movie

Well the first summer film of 2008 is out and its name is "Iron Man"

I have been trying to think how to write this review. I have a very diverse readership and this has left me to write these 2 very different thoughts.

For those who hate the typical Hollywood film, then this film will do nothing to change your mind. It is your typical low level plot, you will see everything coming and it will not stimulate your mind at all. If you think like this then please do not see the film. It will be a huge waste of your time and your money.

If you like the "Summer Blockbusters" then this will be the first one of many that will be showing this summer. I call these type of films the "Popcorn Flick". This film is shown to the general public in a big cinema with digital and it looks good and it sounds good and you leave the screen happy. If you like this type of film, then you will like this film.

Now for what I saw in the film.

I have know who the character "Iron Man" was since my days of reading comic books since my youth. I know who Tony Stark is. I have never been a huge fan of the comic book. I only know one person here in Korea who is and he told me that he loved the film.

"Iron Man" is a popcorn flick, no more and no less. To look for or to hope for anything else would be a huge mistake.

The film is based in the modern era, with Tony Stark making weapons for the US Army, where he is captured and forced to make a very powerful missile. During his capture he is almost wounded and has to have a small attachment near his heart to make sure he can stay alive. Instead he makes an armored suit and escapes.

The film will then take you on the "blockbuster" path, good sound, pretty girl, insane villain and a huge fight with a good guy and a bad one.

If you watch the film please watch for all of the little hints for the proposed trilogy.

Now for two small details. If you are listening for a very familiar riff of music associated with Iron Man, it is there. I saw the film in a Korean movie theater and I was the only one in the audience who cheered when I heard the music. Please stay for all of the credits. The little extra tells you exactly what the 2nd film will be all about and the cameo was awesome. If you know the Marvel Comics history, It was nice to see this hero once again.

If you are a fan of "IRON MAN" then please see the movie. i think that you will enjoy it. Please see it at a digital screen if you can.

Grade B+

Tony Stark: Let's be honest, this isn't the worst thing you've caught me doing.

IMDB Link

Opened in Korea. 30 April 2008

How I saw the film. Primus DLP Cinema, Daejeon South Korea.
(Yes I was surprised that Primus had DLP.

Have you ever seen a movie that looked liked it was a very bad copy of a TV show that you like? That was my entire problem with this movie.

The film looked like a tad bigger version of "The Shield" and as much as he tried Keanu Reeves can not play the "Vic Mackey" role.

If you have not seen "The Shield", then you might actually like this film. If you love the Mackey role, then this film will be a huge disappointment to you. I kept waiting for the theme music to change and actually turn into my favorite TV show. I had a nice story and so so plot but , in the end, its a bad Shield knock-off.

I can not believe how many good actors signed on for this junk, maybe the script was better than what I saw on the screen.

Please pass on this one

Grade D+

Opened in Korea on 17 April 2008

IMDB Link

How I saw the film. CGV Cinema.

Opening Weekend in the USA. April 11-13 2008 $12,469,631. 2,467 Screens.

THE VIEWS ON THIS REVIEW ARE MINE AND MINE ALONE AND IN NO WAY REFLECT ANY VIEW ON THE PUSAN WEB, BUT MY OWN All of this for a 15 minute movie? Are you kidding me? As has long been a policy of mine, If a reader ask me to review a film, the majority of the time, I will review the film. Well, last week, I was asked will I do a review of this 15 minute film. "FITNA" I said yes. Well I have watched the film and here is the review. the movie (At the time of writing this review, the above link was hosting the video) Fitna Wikipedia Site The film starts off with a disclaimer that there are some very graphic videos and photos that will be shown in this movie. For 15 minutes you are shown act of terrorism, People speaking about hatred towards the USA, UK and some very anti-Semitic speech highlights. You are also shown words from the Koran that incite hatred towards all non Muslims. It shows some very graphic scenes of the brutality thrust upon women. The last part of the film talks about the Muslim population in the Netherlands and then links radical Islam To the Nazi's and the Communist. (Please read the Wikipedia link for more information) Well the film ask one very interesting question? Will the west surrender to radical Islam? (My vote is no!) In the study of propaganda, I learned a fact a long time ago. If you scream a lie, loud enough and long enough, the lie will soon become a truth. This is why I am puzzled by the reaction to this movie. The maker of this film went after the radicals, who are using terrorism to achieve their means. He listed worlds from the Koran that state to kill or burn your enemies. He also showed speeches given in Mosques that incite war and hatred. Now readers, All followers of the Muslim faith are not terrorist and he clearly shows that in this film. He is showing how the holy words on the faith are being mangled and used to incite those to kill in the name of ones love of their God. In my opinion, the films goal is to warn against the radicals of Islam. In that part the film is correct. If you believe in freedom, democracy and liberty, then the radicals speeches that the film maker has captured will show you that they are a very determined enemy that want you to conform to them. At the end of the day the final decision about the film worth or worthiness will not be decided by me, it will be decided by those who believe in free speech. I saw no hatred of all just a select few who are extreme. If you believe that this is a criticism of all Muslims then, you are sadly mistaken. After I watched the film i was reminded about the movie Jesus Camp when I saw the 3 year old Muslim girl say that Jews were pigs and that the Koran said so. I recall the extremist in this film also. One is being called a hate video while the later was nominated for an Academy Award for Documentary Feature. What will the west do? Release Date Online March 28th.

Now for those of us who like going to the movie theaters here in Korea, the summer of 2008 could be very interesting. Could we see the total collapse of the South Korean film market by the end of the summer period? For those who do not watch the $, please let me explain what I mean by the above comment. In 2007 according to the Korean Film Council, only 13 out of 112 Korean films released last year made profits. Their average production cost was 4.2 billion won, whereas their average ticket sales remained at only 2.4 billion won. Also according to the KFC, Korean filmmakers rely on local cinemas for almost 80 percent of their revenue. On the contrary, in the United States, ticket sales at theaters make up only around 15 percent of the revenue while the rest comes from DVD, TV broadcasting right sales and exports. I keep watching and wondering when the collapse will happen and who will be blamed for it when it happens. Now let’s take a look at the films that you should see this summer and the films that you might just want to pass on. I will list the opening date for the films here in South Korea. 1. Iron Man (30 April 2008) For those who do not know Iron man is a comic book from Marvel Comics about a man name Tony Stark, who, invents a high-tech suit of armor, to fight the bad men of the world. If you know the history of the comic book background of Stark, then the casting of Robert Downey Jr., was the correct choice. The preview has looked awesome and with the “Iron Man” riff in the background, this could be the first hit of the summer. 2. Speed Racer. (8 May 2008) (IMAX) Once again, for the few people who do not read Korean entertainment magazines, “Korean Wave” superstar Jung Ji Hoon (Rain) will Be one of the drivers trying to defeat and to destroy our hero, Speed Racer. Now please ignore the fact that this was originally a Japanese TV series, so the Korean reaction to this film could be very interesting. It will also play at the CGV IMAX theaters here in Korea. 3. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (15 May 2008) The Korean audience seemed to like the first one and hopefully will like the second part of this tale also. It takes place 1 year or 900 Narnian years after the first part of the story. Look for the returning cast and another tale in this, as of now, four part film story. 4. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (22 May 2008) Well instead of fighting the Germans, in this film he is fighting the Russians. The film has Shia LeBeouf but sad to say, Sean Connery, will not be returning to play his father. It has all of the making of a great summer “Popcorn” action flick. 5. Sex and the City: The Movie (unknown South Korean release date) Now, I do not have a clue how this film will do in Korea. Will the Korean housewife want to see a movie, when they can see the TV show on the “ON Style Channel” The film will take place 4 years after the end of the TV Show and the big question will be will Mr. Big and Carrie finally get married? 6. Kung Fu Panda (5 June 2008) (IMAX) Now as a child of the 1970’s, who grew up watching Bruce Lee and many other King Fu films, I am very interested in this cartoon. It will be homage to those great by-gone films. Please try and watch the film in English. The jokes in this film will not translate will into Korean. It should be interesting to hear Jack Black’s voice as the want-to-be hero Panda and Jackie Chan as “Master Monkey”. 7. Wanted (26 June 2008) This film has Morgan Freeman as the leader of a group of assassins and Angelina Jolie and James McAvoy as trained killers. The actors alone in this film make it a good popcorn flick. This is Timur Bekmambetov first American film. If the name sounds familiar it’s because he is the man directing the Russian “Night Watch” trilogy. That alone should grant him a look. 8. WALL.E (24 July 2008) Now this will be a Pixar film very different from their past work. The hero is a robot and the film will have very little spoken words in it. The trailers have rocked and the movie going public seems to be interested in this film. Hopefully the film will be shown in Digital format here in Korea so we can look at all of the background colors that will be installed in this film. 9. The Dark Knight (31 July 2008) (IMAX) With the sudden passing of Heath Ledger, I have no idea how this will be placed into the movie. For those of us who went to see the IMAX version of “I am Legend”, we were treated with a 5 minute preview of this movie. The preview made me very upset, that I was going to have to wait until July 2008 to see this film on the IMAX screen. The preview was that good. This is the summer 2008 film that I want to see the most. 10. Mamma Mia! (Summer release in USA Sept 2008 release here in South Korea) Now this film just sounds different, ABBA and Meryl Streep together. This could be a huge hit or could become a classic drinking game for future college students. Either way, it deserves a look when it comes to Korea. Now for the films that have a lot of questions, doubts or seriously, “WTF” ? 1. What Happens in Vegas... (Unknown Korean release date) I really cannot believe that putting Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz would actually work. The preview was horrible and just looked like a huge bomb in the making. 2. Meet Dave (29 May 2008) Eddie Murphy and Sci-Fi are together, once again. The last time they gave us Pluto Nash. I only hope that this is not PN 2. I just have a very bad feeling about this film. 3. You Don't Mess with the Zohan (Unknown release date in Korea) Adam Sandler’s films have not done well here in South Korea because the comedy does not translate. I See the same thing with this film. Sandler as a retired Mossad agent trying to restart his life in New York City. It may work in the US but here in South Korea, it will be a huge bomb. 4. The Incredible Hulk (12 June 2008) The first film was really that bad and I see no improvement with this one. The Hulk will be CGI and once again fail to work, just like the last one. 5. The Happening (13 June 2008) Now this film, I just do not know. I actually liked M. Night Shyamalan last film. But his last 2 films have drawn a lot of critics and audiences complaints. Will this be his comeback or the end of a once promising career? The trailer looked interesting, we shall see. 6. Get Smart. (28 June 2008) Aren’t Maxwell Smart and Agent 99 supposed to be lovers? This was a terrible miscasting of Agent 99. I fear fans of the original TV show will stay away in droves from this one. The preview was terrible and gave away the entire film. 7. The Love Guru (Unknown Korean release date) What in the heck is Mike Myers thinking about for this one? He is a love guru? Are you actually serious? This one’s smell is bad and it will only get worse the closer it comes to its release date. 8. Hancock (2 July 2008) The only reason this film got made is because Will Smith said “Yes” to it. The trailer was a joke and I just do not have a good feel for this film. It is coming out on July 4th weekend in the US and Will has usually done very well on this weekend. 9. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (24 July 2008) With Rachel Weisz passing on this film I have to ask, then why make a #3 then. It has potential as a great popcorn film but with the heart of the previous 2 films gone; this could be a huge mistake just waiting to be unleashed this summer. 10. Bangkok Dangerous (Unknown released date in South Korea) Lately Hollywood has gone into remaking Asian Thrillers and taking the very good parts out and destroying the film. In the original the killer was a deaf-mute hitman. I have no idea how this film will play out. It just sounds like a bad execution of a good Asian Idea. Well these are the films that you should see and the ones that you should miss. Until next month, “I see the crap, So You don’t have to”

Well this the the 3rd annual Mike McStay, "Best Films of the Year" list. As always I divide the list into 5 sections, The Best, The Worst, Surprise of the Year, Disappointment of the Year and WTF!,why was this film made?

YEAR ONE

YEAR TWO

A few things to add before we get to the list.

1. Like last year, i saw a lot of film from all over the world, So I will include the imdb link and where the film came from.

2. I, once again, included films that I liked in the disappointed and films that I did not like into the surprises of the Year. I made the list longer, so there are 25 films listed for each category. I thought that it would cover a lot more films.

3. A lot of the films have not had a theatrical run in Korea. So you will see a open in Korea date on the film. If it has already played or no date picked yet, I left it open.

4. Once again, the main award is the "Flynnie" Its a take on my first name "Flynn"

Well 2007 sure did have it moments, we saw robots, dragons and wizards go to war.
We saw a killer barber, A rat who wanted to cook and a girl who becomes a woman in Iran. We saw an illegal surgery, the story of on of the greatest Christian Church Songs and we saw real sex depicted in a film. We may have said good-bye to Spiderman and maybe hello to more Transformers. We saw more IMAX releases this year. We have also seen a writers strike that will see the slowdown in film within 2 years.

We also saw a lot of Korea films loose a lot of money at the box office. We may see higher ticket prices because of that.

Now lets start with the list. I will start with #25 and work my way to #1.

#25 Mongol

Kazakhstan's official submission in the Foreign Language Film category for the 80th Academy Awards (2008). Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film.

Now I had heard of the film and it sure sounded interesting. The story recounts the early life of Genghis Khan and I could not believe it. It was a well written and great cinematography in the film. I was able to watch the film with English Subtitles and it is definately worth a look when it comes to DVD.

#24 The Namesake

Once again a film I was not expecting a lot from ends up being one of the best films of the year. Please watch the scene about when the father tells his son why he named him Gogol. The film really tells about the differences between the 1st generation immigrants and their children that were born in the USA.

#23 Enchanted

I was so happy to see Walt Disney go back to 2D Cartoons, even for the short time that it was shown in this film. If you could imagine one of Disney's princesses coming to 2008 NYC, then you have the idea of this story. Seeing her sing and watching the animals in NYC react to her was a great idea and came across great on the big screen.

#22 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

POC 3

I really have no idea why I like this series, but I have and once again I loved the story in this film. It is a popcorn film but a very good one.

21. The Bucket List

Now when you put Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman together in a film,I thought it was a huge risk. We ll I was glad that I was so wrong on this. When 2 men find that they are going to die and make a list of things they want to do before they die. The film is a story of life and how we live it. Well worth a look when you decide to watch it.

#20. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Lately, I have hated all of Sidney Lumet's films. So when I heard the good press about this film, I was doubtful. Well, get ready for one heck of a ride, if you ever decide to watch this film. It was a great story and had one heck of a very sad ending.

19. Juno

Released in Korea Feb 2008 6th or 21. (I have 2 different dates for this film)

Now this film sure had a very interesting timing, a young girl becomes pregnant after having sex for the first time and then Jaime Lynn Spears announces her pregnancy. It was as art imitating life. The film has been nominated for Best Motion Picture of the Year 2008 Oscar. Also Ellen Page has been nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role. It is a very interesting story about a new life and what to do with it. The independent film has already broken the 100 million $ mark in the USA.

18. Rise of the Footsoldier

Now this is the film that American Gangster should have been. It takes a look at the rise and fall of U.K. gangster Carlton Leach. This film is not for children and shows a very rough outlook on life. Please see it when you can.

17. Amazing Grace

Opens 20 March 2008 (South Korea)

If you have attended Church, then you have probably, at one time, sang this song. The film is about the person who wrote this song. The film talks about how a group of men finally ended the slave trade in the U.K. I loved Albert Finney's take on the author of the song, John Newton.

16. Atonement

Opens 21 February 2008 (South Korea) Nominated for Best Motion Picture of the Year 2008

To be honest, I had no real desire to see the film. I kept hearing a lot of good reviews for it so I decided to watch it. Wow, what an ending, this film has. I will not spoil anything of the film for you. Watch the entire film and try not to leave.

15. Memories of Tomorrow or Ashita no kioku (Japan)

Nominated for Best Film Award of the Japanese Academy (2007) Winner for Best Actor Award of the Japanese Academy (2007) (Ken Watanabe)

The film has a very simple story. It is about a successful businessman's family life is shattered by an early onset of Alzheimer's. It was a film that you knew how it was going to end and at the end of the film I was still surprised by it. Film is available on DVD with or without English Subtitles.

14. 4 Months 3 Weeks and 2 Days or 4 luni, 3 saptamani si 2 zile (Romania)

Opens 2008.02.28 (South Korea)

To be honest, I have no freaking idea why this film was not nominated for Best Foreign Language Film Category for Oscar this year and some crap films were. This is the 2nd year in a row that I have selected a film from Romania in this category, 12:08 East of Bucharest being last years selection. The film talks about a woman who assists her friend to arrange an illegal abortion in 1980's Romania. This film will not be for everyone but it deserves a look and a serious WTF to the Oscar for not nominating this film in The Best Foreign Language Film!

13. Grindhouse Well this film has 2 camps. Either you love this film or you absolutely hate this film. I chose the first and made this my #13 selection of the year. If you really want the Uber geek version of the film, may i recommend this.
Please see the film as it was originally released as 1 film. I loved the fact that I got to see Death Proof here in Korea and the audience wanted to see the other film also.

12. Eastern Promises When David Cronenberg does it right, it is worth a serious look and this film definately deserves it. I could not believe how much the Russian gangster Nikolai scared everyone around him.

11. Hot Fuzz
My review of Hot Fuzz

What I remember most about this film is, that I went to CGV and watched it with Korean audience. I was catching all of the jokes and the audience did not. After the film, one person asked me "Why Laugh?" I tried my best, but neither of us could understand the other.

10. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Their is an old Chinese saying about revenge. "He who seeks vengeance must dig two graves: one for his enemy and one for himself." That theme show up a lot during this film. If you like Tim Burton and Johnny Depp, then please rent the DVD, when it is released.

9. Exiled or Fong juk (Hong Kong)

Now talk about a gangster film! I had no idea what was next or anything. The film is about when, A friendship is formed between an ex-gangster, and two groups of hitmen - those who want to protect him and those who were sent to kill him. It was a great story and please try and find it on DVD.

8. Gone Baby Gone
My Review

I have always liked Ben Affleck, I do not know why. But I have usually liked his work even when a lot of people have not. So when I saw that this was going to be his first released film, as a director, I decided to check it out. I thought it was a great film and really surprised me.

7. Lust, Caution or Se, jie (China)

My Review of Lust Caution

I have seen the film 3 times now and I still do not think that I have caught all that the film was trying to show. Good luck on trying to find English Subtitles for this film. Please see the uncensored version of the film.

6. Reign Over Me

my review

When Adam Sandler tries a serious role, it is usually not received well but critics to give him props for it. I could not believe that he went after this role and pulled it off. I actually believed him and wanted to see more of his back story.

5. Superbad

Now, I thought that I would really not like this film. What a great film this was and especially the 2 DVD Unrated set. I saw a lot of the crazy things that I did as a teen and I really can't believe that, the names may have changed, but the real story is the same. I have no idea if we will ever be able to see this in Korea. I have no idea how anyone could even try and translate this.

4. Persepolis

Of all of the missed nominations, I could not believe that this film was not selected Best Foreign Language Film. I must give props to Harry for turning me on to this film. I was able to watch it in the original French with English subtitles. The unusually drawn animation tells us about a poignant coming-of-age story of a precocious and outspoken young Iranian girl that begins during the Islamic Revolution and ends with her leaving Iran forever. This is a great story and I think that all young ladies need to read her book and to watch her movie and see how one little girl became a woman.

3. 300
My Review

When I saw that this film was coming to IMAX, I took a few fiends of mine, who had never seen an IMAX film before. This made them want to see more films in the IMAX format. I have it on Blu-Ray and regular DVD. It is well worth a viewing if you have not yet seen the film.

2. There Will Be Blood

Opens on 2008.03.21 (South Korea)

Nominated for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Achievement in Directing, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role and a few more. If i had a vote on the academy ballot, this would be my vote on the 5 films that they would give me to vote on.

Daniel-Day-Lewis has always been very interesting to me, either I have loved his acting In the Name of the Father or really hated it The Last of the Mohicans. So I had no ideal about this film, that was until I saw it. This film deserves to be seen on the big screen and I have so far seen it twice and I still need to see it a few more times. I am still not sure that I have seen all that this film has to offer.

Now for the moment that I award the "Flynnie" to my #1 film of the year.

1. Ratatouille

My Review

I thought that this Pixar film could be a so-so good one, I had no idea that it would become a great one. I have seen the film at the CGV about 10 times and most of it in a digital format. I just think that It was a well written and a great story that can be shared with the entire family.