The Lucky One Movie Review (English)

Story: Logan Thibault walks all the way from Colorado to Hampton in search of the woman he thinks was his lucky charm while he was serving as war soldier in Iraq...

Critic's Rating: 

Cast: Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner, Riley Thomas Stewart, Jay R. Ferguson

Direction: Scott Hicks

Genre: Romance

Duration: 1 hour 41 minutes

Avg Readers Rating: 

Movie Review: The problem with screen adaptations of novels written by Nicholas Sparks is that if it's not bang on (in story and spirit), it might get Nicholas fans a little disappointed. Remember Nights in Rodanthe? And if it's minor changes in the plot that we're talking about, as in The Lucky One, we don't really know how Nicholas fans are set to react. 

Logan Thibault ( Zac Efron), a marine having served three tours in the Iraq war finally decides to call it quits. But before that he has an unfinished task: He is hell bent on finding the woman whose picture he has been carrying all throughout the war. For the record, his friend and now he himself, feels that it's Beth's picture which has been saving grace, literally. So out he is on a mission to find his lady luck, meet her and as Dame Fortune would have it, fall for her. But then love, as we know, has never really been that simple. 

The setting is perfect: the woody countryside, streams running into nowhere and a laidback life led by the inhabitants. Coming from one of the best selling contemporary romantic authors, this romantic plot is nothing short of perfect. The performances good: Zac, like Logan in the pages, is a man of few words, seldom smiles and is pretty cool at his job -- walking the dogs. Taylor Schilling's Beth, again like the pages, has her highs and lows as she goes about proclaiming to be a 'damn-good-mother'. 

The Lucky One Movie Official Trailer (HD)

But all said and done, something still seems to be missing out there. Now what is it? Is it Logan who in the very first meeting with Beth (unlike the book) is ready to play plot spoiler? Or is it director Scott Hicks who (unlike the book) does not let the romance and Sparks-ian mush brew between the two love birds? Or is it the bonding (unlike the book) between the nanny and her granddaughter that never really happens? Or finally, is it Zeus (the loyal dog) who (unlike the book) barely has screen time, leave alone being the hero in the end? Yes, the hero is someone else here. 

Now, don't go looking for The Notebook and A Walk to Remember, and you might not end up complaining.

Information Courtesy: The Times Of India

Review: The Avengers (English)

Story: Global catastrophe is round the corner. And the onus of saving citizens on Earth lies with Nick Fury. But how does he go about it? Time to chalk out a super plan. But then looks like it'll take him something more super than just a plan....

Critic's Rating: 

Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston

Direction: Joss Whedon

Genre: Action

Duration: 2 hours 26 minutes

Avg Readers Rating: 

Movie Review: What do you expect when six mighty super heroes - Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Hulk - 'assemble' together on the silver screen for one common purpose? Action unlimited. High voltage drama. Larger-than-life effects. Throw in some smart one liners (humorous, of course) and you maybe in for some push button video gaming fantasy.


Nick Fury ( Samuel L. Jackson), director of S.H.I.E.L.D, an international peace keeping agency, goes out of his way to save Planet Earth from impending doom, courtesy Loki (Tom Hiddleston). Loki, of course, is on the look out for the Tesseract, the cube that has all the power to swallow the planet... and get its inhabitants to bow before the evil one. That's when Fury thinks the best way to save Planet Earth is by handing charge to the evergreen power personalities. And that's precisely when Whedon creates an assembled six-in-one pack - The Avengers -- to wage war on screen. Yes, the story is rather simple. But then with testosterone swelling and bullets whizzing here, there, everywhere, we don't mind missing out on a breath-taking script.

The Avengers is not just your typical good versus evil kind of super hero flick. Here, before all scores are settled, it's the good-versus-good hungama that keeps you glued to your seat. Blame it on the big egos of the superstars. After all, they are all super in their own rights, have never worked as a team to ward off evil... and never taken instructions from other super guys. Naturally then, fireworks and action cuts are bound to follow.

Cut to the performances. Robert Downey Jr's Stark not just delivers his lines with panache in his typical 'playboy' avatar, he keeps the action going-literally - on screen. Chris Evans' Captain America as always makes it on time just when you are about to give up on all that mess. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) comes across as the perfect brother who is torn between the right and the wrong amidst lightening power and battles. Black Widow's ( Scarlett Johansson) mind games leave you simply asking for more. Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) is once again seen doing what he does best -- play around with his bow and arrows. Finally, it's Mark Ruffalo, first spotted in the bylanes of Kolkata, who gives you ample opportunity to clap when he turns into what he calls 'the other guys' (Hulk). Special mention: Tom Hiddleston who surprisingly stands tall as the bad guy in a group of otherwise good samaritans.

So here's what you've got to do: Just settle down with your 3D glasses for some bang-bang stuff where special effects speak louder than guns and the super guys have nothing to fall back on, other than their muscles, reflexes and of course, their super powers...


Courtesy: The Times Of India

Wrath Of The Titans: Now face the wrath!

Story: Perseus's defeat of the huge Kraken is history. He now vows to live the life of an ordinary fisherman with his son, Helius. But then the son of God cannot live without his destiny forever. The Gods -- have otherwise in store for him 

Critic's Rating: 

Direction: Jonathan Liebesman

Cast: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Edgar Ramirez, Toby Kebbell, Rosamund Pike

Genre: Action

Duration: 1 hour 39 minutes

Avg Viewer's Rating: 

Movie Review: There's always scope for improvement. There's ample scope for the clash (2010: Clash of the Titans) to turn into some real action-packed wrath (2012: Wrath of the Titans). Here's calling all you Clash of the Titans buffs who just could not wait to see their second dose of video game push button fantasy come alive on the big screen. 

So what's cooking between the Gods and the Titans this time? The same old war for the I'm-the-best title. But unlike its previous years, the Gods are losing control of humanity and taking over are the badmaash Titans and the deadly giant-sized Kronos. That's where our been-there-done-that hero from the past, son of the all-powerful Zeus ( Liam Neeson), Perseus (Sam Worthington) steps in to put up yet another spectacular show with the spear of Tritum -- the only weapon that can kill the one who shall not be named. Of course, there's a gamut of labyrinths and changing loyalties (Ralph Fiennes's Hades and Edgar Ramirez's Ares) he has got to deal with first. 



Back to all Clash of the Titans fans. Don't go expecting for a storyline that'll make you go all hail Liebesman. After all, when was this Gods versus Titans versus Demi Gods series all about a colossal plot anyway. But then here is what makes up for the same. First, it's the edgy action cuts -- the coming soon calamity drama, fist fights with fire exploding beasts, two headed beasts, unheard of and unseen before beasts, the fight between the one-eyed Cyclopes (who literally tears out of the screen) and our war heroes, the will-Perseus-won't-Perseus-make-it on time situations, the ultimate falling of the Kronos, explosions unlimited. Then there is the element of the mysterious --  the island of Kail, the labyrinth leading to the dark dungeon of the underworld called Tartarus, the Kronos made out of a huge, huge mound of lava -- the falling of which gives this sequel an epic finale. Next is the ultimate hero, the demi God. This time it's not just Sam Worthington who seems to have mastered the art of fighting with the evil Gods, but also Toby Kebbell as son of Poseidon. Toby's God-turned-man avatar, Agenor, comes with a rather mortal sense of humour. Lastly, it's a message rather loud and clear -- Not that the Gods must die too. Not even that man will be all powerful provided he uses his power wisely. It's the possibility of yet another sequel -- watch the sword of honour being passed from Father (Zeus)... to son (Perseus)... to son (Helius). 

A word about the 3D effects. Definitely not much to make the Gods happy, but surely enough to send the message -- of wrath -across to us mortals. 


Courtesy: Times Of India