The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

I'm absolutely taken into delight by the colourful, imaginative world of the Imaginarium. For a moment, I thought I have entered into some fantasy world where everything is simply filled with light and joy. Yet something dark and gloom seems to be lurking somewhere near.

Come into the world of Dr Parnassus! The travelling troupe consists of Dr Parnassus, his daughter Valentina, a dwarf Percy and the messenger pageboy Anton. The mirror, also known as the imaginarium, is not something you should take lightly. Beyond is a world where you choose how you want to be judged. It is a more whimsical version of purgatory.

Dr Parnassus holds a dark secret. In order to pursue the heart of a young maiden, he wagered with the devil for youth and in return, will give away his own flesh when he or she turns 16. In three days time, Valentine will turn 16 and Mr Nick, the devil, is here to collect his due. Not contented to be a simple debt collector, he creates another wager with Dr Parnassus - whoever claims 5 souls will win and take ownership of Valentina.

Will Mr Nick win? Or will the good be triumphed? Is the hangman a lackey for the devil or angel who will save Dr Pasnasuss and his daughter? Life isn't simply good or bad, light or dark, joy or gloom. Scurry off now into the wonderful world of the Imaginarium and let the explosive surreal world take over your senses.

Rating: 5 out of 5 fairy clouds. I simply love the creatively lovely and encapsulating landscape of the imaginarium, moving from one world into another, from the light into the dark. Where will it end? What more choices do we have to choose? Simply disturbingly attractive! By the way, Johnny Depp is cute, very cute.

Avatar (3D)

Avatar is an epic movie full of 3D graphic which tickles your senses. While the storyline is quite predictable and boring, the imaginative world of Pandora will leave you breathless.

Jake Sully, a retired marine hero, takes up an offer to continue his deceased twin brother Tom' high-level research work at another planet, Pandora. Pandora is another planet, many light years away from earth, inhabited by the native sapient, na'vi. The na'vi hold a deep connection to their environment and people, fully encapsulated in the circle of energy which flows through their lives - past, present and future.

Jake works with Dr Grace Augustine and Norm in researching on the unique environment and culture of the na'vi. The core of the operations is headed by Parker and Colonel Miles, whose aim is to move the na'vi so as to excavate and export a very expensive mineral back to Earth.

The adventure for Jake begins when he gets lost in the woods of Pandora on his first dream-walker excursion. While it is unlikely for him to survive, Jake surprises his team in not only surviving but also gets accepted by the Omaticaya tribe.

He starts to assimilate with the lives of the Omaticaya, learning their ways and eventually becomes accepted by the people as he passed the test of becoming a man. It becomes more challenging for Jake as the reality of both worlds start to merge and conflict with his loyalty to the research team, military operations and the Omaticaya people. Watch the move for the ending.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. The movie is quite enjoyable. The lives of the Omaticaya people is simple yet extraordinary as you experience a totally different eco-system. There are a lot of parallels being drawn from animes which run along the same line with mother earth. My only complains, the movie is a little long and my butt hurts from sitting too long. Other than that, go for it. It is worth the money.

Sherlock Holmes

Nothing can escape this man. He is not a mentalist. He is not a mind freak. He is none other than Sherlock Holmes, a cunning, witty, ingenious, charming and yet twisted and eccentric crime detective.

Sherlock and his sidekick, Dr Watson, begin their adventure of with the capture of Lord Blackwood, a black magic practitioner. The successful trial of Lord Blackwood is just a gambit for his more devious plan to take over the British empire and perhaps even the world.

Lord Blackwood is sentenced to hang but returns resurrected after 3 days. It creates a sensational fear and chaos amongst the common men. Is he more than meet the eyes or just a clever concoction of black magic, mystic and fear? I shall not reveal anymore but allow you to indulge in the adventurous journey with Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson.

I love the scenes where Sherlock analyses the situation and immediately creates a solution to counteract and solve the problem on hand. He is also quite a dork by trying to be suave when he can hardly remains calm in the presence of his love interest and adversary, Irene Adler.

Rating: 5 out of 5 fairy clouds. Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law have the perfect chemistry and on-screen partnership as Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. You get a run for your money watching 2 hunks on the big screen exuding the charm of an English Gentleman while fighting valiantly against the most vicious criminal. You simply can't get enough of these two men.

Departures

Departures define as the sending off for the departed; a ceremonial ritual to bid eternal farewell to your loved one who has moved into the next realm. The movies has the right mix of respect, love and dignity when dealing with the dead people.

Daigo Kobayashi is a professional cellist till the orchestra is dissolved. He heads back to his hometown under the encouragement and support of his wife. Mistaking a job advertisement for a travel agency, Daigo finds himself starting a new career as an encoffineer, a funeral professional who prepares the dead for burial and the next life.

Earning from the dead is not a respected profession by the community. His childhood friend shuns him and to make the matter worse, his wife leaves him unless he is willing to change to another proper job. In spite of strong objection, Daigo finds himself enjoying his new profession and a deep respect for the living and the dead.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. To be an escort and gatekeeper to the departed is one that takes a lot of courage. While Daigo deepens his respect, so did I. I particular like the scenes where Daigo and his boss prepare the dead for burial. You can feel the love, the dignity that oozes with every step they take to complete the ritual. Amazing and profound!

He's Just Not that Into You

I feel so cliche watching a romance movie on Christmas Day. To make it worse, the movie made me curdle up into a total cheese ball. There is a good lesson to be learnt from the movie (as well as the book) about man. He won't be bother to call you or do anything for you if he is just not that into you. That's a biblical truth which I urge all, let me stress again, ALL ladies to take note of.

The movie starts with Gigi learning about that men act like jerks like they like you at the tender of 5. Her latest blind date is with Connor, a real estate agent, whom Janine set up for her. Connor never calls Gigi after the first date, so she goes to the bar which he frequents, hoping to "accidentally" bump into him. There she meets with Alex and he becomes her Dr Love, advising her about her dates. Eventually he falls in love with her, making her the exception of the dating rule.

Janine and Ben recently gotten married and is renovating their new home. Ben meets Anna at Handy's supermarket and starts to lust after her. He hides this from Janine as well as his smoking habit which Janine's stubbornly objects to. He eventually confesses sleeping with another woman which secretly trying to destroy his own marriage because he isn't ready to commit and has gotten married because he has been with Janine for a long time. They heads for divorce. Poor Anna just happens to be the catalyst for this breakup.

Beth and Neil are happy and in love with each other. The only issue is Neil does not believe in marriage and refuse to walk down the aisle with Beth. She gets upset and frustrated, thinking her relationship is never going to get anywhere. She breaks up with Neil only to discover that he is really who she wants to be with and is willing to compromise her dream. It ends happy with him proposing to her.

Rating: 4 out of 5 fairy clouds. The storyline is alright, focusing on the relationship issues of the couple of friends. Love has a strange way of showing itself and expressing itself at times. The thing to remember might be that he's just not that into you. Don't forget that.

2012

2012 is a movie I would probably have given it a pass since I'm not a fan of catastrophic armageddon. In fact, I honestly dislike such movies as well as those in the war and related genre.

I won 2012 from a game of bejeweled from my bro. And so I gave the movie a chance. The storyline is very typical and predictable. The world is ending, and the people at the top are fully awared. Preparation has been made and it is time to go, forsaking the rest of the good people. Just imagine a modernised Noak's Ark story.

The CGI effect is quite impressive when you watched it for the first time. I'm not sure if I will be equally impressed if I were to watch the movie again. You do expect to get quite an adrenaline rush from watching the world fumbling before your eyes.

But one thing I do find lacking is the madness of people in such a dire situation. Logically, you will expect people to be all over the place to save their own lives. I see none on the streets when the fissures are formed. Strange, isn't it?

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. It is still a decent movie in spite of the gloom end of the world. And somehow somewhere the hero should always save the day. Amen!

Sideways

Sideways is kind of an odd-ball comedy which will grow on you as you watch it. Two buddies take on a road trip as a 'stylish' send-off before the wedding.

Miles is a depressed divorce who has yet to get over his failed marriage as well as failed writing career. His good pal, Jack, is a minor actor who is getting married in a week's time to a rich lady. The two buddies go on a road trip to the California, passing through the vineyards and local girls.

While Miles is planning on giving Jack a proper send-off with good wine and golf to create some buddy bonding time, Jack is only concern to get as much as boning as he can. Along the way, the guys meet Stephanie and Maya. Miles starts to move out of his misery to take the next step forward in his life. Jack, on the other hand, is getting himself in trouble from one woman to another. At the end of the day, the best pal stands by him and rescue him in the true allegiance-way.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 fairy clouds. A decent movie to watch. The story-telling is quite nice from the man's perspective without being overly-overwhelming and hard to take.