1. To Save a Life: Yes, it is another teen movie. The film deals with clichéd elements like teen suicide, teen drinking and sexuality accompanied by some horrific and disturbing images. The story revolves around an American school student played by Randy Wayne. A repetitive story and a weak screenplay are amongst the primary reasons to ditch this movie. The acting in the movie is not Oscar material either. This movie has the ‘do good or go to hell’ thing going on. Need one say more?

1. Crazy on the outside: The only reason to put yourself through the experience of watching this movie is if you enjoy sexual vulgarity and nothing else. The movie is about Tommy played by Tim Allen, who has spent the last three years in prison and is finally out. He moves in with his sister and their family and the so called story begins as Tommy struggles to keep his sanity around his crazy family. After acting in movies like Toy Story and The Santa Clause, this movie seems like a big letdown.

1. When in Rome: When in Rome portrays Kristen Bell as a young New York woman who takes off to Rome on a whim to find love and reason in life. If the story doesn’t disappoint you the events in the story will do more than that. As she roams across Rome she meets a so-called interesting set of people who are obviously in love with her. The movie is in fact meant to be funny yet charming and it falls way short of its mark. In short, you can have a better time wasting three hours on the net looking for movies to watch, rather than watching this flick.

1. The spy next door: This is a bit down the list of bad movies and that makes it bearable to watch on the flight to kill time, but not worth purchasing a ticket. The lead has Jackie Chan acting the way he usually does, you know, jumping around and fighting people by the dozen. The story and screenplay however display lack of creativity and ingenuity. The story circles around Bob, who wishes to impress his neighbor but ends up as a baby sitter at their place. One of the kids however just happens to download a top secret formula and then Jackie tries to balance the role of a spy and a babysitter all while trying to woe his special someone. Reading a book was never more fun.

1. Cop Out: The names Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan when put together can mean only one thing, lot of violence and sex in combination with Tracy’s unusual and not quite charming personality. The story starts out with Willis and Morgan, two retired NYPD partners, in search of a rare baseball card. Financial difficulties and other problems lead them to believe that they are ready to toss their life on the line for this card. Cop Out is out.

1. Saint John of Las Vegas: There is some nudity involved but that should, in no way compel you to watch this. John, a gambler, leaves the glittery life of Las Vegas to a more stable and well, boring life in Albuquerque. Some events occur and he once again must resist the temptations of his previous life to ensure that he and his new found love have a good time. The twist in the tale being that John realizes that his fears are smothering him and so he goes to Sin City to meet his demons. The genre says Comedy-Drama, but don’t let that fool you.

10. Kung-Fu Hustle or Shaolin Soccer

Kung Fu Hustle  is a 2004 Hong Kong action comedy film directed and produced by, and starring Stephen Chow. The other film producers were Po Chu Chui and Jeffrey Lau, while the screenplay was written by Xin Huo, Chan Man Keung and Kan-Cheung Tsang. Yuen Wah, Yuen Qiu, Danny Chan Kwok Kwan and Bruce Leung co-starred in prominent roles.

After achieving commercial success with Shaolin Soccer, Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia began to develop Kung Fu Hustle in 2002. Although the film features the return of a number of retired actors from 1970s Hong Kong action cinema, it is in stark contrast to other martial arts films around the same time that have made the biggest impact in the West, such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Hero.

9. House of Flying Daggers

The movie House of Flying Daggers is such a perfect wuxia film, that it is no wonder it lists among Top 10 Asia movies. There have been hundreds of wuxia films before this one, but the treatment this film receives sets it apart from the rest. The story revolves around two government officers who are seeking to destroy a house of rebels, called the House of Flying Daggers. The house is named after its weapon of choice and there are many fascinating sequences using flying daggers in the movie. The only hope they have of finding this house is a blind old lady and pretending to be rebels they coax her into taking them to the house. What follows are exciting sequences and plot twists in which all three of them turn against each other.

8. Internal Affairs

Infernal Affairs is a 2002 Hong Kong crime-thriller film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It tells the story of a police officer who infiltrates the Triads, and a police officer secretly working for the same gang. The Chinese title means “the non-stop path”, a reference to Avici, the lowest level of hell in Buddhism. The English title is a word play combining the law enforcement term ‘internal affairs’ with the adjective Infernal. Due to its commercial and critical success, Infernal Affairs was followed by a prequel, Infernal Affairs II, and a sequel, Infernal Affairs III, both released in 2003.

7. Jet Li’s Fearless

Touted as Jet Li’s last venture in martial arts movies, Fearless is the story of a real life martial arts master Huo Yuanjia (1868-1910), founder of the Jingwu Sports Federation. His true story is extremely inspiring- he fell because of his own hubris, rose from the ashes and then set an example that inspired a nation. Jet Li’s portrayal of this renowned fighting master is power packed and goes far beyond what has been required of the actor in simple martial arts movies. Huo Yuanjia, son of a fighting master is discouraged from fighting because of his frail physical condition. However, Huo masters kung fu and with dreams of fame and glory. He soon becomes a master, but his luck runs out when he challenges and kills another fighting master. In revenge, his entire family is killed and he is dishonored. Roaming the countryside in grief and shame, he is rescued by a blind girl who teaches him a lesson or two about honor and humility. After a lapse of few years, Huo is back in the fighting arena, this time to restore his family’s honor. His skills and faith are put to the most stringent tests, but he comes out smelling of flowers.

6. Hero

This Chinese wuxia movie starring Jet Li treats us to breath-taking martial arts between Jet Li who remains nameless and some deadly assassins. It is no wonder that it is one of the Top 10 Asia Movies. The assassins are out to get the King of Qin. After defeating the three assassins, Nameless (Jet Li) comes to the court to collect his reward. The entire movie plays as flashbacks to how he defeated the assassins and saved the country. There is a twist when the king discovers this is a false tale and comes up with a theory which depicts Nameless as a co-plotter. This movie keeps you on your toes and is interesting till the very end. Throughout the movie there is a continuous shift between the real and imagined tales and it keeps you guessing as to which is the truth.

5. Battle Royale

Battle Royale is one of the controversial movies of Japan about 42 ninth- graders. Reminiscent of William Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ but far more sinister, the movie is a twisted plot where the students are deceived and taken to an island and given weapons. They have to kill each other in order to survive in the island as only the last person alive gets to go home. This complex movie is naturally quite disturbing but is also equally insightful as it makes one wonder what they would do in similar situations. It is a brutal, violent film with erotic undertones. This movie has included pockets of resistance and a few moments portray female empowerment as well. Its amazing storyline will keep you rooted to the spot till it gets over.

4. The Legend of Drunken Master

Drunken Master II is a 1994 Hong Kong kung fu film directed by Lau Kar-Leung and starring Jackie Chan as Chinese folk hero Wong Fei Hung. It was Jackie Chan’s first traditional style martial arts film since The Young Master (1980). The film was released in North America as The Legend of Drunken Master in 2000.

The film is a follow-up to Chan’s 1978 film Drunken Master, directed by Yuen Woo-ping, but not a direct storyline sequel. Another film, Drunken Master 3 (1994, directed by Lau Kar-Leung) features little in common with either this or its predecessor, and is not considered a sequel.

3. Oldboy

Oldboy is a great cinematic experience and is a story about a man named Oh Dae-Su. It starts off with him getting kidnapped on his way home after being arrested for public drunkenness. He is put in a small room with a TV and during his captivity, his wife gets murdered and he becomes the prime suspect. He is released after 15 years feeling angry and confused. The story then deals with the torment and frustration of the protagonist trying to find out who did this to him and why. He is fuelled by this desire to exact his revenge. The acting done by Min-sik Choi who plays Oh Daesu has to be watched to be believed. At times bizarre, the movie depicts the emotions of the characters very vividly. With an end that will blow your mind, the movie is top notch with its excellent music and special effects.

2.  New Police Story

New Police Story is a 2004 Hong Kong crime-action film starring Jackie Chan and directed by Benny Chan..The film begins with a highly intoxicated police Inspector Chan Kwok Wing  drinking one whiskey after another. Later, he collapses in an alley, and is found by a stranger, played by Nicholas Tse.

The timeline then moves back a year, to show the heroics of Inspector Chan, as he disguises himself as a news cameraman in order to subdue a man holding a woman hostage in Central.

Soon after that incident, a group of rich, rebellious youths rob a bank. They explicitly ask a bank worker to call the police, and are confronted by the police outside the Legislative Council building. They play a sadistic game, in which they are awarded money for shooting police officers with machineguns, before making their escape.

1. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is definitely a masterpiece. All the characters have performed excellently and this epic story has been told in a very creative way. This movie created history with its action scenes, the kind which were never seen before either in the West or amongst Asian films. The movie also has the eastern culture embedded throughout its narrative, wonderfully showcased for the viewer.  There are parts of the movie where certain philosophies are questioned, especially by one of the main characters Jen.  Jen abuses the powers given to her which includes the magical sword, the Green Destiny. Her rebellion is a very strong one and one will wonder if the love she finds in the desert will save her. With top notch cinematography, direction, plotline and acting, this is truly one of the best movies ever made..

This movies didn’t make on list, but deserve honorable mention:

• Ringu

• Gwoemul

• Ong Bak

• The Killer

• Better Tomorrow

]]> http://www.mynewmovies.net/the-top-10-asian-movies/feed/ 3 http://www.mynewmovies.net/wall-e-to-be-made-into-comic-series/ http://www.mynewmovies.net/wall-e-to-be-made-into-comic-series/#comments Sun, 04 Oct 2009 21:44:58 +0000 admin http://www.mynewmovies.net/?p=180 Disney•Pixar’s 2008 hit animation WALL•E was a huge success thanks to the cute Waste Allocation Load Lifter – Earth Class. And now award-winning comic book writer J. Torres is going to be taking the adorable robot from the big screen to the small page in a four part comic. To learn all he could about the unusual automaton the writer said he has lost count of how many times he’s watched the DVD to learn “how he moved, how he expressed himself, what noises he made instead of using words, etc. I made screen grabs of different “expressions” and poses for reference. I poured over books like The Art of Wall-E and the model sheets and other material we were given. I bought some of the more detailed WALL•E toys to also study.” Torres will be collaborating with comic book writer and illustrator Morgan Luthi to bring the story to life.

Torres has previously worked on hit DC comics like Teen Titans Go and Batman: The Brave and the Bold, so he found working on his latest project “was like another day at the office” for him. Over the four comics Torres will answer many of the films unanswered questions, like what he was like when other WALL•E’s were around, when did he start collecting junk and why. Torres said he didn’t have too much trouble transferring the largely silent robot to the page: “I actually made a list of “words” he said in the movie and tried to “translate” certain sound effects on the page. Didn’t always work out or read as well as I thought it should, so I added a few things to WALL•E’s vocabulary.” He says he’s not too concerned with tackling the wider environmental issues tackled in the movie, saying: “I just want to tell a good story, and hope readers get something good out of it.”

After working on television adaptations Torres says movies are not that different, stating: “Both are very visual, it is comics after all, but WALL•E requires more “acting”. There is no narration or monologueing to help tell our story. It’s very much show and not tell. And that’s where Morgan’s [Luthi] skill comes in and saves my butt.” He says his favourite part of working on the project was showing “throughout the four issues where some of WALL•E’s treasures came from and build towards that awesome collection we see in the movie. I’ve really enjoyed watching the movie for those details and then putting them into the comic in the hopes that readers will have fun making some connections.”

It’s becoming increasingly popular to make comic and graphic novel adaptations of films, such as the successful 28 Days Later one created to bridge the gap between the original film and 28 Weeks Later. We want to know if there are any other films you’d like to see turned into comics. We’d love to see some of Quentin Tarantino’s movies in comic book form as we think the chapter layout would work brilliantly.

It’s not often that hosiery makes an appearance on our fashion fix (in fact, this is its debut – welcome to the party!) as it’s often considered one of those clothing necessities, not fun or showy but simply there to keep you warm. However, in typical trademark Carrie style, no element of her ensemble is allowed to be ordinary or plain and as such she opts for these cool socks that combine two of autumn’s hottest looks – the argyle pattern and sexy over-the-knee sauciness. And just to make sure they’re noticed, these flirty socks boast such bold colours as red, black and white.

Carrie wears them with laced ankle shoes and her eye-catching slogan tee “Stay Alive in 85” by Katharine Hammett”, and obviously has quite the soft spot for over-the-knees as she also dons a grey pair and who can blame her when they’re such a useful wardrobe staple? They look great with knee high boots and keep your legs warm when wearing skirts and dresses while avoiding the pitfalls of tights such as laddering and uncomfortable itching.

These are the exact ones favoured by Carrie and are a fantastic $9 from Foot Traffic. They also come in the more muted grey, black and white and are available on a three for $25 deal that is perfect for these budget-battering times. Keep one step ahead with this winter must-have.

Nominated at the 2008 Academy Awards for her contribution to costumery (she lost out to Elizabeth: The Golden Age’s Alexandra Bryne), Atwood described her creative process behind formulating the movie’s dramatic look. “I was inspired by Sweeney – where he had been and what he had been through. He lost his wife, his child and he was broken,” said Atwood. With Depp cast in the central role of a man who on his return to London after being wrongfully exiled, reinvents himself as the murderous barber, Atwood was inspired further: “In my first sitting with Johnny, I heard him sing and it was moving. It was sort of organic and he gave me a lot to work with. As I [designed] for each character, I was more inspired by who was cast in the roles.”