MAN UP (2015)

Genre: Romance/Comedy
Running Length: 1:28
Cast: Lake Bell, Simon Pegg, Ophelia Lovibond, Olivia Williams, Rory Kinnear, Sharon Horgan, Stephen Campbell Moore
Director: Ben Palmer
Screenplay: Tess Morris 

MAN UP is like a pop version of Before Sunrise. Our two main characters talk about various topics (nice movie references) and do things together as they get deeper and deeper into each others' hang-ups as the night goes by, but the treatment is overly simplistic and too neat. The guilty pleasure of watching a romantic comedy is its predictability. We know where the story will be heading but what defines a true adult rom-com is how the filmmakers take a tried and tested formula and add a layer of realism into it (Personally, Silver Linings Playbook still takes the cake in this genre). Man Up started off quite promisingly but it got really clumsy and corny as it came to the end. And when an unrequited high school crush towards our female lead shows up in the middle of the film to give it a dash of slapstick, you know where all this is heading. Nevertheless, Pegg and Bell make a charming couple. And the gender reversal scenario does give it a little twist, where our male lead plays the hopeless romantic instead while the female is the cynic but both are a mess inside, thus making them a believable couple. Some quieter scenes are really engaging (like the scene where Bell observes that Pegg is an "emotional jigsaw" and he just needs to "find the corners" to piece every thing together) but they are few and far between.

Rating: 6/10

TOMORROWLAND (2015)

Genre: Science Fiction/Adventure
Running Length: 2:10
Cast: George Clooney, Britt Robertson, Hugh Laurie, Raffey Cassidy
Director: Brad Bird
Screenplay: Damon Lindelof, Brad Bird

"If you can dream it, you can do it" - Walt Disney

TOMORROWLAND will divide the critics into two camps; the cynics and the dreamers. And that's exactly what the main message of the movie is trying to convey - which is aptly captured in the tale of the bad wolf vs the good wolf - told by the protagonist's father. The question is, "Which one will win?" When the resolution is revealed, skeptics will chastised it for being too preachy while the hopefuls will be deeply moved. Rest assured, this movie is not a two hour debate on humanity's view of the future as it has interesting collages of mystery and ideas presented in an unhurried pace. It's like a jigsaw puzzle, inviting the audience to piece it together. The film has a good mix of humour, seriousness and adventure which reminds me of Speilberg's earlier films. The visuals are impressive and the characters are very likeable. I actually cared for the characters especially the relationship between Frank (George Clooney) and Athena (Raffey Cassidy) - some will say it's all melodrama but the final act between these two characters touched me deeply.   

Rating: 8/10

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (2015)

Genre: Action
Running Length: 2:00
Cast:  Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Hugh Keays-Byrne, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Zoe Kravitz, Riley Keough, Abbey Lee, Courtney Eaton
Director: George Miller
Screenplay: George Miller and Brendan McCarthy and Nick Lathouris

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD is the real deal. This movie will be up there with the modern action classics; Die Hard, Aliens, T2, Speed, The Matrix. Fury Road is big, brash and bizarre. For those who didn't see any of the earlier Mad Max films (granted that the last one was made almost 30 years ago), it's ok. I've not either but the plot is easy to follow. Although 90% of the entire film is wall to wall action, you don't feel bored. This is probably because very little special effects were used for the chase and fight scenes and thus it adds an element of grittiness and a sense of real danger. The stunt crew should be awarded or something. Also, the characters and rituals in George Miller's post-apocalyptic universe are eccentric, over the top and grotesque. It's like watching a 2 hours Lady Gaga music video but with more excitement and mayhem. Despite the intense emphasis on action, the characters are well defined, especially Charlize Theron's Furiosa. When the audience care for the protagonist in an action movie, we know we have a winner here. But the real star of the movie is Miller's mad and magnificent visuals and vehicles. The day scenes are bright with lots of orange and the nights are soaked in blue. And the vehicles...oh boy, it's so extravagant especially the truck with a concert stage on it (with a disfigured flame throwing guitarist tied to it). Absolutely i.n.s.a.n.e. And the hard-driving score here is off-the-chart. You must watch this spectacle on the big screen and I only wish theaters showing Fury Road would have seat belts installed to its chairs.

Rating: 9/10
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HELIOS (2015)

Genre: Action/Thriller

Running Length: 1:58

Cast: Jacky Cheung, Nick Cheung, Shawn Yue, Wang Xueqi, Janice Man, Ji Jin-hee, Choi Siwon, Yoon Jin-yi, Josephine Koo, Feng Wenjuan, Chang Chen

Director: Longman Leung, Sunny Luk
Screenplay:  Longman Leung, Sunny Luk

Too many cooks spoil the broth. You know you're going to expect mediocrity when in the opening credits of HELIOS, we have rows and rows of production companies backing this Hong Kong crime action thriller movie. The film makers would definitely need to compromise their story telling to please the different parties. Or maybe the shoes were just too big for the film makers to wear. With a much heftier budget than their earlier directorial debut Cold War, they just decided to blow more things up, hire more regional cast (Korean, China, Caucasian, Middle eastern and Indian, besides the HK cast) and have more countries as the backdrop. It just doesn't work. Although it's a technically well executed film, the plot is just over complicated and some scenes are plain logic defying. And the acting is wooden. The writing is predictable and boring eg. To demonstrate the villain is really bad to the core, he executes civilians in cold blood and walks away with the evil look. Plus, the views of the political power dynamics is so ill-informed and shallow, most viewers will be scratching their head throughout the movie. Nevertheless, if you need a fix on some Asian cinema action, you'll have a good time. I seriously think that Hong Kong action/thriller movies should just stick to what they do best (small budget, raw and gritty and built around the themes of loyalty, brotherhood and sacrifice, with tight closed up action scenes) and stop venturing into huge international themes such as nuclear-mass destruction-arms trading. And to confirm my "too many cooks" argument, the closing song (sung by Jacky Cheung - they could have at least gotten another singer, as Cheung plays a prominent character in the movie, but I digress) has Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean and English lyrics. -___-  C'mon!

Rating: 5/10

GOOD KILL (2015)

Genre: Drama/Thriller
Running Length: 1:45
Cast: Ethan Hawke, January Jones, Bruce Greenwood, Zoe Kravitz, Jack Abel, Dylan Kenin
Director: Andrew Niccol
Screenplay: Andrew Niccol

GOOD KILL, the title of this movie, is also a term/jargon used when an efficient air strike carried out by drones dispenses off potential threats cleanly at minimal risk to the dispensers. In fact, at one point, a character in the films calls out “Splash!” when a target is hit. Think first person shooter games. And that's what makes this movie provocative and troubling because this is not a game. People (sometimes kids and women) actually die. But what's even more interesting is an attempt to study Ethan Hawke's character, a drone pilot (and former F-16 pilot), where his daily job is to blow off the enemies 7,500 miles away on a game console like device while sitting in the comfort of an air-conditioned small container office in Vegas. Afterwards, he would drive home to his pretty wife and adoring kids and throw some meat on the BBQ for dinner. Of course, overtime, the stress of his dehumanizing routine kicks in and just like any effects of war, it takes a toll on him. However, the drama and ethics surrounding his meltdown is unable to keep pace with the cold and chilling air strike scenes; when Hawke's character squeezes the button on his joystick, you'll find yourself holding your breath and counting down to impact. The disturbing and powerful images of people being blown into pieces still lingers in my mind.

Rating: 7/10

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON (2015)

Genre: Action/Adventure
Running Length: 2:21
Cast:  Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, James Spader, Don Cheadle, Paul Bettany, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Director: Joss Whedon
Screenplay: Joss Whedon

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON plays it safe. Most summer tent pole sequels tend to up their offering ie. more of the same but bigger explosions, more body counts or more over-the-top action sequences (think the Transformers franchise) but Age of Ultron is just...more of the same. Granted that there are some interesting camera work but the action scenes are more frantic than exciting. Although the big battle CGI laden final scene is loud and energetic (which echoes Zack Snyder's Man of Steel wanton city carnage), it's just way too long and boring. I was actually fidgeting in my seat waiting for the movie to be over. Thankfully, the quieter moments paid off especially scenes involving the characters who don't have their own franchise. And they are given more screen time and back story. Although the love affair between Black Widow and Bruce Banner/Hulk feels forced, it's still pretty sweet. And Hawkeye's "secret" do lead to an emotional payoff at the end of the film. However, the "A-list" superheroes do not fare as well; Robert Downey Jr's Ironman seems to have lost his panache, Chris Evan's Cap Am is wooden and Chris Hemsworth's Thor just stands around looking handsome and spewing out funny one-liners. Although Ultron is somewhat an interesting villain because of his "daddy issues", his big bad evil plan is lame and overly convoluted. Overall, if the film makers could have just taken some risk to challenge its predecessor, this movie could have turned out to be less lazy.

Rating: 6/10