Hello readers of Green Tea Movie! As you may have notice on the lack of updates recently, please be assured that the author (that's me!) has not abandon the blog yet. Indeed, the author (yeah, that's me again!) has his time so much been consumed over his studies. Please be assured that the updates will start pouring in again beginning next week.
Yes, January has been quite a weak movie session with some uninspiring movie looming. It seems making it more sense to say that January is a general month for the movie industry to dump their weak loads on it. So which movie make it in the cut of been decent so far? Check out Green Tea Movie's January movie reviews in brief.
Genre: Thriller/Drama
SEASON OF THE WITCH (18)
Genre: Adventure/Drama/Fantasy/Horror
Release Date: 06 January 2011
Distributor: Nusantara Edaran Filem/Relativity Media
Director: Dominic Sena
Starring: Nicholas Cage, Ron Pearlman
Plot: A 14th century Crusader returns with his comrade to a homeland devastated by the Black Plague. A beleaguered church, identifying sorcery as the culprit of the plague, commands the two knights to transport an accused witch to a remote abbey, where monks will perform a ritual in hopes of ending the pestilence. A priest, a grieving knight, an itinerant swindler and a headstrong youth who can only dream of becoming a knight join a mission troubled by mythically hostile wilderness and fierce contention over the fate of the girl.
Short Reviews: I know Nicholas Cage can do better than this because he is an amazing star. Look at the past and you know how great he is. Unfortunately, it is like a tragedy that his career has been spiraling downward for some reasons. It comes pretty close that his career was almost over before Kick-Ass and Bad Lieutenant managed to correct and amend some of the shattered resume. However, adding into another list of been unsatisfying movie-list under Cage, Season of the Witch is a true bloodless horrifying movie with some attempt to create a high-octane action-oriented story. Unfortunately, those efforts go into the wrong direction for been too slow and dull. The fact that the movie took 11 years to reach the silver screen signifies some bad prospect in it. Bad twist and plot, while the finale looks incredibly less satisfying.
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 (18)
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Release Date: 06 January 2011
Yes, January has been quite a weak movie session with some uninspiring movie looming. It seems making it more sense to say that January is a general month for the movie industry to dump their weak loads on it. So which movie make it in the cut of been decent so far? Check out Green Tea Movie's January movie reviews in brief.
THE TOURIST (PG13)
Release Date: 30 December 2010
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Director: Florian Hackel von Donnersmarck
Starring: Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Paul Bettany
Plot: A remake of the 2005 French film "Anthony Zimmer" starring Sophie Marceau, this Hollywood romance-thriller revolves around Frank (Johnny Depp), an American tourist visiting Italy to mend a broken heart. Elise (Angelina Jolie) is an extraordinary woman who deliberately crosses Frank's path in order to mislead all those who are following her former lover Alexander Pearce, a criminal wanted in 14 countries, who has stolen money from a gangster (Steven Berkoff) and who is being pursued by an agent (Paul Bettany). Against the breathtaking backdrop of Venice, Frank pursues a potential romance but soon finds himself the pursued as he and Elise are caught in a whirlwind of intrigue and danger.
Short Reviews: Trust me, I have seen this kind of ending would be coming. That sense of deja vu comes like crystal clear only 30 minutes into the movie! Don't bother to ask me how I can guess it right that Alexander Pearce is in fact..... The only good things about this movie are Venice, Venice and Venice. The Tourist can makes you bored if you do not keep in touch with its creepily slow and muddling central story which involves an Interpol and her 'target' aka 'auditor' whom decided to run away with the fortune he took from a gang lord. Uninspiring romance and full of lameness. Cheesy and lazy. The Tourist simply does not have what it takes for that rubbish Golden Globe nods. Seriously!
Rating:
Story: 1.0 stars
Casts: 2.0 stars
Cinematography: 3.0 stars
Effects: 2.5 stars
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 06.8/20.0
SEASON OF THE WITCH (18)
Release Date: 06 January 2011
Distributor: Nusantara Edaran Filem/Relativity Media
Director: Dominic Sena
Starring: Nicholas Cage, Ron Pearlman
Plot: A 14th century Crusader returns with his comrade to a homeland devastated by the Black Plague. A beleaguered church, identifying sorcery as the culprit of the plague, commands the two knights to transport an accused witch to a remote abbey, where monks will perform a ritual in hopes of ending the pestilence. A priest, a grieving knight, an itinerant swindler and a headstrong youth who can only dream of becoming a knight join a mission troubled by mythically hostile wilderness and fierce contention over the fate of the girl.
Short Reviews: I know Nicholas Cage can do better than this because he is an amazing star. Look at the past and you know how great he is. Unfortunately, it is like a tragedy that his career has been spiraling downward for some reasons. It comes pretty close that his career was almost over before Kick-Ass and Bad Lieutenant managed to correct and amend some of the shattered resume. However, adding into another list of been unsatisfying movie-list under Cage, Season of the Witch is a true bloodless horrifying movie with some attempt to create a high-octane action-oriented story. Unfortunately, those efforts go into the wrong direction for been too slow and dull. The fact that the movie took 11 years to reach the silver screen signifies some bad prospect in it. Bad twist and plot, while the finale looks incredibly less satisfying.
Rating:
Story: 2.0 stars
Casts: 2.0 stars
Cinematography: 3.0 stars
Effects: 3.0 stars
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 08.8/20.0
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 (18)
Release Date: 06 January 2011
Distributor: United International Pictures - Paramount Pictures
Director: Tod Williams
Starring: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Molly Ephraim
Plot: Sequel to the sleeper hit where a young couple becomes increasingly disturbed by a demonic presence. Director Tod "Kip" Williams is new to the horror genre, having directed indies "The Door in the Floor" and "The Adventures of Sebastian Cole." Oren Peli ("Paranormal Activity" director/writer/producer), Jason Blum, and Steven Schneider return as producers. In this movie, Katie's relatives install a security surveillance system in their home, after experiencing what they believe to be a series of break-ins by a vandal, only to discover from the footage that a paranormal presence (and Katie herself) are responsible for the damage. Convinced something supernatural is going on by a ghost, the family deals with Katie's tormenting, as she violently haunts them all and seeks to take her baby nephew Hunter.
Short Reviews: The first one was not even a ground-breaking 'horror movie captured on a video' genre but it leaves a satisfying mood about the prospect of a horror in a new paradigm. paranormal Activity was a good-enough-for-been-a-decent movie while many expect this one to flop. Unfortunately, those expectation did not materialize. Fortunately, Paranormal Activity 2 avoided the same fate that landed Blair Witch Project 2 on the wrong side of the road. Tod William used the same formula of horror and thrills from the first one, copy and paste it into this one, to generate the same mood on this one. It acts as a prequel and a sequel at the same time. Thus, we get more background story and understanding this time around. I thought this is a much better movie because there is an ample emotion and story to fill in while leaving the premise intact.
P/S: However, I got annoyed by the other audiences in MidValley MegaMall. The haters who make so much noise should understand that the concept of the movie is like that and probably have never even seen the first one! For those trouble-makers in the cinema, GO TO HELL!
P/S: However, I got annoyed by the other audiences in MidValley MegaMall. The haters who make so much noise should understand that the concept of the movie is like that and probably have never even seen the first one! For those trouble-makers in the cinema, GO TO HELL!
Rating:
Story: 3.5 stars
Casts: 3.5 stars
Cinematography: 4.0 stars
Effects: 4.0 stars
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 14.0/20.0