X-Men: First Class. With Two Degrees of Kevin Bacon

Because this movie stars Kevin Bacon, who I haven't seen in a long time, I will be reviewing this with "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon".

But first, a short review. First Class takes us back to the sixties, when Charles Xavier had a full head of hair. As far as prequels go, this was executed quite nicely. This was directed by Matthew Vaughn, the one who helmed the film Kick-Ass. The film has a certain darkness to it, but not as dark as Batman Begins or The Dark Knight. That's a different kind of dark. Let's just say this one doesn't try to be all comic book-campy like the Spiderman flicks. I didn't even notice Stan Lee anywhere in the film. Either he was well-hidden, or he didn't make a cameo at all. Oh, and I also love how the training montage pays homage to Ang Lee's Hulk. A lot of people didn't like that. I did, though. But I am quite ashamed to admit it.

Now, let's go to Kevin Bacon. If you're unfamiliar with "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon", it's a game that's really fun to play. Basically, you have to connect Kevin Bacon to any other actor by six degrees. It's kind of difficult to explain, but here's how we play it.

"Can we just get this over with?"

Kick-Ass

That girl in the picture is not Kick-Ass. That's Hit Girl. But she kicked more ass than Kick-Ass.

Again, this is one of those films that exceeds expectations. Because I was expecting this to be a comedy. Well, it's not a comedy. There were some funny situations, sure, but it's not a comedy. And therein lies the beauty of it.

But the beauty doesn't stop there. The fight scenes were sweet. Better than The Matrix. At least in my opinion. But I'm not dissing The Matrix. I love The Matrix. But this movie kicks ass more. Or this movie kicks more ass. Whatever.

So Nicolas Cage may be the only A-list star here. But there are a lot of familiar faces, like Superbad's McLovin, a really small role by Band of Brothers' Dexter Fletcher, and that guy who played Jackie Aprile in The Sopranos, and a cameo from Jason Flemyng. Plus there are some of Hollywood's up-and-coming faces, particularly Chloë Grace Moretz as Hit Girl (although I liked her more as Hit Girl, probably because of the wig), and Aaron Johnson, Mr. Kick-Ass himself.

So again, before watching this, be warned: This. Is. Not. A. Comedy. In fact, I don't even know how to classify this. It's funny is some parts, action-packed in a lot of parts, bloodier than Kill Bill, as dark (if not darker) than The Dark Knight, and has better fight scenes than The Matrix. And it tackles subject matter that goes deeper than it actually looks.


*some info from IMDb
pic from blogs.smh.com.au


Kick-Ass. USA. 2010.


Original rating: Eight out of ten.
Mention of "Filipino" and balisong screen time: Plus point five.
Bloodiest fight scenes so far: Plus point one.
Comic book sequence: Plus point one.
Final rating: Eight point seven out of ten.

Clash of the Titans

Watched this in 2D. Because I promised myself I wouldn't watch a converted 3D film.

My knowledge of Greek mythology is quite rusty, and I'm not really sure if this film (or the original 1981 version) is true to the original tales. I'm betting it isn't. Oh well.

I wouldn't want to dwell too much on reviewing this particular film. It's a fantasy film, and thanks to the wonders of technology, it is able to show things that the 1981 version could only dream of. So for that, I would like to do a comparative analysis of both films, but maybe in a future post, as the summer heat is making me too lethargic.

Anyway, here are my rants:

Jason Flemyng: You're a great actor, but you look hideous here.

Sam Worthington: You are too pop. Can you do a a rom-com next time, or a serious drama?

Liam Neeson: You will always be Liam Neeson. Everything you say sounds like Liam Neeson. I mean, I don't think you're even acting. Even Qui-Gon Jinn sounds like Liam Neeson. Now unless you convince me that you can become Hannibal in The A-Team, I'm afraid you will always be Liam Neeson.

Ralph Fiennes: Now for me, this is the only worthy performance in the entire movie. Ralph Fiennes is pure heart.

Now for all the rest of the actors, you've seen them in one film or another. Perseus' father was the priest in Romeo + Juliet. Cassiopeia was Atia of the Julii in Rome (she looks less hot here). One of the funny brothers was that cop in The Kingdom. Io was a Bond girl in Quantum of Solace. And so on.

And finally: The Gorgon was okay. The Kraken was ugly. And the scorpions were awesome.

PS: The face-off between Zeus and Hades reminded me of...Schindler's List. What?

*some info from IMDb

pic from aceshowbiz.com

Clash of the Titans. USA. 2010.

Rating: Six out of ten.

Scorpion battle scene: Eight out of ten.

Le Violon Rouge (The Red Violin)

I heart multinational productions.

This movie follows the journey of a Bussotti violin through three centuries and five countries, from its inception in Italy, to the hands of the Austrian monks, to the child prodigy Kaspar Weiss, to the hands of wandering gypsies, to the English genius Frederick Pope, across the ocean to Red China, then back to the Americas in modern-day Canada, to be auctioned to its latest resting place. Whew. Talk about epic.

Anyway, what can I say about this film?

Directing: check.
Screenplay: check.
Cinematography: check.
Production design: check.
Sound design: check.
Musical score: check (Oscar win).
Acting: check.

Jason Flemyng with long hair still looks like a gypsy, like in Snatch. Samuel L. Jackson begins his career playing minor yet important roles. And Sylvia Chang is really cute.


*some info from IMDb and Wikipedia
pic from chud.com


Le Violon Rouge. Canada. 1998.


Rating: Nine out of ten.