Plenty of Action;No Satisfaction

A full-throttle, martial arts thriller, Rogue Assassin stars Jet Li and Jason Statham as two adversaries set on a violent collision course in the Asian mob underground.

After his partner is brutally murdered by the infamous assassin Rogue, FBI agent Jack Crawford vows to find the elusive killer and personally avenge his partner's death. But Rogue proves untraceable until three years later when he resurfaces to ignite a bloody turf war between Chinese mob leader Chang and Japanese Yakuza boss Shiro. Eager to capture Rogue once and for all, Crawford leads his team of crime specialists headlong into the conflict. But Crawford's thirst for vengeance jeopardizes his professional judgment, and as the violence escalates, Crawford finally comes face to face with his enemy to discover that nothing about Rogue or his plan is quite what it seems.

The final twist and revelation even though good, was not executed well and as such fails to deliver the punch. You leave the cinema deranged with no satisfaction at all.

Heartsong

Premonition

To say that it has obvious loopholes is not entirely untrue. But from premonitions, people can do certain things and the outcome can thereby change. So the story here is that you can profit from premonitions, perhaps even change the course of events, hopefully to your advantage.

In this flick, a somewhat depressed and bored housewife, Linda Hanson was told that Jim,her husband was killed in a road accident. Events subsequent to that were rather strange. Trapped between time-zones, she began to live the days before and after his death, in a random fashion until she decided to chart out the days and its events, in an attempt to prevent her husband's accident.

When she told her that he will die, he even upped his insurance requirements and the contrived love-making with his wife made him to desist from starting an affair with his assistant manager.

What strikes me as odd is that in trying to prevent the accident, she was the one that actually caused the car accident that decapitated her husband. If she was at the scene of the accident, why is the policeman coming by the house to tell her that her husband has been killed in an accident?

Heartsong

Provoked- Battered Beauty

Aishwarya Rai is an enchantress. She is delightfully beautiful and in this movie they contrast scenes of the beautiful Aishwarya and that of the frightened and confused Aishwarya. The result-she still wins hands down on beauty.

Provoked is the true story of a Punjabi woman named Kiranjit Ahluwalia who leaves India to marry a London-based guy, only to be badly abused. She ends up in prison for murdering her abusive husband. But she fought back, first against her husband and then against the system.

Full of optimism and affection, newlywed Kiranjit Ahluwalia arrives at the doorstep of her new home and life with husband Deepak. However, the future offered only pain. The drunken Deepak beats her up for the first time and shows remorse. Beating her up gets easier for him on subsequent times. After 10 years of violence, a dazed Kiranjit could take no more. She resorts to a desperate act that kills Deepak.

She is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Incarceration tests Kiranjit. While in prison, she developed an ally in the mischievous Ronnie (Miranda Richardson). Meanwhile activist with the Southall Black Sisters, Radha (Nandita Das) sprung into action to fight for an appeal for her.

The barrister (Rebecca Pidgeon) assigned to the case, with only limited resources could not make any headway with the appeal. Radha appealed for public support. Ronnie meanwhile contacted her estranged brother-in-law Lord Foster (Robbie Coltrane), an influential legal eagle to take on the appeal.

Kiranjit’s appeal gains momentum when Radha persuades a cop to change his knowingly false testimony that Kiranjit was in her right mind the night of the killing. Arguing passionately before the high court, Lord Foster moves the judge to change the fate of many battered women forever.

A moving story that will pull at your heartstrings. The prison scenes and the court proceedings are not only profound but truly educational.

One of the better Aishwarya movies after Bride and Prejudice.

Heartsong

Rush Hour 3 : More of the Same

The fish-out-of-water pair is at it again. First it was Lee beahaving like a lost grouper out of water in New York. Then it was Carter's turn to be a clown fish in Hong-Kong and finally we have both of them like baramundi in Paris. The scenes are fast, thanks to good film editing. Chan is a wee bit slow, age showing and motor-mouth Chris Tucker continues to be as funny but losing some shine.

The story is as silly as silly films go with the plot as weak as temple congee. Funny parts, there are a few; the best being the bashing these two cops got at the hands of a gargantuan Chinese kungfu pugilist. And yes, one embarrassing part when Chan came swinging in a French night club singing as if he was Nicole Kidman's Satine in Moulin Rouge. Chris Tucker sounds better in his sing and dance act with pretty Lenoir on stage.

Rush Hour 3 features the touristy parts of Paris particularly the Eiffel Tower, Champs d Elycee and Arc d Triomphe. See beautfiul Paris;city of lovers.

If you have the time and like a good laugh at the antics of Chan and Chris, Rush Hour 3 can be entertaining. Go see it and laugh your silly head off!

Heartsong

Evan Almighty-Not As Funny

Steve Carrell is no Jim Carey. Secondly, the plot here is lightweight and veers towards the ludicrous. Apart from that, Steve is as funny as he can be, in his own way, in his brand of comedy. He may not be as funny as Jim in Bruce Almighty but he is his own man in this movie.

The transformation of Evan Baxter from State Assemblyman to white haired cum beard Noah-look alike is a sight to behold! Morgan Freeman seems to be enjoying himself on the set of this movie though I don't think he would want to take on the role of God any more............

Family fun and a lot of spectacular CG on the animals and the flood. Watch Evan, Moses-like with staff in hand, commands the animals into the ark. The children would love this movie, I am sure.

If you want two hours of fun, let yourself go and enjoy yourself. Ignore the bird poops,though.

Heartsong

The Bourne Ultimatum

Matt Damon has aged in this third outing but the action still is as fresh and as tight. The film moves on seamlessly from one scene to another toward the finale. Julie Stiles gave a good supporting role and the movie captures the beautiful sights of Tangiers, Madrid, London and Paris.

The thrills and spills can match any James Bond movies especially the car chase scenes. The hitmen here are as hard-hitting and merciless as any and the fight scenes are second to none.

The movie has a feel good ending and you can leave the cinema knowing that this is the ultimate of the Bourne trilogy for he has found his identity at long last.

Good movie. Do not miss it.

Heartsong