How to train your dragon

How to Train your Dragon is a film about a young man who encounters the most notorious of all dragons.  Will he be able to train him?

This is the advent of the post-structuralist filmmakers who would rather present a message not through the live characters but through digitally animated ones.  Now, our fantasies come alive, giving fictional characters such as dragons a life, especially if they're viewed on 3D screens. Of course, these should be exceptionally crafted to please the mind of the audience.

The film places a high value on friendships and understanding the other.  Perennial concern among cultures, especially in the first world countries to be suspicious of other cultures or to impose its culture on them.  But the world can be a better place to live in if we live in harmony, respect, and interdependence.

Rating: 5/5

Extraordinary measures

Extraordinary Measures is a film about a father in search of a cure for his 2 children.

The Harrison Ford - Brendan Frazer tandem is truly amazing and constantly brings the film up on its feet. The storyline also gives soul to the essence of this film.

Extraordinary measures is an inspiring movie for those who long for miracles. Remember a popular Filipino saying, "In God is mercy, in man is action," we have the capacity to make the things that God has planned out for us. This film touches hearts and fills them with hope.

Rating: 4/5

Baseco bakal boys

Baseco Bakal Boys is a docu-film about a boy who earns his living by selling scraps of metal.

This is a semi-observational documentary which is also a narrative. It seeks to explore the world of boys submerged in the sea of poverty that they don't have any choice but to sell and perhaps steal scraps for food. Except for some familiar actors, there is a sense of realism in the way the characters acted, as if we're invited to journey into their world.

Baseco is an eye-opener to the world where poverty abounds and all the risks one has to take in order to survive. But life is not all food. There are signs of life elsewhere - through friendships, generosity, and dreams of a better life. The world continues to exist because of these. Of course, everyone should do their part so that not one, not even children, should end up dying on the streets for a scrap of food.

Rating: 4.5/5

Alice in wonderland

After 19 years, Alice reunites with her friends to fight against the evil queen.

The weight of the entire film rests on Johnny Depp who performs quality roles very consistently. Ann Hathaway and Helena Bonhan Carter also gave such exemplary performances that made Alice a much sought-for film for this year. Of course, the world of animation is just going deeper and deeper, being enmeshed in the real world to give fantasy a chance to make itself real, even virtually.

Alice's world is topsy turvy, making the real world a caricature. And yet, the deepest realities of life especially those inside the heart challenge the conventional world outside. Inside the heart, darkness and evil find their home, but so too goodness and light. Eventually, one has to choose what state to live in, and in choosing, give life or death. Choose wisely then!

Rating: 4.5/5

Agora

Agora is a film about a female philosopher who has to prove that the earth is not the center of the universe.

The film sought to create the historical Hypatia, an atheist professor who was held in high esteem by the polis and the students of ancient Alexandria world but was brutally killed by a Christian mob. The backdrop of old empire is amazing and every effort to recreate history was commendable.

The filmmakers were careful not to make more violent Hypatia's murder. But the message itself was compelling enough. Whether Christian or not, any violent act should not be justified, even in the name of religion, except for self-defense. Just a word of warning: the film may also have depicted Christianity in an overly negative way, with the words of Christ totally running counter to what the Christians were actually doing during those times.

Rating: 3/5

Tooth fairy

Tooth fairy is a story of an athlete who has to learn what it means to understand a child's world.

Targeted to children, this film is entertaining enough although Dwayne Johnson needs a lot to improve his acting. Its plot is unexpectedly thin to the point of losing the child in every adult. This film seems to contend itself with the minimum instead of giving its all in terms of quality, special effects, and a message to make it truly inspiring for children and adults alike.

The Tooth fairy is an invitation to recover the lost world of a child. But it is more so about relationships and the growth of the self brought about by the affirmation of others.

Rating: 3/5

The blind side

The Blind side is a story of a woman with her family who cares for a homeless young man.

"Based on an extraordinarily true story," the secret of this commendable film lies in the consistency of Sandra Bullocks role of being a strong-willed woman with a heart. The plot development is also amazing. Overall, this film touches the hearts of the audience with its moving story.

The blind side capitalizes on the value of generosity as a way of changing people's lives. It goes beyond established status quo which sometimes become a venue for social and structural sins to proliferate. It shows that it is possible to change the world with the power of human compassion.

Rating: 5/5

Percy Jackson and the lightning thief

Percy Jackson and the lightning thief is a film about a demigod who has to save his abducted mother as well as prove that he is not the lightning thief.

The story is very comprehensible to children. In fact it may so simple it works; thus, it goes beyond just displaying special effects and animation. Of course, situating a much revered Greek mythology in Las Vegas or Hollywood may be hard to bear.

The story ultimately explores the vast world of parentless children and how they are coping up to survive in this complex human existence. Parents, take the hint - despite all good intentions, do children really deserve to grow up this way?

Rating: 3.5/5

Where the wild things are

"Where the wild things are" is a story of a boy who runs away from home only to find himself in the midst of monsters.

An adaptation of Maurice Sendak's classic children's story, one could detect some faithfulness to the written text. It is a fantasy story that explores the ID, where it is bound to go, and some realizations that results from the world of immaturity. It is an intelligent film with a cast of lovable and yes, cuddly, big, horrifying monsters.

All of us experienced the joys and pains of childhood and the uneasy compromise between direct parental supervision and the carefree unadulterated world of the young life. But sooner or later, we just have to give in to something higher than what we simply want and to let ourselves be guided by it. That youthful energy will soon be put into good use and our lives will gain true meaning.

Rating: 3.5/5

Legion

Legion is a film about an angel who has fallen to save what God wants to destroy.

This film should be known for its special effects. But be wary more of the script and the message it wants to convey. Like Angels and Demons, the scriptwriter has a way of putting on the silver screen what he believes in. The entire story could be seamless but eventually, it is totally misleading.

The film presupposes a lot of doctrinal errors among them, God has lost "faith" in mankind and has to destroy him; the angels who are supposed to serve God "possess" people and turn into monsters; the angels have their own free will; and that God could be wrong in His decisions. The last part is the most disturbing of all - it puts man at the center of things.

Be forewarned about the message of this film.

Rating: 1/5

The Princess and the frog

The Princess and the frog is a story of a young woman who dreamed of having her own restaurant only to find out she couldn't because she turned into a frog.

Inspired by E. D. Baker's novel The Frog Princess, this film gives a twist to the character of the Princess. The script is also seamless and believable; animation is certified Disney creation. By its mode, it may be geared to become a Broadway musical in the future.

The only disturbing aspect of the film is how the power of evil can convert people into beasts. Of course this is fictional and voodoo is a pagan ritual, but could children take it? Besides, Disney's preoccupation with its conventional evil characters may have gone a bit too far in this movie. They should opt to redefine their convention which by now is not only obsolete but may actually cross the line from entertaining children to actually inviting the power of evil to lurk in the world. Remember, no amount of evil can counteract the power of God and the good.

Rating: 3/5

Avatar

Avatar is an semi-animated film about a man who has to fill up the shoes of his twin brother to manage his avatar as he enters into a new world and learn its culture.

The most significant thing is how the script develops to make you glued to your seat in a span of three hours. There wasn't any dull moment with Avatar. The animated world blended seamlessly with the real world, thus, enmeshing these two. The digital world definitely awakens the viewer that the film he is watching could not be real. But he is left to look for any resonance of the film with the real life.

Many other "alien" films are produced with this kind of theme, i.e., picturing the humans' inhumanity and the aliens' innocence. These films pose a challenge to us, "What have we done to our own world?" We may have gone a long way in advancing technology, but we haven't become more humane. Unless we change our outlook, our world may actually disintegrate and die, leaving the next generation to suffer extinction and decay.

Rating: 5/5

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs is a film about a mad scientist who has to prove himself that he is capable of joining the ranks of the great inventors.

Digital animations are more capable of dwelling in the world of fantasy and imagination and exploring the world of the "what-ifs". It exposes the world of hidden desires. Nice script!

All actions lead to consequences. The question is are we ready to face them? We should be responsible enough to see where our decisions lead us. Perhaps we can discern more rather than jumping before we realize that we have judged wrongly.

Rating: 4/5

Planet 51

Planet 51 is a story of an resident of a planet who encounters a human alien and he has to save him from opening the human's brains out.

In this age of digital animation, the challenge is to create a life-like scenario without actually resembling the real world. The characters move smoothly and the scenes are downright colorful; superb script too though it tends to idealize the American psyche before the world; thus, it clings on to classic Hollywood format.

Who is the human and who is the alien? This is an ageless question in the mind of the American who is forever defining who the real "Americans" are in contrast with the "aliens", foreigners, or Non-Americans. It hasn't transcended skins and cultural barriers on what it means to be truly "human". This is the weakness of the film. Thus, whatever values the film embraces would hold true for a chosen few and not for the majority of humankind. When will we transcend from these barriers and embrace the world of unity? Whatever applies to others should apply first to ourselves.

Rating: 3/5

Battle for Terra

Battle for Terra is an digitally-animated film about a man who is tasked to conquer a certain planet and kill the residents there.

Digitally produced, this film unleashes the creative ideas of its film makers to a world inhabited by Terrians while earthlings near extinction. The visuals worked seamlessly; the script makes sense. Overall, the film is entertaining and enlightening.

Who is the alien? Who is human? What makes man human? What makes him inhuman? The film explores all possibilities of the human heart both humanizing and dehumanizing. We are capable of destroying ourselves and others. Eventually, it makes human beings totally inhuman, barbaric, and worse than animals. Being human goes beyond mere flesh; it is the strength of the spirit and our capacity to offer ourselves to others that ultimately makes us humans.

Rating: 4/5

2012

2012 is a film about the impending doom of the earth and how man desperately tries to survive it to the point of killing others.

This film is a combination of a classic Hollywood-style that seeks a good ending and an apocalyptic film that aims to destroy all conventions. It is digitally animated and destroys buildings and states. But while the whole world is being destroyed to pieces, the people still continue to communicate via cellphone, making the film too incredible and impossible.

2012 is not a film about the end of the world. Rather, it is a film about the beginning of real life. We have created so much that add to the destruction of things - sinful unmarried relationships, selfish lifestyles, etc. But the characters have valuable realizations in the course of the film. Unfortunately, the film tackles only the human perspective. Only God is the ultimate source of life. He destroys so he can start building again.

Rating: 3/5

The ugly truth

The Ugly Truth is a story about a woman who seeks the advice from a male anchor who has more than enough knowledge of sex and relationships.

Of course, much of the credibility of a story relies on a powerful script. Though it borders on the profane, the film manages to catch up on the end. Still, much of the comedy is slapstick. Things just appear scripty with the cast playing too fictional roles only the writers can come up with.

The film, even though it justifies itself at the end part, still cannot compensate for the harm it did in labeling and typecasting the essence of love as perverse, raw, carnal - defining it as an "ugly truth." After the film, all men and women are just that - without any sense of redemption whatsoever. It also went against all ethical considerations of mass media - it managed to hurt the ethical sensibilities of individuals under the guise of comedy. Dignity or even respect is not a factor to consider in this movie. It is hard to clarify what love and lust are in this movie. There may not be any difference at all for the unsuspecting audience.

Rating: 2.5/5

G-force

Get ready for 4 rodents who are out to save the world!

Excellent animation! It is blended seamlessly with real characters and scenes. But the film is lacking in believable "real characters", creatures far surpassed the acting abilities of the live characters. Nevertheless, the story is believable and capable to tickling the audience's fancies.

The film centers around the issue of family more than functions and performances. The heart is far more important than any of these.

Rating: 4/5

Surrogates

Surrogates is a film about a man who investigates for the serial killer of the various owners through their robotic surrogates.

Science fiction films makes us expect high-animation techniques in filmmaking - among them, making Bruce Willis young and robots moving swiftly. Of course, it would still take a lot of convincing to do to hook the audience to believing they're seeing the future. But apparently, the more relevant motive of the film is in the human interest. Thus, the film is still realistic.

The usual "Where does science end and faith begin?" syndrome is tackled. Moreover, there are other more important human realities slowly killed by technology - our capacity to be human, the gift of relationships, and our capacity to be hurt. Despite all these, we are still the vulnerable, helpless creatures we really are.

Rating: 4/5

Year One

Year One is a story of a primitive man who ate the forbidden fruit and is banished by his tribe and thus begins man's crazy adventures of the world outside.

Tapped for comedy, Jack Black succeeds in giving flesh to Zed together with his intelligent sidekick Oh (Michael Sera). The zany distortions of biblical events create a message totally in the mind of its authors; thus, the audience have to be alert about. Will the audience accept this message?

The movie distorts the truths intended in the creation story and the book of the Pentateuch. Though it may seem funny and crazy, it is somehow hints at a message that only man creates his own destiny. If the writers have been more faithful to the message of Scriptures, we would have seen a wholistic and entertaining movie. But with Year One, it just dispels the basic fact that God exists and that man can live a moral life only in reference to Him.

Rating: 2.5/5