The Spy Next Door

English (U) Director: Brian Levant Cast: Jackie Chan, Billy Ray Cyrus

Bob Ho (Jackie Chan) is an undercover CIA agent whose dream is to settle down with his beautiful neighbour Gillian (Valletta) after retirement. Bob’s main mission, therefore, is to get the approval of the divorced mom’s three kids who all think that he is some boring Chinese small time trader. So, to understand the kids, Bob offers to babysit them when Gillian visits her sick relative.

However, when a Russian terrorist comes after some secret files which one of the kids had accidentally downloaded from the internet, Bob’s priority shifts towards saving the kids and eventually the agency’s reputation.

This film is similar to ‘The Pacifier’ in which Vin Diesel plays a spy-babysitter. So, there’s not much to expect.

‘The Spy Next Door’ is a typical Jackie Chan action-comedy flick with some not so compelling romantic equation.   The only vitalising scenes are the Russian villains who deliver some accented funny jokes. Among the kids, Alina Foley is a big reliever – cute and adorable. Despite repetitions and flaws, it is a good show by Jackie Chan.

Robert L Sungte, Deccan Herald

Paranormal Activity

 

English(A)

Cast: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat

Director: Oren Peli

There are only a few horror flicks that will go down your spine and stay there for a long time and watching ‘Paranomal Activity’, which tells a couple’s date with an unknown force is a thrilling experience.

When Micah starts filming Katie in their house in San Diego they soon find out that there is some dormant force hovering around Katie while they are asleep. At first they seek the help of a psychic who tells them to seek the help of a demonist. But, Micah wants to do it his way. So, he records all the events in their bedroom,  only to anger the supernatural being.
Director Oren Peli’s minimalist film with a few characters emerges as a very strong thriller-horror movie. While most films in the genre employ gore and blood, ‘Paranormal Activity’ brings back the classic style in the likes of ‘The Blair Witch Project’, with sound and simple visual settings.

The filming is done with a hand-held video camera. This brings a sense of reality and it is not until the end that one stops looking for movements in the house. Everything in the setting, how simple they look, has their part to create a fearful atmosphere.

The day scenes are like any normal day. However, the night scenes get real spooky with wide angle shots showing possible playing fields for the force to move around in the couple’s bedroom, their doorway, and part of the hallway.

‘Paranormal Activity’ is as real as it can be. It is difficult to trace the dividing line between reality and fiction. This makes it a rare film which will give you both goosebumps and nightmares!

Review by Robert L Sungte (Decccan Herald)

Avatar (3D)

English (U/A) Cast: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana Director: James Cameroon

US $500 million is huge and the epic sci-fi 3D product we get is equally breathtaking. ‘Avatar’ is perhaps the best in its genre, ever since Steven Spielberg’s ‘Jurassic Park’.

Here, we are, taken to the 22nd century where wheelchair-bound marine Jake Scully (Worthington) joins a group of corporate-backed scientists led by Dr Grace (Weaver) to convince the blue-skinned native population of a distant world called Pandora, to leave their beautiful home — an ancestral tree rooted above a huge deposit of a mineral called ‘Unobtainium’…

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The Twilight Saga: New Moon

By Robert L Sungte (Deccan Herald) English (U/A) Cast: Kristen Stewart , Robert Pattinson , Taylor Lautner Director: Chris Weit

A sequel to the mega-hit ‘Twilight’, the ‘The Twilight Saga: New Moon’ begins with Bella Swan’s (Kristen Stewart) 18th birthday party where she tells her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) to transform her into his kind. But her 109-years-old-beau, stuck-in-a-17-year-old-boy’s body has no desire to suck out her blood and soul. So, the party becomes a turning point in the entire plot. Edward breaks up with Bella.

Separated by distance, Bella soon  begins to see why Edward did not grant her wish. But desperate and lonely she soon finds solace in a handsome hunk, Jacob Black (Lautner) who has his own werewolf secrets. As Bella’s life sinks deeper into a possessive relationship  she soon realises she’s standing on the cliff of danger. Now, all she needs is a savior and who is to come to her rescue and how is what keeps the plot of the film engrossing. The film is based on Stephenie Meyer’s second book on the ‘Twilight’ series and director Chris Weitz refined it as a modern day Romeo-Juliet story where you have action and melo-drama.

If we look ‘New Moon’ from ‘Twilight’, it is moody most of the time until Bella meets the warm and cheerful Jacob. The second half of the film is also slow with many show offs scenes. However, the eerie howlings and comical stunts save the good versus bad vampire saga. Another good news is that ‘New Moon’ is a ladies charmer. You have one of the sweetest hunks around trying to capture the heart of Bella. As Pattinson is out of the scene for a long period Lautner’s charm and biceps are much more noticeable.

The film ends in a sentimental note leaving the audience to conclude that they have to see the other two parts of the ‘Twilight’ books on the silver screen.

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