WEEKEND PIC - March 18 - 20, 2011

YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEKEND MOVIES

NEW THIS WEEK

a) WORLD INVASION: BATTLE LOS ANGELES (sci-fi adventure with Aaron Eckhart, Ramon Rodriguez, Ne-You, Bridget Moynahan, Michael Pena and Michelle Rodriguez) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): LA is under alien invasion again but this time around, it is not as silly as Skyline. Like the latter, it also concerns a small group of people - a platoon of Marines and a bunch of civvies. Of course, with Eckhart and Rodriguez in the cast, be prepared for some incredulous gungho, kick-ass action. (Reviewed below)

STILL GOING STRONG:

a) UNKNOWN (suspense thriller with Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn, Bruno Ganz, Frank Langella and Sebastian Koch) Rated * * * (3 stars): With Neeson in the lead, this one is touted as Taken 2 but it is actually based on a French novel by Didier Van Cauwelaert. The first half keeps us in suspense as to Neeson's character's stolen identity, while the other consists of chases, flights and twists. Like Taken, the plot is preposterous but it has a bit more depth. (Reviewed below)

b) RANGO (animated Wild West spoof with Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Harry Dean Stanton, Ray Winstone, Timothy Olyphant and Ned Beatty) Rated * * * (3 stars): Coming from Gore Verbinski, the guy who helmed the Pirates of the Caribbean films, this spoof on spaghetti westerns is cute, creative and visually arresting. The characters - lizards, singing owls, rodents, tortoises and a snake - look mighty real and well-developed. The narrative drags a bit but it is quirky fun on the whole. (Reviewed below)

c) MARS NEEDS MOMS (animated space adventure with Seth Green, Joan Cusack, Elisabeth Harnois, Dan Fogler, Mindy Sterling, Julene Renee, Ryan Ochoa and Jacquie Barnbrook) Rated * * * (3 stars): As you may suspect from its title, this Disney offering is more for younger children - those who refuse to eat their veggies - than for the teens. But parents will definitely like its message and its Pandora-styled sequences that are reminiscent of Avatar. For those who liked How To Train Your Dragon. (Reviewed below)

d) BEASTLY (romance fantasy with Vanessa Hudgens, Alex Pettyfer, Mary-Kate Olsen, Peter Krause, Lisa Gay Hamilton and Neil Patrick Harris) Rated * 1/2 (1.5 stars): The film-makers must have targeted this modern-day version of Beauty & The Beast fairy tale at the Twilight crowd. But after watching this lame attempt I gained a new respect for the Twilight flicks. The story and the acting suck - and the Beast's make-up looks like a Halloween stunt. (Reviewed below)

e) BIG MOMMAS: LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON (comedy with Martin Lawrence, Brandon T. Jackson, Jessica Lucas and Lorenzo Pisoni) Rated * (1 star): Watching another shitty unfunny comedy with Martin Lawrence in fat-suit is bad enough. Watching both Lawrence and Brandon T. Jackson doing this sh*t is sheer torture that no one should go through. Unless you are a masochist...