REVIEW: X MEN Origins Wolverine

Plot: Hugh Jackman stars in the tracing of Wolverine from his earliest beginnings. X MEN Origins Wolverine explains some untold details found in the trilogy and how the mutants came to be.

This one's as good as the trilogy. It is highly entertaining, with great visual effects and an OK storyline. However, for some odd reason, it doesn't really leave a long-lasting impression on me, if you know what i mean. And i must add that transitions were quite bad - some were actually awkward... So i'm not sure about the editing crew.

Rating: 3.5/5

REVIEW: 17 Again

Plot: A middle-aged man magically transforms into his 17 year old body and decides to redo high school, while helping out his kids and maybe fixing his marital tie.

I find this irritatingly unoriginal. The whole idea wasn't tied up together with proper special effects. We've seen this before - Freaky Friday, and other insignificant ones that followed. It is also quite cheesy. Which i don't really enjoy. And i think Zac Efron is quite overrated. Sorry.

Rating: 2/5

REVIEW: Fast & Furious 4

Plot: When a crime brings them back to L.A., fugitive ex-con Dom (Diesel) reignites his feud with agent Brian O'Connor (Walker). But as they are forced to confront a shared enemy, Dom and Brian must give in to an uncertain new trust if they hope to outmaneuver him. And from convoy heists to precision tunnel crawls across international lines, two men find the best way to get revenge: push the limits of whats possible behind the wheel.

Listen - there's race, and there's chase. You would expect this one, of all four especially, to have good race sequences. Sad to say, it was a disappointment. I was at first blown away by the intensity and stunning graphics in the first scene. However, the standard plunged immediately into the next scene. This is not the best of the franchise. But maybe they deserve some credit for the visual effects.
Rating: 3/5

REVIEW: Gran Torino

Plot: Walt Kowolski, a war veteran, is an old, cantankerous man who lives alone. His Hmong neighbours are under threat by a neighbourhood gang, who originally tries to lure naive Thao(from nextdoor) to steal Walt's most prized posession, his 1972 Gran Torino, a stunning vintage car.

Clint Eastwood delivers again and this time he deserves a standing ovation. He takes on a very apt role as a conclusion to his long and successful career. 'Dirty Harry' proves that old guys can be cool and amazing. In this masterpiece, Eastwood skillfully takes on the roles of lead actor, director, composer and vocalist. He remains a legend and this one proves the point yet again.

Rating: 4/5

REVIEW: Departures

Plot: A cello player's dream is crushed when his orchestra is dissolved. looking for a job, he accidentally lands himself in a small company that deals with death ceremonies. He is reluctant at first, but soon gets the hang of it. He faces 3 separate problems; with his wife, his father and his mother.

Departures wonderfully depicts Japanese funeral processions, fitting in good humour at the same time. However, it does not deliver a dark tale, but rather a melancholic one, in a way that maintains respect to death. it shows that death is peaceful and earning a living off the dead is not such a bad thing. It got a bit draggy, but... its Japanese. the jokes are really good, and the script was well-developed. By the way, Departures is the Best Foreign Language Film at this year's Academy Awards, beating the Golden Globe winner, Waltz with Bashir(Israel).
Rating: 4.5

OSCAR TALK: Best Picture

Nominated:

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (5)
  
• Frost/Nixon (4)
  
• Milk
• The Reader
• Slumdog Millionaire (5)

Frost/Nixon was a great watch, but clearly the front-runners are Slumdog Millionaire and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. You might have heard that Slumdog has been winning the race to the Oscars throughout this award season, grabbing almost all of the Best Picture awards. Having watched both, however, I don't see why that is. In fact, Button left on me a greater impression than Slumdog. The filmmakers' skills are very comparable (and highly impressive) but i feel that Button has a better production design. I'd like to commend the following people who are artists by nature, having brought us these two jewels of film.

Slumdog Millionaire (10 Nominations)

• Danny Boyle (Director)
• Simon Beaufoy (Screenplay)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button(13 Nominations)

• David Fincher (Director)
• Eric Roth (Screenplay)

Nevertheless, only one will come out tops, and I'm counting on either of these two films to win the top prize.

REVIEW: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Plot: A boy is born old and ages in reverse, seeing the upside of life, which is sometimes unfair. His life story is told straight from his diary, read out by his daughter to the love of his life, who happens to be dying.

One word - Beautiful. And in every aspect, it is and it lives up to its expectation. It is a very captivating look at the life of a normal person with a slight twist to life. It makes you want more. It also makes you look at life in a different perspective. It's like one of those few times when you visit a museum, and find a portrait that you want to keep looking at forever. Because it touches you so deeply. Yes, this film is greatly emotional. This film also boasts cinematography, art direction and production design at their best. If you have the final ten dollars of your life in your hand, watch this. Chances are, you won't regret it.
Rating: 5