READY PLAYER ONE (Malaysia, 29 Mar 2018)

Genre: Science Fiction / Adventure 

Running Length: 2:20

Cast: Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Lena Waithe, T.J. Miller, Simon Pegg, Mark Rylance, Philip Zhao, Win Morisaki

Director: Steven Spielberg 

Screenplay: Zak Penn and Ernest Cline, based on the novel by Ernest Cline 

READY PLAYER ONE brings back a little of the "Spielberg magic" missing in his recent movies; the sense of adventure, special effects, sweeping music score, awestruck faces of the actors to show a sense of wonder and of course, the neat ending.

What's the movie about?

The year is 2045, where there's widespread poverty and overpopulation. People are more interested in escaping reality into this massive online universe called The Oasis via their VR equipment. When the founder of this game died, he offered his fortune and ownership of the entire game to whoever who can find the prized Easter Egg. Our hero Wade Watts (Sheridan) and his group of new found friends in the game has to face off against an evil corporation who wants The Oasis too.   

What I like about it?

• The Oasis. It's a visual fest, immersive and packed with details! This movie needs to be watched on the big screen with the best possible sound system.  
• Pop references. Because a player can be anybody in the game, this movie is packed full with recognizable characters; King Kong, Iron Giant, the DeLorean, the Akira motorbike, Streetfighter characters, Alien etc. One YouTube video says there are at least 128 of these references. Geeks will love this movie!
• The sweeping music score by Alan Silvestri.
• The sense of adventure and wonder in Act 1. The car race is WOW!
• The good old Spielberg kan-cheong moments in Act 3, involving scenes going back and forth between the game world and the real world. Only Spielberg can get the audience to scream  "Quick, quick hurry up!" at the screen. 

What I didn't?

• The bloated middle Act. After being introduced to the Oasis, I felt that was no need to keep going deeper into that world. I caught myself checking my watch. 
• The missed opportunity of exploring the growing phenomenon of young people living a reclusive life. The filmmakers did shed some light on it but kinda addressed it lightly at the end. 
• The performances from the actors are ok but not particularly memorable. 

RATING: 7.5/10 

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE (2016)

Genre: Action/Adventure

Running Length: 2:14

Cast: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Oscar Isaac, Nicholas Hoult, Jennifer Lawrence, Tye Sheridan, Sophie Turner, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Evan Peters, Alexandra Shipp, Olivia Munn, Ben Hardy

Director: Bryan Singer 

Screenplay: Simon Kinberg 

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE, the third film of The First Class trilogy is the weakest link considering Days of Future Past was such a powerhouse. There is a tongue-in-cheek scene in the movie where one of the characters was lamenting that Return Of the Jedi, "the third one...was the worst”. I believe director Singer was jabbing at The Last Stand (critics ranked it the worst X:Men entry), which he has expressed regrettably not directing it. Looks like the joke's on him for Apocalypse.

To be fair, this movie is not terrible but it's just not groundbreaking. There were moments where it was just absolutely perfect (Magneto's confrontation with a group of Polish soldiers) but such scenes were few and far between. Perhaps we are all suffering from superhero movie fatigue. After all, how many times do we have to sit through massive battle scenes where world iconic landmarks are being destroyed (Golden Gate Bridge, yet again -__-)

My biggest complaint is the chief villain himself. Apocalypse is supposed to be frightening and god-like but he looks like an uncomfortable clown. I blame it on the costume design. And although Quicksilver's THE sequence in Days of Future Past was arguably the most talked about scene, here in this movie, the filmmakers are really milking it. As a result, it feels uninspired eventhough it was well executed.           

As for the highlights, Fassbender's Shakespearean interpretation of Magneto and McAvoy's Gandhi like approach to Professor X are still the anchor of the film. And of course, the wild and brutal sequence of Hugh Jackman's extended cameo as you know who.    

X-Men: Apocalypse is a serviceable superheroes movie, at least the first 2/3 of it. Unfortunately, the last act was just an absolute mess. 

Rating: 6.5/10