The Sessions (2012)

This is a story about a man named Mark who has had polio since his early childhood. He survives on his trusty iron lung that helps him keep breathing for a long period of time. He early explains that his disability does not mean that he cannot feel anything. You see, he is not paralyzed, his muscles just don't work well. And of course, he is a virgin. So imagine a man having a raging erection without being able to masturbate. In his late thirties, his only wish is relief. To leave the world as an experienced man, so to speak. With the help of a Catholic priest and a therapist, he seeks sexual satisfaction from a professional sex surrogate. So how does that work? They will have a total of six sessions in which each session's goal is to let Mark experience a full on, true blue sexual intercourse complete with body exercises and all that. Foreplay, really. Are you not interested yet?

Films Watched - 2013

Just because I'm an obsessed fan of both A Song of Ice and Fire and the HBO series.
Trivia: This is how GRRMartin imagined the Iron Throne to be. 

Enough about my sick obsession. As I've said before, I wouldn't dare watch 365 movies in a year. However, I won't just give up watching films altogether. Just like what I did last year, I'm going to list all the movies I've seen (from start to finish) and review some of them. I'm putting some annoying side comments alongside the titles. Bear with me. 

This is the start of nothing new:

STOP AND STARE: Amy Adams

Not shown in photo: red hair. 

I never really thought of Amy Adams as the hot one. Maybe that's because she always exudes elegance and a general wholesomeness. Blame it on most of her movies wherein she usually portrays a naive sweetheart. Case in point: Junebug (this is where I first saw her), Catch Me If You Can and her all-time chick flick, Enchanted.

I mean, look at how ridiculously wholesome she looks. 

I am definitely not complaining on her choice of roles since all of it fits her like a glove. In fact, she has four Oscar nominations already. That is no small feat for an actor and I think she is one of the best there is. However, I always wanted to see her wild side, or just the less tame one. Then I saw Doubt. She was a nun in that movie. I undoubtedly loved that movie, but not exactly wild. Then I watched The Fighter. After that, I have never doubted her talent and beauty.

No doubt.

Taking a cue from Ms. Maryann Johanson, my favorite movie critic, 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 wherein we stop, stare and sigh. 

Spring Breakers (2012)

If there's one thing that this movie did to me is that it made me forget that James Franco was a total snoozefest as an Oscar host. As a white thug named Alien, Franco is the only thing worth watching. In this movie, four girlfriends are trying so hard to make their spring break epic. To make their vacation so outrageous and ridiculous. It did happen, but not exactly everything that they had expected and hoped for. Instead, they met Alien the drug dealer, who by the way has Scarface on loop (I find this hilarious), and in one way or another became his bitches. For some girls, this fact even makes their vacay more memorable. But for some, ehem Faith (Gomez), this is just too much. But no matter, the party goes on. They went through partying, sex, violence and  then back. The whole thing was bizarre and reminded me of Blow and Requiem for a Dream, just the party version.

Update: 365 Movie Challenge

That's how I feel. Really. 

I failed. Failed to watch 365 movies in a year. Failed to review films. Failed to update my blog. Never mind, failure is temporary. This year, I'm going to take it slow. I won't be challenging myself to watch hundreds of films. But I'll try to watch a lot and review some of them. Before moving on to the list of the films that I have watched this 2013, this is the continuation and final list of 2012:

I'm not giving up that easily.

Man of Steel (2013)

I waited for almost two weeks to post my review of this film because I wanted to be well informed on some of my favorite (and even the not so favorite) movie critics' reviews. I noticed that the ratings of this movie is well-balanced (an average rating of 5-6 out of 10). Not because the reception of the critics is lukewarm, but because some of them rated very low with intensely negative comments and them some rated extremely high with glowing reviews. I think it's because the critics are divided. On one side are the fanatics of Richard Donner's classic Superman (1978). This movie set the bar for all the Superman movies. And the bar is so high that no other version of the DC comic book could ever compare. On the other side, are the ones who are ready to give another version a chance. A chance to shine without its predecessor's shadow looming over. I am one of the latter side.

I gave this movie a chance. I have seen Superman (1978) and I did love it. I loved the humor, the warmth and the good feels. I thought that everything was well executed, from the effects to the storyline down to the acting. However, that movie is not for my generation. It did not speak to me in ways I could not describe. I was not immersed in the movie from start to finish. I did not have goosebumps. Sure, Richard Donner's movie is a classic. But Zack Snyder's Man of Steel is epic.

Stoker (2013)

Assuming that actual human beings visit this blog of mine, I apologize for not being able come through and for being the lazy ass that I honestly am. Moving on. For my first review of the year, I chose Stoker. Why? Because it's a goddamn amazing movie that's why.

This marks as the first non-Korean movie of the great director, Chan-wook Park. I suggest watching his previous films like Oldboy and Lady Vengeance to further understand his style, camera work and story-telling signature. Credit should also be given to Wentworth Miller who wrote the incredibly refreshing script. Stoker starts with the almost indifferent and unaffected girl named India Stoker, played by the ever dependent and wildly entertaining Mia Wasikowska, in her own world. We see through her eyes the events that took place after the death of her father. She meets her Uncle Charlie Stoker whom, together with her flighty and unsteady mother (Nicole Kidman at her best), she never knew existed. This is where the story starts. The uncle, played by Matthew Goode who banked gold in this role, is mysterious, magnetic, eerily charming and freakishly unaffected by his brother's death. India is drawn to him. Her mother is definitely attracted to him. But what are his motives? Why is he still in their house? Do they really want him to leave? These are only few of the questions that will arise throughout the movie. You will understand once you watch this film. You will see the palpable tension that the director effectively captures. You will feel the erotic connection that builds up and threatens to consume.