Now Spewing

TikTik: The Aswang Chonicles

2012-10-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

see full trailer here

Haters gonna hate but that doesn't make this any less of a good movie. The intro was way too long though.

The story generally revolves on a one-night-only battle with the minions of the dark. There's not much reference to the characters' back stories - just that Lovi Poe is pregnant and is due anytime, Dingdong Dantes is the father. Janice de Belen and Joey Marquez are Lovi's parents. And the enigmatic Ramon Bautista... for comic relief - a refreshing change from the usual pinoy movie.

The suspense since indeed were hold-your-breath worthy. The action scenes were, well... action-packed.

It also takes on the usual aswang nuances: pregnant women, salt, bawang and buntot-pagi.

The film's treatment is comicbook-esque. Shot in one set, in green screen, the cinematography did not look cheesy. The digital aswangs (although, some would say were copied from Resident Evil) were great; it looked like each CGI aswang was given ample time to be developed to make sure they look a bit different from each other.

Hopefully they make another soon.And although it's a breakthrough in Philippine Cinema, hopefully the craft gets developed NOT COPIED.

Their website ain't half-bad either.
see the movie's website here

Wallflower Power - Calling All Alternateens

2012-10-02T23:13:00.003-07:00

The movie is based on a novel written by its director, Stephen Chbosky.

Being a movie based on a book, I can't comment of how this movie stays true to the book since i haven't read the novel. Nonetheless this is an enjoyable movie to see.

The cast is top-billed by Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief) and Emma Watson (Harry Potter Series) and Ezra Miller. In supporting roles are Paul Rudd and Dylan Mcdermott. (for a complete list of the cast click here).

The story is a narrative of an incoming highschool freshman trying to avoid the usual bullying and other school stuff. But this is not your typical coming-of-age story where the protagonist discovers himself thru life experiences and all that jazz. Set in the early 1990's, the story peers into the life of Charlie, a seemingly normal teenager with the typical teenager problem.

A funny and touching coming-of-age story based on the beloved best-selling novel by Stephen Chbosky, THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER is a modern classic that captures the dizzying highs and crushing lows of growing up. Starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson and Ezra Miller, THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER is a moving tale of love, loss, fear and hope—and the unforgettable friends that help us through life. - http://perks-of-being-a-wallflower.com/story.html

Trying to decide whether lay low or try just fit in, Charlie sticks to the wall, hoping not to be crushed by the upperclassmen. He meets Patrick (Ezra Miller), a senior, in his freshman shop class. Patrick takes him into his circle and the story unfolds from there.

From the title and the synopsis, this may look like a chick-flick. Well, it sorta is - it has no exploding cars, no action-packed, gun-toting fight scenes... none. It's a nice movie. It touches on some pretty heavy emotional and psychological stuff that normal teenagers do go thru, but really try to push to the back of their minds.

What's more interesting is how Emma Watson fared post-Harry Potter. She was good in the HP series. She was good in this movie. Her character, Sam's backstory was merely narrated and thrown in some conversations, nonetheless she was able to portray a broken girl quite well. But then, she's not the lead.

Logan Lerman's Percy Jackson was supposed to follow suit to HP's fame. (The second installation of the Percy Jackson series is set to be released sometime next year.) With only that (and The Three Mucketeers) under his belt, it wasn't that hard to separate his character from Wallflower from Percy Jackson. Logan played Charlie exceptionally well - oddly introverted, awkward but was able to keep a lid on what's bubbling inside him quite well.

Ezra Miller's character and his portrayal of it was superb. Patrick is likable, funny - the makings of a popular kid- but compassionate and warm. It wasn't surprising though, that his character turned out to be gay.

What's sad is that most teens / pre-adults will miss out on this movie. It doesn't have that teeny-bopper appeal of most movies in this genre.

The whole experience can actually be summed up in one of the lines said in the movie:
"Welcome to the island of misfit toys"

Definitely a date movie.

Disclaimer

2012-09-19T22:44:00.001-07:00

There are no bad movies, only unappreciative viewers.

Quoting an old adage "Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder", there are actually no bad movies. Even those old skin flicks that were made to make a quick buck have something to appreciate. They might not be as artsy-fartsy, but at the very least they do not pretend to be profound and deep. (I can name a few though, recently shown, that seem to try so hard - and fail- to come off as "artsy").

Movies are there for 3 reasons:

1. Profit -movies are priced. If I learned anything watching Entourage, it's that movies primarily have to make money. Of course it takes money to make money. But then again, if the main thrust of movies would be just to "entertain", they movie outfits would just do well to break even.

2. Launch - in order to make profit, the people behind movies should be "marketable". Movies are great avenues to launch fresh meat- products- either actors, directors, producers or writers.

3. Innuendo - Much like blogs, books and songs, movies reach out to try and touch people who can relate and hopefully make a buck off them.

Pick your movie, sit back and relax. It's just a movie.