Faute! ~ ATP/WTA 2011 News!

Monte Carlo Masters  :

1^st Round Results -

ü  Jarko Nieminen beat Julian Benneteau         4-6, 6-3, 7-6(3)

ü  Richard Gasquet beat Denis Istomin  5-7, 6-3, 6-4

ü  JW Tsonga beat Juan Monaco          4-6, 6-3, 6-2

ü  Ivan Ljubicic beat Jeremy Chardy     6-1, 6-2

ü  Oliver Rochus beat Juan Chela         6-4, 5-7, 7-5

ü  Radek Stepanek beat Marcos Baghdatis       3-6, 6-1, 7-6(7)

ü  Florian Mayer beat Mikhail Youzhny  6-3, 2-6, 6-3

ü  Frederico Gil beat Sergiy Stakhovsky           6-1, 6-3

ü  Daniel Gimeno-Traver beat Santiago Giraldo            7-6(4), 7-5

ü  Tommy Robredo beat Ivan Dodig      6-4, 6-2

ü  Viktor Troicki beat Jean-Ren Lisnard 7-6(4), 6-1

ü  Ernests Gulbis beat Alexandr Dolgopolov      6-1, 6-4

ü  Milos Raonic beat Michael Llodra      6-3, 0-6, 6-0

ü  Robin Haase beat Nikolay Davydenko          7-5, 4-6, 6-4

ü  Nicolas Almagro beat Marcel Granollers       6-3, 6-3

ü  Marin Cilic beat Filippo Volandri           6-2, 6-1

ü  Philipp Kohlschreiber beat Andrey Golubev   5-7, 7-6(6), 6-4

ATP Ranking :

            No change in the top 10.

WTA Ranking:

            Victoria Azarenka moves to 5^th spot having won WTA Marbella.

Matches to watch today:

·         P Kohlschreiber vs [2] R Federer

·         E Gulbis  vs M Raonic

Note:  Guys I’m playing ATP Fantasy, its fun. Do take part & let me know your picks in the comment section.

" Innocence Dies Abby Doesn't "

U.N.Owen’s Rating :  4.0/5

Remakes of Foreign movies has really taken over Hollywood. First it was J-Horror movies like Ringu & Ju-On which got a westernized face-lift (pheew ugly!) & now Swedish movies. Based on the Swedish novel, Let The Right One In, the Swedish version was remade into its English version & released in 2010. Surprisingly, this was a hit & a well-deserved one.

Strange happenings leads detectives to wonder if there’s a ferocious creature on the loose. Meanwhile, Owen is  a lonely kid (played by Kodi-Smit Mcphee) who is raised by his mom & is a constant victim of a  certain group of bullies. They bully him to the extent of giving him bruises. One fine day, his life changes as he meets his new neighbor, Abby. Abby is queer, she always meets him when its dark, she never wears footwear & doesn’t accept food stuff from Owen. Despite her peculiar nature, Owen & Abby get along well. She even gives him advice to deal with the bullies. The strange deaths continue to occur & Abby turns out to be a vampire being helped by her “uncle” (he isn’t her uncle though!). Owen & Abby form such a strong bond of friendship that when the time is critical he saves her & when he is being bullied, she comes to his rescue.

This movie maybe a bit clichéd with all the “you are my best friend & I will always stand by your side” view. But  the way in which it was executed was perfect. The blend of vampire-horror genre with such a delicate topic was splendid to watch. Heck it even made me shed a tear. With vampire tales like Dracula & twilight, this one is not only different but refreshingly good.

Verdict : With a good plot, acting & awesome concept, this movie deserves to replace Dracula from its spot of “The best vampire movie”.

Deliciously Devious

Dexter (Season’s  1,2,3,4,5)

U.N.Owen’s Rating : 3.6/5

Dexter your favorite serial killer is back for another season (6^th season) & fans are hopeful of a better season. Including me! Let me recap a bit..

Season 1 introduced us to Dexter the “blood splatter guy” , his dirty-mouthed sister Deb, and several cop friends including Angel Batista, Maria LaGuerta & Vince Masuka. However, underneath the innocent visage lurks a deadly killer waiting to pounce on his next victim.. ..mostly serial killers. Dexter is the resident Robin Hood minus the “stealing from the poor” part. Season 1 covers the killings of the Ice-Truck killer who happens to  have a link between Dexter & his sister. No spoilers but season 1 is worth the watch (3.9/5)

In Season 2, one of Dexter’s cop friends suspects him of all the killings & gets closer to foiling his plans. Meanwhile, Dexter & Rita get closer & more attached. Overall, a bit of a downer compared to Season 1 & its thrilling finale. (3.0/5)

In Season 3, a new character enters & befriends Dexter. They bond  & their friendship grows. But to what extent can Dexter  trust his new “partner”? Deb as usual has boyfriend issues & is perennially crying. The “Skinner” is torturing his victims, taking a bit of their skin. Also giving clues to Dexter. I found this to be the worst season! (2.9/5)

Season 4 started slow but was very interesting keeping my attention. Lithgow has portrayed his character with a great amount of conviction. Deb’s life is at risk & Dexter wants revenge. Dexter shuffles his work, his “other work” & managing a family (having married Rita with a 3^rd baby on the way).The finale is truly gripping. The best season apart from season 1. (4.5/5)

Julia Stiles plays a victim of abuse & torture who witnesses one of Dexter’s crime. While initially suspicious, she realizes his true intentions. She needs his help to extract her revenge on those who abused her. Can Dexter help her without getting caught? Will she be a liability to his “work”? Like I said, I don’t want to spoil anything for you guys, so check it out.  Season 5 is ok, step back from the 4^th. (3.5/5)

Verdict: If you like “anti-hero” concepts, this one is for you, with a gory twist here & there. The acting is good for most parts. Hoping the next season will be like Season 4. Watch it!!!

Resident Evil 5 : RE + FPS = Blech!

Platform : PS3*

U.N.Owen’s Rating :  3.0/5

As I mentioned in the “About me” section, I love Horror & everything associated with it (no im not some deranged psycho!). So decided to review the closest thing nearest to horror, a video game. “Resident Evil 5” the latest installment from the Resi-series from Capcom was expected to be a grand hit in the series. After watching the E3 trailers I thought so too. Boo Capcom! RE5 is not like the others, hell its not even close to RE4 which was a mega success.

RE5 stars Chris Redfield (from RE1 days) & newbie Sheva Alomar (sounds like some soap!)  assigned to the task of looking into strange happenings in Africa. Mostly BSAA & BOW stuff again. Las plagas from RE4 are replaced by some black goo called Uroboros. Albert Wesker, the resident villain (pardon the pun), is back to wreak havoc again (snore!). The sad & annoying part of the game is the fact that RE5 feels more like a shooter & co-op than a survival horror game. Even the chainsaw majini’s don’t instill fear in me.

The Gold Edition is worth the buy though, with loads of extras & playable stages/side stories. The voicing, graphics & controls are good though. However, nothing beats RE4 & its controls. The puzzles are dumb mostly non-existent.

Verdict :  If you like Mercenaries & multi-player co-op with friends blowing zombie brains, then this is the game for you. Else chuck it or rent it.

*The game version I played. I know the game is available on XBOX 360 as well.