[10/10] The Raid: Redemption (2012)

The Raid: Redemption (2012)

Brief review: Gareth Evans' "The Raid" may have a simple premise, but its plot works perfectly, and that combined with the slick execution, leaves a big impact on the viewer. Why? Because "The Raid" is the real deal! It starts off at a frenetic pace and never lets go, quickly turning itself into a shockingly brutal, ultra-violent, tense and thrilling adrenaline rush of a movie, that features some of the best action scenes ever put on film. Just when you think there's no chance for the next fight scene to top the last, it happens, and that proves Evans' out-of-this-world skills as a director and his ability to deliver a progressively mind-blowing action. Considering the movie's low budget, the technical quality of "The Raid" exceeds expectations big time. Evans' truly innovative direction features an impressive variety of camera angles, razor-sharp editing and camera movements so vigorous, they'll spin your head off. The big, old, dark, filthy building is the ideal setting for the hard-edged story, the amazing soundtrack and crisp sound effects match the high-octane intensity of the film, and the bluish, almost violet, tint of the cinematography has a subtle stylishness about it, that takes the film's visuals to another level. Although there's very little character development the main character, Rama, played by Indonesian martial artist Iko Uwais, is so brave, bold, good-hearted and likable, you can't help but fall for his character.

Overall summary: With its masterfully choreographed and executed action sequences, heart-pounding pacing, inventive direction and highly stylized visuals, Evans' "The Raid: Redemption" is sheer brilliance, and the ultimate cinematic ecstasy pill for every true action junkie.

[8.50/10] Wu Xia a.k.a. Dragon (2011)

Wu Xia a.k.a.
Dragon (2011)

QuickRating: Although its story is somewhat similar to 2010's wuxia phenomenon "Reign of Assassins", Peter Chan's "Wu Xia" is still an engrossing, skilfully choreographed, masterfully directed and visually fascinating martial arts drama, that truly captivates the viewer with its compelling characters, gorgeous scenery and strong script, and showcases Donnie Yen in top form, both acting-wise and fighting-wise.

[7.25/10] The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011)

The Flying Swords of
Dragon Gate (2011)

QuickRating: It's overstuffed with characters, the pacing is uneven and Jet Li is wildly underused, but "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" makes up for its lack of coherence with spectacular sandy scenery, amazing costumes, and frenetic, wonderfully-choreographed action sequences, that while a little heavy on CGI and somewhat cartoonish, are exciting and entertaining to watch as is the movie itself.

[6.00/10] The Sorcerer and the White Snake (2011)

The Sorcerer and
the White Snake (2011)

Brief review: Based on an old Chinese legend, Ching Siu-Tung's latest CGI-driven kung fu fantasy "The Sorcerer and the White Snake" suffers from a weak narrative and silly script, and tries to blend too many different genres unsuccessfully, but it still manages to entertain the viewer, thanks to some spectacular set-pieces and a bunch of quirky characters. Jet Li is a bit bland and emotionless as Abott Fahai, but he proves yet again what an amazing martial artist he truly is. Shengyi Huangand is a bit over-dramatic, and yet she delivers as the White Snake, and the rest of the cast do an okay job. Ching Siu-Tung is undoubtedly one of the best and most creative fight choreographers on the planet, but his directing skills are rather questionable. He tries to achieve a bigger effect by throwing too many things on the screen, and jumping too much from one camera angle to another, and as a result his direction ends up being a bit of a mess. The action sequences are CGI-laden and too over-the-top, yet nicely-choreographed and exciting to watch, and the special effects range from impressive to lame. Some of the settings are absolutely stunning, and the cinematography is sharp, vivid and colorful, which makes the film very appealing, visually.

Overall summary: Goofy, plotless and overly-sentimental, yet visually-fascinating and filled with thrilling action sequences, "The Sorcerer and the White Snake" falls flat on its face in terms of storytelling, but still succeeds as an entertaining and enjoyable martial arts fantasy flick.

[5.50/10] The Lost Bladesman (2011)

The Lost Bladesman (2011)

QuickRating: Aside from a few stunning shots and a couple of thrilling, marvellously choreographed fight scenes, "The Lost Bladesman" is an incoherent, clumsily-paced and visually-unimpressive martial arts flick that can be easily considered a misfire, due to its unimaginative script, messy narrative, lackluster execution and Donnie Yen's surprisingly weak and emotionless performance as Guan Yu.

[5.00/10] The Warrior's Way (2010)

The Warrior's Way (2010)

Brief review: Although in itself "Warrior's Way" is an Eastern movie made for Western tastes, first-time Korean director Sngmoo Lee struggles to find the balance between those two cultures, and as a result, his martial arts/western/fantasy hybrid fails to deliver a satisfying story. Also, for a film called "Warrior's Way", the movie doesn't provide enough action to justify its title. With the exception of the fast-paced opening sequence and the action-heavy final act, "Warrior's Way" is more of a romantic movie rather than a true martial arts flick. The fights themselves are nicely-choreographed and the wire-work is passable, but the action scenes are either shot in slow-motion or too fast to follow. However, in terms of visuals the film succeeds vastly, despite some cheesy CGI work, as it has some truly spectacular settings, and a vivid, almost artsy cinematography that pleases the eye. Korean star Jang Dong-gun plays the lead character Yang, and although his martial arts skills are undoubtedly impressive, he turns in an unbelievably dull and uncharismatic performance. Kate Bosworth definitely has the looks, but her acting abilities are rather questionable. Unsurprisingly, the great Geoffrey Rush steals the show as the cool drunkard, Ron.

Overall summary: Aside from some truly gorgeous settings, colorful cinematography and a few thrillingly-choreographed and nicely-shot action sequences, "Warrior's Way" is a poorly-acted, joyless misfire, that barely lives up to its promising title. Nice try, Sngmoo Lee!

[7.25/10] Sucker Punch (2011)

Sucker Punch (2011)

Full review: Zack Snyder, the visionary director of "Watchmen" and the astounding "300", brings his latest visual extravaganza, "Sucker Punch" - a ludicrous, yet striking mishmash of various different genres, that features everything from samurais, to fire-breathing dragons to Nazi zombies to Moulin Rouge-style burlesque, and while many would understand what the director had in mind, it often feels like Snyder got lost in his own imagination in his attempts to bring his first original story to life, as the end result is a big hot flashy mess. Despite its 'muddleness', "Sucker Punch" still manages to achieve its purpose, which is to entertain. Yes, you might be quite disappointed by the lack of coherence, satisfactory plot and decent writing, but you'll certainly be unprepared for the massive amount of stupendous action and imposing visuals this movie has to offer. The CGI backgrounds are uniquely-crafted and breathtakingly beautiful, the special effects are as slick as it gets, and the action is first-rate. The variety of camera angles and different techniques that Snyder uses during the first-rate fight scenes are simply admirable, and his trade mark slow-mo sequences are mind-blowing as usual. Each of the 'dream' sequences is 'painted' in different color, and totally unique in terms of style, settings, action and cinematography. The robo-samurai action scene in the first half is the highlight of the movie, and deserves a special mention, as it's сo beautifully-shot and out-of-this-world spectacular, it's sure to blow you away. The music score contains various alternative rock tracks, with the updated version of Bjork's "Army of Me" being in the lead. Sadly, in terms of acting "Sucker Punch" fails to impress, with most of the performances being sub-par. Emily Browning as is as gorgeous as she's dull in her role as Baby Doll, Carla Gugino just doesn't have much to work with, and Vanessa Hudgens is almost unnoticeable. Abbie Cornish does her best as Sweet Pea, and she's the only real standout in the movie. Jena Malone is also good, but her screen time is extremely limited, and Oscar Isaac does a fair job as the villain, Blue Jones .

Overall summary: Zack Snyder's latest flick may be pointless, humorless and pretty incoherent at times, but it's so spectacularly action-packed and visually jaw-dropping, its plot weaknesses could be easily forgiven. Whether "Sucker Punch" is a video game-inspired movie or a movie-inspired video game, it's hands down a feast for the eyes.

[9.50/10] Shaolin (2011)

Shaolin (2011)

Brief review: Benny Chan's latest effort, "Shaolin" is a martial arts movie with heart, brain and soul, and it delivers on almost every single level, as it manages to be dramatic, serious, funny and action-packed all at the same time, due to it's well-balanced and thought out script and pitch-perfect execution. Benny Chan is an incredibly versatile and very capable Asian filmmaker, and "Shaolin" is a significant projection of his talent, imagination and skills as a director. His positioning of the camera mount achieves a sensational diversity of camera angles, plus, the dynamic camera movements emphasis and enhance certain scenes. The action is just one of the film's major strengths. The fight sequences and the stunts are extremely high-octane, fast-paced, and briskly-shot and edited by the legendary action director Corey Yuen. Chung Chi Li also does a brilliant job with the choreography, as he increases the effect with a fair use of flawlessly-executed wire work and some polished CGIs. Visually, "Shaolin" also never fails to impress. The production design is as beautiful as it's authentic, and the refined, eye-candy greenish cinematography pleases the eye throughout the film. The intense, yet beautiful music score adds depth to the picture. The acting ranges from good to exceptional. The widely popular Andy Lau's delivers, arguably, the strongest performance of his career. He conveys different emotions with ease, and makes us really care about his evil-turned-good character, General Hou Jie. Jackie Chan brings comic relief, but without being over-the-top this time around. Each and every one of supporting actors also do an excellent job in portraying their characters and making them incredibly sympathetic and likable.

Overall summary: With its compelling story, brilliantly-portrayed characters, fantastic visuals and stupendous action sequences, Benny Chan's "Shaolin" ranks as one of the most accomplished, profoundly-engrossing and slickly-crafted martial arts movies ever made.

[6.75/10] Kung Fu Wing Chun (2010)

Kung Fu Wing Chun (2010)

Brief review: Directed by Joe Cheung, "Kung Fu Wing Chun" is a different take on the story of the origin and development of the Chinese martial arts style, Wing Chun. Though a bit cheesy compared to the Yuen Woo-Ping's 94 version, it's still a well-choreographed, entertaining and visually captivating 90's style kung fu flick, full of engaging characters and exciting action sequences, that instead of taking itself too seriously, brings the fun side of Wing Chun. As a martial arts flick, it features plenty of stirring, if unspectacular fight scenes, filled with excellent wire work. Visually, the movie impresses with its exotically-gorgeous production design, some vividly beautiful images (even though many of them being CG), and a vibrant yellowish cinematography, that exudes richness. Тhough the film has a relatively large cast of actors, the main focus is one Bai Jing, who absolutely steals the show as the title character. Jing is as quirky as she's sweet and likable in her role as the rebellious tomboy, Wing Chun, determined to develop her martial arts skills. Colin Chou, mainly known to the audience for his role as Seraph in "The Matrix" franchise does an excellent job as the villain, while Ye Shaoqun is just okay as Chun's love interest.

Overall summary: Although it often borders on silly, "Kung Fu Wing Chun" is an enjoyable, action-packed and nicely-crafted martial arts comedy, that successfully maintains the 'fun factor' throughout.

[6.75/10] The Green Hornet [3D] (2011)

The Green Hornet [3D] (2011)

Brief review: Though it suffers from uneven pacing and unsteady direction, Michel Gondry's 'new wave' anti-superhero flick delivers exactly what it promises: great visuals, exciting car chases, cool gadgets and and plenty of martial arts action. Sadly, Seth Rogen plays the least likable character in this movie, as the Green Hornet himself is an egocentric idiot, who's more like а drone, rather than a hornet. The Taiwanese charmer, Jay Chou, is the true star of the film - not only that he's charismatic and engaging as an actor, but he also possesses an incredible martial arts skills, that will blow you away. Christoph Waltz steals the show, yet again, as the weird, yet delightfully sympathetic villain, Chudnofsky. Diaz is just okay in her role, and James Franco's cameo is rather disappointing. "The Green Hornet" may not have the most substantial plot ever, but it certainly delivers visually. The CGIs are truly impressive, especially those during the slow-mo Matrix-like fight sequences. The action itself is clearly the highlight of this flick, as it's exciting, well-shot and creatively-choreographed. Though the 3D adds little to the experience, it isn't exactly bad or unnecessary.

Overall summary: Quite brainless and often clumsy, yet spectacularly-entertaining, "The Green Hornet" is an inventive blend of flashy visuals and exciting action scenes, fleshed out with lots of enjoyable silliness.

[3.00/10] Wushu Warrior (2010)

Wushu Warrior (2010)

"Wushu Warrior" takes place in 19th Century China, where Lord Edward Lindsey is operating an opium running scheme. When he has one of his adversaries, Reverend Elders, killed, the reverend’s son Jonathan is taken to a small village on the outskirts of the big city. Upon learning his father has died, Jonathan is taken under the wing of village head Uncle Pei. When Jonathan sees two kids arguing, he learns that they are studying the martial art of wushu. When Jonathan asks Uncle Pei to teach him, Pei resorts to training him in secret. Truth to be told, this Canadian-Chinese co-production is probably the most poorly-executed and uninspired martial arts flick I've seen an my life, as it fails to deliver on every single level. It's a complete rip-off of many, many other and better films of this genre and it's shot and choreographed with zero imagination. The story is a standard fare, that pretty much contains every possible cliche known in history of martial arts movies. It shamelessly borrows an already tired ideas, without even changing them a bit, in order to avoid the plagiarism. The funniest thing about "Wushu Warrior" is the fact that every single Chinese actor in this film speaks English at all times, which makes it even less authentic and credible. Not a surprise though, since the director himself is a noneAsian. The writing is completely sub-par, as all the lines are laughably ridiculous and stiffly-delivered by the actors involved. In terms of acting, this flick also fails to make a good impression. All the English-speaking actors are wildly unknown, and lacking in both, acting and fighting skills. You won't believe for a minute that Tod Fennell is a warrior and a martial arts master. On a positive note, the Chinese actors are vastly better, as they play way more engagig characters. Although pretending to be a martial arts movie, "Wushu Warrior" is almst lacking in action, especially in its first half. And as soon as the action starts though, you find yourself even more bored than before, as the fight scenes are horribly-staged and amateurishly-choreographed, accompained with poor wire work and laughably cheesy special effects. Same could be said for the training sequnces, which are mostly boring, rather forced and ridden with cliches. The lack of budget is obvious, as "Wushu Warrior" looks and feels like a cheap made-for-TV movie with its low production values, extremely cheesy special effects and technical incompetence. Yes, the Chinese scenery is exotically gorgeous as always, but that's not enough to save this film from being visually poor and hardly engaging. With its lame and thoroughly predictable story, third-rate fight choreography, and dull and uninspired direction, "Wushu Warrior" should be considered as one of the worst martial arts movies ever created.

• My Rating: 3.00/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
• IMDb: 5.2/10

[9.25/10] Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

Based on Bryan Lee O'Malley's comic book of the same name, "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" follows the eponymous slacker rocker on his colorful quest to defeat his dream girl's seven evil ex-boyfriends. Combining an original story, quirky characters, stunning CGIs and spectacular fight sequences, Edgar Wright's "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" provides a unique and extraordinary cinematic experience you won't soon forget. This is not only the first film in history that looks like an actual video game, but it's the first that perfectly blends comedy, romance, martial arts, fantasy and musical in one. "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World"' may not has the most substantial plot ever, but its certainly has an extremely witty and hilarious script that delicately burlesques pretty much everything in a very unique sort of way, and most importantly, the film never takes itself seriously. However, film's main strengths are its flashy visuals, cartoonish special effects and stylishly-choreographed action, accompanied by Wright's incredibly inventive editing style. The editing really needs a special mention, as it's absolutely sensational, as is Edgar Wright's creative direction, that seems inspired by the genius films of Chinese filmmaker, Stephen Chow. The martial arts choreography is absolutely first-rate and the fight scenes are impressively well-handled and deliciously over-the-top and an absolute joy to watch. The cast also delivers. Michael Cera brings his quirky charm to the title character, plus he does an amazing job of performing the Matrix-like action choreography - Michael shows some surprisingly good fight skills and it seems impressively effortless for him. Mary Elizabeth Winstead as the eccentric-haired Ramona Flowers is as captivating as she's charming, Culkin is hilarious as Pilgrimd's gay roommate, Chris Evans is meant for his role as the action star and evil ex, Lucas Lee, and Ellen Wong as the sensitive Knives Chau brings most of the laughs. All the evil ex-es are delightfully villainous and well-portrayed, with Jason Schwartzman as Gideon Graves and Brandon Routh as Todd Ingram being the standouts. Totally refreshing, wildly imaginative, extremely funny, and spectacularly dazzling, "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" is the most original and visually-unique movie since Stephen Chow's cartoonish martial arts extravaganza, "Kung Fu Hustle", and almost like nothing you have seen before.

• My Rating: 9.25/10 [Rating Updated on Feb 6, 2011]
• Rotten Tomatoes: 81% (7.5/10)
• IMDb: 8.0/10

[8.00/10] Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)

Di Renjie

a.k.a.

Detective Dee and the Mystery of
the Phantom Flame (2010)

Set during the reign of China’s first female Emperor, Wu Zetian, "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame" revolves around a series of inexplicable spontaneous combustions that have killed dignitaries. Feeling threatened by the mysterious deaths, the Empress Wu sends for Detective Dee, whom she had ordered to be arrested and imprisoned eight years before, after he criticized her grab for power. Dee is an unlikely candidate to be at the court of the Empress, but he is also the only one capable of solving the mysteries. Vietnamese-born Tsui Hark is very much a 'hit and miss' director. He has a long list of films behind him, of which "Once Upon a Time in China" series and "The Blade" are arguably the best and most successful, and "The Legend of Zu" and "Black Mask 2: City of Masks" are probably his weakest efforts. Fortunately, Hark's latest big-budget martial arts/fantasy/mystery hybrid, "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame", is not only a feast for the eyes, but also quite intriguing to watch. Although the film has some slight pacing problems and a few plot holes here and there, the story is overall well-structured and consistently engrossing, and the mystery keeps you guessing through most of the story. Plus, "Detective Dee" is probably the most sumptuous, most beautiful and most stunning-looking movie of 2010. Visually, the film succeeds boldly, thanks to production designer Sung Pong Choo and cinematographers Chi Ying Chan and Chor Keung Chan. The settings are lush, picturesque and wonderfully-created, without being over-the-top, and the art direction is top-notch. Tsui Hark is full of creative ideas and imagination and it shows - here, his camera shots are well-planned, inventive and rather effective. The action choreography, by martial arts superstar Sammo Hung, while certainly not first-rate, is dynamic and thrilling enough. There are a couple of great fights and a couple of a very unimpressive ones, probably due to the fact that Hung was "forced" by Tsui Hark to work as an action director on "Detective Dee". One of my favorite Asian actors, Andy Lau, brings a lot of charisma to the title character. He gives another strong performance and makes Detective Dee a very engaging and sympathetic protagonist. Carina Lau also turns in a great performance as Empress Wu, as she acts really convincing and has an incredibly strong screen presence. Li Bingbin, best known to the Western audience as the white-haired Ni Chang from "The Forbidden Kingdom", is not only pretty, but also does a good job portraying her character, Shangguan Wan'er. Spectacularly-lavish, hugely-engrossing and often magical, "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame" delivers a perfect combination of dazzling visuals, enthralling story and interesting characters, and proves that Tsui Hark is back on top form.

• My Rating: 8.00/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: 100% (1 Review)
• IMDb: 6.9/10

[7.00/10] Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen (2010)

Legend of the Fist:
The Return of Chen Zhen (2010)

Set in 1920s Shanghai, Andrew Lau's latest effort tells the story of Chen Zhen, who single-handedly avenges his mentor’s death by killing all the Japanese at a dojo in Hongkou, only to be showered with bullets while making his legendary flying kick. Now, years later, Chen Zhen, who is believed dead, returns in disguise to infiltrate a criminal empire and to dismantle the evil collusion that plagues the country. After a '10 out of 10' opening sequences full of dynamic and spectacular stunts, "Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen" somewhat loses its energy, but fortunately it picks up later on to deliver a passable entertainment for all martial arts and action fans. The film feels a bit unfocused and incoherent at times, as it's muddled with far too many sub-plots and undeveloped characters, but as a whole, while not as satisfying as I hoped, the story is decent enough and still manages to hold viewer's attention most of the way through. Performance-wise, "Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen" is just okay. Donnie Yen is absolutely thrilling to watch, during the fight scenes, and he also does a good job in portraying the title character. He certainly grew up as an actor over the years, and it shows. Qi Shu is a charming and very charismatic Asian actress, but her character Kiki is pretty unlikable - she's just mincing around, not doing much but smoking and drinking. The rest of the supporting actors also give good performances. Special mention goes to Ryu Kohata, as the nasty and evilicious Colonel Chikaraishi. The action sequences, choreographed by Donnie Yen himself are decent, yet rather unimpressive. The fights themseves are so short, that they fail to provide total satisfaction, excluding the opening action scene, which is nothing short of breathtaking. Visually, "Legend of the Fist" is truly arresting, as it offers gorgeous settings of 1920s Shanghai, and the music score is good enough to raise tension when needed. While it doesn't rank among the best martial arts flick ever made, "Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen" is a well-shot, nicely-choreographed and fairly entertaining action flick, that hardly disappoints.

• My Rating: 7.00/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: 50% (2 Reviews)
• IMDb: 6.1/10

[9.75/10] Reign of Assassins (2010)

Jianyu

a.k.a.

Reign of Assassins (2010)

A decade after Ang Lee's hugely successful martial arts masterpiece, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", director Chao-Bin Su and co-director John Woo succeeds in delivering a spectacularly arresting, visually striking and hugely engrossing wuxia flick, that ranks amongst the best of the genre! Set in ancient China, "Reign of Assassins" tells the story of Zeng Jing, a skilled assassin who's on a mission to return the remains of a mystical Buddhist monk to their resting place falls in love with a man named Jiang, whose father was killed by her gang. Soon, a lethal triangle surfaces between her, Jiang and the team of assassins that are after the monk's remains. Film's plot is well-structured, solid and full of intriguing twists and turns, enough to hold any viewer's attention. It's "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" meets "Crouching Tiger" in the best possible way. A cast of A-list Asian actors shines in "Reign of Assassins", with the fantastic Michelle Yeoh being the lead. Yeoh's not only a great female warrior with amazing martial arts skills, but she's an incredibly talented and charismatic actress, whose strong presence commands the screen, and she makes a main heroine that is both - sensitive and tough at the same time. Woo-sung Jung gives a strong and consistently good performance as Zeng's beloved Jiang. They both share great chemistry, and the romance between them feels real and unforced. The rest of the cast also deliver convincingly good performances, with Wang Xueqi as the raspy-voiced Wheel King being the standout, as he makes very interesting character. Veteran fight choreographer, Stephen Tung, who did an outstanding job in last year's amazing kung fu thriller "Bodyguards and Assassins", simply outdoes himself in this film, as he deliver one of the best and most creative action choreography I've ever seen in any martial arts movie. The swordplay in "Reign of Assassins" is nothing short of spectacular, the wire work is flawless and the stunts are fantastically breathtaking. Moreover, the stylized fight scenes themselves are fast-paced and perfectly-edited, and highlighted by the use of various camera angles, without being too over-the-top, thanks to Chao-Bin Su and John Woo's competent direction. Visually, "Reign of Assassins" is slick and stunning, as it offers vivid art direction, striking cinematography that captures the period perfectly and some beautiful costumes with detailed fabrics. Captivatingly-entertaining, spectacularly-choreographed and visually-fantastic, "Reign of Assassins" is the best martial arts film since Zhang Yimou's 2006 visual feast, "Curse of the Golden Flower", and my favorite movie of 2010 so far!

• My Rating: 9.75/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
• IMDb: 6.4/10

[6.25/10] The Last Airbender [3D] (2010)

The Last Airbender [3D] (2010)

The fascinating previews and trailers for "The Last Airbender" built up an unbounded amount of anticipation in me. So yesterday I finally had the chance to see it. In 3D. For better or worse. Based on the first of three seasons of the American cartoon, "Avatar: The Last Airbender", it tells the story of four nations - Air, Water, Earth, Fire, tied by destiny, when the Fire Nation launches a brutal war against the others. A century has passed with no hope in sight to change the path of this destruction. Caught between combat and courage, Aang discovers he is the lone Avatar with the power to manipulate all four elements. Aang teams with Katara, a Waterbender, and her brother, Sokka , to restore balance to their war-torn world. Since I'm not a Shyamalan hater, nor a fan of the "Avatar" series, I'm judging the movie for what it was. Although it didn't meet my high expectations, I thought "The Last Airbender" was a visually striking, yet joyless fantasy flick, that offered stunning special effects and jaw-dropping visuals, but rather shallow story. Shayamalan certainly possesses some talent, so his direction didn't bother me. I thought it was decent, even creative at times. The multi-ethnic cast was interesting, but of the actors were totally miscast, the dialog was far too juvenile, the pace felt rushed, as we skipped from point to point, and almost all the characters were completely one-dimensional. The bending sequences were amazing though, and the the martial arts employed to control the four elements was rather impressive. The 3D was tremendously well-done, compared to other poor post-3D effects. "Clash of the Titans" anyone? Aside from the wooden acting and the nearly emotionless plot, "The Last Airbender" is a visually-marvellous and mildly entertaining fantasy flick, that isn't nearly as bad as some other people, mainly critics, claim it is.

• My Rating: 6.25/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: 06% (2.8/10)
• IMDb: 4.4/10

[5.75/10] City Under Siege (2010)

City Under Siege (2010)

After Wong Jing's disastrously awful sci-fi action, "Future X-Cops", which ended up on the top of my list for worst movies of 2010 (so far), I was hoping that Benny Chan's mutant/action flick will clear the shame. It certainly did... at least for most part. It tells the story of Sunny, an ordinary clown in a local circus, who by chance is turned into a mutant with extraordinary powers in a terrible accident. He decides to declare a battle for goodwill on the City with a troupe of circus performers who embark on a crime spree after they acquire superhuman skills in the same accident. Let's face it - "City Under Siege" is completely brainless and ridiculously silly, but also a lot of fun. It is action-packed and moves with a brisk pace, and despite the often messy story and a couple of dull moments here and there, the film was somewhat gripping, and it kept me entertained throughout the entire 114 minute running time. The special and make up effects are extremely cheesy, yet effective and suited well the overall ridiculousness of the film. The action sequences are excellently-choreographed and filled with spectacular stunts and dynamic. The scenery is fine - nothing specilal, but not bad either. Benny Chan is a solid director with huge experience and he has proven that over the years - he was even nominated for Best Director at the 24th Annual Hong Kong Film Awards for his "New Police Story". He does a good job here as well. The cast is rather good, with Hong Kong superstar superstar Aaron Kwok as Sunny being the central figure. Taiwanese actress Qi Shu as Angel is an angel indeed - delicate, charismatic and cute as a button. However, Sunny and Angel’s romance is quite annoying at times and totally unnecessary, but that didn't bothered me that much. Overall, "City Under Siege" is loud, silly and effects-heavy, and it offers some great kick-ass action and fairly entertaining story - pure mindless summer fun!

• My Rating: 5.75/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
• IMDb: 5.5/10