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MOVIE: ROCKNROLLA

2009-04-06T10:18:00.005-04:00

Written and Directed by Guy Ritchie the overall movie follows Ritchie's distinct style and tone, which I can personally never grow tired of. It's witty, hilarious, mind-boggling coincidences and action packed.

ROCKNROLLA starts with the explanation of the booming London real estate market, and a gentleman named Lenny Cole. Lenny will help you speed up the process of approving a building for renovations that should take many years, and make it happen in months.

So, he takes up the offer a Russian developer, Uri Omovich, for 7 million Euros to help him make his stadium go through without any hitches. Unfortunately Uri has an accountant (Thandie Newton) who is interested in making money on the side. So she hires One Two (Gerard Butler) to steal the money from Uri mid-transaction. Now here's the twisted part... One Two works for Lenny.

If you still don't get it, it's like this: One Two owes Lenny money, and he has till such time to get that money. Lenny makes a deal with Uri. Uri is about to courier the money to Lenny, but One Two who has no idea the money is for Lenny, is stealing the money... to give to Lenny. Get it?

If you like Guy Ritchie's style (NOT Swept Away) you'll enjoy this one, but it doesn't beat out Snatch. I feel as though it was lacking in something, but you'll still laugh and cringe at some great jaw dropping twisted moments.

MOVIE: Dead Like Me

2009-03-23T12:55:00.003-04:00

Yup, you read it right. MOVIE. For you fans of Dead Like Me out there you can head on over to your Netflix "Instant View" and check out the movie, right now!

Dead Like Me picks up five years after the 2nd season ended. The group of reapers are standing outside of the burnt down waffle house. A limo driver calls out their names and drives them to a fancy hotel for breakfast. They find out Rube has been called to the light and their new leader is a slick businessman who doesn't care how the job gets done, as long as it's done.

So, out with the signature yellow Post-It's and in with the new palm pilots. For awhile it seems everyone is reaping on the benefits of their flashy new boss, but George. After a glitch in her palm pilot, that gave her the wrong time for the reap, she reconnects with her younger sister. In the end the crew realizes the importance of Rube and his views on how to do their job, while learning the balance of their job and living.

Meh. I liked where it was going with George's storyline, but with everyone else it fell kind of flat, and then completely ridiculous. Didn't feel it was true to the essence of the way the show was. And I HATE the new Daisy Adair (Sarah Wynter). The original Daisy (played by Laura Harris) was really dainty and very romantically dramatic. But the Sarah's version is nowhere close to it. She's loud, and drunk and a big mess and.. you just don't like her.

Again, George's storyline was interesting. I won't get too much into detail about it, but she connects with her younger sister again and helps the sister deal with her death and someone elses. But I am confused about the ending.

SPOILER ALERT!!!
The ending shows George waving to her sister and then asking the open-ended question "Who's going to be our new head reaper?" or something like. Then from the sky she gets rained by Post-It's. Does that mean George is the new leader?

It's worth checking out but dont' expect anything fantastic and jaw-droppingly good.

MOVIE: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

2009-03-09T16:12:00.002-04:00

Two strangers through mutual friends spend the whole night in various unfortunate, hilarious and awkward situations to hunt down the elusive and very popular band, Where's Bunny. Nick (Michael Cera) was dumped by Tris (Alexis Dziena) an egotistical man eater, and to win her back he's been making mixed CD's for her, which her friend Norah (Kat Dennings) has been listening to.

After his performance with his two gay bandmates, he meets Norah and finds out she's friends with his ex. Hoping that Nick would get out of his slump, his loyal friends encourage the two to hang out for the night in search of "Where's Bunny" secret location performance. The two come to discover they have a lot more in common aside from their deep passion for music.

First off, I absolutely LOVE movies that take place in short spans of time (events all take place in one night. Some great examples are Clerks I & II, Can't Hardly Wait, Collateral, Jurassic Park, Superbad... you get the picture.

Back to the movie... How can you NOT love any movie Michael Cera (Arrested Development, Superbad) is in? Although I do wonder how many more movies he can pull off the really innocent, awkward role in? Kat Dannings is fantastic as the bitter yet hopeful Norah who is trying to make her own place, and be her own character while being in her dad's shadow, the owner of a very famous music studio.

What I love besides the main characters are the friends. Caroline (Ari Graynor), Norah's best friend is a comedic genius as the drunk girl who gets lost in the city, while Nick's friends Thom (Aaron Yoo) and Dev (Rafi Gavron) aid this poor drunk girl to get home, so that their friend has a chance to get out of his slump. In one scene Caroline is passed out drunk in the back of their van, on their way to drop her off, and she comes unconscious. She can't remember where she is and immediately assumes she got kidnapped.

It's an absolutely fun movie to watch when you're in the mood for something funny and cute to watch. The soundtrack is absolutely fantastic, but Garden State is still by far my favorite.

TV: Tin Man

2009-03-09T13:49:00.001-04:00

Tin Man, originally aired on the SciFi Channel in 2007 as a 3 part mini series. It follows DG (Zooey Deschanel) as she is whisked off to the O.Z. (Outer Zone) by a... you guessed it, a tornado. But the story is not what you think. It's not so much a remake of the original Oz, but more of a spin-off.

The costumes, and overall tone of the movie is so entertaining and just enjoyable to watch. It's a more modern and mature view of things in the O.Z. For example the "Tin Man" is an ex-cop who spent much of his life imprisoned in a metallic suit watching a hologram of his wife and son being captured.

Zooey Deschanel is adorable as D.G., who goes through the O.Z. trying to figure out who the woman with the purple eyes in her dreams is and why the O.Z. looks so familiar. As her memory starts to slowly comes back she learns of her own family secret that could save the strangely familiar world from the grasp of the evil witch, who is looking for the green emerald.

Alan Cumming plays "Glitch", the former advisor to the Queen who had his brain removed when he refused to give up the plans for a very powerful machine. Neal McDonough plays the "Tin Man", an ex-cop out for revenge, who helps the group find their way while he finds the compassion for others again. Raoul Trujillo plays "Raw" a special group of species that is being hunted by the evil sorceress for their mystical powers of reading the emotions of whoever they are in contact with.

This is so entertaining and short. You won't waste any time getting through this series.

TV: American's Best Dance Crew

2009-03-06T14:47:00.002-05:00

Well slap me silly and call me an ass. They actually won. I really really thought that Beat Freaks would win.

Well CONGRATULATIONS to the boys! Totally deserving.

TV: America's Best Dance Crew

2009-02-27T10:56:00.004-05:00

It's down to the final two crews, and if I remember correctly I predicted that Beat Freaks is going to be one of the final teams. It's down to Beat Freaks and Quest. It's an all out boy vs. girls team.

I have been rooting for Beat Freaks since the beginning, only because they have been consistently good and you definitely don't see girls doing headspins in any type of dance performance. But at the same time Quest, the all boys group have been phenomenal throughout the show, and the judges have been giving them a REALLY REALLY hard time. JC (gag!) claims they do too much "posing" and not enough transition. Okay "bubblegum pop" boy... let's see you come up with YOUR OWN moves without using choreography. Anyway, I'd be really surprised if the boys end up winning.

The judges/producers really really want a girl team to win. Don't get me wrong... they would be totally deserving of the first group to be all girl, winning a dance crew contest. But I would hate for them to win because they were a pretty good girl dance crew versus a phenomenal girl dance crew, against Quest. Because to be quite honest, overall I find Quest to be so much more fun to watch, and so creative in their routines.

Last night's performance was.... bleh. The challenge was incorporate different styles of street into their routine. Beat Freaks was a flatliner. I felt they hardly fulfilled the challenge and even without the challenge their routine was just boring. There was no "wow factor" to it. If you were to go on last night's performance they shouldn't win. See for yourself:

MTV Shows

Quest on the other hand... WOW! Fell out of my chair a couple of times with the stuff they pulled. It was sharp and absolutely fun watching them have fun doing what they do. Can't say enough about them. They even received a standing ovation from the judges. Check it out:

MTV Shows

MOVIE: Burn After Reading

2009-02-20T12:11:00.002-05:00

Burn After Reading starts with Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) who works for the CIA on a non-threatening level. Osbourne Cox quits after they demote his position. When he tells his rigid uptight wife, Katie Cox (Tilda Swinton), she puts together divorce case without his knowledge. During this case she makes a copy of all his financial/personal records onto a disc to give to her attorney. The attorney's secretary loses the disc at a gym.

Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt) and Linda Litzke (Frances McDormand) are best friends who work at this gym. Frances is a dopey lovable, overly hyper questionably gay guy friend. Linda is an insecure plastic surgery obsessed lonely, chronic Internet dater. When they discover the disc, they find out it belongs to Osbourne and attempt to blackmail him. Things really don't turn out quite as planned, and through a series of miscommunication and unfortunate events help to unfold the story.

I honestly didn't know what to make of this story, except I was left just as confused as the writers were. The movie didn't know what it was. The movie thought it was a dark comedy, then a drama, then a romantic comedy, then a suspense thriller. It was bipolar is what it was.

If the Coen brothers had left it as specifically a drama or a specifically a comedy it would've been really great. But because you confuse the viewers by trying to throw everything into one big pot, it's just a big mesh and you can't distinguish one taste from the next, so you sacrifice a great potential.

And the ending. Oy! Do not even get me started. It was a half-ass ending of "We don't really know how to tie this up, so let's just kill everyone."

MOVIES: Mamma Mia

2009-02-16T12:35:00.002-05:00

Mamma Mia an ABBA themed musical, set the day before Sophie's wedding. She reads her mother's diary to hopefully find out who her father is. Instead she discovers that she has 3 possible fathers, so without her mother's knowledge or permission, she invites all 3 mysterious men, whom her mother hasn't seen in 20 years.

I love musicals. Fantastic examples are Chicago, Moulin Rouge, Grease, Newsies, etc. (not listed in any particular order) If it's done right it's just a really big music video. The dancing and songs especially are what I love about this genre. You are already emotionally involved in the story and music always helps to amplify that emotion the character is conveying.

Mamma Mia was... corny, at best. The transitions of acting to singing just didn't come off well. The scenes were choppy and the songs and dancing weren't really well done. No doubt that Meryl Streep has a good voice, but she's going in her 50's(?) skipping and jumping around in an overall. I like her better as Miranda Priestley in Devil Wears Prada.

The whole movie came off amateur. The songs went on a bit too long, or maybe that's because it just wasn't really that enjoyable. Muriel's Wedding was a better ABBA themed musical then this. I actually fast forwarded through the movie only to discover a very predictable ending.

Again I don't know if this movie is just bad, or if it was a bad translation to film like Rent was. (God, that one was just as awful, if not more, because I loved the Broadway version so much.)

MOVIE: Coraline

2009-02-09T16:25:00.002-05:00

Coraline is based on the books by Neil Gaiman.

Coraline Jones moves to a new house and on top of feeling sad and alone from the move, her parents ignore her completely. They are both writers and incredibly involved with their work, and the mother especially is annoyed everytime Coraline is in her presence. Upon exploring the house, she comes across a door that has been wallpapered over. After pestering her mother to help her find a key, they find one, with a button as a handle. With her mother present, they open it, only to find that it's a brick wall.

During the night she is awoken from her sleep and sees little white mice leading her to the door. This time it leads to a tunnel. On the other side is the exact opposite of her mother... with buttons as eyes. At first all seems to be an ideal world.

I'm a HUGE fan of Nightmare Before Christmas, so without a second thought I went to see this one. (FYI: It seems a lot of people are confusing this little fact that Tim Burton DID NOT direct Nightmare Before Christmas. He wrote and produced it.)

I was kinda disappointed with this one. There wasn't much else to the story. It wasn't a story where it had a beginning, middle and end. We dont' know how that door got there. We don't know why the evil woman on the other side captures little children. We just know she's there and Coraline went through it and defeated the evil woman.

The story wasn't really captivating enough for me, which is a shame because the animation was simply fantastic.

TV: The Wire

2009-02-09T15:14:00.004-05:00

For the handful that have actually been reading my blog, I've been absent because I've been OBSESSED with The Wire. It's 5 seasons centered around the Baltimore, Maryland criminal, judicial and media system.

The overall writing and events are so raw, compared to the filtered crime shows on the network, such as Law and Order, or CSI. You get to see the detectives working the case getting personal in certain situations or just joking around amongst the guys.

Season 1: The Streets
Probably my favorite season, it revolves around the drug dealings on the street. You see the interaction of business being handled from the corners where the transactions take place. The market depends on the addicts staying addicted to the product. Avon Barksdale leads the most prominent gang in Baltimore and follows an old school code and takes his business seriously. The group of investigators trailing to capture Avon involves Jimmy McNulty, a black sheep in the police who constantly breaks rules and burns bridges by not following the chain of command. Through the investigation you see the frustration as the unit doing the investigation is constantly challenged with obstacles that the Police Commissioner and the justice system puts out, as well as trying to be one step ahead of the gang, by putting wire taps on the pay phones being used.

Season 2: The Docks
They step away from the streets and focus on the blue collar section of Baltimore. A family works cohesively to steal shipments coming in from a certain ship, overseas. The stolen products range from electronics to various items that could be sold for profits. But the case takes an interest when a cargo arrives and a secret compartment of dead girls is discovered. McNulty who was demoted to patrol the docks joins his old team to help solve the case, which turns out to be the importing of the drugs to sell to the dealers for the streets.

Season 3: The Streets Part 2
We focus back on Avon's crew, but this time we see the dynamics higher up in the food chain. The story of seeing the pressure between Avon and his second in command, Stringer Bell, is all too familiar. You have two partners in a business that don't see eye to eye anymore. Stringer, a business man at heart, attends business classes at the local community college, and tries to apply real world economics into the street business. Avon, struggles with his partner's idea of trying to apply them to a business that isn't conventional. Stringer's investments with the political circle leads you into a world of dirty politics, where money does make the world go round. Avon would rather use the old and ancient form of making the world go round: guns and power.

Season 4: School System
We follow 4 kids entering a school system where the education system is in a deficit of $54 million dollars. The school's main concern is to meet the minimum requirements of the state to receive the funding, meaning, each student really only has to show up to school at least once a month. ONCE A MONTH! After that it doesn't matter whether these kids pass the school, they usually will advance to the class most appropriate to their age group, known as "social promotion". Test scores are bumped and adjusted to meet the requirements. The relationships between the frustrated faculty who do want to make a change, and the kids who have no other choice but to work the streets is heartbreaking.

Season 5: Media
We all know the media is a powerful tool. It controls the world. They choose what you see, and what you don't, how you should feel, etc. This season parallels with an investigation where McNulty makes up a serial murder case, to divert funding to those that need it, when the new mayor backs out on his promise to focus on crime prevention and instead routes the money towards the education debt. We follow one reporter who starts out by embellishing quotes, and then all out making up quotes, which eventually leads to making up stories. When his editor discovers this and shares it with his editors, the reporter is instead rewarded because his stories make up the front page. We get to see why something makes the front cover, and why something gets pushed back further into the paper. We see why some stories get more coverage and why others are cut down.

I don't feel I did any justice explaining the show, but it's definitely high on my recommendation list. I'm not going to lie and say that this show is just as fun to watch then it is to talk about... it does move along slow. But much like the real world, the stories are there. It's subtle and hidden beneath another story. Everything ties in together, and each character is going to have you hate them and love them from minute to minute. Then there are the other characters you'll be pleasantly surprised you'll be rooting for.

TV: America's Best Dance Crew

2009-01-23T09:55:00.003-05:00

Week2: Workout
Thursdays @ 10pm on MTV

This week the challenges were Workout. Each dance team had to incorporate some form of workout move into their routine. I won't get into a detailed account like I did the previous post, but some teams seemed repetitious while others really surprised me. You can check out the each team's performance here, courtesy of MTV.

Quest started the show with their routine, "kickboxing". I really thought these theme was obvious one for them, and didn't expect to be blown away by their performance as I was. You just had absolute fun watching them perform. They used the theme of "video game fighting". Among the 7 crewmembers, 3 were dressed in red, and 3 in blue, while 1 stood in the middle acting as referee. I can't do it justice explaining so please check it out.

Now as for the judges... especially Lil' Mama and JC (gag)... WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?!?!??! They called Quests's performance mediocre and unimpressive. In fact JC said it was too "Tae-bo" for his taste, and that it wasn't choreographed enough. My only guess is he was googling himself to see how much unpopular he's been getting instead of paying attention to the show.

Worst off was that Lil' Mama agreed with him. Rightfully the audience booed them and their so called judgement. Shane West, probably the ONLY opinion that really matters, since he's an actual choreographer, retaliated by asking the two "are we watching the same show?" He was just as blown away as the rest of the audience and crediting them for many a fancy footwork and innovative moves.

If the judges continue to butcher the judging, this show is going to have to go on my axe list.

TV: America's Best Dance Crew 3

2009-01-16T15:30:00.003-05:00

Season 3 • Thursdays @ 10pm on MTV

I caught the first season, where Jabbawockeez, came off as the well-deserving contenders. Season one was really hot and set the stage as to what the future contestants should live up. Unfortunately season 2 didn't really catch my attention and I found it uninteresting and not as entertaining to watch.

Season 3 kicks off with 9 crews and this season looks as if it might be a repeat of season 1... in a very good way. The edginess is back and the crews look really hot. Here's the rundown on each crew:

Beat Freaks: An all female group that I had doubts about, simply because most female groups are stereotypical in that they perform a dance routine (like in cheerleading). There's nothing wrong with just a simple dance routine but compared to the breakdancing, pop and locking, drill, etc. it really doesn't stand out all that much. But Beat Freaks really really really blew everyone away, and even received a standing ovation from the judges. They pulled off breakdance moves that are rarely seen with girls. They're one of two of my favorites and I seriously think they have a chance at making it in the top 3.
Boxcuttuhz: Lead by Lando, who assembled this team while teaching dance classes on the side throughout the country, they came on to the stage with little stage presence. I felt that they had really great moves, and there wasn't really anything horrible about them, but there was still something lacking. Lydia, the only female in the crew did a great job of keeping up with the crew with 6 other guys.
Dynamic Edition: Uh... They're cloggers, from the midwest. I really don't want to discriminate against them or clogging, but I put them with the same category with girl dance teams. There really isn't much to them, and you can only clog your way through the competition so far.
Fly Khicks: All girl dance team, that fits the stereotype I mentioned in the post with the first team. They're strictly just dance that does the occasional cartwheel and backflip while throwing in random sexy butt shaking moves. Oh, and don't forget the scantily dressed girls. *Yawn. Nothing we haven't seen before.
GOP Dance: Out of Puerto Rico they made it to the states for this competition. Unfortunately they were the first to be eliminated. I didn't think they were worthy of being the first team designated as the losers, but what do I know right? They were okay. They had some fancy movies, but for the most party they just seemed disorganized. Felt like they were saying, "Okay! We have 3 minutes to show what we have so let's squeeze everything we know into those 3 minutes, without any real routine."
Quest: My absolute favorite contender for this season. Probably because I've seen one of their dancers "Hok" from Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance." This guy alone is phenomenal, but you put him on a crew and you are blown away by their creativity and insane style. Can't wait to see what's to come from them for the rest of the season, and would love a dance off with them and Jabbawockeez.
Ringmasters: Straight out of Brooklyn these guys have a different style of dance, flexing and contorting their bodies in ways that should not be possible. One guy twisted his arm a full 360! I'm more grossed out rather than impressed though. They're style is too wild and disorganized looking.
Strikers All Stars: Dance crew specializing in stepping, they all met on their college campus and came together. Stepping is impressive but it gets a little repetitive for me after awhile. Unless they can make up for it with creativity they're gonna make it about halfway.
Team Millenia: I put them on the same tier as Fly Khicks. Obviously they were good enough to make it on the show but compared to the likings of Ringmasters or Quest, they really don't stand a chance, unless they have a secret weapon. Really great dance moves, but nothing to put them apart. Between them and Fly Khicks, I'd go for Team Millenia. You can't win with sex appeal when it's up against hard hitting, street style dance moves.

You can check out the team performances here via MTV.

MOVIE: Lars and the Real Girl

2009-01-13T13:46:00.003-05:00

Lars is 27 years old and works a 9 to 5 job while he shares a cubicle. He goes home to the garage of his brother and sister-in-law's house. He doesn't have any friends. He hates being touched.

One day he decides to buy a lifesize sex toy and calls her Bianca. He doesn't use Bianca for the purposes as intended by the website. Instead he uses her as a companion. Toting her around everywhere on their dates, shopping, parties, etc. Their relationship grows and progresses and helps Lars to be more social and not so introverted.

Oddly enough the entire town comes together and helps to welcome Bianca. When Bianca becomes more independent they invite her to the hospital to read to the children. She goes out shopping with the girls.

By any means this movie should've been a comedy, or the new genre of "dramedy" (drama + comedy = dramedy). Look at the cover. It even suggests that there's a hint of comedy or dark humor in there. I've never been so depressed more in my life. Scratch that... I was more depressed watching Sideways, but you get the connection.

Watching Lars hit a delusional state by finding companionship in this sex doll was sad... in a really depressing pathetic way. Ryan Gosling's performance didn't help either. He just came off as a creepy delusional lonely guy, when he should've came off simply the lonely guy, you feel really bad for, for not having anyone in his life, and being abandoned by his older brother, when their father died. How do you screw that up?

I just couldn't connect to this movie. First I was sympathetic towards Lars, even when he got the doll, and the psychiatrist suggested to his family they play along, until he figures things out. But after awhile, it just got ridiculous and not at all enjoyable to watch.

Ryan Gosling can be placed in the large pool of actors/actresses who have the acting range of a teaspoon. He plays the same cocky, awkward, bored looking character almost everytime.

MOVIES: Tropic Thunder

2009-01-12T12:30:00.005-05:00

Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) is an A-List actor on his way to becoming on the D-List.

Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) is a comedic actor making fart movies, playing all of the characters in the movie in a fat suit.

Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.) is an award winning method actor known for fully involving himself into each character he is casted in. 'Nuff said.

All three were actors were hired to play as a unit of soldiers based on the book pretty much Saving Private Ryan. But when the antics of the actors caused the movie to be behind production by a month (3 days into shooting) and over budget $100 million, the Director tries to get them to be more in character by dropping them off in the middle of the woods and scaring them with special effects to act more like soldiers.

Something goes horribly wrong and Tugg and his actor friends are caught by a gang of drug dealers and they still thing it's part of the movie.

By all means this movie should've been fucking hilarious. Like I should be rolling on the floor laughing, busting a gut. There were moments that were funny, and they should've used that as a momentum to lead up to something funnier than the one before, but it was a stop and go comedy. You'd chuckle here, then wait for it... wait for it... Chuckle. Nothing was absolutely hilarious. The previews were better than the movie in it's entirety.

However, there are only two things about this movie that are absolutely worth seeing. First is the opening sequence. They're mock previews and upcoming trailers of the actors in Tropic Thunder. Brilliant. Then there's the closing scene of Tom Cruise, as the Jewish investor, doing his ghetto money dance. 'Nuff said.

MOVIE: Oldboy

2009-01-12T10:52:00.007-05:00

How am I going to explain this one...?

Based on the reviews, this is going to be one of those films that you're either going to absolutely love, or absolutely hate.

Dae-Su Oh was kidnapped and held captive for 15 years without knowing a clue as to why or who would do this to him. He lived for 15 years in a hotel room with nothing but a television and fried dumplings for meals. He was occasionally gassed to be knocked unconscious not knowing what was being done or why. He was however framed for the murder of his wife. Samples of his DNA and fingerprints were collected from his cell and then planted at the scene of the crime. His daughter survived.

Just as he was captured randomly, he was released randomly one day. Upon receiving a phone and a wallet from a random beggar, he meets a woman sushi chef, Mi-Do, and then receives a call from his captor stating he had 5 days to find out the reason why he was held captive, where he then promises to commit suicide if Dae-Su completes the challenge.

For the next 5 days, Mi-Do helps him uncover the disturbing secret of why her love, Dae-Su was kidnapped. An honest and immature mistake made back in high school.

First off, the style of the movie came off a bit odd to me, and upon some research discovered it was originally a manga, and then it made perfect sense. The movie is part of a three part series originally done in a Japanese manga. This is the second installment of the revenge themed series.

Director Chan-Wook Park delivers a disturbing but addicting film. You are deeply bothered by the underlying message of the film but are still drawn to each character, who are all dynamic and fucked up. I can't rave enough about the storyline. It's so original and captivating and haunting and pulls on all of your emotions. By the end of it you are left just as emotionally exhuasted as Dae-Su and anguished upon the final reveal which can never be replicated. It puts the Sixth Sense's ending to shame.

Beyond the sexuality and violence and sometimes dark humored moments, this film defies what makes a great film. This movie ironically carries the perfect formula for what makes a great film that will have you raving about it time after time. The camerawork, the direction, the pace, the characters, etc. In every aspect of it, this was absolute work of art.

The direction was a great pace. You were left at the edge of your seat waiting for the secret to fold out, but absolutely involved in each character wondering what will come of them next. Even the villainous Woo-Jin Lee, responsible for the imprisonment of Dae-su for 15 years. I have to say when you find out why Woo-Jin hired to have Dae-Su kidnapped, you can't help but to think, "Over-react much?" But I suppose you when you grow up to have money and power at your disposal, eccentricity follows.

Korean style of film is very different than American film. As are most movies done outside of the US. There aren't restrictions or "safety nets" set up on the topics or scenes of what can be in the movie. It's pretty much free reign. So it can be understood when some of the reviewers can't enjoy a foreign film when a certain topic/direction is introduced into a movie, that has never seen the light of day in American theaters. As long as you can watch this movie with an open mind and let go of the boundaries of where a movie can/should go, then you can definitely appreciate this film for what it is, and hopefully others. You'd be surprised at how safe and "G-Rated" American films are compared to outside of the box.

I'm hoping the rumors that Steven Spielberg and Will Smith are attempting the remake are false. I have no idea how they're going to pull this one off and I can't think of two more wrong people for this project. IF this were to be redone on American soil it needs to be done by Guy Ritchie/Richie (can't remember spelling, and too lazy to look up), Robert Rodriguez (based on works done in Sin City) and... David Fincher.

To All You Sports Fans:

2009-01-07T13:33:00.002-05:00

I got into football last year while dating someone. I figured I used to be kind of a jock, why not learn to understand the most popular sport in this country? I was hooked. Then of course it was narrowed down to picking which team to root for. Like counselors/mentors, my fellow male co-workers each rounded up a list that was acceptable to say I was rooting for. Well, it didn't matter... being a former New Yorker, it was going to be the Giants.

What a year that was. They weren't doing so well previously and by some magic turnaround, they made it into the play offs in I don't know how long, and then by miracle of miracles... won the goddamn Super Bowl! I was deemed the Giants lucky charm by all fellow fans. So now I've converted to being a die hard fan.

Enough about that. My now ex was and is a die hard Jets fan (snicker). With the latest events surrounding the ever so famous Favre and his media circus he conducts... it's no surprise he ran his mouth better than he ran the game. When he first announced he was joining the Jets, my ex proudly stated that this would change the team. I stated that yes he is a great quarterback, but one man cannot change the dynamics of a team that much. They wouldn't make it into the play-offs. With bated breath I watched their final game. I'll admit, I thought they stood a chance.

Now what? After a humiliating season (most interceptions in one season), Favre is yet again warming up to do his media dance. I imagine him in a field of daisies plucking petals out going "Should I retire... Should I not retire... Should I retire..." He should've retired last year when he was with the Packers. He made it into the play-offs with a great team. His actions reflect the character of someone with low self-esteem trying to prove himself and everyone that he's fantastic. Dude... we know. Get over it.

This article hilariously accounts what is going on in dear old Favre's career as well as what to expect. Great read.

MOVIE: Day the Earth Stood Still

2008-12-26T19:17:00.004-05:00

I reluctantly saw this one on Christmas. I was with mom and her boyfriend and kinda felt bad. I hardly see them and they were begging to see Valkyrie but I had already promised to see that with someone else. Feeling cornered I very reluctantly agreed to see emotionless Keanu Reeves act as an alien trying to teach us a lesson.

I gotta say... I was WILDLY surprised at how much I enjoyed this. I sat in the theater being a hardcore fan of the original and was expecting a bomb, but at the very least I still remained open-minded, which is how you should view this movie if you want to enjoy it. The graphics are phenomenal, even though I thought GORT was a little over the top.

The storyline changed quite a bit. The general tone of the movie was very different as well, but it was very fitting for something that would be likely happen today. When Klatu mysteriously arrives he is welcomed with scientists in hazmat suits, tanks, cops, guns pointed at him, helicopters, etc. Basically the movie sends the message that we're trigger happy Americans who want to shoot down anything that threatens it may be far more superior than we are.

This movie is worth checking out. The acting isn't spectacular but it isn't horrible. Who else would you cast to play an emotionless alien who doesn't understand the concept of human feelings. You're basically watching Neo, from Matrix, in a different environment and script. So if you have an interest in seeing this please go with an open-mind. If you're going in expecting an homage to the original you will be disappointed. This is more of an update on how it would spin if it were modern.

MUSIC: "Chasing Pavements" -Adele

2008-12-23T14:39:00.000-05:00

People have dubbed her to be the next Amy Winehouse, but I think she's better. Her voice is fantastic with the husky old style jazz voice. The video is beyond anything creative/ingenious I've ever seen.

Can't make up my mind on which I'm more blown away by... the video or the song. Love both equally but together they make one powerful collaboration.

Enjoy!

Adele - New Music - More Music Videos

COMIC: Jeff Dunham

2008-12-18T12:25:00.003-05:00

Jeff Dunham is a ventriloquist. Jeff Dunham is a comedian. Put the two together and you get one hell of a show.

He works with ventriloquist dummies with 5 very different personalities. My favorite is Peanut. The purple headed, green haired looking muppet. He's the annoying sibling everyone has had. But by the end you can't help but to cave in and keel over from laughing so hard, because the stuff they do is so ridiculous. Gets in your face about everything and pesters you with the "song that will never end", but extremely lovable.

Surprisingly his jokes aren't all that "edgy", and not in a bad way. And I say that it's surprising simply because these days stand-up comedians have to be talking of such issues that are more adult related, like Chris Rock or Richard Pryor. The fact that he can tell these jokes without having to go extreme is a talent in itself.

Jeff Dunham brings a refreshing presence to the act. His characters are well put together, as is his interaction with his characters, like Achmed for example. The suicide bomber who failed out of school because he was "practicing" for his test.

Random FYI: I HATE Dane Cook. He's SOOOO not funny. Takes freaking forever to deliver the punchline. That's all. Just wanted to share.

:D

Rumors/News: Batman's Ugly Rumors

2008-12-18T09:35:00.002-05:00

There's an ugly rumor going on the net right now that Eddie Murphy has been cast as the Riddler, in the sequel to the Dark Knight. Ewwwwwwwwww and no no no no no no no no! The rumor was posted by the Sun, and the whole article reads as either really bad journalism or great hoax.

They ended the article with, "Everyone’s excited to see what he does as the Riddler." Really?!? Who?!? The 5-year old's who loved Daddy Day Care?

Word is that Johnny Depp (Surprised? I'm not) is a strong candidate to being the Riddler. I'm afraid he's gonna bring another Jack Sparrow to the screen and then it's just a waste. I'm going with my original submission that I think Jude Law would be fantastic.

Another rumor is Shia Labeof, which has also been discounted as being just a rumor. I like Shia, but I'm not too crazy with him as Robin. Actually I have no idea who a good Robin would be. I'm thinking someone sliiiiightly younger than Shia. Shia seems a bit too old for the role.

And the last rumor set by the Sun, is Rachel Weisz... as Catwoman. Meh. Hoping this one is a rumor too. I voted for Jennifer Connelly or Charlize Theron even. Maybe even Milla Jovovich.

Video: Kingdom Hearts 3

2008-12-11T15:39:00.003-05:00

I'm hoping that this segment of the trilogy will be a lot better than KH2. I feel the developers made a big mistake making the version that came out on the GameBoy a prerequisite to play, in order to understand KH2. It was a bloody nightmare! I had to have my sister on standby to understand what was going on, and even then I'm left with a lot of questions.

My other complain with KH2 was the fact that there really wasn't a lot of action. I wanna say 40% of the time was spent reading.

Upon viewing the trailer for KH3, it seems as though they're taking a different direction. Rumor's are that it's Riku's side of the story. But the graphics and artwork are a lot darker (go figure) and very true to the Final Fantasy style. The only thing that throws it off is the Disney side. Hahaha. You'll see what I by the end of this trailer. Fair warning: It is about 6 minutes long, but very very worth it, I promise:

Market Appeal

2008-12-11T11:56:00.003-05:00

I had an interesting conversation with a coworker at job2. She was excitedly telling me she bought a new 8MP digital camera for $300. When I scowled at her news she asked why. I politely informed her she doesn't need 8MP, unless she's a professional photography.

Yes it's true when taking photos, the more pixels you have the better the quality. But the average point and shoot camera user doesn't need that amount. What're you going to do with all those extra pixels?

I have a 2MP camera. (I never got around to updating my camera.) With 2MP the highest quality print I can print is roughly a 5"x7" print. 8MP will get you bigger than a movie poster print. What average person actually prints their photos from the photo machine, or at home for that matter at that big of a capacity? And so, the manufacturing companies have made profits on the idea that more is better. In reality, it's really unnecessary, further proving that we're a country that likes being overly indulgent.

My next case is the HDTV's. 720p vs 1080p. I've gotten into countless debates with people about this. It's the same concept as the digital cameras. Getting a 32" HDTV with 1080p is POINTLESS. You will never see the difference. NEVER. Just because you have more pixels in a smaller screen doesn't mean it'll increase the quality of the picture. If anything it should make it more fuzzy because there's too much for the screen to handle. But it does sound cooler saying, "I have a 32" HDTV with 1080p", right?

To drive the point even further home, I had a conversation with an honest salesperson (hard to believe, I know) one time, and he even said that regular television won't catch up to the 1080p standard until years later. The only way you'd be able to actually SEE the quality of 1080p is on Blu-Ray.

I stumbled across this article which gives really informative easy-to-understand concepts on the whole HDTV thing. As for the digital camera thing, there really isn't much you can do. These days the market only sells what's the highest available. But given the option you should spring for the clearance items of the lowest #MP camera available.

TV: Whale Wars

2008-12-08T15:50:00.007-05:00

Animal Planet on Fridays @ 9pm

Attempting to kill time I went through my ON Demand and stumbled upon this show.

It's about Paul Watson and his staff aboard the ship the Sea Shepherd. Aboard the ship they circle Antarctica to chase off the Japanese whale hunters. Paul Watson is the co-founder to Greenpeace, and was later voted out for being too aggressive in his fight against whaling, poaching, shark finning and habitat destruction.

For several years, Watson's group of staff and volunteers have engaged in a campaign almost every winter to find and stop Japanese ships that hunt whales in the name of research, attempting to stop them by any non-violent means necessary. The eclectic group — labeled activists, heroes and/or eco-pirates — leave port in Melbourne, Australia for a two-month campaign that is dangerous, controversial and has garnered international media attention. Sea Shepherd's dedicated, international crew have spent their holiday the last several years and risked their lives at the bottom of the Earth to save whales. -Source

This show is really compelling. Compelling enough that my sister and I looked at each other with the opening sequence and contemplated going vegetarian, after seeing the inhumane manner in which these majestic creatures are being slaughtered for monetary... err.. "scientific" purposes.

The Japanese have used the loophole that whales can be hunted under the restrictions that only a certain number are killed for the purposes of scientific research. Each of their ships have "RESEARCH" painted on the side as to make it okay. As they kill them they hold up signs for the helicopters that say things like "We are collecting samples for DNA". Really? You need the whole body for DNA?

Okay, enough with the ranting, back to the show.

My only complaint about the crew is that well... they're not the best decision makers in the world. It's frustrating to watch them stand around and have the passion to do what they want, but not really have the structure or guidance. For example:

The captain is nuts, and the boat is filled with the worst decision makers... EVER. I'll give him credit for being gutsy and going out and doing what he does but he takes the term of standing what he believes in to the core. They find the location of a whale hunting ship and after several attempts to make contact with them, he comes up with the plan to send two of his crew members aboard the ship so they can be held captive, then he can call the media and say the Japanese ship has two of his crew members kidnapped. Great marketing strategy but otherwise extremely risky.

It did work. But the two guys were held on the Japanese ship for about 2½ days. During those days negotiations reached diplomatic proportions. The government got involved when an agreement couldn't be made on how to return the hostages. The Australian Coast Guard stepped in to pick up the hostages and return them to their home ship. The captain decides to get some shut-eye because he's been up for 56 hours.

While he's asleep they see in the horizon the Japanese ship. They feel it's taunting them and vote whether they should make an attack. A crew member advises they just got done negotiating to get their fellow crew members back, to make an attack against them before the dropoff would be counter-productive. They vote against her, and she suggests they ask the captain what to do. The captain says it's up to the first mate, and goes back to the sleep. The attack goes into action.

They send their little boat after the ship, and the helicopter hovers over keeping watch. He notices they are going in the opposite direction. He lets the ship know, and they try getting radio contact. No response. After repeatedly trying to get their attention the helicopter has no choice but to turn back. The boat is missing for about 2 hours. The first mate doesn't wake up the captain. The communications officer comes in the midst of all this and organizes a search and rescue, also suggesting they call the coast guard. The first mate is furious that he even organized such a thing without going through the chain of command.

The boat does come back. They forgot they had the SAT phone. SERIOUSLY?!?!? Anyway the communications officer gets demoted in the morning when the captain hears what happened.

The whole feel of this operation feels like a bunch of college students who are naively pursuing a cause. Great, but it just doesn't feel well thought out most of the time.

Movie: Collateral

2008-12-04T09:47:00.006-05:00

I swear it was purely coincidental that I got another Netflix movie with Tom Cruise in it. Or maybe I went through one of my crazy movie binges and picked all the movies with a certain actor I was thinking of at that time.

Anyway this move was pretty good. I liked going through it.

My friend and I agreed that it was impossible to get over the image of Tom Cruise in gray hair. It just seemed... too MUCH like a character. Maybe it was the "cheap" gray suit. Something about his costume design just wasn't well thought out and we couldn't figure it out. Usually they will do it on purpose to portray some characterization, but in this case it just seemed like a bad wardrobe job.

This is the type of action movie I usually end up cringing at in the end. You have Jamie Foxx who is a meek cab driver throughout the entire movie, and when he finds out the woman he has a possible love interest in is next on the hitlist, he magically becomes a great action hero. I hate when they go realistic for three-quarters of the movie and then get all fantasy for the last quarter. Throws me off.

I also feel like there were chunks of this movie missing. They didn't put much thought into the script at all. Vincent (assassin, played by Tom Cruise) has this complex job description and they don't really go into depth about him at all. I personally would like to know how he started getting into this line of work, and why? Nevermind the why, that's obvious. Father issues.

To wrap it up, this movie was alright. Not great, and not bad.

Movie: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

2008-12-03T15:50:00.003-05:00

Waste. Of. Time.

This movie was a big joke. I actually thought this would at least be fun/amusing to watch at the very least but I got robbed of 2 hours.

Good thing is the movie moved along really fast. But the damn thing moved so fast, there really wasn't anything to follow along with. He runs into the son he didn't know he had. Helps him get his mother and old colleague out of danger by helping the Germans find a legendary lost city to return a crystal skull to get ultimate power of it, blah blah blah.

And that's it. Oh wait, I forgot, there's a car chase scene in the jungle.

The ending to the whole thing was just comical. Aliens?!? After the skull is restored to the body, they all condense into one live alien and the ship comes out of the ground and returns home...

Movie: The Last Samurai

2008-12-01T15:20:00.008-05:00

I wanted to not care for this movie, because, well.. it's quite obvious. Tom Cruise. He's been a big huge media joke, since his couch jumping event. But this movie proves how great of an actor he is.

The idea of Tom Cruise playing a decorated Captain in the late 1800's was really not convincing. It was hard to take him seriously, but as the movie progressed you are captured by the people/characters involved to tell this story.

Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise) is a decorated Captain who makes his living telling stories of fight the natives, alongside Colonel Custer, when he in reality he is haunted by what he has done. You see his flashbacks as him viciously killing the Indians in a savage matter. Especially since the ones that guilt him everyday were the families of the Indians, not the warriors themselves. The Indians weren't the savages... the soldiers were. War is ugly.

While captured by the samurai's led by Katsumoto Nathan learns another side to the war. He learns of the samurai's ways of fighting and is deeply touched by how respectful they are, even to their enemies. They consider fighting on the battlefield to be the highest form of honor and fighting with swords is much more personal, as it should be. If you're fighting for something it should be hand to hand combat, right? To die on the battlefield is not a fearful thought but a welcoming thought. You died fighting for something. But to be alive at the end of a losing battle is shameful. Often seppuku (suicide performed by stabbing oneself in the abdomen) is taken place.

This film was sooooooo well done I can't even begin to explain. Everything was done so beautifully and the script was flawless. The bond that Katsumoto and Nathan have was touching and in a way romantic in the most non-gay way, which is another great example of how well done the movie was. Asians have very intimate friendships and it's so hard to explain. They had conversations as friends, and comrades and as teacher to student, and as enemies. They both learned from each other and relied on each other, regardless of the fact that they were enemies beforehand.

The king being so young plays a bigger part that most people missed. Katsumoto turns to him in the council meeting begging him to let him enter the council meeting as a samurai as the way the old country was. The king wanting to please everyone and not knowing what to do cannot look at him in the eyes, resulting in the arrest of Katsumoto which starts the war against him. Had he grown up and taken responsibility for what he really believed in as Katsumoto begged him to, in a conversation previously taken place, a lot of damage would've been avoided.

I consider the scene with Taka and Nathan one of the most beautiful/sexiest scenes. Right before the battle scene as Nathan leaves early dawn to prepare for the fight, Taka stops him and asks him to wear the armor of her former husband... that Nathan killed in a battle early on in the movie. She removes his current garbs and gracefully dresses him in the samurai armor her husband used to wear. They kiss softly and he goes on his way not caring if he was to die on the battlefield, but for the first time wanting to fight.

On the battlefield it's obvious they are outnumbered. Nathan tells the story of the 300 Greeks who held off an army of over a thousand. Katsumoto asks what happens to the Greeks. Nathan replies every single one of them died. Katsumoto smiles at the answer.

In the final moment of the battle they are left with about a dozen or so men. They charge full force and the automatic machine weapons are brought out killing the last remaining men. Katsumoto reaches for a dagger to commit seppuku. Nathan tries to stop him and Katsumoto begs him. "You have your honor back, let me have mine." As the opposing soldiers see this and Katsumoto dies in the arms of Nathan, they all kneel as a sign of respect to the fallen samurai's.

TV: Mad Men

2008-11-25T11:50:00.005-05:00

Usually on AMC, Sundays @ 10p, but Season 2 finished up in October

I barely even heard of this show. I may have passed it through my channel surfing but didn't pay any attention to it. There was hardly any advertisement. There was however plenty of rave reviews through friends, co-workers, etc.

This show is phenomenally great. I can see why it won so many awards.

The show centralizes around an advertising agency on Madison Avenue, and the term "Mad Men" is lingo for advertising execs who work on Madison Avenue. Don Draper is Creative Director to the agency and he's brilliant when it comes to corporate identity and advertising. The rest follow with his help in terms of the copy writers and the art department.

You would think that because it was set in the 60's where women's only positions were as secretaries in the very male dominated world, the show would be really stiff. It's the opposite. There's promiscuity and affairs everywhere you turn. Head execs are sleeping with their secretaries as well as using terms for the women that would get you fired in a NY minute these days.

But the show reflects things that haven't changed in the office setting. You have the person that's trying to snake his way to the top by any means necessary. The person that's everybody loves and is loyal to the company through and through. The cool boss. THE boss. The group of men/women who sit around and gossip all day. The diligent worker and so forth.

It's hard not to get sucked into this world. It's slick, it's funny, it's riveting. Check it out.

Movie News: Burtonesque Alice in Wonderland

2008-11-17T16:18:00.006-05:00

I heard that Tim Burton was doing his rendition on the classic fairytale of "Alice in Wonderland" and my immediate reaction was, "Well that was inevitable." Of course that was followed by pure elation that one of my favorite directors was doing his version on one of my favorite fairytales.

Then reality sort of sinked in, as I continued to read reports and updates on the production of this movie, I realized this might turn out really weird and overshoot the mark like "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" did.

Case and Point: The cast. According to IMDB this is who has been confirmed so far for the roles:
Johnny Depp........................Mad Hatter
Anne Hathaway...................White Queen
Helena Bonham Carter.......Red Queen
Alan Rickman.......................Caterpillar
Michael Sheen......................Cheshire Cat
Crispin Glover......................Knave of Hearts
Matt Lucas............................Tweedledee/Tweedledum

Others were mentioned but so far they're rumored.

On the cast list alone we can see Burton is going to venture beyond the first half of the classic novel and go through the looking glass. Nevertheless it's still a very very very odd bunch to put together as a cast list. I'm not getting a good feeling about this, but let's not judge too far in advance.

Now for your enjoyment, a preview of the Mad Hatter:

Yipes... Just yipes.

Trivia: It's pretty bad to have Nightmare Before Christmas as my favorite movie, when I've only recently discovered that Burton didn't direct it. He did write it and produce it.

Blog Reads: Callgirls

2008-11-15T10:21:00.006-05:00

These days with a good book being harder and harder to find, naturally, I've turned to the web to scour through the billions of blogs out there. I've come across a few really good reads. One of which is Confessions of a College Callgirl and was obsessed with her story. Self evident by the title it's about her experience as a callgirl trying to earn extra cash while going to school. She didn't go through an agency and instead resourcefully found her john's through Craigslist (go figure).

Fantastic writer. She doesn't really make any of experiences sound porn-ish. Everything is written out really well and the details just feel more of a documentary sort as opposed to some horny college girl writing about her hook-up's.

She recently is coming to an end of her blog, and her last entry kind of explains it all. As she recalled her experiences as a self-made callgirl for all of us to enjoy, she had to relive through all of them. At the time she was able to separate herself and get her through... let's face it, another day on the job, but now things are different. You did what you had to do back then, but now it may not be something you want to relive now. Maybe you have a serious beau in your life. It doesn't necessarily mean she's embarassed or ashamed of what she did back then, but your goes out to this girl.

Now she had mentioned once of this show that came out, Secret Diary of a Callgirl. This one is about a London Callgirl employed through an agency. I watched like 2 episodes and couldn't get into it really. There was really nothing wrong with it, but it wasn't, as they would say in London, my cup of tea.

However, I did find the blog that the show is based on. Belle du Jour. Again, beautiful writer. (I'm wondering if there is a connection between being a great writer and being openly promiscuous.) As I read her entries I can almost hear them in my thoughts with an English accent. Hot.

Her entries in the beginning are much like the previous one I mentioned, really well written out and doesn't feel dirty reading them. Parts I love is the "how-to". She discusses the waxing, the tools and supplies needed when going out for a job.

But then she gets picked up by a publishing company and her entries get more vague and hard to follow. I'm gonna say she might've gone back and deleted some entries in between so that we would go out and buy her book or watch the show. After a falling out with her manager entries on some of the jobs that she had done are few and far in between. The blog focuses more on her life, and sometimes that gets well... a little exhausting to read.

Nevertheless I will still probably pick up her book just to see what I may have missed.

Movie: Get Smart

2008-11-14T11:50:00.004-05:00

I'm a sucker for Steve Carrell. And recently joining the rest of the planet and finally watching the Office, I'm an even bigger fan. Plus the commercials for this one seemed damn funny.

:P

The first thing that made me uncomfortable was the Steve Carrell and Anne Hathaway team up. I never watched the t.v. show but I knew that she was a love interest. It's kinda gross that he's old enough to be her father. Now, I know there have been plenty of pairs in Hollywood where the guy was old enough to be the father... But when you actually LOOK like a father it just doesn't sit well. Does that make sense?

The storyline was predictable. There is some international bomb threat going on, and there's a rat in the agency. Along the way enjoy in the follies and "slapstick" comedy as this spy tries to prove himself worthy of the agency. Blah blah blah.

Overall the movie was alright. It wasn't great. It wasn't horrible. Just mediocre. A few chuckle moments but nothing to have me roaring in laughter. But if there's nothing else on t.v. on a Sunday afternoon, and this happens to be on... It'll kill 2 hours for you.

Movie: Atonement

2008-11-14T11:18:00.005-05:00

I usually don't go for the "chick flicks" but the girl in me will crave a good romantic story once in awhile. For instance I saw Pride & Prejudice for the first time a few months ago and loved it. What girl doesn't love a good story of classic old school romance where there is actual wooing involved.

There was a lot of buzz around this movie when it came out. So it was only natural that I added it on my Netflix list and last weekend it made it's way into my mailbox (along with Goodfella's and Get Smart).

I won't deny that this movie was gorgeous to watch. I loved the colors (like Keira's gorgeous green gown) and the general tone of this movie. The camera movements were fantastic and if you can say that camera movements can be romantic, in this case it absolutely was. Everything was really soft and the dialogue and movements were just soft spoken. So in all you have the perfect formula for a romantic movie.

In the first half it kinda was. Cecelia (played by Keira Knightley) goes to school with her housemaid's son Robbie (played by James McAvoy) who I think Cecelia's father took under his wing and became the caretaker of. I think I heard that he was going to pay for his tuition to medical school, but I'm not a 100% on that.

Through a series of very unfortunate and grave misunderstandings, Cecelia's little sister, Briony, ends up accusing Robbie of assaulting her cousin. This is the first part of the movie, and the only part that has actual movement.

SPOILER ALERT!
After the incident absolutely nothing happens, until the end. Rest of the movie is filled with fluff just so they could have a feature length film. They killed time. None of the characters talk of what happened. We see them all separately going through life. Robbie as a soldier trying to get home. Briony training to be a nurse because she's hoping to see Robbie and maybe save him so he can forgive her. BUT THAT'S IT!

They do mention the characters again, when Briony becomes an author and writes a book on the accounts of her accusing her sister's lover. She writes of an ending in the book where her sister and Robbie end up together but that never took place, because they both died during the war.

I was left feeling incredibly shorthanded. The movie was better as a trailer.

Life Stuff: Being Young

2008-11-12T14:27:00.002-05:00

I figure this is a great way to build a foundation on what conversations with my sister are like:

We happen to live in a very upper white class town. You didn't think it'd be possible in this day and age but it is. I'm forever getting leered at when I go to the local wine store.

Months ago we went to the local movie theater and as we were waiting for the movie to start I made an observation and decide to share in on this new useless fact.

Me: Leans over and whispers I just realized we're the only minorities in here.

Sis: That's because everyone else is older.

Me: WHAT?!?

Sis: *blank stare* What? You said minority and we are catching a matinee... That's not what it means does it?

Me: AHAHAHAHAHAHA! No, honey it does not.

Could not stop laughing for twenty minutes. I had to walk out for a little bit to compose myself as to not disturb the theater.

But it gets better! I was watching tv in my room couple weeks ago, when she comes storms in:

Sis: I was just talking to *Jason online and you won't believe this. He doesn't know what curry is!

Me: So? You didn't know what a minority was.

Sis: How is that worse?

Me: Um.. because YOU ARE ONE!

Sis: Yeah, I suppose that is worse. Walks away.

Oh man I love this girl.

Book: Lamb, by Christopher Moore

2008-11-12T14:11:00.006-05:00

It's really hard to find books I enjoy reading. The last time I read a book and laughed out loud so much my sister ended up staring at me strangely from the doorway, and that was for "Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy". The next string of books I became obsessed with was the handful written by Dan Brown (Deception Point being my favorite.).

So in a forum I was surprised to find a thread on the fellow members discussing their favorite books. "Lamb" by Christopher Moore was brought to my attention and the original poster's brief description really got me aching to find this book. It's about Jesus's childhood friend writing a Gospel. Telling his version of what happened in Jesus's life as 10 year old.

I'm only on Chapter 7 or so, and I absolutely love it. I love the direction it's going and the dialogue that goes on. It belongs on the shelf of a smartass like myself.

For example, Jesus and his friend Levi, a.k.a. "Biff" are praying for guidance and an angel appears before them. He announces that the Messiah will be born tonight in a manger amidst farm animals. He suddenly realizes this event already happened.. 10 years ago! He ran late because he swung by another fellow angel's house to play cards.

There's plenty more incidents like this. But there are moments where it cross references events from the Bible as well as historical facts. I'm just hoping it doesn't get all "preachy" like the Left Behind series.... YES, I read them! The first couple were actually good.

UPDATE: (Spoiler Warning)
I just finished the book, and I'm really pleased with it. I love that the book followed through to the point of his crucifixion because I really wasn't expecting that. His trial and death being told from a beloved friend's point of view was much more compelling and moving. I hardly get choked up from reading, so this was a rare moment, especially since I'm not religious.

My only complaint is that at times the story delved too much into the "fantasy" category. But I guess that's the norm if at that time you are dealing with hearing God's voice boom from the sky and woman turning into pillars of salt.

Towards the end it puts a human touch on the fact that Jesus was in fact human... with special powers. But it makes it a realistic story as to why he comes up with the do's and dont's of what will get you into heaven, and the foundation of the religion. For example, how he comes up with the concept of the "Holy Ghost".

A lot of the guidelines were based on something personal, not just something he whipped up out of thin air, and I think people forget that. You come up with a lot of the decisions of what you do based on personal experience and beliefs.

Huh... Jesus human? Why didn't we think of that?

Presidential Election '08: McCain vs. Obama

2008-11-04T09:04:00.004-05:00

Like millions of other bloggers out there I will be posting my assessment of the historical election that is to take place today. It's not going to be pretty so if you don't feel like being offended turn away here.

Obama will win.... For all the wrong reasons. Here's why I say it's the wrong reasons.

He will win because let's face it, people are not the brightest bulbs in the box. We all know Bush did a fantastic job of driving this country into a hole so deep it totally fucked everyone for generations to come. What the people are assuming is that because Bush is Republican and McCain is Republican... They are one and the same. By putting McCain in office you would be repeating the mistake all over again.

McCain will most likely lose the election for the reason stated above and another big one: Sarah Palin. He committed a major election suicide by choosing her as his running mate. If we were going for a high school popularity contest he did great. But when it comes to picking someone to help you run the country.... You do not want the average "soccer mom" to be your partner. She's an idiot. But I understand you needed the "commercial" appeal and edge.

This is the reason I hate the most of why Obama will win: to be different.
Driving into work today I saw signs that supported Obama followed by "Be a Part of History... Vote Today!" People are voting for him because he's black. Sad to say... it's affirmative action. They don't' even care what he has to say about how to run this country, but they just think it's cool and historical to vote for a black president. Do not put a man in the President's seat because of that! Put him in there because he has the credentials and ideas to support what you think is going to make this a better country.

This election helped me to acknowledge how uninformed people are. They vote to put a black Democratic candidate in the White House and they don't know why. Ask them why they are voting for him for any other reason than being black and to be different and to bring change. Just because he's a Democrat does not mean it will be better.

Movie: Far from Heaven

2008-11-01T22:34:00.004-04:00

I was surprised the critics were so "generous" with their ratings for this movie, which is why I don't trust the critics anymore. They hailed this movie as a great homage to the time and gave great praise to Julianne Moore on her portrayal of a housewife in turmoil on the secret that rips apart her family set in the 1950's.... Her husband is having an affair... with a man. From there the story is supposed to be about her growing friendship with her black gardener as he helps her come to terms with the trauma unfolding in her life.

... at least that's what the back of cover of the DVD said.

I found Julianne Moore's character to be very one-dimensional. NOTHING phased this woman. She was so damn cheery about everything it was obnoxious. I wanted the husband to punch her just so she'd react to something. She was SO optimistic about everything it just didn't feel natural. I understand that as the wife of a big executive of a company you have to act the part, but she just took it too far. I couldn't identify with her at all.

Dennis Quaid actually did a really good job, even though his part was minimal. I thought he had a great balance of being the big executive for a well known company and being torn about his secret.

As for the gardener... he wasn't really even in the story. They hung out once and then some nosy neighbor caught them and so that put a kibosh on that friendship. Later she realized that she had feelings for him even though there was hardly any interaction between the two.

There were a few strong connections between the two but not enough for me to say that this movie held a strong plot line. I think the writer's really stretched this one out. Meaning they had enough material to make a 45 minute movie, but the director said they needed to really make this a 90 minute movie... so they did. By adding some really slow scenes to elongate this as much as possible.

Great job guys.

*rolls eyes.

Psych 101: Nancy Botwin

2008-10-20T15:27:00.011-04:00

Weeds (Showtime): A suburban California widow, Nancy Botwin (Mary Louise Parker) deals pot to make ends meet for her two songs, Shane and Silas, after the unexpected death of her husband, Judah.

Nancy Botwin is the worst decision maker I have ever met. I'm surprised the kids are still alive, and she's not in jail serving 3 consecutive life sentences being someone's jail b****.

Throughout the seasons I sympathized for her. She kept getting into these situations where you felt she was backed into a corner, and certain people, mostly Celia Hodes, repeatedly ruined plans that poor Nancy had made.

But no. If you look at all of it closely, Nancy made all her decisions not for her kids, but for very very selfish reasons that have continued to lead her in a downward spiral of near death and constant corruption. No one has EVER benefited from her decisions. Not even her!

Here's the rundown:

She starts her own growhouse behind her dealer's back, with another associate of the dealer's.
She MARRIES a DEA agent thinking it will keep her secret safe.
Gets him killed for getting involved.
Tracks down his ex-wife out of curiosity only to be friends with her.
Assigns her oldest son to work for her weed botanist to get responsibility after he had been acting out a few times.
Pursues a relationship with her new boss, the mayor of Mexico, and also her boss as drug smuggling.
Moves on to deal coke.
Mercy kills her grandmother by smothering her with a pillow.

*rolls eyes. I know I'm missing a few things.

BOOK: Fight Club

2008-10-16T15:50:00.004-04:00

So it seems I'm the only one on the planet that did not know Fight Club (by Chuck Palahniuk's) was based on a book.

Anyway, so I pick up the book and start reading... then stopped about halfway through. Here are the two main reasons why:

I don't know if it's because I saw the movie already, but this is one of those rare ones where the movie follows the book pretty closely, page by page, so it's like reading a book for the 10 billionth time. You already know what's happened so what's the point of continuing when you can see the hotness that is Brad Pitt or Edward Norton on screen portraying these characters?
Try reading the journal of a person with multiple personality disorder or better yet... someone with ADHD. The writing is all over the place and it gets impossible to stay focused and interested in the character when it's like reading two people talking at the same time.

Skip the book. It's a writing style that I'm not too crazy about. The story just doesn't translate well on paper as it does on screen. If anything reading the book will help you to appreciate the movie even more.. not that it needs it.

Movie: Godfather I & II

2008-10-13T10:41:00.005-04:00

I'm really bad when it comes to movies. I haven't seen a lot of Kubrick's stuff and evident by the title of the post, I JUST NOW saw the Godfather movies. I know that Godfather II is considered not only the greatest sequel to ever be made... but the greatest film period. It's always up there on the list as either #1 or #2 (next to Citizen Kane).

Why?

What was so great about Godfather II? The first one was a lot stronger for me. It had a consistent storyline where you have a progression of the story that went along steadily. The only thing I liked about the second one was going back to how Vito became successful and became who he was, and how. They should've cut out about 20 minutes of filler stuff from the first movie and inserted Vito's backstory... and you'd have the perfect Godfather movie!

I can understand Vito's rising from an orphan to being Don Corleone is supposed to run parallel to Michael's rise to power, but it just didn't work.

As an overall film it was great to watch, simply because as mentioned before, I love movies that tell stories in a biographical style. But as a film overall I just didn't see what the big deal was with Godfather II. If you look at the two together, it's great. So as much as everyone flamed poor Mr. Vincent Canby, from the New York times, I totally agree with him:

It's a second movie made largely out of the bits and pieces of Mr. Puzo's novel that didn't fit into the first. It's a Frankenstein's monster stitched together from leftover parts. It talks. It moves in fits and starts but it has no mind of its own. -Rotten Tomatoes

I'm totally getting rocks thrown in my windows tonight aren't I?

Wii: Zack and Wiki

2008-10-10T15:35:00.003-04:00

My friend raved to me about this game and said it's probably one of the most frustrating yet best games out on the market.

Right now I'm being swept away by de Blob still, so I haven't put too much time into this one... but this one is one of those games that flew under the radar. My co-worker seems to think it's because the name "Zack and Wiki" resembles to close to that Disney show "Zack and Cody" so people write it off immediately.

Anyway, this game goes for about $20 at your local GameStop and it's worth it. It's also a major bonus that it's about half the cost of a regular game.

Incredibly cute storyline of a little boy, Zack, who longs to be a pirate and find the lost treasure, while guided by his flying monkey, Wiki. You solve painstaking mind boggling puzzles to get to a treasure chest, where you get a piece of the pirate who was cursed, who will help you retrieve his treasures, when you put him back together again. Make a wrong move and you die. You can either choose to start from the beginning or continue with a life.

Now here's the catch... You have to buy lives, and each time you buy them they get exponentially more expensive.

This game is probably the best use of the Wii-mote. You have to use the Wii-mote realistically. How do you go about using the controller to open a Wii-mote? With a real umbrealla you press a button to open it. On the Wii, you press "1".

I'm really impressed with the incredible detailed use you get out of the Wii-mote.

Get the game before it ends up like Ikaruga, where you'll end up getting it for double the price it is now.

Heroes

2008-10-10T13:30:00.004-04:00

S03/E04: I Am Become Death

Hiro is going to be chasing ~~that girl for~~ the formula for the whole season.
If it doesn't happen during the season finale it'll happen close to it: Ando and Hiro will have a face to face battle.
~~Future~~ Past Peter is going to spend the whole season fixing ~~his~~ their mistake.
~~Present Peter is going to be stuck with those gang of convicts for quite some time.~~
Mrs. Petrelli might end up being evil and take Sylar under her wing, can't tell yet.
Mohinder might actually die, or he'll create a cure for his side effect and end up coming up with a cure for the virus. Add: By creating a cure he gets rid of Sylar and Adam's ability to heal.... AND CLAIRE'S!!

So in this crazy and wild episode, Hiro and Ando are in trapped in the room sulking at one another about what Ando might do in the future to Hiro. They they get assigned later by Mrs. Petrelli to dig up Adam. But for those of you that missed it... Hiro was the one that put him there in the coffin. Did he not realize who he was digging up as he was digging? Fine I'll be fair... I guess he teleported him in there... but question is.. where's the body that was originally in there? Ew.

Future Peter is now dead, killed by vigilante badass wanna-be Claire. Present Peter is still stuck in the future trying to figure out where it all went wrong. He ends up at Sylar's house trying to get his power, because that's the key.. to.. saving the future? Anyway, Claire and her gang pop up, a scuffle goes on and Sylar's son ends up dead. Yup, they pissed off the one dude that could single-handedly destroy the world.. or part of it, which is what happened. He went radioactive and blew a huge crater in the town.

They blame him again(?) for screwing up things and having him tied down and Claire goes all S&M on him by cutting him s-l-o-w-l-y with a blade for every death he caused. Nate the president of the U.S. walks in. Peter ends up trying to take his power Sylar style and goes back to the present where he ends up in Sylar's cell and then it's revealed that they are brothas.. I mean brothers.

I don't know if I've mentioned this before.. but the writing seems like they completely ignored or hated what happened in Season 1 or 2 and went a completely new direction. Did they get new writers?

Wii: de Blob

2008-10-06T11:04:00.008-04:00

Let's start with a little History lesson:
de Blob was originally developed as a free downloadable game for Windows by eight students studying Game Design and one student studying Game and Media Technology in the Netherlands. THQ noticed the game and was very impressed with the team's work, and acquired the rights to the game. THQ handed over the game to Blue Tongue Entertainment and Helixe and the companies each developed their own versions for different consoles.
- Wikipedia

Picked this one up this weekend. I did my research beforehand, and read the reviews, and was shocked to find the ratings were anywhere from an 8.5 (critic rating) to a 9.5 (user rating), considering I had not even seen so much as a commercial or ad campaign for this at all.

You play as this gelatinous blob that is going around restoring color to the worlds. I.N.K.T. has taken over everything. The people are spend mindlessly wandering around in a black and white society with no fun, parties, activities, etc. You go around collecting paint to put the color back and defeat the I.N.K.T. agency.

The upside:

The graphics are phenomenal. They're intensely clean, bright and just really great on screen.
Overall storyline - Reminds me of the perfect blend of Mario Sunshine with Jet Grind Radio.
Soundtrack - I only have 3 songs, but I love them. Can't wait to find the rest of them.
Insanely cute characters. Think Pikmin with Animal Crossing talk. ;-)
Uncomplicated missions - Sometimes it's a nice break to do some games where you don't have to find a feather to give to the old lady who will then give you a bowl who you have to take to the merchant just to get a gem to get a power so you can move a rock.

The downside:

Inconvenient save points. Unless you can dedicate a full hour to this game then don't bother starting it. You can't save the game until after you have defeated an entire town sector. It's not a ridiculously insanely hard game to get through but it does get kind of annoying if you have two jobs and you want to put 20 minutes here and there.... Okay that might be just me then.
The jumps - I haven't quite gotten the hang of the jumping thing. When I jump it's hard to control (for me anyway) where I want to jump and land. Also the jumping distance is inconsistent. Sometimes I can jump really high, otherwise I'll end up stuck to the wall and have to slowly drip down.
Movement - It does get dizzying after awhile. x_x Again it might be because I haven't put much time into it, but as you "walk" through you leave trails of paint behind you. I'm thinking the trails of paint effect your position in the game. You can't stand still. You end up drifting and moving around where the blobs of paint are, which does get annoying if you need to stand still for a moment, and you keep falling off buildings.
Challenges - I'm hoping the challenge levels pick up a bit, otherwise it's going to be redundant. How many times can you paint buildings a certain color and NOT get bored with it?

I would still definitely recommend this game. If you want a more in-depth review, try this one. He seems to know what he's talking about.

Lady in the Water

2008-10-06T10:14:00.005-04:00

I love fairy tales, which is probably why I still watch Disney movies and cartoons. The imagination and the buildup of it is the ultimate story. You have a beginning with the goal/dream of the character who goes through quite an adventure to get to the end. How can you not love fairy tales?

So here's the tale this movie revolves around:
Long ago humans lived in harmony with water nymphs, the Narfs. As time passed humans on land moved more and more inland breaking ties with the Narfs. Without the communication and guidance from the Narfs, humans on land became increasingly violent and disruptive towards one another. So the Narfs starting sending in their most precious ones to guide them once more. According to the legend, Narfs have the ability to see into the future. Based on that they know who their "Vessel", person they have to meet, is going to be. The Vessel is said to have a major impact on the world, but needs to see the Narf in order to be inspired and directed where he/she needs to go. All the Narf has to do is make sure the Vessel sees her.

Scrunts are animals made of twigs and grass who try to prevent the Narfs from accomplishing their mission. But there is an understand that Scrunts will not attack on the night of the Narf's departure, for fear that they will be punished by the Tartutic's. Sometimes rogue Scrunts will attack regardless of the rules. The Tartutic's are three monkey-like animals that keep justice between them. They are said to be evil.

The entire movie takes place on this story. A Narf, Story, is stranded after completing her mission. A rogue Scrunt has attacked her repeatedly when she tries to leave. And so she seeks the help of the landlord to apartment complex, Cleveland Heep, help her, who researches the story from one of his neighbors, a Korean college student who has a mother who knows all about this bedtime story.

As the movie continues there is more to the story of how to help her get back to the giant eagle, who will help her get back home. Like if she has obstacles there is a select group of humans who can help protect her. A Guardian who can ward off the Scrunts. An Interpreter who can see signs in simple things to guide them. A Healer, to... well heal her.

What I loved was the realistic spin to this fairytale. What I didn't like were the inconsistencies:

The fact that the Korean lady knew of this bedtime story and made-up words like "Narf", "Scrunt" and "Tartutic" were somehow translated from Korean to English.
Where were the Tartutic's all along? Weren't they supposed to come punish the Scrunt's for attacking her when she tried to leave the first time?
If she is allowed to have helpers like the Guardian, or the Interpreter, to help her get to the eagle, and they're allowed to see the eagle, then why can't she tell these people she's allowed to see them?
I wasn't quite clear on the "ceremony". What was the purpose of the 7 sisters? 5 of them were actual sisters, so where did the Interpreter pick the other 2 from?
This is going to sound weird but given the circumstances, I find it hard to believe that everyone would believe such a fairytale is really true. Think about your landlord coming to you and saying "I really found Cinderella, and she needs help finding her glass slipper. Can you help?"

The movie was alright. I'm more impressed with the writing than the writing. If it comes on tv I'll watch it, but it's not something I'll go out of my way to buy and put in my collection.

Heroes

2008-10-02T11:27:00.007-04:00

S02/E03: One of Us, One of them

SPOILER ALERT!

So one of my predictions kinda came true, while a few got totally disproven

Hiro is going to be chasing ~~that girl for~~ the formula for the whole season.
If it doesn't happen during the season finale it'll happen close to it: Ando and Hiro will have a face to face battle.
Future Peter is going to spend the whole season fixing his mistake.
~~Present Peter is going to be stuck with those gang of convicts for quite some time.~~
Mrs. Petrelli might end up being evil and take Sylar under her wing, can't tell yet.
Mohinder might actually die, or he'll create a cure for his side effect and end up coming up with a cure for the virus.

The fact that Sylar is being partnered up with Claire's dad is just bad news. There is no way this can end well for either the characters, or us as the viewers. You are giving Sylar complete access to chase people he would've done on his own... Only now, you're paying him to.

I'm just getting annoyed with all the characters. If the writer's don't swing this thing around soon the ratings may drop more than they have in the past few weeks.

WebComic Review: Blip

2008-09-29T09:54:00.004-04:00

I stumbled across this one through one of my favorite webcomics, Three Panel Soul.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the storyline. It's about this girl who was created accidentally by God, and so to correct the mistake there are angels around her who try to make her as unnoticeable as possible. There's this one panel where it shows her making these art projects throughout various times in her life, and the angels ruining them in one way or another. Eventually she gives up on her passion because nothing ever works out and she just becomes this miserable, snarky, extremely sarcastic girl. It's fantastic!

Usually when I'm drawn to a webcomic it's the artwork THEN the writing. In this case it's the vice versa. Not saying the artwork is bad by any means, but the writing for this is brilliant. The timing of all the responses and reactions are phenomenal. I can absolutely see this as a sitcom or a movie. It does remind me a little of George from Dead Like Me (FYI: IMDB has that it's coming back in 2009!!).

Anyway, please check it out. It's only been around since the beginning of the year, and gets updated about once a month, so you'll catch up quick.

Heroes: Season 3

2008-09-24T11:03:00.005-04:00

SPOILER ALERT!

So the highly anticipated series, Heroes, returned Monday night with a 2 hour special.

I don't know about anyone else but I was really disappointed. Let me start off with Claire. They totally mocked season 1 with her storyline in the first episode. ALL of season 1 was spent to protect the cheerleader so that Sylar doesn't become "immortal" and that gets disproven in one episode?!? Come on!

I'm thinking we'd be done with Sylar by now, but no. The sucker is still around. It's getting old. I hope they keep Sylar in that little room for awhile and focus more on Adam Monroe/Kensei Takezo. Just change something... anything. Because if you think about it... they've been running the same plotline since season one. Yes, yes the world is in danger. Yes the cheerleader has something to do with it. Yes everyone is intertwined in some way. Yes the company is out to ruin everyone in some way. I feel like a lot has happened in the season and at the same time nothing has changed.

You know what... someone needs to die! I thought Nikki was gone for good and was glad, because to be honest she annoyed me. She didn't really have a power, she just a severe mental disorder a.k.a. multiple personality disorder. The Petrelli brothers were each supposed to die, and ended up living by some miracle... oh yes that's right Claire's blood. Does that mean all of the characters are going to live throughout the series?

As much as I complain I will probably end up watching all the episodes. So I'll come back when there's something worth mentioning. But here are my predictions:

Hiro is going to be chasing that girl for the formula for the whole season.
If it doesn't happen during the season finale it'll happen close to it: Ando and Hiro will have a face to face battle.
Future Peter is going to spend the whole season fixing his mistake.
Present Peter is going to be stuck with those gang of convicts for quite some time.
Mrs. Petrelli might end up being evil and take Sylar under her wing, can't tell yet.
Mohinder might actually die, or he'll create a cure for his side effect and end up coming up with a cure for the virus.

That's all I got for now. I'll probably alter the list or add new ones as the season goes on. But my suggestion is if they want to make this season finale end with a bang Mohinder has to create a cure for the virus which also makes Claire, Sylar and finally Adam mortal. Booyah!

Syriana

2008-09-20T18:46:00.003-04:00

What just happened? Seriously, that's what I thought when the movie ended. This movie picked one of the hottest and controversial topics and actually managed to go through the entire two hours not really discussing... anything. So in that sense I'd have to give it a nice round of applause to waste how ever many millions of dollars to make this film about absolutely nothing.

The entire movie felt like you walked into someone else's conversation midway and they're talking about the topic without being direct about it. So you just feel lost and you don't want to leave yet, because maybe they'll start making sense soon... hopefully?

This movie seemed like it was trying really really hard to sound really really smart and come off artsy... and failed abysmally.

There Will be Blood

2008-09-19T14:22:00.008-04:00

I always love the movies that are told in a semi-documentary/biographical sort of way. Apollo 13 and Girl with the Pearl Earring (one of my top favorites) are good examples. So I figured that this would be a good pick, aside from the fact that it won a lot of awards and it was critically acclaimed blah blah blah...

First off, Paul Dano (Girl Next Door, Little Miss Sunshine) was fantastic. He was perfect for the role of Eli Sunday, the over zealous wanna-be prophet for the town. He was creepy and conniving when he needed to be and during the moments when Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis) didn't give him what he needed/wanted, you are reminded that he is still a kid and how naive he is.

Daniel Day-Lewis didn't impress me at all. It seemed like he was impersonating someone from that time as opposed to acting like someone from that era. He just seemed so out of place and there was something about his character that was unnatural.

As for the storyline... this movie would be a good example of a horrible translation from book to film. As the story progresses for what appears to be no reason at all Daniel became more and more irrational. In the beginning you see him as this very calm level-headed businessman. I suppose everyone has a snapping point though, and his would have to be when his son became deaf after an explosion when they struck oil. Even then you still feel disconnected from his character and unrelatable. I'm left confused by his actions instead of feeling sympathetic and understanding.

Oh, and what was up with the soundtrack?! WORST soundtrack ever. It seemed like they ran out of money making the film so they took the soundtrack from a disposable B-rated horror film and slapped it on this one.

My assessment... overrated. I'm hoping the book will be better. I'll let you know.

Into the Wild

2008-08-17T11:40:00.006-04:00

As soon as I saw the movie (directed by Sean Penn), I read the book. This is one of the rare times where I enjoyed the film better than the book.

The story is about Christopher McCandless who graduated from college and disappeared. He didn't just disappear... he left with a strong message, do not look for him. He abandoned his car, supposedly burned his license, social security card, and whatever money he had on him.

The journey was to live off the grid and hopefully make it to Alaska, where he ventured during a road trip one summer. He wanted to be unattached to a world where everything was materialistic. He wanted to disassociate himself from a place where your level of happiness or success was based on materialistic things like homes, cars, money and jobs.

He traveled through the country for two years, doing odd jobs, meeting various people and not staying stationary for too long. When he did make it to Alaska, it was winter and he crossed a small river to find an abandoned bus that hunters used when they were in the area. Spring/Summer rolled around he decided it was time to leave. But the snow had melted and the river was three times as big, and the current too strong to cross. So he went back to the bus.

He died at the bus, from starvation. Whether it was the inability to find food or from eating a poisonous plant that disabled the body from processing the food is still a question. But the result is still the same.

Christopher McCandless at Bus 142, the "Magic Bus"

There was a lot of negative comments on his actions. A lot of people called him a self-martyr or careless idiot, for putting himself through this "journey" and not going into it prepared. Like, why didn't he bring a topographical map. If he had brought a map then he would've seen the river wasn't as wide further up north. Or that there was a ranger's station somewhere close by. Why would he just go into an unknown region without knowing where he was going?

THAT WAS THE POINT!

He didn't want to know where he was going. Didn't want to know where he would end up. He wasn't afraid of death. He was more afraid of what would happen if he stayed along the predetermined path that was set up for him, before he was even born:
Birth> School> Career> Marriage> Death.

He did not want that schedule. He did not want that course. He wanted to go off to Alaska without a plan. That's why he didn't go straight to Alaska. He traveled around for 2 years just existing without a purpose. Just being human. Not conforming to the 9 to 5 and the marriage with the two kids and white picketed fenced house.

He went through life without a map that told him where he was and what he could do. He wanted to be uncharted. And he was.

Sean Penn and Jon Krakeau at the Bus 142, "Magic Bus"

There was a moment in the movie where he finally made it to Alaska, and he looks out into the open. The mountains are in the background and the snow is just covering everything. Christopher McCandless, played by Emile Hirsch, looks out into the open and just tears up with a smile, that even made me get choked up. This was his element.

$155.3M Opening Weekend

2008-07-20T20:19:00.003-04:00

Yes those are the figures as of right now for the Dark Knight. I did check it out Friday night, waiting an hour before the show started in blistering heat. I was lucky enough to snag tickets before standing in line on Fandango, because it sold out literally 5 minutes after I bought them.

I will probably be outcasted for saying this:

I'm going to start off by saying Heath Ledger was FLAWLESS! I cannot wrap my mind around the fact that it was Heath Ledger behind all the make up and pure insanity. He just really captured the mental disturbance and brilliant mind that is the Joker. The littlest things that were done help the character stand out, like the way his mouth kept twitching and his slight clumsiness when it comes to fighting or his lack of care of whether he comes out dead or alive at the end of it. Whether it was the writer's or the director, or Heath Ledger himself, the entire presentation of the Joker was phenomenal.

As for the rest of the movie... eh. Yes I said it... eh.

For the friends that are dearest to me, they know I have an immense hatred for Katie Holmes, but it kills me to say, she made a better Rachel. *flops over dead* There was just something about Maggie Gyllenhaal that I didn't like on the big screen. She didn't fit in with Christian Bale, and Aaron Eckhart who came out a tiny bit too goody-two-shoes with a hint of the need to be in the spotlight. His dire need to help the poor city of Gotham was annoying.

If it weren't for the Joker, this movie would bomb in my opinion. Whether it was Heath Ledger or the Joker's contribution in the storyline it doesn't matter. They carried the story. You sat in anticipation of the next scene that included the Joker. The rest was just fluff.

At the end I felt like I walked out of a B-rated movie instead of being wowed by all aspects of the film and not just one.

Predictions

2008-07-08T21:03:00.011-04:00

Hell's Kitchen Season Finale

I made a bet with a co-worker at the office on who would win tonight. Before I say my prediction I have to say this is by far the worst season. It's a season of misfits. The last two seasons I always had a strong opinion on who would be the winner, and everyone else agreed. But this season is... blah. Nobody really comes out strong. Everyone is sloppy and mediocre.

Anyway the two finalists come down to Christina, fresh out of school and Petrozza, who has many years as a catering chef. My vote is....

Christina.

She shows leadership qualities. Petrozza is too nice. I can't see him ordering everyone around. Ideally it's nice to have a nice boss and not one who is screaming down your throat, but in a kitchen you need that presence.

We'll see what happens at 9. If I lose, I owe my co-worker 2 cans of soda.

Update: Yay! I win a can of soda.

May I Make a Suggestion?

2008-07-08T16:11:00.003-04:00

Don't mind the cartoon looking question mark... I didn't know how else to put it there, and if I left it without the border then it was just too dark.

I'm suggesting Jude Law up for the role of the Riddler. Even though I will embarassingly admit that I actually enjoyed the crazy version Jim Carrey gave. Come on! He was funny! Moving on...

From what I remember in the cartoon series of Batman, the Riddler was portrayed as this very intelligent and arrogant villain. If you mix Jude Law's performance in The Talented Mr. Ripley with A.I., I think you get the perfect Riddler.

As for the rest of the cast I'm not sure. I'll come up with something... I doubt I can come up with anyone worthy enough of Michelle Pfeiffer's portrayal of Catwoman or Danny DeVito's version of the Penguin.

Wall-E

2008-07-08T13:07:00.009-04:00

Being a HUGE fan of Wall-E which is still out in the theater's right now, I strongly recommend that you check out this film. Not for the animation factor, which is really not the greatest I've seen, to be honest. It starts out with really great jaw-dropping effects. The opening sequence of the doomed Earth hundreds of years from now with garbage everywhere, and the detailed put into this planet was phenomenal. You'd have to blink and pinch yourself that this is an animated movie. Towards the end, as the humans get involved it just looks like a cartoon. But I'm not questioning the quality. The quality is still better than Dreamworks, but that's just cause my opinion is biased.

Wall-E is the only robot left behind on Earth and he lives his life day to day doing what he was programmed to do: to compact the garbage left behind by the humans into little cubes and build them into these piles as big as the skyscrapers. His only companion is a cockroach. They live collecting random trinkets while taking care of one another. Wall-E's clumsy, awkward and almost childlike naivete help make him relateable and sympathetic to be the ultimate underdog.

I gotta say that I'm surprised Pixar went where it did. They went brutally honest at what may become of the human race. The humans are morbidly obese living in the midst of a heavily commercialized community. Everything is flashing and announcing that you should be eating this or that and no one is talking to one another without the help of something electronic. They all float through the cruise ship on recliners with machines that give them everything they need. It's a scary but convincing rendition of what the future is expected to be.

Wall-E hardly had any dialogue but still carried a strong and very clear message of loneliness, love and the possible future of our planet. I know I know, it's a weird combo, but it works. The two songs used to help mold the story was "Put on Your Sunday Clothes" and "It Only Takes a Moment".

Found this article that shares a small interview with Jerry Herman, who was the award winning composer for "Hello Dolly!".
"My eyes were really wet at both the opening and the closing of the film, and just the wonderful way those songs were used to make him more human," Herman said. "That's really what they did."

You can check out the article as posted by the Associated Press, here.
Another interesting article. This one focuses more on Pixar itself.

Transformers Goes Ivy League

2008-06-26T14:35:00.003-04:00

Warning: This is not a real poster. I made it up.

So... Yeah. They're shooting a scene for the Transformers 2 movie literally a mile up the street from where I work, in the heart of Princeton University.

Co-worker went into town and said there was a lot of traffic coming back and it was because they moved in about 4 18-wheelers on this one street, which happens to be in the direction that I go to get home.

Anyway, couple days ago, I'm on my way to job #2 and I'm stuck in mini-traffic. At the stoplight I take notice of the car in front of me. The most sickest and hottest Maserati. I'm really not into cars, but if a car could be sexy... that'd be it. Again I don't think much of it. Then we come to where the lane splits and Maserati has to make a left, and I make a right. I look to my left... wouldn't you know it. It was Shia LaBeof.

I was telling my friends about this and they were suggesting I walk by to see if I'd get "discovered". Riiiiiiight. I'm so not the "discovering" type. But I was thinking of swinging by to maybe see if I can get some production work. Even if it was getting some coffee or bagels... could you just imagine the contacts I would be getting?!?!?!

Update: Wouldn't you know it... on the way home they wrapped up production. The trailers were gone. *shrug