Jaws (Movie Review)

I am very sure that by now pretty much everyone and their grandmother's cat has seen Jaws at least a half dozen times. Ironically, it wasn't until a year ago that I finally saw this 1975 classic for the very first time. And I was immediately surprised by its ability to deliver the thrills despite its age.

Amity Island is a summer resort town that thrives on its main tourist attraction, its sandy beaches. Unfortunately for its inhabitants and tourists alike, its waters are about to be declared unsafe. Following the discovery of the mangled remains of a young woman, it is discovered that a shark had wondered towards the coastline. But due to the effect such news would have on its community, the tragedy is downplayed as a boating accident. However, the lid is blown wide open when a second victim falls prey to the shark, and the boy's mother places a bounty on the shark's head.

There is a frenzy as a large number of bounty hunters race against one another to do the shark in. And a tiger shark is killed in the process, and the crisis seemingly resolved. But following further examination of the first victim's remains by a marine biologist, it is determined that the shark responsible for the attacks is much larger than that captured. Now three men (a police deputy, a marine biologist and a shark hunter) must board a boat and set off in pursuit of the great white shark before it claims any more victims.

Considered to be the first ever summer blockbuster, Jaws is regarded as not only one of Steven Spielberg's finest, but as highly influential too. It paved the way for movies like Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but still manages to retain its place amongst such classics. And while it might be lacking in the acting department (at least by today's standards), it still boast some pretty solid, edge-of-your-seat action.

Inglourious Basterds (Movie Review)

A little disclaimer, ladies and gentlemen; I am a big Quentin Tarantino fan. Wait. Scratch that. I am the biggest Quentin Tarantino fan there is. Over the years, he has left us with cult classics like Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill. But hands down, his finest piece till date, his "masterpiece," has got to be 2009's Inglourious Basterds.

Set in a Nazi-occupied France in the dying moments of World War II, the movie tells the story of two separate efforts to burn down a cinema full of high-ranking officers of the Third Reich. The first is by the owner of the cinema, a woman that has every reason to hate the German soldiers. Her name is Shosanna (Mélanie Laurent), and she is a Jew under the guise of a new identity in Paris. Her family was hunted down by the German soldier, Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), a man popularly referred to as The Jew Hunter. And now she wants her revenge.

Then we have the Basterds themselves, a group of Jewish-American soldiers who have managed to strike fear into the hearts of the German soldiers. They are led by the charismatic Lieutenant Aldo Raines (Brad Pitt), a man to whom each member owes "a hundred Nazi scalps taken from the heads of a hundred dead Nazis." Having also learnt about the premiere of a German propaganda movie right there in France, and the attendance of prominent members of the Third Reich, the Basterds plan on infiltrating the event, and bringing down the building with as much explosive firepower as they can smuggle into the place.

This is one movie just oozing with perfection. It does not belong in a cinema, or on a DVD, but in an art gallery somewhere. It should be placed there as the definitive example of how to make a great movie. I could go on and on listing everything I loved about this film, but then we'd be here all day. So instead I'll just say that this movie has some of the best dialog I've heard in any film, and I found myself hanging on every word, most of which were spoken in French and German (with subtitles of course).

There are a few movies out there that simply demand a second viewing for you to fully appreciate them. Inglourious Basterds is such a movie. But regardless of whether you've seen it before or not, this movie never loses its ability to blow you away (no pun intended).

The Hurt Locker (Movie Review)

I think the above poster says it all really. According to wikipedia, "it is one of the most acclaimed films of 2009." It garnered a total of 9 Academy Awards nominations at the 2010 Oscars, going on to take home 6, including Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Picture. And why not, when you consider that this post-invasion Iraq War thriller is not only suspenseful, but eye-opening to boot.

The Hurt Locker is easily one of the most realistic dramatizations of the War in Iraq out there. And rather than trace the lives and actions of a mobile infantry like its peers, the movie focuses on the activities of three members of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit. Jeremy Renner plays Staff Sergeant William James, the leader of the unit. He is a man who is clearly good at what he does (diffusing unexploded bombs) but generally sucks at being a person. Or at least so we are led to believe.

James' daredevil persona actually conceals a childlike vulnerability, one that is revealed when he forges a friendship with a bootleg DVD salesboy named Beckham. And though there is initially some tension between him and the other members of the unit, the three men eventually form a bond that transcends their differences. But when Beckham is revealed to be caught in the snare of the war-torn city, James is willing to go to any lengths to make sure the perpetrators pay with their blood.

One of the most memorable scenes in this movie was the desert ambush, a scene I must have rewatched at least a hundred times now. It was a tense, long-distance battle between snipers, and the tension of that scene alone more than captures the overall tone of this movie. And that is what sets The Hurt Locker apart from others like it, that ever-present fear of an uncertain future, the knowledge that one stray bullet is enough to put an end to any of these soldiers.

The Hurt Locker is quite simply a fine example of quality filmmaking. The movie grabs you from the very first scene and doesn't let go till the very end. And even then it leaves you very much relieved and also wanting more, all at the same time.

Gattaca (Movie Review)

"Like many others in my situation, I moved around a lot... getting work where I could. I must have cleaned half the toilets in the state. I belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. No. We now have discrimination down to a science."

Those were the exact words spoken by Ethan Hawke during his opening monologue for this 1997 science-fiction movie. Gattaca explores the concept of genetic discrimination, through a depiction of our future that is not only possible, but dangerously close at hand.

In the not-too-distant future, geneticists have perfected the science of eugenics to the point that parents are able to select exactly what traits they would like their child to inherit. Through the further manipulation of genes, all likelihood of certain diseases and health disorders can be completely eliminated. The result of this advancement is a dystopian society where those born through this selection process (valids) are given preference over those born naturally (invalids).

Ethan Hawke plays Vincent Freeman, an invalid harboring dreams of becoming an astronaut and going off into space. The problem is while he does have the brains and will to fulfil that dream, he does not have the requisite DNA. Not only was he born myopic, he also has a heart disorder that puts his projected life expectancy at a little over 30 years. But he is determined and so he contacts an underground agent of sorts who introduces him to Jerome Eugene Morrow (Jude Law).

Jerome is a valid with an exceptional genetic profile who got crippled in a car accident. He is willing to let Vincent impersonate him by lending him blood and urine samples to enable him gain admission into Gattaca, the agency responsible for space exploration. The plan works but things become complicated when a murder occurs at the space agency, just days before the launch date of Vincent's seminal mission. The place is soon crawling with forensic detectives looking for the killer and Vincent's chances of being exposed as an invalid increases exponentially.

What I love most about Gattaca is its look and feel. It has this 1950s/1960s aesthetic which both manages to be futuristic and old-school at the same time. A good example would be the computer terminal displays that pop up whenever a blood sample is analysed for identification purposes. Then there are its powerful themes and message which we experience as we follow Vincent's struggle to prove his worth (as stipulated by Jerome's DNA).

If you are looking for high-speed car chases and massive explosions, then kindly look elsewhere. But if you are willing to trade those things for a movie that would stay with you long after the credits roll, then look no further. Because that is precisely what Gattaca is, a thought-provoking science-fiction movie that is sure to leave you thinking for years to come.

Finding Nemo (Movie Review)

Almost 9 years later and this movie still looks every bit as stunning as it did in 2003. This was the movie that finally managed to wrestle the title of highest grossing animated movie from the mighty paws of The Lion King, a more than worthy predecessor. And we had to wait 9 years for that to happen too. Sadly, it didn't get to hold on to that title for more than a year, before being forced to relinquish it to a less than worthy successor. *cough* Shrek 2 *cough*

Finding Nemo is a family adventure that tells the story of an overprotective clownfish father (Marlin) trying to rescue his son (Nemo) who was captured by a scuba diver. The story is told from both points of view, and we learn that Nemo had been taken to a dentist's office somewhere in Sydney, Australia, where he is kept in an aquarium. There he meets with an interesting cast of characters, and begins to formulate an escape plan.

Meanwhile, Marlin is prepared to scour the ocean in search of his son. And the only clue he has to go by is a diving mask left behind by the scuba diver. He joins forces with a fish suffering from short-term memory loss named Dory, who not only claims she can read the address written on the mask, but that she knows how to get there as well. So together they set off to "find" Nemo, coming across another set of interesting characters, including three vegetarian sharks and a surfer-dude turtle.

Dory is by and large my favorite animated character of all time. She is simultaneously annoying and lovable. Only a great talent like Ellen DeGeneres could bring this character to life, and I am surprised that she hasn't gotten or taken on any similar voice acting roles ever since. She more than stole the show in this movie as far as I'm concerned. I simply cannot imagine a Finding Nemo without her in it.

Pixar has been on a winning streak these past 9 years (not counting Cars 2 of course). They've given us back-to-back instant classics like The Incredibles, Ratatouille, WALL-E and Up. But Finding Nemo still manages to retain its status as one of the finer movies to come out of their stable.

Equilibrium (Movie Review)

I'll admit, my first thought upon seeing the Equilibrium poster all those years ago was "Matrix Rip-off." It also has a bit of a B-movie vibe to it, which might explain my lowered expectations when I originally saw this film. But the thing about lowered expectations is that they can more readily be exceeded.

The story is quite simple really. Following a devastating World War III, the city of Libria is formed. This city is governed by a council known as the Tetragrammaton and its laws enforced by a police force headed by elite warriors known as Clerics. These Clerics are trained in the art of the Gun Kata (just think Kung Fu with guns, or better yet Gun Fu). But the most interesting thing here is the nature of the laws they enforce.

In Libria, all forms of artistic expression have been outlawed. Books. Music. Paintings. You name it. Its citizens are also required to take daily doses of a drug that suppresses human emotion; a drug called Prozium. The logic behind this is that without emotions like fear, hate and anger, and the presence of art to trigger said emotions, the human race would finally be able to live in peace and harmony. But there is of course a major compromise in those well-thought-out laws; Prozium also takes away our ability to love and experience true joy. So what we get in reality is a community of drones.

Anyone going against these laws is labelled a "sense offender" and is prosecuted as a result (if they aren't immediately gunned down that is). Christian Bale plays John Preston, a Cleric so ruthlessly efficient that he was willing to turn over his own wife to the higher authorities, having learnt that she was a sense offender. The movie opens with a (somewhat powerful) scene where John had in fact been willing to kill his own partner (Sean Bean), after finding out that he too was a sense offender. But things get really interesting when John ends up missing a few doses of Prozium and starts experiencing emotions for the first time in his life.

The problem with Equilibrium is that it's been done before. A post-apocalyptic setting. A dystopian society with a totalitarian government. An elite police force appointed to put everything in check. A rebel movement. These are elements we've seen in books like Nineteen Eighty-Four and more recently movies like The Hunger Games. The real question is what else has this movie done to distinguish itself from others just like it...?

Well. Aside from some truly spectacular shootout sequences, and decent performances from the cast members (Christian Bale, Taye Diggs, Sean Bean and Emily Watson), there isn't much else you haven't seen before. But despite its lack of originality, Equilibrium is a movie worth checking out.

District 9 (Movie Review)

The 2009 science fiction movie that took the world by surprise. Well, at least before Avatar came along and blotted out the sun. The most remarkable thing about District 9 is not its South African origin, or its modest $30 million budget, but its unique spin on the tried-and-tested alien invasion formula.

The story focuses on our first encounter with an alien race. And for the first time in cinema history, these aliens didn't come to show us the error in our ways, or to enslave us, or to mine our resources, or to blow us to smithereens, but to seek asylum as mere refugees. And just as important, they didn't choose to seek said refuge in Washington DC, or London, or Tokyo, but in the South African city of Johannesburg.

Right off the bat, the movie opens with a mockumentary showing the public's reaction to the presence of the space invaders. It is immediately clear that the aliens are very much unwanted, and they have been relegated to a shanty town known as District 9. Their social segregation mirrors that faced by the black majority during the South African apartheid. And just like the victims of apartheid, the aliens must struggle to survive in a society that hates them for being different.

The focus of the movie is on a planned evacuation of District 9, during which the aliens were to be relocated to a place called District 10 (which was really just a concentration camp built to put a check on their population growth). This exercise is led by a militarized organization known as Multinational United (MNU), a company with much interest in alien weapons research. But before they can carry out their plans, they must first serve eviction notices to the inhabitants of District 9.

Wikus van de Merwe (Sharlto Copley) is the man in charge of serving out all those eviction notices. He is a somewhat nerdy guy who, although seems to show little concern for the aliens' plight, is well intentioned enough. He talks us through the entire process, documentary-style, as they make their rounds through District 9. But during a raid of one of the shacks, he is sprayed by a strange black liquid that would eventually alter his DNA and make him more "prawnlike."

In a classic reversal of roles, Wikus is forced to forge an unlikely friendship with one of the inhabitants of District 9, as he finds himself running from the MNU soldiers, who seem bent on securing him for use as a human guinea pig for their inhumane experiments. The reason for this is that the alien weapons are DNA based. And now Wikus is the only human alive capable of using them.

Watching District 9 was like a breath of fresh air. In a movie industry content with serving up the same reheated formula over and over again, this movie proves that you can have aliens and guns and lots of explosions and still be thought provoking at the end of the day.

Children of Men (Movie Review)

Now here is a world that I never get tired of revisiting. After his brilliant takes on the Charles Dickens classic, Great Expectations, and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Children of Men is quite possibly Alfonso Cuarón's greatest adaptation till date.

Children of Men paints a portrait of a dystopian future where the human race lies on the verge of extinction. For some reason (which was better explained in the book apparently), all women have grown infertile. Due to this unexpected development, people do precisely what people do best: succumb to mass hysteria. Governments crumble as nations are plagued by riots and war. But amidst all the chaos, the United Kingdom struggles to maintain law and order.

The year is 2027, 18 years since the last baby was born. The city of London is teeming with illegal immigrants and asylum seekers, most of whom are kept in cagelike detention centers. The problem is the city is already filled beyond capacity, which is evidenced by the street corners overflowing with garbage. Add to that the near-constant fear of several terrorist groups and you'll get a feel of just how messed up things have become.

The most haunting aspect of this depiction of our future is how ultimately familiar it looks. Rather than scenes filled with flying cars and robocops, what we get is a version of London that looks just like present-day London, only rowdier of course, with hints of technological advancement here and there. This minimalistic approach only goes on to further enhance the story.

Clive Owen plays a civil servant (Theo) who must help transport an illegal immigrant (Kee) to the safety of a group of scientists known as The Human Project. The catch is Kee is (unexplainably) pregnant, and might thus hold the answers to mankind's infertility, and The Human Project is the only organization capable of finding those answers. So our two protagonists must journey through a dystopian countryside and refugee camps to reach their goal. They are joined by the likes of Julianne Moore, Michael Caine and Chiwetel Ejiofor, creating an unforgettable ensemble.

Children of Men is as much a triumph in filmmaking as it is in storytelling. There are a number of scenes that will stick with you long after the credits roll. Like the opening coffee shop scene. Or the countryside ambush scene. Or the childbirth scene. Or the climatic war scene. Okay. Now I'm just rambling. This movie is a definite must see.

Batman Begins (Movie Review)

Truth be told, I originally wasn't too keen on Christopher Nolan's take on the Dark Knight's origin. I mean, heck, Batman doesn't even make an appearance until well over an hour into the movie. For that reason, I felt it didn't feel like a Batman movie (or a superhero movie for that matter).

Needless to say, I didn't see what all the critics were going on about, proclaiming it to be the finest superhero movie ever made (at the time). So of course, when The Dark Knight came out three years later, I avoided it like the plague, even though it had broken all sorts of box office records and whatnot. But it was that movie that allowed me to enjoy Christopher Nolan's vision of The Caped Crusader for the first time.

I recently rewatched Batman Begins, and couldn't believe how utterly brilliant it was. I guess I was originally blinded by my expectations of what a typical superhero movie should be, expectations set by the likes of Spider-man 2. What I love the most, aside from a stunning all round performance by the cast members, was Cillian Murphy's portrayal of Scarecrow. His was a character just as tortured as the victims of his medical experiments.

There was also the overall atmosphere of the film, which was inspired by films like Blade Runner. Then the fact that we were given some psychological insight into what motivates Batman, with a direct view at his greatest desires and deepest fears. The only other movie till date that has shed more light on the character was Batman: Under the Red Hood, my personal favorite (animated) superhero movie of all time.

Right now, as the world awaits the final instalment of Nolan's trilogy, I suddenly feel that The Dark Knight Rises can't come soon enough. Here's hoping that it doesn't go the way of X-men: The Last Stand.

The Artist (Movie Review)

With a list of awards and accolades as long as the Nile, The Artist was a film that had a lot to live up to in terms of expectations. I was one of those who had never even heard of this film prior to the awards season. And even then, it was only after it won the Academy Award for Best Picture did I become committed to seeing it.

My first thought was "How in the world were they going to make a black-and-white silent film work in 2011?" I recently saw the 1927 science fiction film Metropolis, and have to admit that it was a bit tedious to watch by today's standard. The good news about The Artist though, is that while it is presented as a film from the silent movie era, that is where such comparisons end; in its presentation.

In terms of pacing, the story moves along as quickly as any romantic comedy out there today. And that is precisely what this movie is, a romantic comedy. The only reason why its makers decided to present it as a silent movie was to draw a parallel between it and the story it was trying to tell.

That story is about a middle-aged actor of silent films faced with the dilemma of a new era of cinema, the dawn of the talkies. The romance is between him and the rising star of that new era, an actress he had helped bring into the limelight. The main obstacle between that romance, aside from a stale marriage, is the man's pride, with his insistence on sticking to making silent movies. He is a visionary you see. An artist. Hence the title.

I loved the fact that the French movie was lent some credibility by being set in Hollywood, during the outset of the Great Depression. And despite what might seem like a somber backdrop, I was really surprised by how comical the actors' performances were, given their general lack of dialogue. Most especially that of Uggie (the dog), who indeed should have gotten a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the very least.

The chemistry between the two stars is also worthy of note. And the development and progression of their romance also felt somewhat realistic. Overall, there are more reasons why this movie needs to be experienced than not. So if you still haven't seen The Artist, then I suggest that you do so at your earliest convenience.