WEEKEND PIC - June 22 - 24, 2012

YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEKEND MOVIES

NEW THIS WEEK:

a) BRAVE (animated adventure with Kelly MacDonald, Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Julie Walters, Kevin McKidd and Craig Ferguson) Rated * * * (3 stars): This Pixar's 13th animated feature is basically a mother-daughter tale set in the Scottish Highlands and spiced with mirth, myth and magic. It is suitably action-packed and centred around a young red-haired heroine that most of today's young girls can relate to. However, its magical elements tend to run away with the story and leave the older viewers dissatisfied. (Reviewed below)

b) ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER (fantasy thriller and biopic with Benjamin Walker, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Anthony Mackie, Marton Csokas, Jimmi Simpson, Rufus Sewell, Erin Wasson and Dominic Cooper) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): Adapted from the book by Seth Grahame-Smith (who also wrote the screenplay), the film chronicles the famous US Prez as a closet vampire-killer. It is obviously a mix of biopic and horror flick but it fails at both, and ends up being an expensive action film. Two of its action set pieces, involving stampeding horses and a runaway train, stand out but I prefer its subplot on Abe's love story. (Reviewed below)


STILL GOING STRONG:

1. PROMETHEUS (sci-fi thriller with Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce and Logan Marshall-Green) Rated * * * (3 stars): This is supposed to be the sequel to Ridley Scott's 1979 Alien but it has been rewritten to stand on its own as a sci-fi thriller. Prometheus is a technically brilliant visual feast, enhanced by 3D. However, its narrative seems to have bitten off more than it can chew, raising our expectations and not fulfilling them. On the whole, however, it is a compelling film especially for sci-fi fans. (Reviewed below)

2. MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE'S MOST WANTED (animated comedy with voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric The Entertainer, Andy Richter, Tom McGrath, Frances McDormand, Jessica Chastain, Bryan Cranston, Martin Short and Paz Vega) Rated * * * (3 stars): Accompanied by 3D and a bigger voice cast, this third instalment of the successful Madagascar franchise offers more of everything in its bag of madcap gags. It also dispenses with ties to reality and logic, culminating in a circus-gone-berserk climax. Should delight the kids during the weekend. (Reviewed below)

3. SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN (fantasy adventure with Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, Sam Spruell, Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, Ray Winstone and Eddie Marsan) Rated * * * (3 stars): With the classic Grimm tale set more in Mordor and Game Of Thrones territories rather than Disneyland, this version seems to be aimed at the young adults instead of family. The sets, landscapes and costumes are spectacular; the subplots are a bit derivative (of LOTR and Princess Mononoke) and there is a little love triangle to interest the females in the audience. However, Stewart's acting (or rather non-acting) is distracting as well as annoying. On the whole, this alternate version is still watchable. (Reviewed below)

4. TOAST (Bio-drama with Helena Bonham Carter, Freddie Highmore, Ken Stott, Oscar Kennedy, Victoria Hamilton, Matthew McNulty, Frasier Huckle, Reilly Newbold and Ben Aldridge) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): This BBC drama on the childhood of English food writer Nigel Slater is based on his memoir 'Toast: The Story of A Boy's Hunger'. However, most viewers and fans of Slater would notice a glaring gap in the biography: the part where he becomes a food writer. That was left completely blank in the story of a man famous for his food articles! Only at GSC International Screens (Reviewed below)