Tales from the Dark 1 (2013)

This is an adaptation of three short stories from a renown Hong Kong author, Lilian Lee.

Stolen Goods

Directed and performed by Simon Yam

Claustrophobic and moody are the best ways to describe this. Supposedly Simon Yap's debut, as a director. Interestingly, this short explores the fringe of Hong Kong society. We are so used to seeing how the effluent live in Hong Kong and when confronted with this very RAW portrayal of the downtrodden, it is eye opening. It also "interesting" to see, how desperation can drive people to do... very interesting things (in this case grave robbing).

A Word in the Palm

Directed by Lee Chi Ngai

Performed by Tony Leung Ka Fai & Kelly Chan

A more lighthearted approach to ghost stories. It is always a pleasure to see more experience thespian selling their wares, and Tony Leung sure deliver!! Kelly Chan wasn't half bad herself!! So, in short Tony Leung here plays the role of Melinda from Ghost Whisperer... somewhat halfheartedly...

Jing Zhe

Directed by Fruit Chan

Performed by Susan Shaw, Lo Hai Peng & Dada Chen

Again, really appreciate the veteran in this. Susan Shaw is excellent!! A small cameo by Lo Hai Peng. They make acting look so... effortless... Dada Chen is very... haunting here... I'm not sure if you guys are familiar with the term Tar Siu Yan (Cantonese, roughly translate to "Villain Hitting") and Pak Fu (White Tiger). Supposedly, an ancient belief dating back to the Han/Tang Dynasty... I actually have some personal experience with this. When I was in Form 1 or 2, there was a period in time when all dogs I met, gave me a chase..., or because of awkwardness, I got burnt, scratched and fell over, one after another... It was decided that I had "Fan Tai Sui" and that I should appease the Pak Fu... So it was arrange that a friend of my family (an aunty) brought me to a Chinese temple to do prayers and make offering to Pak Fu (meat, fats, eggs and sweet cakes) and "Villian Hitting" was done (paper effigies where beaten with a shoe). Interestingly, dogs stop chasing me after that... so when "revisited" with this short I was amused until the I saw the ending...

So, I like the 2nd the 3rd stories the best.

If you like horror, why not give this a spin.

My two Sen

This post has been edited by Mov_freak: Oct 3 2013, 01:14 PM

Tales from the Dark 2 (2013)

Three more short stories from a renown Hong Kong author, Lilian Lee.

Pillow

Director: Gordon Chan
Cast: Fala Chen, Lam Ka-tung

Wow, a very psychological piece... with a twist. I think the explicit scenes between Fala Chen & Lam Ka-tung is what shocks me most, because that means this movie cannot enter in to the Chinese market (not legally anyway)!!

Hide and Seek

Director: Lawrence Lau
Cast: Chan Fat-kuk, Sham Ka-ki

This segment actually... bore me, because it has been done to death (no pun intended )!! And they do not elaborate of the interesting bits (why one of the girl students is still thinking of a male teacher who had perish during the SARS outbreak...)

Black Umbrella

Director: Teddy Robin
Cast: Teddy Robin, Aliza Mo

Surprisingly, not many people like this, but I do. This explores the world of Taoism, where people perfected themselves through "practice". Here Teddy Robin portrays a 100+ year old man who has been practicing for 129 years. If he manage to do one last good deed, he would ascend to the heavens... but alas... there is a fine line between an angel and demon (eg... a state of mind)

Many a people prefer the Tales from the Dark 2 compared with the first. Myself, I prefer the first!!

If you had watch part one and found it to your liking, give this a go.

It is good to know that movie production in Hong Kong is attempting to recapture the glory days (80s & 90s) of movie making.

My two Sen

This post has been edited by Mov_freak: Oct 2 2013, 03:29 PM

Wah! Interesting spooky tales! Hope I get get my hands on those 2 titles. I actually prefer short spooky stories rather than one full length feature because most times, the full length ones falter before the ending.

Reminds me of one spooky tale that gets my vote, which is:

Rule #1 (2008)

This Hong Kong ghost flick is directed by Kelvin Tong and is a full length movie. I must say that this is one of the few full length spooky ones that I enjoyed watching. Rule #1 or Dai Yat Gaai in Cantonese tells the tale of one Sgt Lee Kwok-keung (Shawn Yue looking young here). Sgt Lee was injured in the line of duty when he inadvertently stops the car of a serial killer. The initial reason was that he noticed that the brake lights was not working on the car. Upon closer inspection he saw blood dripping out from the boot and that was when all hell literally broke loose for Sgt. Lee. A body was discovered. The serial killer fought back. Sgt. Lee got injured and the serial killer was dead at the end of the encounter.

When Sgt. Lee recovered from his injuries, he found himself re-assigned to the Miscellaneous Affairs Department (MAD) located in some back water district. He soon found out that the department had a head count of 2 with him being no. 2 and was headed by an Inspector Wong (Ekin Cheng). Unorthodox was an understatement for the department which investigates cases where things go bump in the night.

Soon after Sgt. Lee joins MAD, Inspector Wong drills into him about Rule #1 in the department. What was rule no. 1? It was that 'there is no such thing as ghosts' and Inspector Wong was pretty adamant about it and states that there was always a logical explanation for those so called paranormal cases. Sgt. Lee resigns himself to accept the fact that he was somehow 'demoted' to this department because he mentioned about seeing the body of the serial killer's victim rising from the boot of the car in his last case. What Sgt. Lee does not yet know is that Rule #1 is meant for the public out there and that ghosts not only exists but can pose a very real threat. Problem is only a handful of people can see them and Sgt. Lee is one of the few that can.

The story is quite original and contains a few twists and turns. It will grip you from the beginning and keep you guessing till the end. The actors all give decent and credible performances and the atmosphere is suitably eerie and spooky but never goes overboard.


Rating 3 out of 5 stars.

If you like horror you'll dig Tales from the Dark 1 & 2.

I have not watch Rule #1. Will look out for it.

The Three Stooges(2012) - 8/10

-> I am speechless for most of time while watching this film due their stupidity is so "heavy" but it was worth a watch,just enjoy this "stupid" film XD

Curse of Chucky(2013) - 4/10

-> A bad film,characters in this film are so "stupid",not stupid like The Three Stooges but you going hate them,I mean,hey a doll is holding a knife and chasing you and you sitting there and yelling(stay in position and prepared to get killed *expectedly*),I know you might be shocked at that time but it just a doll,ok? you are 3 or 4 times bigger than it.Alright fine,aside from this, *if* after you knew a doll has something wrong,wont you doing something to protect yourself like pick up a weapon or dont let off your sight on the doll or the room door(if you have the only one door in your room)..? After I watched this film,I think my IQ dropped already lol

This post has been edited by lexoh: Oct 2 2013, 08:11 PM

3:10 to Yuma(2007)

I don't really talk much about the story(avoiding spoiler and also, I don't think re-telling the story is going to be helpful to readers) but the basic premise for this is that a rancher(Christian Bale) has to deliver an outlaw(Russell Crowe) to the Yuma prison by train and the movie covers the journey to Yuma.

A remake of a 1957 movie, this is actually my first western movie so I am not sure if I can grasp the elements of it. I am generally interested in the western genre, perhaps more curious than interested, but I went with it. I am pretty impressed with Russell Crowe in this one, he's just freaking darn good in his role and provide the necessary depth and subtlety to what I consider the most subtle character of this movie. I find him pretty impressive throughout the movie but more so on the first half. Christian Bale isn't too bad but perhaps I just don't like his character that much and that makes me a bit biased about judging his performance. He is better in the whole finale(or act 3 of a film) to me.

I didn't pick up several things in my first watch but I get plenty of them now after some reading and googling(which I always do for good films) and I am pretty amazed by the depth of this film, it's definitely not shallow. There are some pretty basic logical mistakes though, which I don't like so much, and I understand every movie is going to have them anyway, so it's not a huge concern.

The movie dragged a little in the middle to me but the beginning and finale are top notch. I especially liked many of the action shots in the finale, just awesome. Overall, I would say the character interaction between the two main characters are the gold of this movie while the journey to Yuma is just to get them two together. A movie that features solid characters, easy-to-understand story(on the surface, there's more on the deep) and solid performances, I believe many can find this entertaining or at least, well-made.

I would say this is 8/10.

Absence (2013)

Wow, this movie is widely criticized... for being bad.

I don't know.

If there are so many people who loves Paranormal Activity (2009),... what a difference 4 years makes!!

Same premise, same genre (horror), same camera work and have to add different subject matter.

In Paranormal Activity, the supernatural is explored, whereas here, it is more of an X-Files phenomenon...

Some might even argue, that they are the same (Ancient Aliens anyone... )

The difference here is there really is not one storyline that the "movie" follows, hence the criticism.... Also, the characters do not seem to review their video recordings....

If you do like Paranormal Activity, give this a go!

Do be warn, it is NOT for everyone (especially is you did not like Paranormal Activity)

My Two Sen.

Do you all watch conjuring before??

Just finished Hatchet Trilogy...
Hatchet I
Hatchet II
Hatchet III
Victor Crowley just won't die...

If you like horror, killing then Hatchet is the movie for you...

Does it use the 'recovered footage' theme...ala Blair witch project/VHS series?

It actually does not "say" that, but you better believe it!!

Welcome to the Punch (2013)

Okay let's point out the elephant, right of!

This is NOT a big budget Hollywood production.

It is a "modest" budget of USD 8,500,000.

Having said that, having seen what they were able to put on the with THAT budget, I'm actually impress!!

It is also an English production, so the "beats" (timing) is different.

A decent, Cop & Robber movie, with James McAvoy and Mark Strong.

The themes of the movie are family, friends and what people from different background, think is.... just.

PQ and AQ are actually quite impressive (again taking into consideration the budget they have)

Script is good, acting is excellent from a group of gifted thespian.

If you want a "feels like Hollywood" but not quite movie, give this a go!!

My Two Sen

Mov_freak i was looking for the ingulis name for those 2 horror films starring simon yam the 1st and the 2nd wan....

thk god u put it up...

Tales from the dark 1 + 2....

quite scary....not bad...

now, go watch all the Saw series which is writen by the same guy ie. James Wan

You are welcome. I'm no god, just plain old Mov_freak...

I'm assuming the " " is for the story, Pillow...

yea..he is frm Mlalaysia right?? haha..now i am waiting to watch insidious 2..u watched?

Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

Wow... What happened to the LUV guys... ? Why you no show luv for this movie...

Okay, let's do a breakdown.

1) Storyline - I like it, it nicely encapsulate the first Insidious!! I can see why so many people has issues with it. Some elements were too coincident. But shooting the second movie and cutting it back to the first, I LIKE very much. One wonders if they had the broad outline of the second story when they were shooting the first. The connections seems seamless. Also, whatever back story I made up for the Black Bride, in Insidious 1, goes right out of the window...

2) Cast - Who knew that Patrick Wilson can be SUCH an S.O.B???? I didn't!! They expended on the Elise Rainier character (I knew her when she was Teacher in Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). She also help found New Line Cinema), which is good. If there is an Insidious 3 movie, I believe it would focus on her character and also the "demon" from the first movie. Also good the kids did not grow too big to reprise their roles...

3) In terms of pacing, there really isn't much room for the production team to maneuver to strife for additional originality, base on what they have already done in the first movie. I can understand why so many people were "disappointed" with the movie, because their wanted the "fresh" approach taken for the first movie, and that freshness is not here, because of the established lore..... So, my advice to the general public is to go in there and just enjoy the ride!

My only wish is that they had started showing this movie earlier over here, before The Conjuring (like in the States) rather then after. The reason is The Conjuring has a much MUCH larger budget, and truth to be told, a much MUCH better movie. Which can only compound most peoples' feeling of being let down.

I, for one, actually did enjoy the movie.

If there is a third (sadly I hear James Wan is done with the horror genre) I might just pay that a visit as well.

See youse at the movies

My two Sen.

This post has been edited by Mov_freak: Oct 20 2013, 09:47 AM

now i get it... Pillow.. but my fala fala fala kena liddat....

not yet...u shud go watch

-Dead Silence
-Insidious 1
-The Conjuring

these 3 are like a mini-trilogy for me from James Wan. Then go on and watch Saw series. gooding yo!!

American History X

IMDB = 8.6

yes, this movie deserves the high score.

it showcases the plight and the tension of multiracial/immigrants society perfectly.

pls watch this movie.

The Descent (2005)
The Descent (2009)

Can watch, not bad at all..