MICHAEL NYQVIST (1960 - 2017) Posted on 28 Jun 2017 Swedish actor Michael Nyqvist known as the villian from Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol has sadly passed away at the age of 56 of lung cancer. Born Rolf Åke Mikael Nyqvist on Nov. 8, 1960 in Stockholm, he was educated at the School of Drama in Malmö. He apparently caught the acting bug when, at age 17, he traveled to Omaha, Neb., for one year as an exchange student. Nyqvis ... more

Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Jung Byung-gil, Jung Byeong-sik
Cast: Kim Ok-vin, Kim Seo-Hyung, Shin Ha-Kyun, Bang Sung-Jun
Runtime: 2 hrs 9 mins
Rating: M18 (Violence)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures 
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 13 July 2017

Synopsis: Since she was a little girl, Sook-hee was brought up to become a deadly assassin. She gets a second chance in life when South Korea’s Intelligence Agency’s Chief Kwon recruits her to become a sleeper cell. Her new identity is Chae Yeon-soo, 27 years old, theater actress. With a promise of complete freedom after serving the country for 10 years, Sook-hee begins a new life. For someone who lived a life of a killer, living a normal life is no easy task. But when 2 men appear in her life suddenly, she uncovers secrets of her past…

Movie Review:  

‘The Villainess’ begins with a giddy six-minute long, single-take opening sequence shot and seen largely from a first-person perspective. The fact that we are given literally no prior context as to how and why this is unfolding is proof of the confidence that writer-director Jung Byung-gil has in the sequence per se; and boy oh boy is it breathtaking to watch. Beginning with some 50 to 60 gangsters in identical dark suits being slashed, stabbed, hacked, punched and kicked along along a narrow corridor, the action moves into a gym with about half that number of growling bruisers, where finally we get to see just who has been doing all that bloodletting. Surprise, surprise, it is a woman no less, fuelled ostensibly by unbridled rage, who finishes her spree by wrapping a climbing rope around the neck of the last of her enemies left standing, leaping out of the window while grabbing one end of it, and landing safely onto the rain-drenched alley some three stories below.

If that made you go ‘wow’, then writer-director Jung Byung-gil’s brutal revenge thriller will be right up your alley (pun intended); but if you found yourself nonplussed, then you frankly need not bother with this action-driven star vehicle. Indeed, despite an elaborate backstory that explains just how our eponymous female protagonist Sook-hee (Kim Ok-vin) acquired her skills and accumulated her belly of vengeance, ‘The Villainess’ really exists for its dynamic action sequences – a thrilling motorcycle chase in the dark of night midway through the film which has her fending off five other masked assailants with swords, while riding at breakneck pace down a highway tunnel; and last but not least, a bravura showdown that sees her duelling mano-a-mano with her arch-nemesis using a pair of long knives, drive an SUV with the back of her hand while perched on its hood, jump onto the back of a speeding bus and finally hack everyone else on board who stands in her way.

Although we’ve seen such similar brutal one-on-one/ one-against-many fights in other genre actioners such as ‘The Raid’ and ‘John Wick’, Jung amplifies the intensity of Kwon Gui-duck’s choreographed action with his preference for handheld camerawork, POV shots and rapid-fire editing that puts you in the heart of the action. It does make who’s attacking who a little less easy to figure out from shot to shot, but there is no denying that the experience is a lot more visceral and even edge-of-your-seat gripping. Between the three major elaborate action sequences are a handful of smaller but nonetheless exciting ones, including a break-in cum assassination at a mansion that precedes the motorcycle chase as well as a botched assignment that has Sook-hee and a fellow female agent dressed up as geishas attempting to steal some information off two cut-throats in a traditional Japanese restaurant.

To Jung’s credit, the narrative in between the fights isn’t just meant as filler; on the contrary, Jung tries to work up our sympathies for Sook-hee in a story that resembles Luc Besson’s ‘La Femme Nikita’ in more ways than one, what with Sook-hee being blackmailed into enrolling as a secret agent for the Korean government in exchange for a normal life with her daughter Eun-hye and eventually falling in love with a regular neighbourhood guy Hyun-soo (Bang Sung-jun) after graduating from agent school. As it turns out, Sook-hee isn’t a villainess after all, not even an anti-hero, but a victim of her circumstances: through multiple fragmented flashbacks, we learn how Sook-hee as a child witnessed her father being shot and bludgeoned in the head while hiding under her bed, was subsequently rescued and trained as an assassin by mafia boss Joong-sang (Shin Ha-kyun) and eventually comes to marry him. It is Joong-sang’s apparent death at the hands of a rival criminal organisation that sets Sook-hee off on her rampage at the start, but it isn’t any surprise that he will turn up in the middle act to threaten the new life she tries to build with Hyun-soo and her daughter Eun-hye.

Derivative though it may be, the plot at least remains involving throughout during the quiet, bloodless moments. Credit for that belongs as much, if not more so, to Kim, best known before this for toplining Park Chan-wook’s ‘Thirst’ – the petite actress not only gives an impressively physical performance, but calibrates her emotional range affectingly to switch between a cold-blooded killer, a vicious fighter, a loving mother and a cautious but caring girlfriend in the course of the film. As calculated as the scenes between Hyun-soo and Eun-hye may be to get us to appreciate Sook-hee as a normal human being driven by the desire to have a normal family and a simple life, they are no doubt effective thanks to the tender chemistry between Kim and Bang, which keeps you invested in the budding romance developing between them. The other supporting players are also well-cast, including Kim Seo-hyung as Sook-hee’s no-nonsense handler Chief Kwon and Shin as the manipulative, unconscionable villain you’d love for Sook-hee to exact bloody vengeance on.

But credible though the acting and engaging though the narrative may be, ‘The Villainess’ ultimately exists as a showcase of the heights of Korean action cinema, which is most likely how it had landed a slot at the coveted Cannes’ Midnight Screenings last year. True enough, the two set-pieces which bookend the film and the motorbike chase in the middle are inventively conceived/ choreographed and impeccably executed. It is also a testament to Kim’s own hard work, who performed all the stunts herself during a gruelling 70-day shoot. Like we said before, how much you enjoy ‘The Villainess’ will depend on your appetite for brutal and bloody action; but if you’re a fan of such hardcore, gritty stuff, you’ll surely be in for a treat.

Movie Rating:

(The brutal and bloody action set-pieces are inventively conceived/ choreographed and impeccably executed, which is probably all you need to know if 'The Villainess' is the type of movie you'll enjoy)

Review by Gabriel Chong

Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Stephen Fung
Cast: Andy Lau, Shu Qi, Zhang Jingchu, Yo Yang,  Sha Yi, Eric Tsang, Jean Reno
Runtime: 1 hr 47 mins
Rating: PG (Some Violence)
Released By: Warner Bros
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 31 August 2017

Synopsis: Sophisticated burglar Dan Zhang (Andy Lau) walks out of prison after a three-year term. Dan reunites with his wingman Po (Yo Yang), an expert in computer hacking and weaponry. They are soon joined by Red (Shu Qi), a beautiful and intelligent chameleon. The trio cleverly find their way into a star-studded charity auction and successfully steal priceless jewels under the surveillance of Pierre (Jean Reno), a hard-boiled French detective who sent Dan to jail three years earlier. Dan goes to find help from his surrogate father Kong (Eric Tsang), an unscrupulous and ruthless crime boss who commissioned the heist. Kong assigns Dan a new mission. Meanwhile, Pierre tracks down Amber (Zhang Jingchu), Dan’s girlfriend before he was sent to prison, and convinces her to help him find Dan. From Cannes to Prague across the European continent, Dan and his team search for the jewels while playing a game of cat and mouse with Pierre. As the final confrontation ensues, Dan’s true agenda surfaces...

Movie Review:

As far as caper/ heist films are concerned, ‘The Adventurers’ is a breezy, enjoyable but ultimately unremarkable entry to the genre. All the trademark elements are here – the exotic European locations that span Cannes, Prague and Kiev; the impressive high-tech gizmos to override the most sophisticated security systems as well as to get into places no human could ever fit into; and last but not least the code of honour among thieves, which not only drives the narrative but also defines the relationship between our central trio played by Andy Lau, Tony Yang and Shu Qi – yet director and co-writer Stephen Fung’s Chinese makeover of a classic Hollywood staple comes off too familiar and predictable by the time it is done with its double-crosses and shootouts.

The story begins with Lau’s career thief Dan Zhang after a five-year stint in prison for stealing the prized ‘Eye of the Forest’ artefact from the Louvre Museum, which we are informed in a snazzy prologue is one of three pieces that form a precious necklace called ‘GAIA’. Dan is greeted upon his release by the French detective Pierre (Jean Reno), who warns him that he will be closely watched. Shortly after slipping away from one of Pierre’s associates, Dan assembles his wingman Po (Yang) and hotshot recruit Red (Shu Qi) to steal another part of ‘GAIA’ – and it isn’t any spoiler that they eventually make off with the ‘Wings of Destiny’. The third and final piece ‘Rope of Life’ happens to be in the possession of a nouveau riche Chinese oligarch Charlie (Sha Yi) living up in a castle in Prague, and before Dan makes off with it and presumably disappears into the sunset, Pierre brings in Dan’s former fiancée Amber (Zhang Jingchu) to help apprehend him – the latter apparently still being resentful at Dan for not telling her about his criminal profession.

It isn’t hard to guess that Fung has built his movie around a series of action sequences – the posh Cannes hotel where a livid outdoor demonstration against animal fur is taking place at the same time as an auction for the ‘Wings of Destiny’ is ongoing within; the sprawling castle that Dan and Po will infiltrate in order to steal the ‘Rope of Life’ while Red exercises her seductive charms to get Charlie’s fingerprints; a quad chase through the woods surrounding the castle immediately following the break-in; and finally, the climactic showdown in an abandoned factory in Kiev where Dan will confront the person who betrayed him to the authorities five years ag, and where one of the other key players will come to choose his or her loyalty. Each one of these set-pieces is nicely choreographed and expertly executed, although the last one is a little less exciting than it needs to be to end the movie on a thrilling high, paling even in comparison to the earlier ones that precede it.

Whereas the sleekly performed stunts and the impressive gadgetry appeal on a visceral level, it is the characters involved and their stakes which make these sequences emotionally stimulating. Sadly, that is sorely lacking here, which is a result of the sketchy character work. The tension between Dan and Amber is hardly developed before it is resolved; ditto the budding attraction between Po and Red. We are primed for an intriguing cop-versus-robber dynamic between Dan and Pierre, but that sense of respect for the two individuals on diametrically opposite sides of the law is never quite established compellingly. Same goes for the relationship between Dan and his former mentor Kong (Eric Tsang), given how Kong sees Dan as having betrayed him for wanting out to settle down with Amber five years ago. That no less than four writers, including Fung himself, had worked on the script makes it even more disappointing that the characters are so one-dimensional in and of themselves as well as next to one another, relying instead on the sheer chemistry of the actors to give them pizzazz.

Not that the cast isn’t up to it – Lau is as charismatic and suave as he’s ever been, perhaps even more so than Tom Cruise was in any one of the ‘Mission Impossible’ movies; Qi is at her playful and sexy charming best; and character actors Reno and Tsang lend solid supporting turns to anchor the picture. As far as fun is concerned, there is definitely much to embrace in their lively performances. There is also much escapist pleasure to be had watching them elude and delude their way around their targets, often set to a jazzy, upbeat score by Tuomas Kantelinen. And as beautiful as the European locales themselves are, it is also to Shane Hurlbut’s credit that the movie looks as visually gorgeous as it does. Like we said at the start, ‘The Adventurers’ knows the tropes of the genre and performs them flawlessly; but without an engaging plot and/or characters we can root for, it remains a solid but unremarkable entry into the well-trod caper genre. 

Movie Rating:

(The locations are exotic, the cast is pleasing, and the heists slick and exciting; and as long as you're just looking for some breezy but forgettable escapist fun, 'The Adventurers' will do just fine)

Review by Gabriel Chong

SYNOPSIS: Based on real life experiences of a journalist embedded in the Middle East, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot follows Kim Barker, a Chicago Tribune journalist reporting on Operation Enduring freedom. Tina Fey stars as Barker in this sardonic look at the simultaneously harrowing and darkly absurd early days of the war in Afghanistan. The horrors of I.E.D.s and airstrikes are tempered with a love story that could only happen in a conflict zone when Barker falls for a fellow journalist gunning for the first scoop on the fast unfolding war.

MOVIE REVIEW:

For a movie that stars the sharp-witted and talented Tina Fey (30 Rock, Date Night) and based on a memoir by real-life journalist Kim Barker, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot unfortunately never quite hit the mark. Neither insightful nor exactly rib tickling, it wastes the opportunity to delve deeper into the subject matter and Fey’s character even with a generous running time of two hours.    

Fey stars as Kim Baker, a deskbound journalist who decides to take on an assignment as a war correspondent in Afghanistan to escape her current mundane job. Staying in a heavily protected living quarter with other international journalists, Baker finds comfort in the company of an alpha male bodyguard Nic (Steve Peacocke), driver/translator Fahim (Christopher Abbot), UK news reporter Tanya (Margot Robbie) and freelance Scottish photographer Iain (Martin Freeman) as she maneuvers her way through local politics, customs, an on-and-off love relationship and the disillusioned of her new job.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is more about the life of Kim Baker than the atrocities of war despite the initial promise of terrorism and the danger of being a journalist in a war zone area. Most of the fish-out-of-water jokes liked Baker putting herself in dangerous situations and gawking at her well-built bodyguard wears thin after 30 minutes or so. The movie literally fumbles and drags its way to the finishing line as we struggles together with Baker as she attempts to find meaning in her life.

With the exception of a pretty intense scene, which has Baker hidden in a Burka to film a religious demonstration secretly and a closing chapter in which we sees the latter baring her feelings to a young injured Marine, the entire movie is contend in being moderately entertaining without much meaning even though Tina Fey puts in a commending performance.  

Martin Freeman is of course likeable as Baker’s love interest, a character that doesn’t have much to do except shagging Baker and got himself kidnapped towards the end. And to add to the prestige casting, there is Alfred Molina portraying a lustful local official and Billy Bob Thornton as an Army General who befriends Baker. A pre-Suicide Squad Margot Robbie reunites with her Focus’ directors, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa although both did a rather disappointing job adapting a supposedly interesting topic to the screen.    

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

Picture quality is serviceable enough on DVD. The Dolby Digital 5.1 features loud aggressive sound and ambience effects when require. It’s a talky comedy after all.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee

Genre: Horror/Comedy
Director: Giddens Ko
Cast: Deng Yukai, Cai Fan-xi, Carolyn Chen, Lai Jun-Cheng, Tao Bo-Meng, Lin Pei-Hsin, Eugenie Liu
Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins
Rating: NC16 (Violence)
Released By: Clover Films Pte Ltd, Shining Entertainment and Golden Village Pictures  
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 28 July 2017

Synopsis: MON MON MON MONSTERS talks about bad bullies in school and 2 monsters who feeds on human flesh. Lin Shu-wei,the most unpopular student in class is always being bullied by a group of bullies led by Ren-hao. However, Shu-wei inadvertently joins the bullies when they run afoul of two demonic sisters who feast on human flesh in the dead of night. One night, the group unexpectedly captures the younger monster and imprisoned her in the school basement, where they start torturing her. Despondent at her younger sister’s kidnapping, the older monster ventures into the night to kill anyone who reminds her of the boys ? basically anyone in school uniform. The movie is not just about the “cannibals” sisters; director also turns his genre situation on its head, making the humans into sociopathic monsters and vice-versa. Ultimately, who is the real monster?

Movie Review:

Right off the bat, acclaimed director Giddens Ko makes his statement - this is not like his 2011 hit You Are The Apple of My Eye.

Mon Mon Mon Monsters may be set in a high-school, but bears nothing of the previous work’s whimsy or sentimentality. Instead, it asks the classic question - what makes a monster, a monster? The film slashes through topics such as bullying, aging, human nature and society, while serving up scenes of gore worthy of a Tarantino.

We are quickly introduced to a pair of humanoid creatures who pounce upon a hobo, tearing him up for a night feast. Villains established? Maybe not.

We jump into a classroom, where the awkward Lin Shu Wei (Deng Yukai) is being accused of stealing the class fees. It’s obvious the head hooligan Duan Ren Hao (Kent Tsai), his pair of lackeys (Liao Guo Feng & Ye Wei Zhu) and girlfriend (Bonnie Liang) are the culprits, but they turn the tables and taunt the hapless Shu Wei with a viciousness that’s clearly psychopathic.

The clueless form teacher Ms Li (Carolyn Chen) suggests a community mission to help the elderly to help the kids bond, but it turns ugly quickly with them teasing the old folks instead. Unwittingly, they chance upon the pair of monsters and capture the younger one (Lin Pei Hsin), thus shifting the dynamics and turning the bullying towards the new capture instead. This redirection gives Shu Wei much needed reprieve, though he struggles to maintain his guise as a tormentor to save his own skin.

Mon Mon Mon Monsters is unrelenting in its torture. The foursome gang clearly have no qualms and conscience, as they toy with everyone in their path. From teasing hungry elderly with food just out of reach, to bouncing sunlight on the captive to see her skin sizzle, there’s a cruelty that’s not dissimilar to kids watching insects burn under a focused beam from a magnifying glass. On one hand, one might label it curiousity, but on the other… we know better.

Things escalate when Ren Hao feeds his mantra-chanting Buddhist teacher some of the monster’s blood, to avenge her callous judgemental remark on his family. What follows is plenty of dark internal bleeding coming loose at a local school basketball game, and some spontaneous combustion, captured by laughing students.

Ko is clearly redrawing the lines here. Neglecting and choosing to ignore the injustices that happen around us, Ko makes us the monsters, as we trample on others in accordance to our pecking order. We become Shu Wei, who despite good intentions and moral teachings, gets all of our empathy and compassion beaten out in favour of survival.

Things get upended when the elder sibling (Eugenie Liu) of the creature seeks her missing sister, and tears through the body count  with scenes not dissimilar to some from Japanese cinema. Realism aside, the school bus and classroom massacre will certainly paint the town red.

Certainly Mon Mon Mon Monsters is a stylish outing, if a little overwrought at times. Some parts of the script seem redundant and will benefit from trimming. The struggle for protaganist Shu Wei is also a little unconvincing at times. But Ko’s little glimmers of humour (such as the heart shaped mirror reflection on Shu Wei’s face, or keeping the monster at bay by bouncing sunlight off a picture of Sun Yat Sen), as well as decent performances from the young cast keeps the nihilistic story afloat. With no character to really root for, the ending where Shu Wei clearly sees where humanity’s hope now lies, is a brutal punch to the gut not many might be able to stomach.

Movie Rating:

(Intense, pessimistic and nihilistic, Ko’s shift in gear is certainly unrestrained. There’s plenty of gore, more than its fair share of abusive behaviour, and the clear message it sends early on is certainly fitting for these times)

Review by Morgan Awyong

Genre: Musical
Director: Michael Gracey
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zac Efron, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: 20th Century Fox 
Official Website: https://www.facebook.com/GreatestShowman

Opening Day: 28 December 2017

Synopsis: "The Greatest Showman" is a bold and original musical that celebrates the birth of show business and the sense of wonder we feel when dreams come to life. Inspired by the ambition and imagination of P.T. Barnum, "The Greatest Showman" tells the story of a visionary who rose from nothing to create a mesmerizing spectacle that became a worldwide sensation.

Movie Review:

Can the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invite Hugh Jackman to host the Oscars again?

Back in 2009, he impressed us with his style, grace and confidence. And that opening number saluting nominated films just gets better every time we watch it.

The Australian actor may be known for his long running role as Logan in the X Men franchise, but the versatile performer is perfect for the stage. Having won a Tony Award for his role in The Boy from Oz, Jackman is no stranger to Broadway theatre. For people like us who do not have the chance to watch the 49 good looker perform live, we have are movie musicals like this one directed by Michael Gracey.

Based on the life of PT Barnum, the film is set in the 1800s and chronicles how the Barnum & Bailey Circus was founded. In reality, Barnum was a showman, politician and businessman who treaded in the grey area for promoting celebrated hoaxes. And why would a movie studio risk box office returns by exploring Barnum’s darker side? Besides, don’t the majority of audiences step into the cinema for escapist entertainment?

With that, this movie musical was concocted. Gracey, who has been helming TV commercials, makes his debut as a feature film director here. With Jackman as the leading man, the movie is easily a crowd pleaser,

Jackman gives his all to portray a very relatable Barnum, and the controversies about the showman repackaging ostracised individuals as freaks are simply glossed over by the line “They're laughing at us anyway - might as well get paid.” It is evident that the charming movie star is made for this role, having sung his lungs out in the film version of Les Miserables (2012) directed by Tom Hooper. His portrayal of the big hearted entertainer also involves lots of dancing, and that is a good thing for us.

Another star in the ensemble cast who has benefited from his previous experience is Zac Efron. He may have taken on beefcake roles in movies like Dirty Grandpa (2016) and Baywatch (2017), but we will always be impressed by his likeable vocals in Hairspray (2007) and High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008). Here, he plays Burnam’s business partner and has a highly amusing duet with Jackman.

Elsewhere, Michelle Williams (Oz the Great and Powerful) plays Barnum’s understanding wife, and gets to showcase her vocals. There is also Zendaya (Spider Man: Homecoming) who plays a trapeze artist who gets romantic with Efron, as well as Rebecca Ferguson (Life) who plays real life Swedish singer Jenny Lind and does an impressive job lip syncing to Loren Allred’s operatic voice.

The musical numbers are highly infectious and thanks to Gracey’s portfolio, these sequences do feel like dance pop music videos. They contain so much energy and infectious flashiness, you will have no problem indulging in this guilty pleasure.

We know that a production of this genre isn’t about depth of plot development, but we wish there was more time dedicated to more about Tom Thumb, Dog Boy, Tattoo Man, the Bearded Lady and the other individuals who eventually became family at the circus. But hey, we are always ready for an entertaining circus based movie musical filled with glitzy song and dance. 

Movie Rating:

(Singing! Dancing! Hugh Jackman and Zac Efron! This glitzy movie musical is escapist guilty pleasure at its best!)

Review by John Li

SYNOPSIS: The year is 2022, 23-year-old Lang (Deng Chao) is the newly crowned champion of the National Rally Championship. The racer seems to have an infinite future ahead of him, but all he wants is to prove himself to his father. Zheng, whom he blames for his mother’s death. After the race. Lang takes Zheng on a joyride, one that is abruptly cut short when they collide with a train. Lang wakes up and finds hiimself magically transported to 1998 Shanghai, where he meets a young Zheng (Eddie Peng) as well as his best friends. Xieo Ma and Liu Yi. Lang explores his father’s youth with great curiosity. Zheng may seem like a two-bit hoodlum on the surface, but in reality he is a kindhearted, benevolent young man who is beloved by his neighbors. However, when Lang learns that Zheng is dating a girl who isn’t his mother, he decides to derail the relationship by any means necessary in order to ensure his own birth.

MOVIE REVIEW:

In the closing credits, director Han Han thanked movies liked Terminator, Back to the Future and Peter Chan’s He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother for inspiring him to create Duckweed. Han Han for the uninitiated is not just any young filmmaker embarking on his sophomore effort. He is also a celebrity blogger, writer, singer and professional rally driver.  

Directed and written by Han Han, Duckweed tells the story of a successful rally driver Tai Lang (Deng Chao) who accidentally went back in time to the year before he was born after he crashed his car while on a joyride with his estranged father, Zheng Tai (Eddie Peng in terrible makeup effects). Ironically, the first person he met in 1998 was his father, a low-level hoodlum who spent his days with his fellow buddies, the dim-witted Liu Yi (Zack Gao) and a gifted IT programmer, Xiao Ma (Dong Zijian) in a karaoke bar.

The misadventure however allows Tai Lang to reconnect with his past especially the mother he has never met. Apparently, Zheng Tai went to jail shortly before Lang was born while his mother committed suicide probably due to depression. Since then, father and son have not been on good terms with Lang constantly blaming his father for his frequent absence and rough treatment of him.        

Just when you thought Duckweed is filled with all the seriousness of a melodrama, Han Han cleverly delivered a heartwarming story frequently interspersed with generous doses of humour. We see how Tai Lang learnt about the true characteristic of his father, a man who act and talk tough liked the heroes he admired in HK classic action movies but in reality is a man with a big heart. And of course, audiences are going to have a hearty laugh over Zheng Tai’s business ideas of investing in pagers and foreseeing the closure of cinemas in the long run.

Duckweed is definitely not a movie about the logic of time travel nor does it concern itself with the social and political issues of that time. It’s very much a simple story of how a man reconnects with his father. Deng Chao and Eddie Peng are incredibly charming and mesmerizing as both of them took up most of the screentime. Singer Li Ronghao makes a last minute cameo as a nasty triad boss. The angelic Zhao Liying portrays Xiao Hua who might or might not be Tai Lang’s mother after all (in a hilarious moment in which you need to find out yourself).

Duckweed comes highly recommended if you are tired of loud CGI blockbusters. 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The Dolby Digital 5.1 provides clear, detailed dialogue and a handful of action sequences deliver excellent surround sound and ambience effects. Skin tones and black levels are generally fine. There are obvious noticeable soft edges which we can’t tell if it’s intended to reflect the era. 

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee

Genre: Drama
Director: Roger Michell
Cast: Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Holliday Grainger, Iain Glen, Pierfrancesco Favino
Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins
Rating: NC16 (Some Sexual Scenes)
Released By: 20th Century Fox 
Official Website: http://www.foxsearchlight.com/mycousinrachel/

Opening Day: 29 June 2017

Synopsis: A dark romance, My Cousin Rachel tells the story of a young Englishman who plots revenge against his mysterious, beautiful cousin, believing that she murdered his guardian. But his feelings become complicated as he finds himself falling under the beguiling spell of her charms.

Movie Review:

The title references the enigmatic lady from the perspective of 24-year-old Englishman Philip Ashley (Sam Claflin, best known for playing the lead in last summer’s ‘Me Before You’), and indeed it is from his perspective that this delicious dark-widow mystery unfolds. Literary-minded audiences will likely recall the 1951 novel of the same name by English novelist Daphne du Maurier, previously adapted for the big screen with Olivia de Havilland in the eponymous role and featuring Richard Burton’s Oscar-nominated Hollywood debut. Unlike its source material, this latest version by writer-director Roger Mitchell spins its mystery entirely from Philip’s point-of-view, which has both merits and downsides – on one hand, it affords greater clarity how this orphan first swears to seek vengeance on his cousin and then ends up completely besotted by her; on the other, Philip’s periodic voice-over ends up keeping his relationship with Rachel more restrained than it should, especially in the middle act where a more passionate union would certainly have served the story beats much better.

Notwithstanding, Philip’s narration is well-used to fill the complex back-story: once an orphaned young boy who was taken under the loving wing of his cousin Ambrose; poor health forces Ambrose to the warmer climes of Italy to nurse himself, where he meets, falls in love, and eventually marries the half-Italian Rachel; at first described as “radiant, good, the kindest companion”, Ambrose’s letters start taking on a darker tone, calling her “my torment”, hinting that he is being held captive by her and even slowly poisoning him. By the time Philip answers his cousin’s plea for aid, Ambrose is dead and Rachel is gone; and in the shadow of their previous correspondences, Philip refuses to believe the medical report that Ambrose had died of a brain tumour, believing it to be Rachel to be responsible. “Whatever it cost him in pain and suffering before he died, I will return in full measure upon the woman who caused it,” Philip vows, who takes over Ambrose’s coastal mansion in Cornwall in accordance to the latter’s will and seethes in waiting for Rachel’s return – although when she does, it is as unexpected as the outcome.

Not only does he give up all thoughts of vengeance, he becomes so utterly smitten by her that he takes it upon himself to put into force Ambrose’s unsigned last will, which would have gifted Rachel a share of the latter’s inheritance. So taken with Rachel is Philip that he ignores the warnings of his godfather Kendall (Iain Glen) of her chequered past, as well as the quiet objections of Kendall’s daughter Louise (Holliday Granger) and the family lawyer (Simon Russell Beale). As convenient as it may be to reduce the narrative into the question of whether Rachel had murdered Ambrose or not, it is clear by the halfway mark that it is about much more – chiefly, the impulses of a young man whose naivety ultimately colours his perception of reality. Sam is 24, turning 25, about to be freed from Kendall’s guardianship; yet, he is ill-prepared to distinguish emotion from reason, which explains why he so quickly succumbs to Rachel’s beguiling charms as much as why he never does fully comprehend until the very end her refusal to accept their subsequent relationship on his terms.

“Why shouldn’t I have a life of my own?” asks Rachel, and that is perhaps as close as one can hope to get to her motivations. Because Mitchell stays firmly within Philip’s vantage point, there is never any doubt that the version of events we are observing or inferring is inherently biased; though, on that account, Mitchell does a much better job getting us to buy into Philip’s suspicions of Rachel than his unbridled yearning for her. Even as he wants you to know that Philip is kind of a dolt and too emotionally inexperienced to understand Rachel, Mitchell exercises a tasteful restraint on how amorously much Philip throws himself into the relationship, allowing us just two intimate scenes to see just how obsessed he is with her. Instead, there is less such moderation over Philip’s suspicions of her in the last act after he starts to fall deliriously ill, with Mitchell allowing Claflin to wear his character’s misgivings for Rachel on his sleeve. That said, Agatha Christie fans should probably be warned of an ambiguous ending that never quite fully resolves whether Rachel had poisoned Ambrose and/or subsequently Philip in the first place, though it is quite clear in the ‘did she/ didn’t she’ equation just where the narrative tilts towards eventually.

All the while, Weisz is mesmerising to watch, and not because of the coincidence in first name mind you. Operating beautifully in the vagaries of innocence and guilt, Weisz keeps her character a mystery from start to finish – on some occasions warm and ebullient, on others reserved and distant, but always with an intriguing allure. Claflin, on the other hand, is a lot more straightforward and therefore a lot less interesting to watch; partly due to the nature of his character and partly due to his own committed but slightly dull performance, Claflin never quite comes off as Weisz’s equal, though that may have been Mitchell’s intention after all. This is his first produced screenplay after all, and Mitchell keeps with his customary clean style of directing in creating a refined, albeit at times too clinical, period thriller. As counter-programming for the summer season, it is a breath of fresh air; but as awards-season material, it is too lightweight to count for anything much, be it an intoxicating romance mystery or as an allegory on the male gaze and female independence. 

Movie Rating:

(Notwithstanding a strong lead performance by Rachel Weisz, this deliberately open-ended period romance/ mystery unfortunately remains too clinical for its own good)

Review by Gabriel Chong

SYNOPSIS: A gentle giant and the girl who raised her are caught in the crossfire between animal activism, corporate greed and scientific ethics.

MOVIE REVIEW:

On the surface, Bong Joon-ho’s ‘Okja’ appears to be this generation’s ‘E.T.’, a charming and ultimately moving tale about the bond between a young kid and her non-human companion. At least in the first act, it is precisely that, with tranquil mountain scenes of preteen Mija (Ahn Seo-hyun) spending her days at Okja’s side. Bong has acknowledged Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki as an influence here, and true enough, these simple and yet disarmingly sweet moments of Mija feeding Okja with fruit from the trees growing on the mountainside, catching fish by a waterfall for dinner or even napping on the beast’s belly are full of innocent wonder, reminiscent of ‘Pete’s Dragon’ or perhaps more befittingly ‘My Neighbour Totoro’.

But those familiar with Bong’s earlier ‘The Host’, ‘Mother’ and ‘Snowpiercer’ will know that ‘Okja’ will certainly turn out to be much more – and sure enough, like his earlier films, the Korean filmmaker evolves his family-friendly adventure into a screwball farce in the middle act, and finally to a sincere eco-drama/ corporate satire involving animal cruelty and slaughterhouse horror. That in itself requires Bong to shift gears between comedy, emotion and action within the same movie, but as he demonstrated with his monster-movie-cum-environmentalist-comedy or his psychological-murder-mystery-cum-mother-son-drama or his dystopic-sci-fi-cum-political allegory, Bong is a complete master of tone, such that ‘Okja’ is less a messy hybrid of different genres than an intriguing, even mesmerising, combination of all three at the same time.

Setting the context straight right from the start, Bong introduces us to the alternate present where an agrochemical company known as the Mirando Corporation has figured out the technology to genetically engineer a breed of Chilean ‘super-pig’ in order to meet the food needs of the world’s population. But in order to get the public on its side after a toxic past, its newly minted CEO Lucy Mirando (Tilda Swinton) distributes 26 such piglets to 26 different farmers around the world to be raised in different natural habitats, culminating in a beauty pageant a decade later where one of them pigs will be crowned ‘best super pig’. Okja is one of the 26 – a CG mix of pig, puppy and hippo that frankly is more hippo-like than porcine but completely adorable – given to Mija’s grandfather (Byun Hee-bong) to raise, though the latter has not told Mija that her time will Okja will expire soon enough.

When representatives from Mirando show up to assess Okja and take her pet back to America, Mija is devastated. Yet instead of channelling that into resentment towards her grandfather, she sets out to rescue Okja and bring her back to their mountain home, a quest that will take her to Seoul and eventually to New York City itself. Along the way, Mija will encounter a motley bunch of eccentric characters, including has-been celebrity zoologist Dr Johnny Wilcox (Jake Gyllenhaal), guerrilla animal-rights group leader Jay (Paul Dano), and last but not least Lucy’s ruthless twin sister Nancy (also played by Swinton). Other recognizable supporting parts include Lily Collins and Steven Yeun as Jay’s fellow Animal Liberation Front (ALF) members, as well as Shirley Henderson and Giancarlo Esposito as sycophantic employees of Lucy/ Nancy Mirando depending on who is boss of the company.

Yet even as the film gets bigger, it never loses focus on its heroine Mija or the central bond of friendship between her and Okja. Indeed, the two major action sequences are centred on Mija – the first, and arguably the more impressive one, has Mija busting through a glass-plate window to get into the Mirando offices, then chasing down a truck carrying Okja on foot through the streets of Seoul, guiding a trampling Okja through a crowded underground shopping mall, making acquaintance with the ALF for the first time, and ending up as an unwitting pawn in their plan to expose Mirando’s heinous misdeeds; while the second places Mija in the middle of a hectic New York City parade where Mija gets battered in the midst of the melee between the ALF and Nancy’s private armed resistance. All the while, there is never any doubt that Mija’s attachment to Okja remains her sole driving force, and the purity of that in and of itself is genuinely poignant.

It should also be said however that as appealing as its human-animal dynamics may be for a younger audience, ‘Okja’ does get a lot darker in its final act. There is a truly disturbing scene of Okja being forcibly bred by another male ‘super-pig’, the trauma of which causes her to turn frenzied and disorientated at the aforementioned coronation parade. There is another scene of hundreds of super-pigs kept in pens, and subsequent ones which show the destiny which awaits them in the abattoir. As manipulative as these scenes may be, Bong’s intention is to provoke his audience into thinking about the capitalist food chain of which we are part of, the ethics behind the livestock industry and consumerism that are often conveniently or expediently neglected. Never content simply to entertain, Bong again fashions ‘Okja’ as immensely engaging mainstream entertainment with a strong socio-political message.

This review will not be complete without addressing once more the controversy that has surrounded ‘Okja’, given how it is financed and will be released in most territories around the world solely on the streaming service than on the big screen. Frankly, we couldn’t care more about this debate, because ‘Okja’ is easily the most original films we’ve seen this entire summer. As long as big-screen Hollywood remains creatively bereft churning out one ‘Pirates’ or ‘Transformers’ or ‘Despicable Me’ sequel after another, we’re more than happy to give our money to Netflix instead and enjoy ‘Okja’ from the comfort of our living room. In short, ‘Okja’ is an absolute, unbridled delight from start to end – and by that, we mean right to the very end of the credits (you get the hint).  

Review by Gabriel Chong

Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Wilson Yip
Cast: Louis Koo, Wu Yue, Hanna Chan, Lam Ka Tung, Chris Collins, Kenneth Lo, Jacky Cai, Vithaya Pansringarm, Michelle Saram, Tony Jaa
Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Violence)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures, Clover Films
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 24 August 2017

Synopsis: Hong Kong cop Lee (Louis Koo) goes on a search in Thailand for his missing daughter Chi (Hanna Chan). Thai Chinese police officer Chui Kit (Wu Yue) lets Lee join the investigation, having no idea that Lee is going to use the mass media to hunt for clues. A short clip which accidentally filmed Chi's capture is uploaded to the police website, but subsequently deleted. Chui Kit and colleague Tak (Tony Jaa) tracks down the clip owner, but the evidence is destroyed before they can stop it. The duo begins tracking down the culprit. As they get closer to the truth, they realize that the case is more complicated than they expected, and the mastermind behind the scene is not someone they can deal with...

Movie Review:

The ‘SPL: Sha Po Lang’ brand in Hong Kong action cinema has come to stand for brutal, bone-crunching action in such memorable duels as Donnie Yen and Wu Jing’s alleyway brawl in the 2005 original, Yen and Sammo Hung’s mano-a-mano on a nightclub stage in the same, and more recently Wu Jing, Tony Jaa and Zhang Jin’s fight-to-the-death in the 2015 sequel.

‘Paradox’, the third in the ‘SPL’ canon, continues that grand tradition with director Wilson Yip returning at the helm and Hung as action director. Both franchise veterans ensure that the fights are just as fast, furious and fierce as their first film, but only judiciously bloody, so that the bloodletting never comes off as excessive. Among the highlights here are a daytime scuffle in an open bar that is followed by a breathless chase down Bangkok’s busy streets, a close-quarter skirmish in a flat that continues into the dilapilated apartment building’s corridor and onto its crowded rooftop, and last but not least a no-holds-barred showdown in a meat depot that is also a front for a mortuary of an illegal organ trafficking business. Each one of these action set-pieces are meticulously choreographed and beautifully executed, which is also credit to its stars Louis Koo, Wu Yue, Chris Collins and Jaa.

Besides Jaa, the rest are not quite as well-known for their martial arts skills, but the training, practice and hard work that each one has put in is clearly evident. In particular, Koo’s months of intensive training have paid off tremendously especially in the extended climax, which sees his character turn absolutely badass on tens of baddies successively in a vengeful rampage. Yue also proves quite the revelation; better known for his roles in Mainland TV drama serials than in movies (remember him in Police Story 2013?), the actor who holds a National Martial Arts Championship grade in wushu is less showy than his predecessors Yen and Wu but is no less precise or ferocious than them. Notwithstanding, you should know that Koo and Yue’s top billing here isn’t misleading; whereas Jaa took centrestage alongside his Chinese stars in the last movie, his presence here is no more than a glorified cameo – and it should also be said that his absence is sorely felt, given that his one-on-one rooftop fight with Collins is arguably the most breathtaking sequence in the entire movie.

To Yip’s credit, as much as the fighting is the movie’s top draw, it never becomes its raison d'être but in service of the overall narrative. In that regard, all three movies have been thematically related, based upon the Chinese title’s astrological reference of three individuals whose position relative to one another signified death and destruction. Here, these three are Hong Kong detective Lee Chung-chi (Koo), who has arrived in Bangkok to search for his missing teenage daughter (Hanna Chan); local Thai-Chinese cop Chui Kit (Yue), who has a six-month pregnant wife and whose father-in-law is the police commissioner Chai (Vithaya Pansringarm); and political aide Cheng Hon-Sau (Gordon Lam), who will resort to any means necessary to get an urgent heart transplant for the ailing Bangkok mayor in order to sustain the latter’s re-election bid. Caught up in the ensuing melee is Chui Kit’s fellow police colleagues Kit (Jaa) and Ban (Ken Low) as well as the leader of an illegal organ trafficking syndicate Sacha (Collins). 

It isn’t hard to guess just how the characters are connected to one another, but returning series writer Jill Leung builds the story nicely to have us empathise with Chi’s desperation, grief and vengeance as a single father at the loss of his beloved daughter. Just as visceral is the sense of powerlessness he feels against the corruption of those more powerful than him, so much so that despite responding in shockingly vicious ways, our sympathies remain firmly with him and his fists. More so than the earlier two movies, the storytelling here is a lot more fluid, confident and propulsive, good enough at least for us to overlook some of the obvious coincidences (like how Chui Kit and Tak’s vehicles seem to agree not to start one after another so both can end up at the same place at the same time).

So really, ‘Paradox’ is as solid an hard-boiled action thriller as it gets. The plotting is not just functional, endeavouring and largely succeeding to tell a story about karma, retribution and reconciliation. The acting is solid, each one of the performances a strong emotional anchor for the flawed characters whose relationships next to one another are defined by their respective choices and consequences. And perhaps most importantly to its fans, the action is as awesome as its predecessors, the fisticuffs often white-knuckle intense. This is as raw and real as it gets, set entirely against appropriately grimy backdrops in Thailand. As far as the ‘SPL’ canon is concerned, ‘Paradox’ is as fitting and satisfying an entry as it deserves, demonstrating not only that there is life yet to the series but that it is very much alive, kicking and definitive to Hong Kong action cinema itself. 

Movie Rating:

(Every bit as fast, furious and fierce as its predecessors, this third installment of the 'SPL' brand is a great action thriller itself and as worthy an addition to the series as it gets)

Review by Gabriel Chong