December's Dalliances

Several factors contributed to the fact that I saw only 10 movies in December (the least for any month last year), a far cry from the top record of November, when I saw 21. First, for most of the month I was busy on back-to-back shoots. Second, my Golden Village VIP card expired on 30 Nov, greatly reducing the incentive of watching anything that came along, no matter how awful it appeared to be. And third, there was simply nothing much of note released this month.

(Pictures of the movie posters are still stuck in my old computer and will be uploaded as soon as I mange to extract them)

2 Days in Paris
Freewheeling, talky little film that nonetheless is very entertaining due to the fine cast and clever lines. Still, it pulls no punches when it comes to the fighting, and every last barb is designed for maximum hurt. Funny, yes, but also very, very human, and painfully so. Julie Delpy's parents play her onscreen parents as well, and they're one of the best things about the movie, stealing every scene they're in.

神探 (Mad Detective)
Lau Ching Wan is wonderful as the titular 'mad detective' who has the ability to see the 'inner demons' and the 'real selves' of the people he meets. The great concept is revealed slowly, leading us through some very interesting twists and turns, not all of which make sense, even at the end. It's all entertaining as hell though, courtesy of Johnnie To. Even when he's slumming it a little, his stuff is still better than most, and worth a watch.

Nanking
It's rather pointless to complain about a documentary being Western-centric when it's made by Caucasians. Not to put down their efforts or anything, but the doc really trumpets their heroism at the expense of the real victims. The interviews with real survivors of the atrocities is the most powerful thing about the film, and one only wishes there'd been more of them. Unfortunately, the impact can be blunted somewhat if you've read about the Rape of Nanking before, which was what happened in my case. Above average, but nothing mind-blowing, for me at least.

The Golden Compass
There's nothing here that stands out as a gem in the fantasy movie genre, although the brutal polar bear battle comes close. Dakota Blue Richards and Nicole Kidman are standouts, playing their roles to perfection, especially the former. But otherwise, the movie seems rote, and never really rises above being merely 'competent'.

หมานคร (Citizen Dog)
You can expect something visually spectacular from the director of Tears of the Black Tiger, and this doesn't disappoint in that sense. It's a heady rush of whimsical imagery, loopy humor and pure insanity. Examples include a mountain of plastic bottles, a city full of people singing along to a pop song, passersby all dressed in the same green dress, motorcycle helmets raining from the sky - the list goes on and on. Sometimes though, one gets the feeling it might be too much of a good thing, and whether you like it or hate it really depends on your stomach for such things. Unfortunately, the pacing leaves much to be desired as the director meanders into tangents at his leisure, which makes it ultimately a weaker film than it should be.

投名狀 (The Warlords)
Peter Chan wants very badly for his epic to be a grand tragedy, but he doesn't quite reach his goal. Some powerful moments do hint at its potential for greatness, but ultimately it's let down by its characters who don't feel real enough for a connection to be established. Perhaps in trying to cater to a Mainland Chinese audience (and censors), it lost much of its ability to be biting and downplays the sexual tensions and ambiguity that could have been explored. We all know Jet Li can't act, so his role as a taciturn general who keeps all his cards close to his chest is perhaps his best role ever, and he performs surprisingly well. Takeshi Kaneshiro's role as the naive, idealistic youngest sworn brother is the weakest link as it's annoyingly one note, and sinks into unfortunate (and unforeseen) comedic depths.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets
The unholy double-team of Bruckheimer and Cage provide a surprisingly entertaining movie - dumb, inoffensive and fun. Sort of a sillier version of The Da Vinci Code, if you will, and way more enjoyable than that movie, because it has the good sense to not take itself too seriously. It's a little overlong in my opinion, but is still good for a brainless night out. The best bits are the sparring sessions between Helen Mirren and Jon Voight. Anything with Helen Mirren gets a free pass in my book.

My Blueberry Nights
My colleague SMS-ed me while watching the movie, complaining that it was awful and that she wanted to walk out. I told her to stick with it, assuring her that it got better and better. And true enough, she enjoyed herself in the end. The first half hour is hard to sit through, because it feels like it's Wong Kar Wai dumbed down for the multiplex crowd, and all the dialogue, while typical of his films, sounds extremely out of place when delivered in English. However, once Norah Jones leaves on her road trip, the film finds its footing and delivers poignant vignettes on various aspects of love. David Strathairn and Natalie Portman are fantastic, and Rachel Weisz makes a terrific entrance as well as a wonderful monologue in an otherwise mediocre role. It all ends with a slice of blueberry pie, a beautiful kiss, and a sweet aftertaste without being cloying.

Across the Universe
It's a stunning achievement for musicals. For a theatre director, Julie Taymor has an astonishing grasp of the strengths that film has, and she exploits it to the fullest in sequences that are outstanding in their visual richness. The musical numbers are gorgeously done, with breathtaking choreography, editing and often wonderfully surreal imagery. I wasn't that taken by it the first time I saw it, perhaps because it does feel a little overlong, but the more I think about it, the more I like it. The best thing about the film is that it lets you look at the Beatles' familiar music through fresh eyes.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Undeniably, it's fun to watch Cate Blanchett chewing up all the scenery in her vicinity and spitting it out with unabashed vigor. But soon you realize that it's all in the service of a nonsensical plot that's really quite boring and nothing more than stock melodrama. It tries to distract with ridiculously overblown camera angles and movements, and more over-the-top costumes than you can shake a stick at, but all the visual gloss hardly disguises a wafer-thin excuse of a story.