batman begins (2005). directed by christopher nolan.

it took a 13 hour flight from hong kong to vancouver to present me with the opportunity to watch this movie. i missed really some good stuff. i actually enjoyed this movie a lot more than the dark knight rises (2012). everything in the right amount contained in gotham city universe. 

quills (2000). directed by philip kaufman.

travesty! i have not write about this until now? i recalled a friend who watched this movie at the cinema in coogee beach dismissing it as having "too much nudity". but nah, that's not it about the movie. 

i found a good review from imdb.com which could not have said it any better...

Quills is a delightfully unsettling account of the demise of the Marquis de Sade and those he brings down with him. The film presents viewers with all the evidence they need to identify the fallacies of society's separation of "good" from "evil" and "moralists" from "sinners." It subtly asserts that the values traditionally used to pass judgment are compromised by convention and religion, and that there is moral danger in accepting these values without question.

During the film, one form of sin is only replaced by another, which defeats its resistors and beguiles the rest by hiding behind a pretentious shroud of religion and convention.

Viewers are horrified to discover that they can actually identify with the marquis, whose name inspired the word "sadist" to describe those who derive sexual pleasure from violence. Most viewers' senses of morality are sullied by the realization that they are hanging on every twist of the plot, desperate to know what will next beset these wretched characters.

you are curious too now, aren't you?

shine (1996). directed by scot hicks.

i watched this movie when i was studying in australia. at that time i was crazy about rachmaninov and in my search for the piano concerto no. 2 in c minor, this movie stood out because it was about a real life music prodigy's obsession for the rach no. 2 - the hopes of his immigrant family and community, his depression and subsequent mental breakdown. you feel the intense pressure when everybody is counting on you, and the worst is you being the biggest critic of all. 

this movie instantly convert to me to a geoffrey rush fan.   

the life and death of peter sellers (2004). directed by stephen hopkins.

i don't know why i have not write about this movie yet. a very good film about the strange personality of famed comic british actor peter sellers, who described himself as "having no personality which then eased him to take on a character". great acting from geoffrey rush, which makes the portrayal painful to watch, i thought, it must be hell to be this guy because i came to one conclusion, this is what happens to guys who never really did grow up. 

sherlock (season 1) (2010). created by mark gatiss & steven moffat.

i spent a good part of my childhood poring over the sir arthur conan doyle's fictional characters, and the recent update in the form of robert downey jr. and jude law was a fun take on the stories but not necessarily an accurate one. pffftt..does accuracy matter at all?

it does when you read the book(s) page to page, in small prints, no less. this sherlock nailed that part. everything is 21st century, but holmes and watson are old souls from the books. he is cynical and unfeeling, the other he is loyal and human. they are two peas in a pod, but they are strictly friends. alright, that is just victorian sensibilities. but who cares, i want the book and i get it!

the casting of benedict cumberbatch is a huge plus since he embodies "the" holmes; tall, moody, calculative, the visage is nothing but a mask. martin freeman as dr. watson is not relegated as a sidekick but a friend who cares a lot about holmes (that part jude law got it right). since it is a mini series, each show takes about 1.5 hours. it is well written and not surprisingly it is engaging. that's the advantage tv series have over a full fledged film - that it has the luxury of time to develop the character and the story, the audience gets to know the characters better and bond. i guess that's why a lot of people can follow tv shows so religiously. 

i'm already on season 2. 

the man from nowhere (ajeossi (original title)) (2010). directed by jeong-beom lee.

i think this is a worthy remake of leon: the professional (1994) if the director/writer ever wanted to admit that he was inspired by the latter. i don't watch korean soaps, i am especially not familiar with won bin of autumn in my heart (2000) fame. he was pretty good as the mysterious pawn shop owner who established a relationship with the little girl from next door, who needed attention from an adult because her mother is busy doing heroin (or crack?). it's a story of urban poverty and desperation seen in pretty much all developed/developing countries - of people who lose hope and live in the shell of their former selves. some lost it all together, others, they need to be recalled of how precious that hope and the will to live can be.  

the bourne legacy (2012). directed by tony gilroy.

i can watch jeremy renner. he can hold my attention. but the story? nah. i find the story silly. there's is no greater aim other than chasing a guy half around the globe, only to introduce a new character. i am sure a new hero can be combined with an interesting story - think of the numerous actors who play james bond at least they try to take a spin on the over familiarity of that particular spy genre. on top of that - i think the good actors casted for this movie, like edward norton and rachel weisz were underused. 

see you at the next bourne..err..aaron. 

animal kingdom (2010). directed by david michôd.

this movie blends a family of gangster with art. young joshua "j" cody is lost, lost his mother to heroin addiction and had to seek shelter at the family matriarch home that housed three of his violent, gangster uncles. joshua is oblivious to the going ons of the family, the show offs and the obvious fear of living by the seconds. this is his coming of age, having to fend for himself from his own family but unable to tear himself from the situation. great performances all around, particularly jackie weaver and ben mendelsohn. a quiet australian film is hardly un-opinionated about the truth of criminal life.