The Viral Factor | 逆戰 [ Movie Review ] ★★★1/2

The Plot

A failed mission to protect a scientist who has stolen a copy of the smallpox virus left Jon Man (Jay Chou) severely injured and the scientist kidnapped by his traitorous colleague Sean (Andy On). The bullet is lodged in Jon's brain will paralyses him within two week and he decides to spend his final days with his mother (Elaine Jin).

What he didn't expect was that his mother revealed to him that he has a long lost brother Man Yang (Nicolas Tse) whom she left behind with his gambling addict dad Man Tin (Liu Kai Chi). To fulfill his mother last wishes, Jon decides to track Man Yang down in Malaysia.

En route to Kuala Lumpur (Capital of Malaysia), Jon befriends medical specialist Rachel (Lin Peng) and came across criminal organization attempting to kidnap her. During the process to foil this kidnap attempt, he discovers that Man Yang is a wanted felon working as a mercenary for Sean, who needs the help of a medical specialist to mutate the small pox virus and holds the world ransom.

After Man Yang failed to kidnap Rachel but escaped with the virus, the criminal organization attempts to control him by kidnapping his daughter. The righteous Jon has to decide whether to stop Man Yang from breaking more laws or assist his wayward brother in rescuing his niece and stopping Sean's diabolical plans?

You are the Apple of My Eye | 那些年, 我们一起追的女孩 [ Movie Review ] ★★★★1/2

The Pitch

Touted as Biggest Ever Opening Day and Weekend Box Office for a Taiwanese film (remained as Taiwan Box Office champion for three weeks), You are the Apple of My Eye ( 那些年，我们一起追的女孩 literally means The girl that we wooed during those years ) marks a revival of Taiwanese films that getting commercial release here in Singapore. This coming-of-age movie is based on a popular autobiography book by Giddens (九把刀 or Nine Knives) and it's selling like hot cakes in Hong Kong (No.1 at Hong Kong box office and out selling it's nearest competitor Life without Principle by about 2.65 times). 

What makes this school days romance movie so popular in Taiwan and Hong Kong? The trailer gave the impression that it's going to be another routine romantic comedy with good looking actor and actress. The director. Giddens is primarily known for his novels and this movie somewhat marks his first directorial debut. To have such a result for his first main feature is pretty impressive. 

Perhaps there's something special about this box office champ that getting a commercial screening like it's predecessors, Monga and Cape. No 7. Let's find out what the X-factor in this movie.

The Plot

The movie started with the introduction of the protagonist, Ko-Teng (Ko Chen-tung 柯震東) and his close friends. They are distinctively different with their own special quirks However all his friends had something in common and that's having a crush with the class monitress, Shen Jiayi (Michelle Chen 陳妍希). For the longest time, Ko-Teng could not understand why his friends got the hot for her as he felt that she was only slightly prettier than the rest of the female classmates and there's nothing special about her.

After getting into trouble with their homeroom teacher, Ko-Teng was made to sit in front of Shen Jiayi. Being one of the top students in school, Shen Jiayi was tasked to keep close tabs on him and supervise his school works. The two of them resented the arrangement initially and started bickering until an incident in class changed the dynamic between them.

Shen Jiayi started to prepare extra homework for Ko-Teng and forced him to stay back after class for revisions. Romance blossom between the both of them but the usually outspoken Ko-Teng couldn't find the courage to propose to Shen Jiayi. With graduation looming, could their puppy love withstand the long distance test as they head towards different universities?

The Perspective 

You are the Apple of My Eye turned out to be surprisingly good. I didn't have much expectation for this coming-of-age romcom but it came out of nowhere and stole my heart. Without any surprises for this coming two months, You are the Apply of My Eye is likely to emerged as the best movie of 2011 for me. If I would to narrow down why this movie worked for me, it would because this movie got heart and soul. It wonderfully captures the wooing process and school days romance. Folks who had "similar" experience at school, they would find this movie easily relatable and heart wrenching in many ways.

Before lapping it with more praises, this movie isn't without it's faults. Some jokes and gags missed the spot entirely. At times, the movie can get rather crude, long winded and even tedious to follow at times.

But the payout at the end made all the wait worthwhile and the flaws forgettable. Especially the last ten minutes of this movie when all the build ups came into a satisfying wrap up. It was said that the director had decided to make this movie when the idea for the closing moments came to his mind. It was an excellent decision as the ending was one of the most beautiful yet poignant endings to coming-of-age school days rom com.

One of the biggest discovery for this movie would be Giddens, the director cum writer for this story. I have not read any of his Chinese novels and this first encounter with his work had impressed me much. He is pretty talented in telling a story and has an inventive touch in approaching materials that had been done to death. If imagination is intelligence having fun, it's not hard to see that Giddens is having a hell of time with this movie.

He had also made a good casting choice for this movie. You are the Apple of My Eye worked due to the casting for the two leads. Michelle Chen is lovely to watch and possess a certain special on screen flair that makes it easy to believe that so many guys would fall for her. Without her to breathe life into the objection of affection in this movie, You are the Apple of My Eye would not have work this well.

Likewise, the hunky newcomer Ko Chen-tung turned in a pretty good performance. As the protagonist, he had to carry the bulk of this movie and he did it in an effortlessly charismatic fashion. Whether the scenes  requires him to be comedic, suave or downright emotional, he managed to aced most of those scenes. Without a doubt, I will keeping tabs on these two actors future works.

After recommending this movie to a fellow movie lover, I was told that this type of movies come every five or ten years. The movie does have it's flaws but the heart of this move could easily hide those flaws. Highly recommended for those who wants to reminisce about their school days romance or currently going through some form of dilemma in romance.

Rating: ****1/2

Coda

During the credits roll, there are some scenes of the boys heading to play baseball and talk about their future and writing a book that this movie is based on. The real fun would be at the end of the credit roll when the director played a prank on Michelle Chen. Definitely worth staying back for.


Beyond the Movie

Sadly, this popular movie had cause much distress to the real Shen Jiayi. She had to take a year off from work and left for China to escape the Taiwanese press and the "overly resourceful" online fans. It seemed that the director / writer Giddens Ko was equally affected by the success of his movie and the trouble that it's causing for the apple of his eye that he is avoiding any talk about her to the press.

The Fortune Buddies | 勁抽褔祿壽 [ Movie Review ] ★★

The Plot

The Fortune Buddies follow the adventures of three hapless friends. Lam Luk (Wong Cho-lam), Jit Sau (Johnson Lee) and Fook Cheung (Louis Yuen) are three jobless guys who are often waiting at the employment agency to change their life.

Luk would like to settle down with his girlfriend (Fiona Sit) but the potential father-in-law (Eric Tsang) would like to test Luk abilities in taking care his daughter. He gave Luk a sum of money and a time frame to transformed it into five hundred thousand dollars.

Given their current jobless situation, it's almost an impossible task but Fook and Sau are determined to help Luk achieved his dream. They decided to perform as drag queens at Mongkok's Sai Yeung Choi street. It didn't help them earned much but after a fight with another group of drag queens, they found fame online (courtesy of online video streaming). 

To capitalize on their new found fame, they decided to perform wrestling on the streets. What they didn't expect was a challenge from a foreigner and a surprise win for Fook, Luk and Sau. Their victory were once again loaded onto the internet and they became even more popular. What they couldn't predict was that the foreigner turns out to be a pro wrestler and was humiliated by the defeat. A challenge was issued to the trio and it comes with a reward that they couldn't refuse.

In between Luk's quest to win his girlfriend's father approval in marriage, there are subplots pertaining to Fook and Sau's past and their conflicts. Sau claimed to be a rich man son who left the wealthy life so that he could pursue the woman of his dream (Samantha Ko). Meanwhile Fook is a single dad who refused to let his successful ex wife (Fala Chen) reunite with his son. All their problems will come to an resolution in the wrestling ring.

The Perspective

This movie is made in 20 days and it really showed. It's made in a He Sui Pian movie format (Asian movies made specially for the Chinese New Year period, usually a joyful comedy with plenty of cameo & weak plotting) but it's still a long way to go till Chinese Lunar New Year. After the movie ended, the first thing that came into my mind was "Why was this movie made?".

It seemed to served no purpose. The nearest Chinese Festival would be the Mid-Autumn (Mooncake) festival and it won't be here till September. It's unlikely that this movie is made to celebrate the Chinese Ghost festival. So why is this movie being made?

The production for this movie felt rushed. The story felt more patchy than the average He Sui Pian. It seemed like there were very little thought process given to link the various plotlines together. In fact, it felt like a series of television sketch that's been pasted together and the whole point of this movie was to deliver a gag after another.

That brings us to another problem with the movie. Some of the jokes were funny but most of the jokes weren't. For every one scene that cracked me up, there were many other sketches that fell flat.  I must admit that the jokes might be diluted by the Mandarin dubbing but even so, it's a far cry from "I love Hong Kong" or "72 Tenants of Prosperity". There were also plenty of references to the current trends and pop culture of Hong Kong that didn't strike a chord with this Singaporean viewer. I find them hard to relate and even harder to be amused by it.

Personally, I always enjoyed Louis Yuen, Wong Cho Lam and Johnson Lee's performance. Even when they are just a supporting act in a Hong Kong TVB series. I also have a soft spot for Fiona Sit and Eric Tsang had been tickling my funny bones since I started watching Hong Kong comedies. However there's very little material in The Fortune Buddies to bring out the best in them. I liked to see more of them but it's also hard to recommend this movie. Perhaps one could wait for the telly to broadcast this movie because there's no real lost waiting till then.


Beyond the Movie

Each of the three main characters' name contain a word that forms Fook Luk Sau (or Fu Lu Shou in Mandarin ). Fook Luk Sau are the Deities of Good Fortune, Prosperity and Longevity. These three Deities are very popular in Chinese culture.

Horrible Bosses [ Movie Review ] ★★1/2

The Plot

For Nick (Jason Bateman), Kurt (Jason Sudeikis) and Dale (Charlie Day), the only thing that would make the daily grind more tolerable would be to grind their intolerable bosses (Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, Jennifer Aniston) into dust.

Quitting is not an option, so, with the benefit of a few-too-many drinks and some dubious advice from a hustling ex-con (Jamie Foxx), the three friends devise a convoluted and seemingly foolproof plan to rid themselves of their respective employers…permanently. 

There’s only one problem: even the best laid plans are only as foolproof as the brains behind them. 

(Plot Outline from Horrible Bosses Facebook Info)

The Perspective 

The irony of Horrible Bosses was that there weren't enough Horrible Bosses. Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston and Colin Farrell were the better parts of the show and yet there wasn't enough of them nor were they effective in their limited screen time.  

Kevin Spacey who is replaying the role of a nasty boss wasn't in his A game here. He is still a psycho mean spirited boss but this rendition here really pales in comparison to his performance in Swimming with Sharks. Jennifer Aniston and Colin Farrell were commendable for taking on roles that were a departure of the types that we were used to see them in. But it wasn't really that good either and they got way too little screen time to expand on their roles.

It's a shame because the three bosses could have been funny as hell but were left under utilized and didn't have the time to shine.

Instead we get a movie that focus on three subordinates who were trying to kill their boss for a better life. Their madcap adventure felt like a desperate attempt to copy the success of The Hangover movie (the original one). There's the sensible one, the sex manic and the stupid one. It felt rather generic and predictable throughout.

Jason Bateman felt like he had not stepped out of his character from Arrested Development. Jason Sudeikis as the horny guy who gets laid easily felt like a desperate attempt to incite laughter. But they were bearable compared to Charlie Day.

Charlie Day was simply annoying as the stupid one to turn down the sex offer by his boss. I couldn't relate to his character and it felt like he is going against the law of nature on this one. It certainly made the matter worse when his voice was so whiny and it gets tiresome to watch him play dumb.

Well but humour is subjective. What might not be funny for me, might make people laugh out loud. There are some folks in my theater that were consistently laughing hysterically at bits that I thought wasn't that funny at all. In fact I found the humour rather formulaic, kinda forced and too juvenile to my liking. Horrible Bosses did cause me to chuckle once or twice (at most) but hey like I said, humour is  subjective so watch it at your own discretion.

Treasure Inn | 財神客棧 [ Movie Review] ★★★

Short Takes

Director Wong Jing is back with another China production. Thankfully Treasure Inn was much better than his last theatrical movie Future X-Cops. Even though it's still catered to the China market (i.e blatant  usage of China actors and some obvious hold back in crude humour), Treasure Inn is a film that easy to sit through.

Treasure Inn follows two low ranking constables who were investigating massacre at the city's richest man. Following the trail of the stolen life size white jade of the "Goddess of Mercy", they encountered a pair of twin sisters known as the "Reward Money Hunters". Pooling their resources together for the reward money for recovering the white jade, they head towards the infamous Treasure Inn where all the precious stolen goods get auction there. 

The spoofs on Tsui Hark's upcoming 3D The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (or the 90s version of New Dragon Gate Inn) and Stephen Chow's Kungfu Hustle were pretty obvious. Although these spoofs were not very inventive, they were still entertaining to spot. These spoofs and the comedic elements in this was a mixed bag. Some where laugh out funny and some just totally missed the spot.

Nicholas Tse who is currently dodging the media for the latest news on his marriage breakup was pretty effective as a eye candy. Compare to his recent movies, there nothing here to stretch his acting range and to some, that's a good thing. Bland but pleasant.

Likewise for Charlene Choi as the irritating Water Dragon Girl who is smitten by Nicholas Tse's character and is constantly worried that he would abandon her for the lady owner of the Treasure Inn. I wonder how long can she keep up in such fluffy flower vase roles.

Nick Cheung stole the show with funny one liners and comedic showmanship. He hasn't been this funny for a long time. Partly due to his choice in making serious movie these recent years. Or perhaps it's the partnership with  Wong Jing that Nick Cheung was so funny in this one. If their collaboration could result in such consistent standard, Nick Cheung should forget the dramatic roles that gives him film awards nomination and crave out a career that cement on comedy. 

Bottom line for Treasure Inn is that while it's not that good that you have to shell out movie ticket money to catch it in the cinema, it's won't be that bad if you did it anyway.

the Green Hornet [ Movie Review ] ***

 From the Asians perspective, the most memorable aspect of the Green Hornet franchise would be that the TV series helped launched Bruce Lee's career. Years later, the thing that is grabbing our attention  about this big screen adaption of the Green Hornet would be Jay Chou's foray into Hollywood with his rendition of Kato. We all know him as the Taiwanese music megastar who had done quite a few Asian movies recently but how will he fare in a English speaking role and will he be able to fill in the role that Bruce Lee had left behind?

Equally questionable, would Seth Rogen who played the lovable goofy dude that knocked up a babe in Knocked Up do well as the masked crime fighter? Or can Michel Gondry who directed romantic drama like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind be able to handle a superhero genre flick?

The result was that Green Hornet was surprisingly entertaining and refreshing in it's own ways. They took the Batman set up and gave it a spin of it's own. While both are rich man's son that turned into vigilante, Britt Reid (Green Hornet) 's conversion was less than noble (and more juvenile) compared to Bruce Wayne's journey. They both are aided by their trusty sidekick and an array of weapons to fight crime but Green Hornet does it by pretending to be one of the bad guys. And when it comes to taking on the criminal empire, this greenish duo actually rely on Lenore Case ( Cameron Diaz ) a secretary whom Britt Reid had hired to provide them with a master plan.

Are We having Fun yet!

Not quite the dynamic crime fighting duo but that where the charms of Green Hornet lies in. It almost felt like they were spoofing Batman if the Green Hornet wasn't such an established franchise. Seth Rogen's goofy charms rub off nicely on Green Hornet, a crime fighter who relies plenty of help on his sidekick. It made him likable while Kato / Jay Chou is doing all the cool stuff like kungfu fighting, preparing the arsenal and looking cool. The only thing unintentionally funny about Jay Chou's performance would be when he spoke in English. It's not the best that heard from an Asian in a Hollywood film but it's a commendable effort put in by the prince of Taiwan music chart.

This film also knew that Jay Chou could not perform the Bruce Lee's level of kungfu technicalities and chose to cover up with funky computer graphic (or I call it the Kato Vision) that bears hallmarks of Michel Gondry's handiwork. It was so fun to watch that one would forget to catch how fast or slow Jay Chou's Kato is punching or kicking (as compared to the legend).

Besides that, the buddy factors between Britt Reid and Kato were fun to watch. From their joint effort of stumbling into crime fighting to their squabbling over Lenore, there's a certain chemistry between Seth Rogen goofiness and Jay Chou's coolness that rub off nicely.

Last but not least, the various homage to Bruce Lee was pretty fun to catch too. The references to the one inch punch, moving too fast for camera and sketches of Bruce Lee images were just some of the homage that I caught.

the Gun got more character than me

But then again, not everyone will like this movie. The Green Hornet been getting mixed reviews (and mostly bad ones) from Review aggregate sites like Rotten Tomatoes. Some of the points that they made are relatable.

Christoph Waltz who had such a fine time playing the villain in Inglourious Basterds (and winning an Oscar for it) was simply not that impressive in Green Hornet. It might be that the script had required him to play a villain who is trying too hard to be cool and more menacing than what his peers think of him. Or it might be that he is trying to play a different type of villain that we saw in Inglourious Basterds. Nevertheless, the result was rather bland villain and every hero is defined by his or her arch enemy (which made the conflict between those two a little less compelling to watch).  

Where are we heading?

The story was also weak in how it construct the heroic changes in Britt Reid / Green Hornet. After the fun subside at the halfway point, it felt that it lacks a certain direction and was just podding along for the finale where the film could drown the audience with loud explosion and gunfights (which could get quite numbing after awhile).

But then again, the Green Hornet is not going to be Dark Knight. The thing is, go for this movie for mild entertainment and not for substance. Think of it as a goofy take on the masked crime fighter genre and appreciate their new spin on this genre as it is. It might be disjointed at times but Green Hornet definitely has its moments for fans of masked avengers. Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind catching the sequel if it's ever green lighted. 


Was it worth the 3D price?

The Green Hornet 3D felt like so much like a 2D movie that I wondered why do I have to suffer with a 3D glasses. There's absolutely nothing worth mentioning about the 3Dness of this movie except my eyes tearing up from the usual discomfort from watching 3D movies.


Beyond the Movie

Do you know that The Green Hornet is related to The Lone Ranger? Another masked crime fighter that originated from Radio and TV series. They were both created by George W. Trendle and Fran Strike. Britt Reid is the son of the Lone Ranger's nephew Dan. The Lone Ranger will be getting the big screen treatment soon and Johnny Depp might star as the sidekick to Lone Ranger.