SUICIDE SQUAD (2016)

Genre: Action
Running Length: 2:10
Cast: Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Cara Delevigne, Karen Fukuhara, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Jay Hernandez, Jai Courtney
Director: David Ayer
Screenplay: David Ayer

SUICIDE SQUAD had a similar effect on me as Batman V Superman. It feels and look the same as BVS but way more disappointing because of all the hype thanks to the awesome trailers.

To be fair, the premise of recruiting some of the baddest villains in the DC universe and assemble them as a team to fight a much bigger threat to the world, sound interesting. Unfortunately in this case, the concept sounds better than the execution.

I went in with a curious mind hoping to like some of these oddball characters just like how Guardian of the Galaxy did it for me. I didn't super enjoy Guardians as a whole but I would definitely want to watch its upcoming sequel. But it can't be said with this movie if the studio decides to develop a follow-up.

Probably it's because it didn't really make me care for any of its offbeat characters. Only Will Smith, Margot Robbie and Jay Hernandez characters' backstory are fleshed-out well. Leto's Joker looks creepy but somehow ends up being more of a lost lover boy than a menacing villain. And speaking of "villain", the chief villain here is...boring. Her motivations are never really clear. In fact, Viola Davis' tough-as-nails character is even more scary. Robbie's character even remarked in one scene, "Are you the devil?"

In terms of action and effects, it's nicely done and beautiful to watch. Unfortunately, it's just not enough to save this movie.

Rating: 4.5/10  

BLACKHAT (2015)

Genre: Thriller

Running Length: 2:15

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Viola Davis, Tang Wei, Wang Leehom, Holt McCallany

Director: Michael Mann

Screenplay: Morgan Davis Foehl

I have been struggling to review BLACKHAT. I really wanted to like this movie because it features some Asian stars and it would be a good cross over opportunity for them to break into Hollywood. But the script is so dated (like something out of the 80s) it's actually embarrassing and to a certain extent, offensive to women. It seems that the main actress' (Tang Wei) existence in this film was just an excuse for Chris Hemsworth to remove his clothes. Come to think of it, Hemsworth does that in almost all his movies. Anyway, the premise of hacking and cybercrime is very real especially with the recent Sony hacking, but somehow this movie failed to capture the danger of it. Maybe it will never be fully conceptualized on the big screen because in actuality, there is nothing cinematic about cybercriminals punching away at a keyboard. And taking the viewers through the wires and cables ala CSI style does not count, that's just...lame. As this is a Michael Mann production, expect all his usual stylistic signatures to be present; mix of low grade hand-held sequences, lots of neon green and realistic shoutouts. The plot is pretty straight forward where 3/4 through, things become personal and suddenly our hulking Hemsworth's character just happen to know how to shoot a handgun and a natural at close-combat (The Raid style) with a screwdriver (oh, he's also a brilliant hacker, good looking and has incredible abs). That said, despite being overlong, Blackhat is generally engaging and Tang Wei does a good job in delivering her English dialogue. 

Rating: 4.5/10