With a Hollywood status such as Mel Gibson's, why is the Braveheart warrior still considering cheesy flicks such as Payback. This huge star should have an overstuffed bank account and endless movie offers with his record of huge hits and yet he chooses to follow a mediocre action movie with a no-sense Payback. This overhyped picture co-starring Ling of Ally Mcbeal (Lucy Liu) is way too disappointing for a Mel Gibson film. A senseless flick with a terribly lame plot about an apparently cold-blooded man seeking revenge to reclaim the 70 000 bucks he once stole and was later stolen from. He bombs, car-crashes, kick-butts and punches throughout the show like a dysfunctional terminator on a rampage. Horrible black humour and tasteless physical comedy stains the trashy movie further. Such shows warrants not much of a review so I shall just end off with a word of caution - DANGER!


SHE'S ALL THAT

Think modern Cinderella in a 90s high school whom the prince (pun fully intended) falls for and ultimately gets. Freddie Prince Jr (I Still Know What You Did Last Summer) is Zach, the class president and school athlete whom every guy wants to be is every girl's dream, including the dorky girl in art class who is smarter and more normal than what everyone thinks. Taylor, the typical bitch who's popular, beautiful and Zach's girlfriend dumps him for a himbo from Tv (perfect match) and leaves the most popular guy in school more embarrassed than hurt. Zach's sidekick challenges him to a bet after he claims that he can 'make' a prom queen just be dating her for some time. The victim is gawky weirdo Laney (newcomer Rachael Leigh Cook), who turns out to be hotter than a cat on a hot tin roof. Sounds familiar? Well, if only it is.

This teen flick is Freddie Prince Jr's debut as a lead, following his fast-rising cast from the cult hit I Know What You Did Last Summer. Jennifer Love got her share of the big screen as did Ryan Phillippe (Studio 54) and Sarah Buffy Gellar (Simply Irresistible) who are incidentally leading the cast in an up-coming thriller entitled Cruel Intentions. Set to be the next big thing, Freddie will unfortunately need another flick to seriously launch a career. Despite a pretty female co-star with the physical likeness of Jodie Foster, Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing) Natalie Portman, the characters are too one-dimensional to draw any real interest. She's All That dwells entirely on stereotypes and has no fresh or original twists, making it barely watchable. So typical are the characters and its lame storyline one wonders if anyone cares for the union of the sensitive hunk and the demure babe. With such a genuine portrayal of a sincere stud, why did Zach go out with his slutty ex-girlfriend in the first place? This disappointing movie fails even to light a spark despite its anatomically-unflawed leads. A cry so far from Jennifer Love's Can't Hardly Wait the mere comparison does injustice to the latter.

All That's good for a few laughs, some skin, and a surprise cameo appearance. Other than that, one can safely give this a walkover. P.S: If you find the high school in the movie familiar, that is because it is the hang-out of Brenda, Brandon, Kelly and gang for 3 seasons of Beverly Hills 90210 :)


VERY BAD THINGS

After a surprising smash last summer, Cameron Diaz steps all the way down from Mary to Laura in Very Bad Things. This bazaar movie is about murder and cover-ups ie. more and more murders. A cross between Ewan McGregor's 1994 hit Shallow Grave and last year's Wild Things, but a whole lot worse. The sole reason for the existence of this production is probably a poor attempt for Peter Berg (Chicago Hope) at direction and writing. The plot is unpredictable nevertheless but lies on the borderline of being incoherent. Take for instance Laura, a wedding-obsessed girlfriend of Kyle who learns about the whole massacre a day before her wedding. He reaction to the murder frenzy? She smashes Christian Slater's head repeatedly minutes before walking down the aisle just so her groom who was fighting with him could be on time to exchange vows before the anticipating guests.

100 minutes of pure insanity and some wicked jokes. Christian Slater's recovery vehicle from drugs sinks despite a talented cast ensemble featuring Jeremy Piven from the sitcom Ellen and Ben Stiller-cum-Paul Reiser lookalike Jon Favreau (Swingers) , who guest starred in Friends for several episodes as the rich boyfriend of Monica. If you're in a mood for nonsense as trashy as Wild Things, take a risk. Afterall, seeing Diaz play a bitchy airhead with an attitude can be a real treat. The black humour and its in-your-face violence make this flick highly unrecommended for children and teens.


THE WATERBOY

Bobby Boucher is mama's (Kathy Bates of Misery and Titanic) only kin and filial son. A slow lad since birth, Bobby has been a waterboy as far as he can remember ie. he serves footballers healthy H2O whenever the school team's practising. One day, he learns to stand up for himself after being ridiculed and manages to convert years of suppressed anger into a fatal charging force, impressing the football coach enough to earn himself a place in the perenially losing school football team along with a chance of a college education. Becoming an unprecedented amazingly talented discovery, the waterboy soon becomes the team's prize-bull and brings the team into the finals against their long-time rival. Bobby brings pride and joy to the little town, his proud mama and of course, to himself.

This feel-good comedy is a smash hit in the US, raking in millions upon release and ultimately $160 million before resting. This gave Adam Sandler, the co-writer of the movie, a huge career boost following a prior sleeper-hit co-starring Drew Barrymore which increased his asking price to over $10 million. With the success of The Waterboy, Sandler joins the A-list actors alongside Brad Pitt and Bruce Willis.

Starting off with little steam, this comedy fires full-force halfway through throughout. The hilariously funny physical comedy sends you literally rocking in your seats time and time again, each beating the other. Definitely being of the rare movie experiences when I laughed out loud uncontrollably, The Waterboy is full of perks and original mood-lifters. Rest assure that this flick is flooded with laughs and not one of those movies whose best jokes are only those found in the trailers - think There's Something About Forrest Gump and you're somewhere close to what I'm getting at. Much credit goes to Kathy Bates whose portrayal as a overly possessive mother lies on the edge of being creepy, cheeks-toningly creepy. This versatile actress, nominated for her role in Primary Colors at the 71st Academy awards has already won an accolade at the recent Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards.

A no-brainer comedy but one at its finest, The Waterboy is a sure hit for all just looking for a good laugh and a good time, like 'my mama always say...'


RAVENOUS

"You are what you eat." This black comedy about mam-eating and cannibals coming to terms with cannibalism is morbid, gory and almost fun. The stars of 2 of the best pictures nominees at last year's Oscars join forces to tell a tale of human diet set in the mid 19th century during the American-Mexican war. A cross between Alive (the film about survivors of a plane crash resorting to eating corpses) and a b-rate vampire movie, Ravenous is at times grossly hilarious and at times plain nauseating.

Robert Carlyle, the lead stripper of The Full Monty, grows an insatiable taste for human meat after having a bite of it while being trapped in a cave with several others during a snow storm for 3 months. A old wives' tale about the inheritance of a man's strength and soul after one eats another proves through to this unfortunate bunch of soldiers are caught in a Scream ie. killing frenzy. Guy Pearce, the Australian actor who stole the scenes in L.A. Confidential, had a taste of a fellow mate's thigh while he was trapped in a hole is Carlyle's antagonist. He resists the temptation of preying on human flesh, tries to stop Carlyle and attempts in vain to convince others of the latter's ulterior motive.

The movie begins slow and almost tedious, picking up momentum after 30 minutes and churns an increasing level adrenalin towards the end. The climax and pre-climax-teasers are nothing short of trademark cheap thrills and bloodshed of any slasher-flick. Spurts, oozzes, flows and squirts... there's something for everyone. What makes Ravenous different from its kind is the uncommon setting for a gory black comedy as such. A perfect choice if you're up to there with all the ultra-sweet romances and lovey-dovey courtships saturation from date-movies. For those Scream viewers pining for David Arquette to die after surviving pics, you'll enjoy this one. Bon appetit!


PATCH ADAMS

Hunter 'Patch' Adams is the embodiment of a child's zest and love bundled in a middle-aged man. Radical, extraordinary and fun, Patch just doesn't seem to fit into a medical school of straight-faced professors, dead-serious students and a rigid system. He has developed a deep passion to become a doctor after connecting with several mental patients in a facility where he checked himself into after a suicide attempt. Learning to forget his own woes by caring for the needy, he aspires more than anyone to be able to do so the best way he knows how : by becoming a doctor whose form of prescription is more than medicine. Patch faces much disapproval from the authorities when his display of humour and compassion goes over-their-board and against the long-held traditional ideals and expectations of a doctor and his status. But of course, his sincerety and generosity touched the hearts of his peers, patients and a beautiful classmate turned-around by his amazing wealth of goodness.

The best line is probably the one that is delivered in the climactic scene where Patch stands trial before the medical board who is seriously considering barring him from graduation for his display of 'excessive happiness' despite an excellent academic record - a doctor may win or lose when treating the disease but he or she will always win when treating the patient. This meaningful feel-good movie based on the true story of Patch Adams is happy, humourous, sad, touching and heart-warming, typical of a Robin Williams project. In this film where the titular character can only be played by this actor, he brings this living tale set a few decades back to life and truth. The loving partner in What Dreams May Come, the wacky dad in Mrs Doubtfire, the youthful child in Hook, the troubled psychiatrist in Good Will Hunting, Robin encompasses these dramatic performances into this box-office hit of critical and commercial worth.