Furious 6: Furious Dynamics, Fast Friends For-EVA!

dem. Furious 6 is F.U.R.I.O.U.S man!



a first 9 uols. and this is a 5 star rating blog (oh the irony). well, as we proceed in due course, you would see why. first thing first, the trailer:




Plot:


Following their successful Rio heist, Dominic 'Dom' Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew of professional criminals have retired around the world: Dom lives with Elena (Elsa Pataky); his sister Mia (Jordana Brewster) lives with Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) and their son, Jack; Gisele (Gal Gadot) and Han (Sung Kang) have moved to Hong Kong; and Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Ludacris) live in luxury.

Diplomatic Security Service agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson) and his new partner Riley Hicks Gina Carano) investigate the destruction of a Russian military convoy by former British Special Forces soldier Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) and his crew.


Hobbs tracks down Dom in Spain and persuades him to help take down Shaw after showing him a recent photo of the supposedly long-dead Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez), Dom's former girlfriend. Dom gathers his crew together and they accept the mission in exchange for full amnesty for their past crimes, allowing them to return home to the United States; Mia and Elena remain with Jack in Spain.



The crew travels to London where one of Shaw's henchmen leads them to Shaw's hideout, but it is revealed to be a trap intended to distract the crew and police while Shaw's crew performs a heist elsewhere, namely the Interpol Headquarters. Brian and the rest of Dom's crew leaves in hot pursuit for Interpol whilst Dom, Hobbs and Riley wait for Shaw's next move.





Without long Shaw flees by car, detonating his hideout behind him and disabling most of the police force, leaving Dom, Hobbs and Riley to pursue him.
 

As Brian and the crew arrive at the Interpol Headquarters, they are shot at by the awaiting Shaw's crew.


Han and Gisele's cars are damaged but Brian, Ramon and Tej are able to pursue Vegh (driving a flip car) and Shaw's other crew along the London streets. Using technology that enables front tires locking, Tej and Roman crash whilst Brian with his reflexive instinct manages to avoid crashing and continues to pursue Vegh and the rest. However, in the tunnel using deceptive ploy, Vegh flips Brian over before the gang drives away.


In the meantime, Dom and Hobbs continue to chase Shaw before Letty arrives to help him escape. Leaving Shaw to Hobbs, Dom pursues Letty instead but she shoots Dom without hesitation before escaping. Back at their headquarters, Hobbs tells Dom's crew that Shaw is stealing components to create a Nightshade device which can disable power in an entire region; he intends to sell it to the highest bidder.

 

Meanwhile, Shaw's investigation into the opposing crew reveals Letty's relationship with Dom, but she is revealed to be suffering from amnesia and have no memory whatsoever of her past.



 

Dom's crew investigates a Shaw subordinate who reveals Shaw's connection to Arturo Braga, a drug lord imprisoned by Brian back on US grounds.  however the crew is attacked by Shaw's crew including Letty. One of Shaw's crew dies in the ensuing shootout that leads the rest to scamper away. Roman and Han pursue Jah (Joe Taslim) whilst Riley takes on Letty in a girl on girl fight, feisty and brutal. In the end, Jah and Letty escape their chasers and go back to their hideout.
 
 
 
Using the info on Braga, Brian connects the dots together to deduce that Letty was known by Braga through him when she was doing undercover stint before to help FBI capture Braga. Knowing that he has to go to Braga in Los Angeles to find out more, Brian comes up with a plan where he returns to the US as a prisoner to gain access to Braga.

In a solitary cell,  who discloses how Letty survived the explosion that was thought to have killed her; Shaw attempted to finish her off but after learning of her amnesia, he took her in. Braga further tips Brian that Shaw has eyes and hands everywhere, that he won't let anyone close for granted. everything is orchestrated and each move calculated. Aided by a former colleague in the FBI, Brian is released from prison.

 

In London, Dom challenges Letty in a street racing competition, and afterwards as they agree to stop some place secluded, Dom gets to know that Letty has no idea of her past and her relationship with him. He doesn't give up and instead recounts the moments behind her scars. It moves her but instead, she chooses to leave, but not before Dom returns her necklace he had kept.



As Letty left, Shaw shows up and share a conversation with Dom. He offers for Dom to leave with his family, acknowledging that Dom lives by a code of his own: treating his crews as his family that he is sworn to protect. Dom agrees with one condition, that is Letty to leave with him. Ultimately as Shaw threatens to kill Dom with his sniper ready, Dom returns the courtesy with Hobbs aiming the laser point likewise to Shaw's chest. Clearly at stand-off, Shaw retreats.

Tej tracks Shaw's next attack to a NATO base in Spain. His crew assaults a military convoy carrying a computer chip to complete the Nightshade device. Dom's crew interferes, destroying the hijacking convoy while Shaw, accompanied by Letty, commandeers a tank and begins destroying cars along the highway.





Brian and Roman manage to flip the tank; Letty is thrown from the tank and Dom risks his life to save her from falling to her death.

 


Shaw and his men are captured, but he reveals that he has kidnapped Mia. The crew is forced to release Shaw, and Riley (revealed to be working for Shaw) leaves with him; Letty chooses to remain with Dom. Shaw's group board a large aircraft in motion on a runway as Dom's crew gives chase. Dom, Letty, Brian, and Hobbs board the craft; Brian rescues Mia and they escape using a car on board.

The plane attempts to take off but is held down by excess weight as Han, Gisele, Roman, Tej, Brian, and Mia tether the plane to their vehicles. Gisele sacrifices herself to save Han from one of Shaw's henchmen. Letty kills Riley and escapes with Hobbs to safety, but Dom pursues Shaw and the computer chip. Shaw is thrown from the plane as it crashes into the ground; Dom drives one of the remaining cars through the nose of the exploding plane and reunites with his crew, giving the chip to Hobbs to secure their amnesty.






In the aftermath, Dom and his team return to the United States. Hobbs and Elena (now working with Hobbs) arrive to confirm the crew are free; Elena accepts Dom has chosen Letty over her.
 

As Dom's crew gather to share a meal, Dom asks Letty if the gathering feels familiar; she answers no, but that it feels like home.

In Tokyo, while Han is in a car chase, he is hit by an oncoming car; Han's car explodes, killing him. The other car's driver (Jason Statham) walks away from the scene and calls Dom, leaving him a message: "You don't know me. You're about to."

Review:
Man... this blew the roof! I tried pegging them to 4.5 star but dem, it's hard!

I really enjoy this and wouldn't mind hitting replay, mind you. the adrenaline junkie would appreciate the chasing scenes, the fights and definitely the speed. i'd love to quote Owen Shaw: "Tonight these common criminals are within seconds away from taking us down. Show them the respect that they deserve or it weakens us." perghh.. sensible philosophy. Luke Evans did a good job in this one, a very respectable villain. Intelligent and charismatic. With a very good voice.

The relationship, the chemistry between the characters, Han and Giselle is heartbreaking. i mean, you gotta love Han.. the shy smile, the protectiveness, the way he always got Giselle's back. mak aii..





i'm always in love with Han being in love with Giselle. right off from the fourth and fifth movie. but this movie is the pit. it surprises her too, the real intensity of his feelings for her. and when she dies, a part of Han dies too. and it saddens me, which explains why in the consequent films he always wears that sad look. when Han later died in that car crash, i couldn't help but feel a part of Fast n Furious family died too.

and talking about dying, Paul Walker's recent demise surely rocked the franchise to hell and high water. his quick smile, swagger and confident demeanor is irreplaceable. i wonder how Furious 7 is going to handle that. some talks about his younger brother playing him with CGI thrown in. but IMHO, it won't be the same. too bad the storyline is unlike  The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus where the recently departed Heath Ledger was brilliantly immersed in the story seamlessly. but then, it's a challenge the film productions gotta take care of, the legion of fans gonna screams blue murder if they don't.



if only Brian can come back to life like Letty did. but it's not meant to be kan? it made me smile when Dom recounts the stories behind the scars Letty had. it was bittersweet. and that jump of faith, perghh.. i could fall in love there and then.

this film shines for many things. there is heart here. family. laughters and jokes aside (often at the expense of Roman), it is a serious filming done. the fight scenes between Letty and Riley, that was a hardcore street fighting whilst Han and Roman just took a beating lesson from Jah, one that they won't forget easily.

perhaps Hobbs coming into the franchise with understandable camaraderie with Dom could balance the equilibrium again. true, there's no F&F without Brian but like Tokyo Drift has gone before, given the speed, the believable storyline and warm heartfelt kinship, the franchise could survive.


about cars, i have to admit, the Flip Cars are amazingly breathtaking. the speed, the smooth transmission, dem. it's a real Beauty to me! and adding a tank into the equation, man, this IS a vehicular warfare!

however, the scene with the airplane, it doesn't gel well for me. the fights were ok but the logistics of the plane, it was derailed but still the movements of the inside vehicles are somewhat too static, too stable for my taste. and i wonder, why didn't the pilots close off the ramp as they prepared to take flights? kasi can geng baik2 terjunkah?

btw the soundtrack was great.love this one!



yup these guys own it!

Just Notes: 9GAG's 17 movies of all time

9GAG's 17 movies of all time:




I wonder, why is it Michael Fassbender always has sex scenes in his movies? Fish Tank is of no exception, he gets to have sex with both mother and daughter whilst in fact he's married with a daughter. #awkward

But then, Shame is exquisitely jarring. It makes me feel his pain, oh so acutely. Addiction is worse when you can't escape. and you end up hating yourself for ever more. I don't think I can spend time watching Shame in full, for it really scarred me the first time I watch it. oh MF, you really make me feel things that I don't want to feel...

Accepted: Simply GENIUS thought provoking FUN

 

Trailer:


The Plot:
Bartleby Gaines (Justin Long) is a persuasive high-school senior who, among other pranks, creates fake IDs. His gifts do not extend to grades, however, and he receives rejection letters from all of the universities and colleges to which he applies, including those with high acceptance rates.



In an attempt to seek approval from his strict father (Mark Derwin), Bartleby creates a fake college, the South Harmon Institute of Technology (S.H.I.T.). He is aided by his best friend, Sherman Schrader III (Jonah Hill), who has been accepted into the prestigious Harmon College, and fellow rejects Rory Thayer (Maria Thayer), a hard-working girl who, due to prevalence of Legacy preferences, failed to get in to Yale University, the only school she applied to, Hands Holloway (Columbus Short), who lost his athletic scholarship after an injury, and Glen (Adam Herschman), who got a "0" on the SAT when he neglected to sign his name.


To make the "college" seem legitimate, Bartleby convinces Sherman to create a fully functional Web site for the school. Later on, with Rory's help he also leases an abandoned psychiatric hospital adjacent to Harmon College and renovates it to look like a college campus, using the college enrollment fee that his father gave to him.



When his domineering father insists on meeting the dean, Bartleby hires Schrader's uncle, Ben Lewis (Lewis Black), a former educator, to play that role.



The seemingly innocent ploy quickly spins out of control when the website, which automatically accepts any applicant, enrolls hundreds of other rejected students.



Bartleby realizes that these people have nowhere else to go, so he lets them believe that the school is real, a place where they will finally feel accepted.After a visit to Harmon disenchants him with traditional college life, he has the students make up their own classes and be their own teachers.



Students write down what they want to learn on a giant whiteboard, with classes ranging from the culinary arts and sculpting to "Taking a Walk and Thinking about Stuff," "Foreign Affairs: Hooking Up Overseas," "Rock Our Faces Off 222," and the invention of one freaky kid (Jeremy Howard) who wants to learn how to "blow shit up...with my mind."



Bartleby even goes so far as to create a school newspaper (the S.H.I.T. Rag) and a mascot (the S.H.I.T. Sandwiches).

Meanwhile, the dean of nearby Harmon College, Richard Van Horne (Anthony Heald), makes plans to construct the Van Horne Gateway, an adjacent park-like "verdant buffer zone" by which the dean hopes "to keep knowledge in, and ignorance out." He dispatches Hoyt Ambrose (Travis Van Winkle) to free up the nearby properties, but when Bartleby refuses to relinquish the lease for the South Harmon property, Hoyt sets to work trying to reveal the college as a fake.

The dispute turns personal, since Bartleby has been vying for the affections of Hoyt's ex-girlfriend, Monica Moreland (Blake Lively). Hoyt exposes South Harmon as a fake institution through Sherman, who is attempting to join Hoyt's fraternity as a legacy, but is treated with humiliation and abuse by his fraternity brothers. After having Sherman beaten up, Hoyt forces him to hand over all the files he has created for South Harmon.

Hoyt then contacts all the students' parents to expose the school as a fake. Soon after the parents come and as a result of that, the institute is shut down. However as Sherman's has taken the initiative to file for accreditation, it gives Bartleby a chance to make his college legitimate.



At the State of Ohio educational accreditation hearing, Bartleby makes an impassioned speech about the failures of conventional education and the importance of following one's own passions instead of being dictated on what to do, convincing the board to grant his school a one-year probation to test his new system.

The institute reopens, with more students enrolling, including Sherman and Monica. Also, Bartleby finally earns the approval of his father, who is proud that his son actually owns a college. As the film closes, Van Horne is seen walking to his car in the Harmon College parking lot, only to watch it suddenly explode. Bartleby watches in astonishment as the freaky guy from earlier tells him "I told you I could do it", in that he made his psychokinetic explosions reality.

Review:
To me, Accepted is a simple take on education industry. It happens that these days, our generation lives by a certain standard that if not provoked, and flexed to a certain extent, it shall waste good talents like Bartleby's.

Of course, to some extent, it was too good to be true. but the ideals put forth are worthy. thought provoking.

Plus, I got JL and CS at their most carefree roles. JL is admirable and reminds me a lot about my younger brother who didn't graduate himself. sometimes life is more than just certificates and good job. it's about how you live your life and impacts on others.

Accepted has put JL in my good books the same way Get Over it puts Ben Foster on my map. They are both good and off-beat, a delight to put on rerun :)

Grown Ups 2: ohpleasegrowupalready!

 

the Trailer:


the Plot:
Three years after the events of the first film, Lenny Feder (Adam Sandler) has relocated his family back to his Connecticut hometown where he and his friends grew up.

In the film's opening in the Feder household, Lenny wakes up to find a wild deer standing next to his bed. Upon waking up, his wife Roxanne (Salma Hayek) startles the deer, causing it to urinate all over their home.



Eventually, Lenny is able to get the deer out of the house just in time to take his children Greg (Jake Goldberg), Keith (Cameron Boyce), and Becky (Alexys Nycole Sanchez) to their last day of school. Roxanne brings up the idea of their family having another baby, but Lenny says their family is perfect as is, upsetting Roxanne.

At the Lamonsoff household, Eric Lamonsoff (Kevin James) and his wife Sally(Maria Bello) are at odds with each other over how to raise their children. Sally believes in unwavering support while Eric prefers to be more practical with them. At the McKenzie household, Kurt (Chris Rock) surprises his wife Deanne (Maya Rudolph) with a thoughtful anniversary present, only to find that she has completely forgotten. Meanwhile, Marcus Higgins (David Spade) is waiting at a train station after receiving a letter from an old girlfriend, who tells him that he has a seventeen-year-old son Braden (Alexander Ludwig). Marcus is stunned to see a tattooed, six-foot-tall boy, who turns out to be Braden. Marcus tries to be nice and takes him to school, but Braden shows an immediate dislike toward him.

The school bus driver is wasted so Lenny takes charge of driving the bus, picking his friends along. After dropping off their kids, Lenny, Eric, Kurt, and Marcus spend the day roaming around town, reminiscing about the amazing summers they used to have when they were kids and Lenny's childhood bully, Tommy Cavanaugh (Steve Austin). Lenny argues that he could take Tommy as a kid and he can still take him. Eventually, the friends go to see Becky's ballet recital, where Lenny runs into Tommy, whom Lenny is visibly terrified of. Tommy threatens that if Lenny ever lies again about being able to beat him up, he'll publicly beat Lenny up.

Once the kids are out of school, Lenny, Eric, Kurt, and Marcus decide to visit the old quarry, where they used to swim as kids.
 

There they run into a bunch of partying frat boys (lead by Milo Ventimiglia and Taylor Lautner) who force them to jump into the quarry naked. Braden who was partying with the frat boys, witnesses this and goes off to vandalize their frat house. When the frat boys return, they swear to take revenge.

Lenny arrives home to help Roxanne set up for a 1980s-themed party for their friends. Meanwhile, Marcus begins to bond with Braden, who realizes he was wrong about his father. As all of their friends begin to arrive, Roxanne urges Lenny to consider having another baby. Lenny continues to protest the idea and is left dumbfounded when Roxanne reveals that she is pregnant.

Lenny, feeling overwhelmed by this discovery, goes off to drink with his friends. The Feder's party goes well most of the night until Tommy Cavanaugh shows up and disrespects Lenny in front of everyone, so Lenny challenges Tommy to a fight. In a surprising turn, Tommy decides to take a dive so that Lenny can look tough for his kids, and the two develop a mutual respect. Soon after, the angry frat boys arrive at the house looking for retribution for the damage to their frat house. They go on to insult the local town residents, inciting a fight. The locals hold their own against the frat boys and eventually send them running away defeated.


After all the commotion dies down, the four friends have pancakes at Eric's mom's house. Mrs. Lamonsoff (Georgia Engel) reassures Lenny that a new baby is a wonderful thing and eventually he will never be able to imagine life with just three kids. Lenny has a change of heart and returns home, telling Roxanne he is sorry and excited about the new baby, and they reconcile.

Review:
I knew I gave such a glowing review for the first film, but the sequel is too much.. There are (some) highlights but the tired run-of-the-mill jokes really bother me. I mean, please, I think you guys could find grown-up jokes that don't involve male nudity, horny old janitor, high and wasted adult, poop and such. Why stoop to low levels of funny HA??? The opening scene where the deer urinated all over is SO unnecessary! And it is odd that Roxanne has to scream when she saw Greg in nude. I mean, even though he's a teenager now, Greg is still YOUR son kan? Come on! To scream is to indicate there is some sort of detachment between a mother and her children. Don't you think so too?

urghhh.

Salma Hayek as Roxanne in this one is merely ornamental. There are scenes but she's almost invisible, only to shine a bit at the end of the movie when Lenny finally greets his unborn baby.

I also like the moral that Greg and Andre (Kurt's son) though having opportunities to drink alcohol during the frat party, had evaded to do so. This is what we should impart to our kids, even though grown-ups are not watching, you have an integrity to uphold. That it is your moral code that you should adhere to.

For a star awarded, I love that this movie is some sort of a reunion. We could see SNL players in it having fun.


And Oliver Hudson, David Spade's fellow in Rules Of Engagement was recruited as a yoga instructor. Dishy definitely but yes, still ornamental. No character development whatsoever. Pfftttt!

I also find it odd that Tommy picks the wrong time to reveal that he's a decent guy. I mean, if he truly respects Lenny as a guy, and am repentant of his past bullying, middle of the crowd is definitely not the place to confess. I mean, you could approach Lenny at another time, and yes STOP bullying him in public.

Another low point to me is Milo Ventimiglia playing frat boy role. I mean, he's a spectacular actor. To reduce him to such role is so degrading to me. Milo, you should have picked a better script than this T-T And Patrick Schwarzenegger is also wasted here. The producers could have picked other unknown faces and it won't matter a bit.

Oh, and the same opinion goes for Shaquille O'Neal's role as Officer Fluzoo. Degrading.


Regardless of the disappointments in the storyline, the film has done well to earn triple of its cost. Meaning that Adam Sandler and co has a solid support from moviegoers. Just please do it well next time, please. Lenny is such a decent guy that I wish the Grown Ups gang had a very nice closure, minus the silly (unfunny) gags. Do Grown Ups 3 better please!

The Notebook: what you want...

Trailer:


Plot:
At a modern-day nursing home, an elderly man named Duke (James Garner) begins to read a romantic story from his notebook to a fellow patient (Gena Rowlands).

The story he tells begins in 1940. In Seabrook Island, South Carolina, local country boy Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling) is smitten with seventeen-year-old heiress Allie Hamilton (Rachel McAdams) after seeing her at a carnival, and they share an idyllic summer love affair. Noah takes Allie to an abandoned house, which he explains that he intends to restore the house.  And Allie requests to have her own spot in the house, a room to paint, overlooking the lake. It was some sort of a reaffirmation that she intends to marry him.

Later that evening, she asks him to make love to her, but they are interrupted by Noah's friend Fin (Kevin Connolly) with the news that Allie's parents have the police out looking for her. When Allie and Noah return to her parents' mansion, they ban her from seeing Noah, whom they called "trash, trash, trash". Knowing that her parents do not approve of him, Noah leaves the house, much to Allie's frustration that her fiery temper gets to her head.



The two break up, in the fits of Allie's temper. The next morning, Allie's mother announces that the family is returning home to Charleston. Desperate, Allie searches for Noah at the lumberyard but he's not there. Fin instead asks her to leave Noah alone, that it's not going to work out. She asks him to tell Noah that she loves him and that she's sorry. She leaves by asking Fin to tell Noah to write to her.

For a year, Noah writes a letter to Allie each day. But the letters are intercepted by Allie's mother (Joan Allen), leaving Allie to feel that Noah has forgotten her.

Noah and Allie have no choice but to move on with their lives; Noah and Fin enlist to fight in World War II and Fin is killed in battle. Allie becomes a volunteer in a hospital for wounded soldiers, where she meets an officer named Lon Hammond, Jr. (James Marsden), a young lawyer who is handsome, sophisticated, charming and comes from old Southern money. The two eventually become engaged, to the delight of Allie's parents, but Allie sees Noah's face when Lon asks her to marry him.

When Noah returns home from the war, he discovers his father has sold their home so that Noah can buy the abandoned house, fulfilling his lifelong dream to buy it for the departed Allie, whom by now he hasn't seen for several years. While visiting Charleston, Noah witnesses Allie and Lon kissing at a restaurant; he convinces himself that if he restores the house, Allie will come back to him. Some says he works on the house like a madman, and when he completes it, he refuses to sell it, regardless of the price offered.

Later, during a bridal gown fitting, Allie is startled to read in the newspaper that Noah has restored the house that she faints there and then. Knowing that she has to see him, Allie visits Noah in Seabrook.

In the present, it is made clear that the elderly woman is in fact Allie, who is suffering from dementia and cannot remember any of the events being read to her. Duke, the man who is reading to her, is her husband, but Allie cannot recognize him.

Back in the forties, Allie and Noah renew their relationship by spending time together, as friends. Her feelings come back to her and she questions Noah for not writing to her before. When she knows the truth, and that Noah still has feelings for her, they make love at Noah's now-restored house. In the morning, Allie's mother appears on Noah's doorstep, warning Allie that Lon knows about Noah being her first love back in Seabrook and thus has decided to follow her there. Confused, Allie tells Noah that she's going back to talk to Lon, much to Noah's frustration that they fight.





As Allie reads Noah's letters, she knows she has to confess to Lon about Noah and her feelings. He is upset but says that he still loves her. Allie tells him she knows she should be with him, but she remains indecisive.

In the present, Allie becomes briefly lucid and remembers that the story Duke is reading is the story of how they met. Young Allie appears at Noah's doorstep, having left Lon at the hotel. Elderly Allie suddenly remembers her past; after finding out about her illness, she herself wrote their story in the notebook with instructions for Noah to "read this to me, and I'll come back to you". But Allie soon relapses, losing her memories of Noah. She panics, not understanding who he is, and has to be sedated. That same night Noah is hospitalised with what seems to be another heart attack.

When released from the hospital, Elderly Noah ("Duke") goes to Allie's room to find her lucid again. Allie questions Noah about what will happen to them when she loses her memory completely, and he reassures her that he will never leave her. She asks him if he thinks their love for each other is strong enough to "take them away together"; he replies that he thinks their love could do anything. After telling each other that they love one another, they both go to sleep in Allie's bed. The next morning, a nurse finds them dead in each other's arms.


Review:
I was taken by the story. Duke's voice captivated me as he reads the Notebook to Miss Allie. no wonder this is a famous romance movie, top 12 high-grossing romance movie at the moment. Noah and Allie draw you in. He was charming, she was lovable. Though, I find issues in Allie's parents being so carefree when their daughter spends every waking hour of the summer with Noah.

The storyline is beautiful, moving even. That Duke (elderly Noah) still has faith in Allie's ability to come back, to remember him.. The scene by the counter the night before they die, moves me. If I were the nurse, I would totally do the same. James Garner delivers the lines so convincingly! to be the subject of such devotion, man, I'd love that very much.

Lon was a honorable man too. The way he understood Allie, her reservations about him and her feelings. It is a rare man to love that much but still can release her to be with her first love.  

The issue I have with this film is that it's too perfect, too easy for Allie to get her dreams. True, she longs for Noah for 7 years but we didn't get to see her suffering, merely by mentions that she cried every night for a year. Maybe it's wrong to ask for that but I have this feeling that Noah is the only one suffering. He's stuck in the same place, even the girl he's seeing, Martha doesn't get him to love her. The way she said to him, after spending time to know Allie, was touching. "At least now I have something to look forward to-", meaning now she knows she will have to move on, that at least she knows where she's heading. away.

alahai. this is a sad story by Nicholas Sparks. I know I'd cry buckets reading it..

Now You See Me: fastly paced + sleekly engaging = absolute MAGIC!

Trailer:


Plot:

 



Four street magicians—J. Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher), Jack Wilder (David Franco), and Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson) — are brought together by an unknown benefactor and, one year later, perform in Las Vegas as "The Four Horsemen", sponsored by insurance magnate Arthur Tressler (Michael Caine). For the finale, a member of the audience is invited to help them in their next trick: robbing a bank. That member in an audience is Étienne Forcier (José Garcia), the account holder at the Credit Republicain de Paris.
 
Forcier is apparently teleported to his bank in Paris, where he activates an air-duct that vacuums up the money and showers it onto the crowd in Las Vegas.

 

Upon discovering that the money really is missing from the bank vault, FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) is called to investigate the theft and is partnered with Interpol agent Alma Dray (Mélanie Laurent).


They interrogate the Four Horsemen, but release them when no explanation can be found.

 

Rhodes later meets Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), an ex-magician who makes money by revealing the secrets behind other magicians' tricks.
 

Bradley was in the audience and deduced that the Four Horsemen stole the money weeks before, and manipulated the audience's perception of current events. |



Tressler later on meets Bradley and advises him to not continue his pursuit to expose the Four Horsemen. Bradley cockily refuses.



Rhodes, Dray, and Bradley attend the Four Horsemen's next performance in New Orleans. The group's finale involves them stealing roughly $140 million from Tressler's bank account and distributing it to the audience, composed of people whose insurance claims had been denied or reduced by Tressler's company. Rhodes attempts to arrest the Four Horsemen, but they escape with help from audience members who were earlier hypnotised as part of the performance.

An infuriated Tressler hires Bradley to expose and humiliate the Four Horsemen in their next performance. Later, while researching the Four Horsemen's background, Dray learns about rumors of a secret society of magicians called "The Eye" and suggests to a skeptical Rhodes the case might be tied to a magician named Lionel Shrike, whom Bradley had exposed 30 years earlier and who was so embarrassed that he undertook a dangerous underwater stunt and drowned.

 
The Four Horsemen are located in New York, but they escape during the raid to arrest them.

 

However, Wilder is killed when he crashes a stolen car during a high speed chase and it bursts into flames and explodes. The remaining Horsemen vow to continue and complete their final performance, stealing a safe made by the same company that made the safe Lionel Shrike died in. Then they perform their one last show at 5 Pointz during which they seemingly vanish into thin air, transforming into loads of money that is showered on the crowd.


Rhodes and the rest FBI agents continue to chase them but apparently the Four Horsemen have escaped.

Later it's found out that the money shower turns out to be fake and the real money is found stashed in Bradley's Range Rover. Bradley is then assumed to be the fifth Horseman and arrested, though it appears he was framed.

Rhodes visits Bradley in his cell. Bradley explains the only way the safe could have been removed was if Wilder was still alive but they would have also needed an inside man.

 

Bradley now realizes that Rhodes is the fifth Horseman.

 

Rhodes tells him he wants Bradley to spend the rest of his life in jail in penance for exposing Lionel Shrike. The reason why Bradley did that was because he so desperately wanted to join The Eye but was rejected by Lionel Shrike.

 

The Horsemen are now rejoined by Wilder, whose death was staged. They finally meet their benefactor and are surprised to find it is Rhodes. He welcomes them into "The Eye."
 

Rhodes later meets Dray on the Pont des Arts in France and is revealed to be the son of Lionel Shrike, the magician who drowned years ago. He masterminded and designed the Horsemen plot to obtain revenge on those involved: Bradley, for humiliating his father; the Credit Republicain de Paris and Tressler's company, who refused to pay the insurance on his father's death; and the company that produced the substandard safe used in the trick that led to its failure.

 

Dray, however, decides not to turn him in. When Dray sees the lock with a key that Rhodes magically handed out in front of her eyes, Rhodes proclaimed, "One more secret to lock away". As soon as Dray locks the lock on a chained fence with all of the locks that have been locked, she throws the key into the Seine.

In a post credit scene in the extended cut, The Horsemen are seen arriving at the Neon Museum in Las Vegas. They find crates marked with the sign of the 'Eye'. The movie ends with them looking for the four key cards to open the crates that hold their new equipment.


the Pictures:
 



  

















the Riviu:

the movie got raving reviews such that it's up for a sequel. i as usual wiki-ed them up. but the spoilers really don't spoil the movie for me. in fact i was drawn in from the very beginning that i only paused after the credits rolled in. it was that GOOD!

of course, you'd wonder about plot plausibility but yet you cannot manage to escape its tantalising pace. the chemistry between the Four Horsemen, the beautiful special effects, the fitting soundtrack simply spellbound you.

watch it yourself and please, leave logic behind as you are in for a neat magic trick :)