Summer Reviews: August Movie Recaps

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

When Fox decided to bring back the franchise about ape revolutions made famous by “Planet of the Apes” released in 1968 and its four sequels, it was Tim Burton’s revamped movie with the same name that did make a boatload of money but critically was far from success. So, the studio thought it’s best to shelve the apes once again and freeing them a decade later with a new concept that reboot the entire franchise in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”. Sure the title they’ve chosen sound quite silly but fortunately you won’t find anything silly in the movie. In fact, it’s a reboot that does it correctly, a lot better than what we probably were thinking it would be. The story is very well put together and it sets up nicely for a future movie even the original film. Events that come together to bring about the end of "human civilization" are subtle and really interesting to watch while the CGI apes are amazing - both in the way they are animated and acted.
In the well crafted plot builds from lab through captivity to a triumphant third act primate revolt and final stand off on the Golden Gate bridge, James Franco is Will Rodman a hot shot scientist who creates the most efficient drug to fight alzheimers, and in testing creates Caesar, a remarkably bright baby chimp who quickly grows into a super-smart revolutionary leader.
While Franco does his best with a character who makes some radical personality shifts to help the story, beautiful Freida Pinto does well as a primatologist who grows close to Rodman, and John Lithgow shines as his Alzheimers suffering father, it’s Andy Serkis who is the real star as he creates another incredible character in Caesar. You will forget within minutes that the apes are digital and Serkis who deserves all the plaudits for an extraordinary performance surely one that is heightened, not diminished by the motion capture process. Director Rupert Wyatt also took his time creating a back-story and not just diving into action, serves a loving tribute to the classic film by re-working immortal lines and moments in a truly creative way. This is already one of the most emotionally resonant films you will see all year and one that truly deserves Oscar attention.

Score: 8,5 out of 10


Fist of Dragon

For martial arts movie lovers, the tight and impressive fight scenes makes this Malaysia-Singapore film a must watch. However, other than the action that does deliver, especially the ultimate fight in a warehouse with its admirable choreography and the efficient employment of props on the set, you just can’t really hoping much from the rest. The story is so straightforward that you can predict everything from the very beginning to the very end, and the acting from most of the actors are either really wooden and unnatural or just way over the top.
It’s refreshing to see another newcomer like Michael Chuah break in the flourishing martial arts genre, and he also got some really good pedigree helping him in the form of the producer who worked on “Ip Man 2”. So, “Fist of Dragon” can really be something to be proud of if just the adrenaline pumping action sequences weren’t served with the undercooked script, unprofessional acting and uninspiring direction.

Score: 4 out of 10


Horrible Bosses

The premise is provoking enough to get you into the cinema and providentially the humour delivers with an entertaining ensemble cast that leaves you wanting more. Credits to the three lead actors Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis also the impressive supporting cast, which includes Donald Sutherland, Jamie Foxx, Colin Farrell, Jennifer Aniston, and Kevin Spacey, the movie was raised well beyond what you might expect from the material. It stands out from the rest with a unique and fun plot and though all the characters are pretty one-dimensional, you will enjoy the antics and the twists the film provides. Spacey deserving note for playing a role which would have chilled the spine if you wasn’t too busy laughing while Farrell and Aniston generate two characters who are an absolute delight to hate.
Although half way though “Horrible Bosses” does fall into the comedy genre trap of becoming a little episodic - essentially what we obtain for the final 45 minutes is one shenanigan after the next - it’s this magnificently outrageousness that makes the move so entertaining.

Score: 7 out of 10


Delhi Belly

Seem like a Bollywood version of “The Hangover” at first sight but this film produced by one of the most famous Indian actors, Aamir Khan, surprisingly offers a satisfying 95-minute-long comic caper that is absolutely smarter and wittier than the infamous second “Hangover” film. “Delhi Belly” is probably also the most raucous, boisterous, potty-mouthed production ever came from the lively Hindi movie industry. And as some of us frequently criticizes that Hindi movies thrive on beaten-to-death formula, this movie just suddenly came and defies the stereotype and bring a brand new recipe to the table. The story is about three amigos found themselves in complicated situations, the no-nonsense Tashi (Imran Khan), the clueless but talented Arup (Vir Das), and the food-loving, diarrhoea-prone Nitin (Kunal Roy Kapoor), sloppy roommates who live in a lower middle-class neighbourhood in New Delhi. While Tashi works as a journalist, Nitin is a photo journalist with him, and Arup is a cartoonist working under a ‘boss from hell’. Tashi has an air-hostess girlfriend named Sonia (Shehnaz Treasury) and while their lives are hunkering around with no form or feature, two are engaged to be married within a month. But trouble begins when Sonia acts as a courier for an international smuggler. A little daft, she asks Tashi to deliver the package, who in turn gives it to Nitin, who passes it to Arup.
Director Abhinay Deo executes the ‘bizarre turn of events’ script written by Akshat Verma (also the Associate Director) really well. However, he does take some time to get along with the story. Aside the crazy, grungy humours, this film also has just the right amount of twists to hold your attention.

Score: 7 out of 10


Cowboys and Aliens

One might expect a high-concept idea like “Cowboys and Aliens” to break some of clichés in Westerns and science fiction genre, but the film really doesn’t have quite that much of power in its final result. The story starts off with a cattle baron who likes to throw his weight around (Harrison Ford) trying to intimidate the local sheriff (Keith Carradine) into releasing his immature, spoiled son who shot a deputy and very unwisely picked a fight with a seriously dangerous fugitive (Daniel Craig) with amnesia. When the aliens show up, the cattle baron — a Civil War veteran — has to team up with the fugitive and the townspeople to find his son and their missing kin and do battle with the aliens.
Borrowing all of the stalest cliches of both genres, it’s exactly what you think it is and what should have been a wild, totally fantastic ride turns out to be leaden, badly-paced and dull. The film also wastes good opportunities with its stellar cast and how disappointed us by the very flatness of the film regarding how well Jon Favreau had previously brought to the summer blockbuster fest.

Score: 4,5 out of 10


Captain America: The First Avenger

In this last film of Marvel Cinematic Universe before next year’s mega team-up that is “The Avengers”, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is a frail young man who desperately wants to join the Army to help the United States win World War II. A scientist (Stanley Tucci) working for the government overhears Rogers and convinces him to be a test subject for his experiment. He has developed a serum that enhances the body in almost every way, effectively creating a super soldier. The experiment works perfectly, but Rogers is relegated to the propaganda machine until he proves his worth. He and a special group of soldiers, including best friend Bucky (Sebastian Stan) go after Red Skull (Hugo Weaving), an equally unique specimen who runs Hitler’s Hydra research program, but has ambitions of his own.
Joe Johnston’s “Captain America” surely isn’t one of the best comic book movies, it pales in comparison to its Marvel Studios brother "Thor" this season. It also just an effortless tale of goodies versus baddies without a hint of depth, humor or class of Marvel's earlier “X-Men” summer offering. I even was skeptical when Chris Evans was announced for the Cap role and thought he was very wrong for the part, and he proved me right. When Steve Rogers finally becomes Captain America, the movie only starts to wobble before ultimately tumbling.

Score: 5 out of 10