The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

PG-13  | 117 mins  | Biopic, Drama  | December 15, 2006 (USA)

Director: Gabriele Muccino

Starring: Will Smith, Thandie Newton, and Jaden Smith

When you think your life is so tough...watch this movie. Plus it made me buy and figure the Rubiks cube.

RATING: 8/10

10,000 Hours

R-13 | Filipino, Drama | Release Date: December 25, 2013

Director: Joyce Bernal

Starring: Robin Padilla, Michael de Mesa, Mylene Dizon, Bella Padilla, Pen Medina, Carla Humphries, Cholo Barreto

10,000 Hours' big win at the 39th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) definitely raised curiosity among moviegoers. The film took home most of the coveted awards - Best Director, Best Actor, Best Picture, the FPJ Memorial Award for Film Excellence & the Gat Puno Antonio Villegas Cultural Award. 

Year 2010, Sen. Gabriel Molino Alcaraz (Robin Padilla) is about to spill the details of a pork barrel scam implicating Pres. Genoviva Martinez Obrero (Bibeth Orteza). But the senator gets pinned on an alleged 1986 rub out case instead and his NBI director friend gets killed trying to warn him of the plan to arrest him. Sen. Alcaraz escapes with the help of a brash news reporter Maya Limchauco (Bela Padilla), eluding authorities led by Gen. Dante Cristobal (Michael de Mesa). He becomes a fugitive and goes into hiding in Amsterdam. A Filipino expatriate, Isabelle Manahan (Carla Humphries), shelters the senator and helps him find Salvador Jago (Pen Medina), the man who could clear his name. Back home, the family (Mylene Dizon, Cholo Barreto, Markki Stroem, Winwyn Marquez) falls into despair from the backlash of the senator's controversial escape.

Although the film ends with a disclaimer that the events depicted are entirely fictional, it was obviously inspired by real-life political affairs. The title 10,000 Hours refers to the number of hours Sen. Alcaraz was on the lam - that's one year, one month, and one week. It's loosely based on (and I'd say, the closest to) Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson's story when he fled the country years ago.

Sure, I judged it too soon because of Robin Padilla. Ooops! But apart from the ludicrous premise of a virtuous politician & Amsterdam depicted as boring, the movie was actually good. 

I had my preconceived notion of the action star, but Robin Padilla is convincing as the lawmaker and gave the role plenty of acting cred that it didn't matter anymore. Padilla's performance had the right subtle and subdued quality needed for the character. The rest of the cast did incredible too, they definitely delivered. Bela Padilla, first time on the big screen, was natural in her role as a prick. Mylene Dizon's gun pointing and shooting was badass for a senator's wife. Pen Medina's authentic cussing. Michael de Mesa's big dilemma between enforcing the law and preserving a friendship. I was ready to give Cholo Barreto, Markki Stroem, & Wynwyn Marquez who played Padilla's children some slack because it was probably their first time acting, but I was pleasantly surprised by their acting chops & range. And Carla Humphries, God, Carla Humphries! Uh-uhm. Even Antonio Aquitania, in his short role, was gold in this movie.

Bb. Joyce Bernal didn't disappoint! An action-drama master work by the director who's more known for rom-com movies; this was her first full-feature action film in fact. 

I'm not saying it's because this movie was directed by a woman, because that's just sexist, but you won't find violent, bloody action scenes here or the nervous suspense of On The Job (OTJ). LOL. But like OTJ, this film says a lot too about the Philippine government.

The girls collectively did all the heavy lifting for the movie though, acting-wise and production-wise. 10,000 Hours was mainly backed by a female crew. The film's score by Teresa Barrozo. Screenplay by Ryllah Epifania Berico and Keiko Aquino. Cinematography by Marissa Floreindo. Film editing by Marya Ignacio. 

10,000 Hours deserved the A-rating given by the Film Evaluation Board. 

But, oh, I remembered! The most ridiculous part of 10,000 Hours was that there were CCTVs in NAIA Terminal 3. 

RATING: 9/10

Life of Pi

PG  | 127 mins  | Adventure, Drama, Sci-fi | November 22, 2012 (USA)

Director: Ang Lee

Starring: Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, and Rafe Spall

A feast for the eyes & a riddle for the mind.

Azlan was my favorite feline, until Richard Parker came along. This movie had me wanting to get a cat...and call him Richard Parker!

RATING: 9/10

Taken 2

PG-13 | 92 mins | Action, Adventure, Drama | October 4, 2012 (Philippines)

Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen

Taken was one of my unexpected favorites in 2008. So imagine my excitement for this action flick's sequel.

The movie introduces Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) reestablishing his relationship with his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) and ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen). Taken 2 picks up a year after the events of the first film, where Bryan successfully saved his daughter from human traffickers in Paris. Now, Bryan will be haunted by the consequences of that rescue. The father of one of the men he killed to get Kim back is seeking revenge. On a trip in Istanbul, Bryan and Lenore gets abducted, but cleverly managed to escape with Kim's help. The action begins here, as this former CIA agent is forced to retaliate.

Taken 2 was a decent follow up, although predictable. A sequel where the baddies' nearest and dearest strike back at your hero and his family is just unoriginal. 

There's more running here. I mean far-better-than-The-Bourne-Legacy kind of running, and a cliché  but awesome car chase sequence.

The movie felt like Transporter. But of course, this was also directed by Transporter 3's Olivier Megaton. 

As a sequel, it’s rather underwhelming because the story wasn't as smart as Taken, nor as intense, although the fragile-daughter-becoming-the-heroine-and-not-the-victim-anymore subplot was pleasantly refreshing. The action and fighting scenes are great; it just lacked the brutality that its predecessor showed when a father was so hell bent on rescuing his precious daughter. Even Megaton's Colombiana had more kick-ass action scenes than Taken 2, I think. But Neeson made up for the slack, thank goodness. Maggie Grace did so very well too, playing a bigger role this time around.

It's a lot of fun if you fancy seeing Neeson run around -- shooting, driving, and killing thugs. It’s got a good amount of conflict, adrenaline and drama.

I’m not jumping up and down about Taken 2, but I had a good hour-and-a-half with it. 

RATING: 7/10

Les Destinées Sentimentales

180 mins | Foreign, Drama, Romance | Release Date: July 12, 2000 (France)

English Title: Sentimental Destinies
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Emmanuelle Béart, Charles Berling & Isabelle Huppert
Language: French; with English subtitles

Les  Destinées Sentimentales is an adaptation of Jacques Chardonne's epic novel. It examines the first four decades of the 20th  century through the lives of Jean Barnery (Charles Berling), his unconventional wife Pauline (Emmanuelle Béart) and his obssesive ex-wife Nathalie  (Isabelle Huppert).

The film's intention to follow moments through time was achieved. But it was exhausting at 3 hours of run time. There was just too much screen time for those heavy conversations, and an extensive focus on the finer points of  porcelain-making. LOL. For such a long running time, you would think that Les  Destinées Sentimentales would have perfected characterization. Wrong. The film was devoid of audience interpretation because it's a mere visual track of the  characters. Assayas' camera  would just follow the many characters, not too many observational moments. The transitions were weak, time would pass with little to no indication, or the characters would suddenly be in a specific emotion in the next scene but no attempt  to show how they arrived there.

The film was sensitive, but disappointing. It was over-extended and in spite of the elements to a period flick being present -- set in a small village, a devoutly Protestant  porcelain empire in Limoges, the Swiss Alps, and World War I -- it lacked the period movie breadth like how the Italian's would do it. Not even the beauty of Béart nor the shaky camera technique used throughout the movie could hold our attention for such a long time.

Oh well, this was Olivier Assayas' first period film, a departure from his contemporary works. That's a valid excuse for the film, I guess.

RATING: 5/10

Ladder 49 (2004)

PG-13  | 115 mins  | Action, Drama | October 1, 2004 (USA)

Director: Jay Russell

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, John Travolta, and Jacinda Barrett

Gets me everytime. Firefighters are definitely unsung heroes.

RATING: 9/10