Eat Pray Love

3 stars

Find your balance in life.

Rating: PG
Stars: Julie Roberts, Javier Bardem, Richard Jenkins

What’s the story?
After a devastating divorce and heartbreak, Liz (Roberts) decides to try and find balance in her life, which leads her to go on a one-year tour of Italy, India, and Indonesia. Liz spends four months in Italy learning how to speak the sexy language and, of course, eating everything possible. The next stop is India, where she spends four months in an ashram, a place of spiritual retreat. She finishes off the year in Indonesia, which is where Liz visits an old medicine man she met several years ago.

Why see it?
Based on a memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert, Julia Roberts is once again amazing in the title role. She has incredible skill in delivering her lines so honestly and truthfully. Many people would also agree that the scenes where the camera lingers on the landscapes and spectacular sunsets are hands down the most magical moments in the movie.

Who should skip it? Problems?
Guys probably won’t want to see the film, unless they want to please their girlfriends. As well, if you’ve read the book, this movie does come across as a bit disappointing because some important scenes were not included on the big screen, and some characters were entirely cut out of the film.

All in all:
Julia Roberts embarks on a journey of self-discovery.

Piranha 3D

3 stars

The waters aren't as calm at Lake Victoria.

Rating: 18A
Stars: Steven R. McQueen, Ving Rhames, Elisabeth Shue, Christopher Lloyd

What’s the story?
Jake Forester (McQueen) is a resident of Lake Victoria, a primarily easygoing and quiet town with regular people living regular lives - at least that is until spring break rolls around and the petite population of 5,000 soon grows to over 50,000. While all the partying is in full swing, something else is happening at Lake Victoria - a random underwater tremor occurs unleashing a population of nasty and hungry prehistoric piranhas. It’s all fun in the sun until the vicious fish come to ruin the party. Jake and all his friends must fight for survival before it’s too late and everyone at the lake literally become fish food.

Why see it?
Piranhas 3D packs some intense action, with some jaw dropping death scenes. If you enjoy cheesy summer horror flicks, then this is the film for you. Piranhas 3D certainly is a fun movie to see with your friends.

Problems?
For those who cannot stomach gore, or blood for that matter, I would suggest staying as far away from this movie as possible. The director, Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes), is certainly not stingy on the violence and aims to gross the crowd out before the opening credits can begin.

All in all:
A hauntingly graphic summer blockbuster worth checking out with friends.

Grown Ups

3 stars

Grown Ups is a comedy through the ages.

Rating: PG
Stars: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, and Rob Schneider

What’s the story?
After their beloved basketball coach passes away, five old friends reunite for a holiday weekend at their old cabin. At first the trip is almost a nuisance to the families. Lenny (Sandler) is a workaholic whose kids cannot stand to be away from technology for more than three seconds. Eric (James) is insecure and has a son who cannot detach himself from his wife (literally). Kurt (Rock) is a stay-at-home dad who can’t seem to gain the respect of his wife or mother-in-law. Marcus (Spade) is a childish bachelor, and Rob (Schneider) can’t seem to stay married to one woman for long or keep track of his own kids. As the weekend progresses though, the guys rediscover what it’s like to have best friends by their sides, and rediscover the true meaning of family.

Why see it?
What’s not to see? It’s Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, and Rob Schneider all in one movie. If you’re a fan of comedy movies, you should be literally dying to see these five funny men on the big screen at the same time. This is also a great family film for a night out!

Who should skip it? Problems?
The movie did not live up to its potential. There were a few good laughs in there and several heartfelt moments, but overall, it should have been a lot more comical than it really was, with the combination of the five talented comedians. The whole story also dragged on for too long and began to get a little boring.

All in all:
A solid comedy that should have been even funnier.

Despicable Me

2 stars

A flawed Super Villain gets more than he bargained for when he adopts three young girls.

Rating: PG
Stars: Steve Carell, Julie Andrews, Miranda Cosgrove, Jason Segel, Russell Brand

What’s the story?
When the great pyramid is stolen by young Super Villain, Vector (Segel), a middle- aged Super Villain, Gru (Carell), decides he will outdo his new-found nemesis by stealing the moon, a feat easily accomplished by a powerful shrink ray that Vector possesses. After many failed endeavors to steal it, Gru discovers that Vector’s fortress is only seemingly impenetrable ~ Vector grants access to a trio of orphan girls who sells him cookies. Desperate, he adopts them with the intention of smuggling robot cookies into the fortress to steal the shrink ray, unaware that he will get much more than he bargained for in becoming their caregiver.

Why see it?
As well as being a choice piece of absurdity, Despicable Me is visually spectacular. It can also be seen in 3-D, which almost unfailingly improves any film.

Who should skip it? Problems?
Despicable Me may be better dubbed Predictable Me. Indeed, it is so predictable that anyone who so much as sees the trailer will be able to say exactly how it will end, with a success rate of 98 per cent. Admittedly though, it does not pretend to be anything it is not; it almost blatantly pokes fun at itself. Regardless, if you are tired of the whole “love for new-found family changes bitter individual’s life” formula, do not bother with Despicable Me.

All in all:
Despicably predictable and stereotypical, but enjoyable nonetheless.

The Last Airbender

2 stars

Live action interpretation of popular cartoon doesn’t live up to high expectations.

Rating: PG
Stars: Noah Ringer, Dev Patel, Nicola Peltz and Jackson Rathbone

What’s the story?
In a world where the four elements of fire, water, earth and air, can be manipulated by a select few “benders,” a 100-year-long war has devastated the land and people. The fire nation has already wiped out the air nomads and is aiming towards world conquest when the nation’s progress is hindered by the return of Aang (Ringer), the Avatar. As the only person able to bend all four elements and enter the spirit world, it is Aang’s destiny to restore balance to the war-ravaged world.

Why see it?
From the opening sequence to the final scene, The Last Airbender is a feat of stunning special effects. Stemming from a cartoon where flight and environment manipulation are commonplace, the special effects team faced lots of challenges, but they rose to the occasion and their work is a spectacular example of what digital editing can do.

Who should skip it? Problems?
It’s hard to tell if it was bad acting or stiff dialogue that made every scene almost painful to watch. Very few of the actors managed to capture the essence of their characters, often lacking consistency in their reactions or emotions. Positioning also seemed contrived, with scenes where bad placement of actors and odd camera angles made conversations awkward and forced. The script itself certainly did not help to make scenes less awkward. Apart from the choppy sentences throughout the entire movie, the unnatural statements and rigid wordings reached a point where characters started explaining fight scenes or describing chunks of the plot.

All in All:
A very disappointing film by director M. Night Shyamalan that fell short in most areas.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 stars

"Blood" deep enemies unite.

Rating: PG-13
Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Dakota Fanning, Bryce Dallas Howard

What’s the story?
Edward Cullen (Pattinson), the brooding vampire, is back in Forks and Bella Swan (Stewart) is deeply in love with him. But her friendship with werewolf Jacob Black (Lautner) has taken a turn and Jacob believes she is in love with him, too. To complicate matters, old enemy Victoria (Howard) has created an army of powerful, strong newborn vampires to seek revenge, forcing the Cullens and werewolves to become allies. In the midst of it all, Bella must make the final decision about her future: vampire or werewolf.

Why see it?
Director David Slade has taken the third installment in the series to a whole new level. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is darker and action-packed, making it appealing for a broader audience. And don’t forget those amazing CGI wolves that just about jump out of the screen! For the avid Twi-hard, you won't be able to get enough of this movie.

Problems:
For those who are borderline fans of the Twilight saga, two hours of sparkling vampires and teeth-baring wolves can be a long time to sit through.

All in all:
With great action and suspense, Eclipse is a definite upgrade from the previous films in the series.

Inception

5 stars

A brilliant and original thrill ride.

Rating: PG
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy

What's the story?
Cobb (DiCaprio) is a skilled and highly trained extractor living mostly in a dream world. His job is to extract valuable secrets and ideas by accessing people’s minds through dream sequences. But he’s separated from his life in the real world with his family, as his job has made him a dangerous fugitive. Now he’s given one last job: To create an Inception. The task is to plant an idea instead of steal one. If he succeeds; he could get his life back, but only if he can achieve what appears to be the impossible.

Why see it?
After cult classics such as Memento and The Prestige, director Christopher Nolan delivers his best work to date: A rich and immensely thrilling film that’s as complex as it is brilliant. He’s able to captivate people’s attention and imagination, lure them into the multi-layered dream world he’s created and draw the audience into the movie both visually and emotionally. The storyline (although hard to follow) is unique, original and flawlessly structured. Nolan also manages to deliver well-choreographed action scenes, a great score composed by Has Zimmer and incredible special effects (that’s not shot from CGI). To top it off the cast all give award-winning performances and DiCaprio’s sophisticated performance suits the film’s dark and complex tone.

Problems?
Although this is a near perfect film, some will find it hard to understand whether the protagonist is in the real world or if he’s in the dream world. It also feels similar to Sci-Fi classics such as The Matrix. Finally, this film runs for 148 minutes, but viewers might not notice, thanks to the film's relatively fast pace.

All in all:
A genuinely complex and innovative classic that thrills both visually and emotionally.

Movie Review: Knight and Day

4 stars

A great summer flick with non-stop action!

Rating: PG
Stars: Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, Paul Dano, Peter Sarsgaard, Viola Davis

What’s the story?
Roy Miller (Cruise) is a lethal operative who is protecting the key to a limitless power source. At the airport he bumps into June Havens (Diaz), who is on her way to her sister’s wedding. The two end up on the same flight and little does she know that once the plane takes off, her life is going to take an unexpected turn.

Why see it?
Tom Cruise in a thrilling action movie, who wouldn’t want to see that? And the film definitely lives up to expectations. Cruise and Diaz portray their characters excellently as there is a believability factor in the performances. From airplane explosions to being chased by furious bulls, there is never a dull moment in the film. Furthermore, the two acting veterans exhibit great on-screen chemistry.

Problems:
The flow of the movie could be better as some scenes end abruptly. If you’re not a big fan of action movies and loud explosions this won’t be a movie that will be of interest to you.

All in all:
Knight and Day is the perfect recipe for a good night out. It’s a full course meal of exciting action with a side dish of sizzling romance.

The Back-up Plan

1 Star

A very predictable chick flick.

Rating: PG
Stars: Alex O’Loughlin, Jennifer Lopez, Michaela Watkins, Eric Christian Olsen

What’s the story?
After many years of looking for Mr. Right prove unfruitful, Zoe (Lopez) decides to move on with her life. Making the decision to have a baby (or two) on her own, she decides to be artificially inseminated. However, as fate would have it, immediately after her insemination, Zoe runs into an unexpected catch – Stan (O’Loughlin). Initially hiding her pregnancy, Stan and Zoe begin to date. But after revealing her condition, Stan decides to stay by Zoe’s side throughout the hormonal fluctuations of pregnancy. Can this couple really survive nine months of hormonal chaos?

Why see it?
It’s been a while since we’ve seen J.Lo on the big screen, and rumour has it that this movie is her comeback. If you are up for a carefree, romantic comedy then you have chosen the right movie. Featuring a hunky beau and a beautiful girl amidst a charming story, this movie has date night written all over it. Both Lopez and O’Loughlin deliver heartfelt performances of their flustered, yet romantic characters.

Problems?
While charming, this romantic comedy is as predictable and formulaic as they come. Despite its somewhat promising storyline, the plot remains painfully thin. Not even O’Loughlin’s fit body can make up for this movie’s lack of plot. The originality of the premise is drowned out by an overdose of almost-funny lines and one-dimensional characters. There are absolutely no surprises in this movie as it hits every obvious note – including cheesy pop-music cues that signal the characters’ every emotion. Perhaps my expectations were too high, but as far as chick flicks go, this one falls short. Lopez’s return to the big screen disappoints.

All in all:
A charming, but formulaic chick flick.

Jonah Hex

2 stars

An unsuccessful attempt in bringing the supernatural anithero from his comic book to the big screen.

Rating: 14A
Stars: Josh Brolin, John Malkovich, Megan Fox

What's the story?
While fighting on the side of the Confederation during the American Civil War, Jonah Hex (Brolin) betrays his commanding officer, Quentin Turnbull (Malkovich), leading to serious consequences. After surviving the near death experience at the hands of Turnbull, Hex is given supernatural abilities allowing him to communicate with the dead. Following the news of Turnbull’s death, Hex focuses his energy on becoming a successful bounty hunter, but later hears that his oldest enemy has resurfaced with plans for a terrorist attack. At the request of the U.S military, Hex, with the help of prostitute Leila (Fox), embarks on a journey to stop Turnbull before it’s too late.

Why see it?
Josh Brolin delivers a strong, believable performance as the supernatural gunslinger, making up for the lacklustre performances of his cast mates. The film also brings some enjoyable action scenes and for those not familiar with the comic, an interesting story line about an antihero.

Problems?
Brolin's costars, Fox and Malkovich do not hold very strong performances and seem unable to keep Southern accents despite the setting of the film. At 80 minutes, the film is not long enough to tell a successful story and has far too many loopholes, unfortunately creating a very unsatisfied audience. Perhaps with stronger costars to keep up with Brolin, and a longer film, Hex could have lived up to its comic book movie potential.

All in all:
A barely satisfying portrayal of the DC comic.