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JAY CHOU and director Dante Lam bring THE VIRAL FACTOR to SingaporePosted on 10 Jan 2012 |
SYNOPSIS: A talented ensemble cast delivers laugh-out-loud performances in this “fun nostalgia trip.” (Richard Roeper) When Matt Franklin's (Topher Grace) high-school crush Tori (Teresa Palmer) shows up at his dead-end mall job, he and his buddy Barry (Dan Fogler) devise a wild scheme for Matt to finally win the girl of his dreams. But only time will tell if Matt can seduce this gorgeous goddess at a wild party and survive an outrageous night of seduction, destruction and debauchery. Take this hilarious comedy home tonight!
MOVIE REVIEW:
Topher Grace loves to reminisce. For eight years, Topher headlined the popular Fox sitcom ‘That 70s Show’; and now he has leapfrogged one decade into the 80s with this latest movie that takes a nostalgic look at the era of the music of Duran Duran, Prince and Madonna as well as the coming-of-age Brat Pack films. Those born in that decade will also remember the 1986 Eddie Money tune of the movie’s title- though that song isn’t heard anywhere during the film.
Nonetheless, Topher, who conceived the story with fellow producer Gordon Kaywin, is shrewd enough to ensure that this comedy is an enjoyable trip down memory lane filled with amusing setups and pleasant characters. Set over one night in the San Fernando Valley circa 1988, Topher plays Matt Franklin, a high-school geek who went to the prestigious MIT University but is wasting his days at the local video store. Matt doesn’t yet know what he wants to do with his life, but that is about to change one day when he bumps into his high-school crush, Tori Frederking (Teresa Palmer).
Tori invites him to a high-school Labour Day reunion bash that night, but to bolster his status, Matt lies to her that he is working at Goldman Sachs- hence the concomitant need to pull off the getup. Luckily of course, his friend Barry (Dan Fogler) has just been fired from his job as a car dealer, so Barry is more than willing to help him out by stealing a Mercedes- the vehicle coming with a gigantic bag of coke in the glove compartment.
Besides Matt, there is also his twin sister Wendy (Anna Faris), another brainiac who’s applied for graduate school at Cambridge. But she’s dating the local jock (Chris Pratt), who is clueless about her plans for grad school and has made plans for them to settle down together in the Valley. Yes, despite their common beginnings, Matt, Tori and Barry are just examples of how these high-schoolmates have since drifted apart to pursue their own individual dreams.
In the course of their partying and merry-making, the screenplay by Jackie and Jeff Filgo gives each of these characters time and space to reflect on their own lives- and the subject of finding one’s direction in life immediately after school is one that will surely resonate with those who have ever looked back at their lives and those of their peers and then wondered what they have done with the time that has since passed. The obligatory romance between Matt and Tori is also on the cards, but the script is far less adept in convincing that a girl like Tori will so easily fall in love with a guy like Matt.
Still, where the writing leaves much to be desired, the steady direction by Michael Dowse and earnest performances from its leads manage to win you over. Topher uses his amiable charm to good effect, while Teresa looks stunning enough just with her physical appearance to melt your heart. Anna is mostly under-used here, but Dan provides much broad slapstick relief as the resident funnyman with his deluded and desperate attempts to hook up with someone at the party.
It is to Dan that the film has also assigned much of the raunchy humour too. Two of the best comic sequences are thanks to Dan- the first that finds a drugged-out Barry tricked by a voracious older vixen (Angie Everhart) into having a threesome with her smirking leather-clad companion (Clement von Franckenstein); and the second that finds him fumbling his way through a dance-off competition in front of everyone. Dan pulls them off handsomely, and you’ll find it hard not to laugh out loud at his chutzpah.
But Dowse is also guilty of resting the film too comfortably on the charms of his leading cast, so much so that there isn’t much ambition or creativity in the storytelling. There are few surprises to be had, and by the time the movie ends with the dawning of a new day as the sun rises over the Valley, you’re probably thinking that this road home is a pretty straightforward and predictable. In the end, it is nothing more- and for that matter, nothing less- than an ode to a time and era past, one whose likeability depends very much on your own fond memories of the 80s- and for those who lived through tunes like Men Without Hats' Safety Dance, Dexys Midnight Runners’ Come On Eileen and Duran Duran's Hungry Like the Wolf, it’s a blast from the past you’ll enjoy.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
NIL
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 does just fine with the dialogue and the 80's filled soundtrack. The visual transfer brings out the show well too with an intended graininess and a wide range of bright colours.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Director: James Watkins
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Ciaran Hinds, Janet McTeer, Shaun Dooley, Lucy May Barker
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Disturbing Images)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://www.womaninblack.com/
Opening Day: 15 March 2012
Synopsis: A young lawyer (Radcliffe) travels to a remote village where he discovers the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman is terrorizing the locals.
Movie Review:
In addition to being the first post-Potter leading role for Daniel Radcliffe, ‘The Woman in Black’ is also notable for being the first British horror film to bear the venerable Hammer imprint after more than three decades. It is only their fourth after Hammer’s resurrection in 2007, but this atmospheric horror thriller adapted from Susan Hill’s 1983 novel is quite certainly their best so far and their greatest assurance at regaining the glory of their former days.
Rather than reinventing the wheel, director James Watkins (best known for his low-budget Brit thriller ‘Eden Lake’) pays homage to the oldest of old-fashioned horror thrills- the haunted house. Secluded from the nearest village by a narrow road that is only passable during low tide, the mist-enshrouded mansion known as Eel Marsh is a foreboding labyrinth of creepy hallways and secret rooms that come complete with rocking chairs and eerie-looking wind-up toys.
Anyone who’s seen such a genre flick will know that the chairs and the toys will take on a life of their own, not to mention doors that lock and unlock at their own will and shadows that flit past behind your back. But so what if the scares are nothing new? Expected though they may be, Watkins mounts these familiar elements of the genre with surprisingly efficiency, reminding us why they became tropes in the first place. Even seasoned horror fans will find their pulse quickening as the tension builds for that ‘boo’ moment, and we dare you to sit through the whole movie without getting jolted in your seat at least once.
Besides the old haunted house trappings, Watkins also effectively builds atmosphere by setting the mansion amidst a remote Yorkshire village of Crythin Gifford. At least to young London solicitor Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe), the residents of this dank village aren’t very welcoming- the local innkeeper tells him there’s no room, and is only willing to put him up in the attic where years ago three young girls hurled themselves out of the window. The only person that displays any hospitality is- rather ironically- the wealthiest man of the county, Samuel Daily (Ciaran Hinds).
True to the nature of such rural villages, this one is a hodgepodge of superstition, believing that a ghostly wraith of a woman dressed completely in black is the reason for the string of unexplained deaths among the children in town. Samuel would have none of it despite his own son’s mysterious death, though his grieving wife (Janet McTeer) is less convinced that the said woman in black is just folklore. Arthur however has no such luxury of scepticism- his very first visit to the Marsh residence already brings an encounter with the apparition, and sets him on a determined course to find out just what happened to the inhabitants of the estate.
Those looking for some twist ending will likely be disappointed as the revelation itself proves slightly underwhelming, but screenwriter Jane Goldman overcomes the shortfall of her source material by raising the stakes for her lead character Arthur. Unlike the book, Radcliffe’s Arthur is now a grieving husband still mourning over the death of his wife who comes face to face personally with the fear and terror of the villagers when the very ghost threatens to take the life of his son arriving on a train to visit him for the weekend.
It’s a gripping turn all right, made even more so by a sharp performance by Radcliffe. Though just 22 years old, the actor exudes a palpable sense of grief, anxiety and outright terror first as the skeptic faced with the reality of his own disbelief and then as the father who has to confront the phantom to preserve the life of his very own flesh and blood. Solid supporting turns by Hinds and McTeer also anchor the movie, but it is Radcliffe who competently carries the movie most of the time, effectively rendering the two-person West End stage play into a one-man show here.
At a time when modern-day horror seems only confident of intimidating their audiences with blood and gore, ‘The Woman in Black’ deserves even more credit for assuredly relying on old-fashioned thrills for an even more effectively spine-chilling experience. Spooky hallways, rocking chairs, creaking doors and creepy wound-up dolls- you’ve probably seen them all before, but there’s a reason why we still jump when we experience them, and this solid Hammer horror is as good a throwback as any to these vintage but everlasting horror tropes
Movie Rating:
(Good old-fashioned horror that promises a thrilling, spine-chilling experience- and an assuredly competent post-Potter performance from Daniel Radcliffe)
Review by Gabriel Chong
Genre: Action/Comedy
Director: Jo Beom-goo
Cast: Lee Min-ki, Kang Ye-won, Kim In-kwon, Ko Chang-seok, Joo Jin-mo, Kim Byeong-cheol
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Rating: PG (Some Coarse Language)
Released By: Encore Films & Cathay-Keris Films
Official Website: http://www.encorefilms.com/quick/
Opening Day: 2 February 2012
Synopsis: Speed maniac messenger Gi-su receives a mysterious call while shuttling a member of a girl group to a live broadcast. The mysterious voice on the phone warns that there’s a bomb wired to the helmet and that a package must be delivered to a designated address within 30 minutes. Remove the helmet or fail to complete the mission and the bomb goes off. Caught up in a terrorist attack on the grandest scale smack in the middle of the city, the messenger and his passenger begin a race against time that their lives depend on.
Movie Review:
QUICK is an ambitious project conceived by the team behind Haeundae (a disaster film released in 2009) that has a Hollywood-styled action and locally flavoured comedic elements. It has a relatively generous budget of KRW 10 billion (approximately 1.12 mil SGD), explaining the many extravagant explosive scenes and high speed action along the high way et cetera.
The plot revolves around bike messenger Han Gi Su (Lee Min Ki) and popular idol from OK-girls A-rom (Kang Ye Won) who got involved with the delivering of parcels following a death threat to blow up the helmet if they were to defy the orders. Shortly, after the several ‘coincidences’ of the buildings and places being blown up after the delivery of the parcels, they quickly realized that they were actually delivering bombs and unknowingly became the suspects in crime and terrorism.
Both Lee and Kang are truly aesthetically pleasing, the usual flawless Korean idols these days. Their interactions, exaggerated emotions and jokes that pop up along the way crack you up in one way or another. Coupled with one of the more recognizable Korean comedians, Kim In Kwon who plays the role of a troublemaker police, it keeps you entertained for most parts of the movie. It not only delivers nonsensical jokes, it also combines the Korean culture and pokes fun at the sheer devotion of people towards Hallyu idols.
Keeping the relatively generous budget in mind, the action sequences are very intense and as the title suggests, quick. Most of the action takes on the form of the road chase or explosive scenes. One of the more memorable action sequences occurred along the high-way when Gi Su aids A-rom’s escape from the rest of the group on a moving vehicle. The combination of the comedic elements as well as the action is simply brilliant.
However, not all action sequences in the movie were as capable. Many of the explosive scenes were just a sheer display of the explosive power of the bomb, and pretty much nothing else. The high speed action on the movie train and along the train track is also done a million times in many other movies. In this respect, it is not particularly unique. It is simply an Asian version of ‘Fast and Furious’. Much of the action sequences are very high risk and dangerous, highly adrenaline fuelled which makes it pretty thrilling to watch (on this note, stay on a little more to catch a glimpse of the behind the scenes that feature many stunt actors/actresses). Then again, sad to say, it could be pretty bland and without flavour at times.
Eventually, the story leads on to a devastating realization of the repercussions of Gi Su’s past folly and unveils the mystery behind the bombings. It is an attempt to hit the second climax of the movie but it ends up a pretty patronizing conclusion. Well, at least all’s good and it’s funny till its finish.
Movie Rating:
(If you like your steak rare, perhaps this undercooked movie would be able to satisfy you)
Review by Tho Shu Ling
SYNOPSIS: An international traveler reaches into the snack bowl at an airport bar before passing her credit card to a waiter. A business meeting begins with a round of handshakes. A man coughs on a crowded bus... One contact. One instant. And a lethal virus is transmitted.
When Beth Emhoff (Paltrow) returns to Minneapolis from business in Hong Kong, what she thought was jet lag takes a virulent turn. Two days later, she’s dead in the ER and the doctors tell her shocked and grieving husband (Damon) they have no idea why. Soon, others exhibit the same mysterious symptoms: hacking coughs and fever, followed by seizure, brain hemorrhage... and ultimately, death. The numbers quickly multiply as the contagion sweeps across all borders, fueled by the countless human interactions that make up the course of an average day. A global pandemic explodes.
As the death toll escalates and people struggle to protect themselves and their loved ones in a society breaking down, one activist blogger (Law) claims the public isn't getting the truth about what's really going on, and sets off an epidemic of paranoia and fear as infectious as the virus itself.
MOVIE REVIEW:
Remember the deadly SARS outbreak in 2003 or the H1N1 flu pandemic three years ago? A major flu outbreak is no longer the birth of Hollywood’s imagination but something more alarming when it proved it can happen in real life. Yes, you might brushed off Wolfgang Petersen’s medical disaster thriller, “Outbreak” back in 1995 though I’m sure many will give a nod or two to Steven Soderbergh’s “Contagion”.
Adopting a series of vignettes to tell a story of an outbreak which involves an uncontainable deadly virus, “Contagion” works effectively well if you are a fan of Soderbergh’s past works liked “Traffic” for instance as the scripting doesn’t linger on one single character or even two. It jumps from character to character, one scene to another and the movie on the whole moves at a rampaging speed and when Soderbergh has no qualms killing his leading actress within minutes, you knew “Contagion” is going to be gripping.
While gripping is the word, “Contagion” doesn’t turn into “28 Seconds Later” or “I Am Legend”, in fact one of the down point of the movie is it functions as cold as a surgical tool and emotional attachment is not a must. As mentioned earlier, Soderbergh hardly spent enough time on his characters; we couldn’t really feel the anguish of Matt Damon’s character (Mitch) or the intense danger of looting when a military quarantine is imposed. The prolong focus on Mitch and her teenage daughter in the later part of the story seems totally unnecessary and out-of-sync. Scott Z Burns’ script and Soderbergh’s direction works best on the accelerating seriousness of the outbreak. The globetrotting location shoot around the world is stylish yet terrifying given the subject matter and it’s not something that can explain through a powerpoint chart.
The other numerous A-list cast members whom perhaps have volunteer vigorously to this project include Gwyneth Paltrow who plays the unfortunate first victim, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne and Kate Winslet playing official and epidemiologist from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Watson himself, Jude Law turns up as a scrupulous Internet blogger and I must say the character’s sensationalism on corporate conspiracies is a yawn, last but not least, our homegrown talent, Chin Han as a HK official with a mission.
Soderbergh has managed to conceive a horrifying realistic movie without resorting to any gruesome tactics or even zombies for that matter. Seriously, I got to stock up my supply of Dettol after the movie. This is the kind of intense vibe you get.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Contagion: How a Virus Changes the World is a 2 minutes cartoony presentation on how viruses mutate and populate.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Details are clean and sharp in this Soderbergh’s shot movie while dialogue is clear with hardly any fancy sound effects utitlised. .
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Linus Tee
Genre: Fantasy/Action
Director: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Ciaran Hinds, Idris Elba, Christopher Lambert, Johnny Whitworth, Violante Placido, Kevin Nash, Fergus Riordan
RunTime: 1 hr 34 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence and Disturbing Scenes)
Released By: Warner Bros
Official Website: http://www.thespiritofvengeance.com/
Opening Day: 16 February 2012
Synopsis: Nicolas Cage returns as Johnny Blaze in Columbia Pictures' and Hyde Park Entertainment's "Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance". In the successor to the worldwide hit Ghost Rider, Johnny - still struggling with his curse as the devil's bounty hunter - is hiding out in a remote part of Eastern Europe when he is recruited by a secret sect of the church to save a young boy (Fergus Riordan) from the devil (Ciaran Hinds). At first, Johnny is reluctant to embrace the power of the Ghost Rider, but it is the only way to protect the boy - and possibly rid himself of his curse forever.
Movie Review:
2012 was shaping up to be one heck of an exciting year for comic book heroes on the big screen, with plenty of hype built up for Marc Webb's Spider-man reboot, the highly anticipated coming together of individual heroes from their respective film franchises into The Avengers, and Christopher Nolan's finale to his Dark Knight trilogy. All's looking well in the build up to the Summer, but you have a party pooper like Ghost Rider coming along with caution that hype, is just that, and that the actual delivery
I will unabashedly say that I had rather enjoyed the earlier 2007 film directed by Mark Steven Johnson, even if general consensus was otherwise. Having to deal with an origin and coming from the B-list of heroes isn't easy, but it did what it had set out to do to introduce the character to the film masses. With Spirit of Vengeance, it had elevated the 2007 effort to an assured classic. Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor did good work with the Crank films in terms of making a high octane action flick that played out like a mindless yet fun computer game, but their lack of grasp of another sub-genre got exposed here pretty bad, and one wonders that either they're non Ghost Rider fans, or can't be bothered with the source material, fashioning it as just another effects film that they can use to play with some cool production toys.
David S. Goyer has got his name down on a number of comic book films turned into movies, but this was probably something he had hacked up while in lala land. It's generic, cliche and derivative, and the gist is Johnny Blaze / Ghost Rider (Nicolas Cage) being sought by Moreau (Idris Elba) to prevent a prophesied anti-Christ kid Danny (Fergus Riordan) and his mom Nadya (Violante Placido) from falling into the wrong hands, led by the devil himself (Ciaran Hinds), and some other bad asses along the way such as the very unnecessary and underutilized group of monks led by Methodius (Christopher Lambert, why did you even agree to do this? I hope they paid you well). The Rider plays protector and bonds with this kid (Hello James Cameron's Terminator 2), and plays catch almost all along the way to fulfill his mission, so that he can have the rider expelled from Blaze himself once and for all, and return to normalcy, and convince Eva Mendes to be back for Part 3.
I have to admit there were some nice touches, but these were not enough. The opening credits to ret-con the origin and in a way disregard the 2007 one was nicely done through a series of animation, voiceover and self-deprecating humour, as was the story about the Spirit of Vengeance. The revelation of Johnny Blaze's selfishness also added a little more dimension to the character, and the Rider this time was given a meaner, grimmer look with better effects done up for its hell fire get up. In short, Ghost Rider never looked better with its many cosmetic changes, but alas everything else was also purely cosmetic, and pretty randomly, and haphazardly put together, having set in an Eastern European background to try and desperately add a touch of class which it sorely lacked.
The first film suffered from weak villains. And if you agree with me there, then may you now know that this film had even weaker ones. They cannot fight, they stand around, and generally the Ghost Rider obliterates everyone, and I mean really obliterate, everyone into dust and ash, before you can even shout "Rider in da house". The rider's first fight sequence was laughable and tiring to watch. He stands around with villains in awe of his newly designed hot head, then someone decides to threaten the Rider, and the latter moves in quick time toward his victim, and poof, he's gone. Repeat until head count equalled 0. And when the going's tough, whip out those mean metal chains, and everyone it touches dissolves into ash. Case closed, time for a coffee break.
There's absolutely nobody standing in the way of the Rider, and the filmmakers failed in realizing that heroism comes from overcoming incredible odds set up by villains preferably with both brain and brawn. The villains here were one dimensional and cardboard, with a one tracked mind to execute a singular plan, and turned Ghost Rider into an unintentional god with no weaknesses. Scenes got unnecessarily dragged out to either try and inject some humanity into the characters, or to try and place ill timed comedy. Worst, there seemed to be some fetish fixation over Blaze's transformation into Ghost Rider, with a number of scenes just lingering on that change, though with Nicolas Cage very adamant in wanting to challenge Jim Carrey in the rubber face department.
It's the first Marvel Knights imprint film after Punisher: War Zone to signal material meant for a mature audience, but it's laughable since Spirit of Vengeance turned out to be so juvenile, sans sane plotting and zilch characterization, with a focus only on action sequences that turned out to be very generic. What was kind of fun in the trailer had Ghost Rider pissing flames, but that made it into the movie. Twice. Utilizing the same clip each time, as if a forewarning of the insult any member of the audience has to bear in forking out good money to watch this piece of junk, only to be peed upon by the shoddy storyline.
All in all, the Ghost Rider franchise is finished and left for dead, with this film being the final nail in the coffin until some other more concerted effort comes along to exhume and resurrect the character for the silver screen. It's highly disrespectful to the source material since it's done by filmmakers with no inkling of what it's all about - despite what they say the end result on screen have already proved otherwise - and insults the audience's intelligence. From the trailers one would have hoped it had worked for this film, but sadly it was nothing but absolute smoke and mirrors.
Movie Rating:
(Whoever conceived this story should have his own soul claimed by the devil)
Review by Stefan Shih
Genre: Drama
Director: Ann Hui
Cast: Andy Lau, Deannie Yip, Qin Hailu, Wang Fuli, Eman Lam, Chin Pei, Chim Sui Man, Raymond Chow, Hui Bik Kee, Hui So Ying, Sammo Hung, Tsui Hark, Elena Kong, Chapman To, Jason Chan
Runtime: 1 hr 59 mins
Rating: TBA
Released By: Scorpio East Pictures and Cathay-Keris Films
Official Website:
Opening Day: 9 March 2012
Synopsis: Based on real people and events, this is a story about a domestic helper, Sister Tao (DEANIE IP) who served the Leung's family since she was 13. 60 years went by, the family is left with the only successor of the family, Roger (ANDY LAU) and herself. The master-servant relationship between the two is well and supportive through mutual understanding by lack of proper communication. One day, Sister Tao is found to suffer from apoplexy. In order not to burden Roger, Sister Tao requests to stay in an elderly home. At the elderly home, Sister Tao experiences a shrunken world that is neglected and marginalized by other sectors of society and also meets several characters. Though feeling down, Sister Tao's biggest hope is that Roger will never fail to turn up to visit her. Roger visits her on a frequent basis and claims to be Sister Tao's godson. Once Roger was receiving care from Sister Tao and now the role is reversed. Through the days, Roger has come to realize that Sister Tao holds a far more important position in his life than he had thought. Embraced by the love and care from Roger, Sister Tao is able to enjoy life after her retirement.
Movie Review:
One of my fondest memories of Hong Kong movies was The Unwritten Law, where Andy Lau played a hotshot lawyer whose client was a middle aged prostitute accused of murdering a client. That film was back in 1985, which spawned quasi-follow up films with The Truth (1988) and The Truth: Final Episode (1989), where they made waves for the powerful courtroom drama, as well as having its fair share of tear-inducing, emotional scenes especially since the characters continue to be kept in the dark about their true relationships. Who would have thought that after so many years both actors in their latest pairing would have made waves around the world, winning accolades and awards for their performance together once again.
Credit of course goes to director Ann Hui, herself a maestro in making down to earth dramas that isn't flashy or flamboyant, yet packs in plenty of gravitas in her handling of scenes and characters, making it all vividly real, believable and identifiable. Here in The Simple Life, she tackles the issue of ageing head on in a cosmopolitan, fast paced society, where it seems that for those with limited resources, there aren't plenty of options made available, unless one has someone filial enough to see through one's twilight years. With Singapore heading toward an ageing population ourselves, the subtle messages in this heartfelt film, cannot be something more than apt when you put yourself in shoes worn by the characters.
Deannie Yip plays a ma-jie (servant) called Tao Jie, whose life is spent in servitude toward the Cheung family through four generations, the latest being Andy Lau's Roger, a producer whose time is straddled between Hong Kong and China. She takes care of the last member of the family still based in Hong Kong while the rest have emigrated to the USA, and life is fairly routine with her caring for her not-so-young master, cooking, washing and cleaning, until a stroke strikes. With whatever resources available and being really pragmatic, Roger arranges Tao Jie to rehabilitate in a nursing home for the aged, and with his constant visits, form the narrative and emotional crux of the film.
The film's narrative moves like Life, in episodic form with memorable incidents rather than being one large soap opera, with time shifts between scenes that could be as slow as days, or skipping along as fast as months, sometimes marking certain unfortunate milestones with injury or death as experienced by the patients and residents of a home. There are colourful characters to keep things lively, but you can sense that feeling of being cast away, with Tao Jie being one of the lucky few who has constant visits by Roger, introduced as her god-son to save her the blushes that in this modern day and age, that she is still subservient to someone not of her own. The story has plenty of subtle, and none-too-subtle snapshots on the lives of the aged, and also made some keen observations on how hypocritical things can get especially when tasked to care for someone elderly, regardless of blood relations.
Deannie Yip really put in a performance of a lifetime, masterful in her endearing portrayal of an elderly woman who dotes on her master, and being a great cook, is extremely discerning with food. It's not always doom and gloom in her twilight years which A Simple Life focuses on, but rather her more sprightly, memorable episodes spent with her favourite man she helped to raise, still having her looking out for the him rather than being unilaterally one sided only. She truly deserved her Volpi Cup from the Venice Film Festival and Golden Horse award, and it's difficult not to tear up especially when Tao Jie inevitably deteriorates with the passage of time. With the help of makeup, Deannie Yip looks like, and delivers a performance worthy of a million dollars.
Andy Lau's character too played up the challenges of the younger generation who has to strike a balance between career and looking after an elderly loved one, where one cannot normally spend as much time as one would like to, so the compromise here is to ensure quality of life. Having to look after the aged myself, this is something instantly that can be related to. What I particularly liked is how sometimes with the best of intentions and will to juggle two different priorities, things don't really turn out as planned, as seen from Roger's movie premiere, which in Tao Jie's eyes, Roger could do no wrong and his latest film was a masterpiece, despite the opinions of others.
The film also contains many light, comedic moments, sometimes when you least expect, but never trying too hard to elicit a laughter. It's all done very naturally, and a pity that this wasn't screened in Cantonese as I'm pretty sure there were a number of lost in translation moments. Celebrities also flocked to the film to lend a hand in whatever way possible, though in this case probably to boost the film's appeal factor with many familiar faces, from directors and producers playing themselves, and actors taking up cameo appearances.
Bring your elderly friends, relatives and family to the film, and you're assured of a meaningful and moving time when you will inevitably think about quality of life in twilight years, perhaps inspiring all to spend more time with one another, to lend support, and encouragement, as well as reflecting on issues on both sides of the equation, with the perspectives from both young and old, the caregiver and the ones needing care. Highly recommended!
Movie Rating:
(Beauty in simplicity)
Review by Stefan Shih
A colony of all singin’ and all dancin’ penguins gathering for a soundtrack that runs for 73 very generous minutes? You can count us in! The furry birds which beat Disney Pixar’s automobiles to bring home an Oscar statuette some five years ago are back, with more songs, more music and yes, lots more fun.
The album kicks off with the infectious "Happy Feet Two Opening Medley" featuring the Happy Feet Two Chorus, Common, Lil P-Nut and popular American singer songwriter P!nk. The versatile musician whose birth name is Alecia Beth Moore provides the voice of the film’s female protagonist Gloria, a loving mother and a noble wife. She returns in the soulful “Bridge of Light”, a tune which showcases the artiste’s powerful vocals. Backed up by the Happy Geet Two Chorus, this track is easily the album’s highlight.
There are few oddities in the song section of the soundtrack. Robin Williams, Hank Azaria perform the strange but amusing “The Mighty Sven”, while Omar Crook and Eg Daily’s “Erik’s Opera” is plain awkward. You’d have fun listening to tracks like “Papa Oom Mow Mow”, “Dragostea Din Tei” (more commonly known as the tune from the Chicken Little movie trailer) and featuring a hilarious Azaria and “Under Pressure/ Rhythm Nation” featuring P!nk at her best.
British composer John Powell is a talent we are looking out for, given his commendable works on recent animation productions like How To Train Your Dragon, Rio and Mars Needs Moms. Here, while there is no particular standout track or memorable main theme, the music is energetic and illustrates Powell’s ability to blend orchestral and choral elements effectively. The 47 minutes of score material on this album doesn’t hurt either.
“Ramon and the Krill” is comical, while “Lovelace Preshow” is a grand choral performance. “Trapped in Emperor Land” paints a wondrous and mighty picture, while “Skua Attack/ Adelie Rescue” is an adventurous action cue. When the album ends on a high note with “Tappin’ to Freedom”, you’d be wanting the lovable animals from Antartica to return for more music, dance and fun.
ALBUM RATING:
Recommended Track: (3) Bridge of Light – P!nk and Happy Feet Two Chorus
Review by John Li
You either love him or hate him, this man named Hans Zimmer. The Germany born film composer has scored music for over 100 movies, and is known to integrate electronic music sounds with traditional orchestral arrangements. Not everyone is a fan of electric synthesizers and guitars, because there are traditionalists who believe that film music should be purely orchestral. Besides, with Zimmer’s pompous style of composing music, you can bet these purists are out to criticize his every single work.
After composing the Oscar nominated Sherlock Holmes score in 2009, the award winning composer is back again in Guy Ritchie’s sequel. Fans who are familiar with the original movie’s standout tracks “"Discombobulate" and "Psychological Recovery" would be pleased that this 69 minute soundtrack offers very similar material. There aren’t many differences or new material here, and this can be both a good or bad thing, depending whether you are a fan of Zimmer’s works.
Zimmer wastes no time in introducing his signature style of music. After the brief “I See Everything” and “That is My Curse (Shadows – Part 1)”, he launches the eight minute “Tick Tock (Shadows – Part 2)”, a lengthy cue that contains suspense, adventure and in your face action. Before you have any time to take a breather, “Chess (Shadows – Part 3” comes along, another unabashed track that isn’t ashamed to go all out with thumping beats and looping melodies.
There are amusing moments like “It’s So Overt It’s Covert”, a quirky folk tune that features the film’s main theme. “Romanian Wind” continues the folksy atmosphere, while the intentionally melodramatic “Did You Kill My Wife?” features a brass ensemble.
“To the Opera!”, “Two Mules For Sister Sara” and “Die Forelle” are three consecutive tracks which do not seem to gel very well with the rest of the album as they feature excerpts from actual opera pieces.
Things go back to Zimmer style with the action packed “Zu Viele Fuchse Fur Euch Hansel” and “The Red Book”. Things get a little melancholic in “Memories of Sherlock”, but you know the detective is up and running with “The End?” and “Romani Holiday (Antonius Remix)”, two catchy tracks which bring the album to a closure.
ALBUM RATING:
Recommended Track: (3) Tick Tock (Shadows – Part 2)
Review by John Li
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