A Game of Shadows (PG-13) 6.5

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011): Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick Dr. Watson join forces to outwit and bring down their fiercest adversary, Professor Moriarty. (7.5)

Director: Guy Ritchie
Writers: Michele Mulroney, Kieran Mulroney
Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Jared Harris

Holmes and Moriarty meet face to face early on in the story. So, you know this is one of those stories that isn't good for their health, at least one of them. The story itself has parcel bombs, weapons factories, midget horses, gypsies and all sorts of stuff. At times, the flow of the story is confusing and mis-hearing a key piece of information means the audience is trying to figure out "what is what now." Above all, this being a typical blockbuster thriller, it has all the necessary ingredients for such a flick (whatever that may mean to the expecting audience). The early "military industrial complex" idea seems like genius until you slap your forehead realizing that the writers just copied the very recent history. Okay, so it is a thrill ride but I'd say that's about it. My Rating: 6.5

Shall We Dance? (PG) 7.0

Shall We Dance? (1996) Shall we ダンス?: A successful but unhappy Japanese accountant finds the missing passion in his life when he begins to secretly take ballroom dance lessons. (7.6)

Director: Masayuki Suo
Writer: Masayuki Suo
Stars: Kôji Yakusho, Tamiyo Kusakari, Naoto Takenaka

On the surface, the initial story is quite simple. A guy who sees a pretty dance instructor goes into the studio in the hope of meeting her, but as the story unfolds, we see layer after layer of emotional drama. The drama concern not just the two main characters but most of the supporting characters as well. I think, those who like ballroom dancing will find this quite thrilling, I just found the dance sequences entertaining. We also see the juxtaposition of the traditional Japanese culture and the necessarily Western aspects of ballroom dancing. It is quite intriguing. My Rating: 7.0

Baran (PG) 6.0

Baran (2001): In a building site in present-day Tehran, Lateef, a 17-year-old Turkish worker is irresistibly drawn to Rahmat, a young Afghan worker. The revelation of Rahmat's secret changes both their lives. (7.6)

Director: Majid Majidi
Writer: Majid Majidi
Stars: Hossein Abedini, Zahra Bahrami, Mohammad Amir Naji
Language: Persian (w/ English subtitles)

A simple story about the struggles of immigrant workers in Tehran. Their troubles are exacerbated by the cultural norms and the society's general perception towards immigrants, refugees and women. Okay, for me, the story was too simple. The main character, around which the movie is made, does not speak and does not display a commanding presence on the screen. The seemingly over-the-top generous young man is just that. Perhaps, I am missing a huge deal with their (Iranians, Turks, and Afghans) culture and religion, but the characters seem to be a bit two dimensional. Yeah, people struggle for a living. Tell me a story where those who are oppressed not just by the situation of their lives but by the culture and unwritten rules try to break out of the shackles and try to get on the next step. Sorry, I didn't see a whole lot in this storytelling that impressed me other than "these poor immigrants and refugees are in a tough spot." It had a bit of documentary style to it. There were a few glimpses of scenes where we got to see how nice the scenery could have been, but I think they missed the plot a bit there. My Rating: 6.0

Painted Skin: The Resurrection (NR) 7.0

Painted Skin: The Resurrection (2012) 画皮II Huà Pí Èr: An ancient fox spirit embarks on a diabolical quest to become human after escaping an icy prison, and becomes bound to a disfigured princess who seeks the love of a noble guard as her kingdom crumbles in this lavish supernatural epic. (6.1)

Director: Wuershan
Written by: Ran Ping, Ran Jia'nan
Stars: Xun Zhou, Kun Chen, Wei Zhao
Language: Mandarin (w/ English subtitles)

A supernatural fantasy story presented quite well with strong female lead characters. Where the movie falls off just a bit is in a couple of the CGI scenes, but other scenes take your breath away. While the fantasy story is about the demons needing human hearts to stay in human form, the underlying story has the other, well known, meaning of giving your heart to someone else: love. Yes, the fantasy part of the story takes some getting used-to and a tad bit longer stretch of your imagination, but that's where the imagination and uniqueness of the movie lie. A nice blend of traditional East Asian storytelling and the modern cinematography with high-technology. Perhaps, not a movie for everyone, but if you like fantasy genre, you will enjoy it. (Some subtitles disappear too quickly, so keep that finger on the pause button.) My Rating: 7.0

Fair Game (PG-13) 7.5

Fair Game (2010): CIA operative Valerie Plame discovers her identity is leaked by the government as payback for an op-ed article her husband wrote criticizing the Bush administration. (6.8)

Director: Doug Liman
Screenplay: Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth
Books: Joseph Wilson, Valerie Plame Wilson
Stars: Naomi Watts, Sean Penn

This is the real life story behind the reasons given by the Bush Administration for the Iraq War II. We see how the high ranking officials from the Bush White House got the CIA analysts to say what they (WH) wanted to hear, and generate "evidence" to base their claims for a war. What we will never know is what discussions took place inside the White House even though we do see a couple of brief scenes with Scooter Libby and Karl Rove in the movie. Lots of people have written quite extensively about the events, the fabrication of lies, the manipulation of evidence, and the character assassination carried out against the Wilsons, etc. but what most people have not said is this: The White House said that the wife of one of US Ambassadors is a CIA agent. That is not only a slap in the face for many thousands of career diplomats who work for the State Department and have given their lives for the foreign service, but it also puts many diplomats and their spouses at risk in various parts of the world. The White House did that ... just to score political points and to tarnish the credibility of one person who questioned the validity of the claims for an all-out war. For what ... to justify the Bush Administration's affinity for war, so they could feed the "military industrial complex." As for the movie itself, Naomi Watts and Sean Penn are superb and present the characters as we remember them from the various TV interviews and congressional hearings. The story does not dwell on the politics of if Bush knew or how much Rove was involved or if Cheney was the mastermind, etc. Rather, the movie presents the human side of the Wilsons and what they sacrificed for telling the truth. This movie should be watched along with Why We Fight that looks at the monster we have created in our military industry and various players who depend on it. I very highly recommend this movie. My Rating: 7.5

To (PG-13) 7.5

To (2009) トゥー : The Most Dangerous Thing In Space - Is Man (5.8)

Director: Fumihiko Sori
Writers: Fumihiko Sori (adaptation), Yukinobu Hoshino (manga "2001 Ya Monotogari")
Stars: Jun Fukuyama and Aya Hirano
Languages: Available in Japanese or English

This movie (?) contains two unrelated short stories in what appears to be pilot episodes of an intended series. The animation team has poured its heart and soul into the production, making the scenes, the sequences, and the presentation quite eye catching. The first story has you guessing right up to the end about the relationship between the two lead characters. They've got some of the sci-fi details of the story quite right (in terms of the genre) and I can see how this can be expanded into several episodes. The second episode has even better animation and scenery than the first one. The story, too, is a bit more well-developed here and has the potential to be developed into a series. The people animation follows the anime style while the CGI background scenes are quite well fabricated. I'm not an anime/manga expert, but to my amateurish eyes these two episodes are fabulous in themselves. And, the stories contain more substance--thinking parts--than some of Hollywood's so-called action flicks. My Rating: 7.5

Men in Black 3 (PG-13) 6.5

Men in Black 3 (2012): Agent J travels in time to M.I.B.'s early days in 1969 to stop an alien from assassinating his friend Agent K and changing history. (6.9)

Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Writers: Etan Cohen, Lowell Cunningham
Stars: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin

Okay, so I know that this movie is an attempt to stretch the good combination of the first one just a little bit more and squeeze out the last drop from the original concept; but given that, it was still good that the screenplay left Will Smith room to talk his way through. Josh Brolin plays the younger Jones' character perfectly and that helped a lot in carrying the movie. The story isn't as weak as I expected for a "third installment" movie. Though there weren't too many crazy alien stuff like in the first movie, it was still good. I really liked the guy who could see all possibilities part and that was kind of original. Enjoyable and the action sequences are really good, given that this is a comedy. My Rating: 6.5

The Hedgehog (PG) 7.0

The Hedgehog (2009) Le hérisson (original title): Paloma is a serious and highly articulate but deeply bored 11-year-old who has decided to kill herself on her 12th birthday. Fascinated by art and philosophy, she questions and documents her life and immediate circle. (7.2)

Director: Mona Achache
Writers: Mona Achache (screenplay), Muriel Barbery (novel)
Stars: Josiane Balasko, Garance Le Guillermic and Togo Igawa
Language: French (w/ English subtitles)

This is a short story about the lives of three completely different, yet somewhat similarly eccentric people living in the same apartment building. The strong screenplay and the wonderful acting by the three main actors carry the movie even without having a full-blown story. The observations and the remarks by the little girl make a lot of sense, and are whimsical at the same time. The world seen through the eyes of an 11-year older is quite different and it becomes somewhat alarming when we learn pretty early on that the said girl is tired of living her privileged yet ignored life. The back-stories of the other two characters are also fascinating. Great use of artwork adds to the character of the movie. My Rating: 7.0

The Servant (R) 7.5

The Servant (2010) 방자전 Bang-ja-jeon: A servant falls in love with a girl whom his master also desires. Although the girl loves the servant, she also longs to improve her station in life. The two make a secret deal so the girl can satisfy both her heart and her ambitions. (6.8)

Director: Dae-woo Kim
Writer: Dae-woo Kim
Stars: Yeo-Jeong Jo, Ju-hyuk Kim and Dal-su Oh
Language: Korean (w/ English subtitles)

This is a re-telling of the Korean folktale Chunhyang with what appears to be the tongue-in-cheek "it must have been really like this" attitude. Yes, it is a comedic look at the reverent tale which has passed down the generations through the storytelling traditions; but at the same time it examines the human sides of all the relationships from a different perspective. While I know the folktale from the previous movie (see link above), I wish I understood it from the Korean cultural perspective to better understand the jokes and jibes in this changed story. Yes, in this tale, the two original lovers (pure in the heart in the folktale) are portrayed as cunning, opportunistic and manipulative people who'd do anything to get ahead. The servant is actually the one who is true to his word. What the new story tells you is not to believe everything in your folktales. As in the other movie, the sets and scenes are beautiful and costumes are very elegant, perhaps too good for the time period, but then again, this is a spoof. Acting is superb and some scenes I would judge as "too hot" even for "R" rating, but I didn't mind. My Rating: 7.5

Stuck Between Stations (R) 5.0

Stuck Between Stations (2011): Former high school classmates reunite by chance during a chaotic party-filled evening. (5.6)

Director: Brady Kiernan
Writers: Sam Rosen, Nat Bennett
Stars: Heather Amos, Sam Rosen and Zoe Lister Jones

This is one of those attempts to create some characters, throw them together and see if the chemistry would create a compelling story. Sorry to say that this "story" has no traction at all. If I want to see what other people do on a night out, I can just go to a bar and see what happens ... pretty much nothing significant, and that's what happens in this story. The description about this movie is more hopeful than it really is. I'm sure there are those who like this kind of free-flowing, make up as you go along kind of non-stories but it isn't my cup of tea. To me, cinema is an incredibly rich medium for compelling storytelling. One major part of a good storytelling is having a story. I stopped paying much attention to the acting or the cinematography because it felt like an 80s MTV docu-drama that is filled with useless crap. My Rating: 5.0