arbitrage (2012). directed by nicholas jarecki.

richard gere can actually hold the story on his own - of a billionaire on the brink of collapse trying to patch every single problems of his own doing on his own. at times when everything is going against him - i see not a man in distress, but a man analyzing his moves and weighing the odds of the best possible course of actions. this is business to him, a game that needs to be won - that he doesn't seemed too disturbed about causing the death of his mistress, he is willing to get friends to cover up his crime, not really feeling the guilt about cheating on his wife and family for that matter. in fact everyone around him is not as central as his dedication to play the game to save himself - they are just a bystander, a decoration aside the game. 

who knows what his real motivations are? nothing is that taboo if it gets you to the destination that you want to be. 

end of watch (2012). directed by david ayer.

this i must say:

watch all david ayer's movies. 

i am impressed by this movie. the fact that it doesn't feel like a movie. it feels like a camera follows two young cops around downtown LA carry out their duty calls. both micheal pena and jake gyllenhaal are so genuine you would think they are partners in real life. i love the camera work by roman vasyanov. one thing that stands out about this movie is that - there is no cheesy moments in trying to define heroism (or any values for that matter) - it is what it is - two people doing their jobs, they are regular people with regular people dreams, and sometimes they die violently by mobsters who knows no mercy. 

it is a cruel world out there, i rather directors and screen writers not to sugar coat it. it is still bitter and will stay that way. 

the master (2012). directed by paul thomas anderson.

cults are so weird  the fact there has to be a messiah who thinks he is on the path to save others, and those who badly need to be saved themselves. it's a symbiotic relationship, but a bad one. freddie quell is a veteran of war with a roomful of personal demons - he is erratic, constantly drinking to forget the past, behaving like he is a dollar short of a quarter. he drifted aimlessly until he met the (not-so)-mesmerizing lancaster dodd and his cult family on a boat, thinking he met someone who can save him from his inner troubles. freddie is not awfully smart, seemed to be easily impressed and in need of approval that he is capable of so much more. at times he gave his loyalty to lancaster - which is exactly what the group needs. 

i cheered the fact that freddie can not be contained by  the group methods and they gave up on him. to have a mind on your own, no matter how unsteady, is better than being a blind follower behind an equally clueless master. 

both joaquin phoenix and philip seymour hoffman are intense in their approach trying to contain each other, not to mention amy adams as the master's powerful-behind-the-scene wife. darn, who is jennifer lawrence again?  

lemony snicket's a series of unfortunate events (2004). directed by brad silberling.

i don't usually like kids movie but i like this one. may be because it is over the top, jim carrey being jim carrey, contrasted with the serious baudelaire children. 

brokeback mountain (2005). directed by ang lee.

this is a time when the uttering the word gay is ultimately the fault of the gay person. this is a time when being gay is imposing the gay lifestyle to the discomfort of the majority straights. ennis is afraid to live and love openly, much the chagrin of jack, his lover whom he met while sheep herding at brokeback mountain. his fear could very well be true, but the scene at jack's family home - when ennis found his missing shirt from all those years at brokeback mountain - made him realized the chance he had passed to have a happier life. 

everyone is so so good in this movie. i even like anne hathaway in it. 

silver linings playbook (2012). directed by david o. russell.

cute family feel good drama, but why did jennifer lawrence won that oscar?

that i don't get. 

flight (2012). directed by robert zemeckis.

i am actually surprised that this is a robert zemeckis movie of the famed back to the future (1985-1990) trilogy. and not bad i must say - while denzel washington is a veteran at playing men with a broken psyche - it is still a sombre movie without getting too dark - the scene in which he is fighting his will to drink that small bottle of vodka (i think?) in the next hotel room conveys how hopelessly wrong when an alcoholic tries to convince himself that he is not an alcoholic. 

the guy is in a constant battle of will - to drink or not to drink. stories like this makes me sad - i don't enjoy seeing people spiralling down to their doom. 

the godfather: part 2 (1974). directed by francis ford coppola.

can a movie be as good as this one? i think both part 1 and part 2 are complimentary to each other. it's such a joy to see this kind of story telling because it just doesn't happen anymore these days. the most obvious would be micheal's transformation from a kid wide-eyed of the world to his ascent as the head of the family to his downfall. it changed him inside - he is more inward, contemplative, suspicious to the point of paranoia - pushing everyone away - even killing a family member - something his father will never consider of doing. 

to what point - business is for the family, or is family for business? 

the dynamics of each characters, the seamless story telling, the colours and moods of the era - something in the past that the present at times, despite of technologies, fail to emulate.