Movie Buzz : Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang
I adore the story of Nanny McPhee which is adapted from the storybooks series called ‘Nurse Matilda.’ Emma Thompson wrote the screenplay for “Nanny McPhee” as well as the sequel ’Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang” respectively in 2005 and of course, coming to the big screens soon on 10th June (Singapore) 2010.
To sum up this wonderful screenplay in a paragraph, Nanny McPhee is a magical nanny who will arrive to misbehaved but inherently good children and change them for the better with her 5 base lessons. As how she puts it “”When you need me, but do not want me, then I must stay. When you want me, but no longer need me, then I have to go”.
Unlike the first ‘Nanny McPhee’, Emma Thompson seems to play a lighter role as the nanny – only to intervene when necessary and the children (Norman, Cyril, Vincent, Megsie, Celia) learn from their lessons on their own under the watchful eyes of Nanny McPhee. I thought the casting was brilliant ! 
The children, like the first, were amazing and the characters were convincing. They certainly do the script justice and of course Thompson’s whimsical side while writing the screenplay. I thought Ralph Fiennes and Rhys Ifans were great but not a fan of Maggie Gyllenhaal, while Ewan McGregor was more like a special guest starring in the movie. Maggie Smith’s character is such a dear but sadly, her image is pretty much stuck as Professor McGonagall (Harry Potter) in my mind.
The film was enchanting and the messages are easy to identify – not necessarily a story for children but a story for the child in us all. I am sure the young at heart (*coughs* like me) will find the piglets really amusing and adorable – will not spoil it for anyone but I TOTALLY LOVE THEM ! I truly enjoyed the movie and I think it has been a long time since I last watched a good old movie with a nice heartwarming plot with lil pretence and great casting. Perhaps not so much on the action or special effects like other blockbusters but I highly recommend this film if you enjoyed ‘Nanny McPhee’ or just need something relaxing to watch over the weekend.
I’ll give this movie a 4/5 ! Remember, ’Small C, Big P.’ 
Go Potty Over Potter : The Half-Blood Prince
It is indeed a remarkable achievement for Harry Potter to enter its sixth movie, I still remember watching the first and thinking “oh my god,this totally ruin the book!” Without a doubt, I’m one of those who prefers reading the books to watching it on the big screen – this time is no exception.
I have to say the effects were marvelous, judging how clever they put the “magic” into the “real world”. I quite miss the magical moving paintings on the walls and the ever complicated stairways, Hogwarts looks too “normal” in this film, it felt as though alot of details were lacking. Speaking of lacking, the action in the film seems to be background-ed by the focus on the characters and the romance between these teenagers. Sure,it’s puberty but snogging and crying over boys/girls isn’t exactly what I’m here for. Complex human beings indeed. I had to control my giggles when I thought of various reasons why Dumbledore likes to invite Harry to his room alone, c’mon ! Look at the way he looks at Harry ! (HAHA)
I’ve always thought the death eaters deserve more scenes than the good old Harry, I’m glad Malfoy and Snape stole the limelight for a second. I thought Tom Felton (Malfoy) did a good job at the killing scene, his acting skills has improved from the last films. This film was definitely “darker” than the previous installments but the lack of spells and actions was disappointing. It is already obvious for audience to guess the ending, I thought the screenwriters tried a little too hard this time, could have taken a more passive approach towards the ending. The Dark Lord is straightforward evil, even non-Harry Potter fans would have known, the show just leads to their showdown no matter how the story develops. Harry is never going to escape from the confrontation of the approaching evil dark force and good people always die – well,here and there.
I do like the young Tom Riddle, he sure gives me the creeps. Thankfully, there’s Emma Watson to save the day. You have to admit that she’s looking great as compared to her fellow actors, the twins were pretty amusing – I really miss Cedric aka Robert Pattinson though. (hee hee)
Just a tip for people who are intending to watch this – do your homework ! Expect characters jumping into the scene without proper introductions (and disappearing, like Slughorn from the finale) or broken storyline if you are clueless about the Harry Potter series. The storytelling moves forward too quickly and it concentrates on the characters more than ever, lacking the continuity from previous films. The Half-Blood Prince to me was purely a “set up” to the next one, like superior continuation of a TV series which hopefully gets better. Till now, I still think that the movies never really lived up to the books.
And my owl must be late, where’s my letter to Hogwarts !
[image source : flixster.com]
