The New World

The New World
or you can visit the official website

We weren't supposed to watch this film, actually, we wanted to watch something else, but fate has it that it was sold out, both time slots for today was sold out so decided to watch something else. With the other trash in the cinema, well, this was the best that was offered.

We went to the Cathay Cineplex. First time I was there, ever. There still wasn't much in the building except for the cineplexes, but by looking at the shops that are going to be opened there, we're guessing that that place would end up being another Cineleisure. Not that it's a bad thing, in fact I think that would be great, can ease up congestion at any one place, and with the exclusive showcases for those arty-farty movies, it's a big yay to me.

A lovely video of the facade of the cineplex~

I had wanted to take a photo of it, but with the colours changing, I couldn't decide with colour should I take the picture of so instead I took a video. diaoz~

Since we weren't able to watch the movie we wanted, we ended up having half an hour to burn while waiting for us to be able to enter to watch the New World. Like another other camwhore, what can one do to burn time? Take photos. duhz~ I went around taking photos of movie posters, well, actually I didn't really take a lot of photos (me paiseh la!), I only took photos of movie posters which I want(ed) to watch.

Rent

Actually we were supposed to watch this last week(end), but in the end didn't, then it stopped airing, so we can't watch it this week. Cathay was only screening it exclusively as part of their opening ceremony, but we didn't know that and we weren't able to make it last week when it was screening, then when he asked me again last night to watch it today, well, then we found out that well, we missed it. damn!

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Johnny Depp!!! But it will be screening only in May. damn! I'll have to watch it in German, and I won't be able to hear Johnny Depp's sardonic voice. wahaha~

Ice Age: The Meltdown

Diego is so shuai~ "Where's the baby? Where's the baby? There he is!" wahaha~ I like~ I know most people would think I'm the arty-farty type of film audience, always preferring a French film to any American commercial one, but I love Ice Age! I'll want to watch Ice Age 2 too, but damn, I'll have to watch it in German too. sucks~ Nevermind, I think I'll just stare at Diego's shuai looks when I'm in the cinema.

Okay, back to The New World, that's supposed to be the focus for today. In a nutshell, the plot of the New World, unlike what the name might suggest is actually Pocahontas and Pocahontas: Journey to a New World added together to form a long film chonologicaling the life of Pocahontas. erm... Quite a weak plot only to be saved by some very good cinematographing. Before I go any further, I must confess that I'm a big fan of the first Pocahontas animation, but although I heard of the second one I never watched it because I heard that in the end *spoilers alert* Pocahontas married some other guy than John Smith.

One thing I felt was that this film was handling with too much material. It made the film too long and draggy. Although the film wasn't really that lengthy, about two and a half hours, we felt like more than three hours have passed while we were watching it which isn't something very good. The worse was that unlike the Walt Disney pictures, this so called Pocahontas didn't speak until the second half of the movie. Yea... There was a very obvious change in mood between the first half and the second half of the movie, sort of like when you put both Walt Disney's Pocahontas together and watch it in one sitting, it feels like there are two films in one. If this was meant to be so, it was successful, but if this was not then well, this film would be seen as quite patchy.

Some photos from the movie since I don't have a poster for the movie. Surprise I can't find much of the movie in the internet. The official website doesn't even allow me to download any pictures.



Another thing I didn't like about this film was the casting. Colin Farrell should not have been casted at all. I don't know how the real John Smith looks like, but after years of watching Pocahontas the Disney version, I'd like the real life John Smith, or at least the casted John Smith to be blond hair blue eyed. Don't call me an Aryan or what, I have my reasons. John Smith, is a very typical Englishman name, so I'd like that John Smith to represent the stereotypical Englishman, also in terms of looks, so the blondness and the blue eyes. Not only wasn't a stereotypical Englishman casted, the ugly Colin Farrell was casted. There is only one shuai Farrell and he's in the history department, not the one acting in history genre films. bahz~

*spoiler alert*

Actually if you watched both Walt Disney's Pocahontas, or if you know the stories of John Smith, this won't be a spoiler, but well, if you didn't the spoils ahead. In the end, Pocahontas, now named Rebecca married the other guy John Rolfe rather than John Smith after she heard the death of John Smith, but well, Simth did not die, so Pocahontas was torn between two men, one whom she loved, one whom she had came to love. Well, if I were her, the choice would be so obvious, Christian Bale is so much more shuai than Colin Farrell, why does she still need to choose?

I gave the Yahoo Profile of Christian Bale rather than the usual IMDb one because well, there are more photos in Yahoo!~ But sadly there is no picture of him in The New World. He was so damn shuai lor... Looked a bit like a younger version of Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai. shuai~~~ Almost as shuai as the shuai Farrell~ wahaha~


Well, I think he singled handedly saved the film.

Not only was the film long and draggy and often not much dialogue, there is this recurring narration that well, sounds sort of poetic, but often rather unfitting. Or at least that was what I felt. I don't like the breathy voice the actors used when narrating the so called poems, and well, I don't like poems being narrated, in general. But what was so irritating of this film was that there is not much dialogue.

But I like the subtle use of "touch" and the "touching" of the characters with each other. It gives a rather intimate feeling to the viewers and well, without speech, touch is actually a very important tool in communication. Often the deaf and mutes like to touch their partner when conversing, the blind too. This is a way to break down communication barriers and in such a film where there's few conversations, touching is good. Often modern people are too caught up in their own lifes and forget that they have loved ones around and the lack of regular touching can actually distance a couple, or even between friends and family members.

In all, I'd maybe give it 7/10 points ba. This is not a show I'd recommend to people unless you are the kind of people who don't like commercial films. Or unless you, God forbid, like Colin Farrell.