Movie Review - Captain America: The First Avenger

Movie Synopsis - Captain America: The First Avenger
Movie Trailer - Captain America: The Fist Avenger

Woot Woot Woot! At last! My favourite comic hero of all time is here! Captain America! I've always been a fan of Captain America! He is my all time number one selection among all the Marvel heroes! Well, because he is my all time favourite, I've got a little expectation for the movie. Honestly speaking, the movie didn't quite live up to my expectation.

The story line of the movie was okay. As it was an introduction to the character, there wasn't much action in the movie until the 2nd half of the movie. Most of the movie was about his life before he got into his action packed life. The flow of the movie was good. From him entering the army, going through the operation, being made a performer, proving his ability by storming the enemy base alone and defeating the bad guy in the end was just a line of good flow.

I felt that Chris Evans was not manly enough for the role. He had a very boyish look. Moreover, viewers will always compare him to his role as the Human Torch. I personally think he was more suitable as The Human Torch. He is not manly enough to be my hero! Even though with his solid chest and his 6 pack abs, that doesn't make him any manly. They should put Hugh Jackman or Daniel Craig there. Those two look more Captain America. Nevertheless, I was quite amazed on how they managed to put Chris Evans face into that small skinny body. I knew it was CG but it looked real. The size of the head and the body was proportional.

I find that small little romance between Peggy (Hayley Atwell) and Rogers (Chris Evans) unnecessary. It felt like a fan service to me. To me, Peggy was not even necessary to be in the story. The friendship between Bucky (Sebastian Stan) and Rogers deserved to be elaborated. Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) got the funniest lines in the movie. I think he is the manliest man in the movie. Oh man... young actors these days are just not manly enough!

Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) was the most useless villains ever! All he ever did in the movie was running away with the Tesseract. Every time he saw Captain America , he will run away with the Tesseract. He claimed that he had the power of God but he was too afraid to face the captain. His army also look so normal. The only different was the disintegrating gun that were powered by the energy from the Tesseract. Besides that, there were literally useless. The machine-looking guy with the fire gun looked super awkward in his suit. I don't find him any more powerful comparing to the other guy in the Hydra army. Instead, I find him very clumsy looking.

Nothing much to talk about the script. Most of the lines in the movie was explanation and explanation. As mentioned earlier, most of the cheeky lines comes from the experienced Tommy Lee Jones.

In overall, the movie was just slightly better than Thor. There were more substances in this movie comparing to Thor. However, we need more action fighting scenes in Captain America. Except for the last "fight" between Red Skull and Captain America, most of the action packed scene in the movie was just snippets of him fighting. I think for his capacity, the captain deserved a more vicious and fearless enemy instead of the forever-running-away-with-the-Tesseract Red Skull.

I love his shield! I think that's the coolest weapon ever!

Overall rating, 2.5/5. Sigh....

Movie Synopsis - Captain America: The First Avenger
Movie Trailer - Captain America: The Fist Avenger

Movie Review - Take Me Home Tonight

Movie Synopsis - Take Me Home Tonight
Movie Trailer - Take Me Home Tonight

I saw the trailer for Take Me Home Tonight a few months ago. When I first saw the trailer, I told Jas that I like the feel of the movie. Let me elaborate more on the feel. It feels like a musical comedy. I've always been a fan of musical comedy. Moreover, the set up of the movie is in the 80s! I love oldies! Especially the late 70s to early 90s. When I found out that the movie was out, I told Jas that we need to watch it.

The plot of the movie was very normal. Nothing extraordinary nor shocking but the movie was super fun entertainment! I love the flow of the movie. Every scene was just the correct dosage to keep the viewers entertained. The jokes in the movie was not that funny but the funny things they did in the movie was really entertaining. Yup! I got it! The right word to describe the story line of this movie is entertaining. It was a very entertaining movie! The feel of the movie was so 80s! I love it!

The actors of the movie really suits their character. Topher Grace always have that 70s feel because of That '70s Show. Oh... I love that sitcom. Teresa Palmer was a real hottie. In the movie, she did mentioned that she still have her job because of the boob factor. Her boss had always wanted to see her boobs. Well, who wouldn't want to see hers! She was incredibly hot! Dan Fogler was really funny. He was so catchy in the movie that you will relate him to all the fun factor in the movie! I couldn't recognise Anna Faris! Did she put on weight? I think it's her hair colour.

Nothing much to comment on the script of the movie. No catchy lines. There were one or two attempts on good lines but still not good enough for me to remember. I think the whole morale for the movie was for us to take a shot in anything that we want to do. Just do it! Hesitation is just an excuse for us to procrastinate. The next line is dedicated to all you lazy worm out there! Procrastination is like masturbation. In the end, you are just fucking yourself! Haha! I love this saying!

I've got one suggestion for the movie though. Please refer to line number 4 in the first paragraph. "It feels like a musical comedy." This movie is not a musical comedy. There were only songs and music once in a while as the background music. If this movie was a musical comedy, I think it would be a big hit in the cinema world wide.

Overall, the movie was very entertaining. I rate it 2.5/5.

Movie Synopsis - Take Me Home Tonight
Movie Trailer - Take Me Home Tonight

Movie Synopsis - Take Me Home Tonight

Movie Review - Take Me Home Tonight
Movie Trailer - Take Me Home Tonight

The movie was set in the 1908s, the film opened with MIT graduate Matt Franklin (Topher Grace), his twin sister Wendy (Anna Faris), and his best friend Barry Nathan (Dan Fogler) at a music store waiting to see Matt's dream girl Tori Fredreking (Teresa Palmer). Matt told them that he spotted her in the area a few times before. So chances of seeing her at the music store was high. His best friend Barry who always had a thing for older woman spotted the lady boss in the store and went up to her, trying to get to know her. His daring approached end up with him toppling all the CD racks in the store.

After his graduation, Matt had been working at Suncoast Video Store while trying to figure out what he wanted to do with his life. At work one day, Matt saw Tori approaching the store. He quickly took off his uniform, exited using the back door and entered at the front door of the store to fake a serendipity with Tori. While he was pretending browsing at the CDs, Tori came up to him and found his familiar. Then she recognised him as Matt from her high school. In return, Matt pretended that he couldn't remember her. She then asked him where he works, he lied that he worked at Goldman Sachs. Tori picked a few CDs and wanted to pay for it but she couldn't find the cashier which was Matt. Matt told her to take the CD and he would pay for it when the cashier returned. Just before Tori left, she invited him to go to a Labor Day weekend party organised by Wendy's boyfriend Kyle Masterson (Chris Pratt). Matt was overwhelmed with Joy. He called Barry instantly and asked him along. On that day, Barry was fired from his job as a car sales person. Later that night, Matt, Barry and Wendy drove to the party. Just before they left for the party, Wendy told Matt that she received a letter regarding her graduate school application but she dared not open it. She promised Matt that she will open it when they come back from the party.

On the way there, Barry told Matt that he shouldn't go to the party driving the old car. He should drive a nicer car. Barry led them back to his former working place and wanted to steal an expensive car. Barry ensured them that it will be a smooth crime because he had a set of keys and he knew the code to disarm the alarm. While he was in there, he found out that the boss had changed the code. The alarm triggered and Matt ran away, leaving Barry behind. Wendy who was waiting in the car scolded Matt for running away and forced him to go back in to find Barry. Ignoring the alarm, Barry took the car keys of an expensive car and drove out. Matt jumped into the car. Both Matt and Barry went to the party in the stolen car. Matt also found cocaine in the car.

At the party, Kyle challenged the party people to ride in the "ball," a hollow in the inside metal sphere that will rolled down the street. At the party, Matt was looking around, hoping to see Tori but he bumped into Carlos (Demetri Martin), a high school classmate who works at Goldman Sachs. Matt asked Carlos to help him lied that he worked at Goldman Sachs. Matt then saw Tori and her friends came. He tried to find an opportunity to speak to her but she was all over the place. Matt saw his opportunity when Tori went to talk to Kyle and Wendy. He tried to get into the conversation but the situation became awkward instead.

Barry who couldn't get high at the party, tried the cocaine and got himself involved in a dance battle that eventually turned into a fight. During the party, Kyle proposed to Wendy and she agreed to marry him. Matt who recalled Wendy's graduate school application was shock when she said yes to Kyle's proposal.

Matt who couldn't strike a proper conversation with Tori stood aside at the pool and condemned himself for making a fool out of himself in front of Tori. Tori then called for him because she wanted to get away from a guy who tried to flirt with her. She told Matt that the party was boring and she wanted to go to a business party organized by her boss with her friends. Matt pretended that he knew about the party and told her that he was about to go as well.

Just as the girls were walking to their car, Matt came out and unlocked his expensive stolen car. The girls got impressed and Tori followed Matt's car. Barry who came out sober after the fight also went to the party with them. They all headed to Beverly Hills for the next party. During the ride to Beverly Hills,Tori told Matt about her perverted her boss, Peter (Michael Ian Black) whom hired her because he wanted to see her boobs. At the party, Peter approached Tori and invited Tori to his room to discuss about a new project. Matt who knew about his intention came and save Tori. He introduced himself as a man from Goldman Sachs. Peter then asked him about which department he worked at. He used his maths skills and confused Peter with a very confusing calculation about currency exchange. Carlos then came to join them and lied that Matt was his colleague at Goldman Sachs.

Later that night, Tori revealed to Matt that she hated her job. Matt and Tori left the party and went to the neighbor's backyard. They jumped on to the trampoline and played truth or dare. Tori dared Matt to put his lips close to her without touching her lips. They then kissed and ended up making love on the trampoline. After they were done, Matt thought that he should be honest with Tori about his job. After knowing the truth, Tori was upset and she left.

During the drive back to Kyle's party, Matt told Barry about what happen between him and Tori. Barry was happy for him because he had sex with Tori. Barry then persuaded Matt to snort some cocaine so that he could have a night of enjoyment. Matt attempted to snort while driving and he ended up crashing the car. A police car pulled up behind them and Matt heard the voice of his father (Michael Biehn). He was glad that it was his father who was on duty that night. However, when Matt's father found out that Matt stole a car, he damaged the car even more and told Matt that he need to work for a better company to pay off all the damages. Mr. Franklin who only wanted to teach his son a lesson eventually freed Matt and Barry. Before he freed them, he told Matt not to be afraid of anything. Just take a shot at anything in life. Just do it.

At Kyle's party, Wendy told Kyle about her application for graduate school at the University of Cambridge in England. She confessed to Kyle that she was too scared to open the reply letter from University of Cambridge. Kyle opened the letter for her, and told her that her application was rejected. Kyle was happy and Wendy was very disappointed with Kyle's reaction.

Matt and Barry walked back to Kyle's party. As soon as Matt arrived, he was scolded by a random girl. He knew that Tori was at the party. He looked around for her and when he found her, he tried to explain to Tori and wanted to apologize to her but Tori was too angry and disappointed to hear anything from Matt. She was upset that Matt didn't even have the courage to tell her the truth.

The challenge to ride the ball was on. After one challenger freak out last minute, Kyle asked for the next challenger and Matt raised his hand. He volunteered to step into the ball to proof his courage to Tori. When the ball rolled down the hill, the ball banged into several cars and went off the road. The ball only stopped when it reached a neighbor's pool. Matt who was trapped in the ball nearly drown but he managed to open the door and got up to surface. Barry who chased after the rolling ball was delighted to see Matt alive. Both then walked back to the party. On the way, they saw Tori and Wendy who was driving towards the direction where the ball was heading. Tori stepped out of the car and went to Matt. Matt asked for Tori's number.

Wendy then broke up with Kyle. Kyle pleaded for her to stay but Wendy was very assertive with her decision. Kyle cried uncontrollably.

In the morning, Matt got a card with Tori's number on it. Mr. Franklin who went to investigate at the pool where the ball landed, found Matt's Suncoast Video name tag in the pool. He had a proud smile on his face.

Movie Review - Take Me Home Tonight
Movie Trailer - Take Me Home Tonight

Movie Review - Let Me In

Movie Synopsis - Let Me In
Movie Trailer - Let Me In

It has been a while since I heard about this movie. When I read the synopsis, I found this movie very interesting. It is a story about a vampire told in a different way. The story of the movie is very special. I was very intrigue by it and I told Jas that it is a must to watch. Somehow, it didn't really survived long enough in the local cinema for me to find time to catch it. I saw the movie last weekend and I totally regret of not catching it in the cinema.

The plot of the movie was very nicely arranged. It was fast and slow at the same time. It was fast during the neck biting part but slow in the explanation part. I kind of like it that way. It kept the momentum of the movie going for the viewer. It is very very very rare for me to like a movie that is slow moving. This is one of the rare one that I enjoy it being slow. Even though it is slow in some parts but it still manage to keep my attention on the screen. 

Casting wise I can't comment much on it. This is a movie where the actors doesn't really need to be impactful. The storyline itself is good enough to captivate the audience. Even though I say that the actors need not be good in the movie but both the young actor and actress in the movie did a good job in their role. Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Grace Moretz manage to carry their role well. 

Nothing much to talk about the script though. The movie is quiet for most of the time. I don't remember any memorable good lines. Like I've been saying throughout this post, the selling point for this movie is the unique story line. 

There are somethings that I don't understand in the movie though. Does Owen know that he will be used by Abby to kill people? How can he not know right? Is Abby that attractive that she can so easily find a boy to kill people for her to get their blood? Obviously in the movie, she had been using her so called "father" for many years to kill people and get blood for her. Does she had any powers that will mesmerize boys to kill people for her? If she had been 12 for many years, how many boys had she used? I wonder... Maybe the writers should add a short story on the origins of Abby. That should make more sense to the audience.

Overall, it is a very unique movie. I always enjoy movies that are out of ordinary. I really enjoy watching Let Me In. You should totally catch it. 

I rate this movie 2.5/5. It's a unique story.

Movie Synopsis - Let Me In
Movie Trailer - Let Me In

Movie Review - How Do You Know

Movie Synopsis - How Do You Know
Movie Trailer - How Do You Know

I've seen the trailer for How Do You Know for quite a while already. I've been waiting for it to come to the local cinema since then. Somehow, it didn't come. Well maybe not much people would appreciate the movie because it appear to be a normal day to day movie if you didn't put in some effort to listen to the scripts. After watching the movie, I would say that this movie had some of the most outstanding lines I'd ever gotten from movies.

The plot of the movie was very simple. It was about a woman who lost hope in life after something happen that broke her routine. She was dating a very famous yet immature good looking playboy but an executive who was under federal investigation fell in love with her. These two lines basically summed up the whole movie. Seriously. That's where the importance of the scripts came in. If you didn't pay attention to the catchy lines in the movie, this movie will only be plain boring. The introduction, the climax and the end. That's how the flow of the movie was.

This movie also boasted a very interesting line up. Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson and Jack Nicholson. Where else can you find a more star-studded movie then this. I'd always been a fan of Paul Rudd. I love his movie. His movies were always good and entertaining. I always think that he is one of those actors that deserved recognition for his acting skills. I think all he need now is a good script that will catapult him to higher fame. I'm not a fan of Owen Wilson because I feel that he is very plastic. His acting will always appear to be too exaggerated. I think his facial feature is just too sharp. Nothing much to comment on the world class actors, Reese Witherspoon and Jack Nicholson. Both were simply awesome!

The scripts were awesome. The lines in the movie were superb. I found one particular line very true for most of the people these days. "I do not know if I've got what it takes to lead everybody's regular lives". Well, that line was very true. Most young people these days finds it hard to find their true self. If you happen to have that particular line hovering in you now, just remember to this next line. "Everybody is just a small adjustment from making their life work." I got this line from How Do You Know as well when Paul Rudd told Reese Witherspoon a very interesting story about Playdoh. There were many nice lines that deserved some pondering in the movie. I only share these two because I found them very true and inspiring. 

After watching the movie, I kept wondering why didn't it come to the local cinema. Even though there were some parts which were quite draggy, but I'd seen worst movies in the cinema. I almost slept off in some of them. This movie was definitely worth watching in the cinema. 

In overall, I think How Do You Know deserve a rating of 2.8/5. 

Movie Synopsis - How Do You Know
Movie Trailer - How Do You Know

Movie Synopsis - Larry Crowne

Movie Review - Larry Crowne
Movie Trailer - Larry Crowne

The movie was about a middle-aged Navy man, Larry Crowne (Tom Hanks) who was fired from his job at a hypermaket despite his seniority and he was also an 8th time employee of the year award holder. The company decided to lay him off his job because of he lacked of college education that will apparently stopped him from any chance of advancement in the company. Being in debt, he begged the company for an opportunity to stay but their decision was final.

Larry was saddened over his sudden lost of hope in life. Being under heavy debt and divorced, now he is jobless and soon he will lose his house as well. He talked to his long time neighbor and good friend, Lamar (Cedric the Entertainer). Lamar advised him to enroll in the local community college to further his education so he could get better opportunities at work in the future.

Due to the heavy oil consumption of his car, he bought a scooter to bring him around town. While riding his scooter to the colleage, Larry attracted the attention of Talia (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a younger classmates of his. They became friends almost immediately. Talia repackage his outlook and made him look younger. She and her friends also gave him a new hair cut.

Larry enrolled into a class that teached communication. There, he met Mercedes Tainot (Julia Roberts), a very attractive but unhappily married teacher. She had a bad impression on Larry because she saw Larry very close to Talia and mistaken him as a guy who goes to college to pick on young girls. Larry then got a job as a cook in his friend's restaurant.

One night, Mercedes had a big fight with her husband in the car. She left the car and sat at the bus stand. Larry and Talia saw her alone at the bus stand so Larry offered to send her home. While on the way home, they saw her husband being stopped by police officer for drinking while driving. She was over happy when she saw that. When she reached home, she was so drunk and happy that she kissed Larry.

The next morning, at class, she warned Larry not to tell anyone about what happen the night before. Soon, she began to understand Larry more after seeing his passion and also how he juggle between work and studies to kick start his life even though he was already in his middle age. She found out from Talia that Larry was just a good friend of hers. She also found out that Larry didn't tell anyone about the night. Slowly, she found herself falling for Larry.

During the finals, Larry got the topic of Geography. He told the whole class about his experience as a Navy chef and how he had travel to many places in the world. He had seen many beautiful things in the world. She gave him an A+ for that particular speech that managed to impress the whole class.

One day, she received a note from Larry, inviting her to his place for a meal. She went there and saw Larry. Both smile to each other. The movie ended with both of them entering Larry's house.

Movie Review - Larry Crowne
Movie Trailer - Larry Crowne

Movie Synopsis - Let Me In

Movie Review - Let Me In

Movie Trailer - Let Me In

In 1983 Los Alamos, New Mexico, an ambulance was rushing a critcally injured man to the hospital. At the hospital, a police detective (Elias Koteas) entered the hospital room of the injured man and tried to interrogate him about the recent murder of a teenager for which he was the prime suspect. He placed a note pad and a pen next to the patient. The detective then left the room to take an urgent call from the desk nurse. While he was on the phone, he heard a scream. The detective rushed into the room and looked out the window. The injured man fell out of the window and died. He then looked at his note pad and saw a scribbled note by the injured man, "I'm sorry Abby".

The movie then went back two weeks earlier, Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee) was a lonely 12-year-old boy, who stayed with his mom in an apartment. His parents were in the state of divorcing and he was always the target of bullies at school. Owen spent most of his time in his room, spying on his neighbors. One night, while spying, he saw a girl and her father moving in to the apartment next to his. 

The next day at school, he was bullied at school and he peed on his pants. That evening, we bought a blade and imagined revenge on the bullies by stabbing the tree. While he was fantasizing hurting the bullies, the girl who moved into the apartment next door approached him. She told Owen that they couldn't be friends. Owen was offended and he replied that he didn't want to be her friends.

That night, the girl's "father", Thomas (Richard Jenkins), went out to kill a teenager to in order to get blood for her but he accidentally spilled the blood and returned home empty handed. She was furious when she found out about it.  Owen could hear the commotion at her house. As her thirst for blood grew, she left the apartment and fed on a jogger whom she tricked into helping her.

One evening, while Owen was out at the monkey bar figuring out his Rubix cube, the girl approached him again and ask him what's that he was playing. Owen explained it to her and conveniently ask for her name. She told him that her name is Abby (Chloe Grace Moretz). He then asked her how old is she. She answered him 12 years old "more or less." Owen found her answer weird and asked for her birthday but Abby didn't know her birthday at all.  Abby and Owen eventually grew closer and fonder to each other. They would meet each other in the courtyard every other night. They also communicated through the walls of their apartments by using Morse code. One day, while at school, the main bully, Kenny (Dylan Minnette), wounded Owen with an antenna rod. Owen told Abby about it and she told him to fight back and defend himself. She also offered to help him.

On a separate night, Abby came home after meeting up with Owen. Thomas told her not to see Owen anymore as he packed his stuff to prepare for his killing later that night. He left the house and preyed on a high school student. He hid in the back seat of a high school student抯 car. Suddenly, the car was flagged down by a friend of the driver. He quietly hid there until the car stopped at a petrol station.  When the driver went down of the car to pay for the petrol, his friends reached out to the back seat to get his bag. He saw Thomas and as he tried to flee from the car, Thomas attacked him. Thomas drove the car and tried to escape but his escape plan was discovered by the driver.  The driver chase after the car. The  panic Thomas crashed the car and got trapped inside. As the driver and his friends were approaching the car, Thomas poured acid on his face so that nobody could recognised him.  He was taken to the hospital. Abby heard the new from the radio and went to the hospital. She told the nurse that Thomas was her father and asked for Thomas whereabouts and condition.  She then climbed up the hospital to the window of Thomas room. She saw him horribly disfigured and beyond recognisable. Thomas opened the window and leaned forward to offer his throat to Abby. She fed on his blood. Thomas then fell to his death. Abby was saddened by the death of Thomas. She went to find Owen for emotional comfort.

The next day, the school had an outing to a local frozen pond in a park, Owen was greeted by Kenny in a nice way. While everyone was playing ice hockey, Owen picked up a metal pole to protect himself. Kenny and his friends approached him and threatened to push him into an ice hole. Kenny asked Owen to hand him the pole but Owen refused.  Kenny tried to assult him but Owen hit him with the pole, splitting his ear. Kenny screamed in pain, the teacher saw the whole incident and was heading for them but at the same time, he heard another scream from the other students. He was distracted and he headed to the latter scream instead. The second scream was because they saw frozen dead body hidden under the ice. The police came and took the body out from the frozen pond. Owen almost got suspended for hitting Kenny but the principal decided to give an a chance, based on his good conduct at school.

Later that night, he took Abby to an abandoned place to celebrate his brave attempt in standing up for himself against Kenny. He cut his finger to make a blood pact with her. Upon seeing blood dripping on the floor, Abby went to the ground; she licked it up. Owen was startled by what he saw. Instead of attacking Owen, Abby ran away and attacked a woman who lived in the neighbourhood. Owen then confronted Abby at her apartment and Abby told him that she was a vampire. Owen also found out that Thomas was not her father. He was a boy whom she met many years ago. She also confessed that she had been 12 for many years. Meanwhile at the hospital, the husband of the lady saw the whole incident and describe the attacker to the police detective. The police detective supected that Abby was the one who attacked the lady. While her husband was outside giving his statement to the detective, the lady transformed into a vampire and fed on her own blood. A nurse went into the room and drew the curtains, the daylight shone onto the lady and she burst into flames instantly, killing them both.

One night, while Owen's mother was away. Owen opened the door for her but she insisted that he should invite her in. He asked her why and told her that nothing was stopping her from entering, so she entered without an invitation. She stood at the living area and started fidgeting. Soon, she started to bleed. Owen was horrified to see her condition. He voiced out and invited her into his house. He hugged Abby. Abby then told Owen that she didn't know why but she would end up in that condition if she wasn't invited into the house. The next morning, the detective went to Abby's apartment. He broke into the house.  He found a note on the floor that Abby left for Owen. In the note, it was stated that she would be in the bathroom. He entered the bathroom and saw Abby sleeping in the bathtub. He peeled open the paper covering the window and the sunlight burned Abby's leg, waking her up. Owen who was in the house, called for him and scared him.  The detective was then attacked by Abby from behind. Abby bit the detective. The detective asked Owen to help him but Owen closed the bathroom door, leaving Abby to feed on him. Later, Abby was seen leaving in a taxi. Owen cried.

One day, during swimming lesson in the pool, Kenny's older brother, Jimmy (Brett DelBuono), and their friends started a fire outside to distract the teacher. They then locked up the place and demanded everyone to clear out the swimming pool. Jimmy threw Owen into the pool and told Owen that if he could held his breath underwater for three minutes, then he would only cut his cheek; if he couldn't, he would poke his eye out. When Owen was held underwater, he heard sound of breaking glasses. He then heard scream and there were blood in the pool. He quickly swam upwards to breathe. While he was still panting, trying to catch his breath, a pair of legs walked towards him. All the bullies were killed.

Later, Owen boarded the train with a trunk with him. Owen tapped Morse code on the trunk to communicate with the person in it. It wasn't revealed to the audience but clearly, it was Abby in the trunk.

Movie Review - Let Me In

Movie Trailer - Let Me In

Movie Synopsis - How Do You Know

 

Movie Review - How Do You Know

Movie Trailer - How Do You Know

Lisa Jorgenson (Reese Witherspoon) was a talented softball player. She was very popular among her teammates.One day, during her training, she received a phone call from a young executive, George Madison (Paul Rudd). A girl friend of Lisa gave her number to George. George called out of politeness just in case Lisa was waiting for his call. However, Lisa politely answered his call and told George that she wasn't expecting his call as she didn't know about him having her number. Anyway, Lisa at that time was dating a handsome, playboy pitcher for the Washington National baseball team, Matty Reynolds (Owen Wilson).

However, life took a sharp turn for both of them. George suddenly found himself under federal investigation for corporate malfeasance at a company run by his father Charles Madison (Jack Nicholson). Feeling confused, George went to find his girldfriend but instead of comforting him, she wanted to break up with him. His sudden dismay caused him to be in a tensed up mood. One night, his pregnant personal assistant, Annie (Kathryn Hahn) called him and advised him to go date a girl to redirect his attention. He thought of Lisa. He called her and he got a date with her. On the day of the date, Lisa received a bad news as well. She was not selected for the new team. As she was over 30, she was dropped off from the latest team line up. During the meal, both who were irritated by their recent situation got into a heated conversation with Lisa requesting to have a quiet meal with George. Both didn't talk throughout the whole meal.

George who lost his job and was not able to contact any of his colleagues except his father found himself in love with Lisa. George found Lisa amazing. At the same time, the playboy Matty also found himself falling in love with Lisa. Matty invited Lisa to live with him at his uptown condominium in Washington D.C. Not knowing what to do next in her life, Lisa accepted the offer and moved in with Matty. Matty made millions of dollars a year and was very fun to be with but he was also immature and was never concerned about Lisa's feelings. Coincidentally, George's father, Charles also stayed in the same building with Matty.

With Annie's help, George also found a new apartment for himself. Annie who was so loyal to him tried to give him inside news regarding his charges. George urged her not to tell him because that would cost her job. Moreover, she was expecting a baby and she needed the job. After much argument and reasoning, Annie decided to keep the news to herself.

One day, George went to visit his father. At the elevator, he bumped into Lisa. Lisa invited him over to her place. While George was there, Matty came home. Matty was furious to find another guy in his house. He got mad. Lisa and Matty got into a heated up conversation, ending with Lisa packing up her things and left. George who witnessed the event chase after Lisa and took the opportunity to get close to Lisa. He invited her over to his place and they had a long talk. Lisa told George that she was unsure if she had got what it takes to lead everybody's regular lives. She was unsure abour marriage and babies. George told Lisa that he was under federal investigation and he might go to jail. That night, they understood each other more.

After much persuasion from Matty, Lisa got back to his place. However, things didn't last long with them. Matty tried to be a better man to Lisa but Lisa found out that Matty still had casual affairs with other women. She decided to move out even though Matty promised her that he would see lesser women. Feeling offended and confused, she went to find George. Whil at George's place, George received a phone call from Annie saying that she just delivered her baby. Both George and Lisa went to the hospital to visit her. While in the hospital, Annie's Boyfriend, Al (Lenny Venito), proposed to her in front of George and Lisa. That night, both George and Lisa left the hospital smiling. She began to reconsider her reluctance in marriage and babies. Lisa told George that Matty would be organizing a birthday party for her. Just before Lisa boarded the bus home, George asked if he could attend her birthday party. Lisa said yes. That night, when George reached home, he called his father. He told him that he was ready to speak to him.

On the day of the part, George went to visit his father first. He asked his father if it was him who committed the illegal act. His father admitted. He then told his father his decision was in the hand of Lisa. If she agreed to be with him, he will not go to the jail. If she rejected his advances, he wil go to the jail for his father.

At the party, Matty gave Lisa a present and rushed her to unwrap the present. It was an expensive watch. Lisa was not very pleasant that Matty had to rush her to open the present. George also came to the party with a present. George pulled Lisa aside and gave the present to her. He gave her time to unwrap her present. It was a playdoh. She was surprised to see the playdoh. He told her that the present was not complete without his explanation. He told her the story behind playdoh and added that everyone were just one small adjustment from making their life work.

After that, George hinted to Lisa that he would be waiting for her at the bus stop downstairs. Lisa thought a while, spoke to Matty and went downstairs to find George. Charles looked from above and saw George waiting at the bus stop. He then saw Lisa walking towards George. Lisa chose George and Charles smiled.

Movie Review - How Do You Know

Movie Trailer - How Do You Know

Movie Review - Larry Crowne

Movie Synopsis - Larry Crowne
Movie Trailer - Larry Crowne

When I first knew that this movie stars Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts in it, I already told myself that it is a must to watch. We watched it today and it was awesome!

Just looking at the very surface of this movie, it was a very normal chick flick. A boy met a girl, they fell in love and lived happily ever after. However, in this movie, there was something different. It was a bout a man met a woman, fell in love and lived happily ever after! Saw the difference? Haha! Seriously, I'm sick and tired of chick flick that only revolved around young muscular hunk with a hot blonde chick. In Larry Crowne, it was quality acting that amazed me!

The plot of the movie was good. Not too fast and not too slow. Beginning was quite hasty but I saw the point to it because having the introduction longer served no purposed. It was a good that they had the intro brief and the characters of the movie was introduced to the audience at the right time. The flow of the movie was well managed. The built up, the climax and the ending was nicely organized. The mood of the audience were built according to the mood of the movie.

The scripts were awesome! They were very entertaining. There were jokes in the movie and the jokes were seriously good. I think the funniest character in the movie will be the Economics's lecturer. The way he laughed was simply hilarious. The first time when he laughed, we felt that it was really awkward but when he laughed again at the end of the movie, it got the audience laughed together with him.

What more can I say about acting? It was superb. Every single smile, eye contact, facial expressions and body language made by Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts were purely 100% quality acting. No way, those young good looking hunks or hot blonde chick could provide us with that type of quality acting. I was so impressed by their acting skills. They looked so natural. Those eyes when they see each other, makes me feel as though they were really in love. I had to admit that my mood while watching the movie was the same as how the movie was. Moreover, both of them look super good despite their age! I think they are way more hotter and sexier than many young actors and actresses.

I felt that this movie had more messages to deliver to the viewers besides it being a chick flick. In the movie, Tom Hanks was a middle aged man that lost everything over night. He found hope and love again through hard work and perseverance. I think everyone should be like that. You could afford to lose everything overnight but as long as you were still breathing, you should never lost hope. Hope will bring you far. Hope will being you future.

In overall, this is a movie that I wouldn't mind watching again.We sat through the credits not because we were hoping to see any post-credits scene but we were too overwhelm by the movie. The feeling after watching this movie was slightly better than after watching "Just Go With It". Both were very sweet loving romantic comedy but Larry Crowne won slightly because of Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts.

I rate this movie 3.2/5. A spectacular romantic comedy.


Movie Synopsis - Larry Crowne
Movie Trailer - Larry Crowne

Movie Synopsis - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Movie Review - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Movie Trailer - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

The movie picked up from where it ended in Part 1. It started off with a quick scene of Voldermort  (Ralph Fiennes) obtaining the Elder Wand. Shortly after that, the scene moved on to Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) giving Dobby a proper burial at Shell Cottage. Harry then spoke to Griphook the Goblin about entering Bellatrix Lestrange's vault at Gringotts bank to find a Hocrux. Harry recalled that Bellatrix big reaction gave him a feeling that a Horcrux may be hidden in there.  Griphook agreed to take Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) there with a condition. Griphook wanted the goblin-made Sword of Gryffindor. Harry agreed. Harry also asked Ollivander, the wandmaker, to identify two wands that they took from Malfoy Manor. Ollivander identified that one belonged to Bellatrix and the other belonged to Draco Malfoy. However, Draco's wand has changed its allegiance to Harry.

Hermione disguised herself as Bellatrix (Helena Bonham Carter) by using the Polyjuice Potion and managed to slip past the Gringotts' goblin security along with a disguised Ron with Harry and Griphook under the Invisibility Cloak. They used the Imperius Curse on a goblin to help them reached the tunnels to the vaults. They were on a cart that will take them to Bellatrix's vault. Suddenly, they were stopped by a waterfall which removed all enchantment and caused the security alarm to sound. Upon reaching the main entrance to Bellatrix's vault, they could hear the breath of a dragon. Griphook guided them past the dragon guardian and into Bellatrix's vault. As they entered the vault, they started to look for the Horcrux. Harry spotted it and the very top end of the vault. It was Helga Hufflepuff's Cup. As Harry made his way towards the Horcrux, the items in the vault started multiplying. Griphook mentioned that the items were all cursed by a spell that enable them to multiply whenever they were touched. Harry quickly made his way to the cup and he got the cup. However, as the items in the vault multiplied so fast, the cup slipped out of Harry's hand and Griphook got it. Griphook asked for the Sword of Gryffindor in exchange for the cup. As soon as he they traded, Griphook took the sword and ran, leaving them behind in the vault struggling to get out of the forever multiplying items in the vault. When they got out from the vault, the Gringotts security had arrived and started firing at them, the three jump onto the back of the dragon, freed the dragon and flew away on it.

After flying a far distance, the three of them jump from the dragon and landed in the water. While in the water, Harry managed to read Voldermort's mind and saw that he knew about them getting the Hocrux. In rage, Voldermort killed many goblins including Griphook and the Sword of Gryffindor vanished from Griphook's hand. While in Voldermort's mind, he learnt that Nagini, Voldermort's snake was a living Horcrux. Harry also found out that there was a Horcrux at Hogwarts which was related to Rowena Ravenclaw.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione quickly apparated into Hogsmeade. As they set foot on Hogsmeade, they triggered the Caterwauling Charm alarm. Aberforth Dumbledore, Albus's brother rescued them. Aberforth told them that Albus (Michael Gambon) was not as noble as they thought. Albus sacrificed many things including their sister, Ariana in order to be a powerful wizard. Aberforth told them that they shouldn't trust Albus. Harry told Aberforth that he trusted the Albus he knew and convinced Aberforth to help them get into Hogwarts. Looking at the strong-willed Harry, Aberforth instructed his younger sister, Ariana who was in the potrait to help them. She walked deeper into the potrait and soon came back with someone. She went to fetch Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis), who led them through a secret passage back to Hogwarts. Upon seeing their return to Hogwarts, the other student cheered for their arrival. Harry then told everyone that he is looking for something that is connected to Ravenclaw but he do not know what it is. After much discussion, he found out that it might be the long-lost Diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw, which was not seen for centuries.

Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), now headmaster of Hogwarts, heard of Harry's return in Hogwarts. He gathered all students and staff in the Great Hall to warn them of their severe punishment if they were to help Harry in any way. Harry stepped forward and confronted Snape. As Snape was about to attack Harry, Professor McGonagall (Maggie Smith) intervened and fired her spells at Snape. Soon, Remus and Harry's alliances all came. Snape fleed. Professor McGonagall asked Harry how can they helped him. Harry replied that all he need now is time to find the Hocrux. McGonagall gathered everyone in Hogwarts to prepare for battle against Voldermort's army to buy some time for Harry.

Harry, Ron and Hermione started their search for the diadem. Luna Lovegood (Evanna Lynch) told Harry to speak to Helena Ravenclaw (Kelly Macdonald), daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw and ghost of Ravenclaw house. At the beginning, Helena was very negative towards Harry's intentions on the diadem. Harry knew that Helena had the intention to destroy the diadem as well. So he told her of his intention to destroy it too. She told him that she once trusted a man named Tom Riddle but he cast "dark magic" on her mother's diadem. Harry managed to convince her and she told him that the diadem was hiden somewhere in the Room of Requirement. While Harry was talking with Helena, Ron and Hermione went to the Chamber of Secrets and Hermione destroyed the cup Horcrux with a Basilisk fang. After destroying the cup, the two kissed.

Harry went to the Room of Requirement to find the diadem. He was trailed by Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) and his two friends, Gregory Goyle and Blaise Zabini. They began attacking Harry in the room. Ron and Hermione arrived just in time to help Harry. Harry got the diadem and soon, he saw Ron running away from a blazing fire. Goyle cast the Fiendfyre curse in the Room of Requirement. Goyle died in the uncontrolled flames, but Malfoy and Zabini were saved by Harry and his friends. Once in safety, they destroyed the Ravenclaw diadem with a basilisk fang.

While they were inside the castle looking for the diadem, there was a raging battle out there. Voldermort felt that the diadem was destroyed and he withdrew his army from the battle. He told Harry to meet him in the forest tonight if not, he will kill everyone who tried to hide Harry from him. Harry then continued his search for Hocrux.

Harry, Ron and Hermione arrived at a hut and saw Voldemort speaking to Snape. Nagini was there with him. They heard Voldemort telling Snape that the Elder Wand cannot be truly loyal to him unless he kills Snape. Voldermort then attacked him and instructed Nagini to finish him off. Voldermort and Nagini then left, leaving Snape to die. Before dying, Snape asked Harry to take his tears and look at them using the Pensieve in Dumbledore's office.

Harry took the tears to the Pensieve and saw Snape's memories. He found out that Snape and his mother were childhood friends. Snape fell in love with his mother but his father came along and took her away from him. Snape who fell deeply in love with his mother, begged Albus Dumbledore to protect her and her family. On the night of the killing, he was too late. When he arrived, Harry's mother were already dead. Since the killing, Snape protected Harry with his life because he loved his mother so much even though he hated his father. Harry also found out that he was made into a Horcrux because part of Voldemort's soul splitted off and went into Harry on the night of the killing. In Snape's memories, Dumbledore said that Harry has to die in order to destroy the hocrux within him.

Upon realising that he is a Horcrux, Harry went to meet Voldermort in the forest. Before he met up with Voldermort, it was revealed that he had the Resurrection Stone with him. As soon as he saw Voldermort, Voldermort cast a killing spell on him and killed him. Harry woke up and found himself in a strange white train station looking place. There, he met the spirit of Dumbledore. He explained to Harry that the part of Voldemort within him had been destroyed when Voldermort killed him. Now, Harry had the choice to return to the world or to die. Harry chose to return to his world but he pretended to die because Albus told him that help can always be found in Hogwarts. He needed to return to Hogwarts before revealing that he survived the attack.

Voldermort was delighted that he killed Harry. He took Harry's "dead" body back to Hogwarts and offered anyone who wished to join his army to step forward. Neville stepped forward and drew out the Sword of Gryffindor. Suddenly, Harry woke up and surprised everyone. The battle between the two sides began. During the battle, Molly Weasley killed Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry snared Voldermort away from Nagini, allowing chances for Ron and Hermione to kill Nagini. Both of them failed to kill Nagini but in return, they were being preyed by Nagini. Meanwhile, Harry and Voldermort both drew out their wand and attacked each other.

Just as Nagini was about to attack Ron and Hermione, Neville came and decapitated the snake with the Sword of Gryffindor, destroying the last of the Horcruxes. Voldemort was weakened by the death of Nagini. As Voldermort cast the killing spell to Harry, the spell rebounded and killing him instead. The Elder Wand then flew back into Harry's hands.

Later, Harry explained to Ron and Hermione that he was the actual master to Elder Wand because he disarmed the wand from Draco, who had earlier disarmed it from Albus Dumbledore. Ron asked Harry to keep the Wand but Harry broke the Elder Wand into two and threw it off the Hogwarts bridge.

Nineteen years later, the now married Harry and Ginny enrolled their son, Albus Severus, into Hogwarts. At platform 9 3/4, they met Ron and Hermione, who was also married and sending their daughter to Hogwarts. Just before leaving, Albus Severus told his father that he was afraid that he might be sorted into Slytherin house. Harry told his son to stay strong and be proud of whichever house he will be placed in. He added that the Sorting Hat will take his preference into consideration. The calm Albus Severus then boarded the train. Both couples watched their children left the platform, embarking into their own magical journey.

Movie Review - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Movie Trailer - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Movie Review - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Movie Synopsis - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Movie Trailer - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

At long last! It has come to an end! I seriously think this is the most successful movie franchise in history. Eight parts over the time span of 10 years. I don't even know if any other movie franchise can keep up to that record. The only one movie franchise that I can thought of that might break the record is The Fast and Furious expansions. The first one was also in 2001 but the recent one is only part five. Well, there was a hint that there will be part 6 though. So let's wait and see if it breaks the 8 part record set by Harry Potter and his friends. There is one movie franchise that have 6 episodes to it but it was made in a time span of 28 years. Yes! You're right! The Star Wars! 

Okay! Sorry for side tracking. Let's talk about the movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Well, the movie was a very good end to the dramatic 8 parts chain movie. I'm serious. Everything in the movie just fell in and completed the puzzle. I felt satisfied after watching it but me and Jas still stayed on till after the credits because we wouldn't want to miss anything at all.  The whole movie was a continuation from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. If you didn't watch Part 1, I think you should go grab the DVD and watched it before going for Part 2. Even though it was not very connected but there were bits and pieces that link both the parts.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows started off in a climax. It was a rare start but it was acceptable because this is Part 2. The whole movie progressed really well. Even though the stretch of the climax was really long, but it was very entertaining. A lot of magic were involved. A lot of people were killed in the war at Hogwarts. The movie slows down a bit for some explanation  and then it quickly got us back into the mood. I felt the ending was perfect. It ended when it was supposed to end. No draggy moments or maybe there were no extra time to be draggy.

The scripts were awesome. Some of it really made me ponder upon it and some of it were really strong. For example, Dumbledore told Harry something like "Whatever that is in your mind doesn't mean that it is not real." That particular line made me ponder a while. One example of strong lines in the movie was the famous line that was in the trailer as well, "The boy who lived. Come to die". Voldermort said it to Harry before the final battle began. Of course, the names of the magic spells never failed to amaze me. 

Over the time of ten years, the acting skills of the three main actors had improved tremendously. Just one comment though, Hermione didn't look old enough to have a kid at the end. However, Ginny really looked like a matured lady. However, the two couples seem a bit odd. Somehow I felt Ron and Hermione didn't matched. So was Harry and Ginny. Well, I thought of Harry and Hermione, still it felt a little odd. Well, ignore this. It was just some personal thoughts. It didn't affect the awesomeness of the movie.

Well, I had one question at the end of the movie. Someone who read the book might be able to help me on this. How does the Resurrection Stone work? In the movie, Harry just threw it away after he saw the stone but somehow he got resurrected. I was expecting something magical to happen but nothing happen. He threw the stone away before he died and he resurrected. That's all I got from the movie. Can someone please tell me how it works?

There was an awkward scene in the movie. The part where Ron and Hermione kissed after they destroyed the hocrux. It was a bit odd though. I don't see why they should kiss after destroying the hocrux. I actually spotted a more appropriate moment for them to kiss. I think it would be more appropriate for them to kiss after they survived the attack from Voldemort's snake. LOL! Anyway, this is random as well. Haha!

Sound effect was good. Just that I couldn't remember hearing that signature Harry Potter tune. Maybe it was mixed around in the movie. I guessed I was too into the movie that I missed it. The mood of the movie turned very emotional when Harry found out the truth about Snape.

Overall, the movie was excellent. If you're a Harry Potter movie fan, I'm sure you will not be disappointed. But those who read the book, I'm not sure how you would feel about it as you really cannot expect them to put everything from the book into the movie. I really enjoyed watching this last part of the movie franchise. I strongly recommend it to everyone!

I rate it 3.5/5. All good things will come to an end! Even for a magical journey! 

Movie Synopsis - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Movie Trailer - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Movie Review - Wu Xia

Movie Synopsis - Wu Xia
Movie Trailer - Wu Xia

I didn't knew about this movie until my recent visit to the cinema. I saw the poster there and I was like "WOW! Another Donnie Yen movie!" After his recently disappointing movie, The Lost Bladesman, I didn't put any high hopes on this movie when I watched it. However, this movie turned out to be surprisingly much better. 

The flow of the movie was quite slow. The beginning part was really draggy. But there was something good about it. It kept me wondered if Bai Jiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) was right about the true identity of Jin-Xi (Donnie Yen). In the first part of the movie where Jin-Xi fought the two robbers, he really did a good job in making the viewers think that he really couldn't fight. I thought it would be those kind of movie where his family were killed then he go up the mountain to learn martial arts and came down for revenge later on. It surprised me on the plot though. After the hour mark, the movie became strangely magnetic. I kept on wanting to know what will happen in the end. I would say the plot of this movie was very successful. It was slow in the beginning but somehow still managed to captivate the viewers.

The cast of the movie was awesome. It had been a while since I last watched a movie by Takeshi Kaneshiro. The last movie he was in that impacted me a lot was The Warlords. That movie was super awesome. Till date, I still couldn't find a movie as awesome as that one. Donnie Yen was as usual. Martial art master who seems to be unbeatable. Tang Wei had a very small role in this movie but still, her performance was worthy to be mentioned.

I love the script of this movie. So much details were in it especially on the acupuncture. They must have did a whole load of research in order to get the script out. Most of the dialogues were very powerful and significant. I didn't managed to track any unnecessary dialogue. Most of dialogues and explanations were meant to progress the movie further. 

Here is something that I'd never commented before on other movies. The sound effect and background music. I usually don't pay attention to the background music and sound effect but somehow in this movie, it attracted my attention. I think that the background music and sound effect added "oomph" to the fighting scene. It was nicely done.

In this movie, there wasn't much fighting scene but I felt that the amount was just right. Not too much and not too few. If you are a fan of Donnie Yen, you should watch this movie. It is far more better than The Lost Bladesman. If you are a fan of Takeshi Kaneshiro, you should watch it too! He did a good job as a detective in this movie!

Overall rating, 2.5/5. Action packed movie with good background music.

Movie Synopsis - Wu Xia
Movie Trailer - Wu Xia

Movie Synopsis - Wu Xia

Movie Review - Wu Xia
Movie Trailer - Wu Xia

Wu Xia opened with a pair of thieves robbing a shop where Liu Jin-Xi (Donnie Yen) was there fixing their window. At first, he was hiding behind the cabinet but the thieves were very brutal. They started to hurt the old owner and his wife. Jin-Xi who couldn't held back his righteousness, came out and fought with the two thieves. He killed both the thieves. According to him, he was lucky.

The officials sent detective, Xu Bai-Jiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) to come and investigate the death of both the thieves. After some investigation, they found out that the two thieves were among the ten most wanted people in the land. Upon receiving the news, Bai-Jiu suspected that Jin-Xi was more then just a normal villager. Jin-Xi was hailed as the hero of the village for killing the notorious thief.

Bai-Jiu stayed on in the village to investigate more on Jin-Xi. He went through the whole crime scene with Jin-Xi. Jin-Xi told him his version on how he dodge the sword and how he was thrown around the room but was lucky enough survived and killed both the robbers. However Bai-Jiu had his own version on how Jin-Xi used his martial arts skills to kill both the robbers and managed to arrange it in a way that it looked as though both the robbers were killed accidentally. 

In order to proof his theory right, Bai Jiu tested him in various situation. First, he threw him off a hanging bridge but Jin-Xi fell into the running river and survived. Secondly, Bai Jiu went to the extend of attacking him from behind with a sickle and wounded Jin-Xi badly. After that second incident, the villagers tried to chase him away from the village. Meanwhile, Bai-Jiu sent his assistant to the town where Jin-Xi claimed he was from. His assistant came back with news that Jin-Xi was lying. He also found out that a family of butcher were killed ten years ago by a heartless triad leader called Tang Lung. Bai-Jiu pieced out all the information and concluded that Liu-Jin-Xi was Tang Lung, the second in command in the triad gang 72.

Bai-Jiu went back to town to get the arrest warrant to arrest Jin-Xi. However, the news of Tang Lung living in the village reached the ears of the leader of gang 72. The leader of gang 72 was the father of Tang Lung. Tang Lung's father sent Shi San Niang (Kara Hui) to the village to get Tang Lung back. At first, Jin-Xi didn't want to admit that he was Tang Lung but Shi San Niang started to kill the villagers. Jin-Xi fought back and eventually killed Shi San Niang.

Bai-Jiu came back with his troops but realized that gang 72 came and killed some villagers. One of his fellow policeman advised him to stay out of the conflict and just let gang 72 kill with Jin-Xi but Bai-Jiu insisted that he must arrest Jin-Xi. The fellow policeman reason out to him that even if they could get him out of the village, they would not be able to reach the town because gang 72 people would be out there waiting to get him. After saying that, they left Jin-Xi alone in the village and said that they will only be back to collect Jin-Xi's dead body. 

Jin-Xi then cooperate with Bai-Jiu to fake his death so that he could be carried out of the town. With his acupuncture skills, Bai-Jiu fake Jin-Xi's death and had his fellow policeman back into the village to collect his corpse. However, he had to wake Jin-Xi up within a time frame or else, he would be dead for good. During their journey to town, gang 72 stopped them and  mourned over the death of Jin-Xi by circling the dead body on their horses. While they were mourning, Tang Lung's father went into the village to search for his grandson. Jin-Xi's wife, Ayu (Tang Wei) tired to hide her son from the triad gang leader. 

Meanwhile, Bai-Jiu became very restless and kept looking at his watch. It was almost time to wake Jin-Xi up but the gang 72 people were still around. Out of desperation, he had to wake Jin-Xi up. When Jin-Xi woke up, he amputate his own arm as an act to leave gang 72. His brother was depressed over his action and asked him to explain to his father by himself. He went back to his house and saw his father carrying his son while waiting for him to be home for meal. 

When his father saw him without an arm, he got very angry and tried to kill his grandson. Jin-Xi fought with him and soon after that Bai-Jiu came to help him. Bai-Jiu used his acupuncture technique and poke a needle at the bottom of his foot. Jin-Xi, only with one arm, fought his father bravely and he was thrown out of the building by his father. Bai-Jiu who tried to help Jin-Xi was also heavily wounded by the triad leader. As it was raining heavily and there were lightning, Bai Jiu took the opportunity to stick a needle on the triad leader's neck. As there was a needle in his foot and he was stepping on water, the needle on his neck attracted the lightning and the triad leader was electrocuted to death. 

After the death of his father, Tang Lung became Liu Jin-Xi once again and lived happily ever after in the village.

Movie Review - Wu Xia
Movie Trailer - Wu Xia

Movie Review - Mr. Popper's Penguins

Movie Synopsis - Mr. Popper's Penguins
Movie Trailer - Mr. Popper's Penguins

It had been a while since I last watched a movie by Jim Carrey. All his movie had always been entertaining. When I first knew about this movie, I looked forward into catching it in the cinema. I told Jas that it is a must to watch. Well, it was different. It was not those kind of comedy that would make you laughed till your jaw pain or muscle cramped. It was a very family comedy that will definitely entertained you and your family.

The plot of the movie was nicely arranged. The built up, the climax and the happy ending. Not many movie could juggle the phases of the movie to make it just right for the audience. However, I felt that this movie managed the phases well and got me very entertain throughout the movie. 

The actors were awesome especially Jim Carrey. He would always be funny in his own way. The movie were not as funny but somehow with him in the role of Tom Poppers, the movie became extra funny. His charm was awesome. Even though it was very clearly that he had aged quite a lot since I last saw him in a movie but he was still as charming as before. His charisma will never be negligible. Others actors in the movie also performed well in their respective roles. 

Script wise was good. There wasn't any moment that got me into the 'HUH? What is he talking?' mode. So the scripts were very successful. Messages were delivered to the audience. 

While I was walking out of the cinema, as usual, Jas asked me what I think about the movie. It was a very lighthearted movie that got me very entertain. Not because of the joke. It was due to everything in the movie. From the storyline to the cast to their dialogues even to the penguins. It would be perfect movie for me to cuddle Jas on the sofa and watch it on a quiet Saturday night. Since I've watched it already. Maybe 10 years later, I would cuddle Jas and our children to watch it on a quiet Saturday night.

Overall rating, 2.5/5. The perfect family comedy.

Movie Synopsis - Mr. Popper's Penguins
Movie Trailer - Mr. Popper's Penguins 

Movie Synopsis - Mr. Popper's Penguins

Movie Review - Mr. Popper's Penguins
Movie Trailer - Mr. Popper's Penguins

The movie was about Tom Popper (Jim Carrey), a divorcee and a very successful realtor. Tom Popper's father was a man who traveled to many far places around the world since Tom Popper was still a child. One day, he received the news that his father passed away. Few days later, he received a crate containing a Gentoo Penguin. It was from his late father. While he was opening the crate, a letter from his father fell and went under the table. As he was too surprised to see the penguin, he didn't noticed the existance of the letter. He wanted to send the penguin back but due to a miscommunication, five more penguins were sent to him. Now he had six penguins running around his house. He asked his assistant, Pippi (Ophelia Lovibond) to get someone to get rid of the penguins. She called the zoo.

On the same day, it was his son, Billy's birthday. Billy (Maxwell Perry Cotton) and his sister, Janie (Madeline Carroll) were supposed to go to Tom's place to celebrate the birthday. When they arrived, they were so suprised and happy to see the penguins. Billy thought the penguins were his birthday presents. Tom's children fell in love with the penguins instantly. While they were happily playing with the penguins, the local zoo worker, Nat Jones (Clark Gregg) came and wanted to take the penguins. He stopped Nat Jones from taking the penguins and decided to keep the penguins for his children. He named the penguin Captain, Loudy, Bitey, Stinky, Lovey and Nimrod.

At the same time, Popper was on the verge of taking over his current company after his old aged bosses retired. He was given the final task of buying Tavern on the Green before securing his spot at the top seat of the company. Tavern on the Green was an old restaurant that he used to eat at with his father when he was young. His bosses had the intention of tearing the building down and redeveloped the land. However, the biggest obstacle was to convince its elderly owner, Selma Van Gundy (Angela Lansbury) as would only sell it to someone whom she felt worthy to sell it to.

With the children at his house, the children came to his house more often. He eventually became closer to his children. Tom who was still in love with his ex-wife, Amanda (Carla Gugino) began to date her again. One day, when they came home, they got a surprise from the penguin. The penguins laid three eggs. He waited day and night for the eggs to hatch. One night, he woke up his children to witness two of the eggs hatched. However, Captain's egg didn't hatch. Tom became worried and obsessed in saving the last egg. He began neglecting his job. He spent days and nights taking care of the last egg. One day, his bosses came to visit him. Looking at his condition, they fired him but he didn't care. After much effort in saving the egg, he called Nat Jones. Nat Jones came and told him that the egg cannot be saved.

Upon realizing that he couldn't save the egg, Popper felt that he was not capable of providing the best environment to raise the penguins. He decided to donate them to the zoo. He then went back to work. The bosses took him in immediately and he focused his attention on buying Tavern on the Green. One day, his children and ex-wife came over to visit him but got disappointed with him.

On the morning where he was supposed to attend Selma Van Gundy's press conference, Tom found the lost letter from his father which was under the table all the time. In the letter, his father told him to hold his children close to him and love them, just as the penguins would love him. He felt guilty over his decision to give the penguins to the zoo. He decided to go to the zoo to take them back.

He took his children and called his ex-wife to meet him at the zoo. They stormed into the office of Nat Jones and demanded to take back his penguins. They were told that the penguins were separated and traded to other zoos. However, they heard Loudy and located the penguins. Tom took his chance and locked Nat Jones in the vault where the penguins were kept. They ran and managed to escape with Captain having the most epic escape by flying off the roof with a kite attached to it.

After rescuing the penguins, the whole family went to the press conference. Tom stopped Selma Van Gundy to sell Tavern on the Green. Upon seeing how Tom had reunited his family and rescued the penguins, Selma Van Gundy decided to give him Tavern on the Green. Selma then revealed to Tom that she remembered him as a small boy who used to come to the restaurant with his father.

At the end of the film, instead of tearing the restaurant down, Tom renovated and reopened it. He brought his family to the restaurant and sat on the table that he used to sit with his father. Tom then decided to bring his family and the penguins back to Antarctica. When they reached Antartica, the penguins were happy to reunite with their own kind. The Poppers' first penguin, Captain, laid another egg. Tom told his family that they would come back to visit when the egg hatched.

Movie Review - Mr. Popper's Penguins
Movie Trailer - Mr. Popper's Penguins

Movie Review - The Infidel

Movie Synopsis - The Infidel
Movie Trailer - The Infidel

Last week when we went for Laddaland, Jas spotted the poster for this movie The Infidel. The poster clearly displayed that it was a comedy. So we went for The Infidel this week. The movie was not that very funny but it was a very lighthearted comedy. It was a good idea to go for a soft movie after the seat-jumping Laddaland and action packed Transformer 3: Dark of the Moon. Somehow, when I came out from the cinema, I was speechless. Nothing to comment.

The plot of the movie was normal. From a very soft beginning (which was slightly too slow that I almost slept  off) to a very heated up climax and ended with a happy ending. Even though it was nicely arranged, I felt that it was quite draggy for the first forty five minutes. When things were approaching the climax, somehow the movie became very quick. Maybe the pace of the movie should be slightly more even out. 

Acting wise was very good. The actors in the movie were surprisingly good. All of them were very into their characters. Even the young actors in the movie had quite a notable performances. 

As for the scripts of the movie, it is okay. Nothing impactful. The jokes were not very funny. I couldn't remember any jokes in the movie. The funniest part in the movie was when Mahmud (Omar Djalili) learning on how to be a Jew. The way he danced and the way he talked was really funny. The joke that Mahmud told during the speech at the Bar Mitzvah with Lenny was not funny to me. In fact,  I couldn't recall any of the audience in the cinema laughing as well. Maybe we were slow but whatever the joke is, it was supposed to entertain the audience in the cinema right? Maybe a more layman joke could be a good help. 

The poster seriously made me thought that it was a very funny comedy. I was expecting many laughing moment but sad to say, I think "a handful" was also too much to describe the amount of funny scenes I could remember. Anyhow, the movie was not bad. It was a good lighthearted movie that I'm sure many out there appreciated. 

Overall rating 1.5/5. Good lighthearted movie which I felt differ from the poster.

Movie Synopsis - The Infidel
Movie Trailer - The Infidel

Movie Synopsis - The Infidel

Movie Review - The Infidel
Movie Trailer - The Infidel

The movie was about Mahmud Nasir (Omid Djalili), a loving husband, a devoted father and a not so religious British Muslim whom enjoyed rock music, especially deceased pop star Gary Page (James Floyd), and occasionally had alcohol. His son, Rashid (Amit Shah), fell in love with Uzma (Soraya Radford) and wanted to marry her.Uzma's stepfather is a Muslim cleric, Arshad Al-Masri (Yigal Naor). Rashid tried to convince his father to put up a show in front of Uzma's stepfather that their family is very religious. At first,  Mahmud was disagree but after much persuasion by Rashid, Mahmud agreed to it. However, things change when Mahmud accidentally found his adoption certificate while clearing his deceased mother's house. Mahmud learnt that he was actually a Jewish by birth but was adopted by his Muslim parents when he was only two weeks old. His real name is Solly Shimshillewitz. This comes as a shock to Mahmud, who is somewhat anti-Semitic, exemplified by his relationship with his American Jewish neighbour, Leonard "Lenny" Goldberg (Richard Schiff).

During an argument with Lenny, Mahmud accidentally revealed his religion and real name. Lenny then told him that he know of someone by the name of Izzy Shimshillewitz, Mahmud's biological father. Mahmud tracked his father to a Jewish old age home. He tried to visit his father but a rabbi (Matt Lucas) refused to let him in. He claimed that it would be a shock for Izzy, a Jewish man, to find out that he had a Muslim son. He advised him to learn more about Jew if he wanted to see his father. Lenny agreed to teach Mahmud on how to be a Jew. He was taught to dance like Topol and he learnt basic Yiddish.

However, his frequent trips to Lenny's house aroused the suspicions of his wife. His wife thought that he had an affair. Later when his wife confronted him, he lied to his wife that he went for classes to learn on how to be a more devoted Muslim. During a Muslim rally that Rashid asked him to go, Mahmud publicly burned a kippah in desperation to show that he hate Jews. Mahmud later attended a Bar Mitzvah with Lenny and unintentionally told a very crude joke in his broken Yiddish but everyone burst out laughing.

One day, Mahmud and Lenny tried to go to see Izzy, but the rabbi still refused to let Mahmud in because he couldn't say his Jewish Sh'ma or name the Five Books of Moses in Hebrew. Mahmud got so disappointed and accused Lenny for not being a good Jew teacher. They got into an argument and Mahmud stormed off, saying that he would tell his family the truth about him. However, when he reached home, he saw Arshad, Uzma and their friends were at his house. Arshad was impressed with Mahmud's act of burning the kippah. He was proud to give his blessing to Rashid and Uzma's wedding. Suddenly, the police came to arrest Mahmuh for his racist act in public. A crowd of angry Jews and supportive Muslims were there too. In frustration, he shouted in front of everyone that he was actually a Jew. Arshad was disgusted with the truth and left with Uzma and his friends.

Mahmud's family left him and his best friend at work resigned as well. That night, he drank a lot and was rescued by Lenny.  Mahmud went to the old age home and demanded to see his father but he found out that his father just passed away. Feeling heartbroken over the lost, Mahmud went inside Izzy's room and found a video of his announcement in Izzy's video tape machine. Lenny had earlier sent it over to Izzy. Mahmud saw a sticker on the video with the name "Solly" on it and felt happy because Izzy still remembered his long-lost son.

One day, Mahmud went to Arshad's gathering and delivered a speech on Jewish citizens and Muslims. Mahmud then told the crowd that Arshad was previously Gary Page, who fake his own death after giving a racist remark but was resurfaced as a Muslim cleric. He also revealed that Arshad's parents were scientologists. Arshad escaped. In the end, Rashid and Uzma got married and their party was attended by both Muslims and Jews.

Movie Review - The Infidel
Movie Trailer - The Infidel