Dekha Hain Teri Aankhon Ko Album

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Couples Retreat Movie Review

Cast and Crew
Director : Peter Billingsley
Producer : Scott Stuber, Vince Vaughn
Screenwiter : Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Dana Fox
Starring : Vince Vaughn,Jon Favreau,Jason Bateman,Faizon Love,Malin Akerman,Kristin Davis,Kristen Bell,Kali Hawk,Jean Reno,Peter Serafinowicz,John Michael Higgins,Ken Jeong

The script for this comedy is so half-baked that we begin to wonder why it was made at all. Not only is it resolutely unfunny, but it never dips beneath a superficial examination of relationship cliches.

Jason and Cynthia (Bateman and Bell) are a workaholic couple approaching their marriage as a business, so they propose to their friends a couple-building holiday in a tropical paradise. Dave and Ronnie (Vaughn and Akerman) need a break form their busy lives, Joey and Lucy (Favreau and Davis) hope to spend as much time holidaying apart as possible, and Shane (Love) brings along his new, young girlfriend (Walsh). Despite the spectacular location, it's not remotely what any of them expect, especially when love guru Marcel (Reno) starts his workshops.

There's a strong concept here, and the superior cast is capable of making something both funny and telling from it, but the script continually undercuts them with corny slapstick, unexciting capers and a resolutely shallow approach.
The plot is spread evenly among the four couples and their one-joke storylines, which leaves the film without a centre. And as it progresses, we soon realise that none of the plotlines are going to have a realistic outcome.

It's hard to see what drew such a strong cast to this project, besides the vacation in Bora Bora with pals Vaughn and Favreau (this is a long slide from their 1996 break-out in the too-cool Swingers). With roles reduced to mere stereotypes, there's nothing much the actors can do, although they do drum up some amusing chemistry. The supporting cast are left to steal whatever scenes they can, most notably Reno and Serafinowicz (as the resort's stern host).

Besides a few zinging one-liners, this is just a bland marital drama with gorgeous scenery and awkward physical comedy. It's certainly not the hilarious comedy the cast and crew seem to have thought they were making. This is shown in the way it constantly gets distracted by illogical, irrelevant set-pieces (the shark attack, the Guitar Hero challenge) and then has the nerve to get preachy about relationship issues. Bu the end, the only thing we take from the cinema is a craving for a Mai-Tai.

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Triangle Movie Review

Cast and Crew
Director : Christopher Smith
Producer : Julie Baines, Chris Brown, Jason Newmark
Screenwiter : Christopher Smith
Starring : Melissa George,Michael Dorman,Rachael Carpani,Liam Hemsworth,Henry Nixon,Emma Lung,Joshua Taylor,Bryan Probets,Jack Taylor

British filmmaker Smith (Severance) comes up with an effectively disorienting premise that consistently keeps us both unsettled and unsure what might happen next. It may be a bit vague for some viewers, but others will love it.

Jess (George) is clearly having a bad morning when she joins her friend Greg (Dorman) for a day trip on his gorgeous sailboat with his friends Sally and Downey (Carpani and Nixon), their friend Heather (Lung) and Greg's shipmate Victor (Hemsworth). After a sudden freak storm, they are rescued by an ocean liner that seems to be utterly empty. Except that they start dying one by one.
Sort of. And Jess is the only one who has an inkling that she may be able to stop the cycle of violence.

Smith effectively establishes the characters in the opening sequence with just enough detail to fill in their personalities so we can pick and choose who to identify with. From the start, Jess is the emotional eye of the storm, as she obsesses about her son (Joshua Taylor) back home and travels to some very dark places as the story progresses. Except that it doesn't so much progress as swirl and undulate. Deducing exactly what's happening here probably isn't possible, so it's best to just sit back and let the film take you for a ride.

And trips into the Bermuda Triangle don't get much more gruesomely entertaining than this. Despite its repetitive structure, the film is packed with moments that make us jump, usually because Smith has carefully orchestrated a shock that feels even more powerful because we know it's coming. And the psychological aspect of the premise gives us plenty to grapple with as well, while providing George with another frazzled scream-queen role.

Like a hellish version of Groundhog Day, the film's structure feels like a scratched record, skipping around in circles as it torments poor Jess with unthinkable horror that doesn't always make logical or emotional sense. Some scenes are seriously savage in their brutality, and the cumulative freak-out is both grim and unnerving. Even if Smith's loose approach doesn't answer every dangling question, it still gets to us. Which is something rare in horror movies at the moment.

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Thirst Movie Review

Cast and Crew
Director : Park Chan-wook
Producer : Park Chan-wook, Ahn Soo-Hyun
Screenwiter : Jeong Seo-Gyeong, Park Chan-wook
Starring : Song Kang-ho,Kim Ok-vin,Kim Hae-sook,Shin Ha-kyun,Mercedes Cabral,Park In-hwan,Oh Dal-su,Song Young-chang

Besides the vampires, this is an oddly faithful adaptation of Emile Zola's novel Therese Raquin. Filmmaker Park directs with his usual eye-catching skill and attention to gruesome detail, and creates a story with strong emotional resonance.

Priest Sang-hyeon (Song Kang-ho) voluntarily enters an African monastery to help research a deadly disease. But the mysterious illness leaves him craving human blood. He finds peaceful solutions to this, but things get complicated when he meets the sparky Tae-joo (Kim Ok-vin), who he's known since childhood in the orphanage. She's still living with her adoptive mother (Kim Hae-sook), and is now married to her adoptive brother Kang-woo (Shin). When they plot to kill Kang-woo so they can be together, this is only their first step across the line to inhumanity.

Park tells this story in a remarkably straightforward way, weaving in otherworldly elements with raw earthiness that allows for some cool, low-key effects and lots of dry humour. This keeps things relatively grounded in reality, as does an emotionally open performance by Song Kang-ho as a man who is horrified at his new inner yearnings and desperately tries to create a worldview that works for him. Around him, the characters are all too selfish or nutty for us to care about them.

This makes it impossible for us to invest in Sang-hyeon's relationship with Tae-joo. Kim Ok-vin's performance is lively and constantly surprising, but this simply isn't a character we can root for. She's far too dark and scary for that, while everyone else is either naive or self-involved. And the story turns seriously sordid, so it's a good thing that Sang-hyeon is such a complicated, likeable guy. Even his one act of sheer nastiness is almost understandable.

Yes, while this film is packed with terrific scenes and fascinating characters, the uneven tone makes it hard to engage with. The mood veers back and forth from quiet and thoughtful to gruesome and frantic. Along with the technical expertise, there are fascinating themes in here, most notably about two damaged people who are drawn to each other against their better judgement. And ultimately, it's the theme that contrasts martyrdom with suicide that sticks in the mind.

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Colin Movie Review

Vivid proof that filmmaking is more about creativity than money, this micro-budget British movie takes an inventive approach to the ubiquitous zombie genre. It's rough around the edges, but is surprisingly fresh and engaging.

Colin (Kirton) is horrified by the snarling gangs of undead prowling the streets of London. But he's also been bitten, so soon goes through a nasty transformation. After managing to get out of his flat, he can't resist the urge to bite anyone who's still alive. He's rescued from a gang of zombie-bashers by his sister (Aitkens), but when she's bitten too, Colin continues on a quest to find his girlfriend (Pammen) and perhaps some form of redemption.

Filmmaker Price claims he made this film for U45, which seems like an understatement since the buckets of fake blood and grisly make-up effects alone are surely worth more than that. But the point is that by using handheld cameras and a remarkably adept cast, he achieves something many big-budget movies can't: he keeps us completely gripped to the story as it develops. And this is mainly because we've never seen a zombie movie that depends on emotional engagement with someone like Colin.

In addition to Kirton's superb performance, Price uses clever camera angles, a textured sound mix (including lots of bone-crunching), subtle special effects and telling cutaways instead of dialog to propel us into the situation. And the streets are impressively packed with either zombies or zombie-fighters, including a news crew covering the story. We watch all of this from Colin's perspective, which puts us right into the situations and cleverly inverts classic zombie-movie cliches.

Each situation Colin stumbles into is inventively twisted by the point of view.
A crowd of ravenous undead in a small room is like a zombie rave, Colin's sister's attempt to help him feels like an intervention, being locked in a garden shed feels oddly elegiac, and an extended flashback gives Colin an emotional inner life. Even if some of the events are rather confusing and there's a bit too much shaky camera work, Price's persistent resourcefulness is a joy to watch, especially as he so effectively generates scenes of mass chaos and carnage without ever resorting to Hollywood-style overkill. As it were.

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Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant Movie Review

Based on the books by Darren Shan, this film is an introduction to a franchise, with the coloned title and preparatory storyline. It has a lively, engaging plot that keeps us engaged, even if it is yet another vampire romp.

Darren (Massoglia) is an A-student 16-year-old whose best pal Steve (Hutcherson) keeps getting him into trouble. When they hear about the underground Cirque du Freak, they can't resist a visit. There they meet ringmaster Mr Tall (Watanabe), bearded seer Truska (Hayek) a snake boy (Fugit), monkey girl (Carlson) and many more. But soon they're entangled with the show's star, vampire Crepsley (Reilly), and his mortal enemy Mr Tiny (Cerveris). And when Crepsley makes Darren a vampire, Steve gets so jealous that he joins the other side.

The plot's like a comical, teen-friendly version of True Blood, as the central conflict is between vampires who don't kill humans and the "vampirese" who do.
But instead dark and gothic, the filmmakers keep things light and often wacky.
Everyone cracks jokes, the violence isn't too grisly, and the characters and plot only get mildly shadowy. Although there is some serious subtext, mainly some bleak moments involving Steve's personal journey.

It of course helps that the cast is this colourful and talented. Reilly is marvellously tetchy as Crepsley, trying to teach the reluctant Darren the ropes while fending off Mr Tiny's scheme and resisting a romance with Truska. Hayek manages to create a bit more of a character than the cartoonish, cameo-style roles given to Dafoe, Krakowski, Fugit and others. And the teen trio are engaging and watchable, although only Hutcherson is required to show any real acting chops (which we already know he has).

As the big conflict boils over into a major showdown, the chain of events doesn't make very clear sense. Why does Mr Tiny bother with Darren when he already has Steve? Why do they play this sadistic game with hostages when previous scenes show them to be more ruthless than this? Less-demanding viewers won't care about these things, and it's likely that the next episode will deepen everything considerably. Sure, this light approach keeps it entertaining, but it also prevents it from being a classic.

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All The Best Reviews

Sometimes, we laugh at movies. At times, we laugh in movies. Thankfully, ALL THE BEST, helmed by Rohit Shetty, belongs to the latter type.

ALL THE BEST makes no claims of catering to the intelligentsia or the elite. Instead, it's aimed at those who want to spend two hours of their precious life flexing their facial muscles. ALL THE BEST is for those who expect fun and laughter unlimited in those two hours. This one makes you smile, laugh, even break into a guffaw at times
The jokes and the goings-on may appear silly, but who cares! As long as one feels positive and wears a smile on the face even after the show has ended, nothing else matters.

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A TIME FOR DRUNKEN HORSES REVIEWS

Director: Bahman Ghobadi
Cast: Ayoub Ahmadi, Rojin Younessi, Amaneh Ekhtiar-dini
Shemaroo World Cinema



Here’s a testament that movie making is not always about elaborate budgets, star actors and studio backing. You need not be part of Hollywood to make a film that can be appreciated by a wide audience. Filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi has managed to accomplish all that with a modest budget and crew. A Time For Drunken Horses is a sight to behold, as Iranian snow peaks create a sea of colourless void that accommodates some surreal human emotions.

A young Iranian kid Ayoub (Ayoub Ahmadi) loses his father to a mine on the Iran-Iraq border. He survives his father as the sole bread earner for his household which consists of three sisters and one terminally ill and physically handicapped brother. Kids no older than 13-years-old work chores and tasks like adults and earn a living. Ayoub has the added burden of earning enough money for his brother Madi’s operation.

The story touches you with its simplicity and array of emotional sequences. The film has been shot like a documentary, it doesn’t have any trained actors and yet it comes across at par with any international title.

Also part of the disc is Whistling Woods International’s student short film Dreaming Awake. A surreal look into paranoia and greed. The film portrays complex emotions with great conviction. This beautiful little gem is a must watch for anyone who warms up to good ol’ drama.

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WHERE THE TRUTH LIES

Director: Atom Egoyan
Cast: Kavin Bacon, Colin Firth, Alison Lohman, Kristin Adams
Shemaroo World Cinema



Watching Atom Egoyan’s attempt at film noir on DVD is like watching a visual spectacle through the glasses of an 80-year-old. It’s all a bit hazy. Where The Truth Lies is the story of two showbiz performers Vince Collins (Colin Firth) and Lanny Morris (Kevin Bacon), who are accused of murdering a young girl. As authorities are unable to produce substantial evidence, both Vince and Lanny aren’t prosecuted. A young journalist, Karen (Alison Lohman) decides to unravel the incident and unveil the truth.

The film is based on the high life of Los Angeles and its narrative starts in the ‘50s and goes up till the ‘70s. The cinematography is par excellence and director of photography Paul Sarossy can take a bow as his camera work has captured the stage performances and LA clubs in vivid detail. Visuals are similar to those seen in David Lynch’s Blue Velvet and David Fincher’s Se7en.

Alas, the quality of the disc lets down all that is good about this movie. The disc has been encoded in a less-than-satisfactory manner which results in the visuals being reproduced at below-par quality. With no added features on the disc, it seems as if the disc was compiled in a hurry. Obtaining an alternate copy of this world cinema title might not be an easy task, so all the noir
fans out there will have to suffice with Shemaroo’s lack luster DVD.

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DEKH RE DEKH REVIEWS

Director: Rahat Kazmi
Cast: Gracey Singh, Vijay Raaz, Raghuveer Yadav and Siddarth Koirala
Release Date: 2009-07-17 08:00:00
Quick Take: Not even worth a dekko on cable



It's a village story. So people speak aavo-jaavo type Hindi (which is promptly forgotten by the middle of the movie, and they speak bambaiyya tapori language). Gracey Singh is the heroine of this village story, because only she is dressed as the village belle in ghagras and cholis, others dress in normal salwaar kameez and sarees. She has had a bad marriage and wants to run away from her life, so she recruits a sad sack (Siddarth Koirala) in spotless shirts. He's sad because he doesn't want to work with his dad in a kabadi (garbage recycling) shop (remarkably full of neat stacks of newspapers; very literate villagers, I say!). Sad sack and village belle ask the village politician to help. Village politician (Raghubeer Yadav) also has a sob story. the three ask village drunk/thief (Vijay Raaz in very bad Salman Tere Naam Khan hairstyle) to help. They plan to steal the ancient but very valuable Krishna idol and sell it to change their futures. If you survive their sob stories, you groan at what they steal: a baby Krishna idol which looks neither ancient nor valuable. It's just terrible to watch them escape bungling cops, take refuge in a scary haveli with an even scarier woman who too has a sob Bhootnath-like story. What ensues is worse. They try to double cross one another and all end up dead. You want to clap in relief but no... The film goes on and on and there's no saviour... Their village is picturesque, but everything else is just waste of film stock.

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LUCK REVIEWS

Director: Soham Shah
Cast: Mithun Chakraborty, Danny Denzongpa, Sanjay Dutt, Imran Khan, Shruti Haasan and Chitrashi Rawat
Release Date: 2009-07-24 08:00:00
Quick Take: Dont test your luck with this movie


BLINDFOLDED MEN pushing their luck running across tracks with the trains criss-crossing them is a heart-stopping beginning to an action movie. A determined but lucky Sanjay Dutt is the only survivor. Allan Amin is luckily the action director and he deserves kudos for this fantastic sequence. Action is then interrupted by an annoying voice explaining how luck is being put to the test and millions of dollars are being placed as bets. Sanjay Dutt plays lucky Moosa bhai who sends scout Danny Denzongpa (his tan is so fake, such bad make-up, it changes with every scene) to net lucky men and women to pit them against one another in a game of task-until death. A lucky copy of The Running Man or Intacto or The Condemned? Or plain ole TV show Fear Factor with a fight-to-the-finish clause thrown in? All three, because you are not so lucky as an audience.

A bunch of sundry odd characters are found (their eccentricities so forced, you are lucky to not puke): a fearless major from the army (Mithun Chakraborty), a lame camel racing shorty (Chitrashi Rawat with a lisp), Ayesha (Shruti Haasan a truly unlucky debut), Ravi Kissen (best actor of the sorry lot!) and Imran Khan (he tries so hard to look like action man, he ends up looking as though he‘s waiting for Minissha Lamba to come and Kidnap him from the situation). These lucky few are pitted with other random strangers in ‘tasks’ (very Big Brother show like). You don‘t need luck nor brains to figure out which of the chosen lucky ones are going to die falling off airplanes, eaten by sharks or by gunshots. Soham Shah is lucky the movie Four Rooms has been made, the flick-the-lighter scene can be lifted off easily and rejigged to show a gun being pointed at Danny‘s head instead of fingers being chopped off.

In the final fight, Samurai swords magically appear in the hero‘s hand and he is lucky to discover that his heart is located to his right side and the heroine is rescued from a super lucky speeding train that ploughs through petrol tanks and mines. The chemistry between the hero and heroine is damper than unlucky fireworks in the monsoon. Only Ravi Kissen seems to belong in this test your badass luck flick, and he shines! All other good-luck mascots have a usual conscience and do-gooder backgrounds. To top this golden pile of unlucky poo, the word ‘luck' appears painfully in every single dialogue in the movie (as in this review!).

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THE BROTHERS BLOOM REVIEW

Director: Rian Johnson
Cast: Adrien Brody,Mark Ruffalo, Rachel Weisz and Rinko Kikuchi
Release Date: 2009-07-17 08:00:00
Quick Take: A splendid con caper



WITH CHARACTER names like Bloom (Adrien Brody) and Bang Bang (Oscar-nominee for Babel, Rinko Kikuchi) you know you’re in for a weird ride. Orphans Bloom and his older brother Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) start off young as con ‘men’; Bloom is putty in his older brother’s scripts of deceit but is too timid to start living a ‘real’ life. But when things come to a head, they decide to pull one final con on an unsuspecting rich good-for-nothing lady called Penelope (Rachel Weisz).

The film has a very period feel about it though that’s just a gimmick really.
It almost has an arty feel mixed with some thrills and a bit of noir. Bang Bang’s silent portrayal of the boys’ Girl Friday who likes blowing things up is a treat to watch. The plot twists are exceptionally well-crafted and con you too. Writer/director Rian Johnson’s script is delightfully etched out but you may get a tad lost in the elaborate use of words. All the performances are refreshingly convincing and comically imaginative.

The Brothers Bloom is for a discerning audience who like their capers fun, exhilarating and warm. There’s a hint of inspiration from the ’80s comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, which also involved a pair of con men (the brilliant Steve Martin and Michael Cane) and a ditsy socialite (Glenne Headly).

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HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE REVIEW

Director: David Yates
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe ,Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Tom Felton, Michael Gambon, Jim Broadbent, Helena Bonham-Carter and Alan Rickman
Release Date: 2009-07-16 08:00:00
Quick Take: Full-blooded fantasy



IN THE Half-Blood Prince, the kids have all grown up and one could think of calling the franchise Horny Potter instead after watching puberty set firmly in these hot-blooded magicians. They’re making out in the corridors of Hogwarts and snogging over a pint of Butter Beer at the local inn now. Gives the term ‘raise your wand’ a whole different meaning.

The darkness that pervaded The Order Of The Phoenix continues in this one, though the fear factor has been scaled down a bit. Hogwarts and Dumbledore have barricaded themselves up as protection against an attack from Lord Voldermort’s evil Death Eaters. Draco Malfoy skulks around Hogwarts presumably in a plot to assist the dark side. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) are… well… busy sorting out some mixed up love triangles and all this leads to some fun rom-com moments.

The acting has improved and so have the special effects and direction. It isn’t for kiddies anymore. It’s serious, adult and extremely dark. Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange doesn’t have much to do but Alan Rickman’s Severus Snape’s scathing wit has been given a chance to sizzle a bit more, thankfully. Fans of the series will also shed a tear for the death of a dear character in this movie.

The Half-Blood Prince is sufficiently entertaining but it does give you the feeling that we’re biding time here before the final battle between good and evil erupts in the next two films (the last book by JK Rowling, The Deathly Hallows, will be split into two for the big screen).

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AGYAAT REVIEW

Director: Ram Gopal Varma
Cast: Nitin Reddy, Priyanka Kothari, Gautam Rode, Joy Fernandes, Rasika Duggal, Ishteyak Khan, Ishrat Ali, Ravi Kale, Howard Rosemeyer and Kali Prasad Mukerjee
Release Date: 2009-08-07 08:00:00
Quick Take: Agyaat is eminently forgettable, pointless nonsense


Ten people of a film unit land themselves in Sigiriya Forest in Sri Lanka and eight of them get killed by something unknown. It would have been unfair to tell the story in one line had this been a horror film. But Agyaat is an insult to all those who enjoy getting spooked at movies. Let's not even dignify the film by comparing it to The Predator or The Blair Witch Project. Let‘s just look at what the film is: a two hour long unashamed trailer for Agyaat part 2.

Why each of the ten people have to be strange we do not know, but they are. That‘s the reason why we don‘t care when they die. One has an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips at all times, another chews on a pencil. The heroine goes traipsing in the jungle wearing a tennis skirt, and jogs in white boots. Her workout routine is the funniest thing one has seen in cinema. Not one but two guys make strange guttural sounds. Yes, they all pass the grade when it comes to the saucer-eyed scared look, but when they are all goggle-eyed in one frame, it is not horror, it is unintentionally comical. Let's not get into logic at all and ask how and where the cine equipment and all those dancers showed up in the remote jungle. Let‘s not ask why nobody bothered to find out how one removes leaches from the body. Just pray that they did not leave the beautiful Sri Lankan forest in shambles.

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TEREE SANG REVIEW

Director: Satish Kaushik
Cast: Ruslaan Mumtaz, Sheena Shahabadi, Satish Kaushik, Rajat Kapoor, Neena Gupta and Sushmita Mukerjee
Release Date: 2009-08-07 08:00:00
Quick Take: Teree Sang should not have been made


This is the most irresponsible cinema ever. It‘s based on the logic that if nature (kudrat) allows a girl to conceive when she is 14 years old, the law is an ass if it says underage sex is illegal and a punishable offence. So Maahi (Sheena Shahabadi, Deepika Padukone hangover) and Kuku (Ruslaan Mumtaz, sub-zero acting skills) celebrate New Year‘s by drinking champagne, watching fireworks, experimenting with a kiss and then conceiving. Kuku‘s friends help the two run away to an idyllic, remote house in the hills where they can play house-house (how convenient!). Rajat Kapoor and Neena Gupta are rich absent parents of the girl, Satish Kaushik and Sushmita Mukerjee are the not so well-off but indulgent parents of the boy. Characters as old as Bobby! Instead of dealing with the grim results of real life teenage pregnancy, the film makes a case for underage parenting because the kids love each other and the boy looks after the girl (cho chweet!). And the nails in the coffin are the scenes where we see Satish Kaushik in his undies and his wife jokes about his undone fly. Enough said

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DIL BOLE HADIPPA! REVIEW

Well, the name of the film is Dil Bole Hadippa! with the image of a Sikh’s pagdi dotting the ‘I’ in Hadippa. That should be a good enough warning to the listener that the music is going to overdose in Punjabi. Keeping the Punjabi hip-hop numbers aside, a ear that is not tuned to the language may miss out on the essence of this album, given that the lyrics aren’t easy to comprehend either.

Discowale khisko is likely to catch the listeners’ fancy as it aims to stir national pride with lyrics like, “Bhangra pane aye, angrez nirale, jean valaitee paa li, pairon mein taale…” The sound is a fusion of electronic and bhangra beats. Taking off on a soft note is Ishq hi hai rab, the quintessential love ballad delivered in the vocals of Sonu Niigaam and Shreya Ghoshal. The visuals of Bhangra bistar are something to look forward to as Rani Mukerji plays the boy who is romanced by none other than Rakhi Sawant. Of course, there are Rakhi-ish lyrics too, “Aagaye ji Punjab ke sher with bhangra bistar beer bater.” We’ll have to line up for desi gyms to check the popularity of Gym shim but we have serious doubts. We're not sure gym-goers are going to be inspired when someone belts out lyrics that combine Hindi counts with exercise instructions, “one two teen chaar, parey maar jeet haar, what you doing I liking.”

The title track Hadippa and its remix seem like the only songs that might strike a chord with the youth. Don't be surprised to hear them do rounds of nightclubs.

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WANTED REVIEW

No wonder this guy is 'wanted'. He's under the illusion that the girl loves him because “Your mama says you love me, my abba says you love me.” And the rest of Love me love me lists the different people who want this love to blossom. Anyone interested? Ishq vishq is an exercise for the vocal chords and tests how long one can go uh oh uh oh to the melody. It‘s truly hilarious, especially with the phrase 'all night' thrown in. Dil leke accuses the lover of not only stealing the heart but also the life, “Tum jaan jaan keh ke meri, jaan le gaye.” Definitely, a lesson for those who address their lovers as sweetheart, jaan and the like. Le le mazaa le beats all the other songs at being different as it is sung in Sinhalese and might accompany the baila, a Sri Lankan form of dance. Jalwa is a dance rap number and promises to display Salman Khan's powerful dance moves and energetic performance or simply put, jalwa. Tose pyar karte hai is another promise of love on the part of the hero. It's interesting though, as it has a flavour of tapori music and dance, a treat for folk people. The most wanted track is actually a medley of dialogue, the voice of Salman Khan mixed with some heavy duty electronic beats. What follows is a remix of all the above mentioned tracks.

And this time, the CD is in sync with mobile technology as the listings have a column dedicated to the ringtone codes. Well, those should be easy to listen to, given the short length.

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Shadow Review

Director: Rohit Nayyar
Cast: Naseer Khan, Milind Soman, Sonali Kulkarni and Hrishita Bhatt
Release Date: 2009-08-21 08:00:00
Quick Take: The worst movie to date



You know you are in for a bad time when the USP of the movie is a blind actor who has done all the stunts himself. Shadow is about a contract killer, Naseer Khan, who quickly makes it to the most wanted list by murdering affluent personalities. But the police have no clue who they are dealing with since they have no information about the man.

Prepare yourself for a visual assault from the first frame of the movie, as the only thing decent about it is the budget. Naseer, who is also the writer and producer of the movie, has a long way to go before he should actually venture into the movies again. Although the plot is well defined, the screenplay and dialogue are amateurish, inadvertently making you laugh at the physically impaired man. The sloppy filmmaking tecniques make it hard to believe this is Rohit Nayyar’s fifth effort at direction. The rest of the cast is also unconvincing.

Milind Soman fails to hold your attention and Sonali Kulkarni lacks the intensity of a fearless cop who will go to any length to catch the crook. And such a cop falling for a criminal is implausible. Hrishitaa Bhatt is reduced to just eye candy.
Pity that the USP is used to label this movie as a ‘brave effort’. Unfortunately, it ends up being a pathetic joke, a sad reminder of what our cinema has become. It‘s disappointing that such substandard cinema is made today. The only ones to lose in such a game is the audience.

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LIFE PARTNER REVIEW

Director: Rumi Jaffery
Cast: Govinda, Fardeen Khan, Tusshar Kapoor, Genelia D'Souza. Prachi Desai, Anupam Kher and Darshan Zariwala
Release Date: 2009-09-14 08:00:00
Quick Take: Fun, only with ear plugs



Considering how everyone shouts out their dialogue in this movie, you‘d think microphones had not been invented! Govinda is a loud (clotheswise and dialogue-deliverywise) divorce lawyer and although he is shown to be a blonde babe magnet, he believes in loving ‘em and leaving ‘em. He has two friends: one who has a steady girlfriend and the other who is single and saving himself for his wife. Govinda plays Narad Muni in the lives of his friends and pushes them into getting a divorce. Genelia D‘Souza plays the steady gal to Fardeen. She is close to brilliant when portraying a demanding, spoilt, rich girl who plays at being a painter, a singer, an interior decorator et al. Her clothes are fabulous and she has some of the funniest lines in the movie. She burns her apartment down trying to work the washing machine and she yells at her husband, ‘You don‘t ever appreciate my efforts!’

When you are not smiling at the demands Genelia makes of Fardeen and horrified when he fulfils them, you are grinning at the virginal Tusshar Kapoor who excels at playing the coy Gujju boy who is saving himself for his wife. He probably has the best comic timing in the movies today. Prachi Desai is forgettable as his good little wife. The movie has been written to elicit laughs from the audience and attempts to make a comment on the social situation of non- resident Indians. Darshan Zariwala plays the controlling dad of a Gujarati family (Tusshar‘s dad), and his unreasonable demands on his family (sons should be obedient, women of the family should be seen and not heard and so on) wipe away his gentle Gandhiji image.

The story runs out of steam however when Amrita Arora shows up as an item number (she seriously needs help!) who turns Govinda‘s pathetic life around. This silly extension robs the film of all the fun. Just take ear plugs if you wish to see it in the theatre

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GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST

Director: Mark Waters
Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner and Michael Douglas
Release Date: 2009-08-21 08:00:00
Quick Take: Corny but warm


Borrowing from the premise of the classic film, A Christmas Carol, Ghosts… is a rom-com about Casanova photographer Connor Mead (McConaughey) who’s afraid of falling in love so he sleeps around with hundreds of women and as soon as there’s a hint of ‘love’ he dumps them. Jenny (Garner) is his childhood sweetheart who, of course, is the one he should ultimately end up with and to facilitate their union the ghost of his playboy uncle (Douglas) appears and tells him three other ghosts will show him his past, present and future so that he can redeem his life and settle down.

As far as rom-coms go this one is standard fare. Some of the slapstick does get a bit scary and you’ll find your heart strings tugged more than your funny bone being tickled. Mead’s vulgar charm with the ladies is a tad repulsive as is their total submission to his innuendo-laced come-ons. You never really can look at McConaughey and see a nice guy so even his turn from male slut to Mother Teresa at the end is a bit far-fetched. However, the emotion that director Mark Waters has managed to salvage from a basically flat plot along with some nostalgic music and Douglas’s male chauvinist pig caricature give life to the film.

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Vinyan Movie Review

A vivid example of style over substance, this textured film creates an overwhelming sense of emotion and dread, but never manages to find a point to it all. It merely gives into the grisliness, leaving us shaken and unstirred.

Six months after their son was killed in a tsunami, Janet and Paul (Beart and Sewell) are still living in Phuket nursing their grief. But Janet is convinced that he must be alive and living up-river in Burma, so convinces Paul to fund a desperate expedition. Their first guide (Pankratok) is a bit of a crook, but they soon link with Thaksin (Osthanugrah) and another expat, Kim (Dreyfus). And the further they venture into this strange region, the more bizarre things get.

The title refers to spirits that are trapped between life and death, and this is clearly a reference to Janet and Paul themselves. Their offhanded bitterness is palpable, as is Janet's obsessive longing and Paul's patient yearning to help. And these emotions just get stronger as the story progresses. Soon Janet is a crazed nutcase, dragging them into increasingly dangerous territory.
Frankly, we just wish Paul would leave her to her inner demons. Because we know it can't end well.

Filmmaker Du Welz has a lurid visual sensibility that captures the nightmarish aspects of the settings (and some of the beauty). This is dense and oppressive, but we go with it due to a glimmer of hope on the horizon. As it progresses, though, the parallels with Don't Look Now (parents dealing with grief over a child's death) and Apocalypse Now (voyage upriver into hell) give way to some seriously indulgent filmmaking. And once he abandons the emotional resonance of the premise, Du Welz and his cast are up the creek without a paddle.

Eventually it devolves into a nasty horror movie about a demonic army of jungle vampire children. And while it's deeply creepy and even stomach-churningly gruesome (which is a good thing in a horror film), it's also utterly vacuous without characters we have a connection to or a story with any logic. In the end, the only way to see this is as a symbolic journey into the tortured brains of grieving parents. But by the time we get there, we don't care.

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Ip Man Movie Review

A terrific true story, clearly elevated to mythical proportions, this film benefits hugely from the lucid fight direction by the master Sammo Hung, which gives the film a remarkable resonance by letting us see the characters' personalities in their every move.

In 1930s provincial China, Ip (Yen) is a very private wing chun master who doesn't want to run a school or prove his skill. With virtually no aggression, he easily beats anyone who challenges him, so the town knows he's the true local master. And an interloping thug (Fan) finds this out the hard way. Ip remains quietly devoted to his wife and son (Hung and Li), but after Japan invades China, things get very difficult. Especially when Ip stands up to both the returning thug and the Japanese general (Ikeuchi).

Clearly, Ip is a national treasure in China and, for sheer inspirational value, he deserves to be. Yes, the filmmakers show perhaps too much reverence for him, implying that he singlehandedly defeated the invading Japanese army as they build to a Rocky-style finale and a coda that mentions how Ip taught Bruce Lee everything he knew. But it also has to be said that they state their case effectively, portraying Ip as a steely, calm genius who always deflected attention away from himself and only reluctantly became a hero.

Yen is excellent in the role, lending the fight scenes a surprising edge. The battle choreography is fiendishly clever, and Yen stays utterly cool and focussed, building in wry humour and emotional undercurrents along the way.
Ip's unbending pride is perhaps his only flaw, and yet it's great fun to watch him humiliate his opponents and motivate those around him to stand up for themselves, most engagingly the workers in a factory owned by his lifelong friend Quan (Yam).

And the filmmakers aren't afraid to get dark and tough, showing the raw brutality of war and conflict with only a bit of movie manipulation in characters who are courageous, weak or villainous. By the time we reach the climactic face-off (or three), things have become truly brutal and nasty. It might be a little exaggerated, and also fairly straightforward in its storytelling, but it's a seriously powerful tale.

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Gamer Movie Review

Bursting with their trademark visual style, Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (Crank) attack the screen with this twist on the virtual reality genre.
Unfortunately, the film is a cacophonous mess without a single interesting character.

In the nearish future, roleplay game-maker Ken Castle (Hall) has made his fortune with two games that let people live vicariously through others: the sex-and-party Society and the war-and-destruction Slayers. The twist is that the gamers are controlling actual people due to nano technology implanted in the performers' brains. In Slayers, they're all death row inmates firing real bullets, and the global megastar performer is Kable (Butler), controlled by rich geek Simon (Lerman). But Kable longs to escape and find his wife (Valletta), and a renegade hacker (Bridges) sets his escape in motion.

While this clever idea allows for all kinds of interesting subthemes, the filmmakers are clearly only interested in two things: naked women and grisly carnage. They put all of their considerable skills to bear in these two areas, indulging in hyperventilating action, exaggerated violence, gratuitously skimpy costumes and glimpses of bare breasts every few minutes. But none of this is remotely enjoyable because it assaults our senses without any coherent context.
And the relentless misogyny and homophobia are simply vile.

Besides the vast plot holes, the film is just overwrought silliness. Sure, it looks great, with the lurid photography, gritty images and textured design, but the characters are all swaggering, overconfident idiots. So the solid cast is left to play mere cartoon characters, really. And none of them seems to be having much fun either, although Hall gives it a go by chomping shamelessly on the scenery like a Bond villain on acid.

Eventually, everything boils over into even bigger, nastier carnage, as Slayers invades Society and then society before converging in a truly surreal confrontation that's choreographed like a Bob Fosse musical number. And it has to be noted that Ventimiglia's appearance, in a skin-tight PVC catsuit, is the film's quirkiest sequence. Although when the script strains for a thinly developed reunited family sentimentality, there's nothing we can do but groan.
Where's Jason Statham when we need him?

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Born in 68 [Nes en 68] Movie Review

After the frothy Cockles & Muscles, Ducastel and Martineau turn to this ambitious multi-generational epic that, even at three hours, feels too brisk.
We actually want more time with these fascinating people.

During the student demonstrations of 1968 Paris, Catherine (Casta) is pregnant with the child of her boyfriend Yves (Renier) and living in free-love happiness with their friend Herve (Tregouet). They help set up a commune in a country farmhouse, getting to know local farmers Serge and Maryse (Citti and Citti).
Years pass, Yves has moved to Paris to teach and a next generation of kids, including Catherine's son Boris (Frilet), is living out their dreams in a world their parents helped create. New issues challenge them, including marriage, children and Aids.

The film is packed with characters who are lively and energetic, and extremely well-played. They quickly come and go from each others' lives over 40 years, with potent scenes along the way that vividly highlight both the issues of the times and the connections between these people. Most vivid is the film's early section, with its collision of political issues and social challenges. Ducastel and Martineau present this with extraordinary affection, as a group of young people push the boundaries in an effort to live a full life in a corrupt, violent world.

As the plot begins to leap forwards in time, characters emerge and grow up before we really get to know them, coming together, falling apart, questioning themselves and learning big truths in brief bursts of screen time. The filmmakers originally made this as a pair of two-hour movies for French television, but even more time would deepen the experience, putting major world events that punctuate the story into more personal context.

This makes many things resonate strongly, such as the right-wing LePen during the notorious 2007 election: "You killed authority in 1968, and now France wants a father!" The film may be dialog-heavy, with everyone arguing about what is normal in society: marriage, sexuality, sexual freedom, work, relationships.
But this is a vivid look at how people deal with birth, death, injustice and politics from generation to generation. And how the decisions of the parents affect the children.

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Aladdin Movie Review

Disney’s version of Aladdin and his magic lamp is one of its best animated features — or features, period — with terrific songs and gorgeous colors, thrilling action sequences and big laughs. It doesn’t have the classical emotional weight of Beauty and the Beast, which came out a year earlier, but it’ s one of the only Disney films to break out of that nebulous “family” genre and function as a genuine comedy/adventure.

What everyone remembers, comedically speaking, is Genie, a blue whirling dervish of impressions and wisecracks as vocalized by Robin Williams in 100 percent inspiration, negligible perspiration mode. But Aladdin also features what may be the only tolerable role for Gilbert Gottfried, period: Iago, the cranky parrot sidekick of evil villain Jafar. Even Aladdin and Jasmine, while essentially bland, have likeably cynical streaks (Jasmine is disgusted by the parade of handsome princes sent to woo her, as if she’s just finished watching a Disney movie marathon). These characters would have significant goodwill flogged away by a TV series and the pair of direct-to-video follow-ups that bookend it, but on its own, Aladdin is a rollicking good time. And although the contribution of Williams is immeasurable, the Disney team rises to the occasion with some terrific, fast-paced gagwork and visual mastery.

Computer animation has long since outpaced the likes of this film’s stunning (in 1992) Cave of Wonders, and even the intricately detailed patterns on the startlingly lifelike flying carpet. But often forgotten as critics drool over the latest all-CGI feature is that animation is, foremost, about movement—not necessarily realism. When Aladdin and his pet monkey Abu zip through a cave of flowing lava on that carpet, we’re no longer witnessing cutting-edge technology; it’s now just a beautifully animated, gripping action sequence. The Genie’s shape-shifting impersonations of celebrities are broadly drawn, like Hirschfeld caricatures — and they look great. Like Raiders of the Lost Ark, the film’s style and energy will outlast more technically advanced imitators.

It’s possible that Aladdin, like Raiders, Star Wars, and other wildly entertaining and popular movies, has inadvertently done some damage to the genre it transcends. So many American features now visibly strive for that perfect blend of, well, everything: The noble but scrappy hero, the animal sidekicks, the (often forced) pop culture references “for the parents,” the breezy tone.

Disney formulas were in place long before Aladdin, but this was the film that showed just how much money could be made by a cartoon that appeals to everyone. It was outdone financially by The Lion King a few years later, but Aladdin is the film most later Disney movies tend to resemble, especially Hercules, Tarzan , Atlantis, and, most successfully, The Emperor’s New Groove.

Disney’s output in the past decade-plus has hardly been the black hole some seem to describe. (Have any of the detractors actually watched, say, Cinderella lately? Not a pretty sight.) But you sometimes get the feeling that Disney executives have been herding a lot of talented animators, writers, and directors into Aladdin’s shadow.

Now on DVD, the film includes a full two discs of goodies, including music videos by today's artists (Simpson, Lachey, Aiken, yes!), deleted songs and storyboarded scenes, and lots of games for the kids.

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‘Blue’ is the most dangerous film I’ve done: Akshay Kumar

NEW DELHI - Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar, who has performed innumerable death-defying stunts in his nearly two decade old films career, says his upcoming underwater thriller Blue is his most dangerous film ever.

“This experience has pushed just about everyone involved to their absolute limits - from the producers bank balance, to the directors maximum efforts for his first baby, which just happens to be the most dangerous movie Ive ever been a part of, Akshay posted on his blog akshay.bigadda.com.

“Blue, which is about an underwater treasure hunt, has been directed by debutant Anthony D’Souza. Releasing Friday, it also features Sanjay Dutt, Zayed Khan, Lara Dutta, Katrina Kaif along with Australian pop princess Kylie Minogue in a cameo.

The movie is being touted as the most expensive ever in the film with industry insiders claiming that producer producer Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd has splurged Rs.80 crore on its making.

D’Souza brought down Hollywoods renowned underwater cinematography specialist Pete Zuccarini, who shot for Pirates of the Caribbean series, to shoot underwater scenes. James Bomalick of Indiana Jones fame was also engaged to choreograph the action sequences in the movie.

Shooting with such world-renowned experts has been one memorable experience for Akshay.

“What I loved shooting about this film other than the extreme stunts, the pressure and hardcore diving sessions with all those hungry sharks around, was the fact that I got to work with the most talented team Ive ever come across.

“Pete Zuccarini is a person Ill never forget. He taught me not only to look like a fish but act, swim and feel like I belonged underwater and thats why I pushed myself to my limit in this film, posted Akshay.

The 42-year-old further wrote that the crew’s dedication motivated him to attempt at being a human dolphin for them.

“I trained myself to be able to handle whatever these guys could throw at me. When there is an entire crew waiting for you to nail a shot, you do not want to go wrong. I respected their time and effort and they respected my attempt at being a human dolphin for them, he added.

Now, after his critically panned movies like Chandni Chowk To China, 8X10 Tasveer and Kambakkht Ishq, Akshay is hoping that Blue gets appreciated.

“If this movie gets appreciated half as much as it deserves, Id be a very happy man. It has created a new Bollywood dimension and no matter what the outcome may be, I take my hat off to everyone who made this movie, said Akshay.

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Bollywood movie review - LONDON DREAMS

Mumbai, India: Vipul Shah brings to you, once again after a long wait, the duo of Salman Khan and Ajay Devgan (Hum Dil Chuke Sanam) fame. The pair stars in his film - London Dreams. A musical flick that takes both the lead stars to London in the quest of fulfilling Arjun’s (Ajay Devgan) grandfathers dream of getting on to the musical stage in London.

The story of jealously, previously named as Rashque when the movie’s lead roles were offered to Amir Khan and Shahrukh Khan. Later the roles were assigned to Salman and Ajay.

Along with Ajay Devgan and Salman Khan, the film’s cast include Asin, Om Puri and Cris Wilnson with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy playing with the cords and Prasoon Joshi sets the lyrics for the film.

The story of movie revolves around the lives of two friends, Arjun (Ajay Devgan) and Mannu (Salman Khan). Arjun leaves for London with his ambitious plan to conquer the music scene in the foreign land. Arjun sets up his musical band with the help of Zoheb and Wasim and Priya (Asin Thottumkal) becomes the dancer for Arjun’s group.

Mannu, continues living in India. His happy go lucky nature takes him to sing and dance in local wedding. Arjun comes back and takes Mannu to London where the two friends become entangled in the strange and demanding situation.

LONDON DREAMS - is the one of the Bollywood’s biggest musical flick and its difficult to wait for the release. The film is set to hit the cinema on October 30, 2009.

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'Zombieland'

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

An American wasteland overrun by undead monsters provides the ideal setting for outrageous comedy in Zombieland, the debut feature from writer/director Ruben Fleischer. Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg play two human survivors who employ contrasting approaches to staving off the pesky flesh-eaters. Eisenberg’s Columbus is a neurotic worry-wart with a distinct obsessive-compulsive streak and a nagging case of irritable bowel syndrome who survives in Zombieland by adhering to a strict set of rules. Harrelson’s Tallahassee, on the other hand, is a whiskey-swilling cowboy who has no apparent rules of any kind, only a vast arsenal of weapons and an insatiable craving for Twinkies.

After encountering each other on a deserted highway, the two opposites decide to join forces, if only to stave off the maddening solitude of Zombieland. But their numbers soon double when, during an abortive Twinkies expedition at an abandoned supermarket, they’re surprised to find a pair of enterprising young girls, Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), hiding out in the stockroom. (All the characters are named after their hometowns, if you haven’t figured that out already.)

Though their relationship gets off to a rough start (the seemingly innocent girls rob the gullible boys not once, but twice), the unlikely quartet become fast friends, and together embark on the perilous journey out west — to an abandoned theme park thought to be the only zombie-free sanctuary left on the planet.

THE VERDICT

It may be tempting to compare Zombieland to Shaun of the Dead, thus far the most successful zombie-themed horror-comedy to date, but Fleischer’s film bears little resemblance to UK director Edgar Wright’s indie classic. At its core, Zombieland is really a road-trip comedy in the vein of Vacation, Dumb and Dumber or, well, Road Trip, in which our heroes travel cross-country on a quest, encountering various obstacles along the way. In this case, the obstacles happen to be ravenous, cannibalistic zombies.

And it works, thanks largely the charisma and chemistry of its lead actors and the irreverent wit of Fleischer, who proves that there are still plenty of laughs to be gleaned from the increasingly well-worn zombie oeuvre.

The real hero of Zombieland, however, is Bill Murray. Just when the film exhausts its momentum and starts to meander, the legendary star of Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day arrives unexpectedly on the scene, delivering what is bound to be the most talked-about surprise cameo since Will Ferrell showed up at the end of Wedding Crashers. The presence of Murray and his trademark acerbic, deadpan style injects Zombieland with a welcome jolt of energy, giving it just enough gas to carry us through to the closing credits. (FYI: This is hardly a spoiler — Murray’s cameo is listed on IMDB.)

PARTING SHOT

Zombieland isn’t concerned about messages or metaphors or stern warnings about the future in which society is headed; it just wants to make you laugh and have a good time. In that sense, it’s an unqualified success.

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WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Set sometime in the near future, Surrogates imagines a world in which 99% of its inhabitants live their lives vicariously through “surrogates,” robotic avatars who brave the hazards of the physical world while their schlubby owners sit safely at home in computerized cocoons, experiencing it all via neural sensors affixed to their heads. Think of it as a flesh-and-blood version of World of Warcraft. Or Facebook. Or The Sims. Potential present-day analogies are practically infinite.

As a consequence of mankind’s virtualized existence, violent crime has dropped to an all-time low, since any harm inflicted on a surrogate results in no such injury to its host. Folks are free to go about their increasingly decadent business without fear of the inevitable drawbacks that come with high-risk lifestyles. If their robotic counterpart happens to incur damage, or cease functioning altogether, owners can simply order a replacement from VSI, the suitably dubious mega-corporation in Surrogates that manufactures and markets the robots.

Not everyone is eager to embrace this new world order, of course, and a determined group of quasi-religious luddites, led by a dreadlocked guru aptly named “The Prophet” (Ving Rhames), has assembled in major cities around the world. Eschewing most modern technology, they toil like the Amish in shabby communes as their Prophet regales them with apocalyptic diatribes.

Back in the civilized world, cracks in the utopian edifice form when a pair of surrogate murders result in the deaths of their respective hosts, something heretofore considered impossible. Called in to investigate the first homicides in years, FBI agents Greer (Bruce Willis) and Peters (Radha Mitchell), discover that one of the victims is the son of Canter (James Cromwell), the very man who first invented robotic surrogates. Greer and Peters naturally assume the Prophet and his acolytes to be at the core of the conspiracy, but a nagging question remains: How could they gain access to the advanced technology necessary to create a weapon capable of killing both a surrogate and its host?

WHAT’S GOOD?

Clocking in at a breezy 88 minutes, Surrogates spares its audience the troubling metaphysical questions that so often characterize more ambitious sci-fi projects. Much like the robots at the heart of its story, director Jonathan Mostow’s (Terminator 3) film may be shallow and synthetic, but it sure is pretty to look at. Expect to spend more time contemplating Willis’ absurd blonde wig or Mitchell’s remarkable robotic rack than the implications of society’s increasing disconnect from itself.

WHAT’S BAD?

With its all-too-thin storyline and derivative characters, Surrogates makes for a forgettable, if occasionally entertaining, experience. A subplot involving the increasingly strained relationship between agent Greer and his wife (played by Rosamund Pike), presumably meant to add depth to Willis’ character, feels tedious and unnecessary. A monotonous score telegraphs every decisive moment in the film, ensuring that even the most oblivious viewer is aware that something important is about to happen. And despite director Mostow’s obvious proficiency with visual effects — both practical and digital — some set pieces look cheaply rendered.

PARTING SHOT

There are dozens — dozens — of car crashes in Surrogates, yet not a single airbag deploys. The future, it seems, has no place for proper automobile safety.

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'Couples Retreat'

Seeing Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn reunite on the big screen is an enticing proposition. As anyone who has watched them in The Break-Up or Made can attest, the two Swingers alums seem to step up their improv game whenever they share the frame, and their verbal sparring rarely yields anything short of comedy gold.

The above certainly holds true in Couples Retreat, the new relationship comedy directed by child actor-turned-filmmaker Peter Billingsley. Sadly, the demands of the film’s bloated ensemble cast and the constraints of its PG-13 rating allow precious few opportunities for Favreau and Vaughn to work their magic. And since the rest of Couples Retreat’s main castmembers refuse to pick up the slack when they’re on screen, the end result is uneven disappointment.

The plot of Couples Retreat centers on four couples who travel to Bora Bora for a new-age “tune-up” for their flagging relationships. Each pair has its own unique set of problems: Jason (Jason Bateman) and Cynthia (Kristen Bell) are type-A achievers whose perfect union is threatened by their inability to conceive; Joey (Favreau) and Lucy (Kristin Davis) have essentially lived a sham marriage since an unplanned pregnancy led to their shotgun wedding 18 years ago; Dave (Vaughn) and Ronnie (Malin Akerman) are so tied up in the day-to-day routine of their busy lives that the passion has vanished from their relationship; and recently dumped Shane (Faizon Love) is dealing with the pain of his break-up by shacking up with Trudy (Kali Hawk), a shrieking sexpot half his age.

It’s a solid lineup of actors, to be sure. Problem is, everyone has to have their own jokes, their own story arc and their own tidy resolution at the end. But save for a few amusing moments, nobody besides Favreau and Vaughn is particularly funny or interesting. If anything, it’s the supporting actors -- including Frenchman Jean Reno as the blissed-out seminar guru, Peter Serafinowicz as the satin-voiced group guide and Carlos Ponce as the groping yoga instructor -- who provide the bulk of the laughs.

The whole experience of Couples Retreat ultimately feels like it was phoned-in by everyone involved, as if it were a scheme concocted to get a free, all-expenses-paid vacation in Bora Bora. Most disappointing of the bunch is Bateman, who is coming dangerously close to typecasting himself as the uptight, deadpan good guy. Dude needs to make a movie in which he kills someone -- or at least beats them very badly. Who’s going to want to see an Arrested Development movie if Bateman essentially plays Michael Bluth in every movie he makes?

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'Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs' (PG)

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Based on the beloved children’s book by Judi and Ron Barrett, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs tells the tale of Flint Lockwood, an eccentric young inventor who spends his days in a makeshift laboratory, building monkey-thought translators, spray-on shoes, “hair unbalder” serums and other strange creations. Regarded as a troublemaker and a nuisance by the residents of the small town of Swallow Falls, Flint dreams of one day making something that will win their respect and earn him a place alongside the Edisons and Da Vincis of the world.

Flint thinks his latest invention, a machine that turns ordinary water into gourmet meals at the touch of a button, just might do the trick. But his big unveiling goes predictably awry when his machine launches like a rocket through Swallow Falls, laying waste to the town square before eventually disappearing into the stratosphere.

Just when it appears that the townsfolk have finally had enough of Flint’s antics, salvation arrives in the form of cheeseburgers raining from the sky, thrilling the throngs of hungry people below. Success! Flint’s machine actually works — albeit not quite in the manner he originally intended.

WHO’S IN IT?

Lending his voice to the character of Flint is Bill Hader, a Saturday Night Live regular who’s appeared in small roles in a ton of high-profile comedies, including Tropic Thunder, Pineapple Express and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. Anna Faris (The House Bunny) co-stars as Sam Sparks, a weathergirl whose bubbly on-screen persona masks a keen intellect she’s terrified to reveal — lest she be branded a “nerd” and shunned by the community of shallow, talking-head news correspondents.

Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell voices the sleazy, manipulative Mayor Shelbourne, a wildly ambitious politician who eyes Flint’s invention as his ticket to higher office. James Caan (The Godfather) plays Flint’s well-meaning but emotionally distant father Tim, a blue-collar fisherman who can’t find a way to relate to his brainy offspring. And fans of A-Team and Rocky III will instantly recognize the voice of Mr. T as Earl Devereaux, the tough-minded town cop whose job is devoted primarily to preventing Flint from inadvertently destroying the town. Rounding out the main cast is Neil Patrick Harris (Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle) as Flint’s trusted monkey assistant, Steve.

WHAT’S GOOD?

The animation of Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs is truly a joy to behold. With each successive meal that falls from the sky comes a brilliant new array of patterns and colors, all of which burst from the screening in dazzling 3-D. Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller rightly recognize the visual potential of the source material, with its endless variety of colorful food items, and serve up a delicious buffet of brilliantly-rendered set pieces.

But the film isn’t just a bundle of digital eye candy. Perhaps most pleasantly surprising about the film is the script’s sharp wit and clever observations, which help make the experience enjoyable on a cerebral as well as visceral level.

WHAT’S BAD?

Lord and Miller, who also co-wrote the adapted screenplay, did a generally solid job expanding the relatively thin source material for the big screen, but the story still feels weak at times. It’s just engaging enough to keep you interested, but not quite enough to make a lasting impression.

PARTING SHOT

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs is something of a culinary rollercoaster. As food first begins to fall from the sky, you might find yourself feeling a bit hungry. But as the plot progresses and Flint’s machine starts to spin out of control, bombarding the town with every kind of slop imaginable, don’t be surprised if your stomach starts to get a little queasy!

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The Taking of Pelham 123 DVD English Movie Review,

Directed by Tony Scott
Produced by Tony Scott
Todd Black
Jason Blumenthal
Steve Tisch
Written by Brian Helgeland
David Koepp (uncredited)(screenplay)
Morton Freedgood (novel)
Starring Denzel Washington
John Travolta
John Turturro
Luis Guzman
and James Gandolfini
Four heavily armed men, led by Bernard Ryder (John Travolta), board the New York City subway 6 train departed from Pelham Bay Park Station at 1:23 p.m., and proceed to take control of it.

Meanwhile, MTA dispatcher Walter Garber (Denzel Washington) is assigned to the Rail Control Center, due to an ongoing investigation that he took a bribe to recommend a Japanese car manufacturer for the next subway car contract. The group then uncouple the front car from the rest of the train and hold the passengers in this front car hostage. One of the hijackers, Bashkim (Victor Gojcaj), kills an undercover police officer in the course of the action. Ryder and a former MTA train operator named Ramos settle down in the front of the car, while the other hijackers watch the hostages in the back. They demand $10 million in ransom money to be paid within 60 minutes. For each minute past the deadline, one passenger will be killed. Garber and Ryder exchange conversations through the microphone, while his men set up a wi-fi booster apparatus to enable Ryder to access his laptop in the tunnel to watch the stock market plunge nearly 1,000 points during the next hour.

Unknown to him, one of the male passengers has an active laptop with a webcam, that was casually knocked to the floor, facing the car's interior previously when they took their hostages, which simultaneously reconnects using that same wi–fi link; reestablishing the feed to his girlfriend's desktop with whom he was videochatting; when she returns to her PC, she sees the hostage situation through her webcam and provides the live feed to a local television station. Garber agrees to have the city pay Ryder the $10 million ransom, after the Mayor (James Gandolfini) is intercepted by his staff aboard a train in the Bronx and is transported back to RCC.

NYPD Emergency Service Unit Lt. Camonetti (John Turturro) enters RCC, and Garber's boss, who has a rocky relationship with Garber, orders Garber to leave the premises. Camonetti takes over the hostage negotiations, infuriating Ryder, who demands that Garber be put back on the mic and that he will speak only to Garber. When Camonetti refuses, explaining Garber has already left the building, Ryder shoots and kills the train operator, who was Garber's classmate in motor school. Camonetti immediately has Garber brought back on the mic, talking to Ryder, while he sets up a sniper unit in the tunnel where the car is stuck, ordering all officers not to fire upon any hijacker until told to do so. Camonetti is puzzled as to why Ryder will only talk to Garber, but when he learns about Garber's bribery investigation, he asks Garber in consenting to search his home, which Garber agrees and tells his wife about it. Ryder learns through news reports about Garber's alleged bribe in Japan and forces him to confess by holding the boy with the laptop at gunpoint, saying the reason for taking the money was to pay for his kids college education but that the Japanese company was his first choice anyway. While the police stand down in the tunnel, a rat on the roadbed crawls up an officer's leg, causing him to discharge his sniper rifle, killing Ramos, who was sitting in the motorman's position.

The money is transported uptown to Grand Central and Ryder demands Garber to personally deliver it within 7 minutes. Garber calls his wife to inform her about his new responsibility, in order to save the hostages, but she cares only for his own safety. She makes him promise to pick up some milk on the way home, because he must come home safely. Garber delivers the money (An officer has loaned and concealed a 9mm pistol in one of the bags), then is ordered to operate the train to another location, where the hijackers exit. To ensure that the police go to the wrong location, Ryder uses a special mechanism to lock the driving lever in the full-speed position, bypassing the dead-man's switch and causing the train to accelerate and go down Coney Island at high speed.

The MTA are unaware of the mechanism holding the driving lever down and believe the hijackers and Garber to still be inside the train. Garber manages to escape from the hijackers and follows them to the emergency exit inside an abandoned subway station underneath The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Inside the hotel, Ryder splits away from Bashkim and Emri, who are surrounded outside the hotel by police; as they both reach for their guns, the police open fire on the two of them, killing them. The runaway train is tripped by a red signal one station away from Coney Island and the train comes to a halt safely. Ryder boards a taxi with Garber in pursuit. Ryder checks his laptop, where it is revealed that he has short–sold the market and invested in gold, earning him a profit far larger than the ransom money. Ryder goes to the Manhattan Bridge, where he leaves the cab, due to heavy traffic, and uses the pedestrian walkway on the bridge. Garber confronts Ryder on the bridge where Ryder demands Garber kill him before the police do. Ryder gives Garber 10 seconds to shoot him. When Ryder finishes counting to 10, he takes out his gun, but Garber gets the first shot out. Before Ryder dies, he calls Garber his "goddamn" hero.

The mayor thanks Garber for saving the hostages, and vows his staff in representing him in the bribery investigation. The Mayor then offers Garber a ride home in his car along with the escort service. Garber refuses the offer, saying the subway is faster and is his lifeblood. He then heads home with the last shot of the film being Garber, walking into his home holding a half–gallon of milk in a grocery bag.

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Wrong Turn 3 Left for Dead (2009) DVD English Movie Review,

Directed by Declan O'Brien
Produced by Jeffrey Beach
Written by Connor James Delaney
Starring Tom Frederic
Janet Montgomery
Tamer Hassan
Gil Kolirin
Music by Claude Foisy
Alex and her friends go to the woods for a couple of days. Her friends are killed by the wild, now staple mutant killer, Three Finger, who of course cannibalizes them. She is left to fend for herself, but not for long. Meanwhile some dangerous prisoners are being transferred by Nate Wilson, a prison warden, on his last day before leaving to become a lawyer. During transport their truck is attacked by Three Finger and the prisoners escape. While being chased through the woods, the prisoners come across an abandoned truck filled with bags of money. One-by-one Three Finger kills all the prisoners and everyone who searches for them

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G.I.Joe: The Rise of Cobra DVD English Movie Review,

Starring Channing Tatum
Marlon Wayans
Rachel Nichols
Ray Park
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Christopher Eccleston
Sienna Miller
Lee Byung-hun
Saïd Taghmaoui
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Dennis Quaid
Jonathan Pryce
Brandon Soo Hoo
Music by Alan Silvestri Directed by Stephen Sommers
Produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura
Bob Ducsay
Brian Goldner
Written by Screenplay:
Stuart Beattie
David Elliot
Paul Lovett
Story:
Michael B. Gordon
Stuart Beattie
Stephen Sommers
Comic book:
Larry Hama
Story:-

In the near future, weapons expert James McCullen (Christopher Eccleston) has created a nanotechnology-based weapon capable of destroying an entire city. His company MARS sells four warheads to NATO, and the U.S. Army is tasked with delivering the warheads. Duke (Channing Tatum) and Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) are delivering the warheads when they are ambushed by the Baroness (Sienna Miller), whom Duke recognizes to be his ex-fiancee Ana Lewis. Duke and Ripcord are rescued by Scarlett (Rachel Nichols), Snake Eyes (Ray Park), Breaker (Saïd Taghmaoui) and Heavy Duty (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). They take the warheads to The Pit, G.I. Joe's command center in North Africa, and upon arriving rendezvous with the head of the G.I. Joe Team, General Hawk (Dennis Quaid). Hawk takes command of the warheads and excuses Duke and Ripcord, only to be convinced to let them join his group after Duke reveals that he knows the Baroness.

McCullen is revealed to be using the same nanotechnology to build an army of soldiers with the aid of the Doctor (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), planning on using the warheads to cause panic and bring about a new world order. Using a tracking device, McCullen locates the G.I. Joe base and sends Storm Shadow (Lee Byung-hun) and the Baroness to retrieve the warheads with assistance from Zartan (Arnold Vosloo). After a fight, Storm Shadow and the Baroness retrieve the warheads and take them to Baron DeCobray, the Baroness's husband, for him to weaponize, and use them to destroy the Eiffel Tower to serve as a show of the warhead's destructive power. Making their way to Paris, the Joes pursue them through the streets but are unsuccessful in stopping them from launching the missile. The nanomites destroy the Eiffel Tower and much of the surrounding area before Duke manages to hit the kill switch, but in doing so he is captured and taken to McCullen's base under the Arctic.

G.I. Joe locates the secret base and fly there as McCullen loads three missiles with nano-mite warheads. After Snake Eyes takes out one, Ripcord pursues the remaining missiles in a stolen M.A.R.S. prototype Night Raven jet while Scarlett and her group infiltrate the base. While Scarlett, Breaker and Snake Eyes attempt to shut down the Arctic base, with Heavy Duty leading an attack on Cobra's forces, Duke learns that the Doctor is Rex Lewis, Ana's brother believed to have been killed on a mission led by Duke. He was trapped in a bunker with Doctor Mindbender (Kevin O'Connor), disfigured in the blast which everyone presumed had killed him. The Baroness tries to free Duke but the Doctor reveals he has implanted her with nano-mites which has put her under his control for the past four years, admitting his amazement that she is resisting the programming. Attempting to kill Duke, McCullen ends up being facially burned as he flees with Rex to an escape vessel. Duke and the Baroness pursue him while the Joes fall back when Rex activated the base's self destruct sequence. During this Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes Face off. Snake Eyes stabs Storm Shadow and presumably kills him.

Rex then heals McCullen's burned face with nano-mites, encasing it in silver as he christens McCullen "Destro" and assumes the identity of Cobra Commander before they are captured by G.I. Joe soon after. On board the supercarrier USS Flagg, Baroness is placed in protective custody until they can remove the nano-mites from her body. Meanwhile, Zartan, having been earlier operated on by Cobra Commander, infiltrates the White House during the missile crisis and assumes the identity of the President of the United States (Jonathan Pryce).

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