Red Riding Hood (2011)

Director: Catherine Hardwicke

Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Billy Burke

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: The big, bad wolf is back to haunt an all grown up Red Riding Hood.

High point of the movie is its commendable set design against a beautiful backdrop.The opening panoramic scene capturing winter clad mountains, frozen lakes, deep valleys, never-ending waterfalls, castle, etc. is breathtakingly beautiful. 

It is shot in a medieval village, constructed entirely of wood, surrounded by snow covered peaks and dense oak forest. You so want to 'be' in the movie to experience this splendor of nature! Otherwise, it is the same old fairy tale with a slight twist.

Sadly, these are the only good things that can be said of the movie. Acting is mediocre, Gary Oldman is completely wasted. Amanda Seyfried has shown vast improvement from her last role in “Chloe.” Unlike artificial Chloe, she looks beautiful here.

The movie had a substantial enough plot to engage the popcorn-cinema-going audience, plus there was the general curiosity factor for others too. Some sincere effort in the scripting/directing part would have made it a sure winner. But that wasn’t to be. So a mere:

6/10

Sanctum (2011)

Director: Alister Grierson

Cast: Rhys Wakefield , Richard Roxburgh, Ioan Gruffudd, Dan Wyllie

Genre: Adventure

Plot: A group of explorers trapped  underneath an unpredictable cave system must find a way out.

Visually spectacular and adventurously enticing--these are the only high points of the movie!

 

The canvas shot of Esa'ala Cave (cave-mouth shown in the movie is actually Cave of Swallows, Mexico) leaves you literally spellbound. All the underwater scenes are shot so immaculately that one can’t believe they were filmed in a studio!

Sanctum is partly based on real life events where a team of explorers face life-threatening circumstances in an underwater cave diving expedition. Their aim is to find an unmapped route from within the cave system to the sea.

The script is poor and acting is mostly mediocre.

I personally enjoy exploring caves but still didn’t find Sanctum as appealing as “The Descent,” even though former had better visuals.  

6.2/10                                              

I Am Number Four (2011)

Director: D.J. Caruso.

Cast: Alex Pettyfer, Dianna Agron, Timothy Olyphant, Teresa Palmer

Genre: Sci-Fi

Plot: Some aliens are fighting and Earth is the battleground.

John Smith (Pettyfer) along with eight others escaped from his home planet Lorien as a child.

Lorien is under attack by Mogadorians. On Earth he has to keep a low profile as suggested by his guardian Henri. John has to keep moving and eventually comes to a Paradise, Ohio where he meets Sarah (Dianna) and falls in love. John now inherits his parents abilities and with the help of number 6 (Teresa Palmer, who is trying to look hot) eradicates the pursuing Mogadorians.

    

Sounds familiar? No wonders. Michael Bay is the producer of film!

 

The obvious SFX are there, as always in a Bay production.

There is nothing worthwhile in the movie, acting is terrible and direction even worse.

Timothy Olyphant as Henri is beyond irritating and definitely deserves a Razzie!

Still some teenagers, growing on a staple diet of uncreative computer-generated visuals and completely unoriginal science fiction stories, might moderately enjoy it.

Oh yes! The pre-credits brief soundtrack by Kings of Leon is somewhat hummable. The only respite in almost 1hr 40 minutes!

5.5/10

Der Untergang (2004, German)

Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel

Cast: Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara and Ulrich Matthes

Genre: History, Biography

Plot: 'The Downfall' is a peek at Hitler's last ten days through the eyes of his young secretary.

This is the best portrayal of a paranoid Adolf Hitler (Bruno Ganz) that you will ever see onscreen. The war at Berlin is backdrop of the movie and it focuses on life and affected psyche of the Nazis.

Such is the solidity of Bruno Ganz's performance that halfway through the movie,\ you actually feel for Hitler and curse the traitor Generals, SS etc.

Hitler is delusional in his optimism and is moving now non-existent armies to save the third Reich. His leaders are saving their own lives but some are still standing by his side--especially women and young children who are still fighting and dying as heroes for their Fuhrer.

Even though doubtful of his leadership, senior leader and adviser Speer is faithful and a friend to Hitler. He himself disobeyed Fuhrer’s direct controversial orders for the love of German citizen and Hitler's own good. Devout mothers are willing to sacrifice their children realizing that the future Germany won't be Hitler's dreamt, "Germania."

Der Untergang is a detailed study of those final days at the Third Reich. It captures the horror and confusion of people involved that could only be felt by watching this masterpiece.

8.5/10

Donnie Darko (2001)

Director: Richard Kelly

Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Holmes Osborne, Maggie Gyllenhaal

Genre: Sci-fi, Mystery

Plot: Donnie Darko sacrifices himself to save his family and love without their ever knowing it. And how it all happens? One can always miss a trick in figuring that out!

Indeed one of the most complicated movies ever!

Without spoiling any plot details what you need to know is: there is a mysterious man-grown Bunny who makes a boy named Donnie do some strange things. This Bunny might be a hallucination or a time-traveler from future or Donnie might be caught in a time loop, or traveling back from a tangent universe! If you are into hocus-pocus then add a ‘Magic’ angle to it!

The director’s cut, including scenes about a book "The Philosophy of Time Travel" written by a character in the movie Grandma Death, makes it comparatively easier to understand. Otherwise, the varied explanations of the movie...to each his own!

Possibilities are infinite with this mind boggling piece of cinema! Try one yourself and ponder over it :)

8.5/10