Ryan Gosling is my new man crush...
THE STORY
Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) was a happy, decent, and boring man with a wife and two kids... His life crumbled after his wife, Emily Weaver (Julianne Moore), dumped him and confessed that she slept with her co-worker, David Lindhagen (Kevin Bacon)... Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling) then came into Cal's life and changed his whole appearance and guided him to become irresistible to women... However, no matter how many he slept with, Cal could never ever forget about his wife...
THE REVIEW
As u can see, this movie starred so many Hollywood stars and all of them gave great performances...
Lets start off with my new favorite guy, Ryan Gosling... If someone asked me, "Who would u go gay for?", a few days ago I would not have the answer... but I have it now! Ryan Gosling! Yeah... He's sort of the guy who I wanted to be... Okey, enough with that whole man crush thing... In this movie, he's slick, funny and charming... At first, he was this sweet talker who knew all the lines to get the ladies to come home with him and it was pretty good of him to able to pull off the fast talking stuff because in the movie Drive, he hardly said a thing... Then, he started showing his comical side when he started coaching Cal to be a real man... Damn he's funny... Lastly, he's really charming and sweet when he found Hannah (Emma Stone), his true love... I love to see those two together... What got me smitten was the part when Hannah bit him on the shoulder in the liquor store and the way he reacted was very funny... I didn't know whether it's staged or just spontaneous, but that one particular scene reminded me of my girl and it made me smile...
Steve Carell will always be Steve Carell... If u're familiar with his movie, then u'll know what to expect from him - a lot of fun... All the funny talking, the slapstick, the jokes, the horrible laughing... Though I put Ryan Gosling first in this review, but actually the movie is mainly about Carell... He's the main man...
I could see that the production crew tried to balance out the appearance of Jacob and Cal but they failed for sometimes Jacob was out of the picture for too long...
Other stars, like I said before, also contributed so much to the production... Julianne Moore was perfect for the role as a confused married woman with a mid life crisis... She really looked exhausted in this movie... Emma Stone, ackkk! She's adorable and very very quirky... Gotta love her... Marisa Tomei was also perfect for her role as a crazy woman... Lastly, Kevin Bacon... I wonder why he's always the bad guy... Maybe it's that sinister look he has...
Yeah, I don't do justice on the rest of the actors and focus only on Gosling... But whatever... The main forte or strength of this movie lied mainly on the stars' performances which is typical for rom-coms...
The need to rely on the stars is necessary because rom-coms usually are filled with clichés... In this movie, playboy meets girl of his dreams, a very big speech at the end, guy fights for his girl, yada yada yada... cliché cliché, cliché... In order to cover up that huge flaw in the story line, the production must depend on the stars to deliver quality fun time for the audience...
Again, to conclude and summarize, like most rom-coms, this movie is full of cliches, but it is very fun to watch mainly because the main cast members gave quite brilliant and hilarious performances... Yeeha
3.5 out of 5 stars...
Good nite... "Al-Shabuur... Yang Maha Penyabar... Allah S.W.T tidak akan mendatangkan seksaan tergesa - gesa kepada orang derhaka kepadaNya... Dia akan memberi peluang untuk bertaubat..."
THE STORY
The Driver (Ryan Gosling), who worked as a movie stunt driver, a mechanic and a getaway driver for robberies, found himself falling for his neighbour, Irene (Carrie Mulligan)... Not long after the romance between those two sparked, Irene's husband got out of jail... Though the husband swore that he would stay clean, his past remained to haunt him... He was forced to rob a bank or his family would be harmed... The Driver, helped the husband and got caught in the mess...
THE REVIEW
Ryan Gosling & Carey Mulligan
Both Gosling and Mulligan were very silent in this movie as The Driver and Irene spoke just a few words from the start til the end... Both didn't rely on the scripts but rather they effectively used their facial expressions to convey emotions... Sadness, happiness, shocked, anger, determination - they were all in their faces... The silence kinda made this movie very sweet to watch especially at the part when The Driver and Irene had a little bit of innocent romance before the husband was freed from jail... It's very impressive for them to do so because not all actors and actresses can rely on just facial expressions to portray deep emotions...
Not to mention, both are very good looking... Every time the camera got a close up on Ryan's face, I thought, "Boy, girls would love to sit on his face..."... Whereas, Carey is superbly cute...
It's Definitely Not Fast & Furious
Just like most people, I was misled by the title and the trailer... I expected this movie to have prolonged car chases and lots of cars crashing and exploding like crazy... Because of that expectations, I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed... However, that doesn't mean that this movie is rotten... It has that indie movie kinda feel - meaning that it's quite slow but sweet...
The action parts are simple and scarce but a bit brutal to see... Hammer to the hand, knife to the throat, fork to the eye... Yeah, pretty gruesome... The focus is not in the action parts but more towards the heart and drive of The Driver... What drove him to go out of his safe zone and break every rule he held to over the past years... I guess that's the real meaning of the title...
In a nutshell, if u're looking for impressive car chases, hot girls and cool rides, go rent all of the Fast & Furious movies because this movie doesn't have all of those... However, if u're looking for something sweet and silent with a bit of short action sequences, then this movie is a must see...
4 out of 5 stars...
A bit of trivia - A woman sued this movie for not being Fast & Furious... Read it here
"Sesiapa yang keluar mencari ilmu pengetahuan (agama), dia di dalam perlindungan Allah sehingga dia pulang... Jika orang itu mati ketika mencari, dia mati syahid..."
"Maulana Yusof berkata... Allah benci kepada orang yang takbur... Contohnya : Nabi Musa memasukkan tangan ke dalam saku bajunya dan menariknya kembali... Ketika itu, tangannya memancarkan cahaya... Akan tetapi, Firaun tetap takbur..."
When I was a standard 6 student, my teacher told me about the death of his friend... The friend was young, healthy and happy... he died in his sleep, in bed beside his wife...
I asked my teacher, "How can people die in their sleep?"... He said that while we're sleeping, our souls would temporarily be released from our body and they would travel to random places... Some souls would travel so far and got lost, not able to find their way back into their bodies... That's why people die in their sleep...
After I heard that, I had quite a number of sleepless nights... Afraid that if I fall asleep, I'll wake up and find myself being in a dark small hole... Buried underground...
In order to sleep, I would try to think about other things rather than death... I would lie on bed, stare at the ceiling and imagine about how a perfect life would be... How would it be like if I'm rich, tall and handsome... How it would be like if I'm invincible... and other silly stuff... It put me to sleep faster than counting sheep...
Well, the stuff that my teacher said is just from a spiritual point of view... Here's the scientific explanation on why do some people die in their sleep... According to BBC News, people die in their sleep due to the loss of cells in a particular part of their brain that commands breathing... Click here for more details...
I wish there's a better article on this issue for I would like to know if there's a way to avoid dying in my sleep... The Internet sources are not quite helpful...
After weeks of searching, I finally found the pirated copy of Gantz : Perfect Answer, a continuation of the previous Gantz real life action movie... In case u don't know, this movie an adaptation of the Gantz manga...
THE STORY
The death of Masaru Kato (in the previous movie) had made Kurono Kei even stronger and he strived to save as many Gantz members as he could in every mission they had to endure... Suddenly, Gantz, without any warning changed the rules of the death game... It sent out a former Gantz member who had graduated after gaining 100 points to recruit back other former members into the Gantz room again... Besides that, Kato suddenly appeared without being revived by Gantz... In this movie, the Gantz member did not just face danger from the aliens but also among themselves as they fight with each other for their own selfish needs...
THE PLUS POINTS
Subway Battle
The action scenes were awesome as the gun and sword fights were choreographed so well and they were so engaging to watch... The scene that I enjoyed watching the most was the fight between the black suits aliens and the Gantz members in the subway train carts... The director was clever enough to manipulate the carts' space to the action scene's advantage... The fighting movements seemed ruthless and smooth, making it the best sword fighting scene in this movie... I also love the way the aliens used their guns to fight and block enemies' swords... It was great...
The Twists
There were so many unexpected twists in this movie... Even the fans of the manga would have a problem predicting what's gonna happen next and that's what made it engaging to watch...
The Visual Effects, Props and Costumes
Though the CGI usage was limited, the visual effects were still amazing to watch... I love the way the producers depicted the nature of the aliens... Black suits, weapons coming out from their palms, shape shifting and ability to regenerate... I also love the Gantz suits especially when the it's powered up... They looked awesome...
However, the producers failed to make the Spiderman-like leaping scenes real... It looked ridiculous...
THE MINUS POINTS
The First 30 Minutes
This movie opened up with boring sequences of Kurono's life after Kato died - how awesome he was in battle, how he helped to take care of Ayumu and how his relationship with Tae taking a good turn... It was rather slow and uninteresting... The fun only started when the subway fight took place...
Lack of Explanation
Some scenes were not efficiently explained, leaving me lost and confused on what really happening... For example, what was the water sprayed on Gantz making it explode? and also how could the alien be transported into the room? Was it because it was holding the small black ball or was it because he killed Tae?
The Ending
The last battle took place in the Gantz room where both Kato and Kurono had to fight with the alien leader in disguise as Nishi... That particular scene was meant to be sentimental but because of the bad script and story line, it seemed horrible and lame...
ALL IN ALL
The best thing about this movie is the action scenes... Awesomely choreographed and topped with good visual effects... What made this movie not so great is the bad script and story line... The producers wanted it to be so sentimental but they failed miserably... Therefore, if I ever wanna watch this movie again, I would just skip to the action parts and ignore the rest...
3 out of 5 stars...
Dear family members and friends, I would to invite u all to my wedding~
Yes... I am getting married... Just broke the news to everyone a couple of weeks ago (on the 15th of Oct to be exact) during my friends' (Aafina and Aimi) birthday party and it made all of my friends shit bricks... They were all shocked most probably because me and my girl never said anything about it... Never even hinted anything... and then, BAMMMM!!! we dropped the news on them and it went Nagasaki and Hiroshima... We won surprise of the year... Thank u...
So, the reception on my honey's side will be on 12th of November 2011 (Saturday) which is next month... Gosh... I'm nervous... Of course I'm nervous, it's a wedding! I'm taking a huge motherfucking step here... At the same time, u have no idea how happy I am... Haha...
Here's the venue...
No 6, Jalan CJ2/10-4, Taman Cheras Jaya,
43200 Batu 9, Cheras,
Selangor Darul Ehsan
Coordinates : N3.0275, E101.7589
|
The reception on my side will be on the 26th of November 2011 (Saturday) at my house...
168, Felda Kerteh 4,
23300 Ketengah Jaya,
Dungun, Terengganu
23300 Ketengah Jaya,
Dungun, Terengganu
In case u didn't notice, I live in a Felda area... so, good luck finding my place... Nahh... I'm sure u'll find it... No sweat...
Different people reacted differently from the news of our wedding... Those who were at the birthday party went crazy... Crazy like screaming and shouting... Totally expected... I cannot forget the look on Aimi's face... She just kept staring at me and my girl like she's hoping it was all a dream...
The boys reacted differently... Alief, Fadzly and Aswadi (poyo guna nama betul) told me how challenged they are at the fact that I'm gonna be a husband soon... I can understand Alief's pressure... Not gonna elaborate on that... Relax guys... Your time will come and when it comes, I'll be there... with my wife... Haha...
Married people like Kak Mimi and Kak Effa gave me so many advices after they interviewed me about how the idea of the wedding started... "You know that you cannot undo this after it has been done... Right?", Kak Mimi asked... Ridhwan asked the same thing too... Yeah guys, I know... I know... Don't worry... Then, I was poured with loads of based-on-experience stuff... "Fahmi, kahwin and bercouple ni lain tau...", said Kak Effa with a concerned look...
Yep, I know Kak Effa... People kept telling me that... My girl told me repeatedly that people say the first 5 years is the hardest... Survive that period and u'll be happy for the rest of your lives... So I'm preparing myself mentally, emotionally and physically for it... Thanks for the heads up people... Really appreciate that...
Okey now, let's change the topic to how this idea of marriage came about...
It all started in July... She asked me whether I wanted to get engaged... I told her, I don't really like being engaged... Let's get married instead... She was super excited and immediately told her parents... I was surprised at how supportive her parents were... They were okey with it and went to see my parents at the first chance they got... Both my parents and her parents discussed about it...
At first, my parents were quite reluctant on the idea because we proposed the marriage to be held after Hari Raya Aidilfitri... Hari Raya ke-3 to be exact... It was too sudden for them to digest... Couldn't blame them, it was huge news... They rejected the proposal mainly because my cousin was getting married on the 3rd day of Raya... The idea of marriage kinda died down after that...
Then, after a few weeks, when I got back from Melaka, my parents and I had a bit of discussion... They asked me, "What's the rush?? Did anything happen? Did anything BAD happen???"... I knew that they're worried because they knew so many people who wed out of wrong reasons... As parents, they have a right to feel that way... I told them not to worry because we're getting married not because of that... Everything is fine mom and dad... "Lambat pun tak apa... Tahun depan pun boleh...", I assured them...
A few days later, dad suddenly checked the calendar... "Tarikh 11 November okey tak??"... Huh?? I thought my parents were going to suggest that it will be held next year... Haha... Eventually, I guess it's because of my determination, they decided that it's okey to do it this year... The date's kinda awesome too...
11. 11. 11
Pandai juga abah aku ni pilih tarikh...
After that, the preparations started... Abah got me some forms to be filled from Jabatan Agama Terengganu... The forms were written in Jawi... Luckily I can still read Jawi...
The most memorable and informational was the kursus kahwin... We did it together at Putrajaya... Though I kinda fell asleep like many times but the course really taught me loads of stuff about marriage, and the preparations... The lecturers were great - some were really funny, while others were dead boring but give so many useful advices... One particular lecturer from the Health Department was very interesting to listen too... We agreed that he lectured as if he was high or drunk... It was damn hilarious...
We spent our sweet time looking for barang hantaran... We decided to get ourselves things that won't end up being useless after the ceremony's over... Thus, we looked for stuff that will be useful for work such as a stylish bag that can fit files and books, killer heels that are appropriate for work and that sort of stuff... The hunt was fun as we got to spend time with each other...
I think that's about it... for now :-)
Again, friends and family members, u are all invited and wish us good luck... :-)
Good nite... "Nabi Musa mengadu kepada Allah tentang kekejaman Firaun dan Allah berfirman: "Jangan khuatir, sesungguhnya Aku selalu bersama kamu dan saudara kamu...""
Selamat malam... "Nabi Muhammad S.A.W bersabda: Sesiapa yang berselawat kepadaku sekali selawat, nescaya Allah limpahkan sepuluh rahmat kepadanya dengan sebab sekali selawat itu..."
Real Steel is definitely the real deal...
The Story
In the era of advanced technology, boxing has evolved from blood and flesh to oil and steel... Humans no longer fight in the ring, instead they have robots fighting for them... Charles Kenton (Hugh Jackman), a former boxer, was addicted to robot boxing but never was good at it and because of that, he kept losing money and in a lot of debt... It all seemed to change after he met the son that he abandoned, Max Kenton (Dakota Goyo)... While illegally searching for robot parts, Max accidentally discovered a Generation 2 sparring robot named ATOM... At first, Charlie didn't believe in ATOM's ability, but Max proved to him that it could survive serious beatings and also win against huge advanced opponents...
Awesome Fight Scenes
Being choreographed by Sugar Ray Leonard, the legendary boxer, the fight scenes in this movie are darn impressive and engaging... The robots do not just brawl, they beautifully box! The action sequences are awesome not just because of choreography but also because of the extremely great visual and sound effects... I love the looks that the production team give to the robots for they appear to be alive rather than robotic...
It Got Soul
I won't deny that I almost shed some manly tears watching this movie... This movie is far better than the Transformers movie series because it got soul... A soulful movie is the one that touched your heart and make u feel sad, happy or a mixture of all emotions... Real Steel has all of that thanks to the awesome story line and brilliant acting performance from Dakota Goyo and Hugh Jackman...
Clichés
An underdog beating all stars opponents, an asshole father learns about the true meaning of parenthood, and yada yada yada... Undoubtedly that this movie has many clichés but hey, no one gives a damn about it because the brilliant action sequences, humor, emotional stir and good acting from the main casts managed to cover them up perfectly...
4 out of 5 stars...
"Maulana Yusof berkata... Layanilah tetamu dengan baik... Contohi cara Nabi Zulkifli a.s. melayani manusia... Beliau memberi layanan terbaik, sesuai dengan takdir dan keinginan Allah..."
I don't usually favour Oscar materials but this one in particular intrigued me... It would be an awesome movie for Literature classes because it's quite deep and beautiful... Thanks to Ridhwan for the awesome copy of this movie...
THE STORY
This movie is all about Jack O'Brien (Sean Penn) and his reminisces of his childhood...
PLUS POINTS
Visual Effects
The visual effects are indeed stunning... I was mesmerized by how beautiful the depiction of how the whole universe was created and the process of earth's transformation from being a burning hot planet to the death of it... It amazed me more to learn that all of the effects are not computer generated... The director, Terrence Malick, didn't like how computer generated imagery (CGI) looks and thus, the special effects supervisor, Douglas Trumbull, suggested that they use a variety of materials for the creation of universe sequence...
Working with visual effects supervisor Dan Glass, Trumbull used a variety of materials for the creation of the universe sequence. “We worked with chemicals, paint, fluorescent dyes, smoke, liquids, CO2, flares, spin dishes, fluid dynamics, lighting and high speed photography to see how effective they might be,” said Trumbull... "We did things like pour milk through a funnel into a narrow trough and shoot it with a high-speed camera and folded lens, lighting it carefully and using a frame rate that would give the right kind of flow characteristics to look cosmic, galactic, huge and epic.”
Non-Linear Narrative
This movie for me is a huge compilation of short video clips arranged in non-linear manner but they are all connected to each other and in a way, they're quite chronological... It's a brilliant technique and it fits this movie well since the whole 2 hours is all about Jack's re-collection of childhood memories which come in bits and pieces... Kudos to the director, Terrence Malick, for the awesome movie direction... I'm impressed...
Brad Pitt
Pitt who played Jack O'Brien's father carried his role extremely well... The father, Mr O'Brien, was an authoritarian, strict and hot-tempered father who spent quite an amount of time preparing his 3 children to face the real world... Honestly, he scared me... Yeah, he was a scary father... The way he talked to the kids, the way he touched them, it's like he wanted to kill them... Very rough and a bit psychotic...
Jessica Chastain
Chastain played Jack's mother, Mrs O'Brien... The mother's characteristics contrast the father's in a very obvious manner... Unlike Mr O'Brien, Mrs O'Brien was very caring, lenient and a happy go lucky parent... She's like the children's saviour against the father... What I loved about Chastain is that she could portrayed emotions such as happiness, grief, fright and sadness very well...
The Kids
The kids, Young Jack (Hunter McCracken), R.L (Laramie Eppler) and Steve (Tye Sheridan), are the hearts of the movie... The most prominent is Young Jack who because of his father's way of parenting, became very rebellious... So rebellious that it scared me... I was scared that he might kill everyone in this movie... Haha...
MINUS POINT
I would to stress that this movie is not for everyone... For me, it's very amazing, deep and beautiful... but others might think otherwise as it's a bit hard to crack what the movie is all about... There are so many personifications and symbolisms... Besides that, the development is quite slow... It's an artistic movie and it was meant to be enjoyed and indulged... Of course the pace is made slow...
THE VERDICT
All in all, this movie is great because of the stunning visual effects, awesome movie direction and also the brilliant performance from the cast members... However, like I said before, this movie is very deep and slow in pace and therefore, it's not for everybody to like...
4 out of 5 stars...
I usually write all of my movie reviews in my mind during watching before putting the words on paper or typing them... I would refer it as "Mind blogging"... I've developed it some time after I started writing stuff about movies and reading other people's reviews... Sometimes this mind blogging can be a distraction though... I won't be able to focus on watching if I think of what to write too much...
Actually I don't just mind blog while watching movies... I also do it every time something interesting happen to me and feel like writing them down in my blog... For example, when I saw a cute kitten being washed away in a drain and I saved it, I would mind blog about the sequence of events, and suitable words to use to make the entry that I would type later interesting... Besides being a distraction, it's tiring... To think of what words to use and all that stuff, It's mentally tiring... and I would keep mind blogging about the same thing until I've written it down and post it as an entry... I've been mind blogging about this particular entry for days now...
THE STORY
The Three Musketeers, Athos (Matthew Macfadyen), Porthos (Ray Stevenson), and Aramis (Luke Evans) earned their reputation as the most brave and cunning in France... That was until they were betrayed by Milady de Winter (Milla Jovovich) while on a mission to retrieve a plan of a powerful weapon... They lost their will to fight and never went back into action again... D'artagnan (Logan Lerman) who desired to become a musketeer reminded them of the feeling of glory and thus all four of them combine their wits and powers to protect the king and queen from harm and deceit...
PLUS POINTS
It Looks Good
Just by watching this movie, I can guess that a lot of effort had been put into making this movie look really really good... The costumes, the place settings and the visual effects are stunning... The actors and actress are handsome and pretty except the King Louis XIII (Freddie Fox)
This movie reminded me of the Resident Evil movie series not just because Milla Jovovich is in it, but also because of the special visual effects during some of the action scenes...
Humor
Planchet (James Corden) is the most entertaining character in this movie... Though a small character, he won a few laughs from the audience with his silly acts and the way he got picked on by the musketeers... Other characters also contributed jokes especially the musketeers and D'artagnan...
MINUS POINTS
Nothing New and Interesting
This movie is action packed but I wasn't quite impressed by the choreography... There are many gun and sword fights but I see nothing new and impressive... I don't know, maybe I'm too hard to pleased but I tell u this, I think this movie is quite boring...
Sure, the visual effects and CGI are stunning, but they don't compensate the lack of excitement and suspense... In my humble opinion, the producers seemed to be trying too hard to impress by bombarding the audience with superb effects that it backfired... They depended too much on the effects that they forgot to focus on the heart of story... I left the cinema feeling empty...
Milla Jovovich
I love Milla in the Resident Evil series but in this one, she kinda sucked... I mean, the role of seductive and manipulative woman is not meant for her... She failed to arouse me with her sexy moves and all... Her facial expression... erkhh... fail...
THE VERDICT
The Three Musketeers looks really awesome but there's no substance... I think that with better script and plot, this movie would improve a lot...
2.5 out of 5 stars...
The drive for me to watch this is the craving for a monster movie which is kinda rare nowadays... I love monster movies mostly because of the destruction, thrill and action... I was hoping this movie to be as engaging as Cloverfield and Godzilla...
THE STORY
A group of Norwegian students were investigating and filming a mysterious series of bear killings and they believed that one man, Hanz, knew the truth about it... Therefore, they secretly followed him and ended up discovering that Hanz was a man that had spent his whole life hunting for real life Norwegian trolls in the woods...
PLUS POINTS
Found Footage
Similar to Paranormal Activity and Cloverfield, this movie is a found footage flick which makes it more exciting and engaging to watch... Ever since I watched Cloverfield, which is one of my favourites, I've always like found footage movies because it makes me feel as though I'm the one who's holding the camera, going face to face with ghosts or monsters... However, some people don't like found footage because it makes them dizzy... Well, I don't blame them... With all the running and falling, the pictures are excessively shaky...
The Trolls
All the excitement startes as soon as the trolls were found... They are huge and nasty... Because of the found footage effects, they look extremely scary to me... I mean, seeing them running towards the characters who're holding the camera made me feel as though it was me they're chasing... Considering that this is a budget movie, I think that the producers did a great job in making the trolls look believable to the audience...
MINUS POINTS
Voice Dub
This movie is Norwegian and therefore, the characters speak Norwegian language... However, the one that I watched in AEON Bandaraya Melaka's GSC was dubbed... Yup, they dubbed the characters' voice and made the movie fully in English language... It was a disappointment to me because I hate voice dubs... The characters look ridiculous because the voice didn't match the mouth movements... It was really a mess...
Besides that, I wasn't able to capture the real emotions portrayed by the characters because the voice sounded unnatural... The volume didn't match with the sound effects making this movie frustrating to watch because it destroyed the humour, the emotions, the suspense... It destroyed the movie...
I would suggest Malaysians to just download the movie with original voices and put on the subtitles rather than watching it in the cinemas... It would be better that way...
FUCKING VOICE DUB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE VERDICT
It was supposed to be a good movie but the voice-overs completely annihilate its true quality... I enjoyed watching the trolls and the hunts because it was engaging... All thanks to the found footage techniques... When the trolls are off screen, this movie felt a bit boring... The sound and visual effects were awesomely made...
2.5 out of 5 stars...
My bladder was full with pee after two hours of watching Killer Elite at AEON Bandaraya Melaka's GSC and therefore I went straight to the toilet near Padini Outlet Store... It seemed that I wasn't the only one because all of the toilet cubicles were occupied... So I stood by the sink and waited because I don't like to use urinals... As I stood silently, holding my pee, a Bangladeshi (I assumed) man approached me... He was wearing a cleaner's uniform and holding a mop with his both hands...
"Hello", he said and I said "Hello" back with a smile... I was being friendly... He returned my smile with the biggest grin I've ever seen... Boy, his teeth were awesomely white... As he was about to say something more, a Chinese man came out of one of the cubicles... I went straight to the just emptied cubicle and tried to avoid eye contact with the Bangladeshi cleaner because he kinda crept me out...
Thanks to the ice lemon tea I drank while watching the movie, it was the longest pee ever... After I was done, I opened the cubicle door just to found that the Bangladeshi guy was standing directly in front of the cubicle and he still got that grin on his face... It was beyond creepy...
I walked pass him and went to the sink to wash my hands... He tried to approach me but I stormed out of the toilet without even drying my hands... I avoided going to that toilet since then...
Okey, the drive for me to watch this movie is the hilarious trailer... Besides that, the lead, Shaheizy Sam has been given quite a publicity since Adnan Sempit... So, I was curious to see how good he is... (Malaysian movie lovers must be rolling their eyes at the fact that this is the first Shaheizy Sam movie I watched... While the Hollywood movie buffs are rolling their eyes at the fact that I dared to watch a Malay movie...) Lalalala...
THE STORY
Manja (Yana Samsudin) and Herry (Shaheizy Sam) were a happy married couple... However, under a camouflage of a good house wife, Manja was actually the leader of one of the most influential local gangster group... Without her husband's knowing, she had been going around bashing people's head to maintain the group's power... Not being able to give birth to a child, Manja granted permission to Herry to take Reanna (Intan Ladyana), his secretary, as his second wife so that he could have the pleasure of having kids in the house... Reanna turned out to be the leader of the opposing gangster group... The conflict between two groups forced those two wives to brawl...
THE PLUS POINTS
Shaheizy Sam & Yana Samsudin
These guys are the cutest pair I've ever seen in a Malaysian movie (maybe because I don't watch Malaysian movies too often)... I love it when they're together especially at the first parts of the movie - the part when Sam cupped Yana's cheeks... They're awesomely cute... I was a bit smitten watching them all mushy and stuff...
I can understand why Malaysians (well, mostly Malays) love this guy... Unlike other Malaysian comedians, he doesn't really rely on slapstick to win laughs from audience... Instead, he just act naturally quirky and he doesn't over do the acting and the jokes...
Whereas, Yana Samsudin was bad-ass in this movie... She did her action scenes quite smoothly... It's like she's used to it... and seeing her kick some ass in her black skirt was awesome... Besides that, she was kinda good in portraying sadness and conflict in this movie... She gained my sympathy with her depressed look after the hubby kinda abandoned her for the new wife... Sedikit touching di situ...
Humour
If u're thinking about watching, then bare in mind that this movie was created just for giggles (because Malaysian movie makers are all about comedy)... There were more than a few moments that made me laughed so hard such at the part when Manja and Reanna had a fight in the bedroom and in the kitchen...
THE MINUS POINTS
Other Cast Members
The most annoying character in this movie for me is the Mat Saja guy... His role was actually small but the producers keep bringing him back into the picture which I think totally unnecessary... Other small characters like Manja's two faithful henchmen were also kinda disposable... They fail to impress me with the jokes... I don't know, maybe other people might laugh at their jokes but I think they're quite lame...
Intan Ladyana is cute and all but... no, she didn't shine as well as Yana Samsudin... Her action moves are also kinda stiff, an indication that action movies are not for her... For what is worth, she did contribute to some of the humour scenes... For example, the naughty kitty in bed scene...
Plot and Story Line
Some scenes were rather redundant such as the parts when Manja was depressed... Besides that. there were too many insignificant scenes were created in the intention to create additional gags... I think that it will be better if they take this movie seriously and focus on how to make it better rather than to make it funnier... But, for Malaysian movie makers, it's all about the money huh? Just saying... :-P
Action
They call this movie an action comedy... Hmm... I totally get the comedy part, but action part needs some improvements... Okey, maybe I'm over analyzing... However, it's all a part of reviewing... The action scenes were horrible and out of place... Luckily, they're quite believable thanks to the stunt men who managed to deliver some awesome manoeuvres... Shiah!! Kudos also for Yana Samsudin for being a bad-ass... Damn, the skirt and boots are cute...
ALL IN ALL
The above review is me being optimistic about Malaysian movies... Yes, if u want to compare this movie with those Hollywood made flicks, then it still has a long way to go... However, if u would want to compare it with other Malaysian movies, I say that this movie is not bad... Not bad at all... I quite enjoy it mostly because of the humour and not the action... Besides that, Sam and Yana... They're really cute...
3 out of 5 stars...
At first, I was hesitant to watch this movie because of the mixed reviews it got... But then, I said to myself, "Fuck it!" and went straight to the cinemas alone... This movie turned out to be a movie I love... Through out the whole damn movie, I was wondering, "Who the hell gave this movie bad reviews? Must be old people..."
Bad ass, those are the words best to describe this movie...
I planned on watching this with my girlfriend since she thinks Statham is so damn hot because he's bald and tough but unfortunately TGV Jusco Cheras Selatan didn't show it... Bummer...
THE STORY
Danny Bryce (Jason Statham) was an ex-hitman who quit the job out of conscience... However, he was forced to get back into action for the sake of his best friend, Hunter (Robert de Niro)... In order to save Hunter, Danny must kill three Special Air Service (SAS) officers... His job was made hard by Spike Logan (Clive Owen), a former SAS and member of the FeatherMen - a secret society created by former SAS members to protect their own...
AWESOMENESS
Action
This movie is indeed action packed... I can't even pick which action scene is the best because all of them kept me glued to my seat... Picture this - Clive Owen VS Jason Statham... Who do think would win? Both are bad asses... Well, if u haven't watched it, u must go and find out for yourself...
What I loved the most about the action sequence was the way the director, Gary McKendry, made them damn suspenseful... The pace of each action scene was just nice and I enjoy them very much... Thank you...
Before u hit the cinemas, bear in mind that this movie is style over substance kind of movie... Which means, if u want anything other than action, u'll be deeply disappointed... I came into the cinema hall craving for a decent action sequence, not some fancy story line or clever script and I got what I want... I was happy... I had fun watching it...
NOT SO AWESOME STUFF
Story and Plot
The plot was fucked up shit... It was all over the place... However, it got a good premise... Danny didn't have to just kill three SAS top guns, he must also get their confessions and the killings must look like accidents... Quite challenging huh? The story would be better off if the writer made it more elaborated... However, like I said before, it's a style over substance kind of movie...
SUMMARY
I don't think I have to spell it more to u because above statements are clear and simple enough for u to understand that this movie is all about the action... Hey, we are talking about Statham here... U can't be expecting anything else other than skull bashing and bullets flying action out of him... If u want drama, clever story and all that shit, watch other movies...
What about Robert de Niro u asked? Well, his action parts are quite limited since he spent most of his time being locked up... but when he got the chance, he sure gave it all... Yeah, he's quite a bad-ass too...
3.5 out of 5 stars...
If u like Fast Five, then most probably u will like this movie...
I always refer this type of tudung as "Tudung Fringe"... Because u'll look like u have a fringe wearing it... Especially if it's in black colour...
This one, I refer as "Tudung Belah Tengah"... Because wearing it will make u look like u part ur hair at the middle...
Those tudungs above are actually "Tudung Syria"... With all the variety of tudungs nowadays, those above are my least favourites to see on a girl's head...
The one that is currently on trend is of course the "Hana Tajima" style... Hana Tajima is a person - model and fashion designer... I quote her, "Being a Muslimah in a western country can be a bit daunting especially when it comes to the stares! I wanted to create something that would help Muslimah’s everywhere keep motivated..."
Hana Tajima-Simpson
I kinda like this style of tudung because it looks trendy... I even urged my girlfriend to try it and I'm loving the way she looks wearing it... Though she's having problems remembering how to put it on and often relying on Youtube tutorials... I can understand that because just by looking at the tudung, u know that it's hard to put on...
There's nothing wrong in putting quite an effort to wear tudung... I told my girlfriend once, "if u wanna wear tudung, make sure u wear it nicely..." because I don't want her to look like a makcik or minah tudung (mintud)...
If u are wearing a tudung, don't ever wear short sleeves or knee length skirts... It defeats the purpose and it looks bad...
Besides that, don't over accessorize... You don't have to put on too many colours... You don't wanna look like a clown... Just keep it simple and comfortable...
If u are wearing a tudung, don't ever wear short sleeves or knee length skirts... It defeats the purpose and it looks bad...
Besides that, don't over accessorize... You don't have to put on too many colours... You don't wanna look like a clown... Just keep it simple and comfortable...
The exam period has arrived!!! As my students are dreading this moment because they must study in order to pass the papers, I dread the fact that I have to be one of the invigilators... Sigh... Being in the examination halls, just doing nothing but stare at the students for two to three hours is boring as hell...
Often, in order for me be remain sane, I would let my imagination go wild just to entertain myself during the boring moments... Some other times, I would just observe the students and what they're doing... Here's the result of my observation...
Some students are sleepy heads...
Just after half an hour or so after the exam started, these sleepy heads would yawn like tired lions and retreat their heads into the wrappings of their arms... They sleep during the exam time...
Gambar hiasan
If I'm being positive, I shall think that they burnt the midnight oil the night before the exam... but what's the point of studying if u just waste your time sleeping instead of scoring the paper? Hmm... Students, don't study last minute...
Some students are sketch artists...
These artists would waste their time drawing cartoon figures and doodling on the desks or question papers... Well, I was one of them when I was a student... Instead of just focusing on answering the questions, I would just take my sweet time and doodle all sorts of stuff like dragons and manga characters...
There are also students who would stalk on other people's answer sheets...
In a very subtle way, they would turn their heads to the side, squint their eyes and try to capture the image of answers on other people's sheets...
I always love to mess around with these guys... When I saw them stalking, I would make a sound "Ahemmm!" and stare directly into their eyes as though I'm telepathically telling them, "I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING..."...
I guess the easiest to copy is the answers on the multiple answer sheets... You just take a mental photo of the answer sheet and match it with yours... I did it all the time when I was in school...
I guess the easiest to copy is the answers on the multiple answer sheets... You just take a mental photo of the answer sheet and match it with yours... I did it all the time when I was in school...
Besides that, some students just give up...
These guys would often seem restless... They would not sit still and always sighing... They would turn the pages of the question papers quickly and leave the examination halls after an hour or so... or they would just doze off...
and then, the cheaters...
These students will have hidden notes everywhere... In their sleeves, in the pockets, in the pencil cases... Everywhere... As soon as an examination starts, I would often inspect the men's toilet and I always managed to find some notes hidden... What I would usually do is throw them in the toilet bowl but not flush them down... It's amusing to assume that a desperate student would soak his hand in the bowl to get the notes...
Hehe... Jahat...
Well, as a student, I also cheated once in a while... When I was in school, a day or a few minutes before the exam, I would write down notes on my desk and during the examination, I would just cover the written notes with the question papers... If I sat beside a wall, I would write my notes on it too...
Other than that, we also have the excellencies...
They are the ones who are calm through out the exam period... They answer the questions smoothly and take their time... Of course, they are quite rare... So far, I've encountered two of them...
Well, as a student, I also cheated once in a while... When I was in school, a day or a few minutes before the exam, I would write down notes on my desk and during the examination, I would just cover the written notes with the question papers... If I sat beside a wall, I would write my notes on it too...
Other than that, we also have the excellencies...
They are the ones who are calm through out the exam period... They answer the questions smoothly and take their time... Of course, they are quite rare... So far, I've encountered two of them...
The most annoying for me is the stupid ones...
By stupid, I don't mean academically or in terms of IQ... The stupid ones are the ones who seem to bring so much trouble upon themselves by coming in late and have no clue where they're supposed to be... For example, last week, a student came in 45 minutes late... He had repeated the paper 3 times already and this is his final chance... and he almost damn blew it by oversleeping!! I feel like smacking his stupid face... Luckily, I was the leader of the invigilators of the room and I decided to give him a chance... Last Monday, I encountered another one... He had repeated the paper 2 times already and were 40 minutes late... My GOD... I seriously wanna kick his stupid face... He was not just late, he also was in the wrong exam hall... How ignorant could a person be??
Those above are among the few types of students in exams... Dear students, whichever type you belong to, I wish you all the best... Study hard and study smart... Don't waste your time failing and repeating the subjects... You yourself know your own strengths and weaknesses... Take initiative and make an effort to improve...
