• Love & Honor (bushi no ichibun) is a drama set near the end of Japan’s Edo period. It tells the tale of a lowly ranked samurai, who loses his sight one day in service to his clan’s lord, and how the ensuing domestic struggle strains the relationship between him and his wife. When his wife performs an unspeakable sacrifice for her husband behind his back, can the blind samurai eventually redeem both their honor?
• I remember this being screened sometime back in the cinemas in KL as part of their foreign film festival. It was one of the nominees for Best Film in the Asian Film Awards, and won a host of other awards at East Asian film festivals.
• Love & Honor is a beautifully shot masterpiece, with terrific acting from the two big leads – Takuya Kimura (2046), as the blind samurai and Rei Dan as his wife. The title for the movie couldn’t be more apt, as both issues on love and honor couldn’t have been depicted in better terms. I’m now very tempted to watch the director’s previous two samurai films (this one being the last of a loose trilogy). Catch this if you can.

CJ7 (2008)

• Stephen Chow returns, this time in a movie about a poor little kid, his low income father, and how their life take a little (or drastic) turn when a cute furry alien pays them a visit.
• It’s got some good laugh out loud moments, typical of any Stephen Chow films. The little girl who played Dicky was simply incredible (I didn’t know he was a she!), or the fact that there were a host of other cross gender acting as well (the big bully, the fat girlfriend). The kids were adorable and CJ7 is freaking cute – except for the parts when it starts dancing and stuff.
• However, I found the movie disappointing as a whole. The plot was really loose, and I definitely did not find the constant abuse of poor CJ7 amusing. The special effects was so-so although it’s a good thing that Hong Kong cinema are pushing their CGI boundaries. For every good thing that I can think about the film, there seems to be something negative accompanying it. At most, a mediocre film – especially when compared with both Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle.

Stolen Life (2005)

• A tragic coming of age tale about a young lady in urban China. Having been abandoned in the care of her aunt and grandmother by her parents, Yanni feels that she has no control over her life and is undeserving of love. When she finally gets admitted to college, moves out, and falls in love with a kind man who cares for her, little does she know that she will be embarking on a nightmare that will lead to the loss of innocence and her own child..
• The narrative storytelling sets you up with dread at what to expect at every turn. You will quickly come to take pity on the lead’s unfortunate circumstances and every bad decision she will make (yet understand that most times, those decisions are really out of our hands). My only gripe was how the movie ended with her talking into the camera, as though the entire movie was an interview, and how she implored you to do her a favour. Or maybe that’s just the way it is, for you to share in her helplessness.
• Stolen Life is otherwise an emotionally strong, feminist movie. It will open your eyes to a hidden ugly part of China, the underground, the black market for babies, the poor, the swindlers and cheats who prey on love, the lack of compassion, and all for the sake of greed in a consumerism gripped society.

Love on Sunday (2006)

• The last Ryuichi Hiroki film I watched was called “I Am An S+M Writer” which was borderline pinku with its bondage sex theme. Throw in this movie’s gorgeous looking cover, and I thought the movie might end up being a little explicit as with the director’s previous works. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Don’t judge the book by its cover!
• Love on Sunday is a look through the eyes of a teenage girl’s last 24 hours before she has to move away to the big city. The girl has a dilemma as she is in love with her good friend, who’s apparently got a crush on another girl, who’s desperate to get her ex-bf back, who meanwhile has fallen for the main girl. What a quadrangle quandary right?
• The complexities are deeper of course, each one of them having their own innocent motivations. The two girls know what is happening, while the 2 guys are clueless. They get thrown together, culminating in a high stakes betting contest, and come out with a better understanding of themselves. It’s really nice to be able to relate to the whole tense teen romance setting, with all the chemistry and electricity flying between friends. This film does a good job reminding us all of how hard it was to tell someone back then that we liked them..

The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)

• This movie blew me away! Directed by Kim Ji-Woon (Tale of Two Sisters, A Bittersweet Life), and starring the 3 most recognizable Korean male leads today; The Good – Jung Woo-Sung (Musa, A Moment To Remember), The Bad – Lee Byung Hun (A Bittersweet Life), and The Weird – Song Kang-Ho (Memories of Murder, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, The Host etc.). You ain’t going to get any better than that..
• Inspired by the original Eastwood western – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly. All 3 leads chase down a treasure map, while the Korean independence movement, the Japanese army & the Manchurian gangs all follow suit to provide a messy premise and reasons for tonnes of gunslinging action. The camera will swing in and out and all around while you watch some impressive directing take place – a train heist, gun fights, mega horsebacks and jeep chase with artillery fire and the quick draw showdown finale.
• The characters are ultra memorable. The Good was super cool, The Bad was just plain bad-ass while The Weird provided loads of comedic relief (and he was funny as hell). Violence isn’t held back in the least – just the way it should be so as not to pander towards a rating system, and prevents it from getting too comical. Cinematography, vivid colours, detailed sets, scenery, scope, effects – all left me utterly breathless.
• I’ve waited a long while for good Korean cinema since The Host. This came along wonderfully. A definite must watch.

Night Time Picnic (2006)

• A sweet Japanese drama that takes place during an annual school event where all the students are required to walk 80km in 24 hours. The long walk will turn out to be more than simple exercise, as it represents a unique journey of self discovery, bonding, and the outpouring of hearts for the kids involved.
• Central to the film is a girl named Takako and a boy named You who seem to keep an awkward silent distance from each other. Their friends think they are attracted to each other, and spend most of their time trying to get them together, but they both vehemently deny having anything to do with each other. Their true relationship will eventually be revealed near the end with a tear inducing endearing ending..
• Along the way, quirky friendships and relationships come into play in the form of childishly lovable teen behavior. I particularly liked the dude who was constantly out of energy in the daytime, but turns into a hyperactive rocker guy at night.. The cute girls (and really cute lead), the struggle of walking that distance, and the wonderful sense of accomplishment from finishing, making friends, confessing, and growing up, this movie really made me wish I was with them (and reminded me of my own journey back then too).

Red Cliff (2008)

• John Woo returns to asian cinema, directing what is touted as the most expensive Asian-financed movie in history – an adaptation of Romance of the Three Kingdoms for the big screen.
• This movie was EPIC. Easily contains the largest battle scenes compared to other Asian war movies to date. Considerable amount of extras, horsemen and costumes was used together with the help of CGi to showcase battle strategies in progress. Each of the main characters were given the chance to showcase their fighting prowess (ala Dynasty Warriors) as they easily mow down the cannon fodder soldiers. The fighting scenes were well choreographed, with none of the gore held back. Action movie fans will definitely find something to enjoy here.
• John Woo also spent considerable time crafting several long scenes highlighting the thoughts, and the unique storytelling aspect (Chinese dramatization) from the original novels. The acting however, was average and a little wooden. Although I applaud the use of CGi to showcase the scope of the hundreds of thousands of soldiers at war, I thought the final cgi effect was quite cheap looking and fake.
• Despite it’s flaws, it was still riveting to watch. The most popular Chinese story in history, told and retold in countless book prints, opera teathers and drama series, have now come to life in a high budget action packed blockbuster. The ending was VERY abrupt though, with the second half to be launched a few months later to provide a 4 hour plus gargantuan movie. Can’t wait to catch the finale when it’s released in Singapore cinemas at the end of the week.

Red Cliff 2 (2008)

• And so I manage to catch the continuation of this super long epic movie.. I think John Woo had every intention to recreate Romance of the Three Kingdoms in the image of Lord of The Rings. Both the huge fleets stand off at opposite ends of the lake, as the generals try to outmaneuver each other through psychological warfare, deception, espionage, and subterfuge before culminating in a massive conflagaration.
• This 2nd part had substantially less character development. In fact, everything feels rushed and compacted – definitely not meant for users to pick up halfway through. Full appreciation must include viewing of the first.
• I was a bit miffed with the whole ‘stupid innocent baddy’ subplot though. Initial complains about the less than optimal CGi still applies, although the liberal use of fire was okay. The final battle’s editing although breathtaking, wasn’t very convincing either – it was too jumpy and all over the place. It’s like there were hordes of enemy cavalry at one point, then all of a sudden they were all gone.
• Ultimately, this is a subpar film. Regardless, it’s still an action packed blockbuster and will entertain the masses, Dynasty Warrior fans, or anyone who just loves oriental war films.

Exodus (2007)

• A film by Pang Ho-Cheung, starring Simon Yam as a police detective who happens to come across an unbelievable conspiracy – women with malicious intent to kill all men, be it their husbands, boyfriends, relatives, etc. Of course, women have the methods at hand to make it all look accidental / suicidal in those instances. Convinced, yet lacking proof, the detective goes on a personal investigation that puts his marriage, and possibly his life.. at stake.
• The absurd plot was meant to make this a black comedy and although there were some ‘what the heck’ laughable moments, the general atmosphere was one of dread, and suspense. Unique directing made use of angles and prolonged shots to create a sense of discordance and suspicion. Throw in haunting piano pieces for much of its soundtrack and an overall weird sense of playfulness in the plot and you have yourself a freshly original Hongkie movie – something rare nowadays.

The Detective (2007)

• Yet another awesome Hongkie movie! I’m starting to feel hopeful for Cantonese movies now.
• Directed by Oxide Pang, with Aaron Kwok as a private investigator who one day gets a client insisting that a girl is about to kill him. However, every lead he visits as he tries to track the girl down, ends up mysteriously dead. And in every case, they were suicides, or explainable deaths which should pretty much leave the case closed – but he isn’t convinced and attempts to dig deeper. Eventually he uncovers a shocking perhaps supernatural truth…
• The entire film is shot in Thailand, and the pacing and directing was excellent. Aaron Kwok was simply outstanding here as the naive, yet street wise PI, and is becoming a powerhouse of an actor in my eyes – especially after having seen him in another excellent film “After This Our Exile” that was shot in Malaysia. Entertaining, interesting, and definitely calls for a watch if you can get your hands on it.

Three Times (2005)

• Came highly recommended from a friend on Facebook who voted it amongst his top 3 films of all time. Directed by Hou Hsiao-Hsien – one of Taiwan’s most respected directors for his critical, beautiful, contemplative works.
• Three times is a collection of 3 short love stories taking place in different eras – 1966, 1911, and 2005. Acted by Shu Qi and Chang Chen, Three Times attempt to convey how love is unique, influenced by the byproduct of its times. In the first, it explores innocent love – the sort that needs no explanation – the simple smile, the simple meal, the hand holding. Then it moves back in time to show unrequited love from a pleasure woman whose only destiny is to look forward to be a rich man’s concubine. And finally, to the present – a hopeless love, one based entirely on immediate gratification, even touching on homosexuality. And amongst it all in the background, is the tapestry of Taiwan’s history and struggles,.
• The surprising thing is that the dialogue is exceptionally minimal, hardly 5 lines is spoken in the first section, and the one during 1911 completely devoid of any speech (replaced with dialogue clips ala silent films instead), yet it manages to convey the messages exquisitely. One must also be prepared for a very languid and slow moving film, with much of the movie focusing on the actors doing mundane things, yet also somehow showcasing that its in the everyday actions that characters come to life. Having said that, this is not a movie for everyone. It’s very art house and is the sort of film that polarizes its viewers into either praising it, or hating it.

Ghost In The Shell 2.0 (2008)

• I’ve heard quite a bit about this anime series, but have never gotten around to catching it – probably because I was under the impression that I had to follow a series (and I don’t watch series). However when I heard that the director decided to remake the original 1995 Ghost In The Shell movie into a new version with remixed soundtrack, updated graphics and incorporating 3D cgi, I knew I HAD to catch it.
• This is a deep sci-fi film with heavy Bladerunner overtones. It dives into a dystopian cyberpunk future where technological advancements have allowed humans to have various artificial implants that replaces and augment their bodies. On the extreme end, are androids – completely artificial and indistinguishable from humans, with brain tissue being the only organic thing left in them that gives them sentience. Major Motoko is one such android working for the government, and has been trying in vain to find meaning to her life. She gets that chance when a truly sentient AI construct makes contact with her..
• The story arc is fairly simple, although the universe is surprisingly detailed and well thought out. It’s also an adult anime, filled with loads of nudity and a fair share of violence. The graphics, atmosphere, direction, haunting chanting music, was excellent and I was very impressed – probably as much as Akira even (although Akira was much more epic). Having never seen the original, I can’t make any comparisons as to which is better. After watching this however, I have a tremendous urge to follow up on its sequel – GITS : Innocence. Highly recommended.

Gips (2001)

• The movie starts off with Kazuko who stumbles into Tamako, a stranger in crutches who demands that she helps her take off her shoe, and buy her beer. Somehow, a strange unspoken attraction takes place and Kazuko starts hanging out and vying for Tamako’s attraction. The plaster cast was apparently fake, as Tamako uses the crippled facade to attract men and to make her life more interesting. Things take a turn when Kazako spies Tamako killing one of the men in a basement…
• This is one strange experimental movie. Minimalistic dialogue, and you are often left wondering where the movie was taking you. The premise was definitely interesting enough, and together with the attractive actresses, kept me watching.
• However, those were the only things going for it, as I found it way toooo slow. There were lots of long unmoving shots and pointless extended moments that just wasn’t necessary. It felt like the director needed to increase the duration of the film or it wouldn’t be considered one. Go ahead and watch any of the other movies on this list – just avoid THIS one.

The Kon Ichikawa Story (2006)

• Directed by Shunji Iwai (Hana & Alice), this is a documentary about Kon Ichikawa – one of the most prolific, revered and respected grandmaster of Japanese cinema. I’ve only seen 2 of Ichikawa’s films, (The Burmese Harp and Fires on the Plain) but they left a lasting enough impression that I didn’t mind finding out more about the man behind those films. Kon Ichikawa has made over 39 movies over his 50+ years career, and is currently 91 years old. He is still directing.
• Unlike normal documentaries, Shunji Iwai chose instead to do a somewhat ‘silent film’ – one using short image and video clips from Ichikawa’s life and films, interspersed with black and white text when Iwai had something to say. It made for a very strange and somewhat tedious experience, as much of what was conveyed could have been done in less than half the time.
• Unless you are a fan of Japanese cinema or knows who Shunji Iwai is and is interested in what he has to say about Kon Ichikawa – you can safely give this one a miss.

I Don’t Want To Sleep Alone (2006)

• Director Tsai Ming-Liang’s first work that is shot entirely in his home country – Malaysia. For those of you who do not know him, he does most of his filming in Taiwan, after having felt that Malaysia was too restrictive for him. This well respected moviemaker, particularly in the independent film circles, has won over 36 film awards to date.
• A very gritty movie, focusing on the developing love triangle between 3 unlikely people in the slums of Kuala Lumpur – a homeless guy, a Chinese coffee shop waitress, and an immigrant worker (the races and nationalities of the characters was subjective). It is a slow paced movie with minimal dialogue – maybe due to the fact that they might not have spoken the same languages, except through their expressions and actions. The director uses very long still camera shots – creating a hypnotizing effect where you feel like an invisible bystander trying to make sense of what is shown by putting yourself in their shoes, without knowing the entire picture.
• Delving into the tough lifes of immigrants in Malaysia, the journey of an old mattress, care for the ill and incapacitated, touching on homosexuality, of needing love, of aimlessness and of belonging. It’s got some weird element of humour in it mixed in with some mildly provocative scenes, and an overdone depiction of the infamous KL haze. And there, at the back of it all, is a possible existentialist angle, that the whole thing could just have been a dream, the need of a paralysed man…
• This controversial film was banned in Malaysia for awhile, until the director aquiesced and cut out many scenes. It is a finely crafted absorbing and rewarding honest film, an eye opener to the lives of people in limbo, wandering the streets of KL. I will never look at an immigrant quite the same way again – a reminder that we all have stories of our own. As with all slow moving art house pieces, this might not be for everyone.

Truthfully, writing these posts have been quite time consuming. Running through each DVD to screen capture the characters, thinking of corny captions for the images, and writing them was a bit of a pain in the ass – but I couldn’t exactly stop once I’ve started.. Anyway, if any of the Bond posts made you smile or cringe (to their lameness), then my job is done. Hope you enjoyed them!

Licence To Kill (1989)

• Final movie to star Timothy Dalton as James Bond. Was also the poorest performing Bond movie in the US – although I thought the whole movie was pretty good.
• Some memorable scenes here.. a cool intro where they capture the villain by lassoing the tailend of a plane with a helicopter, and then parachuting into a wedding ceremony. The finale was cool too, with Bond singlehandedly causing the destruction of 2 drug laden oil tankers in a high speed chase scene (lots of explosions!)

Villain – Franz Sanchez

• Drug lord with plans to smuggle tonnes of cocaine to Asia after having discovered a method to dissolve them in gasoline.
• Ruthless. He caused a defection from within the CIA, and brutally murders Felix Leiter’s wife, as well as almost killing Leiter with a shark.. Goes up in flames when Bond puts his gas-coke soaked clothes on fire..

Villain – Dario

• ONE of Sanchez’s many henchmen. I’m only including him here because he’s a super young super skinny Benicio del Toro!!
• Totally didn’t expect to see him.. I love this dude’s acting roles – he always looks damn bad ass. Poor guy has a very bloody demise by falling into a grinder…

Bond Girl – Lupe Lamora (Talisa Soto)

• This latino girl is HAWTTT. Although she’s the main villain’s abused girlfriend, she doesn’t quite qualify as a henchmen cause she helps Bond even from the very beginning.
• Did I mention she was hawt? She carries herself with a lot of pride and stature in this movie, and those eyes.. those legs.. *sweat* Hotness Level 4/5.

Bond Girl – Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell)

• A CIA informant who helps Bond track Sanchez down. An ex-army pilot, and definitely not a bimbo.
• I have to say she was pretty sexy here, especially with the famous 1980′s super short tomboy bob cut. Hotness Level 3/5.

Goldeneye (1995)

• Pierce Brosnan’s first James Bond movie. It took them 6 years to film this due to legal publishing disputes.
• I thought it was pretty good! Not as campy as the older Bond’s and definitely one of the better ones. It was also the beginning of Brosnan’s ‘high tech’ Bond films which will progressively get more outrageous…
• A traitorous MI6 agent and a Russian general with a plan to destroy Britain’s economy by withdrawing money from the Bank of England, and then decimating all electronics in that country with a satellite launched EMP attack (aka Goldeneye).
• Ultimate chase scene, with Bond driving a Tiger tank through St. Petersburg, crumpling cars and causing maximum destruction, while mowing a villain down..

Villain – Alec Trevelyan

• Sean Bean, another accomplished actor.. Plays Bond’s close friend and fellow double O agent who was presumed killed in action, but instead turns out he faked his own death and went rogue.
• Dies by falling off a huge antenna dish (used to communicate with Goldeneye), and then having the dish collapse on him.

Villain / Bond Girl – Xenia Onatopp (Famke Janssen)

• Downright THE most psychotic Bond Girl ever! This girl is CRAZY – she’s carnivorous, dominatrix and loves to seduce and to kill. The scene where she claws on one of her lovers chest, her insane grin, her squeals.. breathtaking..
• And her trademark killing maneuver? Crushing and suffocating her lovers with her legs. Really makes me wonder what it’d be like with her in bed.. haha.. Hotness Level 3.5/5

Bond Girl – Natalya Simonova (Izabella Scorupco)

• The sole survivor during an attack to steal the Goldeneye operating mechanism. She’s just an ordinary girl (a programmer) who ends up as a witness and gets caught up in the entire conspiracy.
• Nothing extraordinary. She’s nice. Hotness Level 2/5.

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

• This movie made lots of Malaysians proud thanks to ‘Datuk Michelle Yeoh’s role in it – just cause she was born in Malaysia..
• It’s got one cool opening sequence with two Migs fighter jets duking it out, but the movie’s later action scenes doesn’t quite live up to its intro. You will however get to see a battleship sunk with a drill-head torpedo, Bond doing a HALO jump, a remote controlled BMW car chase and the movie’s highlight – Bond and a handcuffed Wai Lin escaping on a motorcycle.

Villain – Elliot Carver

• An insane billionaire media mogul who owns a massive stealth ship, which he uses to steal a nuclear warhead. Manipulates the military GPS to trick a British ship into Chinese waters and then sinking the ship to escalate political tension.
• His master plan? To monopolize the world’s media by starting a World War (thus creating his own news), and be the only network to supply the information..

Bond Girl – Paris Carver (Teri Hatcher)

• Used to be in a relationship with Bond before getting married to the villain. She will end up getting seduced by Bond a second time and reveal info about her husband to him.
• She dies after her husband discovers her betrayal. Poor girl. Well, I never really found Teri Hatcher particularly attractive. Hotness Level 1.5/5

Bond Girl – Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh)

• A Chinese secret agent with her own bag of gadgets and tricks. Initially pursues her own agenda, but teams up with Bond to get the job done.
• Considered by many to be the only Bond Girl that is Bond’s equal in terms of skill and independence.
• Hotness Level 1/5. Sorry for the low score Michelle Yeoh fans. I don’t know why but somehow or rather, I wouldn’t exactly ‘do’ her…

The World Is Not Enough (1999)

• I remembered actually enjoying this when I watched it about a decade ago.. It wasn’t particularly outstanding or memorable, just decent entertainment.
• Features a really long pre-title sequence in the form of an intense high tech boat chase. You’ll also get to see a more Bond ski-ing action scenes, with him single-handedly wiping out a squad of paragliding snowmobiles unarmed, defusing a nuclear bomb while traveling inside of an oil pipeline, going against a helicopter with large hanging saws, and hijacking a submarine.

Villain – Renard

• Poor guy has a bullet lodged in his brain that is slowly migrating towards the center of his head. Will eventually die, but for some wonderful movie plot reasoning – the bullet’s path is dulling his senses making him immune to pain.
• Proves that you do not exactly need a bullet in your head to do stupid stuff like sacrifice yourself for the sake of drop dead hot vixen who falls in love with you.

Villain / Bond Girl – Elektra King (Sophie Marceau)

• A rich heiress who masterminded the death of her own father. Plans to monopolize oil trade by building a pipeline to the West, and then destroying the remaining 4 Russian oil pipelines with a nuclear detonation..
• This girl is smoking! Elegant and graceful, Sophie Marceau is without a doubt one of the most breathtaking bond girls. Doesn’t matter that she’s got a bit of a flat chest here, or that the scene with her torn earlobe was a little hard to watch, or that she is super ruthless and even kinky as hell in a particular torture scene. Her imperfections contribute to her attractiveness.
• Do keep an eye out for a nipple slip when she’s making out with Bond.. Hotness Level 4/5.

Bond Girl – Dr. Christmas Jones (Denise Richards)

• God awful acting here, and totally unbelievable as a nuclear scientist. She sounded like a little girl throughout, and looks more like a blonde bimbo than anything.
• She’s got some almighty assets though.. haha. Hotness Level 3/5.

Die Another Day (2002)

• The worst Bond film in my opinion. Filled to the brim with non stop corny one-liners. Insults everybody’s intelligence with the most absurd plot ever. Overusage of CGI.. Has the most ridiculous non-plausible technology at the time – an INVISIBLE car anyone? Urgh.
• This one movie completely turned me off the entire Bond series. Thankfully it was the last of its kind.

Villain – Colonel Moon / Gustav Graves

• Probably giving it away here, but they are one and the same. A North Korean colonel, presumed killed by Bond in the pre-title sequence, he returns as a super rich dude after having considerable cosmetic surgery and gene therapy done to himself.
• Launches a huge satellite that is capable of reflecting sunshine and providing light to any part of the world. A front to secretly hide a diamond powered magnifying ‘glass’ that can focus the above mentioned sunlight into a deadly energy beam. Intends to use it to reconquer South Korea.
• First death – falling off a waterfall. Final and real death – getting sucked into a jumbo jet’s propeller engine.

Villain – Zao

• Do the screenplay writers think we aren’t smart enough to ask if those diamonds can’t be removed from this dude’s face? STUPID!
• Colonel Moon’s loyal aide. Dies by getting impaled with a huge ice chandelier.

Villain / Bond Girl – Miranda Frost (Rosamund Pike)

• A MI6 agent supposedly working undercover to find out more about Gustav Graves rise to power. In reality, she’s a turned agent and is working for Graves instead.
• Dies by getting stabbed in the chest (through a passport?) in a sword fight scene with Jinx near the end of the movie.
• Carries herself with considerable stature, and a dash of unapproachable coldness. Just makes you want to break through her icy layer.. Hotness Level 3.5/5

Bond Girl – Jinx (Halle Berry)

• Plays a secret NSA agent who’s out to assassinate all those responsible for supporting gene therapy. Apparently gene therapy involves harvesting healthy genes from poor unfortunate people.. Apparently NSA find this appalling, and so must kill other people instead. Stupid stupid stupid!
• Awful! I don’t know what’s so sexy about her seriously. Hmm. Or maybe its just me. Hotness Level 2/5.

• My 3rd full featured 3D film, and oh boy are they getting better and better! This is a story about a superhero dog (Bolt), who has spent the better part of his life protecting his owner Penny from the evil clutches of The Green-Eyed Man. Unfortunately, his superpowers, and all that he knows about the world is nothing but an elaborate setup from the movie studios to to trick the dog into believing everything is real (think Truman Show). Bolt gets a rude awakening one day when he finds himself all alone across the other side of America and he struggles to get himself back to Penny’s side.. while making some odd friends in the process, a depressive cat (Mittens), and a hamster who happens to be a die hard fan of Bolt’s movies (Rhino).
• This is a heartwarming family movie, regardless whether you are an adult or a kid. The Pixar team contributed to the story arc and characters, and the quality shows. Bolt’s tenaciousness, fierce loyalty and love for Penny knows no bounds and is touching to watch, and he’s super adorable as well! The characters are all unique and memorable in their own ways especially the pigeons! Jeepers, I had to suppress my chuckles every time the pigeons started talking. Mitten’s carefree despondence and perpetually lazy look couldn’t resemble real life cats any better, while the overly optimistic Rhino was an inspiration despite his craziness and “ridonculousness”.
• Pending the release of the next Pixar movie, you can’t go wrong with Bolt. But PLEASE DO try to catch this in 3D.. it’s a much more overwhelming experience.

Ip Man (2008)

• True blue kungfu films are a rarity nowadays, especially since the great martial arts actors of our decade have all declared retirement (Jackie & Jet). The one other guy I’ve been eyeing and waiting to rise up to the limelight, is no other than Donnie Yen. I have nothing but total respect for this dude after his mind blowing mixed martial arts performance in Flash Point – the most realistically brutal in any movie I’ve seen. If you have not yet seen Flash Point, you can find his scenes all over YouTube. Go catch them before watching this. And then you can imagine why I’m so excited about Donnie Yen stepping up to take his share of the wushu pie in Ip Man.
• Little is known about the real Ip Man character, save that he opened a ‘Wing Chun’ branch of martial arts school in China after WW2. He is also famously known as the grandmaster who taught Bruce Lee most of his fighting skills. Much of the movie is about Ip Man’s humble life (with generous over dramatization), how he learned martial arts as a hobby, balancing his time as a family man, while fighting only when necessary to defend the honor of his township. Movie takes on a more serious note halfway through with the invasion of the Japanese army, as he is forced to pit his skills against the Japanese.
• This film was PACKED with awesome fights. If like me, you came for that, you won’t leave disappointed. The Wing Chun style of fighting isn’t particularly flashy or fast moving, but that doesn’t detract from the awesomeness of well choreographed scenes. Suspension of disbelief was easy, and the opponents weren’t as campy as some in Fearless. As with most Asian films, melodrama was injected into it but nothing too tragic (overacted maybe). No matter how God-like Donnie Yen fights, I have to say that he still isn’t that great an actor. But screw that – Jet Li couldn’t act for nuts either. Sammo Hung’s choreography was top notch, and you’ll find yourself holding your breath whenever the fighting starts.
• The only complaint I have is that watching this in Singapore means that I have to endure a Mandarin dub of the original Cantonese version. Despite it being a Monday evening, the hall I was in was PACKED FULL. The audience was immensely supportive of the movie, laughing at scenes that I didn’t even find funny, and applauding whenever Ip Man wins a fight. Some even gave standing ovations at the end (I didn’t think it was THAT good). But hell, I WOULD watch this again without a moment’s hesitation, AND download it just to fast forward to the fight scenes. And best of all, there is going to be an Ip Man sequel, which includes Bruce Lee…
• Update: I did go and watch this again a 2nd time, and it was still good..

P.S. I Love You (2007)

• Based on the novel of the same name by Cecilia Ahern which I actually read back in January. Holly’s (Hilary Swank) wife Gerry (Gerard Butler) passes away from a brain tumor, but before he dies, arranges for a series of letters to be sent to her after his passing in order to help her recover and move on with life.
• Touching in some scenes, and mostly hilarious in others. P.S. I Love You is a pretty straight to the point chiq drama. It’s only average at most in regards to originality, screenplay, and directing. Although the film was still quite enjoyable for me, this movie isn’t going to get on any critics good side. RottenTomatoes gave this a measly 21% overall rating.
• Hilary Swank still gets my admiration for her acting prowess despite her being in such a lightweight happy movie (compared to most of her other movies which tend to skew towards a darker side). Gerard Butler, gosh I can’t imagine this was the same guy from 300. Thankfully, Lisa Kudrow’s supporting role also injected a lot of humor into an overly melodramatic film.
• Surprisingly, I much preferred this over the novel. I found the novel a little too bland and simplistic to read and hardly as emotional as the film. Of course, as with most novel adaptations, considerable changes was made to the original in order to fit and suit the big screen. These changes were done pretty tastefully in my opinion. Still, this IS a movie based on a chiq lit and you’ve been thus warned.

Twilight (2008)

• Sigh, I had such high hopes for this movie especially after all the positive comments left behind by my fellow female movie going friends. Should have realized that most of those comments were aimed only at the lead actor here, and at nothing much else.
• In short, Twilight is about a 108 year old vampire – Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), and an ordinary teenage girl – Bella (Kristen Stewart) who falls in love. Together they do teen things, like having to abstain from their overwhelming sexual attraction (disguised as bloodlust here), and deal with assignments and proms and stuff. Then of course another bunch of vampires appear to cause trouble, and some short lived lame drama kicks up..
• The on screen characters were admittedly quite smoldering. There’s nothing quite as interesting as mysterious personalities, either in the “I like to keep to myself” brooding Bella, or the stalkerish possessive “You have no idea how much I want to drink your blood” Edward. After all, which girl wouldn’t want to be lusted after as much as Edward does in this film? Oh wait, not ALL girls want that I guess – not after they realize how downright freaky it actually is.. Otherwise, most obsessive stalker nerds in this world would have landed their dream girls already – provided they have Edward’s good looks I guess. Sigh, girls. It ALL comes down to looks right?
• I particularly disliked the way Stephanie Meyer (the author of the books) ripped apart well known vampire lore, and created a watered down version fit for kids. What’s this about vampires appearing with glittery skin under sunlight? That was lame enough for people to laugh in my cinema hall. Or the fact that Edward is 108 years old, yet behaves like a lovestruck teenager. From the sound of things, it seems like there’s virtually no ‘negative’ side to being a vamp, since they can live a normal life like go to school and have a day job working as a doctor. Don’t give me crap about being turned into a ‘monster’, especially since there’s a family who can survive purely on animal blood. Diamond skin, super strength, speed, telepathy, prescience, not needing sleep, immortality, orange eyes, free lipstick, for Gods sake, TURN ME INTO ONE NOW. Also, if just a bite from a vamp can change a human, simple exponential mathematics would show that in just a few months, the WHOLE WORLD would have been converted by now (that or everyone is dead). ARGH, another fantasy movie meant for children. PLEASE BRING BACK ADULT FANTASY (no I didn’t mean THAT kind).
• Low budget with corny special effects. The way the vamps moved around (the fading effect) or the way Edward leaps and climbs trees had no style or grace to it. The final battle between Edward and the nomad hunter vamp offered a brief respite, but even that was very lacking in many departments, especially how the fight ended. There were also loads of cringe worthy corny lines here I assure you, which doesn’t help at all.
• I guess the writer hit the jackpot by creating a ‘Harry Potter’ meant for girls. Think of the whole thing as a premise for teen romance, attraction, sex, peer acceptance, proms, school life, parents, etc. Watch only if you are interested in seeing two teenagers get maddeningly infatuated with each other, otherwise I highly recommend you go pick up White Wolf’s Vampire The Masquerade RPG books or Anne Rice’s series (Interview with the Vampire) if you want proper vampire stories. Hopefully, the sequel called New Moon would be better, but I don’t have high hopes.
• What I AM waiting for instead, is for this top-notch Swedish vampire flick called “Let The Right One In” to be released. Synopsis quoted from IMDB: “Oskar, an overlooked and bullied boy, finds love and revenge through Eli, a beautiful but peculiar girl who turns out to be a vampire.” Supposedly much more brutal and real, at the time of writing, it’s already made it onto IMDB’s TOp 250 and won 16 film awards (while Twilight won’t be winning any for sure)…

What Happens In Vegas (2008)

• Big names in an average chick flick. Ashton Kutcher plays the good for nothing that just got fired from his father’s company. Cameron Diaz is the uptight high strung stock broker who just got dumped by her fiance. While taking a break by visiting Vegas, they end up meeting each other, got pissed drunk -> got married -> struck the jackpot and won 3 million dollars. Of course they don’t want to stay married, but each one of them wants a share of the money. A court ruling forces them to try and make the marriage work, or they will never see a cent of the 3 million. They have 6 months to do it. Can they?
• The jokes weren’t all that great, although there were some gems in Ashton and Cameron’s acting. The plot seems a little forced, especially during the parts when both the leads attempt to make the other quit the court arrangement by doing horrible things to each other. Even more so was the way the movie rushed towards the end with the whole change of heart (yeah like you wouldn’t see it coming), which was rather fake. And then, typical of these chiq fliqs, you have to bear with the campy lines like “You bet on me, You make me wanna bet on myself” yada yada yada..
• Just an amusing flick to catch if you are bored and having nothing else to watch. Or if you like Hollywood romance comedies. If you ask me, once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.

• Easily the MOST OUTRAGEOUS Bond in the entire history of this franchise.
• Capitalizing on the success of Star Wars and the whole sci-fi craze of that era, this one takes Bond to space to combat a mad billionaire.
• You can expect to see the most nonsensical MI6 invention – the Venetian gondola that can transform into a hovercraft. At the beginning, there is a pretty intense skydiving prologue (where Jaws survive a free fall by falling into a circus net), lots of zero G effects, a massive space station, a ‘you’ll never see it again on movie screen’ moment where astronauts duke it out in space using pew pew laser guns, and even more pew pew as James Bond pilots a space shuttle that shoots lasers at poison orbs orbiting the Earth.

Villain – Hugo Drax

• The crazy fella who has somehow the resources to build a space station, acquire loads of space shuttles, and convince an army of people to follow his insane plan, without alerting any authorities. His insane plan – to exterminate all humans on Earth, while transporting only the ‘finest genetic specimens’ of humanity to his space station to start humankind anew.

Villain – Jaws

• Jaws is back! Apparently he has a big enough fan base following to warrant his return.
• As strong and invincible as ever, his role in this movie takes a dramatic comical twist near the end when he meets the girl of his dreams. Decides to help Bond after realizing that Hugo Drax doesn’t consider him and his chiq a ‘perfect genetic specimen’.
• Survives orbital re-entry in a section of a blown apart space station…….

Villain – Chang

• Almost succeeded in killing Bond by increasing the speed of a centrifuge machine that Bond was in. Stupid Bond also lar, wanna get into a life threatening machine for what when he jolly well knows he’s in the middle of an investigation.
• Stalks Bond while he makes love to Hugo Drax’s pilot, and then tries killing him again with a bamboo sword in Kendo gear (what, is he nuts?). Anyway, typical stereotype Asian villain, and died a pathetic death by falling head first into a piano from a few floors up.

Bond Girl – Corrine Dufour (Corrine Clery)

• Hugo Drax’s pilot, and tour guide for Bond. Falls for Bond’s charms when Bond enters her room while she is in nothing but a negligee. Funny how a simple romp in the bed can convert her into helping him break into Hugo Drax’s safe..
• The price of going behind Drax’s back? Death by being chased and mauled by two Dobermans.
• Hotness Level 3/5.

Bond Girl – Dr. Holly Goodhead (Lois Chiles)

• CIA undercover spy pretending to be an American scientist on an exchange program from NASA.
• Plays hard to get and ultra snobbish at the beginning, but ultimately gives in to Bond’s charms when he saves her life atop a crazy cable car fight with Jaws. Turns out to be a useful ally during the later space battle.
• Hotness Level 2/5.

For Your Eyes Only (1981)

• One of the most boring plots ever. A British spy ship sinks in the Mediterranean, and the Russians attempt to get their hands on an ATAC (Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator) aboard it.
• Has the distinction of being the film where Blofeld is finally killed by Bond within the first 5 minutes of the film in a helicopter scene.

Villain – Aris Kristatos

• When Bond attempts to track the villain down, this smartass gets on Bond’s good side, and throws him off course by directing him against another smuggler (Milos Columbo) who is innocent.
• Doesn’t quite do much except trying to find the ATAC unsuccessfully, and then having to steal it off Bond’s hands when Bond finally digs it out of the wreck.

Bond Girl – Countess Lisl von Schlaf (Cassandra Harris)

• Milos Columbo’s bitchy chiq, whom Bond seduces (or is it the other way around). Made some passionate love the night they met, only for her to die the next morning (ran over by a dune buggy), thanks to Kristatos’s henchman.
• Looks kinda old, but she was hawt in that pre-lovemaking scene – generous cleavage and nipple slip and all.. haha. Hotness Level 3/5.

Bond Girl – Bibi Dahl (Lynn-Holly Johnson)

• In contrast to the old lady above, Bibi is a young horny teenager who wants Bond (but unfortunately Bond doesn’t want her). And they never do make out. Stupid Bond.
• Hotness Level 2/5.

Bond Girl – Melina Havelock (Carole Bouquet)

• A STUNNER. Really gorgeous, with that European exquisite look.
• Melina is out to avenge her parents, who were brutally gunned down in front of her.
• An underwater archaeologist. She’s strong willed, and highly independent – even assassinating her parent’s murderer all by herself successfully. My type of girl. Hotness Level 4/5.

Octopussy (1983)

• Bond ends up in India investigating a plot to fund a war with stolen relics. Despite some cool flying stunts in a mini plane, tuk tuk chases, and an interesting train finale, there is otherwise very little over the top plot or stunts in this film.
• Has the distinction of being the Bond film with the most screwed up name.
• Lots of villains.. haha, all henchmen, and henchmen of henchmen. And some more henchmen. Even the Bond Girls all start off as being henchwomen..

Villains – General Orlov & Kamal Khan

• The Russian general and his lackey, both conspiring to replace Russia’s and other treasured relics with fakes, while selling the originals off to make a profit. The funds will be used to start a war, after a nuclear device is detonated next to an American airbase..
• Orlov will die disappointingly by being machine gunned in the back, while Khan perishes lamely when his plane crashes.

Villains – Gobinda & The Yo-Yo Killer

• Gobinda is Kamal Khan’s henchmen, constantly serious, with a vendetta against Bond for having escaped his clutches many times. Nothing spectacular. Dies by falling off a plane while fighting Bond.
• Yo-Yo Killer (got the name from Wikipedia), is a hired killer by both Gobinda and Khan. HAD to include him here despite his small role, because he wields a cool yo-yo saw! Poor guy dies by getting thrown out of a window and into a pond where he gets chomped on by a crocodile.

Villains – Mischka & Grischka

• Twin circus performers with a mastery for knife throwing. Despite their awesome skills, their knifes all seem to miss Bond miraculously. Mischka dies by having a cargo train fall on him, while Grischka is killed with his very own knife by Bond.

Villain / Bond Girl – Octopussy (Maud Adams)

• Technically a villain, she is the smuggling mastermind behind General Orlov and Khan’s plans. A mysterious character, living all alone on an island populated with women who are circus, religion and self defense trained. Named after a supposedly poisonous octopus.
• She gets seduced by Bond when they finally meet, and switches sides almost immediately. Hotness Level 2.5/5.

Villain / Bond Girl – Magda (Kristina Wayborn)

• Octopussy’s henchwoman. Slept with Bond so that she could reclaim Bond’s Faberge Egg. Has a tattoo of an octopussy on her thigh.
• Nice body, but she’s got some crazy pouty lips man. Hotness Level 3/5.

A View To A Kill (1985)

• Roger Moore’s last Bond film. He was 57 when this was filmed – and was one of the biggest criticisms of the movie. Roger Moore himself admitted to being too old for this film, and was mortified when he found out he was older than one of his female co-star’s mother..
• No particularly extravagant stunts here, except for a stunning finale at the very top of the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. That, and you also get to see a lot of tunnels being flooded with water, as well as innocent people being gun downed as they are running for their lifes..

Villain – Max Zorin

• Christopher Walken! The first recognizable villain who has a huge repertoire of other films outside of his Bond role (and a huge cult following too).
• He does a fantastic job as the psychopathic Max Zorin, intent on monopolizing the semiconductors market by destroying the entire Silicon Valley. He plans to do this by flooding two underground faults, as well as detonating a massive amount of explosives at a sensitive geological spot, to create a massive earthquake and flooding of the entire valley.

Villain / Bond Girl – May Day (Grace Jones)

• This she-male is downright scary as Max’s henchwoman. She’s super strong, feral, and not to be trifled with. Bond actually BEDDED her in a horrifying scene. :p
• Later, when Max Zorin leaves her behind to die, she switches side and helps Bond avert the disaster by sacrificing her own life. Regardless, she’s still freaking ugly to me.
• Hotness Level 0/5

Bond Girl – Stacey Sutton (Tanya Roberts)

• When she first appeared on screen, she almost took my breath away with those blue eyes and mane of hair. That is until she started screaming “Booond, don’t leave me, Boooond! Don’t Leave Me!” over and over again. Totally ruined her character..
• Hates Zorin for being cheated out of her family business and fortune. Besides her looks, she’s really quite a useless character – and Bond had to babysit her throughout.
• Hotness Level 3.5/5.

Bond Girl – Pola Ivanova (Fiona Fullerton)

• Peeweet! Bond encounters her spying on behalf of the Russians while spying himself at Max Zorin’s hideout.
• A brief lovemaking scene in a hot bath, after which Bond double crosses and steals her espionage tapes. Hotness Level 3/5.

The Living Daylights (1987)

• Timothy Dalton’s first Bond movie and boy what a refreshing change! No more stupid campy corniness that came with all of Roger Moore’s previous films. Timothy Dalton looks super suave and young. This is a much more serious, much more frenetic, and more logical film compared to the previous ones.
• Not much outrageousness. Maybe except for the cool new Bond car – Aston Martin V8 Vantage – equipped with front missiles, bulletproof glass, ski extenders, studded wheels, hub cap lasers, rear rocket blast, and a self destruct system.
• Complicated plot that involves a Russian general backstabbing and plotting against another Russian general – except that they had to involve Bond somehow.. (Had they not, they’d probably have gotten away with it). That aside, I really enjoyed this Bond.

Villains – General Georgi Koskov & Brad Whitaker

• Two of the lamest villains in Bond history. Totally nonthreatening.
• Koskov does nothing except fake a defection to the British, so that he can implicate a good Russian general in a fake ploy to kill British agents. That, and make lots of money by dealing in opium. Hmm..
• Whitaker does nothing much either, just an arms dealer hoping to make a quick buck through deals with Koskov. He does get to use an interesting rifle with personal bulletproof shielding near the end of the film though.

Villain – Necros

• Henchman to Koskov – tough, well built and well trained. Russian assassin extraordinaire, and very much a throwback and tribute to Red Grant in ‘From Russia With Love’.

Bond Girl – Kara Milovy (Maryam d’Abo)

• Originally Koskov’s lover. I don’t understand why Koskov spent $150,000 to get a Stradivarius for her, and THEN backstabs her by setting her up as an assassin (so that Bond will kill her).
• Bond however doesn’t kill her (cause shes hot), and while investigating her, ends up seducing her instead, and brings her over to his side.
• Quite an innocent, dainty girl here if you like that sort of thing. I thought she was pretty mild & clingy throughout. Not my cuppa tea. Hotness Level 2/5.

Just returned from the opening screening of The Day The Earth Stood Still with Niki. As its fairly new, I don’t think many of you have watched it, so hopefully this review might come in handy. *If you are against even the smallest of spoilers, I suggest you read no further.*

For those who aren’t aware, this is a remake of a classic 1951 movie of the same name. I’ve never watched the original (as I’m sure most of you haven’t either) so I’ll be making my own conclusions about this version. Purists have been slamming it for apparently butchering the original.

• Basic gist – Keanu Reeves plays an alien emissary, sent to Earth to evaluate humanity, and impose judgment. If we pass, all’s good and well.. if we fail, then well, we fail. I’ve never been a fan of Mr. Reeves, despite him being in lots of my favorite movies. He has the most expressionless face ever, no variation and not much acting skill except for his good looks. And he’s no different in this. Thankfully, his role doesn’t require him to display any emotion whatsoever.. haha
• The gorgeous Jennifer Connelly plays the astrobiologist who befriends and enlightens the alien. She does a decent job despite a flat uninspired script. Her son, played by Jaden Smith, was just plain freaking annoying, although he did have pretty good acting skills for his age – inherited from both his father and mother no doubt.
• I’m a BIG sci-fi fan and an environmentalist at heart as well – so this movie struck a chord in me (it doesn’t take much on both those points). BUT it could have been SO MUCH MORE. There was simply so little emphasis on the crisis we are having. It’s just a waste that a movie with such a noble premise is probably not going to stimulate discussion, raise awareness, or encourage children to look up on the matter. If you ask me, its still great sci-fi, but AFTER its been processed by the Hollywoodmeisters, and turned into a special effects feast instead.
• Product placement was OMG awful ESPECIALLY from Microsoft and McDonalds. Although I didn’t mind seeing more of the cool Microsoft multi-touch ‘Surface’ table again (it also appeared in Quantum of Solace), they didn’t have to show an obvious 2 second section of the Windows logo while the table was ‘starting up’. And McDonalds.. argh, what’s with the whole forced Mandarin speaking scene?? It was supposed to be serious, but the whole cinema was cracking up in laughter over Keanu Reeve’s westernized Chinese speaking attempt.
• To be perfectly honest, I DID enjoy the movie. Quite considerably too – simply because I’ve been starved of intelligent serious sci-fi films for the longest time now. Yeah, I would consider this intelligent, because it doesn’t quite insult my intelligence if at all. It was cool to hear about a galactic confederation, a silicon based life form, see self replicating nanotechnology at work, the new US Military remote controlled drone fighters, and more..
• If you are a geek, or you are anti global warming / pro nature, you will definitely find things to like in this. Just try to look pass the typical attempt to turn it into a high budget blockbuster by trivializing the core plot and pumping up the effects. There is a certain rarity here, a hidden gem and message, that is almost non-existent in other movies today. My verdict? Ultimately forgettable (it shouldn’t have been this way!), but still definitely watchable (sigh).

The biggest change about watching movies over here is that THERE ARE NO SUBTITLES! Or if there were any, only Chinese subtitles are shown (and I can’t read Chinese). I now have to focus a lot more in order to catch all the words, nuances and names in the movies – not too difficult EXCEPT for those that are heavily accented with lots of slang (affected my Tropic Thunder viewing). Maybe I’m just too used to subtitles – they help me ensure that I don’t miss anything during my movie experiences. But I’m not complaining – looks like I’ll just have to adapt for now.

Quantum of Solace (2008)

• Daniel Craig is without a doubt my favorite Bond of all time. OK, that was a little quick of me to judge, considering I have yet to watch Timothy Dalton in his Bond role (I’m only up to the 10th Bond movie in my marathon list when I caved in to catch this). Anyway, here goes – spoilers ahead – you’ve been warned!
• Seriously, I don’t see how any of the earlier Bonds could be as rugged, as flawed, as ruthless, and as human as Daniel Craig. Taking place merely an hour after the ending of Casino Royale, this is the first true Bond ‘sequel’ and was impressive with its awesome chase and gritty action sequences similar to the Bourne series.
• It is with great relief that they have now removed almost ALL of the outrageous and ridiculous gadgets that populated the previous Bond (Brosnan) era. In its place are more current and plausible technologies – in particular the ‘Microsoft Surface’ multitouch screen desk in the MI6 headquarters, and how geo-location is used extensively in the movie. Although the 3D photo enhancement portion was a little exaggerated, almost everything else COULD work with today’s technology.
• Olga Kurylenko, although not the hottest Bond girl around, played a convincing part as the independent strong willed femme fatale hell bent on revenge. I particularly enjoyed how Bond took affection to her – shared aspirations if you will – yet never consummated their on screen chemistry.
• The plot was also pretty well written, introducing a new covert organization called Quantum – more powerful and plausible than all previous ones (no blood crying dude here), dealing with today’s diminishing oil reserves concerns. Even more so, is the blurred line between what is right or wrong in the eyes of the world, or the countries in which the organization serves.
• And finally, back to the man himself. Passionate, ruled by his own convictions and principles, stone cold when it counts, and down right unstoppable if you get in his way. With an emotional core that is just as real as ours. For the first time, I feel you 007, I really do.

Tropic Thunder (2008)

• If you didn’t already know, Tropic Thunder is a satire about the Hollywood industry. Imagine a bunch of war actors who were sooo bad, the director decided to throw them into a real situation and film reality TV style – but little do they know that things will go awfully wrong. The supposed fun part of the whole thing, is that this is a movie about a movie within a movie. Or in the case of Robert Downey Jr, the dude playing the dude, disguised as another dude.
• Ben Stiller finally made a somewhat watchable movie. At the current moment, Tropic Thunder’s got some crazily positive reviews from the critics. 7.5 on IMDB and a whopping 83% on RottenTomatoes. Can’t say I agree to those ratings though.
• Maybe I expected something a little less slapstick. There were some Golden moments here, especially played by Robert Downey Jr – near unrecognizable as a black man, and Tom Cruise – whom you’ll be hard pressed to identify from the cast.
• Besides that, everything else took quite a bit of downturn for me. Too much high budget explosions that meant little to nothing, events that totally didnt make sense, and was in no way logical, and a whole lot of empty chatter (guess I missed a lot of the Hollywood jabs). I know, I know, it’s actually a parody and satire and admittedly I had a few good laughs – but it STILL felt like a typical stupid comedy to me. I guess I just couldn’t suspend my disbelief enough.
• Worth a watch lar, if you don’t mind stuff like that. My expectations were probably way askew after having watched Burn After Reading.

Burn After Reading (2008)

• An awesome dark comedy about a bunch of dysfunctional bumbling idiots, each with their own little agendas and motivations, and the tragedy that can occur from when simple things go wrong..
• The Coen Brothers outdid themselves again with this one. I was laughing away quite hysterically. I knew nothing about the movie when I first walked in, and the first 5 minutes was hardly inspiring but the mood quickly settled in. What really helped was the A-star cast in all of the main roles with John Malkovich, Brad Pitt and George Clooney standing out the most.
• Maximum praise goes to Brad Pitt’s character here – you simply have to watch him. He is one of the very few good looking actors with the actual versatility to act in all sorts of roles. If you are a fan of his stuff, don’t miss the chance on seeing him act as a dim witted, gym freak. Malkovich was impressive too, acting as the angst filled ex-CIA officer. Clooney is well, Clooney.
• There are very few intelligent tightly written comedies quite like this one. I’d recommend you give it a shot – especially if you enjoy movies like The Ladykillers, The Big Lebowski, & Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels.

• This is the first and only James Bond film to star George Lazenby as 007. I would say he did a pretty decent job despite having no acting experience.
• It was also one of the most ‘raw’ James Bond film before the release of Casino Royale, due to its sheer rugged fight scenes, and some intense action sequences that are impressive even by today’s standards – in particular a ski chase and stock car race scene.
• It is also the first (and only?) Bond movie to where James falls in love with the girl, and marries her at the end.. (not counting Daniel Craig’s Bond)

Villain – Ernst Stavro Blofeld

• Blofeld returns once again, this time with another mad-ass plan..
• First, he decides to appease his ego by pursuing a ‘count’ title that doesn’t belong to him. Then he sets up this research institute right up at the top of the Alps, completely top secret and inaccessible – under the pretense of developing cures for allergies.
• He DOES develop a cure for allergies, but only cures 10 pretty girls – so that he can also brainwash / hypnotize them to eventually distribute a biological agent around the world.. For goodness sake, with the amount of resources you have, just hire some cheap ass stupid thugs to do the work larr…

Villain – Irma Bunt

• Blofeld’s right hand woman. She’s the mamasan that takes care of the 10 ‘Angels of Death’…
• Nothing particularly threatening about this old bitch. Just that she survives at the end with Blofeld, and together, murders Bond’s wife (read below)..

Bond Girl – Contessa Teresa ‘Tracy’ di Vicenzo (Diana Rigg)

• She is the daughter to Draco, another crime boss that helps Bond get access to Blofeld
• This is one tough resourceful babe! Spoilt, independent, strong willed – she even saves Bond’s life more than once.
• Bond eventually falls in love and marries her – but it all ends in tragedy – the most depressing Bond ending ever, as she dies in Bond’s arms on the day of their marriage… *sob*
• Hotness Level – 4/5

Bond Girl – Ruby Bartlett (Angela Scoular)

• One of Blofeld’s allergy patients (she’s allergic to chicken).
• Poor girl must have gotten so horny having been deprived of men that she invites Bond to her room – by secretly writing her room number on Bond’s inner thigh with lipstick during dinner..
• Didn’t quite like her chirpy demeanor and thick American countryside accent. But I’m giving her credit thanks to a nipple slip in one of her scenes.. Hotness Level – 3/5

Bond Girl – Nancy (Catherina von Schell)

• Yet another horny allergy patient (this one’s allergic to potatoes).
• She managed to creep into Bond’s room on the same night that Bond seduced Ruby. Bond used the exact same lines that he used on Ruby earlier on Nancy, to good effect – and bam, 2nd babe for the night.
• No undressing or nudity here though. Hotness Level – 2/5

Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

• This time, Sean Connery decides to return one final time as Bond.
• Bond is tasked to find out the culprit behind some major diamond smuggling operation – which eventually leads back to Blofeld, and an insane plan to launch a laser satellite that uses diamonds to concentrate the beam.
• What can you expect? Bond almost gets cremated alive at a funeral parlor, an over the top car chase scene with the police (lots of cars gets trashed), a peek into a fake moon landing stage (following the conspiracy theories of the time), a REALLY ridiculous moon buggy chase, and a cheap assault on an oil rig base.

Villain – Ernst Stavro Blofeld

• Blofeld dies at the beginning of the movie, and returns to life again! No thanks to his research on plastic surgery to create duplicates of himself.
• However, when he dies this time – it’s FOR GOOD. YAY!

Villain – Mr. Wint & Mr. Kidd

• Deadly sarcastic, witty, cruel, sadistic duo. These 2 are tasked with eliminating the diamond smuggling path by killing everyone involved. They even almost got Bond himself.
• They are both gays. Not kidding.
• They die horrible deaths – burned alive / drowning and exploding in midair – thanks to Bond of course..

Villain / Bond Girl – Tiffany Case (Jill St. John)

• Starts off as an enemy as she was after the diamonds – but joins Bond when she realizes that her own life is at stake.
• A greedy, naive, air-headed girl who hilariously does more harm than good when she tries to help Bond near the end of the film. Typical bimbo!
• Hotness Level 3.5/5

Villains / Bond Girls – Thumper & Bambi (Trina Parks & Lola Larson)

• Gawsh man, these 2 were such a shocking surprise. They are acrobatic martial artists and managed to give Bond a good ‘thumping’, before Bond gets the upper hand again.
• Hotness Level 1/5

Bond Girl – Plenty O’Toole (Lana Wood)

• Sexy Sexy! A gold digger who latches onto Bond when he goes on a high stakes gambling winning spree.
• Follows back to his room, gets almost naked except for a see through panties, almost gets it on with Bond, but was rudely interrupted by baddies who throw her out the window and into a pool.
• Hotness Level 4/5 (Would be higher if not for her annoying voice)

Live and Let Die (1973)

• This particular Bond flick is DAMN racist. ALL the bad guys in this movie were stereotypical blacks.
• This is the first Bond film to star Roger Moore as Bond. I think Roger Moore makes an exceptional Bond due to his extremely cool under pressure demeanour.
• Get ready for some occult voodoo stuff, a tight situation involving a bunch of crocodiles, a mad bus chase (with Bond driving the bus), a very long winded boat chase scene, and lots of snakes..

Villain – Kananga / Mr. Big

• The mastermind behind the whole grand scheme to smuggle huge loads of heroine into America, get everyone addicted for free, and then monopolize the drug trade.
• Through the use of dual identities, manages to get the backing from the majority of blacks including some really spooky henchmen.

Villain – Baron Samedi

• The enigmatic occultist who is in charge of human sacrifices, rises from the grave for his ceremonies, and claims he cannot die.
• A very mysterious character – and although Bond seems to have killed him off, he reappears again at the very final part of the movie just as the credits roll, suggesting a supernatural origin perhaps..

Villain – Tee Hee

• Another of Kananga’s henchmen, Tee Hee sports a mechanical arm capable of cutting through hard objects, bending guns, and increased strength.
• Attempts to kill Bond off even after Kananga’s death – but is himself foiled thanks to a simple pair of wire cutters.

Villain / Bond Girl – Rosie Carver (Gloria Hendry)

• CIA Agent turned rogue – acts all inexperienced and innocent (maybe she is), and gains comfort and trust while in Bond’s arms.
• Solitaire however tipped Bond off, and poor Rosie was eventually killed of by Kananga’s security system while running away from fear of coconuts dressed up to look like heads.
• Hotness Level : 1/5

Bond Girl – Solitaire (Jane Seymour)

• Vava voom! A psychic able to predict current and future events through tarot cards. She also happens to be the first ‘virgin’ in Bond films.
• Forced into servitude to Kananga due to her supernatural powers, Bond eventually comes to rescue her – or was it seduce her. After losing her virginity to Bond, she loses her psychic abilities too. Way to go Bond!
• Her innocence, mysteriousness, beauty adds together for some seriously raised temperature levels. Hotness Level 4.5/5.

Bond Girl – Miss Caruso (Madeline Smith)

• A minor Bond girl, who just happens to be sleeping with Bond when M and Moneypenny comes door knocking in the beginning of the film.
• I just had to include her in cause she really was quite pretty. Hotness Level 3.5/5.

The Man With The Golden Gun (1974)

• Bond goes all over Hong Kong, Macau & Thailand in search for an assassin called Scaramanga – who supposedly sent a message claiming Bond as his next target. Along the way, he will discover a conspiracy to obtain a technological breakthrough that can ‘solve all energy crisis’ – a super efficient solar converter called the solex agitator. Quite straightforward…
• This Bond film had the overall lowest earnings in history. Many parties also claim it to be amongst the worst Bond films ever made due to it being very uninspired – but I thought it wasn’t too bad.
• Roger Moore is hardass in this one, resorting to beating a woman up to get information out of her, or making love to one, while another is made to wait in the closet.. gosh!

Villain – Francisco Scaramanga

• The Man with the Golden Gun. Just because he has a lighter that can be converted into a gun. If anyone walks around with a lighter that size today, they’re gonna be a major laughing stock man.
• He never misses with his gun.. konon.. but still gets outsmarted by Bond at the end.. obviously.
• Should be renamed to The Man with Three Nipples – yup, his 3rd nipple is apparently the only thing that distinguishes him from others (his photo never been taken). I coudln’t stop thinking about Chandler.. hahaha.

Villain – Nick Nack

• Scaramanga’s dwarf henchman. This guy is seriously too cute to be menacing.
• He was supposed to inherit all of Scaramanga’s wealth once Scaramanga dies – but who’d expect Bond blowing the entire place up and depriving this poor thing of his happily ever after.

Bond Girl / Villian – Andrea Anders (Maud Adams)

• Starts off as being Scaramanga’s chiq, but after a few slap arounds by Bond, eventually caves in to help Bond.. to her eventual demise..
• Hotness Level 2.5/5.

Bond Girl – Mary Goodnight (Britt Ekland)

• A British MI6 assistant to Bond. This blonde bimbo sometimes seem to do more harm than good and almost gets Bond killed on a few occasions. But her hopping around in a bikini at the end does more good than harm though.
• Hotness Level 3/5.

The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

• Top grossing Bond film and voted by many as amongst the best ever made.
• Features an epic plot about a villain with plans to start a nuclear war, and creating his own civilization under the sea. It’s got a massive ship capable of disabling and stealing submarines, and an underwater city (Atlantis). Throw in a Lotus Esprit that can convert into a submersible and you can pretty much expect lots of underwater action in the movie.

Villain – Karl Stromberg

• Don’t mess with this old man – he kills everyone who gets in his way, by feeding them to the sharks, or when they least expect it.
• He’s got webbed hands – not particularly intimidating, but his role more than makes up for it in terms of sheer villainy with an insane plan to take over the world.

Villain – Jaws

• Stromberg’s henchman. Whoa – this MOFO is BADDD (in a good way).
• He is near immortal and despite whatever happens to him, just CAN’T DIE. Appears multiple times during the movie, and almost gets the upper hand in all of them. Watch him claw out of being trapped under rubble, tear a van to pieces, survive being hit by a car, wrestle a shark and win, endure electric shocks and being thrown out of a train, and ultimately survive the destruction of Atlantis.
• Note his metal teeth – hence his name. He can pretty much bite through anything – including steel chains!

Bond Girl – Major Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach)

• A Soviet spy sent to partner with Bond in order to track down the culprit who’s been hijacking their submarines.
• She claims that she will kill Bond after the mission, due to finding out that Bond killed her lover prior to the mission. Of course, Bond manages to turn things around.
• Sexy sexy sexy. She’s suave, confident, and downright not to be messed with. And she’s got a killer body to boot.
• Hotness Level 4/5

Okay, I OBVIOUSLY failed in my objective to watch all 20 Bond films before the release of Quantum of Solace. I watched that about a week back, and my review for it will be coming up shortly too. Not to worry, I intend to continue with the remaining 10 Bond films (part 3 and 4), so keep tuned for more Bond villains and Babes!

A very very BIG THANK YOU to NicT for bringing the guys together for a farewell dinner. Although the ‘surprise’ didn’t exactly work out (I could see a reservation for 12 when I walk into the restaurant you know.. ), I still really appreciate all the trouble you went through dude..

What’s also great was that I managed to try Bubba Gump’s shrimps! I’ve always been wondering if it was any good – just never had the chance to eat there until that night. And you guys were right, the food there was pretty tasty.. although I’m sure I’d get cholesterol poisoning if I kept going back there for their yummy cajun shrimps..

Me and Tanya (who had to leave early)

Me and ultra BZ Nic Fong who also had to leave early due to unexpected ‘commitments’

Group shot! L-R : Ziet, Roy, Steph, NicT, FoOie, Andrea, Sue Ann, Faz, Li Tsing & Chin Li

And another group shot! This is Momma’s house by the way.. and my camera sucks

A bunch of us then made a spontaneous decision to catch the midnight screening of Max Payne over at Cineleisure…

*click* – Review mode turned on…

Max Payne

• Based on the famous 2001 first person shooter game (and one of my all time favorites) about a guy who loses everything when his wife and kid was murdered in front of him by a bunch of druggies. His relentless pursuit and vigilante justice to find those responsible becomes the main point of the story.
• What made the game stand out above all other shooters was the incredibly intense and dark narration. It was also the first use of the ‘bullet time’ – the ability to slow time down, so you gain an advantage over your opponents (you can see bullets whizzing pass you ala Matrix). At the end of the game, through sheer determination, skill, reflexes and righteous vengeance, Max Payne eventually mows down 600 over thugs, mafias and criminals responsible.
• The movie had ABSOLUTELY NONE of the awesome narration in the game, had AWFUL LOUSY use of bullet time, and ALMOST ZERO action. Max Payne became a wuss, and the movie became an overblown rhetoric on Norse mythology with irrelevant special effects of flying demons/angels/valkyries… I really don’t get it – so much potential, all gone to waste. BIGGG SIGHHH…
• I guess if you did not play the game, you MIGHT find things to like in it. The movie IS getting some above average ratings somewhat on IMDB.. so it can’t be that bad right? Rotten Tomatoes butchered the film though with lots of negative criticisms. I don’t know.. it was payneful to watch for me.. pun intended.

*click* – Review mode turned off..

I went for a drink with Li Tsing after that, to do some much needed catching up with her..

And then headed home to catch a veryy short shuteye, before I had to wake up early the next day for some tree planting (coming soon!)..

It was a great night (sucky movie included) – and thanks thanks thanks! to everyone who came even though you may have seen me earlier in the week.. I just have to say this again lar.. I’m really going to miss you guys..

• The 1st James Bond film that started the legendary franchise – it also set the theme and many of the precedents for all future Bond movies to follow – the theme song, the stylized intros, the girls..

Villain – Dr. Julius No

• Introduces the master criminal organization known as SPECTRE (Special Executive for Counter-Intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion)
• Mastermind behind the project to use radio beams to topple American rockets. Was going to topple American’s rocket launch to orbit the moon. Has a deep underground research facility on Crab Key island off Jamaica.
• Lost both his hands due to radioactive experiments. Replaced them with super strong mechanical prosthesis.
• Died by boiling / drowning in radioactive coolant when his mechanical hands didn’t have the traction and grip to pull himself out.

Villain / Bond Girl – Miss Taro (Zena Marshall)

• Spy for professor Dent (one of Dr. No’s kulis), tasked to lure Bond to his death – but in the end gets outwitted by Bond himself, who nicely gives her a good fuck before sending her off to the authorities. Way to go Bond!
• Loved how her bath towel is nicely sculpted to the shape of her boobs.. Hotness level – 3.5/5 stars –

Bond Girl – Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress)

• She was just collecting sea shells on a forbidden island – completely caught in the wrong place at the wrong time! What a premise to throw a hot chiq into the equation..
• She set the standards for ALL Bond girls to follow, and was one of the hottest sex icons for the decade. That bikini you see, was auctioned off for 35,000 pounds! This scene was ranked #1 in “the 100 Greatest Sexy Moments” on BBC in 2003. In 2007, Australian series 20 to 1 ranked her entrance in Dr. No as the #2 Sexiest Movie Moment.
• Hotness level – 4/5 stars

From Russia With Love (1963)

• A much better film compared to Dr. No – probably due to the higher budget, and continuity in the storyline. There’s a lot more humor here, with better one liners.
• Also, the first true bond gadget is introduced here – a special briefcase kit with an exploding teargas canister for those who don’t know how to open it, concealed dagger, 20 gold sovereigns, hidden bullets and a modular rifle.
• Interesting due to all the double crossing involved compared to the straight forward approach of the first film.

Villains – SPECTRE #5 Kronsteen and #3 Rosa Klebb

• Kronsteen, Chess Grandmaster devises the plan to pit the Russians and British against each other by staging a trap where the British is given an opportunity to steal the Russian Lektor decoding machine.
• Rosa Klebb is appointed to source for the girl to lure Bond into the trap, and the assassin to kill him.
• They both eventually die pathetic deaths – none of which from Bond’s hands.

Villains – Red Grant

• The master assassin tasked to kill James Bond. Trademark use is of a wire garrote built into his watch.
• Dies in a brutal fight with Bond on a train, in a reversal by Bond, who uses the same wire garrote to kill him.

Bond Girl – Tatiana Romanova (Daniela Bianchi)

• The unwitting pawn of Rosa Klebb, tasked with meeting Bond and handing over the Lektor Decoding machine.
• Of course, she eventually falls for Bond..
• Hotness level 3/5 stars.

Goldfinger (1964)

• The first true Bond blockbuster – this film was a tremendous success, won multiple awards and ensured that the Bond franchise will forever continue..
• Gold smuggling, homing devices, the very first Bond car – with a passenger ejection seat, front firing machine guns, rear oil slicks, smoke dispenser and bullet screen, cheating at cards & golf, the very first appearance of a laser beam in a movie, compacting a car into scrap, nerve gas dispensing planes, a nuclear bomb, and a high altitude plane decompression.. Goldfinger has them all!

Villain – Auric Goldfinger

• Hatches an insane plan to rob.. no irradiate Fort Knox that holds the entire American gold reserves to raise the value of his own gold stockpile.
• Besides being filthy rich, and overweight, there’s nothing particularly menacing about this dude. He isn’t even part of SPECTRE.
• Dies by getting his fat body sucked out of the window of a plane…

Villain – Oddjob

• One of the most memorable screen villains of all time. The personal aide to Goldfinger.
• Don’t let his stout frame mislead you. This badass can throw his steel edged bowler hat and decapitate stone statues, or crush golf balls with his bare hands.
• Just too bad the electricity conducting element of his steel hat will prove to be his downfall..

Villain / Bond Girl – Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman)

• I’m not kidding, her screen name REALLY IS Pussy Galore. Who writes these scripts!
• Head of a flying circus, and the key for Goldfinger’s plans to distribute nerve gas around Fort Knox. Too bad Bond successfully seduces her with what must have been a goddamn good fuck, because she switch sides at the very end and betrays Goldfinger.
• This auntie is SO NOT hot. Hotness Level 1/5.

Bond Girl – Jill Masterson (Shirley Eaton)

• Just a girl who helps Goldfinger cheats at cards, but once her cover is blown, she decides to join Bond instead.
• Goldfinger apparently didn’t think this was funny, cause he kills her by painting her entirely in gold paint (death by skin suffocation). Yeah right, like that can happen in real life…
• She looked mighty fine in her black lacy underwear, but her face leaves much to be desired. Hotness Level 2.5/5

Bond Girl – Tilly Masterson (Tania Mallet)

• Jill Masterson’s sister who crosses path with Bond while trying to take revenge for her sister’s death by assassinating Goldfinger.
• Bond doesn’t really get to sleep with Tilly, and Tilly dies quite prematurely in the film too but she was definitely hot enough to be included here since the MAIN Bond Girl (Pussy Galore) was so unsatisfying..
• Hotness Level 3/5

Thunderball (1965)

• SPECTRE hijacks a bomber, lands it at the bottom of the ocean (the most unrealistic thing you’ll see), and steals two live atomic bombs on it. Threatens to blow up two cities unless the world government pays 100 million pound sterlings. *smirks at the amount after the recent American bailout debacle*..
• Bond nearly dies on a giant vibrating bed (spine stretcher). True, he almost dies in lots of other scenes, but this was easily the MOST ludicrous.
• Plastic surgery impersonation ala Face/Off makes a brief appearance here, with a cool detachable yacht (kinda like Enterprise D) but the highlight of the movie will be the long drawn out elaborate underwater battle between SPECTRE agents, MI6 Frogmen, and Bond himself – with scuba gear, harpoons, knifes, sharks and a lot of “I incapacitate you by knocking your goggles off” parts.

Villain – SPECTRE #2 Emilio Largo

• Menacing eye patch, and mastermind over the atomic bomb thefts. Nothing special about him, except that he has a pool filled with sharks that he enjoys throwing people in.
• He also happens to ‘have’ a lady that Bond covets (see below), and will die by getting harpooned in the back by her.. Likely payback for all the ‘harpooning’ she got from him over the years..

Villain / Bond Girl – Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi)

• Largo’s femme fatale henchwoman, who is eventually tasked to kill Bond.. AFTER making love to him first of course.
• Too bad she and her body guards are quite incompetent.. cause a bullet meant for Bond, ended up killing her instead. Tsk tsk.
• The scene where Bond catches her in the bathtub, and she asks for something to wear, and Bond calmly just passes her shoes was priceless.. Hotness Level – 3.5/5

Bond Girl – Dominique ‘Domino’ Derval (Claudine Auger)

• Her ‘guardian’ is Largo, who double crossed her brother during the bomb heist. When Bond reveals this to her, she willingly partakes in the attempt to stop Largo. However for the entire movie – she doesn’t really do much except provide some on screen eye candy.
• She was marvelous in her black white ‘domino’ bikini. Growll. Hotness Level – 4/5

You Only Live Twice (1967)

• This film takes things to new absurd levels where SPECTRE sends up their own spacecraft to capture both American and Russian space modules to cause the next World War.
• Get ready for some corny space scenes, oriental beauties, helicopter dogfight, and an epic ninja vs henchmen battle in a secret massive volcano base.
• Screenplay was written by Roald Dahl (YES – that same witty kid literature author).

Villain – SPECTRE #1 Ernst Stavro Blofeld

• After multiple teaser shots of showing just his hands stroking his white cat in the previous Bond films, this is the first appearance of SPECTRE’s #1.
• Gosh, no thanks to Austin Powers, all I see in him is just a Dr. Evil. A really short un-intimidating one.

Villain / Bond Girl – Helga Brandt (Karin Dor)

• OMG, the lamest villain part in history. What is this, she catches him, ties him up, seduces him, then lets him go, then gets on a plane with him (supposedly to escape) only to reveal its a trap and jumps out leaving him in it. MAKE UP YOUR MIND BITCH.
• Deserved to die via lame horrible execution by #1 in a pirahna pool…

Bond Girl – Aki (Akiko Wakabayashi)

• Japanese SIS Agent who saves Bond’s pathetic ass more than once.
• Poor girl dies from poison that was meant for Bond.
• Despite being a true femme fatale, she looked a bit weird to me. Hotness Level 3/5

Bond Girl – Kissy (Mie Hama)

• She was Bond’s undercover wife as he and the ninjas infiltrate the volcano island.
• Va va voom! Doesn’t do much cept run around with Bond in a bikini during the last 40 minutes of the movie. Hotness Level 4.5/5

Thats it, the first 5 Bond movies, watched over the span of 3 days. 16 more to go. Seriously doubt that I can finish them AND write blog reviews in time before the Quantum of Solace is released.. So did I help jog some of your memories? Although most these girls are in their 70′s now, they were quite an eyeful back then..