Police Story 2013 is a 2013 Chinese-Hong Kong action crime film directed and written by Ding Sheng, and starring Jackie Chan in another reboot of the Police Story film series. Unlike the previous Police Story films where he portrayed as a Hong Kong cop, Jackie Chan portrays as a mainland Chinese officer in the new film. Like the New Police Story which was released in 2004, Police Story 2013 is a stand-alone instalment with a darker tone than the previous instalments.
Our Review of Police Story 2013
The month of December has seen quite a number of new movies being released and with so many options to choose from, choosing a good movie to watch can be quite a struggle; especially when movie tickets are not that cheap here in Singapore.
What’s the verdict for Police Story 2013?
If you are looking forward to Jackie Chan’s humorous acting/comedy, you would be in for a disappointment as the Police Story 2013 pitches a rather deep and dark tone; which is unlike previous instalments of the Police Story Series. Despite the obvious reduction in the number of stunts being performed, the action scenes still pack a punch and the storyline unfolds itself slowly through the past recollections and flashbacks of the main characters.
Though Jacqueline felt that Police Story 2013 was not as good as its predecessors, I personally felt that the movie was worth catching and I would recommend it to those whom enjoy watching dramatic movies. As usual, don’t miss out on the movie bloopers that will be shown towards the credits.
Police Story 2013 Movie Synopsis
Night. Inside an enormous bar on a busy street, all the patrons are being held hostage. Among them are policeman Zhong Wen and his daughter Miao Miao, and several strangers who seem to have met before… The kidnapper is the bar owner Wu Jiang. His only demand is the release of a long-term prisoner. What motive is worth this risk? The prisoner is brought to the scene of the crime, but the police now face an even greater crisis, as a cold case is re-opened. Cold is the mind of the policeman, decisively using his wits to resolve the crisis; his mission is to find – the truth. Cold is the blood of the criminal, calmly carrying out his evil plan for – his revenge. Cold are the hearts of uncaring people, reacquainted only to pay the ultimate price for their selfishness – their lives. Cold are the facts that prove to the rebellious Miao Miao through her extreme ordeal with her father – their love. This is a death-match to avenge a lost love.
The movie, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is probably one of the highly anticipated movies for this year and we’re not just talking about Singapore alone but internationally!
During the first week of its opening, most of the sessions at the cinemas across Singapore were sold-out and the movie even topped the North American Friday Box Office with a historic sum of $70.5 million, one of the biggest opening-day grosses of all time!
So how does the movie fare and is it really a movie worth watching?
Our Review/Opinion of the Movie:
To be honest, we’re not really die-hard fans of The Hunger Games Trilogy but nevertheless, we’re captivated by the storyline and having caught The Hunger Games last year, we were really so into the movie that we were so excited to catch the movie, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, upon its release in Singapore last week.
While Jacqueline shares with me that The Hunger Games: Catching Fire wasn’t as good as its first movie, The Hunger Games; I personally had a different viewpoint as I felt that The Hunger Games: Catching Fire was more to the unfolding of events that takes place after The Hunger Games and not so much of how the Tributes try to outdo one another during the Quarter Quell.
However, we felt that towards the ending of the movie, especially during the part when Beetee suggests a plan to electrocute two other Tributes whom were not on their side, the scenes were a little fuzzy and left us with some confusion as to how and why Katniss had the idea to attach the remaining wire to an arrow, and shoot it at the force field to destroy the arena.
Well, whether you’re a fan of The Hunger Games or not, we’re pretty sure you wouldn’t want to miss The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, especially if you have read the novel or watch The Hunger Games previously. But with that said, we highly recommend that you either re-read the novel or re-watch The Hunger Games before you catch The Hunger Games: Catching Fire so that you won’t feel out of touch.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Movie Synopsis
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire begins as Katniss Everdeen has returned home safe after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Winning means that they must turn around and leave their family and close friends, embarking on a “Victor’s Tour” of the districts. Along the way Katniss senses that a rebellion is simmering, but the Capitol is still very much in control as President Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games [The Quarter Quell] – a competition that could change Panem forever.
We caught the movie, “Despicable Me 2” yesterday at Cathay [Ang Mo Kio Hub] and it wasn’t as good as we expected it to be. When movie trailers for Despicable Me 2 were released quite sometime ago, it built up much hype, and expectations were raised somewhat, but we personally feel that its predecessor, “Despicable Me”, was way much better. Movie Trailer for Despicable Me 2
The story build-up for Despicable Me 2 was progressive but slow and though it is supposed to be an adventure comedy film, we felt that the “forced” humour did not seem to take off quite well. Undeniably, the minions are really adorable, funny, and cute; and what we do like about the movie is the family-oriented theme.
Nevertheless, if you have caught all other movies except this one, you might want to watch Despicable Me 2 just to pass time; otherwise, you might want to consider saving up that money for new upcoming movies.
Movie Plot [from Golden Village Website]: In Summer 2013, get ready for more minion madness in Despicable Me 2. Chris Meledandri and his acclaimed filmmaking team create an all-new comedy animated adventure featuring the return of Gru (Steve Carell), the girls, the unpredictably hilarious minions…and a host of new and outrageously funny characters.
Just recently, we went to catch the movie, “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” at Golden Village [Bishan] and it was super duper good. G.I. Joe: Retaliation was released on 28 March 2013 and the main stars are Channing Tatum, Bruce Willis, and Dwayne Johnson. The movie is 110 minutes long and it is rated PG-13.
A follow-up to the 2009 release of G.I. JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA, which grossed over $300M worldwide, Paramount Pictures, MGM and Skydance Productions, in association with HASBRO, commenced the di Bonaventura production of G.I. JOE: RETALIATION.
In this sequel, the G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy Cobra; they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence. The film stars D.J. Cotrona, Byung-hun Lee, Adrianne Palicki, Ray Park, Jonathan Pryce, Ray Stevenson, Channing Tatum with Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson. Directed by Jon M. Chu, and produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Brian Goldner, from a screenplay by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick based on Hasbro’s G.I. Joe characters.
Our Review of the Movie:
Personally, we really like the movie and we will highly recommend you to watch it if you haven’t. The movie plot of G.I Joe: Retaliation is balanced and rather easy to follow. In fact, you don’t have to watch G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra in order to understand what G.I. Joe: Retaliation is all about. G.I. Joe: Retaliation is also full of explosive scenes and definitely action-packed. The actors in the movie really portrayed their roles really well. If you’re the sort of person whom enjoys action-packed movies, G.I. Joe: Retaliation is one movie you shouldn’t miss! Comparing G.I. Joe: Retaliation to G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra, G.I Joe: Retaliation is the better movie.
Well, the service was a tad disappointing because while we were waiting in line, there was nobody that attended to us and neither were the menu presented to us. To be honest, it was totally unlike the exceptional service that we experienced when we dined at the MFM [Plaza Singapura].
Since we had a voucher that was given to us by Baby’s Sister, we ordered the MFM Giant Seafood Platter for 2 and also 2 Supreme Catches which consisted of 2 bowls of Seafood Chowder and 2 Beverages.
Our Opinion: We personally find the chowder to be quite thick and while the texture was acceptable, the chowder definitely lacked the flavour that we were expecting.
The 2 beverages that we had were Cala Cala and Citrus Mint.
Our Opinion: Both the beverages were well presented and the tastes were superb. We really like the refreshing fizziness of the Cala Cala and Citrus Mint, and we will definitely recommend them.
Presenting to you the MFM Giant Seafood Platter for 2!
Our Opinion: We really liked this dish a lot! Not only was the portion huge, but the platter also offered a variety of food to choose from as well. The Giant Seafood Platter for 2 consisted of Fries, Fish, Calamari, Prawns, Broccoli, Carrots, Mushrooms, and Butter Rice! As the platter was quite huge, we really couldn’t finish the entire platter and had plenty of fries left over. We will highly recommend this dish if you’re looking for a wide variety of food to fill your stomach.
Well, although the service was a tad disappointing initially, it wasn’t all that bad because Yin Zheng [Trainee at MFM] and Charly [Manager at MFM] were very prompt in attending to our requests. They were very polite and courteous and we were extremely pleased with the way they served us. What we also liked about MFM was that they provided free Wifi to Guests as well! Now, that is really a plus point because not a lot of restaurants or cafes in Singapore provide free Wifi to guests. We will definitely return to MFM to dine again!
After the rather filling dinner that we had, Baby and I went to Polar Puffs & Cake Store to buy a simple mini log cake to celebrate Christmas!
We caught CZ12, a film by Jackie Chan at GV Max and it was said that the Dolby Atmos Sound System would provide cinema-goers a rather immersive kind of movie experience. Well, I honestly couldn’t sense any difference in sound or cinematic experience and I guess this might be due to the technology being quite new and that movie producers have yet to embrace and incorporate this new technology into their films.
Here’s the Movie Plot of CZ12 [as extracted from GV‘s Website]:
Jackie Chan’s spectacular new adventure takes him all the way from the chateaux and vineyards of France and the hidden dangers of a jungle on a South Seas island to the terrors of a fight in free-fall above an active volcano! The story is sprung on a quest to track down six bronze sculptures, originally part of a set of twelve representing the animals of the Chinese Zodiac. The sculptures were looted from the Summer Palace in Beijing when the city was sacked by European armies in the 19th century, and there’s an international campaign in progress to demand the return of stolen cultural treasures to their countries of origin. But Jackie plays a soldier of fortune, not a high-minded patriot. He’s in it for the money. But as events take unexpected turns and strange alliances take shape, motives begin to change …
Globe-trotting soldier-of-fortune JC is hired by shady antiques dealers to track down six missing bronze animal-heads by any means necessary. The six bronzes originally formed part of a set of twelve, representing the animals of the Chinese Zodiac, forming part of a fountain in the old Summer Palace outside Beijing; they were looted and dispersed when Anglo-French armies sacked the Summer Palace in 1860. JC and his crack team of assistants first head to France, where two of the bronzes are believed to be held in a private collection. The operation to ‘liberate’ the bronzes from a heavily guarded Chateau brings JC into an uneasy alliance with Coco, a Chinese student in Paris, who is active in a global movement which campaigns for stolen cultural treasures to be returned to their homelands. Along the way, JC makes an enemy-for-life of Pierre, the chief of staff at the Chateau Marceau, and an unexpected friend of Katherine, a bankrupted aristocrat whose home contains another of the missing bronzes. The trail next leads JC and his team, now including Coco and Katherine, to a forgotten tropical island in the South Seas, where two missing animal heads are found in a beached wreck. A multi-national band of pirates moves to block the team’s getaway, but JC’s skill and resourcefulness wins the day. Back home, JC is stunned to learn that his employers already had the sixth missing bronze all along, and he sets out to teach them a lesson for tricking him. Meanwhile the protest movement has persuaded buyers to shun auctions of stolen national treasures, and the shady dealers are threatening to destroy the sixth bronze in public. Will JC’s conscience – and his sense of Chinese national pride – kick in to push him to save the last bronze from destruction? The answer is played out on the slopes of an active volcano …
Our Review of the Movie:
Although CZ12 was a movie worth catching, many of the scenes were rather similar to Jackie Chan’s past films and the physical humour have been used so often that it got pretty boring. The storyline was average and the stunts that were performed were pretty predictable.
Well, many people also had the misconception that CZ12 was going to be Jackie Chan’s last movie but well, Jackie Chan has dispelled those rumours and stated that CZ12 would be his last major action movie instead. And yes, I do agree that it is about time that he “retires” from action movies especially when Jackie Chan is getting old [he’s 58 already!].
Seriously, I really admire Jackie Chan and he has made a rather strong impression on me during my growing up years. Some of his movies which I personally enjoyed were, Who Am I [Wo Shi Shei], Gorgeous [Bo Li Zun], Rush Hour, and Shanghai Noon. And what I really like about Jackie Chan was that the stunts performed in his films are real; which explains all the cuts and bruises that he sustained during filming. So well, if CZ12 is going to be Jackie Chan’s last major action movie, you should really go catch it if you’re a fan of Jackie Chan!
I wanted to continue from where I left off about my Genting Trip but because Wreck-It Ralph is going to be screening in the cinemas TOMORROW, I reckoned that it would be good for me to do a short write-up about how Baby and I felt about the movie and then continue my blog entry about the Genting Trip probably tomorrow!
Thanks to Nuffnang and Disney Studios Singapore, both Baby and I had the opportunity to catch Disney’s latest animation movie, “Wreck-It Ralph” just two days ago and we will highly recommend you to watch this movie if it is going to be the last movie you will ever watch on planet Earth [which we believe will not happen].
Here’s the Movie Plot of Wreck-It Ralph [as extracted from Golden Village‘s website]:
Walt Disney Animation Studios and Emmy(R)-winning director Rich Moore (TV’s “The Simpsons,” “Futurama”) take moviegoers on a hilarious, arcade-game-hopping journey in “Wreck-It Ralph.” Ralph (voice of John C. Reilly, “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” “Step Brothers”) is tired of being overshadowed by Fix-It Felix (voice of Jack McBrayer, “30 Rock”), the “good guy” star of their game who always gets to save the day. But after decades doing the same thing and seeing all the glory go to Felix, Ralph decides he’s tired of playing the role of a bad guy. He takes matters into his own massive hands and sets off on a game-hopping journey across the arcade through every generation of video games to prove he’s got what it takes to be a hero. On his quest, he meets the tough-as-nails Sergeant Calhoun (voice of Jane Lynch, TV’s “Glee”) from the first-person action game Hero’s Duty. But it’s the feisty misfit Vanellope von Schweetz (voice of Sarah Silverman, “The Sarah Silverman Program”) from the candy-coated cart racing game, Sugar Rush, whose world is threatened when Ralph accidentally unleashes a deadly enemy that threatens the entire arcade. Will Ralph realize his dream and save the day before it’s too late?
Our Review of the Movie:
Disney’s movies are always heartwarming and Wreck-It Ralph isn’t an exception. In fact, there are many meaningful values that the little ones could learn from the movie and we really love the movie. Although we felt that the ending was pretty abrupt, we nonetheless enjoyed every single moment of the movie and we will give it two thumbs up!
If you’re still planning what to do over this weekends, heading to the movies to catch Wreck-It Ralph might just be the thing you need to cure that boredom.
Here’s the Movie Trailer for Wreck-It Ralph:
Also in light of recent events like the Zoey Raymond Saga and the Change in Instagram’s Policy; I might delay the blog post about Genting and probably give my two cents opinion about the recent news. We’ll see how things go. Meanwhile, we’re also in the midst of setting up our very own Formspring Corner; so do look out for that!
Last but not the least, our giveaway of a bottle of Moscato D’ Asti by G.D. Vajra, Italy, and a Frezfruta Hello Kitty Promotional Pack is ending in 1 day time and we are happy to announce that Jason Koh and Saralyn Low are currently in the lead for the giveaway respectively!
For those whom did not win in the giveaway, fret not because when you participate in our Winsomelifers’ Programme, you can still earn loyalty points every time you “visit” our blog, “like” a blog entry, or even “tweeting” about us; and with these loyalty points, you can redeem for stuffs like Popular Book Store Vouchers, Starbucks Gift Card, or a Golden Village Gift Card from us! It’s our way of thanking you for being our loyal readers here on A Winsome Life. Also, we are planning to add more items for the Winsomelifer’s Programe so if you have any suggestions on what items you would like to redeem, do feel free to pop us an email at admin@awinsomelife.org
Yes yes, Skyfall will be officially releasing tomorrow and guess what, Baby and I have already caught Skyfall and we must say, the movie was totally awesome.
Well before I continue on with the rest of this blog entry, I must thank STClassifieds for the free pair of movie tickets although I have to admit, I was quite disappointed with how the event was managed and organised; especially with regards to the distribution of the movie tickets.
Here’s what happened.
I received an email from STClassifieds informing me that the movie will begin at 2000 hours and that the ticket collection would be from 1800 to 1900 hours. The “best part” was, tickets are distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis. So, like any typical kan-cheong Singaporean where our favourite pastime is queueing, I arrived at 1730 hours to queue and when I was there, I saw that the registration counters and booths were all neatly set up and ready. Since there were 3 ladies manning the counter, I asked if I could collect the movie tickets. Then, the lady manning the counter asked me if I was collecting one ticket or two tickets. Apparently, those collecting one ticket could collect the ticket first and those collecting two tickets could only collect when the clock strikes 1800 hours.
Well, since STClassifieds have made such an arrangement, I waited patiently. True to my predictions, I wasn’t the only one asking if the tickets can be collected since it gave people the impression that the counter was ready to receive people. By about 1735 hours, more people came and even more people asked the counter the same question over and over again. Guess what, at 1745 hours, STClassifieds finally decided to distribute the tickets to everyone since they noticed that the line of people was growing and that the people were starting to get frustrated and annoyed with the puzzling initial arrangement of the tickets distribution.
I really wonder, didn’t STClassifieds predicted that when tickets are distributed on a first-come-first-served basis, there will definitely be people whom will arrive earlier than the stipulated distribution time to queue up so as to get the best seats? Since tickets are distributed on a first-come-first-served basis, then how come those who are collecting one ticket can collect their ticket first while those whom are collecting two tickets have to wait till 1800 hours?
To be honest, I am providing real feedback here. Both Baby and I have received tons of movie invites and in all of the movie events that we have attended, tickets ARE NOT distributed on a first-come-first-served basis but rather, it’s distributed on a free-seating basis. That means, if you step into the theatre late, then you get the front rows, and vice-versa. This I feel, would have been a much better arrangement.
Anyhows, enough of the rantings. We shall now do a movie review of Skyfall.
Here’s the Movie Plot [as extracted from GV‘s Website]:
Daniel Craig is back as James Bond 007 in Skyfall, the 23rd adventure in the longest-running film franchise of all time. In Skyfall, Bond’s loyalty to M (Judi Dench) is tested as her past comes back to haunt her. As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost.
Our Review of the Movie:
The James Bond Film Franchise has never failed to keep me captivated and Skyfall isn’t an exception either. Throughout the entire duration of the movie, we were kept in suspense and anticipation as the movie plot unfolded. Even the introductory portion of the movie was exciting and intense. Filled with heart-pumping and non-stop action, we will strongly recommend you to catch Skyfall if you’re a fan of action movies.
By the way, before we entered the theatre, we were told not to disclose any information [such as the story/climax] about the movie. Seriously, I don’t know what’s the big deal because as of now, Wikipedia even have an article about Skyfall and in the article[movie spoiler], the movie plot was disclosed in full details! So seriously, what’s the point of telling us not to disclose any information about the movie when the detailed movie plot has been released on Wikipedia for all to see?
