SYNOPSIS: Renowned warrior Yu Shu-Lien comes out of retirement to keep the legendary Green Destiny sword away from villianous warlord Hades Dai.
MOVIE REVIEW:
16 years have passed since Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon won four Oscars. Time and tide waits for no man thus not surprisingly, it comes across as a little too late and too little substance for this Yuen Woo-Ping’s helmed sequel entitled Sword of Destiny.
Funded by The Weinstein Company and released locally by Netflix, Sword of Destiny is set 18 years after the events of the first movie. The renowned female warrior Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) continues to mourn for the death of his beloved Li Mu Bai (played by Chow Yun-Fat but is too expensive to make a flashback cameo here). She leads a solitude life until the son of Sir Te engages her help to protect the Green Destiny, the powerful sword so desired by the villainous Hades Dai (Jason Scott Lee) of the West Lotus clan.
Knowing Lien will be outnumbered; Lien’s supposedly dead fiancé Silent Wolf (Donnie Yen) has been secretly lending her a hand and also recruiting volunteers to assist Lien in protecting the Green Destiny. While attempting to steal the sword, one of Hades’ henchmen, Wei-Fang (Harry Shum Jr) is captured by Lien and a mysterious young woman, Snow Vase (Natasha Liu Bordizzo). Who in the world are Snow Vase and Wei-Fang? Are they related? And will Shu Lien and Silent Wolf rekindle their long lost love?
The screenplay by John Fusco (The Forbidden Kingdom, Marco Polo) does no favour to the original Wang Du Lu’s acclaimed Iron Crane pentalogy. It sorely lacks the subtlety and elegance of its predecessor and Fusco’s script only exists to rush through the emotion, characters and replicating the magic of the first Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The characters of Snow Vase and Wei-Fang are obvious homage to Zhang Ziyi’s Jen and Chang Chen’s Lo though it’s pretty evident which pair of lovers will engage you in the end.
Making things worse is the English dialogue which makes the entire viewing experience suffocating. Even though Yeoh and Chow isn’t that proficient in Mandarin in the original at least it feels far more satisfying to sit through halting Chinese than English which is obviously an ill-match for a title that is set in ancient China. Remember RZA’s The Man with the Iron Fists anyone?
Yeoh continues to impress with her subdued thoughtful performance, as she is the only link left for audiences to connect back to the storyline. Action superstar Donnie Yen pathetically has little to shine in his role as Silent Wolf, in other words you probably love Li Mu Bai in his silky white robe than Silent Wolf’s cowboy disguise. Jason Scott Lee on the other hand has the thankless task of being the antagonist, a character that receives not much characterization except that he wants the sword and he is the foe of Silent Wolf.
If story is not a major concern in your selection, then you will also be disappointed by the unimaginative, tiring action choreography by Yuen and his team. In Sword of Destiny, you will not find any exhilarating pursuits among rooftops or breath-taking sword fights above treetop, all you have is a boring fight which took place on an artificial frozen lake and an incredible CGI-heavy climatic battle on a pagoda.
Honestly, this is not a wu xia movie that you will find yourself loving. There are many out there after the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon that much deserved your attention. You can swiftly conclude that this has neither the painful romance, thrilling action pieces or the honorable codes of swordsmen which nearly everyone around the world love in Ang Lee’s tale.
MOVIE RATING:
Review by Linus Tee
SYNOPSIS: When his long-lost outlaw father returns, Tommy "White Knife" Stockburn goes on an adventure-filled journey across the Old West with his five brothers.
MOVIE REVIEW:
Shortly before, Seth MacFarlane has just ruined the Western genre with his A Million Ways To Die In The West, now Adam Sandler decides to join in the fun as well with The Ridiculous 6.
Even for a lowbrow comedy,The Ridiculous 6 is a stinking turd. Devoid of any laughs and filled with plenty of offensive jibes, it is obvious why Sony and Warner decides to bail out of the production even before those controversy about native American cast members walking out of the set starts to emerge.
This supposedly Western spoof or satire has Sandler playing “White Knife”, a man adopted by the Indians who went on a journey to save his real father, Frank Stockburn (Nick Nolte) from the evil clutches of Cicero (Danny Tejo). And along his way, he managed to round up his other five half-brothers, Ramon (Rob Schneider), Lil’ Peter (Taylor Lautner), Herm (Jorge Garcia), Chico (Terry Crews) and Danny (Luke Wilson) to join him on the mission.
Don’t ask me why “White Knife” has a half black brother or a Mexican brother because Sandler likes to make fun of everybody except himself. He even finds time to mock the Chinese in an unnecessary long scene of baseball. The Native Indians especially got the worst of all with one character called “Never Wears Bra” and other involving sexual humor. I guess no decent native Indian wants to portray this character so Sandler’s real-life wife, Jackie has to play the role. Yup it’s all in the name of fun if you were to believe it.
It’s as if no one actually bother to come up with new jokes anymore that the gags portrayed here are often repetitive and juvenile. How many times do you need to see a burro pooping? Even Sandler himself looks liked he just got out of bed most of the time. No one is particularly working extra hard here except Taylor Lautner who shines as a nitwit and Harvey Keitel having a menacing time as Stockburn’s ex-crook partner Smiley.
The rest of the cast and countless cameos are friends and longtime members of Happy Madison that they just can’t wait to show up because of the easy fat paycheck and free beer. Believe it or not, Vanilla Ice shows up as Mark Twain. Steve Zahn (Sahara) and Will Forte (Nebraska) also appears though we still can’t tell who is who. Amazingly Chris Rock and Kevin James are missing however but we guess Rock is busy making racist jokes at the Oscar instead while James is recovering from the failure of Pixels.
This is practically the lowest point of Sandler’s career and this Netflix title will go down in history as his worst. MacFarlane can rest easy for now while he prepares Ted 3 or was Ted 2 a flop? Anyway, Sandler still has his Grown Ups 3 to rely on though this is not much of a consolation for the audiences.
MOVIE RATING:
Review by Linus Tee
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FUNG HARK-ON (冯克安) (1950 - 2016)Posted on 02 Mar 2016 |
Genre: Action/Comedy
Director: Peter Tsi
Cast: Eric Tsang, Bosco Wong, King Kong, Kate Tsui, Charmaine Fong, Lam Ka Tung, Jordan Chan, Stanley Fung, Elaine Jin, Yu On-on
Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Some Sexual References)
Released By: Shaw & Clover Films
Official Website:
Opening Day: 21 April 2016
Synopsis: Fei and Johnny are two rookie cops, raised in single-parent families. They are constantly bickering and can’t stand the presence of each other. Not only are they loggerheads at work, their lives further intertwined when each of their parent fell crazily in love and got married! Soon, the “brothers” are assign to investigate a murder case that leads them to a big conspiracy, where hilarious happenings await.
Movie Review:
TVB actors Bosco Wong and King Kong stars in this buddy cop comedy that is more about crude gags than a proper crime story.
Produced by Eric Tsang and completed back in 2012, Buddy Cops probably exist because Tsang was part of the key personnel coordinating TVB’s annual Chinese New Year title for the big screen. And why this title was shelved for three years? Simply it’s a very bad movie akin to a low-budgeted VOD title in the States.
Chan (Bosco) and Johnny (King Kong) are two misfits in the police force who simply don’t see eye to eye. The former is a hot tempered officer who gets into one trouble after another without solving any real cases. The latter on the other hand is a mama’s boy deskbound clerk and works more as a personal assistant to his high-ranking aunt (Candice Yu). When Chan’s dad (Stanley Fung) and Johnny’s mom (Elaine Jin) becomes an item, the unlikely duo becomes instant step-siblings overnight. Will they patch up their differences and live happily ever after?
Amidst all the silly family grouses, sex/masturbation jokes and references to Japanese porn, there is a villain in the form of a Mr Hung (Gordon Lam hamming up with black nail polish) appearing in the narrative. Mr Hung might be a philanthropist and property tycoon on the surface but he is also triad connected and linked to the murder of Chan’s buddy (Jordan Chan in a fleeting cameo).
However the script by Tsang and a bunch of others prefers to throw in two love interest for our leading men, the possessive Bessie (Charmaine Fong) and Petite Princess (an unrecognizable Kate Tsui) to worsen the already noisy affair that the entire arc about Mr Hung becomes more of an afterthought.
As if to convince the audience that Buddy Cops is still an action comedy, there’s a mostly play for laughs ten minutes fight and shoot-out in the end and a crazy car chase in the opening that is pretty exhilarating if not for the dodgy CGI. The rest of the running time is divided between Chan’s childish antics and King Kong’s surprise turn as a mild-mannered guy who is constantly being bullied by the former. Veteran Lo Hoi Pang finds time to play Bessie’s dad, a seemingly powerful triad figure that appears for no reason whatsoever other than giving face to producer Eric Tsang.
It’s no surprise that the HK movie industry is still in a slum when you have junks liked Buddy Cops. If you are in the mood for some worthy HK buddy cop action thriller, perhaps classics liked Curry and Pepper and Tiger on Beat can do the job, damn even Jackie Chan’s Rush Hour franchise looks way better.
Movie Rating:
(Cheap, pointless and silly, that’s what Buddy Cops is all about)
Review by Linus Tee
Genre: Thriller/War
Director: Gavin Hood
Cast: Aaron Paul, Alan Rickman, Helen Mirren, Phoebe Fox, Barkhad Abdi
Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Coarse Language and Violence)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://www.bleeckerstreetmedia.com/eyeinthesky
Opening Day: 7 April 2016
Synopsis: London-based military intelligence officer Colonel Katherine Powell is remotely commanding a top secret drone operation to capture a group of dangerous terrorists from their safe-house in Nairobi, Kenya. The mission suddenly escalates from a “capture” to a “kill” operation as Powell realizes that the terrorists are about to embark on a deadly suicide mission. From his base in Nevada, American drone pilot Steve Watts is poised to destroy the safe-house when a nine year old girl enters the kill zone just outside the walls of the house. With unforeseen collateral damage now entering the equation, the impossible decision of when to strike gets passed up the “kill chain” of politicians and lawyers as the seconds tick down. EYE IN THE SKY is a contemporary international thriller set in the shadowy world of remotely piloted drone warfare.
Movie Review:
Most action films and modern day war films nowadays rely on explosions and huge spectacle. However, Eye In The Sky does not fall into this category. This film does not depend on visual noise like a typical Zack Snyder or Michael Bay flick to engage audiences. Instead, throughout the entire film, suspense and tension are bombarded upon the audience while action beats are slowly built up and used sparingly. It is one hell of an intense ride.
Eye In The Sky takes place in present day, whereby the world leaders chooses to attack enemies using drones and without risking the lives of their own citizens. Colonel Katherine Powell (Helen Mirren) is a UK-based military officer in charge of a drone operation to capture terrorists in Kenya. Among the group are a radicalized British couple and a radicalized American. During the mission, Powell discovers the targets are planning a suicide bombing and the usage of the drone changes from being an eye in the sky to being a weapon; the mission from "capture" to "kill." A debate happens among the higher ups in London between Lt. General Frank Benson (played by the late Alan Rickman) and other worried politicians and legal representatives. Even when decisions are finalized and as American pilot Steve Watts (Aaron Paul) is allowed to engage, further problems occur. Explored through the questioning of moral compasses, political position, and personal implications, the film shows how though decisions, judgments and actions are made during one drone attack.
The opening sequence of director Gavin Hood’s X-Men outing, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, showed that he can handle war action really well. However the rest of the movie plus the mixed reviews of ‘Ender’s Game’ may leave one feeling doubtful about this movie. However, I can guarantee you, ‘Eye In The Sky’ is definitely his best work in recent years. The film is masterfully directed. Viewer’s eyes are glued to the screen due to the heavy dosage of tension sprawled throughout the film. Hood’s direction allow the film to have an intense pace and unique editing style of cutting back and forth from different points of views- whether is it the Kenya citizens living their lives, not realizing their eventual fate or the ongoing debate around the world about the firing of the drone missile. Whereas most films would choose to dwelve into the action immediately and glorify killing of enemies of the state (like the recent atrocity ‘London Has Fallen’), "Eye in the Sky" has an even mix of ethical decision-making and does not focus plainly on action. Hood at helm makes the drone mission seem large scale than covet and as if viewers are also brought into the moral dilemma. The momentum and tone suits the narrative of the film and every scene has its purpose on screen.
Credit must also be given to the writer, Guy Hibbert. The screenplay of the film could have gone to a route filled with clichés - more focused on the action, filled with one-liners. But it did not, which is a good thing. Every scene has a layer of realism and seriousness. This entrances audience into the film. The tension and suspense allows viewers to constantly guess what is happening. To avoid a complete wear down, the script does feature much humor in the form to allow viewers to breathe and calm down before heading to even more escalating intensity. Main characters are well developed and viewers sympathize with their plight while supporting roles though not as fleshed out are an added bonus to the script.
Speaking of characters, the acting here is what you can expect from all these cast filled with enormous talent. Academy Award winner Helen Mirren portrays the impatient Colonel Powell phenomenally. Viewers can see amidst all the sternness, Powell deeply understands the implications of her actions and does her best to protect her country. Agreeing to the actions of Colonel Powell is Lt. General Frank Benson who acts as her bridge to the higher ups. Benson is the late Alan Rickman’s final live action performance. Sidetracking a bit, younger fans will remember Rickman as Professor Snape in the ‘Harry Potter’ series and older fans will remember him as Hans Gruber in ‘Die Hard’. Whether is it an evil villain or a strict teacher, Rickman always delivers astounding and memorable performances. He is likewise great in ‘Eye In The Sky’. It is unfortunate for an actor, that caliber to pass away at a relatively young age of 69. May he rest in peace while his films live on and carry on his legacy as a filmmaker.
Not always agreeing and easy to work with Benson’s character, the other higher ups and legal representatives are played brilliantly by supporting actors which includes, Richard McCabe, Iain Glen, Jeremy Northam and many more. They serve as the comedic elements of the film and are also the characters feeling the most conflict. With political power at stake, they are the ones who green lights though decisions. The banter between these characters is interesting to watch and is a highlight of the film.
The third group of characters is those involved most directly in the war. Aaron Paul’s Steve Watts is the drone pilot who faces inner turmoil when he questions his own morality. Winning an Emmy for his work in ‘Breaking Bad’ already shows that Paul is talented. His talents are not wasted here, as his character is one that people most sympathize with. His copilot, Carrie Gershon (Phoebe Fox) elevates his character. Lastly, Jama Farah, played by recently Academy Award Nominated actor, Barkhad Abdi, steals the film for me. As Muse in ‘Captain Philips’, we already knew Abdi is going places in his career most would only dream of. As Farah, we can easily confirm that. Barkhad Abdi is the highlight of the film and one to look out for in the future.
The film also marvels on a technical standpoint. Other than the aforementioned editing style, there is also well shot cinematography. The cinematography by Haris Zambarloukos is swift and well lit during scenes in Kenya, allowing audiences to feel urgency as well as to notice the surroundings carefully. Scenes taking place in military bases and drone control centers have a claustrophobic atmosphere whereby viewers can feel the characters uneasiness while doing their jobs. The scenes taking place during political discussions in London and overseas, namely Singapore and China reemphasize how the mission operates on a global scale. The only gripes I have with the shots are those from drones and gadgetry used by the military. Some of these shots are questionably too clear in real life but it could be that technology has advanced too such pristine levels. The riveting score by Paul Hepker and Mark Kilian also complements the cinematography.
Eye In The Sky is definitely one of the best war films made recently.It is an ensemble film and just like in the film, whereby Colonel Powell leads the work of many individuals excellently, Gavin Hood also excellently directs the ensemble. The transition to the action at the end is well built up to and paid off with intense suspense and gripping tension. Moreover, the film highlights numerous themes. Not only serving as an opportunely timed reminder of the cruel consequences of modern warfare, the film also highlights the difficulty of those protecting the lives of citizens of different countries behind the scenes. Alan Rickman’s last line in the film reiterates the theme no better, “Never tell a solider he doesn't know the cost of war. Eye In The Sky is a film that will not only leave you clinging at the edge of your seat but also stir up your emotions, leaving you questioning your own morals, wondering what will you do if you were the characters in the film.
Movie Rating:
(Eye In The Sky is a unique and realistic modern war film, which offers a 102 minutes of tension, complex underlying themes, a strong ensemble cast and a masterpiece of a final performance from the late, Alan Rickman)
Review by Celestine Pang
Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Lok Man Leung, Kim-Ching Luk
Cast: Chow Yun Fat, Aaron Kwok, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Eddie Peng, Charlie Young, Janice Man, Aarif Rahman, Yo Yang, Bibi Zhou, Fan Zibo, Wu Yue, Chang Kuo Chu
Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence)
Released By: Encore Films & Golden Village Pictures
Official Website:
Opening Day: 8 July 2016
Synopsis: “Cold War”, the codename for the rescue operation of the five kidnapped police officers, is deemed a partial success. Despite the political outcry, the risky rescue led by Acting Police Commissioner Sean Lau (Aaron Kwok) gains him promotion to the highest rank in the police force, yet causes Deputy Police Commissioner Waise Lee (Tony Leung Ka Fai) his reputable career. Joe Lee (Eddie Peng), son of Waise and the sole suspect of the kidnapping, is captured and taken into custody. The case remains an unsolved mystery, and Sean is hell-bent on uncovering the details.
Sean’s family gets in the crossfire, forcing him to make the toughest decision of his life: exchange Joe’s freedom for his family’s safety. With his career now on the line, Sean faces an impeachment proceeding that includes Osward Kan (Chow Yun Fat), an influential senior counsel and an independent member of the judicial council. He becomes the key figure in determining Sean’s fate, and it is unknown whether he is friend or foe. Sean’s adversaries within the police force, in an attempt to bring down his career, are desperate to get Osward on their side. With enemies moving from the street and into the political arena, the real kingpin, who has been lurking in the dark all along, is slowly bringing his masterplan into play.
Movie Review:
Not since ‘Infernal Affairs’ has a born-and-bred Hong Kong police thriller like ‘Cold War’ resonated with critics and audiences alike, which broke new ground for the familiar crime procedural by fusing strong character drama, thrilling gunplay and gripping political machinations into a taut and thought-provoking actioner. Despite taking four years to arrive, this sequel again co-directed by Longman Leung and Sunny Luk picks up immediately following the events of its predecessor, opening with a grand send-off by the Hong Kong Police Force for Gordon Lam’s deceased Senior Superintendent Albert Kwong and a solemn reminder by Aaron Kwok’s Police Commissioner Sean Lau at the funeral proper of the Force’s public service obligations. And yet, it is Commissioner Lau himself whose convictions will be put to the test when he receives a call right after from a masked assailant holding his wife captive and demanding the release of Eddie Peng’s disgraced cop Joe Lee.
Until it became clear that his very son Joe was behind the missing Emergency Unit (EU) van and the hostage crisis which precipitated the titular operation previously, Tony Leung Ka-fai’s Deputy Commissioner of Police Operations M.B. Lee was vying for the top post with then-Deputy Commissioner of Police Management Sean Lau (Aaron Kwok), the former beloved by rank-and-file while the latter unpopular for his bureaucratic actions and attitude. Not only did he eventually turn his son in, M.B. Lee also announced that he would be stepping down to take responsibility for Joe’s misdeeds, thus paving the way for Sean to assume the role of Commissioner. Not that Sean therefore has it easy – after breaking protocol by transferring Joe to Police HQ from prison and then letting him slip away amidst a bomb scare at a crowded MTR station, the newly-minted Commissioner finds himself in the crosshairs of a judiciary committee appointed by the territory’s Legislative Council.
That is where Leung and Luk, who co-wrote the script with Jack Ng, insert the highest profile addition to the ensemble cast. None other than Chow Yun-fat is the retired High Court judge Oswald Kan, who signs up for the committee after being persuaded by Justice Secretary Edward Lai (Waise Lee). Kan objects to Sean’s methods, but suspects there is a much bigger plot when M.B. Lee upsets the impeachment proceedings on day one with surprise allegations of corruption against Sean. Indeed, M.B. Lee himself is courted by former police chief Peter Choi (Chang Kuo-chu), who reveals that he and a bunch of other influential politicians have slowly but surely been tightening their screws on a masterplan aimed at securing political control of Hong Kong, one that involves installing the next Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Zone and Lee as the Police Commissioner. And oh, if it isn’t clear by now, Joe was simply doing Peter’s bidding all along.
But more than the web of conspiracy that will once again force the Force’s senior officers to take sides between Sean and M.B. Lee, the intrigue here belongs to the latter’s motivations, which remain fascinatingly ambiguous as a result of both tight plotting and Tony Leung’s riveting performance. Does M.B. Lee covet authority so much that he would agree to be a pawn in a larger nefarious scheme? Or is he only going along with the plan insofar as he needs to in order to bring its perpetrators to justice eventually? His allegiance is teased and tested throughout the entire film, even as a surprising series of twists and turns ups the stakes in his rivalry with Sean as well as his loyalty to a group of former Special Forces men (with Yo Yang playing their leader) whom have literally come back from the dead to do the dirty work necessary for his eventual ascension to power.
Compared to M.B. Lee, Sean is a much more straightforward character, so whereas the former is confronted with a test of integrity, it is Sean’s wits that are tested here, relying on a small but trusted team including Charlie Young’s PR head Phoenix Leung and Aarif Rahman’s ICAC officer Billy Cheung to stay ahead of his opponents before he is ousted in the same way that he had previously done to M.B. Lee. For the most part, the cat-and-mouse game between the two rival factions is tense and captivating, boasting a much more tightly plotted second half than its predecessor as it hurtles towards an explosive showdown that packs both visceral and emotional thrills. In particular, there is a much better grasp of the political overtones that became too overt and didactic the last time round, even as the intersection between the police and the legislative authorities is more pronounced here.
Just as accomplished is the action, once again directed by veteran Chin Kar-lok (who reduces his involvement to behind-the-scenes), especially a thrilling high-speed vehicular chase into a long, narrow underground tunnel that morphs into an intense shootout with course-changing implications for at least two of the key characters. And so, it is with the same mix of elements, combined with a tighter narrative, that makes ‘Cold War 2’ just as tense and poignant as its predecessor was. Even though one wishes that Chow had a bigger part to play at the end and that the door to a potential sequel were not so blatantly opened with a cop-out last scene (don’t worry, no spoilers here), this is as brilliant and accomplished a sequel as one would expect to one of the best Hong Kong crime thrillers of recent years. Oh, Andy Lau doesn’t return for this sequel if you’re wondering, but between Aaron Kwok and Tony Leung Ka-fai, there is enough star wattage for this sequel to truly pop.
Movie Rating:
(As much a battle of wits as of character, 'Cold War 2' follows its predecessor's formula of fusing strong character drama, thrilling gunplay and gripping political machinations into a taut and thought-provoking crime thriller)
Genre: Comedy/Action/Supernatural
Director: Paul Feig
Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jone, Charles Dance, Michael Kenneth Williams, Chris Hemsworth
Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins
Rating: PG (Some Frightening Scenes)
Released By: Sony Pictures Releasing International (Singapore)
Official Website: http://www.ghostbusters.com
Opening Day: 14 July 2016
Synopsis: Thirty years after the original film took the world by storm, Ghostbusters is back and fully rebooted for a new generation. Director Paul Feig combines all the paranormal fighting elements that made the original franchise so beloved with a cast of new characters, played by the funniest actors working today. Get ready to watch them save the world this summer!
Movie Review:
Like Stars Wars: The Force Awakens, Ghostbusters (2016) is a movie both boosted and constrained by fans’ nostalgia and faithfulness. Unlike Star Wars: The Force Awakens though, Ghostbusters (2016) was delivered a death sentence by fans (or should I simply call them Internet trolls?) even before it was released. Internet trolls came out in full to complain that the gender reversal of the quartet would be completely ruin the franchise, destroy their beloved childhood memories through retroactive wrapping of the time-space continuum even before watching the movie.
And the trolls were wrong. Ghostbusters 2016 isn’t perfect but it’s still pretty funny and way better than Ghostbusters 2 (now that movie ruined the franchise, creating the need for a reboot to revitalise the franchise).
In an ironically clairvoyant stroke, Ghostbusters 2016 is a movie about letting go of the need for approval from society. While the struggle for approval is most acutely manifested in Erin Gilbert (played by Kristen Wiig) who struggles with being laughed and not accepted by those in academia, the entire team gets its fair share of rejection and flak. While the 1984 Ghostbusters team montaged their way to fame, the new Ghostbusters get publicly disavowed by the mayor and sneered at as fakes by Internet trolls.
The movie’s worst moments were when it stopped to pay homage to the 1984 movie with familiar faces being trotted out for applause and gasps of recognition and great effort in incorporating the logo one way or another in a “wink-wink we know what we are paying obeisance to” falsely subtle references. It seems that director Paul Feig is sometimes caught between nodding respectfully to the past and revolutionising the franchise by making this movie stand on its own.
Putting aside the baggage that the movie has and watching it as a standalone, Ghostbusters 2016 is a delightful comedy where the four female leads are given equal amount of funny material. No one performance dominates the movie although Kate McKinnon comes close to doing so with her magnificent turn as the in-house eccentric madhatter who gleefully whips up ghost-busting weapons with a crazed look and sputters scripted gobbledygook with a playful air. Considering how women have been typecast as not being able to pull off a non-romance comedy and the higher-than-usual standards that the women have to cross to prove their worth as comedians, they are way funnier and more polished than many male comedians. And that is precisely what makes Ghostbusters 2016 such great fun.
More than being a comedy, Ghostbusters 2016 is also a female-friendship movie (think the female equivalent of a bromance film) but without the stereotypical crying, tussle over boyfriends and jealousy feuds ala Mean Girls.
Overall, Feig directs this with finesse. While some of the tributes to the 1984 version of Ghostbusters may slightly trip one up, the nostalgia is not too heavy and there’s nothing musty about the 2016 Ghostbusters. The movie glows with vitality as the cast revels in each other’s company with some of their dialogue have a loopy vibe that is completely natural and comes across as unscripted. Such as when they take a break from their heroine antics of saving innocent members of the public for an impromptu reverie, sweeping us into the goofy moment and making us feel like we are part of the team.
Movie Rating:
(The women in Ghostbusters 2016 prove that women can be funny. Get over it, Internet trolls)
Review by Katrina Tee
Genre: CG Animation
Director: Fergal Reilly, Clay Kaytis
Cast: Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Kate McKinnon, Bill Hader, Peter Dinklage, Keegan-Michael Key, Tony Hale, Tituss Burgess, Ike Barinholtz, Hannibal Buress, Blake Shelton, Jillian Bell, Danielle Brooks
Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: Sony Pictures Releasing International (Singapore)
Official Website: http://www.angrybirds-movie.com/en/
Opening Day: 26 May 2016
Synopsis: In the 3D animated comedy, The Angry Birds Movie, we'll finally find out why the birds are so angry. The movie takes us to an island populated entirely by happy, flightless birds – or almost entirely. In this paradise, Red (Jason Sudeikis, We're the Millers, Horrible Bosses), a bird with a temper problem, speedy Chuck (Josh Gad in his first animated role since Frozen), and the volatile Bomb (Danny McBride, This is the End, Eastbound and Down) have always been outsiders. But when the island is visited by mysterious green piggies, it’s up to these unlikely outcasts to figure out what the pigs are up to.
Movie Review:
Who would have thought that a video game app which lets you use a digital slingshot to hurl angry, flightless birds at green pigs who have stolen their eggs would become such a phenomenon five years ago? And who would have thought that after fading from public consciousness for some time, these non-aeronautic feathered creatures and their enemies would re-surface in similar bright, colour-rich palette form in an animated big-screen feature, voiced by a first-rate voice cast including no less than Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Peter Dinklage and Sean Penn? Considering how you’re probably not expecting this to be the next ‘Inside Out’ or even ‘The Lego Movie’, ‘The Angry Birds Movie’ is really more fun and entertaining than it has any right to be.
Even as it tries to give its most ardent fans an answer to the question ‘But, why are they so… so angry’, let’s be clear that the screenplay by veteran television writer Jon Vitti (of ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘The Larry Sanders Show’) does not go very far beyond the basic birds-versus-pigs premise of his source material and is basically summed up in the following few lines. Once upon a time, there was an island of happy birds whose eggs were stolen by little green pigs who arrive by ship from distant Piggy Island. No thanks to the marauding pigs, the birds decide to embrace their angry side as they wage a battle against the pigs to rescue their eggs. And because the birds could not fly, they eventually use a giant slingshot left as a gift from the pigs to launch themselves onto the island, discovering their hidden powers (such as exploding or inflating upon impact) in the process.
Not surprisingly, the hero of the story is Red (Sudeikis), an irascible odd bird in an otherwise jolly community, who is sentenced to anger management class with New Age-y therapist Matilda (Rudolph) after a bout of avian rage against a demanding customer. Red’s fellow classmates include the hyperactive yellow canary Chuck (Gad), the inadvertently explosive blackbird Bomb (McBride) and the massive growling big bird Terence (Penn). It is Red who first voices suspicion about their eventual green-sized arch-nemeses when they land on the island pretending to bear gifts and goodwill, and who will eventually lead his community to war when they realise how foolish they were to be taken by the pigs’ slimy charm, especially that of their charismatic, sweet-talking leader Leonard (Bill Hader).
Livening up the straightforward narrative are plenty of DreamWorks-inflected, pop-culture “savvy” jokes that are surprisingly witty and inspired. Red’s anger management instructor Matilda describes herself as a “free-rage chicken”. A fellow avian who stands outside his house offering free hugs to passers-by is called out for being weird and disturbing. Chuck’s painting during one of the classes is a self-portrait of him as a superhero as he dashes in front and behind his canvas. But perhaps most diverting of all is Red’s quest to locate the birds’ legendary enigmatic guardian Mighty Eagle (Dinklage), whose Lake of Wisdom turns out to be his own personal urinal and which their encounter turns out to be a clever lesson against the pitfalls of hero worship.
Thanks to first-time feature directors Clay Katis and Fergal Reilly (who have been longtime studio animators at Disney), the visuals are as appealing and delightful as can be. Much attention and care has been devoted to the character design of the birds – from their shape, size and colour to their eyes and even their feather textures – so that each is distinctive in its own right. The always bright-coloured animation is often eye-popping, filled with a cornucopia of details big and small. And parents will be glad to know that the directors have gotten the pace and tone just right to keep the kids thoroughly engaged, without ever tipping into hyper-active mode like Saturday-morning toons are oft to do.
In fact, those looking for more than just an animated joyride will find a surprisingly unusual moral takeaway about channelling that anger inside of us in constructive ways, especially when it comes to getting even. There is even a lesson or two about colonialism and the compromises of mutual accommodation in a civil society, which is frankly more than we’d ever expected from a mobile-gaming app’s origin story. Thanks to a smart-aleck script that is always amusing and occasionally downright hilarious, as well as top-flight animation and voicework, ‘The Angry Birds Movie’ is a fast, fizzy and furiously entertaining big-screen adaptation that will surely be the first of several more to come. So what if it isn’t interactive? If it is this exuberant, we’d gladly sit back and watch them birds fly.
Movie Rating:
(Packed with witty pop-culture savvy jokes and told with a delightfully irreverent spirit, this big-screen adaptation of the once-insanely popular mobile gaming app is fast, fizzy, and furious fun)
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Drama
Director: Steve Yuen
Cast: Jacky Cheung, Karena Lam, Anthony Wong, Wong He, Law Lan
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Rating: M18
Released By: Clover Films and Golden Village Pictures
Official Website:
Opening Day: 7 April 2016
Synopsis: After sharing a passionate kiss with Pastor To, Michelle files sexual harassment charges against the pastor. The scandal and the proceedings take their toll on both of them in different ways. When they meet again years after, To and Michelle both realize that truth and absolution was never the ultimate destination.
Movie Review:
Like books, some stage plays are better left untouched by filmmakers. We’re sure you can easily rattle off a list of movie adaptations of novels which have done nothing but left you in frustration (whether the Twilight movies are good examples remain highly debatable).
Here, we have Steve Yuen bringing lots of talk, talk, and more talk onto the silver screen. Based on Hong Kong playwright Candace Chong’s 2006 award winning play “The French Kiss”, it is evident that the 99 minute film was written for the stage. You can imagine the bare sets required for the different scenes, because the focus of the story is on the two characters. The frequent flashback sequences are also a storytelling technique theatre goers are familiar with. Not that these should dissuade you to watch the movie though, because there are some truly thought provoking issues explored.
The film introduces us to the two leads at a party: To (the underrated Jacky Cheung) is a pastor turned businessman, while Michelle (Karena Lam, who has matured gracefully over the years) looks like an established figure of the high society. Then we find out that the two go way back, and before we know it, we are thrown into the murky territories where morality and truth intertwine dangerously. In the mix is a seemingly consensual French kiss on a drunken night out that turns the two individuals’ lives upside down.
Cheung and Lam reunite on the film set after costarring in the heartrending July Rhapsody 14 years ago. Incidentally, the film directed by Ann Hui had Cheung’s high school teacher going through a midlife crisis and falling in love with his student played by Lam. In their latest work, you can see instant chemistry between the two as the relationship between the two shifts from one end of the scale to the other.
Cheung, who’s nominated in the Best Actor category at the 35th Hong Kong Film Awards (Aaron Kwok took home the prize for playing a grizzled cop in Philip Yung’s Port of Call) delivers a performance you can identify with. This is a man who struggles with who he really is, and smiles while living up to his esteemed reputation. The God of Songs can act as well as he sings.
Lam (a Best Actress nominee at the 35th Hong Kong Film Awards who lost to Port of Call’s Jessie Li), who makes us believe that she is the doe eyed young girl in the scenes which take place earlier in the story’s timeline, is also superb with displaying her emotions. The final scene of “revelation” will have you wondering whether a strong faith is really what it takes to be human.
Yuen, who is Lam’s real life husband, has two great actors to tell this morality tale. In the hands of a less able cast, viewers will probably be bored stiff. There is also an interesting ensemble cast of supporting actors: Anthony Wong, Wong Hei, Law Lan and Edmond So. These recognisable names also give terrific performances.
At the end of the day, we were unsure who the victim in the story was. How does emotional manipulation, moral judgments, and this holier than thou thing called truth come into place? What we are pretty sure of though, is that behind the polished and happy fronts, humanity can be a lonely, dark and shady path we all have to take.
Movie Rating:
(Jacky Cheung and Karena Lam are superb in this murky morality tale)
Review by John Li
Considering the success of Walt Disney Animated Classic’s 55th animated feature, you probably have been bombarded by the movie’s soundtrack single “Try Everything” performed by Columbian superstar Shakira. You must also have realised how sunny and catchy this kid friendly tune is. And if you haven’t noticed, the song is dripping with optimism - just check out the lyrics co written by Sia.
"I won't give up, no I won't give in/ ’Til I reach the end and then I'll start again/ No I won't leave, I wanna try everything/ I wanna try even though I could fail"
The three minute track is probably chosen to open the 62 minute soundtrack album to draw marketing dollars, but the real gem here (for score fans, at least) is definitely Michael Giacchino’s composition.
The 48 year old American composer is the man behind some of the most recognised music for Hollywood’s biggest titles: Mission Impossible III (2006), Star Trek (2009), Super 8 (2011) and Jurassic World (2015). And then there are his works for the Pixar films: 2007’s Ratatouille, 2009’s Up (for which he won an Academy Award for Best Original Score), Cars 2 (2011) and Inside Out (2015). So we were really looking forward to what the multiple award winning composer would do with animated talking animals - and we were not let down.
There is a generous amount of score material on this CD. The ominous and percussion heavy “Stage Fright” is an odd piece to start with. After the brief setup, things get a little scarier with “Grey’s Uh Mad At Me”. You realise things Disney’s got things in place when the cue eventually transits into a emotionally fulfilling melody.
Giacchino shows his talent at diversity in this soundtrack - there’s the fun and parade worthy “Ticket to Write”, the gospel inspired “Jumbo Pop Hustle”, the hypnotically bohemian “The Naturalist” and the Italian mafia inspired “Mr Big”. There are also adventure cues like “Hopps Goes (After) the Weasel”, tension filled tracks like “Some of my Best Friends are Predators” and upbeat moments like “Gotta Get to the ZPD”.
There is much variety on showcase in Giacchino’s music, although you wish they would last a little longer. To get a sample of everything, jump straight to “Suite from Zootopia” for a glimpse of his talent. Give this CD a few listens, and you’ll be in awe of how great it plays on its own, independent of the film visuals.
ALBUM RATING:
Recommended Track: (22) Suite from Zootopia
Review by John Li
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