Mr. Peabody and Sherman (2014)

In to the WABAC!!!

Movie Poster

An animation based on a cartoon which tells of a genius dog, Mr. Peabody who decides to adopt an orphan boy, Sherman. And from then on, Mr. Peabody thrusts himself into an adventure as a father (figure) to Sherman, while telling Sherman to never call him "Daddy".

The original Mr.Peabody Cartoon

Let me just get this out of the way and say I've never watched the original cartoon, so my expectations and familiarity was largely based on the trailer, which didn't appear too bad. After scouring the internet for reviews on whether to watch it in 3D or just merely the peasantry 2D, I decided on 3D, because well, people said it was worth it.

Mr. Peabody's appeal is in its ability to cater to the youngest of viewers to most adults. The jokes varied from action-based laughs to play on words, which may or may not be picked up by kids (or even adults). Mr. Peabody made history 'fun', in a way, by using the WABAC (way-back). I can't say, of course, whether or not the history 'lessons' are accurate or whether or not kids actually paid any attention to any detail.

In olden-day Italy

Nevertheless, it achieved a lot of laughs, and those hearty moments are not all too bad, pulling on them ol' heartstrings. Well, it was no Up, but 'sad' nonetheless. The down side of the story was that it felt like it tried to include a little too much with so little time, but understandably so - History takes, well, a lot of time. But obviously, being an animation, it should not be taken too seriously on the 'logical' part.


On to the 3D quality, I felt it was one of the best 3D movies yet. Travelling in the WABAC felt like you were being thrusts together with the characters. Those sword-wielding scenes felt like you were gonna be poked in the eye - okay, maybe a little less dramatic. At the end of the day, the extra we paid for the 3D, was worth it. And I'd recommend watching this in 3D.

All in all, a fun movie for the whole family - so bring along the kids, or the kid in the adults and watch this fun, family-oriented animation.

Mr. Peabody in the WABAC

Bottom Line

Positive(s)

+ Fun, colourful and enjoyable
+ Great 3D effects
+Animation was good

Negative(s)

- Messy plot
- Not as emotionally gripping as other animations

Rating: 7/10

Movie Review: 300: Rise of an Empire

This.... is..... Athens? 

The only thing that rose was my eye-brow 

Finally I have the time to write a short review on 300:Rise of an Empire, after watching it last Saturday.

Themistocles

So finally the much awaited and expected (at least by fans of the first one) sequel (well, prequel, well, it happened simultaneously with Leonidas' hot-gates march). This one heads over to Athens, Greece's democracy pioneers. And Athens' very own Leo, Themistocles, a master tactician on the battlefield. A kind leader who, as we are told, caused the whole shenanigans by killing Xerxes' (that generous God) father, King Darius.

With the general plot out of the way, lets get down to the review of the movie itself. Well, the first 15 minutes is cramped with 3D 'gimmickry', which I found sickening (not visually, but just the whole concept of 'I must exploit 3D tech' approach of this installment). All the unnecessary sword to your face, blood on to the screen was overwhelmingly dull. And just how much blood do these people have running through their veins?

HUUUUAAAARRRRGGGHHHHH

What I also didn't like about this movie was the amount of back-story it had. Themistocles, Xerxes, Artemisia, Gorgo.... I mean come on, focus on one and make it great, not focus on many and hope one hits the mark. Acting was decent, watchable at best. Stapleton (Themistocles), wasn't quite as gripping with his speeches as G. Butler (as Leonidas), it didn't feel motivating and the 'soldier' of Athens' we'rent really responding to it accordingly. Extras looked like they were picked up from Walmart - unlike in the first 300, where the extras looked the part.

My body is ready

Xerxes and Gorgo had little, if any, impact on the whole. This was clearly a duel between Themistocles and Artemisia, which again shows the irrelevance of Xerxes' back-story. A lot of people seemed impressed by Eva Green's acting as Artemisia. While she did well portraying a woman full of vengeance and being a dark general, I felt she didn't quite convince the audience (me, at least) that she really wanted Athens' to fall.

Now, I loved the first 300, and hoped that the sequel to it would be about Dilios (the one-eyed man) leading the rest of Sparta into glory. But instead we got this... Athens. And Themistocles. To be fair, the fight scenes were still pretty gory, so that was nice. But other than that nothing else. But then again, what else would you want in this kind of movie? That is for you to decide. 

Bottom Line

Positive(s)

+ Fight Scenes

+ Visual effects (minus the 3D gimmickry)

+ Eva Green is kinda hot

Negative(s)

- Shallow, dull plot

- Less than gripping acting

- Uninspiring and unmotivated

Rating: 5.5/10 
- Worth a watch to kill time

I'll just lay here

Movie Review: Saving Mr. Banks (2014)

Chim Chimney, Chim Chimney, Chim Chim, Che-roo

If the heading sounds familiar to you, then you've probably watched Marry Poppins, the ever-so-cheerful nanny with an umbrella flying through the chimney, or window, or something. It was a long time ago. A timeless classic I assure you. Well, lets not dwell on musical classics.

Hanks, as Walt Disney

Saving Mr. Banks tells of how Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) struggled to woo P.L. Travers (Emma Thompson), the author of Marry Poppins, into signing over the rights so he could make the movie we all know and love. With Mrs. Travers being British, hating everything American and all, Mr. Disney had to give it his all, from sweet-talking to sly-foxing, even up to giving Mrs. Travers a special tour of Disneyland, the happiest place in the world.

This is a family piece, best enjoyed if you've watched Marry Poppins of course, but will still appeal even if you didn't experience the wonders of animated penguins dancing on screen (no, not Happy Feet). Acting is superb and emotionally gripping. From Mrs. Travers' move from Maryborough to Allora, to her journey of letting go of Poppins. Even supporting actors like Giamatti and Farrell put on great performances.

Of course, there are  no twists in the plot, no high action CGI sequences, no explosions... no Michael Bay-ory. This is one of those movies that prosper on amazing acting.

And it delivered. The sincerity in the acting really shows on screen.

Disneyland

Positive(s)

+ Great acting

+ Great for people who loved Marry Poppins

+ Emotionally Gripping

+ Great genuine family movie

Negative(s)

- Felt draggy at times

Rating: 7.5/10 

This is a scene from Marry Poppins, just in case people are wondering

Movie Review: The Lego Movie (2014)

Don't LEGO of me...

This one has been coming, and it's finally here. A movie about Lego(s), those building blocks cum foot-killers. Everyone has, at one point in their lives, stepped on a Lego, or played with them (or maybe something similar to Lego, maybe Blocko).

Batman, Emmet, and Lucy (a.k.a Wyldstyle)

This movie has received raving reviews, so, instinctively I had to catch it, having played with Lego (or something similar) growing up. Probably a stranger to all those new Lego Pirate sets and whatnot, but certainly familiar with the general aspects of this timeless 'toy'.

The Lego Movie revolves around Emmet, a regular Joe (as far as Legos go), someone who plays by the rules, and strictly by the rules. Until one night, he is mistakenly identified as the 'Chosen one', the master builder,
the key to saving the Lego Universe.

It must be said that the story is simplistic, yet thoroughly satisfying. Filled with laughs, gags, puns and just general silliness. It doesn't come off as 'trying-too-hard'. Appropriate for kids, but not too dialed down for adults too. Voice-overs from Liam Neeson, Freeman and Banks are also gold. They really add something extra to the movie. So in short, it's for the whole family, unless your family consists of grouchy people with no sense of humour, then you're better off watching Robocop (I kid, I haven't watch Robocop).

NOT Gandalf

Having said that, the movie is not without its underlying message, particularly to fans of Lego, and that is, Legos are meant to be played with, meant to be experimented with, not to be built and then stored or displayed in that state permanently. It is probably a kick to the teeth or a wake up call to adult Lego fanatics who want their piece to stay the way it is, built perfectly the first time and never to be touched ever again.



So if you haven't watched it, do it! NOW! You will not regret it, and if you do, you're lame and I hate you. This is a fun-filled movie for everyone, whether or not you've played with Lego before. There's nothing I found that was bad, but if I really had to pin-point with a gun to my head, maybe some scenes moved about a little too much and too fast, but I blame my eyes for that. Damn you eyes!!!

And on that note, remember, that everything is AWESOME~!

Emmet is saddened because you havent seen this film

Bottom Line

Positives: 

+ Fun-filled movie

+ Beautifully done

+ Great voice-overs

+ Good jokes, Great cameos

Negatives:

- Fast-paced scenes can be hard to catch

- Product advertising, I mean it is a Lego film after all

Rating: 8.0/10.0

Review: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

We all have our little secret life

So, this happens to be Stiller's (Ben) directorial debut. Based off a short story by James Thurber about a negative assets manager (photographs) at Life magazine who frequently daydreams of fantastic adventures, and has a crush on his coworker Cheryl (Kristen Wiig). Photojournalist Sean O'Connell (Sean Penn), who works closely with Mitty concerning his submissions, has sent him a package containing his latest negatives and a wallet as a gift in appreciation of Mitty's excellent work - Wikipedia (paraphrased)

And so ensues an adventure of a lifetime. Walter Mitty (the movie) excels in portraying a very indie-ish, very laid back vibe. It doesnt take itself seriously, much like Stiller. And it has fun doing so. The cinematography aspect that I enjoyed the most was the birds-eye-view shots - it gave off a really good indie feel.

As for the story, which one of us has never felt much like Walter Mitty (the character now)? You feel as though you're stuck in a rut, nothing exciting ever happens to you. Well, because you never do anything exciting or worth mentioning. There's this girl you like, but she'd never be impressed with your dull lifestyle as a negative assets manager, or a paper boy, or an accounts man. I'm sure a huge majority of us have daydreamed about the impossible, flying, being a hero, travelling the world. We've all been there, and will all go back there again and again.

Ride of his life

Walter Mitty shows us that the only thing stopping us from living the life we want, is ourselves, and our priorities. From New York to Greenland, to Iceland and beyond, the movie offers breathtaking scenes worthy of a Tourism Advertisement. With great soundtrack to boot. What's best about this film is that it doesnt try to be something it's not. It's filled with feel-good moments and some good laughs. 

The only fault I found was the Benjamin Button scene, with Stiller being much too comedic for the film's own good. Otherwise, I thoroughly enjoyed this gem.

Positives:

+ Indie-ish vibe

+ Cinematography

+ Feel-good film

+ Stiller does well in this one

Negative(s):

- The Benjamin Button scene

- Story may not be as deep as people may wanted it to be

Rating: 

A solid 7.5/10