Ben Thomas, IRS

I didn't think I would cry as the secret was very well revealed quite early in the movie and one would've already expected the ending of Will Smith's character.

But it was the final scene when Emily (Rosario Dawson) went to meet Ezra Johnson (Woody Harrelson), that I can't help but let it all out. The scene was not really sad at all since it's two strangers (only bound by Will Smith's Ben Thomas) met for the first time. However, I somehow understand Emily's feeling at that moment and it was really really happy yet painful.

I'm not gonna say more. While this is no In Pursuit of Happiness, in fact it was not that 'gluey' for the first hour but if you do want to watch, be patient and watch till the end, not for the Secret but for that final scene.

This year is definitely going to be Hot

If 2008 was all about Indie and Batman, well...2009 will be even crazier.

Firstly the pre-summer movies.

Ermmm....Not really a fan of Nicolas Cage despite having watched quite a number of its movies including Ghost Rider.

anyway, this is another 'disaster movie' with possibly aliens in it.

The concept, i believed will be similar to the TV series, Numbers where Nicolas Cage is able to break the code (a piece of paper with supposedly random numbers) buried in the ground 50 yrs ago by someone....and will try to stop future disaster based on those numbers.

The movie is finally released and is ending up being a pre-summer movie for 2009. Not for the mass...mainly for those who like the way SIn City adn 300 were directed.

Who could've guess that Part 4 is possible for TF&F.

I've not watch any of the first 3, so will continue to skip this.

Things will get crazy beginning of May. So here are the list of more notable summer movies for 2009.

Accidentally watch T1, purposely watch T2, partially watch T3...will T4 be great? I hope so in view of the not so bad Sarah Connor Cronicles TV Series. I do hope so.

The book was a pre-quel to Da Vinci Code...but i'm not sure if the movie will be in the direction of Prequel or Sequel. Either way, watched the trailer and looks set to be another great movie.

Have you watched the official trailer released recently? It's scary! and it's definitely looks much better than part 1.

Besides Wolverine, audience will definitely go to this movie for two other characters; Gambit and Deadpool. Nuff said!

mmmm.................wonder what else this Ice Age series could bring to excite us.

Can't wait can't wait can't wait..............

Until today, no picture of Cobra had been released..not even in the trailer.....i wonder if it will end up like Star Wars Part III where Cobra will only become Cobra towards the end of the movie, that will open the door for GI Joe II.

Never a Trekkie and never will be.

Other mentionable movies to look for:

A Nigth at the Museum 2: watched the trailer, will probably wait for the DVD.

Saw VI. I actually stopped at Saw III and I might probably need to get into IV adn V first.

Bruno. (the 'sequel' to Borat). Er....DVD.

Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakle - need to buy the DVD for the first movie.

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time - until the trailer is released, i'm going to stay neutral on this one.

Oh...what about Dragonball and Chun Li..., well...............................

Tonight the Audience Sat Still

While internationally, this movie is scheduled to be released on the 12 Dec but we, the audience in Bangkok get to see it 2 days a head, probably thanks to the 10 Dec being a holiday.

Anyway, how was it? Hmmmm.....at least I knew I sat still.

Compared to other major disaster movies (Armageddon, Deep Impact, The Day After Tomorrow) or Alien/Monster movies (Independence Day, Cloverfield), TDTESS tend to be a bit lame or was it because of Jennifer Connelly? Never much seen her movies..and she don't really make much strong impression.

Considering that there's really no big huge movie, it's okay to give this a try. Just don't complain too much. The last scene is actually quite horrid where the Earth really stood still but the Director ignored the disaster it had and hence shown nothing about Aeroplanes falling from the sky or Submarines sinked deeper....

The most funny thing was that towards 40+ minutes into the movie (when Jennifer's Dr Benson inject a water saline into Keanu Reeve), the theatre suddenly paused. Screen went blank. Lights was on. I was wondering if a coup had happen outside or something major.

Sadly, the building was experiencing power failure........hence that moment, the audience sat still for about 10 minutes.

"If the Earth dies, you die. If you die, the Earth survives"

You Have Been Activated

After the Batman craze, it has been weeks since I found myself in the cinema. And with the Summer movie season gone, there's really not much great movies coming along. Then there was this movie called "Eagle Eye" which had Steven Spielberg billed to it.

So...it should be good right? Er...................

Well, in general, it's not bad. Similar to "Wanted", it has the interesting teaser, the overall concept of the story but kinda fail when showing the audience the whole truth behind the story.
But let's talk about Shia Le Bouf. Again, he played the same character that we get to know him through Transformers and Indiana Jones. A cocky young kid. Perhaps the only difference this time is that we get to see his character matured over time and he finally learnt about responsibilities.

Overall, the movie is filled with fast paced action, the car scene chase was really crazy that you just do not know what's happening and how it's happening. That's something I find it annoying in this movie.

Coming to an hour of the movie, the truth behind the story was revealed, though it might still take a while for those who are not that knowledgeable about modern technology. And, i'm not going to spoil the movie by revealing it here but just don't expect to find the villain being some terrorist, cause it's not.

Why so serious?

Three years ago, Christhoper Nolan informed us it has begun. Three years after that, Christopher Nolan returns and showed us the dark side of the knight.



I told you it was coming back in April, and it had came and creating history. I'm glad I experienced it. For the past 2 weeks I've been having 4 hours + of sleep focusing on reports after reports and today, I decided to drop everything and enjoy the Friday night that it's supposed to be. I don't care what the client said about me ignoring her calls, I just needed my time off.



So there I was, at the ticket counter, paying crazy price for the movie. And I'm glad I did.



Nolan wasted no time in telling its audience how he wanted this movie to be like, right from the beginning. It's real, it's dark and he's not holding back.

There are a few scenes that I try not to watch as it is really scary and real, and yes, it has Joker in it. He's one hell of a 'ma-fah'. And the late Mr. Heath Ledger did play a crazy Joker, much better than Jack Nicholson's. I do hope the Academy will give him a nod in next year's Oscar.

I'm not going to tell you much about this movie (no spoiler!) but just don't bring your kid to watch it. It's quite gory at times...especially Two Face.

Running at 150minutes, it was well worth to go to the cinema and watch it, to enjoy the chilling score, the visual effect and other stuff.

The quotes: "Why so Serious?", "You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself becoming a villain"

What the F have you done lately?

Yep, that's the last line before the credit screen appears.

I'm not sure why but I'm always tempted to watch an action pack movie which Angelina Jolie starred in. I think she just had that charisma in such genre. Wait, what movie am i talking about? This one, of course.

I received a call yesterday evening asking if I would like to go for a movie and it's between Wanted and Hancock. We ended up with Wanted, mainly due to Jolie's presence.

I'm not going to say much about it but just go provide you an overview of what to expect out of this flick. Considering that it's adapted from a comic book, you will have to ignore any illogical or scientifically challenge stuff but to really enjoy the moment.

In terms of the style, it's really cool. The choreagraphed stunt was suave, the curve shot and those weird yet cool guns.

The music in general is okay...

But the storyline and the James' character is just a bit over. REminds me of those HK movies or dramas where the hero create all the troubles because of his impatience and seek revenge fast, etc etc.

But then who cares, we are just there to watch Jolie and the curved shot.

Photos courtesy of Yahoo Movies!

Nearing to cross the street

It was 5.30am, it's raining. And i decided to push the play button on my DVD remote.

Beautiful night scene. Sound of a train moving very fast. The scene zoom in to a bakery.

Hmmm...very Chungking Express. In fact it kinda does resembling the movie except this time, the one who's manning the bar is Jude Law rather than Faye Wong.

My Blueberry Night, the first English feature film by HK arthouse director, Wong Kar Wai, did not really fare as well as his HK movies, not because of the storyline but perhaps of the main character being played by Norah Jones. She's just too woody and sometimes expressionless. Compared to his HK features which featured great actors/actresses. Even if they are new, they are able to show they emotion unlike Miss Jones. Of course, you can't expect her to be Maggie Cheung but at least Mr.Wong could have chosen someone better.

Jude Law performance was good but nothing outstanding as he was just playing a role we had seen him in The Holidays. But then again, I don't really blame him since his role in the movie was not really that powerful.

The second story, perhaps was the best of the three storylines interwebbed in this movie. Rachel Weisz was good, playing the sexy & beautiful wife which I imagine Mr.Wong would have casted Carina Lau or Gong Li if this is a HK movie. And David Strathain also did a good job playing Rachel's husband who's just not willing to let go of the love when it's practically over.

The third storyline is probably the weakest despite having Natalie Portman in it. Perhaps it was Norah Jones that just too bloody wood that it spoil the whole storyline.

Not really a must watch compared to his previous fares like 2046, In the Mood For Love or even Ashes of Time.

As usual, this movie is very much a Wong Kar Wai movie. The silent moment, the great soundtrack, the close-up, the ambience. This one is meant for those who are very much alone...watch it, feel it and move on....

Some quotable quotes from the movie (which I stole from IMDB)...

Jeremy: Hmm. It's like these pies and cakes. At the end of every night, the cheesecake and the apple pie are always completely gone. The peach cobbler and the chocolate mousse cake are nearly finished... but there's always a whole blueberry pie left untouched.

Elizabeth: So what's wrong with the blueberry pie?

Jeremy: There's nothing wrong with the blueberry pie. Just... people make other choices. You can't blame the blueberry pie, just... no one wants it.

Elizabeth: How do you say goodbye to someone you can't imagine living without? I didn't say goodbye. [pause] I didn't say anything. I just walked away.

Elizabeth: It took me nearly a year to get here. It wasn't so hard to cross that street after all, it all depends on who's waiting for you on the other side.

Katya: Sometimes, even if you have the keys those doors still can't be opened. Can they? Jeremy: Even if the door is open, the person you're looking for may not be there, Katya.

Well, I'm still taking my long way to cross the street but I hope I'll be crossing the street soon. The only thing is when the door across the street is open, is that person I'm looking for be there waiting for me or it'll just be an empty room? We will never know until we turn the key, won't we?

It's anything but...

I can't help myself but to make a review on one of the more anticipated movie this Summer. No, it's not KungFu Panda. I don't think this movie is available in Malaysia since it will required so much snip snip that the title of this movie will have to be just called 'and the City'. LOL!



Anyway, it has been a while since we last enjoy the company of these 4 women which brings us laughters about their thoughts on love, sex, relationships as well as labels.
If you ask me was it worth the watch? As somekind of reunion, yeah perhaps. But did it match the hype it made during its tenure in HBO? Not really or perhaps it's a bit too long, running at 140 minutes instead of the usual 20+minutes.
It is still a good watch but don't expect to get all those fun moments and 'gasp' scenes here.
If I'm to retitled this movie, i will name it Love and The City.
Or perhaps it was a bit weird to see Samantha craving for sex but not getting it.
There are definitely a few unforgetable moments but the one that really hit me is the scene where Carrie in her wedding gown confront Mr. Big with Charlotte holding on to her. That scene both SJP and Kristin Davis played it so well and so real that you can really feel their emotion.

Hence, do go and watch this movie with your BFF.

The movie also got me crazy about two songs. India Arie's The Heart of the Matter and Duffy's Mercy.

My Thoughts on Indy...

He's old!
















She's icy but good!




















Wannabe...his role in this movie is only to show us that he's the next Indy.

















Okay. Not bad. Not exciting and not much fun.

Indy vs Xfiles...

'Nuff Said

Keep Moving Forward

A few days ago while buying some DVDs, I was given a choice of either The Simpsons or The Robinsons, as I only have one quota left. The Simpsons was very much the simpsons, silly, funny at times and of course Bart getting naked. The Robinsons was Disney and very likely to be family oriented and safe.

Probably expecting nothing out of The Simpsons, I decided to go for the Robinsons. And I didn't realise that it was such a sad touching animation given the fact we had so many animations about animals, monsters or superheros that Meet The Robinsons, though touch based on futuristic theme but was in fact quite down to earth as well.

Coming from a market research point of view, the target audience for this movie should be family with children aged 8-14 years old or adults looking for a feel good movie. I will definitely get my nephew to watch this when he's a bit older as he's too young to understand the underlying message of the movie.

Basically, the story of MTR is about an orphan giving up hope of being adopted after failing for 150 or so times, and wished to find his real mother, perhaps she will want him back now. One thing lead to another that the movie then bring out the fun aspects of introducing time travelling, bringing Lewis, the key character into the future and meet with a very optimistic and funny antics family, the Robinsons.

Being a Disney movie, one will quickly learn that the Robinsons is Lewis future family. And their optimism is very much the influence of Lewis himself, the motto of 'Keep Moving Forward'. And it was this subject that led to a very touching ending. Yes, it's a happy ending but one that will bring tears out of you. A few touching moments include: Adult Lewis meeting young Lewis and adult Lewis showed young Lewis his office, Young Lewis saw his real mother and of course Baby Lewis, Young Lewis saying goodbye to his future son (which they had became good friends) and of course, Lewis finally meeting the current timeline Robinsons followed by Rob Thomas' Little Wonder. Really kicking in.

Or perhaps it was where i am at the moment that really bring those tears out. If aspirin is the remedy for headache, perhaps this movie is the remedy to my previous post on Iraq. Anyway, i'm leaving you with the lyrics to Little Wonder.

Let it go; Let it roll right off your shoulder
Don't you know; The hardest part is over
Let it in; Let your clarity define you
In the end; You will only just remember how it feels

Our lives are made; In these small hours
These little wonders; These twists and turns of fate
Time falls away, But these small hours
These small hours Still remain

Let it slide; Let your troubles fall behind you
Let it shine, Till you feel it all around you
And I don't mind; If it's me you need to turn to
We'll get by; It's the heart that really matters in the end

All of my regret; Will wash away somehow
But I cannot forget; the way I feel right now

In these small hours; These little wonders
These twists and turns of fate
Yeah, these twisted turns of fate
Time falls away; Yeah, but these small hours,
These small hours
Still remain

[While we cannot change our past but we could shape our future - JT]

"If...."

Was invited to watch a heavy drama called Lions for Lambs. Not a bad movie but compared to Crash, it still quite far behind.
In normal circumstances, I might give this one a skip considering it has
1. Tom Cruise in it (finds his movies less & less appealing and it's always about him and no one else)
2. Robert Redford. Not really a fan of his.

But since it's an invitation and the fact that there's Meryl Streep in it, I decided to give it a try.

Overall, the movie consist of 3 stories which kind of interwined with one another. There's
a. Robert Redford as a political science professor having a heavy discussion with one of his 'bright' student who seem to be not interested in life anymore
b. the Senator (Tom Cruise) giving an exlusive interview to a well-experienced journalist (Meryl Streep) about the latest military strategy
c. Two soldiers whom quit their study to join the army and fighting for their life in Iran

You will need to watch this movie to understand how these 3 stories linked to one another. Don't worry, it's just heavy drama but will not required much of your brain to link them. However, it will leave you with a moral question, which is very subjective depends on which angle you are looking at it.

The question in this case is 'Knowing the outcome will be the same, will you tried to fail or rather failed to try?" Remember that the outcome will be a Negative outcome.

If you were to ask me, I definitely not able to give you a very clear answer since life is much more complicated than that. The ethical question, the post-action question, etc. etc. Perhaps when it comes to my work, I will definitely tried knowing that it will fail while when it comes to relationship, I would rather be the one that failed to try.

Considering that your work is more about functional while relationship is more about emotional, therefore by failing to try, there will always be some kind of hope in it. And in life, isn't it hope that keeps us alive, keeps us going on, keeps us to be where we are? Anyway, i'm not in a position to give judgement.

Quotes:
Tom Cruise "I'm not running for President"
Robert Redford "If....If..." after the two students mentioned about they will be able to make a difference when they return from their army duties.

A Heavy Watch.

This is my fifth movie during this long holiday and perhaps one of the better and down-to-earth movie. With Jennifer Aniston being one of the lead, I kinda expect a dramedy (something like The Family Stone) but turns out to be a heavy drama, with a very believable and true storyline.

All four actresses, including Aniston really did a good job. Initally I thought the whole story will be revolving around Aniston but it turns out to be four short stories link to one another through these four best friends.

You may said that this is another chick flick but perhaps you MCPs out there could watch this movie and possibly understand the stuff your wives are going through.

Just a quick spoiler to let you decide should you go out and rent this movie for a Sunday afternoon date...Aniston is a housecleaner, while the other three character are well-off. However, each of them have their own problems, mostly marital problems and the way they decide to deal (or not deal with it). There's one who regularly shrugh off disagreement to avoid argument, there's one who constantly argue, there's one who's just angry and frustrated with life and not because the husband sounds gay and there's one who can't let go a two months relationship with a married guy.

If you asked me, it's definitely worth the watch after all the violence coming from Saw III and Pan's Labyrinth.