Ervin’s

MDA 2004

First parking lot at MDA. Had to come in on alternate Saturdays to read newspap…I mean, do housekeeping of computer files and review previous week’s work. Thankfully a couple of months later the civil service went 5-day week. My neighbour was a Nike Dunk-wearing gal named Yvonne. That’s her…

 Unsuspecting Woman at Mohd Sultan Junction

 MDA 2006

 Shifted into the ‘Alley’ after Donald left. Once again, I was deprived of the sun. And here the air was being slowly poisoned I swear. Cheered myself up by splurging hard-earned money on little Gundam figurines (see pic). It became an unhealthy obsession. I was willing the little Gundams and Zakus on my desk to life while clock watching. Took some practice but afterwhile I could actually do both tasks at the same time (being sad and clock watching)…

MDA 2007 

 My current work shack. Nice and spacious. Had to fight for it though. Stuff actually gets done here (notice the Gundams are gone, relegated to some dark corner in a government-style steel cabinet). The window faces the west so come afternoon my back gets a real roasting. Now and then the ants come out for a tan (wait, why do I have ants…??)

BUT, this is a happy place. 

Bond – The Later Years 

Timothy Dalton should be in movies more.

He was a great Bond, despite owning only two 007 flicks. The guy’s got the looks, the chops and the accent. In this second movie from Edgar “Shaun of the Dead” Wright, ex-commander Bond hams it up as a snickering supermarket boss who hides a sinister and, quite frankly, ridiculous secret, along with a few geriatrics from country village Sanford.

Danny can’t help but notice the new Happy Meal promo, but Nick is more concerned with the chihuahua in the middle of the road

Enter over-achiever supercop Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) who tears his way through the cover-up, finishing with a farcical, gun-smacked showdown that feels like a John Woo / Bruckheimer 80’s Nintendo ES 8-bit game, and if you’ve seen the movie you’d know I mean that quite literally. FUN! To top it off, the movie’s one of those rare love stories without a female love interest or any back-breaking mountains. Think Point Break, Bad Boys, Lethal Weapon…it’s all in there.

Redefining ‘Easy Target’ 

Hot Fuzz is unapologetically satirical, endearingly violent, and very, very Brit-funny. It’s also one of the few original popcorn movies this summer. I use the term ‘original’ loosely, since it’s basically a satire on the entire action genre since Bruce Willis dropped Alan Rickman off the top of that building in Die Hard – a little stunt that won the movie the best Visual Effects Oscar that year. How VFX have changed…

Speaking of VFX, saw F4: Silver Surfer on Saturday night at the new AMK Hub Cathay. Went alone. Can’t remember the last time I did that. Wait, could be Casino Royale…

The ticket counter there is also where you buy your popcorn, drinks etc. Ok, that’s new. Takes a bit getting used to – like brushing your teeth in the shower.

And the movie…well, let me get something straight first. Jessica Alba is HOT. It’s as certain as the sky is blue. What Jess isn’t is BLONDE. You just don’t go yellow-hair on a miracle blend of Mexican and Danish genes, then make it worse by give her blue contacts. It’s unforgivable…

Jess Wrong…

But I forgive you, Jess. The wig (and maybe acting…) aside, you alone were worth the weekend ticket price. What wasn’t so fantastic was the script, a chunk of sub-par VFX and some of the most woodened voice-over I’ve heard, courtesy of Lawrence Fishburne (they should have stuck with Doug Jones). And the Silver Surfer really didn’t do much, except surf and look glossy

I enjoyed the first F4 more. Really, I did. First time round I could deal with the light script, the camp and the cheesy set-ups. But with a sequel you always expect a bit more depth and drama. With the Surfer the premise is all there – the conflict of conscience against duty; the courage in one’s choices etc. The script barely caressed these themes.

It’s ok to say you’re making a movie based on a comic (of one of the lighter-mood superheroes), and that not every superhero film has to deal with death, demons and darkness, but film provides another emotional conduit that should really elevate the experience of a beloved property like F4 beyond a roller coaster ride and cut-out characters.

I accept that some people (mostly kids) are more than happy with 90 minutes of pure comic book fare. Not me and what I deplore most about F4: Silver Surfer is the director’s endorsement of such a lightweight script when he should have had the courage to reach into the comic’s mythology and find a deeper emotional story (and a better screenwriter).

Thank god for Jess Alba.

Extra: F42 marks the end of this year’s superheros at the cinemas. Next summer: The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man and The Dark Knight returns…Bring it!

Anyway, not a major problem (the sci-fi thing; not the legs) and the story does build up to a gorgeous and quietly satisfying ending with the right emo dosage. Oh and the film is hilarious too, which always helps.

Whenever I step out of an anime film screening (sadly it doesn’t happen often) it almost always strikes me why people cannot see animation beyond being a ‘genre’, rather then a real art form for storytelling. Toki o Kakeru Shōjo is a gem of a film that should be a thankful distraction to all the popcorn 3D animated fare out there right now. Just a shame not many people will be seeing this in Singapore – only those genuinely looking for something different.

Extra: The director of Toki o Kakeru Shōjo, Mamoru Hosoda, was originally helmed to direct Howl’s Moving Castle (which he only vacated to make room for the master himself: Hayao Miyazaki).