Edcel.net - mind games

We watched Twilight yesterday and I can still hear those girls (and boys) squealing inside my head. I missed out on a lot of things in the movie according to the people who’ve read the book. But I’m just happy that I had no expectations because I would have been very meticulous in finding out the scenes that weren’t faithfully done.

After we left the theater, one of my companions went ahead and bought the 3rd and 4th installment of this vampire-human love story. She wasn’t as happy when she found out that there were no stocks of book 1 and book 2 already. I could only imagine back the faces of those people after the last book was sold.

While we were on the topic of getting something to read, it made me realize how long it has been since I last read a book. I think the last one was still last year, Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad. This year, I’m just swamped with too many works and assignments and responsibilities that I have a hard time squeezing reading in. However, for any true book fan, I’m just looking for an excuse not to read.

Hence I want to participate in a join book club program. It would be great since you can find all the books of whatever category or genre and you can sort them out according to your liking.

I’m planning to register to listen to some audiobooks so I won’t have to strain myself because right now, I’m still studying and working and because I’m a bit lazy, it’s the next best thing on being able to get some information and be up-to-date. At least, I won’t have to be left-out whenever people would talk about the latest series as I’ll have something to share then.

I’ve just been to a movie watching Twilight with a couple of colleagues at work. We watched the movie around 5pm on a Saturday.

Everybody’s been agog about this movie that I never even heard about except for my other colleague who’s all over the books. Vampires and high school isn’t really my cup of tea, since I’m through with the theme of Anne Rice’s work. But I had to give it a try since they say it toppled down the Jame’s Bond installment “Quantum of Solace”.

When we got to the theater, I didn’t expect anything much because I’ve never read the books; which is a good thing. You don’t have to anticipate the scenarios that should happen.

I was actually warned by a friend to cover my ears. Given that it was a weekend, 90 percent of the audience were teenagers. Therefore, there were a lot of screaming a giggling especially when the vampires were introduced. I just kept on laughing because the theater that we’re supposed to be in was known for a having a ‘civilized’ crowd. But there was actually nothing civilized on that time. There were a lot of times where I had to strain myself in order to listen to the dialogue–> as if I could filter out the noise.

Anyway, overall, the movie was okay; I couldn’t say anything bad about it.

We went to some store to check some 5.11 Tactical Pants somewhere. Since I’m planning to go somewhere rigid. I need a comfortable but durable pair of pants to wear. This is the only pant that has a rear strap and slash pocket design – both proprietary features of these best-selling pants.

Afterward, we went to Fridays to eat dinner. The servings were still big and the food were still a bit bland for our taste but we were full. We finishe around 9pm and I needed to get my rest for I had a lot of homework to do the next day. It was a fun day, albeit expensive.

My Sassy Girl - Elisha Cuthbert, Jesse Bradford
I tried to like this movie as much as I liked the Korean version. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t help but compare the two because the original version was such a huge hit. But I like the attempt of the remake.

It was nice try to relive the different memorable scenes into this American version. However, it’s still different from the original one.

The Korean version was melodramatic, even the mood and the backdrop; probably because we have the right cause we’re Asians? hehe. It’s a culture and liberation issue. You don’t expect Americans to engage in mushy activities because of the stereotypical personalities that come with one’s culture.

Fracture - Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling
Legal, crime and suspense flick. No, there was nothing suspenseful about this movie. Some hotshot lawyer (Ryan Gosling) is busy preparing himself in transitioning from criminal law to corporate attorney for a well-known firm in the city and when he took on his supposedly last assignment to handle a case about a rich engineer (Anthony Hopkins) who shot his wife because she was cheating on him. Ryan thought this was a cinch because the the accused admitted the wrongdoing on the scene of the crime.

Then comes a battle of mind games and such, as what any movie that deals with law entails. I initially thought there’s going to be some action in it but NO. Anyway, the movie’s ok, not bad, not that good as well. It just makes me wonder what I’d do if ever I’d become a lawyer, though that’s hardly one of my plans.

Catch and Release - Jennifer Garner, Timothy Olyphant, Kevin Smith, Sam Jaeger, Juliette Lewis
Jennifer’s fiance died in the movie and it’s up to his three pals to take her into their captivity because she’s broke and she doesn’t have a place to stay. Relationships formed and some were revealed. Issues hounding the dead fiance surfaced and things somewhat became complicated.

Anyway, I kinda feel for the guy who kept his admiration and love a secret to the lead character. He hid is desire to her for 6 years. Whoa. And when he did muster the courage to tell her how he felt, he was left with dismay. Ouch. At least it wasn’t as superficial and it looked as real as it could.

Planet Terror - Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez
I love this movie! Robert Rodriguez is one heck of a director! The scenes didn’t require you to think a lot, cause it’s basically a movie about zombies. And you don’t need to think much. I like the 80s effect of it, and gore wasn’t that high tech. Considering that this was just a low-budget flick, it’s a fun movie to watch with your friends in a movie theater.

Zombies, slime, gore and things you didn’t expect (like a kid blowing up his own head) is what’s present in these Grindhouse films. I also have to hand it to them for the fake Machete trailer, plus points for the Crazy Babysitter Twins as well.

I bought a high-definition DVD copy of this movie with some special features. I had to watch this twice (once with an audience reaction feature and another with the director’s commentary). I want to watch Death Proof now.

Mutant Chronicles - Thomas Jane, Ron Perlman, Devon Aoki
Another movie about mutation, I don’t know why I watched this. This was just lying on the desk with other DVDs that my brother borrowed and one fine morning (or dawn) I just happened to insert it in the ROM. I regretted it though, big time.

The Brave One - Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard
I thought this movie was just about revenge on the people who almost killed her. I was expecting that the movie dealt with some high crime boss and different accomplices  (a la Kill Bill), but it turned out that it’s just a woman who wanted to kill the people who mugged her.

I didn’t like the ending, it would’ve been better if Jodie Foster died. hehe.

The dark knight rocks!

Just watched the movie ”The Dark Knight” and I commend the actors and how the movie was created. The cinematography, the sudden twist in the situations, the different schemes and angles, the dark setting of Gotham city and the crimes, the evolution of Two Face that I didn’t know was part of the movie.

I commend Heath Ledger for giving a brilliant performance –> I don’t really know how a brilliant performance looks like but he was really good at portraying Batman’s archenemy. I especially liked the part where he (The Joker in a nurse outfit) walked out of Gotham hospital with a bomb detonator at hand, looked and acted so silly while creating a huge explosion at the background.

I also liked the part where  Batman was escaping from the Tumbler (batmobile) using the batpod (motorcycle) where he had to run against a wall, ran the vehicle slightly up the building and turned it around to go the opposite direction.

I never really liked Batman as opposed to other superheroes (e,g. X-Men, Spiderman) cause I regarded him as a rich bloke who had no powers but had awesome gadgets. But that’s where the beauty of the movie lies, it diffuses any disbelief and just makes you become a kid again.

I was in awe, every action comes another action and plot that you’d wonder who’s controlling who. You’d think that a certain part is the climax already but it’s actually just the middle of the story. It kept me glued all the time. Maybe the one thing I didn’t like was the masking of Bruce Wayne’s voice whenever he’d play the caped crusader.

When the movie was done, we could hear people clapping inside the theater which just goes to show how good it was. Alright, so I also clapped.

I borrowed a dvd copy from a colleague at work on the movie called “Just Friends”.

This movie was shown years ago, but it’s only now that I was able to watch it again. The last time I’ve seen this was still in the beginning of the YouTube era when I had to open a number of Windows just to buffer the videos to play them continuously. The only problem with this now is that the disc is busted in some parts that I never was able to finish it because it’d get stuck in the middle.

Still, I like this movie cause two of the actors that play are some of my favorites comedians; Anna Faris and Ryan Reynolds really make me laugh at times. Golf bags and all.

The movie deals with the frustrations of not being able to tell how you feel about the person you love who just happens to be your best friend.

Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds) was once an overweight high school geek who’s in love with her best friend, Jamie (Amy Smart) who wanted them to be just friends. 10 years later, all successful and good-looking, he stops by his old town due to some unforeseen events looking after an up-and-coming pop star but a prima donna at heart, Samantha James  (Anna Faris). Chris is able to go back to his past and after a series of unexpected problems, professes back his love for Jamie…

I can relate a lot; maybe because of the process of being turned down by your best friend. Ouch. Just because the other never thought that a platonic bond could still be there after revealing his true feelings. It’s a rare occurence that after talking, the other would feel the same.

I don’t want to be the best friend, I want us to be more.

It makes you realize that in order to move the relationship to move a step farther, you need to get out of the “friend zone”. You should keep a bit of a distance in order to keep her wanting for more. Of course, this doesn’t necessarily apply in all situations; but it does prove a point. As for me, I’m not a friend even anymore so does that give me any chance at all?

We weren’t entirely best friends that we get to be so comfortable sharing rooms but we were close. I wasn’t at all a Loser in class, heck I wasn’t a LOSER; but we connected. And I know I’m getting personal but I hope that if ever our paths will cross again… nah. I’ll just cut this short.

I’ve been watching some dvds lately on the desktop after I bought some golf accessories. At least, I have something to do over those long weekends than spending and getting wasted; though I don’t know how things might have turned out if I did.

Atonement - James McAvoy, Keira Knightley
Story about a young girl’s innocence ignorance and consequences on where it could lead; it made her sister and her sister’s lover (whom she secretly has a crush on) miserable all throughout. The middle part was somewhat dragging because of how the war was being narrated and shown. But there’s something about the movie that seems creepy but sad in the same way; especially the time when the old lady in the end recapped and explained the origins of the book and how the ending became different to what had happened in reality. Tragic love at its best.

Fool’s Gold - Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson
A story about treasure hunting, minus the analysis. This is a flick you can watch without having to think. It does have a hint of National Treasure (because of treasure hunting, duh) and Into The Blue (lovers and the beach). All I can say is that Matthew McConaughey’s so good at playing stupid. I loved the scenery though, the location and the stereotypical rich bimbo. I just find the unusual treatment of the bad guys (who don’t act bad because they act funny) weird. But this is a good enough movie to see when you just want to look at the beach.

Forbidden Kingdom - Jackie Chan, Jet Li
The first time I ver saw Jet Li laughing. I wasn’t as engaged with the movie as I thought I would, but I like the fact that I’m able to see some Kung Fu fighting again since I grew up with Jackie Chan movies whenever we’d visit my grandmother back when we were kids. The ending is predictable though.

Juno - Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner
A comedy/drama about an offbeat 16-year old girl trying to cope with teenage pregnancy and how she deals with it in her own way. Everybody knows Juno now, with this indie flick winning awards and praises. I like the actress who played the title character, being full of spunk despite the hardships that she’s facing because of the consequences out of the situation she created. The movie reminds me of Napoleon Dynamite, maybe because of how slow it seemed when I watched it.

Mind Games
John Lennon

We’re playing those mind games together,
Pushing barriers, planting seeds,
Playing the mind guerilla,
Chanting the Mantra peace on earth,
We all been playing mind games forever,
Some kinda druid dudes lifting the veil.
Doing the mind guerilla,
Some call it the search for the grail,
Love is the answer and you know that for sure,
Love is flower you got to let it, you got to let it grow,
So keep on playing those mind games together,
Faith in the future outta the now,
You just can’t beat on those mind guerillas,
Absolute elsewhere in the stones of your mind,
Yeah we’re playing those mind games forever,
Projecting our images in space and in time,
Yes is the answer and you know that for sure,
Yes is the surrender you got to let it, you got to let it go,
So keep on playing those mind games together,
Doing the ritual dance inn the sun,
Millions of mind guerrillas,
Putting their soul power to the karmic wheel,
Keep on playing those mind games forever,
Raising the spirit of peace and love, not war,
(I want you to make love, not war, I know you’ve heard it before)

——
I just watched the film Across the Universe and I don’t know how I felt afterwards. I can’t really express my thoughts after watching the movie cause I just felt all numb. I couldn’t understand the concept of the whole flick. Of course it’s a bunch of stories all rolled into one; however, I don’t know which one to focus more. If it would be the songs played, or the plot of the story.

Don’t mind me, I’m slow. Like some callaway golf balls.

I’m just liking the fact of being immersed temporarily into this Beatle-mania frenzy and I like the notion that I’m able to recognize 85% of the songs played. Like most people, I’m a fan of this group of talented musicians and composers. They are after all, THE Beatles.

Strangely enough, the song that I posted here wasn’t played in the movie.