Dominatio Per Malum

Channelnewsasia.com

Otherwise known as : “We need to take more money from you so that we can give it back to you through GST offset packages whereby you need to meet all kinds of onerous requirements to qualify for.”

So the solution to widening income gap, and to finance schemes to help the poor is to increase GST which will have greater impact on the poor? And lets not forget the administrative cost of implementing the program to distribute the GST offset package. I think MPs should all take Economics 101 modules.

Battlestar Galactica is still scoring home runs every episode. Season 3 has been absolutely fantastic so far its better than the competition by a large margin.

Lost is doing fine, but the part about the Others is getting tiring. Killing another character is part of the show, but they choose to off one of the better characters?! The show is tying itself into knots, which makes for compelling viewing, but one wonders how they are going to explain everything without looking dumb in future. Overall, still very solid.

I gave up on Desperate Housewives Season 3. It was just BLAH.

I’m almost giving up on Prison Break. Season 1 was good, notwithstanding the many stretches of logic. Season 2 is painfully mediocre, and the characters are no longer compelling. Alot of the plotlines are becoming ludicrous. Prison Break is going from Shawshank Redemption to The Fugitive, but it has none of the finess of the Fugitive. I hope it doesn’t have a season 3.

I’m only watching Smallville Season 6 because i’ve watched 5 seasons. So far not too bad, but its being easily eclipsed by the other new shows.

There are some really good new series around. I’ve previously mentioned Heroes, and its going from strength to strength, with one of the best characters in recent memory.

Showtimes’ Dexter is yet another revelation. Its like American Psycho, only more fun. Its one of the most compelling new dramas around and it has the best opening credits i have seen.

Exiled (2006) 8/10

Johnnie To is on a winning streak these days. After the excellent Election 2, To gives us Exiled, a ’sequel’ to his critically acclaimed 1999 film The Mission.

Exiled is sort of a sequel to the Mission, and those familiar with the Mission’s plotline will better understand it. But watching the Mission is not a prerequisite to understanding the Exiled. Johnnie To goes overboard to give a stylishly executed tale of the triad that explores familiar themes and hearkens back to good old days of the 90s when the HK film industry was at its peak.

The strength of the film clearly comes from the superlative performance of its cast. Anthony Wong and Francis Ng are the bedrock of the film, and even Simon Yam’s somewhat over the top role is endearing. Only Richie Ren seems out of place as a sharpshooting corrupt cop.

Actionwise, it plays like a ballet of bullets. One brilliant scene in a makeshift illegal clinic plays out flawlessly, including a superbly edited long shot that tracks down a flight of stairs. It is these kinds of virtuoso shots that drive home the point that Johnnie To is really, really good.

Of course, there are big holes in the plot and the film emphasizes mood and the fellowship of the men at the expense of believability and character development. The action scenes are fluidly done but suffers from the rambo syndrome where the bullets magically never hit our protagonists. Plus the plot seems to be a rehash of older films and does not offer anything new.

Still for all its little flaws, The Exiled is good old HK film making with a big dose of style and a solid performance by its cast.

A Stranger of Mine (2005) 7/10

Superbly edited, the film traces the lives of 4 different individuals over one night. The editing is excellent and the film at first starts out as a romantic film before changing tone and style midway through the use of Rashomon styled cuts and edits. The film fits like a jigsaw puzzle almost. Unfortunately, the story is lightweight and lacks impact, so for all the stylistic flourish, it doesn’t have the emotional impact of say 21 Grams or Crash.

Perfume: Story of A Killer (2006) 5/10

It has solid costumes and a good setting, but the story is simply laughably bad. Its about a serial killer who kills to collect the victim’s scent. Plus it has the dumbest deus ex machina ending of 2006, and maybe even the decade. Only bright spark is Dustin Hoffman and Geoffrey Rush with delightful supporting roles.

Monster House (2006) 5/10

Safe, unremarkable, kid-friendly flick. Neither good nor bad. Just average.

Notorious Bettie Page(2006) 6/10

Gretchen Moi is excellent as Bettie Page, but as a biopics go, this one merely gives a superficial treatment of its subject matter and the result is a pretty but undeveloped main character that fails to connect with the audience.

Behind Enemy Lines(2001) 6/10

Much better than i expected. Some overuse of edits and slow mo shots, but a servicable thriller. The ending is a too over the top, though.

A Scanner Darkly (2006) 5/10

The rotoscoping gives the film a distinctive look, but doesn’t do much for the sometimes convoluted plot. Interesting but ultimately disappointing film.

Diary (2006) 5/10

Yet another miss by the Pang Bros, who have not made a good film since The Eye, and that was ages ago. Charlene Choi plays a woman on the verge of schizophrenia/insanity, and right from the start, its obvious that the film is going to have quite abit of twists. Some of the twists are predictable, while the unpredictable twists feel convoluted.

In addition, it has Charlene Choi (of TWINS) as the main character. And Charlene’s interpretation of acting is to blink here eyes rapidly and look from left to right. And its painfully obvious that her acting range is insufficient to anchor the film. As a result, the film is let down by a weak and needlessly convoluted script as well as an underwhelming lead role by Choi

The American website for “Sympathy For Lady Vengeance” offers a free download of its soundtrack here, in the Media Section.

And there’s still :
Little Miss Sunshine
Marie Antoinette
Hollywoodland
The Prestige
The Queen
Little Children
The Last King of Scotland
Paris, Je T’aime
So Much So Fast
Why We Fight
The Good German
Harsh Times
Flags of Our Fathers
Volver
Red Road