A TRAGIC WEEK

Italian legendary filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioni(L'Avventura, Blow-up, La Notte, L'Eclisse, The Passenger) dies at age 94.

Two of the most influential filmmaker who have ever lived died this week. Not exactly 'tragic' considering their age, but they would be sorely missed.

INGMAR BERGMAN IS DEAD

One of the greatest, greatest filmmaker ever, Ingmar Bergman, has died at 89.

This is indeed a sad day.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070730/ap_on_en_mo/obit_bergman_1

"I have always admired him, and I wish I could be a equally good filmaker as he is, but it will never happen. His love for the cinema almost gives me a guilty conscience." - Steven Spielberg

HARDLY DYING

DIE HARD 4.0 (Len Wiseman, 2007)


John McClane is back. With or without the 'F' word. Now this is what a pure, adrenaline-rush action movie *needs* to be. Superbly entertaining from start to finish. No excessive slo-mo, no corny melodrama, and no cameramen on seizures (*cough* *cough* Transformers). *This* is the action movie to beat this year.

Die Hard 4.0 gave *exactly* what it promised, and then some. The fantastic action sequences are amongst the best I've seen, and almost all of them are done with *actual stunts*. Meaning: no overbearing CGI effects. And that's just what I want considering the flood of cgi-laden fares recently. A very much welcome return to the traditional ways of action choreography and practical effects.

The character interactions are always humorous and engaging, even though the dialogues generally take a backseat allowing the car crashes and explosions to take the screen. And surprisingly Die Hard 4.0 *DO* have an *actual* plot, and an actual thematic significance (befitting the post 9/11 paranoia) to come along with those explosions. Man versus technology. John McClane is the very antithesis of our overreliance on computers and technology. Rather smart; considering the movie itself used very little computer effects.

Forget Transformers. Go do yourself a favor and watch Bruce Willis in top-form, kickin' ass and spouting one-liners instead. PG-13 or no PG-13, I had the best fun in the theaters this year as of yet. "Yippee-Kay-Yay, m----r!!"

Verdict: 4/5

Oh, and "Happy Birthday to me!" ngahaha

NOT MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

TRANSFORMERS (Michael Bay, 2007)


Michael Bay is a hack. His talents are only and I do mean, only, limited to blowing stuff up and exhausting your senses. Seriously, with all the technological prowess of Industrial Light And Magic at hand, and Steven Spielberg as executive producer, it is a wonder that Bay still managed to screw it all up. And how could anyone(that have a slightest bit of talent) make a *dull* movie out of giant robots beating the crap out of each other?

First off, I don't really hate Michael Bay (at least before this). I really liked The Rock, and kinda-liked Armageddon. So any accusations about me being biased are arguably far from valid.

I'll start with the things I like before I go 'Megatron' all over the movie. Shia LeBouf basically carried the movie, giving an energetic performance. John Torturro embraced the movie's cartoon roots and took the corny, geeky material to very amusing result. And Megan Fox is *extremely* hot. To be fair, earlier on the movie was pretty exciting. And I particularly liked the humor and self-references(or self-parody?) scattered here and there.

Now the bad part. I won't complain about the script or the glaring plot holes, because I don't expect a Transformers movie to have a particularly engaging (or intelligent) story in the first place. If it has that, then it's a definite plus though. But the fact is it doesn't. So all I want to see is some fantastic action sequences that would blow me away. But sadly, it is in that same *department*, that the movie fails totally. The action sequences are virtually incomprehensible. The attention-deficit camera work, ultra-fast editing, and the constant zooming result to an ultimately dizzying, and sometimes excruciating experience. I didn't know who's fighting who, and what the hell is going on on-screen. The CGI team has put an amazing effort in bringing the robots to life, but all the fast cuts and bad camera detracts the overall "effect".

The horrible robot designs(more alien-like than anything) only made it worse. What made the cartoon series so appealing was because of the robot designs. They have *character*, each and everyone of them. Here they just looked like chunks of metal glued together. Bay applied his usual formula of "throwing *everything* on-screen and just blow them all up", with little to no attention on *creativity*. Okay, okay you can blow stuff up good, but you already did that in Bad Boys 2. Anymore tricks up your sleeve? Guess not. If you think about it, some of the action sequences are just a rehash from his previous movies (Even some of the scenes looked recycled!). To put it simply, they're just *dull*. No matter how much destruction committed on screen, nothing beats some genuine, imaginative "action choreography". The messy final fight sequence, pretty much sums it all up: headache-inducing, overblown, and surpisingly boring.

And I don't understand the need to shoot *every* scene like an action sequence, with shots that are barely more than 2 seconds long. This is common in Bay's previous movies, but in Transformers it was taken to the extreme. Any sense of pacing, tension, or a thrilling build-up can be thrown out the window. I thought that he would learn at least a thing or two from Spielberg, but any way you look at it this is still your typical Michael Bay movie: big, dumb, and loud. I hope this is the last of their collaboration, but that seems kinda far-fetched considering the money this movie would undoubtedly rake in.

Transformers worked better when it doesn't try to be serious. I really felt compelled to give the movie a total rotten rating, but Optimus Prime said that he'd melt my brain if I do. So there.

Verdict: 2.5/5

FYP MODE

OCEAN'S 13 (Steven Soderbergh, 2007)


A return to the mainstream fimmaking for Steven Soderbergh, after the minimalistic indie film Bubble (2006). Ocean's 12 was horrendous imo, so I have pretty low expectations on this 3rd, and 'hopefully', final Ocean's outing.

The result: an entertaining popcorn movie. No more, no less. You'll enjoy it while it lasts, but there's nothing to write home about.

It's good to see Al Pacino, though.

Verdict: 3/5

BEHIND THE MASK: The Rise Of Leslie Vernon (Scott Glosserman, 2007)


A satire of sorts on the horror/slasher classics; Nightmare On Elm Street, Friday the 13th, and Halloween (In this film, those infamous characters really existed.). We follow a group of grad students making a documentary on a would-be slasher, who are pursuing the same legacy as Freddy Krueger, Jason, and Myers did during their time.

It's a creative idea, really. Instead of following the would-be victims, the movie centers on the killer himself. From *his* perspective. Accompanied by the usual 'satirical' take on the genre's classic stereotypes. It *is* amusing, I'll give ya that. But I did expect some good blood and gore action to come with the humor. Disappointingly the movie didn't deliver on that regard.

Verdict: 2.5/5

FANTASTIC 4: Rise Of The Silver Surfer (Tim Story, 2007)



Oh why do I even bother. I went in just, and I do mean *just* to see some kick-ass Silver Surfer action. Coz he definitely looked cool in the trailers.

Yeah. And what I got was *exactly* what I got from the trailers. There are only two action scenes involving the Silver Surfer (they *are* cool btw), and both are already shown in the movie's trailer. Talk about a waste of money. I won't bother pointing at the obvious from the other aspects of the movie. Simply put the movie sucks. It's 90 minutes long but it definitely felt like more than 2 hours.

By the way, I don't find Jessica Alba attractive.

Verdict: 1.5/5

It Shines

SUNSHINE (Danny Boyle, 2007)


I kinda regret that I missed the movie's theatrical run, because as it stands, it's one of the best sci-fi film to come out in recent years. Sunshine tells a story about a space mission to reignite the dying sun, thus saving mankind from Earth's barren, frozen tundra. Yeah I know it sounds unbearably cliche, like we've seen it all before. But it is, after all, a film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland. The same team that basically *reinvented* the horror/zombie genre with 28 Days Later.

As 'traditional' as the premise may seem, there is enough talent involved that overcomes the film's 'predictability', whilst at the same time providing more than enough edge-of-your-seat thrills and the usual special effects bravado that comes in packages with the genre. Technical virtuosities aside, the characters also hold a strong spot in the film's backbone. The relationships between the crew, and the psychological impact the mission has brought on them as they juggle with the extreme burden of the fate of mankind. To the point that they question their own sanity. Cillian Murphy leads a great ensemble cast, with Chris Evans giving a surprisingly intense performance.

However, the third act didn't reach the height of the promising buildup. A mish-mash of perplexing philosophical(or even religious?) brouhahas emerged all of a sudden. Masquaraded into a somewhat generic chase/thriller sequences, that feels all too familiar and over-the-top to boot.

The movie's flawed, sure, but this is the kind of 'blockbuster movie' (should it reach blockbuster status.) that is worth the anticipation. Enough thrills, dazzles, and intelligence that is a breath of fresh air from this 'threequel'-laden year. So Danny ol' chap! Ya can chalk up another star for another nail in the genre.

Verdict: 4/5

See Also: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Alien, Solyaris

PAPRIKA (Satoshi Kon, 2007)



You can always count on Satoshi Kon to deliver an animated/anime film that transcends itself from mere, hand-drawn, animated cartoons. His films are always psychologically complex and thought-provoking, with realistic characters, that calling them 'anime' becomes an understatement. They're a work of art. Many regard Hayao Miyazaki as the 'godfather of anime', but personally I prefer Satoshi Kon. Even though their specialty is very much the same (their imagination knows no boundaries), but Satoshi Kon is the very contrast of Miyazaki. Where Miyazaki "creates" new imaginative beings, Satoshi Kon *skews*, or manipulate those visions that has embedded themselves in pop culture, into his films. Like David Lynch is to Hollywood stereotypes. The 'arthouse' of anime; more 'adult-oriented'. In short, his films are the most 'humanistic' compared to other animes, closer to a live-action film. Millenium Actress, remains my favorite anime film ever, and a masterpiece.

Although I feel that Paprika is a bit of a 'minor' work, but it still is his most 'mind-bending' film. Kon's trademark of blurring the lines between reality and dream, that constantly shifts-in and out, are ever-more evident here in Paprika. Viewers will find it hard to follow the film's narrative earlier on, due to its lack of blatant exposition. But it is the 'trust' that is put to the viewers' own intelligence, that raises my respect towards Satoshi Kon. Even more due to those brainless Hollywood blockbusters that are pouring all over this summer. Paprika did not forget to present not only visual sensations, but also plenty of food-for-thought too. It is pulsating with extraordinary imaginations that comes from the "inner-child", at the same time delving deep into the characters'(and our) psyche. As we would continually ask ourselves what is real and what is not.

Paprika didn't actually meet my rather *high* expectation(a fault of the rather underwhelming finale), but indeed, the 'headtrip' is definitely worth the experience.

Verdict: 3.5/5

See Also: Millennium Actress, Perfect Blue, Tokyo Godfathers, Paranoia Agent Series