SILVER HAWK

Director: Jingle Ma
Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Richie Jen, Luke Goss, Brandon Chang, Daming Chen, Bingbing Li, Michael Jai White
Year: 2004
Rating: PG-13

A stylish, fun and enjoyable superhero film - with liberal doses of comedy - Silver Hawk stars Michelle Yeoh as an action hero who seems to actually have a whole lot of fun doing her job.

Lulu Wong (Yeoh) is a high end fashion model of independent wealth, who on the side is also a superhero by the name of Silver Hawk. A local celebrity in Hong Kong, Silver Hawk dispatches bad guys and saves the day with stylish kung fu action and an arsenal of James Bond-like gadgets that help her fight crime ... all of which she does with a smile on her face, truly enjoying her work. She drives a cool silver motorcycle, and the film in fact opens with said motorcycle jumping over the Great Wall of China, as Lulu tracks down a truck full of panda poachers.

On her flight back to Hong Kong, Lulu meets Mr. Richman - or Rich Man (Richie Jen) - the new assistant superintendent of police in Hong Kong who is making capturing Silver Hawk his number one priority. During their talk, Lulu realizes she's met Rich Man before; as children, both of them studied martial arts at the same Shaolin Temple, where Lulu excelled so much that she was taken from the temple to train privately with a true kung fu master ... supposedly to never again see the "big brother" she's now met again on the plane. For his part, Rich Man doesn't recognize the glamorous Lulu Wong as his "little sis" from childhood, and asks her out on a date. Lulu gives him a false phone number to call her at - at which time she also manages to bug Rich Man's phone, so she can listen in on what's going on at the police station - and soon the new assistant superintendent is beyond frustrated when it seems Silver Hawk is showing up to crime scenes and capturing the crooks and fleeing again, before he and his men even get there! Even a late night (and quite funny) trick that has Rich Man not only capturing Silver Hawk, but actually handcuffing her to him, goes awry when Silver Hawk easily gets loose, whips Rich Man with some kung fu, and escapes, leaving Rich Man handcuffed to a light post.

But Silver Hawk comes against her greatest challenge when a maniacal scientist named Alexander Wolfe (Luke Goss, severely and perfectly menacing), kidnaps a fellow scientist who's developed a new micro chip that Wolfe can use to gain mind control over people, simply by installing it into a blue-tooth type phone device. Putting his two more-than-capable henchman (Bingbing Li and Michael Jai White, both expert fighters and truly menacing, considering they have one line of dialogue in the entire film, between them) in Silver Hawk's - and the police's - way, Wolfe is determined to get the device into the hands of nearly everyone in Hong Kong ... if Silver Hawk doesn't stop him first. Helped by her biggest fan - the kidnapped professor's assistant, Kit (Brandon Chang, who provides a good portion of the comic relief here) - Silver Hawk and Rich Man and Kit all join forces to stop Alexander Wolfe before he can upload the device into the brains of the most powerful minds in Hong Kong.

The film is stylish, filmed well with beautifully choreographed fights scenes (hockey players on bungee cords, as the first line of defense when Silver Hawk finds the bad guys' hideout? It happens here!) - with Michelle Yeoh, in her early forties when this was made, never looking more beautiful (she does her own stunts in the film, and they are knockouts). The film has a light, almost comedic feel to it, but never comes off as parody or camp; it's a whole lot of fun to watch, simply, and the martial arts/action scenes so well done (the fight scene between her Wolfe, with Wolfe's two titanium steel prosthetic arms, is pretty neat), they're also exhilarating to see. The cast is equally fun, taking their roles just seriously enough to obviously be enjoying themselves, and the film even ends with a satisfying resolution that's only a tiny bit corny.

Actual violence is kept to a minimum, and there's no bloodshed to speak of - making this an almost kid-friendly film that adults can also enjoy. It's a fun fantasy; a great superhero action flick with Michelle Yeoh at her best and most beautiful. Who could ask for more? *** - Reel Cool

DEATH NOTE

Director: Shusuke Kaneko

Stars: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Ken'ichi Matsuyama, Yu Kashii, Asaka Seto, Erika Toda, Shido Nakamura

Year: 2006

Rating: NR

(in Japanese with English subtitles)

I discovered one of my favorite films of 2008 by accident. Through my friend Larry (yes, him again), who is a fan of Japanese actor Tatsuya Fujiwara, I came across Death Note as the first title I found with him in it ... and promptly bumped it up to the top of my Netflix list.

Now, I watched it twice and have every intention of buying it as soon as possible. It's just one of those "well" films - well-made, well-acted, well-written, and even directed well - a truly original story that's engrossing as hell, through two hours and six minutes and right up to a conclusion that ... well, we'll get to that later.

Tatsuya Fujiwara plays Light Yagami, a Japanese college student who's just passed the bar and is well on his way to a career in law. He seems to have everything - good looks, a loving sister and parents ... even a pretty, very smart girlfriend, fellow law student Shiori (Yu Kashii). But Light's problem is, perhaps, that he's a bit too smart; he's basically a loner, very quiet, maybe even a big smug about himself. Worse, he's recently been second-guessing his career choice, after hacking into the protected database of the local police academy and learning just how many murderers, rapists and thieves actually go free on a daily basis, whether it be from lack of evidence or an overturned trial or what have you. Shocked and appalled by the lack of effectiveness of the very laws he's been studying so hard to uphold, Light even goes so far as to track down a freed killer at a local dive of a bar, where he hears the guy bragging out loud about the kid he killed and how he got away with it. Observed listening by the young killer and his thugs, Light is himself threatened - and flees the bar when they let him go, his reverence for justice and the law shattered.

And that's when, while standing in the pouring rain, he finds - simply lying there on the ground - a thin, black notebook with the simple words "Death Note" printed across the front. Inside the slim book is sheet after sheet of blank, lined notebook paper - though the two pages in the front of the Death Note, labeled "How to Use It", tell Light more than he needs to know ... and something he refuses, at first, to believe.

For anyone whose name is written in the Death Note will die. Simply write their name, and within forty seconds that person will die from a heart attack, right on the spot. Write their name and how they will die within six minutes and forty seconds, and that's exactly what will happen. All you need is the person's name ... but you must also know what they look like - have their face envisioned in your mind as you write their name, which prevents anyone from having the same name from dying, as well - otherwise it won't work. As Light reads the instructions, laughing nervously about how ridiculous it all is, a news story breaks on TV about a captured killer. When Light looks up and hears the name and sees the face of the suspect, he jokingly jots it down in the Death Note before going to bed ...

And the next morning, when he sets down to read the paper at breakfast, the first thing he sees is that the man whose name he wrote down died in his jail cell the previous night.

Freaked out, soon after this Light meets the Shinigami (god of death), called Ryuuk, who was the one responsible for leaving the Death Note in the street for Light to find. The quick-thinking, highly intelligent Light is, at first, sure there is some horrible price to pay for the power behind the Death Note - that perhaps Ryuuk wants his life or soul in exchange for it - Ryuuk not only assures him that there is no "price" for owning the Death Note ... but that in fact Light can give up possession of it to another, any time he wishes - and in fact, if he does so Ryuuk will even erase all memory of the himself and the Death Note from Light's mind. Light does, in fact, keep the Death Note, and Ryuuk (an ugly-as-heck CGI creation with huge batlike wings and about 700 shark's teeth) almost becomes like a companion to Light for the rest of the film (no one can see or hear him unless they've touched the Death Note).

So Light decides to use the Death Note to pick up where the law failed, and one by one - in rapid succession - he begins killing off both incarcerated and at-large criminals and suspects, not only in Japan but all over the world. One by one the guilty (or suspected guilty) fall, and soon an underground movement begins, and people (especially young people) around the world have dubbed him "Kira" and named him the new messiah of justice. Soon Kira discussions are the hottest search topic on the internet, with hundreds of discussions boards and websites going up to both condemn and praise the mysterious messenger of death ... as the crime rate around the world begins to fall.

But power corrupts, and soon Light sees himself as the very savior and messenger of justice that a good deal of the public has made him out - as Kira - to be. But he learns quickly that Kira's followers are not all fans, as even his own little sister and girlfriend see Kira as nothing but a mass murderer who is only keep crime down out of oppression and fear. Even the police, baffled by where to even begin finding Kira to arrest him, eventually seek the aid of a renowned Japanese detective, the mysterious "L" whom no one has ever seen, to aid them in their search for Kira. Speaking only through a laptop, with the help of his elderly servant Watari (Shunji Fujimura), L quickly proves himself to be the intellectual equal of Kira - by immediately tricking Light into revealing that Kira lives within the Tokyo area. As L helps the police to get closer and closer to Light (who can't do a thing about "L", as he doesn't know the guy's real name or what he even looks like), Light continues to learn how to manipulate the Death Note to strike back or protect himself however he must ... even as his God complex grows, and he becomes less and less humane. The tension builds, more than just criminals begin to fall, and the ending finds Light and L meeting face to face, in a quiet scene that sets up a sequel this reviewer didn't know existed ... and had me running to the computer to try and find.

I love this movie. It's got everything going for it, is a tense thriller without the gore that has enough twists and turns in the plot to satisfy a pretzel maker. I'm a full-on fan of Tatsuya Fujiwara's now - and forever a fan of this brilliant film. Yes, the CGI-affect Ryuuk may not seem 100% realistic to many - but that, to me, didn't hurt my getting into the character, or his clever scenes with Light that deftly share some of Light's thoughts and reasoning for the viewer. The cast is top-notch, the film itself very well-directed and made. If I could afford it, I'd buy everyone I know a copy of it on DVD for Christmas - that's how much I liked it - and to me just the originality and cleverness of the story (yes, based on a popular Japanese manga and anime series) are what put the film ahead from the beginning. I can't say enough good about it, and not only love the film's message - that power does indeed corrupt - but also the mental debate it sets up in your mind: is Kira a savior, an angel of justice - or simply a mass murderer, himself deserving death? It's a film that makes you think, and God knows we need more of those in the movie business today. ***** - Reel Must-See

(NOTE: Stay tuned, after the film's end credits, for a trailer of the sequel, Death Note: The Last Name! Also, a USA version of this film is slated to be made and released in 2010 - a huge mistake, as this film is so purely Japanese in tone, story and characterization, it would surely be ruined if turned over to the Hollywood machine. See the original!)

RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION

Director: Russell Mulcahy

Stars: Milla Jovovich, Oded Fehr, Ali Larter, Iain Glen, Ashanti, Christopher Egan, Spencer Locke, Matthew Marsden, Mike Epps

Year: 2005

Rated: R

The third installment in the videogame-inspired Resident Evil franchise finally brings back the quality of the first film (Resident Evil) over the semi-dud of the second (Resident Evil: Apocalypse, which has a CGI-infested ending that drove me batty). Part three takes place about five years after part two ended, and by now the outlook for the human race is grim; the virus created for biological warfare by the Umbrella Corporation has now spread worldwide, effectively turning nearly every living creature into a flesh-eating zombie.

The one hope for humanity is the ass-kicking soldier who's been around from the beginning - Alice (Milla Jovovich), who's now estranged from all her companions in order to keep them safe (the Umbrella Corporation can track her, and she knows it). She travels the country on a motorcycle, trying to find what's left of everything from gas to food to humanity - and the film even opens with a bang-up scene in which Alice is captured by a tribe of inbred hillbillies in the Nevada desert, who lure her in with a radio broadcast may-day ... and her escape from them definitely sets the tone for just how action-packed (and violent) this film is going to be.

Meanwhile, the bad guys at the Umbrella Corporation (whose headquarters, around the world, are so far underground that even the zombies can't get to them) are hard at work. If they can't get Alice, they'll do the next best thing clone her, over and over and over again, and try to find the perfect replica in order to not only combat the undead ... but possibly find a cure for them, as well. Led by the mentally unsound, quite evil Dr. Isaacs, the experimentations just aren't producing the needed results - leading Isaacs to realize he's got to find the real thing ...

As Alice displays some really amazing telekinetic powers, while dreaming in the desert one night - and uses them just in time to save a traveling caravan of survivors led by the equally-tough Claire Redfield (Ali Larter). Alice's old friends, Carlos (Oded Fehr) and L. J. (Mike Epps), are also a part of this caravan - quite possibly the remains of humanity in an undead world - and as a group they all decide to head for what Alice believes (via a homemade journal she's found) is the last spot on earth unaffected by the virus ... Alaska.

But as the group - which has avoided big cities, due to the hordes of zombies that tend to still be in residence there - heads to Las Vegas (their last hope in the area) for food and gasoline ... Dr. Isaacs has already finagled a helicopter and some men, determined at last to find Alice and bring her back "home" at any cost.

This is a kick-butt zombie flick, with awesome CGI effects and action-packed fight scenes that show just how strong and aggressive the undead, infected with the T-virus, have become - as the survivors battle them to try and save what's left of humanity. Jovovich, Larter and Fehr head a strong cast of characters that you'll find yourself rooting for, and to say Iain Glen is rotten to the core in his performance as Dr. Isaacs is an understatement.

In all, nothing to dislike here, and a bang-up job after the disappointing second installment. If you like these kinds of films, and in particular like the Resident Evil story/series, this one won't disappoint. *** - Reel Cool

INITIAL D

Directors: Wai-keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak

Stars: Jay Chou, Edison Chen, Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, Chapman To, Shawn Yue, Anne Suzuki

Year: 2005

Rating: NR

(in Cantonese with English subtitles)

Based on the popular Japanese comic and anime series, Initial D is everything that every Fast and Furious film could only strive to be. Taiwanese pop music star Jay Chou (in his film debut) stars as Takumi Fujiwara, an 18-year-old college student who works at a gas station by day, and delivers "to go" orders for his father's small tofu shop in Japan late into the evening (the two men live alone, Takumi's mother having abandoned the family some years ago). Every night since he was 13, Takumi navigates the long, sharp curves of the road that winds around Mt. Akina - and in the process, unknowingly develops his own skills for "drifting" - a form of amateur street racing that enables the driver to actually have an advantage when the road has a lot of curves and sharp corners. No one knows of Takumi's amazing capabilities, which he's spent so much time perfecting - not his former race car champ father (Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, in a great performance that also gives the film its comedy relief), his best friend Itsuki (Chapman To) - who claims HE is the "racing god" of Mt. Akina - or even the classmate he loves, Natsuki (Anne Suzuki) ... a girl with her own secret to hide. When "discovered" late one night during his run, Takumi is challenged to a race by another street drifter - one he handily wins, suddenly bringing his talents out into the open for everyone to see.

Edison Chen and Shawn Yue, as (respectively) Ryousuke and Takeshi, are the street racers who discover Takumi, and it's Takeshi that Takumi easily defeats amongst the mountainous roads. Ryousuke and Takeshi, good friends and racing buddies, are in the middle of a bet to see who can win the most races in Japan, working the country from top to bottom - but when they spot Takumi and Takeshi is defeated, it's Ryousuke who challenges Takumi to the race of his life ... just before another, professional driver discovers Takumi as well, and also challenges him to race the hills of Mt. Akina, to see who the ultimate "racing god" is.

Can the beat up, souped-up Toyota AE86 that Takumi delivers tofu in match up to the infinitely more professional racing cars of his competitors, in particular for this extremely dangerous form of street racing? That's essentially the plot, and it's light - but the strained relationship between Takumi and his father, Bunta (Wong Chau-Sang) is very real and a strong part of the story ... as is the budding romance between Takumi and Natsuki.

But it's the racing that's fairly eye-bending here, shot perfectly in multi angles that make each race - even though it's down the same mountain, on the same road- fresh, exciting and a lot of fun to watch. Jay Chou plays Takumi with the perfect mix of serious vulnerability - a kid with his share of baggage already, who finds himself only himself when slicing at 140 mph down the roads of Mt. Akina. The movie hinges on his character, and he comes through. The rest of the cast is exceptional as well, the film shot to spotlight the beauty of the country as well as the amazing racing.

A lot of criticism has been heaped on this film for the cuts that were made in order to turn an entire anime series and manga into a 2-hour feature film. Storylines were dropped, and in some cases two or more characters were melded into one. Having never seen the series (yet) or read the manga, I was able to enjoy the film on its own merits - and those merits are strong, indeed. You don't even have to like racing or car films to get into the story - which at times can be as humorous as it is touching - because the main characters are people you grow to care about.

It's a really, really good film; a total surprise to me, and a film I'm very glad I saw. ***1/2 - Reel Cool-Reel Awesome

THE 24TH DAY

Director: Tony Piccirillo

Stars: James Marsden, Scott Speedman, Sofia Verga

Year: 2004

Rating: R

A tense psychological game played out by its two lead actors, The 24th Day (based on director Tony Piccirillo's play of the same name) stars James Marsden and Scott Speedman as two men who find themselves attracted to each other when they meet in a bar. Dan (Marsden) is there with his best gal pal Isabella (Sofia Verga), but after staring into the handsome, boyish face and green eyes of Tom (Speedman), he can't help but get Tom's assistance in seeing a drunken Isabella back home ... before himself going back to Tom's apartment for a little conversation and fun.

Once there, the verbal games begin as Tom comes off as a very nervous straight man who's never been with a guy before; he asks a ton of questions, and ponders big issues like truth and moral values. Dan's not so comfortable with all the questions about how many guys he's been with, if he's ever been tested for HIV, etc., and all the conversation is definitely killing both his buzz and his horny aspirations ... when he suddenly learns that he and Tom have met before. In a calm, rational voice, Tom informs Dan that the two of them had sex together five years previously - when a drunken Dan came home with Tom, much like he did tonight. After pretending to remember, Dan finally confesses that he can't remember that night at all - though he swears to Tom, 100%, that he did wear a condom that night ... as he does every single time he has sex, even though Tom questions Dan's sincerity because of how drunk Dan was when they were together five years ago.

A frustrated, nearly-angry Dan throws up his hands and apologizes, heading for the door to Tom's apartment - which is locked, and when Tom gives Dan the key it proves unsuccessful. Really ticked now, Dan starts to ask what game Tom is playing - when suddenly Tom jabs him with a vicious punch to the head, knocking Dan nearly unconscious. In his half-in, half-out of it state, Dan is then settled into a chair, where his wrists are tied behind his back, his legs tied to the legs of the chair as Tom produces a syringe and draws some blood from Dan's arm ...

Before Tom tells him that he - Tom - has been diagnosed with HIV ... and that with Dan being the only man he's been with, it's therefore Dan who gave it to him. To prove it, Tom's come up with a simple plan: he'll hold Dan hostage in his apartment, take a blood sample from him and get it tested. If the sample come backs negative, Tom will let Dan go.

If positive, he'll kill him.

The rest of the film is basically the cat and mouse game of Dan and Tom spending the next day - the 24th day since Tom's learned of his disease - together, before Tom picks up the results the following morning and determines Dan's fate. In that time, both men will learn a lot not only about themselves but each other ... as well as what it means to be truly responsible, not only regarding your sex life but in all aspects of life.

From trying to break free to trying to talk Tom out of murder - should he be negative - Dan is a character you're never quite sure you can trust. Is he an expert liar saying whatever he thinks someone will want to hear to save himself - or sleep with someone else - or is he an honest, upfront guy who can be believed about his past? Tom has his own issues, even beyond his testing positive for HIV, and viewers of the film will be equally unsure as to where his mind is at, at all times ... or what he might ultimately do. It's a well-written, powerful struggle these two have throughout the film, highlighted by a strong performance by Scott Speedman as Tom and some of James Marsden's best work as Dan. You WILL be kept wondering, tense and unsure, until the end.

And yet, the film didn't totally work for me. Sure, it feels a bit like a filmed play - with the vast majority of the action taking place between the two main characters, in Tom's apartment - but even that didn't bother me as much as some of the dialogue and nuances of the performances (Speedman in particular, who sometimes just wasn't so convincing for me as Tom). Marsden has speeches about HIV and sexual responsibility and the fact that the lines between "gay" and "straight" for a lot of men are so blurred in society now ... and while he delivers said speeches well, there were a couple of times they came off as just that - speeches - that ran too long, or were trying to drive a point home too stiffly. Speedman is able to keep up with Marsden as an actor, yet at the same time I wanted to feel more sympathy for Tom's situation than I did. The direction is good - the situation builds in tension and stress as it should, with viewers always kept wondering just what the heck is going to happen ...

But in the end, strong as the film is, for some reason it didn't click with me like it should have. Worth seeing - and if you're a sexually promiscuous person, it will have you thinking twice about what you might be doing not only to the person you're bedding ... but how that incident might chain reaction to affect others, as well. A good film to see - I just wish something didn't feel ... "missing" to me, after viewing it. **1/2 - Reel Mediocre-Reel Cool

BOYS LOVE

Director: Kohtaru Terauchi
Stars: Yoshikazu Kotani, Saito Takumi, Matsumoto Hiroya, Kanno Atsumi
Year: 2006
Rating: NR
(in Japanese with English subtitles)

Any film that opens with two young, attractive Japanese men alone in a subway car, holding hands and looking worn out and tired (one of them's even fallen asleep) ... as the camera gets a close-up on their clasped fingers, which are stained a bit with what looks like blood, as the lead character narrates the tale of what went on to bring them to where they are now - well, you know this film is not exactly going to end in a rollicking musical number where everyone lives happily ever after.

And such is Boys Love - a heavily dramatic love story with some light moments that realistically (to a degree) depict "forbidden love" in today's Japan.

Yoshikazu Kotani stars a Mamiya Taishin, an editor with a trendy lifestyles magazine whose first writing assignment is to interview a high school boy who's risen to fame as both a male model and celebrated illustrator/artist. At first the meeting between Mamiya and teenager Kisaragi Noeru (effectively played by the very handsome Saito Takumi) doesn't go so well - Noeru is vain, cocky, and reclusive ... even unwilling to talk about the one painting in his apartment that even he gives any validity to, which Taishin also favors. Still trying to get his interview, Taishin takes the young model/artist to dinner, where Noeru - too underage to drink himself - promptly orders a bottle of Dom Perignon on Taishin's tab, which now Taishin is forced to drink. Later, when Taishin stumbles off to use the men's room, Noeru follows and forces Taishin into a stall, literally seducing and servicing the young reporter right there in the public john.

The next day, at work, Taishin is already frustrated, freaked out and angry when a call comes into the office from Noeru's modeling agency. It seems Noeru has told his agent that the magazine reporter sent to interview him was both too aggressive and offensive, and he is demanding an in-person apology. Confused and angry, Taishin goes to Noeru's apartment that night for an explanation - and finds Noeru nude and entertaining one of what is obviously many tricks that the seductive teenaged model often has in his bed. The trick barely leaves in time for Noeru to hit on Taishin again, dropping his sheet and grabbing Taishin's crotch as he explains that the only reason he said what he said to his agent was to force Taishin to come over so he could see him again. When Noeru is rejected by Taishin, who leaves even more angry and humiliated, it seems to be the first time Noeru has ever been rejected in his life - and his affection for Taishin only grows ...

Even as Taishin finds himself growing more and more attracted to the underage model. Try as he might to push the images and feelings from his mind, and his heart, Taishin becomes more and more curious about what makes Noeru so self-destructive - why he sleeps around so much, with men of all kinds and every age and class. When he meets Chidori (played brilliantly by Matsumoto Hiroya), a classmate of Noeru's whose known the young artist since childhood, Taishin starts to fill in the blanks about what makes Noeru the way he is ... even as he finds himself falling more and more in love with him.

But male/male love in Japan - especially between an underage teenaged boy and an adult - cannot have a happy ending ... and this one surely doesn't, as jealousy and madness and the secret behind Noeru's favorite painting all lead to a heartbreaking but very realistic conclusion.

The film's leads, playing Taishin and Noeru, are excellently cast and genuinely good with their performances. The film itself is interspersed, on-screen, with quotes about love and life throughout the film, usually at the end of a particularly emotional scene, and these quotes do add much dimension to the film as you see the relationship between Taishin and Noeru bloom into a full-on love story. And while there are some nice butt shots and plenty of eye candy in the film, don't be fooled into thinking that this - like many gay films - is anywhere near the softcore porn or sex-for-the-sake-of-showing-nudity that a lot of indie gay films are all about today; no, this is a pure love story, and while you get to see both leads nude from behind (and it ain't a bad sight), there's not even so much as a kiss shared on-screen, between the two.

No, this is a movie about love from the heart - not the crotch. A story about two men who meet, and happen to fall in love. Melodramatic at times, even corny and predictable in a few spots, Boys Love is still a very good film that tells a really simple love story that happens to end tragically. Well-made and well-acted, it's a gay-themed film with a genuine story that unfolds between these two characters you do grow to care about ... and that alone makes it worth seeing. *** - Reel Cool

DORM

Director: Songyos Sugmakanan

Stars: Charlie Trairat, Sirachuch Chienthaworn, Chintara Sukapatana

Year: 2006

Rating: NR

(in Thai with English subtitles)

Wow, is the marketing and even cover art for the DVD of this film misleading. I first spotted the film on Netflix, and by the photo and description shown expected this Thai film to be a creepy little ghost story on the scale of something like Ringu, Ju-on: The Grudge - or maybe even a Thai counterpart like Shutter.

When in reality, Dek hor - or Dorm - is so much more, and actually gets cheated by its own marketing ... which doesn't speak for the sensitive, tender, and emotionally involving ghost story the film truly is. Oh sure, there are a few chills and even semi-eerie moments in Dorm - but that's not what you'll leave this film remembering. What you will remember are the characters, the story, and the heartbeat this terrific ghost story has at its core ... as seen mostly through the eyes of lead actor Charlie Trairat - a child actor whose talent bears more emotional clout than most actors three times his age.

Trairat plays Ton Chatree, a twelve-year-old boy on semester break from his school, when he learns that his father has decided to send him to a different school - a private school - as soon as the current term reconvenes. Unable to even finish the rest of the school year with his friends, Chatree -used to doing what he wants, when he wants - at first finds the rules and constraints of his new, all-boy school very hard to bear ... in particular the chilly, always-frowning and oddly sad headmistress, Ms. Pranee (Chintara Sukapatana). Chatree eats with all the other boys, sleeps in the crowded dorm room on a cot with all the other boys, bathes in a sort of community bathhouse-style "shower" with all the other boys - suddenly his world is on a schedule, with time constraints and all sorts of rules, and Chatree is one unhappy kid ...

... Even before the teasing and name-calling begins, as Chatree is one night treated to series of ghost stories by a small group of boys in the school who all hang out together; stories about a student who drowned in the old pool, one of the cook's daughters who hanged herself when she became pregnant, a ghost that haunts the boys' bathroom at night and makes the dogs all howl in unison, etc. - stories that leave Chatree so afraid to leave his cot at night, he ends up wetting the bed ... making him that much more a target for the other kids.

Then, suddenly, Chatree finds a friend in a funny, kindhearted kid name Vichien (Sirachuch Chienthaworn) - a friend who seems genuinely interested in Chatree's life and world, and in turn shows Chatree not only around the school, but also teaches him how to find/steal geese eggs, or even where to go outside the school's rather stringent boundaries. It's only at the outdoor screening of an old, so-hokey-it's-funny Thai horror film for the boys, on school grounds, that Chatree learns that not everything is always what it seems - and comes to learn, in the end, just how strong the bonds of friendship can be.

To say anything more would be to give away too, too much of the plot of the film - or the several surprises tied into the storylines, which are all revealed by "the end". And maybe that's the key word here - "storylines" - because this film weaves genuine plot and story and character to make it so much more than just a ghost story. Charlie Trairat is nothing short of brilliant as Chatree, especially for such a young actor, and though the film rests almost entirely on his small shoulders, Trairat proves more than ready to bear the weight of Chatree's growth into his first steps into adulthood by the film's end. Sirachuch Chienthaworn is equally moving as Vichien, perfectly complimenting Chatree; indeed, the bond of genuine friendship that grows between these two students never seems fake or forced. Dorm is not a scary movie; it may make you jump in a couple of spots, but there are no long-haired ghosts ratcheting down stairwells like crabs, or little girls thrown into wells to drown.

No, Dorm just happens to be a tale of friendship, love, and the sacrifices you make for both ... that also happens to be a very moving ghost story that left tears in my eyes by "the end". I admit to never having seen The Devil's Backbone, to which this film is constantly compared to for its basic storyline - but am glad I haven't, because in the end Dorm stands alone for its moodiness and story and ultimate message. And for Charlie Trairat, one of the best young actors I've ever seen. Early on in the film, as he eats his dinner with the camera up close on his face, a lone tear trickles down Trairat's cheek that he brusquely wipes away with his arm - and in that one scene alone, with no dialogue, Trairat will endear Chatree and his and Vichien's story to your heart forever. Now that's acting. **** - Reel Awesome

THIS CHRISTMAS

Director: Preston A. Whitmore II
Stars: Delroy Lindo, Loretta Devine, Idris Elba, Regina King, Chris Brown, Sharon Leal, Laz Alonso, Columbus Short, Keith Robinson
Year: 2008
Rating: PG-13

The Whitfield family is coming home for Christmas, and bringing enough baggage with them - both real and emotional - to sink the Titanic. Headed by Ma'Dere (the always-perfect Loretta Devine, who seems unable to do any wrong as an actress) and her long-term boyfriend, Joe (Delroy Lindo) - who more or less stays with Ma'Dere in the family home, except for when the older kids are visiting, to show respect to them and Ma'Dere - the Whitfield children are all grown up and out of the house ... each of them with various levels of resentment and consternation toward each other and their parents, even as they try to get along for the sake of family. Ma'Dere's husband, see, abandoned the family long ago in favor of a career as a jazz musician, and ever since Ma'Dere has been a matriarch who's always been afraid of losing the men in her life to music. Even her eldest son Quentin (Idris Elba) hasn't been home for Christmas in four years, leaving home to move to Chicago where he pursues playing the sax in a jazz club.

But this Christmas is different. These pots have been boiling on their respective stoves for some time, and the time is coming for things to blow. There's the oldest sister, Lisa, who had to skip college to help support the family and her younger siblings (Regina King) - and has now married well, has two kids, lives in San Francisco, and can't help but laud her happiness and strength over everyone ...

To middle sister Kelli (Sharon Leal), college-educated and pursuing a modeling career in New York City, who can't seem to hold onto a relationship or a man ... to Lieutenant-Corporal Claude Whitfield (Columbus Short) of the U.S. Marines, the middle son who arrives with a secret in two that he's terrified of telling Ma'Dere and his siblings about ... compared to the baby sister Melanie (Lauren London), who arrives from college with her latest boyfriend (Keith Robinson) and just seems a bit too flighty for anyone to take too seriously. The youngest son, Michael (singer Chris Brown) - known as 'Baby' - still lives at home but has his own career path chosen and ready to go ... if only he can get the nerve up to tell Ma'Dere and his family what it is. Even Quentin, it's soon learned, is coming home for Christmas this year ... but with a pair of goons right behind him, trying to collect a $25,000 debt.

And as the grown children arrive back home to Joe and Ma'Dere, the layers of infidelity and jealousy and secrets begin to unravel - in an often funny, sometimes surprising, and ultimately heart-tugging way.

This is a sweet film, one that anyone with a large family will easily identify with. Preston A. Whitmore II could not have, conceivably, chosen a better cast for his film - none of whom, even newcomer-to-acting Chris Brown - strike a false note. Loretta Devine, as Ma'Dere, holds it together as best she can, while Delroy Lindo is charming as the moderator of all things Whitfield and Idris Elba turns in a sensitive, heartfelt performance as Quentin. But they only head a really strong cast of talented actors, all brought together for a wonderful holiday film that really comes off feeling more like the family gathering it's about. It will have you thinking about your own family, about how all the arguments and fighting and fear are inconsequential ... when it's family that should pull together for each other in the end; what should keep you going.

Lovingly done, and with just enough holiday smarm to come off as real. A true Christmas-time treat with a valid year-round message. ***1/2 - Reel Cool-Reel Awesome

DANCE OF THE DEAD

Director: Gregg Bishop

Stars: Jared Kusnitz, Greyson Chadwick, Chandler Darby, Carissa Capobianco, Blair Redford, Justin Welborn, Mark Oliver

Year: 2008

Rating: R

I had passed this film by on the DVD rental shelf a couple of times, in favor of other fare, until a good friend suggested that I needed to see it. Now that it's become one of my favorite indie films of all time, this refreshing and very funny zombie horror/comedy hybrid - right up there with Shaun of the Dead in both quality and humor - was so enjoyable, I almost feel the need to send said friend a gift; I'm that grateful.

Populated (for the most part) by a cast or young, relatively unknown actors, the lack of star casting adds even more to the reality of the film, as we open (after a brief - and a bit unsettling - opener with a gravedigger in the local cemetery) on a smallish town whose teenagers are gearing up big-time for the upcoming prom. Jimmy (Jared Kusnitz) is one such teen, the class clown who spends more time in biology cutting up than cutting into his frog. It's just another day for Jimmy, who by the end of it winds up in detention with his friend Steven (Chandler Darby) - a Sci-Fi Club geek not-so-secretly in love with the popular cheerleader beauty in school, Gwen (Carissa Capobianco). As Jimmy suffers through detention, after school, with the unrelenting, military-trained drill sergeant Coach Keel (Mark Oliver), Steven's having his own issues - after learning that Gwen's prom date ate some bad spinach and is sick with food poisoning - with trying to ask Gwen to go to the prom with him. Even with his sci-fi geek buddies egging him on, Steven is unable to bring himself to ask his object of affection to go ... especially after learning it's the long-haired leader of the rock band that was just rejected by the prom board, Nash Rambler (Blair Redford), she now has her eyes on.

Things only get worse when Gwen finally asks Nash to take her to prom - only to find out what a sexist pig he is - even as Jimmy gets his own ego deflated when his own prom date, Lindsey (the beautiful-in-a-quirky-way Greyson Chadwick) finally tires of Jimmy's inability to take anything seriously, and dumps him right in the gym that same afternoon. Jimmy decides to stag the prom, as Lindsey takes up an invitation to go with a boy from the right side of the tracks, Mitch (Jeff Adelman) ... as both Gwen and Steven, individually, decide to forsake the prom altogether - Steven in favor of a ghost-hunting cemetery jaunt with his Sci-Fi Club buddies instead, as Gwen throws on some sweats and an iPod to take a run around her neighborhood.

But all this is bupkis compared to when the dead start coming back to life - and out of the ground, craving brains (seemingly thanks to the highly-toxic nuclear power plant, literally on the outskirts of town). Jimmy - called on his way to prom to deliver a pizza in his pizza-wagon car, barely escapes a family of zombies wanting to chew on him instead ... as Mitch pulls over in the cemetery on the hill, overlooking a sweet view of the city (obscured as it is by the oversized power plant in the distance, as well), and attempts a pre-prom make-out session with Lindsey - that is, until zombies yank him right out of his car. Nash and his bandmates, meanwhile, are jamming in a garage when the dead attack - until, by accident, they find out that music hath charms to soothe the savage dead - as the high school psycho-bully, Kyle Grubbin (Justin Welborn), gets his own savagery knocked down a peg or two, when attacked by the real thing in savagery. Even the sci-fi club, headed by Steven, soon realizes they've bitten off more than they can chew in the graveyard - when the cemetery residents come back to life, wanting to chew on them.

The various prom misfits join forces - first in small groups, until they finally all find each other - to battle the brain- and flesh-eating dead. Even Coach Keel slips into full commando mode to aid them in their quest, as the gang realizes that the zombies are most likely heading for the noisiest, tastiest banquet ever - the senior prom - and head out, armed, to battle the dead and save their classmates.

I went into this film with no expectations, and yet feel it exceeded any expectations I could have had. Done on a small budget, with typical indie-film flaws, any of those flaws can easily be forgiven and forgotten in light of the great cast and storytelling the film has to offer. It works as a zombie film - gory enough to satisfy the blood-lovers, with a few real jump-in-your-seat moments and plenty of action - yet, at the same time, it's funny as hell and still tells an involving story that really makes you like, believe in, and root for the characters. Jared Kusnitz and Chandler Darby, as Jimmy and Steven, are true hero-geeks you'll grow to love, and Greyson Chadwick and Carissa Capobianco - Lindsey and Gwen - prove to be feminine beauties that also in no way need a guy around to help kick zombie butt. Mark Oliver and Justin Welborn even play a couple of off-the-wall nutcases that you grow to care about in the film, as well.

Dance of the Dead is an excellently-cast, funny as hell, suspenseful and bloody zombie flick with both a heart and brains. You couldn't ask for more from a full-budget Hollywood blockbuster - let alone a little indie film that's just a real pleasure to watch.

Thanks for the recommend, Larry; I loved it. ****1/2 - Reel Awesome-Reel Must-See

KUNG FU PANDA

Director: Mark Osborne & John Stevenson
Stars: Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross
Year: 2008
Rating: PG

One of 2008's best films opens with the dream of an overweight, clumsy, adorable - but not altogether bright - panda name Po (voiced flawlessly by Jack Black), who is enjoying his vision of being the kung fu master who save his small village in China from destruction ...

Until Po awakens, and has to get up for work in the noodle shop run by his father, Mr. Ping (a duck - or bird of some kind - voiced by veteran film, stage and television actor James Hong). It's never explained how a bird father got a panda son (though it is almost touched on) in the film, but that's unimportant; the two characters are very much father and son in the film, with Po doing his best to please his proud dad ... all the while harboring his own dreams of greatness - of becoming a kung fu master like the world-renowned Furious Five.

But those dreams seem far away, as Po serves his noodles to grateful customers ... until word comes down from the Jade Palace that the great spiritual leader Oogway (Randall Duk Kim) is finally ready to choose the new Dragon Warrior. As the villagers begin their long climb up the grand staircase to the palace, eager to watch the ceremony (for he or she who becomes the Dragon Warrior also gets access to the secrets held within the dragon scroll), Po finds himself stuck at the noodle shop - until his father decides to send him up to the palace with a portable noodle-making stand, in order to get some business from the gathered crowd.

Po's girth makes the climb a tough one, and even when leaving the noodle cart behind he still finds himself just a hair too late in arriving at the palace; the double gates are locked when he arrives. Several failed (and very hilarious) attempts to get in lead Po to literally falling into the center of the action out of mid-air ... just in time for Oogway, to the crowd's astonishment, to declare none other than Po as the new Dragon Warrior.

A decision that totally hocks off Oogway's second-in-command, the diminutive teacher Shinfu (Dustin Hoffman, also brilliant here in a gruff, husky voice) - a kung fu master himself who has been training the Furious Five in order for one of them to be name Dragon Warrior. The Furious Five - Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Viper (Lucy Liu), Mantis (Seth Rogen), and Crane (David Cross) - are also shocked and dismayed at the choosing of the fat, ungainly Po by Oogway as their new leader. Fearing his master has made a grave mistake, Shinfu and the Furious Five set out to show Po just what it would take for him to become a kung fu master - putting the disadvantaged panda through a series of training sessions designed to make him give up his quest right away.

But late one evening, Master Oogway gives Shinfu the news that he's had a vision - a vision of the great and evil Tai Lung (Ian McShane) escaping from his faraway prison. Tai Lung, you see, is a tiger once thought to be the new Dragon Warrior. Trained by Shinfu from the time he was a cub, Tai Lung worked hard at becoming a master of kung fu his entire life, determined to be given the title of Dragon Warrior. But when the time came, Oogway saw darkness in Tai Lung and refused him the title. Shinfu, even in his disappointment, had to trust and believe in his master Oogway's decision - but the verdict sent Tai Lung into a rage, and he tore through the land committing crimes and tearing apart villages until he had to be imprisoned for his crimes. When Shinfu hears of Oogway's vision that Tai Lung will escape, he immediately dispatches a carrier bird Zeng (Michael Clarke Duncan) to the far-off prison, to warn the guard and warden that extra security is needed for mighty Tai Lung.

But when the warning is disregarded and Tai Lung does indeed flee the prison, Tigress and the rest of the Furious Five set out to meet him head on, before he can make it to the Jade Palace ... even as Shinfu does his best to try and train the hapless and helpless Po - the Dragon Warrior, whom Tai Lung is gunning for - in the intricate art of kung fu.

What a funny, warm, and charming film - one that has many funny moments, but also delivers some breathtaking martial arts fight sequences and one-of-a-kind animation ... not to mention one of the best messages you could ever hope to find in an animated movie: believe in yourself. While this isn't exactly a new theme in film, the beauty of this movie is that it makes the point that Po doesn't have to change himself in order to achieve his dream; by the end of the tale he's still the loveable, overweight, clumsy, kindhearted goof he started out the film as ... even as he's evolved as a character, learning to work hard and get his heart's desire without having to change who he is at heart. The actors voicing the Furious Five, while in very minor supporting voice roles themselves, only add to the rich and varied layers of texture that all the actors give to this brilliant film - all backing up Jack Black at his most silly and huggable self ever as Po, a modern-day everyman (or everypanda) that can still be a hero while being himself. What a terrific, funny, and charming film - one that should be up there with Wall-E come Oscar time. ****1/2 - Reel Awesome-Reel Must-See

LOST BOYS: THE TRIBE

Director: P.J. Pesce
Stars: Tad Hilgenbrink, Autumn Reeser, Angus Sutherland, Corey Feldman, Greyston Holt
Year: 2008
Rating: R

What could have been a serviceable "sequel" to Joel Schumacher's 1987 teen vampire hit ultimately falls in on itself under its own weight, via this direct-to-DVD sequel over twenty years later.

Tad Hilgenbrink stars as Chris Emerson, a celebrated surfer who's more or less trashed his career in the wake of the death of his parents, who were killed in a car wreck. As the film opens, he and his younger, 17-year-old sister Nicole (Autumn Reeser) are broke and next to homeless - so are therefore forced to move to a strange town where their Aunt Jillian (Gabrielle Rose) has an extra place to stay.

From the beginning, Chris and Nicole see things aren't going to be easy. Aunt Jillian's a bit of a nut, one who wants to charge them $650/month to live in the nasty, rundown cottage apartment she has on her property. Also, the town is equally rundown, seemingly unsafe and with no jobs; a creepy little coastal haven that seems to be at the butt-end of the universe.

But soon after settling in, Chris meets Shane Powers (Angus Sutherland - yes, another son of Donald's) - a celebrity surfer as well, who disappeared from the surfing circuit a couple of years before. Chris and Shane hit if off, and Shane invites Chris and his sister Nicole to a party the next night ... where it becomes quite obvious that Shane not only lusts after Nicole, but wants to make her his; he has her drink from his flask of "liquor" that evening - and suddenly, the next day, Nicole is sensitive to sunlight and has this rather unusual taste for blood ...

And a meeting with Edgar Frog (Corey Feldman, reprising his role from the original film) informs Chris of what's really going on - that Nicole has drunk the blood of the head vampire in town ... and if he wants to save her, Chris has to kill Shane before the half-vampire Nicole has a chance to make her first kill; one that will cost her her soul forever.

It's an okay premise, and there's nothing to outright hate in the film. But the direction, at times, is a bit ridiculous - with everything from sound effects to entire scenes being shot so close to what appears in the first film, The Lost Boys, that they come off not so much an homage to the original as they do a desperate attempt to show how much this film is like the original (untrue). The motorcycle racing scene from the original? It's here, only the cops are chasing the vamps now. The love scene between Michael and Star (Jason Patric and Jami Gertz) from the original? It's here, shot in almost the same way with Angus Sutherland and Autumn Reeser - only without any of the sensuality or atmosphere. Heck, even another son of Donald Sutherland plays the leader of the young, hot-boy vampire clan! Even the campfire/vampire scene, where - in the original - the boys are trying to entice Jason Patric's character to make his first kill by slaughtering everyone themselves, is remade here with Shane's tribe of boys devouring their dates of the night in front of Chris - in a much gorier version.

Which is something else the movie does - ups the gore and sex/nudity quotient, big time, possibly to show it's 2008 now ... or to maybe distract the viewer from the film's weaknesses. Even Corey Feldman, as the gravel-voiced Edgar Frog - who pals up with Chris to take out the bloodsuckers - literally finds himself quoting exact lines from the first film, in describing what's going on to Chris ... and even still has the exact same "Vampires!" comic book Corey Haim's character Sam had in the original! Sadly, Feldman is giving Edgar Frog the exact same voice and personality he had 21 years ago; the character hasn't developed a bit, and Feldman tries but Frog just comes off way to two-dimensional here.

But again - it all comes off as a pale, desperate attempt by director P.J. Pesce to virtually give viewers more of an update than a remake - and, mind you, a direct-to-DVD update of what was essentially a great film on its own. The performances of the actors are okay - nothing sensational, though Hilgenbrink and Reeser do what they can with the material - but all the humor and fun and rock-and-roll of the first film is missing here, with none of the characters being particularly memorable or fully drawn.

It's not a godawful movie - but maybe only one worth watching when there's nothing else on, or if you're such a fan of the original (like me) that you just have to see it. A brief - very brief - cameo by Haim, early in the end credits, makes the whole thing worth checking out ... but still, save this one either for when it comes on basic cable, or if you can't think of anything else to put on your Netflix queue . ** - Reel Mediocre

WALL-E

Director: Andrew Stanton

Stars: Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Jeff Garlin, Fred Willard

Year: 2008

Rating: G

Truth be known, it's like Pixar can do no wrong (well, hardly) - and this touching, heartwarming comedy/love story about a "Waste Allocation Load Lifter, Earth-Class" (WALL-E) who finds love and saves the world is most definitely one of their best.

The film opens on an earth completely destroyed by pollution and waste. Unlivable for over 700 years, the planet's last inhabitant is a small robot (Wall-E) who, among others, was left behind all those years ago, to begin the task of cleaning up the planet. In those years, Wall-E has adopted some very human habits, and - along with his pal, a hyperactive cockroach - he's okay with his life and job, collecting the occasional odd souvenir from a world long gone, or playing his VHS tape of Hello, Dolly to watch what things like singing and dancing and even falling in love used to be like.

Then, one hot and windy day, Wall-E's life changes when he meets EVE - an Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator sent down occasionally from the mother ship Axiom (a huge, city-like spaceship way out in space, that the human race has been living on since abandoning earth) to seek out any signs of renewed life on the planet. Short, rusty and dusty, old-school Wall-E is immediately smitten by the sleek, sophisticated beauty that is Eve, and after an initial not-so-great start, the two become fast friends and Wall-E takes her back to his place to show her his collection and let her listen to his music.

It's there that Eve finds a small children's boot, in which Wall-E has place a tiny green plant that he's found on one of his clean-up routes. The plant, thriving in its soil, is the one sign of survival on the desolate planet - and Eve's prime directive takes over; she immediately takes the plant and is quickly swooped up again by a ship sent from Axiom to retrieve her, so that she can get the sign of life to the Axiom captain and let the human race know it's okay to come back to Earth at last - that the planet can finally sustain life again.

And now completely smitten by Eve, Wall-E's determined to follow her - to rescue her, if you will - before soon learning that it's actually the human race (now a sluggish, overweight population totally relying on robots and automation to live) that's truly in danger of not surviving.

This film works on so many levels. As a love story, you couldn't ask for a more heartfelt, sympathetic character than Wall-E. With virtually no dialogue - Wall-E doesn't even utter a word for nearly the first half-hour of the film - through his actions and gestures and expressive eyes, the little-robot-that-could manages to charm you and capture your heart in no time. His love for Eve is innocent, sweet, and you'll be rooting for him from word one.

As a comedy, the film's also pure genius - from poor Wall-E's attempts to keep track of where Eve is on Axiom, to his unintentional role as leader of a group of rebel misfit robots out to live for who they are. Both kids and adults will laugh at the action and humor here.

And even as an economic message about what we're doing to our planet - and what it could become - the film manages to get its message through without every being preachy or even dour; in fact, it even gives hope that maybe even humans can eventually learn, adapt, and survive.

This is a brilliant, touching, heartwarming and unforgettable film - quite possibly Pixar's best, and an amazing achievement that will easily be a front-runner, come Oscar season. THIS is what moviemaking is all about - a film as easy to fall in love with as the title character behind it. ****1/2 - Reel Awesome-Reel Must-See

THE REBEL

Director: Truc 'Charlie' Nguyen
Stars: Johnny Tri Nguyen, Thanh Van Ngo, Dustin Tri Nguyen, Stephane Gauger
Year: 2006
Rating: R

(in Vietnamese & French with English subtitles)

While this was my first time seeing Johnny Nguyen in a film, it won't be my last; The Rebel is a great movie, filled with an intriguing story, great action scenes that showcase Nguyen's own style of fighting (called Lien Feng Kwon), and a very dramatic storyline set in French-occupied Vietnam of the early 1920's.

Johnny Nguyen plays Cuong, a local cop or government agent who's been trained by the French to help them with not only the takeover of Vietnam - but to also aid them in the overthrowing of any resistance groups that are trying to stop the French in their conquest. Cuong's strongest "partner in crime" is a ruthless, seemingly superhuman and without conscience bad - VERY bad - dude named Sy (Dustin Nguyen of "21 Jump Street" fame, in his first role as a villain) ... and when both men aid in stopping the assassination of the French secretary, Cuong's conscience finally begins to gnaw at him after he's forced to shoot and kill a barely-legal would be assassin.

But first off, there are bigger problems to deal with - Sy and his cronies have captured the mastermind behind the assassination attempt (Thanh Van Ngo), a young woman whose father is the leader of the Vietnamese rebels. Determined to learn the whereabouts of her father, Sy tortures the female resistance leader, finally throwing her into a prison when she isn't forthcoming with the information ... and, that night, Cuong helps the girl to escape - the two of them now fugitives from the law as Cuong helps the young lady to get out of the city and back to her father ... as Sy and his men begin the hunt to bring them both down, as well as to find and kill the girl's father.

As said, the martial arts fights in this film are exciting and full of raw energy - in particular, the all-out brawl at the end. Johnny Nguyen turns in a great performance as the conflicted Cuong - whom you're never quite sure is either a good guy or bad guy - and Dustin Nguyen is nothing short of brilliant as the nasty Sy. Thanh Van Ngo shows off both her acting chops AND her skills as a fighter, holding her own easily with the guys in her fight scenes (particularly so as she was not trained in martial arts prior to this film). The steamy, oppressed and stark darkness of 1922 Vietnam city life is also perfectly displayed in the film - as is its beautiful countryside and forests (shot in Vietnam, the locales and cinematography add real atmosphere to the tale).

If you're a martial arts fan, this film is practically a must-see ... but it also has a dramatic, strong narrative storyline that's hard to resist. Johnny Nguyen also produced and co-wrote the film, and on the commentary it's mentioned that this film was actually his brainchild - something he worked on for years to bring to the screen - but that's evident in the TLC taken in the making of this film, and one can only hope Johnny Nguyen has many more like it to come. ***1/2 - Reel Cool-Reel Awesome

THE LOVE GURU

Director: Marco Schnabel

Stars: Mike Myers, Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake, Romany Malco, Manu Narayan, Verne Troyer

Year: 2008

Rating: PG-13

Wow, I'm in the minority on this one, but I thought this film had some truly funny, off-the-wall moments that made me laugh out loud. Mike Myers' widely-panned 2008 release is definitely a flawed film - crude, lame in parts, and (in the last half, especially) not particularly funny ... but I can't just totally pan the entire film - or Myers' latest creation, Guru Pitka.

Myers stars as a non-Indian brought up his entire life in India, his spiritual teachings bestowed on him by classmate Deepak Chopra - who, of course, has grown up to be a hugely famous relationship and self-help expert all over the world ... in this country, in particular, after Chopra appeared on Oprah Winfrey's chat show. Pitka, growing up in Chopra's shadow, has always been #2 in the guru business, and as the film opens he's become a very popular "love guru" in Los Angeles, where he lives in his ashram with his faithful servant and sidekick Rajneesh (delightfully and energetically played by Manu Narayan, in one of the best performances in the film) and hires himself out to cure relationships gone bad.

Enter the Toronto Maple Leafs, the professional ice hockey team that's currently owned by Jane Bullard (woodenly and boringly played by Jessica Alba, in hands-down the worst performance of the film). The Bullard family has owned the Leafs for years, and seems to be jinxed because the Leafs have had nothing but bad luck - since Jane took over, especially - but in recent weeks all that was changing because of the Leafs' star player, Darren Roanoke (Romany Malco). But when Roanoke and his wife Prudence (Meagan Good) suddenly split up, and Prudence begins seeing a rival hockey player, Frenchman Jacques "Le Coq" Grande (Justin Timberlake, proving he's got big-time talent as both actor and comedian) Roanoke suddenly goes way, WAY off his game ... and Jane - much against the wishes of Maple Leafs coach Punch Cherkov (Verne Troyer) - hires Guru Pitka to get Darren and Prudence back together in time for the Leafs to win the Stanley Cup. The job appeals to Pitka, as well, in a huge way as well - it's his one shot at finding real fame, getting on "Oprah" himself, and finally beating out Deepak Chopra as the #1 spiritual guru of the world.

It's a silly premise, but you'd expect nothing less than that from Mike Myers. The opening credits and first couple of sequences have a few laugh-out-loud funny moments, and for me Myers set up something fairly charming in the character of Guru Pitka. Myers, on the extras, claims to have a real love for eastern philosophy and practices (as well as the Toronto Maple Leafs) - and it shows here, as in between all the humor and stretches of believability, Guru Pitka's methods and teachings are from the heart. The insult humor, particularly the short jokes aimed unsparingly at Verne Troyer, may grow a little tired after awhile, but a few of them actually come off fresh and funny. And with the exception of Alba, who never seems to fully connect with the rest of the cast on a believable level, all the actors involved do a great job (although whoever told Jim Gaffigan that he was anything less than annoying should be pimp-slapped). Even Telma Hopkins, in a supporting role as Darren Roanoke's stern mother, does a great job.

But the movie ultimately lags in the last third, as the humor becomes a bit too crude and the story a little too smarmy. While the movie's loose ends tie up satisfactorily, what happens can be seen coming a mile away, and only a really awesome Bollywood film song and dance number at the end brought a real smile.

But overall, not as bad a film as most reviewers would make you believe. It's not total crap, and the first third of the film (which includes some great cameos, and may have you chanting "Mariska Hargitay" yourself!). But it isn't Myers' best work, for sure. **1/2 - Reel Mediocre-Reel Cool

GET SMART

Director: Peter Segal
Stars: Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Arkin, Terence Stamp, Masi Oka, Nate Torrence
Year: 2008
Rating: PG-13

A big and very pleasant surprise, this film updating and remaking the hit 1960's TV series is a funny, action-filled comedy treat, with Steve Carell more than aptly filling the phone shoes of the late, great Don Adams.

Here, Maxwell Smart is a data analyst at CONTROL, a secret spy organization though long-ago disbanded and defunct. CONTROL operates in secret now, trying to thwart the exploits of its biggest nemesis - KAOS - in the evil organization's constant attempts to take over the world.

But poor Smart only analyzes his data and dreams of passing the exam to be a full field agent - much like his hero and friend, Agent 23 (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, again proving he can do comedy), the James Bond-like superstar of the organization. Even when Smart passes the exam and makes field agent, the Chief of CONTROL (Alan Arkin, in a great, underplayed performance worthy of original "Chief" Edward Platt) informs Max that he's just too valuable in data analysis to be taken out of that department.

But when KAOS super-villain Siegfried (Terence Stamp, who's terrific but not given enough to do here) steals nuclear weapons - and KAOS actually finds and breaks into CONTROL headquarters, gaining access to the true identities of CONTROL's entire agent roster - Chief has no choice but to make Smart Agent 86, as he's not a known agent to KAOS. Smart is then teamed up with Agent 99 (a brilliant and funny Anne Hathaway), whose recently been made over with plastic surgery to alter her appearance for another reason entirely - and together, the savvy Agent 99 and the fairly inept Agent 86 set out to Russia, to stop KAOS and get back the stolen information before it can be used.

This is a great film, one that keeps the heart and soul of the TV series and characters alive and well - yet never boils down to the corniness or slapstick of the series. Carell is channeling a toned-down Don Adams from the show, and is perfect as Maxwell Smart - Anne Hathaway coming across as a sexy spy with a heart in a spot-on performance. The action sequences are both funny and exciting, very realistic and even thrilling at times, and the chemistry between Carell and Hathaway is there all the way through. Even Terry Crews as Agent 91 and David Koechner as Larabee - two bumbling CONTROL agents who seem like they'd cause more harm than good - are hilarious ... as are Masi Oka and Nate Torrence as (respectively) Bruce and Lloyd, the science guys at CONTROL who provide the agents with their gadgets.

Again - a big and very pleasant (not to mention extremely enjoyable) surprise. **** - Reel Awesome