Opening This Week: Observe and Report Star Trek Sell Out!

Tons of movies hitting the cinemas in Malaysia this week but I'll be previewing only three, one of which is a local production. Malaysia Boleh. So the following are films that are set for release later this week, in order of language/origin of the film.

French. Saint-cyr, Seraphine, Rivals
Malay. Shhh Dia Datang
Thai. Power Kids
Mongolian. Mongol

The three films that will be previewed today are Observe and Report starring Seth Rogen, JJ Abrams' Star Trek and Malaysian film, Sell Out!. Let's go!

Observe and Report (2009)
Starring: Seth Rogen, Ray Liotta, Anna Faris
Director: Jody Hill
USA release: April 10
Msia release: May 7
USA gross: $22,874,896
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 86 mins
Rated in USA: R for pervasive language, graphic nudity, drug use, sexual content and violence
Rated in Msia: U
IMDb User Rating: 6.9/10
Rotten Tomatometer: 52%

Basically the dark, mature version of Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Same premise but very different substance. Observe and Report is about a mall security guard by the name of Ronnie Barnhardt who takes on the local law enforcement.

From what I've heard, Observe and Report is a very dark and unorthodox comedy. If you get the kind of crude humor in the film, you'll love it. If not, you'll despise it. I've even heard watching this film may be awkward and uncomfortable for some because of its vulgarity. I doubt this film is suited for Malaysian audiences. Plus, so many scenes would be cut out. Just to give you a sense of how vulgar this is, below is the red band trailer.

Sell Out! (2008)
Starring: Hannah Lo, Jerrica Lai, Kee Thuan Chye, Peter Davis
Director: Yeo Joon Han
Country: Malaysia
Language: English, Cantonese
Msia release: May 7
Genre: Comedy, Musical
Runtime: 105 mins
Rated in Msia: 18PL
IMDb User Rating: 8.2/10

Her name is Rafflesia Pong (Rafflesia = largest flower in the world, which reeks of animal carcass; Pong = stink). She's a bottom-ranking arts show host who's disillusioned with those overrated underachievers we call "artists". He's Eric Tan (Eric = Eric, Tan = typical Chinese surname), a product designer who's just about to learn that it doesn't pay to be creative. They both work for FONY, a multinational conglomerate whose mission statement, copied from a Taiwanese company, is to be original. In the face of such pressure, Eric and Rafflesia is questioned whether they will retain their artistic integrity or will they finally sell out to fame, fortune or some other nasty thing that also starts with "F". (Cinema Online)

This looks incredibly interesting. For more insight to this movie, click here.

Star Trek (2009)
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, John Cho, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, Anton Telchin, Karl Urban
Director: JJ Abrams
Writers: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman
USA release: May 8
Msia release: May 8
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action, Adventure
Runtime: 126 mins
Rated in USA: PG-13 for sci-fi action and violence, and brief sexual content
Rated in Msia: U
IMDb User Rating: 8.2/10
Popcornmeter: 8.5/10

The film starts off aboard the USS Kelvin when it is ambushed and attacked by a Romulan ship. George Kirk takes the reigns of the ship for 12 minutes before sacrificing his own life to save the lives of the people on the ship which included his wife and unborn son, James Tiberius Kirk. Years later, Captain Pike manages to persuade a rebellious Jim Kirk to enlist in Starfleet. He is sneaked onto the USS Enterprise before being deployed for a mission and eventually helps in the battle with the same Romulan ship, captained by Nero, which killed his father all those years ago. JJ Abrams’ Star Trek is the story of the U.S.S. Enterprise’s first adventure.

Star Trek blew my non-Trekkie mind. It was so good. Just a brief summary of my thoughts: The SFX were impeccable. Characters were so captivating and funny, adding a zest to the movie absent from previous Star Trek experiences I've had. The plot was so straightforward and so comprehensible, anybody could actually watch this film and love it. JJ Abrams really made Star Trek for the general public. To read a full review, click here. Not to worry because the review is spoiler-free.

Sources: IMDb, Cinema Online, YouTube, Box Office Mojo, Rotten Tomatoes

Live Long and Prosper: Star Trek Review

[This review is spoiler-free]

Going into the theater for The Dark Knight last year, probably shared the same expectations with many other people- the expectations of a comic book movie. But coming out of the movie, all I could bring myself to thinking was that it was just a hell of a movie. Not hell of a comic book movie, but hell of a movie period. It definitely revolutionized the modern comic book genre and managed to cater to regular non-fanboy audiences. For me, Star Trek did the same thing. I have never seen any of the previous 10 Star Trek movies and only seen a couple episodes of the TV series. And yet, I absolutely loved Star Trek. From beginning to end. Just like last year’s Batman movie, this film was just a damn good movie.

The film starts off aboard the USS Kelvin when it is ambushed and attacked by a Romulan ship. George Kirk takes the reigns of the ship for 12 minutes before sacrificing his own life to save the lives of the people on the ship which included his wife and unborn son, James Tiberius Kirk. Years later, Captain Pike manages to persuade a rebellious Jim Kirk to enlist in Starfleet. He is sneaked onto the USS Enterprise before being deployed for a mission and eventually helps in the battle with the same Romulan ship, captained by Nero, which killed his father all those years ago. JJ Abrams’ Star Trek is the story of the U.S.S. Enterprise’s first adventure.

The film sucks you right in from the word go, starting off with a full-out battle between a Federation ship and a Romulan ship. Right off the bat your eyes are allowed to indulge in such realistic special effects it makes you want to actually dodge the beams being fired from the ships. OK maybe not that realistic, but still it was really good SFX. Not only were there great visuals but also an incredibly high degree of suspense along with tons of emotion inducing scenes. And remember, this was all in the first scene of the movie.

This is actually a really difficult review to write because there was literally not much wrong with the movie. It was outstanding in every aspect. The action was non-stop. There were unexpected humor thrown in here and there, especially when Scotty came into the fray. And the way JJ Abrams laid out the plot was superbly done. So seamlessly did he manage to create a story that stayed true to being distinctly Star Trek, yet seem like your run of the mill, everyday great movie. I think I’ve said this earlier on but that’s the best thing about the movie; how us normal people, as oppose to Trekkies and Trekkers for that matter, could actually comprehend what was going on and enjoy this film of a heavy genre. I guess some of that boils down to the fact that this is a reboot film but it takes nothing away from the wonderful job JJ Abrams has done with the film.

When you first saw that Zachary Quinto (Sylar in Heroes) was playing the role of the legendary Spock, what did you think? What I thought was that this is going to be so weird. I have ever only known him as Sylar but now he’s Spock. I think in this film, Quinto really showed his acting prowess. I really had no thoughts of Sylar in my head any time he came up on screen. He was the most convincing cast member in the entire film. I truly believed he was a pointy-eared, emotionless, green-blooded hobgoblin. Watch the film and you’ll understand that last bit. But my point was that Quinto gave an excellent performance outshining the rest. Matt Damon recently came out and said he declined the role of Jim Kirk and thank god he did. Chris Pine was witty, funny, sarcastic in the right way; he had everything that was demanded for playing the role of Jim Kirk. The rest of the main cast, I was very satisfied with, maybe except for Uhura. It felt like she wasn’t as involved in things as the other members of the cast. I loved that there was plenty of humor coming from Scotty (Simon Pegg) and Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin), whereas John Cho from Harold and Kumar had just one humorous scene as Hikaru Sulu. As for Leonard Nimoy, well he was just old-looking, but interesting nonetheless. Eric Bana did the evil, revenge-seeking villain thing really well as Nero, captain of of the Romulan ship.

One thing I’m starting to like more and more now is the shakycam technique. The cinematography for this film was so good it only aided the FX. Its amazing how having shaky shots adds so much more to the dramatics of a scene. Made you feel right in the middle of all the action. Which was great in a Sci-Fi film like this. Something else that made so much more difference to the experience of the film was the score, composed by JJ Abrams’ regular, Michael Giacchino. Really gave an outer space/Sci-Fi kind of feel to it, if there even is such a thing.

I’m not going to tell you to watch this if you’re into Sci-Fi. I’m not going to tell you to watch this with your friends or family. I’m just going to say watch this film, no matter who you are or what kind of movie you’re into. Forget the genre, forget the title of the movie. Just keep it in mind that this might just be the best film of the year so far. I’m not too sure because I still hold Watchmen in very high regard but Star Trek is definitely up there with it. When you do eventually see this movie and if you like it, just know that a sequel has already been announced and is probably set for release in 2011.

If I offended any Trekkies (and I know I’ve already offended Trekkers by saying Trekkies) reading this, I apologize for my lack of Star Trek knowledge. You really can’t blame me, there is a lot to know about in the world of Star Trek.

Popcorn-meter

8.5 out of 10 Popcorns

Special thanks to the All Malaysian Bloggers Project are in order for the invites to the special screening of Star Trek.

AMBP First Contact at Studio V

First off, what is AMBP? AMBP, otherwise known as the AllMalaysian Blogger Project is a joint effort between The Star Online and AllMalaysia.info sites to bring Malaysian bloggers under one site. Basically a Malaysian blogger community, the AMBP is a great place to go to discover new blogs as well as to submit your blog to the ever growing directory of Malaysian blogs.

If you’re not already a member of MyStar, you can sign up here. After registering, head on over to the AMBP site to submit your blog URL to the directory here.

What is First Contact? First Contact is the latest event hosted by the AMBP. On May 1, First Contact will be held at Studio V, One Utama. It will be the AMBP’s 3rd annual blogger gathering and 100 bloggers registered on the site will be invited to the event. If you’re one of the lucky 100, you’ll be able to play games, go on a treasure hunt and to cap the day off, watch the special premiere of the latest J.J. Abrams flick, Star Trek, thanks to United International Pictures. That’s right! Having been given tons of great reviews since the special screening in Austin, Texas and world premiere in Sydney, Australia, Star Trek will be shown to AMBP blogger’s a whole week before the rest of Malaysia and most of the world for that matter.

Here are some more details about the event:

Date: May 1, 2009 (Friday, Labour Day)
Time: 1.30pm onwards
Venue: Studio V & V2, 1 Utama (Rainforest, New Wing)
Screening Venue: Hall 3, Golden Screen Cinemas, One Utama*
*There will be full security at this screening and guests will not be allowed to bring in any recording and electronic devices i.e mobile phones, PDAs, notebooks etc

Itinerary

1.30pm
Registration of guests and Movie Ticket Redemption

2.00pm
Intro speeches, and activities highlight/Ice-breaking Games

2.15 pm
Luncheon/Star Trek Trailers

2.45pm
Gopher Product Intro Talk followed by Treasure Trek

3.00pm - 5.30pm
Treasure Trek
AMBP Interviews Bloggers
Photo op with Star Trek Captain's Chair
Auction of Star Trek Captain's Chair
Photo Session with Star Trek Characters
(Studio V2)
Fun time with Red FM

5.30pm
Star Trek Trivia Challenge

6.00 pm
Lucky Draw

6.20pm
Prize Presentation: Treasure Trek /Trivia Challenge /Online Contest

6.45pm
Usher guests to Cinema Hall

7.00pm
Movie Screening

About Studio V. Studio V is the The Star Media Group’s new multimedia outlet located at 1 Utama shopping complex.

Where is Studio V situated exactly? The little outlet is in the New Wing of One Utama shopping complex in the Rainforest area. Check out the map below to give you more of an idea.

Didn’t know that a new Star Trek movie was coming out this year? Been living in a cave have you? Or are you really excited for the new movie? Either way, you can check out my preview of the film below.

Star Trek (2009)
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Eric Bana, John Cho, Leonard Nimoy
Director: J.J. Abrams (Alias, Lost, Mission Impossible III)
Writers: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman (Transformers 1 & 2, Mission Impossible III)
USA release: May 8, 2009
Msian release: May 8, 2009
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action
Runtime: 126 mins
Rated in USA: PG-13 for sci-fi action and violence, and brief sexual content
Rated in Msia: U
IMDb User Rating: 8.0/10
Rotten Tomatometer: 100%

Star Trek follows the amaing adventure of a young crew aboard the state-of-the-art ship, U.S.S. Enterprise. It is up to a young Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) to stop the evil missions of Nero in order to save all mankind.

On a sidenote, a sequel to this Star Trek has already been announced. It is reported that J.J. Abrams will once again helm the movie. Check out the trailer below. Remember to click on the HD button and watch it fullscreen for a better experience.

Enjoying the badass posters? Here are some more character posters for you to download if you like. (click to enlarge)

Are you really excited now? Bottomline is, whether you’re a Trekkie or not, you must catch this movie. I’ve heard its not like any other Star Trek movies before. It’s just another awesome action movie. Remember to check out the AMBP site for more details on the special screening of Star Trek on May 1 and the movie hits theaters May 8.

May The Force Be With You. Eh, wrong franchise. Haha! What’s the Star Trek tagline? I don’t know, I’m not a Trekkie. Probably will be one after this movie.

Doctor Popcorn. Out.