Green Zone

Genre: Action / War

Language: English

Director: Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Ultimatum)

Cast: Matt Damon (Invictus), Greg Kinnear (Baby Mama), Amy Ryan (Changeling)

Runtime: 115 minutes

Plot:

During the U.S.-led occupation of Baghdad in 2003, Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller and his team of Army inspectors were dispatched to find weapons of mass destruction believed to be stockpiled in the Iraqi desert. Rocketing from one booby-trapped and treacherous site to the next, the men search for deadly chemical agents but stumble instead upon an elaborate cover-up that inverts the purpose of their mission. Spun by operatives with intersecting agendas, Miller must hunt through covert and faulty intelligence hidden on foreign soil for answers that will either clear a rogue regime or escalate a war in an unstable region. And at this blistering time and in this combustible place, he will find the most elusive weapon of all is the truth.

Watched the movie on 14 Mar afternoon @ AMK Hub with Sylvia.

ah-deng says: 4 / 5 Matt Demon's acting has always been very convincing. From secret agent, commercial spy, rugby player to cheater, he never fails to display remarkable acting skills. This time round, he has promoted from Private Ryan to Chief Miller, someone who uncovers the truth behind the lies for the rebuilding of the new Iraq. I'm not sure about the story's authenticity, but it is definitely a movie not to be missed.

Alice In Wonderland 3D

Genre: Fantasy Adventure

Language: English

Director: Tim Burton (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)

Cast: Mia Wasikowska (Amelia) ,Johnny Depp (The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus), Anne Hathaway (Valentine's Day), Helena Bonham Carter (Terminator Salvation)

Runtime: 109 minutes

Plot:

Nineteen-year-old Alice is attending party at a lavish country estate when she sees a white rabbit with a pocket watch dart into the bushes. Curious, she follows the rabbit to an enormous tree, and tumbles down a hole that takes her to Underland, a strange world inhabited by anthropomorphic creatures in search of someone to save them from the dreaded Red Queen, who has assumed control of the kingdom by decapitating anyone who dares disagree with her. According to a scroll detailing a historical timeline of Underland -- including events that have not yet taken place -- it is Alice who will set the kingdom free by defeating the Jabberwocky, a powerful dragon-like creature under the control of the Red Queen. But is this Alice the same Alice who appears in the scroll? While some of the creatures of Underland have their doubts, the Mad Hatter and his friends are certain she's the same girl who previously visited them years ago. When the Red Queen kidnaps the Mad Hatter, Alice attempts to free her friend and locate the one weapon with the power to slay the Jabberwocky, thereby restoring the White Queen to the throne, and bringing peace back to Underland.

Watched the movie on 13 Mar night @ Cathay Cineleisure with Sylvia.

ah-deng says: 2½ / 5 The movie is colourful - the 3D animation, the costumes, the make-up and the backdrop. The story wasn't captivating even though the cast was good. So I think only the 3D effect was worth watching for. Nevertheless, Abosolom the Caterpillar, voiced by Alan Rickman, left me impression. His lazy voice suited the Caterpillar very much.

82nd Annual Academy Awards

The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, honored the best films of 2009. The event took place March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

And the winners of the major awards are:

Best Picture
The Hurt Locker - Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, Producers

Directing

The Hurt Locker - Kathryn Bigelow

Actor in a Leading Role
Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

Actress in a Leading Role

Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

Actor in a Supporting Role
Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Actress in a Supporting Role

Mo’Nique - Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire

I'm extremely happy that Hurt Locker beat Avatar, claiming Best Picture & Director. This is even more special since the director is female and the day of the ceremony was the International Women's day.

Dear John

Genre: Romance / Drama
Language: English

Director: Lasse Hallstrom (Hachiko: A Dog's Story)

Cast: Channing Tatum (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra), Amanda Seyfried (Jennifer's Body), Richard Jenkins (Burn After Reading)
Run Time: 108 minutes

Plot:

Savannah Curtis was on spring break when she first met John Tyree while he was home on temporary leave. For the smitten soldier, it was practically love at first sight. Though the love letters that Savannah sent John were one of the only things that kept him going over the course of the next seven years, when each deployment seemed more treacherous than the last, those loving and heartfelt correspondences would ultimately yield consequences that neither the brave soldier nor his one true love could have ever foreseen.

Watched the movie on 27 Feb night @ Cathay Cineleisure with Sylvia.

ah-deng says: 2½ / 5 Who would expect the ending of such a movie to end that way? All I could conclude is that the cast were good but story wasn't, or could be better. Not sure about the original novel but the movie is definitely a poor adaptation example. The only reason the movie was able to knock Avatar off is probably all movie-goers had watched it!

From Paris With Love

Genre: Action

Language: English

Director: Pierre Morel (Taken)

Cast: John Travolta (The Taking of Pelham 123), Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (The Children of Huang Shi)

Runtime: 92 minutes

Plot:

A personal aide to the U.S. Ambassador in France, James Reese has an enviable life in Paris and a beautiful French girlfriend, but his real passion is his side job as a low-level operative for the CIA. All James wants is to become a bona fide agent and see some real action. So when he's offered his first senior-level assignment, he can't believe his good luck - until he meets his new partner, special agent Charlie Wax. A trigger-happy, wisecracking, loose cannon who's been sent to Paris to stop a terrorist attack, Wax leads James on a white-knuckle shooting spree through the Parisian underworld that has James praying for his desk job.

Watched the movie on 25 Feb night @ AMK hub with Sylvia.

ah-deng says: 3 / 5 The 1st impression was, is this a copy of 20 years ago Hong Kong Blockbuster, whereby Chow Yuen Fatt always carried countless pistols and can predict where to shoot baddies. I started to wonder if the Hollywood has run out of better ideas. Then I realised the director directed Taken, all the more I was disappointed because Taken was definitely better compared to this. The plus point of the movie is probably the amount of action / bombing, the twist of the ending and the hottest topic in News these days.

2010 BATFA

The 63rd British Academy Film Awards hosted by the British Academy of film and Television Arts, took place on 21 February 2010 and honored the best films of 2009. And the winners this year:

BEST FILM
THE HURT LOCKER - Karthryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier, Greg Shapiro

DIRECTOR

THE HURT LOCKER - Karthryn Bigelow

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
THE HURT LOCKER - Mark Boal

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
UP IN THE AIR - Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner

ANIMATED FILM
UP - Pete Docter

LEADING ACTOR

COLIN FIRTH - A Single Man

LEADING ACTRESS

CAREY MULLIGAN - An Education

SUPPORTING ACTOR
CHRISTOPH WALTZ - Inglourious Basterds

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
MO'NIQUE - Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

The Hurt Locker

Genre: Action/Drama/ War
Language: English
Director: Kathryn Bigelow (K-19: The Widowmaker)
Cast: Jeremy Renner (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford), Anthony Mackie (Eagle Eye), Brian Geraghty (The Guardian)
Runtime: 131minutes

Plot: THE HURT LOCKER is an intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat. When a new sergeant, James takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn and Eldridge by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

Watched the movie on 19 Feb @ Cathay Cineleisure with Sylvia

ah-deng says: 4½ / 5 I missed the 1st run last year, was glad I managed to catch it again when it re-release again. Definitely a movie not to be missed by war movie lovers, as the movie took a different perspective of the modern war. And the fact that the movie is directed by a female director, I totally salute!