THOMAS PODVIN’S FREELANCE WORK
Freelance writer - translator - Editor

In this new Sandra Bullock vehicle, the actress portrays goofy FBI special agent Gracie Hart, who’s more a PR officer, than a field officer. Still, the satirical comedy provides enough opportunities for Bullock to show off her wacky brand of humor to make it worth watching.
Interestingly, the film’s official website confirms that the flick is a roughly two hour commercial for the federal agency. It features articles on women in the FBI and provides a link to a recruitment website where females can sign on. The plot is thus: with an annual budget of USD 4 billion, the so-called world’s premiere law-enforcement agency seeks the valuable contribution of women, who currently represent just 18 percent of its special agents force. Which is a shame as “women possess different analytical skills and abilities than do men.”
Different, better or indifferent – we’re not quite sure. But for better or worse, “If you believe the FBI is a male-dominated organization, you’re correct,” says Special Agent Knights. Go get ‘em girl.
Warner Home Entertainment

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

In Hostage, a cop is confronted with a double-hostage situation involving his own family. The film has all the ingredients of a classic thriller, including an over-the-edge script that keeps you guessing till the end, inspired characterization, strong production values; and a good cast headed by Bruce Willis.
Unfortunately, French director Florent Emilio Siri (The Nest) fails to deliver the goods despite all the first-grade ingredients on hand. After a visually-original credit roll and a first mesmerizing sequence describing a badly-handled hostage situation, the director’s mise-en-scene has shot its bolt. From this point on, the film is nothing but unconvincing action, clichéd situations and banal characters. Even the director’s control of his actors runs out of steam, Bruce Willis is Bruce Willis, but it is embarrassing when in one scene he cries with disbelief.
Maybe Siri’s goal was to make a movie with grand scenes, in the Hollywood style. Well, he misfired. The lack of pace and tension, and the misuse of the central dilemma (which family to save) relegate Hostage to a mere action-exploitation flick instead of the classic it might have been. Embarrassing really.
Miramax Films/Stratus Film Co.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

Four hundred years ago, a new government bans the martial arts and a bounty is set upon the heads of all who continue the practice. A ruthless general, Fire-wind, sets out to make his fortune as a bounty hunter. He is opposed by a former executioner (from the previous dynasty, Fu Qingzhu) who leads a group of six fantastically good swordsmen. They struggle to re-establish justice, knowing they are in for a long and painful fight.
Seven Swords will appeal to international audiences. The film offers an epic story, jaw-dropping action choreography, high production values and magnificent photography. And more: love triangles, righteousness, crude realism, and gorgeous natural locations from Xinjiang province.
In leading roles are acclaimed Chinese actors (Leon Lai, Sun Honglei and Charlie Young) and acclaimed martial artists (Donnie Yen and Liu Chia Liang). But the real star of the movie is 54-year old Hong-Kong director, Tsui Hark. In the industry for more than 25 years, the internationally renowned filmmaker is famous for his ability to take Chinese legends and culture and turn them into wonders of the silver screen (see Once Upon a Time in China and The Lovers).
Hark is equally famous for his restlessness-he’s reported to sleep just four hours a night. He directed, produced, and wrote of Seven Swords and drew the storyboards. He also designed most of the film’s weaponry, the sets and costumes as well as fight sequences, although he has never practiced kung-fu.
The 150-minute epic movie (the original cut ran 270 minutes!) adapted from Liang Yu-Shen’s classic novel Seven Swords of Mount Heaven, is full of promise for those who crave more: a TV series has already been shot and three other features are in the works, in addition to comics and online games.
Beijing Ciwen Film/Boram Entertainment/Mandarin Films

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

The Bat-Man, created by Bob Kane, first appeared in 1939 in Detective Comics. Since then countless adaptations have appeared in in radio serials, TV series, films, video games and comic books, the result of which is that director Christopher Nolan (Memento) has very little room to innovate in this fourth installment of the franchise. He handles the challenge well, re-actualizing the character and re-fueling the myth by focusing on characterization. Money aside, Bruce Wayne is filled with anger, guilt and a thirst for revenge, yet he remains magnanimous, even compassionate. Says Nolan: “What’s always been fascinating about Batman is that he is a hero driven by quite negative impulses.”
Equally fascinating is the new Batmobile, for example, a realistic creation conceived in Nolan’s garage. Part tank, part sports car, it actually travels at an eye-popping 105 MPH without the aid of special effects. In short, this is the most sophisticated and enjoyable Bat-film yet.
What’s more, you can bin your bootlegs, Batman Begins is showing in Imax format. For an extra RMB 20, you can be completely immersed in a 15m-high and 20m-wide high-quality picture screen. Well worth the extra price.
Warner Brothers

IMAX Theatre at Peace Cinema/268 Xi Zang Middle Rd/(63225252)

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

This reviewer is not a great fan of Spielberg or Cruise, at least not when they work together; Minority Report was overblown. But this second joint venture is nothing less than amazing. Both men have worked hard to make something extraordinary from the H. G. Wells novel (1898).
Cruise puts his all into the role of Ray Ferrier, a nobody, and worse still, an incompetent father. Incompetent he may be, but he clearly loves his children, and as such will do whatever it takes to keep them alive.
Spielberg deserves credit too, and not just for modernizing the source material with the latest CGI technology [far superior to the Best Special Effect Oscar-winning version by Byron Haskin (1953)]. He’s also added a new subtext. In the novel, Wells used aliens to represent the way rich countries impose their ways on the poor. In this version, the aliens appear to represent global terrorists.
Spielberg has thrown in elements from disaster, alien invasion, survival, and road movies. It all adds up to a very dark film in which destruction is all too near, and flight appears the only means of survival. Underlying the work is a sense of agoraphobia, implying that the only real safety is not to be found in numbers.
Amblin Entertainment

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

Four animals from the New York Zoo -- a zebra, a zealous lion, a hypochondriac giraffe and a fat female hippo – somehow end up on the island of Madagascar, where life is a struggle to survive the constant attacks from predators.That struggle is mirrored in this latest animated work from DreamWorks SKG Animation studios, which if this film is any indication, may not survive at all. Of late, the creative minds at Dreamworks seem to have lost inspiration, replacing it with formulaic mass production. If Shrek was as fresh as they come, then Shark Tale and Madagascar are as tired as it gets.
The recipe is as follows: gather a few disparate characters, but not so disparate that young audiences will lose interest, put them in an exotic environment, add a few tired jokes and clichés, throw in a pop soundtrack and hire some big name stars to dub the voices. Then call it entertainment. Which is not to say Madagascar fails completely. If you’re in the mood for cute, then you might just enjoy this film. And if you hail from New York, well, Madagascar is peppered with in jokes.
Indeed, the film’s ‘humor’ relies heavily on the idea of anthropomorphic New York yuppies getting out of the Big Apple and retuning to the wild. Which come to think of it, may not be such a bad idea.
DreamWorks Animation

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
September 2005 issue

Anybody already familiar with the story and the characters from the eponymous Japanese comics and video game might wonder if there's any point watching this uninspired HK blockbuster shot in Japan. Who cares? The film's investors, of course. The marketing tsunami preceding the release managed to brainwash moviegoers to go to cinemas in droves.
Uninspired though it is, the film does spark an interest in car racing. Directors Lau and Mak (Infernal Affairs) have framed, edited and photographed some gripping car stunts. The "D" in the title stands for drifting – a racing term where turns are negotiated at full speed while skidding on the rear wheels, a technique that is fortunately fully exploited here.
While the car stunts work, the directors downshift when it comes to characterization and storytelling. The insipid childish-love story, is like an overlong MTV spot, and the over-abundant visual effects (freeze frames and split screens) slow the pace down. The acting sucks too. Main drifter Jay Chou is monolithic in his own vehicle. Next to him, young bourgeois Edison Chen looks like Tom Hanks. And that's no compliment. Sure, kids and schoolgirls left the theater with big satisfied smiles, but this reviewer was itching for the exit.
A sequel has already been announced, Initial D 2: Duel in the Alps!

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

Guanzhou Chief editor: Christopher Cottrell
August 2005 issue

Uber cool Brad Pitt and ultra sexy Angelina Jolie star as professional killers in this action comedy inspired by The War of the Roses and True Lies.
On screen (and off?) the pair are fakes, that is to say they take on aliases to cover their tracks. After being set up, each of the couple discovers he/she has been living with a killer for five or six years; still neither lose his/her cool, make up or hairdo.
On paper, the plot and cast must have sounded like a winning combo. On screen, however, the sum of the parts is little more than a nicely-packaged farce that strains to entertain for 120 minutes.
Fresh and fun; forgettable and silly, the chemistry between Pitt and Jolie is the film's main asset and their rumored romance off screen was nothing if not a brilliant marketing coup.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

Guanzhou Chief editor: Christopher Cottrell
August 2005 issue

The horror genre surpasses all others when it comes to sequels. This entry is the third in the cult Dawn of the Dead series, while House of Wax is merely a remake, though it could spark a series of its own.
Romero made Night of the Living Dead back in 1968, the first installment of his Dead trilogy. Ten years later, with Dawn of the Dead, a ground-breaking satire on American consumerism, he strengthened his status of horror master and leader of the living-dead sub-genre.
Surrounded by zombies, four escapees seek safety in a mall. In this empty materialists'haven, they create a microcosm of society confronting issues of survival, race, gender, law and government. The new order doesn't last long. After breaking their own rules, they must battle a gang of plunderers and face the ever-hungry living dead outside.
There aren't any zombies in the House of Wax. Though this slasher/horror film does drip with the influence of three thriller classics: Hitchcock's Psycho in the 60s, Halloween in the late 70s and Friday the 13th in the early 80s. All three, of course, featured a psychopath who graphically kills whomever's in his way. All three also helped push the genre into the mainstream.

We should also mention a fourth and obvious influence, the original House of Wax, starting the king of them all, Vincent Price. Sadly, the current House lacks the master's touch.
Like Price's work, the Dead trilogy, stands the test of time, especially the gory special effects (Tom Savini rules!). And without question, Dawn of the Dead is the entertaining, accessible and prophetic chapter of the lot. Question is, will the upcoming release, Land of the Dead, live up to the past?

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

Exploring Chinese legends is a delightful and time-consuming process considering the huge number of myths. Lotus Lantern, a family blockbuster produced by the Shanghai Animation Film Studio, features plenty of satisfying mythological material (folk heroes, gods, a fire lake, a lotus lantern and a dog eating the moon…)
The most-expensive animation feature ever made in China at USD 10 million, the film was four years in the making. It's likely that a good part of the budget went to the many Chinese stars involved in the post-production dubbing (Ning Jing and Jiang Wen) and those who contributed to the soundtrack (Coco Lee, Zhang Xinzhe and Liu Huan).
The movie's universal theme of filial love will appeal to viewers of all generations and origins. Shanshen Mu, a goddess whose only sin was to marry a human, is abducted by her brother, Erlang, the conservative god of heaven. Even with the help of the Earth god, the Monkey King, 7-year-old Xianchen still faces many challenges to rescue his mother.
The DVD version has optional language and subtitles in Chinese, English and Japanese and offers some good bonus material.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

Film noir fell out of favor in France for much of the last two decades. However, recent movies such as Crimson Rivers, The Nest, Cash Truck and 36 Quai des Orfevres have proved that audiences are still willing to support the genre.
The latter is probably the best of its kind since Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo won worldwide acclaim as archetypical noir heroes. Indeed, it is so good that it may very well herald a new wave of French-action thrillers.
After a moderate success with his debut movie Gangster, director Olivier Marchal, a former French cop, has moved up to A-level production, with big stars (Gerard Depardieu and Daniel Auteuil) and a relatively big budget of USD 14.5 million.
As the title indicates (the address of the Paris Criminal Investigations Division), Marchal's film is rooted in reality. The director is a former cop and the plot of 36 Quai Des Orfèvres is based on the experiences of Dominique Loiseau (who co-wrote the script), a former member of the BRI (Brigade de Recherche et d'Intervention, the 'anti-gang' squad) in the mid-eighties.
This film was nominated for eight Césars, the French Oscar equivalent, and except for the story's inability to surprise, until the very end at least, 36 Quai des Orfèvres scores on every front. A gripping tribute to the genre and to the long tradition of French gangster movies that should be revived once and for all.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

If you liked Ocean's 11, you won't necessarily like the sequel. Of course, most sequels fail to equal the original and few surpass it. Ocean's 12 is no exception. Still, fans of the first caper movie, craving more of the same, will have to try hard to be amused. And in their interest, we offer a few tips.
1. Expect no more than two facial expressions from the star, George Clooney (a wink and a smirk), expect Brad Pitt to act the playboy and expect Julia Roberts to impersonate herself.
2. Switch off your brain. Do not try to make sense of the 'plot'. After this mental adjustment, you may relax and enjoy the movie, maybe even as much as the actors enjoyed making it (they enjoyed a paid vacation in various parts of globe).
3. Look out for French actor Vincent Cassel, who delivers an impressive performance as the Brazilian capoeira artist and provides the film's most exciting moment.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
August 2005 issue

Twenty-eight years after the first installment, Georges Lucas ends his six- episode saga. Things have changed quite a bit in three decades. Good and evil were clear cut in episodes IV to VI, not so given the blurry politics in episodes I to III.
The latter series went to great length, explaining Anakin Skywalker's journey to become a Jedi knight, and how faced with doubts, he eventually switched to the dark side of the force. Of course, this is what audiences have been waiting for – the final explanation.
Most heroes are plain and dull, but Skywalker’s companions, and his strong-minded nemesis, add substance and excitement to the story. In this respect, Revenge of the Sith, with its fully-fleshed characters is the best of the last three installments, even if some loose ends from previous episodes are somewhat clumsily tied.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2005 issue

Two recent releases have proven how tricky is the task of comic book adaptation; an ongoing Hollywood trend aimed at saving the film majors from bankruptcy. The theory is that the simpler the plot, and the bigger the budget, the larger the audience (profit). But consider the following: Constantine was made by music-video director Francis Lawrence for USD100 million; Sin City was co-directed by filmmaker Robert Rodriguez (From Dusk Till Dawn), comics' illustrator Frank Miller and guest director Quentin Tarantino, for USD 45 million. The former is short on character development and fails to involve the viewer; the latter is rich in situations and characterization, and draws the viewer in.
Constantine, supposedly based on Hellblazer, is another Keanu Reeves vehicle. Ironically, for a comic adaptation the film takes itself far too seriously, and audiences are unable to suspend their sense of disbelief. Oddly enough, belief is the central topic of this deja-vu, good-versus-evil fight, which emphasizes F/X over storyline. The result is a blockbuster of a bore, at least until the last reel when all hell breaks loose.
Sin City, on the other hand, gets it right. From first to last frame, the film is faithful to the original B&W comics, with its imaginative B-movie budget and sense of anything goes. Solid production values, excellent writing, directing and acting add up to a very enjoyable experience; that is, if you can stand the ultra-violence.
Smart black and white compositions (Sin City won the Technical Award for best visuals at the Cannes Film Festival), with the odd splash of color, reveal the movie’s grasp of the real world: Good guys aren’t all white, and bad guys are even worse than we thought. Outcasts, killers and virtuous prostitutes fight corrupt officials, cannibals and inhuman mobs. Comic adaptations don’t get any better than this.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2005 issue

This month’s guilty pleasures both encourage America’s paranoid tendencies. Both movies describe in a more or less serious fashion (Carpenter will be Carpenter), a society where free will is jeopardized by the government and/or secretive organizations driven by profit and power.
To escape this threat, according to the theory presented here, individuals must live on the margins of society and have no personal attachments (loved ones are either dead or absent), indeed, have no attachments of any sort. Only through utter detachment can one penetrate the conspiracy which in Pakula’s film, The Parallex View, involves the assassination of liberals. Viewers might wonder how on earth these conspirators manage to get away with the large-scale recruitment of killers and all these assassinations. You’ll have to watch to the end to find out.
Conspiracy comes from an altogether different source in They Live, which tells the story of an unemployed man who professes a strong belief in the American way, i.e., freedom. His particular brand of paranoia is the result of a pair of unusual sunglasses, which allows him to spot aliens. He uncovers the aliens’ plot to control society using subliminal messages posted on every street corner.
Both films reveal the cost we must pay for free thought, and the process reveals how painful and spectacular reality can be. Only the paranoid need apply.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2005 issue