Alexander

USA 2004 - Adventure/Drama/War — 175 min — Directed by Oliver Stone
Cast: Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer, Anthony Hopkins

Conquering 90% of the known world by the age of 25, Alexander the Great led his armies through 22,000 miles of sieges and conquests in just eight years. Coming out of Macedonia, Alexander led his armies against the mighty Persian Empire, drove west to Egypt, and finally made his way east to India. This film will concentrate on those eight years of battles, as well as his relationship with his boyhood friend and battle mate, Hephaestion. Alexander's conquests paved the way for the spread of Greek culture (facilitating the spread of Christianity centuries later), and removed many of the obstacles that might have prevented the expansion of the Roman Empire. In other words, the world we know today might never have been if not for Alexander's bloody, yet unifying, conquest.

Underwhelming and dumbed down, two things that sums up this supposedly 'epic' movie. Colin Farrell does an allright portrayal, as does the rest of the cast - though Val Kilmer as the King was excellent. Hannibal Lecter is his usual, mega-boring self, and Jolie did a much better job than I thought her capable of. But Olive Stone, the director, did a shoddy job at best. It sure doesn't feel epic is any way, which is what an Alexander movie should be. Too bad Baz dropped his version, it would easily have been much this movies' superior, without even trying.

The battles are way too brief and muddled, and Stone dwells too much on the wrong things and events. You never get a feel for Alexander's greatness if you will. It's a long move, almost 3 hours, and I apprechiate the difficulty of making a movie about the whole of his life, but this surely isn't it. Even a documentary on Discovery will do a better job at that. By concentrating on certain events and battles, and only brief mentions of the conquering of Egypt, Babylon and bloody much the rest too, lessens any impact it could have. It's almost as if it was made for US television, totally dumbed down, and patronizing

Deadwood (Season 2, Episode 8)

Swearengen calls a sit-down with Bullock to enlist him in "the coming campaign," He wants Bullock to contact his judge friend in Montana, with an eye toward annexation. The stage brings a pair of interesting arrivals to town. One is the new telegraph operator, who will rent office space with Merrick. The other is an enormous "bone-shaker" bicycle that has been ordered by Tom Nuttall. Showing off the specimen at his saloon, some patrons express doubt that it is built to handle streets as rutted and muddy as those of Deadwood. A bet is soon made, with many of the citizenry taking a position.

Yes! Al getting into things. Still way too slow for my liking, he should be out there stirring things up, but I guess it's a start at least. Hopefully he'll get into full swing next week, damnit! Bullock really is a pussy. He still have the spark, but his fire is almost out and has been so this entire season. He might get his act together, there are signs, but I wouldn't bet on it. He's been pussyfied by his "wife." Come on! We crave action, backstabbings and fun.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Comedy/Adventure/Drama — 118 min — Directed by Wes Anderson
Cast: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum

Internationally famous oceanographer Steve Zissou and his crew--Team Zissou--set sail on an expedition to hunt down the mysterious, elusive, possibly non-existant Jaguar Shark that killed Zissou's partner during the documentary filming of their latest adventure. They are joined on their voyage by a young airline co-pilot who may or may not be Zissou's son, a beautiful journalist assigned to write a profile of Zissou, and Zissou's estranged wife and co-producer, Eleanor. They face overwhelming complications including pirates, kidnapping, and bankruptcy.

How the Hell does this get a 7.3 rating at imdb.com? Plants? It's one awful piece of stinking shit. How the director managed to get the $25 million budget is a no-brainer with a cast like this. I bet they thought it would be a great film. I wonder how many of the executives who saw early footage from this managed to avoid choking to death. I've never seen such a waste of talent go so totally overboard, pardon the pun, in such a total shipwreck of a movie. This one falls flat on all counts. The director must have spent the money on hookers and parties, because it's not in this movie. Well, apart from the 25 cents he spent on the story.
Performance-wise only Willem Defoe manages to do anything at all with his role, which isn't much to boast about. Bill Murray looked like he was sleepwalking for the entire duration. Oh, I really suffered to get through the whole thing, but I forced myself to watch it till the end. I barely made it. Wes Anderson should be taken out to sea and dumped there along with all copies ever made of this total waste of film. The world would be a better place. Fuck!

My rating: 1 /10

Grey's Anatomy (Episode 5)

An exhausted Meredith thinks she may have made a mistake during surgery, which could jeopardize her career. Meanwhile Izzie's plan to throw a party for her new boyfriend goes completely awry, and Alex deals with a patient who is addicted to painkillers.

Meredith struggles with taking responsibility, and we get a peek at her nipple (if you look real carefully) as the episode starts with her in the shower. Keep your eyes peeled to the lower right corner of the screen, as the camera pans down, and you won't miss it. It looks very nice! Oh, the show? Well after that start, I didn't pay much attention, heh. Joking aside... Izzy throwed a party at Meredith's house without telling her about it, and when M came home to find her house infested with partygoers, she got mad. Only to realize that why wreck it, get drunk instead. Responsible. Right.

But I still like (gasp) this show. For some reason, it just feels right. Wonder why that is. Just found out that Boston Legal won't return to it's time slot Grey's have inherited. Apparently, Grey is doing pretty good, so they've canned the BL episodes for next season. I love James Spader's character on BL, and Shatner is pretty cool too, if a bit too loopy. Can't wait for it to return, and Grey's a good replacement. I'll keep following both, as they are good. A rare thing these days filled with shitty reality-shows.

Femme Fatale

France 2002 - Thriller/Crime — 110 min — Directed by Brian De Palma
Cast: Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Antonio Banderas, Peter Coyote, Rie Rasmussen

Con artist/thief Laure Ash helps pull off a diamond robbery in Cannes during the film festival. She double-crosses her partners and makes off with the diamonds to Paris, and then leaves the country. Seven years later, she re-surfaces as the wife of the new American ambassador to France where a photographer, takes her picture which sets the stage for a motion of events.

This movie has one of the hottest lesbian scenes ever in a regular movie, between models-turned-actresses Rie Rasmussen and Rebecca Romijn. Rebecca also does one damn hot dance/strip scene that will make a bulge in your pants - unless you're gay. Storywise it's a bit too haphazard at times, and you never get the whole picture. You're kept on your toes, guessing what's gonna happen and why somethings do happen. It works fine, but at times you really feel that there need to be some justification to some events. Well, you get it close to the end, as most of the film has happened the Dallas way - turns out Rebecca lying naked in a bathtub has dreamt it all. But when she awakes, the events she dreamt of, start happening, so she alters it. If you a decent crime/heist story, this is a no-brainer to watch. If you also like naked hot women - do yourself a service and watch this! Rebecca goes full frontal, which in itself should be enough!

My Rating: 7 / 10

Grey's Anatomy (Episodes 1 to 4)

Meredith is a first year surgical intern at Seattle Grace Hospital, the toughest surgical residency program west of Harvard. She and fellow first-year interns Cristina Yang, Izzie Stevens, George O'Malley and Alex Karev were students yesterday. Today they're doctors and, in a world where on the job training can be a matter of life and death, they're all juggling the ups and downs of their own personal lives.
Grey's Anatomy focuses on young people struggling to be doctors and doctors struggling to stay human. It's the drama and intensity of medical training mixed with the funny, sexy, painful lives of interns who are about to discover that neither medicine nor relationships can be defined in black and white. Real life only comes in shades of grey.

Sat down and watched all four episodes in one go, and I'm surprised to say that I did like it better and better as we got to know the characters. I thought it would be some crap like E.R. but to my surprise it was not. It's very well written and although it's a hospital drama, it's not as heavyhanded as E.R. and other such shows. They interact well, and they are even likeable. Especially the Meredith/Dr Shephard romance. I hope they let is grow slowly, and not force them together. It's a vital to keep the sexual tension between them. I like Dempsey, he has that wild look in his eyes when he looks at her. It's a recipe that makes for good fun. Kath Heigl is there just for the teenage droolers that like to see her boobs behind incredibly thich bra's, which she somehow always use. Not a chance of ever using a bra that won't cover 95% of her boobs. Too bad boys. I like Ellen Pompeo as Meredith much more. She's better looking, has infinitely more class, and isn't a bimbo like Heigl. I like her more and more for every episode.

Numb3rs (Episodes 1 to 5)

Inspired by actual cases and experiences, "Numb3rs" depicts the confluence of police work and mathematics in solving crime. The story of an FBI agent who recruits his mathematical genius brother to help solve a wide range of challenging crimes in Los Angeles from a very distinctive perspective.

Ep1 — Serial killer
Ep2 — Gentlemen bankrobbers
Ep3 — Spanish Flu
Ep4 — Unsafe Skyscraper
Ep5 — Clown kidnappers

Saw the first five episodes and I gotta say that I like it. It's not as good as last years excellent "Line of Fire" that was cancelled for some stupid reason. Stupid ABC executives. I sure hope they bring on some more dynamics between the cast in this one, as it's seriously lacking so far. The characters just aren't very interesting somehow. We have barely got to know them, and none of them seems to have any quirks we can like or dislike. That's what's needed. They've covered some pretty cool topics, from the Riemann Hypothesis to a leathal disease on the loose. It's produced by Ridley and Tony Scott, the famous directors, but I sure can't see their hands in anything. Seems to me they've only lent their names to this series, or have they sold out? The writers have done a good job researching stuff, but somehow that plots are almost infantile and the conclusions invariably stupid and they don't feel realistic at all. They should be able to do much better. I hope it picks up in the coming episodes, which I'll try to watch tomorrow.

24 (Season 4, Episode 18)

Curtis brings in a suspect who has critical information about Marwan's next strike. Michelle orders Curtis to use harsh methods to interrogate the suspect, but things get complicated when Marwan sends a lawyer to defend his rights. New President Logan's advisors begin to worry as he continues to exhibit fear in the face of the ongoing terrorist threat.

Getting information from accomplices seems to be tough, and Jack has to resign from CTU and break some fingers to get the info he needs. Naturally the crooks get a nuke, and will probably detonate it in next episode - unless our intrepid hero Jack can stop them. Oooh. Aaaah. It's getting old real fast. Read about a rumor that Maddy, the 747-parachuter/bomber will be back in the last episode. I love Mia, so that's something to look forward to atleast. Felt like fast-forwarding the entire episode, and wouldn't have missed any vital or new info. Chucks.

Deadwood (Season 2, Episode 7)

Al is surprised to find a door that connects his place to the Pioneer, finds a despondent Merrick, who explains that Tolliver has wrecked his newspaper office in retribution for not publishing the county commissioner's notice.
At the Chez Amis, Tolliver enlists Lee to dispose of the three whores' bodies.
Joanie is badly shaken, and confides her secret to Charlie Utter.
At the Grand Central, a seething Utter continuously insults Wolcott and accuses him of stepping on his foot. Charlie unleashes a string of profanities and ends up beating the man brutally in the street. Bullock finally stops Utter's savage attack, and Al, begins to connect Charlie's actions to the evacuation of the prostitutes the night before.

Most of the time, Bullock is a pussy this season. He does nothing, just goes about his business, doing what amounts to almost nothing. Somebody please give him his balls back already! And Al keeps improving, but not nearly as fast as he should, to get this stagnant show running. I sure hope he does - for all our sakes, and soon. As it stands now, it's little more than a borefest than as fun as it was last season.

The Interpreter

USA 2005 - Drama/Thriller — 128 min — Directed by Sydney Pollack
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Jesper Christensen, Yvan Attal, Earl Cameron

An interpreter at the United Nations overhears an assassination plot to kill a visiting president. An Secret Service agent is assigned to the case, which proves to be more difficult to solve than he first thought, especially since he starts to have feelings for her. But is she innocent, or part of the plot?

Nicole looks lovlier than ever, and sure surprised me by doing a good performance. I'm used to see her in ultra-dramas like The Hours and such garbage, so it was nice to see her in a thriller. It's not as good as The Others, which she did a couple years ago, but it's still quite allright. Sean Penn owns his role too, as a depressive agent. He somehow fits well into that role. The plot is a bit weak, as should be expected, but if I have to complain about anything, it's the slow pace. Not that it was too slow, but the story moved along at such a slow pace I could hardly sit still at the end. And it was never very interesting either, and you could feel that something about Silvia (Nicole) just wasn't right. So you could see the conclusion fifty miles away. The direction was allright to, if not very exciting, but Sydney have never been very exciting has he?

My rating: 6 / 10

Layer Cake

Thriller/Crime/Action — 104 min — Directed by Matthew Vaughn
Cast: Daniel Craig, Tom Hardy, Jamie Foreman, Sally Hawkins, Burn Gorman, George Harris

A successful cocaine dealer who has earned a respected place among England's Mafia elite and plans an early retirement from the business. However, big boss Jimmy Price hands down a tough assignment: find Charlotte Ryder, the missing rich princess daughter of Jimmy's old pal Edward, a powerful construction business player and gossip papers socialite. Complicating matters are two million pounds' worth of Grade A ecstasy, a brutal Serbian assassin and a whole series of double crossings. The ultimate last job, a love interest called Tammy and an international drugs ring, threaten to draw him back into the 'cake mix'. But, time is running out and the penalty will endure a lifetime..

From the director of the great "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels" and "Snatch" films comes this movie that is in a similar vein. But it doesn't quite make it, at least not to top any of those two. Still, it's pretty nice with loads of double crosses and plot twists, albeit most are somewhat predictable. The best scene is the assassin getting shot in the head as he's about to assassin the would be assassin. Heh, nice sentence. The morals of the film? Well, simply put you'll have to wait for the final scene, to get that. It's some good entertainment, and your time is better spent than watching a stupid Hollywood clusterfuck like "Be Cool" with Travolta. Trust me.

The Night Watch

Russia 2004 - Fantasy/Mystery — 115 min — Directed by Timur Bekmambetov
Cast: Konstantin Khabensky, Vladimir Menshov, Valeri Zolotukhin, Mariya Poroshina, Galina Tyunina, Yuri Kutsenko

A long time ago, The Forces of Light battled the Force of Darkness, but when the two sides realized they were too evenly matched, a truce was reached. In present day Moscow, disheveled Anton gets ready for his first assignment - capture or kill vampires that have broken the "truce" established by the aforementioned battle thousands of years ago.

Now who would have guessed that something as cool as this would come out of Russia? Great special effects, and lovely settings. The only drawback it has, is that it's Russian; which will (probably) stop it from doing great at box-offices all over the wrold. Sadly. Because the whole mythos of this movie is just awesome, and it's the first of a trilogy, with the second named "The Day Watch" being released in Russia this year. Wanna bet against Hollywood negotiating to do an US remake, set in New York or Los Angeles? I enjoyed it immensely, especially the gloomy setting, and I'm looking forward to seeing the sequel. Now that is not something I usually do - ever.
The offbeat story and mix of weird scenes was also a joy to watch. After seeing it you just want more and more. You need answers, you need to find out what's really happening and why. I normally root for the bad guys, but I found myself rooting for the good guys in this one. Damn it.

My rating: 8 / 10

Tim Burton's Corpse Bride Trailer

Apparently, Tim's latest stop motion animated feature film (based on a 19th Century Russian folktale, where a man mistakenly weds a corpse) is nearing completion in London, as there now is a trailer available over at Apple's Website. It's actually been available since January. You can really tell from the picture that it is Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, right? Here's short synopsis of the story, to wet your appetite...

Once upon a time there was a young man who lived in a village in Russia. He was to be married and he and his friend prepared to go to the village where his bride-to-be lived, two days walk from his own village.

The first night the two friends decided to set up camp by a river. The young man who was going to be married spotted an unusual looking stick in the ground that looked like a bony finger. He and his friend started joking about this bony finger sticking out of the ground and the young man who was going to be married took the golden wedding ring from his pocket and put it on the strange-looking stick. And then he started to do the wedding dance around the stick; he danced around the stick with the golden wedding ring three times and he sang the Jewish wedding song, and recited the entire marriage sacrament as he danced around the stick, he and his friend laughing the whole time.

Their fun stopped suddenly when the earth started rumbling and shaking beneath their feet. The place where the stick had been opened up and a very bedraggled looking corpse emerged, a living corpse, she had been a bride, but now was barely more than a skeleton held together by shreds of skin, still wearing an old torn white silk wedding dress. Worms and spider webs hung on the once-beaded bodice and tattered veil.

The two young men were aghast.

"Ah," she said, "you have done the wedding dance and pronounced the marriage vows and you have put a ring on my finger. Now we are man and wife. I demand my rights as your bride."

Now doesn't that sound real horrorshow? If it is even close to being as good as Nightmare Before Christmas was I'm one happy camper. Burton rarely makes a bad movie, and this looks just fantastic!

Deadwood (Season 2, Episode 6)

Alma proposes forming a bank, and looks to familiar faces to run it. To test himself, Swearengen grants audience to a long line of supplicants; talks with Farnum and Miss Isringhausen prove most illuminating. The arrival of low-priced Chinese whores begins the next phase in Tolliver and Wolcott's arrangement. Humiliated by Bullock, an angry claim owner looks to "square the scales." An enchanted Merrick tours a new schoolteacher about the camp. Wolcott's inner demons test his alliance with Tolliver, and prompt Stubbs and Utter to covert action.

Nasty action in this episode, as three whores are murdered by an angry Mr W. Al's slowly getting on his feet, and the camp better watch out. I hope he puts the fired governant in her proper place soon. There is something with her that I don't like, and she seems to be out for Al's hide somehow. It's sure time for Al to wake up and start wreaking some havoc with the camp that seems to be slipping from his grasp. He needs to stamp his authority before it's too late.

The Manchurian Candidate

Thriller/Mystery — 129 min — Directed by Jonathan Demme
Cast: Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber, Jon Voight, Meryl Streep

When his army unit was ambushed during the first Gulf War, Sergeant Raymond Shaw saved his fellow soldiers just as his commanding officer, Major Ben Marco, was knocked unconscious. Brokering the incident for political capital, Shaw eventually becomes a vice-presidential nominee, while Marco is haunted by dreams of what happened - or didn't happen - in Iraq. As Marco investigates, the story begins to unravel, to the point where he questions if it happened at all. Is it possible the entire unit was kidnapped and brainwashed to believe Shaw is a war hero as part of a plot to seize the White House? Some very powerful people at Manchurian Global corporation appear desperate to stop him from finding out.

Denzel always do nice movies, and this was no exception. The little man wins over the big bad corporation. Now who doesn't love that? It almost never happens in real life, but this is the movies... Meryl was perfect as the mom that would walk over any corpse to get what she wanted, and Denel was just as good as he always is. But Liev Schrieber owned this film. He was just right for the role and did a first-class job. Sure there were few real surprises, and some things was a bit farfetched, but it was still good entertainment. Not many slow or dull moments, just a movie to sit back and enjoy.

My rating: 7 / 10

Mothman Prophecies

Thriller — 119 min — Directed by Mark Pellington
Cast: Richard Gere, Debra Messing, Laura Linney

John Klein, a Washington Post reporter, whose wife died in a mysterious carcrash involving a winged apparition (that only she saw) leaves for an interview qith a governor. He mysteriously he winds up in Point Pleasant, a small town in West Virginia. The locals are seeing winged apparitions too, and he sets out to try to find a solution as to why he is there.

This 2002 thriller was surprisingly good. Lots of scary scenes that got you biting your nails, and without the gore that normally accompanies scary scenes. This is more a mind-thriller, as it gets you thinking about it, instead of just gluttoning on the blood-fest. Really shows you that to be a good thriler, it doesn't have to have bloodbaths in it. This works much better as you start imagining things as you watch it, outting yourself in Richard Gere's place. His character sure is much braver/more stupid than I would be. I'd not investigate such matters. That which you cannot explain or understand - leave it alone. The characters are just some small town folks, as normal as anyone, and not stereotypes. It feels real, and that's where this film succeeds where so many fail. I wouldn't want to watch this alone in a remote cabin at night. I'd not be able to sleep without large amounts of alcohol...

My rating: 7 / 10

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Adventure/Fantasy — 108 min — Directed by Brad Silberling
Cast: Jim Carrey, Emily Browning, Liam Aiken, Kara Hoffman, Shelby Hoffman, Timothy Spall

Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire are three intelligent young children who receive terrible news that their parents have died in a fire and have left them an enormous fortune not to be used until the eldest child is of age. When they are sent to live with Count Olaf, a greedy distant relative, they soon learn he is trying to steal their fortune for himself.

I was suspecting Jim Carrey to be his usual over-the-top, but pleasantly surprised when he wasn't - well, at least not overbearingly so. Still, it's Jim, so his inherent affinity for overdoing everything certainly is there, as expected. But it's the kids that do the best work, and steal the scenes from Jim's overacting. Emily Browning will blossom into a beautiful woman that will make all guys drool in a couple years, and I wouldn't be suprised if Liam Aiken becomes a heart-throb too. Guess it depends on what kind of roles they will get. At least they can act, as opposed to so many totally useless singers-with-big-tits-turned-actresses around today. But Hollywood seems to become more and more inept at appreciating talent when they see it. It's the old 'If it has big tits, no talent, it must be good' mentailty.

But the best thing about this movie is the setting and scenery. It's just amazingly done. They've managed to create an unique feel for the whole world that feels authentic yet surreal, like something from the minds of Terry Gilliam and Tim Burton, which in itself would be an amazing thing. I will watch this one again, just for the sake of the scenery. I really loved that.

My Rating: 7 / 10

Birth

Drama/Mystery — 100 min — Directed by Jonathan Glazer
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Cameron Bright, Danny Huston, Lauren Bacall, Alison Elliott, Arliss Howard
Anna is a young widow who is finally getting on with her life after the death of her husband, Sean. Now engaged to be married, Anna meets a ten-year-old boy who tells her he is Sean reincarnated. Though his story is both unsettling and absurd, Anna can't get the boy out of her mind. And much to the concern of her fiancée, her increased contact with him leads her to question the choices she has made in her life.

Nicole is one of my favorite actresses, mostly for her looks, but she sometimes performes well too. First saw her at the movies in Dead Calm back in 1989 and has been a sucker for her ever since. She does a good job here, but nothing stellar. The director's lingering shots on lovely Nic was sometimes almost annoying, especially the scene in the theater where he kept the camera close-up on her face for what seemed an eternity (20-30 seconds?) The supporting cast did an adequate job, but it's the story that felt jumbled in places, and to me it felt like they had cut too much out, and left the wrong things in. At times it just dragged it's feet at an incredibly slow pace.
All is not bad though, as Sean, played by Cameron Bright was great. He stole the whole show from Nicole, indeed that whole movie. He was so calm and it seemed so natural for him to be an adult. It's a rare thing, to find a kid in a movie nowadays that's not in the least annoying as hell. He did an great job for one so young, and I wish Hollywood won't make him into another Haley Joel Osment (6th Sense) that makes you wanna puke every time you even catch a glance of his face. Cameron was just the opposite. I wan't to see him in more films. The much talked about bathtub scene with Nic turned out to be nothing at all. You need to drop that bible and relax for a second.

My Rating: 5 / 10 (+1 for Cameron's performance)

National Treasure

Adventure/Action — 131 min — Directed by Jon Turteltaub
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Sean Bean, Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel

Benjamin Franklin Gates descends from a family of treasure-seekers who've all hunted for the same thing: a war chest hidden by the Founding Fathers after the Revolutionary War. Ben's close to discovering its whereabouts, as is his competition, but the FBI is also hip to the hunt.

Wouldn't you just know it. This reeks of American propaganda from the beginning to the end. The ggoodguys are chased by the badguys, and naturally they win and find the treasure at the end, after the baddies are tricked. Groan! Now that's not surprising in itself, it's the hidden subtext of the whole movie that reeks of Go USA! Naturally, the hero is larger than life, wanting the whole world to benefit from the treasure, rather than himself. Right. The american way is as we all know, everything to me, not to the world. Nic is as usual wooden, and his sidekick and comedic assistant have some pretty awful 'funny' stuff to say. And it wouldn't be complete without some eyecandy for the boys. She's not bad-looking at all, and that cleavage, well, slurrrp. Sadly she doesn't show it very much, probably due to the PG rating. All in all a no-thrills movie with a very predictable ending. Love the way the sidekick mishandles his Ferrari at the end.

My Rating: 6 / 10

24 (Season 4, Episode 16)

CTU raids Marwan's hideout, but he manages to slip through their fingers. Luckily, Jack locates a lead that may help him identify Marwan's next target.
Tony becomes suspicious of Michelle's personal life, while Audrey reunites with Paul and learns the extent of his injuries. Anderson closes in on his quarry, as President Keeler searches for words that will comfort the American public.

Sigh! Once again, Marwan manages to escape the incompetent Jack Bauer and CTU swat-team, and anyone wanna bet against that he has yet another big secondary plan after shooting down Airforce One? No, I didn't think so. This is really starting to get on my nerves. Eight episodes left, and there just gotta be something else than trying to catch him happen in those. I'm not holding my breath, and to be honest, I don't expect much from the remaining episodes - even if I might watch some of them. And how many people does Marwan have involved yet to be revealed?

I wouldn't be surprised if Tony Almeda suddenly turned sides. I bet the President survives the missile, but Marwan get's the nuke codes from the briefcase travelling with the Prez in one or two episodes. Seems they make it up as they go, so why wouldn't that work? Haha, right. Then he won't be able to launch the missiles, because Jack will stop him. He might be able to launch a few, but not all. And no, I wouldn't be surprised to see the VP stage a coup d'Etat... Poor Jack & Co :)

Lost (Episode 20)

Jack tends to a very wounded Boone after Locke returns him back to the caves after his body was nearly crushed in the plane fall when trying to contact the outside world. Sun helps Jack in his need for medical assistance and Sayid presents Shannon with a grand romantic surprise when they're alone. Claire unexpectedly goes into labor in the forest while a helpless Kate, Charlie and Jin go into panic mode by her side when Jack is unable to deliver the baby and they must tend to Claire themselves. Meanwhile, Locke mysteriously goes missing during all the chaos when returning Boone back to Jack. He disappears back into the forest.

Sweet Lovely Julie Bowen from cancelled NBC series Ed apparently marries Jack in a flashback, but we're left hanging, not knowing if they really do marry. He saved her life and he's not sure he can be a good husband. Claire gives birth to a son, just as Boone dies from his wounds sustained from the crashed plane incident in the previous episode. Sawyer seems to be softening on the islanders, as he gave up all his alcohol to Jack trying to save Boone's life. We knew that someone was about to die before season's end, and Boone was always a hindrance for Shannon's romance. Jack learns that Boone's injury wasn't sustained in a fall, but that it has something to do with a airplane, and that Locke (who we didn't see at all in this episode) has something to do with it. Gonna be tense when and if they find him... The sad thing is that we'll have to wait a whole month for the next episode, as the next one isn't scheduled until May 4th. Ah, the agony!

Constantine

Action/Thriller/Horror — 121 min — Directed by Francis Lawrence
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, Tilda Swinton, Peter Stormare

Based on the DC/Vertigo comic book Hellblazer,Los Angeles supernatural detective John Constantine has literally been to hell and back. When Constantine teams up with skeptical policewoman Angela Dodson to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister, their investigation takes them through the world of angels and demons that wander unseen in our world. Caught in a catastrophic series of otherworldy events, the two become inextricably involved and seek to find their own peace at whatever cost.

Keanu sure has a way of icking cool movies. This one is damned fine, and could easily open up another series of movies. Hell as pictured here is a really hot place filled with demons and lots of pain. I love movies like this that meld the angels/demons into our world. Unlike films that have managed to botch this, it works great here. Constantine is a tormented man, seeking to gain entrance into heaven, though he knows it will be impossible, ne doesn't give up. This is the kind of roles Keanu should stick to - it is what he does best. I've never understood what people see in Rachel Weisz. She's a ok actress, but she's not on my list of beautiful women, and I find something unnerving about her presence in movies. Now if she didn't get the part (and all other high profile roles she's got) by lying on her back alot, I'd be very surprised. She's might just be a tigress in bed... Tilda Swinton is great as an androgyn Gabriel, and Peter Stormare just owns as Lucifer. Perfectly done!

My Rating: 8 / 10

Sin City

USA 2005 — Action/Thriller — 126 min — Directed by Robert Rodriguez
Cast: Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Nick Stahl, Powers Boothe

Sin City is a violent city where the police department is as corrupt as the streets are deadly. We follow three stories, Hartigan, the cop with a heart of gold protecting a little girl, Marv, a tough-as-nails and impossible to kill fighter who goes on a rampage of vengeance of a beautiful woman, Goldie. Last, we have Dwight who helps some girld get rid of the body of a cop. Nothing turns out as expected.

I really liked the visual style, but most of the female cast just creeps me out. We have Jessica Alba (who luckily enough isn't in it very much) who couldn't act to save her life, and looks like something not even a blind mutant-goat would touch - with your dick. Rosario Dawson so creeps me out so much that she just must be an alien from another planet, she's not human, that's for certain. Brittany Murphy, eeeeew, get the fuck away from me you skanky diseased one-dollar whore. All their scenes are ruined by their mere presence in them. Damn that sucks.

That said, there are some nice looking women too, most notably Carla Cugino and Alexis Bledel, so not all is gloom. But enough bitching, what about the movie? Hartigan is a Bruce Willis we've not seen in many years. He seems to be enjoying it. But it's Mickey Rourke's Marv that steals his thunder. He's simply one bad-ass on steroids coupled with speed and he's totally heartless. I love it! Finally a badguy that's reeeeally bad with no regrets. Clive Owen as Dwight is another not-so-nice guy, but still a wuss compared to Marv. And Frodo as a smoking bad guy hitman, simply brilliant, as was the female ninja.

The visual style of the film will be talked about for years to come, and mimiced till our eyes run dry, rest assured. If Rodrigues only had gotten the cast dead on, it would have been a clear nine in my book. I bet it gets better with each viewing too.

My Rating: 8 / 10

Deadwood (Season 2 - Episode 5)

Al Swearengen returns to the land of the living, opening his eyes at last to ask "You fuck me while I was out?" he asks Dority. Al is back! County commissioner Jarry, insists that the front page of the city newspaper run what appears to be a legal notice, written in impenetrable legalese, it purports to call into question the legitimacy of Deadwood gold claims. Angry townspeople try to get to the commisoiner but are stopped by Sheriff Bullock, and they try to set him up, but he harshly stops them. Bullock and Swearengen form a sort of a truce, as they are working agains outside interests.

Yes, Al's back and it instantly picks up speed, and I do mean instantly. Al's first sentence is just what was missing. Seems the clouds are gathering for a big storm in the near future as the two seems to be forming an uneasy truce of sorts. Seems they respect eachother, but there sure is tension. Alma having a baby that is so obviously Bullock's, sets that one up too. It's amazing how important Al is, and when he's not around it really diminishes the whole series. That he's surrounded himself with complete nitwits is a no-brainer, but his eloquence just plain rams it home with such clarity you can't misunderstand why he's the boss of the Gem. Hooray!

Deadwood (Season 2 - Episode 4)

Cochran contemplates a procedure that could cure Swearengen - or kill him. His employer indisposed, Dority must attend to a former fellow-bushwacker come to request Swearengen's permission to pull a job, and to Wu, who attempts to convey news of a 'tong' rival newly arrived from San Francisco. Bullock attempts to settle into domesticity, while Star gets a new combination bookkeeper/roommate - Trixie. Alma cuts ties with Sofia's tutor, and offers to but the Mayor's hotel. The arrival of County Commissioner Hugo Jarry spawns rumors about the camp's future and legal ownership of the gold claims.

The pace is slow once again, perhaps due to the fact that Al have no lines and doesn't really figure in this episode. Heck, this series is Al's show, he's the best character bar none, and without him it's just not the same. I wish him a speedy recovery, so we can once again enjoy his perverted views on things! The pace is just a bit too slow, and plots without the shenanigans of Al feels a bit, well, awkward and plain boring. I also hope Bullock gets his balls handed back by his wife...

Deadwood (Season 2 - Episode 3)

Francis Wolcott, agent for the mining magnate George Hearst, arrives in Deadwood. At the Gem, Swearengen is in a bad way, lying on the floor suffering from septic shock and kidney stones, barely able to speak. Doc treats him after having to break down the door.

Ouch! The inserting of a prod into Al's private parts was one of the most painful moments I've ever seen in on-screen. Just awful, infact my skin crawls just at the thought of it. Healthcare has made some pretty good leaps over the last century - thank God!. Al's been sidelined for the entire episode to a moaning patient, and not the scheming bastard he is, and Bullock seem to be domesticated by his wife and no more hanky-panky with Alma.

Deadwood (Season 2 - Episode 2)

Swearengen and Bullock lick their wounds following the battle. Bullock and Alma are discussing their future, and he proposes that they immediately leave the camp, or remain and sever connection, so spare his wife of humiliation. Joanie Stubbs and the whores begin the job of transforming raw space into the Chez Ami, the high-class brothel they envision. Alma agonizes in her hotel room over what course of action to take. Bullock gets his gun back from Al. Bullock finally go home to his wife, and they head upstairs to bed.

A bit slow this one, but it really shows the vile place Deadwood presumably was, and how life probably really was. I really love that they do show how dirty and vile it was, without any usual Hollywood 'sanitation.' The whole cast is just simply awesome. Dumping dead bodies to dispose of evidence in the pig-pen is just so disgustingly nasty it must have been done that way. Bring it on, I can't wait for the next episode, which I will see promptly.

House of the Flying Daggers

Action/Drama/Romance - 111 min — Directed by Yimou Zhang
Cast: Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, Ziyi Zhang, Dandan Song

Near the end of the Tang Dynasty, deputies Jin and Leo tangle with Mei, a dancer suspected of having ties to a revolutionary faction known as the House of Flying Daggers. Enraptured by her, the deputies concoct a plan to save her from capture, and Jin leads her north in what becomes a perilous journey into the unknown.

It's hard not to compare this film to the directors previous masterpiece Hero. It has some of the style, but it isn't nearly as beautiful and rich in textures as Hero is. It falls short on several levels, most of all, the story is not as good and epic if you will. While Hero had vivid colour-keyed scenes and factions, this one barely reaches to the ankles of Hero. It feels like he tried too hard, only to fail. Not that it is entirely bad, it has some highlights. Ziyi looks as beautiful as ever. Lovely. Serene. This is more of a love story, and there are some minor surprises which saves the day, but at times it just drags along.

My Rating: 6 / 10

Elektra

Action/Crime/Thriller - 96 min — Directed by Rob Bowman
Cast: Jennifer Garner, Goran Visnjic, Kirsten Prout, Will Yun Lee, Terence Stamp
Elektra, spin-off from the abyssmal Daredevil movie, a lethal synthesis of grace and power with the mystical power known as kimagure: a limited ability to see the future. She has purposefully severed all ties with the world and lives only for her next assignment. Elektra's latest job forces her to make a decision that can take her life in a whole new direction or destroy her.

Forced myself to watch this, just to get the perspective of seeing a really bad movie to compare other to. But I was surprised that it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Sure, it's not especially good, but then again, neither is it really bad. It's the villains that make it watchable. The story is not much to talk about, neither is Jen Garner's pathetic attempts to look sexy. She doesn't look sexy at all, rather the opposite. She looks incredibly pathetic, especially in Elektra's red outfit. Being a fan of the original Elektra, her red outfit looks absolutely nothing like the real one did. She's not a S&M leather-whore like she's portrayed here. I could go on and on about that, but I'll spare you. Suffice to say, Elektra looks nothing like that. The something-fu fighting sequences with ELektra looked real pathetic. I'll never understand why they always feel it necessary nowadays to include oriental fighting in movies. Sure, Elektra uses oriental style fighting, but not this pathetic Hollywood karate or whatever you wanna call it that has become so popular. It looks/feels like the pathetic something-fu they used in the Matrix films. It makes me wanna scream and puke. The CGI was average, they certainly didn't bring on the big boys for this, and you could see it, especially in the mansion sheet fight at the end. I give it +1 in rating, just because it didn't suck as much as I feared.

My Rating: 6 / 10

Ocean's 12

Comedy/Crime/Thriller - 125 min — Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Don Tiffany

Set three years after "Ocean's 11," this sequel shows us Danny Ocean gathering up his complete gang of con artists and thieves from the first film who must deal with increasing pressure from a very mad Terry Benedict who want's his money back, a dedicated Europol agent with a link to Rusty's past, and a mysterious French rival known as the "Nightfox." Will Ocean's crew reach their full potential and become the greatest thieves the world has ever known, or will they fall victim to Benedict's revenge? All bets are off.

It started out fine, setting the whole thing up, but from the moment Zeta-Jones entered, I just knew how it would play out, and that her father was the master-thief she spoke of. And all while planning to steal the egg, I knew that it was a decoy, because the film went to too big lengths to set them up, there just had to be a hidden plot behind the scenes. And figuring out that it had to do with stealing the egg before the Nightfox could do it was a no-brainer. Wht? They didn't show the Nightfox operating at all, so it doesn't require much reflection to see that the fox would be out-foxed, yet think he's won. That said. it was still nicely done, but ultimately a letdown because of the see-through story.

Lost (Episode 19)

Locke begins to suffer physical difficulties when it comes to walking as he and Boone try to find a way into the hatch. They go further into the island as Locke thinks he's being sent a sign on how to get the hatch open. Jack is reluctant to offer assistance when Sawyer begins to experience excruciating headaches and needs glasses. In this episode we learn more about Lockes' paralyzing past due to his biological parents scheming him, interrelating with the events around the hatch. Lastly, at the end of Locke confronting his troubled past and struggle to open the hatch Boone is seriously injured after an accident involving a plane that they found in the forest.

The mystery thickens as lots of new and unexplainable things happen. When the light in the hatch goes on, it just adds more to the mystery that is the island. They keep us wanting to know more and more without really explaining anything. And therein lies the whole charm of the series, it divulges small things, only to reveal even more mysterious things just when you thought you started to get a grip on things. Genius. They can string us along as long as they want and then change it to anything they want. I bet this series will be on for years and years, without letting us know anything really about the mysterious island. Or will it be a season-ending cliffhanger that will ensure ABC the highest ratings in years as next season starts? I'd bet the proverbial farm on that...