X-Men: First Class (2011)

Date and Place of viewing- 04 May 2011; Glorietta Cinema 3
Country of Origin - USA
IMDB's Rating - 8.3 out of 10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 87%
My Rating - 9/10

     I've been religious in watching a movie at the theaters these past few weeks.  After Fast Five, I've watched Thor, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, In My Life (Tagalog movie), and yesterday, X-Men: First Class.  Much as I was active in watching movies, I was so darn lazy making a review of the films I watched.  Oh well.  I am not the queen of procrastination for nothing.

     To tell you honestly, I do not know most of the cast of X-Men: First Class but it did not deter me in enjoying the movie.  There was no 3D for this movie but it really was not needed.  The film itself is quite fun and touching at times.

     I was in high school when the X-Men cartoon series was shown.  I was 13 or 14 years old then.  I religiously watched each and every episode so I am fairly familiar with the characters.  However, the series was set during the time of Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm, Gambit, Jubilee, Rogue, Beast and Wolverine...you know, the characters in the previous X-Men series.  So, Professor X was already bald by then.  But this new movie focuses on the era when Professor X and Magento were still young (with hair) and had a few young recruits, like Alex Summers, a.k.a. Havoc,  Dr. Hank McCoy a.k.a. Beast, Raven a.k.a. Mystique, among others.  These kids were too young and too impulsive that they were just a bunch of partying-going kids with unique abilities.  However, with the guidance of the extremely rich and intelligent telepath Charles Xavier, he helped the kids, and Erik Lensherr a.k.a. Magneto, unlock their potential and control their powers.

     Yes, Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr were besties back then.  They shared a deep bond and Erik even trusted Charles Xavier.  And they have a common enemy, Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) and his minions in the Hellfire Club, including the very stoic Emma Frost (January Jones).

     And speaking of January Jones, she always gets the "ice queen" roles.  I wonder why?  Hahaha!  I mean, she really looks so cold, that is why.  She played Emma Frost like she played Betty in Mad Men: cold, haughty, very stiff.  An icy bitch.  She's someone easy to loathe: she's extremely beautiful.  Haha!  I don't know if January Jones' presence in the movie makes me imagine Erik Lensherr (Michael Fasserbender) as John Hamm.  I mean, I knew the character of Magneto was not played by John Hamm but every time I look at Magneto, I see John Hamm.  I even think that Erik Lensherr is very Don Drapper.  I mean, he'll say he doesn't want to sleep with Mystique because she's too young, but he still slept with her, and that's very Don Drapper.  Whatever, Michael Fasserbender looks like John Hamm, in this movie at least, and he bought class to the young Magneto's character, and a whole lot of gorgeousness and sexiness, and dammit, I miss John Hamm!  It made me think, why didn't they just sign up John Hamm for the role?  I think it's because he's a lot older.

    Hugh Jackman and Rebecca Romijin had guest appearances.  Everybody laughed. 

     Overall, the movie revolved around Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr's friendship and of course, the latter's grudge against Sebastian Shaw.  The so-called First Class only made a show and full use of their powers later in the movies.  

     I'll give X-Men: First Class a 9; it should have been an 8.5 but I'm giving an extra .5 for Michael Fasserbender.  He gave me the fantasy that John Hamm is Erik Lensherr.

       [ETA:  Oh, shit!  Nicholas Hoult who played Hank McCoy is the kid in About a Boy!  This information made me feel so old!  He's 21 now.]

Thor (2011)

Date and Place of viewing- 12 May 2011; Greenbelt 3
Country of Origin - USA
IMDB's Rating - 7.8 out of 10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 79%
My Rating - 8/10

     I remember Thor as a cartoon character: the Mighty Thor.  I've watched re-runs of the cartoons as a child and I vaguely remember the Nordic looks, the blond locks and the hammer, of course.  About the story?  Nothing at all.

     I watched Thor, the movie, last Thursday without any expectations.  I didn't know the actor who played Thor, except for his name, Chris Hemsworth.  But when I caught a glimpse of Thor on screen, he's a cutie; a beefcake.  A total hottie.

     Did muscles and god-like looks make the movie all the more worthwhile?  Yes, indeed!  However, I could not help but think that the movie is made for kids; it's very general patronage.  And the plot, too, is kinda shallow.  Moreover, I was surprised that Jane (Natalie Portman), a scientist, would be portrayed as a  very ditzy gal.  Really.  It was very odd.  You'd never know that she's a scientist unless she tells you so.  Every time she looks at Thor, she seems to want to run experiments on him; lusty experiments about the birds and the bees.  Lol!

     The things that I really liked about the movie are the special effects and the occasional jokes about other Marvel heroes, like Stark (Iron Man).  And of course, the very charming beefcake that is Chris Hemsworth.  He only needs to appear on screen and it'll be enough for me to forget that there's really no compelling story.

     Seriously, though, the special effects are literally out of this world.  Very wicked!  The rainbow-brite bridge is dazzling, especially when horses gallop on it.  Yay!  Color burst!  And Asgard is so surreal.  Whoever thought of how to make that realm come to life on the big screen has a very admirable imagination.  Asgard is sublimely breathtaking.

     And oh, I think I liked Loki, although his evilness is still quite lacking.  I mean, he's kinda vague in being evil.  He's more of a jealous prick who yearns acceptance for who he is, not evil personified.  He's proud, though, and a very sneaky bastard.

     Over-all, it was fun movie.  80% because of the special effects and 20% because of Chris Hemsworth.  Would I want to watch it again, ever?  Not really.  Not even for Thor the Beefcake.

My Love for Movies, Falling in Love with Jay Chou, and The Green Hornet, in No Particular Order

Date of screening - 22 January 2011
Cinema - Greenbelt 3, Makati
Rotting Tomatoes - 45%
My Rating - 6/10

     One of my many varied interests, aside from watching animes, asian tv series, reading manga and picture-less books (ha!) and travelling, I also love to watch movies.  Yup, in fact, every week, I go to the theaters to watch anything that's being shown.  I am not particularly choosy when it comes to watching movies at the theaters.  I mean, if all movies showing within a certain week suck, I’d just choose the least crappy one.  It’s just like choosing the lesser evil.  Hahaha.  While I may be an easy sell as to  movies shown on the big screen, I am more discerning when watching movies on DVD.  I mean, with DVDs, I have the choice to watch movies that really appeals to me, so why the heck would I endure watching something I don't really like?

     So, what made me want to put up a blog regarding movies, aside from my love of movies?  Well, let’s just say that I watched The Green Hornet the other Saturday, and I was really impressed by Jay Chou who played Kato.  He seemed so cool!  In fact, I think that I fell in love with him.  Lol!  I was so affected by his on screen charisma that my heart started pumping hard!  Doki-doki.  It has never happened to me before,and I was really confused.  So, I thought, I should chronicle about those unexpected "moments."   Then, it occurred to me, why not start a blog and make my views known?  I am not a film critic, though; I just love movies.  And since I watch a movie every single week, I might as well write down my views about the movies I saw.  In plain language, it just means, "I want to express how much I fell in love with Jay Chou just by watching The Green Hornet but so as not to look like a crazed fan-girl, I'd start a movie review /reaction blog..." LOL!

     Well, what better way to start my blog than by writing about The Green Hornet?  (You had it coming, didn't you?)  I mean, it had received some bad and sometimes even pretty scathing reviews.  So, what are my thoughts about it? (Another excuse just to talk about Jay Chou?  Heh.) 

     While admittedly, the film had lots of flaws, I was still highly entertained.  I mean, I know the film was less than stellar; in fact, it was not so good as a whole.  I wonder how did that ever happen with Michel Gondry who directed the masterpiece, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (anyone who could make me like Jim Carrey must be a genius).  However, despite the ho-hum, The Green Hornet has a lot to offer in terms of comedy. The movie is still palatable, not only because I was smitten by Jay Chou, but because the film is funny!  Perhaps not Superbad  funny (it was co-written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, too, just like The Green Hornet) or Kick Ass funny, but it is still funny!

     ‘Fess up: you who watched The Green Hornet laughed so hard at the opening scene…if not, you rolled in laughter silently.  I mean, the genius of Christoph Waltz, as Chudnofsky, the vain villain whose name no one could pronounce, showed through while he was being dissed by the new-villain-on-the block, a.k.a. Crystal Clear played by the brooding James Franco who was equally delightfully funny in that scene.  Lest you forgot, Jame Franco starred opposite Seth Rogen in the weeds movie, Pineapple Express, as well as in the short-lived tv series, Freaks and Greeks.  So, he has street cred when it comes to comedies.

    Chudnofsky and his double-barreled gun.

     As for the character conceptualization, I can empathize with the haters of this movie; The Green Hornet, Britt Reid, was made to look like a rich, good-for-nothing party boy who is always in trouble and always in the center of every party in town; just like Paris Hilton.  In fact, Rogen even said that the character was patterned about the blond heiress.  Well, isn’t The Green Hornet a superhero? So why did Rogen portray Britt Reid as a male Paris Hilton bot in the movie? 

 

     I guess, Rogen wanted to break the hero mold; perhaps, he wanted to humanize the Green Hornet.  The Green Hornet is a human after all, and as a human, isn't he subject to the same follies and weaknesses of mankind? Must all heroes start out as geeks, goody-goody, wimpy,or holier-than-thou?  Don't we want to cheer on the prodigal son who found his way back?  Hmm...

     Oh well, I know the movie was not easy for some to digest, but really, it had its share of highs.  The highs, namely, the Black Beauty, the charming, good looking, human swiss army knife called Kato, played by Asian superstar, Jay Chou, the brotherhood and the not-so-subtle bromance between Kato and Reid, Chudnofsky, Gangsta's Paradise, and the fact that Kato and Britt Reid stood side by side as equal partners, not as master and servant.  I loved the way Rogen made Kato look not only as a hand-dandy sidekick but as an equal.  That scene when Britt Reid haughtily ordered Kato to make him coffee in front of Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), and Kato angrily did what he was told but afterwards he pulled Reid for a warning not to do that again...with a punch that put a hole in the cabinet beside Reid's head?  Oh yeah, the scene where Reid and Kato were fighting was also another plus for me.  I mean, Kato kicked Reid's butt big time and were it not for the latter's sly tactics, he would have been a goner.

     And oh yeah, there was a lot of crap comments about Jay Chou's english.  Some find it really hard to understand what he says.  Personally, it was not that bad.  There are times that I want to ask, "what did he say?" but most of the times, he delivered his lines in good english, and I swear, he said something in Chinese in the movie.  He tried hard and english is not his first language.  Nonetheless, his lines weren't dubbed.  And putting subtitles would have been dumb.

     While the theater was quiet all throughout the movie, in fact, I was the only one laughing, and there were just about 50 or so people inside the theater on its opening weekend, I didn't regret buying that Php 320.00 ticket.  I was entertained by the movie, I was amused by the apathy of the people watching which made me wonder if they were all geezers or something, I had a new-found respect for Seth Rogen (who's really cute and cuddly when he's speaking/promoting about this movie even though he lost weight), I had my curiosity piqued by the stellar performance of Christoph Waltz and James Franco, I heard Jay Chou singing for the first time and in English, and I fell in love with him in our less than two hours encounter.  See, I really got my money's worth, although there's nothing to see in 3D.

     Question is, will I watch it again?  Yes.  I might want to own a DVD but Jay Chou is 90% of the reason why.  There.