The Mummy 3

The Mummy 3 - Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor



Synopsis
This 3rd installment of The Mummy series sees its focus on Asia (China particularly). Retired Rick O'Connell(Brandon Fraser) & wife Evelyn Carnahan-O'Connell (Maria Bello) joins in once again with son, Alex O'Connell (Luke Ford) to combat the evil & greedy Emperor Han (Jet Li).



With a setting in olden days Shanghai, the plot is full of the usual adventures that Rick is accustomed too. Only difference, this time round, his son has found romance with the daughter Zi Yuan (Michelle Yeoh), Lin (Isabella Yong).

Why You Should Watch This Movie
If you are the sort who loves Indiana Jones, this has a close resemblance to its adventure of good vs evil in lots of heart pounding battle scenes. The battle towards the end maybe common in most adventure movies, but nevertheless is rather amazing. In fact the CGI throughout the movie is well done, as expected from a huge blockbuster like this.

The showcase of old Shanghai is quite eye catching as well.

Why Not
For the already known & too familiar plot, like the many adventure movies, making the 'adventure' less interesting.

And if you are here to watch Asian icon Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh or even Hong Kong actress Isabella Yong, you'll be a lil disappointed. Jet Li is masked in the devil suite nearly all the time, while Michelle Yeoh's & Isabella's roles are rather minor for this huge movie.

Conclusion & Rating
Truly one for adventure fans only. Do not go in with too much expectations - or higher expectations than the previous 2 movies before.

The Mummy Trailer



3 stars.

Walle

Wall.E - Animation



Synopsis
Disney is back once again. Or more so, Academy Award winning director, Andrew Stanton, with his group of talented group at Pixar teams up to create this robot cartoon in the future.

Earth by then is only a waste land and people live on spaceships. Meanwhile, robots like Wall.E (whose full name is Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) is created to clean up the earth.



His daily routine brings him to find 'interesting' items made by humans - things that are common to us, but which amuses the robot. But nothing beats the special day when a space robot, Eve, comes to earth and stumbles him.

The story then revolves on these 2 robots trying to 'save planet earth' for humans. And of course, in between the romance of the robots build up.

Why You Should Watch This Movie
To see how a rather silent movie that goes with very little dialogue, and yet remains understandable. And it is interesting to see a romance between robots, set in a rather futuristic time, when robots control humans.

Why Not
If you have very high expectations on animation, this movie may not give the same all time high like Finding Nemo or even Monsters Inc.

Conclusion & Rating
One of the better animations to date, especially with so many animated movies coming out now. One for the whole family!


Walle Trailer



4 stars.

Kung Fu Panda Movie

Synopsis (with info from Kung Fu Panda Official Site).



The Kung Fu Panda movie revolves around Po (Jack Black), the 'son' of a bird noodle seller in a small village.

His father has plans for Po to take over the business someday soon. However, Po seems disinterested in it, and has dreams of becoming a kung fu warrior, despite having near zero experience in kung fu fighting.

But, true to animation style, there was an opportunity - when Master Oogway holds a competition to find the new hero to beat his old student-turned-bad, Tai Lung (Ian McShane),who is believed to be soon escaping from the tightly controlled dungeon.

Of course, the clumsy & inexperienced Po somehow managed to land himself this role, envied by the fellow kung fu mates, the Furious Five — Master Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Master Monkey (Jackie Chan), Master Mantis (Seth Rogen), Master Viper (Lucy Liu), and Master Crane (David Cross).

They were rather hostile towards him at first & do not believe in him being the savour, and especially so because they have been much more well trained in kung fu.

But, as the story unfolds, Po learnt a lesson that 'there is no secret' and that believing in oneself is the way to succeed. And so, with training, supervision & belief by Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman), Po finally saves the day & beats Tai Lung.



Why You Should Watch This Movie
1. This is a movie for both family (kids) & adults. The storyline is tight & yet it manages to have the right humour at the right time.

The Master Tiger

2. Wonderful animation. The kung fu fighting & kung fu forms are comparable to that of real life.
3. For its beautiful China backdrop throughout the movie from mountain views to the village.
4. Animation fans will be glad to see the great details that went behind to make this Kung Fu Panda movie so real.
5. Apart from the teachings of good triumphs over evil, the belief one has within is imparted as well. This seems to be the key message here.

Why Not
Though this animation movie still lacks behind some of the all time favourites, but it's hard not to like this movie. Can't think of bad points, but maybe that it may seem a lil weird a Chinese backdrop movie with Chinese characters all in English.

Conclusion & Movie Rating
A must watch for all animation buffs & movie goers who want authenticity, humour & action.

4 stars.

Kung Fu Panda Trailer

Forbidden Kingdom

Synopsis
This English script, comedy-fiction of Forbidden Kingdom movie sees an American teenager, Jason (Michael Angarano - Will And Grace, Lords of Dogtown, Seabiscuit), who loves kung fu fighting being transported into ancient world China.

His mission - to free the Monkey King from the spell of the evil Jade Warlord. The Monkey King was cast into a statue and will only be freed with the weapon held by Jason.



Jason is lucky as he is helped first by Lu Yan (Jackie Chan - Drunken Master, Rush Hour) and also an orphan girl by the name Golden Sparrow (Yifei Lui). They were later joined with the Silent Monk (Jet Li - Fearless, The One, Once Upon A Time In China).

Jackie Chan


Jet Li

The movie shows the journey and bond of friendship of the 4 different characters - the drunken happy-go-lucky Lu Yan who were most times at loggerheads with the Silent Monk. And to help himself, Jason went to learn kung fu by the two masters with different techniques.

Why You Should Watch This Movie
If you are a kung fu fan, this movie is one of the must watch of all times - where 2 kung fu movie legends battle it out. It's the first time both Jet Li and Jackie Chan battle on screen.

It of course also shows the comedy hero Jacky Chan in a lil different drunken role, but still funny vs the on screen serious Jet Li.



More - the action choreography is done by Wo Ping who also did for The Matrix and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

Chinese and Hong Kong movie buffs will also enjoy this film as it has a little bit of Chinese influence, despite this being an international English movie.

Why Not
Though not fully a slapstick comedy, the storyline is rather lame and at times a lil too fictitious. Some may also find the jokes may be a lil silly at times too.

The CGI effects are also not too inspiring as to what we've seen around nowadays.

And if you expected much more action between the 2 kung fu legends, one may leave a lil dissapointed as there is only one scene between them. If they played a good and evil, then that may be better.

Conclusion & Movie Rating
If you are a fan of Hong Kong/ Chinese movies style or a fan of Jackie Chan or Jet Li, or even a kung fu fan, then go watch this - you'll definitely enjoy it.

Or if you put a lower expectation, then this maybe a good watch. Just don't hope too much.

Otherwise, there are other better movies around.

3 stars.

The Other Boleyn Girl

The Plot (edited from The Other Boleyn Girl, Sony Pictures)
Based on the best-selling novel by Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl is an engrossing and sensual tale of intrigue, romance, and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in history.

Two sisters, Anne (Natalie Portman) and Mary (Scarlett Johansson) Boleyn, are driven by their ambitious father and uncle to advance the family’s power and status by courting the affections of the king of England (Eric Bana).

Leaving behind the simplicity of country life, the girls are thrust into the dangerous and thrilling world of court life – and what began as a bid to help their family develops into a ruthless rivalry between Anne and Mary for the love of the king. Initially, Mary (the younger of the 2 in the movie) wins King Henry’s favor and becomes his mistress, bearing him an illegitimate child.

But Anne, clever, cunninng, and fearless, edges aside both her sister and Henry’s wife, Queen Katherine of Aragon, in her relentless pursuit of the king. Despite Mary’s genuine feelings for Henry, her sister Anne has her sights set on the ultimate prize; Anne will not stop until she is Queen of England.

As the Boleyn girls battle for the love of a king – one driven by ambition, the other by true affection – England is torn apart. Despite the dramatic consequences, the Boleyn girls ultimately find strength and loyalty in each other, and they remain forever connected by their bond as sisters.


Why You Should Watch This Movie
The plot is very well built up and gives good insight on how things were done in the palace then. It also shows how terrible sex and lust can cause even a King to fall from grace, and the things that can happen when too much power is wielded onto someone. The greed of power is shown through the siblings father, Sir Thomas Boleyn.

If you are into old England and are into history then this movie is for you. the setting is well done with the costumes and all resemble closely to the time, just like the other old England movies on the monarch.

Why Not
This is an adaptation of the novel, and even the novel may not necessarily be accurate. It has actually gained a fair bit of criticism especially on grey matters which have no concrete proof.

The ending is a lil abrupt though it didn't affect the movie much but it finished a lil too quickly. And there is a fair bit of head chopping although the scenes are not shown.

Conclusion
This is a worth your monies - definitely will be in the eyes of the jury of the Oscar awards. 4 Stars.

August Rush

First, before you guys say that this movie is a bit old for a cinema review (as the DVD is already out), well this is because the movie is only making its rounds here in Singapore now :)

The Plot
This Academy Award nominee is about a young boy who is in an orphan's home, and has not seen since his parents since birth. However, Evan Taylor (Freddie Highmore) seems to knows that his parents are alive somewhere and can connect with them by listening to the music around him.

There is flashback in between showing how his parents were connected, and are musicians themselves. It starts with the parents first meeting each other and knowing one another, before a turn of events see them being seperated, before the baby was born. And their child was given away without even the mum (Keri Russell) knowing about it - a move done by her dad - making her believe that the child died at birth.


However, she has always imagined of her son and hence the flashback continues on nearer and nearer and finally seeing the present lives of all 3 - father (Johnathan Rhys Meyers), mother and son.

The son in the meantime is in his own journey - running from the orphanage's home into big busy and bustling city of New York. He face challenges of making new friends and then running away from them as they are to cheat his money, and finally ending up in a church where he gets to be schooled for music. His talent is so great that he has his very own concert!


Why You Should Watch This Movie
If you are into dreams come true, this movie is a good fairytale story. This movie also has a good happy ending - a must for some movie goers.
Most of all, if you are into music, this movie will definitely touch your heart - from learning how to experience music, be inspired like the lil boy does, and simply get connected to it and through it.

The music scores are great as well (is also nominated in the Oscar Awards for Best Song).

Conclusion & Overall Rating
A good movie for a laidback time, especially on a stressful day. Besides it does have a feel good theme to it.

3.5 stars.