HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone! XD

All the work in my company, outings, gatherings and celebrations have left me highly exhausted and hence the lack of proper entries for the past 2 weeks. *gasp*

Unlike frequent bloggers like kkyz or kevin @ erpz who put in efforts to blog every single day, (they probably even apologise when they miss a day, which puts my ‘promise to blog weekly’ to shame because I can’t even handle 1 post/week) I find it really difficult to keep up with blogging on a regular basis.

Not that I have nothing to write about. I actually have many incomplete drafts lol.

Like, whenever I managed to squeeze out time to update my blog, there were always some obstacles ahead that stop me from doing so.

I either…

fell asleep before I managed to finish typing the first line..

OR..

K.O.-ed before I reached my computer..

OR..

zzZZ outside my room.

On a side note, I want to announce something shocking to all Singaporean Apple fanboys (and girls, if any) out there.

It’s something about the Epicentre at 313 @ Somerset.

It’s something about their informative touchscreen wall, which provides an interactive experience mimicking the one on their popular iPhones.

It’s something about looking closer at its top right corner..

..to discover a Windows icon. OMG.

So they are using an Internet Explorer 6.0 on a Windows XP platform to showcase their superior iMacs, iPods and iPhones??!

Why Windows? If Windows, why Windows XP? If Windows XP, why bloody use Internet Explorer 6.0?????

I can already hear several Apple fanboys’ hearts die a bit.

My heart goes out to all of you.

- - -

Movie Reviews!

Sherlock Holmes

Some movies are story-driven while some are character-driven. This movie clearly belongs to the latter. For someone, like me, who has never watched or read a lot of mystery/crime fiction works, Sherlock Holmes manages to provide decent amount of entertainment and story substance to hold my attention for the 2 hours it ran.

The plot may not be as exciting as Kindaichi Case Files or villain not as memorable as Joker in The Dark Knight, what this show has delivered are the lovely chemistry shared between Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr and the funny moments. Recommended!

8 / 10

- - -

Bodyguards and Assassins

This is the BEST CHINESE MOVIE OF THE YEAR, truly a masterpiece. What makes this movie so good is its ability to stir emotions inside the audience (in this case, me). The passion shown by the characters and their fighting spirit has made me tear several times throughout the show.

This is the sort of movie that makes you want to stand up and applaud for the right things while curse and kick the theatre seat for the wrong things. Not forgetting to mention, it has one of the best chase sequence I have seen in my life. The character development in the movie is very well-done, and that’s not an easy feat, considering its large ensemble of strong and well-known cast.

It seems like every year end there is a movie (last year’s was Ip Man) that reminds me that Asian cinema is faaaarrrr from dead, and this is THE movie.

9.5 / 10

- - -

Avatar

I caught this movie so much later than everyone else that I nearly thought I was the last person in Singapore to do so. This show has created so much hype and received so many good reviews it was hard not to enter the cinema without great expectations.

Seriously how good can a movie be? Good story, check. Good visuals, check. Good music, check. Good acting, check (seriously, the best motion capture performances I have seen).

At some points I was pissed by the antagonists’ actions, and sometimes quite sad when some of the trees got taken down. It’s the standard good vs evil thing.

Even with all items on this mental checklist (for the best movie) checked, I somehow felt that the most important thing (ie, the emotional connection) wasn’t really there. It wasn’t like ‘WHOA MINDBLOWING AWESOME’.. but more like ‘hmm that’s good!’. While the plot is good, it isn’t entirely original or refreshing. What’s really revolutionary are the storytelling technique, the new world it’s presented and the entire movie viewing experience.

But yea, I had a great time throwing myself into the world of Pandora and watching the adventures and battles unfold.

It seems like everyone (who has watched the movie) on Earth would give anything just to live in Pandora with the Na’vi. For me, I would not mind paying to relive the enjoyable viewing experience. (update: and I did)

9 / 10

Guess what.

Recently I accidentally discovered a hidden talent of myself.

It all started when I put my hand into my pocket while walking. And suddenly.. I felt something LONG.

As my hand moved down the pocket, I realised that it was not just long, it felt SMOOTH.. and HARD. There was something ROUND at the tip too.

My hand went all the way down, grabbed it firmly and pulled it out. OH MY. It was even longer than my palm!

Hoping to avoid weird stares from people around me, I quickly forced it into my mouth to hide it. It was HARD at first, since it was really LONG and BIG, but I persevered, pushed it down my throat and managed to swallow everything.

I thought it was all over until… it stuck out from my pants AGAIN! It was as hard and long as the previous one! People were crowding around me and I was gaining unnecessary attention. Maybe they enjoyed watching it.

So I had no choice but to…

…swallow the Microphone popping out from my pocket again and again and again and again. I can swallow microphones!!

- - -

Movie Reviews!

The Storm Warriors

Gone are the sincerity you could feel from the first movie. This movie is a mixture of deafening sound effects (so loud you want to cry), cheesy dialogues (I tried very hard to suppress my laughter throughout the show), wooden acting and lots and lots of visual effects to prove to you that Asians can do something like the movie 300. Sometimes it feels like they are trying too hard. However, I have to give credit to those who have worked hard to produce this visual feast with strong art direction (sometimes refreshing and experimental in Asian POV). A lot of what you see in this movie are something that has never been introduced to Asian cinema before. If there were lesser slow-motion sequences, this movie could have been 30 minutes shorter. *shrugs*

3 / 10

- - -

Zombieland

I have never seen a good hor-medy before (Jack Neo’s ‘Where Got Ghost’ is what I consider.. FAIL), and Zombieland could very well be the first. This movie pokes fun of the horror movie genre and at the same time keeps it outrageously fun. It presents a ‘what-if’ scenario where all the humans on Earth have turned into zombies and the remaining human population (like, maybe, 4 people?) has to fight hard to survive. The gore and violence shown in this show are nothing too traumatising for me, but the friend who watched with me remained in shock even when the credits started rolling (and this show is so good I was begging for more). Having seen Emma Stone’s memorable performances in Superbad and The House Bunny, her appearance in this movie has officially made me want to movie-stalk her in her upcoming movies. =D Zombieland is highly recommended to those who wants some light-hearted wicked fun!

8.5 / 10

- - -

The Princess and The Frog

Ever since I found out that Walt Disney Animation was going back to produce 2D animated movies (after their much boo-ed departure from it to focus on 3D movies), I have waited for the release of this movie like a loyal fan. The day has come. And what can I say? This movie is awesome (but not very memorable)! Even though there’s nothing really new or anything considered a breakthrough here (not if you consider having a black princess for the first time as a breakthrough), it is nice to know that Disney is back on track to churn out classics again.

8.5 / 10