Tekken - Thoughts

I don’t remember any promo activity for this movie, at least not in my region. Having been slightly familiar with the combat video game Tekken, when I came across something about this movie online, I decided to read up on it. Being someone who’d watched the Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, and Fatal Fury movies and cartoons, it should come as no surprise that I decided to source and watch this movie. In Tekken, a young boy living in the slums of the new corporate world, witnesses the shooting of his mother, and decides to use an annual tournament for professional warriors as a means to seek vengeance on the corrupt corporation that was responsible for her death.


While the plot is simplistic, and leaves very little to imagination, the fight sequences are pretty impressive. Considering that Tekken is about the fighting, I guess it succeeds. My knowledge of the games’ story is limited, and thus it’s hard to say if the movie is in keeping with the original game storyline. The twist regarding the lead characters lineage is interesting, but not all together shocking. The runtime is short and the overall pace is quick, with just a few acceptable slower moments. The character mix is well suited for a movie of this sort, and brings the action together well. Though the lead character has a girlfriend and also seemingly hits it off well with a fellow female combatant, there is no real romantic piece to the plot; be warned if you’re expecting one. If you’re a videogame fan looking for a martial arts movie remake, you’ll love the action and enjoy Tekken. On the other hand if you don’t really care for such amateur low to medium budget action productions, you will be bored.

Most of the cast in Tekken is amateur, with the only readily recognizable face being that of Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, who plays Heihachi Mishima, the head of the Tekken organization. Incidentally he played Shang Tsung in the legendary Mortal Kombat movie from 1995. He did well in his role in Tekken, coming across as the dominant head of the organization, being both commanding, and authoritative. The lead role of Jin Kazama is played by Jon Foo, who was admirable in his portrayal of the bold young teenager. Blended well was his representation of the rash and passionate adolescent out to seek vengeance, yet having good moral values and learning quickly from his well-wishers. His friend and fellow participant whom he had a noticeable connection with was Christie Monteiro, played by Kelly Overton; a young woman who was smart, sassy, and very capable of kicking ass. She did justice to her role, coming across as dependable and loyal. Overall an amateur cast with pretty decent performances all round.

As sourcing the movie was relatively difficult, I ended up watching a downloaded DVD5 version of the movie. While picture and the overall presentation were far superior to a lossy DivX, I do believe that some transcoding might have been done that marginally degraded quality. Video was clear and pixel free for most part, but wasn’t flawless. Definition was pretty much acceptable all through. Most of the scenes in the movie are at night or indoors in artificial light. Sound was presented by means of a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround audio track. It complemented the fight sequences well, and made the action enjoyable. Surround stage usage was quite minimal overall.

My Recommendation: Watch It – (A must watch for those who enjoy video game movies)

Over Her Dead Body - Thoughts

After having seen the trailer for Over Her Dead Body, I decided to give the movie a watch as it came across as funny and entertaining. In the cast was Lake Bell, whom I had previously seen only in TV serials, and in relatively more serious roles. So that made for additional reason. Following an accident and the death of his fiancée on their wedding day, Henry remains detached and to himself for over a year. His sister in an effort to set things right talks him into meeting a psychic, Ashley, who would help him reach out to his dead fiancée, and talk through unresolved matters, thus helping him achieve closure. What she does not intend for is the attraction between Henry and Ashley. Also unplanned is the resurfacing of his dead fiancée who isn’t overly keen on this new union.


Overall a good movie to watch, keeping in mind that you’re looking for 95 minutes of light fun and not something outstanding or novel. The movie had all the usual bits that you’d expect from a romantic comedy, girl and guy meet and unexpectedly fall in love. There are obstacles they have to overcome to keep things up, and eventually one feels betrayed by the other who should have come clean on a certain secret. They break things off, miss each other plenty, and eventually the last minute dash, to get the girl at the airport moments before she leaves. The interesting twist here being that the obstacle is the spirit of the guy’s ex-girlfriend who died on the day of their wedding. If like me you’ve seen the trailer you’ll be a little let down, as the trailer presents the movie as being a lot more up-beat and fast paced. The movie is in actuality moderately paced, with several slower moments.

Playing the role of the nice guy who’s sad and not willing to move on was Paul Rudd (knocked Up / Forgetting Sarah Marshall). His love interest, the fun, casual, not so successful psychic played by Lake Bell (Boston Legal – Season 1). Eva Longoria was Kate, his crazy, bossy, totally hyper ex-girlfriend (of Desperate Housewives fame). The chemistry between the three made for some entertaining moments.

Technically the quality was pretty decent. The colors seemed lively in certain scenes like the grocery store with the backdrop of peppers of various colors. Otherwise it was just about acceptable overall, with skin tones seeming a little flat. The aspect ratio was standard widescreen with the usual widescreen letterboxing. The soundtrack was sufficient, with the English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround ensuring that all dialogues were clear and audible. The pace was moderate to slow, and set the mood for the movie. Again, the DVD I was watching was a Region 1 US release.

My Recommendation: Watch It (An entertaining flick, if you have 95 minutes to spare)

Resident Evil: Apocalypse - Thoughts

Released in 2004, 2 years after the first Resident Evil movie, Apocalypse follows the spread of the deadly T-Virus, and Alice’s struggle against the infected undead. Not only has the virus which was thought to be contained in the secret underground Umbrella Corp. facility spread into Raccoon city, but Alice wakes to realize that she is part of the Umbrella Corp’s bio military experiments. Being an avid fan of the franchise this was something I deemed as a must watch, early on into hearing about it. I subsequently watched this movie in the theatre in 2004, and also rented the DVD and watched it a few months later. I decided to revisit it as part of a Resident Evil marathon prior to watching the all new Resident Evil: Afterlife movie; which btw started playing in theaters a week prior to me writing this review.


Resident Evil: Apocalypse is billed as a Sci-Fi, Action, Horror, Thriller. From having seen the original, I wouldn't categorize it as Horror anymore. While it still has several intense thrill elements, it isn't as dark or grim as the first part. What it has maximized on is the Action element. All the fight sequences are bigger, more hard hitting, and closer to extreme. Alice looks more toned, tough and showcases super human ability in this installment. Plot and story progression is ample, with the spread of the T-Virus, development of Alice, and other long term franchise story elements being nurtured carefully. All the gore and expectedly disgusting zombie ghastliness is very much present; be warned if you're not into that sorta thing. If you're into Sci-Fi, or just plain loathe the Resident Evil series, you'll love the almost mindless and casual action that Apocalypse has to offer. If you're looking for something new and gripping, keep in mind that Apocalypse is more an expansion and less an innovation.

Resident Evil wouldn’t be Resident Evil if it didn't have Milla Jovovich. If she came across as cold and intense in the first installment as Alice, she does so even better here. While a little lost in the first movie, here Alice is coming to terms with what is happening to her and around her. She is more in control of herself and what she is becoming. As an action star Milla is increasingly convincing in Apocalypse; she certainly seems to have the art of kicking ass while looking good at it, down. True to Resident Evil form, Alice has a supporting female action costar. In Apocalypse this comes in the form of Jill Valentine, an elite special forces cop, played by Sienna Guillory. While unfamiliar with her past work, she does a fine job in this sequel, keeping up with Alice, though obviously more human and not as invincible. Oded Fehr stars as Carlos Olivera, one of the Umbrella Corp’s hired guns who later joins forces with Alice and her brigade. Though character development is limited, Oded is convincing as an anti-hero and a team player. Thomas Kretschmann plays Major Cain, the Umbrella Corp. suit, and the face of all things commercial, uncaring, and sinister. His portrayal was average at best, and came off as amateurish often enough. Thankfully this inadequacy didn't impact the overall movie too much, as Major Cain was sufficiently dis-likable.

The DVD I was watching was a Region 1 US release. Video was pretty good, with not much that I can think of in terms of being sub-par. There were a lot of dark scenes, and definition was sometimes average in those sections. Sound was good, and complimented the action very well. There was a lot of gunfire, breaking glass, and special effects all through; needless to say sound and special effects were the main driving forces behind Apocalypse. The audio track I was sampling was a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track. Surround stage usage was acceptable, but nothing over the top. The soundtrack was pretty good, and special mention must be made of the track The Outsider (Resident Renholder Mix) by A Perfect Circle.

My Recommendation: Watch It – (Can’t get enough of Resident Evil? Here you go….. the sequel)