WEEKEND PIC - May 15 - 17, 2009

YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEKEND MOVIES

NEW THIS WEEK:

a. ANGELS & DEMONS (mystery thriller with Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgard, Pierfrancesco Favino, Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Armin Mueller-Stahl) Rated: * * * (3 out of 4 stars): Director Ron Howard has learned from his mistakes in The Da Vinci Code and has made a much better 'sequel'. He has also made a few changes from Dan Brown's book, resulting in a tighter movie. (Reviewed below)

b. I LOVE YOU, MAN (comedy with Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, Rashida Jones, Andy Samberg, J.K. Simmons, Jane Curtin, Jon Favreau and Jaime Pressly) Rated * * * (3 stars): This 'bromantic' comedy about guy-bonding may not be as laugh-out-loud funny as it should be but there are enough crazy incidents and lessons for today's yuppie couples. Trust me. (Reviewed below)

c. PUSH (sci-fi thriller with Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle, Djimon Hounsou, Joel Gretsch, Neil Jackson, Maggie Siff, Scott Michael Campbell, Colin Ford and Nate Mooney) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): Catch Evans and Fanning being chased by Govt goons all over Hong Kong if you can't get enough of Heroes and X-Men action. However, Push is rather mess and confusing, though. (Reviewed below)

STILL GOING STRONG:

1. STAR TREK (sci-fi adventure with Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, John Cho, Ben Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, and Zoë Saldana) Rated * * * 1/2 (3.5 stars out of 4): It's a new beginning for Start Trek franchise - just like it was for Batman Begins - and a must for every Trekkie and sci-fi fan. (Reviewed below)

2. SELL OUT! (Malaysian comedy with Jerrica Lai, Peter Davis, Hannah Lo, Kee Thuan Chye and Lim Teik Leong) Rated * * * (3 stars): Newcomer Yeo Joon Han's black comedy offers some refreshing insights into Malaysian foibles. There should be enough laughs for your money. (Reviewed below)

3. MONGOL (historical adventure with Tadanobu Asano, Sun Hong-lei, Khulan Chuluun and Aliya) Rating * * * (3 stars): An old-fashioned historical epic about the early life of Temudjin (Genghiz Khan) with fantastic scenery and realistic action. (Reviewed below)

4. X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE (Fantasy actioner with Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Ryan Reynolds, Dominic Monaghan and Lynn Collins) Rated * * * (3 stars): This action-packed tale about the origins and relationship bewteen Wolverine and Sabretooth should please Marvel comics fans. (Reviewed below)

5. THE SNIPER (actioner with Richie Jen, Edison Chen, Huang Xiaoming, Jack Kao and Bowie Lam) Rated * * * (3 stars): Testosterone-filled thriller about a sniper out for revenge. The movie was delayed due to the Edison Chen sex pix scandal. Mainly for action fans. (Reviewed below)

6. POWER KIDS (Thai action fantasy with Nantawooti Boonrapsap, Sasisa Jindamanee, and Johnny Nguyen) Rating: * * (2 stars): Greasy kids' stuff about four martial-arts-trained children and their bid to save a child with heart problems.