A Nutshell Review by daface

last SG · 2005-05-29T10:42:43+00:00

A Nutshell Review: I Hate Valentine’s DayI haven’t seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding from start to end, but from what I gathered from scenes, Nia Vardalos is qui...

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Island

This review is brought to you courtesy of a movieXclusive.com preview session, without which I won't be able to write this so soon.

The Island is the latest summer blockbuster offering from director Michael Bay, who brought to you other loud actioners like Bad Boys, The Rock, Armageddon, Con Air and Pearl Harbour. But what's different in The Island is his departure from long time collaborator Jerry Bruckheimer, and an attempt to explore a bit on human morality and ethics.

While I won't say that this exploration is thorough, it does invoke some thought when you're watching the film.

Continues at my blog...

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Stealth

The loud music and high octane action from the start of the film make no apologies that this is how a summer popcorn action movie should begin. Rob Cohen, famed for his previous directorial action flicks The Fast and the Furious, and xXx, again weaves his magic in thrusting (pardon the pun) relatively unknowns into carrying the burden of delivering an adrenaline pumping film for the masses.

Continues at my blog http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

Do check back at my blog for links to other reviews I've done on Seven Swords (+ press conference) and Wedding Crashers

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Roald Dahl wrote countless of books, many of which I grew up reading in secondary school. There are many of his works adapted for the screen as well (The Witches, Matilda), but none so far given the Tim Burton treatment.

The opening credits/scene has Burton's fingerprints all over - the imaginative sequence, the gothic soundtrack (done by long time Burton collaborator Danny Elfman), mammoth weird looking architecture and snow filled landscapes.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Bewitched

"I'm a witch!" and with a wrinkle of the nose, an updated version of the classic television sitcom hits the big screen with the pairing of Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell as screen couple Samantha and Darrin Stephens respectively.

Well, just not quite

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Napola

Napola refers to elite military National-Political Schools, set up to train promising young German talents into potential future leaders for the Third Reich - Man makes History, but Napola makes the Man. Set at the peak of Hitler's Nazi regime in 1942, this film explores the very different lives of two youths enrolled in such a school, and exposes some of the difficult training programme that these youths are put through.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Valiant

Lending his voice to an animated feature film the second time this year, Ewan McGregor "stars" as the title character Valiant, a pee-wee little pigeon whose aspiration is to join the Allies' Royal Homing Pigeons brigade in WWII. You see, it's not the size of your wings, but the size of your spirit, the mantra in which he subscribes to.

continues at the blogsite below!

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: George A Romero's Land of the Dead

The maestro of zombie films, George A Romero, is back with his latest offering for the Dead series - Land of the Dead.

The Universal Pictures logo also underwent transformation back to the good ol' days (the 20s), and the film opens with a quick news monologue montage to update the audience that it's basically zombie land out there in the world...

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: March of the Penguins

This film is a celebration of life, love, danger and death, as seen through the eyes of Emperor Penguins in the Antarctica. Most people will come to know of this documentary from its quiet successful ascension on the American Box Office.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Innocent Steps

Na Young-sae was once touted as the best dance trainer in Korea, and was in contention for another trophy during the national dance competition, until dirty underhand tactics by rivals ruined it all for him. Seeking a comeback, his manager and him hatched a plan to import a foreign talent from China, Jang Chae-rin, to partner with him and reclaim his spot at the top.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Red Eye

If you've seen the trailer for Red Eye, it's one of the most misleading in recent times. It started off with serendipity romantic type moments of boy meets girl at the airport, then meet each other again at the airport lounge, and yet again they find themselves seated side by side on the aircraft. Until Cillian Murphy's eye goes red, and the trailer ends.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: 36

The opening in 36 has got to be one of the more arresting (pun not intended) starters in a movie I've watched in some time, especially if you're a fan of Euro-electronica, where a catchy tune paces the multiple action happening on screen.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Longest Yard

The Longest Yard is one of many remake movies that Hollywood has churned out in recent years. Others did well, like Charlie's Angels, while some fumbled, like Bewitched. This Adam Sandler movie, helmed by director Peter Segal (who also worked on Sandler's Fifty First Dates), managed to keep afresh the already familiar material.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: A Bittersweet Life

This is a revenge movie, pure and simple. When it comes to this genre, the protagonist usually has some injustice (loosely used here) done unto him, and therefore unleashes hell upon those who incurred his wrath, who of course, failed to finish him off in the first place.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/bittersweet-life.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Be With Me

This is the third feature length film of internationally renowned local director Eric Khoo, and given the hype of this film's response in Cannes, I'm sure many in Singapore are eager to watch it, given that Eric Khoo's last movie, 12 Storeys, was a long 8 years ago.

Following the previous film's narrative structure, Be With Me features 3 stories (In my humble opinion, I'd like to consider it as 4 actually) carefully strung together, each with a strong common theme of loneliness, love, despair and longing. Given that the 3 stories each touch on different kinds and stages of love, I'm certain the audience can identify with it at certain points in the film's time.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/be-with-me.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Night Watch aka Nochnoy dozor

After Bimmer, which I enjoyed, this is the other Russian film that has hit our shores. Simplistically put, this is the first of a fantasy-thriller trilogy, about the eternal fight between good and evil forces.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/night-watch-aka-nochnoy-dozor.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Brothers Grimm

Let me begin by saying that director Terry Gilliam's films are an acquired taste, and usually don't go down well with the average moviegoer, including myself. While films like Twelve Monkeys were easier to grapple with, general audiences may find cult favourites like Brazil and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen less palatable.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/brothers-grimm.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Cinderella Man

Yet another boxing movie on the heels of Ali and Million Dollar Baby you might add? Yes, and agreeing with Runyon, this movie, director Ron Hward's second collaboration with Russell Crowe (the first being A Bueatiful Mind), about the Depression-era boxer Jim Braddock packs a wallop like Ali and brings on some sniffles like Baby.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/cinderella-man.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: A Sound of Thunder

This film was rooted deep in production problems, and at long last it has finally made it to screen. I got to admit I watched it because of the tacky theatrical poster of the dinosaur, less sophisticated than its US version of a fossilized butterfly. While I thought this would be another Jurassic Park, and kept my expectations low, it turned out to be a jolly entertaining movie, though a bit formulaic.

continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/sound-of-thunder.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Myth

This film was pretty hyped up for many reasons. Jackie Chan, after the relatively successful return to HK movie industry with the release of New Police Story, teams up once again with Stanley Tong (Rumble in the Bronx) for starters. Tong wrote the story of The Myth, casting Jackie Chan in a never seen before role (yes, audiences are tired with his cop roles already) as a Qin dynasty general. What's refreshing too is that the role requires the use of a real weapon (a sword in this case), rather than having JC's character improvising with tools from his environment.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/myth.html

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Four Brothers

A kind old lady is murdered in cold blood one snowy night in a convenience store. It seemed like the usual stick up by racist hoodlums on the hard streets of Detriot, and that the lady was collateral damage.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2005/09/four-brothers.html

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