adztigana

IMDb member since August 2004
    Lifetime Total
    10+
    IMDb Member
    19 years

Reviews

Mother India
(1957)

Mother's Willpower & Love
It was midnight couple of weeks back, and Mother's Day mode was in the air. Turmed on the TV and the movie was about to start. Astonishingly myself not a core Hindi movie follower glued in front of the TV way until 3.30am that night/morning. The reason was the superb performance by Nargis in the movie. Possibly a magnificent portrayal by an actress in a movie, Nargis pulled a character not withholding the burden, humiliation and suffering she endured - just because of her love for her sons. And the ending in such heart hammering way, perfectly crowning the character Mother India. The movie is one of those poured the heart and soul of a mother despite shortcomings. And to think I watched it on my first Mother's Day without my own late beloved mum. There is no me or us, without our own mother.

Combat!
(1962)

Combat! Lives On!
Among the best TV shows, watching the current re-runs brings back fond yesteryear's memories. It was early 80's, and I remembered running back with friends to the big penal (village head) home just to watch the series. It was the only house with cool TV - and constant electric supply. (In comparison to few others in the village needing generators to run the TVs). We used to re-create the scene from the show, and cue wounds here and there and even a broken arm for my best buddy. Watching Combat! again, only now I fully enjoy the spirits embodied by the actors, ingenious plots variety and Kirby has the best one-liners (and gun). Worth waiting in the midnight hour and just wait for that triumphant drum-trumpet intro.

Arunachalam
(1997)

Rajini's Gem
Darn, anybody would never even bother to regard this movie as a marvellous one from the one-and-only idol, Rajini. Think about it, where can one could get dangerous creatures from his back? And how one explain destiny was arranged simply when a sexy lady walked passed by the desk(i.e. the rolling talisman bead scene)? I'm a non-Indian and I regard Rajini along with the likes of the legend MGR,Kamal Hassan n somehow Sathiyaraj as my fave quartet of Tamil hero icons. Arunachalam is parallel to any cartoon or cheesiest to the core. But,if you have nothing to do for over 3 hours, kill your time with this movie. The thing about Rajini is that he would always start from the scratch i.e. he would be doing the-odd job, a poor fella, etc. This is what captivated a fan with his character. All day normal guy. And Rajini did the action, jokes n of course the trademark 'swoosh-swish' thingy in an ultra-cool way.So much for hype, but then again, picture this. His current movie Chandramughi is the longest staying movie yet in one of the cinema in my resident town. Still holding queue since 14 April. And still there are people wondering why he's a superstar. Enough said.

Pendekar Bujang Lapok
(1959)

Bujang's cool
From the opening sequence at the penambang (boat-quay) to the ending with the trio getting honoured as pendekar (warriors), please do not move an inch (or if possible, blink) as this film is one marvelous way to appreciate the line-ups of great comedy-movies made during the golden Malay films era, circa 50s-60s. All hell's break loose, as I would say, once the Bujang Lapoks clicked to bring a casual but lively performance in the film. Sadly, such this movie has long gone from the theatre here in Malaysia. Nobody's have the fresh ideas and spontaneous acting as portrayed in this (and other Bujang Lapok) movies anymore. A highly recommended watch for everyone.Watch out for the trio 1st lesson in school or their hilarious 'cobaan' sequences. Honestly no other trio (not even The 3 Stooges) could match the togetherness of Ramlee,Sudin and Aziz. And let's chant now... "Hey mambang tanah, mambang air, mambang angin, etc, etc, etc..."

Chocolat
(2000)

Chocolatey Tasty
A fine film about how traditions are engaged with the battle of liberalization, so to speak. Good performance by all the cast, though one would say the casts were underutilized. This is the result of the few plots emerging in the storyline. Anouk character stood out for me and Juliette Binoche was as charming as usual. Nevertheless, the film depicts a way of how finally someone who is afraid of letting it all out or trying to admit own's misery being portrayed by just a bite of the ever loving food known as chocolate. An enjoyable movie with good accommodating tracks and nice caption of a lovely French village. Au revoir!!

Seniman Bujang Lapok
(1961)

Marvelous
The best of the Bujang Lapok's films. A rare non-slapstick comedy that blends well the art of entertaining, picturing everyday's life of the 60's era (a coffee for 5 cent anyone?) and of course the magic touch of giving out moral value in such a simple way. There are really some great comedy like the trio's first screen test, the part where the trio filming Bujang Lapok In Baghdad (esp. the cow-poo dream peak) and the chaos they encounter as they learning their script. The dialog between Sudin and Aziz about 'new house'was in fact a marvelous spontaneous moment - that is now scarcely (or even none) in nowadays comedy flicks. And one might realise there are messages can be deduced from such sequence of "Hoi Singh!" outside the studio or the classic neighbours nightly havoc. You can call me nuts, but whether this film is aired on TV for the um-teenth times, I would be there to chill out and have those laugh (til tears sometimes) all by myself. Well, a bujang lapok like me has nothing else to do on a lazy weekend.

Mike Hammer
(1984)

Hammerin 'em all !!!
One could only dream to be a P.I. like the Mikey himself. Semi-Classic noir-style work. One could hate watching this series first time around. But surely, after some viewing you'll back for more. Okey, the dialog are Z-class, the acting are so-so and women might felt male chauvinism is on the prowl. Heck, where can you find a guy who's seems could dodge bullet when he's slower than a jumping hare? How about those one-liners reply when bashing up the bad guys or flirting up a chick? Speaking of chicks, Mikey does his best to have the right enjoyment with different lady (or sometimes ladies) every different week. And yet he's fantasizing about the Face. Sigh, he could even live another day without getting paid at the end of the story. Yeah, I might be freaking weirdo who like this series. Just like the other 80's stuff being replayed on TV like The A-Team, MacGyver & Santa Barbara (duh). Then again, I always wait for the appearance of Velda on the show. (p.s. anybody knows her whereabouts nowadays?)

Mystery Men
(1999)

Man
The spoof for all the superheroes on everyone's mind. No super strength, no super elasticity and no super vision [forget flying]. These superheroes are just plain guys, with only a bit more skills in throwing forks, digging the earth and "letting the gas out". Heck, I can be like Ben Stiller's character anytime when there is a blackout during tedious work or stuck in traffic, missing a good game on TV. These are skills and characteristics more logical for a ordinary hero in everyday life. The storyline is simple enough to evoke what we can at least do in desperate moment. And teamwork's way off better than being alone. Good enjoy-the-scene moment from Geoffrey Rush and that "Skullky" bowling ball. No more mystery, just homage for being abnormal and crazy moment in life.

Ying xiong
(2002)

Utterly awesome
One could ever think such a grandeur story with excellent multi-plots, exquisite cinematography and of course, the extraordinary action sequence can be intricated together in one whole movie. The history and culture of Chinese civilization during starting of the Golden Empire were somehow almost perfectly captured. The protocol of how a servant meets the emperor, the delicate caligraphy or the martial arts display (watch for the sequence involving Donnie Liu), are some of the way of life during the period portrayed in such melancholy. The lovers story in sort of flashback arrangement were captivating, almost as equal as The Godfather II or The Usual Suspect. The usage of multi-layered colours are aptly a festival for viewers vision. Honestly, this movie is better than Crouching Tiger. And kudos to Mr. Zhang for that usual perfectionist feel in his movie. A treat for everyone - historian buffs,kung-fu master wannabes or plain movie fans.See it, rent t, buy it.

The Evil Dead
(1981)

Greatest Possessed Soul Scene
I'd taken my friend's advice to watch the film alone in the dark. I'm about to heave a relief as suddenly this scene occurs. The one with the woman sitting and laughing by the door. Not to mention that wiggle in the head, and the smile.In split second, the shuddering made me stone-tomb cold and dumbfounded. This, together with Megan's 360 head-roll in Exorcist, was one of the most dramatic possessed soul moment in films. I'd lost my bet with my pal (as I turned on the light immediately) and had to endure being called 'Duh' dude for a while. Nevertheless,the movie was darn frightening. The walking dead, the falling bridge and the living woods are all became inspirations for today's horror genre (include those teen-scream films et al). I wonder are there anyone just like me, duh ??

The Exorcist
(1973)

Scary
When I first saw this as a 10-yr old on video, the next 3 months or so, I literally slept in my parents room. All of this because of the demon-child's image wandering in my head. To think of it, I might not watched it alone even nowadays, if it's in the night. A chicken might I am, but the movie itself produce a grandeur feeling of horror. If not physically seen, it always botch the feeling and mental state of viewers. In a word - scary. The sequel (and prequel) just didn't have the wholesome gist of original. Blame me for dramatic,but this movie stood out on its own permanently.

A classic and a must possessed (no pun here) title. Now, where's my green pea instant soup?

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