Movies That I Like

1. Harry Potter

Harry Potter has already existed since I was in my childhood day when I was 7 on 2002. This movie’s starred by Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint etc. To be honest, Harry Potter is the best movie I have ever watched. I can’t even describe this movie as its movie is too awesome! Harry Potter has 8 parts of movie and I have been following it all from the beginning. The wizards, magic, spells, the people and the places are just too fascinating! Sometimes, I wish I can reach to Hogwarts to experience myself living in a magical place like that haha!  

Synopsis: 

The final adventure in the Harry Potter film series follows Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) as they prepare for a final battle with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), who is determined to destroy Harry once and for all. In order to defeat the powerful wizard, they must find and destroy Voldemort's last and most elusive Horcrux -- that is, the enchanted piece of soul allowing him to remain immortal -- before his nefarious plans come to fruition. David Yates directs.

Source by http://www.allmovie.com/movie/harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows-part-2-v434402

2. The Hunger Games

For me, Hunger Games starred by Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson really attracts me in the way they attempt to save themselves from being killed by every district that consists of 2 persons in a group. They’re also gone through lots of hardship in the jungle, physical and mentally tested during their journey to win themselves in the competition. This 2-hour duration movie teaches me about how to give cooperation and helping each other, be strong although there are lots of hardships to be faced in our life and strive hard for something if we want to achieve the victory.

Synopsis

Based on the best-selling young-adult novel by author Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games tells the dark tale of a 16-year-old girl named Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), who volunteers to compete in a vicious televised tournament in which 24 teenagers from a post-apocalyptic society fight to the death for the entertainment of the masses. In the future, North America is no more. In its place has risen Panem, a divided nation split into 12 districts. Every year, each district selects a teen of each gender (called "Tributes") to test their worth in a competition known as the Hunger Games, which are broadcast across the nation as entertainment, and to reinforce the government's total power. When her younger sister is selected as District 12's latest "Tribute," Katniss volunteers to take her place, and trains under hard-drinking former Hunger Games champion Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson) to sharpen her killer instincts. Now in order to survive the game and emerge the victor, this young combatant must put all of her skills to the ultimate test. Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth co-star.

Source by http://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-hunger-games-v483902

3. Papadom

I personally love this Papadom movie so much because it reminds me of my dad. The father in this movie is overprotective and if could, the father wouldn’t let her daughter out of his sight even a single second because he loves his only daughter too much. His daughter is the only heir and family member that he has. This movie looks a bit similar to my current situation but my dad still has his partner by side. There are reasons why my dad did this to me and I know he has good intentions on it. I should be grateful to have a daddy like him.

Synopsis

Papadom is a movie directed by Afdlin Shauki, one of the most popular actor and director in our film industry. This movie tells a tale of Saadom who is a successful Nasi Kandar businessman in Pulau Pinang. His wife’s last wish before she leave the world is for him to take a good care of their one and only daughter, Mia. From a busy businessman who is so influent with his Nasi Kandar business, Saadom changes into a dependable father who is very much focused on his daughter’s life. As Mia grows up, she gets a bit annoyed with her father’s endless care and devotion towards her which at times seem too much too handle. A huge dilemma arises as Mia is all grown up and ready for university life. Saadom then panics as he has no idea how to fulfill his late wife’s wishes while she’s away.

Source by http://theextraordinaryclass.blogspot.com/2011/02/movie-review-papadom.html

4. Syurga Cinta 

For Syurga Cinta, especially for pleasure-seeking guys, you shouldn’t playing fool and taking the girls for granted or you’ll get reciprocation from The Almighty for implementing it. I’m pretty sure all of us have heard this well-known quote “What you give, you’ll get back”. Woman is the most complicated yet beautiful creature that God have ever created and we should give some respect towards them. Next, parents should guide their children in properly way. According to this movie, we can see that parents Irham did not play as a good example to their child. This can be seen when they did not advised their son who always went out at night for clubbing and brought any women to their home. Even they also drank and socialize together with their friends at the nightclub. From example given, we need to emphasis the religious values in our daily life. Without the element of that, we can easily to influence and practice the western lifestyle.

Synopsis 

Syurga Cinta is one of the movie directed by Ahmad Idham who is famous director in Malaysian film industry. This movie is about the love between two people with different ideologies, a Muslim boy named Irham who lives a very modern influenced with Western lifestyle, and a Muslim girl named Syuhadah  who faithfully follows the teachings of Islam in Malaysia's modern society. When their two worlds collide, they face issues and confrontations that both of them have yet to learn and understand from each other. Based on this movie, there are many good lesson that can be learned such as  parents should guide their child in properly way, we have to recognize our own mistakes and we have to be aware in judging someone.

Source by http://theextraordinaryclass.blogspot.com/2011/02/syurga-cinta-heavenly-love.html

5. Ayat-Ayat Cinta

I love this movie because it tells how beautiful Islam is. It shows women are such a gift to be taking a really good care of. Islam glorifies women by protecting them in every single way. From this movie, it tells women have to be respected. For example, Noura who is Fahri’s neighbour has to face her cruel father, Bahadur who always keep beating her and force her to become a prostitute. From the example given, we know that women are not a doll to be damaged easily as simple as pie but women are someone that have to be respected.In conclusion, this movie is really teach me something. It touches my heart by showing that how beautiful Islam is in every single way. This movie imparts knowledge on reasons for Islamic values such as women have to be respected, we should lend our help to one another and marriage is recommended in Islam to avoid defamation. Islam is beautiful and completing our needs in this entire lifetime.

Synopsis

Ayat-Ayat Cinta movie is an Indonesian melodrama which is directed by Hanung Bramantyo. This movie is an adaptation based on best-selling novel written by Habiburrahman El Shirazy.This movie is a story about young handsome Fahri Bin Abdullah Shiddiq who is attending Al-Azhar University in Cairo Egypt in order to complete his studies. At the same time, his good manners attract women to know himself further. Based on this movie, it shows many lessons to be learned such as in Islam, women have to be respected, we as Muslims need to lend our help to one another among Muslims or other religions and for the third lesson will be Islam recommend us to get married due to avoid defamation.

Source by http://theextraordinaryclass.blogspot.com/2011/02/ayat-ayat-cinta-movie-review.html

6. Ketika Cinta Bertasbih
This movie motivated me. The main character shows responsibility towards his family. He also shows the readers how to survive and be self sufficient in difficult situations. It not only tells the romantic story with the couple but also Fiqh (Islamic). It tells love for our God (ALLAH SWT). The movie Ketika Cinta Bertasbih makes me realize how important hard work is something can be achieve by working hard.

Synopsis

Khairul Abdullah Azzam is the main character of the novel “When love hymn”. He was 28 year old. A intelligent young man from a small village in Central Java. He was very studious because of hard work, he managed to obtain scholarship to study at Al Azhar University in Cairo.

At Al Azhar University, Khairul won award “Jayyid Jiddan” for the best student that completed All the exam with the highest standard. Unfortunately, at the end of the first year , he received a very bad news from his village that his father had passed away.  

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As he was the oldest in the family, Azzam felt that he was responsible to look after his family. He wanted to complete his study in Cairo, meanwhile, he also had to earn some money for himself and to send to his family in Indonesia. So, he decided he open up a small stall which sold ”Tempe” and ”Bakso

“(noodles) with meat ball near Indonesia embassy in Cairo. Because of his skill in cooking, his food was very popular. He was so busy because he had so many customers. He managed to earn enough money for a living and sent some money to Indonesia and to pay for his sisters’ education, but the drawback was. He has to take time off for from his study. Nine year had passed, he still hadn’t completed his education.

He managed to maintain the standard of his cooking consequently. He was often asked for cater for party held by Indonesia embassy. Because of frequent visits to embassy, he met Eliana Pramesthi Alam, the daughter of Indonesia Ambassador. Eliana graduated from EHESS, French University.she was very intelligent. She always became the topic of conversation among Indonesian students because of her beauty. She was once being asked to act in one of Hollywood movies. She also acted in some of Indonesian soap opera and films. Azzam feel in love with Eliana, but he felt then he had to stay away from her because of their different social background. Mr. Ali, the ambassador driver also advise Azzam to find another girl.

Mr Ali told Azzam about Anna Althafunnisa, a young and beautiful Indonesian girl who Mr Ali thought more suitable for Azzam. She was doing master degree at Kuliyyatul Banaat  A Azhar in Cairo. She was multi-intelligent. She could speak Indonesian, English and Mandarin. Furthermore, she was very religious and her father Mr. Kiai Luthfi Hakim was a teacher at an Islamic School in Indonesia.

After listening to what Mr Ali told him. Azzam had a desire to marry Anna although he hadn’t to met her before. He asked his uncle ustadz muzab to propose to Anna’s father on his behalf. Anna’s uncle rejected Azzam because he said that Azzam social status. In his opinion, Azzam is better known as “Tempe” and “Bakso” seller. Besides, Azzam hadn’t finished his education at Al Azhar University. Anna’s uncle asked Anna to marry Furqon, Azzam’s friend who came from a wealthy family. Furqon was studying for a master degree also from Al Azhar University.

Disaster struck when furqon found out he had got virus HIV, a very contagious disease that is so difficult to cure. He was faced with dilemma whether he remained married to Anna or not because this disease would destroy his life as well as Anna.

In Cairo, Azzam heard good news from his family. His little brother had finished his education and now had got a job as a psycholinguist. Husna income was sufficient to pay for her sister, Sarah. So, Azzam was no longer required to send money every month.

Hearing the good news, Azzam decided to concentrate on his studies. He finally completed his study at Al Azhar University.  Once completed, he returned to his village. He hoped he would find his soul mate there.     

Source by http://cwekimutnsholeha.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-novel-ketika-cinta-bertasbih_412.html

7.  Ra-One 
Ra-One taught me to appreciate what our fathers have done to us. Even in real life, most of fathers in the globe are willing to do anything for their children, as long as they can see the smiles carved on their children’s face. Another one is whenever we face devilry, we must try to defeat it whatever it takes for the sake of our beloved family, religion, society and country. 

Synopsis
Goofy gaming expert, Shekhar Subramaniam (Shah Rukh Khan) wants to be a super hero for his son Prateik (Armaan Verma). But his young son, like all young sons, thinks super villans are more cool. So Shekhar creates the ultimate clash of good against evil by pitting a very powerful anti-hero Ra-One against a seemingly less potent good guy. But can the good guys ever lose? 


Rajnikant's Robot may have pre-dated it, but Ra-One does manage to hold despite the larger-than-life quality of Rajni's antics as Chitti. Here, Shah Rukh Khan does the train walk sideways and he does it rather well. And if that is not enough, the two desi sci fi heroes have a split second encounter on the streets of Mumbai, with Rajni saar showing off his flying googles act and SRK replicating it with elan. Twin Rascals! 
Ra-One works on several accounts. First because it has some interesting clashes betwen G-One, the good robot(Shah Rukh Khan) and Ra-One, the bad robot, who can take the form of anyone he wants. Secondly, the bond that G-One develops with the family he is supposed to protect, Kareena and her young son Prateik, is warm and winsome. There is also a lot of wit thrown in here and there in the screenplay, specially when the film concentrates on the geeky and loving Subramaniam's family dinners. And finally it is the excellently sung and choreographed Chammak-Challo number which keeps the mercury rising to unprecendented heights. 

The film falls back in the emotional quotient. Understandably, robots have no feelings, but remember, even the steely Terminator managed to have a very special relationship with the mom and her messiah son. Also, considering so much money has been poured into the film, the special effects and the hi-tech gadgetry lacks the glitzy feel of Hollywood sci-fi. In some places, it even gets somewhat tacky with all those flying cars hurtling into nowhere and the digital game screen going gaudy in orange. 

Source by http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-reviews/hindi/RaOne/movie-review/10484952.cms

8. Om Shanti Om

The movie Om Shanti Om taught me to not give up on my dreams, dream big and keep looking forward. 

Synopsis

Love and dreams follow two starry-eyed actors across three decades and two incarnations in this splashy Hindi musical. It's the early '70s, and Om Prakash Makhija (Shah Rukh Khan) is a young would-be actor who has been playing bit parts in Bollywood musicals while looking for his big break. Om's ambition is to become a film star and win the heart of beautiful screen siren Shantipriya (Deepika Padukone), and his pal Pappu (Shreyas Talpade) and his mother, Bela (Kirron Kher), both encourage him not to give up on his dreams. One day, Om meets Shantipriya on a movie set, and he feels as if destiny is finally smiling on him, but when he overhears her having an argument with studio chief Mukesh Mehra (Arjun Rampal), Om senses things are not as they should be. Before Om can decide what to make of his misgivings, the studio burns to the ground, claiming the lives of Om and Shantipriya. Thirty years later, a bit of Om's spirit seems to live on in Om Kapoor (also played by Shah Rukh Khan), a popular film actor with a large ego and a fear of flame who was born the day the old studio burned down. Despite his fame, Om is lonely, at least until he meets Sandhya (also played by Deepika Padukone), a shy but eager would-be actress looking for her chance to become a star. Om Shanti Om was directed and co-written by Farah Khan, who was a top choreographer in the Indian film industry before moving up to the director's chair, and features guest spots from a number of Bollywood's greatest stars, a few appearing in the form of digital recreations taken from films of the '70s.

Source by http://www.fandango.com/omshantiom_v417756/plotsummary

9.  Cyborg She

Okay, I really loved the movie, but the ending screwed me up. I'm totally confused! I was good up until the scene where they introduced the real girl who resembled the robot, who then went back in time to live with Jiro.

Synopsis

Kwak Jae-Yong is a director of remarkable talents with an ability to tell romance stories against the backdrop of any genre template - in fact, more often than not, the South Korean auteur manages to meld and splice his ideas across several different genres not just within the same film but, uniquely, in any given scene. From action-comedy and teen film through to period drama and sci-fi, Kwak has, through a back-catalogue including the modern classics of My Sassy Girl, Windstruck and The Classic, managed to carve a unique place for himself in cinema history. In keeping with his previous work, Kwak Jae-yong blends several different genres together for Cyborg, She to make a time travelling romance which recalls films as varied as The Terminator, The Notebook and Primer.

The first film that Kwak has made outside of Korea, Cyborg, She is the final installment of his thematically connected "Bizarre Girl" trilogy and is certainly in keeping with the high standards of the film's two predecessors. Much like the "Revenge" trilogy made by Kwak's one-time assistant Park Chan-wook, the "Bizarre Girl" films are all connected by theme rather than story - here Kwak replaces the idiosyncratic, unhinged female protagonists portrayed by Jun Ji-hyun is My Sassy Girl and Windstruck with a winning performance from the Japanese doe-eyed actress Haruke Ayase.

The plot sees Jirou Kitamura (Keisuke Koide) alone on his birthday, ready to celebrate in solitude until a mysterious girl (Ayase), whom he had previously noticed in a department store acting erratically, invites herself to join him. She is bizarre yet charming and seems to veer from entirely emotionless to a grief-stricken mess as the night continues. As quickly as she entered his life, she suddenly disappears leaving behind only a smitten Jirou. For one year he is alone wondering who the girl was, where she came from and where she went until, at his next birthday, she returns but acting even more bizarrely than previously; this time she claims to be a cyborg sent from the future to protect him from an accident. Although the statement seems ludicrous at first, Jirou begins to understand her claim has some veracity as she impresses him with a number of superhuman and Herculean tasks. Despite this knowledge, Jirou can't help fall head over heels for her and her strange ways despite realising that, as a mechanical being, she may never feel the same way for him. But maybe, he speculates, somehow her feelings are real and the affection she shows comes from a different place than the way she has been programmed.

   
The film, as is Kwak's signature style, manages to mix emotions just as well as it splices genres. Throughout it's running time Cyborg, She elicits laughter and sympathy, sadness and hope, joy and fear. It is a feature which lacks any form of cynicism and instead is, especially for a film about time travelling romances, incredibly earnest and sincere. Ayase proves herself to be a wonderful substitute for the remarkable Jun Ji-hyun, providing pratfalls and laughter as well as a stoicism which provides the film its tender heart and its tear-jerking climax, and Keisuke Koide offers a delightful turn as another one of Kwak's put-upon boyfriends. Whilst tying in neatly with the previous two Bizarre films, Cyborg, She can be watched to equal levels of enjoyment without knowledge of its predecessors and adds mounting evidence to the case that Kwak Jae-yong is to romance what Alfred Hitchcock was to suspense - the master of his art.

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2013/02/film-review-cyborg-she.html

10. Like Father, Like Son

Like Father, Like Son forensically examines Ryota, his unrelenting ambition and the effect this has on his family with a weightless, almost serene, grace. We’re never asked to judge what may be considered neglectful or selfish behaviour, but Koreeda simply invites us to try and understand what could drive a man to these behaviours. After the initial, potentially unanswerable question, of what to do in Ryota’s situation, Like Father, Like Son slowly begins to propose many more and, with each one, challenges us to challenge ourselves and our perceptions further and further. A touching and thought provoking humanist drama.

Synopsis

Hirokazu Koreeda’s Palme d’Or nominated Like Father, Like Son highlights why the Japanese director is one of the most universally acclaimed of living film-makers. Emotive and profound in equal measures, the story of two sets of parents trying to come to terms with the realisation their six year old boys had been switched at birth, Like Father, Like Son builds slowly (and rather unexpectedly) to a climax which is likely to challenge even the most stoic of tear-ducts. 

Koreeda’s film stars Masaharu Fukuyama as Ryota, a modern man who seemingly has everything in his life in order. Handsome, sophisticated and an architect by trade, living in an expensive Tokyo apartment with his wife Midori, the one problem in his life is that his son Keita does not live up to his lofty standards. A shocking phone call from the hospital confirms a fear he had long held in the back of his mind – Keita is not his biological son; his child had been swapped with that of another couple at birth. The four parents must decide together what will happen to the children – can they, and do they, switch their children back? Or does parenthood go much deeper than bonds of blood? 

Rather than head down the obvious path of melodrama, Koreeda’s film turns introspective and the austere, languid pace of the film means the audience is allowed ample time to breathe in each decision the parents make and to ponder the ramifications of these actions before moving onto the next scene in a zen-like series of episodes. Along the way the audience is asked to consider what does it mean to be a parent and, observing Ryota’s bull-headed behaviour, what does it mean to be a man? Koreeda’s remarkable film shows the children to be much more resilient than the adults expect and, conversely, the men to be much less so than they show. Maybe Keita wasn’t the letdown after all and it was Ryota’s own lack of a paternal instinct which troubled him the most? 

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2013/12/film-review-like-father-like-son.html

11. A Moment To Remember

Gentle, tender, generous of spirit and mournful. For me, A Moment to Remember is a triumph of artistic vision and a triumph of love.

Synopsis

When Hollywood has finally plowed through the entire collected works of Nicholas Sparks, the resident producers of Tinsletown could do much worse than adapting A Moment to Remember for Western audiences. A virtually peerless tragic romance, the Korean film shows us that love is not necessarily about happy endings but the sacrifices we are willing to make, and the patience we are willing to give, to try and make the impossible real.

Lee Jae-han's remarkably vivid and emotional romantic drama manages to fit neatly into the criteria of many of the most beloved young adult tear-jerkers produced by Western movie-makers of the last twenty years. Somehow, perhaps via magic alchemy, A Moment to Remember also attains the dazzling feat of transcending the melodramatic base of many Hollywood love stories and retaining an authentic heart too.

Su-jin (Son Ye-jin) and Chul-soo (Jung Woo-sung) meet by accident and, from this moment of serendipity, their hearts are eternally bound to one another. Like many romances, their social status should keep them apart - she a fashion designer, he a construction site worker - but it becomes apparent that much bigger hurdles will have to be overcome for love to blossom. 

Forgetfulness creeps up on Su-jin to the point of danger - a house fire is caused by her not remembering to turn a stove off. A trip to the doctor confirms the worst - at the age of just 27, Su-jin is beginning to develop Alzheimer's disease (The Korean title of this film Nae Meorisohiu Jiugae literally translates as "Eraser in my Head"). Soon, the world begins to make little sense to our heroine - aside a fading lucidity, Su-jin experiences denial, anger and, ultimately, an unimaginable sorrow as the couple realise that one day she will have no recollections of who Chul-soo is. We've seen love grow from the smallest seed and we will see it wither in front of our eyes - winter has arrived tragically early. Yet, there are no conditions that can be attached to the human heart when it beats at its most powerful; Chul-soo may not be able to fight the battle in Su-jin's mind, but he can sure as hell change the world around her.

A Moment to Remember boasts a brace of exceptional performances from it's leads, two of the most expressive and graceful actors in Korean cinema. Son Ye-jin's enchanting face constantly communicates her complex and baffling internal story, the battle to understand what is happening around her and the sorrow caused by her confusion. If a picture is worth a thousand words, each frame of Son's puzzled features are filled with countless emotions; her physical performance is one of the most in-depth committed to screen to date. Astonishingly, in moments where lucidity returns, Son, as Su-jin, radiates love and hope through the pools of water in her eyes. Jung, meanwhile, compliments Son's powerhouse performance with an understated turn full of stoic resilience and patience. Whilst Chul-soo may have a task as impossible as King Canute halting the tides, Jung makes certain that we, the audience, see flickers of hope and even joy at the time he spends with his ill-wife to counterbalance the over-riding feeling of infinite melancholy - he desires, in his soul, that love can transcend something as fickle and finite as memory and perhaps that's the one thought that gives him strength.

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2014/01/film-review-moment-to-remember-nae.html

12. My Girlfriend Is An Agent

Casting an equally large shadow over Asian comedy is the 2001 masterpiece My Sassy Girl (by Kwak Jae-yong) - a film which managed to re-invent the genre in it's own image; a youth-based, kinetic blend of slapstick, sentimentally and boundless enthusiasm for the medium. It is through this filter that most Korean comedy is now viewed and judged - it's influence extending past the confines of the edges of it's own narrative and deep into the psyche of many modern movie-makers in the region. It is through this filter which My Girlfriend Is an Agent (7급 공무원) is also viewed and sadly, like the features of Guy Ritchie, it is a movie which struggles to escape its influences, coming across as a sub-par version of another film rather than as a feature in its own right.

Shin Tae-ra's feature stars the luminous Kim Ha-neul as Ahn Soo-ji; a lady who is a veteran of the secret services but, due to her role, has to hide her true identity from those around her - if this means taking a slight detour on the propsed day of her nupitals and negotiating a thrilling jet-ski chase in her wedding dress, so be it. Yet, the more she tries to hide her bizarre disappearances and apparently erratic behaviour, the more clear it becomes she's hiding something.

Lee Jae-joon (Kang Ji-hwan) is an ex of Ahn's who grew tired of her irrational and deceitful ways, causing them to part. He too, however, had a secret of his own; Lee is also a member of the secret services but, alas, not at all successful and, due to his clumsy and goofish nature, has never been out on the field on a case. This all changes when a Russian organised crime group conspire to steal chemical weapons from Korea and, due to unforseen, and slightly contrived, circumstances both Lee and Ahn are assigned the case to stop them. Can they resolve their lingering resentment for one another, keep their secrets hidden AND save the day too?

Although the premise sounds incredibly similar to Mr and Mrs Smith its clear to those who have seen My Sassy Girl where the true main tide of influence stems from. The dynamic here (of the strong female and the comically subservient male) borrows heavily from Kwak's timeless comedy and the splicing of genres (here action and comedy) is familiar to those who have familiarity with Korean cinema. Whilst Kim Ha-neul's characteristically winning turn does raise the occasional smile, the longer that one spends time in the presence of this film, the more one's mind drifts away to the much funnier and charming My Sassy Girl. It's the cinematic equivalent of going on a date and spending the evening thinking of an entirely different person to present company.

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2013/05/film-review-my-girlfriend-is-agent.html

13. Mon Petit (Little World)

David Lynch's Straight Story had, until very recently, the distinction of being the most peculiarly moving Road Movie I had ever seen. Featuring an elderly man on a cross-state voyage to see his ill brother who he had not spoken to for some time, the unexpectedly touching movie, featuring an array of bizarre characters along the way, remains one of Lynch's strongest. This journey, however was easily surpassed, in terms of miles traveled, joie de vivre and magical whimsy, by Marcel Barenna's wondrous film Little World.

Synopsis 

A rather fantastical feature, Little World is a documentary detailing the 18'600 mile journey of a 20 year old from Barcelona who aims to navigate himself to the exact opposite end of the world from his home: a lighthouse found in East Cape, New Zealand. Although the voyage itself would constitute something remarkable, what makes this feat even more amazing is the fact that Albert Casals is a wheelchair user who aims to conduct the trip with no money. Instead, Casals aims to utilise only his street smarts and, hopefully, the kindness of strangers he meets along the way.

The movie unfolds with a real kindness of spirit as we see Albert traverse through Iran, Turkey, Malaysia, China and more on his epic journey yet, much more awe-inspiring to see than any of the great views of far away locations, is the personality of Albert himself; a wide-eyed, young at heart, inspirational man for whom there is no greater happiness to be found in life than simply living day-to-day and making friends across borders and language barriers.

It soon becomes clear that Albert is quite clearly a person of great substance and inspiration; a tragedy in his childhood left him with an inability to walk but, rather than use crutches or braces, the young Spaniard decided to use a wheelchair as his main method of transport as it was the one which would allow him to move with the same speed as his young friends. And, although his lack of mobility is of course a factor in his day to day life, he sees it as ultimately inconsequential. When people raise eyebrows at him dating an able-bodied lady his reaction is simply: "I don't believe something so banal should stop two people being together." He further states his wheelchair use is the equivalent of others wearing glasses; making a big deal out of this would be "silly".

The scope of the movie is humbling and many lessons are learned along the way both from how people react to Albert and the wisdom and values he leaves them with as he departs. Also, it's not hard to see where our hero gets his moral gravitas and world-view from: his Father tells the story of Albert's youth in which all kinds of tragedy struck but the stoic, unrelenting love he gave saw them both through. It was undoubtedly his inability to give up, his resolution to remain strong and begin each day with a smile in the face of adversity which helped his son grow up into the remarkable man he is today. The love Albert's father gave him multiplies further and further each day as the young Casals travels the world spreading his positivism, dignity and compassion across the globe; love is all he has known and it is this that inspires him to give it at every opportunity he can.

They say that travel expands the mind and in this case it is true; although I did not leave my cinema seat for the entire duration of the movie, the journey Albert took me on was one which helped me see the world much clearer. One of the most important lessons to be gleaned from the film comes from Casals' free-spirited words of delirious wisdom: "The World is so fucking cool!" With people like Albert Casals in it, I find that statement very hard to disagree with.

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2013/04/biff-film-review-little-world-mon-petit.html

14. Memory Of The Dead

Whilst Memory of the Dead is unlikely to be awards bait any time, I salute it for this - it might not be perfectly assembled, or even coherent all the way through, but it knows exactly what it is and doesn't fail at being something it isn't. It's trashy, sleazy, skeezy, camp, ridiculous, ludicrous and, ultimately, fun.

Synopsis

Upon the death of her husband Jorge, his devastated widow Alicia invites a circle of close friends to her abode in order for her to read out a letter written by her departed. At least, this is what the attendees believe to be true. Alicia, however, has hatched a Machiavellian plot to sacrifice each of the individuals in order to bring her husband back from beyond the grave, a scheme which sees the gatherers descend into a chaotic and occult world of terror, trauma and melodramatic plot twists.

This Argentinian film is not the Latino horror movie those familiar with Guillermo Del Toro's early work should expect; rather it is the cinema of fear as filtered through a highly camp Tele-novella: tears, screams and soap opera acting abound as the sensationalist premise is pushed to the extremes, with seams literally bursting at points.

There are two things that can be done with the ludicrous set up to a film like this and, rather wisely, Valentin Javier Diment decides to eschew po-faced piety to pursue the most sensationalist route possible at all times: a wise decision which means even when the film's often surreal narrative reaches the point of incoherence, as it does several times, the feature remains enjoyable due to its commitment to embrace the ridiculous. Subtlety is not its strong point and, in fairness, nor should it be. In a world where plainly ridiculous films take themselves far too seriously (the pseudo-profudity of a series based around a man who wears bat-suit latex to fight crime would be a great example), it is always refreshing to see a feature that knows exactly what it is.

So, despite hysterical and histrionic performances littered through the film, cinematography which often appears like a cross between a Mexican soap opera and Knightmare, and a plot which often wanders in to the realms of incomprehensibility (as opposed to its regular lucid off-beat terrain), Memory of the Dead is an ultimately fun movie to watch. As an additional bonus, despite the film-stock appearing to be of sub-televisual standard, there are some surprisingly high quality set pieces in the feature, particularly those which require special effects make-up: the grotesquery on display is magnificently, perversely assembled and a testament to the make-up artist's imagination. Similarly too, there are a couple of moments which, unexpectedly, are genuinely quite emotive - something which is quite rare in this genre of movie, particularly at the trashy end which this resides in.

Source by http://www.the-totality.com/2013/04/biff-film-review-memory-of-dead.html

That's all for my movie reviews and synopsis :)