Slipstream (2005)

4/10

I would highly recommend you to NOT watch this film unless you have a time machine to undo watching it after you've watched it.

Plot: A scientist plots a bank robbery based around his newest invention -- a time travel gadget that will send its user 10 minutes into the past.

I liked the concept during the first 10 minutes in the bank but the film seems to have lost its focus from there and frantically attempted to reel in again at the end.

Slipstream started off strong but tried way too hard to want to capture Requiem for a Dream artsy effect. This film used too much artsy elements, cliche dialogue, overdramaic acting and rewinding of itself that it became annoying. I was so fed up with this film that I was skipping through it to just get the gist of the story.

Unlike Requiem for a Dream, Slipstream uses artsy footages for the sake of being artsy. Whereas in Requiem For a Dream the artsy elements were use to allude the audience into the mind set of the characters during their moments of getting high. Slipstream could have been so much better if it stayed off the artsy throttle and focused more on time travel...then again maybe a different writer/director might have been helpful too.  I know I am being very harsh towards this film but Slipstream just lacked in everything (and too much of some things).

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

8/10 [highly recommended]

Daring, unique and brilliantly epic

Plot: In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as "The Basterds" are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis.

Inglourious Basterds doesn't try to find forgiveness, to be historically accurate or to please the audience. It is full throttle on being a dark, fun filled comic fantasy film about an alternative WWII where people fault back. I loved the dark humour and gore that filled this film from bottom up. The film uses all the human emotions and takes a shape of its own.

Tarantino knows exactly how much gore, crudity and length of each scene. Giving you enough to laugh while gagging. He toys with cliches and uses unexpected as well as expected moments to put together a piece of art work.

All the Basterds are a bit mad, which gives the film an edgy appeal. My favourite characters would have to be Donny Donowitz (aka bear Jew played by actor Eli Roth) and Hugo (portrayed by Til Schweiger) as they have real dynamic to the group.

Go watch it! It's a crude, gory, unsympathetic and very daring film that is just plain awesome! Not recommended to the squeamish and the weak hearted as it is gory.

Oh and don't take the film seriously because that's not the point of it.

Vanishing on 7th Street (2010)

5.5/10

Flawed but not a horrible film.

I wanted to discovery for myself why Vanishing on 7th Street had such poor reviews so I decided to give the film a shot.

The reviews weren't lying when they said this film will leave you with more questions than answers as I was fairly confused toward the end. The film was also riddled with flaws. There's the issue with how flash lights can't be controlled but all the other electronic light sources can be controlled by the mysterious shadow/darkness. And also the extremely short life span of car batteries.

However bad the ratings were for Vanishing on 7th Street, this film is still fairly thrilling and keeps you engaged. Though confusing and flawed, I was still watching this film on edge wondering what was going to happen next. So for the thrilling element, this film succeeded. For plot, character development and dialogue elements, this film failed to deliver.

Overall, my impression is that Vanishing on 7th Street is engaging with great concept that had potential but failed to come together in the end.

Contagion (2011)

7/10

Solid storytelling even without a main heroic character.

Plot: A thriller centered on the threat posed by a deadly disease and an international team of doctors contracted by the CDC to deal with the outbreak.

This film really explores the effects of an outbreak through the lives of many live and also showing how the spread started. It does a great job showing people's reaction to the pandemic. A misguided blogger who become the cause of violence. A father who experience drastic loss as a result of the pandemic and must now protect his daughter from any harm. A doctor visiting China ends up involved in a village that is fighting to survive.

The movie is dialogue driven with the different stories intertwining with kept me intrigued. The acting was phenomenal with a solid cast making the film very believable and raw.

Every event in the movie felt very realistic, which contributes to the intensity and the fearful element of the film. It brought out the horror of humans in "every man for himself" situations. The different events in Contagion is all to possible and has definitely left me a bit shaken at the end of the film.

I would not be RE-watching this film again anytime soon, but it is definitely a movie worth watching! I recommend this to a selected audience and as it is intense. I would not recommend you to watch this back to back with  Blindness (unless you want to feel scared, upset and depressed).

Little White Lies (2010)

7.5/10 [recommended]

Made me laugh, smile, cry and appreciate all that comes with friendship A fantastic film.

I don't even know where to begin telling you how much I enjoyed this French film. The amaxing casting, great writing, witty dialogue and heartfelt story makes this film SHEER CLASS.

Guillaume Canet did it again by writing/directing another phenomenal film that. Canet has a way of taking something simple (a group of friends on vacation) and making it into a heartfelt gem (their bonds and appreciation for one another). His focus on character development and simple witty dialogue exchanges makes him stand out from other films. 

Doctor Who (1996) TV movie

6.5/10

Totally absorbing even if somewhat flawed in the story/character

Doctor Who follows the newly-regenerated Doctor (Paul McGann) takes on the Master on the turn of the millennium, 31 December 1999.

Out of the entire Doctor Who franchise, this 89min TV movie is the only one that was filmed in Canada and the one I decided to start my descend into the Doctor Who series. There's already 11 Doctors awaiting me, and I started at the 8th Doctor.

Starring Paul McGann and Eric Roberts, the film begins by planting us straight in the middle of San Fransico. The story takes flight right there with the Doctor being taken down and the Master escaping and all hell, pretty much breaking, loose at this point. With a plot like this how could anyone not get sucked right into it. I was right into the storyline from moment one. However, the strong plot is weakened by a flawed storyline  and some irrational characters. There are moments where I am dumbfounded at why a certain character would act in such a way resulting in the climax of the film.

Overall, this wasn't a fantastic perfect movie BUT this TV film does do the trick of generating interest for me towards the Doctor Who franchise..which will occupy my next weeks to month :)

A Very Long Engagement (2004)

7.5/10

Very sweet

Plot: Tells the story of a young woman's relentless search for her fiancé, who has disappeared from the trenches of the Somme during World War One.

It has been so long since I saw this film that I don't remember much detail about it except that I enjoyed the film.

Audrey Tautou ( from Amélie and Da Vinci's Code) is stars in this film and from what I recall, she gave yet another great performance.

The one thing I remember quite clearly about A Very Long Engagement are the enchanting cinematography and set scapes that made this film just breath taking.