House of Wax

cast: Elisha Cuthbert, Chad Michael Murray

The good: huh?
The bad: oh the stupidity
Six people decides to camp out in the woods but when a car problem forces them to venture into a seemingly prosperous small town, well, everything goes wrong.

The town isn't what it looks like and before Carly (E. Cuthbert) discovers that the town is a ghost town with people turned into wax figures, its too late and in typical Hollywood horror fashion, her friends die one by one.

Since this is a American horror film, stupidity and the usual "da-da-da-YAAH!" scenes abound. There's nothing here that you haven't seen before so if you're still interested, then be not. The film just feels like a lame excuse to show Paris Hilton in her undies and though she's rarely glimpsed at in the film (thank heavens), the movie feels made for her - which is bad.

If there's any redeeming factor (but only a tad bit), its that Elisha Cuthbert and Chad Michael Murray are both fine actors and the last 10 minutes where they desperately struggle to survive a beautifully visualized melting house of wax are quite enjoyable even though Chad Michael Murray's sudden transformation into action-hero character seems out of place. But that doesn't change the fact that this movie is a pathetic excuse for a film (1/5)

Area 51

The good: initially interesting story
The bad: lack of variety all-around
I've always been fond of matters concerning the extra-terrestrial. I remember eagerly awaiting episodes of UFO Diaries (remember?) when I was a kid in HBO. So the news of a FPS with alien touches greatly intrigued me but now that I've played it, I'm not intrigued anymore.

Set in the notoriously mysterious Area 51 base, where all kinds of alien research supposedly takes place, the game dishes out a fairly interesting story arc beginning when an infection gets out of hand and turns everyone into alien/monster hybrids. You're sent in to investigate as part of a HazMat (Hazardous Materials) team and you quickly discover that not everything is what it seems in the base.

At first, the game seems to be a squad based affair but alas it is not. Your teammates soon die one by one leaving you alone to wander around the base. And since there is an extremely limited set of enemies and characters to see, you'll soon get lonely (or bored). Adding to the variety problem is an even more limited assortment of weapons to fiddle around with. You'll only have access to a pistol, assault rifle, shotgun, sniper rifle, and two alien guns with only two kinds of grenades.

One thing I did like is looking for and scanning hidden items which are scattered across the levels which gives you access to files and secrets in a databank. Too bad though because the rewards aren't really very interesting so there's no incentive to look for them all (although its easy to finds all 90).

Graphics are quite nice although sometimes the game appears too bright which lessens the creep-factor. Voice acting (David Duchovny and Marilyn Manson) is really quite pathetic with both actors feeling sleepy and bored. The game isn't horrible by any stretch but with better games out there, why bother? (3/5)

Madagascar

cast: Ben Stiller, Chris Rock

The good: genuinely funny
The bad: voice acting is so-so
I'm not a big fan of 3-d animated films but I enjoy them once in a while. Madagascar falls in my list of enjoyable animated films with its zany humor, gorgeous visuals, and adorable characters.

Ben Stiller voices Alex, a lion so engrossed in his fame as the premier attraction of a New York zoo that he disregards the idea of returning to the wild. Meanwhile, loud-mouthed zebra Marty, voice by comedian Chris Rock, desperately wants to experience life in the wild and would do anything (even braving the streets of New York) to get there. Two other characters, a hippo and a giraffe, round up the main cast.

Voice acting is decent at best although it thus reach some high points. The voice behind the lead penguin, the squirrel king, and the British-voiced monkey are all top-notch but dragged down by less-than-stellar voice acting by the two leads, Stiller and Rock.

Music is engaging but forgettable with some nice accompanying songs to forward the on-screen action. And as I said, the visuals are as usual fantastic with nicely rendered and animated animals frolicking around in the screen. Script is tight with funny dialogue but lacks the luster and character of other animated flicks.

Madagascar is a highly-enjoyable, if all-too typical, animation which isn't as good as Finding Nemo, but just as good as The Incredibles, and definitely much better than Shark Tale. (3/5)

*Fun Fact: David Schwimmer (Friends) is the voice behind the giraffe character.

Unleashed

cast: Jet Li, Morgan Freeman

The good: surprisingly strong drama elements
The bad: surprisingly weak action elements
Jet Li plays a trained (or groomed) martial arts experts who wears a collar which when released, 'unleashes' the beast within him. He is manipulated by a local gang boss who uses him and treats him like a dog.

Powerful in its dramatic elements and lacking in its action sequences, Unleashed is more of a drama as it is a kung-fu film. For instance, much of the story revolves around the transformation of Jet Li's character from ice-cold fighter to a kindly innocent young man after he is treated and taken care of by a blind piano player (Freeman) and his adopted daughter.

The acting is the strongest highlight of the film with Jet Li and Morgan Freeman wonderfully acting side by side with the former in his innocent and curious demeanor and the latter as a all-too kind and caring father figure. The acting gives serious life to the lengthy story elements. In fact I found myself enjoying the dialogue bits more than I did the fight scenes.

Speaking of the fight scenes, they are scattered moderately throughout the film but they never take center-stage. They provide the trademark Jet Li acrobatics and skills but you've seen far better than this.

The movie is coated with a distinctly gray lighting effect which adds to the overall feel of the film.

Surprisingly above-average and dramatic, Unleashed is one of the finer Jet Li films out there and is a good watch for any bored movie-goer. (4/5)

*Fun Fact: Bob Hoskins (the gang boss) last appeared in the craptacular Son of the Mask as Odin.

La Visa Loca

cast: Robin Padilla, Johnny Delgado, Rufa Mae Quinto

The good: competent all-around
The bad: not really all that good
La Visa Loca tells the story of Jess Huson (R. Padilla), a local taxi driver whose ambitions to go to the U.S. has been repeatedly frustrated by the U.S. Embassy's refusal to grant him a visa. By chance, he recognizes an American tv host/producer who happens to ride in his taxi. The producer just happens to have a brother-in-law who owns a nursing home in Florida and promises to recommend Jess to him if Jess finds a candidate who is willing to get nailed in the cross.

First off, the movie is indeed good and is a nice break from all the lovey-happy, teenage flicks that we're accustomed to. However, I'm not gonna rain too much praise on this movie because it doesn't deserve it. Don't believe the local critics, this film ain't no Crying Ladies.

What it is though is an all-around competent production, with generally decent acting, unfortunately stymied by a lousy script and non-descript cinematography.

The film has its great moments - moments which will make you laugh seriously hard - but these moments are few and far between and the dramatic elements fail to give additional impact for the moviegoers. The underlying relationships between Jess, his father (played brilliantly by J. Delgado), and his former girlfriend (Rufa Mae Quinto in another "I'm stupid" performance) lack the emotional strength which other comedy/drama hybrids have.

This is a not-so special but otherwise decent offering by our own producers and is something that Filipinos should not be ashamed of paying good money for. Now, if only I could say the same about other Filipino films... (3/5)

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

cast: Hayden Christensen, Ewan McGregor, Samuel L. Jackson

The good: bridges the gap between the two trilogys
The bad: still disappoints
George Lucas makes sure that Ep. 1 and Ep. 2 aren't repeated in Ep. 3 delivering a grandiose close to a well-beloved saga.

As you may know, Ep. 3 tells the story of how Jedi Anakin Skywalker embraces the Dark Side and becomes Darth Vader. There's also a war going on but that's not the focal point of the story.

The previous two Wars were largely criticized for lack of action and too much sleepy dialogue. The third episode features more lightsaber action just as the fans hoped. However, it doesn't feel like there is still enough action primarily for two reasons. First, there's still too much sleepy conversation scenes with at best decent acting with Anakin's inner struggle much too played out. Second, many of the battle scenes are slow, boring, and anti-climactic. Take for instance the initial space battle, there's a large fleet of warships on both sides battling each other but focus is unfortunately given to the Jedi spacecraft of Obi-Wan and Anakin. Also, during a battle between a Jedi Master and a Sith Lord in the middle part, it feels like an underwater lightsaber duel with slow moves and poorly choreographed action. I have gripes with the other fight scenes as well but these two are the biggest offenders.

Music also disappointed me because the music is still only suited for the actiion scenes leaving what should have been majestic dramatic moments feeling flat with no emotional backup to stir things up a bit.

Not all is wrong with the Force though as George Lucas still delivers a damn fine piece of work which is enjoyable to the bitter end.

You'll still be mesmerized with the special effects, be dazzled with the inherent coolness of the Jedi and the Force, and be intrigued with the magnificent universe of Star Wars, you'll walk away from the theatre feeling both satisfied and disappointed but the film still delivers as a triumphant close to an epic saga. (4/5)

*Fun Fact: Who is the only actor to appear in all 6 of the films? Why, its Anthony Daniels, or more appropriately, his voice as C-3PO of course.

Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening

The good: stylish action
The bad: ridiculously difficult
Half-human, half-demon Dante returns once again to kick demon butt and this time its his butt which gets kicked more.

Right off the bat I'm gonna tell you that this game is excruciatingly initially difficult. I'm talking about several retries in even the first few levels so casual gamers stay away. I guess the developers listened to everyone's comments about the 2nd Devil (which was too easy) and upped the difficulty ante by several levels.

Stay with the game though and the rest of the game wouldn't feel as hard. In fact, if you go back to the levels and bosses that you've fought before, you'd wonder what made you nearly throw the controller in the first place. The action is appropriately frantic and stylish with crazy moves and combos. New to the game is a 'style' system where you get to choose from several styles which augment Dante's assortment of abilities. For example, choosing the gunslinger skill will allow Dante more moves for his gun repertoire while the trickster option (the best choice btw) will let Dante dash etc. However, most of the styles are pretty much useless as with most of the abilities which they provide. You'll only really use the trickster style and that's too bad.

Enemy types are lacking with only a few similar-looking monsters. The levels are also very disappointing, looking a lot like the levels in the first DMC with few variety. It doesn't help that the game forces you to do a significant amount of backtracking which is always a downer.

The moment to moment action is still fun although you'll find yourself running away from the enemies more than fighting them because even the regular enemies takes too long to kill and deals out too much damage. Good thing that the story is quite interesting and the cinematics are some of the coolest ever (I sure hope that a DMC movie is in the works) or I'd have given up in frustration.

For the next DMC, I'd like a more manageable difficulty level, more gun and sword variety, more enemy types, better level design and real puzzles (the puzzles here are a joke), as well as the chance to play as tomboy-hottie Mary. (4/5)

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

The good: superb production values
The bad: more detailed explosions would've been nice
Being a veteran of three of the past 4 Ace releases ( I missed the 4th installment), I was quite expecting another quality air-time in this latest release. To my surprise, Ace 5 isn't just the quality flight combat game that I was expecting, it turns out to be one of the most enjoyable videogame experience of my life.

Ace 5 tells the story of two countries in the brink of a major war. You play as Blaze, young captain of Sand Island Squadron which just happens to be the first line of defense in the coming war. The story is told through numeruous and quite lenghty FMVs which are nothing short of beautiful as well as in the constant radio chatter during missions. And trust me, the story and the underlying characters, relationships and events is as chilling as any movie you'll see.

Missions are abundant and are varied enough that you won't feel as though you've played a mission before. You get to choose a wide assortment of real-life planes which are detailed to a almost picture-perfect detail. If only I could say the same about the terrain and explosions detail then this game would've been unbelievable. (5/5)

In Good Company

cast: Dennis Quaid, Topher Grace, Scarlett Johansson

The good: good story
The bad: identity problem
Dennis Quaid plays an over-protective father who just got demoted when a business tycoon reorganized his newly-acquired business. Meanwhile, Topher Grace is a young, business hotshot who suddenly becomes the boss of Dennis, who's job he now has. This presents an interesting story which while not be groundbreaking, is enjoyable to the end.

But let's deal with the problem first. The film isn't really too serious to be called a drama, nor not too funny to be classified as comedy, and its romantic elements are thankfully subdued which makes this not romance. So it's a dra/com/rom which isn't unusual because a lot of movies are a mixture of genres. The problem in this film is that it never feels that all the elements mixed well and it comes to the expense of the film being unclear.

Now the film is still very enjoyable although if I have to say, this has stronger drama elements so don't expect to laugh your socks off. Acting is admirable with Dennis Quaid very convincing as the businessman-father while newcomer Topher Grace is charming as the goofy but surprisingly competent young boss while Scarlett Johansson is a treat just by herself. The film does tackle serious issues like bottomline thinking and layoffs in corporate America culture but it never feels grim, just serious. I'm afraid though that this is one of those films were moral issues like divorces, and pre-marital sex are sidelined in favor of just going about with the story.

Not really a special film by any stretch but a good watch on a slow afternoon. (3/5)

Mercenaries

The good: action-packed missions
The bad: needs more gameplay mechanics
You're a mercenary on the employ of a private military organization who sends you to war-torn North Korea to capture its dictator leader. This backstory, while interesting at first, takes a backseat to all the gunfire, explosions, and just sheer mayhem which you'll inflict - through a wide assortment of guns, vehicles, and heavy firepower - on the North Korean mainland.

Comparisons to the Grand Theft Auto games are inevitable. You'll wander around two expansive maps choosing missions in any order you like, collecting and destroying this game's equivalent of GTA 'packages', and completing missions in a pretty much non-linear fashion. But this isn't really a GTA-type game. This game is far more action than plot-oriented unlike that game and the available options for your character is more varied and expansive here.

You have at your disposal the standard collection of firearms and support items like rifles, grenades etc. but the interesting gameplay mechanic here is that you have access to radio support which may be in the form of supply drops (medical supplies, ammo, even vehicles) and more importantly, heavy firepower assistance. Yup, for a price you'll be able to order artillery barrages, cruise missiles, bunker buster bombs and all sorts of other stuff which makes things go boom! And since every building is destructible here, there's lots of opportunities to witness fancy explosions.

Since you're a mercenary, you'll be able to choose which of the 4 warring factions you'll help. But be it the Allies, the South Koreans, the Chinese or the Russian Mafia (the NoKors are the only real enemy), you're ultimate goal is to kill or capture the so-called deck of 52 which are the military and scientific leaders of NoKor. You'll earn money for every kill, capture or successful contract which you'll spend in radio support.

I just wish that there were more to the game. There's a lot of potential here like having to buy more permanent upgrades to your arsenal, squad-controls, more tangible effects of the disparity between the factions and on a more technical side, better draw-in distance especially when in the copterts. But as it stands, Mercenaries is still one of the best action games I've ever played. (5/5)

The Amityville Horror

cast: Ryan Reynolds, Melissa George

The good: appropriately tension-filled
The bad: just isn't very engaging
A remake of a from-whatever-age film about the supposedly true events of a family terrorized by demonic forces in a suitably creepy house, this film bucks the trend of contemporary horror and presents a bubblegum level of enjoyment... if a bit too shallow.

The highlight of the film is in the acting performances of the two leads. Melissa George gives a convincing portrayal as the mother of the family who has become disturbed by all the strange occurrences in their newly occupied house. However, giving the best performance of his not too broad career is Ryan Reynolds as the step father. His character seems to relive the past tragedy which befell the former occupants of the house and he both looks the part and plays the part (even if its weird that his character has full abs), brandishing a dastardly wicked set of eyes which adds all the more tension to an already high-stress film.

If all you're looking for in a horror movie is a few hours of tension well then this movie is just right up your alley giving a good dose of the usual pop-out-of-nowhere horror filled with increasingly disturbing demonic apparitions. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of engaging storytelling as there really isn't anything to the story rather than the initial premise. The little mythos towards the end helps little in producing a sense of character for both the important events leading up to the story and the film which chronicles it itself.

So what comes of as a visually engaging horror flick just becomes a forgettable two hours of...I forgot. (2/5)

*Fun Fact: Ryan Reynolds is Canadian and Melissa George is an Aussie.

Suikoden 4

The good: well it bears the Suikoden name
The bad: boring battles; much too short quest
The Suikoden series is one of my favorite RPG series of all time so its no secret that I was eagerly anticipating this latest installment. I quickly ignored the Dreamcast-quality graphics in hopes of an epic, and long quest (as the Suikoden series is known for) as well as looking for the 108 characters as usual.

But the battles quickly halted my excitement as you only get to use 4 characters at a time instead of the usual 6 which limits use of the many characters you'll assemble not to mention the chance of finding character combos which is a gameplay mainstay of the series. The world map is the biggest offender though requiring you to haul your slow as molasses ship across huge expanses of water battling random encounters every 5 seconds. Its good that battles with the unimaginative enemies are quick and easy. Naval battles which serves as the army battle of the game also disappoints with its overly simple mechanics and too-easy bouts.

However, all this could have been forgiven if the quest was longer. This is the shortest Suiko ever taking only only about 25 hours if you don't take time to complete all 108 characters. This wastes the majority of your playable characters as you get to recruit the majority of them in the last stretch of the game when you won't have the chance to use them anymore.

This is one of the most disappointing games, RPG or not, that I've ever played and it saddens me that one of my favorite series is tarnished in this way. The sequel better be explosive. (3/5)

BloodRayne 2

The good: interesting story
The bad: less focus on gunplay
The first Rayne pitched the titular character against hordes of Nazi henchmen and vampiric enemies in an effort to stop vampires from reigning dominion over men. You spent equal combat time using your blades and various World War era guns to lay waste to your enemies. The sequel continues the interesting storyline (this time she's hunting for her vampire siblings) but ditches (in a way) the gunplay.

Instead of the assortment of guns that you picked up everywhere in the first game, you'll only have access to one gun - dragon pistols - which will be upgraded with various mystical attachments as you progress through the game. The dual pistols effectively serve as normal pistols, machine guns, shotguns, rocket launchers depending on which ammo type you choose. The problem is that ammo is counted as a blood reserve which can be replenished by feeding on enemies. When you run out of reserves, the gun drains from your health to fire.

Since much of the first half is littered with only pathetically weak enemies, most of which can be killed just by feeding on them and executing one of several feeding fatalities, there's very little use for your pistols. In fact, standard swordplay is also rare because harpooning enemies into environmental hazards is far quicker and more fun. Speaking of harpooning, the game relies too much on harpoon puzzles where you have to harpoon several enemies on an obstacle to progress like when the still spinning rotor blades of a downed chopper is blocking your path. And while its fun for the first few times, it just becomes plain annoying when you have to do it in almost every level.

Level design doesn't help matters any - their generic (how many sewer levels do we need?), devoid of innovation and repetitive. For example, in one level I've lost count of just how many lifts I took in order to get to the top. Graphics are also a downer because they're only technically decent and aesthetically quite ugly.

But that's not to say that the game is horrible; far from it in fact. Boss battles are great requiring use of your vampire abilities (which you'll rarely use in standard levels), and the second half of the game dishes harder and more interesting enemies like ninja vampires. Its too bad that just as you're starting to get immersed in the story and gameplay, the game ends abrubtly at only around 7 hours. (3/5)

Shadow of Rome

The good: gruesome combat
The bad: lame stealth sequences
Capcom has always been known for its gory games. In fact, they seem to have the trademark for the "contains explicit violence and gore" warning before every game title screen. Shadow of Rome, an action title set in gladiatorial era Rome is no exception.

The game is divided between two characters, and you'll get to play them in alternating sequences of the storyline. Agrippa, who is the burly Roman General turned gladiator (hmm where did I see that?), handles the action sequences while friend Octavianus sneaks in and out of Roman locales.

The stealth sequences do a good job of advancing the storyline as well as giving players a break from the more stressful and blister-inducing fight sequences of Agrippa. However, Metal Gear Solid this game ain't and the stealth here is passable at best. Compared to the gladiatorial contests, Octavianus' part seems underdeveloped and limited.

But the fast. exciting, and ferocious combat that you'll undertake in the action part of the game is one of most purely visceral you'll ever experience. Heads are cut off; limbs fly like houses being demolished by a tornado; and blood is spilled whenever a sword is swung. And with a wide variety of ancient weapons (the halberd being especially gruesome), and different takes on the gladiatorial rounds (hostage rescue, animal fights, team battles), the main game never really gets old. Boss battles are especially fun, each requiring serious skill and strategy to be beaten - weekend warriors need not enlist or you'll be crying at the hardships you'll have to endure in this game.

This game is quite long too taking me over 18 hours to finish. For the sequel, let's hope Capcom give more life to the boring stealth sequences while taking the action part to the next level. (4/5)

Princess Mononoke (Mononoke Hime)

The good: wondrous story
The bad: the ending is...lacking
Mankind's appetite for consumption has taken its toll on the nature and as a result, a war between the forces of man and the forces of nature is ensuing. Meanwhile, a young man named Ashitaka kills a boar-god in defense of his village. He becomes infected with the evil which enveloped the god and he sets out to try to find a cure.

At over two and a half hours, Mononoke tells a dazzling tale about the conflict of men and nature. And as such, the animated gloss gives way for a serious adventure which has significant parallelism with our times. How can mankind co-exist with nature? What responsibilities do we have? These are just some of the questions which will pop up in your mind as you witness the unfolding of the tale.

It helps greatly that the animation is as usual wonderful with extremely creative touches not present in most other animation. Hollywood has a long way to go before it reaches the level of animated story-telling which Japan has in droves.

If you stay away from the lackluster English dub (Claire Danes is merely decent, and Billy Bob Thornton is horrid) you'll find a film, which may not be as great as Grave of the Fireflies and Spirited Away is still right up there with the best films, animated or not, of all time. (5/5)

*Fun Fact: The film is top 132 in IMDB's list of the top 250 movies of all time.

Need More Books

I love books. I really do. There's nothing like the exciting feeling you get as you flip through the pages eagerly awaiting and anticipating what's gonna happen next. Its too bad that books are so expensive and I'm left to scrounge up for second-hand books which are about 1/3 of the sticker price. The only original title that I have is Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code which I find appalling for religious reasons.

My favorite authors are Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton. Clancy for his military and political novels and Crichton for his mixture of suspense, sci-fi, and imagination. Clancy novels that I've read are as follows: The Hunt for Red October, Red Storm Rising (which JRF still haven't returned), Patriot Games, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, Clear and Present Danger, The Sum of all Fears, Op-Center, Op-Center: Mirror Image, Op-Center: Games of State. Crichton novels would be: The Sphere, Congo, Disclosure, Airframe, Jurassic Park, The Lost World.

I'm currenty reading Dreamcatcher by Stephen King.

TimeSplitters: Future Perfect

The good: great graphics; smooth gunplay; fantastic humor
The bad: short-lived single-player experience
If I rated this game based on its humor alone, I'd have to give it a 5, but as a game, well, the title fails just short of the mark.

Gone are the multiple characters that you play as in previous Splitters in the main campaign. This time, you get to play exclusively as Vin Diesel-lookalike Cortez for the 13 levels of the quest. The story, while nothing special, is filled to the brim with extremely engaging humor courtesy of some weird Scotsman and a robot with a 'tude. However, you'll stop laughing when you realize how pathetically short the game is. I finished the game in both the hard and normal modes, completed all the challenges and the arcade league matches and all it took me was a measly 12 hours.

Its too bad because the graphics are a sharp improvement over the previous Splitters and the gunplay is more fun than ever thanks to the myriad of guns ranging from six-shooters to high-tech plasma guns of the future. The main game also benefits from a new time-warping gimic where you'll experience a scene playing as 'past' Cortez and then later on as 'future' Cortez. Its a fun gimmick which should be done more often in other games.

As it is though, Splitters is still a fun game especially if you have friends to play with but the short but sweet single-player campaign lives a lot to be desired. (4/5)

Syphon Filter: Omega Strain & Musashi: Samurai Legend

The good: lots of weapons and missions
The bad: respawning enemies
Note to developers: next time you're gonna include cheap, respawning enemies who reappear just after you've killed them, DONT! It takes away completely the fun of disposing of them in the first place thereby removing the need for gunplay in favor of just running past the baddies. It also doesn't help the lock-on system is useless as you can empty and entire gun clip at point blank range without hurting your enemies. The incomprehensible plot which would make Tom Clancy dizzy rounds up the entire package. (2/5)



The good: nice cel-shaded graphics
The bad: much too formulaic
You hack, you slash, beat boss, explore town, talk to townsfolk, repeat, rinse, and sleep. That's basically all there is to Musashi and unlike its PS1 predecessor, there's no charm nor character here. Granted most games have a formulaic set-up, the beauty is when you don't feel like there is a formulaic set-up. It doesn't help that your skill-duplicating abilities (imitate enemies' combat moves) is pretty much useless as you can defeat enemies using just your sword rendering most of the skills useless. Enemies, of which there are about 5 just with different skins, poses no real challenge as do most of the bosses. Which means, that without any worthwhile secrets, the game is only 15 hours long maximum which is actually good since the repetitive nature of the game will wear you out after only a few hours. Too bad because I really loved the first Musashi. (2/5)

Kingdom of Heaven

cast: Orlando Bloom, Evan Green, Liam Neeson

The good: marvelous production values
The bad: littered with so many pointless scenes
Director Ridley Scott tries another Gladiator and succeeds...yet fails at the same time. He brings us again to ancient times this time around during the period of the Holy Crusade when Jerusalem was at the center of it all and Christians and Muslims where at it each other. Production values-wise, this is one of the most breathtaking films you'll ever witness beating similar war epics like Troy, Alexander, even the glorious LOTR trilogy. Everything from the helmets, swords, banners and flags, to the mesmerizing sets depicting Jerusalem and its neighboring towns and fortresses are brought to life in grand fashion; and when you witness the armies of both sides assembling and preparing for war with the gold cross glistening at the background, you'll appreciate what Hollywood artisans are truly capable of.

But everything is almost for naught as the film itself is boring, and crammed with pointless dialogue. Gladiator, the better work of Ridley Scott was also filled to the bones with dialogue but everything made sense and all merged into one big picture. Kingdom, on the other hand, feels more like Alexander (without the gays) with its superfluous scenes about the hero's struggle which never really takes center stage despite getting so much focus. The problem lies with the film's identity: is it about a man struggling to find God and rising up to serve him once more? or is it about the nature and history of the Crusade itself? Without an answer to this, the film goes two ways and tries unsuccessfully to inject both into itself.

Adding to the problem is Orlando Bloom's less than stellar acting coupled with his boyish looks which distracts from the otherwise grim and brooding feel of the film. Liam Neeson plays another master-who-imparts-knowledge character but his service is...well..very short. Also, I nearly laughed when the film turned from a serious narrative about the period into a conspiracy by evil royals to take control of Jerusalem (why does every Hollywood film have to have a bad guy? Can't they learn from their Asian counterparts?).

Watch if only for the thunderous battle sequences and grand production values. (3/5)

*Fun Fact: The commander-turned-king Marton Csokas of the film is also the baddie from the first xXx and Mr. Smith towards the end of Kangaroo Jack. And if you're wondering who the voice is behind the mask of the Jerusalem King, well its none other than Edward Norton.

Casshern

cast: biggest names in Japan (supposedly)

The good: how many times can you say, WOW!?
The bad: boring first half
In the near future, a scientist has discovered a way to rejuvenate dead corpses but government leaders, fearing the discovery, turns down the project. But of course, someone out there is probably interested in the secret and when all hell breaks loose with the project, mutant-humans suddenly rebel against the government. Insert Power Rangers-wannabe Casshern and you'd have the makings of a kick-ass action/sci-fi/drama flick.

And yes, I said drama. Because underneath all the fancy 3d and gloss (more on that later), the story is really ripe with serious moral, ethical, and emotional discussion and sadly much of the first half is dragged down by these. But when it comes to the action, oh boy, trust me you have never seen anything like this. Casshern beats the living hell out of any Hollywood flick when it comes to presenting a seriously uber-cool atmosphere pampered with the trademark Japanese anime flair which would make even your girlfriend drool. The film also uses a Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow-esque film style where actors play out on computer-generated imagery and the effect here is much, much better than that film.

From the Dante of DMC lookalike main baddy (well, he's not really bad), to a scene where that character dresses himself in a flag with the camera panning for a wide shot of the bustling metropolis, to the way Casshern slices vertically a poor robot with again the camera zooming in close-up to his face, Casshern just screams "Coolest movie ever". If you don't believe me, just check out the trailer at rotten tomatoes.com and see if you're not interested.

With 20 minutes more action and 20 minutes less dialogue, I would have given this a 5, but you know what, I'd give it just that. (5/5)

*Fun Fact: Utada Hikaru fans should now that the theme song for the movie is Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro. Also, if anybody finds a dvd copy with english subs of the film, let me know asap!

90 and counting

I've had my PS2 for around 3 years now and I've played and finished quite a number of games. I've finished 90 games so far and 14 unfinished for varied reasons including broken disc, loss of interest, and my favorite, "this is too freakin' hard" (ahem, grandia extreme). I would have played and finished more if not for financial barriers and a few months of non-playing (I didn't play a single game for one semester and then for about 3 months when my unit broke); plus the fact that I also have a life to live. I've listed the games which I have completed by genre and I'll be reviewing new games as soon as I've finished them so wait for that. And, oh yeah, my favorite genres are FPS, RPG, Adv, and Strat/RPG, but I've completed so much more action games because there are so much more action games being released. Go figure.

First-Person Shooters (FPS)
- Goldeneye: Rogue Agent; Medal of Honor: Rising Sun; Rainbow Six 3; Project: Snowblind; Ghost Recon: Jungle Storm; Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Operation Resurrection; Killzone; Ghost Recon; Timesplitters 2; Mace Griffin: Bounty Hunter; Medal of Honor: Frontline; Warhammer 40k: Firewarrior; James Bond 007: Nightfire.
Role-Playing Games (RPGs)
- .Hack: Infection; Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits; Shadow Hearts; Shadow Hearts 2: Covenant; Xenosaga; Legend of Legaia 2; Summoner 2; Suikoden 3; Grandia 2; Final Fantasy X; Final Fantasy X-2; The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age.
Fighting
- Capcom vs SNK 2; Tekken 4; Virtua Fighter 4.
Simulation
- Harvest Moon
Action/RPG
- Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance; Baldurs's Gate: Dark Alliance 2; Kingdom Hearts; Dark Cloud; Dark Cloud 2; Dual Hearts; X-Men Legends.
Adventure
- Silent Hill 2: Paradise Lost; Silent Hill 3; Restless Dreams
Strategy/RPG
-Shaman King: Power of Spirits; Front Mission 4; Disgaea: Hour of Darkness.
Strategy
-Kessen 2; Pacific Theater of Operations 4; Kessen.
Action
-Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater; Megaman Anniversary Collection; 007: Everything or Nothing; Blood Will Tell; Psi-Ops: Mindgate Conspiracy; Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone; Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando; Zone of Enders; Shinobi; The Getaway; Maximo vs Army of Zin; Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas; Enter the Matrix; Bloodrayne; Samurai Warriors; Ghosthunter; Gungrave: Overdose; Dynasty Warriors 4; Ape Escape 2; Twisted Metal Black; Robotech Battlecry; The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers; Grand Theft Auto 3; Tenchu 3: Wrath of Heaven; Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow; Splinter Cell; Grand Theft Auto: Vice City; Hitman 2; Maximo; Winback: Covert Ops; Tribes: Aerial Assault; Starwars: Battlefront; Ratchet and Clank; The Bouncer; Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.
Action/Adventure
-Extermination; Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time; Legacy of Kain: Defiance; Onimusha 3: Demon Siege; Castlevania: Lament of Innocence; Rygar: The Legendary Adventure; The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring; Headhunter; Run Like Hell; Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny; Devil May Cry.

Can this be Love?

cast: Hero Angeles, Sandara Park

The good: tell me if there's any
The bad: that people are fooled to watch this crap
What justifies a 1 rating for a film? Bad Acting? Bad cinematography? Bad storyline? Boring fight sequences? Well, movies sometimes deserve even a 2 with all those negatives combined. What makes a film deserve a piss-poor 1 is when it is utterly unwatchable, put-you-to-sleep-boring, and "I wanna get out only after 30 mins" crap, that's what.

It is really of no surprise that a Filipino film turns out to be bad. But even Let the Love Begin wasn't this bad. I can forgive the bad acting, I can forgive the hodgepodge of TV stars and personalities, I can forgive the false assumptions and the cultural mistakes (Koreans getting eeky on intenstinal foods? Come on they eat live scorpions for crying out loud!), I can forgive Hero Angeles sporting a long hair-do even though he's a nursing student, I can even forgive the again blatant advertising (paload nga 25, my number is ....), but what I can't forgive is the penchant of Filipino networks in releasing one bad romcom after one bad romcom. And they say the Filipino movie industry is dying because of piracy, yeah right!

Filipino movies are crap, pure and simple, and this film is a testament to that. Sad that other Fil films like Jose Rizal and Crying Ladies have to share the same "Filipino Film" title as this one. (1/5)

*Fun Fact: there is no fun to be had in this film.

Hana and Alice (Hana to Arisu)

cast: Yu Aoi, Anne Suzuki

The good: funny, cute and distinctly Japanese
The bad: some dragging moments
When friends Hana (Suzuki) and Alice (Aoi) develop a crush on the same boy, they soon get entangled in a series of events which may just break their friendship. And incidentally, their crush gets amnesia after banging his head against a low hanging shutter. Hana, sensing an opportunity, decides to fool the boy into thinking that she is his girlfriend.

While the plot could have been made in Hollywood, everything else about the movie could not. From the gorgeous Japanese backdrop, to the silly humor, and a style which just screams "totally Japanese!", you'd wonder how you are able to watch the same old, same old Hollywood romcoms.

Anne Suzuki plays admirably as a desperate teen desperately trying to keep her crush on her side through desperate means which often plays out in desperate scenes. However, Yu Aoi steals the film from under her nose not just because she is utterly beautiful, but because her cute, innocent candor warms my heart. The movie is clearly geared towards the female audience but boys should not be left out if only to see Yu Aoi. The movie is really very unique and different from what you've accustomed to and its done in a very polished manner.

That's not to say that the film is without fault: the film suffers from a dragging middle part when you see only Hana for an extended period of time and then only Alice. Also, the script is ripe with references to the boy's amnesia and the girl's attempt to create a false past. The girl's say so many "this is where we first met, remember?" lines that the boy would have guessed already what's going on. These are pithy gripes though and the film as a whole performs charmingly. The ballet scene at the end alone is worth watching the whole movie for. (4/5)

*Fun fact: Yu Aoi is now officialy my crush. If you happen to find a copy with english subtitles of this film, contact me immediately please!

The Interpreter

cast: Sean Penn, Nicole Kidman

The good: two Oscar winners in one movie!
The bad: as political thrillers go, this one fails to impress
When Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman stars in the same film (don't really like Kidman though), you should expect something special. And acting wise, the film delivers with Sean Penn's usual troubled character role and Nicole Kidman's surprisingly cool accent. The rest of the film, however, ain't nothing very special.

United Nations interpreter Silvia Broome (Kidman) overhears a planned assassination attempt to a visiting African nation tyrant in a UN meet in the near future. She turns to Secret Service agent Tobin Keller (Penn) and the whole "is-she-telling-the-truth-or-just-making-it-up" twist starts. However, since the film is billed as a political thriller and not a psychological thriller, this twist is useless because its obvious that there will be an assassination attempt. Furthermore, its very easy to guess what's gonna happen next which is always a bummer. I was cursing the director for directorial mistakes early on when I felt I already knew most of what's gonna happen (and I was right).

But my movie-guessing skills aside, the story really isn't all that exciting, although it ain't half-bad either, its just plain generic with none of the tension and intrigue you'd expect from a political thriller. Also, that label is also a bit misleading because the political side is woefully underdeveloped in favor of Silvia's past and role in the upcoming events (wink, wink). Sadly, the mediocrity of the script and the directing only serves to supplant the otherwise noteworthy acting performances of the two leads. (3/5)

*Fun Fact: Sean Penn's story partner, Catherine Keener, also played Al Pacino's ex-wife and Evan Rachel Wood's mother in S1m0ne.