THE NEW KARATE KID WHO LEARNED KUNG FU

I had a bad feeling about "The Karate Kid" even before I watch it.

That is why I planned NOT to watch it but then was deceived and lured by 'kiasuness' (fear of losing out on something good and the mentality that you want everything, especially when it's free). Oh well, my bro said he will pay for the movie, just so I can watch it and then review it. 

I told him that I can just watch it at home and review it anyway but then he reasoned me out.

So there I was, sitting just 5 rows away from the huge cinema screen, craning my neck due to the lousy seats we got (That is another story; let's just say that that particular cinema has a weird ticketing system which indicates the wrong seats), and watching a movie that got even its title wrong. Why is the movie "Karate Kid" when the kid is obviously learning Kung Fu? Enlighten me...

I predicted that this movie will be a blueprint of many other Kung Fu, boxing, street-fighting, you-name-it kinda movies. It takes on the "underdogs-will-prevail-in-the-end" format. 

If you haven't already know, the movie would start with a boy/girl who at first is bullied or knocked down by the antagonist of the movie. Meanwhile, there'll be someone, who usually is an outcast of the society, bittered by something bad that has happened in his/her life and this person would be the one with experience in that particular field. And the underdog would then learn from this expert and continue on succeeding at the end. Hooray!! Happy ending. 

No matter how we dislike such recycled storyline, we still can't help but want to watch them and witness again and again that moment of victory because, who are we kidding, seeing the underdog's victory does makes one feel better about life. It is therapeutic as it kinda helps us forget the reality that the chances of an average joe or juliet succeeding is sometimes impossible. Oh excuse me for being negative. In the movie's defense, I guess it is movies like these that lifts people's spirits up again and get people to start believing again. 

"Karate Kid" sees the more grown up Jaden Smith (son of Will Smith) taking on the role of Dre, a Detroit kid who was forced to move to China. China sees him struggling with the new cultures and people. He got off the wrong foot with Cheng, a bully in school, resulting in him being constantly bullied until Mr. Han saved him from Cheng's gang. Mr. Han later trained Dre for the Kung Fu tournament in order to challenge Cheng and his merciless coach.

For such a simple movie, with such simple storyline, it's amazing that it can be dragged across 2 and a half hours of my life. 

Half of the movie can be chopped off and the films can be saved for other more noble causes. The beginning of the movie whereby Dre was beaten up over and over again is redundant. We get it - he is going through living hell because he was being beaten up by a Chinese kid and his gang who knows Kung Fu. And we know you are going to learn Kung Fu later so please proceed to the part where you actually learn Kung Fu and start fighting already. 

I'm not a fan of the character Mei Ling, although she seems to be a sweet girl. I would actually erase her character and develop Cheng's character further. I mean there is always an interesting story behind the antagonist and it would be even better to see the friendship develop between Cheng and Dre, rather than another cute puppy love story, which is quite plain. In my humblest opinion, a story about two rivals learning about each other's culture is definitely better than another love story between two souls of different culture. The latter has been shot over and over before, albeit different couples showcasing different cultural background.

Jackie Chan's character, Mr. Han, on the other hand, was not well developed. The few minutes in which he cried in the car, regretting the fact that his negligent driving led to the deaths of two people he loved just wasn't good enough to accentuate his character. It was just a few teary minutes, and though very touching and sad, didn't make him intriguing enough as a character, so it fell back to being predictable, if not boring.

And just so you know, there were no surprise during the tournament. Again it all turned out as expected. A little drama before the end, you know, how Dre got seriously injured but then managed to fight back, that sort of thing. Yep...all there.

However, I would credit how the punches and kicks, through sound effects and certain camera movements (slow motion techniques mainly) emphasizes pain and anguish, and effectively created something pretty surreal. The facial expression of Jaden Smith also deserved a point, as he made the scenes believable. I felt his pain just by watching and I find myself squirming with every hit targeted on the face and the stomach. The last part in which the boy crunched Dre's knee...I felt my own knee breaking man.  

On top of that, there were certain moments in which I believed that they played with colours and music to create certain moods, which described the character of that particular group of society. For example, the first bunch of Kung Fu students were dressed in red, backed by strong music, symbolizing vigour, strength and power.

But they are so cute

Cheng's character was clad in black - representing evil, but during the tournament, he wore red to symbolize domination and power and a force to be reckoned with.

Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) however told Dre that Cheng is not practicing real Kung Fu as the real martial art is about generating peace and harmony, and not hurting others. Mr. Han brought Dre to this place high above the mountains and we spot people dressed in gentle colours of grey and whites - depicting harmony. The music used as background is peaceful in contrast to the earlier scenes of Kung Fu that was full of energy.


I guess it also helped that there were one or two quite funny moments in the movie that did get one or two of my funny nerves tickling me.

In a nutshell, 3 things that made this movie weak - the drrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaggggggyyyyyyyyyyy introduction which somehow killed the climax because the agonizing wait drained off whatever it has to offer, the weak characters whose characteristics were mostly predictable and lastly a storyline that doesn't make one go shouting "freaking awesome!!!!" in the end.

So perhaps one would only enjoy Jackie Chan's hilarious signature Kung Fu moves and also the little cute tyke Jaden Smith's funny facial expressions. Besides that.....I think it failed to live up to expectations...but wait, I wasn't really expecting anything anyway and yet, was let down.

All I can say is, this movie is overrated. 

I've never seen Leisure Mall's cinema this pack and it was packed when Karate Kid is on. But then again, if a film is generating ka-chings, who am I to say that it is lousy.

But looking at the positive, it is a feel good movie which reminds us to stand up when things knock us down. Now that is good advice and that, we shall bring home.

This movie is like a family project. I say so because it is basically a film Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith funded to provide his son an avenue to act. So they flew everyone to China and got Jackie Chan, every child's super hero to star in the movie and then Jackie taught Jaden some Kung Fu, pads up a 12-year-old with muscles.... and "BAMMMM!!!!"...Karate Kid was produced....


I don't know why, although the name of this movie is Karate Kid, I do not feel it related to the previous Karate Kid. Now I have really vague memory of the previous Karate Kid movies but the feel those films gave me is definitely different from this one. This movie is like...oh well, a stand-alone Western mixed Chinese Kung Fu movie (or you might say comedy) that was wrongly categorized under the "Karate Kid" family. 

Whatever I say doesn't matter because you already know if you are going to watch it.

But perhaps with World Cup fever, many of you will be too ill to pay attention to a 12-year-old practicing Kung Fu on the Great Wall of China. I mean, obviously 20 men chasing 1 ball is much more entertaining...;P

TC-My Rating:

With Lotsa Love

TammyC

SHUDDER ISLAND

It has taken me forever to write this but I'll start this piece by complimenting Leo DiCaprio again for his versatility in portraying the various characters he sets out to carry.

His playing Jack in Titanic wasn't what got me gaga over him. I mean, I wasn't crazy over his then Nick Carter boyish hairstyle and the cheeky charms and I certainly wasn't thrilled about him spitting in the sea, although in the movie, it seemed oh-so-romantic (to a certain level) for some. Although an adventurous artist who draws nude pictures of women around the world certainly sounds attractive, but no, I wasn't in Leo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson. 

The once-upon-a-time boyish charms that failed to infatuate me...

Or perhaps I just grew out of the Jack-Rose thing...

Leo DiCaprio secured himself as one of my favourite actors ever since his portrayal as a mercenary in "Blood Diamond". He then made me realize how excellent he is again by blowing me away when he played Roger Ferris in "Body of Lies", with his super awesome Middle East accent. By the way, I also really love the film because it keeps the romance element sweet and innocent.

The two acclaimed movies responsible for making me crazy over Leo DiCaprio's acting...

Naturally, I'm now crazy over any films of substance that star Leo DiCaprio.

When Shutter Island's trailer flashed by in front of me in the cinema, I knew that movie has gained top spot on my must-watch list  of movies.

I could be wrong, but in my own humble opinion, Shutter Island takes on the style of Secret Window, which stars Johnny Depp.

There were mixed reviews on this movie.

Some said it is good but there were some who deemed it lousy. I however, have to agree with the former.

I think Leo DiCaprio did great as usual, captivating audiences with his glaring stares, portraying the sense of anxiety and mystery which encapsulates the movie's mood. But I'll have to admit that this is not one of his best films.

Shutter Island gives audiences a weird sense of fear. It is a thriller that really gives one the creeps. I do not know why films always have to present mental institutions as a freaky and  scary place, but ya, they always do. But Shutter Island gives mental institutions a double dose of creepiness. The mood is set that way although towards the end, you'd realize that it is not really that scary.

The mood is also cleverly created through the music, flashbacks and weird characters.

There is a quite creative twist to the film, in which different people had interpreted differently. Some argue that he is sane while some thinks that he is still cuckoo in the head. I'm going with the former. 

The film is basically about a bunch of shrinks who played along with the fantasy of Teddy in hopes of curing his insanity. Teddy was stricken with insanity as he tries to escape the harsh reality of himself  killing his wife after she murdered their 3 children due to her mental illness.

I do not want to give away too much but I personally think that the film is very creative. The twist in the story is quite unique, though arguably, it can be deemed as forced and ridiculous. 

But true, this wasn't Leo DiCaprio's best like I said. You see, there just wasn't a 'moment' for him in this movie, unlike 'Blood Diamond' (the ending when he died and called the girl) and 'Body of Lies' (the part where is hand was almost chopped off).  But with "Shutter Island", I can't really name an exceptional moment for him.

The movie is filled with puzzling maze of queries and thus, some claims that the film is a bore since it drags people through 2 hour headache figuring out what's going on and why. But personally, I think it is not as bad as Benjamin Button. For Benjamin Button, it's like, you know what's going but you're just begging for it to end. Brad Pitt's good-looks also failed to make the movie bearable. No offense, I know many appreciates the meaning of Benjamin Button. Sorry that I only judge it on the surface.

But as the story unravel and you know the explanation to certain flashbacks and scenes, you will find the walls of the maze slowly shattering, revealing a clear path, although some find the end of that path most ridiculous. Some people just doesn't like the fact that the 120-minute worth of footages they have been watching are a whole load of psychotic fantasy. I mean, I agree, which mental institution would act to play along with a patient's illusions? But arguably, it's quite a creative twist.

Generally, not a bad movie. However, the fact that I'm finding it hard to write about it is an indication that I'm not exactly feeling the movie much. 

I anticipated it and I wouldn't say I was let down but I don't love it to bits either. However, I'd actually recommend it to everyone actually because it is a very interesting movie. It's a kinda movie that freaks you out and sends chill to your spine although it is has no mutated ghostly figures. And I think if you are studying film, you would appreciate the fact that you could use this movie to study its mood, the costumes, setting and characters. Oh and if Mr. Alan is here, he would be able to tell you also the hidden meaning behind each scenes - the positioning of the characters, the lighting etc. I mean, this is a Martin Scorsese film, it has got to contain some crafty cinematography. And if you are multimedia/graphic student, you'd also witness some awesome graphical elements in the movie.

TC-Rating:

With Lotsa Love

TammyC