Genre: Sci-Fi/Thriller
Director: Andrew Niccol
Cast: Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, Cillian Muphy, Vincent Kartheiser, Johnny Galecki, Olivia Wilde
RunTime: 1 hr 50 mins
Released By:  20th Century Fox
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence & Brief Coarse Language)
Official Website: http://www.intimemovie.com/

Opening Day: 26 October 2011

Synopsis: Welcome to a world where time has replaced money as the universal currency. The wealthy have accumulated thousands of years, allowing them to live forever, while the poor beg, borrow, and steal enough minutes to make it through the day. In this world, Will Salas (Justin Timberlake) is one of the unlucky ones, waking up every morning with 23 hours left on his ticking clock, and the knowledge that if he doesn't earn enough time, he won't live to see tomorrow. But Will's fortune takes an unexpected turn when a wealthy stranger turns up dead, and Will finds himself 100 years richer. Now the prime suspect for the man's murder, Will is on the run for his life, searching for the real killer with the help of a beautiful young woman (Amanda Seyfried), who is the only one who believes he is innocent..

Movie Review:

Andrew Niccol's Gattaca remains one of my favourite science fiction films, and from that acclaimed debut he's directed only 2 other films with S1m0ne in 2002 and Lord of War in 2005. It's a 6 year wait for his latest science fiction offering In Time, boasting a wonderful premise with links to gene manipulation that's almost aligned to his debut feature, and using the concept of Time as currency, where everyone ceases to age at 25 thanks to the identification of the culprit gene, and one's lifespan thereafter would be controlled by a literal ticker that counts down to zero, after which one's life will end if one doesn't have enough to top up, through working, begging, borrowing or stealing.

Current Hollywood It boy Justin Timberlake continues his good run this year in Tinseltown playing Will Salas, a poor young man from the slums who with the rest of his community, live from day to day and very much hand to mouth, with work barely earning enough Time to keep themselves alive, and inflation shooting through the roof in recent times. But despite the hardships life is pretty content with mom Rachel (Olivia Wilde) until the trailer unfortunately spoils it all, and Will decides to fight the system soon after a benefactor (Matt Bomer) wills him a century's worth of time before committing suicide, and Will is being accused of murdering him instead. So begins a life on the run with the poor little rich girl Sylvia Weis (Amanda Seyfried) whom he holds hostage from her father's swanky party, and Cillian Murphy's Timekeeper aka cop character breathing down his neck every step of the way.

There are plenty of interesting thoughts and bright spark ideas that went into the background of the film, such as the cheeky play with the concept of age when one looks at a woman, but just cannot guess what her social status, or relationships are with the men around her, since every grandmother, mother and daughter are at their prime of age 25, and can very much pass off as peers or sisters. Olivia Wilde as Justin Timberlake's mom will give you the clue as to this magnitude of a social road block. Everyone's at an age of invincibility, although deep inside, they are already mature beyond their physical selves which do not betray their true ages. Or how the powerful and the corrupt are always so zealous in protecting the status quo which have benefitted them, and are paranoid in doing so to maintain their grip on power. Some universal themes never change, especially when currency continues to exist in any form.

Niccol's story was also intricately detailed that it sets up and builds an entirely new universe altogether, painting vastly different environments in his world where blue collared workers get separated from the white collared, with the poor being left to fend for themselves in segregated quarters from the rich, where moving up the social ladder literally meant putting down some blood money in order to cross physical barriers that separate the haves and the have nots. A simple process gets crafted that deals with how people get paid in time from seconds to centuries, and the mode of transfer being as easy as gripping the other by the arm, and wiring the currency over telepathically. It worked wonders here, setting up for many slow-motioned moments with the run against time for topping up before the counter hits zero. And running, is what this film has by the bucketloads with poor people ingrained with having to zip from point to point non-stop in order to save and shave precious seconds from tasks, contrasting with the rich who can almost always afford to take it easy, and enjoy life at a significantly slower pace.

But unfortunately, in Niccol's eagerness to bring us on a tour of the insides of this newly created world with its own rules and regulations, the story found itself heading nowhere, except in circles and clearly not having a definitive, satisfying objective in order to leave the door wide open for any future expansion possibilities, even in a different medium altogether. There's too much talk and not much of a walk, with interest and probably fear being that the audience may be too far detached from the science fiction elements of the film, that a lot more care has been taken to fully explain each action and step of the way. For a film medium, this turns out to be unnecessarily talky, and dragged out scenes for far longer than they should.

With the Stockholm Syndrome, Seyfried's Sylvia and Timberlake's Will soon become the futuristic version of Bonnie and Clyde, seeking out thrills and frustrating the powers that be when they try to even the score and narrow the Time currency gap by robbing banks, and fueling a distribution point for Time amongst the poor where everyone and anyone can get a piece of life extension, for free. This of course runs counter to the system set up for law and order, and puts them in direct confrontation with the Timekeepers. Do not however expect big bang, spectacular action sequences, as these were largely absent in lieu of simpler battles that look tame by today's standards. And what more, Will's initial rage against the system really saw him being quite clueless about where to begin venting his pent up vengeance, with love coming into play, and personal pain being thrown out the window. It had built up a lot of story to tell, but decided to only run with the simplest of the lot instead.

Ultimately you can't help but to feel that In Time is nothing more than an effort to buy time for building up either an MMPORG or a television series with both Sylvia and Will immortalized as some cult hero, and you either get to play a spin off character from the film, or get to watch a new set of characters operating within the confines of this new world under flux for the goggle box.

Movie Rating:

(Plenty of running against time, but ultimately leading nowhere)

Review by Stefan Shih

In Japanese with English & Chinese Subtitles
Genre: Sci-Fi/Action
Director: Shinsuke Sato
Cast: Kazuanari Ninomiya, Kenichi Matsuyama, Yuriko Yoshitaka, Kanata Hongo, Ayumi Ito, Tomorowo Taguchi, Takayuki Yamada
RunTime: 2 hrs 25 mins
Released By: Encore Films & GV
Rating: NC-16 (Violence)
Official Website: http://www.encorefilms.com/gantz2movie

Opening Day: 18 August 2011

Synopsis: Kato's death changes Kurono's view of life completely. He decides to keep fighting until he earns 100 points so that he can bring back Kato.GANTZ calls back Ayukawa (Ayumi Ito) and other GANTZ alumni who'd left once after scoring 100 points. In the meantime Kurono works on getting 100 points. But before Kurono succeeds in resurrecting Kato, Kato unexpectedly turns up. 

Another strange man (Takayuki Yamada) appears and he appears to be investigating GANTZ and the fighters while the fighters take on the most terrible enemy (Go Ayano). To complicate the situation, GANTZ starts acting up. GANTZ chooses the next target... this time it's not an alien but a human girl, Tae, who is in love with Kurono.

Some GANTZ members go after Tae to score points while Kurono tries to protect her.  In turn,  Tae tries to protect Kurono who fights for her. A love story between their characters blossoms and Kurono must stop his teammates from getting to Tae.

Each teammate has a different motive for fighting, whether to protect a loved one or to do what they think is right. Whatever their cause, they end up sacrificing something important...

Movie Review:

The first ‘Gantz’ was an intriguing setup for its sci-fi premise- through the perspective of university student Kurono (Ninomaya Kazunari), we learn of an alternate universe where recently deceased people are transported to by a giant black sphere to kill aliens. If they die on a mission, they die for real; but if they survive, they earn points depending on their effort in completing the mission. Once they reach 100 points, they have the choice of either returning home with their memory erased or resurrecting a fallen comrade.

For the benefit of those who did not catch the first movie, this sequel recaps the rules of the game as well as the events of its predecessor- and you should also know that while Kurono survived a particularly tenuous kill at the end, his childhood buddy Masaru Kato (Kenichi Matsuyama) wasn’t as fortunate. If we could have accepted the ambiguity of the first movie, that was because we were looking forward to its sequel to offer answers to the many riddles within. Unfortunately, despite having a title like ‘Perfect Answer’, this sequel is hollow, pointless and utterly disappointing.

Beginning proper five months after, it brings us back to a guilt-stricken Kurono who has made it his goal to collect 100 points so he can bring back Kato. In the meantime, Kurono and his university gal-pal Tae (Yoshitaka Yuriko) take turns looking after Kato’s younger brother. Besides these returning characters, screenwriter Yusuke Watanabe (20^th Century Boys) also introduces two other significant others- the pop idol Eriko Ayukawa (Ito Ayumi) who receives a small black orb in a mysterious package one day in her mailbox; and detective Masamitsu Shigeta (Takayuki Yamada) who has been investigating the string of mysterious incidents.

Ambition is one thing, and then there’s foolish ambition- which is what Watanabe and director Shinsuke Sato demonstrate here. It was going to be a feat offering their viewers satisfactory answers to the questions raised in the first film even without the hefty plot additions, but Watanabe goes ahead anyway- not least with another group of alien enemies who assume human form, including the slain Kato- and stumbles dreadfully. Who is Gantz? Some alien object apparently. Who are these aliens he sends Kurono and the rest on assassination missions to? His enemies obviously. What do they want with him now? Revenge.

The origins of Gantz are never explained, nor the source of its deep enmity with the enemies it sends his human subjects out to slay. Worse still is its subjects’ blind devotion to its orders, especially with the twist in the middle of the story when its target becomes someone close to Kurono. And Watanabe’s attempt at trying to make deeper sense of the mayhem by going into the ‘violence begets violence’ rhetoric is tired and laughable. Because there is so little meaning or significance in what unfolds (death is after all so easily reset as if in a computer game), even scenes that are supposed to be emotional end up raising chuckles.

To its credit, Sato does stage a thrilling lengthy action sequence set on a packed subway commuter train which brings together the ‘Gantz’ soldiers with their pistols, the alien enemies with ‘katana’ swords, Eriko and Masamitsu all after the same target. The extended set piece comes midway into the film, and marks the height of the film which the clumsy finale never manages to top- especially not when Watanabe insists on having Kurono and the two Katos go at each other for longer than necessary.

But what truly takes the cake is the final showdown between ‘Gantz’ and the other aliens, which has eight ‘Gantz’ players up against more than twice or thrice that number of aliens with both sides just firing at each other. The sheer implausibility of that and the subsequent denouement of Kato and Kurono recalls Neo’s ‘revolutionary’ battle with Agent Smiths in the last ‘Matrix’ movie- but at least that took place in the context of a video game. And just as how the ‘Matrix’ sequels fizzled out one after another, so does this sequel from the suspense built up so expertly in the first film.

So what if this live-action adaptation is probably one of the goriest action movies you’ll ever from Japan to be in line with its source material? Executed without flair and devoid of meaning, ‘Perfect Answer’ is a tepid end to the much-touted franchise. Don’t come in looking for any perfect answer to the questions at the end of its predecessor- there are none, and the ones that you will find will ultimately leave you wanting for much more.  

Movie Rating:

(Devoid of meaning, significance and logic, this is one pointless sequel that is far far from perfect)

Review by Gabriel Chong

SYNOPSIS: An uneasy truce between the armies of the Undead is unraveling and New Orleans will be the battleground unless one man can solve a mystery, preserve the peace and manage to stay alive in the DEAD OF THE NIGHT...

MOVIE REVIEW:

“Dylan Dog: Dead of the Night” is the perfect material for directors liked Guillermo del Toro. It is a combination of supernatural elements, thrills and action almost similar to the Hellboy franchise and Blade II. But the man who keeps announcing new project by the minute probably has not much time on his hands to do this. At least, Kevin Munroe should seek out del Toro on how to properly direct a horror, action comedy.

Based on a successful Italian comic book series, the Dylan Dog character is played by Brandon Routh who shot to fame in Bryan Singer’s not-so-successful reboot of Superman. Routh to his credit looks the part and plays the part of the private detective caught in a battle between the Vampires and Werewolves charismatically to the best of his ability. Dylan is engaged by a women, Elizabeth (Anita Briem from The Tudors) to investigate her father’s mysterious killer. Through Dylan’s narrative, we learnt that Dylan is no ordinary detective; he was once the peace-maker of the undead until his girlfriend was murdered by the vampires. Now he is back to save New Orleans from an ancient evil that is going to be revived by the vampire leader, Vargas once he laid his hands on a trinket.

The movie is ironically filled with vampires, werewolves and even zombies but pathetically none of these are engaging since the vampire looks liked castaways from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer and “Angel” and the werewolves looks like puppies as compared to the ones in “Underworld”. When it comes to zombies, Dylan’s friend, Marcus (played by Sam Huntington also from Superman Returns) is tasked with providing the comic relief with his cheesy one-liners, zombie-related gags and did I mention he is a zombie as well.

The script by Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer is as lifeless as the zombies, at least they can change their body parts in the movie but we can’t change a thing with Dylan Dog. Every supernatural character they can think of are probably cast right here and yet there is a tendency to doze right off. And Routh’s film noir private detective’s voiceover doesn’t help either. Expectantly, the vampires are the ones behind the mayhem while the werewolves are comfortable enough in their meat-packing business. The sudden twist in the end only stirred up the muddiness of the whole affair instead of a grand-slam finale. Coincidentally, Swedish actor Peter Stormare who also stars in “Constantine”, another comic-based paranormal investigator character, appears here as Gabriel, the leader of the werewolf clan.

Sadly, Kevin Munroe who has only directed the animated feature “TMNT” prior to this seems utterly out-of-touch on the subject matter. Even the heavily thrashed Underworld franchise deserves repeated viewings than this mess. Despite a conservative budget of US$20 milion, “Dylan Dog: Dead of Night” flopped with a meager US$4 million box-office. It should have just saved the trouble and simply unleash hell on the direct-to-DVD market.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The obvious intended grainy dark look of the movie looks good enough on this DVD. The occasional sound and ambient effects are serviceable in this Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack supplied here.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee

SYNOPSIS: Screen legend Natalie Portman (BLACK SWAN, CLOSER) lights up the screen in this frank, funny, and heart-wrenching adaptation of bestselling author Ayelet Waldman’s novel about life, loss, and family. Emilia (Portman) is a Harvard law school graduate and a newlywed, having just married Jack (Scott Cohen, THE UNDERSTUDY), a high-powered New York lawyer, who was her boss firm. Unfortunately, her life takes an unexpected turn when Jack and Emilia lose their newborn daughter. Emilia struggles through her grief to connect with her new stepson William (Charlie Tahan, I AM LEGEND), but is finding it hard to connect with this precocious child. Emilia is also trying to overcome a long-standing rift in her relationship with her father caused by his infidelity. But perhaps the most difficult obstacle of all for Emilia is trying to cope with the constant interferences of her husband’s angry, jealous ex-wife, Carolyn (Lisa Kudrow, FRIENDS, ANALYZE THIS). Ultimately, Emilia’s and Charlie’s playful and sometimes tender exchanges help Emilia to open her heart. Can Emilia rediscover her own capacity for love in time to salvage her failing marriage, mend fences with her parents and build a family from the wreckage? Directed by Don Roos (OPPOSITE OF SEX) from his own screenplay, this tearful, terrific tale proves that even with a pursuit like love, nothing is impossible…

MOVIE REVIEW:

This is the hard truth: Movie making is, after all, a money making business. Despite all the talk about making quality films and ensuring artistic integrity, what matters at the end of the day to distributors are the box office takings. And here, we have one perfect example of a movie which completed post production in 2009 but only released in theatres two years later in 2011.

Based on Ayelet Waldman’s novel, the protagonist of the story is a woman whose life is turned upside down after losing her infant daughter. On top of the girl’s death, she has to come to terms with her status as the second wife of an accomplished lawyer. Seen as a home wrecker, she receives snide treatment from the lawyer’s ex wife all the time. Another problem comes in the form of her step son, whom she must also come to terms with, although the young boy constantly reminds her of her own dead baby.

Natalie Portman takes on the role of the troubled woman. The Oscar Best Actress (Black Swan) displays her usual hysterics, bawling her eyes out in some melodramatic scenes. We are not saying that the talented Portman isn’t a good actress, but it really isn’t anything we haven’t seen before. Besides, her character isn’t your likeable best friend material, hence the constant crying and anguish may not win her too many fans.

If you hadn’t realised, the distributors must have thought it was the best opportunity to release this Don Ross directed movie after Portman’s win at the Academy Awards, hoping that more people would pay attention to this rather mediocre movie. It is difficult to care for the characters, as they do not manage to win your affection, despite the apparently difficult lives they are going through. Scott Cohen’s (The Understudy) high flying lawyer is somewhat a caricature of the creep you don’t want your female friends to fall in love with. The stepson played by Charlie Tahan (I Am Legend) isn’t particularly adorable either. With this mix of unmemorable characters, it doesn’t help that the screenplay feels clumsy and slipshod. The result is a TV movie like production which doesn’t stand out against the slew of drama movies in the market.

Thankfully, there is the always reliable Lisa Kudrow (TV’s Friends) who plays the ex wife who picks on the protagonist. The blonde haired star lights up the screen every time she appears, although she may not be the nicest person in the show. But hey, she made us sit up and watch. 

 SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

There is nothing to complain about the movie’s visual transfer. It is presented in its original English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by John Li

SYNOPSIS: Earlier tonight, a bizarre disease was unleashed in a run-down Los Angeles tenement...and no one got out alive. Yet something escaped. Now, aboard Flight 318, the first symptons begin to show. As the infection begins to take root, innocent passengers suddenly transform into terrifying, bloodthirsty killer. Forced to land at an isolated terminal and surrounded by government agents, the crew and passengers grow increasingly desperate. The only question now is how far they will go to survive.

MOVIE REVIEW:

Hollywood’s obsession with remaking every single movie concept that’s proved successful overseas led to the almost shot-by-shot unnecessary remake of Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza’s Spanish hit horror thriller [REC]. Indeed, while it certainly wasn’t bad, John Erick Dowdle’s ‘Quarantine’ was simply an imitation of its Spanish counterpart, and offered little reason why fans of the genre should see it over the much superior original. So it is with trepidation that we approach this direct-to-video sequel, ‘Quarantine 2’- after all, such in-name only sequels tend to pale far in comparison with their predecessors.

But surprise, surprise- writer/director John Pogue’s sequel is actually much better than expected, tight and gripping throughout in a neat slice of genre entertainment. First off, it’s good to know that ‘Quarantine 2’ offers an original story that doesn’t follow [REC 2], and the liberty that Pogue has taken with the material allows him to bring the infection from the first movie out of the apartment building and onto a commercial airplane. It’s a sleek move to say the least, since such confined spaces are too appropriate for engendering fear and dread.

Taking place on the very same night as the first ‘Quarantine’, it begins by introducing its audience to a group of passengers as they board the plane- among them a disabled elderly man, a nonchalant teenager, a middle-aged teacher who insists on bringing hamsters on board, a grandmother with a cat in her handbag and a young couple who can’t quite keep their hands off each other. Not to spoil any surprises for you, but suffice to say that Pogue builds the events superbly leading up to the first human infection on board the plane.

Like the original, the infected turn berserk, and their eyes bloodshot- the result of which forces the pilot to turn back and make an emergency landing. For reasons apparent to us but not the passengers, they are not allowed to enter the terminal, and instead find their way into a massive baggage handling facility where they find themselves quarantined. The infection spreads of course, but Pogue makes an admirable attempt at finding reason for the mayhem which ends in a good twist that links the proceedings with that in the first movie.

Pogue, who also makes his directorial debut here after writing other thrillers such as ‘Ghost Ship’ and ‘The Skulls’, turns out to be a skilful helmer with a good sense of pace. The movie picks up very quickly once the plane is airborne, and sustains its brisk momentum right up to the end. The B-cast don’t stand out much, but they do well enough to flesh out their respective character stereotypes- especially the beautiful Mercedes Masöhn, who plays the flight attendant Jenny tasked with keeping the passengers calm.

But of course, you don’t expect more from the cast going into a movie like this- you simply ask for a terrifying bloody good time. And while this doesn’t reach the same heights as [REC] or [REC 2] for that matter, Pogue’s direct-to-video sequel is an above-average genre movie that delivers the requisite thrills- albeit in a decidedly low-budget fashion. But for attempting to break away from the [REC] series, Pogue’s film deserves points for originality- so if you’re looking for a riveting horror thriller, this should do well to satisfy your appetite. 

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The Dolby Digital 5.1 has a good sense of place, even if the surround effects could be beefed up. Visuals are clear, though most of the scenes are dimly lit.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Gabriel Chong

Posted on 20 August 2011

SYNOPSIS: She's cute. She's loyal. She's psychotic. And, unfortunately for college freshman Sara (Minka Kelly), she's "The Roommate." When Sara arrives at school, she finds new romance with Stephen (Cam Gigandet) and forms a fast friendship with her roommate Rebecca (Leighton Meester). What begins as camaraderie soon turns creepy, and Sara comes face to face with the terrifying realization that her new best friend is obsessive, unbalanced...and maybe even a killer!

MOVIE REVIEW:

How the cast and filmmakers ever deceived themselves into thinking that they were making a psychosexual thriller by way of ‘Single White Female’ for a new generation of viewers is quite beyond us. Indeed, as we sat through all 93 minutes of this yawn-inducing fest, the only thing we could think about is how consistently awful this ‘thriller’ really is- notwithstanding its pretty cast of Leighton Meester and Minka Kelly.

Set in the fictional University of Los Angeles (or ULA for short), Kelly plays an Iowa girl Sara whose new dorm buddy is the born-and-bred in Beverly Hills Rebecca (Meester). And as convention would dictate, writer Sonny Malhi first sets Rebecca up as the perfect gal-pal for Sara, before becoming overprotective and downright possessive- and that includes demanding to know where Sara is at all hours, insisting on hanging out with her 24/7 and threatening her slightly rebellious pal Tracy (Alyson Michalka) when she keeps Sara out too late.

Neither does Rebecca take too kindly to an arts professor (Billy Zane) who has the hots for Sara or the frat boy drummer Steven (Can Gigandet) she is in love with. It’s a trashy, pulpy premise- but in attempting to appeal to a teenage crowd, director Christian E. Christiansen has sanitised it to the point where it becomes limp. There is little sexual tension between Sara and Rebecca, and what is shown barely qualifies as primary-school jealousy. Worse still,the portrayal of Rebecca’s psychotic qualities comes off as juvenile and downright infantile.

Christiansen has also no sense of pacing, so his thriller moves along at such a sluggish pace with too many contemporary soft-rock songs that there is nothing thrilling or exciting about it. The cast too are equally insipid- Meester in particular fails miserably in trying to capture the intensity of Jennifer Jason Leigh’s psycho gal in the much superior 1992 movie from which this unofficial remake draws its inspiration.

There is nothing here on display except two hot girls- Meester and Kelly- but that is little consolation for the disappointment that ‘The Roommate’ delivers. Had it more gleefully embraced its B-movie origins, this could have been so much sexier and edgier. As it is, there is no tension or suspense throughout its duration- so much so that this is one movie which deserves to be locked up alone, so do yourself a favour and give this a miss

SPECIAL FEATURES:

There are about 6 min of Deleted and Alternate Scenes on this DVD. The Deleted Scenes seem to be the leftovers from the scenes already in the movie, and are rightly removed for brevity.  There is an alternate title sequence, but nothing worth your interest.

The DVD also comes with a Feature Commentary with Danish director Christiansen. Despite the outcome of the movie, it’s still interesting to hear about some of the challenges he faced working on his first English-language debut, as well as the PG-13 restriction he was given to work his film around.

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio makes little use of the back speakers, leaving most of the audio to the front and centre speakers. Visuals are clean and sharp, and the light and dark tones especially during the dimly lit scenes are well-balanced.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Gabriel Chong

Posted on 18 August 2011

SYNOPSIS: From the creators of Saw and Paranormal Activity, Insidious tells the story of a family who discovered that dark spirits had possessed their home and caused their son to fall into coma shortly after shifting in. To escape the haunting and to save their son, they moved again, only to discover that it was not their house that was haunted.

MOVIE REVIEW:

At first sight, the latest from the producers of Paranormal Activity looks to be another haunted house horror- but let us assure you that Oren Peli, Jason Blum and Steve Schneider know better than to repeat themselves. ‘Insidious’ proves to be far more sophisticated than what it appears, and those looking for a good scare will find themselves in for a terrifying treat.

The script by ‘Saw’ creator Leigh Whannell starts off innocuously enough with a young couple moving into a new house- the father Josh (Patrick Wilson) a university lecturer, and the mother Renai (Rose Byrne) a stay-home mum. They have three kids, but it is the middle child Dalton (Ty Simpkins) whom you should pay attention to. Things take an inexplicable turn when Dalton suddenly goes into a coma one night, the doctors unable to offer any medical reason for his condition.

Strange incidents start occurring around the house- spirits are sighted, voices are heard, and their youngest, only a baby, starts crying out of the blue. Renai is convinced the house is haunted, but after finally persuading Josh to move out, she finds that the terror has actually not left them. In some ways therefore, ‘Insidious’ bears similarities to ‘Paranormal Activity 2’ where it is revealed that the hauntings are associated not with the residence, but with the individual.

Nonetheless, the similarities stop there as Whannell takes his audience down an entirely uncharted and utterly horrifying turn with the revelation of a parallel realm called ‘The Further’. It may sound kooky at first, but think about it- is it really that far-fetched that there are spirits living around us that we are simply oblivious to? And if we accept that, then isn’t it true that just as there are both good and evil forces around us, there are also benevolent and malevolent spirits around?

We shan’t reveal more about what happened to Dalton, and how Whannell ingeniously links this up to Josh’s own personal history, culminating in a rivetingly frightening climax that will make you squirm in your seats. Whannell here is united with his ‘Saw’ director James Wan, and the two clearly have great chemistry working together, delivering their best and most original work since the first ‘Saw’ movie. Indeed, Wan resorts to the occasional jump-scare, but mostly the horror here is of a more fundamental insidious nature that is bone-chilling good.

Wan has also assembled an excellent cast here. Wilson and Byrne bring out their roles as anguished parents desperate for their son’s recovery keenly, while Lin Shaye is mesmerising as the medium Josh’s mother (Barbara Heshey) calls upon for assistance. There is also unexpected humour in the form of two geeky assistants (Whannell and Angus Sampson), and the use of scientific equipment to hunt out the paranormal activity proves greatly intriguing.

Perhaps the greatest surprise is how the movie was made on a shoestring budget of only $1.5 million, proving that a superb concept and expert execution is enough to make a genuinely classic horror film. This is bound to be one of the best horror films of the year, and we guarantee that after watching this, even the most fearless among us will be unnerved by what lies beyond and around us. They say the most terrifying things lie in what we cannot see- and ‘Insidious’ will prove that to be absolutely true. 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The Dolby Digital audio lacks the extra surround sound experience to make this even more terrifying. Visual transfer is less than stellar though, and the film looks grainier than when we recalled watching it in the cinema.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Gabriel Chong

Posted on 11 August 2011

SYNOPSIS: Affair and love triangle happen. It is inevitable that one has to lose the love in the end. What would happen if the loser isn’t human and not willing to give in? Will they ever find a way out? Can this kind of entwining love be resolved?

MOVIE REVIEW:

You may be able to escape from all the ghouls and spirits in the world, but the Thai horror genre is one thing we can’t run away from. That probably explains why we have sequels after sequels of horror movies from the Land Of A Thousand Smiles. As much as we didn’t think much of Piyapan Choopetch’s 2009 offering My Ex (a ghost of an envious ex girlfriend, seriously?), it made enough money at the box office to have the producers wanting to make a sequel.

The protagonist is a young actress who clinches a lead role in a big budget feature film. While this is definitely one thing that made the aspiring starlet very happy, something else is haunting her – literally. She had found out that her boyfriend has been seeing another girl, and after an emotional confrontation, he admits to be only after the other girl because of her money. Soon after, someone dies and strange things begin to happen.

Of course strange things would happen: How else would the movie producers be able to flaunt their skills of using gruesome makeup and deafening sound effects to scare fans of this genre? Call us cynics, but if you have seen one Thai horror movie, you’ve seen them all. Vengeful spirits, ghastly getups, ear splitting screams and good looking people getting mutilated are all part of the act.

This may make us sound like we aren’t open to new ideas, but the one Thai horror which still sends chills our spines whenever we think of it is Shutter (2004). It’s so good that Hollywood had a remake (albeit a lousy one) of it. We are not expecting this sequel (or its predecessor) to be Americanised anytime soon. Back to the production, there is nothing dreadful about the cinematography or editing, but there is something about the story pacing which just doesn’t work for the seasoned horror fan anymore. One can sense the obligatory twist ten minutes into the movie. Of course, being an Asian production, it has got to do with karma, and more importantly, potential to spin off more sequels.

Choopetch returns to helm this sequel, directing stars like Ratchawin Wongviriya, Thongpoon Siripipat and Maria Affolter as they attempt to look jealous, guilty and freaked out throughout the movie’s 85 minute runtime. They stars may be eye candy, but there is only so much we can comment on their acting, Let’s just put it this way – would you expect an actor from a horror movie to be crowned with an acting award?

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

There is nothing to complain about the movie’s visual transfer. It is presented in its original Thai soundtrack.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by John Li

Genre: Concert/Drama
Director: Wen-Yen Kung
Cast: Mayday, Rene Liu, Ritchie Jen, Lam Suet
RunTime: 1 hr 35 mins
Released By: GV
Rating: TBA
Official Website: http://www.bin-music.com

Opening Day: 15 September 2011

Synopsis: Besides being the first Mandarin 3D concert-drama movie, MAYDAY 3DNA is also Mayday’s debut movie project. The movie brings together state-of-the-art 3D technology, forty-four segments of concert footages from “Mayday DNA World Tour”, and three interwoven storylines, starring actors Rene Liu, Richie Jen and Lam Suet.

Movie Review:

Whichever direction the winds in the month of September were blowing was apparently enough to send five 3D concert films our way, with all but one of them from Asian bands. Not that their respective fans are complaining- from the speed of the advance ticket sales of each one of these concert films, it’s safe to say that the winds will continue to blow in this direction. But we digress- we’re here to talk about ‘Mayday 3DNA’, based on the Mayday DNA Tour which had a sell-out run in Singapore just last year.

‘Mayday 3DNA’ is apparently not just any concert film- rather, it’s been billed as a ‘concept film’, interweaving three fictional stories set around Mayday’s DNA concert stop in Shanghai with footage shot during their tour in different Asian cities like Taipei, Hong Kong and of course, Shanghai. Having seen it firsthand, we have to admit that it is a nifty idea, built as the stories are along three very popular Mayday tunes- namely ‘戀愛ing (Love-ing)’, ‘溫柔 (Tenderness)’ and ‘倔強 (Perseverance)’- to evoke the significance of their lyrics.

The first vignette set in Hong Kong tells of a young girl who tries to persuade her father (Lam Suet), owner of a curry noodle stall, to let her go to Shanghai for the Mayday concert. Thanks to Lam Suet’s comic timing, this short zips by buoyantly and is sure to put a smile on your face by the time Mayday takes over for a live performance of ‘戀愛ing’. The second set in Taipei over one night takes a more melancholic tone, as broken-hearted Ritchie (Ritchie Ren) bonds with kindred spirit Rene (Rene Liu) by allowing her to ventilate her anger at her actor boyfriend through smashing cardboard standees of him. Rene is excellent as ever, and despite the contrived setup, this segment turns out more moving than you would expect.

The last short is set in Shanghai, where we see a delivery boy conscientiously saving up his daily earnings to buy a Mayday ticket worth over three hundred dollars. There is a slight twist at the end, but sharp audiences should be able to see it coming. Director and screenwriter Kung Wen Yen also tries to bring the three stories together with a final episode set around the Shanghai stadium, but his attempt is less inspired than strained. Of course, that is probably least on your mind if you’re already planning to catch this. Yes, despite the effort by Mayday and the producers at trying to make this more than just your average concert film, we are really hear to watch them perform up close in front of a live audience.

And in that regard, you can be damn sure that they do not disappoint. Besides the aforementioned hits, the songs selected here hail from their ‘best of’ collection, so expect to sing along with the rest of the Mayday fans in the audience to ’突然好想你 (Suddenly Missing’, ‘你不是真正的快樂 (You’re Not Truly Happy)’ and ‘天使 (Angel)’. Even though they are not live in front of you, let us reassure you that the atmosphere is no less electrifying when you’re in a packed hall full of fans- and so if you’re already one, you should make for the nearest box office if you haven’t yet gotten your ticket.

Since there is no more we need to say for Mayday fans, we’ll reserve our last words to those who are still lukewarm about the band, or worse still, think Mayday is some Labour Day concert. The folks have been here for more than ten years now, and the fact that they have sold out so many of their concert tours around Asia alone should speak for their music. ‘Mayday 3DNA’ is an incredible experience not simply because of the atmosphere, but also because of their wonderful infectious tunes. If you need any more persuasion, take a listen to their latest single released in conjunction with ‘Mayday 3DNA’:

Movie Rating:

(Electrifying to say the least- whether or not you are already a Mayday fan)

Review by Gabriel Chong
  

MAYDAY RELEASES THEIR FIRST EVER 3D MOVIE "MAYDAY 3DNA" Posted on 03 Aug 2011 Besides being the first Mandarin 3D concert-drama movie, MAYDAY 3DNA is also Mayday’s debut movie project. The movie brings together state-of-the-art 3D technology, forty-four segments of concert footages from “Mayday DNA World Tour”, and three interwoven storylines, starring actors Rene Liu, Richie Jen and Lam Suet. The Singapore and Taipei legs of the “Mayday DNA ... more