Category: Movies

One of the most awaited movies for Year 2012 is finally out here in the Philippines (sorry U.S. peeps, we went first)!  I’ve been waiting for The Avengers since I saw the after credits from the movies Thor and Captain America.  I loved the movies featuring each of the superheroes so I was really overly excited to watch the Avengers.  Who wouldn’t want to see all those kick-ass superheroes in one single movie?

The movie, The Avengers, is based on the popular Marvel comic book series ‘The Avengers’, that was first published in 1963 and became a popular comic series ever since.  I didn’t have any collection of comics aside from the Archie series but I’ve always been fond of the characters in Marvel comics.  I’m just glad that the producers decided to make it into a movie.  They didn’t just produce a movie, but they definitely made an AWESOME or should I say, PERFECT adaptation of The Avengers.  I was just too impressed that even after a day of watching it, I’m still on a high of the movie.  I’m gonna watch it again on tuesday and this time, I’ll make sure I watch it in a better theater.

When Thor’s adopted brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) emerges to cause havoc on earth and steals the Teseract/Cosmic cube in order to rule the human race, Nick Fury (director of S.H.I.E.L.D.) finds himself in need of a team of skilled warriors to help and save the Earth.  He gathered a super kick-ass group of superheroes that could have him with his mission and they are called The Avengers.  However, being superheroes on their own, will they be able to work together and fight Loki & his alien army to save the world?

• Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) – genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist
• The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) – man with anger management issues
• Thor (Chris Hemsworth) – hammer-wielding god of thunder
• Captain America (Chris Evans) – righteous and man of morals
• Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) – master archer
• Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) – Russian spy

For all Avengers comic book lovers, I’m sure you already know the story and what’ll happen, but boy, this movie really is made of pure awesomeness.  I can’t believe that in spite of creating so many Marvel movies in the past, they can still outperform with a movie like the Avengers!

The movie really blew my mind!  It made so much impact not just to me but also to other people who have watched it as I see my Twitter timeline full of raves about the movie!  It’s not just one of the most awaited films of the year but it definitely will be one of the BEST films of 2012.

The action scenes, humor, the super sleek one-liners, stunts, the casting and definitely, the performances were just spot on!  The Avengers had the perfect formula for a successful film.  Each and every superhero were highlighted in the story.  The performances of every celebrity in the movie was just so good!  Even if they got Mark Ruffalo, who haven’t played Hulk before, was pretty successful.  I never even missed Edward Norton or Eric Bana playing the Hulk while watching the Avengers!  Mark Ruffalo did so much justice for Hulk.  In fact, Hulk is now my favorite Avengers member.

I am so looking forward for the next Avengers movie already!
(I’m sure there’ll be one as after credits of the Avengers proved it).

My Rating for Avengers: 5 out of 5 stars (PERFECT!)

Shangri-La Mall had a free screening of Mediterraneo courtesy of Philippine Italian Association and Film Development Council of the Philippines last April 24, 2012.  I actually didn’t know about it but a friend called me up and said that it looked good and we must watch it.

Good thing we did because Mediterraneo was a totally different movie experience for me!  Mediterraneo is considered to be one of the greatest film in Italy.  Mediterraneo won Best Foreign-Language film at the 1991 Academy Awards.  It was directed by Gabriele Salvatores and screenplay by Enzo Monteleone.

The film is set during World War II and revolves around a crew of eight misfit Italian soldiers who were stranded on a Greek island and were left behind by the war.

The tiny Greek island was called, Kastellorizo.  They found themselves less interested in fulfilling their patriotic duty (spot enemy ships and to hold the island in case of attack) and more interested in discovering the joys of life.  With their boat destroyed and their two-way radio broken, they gradually made contact with the locals.

They learned to adapt in their new lives.  The lieutenant discovered his talent for painting and restores the church, while some become fishermen and goat herders.  An Italian solder, on the other hand, fell in love with the island prostitute and marries her.  They have all forgotten about their identity and became part of the island community.

As the war ends, the island’s male population return to Kastellorizo and to their wives.  The Italian soldiers reluctantly left the island but one of them stayed, after having married.  After several years, they reunited at that same island.

The movie really grew on me!  In fact, when I try to remember the movie, I tend to appreciate it more and more.  I liked the positive spin of Mediterraneo.  Imagine the irony as Mediterraneo was on a war setting but love, passion, compassion and friendship defined the whole movie!  I’m just glad I was able to watch it.  It’s definitely a classic and a well-moved movie!

Oh BTW, the film was sweetly dedicated to ‘all who wish to run away’.

My Rating for Mediterraneo: 3.5 out of 5 stars

After two years, the sequel to Clash of the Titans finally came out.  The film Wrath of the Titans stars Sam Worthington (Perseus), Rosamund Pike (Andromeda), Liam Neeson (Zeus), Ralph Fiennes (Hades), Edgar Ramirez (Ares), Billy Nighy (Hephaestus), Toby Kebbell (Agenor), Danny Huston (Poseidon) and John Bell (Helius).

I’m not really a fan of Greek mythology but since I enjoyed the first movie, I assumed I would likely enjoy the sequel.

After a decade of defeating Kraken, Perseus (demigod son of Zeus) opted to live a normal quiet life as a fisherman and a father to his son, Helius.  One day, Zeus appeared before Perseus to inform him that gods are losing control of imprisoned Titans.  Tartarus, the place where Kronos (Titans leader) was imprisoned.  It was breaking down due to humanity’s lack of devotion to gods.  If it continued, then that will be the end of gods and also of humanity.  Perseus, however, wasn’t interested in helping out.

But Perseus ended up embarking on the quest into the underworld when his father was captured.  Apparently, Hades (Zeus’ brother) and Ares (Zeus’ other son) made a deal with Kronos in order to stay immortal.  Ares and Hades squeezed Zeus’ power in order to revitalize Kronos.  As Zeus was getting weaker and weaker, Perseus sought the help of friends andromeda and Agenor to rescue his dad.

I honestly can’t pinpoint why I didn’t enjoy Wrath of the Titans that much.  The effects and action scenes were good.  I loved Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes’ characters there and their acting were superb!

Maybe the story didn’t cut it for me.  There wasn’t strong character building.  Or maybe the main characters just didn’t show as much emotions as they should be.  I loved Rosamund Pike but I think the role didn’t suit her or there wasn’t any material for her to work with.  Sam Worthington was emotionless all throughout the movie.  He had the same expression even in scenes that would need him to emote.  Maybe Perseus was really a man who hides his emotions and not the expressive type.  I really don’t know.

If you just wanna sit, watch and relax then you can enjoy Wrath of the Titans.  Don’t expect long discussions with friends after watching the movie though.

My Rating for Wrath of the Titans: 3 out of 5 stars

I never heard of Hunger Games until a week before The Hunger Games opened in Manila.  There was a lot of hype!  I learned that the movie was based from a book of the same title by Suzanne Collins.  I rarely read fiction so when I entered the movie house to watch The Hunger Games, I had no idea whatsoever what the movie was all about.

Panem, formed from a post-apocalyptic North America, was composed of 12 districts that were controlled by Capitol.  The Hunger Games was a televised battle created by the Capitol as a brutal reminder of the districts’ failed rebellion.  Each year, one boy and one girl (aged 12 to 18) are randomly selected from each of the districts to compete in the annual deathly battle.  When Katniss Everdeen’s younger sister was chosen as one of District 12’s representatives, she volunteered to be the tribute in her place.  Pitted against 23 other tributes, Katniss relied on her hunting instincts and her training from former winner Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) to emerge as the games’ sole victor.

Hunger Games is part one from the trilogy (Catching Fire being the 2nd and Mockingjay as the 3rd & final one).  It was nice that one of my friends that I watched the movie with, had read all three books.  I was practically bugging her about the story after.

I must say, I enjoyed the movie very much.  This was the first time that I had the urge to read the books after watching a movie adaptation.  I immediately got myself copies of all three books by Suzanne Collins and read all of them during the long weekend.

Actually, if you haven’t read the book, you can still understand the story altogether by watching the movie alone.  There is no need to understand it further by reading as the movie makers did an excellent job!  They made a perfect adaptation.  I realized that after reading the book.

One of the reasons why I think the movie was successful was the casting.  Jennifer Lawrence was stunning and extremely effective as Katniss Everdeen.  All supporting cast were perfect too!  They were all in character.  It’s not surprising for the viewers to feel affected by each moving scene.  I felt that especially when Rue died, I shed so much tears during that scene.

The movie didn’t concentrate on the love factor which was quite refreshing in my honest opinion.  I liked that the female lead was strong and doesn’t rely on men to survive.  A good welcome change from the usual teeny-boop movies.  That’s why I think The Hunger Games was successful not only for the young audiences but also adults (both men and women)!  I can’t wait for the next installment of the movie, which is Catching Fire.  It bums me out that it will come out November 2013 which is like 1.5 years wait!  Too long, too long..

Oh well, may the odds be ever in your favor.

The Hunger Games is a must-watch, don’t miss it!

My Rating for Hunger Games: 5 out of 5 stars

It has been so long since I last watched a fairy tale movie.  When I saw that Mirror Mirror was currently showing, I thought that they just made Snow White into a non-cartoon with all the movie stars and costumes becoming true to life.  When I saw the movie, I realized that Mirror Mirror was totally different!  The story was at variance from the original one.  I guess the only similar thing between the original Snow White story and Mirror Mirror is that there are seven dwarves, an evil queen and a handsome prince.

Mirror Mirror is about a young woman (Snow White) who is determined to take back her throne from the evil Queen (Julia Roberts).  With the help of a band of robbers (Seven Dwarves), Snow White grows into a much stronger woman ready to fight her way back to the palace.  Aside from the throne, the wicked queen and beautiful Snow White fought for the attention and love of a charming prince (Armie Hammer).

Like all fairy tales, we get a feel-good ending with the evil queen dethroned and a beautiful lovely union between pretty snow white and handsome prince.

I find it refreshing to see Julia Roberts as the evil queen.  I’m so used to watching her play lead roles and it’s nice that she decided to take a supporting role and an evil one at that.  She was pretty effective, it just shows how versatile she is as an actress.  The other actors were also pretty effective with their roles.  That’s why I really really liked the movie.  It was refreshing, entertaining and light!

I was already very impressed with the movie Mirror Mirror but was disappointed when I saw the after credits!  My gosh!  The kind of dance that they put in just didn’t match the movie theme at all!  I wish they’ll remove it because it somehow ruined the whole movie experience.

However, if we judge only the movie and the story, I give it a thumbs up!  It’s a very cute take on the Snow White franchise.

My Rating for Mirror Mirror: 3.5 out of 5 stars.