Movie Review: Rurouni Kenshin Live Action

Can I just take  this moment and scream? *runs ahead and screams like a mad woman*

Sorry 'bout that folks. Still haven't shaken off the excitement. Must have been one helluva after movie fever kinda thing. Finally got to watch Samurai X after the train wreck yesterday. We were at the cinema yesterday  but was horribly late to make it to the first show and the ticket sales for the next slot ain't open yet,  so we had to wait for like two hours. When we got back we were then informed that the reel wasn't working. Epic fail moment. So the opening got bumped to today. Got there early enough to catch the first screening. 

The rest of the movie experience is pretty much the most peaceful one I have gone to. Everybody got into the zone, not much talking goin' around which is something that I'm quite thankful for. Perhaps its a good thing that the language is foreign and majority were too focused on the subs lol. Luckily I can understand a little bit of japanese and rarely had to rely on the subs so I still got to watch the movie at its finest.

Do excuse this meager excuse for a review since this might contain more fangirl flail moments than an actual constructive content. But I'll try to be as critical with this as I possibly could.

Well then I'll start with the flow of the story. The opening scene of the war was a good way to stimulate the senses of the audience and make them anticipate what happens next. . Moving over to the more light hearted then heavier stuff again. Thanks for not hacking the story into nothing but pure blood bath because seriously Rurouni Kenshin isn't anything like that. No out of the blue timeskips and confusing backtracks that could be so out of place you'd end up wondering "Wtf is happening?". 

This movie is a breath of fresh air foregoing the excessive CG usage. Some of the wirewoks looked a little awkward in some parts, but overall effective in providing speed and agility in movements especially during the sword fighting, which looked quite genuine and not some meager you slash here and I'd poke you there excessively choreoed fight scene. Awesome metal to metal action. As one of my friends oh so kindly pointed out, when you see some of the bizarre occurences in an anime/manga which looked quite normal in that aspect might appear tacky and cheesy when done in real life so it does take a lot of getting used to. I believe that the leaps and tumbles in here were done as the scene calls for and made with class and style and not just some silly acrobatics to draw any kind of reaction from the audience. Altough the reception may still vary. As for me, I actually enjoyed those stunts.

I was pleasantly surprised by the musical score. I was expecting more show of the traditional japanese instruments, but there was something more hollywoodi-sh feel on the scores. The track I loved the most is Track 13: 飛天 (Hiten). Really gave me the goosebumps.

And lastly, the casting. . . Well I believe that each one them really did a stellar job with their respective roles. Some people I know voiced out their skepticism over Takeru's capacity to hold such a big role, but after seeing the movie I believe that he did a spectacular job. His boyishly good looks provided charm and charisma to the role and his acting effectively delivered. Thank goodness that the scar was made in the kind thats there but barely there. It was noticeable but not too obvious. Even Teruyuki Kagawa who portrayed Kanryuu Takeda is annoyingly effective in his role, made me want to pull off all those teeth. Gyargh! Hearing the "de gozaru" lines were kinda awkward moments though lol. . .The rest did well but Kenshin and Kanryu were the obvious standouts. 

Overall, this movie wasn't just some out of the blue mediocre crap with an attempt to cash in on fans but a movie that is made with respect to the original material. Good as a stand alone movie.

In Focus: Kimmy Dora and the Temple of Kiyeme

So here's my review for the 2nd installment of the movie 'KIMMY DORA'. . . now titled "KIMMY DORA AND THE TEMPLE OF KIYEME"

Saw it during its opening week. We weren't really planning on going to the theaters that day. It just came as a spur of the moment kind of thing when my Mom texted me and asked me if I wanted to watch a movie. And we were actually planning on seeing 'PROMETHEUS' but  ended up with Kimmy Dora instead, and I'm proud to say that I left that cinema a happy camper. Every penny I paid for the tickets were really worth it. 

I only got to see the first movie in DVD and seeing how much we've enjoyed it, I had hopes that the new installment would not disappoint. 

'KIMMY DORA and THE TEMPLE OF KIYEME'  is an upgraded version; more large scale compared to its predecessor; from the location shoots, the costumes and the storyline has touched several different genres. Whereas the first movie was more family oriented comedy, the temple of kiyeme, though still focused on family relations with a comedic flavor, has an added punch of mystery, action, drama, suspense and horror.

And I must say that I was really impressed by the CGI's that they've used. Another step up in what I've seen in local movies so far. There was this one scene, spoiler at this point, where their father was locked in the bedroom with Sang Kang Kang and the view zoomed out of the peephole, I literally had this 'WHOA!' moment. 

The story was well written, managing to integrate just the right amount of comedy, action and horror required for each scene. It was interwoven in such a way that the tone blended almost seamlessly. At one point you'd find yourself jumping when you get startled and laughing the heck out of you with the genius that is Eugene Domingo. 

No one could bring that much justice to the role Kimmy and Dora as much as Ms. Eugene Domingo had. There's just something in her that just connects with the characters and makes you believe. The way she delivered those lines, certainly had that needed impact. The same goes for the whole cast of the movie. Excellent.

Although Kimmy and Dora's characters are the obvious standouts, everyone definitely did a good job portraying their own specific characters. Based on what I have seen, they each gave pretty solid performances throughout the film.

There were a lot of new faces whose appearances in the movie I found really exciting and they certainly added a lot more character to the movie. I really liked Kiray's participation. I think that she has a good future as an actress especially in the field of comedy.


I am quite satisfied with the movie. My mom loved it as well but still preferred the first one over this. 

I heard the same sentiments from people pouring out of the cinemas when the movie ended. It was like 50/50 on which movie they liked better. The first or the second one. Personally, I liked the second one better. Maybe because I enjoy a good dose of suspense  and that is why KIMMY DORA and THE TEMPLE OF KIYEME held more appeal to me. 
Verdict:

Verdict: The Hunger Games

Another review!!! But before that, a brief run down on what happened today. Well, it was raining all day , I was actually worried that it would get worse and we wouldn't be able to go and watch the movie today. But thankfully, it was only drizzling by the time that we've left the house. The supppperrrr long line that I was expecting to see in the ticketing counters was none existent. But I am not really regretting the advance ticket purchase I've made. With a movie as big as this, you can never be too sure. We watched the first screening!!!

The schedule was moved half an hour early from what was written in our tickets so it's a good thing that we arrived early!

And another thing that I was anticipating is the lack of good seating due to the expected number of movie goers that would be watching the movie. But alas, the movie house wasn't even half filled by the time that the reel started rolling. The other half was almost bare except for at least two or three people who were sitting at the very back I think? Our section has more people seated in it considering that is nearer to the door.

The annoying happened again when a bunch of people, who chose to sit at the very back, they occupied two lines, who kept on talking LOUDLY! during the whole show. And when I say loud, I mean LOUD! The girls voices kept echoing inside the movie house and they won't shut up! The usherette reprimanded them quite a few times but they must've left their manners at home. Many people were obviously pissed off at them as well. I could tell that majority of us weren't able to concentrate that well with the movie because of the ruckus that they've been making throughout the movie. Gosh soooo annoying! They should've been kicked out!!

For some unknown reason, this review isn't as satisfying as the others I have made before? I was really having a hard time writing this review in the first place. I just can't seem to piece together the words properly. Argh! What is happening to me! And with this warning, I would like to apologize on how crappy this review ended up. I think I am just not in the best mindset right now. I'll try to mend this when I feel like doing so.

I am glad that the movie stuck with the book as much as they possibly could. That was my biggest fear, and I think the same goes for all those who actually bothered to read the book in the first place. Film adaptations of books have this tendency of butchering good storylines. They deviate too much from the books. And for books that are quite lengthy, there's the problem with compressing the scenes, and they often leave out the important parts!

For this movie, the changes were actually minimal and I think the deviations actually helped in making the story much better.

First is the change in the structure of how the story is told, which in the book, is based on Katniss's own point of view. The shift enabled us to see beyond Katniss and provided us with a much bigger dimension. For instance, the exchanges between President Snow and Seneca Crane. And the stirring that has happened in District 11 which generally affected the possible start of an uprising which definitely put Katniss as one of President Snow's not so favorite person in his books. 

Another glaringly obvious change was the MockingJay Pins origin, wherein in the book it was actually given to Katniss by Madge while in the movie, Katniss got it from the Hob and was given to Prim as a gift. I have to admit that this version was much better. This way the pin isn't just a simple token, but something that has a deeper emotional value and not a mere symbol.

The pacing was great! I love how they managed to mesh together all those parts smoothly, with the shifting done with fluidity. I think that picking out parts of the book that you want to appear in the movie and blending them together so it wouldn't appear too fragmented is a very difficult task.

Its great when you read the book but even better when you watch the movie because you have this visual motion standpoint where you could somewhat gain a greater vision of what you're imagining. For instance, my image of the Cornucopia. I have an idea but when I saw it in the movie, I was like "Oh so that's how its supposed to look like!." Are you getting what I'm trying to say? 

The downside, possibly is how they downplayed the level of violence in order to keep it at a PG-13 level? The mish mash of shifty camera angles definitely wasn't the best of ideas to make it more audience friendly. It almost gave me a migraine.

Actors' and actress' wise, I think that every single one of them managed to give justice to the roles that they were portraying. The concern I had with Josh and Jennifer not having the 'CHEMISTRY' wasn't an issue at all. The pairing actually worked in my opinion. The height difference didn't even seem to exist anyway. Camera angles?

Surprisingly, after watching the movie I actually learned to like Haymitch and Effie. 

My movie HIGHLIGHT: 

Most definitely is the opening ceremonies! They look freakin awesome my gosh! A hundred times better than what I've imagined when I read the book. Cinna you're awesome!  

Watching the movie definitely is a great experience. It is like you are really watching the words come out of the pages of the book.

With the movie hype still at its peak, and with many more movie goers who had been eagerly anticipating the movie since last year who have yet to see the movie themselves, I have a feeling that greater things are to be expected. Especially with two more movies that hopefully would be as strongly grounded as the first, if not, better. 

RATING: 4.5 / 5  

The Woman in Black a movie report

I am no expert when it comes to making reviews and so, I would be providing insights as an ordinary movie goer. But I would try to make a review that is descent enough to read by others.

Well, when I first heard about Daniel Radcliffe’s new movie, which I think I accidentally saw in one US News Program, I was rather excited. I saw some snippets during features and then watched the trailer as it went online. I believe that it (trailer) hasn’t been shown in local tv? Or perhaps I've missed it.

I was ecstatic to find out that screening has finally opened in the local cinemas. But I was unable to watch during the opening day.

Since it is Friday and it’s still school and work day, I was certain that there would be few movie goers in the cinema today. And I was right, by the time that the show started we were only 20 or less inside the movie house. Yeah, I did count. How lame right? Had to wait for the movie to start for 45 minutes since we got there early. We actually finished the hotdogs and popcorn way, way before the movie started rolling.

The Woman in Black is a typical ghost story. But despite how seemingly cliché the theme is there'd still be that level of enjoyment considering how satisfactory the quality level of the movie is. I highly doubt that ghost stories would really grow old and too used for us to get fed up on it.

The usual concoction you'd expect; suspicious acting people, a creepy looking old house in the middle of a secluded piece of land, a graveyard, apparitions of the dead and an eerie hunk of black blob who turns out to be a woman in black whose face becomes all wonky up close.

The pacing of the story felt a little loopy at times. The woman in black didn't serve her purpose all too well. Aside from a few good scares, the effect became so-so after a while since she was exposed way too much. You could actually pinpoint the time when she'd actually appear in the frame. Hell, the water coming out of the faucet water contraption thingy was freakier.

The suspense . . . It built up at a pace that would leave you hanging onto the edge of your seat and then it would either end with a resounding ‘BOO’ moment or a halt and then build the tension back up again like rollercoaster ride. It utilized this eerie like setting to constitute fear instead of the usual blood and gore of hacked off corpses. I find this sort of attack more refined and effective.

The backdraft for the whole movie, particularly the marshlands were well set and gave off that exact aura of something bad looming just around the curb.  Good cinematography and musical scores.

The end was somewhat anticipatory, since sudden twists at the end has become a trend with horror/suspense/thriller genres nowadays. But might be questionable to some? I mean why bother doing all that when you'd see the same fate in the end anyway? But when you look back at everything, you’d realize that is an appropriate ending anyway, albeit bittersweet. 

Acting wise, I believe that Daniel Radcliffe is quarter way to fully making a name independent from being the boy known to have played the role of Harry Potter. I was curious on how he’d fair playing the role. But I do believe that he did well, better than I had originally expected him to. Some minor setbacks that I think are barely noticeable anyway especially if you are too engrossed in the film?: The flatness of the tone of his voice when he was delivering some lines and the deadness behind the eyes (although he was supposed to be liked that, moroose) during some scary bits.   He, however did convincingly enough in portraying the role of a man who is broken by the death of his wife. Surprisingly enough, he, as a dad, looked convincing enough and not just a far fetched notion that is too impossible to comprehend.

Though truth be told, I hadn't completely let go of his portrayal as Harry while watching the movie. I did reminisce at some point about his wand wielding escapades. Whereas Harry wields a wand and the gryffindor sword, in this movie he wielded a candle stick and an axe.

This movie is not a big leap from the Harry Potter franchise though and a film of an entirely different genre would measure his real caliber as an actor. Not much difference when he had to fight off an evil dark lord, from a black woman who seeks vengeance. Antagonists that are not too far apart from the different sides of the spectrum.

All in all, The Woman in Black is a must watch especially to those people who are looking for some thrill that would somehow make you jump and scream. From start to finish, it held me strong.