Now playing in Pattaya
Captain America: The First Avenger: US, Action/
Adventure/ Sci-Fi/ Thriller – Really a lot of old-fashioned fun, and by old I
mean a steady camera- not jiggly as is the current fashion, and action you can
follow rather than a blur of images. And solid, confident film-making, so you
feel that you’re in the hands of experts. And an old time, World War II era with
a terrific and detailed evocation of the time and the wartime mood. And a good,
old-fashioned Hollywood musical number.
After being deemed unfit for military service, Steve Rogers
(Chris Evans) volunteers for a top secret research project that turns him into
Captain America, a superhero dedicated to defending America’s ideals. Three
cheers for the Red, White, and Blue!! Has fine performances by Evans, Hugo
Weaving, Tommy Lee Jones, Stanley Tucci, and several others.
How did the moviemakers get Chris Evans so skinny to begin
with? No, not diet. Not a body double, with Evans’ head superimposed. It was
done by computer – a variation of the program that shows how a person ages. This
one simply showing how a person would look much skinnier, based on how he looks
now. This was applied to all the shots of Evans as a 97-lb weakling, but this
created a problem. All around him was empty space where his body used to be, but
with no information on how to fill it up. This meant they had to shoot all these
early scenes against a blue screen, so the background could be added later. So
the real Chris Evans is the muscular one, and the skinny one is a trick.
Way at the end, after the seemingly endless credits, there
are secret scenes from future films in the series. I’m looking forward to them.
Playing in both 2D and 3D versions in English at Pattaya
Beach, in 2D and English at Major, and in 3D and Thai-dubbed at Big C. Generally
favorable reviews.
Horrible Bosses: US, Comedy/ Crime – It’s been called a
bouncy, well-built, delightfully nasty tale of resentment, desperation, and
amoral revenge. Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell, Jason Bateman, and Kevin Spacey
are nasty, uneven, and funny. Rated R in the US for crude and sexual content,
pervasive language, and some drug material. Mixed or average reviews. Major
Cineplex only, in Digital (but not 3D).
Rise of the Planet of the Apes: (Scheduled) US,
Action/ Drama/ Sci-Fi/ Thriller – Set in present day San Francisco, the film is
a reality-based cautionary tale, a science fiction/science fact blend, where
man’s experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of
intelligence in apes, and the onset of a war for supremacy. This is a reboot of
the original Planet of the Apes film series. It will start fresh with a
new continuity. Using great advances in the performance- capturing technology
pioneered in Avatar, this is the first in the series where the apes are
not played by costumed actors, but are something much more realistic – I mean
truly; just wait till you see them! With Andy Serkis, Freida Pinto, and James
Franco. (And stay through the credits!)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2: US, Action/
Adventure/ Sci-Fi – Go see it. You know you will eventually anyway. This, the
final Harry Potter, is an exciting and massively eventful finale that
will grip and greatly please anyone who has been at all a fan of the series up
to now. It’s powerfully acted and visually dazzling. The entire series of Potter
books and motion pictures has been leading us to this final showdown between
Harry and Voldemort. The fight here between good and evil is more than
satisfying. It’s thrilling – carrying an ultimate message that will resonate
with every viewer, young or old: there is darkness in all of us, but we can
overcome it.
It’s much better than the book, in my opinion, which has
sections that are so preposterous that no amount of suspension of disbelief can
overcome. Playing now only in a 2D version at all three cinemas, in English
except at Big C, where it’s Thai-dubbed. Reviews: one of the rare films to be
labeled by Metacritic as “Universal acclaim.”
The Moon (Pumpuang Duangjan): Thai, Drama/ Musical – The
biography of Pumpuang Duangjan, considered the Queen of Thai country music. The
rags-to-riches story charts her successes in the 1980’s up to her early death in
1992 at the age of 31. One of the most anticipated Thai films of the year, and
with a newcomer in the starring role. Prettified as biography, with reportedly
anything that shows anyone in a bad light changed or deleted.
Wu xia / Swordsmen / Dragon: Hong Kong, Action/ Drama –
Invariably described as a martial arts version of David Cronenberg’s A
History of Violence, with violence so intense as to rate 18+ in Thailand,
this is nevertheless definitely a thinking man’s action film. Reviews give high
marks to director Peter Chan and star Donnie Yen. What a shame that films of
this type always arrive here in dreadful Thai-dubbed versions and without any
English subtitles, thus preventing these sometimes excellent films from being
appreciated by large portions of a potential audience. Thai-dubbed only. Not at
Major. 18+.
The Lost Bladesman: Hong Kong, Action/ Biography/ Drama/
History – This historical martial arts film set in AD 200 is adapted from the
story of Guan Yu crossing five passes and slaying six generals, as told in Luo
Guanzhong’s historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Most
reviewers claim it’s confusing, some admit to not understanding a thing, but
being very impressed with the fine balance between sweeping epic and intimate
personal drama. With superstar Donnie Yen, in a second film this week. Generally
favorable reviews. Another interesting film that’s unfortunately Thai-dubbed
only; only at Major.
Hanna: (Still scheduled) US, Action/ Crime/
Mystery – A really weird one, sort of a cross between a Euro Art Film and an
ass-kicking female action flick like those of Thailand’s own Jeeja
(Chocolate). Hanna (played by Saoirse Ronan) is a teenage girl with the
strength, the stamina, and the smarts of a solider; these come from being raised
by her father (Eric Bana), an ex-CIA man, in the wilds of Finland. Her
upbringing and training have been one and the same, all geared to making her the
perfect assassin. The turning point in her adolescence is a sharp one; sent into
the world by her father on a mission, Hanna journeys stealthily across Europe
while eluding agents dispatched after her by a ruthless intelligence operative
with secrets of her own (Cate Blanchett). An odd film with odd actions done for
obscure reasons, but entertaining and intriguing. Generally favorable reviews.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon: US, Action/ Adventure/
Sci-Fi – The opening 12 or so minutes I think is magnificent movie-making:
exciting and provocative, beautifully shot, great story, involving. Then we get
the titles and the beginning of the story of the two stars, the incredibly
irritating Shia LaBeouf and his girlfriend played by Victoria’s Secret model
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who is dreadful. The movie falls to pieces in my eyes
whenever their story is front and center, only to be further undermined by the
silly and incredibly noisy battles of the tinker toys. Set against the space
race between the USSR and the USA, the film re-imagines the reasons for the
race.
This has been a big 2D and 3D spectacular at all Pattaya
locations, and has been continuing in 3D at Pattaya Beach in its new second
cinema devoted to digital 3D films. In 2D at the other locations, and
Thai-dubbed at Big C. The 3D is the best I’ve seen since Avatar. A lot of
care went into that aspect by the studio and director Michael Bay. Mixed or
average reviews.
Gancore Gud: Thai, Comedy/ Horror – Usual Thai
horror-comedy mix of boobs and severed limbs, this time with gangsta rap. It’s
written and directed by hip-hop guru Joey Boy and stars him and his hip-hop
group Gancore Club. The group is stuck on a remote island, where their paradise
turns to horror as they encounter bloody islanders who love to kill people, and
zombies that rise up from the sea. In Thai only at Big C, English subtitles
elsewhere. Rated 18+.
