Adrenaline Rush

Do not give this a miss if you like martial arts movies.

There is high octane action, gripping fight scenes and cameos by some of the biggest names in the Hong Kong action genre. I didn't recognise some of them till the closing credits were shown. 

Chinese star Wang Baoqiang was stellar in his portrayal of the fanatical villain who wants to be número uno in the martial arts world.

His opponents all put up a good fight, hats off to the choreographer.

Asia's reigning star Donnie Yen has done it again in his latest offering, Kungfu Jungle, a collaboration with Teddy Chen. This is a tour de force.

Emotionally Stirring and Funny

Highly recommended.

A movie that can make you care for the characters is always a great movie. The Guardians of the Galaxy, directed by James Gunn, succeeded on that score.  It is entertaining, funny and stirs emotions as well. The movie's a real winner.

My favourite character is Rocket because he is really really funny, intelligent and has this endearing naughtiness. I also like Groot who didn't seem much like hero material at the start of the movie, but he is a true hero to the end.  Groot's childlike and innocent quality makes him very lovable.

Chris Pratt was comfortable in his role as Star-Lord, and so were Zoe Saldana and Karen Gillan playing sisters Gamora and Nebula respectively.

A Delightful Dark Fantasy

Maleficent is a visual treat.  

An old tale told anew, the film questions the existence of true love.  Once a good fairy, Maleficent's heart was stolen and then shattered by a peasant boy who later also stole her wings.  He did this because he wanted to be a king.

Blinded by rage, hatred and a thirst for revenge, Maleficent cast a dark spell on the king's newborn child.  However, Maleficent grew to love the baby girl and watches over her as the child grows up. She even tried to revoke the curse but words once uttered could not be taken back.

Does true love exist? It sure does.

The peasant boy ascended to the throne but his days were filled with torment because of his wrongdoing. The evil that one does will always come back to haunt the evildoer, so why waste our time and energy to harvest the seed of hatred?

And when Maleficent found love once more, her forest kingdom became a beautiful place again which shows that when your inner world is at peace, your environment will transform.

I love Maleficent

and the salted popcorn.

Iceman and an Irishman

I think I didn't blink at all throughout the bar fight and also during the battle at the bridge.

Before I watched Iceman 3D,  I had read some bad reviews so I wasn't expecting much.  However, I enjoyed the turbo-charged actioner starring Donnie Yen.

Iceman was interspersed  with humour and captivating stunts.  There wasn't a single dull moment. For moviegoers who usually find themselves dozing off when they're watching a movie, are not likely to find themselves doing that here unless they're dead tired.

After 400 years of being frozen, three imperial guards from the Ming Dynasty found themselves in 2014. Once comrades, two of the guards turned against the protagonist as they thought the latter had betrayed the country.

At the end of the movie, the truth is revealed not with words but by the protagonist's actions.  Judge a man by his deeds and actions and not by what he says, as the cliche goes.

Meanwhile, I also enjoyed the movie "Winter's Tale" starring Colin Farrell.

Like Iceman, Winter's Tale is a story about the age-old battle between good and evil.  

It is also about love and miracles and how the universe brings people into our lives.

The Monkey King

The TGV cinema at Bukit Indah, Johor Baru, was packed yesterday.  Tickets for The Monkey King was all sold out for the 8.30pm screening, so I had to watch the 9.30pm show.  The previous day, both the 8.30pm and 9.30pm shows were fully booked when I got there at around 5pm.

I have always been a big fan of Donnie Yen.  The Hong Kong action star has such awesome moves.  My all-time favourite Donnie Yen movie --- SPL --- love the knife-baton fight scene in the alley.

Donnie Yen then went on to star in movies like "Seven Swords", "Ip Man" and "Dragon Tiger Gate".

In the Monkey King, the story of Sun Wukong started with the battle between Good and Evil, and how the protagonist was born from the crystal of a deva/goddess.

Sun Wukong has many negative traits such as arrogance, brashness and impudence, but he also has a big heart and cares for the well-being and happiness of all, not only his own.  Both the dark forces and the light wanted him on their side, but eventually it is Sun Wukong who has to decide which side he wants to serve.

The Underworld resorted to trickery while the Heavenly beings offered free will.

The CGI effects was nothing to shout about but the storyline and  Donnie Yen's stellar portrayal of Sun Wukong deserved a thumbs-up.  There were also moments where I had burst out in laughter.

The Monkey King reportedly grossed $1.8 mil on Jan 31 and took in $20 mil throughout China on the first day of the Chinese New Year. And it garnered $4.5 mil during the three-day CNY weekend holiday in China.

The film will undoubtedly achieve number 1 status in both the Malaysia and Singapore's box office.