Tag Archives: Review

The Lion King (3D) – Movie Review

This is probably the toughest movie review I have to do. Simply because there’s no way you can judge Lion King without being substantially biased. After all, out of all the movies I’ve reviewed so far, this is probably the one that has been around with me the most.

Back when it was first released in 1994, I remember obsessing over Timon, Pumba and Simba. Five year old me had those drinking cups with figurines on top from which you nuzzled water or juice. I remember also buying a $20 book filled with pictures from the movie, retelling the story. That book passed away soon after due to my overwhelming interest in the pictures and some accidental water damage.

I also remember being amazed by the scene when Mufasa appears to Simba towards the end of the movie to remind him who he truly is. And five year old death-ignoring me had no idea what that meant. So my parents’ explanation was: his father was alive all this time, taking care of him without Simba knowing.

Yes, there’s a lot of history in all our lives that revolves around The Lion King. If there’s one Disney movie that touched generations, it’s this one. Hakuna matata, anyone?

So it was with childish glee that I went to the movie theatre with my friends Elia and Paul to watch the 3D re-release of this movie. In my head, any 3D re-release is a shameless way to make money out of an already lucrative movie. And naturally, being the sucker that I am for such sentimentalies, I couldn’t resist. After all, who could resist watching The Lion King – or any Disney movie from your childhood for that matter – in full surround sound, on the big screen, in a movie theatre, which is something most of us didn’t get the opportunity to do, becoming stuck with worn out video cassettes that got played over and over again?

The moment the opening music starts – that deafening shriek that should be trademarked – you know you’re in for a ride. I will skip the usual plot framework that I do in my reviews because I believe whoever ends up reading this has watched the movie at least forty five times in their lives, six of which are in the recent five years. Therefore, no need for me to reiterate the obvious.

And the ride continues. You listen to songs like “Circle of Life” and you can’t help but feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Yes, apparently Disney still has that effect on me. (I’m pretty sure it has that effect on you too. Admit it. Now.) As the movie proceeds, the 3D in it appears seamless. It doesn’t jump out at you like in movies where 3D was a last minute post-production decision to bring in more money.

The surround sound experience of The Lion King was a revelation of how absolutely kick ass the music in it is. Yes, I used that terminology. And you would too if you got goosebumps every time that somber music plays. We’ve all grown to appreciate the music in The Lion King. But it wasn’t as obvious – at least to me – as it was when I watched it with a full blown sound system.
And let me tell you, The Lion King is a very witty movie. I never knew there were so much jokes in it, most of which are uncannily smart. It could be that all my previous screenings of the movie were via my French-dubbed version, but this was another revelation for me.

Do I recommend you going to watch the movie about the coming of age of the innocent cub as he transforms into a lion? Absolutely. Why? Because out of all the other options of movies at your local theatre, this is the only movie from which you are guaranteed to come out with a grin. Out of all those movies, this is the only one where a twenty five year old guy sitting next to you would be singing along to Hakuna matata. And yes, you would be too. And out of all those movies, this is only one that will touch you the same way it did when you first watched it seventeen years ago.

The Lion King is a timeless movie that transcends generations. It is a tale about survival, betrayal, importance of family and love. It is a tale that ought to stay with us every day of our life. It is a movie that doesn’t shy away from hurt – even if it is masked often by protective parents and their explanations. The Lion King is a movie for the ages. And we are lucky we happened to be those ages.

For your general info, my favorite Disney movie ever, Beauty and the Beast, will be re-released in 3D on January. Yes, I’m uber excited too.

Bridesmaids – Movie Review

Where do I start?

Over 90% in positive reviews according to Rotten Tomatoes, written by those responsible for the hilarious Saturday Night Live skits and brought to the screen by those that gave us Knocked Up and The 40 Year Old Virgin. Mix these together and you get a pretty high expectation level for Bridesmaids. Some had even called it the comedy of the year, a possible “Hangover”-esque comedy with women in power.

I don’t want to sound anti-feminist but Bridesmaids fails miserably.

Annie (Kristen Wiig) and Liliane (Maya Rudolph) have been best friends since they were little girls. When Liliane gets engaged, she chooses Annie to be her maid of honor. And then they meet the other bridesmaids: a neurotic woman named Helen (Rose Byrn), a newlywed Becca (Ellie Kemper), a tomboy-ish Megan (Melissa McCarthy) and a frustrated mother and wife named Rita (Wendy McLendon-Covey).

Naturally, the bridesmaids won’t get along well as conflict between Helen, who wants to be Liliane’s best friend, and Annie soon arises. And this is the movie’s catalyst (or lack thereof): how the characters interact.

Starting off with a sex scene and going into the monotonous life of a woman and her best friend, the movie sets itself as a chick-flick from the get-go. And it doesn’t really try to stray from that connotation until about the 45th minute. And that’s a lot of baggage for a movie to try to get rid off with one scene that involves a dress fitting gone seriously wrong after some Brazilian food poisoning.

Yes, you will laugh your ass off at that scene and start hoping that the movie has picked up but you will be severely disappointed.

And what do you know, single Annie soon enough meets her own prince charming in the form of a police officer who pulls her over because he thought she was driving under the influence of alcohol. Rhodes (Chris O’Dowd) soon embarks on a troubled relationship with Annie that doesn’t really unfold and is left as a side story more in the realms of cliche than of a true relationship.

Bridesmaids is a terribly slow movie as well. The plot lingers on so many irrelevant points that it doesn’t feel like moving at all. And mind you, I had no idea this was a two hour movie. It’s almost longer than Harry Potter. No comedy is supposed to take this long to unfold, especially one with so little jokes and so many useless dialogue.

The acting in Bridesmaids is pretentious as well. Not only is it agonizing to watch at times, but it’s also as rickety as the joints of a creaky table. Some have called Kristen Wiig’s performance a breakthrough. Excuse me, but have we watched the same movie? She’s not even the character that delivers the good jokes in the movie, it’s tomboy-ish Megan. And Helen, the movie’s “villain” is so marinated in everything cliche about the perfectionist wedding planner than seeing her on screen initiates your gag reflex.

Let me put it this way, Bridesmaids was so bad that a friend who watched the movie with me and who hates anything in the fantasy genre wished she had watched Harry Potter instead. And I was mortified that I had actually suggested we’d watch such a movie. I’m pretty sure a third screening of Harry would have been much more enjoyable than seeing a bunch of women make a joke of themselves by vomiting, cracking jokes about blowjobs, diarrhea and getting wasted on airplanes.

Let me try to grade this. 3/10

Skyscraper (Single Review) – Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato is not a typical artist that I’d listen to. On the contrary, she’s quite far from my cup of tea. Disney star, you automatically assume she’s in the same group as Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and other stars of the same franchise. However, unlike them, life hasn’t always been peachy for Demi. I refuse to believe that Miley’s current “problems” are really problems and Selena Gomez having to suffer because of Justin Bieber’s rabid fanbase doesn’t exactly count.

Demi, however, has had to fight bulimia and body issues and bullying, which led her to cutting. Keep in mind that she’s only 18. And it’s in that context that the artist presents her latest single: Skyscraper.

She starts the piano-driven song with a weak whisper: “Skies are crying, I am watching… catching teardrops in my hands. Only silence as it’s ending like we never had a chance. Do you have to make me feel like there’s nothing of me?”

But even with her pain and weakness, she tries to say that nothing can bring her down on the chorus: “you can take everything I have. You can break everything I am, like I’m made of glass, like I’m made of paper. Go on and try to tear me down, I will be rising from the ground like a skyscraper…”

As she finishes the first chorus, she gains strength that goes into the song’s second verse: “As the smoke clears, I awaken and untangle you from me. Would it make feel better, to watch me while I bleed? All my windows, still are broken. But I’m standing on my feet,” before delivering a stronger rendition of the chorus.

Then she goes to the song’s bridge, which is also another step up in the vocal strength department. “Go run, run, run, I’m gonna stay right here, watch you disappear,” she fiercely sings. “Go run, run, run, yeah, it’s a long way down but I’m closer to the clouds up here,” before she goes into a final rendition of the song’s chorus that starts off with a whisper before she goes full on vocally in what could only be described as an overwhelmingly emotional conclusion. You can feel her voice somewhat break off in tears towards the end.

And it’s precisely that. Skyscraper is the progression of the person who has been wronged. You start off trying to make sense of your problem, rightfully convincing yourself that you’re not the one mistaken here. But even though you’re the one in the right, you are still weak. But as you go on, you gain strength. You realize that you’re not a two-story house that anyone can bring down, you’re a full-blown skyscraper that touches the skies. You realize your own strength.

And it’s because it’s deeply personal that Skyscraper simply works. And it works brilliantly. Demi Lovato emotes with ease because the song reflects her struggle. Even without hearing the lyrics, you can deduce the song’s contents from her impeccable delivery. And it is precisely from her pain and anguish that something like Skyscraper can raise.

Skyscraper may not be the most radio-friendly song for any artist to have as their lead single. But with something like this, who cares? For all matters and purposes, one would be proud to buy a song like Skyscraper, a song that is brimming to the tip with essence and emotion.

Demi recently tweeted that this single is more than a song for her. She said the strength the song represents of the journey she has been on would give other people who are going through dark moments as well the faith and inspiration to face their problems like she did. And even though it’s just a song, the power that Skyscraper represents is the ability to make you feel better. The best analogy for this song would be a phoenix rising from the ashes. By the end, it flies away to the clouds where no one can try to damage it.

Listen to Skyscraper:

4 (Album Review) – Beyonce

Beyonce - 4 - album cover

I have to admit. When I first heard “Run The World” my expectations for this album by Beyonce sank lower than the Dead Sea. I am not the biggest Beyonce fan but I’ve come to appreciate her as an artist and come to like a few of her songs (Halo, Sweet Dreams, If I Were A Boy, Listen, Irreplaceable…) so it was with caution that I approached listening to this album.

And it is drastically different from what I expected it to be. If the norm is for an artist to release a sample of the album’s sound with the leading single, Beyonce simply shattered that. “Run The World” has nothing to do with any other song on the album. And that’s a very, very good thing.

4 is an album full of ballads where Beyonce showcases her amazing vocals. She’s the kind of artists that’s always underestimated when it comes to her vocal chops, mostly because she caters to an audience that doesn’t really care about such things. So with 4, she shows impeccable growth in that department and she delivers the album that she wanted to make, regardless of how much it would sell or how well radio would respond to its singles.

4 is also an album that could well be the exact theme opposite of the Adele’s brilliant “21”. Where the latter was an album about sweet heartbreak, 4 is an album about falling in love. Even the heartbreak ballads on 4 are songs about how Beyonce still has love for her significant other.

The album opens with the gut-wrenching ballad “1+1”, which I reviewed earlier after Beyonce debuted it in an impeccable performance on American Idol. And if you thought that performance was great, a video of Beyonce singing the song in her dressing room for select friends and family where she was even better, showing that what you get on stage is who she is – not just a synthetically improved gimmick.

The album continues to a song titled “I Care,” a balland about Beyonce’s significant other not caring about her anymore but she can’t help it that she still cares about him. On “I Miss You,” Beyonce sings: “It hurts my pride to tell how I feel but I still need to… I miss you.” Another album highlight.

“Best Thing I Never Had” is the album’s second – and much better – single, where Beyonce declares to the person she was interested it that he doesn’t deserve her tears and she was the best thing he never had.

A change of tempo in the upward direction comes in the form of “Party”, a song that I cannot wrap my head around, mostly because it feels like sub-quality compared to the songs around it. But for those who like dancey Beyonce sound, this song is for you.

On “Rather Die Young,” another vocal-showcase ballad, Beyonce declares to her love interest that even though he smoked too much and drove too fast, he gave her a rush – made her feel like she was seventeen – and she’d rather die young than live her life without him.

“Start Over” is another album highlight where Beyonce acknowledges that the relationship reached a very rough patch, but she can’t help that she still loves the guy. And then she invites him to “start over” because they can’t let their good love die.

“Love On Top” is another declaration of love on the album where Beyonce’s love interest put her love on the top list of his priorities. How he’s the one she always calls, how his lips taste like champagne, etc…

I cannot also wrap my head around “Countdown,” another song for uptempo Beyonce fans. The song is basically a countdown from ten to one that ends with him being the one.

“End of Time” is rumored to be a strong contender for the upcoming single off 4. Many people are loving this song but I feel the album has many stronger songs but I do get the radio potential in this. And after all, you need a strong radio performance of a single to sell the album. On this song, Beyonce declares that she’ll “love you until the end of time.” The song is filled with a tribal-like rhythm.

“I Was Here” is the album’s most personal song. It is a testament of Beyonce’s achievements, what she has accomplished and what she still wants to do: “I wanna leave my footprints on the sands of time… When I leave this world, I’ll leave no regrets. Give something to remember so they won’t forget I was here, I lived, I loved. I did, I’ve done everything that I wanted…”

And the album is concluded with “Run The World (Girls),” which after the series of brilliant songs that precede it sounds like an out of place song on a much superior record. You start thinking what Beyonce was thinking when she released this song as the album’s lead single when she had much stronger songs that could have helped her sell the album more.

It’s always refreshing when a capable artist decides to deliver true artistic songs that display their talents and not just some brainless pop songs that only get you to dance. 4 is an album with many influences, the most prominent of which is an 80s RnB sound. It feels to be a natural evolutionary step for an artist who made her career by walking across genre lines. 4 is a great album that could be considered as Beyonce’s best.

Songs to download:

1+1, I Care, I Miss You, Best Thing I Never Had, I Was Here.

If I Die Young (Single Review) – The Band Perry

 

Newly released to American pop radio after dominating the country charts last year, If I Die Young is the second single by country newcomers: The Band Perry.

Already certified 2x platinum, you feel such a success is the most natural thing for a song of If I Die Young’s caliber.

“If I die young,” Kimberly Perry starts the song that she wrote by herself, “bury me in satin, lay me down in a bed of roses, sink me in a river at dawn, send me away with the words of a love song.”

The opening lyric sets the hypothetical tone of the acoustic-leaning song. And it is through that tone that the narrator, Kimberly, continues her story. “Lord, make me a rainbow, I’ll shine down on my mother. She’ll know I’m safe with you when she stands under my colors.”

The whole song is a testament to Kimberly Perry’s command of language and crafting interesting images that do not feel forced. On the contrary, the whole song, though the theme might be morbid to some, is a jubilation to life. And everything in it fits like the pieces of a puzzle. If I Die Young boasts very sharp lyrics with highly imaginative detail, building a story of a girl who’s contemplating how it would be if she were to die young.

On the second verse, the narrator laments on the fact that she never knew love. “There’s a boy here in town, says he’ll love me forever. Who would have thought forever could be severed by the sharp knife of a short life? Well, I’ve had just enough time.”

And as is natural with everyone thinking about death, the prospect of value comes up. It’s a recurrent topic how the things you own get more valuable when you pass away. And that issue is tackled in If I Die Young as well.

A penny for my thoughts, oh no, I’ll sell ’em for a dollar
They’re worth so much more after I’m a goner
And maybe then you’ll hear the words I been singing
Funny, when you’re dead how people start listening

And then the song comes full circle with the narrator singing the chorus one last time before elaborating on what the love song should be: “The ballad of a dove, go with peace and love. Gather up your tears, keep ’em in your pocket… save them for a time when you’re really gonna need them, oh”

If I Die Young might be a song with death in its title but it’s mostly about living. It’s not about the narrator inviting the listener to live to the fullest, but it’s more saying that: “even though my life was cut short, I am satisfied with the time I’ve had – I’ve had just enough time.”

Nothing is more testament to how people perceive If I Die Young than the response the three members of The Band Perry received because of that song. The most famous story regarding the song comes in the form of a letter than Kimberly received, containing a necklace with a letter from an eighteen year old girl who lost her best friend to cancer. The girl was contemplating suicide, mourning her friend, and If I Die Young came on the radio. The girl heard so much life in that song that she sent The Band Perry her most prized possession, the necklace her friend gave her before passing away.

If I Die Young is also a song that touched people from older generations. While performing the song at a concert, The Band Perry saw an older woman standing in the scorching heat with a sign on which the words: “She died young” were written, signed with her daughter’s name.

Kimberly Perry delivers the song brilliantly. She doesn’t under or over-sing. She handles the melody with restraint and impeccable nuances. Her slightly weathered voice adds magnificence to the song, as well as the subtle harmonies that her brothers deliver in the background.

You cannot listen to If I Die Young without feeling something. It is a song that crosses age boundaries and touches everyone regardless of personal background or even musical preference. We’ve all had someone who died young. It is a song that calls after you to live and enjoy life. It calls on you to love your life and to always have no regrets. It’s no wonder it stands out on pop radio among all the electronic music being played. It rises way beyond clubbing songs that you would hear before and after it, simply because this is a raw, authentic and real.

Listen to If I Die Young here: