Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Saturday, Aug 1 2009 

3 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , Humaira 4:48 pm

I’m probably the most unlikely Indiana Jones fan, so you can imagine my excitement when I heard Indy was going to come back to screen in a new film.

And finally I got to see this film and I was just…disappointed.

It seemed like a good plot. A crystal skull which gives the owner power to control nature and do unimaginable horrors. A kidnapped old friend, a mysterious young man, Russians and Cate Blanchett speaking in a Russian accent.

Dr. Jones, is tasked by a crazy Russian woman to help him find and return the ancient crystal skull to a lost Mayyan city. Along the way, Indy’s friend Dr. Oxley is kidnapped and has gone mad. Mutt Williams asks Indy to help him track Ox down. Marion Rookwood, from one of the previous films is also a part of the plot as Mutt’s mother. Indy solves puzzles and has a rollicking good time.

From the summary it sounds fantastic, but watching the film the magic was missing for me. Indy is now 65, cantankerous as ever, but not as fast on his feet. Although he can still outsmart the bad guys and has his sense of humour. I like getting closure on Indy, and I’m glad they made the film, but it just didn’t do it for me.

I thought the whole storyline with the Crystal Skull was not plausible, but I enjoyed the interactions between Indy and Mutt. And Indy and Marion.

All in all, if you’re an Indiana Jones fan, watch it to get closure but don’t expect the same magic as in the first 3 films.

3 out of 5 stars.

Random fact: The girl who punches Mutt in the diner scene is Sasha Spielberg, daughter of director Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw (Willie Scott).

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2 Disc Edition) [DVD] [2008]

 

Bulletproof Monk Thursday, May 28 2009 

5 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , Humaira 9:29 pm

This is a story of a monk and a thief who work together to prevent an evil Nazi from taking over the world and committing mass genocide.

Sounds interesting right?

The story starts with the Bulletproof Monk who is entrusted to protect an ancient scroll, which can incite heaven or hell depending on whose hands its in. His Master dies in his arms and tells him to protect the scroll at all costs. Cue to present day, 60 years later and due to some major mojo, the monk has not aged at all.

He’s in modern day America and whilst on the run from the evil Nazi’s henchmen, manages to save a girl caught on a railroad track which is where he meets, Kar the thief who steals his scroll. After following Kar in order to retrieve the scroll, he notices Kar’s fighting abilities and Kar fulfils one of the conditions of the Ancient Prophecy to allow him to become the Next, the carrier of the scroll.

As Kar and the monk get to know each other and trust each other, into the fray comes Jade a girl who helps Kar get out of a tight spot and who hides a few secrets of her own. The evil Nazi’s granddaughter is after the scroll, so that he can regain his youth and destroy the world.

But will the Bulletproof Monk and his reluctant pupil manage to hold off the world’s destruction? OK, the answer is obviously Yes, but its the fun conclusion which you never see coming which makes it worth the while.

Good movie, not a fast paced action thriller, steady with some actiony bits, good storyline, humorous dialogue and great cast. This is not your typical martial arts movie. Its got something for  everyone and unlike the annoying Rush Hour Movies, Sean William Scott is not annoying or stupid. In fact he’s really good in a movie this serious!

Worth watching.

5 out of 5 stars.

Random fact: The actors who portray the monks in the movie are real martial artists from the Sunny Tang Martial Arts Centre located in Toronto, Canada.

Bulletproof Monk [DVD] [2003]

 

The Golden Compass Sunday, Nov 16 2008 

3 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , Humaira 12:43 pm

The Golden Compass is the story of Lyra, a 12 year old wild girl living amongst the scholars of Jordon College in Oxford with her best friend Roger. But when Roger is kidnapped by the Gobblers, Lyra must go on an adventure to the North to rescue him from the awful things they are doing to children.

I wasn’t happy with this adaptation at all. First of all, they’ve totally rejigged the story and cut huge parts out. Second, they totally ruined the dramatic ending, ruining before it got to the climax.

But, it was nice to see Lyra and her world come alive. I especially loved the special effects of the technology and the Daemons – the souls of the person as animals. I also loved the cast, especially Daniel Craig and Eva Green.

A good adaptation, but not one to watch if you’re a loyal fan of the books.

Random fact: Daniel Craig (Lord Asriel) was a fan of the books before he was involved with the movie, as was Dakota Blue Richards (Lyra) who has read the books and saw the National Theatre stage play.

3 out of 5 stars.

The Golden Compass [2007]

 

Kingdom of Heaven Sunday, Nov 2 2008 

4 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , , Humaira 1:15 pm

Kingdom of Heaven is about Bailan, a young blacksmith who is haunted by the suicide of his wife after the birth of their stillborn child in rural France.

Baron Godfrey of Ibelin is a Crusader who rides through the village and introduces himself as Bailan’s out of wedlock father. He invites him to join him onto his way to the Holy Land. Bailan declines, but after finding out that the town priest beheaded his wife as she was a suicide, and stole her necklace, Bailan kills him and joins the Knights on their quest.

They are ambushed as men are sent to capture Bailan for the murder. While defending themselves, Godfrey is injured and near death, makes Bailan a Knight and his heir. His father charges him to protect the helpless and to serve the King of Jerusalem.

Its an interesting film, and I wasn’t sure I would like it or not. Sadly, this is not the full story. The uncut version which is the true version of the film, makes more sense but sadly I didn’t receive it.

Orlando Bloom has mean and moody down to a T, and i found his restrained acting charming. When he doesn’t say anything and just emotes from his body language, its amazing. Liam Neeson, Jeremy Irons and an unrecognisable Edward Norton as the King of Jerusalem make this film worthwhile, even if the story goes on a bit.

The battle scenes are epic and bloody. Not one for those who are squeamish.

The Syrian actor who played Saladin was amazing and the portrayal of the Muslims wasn’t too bad. I liked the way they spoke Arabic to make it more authentic.

The star for me was Eva Green though, because her character of Sibylla, Princess of Jerusalem, was amazing. When she was on screen, she owned it and made the character her own.

Good film, but not for me.

Random fact: Orlando Bloom gained 20 pounds

4 out of 5 stars.

Kingdom Of Heaven – Definitive Edition [2005]

 

Batman Begins Sunday, Jul 6 2008 

5 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , , , Humaira 7:35 pm

Batman Begins takes us right back to the beginning of the Batman myth and follows Bruce Wayne’s years before he became Batman and how he became Batman. Along the way he must face the Scarecrow and Ra’s al Ghul – the leader of the mysterious League of Shadows bent on destroying Gotham City.

I really liked this, as it takes time to establish Bruce the man and how he came to have so much anger in him. It also shows us how Bruce’s parents were killed and where his fear of bats came from. I also liked how the costume was very crude at the beginning as well as how the Bat Cave came into being.

Christian Bale is phenomenal in this role and stole my breath away with the masculinity he injects into the character as well as the raw anger that Bruce started with. Michael Caine was fantastic as Alfred the Butler who’s a cockney from London and adds much needed humour to the film. Katie Holmes was good in her role as Rachel Dawes, Bruce’s childhood friend. Liam Neeson stole the show as the baddie as did Cillian Murphy as the psychotic doctor/Scarecrow.

Overall, the story really captured me and time flew by as I was entranced by the beginning of Batman as he came to be over the years. It was good to reboot the fandom in this way and go back to the beginning.

Random fact: Much of Batman’s gear and apparel, including his cape and suit, is based on actual military technology.

5 stars out of 5.

Batman Begins – 2 Disc Edition [2005]