Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Little Manhattan (2005)


Ah...love. Is there any more beautiful than love itself? Any more complicated and frustrating and exciting? Answers may vary, but it is a fact that the mention of love will elicit such passionate arguments that could go on forever. However, this movie is not about the complexity of love. It's about its simplicity. It's the moment where you get butterflies in the pit of your stomach just because the "love of your life" smiled at you. The moment you bury your head in the pillow of paranoia because you just don't know what to do with those goddamn butterflies. Come to think of it, how did love get so freaking morbid and dark to the point of madness? Why don't we take a step back and admire the perfection of love.

Gabe is the giddy, hopeless romantic who doesn't seem to know how to handle this new found feeling.  Rosemary is The Girl. It's confusing for Gabe to feel this kind of happiness when Rosemary is a girl, for god's sake! Boys aren't supposed to like girls. They're repulsive and they spread cooties, right? Right? Well, it may be true (yeah, right), but that definitely did not stop him from mooning over her. Set in New York City during their pre-teens, it seems the perfect place and time to fall in love. Gabe is played by none other than Josh Hutcherson (Bridge to Terabithia) who narrates his whole experience. It's funny how he can be so determined and nervous at the same time. And it's cute how he describes New York as if he had been living in it for a very long time. Rosemary is played by Charlie Ray. As Gabe thought, she isn't the most beautiful girl in class, but there is something about her. Something that will make you love her, as well.

It isn't poignant. It isn't Romeo and Juliet. But I dare you to watch it and not love it.

Monday, February 27, 2012

STOP AND STARE: Andrew Garfield

Moments of silence please for the next Spidey. I know, I know, he isn't Tobey and he may be a disappointment, but trust me when I say that he is a great actor. And let me just say that I have adored him since he suddenly became Hollywood's next big star or whatever you call those artists who are given their big break.

His first public photo as Spider-Man.

Not only does he look adorable, but he acts like nobody else's business as well. Watch him in The Social Network. (He was so much better than Jesse Eisenberg who got an Oscar nomination. Unfair, really.) 

Following the theme of this post which is the shameless gazing at beautiful people, let us stop and stare. :)
Imagine him giving you this. *squeals of delight*



Taking a cue from Ms. Maryann Johanson, my favorite movie critique, I will post some actors and actresses worth gazing and admiring at. A person should be seen and liked because of his/her character and all that inner beauty thing, but you see, we like to look and by god, we love to admire. Let's not a make a big deal out of this and enjoy the moment where in we stop, stare and sigh. 


Update: 365 Movie Challenge

I have to admit, having this kind of challenge is a bit tiring. Don't get me wrong, I love watching movies, adore it even. But dammit, that's just a lot of movies. Anyhoo, please disregard my whining and my excuses, it was a momentary weakness. Never again. I wish.

More movies that I watched since the last one I posted.

36. 30 Minutes or Less
(Meh. I've never been a fan of Jesse Eisenberg. I just don't get his charm--or lack thereof.) 

37. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
(This is the Swedish and the earlier version.)

38. Ferris Bueller's Day Off

39. The Artist
(Best Picture, Director and Actor in the Academy Awards. Jean Dujardin is so disarmingly adorable.)

40. The Ides of March
(Ryan Gosling once again shines in this movie. Why he isn't nominated is beyond me.)

41. The Descendants
(Nominated for Best Actor in the Academy Awards- George Clooney at his best, no doubt.)


Note that I won't be posting a review on all the movies I'll watch. Maybe I'll post some teeny tiny remarks (sarcastic or otherwise) on most of them. Bear with me. :) 324 movies to go.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Warrior (2011)


Nobody could have prepared me for this movie. I even remember, at one point, hitting the pause button just because I couldn't take the awesomeness of the scenes. It was that exciting. For me, at least.

It is about brothers. Brothers who were separated due to an alcoholic and perhaps, abusive father. One brother married a perfect house wife, had children and seemed to live an ordinary life. The younger one, however, became an Iraq War veteran, saw his own mother die and ultimately led a bitter life. They seem to be extremely different, but its about to change when they both joined a mixed martial arts tournament and inevitably fight each other. Nick Nolte plays Paddy Conlon, the former alcoholic father who, upon seeing his youngest son, was determined to earn his forgiveness. I say he deserves to be nominated as Best Supporting Actor in the Oscars. Tom Hardy as Tommy Conlon (younger brother) is extremely exhausting to watch. I don't mean it as a negative retort, but as a compliment. I understand his bitterness and feel his ultimate reluctance to forgive both his father and brother for abandoning him with his mother. There's just an aura in him that suggests that he is still a little boy waiting to be saved by the older men in his family. I swear, his scenes with his father made me sob so bad, I eventually had hiccups in the end. Lastly, Joel Edgerton plays Brendan Conlon, the older one, the one who should have been carrying the burden of their family problems. He will surprise you and you will love him for it. This dysfunctional family will play at your emotions like nothing ever did and will leave you speechless.

Now that we're done with part where you'll cry, let's move on to the part where you'll cheer and jump up. Or jump up and cheer, whichever order. As I've written before, I hate spoilers and in retrospect, I hate giving them as well. But really, the fight scenes in the arena is heart-stopping especially with Brendan, underdog that he is. The training was grueling and painful to watch, but what's pain when you get to win a shitload of cash? I can't stress this any clearer and harder: The fight scenes will send your blood racing and by the end of the movie, you'll be a fan of the mixed martial arts. For those who adore UFC, then I don't know any other reason not to watch this. If you've seen The Fighter (starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale) and liked it, then take a chance on this. You might like it, too.

Cheerios! :)

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Song of the Week: The Stand In

by: Leighton Meester and Check in the Dark

This song (music video, actually) entry would be every week-ish to lighten up everyone's day. What's life without music, anyway? Enjoy! 

Inglourious Basterds: Who is your favorite character?

Inglorious Basterds is one of my favorite films and up until now, I still think that it should have won the Best Picture in the Academy Awards (two years ago, actually). However, I didn't post this to cry over spilled milk. Besides, we have a new set of movies nominated for this year's Oscars and I'm definitely posting something about that. I just love this film so much that I decided to post who my favorite character is.

Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz, that's who. Portrayed by Til Schweiger who is a household name in his native Germany, Stiglitz is one of the most interesting character in Inglorious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino's best film, in my opinion). Aside from the fact that this man is oh so beautiful, his portrayal of Stiglitz was the right amount of badass and mystery. I know that Christoph Waltz's Oscar-winning role of Col. Hans Landa perfectly owned the film that I barely even remembered Brad Pitt's presence, but I feel that Stiglitz should have been elaborated. We only know bits and pieces of his past and even fewer information about the time when he was captured (just before the "Basterd" recruited him). Yes, his obscurity onlu adds to his character, but really, I just wanted to see more of him and less Brad Pitt. Biased much? Oh but who cares? Til Schweiger is fine, period.

Favorite line: "Say auf wiedersehen to your Nazi balls."

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)


After watching this movie, I found myself staring at my computer screen for several minutes before even processing what I've just seen. The first thing that came to me was how brilliant Elizabeth Olsen was. With her riveting  performance, you would never have known that she is the younger sister of the famous Olsen twins. Well, maybe she looks a bit like them but based on her acting, she could have been from a different gene pool.

She plays Martha, a young girl who decided to to live in a cult as Marcy May. We never actually see the scenes where she decided to go there rather, the first scene was when she decided to leave and escape from the cult. She then seeks comfort from her sister who welcomed her with open arms despite Martha leaving home without further notice.

Major problem? Martha could not separate her dreams and her past. She could not adjust well with her surroundings and does not know how to "act" properly, as her sister's husband implies. I love how I could completely relate to Martha's sister, Lucy (Sarah Paulson). I shared her impatience and curiosity as to what really happened to Martha. But at the same time, understanding that some people just don't open up that easily. It is completely chilling how we see bits and pieces of what she experienced, but never fully knowing what happened.

This is where Olsen proves that she is a force to be reckoned with. She has to show the audience that Martha is broken, but at the same time conveying that she is almost oblivious about it. Boy, did she deliver it and deliver it well. I know that some people would chalk it up to the "boring" section, but trust me when I say that just seeing  Ms. Olsen act is enough reason to watch this film.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Fan Craze Mode: The Hunger Games

Here's one movie that I absolutely cannot wait to see. Maybe because I've read the books. Maybe because Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen is so perfect that I can't think of anyone who could fill her place. Maybe because I have faith in Josh Hutcherson's acting abilities (see: Little Manhattan). Or maybe I just want a really good movie that goes beyond the boundaries of genres. Whatever the reason is, the mere mention of THG drives me up the freaking wall. In a good way.

After Lionsgate released their first teaser trailer, the amount of internet buzz it has garnered bordered on insane. And I am one of those crazy fans that tweeted, searched and commented on every goddamn THG page that we could find. There has been issues (petty, I'm sure) raised that this movie will be similar to the Twilight Saga. Well, those who speculated that clearly did not read the books or even see the trailer, at the very least. The only similarity between these two franchises I can think of is the love triangle. Both main characters (Katniss and Bella) have the who-should-I-choose-I'm-so-torn love sick problem. Other than that, they could not have been more different. I don't have to go into a list of detailed differences, watching it would be so much better. :)

Some things I'm excited about:

How they are gonna portray the Capitol. Actually, we see a glimpse of how it's gonna be, but I'm still psyched with what the people would look like. 

Wes Bentley as Seneca Crane. I haven't seen him since American Beauty and he was great in there (aside from Kevin Spacey, of course). 

The chemistry of Jennifer and Josh as Katniss and Peeta.  More of Jennifer, actually. I wanna see if she could embody Katniss' flawed character, her will to live and her plain badass-ness. 

Vanity Fair's cast photo to hopefully excite you more:
See you in the cinemas on March 23rd. ;) Cheerios!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

365 Movie Challenge

I have taken on a challenge for myself. To watch 365 movies this year 2012. I know it is a leap year, so it would have been more appropriate to watch 366 movies rather than 365. But really, who gives a rat's squiggly ass?

Here are my self-proclaimed and very simple guidelines:

  • Movies should either be foreign or local and mainstream or indie;
  • Movies should be watched from start to finish (some movies I watched before were never started or finished) and lastly;
  • Movies watched can be completely retarded or the opposite. 

I will definitely not try to post a review on each movie I watch because that would be insane plus, I'm quite lazy. Quite. However, I will try and review some of the films that I deign worthy of anyone's two cents. So far, I have watched 35 films. That's 330 films to go. Oh, boy. 

The list:
  1. Sherlock Holmes 2
  2. The Change Up
  3. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
  4. Martha Marcy May Marlene*
  5. Like Crazy*
  6. LOL (Laughing Out Loud)
  7. Bad Teacher
  8. Lolita
  9. Warrior*
  10. The Help
  11. Zombieland
  12. Lars and the Real Girl*
  13. Meet the Robinsons
  14. Dawn of the Dead*
  15. A Very Long Engagement
  16. Happy Feet 2
  17. Rabbit Hole
  18. Gulliver's Travels
  19. Dinner for Schmucks
  20. Arthur
  21. Casablanca
  22. Vantage Point
  23. Beginners
  24. Corpse Bride
  25. Trainspotting
  26. A Dangerous Method
  27. Little Manhattan*
  28. Less Than Zero
  29. Moulin Rouge!
  30. Moneyball
  31. Okuribito Departures
  32. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
  33. Chaplin
  34. Chronicle*
  35. Shooter
*I will/may post a review. :)

Be Gentle to the Neophyte

I have just posted my first ever movie review in this site. Hallelujah! In this site, I said because I had a blog before (wordpress), but it didn't work out. It's amazing what lazy people could accomplish, no? That's nothing in the lazy world's language, by the way. Anyhoo, I'm glad I decided to continue this seemingly taxing job of blogging. :)

I just wanted my ego to go crazy for a while and posted this completely uninformative entry. And if you didn't like this post then here's an awesome song. Cheerios!

Chronicle (2012)

CHRONICLE

So what if you became a superhero? This is the question that we often ask after watching a particular superhero battling villains and protecting whatever realm he or she is in.

Chronicle is an answer to that question. In this movie, three teenage boys accidentally acquired a super cool power, telekinesis. Imagine what they could do with that! However, being teenage boys with more raging hormones than a teenage girl with her period, things get a little.. messy.  Oh it was light and fun at first what with all the well-planned pranks and artistic antics, but as they grow stronger so is the looming question of responsibility. I would not go into details because I hate spoilers and I am assuming that you do as well. Golden rule.

I personally like how the characters were portrayed, giving them a classic adolescent crassness without being morbid and emo-ish. I admit, the characters were tipping over to cliché-ness, but salvaged it with solid acting and thankfully, great effects considering how low-budget this film is. The movie also showed how one’s state of mind could greatly influence one’s sudden greatness and that being great is just not that simple.

Technically, showing the movie with only one character’s perspective (he was filming the entire thing with his personal camera) was a little bit discomforting as it limits the connection of the audience to the protagonist’s surroundings. It was frustrating for me to know that some particular scenes would have been better seen with that unattached, un-documented type of filming. Although, it did seem fantastically real with the Blair Witch documented style, plus it gave the viewers an all-access pass to the protagonist’s personal life which was interesting.

All in all, it was a great appetizer for the main course which would be the real superhero movies: The Dark Knight Rises, The Avengers and The Amazing Spiderman. I cannot wait to watch these and I know that some of you can’t, too. So for the meantime, watch Chronicle and see that time was not wasted. Not at all.

Here's the trailer: