One recent movie that has been receiving no publicity but is amazingly brilliant is The Illusionist. It is odd that such a good movie with mostly positive reviews receive absolutely no publicity at all. I didn't see any of the cast on late night talk shows or a preview of the movie on TV. The first time I heard about the movie was when someone asked me for a show I was interested in watching an hour prior to the showtime. My choice then was The Black Dahlia or The Illusionist. Knowing that The Illusionist comes from the producers of my recent favorites, Crash and Sideways, I naturally picked The Illusionist.

The movie tells a story of Eisenheim the Illusionist (Edward Norton) in the turn of the century Vienna where a rivalry exists between the magician and the Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell) who is bent on exposing Eisenheim as a fraud. The rivalry is further intensified by Duchess Sophie (Jessica Biel), a future consort of the prince and a love interest of Eisenheim. I especially like the character development of Paul Giamatti's character, Chief Inspector Uhl, from a petty agent of the prince to an honorable, rational detective who eventually become an Eisenheim's sympathizer. I actually found myself respecting and even empathizing with Uhl even more at the end of the story. And for Eishenheim, he is ultimately portrayed as the anti-hero of the story who strives to pit his values against those of the insecure prince. Ultimately, it is his talent in the arts of manipulating the truth or maybe even the supernatural that dazzles and tricks us into Eisenheim's game. The movie has a great cast and entertaining plot. I highly recommend the movie.

10/7/2006 2:49:42 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Eimear, Karine, Camille, and I watched the Squid and the Whale. And no, the movie is not a documentary about squids and whales. However, you will undoubtedly understand the origination of the title at the end of the movie. I mostly enjoyed the movie but do find certain parts a little disturbing. The central theme of the movie mostly revolves around the 2 children whose lives were dramatically disrupted with the separation of their parents. There is one technical flaw in the movie that pesters me a lot. The movie is set in 1986; yet I kept seeing the modern versions of Subaru Outlook and other car models in the movie. I attribute this to the film's low budget. So it is no big deal. Overall, I like the movie. I give it a 7.5 out 10 rating.

1/28/2006 11:08:24 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)

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I really enjoy the movie March of the Penguins last Saturday. Although the movie is labeled as a documentary, I prefer to call it an inspiring, heart-warming, and heartbreaking drama of love against all odds. Watch as the Emperor Penguins walk 70 miles inland in frigid -30F temperature to procreate. But the mating ritual is the easy part. Once the female lays her eggs, she transfers the egg to the male for stewardship before marching back to the sea to feed. The father remains at the breeding ground and is given the responsibility of looking after the egg. For the next 3 months, these male penguins will go without food and brave the harshest winter on Earth with temperature dropping down to -80F and with winds reaching hurricane level of 100 mph. Nonetheless, the community of penguins will collectively do whatever it takes to survive the harsh winter by huddling together for warmth while tending the egg within their pouches. There are heartbreaking scenes in the movie where the parent penguins watch their young ones confront the perils of the weather and of predators. On the other hand, the movie is a powerful movie given the penguins' defiance to the cold and their love for their young ones. Just earlier today, I was complaining about winter while walking home in 35F and 10mph winds. If I only have even a quarter of their resilience, I would be satisfied. So don't think of penguins as cute, little creatures. They deserve more respect for their resilience. I give this movie an 85% rating.

12/12/2005 11:56:12 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)

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With the war looming in Iraq and the current political discourse on America's dependency on foreign oil in a post-9/11 world, it makes it all more relevant to watch Syriana, a serious movie about the politics of oil. Last friday, l went to see the movie with Camille and Brian. My take on the movie is mixed. As you would expect, this movie relates to the human fragility of greed. In the struggle for wealth and power, tragedies and betrayals are inevitably the norm not the exception. I enjoy this aspect of the movie where I am able to step in the vast, complex world of the most powerful industry on Earth. I also like the shuffling of between scenes of lawyers and oil men brokering deals in Washington and the disenfranchised Pakistani migrant workers in the Middle East However, there are 2 things that I don't like about this movie. While I don't see the type of self-righteousness (something that I detest) that is often pervasive in many political tinted movies, I do find several aspects of the movie largely exaggerated. Another problem that I have with this movie is the large number of storylines that unfolds during the movie although at the end of the movie, the storylines were weaved together quite nicely. Nonetheless, you can get a quite lost in the middle of the movie especially with such a complex background and numerous disparate characters to contend with. Overall I enjoy the movie as it makes me think about the questions of U.S. energy and foreign policies in a post-9//11 world. I give it a 70% rating.

12/11/2005 2:22:02 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)

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Today, I have just found a new incentive for blogging - getting the opportunity to review films. An independent film director, whose name and film I am going to withhold, emailed me yesterday about getting me to review his film. He said that he has been reading my blog and would like my critical inputs on his film before its release in the fall. Also, I have just discovered that my blog is now featured on Milkplus - a blog dedicated to the review and discussion of films. Wow, both discoveries are big surprises for me as I never consider myself a film buff let alone a film critic. All I did in the past 6 months was writing a few short commentaries on the films that saw. Nonetheless, this is exciting news as it represents an opportunity for me to critique films and practice critical writing.

7/27/2005 12:42:42 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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The influence of the Hitchhiker Guide to the Galaxy (HHTTG) is so profound in today's pop culture consciousness and other aspects of life, that even if you have not read the book or seen the movie, chances are that you have encountered the following in some point in your life:

1. Asteroid Douglasadams was named after the author of HHTTG.
2. The Minor Planet Centre of the International Astronomical Union also named an asteroid Arthurdent after the main character in HHTTG, Arthur Dent.
3. Radiohead's song Paranoid Android pays homage to Marvin the Paranoid Android.
4. Radiohead's album, OK Computer is a reference to a phrase uttered by Zaphod Beeblebrox.
5. The popular instant messaging program, Trillian was named after a HHTTG character of the same name.
6. The popular online translation website, Altavista Babel Fish is named after the Babel Fish, a parasitic organism that is used as a translator, in HHTTG.
7. One of the most popular message boards on the Internet is GameFAQs' Life, the Universe, and Everything, which was named after the third book in The Hitchhiker's series.
8. South Park's Towlie often says, "Don't forget to bring a towel," an obvious nod to the sound advice of The Guide.
9. The game "GoldenEye: 007" features the "Mostly Harmless" multiplayer award for player who earned the least kills in a match. In HHTTG, "Mostly harmless" is the revised entry used to describe Earth.
10. The online children's game Neopets features an item called the Pan Galactic Gargle Slushie. This is the kiddie version of the The Hitchhiker's Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster. According to the guide, the Gargle Blaster is one the best (and most dangerous) adult beverages in this or any other galaxy.

Sources:
http://stuffo.howstuffworks.com/
http://www.google.com/
http://www.msnbc.com/

6/24/2005 12:59:26 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Movies

When you regard someone's work with high esteem, your expectation of his/her work goes up. But what happens if his/her work does not live up to your expectation? Utter disappointment and maybe betrayal. Well, that's how I felt after I saw "Star Wars: Phantom Menace" a few years ago. Last night, it was Howl's Moving Castle, although it was more of a disappointment and no betrayal.

Howl's Moving Castle, which was adapted from an English novel by Diana Wynne Jones, is still a great animation with delightful visual textures and out-of-this-world imagination. But compared to Miyazaki's recent works, this movie is a disappointment. The cause of my disappointment lies in the continuity and pace of the story. Like Roger Ebert, I found that the weird and incoherent events and characters introduced in unlikely parts of the story disrupted the continuity of the plot. Halfway through the film, the plot becomes unclear and I found myself getting a little impatient even for a Miyazaki movie. The worst part (spoiler alert) was the plot development in the last 5 minutes of the movie. I rank it to almost to the same level of corniness as that of the dialogue between Skywalker and Amidala in "Star Wars: Attack of the Clones." Overall, I still like the movie because I am sucker for Miyazaki's work just I am for Lucas's. Would I recommend the movie? Well, only if you are a fan of Anime or Miyazaki. I would recommend Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke if you haven't seen any of Miyazaki's films.

6/19/2005 5:47:59 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Movies

I have been watching a movie every weekend in April. I saw the Uber-violent Sin City two weeks ago. I thought that the cinematography and story plot was cool but the violence was unnecessary and just too graphical even for my standards. My verdict for Sin City is, watch it if you like violence. On the other hand, if you are looking a date movie that has something to do with Boston or the Boston Red Sox, then Fever Pitch is the movie for you. I saw the movie last week and I thought it was alright. The plot outline of the movie is about Drew Barrymore's character who is stuck in middle of her love relationship with Jimmy Fallon's character and his passion for the Boston Red Sox. I saw Kung-Fu Hustle last night and I really enjoy it. Thankfully, the movie is in Cantonese and thus retains the comical context of the movie. I have been a fan of the lead actor, Stephen Chow, for many years and have seen many of his movies before, so I am glad that his movie is finally making into America. However, I wasn't sure if the American audience was fully ready for his brand of humor. Judging from the audience's laughter and ticket sales last night, I think the response was good. Watch this movie if you love humor and kung-fu.

4/24/2005 11:46:15 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Movies