Little Children (2006)

I started off watching this movie with semi-high expectations. I was a little bit disappointed but it is still worth the watch if you have the time. "Little Children" is a film that suggests adults behave like little children and it's just that we don't notice it. In a way, "Little Children" managed to do that, illustrating relative examples without being too exaggerative. I personally felt the movie could have been a little shorter, some scenes didn't seem to have any strong significance. You can understand why that scene was there if you think about it, but wnen it doesn't come across with much strength. Because of this, the movie felt a little drawn out and boring. Having said that, this movie still has many merits, such as being able to paint it's main message subtlely and intelligently. The best part of this movie is the climax. It ends with a strong moral and it was very well done.

"Little Children" focuses on a group of characters. A distressed husband and wife, both feeling detached from their real spouses. An affair between them occurs when they meet and the story pretty much unfolds from there. There are some pretty good side plots, intelligently intertwined with the main story. One good example that managed to portray our immmature behavior is the plot revolving the paedophile. Jackie exposed himself to a minor few years ago and now he's back on the streets. Jackie is actually a good man, he is just mentally ill. He realizes this and desperately wants help but everyone around him shuns because of his past. In a way, this example relates to children shunning another "nerd child" or another kid who is deemed weird by the others. I won't go into the exact details, but any viewer with a brain can easily see this relation in the movie.

"Little Children" has a decent cast, no big stars but good enough. The acting wasn't really commendable, there are a couple of distracting moments for me when I watching "Little Children" because of the acting. It's not really a big deal though, most of it still pulls through. Overall, I'd rate "Little Children" 7/10.

Heat (1995)

A masterpiece. A mindblowing film. A brilliant piece of art. No words or phrase can do this film justice. If I could give this film an 11 out of 10, I would, but that would make no sense and just simply violate the purpose of ratings. When I started watching "Heat", I wasn't even in the mood for a movie. I had nothing to do and I wanted to kill time. Everytime I decided to turn it off and go do something else, I found myself drawn into the character's plight and the coming sequence of events. By the time I was 10 minutes into the movie, I was completely soaked in "Heat". "Heat" is a movie that is hard to describe. It would be such an terrible understatement if I called it an action film because even though it touches only the surface of many different genres, it succeeds with incredible direction.

"Heat" is a robber and cop drama that tries on a very different approach. It brings in many support characters, all with good purpose and detail, to spin an epic yet personal tale of passion and principles. Although "Heat" does focus on the robber (Robert De Niro) and the cop (Al Pacino), it would not be fair to discredit the role of the support of the characters in this film as doing so will take away the epic magnitude of this film. Having said that, I am not going to talk much about the actual plot of this film as there would be too much to write without giving away the whole story.

The leads in this film carry it as their roles bring everyone together, they are like the medium that channels the strength of all the supporting characters into a huge cesspool of brilliance. Even though Robert De Niro plays a villian, you can't help but feel for him, wanting him to get away despite his deeds. In my opinion, he is what every man should be; decisive, smart, fearless and compassionate to those he know. Al Pacino plays a less likable character but equally understandable. Both of them have dedicated their lives to their own line of work and when they finally meet, they can't help but have admiration for each other. "Heat" isn't an idealistic drama about good vs bad. The cop isn't trying to catch the robber simply because the robber is doing bad things. The cop enjoys his work and is very good at it, it's his life's passion and he doesn't want to stop. When he meets someone who is equally good at robbing things, they form a unspoken bond of respect.

With a cast like Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Val Kilmer, Jon Voight, it's almost impossible to go wrong. Throw in an epic plot, great directing and powerful editing, you get a film that jumps into the league of movies like "The Dark Knight". "Heat" is easily one of the best films I have seen and anybody who isn't just there for the "guns and cars" will appreciate it very thoroughly. "Heat" is easily a 10/10 in my books.

Oldboy (2003)

To call "Oldboy" a revenge film would be appropriate, but to call it just that would be a massive understatement. "Oldboy" doesn't focus on the aspect of damage escalation that typical revenge films usually focus on. Rather, it focuses on the reasons for revenge.

"Be it a grain of sand or a rock, in water they sink the same"

This line sums up most of what "Oldboy" is about. However, don't discredit it just because it doesn't have a complex theme. Other good movies may explore multiple aspects effectively but "Oldboy" hits you with it's moral like a truck. It also puts you at the edge of your seat throughout the film. As it slowly peel away the skins of a well layered mystery, you finally realize the captivating yet brutal essence of the film.

"Oldboy" revolves around Oh Daesu. Our protagonist was kidnapped on his way back from work and locked up in a room. He wasn't told the reason why or how long he was going to be locked up. As a result, he lived day by day, bordering on the brink of insanity. Finally after 15 long years, he was released. The film starts from there, where Oh Daesu pursues the reason as to why he is locked up with frightening determination and perseverance and ultimately convicts the man responsible.

This film is among my favorites. It is the best foreign film I have ever seen and one of the best in its genres, up there with the likes of "The Prestige". While I cannot recommend this film to everyone since it is rather disturbing, I can safely say that people who have no problem with dark films will definitely enjoy this. In my opinion, Oldboy is a 10/10.

Babies

Babies are often used as symbology for innocence, as they lack guilt of any kind. I personally think an innocent life is the highest form of life, even if a life of great social status is in the equation, such as a comparison between a President of a country and a newborn baby. My belief would lie in the ideology that the baby's life is the embodiment of innocence; sinless, pure and new. A baby's life vs the life of an old man is like a new empty book vs a nearly complete book. This is the crux of my belief, I feel that everyone deserves a chance at life; that everyone should have at least a page written in their journal of life. Of course there is the arguement of a man who has continually made decisions that improved mankind vs a completely new human being with an equal chance of performing both bad and good. The arguement would be that the man has already proven himself to make good decisions and there's a higher probability that his survival would contribute more than the baby's survival. In terms of probability and practicality, it would be seen by most that the man's life is more valuable.

However, my belief lies beyond practicality, it is something most would consider irrational, it lies in our humane feelings and conscience. It lies in what is considered to be our race's uniqueness. Even though we know how unpractical it is, most of the time we are governed by our feelings. If everyone applied practicality above all else, where would our individualism go? Although it is often true that the most practical solution is the best solution in terms of materialistic ideals. Our humanity is what preserves our individuality and race. Without it, we would be like ants with brains, we would share a common goal but each with no form of individuality. Eating a burger from Mac Donald's is unpractical because it is unhealthy. Religions are usually unpractical because they have universal laws and universal laws are unpractical. I personally believe all situations need to be assessed before making the best decision. Such as the act of killing 1 man to save 10 men's lives. A universal law like "thou shall not kill" doesn't work in terms of practicality since the best decision is obviously to kill this one man. With absolute practicality, our race might progress incredibly fast as a whole but we would lose what makes us human.

Afterall, it is a fact that we still do not understand many things in this world, such as the existence of god, so I think that sometimes it is ok to hold faith in our feelings. That sometimes we should let our collective feelings as a majority rule us, instead of determining what is the right decision through absolute practical rationalization. Having said that and since most people think that the ultimate value is a person's life, I think that a baby's life, a new life holding a clean record, should be given a chance above all other lives, because I personally FEEL that it wouldn't be fair to take a life that has barely started away simply because he or she has not contributed.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

One of the most brilliant dramas I have ever seen is actually this dark and quirky little comedy, "Little Miss Sunshine". It deals with human realism in a way never done before, so real are these characters that when you see each of them, you'd immediately associate them with a person you know in real life. The emotions, characteristics and personalities are incredibly humane in this film. With this factor as it's standing strong point, it delivers a fantastic cinematic experience.

"Little Miss Sunshine" follows the Hoovers, a dysfunctional family with extremely unique characters. You have the chain-smoking mom, a gay uncle, a vulgar grand dad, a ironic motivational speaker that can't practice what he preaches as a father, a angsty and rebellious teen who doesn't speak and finally, the member who binds all of these characters together, an innocent and cute six year old girl. Olive Hoover, the girl, has one dream: to win the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant contest. She finally gets the opportunity to realize her dream when she is invited to participate in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant far off in California. Unable to bear the guilt of destroying the little girl's dream, the entire family sets on a journey to bring her to California despite their own troubles.

I cannot stress how well these characters were portrayed as even though their real life counterparts probably annoys you, it is so easy to feel for them as they each are very likable in their own way. It's almost frightening how you can relate so well to these characters. "Little Miss Sunshine" has many funny moments and they were very well done in taste so if you are looking for slapstick humor, skip this film. This film takes the "never give up" spirit, which has been done so many times, as it's theme but delivers it in a unique way which makes it very memorable to watch.

I personally rate this movie a 8/10 for it's realism, originality and tasteful humor.

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

When I first heard about this movie, I was extremely excited because two of my most favorite actors are in this movie. These actors, in my opinion, carry movies, they can transform a bad movie into a good one just through their powerful acting. Of course, the script and plot matters as well. "3:10 to Yuma" is actually a western "cowboy" movie, something that I don't really fancy. I only saw it because of the actors, which needless to say, didn't disappoint. In the end, I was totally blown away by this movie.

"3:10 to Yuma" has two main leads, a notorious outlaw (Russell Crowe) and a down-on-luck rancher (Christian Bale). Their paths crossed when Ben Wade, the outlaw, was arrested in one of the towns while Dan Evans, the rancher, was in it. Dan, having lost his land because of major financial troubles, decides to escort Ben Wade to the 3:10 to Yuma train for $200 (considered to be a large sum of money in the past). As the journey becomes increasingly difficult, Dan learns that he is not only doing it for the money, but also to redeem himself in front of his family. During the arduous journey, Ben's character developes more and we learn that he is not all that he seems to be.

The chemistry between these 2 focused actors is very captiviating. Their clash of ideals ultimately leads them to a ironic conclusion that both of them aren't that much different. It's really interesting to see how they communicate, how both of them eventually gain respect for each other. "3:10 to Yuma" is definitely a thought provoking action movie. It explores each character in a very realistic manner and leaves a lot to open interpretation. I personally rate it 8/10. There were some characters that I felt were too irritating, I am pretty sure anyone who have seen the film would know who I am relating to.

Taste on movies

I realize that if anyone reads this blog, they might question why I have given every movie such a high rating. This is actually because I haven't bother to write about movies that I disliked since they don't stay in my head. I might write one if I get the chance to see a bad movie soon, which nowadays, has a very high likelihood anyway.

I have attempted to compile a list of movies in their assorted genres that I think are worth viewing. It's easy to tell that my favorite genre of films is actually thrillers.

Thriller Films (Not for idiots)
Prestige (Highly recommended!)
Oldboy (Highly recommended foreign film)
Felon
Unbreakable
Se7en
Fight Club
Dark City
The Departed
Michael Clayton (Only if you enjoy political thrillers)
Gone Baby Gone
Saw (Be warned that it involves a lot of gore)
Saw 2 (I didn't like 3 and 4)
Trade
The Usual Suspects (Cult classic)
Collateral

Action Films (Some can be thought provoking)
300 (Highly recommended!)
Equilibrium
3:10 to Yuma (Highly recommended!)
Warlords
Batman Begins
The Dark Knight (Highly recommended!)
Bourne Identity
Bourne Supremacy
Bourne Ultimatum (Highly recommended!)
Ong Bak
Enemy at the Gates
Iron Man
The Incredible Hulk
Rambo 4

Comedy
In Bruges (Highly recommended!)
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Highly recommended!)
The Lonely Guy
The Jerk
The Man with Two Brains
Zoolander
Stranger than Fiction
Ocean Eleven
Get Smart

Drama
American Beauty (Highly recommended!)
Gattaca (Highly recommended!)
Cinderella Man
A Beautiful Mind
Little Miss Sunshine (Highly recommended!)
American Gangster
Crash
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
K-Pax
Rounders
Heat (Highly recommended!)

Fantasy
Lord of the Rings (Highly recommended!)

There are way too many movies that I enjoy, I can't think of all of them now but I will to update this list as best I can.