The one with The Avengers

The first of the summer-comic-book-movies has been screened - The Avengers. A fan-boys dream come true. And I must say it was surprisingly fun.

I was a bit sceptical about the movie. I was worried about chemistry, screen time, character development and the flow of the story. However I was glad I was wrong.

Each character was given a fair amount of screen time and presence in the film. Though I believe Loki had more screen time than most and Tony Stark had the best lines especially with his verbal sparring with Steve Rogers.With Steve playing the patriotic soldier and Tony being himself, the clash of ideas really had an impact on the team. And their on-screen chemistry was beautiful.

Mark Ruffalo's portrayal of Bruce Banner surprised me. I for one really enjoyed Ed Norton's portrayal of Bruce, as he embodied the inner struggle he endured brilliantly. Mark played a Bruce who seem more in control of 'the other guy'.

My favourite character Thor was probably the most awesome of them all (yes, I'm biased). His early battle against both Captain America and Iron Man was one of my favourite scenes. Thor himself enjoyed watching both Steve and Tony go at each other. Also the Thor against Hulk fight was awesome. (Wonder if we would have a Hulk vs Wolverine soon?)

The other characters Natasha and Clint had their share of screen time too. The were normal humans who didn't have powers like their teammates. Nick Fury, Phil Coulson and Maria Hill had their screen time.

Come to think of it, Joss Whedon really did a good job developing the characters. Unlike the X-men trilogy where Wolverine was the main focus of the story.

The movie is about the different personalities of each team member and how they all came together to fight the common enemy.

My overall review for Avengers would be awesome and fun. Just enjoy the ride.

The one with The Dark Knight Rises teaser poster

The one with Toy Story 3

Hola amigos, un puesto de revisión de cine hoy. Pardon the Spanish, still influenced by the Spanish Buzz Lightyear mode.
Well Toy Story 3 for me is the best movie of the year. It is a very enjoyable movie. One of the highly recommended movies of 2010. And to think it was 15 years ago the first movie came out. It thrilled us then. The latest film deals with the situation where one outgrows his toys and saying goodbye to the toys we played with as a kid.
This film has a whole new range of characters as well as new environments. It even had a cameo of Totoro from Hayao Miyazaki’s My Neighbour Totoro. Yeah, got that from the list of easter eggs in the film here. Now that is one good read. People actually have time to analyze every frame.
My favourite new range of characters were the toys owned by Bonnie. The hedgehog, unicorn, triceratops and a doll. After reading the credits, you wouldn't believe the voices behind all the characters.
My favourite scene (as well as everyone) was the Spanish Buzz mode. A great barrel of laughs.
Also, this is one of the rare moments where I cried during a movie in a cinema. Yes, I admit, I cried. Two scenes towards the end of the film unleashed the waterworks.

So Toy Story 3, is the film for 2010. It was better than Ironman2 and will be better than the upcoming movie about the boy who lived and another about sensitive new-age vampires.

Overall Movie of the Decade Montage by IGN

The one with a great show

I believe the me who karaokes with a reckless abandon is back. Participated in a performance for the ages. One which had me sweating till my shirt soaked.
Pulled off a variety of genres. Pulled off a series of dance moves. I do hope everyone enjoyed the show. But I'm not a one-man show. The whole group made it fun. And with some newcomers, we showed them our brand of entertainment. Proved our versatility with rock and pop numbers especially boyband numbers. Since we had to dance along to it.
Wondered how to play futsal after that, but still had a great game. Wide open game, free-flowing futsal with a whole lot of goals.
Also managed to catch He's Just Not That Into You. An enjoyable movie for me. Some lessons learnt and I should really put them to practice.
So how was your weekend?

The one where 2009 begins

A great start to the year. I'm on a roll. But being 'Mr-the-glass-is-half-empty', I will be brought back down to earth with a loud thud tomorrow. Reason being, my first working day for 2009. Now to continue where I left off after tennis.
So went for my first movie for 2009. Went for Bedtime Stories. A movie which I enjoyed and even though it was a typical feel good Disney movie. Loved the humour and jokes both Adam Sandler and Russell Brand brought to the show. And I never thought I see Russell Brand starring in a Disney movie.
After tennis kicked off the year for me, futsal resumed as usual. The Saturday group started what would be the 7th year (I think) of the group. Can't believe we've been playing that long. Had a great game, and was in full flow, especially when you have teammates who are in the same wavelength. Banged in a number of goals for good measure, mostly finishing after some a breathtaking buildup.
The highlight of the weekend for me was Mamma Mia! Finally managed to catch the show. Actually, my friend Elina had a spare ticket and asked if I wanted to go. Well somethings you don't need to ask twice. So her friends loss was my gain. Since I myself couldn't get tickets. The show itself was a joy to behold. And at times (okay, all the time) I was singing along to songs. The audience itself enjoyed themselves as well as the cast. But who wouldn't, the energy was contagious.
Finally for my 2009 resolutions. Not that I made any, but for arguments sake I did. Mainly to be more of a 'yes man' and go out and try new experiences. And also, I want to try and settle down with someone. Or at least be in a steady relationship. Which itself could be a challenge for any other year.
Well lets see how the year pans out.

The one with the 200th

Well what do you know. Post 200 already. Should have been earlier, as time constraints is the main reason why. So what will it be about.
How about a double feature movie review. I manage to watch Quantum of Solace and Madagascar 2 these past couple of days.
The last movie that I was looking forward to for 2008. Being a Bond fan, this was highly anticipated after the success of Casino Royale. After all the hate Danial Craig received prior to Casino Royale, he convinced everyone that he was the Bond for the new age. Sadly, yes sadly the QoS didn't live up to expectations. I left the cinema saying to myself "what the hell was that?". First up, it wasn't even a Bond film. The stripped the essence of Bond movies and made it more into a Jason Bourne movie. Even the opening credits sequence was crap as well as the song by Jack White and Alicia Keys. Not one of their memorable works despite their accolades.
I was disappointed that Bond was less witty and didn't even have one of those one-liners which we all love. Gadgets wise there was nothing except a Sony Ericsson mobile phone which served as an advertisement. But gadgets wasn't really an issue as Q has yet to be introduced. Even Bond doesn't seem to say much. Just a lot of action sequences.
Even the villain wasn't villainous enough. I do know they want to do away with cheesy villains from Bond past. But at least have him commit a villainous act. And no, drowning Gemma Arterton's character in oil doesn't count, because we didn't see it. Even the villainous plot wasn't well developed. I think the whole idea was about water.
And one final complaint, Olga Kurylenko's character doesn't take her clothes off!
So to offset the 007 disappointment, I went for a movie which is fun. I went for Madagascar 2. It was a good laugh and enjoyable to watch. I guess I do really enjoy cartoons.
Oh well, that's about it I guess. Here's to the next 100.

The one with the Dark Knight

Finally the movie everyone been waiting for. Might I add the anticipation and hype was justified. The movie ran for around two and a half hours. And after the week I had, it was the best two and a half hours for me this week.
So where do I begin. Let's begin with the actor which made the movie what it is. The late Heath Ledger. His performance as the Joker was simply out of this world. I can't really think of any superlatives for his performance. His chilling display was reminisce to Anthony Hopkins performance as Hannibal Lector from Silence of the Lambs. And in my book, Ledger's rendition of the Joker is the best villainous performance of all time. When the Joker first appeared on screen it sent chills down my spine. And judging from his references for the role (Clockwork Orange and The Killing Joke to name a couple), he really played the part to heart. A lot has been said about a posthumous Oscar for Heath. And seriously I wonder who can really top what he did as the Joker.
As for Christian Bale, his Bruce Wayne/Batman role was an internal struggle. He didn't want to be Batman forever, and longs to be just Bruce Wayne, billionaire playboy. With the character introduced in Batman Begins, this movie sees Batman delve into the detective role. Even had a scene which was very CSI-like. He had great chemistry with all the the other co-stars and played the Batman/Bruce Wayne voice very convincingly.
As for Gary Oldman and Aaron Eckhart, they both want the same thing, but they have different ideas. The Batman-Gordan-Dent team-up see Gordan play a bigger role in this movie than the previous one. And Eckhart's Dent too like Batman/Wayne was an inner conflict. Only after having half his face burnt did he play the Two-Face role to perfection. Even like Bale, he had a different voice.
Maggie Gyllenhall played the role as the love interest for both Wayne and Dent. And the end she had to break someones heart. With the help of Alfred, that someone didn't have to find out.
Morgan Freeman and Micheal Caine's role as the eyes and ears for Batman was one of the show stealers. Both had a array of witty one-liners.
Also William Fitcher of PrisonBreak had a small cameo early in the film.
As for the film itself, it was just bigger, better and longer. The storyline was well thought of and only in the end did we know the Joker's true motives. And the last showdown between Batman-Two-Face-Gordan defined the Batman role Bruce had to face.
Now I wonder how they are going to top this one for the third movie.

The one with the suprise birthday karaoke

Another long week. Another tiring week. Another week where I want to go on killing rampage. As the Fraternity code says "kill one, save a thousand".
Well as the first paragraph suggests, I watched Wanted last night with the entourage. May I say it was an action packed film, with hints of the Matrix. I believe those who read the comics would be disappointed as a lot has been changed in order to make it Hollywood. Among them was the costumes, as the characters were all portrayed in daily attire. Would have love to see Angelina Jolie in the cat-suit like costume her character dons in the comics. Also the movie really defies the law of physics. Unless someone can prove to me 'curving the bullet' is possible.
After the movie, it was suggested we head to the teh tarik place for post-movie drinks. Upon arriving, we were all "invited" to karaoke by a friend was was already there. Opening the door "SURPRISE!!!" by everyone. Even my birthday cup-cakes were lit. Well my birthday isn't until Sunday, but they wanted to do an early bash. So to Farrish-Ida, Shah-Faizah, Shahreza and Suraya thank you very much. I didn't see that one coming. Well planned.
As for the karaoke, well it was us being us. Rocking the night (or is that morning) away.

The one with another quiet weekend

I feel I must be on some losing streak here. Then again thats nothing new. So after my Lakers were defeated in the quest for the NBA title, my Dutch team bowed out of the Euros.
Guess the team faltered after all the hype, especially the way they dominated the group stages. Guess it just was not meant to be. Despite going a goal down, we pulled back to even the score with four minutes left. Then late in extra-time we conceded two goals and were sent packing. Not to mention the numerous sms-es I received especially from the Italian fans.
Before the game futsal Saturday was one of the great games. I wore my new Holland jersey and scored some great goals. Most of which are uncharacteristically me. Most of them were long range efforts. But since I couldn't find an open teammate due to good defending my the opposition I made use of the space given. And the guys are agreed they had a great game.
Managed a double feature at the cinemas this week. Get Smart and Made of Honor. Both were great entertainment and good for a barrel of laughs. Especially Made of Honor. Didn't expect to enjoy since to me it was My Best Friend's Wedding in reverse. It was also the typical, the right one is always right in front of you except you just don't know it until its too late story. As for Get Smart, they captured the essence of the TV series without trying to be the TV series. They made it fresh while staying true the what made the series a joy to watch. They even had those classic one liners.
Besides movies and futsal, my weekend was pretty much quiet.

The one with the incredible movie

It's a great time to be at the pictures again. After the Kung-Fu Panda flick last week, we are treated to another movie of incredible proportions. Yes, finally The Incredible Hulk is here. One way, way better than the Ang Lee crap a few years ago.
This movie is another one of those reboots. Similar to what Batman Begins was doing. Making you forget about the previous film. Eric Banner as Bruce Banner was good, but with a script that sucked, he couldn't save the movie. So enter Louis Leterrier and Edward Norton in attempt to reboot the franchise. And may I say they did one hell of a job. Ed Norton always seems to bring in something extra to all the roles he has played. So when I heard he was casted as Bruce Banner, it seem like a perfect fit for me. Liv Tyler makes a return after I last saw her in the Lord of The Rings trilogy. Now it seems like being in comics film adaptation is the 'in-thing' dude to the relatively large fan-base.
Go catch the Incredible Hulk and you will finally enjoy an overdue Hulk movie. And also, there is also a special cameo appearance. No, not Stan Lee, you know he is always in these Marvel movies. And no its not Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury either. Go find it out for yourself.
Next up for the month of June, Get Smart next week and Wanted the following week. And another month before the one we have been waiting for (I know I am), The Dark Knight.

The one with Speed Racer

Surprisingly I had time on my hands after work today. So I thought of checking out what was new at the cinema. This weeks new releases include What Happens in Vegas and Speed Racer. I opted for the latter so I wanted to see how the Wachowski brothers messed this one up. Yes, I believed they made a mess of one of the cartoons I watched as a kid after seeing the trailers. Hey, they did mess up Matrix 2 and 3.
First of all and surprisingly I enjoyed the movie. It was quite fun to watch. The movie itself was very colourful despite all the CGI animation. The racing action was mind-blowing (please ignore the laws of physics while watching). Despite the length (2 hours) the movie was enjoyable.
What do you know, another short post. Good night.

The one with IRONMAN

Lets see if I can write a full movie review. And probably spoil it for everyone in the process. So the entourage went to watch Ironman at the usual cinema and also our usual seats.
I have to admit, I'm not much a fan of the comics, but at least I know who's who in the Ironman world. I probably more well versed in the Superman and Batman universe.
First of all I have to say I totally enjoyed the film. Hard to find faults or complaints. I even talked about it with the Earth638 guys, and they say overall they got it right. The movie didn't stray too far from the original comics. The filmmakers kept it true to the form fans loved.
I for one totally dig the iron suit (although it is suppose to be titanium alloy). The colours were spot on and the red, was a very nice red. Hot-rod red as they call it now. I believe soon it will be in in-colour for 2008. The special effects of the armour had a Transformers feel to it. I also the scene where the suit was put on. The way the armour was put on was wicked, so sophisticated. And when he wanted to take the armour off, well it had calamitous results.
For the cast of the film, I must say they couldn't have casted it any better. Robert Downey Jr felt at ease playing himself as Tony Stark. The rest of the cast played their role well. Terrence Howard had a scene which would excite fans about the sequel. He saw another armoured suit and said the lines "next time baby". Meaning, hopefully he will don the armour of War Machine for the sequel. An unrecognizable Jeff Bridges delivered a master baddie performance. Guess its always easier to play the villain than hero. And finally Gwyneth Paltrow played the ever-loyal personal assistant to Tony Stark.
Also this movie is not without their "product placement". Mainly the culprits here are Audi and Burger King. BK being the obvious early in the film, when after Tony Stark escaped his captives, the first thing he wanted was an American cheeseburger.
Finally for those who are planning to watch, as usual Marvel movies always seem to have an extra scene after the credits. Here we are introduced to Nick Fury who is the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division). And he was played by none other than Samuel L. Jackson. He mention the Avengers to Stark. Guess Marvel is really planning something big in the near future.
So that's the beginning of the summer blockbusters. Next up, Indiana Jones 4.

The one with Definitely, Maybe

Well I believe this post was suppose to come prior to the karaoke post. Then again, just like the movie, I'll work my way backwards. By the way, I watched the movie twice.
First of all its not your typical romantic comedy. Its not the typical boy meets girl flick. Still it does have a happy ending. Its more of a 'whodunnit' film, where the main character tells his daughter on how he met the mum. And the daughter has to figure out which one of the three ladies in his life is the mum. By the way the parents are going through a divorce, and the daughter wants to help her father find happiness.
A very lovely film if you ask me. Explains why I watched it twice. As for the connection and whether it relates to me in real life, I have no idea. The movie kind of tells the story that the right one has always been in front of you, except you just don't see it until its too late.
Another short post, guess I'm keeping it short and simple these days.

The one with the Persian film, Cease Fire

A new first for me. Catching a Persian film at GSC International Screens. I was recommended to watch this film by my colleague. And may I say, a very excellent film.
Well I'll give a brief description about the film, as it has very limited screenings. It starts as a married couple looking to file a divorce. The wife Sayeh arrives first, followed by the husband Yousef. The wife was looking for the divorce lawyers office, only to end up at a therapist's office. The therapist, hang on, if you put a space between the e and r you will get the rapist, interesting. Back to the story, the therapist takes an interest in Sayeh's case and asks what is wrong with the marriage. So she tells what the couple goes through. The therapist advises that the marriage can still be saved. After Sayeh leaves the office, Yousef comes by the therapist's office demanding to know what his wife was doing there. The therapist then hears the story from Yousef's side of the story. He then advise the couple to take a break from each other and during the break, he provides the couple a video of how to help mend things, by looking within themselves. He guides them through the process with a series of exercises of understanding one's self. To me that was cleverly done.
The movie itself shows a modern Iran. The married couple driving European cars (BMW and Pegeout), working as engineers, in a very modern crib with very posh furniture.
And below I want to share my favourite scene from the film. One of their many childish antics against each other.

The one with Step Up 2

Well post karaoke, I acted like nothing happen. Move on as well as play dumb at work. Went for a double feature last night. Went for Kung Fu Dunk and the French film Paris Je T'aime. Well being a basketball fan, I thought of giving Kung Fu Dunk a try, since there isn't really a lot of basketball films. As for the French film, well it had Natalie Portman and a host of other stars playing small roles in a collection of short films.
Earlier today, I went for Step Up 2:The Streets. Have to say it was one hell of a movie. I really love the energy in the movie and the dance moves are off the hook. There are times during the movie I feel like just getting up and dance. Then again I should save myself the embarrassment due to the absence of rhythm. All the performers really did a great job in the film. To pick a favorite dance sequence would be hard. But my pick is the last dance sequence, which was done in the rain. The was sick.
One character really caught my eye was Andie West played by a 'how you doing' Briana Evigan. Guess you can say I fell in love with her during the show. Did some research on her and she was the Linkin Park video Numb. Her dance moves were great. Reminds me of a certain Sophia Boutella. Well except Sophia is one hell of a dancer with moves that I couldn't even imagine. Didn't know it was possible to bend your body that way. Look up Sophia on YouTube and you'll know what I mean. Well back to Briana, I wouldn't put her in the Sophia category, but she's getting there.
One last note, had a sense of deja vu today. Help send another friend to the hospital after a futsal injury. I myself don't know what to say. I believe I posted something on rough play in futsal once, and you know how I feel about the issue. As for my friend, no broken bones but suspected torn ligaments (well everyone on the court heard a 'clack') and he would require a follow up on Monday.
As for me, the next karaoke session, I probably rock it Step Up 2 style, in the company of my close friends.

The one with the Jumper

Hello my beloved readers. Been some time since my last post. Reason being running our of ideas and nothing interesting to post and nothing deep enough to post. Been trying to find something inspiring to write, but words are just so hard to come by. Its a whole lot easier for me to express myself in futsal and basketball.
Anyways, ever since I played futsal, I notice the art of celebrating goals is lost on some players. I think I'm the only player who just loves to celebrate goals. Don't know why, but its just something that kicks in once I smash the ball in the net. The most common I do these days are Robbie Keane's forward roll and Kaka's pointing to the sky. Some amazing goals do deserve some worthy post-goal-show, like taking off the shirt and twirling it around ala David Ginola. Goal celebrations is an art of expression.
Went to check out the movie Jumper today. Enjoyable movie with cool special effects. However the story could have been written in a better way. Still Rachel Bilson provided eye candy just as she does in OC. As for the Star Wars reunion. Samuel L Jackson still does what he does best, and as for that guy who played Anakin Skywalker, well he did show some improvement from his wooden performance in Star Wars.
Oh yeah, totally forgot to wish you all a Happy-Commercialized-Valentine's Day.

The one with the long Chinese New Year break

Happy Chinese New Year to all. Also a very long break for most of my fellow countrymen. A long weekend which began on Thursday. Well the entourage didn't make arrangements to go somewhere but still manage to hang.
Started with a bang on Thursday. Where the entourage came and rocked Red Box Plus Pavilion. The first time we rocked there as a group. However most of us got the timing off. We took the lunch package as it was reasonably priced but guess some people partied too hard the night before. Still we manage to rock the joint. Overall we loved the place, mainly to the cordless mics and sound system. With the cordless mic, there wasn't any tangled wires and spilled drinks. As for me, I really went loose.
Had lunch at Friday's which had poor service. Food was ridiculously slow. Then we headed off to Starbucks Uptown (the new one next to HSBC) for coffee. We just chilled as well as deciding our next move. Decided to catch a movie. We were torn between Rambo and The Eye. In the end Jessica Alba won (which to me was a no-brainer, but don't know why some prefer to watch Rambo).
The rest of the break was just hanging out with the entourage. And I manage to kill some time reading at MPH One Utama and Borders The Curve. Was reading a book about the Star Wars Extended Universe. Didn't read about the Jedis, just went straight to the Siths. Read up on their history and why there is only two, the master and the apprentice. The chapter went on until Darth Vader. Didn't explain what happen after Episode 6, but you can look that up on the internet.
Also the drawback of this long weekend, I really pissed away a lot of money. On food, Starbucking as well as reading material. Don't really want to know the damage in dollars and cents.
And tomorrow is Monday. Crap.

The one where we met the demon barber from Fleet Street

What a week it has been. Mainly sad news, due to the death of Heath Ledger and Megat Junid. And also sad due to the fact that Roger Federer wouldn't be able to come one slam within Pete Sampras's record after being ousted in the Aussie Open semis. At least the women's final later between Ana and Maria should be a mouth-watering clash (my pick Ms Ivanovic, its an adidas thing).
Well last night the entourage went for Sweeny Todd. One hell of a movie. Very Tim Burton-esque with the dark gloomy backgrounds and blood. The film was a musical so you get to see Johnny Depp sing. Well the dude can sing, as well as give on of the closest shaves you'll ever get. The thought does send chills through your spine and good thing I shave myself. Wouldn't want Mr Todd as my regular barber. As Calvin (from Calvin & Hobbes) once said "never argue with a man who holds scissors" (something like that).
After the movie, we all went nuts. Must be due the fact we were all lacking sleep. We were all singing after that. More like having our conversations in musical mode. (Mental note to self, never go for musicals with friends).
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to shave.

The one with Cloverfield

Movie review post. Went to catch Cloverfield last night with the entourage. I at first wasn't to keen on going, after reading the reviews say the monster didn't really live up to the hype. But I came out of the cinema feeling the movie was refreshing, even though only myself and Farrish shared the same view, the rest were very disappointed.
First of all the movie is Blair Witch meets Godzilla. The whole movie was just a camcorder recording of the whole night. I was very intrigued with what camcorder they were using, since in my calculations the whole movie took space in 12 hours. Very good battery life and very durable. The cast were all unknowns to give that regular citizens feel. You can see the panic (as well as one very irritating character) just trying to survive. As for the monster, I was expecting more actually. And I still have no idea what it is. Which is meant to be the whole idea. The idea was we were never meant to understand the movie on the outside. Just what was going on through the minds of the main characters. We don't know where the monster came from or what it is. We don't know what happened at the end to Manhattan. We don't know what became of the monster. What we know is what was seen through the lens of the camcorder. You have to understand the movie from where its coming from to understand the movie.
By the way the movie was only an hour twenty minutes long.