3:10 to Yuma

Damn Stylo

It's been a long wait for the remake of 3:10 to Yuma to finally reach our cinemas. In fact, the Code 1 DVD is already out, and I thought it was probably missed opportunity if there are interested folks out there who decide to get the DVD instead of catching it on the big screen. I do not understand why the need for the delay, contrary to the belief that it is a Western movie which might be an unpopular genre to go into, and of course, I can only recall a handful which made it to cinemas here in recent times - Dances with Wolves, Unforgiven, Tombstone and Wyatt Earp - the last 2 being movies about the legendary lawman and the shootout at OK Corral.

Some 50 years ago, audiences were introduced to the duo of impoverished rancher Dan Evans (then played by Van Heflin) and the number one outlaw of the land, Ben Wade (Glenn Ford). As the story goes, Evans has to feed a family and the poor harvest and weather aren't doing him any favours. As Wade gets captured, volunteers are immediately called for to escort him to the town of Contention, to put him onboard the 3:10 train to Yuma jail, hence the title. Two powerful actors have now taken over the mantle of the 2 rivals, namely Russell Crowe (who's having a comeback of sorts to our screens with the recently released American Gangster), and Christian Bale in respective roles. And unlike American Gangster which had again 2 high profile actors sharing top billing, Bale and Crowe share a lot of screentime together, thus boosting the appeal of the remake.

Even for those who have seen the original movie, I am glad to say that on the whole, this version ranks far superior than the original version. The earlier version, being made half century ago, will definitely need a decent update for modern audiences, and that aspect did not disappoint, with more in-depth character development, and exciting shootouts. However, in my opinion, the ending of the original packed far more a punch that this one, given that the ending in the 2007 version is likely to be more in line with stories these days - the cynical, non-saccharine sweet ending.

If it followed the original closely, then most audiences would have found it trying as most of the movie took place in a hotel room where the duo are waiting for the awaited time to make a run for the train station. Here, director James Mangold and scribes Halsted Welles, Michael Brandt and Derek Haas decided to boost the middle section with a detour to Apache land and encountering railroad builders (check out Luke Wilson!), presenting again more threats to the group escorting Ben Wade. Also, Ben Wade is presented in a more manacing manner, constantly probing the group and looking for opportunities to make his escape, rather than the rather subdued original which didn't exhibit any notion of danger. What I also found to be a leg up, was the swapping of importance between Evan's wife Alice (Gretchen Mol) and his son William (Logan Lerman), which eliminated a rather awkward moment in the original where Alice paid Dan a visit whilst holed up in the hotel room. The structure and development otherwise remained about the same, and even some lines from the classic were reused in this remake, in particular in the first half of the movie.

Character wise, you can't get any more better than having Crowe and Bale flesh out their characters and giving both a sense of angst, who on a better day, could probably have been good friends. You follow them as the duo gain newfound respect for each other, and the longer running time provided ample chances for the audience to find reason to connect, and understand the characters at a deeper level. Ben Wade was given time to show that he isn't all bad, despite what he tells others and from what he had done to gain his notorious reputation, and in Dan Evans, he finds the kind of life that he yearns for - beautiful wife and family, with sons who look up to the dad - but will probably never get, unless you count the mercenary hoodlums as family (Ben Foster in a truly badass role). And from Evans, learning his true motivations for this suicidal job, could have made any grownup feel sorry, while he exhibits his admirable work ethics in the face of temptation, to just get the job done, to put food on the table for his family, and teaching his sons as well that it's not the size, calibre or speed of the gun that matters, but principles.

3:10 to Yuma deserves to be watched on the big screen, and given limited screenings and the crowding of movies this month, do make time for it. It's a perfect balance for those looking for mean gunfights, and powerful drama, and this remake delivers it all where it should matter - adopting the best bits in the original, and plugging the gaps when those portions falter. Highly recommended, even if you're not a fan of the Western genre!

[DVD] The Trench (1999)

Poster

The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest in WWI, and the first day saw the infliction of the worst ever casualties on the British army, with almost some 20,000 deaths amongst 60,000 casualties. But don't expect to see plenty of post-Saving Private Ryan styled action sequences as made famous by the Spielberg movie, but The Trench offers a much more realistic look at life in the ditches of soldiers back in those days.

Some things still hold true though, that in the army, it's a constant rush to wait, followed by the wait to rush, and the cycle continues. We are introduced early to a platoon given the task of holding the frontlines, with the vague hope that should the order be given to charge, they will be amongst the last to leave the trench because of their front line duty. But as we all know, things in the army are subjected to change, and soon enough, fear sets in as the order gets given.

Mention the word "trench" to any infantry soldier, and you can look at the face of dread as a lot of manpower is required to dig one entire network of trenches, with provisions for quarters (for those with rank) and provisions and supplies. What made The Trench shine, are the characterization, even though at times it bothered on the edge of become caricatures. For example, the officer in charge (played by Julian Rhind-Tutt) is often seen as inexperienced and incompetent, while the sergeant is a hard nosed bloke who takes no bullshit (hey, it's Daniel Craig in the role!)

We learn, if you do not know, why mundane things like polishing boots, and drills, still become enforced in the claustrophobic surroundings, more so of allowing the men to keep their minds of dread and the impending potential of death, and we peer into the minds behind those men in preparing for combat. Moments of folly lead to unnecessary sacrifice, while bravado gets exposed as a masking of underlying cowardice. While it seemed to have been filmed within a studio, the wonderful cast (see if you can spot Cilian Murphy!) still managed to bring out immense fear of the unknown, and while there are the expected tussles and difference in opinion, you can't help but smile at the select few who constantly choose to look at the side of optimism.

The Trench evokes emotions and thoughts that it is after all, an anti-war movie, that seeks to honor the men who have given the prime of their lives for a cause they do not fully understand (they were mostly volunteers, not conscripts, back in those days). It's a war movie no doubt, but one where you are given generous in-depth look at the dreadfulness, and the senselessness of it all.

This region free DVD by BFS Video is presented in full screen format. Only English audio is available, and it comes without subtitles. Visual transfer is decent, and the movie is split into 6 chapters for scene selection.

Most of the Special Features are mainly text based. Cast Biographies are available for Paul Nicolls, Daniel Craig, Julian Rhind-tutt, Danny Dyer, Anthony Strachan, Tam Williams, James D'Arcy and Ciaran McMenamin. Crew Profiles include writer-director william boyd, producer Steve Clark-Hall, DoP Tony Pierce-Roberts, editor Jim Clark, casting director Mary Selway and music composers Evelyn Glennie & Greg Malcangi. Short Production Notes Are given by director william boyd, producer steve clark-hall, and the cast of Daniel Craig. Paul Nicholls, James D'Arcy, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Tam Williams, and Danny Dyer, as they share some insights into the making of the movie.

There's only one notable documentary which encompass elements of WWI, introducing us to key battlegrounds as well as, given the titular subject, shows us how on paper a trench is supposed to be like, of course theoretically, versus what is actually on the ground as built and maintained by tired soldiers. For those fascinated by the tactics of warfare in those days, then this 48 minute documentary must not be missed.

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Sharkwater

Da-Dum, Da-Dum, Da-dumdumdumdumdumdumdumdum

Blame it on its many teeth, giving it a perception that it can cut through flesh and bone. And no thanks to movies like Jaws, which has set that perception in stone that sharks are extremely dangerous creatures that have one mission, and that's to eradicate human swimmers from the sea. How do you try and convince what is generally "accepted truths" by the masses? You go at it small, with persistence, that fire in the belly to fuel your crusade in re-educating the masses, and the best example being yourself taking the plunge to try and set things right, one step at a time.

That's what Rob Stewart did, in trying to change the incorrect mindsets we have of sharks, by demonstrating to us how they are actually more afraid of us, and making a documentary film out of it to spread the good message. Don't let the poster fool you into thinking it's a fictional, narrative film. It's a documentary, and like most documentaries, it has an agenda to cover. Here, Stewart's agenda is simple, to talk about shark conservation, and the importance of the ocean ecosystem. Yes, it's a myriad of topics that can spiral out of control, but strangely enough, the key points are all presented in a compelling manner, against very beautiful underwater images of marine life, the very life he is seeking, on the bigger picture, to try and save.

Naturally, one doesn't talk about saving the sharks without touching on the demand side of things, and that is the perceived value of a delicacy called the Shark's Fin Soup, which is a staple in any self-respecting Chinese restaurant. While the usual illegal poaching through long lining and footage of skinning are aimed to shock an audience into the cruelty of the way the sharks are destroyed, the biggest impact made here are the frivolous statements given by the chairman of a prominent brand of canned shark's fin soup. You will definitely chuckle at his arguments, or the lack thereof in the intelligence department, as he's made to look quite animated, and not in good light, deliberately of course.

Some might feel that the movie did seem a little like an ego-trip for Rob Stewart, with himself being featured quite prominently in many scenes, but I thought it's a given because it is a trip along a journey he's bringing us, and that's why we see some of the inherent risks involved in the many conservationists efforts as they go out to try and stop, with limited budget and resources, the perennial problem of trying to stem out the supply side of things. Naturally, it's never easy with the illegal trade, as shady corporations, characters and corrupt governments are almost always involved, because that's how the activity can thrive, and it boils down to obscene amount of profits to be made by all parties.

Through documentaries that touch on current hot topics involving the environment, it's hard to tell how effective they can be. I guess a good measure if how convinced you are to the cause, and from the documentary, try to reinforce the message yourself to your peers. Simple actions done by a few, can go a long way, and I guess the simplest of ways is to start from yourself. An Inconvenient Truth has made me more diligent in electricity utilization, and now Sharkwater has convinced me to layoff the shark's fin soup, whether they come in cans, or presented in wedding dinners. I have a choice, and I choose not to consume it. You might laugh at the futility of my actions, or want to take my share, but go ahead please, as I'm exercising my choice, a choice which you have too.

Watch Sharkwater. You might be convinced by the arguments for the cause too. If not, it's still an educational trip in learning more about sharks and the ocean ecosystem, with a stark warning not to tamper with the natural order of Mother Nature. Highly recommended, naturally.

P.S. I wanna hug a shark too!

Jack Neo's Ah Long Pte Ltd

Finally, after those extremely short teasers asking you to turn off your mobile phones when in the cinemas, the theatrical trailer has arrived, though in YouTube. Stick around and I'll let you know when the movie site goes live.

In the Star Awards last year, Mark Lee jested that Fann Wong was his (screen) wife, and this is it. The trailer runs 3 minutes long, and you can't help but notice that there are slight similarities to the Korean movie My Wife is a Gangster - here Fann Wong plays a loan shark with whom Mark Lee's effeminate character marries. Shot partly in Malaysia, expect the usual not-so-subtle jibes at the gahmen this time (such as the dig on the escalating prices of cigarettes), and one perennial favourite from Neo's previous movie, the security guard, makes a return too.

But what I think I will enjoy, are the songs that have become hallmarks of a Jack Neo film. The trailer gives you a glimpse of what's to come, but I'm looking forward to more to crack me up. Making its premiere during this year's Lunar New Year holidays in February, it's up against tough competition such as Jay Chou's Kung Fu Dunk, and the highly awaited Stephen Chow's CJ7. Let's hope it still makes a decent box office dent!

[DVD] Painted Skin (Hua Pi Zhi: Yin Yang Fa Wang) (1993)

Beware the Droppings!

Painted Skin is the last movie that King Hu made, and while he revisits Pu Songling's material from Liao Zai, which he last did for his masterpiece A Touch of Zen, this movie however seemed a little strange and terribly dated, with uninspiring plots and despite the power cast, the characters all came off to be going through the motions, and not injecting any life at all.

I am not sure why or how this project came about, but there were a number of missteps along the way. For example, prior to this 1993 release, Joey Wong had already been typecasted for her many roles as the ethereal ghostly enchantress with her roles in the Chinese Ghost Story franchise by Tsui Hark, up to a point I remember that audiences were sick of her portrayal, and cemented her reputation as a one-act actress. Here, she gets cast again as a spirit of sorts who cannot go to Heaven or Hell, and is practically stuck in limbo.

Her You Feng meets with yet another scholar type character (do I hear the yawns and groans already) Wang Hsi Tzu, played by Adam Cheng, but instead of the usual dashing swordsman type figure that Cheng is famous for, he takes a turn and portrays a character who's main objective is to find a woman who can bear him an heir, because his wife is found barren. Now how this develops is almost comedic - right from the start after Hsi Tzu's initial encounter with a playful priest, he bumps into You Feng, gets horny, brings her home and wants to hump her immediately. If this is not a King Hu movie, I would have fallen out of my chair laughing at this juvenile turn of events!

Painted skin refers to the makeup that ghosts put on to pretend to be humans, because they're stuck in the middle of two planes. It's always interesting to note that the Chinese believe that when you leave this world, you head straight to hell for judgement and punishment, contrary to Western believes that you get to at least line up at the pearly gates (and gawk at the saints), whether or not you get to enter it after the verdict is passed is a different story altogether. When you're in hell suffering, you will start to long for the time to reincarnate (whether as a human is also a different story), but that's basically the gist. However those stuck in this yin-yang domain, as this story goes, are ruled by an evil spirit called the Yin-Yang King, a faceless creature who later on has someone portraying him to duke it out with the heroes.

And the battles here, while choreographed right for excitement, doesn't seem to be sophisticated enough. Bear in mind that this was in the year 1993, where films like Once Upon a Time in China, and Swordsman II were released. Having what is perceived to be a rehash storyline and setting didn't help either, as audiences probably were tired from the female spirit-male scholar-priests-demon king connection. There's no grandeur fight sequences of epic magnitudes, or memorable scenes such as the chase in a bamboo forest. Here, chases are aplenty, more with the good guys running away from a crazed, powerful demon king, than actually engaging it in meaningful combat. We have multitudes of priest characters here, from the 2 resident bumbling, incompetent ones played by Lau Shun (who was the evil eunuch in Swordsman) and Wu Ma, to Sammo Hung as a mysterious High Monk who chooses to hide his identity, and a cameo by the late Lam Ching-Ying (everyone's favourite Vampire Hunter) as a Purple Taoist.

But despite its almost A-list cast, the story was still all over the place, with flashbacks and truly strange scenes which doesn't add much depth to the story, as if to want to cover a wide breadth versus digging in for depth. If compared to A Touch of Zen (which seemed to have its ending parodied here in one of the scenes), Painted Skin is unfortunately no match on all fronts, and it's actually quite a pity that King Hu should bow out with a lacklustre piece such as this.

The region-free DVD by Tai Sing is actually quite poor in quality, presented in letterbox format. The visual transfer is like a badly aged home video, and audio is available in Cantonese and Mandarin, which seemed mono. English and Mandarin subtitles are burned in, and there are 9 chapters for you to scene select. The only extras here are trailers for Running Out of Time, Dragon Inn, Armageddon and The Duel, all redubbed in English.

What's Up?

Anthony Chen, whose previous short film Ah Ma was the first local short film to have garnered a Special Mention award at last year's 60th Cannes Film Festival, is gunning for another possible award with his new film, Haze (雾), at the Short Film Competition of this year's edition of the Berlinale.

Haze will make its world premiere at the festival, being one of 11 short films chosen from over 1500 submissions from 64 countries, and is in the running for the Golden or Silver Bear awards. The synopsis:

Set during a period when Singapore was shrouded by the haze caused by burning forests in the region, Haze chronicles an innocent love affair between two teenagers when they decide to skip school and idle the day away.

Sounds like it has taken a leaf out of Tsai Ming Liang's I Don't Want To Sleep Alone. I wouldn't know, but here's wishing him luck and let's do the lion's roar! (Someone send me a screener leh!)

***

Of course for those who can't make it to the Berlinale, not to fret. The Substation's Moving Images programme for this year kicks off with Film Speak, which happens to be part of the Speak Good English campaign. Not to fret cinephiles, despite the tie-up with the campaign, it's still pretty good local movie stuff.

As the website puts it, "For some of us who are familiar with local films, we know that they are a colourful mix of stories in various languages. What is it like making films in Singapore and bringing them to festivals around the world? How would filmmakers discuss their films with an international audience? How about at home in Singapore? Join Associate Filmmakers from The Substation, like Lionel Chok, Kelvin Sng, Kan Lume and Jeremy Sing as they attempt to answer these questions by sharing their films and experiences with us in this special series. "

Film screenings, filmmakers in attendance, Q&As, what more do you want? Mark your calendars every Wednesday to be at The Substation's Theatre from 7-8pm. Next week's session will be by Kan Lume, who will screen his "The Assassin". I tell you, I'll be there!

Click here for the entire schedule!

[DVD] Human Lanterns (Ren Pi Deng Long) (1982)

Work of Gore

Human Lanterns is probably widely talked about as a cult martial arts film with some dabbling on the macabre. The opening credits show a warehouse with plenty of human remains atop a bloody grinder. In fact, it has all the ingredients of a torture porn flick, except that, horrors of horrors, this DVD edition comes censored! So gone are the scenes where the victim's skin are peeled off their bodies to make the titular lanterns, though there was a fleeting boob shot from afar that the censors seemed to have missed.

Anyway, the story is nothing remarkable, with two town braggers, Master Lung (Tony Liu Yong) and Master Tan (Chen Kuan Tai) at loggerheads and always scheming to be one up against the other. Tan shows off his latest human-sized lantern which gets the admiration of the simple townsfolk, and Lung decides to go one up on his rival. His search for a master lantern maker leads him to one time love rival Chun Fang (Lo Lieh), who agrees to make him the most stunning lanterns ever seen, with a condition that he never visits his workplace. Best of all, they celebrate their strange union by visiting the whorehouse. Hmm.

Also, a mysterious masked creature looking like an overgrown hairy ape with highly skilled kungfu start to terrorize the town, kidnapping young nubile females such as the #1 courtesan and the sister of Master Tan, and given the nature of the disappearance, the animosity between the two men deepen to a deadly duel. However, it doesn't take you a second to figure out just who the man is behind the creature, and there's some needless tension built up around this mystery which seemed a little waste of time. The "police" too turn out to be rather foolhardy and inept, with the sergeant always listening to the two rich men, allowing his investigations to be poisoned by ill opinions from each of them on the other. Talk about siding with those who are rich or in power.

While it can't be comparable to stuff we see today, for it's time I think the fight scenes were still interesting enough to engage audiences, given its myriad of weapons from swords to fans (and the creature's gloved claws), and stunts. In fact, the stunts and sets were really impressive for its climatic battle, and I thought there was no stinginess in creating multi-layered sets for the actors to ply their martial arts abilities. What seemed to be interesting here though, is not the choreographed martial arts display, but rather the portrayal of the women's role in cultures back then. They are treated like playthings, with zero say in the ways of the world, reduced to gossipy aunties, and helpless damsels in distress. In fact, Lung's wife had to even tolerate, and even approve of her husband's infidelity.

That said, Human Lanterns could have been a more entertaining watch, if not for the censoring of those crucial moments, making it like eating Char Kway Teow without the See Hum!

The Code 3 DVD from Celestial Pictures is presented in letterboxed format. Visual transfer is decent but not fantastic, and audio is available only in mono Mandarin with subtitles in traditional Chinese, English, Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia. Scene selection is available over 12 chapters.

The Special Features are woefully few, which includes the remastered trailer for Human Lanterns (0:57), Temple of the Red Lotus (0:54), The Last Tempest (1:11), Last Woman of Shang (1:09) and Big Brother Cheng (1:12). Movie Information contains a Photo Gallery made up of 14 stills, an Original Poster still, Production Notes which is actually a one paragraph synopsis in English and Mandarin available on the back cover DVD sleeve, and text Biographies of actors Liu Yung, Chen Kuan Tai, Lo Lieh and director Sun Chung.

One Missed Call

Didn't Pay Your Phone Bill?

One Missed Call gets filed amongst Hollywood Remakes of Japanese Horror that shouldn't have been green lighted in the first place. I suppose with the likes of so many of such remakes, the supposed winning formula would be to adopt the story, slap some relatively known actors in it, and employ every trick in the Hollywood horror book, and expect the box offices to go ka-ching! Wrong! One Missed Call happens to be One Big Bore!

I am beginning to affirm that horror remakes by Hollywood are a waste of time. What made the Asian ones work, is because of a certain X-factor appeal in them, pertaining to the building of atmospheric mood, which plays a key role in maintaining tension, and some really ingenious and innovative ways of exposing the ghoul for a good scare. Hollywood instead dives straight into such scenes with so much noise, even the ghoul would have run away. It doesn't mean that with a bigger budget and better special effects, it's an automatic triumphing over the relatively lower key originals. They work for a reason, and more money being thrown at it, is just not the answer.

I am curious to know how Edward Burns would have truly thought about his role here, as well as the storyline. A filmmaker himself, I guess he needed to pay the bills and perhaps fund his own projects too. I had enjoyed his performance in 15 Minutes and Confidence, not masterpieces but at least a tad enjoyable, and while he has the occasional dud like A Sound of Thunder, I thought his role here as a generic cop, really took the cake. It's just so lazy a character, he got slapped into the thick of things in pure coincidental fashion, and not to mention just going through the motions of it all, looking concerned most of the time, and being cut out of the action for the most parts too conveniently.

Shannyn Sossamon probably had everyone take notice with her lead female role in A Knight's Tale, alongside Heath Ledger and Paul Bettany. While her male co-stars went on to bigger and better roles, she got perpetually stuck with unremarkable ones, and with turkeys such as this. In true Final Destination style, her friends around her start dying after she hears their missed call/voice messages, which contains their last utterances on Earth, before their untimely demise, the exact moment all coldly printed on the LCD screen of their mobile phone. Even the deaths too seemed tired, and so bad I would've settled for a simple knife stabbing just to get over it.

And the supporting characters? Don't bother. Too many one dimensional roles here which calls for half exposed cleavage to spice things up a little and hold the attention of pimply boys it hopes to target in the audience. I tell you, one more of this demonic kid nonsense, and that's it, it get a stamp of rejection. What's with demonic kids? Can we get over this group already? Can we move on from crazed children who probably needed a good spanking to slap the devil out of them? And move on too from the creaking doors, insipid light and shadow play, sudden crescendos in the soundtrack, and cheap shots passing off as "ingenious" ways to scare the audience. It's boring when it doesn't get done right, and comes off as lackadaisical.

But what's truly scary, would be you downloading from somewhere, the ring tone that is featured in the movie, and into your friends mobile phone. It's now synonymous with impeding doom and death, so if you want to wish someone ill-will, then this is your ringtone of choice. If I can create a ringtone and make money out of it, then this is the one to create, right now before the fad dies off.

One missed call? Don't return the call please, and delete it from your phone records. For good. Skip it and don't bother with the rental.

[World Cinema Series] Radio On

Restless Radio

A programme of the National Museum Cinémathèque and co-presented by the Singapore Film Society, World Cinema Series is a monthly screening of works by the boldest and most inventive auteurs in the history of cinema. This series charts both the significant and less discovered territories of cinema - from the early silent era to underground films, and new wave film movements around the world, by some of the greatest mavericks and artists of film.

This month's screening is Chris Petit's Radio On (1980). Ben Slater, who co-produced the short Radio On Remix (which was also screened after the Q&A), was on hand to introduce the movie. As Ben puts it, it's an English road movie, from London to Bristol by car, which in actuality would approximate the running time of the movie. Happening at an interesting juncture of British history, the movie naturally has landscapes - the roads, buildings and even bad weather, while it also covers the inner landscape - the emotional world of the characters, as well as the sonic landscapes with the world of music and sound, which play an important role in the film. It's a cult favourite now and probably retains its resonance with audiences with the unconscious sense of anticipation that something is about to happen.

*****

Radio On opens to the tune of David Bowie's Heroes, which modern audiences will probably associate it with the Hollywood Godzilla song, as performed by The Wallflowers. With the song blaring loudly, we are meandering inside an apartment, going from room to room, opening closed doors, and passing by a bathtub and catching a glimpse of a body inside. We learn later that radio DJ Robert's brother had died under mysterious circumstances in Bristol, as we follow Robert in a trip from London, planning on investigating his brother's death.

Or in actuality, nothing exactly happens. Road trip movies have recently been fodder for comedies and teen adventure, where either funny situations follow one another to send audiences into chuckles, or you can bet your last dollar that every character that comes into the picture is a quirky one. However, while the formula for quirky characters is there, with the Irish hitchhiker, the German girls, and even Sting at a petrol kiosk, there's something uniquely different about it, and that it is a challenge to sit through this movie, and I was struggling, hard.

Struggling to find some meaning. Struggling to fight the listlessness that creeped up, as shared by Robert as he mopes around looking for answers, and being reactive and waiting for something, anything to happen. We're thrust into a state of limbo as he flits from scene to scene, location to location, character to character, as we try to make some sense of it all, as the movie is almost devoid of a standard narrative structure to piece everything together. It doesn't take long for us to realize this is not a typical road movie, and we're witnessing, and experiencing, even manipulated I may say, to feel exactly how the main character feels in his quest for non-existent answers. Don't fret if you can't connect, or find it emotionally empty. If only it was as easy as 42!

And it's not just the narrative, but the technicalities that will leave you bewildered too. Shot in black and white, there's a deafening silence each time there's no dialogue (and it's so for the most parts), or a song. Dialogue between characters somehow are really soft, as if they know there are folks listening in, and have to resort to whispers. But it's not the volume control though, as the songs do get blared out loud, and background sounds, if any, are at your usual level. You'll need some level of patience to sit through Radio On as things move at an incredibly slow pace, and while as mentioned it is silent, there is a major chunk of dialogue in German, which without subtitles, is anyone's guess (though there are folks in the audience who understand the language and could chuckle at/with it).

All in, it's still a movie that's nicely shot, with bits of black humour that one could reach out, grab and connect to. It's not your usual movie, and something that you would probably not expect, but if you're up for a bit of a challenge, then you should watch Radio On if opportunity presents itself again. Rated R21 here for a slide show with pornographic images, though by the time they appear, it's unlikely you'll be shocked / in awe.

*****

I wanted to reconstruct from notes taken during the Q&A on Ben's involvement in Radio On Remix, but guess what? He has a blog entry on it, so without further ado, click here to read all about it! (The wonders of hyper-linking, so I can turn in early on a nice, cool, rainy night) :-)

Death Sentence

Do You Need Another Nostril?

If you're into revenge and retribution movies, where the lead goes berserk and dishes out his brand of justice pumping plenty of lead without remorse, then this movie should be in your radar come 24 Jan 08. Starring our 6-degrees favourite Kevin Bacon, watch as your average corporate type guy go on a rampage when the most sacred thing in a man's life - his family - gets intruded upon by senseless crime. Goodbye Mr Nice Guy, and Hello Mr Bastard with No Remorse, barely. OK, well actually he's running scared for the most parts, and seem utterly clueless, hence giving him a slight twist from the usual Rambo styled characters.

Brought to us by director James Wan of Saw fame, the highlights of the movie are technical instead, and you will go ballistic with the fluidity of the sweeping camera movements to capture action all in one solid take.

To read my review of Death Sentence at movieXclusive.com, click on the logo below:

American Gangster

We Roll in da Hood Y'all!

Ridley Scott's American Gangster has many similar parallels to Derek Yee's Protege, in that it's a story about the scourge of drugs, and each containing the respective insights into the entire production, processing and distribution processes, stemming again from material sources in South East Asia. While the latter is a fictional account, American Gangster is based on the true story of Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington), the black drug lord whose meteoric rise to power was deemed incredulous because of race and colour, and the story of the detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) whose team had broken through the complex web of mob dealings to take down the gangsters, as well as their corrupt own.

This epic movie, clocking in at slightly more than 2.5 hours, takes its time to tell the respective stories, which on their own could be standalone equivalents, no doubt boosted by the powerhouse performances by award winning actors Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, who is into his third collaboration with Ridley after movies like Gladiator and A Good Year. While the story may seem straight-forward without any spectacular twists and turns, it's based solely on the credible performances as well as the re-creation of the late 60s-early 70s environment of New York, where blatant corruption seemed to be the norm of the day.

Crowe's Richie perhaps have the lesser screen time of the two, like an Elliot Ness equivalent in being the incorruptible cop in a corrupt force, whose reputation of turning in a million dollars instead of pocketing it, preceded him. This made him an automatic choice in creating his own squad of Untouchables, assembling a team of similarly principled men to work outside the system, to go after the big fish. While his boy scout character might seem boring, here's where the script by Steven Zaillian adds a little flavour in throwing in shades of grey. While Richie is honest to his job, a little examination into his private life has him being quite the ladies' man, as well as struggling with his estranged wife to fight for custody of their child.

Washington's Frank Lucas on the other hand, had the meat, given after all the movie is about the crime lord. The first hour charted his rise and it is the buildup that makes this movie so compelling as it tapers toward the inevitable finale, as you discover how deep the rot of corruption is, and having links to the Vietnam War and the army. His "Blue Magic" heroin product sells for half the price and double the potency as middlemen are cut off, and shipment is relatively free - I'd dare say this is ingenious, and makes a monkey out of the authorities.

And it is his segment that proved to be more interesting of the two - ok, so everyone would like to know how he did what he did, versus a straight cop's quest to putting away those involved with the entire business. There were many fine points made especially for those who are in the business of being crooked. If you notice all the high profile corporate fraud cases, most are done in because money corrupts one into an opulent lifestyle, bringing uncalled for attention to oneself. Here, Lucas' principle is similar, to keep a low profile, but alas everyone has their moment of oversight and carelessness.

To continue my admiration of the guy's work ethics, and probably because of the nature of the business, no one is trusted except for family. I guess a crime family is easier to raise since blood is supposedly more trustworthy than random hired hands. While we see Richie's assembly of a few good men for his cause of righteousness, we also witness the creation of a mob family from scratch, but as we all know, time will tell if the kinks within the family can be worked out, or go against the ruler with an iron fist. Scott somehow seemed to emphasise family for a fair bit, with periodic shots for comparison put side by side for the audience to form their conclusions.

Don't be expecting any major scenes of killing, choosing instead to be based on powerful dialogue as the gun battles here are few and far between, usually over as quickly as they start because Frank Lucas doesn't fall into the usual fictional villains' lapse into monologues. The action sequences might be few, but they are sure pack their punch despite their short duration. Everything's paced rather nicely, and I particularly enjoyed the entire buildup, though the ending felt a little rushed because there are little that could be elaborated at that point. Fans of Denzel and Russell who want to see these two strong actors share the same screen/scene, will be a tad disappointed, as they do so only toward the finale, lasting no more than 10 minutes, but those turn out to be the gem they were, so savour every moment of it properly.

The second mobster movie this week, it's a difficult toss up between Ridley Scott's American Gangster and David Cronenberg's Eastern Promises. If you're tired of blood and gore with a twist, and would prefer something based on a true story told in a more straightforward manner, then American Gangster will be your choice. IF I may say, there's nothing really spectacular about the plot, but it works, thanks to Ridley Scott's confident direction, and the A-plus performances by Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.

Linger (Hu Die Fei / 蝴蝶飞)

I'm So Plastic

A romance movie may be simple to make, but also amongst the most difficult. Almost every other movie out there has a romantic angle in it, and if the movie is one that has it as a primary, it either be something jolly good to appeal to the masses with a strong storyline, or be differentiated through the many gimmicks like time travel or the supernatural, or contain charismatic and beautiful leads to shoulder the movie.

Johnnie To has decided to take a temporal walk away from his contemporary crime thrillers of late, and gone into the romance genre. This isn't something new though, as he had lent his hand in directing romantic flicks like Turn Left, Turn Right. I still maintain that romance may not be his forte, but it only means that he should get more capable scriptwriters to craft a story of more substance, rather than to have the story feel as if it's coasting through trivial circumstance after trivial circumstance, that even the gimmicks employed - ghostly apparitions and novelty like being the male lead Vic Chou's movie debut, fail to lift the movie from baseline mediocrity.

Vic plays Dong, a school basketball player who cheats on his school flower girlfriend to get into the pants of Yan (Li Bing Bing), whom he discovers trying to taunt his girlfriend with their secret trysts. Frustrated, he chases her car in a motorcycle, and in one of the most ridiculous scenes ever in trying to find out if she loves him or not, deserved to die for his dumb recklessness.

Fast forward 3 years, and Yan is now a law clerk, but cannot forget the guilt and responsibility she felt for causing Dong's death. Relying on drugs to get by, she soon gets visited by Dong (yes, he waited for 3 years to decide to linger around, hence the title), and the two begin a journey of quaint discovery of themselves, and of their love toward one another, all this while with many forgettable supporting characters (like the impetuous teenager who is a Dong-wannabe) trying very hard to either compensate for the weak leads, or thrown in to create yet another convoluted, unnecessary sub plot, like themes of family, of second changes, reconciliation and forgiveness, bloating what is essentially short film material into a feature length.

There are many faults in the movie, which at times passes off as cheap comedy. Ghosts, if you believe, usually linger around our realm so as to finish off outstanding business. Here, the outstanding business happens to be finding out if a girl loves you from 3 years ago, and waiting out quite vengefully for a dad to ask for forgiveness. However, Vic Chou comes across more as Casper style, the friendly ghost with zero character, made worst by his non existent acting. Bottom line is, he crashes and burns in his big screen outing, playing an unremarkable character that his limited acting ability can never transcend, apart from being whiny.

Li Bing Bing tries hard, but comes across as that - trying hard. If any good thing were to come out of this, it would be lending her vocals to the theme song. Otherwise, her Yan has nothing much to offer, character wise, being a girl who's trying to figure out her life out of drugs, and coming to terms with guilt, which is soothed by the reappearance of her ghostly lover.

You'll feel absolutely nothing at all for the lead characters, which point to a failure, especially for a romance movie. With a terribly weak storyline no thanks to Ivy Ho, it felt that To had to direct this in order to try and salvage the movie from its weak plot. However, you'd probably find more fun identifying each time a To regular like Maggie Shiu (as in the credits), Lam Suet and Roy Cheung appear on screen, rather than try to tear your hair out in giving an iota of chance for the story, and the leads, to work something out. Don't hold out for a satisfying ending though, as everything about the movie is way below average.

Vic Chou fans may only be the ones supporting a movie like this, having the much talked about love scene touted to see their idol bareback/chested. But urgh, on the big screen it has lots of zits. And sex with clothes on, under the blanket, is always such a turn off.

Le Grand Chef (食客)

Chef Wars

A romantic comedy about food should evoke some hunger pangs, as well as some mouthwatering oohs and aahs for the sheer visuals of food that you'll probably swear you can smell and taste, if done right. However, the first reactions from Le Grand Chef is "eeeeeeeeeeeee" followed by plenty of reeling from the graphic nature of fresh sashimi preparation. The opening scene is the preparation of fresh golden blowfish, where you'll see the fish still gasping in its last stages of life, snuffed through a deft decapitation of its head, followed by the fins, before skinning it in one fall swoop, disembowelment and the slicing of its meat so thinly that it's translucent.

Based on a popular comic book series, Le Grand Chef perched on the #1 spot in Korea for three weeks, touching very familiar territory in the likes of films shown a few months back such as No Reservations and Ratatouille. We're soon introduced to two rival chefs, Sung-chan (Kim Kang-woo) and Bong-joo (Lim Won-hie), where they are to present to a judging panel to wrestle control over a famed restaurant. Needless to say, Sung-chan fails miserably through obvious foul play, and quits the scene.

Becoming a well known produce farmer with fans made from middle aged housewives, Sung-chan is soon persuaded to return to the scene by VJ Jin-su (Lee Ha-na) through a cooking competition, where the prize is a rusty blade belonging to the Royal Chef, an artifact with so much rich history, it just had to tie into the lives of Sung-chan and Bong-joo and their ancestors. So it's game on everybody!

With good food photographed so beautifully, there's nothing not to like about the movie, despite its very familiar storyline, The plot may be recycled from various cookery/food movies, even like Stephen Chow's God of Cookery, but here, it goes to show that the delivery plays a huge part. While it is very obvious to rattle on and on about the competition proceedings, director Jeon Yun-su mixes things up and borrows loads from Japanese movies where food is concerned (Udon, anyone?) and added ingredients from melodrama to bloat the plot.

Fortunately, they don't dilute the movie, but provided a good variety of subplots on the side, ranging from supporting side characters such as a famed charcoal maker, to comedy involving the quest to cook the perfect Ramen. Running through the narrative is plenty of flashbacks into the ancestry of the rival chefs, which had a simple mystery on the sins of their ancestors, adding some form of depth into the hatred these men have toward each other. For once, I thought the flashbacks were as effective as they were entertaining.

While the subplots serve to entertain, the cookery competition serves up a feast for the eyes, albeit it took a backseat in the second half of the story after a flurry of first half activity, so much so that split screens in comic book style had to be employed to squeeze as much as possible onscreen at the same time. And the presentation was kept fresh with different styles employed so that it's not the same after each round of competition, keeping in line with the necessity of having things fresh, akin to food.

Le Grand Chef is a delightful film to sit through, and probably fired the first salvo for 2008 as a contender to be amongst the top of my list this year. It's not just or always about food, but the philosophy, ingredients and plenty of heart, nevermind the cliche that come along with it, especially with the some similarities to Pixar's last offering, from plot to characters. One thing's for sure, food critics aren't really a likeable bunch from the way they are portrayed in movies, ha!

Love in the Time of Cholera

I'm Waiting For You

The title will probably elicit the first reaction from you - the number of words, and whether this is yet another Painted Veil, which is also a love story set during the time of a cholera outbreak. Being a period movie as well, the lack of recognizable names might not serve as a plus point for those looking out for stars, but with Atonement taking its own sweet time in getting released here, this movie might serve as a substitute while awaiting for the real McCoy to arrive.

Based on the novel by a Nobel prize winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Love is a romance story that spans more than 50 years, and tells the tale of obsession, of missing somebody, and to those who are sentimental at heart, the waiting for that special someone to one day decide to come back to you. I'm sure there are many out there who are scarred by that emotion called love, and probably be on either side of being spurned. But how many have stepped over the line and decided to wait? Longing for someone available might be dumb, as you should start making the first move, but longing for someone who has written you off is a totally different ballgame altogether.

And that is what Florentino Ariza (Javier Bardem) finds out, the hard way. In his youth, he is enamoured by Fermina Ariza (Giovanna Mezzogiomo), whom he woos sincerely through his gift of the written word, using poems, secret letters and telegrams as tools to profess his feelings toward his lady love. Adversity comes in the form of the outright rejection of their relationship by her father Lorenzo Ariza (John Leguizamo), who is shrewd to want to exploit his daughter's good looks, to move up society should she marry into a rich family. So their forbidden love becomes a long distance one, and one which plunges Florentina first into the emotion of hope, longing for the day his love will return.

Now we all know the horror stories that come with long distance relationships, and sometimes absence doesn't make the heart grow fonder. For Florentina's case, efforts by his mother (Fernanda Montenegro) to make him forget and move on were to no avail, as he degenerates into a sobbing wreck. It seems that to overcome love once was, and to move on, has to come from within. How long can one wait? In my case, it might be around 5 years before you realize you're a dumb fool, and you'll probably find some means to channel your energies and keep yourself distracted, of which this blog is but one of the by products from my waking from the dream. How long did Florentina take?

All 51 years, 9 months and 4 days! Of course this is fiction, so the longer the duration, the spicier his life for a story becomes. In his effort to try and distract himself, he becomes the quintessential Don Juan Casanova, when he discovers the joy to bodily explosions to drown his sorrows. Yes you heard me right, that's why this movie garners an M18 rating here. And his character provides interesting insights to those who can probably identify with the pain of having being let go and rejected by his first love on the fly, without explanation, without seeing it coming. Spurned by love, his infatuation brings him to want to compete and upgrade himself socially as well, to want to be the best, and liken himself to be that catch that got away. And it also drew parallels to the latest scandal from across the Causeway, that men in power probably won't find it difficult to find willing prey, as some women do get attracted to that level of power, wealth and fame.

However this is not only a story about Florentina, but also about his love Fermina. For reasons somewhat unexplained, her moving on and marriage to a doctor (played by Benjamin Bratt) seem to be constant fuel for Florentina as he resorts to having a stalker tendency, curious to find out how the love of his life once is up to now. Little glances around town, without her reciprocation, seem to be sufficient. While he had wished in all earnestness that she has a happy/happier life without him, Fermina's portion of the story dwells on the fact that all is not as smooth as one would expect, bringing about a litle sense of that probable regret in making the wrong move, and some nagging "what-ifs".

Director Mike Newell's movie is rich in its sets, and no effort spared in the technical aspects of it, recreating some really wonderful moments of the era of steamboats together with an emotive score. The movie also marks original song contributions by Shakira, but unfortunately the few contributions were reduced to mere scattered portions, not a complete song. The makeup was also stunning in making the youthful actors age (we're talking about 50 years, so what do you expect?), which lend some accentuation to the actor's performance.

I thought Javier Bardem was pitch perfect as the Romeo turned Casanova, a pained man who seeks immediate short term pleasure, consistently, while we know that beneath his playboy facade is a man who's been terribly hurt, and is somewhat still yearning for any moment where he can be together with his true love. However, the plot and his character toward the final act made him seemed too vengeful despite his sincerity, in having a sole objective of wanting to put his banana into the fruit bowl. Giovanna Mezzogiomo started off quite plainly, but as the story developed, so could we watch her character grow from strength to strength given limited screen time.

Love in the Time of Cholera is a love story with an epic scale, a tale of two lovers who just could have been should circumstances allow, but had to take more than 50 years to make something out of it, starting very early with being apart even during their budding years. It might not be touching enough to warrant any tears, given the protagonist here is a jilted man rather than a woman who will probably deserve our sympathy, however, it serves to remind all those out there who are still holding candles, while you keep the memories you share, you should not forget to snuff out the flame, and move on for sanity's sake.

Reservation Road

KFC is Three Blocks Down

You wonder what goes through the minds of those involved in hit and run accidents. In that split second after impact, you are presented a choice, and your life will change, one way or the other. One probably has to consider whether to stop and render assistance, and in doing so owning up to the accident, but having a chance to save a life if the circumstances allow for it. Or to hope that nobody saw you did what you did, and bolt. Negligent drivers, either through drink driving, or being distracted while on the road, probably won't elicit much sympathy, especially so from the family of the victim, and in Reservation Road, powerful drama is weaved amongst the characters on both sides of the hit and run equation.

Reservation Road refers to the scene of the crime, where the Learners - dad Ethan (Joaquin Phoenix), mom Grace (Jennifer Connelly) and daughter Emma (Elle Fanning) lose their son/brother in an accident, caused by a man in a baseball cap, driving an SUV. On this angle, we follow through the pain of the family who suffer a terrible loss. The dad Ethan slowly degenerates into an obsessive wreck, trying in vain to pursue the perpetrator who's out there, through his own dogged investigations when he realizes that the cops can only do what they can given extremely limited leads which yielded no progress. The mom Grace, while at first finding it hard to accept the truth - and in the initial days, the simplest of reasons to pin the guilt in, will resonate deeply - but we see how she draws strength in the hope of keeping the family spirits up. And the daughter finds ways to cope with the loss through channeling her energies into performance.

On the other angle, Mark Ruffalo plays Dwight the lawyer, who's estranged from his wife Ruth (Mira Sorvino) and has visiting rights to their son. When the accident happens, in that split second he made the inevitable decision for self preservation, and while he may have momentarily escape from justice and the law, negative karma dictates that he will live his life being tormented by guilt from that point on, all this while trying to provide reason that he based his decision on being able to be free from jail, to continue seeing his son. Confession and owning up will see himself in the slammer, and probably losing everything. I thought this part of the story was the more interesting one. On one hand we judge that he's a coward, of not being a man in owning up to the wrong that he did. On the other, we also realize his pain and his fear - it takes a lot to own up, especially when it involves lives being taken away, and from people we remotely know, no thanks to six degrees of separation.

Based on the novel by John Burnham Schwartz who also co-wrote the screenplay with director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda), some might wonder if the coming together of the key characters are a tad convenient. We have father to father in a lawyer-client position, and one mother being the teacher of the other's child. Putting them together will lead to the inevitable, but it is this unravelling of the truth, that keeps us engaged to a gripping ending. Scenes that will make you seethe with rage, and probably whisper a silent curse, will be those where opportunities for confession are presented, but each time spurned. As the saying goes, a lie begets a larger lie, and it will snowball before you realize that the lie becomes to difficult to cover up.

Kudos go all round to the entire cast, save for Sorvino's role which is more cameo than supporting, mainly also because the tanglement of the complicated situation doesn't affect her character directly. Ruffalo put on a commendable performance as the man wrecked by guilt, and he fleshed his character with incredible nuances we usually associate when we are fearful, and guilty. You can feel pain through Joaquin's performance of the dad looking for justice, but finds himself being unsatisfied by the system of the law, and learns that sometimes the law and justice conflict each other, and offer the layman little or no protection, unlike those such as diplomats who have powers at their disposal. Jennifer Connelly of late plays nothing but pained wives/mothers/girlfriends (A Beautiful Mind, Hulk, Dark Water, Little Children), so there's nothing really new in her role her. But I would like to single out little Elle Fanning. While her role here is fairly simple, I thought she had exhibited much more screen presence and likeability than her more illustrious sister Dakota, who has disappeared after her last outing in Charlotte's Web. Hopefully we get to see more of Elle taking on challenging kid/teen roles in time to come.

Reservation Road is recommended for being a powerful drama with excellent an excellent cast. Usually movies like these will have the mothers bawling and the picture being a weepie drama, but here, the movie shifts its focus to the love of fathers toward their sons, and that makes it well worth a watch.

Assembly (Ji Jie Hao / 集 結 號)

Band of Chinese Brothers

Feng Xiaogang's Assembly was the opening film at last year's Pusan International Film Festival, and tickets were sold out in record time once they were made available online. Such is the faith (or curiosity) of the new film from the director who brought us movies like World Without Thieves, and martial arts Hamlet The Banquet. When you think of Chinese directors making a movie based out of Chinese history, you can't help but imagine the massive amount of propaganda that get so blatantly infused into the story and especially the dialogue. But here, Feng managed to bring about a movie which goes beyond the usual ra-ra, and shows us that a movie with universal themes can also come out from what is essentially a war movie based upon China's tumultuous era after WWII.

Assembly refers to the call of the bugle to retreat and regroup, and this is the call that Captain Gu Zidi (Zhang Hanyu) and his 47 men of the 9th Company, 3rd Batallion, 139th Regiment, are keenly listening out for, as they go about their mission in ill-equipped fashion, holding fort on a strategic plain. Sent to the frontlines for war-crimes, Captain Gu and his men, while being the best at trench warfare, find themselves severely lacking in essentials - manpower, ammunition and heavy weaponry, as they go up against the marauding forces of the Nationalist army, with their relatively superior armour. However, their mantra is old school - only the bugle will signal their fall behind, and everything else means fulfilling their mission objectives at all costs.

While all might seem lost, this provides the kind of tales of valour that comes out of these battles, something like 300's. Assembly honours the spirit of the unit, of their tales of bravery and unflinching under insurmountable odds. If you're looking for a war movie, then Assembly will not disappoint. For the first hour anyway. Told in three acts, the first act, all 60 minutes of it, is where the action takes place. The war sequences here aren't poetic in the veins of Terence Mallick's The Thin Red Line, but are more aligned with Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan, with its gritty realism, strained colours, and bloody, gory violence.

We're probably, in recent years, in tune with war movies that put us in the shoes of aggressors, and that is to follow an assault team. Very rarely are we put into trenches and be seen to be on the defensive like that of Letters From Iwo Jima, soaking up wave after wave of attacks. And that's where Assembly shines, in having four intense battle sequences, three of which were on the defensive scheme of warfare, and the other, while an assault, does seem more to be on the losing end rather than achieving a clear, decisive victory. If details are what you're after, then you probably can't go wrong with the single bolt weapon, primitive artillery and the sharing of tin helmets. In fact, you'll probably be wondering instead that the PLA at the time was really backward, given the world's military technological advancement in the West/Japan during the 40s.

And given last year's double bill by Clint Eastwood in Flags of our Fathers and Letters From Iwo Jima, Assembly seems like both movies combined, in providing both an indepth look at the battles fought, as well as taking time off to contemplate more serious issues in dramatic fashion. In the second and last acts which take up the remaining hour, we follow Captain Gu as he tries his darnedest best to get his company recognized for the contribution it made, no matter how minuscule it might seem compared to the helicopter view of achievements. These acts might bore those who came satisfied with the first half, but for those looking into a more intimate drama of one man's fight for his lost brothers, then this portion will likely appeal to you.

Ultimately, Assembly is an ambitious film. It combines drama and action, and in both aspects, doesn't hold back in bringing about the best it probably could. Kudos go to actor Zhang Hanyu who plays Captain Gu, in what can be essentially a one man show, putting focus of his place in history and his solo fight against the system. And after watching this, you'll probably won't hesitate to watch another war movie coming out of China, if they meet the benchmark set by Feng Xiaogang. Recommended!

[DVD] Topkapi (1964)

Walter's Six

The first movie I watched in 2008 happens to be a caper movie. I've been a fan of the genre for a long time, what with the movies like Confidence, The Italian Job, The Thomas Crown Affair, Heist (starring Gene Hackman), the Ocean's 11,12,13 movies and the likes, both old, new and the remakes. I guess there's always a sense of romanticism in these movies that appeal to me, especially with the lead character possessing charisma and the slick powers of persuasion.

Yes you can argue that the situations they're put in are rigged from the start so that you'll almost always know they can escape from the long arm of the law, make it look so easy and cause the authorities to look dumb. Sometimes the tricks and techniques they use aren't really feasible in real life because while loopholes are bound to exist, they can't be exploited in the manner shown on screen, unless of course the exploitation involves human errors, complacency or laziness. And most of the time, coincidence play a huge role in pulling off their mission. But of course these are secondary when we're talking about a movie.

What will determine if it'll work, is how challenging the caper will present itself, such that rarely can one man do the entire job, but will have to rely on a team of experts in their respective fields. And naturally some will go to the extreme of having double crossers in the team to spice things up. Anyway, Topkapi involves Elizabeth Lipp (Melina Mercouri) setting her eyes on the jeweled dagger stored in an Istanbul museum, and recruits her ex lover Walter Haper (Maximilian Schell) to join her in pulling off the heist. They can't go at it themselves, and decide to recruit a bunch of amateurs to assist them - amateurs here meaning no blemish in their records, because with a heist that major, every European / Pan-European police force will be on it, and naturally those with records are first suspects.

While it may have worked some 40 years back, I found the proceedings to be unfortunately too slow for today's age. We're probably used to heist movies being slick, and paced quite fast to keep the adrenalin pumping. But here, the actual heist doesn't get well into almost the last quarter of the movie, with the bulk of it centered on plenty of boring planning (OK, granted you need to plan to execute to a T), and outwitting the police, who had convinced one of them, the comedic Arthur Simpson (Peter Ustinov) to be their mole.

But when the action got down to the crunch, they do look exciting enough, with plenty of on-location shoots involving rooftops. And if you think the extremely well made stunt in Mission: Impossible involving a Tom Cruise being lowered gently into the CIA vault room was top notch, well sad to say I discovered that the exact same stunt was performed by the robbers here in Topkapi! And they maintained the same level of suspense and tension too! Eat that, Brian De Palma!

What also piqued by interest in Topkapi, was the rumoured remake of the film in the sequel to The Thomas Crown Affair (working title: The Topkapi Affair), where Pierce Brosnan will be reprising his role as Thomas Crown, and this time bringing his street smarts to Istanbul. No word if Renee Russo will be joining him though, but I think perhaps this time round he might not be working alone (but that will make the movie into yet another group effort), and probably we can see him suited up properly in a tuxedo, which he can't do so previously because of contractual obligations with being James Bond. We'll see, soon.

Code 1 DVD by MGM Home Entertainment comes in widescreen anamorphic format, but audio is only presented in Mono English, or French. Subtitles are available only in French and Spanish, and the bare bones edition means only the theatrical trailer and scene selection are available.

Happiness Is...

Spending the new year with good friends over good food and good conversation (ok, so we were talking cock for some parts) :P

Anyway, it also includes going to Mustafa, and for the first time getting Hindi DVDs - Dil Se and Dhoom2 - Hey I thought Dhoom was fun, and now the cast is expanded to include Hrithik Roshan (who was in Singapore as Krrish), and Aishwarya Rai in an all out action movie? Count me in!

That's Mr Shah Rukh Khan Dancing Atop a Moving Train!

So expect a review, erm, soon enough! (Once I get pass putting Chaiyya on loop, and the Dhoom theme as well) :P

Happy New Year!

[Support Indie!] 10MPH

There are a number of Indie films out there, so I shall try and jumpstart some of the notables by sharing, on a hopefully regular basis, those who have made their films available for free.

That's right folks, knowing that we're all hardpressed for cash these days, and yet trying to satisfy our appetites for movies, here's one for the new year called 10MPH:

Synopsis

10 MPH is a comical documentary that follows a pair of aspiring filmmakers as they quit their jobs and turn a friend's ludicrous idea into a movie. The impulsive purchase of a two-wheeled Segway scooter sets this story in motion when the two friends decide to travel from Seattle to Boston at 10 mph in an attempt to change their lives forever... What ensues is a road trip like none other with a haphazard cast of characters you could only find on a zany 100-day trek through America's back roads. Each poignant story the two friends discover along the way inspires a craving inside to go out and do that thing you're supposed to do.

If you're interested to watch it after the trailer convince that it's worthwhile, here's the catch. Of course there's a catch, but it's a painless one. All you have to do is to register for an OurStage account, that requires just a creation of an account (userid and password only), together with a valid email address where you can activate your account. You can click on the logo below to do that:


Then all you have to do is go to this link to download the movie. Best of all, for every account registration, US$1 goes to the filmmakers too, in support (and yes, this doesn't come out of your own pockets).

So what are you waiting for? Get cracking! Expect to see a review of the movie here, very soon (if I can get past the extremely busy start to the new year).

Cheers!