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Schedule for full-blown reviews…am not in the mood since I just churned out a half-baked anime review. Anyhoo, in a nutshell…

Rogue Assassin: A Waste of Jet Li and Devon Aoki
When you watch a Jet Li movie, you see it for the martial arts, ne? So why they heck has he been toting a gun 90% of the time? The story jumps. Like when the FBI were investigating something and one of them says, “Hey, you’re never going to believe this.” And we were left hanging as to what that was. It’s a shame because I appreciated the little twist they put in there…which they effectively ruined with another plot twist that I found totally unnecessary. I just left the theater scratching my head at the plot holes and the waste of bright talents.

Nancy Drew
Didn’t feel like Nancy Drew. I had read all the hardbound books as a kid and I’m not sure if it was because I was young and had looked up to Nancy Drew or the writers were confused about Nancy’s age…but see, it was like a teen movie that was trying hard to address mature issues. I was surprised to see Nancy looking so young. But she’s solving murder cases and mysteries regarding paternities, single motherhood and what have you. You can see this contrast in the way this 16-year-old Nancy, who lived in a time warp, where everyone in River Heights dressed and looked like they’re in the 50s, clashed with the people who are living in 21st century L.A. No, there’s no time traveling angle here, but I was almost led to believe that there is.

The Nancy Drew I remember was 18 years old, smart, has the makings of a sophisticated woman and only solved cases about secrets and theft. Of course, new books came out decades later but those didn’t really appeal to me (there were even crossovers that involved her and Frank Hardy, of the Hardy Boys, liplocking). I suppose they just wanted to update good ol’ Nancy. After all, what used to be marked rated R half a century ago are now marked “Parental Guidance Recommended.” Still, I miss the original Nancy.

Old Nancy and new Nancy have one thing in common, though: I don’t think they’d ever have decent love lives. A woman embarking on obsessive missions never does, so Ned Nickerson then is just about as decorative as Ned Nickerson now.