Lake Placid (1999)

6.5/10

What do you get when you throw interesting/wacky characters, chopper, gun fire, action, endless sarcasm, and one big croc? One fun Saturday movie night.

Here are the pros of this film: it almost feels like a wildlife documentary, lingered with a slight tone of horror, classy yet gross use of gore, and hilarious dialogue. I felt myself chuckling at the many sarcastic remarks and bantering of Shieff Hank and Mrs. Delores Bickerman. This film differs it self from many other creature features in the sense that the writers put focus on the characters of this film instead of just the 'horrifying monster'. OH and Betty White probably is the gem....

Starring Bill Pullman, Oliver Platt, Brendan Gleeson, Betty White


Cons of Lake Placid: Bridget Fonda's character kelly was a bit of a nag, I found her more peeving at times. If you were looking for horror, this film doesn't really make you jump (I dont do horror well, so this is a pro for me hehe) but it does make you not want to go swimming in a lake for a while. Some action taken in this film doesn't really have much common sense, but then again that's what makes it fun


Overall, it was fun ride. Not overly epic, but has some funny as well as gross moments.

Lost Room (2006)

8/10 [highly recommended]

Despite some flaws, still mindblowingly awesome.

A detective investigates a mysterious motel room, which acts as a portal to alternate universe after he lost something precious in the room.

The Lost Room had me completely engrossed from the first episode, I was pulled in and couldn't turn away until it ended.

Premise of The Lost Room is astounding. Without giving too much away, Lost Room is about a motel room and the many contents that it came with. The room and each item has a different/very unique abilities that is attached to it. The mini-series is built around these items and the people who covet after them. I was completely absorbed by the different qualities given to the items and the way all the items comes together.

Despite the fascinating premise, there were certain flaws that made it hard for me to give this series a perfect 10. The mini-series had way too many characters and sub-plots that didn't get developed enough. The character relationship was lacking in material and emotion. The main character, Joe Miller, felt kind of one-dimensional and we aren't really told why he was so special in comparison to the rest of people whom were once involved with the mysterious hotel room.

Joe Miller's relationship with the different characters, eg with the girl interest Jennifer Bloom, was thin and rushed. Besides being a cop and single father, we aren't given much background about Joe  and yet almost everyone he meets seemed very inclined to help him.

Also the gun, the way he points it at people at such close distance can be so easily swatted away, yet no one seem to be capable of disarming him....(i know, this is just me being picky but nevertheless bothersome).

Overall, I did enjoy this mini series and highly recommend it. The main focus of the film (the special abilities of the motel room/items premise) does overshadow the flaws (the undeveloped characters/relationships).  Very entertaining and will keep you at the end of your seat!

Injustice (2011) Mini-series

8/10 [Highly Recommended]

Holy awesomeness batman!! Such a good mini-series!!

Plot: On the surface William Travers is a picture of success. An accomplished criminal barrister happily living with his wife in rural Suffolk. However, Travers is still recovering from a traumatic series of events that have shaken his belief in the legal system

Hats off to the writers of Injustice, who created a complex masterpiece through flashbacks, multiple intersecting story lines from different characters and many twists.

The series starts off a bit slow, but give this mini a chance and sit through the first half of episode one; You'll be thankful that you did. This 6 episodes 300minutes long mini-series is filled with unexpected twists, clever dialoge, interwoven stories, suspense and great acting. I was truly amazed by suspenseful and thrilling adventure that was Injustice.

James Purefoy (from TV series Rome) and Charlie Creed-Miles both gave superb performances in the lead roles, giving an edge to this mini that otherwise wouldn't have been as great.

The rating on IMDB.com must have been the result people who can't tell the difference between great television programming and jersey shore.

Recommended to those who enjoys Law and Order, Sherlock Holmes, Mr.Brooks (movie) or just a great police/court/character-driven film.

The Last Castle (2001)

3/10

The premise sounded good but the dialogue, storyline and scenarios are stupidly ridiculous and overly exaggerated

All the characters are very one sided and simple minded. The dialogue is shallow and cliched. "The Castle prison" doesn't even feel like a real prison. All these bad-ass dangerous prisoners, who get food/beverages/free time/family visits, all act like babies whining about mistreatment and minimal issues making this film feel like a high school drama.


The prisoners and prison is built up at the introduction of the film to be dangerous and strict, however the film does not deliver this atmosphere at all. Also to add to the stupidity of the film is the "forbidden salutes" rule of the prison.

Bad film, it had potential but failed to create much emotion or thought. The action in this film is bare minimum, so I won't even recommend it as a brainless action flick.

Le grand blond avec une chaussure noire (1972)

6.5/10

Slow paced, quirky, funny

Plot: Hapless orchestra player becomes an unwitting pawn of rival factions within the French secret service after he is chosen as a decoy by being identified as a super secret agent.

I stumbled upon this French film accidentally and found it fairly entertaining.  The concept of this film intrigue and the introduction grabbed my attention right away. This is not a film to take too seriously as it is very quirky and full of ridiculous moments.

It wasn't as exciting or thrilling as I had hoped but there were numerous scenes that was ridiculously amusing and funny.

A remake of this film titled "The Man with One Red Shoe" was made in 1985 starring Tom Hanks.

Miracle at St. Anna (2008)

5.5/10

A good plot line but poor poor execution.

Plot: Set in 1944 Italy, the story of four black American soldiers who get trapped in a Tuscan village during WWII.

The film started off exciting but the attention grabber didn't last long. The dialogue and acting felt overly exaggerated. There was a lack in character development and connection between them. Many characters were introduced but none of them remain memorable.

The film felt long and dragged out. The movie felt like a bunch of scenes that was roughly thrown together in the editing room. Somewhere in the production, the direction of the film was forgotten, but the realization and decision to scramble a few meaningful scenes in proved insufficient.

Long story short, skip this film and go watch something like Saving Private Ryan and Saints and Soldiers

Man from Nowhere (2010)

7/10 [recommended to selected audience]

Gangs, drugs, smuggling, lone hero, fight scenes and blood blood blood...nothing new

Man From Nowhere is a Korean film about a quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug- and organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.

Right off the bat we are introduced to a bunch of characters, and if you weren't paying attention, you would have a hard time keeping up. The plot, though not complicated, does not wait for you and moves fairly quickly.

A typical storyline full of action packed fight scenes of a lone heroic man, with a complicated past, attempting to save a girl's life. Although this film has many overdone cliche themes (lone super human saving a girl from cruel/ruthless drug dealers and one super bad guy who is of equal strength that the hero must fight), it is definitely not a boring movie to watch.

But of course, being a Korean film, Man From Nowhere did include some tear shedding drama accompanied by orchestra background music. This touch of 'heart warming' element does help balance out the action of the protagonist.

In short, if you like gory fight scenes with tone of explicit scenes full of bloodshed, then definitely watch this film. Nothing new but great friday night kick back film to watch!

With some careful re-analyzation of this film, I decided to bump it from the original rating to a 7. This film felt very similar to Leon, The Professional...just with more blood filled scenes. Though this film has some cliche themes, I have to admit the cinematography and use of sound is above par.

Micmacs 2009

7/10 [Recommended]

Micmacs is about a man and his friends come up with an intricate and original plan to destroy two big weapons manufacturers

From the maker of the French film Amélie, brings you MicMacs, a clever and well edited with small clips of animation and shot/edited in a very unique technique.

A very quirky yet sophisticated film that takes your through a intricate plan to bring down two weapons manufacturers. This film may not be the most action packed film with car chases and fight scenes, but it did not need any of these elements to be just as exciting. Although slow paced at times, the amount of artistic elements that Micmacs contained, such as mechanical puppets and cut out pictures, made this film very spectacular.

The array of clever, witty, silly, and ridiculous characters brought together in this film are worth watching.

If I had to chose two words to describe this film it'd be 'smartly quirky'. Micmac is a smart film filled with many quirky characters and is a piece of masterpiece.

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.

Intouchables (2011)

9/10 [Highly Recommended!]

Fantastic story, funny and touching

Intouchables is based on true events about the relationship between a quadriplegic and a young man from the projets that is found to be his caretaker.

If I was wearing a hat during the film, I would take it off for the amazing performance by the cast. François Cluzet and Omar Sy made their characters come to life on screen. I would say I am now a fan of Cluzet, because not one moment in this entire film did I think of him as Alexandre Beck (Cluzet's able-bodied character from Tell No One).

Intouchables holds some very important key life lessons and  meticulously presents these lessons with humor. This film is able to not only capture the suffering of Philippe but also the joy of his pain. What I absolutely love is how Intouchables is able to overcome hardship/pain with comedy...and does so in such tasteful and delicate manner.

One of the most beautiful and strong friendship brought to life.

Please do yourself a huge favour and go watch this film. I fully enjoyed every second of it!

Michael Clayton (2007)

5.5/10

Slow paced corporate/law based thriller

Michael Clayton plot: law firm brings in its "fixer" to remedy the situation after a lawyer has a breakdown while representing a chemical company that he knows is guilty in a multi-billion dollar class action suit.

This film starts off with a bang but is slow for the rest of the film until the final act. I paused this film many times and found myself distracted away because of the slow pace. I remain curious about how the film will resolve, however I could not give my full undivided attention to the film. 

The characters are the strong points of this film. Michael Clayton's (played by George Clooney) true intensions are never fully revealed to the audience until the very very end, thus keeping us on our toes.

If you enjoy films that are rather slow paced based on law, character development, and corporations...then you'll find this film very fascinating.

Kontroll (2003)

6/10

odd film about subway life.

Plot A tale about a strange young man, Bulcsú, the fellow inspectors on his team, all without exception likeable characters, a rival ticket inspection team, and racing along the tracks... And a tale about love.

Not too sure how I feel about it. Kontroll has a wide range of quirky/funny characters and situations. Entire film shot underground in a subway system, with no day light. There is not much of a storyline, we just follow Bulcsú around as he work, played and slept in the underground system. We learn little bits about him throughout his wonderings but we never get the complete picture.

This film gives the audience an inner look at the subway system, giving a tour of what we normally do not see. The concrete walls, empty train tracks, the air vents and transfer tracks. The cinematography does a good job of creating the wonderment of this underground world.

Will take a special person to really appreciate this film.   It does not have much of a solid story line. It has action, some very dull moments, some dreamlike scenes and gore. The gore comes from the subway train running over people. Not for the weak stomach.  There are certain scenes where the situation is so ridiculous that it was actually fairly funny.

Pretty much all of your fears about riding public transit (be it bus, train...) all put together in this one film.

My Girl (1991)

7.5/10

step back to the 90's in this sweet meaningful film.


Plot: Vada Sultenfuss is obsessed with death. Her mother is dead, and her father runs a funeral parlor. She is also in love with her English teacher

So sweet and genuine. Film full of themes and overflowing with love.

The young cast is stunning in carrying the story with such power.

Great character development and fantastic collaboration of music and playful scenes. Definitely well put together.

Definitely recommended

La môme (2007)

8/10 [highly recommended]

Stunning film all around!

La môme is the life story of singer Édith Piaf.

Our attention are gripped not only by the story but we are carried away by amazing music, brilliant make up and one amazing French actress, Marion Cotillard.


Love Me If You Dare and Inception are the first films I saw starring Marion Cotillard. With those films I was already in love with her performance. After seeing La môme, Cotillard has become one of my favourite actresses. Her performance as Edith Piaf is so stunning that, at times during the film, I forget I am watching a portrayal. Capturing the singers walk, gestures, facial expression, quirky, tone of voice and stance. Cotillard won the Oscar for Best Actress for this film, and damn did she ever deserve it!

The story is told out of sequence in a mix of flashbacks, memories and 'present' day. We follow Piaf's life in a classic fairy tale of the ugly duckling transforming to a beautiful swan. However, what most fairy tale fails to do is tell you that transformation into the beautiful swan, is not the ending of the story. As we can see in Piaf's story, her shining transformation came with a price.

Towards the end of the film, we find out a vital event that occurred early in the singer's life, which seems to finally shine some light on Piaf's later statement mind that was depicted early on in the film. A mix of songs at different stages in Piaf's life is knitted together by a non-linear storyline of her life. Throughout the film, I found myself slowly starting to piece together the story. It is as if each minute that passes, we are receiving a piece of puzzle building up to a mystery image.

The music is beautiful. It didn't matter that I didn't understand what the songs were about because music and singing had a way to sweep you away.

The second Oscar that this film won was for make up. The detail and realism that was involved in making Cotillard to look like Piaf, succeeded. The make up department was able to capture the singer in the late stages of her life looking ill, weak but still with energy to sing. It is not too difficult to make someone look old, BUT it is mighty hard to make someone look not only 1) old 2) resemble a different person 3) realistic. What really was impressive is the fact that the make up team was able to make the singer look like she's wearing make up to cover her ill stricken skin.


I highly recommend La môme! It is a work of art. Pieced together by a talented/dedicated actress, a great make up team, unique storytelling and pure beautiful music.

My Sassy Girl (2001)

7/10

Sweet and silly story

Plot: Based on a series of true stories posted by Ho-sik Kim on the Internet describing his relationship with his girlfriend...

The Korean My Sassy Girl is such a silly and sweet movie. I didn't think I would like this film much but it captured my attention. It wasn't the story, that itself was simple, but it is the way the story is told and how the movie is put together. We are constantly given scenes where win our minds we jump to one conclusion but in reality it is not that case.

This film is almost like serendipity but the two seem to continuously miss each other at key moments. "There's a time and season for every matter"

Kyun-woo (Tae-hyun Cha) is hilarious as the guy lead. Talk about having bad luck and can't explain yourself. I love seeing Kyun-woo get beat up by the girl (Gianna Jun), and the completely wild dares the girl tells Kyun-woo to do. The shoe exchange, now that was awesome. The girl, her complete disregard for things at times, scares me but eventually she grows on you.

My Sassy Girl is silly, wild, hysterical and a lot of fun to watch. Though at times a bit slow paced, the humor makes up for it. Overall, a good rom-com

Max Manus: Man of War (2008)

7/10

Solid cast, great set decoration but slow paced story

Plot: The true story about one of the most brilliant saboteurs during World War II and his battle to overcome his inner demons.

A decent film that captures the life of Max Manus during world war II.

However, I felt something was missing in this film to push it into the catagory of epic/classic but can't put my finger on what. Max Manus: Man of War had the action, great set decoration and amazing characters but it feels like it lacked in the intensity that other world war II films carried. The ease Max and his gang went through check points didn't leave me in cold sweat and panicked. I remember watching Uprising (the TV movie) and after certain scenes I was left shaken. A different type of feeling was created when I was viewing this film. I felt I was just on the sideline watching in on Max's life where I connected with a few characters but spectator for the rest.

This being one of the first Norwegian film I viewed, it has left an impression on me. It was well filmed with great camera angles, nice colour treatment in editing, realistic special effects, bloody amazing set decoration and solid casting. A bit more focus on the other characters' (like Gregers, Kolbein, Gunnar) lives in relation to Max and the saboteurs would have helped the audience to feel attached the the movie. It would have benefitted knowing just a bit more about the other characters to really feel the loss Max felt.

Overall a well made film that is worth viewing but not overly epic.

Though, not going to lie, I have grown rather fond of the supporting character Gregers and wouldn't mind seeing more of the actor  Nicolai Cleve Broch in films.

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.

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. 

Lady in the Water (2006)

4.5/10

Nice visually but slow story that is easily forgettable.

The Lady in the Water is about an apartment building superintendent Cleveland Heep rescues what he thinks is a young woman from the pool he maintains. When he discovers that she is actually a character from a bedtime story who is trying to make the journey back to her home, he works with his tenants to protect his new friend from the creatures that are determined to keep her in our world.  (imdb)

Lady in the Water wasn't as good as I hoped. It has a neat concept and puts emphasis on the fact that it is a fairytale story..BUT sadly, the execution and pace of the story is slow and boarders boring. I felt myself distracted away from the movie quite a number of times throughout the film. The stories tries to make itself different in the sense that it refers to itself within the movie. This film is definitely bizarre one that left me bored but pondering.

The casting for the film is solid and believable. I am definitely a fan of Bryce Dallas Howard after watching the Village, but I'm not sure how to feel about Lady in the Water.

The cinematography is visually appealing in this film with nice choice of angles, pans and unique use of camera focus. The shots make the audience aware of the fact that a camera is present, which emphasizes the idea of the story referring to itself.

Overall, mediocre story with nice visuals that sadly didn't hold my interest. I guess this film takes a special kind of audience, who enjoys the slow bizarre plot and the neat camera angles.

My Sister's Keeper (2009)

9/10 [Highly Recommended]

Don't take things for granted.

My Sister's Keeper, based on the book with same title, is about Anna Fitzgerald who is looking to earn medical emancipation from her parents who until now have relied on their youngest child to help their leukemia-stricken daughter Kate remain alive. (imdb)

My Sister's Keeper is a truly amazing film with fantastic acting with a very powerful story. I found myself reaching for the tissue box again and again. It is not just another chick flick, it is so much more.

Each cast member pulled their own weight in giving such a splendid performance to really make this film breathtaking. Abigail Breslin, Cameron Diaz, Jason Patric, Sofia Vassilieva, Evan Ellingson together really showed strong chemistry as the Fitzgeralds, a family going through one of the toughest situation to ever occur to a family.

The story itself, along with a few twists, wraps itself around your heart and takes you down a road of pain, suffering, happiness, family and lost.

A truly heroic, inspiring, realistic and heartfelt film that I highly highly recommend to everyone.