Only a few movies can succeed while revolving around a small cast but Captain Phillips is pulling it off well. You don’t even have to know someone from the Marine industry to understand and relate to the story. The build-up of suspense is enough and the tension is very real.

Tom Hanks, once again, shines in this movie. The A-lister is very effective as a stoic, calm and collected leader of the ship, Maersk Alabama. The rest of the ship’s crew, the Somali hijackers and the NAVY seal provide excellent backdrops to the drama as it unfolds. Capt. Phillips is a true to life documentary of the hijacking that happened in 2009. The Maersk Alabama was commandeered by Somali pirates despite valiant efforts to keep it from happening. The quick thinking crew, the small maneuvers and even the covert advice of

Captain Phillips keep the audience engaged. It is a relief to watch a movie where the characters are proactive and not just accepting of their fate.

The Somali actors also need special mention. The casting director’s choice of actors made the movie more realistic and alive. The Somali pirates have not been presented as mere menacing and hardened individuals. A few brief shots of where they are from and the kind of live they lead make them more human and also make the audience relent to them…a little. After all, poverty is no excuse for violence, is it? One thing to be remembered as well is a small scene where Hanks tells the pirate leader he didn’t have to do all these (pertaining to the crime) but got an answer that in his land, he had no choice. A few Google clicks away and you’ll be surprised to find that the Somalian’s ages ranged from 16-20. This knowledge somehow puts them under a new light…at least for me.

The only negative thing I have to say about the film is the small part that Catherine Keener had to play as Tom Hank’s wife. She barely has a few minutes airtime; she might as well have been replaced by an extra. It’s simply a waste of talent to cast someone of her caliber and not use her acting chops. All in all however, Capt. Phillips is a surprisingly great film and one which will be bound to win or at least get nominated in several awards.

You can check-out the trailer below here also:

The Colony starts off with an all too familiar premise- the end of the world as we know it. It is a ho-hum movie that seems to take elements of its plot from previous blockbusters.

We have a zombie apocalypse that is akin to the’ Walking Dead’ or the film ’28 Days’. We see the seemingly irrational beings who turn out to be organized and united like the ones in ‘I Am Legend’. There’s the sudden drop of temperature for the entire planet which is reminiscent of ‘The Day After Tomorrow’.

The parallel plot may come across as annoying to avid movie fans but infrequent viewers might find it interesting still. The film is set well into the future where extreme temperatures have forced men to build colonies deep into the ground. Food is rationed and health is of the utmost importance….a simple cold can be reason enough for execution. Then a distress call arrives from a neighboring colony to which selected members respond to and all hell breaks loose. The story develops slowly but eventually gives brief moments of suspense. The chase and fight scenes are enough to get the adrenalin pumping but the conclusion is predictable and expected.

The Colony hits Philippine cinemas on September 28. See trailer below

Although Luke Evans has been in the entertainment industry for over a decade, his breakthrough role was that of a villain in Fast and the Furious 6. In fact, he was one of the Philippines’ visitors a few months back to promote the film, which ultimately proved to be successful in the box office. It was also during this visit that he sang his way to Filipino hearts by crooning a few lines of Kailangan Kita, a Lea Valdez’ hit.

The success of Fast and the Furious 6, coupled with Evans’ undeniable charm may be the reason why local cinemas thought No One Lives would be a big hit. A movie with Luke Evans in top billing should attract moviegoers, right? Perhaps.

In the movie No One Lives, Evans reprises the role of the anti-hero; cold, calculating, cruel and cunning. He is a lean killing machine who extinguishes lives without remorse…which is exactly like his character in the Fast and the Furious franchise. The screenplay also plays with a lot of violent, bloody and gory scenes, which have a déjà vu feel to it. The ‘kill’ scenes look familiar and the blood, too contrived. The plot is as messy and vague as its storyline and the movie ends leaving the viewer with a lot of unanswered questions. What did the two lead female cast’s identical scars mean? Was Tamara also a kidnap victim? How was Emma chosen? And in the end scene, why did no one see the killer parade around the hotel lobby, stripping off the doctor’s gown and throwing it away?

We may never know and sadly, we will never get back the time and money spent on such an odious film. Kudos to Evans for his effective portrayal…but that’s just about the only positive thing one can say. Truly, no one will live to say they enjoyed seeing this flick.

No One Lives is now showing in cinemas nationwide. See trailer below also:

Sometimes when I write movie reviews, I do a bit of research to try and see how others wrote their reviews. True, there are times when I do ‘blind’ reviews and just give my pure, unadulterated opinion, but in this case, I chose to do a bit of ‘googling’.

Turns out, this sequel isn’t as popular as I would’ve hoped or expected. Critics have passed it off, saying that Percy was written without any depth of character. They say that there’s a scene which is totally infuriating and that the whole franchise feel “been there, done that”.

I disagree.

Now, let me clarify first that I am not a Percy Jackson fan. I just see merit where I am surprised others do not. I guess other people have reached the point where they have forgotten their younger, insecure selves that they failed to understand where Percy Jackson is coming from – his need for parental approval, his desire for personal approbation and acceptance, his incessant question of self worth. I mean, we were all young once. Did you never pass a phase in your life where you questioned your worth? Evidently, some critics have been lucky – or oblivious – to one of the most philosophical questions in life: Do I matter?

Pushing this question aside, Sea of Monsters must be commended for outstanding visual effects. By now, movie goers are familiar with computer generated effects but it is refreshing to see the movie take it into another level. The rendering has been done naturally, it is hard to define where reality ends and the effects begin.

Of course, the actors have also contributed well into the movie’s success. The chemistry between Logan Lerhmann (Percy Jackson) and Alexandra Daddario (Annabeth Chase) is red-HOT. Grover’s one liners are hilarious, Clarisse and Luke are pretty much still despicable and Mr. D is still as grumpy as ever. Pierce Brosnan’s portrayal as Chiron is the only thing amiss but Anthony Head as replacement still works. Both men still ooze charm and sex appeal.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters is still showing in cinemas. Catch them at theatres nationwide.

You can see trailer here.

The Conjuring has nothing new on the table for horror fans. The movie gives us a lot of dark scenes, eerie silences, piercing screams, falling objects, loud noises and hideous, white faced ghosts. The music is effectively timed, enough for experienced horror enthusiasts such as myself (lol) - to steel and buckle up on a scary movie moment.

Despite all the clichés, however, The Conjuring is still effective. If you are looking for a scary movie, try this one – it’s definitely scary enough. The only, small, miniscule letdown is the acting of the daughters in the movie. Chalk it up to age and inexperience but there were moments when you feel their terror was and forced, making it obvious for what it really was – acting. The main actors, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Vera Famiga and Patrick Wilson gave good performances, despite the fact that the script they’d been given was simple and shallow. In the movie, we hardly see anything in their character apart from their profession and familial relationships.

Perhaps the creepiest factor in this entire movie is that everything was based on the real-life ordeals of the Perron Family and the encounters of the Warrens. The end of the movie shows us their pictures and even if this is not the first horror movie that’s based on real –life situations, (remember Amytiville Horror and Exorcism of Emily Rose?) – the mere fact that it really happened a long time ago is enough to send shivers down anybody’s spine.

The Conjuring opens in cinemas on August 21.

Image Source

Spoiler alert!

Blood, gore and extreme violence – it just doesn’t seem to fit any of Robert De Niro’s impressive resume of blockbuster films, but surprisingly, this movie works. John Travolta is no pushover either, as he delivers in this movie, transforming himself into a gaunt, lean and bitter former Serbian soldier who is out for revenge.

The movie begins with scenes from the Bosnian War – a reenactment of course - and how it ended when American and NATO forces intervened. This particular war occurred from 1992 to 1995 and maybe because it is on the other side of the world, Asians for the most part were oblivious to what is now called the ‘most devastating conflict’ since World War II.

There is one scene in the film that is almost reminiscent to Schindler’s list where an American soldier opens a train carriage only to step back in horror and disgust to find hundreds of dead bodies, eyes open in hunger. Theirs was definitely not a peaceful death. It is a powerful image, and one that is repeated again, later in the film.

Fast forward to the next 18 years and we find one Serbian soldier (Travolta) who finally gets the intelligence report he needs to track down and kill the man he thinks is responsible for his people’s untimely demise – Col. Benjamin Ford (De Niro).

What ensues is a deadly game of cat and mouse. It becomes a suspenseful contest of cunning between the two war veterans and their struggle to survive. Each character is successfully revealed to the viewer that it is impossible to choose sides and root for any one of the protagonists.

Now, I won’t reveal how the movies ends, but suffice to say that it was touching to know how one man’s source of bitterness was the other’s source of misery. It’s just brilliant storytelling. Each of them dwelt on the same moment that forever touched - and almost destroyed their lives. Killing Season is definitely not a sci-fi movie, nor is it a documentary filled with boring statistics. Killing Season is quick and to the point. Every minute matters. And if you are not into gore just like I am, turn away from the scenes in the forest and simply focus on the conversation – you won’t regret it.

Killing Season opens in theaters on August 7. Don't forget to check-out trailer below also.

I'm initially not a fan of horror movies. Things changed, however when I began watching ‘The Walking Dead'. I was hooked to the adrenalin rush! But let me make it clear – I don’t like slasher films – with the exception of my favorite TV series, Dexter. ( Who can resist that primal need for vengeance?)

I classify slasher films as those that have their characters die, one after another, dropping out of the movie like flies. Senseless deaths, even more absurd serial killer motives and blood – buckets and buckets of it. Slasher films often try to pass themselves off as horror movies when all they really do is try to creep viewers out with badly executed storylines.

This was what I expected, when I saw World War Z. I half expected to find a half familiar story – Resident Evil meets Walking Dead meets Night / Dawn of the Living Dead meets 28 Days. I was pleasantly wrong however and I soon found myself gripping the edges of my seat, empathizing with movie characters and squealing like a little girl.

Technology today makes anything possible, specifically on the big screen – the cinema. It is sad however, that special effects sometimes become deciding and defining factors in labeling movies as ‘good’.

I saw ‘Man of Steel’ with an open mind. (I say this because I am a Christopher Reeves fan – the second and longest running actor of the Superman franchise.) I allowed myself to watch it out of curiosity, having heard from several colleagues it was a good movie.

Right from the start, I questioned the movie storyline. Was this movie meant to re-write the life of Superman / Clark Kent? In the past, Clark was never a bum, a disillusioned, semi-philosopher who searched for the meaning of his life. He was a bumbling, clumsy news reporter who has conviction and principle. The clumsiness of course, was just a front, to cover for his true superhero self.