Death Race 2 (2010) Unrated review

Overall verdict: 5.5/10

The Good: great action despite small budget, solid production design, clear concise camerawork, stylish

The Bad: almost a clone of its predecessor, under developed characters, little substance

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The 2008 Death Race film (itself a remake of the 1975 B movie Death Race 2000) was definitely not avant garde cinema. Critics drided it with mixed to negative reviews. It was a loud, visceral, simple action movie; all style, little substance in the grand Paul WS Anderson tradition. Death Race 2 is the cheap direct to video prequel, not a sequel as the title might seem to imply, and it is just more of the same. Even the main characters looks the same only with different names.

Now fans of the 2008 crash and burn thrill ride of a movie are in for a treat here. In Death Race 2, we discover the origins of the dangerous game; how it went from a simple prison fight caught on camera to a full blown TV ratings dependent gladiatorial combat. And then, to boost ratings, they added cars, a military arsenal and the brutal Death Race was born. Anybody remember the cool sounding masked Driver "Frankenstein" who appeared at the beginning of 2008's Death Race? Well here is his origin story. Before he became the famous Frankenstein, Carl Lucas (Luke Goss) was a getaway car driver for a crime boss Markus Kane (Sean bean). A heist gone wrong landed Carl a life sentence at Terminal island penitentiary, a prison famous for its broadcasts of "Death Match". With ratings of Death Match plummeting, one of the organizers "September Jones" witnesses Carl's driving skills and decides to revamp the games into "Death Race". Nine cars, three rounds, five wins to freedom. The no holds barred car-nage has just begun. As Carl puts his skills to the test, his former boss is planning his death, and he has someone on the inside to do it.

Synopsis sounds familiar? To say that the writers were lazy is an understatement. They basically took the exact same character types from the 2008 film and changed their names to be new characters. In other words, we got all the uninspired lines, one dimensional (and slightly racist) characterization, and minimal character development of the original show, but none of the star power the likes of Jason Stratham and Tyrese Gibson. Star power alone was what made the original character bearable and now with that gone, they are not as interesting to watch. Fans would recognize Robin shou and Frederick Koehler reprising their roles of "14K" and "Lists".

The main attraction here has always been the cars and the carnage. Despite having less than one third of the budget of Paul WS Anderson's 2008 film, Death Race 2 does a wonderful job of replicating all the excitement and adrenaline of the races. Perhaps too good a job as some scenes look 100% copied and pasted from that film complete with similar camera angles, same chain of events and even similar lines of dialog. The cars themselves and the sets do not look as well designed as its predecessor but remember, this took place before the 2008 film, and as such cars get rebuilt and the place gets upgraded as the days go by.

With the target audience being those who loved the brainless 2008 Death Race, Death Race 2 delivers no more than what they expect. If you thought its predecessor was bad, Death Race 2 would not change that impression. It is fun, it is violent, it is a glorified B movie just like Roger Corman's DeathRace 2000 and Paul WS Anderson's remake, and it is surprisingly well shot for a direct-to-video film. Definitely worth at least a rental but do familiarize yourself with the 2008 movie before jumping into this.

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Go For it: if you are a fan of the original 2008 Death Race movie and would like to see the events that led up to that film

Avoid it: if you expect anything deeper or thought provking than simple, straightforward car on car action

Entertainment: A

Story: B-

Acting: C

Characters: C

Replay value: B

"Brains": C-

Monsters (2010) review

Overall verdict: 8/10

The Good: awesome cast chemistry, impressive visuals despite low budget, solid emotional core, very effecting directing,

The Bad:policital and social commentary ineffectively conveyed, slow moving plot,

Current Availability Status: Coming soon to DVD and blu-ray

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The one thing worse than a misleading movie trailer that gives one false expectations, is a misleading movie title.

For a movie entitled "Monsters", there is VERY LITTLE monster appearances. There does not even seem to be a hidden second meaning in the title (a smarter man would make a movie titled "Monsters" and have it refer to the monstrous nature of humans who mete out atrocities on one another.). Therefore, calling this a monster film with a hidden social commentary is stretching it at best. Here is a human interaction drama of two strangers thrown together by unforeseen circumstances, facing unknown dangers against the backdrop of a world at constant war with a race of giant alien squid creatures.

Six years have passed since a NASA space probe brought alien life to earth. The aliens have been quarantined to an "Infected Zone" between Mexico and USA. Into this world comes news photographer Andrew Kaudler who is tasked to safely bring his employer's daughter, Samantha Wynden across the Mexican border back to USA. A series of mishaps leaves them with only the option of traveling through the monster infested zone where danger lurks within the deep jungles. So in what can only be described as a homage to Jurassic Park and Apocalypse Now, the duo take a perilous journey upriver into the heart of the Infected Zone.

Apparently shot on a shoestring budget of barely half a million dollars, "Monsters" would feel like a Discovery Channel travelogue if it were not for the amazing chemistry between the two core characters. This very realistic interplay as the two characters get to learn about each other saves this film from becoming just another road trip flick.

Director Gareth Edwards has a keen talent for maintaining a palpable sense of tension and danger in slower scenes that would otherwise be considered boring in less expert hands. Allowing the camera to linger on a scene while the sound fades until only the haunting musical score is audible serves to add a great emotional impact to such scenes. Edwards uses a very "documentary" style of filming that revels in properly fleshing out the sorry state of a world in constant fear of the unknown and border towns who live in the shadow of death; again, much like a travelogue. There are some hints of jabbing at American immigration policies, USA's reliance on high tech warfare to solve international problems and the intolerance toward "alien" immigrants but these are only hinted at and barely given emphasis. Stuff like "District 9" handled those themes a lot better.

Do not expect a movie the likes of Cloverfield or Godzilla when going to watch "Monsters". It is less like a monster movie and more like a very satisfying, emotional human drama about an unlikely couple bonded together by the desire to return home to their loved ones. We get a look ingo their anguish, their sorrow, their hopes and dreams that they go through along the way. Here is a showcase of the very best of what can be achieved in an independent film, easily besting many of its bigger budgeted counterparts.

(Oh, and there are giant enemy squid creatures conveniently appearing only in murky night time darkness to conceal the low budget CGI rendering.)

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Go For it: if an independent film filled with human drama, tension and a character centered story are your cup of tea
Avoid it: if you are expecting some big action packed monster mash like Godzilla or alien invasions like Independence Day.

Entertainment: B
Story: A-
Acting: A
Characters: A
Replay value: B
"Brains": B-

Tron: Legacy (2010)

Overall verdict: 9/10

The Good: imaginative production design, clear concise directing, charismatic acting by most of the cast, unique soundtrack, filled with homages and references, more underlying complex themes than a typical disney movie, satisfactory emotional core, originally filmed in 3D

The Bad: mediocre acting from main protagonist, truncated first act might be difficult to follow,

Current Availability Status: Coming to video soon

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In 1982, "Tron" gave the world a vision of a world unlike any other. A world within a computer where programs exist as actual living beings who race along freeway style circuits. A world that defied human imagination and piqued the obsession of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), computer programmer extraordinaire. In an opening narration, Flynn, who is now the head of the ENCOM company, tells of his adventures in the original Tron movie and his motivations for using the computer world which he calls "the Grid" to benefit mankind.

With this little bit of exposition, barely sufficient to bring newcomers to the Tron franchise "up to speed", Kevin Flynn disappears one day, leaving his son, Sam, who grows into a rebellious young man. Sure he is the major shareholder of ENCOM, but he'd rather play cyber pranks on the greedy ENCOM CEO and outrun the Cops on his bike than sit in board meetings. He is a punk slacker in every way, and smart mouthed to boot, living each day with no discernible purpose until he is approached by his father's long time friend over a mysterious "page" from his father's old office in an arcade. Yes a "page", from a pager. OLD school tech. Sam discovers a supercomputer but an accident lands him mysteriously transported into the Grid which is ruled over by the tyrannical (and equally smart mouthed) "Clu" who bears a striking resemblance to Sam's father. NOW the movie begins in earnest with Sam fighting his way through gladiatorial combat, making a daring escape during a "lightcycle" death race and meeting new allies while searching for his father. Hidden secrets will be revealed and expect some surprising twists in this otherworldly digital domain of peril and adventure!

And what a world it is! Carrying on the legacy of its predecessor, Tron Legacy once again presents imaginative production design coupled with cutting edge computer imaging. It is worth watching purely for its visuals, 3D or otherwise. Newcomer director Joseph Kosinski peppers his action with wide angles and sweeping cinematography, a fresh feel indeed from the frequent close-ups and "shakey cam" used by his other more "experienced" compatriots. Breathing life into the Grid is the similarly surreal soundtrack by "Daft Punk". It is mixture of electronic and orchestral music that serves to highlight the "synthetic" aspect of the Grid world while paying homage to the electronic synthesizer tunes used in the original Tron movie. The masterfully composed score blends eerie with Epic in the action scenes while toning down into warmer traditional tunes in the more emotional scenes. Like the directing style, the electronic soundtrack is a welcome change from the typical percussion and bass heavy action movie music.

Without putting up spoilers, one has to admit that the story works on multiple levels for both newcomers and sci/fi fanatics alike. For example When Sam first enters the Grid, it is one big tribute to classic spaceman stories like Flash Gordon. (Stranger lands on a strange world ruled by a tyrant, he is captured, made to fight as a gladiator, breaks out and joins the resistance). It might be a tad hard to follow at first as many concepts might be lost on viewers without some smidgen of tech savvy-ness or those not quick enough to get the little narrative homages. A lot happens in little time but once things slow down near the middle, the story has room to breathe. Under all the light and flashy spectacle is a very down to earth father/son tale that anyone can relate to. Between the lines lies an almost biblical parable relating to mankind's rejection of God in his quest for his own perfect Godhood. Present too is a running theme about how well intentioned legacies left to the wrong people become corrupted by those it was left to. Rather complex for a Disney movie to incorporate such themes.

One little byte to pick with this film would be the acting. Jeff Bridges reprises his role as Kevin Flynn as well as the villain program Clu and does a wonderful job of just becoming his character. He exudes a charisma and charm that his son, Sam, seems to lack. It is very ironic that the digital characters like Olivia Wilde's Quorra and Michael Sheen's Castor seem so much more "alive" and real than Garret Headlund's snarky Sam.

Needless to say, Tron: Legacy is epic storytelling that challenges the boundaries of imagination. It is a fun and exciting ride with a satisfactory emotional center. The more learned viewers would be happy to dig into the underlying themes that can be easily related somewhat to ontology and even biblical theology, while the the rest of you can just sit back and enjoy the visual spectacle and human father/son drama. Unlike stuff like Inception or the Matrix, tron Legacy does not force feed you the complex stuff, thus making it very accessible to viewers of all ages.

With an animated series in the works (as of writing this review) here's hoping that the legacy of the Tron lives long for ages to come and goes from being just a Cult classic to a full fledged sci/fi epic franchise.

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Go For it: If you were a fan of the original "Tron" or would like to witness one of the best and most imaginative disney action movies to date
Avoid it: if you just don't like this genre of movies and would prefer some romance slop anyday.

Entertainment: A
Story: B+
Acting: A-
Characters: B+
Music: A
Replay value: A
"Brains": A-

Love Hina (2000) review

Overall verdict: 8/10

The Good: Emotionally deeper than other "harem" genre anime, bettern than usual TV animation, exceptional japanese voice cast, well timed humour, well developed characters, beautiful artwork and character designs

The Bad: Cliched premise, unoriginal plot, over reliance on budget saving animation short cuts, weak final act, some humour borders on the nonsensical.

Current Availability Status: some VCDs available in singapore. DVD not available

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Poor Keitaro Urashima, the dude just cannot catch a break. Having Failed the Tokyo university exam twice, Keitaro was kicked out of his home and forced to take up residence at an inn run by his grandmother. Little does he know that the inn has been converted into an all-girls dormitory and that his grandmother has left him as the dorm manager. As expected, the girls are not too happy with the arrangement, but they get a teeny bit more sympathetic once they discover the poor bugger's plight. Madcap wacky boy-meets-girls adventure with a sweet romantic twist follows in one of the better romance comedy anime series out there.

More an ensemble piece than other shows of this genre, its main selling point is definitely the characters. Each of them is given a unique and multi-layered personality making them both easy to relate to and incredibly lovable. Keitaro is THE guy that the intended target audience (single male who wastes his life either studying or watching anime like this) would die to be. He is a bumbling idiot, a complete loser, yet his tenacity and optimistic outlook would either inspire or disgust you; one would not be blamed for wanting to slap some sense into Keitaro. But give the guy a break, he has got a promise to fulfill a promise to a forgotten childhood sweetheart and get into Tokyo university.

Naru Narusegawa is the "main" female protagonist here. Her fierce demeanor toward Keitaro and hot headed attitude (not to mention, hot body) belies a secretly insecure neurotic looking for her place in the world. You see, the girl is studying to get into Tokyo university too. And the fact that she bears a startling resemblance to Keitaro's childhood sweetheart causes some inevitable sparks to fly. It is the "unlikely couple" scenario seen in so many romance shows: he likes her, she hates his guts, she cracks and shows her vulnerable side, he so happens to be there for her. etc. We all know where this goes. But no romance would be right without a proper love triangle and we get that in the form of Mutsumi Otohime, a simple but adorable ditz introduced later, who claims to be Keitaro's childhood friend.

Though the central tale is a little cliched sort of a coming of age thing for Keitaro and the surreal love story, each of the other girls are given ample development of their very own character arcs. Timid little Shinobu learns the value of trust and how to assert herself, carefree Kitsune gets a lesson in responsibility, the icy Motoko learns to open up her heart and even the wild and sprightly Kaolla Su learns to grow up. As said before, all very lovable, all easy to relate to.

Created at the turn of the 21st century, Love Hina was among the first shows to be colored by computer. The result is some beautiful artwork and cute, albeit slightly simplified, designs with a color scheme that uses the unlimited palette offered by software without looking overly bright and saturated. The animation itself is pretty standard anime stuff; it has its decent share of animation short cuts, lazy scene panning, some stiff character motions, but they only crop up occasionally per episode. On a whole, the quality is slightly better than the typical TV series with more attention given to maintaining a consistent high level of detail in the artwork.

In contrast, the voice acting is superb throughout. Veterans like Megumi Hayashibara, Yui Horie, Yuji Ueda, among others, totally sell their characters, playing them with the same diversity that fits their personality. A bit over the top at times, but it fits in with the very nature of the show. A Chinese dub and a USA English dub were released as well but neither can hold a candle to the original language. Though, in comparison, one might favor the English version over the Chinese version purely for the superior acting standard; at least the English version is not downright terrible or miscast like the Chinese one.

The more conservative types would be glad to know that fan-service is only teased and not blatantly tasteless like many recent anime. Comedy is well written, jokes are timely and in good taste with only a twinge if innuendo. Its shortcomings in its animation is forgivable but a hastily written and seemingly lower quality final few episodes earns it a couple of demerits. Definitely "cleaner" and emotionally deeper than other shows of similar genre, Love Hina is a fun filled gem of a series filled with truly emotional drama, romance and crazy comedy complete with giant robot turtles, mysterious island kingdoms and a little bit of magic.

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Go For it: for a cleaner, better written romance comedy anime that puts the focus on the characters' personalities and not just on the characters' bodies
Avoid it: if you are a staunch "the manga is always better" kind of person

Entertainment: A
Story: B
Characters: A-
Animation: B-
Art: A-
Voice work (japanese): A
Voice work (english): B-
Voice work (chinese): C
Replay Value: A-
"Brains": B-


Did i mention slapstick (or more like slap Keitaro) humour?


Did I mention the giant robot turtle?

Did i mention..........YIKES, wat the hell is this??

Childhood sweetheart, an undying promise

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack (1988) review

Overall verdict: 9/10

The Good: Resolves all hanging plot threads of previous gundam series, high quality animation, professional voice acting, philosophically deeper than most mecha anime

The Bad: requires knowledge of preceeding Gundam series to fully appreciate

Current Availability Status: No available in Singapore. DVD available from online sources.


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Mobile Suit Gundam. The legendary anime series of the 80s by famed director Yoshiyuki Tomino astounded millions of fans by offering giant robot combat action with a very realistic portrayal of war. Then, its darker sequel Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam delivered a tragic tale of love, loss and hidden conspiracies as the body count mounted to an all time high, earning Yoshiyiki Tomino the nickname "Kill them all Tomino". Now, the final chapter of an anime legend, the Universal Century Gundam saga, comes to its mind blowing conclusion.

Char's Counterattack is the culmination of years worth of Gundam storylines, in particular, the rivalry between Amuro Ray and Char Aznable that was established in the 1979 Gundam series but was never really followed through in the sequels. Seemingly having defied death once again, the famous Char Aznable has resurfaced to lead the Neo Zeon movement against the tyranical earth Federation. Slowly but surely, the movement is winning the hearts and minds of the space colonists, but Char has an even darker scheme planned. By crashing a colony on to earth, Char intends to force all human beings into space in hopes of ridding the earth dwellers' bigoted prejudice against space colonists. In order to quell this threat, the Earth Federation sends their "Londo Bell" task force led by Bright Noa and the ace pilot Amuro Ray. The battlelines are drawn once again as the world gears up for its greatest conflict ever.

As a stand alone Gundam movie, Char's counterattack does not do much for the newer audience. It expects that the viewer is already familiar with Gundam lore and the established rivalry between Amuro and Char as it immediately throws you into the thick of the story and the heat of the action. A couple of new characters like Quess Paraya and Hathaway Noa are introduced but they come across as uninteresting and seem like throw-away characters whose only purpose is to fill up screen time when we are not focusing on Char or Amuro. There is a very uncomfortable attempt at creating a shaky love triangle story but the execution of that plot thread was not as good as it could have been.

Poor attempt at romance aside, Char's counterattack features a number of other themes that the viewers can easily relate to. There is a coming-of-age theme in how Hathaway Noa desires to step out of his father's shadow and forge his own identity, and there is a good deal of wartime pholisophical rhetoric thrown about by Char. That being said, only once Amuro and Char take center stage does the movie finally find its footing and delivers an engagingly entertaining experience. They are the perfect opposites, each representing widely differing views on war and the idealistic pursuit of peace. How far is one willing to go to end a war? Does an objectively good end justify unethical means? Can the obsessive pursuit of ideals turn men into monsters? Questions like these pop up during the course of the narrative which challenges the viewer to think and question.

Some fans have complained about the lack of character development of many of the cast, but it seems further development of the characters was not the director's intention. It is not a movie to develop the characters further, but a movie to bring about a RESOLUTION to the characters that have been developed over the course of the previous Gundam series. Char's Counterattack should not be viewed as a stand alone movie. As such, it is highly recommended to re-watch at least the original Gundam 0079 TV series or compilation movies before watching this movie. Re-watching "Zeta Gundam" would also add to a better understanding of Char's character and his bitter inner struggle with his own ideals over the years.

Jam packed with epic action sequences thanks to a higher budget and more experienced staff, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack is the exciting concluding chapter in the grand sweeping tale of Amuro Ray and Char Aznable. Here is a high point in the history of Gundam that subsequent shows had never surpassed.

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Go For it: to witness one of the must watch anime movie classics that inspired a generation of other creators to follow i its footsteps. Or if you are a Gundam fan and would like to see the best Gundam had to offer.
Avoid it: If you really have no pre-knowledge about the original gundam series and would not even bother reading up wikipedia

Entertainment: A
Story: B
Characters: B-
Animation: A-
Art: A-
Voice work (japanese): A
Voice work (english): A-
Replay Value: B+
"Brains": A-


Clash of the titans: Amuro's Nu Gundam and Char's Sazabi go head to head


Amuro and Bright Noa prepare for battle


Char Aznable. Hero of the people or anti-earth terrorist?


Awesome animation reflects the chaos of actual warfare

Noteworthy video releases

Avatar - 3 disc extended edition DVD and Extended collectors edition Blu-ray

Resident Evil Afterlife - DVD

Twilight saga: Eclipse - DVD

Inception - DVD and Blu-ray

Salt - DVD and Extended Edition DVD

Knight and Day - Extended edition DVD

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) remake review

Overall verdict: 5.5/10

The Good: better than usual acting for a horror movie, intense chase sequences, lots of blood and gore, atmospheric cinematography

The Bad: too much blood and gore, bland story, few genuinely scary scenes for a horror movie

Current Availability Status: banned in Singapore

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Ah! the vast Texas countryside. Rolling plains, long stretches of road, quaint little towns. It is 1973 and what could be more fun than going on a road trip with a bunch of friends to catch the biggest Lynard Skynard concert of the decade? Nothing could go wrong. Well for Erin, Kamper, Morgan, Andy and Pepper, every "wrong" starts to happen when they come across a blood drenched and obviously traumatised young girl. Being good hearted teens, they try to seek help first from the local sherrif. However, the unreasonable sherrif suspects the teens of foul play forcing them to turn to some residents of an old house for help. But those Texas residents have a gruesome little secret hidden in their cellar, and it carries a Chainsaw. Naturally, "massacre" will follow.

Produced by Michael Bay, this remake revolves around a retelling of "actual" events involving a group of teenagers and their tragic run-in with the deranged Texan family of killers and the murderous Leatherface. In true slasher movie fashion, the characters are just there to look pretty until they get offed one by one in the most gruesome ways. The acting is actually praise-worthy, better than the usual horror film, but it suffered from an uninspired script and flat story.

As a stand alone horror movie, this Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake is actually more horrific than horror. Where the original show banked on the tension and scared by teasing one's inherant primal fears, the remake does not scare by actually scaring but by making the audience cringe in terror thanks to gratuitous amounts of gore and prolonged scenes of suffering before the eventual death Many times, the film leaves the genre of horror and falls into more a "torture porn"-like genre.

If there was anything scary about the film, it was not the Leather-face killer. Rather, it was the overall sense of helplessness felt by the main characters. As the movie goes along, the characters try to turn to other townsfolk for help. But they soon realize that the townsfolk, and even the sheriff, are not only unwilling to help, but have a much darker agenda planned.

Flipping through Marcus Nispel's short resume of films(he directed the Friday the 13th remake and Pathfinder) and Platinum dune's list of horror remakes would pretty much tell you what to expect; a tendency to focus mostly on gory killings. Nispel himself seems more capable of directing a frenzied chase scene or a bloody body carving as opposed to anything remotely scary. At least the film looks great with a stylishly worn yellowish tinge to every scene that complements the "1970s" setting.

Despite its shortcomings, the film was rather popular at the box office. Perhaps action is indeed more successful at netting a wider audience than actual horror. And like many action movies, Texas Chainsaw Massacre exists solely for that unauthodox sense of escapism. Showing it to your more chicken-hearted friends and watching them gross out is also a good way to use this movie. It is a cringe worthy thrill ride of a splatter-fest with better than usual acting. Not the best of horror movie remakes, but not the worst either.

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Go For it: if you desire a more faster moving, more savage version of the 1978 classic
Avoid it: if you were happy with the tension and fear of the original classic

Entertainment: A-
Story: B-
Acting: B
Characters: C+
Replay value: B+
"Brains": D