Another Song for the Occasion

The day you left me
there was a feeling I have never shown
The day you told me
there were the words that I have never known
And now it's over
So what's left that I should ever feel
cause since the day you left me I have been so alone

And now we're left with broken promises
my heart can't take no more
and now we're left with broken promises
my mind has had enough

Deep inside me
there are things that I have never told
they burn inside me
and now I need to know
Why are you trying to take everything away from me
well I'm begging you
I'm here with nothing left to show
cause since the day you left me I have been so alone

And now we're left with broken promises
my heart can't take no more
And now we're left with broken promises
my mind has had enough

Look at how you turned on me
You ran away and left me here with nothing to see
I'm a man so turn around and say it to me
Don't you think I've got something to say
Look at how you turned on me
You ran away and left me here with nothing to see
I'm a man so turn around and say it to me
Don't you think I've got something to say
Now look at how you turned on me
You ran away and left me here with nothing to see
I'm a man so turn around and say it to me
Don't you think I've got something to say

And now we're left with broken promises
my heart can't take no more
and now we're left with broken promises
my mind has had enough
and now we're left with broken promises
my heart can't take no more
and now we're left with broken promises
my mind has had enough

"Broken Promises" by Element Eighty

Remote-Controlled Life

A (Belated) Movie Review

Title:
Click

Directed by:
Frank Coraci

Writing Credit:
Steve Koren (written by) and
Mark O'Keefe (written by)

Cast:
Adam Sandler, Kate Beckinsale, Christopher Walken, David Hasselhoff

One glance at a 'Click' poster and you will think "Oh, another Adam Sandler movie." Just another movie you watch to kick back, have a simple dumb fun, preferably with a date. I was about to completely kick this movie out of my attention orbit until a friend of mine, whose movie taste is rather trustworthy, told me that this movie is worth a viewing due to its surprisingly good story.

So, armed with my multimedia control at the side of my seat (Oh I just love Singapore Airlines and its in-flight multimedia entertainment), I chose 'Click' from the available selection (making sure that I did not choose the Chinese voice-over) and just kick back and relax, trying to entertain myself with Adam Sandler's comic performance.

This movie took me by surprise. Yes, there are many funny moments during the movie (this is, after all, Adam Sandler's movie), however as the movie progresses, it changes its tone from a light-hearted comedy to a rather serious movie that reflects quite seriously on certain aspects of life. I must say that the writers did a good job to come up with some materials that people might take as light at first glance and turn it into something that is of a more serious nature.

Adam Sandler's performance is quite good in this movie. There are times when he acted just like a punk (a lucky punk in my opinion, to be able to play alongside the beautiful Kate Beckinsale) but there are times when he showed that he could play a character that is actually quite serious. Kate Beckinsale didn't just be in the movie looking all pretty and sexy. She actually played quite good as a housewife and a mother (after watching the two Underworld movies, this is quite an image change...hmmm...a housewife and a mother...). Christopher Walken played the character 'Morty' quite well in this movie, and that character is quite important in this movie. As for David Hasselhoff, well, let's just say that he's the butt of joke in this movie. But, he took it like a man.

I will not dwell into why I would call this movie as light comedy-slightly serious drama (I might wanna talk about it in a different blog entry), but let's just say that I myself found myself moved near to tears during one of the scenes in this movie. So, just give yourself some time to watch this movie when you have the opportunity (or if you happen to be in a 3-or-so-hour flight onboard a Singapore Airlines plane). You (and your date, if you happen to see this movie together with someone) might find yourself in a reflective silence a few moment after you finished watching the movie.

A good movie with a good story that has an excellent effect on you, spiritually.

Rookie Bond

Movie Review

Title:
Casino Royale

Director:
Martin Campbell:

Casts:
Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judy Dench, Jeffrey Wright

Writing Credits:
Neil Purvis, Robert Wade

I'm not much of a Bond fan. All I know about James Bond are: James Bond ("Name's Bond. James Bond."), 007, Vodka Martini (shaken but not stirred), Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton, fancy cars (with lots of fancy sci-fi gadgets and functions inside them), fancy watches (same case as the cars), tuxedos (with bow tie), guns, hot women, and an abundant opportunities to market exclusive and albeit expensive merchandise (hint: fancy watches, fancy cars). Come to think of it, that's quite a lot. But I haven't gotten around to seeing most of James Bond movies. So, once again, I can't say that I'm much of a Bond fan.

But I did get to see some of James Bond movie. And from the movies that I did see, I could conclude that James Bond is...inhuman. I rarely see any other emotions on his face except for self-confidence and sometimes, amusement. I could never really sympathize with the guy. He seems distant, doesn't care much about anything, and never willing to reveal himself (Am I starting to sound like a disgruntled girlfriend?) And he seems hell bent on destroying every fancy cars and equipments that he could get his hands on. I don't know, maybe it's just that I have never read any of Ian Fleming's book on James Bond so that I don't know his character well enough. So, at one point in time, I surmise that people go to see a Bond movie for the fancy cars, fancy watches, and (for the guys) hot women. It's not exactly a bad thing, but to me it seems that any James Bond movie is going to be just another action movie. Exciting, fun, but rather shallow (what kind of an agent/spy goes around telling his real name?).

However, Martin Campbell managed to create another Bond movie with a different twist in it. For the guys, don't worry, there are still hot ladies in it. You want fancy cars? You got it. Fancy watches? Check. But gone are the sci-fi-flavored gadgets and machineries. The cars are still fancy, but they don't shoot missiles. The watches are just watches. They don't cut through ropes or chains.

But the biggest difference in Casino Royale is none other than Bond himself. Gone is the self-confidence, gone is the silky-smooth yet brutal style of the famous British agent, gone is the 'shaken but not stirred' attitude we have come to know about James Bond. This time around, Bond is ruthless. His methods are reckless and brutal. Daniel Craig plays a Bond who shows a lot of raw emotions and the movie really shows you how much of a 'rookie' Bond is at that time ("Vodka Martini, shaken or stirred?" "Do I look like I give a damn?"). However, this is after all, one of James Bond's first missions, when he'd just received his '007' status. As the movie progresses, it will show you some of the reasons why Bond became the Bond that most of us know. Personally, I kind of like Casino Royale's Bond, due to his showing more emotions. It's kind of like this James Bond is an entirely different person than the James Bond that we come to know so far. I would go so far as to say it's almost as if this movie is not a Bond movie.

Daniel Craig is really good in portraying an agent who still has a lot of rough edges to be smoothed out. But, behind all those brutality and recklessness you could almost sense that this is the man that will one day become the confident man that James Bond is. For those who has doubts about him, rest assure that he delivered a convincing performance. I would like to see him play the 'confident' Bond and see how he fares. It should be interesting.

Another thing worth mentioning is the action sequences. I really can't say much (I don't want to spoil the fun for those who have not yet seen the movie) except that these action sequences deserves a two-thumbs-up. Especially the chase scenes. They will keep you at the edge of your seats. And surprisingly, the story is quite good. Coming from someone who thinks that the previous Bond movies are slightly on the shallow side when it comes to the stories, it's quite something. That is partly due to the fact that they didn't use any fancy, sci-fi, gadgets to spice up the actions and mostly to some serious character buildings.

To summarize, this is the most un-Bond James Bond movie that I have ever seen. And that is a good thing. If you like seeing movies such as Bourne Identity and Bourne Supremacy, you will definitely love this movie. You will see a real person, an agent, with fears and flaws and not some cool and confident chap in a tuxedo waving his gun around just trying to look cool. And fear not, Bond fans, for you will see a lot of things Bond in this movie that you will not feel betrayed. A definite must see for any Bond fans, and any action movie afficionados.

Objection!

Game Review



Console:
Nintendo DS

Title:
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Developer:
Capcom

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be a defense attorney? Well, this game does not give you THAT exact feeling, but what it gives you is an entertaining adventuring time. Yes, even if the premise of this game is to put you in the shoes of Phoenix Wright, a 'rookie' defense lawyer, but in heart it is actually an adventure game.

The game is mainly broken up into 2 parts: trials and investigations. During the trials, you mainly hear the witness testimonials and find inconsistencies in them. You could press them during their testimonials, or present evidences whenever you find contradictory statements during the testimonials. The basic assumption, of course, is that your client is innocent. The other part, the investigations part, is where you investigate around, finding clues and evidences to help you during the course of the trials and also advancing the story line. Don't worry about not finding enough evidence: the game will not let you advance through the story if these evidences have not been found during the adventure part.

The story is quite linear. It is mostly told through texts. The animations of the characters are minimal, but they are more than enough to tell the story. Some of the most interesting and amusing animations are whenever you succeeded in cornering the witnesses and unearthing the inconsistencies in their testimonies. The main character himself is quite likable. You could almost sympathize with him whenever he has to face obnoxious witnesses.

The game utilizes the DS' touch screen and microphone quite well. During the trials, you could actually scream into the microphone whenever you want to press the witnesses, or to give objection and presenting evidences (Hold it! Objection! Take that!). You could also do that with the touch screen, if you don't feel like screaming into the mic. As for the touch screen, mostly it is used to sift through the texts, but some of the brilliant functions can be found during the final chapter of the game. It is too bad that these creative uses of the touch screen is not utilized from the early chapters of the game.

All in all, this game offers a unique adventure game experience with the premise of the story, and for those longing for a good adventure game (and happen to have a Nintendo DS) should never pass this game up.

Freaky Questions

A Book Review


Title:
Freakonomics

Author:
Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Life is a big question mark indeed. Anywhere you go, you'd find yourself asking "Why this? Why that? How so?" and so on. Some questions are downright serious, and some questions are downright silly. Sometimes the answers to these questions are so obvious. And sometimes, if not most of the times, the answers lies lurking behind the shadows. And many times, the answers, when found, cast shadows of doubts that give birth to more questions.

In any case, you are now probably asking "What does questions got to do with a book review?" Ah, dear friend, this book is about questions. At least, that's what the authors (and I'm betting the marketer geniuses behind the book) is putting in the forefront of this book. What kind of questions? In a glance, silly ones. I mean, just take a look at one of the questions: "What do teachers and sumo wrestlers have in common?" If you're already interested about the book by reading the previous sentence, then you know what I mean by 'those marketer geniuses'.

However, questions are no good if there are no answers. And the answers that the authors put forth in this book will prove that these questions are actually not that silly. Steven D. Levitt, one of the author of this book and Stephen J. Dubner, a journalist who once wrote an article on Levitt, answers these seemingly silly questions based on one of the basic principles of economics: incentive. In other words, their main argument is that people are willing to do something, or rather, behave the way they do if there's something in it for them.

The authors will describe the answers to these questions one by one by using many statistical explanations. But fear not, those who are bewildered by numbers and calculations: these explanations are not technical. They are presented in a way that can be understood by casual readers. Those trying to find in-depth economy lessons in this book might be a little disappointed, but I personally believe that people should go to the basics from time to time. And that's exactly the point of this book: back to basics. And the basic, once again, is about incentive. And on that note, those who have casual or a serious interest in behavioral science might also be interested in this book because it's also mostly about people and why they do what they do. One thing that should also be noted is that 'incentive' in this book is brought not only in monetary context but also in non-monetary context.

Some of the facts or findings that are presented in this book can be quite bewildering and surprising. Indeed, the explanation offered by Levitt concerning the drop in crime rate invited many contradictions, criticism and disagreement from many people. And some would-be parents might also want to read the section concerning whether parents actually have influence over what their children would be one day. But that's part of what make this book an interesting read.

It is such a shame that this book is a tad short. I have the extended version, with bonus materials such as previous articles written by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt, selected blog entries, etc. However, whatever is written in these bonus materials have been summed up, or even explained in greater details, in the main section of the book. This fact makes the bonus materials a little unnecessary, save for some of the articles. As for the blog entries, in the age where people could access the internet easily, this too also feels a bit unnecessary. I would also have to agree with other reviewers that this book has no unifying theme. However, I would like to venture further by saying that it is not that the book has no unifying theme, it is just that the way the authors presented the materials make it seem as if there's no unifying theme. But observant reader should know that this book is all about incentive.

I have to say that this book is a casual read, and very interesting. And, as I have said earlier in this book review, answers can give birth to more questions. Like, is there a new book coming out from Levitt and Dubner? Maybe so, if there's a good enough incentive for them to do so.

Heaven or Hell

I read this book once, it's title is 'Awareness'. The writer was Anthony de Mello. You see, I really like de Mello's books, because they are usually quite eye-opening. The things that are written in his books might be hard to swallow at times, if you really reflect yourself on it. And the things that he wrote in 'Awareness' are no exception. Coming from a Catholic priest, this book might be considered 'unbelievable' or 'outrageous' for some people. Indeed, a friend of mine (who has also read that book and likes it) forwarded it to her Protestant priest and he said that that book should be burned.

But I believe that what de Mello was trying to do was just to point out the harsh truth inside every man. A bitter truth, but the truth nonetheless. In my own personal opinion, that truth is part of what being human is all about. And I believe that once a person can be at peace with this truth, life would be a lot easier for him or her. Or maybe harder. Who knows anyways.

In any case, I would really like to give a review about de Mello's 'Awareness', but I think this book deserves more than just a review. And in that review I will not be able to help but to give my own interpretation about the subject that is brought to attention in that book, and that will only take away the true intention of the book. So, just go ahead and look for the book and read it for yourself. Give yourself a favour and read it with an open mind.

Well, up until now I'm just talking about the 'truth', the 'truth' and the 'truth' without saying what the 'truth' is all about. To describe this, I would like to quote from a book that I am still reading right now (a review is coming, once I finish reading the book that is :P). I was quite taken by this short paragraph I found in this book. It is harsh, but in a twisted way, true.I believe that what I'm quoting runs along the same line as what de Mello is trying to say to us in 'Awareness', albeit with different words. This short story is taken from David Mitchell's fiction novel 'Ghostwritten'. Read it with an open mind. And of course, how you interpret it is all up to you.

'I guess this isn't really a secret, it's more of a story. I remember a sermon. A traveller went on a journey with an angel. They entered a house with many floors. The angel opened one door, and in it was a room with one long low bench running around the walls, crammed with people. In the centre was a table piled with sweetmeats. Each guest had a very long silver spoon, as long as a man is tall. They were trying to feed themselves, but of course they couldn't - the spoons were too long, and the food kept falling off. So in spite of there being enough food for everyone, everyone was hungry. "This," explains the angel, "is hell. The people do not love each other. They only want to feed themselves."'

'Then the angel took the traveller to another room. It was exactly the same as the first, only this time instead of trying to feed themselves, the guests used their spoons to feed one another, across the room. "Here," said the angel, "the people think only of one another. And by doing so, they feed themselves. Here is heaven."'

Tatyana thought for a moment. 'There's no difference.'

'No difference?'

'No difference. Everybody both in heaven and hell wanted one and the same thing: meat in their bellies. But those in heaven got their shit together bettter. That's all.'

Taken from 'Ghostwritten', written by David Mitchell

The Story Behind the Flag

A Movie Review

Title:
Flags of Our Fathers

Director:
Clint Eastwood

Cast:
Ryan Phillippe, Jesse Bradford, Adam Beach

Writing Credits:
William Boyles Jr. (screenplay), and
Paul Haggis (screenplay)

James Bradley (book), and
Ron Powers (book)

Before we go to the review, I would like the reader to see the following photograph to better understand what this movie is all about:

A photo is worth more than a thousand words

Some of you might be quite familiar with the photo above. It is a photo of six American soldiers raising the American flag at Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima. I think it is one of the most memorable photo in this century.

Those of you might think that this movie is 'just another war movie'. But knowing Clint Eastwood and his previous works ('Mystic River', 'Million Dollar Baby'), I was quite sure that it was more than just a war movie. As some of you who have seen Eastwood's previous works can attest, he puts more emphasis on the characters and the story.

Sure, there is good war action to be found in this movie. And having Steven Spielberg as one of the producer is a good enough indication for that (some of you may be familiar with Spielberg's previous works such as 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Band of Brothers'). However, this story is not just about the action happening during the time of the flag raising. The story is more about the lives of the six people who raised that flag, and what was going on behind the war. So, do not be fooled. This movie, aside from being a war movie, is also as much as a drama movie as 'Mystic River' and 'Million Dollar Baby' are.

The movie, a very thought-provoking one, focuses on the story of three of the flag raisers: John 'Doc' Bradley (James Bradley's father, the writer whose book, which has the same title as the movie, is used as one of the materials for the movie's story), Rene Gagnon, and Ira Hayes. In general, it showed us how the photo came about, and what the event (the flag raising, the campaign to raise fund for war based on that fateful photo, and also the war in Iwo Jima) truly means for these three people and how they feel about it. There is a narrator (or more, because I think there are several narrators actually, the veterans of Iwo Jima who got interviewed by James Bradley) during the course of the movie who comes and goes, and the story is told with a discontinued time line style, showing flashbacks here and there during the course of the story.

There is a lot to be told about this movie. There is the story about the war propaganda and how they use that photo as a promotion for the 'victory bond', the method they use to gather funding for the war. There are also the great action sequences which, once again I would like to mention, are greatly influenced by Steven Spielberg's previous works. There are also the great performances by the actors, especially Adam Beach who played Ira Hayes. However, what really stands out in this movie is how the three soldiers really feel about the war (especially for Ira Hayes) and their views toward the war propaganda. And this is where the movie really shines. It told the harsh truth, a sad truth in my opinion, but the truth nonetheless. And what is more, the time line, the story, the flashbacks, they are all presented in this movie in such a way to really bring out the thoughts and feelings of these three soldiers. And what is excellent, is that the movie did not take sides. It just let each persons who viewed it to determine what the story really mean for them.

Clint Eastwood did a really good job in bringing out the humanity behind the photo and presenting it in this movie. The acting was great (a big applause for Adam Beach, again, who played Ira Hayes), the cinematography was excellent, and the story was great. And talking about not taking sides, Clint Eastwood is directing this movie back-to-back with another movie titled 'Letters from Iwo Jima', which will tell the story of the battle in Iwo Jima but from the perspective of the Japanese. And I can't wait to see that one also.

In the end, 'Flags' is a very thought-provoking movie. It is certainly not the pop-corn kind of movie (think Spiderman, X-Men), and deserves a lot of thought.

The Illusion of Bitter Rivalry

Movie Review

Title:
The Prestige

Director:
Christopher Nolan

Cast :
Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, Andy Serkis, David Bowie

Screenplay:
Jonathan Nolan and Cristopher Nolan

Based on a novel by:
Chritopher Priest

I have been excited about this movie since I saw the trailer and saw the caption 'from the director of 'Batman Begins'!'. The casting was also promising: there was a lot of A-list actors and actresses in the casting list. I also did something that I regretted doing later on: I checked the reviews for this movie in www.imdb.com. The movie got good reviews, mind you. But the thing that I didn't like was that I would be going to the movies with high expectations and a fear that the movie might actually not meet my expectations. I should have gone to see the movie without any expectations. It would have made it more exciting.

After watching the movie, however, I found that my fear was unfounded. The movie was, for not having any better word to sum it up, really good. If you are familiar with Nolan's previous works (such as 'Memento', and 'Batman Begins'), you need not fear: you are in familiar territory here. Discontinued/unconventional story timeline? Check. Twisted story? Check. Twisted ending? Check. Excellent cinematography? Check. Excellent direction? Check. Excellent performances? Check. What else could you ask for out of a good movie, right?

The story of the movie could be summed up in these words (taken from the movie's trailer): "Every great magic trick consists of three acts. The first act is called "The Pledge"; The magician shows you something ordinary, but of course... it probably isn't. The second act is called "The Turn"; The magician makes his ordinary some thing do something extraordinary. Now if you're looking for the secret... you won't find it, that's why there's a third act called, "The Prestige"; this is the part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before."

The directions of the story and the discontinued timeline are all arranged to serve you 'The Pledge', 'The Turn', and finally 'The Prestige'. Once again, if you have seen 'Memento', you'll understand what I'm talking about. And just like 'Memento', the movie and the story is quite detailed. This movie deserve subsequent viewing, especially for those who like details. However, to give you a general idea of the story, it is about the rivalry between two magicians, Rupert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale). Their rivalry takes a bitter turn after an incident, and it threatens to wreak havoc to both men's lives and the lives of their closest people. Finally, their rivalry will involve one trick called 'The Transported Man'. Each men will try to outdo one another to come up with the best version of 'The Transported Man', while trying to figure out each other's trick's secrets.

Performance-wise, the actors were fabulous. Hugh Jackman gave quite a convincing performance, from being a person with a positive outlook towards life to becoming a bitter man hell-bent on destroying his rival. Christian Bale also held his own, playing a person whose life was all about tricks, secrets, and performances. Michael Caine was excellent, as always, playing the mentor of both magicians. Scarlett Johansson gave quite a good performance too. There was nothing spectacular about her acting nor was it below standard either. Her role/character, however, was quite pivotal in the storyline. David Bowie and Andy Serkis deserve a mention here for their role in the storyline. David Bowie was surprisingly convincing as Nicolas Tesla. Strong acting overall, in my opinion.

The movie was quite sweeping and epic story-wise, and it took quite a twisted turn near the end of the movie (go see the movie and you'll know what I mean). However, that is to be expected. After all, this movie is all about 'The Prestige', isn't it? The part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before. And so in the end, the actors and actresses are merely a magician's tools, and the director is the great magician.

One of the greatest movie of this year, in my opinion.

Finally, I would like to say one thing to you who are going to see this movie: "Are You Watching Closely?" (Alfred Borden)

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...

...and Spring

A Movie Review
Title: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring
Directed by: Ki-duk Kim
Writing credit: Ki-duk Kim

I have been wanting to see this movie for awhile. Thanks to the Manila International Film Festival, I finally had the opportunity to do so.

So, what was the movie all about? The movie is about the story of a young monk in the care of an older, seasoned, monk. The movie shows the transformation of both the young one and the elder one as they go through life. Each phase is represented by each season. It stars in Spring and comes in full circle in the coming Spring. But in my opinion, the movie might as well be about Buddhism and its view towards life in general.

If I could say one thing about this movie, is that it is all about symbols. Each season symbolized each phase of the young monk's life. And each season is symbolized by a different animal. Spring is symbolized by a dog. Summer is symbolized by a rooster. Fall is symbolized by a cat. Winter is symbolized by a snake. And finally, the full circle, the coming Spring is symbolized by a turtle. Each season is started by a door opening to show the floating temple in the middle of the lake where most of scenes in the movie took place. I have a feeling that 'doors' in this movie also represent something relating to Bhuddism.

Well, I don't know much about Buddhism, but I know that this is the central theme of the whole movie. And since I don't know much about Buddhism, I don't know much about how to explain the symbols in this movie. But I know (or I have a strong hunch) that they represents the basic principles of life and its cycle.

The story unfolds in quite a peaceful pace. It took its time to reveal everything, being quite deliberate and all, and it does so using very minimal dialogue. The phrase 'A picture is worth a thousand words' is true for this movie. Dialogue is minimal (I think it represents only about 25% of the movie) and the story is told by the scenes unfolding throughout the storyline. Since symbols and scenes are the main theme of this movie, the cinematography was top notch. The lake in the middle of the mountain range, the floating temple, the boat, the door opening to the lake where the floating temple is, the 300-year-old tree, they're all taken from an angle that shows good workmanship in cinematography. And they all tell a story, a story whose interpretation is left to the viewers' minds and hearts.

This movie is like a moving painting, a peacefully-paced moving painting. And 'beautiful' is the only word I could come up with. I won't go deep into the interpretation of the story and the symbols inside this movie, since I think that is up to the viewers on how to interpret it. And I think that is what the director wants in the first place. A movie that will leave you dazed and think deeply on life. That's another way of my saying: 'highly recommended'.

Bits and pieces: even though there's a door to the lake, there's no wall whatsoever separating the lake from the outside world. People could just walk over to the lake without going through the door, but they still had to go through the door. It's the same also for the rooms inside the floating temple. There was no wall separating the bedroom from the praying room, but there was still a door. And the old monk always came in and went out the bedroom through the door. I guess this is also part of the movie's many symbolizations.

A Weekend of Good Movies

Most of the Thais, the Malaysians, and the Singaporeans were gone for the week because they were flying back to their own countries. And I had no idea on what to do during the weekend, only that I had to go to the church on Sunday and that's it. My other friends either had families to take care of, or had guests to entertain. I was on my own, it seemed to me.

So, on Friday, while I was left with no idea on what to do during the weekend and trying to come up with one, a good friend came up to my cubicle and asked why it was all quiet. I told her that most of the people were flying back and I told her that I had no idea on what to do on Saturday. She was kind enough to give me one: Manila International Film Festival. She even gave me the website to check out the movies and the schedules.

Armed with the web address (it's www.cinemanila.com.ph, by the way), I went online and checked the schedules for the movies playing at the cinema in Greenbelt 1, one of the many malls in Manila (and one that is nearest to my apartment) and one of the cinemas chosen to hold the festival. One name caught my attention: 'Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring', a Korean movie that I have been wanting to see for quite some time.

So, on Saturday morning, I went walking to Greenbelt (have I told you that it's near my apartment?) to go and watch the movie. After waiting for quite awhile (the movie was supposed to start at 11:30 but the people with the movie rolls came a bit late at 11:15 with slight panic looks on their faces, but fortunately preparation was quite fast...this kind of preparation reminded me of Jiffest, Jakarta International Film Festival) I finally got a hold of the ticket to see 'Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring' (I was first in line, yay! He he he).

So, how was the movie? Quite good, actually. Not your mainstream movie, mind you. Not everyone will enjoy this movie. 80% of the time it was only sceneries and no dialogue at all. There was a lot of symbolic scenes in the movie. I think many of them are related to Buddhism, and since I was no expert in such matters thus most of the time the meanings were lost to me. However, one needs not be an expert in Buddhism to understand the movie's true beauty and strong points: the story, the meanings behind the story, the meanings represented by the symbols, and the simple-yet-beautiful cinematography.

I will write a proper review about the movie in a separate entry. I think it will be short because basically I'm going to tell you all to go and see this movie before you die, since it was the kind of movie that you should see by yourself to understand its beauty. For those of you who prefer mainstream, Hollywood kind of movies, I should warn you that this is no such movie.

After the first movie, I was thinking of watching another one: 'Perhaps Love'. But I seemed to remember that a friend has already got the DVD. I think it's not going to be hard to look for it, so I decided not to. However, there was another movie that I was interested to see and the movie was not part of the film festival. It was called 'The Prestige'.

I became interested in this movie since the first time I saw the trailer. Directed by Christopher Nolan ('Memento', 'Batman Begins') and armed with A-list actors and actress (Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Andy Serkis, and the sexy Scarlett Johansson), I had the feeling that the movie will be quite interesting, and possibly, very good. And I wasn't wrong.

As soon as the first show was over, I went to the other cinema to get myself the ticket to 'The Prestige'. Had lunch before going inside, and was terribly pissed when the security people at the cinema asked me to deposit my digital camera. I mean, c'mon, what the fuck can I do with the digital camera? Record the whole movie? Were they kidding me? Well, I didn't exactly said that. Just submitted myself to their request and gave my camera to be deposited.

'The Prestige' lives up to director Christopher Nolan's style. Disconnected timeline, twisted storyline, and a very good cinematography. The actors and actresses delivered very good performances, and the soundtrack was fitting to the mood of the movie. Overall, a very dark movie, with a very good, albeit dark and twisted, storyline.

You probably are wondering what 'The Prestige' is all about. Well, I will elaborate that in my review. All I can say here is that it's a movie about magicians. My review of the movie will come in a later entry. For now, I'd like to close this journal by saying that I had quite an entertaining weekend, and it's been awhile since I last watched 2 movies back-to-back (the first time was about 6 years ago, I watched 'Gladiator' and went straight for 'X-Men'). Ah...so nice! Movie weekend, nothing quite like it. If it wasn't for an excrutiating headache I would have tried to find another movie to watch...

Wait...

I haven't finished watching 'Before Sunset'...

A view in Greenbelt 3

to be continued... :P

Goodbye My Lover...

Did I disappoint you or let you down?
Should I be feeling guilty or let the judges frown?
'Cause I saw the end before we'd begun,
Yes I saw you were blinded and I knew I had won.
So I took what's mine by eternal right.
Took your soul out into the night.
It may be over but it won't stop there,
I am here for you if you'd only care.
You touched my heart you touched my soul.
You changed my life and all my goals.
And love is blind and that I knew when,
My heart was blinded by you.
I've kissed your lips and held your head.
Shared your dreams and shared your bed.
I know you well, I know your smell.
I've been addicted to you.

Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.

I am a dreamer but when I wake,
You can't break my spirit - it's my dreams you take.
And as you move on, remember me,
Remember us and all we used to be
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile.
I've watched you sleeping for a while.
I'd be the father of your child.
I'd spend a lifetime with you.
I know your fears and you know mine.
We've had our doubts but now we're fine,
And I love you, I swear that's true.
I cannot live without you.

Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.

And I still hold your hand in mine.
In mine when I'm asleep.
And I will bear my soul in time,
When I'm kneeling at your feet.
Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.


I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow.
I'm so, I'm so,


I'm so hollow...



(James Blunt)

DotA Session with the Pinoys

Tired of all the malls and the restaurants here in Manila, I decided to pass the invitation to go to Rockwell (Power Plant Mall) for dinner. I opted instead to wait for my colleagues in my project to finish their work for the day and go out and have some nerdy fun (read: play DotA). To be honest, I suck at playing this game so I was a bit reluctant. However, the next day was a holiday and I have nothing to do (having declined the previous offer to go to dinner), so I thought hey what the heck this might be fun. And the Manila guys are a riot and they're ridiculously funny. So, it should be fun, right?

So, at about 8:30 pm, the six of us left our project building and went to Glorietta by Jeepny. Yep, my first Jeepny ride (I'm actually not sure whether the spelling is correct, though) and it was fun. Just like riding 'microlet' back in my hometown of Jakarta. Wanted to take a picture with my camera but thought better of it (just like Jakarta, it's not safe to show off your personal belongings).

So, we had a Tapa King dinner at Glorietta and went to Greenbelt to look for any internet and LAN game cafe that was still open. Found one finally, and we got to see all the pretty ladies dressing up for the Halloween parties in the many restaurant-slash-night clubs in Greenbelt 2 along the way. Damn, should have taken pictures...Just thought of that now as I was writing this entry...stupid me...

Anyways, credit goes to Christopher for teaching me how to play DotA. At least I got to kick Rexon's and Arvin's butt a couple of times (no hard feeling, guys :D he he he). And it was indeed fun. We talked and joked along the way (I finally understand what they mean by 'the symptoms'), and after playing for about an hour and a half, we went back at about midnight. The other took buses or taxis and I walked back since Greenbelt was not that far from my apartment. Aubrey left earlier because he had to be home before midnight.

Here are some pictures I took when we were playing. The casts:

1. Me
2. Arvin V. Cirunay (a. k. a. El Carino --> That's 'The Romancer' in English :D)
3. Christopher Hernandez
4. Rexon Caliwanagan
5. Aubrey Carino, and
6. Ruel Cabcad

Arvin, Aubrey and Ruel (he's shy)

Rexon and Christopher

Thanks guys, for a fun night out! Let's do it again sometimes!