Author: Rochelle Sy Chua

It seems that fantasy movies are popular these days. The second one I watched this month was Oz the Great and Powerful.  I had high expectations on this one as I heard lots of raves about the movie. Plus, who wouldn’t want to see James Franco and Mila Kunis?

According to director Sam Raimi, the film takes place twenty years before the events of Victor Fleming’s original 1939 movie.  The film is not based on any book in the Oz series, but can be seen as a prequel of the classic myth.

Oz the Great and Powerful tells the story of Oscar Diggs commonly known as Oz (James Franco), a circus magician, con artist and womaniser.  Originated from Kansas, Oscar got into the land of Oz when he was hurled away by a tornado.  Oscar thinks he got lucky upon seeing the fortune he could get at the land of Oz.  However, Oscar was unwillingly drawn into the problems facing the land.  He met three witches and transforming into a better man in the process.

Here are the main characters including some of my favourite supporting ones
(source: Walt Disney FB Page):

• Oscar Diggs (James Franco) – a small-time magician who takes his magic act on the road as part of a traveling circus in the Midwest. A man with dubious ethics, Oz is a handsome, charming charlatan who is skilled at smooth-talking his way out of problems. When he is hurled into the magical Land of Oz, Oscar faces a fight-or-flight dilemma that holds the fate of a kingdom in the balance, forcing him to decide what kind of man he truly is before it is too late.
• Theodora (Mila Kunis) – a beautiful, naïve witch who is protected by her powerful sister Evanora. Theodora only wants peace to come to the Land of Oz and truly believes that a prophesied wizard will arrive someday to restore order.
• Evanora (Rachel Weisz) – A witch to be feared, Evanora is Theodora’s over-protective sister. With her penetrating gaze, she exudes a powerful presence and has positioned herself as the royal advisor and protector of Emerald City.
• Glinda (Michelle Williams) – a good witch who rules over a peaceful kingdom of simple, kind folk. Beautiful Glinda is not only a compassionate and benevolent witch, but also a fierce protector of her people. Though Glinda sees through Oz’s façade early on, she knows genuine goodness lies within and helps Oz achieve his true destiny.
• Finley (Voice of Zach Braff) – a winged monkey that accompanies Oz on his journey. Finley doesn’t have a high opinion of Oscar and lets him know it. Ultimately he becomes a loyal ally and helps Oz discover his true self.
• China Girl (Voice of Joey King) – from the village of China Town, where everything, including the inhabitants, is made of china. When destruction befalls her land, the brave, resilient China Girl encounters Oz and they strike up an unlikely friendship.
• Knuck (Tony Cox) – a dour, unsmiling Munchkin, who, as the Herald of Emerald City, announces all the visitors. Despite his cantankerous demeanor, he is loyal to Glinda and thus reluctantly becomes Oz’s ally.

Each and every character in the movie was interesting… I especially loved the China girl and the flying monkey.  They were so cute and adorable!

Unfortunately, I felt that Mila Kunis’ character was forgettable 🙁  I’m not sure if it was the script or she wasn’t able to portray the evil witch effectively.

I must admit I couldn’t stop staring over how astoundingly beautiful Michelle Williams was in the movie.  She had an angelic look all throughout the movie.  I do not know if it was the make up or the costumes but boy, Oz the Great and Powerful just made me a Michelle Williams fan.  She’s now one of my girl crushes!

Another aspect of Oz the Great and Powerful that I loved was the impressive graphics.  I enjoyed touring the vibrant land of Oz through the film.  The beautiful land, flowers, hot air balloon, and special effects like Glinda’s flying bubbles.  It was eye-candy all around.

The movie was over two hours. I had a great time watching it with its beautiful scenery.  I think a lot of people can escape watching this movie.  Oz the Great and Powerful definitely caters to everyone of any age.

My Rating for Oz the Great and Powerful: 4 out of 5 stars

I haven’t been sleeping nicely since year 2013 started.  I am so absorbed at work that I realised I needed to do something to bring balance into my life.  So in spite of having only 3 hours of sleep, I ended up watching Jack The Giant Slayer at 1AM in the morning at the Newport Mall.

I’m not sure if I didn’t like the movie much or if I was too tired but I slept most of the time while watching Jack the Giant Slayer.  Maybe the abnormally cold temperature inside Newport Cinema had something to do with it but I felt there was something missing in the movie.

Jack the Giant Slayer was based on two fairy tales: Jack and the Beanstalk & Jack the Giant Killer.  It tells the story of an ancient war between human and giants.  Jack is the hero of this story – a young boy who must rescue a beautiful princess when the gateway to the human world was accidentally opened to the giants.  This includes fighting for the the princess’ kingdom and its people too.

The film was a modern take of the ancient fairy tale adventure that we grew to know when we were still kids..

Jack the Giant Slayer had a budget of $195 million yet it only earned $50 million and that’s just sad.  In my opinion, there are hits and misses on this film.  Unfortunately, the misses overpowered the good ones which made the film earn so little 🙁

The pros:

• Acting –  I liked the acting of the main characters in the film.  They made do with whatever the story was and that was admirable considering the rawness of the material
• Special effects – the film used a lot of CGI effects.  I loved how the giants looked and how the kingdom panned out in the film.  It was eye candy all over!

The cons:

• Target audience mismatch – At first, I didn’t wanna watch the movie because I had the impression that Jack the Giant Slayer was for kids.  However, the movie was tagged PG-13 which I felt was a disconnect.  People had the impression that the movie was for kids but it was actually for teenagers and adults alike.
• Story flow – I do not know how to explain this but I wasn’t really too giddy about the scenes in the film.  In fact, there were a lot of times that I was confused about the story.  Two things that I didn’t like: (1) are the giants really the villain here or are they just props in the movie? (2) Can Jack really slay giants?  I felt that his character was so weak.  Elmont (Ewan McGregor) was more heroic in this film than the main character!

I liked the movie but didn’t love it.  I must admit I wasn’t really wowed and the only thing that stuck in my head was how handsome Ewan McGregor was in Jack the Giant Slayer.

My Rating for Jack the Giant Slayer: 3 out of 5 stars

I started to keep track of Jennifer Lawrence’s movies after watching her at Hunger Games.  Lawrence’s portrayal was too impressive that I thought she would definitely be a big star.  In less than one year that actually happened!  Jennifer Lawrence became an A-list star with several best actress awards to boot (Oscars included!).

Silver Linings Playbook was the movie that made Jennifer Lawrence a huge household name.  One of the best movies in 2012 was this romantic comedy about two troubled individuals determined to win back their lives and cope with their troubles.

Silver Linings Playbook has a strong and awesome cast.  The movie stars Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert de Niro and Jacki Weaver.  The acting was so good even for the ones with small roles like Chris Tucker’s and Julia Stiles’.

Patrizio Solitano (Bradley Cooper), a man with bipolar disorder, has lost a lot including his house, his job & his wife.  He was released from a psychiatric hospital after spending eight months there and found himself living back with his parents again.  Pat is determined to win back her wife and rebuild his life.  His parents sole wish was to get Pat back on his feet.

When Pat met widowed sex addict Tiffany Maxwell (Jennifer Lawrence), his life changed.  Tiffany offered to help Pat win back his wife, as long as he helps her in return by entering a dance competition with her.  As Pat & Tiffany trained and got to know each other, an unusual bond formed between them.

Silver Linings Playbook is not our usual romantic comedy film.  It is serious and I appreciate that it actually felt real!  It’s not like the fairy tale type that we can just connect with our fantasies but this is something we can learn for our own interactions & relationships.  The film is about two misfits trying to make a relationship work.  It made me believe that a right partner would not help solve our troubles but they are the ones who can live with them.  It’s a type of movie that made me realise that no matter what kind of shit we are in, we can still make good decisions and be able to go through with them in a positive way.

As what the title of the movie says, there is always hope and comfort in the midst of difficulty and trials.  That’s what Silver Lining is all about.  We can all learn from the movie.  I highly suggest you watch it.

My Rating for Silver Linings Playbook: 4.5 out of 5 stars