First Weekend of June

Alongside with my Elle Woods dream - uber excited for Legally Blonde, The Musical at the Meralco Theater - and the start of the rainy season, I spent the first weekend of June with the BF. It was quite wonderful that I got to experience once again the usual weekend stuff which I deprived myself of from the time "The law is reason free from passion" haunts me. So there.

Finally, after weeks of mentally salivating over this seemingly popular fantasy-adventure film, we watched Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time at SM Megamall last Friday Night. I am no video game fanatic but I really enjoyed the movie. 

Food & Film Friday: Tokyo Tokyo's Sumo Beef Bowl (beef misono with prawn & veggie tempura), california maki & red iced tea & Prince Dastan-Princess Tamina-Nizam film poster

Then came a surprisingly cool Saturday night. After a sweltering summer with temperatures shooting up to 38 degrees, the night was comparable to a soothing balm. So I was inspired to whip up another "pacham" (read: kitchen invention). My kitchen invention this time around is made up of chayote (or pear squash if you wanna sound starched), carrots and ground pork.

A dinner of sauteed chayote & carrots and pork chops (lovingly marinated by the BF) spells Y-U-M.

Sunday means the much-awaited visit to the much-awaited abode. Loads of excitement filled the air, mind you.

Three more months...

Let the June flag fly high!

Miss You Like Crazy

One thing's for sure: John Lloyd-Bea's newest cheesy flick is another open invitation to travel to Kuala Lumpur (the first was the heist film Entrapment in 1999) and stare at the Petronas Towers. The rest is a hodge-podge of typical Pinoy cheesy flick with a happy ending. And in Pinoy love stories, the ending is quite predictable from the first few minutes.

I watched it because I'm a fan of the love team. They look good together and the chemistry is remarkable. Years ago, the Bea-John Lloyd was another option for Kristine-Echo, except that the former proves to be more credible during TV interviews. Before the Bea-John Lloyd love team was launched in the movies, their chemistry was already tried and tested in daily soaps such as Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay and Betty La Fea. This is what I know right now: the female is a meztisa while the guy is tall, dark and handsome. Throw in a cheesy plot and, voila, a box-office hit!

In my opinion, the story of MYLC can hardly be possible in real life. I'm pretty sure others share the same opinion too. Imagine, a four-year-old relationship versus a week-old series of double entendres. Then the guy would profess that he loved the object of his flirting, which, to me, is truly impossible. In historical romance paperbacks, yes, but never in cold reality. It's a feel-good movie nonetheless. If there's one good thing about Bea-John Lloyd movies and soaps, then it's the presence of "kilig" in large doses. Kilig to the bones. The love team guarantees us that.

As always, John Lloyd is an eye candy all throughout the movie and he can act as well. He's the Christopher de Leon of our era. Bea, on the other hand, has proven herself once again that acting is her domain. She doesn't have to venture in singing and launching an album because she sings poorly.

Now, I remember. It's not just the Petronas Towers and Lake Titiwangsa Park (Malay can be funny) I'm curious of. I'm also curious of our very own Pasig River Ferry Service. I wonder if I can really leave a stone with imprints in the ferry seats.

Dear John

"Dear John," the letter read. And with those two words, a heart was broken and two lives changed forever.

A friend once told me that Nicholas Sparks' novels are inclined to be very emotional and tear-jerking. And so I absent-mindedly followed the advice since I don't want to deal with heavy dramas. This was sometime in law school when my thick books were considered priority above others. I have watched, however, two films adaptations of Nicholas Sparks' novel of the same name: Message in a Bottle & A Walk To Remember. The guy must be filthy rich for having six of his novels turned into films, namely, Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John (gotcha) and The Last Song (expected to be released in March 2010). My research also tells me that two more books are already in the process of being made into movies: True Believer (2011) and The Lucky One (2012).

First things first.

According to Wikipedia, a "Dear John letter" is a letter written to a husband or boyfriend to inform him their relationship is over, usually because the author has found another lover. Dear John Letters are often written out of an inability or unwillingness to inform the man in person. The reverse situation, in which someone writes to his wife or girlfriend to break off the relationship, is referred to as a "Dear Jane letter."

The definition itself is suggestive of a weepy tale. Sigh. But still, I prodded my boyfriend that we should watch it. After all, the movie was reported to topple off the gigantic Avatar after reigning in the cinemas for seven weeks. 

At first, I really expected that the movie will make me cry. Unfortunately or fortunately, it did not. Maybe I was holding on too much to be swept away with the breakup scene and how the lovers' lives have changed. The movie speaks of the most basic consideration in a relationship - communication - and the very importance of the same. It can make or break a relationship, needless to say. Keeping in touch across the miles is the most crucial part in an LDR.

It's basically a soldier-meets-true-love story. John Tyree and Savannah Curtis* were a lovely pair from the start. They both fell in love in a short period in what seems to be a laid-back town in South Carolina. John was on leave from the Special Forces while Savannah was on a spring break from college. Their happy moments were cut short and LDR came into play. Sending letters to each other was the only cure for loneliness. Then the most controversial Dear John letter fell in the hands of John. Complications set in and a surprising twist happened. Hearts of moviegoers were wretched. Okay, mine was slightly wretched too. However, true love seemed to prevail after all. The last scene shows John and Savannah locked in an embrace, a scene which makes the "Dear John letter" vanished into the wind.

*Amanda Seyfried also stars in an upcoming movie Letters to Juliet. Hmmm, I see a trend here.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

I had the chance of watching this movie last Saturday in Gateway Mall with my brothers Jobo & Popo and nephew Dave.

But before that, allow me to rave about something lucky. In line with the celebration of  HVD, the Gateway Cinemas came up with some pick-a-prize promo. Two (2) tickets will entitle the ticket holder to pick a prize. Since we have four (4) tickets, we're entitled to pick two prizes. Popo, who proudly claimed that he's a lucky guy, volunteered to fish whatever prize in the bowl. (Fact: He was born on March 8, 1988, and "8" is said to be a lucky number in the Chinese domain.) It was also the eve of KHFC last Saturday, so after a unanimous vote, we let him pick the prize in bowl # 1. True enough, he was able to win two (2) Dairy Queen GCs for (cue suspense music) two Dilly Bars! He's a lucky guy indeed!

Okay, back to the main premise. The film completely reminds me of the famous Harry Potter. You know, a seemingly outcast kid who had an absentee father (HP, however, is orphaned on both sides.) got the biggest surprise when he learned he possessed magical powers. Fantasy stuff in the big screen. Plus, a great reference to Greek mythology was there, and it was enough to keep me wide awake all throughout. And Percy Jackson (PJ for brevity) lived in the Big Apple - a bonus  for me! PJ has Poseidon as his father, so that makes him a demi-god. He can control anything H20. Poor innocent PJ was tagged as the lightning thief by the great Zeus. Zeus told Poseidon that the lightning bolt must be returned to Mount Olympus before the summer solstice (10 days if I'm not mistaken), otherwise a great war will happen.

And boom! The next thing I saw, Pierce Brosnan (the handsomest James Bond I ever know) was on a wheelchair (posing as PJ's Latin teacher) and later a centaur* named Chiron (Camp Half-Blood's resident trainer). It got me thinking, "What have they done to my Pierce?" So PJ was sent to Camp Half-Blood after he witnessed his mother vanished in the hands of a minotaur** which, I think, was portrayed in a substandard animation. And a series of adventure ensued with his two companions Grover (PJ's protector/satyr***) and Annabeth (daughter of Athena). Goal: To get the three pearls which will be their return ticket from the scary underworld to reality. Said pearls are scattered in three states in the US of A.

The trio went on three major adventures for the, yes, pearls. Childhood adventure/ fantasy for y'all!

1. A trip to a statue (?!) garden somewhere in New Jersey. Here, they encountered the evil Medusa. Uma Thurman was so convincing with all the almost real snakes in her head. I love the part where PJ used his iPod as his rear view mirror to escape Medusa's spell. Yes, they got the first pearl.
2. Trip to Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee. The music capital of the world. I suddenly remember my Uncle Jimmy who is based there. The trio is supposed to get the pearl from the crown of the giant statue of Athena. After battling with some multiple-headed monster (I forgot the Greek name. Sorry.), they got the pearl.
3. Trip to a hotel casino in, where else but, Las Vegas, Nevada. After munching lotus flowers, the trio was left in a trance and were trapped in the casino for five days. A fatherly whisper from Poseidon brought PJ to reality and the trio successfully got the last pearl.

Then off to the underworld where Hades reigns supreme. The underworld was creepy, just like I had imagined in Greek mythology lessons in high school. PJ finally saw his mother. They used the three pearls as return tickets to reality. Grover, however, chose to stay in favor of PJ's mother. He had some flirty moments with Persephone who was being held captive as Hades' wife.

And so on and so forth. PJ battled with Luke, son of Hermes, who turned out to be the true lightning thief. Then PJ and Annabeth (she looks more like a goddess than her mom Athena) went to Mount Olympus. Here's the amusing part: So Mount Olympus is just way above the Empire State Building? PJ finally met his father and had a talk with the latter.

Then it's back to Camp Half-Blood where PJ and Annabeth will further undergo more training as demi-gods. PJ is now more confident to approach Annabeth. A hesitant loveteam at first.

The end.

And I better end this rambling. Despite some forgivable lapses, I'm looking forward to a sequel, actually.

*part human and part horse 

**a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man

***a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus that roamed the woods and mountains. In mythology they are often associated with sex drive and vase-painters often portrayed them with perpetual erections.

Tooth Fairy: Magic Is Getting Some Muscle

(N.B. This is actually an overdue post. It has been filed as draft [photo only] for almost two weeks and I think it's best to blog about this ASAP. ~ The Authoress)

In all aspects, The Tooth Fairy seems to be a no-brainer movie. It's a movie which would enable you to munch on popcorn as many as you want or to even send a quick reply to a friend's SMS without getting lost in the story line. Ooops, the SMS part depends, however, on how you respect the term: movie etiquette.

Dwayne Johnson (a.k.a. The Rock) reminds me of Vin Diesel in another no-brainer movie The Pacifier. Why, you may ask? Muscles, the rebellious yet cute kids and some boring, wholesome romance with the leading lady. These three factors really hold some truth that Hollywood sometimes recycles movie plots to the point of becoming too achingly familiar.

My memory bank allows some deposits, to wit:

1. Julie Andrews. Her portrayal of Lily, the head fairy, reminds me of her portrayal of Queen Clarisse Renaldi in Princess Diaries 1 & 2. She seems to remain regal and poised over the years.
2. The tooth fairy weapons ( e.g. Shrinking Paste, Invisible Spray, Amnesia Dust, Cat Away, and mints that makes people bark like a dog). I'm wondering whether our country's folklore has a counterpart for this.
3. The "dream crusher" scenario. I had a sinking feeling when Derek Thompson (The Rock's character) said to the kids that "there's no such thing as dreams". It's a good thing emotional bailout scenes soon followed.

As a general rule, I am not a big fan of surprises, but such rule admits of an exception -  Hollywood movie plots.

Weekend at TriNoMa

My sister-in-law Sheryl gave us three (3) movie passes for Jackie Chan's newest comedy film The Spy Next Door. So I tagged along my sister Nikki and nephew Dave to Trinoma to watch the film. That quite saved me some bucks for some weekend movie. Thank God for Citibank freebies!

Jackie Chan never failed to make me laugh since time immemorial. Yep, it's slapstick humor but a martial arts comedy movie generally lives on the corniest execution of stunts. Overall, the film was a wholesome material for the family, similar to The Pacifier.

After the movie, we tried The White Hat Italian frozen yogurt for the first time. In all fairness, it was  refreshingly good, despite Dave's constant pleading to go to Time Zone. The kid can be so persistently annoying in a good way.

Create Your Own HAT: Regular with strawberry preserves & green tea flavored yogurt with kiwi

Dave, simply bored

List the movies you've watched with your BF

This is another no-brainer list. I think watching a movie is one simple way to bond with your partner. In every movie date, two persons shared some things we all seek: a warm hug and a hand to hold for the duration of the, oh yes, movie. I told ya, I'm made of cheese.

As seen in my daisypath anniversary ticker, we've been together for 6 months, 2 weeks and 3 days.

1. Monsters vs. Aliens*
2. Angels & Demons**
3. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen***
4. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
5. Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince
6. And I Love You So
7. The Time Traveler's Wife
8. Kimmy Dora
9. Michael Jackson's This Is It
10. 2012
11. Avatar
12. Ang Panday
13. Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

 I hope to see more. 

*The first 3-D film I've seen in my entire life. Somebody paid for us, and it was in Charlottesville, Virginia. And most significantly, the boyfriend and I were still complete strangers during that time.

**Dating stage; presumed malice. I think it counts.

***Still on dating stage; actual malice.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

I'm the long-lost Chipette!

I had an entertaining Sunday afternoon.  

Uber thanks to the Seville furballs - as the jock Ryan calls them - for making me laugh.  Although the movie overall has little to no basis in reality and/or intellectual value (who needs it anyway?), the following is a list of squeakquel moments that I feel merit a space in my fun bank:

1. When Dave first yelled his signature "Alvinnnnnnnnn!!!", I was very amused.
   
2. I suddenly craved for a bag of UTZ cheese balls, the yummy treasure which Alvin found in the kitchen cupboard. I suddenly miss Kroger in Barracks Road. Damn.
   
3. My heart leaped when The Chipettes sang "Put Your Records On" by Corinne Bailey Rae, one of my favorite soul singers. Who would have thought huh?
4. Theodore was the cutest when he almost die (I think so) under a blanket of intestinal gas.
5. I think it was very clever of Alvin to use the remote control helicopter as their lifesaver. Talk about pogi points to Brittany.
6. In an amusing manner, I felt pity upon Eleanor when she was forced to wear clogs to look tall, as ordered by the evil Ian Hawke. 
   
7. Lastly, I was happy when I saw Charice Pempengco as herself in the music contest. Proud to be Pinoy!

I do wonder what song will the Chipmunks sing next.

List of Favorite Films

I'm ready to hit the sack and yet all the cells in my body seem to be engrossed with blogging. But lo and behold! I'm too tired to think of anything even mildly interesting enough to write before I say good night, so I suppose it's about time for a random list.

1. Amelie
2. Frida
3. Titanic
4. The Other Boleyn Girl
   
5. Catch Me If You Can
6. Legally Blonde
7. Dirty Dancing
8. Phantom of the Opera
9. Elizabeth
10. Dirty Dancing
11. The Little Mermaid
12. How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days
13. Twilight & New Moon (looking forward to Eclipse & Breaking Dawn, regardless of production quality)
14. Seabiscuit
15. Jose Rizal
    
16. El Crimen del Padre Camaro
    
17. The Sound of Music
18. Anne Frank: The Whole Story
19. The Godfather series
    
20. Music and Lyrics

Going further would destroy my body clock. Bonne nuit!

My Thoughts Exactly

I'll hit 30 next year. 

I wonder if  I have already reached the "end of the line"?  I guess not. Because if I have, then I wouldn't have to wonder, I would just know.

  

I'll just enjoy the ride, and I am going to enjoy the same. I will think of positive thoughts while on board. I will not even entertain a hint of remorse why I have chosen this ride. I will go my own way. It's my life, and what I think of myself is my choice. 

I used to wish I'm 30. Next year is my year. 30 is the age I've been wanting all my twentysomething life. When I was still a 23-year-old courtroom drama fan, I imagined how ladies in their 30's got to do things with confidence and without hesitation. Oh man,  ain't that cool?

  

One thing I learned in this lifetime is that even with the purest intentions I have in my heart, I am still to blame for every screw-up in my simple yet dramatic life. And just when I think I couldn't possibly sink any lower, I go ahead and surprise myself.

At this point, I bid adieu to my doubts, hesitations and to all repulsive beings out there who will jeopardize my noble thoughts en route to success.

And, God forbid, if all else fails, age is but a number.

My heart goes out to Jenna Rink! :)

I am tempted to make this blog entry longer, but decided to behave like a grown-up. (big grin)

Two thumbs up for Avatar

Human ♥ Humanoid... Would that be possible in 2154?

I will not attempt to do an extensive movie review of Avatar.

Prior to this blog entry, I consulted my fling* for added knowledge. Just so you know, I like details. Check out CBC News movie review of James Cameron's blockbuster film Avatar. If you're a sucker for details like yours truly, then click here for Wikipedia's version.

There are two major, classic concepts which are apparent in the movie.

1. War between good and evil; and
2. Love against all odds.

I am not a sci-fi fan, but Avatar is really worth every centavo you paid. All streaks of your varicose veins while lining up to get a ticket will be well compensated. The people inside the cinema were all cheering and clapping their hands when Pandora resident Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) struck the power-hungry Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang) who was about to kill Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) in a combat scene. Yes, the classic concept of good winning over the evil. Regarding the love story of Jake and Neytiri, the following scenes are quite unforgettable:

1. When they shared a tender moment in the thick forest of Pandora. Know what? I was then curious if James Cameron will actually make a real love scene between a human and a humanoid. In all Hollywood films, it's likely common to include a lovemaking scene when there are prior scenes portraying the build-up of emotions and excitement. In Titanic, there was. Not explicit though. Good thing he didn't include one in Avatar because it would be very unlikely for a human and an alien to have sex, and it will gross me out for sure! Kissing and hugging are fine. Hahaha!
2. When Neytiri and the human version of Jake finally meet. It was sweet. Love is blind, blah-blah. Ooops, let me correct that. Love is not blind; it sees but it does not mind.

There are scenes in the movie which I find too funny, and I think  those were done on purpose, just  to equalize the level of emotions.

1. The worship scene of the Na'vi people in the forest.  It looks like they hired a choreographer for that "sway-there, sway-here" moves just to appease Mother Eywa. Hahaha! 
2. The weird appearances of Pandora's fauna like: (a) cousin of triceratops with floral headdress as its defense mechanism, (b) multi-colored flying animals which remind me of the dinosaur era, (c) jellyfish shaped floating thingie, (d) cross-breed of zebra and horse which makes me wonder if we, humans, could actually come up with that. I remember one Science teacher way back elementary that zebras are closely related to horses; and (e) the black, scary-looking counterpart of our dogs. I could almost hear the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out?" on the background. Who? Who?
   
3. How about the Pandora humanoids' hair ends (reminds me of split ends) which they connect to their pet animals for some sort of a bond? Very clever!

James Cameron is the best! He's the sole reason why Titanic is one of my all-time favorites. And now, I will definitely add Avatar to my list.


*Google (See previous entry.)