Infernal Affairs I, II and III

It is a great lazy Sunday to have a movie marathon. Today I plunged deep into Infernal Affairs I, II and III.

Infernal Affairs I
The story of 2 cops, one is an undercover for the police in the triad society while the other is a undercover for the triad in the police force. When their paths cross, what should you do and who should you trust? The covet fight between two strong actors, Tony Leung and Andy Lau is rather enjoyable.

Infernal Affairs II
Part II shows the young version of Andy Lau and Tony Leung as a prequel to the 1st movie. The plot is captivating and will most definitely keep you in suspense. It gives you a better understand of the 2 main lead actors and their attitudes and thinking of why they become who they are in time. But I do find the some of the twists a little far fetched, making some facts in the 1st movie rather incoherent and unacceptable.

Infernal Affairs III
Part III sees Andy Lau suffering from guilt and delusion in his attempt to redeem himself as a good man, a good cop. The story flashes between the past and present which can be confusing for an average movie buff. It is an unusual artistic direction for a commercial film. I do enjoyed the movie except for the mushy bits between Kelly Chan and Tony Leung. It does not add any value to the movie except to draw the parallel between Andy Lau ad Tony Leung, the same misery of having to betray people around them in order to survive.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. Taking an average of the 3 movies, I do find the 2nd and 3rd one more interesting. The 1st movie is quite like the typical triad-police movie which has overwhelmed the movie market in the early 90s.

Saving Private Ryan

I finally got to see Saving Private Ryan today! Oh yes, I know it is 11 years late. But it is better late then never.

The beginning of the movie is very hard for me. I do not like war movie and I most certainly do not like to see death. Though it is just a movie, it brought tears to my eyes to see people dying in war. The landing of the US troop on Omaha Beach is a disaster even if they manage to take hold of the area from the German soldiers. It is very heart saddening for me as I can vivid imagine the horror of these young man who sign up to be a soldier only to be killed before they even enter the battlefield.

Caption John Miller (Tom Hank) is assigned to rescue Private James Francis Ryan. This assignment from the top (Colonel) is ordered simply because the US military is "heartbroken" to send the telegram to a mother who has lost 3 sons to the war. To redeem themselves, an order has been issued to escort Private Ryan home safe and sound. Oh so touching, isn't it? In reality, I doubt the government really gives a hoo. But this is a romanticised Hollywood movie, why we should just take it with a pinch of salt.

Overall, it is a pretty decent film. The killing is just too much for me to tolerate personally. But I can understand the charm and the reasons why it has been such a popular movie. In all fairness, it is still worth watching at least one. More for those who can stomach the bloody scene.

Rating: 4 out of 5 fairy clouds.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

"I was born under unusual circumstances..." claimed Benjamin Button.

There is nothing unusual about Benjamin Button if you eliminate his reverse aging. Benjamin Button is born an old wrinkly baby. As he grows up (physically growing), he becomes younger and more youthful, before he dies as a baby.

The movie has a good cast of actors including Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton. Sadly, I'm rather disappointed by the plot development. There are obvious key situations and turning point of Benjamin's life but the director has failed to highlight these significant events. The movie comes alive only in the last 30min of its run.

It is a 3 hour long movie and I find it rather challenging to sit through it. I can imagine two kinds of people will enjoy this film, i.e. 1) value for money movie buff and 2) die-hard romance who feels true love transcend time and continents. Oh yes, I forgot about the 3rd kind, fans of Brad Pitt.

The movie is really kind of crappy and I'm surprised that some sites claimed it to be "a grand tale of a not-so-ordinary man and the people and places he discovers along the way, the loves he finds, the joys of life and the sadness of death, and what lasts beyond time. " To me, it is just a tale of an ordinary man whose path crosses with major changes of the world, and finally coming term with his ideas of life and closure of his own personal struggles.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. I'm not impressed due to its austereness and lack of depth.

Shugo Chara! and Shugo Chara!! Doki!

The Japanese anime series is about an elementary 5th grade girl by the name of Hinamori Amu. On the exterior, she exudes the cool and spicy image while within closed door, she is just an average shy girl. Her life changing moment comes when she wishes for Guardian to help make her change. Overnight, 3 new adorable Shugo Chara appeared and transformed her life ever since.

Shugo Chara! started in October 2007 running a total of 51 episodes. The sequal is renamed Shugo Chara! Doki and started from October 2008 and running to today. There are quite a number of interesting twists and friendship stories throughout the series. New characters are also being introduced over time. It is amazing how friendship can overcomes obstacles in life and bring people closer together.

I'm looking forward to the ending and especially the interesting romance between Amu-chan and Ikuto. Though Tadese and Nagihiko are both good looking, I somehow likes Ikuto over the rest. :) What will happen to them? I guess we all have to wait and see for now.

Yume Tsukai

If dream manifests into physical realm, will it do good or harm? Will it take over control and create more trouble? What happen to the dreamer, the original creator of the dream?

Yume Tsukai is a TV anime series which explores dreams when it cross over to reality. Leader of the ring is Touko, followed by her younger sister, Rinko, Tachibana Hajime and Satoka. The sister pair works closely together in helping people who encounter problems when their dreams become a reality and take over control. Hajime is called in from time to time while Satoka is the newest and least experienced.

The anime explores an interesting aspect of dream vs reality. This theme is also seen in Paprika, who helps people in their dream to understand the root of the dream issues. A pretty good run for my time over the weekend in finishing 12 episodes of this rather interesting series. I have yet to fully explore this area, perhaps I should go dream about it... and I might learn more the next day. Hmm... interesting is the only comment I have about this anime for now.

Elegy

Elegy is as poetic as its name. The movie is strange, mysterious and somber as an elegy.

David Kepesh is a well know literacy celebrity and professor. He is always in pursue of beauty and never allows himself to settle for any woman. He fled from his marriage and has ever since soured his relationship with his son. His only comfort is Caroline, a businesswoman, whom he has an open relationship for the past 20 years.

The day Consuela Castillo enters into his life become a turning point which puts him in chaos. From an intelligent, smart and confident man, David becomes a insecure, jealous, possessive and childish little boy. He yields for Consuela. Yet, he also fears deeply that his beautiful Consuela will either leave him or be swept away by another young man given their over 30 years of age difference. He has refused to commit to Consuela despite their 2 years relationship.

Consuela decides to end the relationship when David has once again refused to show up for a family event, this time it is her graduation party. She disappeared from David's life for 2 years while he learns to pick up pieces of his broken self. When Consuela shows up on a new year's eve, breaking the news of her cancer, David finally sees beauty and open up his heart for the first time in (probably) 40 years.

The movie is very poetic driven, trying to show the inner struggle of a man who is refusing to open up his heart. The conflicts are very subtle and yet powerful. Words and emotions aren't always that easy for a man to communicate and in this movie, you notice that struggle for David. It got a little draggy at a couple of spots in the movie. Overall, it is a decent movie.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 fairy clouds.

Yes Man

Would you say yes to everything that presents itself to you in life? Or do you lead your life saying no to everything? Say yes to life and start living your life now!

The power of self-affirmation, releasing and programming. Carl Allen is a no man. He said no to everything in his life. He is as stuck as the stick in the mud. He says no to his best friends' invitations, he says no to this neighbour, he says no to his work, he says no to promotion, he says no to his boss... in fact he says no to himself. He prefers very much to wallow in his own pain, within the comfort zone of his own home, watching rented DVDs without any one around him. If given a choice, he would rather have the world abandon him.

Thing starts to change after he meet an old friend while having his lunch one afternoon. This friend introduces the YES workshop to Allen and encourages him to make a change to his life. His sub-consciousness starts to work through him. One evening, he attends the new age YES workshop. After that evening, he starts to say yes to everything and every opportunity that presents itself. A little trial of saying yes begins to open the door to opportunities and change for Carl. Life slowly unravels itself. From offering a ride to the homeless, to getting to know his new love interest Allison, he starts to enjoy his life and loves the experience of living.

The reality is (of course!) he goes a little too much and too far by saying yes to everything, to the extend of finding it hard to say no. Its like the universe punishes him for saying no. Every story has a key message. In Yes Man, the message is... Do things in moderation. You can't say yes to everything and you can't say no to everything. You choose the middle, in that grey area of Maybe, and not to forget, you must add a dash of common sense too!

I have to admit that Yes Man is a rather powerful movie in a new age way. I highly recommend this movie for the value it offers. The only thing that irks me is that Jim Carrey is unable to break away from his face contortion and silly antics which makes him a famous comedian. It stereotypes him, making it hard to appreciate him as a serious actor. To find in this lovely movie, the tiny signature Jim Carrey expression and behaviours is a little discerning. Perhaps it might be way too serious if he does do away with all this signature actions. Either way, Yes Man is a movie worth watching.

Rating: 4 out of 5 fairy clouds. You can have good fun watching Yes Man even if you do not understand the power of new age healing. It is still a decent movie with good storyline.