An adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s story, where Max, a disobedient little boy sent to bed without his supper, creates his own world–a forest inhabited by ferocious wild creatures that crown Max as their ruler. The star cast in the movie are Max Records, Catherine Keener , Steve Mouzakis, Mark Ruffalo, Max Pfeifer , Madeleine Greaves.

Still from the animated movie 9. When 9 first comes to life, he finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world where all humans are gone, and it is only by chance that he discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction. Despite being the neophyte of the group, 9 convinces the others that hiding will do them no good. They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.

In a gritty and alternate 1985 the glory days of costumed vigilantes have been brought to a close by a government crackdown, but after one of the masked veterans is brutally murdered an investigation into the killer is initiated. The reunited heroes set out to prevent their own destruction, but in doing so discover a deeper and far more diabolical plot. The Star cast in the movie are Carla Gugino, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Patrick Wilson, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jackie Earle Haley, Matthew Goode, Stephen McHattie, Laura Mennell, Danny Woodburn.

A young girl (Fanning) walks through a secret door in her new home and discovers an alternate version of her life. On the surface, this parallel reality is eerily similar to her real life – only much better. But when her adventure turns dangerous, and her counterfeit parents (including Other Mother [Hatcher]) try to keep her forever, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home – and save her family. The Voice of the characters in the movie are Keith David, Dakota Fanning, Dawn French, Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman, Ian McShane, Jennifer Saunders.

The prequel story traces the origins of the centuries-old blood feud between the aristocratic vampires known as Death Dealers and their onetime slaves, the Lycans. In the Dark Ages, a young Lycan named Lucian (Sheen) emerges as a powerful leader who rallies the werewolves to rise up against Viktor (Nighy), the cruel vampire king who has enslaved them. Lucian is joined by his secret lover, Sonja (Mitra), in his battle against the Death Dealer army and his struggle for Lycan freedom. The Star cast in the movie are Michael Sheen, Bill Nighy, Rhona Mitra, Steven Mackintosh, Kevin Grevioux, Tania Nolan, Craig Parker, Leighton Cardno.

Mo has the special talent to bring characters out of books. One night he brings out three characters from Inkheart, a story set in medieval times and filled with magical beings. Capricorn and Basta, two villains, and Dustfinger, a fire-eater. Now, 10 years later Meggie discovers the truth and it’s up to her to escape Capricorn’s evil grasp. The Star Cast in the movie are Brendan Fraser, Sienna Guillory, Eliza Hope Bennett, Paul Bettany, Helen Mirren, Matt King, Steve Speirs, Andy Serkis, Tereza Srbova

A family comedy about a hotel handyman whose life changes when the lavish bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew start to magically come true. The Star cast in the movie are Adam Sandler, Keri Russell, Guy Pearce, Courteney Cox, Teresa Palmer, Annalise Basso, Veronica Bennett

Tells the story of Benjamin Button, a man who starts aging backwards with bizarre consequences. The Stars in the movie are Cate Blanchett, Julia Ormond, Faune A. Chambers, Elias Koteas, Donna DuPlantier, Jacob Wood, Ed Metzger, Jason Flemyng, Danny Vinson, David Jensen, Joeanna Sayler, Taraji P. Henson, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali

Bella Swan student of Arizona high school has always been a bit different. She isolates herself and never seem to run with the crowd. Bella chose to live with her father after her mother re-married. Things change when she meets Edward Cullen. He is intelligent and witty and he can see straight into her soul. He can run faster than a mountain lion. He can stop a moving car with his bare hands. Oh, and he hasn’t aged since 1918. Like all vampires, he’s immortal. The movie stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Billy Burke, Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Kellan Lutz, Peter Facinelli etc

If you had a love-potion, who would you make fall madly in love with you? Timothy, prone to escaping his dismal high school reality through dazzling musical daydreams, gets to answer that question in a very real way. After his eccentric teacher casts him as Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, he stumbles upon a recipe hidden within the script to create the play’s magical, purple love-pansy. Armed with the pansy, Timothy’s fading spirit soars as he puckishly imposes a new reality by turning much of his narrow-minded town gay, beginning with the rugby-jock of his dreams. Ensnaring family, friends and enemies in this heart-wrenching chaos, Timothy forces them to walk a mile in his musical shoes. The course of true love never did run smooth, but by the end of this moving musical comedy of errors based on director Tom Gustafson’s prolific award-winning short film, Fairies, the bumpy ride comes to a heartfelt conclusion. With vibrant imagery, a first-rate ensemble cast and innovative music rivaling the best of pop/ rock and contemporary Broadway, Were the World Mine attempts to push modern gay cinema and musical film beyond expectation. The Stars in the Movie are Zelda Williams, Christian Stolte, Ricky Goldman, Tanner Cohen, Wendy Robie, Judy McLane, Nathaniel David Becker

The tale of three unlikely heroes – a misfit mouse who prefers reading books to eating them, an unhappy rat who schemes to leave the darkness of the dungeon, and a bumbling servant girl with cauliflower ears – whose fates are intertwined with that of the castle’s princess. The Voices behind the animated characters are Emma Watson, Dustin Hoffman, William H. Macy

Film: JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson, Anita Bremin
Director: Eric Brevig
Rating: 2/5

He is accompanied by his nephew Sean (Josh Hutcherson) who soon after going to Iceland meets a tour guide named Hanna (Anita Briem). Together they find themselves lost in the magical ‘world within a world’ but must soon find a way to escape before the place heats up to melting point.

The movie’s plot line is incredibly simple. The are no unnecessary twists and turns to annoy the viewer. The pacing doesn’t lag and is punctuated timely with some nifty action sequences. The only disappointment is that once they get to this magical world they don’t spend enough time there. We don’t get to soak in the magic. As soon as they reach this place, they have to begin to escape. But while there, we are introduced to some glowing birds, menacing fish and even a predatory dinosaur. It is clear that the film makers took full liberty with the computer generated imagery.

Fraser is a fine actor and he does well here. His comic timing is impeccable. But he suffers from a poor script. The one-liners are limp and fall flat occasionally. Josh Hutcherson does a commendable job. Anita Briem complements the men well by playing a no-nonsense woman who is independent and brave.

The director Eric Brevig allows too much dialogue in the initial parts of the film but manages to transition well when it comes to the action. A lot of space is given for the viewer to construct in their own imagination as they enter this magical world.

Adults may not find enough to admire in this movie since it seems to be designed for 10-year-old boys. But for children who are familiar with the Jules Verne book, this movie should meet their expectations. For those not introduced to Verne, this movie might just whet the appetite.

For clean wholesome family fun, and a few scares, this movie is a nice experience even as it strives to not blow us away, but just thrill.

– By Sevanand Gaddala

There have already been quite a few summer action blockbuster movies this year, and the “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” tries to sneak in and make an impact. It is not going to succeed. With “The Dark Knight” already getting incredible critical and box office success, any other movie following that one is doomed, at the best, to be mediocre.

Film: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Director: Ron Cohen
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, Michelle Yeoh, Luke Ford
Rating: 1/5

The Mummy franchise returns for a third time and the tragedy of this instalment is just how much of a good thing it squanders. It had millions of dollars and some semblance of an interesting story. But it is unforgivable for the way it wastes some very fine Asian actors like Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh.

The film makers chose to ignore any kind of story and the potential good acting at hand, and chose to just go for as many explosions and as much noise as possible. The plot seems to be at the service of action and some exotic locales. It takes us to the deserts of China, the Himalayas and even allows us to encounter some snow animals called yeti.

Even the dependable actor, Brendan Fraser, gets very little from the script to build on. Another fine actress, Maria Bello, is not allowed to sink her teeth into the role. There is no chemistry between these two lead actors or between Fraser and Luke Ford, who plays his son. Ford could go down as the most bland character in an action movie this year.

The movie starts with a flashback from history of an ancient emperor along with his army being turned to clay by a spell cast by a woman. The woman is in love with another man and the emperor is against this union. Fast forward a few thousand years and Luke Ford’s character has discovered this tomb, and well, all hell breaks loose after this. This is also the point where the movies starts losing its wheels and just rambles on, taking us for an inconsequential ride.

The only good thing about this movie is the action. It delivers in some way.

There is nothing new in terms of technique or filming, but it does strive hard to thrill. Pre-teens may find this appealing and adults looking for a good break from anything cerebral might also appreciate the explosions.

The director Rob Cohen might have understood this a little too well and thinks he doesn’t have to offer anything more than that. The writers, Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, are not interested in coming up with anything fresh or even aware of the sheer acting potential in all their actors. Each of these actors has won rave reviews for at least one other performance in other movies. They could have been given much more to handle in this one.

This movie works best when there are no expectations and demands. For the sake of pure thrill and mindless fun with action in exotic locales, this movie will satisfy.

– By Sevanand Gaddala

Film: “Hancock”
Cast: Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman
Director: Peter Berg

The movie is a wasted opportunity. Will Smith, the most dependable Hollywood actor right now, with his last nine movies topping the box office, plays an unlovable superhero who goes through a transformation.

It is a very promising premise, but the writers Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan along with director Peter Berg seem to lose their bearings half way and allow the movie to take one of the most bizarre and wholly boring twists in any Hollywood movie this year.

Not even the talented Oscar winning actress Charlize Theron and the dependable Jason Bateman can rescue or clarify this muddle of a movie.

Smith is Hancock, the superhero with good intentions but bad PR skills and even poorer hygiene. He cannot resist helping anyone in need, but much to the annoyance of the residents of Los Angeles, he does more harm than good. His rescues end up costing the city millions of dollars in damages.

One day Hancock rescues an altruistic but failed PR man Ray who offers to refine him and make him presentable as a superhero. This takes up the first 20 minutes or so of the movie and is actually pretty entertaining. The wheels start coming off when Hancock starts taking an interest in Ray’s wife and the movie proceeds to explain this attraction.

Since it is a blockbuster, the movie has the luxury of money and does a good job with the action sequences and special effects. But the true thrills in the movie are the scenes where Hancock is making efforts to be nicer and presentable.

Smith, with his wholesome reputation, asks the audience to stretch their imagination in having to believe his crass attitude early in the movie. Fortunately, those scenes are few and brief and it is not long before he goes about smashing things.

Smith cements his reputation as the most dependable action if not superstar in Hollywood right now. This movie will not have quite the shine as “Independence Day” or “I, Robot” and he displays much better acting skills in “The Pursuit of Happyness” and “I am Legend”. He was able to surprise us with his acting range.

“Hancock” sadly doesn’t even put up any acting challenge before him and that is another reason the movie is a wasted opportunity.

“Hancock” never forgets that it is a summer blockbuster action movie, and in many ways it delivers in the way action movie fans would expect. They will not be disappointed. For those who can put up with a digressing plot line but not at the cost of some action and special effects, “Hancock” delivers.

Very few Hollywood action movies get it right. In this age of computer generated images in blockbusters, far too often, depth of character is sacrificed. They might thrill but fail to resonate emotionally. “The Incredible Hulk” has plenty going for it with its action, but just ends up being an action movie with very little to care about.

Film: The Incredible Hunk;
Cast: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, William Hurt, Tim Roth; Director: Louis Leterrier;
Rating:2/5

This movie seems more like a knee-jerk reaction to the Oscar winning director Ang Lee’s more cerebral, brooding and introspective “Hulk” (2003). Hard-core fans were put off by the psychology of it all and wanted more action. So, director Louis Leterrier falls into that trap and unfortunately goes the other extreme. It is clearly more interested in the action and loses out on a potentially touching if not more visceral underpinnings.

The Hulk does not want to be a monster again and his love tries to help him against the wishes of her father. This plot line could have been further delved into without taking away from the action. The movie fails to do so.

The opening credits encapsulate the story of how Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) when angry turns into the Hulk. It then continues from where the earlier movie left off. We find Banner in a South American town trying to find a cure. He also learns to control his anger. The army general, Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt), is hell bent on finding him and extract that which makes him the Hulk and use it to make a weapon.

He eventually finds Banner with the help of a mercenary Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) but the Hulk escapes and returns home. But Blonsky also turns into a Hulk like monster called the Abomination and they face off in the end.

There is a new cast for this movie who really don’t get much material to work with. Liv Tyler playing the love does a decent job and her scenes with Norton are tender. Roth playing the cold and ruthless Blonsky shines and injects the movie with some refreshing human edginess. Norton co-wrote the movie with Zac Penn. There were rumours that Norton was upset that the story of Banner was compromised for the sake of action and he even refused to do initial promotional work for the movie.

The action sequences are clearly better staged than the earlier movie and even Hulk looks much more believable. The film makers have clearly worked on the CG imagery. But it is very hard to look into the Hulk’s soul and see any kind of anguish and turmoil the character is clearly going through. The only emotion that seems to be relayed is anger. This struggle between Banner and Hulk is woefully under worked and the movie’s biggest failure.

The script is damp and could have done more with the humour. The other Marvel comic super hero movie “Iron Man” was well served with a witty script and this movie could have done with more light hearted moments. Since the film makers seemed intent on satisfying fans, for those looking for a thrills and not much brooding this move will deliver.

Rating:2/5

– By Sevanand Gaddala