I’ll have to admit that I was leery of The Departed after seeing the billboard. Coming from Hollywood, I thought it is just another one of those gunfire blazing unlimited ammo action flicks. And the title didn’t help: It actually got me expecting some demonic horror twist. But haven’t watched a movie for so long that I actually did go and watch it. Fortunately, I was oh so wrong. The movie turned out to be pretty good. It is essentially a cat-and-mouse game between a police mole in an organized crime gang and a gang mole in the police force. There were no guns blazing. During the whole movie there were probably just over a dozen pistol shots. And there was absolutely no demonic horror twist. Instead, there was intense palpable drama full of twists and turns as the two moles hunt each other out while at the same trying striving to protect their identities and maintain a grasp on the false life (or is it their real life?) they both live. The game culminated in a tragic ending though not without a few more twists.

Okay. That was actually my review, with some word changes, for Infernal Affairs where the movie was based on. But to a large extent, it was faithful to the original and the review is still quite applicable. What Scorsese did different was to make things less complex and easier to understand (or should I say made it idiot-proof?). In that he did quite well. He also strived to develop and establish the characters more. All the actors were great for their roles except for Leonardo De Caprio (okay so maybe it’s just my bias showing :P). And finally, he culminated with a montage of death befitting a classic crime drama (think The Godfather). The end result is a great remake that can stand on its own as a great movie.

Rating: 4/5

Michael Mann sure knows his stuff. In Heat, Collateral, and now Miami Vice, he mixes us just the right amount of guns, cars, a dash of romance, and a fast paced plot. Granted, the story of Miami Vice is not as deep as Heat, but it still is plenty entertaining.

The movie is about two undercover cops who infiltrate a big drug smuggling organization. Pretty soon they got entwined into this world and Sonny (Colin Farrel) especially faced the risk of losing sight of the original objective. But he declared he hasn’t and proved it, somewhat, in the movie’s action packed climax reminiscent of Heat’s street shootout.

There are chick flicks and there are guy flicks. This is definitely a guy flick. And definitely not an art film. But don’t think that’s bad!

Rating: 4/5

A few months back, my sister offered to lend me her copy of The Motorcycle Diaries. I was a bit busy at that time and I forgot about it. I only remembered when my friend Cez and I were talking about traveling the width of the USA and she mentioned in passing the movie, that it was about traveling (and also that it is about Che Guevara). I decided I should watch it (for the travel part) so I borrowed it from my sister and watched.

It turned out to be quite a good watch. It’s about the adventures of two friends as they made a decision to leave what they have to do and people they love behind to travel across South America. Most of us probably had the same conflicts and stayed pretending that we can do it later. But do we really NEED to do these things? Can’t the ones we love wait or at least go with us? Can we really do it later? But these two, travel they did with just a few bucks, some bags, an old motorcyle, and their wits. The epitome of the spirit of adventure.

It is also in a way a view on the plight of the rural South Americans and a glimpse of the influences behind Che Guevara’s ideology later in life. One scene of this aspect that I particularly liked is when they asked a couple they met along the way on why they are travelling. The couple responded “To work.” then threw back the question. There was silence as the friends took the answer in and finally answered “We travel just to travel.” It captured the essence of the issue.

The movie is probably not for everyone but do at least give it a try to see if it is for you. If it is, you won’t be disappointed.

Rating: 4/5