Monday, December 28, 2015

Epic 2013

 Released Year: 2013
Directed by Chris Wedge

Voiced By:
Amanda Seyfried as Mary Katherine / M.K.
Josh Hutcherson as Nod
Colin Farrell as Ronin
Christoph Waltz as Mandrake
Aziz Ansari as Mub
Chris O'Dowd as Grub
Pitbull as Bufo
Jason Sudeikis as Professor Radcliffe
Steven Tyler as Nim Galuu
Beyoncé Knowles as Queen Tara
Blake Anderson as Dagda
 Story
17-year-old Mary Katherine, or M.K., moves in with her eccentric scientist father Professor Bomba who has been searching for tiny humanoid soldiers called Leafmen. They protect the forest Bomba lives near from evil creatures called Boggans and their malevolent leader Mandrake. An independent young soldier named Nod decides to quit much to the ire of the no-nonsense Leafmen leader Ronin.

The queen of the forest, Queen Tara, must choose an heir to her throne and goes out to a field of leaf pods, guarded by a laid-back slug named Mub and a wannabe Leafman snail named Grub. Immediately after she chooses a pod, the Boggans attack. Tara flees the area with the pod, and though her bodyguards do their best to protect her, they are soon overwhelmed by the sheer number of Boggans. Eventually, Ronin arrives for her and the pair fly off on his hummingbird mount. They are then attacked by Mandrake and his son Dagda. Dagda is killed by Ronin, but Tara is shot with an arrow by Mandrake.

Meanwhile, M.K. decides to leave after having an argument with Bomba about his research. Before she can leave, Bomba's dog Ozzy runs into the woods. While looking for Ozzy, M.K. sees Tara falling. Dying, Tara gives her the pod and uses her magic to shrink her. She tells M.K. to take the pod to a Glowworm named Nim Galuu before she dies, and M.K. joins Ronin and the Leafmen, along with Mub and Grub. Ronin discovers that Nod has entered a race against other creatures and bugs on birds. Nod goes back on a deal with a tough bullfrog named Bufo to throw the race. Before Bufo and his two henchmen can feed Nod to a snake for not throwing the race, Ronin intervenes and orders them to leave. A reluctant Nod joins him, M.K., Mub, and Grub after hearing about Queen Tara's death which Bufo overhears.

Ronin, Nod, M.K., Mub, and Grub eventually find Nim Galuu who leads them down to the scroll library, where M.K. discovers Tara's brief message before shrinking her, and a message that will get her back to normal size. When Ronin leaves, Nod takes M.K. on a deer ride and they begin to fall in love. Meanwhile, Mandrake has had the Boggans bring Bufo to him, finding out the location of the pod. Mandrake goes to Nim Galuu's place to steal the pod, which, if it blooms in darkness will help Mandrake destroy the forest. He takes the pod and kidnaps Mub and Grub. Ronin scolds Nod for not being there to protect the pod. To get into Boggan territory undiscovered, M.K., Nod, and Ronin set out to Bomba's house to get some disguises, where M.K. learns that the Leafmen have deliberately been leading Bomba off their trail. Bomba sees that he has visitors and captures M.K., fainting when he sees her. M.K. marks the location of Moonhaven on a map Bomba has made of the forest before rejoining Nod and Ronin.

When they reach the Boggan land Ronin distracts the Boggans while M.K. and Nod rescue Mub, Grub, and the pod. Mandrake discovers them and orders the Boggans to stop them. M.K., Nod, Mub, and Grub escape alive, but Ronin sacrifices himself to ensure their escape. Before the full moon can sprout the pod at Moonhaven, Mandrake's bats block the light, causing the pod to begin sprouting in darkness. The Leafmen set out to fight the Boggans; M.K. tries to get help from her father by visiting his various cameras he had set in the forest. However, upon regaining consciousness, Bomba believes that he didn't really see M.K. and that he has been insane all these years, and shuts down all his cameras. He changes his mind when he sees a red push-pin that M.K. had put on his map.

Bomba is overjoyed to see that he has been right and he follows M.K. to Moonhaven. M.K. uses Bomba's iPod to make bat sounds, luring Mandrake's bats away. Meanwhile, Mub and Nim Galuu try to stop Mandrake from reaching the pod, but are unsuccessful. Just then, Ronin appears, bearing scars and bruises from the Boggans. Mandrake manages to outdo him, but Ronin is defended by Nod, who finally realizes the importance of teamwork. Before Mandrake can obtain his victory, the pod blooms in moonlight, defeating the Boggans, and sealing Mandrake into a nearby tree.

The chosen heir is the flower child who helped save Tara earlier in the film. Grub becomes a Leafman, Nod and Ronin reconcile, and Nod and M.K. kiss before M.K. is returned to her original size. After reuniting with Bomba and becoming his assistant, the human family still keeps regular contact with their small friends as they continue the research of their world.
 L² Scored: 10/10

L² Comment
Went to a friend's house and watch this in 3D version, it really does amaze me :) Love the storyline, its something new and refreshing, everything is damn nice and hopefully there is a sequel on this as well~ Love the part when Queen Tara went to choose her heir, that scenes are fabulously breath-taking~ 

Sunday, December 20, 2015

The Day the Earth Stood Still 2008

 Released Year: 2008
Directed by Scott Derrickson

Casted by:
Keanu Reeves as Klaatu
Jennifer Connelly as Helen Benson
Jaden Smith as Jacob Benson
John Cleese as Professor Karl Barnhardt
Jon Hamm as Dr. Michael Granier
Kathy Bates as Regina Jackson
 Story
In 1928, a solitary mountaineer encounters a glowing sphere. He loses consciousness and when he wakes, the sphere has gone and there is a scar on his hand where a sample of his DNA has been taken.

In the present day, a rapidly moving object is detected beyond Jupiter's orbit and forecast to impact Manhattan. The United States government hastily assembles a group of scientists, including Dr. Helen Benson, to formulate a survival plan. The object is measured to be moving at 30,000 kilometers per second - enough to destroy nearly all life on Earth - but as it nears the planet, the object slows down just before impact and is revealed to be a large spherical spaceship, which lands gently in Central Park. The sphere is quickly surrounded by police and a heavily armed, hostile, and rather chaotic US military force.

An alien emerges and Helen moves forward to greet it, but amidst the confusion, a soldier shoots the alien. A gigantic robot then appears that temporarily disables everything in the vicinity. The alien voices the command "Klaatu barada nikto" to shut down the robot's defensive response.

A military surgeon discovers that the alien body is actually a bioengineered space suit, composed of placenta-like material covering a human-like being. The being quickly ages into Klaatu, who looks like the mountaineer from the opening scene of the film. Klaatu informs Secretary of Defense Regina Jackson that he is a representative of a group of alien civilizations, sent to talk to the leaders of Earth at a United Nations conference in the city. Jackson instead orders that Klaatu be sent to a secure location for interrogation. Klaatu manages to escape and Helen and her stepson Jacob give him a ride out of the area. The trio are pursued and harassed by the authorities for the rest of the film.

The presence of the sphere, and others like it around the world, causes a widespread panic. The military launch a drone attack on the sphere, but are thwarted by the robot. They cautiously enclose the robot and transport it to Virginia.

Klaatu meets with another alien, Mr. Wu, who has lived on Earth for 70 years. Wu tells Klaatu that he has found the human race to be destructive and unwilling to change, which matches Klaatu's experience. Klaatu decides that the planet, with its rare ability to sustain complex life, must be cleansed of humans to ensure that it can survive. Klaatu orders smaller spheres to collect specimens of animal species, to preserve them off the planet. Helen quizzes Klaatu about his statement that he has come to save the Earth and discovers that he means to save the Earth from destruction by humankind.

Meanwhile, the robot, named "GORT" by the military, is being examined in an underground facility. The robot transforms into a swarm of winged, insect-like, nano-machines that self-replicate as they consume everything in their path. The swarm starts to erase all trace of the human race.

Hoping to persuade Klaatu to change his mind about humanity, Helen takes him to the home of Nobel Prize-winning Professor Barnhardt. They discuss how Klaatu's own race went through a drastic evolution to survive their own star's demise. Klaatu is impressed by the beauty of the music by Bach playing in the background. Klaatu finally realizes that he has misjudged humanity when he sees Helen comforting Jacob at his father's grave. They head for the sphere in Central Park to try to stop the swarm.

Klaatu warns that even if he manages to stop the swarm, there will be a price to the human way of life. The swarm arrives and Jacob and Helen become infected by the nano-machines. Helen tells Klaatu to save Jacob and Klaatu draws the nano machines into his body, reviving Jacob. Klaatu then walks through the swarm to the sphere, touching it moments before his body is consumed. The sphere deactivates the swarm, saving humanity, but at the expense of electrical activity on Earth which is apparently all shut down. The giant sphere leaves the Earth.
 L² Scored: 4.5/10

L² Comment
This is not the first time i watched this remake film of 1951 same name movie, but still it managed to bored me out and makes me almost fell asleep again... I did not watch the 1951 movie and of course not the fiction "Farewell to the Master" by Harry Bates; so i'm not in the place to comment how much it follows the original, all i know is, i need to drank coffee to finish this movie.

Technical wise definitely better than the previous movie i suppose, Reeves seems like a piece of wood to me, totally expressionless~ yawn. Connelly in the meanwhile not really outstanding too if compare to little Jaden Smith :) But overall the movie is very so so, guess most probably I won't watch it for the third time anymore...

Thursday, December 17, 2015

The Back-up Plan

Released Year: 2010
Directed by Alan Poul

Casted by:
 Jennifer Lopez as Zoe
Alex O'Loughlin as Stan
Michaela Watkins as Mona
Danneel Harris as Olivia
Melissa McCarthy as Carol
Linda Lavin as Nana
Eric Christian Olsen as Clive
 Story
Zoe has given up on finding the man of her dreams and decided to become a single mother and undergoes artificial insemination. The same day she meets Stan when they both try to hail the same taxi. They run into each other twice more at a farmers market and a pet store. Stan convinces Zoe to go on a no-obligations date. Zoe is still uncertain whether she is pregnant or not and if she should tell Stan. The night she takes the test, Stan takes her for a romantic dinner in a garden. Things don't turn out as well as planned when he spills the wine and a fire occurs. At the end of the night Stan asks her to come to his farm during the weekend and Zoe finds out that she is pregnant.

She goes to the farm determined to tell him that she is pregnant. They have sex and afterwards Stan is confused and angry that she didn't tell him before and Zoe leaves the next morning believing that things are over between them. However, Stan decides he still wants to be with her and they reconcile. They go to the doctor and find out that Zoe is actually carrying twins. Overwhelmed, Stan goes to a children's playing area to figure out what it means to be a father, but is suspected to be a pervert; this is soon cleared up. He finds a friend there that he can talk to about the pregnancy throughout the movie, while Zoe gets little support from her Single Mothers and Proud group when the group members discover she is no longer single. Stan takes the next step to becoming a father and orders a stroller for the twins. After many misunderstandings and comedic revelations, Zoe and Stan are walking into the Market when they run into Stan's ex-girlfriend. Due to Stan's remark that the twins are not his, Zoe believes that he is not ready to become a father to them, and breaks off the relationship.

Later, the stroller that Stan ordered arrives and Zoe figures out that Stan was never planning to leave. At her grandmother's wedding, Zoe's water breaks and on the way to the hospital they make a pit stop at the Market. Zoe apologizes to Stan and they begin to work things out. He pulls out the penny that she turned over when they first met and Zoe promises to trust him more. In the end, Stan opens a store/restaurant next to Zoe's pet shop and after the Grand Opening speech Stan asks Zoe to marry him and she says yes. On their way home, she spontaneously throws up into a rubbish bin and realizes that she may be yet again pregnant.
 L² Scored: 8/10

L² Comment
Its been a while since I last watch any movie of JLo. JLo is always a singer type of celebrity rather than an actress for me. But she was not bad in this kind of romance comedy movie :) Jlo & O'Loughlin makes a nice sweet couple in this movie and I love it very much :) Overall the movie is easy to watch and nice, having the baby first before the dates and marry is quite normal in nowadays too, right? 

Monday, December 14, 2015

Inkheart

 Released Year: 2008
Directed by Iain Softley

Casted by:
Brendan Fraser as Mortimer "Mo" Folchart
Eliza Bennett as Meggie Folchart
Paul Bettany as Dustfinger
Andy Serkis as Capricorn
Helen Mirren as Elinor Loredan
Rafi Gavron as Farid
Jim Broadbent as Fenoglio
Sienna Guillory as Teresa "Resa" Folchart
 Story:
One evening, whilst Mortimer "Mo" Folchart and his wife Teresa "Resa" Folchart are reading the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood" to their baby daughter Meggie, a red velvet hood appears out of nowhere. Several years later, a much older Meggie travels with her father Mo to visit an old book shop in Italy, unaware that he secretly looking for a copy of the book, Inkheart. Shortly after finding one, Meggie comes across a marten with horns outside the shop, who tries to bite her fingers. Suddenly, a man appears from the shadows, claiming to be an old friend while revealing the marten's name as Gwin. When Mo comes out of the book shop, he quickly recognizes the man as a person called Dustfinger, whom quickly asks to be read back into the book, only for Mo to flees with Meggie from him.

Travelling across Italy, Mo takes Meggie on a visit to Meggie's great aunt Elinor, whereupon he reveals to Meggie why he fled from Dustfinger. While she was young, Mo read to her from Inkheart, inadvertently freeing Dustfinger as a result, due to a gift he possessed from birth, that marks him as a "Silver Tongue". Unfortunately, his gift also freed the book's villain Capricorn and several of his henchman, but at the same time, losing Resa after being forced to flee with his infant daughter. Soon, Dustfinger reappears seeking Mo, accompanied by Capricorn's minion, Basta, who quickly captures Mo and his family and takes back Inkheart, destroying Elinor's valuable library in the process.

The four are taken to Capricorn's new castle in the real world, and imprisoned in the stables, which house various creatures from different storybooks, including the winged monkeys from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the minotaur from the story of Theseus, and a unicorn. During their imprisonment, Mo explains to Meggie and Elinor about his gift, stating that when he reads a person or an object out of a book, someone from the real world is sent into it, hence why his wife disappeared. Capricorn, interested in using his gift, forces Mo to read out items from books, causing him to get a stash of treasure from one of the stories in The Arabian Nights, while causing one of the 40 Thieves, named Farid, to be brought out as well and forced into imprisonment. Dustfinger, who believed he could get his chance to return into the book, quickly learns Capricorn tricked him, and so prompts a quick escape using the famous tornado from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; during the escape, he opts not to tell Mo that his wife Resa is in the village, but has lost her voice.

Following their escape, Meggie offers the idea of finding the author of Inkheart, a man named Fenoglio, who may have access to a copy of the rare-to-find book. Whilst Elinor decides to leave them to recover what is left of her book collection, the rest head for the author's location, with Dustfinger initially staying with Farid to teach him to juggle fire, yet secretly afraid of learning his fate in the book. When he does travel with Mo to find and meet with Fenoglio, the author's ecstatic mood, upon seeing his creation live and breath before him, causes Dustfinger to discover that his efforts to save Gwin at the end of the book brings about his death. Angry, he berates the author for not being his god and that he has the freedom to chose whatever fate he wants, before eventually confessing to Mo, who Resa is in the book, that his wife was in Capricorn's castle.

Both he and Mo take Fenoglio's car, leaving Meggie behind with the author, where during the journey, they quickly discover that Farid had stowed away in the car's trunk, and take him along at his insistence. Whilst away, Meggie begins reading a number of books out loud, and discovers she is a "Silver Tongue" herself, just before Basta arrives with men to capture Mo. Upon learning that she can read things out of books, after the author notices she brought Toto from the The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Basta takes her and Fenoglio back to Capricorn. Elinor, who has a change of heart and does not take the train back to her home, returns to the author's home and quickly senses trouble, pursuing the captured pair. At the castle, Capricorn reveals to Meggie his intentions of bringing the monstrous Shadow from Inkheart, revealing that, although he burned all the copies, he spared one for such a purpose, threatening to harm her mother if she fails to comply. During this time, Mo sneaks into the castle, but is captured by Capricorn's henchmen.

After escaping his cell, Mo attempts to free Meggie, Resa and Fenoglio from imprisonment, as Capricorn forces Meggie to read out the Shadow from the book. Meanwhile, Dustfinger sneaks back into the castle with Farid and decide to set it alight, after his conscience gets the better of him. The distraction this causes allows Fenoglio to give Toto a rewrite he made to help Meggie stop Capricorn's plan. The plan partly works until Capricorn gains the upper hand. Just then, Elinor arrives with the creatures Capricorn imprisoned, giving Mo the opportunity to quickly throw his daughter a pen, allowing her to write out a story on her arm to combat Capricorn's plan. Meggie quickly reads out her creation, which causes Capricorn to turn into dust, vanishes his henchmen, destroys the Shadow, and return all the read out creatures back where they belong, including Toto. In addition, she grants Fenoglio's wish, and send him into Inkheart to live in the world he created, while restoring her mother's voice, allowing her and Mo to finally reunite with her, before fleeing as the castle collapses.

Shortly afterwards, Dustfinger, having missed his chance for Meggie to read him back into his book, decides to leave, not wishing to force Mo and his family to do anything without risking their happiness. As he does, Farid catches up with insisting on travelling with him to find another reader to send him back into the copy of Inkheart he had stolen before the castle collapsed. After a moment's hesitation, Dustfinger agrees and the two start off together only to have Mo catch them up and fulfill his promise. Dustfinger is soon transported safely back into Inkheart, where he reunites with his wife Roxane at their home. In the real world, Farid quickly reveals he kept Gwin with him, thus allowing Dustfinger to avoid his fate and have control over his destiny. As Mo and his family leave with Farid, Meggie agrees to teach him how to read while Farid agrees to teach her how to use the dragon breath.
 L² Scored: 9/10

L² Comment
Till now I still have not find the novel of Inkheart which was written by Cornelia Funke. Not sure how originally the movie follows the novel, but definitely its a very exciting movie and full of fantasy. Brendan  Fraser always give me a dreamy kind of image. His character is usually brighter whenever he was in this kind of fantasy movie... Overall the movie is quite good, how i wish i can find the novel in Big Bad Wolf lol~

Friday, December 11, 2015

Paul Blart: Mall Cop

 Released Year: 2009
Directed by Steve Carr

Casted by:
Kevin James as Paul Blart
Jayma Mays as Amy Anderson
Keir O'Donnell as Veck Simms
Bobby Cannavale as Commander James Kent
Adam Ferrara as Sergeant Howard
Peter Gerety as Chief Brooks
Stephen Rannazzisi as Stuart
Jamal Mixon as Leon
Adhir Kalyan as Pahud
Erick Avari as Vijay
Raini Rodriguez as Maya Blart
 Story:
Paul Blart is a resident in West Orange, New Jersey with his teenage daughter, Maya, and elderly mother, Margaret. Aspiring to join the New Jersey State Police, he trains at the police academy, but his hypoglycemic medical condition causes him to collapse, therefore failing the exam. To shape things up for his career, Blart works as a security guard at the West Orange Pavillion Mall.

Blart patrols the mall on a Segway to assure things are safe and clean. He goes to the surveillance room and trains Veck Simms, who is new but uninterested on the job. Meanwhile, Blart eventually becomes acquainted with Amy Anderson, the vendor of a new kiosk. He meets her one evening at a restaurant with other mall employees. Things initially go well, but Blart is sidetracked when he decides to participate in a nacho-eating contest with his friend Leon. The hot sauce is more than Blart can handle, and he begins chugging down several alcoholic beverages causing him to become excessively drunk and incoherent. He crashes the party and makes a wild exit by falling through a window.

Two days later, on the night of Black Friday, an organized gang of thugs disguised as Santa's Village employees begin what appears to be a bank heist inside the mall. They take Amy and other customers in the bank hostage. Simms is revealed as the gang's leader – his mall security job was a ploy to gather intelligence. They are keeping the hostages as insurance for the gang's escape. The crew forces shoppers to exit the mall and strategically places motion sensors around each entrance to detect any attempt to enter or exit the building.

Blart takes a break in the arcade and plays Detroit Rock City via Rock Band. He eventually walks back out in the mall, and discovers the entire mall is evacuated and under a state of emergency. Upon realizing this, he calls the police, and slips out of the mall to speak with Commander Sergeant Howard. Blart realizes Anderson is still inside after spotting her car in the parking lot and decides to return to the mall to look for her. A state SWAT team soon arrives with Commander James Kent at the helm. Kent, a former classmate and bully from Blart's childhood, takes control of the situation and orders Blart to let them handle the situation. After spotting Anderson as one of the hostages, Blart refuses and attempts a rescue. Vastly outnumbered and physically outclassed, Blart takes a stand against Simms' crew using improvised measures to take them down one by one. He discovers credit card codes written in invisible ink on the burglars' arms and realizes that their real plans go beyond robbing the bank.

Maya, unaware of the situation, shows up at the mall on her way to bring Blart some food, but Simms' remaining henchmen seize her and add her to the hostage group. Blart manages to arrest all of Simms' accomplices and attempts to evacuate the hostages by pulling them up through an air vent. The plan fails when Leon cannot fit. Simms enters the room, capturing Blart and forcing him to give up the credit card codes he recorded on his cell phone. Simms escapes, kidnapping Anderson and Maya. As police swarm the mall to apprehend the criminals and rescue the hostages, Blart borrows a display minivan and joins Kent in pursuing Simms to the airport, where he is attempting to escape to the Cayman Islands.

After a brief scuffle, Blart overpowers Simms and puts him in handcuffs. Moments later, however, Kent pulls his gun on Blart revealing that he was in cahoots with Simms. Kent demands the phone containing the codes from Blart, who refuses and responds by smashing the phone into the ground. Before Kent can retaliate by shooting Blart, Chief Brooks of the mall security team arrives in time and shoots Kent in the arm. Kent and Simms are arrested, and Anderson and Maya are returned safely. For his bravery and assistance, Howard offers Blart a job with the New Jersey State Police. Blart honorably declines opting to remain in mall security. Blart and Anderson are eventually married in the mall, where they exchange vows on a set of black and white Segways.
 L² Scored: 6/10

L² Comment:
I never know who is Kevin James till I watch this movie. This is a "not bad" movie, but some parts can be better... Heard that the 2nd movie was out somewhere in April 2015 with Kevin James continue to lead the whole movie. Let's see whether I will able to find this movie and share it here with all of you...

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Night at the Museum

 Released Year: 2006
Directed by Shawn Levy

Casted by:
Ben Stiller as Larry Daley
Robin Williams as Theodore Roosevelt
Carla Gugino as Rebecca Hutman
Dick Van Dyke as Cecil Fredericks
Mickey Rooney as Gus
Bill Cobbs as Reginald
Jake Cherry as Nicky Daley
Patrick Gallagher as Attila the Hun
Rami Malek as Ahkmenrah
Owen Wilson as Jedediah
Steve Coogan as Octavius
Mizuo Peck as Sacagawea
 Story
Larry Daley is divorced, unable to keep a stable job, and has failed at many business ventures. His ex-wife believes that he is a bad example to their ten-year-old son Nick, and Larry fears that Nick respects his future stepfather, bond trader Don, more than him.

Cecil, an elderly night security guard about to retire from the American Museum of Natural History, hires Larry despite his unpromising résumé. The museum plans to replace Cecil and two colleagues Gus and Reginald with one guard. They advise Larry to leave some of the lights on and warn him not to let anything "in...or out".

Once night comes, Larry discovers that the exhibits come to life, including a living Tyrannosaurus skeleton nicknamed "Rexy" who behaves like a dog; a mischievous capuchin monkey named Dexter, which always steals Larry's keys; rival miniature civilizations led by Old West cowboy Jedediah and Roman general Octavius; limb-ripping Attila the Hun; an Easter Island Moai obsessed with "gum-gum"; and a wax model of Theodore Roosevelt.

Roosevelt explains that since an Egyptian artifact—the Golden Tablet of Pharaoh Akhmenrah—came to the museum in 1952, all of the exhibits come to life each night. If the exhibits are outside of the museum during sunrise, however, they turn to dust. Roosevelt helps Larry by restoring order, and he decides to remain as a guard.

On Cecil's advice, Larry studies history to prepare himself better. He also learns from a museum docent Rebecca Hutman, who is writing a dissertation on Sacagawea but does not feel she knows enough about her subject.

The next night, Larry uses what he has learned to better control the exhibits, however, things go wrong and four Neanderthals set fire to a display, among other things. One of the Neanderthal turns to dust when he leaves the museum at dawn. The next morning, museum director Dr. McPhee almost fires Larry after what happened to the Neanderthal exhibit. He offers Rebecca a meeting with Sacagawea, but she believes that he is mocking her and the museum.

Larry brings Nick to the museum to show him the exhibits, but none of them are alive. They find Cecil, Gus, and Reginald stealing the tablet and other valuable objects. Like the exhibits, the guards receive enhanced vitality from the artifact; wishing to retain their health and fund their retirements, the three plan to frame Larry for the thefts, and disabled the tablet to stop the exhibits from interfering. Nick reactivates the artifact, but Cecil locks him and his father in the Egyptian room and flees with the tablet.

Larry releases the Akhmenrah's mummy from his sarcophagus. The pharaoh speaks English from many years as an exhibit at Cambridge, and helps Larry and Nick escape. The three find the other exhibits fighting; Larry confronts Attila, realizing his behavior came from being hurt a long time ago, and convinces them to work together. Although some of the exhibits capture Gus and Reginald without difficulty, Cecil escapes by stagecoach with Larry, Nick, Akmenrah, Jed, Octavius, Rexy, and Atilla the Hun in pursuit in Central Park, where they stop him and regain the tablet. Jed and Octavius are presumably killed when their remote-controlled Hummer crashes, but they somehow survive. Rebecca sees the exhibits return to the museum before sunrise and realizes that Larry was telling the truth; he introduces her to Sacagawea.

Dr. McPhee fires Larry after seeing news reports of the strange events around the museum—such as cave paintings in the museum's subway station, dinosaur footprints in Central Park, and cavemen sightings. He rehires him after he sees that these events raised attendance. Larry, Nick, and the exhibits celebrate.

During the credits, it was shown that Cecil, Gus, and Reginald weren't turned over to the authorities and are now working as janitors at the museum.
 L² Scored: 10/10

L² Comment
The first movie is always the best among all series of movie which proves it right again in this Night At the Museum series. It is based on the children book of the same name by Milan Trenc. Not only the idea is wild and excited, its never being film with this topic and everyone loves it very much. Ben Stiller never fails to make us laugh and yes one again he did it :)

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

Released Year: 2009
Directed by Betty THomas

Voiced & Casted by:
 Justin Long as Alvin Seville
Matthew Gray Gubler as Simon Seville
Jesse McCartney as Theodore Seville.
Christina Applegate as Brittany
Anna Faris as Jeanette
Amy Poehler as Eleanor
Zachary Levi as Toby Seville
David Cross as Ian Hawke
Jason Lee as David "Dave" Seville
Story
During a benefit concert in Paris, France, David Seville is injured. Having to recuperate there, Dave asks his aunt to look after the Chipmunks, Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Arrangements are also made for them to go to school at West Eastman High School. After another accident, the Chipmunks are left in the care of Toby, Jackie's grandson.

Meanwhile, Ian Hawke lives in the basement of JETT Records. Three singing female chipmunks, Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor, also known as The Chipettes, emerge and Ian hires them as plot to get back at the Chipmunks and revive his career.

While at school, the Chipmunks are bullied by jocks. They visit the principal's office, only to discover that the principal, Dr. Rubin is a huge fan and wants them to help raise money for a music program by participating in a contest. Meanwhile, Ian is shocked to find the Chipmunks on the front page of his newspaper. After he reads a story about them, he quickly sends the Chipettes to school.

When the Chipmunks meet the Chipettes, a rivalry forms after the former group learns that the latter group are with Ian. Meanwhile, Alvin becomes popular with the jocks and joins the football team, not realizing that the next game is during the concert. At the concert, Theodore and Simon tell the fans that Alvin didn't show up and that they can't perform, leading to a victory for the Chipettes. When Alvin finally shows up after the concert is over, he finds the auditorium empty and is ignored by his brothers at home.

Soon the Chipettes are hired, but learn that the concert they are to perform as an opening act for a Britney Spears concert at the Staples Center is on the same night as the school contest. Ian convinces them to blow off the battle and perform at the concert, but refuses to give the same credit to Jeanette and Eleanor that he gives Brittany. She demands that they all go together or not at all, until Ian threatens to send them to a barbecue restaurant (in a similar manner to the Chipmunks) unless they perform.

Before the Battle Of The Bands, Alvin receives a call from the Chipettes who tell him that Ian has locked them in a cage, so Alvin races off to rescue them while Simon tells Jeanette how to open the cage over the cell phone. Simon and Theodore are on the verge of going out to perform until the others arrive just in time to perform at the contest. The Chipmunks and the Chipettes perform together and receive the money for the music program. Dave, who had left the hospital upon learning that Toby was looking after the Chipmunks, returns during the contest happy to see his boys again. Meanwhile, Ian gets into more trouble at the concert of Staples Center he set up for the girls when he attempts to imitate them only to be taken away by the security guards. After the contest, Dave allows the Chipettes to stay with them.

In the mid-credits, Dr. Rubin has the jocks scrape the gum off from under the bleachers in the gymnasium. In the post-credits, Ian is thrown into a dumpster.
  L² Scored: 8.5/10

L² Comment:
Second movie of Alvin & The Chipmunks added in the 3 babes for them. I remember during the cartoon time, these 3 babes didn't sing as much as they are in the movie... Oh well, mayb i'm forgetful, coz it has been so many years ago... the storyline is expected but not bad... hopefully the movie series will be growing~ 

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Space Buddies

Released Year: 2009
Directed by Robert Vince

Voiced by:
Field Cate as Buddha
Skyler Gisondo as B-Dawg
Liliana Mumy as Rosebud
Henry Hodges as Mudbud
Josh Flitter as Budderball
Jason Earles as Spudnick
Amy Sedaris as Gravity

Casted by:
Bill Fagerbakke as Pi
Diedrich Bader as Yuri
Kevin Weisman as Dr. Finkle
 Story:
The film starts as Buddha and his owner Sam are star-gazing. As a shooting star passes, Sam makes a wish that he can touch the moon. The next day is the day of Sam's school field trip to Vision Enterprises to watch a test launch of the Vision 1 space craft. However, since no pets are allowed to go, Sam has to leave Buddha at home. Buddha meets up with the other Budderball, Rosebud, B-Dawg, and Mudbud, and invites them to come with him to go to see the test launch. They hide in the school bus and the bus soon arrives at the Vision Enterprises where the launch is. The dogs go to a space-suit machine and put on space-suits before following the group of students, who are being led by Dr. Finkel. The dogs get aboard the space shuttle Vision 1. At Mission Control in the Vision enterprises, Pi confirms they are ready for launch. Meanwhile, the Buddies take a close look around until they are sealed in the shuttle, which prepares for launch. Astro, who will be piloting the ship from Earth, launches the shuttle, and the shuttle flies to space.

At Mission Control, the humans realize the third tank of gas in the shuttle was never fully filled. With ten hours until the gas runs out, they look for solutions. They eventually decide to pilot the space craft to the old R.R.S.S. (Russian Research Space Station), which was launched during the Soviet era. They contact the cosmonaut living in the space station, named Yuri, telling him to refuel the Vision 1. As Vision 1 connects to the space station, the dogs decide to explore the space station, and they meet a dog called Spudnick who is under the care of Yuri. Spudnick explains that Yuri is quite content to stay in space, yet he wishes to go home. Yuri finds the dogs and becomes happy because the buddies can keep them company. The buddies are trapped in the kitchen, and are saved later by Spudnick. After connecting the fuel pipe to the Vision 1, the gas starts to leak from the pipes. Meanwhile, the buddies and Spudnick rush back to Vision 1 to escape. Yuri activates lock-down to trap the dogs. They manage to get to the Vision 1. Yuri tries to stop them, banging on the control switches. However, some sparks drop on the gas, causing an explosion. Spudnick and the Buddies escape from the R.R.S.S. as it explodes. Yuri barely escapes using the "Cosmo-pod escape vessel".

The Vision 1 travels to the moon. Soon after, the Vision 1 approaches and lands on the moon (Before this event had occurred, B-Dawg had mistaken the moon for the Death Star). They soon begin to get out of the Vision 1 and walk around the area within the place they had landed. Mission Control finds that the sounds from their space helmets happen to be soft barks, and conclude they are golden retriever puppies, and this is broadcast on the news. The children find out through the news ("We're live at Vision Enterprises, where quite a furry tale is unfolding. It seems 5 golden retriever puppies have been accidentally launched into space."). The buddies, while on the moon, meet a ferret named Gravity, who is the Buddies' mission control assistant. But since their only communication is from audio, the buddies don't know Gravity is a ferret. Gravity orders the Buddies to get back on the Vision 1.

When returning to Earth, the path is changed by the untrustworthy Dr. Finkel. The path's telemetry is reverted into a meteor shower. The "auto-avoidance system", takes control of the Vision 1, rotating and shifting heavily between every meteor in its path. However, the Vision 1's data communications antenna is busted to the right when it becomes struck by a meteor. Budderball is sent to repair the antenna by doing a space walk outside of the Vision 1. At Mission Control, the adults are puzzled about the change of the telemetry course of the Vision 1 when Sam accuses Dr. Finkel of changing the path. As Dr. Finkel denies it, Pi uses the security camera to confirm that Dr. Finkel was indeed at the desk at 7:49 PM, the time when the telemetry course was changed. As Dr. Finkel is taken away by security, Sam approaches Dr. Finkel and calls him "Dr. Stinkle."

Mission Control receives Yuri's distress signal in the Cosmo-pod before the Vision 1 enters the atmosphere through the blackout zone. They wait 4 minutes until they arrive, but they arrive early. The Vision 1 ends its mission by slowing down on the take-off strip. The Buddies find out Gravity was a ferret, and so that Butterball replies he is related to skunks. Yuri crashes his pod, and is rescued by some soldiers, telling them he comes from space.

Pi awards The Buddies wings of true heroism, with their title as "Space Buddies". The Buddies review what they did (Budderball was taught how to eat his vegetables from the trip). Once at home, Buddha gives Sam a moon rock he had taken from his journey, fulfilling his wish of touching the moon. The film ends with Spudnick back at home with his old owner Sasha, saying, "It is the journey and friendship that matters the most."
 L² Scored: 3.5/10 

L² Comment:
This is the 3rd installment of Air-Bud series of Disney. For me, the storyline is special, but its a bit boring for adult, maybe it might be cute and special for children :) I really love those 5 golden retriever and the bull terrier~  the rest i don't wish to comment much...

Monday, December 7, 2015

Paranormal Whacktivity

Released Year: 2013
Directed by Roger Roth

Casted by:
 William Patrick Riley as Michael
Sasha Formoso as Kasey
Damatri Crayto as Demonbuster
Chris Pentzell as Psychic
Mighty Mike Murga as David / Demon / Baby
 Story:
A sexy and hilarious spoof about a couple (Michael & Kasey) who have just moved into a new home to consummate their relationship, but find peril around every corner due to an evil presence that haunts them whenever they attempt to be intimate. Michael wants to make a porn film with Kasey and even invited a crew to shoot their sexual activities randomly. But they found weird paranormal things occur in their own recording machine and they invited a psychic and demonbuster to solve the problem. But finally they manage to get rid of the demon after the demon find a hotter girl that Kasey...
 L² Scored: 4.5/10

L² Comment:
Its been a long time I didn't watch this kind of genre, but well, beside having some laughs and relax. I don't totally care about the storyline because it totally sucks hehe~