Exam (2009)

7/10

A clever psychological thriller that will grip you from beginning to end.

Exam is about eight candidates, seated at desks in a room, each with a sheet of paper...their task to answer the exam question.

This low budget film with a fairly unknown cast is gem of a find. The film uses clever psychology and mind games to keep the atmosphere of mystery throughout.

The greatest strength of this film is the overall tension and curiosity the film creates, even with a mediocre ending, this film is still quite entertaining. However, this is not the first of its kind, other thrillers has been done of strangers put to the test, however, this film does not fail in comparison.

If you like films with thrill and mystery with the content of horror then definitely give Exam a chance.

NOTE: Do not watch the Trailer for the film...it'll spoil it!

Community (2009-present)

9/10

Want a good laugh with well written dialogue and no laugh track forced upon you? If so, then I highly recommend Community, the show that defines LOL.

Community revolves around the members of a study group at a community college (Greendale), coming together to deal with everyday issues and creating a good laugh along the way.

Community is brilliant, sarcastic and tickles your funny bone in the right way. The show is able to balance its own story line with film references, and inserting hilarious situations all at the same time. You can literally watch a single episode multiple times in one night.The cliches and parodies used in the show is phenomenal and cleverly executed.

The cast is phenomenal and believable in their performance as they absorb their characters so well.

What I love about the show is that it is so real and relate-able. Unlike so many sitcoms now days Community does not use a laugh track to force a laugh. Community works at using dialogue, plot line and parodies to create humor and SUCCEEDS.

References in Community season 1.

Constantly referring to another piece of work, Community is an intertextual gold mine. Let's look at some parallels.

Die Hard referenced when Jeff Winger limps into the deans office in episode 23

Joel McHale in Community. In this scene Jeff actually limps into the office, in Die Hard, Jack's foot was cut...thus he was limping. Direct Reference

Bruce Willis in Die Hard

Ghost being referenced (they actually talk about the film) in episode 19.

Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore in Ghost

Joel McHale in Community

Possible Wanted reference in episode 23

Ken Jeong in Community

James McAvoy in Wanted

Matrix

Gillian Jacobs in Community

Keanu Reeves in Matrix

Possible Charlie's Angels reference in Episode 13

Gillian and Alison in Community

Cameron Diaz in Charlie's Angels

Beast Master reference

Daniel Goddard in Beastmaster

Chevy Chase in Community

An amazing show, that wraps it references cleverly into each plot. Definitely worth the watch! Especially, for movie/comedy fans! Love this show :)

Identity (2003)

8/10

More than meets the eye...

Starring John Cusack and Amanda Peet, Identity is a thriller/mystery/horror revolving a group of strangers at Nevada Motel in the mist of a storm, and slowly one by one starts to get killed off.

Plot line sounds simple right? Well there's more to this film than meets the eye...a lot more. Like the tag line says "Secret lies within," so if you want to know what happens...watch it.

Identity, isn't as scary as you would presume. The moments of fear are set up so you know it is coming. Doesn't catch you completely off guard, but does give you chills as the right time.

The editing in the first 20 minutes or so, is quite brilliant. Going back and forth between shots sets up how each character is connected to the film.
Brilliant film, however, could have done more cuts of flashback during the latter half of the movie.

If you like thrillers/mystery with a touch of scary element attached, then I would recommend you take a tour through Identity.

Brokedown Palace (1999)

7/10

A true test of friendship. If you were in their situation, what would you have done?

Starring Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale, Brokedown Palace follows two best friends who, while on vacation, are arrested for smuggling.

This film revolves around the idea of friendship and the justice system. It is a very emotional and raw movie that deals with realistic issues and integrity.

The film unveils the bare hard truth that occurs when young people , like these girls, who only wanted a fun/exotic vacation, got more than they bargained for.

Beckinsale and Danes are both wonderful in this film, allowing viewers to really connect with their characters.

Brokedown Palace is a fantastic film, that I would recommend to those who enjoys a film that has depth and is emotionally raw.

Frequency (2000)

7/10

Coulda, shoulda, woulda..

Frequency is quite a thrill ride, packaging action, suspense, time-travel, and family bond together.

The film is about an radio link that coincidentally connects father (Dennis Quaid) and son (James Caviezel) across 30 years. The son, with the radio link attempts to save his father life but must deal with the consequences made by his alterations.

I stumbled upon this movie and am very surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

Frequency does a good job embracing the central theme of time travel. Playing with the idea that changing the past will have consequences in the future. The storyline isn't hard to follow, but can be quite frustrating as you are so caught up in the decisions and actions of the characters.

The characters and the relationship between them makes the difference in this film. The film toys with our emotions at every turn and with every character making it hard not to get attached to them.

Going between 1969-1999, the make-up follows suit quite well as you see the change in characters throughout the 30 year span.

As time traveling goes this would be on my list, right after Back to the Future I and II.

Girl Who Leapt Through Time

8/10

I've only seen ever about three anime and one of them is Girl Who Leaped Through Time. This film caught me off guard, I didn't know what to expect when I started watching. Towards the end, what can I say, I may have fell in love with it.

The animation made me laugh, tear and smile. A well written story that kept me hooked from minute one and left me smiling.

For someone who rarely watch anime, I recommend this one, it is very adorable, funny and meaningful.

The Game (1997)

6.5/10

David Fincher gives "plot-twist" a whole different meaning in this 1997 film starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn.


The plot line, with exception of few parts, is well written. At every corner, at every turn, there's is a mixture of mystery and suspense. Almost like a giant maze without an exit.


The Game will cause you to distrust of your senses and question everything around you. This film is designed to get inside your head, and (excuse the pun) play with your mind.

The film does have it's flaws...---below may contain spoilers---

My only complaint is the ending is too far-fetched. Without giving away too much, I felt the ending, to some extent, ruined the final finale that the film has been building up to, which is disappointing.

Note: Watch "The Man Who Knew Too Little" afterward, it's a good parody to "The Game"