Review of LITTLE ITALY: Prosaic Pizza

October 4, 2018

Sal Angioli (Adam Ferrara) and Vince Campoli (Gary Basaraba) used to be close friends and business partners. One day, after their pizza won a local contest, they became estranged and bitter rivals, each opening his own pizza parlor right beside each other. Despite this family feud though, the Angioli matriarch Franca (Andrea Martin) and the Campoli patriarch Carlo (Danny Aiello) had their own secret shenanigans going on.

Meanwhile, their children Nicoletta "Nikki" and Leo grew up together in the Little Italy district of Toronto as best friends since childhood. Nikki eventually left town to take up culinary lessons in London under noted chef Corinne (Jane Seymour). When Nikki came back home for a short two-week visit, Leo tried to rekindle the romance between them, with awkward results. Will Nikki choose to stay with Leo, or will the chef position in Corinne's newest restaurant be too tempting for her to refuse.

This film had a predictable story, cheesy dialogs and corny jokes. The basic premise was straight out of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" (and they did acknowledge this) but made into a light little comedy without the tragic parts. This rom-com had an old-fashioned look and feel about it, seemingly shot and set in the 1990s. The jokes were hit-or-miss, generally good-natured and occassionally naughty.

The lead roles Nikki and Leo were played by Emma Roberts and Hayden Christensen, both of whom did not seem to be of Italian descent. With the diversity available to the filmmakers in terms of ethnicity in their setting, I thought this was a strange casting choice. I'm sure there were plenty young Italian actors and actresses out there who can do these roles with more authenticity. Being Italian was an intergral part of the story.

Emma Roberts is of mixed ethnicity from six European countries, Italy is not one of them. She is a perky young actress who had played several lead roles since she broke through in kiddie films like 'Aquamarine" (2006) and "Nancy Drew" (2007). Compared to her more recent roles in "Nerve" (2016) and "Billionaire Boys Club" (2018), her role here in "Little Italy" as Nikki seemed like less of a challenge for her as an actress. She breezed through this role like a leisurely walk in the park.

Hayden Christensen at least had some Italian blood on his mother's side, but he is 10 years older than Emma Roberts. This actor hit a major career jackpot when he was cast as Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels. Unfortunately, his critically-maligned performance in those films did not bode well for his success in Hollywood since then. This was not award-winning for sure, and his lines were the corniest, but as Leo, he was actually more relaxed than the other films I had seen him in. 

The better chemistry in this rom-com actually belonged to its most senior couple, Franca and Carlo. Andrea Martin is of Armenian ethnicity, but she was able to pull off this role as an true-blue Italian grandmother very realistically. She had long been acclaimed for her impersonation skills since early in her multi-awarded career on stage and tv. Danny Aiello is of course of pure Italian parentage. A veteran character actor and Oscar nominee, Aiello was very playful here and a joy to watch, a departure from his usual role as a mobster.

Director Donald Petrie is a veteran of several familiar rom-coms like "Miss Congeniality" (2000) and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" (2003). "Little Italy," being a film about rival pizza-making families, is a sort of throwback to the film that launched his career as a feature film director "Mystic Pizza" (1988). The casting of Emma Roberts may actually be a reference to her aunt Julia Roberts, the lead star of "Mystic Pizza."  I think it is safe to say though that "Little Italy" will not do to Emma, what "Mystic Pizza" did to Julia. 

This is not ground-breaking by any means, in fact you call call it a miscast cliche. However, it can still be a pleasant way to pass the time for people who fancy a taste for old-fashioned rom-coms. 5/10. 

Review of THE TRIGONAL: Forceful Fighting Form

October 2, 2018

This local action film had a very unusual commercial run. I don't know how many movie houses were showing this when it opened last Wednesday, but over the weekend, it was only showing in only one cinema, in only one mall, for only one screening time per day at 2:50 pm. However, because of this very limited release, in addition to its intriguing title and classy-looking poster, I was drawn to try to catch it even more. 

Set in Bacolod City, Jacob Casa was a taekwondo champion who ran a dojo for MMA. He and his wife Annie were excitedly expecting their first child. One day, Jacob received an invitation to join an underground fight club competition called The Trigonal run by a ruthless drug lord Henry Tan. He was not keen to join at first, but a very harsh series of tragedies made it impossible for Jacob to refuse the call to fight, in order to achieve redemption.

I only knew four actors in the cast. Rhian Ramos played Jacob's loving but headstrong wife Annie. Epy Quizon had a brief role as Jacob's friend and business partner Dodoy. Christian Vazquez hammily played Tan's violent henchman Allen with crazy eyes and flaring nostrils. It was good to see former taekwondo Olympian Monsour del Rosario back on screen and still kicking high as Jacob's sensei Mike Vazquez, who trained Jacob in tapado. 

The rest of the main cast were largely unknown actors, but were stars in various fields of martial arts. Tall, long-haried, unmistakably Filipino-looking lead actor Ian Ignacio (as Jacob) was a protege of Monsour del Rosario in taekwondo. Before this, he only had a few films under his belt, as well as stage experience in Dulaang UP ("The Country Wife" in 2014), but Ignacio pulled off the lead role creditably, not only in those hardhitting fights, but also in the teary dramatic scenes.

Asian-American Sarah Chang is a wushu champion. Here she was the director of the fight scenes, and she also displayed her winning wushu form onscreen. As Jacob's new friend and cornerman Mei Li (who was also an MIT graduate in electrical engineering and computer science!), Chang is a delightful presence with her sassy attitude and wacky sense of humor. Mei grew up in San Francisco, and was just visiting her Mandarin-speaking father Master Li (Qian Li Yang), who taught wushu in the taoist temple in Bacolod, when she got drawn into the action.

Writer and director Vincent Soberano was a muay thai champion. He also had an onscreen role as the cool and toothpick-chewing detective Tony Pascual. His character got to deliver a lot of chill punchlines and steal the scenes where he's in. I guess that is the advantage when you are also the writer and director, and that is a good thing. Aside from English, Soberano also gets to drop a few lines in Ilonggo, with that unmistakable lilting accent. 

Hongkong-based director and actor Gus Liem played the main antagonist Henry Tan. Despite his senior age and gentle features, he was still able to project a fearful crime-lord vibe around him. Australian actor and martial artist Paul Allica played James Lowe, the main fighter in Henry Tan's drug-enhanced stable. As the nasty-looking scar on his face clearly suggested, this Lowe was a one-dimensional bad guy.

The film was a nostagic throwback to the Hollywood action films of the 80s and 90s, usually starring Stallone or Van Damme, where the underdog hero goes up against monstrous odds and still managed to come up on top. Aside from some Mandarin, Tagalog and Ilonggo by some characters, most of the film's dialogue was in English, but it did not sound awkward, instead this gave it a distinct charm. We probably have an idea what was going to happen, but the incredible fight scenes keep us glued to watch. 

A Trigonal match was divided into two parts. The first part was a fight using weapons, and would last only five minutes. However, the second part was pure unarmed combat with no time limit. Beyond these guidelines, there were no other rules -- anything goes. The last man standing would bring home the grand prize of US$ 1 million. 

The camera angles, editing and choreography of these brutal fight scenes made it feel like we were right in the thick of the fights.  It was hard not to wince in pain when watching the action because we feel every blow to the face, or punch to the midsection, or kick to the torso with "penetrating energy". The MTRCB rating was R-16 due to its all-out, hard-core, realistically bone-breaking violence. Action fans would surely enjoy this intense mixed martial arts showcase. 8/10. 

Review of SMALLFOOT: A Yeti's Yearning

October 2, 2018

Yetis are a tribe of gigantic white-haired anthropoid creatures who lived on the peak of a high mountain hidden above the clouds. Migo is a young yeti who was training to be the new Gong-banger, which they believed activated the sunrise everyday. One day during training, Migo overshot the gong and hurtled beyond their village just in time to witness a plane crash and the human being (the legendary "Smallfoot") who had safely ejected out of it. 

When Migo told his fellow villagers, the stern Stonekeeper accused him of being a liar and banished him. With the help of the S.E.S. (Smallfoot Evidentiary Society), led by the Stonekeeper's daughter and Migo's big crush Meechee, Migo agreed to go below the clouds in order to find conclusive evidence of the existence of the Smallfoot in order to clear his name. Migo's initial Smallfoot encounter was with Percy Patterson, a TV host whose wildlife show desperately needed a boost in his ratings. 

At first, I thought the trailers of this animated film seemed to already tell the whole story. However upon watching, they really did not. I liked how the story was developed by writer-director Karey Kirkpatrick, that there was so much more than met the eye than just the cute funny characters and the kiddie slapstick comedy scenes. It was fascinating how the filmmakers were able to create a whole interesting history and culture for the Yetis. They challenge the viewers with the question: Is ignorance really bliss? Were the Yetis better off not knowing anything about the Smallfoot, and vice versa? 

Like most animated films, the voices in this film are all very child-friendly and familiar. No voice was really very distinct that is why I am always surprised to discover who was voicing which character when the closing credits roll. Channing Tatum gave Migo a cheerful lilt in his voice. James Corden played the conflicted human character Percy so he had to balance between being the bad guy and the good guy. Zendaya had such a calming voice quality as Meechee. Common had that deep authoritative voice as Stonekeeper. Danny de Vito played Migo's wise father Dorgle. Lebron James played the huge purple eccentric yeti Gwangi.

In the trailer, I only heard "Finally Free" by Niall Horan, but did not know that there would be other song numbers to perk up the energy of the storytelling, all delightfully sung by the voice actors themselves. "Perfection," the opening song sung by Migo (Tatum), had a jaunty cheerful "Moana"-like vibe. "Wonderful Life" sung by Meechee (Zendaya) sounded like an anthemic song from "The Greatest Showman." "Percy's Pressure," which used the baseline of Queen's "Under Pressure," was sung by a stressed-out Percy (Corden). "Let It Lie" by the Stonekeeper (Common) had a "Hamilton"-like rap-hiphop beat as he told Migo about the history between Yeti and Smallfeet. 

This was by the Warner Animation Group, makers of the "Lego" films. It was a nice little entertaining film for kids, with deep messages about curiosity, discovery and mutual understanding which may need parental guidance. The generically sweet trailers may not have been that compelling, but I am glad I gave this a try. I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would. 7/10. 

Review of PAPILLON (2018 vs. 1973): Journal of a Jailbreak

September 30, 2018

In 1933, safecracker Henri Charrière (alias "Papillon" for the butterfly tattoo on his chest) from Paris was framed and convicted for murder and was sent to a notorious penal colony in French Guiana -- Devil's Island. There, the brawny Charriere offered to protect weak eccentric counterfeiter Louis Dega in exchange for financial support. Unfazed by the harsh conditions, hard labor and solitary confinement, Charriere and Dega still persevered in their daring plan to escape this prison which prided itself for being unescapable.

There had been already been a movie version of Henri Charriere's 1969 memoirs "Papillon" back in 1973 directed by Franklin J. Schaffner (who also directed "Planet of the Apes" and "Patton" before this). Written by Dalton Trumbo ("Roman Holiday", "Exodus") and Lorenzo Semple, Jr. ("The Parallax View", "Three Days of the Condor"), the original "Papillon" film starred Hollywood A-listers Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman in the lead roles of Charriere and Dega.  

In my opinion, Charlie Hunnam is a bland leading man. Even in good films like "Pacific Rim" (2013) and "The Lost City of Z" (2016), his performances were not really that memorable. He felt miscast in the lead role of King Arthur in last year's Guy Ritchie reboot of the legendary king. His portrayal of Henri Charriere in this film may actually be one of his best performances already, but again it will always be (fairly or not) compared with Steve McQueen's effortlessly macho portrayal, so so much for making a strong impression. 

Rami Malek gave a restrained sensitive performance here as Louis Dega. He did not pick up those autistic tics Dustin Hoffman gave his bespectacled Dega several years before he won the Oscar for playing the similiar autistic tics in "Rain Man." Malek had already won an Emmy award for his lead performance in the TV drama series "Mr. Robot" in 2016, but for many, Malek is still an unknown quantity. Things will change in a major way when we finally see him portray Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody" later on this year.

The bulk of the 20 minute difference in running time between the 1973 and 2018 version was the part about the escape. In the original, there was a more detailed depiction of the planning of their escape. The parts about that scam with the first boat, and how Henri talked to lepers to get a new one were all deleted in the remake. Later, we see Henri's idyllic life with a native tribe with topless island girls and a chief who also wanted a butterfly tattoo on his chest. He had to travel by bus later to hide out in a convent of nuns. In the remake, the islanders and the righteous nun were just condensed into one faster-paced sequence. 

In addition, the new version of "Papillon" gave us a little introduction to Charriere's life of crime prior to his incarceraton. This was merely mentioned in conversations in the original film. The depiction of Devil's Island at the final act of the film was also very different. In the original, the island looked a quiet settlement where Dega had a nice house where he can cook up a decent lunch. This made Dega's final decision more logical than in the remake, where the island only had terribly rundown buildings as shelter. 

This 2018 remake of "Papillon" by Danish director Michael Noer joined the ever-growing list of unnecessary remakes of films already considered classics. The 70s had been a particular favorite decade of these needless reworkings, the likes of "The Poseidon Adventure", "The Taking of Pelham 123", "Carrie", "Halloween", " Murder on the Orient Express", "Death Wish" -- all not doing their original versions any favors. This new "Papillon" was not bad by any means, but I felt it just did not have to be redone anymore.

Papillon 2018: 7/10. Papillon 1973: 8/10.

Review of EXES BAGGAGE: Reviving a Relationship

September 27, 2018

During the inauguration of a bar owned by their common friends Tops and Reyna (Dino Ignacio and Dionne Monsanto), exes Nix Cabangon and Pia Madrigal met for the first time since they broke up two years ago. Flashbacks would show us how they met, how their friendship grew into love, how they lived together under one roof, and later, how their relationship came to an end. Now that their roads have crossed again, is there a chance for them to get together again as a couple?

We learned about Pia's former relationship with Migz (Joem Bascon), who was a married man; as well as Nix's former relationship with Dwein (Coleen Garcia) who was his only ex whom he almost married. Encounters with these two former partners also proved problematic between Nix and Pia, especially when their idyllic romance eventually began to take a turn for the worse with time. As insecurities and jealousy reared their ugly head, they learned more about each other from the way they dealt with their previous lovers.

Director Dan Villegas is already a master with the rom-com genre. He started in 2014 with "English Only Please,"  and since then, his films, mostly romcoms like "The Breakup Playlist" (2015), "How to be Yours" (2016), "All of You" (2017), had been commercial hits at the box office. With his storytelling skill and pacing, the love story of Nix and Pia was quite engaging even when only told through the daily mundane situations and conversations between them, as written by Dwein Baltazar (who gave her unique name to Nix's ideal ex). Everything was very relatable. There were no fancy occasions here, nor any out-of-town trip to a local or foreign destination, as most romcoms nowadays tend to do. 

The life of this film was Angelica Panganiban's portrayal of the free-spirited real-estate broker Pia. She was a loud and bubbly type of person, who drank alcohol and smoked. She's not shy to make the first move on a guy to get him to go to bed with her. Angelica had the energy and humor we expect from her, as in "Here Comes the Bride" (2010) and "That Thing Called Tadhana" (2014), but it was her dramatic scenes here that can really tug at you, like they did in "One More Try" (2012) and "The Unmarried Wife" (2106). 

In contrast, Carlo Aquino gave a more restrained performance as introverted furniture designer Nix. There seemed to be nothing in common between him and Pia, and she was a world away from his very formal ex Dwein. But their mismatched relationship seemed so right as we saw it unfold on the screen, very sincere and real, which is why we were all rooting for it to succeed. That was why it also hurt us so much to see them drift apart because of lingering "ex baggage" issues that constantly intervened. 

The love theme song "Maybe the Night" certainly added more romantic thrill and emotional feels to the viewing experience. We hear the original Ben&Ben version on the radio the first time Nix drove Pia home. Then we actually hear Nix himself sing the song to Pia the first time he visited Pia's new condo. Finally, we hear the song sung by a band called Midnight Meetings in a bar where they ran into each other again. This beautiful song was an integral part of this film's story and appeal. 

As a parent of teenagers, I was surprised that the MTRCB rated this film PG, despite scenes of pre-marital sex and living together without marriage. I guess this more liberal standard of morality may actually be the norm nowadays, since the previous blockbuster film also featuring an unmarried couple living in together, "The Hows of Us," was also rated PG. For "Exes," the PG rating was justified because it "served as warning to young viewers regarding relationships." The MTRCB even waxed poetic about it: "What you see is not what you get. What you get is also not what you see." Extraordinary.

Honestly, it cannot be denied that romantic plots about exes are very common, and it had already been tackled in many different ways in both local or foreign films. The clinicher for this particular one that made it specially stand out was the casting coup of getting Angelica Panganiban and Carlo Aquino to play the roles of exes Pia and Nix. The known fact that Angelica and Carlo were actually exes in real life definitely added further vivid color into their already sizzling onscreen chemistry. 8/10.

Review of PEPPERMINT: Avenging Angel

September 27, 2018

Riley North saw her husband Chris and daughter Carly gunned down in cold blood. She was able to identify the three killers in the police line-up, but the case was still dismissed because of  "insufficient evidence." Five years later, Los Angeles was the scene of a series of bizarre murders. All the victims all had one thing in common -- they are connected directly to the terrible miscarriage of justice against Riley North and her family. 

Ok, yes, it is another revenge movie. It has been a very familiar plot in action films to have a typically mild-mannered person who suffered a major crime rise up to maim and kill everyone responsible for his tragic circumstances. We see a lot of male protagonists in this type of film: from "Death Wish" (1974) to "The Punisher" (2004), from "Mad Max" (1980) to "Payback" (1999), from "Taken" (2009) to "John Wick" (2014). 

A female protagonist in a revenge film may not be that common, but they count among the best in the genre. Among the most memorable ones would be "Carrie" (1976) with Sissy Spacek, "Kill Bill" (2003) with Uma Thurman, "The Brave One" (2007) with Jodie Foster, and "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" (2011) with Rooney Mara. A new lady vigilante joins their ranks with this new film "Peppermint". 

The main reason to watch this film is lead actress Jennifer Garner who played Riley North. Garner burst into mainstream fame and critical acclaim playing the role of Sidney Bristow in the classic action TV series "Alias" which ran for five seasons from 2001 to 2006. This led to superhero films "Daredevil"(2003) and "Elektra" (2005). However, since then, she stayed away from action films, starring mainly in unremarkable romances and dramas, until now. 

At 46, Garner is much older now, but she can still kick ass like she used to do, although the there were more shadows, more closeups and more quick cuts this time around. True to the formula, the means by which she killed the bad people who victimized her and her family had to be ultraviolent and explosive. Within five years, this simple banker / housewife gained unmatched survival skills to make her invincible and unbeatable going against an entire drug gang and the LAPD. Fans wanted it that way, and we got it. 

From the very first scene we already see her killing someone, before the flashback to five years ago followed. It was an strange choice for director Pierre Morel (who also directed "Taken" nine years ago) to have kept the precise way she cornered and killed the three primary gunmen off the screen. We only saw them hanging from the ferris wheel of the carnival where the murders happened. There would have been more gratification to see exactly HOW she did this all on her own.

Aside from the seemingly trivial mention of "peppermint" as the flavor of ice cream Carly chose before she was gunned down, it was quite a mystery for me why the entire movie was entitled this way. Anyhow, we may find out some time in the future, as the possibility for a sequel was left open at the end. 6/10.

Review of NAKALIMUTAN KO NANG KALIMUTAN KA: Heavy on the "Hugot"

September 25, 2018

Jaz was very devastated with the sudden disappearance of her boyfriend Migs the day after he proposed to marry her. Try as she may, Jaz could never move on from her shock and hurt at Mig's unexpected departure She even considered to undergo "heart replacement surgery" by a certain in-demand Dr. Rolex at the "Clinic of the Desperately Hurt" to forget her unendurable woes and recover her lost life.

To help Jaz move on, her best friend Kimpoy decided to bring her along to his vlogging trip to Bataan. Unbeknownst to Kimpoy, he brought Jaz to visit the same exact places (the Oriental Bataan Hotel, Sisiman Lighthouse, Five Fingers, the Ruined Bar) where she and Migs first met and fell in love a year ago. Instead of recovering, Jaz relived her happy memories with Migs, which further plunged her deeper in her sadness.

"Hugot" is the Filipino word to describe statements that carry deep emotional meaning, usually applied to a failed romantic relationship. The script of this whole movie is steeped in so much "hugot." Practically every line uttered by by the unceremoniously dumped Jaz was a major "hugot" line. Kimpoy also had his share of "hugot" lines as he nursed his ego hurt by a long unrequited love. One of the highlights of this film was Juan Miguel Severo delivering an impassioned freeverse "hugot" poem entitled "Wet Pillow" -- wet with tears, of course.

The beautiful love theme song of this film "Let Me Be the One" was written and originally recorded by pop balladeer Jimmy Bondoc in 2004. Like everything else, the lyrics of this song are also a bunch of eloquently painful "hugot" lines about letting a loved one go set to a gently heart-rending tune. In the film, we hear it sung first by Migs during a jamming session. We hear it again sung by Keiko Necesito to accompany scenes showing the events on the night Migs left Jaz. 

I know Alex Gonzaga as a vibrant comedienne on TV but we do not see her smile too much in this one, except in those happy flashback scenes. However despite this, Alex was still very funny in her exagerrated scenes where she was wallowing in self-pity. She was delivering all those "hugot" lines with a serious deadpan face, but still came across as a rib-tickling delight. There were times when all these emotional "feels" can get repetitive and tiresome, but Alex's charm can still win you over in any case, most of the time. 

Vin Abrenica was charming chap as Migs, and it was clear why Jaz fell head over heels for him. The audience was made to come up with a plausible reason why Migs did what he did because there was no scene clearly explaining his exact reason. Jerrold Napoles played a caring guy who simply could not get any girl to like him more than just a friend. The script directly made fun of his unattractive face and oily skin, but for me, there was clearly no chemistry between him and the girl of his dreams here.

This film was written and directed by Fifth Solomon, his feature film debut. Fifth first gained public attention when he and his twin brother Fourth joined Pinoy big Brother in 2014. He was noted for a controversial confession of being a bisexual, a fact that became a joke in the film. There were a number of PBB alumni in small roles, like Jason Gainza (as a janitor), Joj and Jai Agpangan (as Dr. Rolex assistants) and Loisa Andales (as herself). 

Candy Pangilinan played Dr. Rolex, who gleefully discussed for us the steps of the "Loved and Dumped" syndrome, namely: hoping for nothing, feeling alone in the world, feeling angry at the world and accepting your loss.  Some surprise cameos include Ruffa Mae Quinto (as the sexy but quarrelsome patient), Ricci Chan (as a job interviewer), Cai Cortez (the clinic endorser on TV) and Toni Gonzaga (as a tricycle driver). 

Knowing how romantic Filipinos are, this film and its plethora of mostly well-written "hugot" will definitely connect with its audience, especially those who, for one reason or the other, are not in a relationship. Maybe watching this film, seeing how absurd how getting stuck in misery over a lost love can be and getting a good laugh out of it might actually help "desperately hurt" romantics move on. 6/10. 

Review of THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS: Horological Hauntings

September 23, 2018

It was 1955. Ten-year-old Lewis Barnavelt went to live with his eccentric Uncle Jonathan in New Zebedee, Michigan after both his parents passed away suddenly. His uncle's house was a creepy old mansion which had unusual furniture and macabre decorations. It had countless clocks hanging all over its walls to mask the unbearable ticking of a clock hidden within one of its walls. As Lewis tried to fit into his new home and school, Lewis learned about the magical nature of his uncle, their neighbor Florence Zimmerman, and the late Isaac Izard, the former owner of the house who now wanted to come back from the dead.

At first, I thought this would be a fantasy film, like "A Wrinkle in Time" earlier this year (which almost caused me to give this one a miss). I was surprised that it turned out to be a HORROR film -- for kids! When the closing credits started to roll and I saw the name of Eli Roth as director, I was taken aback. Roth was notorious for his graphic horror films like "Hostel" (2005) and "The Green Inferno" (2013). But of course, Roth gave this one a kid-friendly thrills and gore, slimy and disgusting as kids love it. Even I enjoyed that scene with the attack of the evil Jack O'Lanterns with their bright orange goo they barfed out. 

The most Rated SPG (Strict Parental Guidance) horror scene was the cemetery scene where Lewis performed a necromantic occult blood ritual to impress a popular kid at school. That scary scene was executed to give young kids nightmares. Like the Harry Potter films, there were some fantastic beasts here too, such as the topiary lion who had poor toilet training. The rest of horror techniques Roth employed ranged from sudden little jump scares to very creepy life size doll scenes. 

With his perpetual naughty little boy personality, Jack Black is really a natural for these darker kiddy films, although his casting was not really too imaginative because of he already starred in a similar-veined "Goosebumps" just three years ago. With Jack Black in the cast, this might as well have been the sequel of that kiddie horror film, only that the real sequel "Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween" will still come out later on this year (without Black). Since "School of Rock" (2003), we know Black worked well with kids, and same here.

Owen Vaccaro played Lewis, a likeable little misfit with his Captain Midnight goggles and bow tie. He had to deal with the death of his parents and getting along with his wacky uncle, at the same time trying to make friends in a new school, and learning to unleash the magic within him. Vaccaro tends to overact in some scenes though, especially the crying scenes. 

Cate Blanchett I feared might be ill-fit for her role here as a stern but friendly witch, but of course the talented actress proved me wrong. She matched Black joke for joke in the comedy department, of course, with her trademark classy finesse. It was good to see Kyle MacLachlan again playing the sinister Isaac Izard, obsessed with world destruction. Renée Elise Goldsberry, Angelica Schuyler in "Hamilton" on Broadway, played Isaac's sneaky wife Selena, who had her own special witchy abilities. 

Overall, this was old-fashioned family-friendly horror fare (based on a 1973 children's book by John Bellairs) with modern CGI flourish (some effects were very good, some not as good). More jaded adults may find the proceedings on the corny side, but hey, the target audience are younger kids who will get a kick out of the (mostly) nifty magic, (generally) tame scares, and (silly) slapstick comedy. 7/10. 

Review of SEARCHING: Online Ordeal

September 21, 2018

Nowadays, we beleive that the internet is a miracle in keeping us in touch with everyone around us, even oceans apart. However, more and more it has been noted that this online communication is actually making relationships more distant and less personal. People are even messaging each other within the same house. After "Disconnect" (2013) and "Unfriended" (2014), there could never be enough cautionary tales about the internet.

David Kim is raising his teenage daughter Margot as a single parent since his wife Pam passed away. Since she left home to live in a dorm on campus, David made sure they kept regularly in touch via private messaging and video calls. One day, Margot suddenly never responded to any of David's messages. He frantically searched for any possible contacts for any leads. Failing to make any progress, he reported her missing with the police, with Detective Rosemary Vick assigned to his case.

The whole story was told via various messaging apps, home videos, online photo albums, video blogging sites, security cameras, smart phone, home computer and any other gadget that uses the internet. The film "Unfriended" (2014) did this technique first for a horror story about cyber-bullying victim getting even from beyond the grave. "Searching" isa basically a family drama about a missing child, but it might as well also be a horror film, especially for the parents watching.

I first knew Korean-American actor John Cho from his stupid Harry and Kumar films from a little over ten years ago. He's gotten more respectability playing Sulu in the rebooted Star Trek films. This role as David Kim is probably his most serious one to date. He had this harassed and stressed out appearance which was so fit for the role. We share his alarm and guilt for the things he never knew about his only daughter, and feel his anxiety throughout the seemingly futile search. 

The role of Margot was played by various child actresses at ages 5, 7, 9 and finally by Michelle La as a teenager. Cast here in her feature film debut, La mostly played it downbeat and aloof, as introvert teens are wont to be. The role of Detective Rosemary Vick was played by an actress also more well-known to me as a comedian -- Debra Messing, yes, that was Grace Adler from "Will & Grace". She was dead serious here in this role, and not immediately recognizable without her bright red hair and toothy smile.  

This film will make parents reflect on how well they know their children or not. Do we really know their friends and contacts online, or not? Do we know who to call when we lose contact with them? Even the best of kids may have their online secrets. In the film, Margot had been siphoning the monthly allowance meant for piano lessons into what seemed to be a secret bank account. Do we really know what our kids are doing online? Director Aneesh Chaganty did his work so well, such that watching this absorbing film became quite a harrowing experience for a parent like me. 8/10. 

Review of A SIMPLE FAVOR: Friendship Foul-ups

September 20, 2018

Perky dowdy mommy vlogger Stephanie Smothers and aloof glamorous PR director Emily Nelson were worlds apart in personality. However, the two hooked up and became friends because their little boys Miles and Nicky were best friends in school. One day, Emily called Stephanie to ask a simple favor to pick Nicky up from school because she was attending to an emergency at work and her husband Sean was in London. Emily never came back to retrieve her Nicky. Stephanie used her mommy vlog to ask her viewers' help to find Emily. 

In the past years, there had been similar suburban housewife mystery films coming out in cinemas based on best-selling novels. These were: "Gone Girl" (David Fincher, 2014) from the 2012 book by Gillan Flynn, and "The Girl on the Train" (Tate Taylor, 2016) from the 2015 book by Paula Hawkins. "A Simple Favor" (Paul Feig, 2018) was cut from the same fabric, as adapted from the 2017 book by Darcey Bell. 

Unlike the previous two films which were serious dramas, director Feig gives "A Simple Favor" a distinct sense of female-centric humor. This is not surprising since most of Feig's most memorable directorial jobs  -- namely "Bridesmaids" (2011), "The Heat" (2013), "Spy" (2015) and "Ghostbusters" (2016) -- involved women in rollicking fun action adventures. His two female lead characters here were so different from each other, yet seemingly clicked as friends. Both had major secrets to hide which further added flavor to the bubbly brew.

Anna Kendrick projected that cute annoying fussbudget vibe she always had that was right up the alley of Stephanie's personality. You just imagine her "Pitch Perfect" character Becca as a housewife Youtuber sharing household tips and tasty recipes, and your expectations won't be too far from what you actually see. She is one of those hyper-active mommies you see at your kids' schools who seem to lead a perfect life of milk and cookies.

Blake Lively, on the other hand, had an effortlessly classy, gorgeous, sexy, electric and mysterious screen presence even if Emily was just standing still up there. Even in a simple scene like when Stephanie was first invited into their big house, Emily started removing her blazer and later a fake collar and cuffs -- Lively was breathtaking to watch. No wonder Stephanie, Sean and everyone else, was irresistibly drawn to her.  

Henry Golding is fresh from his big screen debut in "Crazy Rich Asians", and he plays another crazy rich person here. Sean Townsend-Nelson was not expressly labelled as an Asian, but his son Nicky was played by an Asian kid Ian Ho. Golding was not even in the initial promotional posters of this film, but was just photoshopped in local posters following the huge success of "CRA." Golding radiated a good boy feeling about him. so you cannot believe he'd do anything bad, even if he already did.

I enjoyed the twisting and turning of this mystery-thriller. It was fun, dark and ruthless all the way as a new angle comes out one after the other, so you never can tell when or how it was going to end and that kept you hanging on. It did feel a bit overstretched towards the climax, and the ending was so over-the-top, but anyhow, these did not really affect my enjoyment of the film as a whole. 7/10. 

Review of THE PREDATOR (2018): Gore and Gags

September 20, 2018

I have to confess at the outset that this is the first film of the Predator film franchise that I have seen. I know that the first "Predator" (1987) starring Arnold Schwarzenegger was very popular but I was not able to see it (up to now), so I never got interested in watching any of the sequels in 1990 and 2010, with two "Alien vs. Predator" films between them in 2004 and 2007. I was surprised that they were reviving the franchise again this year, so I decided to finally go see what it was all about.

The film starts with a Predator spacecraft crashed on earth just where Army Ranger Quinn McKenna (Boyd Holbrook) was on a mission. He was able to shoot the Predator down and grab its armor, and mailed it to his home address in the US, where his ex-wife Emily (Yvonne Strahovsky) and son Rory (Jacob Tremblay) lived. 

Meanwhile, government agent Will Traeger (Sterling K. Brown) invited biologist Casey Bracket (Olivia Munn) to study the body of the unconscious Predator in a special facility. But since it is not dead, it was no surprise that it woke up, violently killed everyone in the lab (except Casey and Traeger of course), and set out to recover its lost armor. 

Boyd Holbrook and Olivia Munn were attractive lead stars and were good in their action scenes. Not sure how Munn's evolutionary biologist got her firearms training but she was gung-ho with them as the rest of the boys. They gave Sterling K. Brown a sinister twinkle in his eyes that made him look like a natural antagonist. 

I do not really know how the Predators (supposedly with human DNA in their genome) in this new sequel compared to the previous incarnations of Predators, so I cannot comment. There were even Predator dogs here which did not really matter too much in the action. However, this Shane Black film was crazy in two very different ways -- in terms of its high level of violence, and in terms of low level of comedy.

The blood and gore level of the kills of the evolved Predators was off the charts as innumerable cannon fodder extras were sliced in half, impaled into trees or walls, stabbed into the eyes, shot clean through the body or exploded into smithereens. People who love this type of extreme action will have a field day with the insanely imaginative ways they thought of how Predators could slaughter a poor hapless human being. 

On the other end, this film also had a silly streak with its raunchy offensive collection of jokes. These jokes were care of the rowdy bunch of captive soldiers that McKenna was grouped with -- Williams (Trevante Rhodes), Coyle (Keegan Michael Key), Baxley (Thomas Jane), Nettles (Augusto Aguilera) and Lynch (Alfie Allen). Key had all the wildest wisecracks. Jane used Tourette's syndrome to be ridiculous.  

To balance things off with some drama, there was the character of McKenna's autistic son Rory, played by the child actor Jacob Tremblay, who had previously wowed us with his previous roles in "Room" (2015) and "Wonder" (2017). Some hardcore action fans may not like having a child character in the story as it may dampen the savagery (not that it affected the ferocity here), but having Rory there sort of opened up the story of the franchise to more sequels in the future.  6/10.