Movie Title: Underworld: Evolution
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (6/10)
Year: 2006
Underworld : Evolution official site: http://www.entertheunderworld.com

I could never imagine the lead actress in Pearl Harbour is currently a vampire. I know, it’s plain my problem but I just can’t help it. Put the pictures side by side and I must agree that she looks so yummy now. Those blue eyes were just so perfect. It got me so into her. Opss.. did I spill some secrets out?

Okay… I might be talking rubbish here as I din actually saw the first episode. Well… for my age, I might even forget what I have seen even if I have seen the movie before.

What more can you expect from a vampire base movie. Blood, more blood… more more blood and violence. Yeah.. The movie start out with the introductions. Yeah… Corvinus is the first immortal. He has two sons, Marcus being bitten by a bat and thus became a vampire and William got bitten by a wolf and thus became a werewolf (lycans).

What can you get when you put two clans that just love the taste of human’s blood. Both were eagerly fighting and killing loads of humans. The movie started with scenes where Viktor the leader of the vamps wants William locked up for all eternity, Marcus (William’s vampire brother) is against it but goes with it for the sake of being at peace with Viktor.

A few thousand years later, Marcus finally got freed and knew about all the drama’s that happens and decided to free his brother in order to create a new race of half vampires half werewolves. He is then in search for Selena and his boyfriend because they hold the key. Yeah the key to release his brother. Well.. there are loads of fights, blood pouring here and there and of course sex scenes which were deleted from the cinema. But hey, they din censor the “fuck” word.

Well, there are much details which weren’t explained clearly.. or perhaps because I miss the first one thus I am so blur. But well… I could never understand how the know-it-all-marcus fails to see that selena’s boyfriend is a mix breed of warewolf and vampires. If he was being killed by Marcus, why the hassle of Marcus trying to release his brother and create some new breed?

Well… overall, I would say they do spend a quality amount of time in doing the CGI for the movie. However I just felt something was overly done. I dunno just a strange feeling. I like the effects they did on Marcus big bat wings. Which makes me wonder.. How come other vampires in the movie doesn’t have wings? And well, if Corvinus is the first immortal, how can he be killed by Marcus so easily? And so.. when Selena drank his blood… she is now an immortal vampire?

I dunno… I personally enjoyed the movie despite all the questions surrounding me. Well, it’s a fast and violent movie. And obviously I din have that much time to think that much question when I was watching the movie. I guess I can say it’s a after-movie taste. Hahaha… well, I guess you will enjoy the movie if you enjoy catwoman.

Hahaha.. stop being so bias. Both the ladies wore black lather suit and jump around and all. If you like this movie but not underworld, there is only one reason to it. You know it, I knew it.

P/s – I am starting to wonder why movies I watch recently are rather black… ermmm *ponders*

Movie Title: 犀照 (49 Days)
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (6/10)
Year: 2006
49 Days official site: http://hk.promo.yahoo.com/movie/49days/

Another one of Stephen Fung and Gillian Chung movie collaboration after I first saw them both together in House of Fury. I personally think it  they both displayed really good on-screen chemistry as brother and sister, which is what that got me interested and looking forward to this new horror/thriller themed movie – 49 days.

Fitted to it’s poster theme, the movie opens with an opening title similar to the movie A Chinese Tall Story. It starts with a text intro, giving viewers an introduction to Chinese believes back in the olden days. One of them being – when someone burns a rhinoceros horn, it is said that they will be able to see ghost.

The story starts by telling a tale about Lau Sing ( Stephen Fung), a young Chinese herbalist tasked to expand his family business and set up a medicine shop in the provincial capital. Leaving behind his beloved wife and daughter back in his village, he promised that he would return to find them as soon as the business is settled down.

Four years passed by, Lau’s business is doing well and he decides to return to visit his family when he received a letter from his wife. On the night before returning to his village, Lau is seen entertaining with some businessman together with Susi- who long had a crush on Lau.

The movie then shifts to a scene where Susi witnessed a crime committed by Lau’s trusted friend/business partner – Pang Sei (Raymond Wong) where he is seen burning down the herb warehouse. Susi did not expose him as she wants to keep Lau by her side while Pang Sei eyes on Lau’s family fortune.

Framed and accused by Raymond for setting his herb warehouse on fire and killing everyone in it, Lau is sentenced to death and are scheduled to be beheaded in the public. Siu Chin is an attorney played by Gillian Chung, was sent to help Lau Sing but fell on coma for more than a month when she met with an accident.

On the day of execution, Lau Sing escapes with Siu Chin where they both head back to Lau’s hometown. Strange things starts to happen. Lau’s house appeared to be old, dirty and haunted looking. Lau saw a little girl sitting at the corner of the house alone, only to find out later she was his daughter.

Feeling terrified when she heard voices, Lau’s daughter ran to the brightly lighted room where she finally manage to see Lau. Story starts to unfold, where Lau finally knew he is a ghost himself as he was beheaded earlier and his daughter are only able to see him when she lit special candles – candles with grinded rhino horn added to it, something Lau would add as a prescription for his daughter’s breathing problems since young.

I thank the director for not including the cheap and abrupt pop-up horror scare scenes. The horror scenes are mild or close to none. While I like how the movie tells tale of an old Chinese believe, I think it tries too hard to cover many different emotions and relationship hence lack of consistency and messy storyline.

I have so many questions in my head from the messy storyline, and just to name a few:
Pang Sei was in serious debt with the loan sharks which resulted him to burn down the herb warehouse with the reason – to get money.
1. What money does he get by burning down the warehouse? Stocks are money, how by doing do gets him money especially in an immediate situation.
2. He is said to have bribed witness and officers. How? Especially when he is said to be in serious debt, and he burnt down the warehouse where all the stocks are.
3. He managed to poison the loan sharks. Which makes me wonder, if that can be done so easily this fiasco wouldn’t have happened. He wouldn’t have to gone through this much – burn down the warehouse, frame Lau, bribe witness and officers, cheat Lau and his family of their fortune and killed people.

I am still confused, but seeing Stephen Fung’s smile in the end manage to ease some pain.