The Hobbit: The Unexpected Journey

My love for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings Trilogy was the primary reason why I watched his new adventure trilogy. It was one of my anticipated films of the year. Though I didn't really care watching it in 3D, the  first part of The Hobbit trilogy was still worthy to watch but I would say it falls a little behind the the LOTR films.

'The Unexpected Journey' is the first part of the prequel of the new trilogy which took place 60 years before 'Fellowship of the Ring' where Bilbo Baggins was young and went on an adventure with Gandalf The Grey. Accompanied by thirteen dwarves lead by the Thorin Oakenshield whose kingdom was taken by a dragon Smaug,  Bilbo Baggins reluctantly joined the the group and went on a journey that changed his life forever. While traveling to the  Lonely Mountain where the dragon resides, the young Bilbo met the Elves, Giant Spiders, Goblins, Orcs and Gollum with his precious Ring along the way. I haven't read the book so I didn't have any idea how the story goes, I sat through it and satisfied my eyes with great special effects, though the story felt a little vague as the first LOTR I still find the ending a little touching and makes you hang on for two more films to come. (Rating 4/5)
  

The Perks of Being of Wallflower

"Let's go be psychos together" as Sam said to Charlie in the movie that I recently watched The Perks of Being a Wallflower. That's I think the sweetest thing that I would ever hear from a girl. The film is the least movie on my list  to watch this year but has become one of the best movies I've seen. It was a little melancholic but satisfying and moving. 

It centers on a story of an introverted boy, Charlie who's having a tough  freshman life. His best friend just passed after committing a suicide while his aunt's death is hunting him for years.With all these Charlie is having a hard time to belong in school despite the presence of a supportive family. While with great potential his English teacher Mr. Anderson encouraged  him to participate in class and inspired him to write by giving him books. Even as depressing as he thinks, Charlie found a friend through his teacher Mr. Anderson. Meanwhile, one football game Charlie befriended Patrick, a senior and happy-go-lucky type of person who has a step-sister, Sam. The three started to become close and for the first time Charlie is happy and started to grow feelings for Sam. His life started to revolve around his friends and his feelings for Sam. The story goes from a teenage romantic story to a melancholic journey of a boy who has learned that life is free and limitless despite his health condition. 

The three main casts were exceptional. Logan Lerman's dramatic performance as a troubled teen was convincing enough, you'll find yourself sad when he suffers and smiling when he is happy. Emma Watson and Ezra Miller were great too as Sam and Patrick. The film is adapted from the book of the same title authored by Stephen Chbosky who also wrote the screenplay and directed it. 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower may not be among those multi-awarded films despite the positive feedback from critics because only a few people have actually watched it. But it deserves to be seen and it's definitely worth of a positive review (ok, it may not be as great as this). (Rating is 4/5)

Inspirational Movie Quotes

Here are some of the inspirational movie lines that I remember taking note of so far. It took time for me to blog about it but I've been keeping them in my drive for quite a while now.

Grown Ups
"Life can be difficult sometimes, it gets bumpy, but with the family and things not going exactly as planned that's what makes it interesting.In life the first act is always exciting, the second act, that's where the depth comes in."

The Bounty Hunter
"Life is about making mistakes. Death is about wishing you made a whole lot more." - Jennifer Aniston

Tooth Fairy
"The reason why there are unhappy people in this world because they are clinging in to some version of "What if" - Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson

All About Steve
"My favorite ingredient in a crossword there is, is perseverance,if you quit the puzzle you can't finish it" - Sandra Bullock

Precious
"The Llongest journey begins with a single step"

My Name is Khan
"The theory of entertainment in Physics states that some specific sounds increase the rate of your hearbeat.For me Mandira, that specific sounds has always been the sound of your laughter"

Ip Man 2
"By fighting this match, I'm not trying to prove Chinese martial arts are better than Western boxing, What I really want to say is, though people have different statuses in life, everybody's dignity is the same. I hope from this momment on, we can start to respect each other"

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
"Everything changes with time, we should know this best of all"

Faith Like Potatoes
"The condition for a miracle is difficulty, for a great miracle is impossibility" - Angus

Cameron Diaz, All Time Hollywood Box Office Queen

Cameron Diaz has already sent 15 movies to Worldwide All Time Box Office record (boxofficemojo.com). From comedy-fantasy, to Romcom, to action thriller films, Diaz has managed to score box office trophies regardless of genre she stars in. Her latest Bad Teacher role just crossed $200 Million world wide this weekend as her 15th film to reach the milestone which makes Diaz as the only Female Hollywood actress that has more than 10 box office records (at least with $200 million total gross), more than any female A-lister including Oscar winners, Julia Roberts (has 9 films), Angelina Jolie (has 8 films), Nicole Kidman (has 6 films) and Sandra Bullock (has 5 films).

Here are Cameron Diaz's successful films:

1. The Mask (1994) - Cameron's first movie was really a huge hit, thanks to Jim Carrey.
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $352 Mil

2. My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
Co-star: Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$299 Mil

3. There's Something About Mary (1997)
Co-star: Ben Stiller, Matt Dillon
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$370 Mil

4.Charlie's Angels (2000)
Co-star: Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$264 Mil

5. Shrek (2001)
Co-star: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$484.4 Mil

6.Vanilla Sky (2001)
Co-star: Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $203 Mil

7. Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)
Co-star: Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Demi Moore
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $259.3 Mil

8. Shrek 2 (2004)
Co-star: Mike Myers, Antonio Banderas, Eddie Murphy
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$929 Mil

9. The Holiday (2006)
Co-star: Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$205 Mil

10. Shrek the Third (2007)
Co-star: Mike Myers, Antonio Banderas, Eddie Murphy, Justin Timberlake
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross:$799 Mil

11. What Happens in Vegas (2008)
Co-star: Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $219.3 Mil

12. Shrek Forever After (2010)
Co-star: Mike Myers, Antonio Banderas, Eddie Murphy
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $752.6 Mil

13. Knight and Day (2010)
Co-star: Tom Cruise
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $262 Mil

14. The Green Hornet (2011)
Co-star: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $228 Mil

15. Bad Teacher (2011)
Co-star: Jason Segel, Justin Timberlake
Worldwide Boxoffice Gross: $201.2 Mil

My First IMAX Experience

I finally experienced IMAX 3D with Transformers: Dark of the Moon. I've watched several 3D movies in cinemas since Avatar in 2009 but not in IMAX. It's not that I didn't have a chance to, I just didn't find a movie that is worth spending the admission ticket for. It costs around Php 450.00 but it was really worth it. The sound, effects were real-like, too bad I was positioned right next to the first row of seats but did enjoy it anyway. It was the last full show, so I didn't really expect the seats to be filled, I had no choice but the get one of the last remaining seats.

Overall, the third Transformers film was not the best among the series but it got the best visual effects, after all it's Michael Bay's first 3D film. I wouldn't really mind going back to IMAX cinema for another film but next time I'll see to it that I'll got the best seat ever.

World Invasion Battle: Los Angeles - A Movie Review

Just got off from watching "World Invasion Battle: Los Angeles or simply known as Battle:LA in North America. Due to not-so-good reviews from the movie critics (only got 34% from Rotten Tomatoes) I didn't expect too much from it and to my surprise I found the film interesting as alien-invasion themed movies District 9 and Independence Day.

Set in August 2011, Extraterrestrial invaded and started to colonize the Earth due to its abundance of water. While people from all over the world were being exterminated, a group of marines in LA headed by retiring Sgt Michael Nantz was sent on a mission of securing the remaining civilians before Air Force bombs the entire invaded area. Carrying the baggage from the last mission, Sgt Nantz realizes that aliens are not just his only concern, he also needs to deal with his marines and their bad speculations about him.

Filled with non-stop action thrills, World Invasion is a pretty good action flick which promises to give you more explosions despite of being short in exploring human emotions. Director Jonathan Liebesman could have extracted deeper from the characters though it isn't really necessary in an action film but since Liebesman started showing it on the beginning he could have been more consistent with it to make the ending more joyful and unforgettable. But despite all that still I was a bit moved by its little drama and the action-thrill with decent special effects is worth watching. (3.5 out 5 stars)

World Invasion Battle:Los Angeles is starred by Aaron Echkart (Dark Knight, Rabbit Hole) as Sgt Nantz, Michelle Rodriguez (Avatar, Fast and Furious), Michael Pena (Observe and Report, Shooter) and R & B singer Ne-yo. Directed by Jonathan Liebesman whose directing jobs includes Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning and now working on Wrath of the Titans (Clash of Titans 2).

Shake, Rattle & Roll 12 - Movie Review

I don't exactly remember when Shake, Rattle & Roll or SSR started scaring audiences but what I remember is the creature "Undin"(starred by Manilyn Reyns and Ai-ai Delas Alas) gave me ghost bumps every time I'm left in the rest room alone. Several years have passed and technology has become more sophisticated, SSR reaches its 12th films but unfortunately delivered less scary stories compare to its predecessors (talking about the films released in 90's).

Just like the usual trend of the series, SSR 12 comes with three different episodes, "Mamanyika", "Isla", and "Punerarya". While the first two episodes were disappointing, the movie as a whole was concluded with a great one.

Mamanyika: Is a story of a possessed doll that kills every one or everything (including its fellow dolls) who gets its way. The episode was not scary at all, everything was ridiculous. First time director Zoren Legaspi apparently wasn't ready to take the director's seat. Starred by Shaina Magdayao and Ricky Davao.

Isla: The second episode focuses on a heartbroken woman who let things cooled down in an island haunted by "engkato". Though it got better visual effects, the second story was even more boring and totally a waste of time. Dir Topel Lee should have focused on the story line than working more on the effects and the killing scenes. Starred by Andi Eigenman and Rayver Cruz.

Punerarya: The final episode is the most suspenseful story among the three, one of the best episodes I've watched in SSR series actually. The plot was simple and I believed was used in horror films before but still made into a real shocker. Focusing on a story of a teacher who takes a private tutor job for two children of a family whose business involving funerary services. Intrigued with the family being different from normal people, the tutor realizes that she has to run for her life before the whole family prey on her. Starred by Carla Abellana and Sid Lucero.

Don't know why our local movie makers can stand with ridiculous stories that are not even worth of a single peso to spend for. With the strong final episode, SSR 12 obviously could have been better. The movie is watchable but you just need to suffer on the first part of it for you to enjoy what has been stored at the end of it. (My rating is 3 out 5 stars)

HP 7.1 has become the top grossing HP movie overseas among the series

Down to its last book, Harry Potter continuously vows both the critics and fans with its breathtaking conclusion of this beloved book-adaptation series that has become the most successful book adaptation of all time with a total of $6.4 billion. The latest film Deathly Hallows Part 1 has become the top grossing overseas among the series with $952,175,796 million while Sorcerer's Stone (Philosopher's Stone) rules the North America and World Wide box office tally. Both of which are in the top 10 all-time highest grossing films (boxofficemojo.com)

The series follows the life of Harry Potter, a young wizard who has been running for his life since his parents died from ruthless evil wizard Lord Voldermort. With people around him doing everything to protect him and end up dying, Harry Potter with the help of his best friends Ron and Hermione, they must find Voldermort's weaknesses quickly as possible to spare the people they love. (My Rating is 4 out of 5 stars)

The three have gone to searching and destroying Horcruxes which help them to defeat Lord Voldermort on this first part of the last film, which is the 7th and final book of J. K. Rowling. With David Yates on the director's seat again, HP has never been this great. The dark-noir effects and musical scoring were really outstanding bringing a different experience, more so if the film was successfully converted to 3D-IMAX. Personally, "Prisoner of Azkaban" is my best book and best film among the series and assuming the last film would carry on thesame style and over-all cinematic presentation, it would be either fall next to 'Azkaban' or surpass it. The film is obviously vague, but that's how it really is, the momentum may have gone downhill after watching it but prepare for a roller-coaster ride once Deathly Hallows Part 2 hits the 3D-IMAX cinemas this July.

Fast and Furious Race - a Total Recall of a Successful Franchise

One of the most anticipated movies of this year is the 5th movie of the famous speed car-racing movie franchise Fast and Furious, this time dubbed as "Fast Five". Before hitting theaters this May, let's look back and see what this action-thriller has been for the last ten years (I spent the whole day yesterday watching again its first four films).

The Fast And The Furious (2001) - The first film from the franchise was released in June 2001 and went straight to top spot on its first 3-day in North America with $40.1 million . Starred by Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster. The first film was a huge success that accumulated $207 million world wide considering the small budget of just $38 mil. Directed by Rob Cohen, who later directed xXx, Stealth, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.

Plot:
Dominic Toretto (Diesel) with his team including his girlfriend Letty (Rodriguez) hijacked a truck stealing millions of merchandise. Pursuing them was LAPD Brian O'Conner (Walker) who was in undercover joining Dominic's team to get enough evidence to take them in. He fell for Dominic's younger sister Mia (Brewster) and become more close with her brother. The two got along and Dominic introduced him the "Race Wars". A sort of brotherhood formed and Brian got himself protecting Dominic and his team from the authority. (My rating is 3.5 out 5 stars )


2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) - after two years the second movie was released with more budget ($76 mil) and also debuted at number one on it's first week with $50.1 million and ended with $236 mil during its theatrical run world wide despite the absence of Vin Diesel and the two female lead. New casts were added which include Tyresse Gibson, Ludacris, Eva Mendez and Devon Aoki. Directed by John Singleton who later directed Mark Wahlberg in Four Brothers and this year's new film Abducted.

Plot:
Brian was discharged from LAPD from freeing Dominic (was shown at the end of the first film). He was contacted by the FBI to do another undercover job with Monica Fuentes (Mendez) for money laundering headed by a ruthless drug lord. In doubt of being accompanied by an FBI agent, Brian demanded for a known driver who can do the job with him and in return they will be both cleaned from their past charges. He turned to his old friend Rome, whom he had a little drift with before joining LAPD. With the help of fellow street-racers Tej (Ludacris) and Suki (Aoki), Brian and Rome need to finish the job before the drug lord finishes them. (My rating is 2.5 out of 5 stars)


The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006) - released after three years, the third installment didn't much live up to its predecessors when it comes to box office gross but wasn't a disappointment either. It still managed to accumulate a worldwide gross of $158 million despite casting younger and unknown actors which include Lucas Black, Bow Wow and Korean American actor Sung Kang. Directed by Justin Lin who later worked on the other two movies from the franchise.

Plot:

Sean (Black) is a high school student who constantly moves from one town to another due to his stubbornness. He was sent to Tokyo by his mother to join his father after involving in a crash because of street racing. Despite the warning from his father, Sean found himself joining his fellow-American student, Twinkie (Bow Wow) who introduced him to "Drift Racing". He met Han, a Japanese drift racer who later taught him to drift against DK, a nephew of famous Yakuza. Tired of moving and running away, Sean made a good deal with the Yakuza and needs to race again and win against DK for him stay in Tokyo for good. It was revealed that Han was a good friend of Dominic (Vin Diesel) who made a short appearance at the end of the film. (My Rating is 3.0 out of 5 stars)


Fast and Furious (2009) - released in April of 2009 which opened with $70.1 million on its first 3-day. The fourth film reunited all the four original casts together which became the most successful film in the franchise so far. It earned a total of $353.2 million world wide and holds the record of the best live-action car movie ever created. Justin Lin was once again took the directing job for the fourth film.

Plot:
The plot happened between the second and third movie, where Brian was back in LAPD pursuing a drug dealer while Han and Dominic were in Dominican Republic hijacking trucks of fuel. When Dominic learned about the death of Letty (Rodriguez) he went back to LA pursuing her killer who was also being pursued by Brian to lead him to the drug lord Arturo Braga. The two met and once again involved in car racing, only this time with Dominic is on for revenge at the same time. After avenging Letty's death, he chose not to run from authorities, he was convicted and was sent to jail for 25 years, and on the bus while on his way to his prison, Brian, Mia and two other new racers rescued him. (My rating is 3.0 out of 5 stars)

Fast Five (2011) - picking up from where the last movie left off, Dominic, Brian, Mia and fellow racers are being pursued by cops headed by a new character Hobb (played by Dwayne Johnson). Still directed by Justin Lin and three main characters reprise their roles (except for Rodriguez whose character died in the last film). Also Rome (Tyresse Gibson), Han (Sung Kang), and Tej (Ludacris) are back in this action-thriller film. We still don't know if this film is better than its predecessors but no matter what it will be another box office success and the guys behind the franchise are already working on the sixth and final film. Sounds so exciting right?..can't wait to watch it in cinema this May