15 June 2012 -- A Dark Twist To The Tale -- Snow White & The Huntsman

Fairy tales have always fascinated and entertained us when we were young, hence remakes of these classics would undoubtedly lead to many comparisons. We have already known for quite some time that there would be two remakes of the classic fairy tale Snow White in 2012, Mirror Mirror (which was released on March and was supposed a light-hearted take of the story by the Brothers Grimm) and Snow White & The Huntsman (which was released this month).

I missed out on watching Mirror Mirror, partly because I am not a frequent movie-goer. However, my friend recommended watching Snow White & The Huntsmen during a get-together session, so I proceeded to watch only my 2nd movie within the last one year.

In all honesty, I was skeptical of how the movie will turn out, particularly when Kristen Stewart was cast as the female lead Snow White. I am not picking on the casting of the Twilight starlet, because I think she is a pretty good actress but she needs to work on her facial & emotional expressions. (Fanboys don't bash me, please. :3)The movie also features Charlize Theron, who portrays the evil stepmother/queen, as well as Chris Hemsworth, who decided to leave Mjölnir in Asgard and is here as the huntsman. 

Unlike the original tale, this incarnation takes on a darker theme but basically follows the same story arc. Snow White's mother died when she was young, leaving her under the care of her father, who is the King. When Ravella (Theron) married the king and murdered him in cold blood on their wedding night, everything changed. Snow White was held captive in the North Tower for years but managed to escape when the evil Queen, in her pursuit of beauty and power, decided to kill her. She made her way into the Dark Forest but was tracked by the huntsman. The huntsman however decides to join forces with Snow White to overthrow the evil Queen's reign, a la Joan of Arc's style.

On the whole, the movie was not too bad, but was not exactly an entertaining 2 hours as I would have hoped. Charlize Theron's powerful performance as the evil queen Ravella was, in my opinion, one thing that stole the show. One can really feel the hatred and embitterment in Ravella as her pursuit for beauty and power (which includes sucking the lifeforce out of virgins and flowers) drove her to insanity and eventually became her undoing.

Chris Hemsworth also did a good job as the huntsman with a traumatic past, providing scant reminder of the hammer-wielding demigod he is now famous for in the Marvel franchise. On the contrary, Stewart's potrayal as the title character somehow pales in comparison, but nevertheless still a convincing one. Unfortunately, as we all know (and should have figured)...

When Snow White is scared, =.=

When Snow White is angry, =.=

When Snow White is happy, =.=

When Snow White is in a coma, ... =.=

While Snow White & The Huntsman may be the most entertaining flick I have watched, it does offer a welcome alternative to movie-goers. Don't give it a miss! :)

Rent-A-Movie: Nasi Lemak 2.0

I am back! Apologies for the long absence, but as usual, many things have happened during my disappearing act, one of which has contributing to my lack of posts.

I have been writing the last few blog posts using my Huawei MediaPad. As a result, I had been experiencing neck pains for the last week due to my incorrect sitting posture. Frankly speaking, if you hold your head forward in a flexed or bent position for long periods of time while looking at your tablet computer, it could result in serious neck problems. I have been hugging to my Mediapad for three weeks straight, and sitting in front of a computer during work from 9 to 5 did not help matters. Eventually, it was inevitable that it eventually became a "pain in the neck" and I have to stop using for a while. T.T

Devoid of my daily dose of entertainment, I turned to renting movies to watch at home. It turned to be a good idea, because I rented one particularly funny movie to watch.

Its title "Nasi Lemak 2.0" was the one that initally caught my attention as I scrolled through my mioTV menu for something to watch. With food used as a title for the movie, I thought this movie should be quite interesting, and I was not disappointed.

Nasi Lemak 2.0 is a low budget Malaysian film directed by Namewee and was released in September 2011. It also starred the director as the movie's protaganist Huang Da Xia, a young chef who struggles to keep his Chinese restaurant going but was a hero in the local neighbourhood as he helps the community. One day, he crosses paths with Xiao K, who asks for his help. Xiao K's father is athe owner of a big Chinese restaurant and is embroiled in a battle for ownership with her aunt. Chef Huang decides to help her out but lost the competition to see who can cook the best Chinese cuisine. Later, he receives help from a neighouring Nasi Lemak hawker stall lady, who summons him to embark on a myserious and enriching journey.

I like this movie mainly because of the style of acting as well as the creativity infused into the movie, which is unique to Malaysia itself and audiences can instantly relate to the characters and the script. I was laughing from start to end. However, this movie is not without controversy. At times, this movie seemed to nearly get into trouble with the censorship laws as it veers dangerously close to touching on sensitive issues (I shall not spoil the movie for everyone, so it's best you watch it yourselves.). However, this movie has taught everyone an important lesson. In every multiracial and multicultural society, social unity is important for the country. The movie draws similarities between racial harmony and the iconic food nasi lemak. Like the dish which is made up of as variety of side dishes along with rice, a society is made up of different communities of different cultures and races which integrate to become one big family.

So go catch this movie on DVD! Hope you will enjoy the movie as much as I do! :)

Korean Music Showcase: Mnet Asian Music Awards 2011! :D

The inaugural MAMA Awards (Mnet Asian Music Awards) hit Singapore's shores on 29th Nov. Held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, this year's show promised to be bigger, better and much more awesome than its 2010 version at Macau.

K-pop artistes who had arrived for the event included Miss A, Girls' Generation, Super Junior, Leessang and 2NE1. With the Korean Hallyu fever raging strongly in Singapore, there is no doubt that this is a widely anticipated event. Many fans had queued up early to attend the show!

In order not to spoil for those who missed out on the event, I shall give a brief outline of who are the biggest winners of this year's MAMA Awards.

1. Girls' Generation

Awards: Artist of The Year, Best Female Group
One of the biggest winners this year, they gave the audience one of the most powerful performances of the night. Singing their latest hit "The Boys", the girls wowed the crowd with their dance moves and strong vocals. Their stage's special effects are so good, they left the members of Miss A stunned! :O Pity they only sang that one song though.

Check out their performance in this video:


2.  Super Junior
Awards: Album of The Year, Best Male Group, Singapore's Korean Singer Popularity Award

SM Entertainment's biggest boyband returned home with a total of 3 awards. Given their popularity in Singapore, it is little wonder they were awarded the Singapore's Korean Singer Popularity Award. For their special stage section, they belted out hits like "Super Man", "Mr. Simple", and of course hot favourite "Sorry Sorry".

3. 2NE1
Awards: Best Vocal (Group), Song of The Year
One of the hottest girl groups in Korea won 2 awards in this year's MAMA Awards. Both wins were well deserved, as the girls showed their vocal prowess in "Lonely" and "I Am The Best" was one of the most popular hits. Dara's hair was one of the coolest that day, with her amazing, gravity-defying ponytail frozen on her head. The quartet also showed in their special stage session why they are the best:


Other award winners include Beast, Kim Hyun Joong, Hyuna and Baek Ji Young. Even though I did not get to go for the awrds show itself, watching it live via streaming is still epic enough to experience the atmosphere at Singapore Indoor Stadium. I look forward to next year's edition! :)

* Credits to slam10 for photos of SNSD, 2NE1 and Super Junior. Thanx. :D

The ChaeRa Sisters

I got to admit, 2NE1 is my favourite girl groups.

Their style is different from a typical cookie-cutter girl band. (Note: I am not referring to any groups in particular.) Be it whether they are on stage, or offstage, they just want to enjoy what they are doing and have fun.

Their bond is so close, that they really looked like sisters if you haven't known who they are.

Especially the ChaeRa 'sisters'...their chemistry is pretty awesome.

Note: Even if you do not know what they are saying, the actions are still quite cute and funny.

29 May 2011 -- Sailing On Stranger Tides!

Being a fan of the Pirates Of The Caribbean franchise, there is no way I am going to let the opportunity of watching the 4th installment pass. So when my friend thought of watching it as part of the movie outing, I was pretty much excited!

Anyway, this is the summary of the story:
Captain Jack Sparrow travels to London to locate his impersonator, who has reportedly been recruiting a crew to search for the legendary Fountain of Youth. First Sparrow rescues his former first mate, Joshamee Gibbs, who is about to be hanged, though the two are captured. Jack is brought before King George II, who wants him to guide an expedition to the Fountain before the Spanish find it. And heading the expedition is Jack's old ally/nemesis(?), Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), now in service to the British Navy.

As Jack escapes, he met his father who warns Jack about the Fountain's tests. Jack also discovers that the impostor is his former lover Angelica (Penelope Cruz), daughter of the ruthless pirate Blackbeard, who wants to escape his death prophecy by finding the Fountain of Youth. Jack is forced to join Blackbeard's crew and to lead them to the Fountain. Meanwhile, Gibbs, who memorized, then destroyed, Sparrow's map, barters with Barbossa to lead him and his crew to the Fountain. And this is where all the adventure starts to unfold...

Johnny Depp works his charm as usual in this movie, as the witty and cheeky Jack Sparrow. However, Sparrow's antics may seem a bit lethargic and somewhat predictable for viewers who have viewed the last three movies. Still, he is the crux and provides the main entertainment in this movie.

For viewers who miss the Turner/Swann romance of the first 3 movies, this movies provides some sort of replacement in the form of a romance between Philip, a missionary captured by Blackbeard's crew, and Syrena the mermaid. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite have the same entertainment appeal as compared to that of Turner and Swann.

For people who are familiar with the franchise, I felt that the movie took a refreshing change as it now focuses on Captain Jack Sparrow's solo adventures after "At World's End". This, basically means no William Turner (Orlando Bloom), no Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley), and no more of the couple's romance story. It's ALL about Jack Sparrow. I thought it is more of a standalone movie rather than a continuation to the trilogy. Therefore, new fans of the franchise do not have to go through the first 3 films before watching this movie, as "On Stranger Tides" has little/no relevance to the previous installments, save for a few titular characters (including Jack Sparrow, obviously.).

This movie is definitely worth watching, and viewers get to enjoy the awesome and captivating scenary of Hawaii, where the movie is filmed. Oh, don't forget to stay back after the movie to take a look at the short but interesting post-credits scene. :D

On another note...after watching this movie, a couple of interesting questions popped up in my mind. Here's a few questions to share:

1. Blimey, is Blackbeard real?
Well he is real. According to a purple-covered book I have in my drawer (where the book is left to collect dust), Blackbeard definitely exists in history. Born as Edward Teach in Bristol, he was famous for being a vicious pirate and died in 1718, when he was killed by a small force of sailors led by Lieutenant Robert Maynard. References to other websites also showed that he and his crew operated and terrorized sailors mainly on the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea from 1716 through 1718. However, unlike in the movie, Blackbeard is definitely not looking for the Fountain of Youth. But we all know the movie is just fiction, although speaking of which...

2. Does the Fountain of Youth exist?
Yes and no. A search on the National Geographic website did state that this legendary spring, which has the ability to restore youth of anyone who drinks its waters, is sought after by many throughout history. Writings on Alexander the Great did have some references on this magic waters. However, the name linked most closely linked to the search for this legendary spring is 16th-century Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon, first Governor of Puerto Rico by appointment of the Spanish crown. Accordingly to the stories, he believed that the Fountain of Youth is located in a place now known as Florida. No wonder, as de Leon's name did pop out a couple of times throughout the movie.

Valentine's Day -- Sealed With A Naughty Kiss ♥

Wow. Valentine's Day is around the corner.

Blimey, it's actually tomorrow! o.O

While I will probably spend Valentine's Day at home this year (as usual), at least I have something to keep me entertained for the day!

Guess what! I just borrowed one of the latest Korean drama "Naughty Kiss" recently and I am actually watching it! :D

Basically, "Naughty Kiss" is based on the Japanese comic series "Itazurana Kiss" by Tada Kaoru. (Taiwanese idol drama fans may find this familiar. Well, this has been made into a Taiwan idol drama before, starring Ariel Lin and Joe Cheng.) This is a romance story about a girl named Oh Ha-ni (Jung So Min) who is a clumsy student who practically fails her exams all the time, and the perfectionist Baek Seung Jo (Kim Hyun Jung) who has an IQ of 200. So Ha-ni has a crush on Seung Jo since high school, but Seung Jo is indifferent towards her and rejects her love. When Ha-ni's house collapses, she and her father moves into his long-known friend's house. Coincidentally, it turns out that Seung Jo is the friend's son and Ha-ni is given the opportunity to be staying close to the guy she loves. This is when their relationship starts to become closer...

Well, after watching about 3 odd episodes, I felt that this is a good show to watch if you are looking for a light hearted Korean comedy. Some parts were really funny and I guess that's what that kept me glued to the show. (For Kim Hyun Jung's fans, this is one show you guys can just watch at how cool he always acts. :D) As expected for all rom-coms, the ending will always be a good one. Yay.

However, imagine this, if a girl keeps sticking to you like a chewing gum in real life, maybe the guy will really get sick and tired of her after a short while even if he likes the girl a lot. I think it will give the guy very little space of his own and he may feel that he has lost part of his privacy. For example, would you like your girlfriend to stalk you everyday, 9 hours a day when you are working? (this happened for Seung Jo when he was working in a family restaurant and Ha-In kept going to the restaurant to keep an eye on him, but if you want to know what really happened, you'll have to find out yourself...). Love is one thing, but obsession is another.

So...go watch this drama if you haven't started! Meanwhile, I'll carry my DVD copy along with me to watch on Valentine's Day night. Can't wait to finish all the episodes! :)

29 Jan 2011 -- Me vs The Green Hornet!

Yep, no mistake with the title.

Alif and I went to watch the much-anticipated "The Green Hornet" on Saturday.

And boy, we weren't disappointed.

I thought it was not a bad movie, although some parts were quite predictable. The jokes and the fighting scenes were more than enough to keep us entertained for the 2 hours in the cinema.

Anyway this is what the story is about:

Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) is the 28-year-old slacker and playboy son of widower James Reid, publisher of the newspaper The Daily Sentinel. All of a sudden, James is found dead from an allergic reaction to a bee sting. After the funeral, Britt fires the staff aside from his maid and Kato (Jay Chou), James' mechanic and a skilled martial artist.

Britt and Kato get drunk together and, upon agreeing that they both hated James, visit the graveyard to cut the head off James' memorial statue as revenge. Just then, they see a couple being mugged, and rescue them. But Britt and Kato are themselves mistaken by police for criminals and chased through the streets, but they manage to escape safely.

Britt convinces Kato to be crime-fighters who pose as criminals in order to infiltrate real criminals.

So that's the story. After watching the movie, I have learnt a couple of important things about mass media. In this case, it's newspapers we are talking about. The wrong use of media could lead to serious repercussions. Just ask Britt Reid. The first mistake he made? The use of the Daily Sentinel to publicise his rise as the Green Hornet. It eventually got himself into deep trouble (nearly getting killed) and also the loss of many innocent lives. And he almost made the same mistake again when his friend District Attorney Frank Scanlon tried to persuade him to downplay the crime rate in the city to help his career. Overhype of incidents and distortion of facts are two good examples mass media could be used in wrong ways. Should have used them in my GP test...

Another thing to note is that Jay Chou got pretty much screen time in his first English movie. I guess that's pretty good, as Asians were once treated as peripheral characters in the movies. The fact that Jay, as Kato gets as much screen time as Seth Rogen is comforting to see, as Asians are increasingly treated as equals in the movie industry.

Contrary to public view, Jay Chou actually speaks English pretty well! (Although there are times Alif and I couldn't really get what he was saying and we were left looking at each other, puzzled.) But good effort, Jay.

I think this is one good movie to watch, even if you are no Jay Chou fan. For those who are familiar with the original TV series, this should still be a good show to catch! :D