit, each one does try his or her darndest to look like they are having a good time moving to the beat of the music; unfortunately, there is something just too static about Litza Bixler’s choreography as well as Philipp Blaubach’s cinematography, so much so that the sequences rarely find the toe-tapping groove to which they aspire to. Not that there aren’t some good ones - in particular, you’ll find ‘The Power of Love’, ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ and ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’ more inspired than the staging of the rest.
If it doesn’t seem as if we’ve paid much attention to the plot, well let’s just say that the less said about it the better. As with most musicals, storytelling comes secondary to the song and dance sequences and in fact serves only to transition from one sequence to another. That same criticism may very well be applied to Joshua St Johnston’s shamelessly derivative screenplay, which sets up a love triangle between Arterton and Scholey who play sisters Taylor and Maddie that fall in love with the same guy Raf (Berruti) on the occasion of the latter’s surprise whirlwind wedding with him. From the very first moment Maddie’s ex (Greg Wise) pops up, you can pretty much guess just what sort of happily-ever-after you’re going to get.
But that’s the least of our gripes really; because we’re willing to accept it for the guilty pleasure it aims to provide. Yet even on that level, the singing is just above par, the dancing not quite as energetic and the mood not even as infectious as it should be. No matter the cheesy group dancing or slapstick humour, ‘Walking on Sunshine’ is good only if you are in desperate need for a jukebox collection of your favourite 80s tunes. Indeed, we’ll tell you this - there’s not much to ‘go-go’ gaga about here.
Movie Rating:
(Unless you can’t find a jukebox of classic 80s pop tunes you really want to listen to, there’s little reason to go-go to this musical chick-flick of mediocre singing and dull choreography)
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: CG Animation
Director: Antony Stacchi, Graham Annable
Cast: Ben Kingsley, Toni Collette, Elle Fanning, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Jared Harris, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Richard Ayoade, Tracy Morgan
RunTime: 1 hr 37 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: UIP
Official Website: http://www.theboxtrolls.com
Opening Day: 11 September 2014
Synopsis: “The Boxtrolls" is a comedic fable that unfolds in Cheesebridge, a posh Victorian-era town obsessed with wealth, class, and the stinkiest of fine cheeses. Beneath its charming cobblestone streets dwell the Boxtrolls, foul monsters who crawl out of the sewers at night and steal what the townspeople hold most dear: their children and their cheeses. At least, that's the legend residents have always believed. In truth, the Boxtrolls are an underground cavern-dwelling community of quirky and lovable oddballs who wear recycled cardboard boxes the way turtles wear their shells. The Boxtrolls have raised an orphaned human boy, Eggs (voiced by Hempstead-Wright), since infancy as one of their dumpster-diving and mechanical junk-collecting own. When the Boxtrolls are targeted by villainous pest exterminator Archibald Snatcher (Kingsley), who is bent on eradicating them as his ticket to Cheesebridge society, the kindhearted band of tinkerers must turn to their adopted charge and adventurous rich girl Winnie (Fanning) to bridge two worlds amidst the winds of change - and cheese.
Movie Review:
If you haven’t yet seen ‘Coraline’ or ‘ParaNorman’, it may take you a while to get used to the world of ‘The Boxtrolls’. The third feature from Oregon-based studio Laika Animation, it is told using the same stop-motion technique (with some CG and hand-drawn work) as their earlier films, but the similarity doesn’t quite stop there. Yes, once again, the animators have eschewed the cuteness of Disney or Dreamworks for something much darker than your normal kiddie fare at the Cineplex, and therein, we would argue, is the reason why it proves so uniquely charming.
Adapted from British children’s author Alan Snow’s fantasy adventure ‘Here Be Monsters!’, it retains the Steampunk setting of the novel but takes quite a few creative liberties. Instead of an over-industrialised Ratbridge, the city in question is Cheesebridge, so termed because the dairy product is what separates the rich in “White Hats” from the poor in red ones. What unites the humans across their class distinctions is the subterranean Boxtrolls, little blue-skinned fluorescent-eyed creatures who emerge from the sewers at night to swipe anything and everything they can get their hands on.
So named on account of the cupboard boxes they wear their bodies, the Boxtrolls are feared by the humans as much they fear the humans. The fear of the former is stoked by none other than Archibald Snatcher (voiced by Ben Kingsley), a truly detestable rascal who is responsible for spreading nasty rumours about the Boxtrolls in order to justify his eradication for a coveted place with the “White Hats” and a seat with them at the cheese tasting table. As you can probably guess, their leader is no saint either, but rather a self-absorbed aristocrat by the name of Lord Portley-Rind who cares more about his Gouda and Brie than the welfare of his citizenry.
It’s a lot of setup, but co-directors Anthony Stacchi and Graham Annable deftly lay out the intricacies of their make-believe world while setting the narrative in motion. For reasons only revealed in a crucial flashback sequence later, a boy is taken as a toddler under the care of the Boxtrolls and is named Eggs after the carton he wears over himself. While on the prowl one night, Eggs runs into Lord Portley’s precocious daughter Winnifred (Elle Fanning) who is shocked that a human would be associating himself with the dreaded Boxtrolls; but before she can make his acquaintance, Eggs is forced to flee from Archibald and his henchmen.
As such stories go, Eggs sets off on a quest with Winnifred in tow to convince the humans that the Boxtrolls aren’t sinister beings who kidnap children. To top it off, Archibald turns out to have a nefarious scheme after all, building a contraption to assert his authority over Lord Portley and demanding that he be given the latter’s white hat. But parents need not worry - writers Irena Brignull and Adam Pava don’t deny the kids of a happy ending, though not before subjecting them to some grotesque images that may just make them swear off cheese for some time.
Consider this as fair warning - visually, this isn’t cast in the same mould as the usual CG animation, and one might even go as far as to say that ‘The Boxtrolls’ operates in a realm of ugliness. But once you look past the cruder-than-usual designs, you’re likely to find the cardboard-wearing critters surprisingly endearing by their guile and naivety. We urge you too to pay attention to the dazzling production design that makes up the world of Cheesebridge and the underground lair in which the boxtrolls call home; there is a whole cornucopia of details that will leave you wowed if you pay attention to them.
Still, compared to their earlier features, this latest lacks the heart and poignancy that made its predecessors memorable. Eggs never comes across as someone whose plight we would sympathise with, nor for that matter is Winnifred a likeable enough character. The way the boxtrolls communicate in an Ewok-like language is amusing all right, but they are lacking individually in any defining personality. Because we never quite understand the reason why the humans so fear the boxtrolls, their eventual reconciliation doesn’t quite resonate as it should.
It isn’t that ‘The Boxtrolls’ is underwhelming though; against a surfeit of clean-cut CG animation, its stop-motion aesthetics make it a refreshing change of look. Rather, because its earlier two adventures were such singular accomplishments, Laika’s latest seems more like a walk in the park. Yet its refusal to be boxed in (pun intended) by conventional animation features is still evident in its design as well as its choice of themes, and if there ever were need to prove that it is possible to be both grotesque and charming at the same time, then ‘The Boxtrolls’ would be it.
Movie Rating:
(Grotesque and yet charming at the same time, this visually singular piece of stop-motion animation is quite the spellbinder)
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Fantasy
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ken Stott, James Nesbitt, Cate Blanchett, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Orlando Bloom, John Bell, Manu Bennett, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Billy Connolly, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Sylvester McCoy, Graham McTavish, Dean O’Gorman, Mikael Persbrandt, Aidan Turner.
RunTime: 2 hr 24 mins
Rating: PG13 (Violence)
Released By: Warner Bros
Official Website: http://www.thehobbit.com
Opening Day: 18 December 2014
Synopsis: “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” brings to an epic conclusion the adventures of Bilbo Baggins, Thorin Oakenshield and the Company of Dwarves. Having reclaimed their homeland from the Dragon Smaug, the Company has unwittingly unleashed a deadly force into the world. Enraged, Smaug rains his fiery wrath down upon the defenseless men, women and children of Lake-town. Obsessed above all else with his reclaimed treasure, Thorin sacrifices friendship and honor to hoard it as Bilbo’s frantic attempts to make him see reason drive the Hobbit towards a desperate and dangerous choice. But there are even greater dangers ahead. Unseen by any but the Wizard Gandalf, the great enemy Sauron has sent forth legions of Orcs in a stealth attack upon the Lonely Mountain. As darkness converges on their escalating conflict, the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must decide – unite or be destroyed. Bilbo finds himself fighting for his life and the lives of his friends in the epic Battle of the Five Armies, as the future of Middle-earth hangs in the balance.
Movie Review:
*Warning: This review comes with spoilers, read at your own risk*
If you’ve not watched the first two films in The Hobbit series, the beginning of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies would be a little confusing for you. Rather than a beginning of a new film, it is more like the ending of the previous film where Smaug the Dragon is finally killed by Bard with the Black Arrow. Jackson’s tying up of other loose ends, such as Gandalf’s rescue by Galadriel, would also likely further confuse those who missed the earlier films. This was made clear to me when a lady, sitting two seats away from me, kept asking her boyfriend for the backstories to these events/moments.
However, to those who’ve watched the earlier The Hobbit films, those moments were long overdue and very much anticipated (I’m sure everyone was just waiting to see Bard kill Smaug with that Black Arrow). Kudos to Jackson for being able to play up these predictable moments and carry the audience along through appropriate use of music (the tone of the music serves as a great indicator of whether something is lurking in the background or all is really well), well-written lines and tight pacing. Bard’s desperation to defend his home and keep his children safe is felt as Bard fires arrow after arrow at Smaug but fails to pierce him. You can’t help but feel fear for him even though you know that he’s definitely going to kill Smaug.
As jarring as it might be initially for those who missed the previous film or forgot what happened, the audience is quickly swept up and becomes engrossed in the film. Lady who was two seats away from me, stopped her questions very shortly into the film and started gasping and going “Oh no!” at moments when the principal characters were in danger.
It takes a while to build up to the epic battle, which the title makes reference to, but it is worth the wait. If you’ve seen the earlier The Lord of the Rings films and battle scenes, you will know Jackson is a master of such large scale battles. He sets out the terrain of the battle carefully and the audience can fully grasp where each pocket of fighting is taking place against the backdrop of the battle. The camerawork is steady and each cut is meaningful and not rapid fire. Practically every sword clanging moment is discernible and Jackson adjusts the pacing based on the character he is focusing on. When the focus is Thranduil, there is a gentle pause as snow falls around him elegantly as befitting of the mighty elf king of Mirkwood before he swiftly cuts down all in his path. With Dáin, Thorin’s cousin, it’s a different pace altogether as the fearless king of Erebor charges straight into battle without a care.
Despite the clear reference to Bilbo, this film is really more of the story of Thorin Oakenshield, a great dwarf king who fell prey to greed but who became even greater for being able to shake off that greed and rise up to the occasion. That Jackson does not cling onto notions of having to have Bilbo have the most screen time because of this being a The Hobbit pays off. Characters’ tale, such as that of Bard’s, the love triangle between Tauriel, Legolas and Kili, are given proper development, rewarding the audience for its investment in these characters. On Bilbo’s part, he plays a central and pivotal secondary role that is, thankfully, not dragged out. Given that Jackson doesn’t cling onto any characters, be prepared for the death of some beloved characters.
Jackson has also clearly learnt from feedback received on The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Unlike the last film in the The Lord of the Rings trilogy where there were too many false endings, The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies has a clear ending which very nicely connects with the first film in this Hobbit trilogy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. There is also a sense of continuity between this trilogy and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which should make for a pleasant movie marathon for fans of the two trilogies.
Movie Rating:
(A film that wraps up the last of the Hobbit trilogy elegantly and connects the two Tolkien trilogies together, this film is a must-watch for all Tolkien fans)
Review by Katrina Tee
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