Mama Mia

I happen to watched the trailer of this movie last night as we were about to watch Hancock Movie. Mama Mia seems to be a very interesting movie as it is set in a greek island and its a broadway musical now made for the big screen.

Mama Mia stars Amanda Seyfried as Sophie who is Donna’s (Meryl Streep) daughter and will be marrying her boyfried Sky (Dominic Cooper). Sophie wants her father to be at her wedding and assumes that he might be one of the three names mentioned in her mom’s diary. The three guys were Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgard. Amanda Syefried played one of the Mean Girls in Lohan’s films before and I think this movie has done some good for her.

I’ve heard only great feedbacks about this movie, says its really worth it to go and watch it. Funny and really nice. This one is on top of my must-see list of movies.

John Hancock

My buddy and I were suppose to watch Wanted last night, but we didn’t make it on time and fortunately this movies was just about to start. It was not like what I’ve expected and I have loved it. I love the character Greg, seeing only the good in people and aiming to make a better and more caring world. What he made Hancock into was really something to be proud of. The movie has a great plot, very funny scenes, very moving lines but I not very awed by the music played.

John Hancock was played by Will Smith, and his supposed partner Mary was played by the very lovely Charlize Theron. I like how they conjured up the story of god and goddess, and angels. They being created in pairs, that being close to their partner they lose their powers and being away from one makes them stronger and more powerful.

I hope that they could make a prequel to this so we’d get to know more about the life of this uncomely superhero.

Hancock (2008: PG-13)

Hancock * Rated PG-13 * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0448157/ *
Director:Peter Berg; Starring: Will Smith … John Hancock, Charlize Theron … Mary Embrey, Jason Bateman … Ray Embrey, Jae Head … Aaron Embrey, Eddie Marsan … Red, David Mattey … Man Mountain.
A washed up superheroe with amnesia clumsily and drunkenly fights crime while trying to figure out who he is and why he has superpowers and through an act of kindness, gets linked up with a Public Relations specialist who becomes dedicated to clean up his act. Little does he know, secrets to his past become revealed and its a strong curious struggle to doing what’s right. High action, good laughs. Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

curse of the golden flower

Set in pre-modern China, the role of rules on sex and gender was very evident in the movie. The emperor is conniving and ruthless while the empress pretty much represents the women of the time. She’s bounded by tradition to bow down to her husband, even when he’s trying to poison her. The act of the poisoning itself is very humiliating on the empress’ part, for the reason that the poison is presented as her medicine, and everyone looks at it as an act of concern of the Emperor. Running out of choices, she resorts to deceit and maneuverings. Even the tight dresses of the women in the movie suggest how women are suffocated in the society at that time; there was extreme male domination. As the Empress represents women, so does the Emperor represents the men. He shows how much dominion he has over his wife and sons, while he speaks of familial respect and concern in presence of his sons, he is slowly poisoning his wife. The role of their dress was further signified in the scene wherein the Empress throwed her robe and headpiece and reveals her insignia of golden chrysanthenum, revealing herself and her plot. Gong Li is, as always, very impressive in her role and Chow Yun Fat is effective as an overly power-hungry emperor. Both of them, honed in their craft, outdone their younger costars.
The movie is nothing short of dashing. From the extravagant costumes to the perfectly glittering set, everything seems to exude glitz and glamour. With its ubiquitous golden environment and staggeringly lavish palace, the result is a visual feast for the audience. However, these visually stimulating scenes are merely a reflection of the emperor’s passion for power and quest to hide the ugly secrets behind their lovely rooms. Beneath the grandiose of everything audience see, everything is simply superficial. Everything is just a façade to conceal corruption and dissolution happening inside the palace.
Curse of the Golden Flower is packed of lethal bitterness and distraught politics. Incest, murder, patricide are just some of the sins the characters are guilty of. Everyone is guilty of something and somehow deserves to be punished. The mother and son love between the Empress and Prince Jai seems to be the only decent relationship in their dysfunctional family. Prince Jai was the only prince who expressed worry when the Empress had her spells, and he quickly check on her to make sure she’s okay. Jay Chou, as Prince Jai shows promise in his character by transcending his acting in the latter part of the movie.
The movie was effective and should be given credit in projecting the wealth and prosperity of China in that time. However, even with the stimulating visual scenes, the movie still lacked the power to move its audience. The film’s extravagance isn’t enough to justify a satisfying experience. The flamboyance of the set doesn’t seem to match the potential of the movie. The indulgence in dashing costumes and set is never enough to sustain the melodrama. The actors were so-so and overall, the movie is just enough to show the audience how convoluted royalty life could be.
The melodrama never quite reaches the necessary boiling point. Zhang takes so long to establish the complexities of the court and gives us so few characters to care about — essentially just the empress and Prince Jai — that much of the film seems like unnecessary time spent with characters we’d just as soon not get to know so well. The performances are uniformly strong — though certainly Gong and Chow outshine their younger co-stars — but how many times can we see the emperor demonstrate his absolute power without it getting tired? And the shakeup we come to expect doesn’t quite work out as we’d hoped.

star wars

Star Wars is a film about cosmic war between the forces of good and evil wherein a great catastrophe is foretold but the loyal will endure with the help of the Force. A savior, the “one,” appears and a new world order will come about where justice will still reign and evil will perish. This myth is made more significant to the moviegoers since the film is structured as a battle of technology vs. the natural human- the machine Vader vs. the Anakin and the Death Star versus the Force. Everything ends when virtue triumphs over wicked technology. However, the film itself is a celebration of triumph of capitalism, technology and industrialization. Star Wars glorifies and reproduces the majestic age of capitalism.

According to the article, the “empire represents an illegitimate form of political dominance.” On the other hand, the Rebel Alliance is fighting for the good and the freedom of the galaxy. While the Empire may represent totalitarian dictatorship, the Rebel Alliance is a clear paradigm of a capitalist bourgeois dominated system.

Luke Skywalker is one of the highlights of the film as the champion of the oppressed because of his superiority as a Jedi, his saber skills and his desire to fight off the Empire. His mastery and use of the saber is a spectacle, which simply signifies being one of the elite. The use of this saber clearly becomes an elitist rite. On th other hand, blasters are used by the rebels dividing the line between the elite and the working class. Princess Leia who is also a member of the elite and came to rule the revolutionary force further reinforces class divisions in the society. This positioning of leaders stress the control of the elite over the working class and how the interchanging of leaders is based on lineage. Hans Solo can never be superior over the Jedi since he is not one of them.

While the Empire represents the power-hungry, the Rebel Alliance is masked as the good guys. This, however, is a spectacle that the film wants us to see. Moviegoers are led to believe that the elite leading the rebels will result in freedom. But the ending doesn’t show how the poor rebels wouldn’t get their much-awaited freedom after all. It doesn’t tell us that the rebels will stay subordinates to the whims of elite-led Alliance. While the Alliance is a composition of diverse creatures from all parts of the galaxy, it is still the elite who lead and who think that they should hold rightful power in the galaxy. The conquest for freedom by the Rebel Force becomes a camouflage for capitalist rule. In a quick analysis, the mere hierarchy of the aristocracy as leaders in the revolutionary force further defines their own desire for supremacy. Marxism then tells us that freedom, therefore, will continue to be a far-fetched dream of the rebels.

Wall E movie

Last night, my husband convinced me to watch “Wall E” movie.He told me that it’s a new movie that surpass “Hancock”. It’s like “The Incredibles” because it is 3d. Pixar,whom created and produced that movie, invested a lot to finished it.

I got curious! So, I dare to watched it.

At first, graphics are amazing. The movements and lightings are smooth. I can see now why Pixars gives so much in production cost.

The story is simple. It’s like the “Earth” was abandoned because there was no longer diversity of life there. It’s already a trash planet. People are now living on space in a cruise ships. Not until, a robot shows them a small plant taken from earth. Of course, there’s a conflict there in all the characters in the story. In the end, the cruise ship’s captain decided to go back to earth and live.

The movie is entertaining and ideal for the whole family. Especially, the kids will surely love it! I think this movie is worth watching for.

Kung Fu Panda

I had the pleasure of watching Kung Fu Panda and i find it funny and full of moral story for kids of all ages. I like Po (Panda) who is fat and bored from working in his family’s noodle shop store and who really really loves kung fu. Because of his size, nobody thinks that he is the real kung fu master destined to save the valley of peace from the treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung. Kung Fu guru master Shifu patiently taught Po and it was hilarious and touching how his weakness (his size and appetite) turned out to be his real strength. Everybody will laugh at how master shifu would use food to motivate Po.

People will have different opinions for this movie but for me its good. The story is great, the moral story is great, it is fun to watch, the animation is good, the scenes are good and the lines, funny. It is not that long, so older people won’t be bored. Kids will have a great time watching this.

But above all of this I love the idea that the secret is not written in a sacred tablet or scroll, the secret is in you and there is really no secret and that is the moral of the story.

Review on the 2008 Movie “The Bucket List”

I just watched the 2008 movie “The Bucket List” staring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman and am ready to write my review on it.

First off, let me say I was a little disappointed but only because I was under the impression via movie trailers that this was supposed to be a cute comedy. I have to say that I disagree because the comedy parts were all thrown into the trailer so there was nothing new comedy-wise to be viewed in the movie. I also found it to be a very slow movie. I can understand that the producers and director was trying to keep things kosher, decent and respectful for those who have, have had cancer or knows someone who have had or has it. That being said, I think that they should have made it a serious movie instead then instead of labeling it under the category “comedy”. It was a very beautiful movie and the actors in it were phenomenal but I was expecting a comedy based on reviews and trailers.

Heather

re-living moments

Life is not about how many breaths you take,it’s about the moments that take your breath away… - Hitch (movie)

*sigh*

I think God finds a way to make us happy in times that we really need happiness in our lives.It may be finding something new with something that you do everyday..or it may be something out of the ordinary.I may be always for finding the silver lining in every dark cloud of despair & finding the glass half full instead of half empty….but when the time came that I’m looking at my glass half empty??..it turned out I have a second glass…full.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is set to be released on November, 2008 and this early, I am so excited to watch it on the big screen.

There have been rumors that the trailer will be shown on The Dark Knight and the Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. I’m not sure if this is true but it would be great to see a sneak preview of the much-awaited movie.

This is the 6th installment for the Harry Potter franchise and speculations have been made that the book will be divided in to two movies as it is very long and there are a lot of important events unfolding and maybe, they find it difficult to decide which scenes will make the cut.

I missed the trio, Harry, Hermione and my favorite Ron. It is a good thing that I don’t have work tomorrow because I’m planning to have a Harry Potter marathon of all the movies and books. I do this every time a new movie is about to be released. It’s like I’m brushing up my HP knowledge so that when the movie is finally shown, I can understand it easily and also I won’t be confused about the details. I’ll be sure to watch this one on the first day of showing.

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