serene’s posterous

I am not a big fan of terrorist-themed movies but this was a reasonably interesting and intelligent thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio (at his furrowed best) and a tubby Russell Crowe.  I thought that the stars were outshone by Mark Strong who plays the enigmatic Jordanian head of intelligence.  The way he refers to DiCaprio's character as "my dear" is particularly creepy.  There were also scenes in this movie that were quite disturbing.  I had to avert my eyes.

This movie reminded me a little of Before Sunrise (which I loved!) but more lightweight, and perhaps with cooler music.  Two people wandering around in the city, hanging out and falling in love.  What's there not to like?  Kat Dennings is luminous as Norah, and Michael Cera plays his usual "nice guy" role well.

I enjoyed the movie thoroughly.  It was funny and heartwarming.  While it may not be as good as the best of the Pixar movies, it certainly came close.  I loved Rhino, the somewhat delusional hamster in a ball.  And how can you resist Bolt when he makes the pleading face?  If you rent the DVD, don't forget to watch Super Rhino - an animated short.

Yes, yet another Jason Statham movie.  What can I say? I am a fan.  The movie is pretty bad and nonsensical, probably worse than the previous Transporter movies.  But Jason Statham is still perfect as the no nonsense guy who is unfazed by anything that is thrown at him.  The fight scenes are pretty good.  Watch him fight a bunch of baddies with various items of his suit!

Loved the movie.  I don't think I can add much to what other people have said about the movie.  Danny Boyd did a great job directing.  You simply get immersed in the sights and sounds of India.  Frieda Pinto was luminous.  The child actors were amazing.  And the trains!

I went to India over 15 years ago on a school trip.  And even back then, when I was a silly teenager, I was equally amazed by the magnificence of the monuments and horrified by the slums, and the constant badgering by the touts, beggars and children.  I certainly remember the photographers at Taj Mahal offering to take a photo of you touching the tip of the monument.

I would imagine that India would have changed a lot over the years - more high-rises and perhaps a bigger middle class, but the poverty is still there.  Maybe Eu-Jin and I will travel there someday.

This is a 1984 TV documentary by Werner Herzog about mountaineering - an alpine-style expedition to climb 8000m peaks in Pakistan, Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II, back to back without returning to base camp by Reinhold Messner and his partner Hans Kammerlander.  The documentary is mostly about the motivations of these mountaineers, particularly Messner.  Why do they take these kinds of risks?  We watched this documentary from a box set of Werner Herzog's shorts and documentaries.

Hell on Wheels (or Höllentour) is an interesting documentary on the world of professional cycling.  The documentary focuses on the 2003 Tour de France, and follows the Germany's Team Telekom, in particular Erik Zabel and his roommate and friend, Rolf Aldag.  We only picked up this DVD because we enjoyed To the Limit by the same director, Pepe Danquart.  But we were not disappointed.  It is crazy how much suffering and pain these cyclists go through, just to complete the tour.  I also learnt why cyclists shave their legs before a race...

I found this stoner comedy mostly hilarious.  James Franco, in a very different role from his intense character in the Spiderman movies, was particularly funny as the slacker dealer.  As Eu-Jin would attest, I was in stitches during the car chase scene...He had to pause the movie so that I could recover sufficiently to continue watching.  Just don't overthink the movie, and go in with lowish expectations.

I didn't like the movie and consequently I didn't pay a lot of attention to what was going on.  Admittedly, it is better than In the Name of the King if we were trying to compare the based-on-the-computer/video-game movies.  I am vaguely familiar with the game that the movie is based on because Eu-Jin used to play it in college.  The visuals in the movie were indeed quite cool.  But the plot was terrible, and the lines the actors had to spout were sometimes cringeworthy.  At least the movie was quite short.

Yes, it is 2 Jason Statham movies in a row.  It is funny that Jason Statham essentially plays the same character in all his movies.  He even keeps the accent.

The movie isn't particularly intelligent...a typical B-grade action movie.  This time it is about prisoners who participate in a gruesome car race to win their freedom.  And there's some bits with the icy cold and calculative warden played by Joan Allen.  Also not forgetting the shapely female "navigator".  But it is entertaining.  Perhaps there's too much blood and carnage, but that is to be expected for these kinds of movies.