The Bourne Ultimatum

今年是第三集年？蜘蛛俠，魔盜王，史力加之後是講失憶特務Jason Bourne 的The Bourne Ultimatum。

香港好像也會同日上映！

七月中開始可在Google玩Search for Bourne遊戲

28 Weeks Later... "We've lost control. Kill everyone."

28 Weeks Later的trailer有得睇喇！
續28 Days Later的故事，六個月後軍方終將整個倫敦消毒完畢。正當大家重回家園，又再發現染病的人…

"Deeply unethical"

"Deeply unethical" was Al Gore's comment about American involvement in the accumulation of greenhouse gases.

An Inconvenient Truth is a documentary movie in which the former Vice President of the United States talked about his environmental protection efforts as a politician in the last 20 years. He talked about the causes of global warming (greenhouse gases), its effects on world weather, the reluctance of governmental support on its prevention (such as the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol) and a lot more.

In this movie he said many, many times that global warming is "a moral issue" not political. In this very same movie, however, we can see that it can be as political as you want it to be. Indirectly he criticized the Bush administration for her over-emphasis on "War on Terror" and neglect on the environment. He claimed that the reluctance to adopt environmental friendly policies were supported by oil company lobby groups. It almost looks like it is part of a smearing campaign against the Republican government. There are more problems to this. One of which disturbs me a lot is "Carbon Neutrality" ...

Mr. Information Superhighway said you can reduce your Carbon Dioxide emission to zero. It is impossible unless you do not use any petroleum products. Carbon offset only make you feel better but does not mean you emit no net CO2 gas throughout your life. No amount of tree planting can compensate for the fact that crude oil has been pumped out from beneath the ground. Biofuel will eventually force us into using genetically altered crops, but it is at least a good start for a change.

There are more problems to this movies as Googling can show you, but it is nonetheless a good sign. It means that mainstream American politicians are aware of the environmental impact their country is bringing to this world and believe environmental-friendliness can attract voters. This movie may have been made for political motives, but it also gave the issue an attention it deserved. It is important to note that sustainable development can, and should go hand in hand with profit. Afterall we cannot expect anyone to invest in a company because it makes them feel good. Al Gore's investment company, Generation Investment Management, started investing client money last year based on sustainability research. I hope we will see more of it.

More links:
The moral flaws of Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth: "admirable in intent", but ...
Key to "An Inconvenient Truth": Hey, Al Gore is a director on the board of Apple Computer!
絕望真相「影」真絕望: sordinmui's review of the movie

Impressions on An Inconvenient Truth: 7/10

Also watched recently ...
詭絲: 6/10
男たちの大和 (on DVD): 4/10


UPDATE: On USATODAY there is an article revealing how green Al Gore's lifestyle is. Apparently he did not go green energy when it is available, and turned a blind eye on his river-polluting mining concessions. That begs the fat doctor question.

A very scary, scary movie

I have watched Scary Movie series. All 4 of them in the cinema. Scary Movie 4 is a hilarious, politically incorrect movie. Funny but not much to think about. Except 2 scenes that disturbs me in a strange way.

Abortion: Just before leaving for the U.N., President Harris (Leslie Nielson) looked back at the kids and told Harper, "remind me to sign the Abortion Law."
Gay marriage: Henry (Bill Pullman) said in the party, "let's celebrate this domestic partnership...". He felt disgusted seeing the gay couple kissing each other and said to himself, "the village is nothing like what it was." (paraphrased)

I will leave you to decide if they are just harmless jokes, or if they have a message they want to spread.

Impressions on Scary Movie 4: 6/10

There is a review on PopMatters that I found interesting.

The Da Vinci Code

After getting the cat I have been quite slack on movie posts. This situation will improve, if she continues to bite me regularly. I am confining her to jail in the living room and lock myself in my bedroom with the computer. (Who is the prisoner? Me or her?) Back to topic.

The Book

I borrowed a copy of the book from a friend and finished it in 4 days. Not because it was that good, but because I wanted to complete the book before going for the movie. No it was not bad. In the first half before Langdon & Co. went to London it was rather nice, but after that it decayed into a poor imitation of a spy novel. There is one thing I really hate: creating myth that looks like fact. Dan Brown kept throwing lots of unrelated information at us and try showing us how they are related, but he did not really do his research carefully. It really helps to provide a small section of clarifation, like Chevalier's historical fictions.

The Movie with minor spoiler alert

I have repeatedly seen negative reviews from those who have read and loved the book, because it turned a suspense story into an action flick, because it changed the story too much, because they picked Tom Hanks to play Robert Langdon...

It was not as bad as I thought. Lots were changed in the movie but many of them are good changes. In the novel, there is only one bad guy. Sir Teabing the crazy, fanatic supporter of the sacred feminine. Captain Fache was a good guy from beginning to end; Bishop Aringarosa was simply tricked into believing what he should not and was trying to correct his mistakes by confessing to Fache; Silas the albino was a misguided "angel"; The Church paid Opus Dei only for a peaceful "divorce". In the movie the roles have been changed: The Church and the Bishop were conspiring to destroy the Priory of Sion, with the Church supplying cash and Aringarosa supplying the soldier, only to find themselves cheated by Leabing. Fache was a poor stupid cop who believed the lies of Aringarosa. I believe this story made more sense than the original.

There is, however, something terribly wrong with the ending. 2000 years of document lying in the Rosslyn Chapel? Believers rushing out of nowhere to see the last descendant of Jesus Christ? DNA analysis ruined because the body could not be found? They should have used the more opaque ending from the novel: An old woman, a young man and old photos. Nice family gatherings. Words that they chose to trust with faith.

Impressions on The Da Vinci Code: 5/10, because I hate how the ending was mangled.

You might also be interested in this MTV Awards parody.

The Boardgame

Da Vinci Code is the German edition of the 2-4 player deduction game CODA. In this Japanese designed game there are 26 tiles of 2 colours, out of which 2 special tiles are reserved for the advanced game only. Before game begins, you pick 3 to 4 tiles randomly and order them facing you in ascending numeric order, where black tiles are placed before whites in case of a tie. When your turn comes, you pick up one of the remaining tiles, then try to guess ("attack") the number on one of another players' tiles. If you guessed correctly, the "defending" player turns that tile around for everyone to see and you make attack again. If you were wrong, you turn your tile over and your turn ends immediately. The game ends when only one player has any unrevealed tiles, who is declared the winner.

Is it any good? I am not really a fan of deduction games, but I still find it entertaining. Unlike the more American styled games such as Clue, it is simple, easy to explain and short. I have not played it enough to like it, but I will be willing to play it again if given the opportunity.


P.S. I completed Tracy Chevalier's Girl with a Pearl Earring in 2 days. It was that good.

Vampires and Underworld: Evolution

I watched 2 movies last Sunday: V for Vendetta and then Underworld: Evolution.

The sequel to Underworld was a disappointment even though I went without much expectation, but to explain that you have to know a little bit about the story and my limited, game influenced knowledge of vampires. I am no expert (nor do I want to be) in the study of vampires, so please allow for omissions and incorrect information. Suggestions are welcomed: please post a comment if you have corrections to make.

(warning: lengthy with spoilers to Underworld)

Vampires, old and new

The image of vampires often depends on the literature. In the older days, folklore vampires were enemies to humanity. They were hideous, monstrous entities which fly into villages at night, killing livestock and villagers. In the recent years, vampires have been highly romanticized, thanks to movie makers and fiction writers. Gratified by an eternal life yet cursed with an insatiable hunger, intelligent yet tempered with dementia, swift and strong but turn to dust the moment they see sunlight, vampires have become a symbol of a conflicted personality, an excellent tool to inject tormented love and hate into a story.

Doomed to live forever in solitude, a "romanticized" vampire may be tempted to create a family of his own. The exact procedure differs from story to story, but it usually requires the victim to drink some of the vampire's blood, completing a bond between the two individuals.

The bond of blood

Blood is the essence of life. It is often the symbol of strength and knowledge. By consuming blood from a vampire one inherits the immortality and vampiric strength from the master. This means that vampiric abilities may dilute along the bloodline. In some settings, the chain of blood also guarantees obedience to the creator. The creator may require his creations drink his blood regularly to maintain dominance. The transfer of blood may have been an euphemism for sexual activities. Afterall, both are about the transfer of bodily fluids.... but this is suppsed to be a movie review so I would just leave it.

Underworld, the world beneath our own

As bloodlines grow into networks, vampires must feed carefully without exposing their tracks. The entire society must stay underground and remain hidden from the commons or an inquisition will begin to claim their heads. This is the core story of "Vampire: the Masquerade", a story-telling game of gothic horror by the game company White Wolf. Believe it or not, I first knew of the movie through a press release they issued. I doubt any of you would care, so I would just continue to the story of Underworld.

Underworld was first promoted as a Romeo and Juliet story in a gothic world. The Capulets are played by the "Death Dealers", a highly organized society of vampires and the Montagues by the "Lycans", a raging group of werewolves. For reasons not initially known, they have been fighting each other for centuries. Now the whole Underworld have their eyes set on a young human named Michael Corvin. When the story unfolds, it is known that Michael is a descendent of Alexander Corvinus, the father to all vampires and werewolves. Michael has been bitten by a werewolf and will be killed by any vampire. Selene, herself a vampire, need to fight against both sides to save his boyfriend.

While I am not very fond of the excessive CG scenes, I found the movie entertaining enough. The two main plots: a vampire in love with an enemy, and an experiment to create a stronger specie were merged nicely. The integration of vampire and werewolf myths and the futuristic society could have been better, but is not too bad. The photography was very nice.

Impressions on Underworld: 6/10

The Evolution that evolved into nothingness

The story of Underworld: Evolution starts right after the previous story ends. Michael is now a stronger (or so they claim) vampire-werewolf hybrid but the elder vampire Marcus has awakened. He is after Selene for Lucian's necklace.

Why do I not like it? I just need to ask one question: do you like it if a love story turns into a DOOM like shooting game? Apparently all the Death Dealers and Lycans have been wiped out in the last movie. Now it is all about Selene, Michael, some humans and Marcus the huge, mean monster with no personality. A dumb fight-or-die survival thriller.

In Underworld they made some effort sticking to the general vampire and lycanthrope rules while making a visually appealing Hollywood movie. All the impressions and contrasts have been lost in the sequel. Nor did they keep the contract of blood which made vampire stories so fascinating. In the Underworld, blood represents memory but apparently not strength. If this is true, how could the wise but fragile Corvinus have helped by letting Selene drink his blood?

In a Hollywood movie the amount of female body displayed is often inversely proportional to movie quality. Seeing Kate Beckinsales' pelvis does not help improve the rating; instead it reminds me how bad this movie is.

Impressions on Underworld: Evolution: 4/10

If Your Life Was a Movie, What Genre Would It Be?

The Movie Of Your Life Is A Black Comedy

In your life, things are so twisted that you just have to laugh. You may end up insane, but you'll have fun on the way to the asylum. Your best movie matches: Being John Malkovich, The Royal Tenenbaums, American Psycho

I found this quiz web site from the Argument Clinic. You can take the test here: If Your Life Was a Movie, What Genre Would It Be?

The wierdest thing is that, in the cinema I have watched 2 of the 3 movies suggested, and I enjoyed both.

The challenge: guess which one I did not watch

New in the cinemas

• Pride & Prejudice DVD is already available in HMV stores, even before the film is available on the big screens locally.
• On the 16th of Februay, UA Cinemas took over the operations of Windsor Cinema with 3 screens. There, "Coming Soon" posters for V for Vendetta and The Da Vinci Code have already been posted.

Sing für uns. Sing für sie

『聖誕快樂』(Joyeux Noël)是真人真事改篇的電影。時間是1914年的平安夜，在比利時的一個陣地有德、法、蘇格籣三國軍隊交鋒。男高音Sprink響應對陣牧師的音樂聲，竟站在無人地帶高聲唱歌，讓苦戰中的各方人仕在聖誕夜忘卻戰爭。

參戰國民族主義高漲，總是將敵對國家標成魔鬼。老師在課堂上向學生如是講解，牧師也對信眾說：Kill them all, children and women included, so we don't have to do it again。別忘了你殺的人跟你一樣有家室、子女。信同樣的神，會唱同樣的聖誕歌！即使語言不通，聽到相同的旋律也有相同的感動。

11月25日的Deutsche-Welle TV 節目KINO有電影簡介。

評分：8/10

Trivia:

• 戲中男高音叫Nikolaus Sprink，而Nikolaus也是聖誕老人的名字。
• 在IMDB的討論區提到這個事件，在英法等的教科書中到有提到，而德國的教科書則側重二戰，對一戰著墨較少。

Joan of Arc

1999年有兩套以聖女貞德為名的電影，一套是加拿大人Christian Duguay導演的電視長篇Joan of Arc，一套是法國人Luc Besson導演的The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc。

在兩套電影中演Joan的都不是法國人。Joan of Arc中的是美國人Leelee Sobieski。The Messenger中的是俄國人Milla Jovovich。兩套電影都有吸引我的地方，兩套也很喜歡。有趣的是，兩套差不多時候拍的電影，其中的Joan卻相差那麼遠。Joan of Arc裡的Joan的雙眼是堅貞不移的，到最後禁不住拷打才被屈打成招；The Messenger裡的她卻是迷失的。

(spoiler)

起初她相信是神將劍掉到她身處的田裡、是神要她帶軍出征，但被補後她卻開始懷疑自己。劍真的是從天而降嗎？會不會是兩個士兵打架掉下來的？她從小聽到的，教她做人，要她參戰的聲音是神的聲音還是由自己失常的腦海衍生出來？神跡可能是一連串的巧合，善惡也只是河的兩岸。就這樣，她懷疑自己，招認了自己的罪行被當作異教徒燒死。

你找到一個裝著世上所有問題與答案的黑盒，你會打開它嗎？
會：請到第2頁
不會：請到第3頁

萬物必有因，不過真相不一定與你所想的一樣。你想被迫瘋還是鬱鬱而終？

Joan of Arc評分：8/10
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc評分：8/10

最近看過的電影

最近兩星期看了三套電影。各自都沒有甚麼好寫（是我懶），不過有一個共通點，就是某程度上是另一套電影的改篇，所以連在一起隨便寫點吧。

The Jacket
主角發現自己有去到未來的能力，並得知自己四天後就要死，要怎做？
看到這個題材就跟上年的The Butterfly Effect相比。去到未來竟然做這種事，自然是立即比下去。
評分：4/10

如果．愛
人生如戲。三個人拍電影，但劇本跟他們的故事一樣。戲，卻一定要拍完！
這部電影看到一半就讓我想起幾年前把Gwyneth Paltrow變成金像最佳女主角的Shakespeare in Love。如果簡簡單單要拍一套浪漫愛情片還好，片中夾雜的歌舞片斷，零碎得像電視MV。
評分：5/10

King Kong
Lord of the Rings成名的大導Peter Jackson說他是King Kong(1933)的影迷，今次打正旗號重拍當年名作。原作沒看過，但以上星期看過新版的觀感，雖沒之前看LOTR的感動，但還不算失禮。
評分：7/10

沒幾多套電影是我會付錢入戲院看兩次的。印像中只The Fellowship of the Ring，The Two Towers跟Shrek 2三套。

SPL and Creep

I have watched 2 movies this week. The first was SPL, a Hongkong action movie featuring action stars Sammo Hung and Donnie Yen. The second was Creep, another British production showing the Pathé rooster logo.

In Creep, a young lady Kate (Franka Potente, a German actress who also starred in The Bourne Identity) was locked inside a London subway station. She soon found out she had company: an ugly, human-eating monster. What must she do to get out alive?

I was told that they have many unused or retired subway stations in England, and subway ghost stories exist among londoners. However, I am no londoner, and I have problem understanding this film. Blood ran throughout the film, but I hardly find it entertaining. The story was pasted together, people appear without reason. What is good seeing people die in front of me? There may be urban legends about war-time secret experiments in underground laboratories, but I cannot feel the horror, since I live so far away.

Impressions on Creep: 3/10, but I have saved something better:


SPL is about the relentless revenge of a cop in June 1997, a week before the handover of Hongkong. In 1994, Po Wong (Sammo Hung) killed Chung's (Simon Yam) key witness and the wife of the witness. Chung had sworn to protect their kid and put Po in jail. Just before Chung's retirement due to cancer in 1997, he and his colleagues would even temper with evidence and commit murder in order to convict him. Defying the law will do them no good. Instead of completing the conviction, they set him free. Kwan Ma (Donnie Yen), who was the replacement to Chung, must rectify the situation before things got worse.

Bad cop is always a good movie subject. The plot was probably not perfect, but it was good enough for an action movie. The great action stars more than remedied the situation, making it a must-see local movie this year.

It had a strong contrast with another recent movie starring Sammo Hung: Dragon Squad where a couple of very interesting speeches were given: "Each of us has a role in the society. If we rush to avenge our dead colleagues, who protects law and order? Our world will be in chaos," "Give yourself a chance. Drop the weapon and live." The cops in SPL went for a revenge. They sacrificed a lot. They created chaos. Po went too far and did something he regretted at the end. This is perhaps the moral of the story.

Impressions on SPL: 8/10

"Money is just a thing, and things change"

I am very fond of European movies. They always provide me some insight, or perhaps I have seen too many American movies. European movies seem to let me see the world in a different angle, and often comes with an intoxicating beauty. Girl with a Pearl Earring was one of this kind. Also supported by Pathé and the UK Film Council is Millions, a movie directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later).

The story is very simple, so simple that you probably guessed the ending right after reading the synopsis. However, I must also add that a movie is not a puzzle, so a good script need not (or rather, should not) be complex...

Damian is a young British kid, about the age of 7. After her mother died, he was moving to a new community with his father and his older brother Anthony. Damian was still mourning for the loss of his mother, and he attempted to soothe his own sorrow by imagining her as a saint in heaven. A few days before Christmas, a hugh bag of money fell from the sky. Damian thought it was god who gave him the money. Well educated by his mother, he tried to distribute the money to the poor people, but his brother thought it was a better idea to keep the money to themselves. However, by Christmas the transition to Euro would be complete and any unused British Pounds will be useless. They also have another problem: the money did not come from god. It came from a train robbery.

This simple movie talked about lots of things. What do you get probably depend on what you were thinking at that time. Money is very important in our lives, but should they be? "Money makes it harder to see what is what." More than often, money clouds our judgement costs our children's innocence. Anthony hadn't celebrated his 10th birthday but he is already well-versed in Economy. He knows the exchange rate better than his father. He exploits the death of his mother to get benefits from adults, and is surfing on the Internet for underwear advertisement. Is this what kids are supposed to do?

Damian's saints gave a couple of very refreshing talks. Saint Peter's reinterpretation of the "five loaves and two fish" story might be one of them: Jesus passed the plate to one of his followers. The follower did not take the food, because he had some lamb chops hidden beneath his clothes. Instead he placed some of his lamb on the plate and pretended he took something. Each of the followers did the same, and Jesus himself was astonished when he found the fish and loaves still intact on the plate when it was passed back to him. Saint Peter lied to Jesus and told him it was a miracle. It was not magical. It was sharing out of good faith, but perhaps it was still a miracle. As was what Damian did.

There are more to the movie than what I have written but I believe it is better if I do not spoil you too much before you get a chance to see it. This fairy tale is now showing on selected UA cinemas in Hong Kong.

Impressions on Millions: (first ever) 10/10


You may also find some information from other reviews on the net:

Millions at Rottontomatoes
KDHX Film Review - Millions
Millions is worth the buck

Someone shared similar thoughts too! 爛兔記:電影觀眾不是尊貴客戶

猛龍

昨天總算有時間看電影，首先當然要看很快會落畫的。於是我看了有洪金寶的猛龍。

（注意：有內容）

不知怎的，總覺得看起來很有點過江龍(Martial Law)的影子。劇情方面比較老土，對白是四語廣播（有點多餘），而且有很多漫畫式的人物介紹、回想…但看動作片最主要還是看動作。而錢嘉樂做武指出來的效果還算不錯！電影中段的槍戰跟片尾的刀手格鬥都很可觀，但我覺得片尾吳建豪的槍戰與最後一幕『射鴨仔』是敗筆！

下一套會看的可能是殺破狼。猛龍評分：5.5/10

Corpse Bride

Tim Burton's creations always intrigue me in a bizzare way. Yesterday I finally had time to go for Corpse Bride, his newest movie.

The story is based on a Russian folklore. Victor the shy kid was forced to marry the young and beautiful Victoria, the daughter of a declining family. They fell in love immediately after seeing each other, but there is always something waiting to go wrong. After make a mess out of the rehearsal, Victor went for a little practice in the dark forest at night, and accidentally married Emily, the corpse bride.

Like the rest of Tim Burton's movies, the world we see is so different from the world we live in, yet it reminds us continuously of your very own life. In the story he portrayed two worlds. The land of the living is dull and without colour with people all living like zombies and working like robots. The land of the dead is however very colourful, with the dead having an happy (after)life underground, singing and dancing every day and night.

[minor spoiler alert]

The story began with a blue butterfly. Bright and colourful, it served as the introduction of the boring human world: People breathe, and their hearts beat, but they do not feel life and even chased the butterfly away. The same butterfly also appeared again later to visit the lonely corpse bride, but the reaction it got was very different. Sadness did not prevent her from adoring the butterfly and the life it represented. The full moon was beautiful, but only in her eyes. Perhaps sometimes we pay attention to the beautiful things in life only after we lose them? The nature, a dead pet, Too often we learn the way of life through loss and regret.

Some say that the story ended abruptly, but the final scene was so beautiful it made me weep. I wonder if the butterfly was the afterlife of another beautiful lady?

Impressions on Corpse Bride: 9/10

The songs are very nice, making the soundtrack a must-buy item. Following is an excerpt from "Tears to shed", a song Emily sang with the black widow and the maggot:

If I touch a burning candle I can feel no pain
In the ice or in the sun it's all the same
Yet I feel my heart is aching
Though it doesn't beat it's breaking
And the pain here that I feel
Try and tell me it's not real
I know that I am dead
Yet it seems that I still have some tears to shed

Is programming a form of art?

Have any of you seen Mona Lisa Smile? Overall it is a boring movie, but it had some of the most talented actresses, as well as insightful ideas. In this movie, Ms Ann Watson the teacher (Julia Roberts) and Betty Warren the student (Kirsten Dunst) had this conversation:

Watson: What is art? What makes it good or bad? And who decides?
Warren: Art isn't art until someone says it is.
Watson: It's art!
Warren: The right people.
Watson: Who are they?

Do art exist in the computer world, among us working in the industry, among those watching porn late at night, or those net-addicted people sending instant messages across the Internet to complete strangers? Can programming be classified as a form of art?

There are lots of tools with which you can create a piece of art: pieces of metal, clay, cloth, paint and canvas, or even shades of light. Like art, there are lots of tools to complete your work. Different programming languages have different characteristics and styles, which you must choose carefully to present your work. There are always many different ways to write even the simplest programs. Looking at them casually without reading in detail, a well written program can be fairly similar to a poem. The word "program" even rhymes with "poem". Plus, we have writer's block, too.

However, unlike art, there are discreet criteria where programs can be judged. A program is not intended for display in its source form: they almost always serve real purposes, and there are commonly known good and bad styles.

So am I an artist? I do not know. The only thing I am sure is that I will be happier if I consider myself an idealist pursuing an unreachable perfection, than a nitpicky cheap labour finishing projects that could not be. It can also be used as an excuse for my bad temper.

Impressions on Mona Lisa Smile: 6/10

黑社會賺錢高招

是說杜sir的黑社會，不是賣四仔的。

在電影新聞組看到這條連結，很有意思，故節錄部份內容如下：

……

其中有一幕是梁家輝（飾演想搶黑幫龍頭地位的老大）捉了那些在選龍頭時沒為他出夠力的頭目到山上，在糟躓他們之餘，蹲在那塊可以俯瞰城市景觀的大懸石上，用手提電話約其他頭目晚上聚集談判，很有實感的大大聲講出約定見面的酒家名。

……

很有交代，打電話給一個頭目說一遍，有的聽不清楚又要勞氣說一遍（這是很合理的，在山頭野嶺嘛，電信公司覆蓋不好，信號不清），約一大堆人，酒家名便一而再的在一個很有氣勢的位置給喊出來。

這酒家名正是全力贊助這套電影的字號，我是出錢贊助的，又或電影公司的老闆，一定會看得聽得很開心，為導演的交代而滿意。

不論市道好不好，既是商品，開多點門路賺錢天公地道，只要不會讓觀眾覺得突兀討厭便好，他們也該會審慎行事，避免造成反效果。

像這一次便是很好的示範，……

原文： 杜琪峰《黑社會》賺錢高招

黑社會

上周五在沒大期望的情況下看了黑社會。

故事是很簡單的黑社會爭上位遊戲，大Ｄ與樂爭做和聯勝龍頭大哥，各區話事人因不同原因各執一詞，各不相讓。要避免警方介入，應如何處理？

之前看新聞說會『教壞細路』，我看完這種感覺卻不強烈。要說教壞，之前的古惑仔系列不是更嚴重？片中多次說明，所謂的愛兄弟不愛黃金都是騙人，以香港電影來說都不能算是美化黑社會了。反而是很多對白都刻意影射時局，甚麼最重要是安定繁榮，大社會選大佬比選香港人選特首早一百年，不同人看應會有不同感想…

暴力鏡頭以三級片來說實在是非常的少，要不是有黑社會入會儀式的鏡頭，應該都不會成為三級片。片中角色眾多，幾乎清一色是男生。由於開始時人物介紹部份沒細心看，中間搶旗時認人名還有少許困難－－如果你打算看記緊要留心。一般來說出鏡的演員都是有實力的演員，整體演出都可以。主角方面，任達華做得出色，而梁家輝能做出大Ｄ的惡，不過好像做得太過火了。配角方面林家棟演的東莞仔應是演得最好的一個吧…

黑社會評分：7/10

再早幾天看過Flightplan（港譯：高凶三萬尺）。故事大綱有趣，不過犯駁之處不少。有幸演員出色不救回不少分數。
Flightplan評分：5.5/10

（自己寫的文章好像愈來愈短了…）

以下私自轉載舊同事寫的黑社會影評。有部份說得還算有意思，希望不要見怪。

杜琪峰的確是當今香港影壇的重要人物，他執導或監製的電影都能緊握著香港觀眾的口味和市場的觸覺，而男性警匪電影更加是杜Sir近年專攻‘科目’，由＜鎗火＞，到＜PTU＞，甚至劉德華的＜大隻佬＞，警與匪的對立都像電影中的燈光手法一樣黑白分明，今次＜黑社會＞可說是開宗明義，將全男班黑幫兄弟一個一個擺上檯，甚至推出康城影展‘曬冷’之作！

有＜無間道＞珠玉在前，＜黑社會＞勝在擺脫了最濫情的臥底橋段，甚至連一幕旗鼓相當的黑白兩道大鬥法的場面（e.g. 曾志偉 vs 黃秋生的一幕）也沒有，反之是樸實無華地描寫一次黑幫話事人選舉交棒的腥風血雨；正因為沒有太多情節上的出人意表，因此更添劇情的感染性和張力，這亦是最 考編劇功力的地方。當然，有人認為龍頭棍的爭奪有點脫離現實甚至乎過份漫畫化，但我認為這正是全片最畫龍點睛的一個意象符號！當任達華第一次看見龍頭棍，說出一句：「我都係第一次見！」他為權力著魔的表情，就令觀眾更容易明白杜琪峰以黑社會為題拍電影的弦外之音！

兩大男主角任達華和梁家輝撐足全場，無論造型和角色設計上梁家輝都佔盡優勢，他的角色其實是＜江湖救急＞中任因久的兄弟版，演繹方面難度較小，金馬提名最佳男主角只有家輝入圍，任達華落馬實非戰之罪；天林叔的老戲骨獲提名最佳男配角實至名歸，而一眾黑道男人個個搶戲，最討好的當然要數杜sir愛將林雪，他的戲份不多，但幾句對白卻是電影中最重要的關鍵所在；張家輝和張兆輝都略嫌over了一點，但可能只是角色設計所累，相反古天樂演得沒精打采，與其他人演技上仍有點距離，個人認為演得最恰到好處的男配角是林家棟，短短的一場戲不愠不火，交足功課。
散場之後第一個感覺是，咦，點解無黃秋生呢！有就perfect喇！
（影評：葉瀚）

Wait 'Til You're Older

I am not a big fan of Andy Lau, but the company I work for is a sponsor of the movie. Many colleagues went to the premiere show and came back with very positive comments. The movie looked promising enough, so I went anyway.

With no gangsters, crimelords, nor gamblers, I am surprised to see such a high calibre Hong Kong movie like this one. Years ago, Kwong's mother commited suicide because his father fell in love with another women. Since then the kid had been living with the stepmother, and refused to communicate with his parents. He hated his parents. He wanted to be free from them. He wanted to grow up. One day he met an old alchemist in the park and witnessed the effects of the old man's new invention: a magical growth potion. He stole the potion and became an adult after just one night's sleep. How could he live in his new shell? Could he forgive his parents for the mistakes they made? Or, could he ask the forgiveness of his parents for his childishness?

Families and friends, misunderstanding and forgiveness. These are not common themes in local movies, but it had been wrapped up very well. They might have borrowed a few ideas from Big Fish, I guess. Your parents but not tell you every truth, but if they don't, they are probably doing you good. Not that I would change my attitudes towards my father though.

Impressions on Wait 'Til You're Older: 7/10

"I don't believe!"

Watched The Skeleton Key last Thursday.

Spoiler alert - but I would try to keep it minimal

The story: Young nurse Caroline (Kate Hudson) is moving in to Ben and Violet's (John Hurt, Gena Rowlands) house to take care of the old man, who recently had a stroke and have only a month to live. She soon realised that the house is perhaps haunted by a couple who practised "Hoodoo" magic in the house almost a hundred years ago. The ghosts may also be the cause of Ben's stroke. Caroline decided to learn the arts of Hoodoo and save the old man, but could her magic skills save herself? Truth is perhaps the last thing she should know.

It is not really a thriller, but more like The Sixth Sense, a horror/drama with a sudden twist at the end. The plot had certainly been thought over, and is much more logicial than most other movies of similar genre. There are not many frightening scenes, but a creepy "Hoodoo" atmosphere runs throughout the movie but was perhaps too disturbing for me.

I don't know what I should add without spoiling too much, so I'd just stop here. Impressions on The Skeleton Key: 6.5/10

Question: what was the chicken soup supposed to do?