DEAR JOHN (2010)

MyRating: YYY

Director: Lasse Hallstrom
Cast: Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins, Henry Thomas
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for some sensuality and violence

A soldier, John Tyree (Tatum), falls in love with Savannah Curtis (Seyfried), a college student who visits his hometown for a holiday while he is on leave from his duty. They both fall in love at first sight and shortly get into a romantic relationship. John was raised by his father (Jenkins), a very quiet and solitary man, who seems to have interest only in coins collection. And John grew up with a distant relationship with his father, since as two men leave under one roof, they cannot understand and touch each other by heart. But the appearance of Savannah seems to slowly dissolve the awkward relationship between them, as she can win his father's heart by understanding and befriends with him.

John and Savannah could spend their time together only for two weeks, since he has to return to the army. But they say goodbyes with hopes because it will be the last year of John's enlistment in the army and soon they will be together again. And they promise to maintain their long distant relationship by writing letters to each other no matter what. So, as time goes by, letters and letters keep flowing while they are on the two different parts of the world. However, the situation changes after the 9/11 attacks, as John has to re-enlist for another two years for duty in Afghanistan. And on that time, their relationship is on a big test, as the longer they stay apart from each other, the bigger the chance it will damage their relationship.

This movie was adapted from a novel by Nicholas Sparks, a writer who is popular with his romantic fiction genre. I found myself enjoying the movie due to the very romantic story and the two charming leads, Channing Tatum & Amanda Seyfried. They both have a sweet and good chemistry together. And what is more romantic than watching two young and beautiful people falling in love.

From the acting side, I think both of the actors gave quite decent performances. Amanda is a rising young star, who starts to get many important roles since her breakthrough appearance in Mamma Mia! I like this actress more and more as I see more of her movies, as I think she has a good acting skill. While Channing... is Channing, a new Hollywood heartthrob that will win the hearts of many women. A bit lack in his expressions as usual, but who cares about that in this kind of movie. Both of them were just lovable to watch, especially the scenes when they are together. And I also felt sympathy with John's father's character, played by Richard Jenkins, whose part of his character is somewhat similar to a person I know and close to me.

This movie is to be loved for what it is, a melodrama. You just need to enjoy the love story and the lovebirds inside. Anyway, what love story can offer more than the excitement and the beauty of the love itself. And I like this melodrama. (MJ)

3 IDIOTS (2009)

MyRating: YYYY1/2

Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor, R. Madhavan, Sharman Joshi, Boman Irani, Omi Vaidya

I was not exposed to many Indian movies in my life. This is indeed the second movies I watched in the cinema after such a long time (maybe I watched one or two when I was a kid, but I can't really remember). The first one I watched this year is My Name is Khan (I've also already made the review). And both of the films were a blast. Since its release in 2009, 3 Idiots has broken all box office records in India and becoming the highest grossing Bollywood movie of all time in India. And it has grossed Rs 400 crore (around US$ 90 Million) worldwide. This movie also has already won many awards in India.

Bollywood is the biggest movie industry in the world for the number of movies produced per year. Yes, not Hollywood. Each year, Bollywood produces around 1,200 movies, while Hollywood produces around 600. So, twice as much. The thing about Bollywood movies is the Indian people love to watch and admire their own movies so much, more than any other movies from other countries, and this kind of good fanaticism has helped to support Bollywood to become a huge movie industry in the world, not only in terms of quantity, but also quality.

Here is the story. Ten years after being humiliated in front of the whole college by the 3 idiots, Chatur Ramalingam (Vaidya) invites the 3 idiots to come to their ex-college rooftop where he had vowed to seek revenge by swearing that he will become more successful than them in life in ten years time. He proves his words as he has become rich now, has a successful career, a beautiful house and fancy cars. But he only can shows his success to two of the 3 idiots, Farhan Qureshi (Madhavan) and Raju Rastogi (Joshi), as the third idiot, Rancho Chanchad (Khan) is nowhere to be found since he dissappeared after their graduation.

The story is then flashback to their time at college. Rancho, Farhan and Raju are three engineering students at one of the best engineering colleges in India, who share the same room in the college hostel. Farhan and Raju are below average students, who seem to enter college for the wrong reasons. Farhan has a passion to become a wildlife photographer, but he joins engineering merely to fulfill his father's wish. While Raju, who lives with many fears towards life, desperately wants to improve his family's life from their poor condition, since his father had suffered a stoke. Both of them do not qualify as a good engineering student. But not Rancho.

Rancho is a genius student, who comes from a rich family. He loves fixing machines. But he takes a totally different approach towards studying, as he studies only for the excitements of studying, not for pursuing good grades and high ranks. However, he always ends up at the top of his class. He is a rebellious student with an outside of the box way of thinking, as he is against the strict and rigid education system in his college. He thinks that the education system in India is wrong, as there is a very high rate of suicides amongst the students across the country, due to the high pressures put by their teachers. With this kind of attitudes, he soon provokes the anger and hate of the dean of his college, Professor Viru Sahastrabudhhe (Irani), whom the students giving him a nickname as ViruS. ViruS is an old fashioned dean, who runs his college with iron fists and no mercy. He prefers an obedient student like Chatur (the "Silencer"), a bootlicker who always comes second after Rancho, rather than Rancho and his friends, whom ViruS calls as idiots. And he tries his best to separate the three friends, and if possible, expelling Rancho from the college.

The situation becomes complicated when Rancho falls in love with ViruS' medical student daughter, Pia (Kapoor), who already has an arrogant boyfriend. As their friendship grows, Rancho finds out that this girl may also have a mutual attraction to him. So, not only Rancho has to survive his college until graduation, he also has to bring out the best from his two best friends and finally to win the heart of the woman of his life. But will he succeed? And will his genius also make him success in life, better than Chatur whom he always beat at college?

This movie is hilarious and very enjoyable. The story is charming and heartfelt, with clever intermittent flashbacks. And the characters are very interesting, especially the characters of Rancho, ViruS and Chatur. Aamir Khan, one of the Indian's heartthrob, gave a great performance as Rancho. His character is the center of this movie, with his smart but rebellious spirit. He played his character so well that makes us cannot not to fall in love with him. On the other side, Boman Irani was standout as ViruS. His acting and expressions are excellent as the cruel and heartless dean, with his good caricature impersonation. And Omi Vaidya was just awesome with his strong comedic performance as Chatur. Very solid actings.

A Bollywood movie is not complete without songs and dances. The songs in this movie are great, especially a song named "All is Well", the words that the Rancho character says a lot in the movie when he is facing with an extremely difficult situation. Another memorable songs are "Give Me Some Sunshine" and "Zoobi Doobi". The dances? They are just awesome to watch. You will find yourself move your head and shoulders along with the melody. (To listen to the songs from this movie, please click the song links below.)

This is another wonderful experience I had in the cinema after My Name is Khan, that I will remember for a very long time. Love it! Definitely worth seeing. (MJ)

Song Links from 3 Idiots: (To not exit this page - open the songs in new windows with right click)
- All Izz Well
- Give Me Some Sunshine
- Zoobi Doobi
- Jaane Nahen Denge
- Bahti Hawa Sa Tha Woh

SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)

MyRating: YYYY1/2

Director: Edgar Wright
Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Dylan Moran, Penelope Wilton, Bill Nighy
MPAA: Rated R for zombie violence/gore and language
US Gross: US$ 13.5 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 30 Million

Do you know why I love Zombie movies so much? I will give you 3 reasons :

1) You do not have to make things and yourself complicated with something called love and lust (sorry Dracula & Vampire lovers), because a Zombie is done with all those mortal things.

2) You do not have to feel ashamed together with the main character when you see him find himself waking up naked somewhere in the park in the morning (sorry Werewolf fans), because a Zombie never cares about that, and he seems to always have shirt on him.

3) You do not have to worry too much about your perfection (sorry Mummy devotees), since Mummy needs to kill a lot of people before he can make his face and body perfect again. But not with a Zombie, he doesn't mind to look ugly at all, and he only needs to bite one person in order to make that person look as ugly as him.

Maybe I will think of something to mock of Zombie the next time I write about Dracula & Vampire & Werewolf & Mummy, because actually I love those movies too, but maybe not as much as I love Zombie's.

When I heard a comedy about zombies was made (the same year with Dawn of the Dead remake), I said to myself, "What? I will not watch it! It will be just a silly zombie spoof. Zombies should be scary, serious... and cool, not something funny or to take a joke of. It must be a very stupid movie." I watched it anyway. And I found out myself laughed in tears while watching it. Not small laughs, but big round laughs. Indeed Shaun of the Dead is one of the most brilliant and hilarious comedies I've ever seen. Not only the story is engaging, but also the casts are charming with very convincing actings. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are two funny British actors who work well together as a laughing inducer machine. And most of all, the dialogs are clever and superb. Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, as the screenwriter, have a seriously huge amount of humors. Even when I watched it again and again, I still can't stop laughing because this movie is really-really funny.

The story is about Shaun (Pegg), who has a mundane life. He works a dead-end job in an electronic store, where his subordinates do not take him seriously. He also has problem in his relationship with his girlfriend, Liz (Ashfield). She complains because Shaun seems to spend more time with his best friend and roommate, Ed (Frost) rather than her. Ed is a lazy and jobless man, who spends his time everyday playing video games in front of the TV and drinking beers. Liz is also fed up with Shaun's less of initiative. He only knows one place to have dates, which is his favorite pub, the Winchester Tavern, a boring pub where Shaun hangs out every night with Liz and Ed.

When Shaun did one unforgivable mistake, Liz thinks that she already has enough and dumps him, supported by her two best friends, Dianne (Davis) and David (Moran), who also do not like him. But Shaun does not have much time to cry his broken heart as London is suddenly overrun by flesh-eating zombies. In this chaos, Shaun knows that it is time for him to stand like a man, as he has to safe his ex-girlfriend and his mom (Wilton), who lives with his stepdad (Nighy). Together with Ed, he has to bring them to a safer place before the zombies could reach them. And he can only think of one place, which is also the safest place on earth, the Winchester!

There are so many funny scenes in this movie, but I will give you 3 scenes that I think were the funniest (my lecturer once told me that, give only 3 points when you want to give your opinions, because 3 is the ideal number and also the maximum people can absorb):

1) The scene when Shaun and Ed throw two zombies in Shaun's backyard with Shaun's recording plates collection. In that hectic time, they still have to choose and argue which plates to throw away and which ones to keep.

2) Shaun's imaginary scenarios on how to save his mom from her house, including on killing his stepdad.

3) When Shaun, Ed and Liz hit a man in the Winchester Tavern with billiard sticks while a Queen's song, Don't Stop Me Now, is playing in the background.

4) Sorry, I have to add another one. A scene also in the Winchester when Shaun, Ed, David, Dianne and Liz are pointing gun and broken bottles towards each other, while shouting about a matter of life and death.

5) One more. The way Ed repeating Shaun's words, such as "It's on random" when talking about a random record playing in a jukebox and "We're not using the Z-word" when talking about zombies, are just hilarious.

There are still many funny moments which I cannot write down one by one, because I've spoiled a lot already. And don't think that this film is a soft zombie movie because of its comedy, because I assure you it has quite a lot of gore and blood to satisfy the zombie fans.

If you don't like zombies but you like comedy, then you have to watch this. If you don't like comedy but you like zombies, then this one is perfect for you. And if you don't like both zombies and comedy, well, just consider this as an action movie or a romantic comedy with zombies, as mentioned in its tagline, and I urge you to go for it and experience the wonderful experience that I had.

This is a little gem of the British comedy, and a masterpiece of world comedies... and zombies. And I love this movie so much. (MJ)

DATE NIGHT (2010)

MyRating: YY

Director: Shawn Levy
Cast: Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg, Taraji P. Henson, Jimmi Simpson, William Fichtner, Ray Liota, James Franco, Mila Kunis
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for sexual and crude content throughout, language, some violence and a drug reference

Phil and Claire Foster (Carell & Fey) are a typical of majority couple who have been married for several years, having two kids, working hard and coming home exhausted at night, too tired to make out. They love each other but they live a routine and boring life. But they have a routine date night, a night when they leave their children at home with a babysitter and hang out with each other by having dinners, watching movies and joking about other unknown couples they see at their dates.

When another couple, their best friends, shockingly tells them that they are planning a divorce, Phil and Claire realizes one thing, that a so called ordinary life can also destroy a relationship. So, Phil decides to spice up their marriage. He does something different when their next date night comes, by driving into the city to have dinner in one populer and expensive restaurant. However, they could not get seats there since the place was fully reserved even from a month before. Do not want to give up, they wait, and when they hear a waiter calling a couple named Tripplehorns who happens to not show up, they do the silliest mistake in their life by admitting that they are the Tripplehorns, so that they could get the table.

Everything becomes interesting when two hit men approach them while they are having dinner and rudely ask them to step outside the restaurant. At that time, Phil and Claire realizes that they have stolen the identity from a completely wrong couple, as the Tripplehorns happens to have stolen something very valuable from a notorious mobster boss (Liotta), and they are asked to give the thing back. Do not have it with them, Phil and Claire know that they have to run for their lives or be killed. So their adventure begins, as they run around the Manhattan that night to stay alive, while trying to figure out how to solve their problems. The only way is to find the real Tripplehorns and get the thing the mob wants, before they will find themselves inside a body bag, below the Manhattan river.

Steve Carell and Tina Fey are two big names in comedy and together they should become a guarantee for a box office success. And I find myself grow to like Steve Carell each day, as I think he is funny, even when he is not trying too hard to be funny. However, I found out that this movie was not as funny as I thought it would. It actually has an interesting premise, a misfit couple finds themselves being chased by the mob, and I can see both Carell & Fey did everything they could in their capacities, which are being funny. And they were likeable in this movie. If I might say, I think it was the script that did not work very well.

I know a taste for comedy is something that may different from one person to another. Some people may thing that one movie is very funny, but others will think that the movie is just okay. After all, reviewing and valueing a movie is very subjective, depends on his/her feelings towards the movie. And for me, this movie is not very funny, even though it tried hard to be funny. The script was not good enough and seemed to be just circle around. The humors are dry with too many physical slapsticks. There are funny moments though, but I found myself only had a few laughs through out the movie.

The cameos are interesting. Besides Ray Liotta as the mob boss, Mark Wahlberg appears cool as a security expert who seems to not like wearing a shirt, showing his macho and muscular body. James Franco and Mila Kunis were also guite enjoying their parts as the real Tripplehorns, with their funny dialog and debate.

I expected this movie to be hilarious, but it turned out not. I don't consider this as a bad movie, but a mediocre comedy. (MJ)

THE BOOK OF ELI (2010)

MyRating: YY1/2

Director: Albert Hughes & Allen Hughes
Cast: Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson, Jennifer Beals
MPAA: Rated R for some brutal violence and language
US Gross: US$ 94.8 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 152.4 Million

It's the world after apocalypse, the world as we know now has become wasteland. Cities and civilization have been destroyed by a big and catastrophic war happened 30 years ago. It's a world full of chaos and fear, where a bottle of water may worth all your belongings and the people who survived have to live with jungle rule, to kill or be killed. The roads and fallen cities are full of bandits, who will rob, rape and kill any travellers that pass by. There is no law. The bandits are the law. But the outlaws are messing with the wrong person when they meet a traveller named Eli (Washington).

Eli is a lonesome warrior who has travelled by foot for 30 years with the aim of heading west. He has a mission to protect a book and bring it safely to a final destination, guided by a higher power above him, as he believes the book is the only hope for the future of the mankind. It has been a mission of his lifetime and he keeps on going merely by faith. And as a skillful warrior, he will fight, even kill, anyone who will put his book in danger.

His mission is facing its ultimate test when Eli meets with Carnegie (Oldman), the head of a group of cruel bandits, who happens to know about the book and its secret. Carnegie has pursued the book for a long time, as he believes by owning the book will give him power to build and rule many cities. And he must get the book from Eli at any costs.

Denzel Washington was fit for his role as Eli with his solitary soul and toughness. While Gary Oldman, whom we always know him well as the bad guy, played his role with his typical bad guy style that suited him. And the role of Mila Kunis as Carnegie's adopted daughter, who is fascinated with Eli and his mission, was necessary as the movie will become more barren and dry without the presence of a sweet and beautiful woman like her (it's apocalypse!). And I think she played her role well.

The cinematography of the wasteland is beautiful with all its ruins and bleakness. And the action sequences are good and well coreographed. The violence is brutal, as you will see heads and body parts chopped off all the way.

The weak point of this movie is the plot. It started as an interesting movie, but as the story goes, the plot became to drag and seemed not being developed well enough. The movie was also overlong, with not a very satisfying ending.

There is one interesting thing about Eli that you will know only at the end of the movie. But you may find the ending difficult to believe. (MJ)

[REC] 2 (2009)

MyRating: YY1/2

Director: Jaume Balaguero, Paco Plaza
Cast: Jonathan Mellor, Manuela Velasco, Oscar Zafra, Ariel Casas, Alejandro Casaseca, Pablo Rosso

This is the sequel of the surprising horror made by Spain in 2007, [Rec], which has been adapted by Hollywood in 2008 with Quarantine. The story continues immediately after the end of the first movie. After losing contact with the people quarantined inside the apartment building, a SWAT team and a health specialist are sent inside the building to check the situation and find out what is happening. At the same time, three kids, who like to do wild stuff, find it is challenging to sneak inside the same forbidden building in order to satisfy their adrenalin. And what they all find inside is worst than their worst nightmares when they are attacked by a bunch of zombies roaming inside the building.

I like the first [Rec], it is an original, very scary and a good horror movie. The shooting with the camcorder is the main attraction, as it puts you in the first person's point of view who walk and run up-and-down the apartment building. It adds more tensions to the film than if it was merely shot in the conventional third person's point of view. The camcorder's shots were also carefully taken, so to minimize the potential dizziness usually created by this kind of movies. (Not the same as Cloverfield - the worst experience I had in cinema when watching movies shot with camcorder, because it made me really sick and nauseous through out the movie). But [Rec] is not.

This second movie actually started quite promising when the new team entering the building and exploring the inside, as we wait for their first encounter with the zombies. But somehow after the attacks and halfway through the film, it started to lose its grips. I think the way the film try to explain too much about the cause of the plague and its connection with demonic possession kind of hurt the story and the tension of the movie. I am the one who prefer to leave the zombies with the zombies, without have to link it with religious factor.

If you have not watched [Rec], maybe you will find this as something new. But if you have watched the first movie plus Quarantine, then what you will find here is more of the same, with the exactly same setting inside the apartment building and relatively same way of terrors. But it is not as scary as the first one.

If they are planning to make a third movie, I think they have to find a new setting location. It will definitely more interesting to see the plague spread outside the building. (MJ)

COUPLES RETREAT (2009)

MyRating: YYY

Director: Peter Billingsley
Cast: Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, Faizon Love, Malin Akerman, Kristen Bell, Kristin Davis, Kali Hawk, Jean Reno
MPAA: Rated PG-13 on appeal for sexual content and language
US Gross: US$ 109.2 Million
US Worldwide: US$ 171.8 Million

Four couples and best friends go on a couples retreat on a tropical island with a group-rate package when one of the couples, Jason & Cynthia (Bateman & Bell) are having difficulty with their marriage and in a brink of a divorce. Even though the other three couples, Dave & Ronnie (Vaughn & Akerman), Joey & Lucy (Favreau & Davis) and Shane & and his new girlfriend Trudy (Love & Hawk) are reluctant to go at the beginning, they finally agree in order to support their friends, with a condition that they will just have fun in the island while Jason & Cynthia have their marriage theraphy.

When they arrive at the island, they find out that everything is just perfect as per the advertisement, an exotic island with beautiful beaches, a luxurious resort, and delicious foods. It feels like coming to a paradise. But they also discover one thing, that the group-rate program is compelling every couple to participate in a series of couples' therapies and exercises, with no excuses. If they choose not to participate, they will have to leave the island. Do not want to lose all the excitements offered by the island, they participate into the program half-heartedly, but all of them soon find out that they actually have problems in their relationships.

Shane has just divorced from his wife and started a new relationship with Trudy, but they have age difference issue, since Trudy is much younger and has more energy than Shane. Joey & Lucy have lost the sparks of love in their hearts towards each other, and Joey doesn't seem to be able to stop his eyes towards other beautiful women. Even Dave & Ronnie, who have the most perfect marriage, have their own issues. And all of these couples' problems are like time bombs, that could explode anytime.

I know many critics were bashing this film. But after watching it, I do not agree that this is a bad movie at all. Rather, I enjoyed it. There are quite many funny moments. The therapy sessions are funny. We can see that all the actors were having fun in this movie, including Jean Reno as the owner of the resort with his odd therapy methods. However, I also have to say that there are some jokes that are not very funny and felt a bit too forced. But in overall, I found this movie was refreshing and entertaining. The island is also beautiful and engaging enough that makes me want to visit that island.

This is not a bad comedy. Indeed, I have to say it is a good one, if not great. The problems showed by the couples are actually close to our reality, because we may face those problems ourselves. (MJ)

THE GHOST WRITER (2010)

MyRating: YYY

Director: Roman Polanski
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Olivia Williams, Kim Cattrall, Tom Wilkinson, Timothy Hutton, John Bernthal, James Belushi, Eli Wallach
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for language, brief nudity/sexuality, some violence and a drug reference

An unnamed successful British ghost writer named The Ghost (McGregor) gets a proposition he cannot refuse when he is offered to complete the memoirs of the former British Prime Minister, Adam Lang (Brosnan). Even though he senses danger from the very beginning, as the predecessor ghost writer for Lang's memoirs died in a mysterious accident, but he accepts the job as a contract of a quarter million dollars may be something he will never see again in his entire lifetime.

As soon as The Ghost starts his project in Lang's luxurious and isolated mansion by the oceanfront on a small island in the US, where Lang lives with his wife Ruth (Williams), a major political scandal related to Lang's past, when he occupied the office of UK Prime Minister, erupts. Lang is accused to have authorized a series of seizures towards his nation suspected terrorists and handing them to the United States to be tortured by the CIA in Guantanamo. The controversy quickly arouses the international attentions and soon after, the reporters and protestors from all around the world flooded the island.

As The Ghost digs deep into the project in the uncertain situation, he starts to find clues and strangeness related to his predecessor's dead and it may because the man knew a big secret that link Adam Lang with the CIA. And everything seems to be hidden inside the the thick memoirs manuscript left by his predecessor, as long as he can solve it. And The Ghost knows that he has to find the truth and do the right thing, before the same accident that was happened to his predecessor will happen to him.

Ewan McGregor was well-casted as The Ghost. I think he portrayed his character just right as the curious, cautious and smart ghost writer. Pierce Brosnan is equally interesting to watch as the ex Prime Minister with his charms and great personality. But we cannot see the full depth of Brosnan's character as the script purposely not giving us a full access into the heart of his character.

The suspense is slowly built, but maintains our curiosity as the mystery flows and unfolds. This is a good political thriller, but you have to be patient and put yourself in full concentration while watching it, if not you will lose the story due to its complexity. There will be some questions left in your head after finishing this movie, but the director will leave you to think and answer those questions by yourself. (MJ)

HALLOWEEN II (2009)

MyRating: BOO...

Director: Rob Zombie

Cast: Scout Taylor-Compton, Malcolm McDowell, Tyler Mane, Brad Dourif, Sheri Moon Zombie, Danielle Harris

MPAA: Rated R for strong brutal bloody violence throughout, terror, disturbing graphic images, language, and some crude sexual content and nudity
US Gross: US$ 33.4 Million

Worldwide Gross: US$ 38.7 Million

I write this review because this was maybe the worst movie I watched last year. It's the sequel of the first remake by Rob Zombie in 2007, from one of the most popular and legendary slasher-horror, John Carpenter's Halloween. After survived from the killing-spree by Michael Myers in the first movie, Laurie Strode (Taylor-Compton) is taken to a hospital for her wounds. However, as Michael Myers is not dead, he hunts her sister down to the hospital. And another massacre begins, as he will kill anyone that is on his way, the nurse, the doctor, the security, everyone.

This movie is really-really bad. Nothing personal with Rob Zombie, because the first movie was still okay for me, but not this one. The story is bad, the dialog is far from clever, and many scenes are just not making any sense and stupid. And worst of all, the characters are very annoying.

Laurie Strode character is the most annoying. Taylor-Compton has made her character become dumb and whiny. It was very frustrating to see her whining, crying and swearing all the time. Yes, she swears a lot. She has totally ruined the character who was played very well by Jamie Lee Curtis in the original version. It is not similar at all with the stronger character portrayed by Curtis. Therefore, it would be better if the name of the main lead in this Zombie's version was not Laurie Strode at all.

The imaginary character of Michael Myers' mother (Sheri Moon Zombie) with her white cinderella dress and white horse, was absolutely unnecessary. I kept asking myself, am I watching a horror movie or a fantasy. It was just laughable. Anyway, the brutal and gory violence are all there in this film.

The showing of Michael Myers' normal real face was also very ineffective. It significantly reduces the charisma of Michael Myers. I don't think people want to see him as a human, but as a monster. That is the way he lives.

And the ending was just not right. Maybe it tried too hard to look clever, but the fact, it was not good at all. That was not even a twist. The using of the popular ballad song at the end of the film, Love Hurts (popularized by Nazareth in 1975) was totally irrelevant. It is a very good song and nice to hear, but the music and lyric has no real connection with the content of this movie. Seems Zombie just put a song he likes. It's like playing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in a rock concert.

Rob Zombie has ripped-off the Halloween franchise and killed all its characters. And the result was awful. As Simon Cowell likes to say, "It's a complete and utterly mess". (MJ)

UP IN THE AIR (2009)

MyRating: YYYY

Director: Jason Reitman
Cast: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman
MPAA: Rated R for language and some sexual content
US Gross: US$ 83.8 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 162.9 Million

Ryan Bingham (Clooney) builds his career on other people's downfalls. Not because he likes to see people suffer, but it is his job as a corporate downsizing expert, in which to fire people from their jobs when their own employers are not daring and gentle enough to tell them. It is a good business and Ryan is very compassionate with his job, besides his another profession as a motivational speaker. He loves to fly around the country, with a suitcase in his hand, 320 days a year (and spends the remaining days of the year miserably at home, as he said). His goal is to reach the 10 million frequent flyer miles, which will also become the mark of his successful career.

When his boss (Bateman) hires Natalie Keener (Kendrick), a young and ambitious woman, but naive, who develops and suggests the company to change their way of doing business by applying a method of firing people through remote video conferencing, thus will reduce the huge company's flight expenses, Ryan senses that this may be the end of his conventional and reputable way of doing his job. So when his boss asks Natalie to accompany Ryan on one of his trip in order to learn the business, he knows that this is the time to show the girl that her method is not applicable, as what they face are not merely people made of wood at the other end of the computer, but they are human beings with hearts and lives and families. That trip not only changes the way they know about each other, but also starts to change Natalie's believe and Ryan's perspective about his own way of life.

Aside from his work, Ryan does not have much personal life because he doesn't like to be tied up into a relationship. The only person that seems to change his mind is Alex Goran (Farmiga), a business woman and also a frequent flyer, whom he frequently meets between his trips and flights. A woman with the same lifestyle like he does. As their relationship grows stronger, Ryan realizes that this woman may be his final stop.

George Clooney is (always) great, as he gives a solid and precise portray of Ryan Bingham's character. This selective actor seems to always play each of his character with ease, but the results are of high quality and fun to watch. Not only he has a charming smile, but also charming performances. Vera Farmiga also shows a strong characterization as a business woman with her free lifestyle and Anna Kendrick is good in her naive role.

This is a moving story about life and its reality. It's nice to know someone with a profession like Ryan Bingham, but of course you do not want to find yourself sit with him across the table. It's just interesting to see how he passionately loves his work and flying, and how an achievement and satisfaction of a person can be measured by how far by miles he has flied. But that's Ryan Bingham. And to know him, you have to fly with him. (MJ)

ORPHAN (2009)

MyRating: YYYY

Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Cast: Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Furhman, Jimmy Bennett, Aryana Engineer, CCH Pounder
MPAA: Rated R for disturbing violent content, some sexuality and language
US Gross: US$ 41.6 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 76.7 Million

Kate and John Coleman (Farmiga & Sarsgaard) are having a very though time after the death of their unborn child. As they try to save their marriage and recover their lives, they decide to adopt a child, with hope that the child could bring back the joy to their family. When the couple visits an orphanage, they are attracted and falling in love with a conservatively dressed 9-year-old Estonian girl named Esther, who seems to be sweet, smart and talented. Knowing that they have found the child they want, they quickly adopt and invite her to their house, and introduce her to their two children. But not long after Esther becoming the part of their family, strange things begin to happen, which slowly makes Kate suspicious that there is something wrong with the girl. There is another side hidden behind her innocent and angelic appearance.

When a series of accidents happens, Kate knows that not only she has to convince her husband, who seems to be attached with the girl and doubted her due to her past drinking problem, but also she has to act before something worse happens to her family.

This is a very good horror-thriller that will become your worst nightmare. The acting is good and the suspense is slowly built into a satisfying climax. Isabelle Fuhrman is excellent as Esther with her impressive and very believable acting, which roots deep into the soul of her character. She is a very talented young star. Vera Farmiga is convincing as the mother who is haunted by her past and trapped in the middle of the situation. While Peter Sarsgaard is also good as the husband, whose unbelieving towards his wife will get you to your nerves.

The twist ending is startling and brilliant, something you will never see it coming. Don't miss this movie if you are a horror fan... or not. (MJ)

THE LOVELY BONES (2009)

MyRating: YY1/2
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Saoirse Ronan, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving disturbing violent content and images, and some language
US Gross: US$ 44.0 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 93.1 Million

Susie Salmon (Ronan) is a happy 14-year-old young girl who is about to experience all the excitements in her life as a teenager, having a loving family, pursuing a new hobby as a photographer, and falling in love for the first time. But all those are suddenly robbed from her when she is killed by her neighbour, a middle-age man serial killer. She then goes to heaven but reluctantly let go of her past on earth.

From heaven, she watches how her family is slowly falling apart, as her father (Wahlberg) never gives up on doing all he could to solve her daughter's murderer case, while her mother (Weisz) tries very hard to forget, put everything behind and move on. But both of them are badly broken heart. She also watches every step of her killer, as the man is slowly feeling safe and comfortable with himself, when the case seems to be unresolved after the time goes by. Knowing that sooner or later she will have to let go of everything on earth, Susie desperately wants her murderer to be caught, before the man dumps her body to a place where nobody could find her forever.

The story is adapted from the best selling novel of Alice Sebold, which remained on the New York Times bestseller list for over a year and became the word-of-mouth in 2002. It has a very promising and interesting story, but it was not executed very well on screen by Peter Jackson. The story is not flowing smoothly. The many slow motions used through out the movie (which I believe the purpose is to give dramatic impacts) makes the film become slow and a bit dragging. And the heaven, even though visually beautiful, is looks like a colorful surreal children playground.

The actors are doing a good job. Saoirse Ronan is impressive as Susie, which puts her as one of the promising young actresses in Hollywood. Mark Wahlberg is also quite succeed in showing his emotions of losing her daughter. Rachel Weisz is just okay as she was not getting too many screen time. While Susan Sarandon's character as the grandmother is a bit off from the whole story with her comedic performance. And Stanley Tucci is good as the neighbour George Harvey, which made him nominated for the Best Supporting Actor by both the Golden Globe and the Oscar.

The director seemed to do this project on his big break while lying on the beach, after finishing his mega projects, The Lord of the Rings trilogy and King Kong. No, I was exaggerated. But The Lovely Bones was indeed something out of his comfort zone, as Mr. Jackson is usually directing monsters and goblins and elves. This looks like an experiment to him for something different. However, it was a good experiment from the great director as the result is not bad. But could have been better. (MJ)

EVERYBODY'S FINE (2009)

MyRating: YYYY1/2

Director: Kirk Jones
Cast: Robert De Niro, Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for thematic elements and brief strong language
US Gross: US$ 9.2 Million
Worldwide Gross: US$ 13.9 Million

Imagine when you were old some day, all your children have moved out and have their own families, and you have just lost the person you love the most, your spouse, forever. In your loneliness, you plan a family gathering with all your children, just to make sure that everybody's fine. But... none of them come and bother to meet you, because they are all busy with their own lives. How would you feel? Frank Goode (De Niro), a sick, retired factory worker and a widower who has just lost his wife, plans a reunion with his four children at his house. He prepares everything to welcome them, from a new barbeque grill until good wines, because he just misses them after their mother burial eight months before. Sadly, none of them show-up.

Frank is a typical of discipline and critical father who pushed his children hard enough in order to see them success in the future. While his wife was a glue in their family, who attach all of them together, Frank is more of a distant father figure. But he is proud to see all of his children doing fine and having good lives as adults, Rosie (Barrymore) is a professional dancer in Las Vegas, Amy (Beckinsale) is a successful advertising executive in Chicago, Robert (Rockwell) is a classical music orchestra conductor in Denver, and David is a painting artist in New York who lives his dream. They didn't show-up not because they hate him, but because they all have other more important things to do in their lives.

Pushing away his sadness and disappointment, Frank decides to visit each of his children himself and give them a surprise, even though his doctor has urged him not to take a long journey due to his bad heart disease. So, he starts his journey to meet each of his children, from New York to Chicago, then Denver and Las Vegas. Unplanned, what he finds out is that his children's lives are not as perfect as what he imagines. As a father, he can sense the problems that they have, even though in front of him, they act that everything's fine. There, Frank realizes that not only he should stand for them, but also he should become the glue that his wife used to be, to stick his family back together again, no matter how they are in their lives.

Robert De Niro is great as the respectful but sympathetic father, who tries his best to show his affections to all his children. He gave an honest and heartfelt performance that will drive our emotions with him, even though only by seeing the expressions in his face. Such a great actor. The other casts as his daughters and son are stellar.

This is a very touching story, sometimes sad, but also gives hopes. Loved the story and the performances. Not a box office success, but definitely a good movie. (MJ)

FROM PARIS WITH LOVE (2010)

MyRating: Y1/2

Director: Pierre Morel

Cast: John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Kasia Smutniak

MPAA: Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, drug content, pervasive language and brief sexuality

US Gross: US$ 24.1 Million

Worldwide Gross: US$ 41.2 Million

An over-the-top action flick about a low level CIA intelligence operative working for the US Ambassador in France, James Reece (Meyers), who finds himself facing a loose cannon when he has to partner with a wacko and super fearless special agent, Charlie Wax (Travolta). Their mission is to stop a terrorist attack in Paris. At the beginning, James feels difficult to accept Charlie's extreme methods in handling the case, but when he realizes that he himself is somehow becoming the target of the terrorist's big plan, James knows that he has to work hand-in-hand with his new partner to stop the terrorists before it is too late.

John Travolta is fun to watch as the wisecracking and tough-guy partner, with his bald and bearded appearance. He is the type of guy with a motto of "Do it my way" or "Do it my way". Some people may like him and some people may hate him. But I think he is the main attraction of this movie. Without him, this movie will be lifeless and soulless. Jonathan Rhys Meyers, on the other hand, is stiff and boring. He is just lack of expressions (and what is he doing carrying that vase all around?).

If you are a fan of a pure action film, maybe you will like this movie. There are plenty of actions. Gun-shooting, fighting, car chases, gun-shooting, explosions, bazooka, gun-shooting... But I didn't like it as I thought I would. Did not like the story, it is not a good script. And since I hardly can enjoy the story, I could not even enjoy the actions. (MJ)

PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS: THE LIGHTNING THIEF (2010)

MyRating: YY1/2

Director: Chris Columbus
Cast: Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Jake Abel, Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan, Steve Coogan, Rosario Dawson, Kevin McKidd, Uma Thurman
MPAA: Rated PG for action violence and peril, some scary images and suggestive material, and mild language

Percy Jackson (Lerman) has a normal life just like any other kids at school, except he can stay under water long enough no other kids can do. He never knew who he actually was until he is suddenly chased by monsters from the Greek mythology. That's the time he learns that he is the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, which also makes him a demigod.

The reason he is being hunted is because the Olympian gods are suspecting him of stealing Zeus' lightning bolt. It could cause a great war between the gods, that could also destroy the earth, if the bolt is falling into the wrong hand. When his mother is being caught because of this, Percy decides to embark on a dangerous adventure in order to save her and to prove to the gods that he is not the thief by finding the real thief.

This movie is adapted from the best-seller Percy Jackson & the Olympians novel series, authored by Rick Riordan, which could become a new movie franchise. And the fact that this movie is directed by Chris Columbus (the director of the first and the second Harry Potter series) also gave quite a good promising. And I have to say that I was quite entertained and enjoying this movie. It has almost everything you need to see, the Hydra, Medusa, flying beasts, and all the Greek mythology gods.

But soon after we finish the movie, we will forget about the content of the story, because the story is just too light and not that memorable. The setting is not as glamorous and glorious as Harry Potter (actually it is still far in comparison). Nothing is really spectacular. And as Percy, Logan Lerman is just okay, he is not bad, but not outstanding either. In my opinion, he did not show enough sparks and impressions, as the impressions given by Daniel Radcliffe when we first saw him as Harry Potter.

The only and most memorable thing in this movie is the snaky head of Uma Thurman. That will be the first thing bounce in your head when you think about Percy Jackson. The others you will forget. Not a very strong beginning for a franchise. (MJ)