Short reviews of movies I watched but got too lazy to do the usual longer review

Run boys run!!!

The Maze Runner – Adolescent boys trapped in a maze like place and try to find their way out only to discover a bigger plot is waiting for them once they escape. Surprised to see the cute boy from ‘Love Actually’ is all grown up. There is a sequel coming up.

 

Paging for Van Helsing

Dracula Untold – Dracula was once a caring ruler, husband and father until he had to make an ultimate sacrifice that turned his life around. Luke Evans takes a break from The Hobbit and helms this flick. A reminder that everybody has their reason for being the way they are.

Denzel got your back! 

The Equalizer – Denzel Washington practically takes down an entire Russian prostitution ring. Chloë Grace Moretz is fast becoming an amazing actress and I look forward to more awesome work from her. It was kinda too ‘bloody’ for my liking yet good effort to get Denzel back on the screen again.

  

 

Wanna play? 

Annabelle – After all the hype Annabelle created during The Conjuring, this was a big let-down. Cheap scare and wooden-pun intended performance by the cast didn’t help much. Biggest let down was the ending which got me going…”erk…wat the heck? That’s it? Chet!!!”

He loves me, he loves me not...

Love, Rosie – Never have I watched an annoyingly cute love story such as this. You will be going….’Arghh….enough oredi ler’ yet still enjoy the annoying parts. Good chemistry between Sam and Lily made it barely to watch but God forbid anybody from going thru what these nuts went thru.

Don't mess with him! 

John Wick – Keanu as John Wick is back as an ex-hitman to whack those responsible for killing his dog. No matter how action packed his flicks are, Keanu’s face reaction is still the same emotionless. Lantak dia lar, tengah nangis ke, tembak orang ke, sepak orang…muka maintain je mamat ni. Another one of those bang bang you die flick.

Think you Boss sucks? 

Horrible Bosses 2 – Hollywood’s 3 idiots are back with another dumbarse plan to get back at the investor who cheated them. Unfortunately things that could go wrong go wrong with a twist. The returning cast and new addition makes no different to the jalan cerita. I just need to know one thing….how on Earth is Jennifer Aniston is still that hot at her age?

What are you thinking? 

Gone Girl – This got to be one of the most mind fucking flick I ever watched. It’s based on a book and was well done into bringing into the big screen. Ben is in his usual almost Keanu like facial reaction (read: emotionless). Rosamund Pike however was on another level, if you didn’t know who she was before this, trust me you will never forget her after this. Makes you think twice about who you are married to. Did I mention I got mind fucked by this movie?

Boggart, dragon...bla bla bla...

Seventh Son - Seventh Son – If you think your ex sucks, wait till you see how pissed Malkin (Julianne Moore) is when Gregory (Jeff Bridges) ‘breaks her heart’. To make matters worse, Malkin is a powerful witch so all hell breaks loose when she escapes from her prison. The only way to stop her is with the help of the seventh son of the seventh son Tom Ward (Ben Barnes). Together the Spook and his apprentice embark on a journey to end evil from ruling the world. CGI, lame romantic scenes, blab la bla…what a stinky way to end my movie watching year with this stinky poo. Haih. 2015…you better serve me better flicks. 

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb Review

Who's your favourite? 

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb Review – 3^rd instalment of spending night at the museum. As usual the first flick was good but let’s not mention about the second stinker. Will this final chapter serve as a proper farewell?

Reunited once again with some new addition

After the successful attempt to keep the museum ‘alive’ with the help of Tablet of Ahkmenrah, Larry (Ben Stiller) was hoping things would get ever better. Unfortunately the Tablet seems to be ‘running out of power’ which impacts his ‘exhibit friends’. In order to figure out how to restore its magic, Larry makes a journey to London where parents of Ahkmenrah are displayed. All the while Larry had also had to face the fact that his son Nicky (Skyler Gisondo) is growing up and Larry had to learn to accept Nicky’s decision on how to shape his life. Once Larry and Ahkmenrah manage to sneak inside the London Museum, he was surprised to find that most of his ‘gang’ decide to join the cause. Together they witness ‘characters’ such as Lancelot, Triceratops, Garuda come alive for the first time. Just when Larry finally gets to meet Merenkahre (Ben Kingsley), a confused Lancelot (Dan Stevens) decides to take matters into his hands. With time running out to restore the tablet’s power will Larry succeed in his one last important task or let his ‘friends’ down?

Guard of the year! 

You are missed Sir. :( 

It’s like a reunion unlike any other. Especially knowing that two talented people in this flick are no longer around, namely Robin Williams and Mickey Rooney. I was looking out for ‘Teddy’ to appear on screen and every time he did, my heart hurt a little. Sigh…what a loss. Stiller was his usual self trying to figure things out on how to deal with his responsibility as both the night guard and father. New additions Rebel Wilson and Dan Stevens were an excellent choice adding extra flavour. The special effects when the London Museum exhibit was a delight to watch as well. Look out for Pompeii volcano and how Dexter saves Jedd (Own Wilson) and Octavius (Steve Coogan) and also some ‘kitties trying to catch the light’. Makes me want to visit the London Museum soon.

Brit humor at it's best! 

When the franchise started I was intrigued to learn about the world history and spend time at the museum (unfortunately our National Museum is a sad state).  After this flick I hope I can one day make my way to the museums all over the world and expand my knowledge on world history. Who wants to join me? 

Thank you Yes4G for the preview pass! 

Paddington Review

Not just an ordinary Bear. 

Paddington Review – Move aside Winnie…here comes the Brown Bear with special obsession for Marmalade from Darkest Peru to steal our hearts.

Paddington takes on the escalator. 

A British explorer travel to darkest Peru and discovers a rare species of Bear. There he learns and teach them a few things about London and civilisation. Before he leaves, the explorer invites the Bear family to visit him. After years have passed, the young Bear (voiced by Ben Whishaw) upon losing his Uncle Pastuzo (voiced by Michael Gambon) and leaving his Aunt Lucy (voiced by Imelda Staunton) at Bears Retirement Home, takes up on the offer and heads towards London. Upon reaching Paddington Station, he gets the taste of human ignoring and trying to avoid him except for Mrs. Brown (Sally Hawkins) who was kind enough to convince her husband to provide shelter for the Bear until he gets a ‘home’. The bear is named Paddington and wrecks some havoc at the Brown’s home. As they help him find the explorer, Paddington has a series of mis-adventures, unaware that a taxidermist Millicent (Nicole Kidman) is on his trail, determined to add him to the species on exhibition at the Natural History Museum. Where will Paddington end up? Will he get a home? Or get ‘stuffed’ and placed in a glass exhibit? 

Watch out for this villain! 

There’s something about any film that has British cast that I like so much. Perhaps it’s their accent but they seem to fall on my favourite side so you can imagine me smiling while watching this movie. I don’t have to mention actors by name but each of them were brilliant in their role however big, small or errr….furry. The Director managed to capture London’s essence, both of its good and bad side. It only made me want to visit this city even more. One day London! One day! I might just wait at a train station to get a ‘home’ too. 

Guess who is in town? 

With the holiday season upon us, this is a heart-warming movie to be enjoyed with your family. Go get a red hat and blue coat and enjoy Paddington’s adventure around London city till he embarks on a new journey soon. Here’s hoping for a delightful sequel soon.

P/s - Paddington is on adventure around Malaysia so be sure to get a hug from him if you manage to spot him! 

Paddington's Malaysia Tour Schedule

The Hobbit : The Battle of the Five Armies – Review

Don't mess with this Hobbit! 

For someone who is not actually a big fan of this series, as luck would have it. I won preview tickets for the first two instalments and an upgrade for the final part in the Indulge Hall. How freaking cool is that? Macam nak je aku layan gamba ni kan? No harm since it is the year’s most anticipated movie and I’ve grown to like the Middle Earth creatures.

Bersatu teguh....bercerai roboh. 

The cliff-hanger at the end of The Desolation of Smaug left us with the Dwarfs making it to the Lonely Mountain and the pissed off Dragon (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) going on a rampage to destroy Lake-Town (it was translated as Bandar Tasik and I couldn’t help myself but to chuckle thinking if it was called South Lake Town…the direct translation would have been Bandar Tasik Selatan!) Anyway…after talking wayyyyy too much in the previous part, this time Smaug shows his disruptive side until Bard (Luke Evans) takes it down. Unfortunately his Bandar Tasik is left in shambles so the whole population heads toward Erebor. In the meantime, Gandalf (Ian McKellan) who is stuck at Dol Guldur is rescued by Galadriel (Cate Blanchett) with the help of Elrond (Hugo Weaving) & Saruman (Christopher Lee). They stage one heck of a kick arse battle against the 9 Kings of Men while getting a glimpse of Necromancer who Gandalf has already confirmed as Sauron. Meanwhile, a personal battle brews within Thorin (Richard Armitage) who have seemed to be consumed by his greed of the gold. He orders the dwarf to keep looking for the Arkenstone without knowledge that Bilbo (Martin Freeman) are already in possession of it. When Thorin goes back on his promise to help Bard and the Elf King Thranduil (Lee Pace), Bilbo hands the stone to Bard to change Thorin’s mind. All this while the army of Orcs are making their way to Erebor. In order to survive the great battle, the Lake-Town Man, Mirkwood Elves, Dwarves of Iron Hill had to go against The Orcs of Moria & Gundabad and the Great Eagles of the Misty Mountains. Fuh! How’s that for confrontation? Who will make it? Who will be defeated? 

Ready to kick butt! 

As I mentioned in my earlier reviews, I don’t have to comment about the amazing cast, they certainly gave their heart and soul into this movie. With Peter Jackson helming it, get ready for the award season for some serious nominations. With some silly humour, lovey dovey (between Tauriel and Kili!), loyalty, friendship and a whole army of other emotions captured since the beginning of the series, am sure the fans would enjoy this to the max. Some might sleep with their fake elf ears on I presume.

Hobbit makes it home? 

It is end of an era and journey unlike any other. Just like life…we live, we travel, we experience, we remember. Learn what we can and teach what we could share. My own personal journey throughout this movie was watching with three different friends of mine while also catching up with my primary school friend….oh how time flew by. All those memories. Thank you Peter Jackson for turning the book into a master piece…what’s next oh Bearded One? 

Previous Hobbit review -

The Hobbit - Unexpected Journey

The Hobbit - Desolation of Smaug

Geng Hobbit reject!

Primary school Hobbit reunion!

P/s - Thank you Churp Churp and TGVCinemas Movie Club for the IMAX and Indulge experience respectively! 

The Pyramid Review

#noshitSherlock You only enter once! 

The Pyramid Review – Some ruins are better left uncharted.

The curse? More like tsk tsk 

Father and daughter team of archaeologists are excited about their new discovery of an unmapped Pyramid. Unfortunately just when they are about to explore further, the local government decides to shut them down because of the political unrest in the country. Determined to get at least some information, the team uses their expensive rover to survey. After just few feet, the rover goes missing so the team together with a reporter and her cameraman decides to retrieve it. They manage to get back the roved but it is badly damaged. On trying to find their way out, the team gets lost inside the maze of the Pyramid. One and after wrong turn and mistakes cause them to discover what is actually ‘laid’ inside the Pyramid. Will the team makes it out alive?

Ok...siapa nak masuk and mampos dulu? 

Haih…with practically unknown cast, it’s a no brainer to place one’s bet on who will die first or who will actually makes alive at the end of the movie. The camera work is another headache inducing process but at least the music was ok. Don’t get me started about the storyline…it’s just an insult to your intelligence. I was just looking forward to step out of the cinema and thank Anubis didn’t spend my hard earn cash to buy the tickets (I got the preview tickets from my friend) and watch this stinky poo.

Dead body...*hint hint...you ain't gonna make it alive girl :P 

The only fun moment I had was when my friend pulled an ‘emergency break’ action on her seat during one of the silly scare scene. The rest should remain buried in my mind. 

Dumb and Dumber To Review

They ride again! 

Dumb and Dumber To Review – Lloyd and Harry are back with their antics, pranks and tricks after 20 years.

Errr.....

In case if you are wondering what happen to these two nutters, Lloyd was held in a mental asylum until he finally decides to reveal his real reason getting Harry to change his diaper. It was a prank! For twenty years, Lloyd fooled Harry into thinking he had lost his mind. Talk about determination! Once both friends are back together, Harry informs Lloyd that he needs a new kidney as soon as possible. Together their go back to Harry’s parents to try to get them to donate either one of their kidneys, bad news gets worst when Harry’s parents inform them that he was adopted. Not all is lost when Harry goes thru his old mail and discovers that he could have a daughter, Penny (whom was given up for adoption). They try to locate her and a whole hoopla of adventure awaits them. Will Harry be reunited with his daughter? Is it really his daughter? Does he really need a kidney transplant?

tsk tsk tsk....back doesn't mean it's better....

Oh Jim and Jeff…why bother to come back and leave sour after taste to a characters I used to like? You guys just made me sigh trying to milk the funny out of the original roles. All I could see were two great actors being used a puppets. Shame on the directors and those involved for even coming up with a lame of an excuse for this follow up flick. Lloyd and Harry should have just remained Dumb and Dumber and never be revived ever in a stinker of a sequel.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 Review

Katnisssssss

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 Review – As the title goes, this is the first instalment of the epic finale that is dawning upon us. After an awesome cliff-hanger at the ‘end’ of Catching Fire. 

The rebelssssss

After witnessing awesome action and combat in Catching Fire, Mockingjay slows down the phase to focus on the death and destruction caused by the Capitol for supporting the ‘rebels’. We are taken to what is left of District 12 where less than 1000 people survived the devastation. Upon seeing the damage, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) agrees to be the Mockingjay much to the delight of Plutarch Heavensbee (the late Philip Seymour Hoffman) and President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore). From their shelter in District 13 and with the help of Beetee (Jeffrey Wright), they try to broadcast the atrocity caused by Capital to the Districts that defy their orders. While former Champion Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) seemed to have been brainwashed by President Snow (Donald Sutherland), a team is sent to rescue him led by Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth) who is caught in a love triangle. With time running out on both side, which is this leadership will prevail to spearhead the people of Paneem?

...the cast...........

you will be missed Mr. Hoffman....RIP

When you already have few Oscar winners in the movie what better way to make it even more awesome by adding more talented name into the cast list. I’m talking about Julianne Moore of course, I’ve been her fan for as long as I can remember and was delighted to see her playing an important role as President Coin. If there is one person I don’t mind leading me, it would be her. While the rest of the usual cast gave their best performance (Elizabeth, Sam, Donald, Josh, Woody). Gotta admit I got goose bumps when I saw Hoffman on screen. What a loss after rising talent. Sigh. Besides the serious part of this movie, there were also some light moments when Katniss try to ‘shoot’ the Mockingjay message. Overall it did feel a bit draggy but I’m hoping for an epic ending in Part 2 come November 2015!

President Snow time is running out....

Not gonna say much except like other Hunger Games fan, my anticipation is high is satisfy my Hunger-pun intended! Bite me! Hehe 

Thank you Red Box Karaoke for the in season pass!

My earlier review on Catching Fire!

http://krezikanmanimani.blogspot.com/search?q=hunger+games

Penguins of Madagascar Review

The boys in strips are back! 

Penguins of Madagascar Review – Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private comes out with their own venture out from the shadows of Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman.

Cute rightttttttttttttt????

Cuddly righttttttttttttttttt???

We get to witness how Skipper (Ton McGrath), Kowalski (Jeff Bennett), Rico (John DiMaggio) rescued Private (James Patrick Stuart) and embark on their own journey. Their cute and cuddly feature becomes a big hit and are loved anywhere they go. Little did they know they have ‘stolen’ the limelight from Dave the Octopus disguised as human Dr. Octavius Brine (John Malkovich). While on another adventure, the four penguins get kidnaped and later rescued by the North Wind. Together they discover that Dave plans to get even with the flipper birds that can’t fly. They have to stop Dave before he jeopardise the penguins loveable traits. Can they make it on time?

The North Wind!!! 

The original voice cast for the penguins are not familiar names but the latest additions are instantly recognisable, namely John Malkovich, Benedict Cumberbatch and Ken Jeong. They bring their own flavour to the characters they play. Storyline is well crafted with few moral values attached to make both kids and adults enjoy watching the flick. If you didn’t like penguins before, you would love them by end of this movie. The colours, the music, the adventure will surely put a smile on your face and some scenes will get you laughing of chair off. Trust me!

Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private ready for some action! 

What I enjoyed most was the pun styled name dropping of famous actors. One has to be quick to connect the name that puns perfectly with the action. For example….Nicholas…Cage them…geddit geddit? I was going ‘kekeke’ when I heard his name so imagine how much harder I laughed when Kevin Bacon, Halle Berry and the like’s names were mentioned. With an awesome spin-off the Madagascar series, I look forward to the sequel to find out what else are the Penguins of Madagascar are up to in the future. 

P/s - Thank you Churp Churp for the #Churprimere tickets!!! 

Big Hero 6 Review

Make way for Baymax! 

Big Hero 6 Review – Don’t worry…this is not a sequel for Big Hero 1,2, 3, 4 or 5 and move over minions…there is a new cutie called Baymax and it is adorable and cuddly as Polar Bear minus the fur.

Welcome to San Fransokyo! 

The story is set in San Francisco and Tokyo mixture of city called San Fransokyo. Brothers, Tadashi (Daniel Henney) and Hiro (Ryan Potter) are living with their aunt Cass (Maya Rudolph) after losing their parents. Both brothers have brilliant innovating skills and to prevent Hiro from wasting his talents on illegal bot fight, Tadashi takes Hiro to his University to meet his other inventor friends, Go Go (Jamie Chung), Wasabi (Damon Wayans Jr.) Honey Lemon (Genesis Rodriguez) and Fred (T.J. Miller). Tadashi also introduces Hiro to his own creation, Baymax (Scott Adsit). Hiro gets inspired and manage to impress Professor Callaghan (James Cromwell) with his own microbot invention during a demonstration. The joy of Hiro being accepted into the University are short lived when a tragedy strikes and Hiro is back into being depressed again until he accidently activates Baymax. Together they uncover a sinister plot taking place with Hiro microbot being manipulated by a man in a kabuki mask. With the help of Tadashi’s friends, Hiro decides to uncover the plan and suit each of them with hi tech upgrades turning them into unlikely Superheroes. Will this new band of Superheroes stop the menace from taking place….. *insert fist bump…fra la la 

....from zero.....

....to Heroooooooooo

First of all how cute is Baymax! That huggable marshmallow will melt your heart the moment you set your eyes on it. Plus Baymax also has a great sense of humour. The best part is when Baymax tries to cheer up Hiro and getting him back on his feet after a devastating loss. The voice talent are greatly matched with the characters while the setting of San Fransokyo is a bonus tour for those who have not been to both San Francisco and Tokyo before. The lines are witty and entertaining and in no time you will be rooting for the heroes to defeat the Kabuki masked guy. It also teaches a few lesson of not wasting ones talent and how to cope with sudden loss. Fall Out Boy’s Immortal suits well as the movie’s theme as well.

Have you #Baymaxhug someone today? 

Throughout the movie I wished I had  Baymax too to handle my own loss. Heck if I was not ‘strong’ enough I would have shed tears during some of the emotional moments in this flick. No shame admitting that! It’s not very often a movie makes you feel good and Big Hero 6 is one of those few. Bring your young ones to this and have a blast with Baymax! 

Make your own Baymax! 

P/s – stay until the end credit. I didn’t so am kicking myself for leaving the cinema early but then it’s a good excuse to watch the movie again now right? *wink wink

Hensem pulak aku tengok Tadashi ni! ehe ehe 

Thank you IM4Ufm for the preview tickets! 

Interstellar Review

Space travelers...

Interstellar Review – Oscar winners in one jam packed flick about humans trying to survive in a dying world.  

Wakey wakey!!! 

Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) is a former NASA test astronaut pilot and engineer turned farmer. Space exploration has been deemed too expensive to focus on farming since all the other type of food source can’t withstand a dusty wind. The only surviving crops are corn which is also in danger of being damaged as time passes by. Cooper tries to get by everyday with his kids, Tom and Murph one day accidently stumbles upon ‘message’ from ‘them’ while trying to explain to Murph (Mackenzie Foy) about the non-existent of ‘ghost’. Both father and daughter decipher the ‘message’ which brings them to a secret location. Little did they know that discovery will change their life forever. Cooper is recruited by Dr. Brand (Michael Caine) along with his daughter, Amelia (Anne Hathaway), Doyle (Wes Bentley) and Romilly (David Gyasi) to lead an expedition to scout for another planet to live. Cooper had no choice but to leave his family behind with no idea if he will make back alive from the voyage. The team ventures out and had to face numerous obstacles while also make a many sacrifices for the survival of the human race. Will their mission be successful  or are human race doomed?

Murph & Tom all grown up

Besides The Prestige, I’m not really a big fan of Nolan. His way of movie making doesn’t quite appeal to me but what made me want to catch this movie was the idea of leaving the planet and starting anew in another planet. With the current happening around the world, the natural disaster and what not, I was curious how he would tackle this issue. He didn’t disappoint my curiosity but I gotta admit it was a bit over the top for my liking. Those entire Black Hole, time lapse, theory of relativity, Murphy’s Law was a bit too much. I did however enjoy the music which was really grand and pretty much carried the movie for me. As for the cast…Nolan hired his usual favourite, Michael Caine with addition of Matthew, Anne and Jessica. Pretty much big names with big talent so no complain on the acting roles.  The space travelling visual was well crafted and one can almost feel what the explorers are going through when they travel in their space ship.

Can human start over again here? 

Overall it was a good picture albeit too long to watch after working hours. It’s better if one were to catch it and don’t have to work the next morning. I went for the preview which started at 9.30 pm and the movie ended half passed midnight. It kinda felt like I travelled through time myself.

P/s - Thank you Churp Churp for the #Churpremiere tickets!