Movie Review: One Day

Kurt and I watched the movie One Day at SM Megamall yesterday.  To our surprise, there was not much audience for this film when we watched it.  Is it underrated?


One Day is a movie adaptation of a novel by David Nicholls published in 2009.  The genre is melodramatic so there is no humor in it.  The novel attracted positive reviews and was awarded the 2010 Galaxy Book of the Year.  Was the movie almost as good as the book?

The movie adopted the style of presenting the protagonists life situations every July 15th (which is the "One Day").  Like the book it last twenty years but some years was merely passed by.  I felt that there was a lack of development in the characters especially with Emma played by Anne Hathaway.  But viewers still could follow through the story.

The portrayal of Dexter by Jim Sturgess was actually fitting and good.  On the other hand, Emma's character could have been played out better.  She was supposed to be a very interesting character.  But Dexter seem to have had more spotlight in the movie. Ian casted by Rafe Spall was pretty good.

I didn't like the way they ended the film.  They could've added a little more suspense or mysteriousness in it rather than viewing it from an angle that made it so obvious.

Overall, for a melodramatic romantic movie, One Day is better than expected.  Being based on a novel, I can't really criticize the story but merely the presentation.  That being okay but could have done better.  But the film is still worth the watch if you enjoyed the novel or love watching melodramatic romantic movies.

Movie Review: Crazy, Stupid, Love. (+ some reflections)

Last Night, I got to watch the advance screening of  "Crazy, Stupid, Love." movie in Rockwell Cinema 2 with my little sister.  We had FREE ice cream courtesy of Nestle.  There were also some games and prizes from the sponsors before the show.  But everyone was looking forward to just watching the movie.

Tickets courtesy of PEX

There has been a lot of romantic comedies these days that are full of big shot stars but lack uniqueness in plots.  So we had the impression that this will be another one of those.  BUT we were WRONG!  This movie is probably one of the best romantic comedies I've watched.  Seriously, this is one romantic comedy your boyfriends (except if its Kurt) would even enjoy.

It's not a cliche romantic comedy.  It has a plot of its own and good one too.  Its a good blend of entertainment.  There are tear-jerking moments and a lot of good and hilarious jokes.  The humor is unexpected and surprisingly funny.   There was not a boring scene in the entire film.  There is also a message in the story which I really appreciated.  The message,of course, is well encapsulated in the title itself.

I liked the combination of the casts.  Steve Carell, as expected, is a superb comedian.  I've liked Ryan Gosling since he starred in as Noah in one of my favorite movies, The Notebook.  He's a real woman-charmer that's for sure.  Together, these two brought the show to life.

Overall, I loved the movie! The casts did well in their role.  I like the presentation and how it was made.  It was perfect!  You should watch it.=)  There's a good lesson to it too.

After watching this movie, Kurt will probably tease me for watching movies like this because he thinks romance is just a sham sold to women to hope for something that doesn't exist.  Is it?  For a long time, I've stopped watching and believing in these things.  But by watching this movie, it made me rethink and reconsider.

Movie Review: Cowboy and Aliens (plus Hidden Spoilers)

By the sound of the title "Cowboys and Aliens", I had the impression that this movie wants to be different from all the other alien films out there.  At first it may sound ridiculous.  But if you think about it aren't aliens are fictional in the first place?  I am really curious whether they could pull it off or not so I just had to watch it.

The movie can be best enjoyed by keeping your mind open and using your imagination.  If you put a blind eye and on some of the illogical scenes and plot holes, the movie can be fun and entertaining.  But being directed by Jon Favreau, I was disappointed by the plot.


Some illogical scenes in white ink:

• When aliens die, don't their weapons drop off?  


• If the alien woman can withstand fire, why not an explosion?


• Why didn't they just use explosives to fight the aliens?

Since the plot not that spectacular and unique as it seems, it required good actors to play their roles.   Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford fit their roles well.  I'd imagine the movie becoming worse if they didn't play their part.

There was a lot of action in this movie but I'd say it was not enough to make the movie exciting.  A lot of gunshots were made but of course, we want to see something more than that. The effects were good but not that much was needed for the movie.  I appreciated that there were bits of humor, romance and drama mixed in. The presentation of the alien was not that different from other movies but it was okay.
Spoiler alert in white ink: I'd like to note that the indians were discredited in this movie.=p
Overall,  I'd say its a so-so movie.  It's okay to watch to pass some time or if you're curious on how the movie goes.  It is passable but not impressive.

Movie Review: Captain America: The First Avenger

When we were little, we used to watch Captain America in cartoons.  As I grew older, Captain America became less appealing to me as more interesting cartoon superheroes were being promoted.  

Until this movie, I've never heard of Captain America for a long time so I was really curious how this movie   "Captain America: The First Avenger" would turn out. 

It turned out that there is a deeper story to Captain America than I remembered.  Through this movie, I was able to appreciate his characteristics.  I loved how it was presented in the movie.  The pacing and development was perfect.  The effects were pretty good.  The film had a good share of action.  It also had some humor mixed it.  

Chris Evans looked really cool and charismatic in the movie.  He was a perfect portrayal of Captain America.  He looked really well in the Captain America costume.  I originally though it would be the plain and boring but it was presented in the movie as a cool upgrade from the classic form.  

As expected from a Marvel Movie, Stan Lee once again playing a cameo role and a post-credit scene.  This time Stan Lee has a one-liner dialogue.  Did you notice him at the scene?  The post-credit teaser was amazing!  I can't wait for the next marvel film!  How about you?

Movie Review: Transformers 3 Dark Side of the Moon

We've all watched and followed through the Transformers Series (Transformers and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen).  Surely, we can't pass this last one up right?   It is beyond doubt that no matter what the criticisms this movie will have, we'd all still watch it for visual delight.  It was our first time to watch at Shang Cineplex and it was a swell experience.  Thank you Nuffnang for the movie invite!=)

          The movies starts off by updating its audience of the main character after the two previous movies have passed.  Sam Witwicky was potrayed as a whiny frustrated kid who is forced to face the transition towards adulthood.   But of course, the movie is not all about him as the movie unleashes thrilling BOT action. 

What's the deal with the bunny anyway?

As expected a new character is introduced for the purpose of the story.  The plot is best out of the three movies.  It has some historical background blended in too.  The phasing is good.  The movie's runs time is around 2 Hours and 34 Mins. but the length is just enough for the story to develop.  Although of course, there are a lot of loopholes in it.  I was quite disappointed that the balance between the two sides were not equal.  There were some parts that you'd wonder why and if it is even possible.  I'm still shocked with the final outcome of the movie.  What about you?  Do you think about Optimus Prime and Megatron?

The movie was jump-packed with action and suspense.  That together with the neat and cool CGI animation and surround sound made it a blast!  Humor mixed in made it more entertaining too.

      The acting was not that impressive.   Understandably the movie is for men so Victoria Secret's model Rosie Huntington - Whiteley was focused with glamorous effects.  The techniques from the previous movies were adapted like long poses with waving hair to make her as seductive as possible.  

Overall, the movie was definitely worth watching.  Cool transformations and robotics, massive and explosive effects and the sexy  Rosie Huntington - Whiteley guarantees an eye-catching sensation.  The plot was also better than among all Transformers movie ever created.   As they say, "Third times a Charm".  To those disappointed from the last movie, you better not be thinking of missing this!

Movie Review: Insidious

Who could forget watching their first horror film?  It could have even scarred us.  But then again, there are some who love watching them.  If you're one them, how could you resist Insidious with the dream team of horror film makers such as James Wan from Saw and Oren Peli from Paranormal Activity.

To start the movie off, the film tried to set the movie pace into a slow yet scary way. You might think that its your same old ordinary horror movie with its big old haunted house and a new family moving but think again.

For starters, the movie had no gore or blood in it.  A bit surprising knowing that James Wan was included in the makers huh?  The movie started off pretty good.  It made use of the slowly but surely means of making everyone scared.   I even saw 2 girls in the far front move out from their solitary seats to a much more crowded area.  I thought at first it tried too hard to scare everyone.   But the scare built up was just right to make the movie work. 

It scared me enough to meet my expectation.  However, the story was not that good.   The ending left a lot of unanswered questions so there's a lot to ponder on still.  Overall, the movie was good and worth the money.  If you're in the mood to watch something scary then this is the movie for you.

Movie Review: X - Men First Class

At last Friday came and X-Men : first class was finally shown.  I actually watched it around 2:30 pm at SM : MOA but the line was already insanely long that's what you'd expect from an X-Men Franchise.

If you're expecting a great movie, you won't be disappointed . Every actor played their roles perfectly from the ever villainous Kevin Bacon who played Sebastian Shaw to the mild manner Professor Charles Xavier played by James McAvoy.

Though marvel comic fans might disagree since most scenes were far from the original comic. Then again most comic book movie adaptation are usually modernized to fit the average person's preference.

Overall, the movie was great. It clearly showed how Erik and Charles's friendship was made and how the mutant academy started. Definitely a must watch movie for this year. 

Movie Review: Kung Fu Panda 2 in Full 3D

     When Kurt and I met again, 3 years ago, we went to see the first Kung Fu Panda movie.  We loved it so much that we just had to watch this.  We watched this in 3D at Robsinson's midtown (300 php/ticket comes with free regular drink and popcorn) I'm glad we did.  It was really awesome!!!

     The movie was consistent with the animation and storyline from the first movie.  When stories were told the animation was similar to pop-out story book style.

      Overall, the plot is good.  There was comedy, romance and drama.  The development and pacing was just right.  It was predictable yet still entertaining.  Some of the jokes were predictable but we had many laughs too.  It also had a moral value which makes it ideal even for little kids.

    The 3D was amazing and was essential for the enhancement of the movie.  From the start until the end, the 3d animation was superb.  The story telling was in 3D so it was cute.  Objects such as weapons, wood, debris, leaves, bamboo and everything else were great with 3D effects.   Even the characters looked better in 3D.  We could see them with their furs up close.  It reminded me of my life-sized stuff toy panda that I wanted to squish so much!^_^

     Overall, we found the movie light and entertaining.  This is probably one of the best animated sequels we have watched.

Movie Review: How Do You Know Movie

Last night, I watched "How Do You Know".  It was a romantic comedy starring Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Paul Rudd and Jack Nicholson.   It is about a love triangle between a professional soft ball player Lisa Jorgenson, a problematic corporate executive George and a major-league pitcher Matty.

The plot was ordinary and cliche.  I didn't even feel the climax.  There were only a few jokes too.  It was a bit dragging.  The ending was simple and somehow makes you wonder why you watched the entire movie just to see that.

When I watch a movie, regardless of whether it is good or bad, I often find a lesson or realize something.  With this film, I realized that Lisa's style of having quotes prepared for her ordeals is very useful.  It could guide or motivate you to do something.  Perhaps, I should make one for myself too.

Movie Review: The Switch Movie

Just watched the movie "The Switch" starred by Jennifer Aniston as Kassie Larson and Jason Bateman as Wally Mars.  It is a romantic comedy drama film.  It seems more on the drama side.

Its about a Kassie who is approaching middle age who decides to get a child through artificial insemination.  She and Wally Mars are best friends.  They separate and then seven years after she returns with the kid named Sebastian.  That's when things got complicated with Kassie, Wally and the donor.  The plot was kind of weird and unrealistic to me although it was pretty good to watch.

While watching this movie, it reminded me of another film which also involved a single woman getting artificial dissemination called "The Back Up Plan".  With two movies like this, it got me thinking.  Is it really possible that some women give up on finding the right one and prefer to raise kids on their own?  I guess, times have change.  Gone are the days where being a single mother was taboo and wives have to tolerate their husbands just for the welfare of their kids and because of their public outlook.  Women have become more confident and independent.

As I watched this, it made me dreamy of having a guy best friend like the two main casts.  I agree with Kassie in the movie that it is essential that guys have a sense of humor and that is also why I prefer to have guy best friends.  From childhood, I've had several close guy friends before.  (Really miss those good days!) But it never worked out.  I'm amazed at how long there were able to make it work.  What do you guys think?