Magic Mike [Dig]

A typical Soderbergh movie, complete with a snazzy soundtrack and montages, that eschews expectations. Although this film is about a (male) stripper, it is not a movie about stripping. Consequently, surprisingly, it was not very sexual. And a lot of it is due to the way in which Soderbergh directed and edited his film, as well as the dance choreography employed which was less erotic and more athletic  Nonetheless, the usual stripper cliches are all present: a stripper with a heart of gold, the newcomer, the Girl/Boy, the debauchery associated with being a stripper, and of course the climax where protagonist has to decide on his/her future (usually in or out of the stripping biz). But the difference here is that the protagonist is not the newcomer, which provides a refreshing change in POV and  story-telling direction. Channing Tatum has improved as an actor, I will give him his dues. His screen time with Cody Horn was one of his better performances (and really, he should stick to rom-coms). Alex Pettyfer has got the rakish bad-boy look down pat. The two male leads relationship started off feeling organic but developed into something a bit off in the end (you can believe it, but it is hard to really understand why. "Why?!"). Olivia Munn in a bit role is always fun to watch. However, the star of the show is Matthew McConaughey who turned in the performance of his career. He was mesmerising as the owner of the club and you can tell from the way McConaughey portrayed him that there was so much more backstory that could be mined from him: that he had been around and weathered of kinds of storm, and he will always keep on standing and moving forward regardless. Thankfully, Soderbergh did not dwell on him or had him laid his soul, but instead he had McConaughey doing his thing and owning it. There's a definite Golden Globe nomination for McConaughey and I will not be surprised if he sneaked in an Oscar nom too.

Sole Pomodoro

A simple, nondescript, rustic Italian Osteria opposite Rex cinemas with a good old-fashion wood fire pizzeria oven (which to me is the main attraction). Well ventilated surroundings with generous air conditioning and overhead fans that made dinner time al fresco dining a pleasure in Singapore (other than the plentiful vehicular traffic). The meatballs were authentic: soft, slightly chewy minced meat served in a tomato/bolognaise sauce that could have been hotter. The 4 cheese pizza was excellent. Thin and chewy with a subtle hint of burnt wood over the crust. Though not good enough for me to eat all the crust (only Il Montino's pizzas in Pisa was that fantastic!), it is still much better than many other joints in Singapore. Price-wise it was average, but would have expected a tad less based on location and lack of full air-conditioning.

Verdict: Will definitely be back if nothing else but to try their other pizzas.

ParaNorman [Digital] [3D]

An excellent, intelligent, satirical allegory on humanity wrapped in kid-friendly stop-motion and a horror-comedic premise from the creators of "Coraline". It lacked the quirkiness and originality of the latter, but made up for its subtle intelligence and even more amazing animation. Children will like it for its superficiality; adults will get bored of they cannot appreciate the dark satire and social commentary that Chris Butler wove into the plot, dialogues and throwaways. The first act started promising with the first scene but then slowed and dragged; it seemed confused on what it really wanted to be. Fortunately, it found its footing in the second act and became thoroughly enjoyable by the midway point accumulating in an exciting climax. This is more than just a "cartoon" or a zombie flick. Then again, smart writers/authors have always used zombies (and the undeads) as a an allegory to human nature and behaviour. Possibly one of the best Zombie-comedies on par with "Shaun of the Dead" and "Zombieland". 3D not necessary. Stay to the end of credits!

To The Arctic [IMAX@Omni-Theatre]

Throwback to the past watching a movie at the Omni Theatre. Nonetheless this Meryl Streep narrated documentary is anything but not modern. Amazing technology yielded stunning close-up footages of the polar bears. But that was all to it to this 40mins docu. A series of gorgeous landscapes, panoramas and ultra-cute polar bears (with cameos by Walruses and Caribous) to sell the simple environmental message of Global Warming. Oh, and together with Meryl Streep's soothing narration and Pail MacCarthy's whimsical songs. There was one genuinely tension filled sequence at the end that was quite brilliant. Sadly, only shown in the Omni-Theatre so expect a lot of young children and the consequential persistent chatter throughout.

Penang Kitchen

Situated at the corner of relatively quite King's Arcade along Coronation Road, this humble Penang kitchen serves up some delicious and affordable Penang food. Their char kway teow (extra spicy) and char bee hoon were standouts. Though the former loses out in authenticity with the lack of pig skin and lard. The rojak was very authentic with a very strong prawn based sauce. The herbal duck soup was good too but the meat itself was too tough. The prawn mee was alright but not wow. No comments on the Assam laksa because I never really liked it in the first place, but the dining party agreed that it was alright. The chicken wings and orh hiang were both great starters, though the orh hiang was a tad skinny (but at least it was flavourful). Can skip desserts, IMO.

Jaan

The last time I ate at Jaan, André Chiang was the chef. Julian Royer has now taken over and his cooking is quite promising. Standouts from the 10-course surprise menu includes the mushroom tea with sabayon, organic egg with iberico ham, trumpet mushrooms and peas, black truffle ice cream (a side though), and the main strawberry and cardamon sorbet dessert. Many of the dishes had too many parts in them and it's disjointing to the palate. However, overall it was quite good and impressive but the menu itself lacked a common theme which would have raised the standard, and so ended up a tad schizophrenic. The service here could be better. Food should be served at the same time and held off if not all the guests are at the table; water should be topped up regularly and the type of water (Châteldon, my favourite sparkling water) is expected to be known; the wine menu should be re-offered after the first glass; serving tempo should be regular and equally paced; bread should be offered regularly until the customer officially declined any further.

Verdict: May come back once in a while, but only with the Feed at Raffles card.

Brave [Digital] [3D]

A classic, Disney Princess cartoon that skews more to the younger and female crowd than the classic Pixar animations. Nonetheless, it was, as expected, gorgeously landscaped and designed to mimic the Scottish highlands. Merida's fiery red curls were amazing! Typical plot about growing up and youth vs. wisdom. Right amount of cuteness to endear to the young ones, but not too childish to alienate the adults. Started out a tad slow but found its footing and rhythm in the second act, and ended with an exhilarating third act. Some genuinely funny and touching scenes that's not too strained. Voice acting was excellent from Andie McDowell and Emma Thompson, although the Scottish accent might take some getting used to. The Scottish score by Patrick Doyle was appropriate but not highly memorable. The short in the beginning was very good. A simple fairy tale that echoes a similar morality as the main feature and accompanied musically by the always excellent Michael Giacchino. Stay till the very end of the credits! 3D not necessary.