On PSP video

The Other Boleyn Girl. Two sisters become rivals over a king. Natalie Portman portrays Anne Boleyn, an ambitious, intelligent woman who had set her eyes on the king of England. Scarlett Johannsen is Anne's sister, Mary, who eventually becomes the king's mistress, earning Anne's wrath. Well, we all know what happened to Anne, but the film chose to gloss over those historical details and focussed instead on the sibling rivalry, brought about by their parents' (actually, just the father's) ambition that eventually led to their doom. Historically inaccurate, but very attractive film nevertheless. [5/5]

Memoirs of a Geisha. A film adaptation of the novel with the same title, the story revolves around the life of Sayuri (Zhang Ziyi), her being sold to a geisha house, and her ambition of becoming a geisha. Now, I'm also guilty of this ignorance, but geisha are not prostitutes or courtesans, but actually artists -- well-schooled in music and dance, and following a stringent set of rules and protocol. Rivetting performances from Ziyi, Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh -- all Chinese actresses portraying Japanese roles (interesting, but I'm not interested in the politics). Must read the book. [5/5]

Midnight Meat Train. Based on Clive Barker's short story. I thought it would be great, having read some of Barker's work, but I was sorely disappointed. I was expecting the usual hack-and-slash, blood-all-over scenes, but the actors came across as anemic. The photographer (protagonist?) wasn't very convincing; and even Vinny Jones (Juggernaut in the X-Men: The Last Stand) as the butcher was not that menacing. Or perhaps that's the intended effect? [2/5]