The REEL Addict 

S.P.L.: KILLZONE
If you need anything more than the promise of an awesome Donnie Yen vs. Sammo Hung climactic fight as an enticement to see this film, then this may not be the movie for you to begin with. Thankfully what comes before the fight is pretty good too. Continuing a prevalent trend in recent Asian cinema (epitomized in INFERNAL AFFAIRS, the inspiration for Scorsese’s THE DEPARTED), towards dark, gritty, sometimes nihilistic cop dramas, S.P.L.: KILLZONE is a solid police flick that wrangles with the moral grayness of police officers testing the limits of what should and shouldn’t be don’t to make sure justice is served. It works well enough that you don’t really mind that even though the film stars Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung (a surprisingly effective heavy) there isn’t really any fighting to the very end. On that note, damn is it a hell of an ending. Not just because of the wicked fight between the two pros, but because … well, you’ll see.

Overall rating: B+

PENELOPE
PENELOPE is a delightfully fluffy little fairy tale, one that – like ENCHANTED – gives everything a slightly modern twist, both in terms of setting and in its delicate and respecting reinvention of ancient curses, princesses, witches, Prince Charming, true love, and sidekicks. Sometimes its fluffiness becomes a detriment, making the film as sweet as cotton candy, but just about as substantial and filling. It doesn’t really matter though since it is a fairy tale in the end, and it has its heart and tone in the right place. As such there’s something refreshing and simple (but in no way patronizing or finger-wagging) about its moral, one that is accentuated with no end of great performances from Christina Ricci, Catherine O’Hara, Peter Dinklage, and James McAvoy.

Overall rating: B