Olympus Has Fallen: Movie Review

With the number of blockbuster movies to watch out for this year, Olympus Has Fallen seemed undermarketed compared to expected hits like Iron Man, The Hunger Games, Oblivion, The Host and the like. However, looking closer into this movie. One would find that it has a pretty solid cast, a rather ambitious premise and a potential to be one wicked action thriller. On most counts, i believe it delivered.

Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) is the lead Secret Service agent detailed to the White House but more than that, he enjoys a close relationship with President Asher (Aaron Eckhart) and his family. But when an accident makes the President lose confidence in his friend, Mike is exiled to the Treasury Office, where he still keeps one eye out for his commander in chief from a distance. When tension reignites in the Korean peninsula and the the South Korean Prime Minister visits the White House to seek the help of the United States against the North, the White House is blindsided by a daring assault in which its top officials are caught in a compromising situation. With the top brass at gunpoint, all that stands between the fall of Seoul and the future of the United States is the Speaker of the House Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman) and Mike Banning.

If one would ignore the glaring loopholes in the story (e.g. lapses in security protocol, the ability of the main antagonist to infiltrate the government without anybody doing a background check, the slow response time of the military and the sheer idiocy of the Secret Service strategy), it would be very easy to enjoy this movie. Directed by the dude who helmed Training Day and The Replacement Killers (Antoine Fuqua), this movie was not short of  amazing strategy, thrills and cool action sequences.  It had sort of a Die Hard vibe going for it but on a larger scale because never have I seen a movie in which the White House decimated on such a level so strategically and so efficiently. Hats off to the writers Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt for the sheer brilliance of the material.

Olympus is the type of movie that will have audiences on the edge of their seats because of the suspense and those with weak stomachs to head for the door for the sheer brutality of the scenes. More than the violence, it gets audiences to think about what’s going on in the world today, especially since North Korea is cast anew by Hollywood as the villain of the piece. It makes audiences think about what would have happened if United 93 had hit its target on September 11 rather than crashing into a field in Pennsylavia because of the heroic acts of its passengers. It also gives an insight into the suffering of the people in the North and what drives them to act as they do.

What I loved about the movie was that it did not have a one dimensional plot. Just when one thinks that they have the entire thing figured out, the villains will reveal a new motive in which a new strategy is revealed. And the action will take off again. It did have a formulaic approach to the movie but it really worked out. Superb cast by the way. Their performances played off each other really well.

All in all, one man saving the world is still a long shot, but I thought Olympus has Fallen was great. Plus, with Morgan Freeman as acting head of state, how can one go wrong? Kudos to everybody involved in this film. A $70 million budget well spent. I had a lot of fun watching it but I’m afraid some of my hair may have turned gray in the two hours it took to finish the movie because of tension. That and a couple of my nails bitten to excess, but these were sacrifices well worth it.

Oblivion: Movie Review

After starring as Jack in Jack Reacher, Tom Cruise takes on the role of another Jack — Jack Harper that is, a tech specialist in what remains to be the Earth’s mop up crew after a failed alien invasion in the sci fi thriller Oblivion.

Sixty years after Earth successfully warded off an alien invasion, leaving the planet almost uninhabitable, tech specialist Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) and his partner Victoria (Andrea Riseborough) are two weeks away from completing their mission to extract all of Earth’s remaining resources and rejoin the rest of humanity in Saturn’s moon Titan. While Victoria is anxious to leave the planet, Jack, whose memories prior to the mission were wiped clean by his superiors in case he is compromised, continues to feel that despite the devastation, the Earth is still his home. He is also haunted by the memories of a woman who appears in his dreams, a woman (Olga Kurylenko) he encounters face to face when he rescues her pod from a drone attack. When he and the survivor are captured by the “Scavs”, led by Malcolm Beech (Morgan Freeman) and Sykes (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Game of Thrones), Jack discovers who he truly is what his mission entails. Now, it is now up to him to save the planet that he loves, along with what remains of species.

When I initially saw the trailer of Oblivion, I had high hopes about this sci fi offering. However, when I actually saw it, I felt a bit put out. While there was great cinematography and execution of the basic idea of the plot, I felt that the film just did not live up to its promise of an action packed sci-fi adventure. Rather, I felt like it was more of a sci-fi drama more than anything else.

For one, Oblivion proceeded at a snail’s pace, fleshing out its story, taking its sweet time moving along. It had a very contemplative vibe, bordering on depressing. In wanting the twist to be the main highlight of the film, the movie focused on the mystery of Julie haunting Jack’s dreams, Jack wanting to stay in Earth on his cabin, Jack in various scrapes that admittedly had passable stunts, and Jack doing whatnot. Okay, we get it. It’s Tom Cruise’s movie and he is the lead star. What’s next?

Finally, after the constant back and forth and a lot of speculation about what happened in the war (which took up over an hour of the movie), the truth is revealed and the final 25-30 minutes or so proceeds at a much faster and action packed pace. While it was not in the magnitude of what I had expected for a big popcorn movie like this, I was thankful that there was at least a stab at moving things along.

On the positive side, the film took inspiration from some sci-fi greats like Star Wars in terms of design and stunts. The drone chase was similar to Luke Skywalker’s epic fighter plane sequence in the Empire Strikes Back. Some of Jack’s gadgets even looked like R2-D2. In terms of the set, I must give credit to the production for the details in the set pieces. The majority of white in the setting also lent an air of surrealism to Jack’s life in the Mission Tower in contrast to desert trails and wilds that remain of Earth, which effectively distinguishes the two worlds that Jack treads.

All in all, Oblivion had great potential, had it not been for the pacing. I think that given the story, the film would have benefited from reduced scenes and a real focus on the bigger picture rather than Jack’s personal dilemmas. In the end, it just seemed like the movie was a drama disguised in sci fi setting. Even the ending seemed kinda meh.

G.I. Joe Retaliation: Movie Review

GI Joe Retaliation seeks to bounce back from the rather passable but underwhelming first installment by signing on two of today’s most badass action icons – Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who only has to appear in a movie for its awesomeness to rise ten notches and John McClane himself — Bruce Willis.

This time, the story borrows inspiration from current events and revolves around the ongoing missile dispute among major countries in the world, most prominently the United States and North Korea. With Zartan posing as the most powerful man in the world (the President of the United States) using high level nanotechnology developed by the Cobras, he attacks the Joes and frames them in the murder of the Pakistani president. Zartan then uses the death of the Pakistan head to call on other world leaders to meet regarding nuclear disarmament in the guise of seeking a peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict. All the while, the Cobras plot Cobra Commander’s escape from a high security German facility. Unfortunately for them, some of the Joes escape and vow to avenge their brothers from the treachery of the Cobras, and clear their names as loyal soldiers of the United States of America.

The story itself offers nothing new. This storyline has been rehashed time and again in mainstream action movies and the only thing that is different is the presentation. In terms of action, I could not fault the filmmakers for their execution because of the non-stop explosions, stunts and machismo that oozes from every pore of this film. However, I felt that there was too much going on most of the time that the story just fades into the background and everything just becomes a big bunch of action scenes lumped together. The problem with this is that the audience becomes so bombarded with everything that is going on that they cease to appreciate individual moments of brilliance in the execution of the scenes.

I also felt that the bromance between Roadblock (Johnson) and Duke (Channing Tatum) was a hard sell in the beginning of the movie, so much so that audiences would feel that something big will happen between the two based on their interactions and dialogue. From the get go, there was a difference in the treatment of the two actors as Johnson’s character clearly overshadowed Tatum’s character Duke, who was part of the original characters of the franchise.

Sad to say, I was also not a big fan of Johnson’s tortured look. I felt that it is one thing to project rage and anguish but its another thing to oversell it to the audience. While I could not fault Johnson for his execution of his action scenes, I could, and would call him out on his overacting.

I think the thing that differentiated GI Joe’s second installment from other action megahits like Transformers and The Expendables was that it became too intense. It focused too much on the action sequences and failed to consider its balance with fun and entertainment. GI Joe is based on a cartoon series and making it fun is a basic requisite for the film. The first installment had Marlon Wayans as Ripcord who flipped wisecracks at Channing Tatum’s Duke. This time around, no one was there to counter Roadblock’s intensity, and there were hardly any missteps on the part of the Joes that posed as a challenge to their rather impossible mission.

One thing I liked about the film was the subplot that focused on Storm Shadow (Lee Byun Hun) and the Arashikage Clan. I liked how his character was given a chance to shine in this installment because Storm Shadow is one of more dynamic characters of the franchise. Lee Byung Hun is a fine actor and I liked his fashion sense best among all the ninjas of their clan.

All in all, director John M. Chu managed to come out swinging with this high impact popcorn movie. I’m not quite sure whether I liked it in total but it did have its merits. My main problem with the movie was that it was too cliché. I guess I was just looking for something different, but I guess that’s my problem.

Premium Rush: Movie Review

If there is one word to describe the experience of seeing this movie,  it would be “a rush.” Oh wait, that’s two words. What about a frickin’ awesome rush? Well, that sounds a bit better, but that’s three words and that’s my bad. In all honesty, Premium Rush had me at the edge of my seat from the first minute until the last and that, ladies and gents is entertainment at its finest.

Directed by David Koepp, and written also by David Koepp and John Kamps, the film revolves around New York bike messenger Wilee (Joseph Gordon Levitt) who unwittingly receives a premium rush delivery which contains a ticket worth a huge amount of money. He tries to make it to the deadline while a dirty cop indebted to the Chinese gambling mob does his damnest to stop him from delivering the envelope, chasing him all across the streets of Manhattan to achieve his goal.

Premium Rush was a nail biter from Minute One. I loved the pure athleticism and skills of the actors and stuntmen involved in this movie, which effectively depicted the day to day dangers encountered by over 1,500 bike messengers in a city as busy as New York. There were plenty of great riding in the film, further made cool by tricks worthy of the X-games (well, close enough). Man, most of the chase scenes almost gave me a heart attack because of its sheer speed.

I loved the way the story unfolded, and the way the entire film was presented. It had an indie sort of edginess but still tempered by mainstream flavor that would appeal to audiences. This, I think was made possible by great editing and effects. The GPS and the trial and error effects were executed flawlessly and were very relevant to the movie.

There were only a few actors who were in the movie, Gordon-Levitt being on the front and center, but somehow, the movie seemed bigger because of the focus on the key characters.  The irony of his name, being similar to Wil.E. Cayote, who is known for his endless (yet unfruitful) pursuit of the Roadrunner to his character being the one pursued by the dirty cop to great personal cost was a great touch.

Gordon-Levitt deserves a great big pat on the back for pulling off the cycling part of the movie to endearing himself to the audience with his character’s smart alecky ways and resourcefulness, as with the rest of the cast. Levitt was Premium Rush. They couldn’t have cast a better actor to fit the part.

All in all, Premium Rush was a great ride. Hats off to the filmmakers to this salute to bike messengers, all around the world. There’s no greater way to honor them than by showing the audience what an awful risk is involved in delivering messages, and humanizing their profession by highlighting their sense of community.

P.S. Here in the Philippines, bike couriers are called “Lagarista” and mostly carry film reels from one theater to another. There was a movie released in 2000, directed by Mel Chionglo which starred actor Piolo Pascual. It was shown in several international film festivals (Toronto, Chicago, Pusan and Hong Kong) and had local limited release.

A tale of two Les Miserables

composite photo courtesy of http://www.krisjimena.blogspot.com

When Les Miserables came out in 2012, it made me think of another version of the Oscar conteder — another version in 1998 starring Liam Neeson and Geoffrey Rush. So I decided to hold off the review and do it together, after I’ve seen both films on video.

It may sound like a sacrilege to some but while Les Miserables is one of my favorite musicals, I am not as familiar with the actual story as I am with the songs. I am happy to say that basic premise of both films are the same. The story revolves around Jean Valjean, a convict who was releaqsed from prison after 19 years for stealing some bread. But while his offense was minor, he was issued a yellow passport upon release, warning people that he was very dangerous that he would need to report for parole for the rest of his life. This did not make life easy for Valjean as he was judged by people and turned away at every opportunity. But an encounter with a Bishop manages to touch Valjean’s heart and the simple act of kindness inspires him to start afresh. Years later, his hard work sees him as the just mayor of small town in France, but his troubles seem to follow him with the appointment of his former jailer Inspector Javert to his district. As he tries to keep his secret, he is faced with moral choices and new challenges that would pit the two against each other all the way to Paris.

Both movies were excellently cast and it is quite difficult to say which Jean Valjean was the best. In 1998, Liam Neeson gave life to the character in a very subtle and effective way. He was very releateable as an everyman trying to reform. His interaction with Uma Thurman’s Fantine was very heartwarming and much more clearly established.

Hugh Jackman works the docks as the convict Jean Valjean in the 2012 film’s opening sequence.

Hugh Jackman’s version of the character, on the other hand was much more raw and intense, perhaps due to the fact that his suffering was highlighted better from the opening sequence of the film. His performance was so gut wrenching and moving. This was  quite a feat given that he had to convey his emotions through song, and not numbers that are easy to sing at that, if the veins on his neck and forehead were any indication of its difficulty. For the part of Inspector Javert, I thought that Geoffrey Rush had a slight edge against Russel Crowe mainly because his need for order and rules was better conveyed. Crowe as the anti-hero seemed too human because of his expressive eyes, which won him the Oscars twice for his stirring performances in Gladiator and A Beautiful Mind. And just to clarify, his vocals were not as bad as some bashers have indicated. Perhaps not as strong as the others but he is not a professional singer so viewers need to cut him some slack.

While Uma’s Fantine took on a lengthier part in the 1998 version, Anne Hathaway (who won Best Supporting Actress for the role) earned her keep with her emotional rendition of I Dreamed a Dream — a masterclass in acting. I can’t believe this was the same girl who starred in romantic comediess like The Princess Diaries and Ella Enchanted. She has truly matured as an actress.

As for Cosette, I never quite connected with Claire Danes for the part, nor with her Marius, Hans Matheson. The dude looked smarmy.  In contrast, 2012  Marius Eddie Redmayne (Marius) had me enthralled from the moment he sang his first note. He completely took my breath away with his strong vocals in both his solo and ensemble performances. Isabelle Allen as the young Cosette had excellent chemistry with Jackman and she had a great voice and a charismatic persona while Amanda Seyfried as the teenage version of Cosette, did well enough  in her role, but it was nothing I have not seen before.

Marius (Eddie Redmayne) holds Eponine (Samantha Barks) behind the barricade as the fight rages on.

I noticed that the 1998 version was wanting for one vital character — Eponine, the lovesick daughter of the swindlers (Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter)who sold off  Cosette to Valjean after Fantine’s passing. Samantha Barks who debuted in film for the role delivered such a haunting rendition of On My Own that I don’t think there’s any lovesick girl who could ever see her performance without a handkerchief. I was completely rooting for her the entire time. Little Daniel Huttlestone also made his mark on the latest version as the streetsmart and brave orphan Gavroche. This kid is a star.

Basically, both films employed different approaches. Director Billie August (1998) chose to go the dramatic route and did not incorporate musical numbers into his film. His storytelling was slightly different to the updated version but I felt that he told a complete story and the actions of the characters were better explained. August had the advantage of having superb actors in his cast as well.

The 2012 version, helmed by Tom Hooper, stayed faithful to the musical for which the play grew famous for. It went all out with the production to produce a visual masterpiece, and depicted Paris as the desolate and decrepit place that reflected the status of people in that era. This, filmmakers supported with cast members with strong theater backgrounds that delivered compelling and larger than life performances  that roused one’s spirits with familiar songs that tugged at the heartstrings. I think the greatest advantage of the 2012 version was that it worked as an ensemble, with each character supporting the other, lending ore strength to the performances. Even the supporting cast members shone in their own right, especially Aaron Tveit who played young militant leader Enjolras. In fact, there were plenty of standouts but somehow, the performances blended into one strong showing It was tricky because one mistake in the casting could have taken the whole story down but somehow, Les Mis was able to pull it off.

All in all, Les Mis tells of a universal message that rings true up until present day. It was no surprise that both films were excellent in their own right because the source material was a literary gem that communicates to the audience on an emotional level. It spoke of stereotypes, and inequality, forgiveness and repentance, hope, love and freedom, concepts and ideals that each and every man relates to.

However, if I were to judge which I liked better, I would have to go with the musical. There is just an intensity in the performances that drew me to it, that gave it an edge over its straight drama predecessor. And it was not because any singular effort of any of the actors, as well, but rather because of the combined output of all who were involved in the film. The film has heart, as Gene Hackman quoted in The Replacements, “miles and miles of heart.” And this is just something that does not happen with every movie. Besides, Les Mis isn’t quite Les Mis without the music. But that’s just my opinion.

A Moment in Time: Movie Review

After the successful team up of dramatic actor Coco Martin and teen princess Julia Montes on the teleserye Walang Hanggan, it seemed like a logical next step to try their chemistry on the big screen and it was no wonder that Star Cinema, in partnership with Dreamscape Cinema chose the pair to headline their Valentines Day presentation, with a romantic drama entitled A Moment in Time. While it was not a clunker, I don’t think it will go down in my list of favorite local movies either.

Jillian (Montes) is a sheltered rich girl with only a few friends and music to keep her company. When Patrick, a charming artist forced to give up his dream because of the untimely death of his mother, enters her life, she easily falls in love with him. But their budding romance encounters a major setback when it is revealed that the two share a connected past that may affect their future happiness.

I think the beginning part, when Patrick was laying on the charm on Jillian was actually the main reason why viewers went to see the movie.  It is the season of romance after all and Coco plays the happy go lucky heartthrob quite well. In the movie, Coco is seen doing a lot of goofy stuff that his previous characters have not given him a chance to do. And since the chemistry between the two stars was already proven in their earlier pairing, there was no surprise when their scenes were met with a lot of smiles and approving whispers from the audience. The supporting cast also contributed to establishing the story.

However, it would seem that the conflict in the story was introduced too soon and this affected the romance angle of the movie greatly. The relationship between the two stars was not even fully established that the heavy drama was already injected into the story, testing the bond that was supposedly formed between them. This affected the entire pace of the story and feelings that went with it. The ending too, seemed a bit too simple considering how complicated the problem was presented as. It would seem that the bulk of the film was devoted to the drama that the ending seemed a bit forced in order to change location to Europe, which was breathtaking by the way. It did not seem realistic at all.

In all fairness, the chemistry was very strong between the two main stars and the acting was no less than superb. I was just having a bit of a problem with the depressing background music which fed to the tone of the film but other than that, it was a decent output from the studios. I just wished that the filmmakers were able to balance the romance and the drama aspects of the film better.

A Good Day to Die Hard: A Review

Truth be told, I never even saw the theatrical trailer for this movie before I decided to see it on the big screen. I just saw that it was playing and my brother and I were confident enough in the strength of the Die Hard franchise that we didn’t care if the story was any good. While it was not as strong as the previous installments, I must say, A Good Day to Die Hard does have its own appeal and held its own as a standalone.

For the first time in five installments, John McClane goes international as he tries he save his estranged son Jack (Jai Courtney) from prison time in Moscow. But not even a few hours after his landing, with no chance of even finding out the deal that got Jack in trouble, an explosion rocks the courthouse where Jack was to appear as a witness in the trial of Yuri Komarov, a political prisoner who is set to expose a huge conspiracy behind the Chernobyl disaster. After John saves his life, the young McClane realizes that he is backed into a corner with no other ally than his dad, who admittedly, has some experience in the past in dealing with tough situations.

A Good Day to Die Hard follows the formula of its predecessors almost to the letter. It has kickass action — car chases that basically set out to prove how powerful Mercedes Benz vehicles are;  lots of firepower (director John Moore seemed to have a special fondness for exploding glass), some choice family moments when father and son bond, and basically a lot of running, broken bones, injuries and the like. If one has seen any of the previous Die Hard movies, this one basically just takes on another form in another location.

What I really liked about the movie was that Bruce Willis took a page from Sly Stallone’s manual and seemed to now play to his age. AGDTDH, in choosing a plotline that has his grown son as the focus, is saying that the action hero is indeed aging and is relying on his experience, more than his age to kick the bad guy’s ass. For the rest, he can sic Jack, who has arms like boa constrictors and a tough no nonsense attitude like his dad. The movie also showed rapport between father and son, and illustrated how their styles and strengths complemented each other, even with years of estrangement between them. While the supposed dramatic moments were peppered with wisecracks from John, there was some sort of macho understanding between the two characters that solidified their partnership.

The story was not exactly mind blowing, but after four installments of the franchise, it was a good effort from writer Skip Woods (Hitman, Wolverine, Swordfish). It still had some sort of continuity through John’s character. I had a bit of a problem with the use of extreme close ups especially towards the beginning because some of the sequences were shaky, and I would have liked to see more of Russia through the cinematography but AGDTDH was, mainly an action film that focused on ass kicking rather than selling the view so not much complaints on my part.

I think what was missing from this (maybe) final installment to the John McClane franchise was a really good villain that makes the audience cringe and grit their teeth. It had Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) in the first, it had Col. Stuart (William Sadler) in the second. It had the terrorist Simon (Jeremy Irons) in the third and even Timothy Olyphant pulled his weight as the techie terrorist Thomas Gabriel in 4.0. In the fifth McClane adventure, I would have thought that filmmakers would introduce a more nefarious villain since there were two tough McClanes to contend with but all they came up with were two double crossing Russians in their 50s and a (bad) tap dancing assassin. This part was kind of a downer.

All in all, A Good Day to Die Hard was a fitting end to the Die Hard franchise, well, not unless they want Lucy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) to tote an AK-47 for the next McClane family adventure. It was good to see John finally reconcile with his two children since his love for his family was what remained constant in all of the films.

AGDTDH was a wild ride, but sadly, it was not as wild or as memorable as any of the first four movies. In itself, it was a strong action film which I hope would open doors for talented Aussie Jai Courtney (whom I loved as Varro on Spartacus) as he brought the new school component to the movie quite well. Bruce Willis will be awesome no matter what role but I must admit that I like him best wearing John McClane’s shoes. If this is the end, I will surely miss him. He is one tough action hero.

Silent Hill: Revelation Review

Let me begin this by saying that I was not very impressed by the first Silent Hill movie, which I thought was well made enough but lacked the usual kick that I was expecting from a good horror. The sequel has its good points and bad. But one thing it does have going for it is consistency with its predecessor. Too bad it was consistent with all the boring parts.

Silent Hill: Revelation takes place some 7 years after Rose da Silva (Radha Mitchell) saves her daughter from being trapped in the alternate dimension that is Silent Hill, a town that is damned by a demon child named Alessa, who has covered the town in darkness as part of her revenge on the cult who burned her because she was born out of wedlock. Sean Bean returns in his role as Christopher, Sharon’s adoptive father. But now, things are a bit different as he is now aware of the mystery behind his wife’s disappearance, and what he must do to escape the cult that wants Sharon back in Silent Hill to serve as a vessel for their new god. But with the passing of the years, the cult has grown more aggressive in pursuing father and daughter, and they kidnap Christopher to be used as bait for her daughter’s return.

I think that Silent Hill did a pretty good job in developing the continuity between the two movies, bringing in most of the same cast and characters from the original to the sequel to add a sense of familiarity overall. The feel of the first and second movies are marvelously identical in most parts.

Visually, it has all the elements of a good horror down to a science. It also has a strong storyline from the videogame and a solid fanbase that guarantees that it will be a hit, no matter what. So it should have worked, considering that they had a strong cast — Sean Bean, for one, and Kit Harington (Jon Snow in HBO’s Game of Thrones) in his first movie role. But somehow, the presence of these two stars are not enough to compensate for the movie’s biggest goof, which is casting Michelle Williams look-alike Adelaide Clemens in the main role as Sharon. I don’t know but something about her doesn’t click in this role. Perhaps, its her manner of speaking but I just thought she fell short on delivering emotions of panic, horror, and even shock at all of the things that are happening in her life in such a short amount of time. I think she needs to go to the Jennifer Carpenter horror acting workshop. She might pick up a thing or two about this genre.

Another goof is the lopsided pacing of the movie, which for the most part is sloooooow. I understand that the movie is spawned from an RPG game but because of the pace, the supposedly exciting parts of the movie felt anticlimactic. The eventual confrontation between the two versions of Alessas on the other hand, felt rushed. As was the showdown between Claudia and Red Pyramid. Such a shame.

All in all, Silent Hill: Revelation was a revelation alright. A revelation that no more sequels need to be spawned from this franchise. Leave it to the game developers. At least they know what they’re doing. Some games just need to be left alone to be awesome in their own platform.

 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower: Movie Review

Before I wrote this entry, I re-read my review of the book so that I can refrain from saying the same things again. Why? This is one of the best book to movie translations I have ever seen and both the literary source and on screen material were mind blowing. This early in the entry, I would like to give a big kudos to author Stephen Chbosky who also wrote the screenplay and directed the film. Saying that he did an awesome job is an understatement of epic proportions.

The movie centers around Charlie (Logan Lerman), a 15-year old who is starting his freshman year in high school coming from a painful experience. His best friend Michael committed suicide over the summer and he was pretty much the only friend Charlie had. Charlie is pretty smart but he does not “participate.” He chooses to be alone most of the time observing people. But one night during a football game, he lucks out and meets seniors Patrick (Ezra Miller) and his stepsister Sam (Emma Watson), who take him under their wing and help him navigate through the jungle that is high school (read — smoking pot, drinking, hanging at parties, dating and love).

THE ISLAND OF MISFIT TOYS. From top left: Bob (Adam Hagenbuch), Patrick , Sam, Mary Elizabeth (Mae Whitman), Charlie and Alice (Erin Wilhemi).

I loved this movie because it interpreted the core essence of the book so fully not only with excellent dialogue but with a cast that totally reflects the characters in the book. Emma Watson was the biggest name in the cast and she did an amazing job but Ezra Miller as Patrick totally stole the show as the openly gay character secretly seeing the star quarterback Brad (Johnny Simmons). I love his vulnerability and his strength and his sweetness to Charlie. Logan Lerman on the other hand, was the perfect Charlie. He was endearing and charming and so darned innocent that audiences would feel the strong urge to step through the screen and hug him to take his pain away. This might be one of the best casting moments on film (thanks hugely to Venus Kanani and Mary Vernieu). This group is magic. Their pain is palpalable, their joy infectious. They make audiences laugh and cry and pretty much draw the audiences into their circle for the duration of the film. One can’t help but feel like they are part of this group. One can’t help but want to.

The story itself is not quite the regular coming of age staple. It runs deeper and deals with characters that are flawed and struggling. It shows high school as a time of depression and a time of hope. It puts a face to the darkness that some people have to hurdle in order to be normal. It is not for the faint of heart.

It is a story of love but not just the romantic kind but also one that springs from deep understanding and empathy and shows the wallflower in a positive light. It is a story of loyalty and friendship that inspires people, teens and adults alike to overcome their demons as these young people have.

The movie’s story deviates somewhat from the novel, perhaps due to cinematic restrictions, but it was still able to communicate Charlie’s life completely, albeit with smaller focus on his family, which took up a huge chunk of the novel’s backstory. The ending though, is more definitive than the novel’s open ending, so audiences might like that.

One other thing, the soundtrack was kickass. When I was reading the book, I had to research each song as it popped up (I think I may be of the same generation as Charlie but there were songs I was unfamiliar with) but hearing them being used in the specific scenes totally brought the novel to life.

WE ARE INFINITE. Charlie, Patrick and Sam celebrate Patrick’s C- on shop class.

All in all, a poignant film that has no sense of artifice and false bravado — just a barebones chronicling of the life of a troubled teen who had his fair shake of tragedies and triumphs. It connects with the audience in a different level whether or not one has read the novel or not. There’s just something about this film that clicks. I can’t put a name to it. All I can say is that it makes me feel infinite — and it has just earned a place in my list of favorite movies.

Merantau: A Review

After being wowed by the action of The Raid: Redemption, I decided to check out the same team’s first collaboration, a 2009 Indonesian film entitled Merantau, which also stars real life Silat champion Iko Uwais in the lead role of Yuda. Yayan Ruhian, who also had a hand in the fight choreography for The Raid, also plays a supporting role, and Donny Alamsyah who was Iko’s brother in The Raid, again plays his big brother in this movie.

Merantau (Wandering) is an Indonesian rite of passage for young men in transition to manhood. When this time comes, they are encouraged to leave their homes and undertake their own journeys to learn about life, and further widen their perspectives through new experiences. Tomato picker Yuda (Uwais) is excited to go on the journey to follow the footsteps of his brother (Alamsyah) whom he idolizes. While his mother dissuades him from going, he asks that he be given a chance to try his luck and she concedes. But the optimistic country boy is shocked when he reaches Jakarta, to find that success is not very easy to achieve, espcially when he gets involved in the lives of siblings Adit Yusuf Aulia), a pickpocket, and Astri (Sisca Jessica), an exotic dancer being pursued by a prostitution ring led by Ratger (Mads Koudal) and Luc (Laurent Buson).

Unlike The Raid, Merentau is not presented as an outright action movie. It has a dramatic element that is explored lengthily in the beginning of the film. At first, the movie is a bit slow, following the steps of Yuda as he discoveres new things about himself and the people he interacts with, so this makes the film a bit lopsided but when the action kicked in, it was hard to put the brakes on.

Action wise, Merentau seemed like a great preview for The Raid. While there were several notable action scenes, but I felt like the story limited the action to Uwais vs gazillions of henchmen and Uwais vs the two white guys towards the end. Not that it was bad per se because the action scenes not only highlighted the use of Silat, but was executed with a fluidity that is ridiculously flawless. However, it seemed like everybody else was outclassed by Uwais’s character when in fact, the perfect opponent for him skill wise would have been Eric (Ruhian) — (case in point — Ruhian vs Uwais in an elevator). But all is good as the preempted action fest between these two were finally seen in The Raid, dubbed by critics as one of the best action scenes of the decade.

I would like to give a huge kudos to writer/director Gareth Evans for having great instinct in casting Uwais in the lead role (He discovered Uwais when he did a documentary on the Indonesian martial art of Silat). Uwais, while he did not have extensive acting experience prior to this movie, is oozing in charisma. And even better, he can do these action scenes in his sleep, being a real life expert of Silat. This guy looks like a nice guy, which gives him a sense of vulnerability, but he has the swagger of Bruce Lee in his heyday when he gets in his martial arts position. This guy could be Indonesia’s version of Jet Li, truth be told (Li is a real life wushu expert). And I find myself liking him more after seeing two of his films.

I loved Merantau mainly because it had a heart. It was merciless in its depiction of the slums and the underground business in Indonesia but it was not lacking in sentiment when depicting the good in people. That, I believe, kind of balances it out. I loved that the story had something to do with family and going the extra mile to make a difference in another person’s life, even if it meant making sacrifices. The ending truly brought tears to my eyes but also gave me peace with all that transpired.

All in all, Merantau is a quality movie that has made me a bigger fan of this film team and Indonesian cinema. Two thumbs up.