The Plot:
Three friends – Arlene, Shanna and radio disc jockey "Jungle Julia" Lucai– are driving down Colorado Street in Austin, Texas to celebrate Jungle Julia's birthday, unknowingly followed by a man in a souped-up 1970 Chevy Nova. While drinking at Güero's Taco Bar, Jungle Julia reveals that she made a radio announcement earlier that morning, offering a free lap dance from Arlene in return for calling her Butterfly, buying her a drink and reciting a segment of the poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening". As the night goes on, the girls run into Pam, a childhood adversary of Jungle Julia's, who is being studied by Stuntman Mike, a stunt double for Hollywood action films. He spends the night flirting with the women, working his way up to Arlene, who realizes that he's been following them all day but accepts his excuse because of his charm. After giving Mike the lap dance, Arlene finally leaves with Jungle Julia, Shanna, and their marijuana dealer, Lanna Frank.
Stuntman Mike agrees to give Pam a ride home in his car and stays sober all night. Up to this point Stuntman Mike seems to be a normal guy, and when Pam is presented with a plexi-glass sealed passenger seat with no seatbelt, he simply explains that the camera is sometimes set up in that area and assures her that his car is "death proof". It's at this moment, Stuntman Mike looks directly into the camera, and grins from ear to ear, foreshadowing the mayhem to come. In the car, he asks for directions, and when Pam says right he sighs and says they're going left, and he wished she had said left so she wouldn't get scared right away. He reveals himself to be a sadist, and begins to ride at extreme speeds and swerve the car around, thrashing Pam around the box. She pleads with Mike to let her out of the car, but Mike ignores her and informs her that the car is only death proof for the driver "to get the benefit of it honey, you really need to be sittin' in my seat". He then slams on the brake, causing her to smash her face on the dashboard, killing her. Then it's "time to find me my other girlfriends", and he tosses his voyeur photographs of the girls out the window so the police don't find evidence of premeditation. Mike then chases after the other four girls. Finding their car on an empty road, he speeds past them and spins his car around. He proceeds to race at the girls' car head-on at full speed with his headlights off, and turns them back on at the last moment. Mike crashes into them, killing them.
At the hospital, it is revealed that Mike suffered only minor injuries. Because the girls were driving while intoxicated and Mike had not consumed any alcohol or marijuana, he is cleared of all criminal charges (Pam's death is likely attributed to the collision), angering Texas Ranger Earl McGraw, who knows the stuntman is guilty, but decides not to investigate due to the lack of evidence and energy he thinks could be better spent elsewhere, such as following the Nascar circuit. He vows to bring him down next time he does it in Texas, however due to barriers in cross-state police communication, Mike is soon in Tennessee looking for victims again without fear of being caught.
Fourteen months later, Lee Montgomery, Abernathy Ross, and Kim Mathisare traveling through Lebanon, Tennessee and stop at a convenience store where Mike has stationed himself. When Kim goes inside, Lee moves into the driver's seat and starts listening to her iPod with Abernathy still trying to sleep in the backseat. Mike then gets out of his car and begins playing with Abernathy's bare feet which are hanging out of the car window. When she wakes up, Mike pretends he bumped into her while looking for his car keys. He gets into his car and takes off. Abernathy catches one last glimpse of Mike's car speeding off, which the other two don't notice, before the three depart. The trio pick up their friend, stuntwoman Zoë Bell, at the airport, who informs them she wants to test-drive a classic white 1970 Dodge Challenger. Later, she reveals her true motives: she wants to play a game called "Ship's Mast," in which she will hang onto the car's hood with two belts while someone else drives at high speeds. When the girls reach the barn where the Dodge is being sold, Kim reluctantly agrees to help with the stunt and Abernathy tags along, while Lee finds herself left behind to placate the car's owner, Jasper.
During this game, Mike arrives suddenly, and targets them with his 1969 Dodge Charger, repeatedly crashing into them, and eventually Zoë is thrown from the hood. Kim, who carries a gun f or protection, shoots Mike in the left arm, causing him to flee. Zoë, due to her training and agility, is unharmed except for a "bruise on her bum." The three girls decide to take revenge against th
eir attacker. At this point the character roles abruptly switch, as Stuntman Mike becomes hysterical. His intended victims, on the other hand, become enraged in their pursuit, jeering and laughing at their foe's efforts. Stuntman Mike's injury forces him to stop and attempt to tend to his wound. In doing so, he releases his safety harness. Kim crashes into the back of his Charger and Zoë attacks him with a pipe, but Mike flees again without refastening his harness. An extended chase scene follows; just when he thinks he has escaped, the pursuing vehicle blindsides him and he crashes to a stop, breaking his right arm. Screaming in pain, he is hauled out of the car and the three women administer a vicious beating. Stuntman Mike is knocked to the ground, and the women leap in celebration, caught in a midair freeze-frame as the film ends. After a moment of credits, the film returns to show Abernathy delivering an axe-kick to Mike, crushing his head with her boot.
*I felt like vomitting upon seeing Stuntman Mike killed his first victim. There are bloods everywhere at the passenger seat, well, not really a seat, as it doesn't have a proper place to sit. It's only a small seat, like a bicycle seat. It will reallly unsafety if there is a Stuntman Mike in reality. He's a physco-mad-crazy-siao-whatever you wanna name it-person, killing all those harmless young women, in his special design car. Aikss...feel like vomiting again!
WALL-E
Guess many had watch this. It's just that I'm just a lil late. Hehe...coz I'm not a movie maniac-whatever movie is released, just sapu and go to watch! I'm quite selective, though. Coz $$ is a problem! Anyway, now I also have a chance to watch it, not too late, right? Well, actually, WALL-E is a good movie, it's reflects what people have forget all this while: our responsible to mother earth and feelings to each other. We are not machines, we are human who have feelings and brain to think wisely. Even robots like WALL-E and Eve have feelings to each other. Why can't we? So, will the real Human out there please stand up?
The Queen
The Plot:
The film begins on the eve of the 1997 British general election, which saw Tony Blair elected as the United Kingdom's first Labour Party Prime Minister in 18 years. While posing for an official portrait, the Queen talks with the artist and expresses her regret about not being allowed to vote. She is slightly wary of the new prime minister and his pledge to "modernise" the country, but Blair promises to respect the independence of the Royal Family. When Blair visits Buckingham Palace to kiss hands, the Queen follows custom and asks him to form a Government in her name.
Three months later, during a visit to Paris, Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car accident in the Pont de l'Almatunnel. Blair's director of communications, Alastair Campbell, immediately prepares a speech in which he describes her as "the people's princess." Blair gives the speech the next morning and the phrase catches on immediately. Over the next few days, the British people erupt in an outpouring of grief, as millions flock toBuckingham and Kensington palaces to leave floral tributes and notes.
Meanwhile, the Royal Family are still on holiday at Balmoral Castle, the Queen's estate in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Diana's death immediately sparks division among senior members of the family. The Queen observes that, since Diana divorced from Charles, Prince of Wales a year earlier, she is no longer a member of the Royal Family. Consequently, she insists that the funeral arrangements are a "private affair" and are best left to the princess' own family, the Spencers. A visibly grief stricken Prince Charles, however, argues that the mother of a future King of Great Britain and Northern Ireland cannot be dismissed so lightly. Following her mother's suggestion, the Queen eventually sanctions the use of an aircraft of the Royal Flight to bring Diana's body back to Britain. Charles ensures that his ex-wife's coffin is draped with a Royal Standard instead of remaining a "wooden crate."
In London, the bouquets begin to pile up along the palace railings, forcing the changing of the guard to use another gate. Meanwhile, British tabloids become increasingly inflammatory about the lack of any statement by the Royal Family. Prince Charles, during a brief conversation with Blair and later through back-channel contacts, leaves no doubt that he shares the Prime Minister's views about the need for a more public expression of grief. As the Queen's ratings plummet, Blair's popularity rises sharply, to the delight of the Prime Minister's Anti-Monarchist advisers and his wife, Cherie.
Blair, however, does not share these sentiments. Despite not concurring with the Queen's course of action, he admires her and tells his wife that a Republican Britain is a ludicrous idea. Later on, he angrily denounces the anti-royal disdain of his Labour advisors and accuses Diana of having tried to destroy everything which the monarchy stands for. After days of building pressure, Blair calls the Queen at Balmoral and urgently recommends a course of action he believes is needed to retain (or regain) the public's confidence in the monarchy. These measures include attending a public funeral for Diana at Westminster Abbey, flying a Union Jack at half mast over Buckingham Palace (an unprecedented step in four centuries of royal protocol), and speaking to the nation about Diana's legacy in a live, televised address from the palace.
Blair's recommendations outrage the Queen's husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen Mother. Philip is also surprised that Elton John is asked to attend and sing a song (Candle in the Wind) in Diana's honour. They view such steps as an undignified surrender to public hysteria, created by the tabloids, that will eventually calm down when the public comes to its senses. The Queen seems more concerned about this and although she shares their feelings, she begins to have doubts as she closely follows the news coverage. Speaking with her mother, the Queen muses that there has been some shift in public values, that perhaps she should step aside and hand over the monarchy to the next generation. Her mother dismisses these ideas, however, saying that she is one of the greatest assets the monarchy has ever had, adding, "The real problem will come when you leave." The Queen Mother also reminds her daughter of the promise she made in Cape Town, South Africa, on April 21, 1947, her 21st birthday, in which she promised that her "whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong ..."
Later at Balmoral, Philip attempts to distract his grandsons from their mother's death by taking them deer stalking. While venturing out alone in her Land Rover, the Queen damages her vehicle while fording a river and has to call for assistance. While waiting, she weeps in frustration but then catches sight of the majestic Red Deer stag which her grandsons have been stalking. Hearing a distant gunshot, she shoos the animal away. Later that day, the Queen decides to carry out the recommendations of Blair. While preparing to leave for London, she is horrified to learn that the stag has been killed on a neighbouring estate, by a visiting stockbroker. She visits the estate where the stag is being dressed and expresses dismay at the amateurish way it was hunted.
In the film's climax, the Royal Family returns to London and inspect the floral tributes. The Queen also goes on live television to speak about Diana's life and legacy, even going so far as calling her "an exceptional and gifted human being." Two months later, Blair comes to the palace for a weekly meeting. The Queen has regained her popularity but believes she will never quite fully recover from "that week." She cautions Blair that one day he too will find that public opinion can rapidly turn against him. She declares, however, that times have changed and that the monarchy must "modernise." When Blair suggests that he can help with this, she responds, "Don't get ahead of yourself Prime Minister. Remember, I'm supposed to be the one advising you".
*It's a 2006 film, and I think it doesn't released here in Malaysia. But if it did released, it won't released in every cinema, probably just released in International Screening's categories. At first, I thought it was about Queen Elizabeth's story, you know, her backgorund, how and when she become the queen, what's her achievement, etc. But only after watching the movie, I reliased it was about how the queen cope with the death of Princess Diana, the same year when Tony Blair was elected as Prime Minister. It was the first time the British governed by Labour Party. While the queen is still being conservative, the people actually are changing. At first, the queen take Diana's death as something private, but Diana is not only for the royal family (as in the young princes' mother), but she is also for the people around the world. The queen doesn't see it this way, and thought that all these frenzy things (people mourn in front of Buckingham Palace, crying, grieving, waiting for the funeral, etc) will just go away as time goes by, hence making no statements regarding Diana's death or doing anything about the funeral. But what the queen doesn't think of was this makes people feel that the royal does not respect Diana (well, it seems so. Wouldn't you do something if your ex-daughther in-law who gave birth to your grandchildren had passed away? Does it mean that you shouldn't do anything as she's your ex-daughther in-law?). But, in the end, the queen did make something, like make amends for what the royals should have done earlier, for the sake of the monarchy. Times have changed, and the monarchy must "modernise". I cried a lot upon seeing the part of the death of Diana, as I trully adore and love her. And I felt sad when I heard the news in year 1997. It was my second sad news in a month. My grandpa had passed away in July, before the death of Princess Diana on 31st August. At that time, I was only 10 years old. I don't really know the real sad feeling. My grandpa's death was my first time in encountering a funeral, and I don't really know how the feeling it should be. I was young at that time. But now when I recalled back at that moments, I do get sad. It's a human cycle. People born, grow up, and die. No more, no less.
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