Mother (마더) (2009)

Life is hard when you're a single mother living with an adult son with learning disabilities, making ends meet as the town's herbalist and illegal acupuncturist.

Life is much, much harder when above said son is the prime suspect in a murder mystery - prime because retarded people are always convenient suspects for police investigations short on leads.

Your task, if you should accept it: Take on City Hall, prove son's innocence, solve murder mystery, and perform acupuncture for client!

Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 30 December 2009.

Treasure Hunter, The (刺陵) (2009)

What happens when Chinese Ed Wood makes a movie with Jay Chou?

For better or for worse, is The Treasure Hunter actually (respectively) worse or better than Fantasy Mission Force?

Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 30 December 2009.

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Did Guy Ritchie dodge the infamous post-Madonna divorce career slump curse?

Is Sherlock Holmes really a suited to be an action hero?

Do Holmes and Watson bicker too much over trivial things like who owns the dog, the flat, and the money?

Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 23 December 2009.

No puedo vivir sin ti (不能没有你) (2009)

Will Taiwan's 2009 Academy Awards entry make it to the shortlist for Best Foreign Film?

No pudeo vivir sin ti is a piece of neorealist cinema set in modern Kaohsiung, focussing on the plight of poorest of the poor in society: squatters and itinerant workers.

Read my full review on Fridae, first published on 23 December 2009.

Avatar (2009)

James Cameron took 15 years and a budget fit to bail out a bank to make this film.

Has Cameron Rip Van Winkled himself into irrelevance?

Does he prove that even with Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro on the scene, that he's still the king of the world?


Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 16 December 2009.

Bodyguards and Assassins (十月围城) (2009)

Sun Yat-sen. To some, a patriot, revolutionary, and father of the nation. To others: a traitor and a target for assassination.

Will Dr Sun Yat-sen ever be safe from the imperial assassins?

Will he see to his revolution before the Manchu court has his head?

Will Donnie Yen yet again bash someone's head in for no apparent reason?

Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 16 December 2009.

The Storm Warriors (风云 2) (2009)

The Pang brothers revive the 风云 franchise after a long 10 years. Will their CGI flick hold the key to Aaron Kwok's 3rd Golden Horse Best Actor?

Will Simon Yam out-do Sonny Chiba's scenery mastication?

Will Aaron Kwok and Ekin Cheng once again cross their huge swords with each other?

Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 16 December 2009.

Princess and the Frog

How does Disney fare with its first hand-drawn animation in years?

Is a pic about a very dated classic the right way to herald a comeback for Uncle Walt's studio?

And really, casting a black princess in pre-War New Orleans? Really?


Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 9 December 2009.

Private Lives of Pippa Lee, The (2009)

A Desperate Housewives for the SuicideGirls generation, Private Lives is an ambitious meditation on the frailty of identity and ego, as well as probably the first coming-of-age story of a middle-aged housewife.


It's something that Virginia Woolf would approve of, and might have made if she were a filmmaker...



Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 9 December 2009.

Zombieland (2009)

Join Woody Harrelson and gang on a wild road trip across America (or Zombieland, as it's known post-apocalypse), killing zombies and smashing up property in the search of the last surviving heavenly twinkie on Earth!

You know this is really good stuff when the zombie designs come from the creator of the undead creatures in Michael Jackson's Thriller video...


Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 2 December 2009

New Moon (2009)

Forget about vampire lore. Forget about movies constantly reinventing vampire lore. New Moon's teen vampires and werewolves just want to fall in love, and you will fall in love with them too.

New Moon is written so that you too can appreciate the beauty of shirtless Native American types prancing around, without having to read the novel or even know about the previous instalments of the Twilight franchise...


Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 2 December 2009

Couples Retreat (2009)

Welcome to the couples retreat, where a very ditzy Jean Reno plays spiritual guru and relationship counsellor to a group of 4 married partners in search of happiness - and not necessarily with each other!

A very average romantic comedy, Couples Retreat shows far more discipline, coherence and consistency than Hollywood's other recent romcoms, which is a plus in its point.


Read my full review at Fridae, first published on 2 Novemeber 2009.