Beastly

CAST: Vanessa Hudgens, Alex Pettyfer, Mary-Kate Olsen, Peter Krause, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Neil Patrick Harris; DIRECTOR: Daniel Barnz; WRITERS: Alex Flinn, Daniel Barnz; GENRE: Romance, Drama; RUNNING TIME: 95 minutes

Technical Assessment: 3
Moral Assessment: 3.5
CINEMA Rating: For viewers age 14 and above

Make a person rich and smart and good looking and in no time at all that person will be a beast inside. That’s what Kyle Kingsberry (Alex Pettyfer) is, mocking all the unbeautiful creatures in the Buckskin Academy High School campus. In fact, running for president, Kyle has for his motto “Beautiful people get it better; that’s just the way it is.” Kyle openly derides a campus mate who has Gothic fashion and makeup leanings, Kendra (Mary-Kate Olsen), rumored to be a witch. Alas, it is not mere rumor, for the offended Kendra retaliates by casting a spell on him that turns him, once he gets home, into a beastly looking creature. However, Kendra is not entirely merciless, for she says she will lift her spell provided Kyle finds someone who’ll love him within a year. That someone turns out to be Lindy (Vanessa Hudgens). From there you can expect a fairytale ending.

Most actors in this movie are necessarily young, the story being set in a school environment, but it gives the young characters enough interaction scenes with adults, and with good results. Pettyfer (I am Number Four) and Hudgens (High School Musical) surprisingly show promise as dramatic actors here. Not that the script is that demanding, but at least theirs is a timely departure from the musical or the CGI adventure that they first came to be known for, preventing them from being filmdom stereotypes. Give them meatier roles and good directors and they’ll probably metamorphose into real seasoned actors in due time.

Beastly tries to play up to the YouTube-and-tattoo generation by not making a werewolf out of Kyle. Rather, he simply loses his blondie-blond hair and gets covered with scars, metal hoops and ever-morphing tattoos which would actually make him just so cool in Punkland, USA. As Lindy says when he uncovers himself before her eyes, “I’ve seen worse…” Beastly is obviously a retelling of Beauty and the Beast and the one outstanding message is “it’s not to your credit that you were born rich and smart and good-looking so chill out or lose it all.” Kyle is humbled by becoming disfigured, and learns to start loving when there’s no longer himself to love in the mirror. We can’t really say Lindy has learned to love Kyle in spite of his beastly appearance for as we said, he doesn’t look all that beastly, but rather, she appreciates the transformation within Kyle, from the conceited egomaniac that he was to someone who has learned to care for another.

Rio

CAST: Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro, Jake T. Austin, George Lopez, Will i Am, Carlos Ponce, Kate del Castillo; DIRECTOR: Carlos Saldanha; GENRE: Animation, Action/Adventure, Comedy; RUNNING TIME: 96 minutes


Technical Assessment: 4
Moral Assessment: 3.5
CINEMA Rating: General Patronage

The very title of this movie promises a riot of colors and music and yes, quite interesting characters. Rio is an overwhelmingly child-friendly animated adventure about Blu, a Brazilian native macaw (voiced by Jesse Eisenberg) which is the last male of his species but unfortunately has been raised as a pampered pet in Minnesota. This spells extinction for the blue macaw, unless Blu is returned to Brazil to mate with Jewel (voiced by Anne Hathaway), his sole remaining female counterpart. Blu’s owner, Linda (voiced by Leslie Mann) reluctantly agrees to go with her pet to Brazil with Rio-based scientist (voiced by Rodrigo Santoro) for the bird’s species’ sake. This opens the door to adventure as never known before, because Blu doesn’t know how to fly. Take the family along as Rio has a number of lessons to teach about the environment, personal freedom, caring and nurturing, courage, and the value of family (whether human or bird), to name a few.

Tum: My Pledge of Love

CAST: Robin Padilla, Mariel Rodriquez, Datu Khomeini Bansuan, Ejay Falcon, Nash R Raza, Queenie Padilla; DIRECTOR: Robin Padilla; SCREENWRITER: Robin Padilla; PRODUCER: Star Cinema; GENRE: Romantic Comedy; DISTRIBUTOR: Star Cinema; LOCATION: India, Philippines

Technical Assessment: 2.5
Moral Assessment: 2.5
CINEMA Rating: For viewers ages 14 and above

Nagbalik si Ravaan (Robin Padilla) sa bayan ng Alipur, India nang mabalitaan nito ang pagkamatay ng amang Indiyanong-Muslim. Nailibing na ang ama pagdating niya at maaatasan siyang pamahalaan lahat ng negosyong naiwan ng kanyang ama. Ngunit ang pamanang ito ng kanyang ama ay may kalakip na kondisyon: kailangan niyang pakasalan si Linda (Mariel Rodriguez) na siyang punong-guro sa paaralang pag-aari nila. Hindi magiging maganda ang kanilang pagtatagpo at hindi rin magiging maayos ang pakikitungo nila sa isa’t-isa sa simula. Ngunit pagkalaon ay magkaka-hulugan din sila ng loob at tuluyang magpapakasal. Ngunit hadlang pa rin dito ang ilan dahil sa ibang relihiyon at lahing pinanggalingan ng dalawa.

Nagsubok ang Tum: My Pledge of Love na gumawa ng pelikulang may kakaibang timpla at inspirasyon. Nariyan ang kuwentong pag-ibig na malapit sa kuwento ng dalawang tauhan sa totoong buhay at nariyan din ang lugar ng India pati na ang pagpapakilala sa atin sa “Bollywood” na siyang industriya ng pelikula sa bansang India. Ang resulta’y isang pelikulang puno ng maraming elemento na tila hindi rin naman nagkatugma at hindi nakuha ang tamang timpla sa kabuuan. Madilim ang mga kuha ng camera at mangilan-ngilan lamang ang pagkakataong maeengganyo ang manonood sa mga tanawin ng India. Malamlam at kung minsan ay over-acting ang mga tauhan lalo na si Rodriguez. Alanganin din ang takbo ng kuwento at di malaman kung saan nito nais magtungo. Kung ang Tum ay kuwentong pag-ibig, kulang ito sa kilig. Kung ito naman ay drama, kulang ito sa hagod ng damdamin. Mas lamang ang pagiging aksyon ng pelikula ngunit pawang kulang pa rin sa sipa ang lahat ng ito kung susumahin.

Malakas ang mensahe ng pelikula ukol sa pagtanggap sa iba’t-ibang lahi at relihiyon. Na ang relihiyon o pagkakaiba ng lahi man ay di dapat maging hadlang sa pagmamahalan at kapayapaan. Magkakaiba man ang tao ng paniniwala at kulay ng balat ay iisa ang kanilang adhikain—ang mabuhay ng payapa sa pag-ibig. Ganunpaman, naging labis na nakababahala ang ipinakitang karahasan sa pelikula. Nariyan ding palabasing masasama at makikitid ang mga pang-unawa ng karamihang mga katutubong Indian. Pihadong hindi masyadong matutuwa ang mga taga-India na makakanood nito. Taliwas sa mensahe ng pelikula ang ilang mga imaheng ipinakita dito. Pero sa bandang huli nama’y ipinakitang pag-ibig at pag-ibig lamang ang siyang makakahanap ng paraan upang magkatagpo ang dalawang pusong pinaglayo ng pagkakataon. At tanging pag-ibig din lamang ang siyang maaring magpatalikod sa isang tao sa karangayaan at kapangyarihan.

Gnomeo & Juliet

CAST: James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Jason Statham, Maggie Smith, Patrick Stewart, Ashley Jensen, Jim Cummings, Richard Wilson, Julie Walters; DIRECTOR: Kelly Asbury; WRITERS: Kevin Cecil, Andy Riley; GENRE: Animation, Family, SciFi/Fantasy; RUNNING TIME: 84 minutes.

Technical Assessment: 4
Moral Assessment: 3.5
CINEMA Rating: Audience all Ages

Is this animated Shakespeare? Not really. Although the title is a takeoff from "Romeo and Juliet" most of the characters in Gnomeo & Juliet are garden gnomes in the yards of English homes. We know this is England because we glimpse a bus whose destination is Stratford on Avon. These gnomes have obviously been sneaking off to the movies while their human owners were not looking. And they have been watching the Toy Story series because they do the same thing, have a life of their own but go into their expected poses as soon as humans turn up.

What might make Gnomeo & Juliet more enjoyable for film buffs is the strong voice cast. James McAvoy and Emily Blunt are the starcrossed lovers and Michael Caine is plain to hear as Juliet’s father. You have to listen quickly to catch Julie Walters and Richard Wilson as the human Capulets and Montagues. There is a monstrously huge mower, called the Terrafirmanator, obtained by a computer savvy gnome, Benny (Matt Lucas)—and it is ‘voiced’ by wrestler Hulk Hogan. Someone for everyone! Even a Hispanic-sounding flamingo from the garden. (And a nice trivial pursuit question: what film did Maggie Smith and Jason Statham appear in together? Here it is, she Gnomeo’s mother and he the rather typecast Tybalt.)

Yes, we know what is going to happen, but it is entertaining to see how this entertainment for children incorporates Shakespeare. And, yes, the soundtrack replete with familiar melodies is a collection of Elton John and Bernie Taupin songs because the film is a product of Elton John and David Furnish who have turned their attention to children.

The Roommate

CAST: Leighton Meester, Minka Kelly, Danneel Harris, Cam Gigandet, Alyson Michalka, Matt Lanter, Frances Fisher,Katerina Graham, Tomas Arana, Cherilyn Wilson; DIRECTOR: Christian E. Christiansen; WRITER: Sonny Mallhi; GENRE: Suspense/Thriller, Drama; RUNNING TIME: 93 minutes

Technical Assessment: 2.5
Moral Assessment: 2
CINEMA Rating: For viewers age 18 and above.

Pretty girl from Des Moines, Iowa, Sara (Minka Kelly) goes to college in Los Angeles. The roommate she gets at the dorm is Rebecca (Leighton Meester), an only child of wealthy parents. Rebecca turns out to be a nice girl-next-door type, supportive of Sara, shows her the sights in town, offers her wardrobe for Sara to borrow anything from, and even consents to her bringing in a forbidden pet into their room. Sara is grateful that college would be bright with such a roommate around, until Rebecca begins to know her friends. When she comes in late without calling, Rebecca gets mad. When an ex-boyfriend hounds Sara, Rebecca makes sure he keeps away—she has become a little too possessive.

The Roommate is another of those countless movies about psychotics, and naturally extremely violent. It’s a relief, however, that despite the mad killings and vicious attacks on persons practically no blood is shown, and physical combats are limited to what’s possibly human, without CGI to show more super human violence for its own sake. The cinematography is better than most movies of this genre display, and the music appropriately keeps the viewer in tension. The actors, while not that well-known yet, also do justice to their roles considering the limited depth of the characters they portray The story is rather flat, offering no justifiable motivation for Rebecca's behavior, for example, or adequate emotional depth in the her parents' regard of her situation.

Filipino parents with college age children might worry thinking whether the lifestyle of the American college teens isn’t yet being adopted by their children. The movie shows them at parties where booze flows freely and sex at first meeting is an expected part of the party package. You might also wonder what The Roommate is trying to tell us by its underscoring of the wild side of college kids—they are quite too often shown dancing, flirting, and drinking until they’re too toxic to walk home, but never shown poring over books. The only library scene is done more as a scare tactic than anything else. Parents—although by themselves they seem refined—are shown to be powerless over a stubborn daughter. A male teacher bribes a female student to take an “official” trip to Paris. Girls sleep with their boyfriends or engage in lesbian sex in total disregard of what their elders might say. This story delivers no moral lesson, nor does it give direction to young people towards a better life. But maybe you’ll come out of the theater hoping your kids will never imitate these ones!