What did I do over the long weekend, you ask? (No? I'll share it anyway.)
I devoured eight 1-hour episodes of the first season of Lost. After several seasons of hearing mostly good things about the show, I have decided to see what the fuss is all about. My verdict: Good. Not great, but good. My main issue is the acting, but it was the first couple of episodes into the first season, so I'm sure the actors have gotten better as the season/series progressed. Story-wise, they sure know how to reel viewers in (a polar bear? in a tropical island? WTF? Are you there Dr. Moreau?). Oh yeah, and Boone is a hot pretty boy, but I think he's going to die, or is he??? (du-du-dunnnn)
So, after eight straight grueling hours (for my eyes, not me per se), I decided to take a break from Lost... and started watching anime (i know, poor eyes).
I borrowed several DVD's from the SSF Library before the long weekend and I grabbed one anime series entitled, "Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge" or "The Wallflower" (I am not entirely sure what the Japanese title translates to, there seemed to be more to it than just being a wallflower). The DVD were episodes 1-5, which I've finished prior to the eye-popping extravaganza, so to break-off from mood that was set by serialized/scripted Survivor-slash-Fantasy Island aka Lost, I finished the remaining twenty 30-min episodes in The Wallflower series. My verdict: OK. Not bad, not exceptional, OK-good. I think I've mentioned it before, but when I watch an anime, I place a lot of weight on the graphics, ink work done on it. This series has so-so graphics. I have several other issues, but I think I will post a separate review to elaborate further.
That pretty much is my long weekend. It's pretty lame, and by lame I mean awesome.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
What happens when two of my favorite things in the world are put together?
How did I miss this??? I knew Steve Carrell was hosting, but I guess I just haven't been used to watching SNL for a while now, which explains why I missed this short (I heard most of the show sucked).
Anyway, enjoy --- this is like a dream come true for me:
Question: I know Anglophiles are people that love everything English, but what do they call Japanese culture-obsessed peeps like me? Nipponphile?
Anyway, enjoy --- this is like a dream come true for me:
Question: I know Anglophiles are people that love everything English, but what do they call Japanese culture-obsessed peeps like me? Nipponphile?
Movie Review (DVD): Half Nelson
What is a "Half Nelson"? After finding out that no one was named "Nelson" in the movie, I seriously wondered what the heck "Half Nelson" meant. So I quickly ran to the internets to look for answers.
According to this forum entry, a "half Nelson" is a wrestling term "when a wrestler who is behind his opponent, passes one arm under the corresponding arm of his opponent and locks the hand on the back of his opponent's neck. A struggle between two opposing forces ensues". It's a wrestling term? How did I not know that?
Anyway, in the movie, Dan's (Ryan Gosling's character, who is a middle-school history teacher) class lectures were pretty much about "half Nelsons", and I think really, he's just talking about himself. He is battling his own "half Nelson", so to speak. LOL. How long can I go on with "half nelson-ing" this entry to death, I don't know... but me likey. And you know who else me likes? Super-cracked-up hottie Ryan Gosling.
OK back to the movie review: I like this movie. It was kinda slow, but I did not find it dragging. The whole movie was like prepping it's audience for some kind of payoff at the end (i.e. some sort of redemption), which never came. I think this made it more raw and realistic (but then, who wants/expects movies to be realistic nowadays?). The movie was unlike most movies with the "teacher of inner-city kids" tag on it --- no contest was won against the private school, the school didn't get prettier, no special award from the city was given. He was the cool teacher, he taught outside of the prescribed curriculum, his kids seem to like him but that was it. He pretty much left it to the kids if they want to make something of his class. I thought his purpose was more self-serving, teaching was his therapy, the school was his rehab. He found an ally in Drey, one of the kids in school and a budding crack dealer herself, if anything, she needed someone who could help her get out of the crack-dealing cycle in her life. What she got is a crack-using mentor. In the end, all the half nelson-ing within Dan pretty much made him give up. How can he talk someone into leaving Drey alone, when he has nothing better to offer Drey?
Like I said, I'm not much of a "thinking" movie-viewer, but this made me think (at the risk of making my head explode). In the end, I was rooting for Dan and Drey, that they may find a better path for themselves.
Ed's note: The pic posted is very self-serving. Me happy.
According to this forum entry, a "half Nelson" is a wrestling term "when a wrestler who is behind his opponent, passes one arm under the corresponding arm of his opponent and locks the hand on the back of his opponent's neck. A struggle between two opposing forces ensues". It's a wrestling term? How did I not know that?
Anyway, in the movie, Dan's (Ryan Gosling's character, who is a middle-school history teacher) class lectures were pretty much about "half Nelsons", and I think really, he's just talking about himself. He is battling his own "half Nelson", so to speak. LOL. How long can I go on with "half nelson-ing" this entry to death, I don't know... but me likey. And you know who else me likes? Super-cracked-up hottie Ryan Gosling.
OK back to the movie review: I like this movie. It was kinda slow, but I did not find it dragging. The whole movie was like prepping it's audience for some kind of payoff at the end (i.e. some sort of redemption), which never came. I think this made it more raw and realistic (but then, who wants/expects movies to be realistic nowadays?). The movie was unlike most movies with the "teacher of inner-city kids" tag on it --- no contest was won against the private school, the school didn't get prettier, no special award from the city was given. He was the cool teacher, he taught outside of the prescribed curriculum, his kids seem to like him but that was it. He pretty much left it to the kids if they want to make something of his class. I thought his purpose was more self-serving, teaching was his therapy, the school was his rehab. He found an ally in Drey, one of the kids in school and a budding crack dealer herself, if anything, she needed someone who could help her get out of the crack-dealing cycle in her life. What she got is a crack-using mentor. In the end, all the half nelson-ing within Dan pretty much made him give up. How can he talk someone into leaving Drey alone, when he has nothing better to offer Drey?
Like I said, I'm not much of a "thinking" movie-viewer, but this made me think (at the risk of making my head explode). In the end, I was rooting for Dan and Drey, that they may find a better path for themselves.
Ed's note: The pic posted is very self-serving. Me happy.
Friday, May 16, 2008
What's New?
Nothing much really. I am taking a Business Law course for the summer, and it has taken a lot of my blogging time away --- this is actually a good excuse, if only it was true. The summer course is very true and real, except that, whatever time I'm suppose to spend reading the material, plus writing the case briefs I devote somewhere else... TV! Movies! Sleeping!
Speaking of TV, I haven't even seen The Office season finale. Thursdays are a pain as I don't get home 'til past 10pm (class ends at 9:30)... the good news is that the season is over and there won't be episodes to miss for the time being.
It's been freaking HOT here in the Bay Area... I heard it's going to cool down the next couple of days. Good news.
Fred the bunny scratched my right arm last Wednesday. I now sport two fairly long scratches, one on my left arm and one on the right, looks like I've been cutting myself again. Bad news.
This weekend - Bay to Breakers - I am going to miss it again this year. I have finals the next day. School sucks.
Speaking of TV, I haven't even seen The Office season finale. Thursdays are a pain as I don't get home 'til past 10pm (class ends at 9:30)... the good news is that the season is over and there won't be episodes to miss for the time being.
It's been freaking HOT here in the Bay Area... I heard it's going to cool down the next couple of days. Good news.
Fred the bunny scratched my right arm last Wednesday. I now sport two fairly long scratches, one on my left arm and one on the right, looks like I've been cutting myself again. Bad news.
This weekend - Bay to Breakers - I am going to miss it again this year. I have finals the next day. School sucks.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Movie Review (DVD): Eastern Promises
I love movies. I think I've mentioned that a couple of times but I just realized that I've never really done any thorough review of movies (or films, if your one of those types) that I have seen (and I have seen quite a few). The reason is this: I don't know how. I mean, maybe I do, but I do not know how to go about doing it. I'm not a thinking-type, I'm more of the "take-it-as-I-see-it" type. I know it's good when I think it's good (i.e. "think" used here very loosely). So, for my first-ever movie review, I'll keep it simple. OK, here it goes... (the following may contain spoilers)
I like Eastern Promises. Good acting all-around. If not for Naomi Watt's and her mom's (in the movie) English accents, I wouldn't have known that they were in London, which was great because it gives us a London that is seldomly seen. Despite the tatoos and the awful hair (which was researched), Viggo Mortensen is still hot. Favorite scene: the bathhouse scene! I had to laugh at myself for being such a juvenile, but every time some bits of Viggo was shown on-screen, I just had to stiffle a giggle --- I guess I'm no different from those pre-pubescent kids who saw their first boobies in American Pie. Also, it reminded me of my childhood in that scene in Blue Lagoon where the guy (all grown up) was swimming and you could see the shadow of his bits in the water --- but I was actually a kid when I saw that, so that's my excuse for giggling back then. Back to the movie, from the very start, it gave you the feeling that Viggo was a nice guy and he was different from all the other vors. As it turns out, he was working undercover. My issue with the movie is the ending was that it was sort of abrupt. That was it??? The baby (the evidence, pretty much) was saved, Semyon got charged for rape and went to prison, Nikolai took over everything (like he knew he would) since Kirill is a big buffoon... and it was an ending worthy of a "happily ever after"? I wanted more.
So yeah, good movie. Saw the special features and apparently David Cronenberg is into existensialism and other philosophical stuff. He's a "deep" person, that's probably why I didn't get the ending.
I like Eastern Promises. Good acting all-around. If not for Naomi Watt's and her mom's (in the movie) English accents, I wouldn't have known that they were in London, which was great because it gives us a London that is seldomly seen. Despite the tatoos and the awful hair (which was researched), Viggo Mortensen is still hot. Favorite scene: the bathhouse scene! I had to laugh at myself for being such a juvenile, but every time some bits of Viggo was shown on-screen, I just had to stiffle a giggle --- I guess I'm no different from those pre-pubescent kids who saw their first boobies in American Pie. Also, it reminded me of my childhood in that scene in Blue Lagoon where the guy (all grown up) was swimming and you could see the shadow of his bits in the water --- but I was actually a kid when I saw that, so that's my excuse for giggling back then. Back to the movie, from the very start, it gave you the feeling that Viggo was a nice guy and he was different from all the other vors. As it turns out, he was working undercover. My issue with the movie is the ending was that it was sort of abrupt. That was it??? The baby (the evidence, pretty much) was saved, Semyon got charged for rape and went to prison, Nikolai took over everything (like he knew he would) since Kirill is a big buffoon... and it was an ending worthy of a "happily ever after"? I wanted more.
So yeah, good movie. Saw the special features and apparently David Cronenberg is into existensialism and other philosophical stuff. He's a "deep" person, that's probably why I didn't get the ending.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
WTF! It's May already???
It's been a while since I last posted. I don't really know why I haven't written anything. Not that I don't have anything to rant or rave about (I didn't even do an Office recap!), but I don't know, maybe I just wasn't feeling it. So, here are some of the highlights of things that have happened since Earth Day (I say highlights, but they're really just the stuff I do remember, I think I'm getting old):
- I had two final exams on 4/24, when all of a sudden, the instructor for the other class moved one of the exams the following day. I had to cancel work that day (Yes, it's sad that I am saddened by not going to work --- I sure will miss folding those sweaters). Exams went OK, could've done better. Went out for drinks with classmates after, first time I've had a cocktail in a looooooong time.
- Planned to see Baby Mama or Forgetting Sarah Marshall... ended up seeing Harold and Kumar 2. Loved it. John Cho's hot. Am still planning to see the formers.
- So stoked about the 0.31 cents per scoop promo at Baskin-Robbins. I had four. Four scoops. All of them delish. Jamocha Almond Fudge. World Class Chocolate. Tax Crunch. Maui something-something (it sounded good too). All for $1.29. YAY!
- Bonnaroo trip with Joe made official. There's no backing out now Pipi.
- Registered for Summer classes... missed deadline for Fed loan app. Truly bummed.
- Aunt's birthday. Binge-ate. Ate my feelings because that's what depressed girls do. Or shop. I eat. Indigestion is a bitch.
- Cinco de Mayo. I don't celebrate it. Should've gone to Taco Bell for lunch. I had Tocilog instead.
Well, that's it. I'm sure more things happened... and I'm sure I'll remember them all one of these days. Didn't include important news bits from around the world. World is too crazy now: Daddy is the baby daddy, horsey euthanization and more crazy stuff. My hometown in TV Patrol... again.
Until next time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
