changmoh

"Brave" is basically a mother-daughter tale set in the Scottish Highlands and spiced with mirth, myth and magic. It is suitably action-packed and centred around a young red-haired heroine that most of today's young girls can relate with. However, its magical elements tend to run away with the story and leave older viewers dissatisfied.

The heroine is Merida (Kelly MacDonald), a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old suitor custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: the massive Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane). Merida's actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Witch (Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it's too late.

The first half of "Brave" is suitably absorbing, fleshing out the characters and personalities, especially of Merida and her mother who are the strongest individuals in conflict against each other. The others in the cast, especially the males, are mostly presented as caricatures, with all of them behaving like buffoons. The free-spirited Merida will not take her pick of them as her suitor - despite Queen Elinor's attempts to bend her daughter's will to the dictates of custom and tradition.

The story gets a bit weirder in the second half when it takes on a body-switch twist. From this point on, the battle of wills between mother and daughter is all but put aside as our attention turns to Merida's new crisis. Some reviewers have attributed the movie's lack of plot coherence to the fact that story creator Brenda Chapman left the project midway, leaving Mark Andrews to maintain the directorial reins. I wish to stay neutral on this debate.

However, I get the feeling that the plot is missing something when we consider that Merida, in pursuing her right to be 'liberated' rejects all suitors, but leaves her future and that of her 'kingdom' unresolved. Verdict: Not as memorable as "Finding Nemo" and "Up", but entertaining for the kids, nonetheless. (Full review at limchangmoh.blogspot.com)

From the title, it is obvious that this is NOT the Abe Lincoln that we know from the history books. The curiosity factors aroused by this film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov of "Wanted" {2008} and "Daywatch" {2006} fame, are how creatively the film-makers 'bastardise' American history, and the set action pieces that Bekmambetov and his crew have set up. The answer: They are impressive but a bit ludicrous. Adapted from the book by Seth Grahame-Smith (who also wrote the screenplay), the film chronicles the loss of Abe's mother (Robin MacLeavy) at the hands of a vampire when Abe is still a child. This serves as the motivating factor for Abe's (Benjamin Walker) subsequent vampire hunting mission and his burgeoning career as a lawyer and politician to, finally, his Presidency during the Civil War. Along the way, he kills countless bloodsuckers led by the vile and vicious Adam (Rufus Sewell) as part of his secret war against the undead. The movie is obviously a mix of biopic and horror flick but it fails at both, and ends up being an expensive action film. This is evident in the story which has Abe wielding an ax against the marauding vampires instead of guns with silver bullets. With the ax, we get blood splashes and dramatic combat action - the sort of targets Bekmambetov usually aims for. Still, two of his set pieces stand out: a rodeo-styled chase during a horse stampede, and a climactic fight on a runaway train speeding across a burning bridge. I am not really a fan of the main vampire plot which borders on the ridiculous but Grahame-Smith provides a few interesting and absorbing subplots, namely the relationship between Abe and his wife Mary Todd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). There is chemistry between Walker and Winstead that makes us care about and believe in this absurd version of the First Couple. Also, Walker, who looks like a young Liam Neeson (he has played the younger version of Neeson's title character in Kinsey), exudes the simple and honest charm one normally associates with Abe Lincoln. Hence, bravo to the casting department. One the minus side, the anti-slavery subplot and his rise to the Presidency are given the short shrift; and the man-vs-vampire clashes are so absurd that we are constantly reminded that this is revisionist pulp fiction trying to get on the bandwagon of "Twilight"'s popularity.

We have two Snow White offerings this year but the two turn out to be as different as day and night. While "Mirror Mirror" is a comedy spoof aimed at families, "Snow White and The Huntsman" is a darker fantasy for young adults, sans the adult-type visuals and humor.

Director Rupert Sanders, making his feature debut on a screenplay by Evan Daugherty and John Lee Hancock, maintains a murky and gritty narrative that stretches over more than two bottom-numbing hours. Yes, it's somewhat like taking the Grimm tale into "Game Of Thrones" territory, complete with lofty cliffs and expansive snowy locales.

This alternate version set in medieval Europe has a witch named Ravenna (Charlize Theron) as the evil stepmother who kills the king on their wedding night, seizes the throne and imprisons Snow White (Kristen Stewart) in a tower dungeon. Somehow, Snow White manages to escape not to the woods but to the Dark Forest where the queen's magic has no effect.

To get Snow White back, the queen and her beloved brother (Sam Spruell) 'hire' a nameless Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) to track her down. Meanwhile, Snow White's former childhood playmate (Sam Clafin as William) is also looking for her, setting up the love triangle that Stewart of the "Twilight Saga" is now so famous for. What about the Dwarfs? you ask. Well, they come in rather late in the movie - and none are whistling while they work. They do sing, surprisingly.

On the plus side, I like the breath-taking landscapes and fantasy sets that remind us of those in "Lord Of The Rings" and "Princess Mononoke". These help to ground the fantasy with a touch of credulity besides enhancing the movie's eye-candy value. Ditto that for the fabulous costumes by Colleen Atwood.

I also like the way the dwarfs (eight here, not the usual seven) are being portrayed by top British stars the likes of Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, Ray Winstone, Nick Frost, Eddie Marsan, Johnny Harris, Brian Gleeson and Toby Jones who are computer-digitized to look half their size. They provide comic relief and a touch of rough humor in an otherwise solemn and brooding film.

As for the minuses, the most outstanding is Kristen Stewart whose range of expressions alternates between pouting petulance and silent rage. In other words, she is still playing Bella Swan here. Well, one can easily argue that her Snow White probably gets that attitude after being shut up in the dungeon for so many years. I am inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt, having seen her play the audacious teen rocker Joan Jett in "The Runaways". I believe she can act better if directed to do so. Theron is good although she tends to overact, bursting into her evil rages ever so often; and Hemsworth provides the beefcake moments.

My other gripe is the overstretched length of the film in which the film-makers try their utmost to provide character psycho-analyses for the evil Queen and even the Huntsman. This is quite unnecessary in a popular fairy tale and it just cramps the movie with too much baggage. All in all, it is a derivative but highly watchable fare. Full review and pictures at limchangmoh.blogspot.com