DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

I was looking forward to watch this movie but I must say I was disappointed by it. Starring Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell and so on, it continues from the 2011 movie "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" starring Andy Serkis and James Franco.

It was quite a long movie and the story took place in San Francisco, ten years after the Simian Flu Virus that escaped from a research facility following the first movie spread throughout the world. Caesar, the leader of the Apes, and his community had not seen humans since two winters ago and thought all of mankind perished until they came across a few human survivors led by Jason Clarke's Malcolm. The storyline was weak and didn't quite pick up after that and it was a letdown all the way to the end, even with Andy Serkis and Gary Oldman around.

The ending was once again open-ended, possibly as a lead up to any possible sequel. However, judging from this movie, I doubt the box-office takings would be optimistic enough to warrant a continuation of the this movie. Thank goodness James Franco didn't act in this movie.

Andy Serkis's Caesar, leader of the Apes

Koba, the ape who only learnt hate from the humans

Malcom and his team in search of the dam to restore power to the city

Malcolm

a visibly older Keri Russell of "Felicity" fame as Ellie

ROBOCOP

This is a remake of the 1987 Robocop movie, starring Peter Weller and Nancy Allen etc, which was a hit back then.

The main cast includes Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson and others. Set in 2028 in a world protected by drones, the policeman Alex Murph played by Joel was a very serious law enforcer who went all out to bring down criminals in society. However, his relentless pursuit of a notorious criminal caused him to be the target of a car bomb and was critically injured. To save his life, his wife signed an agreement to prolong her husband's life through the help of modern technology.

What was shockingly graphic were scenes showing what remained of his organic body which included his head, neck and esophagus, part of the torso including his lungs and heart as well as a palm. The rest of his body was amputated away from his body. The body parts were then fitted onto a robotic body that was intricately connected with his brain such that it functioned almost like a normal human being, except of course with superhuman strength and abilities.

I shan't give the rest of the story away but it was a case of him fighting corruption, even within the police force, and tried to maintain his sanity to get back to his estranged wife and son. Alright, I wouldn't say I was impressed with the movie but once again, Gary Oldman put up an excellent performance. Michael Keaton, who no longer had an ounce of fabric resembling Batman, looked old and loathsome as the unscrupulous CEO of the Omnicorp which manufactured the drones and the Robocop prototype.

Ok, it's time to move on to another movie.

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

Today's weather - sunny

I didn't have much high hopes of this movie but after watching it, I was pleasantly impressed. Directed by Christopher Nolan, this is the last of a 3-part trilogy on the DC comic superhero character Batman. The first two movies Batman Begins and The Dark Knight were released in 2005 and 2008 respectively.

Hemmed by a cast which included Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne and Batman, Michael Caine as the butler Alfred, Gary Oldman as Commissioner Gordon, as well as new characters Selina cum Cat Burglar played by Anne Hathaway, Bane by Tom Hardy, John by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, other cameos included Cillian Murphy and Morgan Freeman. I am happy that this new installment wasn't a disappointment in the making and it was worth the wait for four whole years before it came to the big screen.

I shan't dwell on the storyline but I am very glad that the movie-makers introduced new twists or surprises to an otherwise mundane plot. One of my favourite character actors Joseph Gordon-Levitt really came a long way since his days on the TV series "Third Rock from the Sun". As John Blake, the audience was treated to a surprise at the end when it hinted that he could be the new Robin, who is the other half of the well-known Batman-Robin pairing portrayed in the comics. Interestingly, in one of the scenes, Joseph's police uniform spotted the familiar initial GC on his sleeves, which I suppose stood for Gotham City. Anne provided a different girlish portrayal of the Cat Burglar, which was a fresh take that bore absolutely no resemblance to the classic Cat Woman played by Michelle Pfeiffer in the late 80s. Then there was Tom Hardy, whom I last remembered as one of the characters in the movie "Inception" of recent years. Just take a look at the photos below on how much he bulked up in a matter of months to play the role of Bane. Sadly, he was almost unrecognizable with the mask on this face and there was only one blink and you will missed it scene of his actual face in the entire movie. Such ballooning in body weight must have a toll on a person's health, I guess? What a sacrifice actors have to make!

And yes, I am looking forward to see the new movie "Man of Steel" on the most well-known DC comic superhero Superman in 2013, which is a year away, after watching the short trailer played before the movie started.

SINGAPORE GARDEN FESTIVAL 2012

The Singapore Garden Festival (SGF) is coming up again from 7-15 July 2012. Meanwhile, the exhibit at Orchard Road has attracted attention from passersby who posed for photos. The 3 mascots Benny the bee, Gary the grasshopper and Lindy the Ladybird are prominently featured in the landscape. And I spotted a flowering Brugmansia! Too bad it is so far and out of reach for me to catch a whiff of its fragrance.