The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies
The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies |
- Horror unlimited
- Studio pulling Harry Potter discs from stores Dec. 29
- Magnolia picks up '360' starring Rachel Weisz, Jude Law
| Posted: 24 Oct 2011 11:51 PM PDT Hong Kong Ghost Stories offers two scary tales with different settings. GOOD old scary Hong Kong movies have been sorely lacking in the cinema these days. But now, we've got a new release simply titled Hong Kong Ghost Stories, which actually promises the return of Hong Kong horror. Making this ambitious claim are the movie's producer Wong Jing and writer-director Patrick Kong, who are out to convince viewers that horror exists where you least expect it. With such an incongruous pairing, it is only logical for one to expect the unexpected; the former is famous for his prolific cheesy crowd-pleasers while the latter is better known for his bleak love stories. Opening during Halloween, this timely release is an old school Hong Kong ghost flick that comes as a two-parter. One tale takes place in a classroom with a bunch of rowdy and wayward students, while the other tells of a group of quirky friends on a vacation. In the school-bound story, Jennifer Tse plays a freshly-graduated teacher with a broken heart, Pakho Chau plays her unrelenting ex-boyfriend, and Paw Hee Jing and Leung Kar Yan play her parents, while Kristal Tin plays the school principal. The students are portrayed by youngsters like Carol Yeung, Betrys Kong, Vivian Law, Tong Fei and Leung Chun Lung. The teacher catches the students of class 4E involved in prostitution and decides to stop them by reporting the matter to the school principal but is shocked to discover that the class does not even exist. In a recorded interview, Tse shared: "My character in the movie is a girl in her 20s who has just returned after furthering her studies in England. She's been dating a guy for seven years but he has a habit of hitting her. So, she hopes to start afresh as a substitute teacher in a new school where the students are quite naughty. "She gets particularly close to one student, because she feels the girl is like her. She is bullied constantly and seems unable to stand up for herself. But, as the movie progresses, we discover that things are not what they seem." Playing the boyfriend with a violent streak, Pakho offered: "My character is in this on-off relationship with a girl, whom he sometimes hurts so badly that she ends up in hospital. I later find out that she is caught up in some supernatural phenomena and I try to help but she is not interested in my concern." In the travellers' tale, Chrissie Chau plays a mysterious woman on the run, while Him Law plays a ruthless and dangerous lover. The weird bunch of travellers are portrayed by Timmy Hung, Jacqueline Chong, Charmaine Fong, Rose Chan and Harriet Yeung. The story unfolds with the travellers seated at a table enjoying a hearty hotpot meal while spilling the beans on each other, unaware of what fate has in store for them. As a woman hounded by her beau, Chrissie expressed how different it felt working with the director and Law again. "Although, I play lovers with Him again, the relationship is no longer the same. His character likes playing mind games and keeps everyone guessing all the time, so it feels more like a cops-and-robbers flick. "Sometimes, I feel like giving him a punch or a kick. Having known Him for so long, it's the first time I've seen this side of him. I never realised that Him was capable of fleshing out such a mean character. I feel the director is amazing for being able to bring out the best in every actor," added Chrissie, who was full of praises for both the director and her co-star. Playing the antagonist, Law shared: "I've filmed many movies with Chrissie, so we've got such synergy going for us that there's nothing to be awkward or embarrassed about. In this movie, our relationship is less passionate but more complicated. "On portraying the villain, I feel that everybody has a selfish or negative side. So, you just have to magnify this unfavourable trait and convince yourself that you're a baddie and have bad intentions in every action you undertake. Once you are able to achieve that, then your every gesture and expression gives off that convincingly negative vibe," explained Law, who says playing a baddie has given him more satisfaction than acting as a good guy. With a young cast providing lots of eye candy, the trailer seems promising as the movie looks to be generously populated with scary ghosts and screaming victims. – Seto Kit Yan Hong Kong Ghost Stories opens in local cinemas on Thursday. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Studio pulling Harry Potter discs from stores Dec. 29 Posted: 24 Oct 2011 06:46 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Warner Brothers is taking a page from Disney. The studio announced that it will pull all Harry Potter DVDs and Blu-rays from store shelves on Dec. 29, 2011. Move follows the Nov. 11 home entertainment release of the final film in the franchise, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2,'' which should send disc sales into the stratosphere. The studio is also releasing a box-set of all eight Potter films on that date. Disney has employed a similar strategy with animated hits like ''Beauty and the Beast'' and ''Sleeping Beauty,'' re-releasing the movies in theaters and on tricked out versions for limited periods of time. If the runaway success of the 3D re-release of ''The Lion King'' is any guide, fans can expect Potter to wave his wand in theaters at some point in the future. Warner Brothers says the new moratorium will not apply to digital copies or video-on-demand. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Magnolia picks up '360' starring Rachel Weisz, Jude Law Posted: 24 Oct 2011 04:58 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Magnolia Pictures has acquired U.S. rights to ''360,'' a drama starring Rachel Weisz, Anthony Hopkins and Jude Law, the company announced Monday. Ben Foster, Jamel Debbouze and Moritz Bleibtreu also star. Law plays a businessman who is thinking about a liaison with a prostitute. Weisz plays a married woman who is ending her relationship with a younger man. Hopkins plays a man who is searching for his missing daughter, and Foster plays a sex offender recently out of prison. The movie is based on ''Reigen,'' a play by the late Arthur Schnitzler. The play is made up of short scenes between lovers - either just before or after sex. Meirelles, who directed Weisz in ''City of God,'' shot the movie in Vienna, Paris, London, Bratislava and Rio de Janeiro. Peter Morgan (''The Queen,'' ''Frost/Nixon'') wrote the script. Andrew Eaton and David Linde produced with Chris Hanley, Danny Krausz and Emanuel Michael. Magnolia plans a theatrical release in 2012. The movie also will be distributed through Magnolia's Ultra VOD program. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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