Conquest of the Planet of the Apes

Conquest is probably the best Planet of the Apes movie among the ones I've seen so far.

(Warning: Contains minor spoilers on the series. If you haven't watched any of the Planet of the Apes movie before I suggest watching them first before reading this review.)


First, a brief backgrounder on the Apes movies. Each one starts out with some form of time travel, that is, going back or forward in time. Each one contains some thinly veiled social commentary on the nature of man or human relations. There is the requisite tragic ending - murder of the protagonists, discovery of the fate of the human race, and even the end of the world (yes, really). The best thing I like is the feeling that anything can happen in an Apes movie, no one is spared.

Conquest starts in a semi-futuristic earth, a couple of years after the death and murder of Cornelius and Zira, the talking apes from the far future. Their son, Caesar (as he will be named later on) and only descendant is now the property of a kind and very understanding circus owner played by Ricardo Montalban, who treats the ape like his own son and strives to protect him from the harsh reality of the world outside. Caesar is now the only talking ape in existence, having descended from Cornelius.

As the story goes, people started having these lovable apes as pets to replace their dogs and cats that perished in a plague. But the humans quickly discovered that the apes were intelligent and could quickly be trained to do various menial duties. The result is that the apes were made into slaves, meant to serve man. Many of them are cruelly treated and oppressed by sadistic owners, and frequently whipped into submission. Caesar sees all this and is profoundly affected. And you see his character develop throughout the film. He starts out as a naive, scared creature, and turns into a strong courageous leader of the ape slaves.

This is a great movie. Fun to watch from beginning to end. The transformation of Caesar is astonishing. The theme of the movie is pretty dark with none of the silliness or overacting of the earlier apes movies.

My only complaint is with the character MacDonald, one of the humans who sympathizes with the apes. I thought he went slightly over the top in doing too much to help Caesar escape, certainly a treasonous act which felt to me like he betrayed the human race, and he's supposed to be a good guy? His rationale for letting Caesar escape, that of being descended from slaves, was kind of lame. They could have redid the plot to make the MacDonald character, as well as the over the top villainous city governor more realistic.

The ending is pretty good, with a great speech by Caesar in the end. I read that they redid the ending slightly and added some parts to his speech because test audiences found the original ending too harsh. This was certainly a mistake. I liked the original speech as is. This isn't a feel good movie, so there is no need to make the events lighter to watch. The movie should have ended after Caesar mouths the words "And that day is upon you now.", no need to add anything else after that. But I'll just consider this a minor re-touch to make it more hollywood friendly and sell more tickets, so I can forgive them for that. Still, an excellent movie, highly recommended. Battle for the Planet of the Apes is next.

Rating: 4/5 * * * *
A classic.

Scary Movie 4

Scary Movie 4 spoofs and satirizes War of the Worlds, Saw 2, The Grudge, Million Dollar Baby, The Village, and numerous other films. I didn't have high expectations for this one and I left the moviehouse thinking I had wasted my time.

OK, I haven't seen War of the Worlds so I couldn't relate to any of the jokes regarding it, which was a major part of the film. I'm a big M. Night Shyamalan fan so I was pleased that they decided to spoof The Village. The jokes regarding The Grudge was kinda lame, I only found the japanese real estate agent funny. The Saw 2 jokes were unfunny. I actually laughed at the Million Dollar Baby ring scenes.

The presence of Anna Faris was probably the only one thing made this movie marginally worth watching? Beautiful, funny, and silly at the same time.

The ending? It was ridiculous. Yes I know it isn't supposed to make sense, that I shouldn't take this movie too seriously. Yet it was even more ridiculous than I thought, carelessly made ending that wasn't funny.

Rating: 2/5 * *
Not funny enough.

Derailed

Here's the plot for this movie in a nutshell without giving away any spoilers: Jennifer Aniston and Clive Owen are married to different people, they meet by chance in a train, one thing leads to another and they have an affair. Then something unexpected happens. Clive Owen ends up being blackmailed.

Owen's character is sheltered, quiet and clean. Yet he ends up having to deal with unsavory characters. He plunges himself to one dangerous situation after another putting him and his family's life in danger. For me this is the most compelling part of the movie, and also the most uncomfortable. There is a very dark and depressing scene with a prostitute and some corrupt cops that illustrates how much of a bind the hero gets himself into, and also how weak and vulnerable he is. It made me feel genuinely uncomfortable and distressed.

There is also a brutal scene that will leave a negative impact to the viewers, which I guess is its intent. What starts as an illicit love affair story ends up as more of a pessimistic diatribe on society. This movie is definitely not for kids. I do believe however that this is the intent of this film so it has achieved its goal.

Other scenes are quite silly, particularly the way Clive Owen's wife acts when confronted with an unknown stranger. I found myself at times shouting at the hero telling him for pete's sake to go to police and stop doing stupid things. Yet he continues making mistake after mistake, getting himself into deeper trouble.

All in all, quite a disturbing film. Not for everyone. If its intention is to shock and portray weak characters, then it has achieved its goal.

Rating: 3/5 * * *
Distressful and disruptive.

The Most Entertaining Fiction Books of All Time

This is actually a list of fiction novels I've enjoyed the most. The books were evaluated solely on entertainment value, how pleasurable it was reading them. Here is my top ten:

10. The Firm - John Grisham

I consider the first of half this book to be a masterpiece of foreshadowing. This is the half where our new Harvard Grad and main protagonist gets the job offer of a lifetime from a large law firm. His new company encourages new employees to buy expensive houses, BMWs, and live a high cost life, all in an effort to keep them dependent on the firm. They give our hero an extremely challenging new project that turns out to be dummy projects to prepare them for their real clients who are less than honorable.

I liked the extreme attention to detail in the first half of the book. When the firm goes out of its way to hire fat unattractive secretaries to prevent distractions. Or how everything seems all fine and rosy on the surface, then when new associates get trapped by their extravagant lifestyle and mortgages, this is when the firm reveals its dark secret to them.

The second half of the book sort of deteriorated into a chaotic catch me if you can chase storyline which I didn't find as interesting. Also, I actually liked the ending of the movie better as I felt it was more realistic and had an ironic charm in itself. But other than that, the book is much more fun due to all the added details and nuances that are best described in text.


9. The Return of the King - J.R.R. Tolkien

The neat thing about this book is that the climactic finale where the ring is destroyed and Sauron is defeated actually occurs around two thirds of the way through the book. I remember reading this the first time and thinking to myself 'Huh? The fight's over but there are still dozens more pages left?' It turns out that the most enjoyable parts take place after the major conflicts ends. This is the part where our heroes, Frodo, Merry, Pippin head back to the Shire and retake it from some minor baddies. There are also bits and parts as to what happens to Gandalf, Aragorn (the king) and other former fellowship members after the great battle. Most books follow the formula of buildup to the climax, then ends abruptly with a good ending. Return of the King takes its time with a slow simmer, allowing the reader to savor the victory and celebrate with our heroes. It was cool (and realistic) to actually make the long trek back from Mordor, with some descriptions of how dangerous some of the places still were. This is what made it most fun to read.


8. Disclosure - Michael Crichton

By the way, I enjoyed the movie a lot, one of the rare film versions as good as the book. I also felt this book was more about corporate politics and high tech rather than being about sexual harassment. I could readily identify with Tom Sanders character as well as the rest of his team. I loved how he was able to turn around a difficult situation and salvage his reputation in the end. Lots of neat plot elements such as the mysterious "A Friend". All of the characters were interesting, in particular I liked the background description of the guy who used to be Tom Sanders best friend in the company, until the rigors of corporate life changed his friend until they grew distant to one another. Made me feel great about working in the computer industry. This is your classic page turner, extremely addictive and enjoyable.


7. The Fellowship of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien

I included this in my list because I was enamored with the concept of The Fellowship - a gathering of the best persons from each race, each with different motives and ideals, yet working together to fight a common enemy. Here we are treated to a suspensful hide and seek chapter where Frodo and the hobbits elude the dark riders. I also enjoyed the part where Frodo & co. got drunk in the bar, almost giving themselves away, and meeting Stryder aka Aragorn in the process.

For me, the best part of this book is the opening chapter where Bilbo throws this huge massive birthday party for himself. Lots of background descriptions of the different hobbits (in particular those nasty Sackville Baginnses), Gandalf having a frank talk to Bilbo about the ring, and Frodo getting ready to make his fateful trip out of the Shire. This was good because of the sharp contrast between the sheltered life of the Shire and the dark world outside its borders.


6. The Runaway Jury - John Grisham

This is Grisham's best work in my opinion. I sort of look at myself as a Nicholas Easter character (especially the opening line that mentions in jest his 'boyish good looks', hehehe). At first we don't know what his motives are, whether he is a tool of Big Tobacco, or an altruistic character with noble goals. There is also this mysterious woman who seems to work with Easter, yet we're not sure. We get clues though based on how Nicholas Easter subtly manipulates the jury, how he gains each jury members trust, and tries to get rid of the uncooperative members with some ruthlessness. Is he a good guy or a bad guy? We only find out in the end, an extremely satisfying finale.

Through the story, Grisham also educates us on the finer parts of jury selection, the process of how jury members are selected, what lawyers use to decide whether to accept or reject a potentional juror. There are also side stories of each juror that you will find interesting.

By the way, don't watch the movie version of this as it has almost no resemblance to the book and is crap.


5. Rising Sun - Michael Crichton

This book had a very interesting, inspired theme - how Japan is slowly taking over American business. In the late 80's and early 90's, many Japanese companies started investing heavily and acquiring numerous American companies. Think of Sony acquiring Columbia Pictures, and Japanese Auto Giants Toyota and Honda taking huge marketshare from traditional US auto companies. The hysteria was very real.

This is Crichton's most documentary-like book. We are treated to numerous chapters where the protagonists overhear conversations from businessmen (which is actually just a ploy to sneak in some of the documentary research in the book), talking about how Japanese companies are taking over the US. The two main protagonists are also very effective tools in explaining the facts to the readers. There is this master sensei character (Sean Connery for those who watched the movie), an American who has lived most of his life in Japan and is an expert in Japanese culture. It is through this character that we learn more about Japan's idiosyncracies and how it relates to the present time. The other character (Wesley Snipes in the movie) is your Dr. Watson, he is the link between the reader and the sensei. His sole purpose is to act dumb and ask questions to the sensei character so that we can learn more.

Since this was published, Japan went into a decade long recession, so much of this book will seem silly if read now. But I still consider this to extremely informative and fun to read at the same time. The most I've learned from a "fiction" book.


4. The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien

Ah, now we're getting to something. If you haven't read J.R.R.'s prequel to The Lord of the Rings, you've got to rush out and buy The Hobbit. The tone and ambiance is a stark contract to the dark and brooding nature of the LOTR books. Bilbo Braggins is one of the funniest and most endearing characters of all time (I laughed out loud in the part where he realizes he left his handkerchief back home). I kind of wish the Lord of the Rings series was as light-hearted as this book.

Bilbo Braggins is the unlikely hero. He started out as a total naive incompetent (How did he get Gandalf as a friend in the first place?). The dwarves have to bail him out everytime. But he ends up saving the day, rescuing the dwarves, leading them out of the dark forest, even fighting the dragon in the end. You will be amazed at the gradual, slow, complete turnaround from dope to hero. And you'll be rooting for Bilbo on every step.


3. The Godfather - Mario Puzo

This was the book where I felt the characters were alive. As if even when I stopped reading, they continued to live on because they were real. I marveled at how Michael Corleone went from a man who originally didn't want to have anything to do with his father's business to getting more and more entrenched in it. Mario Puzo revels in hyperbole and creating exagerrated, almost one-dimensional characters, but in a way that is totally believable and that works.

My favorite part was when Michael got exiled to Sicily. When he had to escape the country, living in relative peace with a new bride and friends, yet ended up getting dragged back to the troubles at home. Another neat part was when The Godfather arranged for a meeting with all the italian families and called for a truce. Actually there are so many good parts, so many neat side stories of the various characters that are linked to the Godfather one way or another.

The middle part gets boring. I'm referring to the Las Vegas storyline with Sonny's mistress, as well as a few of the young Godfather flashbacks. Although the young Godfather could be a book in itself as it describes how Vito Corleone started out and eventually became one of the most powerful men in New York.

The Godfather movies are ok, but are too short to enjoy all the finer details and nuances present in the book. So you've gotta read it to get the full enjoyment.


2. Contact - Carl Sagan

This was one of my favorite movies of all time, so I decided to read the book too, and was pleased at how much fun it was to read. Carl Sagan takes his own sweet time in telling the story, developing the characters, telling the story in his own unique style. It almost reads like a diary, dwelling on a certain event or plodding through different story arcs. Sometimes I felt like I was reading it as it happened in real time.

You have to be in the right frame of mind while reading this. Do not rush through, relax and read it slowly, you will feel as if you are a bystander watching the story unfold among familiar friends. If you have watched the movie, you will find the pace much slower, less dramatic, but more enjoyable. The story is a lot different too. For instance, in the movie only Jodie Foster makes the trip, while in the book she is accompanied by a whole crew. The ending is much better in the book too. In it, there is a neat epilogue which reveals the secret of the ancients. I loved, loved the epilogue.

Lots of geek stuff that even non techies will enjoy. My favorite part was when they were building the alien device based on the simplistic set of instructions that first laid the foundation building more and more complex sets until eventually you have the full system. There is also that feeling of uncertainty building a device that is inherently alien to the human race, something that may result in our own destruction. The book also contains some real good philosophical discussion on the nature of God and potential meanings of life. One of the best and most highly recommended.


1. Eaters of the Dead - Michael Crichton

This is my #1 most entertaining fiction book of all time. I never get tired of this Crichton classic. I probably read it three times already. I bet I would still enjoy reading this a fourth, fifth, or sixth time. Why is this book great? It's because the writing style is so cool, so different. It is written in the first person in journal form. You getto read the point of view of an observer trapped in a culture that is entirely foreign to him, so he describes everything in intricate detail with a mix of awe and disgust. But the observer gradually becames one of them and even ends up participating in their travels.

I learned later that this was Crichton's tribute to Beowulf and his take on Viking culture. Another well-researched book on his part, with just the right stuff to keep it as entertaining and educational as possible.

I consider the title 'Eaters of the Dead' to refer to a certain subplot in the story, that of this greatly feared race of half-neanderthal, half beast man-creature that are the ultimate savages. I cringed during the part where the observer and his compatriots discover the brutality left behind by the eaters of the dead. And the worst part is, they have to go to war against them! Can they actually win, will they survive at all.

It's like a fairy tale, historical narration, and horror novel, all rolled into one short but great book. And it just so happens to be the most fun book I've ever read.

The Best Cartoons on TV

Here's a list of my top five favorite cartoon series of all time. Three of the five are still in active production, which is nice.

5. Dragon's Lair
An oldie but goody. I got to watch old episodes of this as a kid through betamax tapes. I liked how the show gave choices to the viewer, ala-Choose Your Own Adventure, as to what Dirk the Daring should do next. Then it would show the results of those choices, most of them leading to the demise of the lead characters. It also helped that I was into the whole Knights and Wizards thing as a kid, adding more spark to an already overactive imagination.

4. Futurama
Very underrated show. I like how Simpsons creator Matt Groening combines sci-fi with humor. Some of the stories and ideas are actually quite good, covering many popular science fiction paradoxes and cliches. Although the series has been cancelled on TV, there are plans to create new episodes exclusively for DVD, and even its own movie.

3. Family Guy
I admit I hated this the first time I saw it. I thought it was trying too hard to be funny and cute. But lately Family Guy has grown on me and is one of the funniest shows on TV. My favorite character in this is the talking dog. He is easily the most articulate in the family, but at times goes back to doing dog things. I can't stand the obnoxious baby Stewie. The father lead character, Peter is obviously their version of Homer Simpson. They squeeze in an incredible amount of satire and jokes in each episode with plenty of sexual references and toilet humor. Well worth watching.

2. The Simpsons
The gold standard by which all primetime cartoons are measured against. The Simpsons seem to get better season after season. I like the Halloween episodes where they have elements of science fiction and horror, and where anything can happen. The characters, Homer, Bart, Flanders, Lisa & co. as well as the city of Springfield seem to have taken a life of its own. Decades from now we will be marvelling at the genius of this series.

1. South Park
The boys are #1! Matt and Trey try very hard to offend as many people as they can. They make fun of organized religion, hybrid car owners, hollywood, and every possible group they can piss off. I have a list of my favorite South Park episodes: the one where Cartman grows his own race of Sea Monkeys that worship him as a God, the Iraq war debate which devolves into an "I'm a little bit country, I'm a little bit rock n' roll" concert, Randy Marsh spoofing Rocky, the Scientology episode which caused Isaac 'Chef' Hayes to quit the series, and of course this season's 'The Return of Chef' where Chef turns into Darth Vader in the end. Every new episode of South Park is an event and the highlight of my week. We want more!!

Sunday Morning Coffee

Sunday Morning Coffee is a collection of instrumental tracks compiled by Chip Davis that serves the purpose of setting the mood or background music. This is one of my favorite CDs in my collection. It covers different moods occuring on a Saturday or Sunday morning. I like it because it evokes old feelings of romance, peace, and inspiration in me when I listen to it while sipping a warm cup of tea by myself or with friends (I guess you could also call it 'Sunday Morning Tea' or something).

Here's the album intro on the inside CD jacket which sums it up nicely:

"Day Parts" is a term applied to various parts of the day by the broadcast business. They have names for various day parts like "Early morning drive", etc. Back in my days as a jingle writer, I used to have to compose music that fit various formats and moods, and quite often in a very wide variety of styles. Several years ago, I thought it would be neat to have an album for different parts of the day to sort of "score our lives" like one might a movie.

There are a couple of standout tracks here. I like how each song has a brief intro written about it on the CD booklet. For example, here's the intro for 'Sunday Morning Coffee' composed by Chip Davis himself. It's probably the best track on the album, and kind of reminds me of the lovely actress Meg Tilly.

This piece was brewed on the morning (Sunday... of course) after my little peewee daughter, Kelly Lynne, was born. It was a fresh morning with yellow sunlight and the warm feeling of a new life starting.

Here's the intro for 'Sunday Sonata':

You work your job all week, you work your yard all Saturday, and Sunday... well, Sunday has already been proclaimed a day of rest, so let's not feel guilty about it. This tune is about sitting on the front porch, with a steaming cup of java, softly strumming a guitar. Or if you don't own a guitar, a Sousaphone will suffice.

I particularly like 'My Secret Lust', the bad boy track in this compilation. Heck this is how I feel most Sunday mornings!

This song is "the other" kind of Sunday morning. You've had a miserable work week and Saturday night you indulged in a little too much snake-bite juice. So here you are on a Sunday morning, taking coffee and aspirin through an I.V., thinking "there has to be more to life than this... If I only had a new sail boat... or a glamorous job... or that sexy barmaid... or... "______" (fill in your own "secret lust").

Here's another good one, the intro to 'Coffee with Carla':

This is the picture perfect Sunday morning: your significant other sits close by, wrapped in a terry cloth robe; the soft sunlight warms your shoulders and peace rises with the steam off your coffee. Life moves in a slow motion waltz, and the sleepy feeling is occasionally broken by small crescendos; the laugh from a comic strip... the ring of the phone... the furnace blowing up...

Of course if you've had too much coffee, you end up with too much caffeine in your system, which results in the hyperactive final track 'Morning Blend', the second best one on the album:

It wasn't baroque, so I didn't fix it. However, I thought that a little intermingling of styles would make this cut (cup?) a little more interesting. I ground this out on a Sunday too.

The result is a refreshing cup of musical enjoyment.

Rating: 4/5 * * * *
Inspiring and relaxing.

Review - Comics: House of M

I just reread this comic series recently and I soon rediscovered why I believe this is one of the best mini-series ever made. The great story coupled by the involvement of two of the best teams ever assembled, the Astonishing X-Men and the New Avengers made this one of the best titles I've read.

The Setting: The story takes place in an alternate Marvel universe where several Avengers (the Vision, Hawkeye and Ant-Man) were killed by one of their own, the Scarlet Witch when she suffered a nervous breakdown after she lost her children. It is also a place where the X-Men founder, Charles Xavier, left the team to rebuild the charred remains of Genosha (the only mutant city) and came to the aid of his long-time friend Magneto, the shamed and outcast father of the Scarlet Witch, to help "cure" his daughter.

The Plot: The story begins with Xavier trying to convince a severly-traumatized Scarlet Witch to control her reality-altering mutant powers. He realized the need to do so because he knew that the Scarlet Witch's power was too dangerous to let loose. However, he also knew that he was powerless to help her. So he left Genosha and called on the Astonishing X-Men (Emma Frost, Cyclops, Wolverine, Beast, Shadowcat and Colossus), the New Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, the Sentry, Spider-Man and Luke Cage), Avengers Reserves (the Wasp, Falcon, Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man) as well as the Mystic, Dr. Strange to decide with him the fate of Wanda Maximoff (the Scarlet Witch).

There was a standoff - with the X-Men wanting to eliminate the Scarlet Witch before she poses a bigger threat on one side; and the Avengers wanting another alternative on the other. Both teams claimed that they should have jurisdiction over the matter. The X-Men believed that they should have authority since the Scarlet Witch was a mutant threat. While the Avengers believed that they should decide on the matter because she was part of their team. With the absence of a clear decision, everyone decided to go to Genosha to speak with the Scarlet Witch instead. However, they were all surprised to learn that the Scarlet Witch was moved. Fearing that Magneto took his daughter away, the heroes tried to pursue the fugitives. They closed in on them until Xavier was mysteriously lost and the whole world turned white.

The Twist: The Scarlet Witch used her powers to create a new world where the heroes got what they always wanted. It was a world where mutants were the dominant race, Spider-Man was a happily-married, popular and wealthy wrestler (his Uncle Ben was alive), Captain America was a retired war hero, Tony Stark (Iron Man) was a wealthy businessman (with an alive father), Emma Frost and Scott Summers (Cyclops) were living together, Colossus was a farmer, Shadowcat was a teacher, Ms. Marvel was the most popular superhero, Wonder Man was a celebrity etc.

Unfortunately, Wolverine also got what he always wanted - he got all his memory back. Along with that, he remembered a different world: a world where mutants were hated and feared; where war, violence and famine were more rampant; where the world was in tormoil. Wolverine knew that the world, where he was the head of the most elite force for the House of M (Magnus - Magneto's real name), was a better place - but it wasn't the real one. So he went rogue and tried to reassemble the X-Men and Avengers team that he remembered. He was helped by a powerful child psychic, Layla - a mutant that existed only on the new world but strangely remembered the world Wolverine described. She was instrumental in letting the heroes remember everything.

The Climax: The best part of the series was the face-off between the combined X-Men and Avengers heroes and those of the House of M. Although the heroes were a powerful group, the House of M were no pushovers - there was the Maximoff family (Magneto and his children), Namor the leader of Atlantis, Ororo (Storm) ruler of Africa and Dr. Doom ruler of Latvia among others. The battle sequences were brutal (Cyclops insisted that nobody should hold back). The two sides were evenly matched with nobody in any clear advantage. Concurrently, two important revelations about the story surfaced while all the fighting went on. 1) Xavier, who was presumed dead, was found to be only missing and 2) Magneto didn't convince his daughter to create the mutant-ruling world - it was Quicksilver's (Wanda's twin brother's) idea. When Magneto learned that Quicksilver did this and used his name in the process, he killed his son. This angered Wanda because she believed that Quicksilver only wanted to help her and everyone else in the process. Because of this, Wanda used her powers once again and wished to have no more mutants. Thus the whole world turned white again.

The Ending: The old world was returned to how it was - except that 1) Most of the world's mutants lost their mutant genes. 2) Nobody remembered the events in the world of the House of M except for the X-Men, Spider-Man and Dr. Strange. 3) Xavier, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch were missing. 4) The repercussions of the lost energy of all mutants were about to unfold.

My Reaction: The story was great since the heroes were willing to let go of the reality created by the Scarlet Witch no matter how great it was. They were willing to die and fight without holding anything back in order to return to a world that's worse than the one that was created for them. Did they do it because it was the unselfish and noble thing to do? Or is it because they just couldn't live a lie? Be it for whatever reason, it epitomized how earth's heroes value integrity and dedication. It showed how these can overcome even their human emotions.

However, I also felt for the Maximoff family because their stories showed how they succombed to their human sides. I felt for Scarlet Witch, a loving mother, who wanted to have a world where her children were alive. I also felt for Quicksilver who was selfish enough to suggest a new world where his sister can be spared from a possible execution. Finally, I felt for Magneto who was proud not to accept the mutant-supreme world (his lifelong dream) that he ruled when he learned that it wasn't real.

I like the way both sides in this series were properly developed. There were several other related titles to the House of M that further showed the altered lives of the heroes from both sides. It's obvious that a lot of work was exerted in creating the intricate stories and how everything came together. I really enjoyed the story and I'm looking forward to the series that follows this one, Decimation. Hopefully it's as good as it's predecessor.

Rating: Starbucks

5 - Starbucks
4 - Seattle's Best
3 - Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
2 - San Francisco Coffee
1 - Kapihan sa Kanto

The Constant Gardener

Note: May contain a few minor spoilers, but this should not detract from your viewing enjoyment. I believe these were revealed in the original movie trailer anyway.


The Constant Gardener is part mystery, part current events, part social agenda. The opening sequence is pretty good. It shows flashbacks of Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz, how they met and got married, how Fiennes job as a diplomat got them assigned to the British consulate in Africa, and how distant they can be to one another, yet maintain that level of respect.

Weisz is extremely dedicated to social work and is determined to do as much as she can to help the poor and suffering people in the region they are in. Sometimes it is as if she is merely using her husband to further her own social agenda. The movie skips ahead occasionally and shows us glimpses of the present. Rachel Weisz' character is found raped, murdered, and mutilated. The scene at the morgue where Fiennes identifies his wife's mutilated body is quite shocking as we are jolted with the horror and reality of death. The question is, who were the perpetrator(s), was it random bandit violence or did someone order the hit? This is where the actual movie starts as Fiennes unravels the circumstances behind his wife's death.

The fact that Weisz hasn't been telling her husband what her true motives and which activities she has been involved in the past few months make the investigation more difficult. We are left with plenty of scenes that illustrate just how difficult life is in Africa. There is poverty, corruption, hunger, thuggery and all sorts of negative aspects. There are also the aid workers who dedicate their lives to helping out the people.

Feinnes and Weisz make a weird couple. They are said to be in love with each other, yet they appear to be very distant to each other emotionally. I also find that Rachel Weisz' character in the movie has a lack of respect for her husband. She never tells him what she's doing, seems to be always at odds with anything he does, and even berates him in one scene for using pesticide in their garden. Feinnes is a saint, a martyr husband who has no idea what his wife is doing and sometimes doesn't seem to care. Due to this, I find the final events of the movie extremely hard to believe and unrealistic, given the nature of the couple.

This movie is well made and manages to entertain despite the grim subject matter. But I think it is limited by the plot of the original novel. One thing I didn't like was that it felt like it had a social agenda. For instance, all the good guys as well as all the bad guys were westerners (British). It felt like the African people were pawns easily manipulated by the big bad corporations, and that the west was responsible for their hardships when the fact is, it is the corrupt governments and officials that is mostly to blame for abusing and terrorizing their own people. It was this buildup of the gradual condascending attitude that made me dislike this movie. And by the way I didn't like the ending, not because it was bad but because it was dumb.

Don't get me wrong, this movie is well made. But I hated the message and the way it portrayed the victims in the story as powerless and unable to fight back. This may be the current reality but when I watch movies such as this that have an obvious social agenda, I want some solutions rather than just being given more problems.

Rating: 2/5 * *
Well made but misguided.

Review - PS2 Game: Shadow of the Colossus

I haven't even finished the game yet (I only managed to defeat 5 of the 16 colossi) and I already know that this is a lousy game. I heard that a lot of people don't agree me since this game scored well in other reviews. Frankly, I don't know how these people felt that way. This game is boring - plain and simple. It offers no real challenges to a gamer except for some thought-provoking moments. I wouldn't recommend this game to anyone I know.

Cons:
1) The main character doesn't look like a hero. He looks lame. You wouldn't even know he's a guy until he got to speak; in a lousy language nonetheless.
2) No Action! The only time you get to use your sword and bow (your only un-upgradable weapons) is when you're fighting a colossus. There is not a single interaction (at least as far as I'm concerned) with another human character throughout the game. Not even while travelling anywhere in the whole map.
3) The game flow is repetitive. You start in an altar, you are told where to look for the next colossus, you look for the colossus, you kill it, then back to the altar for you. It doesn't get more predictable than that.
4) The video is awful, controls are a burden, game physics kinda sucks, lighting needs improvement. I think all of these add up to a bad gaming experience.

Pros:
1) The game can be partly entertaining when you're looking for a colossus (It seems ironic that this is one of the challenges since a colossus is about 50 times bigger than your character) and figuring out how to kill it. At least you get to use some imagination while doing so.
2) I didn't buy the game. I just borrowed it from a friend. I couldn't think of another plus for the game so I added this up.

rating: RicRic Marata

5 stars - Jason Kidd
4 Stars - Chris Paul
3 Stars - Steve Nash
2 Stars - Chauncey Billups
1 Star - RicRic Marata

man to man

starring: joseph fiennes, kristine scott thomas, iain glen, hugh bonneville, lomama koseki, céile bayiha

it is always fascinating to observe humanity as it was. and in retrospect, as it is. this film is about 18th century europe, when it had had for a time come to terms with mankinds true origins thru the theories of charles darwin. at this point, mankind had lost that privileged place of being the center of all nature. it has turned on into itself. it created a heirarchy of humans, with the caucasians at the top, because it had probably had the most bruised ego being the first to discover, and negroids at the bottom.

the story begins with dr dodd's capture of the two pygmies. toko (male) and lumiko (female). they were in the beginning treated/regarded as animals. dr. dodd's interaction with them brought him to the realisation of his prejudices. this is a clear message of how to cure prejudice. why prejudice is wrong. the story ends with the roles of who is the real savage reversed.

we all have prejudices against other people. wrong notions about people based on the color of their skin, gender preference, creed, their age, their sex.

rating 5 out of 5 *****
we are all human beings.

Cute But Good Love Songs

I've never really understood this madness they call romantic love. All I know is it makes people do good and stupid things. Anyway here's a list of my favorite cute but good love songs:


5. Wooden Heart - The Lizards' Convention

An improvement over the Elvis original. Your traditional feel good romantic tune.

There's no strings upon this love of mine
It was always you from the start


4. Separate Lives - Stephen Bishop

Ouch. The original Stephen Bishop version has much more emotion and impact than its more popular Phil Collins counterpart. The singer vividly describes feelings of hurt and isolation after a devastating breakup.

You called me from the room in your hotel
All full of romance
For someone that you met
Telling me how sorry you were
Leaving so soon
And that you miss me sometimes
When you're alone in your room
Do I feel lonely too?

You have no right to ask me how I feel
You have no right to speak to me so kind
Someday I might
Find myself looking in your eyes
But for now we'll go on living
Separate lives


3. The Longest Time - Billy Joel

I love this song. It captures exactly the feelings of being in love. Hearing this brings back fond memories that you know will always be there.

Oh, oh, oh
For the longest time
Oh, oh, oh
For the longest time
If you said goodbye to me tonight
There would still be music left to write
What else could I do
I'm so inspired by you
That hasn't happened for the longest time

Who knows how much further we'll go on
Maybe I'll be sorry when you're gone
I'll take my chances
I forgot how nice romance is
I haven't been there for the longest time
I had second thoughts at the start
I said to myself
Hold on to your heart
Now I know the woman that you are
You're wonderful so far
And it's more that I hoped for


2. Out Of My League - Stephen Speaks

This reminds me of a girl I admired from afar that I never got the courage to talk to because I was so intimidated with her whole mystique. And though nothing ever happened, you're still thankful for the butterflies and wonderful feelings you went through whenever she was there. Those uncertain emotions of swimming in that strange sea, being high up looking down on the land. Perhaps someday...

It's her hair and her eyes today
that just simply take me away,
and the feeling that I'm falling further in love
makes me shiver but in a good way.
All the times I have sat and stared, as she thought fully thumbs through her hair.
And she purses her lips, bats her eyes and she plays with me, sitting there slack jawed and nothing to say.

Cause I love her with all that I am,
and my voice shakes along with my hands.
Cause she's all that I see, and she's all that I need, and I'm out of my league once again.

It's a masterful melody,
when she calls out my name to me.
As the world spins around her she laughs rolls her eyes and I feel like I'm falling but it's no surprise.

Cause I love her with all that I am,
and my voice shakes along with my hands.
Cause it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea, but I rather be here than on land.
Yes, she's all that I see, and she's all that I need, and I'm out of my league once again.


1. Go For You - Basia

Not your typical Basia song and one of the quirkiest love tunes ever written. Describes that moment when you start to lose it, not wanting to show weakness by falling over yourself, yet being unable to control your feelings of love.

I'm through with love
It's only a madness
I'm finished with this
This moment was never my joy
Who needs a heart break
Don't want anybody to call my own
But when you're near
The sweetest sensation
Takes over my heart
I feel like I'm losing control
These moments of weakness
Allow me a glimpse of heaven

It could be so good
I'm wishing anew
Or why should I resent something I've always missed
What's the point in my pride
if I cannot deny
that I could really go for you
What's the point in my pride
if I cannot deny
that I could really go for you

Firewall

The trailer advertises this movie as a high-tech thriller, with Harrison Ford playing the role of a computer security guy who discovers that his family is kidnapped and is forced to use his skills to steal from a large bank under the threat that his family will be killed.

The film turned out to be a big letdown, even lower than my low expectations. This is easily one of the the most inconsistent, illogical, inaccurate, boring movies I have watched in a long time. There were just too many plot holes, childish contrived scenarios, and unimaginative action scenes.

How did the bad guys get into the gated security? Why did the wife act surprised when Paul Bettany wasn't the pizza man she thought he was. Did the family actually order pizza? Do the pizza delivery guys have a free key to the gate?

Why use Harrison Ford in the first place when you already have his identity? Was the whole kidnapping really necessary? What the hell was the 'gambling thefts via identity theft' for in the initial scene?

Why waste time having the family try to escape the kidnappers? Oh I get it, it's to keep the audience in suspence for a few minutes.

Why do what 99% of all action/suspence movies do by having the good guy fight the bad guy in hand to hand combat in the end.

Why is there free wifi in isolated city streets and remote countryside regions? Man, I would love to have Harrison Ford's laptop, the one with the free internet connection everywhere he goes.

Why waste Virginia Madsen with such a useless role?

Why waste the audience's time with the all too common practice of having the handsome and gentlemanly villain?

Why does computer security expert Harrison Ford have such a lame easily breakable four character password?

Why were the bad guys too nice?

Why was Harrison Ford so lucky that the kidnappers decided to bring along the dog, which ultimately allowed them to be traced to their "secret" hideout. It still bothers me that Paul Bettany would have gotten away if not for the dog.

Why give the only two interesting characters in the movie, Ford's secretary, and the X-Files guy, such limited roles?

Why start with such an interesting premise, then stoop down to the lowest common denominator by using contrived, overused plot devices?

Why didn't I stay home instead of watching this crap?

Rating: 1/5 *
Watch CNN instead.

The Best Books of 2005

Well not really. This is actually a list of the best books I've read in 2005, regardless of when the book was published. You might also want to check out Roehl's 2005 book list, as well as my 2004 top 10 list.


Alright, here are my ten best books of 2005:

10. Prisoner's Dilemma - William Poundstone

This is a fascinating read. If I could summarize what this book is about in one sentence, it can be described as a technical discussion of game theory and other theoretical thinking/decision scenarios. When does it pay to cooperate with your opponent? Is there a single line of action that will assure a win no matter what the scenario? Poundstone describes interesting puzzle games such as the prisoner's dilemma, honor among thieves, and my personal favorite - the dollar auction. You think through the solutions to these problems. You can relate these to real life scenarios and it serves as great mental exercises.

There is also a side story on Von Neumann and the various cold war strategies employed by the US and Soviet Union. How the US government employed cooperative game theory in outmaneuvering their cold war rivals. Great stuff.


9. Armchair Economist - Steven Landsburg

This book opened my eyes to the economist's view of the world - a much different way of looking at things than we are used to. For instance, is pollution bad? Not if it lowers rent costs and real estate prices, which gives opportunity for lower income people to afford their own place.

Or imagine a scenario where farmers grow wheat, which they export to distant lands, and in exchange receive shiploads of Japan-made cars. It doesn't matter where the cars are built. It is as if the vehicles are grown directly in the farm. Growing wheat -vs- building cars has the exact same net effect - you get cars in return. Is inflation bad? Inflation causes prices to rise, which raises the cost of living, and directly causes interest rates to rise, which nets you a higher return on your investment. So it is neither good nor bad. When you set a dollar bill on fire, does the value of that dollar get lost forever? Or does it raise the value of every other dollar bill, which benefits everyone else. Thus, there is no net loss in the burning of your dollar bill.

The negatives: Some of the ideas are not presented in a very coherent manner. And you get the feeling that the author is too full of himself and feels superior to the reader. Still, whether you agree or disagree with the ideas or like the author, this book will change the way you think.


8. Freakonomics - Steven Levitt, Stephen Dubner

Reading this is like eating junk food. It's fun, tastes good, and you want to eat more. This book is the main reason for the current popularity of economics texts. You'll find lots of interesting out of the ordinary conclusions based on the authors' research.

There's a controversial chapter that discussed the dramatic reduction of crime in the 90's, and how the Roe v. Wade supreme court decision to legalize abortion was the main factor behind it. It studies the statistics behind internet dating sites, which factors maximize results, and why having blonde hair for a woman is worth its weight in gold. There's another chapter that gives a good illustration of how people respond to incentives. When a school gets funding based on the test scores of their students, it results in an increased cheating rate done by the teachers themselves. Each argument and conclusion is presented well, supported by facts, and written in a very entertaining way. This book is just plain fun to read.


7. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

Another very entertaining book. Though I was put off by the lame ending and felt the author didn't go far enough. If you're going to write a fiction book about the descendants of Jesus Christ and the location of the Grail, might as well go all the way. I loved all the historical references and the idea that the history which we all take as fact could very well have been altered by those in positions of authority to suit their own objectives.


6. Learning Python - Mark Lutz, David Ascher

Only one computer book made the list this year and it happens to be a tutorial book on my new favorite programming language - Python. This book guides the beginner on using Python language features and writing useful programs. Python offers a low stress development environment, it's like writing pseudocode that runs. And it doesn't bog you down in language details that interrupt your flow of thought. A cool language and a practical book.


5. The Motley Fool You Have More Than You Think - David Gardner, Tom Gardner

I've read a bunch of personal finance books, both good and bad. A lot of them rehash the same principles over and over again - put away 10% in savings per month, pay yourself first, have 6 months emergency fund, pay down your debts, blah blah.

Ah, but the Fools put their own slant to the personal finance stuff. It is presented in a more practical, detailed way. My favorite chapter is the one about the value of a dollar. How much is the value of a dollar - not much you say? Actually the value of a dollar is worth more than a dollar, and they explain the reasons behind it. The Fools also tell you when you should not invest your cash, how to get a good deal when buying a car or house, and even some basic info on how to read those numbers and symbols you see in the stock market. All told in a humorous fashion making it fun to learn what used to be a dry subject. There is even a joke chapter on how to teach your dog tricks and make extra money, which caught me off-guard thinking it was serious advice. It would be nice to teach high school kids the concepts presented in this book.


4. The Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell

One of two books written by Gladwell that made the list. The guy is an amazing writer. He puts into words old concepts that have existed for a long time, which we didn't have a name foir. For instance, take the concept of the Tipping Point. That phenomenon where a product or idea gathers momentum and slowly makes its way to the mainstream. One day it hits that magical tipping point where it gains critical mass and becomes a marketing success.

Gladwell describes exactly how the tipping point is achieved. It takes the work of key individuals such as connectors (people who connect you to other people) and mavens (people who are experts and an information resource that other people rely on). There is also the stickyness factor - how an idea can be 'sticky' which gives it a longer life. And the Law of the Few - a few key people can matter a great deal.

This book is sometimes sold as a marketing book, or business book. But I think the text is more about human nature and life lessons. Gladwell sometimes has the tendency of repeating the same point over and over again, with different examples, which can be repetitive reading sometimes. Still this is a great book and a bonafide classic. And it probably deserves to be higher on the list than just #4.


3. Blink - Malcolm Gladwell

Sweep! Two for two for Malcolm Gladwell in 2005. This is an incredibly interesting and fascinating book. It is about how humans think and perceive things. We look at the world around us and constantly make snap decisions without being aware of it. We think this item is good, this one is bad, this place doesn't feel safe, that tennis player will miss the shot.

Instinctively we know all this stuff. The most powerful computer in the world, our human brain works constantly, thin-slicing our gut reactions. We are taught in school not to make snap judgments. To use critical thinking, decision matrices, flowcharts and other aids. To minimize our instinctive reactions that we learn are not accurate. Gladwell's hypothesis is that our gut reactions to common everyday things are just as accurate, or even more accurate than if we spent a couple of weeks consciously mapping out which will be the best decision to make.

He also gives counterarguments as to why snap judgments may lead us to the wrong path. There is one interesting chapter on the race prejudice test where we tend to associate black with bad and white with good. Sometimes think-slicing doesn't work as well as we want it too. This book has it all, unique insights, new ideas, and an enjoyable read.


2. The Joy of Laziness - Peter Axt, Michaela Axt-Gadermann

I have a confession to make - I'm lazy. I have a hard time getting up in the morning. If I didn't have to go to the office, I'd probably sleep till noon everyday. Also, I hate exercise. The thought of going to the gym repulses me. I'd rather go for a long walk rather than go jogging or lift weights.

Conventional wisdom says you need to wake up early, have breakfast, join a fitness club, run marathons, eat five meals a day. Could it be that we were wrong all this time? That lazy people actually live longer and stay happier than their fitness-obsessed, always on the go counterparts? This is what this book is about. It describes a lifestyle change wherein we conserve energy, avoid stress, relax more, and have periods where we do nothing. Written by two doctors, one of them being a former marathon runner who found out that excessive exercise actually brought more harm than good.

Rediscover the lost art of relaxation. For exercise, take brisk walks rather than going jogging. Cancel breakfast or dinner once in a while, fast one day of the week to lower daily calorie intake. Start waking up later rather than earlier to give our body much needed rest and recuperation. Avoid job promotions that take away our peace of mind and relaxation. Be lazy and indolent - these are the heart of good health. Something I already knew but was always afraid to say out loud. Highly recommended to challenge conventional thinking.


1. Million Dollar Habits - Robert Ringer

Our top book of the year. Written more than a decade ago by the great hard-nosed, no-nonsense motivational author Robert Ringer. Not to be confused this with Brian Tracy's recently released book of the same title. Don't get that, get this one instead. I found an old copy in the public library. Took it home, liked it so much I reread it again immediately after finishing it the first time.

What makes this book great? First of all, this is an extremely practical book. Each piece of advice is solid, sound, can be readily applied in real life. There are no shortcuts or tricks. There are no magic words to use, or cute statements to fool yourself into thinking you are successful or happy. Just good practical advice which you can use.

You can access an outline of each of the principles mentioned in the book here. To summarize, you have to live in reality, not a fantasy world. You should not fool yourself into thinking your situation is better (or worse) than it actually is. You have to keep things in perspective. Losing your job may be bad for you, but there are far worse things (starvation or war for instance). You should live in the present, set in motion a cycle of good thoughts and success. You should not lie even if it will give you an advantage (very hard to do). By preserving your integrity, you are giving yourself true freedom and peace of mind which cannot be bought by any sum of cash.

You should practice good human relations. Be respectful to others, cooperate with them. Practice tactfulness and tolerance for other people's beliefs. Keep things simple rather than complicated. Avoid negative people who drain you of valuable energy. Practice self-disciple and learn to develop a laser-like focus on stuff that is most important to you. Take action - this is the best cure against adversity.

All of this stuff probably sounds like common sense, or mere motherhood statements. But Ringer writes in a clear manner with lots of examples from his personal life. He talks about the mistakes he made and life experiences he had which illustrates the point of each habit.

The title 'Million Dollar Habits' is a bit misleading. This isn't a book that will help you earn a million dollars. It's not even remotely concerned with making money or with achieving the illusions of "success" and all its trimmings. This is a book about life. Living in a manner that will give you great satisfaction, happiness, and true success.


Honorable Mention:
- The Okinawa Program
- How to Make Luck

Got some books you've enjoyed reading lately? Let us know in the comments section!

stage beauty

this movie is acute in illustrating how we are so preoocupied with gender roles. men are expected to behave this way and women are to behave another way. mannerisms brought about by the culture that fosters them. creating strict expectations and thus self limitations, by which everyone must adhere to, or suffer the consequences.

the story takes place in 17th century england. it starts with a very famous actor, mr. kynaston who plays women. at this period, women werent allowed to take on any roles on the stage. purposely prohibited by guess who? ^_^ and so it was up to the men to take on women parts. and for some rather exceptionally. up until the king who was very liberal, turns about and decrees that women be allowed to play women roles. this new decree, beside the obvious implication of advancing womens rights in society, takes away the jobs previously available for said actors.

my favorite part was when the king was deliberating on the subject of allowing women to act on plays. and one argued that france, a neighboring country, had always been doing it for years. although said in jest, its a tribute to a culture that has always been progressive, socially that is.

also i find this film to be mocking of how things are still today. we still have the same players who oppose social progress. we have the same people who in power to allow or prohibit these advances to happen.

rating 4 out of 5
i like comedy

lord of war

le seigneur de guerre. BASED ON ACTUAL EVENTS .. nicholas cage plays yuri the arms dealer, his wife ava fontaine played by bridgette moynahan, and jared leto plays vitaly the brother. and finally the government agent played by ethan hawke.

it is about an arms dealer living off the transgressions / wars between countries, dictators and the people he oppresses, and regular folks who have reason to buy a gun and use it. exploitation, corruption, oppression are explicitly shown in the film. almost everyone is corruptible. it is an ethical question. are arms dealers responsible? when they dont actually kill people. they just sell the means that people kill themselves or defend themselves. but is it not the same as selling drugs, alcohol, and to a largely remote degree fastfood?

i like the relationship between yuri and vitaly. where the brothers show solid confidence and loyalty, honesty to each other. it protays that yuri despite his business dealings of selling arms is still a human being. with the same desires and needs as any.

it touches briefly on the issue of arms in the states. where citizens have the right to bear arms. so that it might appear to be an anti-gun campaign film. but more importantly, it urges us to examine what kind of society we will be if citizens are allowed to have weapons. the arms dealer leads a rather complicated life. a double / triple / quadruple life. the story builds up into a judgement against him but overturns right at the end where he is eventually caught and gives out his biggest defense. i wont say here what hehehe.

rating 5 out of 5 *****
"evil prevails .."

Rare But Good CDs

Ever had a CD you love that hardly anyone has heard of? Here are a couple of my most treasured CDs in the collection. It's likely that any of them will be found in retail music shops. Their recording labels have either closed or discontinued new releases. Here's the list:

5. Marc Almond - The Stars We Are
I was a big Marc Almond fan in high school so this was the very first cassette tape I bought with my allowance. If you haven't heard his two songs: 'Bitter Sweet' and 'The Very Last Pearl', then you're in for a real treat. These are two of the best little-heard new wave songs ever and it evokes wonderful memories every time I hear them. Sixteen years later, I finally acquired the CD version and the music is still as good as it was back in high school.

From 'The Very Last Pearl':

Well I've seen the sights of New York
I've seen day become night
I've seen the Brooklyn Bridge
All covered in lights
I've dived to the depths
I've scaled the heights

Call me romantic
Call me deluded
I've had it all

I've seen a Mediterranean night
The ships on the sea
The most beautiful eyes in the world
And the saddest eyes in the world

Call me romantic
Call me deluded
But I didn't care at all

4. Frente! - Labour of Love EP
I had to scrounge through the amazon used CD resellers to get this rare Frente release. What makes this CD 'rare but good' is that it contains two little-known Frente songs that I consider some of their best work: 'Not Given Lightly' - a cute love ballad, and 'Paper, Bullets and Walls' - a folksy, angst-ridden, quirky song. Nicely done Frente. But what we really need is a new Angie Hart release.

We also reviewed it previously on dangerousreviewers.


3. For the Kids (various artists)
A children's CD makes the list? You bet! Well, this is a children's CD with some kickass covers of popular kiddie tunes song by none other than three of my favorite bands. There's a CAKE cover of 'Mahna Mahna', a Barenaked Ladies version of 'Lalalala Lemon', and a rendition of 'Good Night Children Everywhere' by Sixpence None the Richer. Add to that, the very best version of 'Rainbow Connection' I've heard, performed by Ms. Sarah Mclachlan herself. This ain't no kids album.


2. The Other Two - The Other Two and You
The Other Two are Gillian Gilbert and Stephen Morris, two of the lesser-known New Order band members who recorded an album on the side. And what an album it is! This was released sometime in 1994, when the popularity of new wave music had all but passed. I remember hearing the single 'Selfish' on the radio and thinking 'Holy.... new wave lives on!'. This song has string instruments, synth, cool vocals, and a smooth beat. One of my all time faves.

From 'Selfish':

Someone I hate,
she think she's great unless you state the obvious.
You're next to me, entirely let's wait and see

Someone like you, selfish it's true
All you can do it's play to see entirely you disagree

No sense of reason, you think it's true
Why did you have to believe them?
No sense of reason,
What do I have to do?
There's no one else
You're deceiving

The rest of the album is good too because of the high musical quality of tracks such as 'Innocence', 'Movin On', 'The Greatest Thing' and others. How can you not like a song that has 'The Greatest Thing' as its title? This album is the greatest thing. Well, maybe the second greatest thing, especially after you read my number one pick.

From 'Innocence':

It’ s not the city or this town
I’m not the only girl that needs your affection
To satisfy this need that you’re the same boy now and that’s what I want

Since the very start you took control of my heart
And in the very end you pretended to be my friend
But you could never see the innocence in me
The innocence in me

By the way, I intend to get their follow-up album Superhighways in the near future if I can find it.


1. The Lizard's Convention - Here's a Funny Fish, Hurrah!

This is the ultimate rare but good CD. No longer sold in stores after its japanese distributor, Pony Canyon folded. I still have the original CD I bought in the mid-90's when the group had a minor hit in some parts of Asia with their cover of the Elvis Presley song 'Wooden Heart'.

The Lizard's Convention is a Singaporean band composed of Leon Lim, Adrian Loo, and lead singer Kristine Oehler who has one pretty unique singing voice. Its two cover songs 'Wooden Heart' and 'Rock the Boat' are superior over the originals. You've got to hear Kristine's rendition of these songs, absolutely amazing. It has a power and chatty friendliness that is hard to describe.

And who can resist other cool tracks titled 'The Goat that Haunted Me', 'Pleasant Song', 'If Cows Grew on Trees', and 'La Di Da'. Very cool songs. Kids will love 'em because they are sweet sugary pop melodies that are immediately appealing to the senses. Adults will love 'em because this is high quality music performed by people who love creating music.

Shortly after The Lizard's Convention's brief bout with fame, the group kind of disappeared. They had troubles with their recording label, was forced to record their follow up albums on their own, each band member going their own separate way. I can't even find their mysterious second CD titled 'Quarkstar' (if anyone has seen it or has it, please leave a comment). Such a pity as this little-known Singaporean band was pretty good. We want more Lizards Convention!



If I can continue to collect more hidden gems such as these in the next ten years, I will be a very content man.

Batman Begins

This is a do-over of the previous Batman movie series that had gotten stale. Batman Begins is not bad. It's actually pretty good.

The first forty minutes of the movie is well-made. In fact, it's my favorite part. Essentially it provides the background story of how and why Bruce Wayne became The Batman. How he trained hard under a mysterious ninja organization that had Liam Neeson as one of its leaders. How his parents were murdered and how he dealt with it as a young heir. Great effort is made to make the reasons for his transformation believable to the viewer, as if it could actually happen. I liked the lines about fear, and how Wayne eventually learns to unleash it for his own purposes. A very entertaining extended opening sequence.

Such a fine intro, but the rest of the movie was kind of subdued. It felt a little bit uninspired, as if all the good ideas were used up in the opening scenes. Don't get me wrong, relatively this is still quite a movie. It was like the rest of the film was stuck in slow motion. The good parts were few and far in between. For instance, I liked the contrast between billionaire Bruce Wayne and The Batman, and the realization by Katie Holmes that he no longer is Wayne, he has become Batman. The Scarecrow is a fascinating villain as he enables victims to visualize their greatest fears.

I think this movie's main purpose is to set up the rest of the series. It introduces several key characters, sets up how Lieutenant Gordon develops into Commissioner one day, establishes Arkham Asylum as a future breeding ground for villains. And it reveals exactly which bad guy Batman will face in the sequel.

All in all, not bad. Just got boring and uninteresting in some parts. But hardcore fans will love this.

Rating: 3/5 * * *
Good intro. Promising setup for future sequels.

north country

a mother was trying to earn a living for her and her family by taking on a job tradionally taken by men, at the mines. it immediately sets a clear backdrop of sexism at work. and her journey towards her liberation and along with it, the liberation of all women. its an important message especially for a country like ours which has a rather archaic view of women.

sexism can be as little and insignificant as a joke. it happens all the time and women are subject to it everyday. i can only imagine what it would be like for them. and the movie was clear to make that distinction. between a joke and a joke.

women are human beings. how difficult is that to understand. she is capable of doing anything she puts her mind on. that includes doing police work. fireman work. drive a car. teach. advocate. take care of the sick. lead a flock to worship. lead a country. we see proof of this in progressive socieities.

rating 3 out of 5
important message, but it lacked punch

narnia

narnia is a typical disney movie. there was no blood shed. and problems were magically whisked away by some powerful force that is beyond the world and undertanding.

the villains appeared ugly save for the witch who was enchanting. the heroes were valiant and noble looking. clear templates of what defines noble and not so noble. the villains were doomed and didnt have a chance. perpetuating yet again the myth of good and evil in the world.

i got a strong feeling that it fell short of showing a very good battle scene (potentially). like the ones in the lord of the rings. or with la coeur valiant. i didnt feel the same desperation as i did when i watched these other films. i wished that edmond had sticked to his true convictions. and that is to bring destruction to his meddling siblings. i mean, i would .. ^_^

i like the two sword wielding centaurs. the creatures. the taurens. the polar bears! and my personal favorite la sorcière. the acting was good, convincing. and the english accent was charming.

this movie is definitely for kids. im predicting that local producers will start copying certain elements of this film. and make it appear as if they were original.

rating 3 out of 5
stereotypes abound

Primer

I just finished watching this on DVD. My head is spinning. My brain is working overtime, trying to figure out all the details. I've spent the last hour reading up on the imdb messageboards trying to make sense of the story.

Primer is a movie where time travel is used to brilliant effect. Two young engineers invent what appears to be a device that allows you to travel short distances to the past. It starts with a lengthy fictionalized scientific discussion on how the two guys actually create the machine. This part is told in a realistic manner that makes the premise of time travel actually plausible. What happens if it actually works?

The ability to go back in time, armed with full knowledge of what the present has in store, is a very powerful weapon. We see subtle changes in our two protagnists' behavior. They start out innocently, using future knowledge of stock prices to their financial benefit. But they end up doing more, seduced by the power of being able to know everything in advance. There are major plot twists near the end of the movie, at which point I completely lost track of what was going on. It becomes a complex puzzle, as layers upon layers of time travel adjustments and interactions between different iterations of past selves takes place. And it's a fun, bewildering ride.

You really need to pay attention while watching this film. The ending left me saying 'huh?' and it took me some time browsing the message boards, reading alternate user interpretations before I got a semblance of what actually happened near the end. If you like thinking and puzzle movies you will love this one. But if your idea of a good movie is to relax and watch the next car chase scene with explosions you will probably hate this one.

My personal interpretation: The focus of Primer concerns various time travel possibilities. How does this affect the parties who can control time. How does it deal with certain causality conflicts i.e. killing one's own grandfather, thus preventing your birth, etc. We are given a realistic interpretation of what could actually occur and a subtle commentary on how power and control affects the human psyche.

This movie was made on an extremely tight budget, reportedly just $7,000. Many of the scenes were shot in one take. And the two main actors end up telling the story of events that happened rather than us seeing the events ourselves. One major complaint I have is that a lot of the big points that would have made the story easier to understand were not emphasized to the viewer. So we are left with lots of small clues and left wondering whether they are significant or not. The movie could benefit by making some of the important parts easier to understand, with dialogue and timing organized to underline the key events. Because this was not done, I found myself having to watch the DVD more than once to get a better grasp of the story.

I'd like to see this movie remade with a bigger budget. With some of the scenes shown to the viewer as it occured rather than have it narrated by the actors. Perhaps tweak and revise the screenplay to dumb it down slightly and make it easily digestible in small doses rather than all at once. I can't wait for director Shane Carruth's next film.

All in all, a unique story. A brilliant geek movie that didn't get much mainstream attention.


Rating: 4/5 * * * *
What happens if it actually works?