UNKNOWN (18)
Genre: Thriller/Drama/Mystery
Release Date: 10 March 2011
Running Time: 115 minutes
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Screenplay: Oliver Butcher and Stephen Cornwell, based on Didier van Cauwelaert's Out Of My Head
Starring: Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Frank Langella, Aidan Quinn
Plot: "Unknown" (originally titled "Unknown White Male") is an action thriller directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, based on the novel Out of My Head by Didier van Cauwelaert. Liam Neeson stars as Dr. Martin Harris, who awakens after a car accident in Berlin to discover that his wife (January Jones) suddenly does not recognise him and another man (Aidan Quinn) has assumed his identity. Ignored by disbelieving authorities and hunted by mysterious assassins, he finds himself alone, tired, and on the run. Aided by an unlikely ally (Diane Kruger), Martin plunges headlong into a deadly mystery that will force him to question his sanity, his identity, and just how far he's willing to go to uncover the truth.
Short Reviews: Unknown is an effective thriller and it may surprises you by how the strings of mind-bender twists work out pretty decently. Yes the tagline is pretty catchy - Take Back Your Life and oh boy, how this movie is able to do that is beyond surreal imagination of story and casts. The premise is very intriguing and serves a clear paradox-ism into the story as well as to the characters. at times, it feels implausible but Liam Neeson is the face that many should recognize due to his persona and charisma he carried into yet again, the character he plays. Unknown plays the premise of its story very well, inserting necessary time for action and when for exposition. It is an ultimately solid thriller and requires you to tie up the strings of unknown into one piece. It's B+ thriller!
THE RATING:
Story: 3.5
Casts: 4.0
Cinematography: 3.5
Effects: 3.0
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 14.3
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THE EAGLE (18)
Genre: Drama/War
Release Date: 24 March 2011
Running Time: 117 minutes
Distributor: Focus Feature, Nusantara Edaran Filem
Director: Kevin Macdonald
Screenplay: Jeremy Brock, based on Rosemary Sutcliff's The Eagle of the Ninth
Starring: Channing Tatum, Jamie Bell, Donald Sutherland, Mark Strong
Plot: Marcus Aquila (Channing Tatum) is a wounded Roman soldier living in Britain during the 2nd Century A. D. Along his Celtic slave, Esca (Jamie Bell), Marcus undertakes on a perilous journey into the wilds of the far north in an attempt to retrieve the Eagle emblem of the vanished Ninth Legion, which was lost under Marcus father's command ten years before.
Short Reviews: The Gladiator 2? Hell no. It's nothing more than a heap of old-fashioned swords-and-sandals wannabe. Let's not forget that this movie has some similarities with another movie called Centurion with same basic premise revolving the Ninth Legion of the Roman army serving in Britain. However, from the butter-and-bread comparison, The Eagle did better than Centurion did by giving in some decent satisfaction in real-deal fighting sequences and majestic cinematography; by comfortable margin. The premise is much like a straight adaptation, making it less bold in exploring the larger nature of the story. At times, it feels like the Celtic are more like the Apocalypto than Braveheart. I'm pretty sure they are still in Scotland right? In the end, The Eagle is better than what I have expected.
THE RATING:
Story: 3.0
Casts: 3.0
Cinematography: 3.5
Effects: 3.5
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 12.6
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MARS NEEDS MOMS (PG13)
Genre: Animation
Release Date: 10 March 2011
Running Time: 91 minutes
Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures
Director: Simon Wells
Screenplay: Simon Wells and Wendy Wells, based on Berkeley Breathed's Mars Needs Moms!
Starring: Joan Cusack, Seth Green, Elisabeth Harnois, Dan Fogler, Mindy Sterling
Plot: "Mars Need Moms" follows a boy named Milo (Seth Green). He's just starting on his summer break but his mother gives him plenty of chores and tasks which include weeding the garden and eating up all his vegetables. After an argument with his mother in which Milo says "I don't see what's so special about mothers!" Milo goes to his room. He falls asleep and doesn't hear the roar of a rocket landing outside. Martians have entered Milo's house to take away his mother and Milo now realises that he has to rescue her!
Short Reviews: I'm not going to hide my disappointment and this animation is like a heap of tiresome when you try to serve it next to let's say some animated alien movies; but it stands way better than, let's say Battle For Terra! Easy comparison and simply to make some proper sentence to say for, Mars Needs Moms lack of human touch and it portrays our heroes Milo, Gribble and Ki as someone who takes things for granted and decided to save the world for one day, forcefully! Let's analyze this movie in other aspect. Is it funny? No, I hope it wasn't. Is it terribly written? Hell yeah and probably more effort should be make so that this animation doesn't end up been formulaic and underdeveloped. It feels too 'techy' for the kids to understand this. Does it bored you to dead? Pretty much. So, that sums up a perfect movie for audience under the age of nine and for adults who want to stuck here to kill some time.
THE RATING:
Story: 1.5
Casts: 2.5
Cinematography: 3.5
Effects: 3.5
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 9.0
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