INTERSTELLAR

One of the most hush-hush sci-fi movies kept under wraps for so long, this recently released movie built up too much hype and I don't always think that is a good move. Directed by Christopher Nolan of "The Dark Knight" series of movies fame, I had high expectations when I caught it at the movies.

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, John Lithgow, Wes Bentley with a cameo by Matt Damon and Topher Grace, the movie almost put me to sleep at times. Set in the future on a dying Earth, the space travel did not happen until at least an hour into the 2 hrs 50 mins long movie. The movie makers took their time to explore the special relationship between Cooper, Matthew's character who was a former NASA test pilot turned farmer, and his 10 years old daughter Murphy, played by MacKenzie Foy, before they whisked him off on a spacecraft Endurance with Dr Amelia Brand, played by Anne Hathaway, daughter of Professor Brand, Michael Caine's character, and some others into outer space through a wormhole to explore the livability of 3 potentially habitable planets Miller, Edmunds and Mann named after the astronauts who went on the initial mission to seek out these planets, in another galaxy in a bid to relocate mankind. The young Murphy was so heartbroken that although she pined for her father and unlike her elder brother, she refused to record messages for her dad, for the many years to come, which were sent to those on the mission.

Of course, the space travel wasn't as simple or straightforward and was fraught with lots of potential dangers and challenges. Planet Miller was too close to a black hole Gargantua which exerted a strong gravitational pull on the planet that it resulted in time dilation and one hour spent on the planet was the equivalent of seven earth years. Naturally, disaster happened to the team who explored this planet first. By the time the survivors returned to the Endurance, 23 earth years passed. That was also when Murphy, who was now a NASA scientist, sent her first recorded message to her dad on her birthday to remind him of his promise that he would be back before she reached the same age as him when he left her behind. This was the part that Matthew McConaughey broke down with grief when he finally saw his daughter after two decades apart.

They next went to Planet Mann, where Dr Mann was awakened from his space slumber, which showed a lot of potential for humans to inhabit. However, it turned out that Dr Mann falsified all the data for his own selfish reasons because he couldn't stand the loneliness in outer space and plotted to get a spacecraft to get there to rescue him from his plight. Another astronaut was killed as Dr Mann tried to take control of the spacecraft but didn't succeed, leaving behind Cooper and Amelias as the two remaining survivors of the voyage. This commotion caused significant damage to the spacecraft and barely left behind enough resources to sustain both of them for the final mission to the third planet.

Cooper sacrificed himself and instead of being destroyed upon entry into the atmosphere of the third planet, he was thrust into a 5th dimension across a time continuum behind a series of bookshelves where Murphy's bedroom was. He had to find the one that the adult Murphy was in at the specific moment to communicate with her the data that would enable her to solve the mystery of sending mankind to outer space. He eventually lapsed into unconsciousness before waking up at a hospital, which he later learnt was part of a larger life sustaining facility on another planet and the place was founded and named after Murphy. By then, Murphy was already in her 80s and surrounded by her children and grandchildren and she sent him away looking for Amelia, who was still somewhere stranded in outer space.

The ending was very typical of Christopher Nolan's movies where there was a lot of narration to provide a closing chapter to the movie. Strangely, this is one movie that I caught of outer space where aliens were not involved.

Cooper broke down on watching Murphy's first recorded message.

Prof Amelia Brand

Cooper and his children Tom and Murphy

the adult Murphy

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 TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART 2

This is the finale of the Twilight romantic fantasy movie series that premiered in the year 2008, gave vampire movies a new twist and made household names out of the 3 young leads Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.

This last installment finally saw Bella transformed into a powerful vampire with amazing abilities. It also spawned the child of Bella and Edward, Renesmee who is a half human and half immortal. The movie has a strong cast comprising MacKenzie Foy, Ashley Greene, Michael Sheen, Dakota Fanning, Kellan Lutz and Maggie Grace, amongst many others.

I am not a good storyteller and do not know how to embellish a tale, but I was really happy with how the story panned out and the ending. Frankly, there are many things about this finale that I love.

For a start, I love how they alternated the colours red and white at the beginning of the movie to introduce the production crew and ended the movie by showing the entire cast from the first movie until the last. I think it is unprecedented and although I couldn't remember all the characters but it was a good way to wrap up the saga after 5 years.

Then, I love the beginning part of the movie where they showed fantastic views of the beautiful forest conifers and animals when Bella displayed her newfound abilities to hunt. Once again, it was as if I was looking at an enchanted forest with mystical creatures. I was already sold after watching this initial but brief introduction before the story unfolded its dark side. 

The showdown between the vampires, werewolves and Volturi on the snow-covered open field was the climax and I was shocked and saddened by the sudden and quick deaths of the Carlisle Cullen and Jasper, during the brutal battle, who appeared and played important roles in the Cullen family from the first movie until now. Their deaths enraged the Cullen family and their vampire friends and gave them strength to fight and hold their own against the powerful and corrupted royalty Aro, Jane, Alec and others of the Volturi coven, whose demise was both sweet and uplifting for those who rooted for the Cullens. 

The battle ended brilliantly, and gave a well-deserved ending to this epic tale of vampires and werewolves. Of all the movies in this series as shown below, this is my personal favourite.

• Twilight (2008)
• The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)
• The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010)
• The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part 1 (2011)
• The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part 2 (2012)

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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.