The movie is situated in 1950s, in which two US Marshals were sent to the Ashecliffe Hospital on the Shutter Island. The hospital is an asylum for the criminally insane. Leonardo DiCaprio is paired with Mark Ruffalo playing as the Marshals. Their mission was to investigate a patient, Rachel Solando, who escaped and went missing from the hospital. The only clue was a small note found in her room which says “the law of 4, who is number 67?”. Ted Daniels (DiCaprio) found many strange things in the investigation, in which he started to doubt and suspect everyone in the hospital including his own partner, Chuck (Ruffalo). The hospital is hiding a secret and it will not let Ted blows it. As the investigation progresses, Ted is also getting flashbacks from his WWII experience with the Nazis, which makes his mind and actions more intense to uncover the truth.

Martin Scorsese once again presents his mastermind, the kind that will make people hate and love his movies at the same time. A big fan would probably go so-so with this movie because they expect more. But I love the movie because it’s a mind boggling, dark but not violent, and it lets me to interpret the story based on the visuals and the dialogs. I read in one or two forums people go crazy debating the ending hahaha… Cool stuff!

The movie was based on 2003 novel by Dennis Lehane of the same title, and is also known as “Ashecliffe”.

My rating: 5/6

The poster may look a little creepy, but the movie is far from that. I would say it’s a thrilling drama with occasional creepy visuals. The title literally means Men Who Hate Women and known worldwide as The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. The main plot revolves on sexual violence against women, the Swedish anti-Semites generation and psychological disorder themes. Scenes on violence are shown not too detailed but strong enough to make me feel sick. It’s brilliant by the way, because I get the emphasis it wants me to feel without driving me away from the grotesqueness. For a non-Hollywood, this movie is fresh and a crowd-pleaser especially with the gripping performance of Rapace. Although, I also feel that sometimes it’s a bit too much, that everything can be solved just by a single person. Directed by Niels Arden Oplev.

The movie is based on the trilogy books by Stieg Larsson. The other two books have also been made movies: The Girl Who Played with Fire (2009) and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest (2010). Larsson died in 2004. The movie’s Hollywood adaptation is planned for a release later this year.

My rating: 5/6

Parker Wilson (Richard Gere) is a university professor who found Hachi in the station at one evening. At that time Hachi was still a puppy. Unable to find the puppy’s owner while the station master refused to shelter it, Wilson took Hachi home only to grow fond of it. Year after year, Hachi walked with Wilson to the station and it waited until Wilson came back from work in the evening. Hachi waited at the same spot everyday, even years until Wilson passed away. Hachi had actually been adopted by Wilson’s daughter who moved to a different part of the town after she got married, but Hachi always managed to run away and went back to his spot at the station waiting for his only master.

Honestly, although the story is touchy and I dropped tears when Hachi finally meets with Wilson again, the movie itself goes on slow pace and lacks of something that would make it more enjoyable to watch. Don’t ask me what. Gere is charming, as always. He suited to play a kindhearted professor like Wilson. The dogs that play Hachi are also cute and lovely to see. But still, the overall movie is just nice. It is still heartwarming and a good one to watch with the family.

My rating: 3/6

My rating: 2/6

Teenager Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) is a homeless boy surviving on his own. Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) invites the boy to her family home, when she saw him walking in the cold wearing thin clothing. The Tuohy family then started to involve Michael on their family activities and soon enough he becomes part of them. Now that Michael is having a new home to live in and proper clothing to wear, the Tuohys move to help finding Michael’s potential both academically and in sports. Not only Michael’s life is changing, but the Tuohys also discover their true happiness.

As a fan of Sandra Bullock, it’s refreshing to watch her playing in a more serious role, less funky expressions, although here and there you can feel her as ‘the’ Sandra Bullock. Even in this movie, she’s still that daring, bubbly and no-nonsense individual. Somehow, I started to think her as the new Julia Roberts. The movie was based on Michael Lewis’s 2006 book, “The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game”.

My rating: 4/6

Kalau harus ngomong tentang Star Trek, sejujurnya aku nggak paham dan bukan fans berat. Tapi film ini luar biasa karena mampu memikat penonton yang mungkin nggak kenal Star Trek sama sekali. This movie really got me hooked! Selama 2 jam running time, aku bisa menangis haru menonton kehancuran USS Enterprise atau terbawa kesedihan yang dialami karakter-karakternya, tertawa geli sambil kasihan melihat Kirk berdiri tanpa tujuan karena tidak di-assign ke pesawat manapun, ikutan sewot dan gemas menonton Spock yang berhati dingin, semuanya serba WOW! Bahkan kostum yang dipakai Winona Ryder pun terlihat kocak in a good way haha…

Karakter Spock yang diperankan Zachary Quinto memang sangat menonjol. Mimik wajah, gestures bahkan dialognya menyedot perhatian. Hal ini diimbangi dengan Chris Pine yang memang diposisikan sebagai hero. Good balance, great visuals, great music dan great actors memang kunci kesuksesan film ini. Dan yang paling notable, setiap scene dibuat menjadi bagian penting dari keseluruhan film. Visual yang gelap dan tenang pelan-pelan dibawa ke hiruk-pikuk war zone yang gempita. Di tengah kondisi kacau balau, scene dibuat slow motion untuk mempertunjukkan details kekacauan dan menciptakan efek tenteram bagi penonton. Ah, film ini memang luar biasa.

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Her ongoing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life forms and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.

My rating: 6/6

This is the story about con artists who swindle money from the rich people through con stories. Stephen and Bloom begin their con men profession since they were teenagers when they moved from one foster house to another. Stephen is the mastermind, while Bloom is the younger brother who’s introvert personality perfects the con stories. Twenty five years later, Bloom decides to quit after one last con. Being the mastermind, Stephen knows for sure what Bloom is actually looking for. Stephen sets up a perfect con for his brother which include a wealthy heiress with dramatic personality so exciting that Bloom can never refuse.

I particularly like the vulnerable character of Bloom (Adrien Brody) and the multi-talented and electrifying Penelope (Rachel Weisz). The other pair, Ruffalo and Kikuchi, were also good, but the first couple steal the scenes most of the times. Occasionally, Kikuchi’s character is too comical and annoying. I guess that’s part of the humour. Story-wise, the movie is very exciting and enjoyable, although the ending lacks the promising charm it offers since the beginning. I still don’t understand the scene inside the old theater when Stephen sat alone and dying just to perfect the con story with reality. I mean, what’s the point? Can he just continue his life while his brother chooses a different path? Maybe that’s the cliche we’re all avoiding hahaha…

My rating: 4/6

Rasanya aneh menonton film tentang sastrawan Rusia, tentang kehidupan dan keluarganya, menyebut nama-mana Rusia, tapi semua orang berbicara bahasa Inggris dengan fasih, kecuali ketika ada massa yang berkumpul dan mereka berbicara dalam bahasa asing. Mungkin merupakan kendala besar untuk dapat mengangkat kisah hidup Leo Tolstoy dengan menggunakan aktor-aktor Rusia dan tetap menjadikannya tontonan yang komersil dan menarik.

Selain kecanggungan berbahasa seperti yang aku ungkapkan diatas, selebihnya film ini adalah tontonan nikmat. Aku bahkan ikut tersedu-sedu di bagian-bagian yang memang harus menguras air mata (yeaaah… that’s me). Ujung-ujungnya memang film ini seperti dibuat untuk bersimpati pada Sophia dengan membiarkan Vladimir konsisten menjadi antagonist yang mencoba memisahkan Tolstoy dari belahan jiwanya. Akting Helen Mirren bagus sekali sebagai seorang perempuan yang terancam. Kemungkinan besar aku akan melakukan hal serupa jika aku adalah Sophia. Sedangkan Paul Giamatti, well, aktingnya untuk peran ini seperti pengulangan karakternya di film The Illusionist (2006). Not bad, but not refreshing either.

My rating: 4/6

For a comedy, this movie has its moments that make me raise eyebrows, chuckled, did single laughs here and there. Not for the whole movie though. It’s not funny funny, but it’s entertaining for anyone who can appreciate dry humor.

My rating: 3/6

I feel that this movie has so much to offer, especially with the story and the casts, but somehow in the middle the movie became tedious. I understand this movie was based on true events and may be trying to depict the real thing straight forward. But there should be some ways to reduce the cliche while keeping the main message going still. I mean, this movie is a feel-good movie, it’s inspiring to lift up human spirit especially to those who have everything to lose, so it’s a guarantee to get attentions just by reading the tag lines. But it desperately needs to work harder to keep all the attentions during the 2 hours run. I wouldn’t recommend anyone watching this on the theater, people may dozed off.

My rating: 2/6