Review of PWERA USOG: Salvation by Saliva

March 8, 2017

Among Filipino superstitions, a most curious one is "usog." This is supposed to be a curse imparted by a stranger who gives someone (usually a kid) a bad stare or an evil eye. This results in the victim to experience unexplained body malaise and fever, or stomach ache and vomiting. To counter this, the visitor is supposed to wet his fingertip with his saliva and touch it to the child's forehead in a cross pattern, saying "pwera usog" (or "to avoid usog"). 

Noted indie writer and director Jason Paul Laxamana tackles this interesting folk belief in his latest project -- his first foray into the horror genre.  Like his previous films like "Babagwa" (2013) and "Ang Magkakabaung" (2014), a good part of this film was also shot in his home province of Pampanga. 

Jean Cordero (Sofia Andres) is a bratty rich girl who enjoys making naughty prank videos with her close, similarly bratty friends Val (Cherise Castro) and Bobby (Albie Casino). One day, she convinces her level-headed ex-boyfriend Sherwin (Joseph Marco) to drive them out of town for a road trip. During a pitstop at an old abandoned building, the pals decide to play a cruel prank on a beggar woman Luna (Devon Seron) that went horribly wrong. From then on, Jean and her friends began to experience the wrath of a malevolent spirit causing a potent deadly "usog". 

The millennial lead characters in this movie Jean, Val and Bobby-- with their obsession with being viral on social media, their wanton disrespect for their parents, their overwhelmingly selfish egos, their arrogant, whiny American accents -- were all so annoying and maddening to watch! I cannot believe anyone sane and educated would ever even think of or actually doing that excessively sadistic prank they did. They really had the curse coming to them, and they certainly deserved their punishment.

The three generations of arbularyo (or folk healers) in the film were Magda (Erlinda Villalobos), Minda (Aiko Melendrez) and Quintin (Kiko Estrada). They are not related by blood, but by circumstance. I wonder how accurate to reality those arbularyo rites (the egg in the bottle, the circle of salt, the preventive amulets) were because I thought they were interesting. I got a great laugh about the gallon of liquid that the arbularyo poured on a severe usog victim, and that liquid was revealed to have been Magda and Minda's stored collection of their saliva!!! I'm sure that simply can't be true. LOL!

Aside from that gallon of spit gag, there were a lot more humorous moments throughout the film. The scene where Jean, Sherwin, Minda and Quintin were prepping for battle was hilarious. Joseph Marco was so funny when macho Sherwin was acting like a scaredy-cat during his ghost encounters. Because of her "burgis" ways, Sofia Andres was visually funny when she sat inside the circle of salt to initiate a fight with the ghost. Those ethereal catfights in the netherworld between Minda, and later Jean, against the diabolical soul of Catalina (Eula Valdez) were also quite a riot to behold.

"Pwera Usog" had all the Pinoy horror film essentials in there: eerie locations and production design, macabre musical score, gallons of blood and vomit, false alarms and jump scares, and of course, the ghostly witch makeup. It even had a pseudo-scientific explanation by a hammy-acting Dr. Michael Yu, neurologist. I think writer and director Laxamana did it on purpose that the film was not really an all-out serious horror film, and this worked in his favor. The sense of humor, intended or not, made this quite an entertaining film to watch. I may not have been truly spooked, but I sure had fun. 7/10. 

Review of T2 TRAINSPOTTING: Mellowed by Middle-Age

March 7, 2017

"Trainspotting" was a celebrated British film in 1996 which dealt about a gang of young heroin addicts living in the underbelly of Edinburgh, Scotland. This sometimes violent, sometimes disgusting, always frenetic film was directed by Danny Boyle with a screenplay written by John Hodge based on the book by Irvine Welsh.  It was one of the top 10 best British films of all time in the list released by the British Film Institute in 1999.  This new sequel "T2 Trainspotting" is set in real time twenty years after the events from the first "Trainspotting" film. 

A major act of betrayal by Mark "Rent Boy" Renton split up their gang. He left and moved to Amsterdam to make a new life for himself, while his friends all stagnated in Edinburgh. Pretty boy Simon "Sick Boy" Williamson remained on drugs and dabbled in blackmail. Fearsome hothead Francis "Franco" Begbie is serving a 25-year prison sentence. Simpleton Daniel "Spud" Murphy is helplessly wallowing in drug miseries as he is losing his wife and son. When Renton came back to Edinburgh after his 20 year estrangement, he would soon discover that his betrayal was not yet so easily forgotten by the friends he left behind 

Ewan McGregor, we are still very familiar with since he is a big movie star. The other guys are still very active actors, but more in British films than Hollywood, hence were not really as visible to me as McGregor. I know Jonny Lee Miller more as Angelina Jolie's first husband. The last big role I recall Robert Carlisle in was "The Full Monty" (1997). I don't remember Ewen Bremner in anything else. 

As Mark and Simon. McGregor and Miller both still look fit and able in the central dramatic roles, more mature, but still daring enough to run across a field nude and do a spontaneous piano-song number. Most of the violence was care of the manic Franco, still played with palpable menace by Carlisle, albeit now hampered by issues of sexual potency. Most of the comedy was care of the funny-faced Spud, still delightfully played by Bremner, albeit now tempered with issues of being an inadequate family man. 

Kelly MacDonald, who played the 15-year old schoolgirl Diane who gets involved with Renton in the first film, is back here as Atty. Diane Coulston, but this was practically only a cameo. The main female role is that of a Bulgarian prostitute Veronika who gets involved with all the guys, played with sultry rawness by Anjela Nedyalkova. 

As the cast became middle aged, the film itself also mellowed a lot from the explosive energy of the first film. Even the color palette and the musical score have also toned down significantly. While there were still sporadic bursts of action, violence, sex and drug abuse, this sequel is a more sedate and more thoughtful affair which concentrates more on the relationships of the four guys. 

Since the first "Trainspotting" brought director Danny Boyle into the big time, he has since already won an Oscar in Directing for "Slumdog Millionaire" in 2008.  The first film was so controversial with its very frank depiction of heroin addiction. There were bizarre and nightmarish scenes of a man crawling into a toilet bowl full of excrement, a dead infant crawling on the ceiling, among others. Now however, there were less of these shocking scenes. The direction in this sequel is more polished, even-keeled and sophisticated, in tune with the more mature outlook. As a plus, Boyle incorporated a number of memorable clips and lines ("Choose Life") from the previous film for fans to reminisce with. 

The main draw of this film for me was the nostalgia of seeing the four members of the old gang back together again, everyone 20 years older. Now, if you have no idea what the first "Trainspotting" was all about, you may not really understand this one very much.  Without that sense of nostalgia, this may just seem like any random action-drama film with weirdo characters barely understood because of their heavy Scottish accents. 

As for me, I liked this one because I know (though not exactly love) the first "Trainspotting" film. This sequel (also written by John Hodge based on the second book by Irvine Welsh entitled "Porno") gave me a satisfying story of what happened to its notable characters twenty years hence. Admittedly, this new film did not exactly break any new cinematic ground anymore like its bold predecessor, but it still triumphs with its own charms. 7/10. 

Review of LOGAN: Mutants in Mangled Misery

March 4, 2017

Hugh Jackman had been playing the Marvel character Wolverine for 17 years. He was in all 3 of the original X-Men films, as well as in the 3 reboot X-Men films. He also had his own trilogy, of which this one "Logan" is the final installment. He has also announced that this would be his final film as the savagely powerful, self-healing mutant with deadly claws in his knuckles. Honestly though, we really did not need to be convinced to watch this. 

It is 2029, mutants are already a dying race. Logan (aka James Howlett, aka Wolverine) is working as a limo chauffeur to make ends meet. He is looking much older now, his body weakened by the same adamantium that made him a deadly killer. He is constantly drowning his pain and misery in alcohol. He, along with the photophobic albino mutant Caliban, is taking care of Professor Charles X. Xavier, whose powerful mind had now been overtaken by senility and violent seizures. 

A mysterious female child named Laura had been thrust into Logan's care by a violent turn of circumstances, a child with more in common with him than he'd accept. As Logan rushes to deliver Laura far northward from Mexico to North Dakota to a mutant haven called Eden, robotically-enhanced mercenaries called the Reavers, aided by Logan's own angry clone X-24, were breathing down their necks to prevent them and the other mutant children from crossing over into Canada for safety. 

Hugh Jackman gave what could be a rare Best Actor award-deserving performance of a superhero. We knew him as Logan well from all his past films so we completely feel his suffering and misery here, and Jackman, in all his gnarled, leathery and angsty best. He is not healing well anymore, so we see him broken, vulnerable and mortal. No other actor can touch his definitive portrayal of this character anymore. As a bonus, Jackman also plays his younger wilder clone X-24 --so we also get to see him doubly berserk, furious and savage. 

Patrick Stewart merits a Best Supporting Actor award here in a Shakespearean portrayal of Prof. X, reminiscent of King Lear and his decrepit senescent madness, a piteous wretched shell of his former self. 12-year old child actress Dafne Keen gives a disturbingly intense performance as Laura, with feral bloody fight scenes other kids her age cannot even watch (legally, that is). She also nailed her quiet emotional scenes quite effectively. The villains played by Richard E. Grant (as Zander Rice, head mutant engineer) and Boyd Holbrook (as Pierce, leader of that Reavers) could have been written to be even more menacing.


Probably because this is already the last Wolverine film with Hugh Jackman, the director James Mangold really went all out in the action and fight scenes. We are finally shown in graphic detail the full extent of the damage what those adamantium claws can inflict on a hapless human body. From the very opening sequence with the car-jackers to the final encounter with the Reavers, heads and limbs were being chopped off, with blood and guts splattering around. This is the true uninhibited R-rated Wolverine as he was written in the comics, not the Rated PG we've seen in the considerably more child-friendly X-Men films. 

Overall, this is a compleat superhero movie for adults, technically solid  with excellent story, cinematography, film and sound editing, and visual effects. This is definitely not kid-stuff. The violence is over-the-top, vicious, brutal -- nothing held back. But this is as it should as that unbridled ferocity is the Wolverine's essential nature.  To make it more awesome, we have three Wolverines in this one -- so the slash-fest is three-fold! This is not for the faint of heart. At the same time in the midst of all this slice-and-dice gore, the deep emotional core is intact and potent. The tragedy of Logan cut deep into us fans, but we also recognize that this end is inevitable and necessary. 9/10. 

Review of A DOG'S PURPOSE: Reincarnations and Reunions

March 3, 2017

A dog movie is a distinct genre of its own. These are usually wholesome, usually sentimental family films about a child and an adorable dog he loves dearly. Quite a number of these films featuring all sorts of canine breeds had been made since the silents era to the present, both live action and animated form. Several of these canine stars became really famous, from Rin Tin Tin in the 1920s, to Lassie in the 1940s, Benji in the 1970s, and Beethoven in the 1990s.

This new film is unabashed in its sentimentality from the title and poster alone. You know there was going to be a cute Golden Retriever in there to tug at our heartstrings. We see the adventures of Bailey in the 1960s as beloved pet of Ethan Montgomery up to his teen years. Bailey was always with Ethan through his highs (meeting his girlfriend Hannah) and lows (his father's descent into alcoholism).

In a departure from other dog films, the second half of this film follows Bailey's soul in his subsequent reincarnations as Ellie, a heroic German Shepherd police dog, then as Tino, a feisty Welsh Corgi of a college girl, and finally as Buddy, a sad St. Bernard abandoned by his irresponsible owners. As Bailey goes from one incarnation to another, can he ever learn and achieve his real purpose of existence?

Again unlike most live action dog films, we get to hear the thoughts of Bailey (as well as Ellie, Tino and Buddy) via the voice of Josh Gad, who of course injected the character with his infectious sense of humor. As this film was told from Bailey's point of view, Ethan was portrayed lovingly, as how a loyal dog would regard his master -- by Bryce Gheisar, KJ Apa (the New Zealander actor who plays Archie on the current TV series "Riverdale") and veteran actor Dennis Quaid at different ages. 

As expected from the dog films we have seen before, there will be heartwarming scenes of dog and master bonding, as well as heartbreaking scenes of dogs saying goodbye. In this film of three dog reincarnations, there will of course be three scenes of dogs dying. If you've seen other dog films, you know one scene of a dog dying is tear-jerking enough. For me though, the scene which really made my tears well up was one of pure ecstatic joy. 

Respected Swedish director Lasse Hallström had similar themed films before in his long career: "My Life as a Dog" (1985) for which he received his first Oscar nomination for Best Director; and "Hachi: A Dog's Tale" (2009). The screenplay was by humorist W. Bruce Cameron and his wife Cathryn Michon based on Cameron's own 2010 novel. The release of this film was marred by news of animal abuse on the set, which were all fortunately proven to be false (unlike the local film "Oro"). 

Dog lovers of all ages will definitely be entertained by this film, enveloped by its love for man's best friend. The story of this film is wish-fulfillment for everyone who had that one beloved dog who went to heaven too soon. I do not have a dog now, but I recalled fondly my own special dog that I loved in my childhood. Who knows, maybe my dog and I could also come full circle again someday in the future. 7/10. 

Review of FRIEND REQUEST: Occult Online Obsession

March 3, 2017

Because of the immense popularity of social media these days, horror movies about the Internet are already being made. The most popular one so far is "Unfriended" (2015) (MY REVIEW) which was executed in an innovative way, as if we ourselves were looking into the computer screen ourselves using apps like Skype, Spotify and Facebook. This new film "Friend Request" elaborates on that same track. 

Laura Woodson is one of the most popular girls in campus, with more than 800 Facebook friends. Marina Mills, a reclusive classmate who hides under her hoodie with zero FB friends, sends Laura a friend request which she accepts. However, Marina turns out to be as creepy and obsessive as the dark artwork and videos she posts. When Marina commits suicide, Laura begins to experience nightmares, both online as well as in real life . 

Acting in this film is just basic and serviceable. Australian actress Alycia Debnam-Carey played Laura Woodson winsomely so we do empathize with her plight. William Moseley, better known as the dashing Peter Pevensie in the Narnia movies, played her medical student-boyfriend Tyler. Wide-eyed Connor Paolo played friend-zoned computer geek Kobe. Pale Liesl Ahlers played the lonely spooky Marina Mills. 

"Friend Request" uses the Internet and the Facebook app as a tool to perpetuate a very familiar horror film theme -- the vengeful psychotic loner. This angry rejected entity will then go on a series of killings, going through the list of supporting characters one by one until there is just the main character left. The victims here were terrorized by terrifying images they see online on their social media. Once they see it, they die a gruesome death.

Here, Marina, or whatever is possessing her, was able to worm her way into the very source code of Facebook to render any attempt to delete unwanted posts, deactivate unwanted accounts or unfriend unwanted people as errors. It is too bad that director Simon Verhoeven and his co-writers did not exert effort to try to venture an interesting explanation where these online powers originated, just simply ascribing them to some preternatural evil.

Aside from the supernatural chills and thrills, these films also serve as cautionary tales about the real dangers that lurk around in the World Wide Web and its various apps. The terrorizing effect of incriminating photos or videos posted online are also explored here, like it was in "Unfriended," "Disconnect" and even in "Rings." Social media makes it so easy now to ruin a person's reputation by a mere click of a button. 

I bet we will see more of this type of horror in films to come. This one is not too bad, the ending twist was actually good.  But I wish they'd come up with better jump scares and fresher stories than what we see in this one. 4/10.

Review of RAILROAD TIGERS: Homespun Heroics

February 23, 2017

We just watched a new Jackie Chan movie just about ten days ago entitled "Kung Fu Yoga" (MY REVIEW), and now here comes another new Jackie Chan movie in the cinemas. Fans of Jackie Chan really can't get enough of him. He is not running out of viable film projects even if he is already in his 60s. 

The setting is 1941 during the Japanese invasion of China during World War II. Railroad worker Ma Yuan and his group of village folk friends daringly undertake to complete the unfinished mission of a young Chinese soldier who was killed. Using nothing else but their wits, they plan to blow up a critically important bridge which serves as the passage for Japanese weapons and ammunition to reach their frontlines. 

Jackie Chan plays Ma Yuan, the oldest and the leader of the rebel group. This is more of an ensemble film so there was not much chance for Jackie to showcase his martial arts skills and stunts here. Jackie's son Jaycee Chan got significant exposure as Rui Ge, the driver of the trains. Actors Wang Kai, who played a sharpshooting ex-bodyguard Fan; and Hiroyuki Ikeuchi, who played main antagonist Yamaguchi, both cut dashing figures and had a strong screen presences. Ex-EXO member Huang Zitao, who played the young tailor Da Hai, also got to figure in some gunfights and even sing.

There were very many other minor characters so it can get confusing because we barely know anything about them except their distinctive faces. But anyhow it is sufficient to simply know distinguish the good guys and the bad guys to enjoy the film. 

I liked the historical setting of the film with its admirable show of unselfish patriotism among the Chinese characters. The Japanese soldiers were all portrayed as one-dimensional sadistic buffoons, and were made the butt of a lot of crazy violent jokes. Only Jackie Chan can get away with that sort of dark comedy. 

I liked the elaborate action sequences in the film, like that one where Ma and Rui were rescued from their cage, and of course, that whole final train heist sequence with all the tanks and bombs, even though there were obvious computer-generated effects. I liked some of the great-looking locations, especially the riverside scene with those picturesque tall grasses, which were used to best effect. I also liked the animated cards used to introduce characters, set up situations and illustrate elaborate plans. 

The print I saw in the movie house was dubbed in English, so a lot of humor got lost. I suppose there was supposed to have been Chinese dialog and Japanese dialog leading to misunderstandings due to lousy translators. However, since we hear both sides speaking in English, it did not make much sense that they were not getting what the other said, so these jokes failed to fly. 

Director Ding Sheng was also Jackie Chan's director in the sober "Police Story 2013" (MY REVIEW), which I thought was excellent. For this one though, I personally felt it was a pity that they had to resort to cheap childish comedy cliches which diffused the dramatic tension in the action scenes. Ding did not even spare the climactic fight scenes from juvenile foolishness, which I thought was a bad idea. I am okay with the lighthearted treatment of "Tigers," but Ding should have reined in the slapstick. 6/10. 

How I Would Rank This Year's OSCAR BEST PICTURE NOMINEES (2017) & MY OSCAR BETS

February 26, 2017

With the Oscar Awards coming tomorrow February 27, morning Manila time, it is time for me now to make my fearless Oscar predictions.  Here is how I would rank this year's 9 nominees for Oscar Best Picture based on my own opinions when I first saw these films.  

1. LA LA LAND: 9/10

14 nominations: Best Picture, Director, Original Screenplay, Actor, Actress, Cinematography, Costume and Make Up, Film Editing, Art Direction, Musical Score, Original Song (2 nods), Sound Editing, Sound Mixing.

Mia Dolan is an aspiring actress and writer, who works as a barista in a cafe inside the Warner Brothers lot. Sebastian Wilder is all about jazz, being a down-an-out but talented jazz pianist and jazz memorabilia collector. After a rough start, the two eventually fall in love. Their relationship would face challenges as their respective careers each get opportunities to prosper.

The look and the music were really what made this film special. I really liked it a lot, and I was ready to watch it all over again (which I did). I am looking forward to its win as Best Picture. (MY FULL REVIEW)


2. ARRIVAL 8/10

8 nominations: Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Production Design, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

One day, twelve unusual bowl-shaped alien spacecraft appeared in different locations all across the planet. One of them hovered over Montana in the USA near a military camp where linguistics professor Louise Banks was brought in to try and establish communication with the two "heptapod" creatures on board. Louise decodes the strange, seemingly random circular "messages" the aliens send. Meanwhile, Louise is also being unsettled by dreams with her and her daughter.

Its non-linear storytelling, glacial pace, moody look and breathy soundscape may not be for everyone, but I thought its important message about communication that transcends space and time is well worth the 2-hours it takes to watch this film. (MY FULL REVIEW)

3. HIDDEN FIGURES 8/10

3 nominations: Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Supporting Actress

It was 1961 and Segregation was still the norm. Three African American women, math prodigy Katherine Goble and her friends Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan, bucked the system and got jobs in a research division for NASA. Goble eventually got assigned to compute rocket flight trajectories for the Space Task Group.

This is currently the biggest box-office hit among the nine Best Picture nominees. It is a more traditionally-executed mainstream feature that is easy for audiences from all walks of life to understand and appreciate. The story being told is very interesting (history of the space race) and inspirational (race and gender-wise). (MY FULL REVIEW)


4. MANCHESTER BY THE SEA 8/10

6 nominations: Best Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay

Lee Chandler was a reclusive, ill-tempered man who worked as a janitor in an apartment building. He was called back to his hometown of Manchester-by-the-Sea because his brother Joe had a heart attack and died. Lee was unsettled when he was named as guardian of Joe's teenage son, Patrick.  Lee still could not bear living back in Manchester because of a major family tragedy that haunted and scarred him forever.

This film about the life of a major loser is very depressing and gloomy. The story did not really have a big emotional climax before it ended. The pace was slow and even-keeled. Many people may find this film pointless and boring.  But for me, it cast a mesmerizing spell that engaged me to the very end. (MY FULL REVIEW)


5. FENCES 7/10

4 nominations: Best Picture, Actor, Supporting Actress,Adapted Screenplay

The setting is Pittsburgh in the 1950s. Garbage man Troy Maxson is married for 18 years to his self-sacrificing wife Rose. They have a teenage son together named Cory with whom Troy is constantly at odds. Their marriage itself will later be threatened by a dark secret that cannot be kept hidden anymore.

The awesome acting of the cast is really the best aspect of this film. Denzel Washington became Troy Maxson, embracing all his character's sins and flaws, no matter how despicable. Davis matches Washington's passion scene for scene that they're together. You can sense the theater roots of this film when you hear the overly colorful language and the loud acting styles, but the cast manages to make it all feel so real and relatable. (MY FULL REVIEW)

6. LION 7/10

6 nominations: Best Picture, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Music (Original Score)

Little Indian boy Saroo was looking for his brother Guddu at a busy train station. Unexpectedly, the empty train he boarded began to move and he was not able to get off until it stopped on the other side of the country in Calcutta. Saroo was taken in by an orphanage and was adopted by Australian couple John and Sue Bierly. Twenty years later, Saroo searches for his roots.

The first part of this movie was sweeping and epic, taking us on a train trip across India. The performance of the little child actor Sunny Pawar as young Saroo was so affecting. With his innocent face and imploring eyes, we all wanted to reach out across the screen to help him out. The second half of the movie with Dev Patel as adult Saroo was more confined and sedate, since most of the action happened while he was surfing the net. The conclusion, while expected, was built up very well for full emotional effect. (MY FULL REVIEW)


7. HACKSAW RIDGE 7/10

6 nominations: Best Picture, Director, Actor, Film Editing, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

Desmond Doss was not a typical soldier. Being a devout Seventh Day Adventist, he refused to handle a rifle or train on Saturdays. Anyhow, he persisted with his military training despite the bullying of his superiors and fellow trainees. He served as a combat medic during the Battle of Okinawa during World War II.  

The second half was an immersive viewing experience right in the middle of the war zone. These scenes were graphically bloody, brutal and horrifying to watch. Recall that Normandy Landing scene from "Saving Private Ryan" and extend it for 30 minutes, and then some more. It was breathtakingly excessive violence in true Mel Gibson style. (MY FULL REVIEW)

8. HELL OR HIGH WATER 7/10

4 nominations: Best Picture, Supporting Actor, Original Screenplay, Film Editing

Serious and pensive Toby Howard and his reckless ex-con brother Tanner launch into a spree of bank robberies, mainly branches of the Texas Midlands Bank. They launder the money at a casino outside the state in order to get a check to be used in paying off the bank mortgage of their family ranch. Meanwhile, senior Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton is hot on their trail, hoping to catch them before his retirement.

Writer Taylor Sheridan's script for "Hell" is very cleverly plotted with a lot of interesting details given for each of the main characters. Overall, the film is really very well done, but I think though it is best watched without knowing that it is an Oscar Best Picture nominee. (MY FULL REVIEW)


9. MOONLIGHT 6/10

8 nominations: Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Music (Original Score)

The story about a boy Chiron growing up in a tough neighborhood in Miami with his drug-addicted mother Paula and his close friend Kevin. His life story was told in three chapters: as a young boy nicknamed Little, as a teenager under his own name Chiron, and as a hardened drug-dealer code-named Black. 

While I was watching the movie, I confess that was not really impressed with the story and the technical aspects. However as I was reflecting on the film while writing this review, I am eventually seeing several reasons why people may like this, realizing in retrospect that this story was actually well-told. (MY FULL REVIEW)


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My bets for each of the other categories:

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE: Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Nominees: ; Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge; Ryan Gosling, La La Land; Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic; Denzel Washington, Fences

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE: Emma Stone, La La Land
Nominees: Isabelle Huppert, Elle; Ruth Negga, Loving; Natalie Portman, Jackie; Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins (My Review)

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE: Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Nominees: Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water; Lucas Hedges, Manchester by the Sea; Dev Patel, Lion; Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE: Viola Davis, Fences
Nominees: Naomie Harris, Moonlight; Nicole Kidman, Lion; Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures; Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM: Zootopia
Nominees: Kubo and the Two Strings (My Review); Moana (My Review); My Life as a Zucchini; The Red Turtle

CINEMATOGRAPHY: La La Land
Nominees: Arrival; Lion; Moonlight; Silence

COSTUME DESIGN: La La Land
Nominees: Allied (My Review), Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (My Review); Florence Foster Jenkins; Jackie 

DIRECTING: La La Land
Nominees: Arrival; Hacksaw Ridge; Manchester by the Sea; Moonlight

FILM EDITING: La La Land
Nominees: Arrival; Hacksaw Ridge; Hell or High Water; Moonlight

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: The Salesman (My Review)
Nominees: Land of Mine, A Man Called Ove, Tanna, Toni Erdmann

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING: Star Trek Beyond (My Review)
Nominees: A Man Called Ove; Suicide Squad (My Review)

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE): La La Land
Nominees: Jackie; Lion; Moonlight; Passengers (My Review)

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG): "City Of Stars" from La La Land
Nominees: "Audition (The Fools Who Dream)" from La La Land; "Can’t Stop The Feeling" from Trolls (My Review); "The Empty Chair" from Jim: The James Foley Story; "How Far I’ll Go" from Moana

PRODUCTION DESIGN: La La Land
Nominees: Arrival; Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; Hail, Caesar!; ; Passengers

SOUND EDITING: Hacksaw Ridge
Nominees: Arrival; Deepwater Horizon (My Review); La La Land; Sully (My Review)

SOUND MIXING: Arrival
Nominees: ; Hacksaw Ridge; La La Land; Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (My Review); 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

VISUAL EFFECTS: The Jungle Book (My Review)
Nominees: Deepwater Horizon; Doctor Strange (My Review); Kubo and the Two Strings; Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY): Arrival
Nominees: Fences; Hidden Figures; Lion; Moonlight

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY): Manchester by the Sea
Nominees: Hell or High Water; La La Land; The Lobster; 20th Century Women

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POST- OSCAR SHOW UPDATE: 

Acting awardees Ali, Stone, Davis and Affleck pose with their Oscars.

(Photo credit: USA Today)

Of these predictions of mine, i got 13 correct out of 20.

MY CORRECT PREDICTIONS:

Best Supporting Actor: MAHERSHALA ALI
Best Supporting Actress: VIOLA DAVIS
Best Foreign Language Film: THE SALESMAN from Iran
Best Animated Feature: ZOOTOPIA
Best Production Design: LA LA LAND
Best Visual Effects: JUNGLE BOOK
Best Cinematography: LA LA LAND
Best Musical Score: LA LA LAND
Best Original Song: CITY OF STARS
Best Original Screenplay: MANCHESTER BY THE SEA
Best Director: DAMIEN CHAZELLE
Best Actor: CASEY AFFLECK
Best Actress: EMMA STONE

MY WRONG PREDICTIONS:

Best Makeup: SUICIDE SQUAD (Who would have guessed this?!)
Best Costume: FANTASTIC BEASTS (OK. But I preferred an "Allied" surprise.)
Best Sound Editing: ARRIVAL
Best Sound Mixing: HACKSAW RIDGE (Got the two films right, but in wrong categories!)
Best Film Editing: HACKSAW RIDGE (Those intense graphic battle scenes!)
Best Adapted Screenplay: MOONLIGHT (OK. But I still think "Arrival" is better.)


And, after another unreal Steve Harvey-Pia Wurtzbach moment...

Best Picture: MOONLIGHT! (I could not have called it more wrong. Haha!)

Review of MOONLIGHT: Defined by Drugs

February 2017

The story about a boy Chiron growing up in a tough neighborhood in Miami with his drug-addicted mother Paula and his close friend Kevin. His life story was told in three chapters: as a young boy nicknamed Little, as a teenager under his own name Chiron, and as a hardened drug-dealer code-named Black. 

The synopsis did not interest me. The topic felt too familiar. However, because of its buzz as an Oscar contender, I still went ahead to give it a chance. It earned 8 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. At the 74th Golden Globe Awards, the film won Best Motion Picture – Drama, and that meant something.

Upon watching it with all these big expectations, the film for me was good but I could not really call it spectacular. I do not get all the awards attention it is getting. Maybe it is simply the subject matter that did not really appeal to me at all. The cinematography, editing and musical score were nominated, but these seemed basic and unremarkable to me. 

The actors who played Chiron especially as child and teenager were very raw and realistic. They looked like actual kids from the wrong side of the tracks, and seemed like they were not actors at all. I really liked the child actor Alex Hibbert most of all. He conveyed very well the innocence, the wariness, the vulnerability and the disillusionment of a child in his situation. Ashton Sanders had the tough job of portraying Chiron in his tumultuous adolescence. Trevante Rhodes in the role of adult Chiron had the easiest role of the three.

The character of Chiron's best friend Kevin is very interesting guy as written, mysterious as to his real motivations behind his support. He was also played by three actors in different ages in each of the three parts, all with different challenges, just like the three actors portraying Chiron. These actors were Jaden Piner as Child Kevin, Jharrel Jerome as Teen Kevin and André Holland as Adult Kevin.

Mahershala Ali was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for the role of Juan, a character from the first chapter of the film only and he is actually buzzed to win. I felt his performance did not really demand much intensity nor depth at first, until he came up with that quietly emotional final scene of his around his dinner table. Ali's kind face, pithy lines and warm chemistry with the Hibbert made him come across convincingly as the ideal father figure to a misguided boy.

Naomie Harris has a much showier role as Chiron's flawed mother Paula whom we descend into the hell of drug addiction. Harris was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her efforts here. She is very good in her portrayal, but for me, there is nothing much she added to this common character of a selfish druggie mother. 

While I was watching the movie, I confess that was not really very impressed with the story the technical aspects. As I was reflecting on the film while writing this review, I am eventually realizing several reasons why people may like this. I see in retrospect that this story of how a man is shaped by the people around him while growing up was actually well-told. However, the topics tackled did not interest me. 6/10.

Review of FENCES: Faults of a Father

February 2017

"Fences" was first a play written back in 1983 by American playwright August Wilson. During its Broadway debut in 1987, it won the Tony Award for Best Play, Best Director, Best Actor (James Earl Jones) and Best Actress in a Featured Role (Mary Alice). It had a very successful revival in 2010, which earned 10 Tony nominations, and won three for Best Revival of a Play, Best Actor in a Play (Denzel Washington), and Best Actress in a Play (Viola Davis).

Denzel Washington directs himself and his theater co-star Davis in this feature film version of this play.  Mykelti Williamson, Stephen Henderson, and Russell Hornsby also reprise their roles from the 2010 production. It has since earned four Oscar nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor (Washington), Best Supporting Actress (Davis), and Best Adapted Screenplay (posthumously for August Wilson). 

Most of the awards it had taken home to date belong to its two stars. Washington had won the SAG for Best Actor, and is thus in tight contention for the Oscar also. Davis had so far won the Golden Globe, SAG Award, BAFTA, and Critics Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress, and is already considered a lock to win the Oscar as well in her category.

The setting is Pittsburgh in the 1950s. Garbage man Troy Maxson is married for 18 years to his self-sacrificing wife Rose. They have a teenage son together named Cory with whom Troy is constantly at odds. Troy was blocking Cory's football career because he was himself a frustrated baseball player in his youth. Their marriage itself will later be threatened by a dark secret that cannot be kept hidden anymore.

The titular "Fence" literally refers to the fence Troy had long been working on in his backyard to keep the devil out of his house. But as the film went on, you can sense so many symbolic fences being built by the characters to form their own little enclosures around them both to keep certain things out and to keep certain things in. 

Denzel Washington became Troy Maxson, embracing all his character's sins and flaws, no matter how despicable these were. Washington delivers his over-the-top lines with such natural verve, no artificiality. Washington's acting style here is directly in contrast with that of his main Oscar rival Casey Affleck in "Manhattan by the Sea". Affleck's attack is purely internal as his character puts on a cool front. On the other hand, Washington's acting is overt but you can still feel his pain inside.

Viola Davis is clearly not Supporting Actress here as her Oscar nomination and other awards labelled her. She should really contending for Best Actress as her character Rose is onscreen practically the same amount of time as Troy. The film talks about their lives as husband and wife. Davis matches Washington's passion scene for scene that they're together. Even her quieter moments brim with deep emotion. We love her Rose as much as we hate Washington's Troy. 

The awesome acting of the cast is really the best aspect of this film. You can sense the theater roots of this film when you hear the overly colorful language and loud acting, but the cast still manages to make it feel so real and relatable. 7/10. 

Review of RINGS: Summoned by Samara

February 22, 2017

The original 1998 Japanese horror film "Ringu,"directed by Hideo Nakata, adapted from the novel Ring by Kôji Suzuki, became a pop culture phenomenon. Its main character, the vengeful ghost Sadako, with her long black hair covering her face as she crawled out of a well on video and out of the TV to kill her victims, became a cult icon recognized, feared and parodied to this day. 

In 2002, Hollywood produced its own version of this film, called "The Ring" directed by Gore Verbinski, starring Naomi Watts. For this American version, the name Sadako became Samara Morgan, which, for me, lost some horror points already. But the critics and public loved it. For the 2005 sequel, "The Ring Two", they even got Hideo Nakata himself to direct, but the reviews were considerably poorer. 

I was very surprised to learn that after 12 years, there will be yet another Ring sequel this year called "Rings." I then learned that this film was supposed to have been released way back September 2015, but its showing had been pushed back three times until it ended up only being released this month. That did not sound too promising, but I wanted to see where they were taking this mythology.

Julia is alarmed that her boyfriend Holt had not been calling her from his college. When she went to look for him, she discovered that he had taken part in an experiment conducted by his professor about watching a certain cursed videotape which threatened to kill the watcher after seven days if he was not able to make a copy and make another person look at it. Since Holt's seven days was already running out, Julia decides to watch the video for herself to save him, putting herself next on the line to be killed unless she finds a way to break Samara's curse.

There are no A-list actors on the cast. Do not expect too much acting-wise. Matilda Lutz cannot convince us that her character Julia was that brave to do the things she did, like enter an empty tomb, or go down an abandoned flooded church basement, or confront the suspected killer all by herself. As Holt, male lead Alex Roe was just Julia's pretty consort, nothing more than that. He played the loyal boyfriend but was not really there in much of Julia's daring investigative escapades. 

One of the only two actors whose names I recognized is Johnny Galecki who played Holt's Biology professor Gabriel Brown. He is a egotistical jerk who started that video experiment among his students to save his own hide in the guise of scientific inquiry. Imagine him as his "Big Bang Theory" character Leonard, only totally and seriously demented. 

The other is Vincent D'Onofrio who played the role of the burly blind man at the cemetery, Galen Burke, who seemed to know a lot about Samara but is not letting on. Being blind, there was a time there when this character was involved in a suspenseful situation very much like that in "Don't Breathe" (2016).

Spanish director F. Javier Gutierrez stuck to the muted palette with that distinctive bluish green filter pervading the screen. Samara's horror is not scary like before anymore, since we already know what she does when she comes out of that well. Gutierrez had to come up with other ways to scare us, mainly by jump scares with startling sound cues. With the update in technology, Samara can now reside in an mp3 file. Copying and sharing does not seem too difficult anymore as well.


I do not get the reason why Julia was different from the other people who watched the video. Why was she the one who seemed to have been specifically chosen by Samara to liberate her? Why was Julia the one who received additional images in the video she copied, providing her several clues as to where Samara was buried? If the reason was mentioned, I did not catch it. 

I think fans of the original Ring will still find that this sequel stayed loyal to the lore, further unearthing another angle to explore, that of Samara's real parents. This may be interesting for the duration of the film, but will ultimately be forgettable in the long run. Just like the VHS tape which she originally inhabited, I think Samara/ Sadako already had her time to scare us fifteen years or so ago. Any more efforts to exhume her, like this one, will just prove needless and unproductive. 4/10. 

Review of HIDDEN FIGURES: Inspirational Intellect and Integrity

February 2017

"Hidden Figures" is a film that recounts the largely-unheralded contributions of African-American women at the NASA at the height of the space race in the 1960s. It was directed and co-written by Theodore Melfi based on Margot Lee Shetterly's biographical book of the same title. It has been nominated for three Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Spencer. Its chances to win Best Picture is boosted by its strong box-office showing and its SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

It was 1961 and Segregation was still the norm. Three African American women, math prodigy Katherine Goble and her friends Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan, bucked the system and got jobs in a research division for NASA. Goble eventually got assigned to compute rocket flight trajectories for the Space Task Group, where she worked hard to gain the confidence of her boss Al Harrison. Meanwhile, Jackson pursued an engineering degree and Vaughan figured out the complex IBM computer systems. 

Taraji P. Henson leads the cast as Katherine Goble, a mathematician who proved that sheer talent can still shine through serious adversity with dedication and hard work. Ms. Goble had to work under oppressive conditions and attitudes, including having to run 20 minutes to a colored bathroom all the way on the other side of the complex just to use the toilet. Henson gave such a powerful and empowering performance here. I was surprised was snubbed for Best Actress consideration at the Oscars. 

Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer (for "The Help") did get Oscar notice again this year. Her turn as Dorothy Vaughan, a responsible secretary taking on supervisorial duties, had sass and vigor, but for me, this is a performance typical of her. Janelle Monáe played Mary Jackson as a pretty and perky woman who aspired to become an engineer despite it being a white male dominated career option. 

It was good to see Kevin Costner in the role of Space Task Group director Al Harrison (a fictional composite character, not an actual person) who did not allow race to get in the way of recognizing ability and effort. His scene with the "colored bathroom" sign packed a big statement. Jim Parsons basically played head engineer Paul Stafford as his signature snooty Big Bang Theory character Sheldon Cooper. 

A very mature-looking Kirsten Dunst played the icy cold office supervisor Vivian Mitchell. Glen Powell played a very charismatic and young-looking pioneer astronaut John Glenn. Current Best Supporting Actor favorite Mahershala Ali (for "Moonlight") is also here as Katherine's suitor, mild-mannered soldier Jim Johnson.

"Hidden Figures" is currently the biggest box-office hit among the nine Best Picture nominees. It is a more traditionally-executed mainstream feature that is easy for audiences from all walks of life to understand and appreciate. The story being told is very interesting (I enjoy watching well-told historical films) and inspirational (race-wise and gender-wise). The story-telling style is conventional but engaging. The ensemble award it received from SAG is a surprise but well-deserved. But saying that it will parlay that big SAG win to a Best Picture award over "La La Land" may be too much to wish for. 8/10.