Highly Recommended
Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) (American Horror/Comedy) (repeat viewing) – This creative, witty sequel transports the little monsters into a high-tech skyrise in New York City. There are so many smart little jokes that one might miss without repeat viewings (be sure to listen to all of the background announcements on the PA system). The Gismo-clones are friggin’ hilarious (especially the nutball one with the cross-eyes) and the gremlins are crazy (my favorite being the spider one). Great stuff.
Recommended
Master (2016) (Korean Drama/Thriller) – A crime investigation team (headed by Dong-won Gang) goes after One Network, a corrupt investment company headed by Byung-hun Lee. One of the employees of this company (Woo-bin Kim) finds himself getting played by both sides, so he attempts to return the favor and steal a wad of cash for himself. The script isn’t bad, but it feels like it’s playing it safe most of the time and is rather cliched (e.g., there’s an account book that can expose everything, etc.) Characters are also one dimensional. However, performances are solid and help to carry this film. The finale is also satisfying and has some action thrills.
The Menu (2016) (Chinese Drama/Thriller) – A group of journalists investigate an explosion at a television studio which was caused by a man out to expose the network’s controversial CEO. Subsequent to the explosion, this man takes the station employees hostage and begins making demands in an effort to finally find justice for the rape and murder of his daughter. Theme are “on the nose”, but this is a pretty entertaining flick that has a mix of likeable and unlikeable characters that interact with one another during this hostage event. One side attempts to use media to incite violence, while the other side attempts to use media to save lives. Apparently, Hong Kong papparazzi are vicious in real-life, so this movies shows it.
Canola (2016) (Korean Drama) – A high school girl is a troubled teen who steals and cons people out of money, with the help of her friends. She is dramatically reunited with her grandmother, who has not seen her in 12 years. The girl attempts to transition into a new life. The important thing to recognize is that Go-eun Kim is a really good actress. This movie does get too melodramatic and drawn out near the end. But overall, Go-eun makes it worth watching.
Line Walker (2016) (Chinese Crime Action/Drama) – An inspector (Francis Ng) investigates a drug racket that is taking over the city. Unexpectedly, he receives a mystery message from a missing undercover agent “Blackjack.” He tries to locate and process Blackjack before it's too late. This is cheesy, fairly stupid, and has some absurd twists. But I found it moderately entertaining. The cast of Francis Ng, Louis Koo, and Nick Cheung definitely helps to keep things watchable. There are a few funny moments early on, like “You reek of plastic and spread your legs too willingly.” Some pretty good action too, like the shootout in Brazil, the shootout in a parking garage, and a knife fight near the end. This is critically hated, but more fun than expected.
The Italian Job (1969) (British Action/Comedy/Drama) – Enterprising swindler Charlie Croker (Michael Caine) attempts to execute an ingenious plan to steal a huge cache of Chinese gold en route to Turin, Italy, as collateral for a new Fiat plant. The diversion for the heist: a gigantic traffic jam during an Italy-Great Britain soccer match. There are a few slow moments during the middle section, but the action is decent enough. Most of the humor does not work well, but there are a few effectively quirky moments, like the scene where photographers are focused so much on a wedding that they don’t even bother to notice the cars that are zooming by them. I’m certainly not a fan of the soundtrack, which is obnoxious and overly repetitive during the finale. The ending is rather stupid. The remake from 2003 is far better.
Not Recommended
Cinderella (1950) (American Animated Drama) – This is the story of a gentle-hearted girl who attends the palace ball and meets Prince Charming. Right off the bat, there’s too much filler – the opening 20 minutes feel like a Tom and Jerry skit, only not as good. In fact, most scenes with the mice feel like they should have been in a completely different movie. Seems to me like they had a really shallow, flimsy script and were forced to pad out to a short 84-minute runtime. The voice-acting and songs are also unimpressive.
My War (2016) (Chinese War Action) – This film by Oxide Pang concerns the Chinese volunteers who were sent to fight in the Korean War against the U.S. during the 1950s. This is a propaganda film with very thin characters and practically no story, but it also has tons of action. The problem is that the action design is repetitive, lacking in strategy, and uses too many close shots and quick edits. Close-up explosion, close-up explosion, close-up explosion . . . yawn. There’s also too much slow motion. It gets monotonous quickly, and the moments of melodrama do not work.
The Long Way Home (2015) (Korean War Comedy/Action/Drama) – It’s the year 1953, three days before North and South Korea will sign the truce. A South Korean soldier attempts to retrieve a secret document from a North Korean soldier while both are separated from their reinforcements. This begins with an unrealistic but fun war battle, but goes downhill soon after. The characters are complete morons who act hysterical and have no idea how to use military equipment. This schtick gets old really fast and quickly becomes obnoxious. Attempts at drama do not work. Good luck sitting thru this.
