Mr. Vampire

mr vampire

mr vampire upholds that certain tradition of favorite kungfu movies we have grown to love over the years. i felt like a kid wanting desperately about knowing the kungfu. remembering jackie chan and his antics. the movie appears low budget but what it lacks in special effects, it fully compensates with good natured humor. i think anyone from any background would be able to appreciate it. come to think of it, the raw quality of it is part of its charm.

the story is filled with chinese folklore, about the nature of the dead. how it continues to "live" after life. my favorite part was when the taoist? monk discovers the rogue vampire and tries to (and fails) to capture it using his own stock of undead. the fight scenes were not martial arts intensive. but like i mentioned earlier. it compensates with humor.

3 stars ***
made me laugh ..

Death Note 1 and 2 (The Movie)

death note 1 and 2 (the movie)

it was only after did i watch and liked the movies did i learn that they (supposedly) pale compared to its manga roots. i have also heard that there was an animé which also surpassed the real live movies. then i suppose it was for the best that i was ignorant when i came to watch them because i enjoyed the anime-like characters and the the mind games they played against each other.

death note is about a magical book granted by shinigamis (death gods) to certain mortals. the book basically kills people. the chosen mortal writes down the name of his/her enemies. and possibly, but not necessarily, the nature and circumstance of their deaths. and those people who have their names written down on the death note helplessly die, written circumstance fulfilled. at the very least, having your name written down on it grants you death by heart attack.

i am not going to read in too much about how the japanese psyche deals with death. certainly, in the story, the seriousness of mortality as it affects all of humanity is caricatured. so i felt unattached to the idea of mortality. to me, the story is an intriguing question. what would you do if you have to power to kill.

3 stars * * *

August Rush (Movie Review: 3 out of 5)

You don't have to be a music lover to enjoy this movie. However, you must be prepared to accept all the freaky coincidences and odd circumstances that play around the main protagonist of the film.

The hero (August Rush, aka Evan Taylor) is an orphan who is driven to find his birth parents. He's a music prodigy who has the "gift of listening to the world". Thanks to this gift, he is reunited with his family at the end.

It's a modern day fairy tale of sorts -- we have a young boy who gets thrown into a cruel/nasty world (aka New York City). But thanks to his musical talent, he meets people (like a character named "Wizard") who either helped or exploited him along the way. But August stays true to himself and his dream does come true.

Jen loved the film while I found it just okay. It's a feel good movie with a nice soundtrack, but there are better "feel good" movies out there. The only point that I found interesting were the movie's attempt to portray the "underground society" of New York through the eyes of children. We see the flaws and the issues of the child welfare system and how many runaway kids get used and exploited off the streets. August was lucky that he had the magical talent to get himself out of the gutter. I pity the other kids who got left behind.

Pan's Labyrinth

I've been wanting to do a review of this movie ever since I watched it last October 2007. I'd personally give the movie a six star rating for its imagery, story, and suspense.

Pan's Labyrinth (or "El Laberinto del Fauno" in Spanish) is the work of Guillermo del Toro, the same guy who directed the Hellboy movie. At first I was skeptical of the movie's English title, it sounded like a B horror movie. But then after hearing nice reviews, I decided to watch it and see for myself.

The movie is basically an adult faerie tale. By adult, I'm talking about the intense and gruesome violence depicted in the story. I wouldn't recommend having kids watch the movie because of the gory head bashing, torture, and the bloody gun fights.

Pan's Labyrinth is set in the wilderness of Spain, during the country's civil war. The military, led by a maniacal war freak captain, is hunting down rebels - killing them left and right. Amidst all the death and violence, a young girl becomes enamored in the world of faerie. She encounters a satyr and learns of a fantastic faerie world. With the help of the satyr and some pixies, the girl undergoes a series of quests to help improve the lives of her family.

Slowly the girl's secret fantasy world and the realities of war begin to overlap. The rebels waged their final war against the military and the girl is forced to make a choice - to save her dreams or her family.

While the movie revolves around the girl and her struggle to save her family from hardship and suffering. I think that her innocence and belief in faerie kept her protected from the brutalities of war. Since she is the only one who interacts with the Satyr and pixies, I was left thinking whether the faeries were real or if she made it all up.

Despite all the death and violence, the story redeems itself in the end. In the young girl's mind, she has succeeded in her quest and she has brought happiness and prosperity for her family and the land.

Kekexili: Mountain Patrol

I stumbled on this movie accidentally at AXN last Saturday and I was glued to the screen. At first I thought it was one of those mainland films depicting life under communist rule, but as I continued watching, I realized this was a story about life in the wilderness of Tibet.

The film acts like a travel documentary, revolving around a Beijing Photojournalist on assignment in Tibet. He gets first hand experience with the rugged and harsh life in the mountains.

During his trip, the journalist encounters a group of Tibetan vigilantes who roam the land to protect endangered antelopes from poachers. They track down illegal hunters across the mountains, arresting violators and burying the carcasses of dead antelopes they encountered.

The film portrays the harshness of the Tibetan mountains -- from its cold numbing frost, to its vast stretched of wasteland. It shows how people survive under poverty. Abandoned or simply ignored by the government, these people resort to illegal poaching, skinning of antelope skins (which are prized in the black market), and stealing.

One of the scenes that struck me was when the patrol arrested a group of poachers. The journalist interviewed one of the criminals, an old man who claimed to be the fastest antelope skinner in the region. The old man proudly showed his three sons who were along with him. He said that he was once a shepherd but because of the changes in the weather, his livestock died. Shortly after that, he became a poacher.

I liked the way the film portrayed the region as a "savage frontier", where everyday is a fight for survival. It also shows how the land affects its inhabitants, and how it affects ones moral judgment and view of good/evil.

Children of Men

Watched the movie on HBO last night. I 'm a sucker for post-apocalyptic movies and this was one of the best. The movie paints a realistic and terrifying vision of the near future, a future that seems all the more probable with all the problems that the world is facing right now.

The movie is set in the United Kingdom of 2027. Mankind has less than a century to survive, since all women have lost the ability to conceive and bear children. Accompanying this crisis is a worldwide societal collapse, rampant terrorism, discrimination, and environmental destruction. Britain becomes the last functioning government, persecuting illegal immigrants and refugees.

Watching the movie gave me a picture of the world, if the present problems of global warming, political/financial instabilities, and terrorism would continue to worsen. Unlike other apocalyptic movies where mankind is quickly eradicated by some kind of holocaust, Children of Men shows a slow and more gruesome collapse of humanity and civilization. Coupled with the mysterious dilemma of infertility, people have lost all sense of decency and morality. Many of them have simply surrendered to their inevitable doom and destruction.

Despite all the death and suffering, the movie offers hope and redemption for humanity. It might not be that uplifting (at least not for me), but it still shows that there is something positive and good about people, and there is a chance for mankind to survive.

Best Songs of 2007

Here's my top ten list of best songs of 2007. Last year was a great time for music, and if the pattern continues, it looks like 2008 will also be good for music fans.

Here's some interesting observations from the song list. Nine out of the ten songs had lead female vocals (Hugh Grant being the exception, and he's not even a genuine recording artist). There was only one American song in the top ten (the one by Rihanna). And four out of the ten were either remakes or heavily influenced by an older song.

You can also check out my previous 2006 and 2005 lists. Happy listening!

10. Pop! Goes My Heart - Hugh Grant

When the movie 'Music and Lyrics' opened with Hugh Grant in full 80's look performing the music video to this song, I knew I would like the rest of the film. It's a song that is made to match the look and feel of that era. And parodies a lot of the old 80's music video style.

9. Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne

Surprisingly catchy and infectious. Angst-ridden, yet at the same time having a lot of positive self-affirmations. My favorite part is the short rap solo and the line where she sings "Hell yeah, I'm the motherf___ princess".

8. Don't Save Me - Marit Larsen

I have endured my fair share of ridicule and mockery from friends after admitting that I was a big M2M fan. And Marit, the blonde girl, was always my favorite of the two. So when I heard that she had released her first solo album, I was eager to check out the new songs. This is the first single from the album and was a huge hit in her native Norway. It has a lot of the M2M qualities we like, but in Marit's personal style. You can interpret the lyrics as being about the split with her M2M partner and best friend Marion Raven.

7. Shut Up and Drive - Rihanna

This is a guilty pleasure of mine. Rihanna samples New Order's Blue Monday bass and rhythm parts to create a hit song. I love it when new artists take sequences from 80's songs and adapt it to today's pop music. Most of the time, they end up ruining the old songs, but Rihanna actually does it well, duplicating the successful formula she used previously in SOS (which sampled Soft Cell's Tainted Love). Shut Up and Drive is a fast paced, energy-driven song. Rihanna's attractive physical assets displayed in the music video certainly helps enhance the appeal of the music.

6. Only a Fool - Marit Larsen

I really like Marit's voice in this one. And she does a lot of unconventional things in this song, such as the use of an instrument/sound effect that sounds like a whistle, as well as adding a banjo and harmonica to the list of instruments. This sounds very much like a children's song combined with many bluegrass and country elements. Cute and good song.

5. Everything's Just Wonderful - Lily Allen

This is a song that speaks to the thirty-something batch with which I belong to. We are faced with enormous pressure to be more responsible, get a good paying job, pay for the mortgage, stay thin, be a good taxpaying citizen, stay within the norms of society and play the same game that everyone plays. Then when asked by our friends and relatives "How's everything going?", we reply "Oh, everything's just wonderful" with only a hint of sarcasm and bitterness. And that's what this song is all about.

4. Selfish - Sunset Daze

The original 'Selfish' by The Other Two was my top song back in 1994, when I used to share yearender lists with fellow dangerousreviewer Roehl and other friends. So I was very excited to discover this remake. I only found it by accident from one of the mix collection CDs I bought early this year in my goal of updating myself with the popular songs I had missed from the Philippines the past three years.

The added background vocal blending is a great enhancement to the original. It's also good to know that some of the younger people hearing this song for the first time will also rediscover the original version by The Other Two. It's a tribute to good 90's music. It also symbolizes to me my own reconnection to family and friends I haven't seen in several years.

3. I Didn't Know I was Looking for Love - Sitti

You're probably familiar with the EBTG (Everything But the Girl) version of this song, which is one of my favorites. But after hearing Sitti's bossa nova version, I think I'm starting to like it more than the original! I was with my brother and mother at Rockwell Mall when I first heard this playing in the background. I immediately asked my brother if he knew who the singer was. He didn't know, but he mentioned that bossa nova music was getting really popular in the Philippines and that it probably came from one of those new artists specializing in that genre, in this case, Sitti.

Of all the songs in the list, I feel this is the one with the most staying power and could easily have been my #1 pick as I'm still not tired of listening to it. The music and vocals have a relaxed yet playful style to it. This is how you remake a song, you take its essential qualities, and add your unique spin on it. Looking forward to more Sitti releases.

2. Oh My God - Mark Ronson/Lily Allen

Get ready for a real treat if you haven't listened to this yet. This is an overpowering, high energy song featuring Lily Allen's singing and Mark Ronson's musical arrangement. I was amazed when I first heard this, it has almost everything I want in a song. It builds up to a point where you almost feel that it's going out of control, then recomposes itself before the dramatic trumpet solo. I listened to it repeatedly last summer while working out and taking long walks in the hot sun.

It's a remake (and improvement) of the original Kaiser Chief song of the same name. Definitely check out the other tracks in the Mark Ronson album if you're a fan of song remixes.

1. Single - Natasha Bedingfield

This is hands-down the best song of the year. 'Single' has powerful vocals, one of the best bass lines produced in a song, fantastic lyrics, and an extremely addictive quality. The song is about proclaiming your independence, not only in terms of relationships, but also with regards to your individual liberation from the norms of society. Without question, 'Single' is the top single of 2007.

dragons of the dwarven depths

it is recommended that before you read the lost chronicles trilogy. you must finish reading the chronicles trilogy first. why? because the lost chronicles is about the adventures that happened during the chronicles trilogy but were intentionally left out (i heard as to make more money) but perhaps its a good thing that our favorite companions continue to have "new" adventures way after their lifetimes. ::sob:: ils me manquent bien ... ::sob:: tome 1 dragons of the dwarven depths is about how the companions obtained the hammer of kharas. a gift from the gods of light by which the inhabitants krynn will able to forge the mythical dragonlances. also it showcases the kingdom of the mountain dwarves thorbadin and the different clans of dwarved who dwell in it. my favorite part is when caramon drew a heart on the tunnel wall with tika's name inside. cute cute ^_^ (sigh) the highseekers who continues to be a burden to the companions and the refugees remind me very much of baptists or filipino politicians who charms their way in to the hearts of the mob whispering sweet words but with little or no substance.

rating 2 out of 5 .. for a book that has the word depth on the title, i find it lacked depth .. however i did want to make special mention of the artwork on the cover. its nice!

City of God

imdb page

I heard lots of good things about this movie, mainly for its realistic depiction of crime in the 'City of God', the name of a slum area in Rio de Janeiro.

I was a bit apprehensive, as I was afraid it would be too violent and disturbing to watch. But it didn't turn out as violent as I thought it was. Yes, lots of gang killings and violence takes place, but it doesn't revel in them unlike many of today's unimaginative and horrible torture movies that masquerade themselves under the horror category. City of God does its best to hide the graphic nature of the violence and only uses them to illustrate how dangerous and desperate the area is.

It is filled with many fascinating characters, each with his own storyline. I found myself believing that these were real people and not merely roles played in a movie. The main character is a gang druglord named Li'l Ze. We are introduced to him starting from when he was a little kid hanging out with a bunch of local thugs. At first, it is amusing to see how eager he is to try to fit in with the older guys and show that he will make a good gangster in the future. Then the film fast forwards to the point where he is all grown up and now quite a scary character capable of much violence filled with his desire to control the City of God.

The other main character is a young boy named Rocket, who somehow manages to avoid getting himself involved with the rampant crime and violence. He grows up to be a struggling newspaper errand boy, with a passion for photography. These two characters - Li'l Ze and Rocket frequently bump into each other at critical junctions, and their paths finally cross in the climactic final scene.

The sequencing of scenes are very nicely done and serves to advance the story in a captivating way. Through this method of storytelling, we are introduced to the secondary characters of the City of God - Benny, the popular gang leader and best friend and partner of Li'l Ze. Knockout Ned, the humble unassuming slum resident who is unwillingly drawn into the gang violence. We also get to know Rocket's love interest, Angelica, and Carrot, the rival drug lord to Li'l Ze's empire.

An interesting side note is how big the class differences are in Brazil. You've got the poorest of the poor living in the City of God slums, and we get a small glimpse of the other side in the newspaper scenes, where it seems like a very different country. The income gap between rich and poor is as wide as the differences between first and third world countries.

This was an entertaining and fascinating film to watch which I highly recommend.

Rating: 4/5 * * * *
Great characters and realistic story.

I Am Legend

imdb page

I Am Legend is a movie adaptation of Richard Matheson's novelette of the same name. A mysterious virus outbreak has turned all the inhabitants of New York City into degenerate beast-like creatures. Apparently, there are only two survivors: Will Smith's character, who appears to be immune to the virus, and his pet dog who serves as his loyal companion and best friend.

The start of the movie is pretty good. A scientist/doctor played by Emma Thompson appears on a TV news interview with what appears to be a cure for Cancer. The scene then shifts to several years later. New York is deserted and in ruins. An unforeseen disaster of apocalyptic proportions has occurred.

As a fan of the post-apocalyptic movie genre, I was looking forward to this film. But at the same time, very apprehensive as it had all the makings of another disappointing Will Smith sci-fi film in the mold of I, Robot.

While not as bad as I, Robot, this unfortunately didn't turn out well. The human/beast infected creatures didn't look real. They were very CGI-ish. I also got very impatient with the pacing, it felt like everything was moving so slowly and I wanted them to hurry it up.

I also found myself in disbelief at some of the decisions that Will Smith's character made in the movie. I found myself questioning many of his actions, especially in the later parts and the ending. This is one of the movies where I felt many of the situations were contrived.

The only saving grace here is Will Smith's relationship with his dog. It was both very touching and real. These were the only good parts of the movie.

I haven't read the original novelette, but based on what I gathered from those who are familiar with it, this film deviated from much of the original story. And I think it missed on a lot of the main points that the story wanted to impart, replacing it with more action sequences (just like I, Robot).

The sad thing is that I Am Legend hit it big in the box office, which only encourages Hollywood to follow the same formula, which will result in more bad movies like this to be made in the future.

Rating: 2/5 * *
Another Will Smith sci-fi fiasco.

Best Songs of 2006

Here are my picks for best songs of last year, 2006. I've only got five that are memorable, because it was kind of a sparse year for good music. This is a year late, but I wanted to post this before I finalize my top song picks for this year. You can also check out my 2005 song list.

5. Wind It Up - Barenaked Ladies

While I was underwhelmed with their latest CD 'Barenaked Ladies are Me', I did enjoy the last song in the album 'Wind It Up'. The video is good too - a funny and oddly inspiring story about a rock star making a comeback in the national air guitar tournament.

4. Fidelity - Regina Spektor

Here's a nice feel-good song with catchy vocals and melody. It's memorable because I first saw the video in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep, and thought it was fantastic. A couple of weeks later, I heard it again while browsing in a bookstore and it just had a good mood to it.

3. Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield

One of the most played songs on radio for the year. This is a great motivational song - especially with the excellent lyrics combined with Natasha Bedingfield's powerful voice. My favorite part is when the gospel choir sings along in the chorus. It's about deciding and writing your own future and enjoying the present moment.

2. SOS - Rihanna

When I first heard this on the radio, I immediately noticed the Soft Cell 'Tainted Love' background loop, but on a new song. Who is this Rihanna and why is she stealing from Soft Cell? I was determined not to like this new song, but after repeated listens I had to admit that it was growing on me and I was starting to like Rihanna's new spin on an 80's new wave sampling track. After a couple of months, I was hooked. It's also good workout music.

1. O Valencia - The Decemberists

It was on a dark and cold November night that I saw The Decemberists play this song on Letterman. The music and singing struck me as something very unique, and the lyrics were romantic and tragic in an epic sort of way. It transported me momentarily to a different time and place - where true love exists and lingering feuds are settled the old fashioned way. O Valencia had that magical, innocent aspect to it, which you don't see much of these days. And this is why it's my top song of the year.

The Best Books of 2006

Yes I know, I'm a year late for this. Here' s my top 10 list of best books for the year 2006 (last year).

Stay tuned for my 2007 book list which I will post very soon. You can also check out my 2005 and 2004 book lists.



10. Salt: A World History - Mark Kurlansky

This book brought me back to my high school days, when I used to enjoy reading about history. The author describes how salt is cultivated and traded, and how it played a huge role in the development of civilization. In the past, salt was a scarce and heavily valued resource, much like oil is today. Salt is now easily manufactured and readily available everywhere. Kind of makes you think what would happen if oil were to follow the same fate, how would it affect the balance of power in the world?

9. Programming Interviews Exposed - John Mongan

I added this to my list as it helped me in preparing for a couple of job interviews when I was applying to different teams early in the year. This book helped me get into good programming shape and provided me the tools necessary to exercise my skills and develop my confidence which helped me get the much needed job transfer.

8. Effective C# - Bill Wagner

I needed this book to prepare me for the C# Programming Trivia part of the job interviews. It was essential in getting to know the ins and outs of writing code in the C# language. Though I wasn’t able to use much of the material in the actual job interviews, I found that it actually helped me a lot in my work, as it had some new coding idioms and tricks I wasn’t aware of in the past.

7. The 10% Solution for a Healthy Life - Ray Kurzweil

I bought this book after my father suffered a stroke late in the year. So I was determined to learn more about good health habits and how to prevent heart attacks. It also helped that it was written by Ray Kurzweil, who I respect a lot based on his past work and ideas. Kurzweil approaches health topics like any science or computer problem. He researches the topic exhaustively and puts forth a solution for himself that other people can follow. The gist of his program is to reduce fat and salt in the diet as much as possible. It is quite difficult to follow his recommended solution, and looking back at it now, I must say that I don’t fully agree with his findings. But still, this is a very educational book and highly recommended if you want to learn more about good health.

6. To Be or Not to Be Intimidated - Robert Ringer

This is the rewritten and revised version of Robert Ringer’s original classic ‘Winning Through Intimidation’. The original editions of Ringer’s books tend to have misleading titles, which is one of the reasons why he changed the title for this one. This is a nice book that, through a series of personal anecdotes and stories, teaches you how to accept and acknowledge reality for what it is, and how to deal with different kinds of people. Ringer describes the different people who will try to take advantage of you in business, and gives very practical advice on how to handle them. This is a great business and life book and has helped me a lot.

5. Hyperspace - Michio Kaku

The author, Michio Kaku has a knack for describing complicated physics topics in a highly entertaining and educational manner. He starts with the basics, then progresses to more current theories – Newton’s Law, Einstein, Quantum Theory, and String Theory. He also mixes the technical stuff with plenty of musings and digressions on the nature of the universe, reality, and time. This was a very enjoyable book to read and greatly expanded my imagination.

4. Your Money or Your Life - Joe Dominguez, Vicki Robin

This is one of those subversive books that is so radically different from everything else I have been led to believe in the past. To me it is the personal finance counterpart to ‘The Joy of Laziness’ (another book I loved, which also drastically changed the way I think). If you have been struggling with your finances or find that you're not enjoying your work and your life, this book might be the most important one you’ll ever read.

It’s not so much a money book, but more of a ‘life’ book. It shows you how to value your time and how to put your life energy to things that are most meaningful to you. It also emphasizes how frugality can lead to a much more enjoyable life, by using every item to the fullest extent. The later chapters eventually get to the ultimate destination, what the authors call the ‘crossover point’ wherein your investment income equals your expenses. At this point you are free to pursue what fulfills you the most in life, which can give you greatest happiness and satisfaction.

3. Build Your Own Computer - Kyle MacRae

This is your standard ‘how to’ book which shows you step by step, with lots of diagrams and illustrations, how to build your own computer from parts you choose and buy separately. Now you’re probably wondering how a simple book like this can be #3 in my list. It’s because I’ve always wanted to assemble a PC myself, and have asked a lot of people how to do it. I’d always get a smug, unhelpful reply such as “it’s easy, don’t you know how to do it?” or something like that, which doesn't me much good. But this book showed me how to do it step by step, and also addressed a lot of the gotchas such as hardware compatibility issues and all those pesky details. It just works, which is why I love this book.

2. Looking Out for #1 - Robert Ringer

I have benefited so much from reading Robert Ringer's ‘Million Dollar Habits’ (my top book for 2005), and have gained a lot from this book that he wrote earlier. He describes his overarching philosophy on life – looking at the big picture, seeing things in perspective, always seeing things for what it is in reality. He gives a lot of advice based on his personal experience, which he narrates in a humorous, self-deprecating manner, through his plodding Tortoise character, which I instantly related to.

I saw this book many times in the past, usually in National Bookstore or book sales. I would always pick it up, read a few pages, debate whether to buy it or not, eventually put it back on the shelf. I regret not buying and reading this a decade ago when I first saw it, as it would probably have had a profound affect on my life much earlier, and I would have avoided a lot of my earlier mistakes.

The book is extremely rich in content, covering all sorts of topics on human behavior, personal neuroses that hold us back, reality-based thinking, among other stuff. What I really need to do is reread the book again and post an outline of all the major points. But if you want to get a good insight on life and personal development, I highly encourage you take your time in reading this book, and digest all the ideas slowly.

1. Naked Economics - Charles Wheelan

Simply put, this is the best economics book out there. Lately, there has been an increase in popularity of popular econ books such as Freakonomics, The Undercover Economist, Armchair Economist, and many others. While they are all a source of good ideas and fascinating reading, they are usually geared towards the more entertaining and sensationalist facets of economics. ‘Naked Economics’ is less geared towards pop economics, and is structured more to cover the basic concepts of how the free market economy works, yet is written in a way such that it is also very educational and entertaining to the casual reader.

This was the book I should have read in high school, when I used to fall asleep in economics social studies class. It covers how free markets work, why the government is useful, how the flow and availability of information affects you more than you think, the power of incentives in everyday life, productivity, and how the Federal Reserve works to our benefit. It’s 236 pages of condensed information. The author, Charles Wheelan, describes each topic with plenty of historical events, side stories, and metaphors to illustrate a new lesson, all in a succinct way.

After I finished the book, I felt a deep glow inside of me - that feeling when I knew that I gained a deep understanding of how the modern world works. It also challenged a lot of my assumptions as to how I thought things were and how different it was in reality. I knew that I would never see things in the same way I used to think of them in the past. Which is why Naked Economics tops my list for 2006.

the golden compass (book and film)

[BOOK]

the golden compass is tome 1 of the trilogy entitled His Dark Materials. its a fantasy world which has similarities to our own.

i enjoyed the different factions. the separation of powers. there is oxford college which traditionally stood for social and scientific progress. the government, puppets of the magisterium which stands for totalitarian rule. one cant help but make the connection between the magisterium mentioned in the book and the catholic church with it's history of oppression of outsiders and suppression of freedom. the gyptians (similar to the fate of gypsies in europe). the free-spirited nomads who are subjects of prejudice, from which our main hero lyra belacqua will get most aid from. i was inspired by the magnificence of the armored bears and the alluring witches.

on page 239. there is, for the first time nearly the end of tome 1, a brief mention of the vatican. the power behind the magisterium and the clever precedent, refering to the practice of castration in catholic europe, to the awful cruelty that is happening in lyra's world.

my favorite part is the confrontation between the armored bears. i thought it a precise metaphor to how weak and dangerous pretentions can become.

[FILM]

have finally watched the movie golden compass. i was very disappointed with the movie. although it was faithful to the general plot, it failed to convey the same level of excitement and dread that it had in the book. to put it mildly .. it lacked soul. if the story had been human, the movie would have been someone who had lost its daemon. by this time i believe most people would have heard about it. or have watched it themselves. so it would be okey if i mention the parts which went missing in it.

1. first, the magisterium was heavily watered down into a regular bad guy. for those who havent read the books. the magisterium is controled by the vatican. even if it did maintain its primary intent, that is to control mankind (his thoughts. his dreams. his life). the change of face made it less of a threat and therefore it was less intriguing. i felt that this was very unfortunate that prof. richard dawkins is once again right in his thesis. why is religion immune to scrutiny. but that is that another story. (another forum for that matter)

2. in the book i felt scared and utterly shocked at the discovery of the ghostly kid who lost his daemon. it was downplayed in the film. i couldn't feel any dread. but instead it felt like a walk in the park on a sunday afternoon where you ignore everything around you. in the book, the boy died. in the movie, they hinted on getting the daemon back. again this couldn't work. the enemy and what it was doing became an inconvenience rather than something to be afraid of. it took away the intensity of the scene. loosing your soul is suppose to be a very big deal. and yet the people just stood there as if the kid just lost a pet.

3. what better way to invade a kingdom but by invading its culture (its spirit). this is exactly what happened during the age of colonization where christian europe settled in the americas and colonized many parts of africa and asia. this story is written all over church history. it starts by converting the ruling class, then the nobles and then finally, the peasants. it then demonizes/ridicules local traditions until eventually everything about their identity had been stamped out completely. much like the king of svalbard who was enticed to convert along with his confused subjects. it must have started that way too for the filipino natives when their datus (chieftains) converted (under the banner of the sword) to catholicism. it must have been awkward and confusing for their subjects. their way of life changed. their spirit gone. they've become slaves to the imported culture. although not portrayed very well in the film, the metaphor was perfectly obvious in the book.

rating - book 3 out of 5 ***
rating - film 1 out of 5 *

The Fifth Mountain

Category:	Books
Genre:	Religion & Spirituality
Author:	Paulo Coelho

It's been years since I last read Paulo Coelho's books. Personally I prefer Coelho's first three books (The Alchemist, Valkyries, and the Pilgrimage) over his later novels. For me, "The Alchemist" was the best, followed by "The Pilgrimage" and then "Valkyries". These books were filled with insights, ideas, and new age mysticism -- which drew my curiosity and interest. I had the chance to skim through his other books, and found that they paled in comparison to his first three novels.

A few weeks ago, I friend of mine lent me "The Fifth Mountain" and "The Devil and Miss Prym". I read the two books and I am still convinced that Coelho's first three novels are still his best works. I decided to do a fantasy review on "Fifth Mountain" simply because this novel is an attempt by Coelho to retell the story of the prophet Elijah in a new age/fantasy type of narrative.

Here Coelho tries to mix religion with new-age mysticism and philosophy into a pseudo-biography of the prophet. In the book, Elijah is shown as a man who has the gift to communicate with angels. What makes the novel interesting is the way Coelho manages to portray Elijiah as a flawed human being. Coelho's Elijah is not the same Elijah in the Bible. He tries to run away from his destiny as a prophet and a messenger of God. Elijah is a man constantly bombarded with self-doubt, fear, and frustration.

My main comment about the book is that it reflects the same ideas from "The Alchemist", "The Pilgrimage", and "Valkyries". Coelho seems to be recycling or promoting the same kind of spiritual philosophy in his all his books.

At the start of the story, Elijah refuses to become a prophet and decides to live his life as a carpenter. When Queen Jezebel decides to kill off Isarel's prophets, Elijah was forced to flee his homeland. Elijah continues to reject his destiny as a prophet, causing him to experience more pain and hardship. This same conflict was also seen in Coelho's "The Alchemist", where the shepherd boy was tempted several times to follow a path that was not meant for him.

One curious thing about the novel is that Coelho skips over the story of Elijah that is found in the Bible. Instead, he creates his own story about Elijah's exile. Coelho focuses his story on Elijah's stay in the city of Akbar. Here Elijah undergoes a spiritual journey, much like the journey in "Valkyries" and "The Pilgrimage". He falls in love, learns about himself, God, and his destiny.

I think this book be is a re-telling of "The Alchemist". Coelho recreates the story of Elijah to talk about his ideas on destiny, God, and spirituality. The story works on some levels, but there are some sections where Coelho rambles about his philosophy, which I find a bit too "new-age" for me.

Death Proof

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Death Proof was originally shown in theaters as one half of the Quentin Tarantino 'Grind House' double bill, the other half being Planet Terror. The two movies were released as separate DVDs, though there is a planned 'Grind House' special edition release coming soon. I wasn't able to catch this during its theatrical run so I had to settle for viewing the DVD.

This film was shot B-movie style, with grainy film quality, skips, and even an occasional blooper thrown in. It's supposed to have the effect of going to a delapidated movie house showing old, low budget films. It reminded me back when I was in high school and college, where I wouldn't be too picky about the types of movies I watched, going to poor quality movie theaters to watch rehashed 70's and 80's movies. Most of them weren't good at all, but it was still fun to watch. Death Proof tries to replicate this effect with mixed results.

You get three different picture styles, as well as two sets of female victims. It starts with a rough, grainy, old film look, complete with audio and video skips. This is part with the group of girls led by Vanessa Ferlito. It then shifts to black and white (presumably as we're now on a separate roll of film) when the second group of girls led by Rosario Dawson are introduced. Then there's a very cool effect when the film shifts to color, and you see that the girls' car is actually yellow.

To get to the good parts, you have to bear with a lot of boring conversation by both groups of girls. I found the dialog between the girls very difficult to sit through and got increasingly irritated and bored with the seemingly endless talking. I think this was the intention of Tarantino, to make us so tired of listening to these characters that it would make the action scenes much more interesting by contrast.

We are spared from having to hang out with these unlikable characters once Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) is introduced. Here is a guy we actually like. An old school stuntman from the 70's and 80's. A loner who gets the attention of the only other likable character in the first segment, Rose McGowan, a sweet girl who feels alienated by the slutty, shallow, drug-using group of girls we had to bear with earlier. McGowan is able to hitch a ride with Stuntman Mike after they leave the bar. And this is where the action starts.

In the second segment, we have to bear with another torturously long chit-chat between the Rosario Dawson group of girls. While not as irritating as the first group, they had their own set of unlikable qualities. At this point, I was actually rooting for Stuntman Mike to finish them off. And I think this was the emotion that Tarantino was going for with his audience. For them to root for the bad guy. After all, if you take away the psychotic murderous serial killer side of Stuntman Mike, he's actually a pretty cool guy who you'd like to hang out with and can relate to.

My main complaint with this film is the overly long, boring conversation that takes place not once, but two times, with two different groups of females. Perhaps Tarantino could have found a way to make these parts shorter, while at the same time getting the same intended 'irritation' effect. Or maybe not.

The dialog also feels somewhat contrived, especially with Tracie Thomas' character, Kim. Just too much girl power. Only two girls were likable, the sweet and innocent Rose McGowan, and Lee, the cheerleader (who has a somewhat interesting side story in the end, when she is abandoned by the Spice Girls).

The best parts were the road action parts. These are not your ordinary chase scenes. Most vehicle action scenes in today's movies are spliced together in a way that they don't have the same cohesion, like watching a bewildering sequence of special effects on the road that leave you dizzy. The Death Proof chase scenes appear very genuine, like they were actually taking place, and they tell a good story, with emotional pacing. This is oen of the reasons why Quentin Tarantino is one of my favorite directors. You can feel the love, care, and attention to detail that he has for his movies in something as ubiquitous as a high speed car chase scene.

Overall, a very entertaining movie. And I'm eagerly awaiting Planet Terror, the other half of Grind House, when it comes out.

Rating: 4/5 * * * *
A little action with lots of annoying dialog.

Braveheart

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I consider Braveheart to be the precursor to modern era epic battle movies such as Gladiator, Troy, Alexander, and Lord of the Rings. It was filmed and shown before CGI, or computer-generated imagery became common in movie production.

Due to this, I had tempered my expectations for this film, as I knew the battle scenes were developed without the aid of computers or graphics. Whatever limitations it would have in terms of special effects, I expect it to be made up by a much better story and character development. But it ultimately let me down.

Mel Gibson stars and directs in this movie, which in 1996, won Best Picture and a Best Director award for Gibson. I guess it must have been a very weak year for movies at the time, as I don't get how this won. It's mildly entertaining, and at times even fun to watch, but horribly overrated.

Gibson portrays William Wallace, a thirteenth century Scottish bandit/rebel who fights to free his people from the evil English. This is the film's fatal flaw as I don't find Mel Gibson at all convincing in this role. Wallace is supposed to be this fearsome brute of a man, savage and courageous at the same time. And I just never see these qualities in his acting.

Another complaint of mine is how this movie appears to advertise itself as being based on historical events, yet is terribly inaccurate. I understand that the storytelling needs to be exaggerated and some new parts made up to add entertainment value. But in this case, Braveheart went too far off course.

Even while watching this, I couldn't believe how saintly Wallace was portrayed, I'm pretty sure the real-life figure wasn't at all like this. I'm not even sure if his wife existed, or if the Scots were the good guys, or if King Edward Longshanks was that ruthless. Once you start to doubt whether these events actually happened or not, that's when things start slipping.

Despite these complaints, I confess I found it entertaining at times. Particularly all the scenes with King Edward (Longshanks). I enjoyed the tough guy, kick-ass King character. You can feel his power and ruthlessness. To illustrate just how bad ass this elderly king is, in one of the scenes, he throws his son's male lover out a tower window, and effortlessly beats up his son when he tries to fight back.

The battle scenes were ok but lacked emotion. At times it felt like these were actors going through the motions of fighting. There were also some moments which felt too contrived, such as when the Irish and Scots changed sides. The ending where Wallace seemed to get the upperhand of the King even in defeat was just too precious and made me groan out loud.

This would have been a pretty good lighthearted action flick. It just took itself too seriously.

Rating: 2/5 * *
Overrated Best Picture

The Weather Man

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Most movies follow fairly predictable plots. You can almost tell what the characters are going to do, what will happen next, and sit smugly knowing that things are going to be resolved, that everything will turn out alright, and that the heroes will be vindicated in the end. The Weather Man is not that type of movie.

In fact, you can't tell what will happen next. It could be good or bad, but in this case, things always get worse. And when you think you finally reached the turning point where things ought to be getting better, guess again. This thing is depressing to watch, but in a good way.

Nicholas Cage is David Spritz - a TV Weather Man. On the surface, it looks like he's doing very well for himself. He's a well known TV personality, has that charm on camera, earns big bucks, gets to have sex with lots of attractive women, and is on target to get a potential six-figure income as the weather guy in the country's number one syndicated morning show, Hello America. He's living the American dream, but there's a problem.

Despite all his successes, his personal life is in shambles. His ex-wife hates him. His kids have no affection for him. He feels like a failure when he compares himself to his father, a world-renowned writer played by Michael Caine. He gets no respect from strangers either, as he is frequently gets fast food and beverages thrown at him on the street. Nobody likes the weather man.

Spritz tries desperately to make things better. He takes his daughter to the company Christmas party, where things go wrong. He takes her out for archery lessons but there's no warmth in their father-daughter relationship. To make things worse, his son is befriended by a pedophile, which Spritz is unaware of. He can't even get things right in his father's "live funeral" (a make-believe funeral you stage with loved ones while the person is alive).

It's like watching a horror movie. I wanted Spritz to win, even just a little. The character is shallow, weak, and oftentimes a jerk, but I found that I still wanted to root for him to succeed. There's a point in the film where he realizes exactly the type of person he is, and I think this is the most powerful point in the movie.

In a way, it's also a film about the modern ills of western society. You can be well off materially, have all the physical comforts, and have all the external trappings of success, yet be very unhappy. One of the dilemmas that Cage's character faces is how his professional success contrasts with his failures in personal life and relationships.

There were some things about this film that I felt were flaws. For one, I couldn't figure out whether Michael Caine's character was british or not. He kind of had a british accent, yet he was supposed to be the father of Nicholas Cage's character who was American. To add to the confusion, Cage's son played by Brit Nicholas Hoult, who was Marcus in About a Boy, also seemed very British. Were Caine and Hoult supposed to be Americans, or were they there to show that Cage's family had some British roots? Though not relevant to the story, it distracted me enough as they just didn't feel as if the three males from different generations were related to one another. Poor casting in my opinion.

Another thing was that I got the impression that this was a comedy, or at least a dark comedy. It's not. In fact I think this plays more like a modern day tragedy. I watched this with the wrong expectations. Perhaps that was the intent of the filmmakers, but it made it more painful to watch for me.

This movie won't make you feel good and will make you probably more depressed after watching it. But I think that's its main purpose. You'll also think of how much your own life either resembles or contrasts with the quiet desperation of David Spritz.

Rating: 3/5 * * *
How are you like the weather man?

Hot Fuzz

imdb: Hot Fuzz

Hot Fuzz is a brilliant and funny film from the makers of Shaun of the Dead. If Shaun of the Dead was a movie about all other zombie films, then Hot Fuzz is a tribute to every cop film made. It has the same director, writers, and two lead actors as Shaun of the Dead.

The plot revolves around a London supercop named Nicholas Angel, played by Simon Pegg, who's so good that he makes his superiors and colleagues look bad in comparison. So he gets assigned to the small, quiet town of Sandford. Here he meets his new partner, Danny, played by Nick Frost, who is Simon Pegg's real life best friend. They also played the part of best buddies in Shaun of the Dead. A couple of people get killed, which is chalked up as 'accidents' by the police chief. Everyone in this town seems so dumb, but things are not what they seem to be.

The first two thirds of the movie contains lots of references to cop movies. There's a scene where Angel visits his partner Danny's apartment and sees his huge DVD collection. They watch some scenes from Point Break and Bad Boys II, and Danny mimics his favorite scene from Point Break, which will be revisited in a later point in the movie. He also pesters Angel about whether he was able to do some of the cop stuff that he has seen from those classic cop films. To which Angel replies that he hasn't done any of those, and dismisses them. Again, this will be revisited in a later point.

The first two thirds is essentially a setup for the climactic last third. A lot of buddy cop movie cliches are thrown in - the amiable police chief, the rival cop team, the good-looking villain, and many others. If you watch a lot of action movies, you'll recognize them all. Then in the last part, all hell breaks lose and all the cliches come to life unexpectedly.

This was an extremely well made film, with great attention to detail. You'll need to watch this closely, or like what I did, watch it twice. As every scene turns out to have some important meaning later on. On my second viewing, I watched this with the commentary on in the DVD, where the director and Simon Pegg reveal a lot of the hidden gems. There's bits of humor sprinkled throughout that will only become apparent on second viewing. For me, the funniest part was the 'Point Break' reenactment near the end.

As you may have heard, this is a British film, but it was made to parody hollywood movie cliches, so the comedy feels very American. The spoofing is also very subtle, unlike what you're used to seeing in movies such as in the Naked Gun, Hotshots, and Scary Movie franchises. This will satisfy all action movie enthusiasts. I would love to see a sequel.

Rating: 4/5 * * * *
Everything you liked in cop movies.

V for Vendetta

imdb: V for Vendetta

This was an odd movie. Somehow I couldn’t put my finger on it. Is it about revenge? Or social revolution? Or a political statement based on current events? I’ve read that the original graphic novel was a reaction to the Thatcher administration. And that the Wachowski brothers (who made The Matrix) wrote the screenplay for this, and simplified and revised the story for the benefit of the viewing audience.

It occurs in the distant future, with the entire story taking place in the UK. The United States has fallen into civil war and is in ruins. A fascist, repressive government has taken over, led by Chancellor Sutler. The government has removed all civil liberties and is bent on enforcing its will on the people through propaganda, government enforcers who goes by the name ‘Fingermen’, and through spying on its own citizens.

The two protagonists is a masked character named ‘V’ and a young female, ‘Evey’ played by Natalie Portman. V is hell bent on revenge and justice as he has been disfigured as a result of being incarcerated by the government. Evey has her own back story, starting out as an innocent citizen, but slowly being drawn into V’s world, eventually playing a major role in his plans.

There is a lot of social commentary in the dialogue, mostly from V. The idea that is repeated throughout the film is that ‘ideas are bulletproof’, and are more powerful than men. He also said a lot of other lines that I thought were interesting, maybe a bit idealistic, a little weird, funny even, but it fits in with his overall character and accomplishes its purpose.

I had the subtitles turned on while watching the DVD as I didn’t want to miss any of the quotes. My favorite is the one when Evey asked V whether he was certain of his plans, and he replied “There is no certainty, only opportunity.” Of all the bits of dialog, this was the one I could relate to the most.

I didn’t exactly agree with how V went about with his plans for overthrowing the government. I felt it was a bit too reckless, a bit too idealistic, and self-serving. He also came across as this goofy character, particular in this one scene where Evey wanted to leave, and he kept saying something like, ‘oh before you go’, and ‘could you do me one favor?’, which came out really weird (I kept thinking, uh oh, I think V wants to have sex with Natalie Portman). I’m not sure if the humor was intended, probably not.

There were also some boring and ridiculous parts, such as the one where the TV host spoofs the Chancellor and plays the Benny Hill music. It felt unfunny and out of place. The priest's acting in the scene with Portman was totally dumb and unrealistic. There was also this part where the lead detective kicks a garbage can in a fit of frustration that felt out of character. Many scenes didn't work at all for me.

The Wachowski brothers are brilliant writers and filmmakers, but when left uncontrolled to their own devices, they occasionally turn out some weird crap such as in Matrix Revolutions and some of the scenes in this film.

Natalie Portman was great in her role, and I think she saved this movie from going over the edge. My friend remarked that he avoided watching V for Vendetta because he didn’t want to see a bald Natalie Portman. But she still looked great with her head shaved! And I think the character fit her perfectly.

There were a couple of plot holes which I can’t list without giving away spoilers. I had some trouble believing what happened in the Evey interrogation/torture segment, and how V had rebuilt the subway train all by himself.

This is not horrible. Maybe even an entertaining movie. And it has some good ideas. It felt very preachy, but I believe this was the intent anyway. It will make you think, which is the important part. It’s the ideal movie to watch with your friends and talk about over starbucks afterwards.

Rating: 3/5 * * *
+1 * for Natalie Portman

(Note: This article describes the differences between the movie and the graphic novel. After reading it, I understood why the movie felt so flawed, at least to me. Contains spoilers. -rob)

Without Warning

'Without Warning' imdb page

I remember back in the 90’s when my father woke me up to tell me that there was this important live news story breaking out. It turned out to be an HBO movie that was pretending to be a real news broadcast. He was in on the joke of course but wanted to see whether I would believe it.

I came in right near the end, having missed most of the breaking ‘news’. I remember thinking to myself ‘wow’ after seeing the ending. At the time I also thought the production values were very good, it looked exactly liked real news a la CNN.

Unfortunately, I could tell right away that it was fake, having recognized the actress playing the news anchor, Jane Kaczmarek, who would later on play Malcolm in the Middle’s sitcom mom. But I didn’t want to ruin the fun, so I played along, making believe it was real.

Fast-forward more than a decade later. I was finally able to watch the movie in its entirety after getting it on DVD. The production values did not look as good, the ‘news’ didn’t look authentic at all, and I even chuckled at some of the bad acting by the reporters and fake witnesses. Worst acting goes to the bar customers, the SETI scientist, and the lead roving reporter.

Now, it could be that the producers were deliberately trying to make the acting bad, just to make sure that no one would actually believe that this was a live broadcast. My analysis is that this could have looked real ten years ago, but watching it again, it looks very dated. Believe it or not, from reading the imdb messageboards, it appears that there are still a lot of people who mistake this fake broadcast to be real. What the?!

The only gem in this one was Jane Kaczmarek’s portrayal of the fake news anchor. She seemed very real, just the way I would expect an anchor to react if these events were actually happening. I found the other anchor to be very unrealistic, despite him being an actual news guy hired to play a fake role. OK, you’ve got what appears to be an alien encounter, an entire town disappearing, and potentially the end of the world, and he reports it like it is just any other news story. Plus his line at the end just felt stupid.

All in all, I still enjoyed it! It reminds me of what is called a ‘shoot angle’ in wrestling, wherein the participants pretend that what is happening is not part of the script, and real life blurs into the storylines (if you’re a dedicated wrestling fan, you’ll know what I mean).

Without Warning is flawed, silly, overacted, and deserves the low rating it gets. But it’s one of the bad movies I liked a lot. I can’t wait for the day where I play this movie in a party, and make believe to the other people that it’s real, pretending to watch while mumbling to myself "Holy..!”, “Shit, what happened?”, and “Oh my God, the aliens are here!”.

Rating: 2/5 * *
What if it actually happened though?