Harry's "Adult" Film and JJ's Polished Sounds

As you can tell from the title, I am reviewing a movie and a CD.

#1: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

#2: 林俊杰's 西界 (westside) CD

Hope the insights are useful =)

The scoring system is in "WoW"s.

WoooooW = Excellently-excellent. Can't get enough of it.

WooooW = Well-made. Worth your every $.

WoooW = Good entertainment.

WooW = Argh! Life is short. Don't waste your time.

WoW = Like, wow. Please kill me.

[ picture from http://laist.com/2007/07/12/harry_potter_an.php ]

AN EXCELLENT BENCHMARK FOR THE FINAL TWO MOVIES

Rating: W o o o o W (4.O/5)

David Yates is the least-known director who helmed the wildly successful Potter film franchaise. But how the heck did he manage to churn out such a slick, well-filmed movie, I'll never know. Order is a very lenghthy book, so you can imagine Yates' arduous task of creating an enjoyable-yet-sensible film. At 138min, Yates' succeeded fairly-well, while I know fans of Rowling's books will not be happy for the amount of scenes he axed from the plot, and the short-cuts he took. (Notably, Ron's Quidditch-champion stint, and the fact that Yates totally ignored Ron and Hermione becoming prefects at Hogwarts.) But in my opinion, they are all inevitable.

Here's what's good about Order.

What strikes me most is the fantastically-delicious acting, mainly from the veterans. Imelda Staunton turned in a stunning tour de force performance as villainous-you-just-want-to-slap-that-bitch-face Professor Dolores Umbridge, the sinister woman working for Ministry of Magic, who brings her reign of terror to Hogwarts complete with her toadface and disgusting pink outfit down to her fine, china tea cup. Maggie Smith wows again as Professor McGonagall - two of the best acting scenes were delivered by her and Imelda, and another one with Professor Trelawney (a sympathetically-jittery Emma Thompson). The men were equally comfortable in their roles as well, particularly Alan Rickman as Severus Snape (he is PERFECT) and Gary Oldman as Harry's godpa Sirius. One complain though: what a lousy way to handle Sirius's death.

Of course, I shouldn't ignore the young leads, who vastly-improved way beyond my expectations. Daniel Radcliffe is so comfortable playing the long-suffering boy who lived. He handled his emotions very well throughout. Emma Watson (Hermione) is fast-becoming a serious, credible actress to watch-out for and her upcoming onscreen-beau, Rupert Grint (Ron) does well to keep up with her. Despite a few solid praises I've read of Evanna Lynch (playing the loony role as Luna Lovegood), she is rather under-used in the movie. Let's hope she matures well enough to be as excellent as Ginny, who seems effortless in her role.

As mentioned in The New Paper, Cho Chang's first kiss with Harry was worth the hype. But here's my nagging complain: please lah, I think there are a million other Chinese girls prettier than Katie Leung lor. However, you can't deny that finding one with a delicious Scottish accent is easy. Kudos to her on that.

Last but not least, the final showdown at the Ministry of Magic is ENOUGH to get you your $9.50 worth. The CG-set of the Dpt of Mysteries is stunningly-ominous, and the Dumbledore-Voldemort fight was exhilarating to say the least. Flying shattering glasses, street-fighter-style wand magic concoctions. The Ministry of Magic, complete with its towering in-house office cabins, was a sight to behold. Voldemort's possession of Harry at the climax was both heart-wrenching and intensely-filmed.

Whoa, that was long. But anyway, Yates directed a master of a film, complete with his sweeping breath-taking shots of Hogwarts castle. Although there was no exciting Quidditch, Order is one solid film. Definitely on-par with Goblet of Fire, but with a darker, adult-edge.

+

[ picture from http://music.yule.sohu.com/20070629/n250829267.shtml ]

JJ FORMULA NEVER FAILS
Rating: W o o o o W (3.5/5)

I didn't even know JJ had a new disc until I saw it shot straight to number one in Taiwan on MTV's Top20. I was impressed and being a fan of good, local music, I went to purchase it.

Got it on a steal! $7.50 - was a 20% discount. It's the original China-import version.

Anyway, on the first spin, I must say I wasn't hooked. The Killa, his first single (yes, the one with the controversial JJ-mutilating-girl music video), failed to impress me. His second single, Westside, was a not-bad ballad, complete with his signature vocal riffs.

However, on a second spin, the CD grows on you. The Killa, as I discover, is a sleeeeek groovy single, making JJ a strong contender for Jay Chou's R&B-king status. His ballads, still, are the strongest here. Westside has the ability to stick to your head - and I mean it in the best way possible. The Channel 8 drama, Kinship song, 大男人·小女孩, is a sweet lullaby. 不流泪的机场 and 自由不变 are very polished ballad that showcases JJ's song-writing and vocal prowess. Lastly, BABY-BABY is a very enjoyable bubblegum pop number that will get you singing along in your car (if you play it inside, that is).

Only one complain: the track, K-O, is rather irritating and uninspiring.

All in all, it is a great effort, considering the short period he had between this album and the last (曹操). Get this if you are looking for polished Mandarin pop.