time to bring out the popcorn. or kacang puteh. I’m reviewing classic children’s fairytale-fantasy ‘jack the giant slayer’, intense thriller ‘the call’, black comedy based on true court case ‘pain and gain’, and the horror psyho-drama ‘shelter’.
alright, time to click ‘play’.
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I’m a sucker for romantic fairytales. I just LOVE drew barrymore’s ‘ever after’, matt damon and heath ledger’s ‘brothers grimm’ is so fun, and anne hathaway’s ‘ella enchanted’ is simply adorable. so it’s not surprising that ‘jack the giant slayer’ is my new favorite movie. I love everything about it.
the movie is straightforward without any complicated characters or drama but not boring; making it the more easier to enjoy. this movie adds a few details here and there in the plot that made the original tale even more interesting and magical.
the story is as old as time : jack got some magic beans, got thrown out, immediately grew into a huge beanstalk that leads to the kingdom of giants. kononnya the story that we know today seems to have been altered through time and words of mouth – for the movie claims to depict that original story of jack, the giant slayer.
I adore all the characters in ‘jack the giant slayer’. the characters form a fantastic recipe for a delicious fairy tale – a courageous farmboy in love, a feisty princess in search of adventure, a gallant knight in shining armour, a brave king protecting his kingdom, an evil duke hungry for power and an ambitious giant out for revenge.
the main leads are adorable together, and ewan mcgregor is as charming as ever. I also enjoy the occasional funny banters between jack and the knight. cute.
I highly recommend ‘jack the giant slayer’ even for non-fans of fairy tale, for in it you’ll find action, adventure, comedy and romance. even my boys absolutely love the movie simply for the magnificent giants.
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this movie gives new meaning to heart-stopping thriller. there’s never a dull moment. each second moves you at the edge of your seat as you follow the kidnapping of a young woman and the 911 officer who’s trying to help her.
a young woman was kidnapped, thrown in the trunk of the car. she has a hp with her. calls 911. and so begins the cat-and-mouse chase with the help of the 911 officer (halle berry) determined to rescue her. we kept seeing the young woman in the trunk of the car doing whatever it takes to alert other drivers on the road, to let people know that she’s trapped in the trunk or to show any signs to hovering helicopters of her whereabouts.
I love the movie not only because of its non-stop suspense, but also for suggesting many tips for anyone out there in similar situation. not to panic. look around, feel around. think fast, think smart. use the items around you. it may save your life.
this is one of those movies that determines whether you’re really a good actor or not – because for most of ‘the call’, halle berry’s character is on her chair, talking on the phone with the kidnapped victim; soothing her, reassuring her, giving her instructions to help police find the car she’s in. she showed great emotions in her facial expression, in her voice, and body language – halle berry is fantastic. kept me glued to know what’s next.
highly recommended.
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the story is so unbelievably stupid (and I meant that in the nicest way) that it’s amazing that it’s in fact, a true story. I actually enjoyed ‘pain & gain’. it’s the characters in the movie that did all this incredibly idiotic moves that lead to their arrest – which makes ‘pain & gain’ the more entertaining and funny.
this black comedy is about 3 bodybuilders with a dream. one cocky millionaire client at the gym. a planned kidnapping gone wrong. and all went downhill from there. like, REALLY rock bottom.
mark wahlberg proves himself to be a versatile actor as the not-so-clever mastermind in ‘pain & gain’. he usually plays serious characters like in ‘the fighter’, ‘the departed’ and ‘the lovely bones’ but he was really hilarious in ‘the other guys’ along with fantastic funnyman will ferrel. he adopts the same kind of slightly dumb-angry-muscle man persona in ‘pain & gain’ and entertained us all.
dwayne ‘the rock’ johnson was no less hilarious as the god-fearing ex-con. great cast doing scene after scene of omg-what-in-the-world-are-they-gonna-do-next that it’s fun to watch.
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‘shelter’ is not exactly a horror movie, but it’s very scary. also known under the title ‘6 souls’, the movie keeps you guessing on what will come next. the plot is original, fresh yet wonderfully frightening.
psychologist cara harding aimed to cure a patient believed to be suffering from multiple personality. soon she discovered that all the ‘personalities’ created by this patient were actually real life people – and that they were all dead. murdered. time to dig up the past…
it’s not exactly a psycho-thriller, and yet not a ghost story either. it’s a cross between the two, resulted into an eerie hair-raising psychological mystery that has the most shocking ending.
jonathan rhys meyers is brilliant in ‘shelter’ as the multiple personality patient. he was believable. till the very last scene he steals the limelight from big-screen veteran julianne moore who is also convincing in this one as the psychologist.
all you fans of psycho-thriller and all things creepy – don’t miss this one.
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macam nak tengok vikingdom pulak lah…
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