Saturday, July 31, 2010

Salt (2010) ***

Rating PG-13


Be ready for 100 minutes of extreme action which will leave you confused… yes confused, whatever happened in the end??? I don’t believe in ruining movies for others so I keep my reviews for the most part matter of fact and simple, but for this one, on the way back from the theatre we actually had an argument: did he die? (So as to not ruin it for you I will not mention who) If he didn’t then what was all the fuss about? A sequel I presume.

Evelyn Salt (Angelina Jolie) is a CIA agent who is also a Russian sleeper spy. The plot begins when a captured Russian agent during interrogation reveals Salt’s identity. From then on it’s a lot of crashing, bashing and then some more bashing (kick, punch, shoot: repeat). The first half of the movie will keep you guessing but then it falls flat. This is Kurt Wimmer’s (Law Abiding Citizen) second movie as screen writer, I for one expected the screen play to be better than his first attempt, but then again expectations tend to disappoint.

What kept the movie together was Jolie’s performance, other than that the plot was skimpy thin, the action scenes were horribly shot and the score of the movie was even worse. The movie had a Bourne Identity/Bond feel to it minus the depth. The nuclear war incident ‘day x’ which could have been played upon to give the movie some volume went by as if it were an ice cream truck passing by your street in winters: zero consequence.

All in all I won’t say it was a bad watch, it was action fluff, a popcorn flick. If you have time on your hands and money to spare go watch it, otherwise wait for it to show on TV, no sweat you won’t be missing much.

P.S:

Hey, Jolie if you are reading this please put on some weight! You look emaciated and extremely malnourished, isn’t Brad feeding you? It breaks my heart to see you looking so ill, and Philip Noyce (director) made you kick and punch so many men… hope you are ok… how are the kids?




Watch Trailer HERE
Official Website

Link for downloading movie online for free, or streaming live will be posted as soon as its available.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Despicable Me (2010)***





After the Hilarious action-comedy with Tina Fey in Date Night Steve Carell is back .
This time lending his voice to the super villainous character of Gru in Disney-Pixar’s latest animated offering “Despicable Me”.

Despicable Me is about Dr.Gru( Carell) a criminal mastermind with serious mommy-issues, who lives alone in a house built over his super secret lab that’s being run by hundreds of tiny yellow minions.
Gru feels that he is loosing his touch at villainy after a new, younger villain Vector( Jason Segal) surfaces. Vector has outdone Gru’s claim to fame by pulling off the biggest heist of the century.He stole the Pyramid of Giza.So Gru along with his mad scientist buddy Dr.Nefario (Russel Brand) concocts a scheme to steal something even bigger.
Gru, ladies and gentleman, plans to steal the Moon!

But for the completion of his scheme he need a loan from the Bank of Evil.And to secure that loan from bank, he needs a shrink ray which is being kept in a vault in Vector’s high security home.
After his failed attempt to steal the shrink ray,Gru realizes that the only way he can get into vector’s home is through three little orphan girls who are selling girl scout cookies.
So he adopt the girls only so they will serve his purpose, not realizing that the girls will succeed in melting his cold heart and turning him from Super Bad to Super Dad.


Steve Carell adapts a heavily accented voice and gives a good delivery that makes his evil character likable but his minions were the real jokers in the movie.
The little girls were just adorable, specially the two younger ones. The dialogue wasn’t hilarious but it is pretty funny at times. The story line was cute with a few very sweet-mushy moments and it ends with the regular happy ending.
Not the best animated movie of this year, but definitely recommended for modest laughs.

Watch trailer HERE.
Official Website

Monday, July 26, 2010

Funhouse- Pink (2008) *****

If you recently had your heart broken, this album will bring you to tears, such is the power of the eccentric pop/rock pink. Don’t believe me YouTubeGlitter in the Air’…watch her live performance at the Grammys 2010, phenomenal!


Many have called this her divorce album, whatever the case the album has eight super hit songs, in its first week it became the highest selling album worldwide. With heart wrenching lyrics sung out in pinks signature raspy voice the album is a super hit. Whether you know pinks history or not, you will be able to identify with many of the songs on the album; love, life, loss, tragedy, identity, self discovery…its all of it with a pop-rock melody and an occasional ballad.

The album kicks off with So What’, it’s a trademark pink track: rebellious rock star attitude. Don’t mess with the rock star!! Up next is ‘Sober’, the song was conceived during a party at her place, where everybody was drunk except her ‘how do I feel so good sober?’ self discovery, understanding your fears and stepping forth and lastly how to be happy with all of that…know it.

I Don’t Believe You’, ‘Crystal Ball’ and ‘Glitter in the Air’ the three ballads on the album, quite honestly I don’t have the words to describe what I felt when I heard each one of them for the first time. According to the artist ‘Crystal Ball’ is her most prized number on the album, recorded in the first take, un-edited and mixed the song is raw emotion. ‘Glitter in the Air’ is my favorite song of the album (maybe because I am an emotional female :p) .

Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler does back up singing in ‘Mean’ .The title song ‘FunHouse’ is violent with provocative lyrics: rock and roll extreme!

Over all the album shows P!nk’s lyrical and melodic brilliance with heart thumping pop-rock beats and classic vocals. The lyrics question the world around us with songs like ‘Ave Mary’ and at the same time the album will give you softness that most of us don’t expect from the singularly unconventional P!nk.

PS:

I think Pink is vastly under rated, many of you will just ignore the songs just because its pink. Give it a shot, you won’t regret it.

Download the album for free

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Bill Dance's classic bloopers



Bill Dance Outdoors is a fishing television series hosted by retired professional tournament angler Bill Dance. This collection of outtakes is funny, even if you know nothing about the show.

The Electric Daisy Carnival Auditions 2010



The Electric Daisy carnival is is an annual electronic dance festival held on the last weekend of June in Southern California, and it has also been held in Texas, Puerto Rico and Colorado. It truly is a awesome experience being there. The video above is of Nigel Ficke; an Australian 'dance academy graduate' hopeful, that came in for open casting and the video is kind of like a promo for the Festival which i found pretty unique to say the least. Enjoy !

The Greatest partiers in Film History




From 1978 to 2010...See the Greatest partiers in Film History HERE

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Theatre in Lahore: Khatra-e-Jaan (22nd- 24th July 2010) ****

Day 1: House Full


Day 2: House Full

Day 3: YOU MUST GO SEE!

Theatre in Lahore is primarily divided into three categories: the traditional Punjabi (not for families), the Urdu artistic kind and finally the new breed of English plays. The last kind attracts a mass youth following; but the problem with these plays is that the culture they present isn’t ours, the language isn’t ours and finally over time they have become excessively similar to their Punjabi counterparts save for the language…amidst all this Khatra-e-Jaan is a welcome break. Talal Ali Jan (director) and Hell Box production with a team of young talented actors took Dr. Enver Sajjad’s script and turned it into an evening full of spirit and light hearted laughter. The best part about the play for me was that it was funny without the usual lewd comedy and actually had some moral worth.

The play is set in a typical ‘undroon shehr’ clinic, the story revolves around a greedy mal-practicing doctor who doesn’t have a degree and is responsible for the deaths of many. His daughter Bano is in love with her cousin Khalid a poor clerk, but Doctor Sahib is against their marriage. Majeed the dispenser at the clinic wants to one day become a doctor like his boss, through hit and trial to eventually win the hand of his love interest Naila, a small town girl.

The doctor one day on his return from a house call, throws one of his usual tantrums, gets rid of everyone and starts drinking, until lights flash and there is complete blackout, he presumes it’s just merely power failure until from amidst the audience a ghost steps forth and onto the stage. The ‘Ajnabee’ tells him that he is here to take him to hell; initially the doctor assumes he’s just a patient with dementia, but on his dispenser’s return he realizes although everyone can hear the ghost they can’t see him. The identity of the ‘Ajnabee’ is revealed towards the latter half of the play. During the course of the play you will be introduced to various other characters, each one of them funnier than the next.

The actors were a group of extremely talented youngsters, whose age you would not be able to guess until the curtain call and you will be surprised to say the least. Ajnabee played by fifteen year old Hamza Kamal gets the most laughs, what’s amazing is the fact that his improv of the original character is what drew most applause and appreciation. Majeed played by Farrukh for me was the strongest and most consistent character. Truth be told I wasn’t expecting much out of this play, in fact I was sure that it would be yet another typical wannabe angraiz comedy performed by a bunch of young bucks who don’t have a clue but I was amazed, the content and the performances far exceeded my expectations. Maie Haseena, Naila, Khalid, Bibi Majeeda, Muna, Bano, Ainak wala Baba and Maulvi as supporting characters were amazing. Talal and the rest of the Hell Box team you guys did a great job… two thumbs up!

P.S:

A little criticism is a must, what was missing were brochures…so, writing this review was a memory test as far as the cast and character names were concerned. Oh and a shout out to the hall management and security team: great crowd control!

Friday, July 23, 2010

Inception : The Review


With more twists and turns than a Brazilian soap opera (remember the days of Celeste dubbed in Urdu/Hindi on Star World?), Inception is one hell of a ride...

Written and directed by Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Prestige) , Inception is a tour de force that defies any genre that you might try and place it in, and yet at the same time, bears an undeniable Nolan trademarks – suspense, dark comedy, and a plot that always keeps you guessing.

Unlike many other movies, Inception isn’t based on a series of books, or even a set of graphic novels – it’s a wholly unique offering, blending elements of science fiction, with dashes of fantasy, and a smattering of steampunk style.

Set in a world very much like our own, it tells the story of Dominic "Dom" Cobb (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) and his ragtag team of friends and accomplices who specialise in “subconscious security”, Leo enters the mind of his targets via dreams, stealing their most precious ideas, and selling them to the highest bidder (of course). That’s right. Not even your dreams are safe. Infact your dreams are downright dangerous and leave you very open to suggestion.

Needless to say, this particular type of security is very dangerous, and if you piss off the wrong people as our main man did, there are serious consequences – being separated from his children and the death of his wife in this case.

But an opportunity presents itself that could set everything right – if he successfully implants an idea in his targets mind (the process itself is called Inception), he and his children will be re-united once again.

It’s worth pointing out at this point that the plot is extremely rewarding to those who follow it. The many intricate delicate twists and turns will leave you wanting more, and is never, ever predictable and keep you wondering even after you have left the cinema.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Coke Studio-Episode 4





After a very promising start in episode 1 with amazing performances like Abida Perveen’s Ramooz-e-ishq and collaboration of Meesha Shafi and Arif Lohar in Alif Allah Chambay de boti, things have been going pretty downhill for coke studio.Unable to replicate the magic of episode 1, we had some very mediocre performances from E.P, Amanat Ali,Arieb Azhar and Sanam Marvi and even Noori.Along with some really good, if not great performances by Zeb and Haniya,A.D.P and Meesha and the Iconic Tina Sani.

Episode 4’s first act was Noori singing Hor Vi neevan ho

Recently Noori has been criticized a lot because of their monotonous lyrics, and some fans even demanded them to hire a new lyricist. But in 'Hor Vee Neevan ho' they redeemed themselves. Powerful poetry,good vocals and the dulcet sound of Veena, cast their magic on our ears. In a very interestingly composed track,one could feel the instruments dominate in the first half , in the second half the vocals reached the high and Ali Hamza’s voice mesmerizes the listener's ears.

Karavan gave a performance of Kesay mumkin hai.
The sound was good but the intro felt horribly ripped off.Giving you the feeling that you have heard it before.


Zeb and Haniya sang Nazaar Eyle
It was a pleasantly soothing melody.Even though I coudnt understand the lyrics,the song felt good.

Amanat Ali and Sanam Marvi’s did a pretty decent job on Haq Maujood
The medley of sufi songs gelled well with Amanat Ali’s Voice.After his mediocre cover of Aisha,this song did show his talents to the max.


Arif Lohar’s Performance of Mirza Sahiban was completely over the top,I was laughing throughout the performance,It was hilarious if not anything else.
Arif Lohar was allowed to go berserk when he could have given a much better version of mirza sahiban.The analogy he made about his name “lohar” and heavy metal music was just absurd! Was he trying to be a rockstar when he gave that frightening shriek in the end?i just don’t know.
Plus the “balle balle shawa shawa” backing vocals just made it a cross between rock, traditional folk music and mehndi/mayoon songs.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Invictus (2009) ****

Rating: PG-13


Dedicated to Ma’am Shoa

Sometimes a good dose of healthy vitamins can boost an ailing body when all other medications fail. That’s what I thought of Invictus… it re-invoked a spirit of patriotism which made me want to do something for my country and set aside all our differences and perhaps start over again.

The movie is a cross between a sports flick and a political biopic. It begins with a haphazardly put together montage of events that eventually led to Mandela (Morgan Freeman) becoming the president of post-apartheid South Africa. This is where the movie begins, Mandela has won the election but he is yet to win the hearts and the trust of his nation. The black-white divide could hazard the nation into succumbing to communal riots and eventually a civil war. But Mandela sets into motion a civil reform, which begins in his own office, overcoming the black distrust of the white and employing both as his body guards to symbolize the harmony he foresees within his nation. Running parallel is the story of Springboks the South African rugby team, Pienaar (Matt Damon) is the captain who is being forced to resign on account of his team’s pitiful performance. Mandela steps in calling to office Pienaar and motivating him and his team to win the 1995 Rugby world cup which incidentally is being held in South Africa. This is where the conflict arises, the black South Africans always cheered for the team playing against the Springboks, as it stood for everything Apartheid, from its color to its emblem besides they preferred football over rugby. And when the Springboks initially fail to win and the now black majority house votes for a change in the name and anthem of the team Mandela steps in despite being advised against it, to coax his party members to withdraw the amendment. The story of how Mandela coaxes his nation to greatness is something that kept me mesmerized making me believe anything is achievable when you set your mind to it.

Nelson Mandela himself said that only Freeman could portray him on screen. And Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela does an excellent job, bringing to screen emotions that only an actor of his caliber could of managed, supported by Matt Damon as Pienaar, the captain of the South African Rugby, which actually ends up being the reason the movie was what it was overcoming some really sloppy decisions on part of Clint Eastwood as the director and his editors. The movie is long and drags a little towards the end with the rugby match extending to a good half hour. But when you are telling the story of Mandela and you have Morgan Freeman playing him, there isn’t much chance of going wrong.

P.S.:

Mandela has come forth as one of the most inspirational leaders in recent history, bringing together a nation vastly divided. His journey to office is a story which seems unreal, from being a political activist who spent thirty years in prison at Roben Island to a leader who reformed South Africa. What I am about to say has nothing to do with the movie…it’s just what the movie did for me… it reminded me of what the greatness of a single man can do for a nation and it hit home. We need greatness individually and as a collective whole, so watch the movie…learn and act upon it, hoping to bring forth some radical changes for the betterment of our nation.

watch trailer HERE

Monday, July 19, 2010

Five Point Some One - What not to do at IIT - ***


Ok! So by now all of us have watched the movie "3 Idiots", haven't we? and most of us are in love with the movie and how well Amir Khan and Company have portrayed the life of an Engineering Student. But do we know that the story of "3 idiots" resembles alot with a novel named "Five Point Someone" written by Chetan Bhagat in 2004, an alumnus of IIT himself?

I happened to get my hands on this novel by chance, and after reading the first few pages I was pretty sure of the similarities between the novel and the recent Indian Blockbuster "3 Idiots". So I thought of dropping the novel as I had already seen the movie more than once, but then there were some variations between the two and curiosity made me read this novel to the very end.

The plot of this novel is based on 3 freshies in IIT (India's Premier Engineering Institute) Hari (the narrator of the story), Alok (the pessimist poor boy with paralyzed father and unmarried sister) and Ryan (the smart, handsome & creative boy). These 3 friends stick with each other through thick and thin, suck at exams and get GPA's around 5 out of 10, and thus get the name of Five Point Someones, ones who enter the system but do not belong to it. Rest of the plot you people know already.


So now let's come to the interesting part, the variations between "Five Point Someone" & "3-Idiots";

  • Hari, who is hardly handsome and narrating the story, gets the chick (Neha, Daughter of Dean of Mechanical Engineering) and not the smart/creative Ryan.

  • Alok, the poor fatso, is the artist in "Five Point Some One" not the narrator, as in the movie.

  • Neha has both parents, no elder sister, she kisses Hari before the climax and there are no vacuum pulled babies (Thank God for that!)

  • Venkat the crammer (The infamous Chattur in "3 Idiots") does not return to IIT to see who is more successful in life.

In other words, while watching the movie all the scenes that you didn't like and felt unreal to you were never a part of "Five Point Someone" and were included only to add the "Bollywood Masala". The producer of "3 Idiots" Vidhu Vinod Chopra claims that there is not even 10 % similarity in "Five Point Someone" and "3 Idiots". I strongly suggest to go through this entertaining novel and see for yourself if there is any similarity in the Super hit novel and the Super hit movie.

Shrek:The Final Chapter(2010)


Here’s a theory about movie franchises:
The first one is always a blockbuster hit, everyone loves it and cant get enough of it.(e.g Spderman,Ironman,Superman,Shrek, etc etc)
Second one is never as good as the first one but usually has a pretty decent storyline and since every fan is waiting for it, it works(Underworld2,spiderman2,Transformers,The Mummy Returns, etc )
The third one is the much awaited final chapter where you have to give a final ending and so most of the characters get killed off but the viewers are sent home satisfied that it was a fit ending (Spiderman3,X-men3,Pirates of the Caribbean3 , Star wars ep.VI etc)
Now what do you do when all the storylines are exhausted and and the characters dead!
You make a PREQUEL!!! And that’s one kind of movie that should have never been made at all(eg.Wolverine, The Scorpion King,Star warsI,II,III etc etc and soon to be made Spiderman too)

Still, Shrek movie-makers took the predictable path and made a “somewhat-prequel” for the fourth installment too.



Shrek:The Final Chapter starts with a scene of a time before Fiona has been rescued by Shrek .Her parents, desperate for a way to lift the curse off their daughter go to Rumpelstiltskin.He agrees to grant them a wish and make their worries go away, in exchange for the Kingdom of Far Far Away.
They are about to sign when the news of Fiona rescue comes and they don’t make the deal with Rumpelstiltskin.
So now Shrek is living in his swamp with three kids, Donkey and his hybrid family and Puss in boots ,Tired of his routine life, and wishing he could become a “real” Ogre once again
Rumpelstiltskin, who is mad that Shrek deprived him of the Kingdom of Far Far Away over hears Shrek’s desire to live just one day before all these things happens and tricks him into signing a deal with him.
Hence Alternate Universe/Prequel-ish movie:

Shrek has never been born, Fiona has never been rescued, Donkey and Dragon have never met, Puss in boots has let himself go and is now a Fat over pampered kitty!Without the boots and hat. And Queen Lillian and King Harold had signed the contract to make "all of their problems disappear", causing them to literally disappear.
Oh and Rumpelstiltskin is the King of Far Far Away living in the castle with plenty of Wizard of Oz-type disco dancing witches.

As an exit clause Shrek has until sunrise to find his true love:Warrior Fiona leading an Ogre Resistance to defeat Rumpelstiltskin, to make her fall in love with him and have that “true love’s kiss” which will make his contract null and void and give him his life back.
As Rumpelstiltskin says:
“How’s that for metaphysical paradox?”

And all that is happening because “Shrek didn’t knew what he had until its all gone”

Apart from the regular characters, the new additions are Rumpelstiltskin and Pied Piper, plenty of new ogres,and the witches.
As Fairytale endings go Shrek and Fiona fall in love AGAIN,Share the true love’s kiss all that yada yada and bring an end to a very unnecessary movie!

Trailer of the movie HERE

Killers(2010)**




The movie which got absolutely no hype and raked in Just $45.3M is ..well.. quite funny at times! Maybe it’s the fact that I saw Killers at a time when everyone, including my mind, was asleep, is making me say this: I enjoyed Killers!

Its is about Jen (Katherine Heigl), a newly-single twenty-something on vacation with her parents (Catherine O’Hara, Tom Selleck) who meets Spencer (Ashton Kutcher) and Bam! Falls in love with him.
Fast Forward a couple of years Jen and Spencer are living a life of Marital Bliss when suddenly Spencer’s Friend/Colleague turns out to be a assassin hired to kill him.
Jen learns the truth about Spencer that he is “a blah working for blah blah blah with a license to blah.” (That’s a direct quote from the movie incase you are wondering)
And Thus begins Killers-The movie.

Ok that doesn’t sounds so promising and we all know that’s the same storyline as Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Ashton and Katherine are no Brangelina!
Nevertheless, Jen and Spencer go on the run, while fellow cast members here and there keep turning up as villainous assassins. A few cool fight scenes thrown in between. A couple of funny moments with Jen’s alcoholic mother and over protective father, and a predictable happy ending.Not exactly an original plot here, but do watch for the Laughs.


Well thought I had good things to write for this movie but now that I am reflecting, I really don’t.
Watch the Trailer HERE, and judge for yourself if you want to kill time while watching Killers :P

Sunday, July 18, 2010

The Last Airbender (2010) *


It pains me to say what I have to say about this movie… if you were a fan of Avatar the show on Nickelodeon (like me) than don’t bother with the movie, it will only frustrate and bring you to tears (for all the wrong reasons); and if you never saw the show, then you definitely shouldn’t bother, as you won’t understand what’s going on.


Before I move on to the plot, I have a question (or two) to the makers of the movie: why was everybody and everything so sad, dark and bleak? Did you actually bother seeing the TV show which millions of kids and adults alike around the world followed?

The basic story line is the same as book one of the TV show, the fire nation has taken over the world and the Avatar has disappeared until Katara (Noah Peltz) and Sakka (Jackson Rathbone) find Aang (Noah Ringer) the last air bender frozen outside their village. Both the siblings take it upon themselves to protect the Avatar who is destined to save the world and bring to an end the tyranny of the fire nation. The rest of the story is predictable but what made the TV show entertaining were the funny anecdotes and the chemistry between the characters, but in the movie the dialogue is missing, the acting is horrible and there is zero chemistry between the characters (maybe because they don’t know who they are supposed to be?). The only decent actor Dev Patel as prince Zuko has barely any dialogue. Aang is supposed to be a smart funny kid… but Noah Ringer looks like a sad depressed little boy, ok his martial arts skills were pretty good but the overall effect was not at all pleasing. None of the characters were believable and the bending… that was a joke! And what reallyyyy annoyed me was how they were pronouncing the names of the characters (Sakka is Sokka and so on)…you could at least get that right!

Ok so the acting was bad, you expect the story to pull the movie together or make it at least bearable but it seemed like chunks of scenes from the series (all 20 episodes) haphazardly put together and coming from someone as renowned as M. Night Shyamalan (6th sense) I for one definitely had higher expectations. The screen play, direction and CGI all of it was horrible to say the least.

watch trailer HERE

Knight and Day(2010)**




Two Stars!Yes That many stars for the biggest blockbuster to show...well atleast at our local cinemas this summer.
See Trailer:



Trailer is awesome,isnt it?
Makes you want to run to the cinema and watch the film.Plus it plays a Muse song in the background(Uprising-Amazing song,but then all muse songs are). How could I resist it?
Turned out, I could have resisted it! very easily too.

The Plot of the movie revolves around Tom Cruise character,Roy, a rogue C.I.A agent agent safeguarding a priceless battery...Yes, you heard that right: a BATTERY!
Ok well its a tiny battery created by wacky inventor Simon Feck (Dano) that is apparently "the first perpetual energy source since the sun." Tom C is saving it from unspecified foreign bad guys who speak immaculate English one minute,then lapse into "where iz deee batteree" when their cover is blown.
Joining Tom Cruise in this epic action/comedy is Peter Sarsgaard, Viola Davis, Paul Dano and Jordi Molla and ofcorse the Female lead,and the Bubbly blonde extrodinaire, Cameron Diaz as June Havens.

Throughout the movie the plot spins out of control with June and Roy getting tangled up in the whole saving-the-battery drama and keeps the viewers engrossed though banal dialogue and gun action thrown here and there.
The movie also keeps changing locations every fifteen minutes.So you get to see scenes shot in Boston! Salzburg! Seville! AND some un-named exotic islands.


The movie has everything that a summer blockbuster needs; car chases, motor cycle chases, gun battles, hand to hand fighting, exotic locales…Tom Cruise acts his usual annoying/charming self and Cameroz Diaz as the perfect damsel in distress who keeps getting herself into trouble and waiting for her “Knight” without any shiny Armour to rescue her.
Good for a one time watch.Will provide a few laughs here and there too, thanks to Cameron Diaz Ditzy blonde act.

Although the story line is full of action scenes , I guess the writers didn’t think us viewers deserved anything more than that; every time the good guy and the bubbly blonde are in a fix,he DRUGS her and then escapes...so we dont know how exactly he keeps escaping from high security safehouses because ,well,he drugged her when they got caught and when she wakes up, she is safe and sound after the ingenious escape.Which shows how clever the script was.Very convenient for the writers.
In the end the priceless battery somehow transforms into a bomb blowing up the bad guys helicopter in which they are escaping.
Bubbly blonde and Awesome agent get together and live happily ever after.
Oh wait did I just give away the ending?

Sorry,my bad, but you knew that already didn’t you? It’s a feel good movie.So it was supposed to end like that :P



P.S. Tom Cruise is OLD! Even that shirtless six-pack scene wouldn't make me drool over him.And thats just Sad!Mostly he looked like a creepy-middle-aged guy.So I guess Cameron D suited him just fine with all her own wrinkles.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010) ****

Rating: PG-13


Why did I watch the movie? Primarily because the hero (Jake Gyllenhaal) is adooraabbblleeee!!! And as a kid the wobbly acrobats of the prince on a 4.86 pc fascinated me. So here I am reviewing a movie which has been vastly under-rated by most critics. Fine the movie doesn’t completely follow the story from the video game…but then again what movie actually stays true to its inspiration? At the same time this one doesn’t go too far off… so all you prince of Persia fans can breathe easy.

Before you begin watching the epic adventures of the Prince of Persia, shed all your preconceived notions and be ready to be taken on a CGI aided action ride through the sands of time.

The story revolves around Dastan (Jake Gyllenhaal) adopted by the King of Persia from the streets of Nasaf. The action begins when Dastan over-riding the orders of his brothers Garsive (Toby Kebbell) and Tus (Richard Coyle) takes into his own hands the conquest of the Holy city of Alamut, only to find out that the motive behind the attack was false and fabricated in order to attain something far more valuable: the mystical dagger of Sands of Time. The princess Tamina (Gemma Arterton) of Alamut has vowed to protect the dagger, a gift from the gods, from falling into the wrong hands. Amidst this treason is committed and the King is murdered, the blame of which lands on Dastan. From there on begins the journey of the Prince and the Princess together to both protect the dagger and the world, and to clear Dastan’s name. What unfolds is a captivating story of treachery, deceit, romance and self discovery.

The movie is a whirlwind of high profile action and breath taking stunts. Disney productions in collaboration with director Mike Newell have brought forth a thoroughly entertaining epic adventure which is a must watch.

Prince of Persia Official Disney Website: http://adisney.go.com/disneypictures/princeofpersia/
Prince of Persia Film Official Movie Trailer HD

Spartacus: Blood and Sand - Season 1 ****


For Starters,’ Spartacus; Blood and Sand’ can be loosely termed as a cross between “Gladiator” and “300”, claimed by the producers to be ‘the boldest and bloodiest series’ to ever hit the TV screens, and lives true to the claims.

The plot of this tv series revolves around a thracian warrior who commits with Rome to fight against Getae (who used to strike their homes, rape women etc etc), later he goes against the Romans and is captured and is sent to Rome as a slave to be slaughtered by Gladiators in Blood Games. In a series of events, all other thracians fall yet one remains, killing all the gladiators in the arena & earning the title of “The one who defies death” and is given the name Spartacus.

The second major character enters in this point of series; He is Lentalus Baitiatus, the head of Ludus of Baitiatus, a school of gladiators. He sees Spartacus as a good investment and purchases him. The story moves ahead and Spartacus’s fame grew and he becomes the champion of Capua. The rest of the plot moves around the walls of Ludus of Baitiatus where friendships are made, Champions fall, nobles slaughtered, gladiators murdered. Infact one finds everything there; love, sex, jealousy,slaughter, treason, friendship, slavery, respect and death.

Generally the storyline of this series seems to be a bit weak and quite predictable, but here is where the cast and characters step up and do their part. The acting by the major characters is no less than fantastic and all of them do full justice with their characters. The major characters that stand out are Spartacus (The Thracian warrior turned Gladiator turned Champion of Cupua), Lentalus Baitiatus (Head of Ludus of Baitiatus, trying to make ends meet and entering the senate), Lucretia (Wife of Baitiatus, admires Crixus (another gladiator) and longs for a child), Crixus (Champion of Campua who lost his title, extends favor to lady of the ludas, loves Lucretia’s house slave), Ilithya (Wife of Glaber, who captured Spartacus and sold off his wife Sura) and Ashur (once a Gladiator, crippled by Crixus in the Arena, now handles accounts for the ludus)

With high volumes of blood rich action sequences and heavy dosage of soft porn within the series, one feels to be engrossed in these two but that’s not the case. With all the blood flowing on sand, gore curses and naked bodies making love constantly, the message shown is the roman way of life and roman thought process.

The series comprises of 13 episodes, the earlier episodes a bit difficult to digest, but once you have seen 3 episodes you are glued to this show. As for the next season, the shooting was scheduled to start months back was delayed by the news that the main lead Andy Whitfield (Spartacus) has contracted cancer. What a cliché, the person nicknamed as ‘The one who defies Death has cancer’. However, the producers taking advantage of time in hand and public demand have shot a 6 episode prequel to season 1, which doesn’t make sense to me at all but looking forward to it when it is aired.

A good series to have in the midst of non realistic gossip girls, entourages and other uptown crap. Great Sets, Beautiful woman, blood bathing warriors, Simply Awesome!

P.S. Viewers are kindly reminded to watch this series at their own risk and we further request not to get carried away and try any of the horrendous stuff showed in Spartacus Blood and Sand

Dorian Gray (2009) ****


Oscar Wilde’s ‘The picture of Dorian Gray’ (1890) comes to life yet again in Technicolor, bringing forth the horrors of a corrupt mortal soul in a society governed by vanity, lust and greed. (Sound familiar?)


The movie tells the story of a young beautiful man Dorian Gray (Ben Barnes) whose life changes drastically on his arrival in Victorian London, where he has inherited an estate left to him by his deceased grandfather. Dorian’s relationship with his grandfather unfolds gradually through a series of flashbacks throughout the movie, reflecting the torment he had to face as a child and the ongoing inner conflict of morality vs. corruption as he is led into a world of debauchery under the guidance of Henry Wotton (Colin Firth), a calculating amoral man. Dorian meets Henry through Basil Hallward (Ben Chaplin) an artist who in his obsession with Dorian’s beauty paints his best work: a portrait of Dorian. Captivated by his own good looks Dorian’s wishes for eternal youth, agreeing to sell his soul to the devil for it, his wish is granted. While the world around him grows old he is eternally young, pursuing a life preached to him by Wotton ‘fulfillment of the senses’. Throughout his escapades of lust, violence and moral degradation Dorian remains youth full, while the portrait Basil painted disfigures, revealing the reality of his soul. The story comes to a climax when Dorian finally finds true love, Lady Victoria (Emilia Fox) daughter of Henry Wotton.

Directed by Oliver Parker, the movie will take you on a dark-gothic surreal journey, which will leave you questioning the reality that surrounds us and our obsession with vanity. It’s a brilliant take on the original whether you watch it purely for entertainment purposes or leave with a lesson or two in toe.

watch trailer HERE

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Marley and Me- A review! Better late than never ;)


After being told 'many' times by my friends NOT to watch Marley and Me, as they were aware of my Love for animals, I did tonight.. And sadly or rather sniffing-ly, I admit, I was told the right thing.. I actually cried buckets!
A beautiful beautiful movie which makes you smile, laugh and weep at the same time.. The movie is about a dog; Marley which Jenny and John bring home as their clearance puppy after getting married. According to them, they wanted to prepare themselves before having future children. The little cute puppy turns out to be a brat who chews, destroys and swallows anything and everything that seems edible to 'him' (For Marley, even a telephone was an edible item). He tears apart the house, makes wild escapes all the time, humps on his trainer who was sure that she knows how to let the dog know who 'leads' the pack, and terrorizes everyone around lovingly. Despite of the torturous love given by Marley, the Grogans never give up on him and in return, Marley loves them back passionately(literally). As time passes by, they have three kids and everyone could see that Marley started behaving like a gentle dog around the kids and started gaining more respect from his owners. The movie is basically based on a journey of a family with their dog. And the story is from an autobiographical book, written by John Grogan. I haven't read it but after watching the movie I sure want to. Though I'm a bit relutant as I don't want to repeat the crying episode again but still I'm sure it'll be worth the read.

I know I know, its quite visible that I'm an animal lover but nonetheless, I did cry buckets ;) So if you are fan of dogs, you would love this movie and will definitely connect with some parts. I sure did! And also keep some tissues with you!
And if you aren't a dog lover.. Errr.. Then why are you reading this review anyway.. Lol! Just kidding! Give it a watch, its a tender hearted easy going movie =)


P.S: This quote was the Best part, it actually is true for the society we are living in:
A dog has no use for fancy cars, big homes, or designer clothes. A water log stick will do just fine. A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, clever or dull, smart or dumb. Give him your heart and he'll give you his. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel... extraordinary?

Monday, July 5, 2010

Twilight -Eclipse! A Review.

Some books should not be made into movies AT ALL! specially if the book is about a annoying,whinny,16 year old who is "unconditionally and irrevocably in love" with a 100 something Vampire and has a hunky werewolf as her best friend!
But then there are things you just cannot stop and Twilight-Cult Status is one of them.Lets have a Twilight Review.



Eclipse finally did the unthinkable.It turned the memory of the earlier two movies as a bad dream that you know You did saw but don't remember.It is not as boring as Twilight neither as dull as New moon,it actually entertains you for a while.
The movie starts with a teenager named Riley being attacked by an unknown Vampire and a series of killings that have started happening in Seattle.The Cullens start investigating the killings and instantly know that a Vampire hand is involved.Meanwhile Bella and Edward are together again and Jacob is doing his Jilted-Lover thing.
Midway in the movie we learn that Riley has been made into a new-born Vampire,and is Raising and army of Vampires on Victoria's orders(Surprise.she is back to take revenge)The army of vampires have one purpose-To kill Bella so Edward can feel the pain Victoria felt when the Cullens killed James(In twilight)So the Mortal enemies, werewolves and vampires, join forces to fight the newborn army.
Now thats just 15 minutes of the movie!
The other many minutes are centered on the conflicting love Bella has for two leading men.We find Bella (Kristen Stewart) coming to terms with the reality of her desire to become a vampire, while continuing to find some middle ground between her love for Edward (Robert Pattinson) and friendship with Jacob (Taylor Lautner). Seeing as one is a vampire and the other a werewolf, they are already predisposed towards animosity, but with Bella in the middle – "Switzerland," as she calls herself – their jealousy only adds more fuel to the fire.
But all the intense love between Bella and Edward is a bit of an overkill.Yes Bella is torn between her two mythical men but Isn't Bella supposed to be happy with Edward.In the movie,they come across as two people who are together but who couldn't be more miserable!
As for the performances,Stewart has finally loosened up a bit and is more comfortable in her role.Pattison's delivery and acting is still flat and monotonous but atleast he looks good!Lautner is the only one who really puts an effort into portraying his character.
Apart from all the angst and fighting,we also learn about the human-pasts of Jasper and Rosalie Hale.They give pretty solid performances.And Jackson Rathbone as Jasper is at his best in Eclipse.The Volturi also make a brief appearance in the movie,with Dakota Fanning as Jane,portraying the merciless attitude of Volturi,intent on giving no second chances to vampire-rule breakers.

All in all the movie entertains twilight haters and lovers alike,maybe because this time they actually followed the book.Word for word.
Watch if you are a Twi-hard and you want be disappointed.
If you are not a twilight fan,watch for the Shirtless Quilletes(werewolves tribe)....and You wont be disappointed too ;)

watch trailer HERE
visit official web page

Sunday, July 4, 2010

The Contributers.

Ally
EmJay
ANA
you know who you are!

twitter up :

HERE


facebook page:
HERE


Contributers should Start Posting their views and Reviews :)

P.S. Yes the Facebook page name was messed up by me.But A.S.S works too.Even better ;)

The Ribbon cutting ceremony post.

The figurative ribbon has been cut.Applause all around.
No Honorable mentions.(We just dont deal with it)

Finally the A.A.S's Guide to music,movies,books and everything else is here.
Dont forget to check in now and then.Browse Comment and Leave your suggestions.Plus do tell your friends.
Cause we are here to stay.