DIE WELLE (THE WAVE)

Cine Europa
Cinema 1, Shang Cineplex

Of all the films showing at Cine Europa this year, I was really looking forward to watching this German movie. Based on a true story, it delves on fascism and dictatorship. It narrates how a simple experiment for project week conceptualized by a teacher in a high school spins out of control and takes over the lives of his students.

During an open discussion in his autocracy class, Rainer Wenger is intrigued by a statement from one of his students that dictatorship would never thrive again in Germany. He then devices a plan to prove them wrong. From letting his students wear a uniform for class, designing a logo and calling themselves members of The Wave - the concept evolves from a simple class experiment into a form of supremacy for its members who adopt a superiority complex against outsiders (the other students who aren't part of their group).

A compelling and highly provocative film that makes an effective point. The propensity of the youth to be easily swayed by any higher authority into extremist political views. The unruly bunch of students were at first hesitant and even skeptical about the experiment which started on a Monday. But by the end of the week, their zealous enthusiasm took over with some of them even claiming that "The Wave" gave more meaning to their otherwise boring life. Unfortunately, the experiment goes horribly wrong with tragic consequences.

The movie is entirely in German with English subtitles and it runs for about 1 hour and 4o minutes. Almost 2 hours filed with enough tension amidst dramatic sequences yet it doesn't appear to adopt a preachy tone. It simply and effectively explores human nature. It makes us see how easy it is to create the conditions that appeal especially to the weak, the disenfranchised, the unloved by giving them a sense of being empowered and how their resentment can become a deadly weapon.

MANAGEMENT

Jennifer Aniston, Steve Zahn, Fred Ward, Woody Harrelson

"A touching comedy"

Cinema 3, Shang Cineplex

Sue (Jennifer Aniston) is a sales rep of a company that sells motel art. In short she sells those paintings you find in rooms at cheap inns/motels. Mike (Steve Zahn) on the other hand is the son of a married couple who manage a road side motel. A little mom and pop business, so to speak.

Mike who doesn't really have much of a life aside from helping out in the family business, somehow manages to find the courage to be 'friendly' with Sue who happens to be a guest in the motel. Mike develops an instant attraction to Sue and pursues her in some stalker like behavior which I found a bit disturbing. Yet it is in this pursuit where the film draws its character.

You see in my opinion, Mike isn't really a stalker, per se. He is just a simple guy without any major plans in life who suddenly develops some direction and a sense of meaningful purpose once he meets Sue. He doesn't have a threatening personality neither is he isn't the violent type. I figure it helps a lot that Steve Zahn portrays Mike as a naive, innocently cute character. As cute as a love sick puppy who follows his object of desire everywhere she goes. It is a far more mature role for him instead of his usual sidekick for comic relief supporting roles in his previous films.

Jennifer Aniston's portrayal of Sue was averagely alright. She didn't come across as particularly interesting though she has this pragmatic vibe to her personality. A girl who doesn't have a lot of friends to hang out with. She has her job which permits to travel regionally from time to time. She has practical type of personality with a heart of gold. Her one true wish is to put up a homeless shelter where the residents can play midnight basketball.

Interesting enough, the odd pairing of Aniston and Zahn works. They have good chemistry together in this quirky and off beat romantic comedy. For some strange reason, the song by Air Supply "Two less lonely people in the world" kept creeping into my mind while watching this eccentric rom com! Heh!

TOI ET MOI(YOU AND ME)

Cine Europa
Cinema 1, Shang Cineplex

France's 'entry' to this year's Cine Europa is a schmaltzy romantic comedy. Basically a chick flick about two sisters who have different ideas and notions about romance. Lena, a musician (Marion Cotillard) is level headed while Ariane (Julie Depardieu), an editor of photo novels (a magazine type novel with illustrations and dialogue) tends to over romanticize her relationships.

The film explores the ups and downs of relationships presented in realistic tones. That is if you include love affairs with men other than your boyfriend/partner. The steady plot is coupled with certain dream like/animated sequences which depicts Ariane's fairy tale like love stories for the magazine.

The characters are well developed and portrayed convincingly by good actors. Most of the comedy comes from the dialogue (which is entirely in French with English subtitles) as well as funny situations which mostly involve Ariane's pathetic antics vis a vis her relationship with Farid, her commitment phobe partner.

I was surprised to learn that it was only about an hour and a half because it seemed like this rom com dragged on forever. Only to conclude with a somewhat predictable ending, not necessarily a happy one at that. It was probably not really worth lining up for but hey it was shown for free (all the films in Cine Europa were shown on a first come, first served basis) and it gave me a rare chance to 'practice' my French. That is for me to find out if I could still understand the language without necessarily reading the English subtitles. I'd like to say I managed fairly well!

Cine Europa

A total of 18 European films will be shown at the Shangri-La Plaza Mall Cineplex from September 11 to 20. The festival moves to Cebu City and Cagayan de Oro City for screenings in October.

The featured films come from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

At this year’s Cine Europa 12, you will get the chance to win a free trip to London, courtesy of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Rajah Travel Corp.

Cine Europa 12 is supported by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Rajah Travel Corp., Yo Card and Click the City.

Admission to screenings is free on a first-come, first-served basis.

Click here for film screening schedules.

For inquiries, please contact the Shangri-La Plaza Cineplex at 633-7851.

UP

Cinema 5, SM Megamall

I don't normally watch animated feature films at the cinemas because I don't feel I would get my money's worth. But this time I made an exception. I did watch it at a cheaper price though but nonetheless it was within the comforts of a cinema. Luckily there weren't any noisy kids in the theater so I was able to absorb the story with delight.

The main reason I watched this 'cartoon' are its main characters. They are human beings and not some talking animal. Carl & Ellie are an adorable couple. They remind me so much of my parents! The first part which chronicles their life together was very poignant even sans dialogue. It was beautifully put together and it summarized their love story gracefully. I totally loved Ellie. She had a beautiful spirit. I was crashed when poor Carl was left alone to fend for himself after her death. So when he ventured on his little adventure in his house lifted by a thousand balloons. You can't help but cheer for his success after all he was fulfilling Ellie's life long wish to visit Paradise Falls.

Then those nasty talking dogs show up and I somehow lost interest. But I knew their purpose was to serve as obstacles for Carl and Russell which is a naturally effective way to convey conflict in a movie, animated or otherwise. Another 'flaw' in this film is how come Charles Muntz didn't age that much given that he was already in his prime when Carl was still a young boy.

Having said that "Up" is truly an uplifting tale. It teaches us to never give up in pursuing our dreams (no matter how old we are!). That obstacles and adversities will surely surface but it must not stop us from venturing on our little adventures.

Before I forget, there was an added bonus before the main feature. A very short animated film about babies of all sorts and shapes being manufactured in the sky by big clouds then delivered by storks to their mothers. It was the cutest film clip I've seen in ages.

BURN AFTER READING

Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, John Malkovich, Richard Jenkins

"Intelligence is only their job"

Trust the Coen brothers to come up with a full length film about a bunch of idiots. Basically, the story stems from a disk that is discovered by two gym employees Chad (Brad Pitt) and Linda (Frances McDormand) who believe it contains top secret intelligence data. They try to blackmail Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) the owner for money. But little do they know that it is merely his inconsequential memoirs. A side plot involves a paranoid spook Harry (George Clooney) having an affair with Katie Cox (Tilda Swinton), Osbourne's wife.

This well edited film is a sequences of situational comedies abound with hilarious moments. Often times, you find yourself laughing out loud at just how ridiculous everyone and everything is in the movie. A bunch of idiots who think highly of themselves getting into silly situations yet you can't help but think they truly deserve their moronic fates.

The cast is peppered with good actors. Frances McDormand and John Malkovich's characters drew the most laughs from me. Her portrayal of Linda, the gym employee obsessed with cosmetic surgery was really funny in a pathetic and silly kind of way. While Malkovich as Osbourne Cox was a blast, especially when he starts flaring up in anger and starts swearing like crazy. Brad Pitt in a nonsensical comedic role was ridiculously hilarious. I like how he is willing to shed his 'matinee idol' status to portray a stupidly lame gym employee named Chad. For that matter, George Clooney another lead actor had great comedic timing in this film.

A typical Coen brothers masterpiece that never fails to entertain even the most cynic or especially the most cynic among us. It was fun to watch!

THE TIME TRAVELERS' WIFE

Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Arliss Howard, Ron Livingstone

Cinema 3, Shang Cineplex

There are movies based on novels which you can watch without reading the book and still understand the main storyline. Well, sad to say this film isn't one of them. Even though the book was quite popular on the best sellers list, I wasn't particularly interested in the time travel premise so I didn't buy it. Now I wish I did.

Having said that it doesn't mean I didn't appreciate this uniquely intriguing love story. Once you get past the mind boggling premise of Henry's constant time travels (for instance how can there be two Henrys in the same time period? How come an older Alba gets to play with her younger self?), you simply take it for what it is - a beautiful yet complex romance between two people who were destined for each other. In that sense, the film spoke to the hopeless romantic in me.

I admit the main draw for me was Eric Bana. He has always been this good actor who can churn out solidly believable performances in his movies. Here as Henry he is sturdy and non threatening even though he has to live with such a strange disorder. Rachel McAdams played Claire as a very sympathetic character. You could feel her frustrations as the very patient wife yet at the same time you could also sense her profound love for Henry. When she tried several times to conceive well that's when my tear ducts just flowed. It was such a sensitive and highly poignant moment for me.

I like the fact that the film didn't use some scientific and technical method to portray Henry's disappearing act. Or else it would have been like some superhero flick. Instead they chose to focus on the love aspect and in that sense the film works for me. Ultimately, The Time Traveler's Wife is about living life to the fullest without any regrets. Claire made it totally clear towards the ending when she uttered "I won't change one second of our life, together".

MILK

Sean Penn, James Franco, Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsh, Diego Luna

"His life changed history. His courage changed lives."

Sean Penn shines in his role as Harvey Milk in this biopic about the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in the US. The film traces the last few years in the life of Harvey Milk. His personal upheavals as well as his struggles in championing the gay rights movement. The film is set in the tumultuous 70s in San Francisco, the city where the gay rights movement was born.

The film uses flashbacks as it shows important snippets of his short life. Footage of actual TV interviews of personalities who made headlines during those volatile times are also featured. The end credits show pictures of the real persons with a short description about their current life.

Sean Penn is ably supported by a good cast of actors who all convincingly portray real people. James Brolin as fellow supervisor Dan White, Milk's main nemesis in the political arena. Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones, an impassioned fighter for gay rights. Diego Luna as Jack Lira, the troubled partner. But I was impressed by James Franco's brilliant performance as Scott Smith. The loyal lover of Milk who stood by him through thick and thin. A faithful supporter till the end.

A well developed film about an inspirational character who usually begins his fiery speeches with "Hello, I'm Harvey Milk and I am here to recruit you" and his passionate battle to champion gay rights.

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THE PROPOSAL

Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Betty White,
Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson

"Here comes the bride ..."

Cinema 5, SM Megamall

When book editor Margaret (Sandra Bullock) faces deportation to her native Canada, she suddenly declares that she’s actually engaged to her unsuspecting assistant Andrew (Ryan Reynolds). The tormented but faithful Andrew agrees to participate in the charade, but he has set a few conditions. The unlikely couple heads to scenic Alaska to meet his family for the weekend. With an impromptu wedding in the works and an immigration official on their tails, Margaret and Andrew reluctantly vow to stick to the plan despite certain consequences.

This romantic comedy works because its two main stars have good chemistry and perfect comedic rapport with each other. Despite the visible age difference, they look good together as a couple. Next to Meg Ryan, Sandra Bullock has I believe captured the top spot in the romantic comedy leading lady roles. She is in her true elements when she portrays heroines who are partly impish, partly adorable all in the same breath. She is funny, talented and can definitely hold her own fort in the rom com genre. I also like how Ryan Reynolds has progressed from irritatingly annoying immature roles to dashing leading men with hearts of gold. Plus he's got a killer body to boot - that is an extra bonus. Hehe

The plot had its funny har har moments as well as some dragging scenes (those with the totally not funny Ramone!) but it all unfolds in stunningly panoramic Alaska that you can't help but admire the amazing scenery. A tad bit predictable despite their efforts to throw in a 'crisis' towards the end, it nonetheless was fun to watch. Bullock and Reynolds are ably supported by a talented cast (Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson) who do their share in spreading the cheerful nature of the film. Most notably Betty White who as Andrew's grandmother was a hoot to watch and generated most of the laughs from the audience.

A nice light and breezy romantic comedy with a talented pool of actors set in a breathtaking environment. Plus you get to see a great shot of a naked (but not in a vulgar way) Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock too for that matter - whatever suits your fancy!