Sophie Scholl: The Final Days (2005)

7/10

Powerful true story

Secret Defense (2008)

7.5/10

unexpectedly exciting, might need to rewatch parts to fully get the plot twists/storyline

Secret Defense plot: In France, terrorist groups and intelligence agencies battle in a merciless war everyday, in the name of radically opposed ideologies.

The beginning starts off like the merry-go-round, slow and not so exciting. However, after the initial 15 minutes the film picks up right away like the roller coaster hitting its first hill.

The first 10 minutes introduced the history, relationship and personalities of the characters. There are many different characters, which makes it difficult to track the alliance between the members. This is done purposely to allow you to feel the confusion that the characters themselves feel in a world of espionage and secret service with much detail intelligence information. The introduction of the characters will lead to the ultimate conclusion and ties certain events together.

What "Secret Defense" does very well is it doesn't overdo any element of the film. The film uses of much cinematographic elements that is comparable to blockbuster films, like transitions, camera use and cuts. However, at no point in the film is any of it redundant and overused. Felt very tidy and pristine editing/filming technique.

Also, 70% of the film is shot with hand-held cameras but does a great job of balancing stability vs movement depending on the scene.

This film is not a walk in the park. It has some scenes that are not suitable for all viewers with a rating of 18+.

Find Me Guilty (2006)

6/10

Different mobster/court film

Based on the true story of Jack DiNorscio, a mobster who defended himself in court for what would be the longest mafia trial in U.S. history.


A very different role from Vin Diesel. I almost didn't watch it when I first saw it was staring Diesel, but to my surprise he gave a very splendid and realistic performance.

The overall film had moments of humor but overall is very slow. A film starring Vin Diesel, about mafia yet is slow and has no chase scenes? That's right, but even without all the hollywood effects this film still packed a punch. The terrific acting, the true story, and the strong focus on friendship/loyalty makes this film very unique.

Tais-toi! (2003)

7/10

some laugh out loud moments

Tais-toi is about a journey taken by a determined outlaw and an idiot thief. Many ridiculous yet absolutely hilarious events ensue.

Take Pink Panther, Three Stooges, some way-too-easy-to-beat-up thugs/cops and roll them together...the end result is Tais-toi. T

Director/writer Francis Veber created a wonderful piece of comedy. Jean Reno gives a terrific performance as the serious character but is stuck with an idiot (much like Pink Panther with Steve Martin). Gérard Depardieu's character, let's just say you end up hating yet liking him at the same time.

My Cousin Vinny (1992)

9/10 [ highly recommended]

Smart, witty, terrific acting, and exciting court room action

My Cousin Vinny is about two New Yorkers who were at the wrong place at the right time. The two are accused of murder in rural Alabama while on their way back to college, and one of their cousins--an inexperienced, loudmouth lawyer not accustomed to Southern rules and manners--comes in to defend them.

My Cousin Vinny is one of the best comedy/mystery/crime movies I have seen in a love time. It is well directed, well acted and fantastically written. The exchanges of dialogues are smart and filled with a lot of content.

Joe Pesci did an amazing job in the lead. Marisa Tomei, who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in her role as Mona Lisa Vito in this film, was stellar. The entire cast was perfect as they were the perfect balance between amusing yet believable. Some comedies have characters that too dramatic and over commit in their role, which makes it ridiculous. My Cousine Vinny perfectly balances the credibility of court room drama, humor, mystery, and suspense. It was definitely a laugh out loud, exciting, gripping ride.

Highly recommend this film!  I will be re-watching this film again for sure.

Primal Fear (1996)

6.5/10

Gripping, disturbing, great performances

An altar boy is accused of murdering a priest, and the truth is buried several layers deep.

Primal Fear is heavily revolves around a huge case inside a court room. An alter boy is accused of murder, a hot shot lawyer with a great track record takes the defence pro bono,  and a case that is steeped in one mystery after another.


Richard Gere comes back with a stellar performance as the lawyer defending the alter boy, played by Edward Norton. Norton is absolutely amazing in this film (without giving too much away) capturing the innocence and fear of his character.

When the final act and the ultimate conclusion is revealed, many clues that was left throughout the film suddenly made sense. I didn't feel completely absorbed in the story as parts of the film are fairly slow. However, the performances by the cast and the final conclusion (can't say what it is) did help recapture my attention

Not the most exciting or realistic court based film, but worth watching for the cast and the concluding twist.

Nothing to Lose (1997)

5.5/10

Some funny moments but not spectacular

Nick Beam's life couldn't get any worse. He discovers he has been living a lie and is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. So when T. Paul, a carjacker, attempts to rob him, it is the last straw for Nick. With everything to gain and nothing to lose, he kidnaps T. Paul and attempts to put his life back together.

 The premise of the film is Nick, who seemingly is in a loving relationship, sees something that makes his entire world collapse. From there on the film revolves around Nick and the events that follows after he has a breakdown. The silly concept fell short of being a decent comedy as it lacked in a solid storyline and witty dialogue. During the second and third act I felt I had to force myself to pay attention. This film couldn't hold onto my attention long enough.

"Don't jump to conclusions" is the morale of this story.

 Mediocre story that could have been better. Watch Galaxy Quest, Zombieland or Shaun of the Dead if you want a comedy with solid storyline.

Galaxy Quest (1999)

8.5/10 [highly recommended]

Loved it...perfect balance of witty humor, action, alien, and sci-fi spoof

Galaxy Quest is about an alumni cast of a cult space TV show, "Galaxy Quest", have to play their roles as the REAL crew of an space ship when an alien race needs their help.

The moment Galaxy Quest started, I knew I was in for something special. I almost didn't watch this film when I first read the plot but I am so glad I gave this film a chance.

Galaxy Quest is spoof on sci-fi/fantasy/alien/outer-space/Star Trek. What audiences should be aware is that this film is about actors pretending to be the crew of a ship on a tv show. So it's actors acting to be "actors" who are pretending to be "crew" of a space ship.

The film begins by introducing the audience (us) to a fictional "cast" of the television show "Galaxy Quest" at a comic con type event. To those who are familiar, will see right of the bat that this film is a perfect spoof of Star Trek. The film even does a perfect job of replicating a comic-con full of sci-fi fans. Alan Rick is fantastic as the "Spock" of Galaxy Quest and Tim Allen was stellar as the captain. Rick, who also plays Snape in Harry Potter, was a joy to watch as he was so full of different facial expressions. I found myself laughing and completely absorbed on the ridiculously witty story.

My favourite element is that Galaxy Quest acknowledge the absurdity of TV and refer to itself. It does not use crudeness, obscenity or vulgarness to try and force a laugh. Rather is uses audiences' knowledge of sci-fi, television shows in general, and spoofs to create a masterpiece.

I love it. I most likely will watch it a couple more times because that's how many times it would need to see the sheer genius behind this piece of work.

Clockwise (1986)

6/10

Clockwise is a headmaster, who is meticulous when it comes to timekeeping but has missed his train and has to travel across england by car.

Started off as a well planned, on schedule and good day...however, with John Cleese, you'll except humor and things going wrong in matter of moments. The headmaster (otherwise known as principal of a school) planning to go to a headmaster conference but with everything that could have gone wrong...did go wrong.

It is alright funny, extremely silly, quite frustrating...it's like Mr. Bean collided with Monty Python, fell onto Pink Panther thus creating Clockwise

Hugo (2011)

7/10

Wonderful cinematography, good editing, beautiful scenes... predictable storyline.

Set in 1930s Paris, an orphan who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.

 From the moment the film started, I knew I was in for some incredible scenes and editing. During the first 5 minutes, you'll notice one continuous should of Hugo running through the mechanical back rooms/chambers of the train station. This single shot goes up, down, spirals around, through, and over...never missing a beat as the camera seems to float behind Hugo. I am very fascinated in how this shot was accomplished.

 The colours and lighting in HUGO made the entire film feel almost dream like, which fit really well with the theme of the film. The almost cartoon feeling really asks your brain to try and detect whether what you are watching is real or animated. I felt myself suspended in wondering whether a scene was CGI or real people.

The story is quite predictable. Several times during the film, I found myself guessing how that act will end and how it will tie in with the final conclusion....each guess I made turned out to be right. When I first read the synopsis,  I was expecting that Huge witness a mystery that was full of twists so I guess that initial expectation might have made this film a bit less exciting.

Overall, I would recommend this film to those who enjoy a feel good, good cinematography, and cheerful family film.