The Wingless Birdman of Imagination

Playing with Your Mind

This is definitely an art-house movie.

Directed by the famous Alejandro Innaritu, this is a movie of human aspirations and the 'daringness' to dream again.

Here a washed-out protagonist icon of a screen hero relives his life on the stage putting up a play titled, "What Do We Talk When We talk of Love?"

He fights with relationships with his ex-wife, his daughter and his alter-ego, the dark Birdman who taunts him to take chances to better himself.

The last part of the movie is surreal and leave much to the imagination.

This is one movie I would not want to revisit or to review.

Brilliant-Eclipsing Gravity and Even Space Odyssey 2001!

Breath-taking Fare

Interstellar is another masterpiece from master director,Christopher Nolan.

In this science-fiction movie, he explores complex ideas like like wormholes, relativity, time and the elusive five-dimensional thinking.

A Fantastic Visual Experience

It is both factually educational and thought-provoking.

The premise of the future Nolan world is overpopulated and in constant struggle to feed the masses. Though farming is the future, the crop blights seems to engender government investment in interstellar research to look for an alternative live-able world for humans.

Transcending the worm-hole

Continuing from partial information retrieved from earlier Lazarus missions, Matthew McConaughey's piloted the last Ranger into deep space after taking from a cue from his daughter's poltergeist premonitions. With the aid of two robots and 3 crew members, he transcended a wormhole just beyond Saturn, into a new galaxy.

Hathaway as Dr. Brand

The new world  through the lens of Nolan is nothing short of breathtaking. The visions of the black holes, the worm-hole, ice-planets and water planets are simply beautiful.

The Water Planet

As for the actors, McConaughey's character is well-developed. Hathaway and Caines' characters's are fairly developed but Damons's role as Mann, the baddie, is mostly minuscule and forgettable.

The Ice Planet

Totally unforgettable will be Mackenzie Foy, who plays the young sensitive Murphy. For her part, Jessica Chastain provides the melodramatic thread of an adult Murphy that connects both father and daughter  over time and space wherein springs the solution to the entire panning out of the Interstellar story.

McConaughey, Chastain and Hathaway

Almost stretching to  2 hours 47 minutes, this movie may win some Oscars this February.

The young Murphy

Superb storytelling and enjoyment of a movie but for its length!

The Unbroken Olympian

Unbroken Valour

Anjelina Jolie's movie, Unbroken showcasing the life and times of Louis Zamperini from his rowdy childhood days, his rigorous training in track and field and to his triumph in the 5,000 meters track event at the Berlin Olympics in 1936 set the stage ahead for the second half of his life as a bombardier shot down over the Pacific Ocean, lost  at sea in a life-boat with two comrades and finally his incarceration and brutal torture  at the hands of a sadistic commandant in a Japanese hard labour camp in Tokyo.

Capturing Olympic Gold in Berlin 1936

The incessant torture by the commandant of the camp named Bird Watanabe who took an instant dislike of him and the challenges he was put through physically and mentally can be quite graphic and nerve-shattering to witness. Louis Zamperini was only completely sure of his peace of mind when the Allied Forces took Tokyo.

The real Louis Zamperini who died in 2014

This movie was directed by Angelina Jolie and she co-produced it as well.

Quite a good movie to watch especially the agony and triumph of Louis.

Good Directing

From Selma to Montgomery

The Civil Rights Classic

 The movie;Selma, chronicles the civil rights fight of Martin Luther King against the state of Alabama where Blacks were denied the right to register to vote.

Standing between Lyndon B. Johnson the President of America and King is  the racist Governor George Wallace who made it his personal mission to curtail the rights of the Blacks.

David Olewoyo as King and Carmen  Ejogo as Coretta Scott King

A moving docudrama, it is well paced and keeps the audience longing in anticipation for the next thing to happen in this volatile quest by King to secure voting rights for the Blacks from President Johnson through a Bill of Rights.

The walk across the bridge from Selma to Montgomery by King and the protesters as they faced the local police force bent on beating them down is the climax of this movie.

This movie has great stars both in starring roles and in cameos.

Attractive Ejogo

David Olewoyo stars as King while Carmen Ejogo stars as his wife Coretta. Johnson was played by Tom Wilkinson with cameos from Cuba Gooding Jr,Giovanni Ribisi and Wendell Pierce. Oprah Winfrey acted as  Annie Lee Cooper and also co-produced Selma.

Great movie to enjoy if you like witty dialogue.

Sniper Fire

Bulls-eye precision

If you should compare this movie called American Sniper to the classic, Enemy at the Gates, the former pales in comparison.Nothing beats the cat and mouse fight between sharp-shooters Jude Law and Ed Harris!

However, after a second review of the movie especially with good English subtitles, Clint Eastwood's treatment of this movie chronicling 4 tours of duty of Chris Kyle in Fallujah  has its good moments. Though Eastwood tends to be overtly melodramatic,carrying on from such movies such as The Unforgiven  to Million Dollar Baby, American Sniper does not  differ too much from the Eastwood mould-dry,draggy and tending towards dry realism almost resembling a pseudo documentary. There is still too much details amidst the bloody gore and violence.

Starring in the main role as the protagonist Chris Kyle,  a Navy Seal sharpshooter is Bradly Cooper and Sienna Miller as his lonely wife who enjoyed only 3 days of her honeymoon before Chris was whisked off to Iraq. Sadly, she was 'put on hold' and  had nothing to look for in life except to bear his 3 children and to await his safe return from his missions.

The Speed of a Bullet

Though it is a long movie, it does provide ample excitement especially in the final minutes of the conflict in Fallujah against a background of a raging sandstorm and gun fire.

This movie may appeal to war aficionados, but I feel that American Sniper may be closer to the American audience and may yet garner a fistful of Oscars this time around.

Eye Candy for the movie

In real life, after his heroics in Iraq, Kyle was murdered by a war veteran.

Escapism into the Wild

The Wild Option

One of the current movie making the round at the local circuit is Wild.

It is a depressive movie chronicling the downward spiral of a woman named Cheryl Strayed who almost tipped over due to the death of her mother and the dissolution of her marriage.

To overcome her grief, and with an absolute lack of hiking experience,  she took on a heavy backpack and chose the tortuous Pacific Crest Train ( longest and toughest) as her challenge to overcome the pains of  her plight.

Challenging Depression

Though Witherspoon showed her many sides of what it is to grief, the movie somehow did not hit the high notes.

Characters were not well developed and the story hardly build up to a crescendo especially with its too many flashbacks.

You  can give this movie a miss.

The Big Eye Genre

The Big Eye Wonders

I must say this movie, " Big Eyes" have its share of interest though there are critics that will tell you that without Christoph Waltz and Amy Adams in it, it will be another run-of-the-mill B Grader.

The plot-line is simplistic-a divorced single parent, Margaret (Amy Adams) sought a new life for herself and her daughter, painting portraits  of waifs with saucer-shape eyes. A trickster, Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) saw her talent and married her to tap on her talents but with a twist. He wanted every painting to bear his name instead of hers. As he basked in his new found fame thanks to his marketing skill, his ego got the better of him and he estranged himself to Amy and her daughter.

When Margaret started her painting business in Hawaii after leaving him, Walter tracked her down and a court case ensued.

Margaret in her studio

Who won should be no mystery.

Watchable fare based on a true story that spans the period 1950's through 1960's.

Chilly Nights with the Nightcrawler

Chilly Nights with Lou

If there is one recent movie that may give you the creeps, it is Nightcrawler.

A movie depicting the lives of free-lance stringers who prowl the nights and compete to scoop on tragic news from violent accidents to murders to sell to  tv stations and the low-down dynamics of their operations is well-documented here.

Jake Gyllenhaal as the chilly-looking Lou that will do anything to succeed in his new found trade and his desperate quest by bargaining to move ahead to the top of the heap is the premise of this exciting dark movie.

By the way, Rene Russo still look voluptuous at her age. Believe me.

Quite a worthy movie to watch.

Boyhood-Living Through It!

Mason- A Brilliant Portrayal 

As the Academy Awards ceremony looms closer, I have spent time watching some good movies lately.

Top on the list was Boyhood.

It was a cinematic feat-a first of its own kind where a movie was made chronicling a twelve-year period  of a boy from his young years until he reached college-going age. The producer and director Richard Linklater must be credited for their sustaining effort of more than a decade, to bring this classic movie to the silver screen.

The quality that the movie brought through both Mason (Ellar Coltrane) and  Samantha (Lorelie Linklater) as they literally grew before your eyes throughout this period is truly profound and beyond all comparison. It's a great feeling to experience their growth from childhood to pre-adulthood.

As for acting, Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette were brilliant.

Arquette  Linklater,Coltrane and Hawke

Patricia Arquette may seem like the underdog for The Best Actress  nomination this year if the hot favourite Julianne Moore finally gets the coveted Oscar for her dramatic role in Still Alice this time around

Still, Boyhood is a joy to watch especially through the eyes of the parents as they undergo the phases of happiness,depression,separation and divorce through the years and the effects they have on these 2 children.

Great movie. Watch it.

Movies for Armed Forces and Servicemen

Interesting Throwback to the War Years

This credit is often seen at the end of movies that were made during the war years.

They were meant to boost the morale of fighting men as well as to entertain them.

On of these movies was Rodgers and Hammerstein's State Fair with its wonderful melodies and lyrics of yester-years.

Cybil Shepherd's Best

Heartbreaking Humour

Most of the younger generation will remember the Ben Stiller version of the Heartbreak Kid which was mostly comedic and meant to poke fun.

However, the original 1972 Heartbreak Kid was really something else. And much more.

Lusting or Loving?

Here, a young Charles Grodin played Lenny in a more 'awkward' and less funny way.

Lenny is the  protagonist who did not know what he wanted out of a relationship or even a marriage or two.

This original movie was also the true debutante platform for a young and charming Cybil Shepherd who played Kelly.

It showcased her physical form, beauty and cheekiness as she played love and lust games along with a confused Lenny.

Rapture and Capture

Lenny was actually spun like a top by this young thing who led him up the garden path from the beach in Miami to a remote cabin in Minnesota.

The stripping game in which Kelly toyed with Lenny  in the old cabin was  mischievously funny and reminds one of a coming of age movie.

An Icy Encounter with Kelly's parents

It is  sexual teasing that is so well done and remains one of moviedom extraordinary great moments which has yet to be paralleled up to this day!

The really weird confrontation between a silent and glummy Kelly's father and a brash and gutsy Lenny was equally amusing  particularly the scene when he tried to buy over Lenny, poker style with his wad of cash.

Lusty Cheekiness

The final scene when Lenny was totally lost even at his own wedding dinner after marrying Kelly truly exemplify the woes of a heartbreak kid!

What does he really want?

Amusing fare. Great movie!

The Goodbye Girl-A Gem of a Movie

Pure Entertainment

I finally managed to go down memory lane on this classic movie, "The Goodbye Girl".

Based on a Neil Simon play, this movie centers itself upon the lives of three main characters in an apartment in New York. It is a gem of an outing that plays on the rough edges of  love of the main players and the stressful breakups that can affect an innocent child.

Joy of New Love

Built around witty dialogues with Quinn Cummings as the precocious prima donna daughter Lucy, Marsha Mason as Paula-the unfortunate Good-bye Girl and Richard Dreyfuss as Elliot the Johnny-Comes-Lately actor that came into Paula's life, it testifies that love can stay and grow. All you do need is faith and trust.

Truly unpredictable, you will enjoy this one every time you go down memory lane.

Meditative Humour

And then there is that most unforgettable song by David Gates of the film title worth savouring time and again.

Smart-alecky Ten-Year Old Kid

I enjoyed this one!

Zero Moustafa-Not Quite

A Fictional Fantasy Between the Wars

The Grand Budapest Hotel is superb story-telling.

The way the story is unraveled is artistically done  so that the audience can savour every bit of its incandescent story-line.

It is intrinsically a story of of two lobby boys who became concierges and then owners of the same hotel in two different periods and their experiential adventures. While Gustav H, the senior lobby boy has superb hospitality skills and provided specialised services for  aged wealthy women thus earning their continuing patronage to the hotel, Zero Moustafa was the simpleton refugee that finally inherited the Grand Budapest Hotel. His life, however, lacks the splendour of Gustav H and was a long unending life of tragedy.

The thrills and spills are all here in this comedic thriller. Do see it.

Lending credence to this US-German effort are Ralph Fiennes as Gustav H, F. Murray Abraham as Zero, Adrien Brody as Dmitri,Jeff Goblum as Kovac, Bill Murray, Saoirse Ronan  as Agatha and Tilda Swinton as Madame D.

Captain America-The Beginning

Patriotic and Brave

I watched this movies after watching Captain America The Winter Soldier.

Surprisingly, it was as refreshingly  good as if it is the first time you have seen a Captain America film.

The period background of World War 2 makes it all the more authentic just like in an Indiana Jones movie!

For those who do not know Captain America, it was in the war years of World War Two that they developed a regime of serums to create mighty soldiers that will fight the war valiantly and victoriously for America.

A asthmatic applicant to join the army was chosen to take the dosage and he became the only super-man soldier-Captain America.

His foes continue to be the German Reich in the form of Red Skull.

Good movie and worth the while watching until the shocking end when Rogers woke up after 70 years in a deep coma into modern times!

Stars Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hayley Atwell and Hugo Weaving

Saving The World Again?

Trust No One!

Chris Evans reprise his role as Captain America and dons his signature spandex,body suit and shield in the latest outing as the superhero in Captain America The Winter Soldier.

Though most Marvel comic heroes and their stories are quite  predictable, this movie is diametrically different. Not only is it baffling as the movie moves on but it's action is superb to say the least.

I would not talk about the story-line but suffice to say, there is biting excitement and suspense throughout the movie.

This is one movie you would not fell asleep as it will keep you on the edge of your chair.

The vivacious Scarlett Johanssen provided the eye candy. So,feast your eyes on her!

Enjoy!

People Will Think We Are in Love

True Cowboy Romance

For those who adore the film version of the musical Oklahoma, you will definitely appreciate the romantic fervor of this song sung by Gordon McRae and Shirley Jones.

Absolutely precise in terms of indicator actions and feelings of a blooming romance.

Enjoy these lyrics.

Go to You-tube to enjoy the song.

LAUREY ( Shirley)

Why do they think up stories that link my name with yours? 

CURLY (Gordon)

Why do the neighbors chatter all day, behind their doors? 

LAUREY

I know a way to prove what they say is quite untrue. 
Here is the gist, a practical list of "don'ts" for you. 
Don't throw bouquets at me 
Don't please my folks too much 
Don't laugh at my jokes too much 
People will say we're in love! 

Don't sigh and gaze at me 
Your sighs are so like mine 
Your eyes mustn't glow like mine 
People will say we're in love! 

Don't start collecting things 
Give me my rose and my glove. 
Sweetheart they're suspecting things 
People will say we're in love. 

CURLY

Some people claim that you are to blame as much as I.
Why do y' take the trouble to bake my favorite pie?
Grantin' your wish, I carved our initials on that tree.
Jist keep a slice of all the advice you give so free.

Don't praise my charm too much 
Don't look so vain with me 
Don't stand in the rain with me 
People will say we're in love! 

Don't take my arm too much 
Don't keep your hand in mine 
Your hand feels so grand in mine 
People will say we're in love! 

Don't dance all night with me 
Till the stars fade from above. 
They'll see it's alright with me 
People will say we're in love.

Our Sister, Hedy

The 4 Sisters-Hilda,Helen,Hazel and Hedy

I remembered watching this black and white movie when I was a little boy. Perhaps it was in 1960.

Those days, I lived in a plantation and one of my father's duties was to be a projectionist to show movies to the plantation workers once a month, courtesy of Harrisons and Crossfield. The hall was used for this purpose.

Family Squabbles and Machinations

Before the movie started, mats would be placed on the floor of the hall and it will be fully crowded just as the movie was about to begin.

One Chinese New Year weekend, my father showed the movie, "My Sister,Hedy". Before the showing, it was the talk of the Chinese folks in the plantation.

Boyfriend Conversation

In anticipation,we all watched to movie in joyous satisfaction.

The story revolved around 4 sisters. The eldest is Hilda (Mu Hong), followed by Helen (Julie Yeh Fong), Hazel (Dolly Soo)and Hedy (Jeanette Lin Tsui). They lived with their father after their mother passed on.

Hilda was too responsible and acted as a substitute mother busy with housework; while Helen was playful and careless of the woes of the world but to gather boyfriends. Hazel was on the softer side but attractive enough to attract a pilot. As for Hedy she was a tom-boy with nary a worry in the world but her family and school responsibilities.

Family Joys

It's the usual family story where the daughters woo the love of their father, bicker over boyfriends and finally settled into life married to their spouses,for better or worse.

Though filmed in 1957, dialogue was peppery and it was enjoyable to watch.

For me watching the movie again after almost 50 years is indeed nostalgic!

The Accused-Gang Rape and Criminal Solicitation

Rape and Criminal  Solicitation

This is one interesting movie about a Assistant District Attorney who plea-bargained a rape case for lesser charges that actually got the same sentence  for the rapists only to be told by the victim that what she did was not enough as she was not consulted on it and she was deem slutty in the public eye.

Realistic acting as a rape victim

Feeling morally wrong, she convinced her office to let those who urged on the rapists to be brought to justice as well by putting the rape victim on the witness stand to be corroborated by another independent witness.
The court found for the rape victim and those who raped her got the sentence extended to the full stretch of 5 years.

An interesting movie that add a twist to how justice is being served especially in  gang rapes and also for those who encouraged the act through the charge and conviction of criminal solicitation.

The Assistant District Attorney, Kathryn Murphy

Kelly McGillis stars as Kathryn Murphy and Jodie Foster played the rape victim, Saras Tobias.

Good movie.

Too Much of a Good Thing is Wonderful-A Biopic of Liberace

The HBO movie, directed by Steven Soderbergh called " Behind the Candelabra" is a credible biopic of the rise and fall of Liberace.

A gifted showman, Liberace was a wizard on the piano who  kept his life as a homosexual under wraps as he indulged in the gay world in the early days of AIDS .

Today, Elton John mirrors Liberace in some way; himself a gay too.

That Liberace finally succumbed to AIDS just like Freddy Mercury and Rock Hudson did not dampen his fame as the rhinestone performer that reinvented himself with flowing white robes, glittering, red garbs and a candelabra on the piano.

Liberace and Scott

Great made-for-tv movie to watch with  naughty dialogue and gay action  from Michael Douglas as Lee-Liberace and Matt Damon as Scott Thorson.

Bangkok Hilton-The Horrifying Version

The Holding Prison

This 1989 movie is based on the infamous Kevin Barlow case in Malaysia.

The punishment for drug trafficking is death in most South-East Asian countries.

Thailand is no exception.

Innocent looking Nicole  in this Australian production

So, those accused for such crimes will spend their times at the Bangkok Hilton before they are tried and sentenced.

In this film, a girl looking for her father she never met was inadvertently made into a drug mule and caught at the Don Muang International Airport.

Before Matrix and Lord of the Rings

When all efforts through the legal system failed, she had to escape from the holding lock-up to leave Thailand and to seek revenge on her foe in Goa.

Beautiful scenes in Goa and UK.

You would see a young Nicole Kidman and Hugo Weaving in this movies as well as the protagonist Hal Stanton played by Denholm Elliot.

The Late Denholm

An interesting movie to watch.