Matrix Trilogy - Simply cool. Love the french couple with his accent, his wife and his two hired hands.
Star Wars I-VI - Can't have just one or two in the set. Gotta have it all. The Empire Strikes back was my personal favourite even though the dark side triumphs.
The Green Mile - Great drama and suspense. Well done.
Shawshank Redemption - Great drama and suspense. Well done.
Finding Neverland- Without creativity and imagination, where would this world be. A sad sad place.
Lord of the Rings Trilogy - yeah those little stinkers are @#$ annoying to the point that you wish they'd be killed so you wouldn't have to cringe with every idiotic mistake they make, but the action and general story is too attraction to ignore.
Raiders of the Lost Ark Set - Great action without a lot of digital effects.
Heat - De Niro, Pacino, Kilmore. Strong cast and good suspense. Love it.
Goodfellas - Good portrayal of mafia life. Eh vinnie!
Saving Private Ryan - I'm a fan of good war movies and this is one of them with the latest special effects. No sci-fi.
Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - A surprise addition having only been introduced to this movie a month ago. Never thought I'd get into anymore anime style movies.
Sleepy Hollow - Always a big fan of Johnny Depp and Christopher Walken movies. Plus lots of great creativity and imagination here.
Lemony Snickets, A Series of Unfortunate Events - The wonders of the digital age has brought this to us. Jim Carrie doing his usual. Wonderful concept and set creation.
Platoon - A war movie staple(Acquired as of 1.12.06 afternoon). Strong cast and characters which draw you into their personal battles. Martin Sheen's in particular along with William DaFoe and Tom Berenger.
***Revised at 3:46pm***
I have some ideas about what might be causing the pain because I've felt it before but to a slightly lesser degree. Blocked ducts from the liver, gall bladder or the pancreas, damaged nerves, or possible cirrhosis of the liver itself resulting in an overload of the kidneys. For now, I'll make every attempt to just stick to the healthy foods and wait for the appointment later on this week with the specialist.
Today was a relaxing day. Got up really late and meandered around. Surfed the net abit before quickly filling out the Oscar Academy Ballot. Once I finished guessing at half the movies which I had not seen let alone heard of, I drove off to a friends house for the second annual Oscar party. I scored better this year getting about nine right. Alot better than last year when I had the most wrong and the other Ray got the most right. How's that for weird? I was really glad to see Million Dollar Baby and Ray win most of the big categories as I wasn't a big fan of the Aviator. Although maybe my mind would change if I had actually watched the Aviator.
And what about the ultra tall amazon women they had to escort the announcers and winners off the stage. When Renee Zelwegger inched her way across the stage in that tight full length red dress, she looked tall all by herself. That was until she stood by the model who dwarfed her completely standing what seemed like a foot taller. Robin Williams even hung onto the model with his head beneath the models shoulder like she was a protective giant.
Did anyone notice Robert DeNiro struggling to stand still reading the cheat cards? Then there was the two guys who won an award for something which I can't remember. Their speech went along the lines of "and patrick works with me. And I work with Patrick. He writes the bla bla bla". Well of course. Duhhh? You two made the movie together. The shorter guy didn't say anything. The tall guy looked like Robert Barone on the show "Everybody Loves Raymond" and just talked really slow. They looked like a slightly retarded version of the comedian couple Penn and Teller.
And for the longest gabber of em all, Hillary Swank and the ending to her speach. She faked the orchestra out as they started playing and kept on with the thank you's.
The format was slightly different this year as well. For some of the categories, they made all the nominees stand on the stage. And for others, they made them stand in a small group on a balcony alone, or in a separate room. I guess they didn't have enough star quality to be allowed to receive the award on the stage.
The whole show was surprising slower than previous years. We noticed that they didn't bother to play small clips of the movies nominated for the best picture award intermittently throughout the evening leading up to the actual presentation. I think they shaved off at least an hour and a half. Good for everyone who has to go to work early the next morning.
And so, the next batch of movies on my to watch list are as follows.
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate events - Gotta love that Jim Carrey character. The trailer looks so funny!
Finding Neverland - Interesting fantasy like story.
Sideways - Lots of recognition although I admit that I don't find this movie to be very appealing on the surface.
The Motorcycle Diaries - interesting foreign film.
The Aviator - Just because its supposed to be good despite the fact that it doesn't interest me that much.
WARNING - DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW THE ENDING!!!
I worked out at the gym again tonight even though I was still stiff and sore all over from the other night. Everything was still great as it hasn't taken long to get back into shape. More crunches, lunges, pushups coupled with sparring drills. Quick left right punches followed by an elbow combo with not so much emphasis on power but more on fluidity and speed. I was paired up with a new person who came from a boxing background but no legwork. Hence his punches were strong but the kicks and kneeings were weak.
I watched Million Dollar Baby the other weak. It was as good as every says it is. I've enjoyed many of Clint Eastwoods movies regardless of whether or not he was even in the movie. Hillary Swank did a wonderful job of picking up the boxing skills. It was reported that she came here to vancouver to get in shape and learn the sport for the role. But as I look over at the tv, she is currently on a talk show and just said that she trained in Brooklyn. The ending is somewhat unexpected if you've already seen it and ironic because just the other day, I read in the news a story about a woman who had been paralyzed to pretty much the same extent as Hillary's character at the age of eighteen. Twenty years later (a few days ago) the woman suddenly regained the ability to speak and show body movement. She was conscious for the whole time with the television being her only access to the outside world from inside her nursing home. I suppose this is why the ending to the movie was heavily criticized despite the rave reviews.
I watched this movie on the multicultural channel tonight. A gem of a film like many others which come out of foreign countries instead of the usual full on technological bombardment of hollywood productions. And as with many foreign films which must be translated for north america with subtitles (which I used because I don't understand Korean) the title does not do it justice. This film has also been called "Yeopgi Girl" as well as "Bizarre Girl". Nevertheless, 'My Sassy Girl'is a romance comedy made in South Korea back in 2001 and later went on to become the second highest grossing film in Korea that year I think. Great writing, a wonderful story, and even the story within the story - the one tree hill. Watch it I say or... 'DO YOU WANNA DIE!"
Thats two thumbs up from me! My left thumb and my right thumb. Just one critic here. I barely remember seeing the first one let alone seeing it in its entirety. Tonight I watched the second one. It lived up to my expectations and even had a great ending. Peter Parker gets the girl and the stage is set for part three. One thing though, I was surprised that spiderman's true identity was shown to practically everyone. From his girl to his best friend to all the people in the speeding train.
I have one tip which does not have anything to do with the movie itself. Just to add to the watching experience, get a seat in the middle of one of those giant complex theatres for the best sound affects. It's been a while since I went to the theatres and I ended up sitting in one of the top corners. Can't experience digital surround if all the speakers are in front of you.
And last but not least, don't forget to get the refill on that giant pail of popcorn and share it with your friends! We came up with an idea to collect the various popcorn buckets from Famous Players and use them for my friends annual oscar party.
On a more somber note, I'm sorry to hear that Gambit lost his job yesterday. While it has been expected for sometime, hopefully a new and brighter opportunity will come his way now.
I watched the volume one of Quentin Tarentino's movie with a friend of mine. This time we went to see volume 2. I think it was the opening weekend and there were no lineups at the theatres. The Canucks were playing game six in the playoffs against the Flames so the general population had hockey on their minds.
I liked the second one. No where near as much fighting as in the first one but some good fighting sequences nonetheless and the section about Pai Mei was pretty funny. When translated, Pai Mei is supposed to mean white eyebrows. In this a section, Uma Thurman's character mixes japanese, mandarin and english while Pai Mei only spoke in cantonese if I recall correctly. If you could understand it all, it makes for a bit of an amusing sequence instead of just reading the english subtitles. Although I may be mistaken in that Pai Mei might have spoken mandarin instead as I can' t remember now. Someone please correct me on this.
Advanced warning - don't read this section if you have not seen the movie yet and plan on seeing it.
At the end of the movie, he displays a phrase which goes something like "the lioness has returned to her cub and all is well". I couldn't remember the exact wording but it struck me. Possibly somewhere far away, a lioness has been reunited with her cub and evil has been thwarted.
When leaving the movie, we walked through the mall where the theatres were found in. There we passed by a store which sold things like ancient crystal balls, gothic chess sets, fake Eqyptian artifacts and swords. A man was standing at the cashier's desk holding a Samurai sword looking at it with great interest. A funny image if you think about it after having just watched Kill Bill. My friend and I both laughed as soon as we saw this. A martial arts sword fan is born.
I am the fastest on Mt. Akagi.
I am called the Akina 86.
Many discount me by appearance,
Until they awaken the monster within.
Many challenges have been made,
And many challenges have been beaten.
Now I must go out and challenge all those around me.
And beat them in any domain.
Takumi is the main character in a japanese anime series called Initial D. I received the box DVD set as a gift but never having any interest in watching anime, I didn't watch it at first but after my sister gave me the guilt trip, I decided to go ahead and watch it. The whole two seasons, side story and movie all in a little over a week.
It is about a teenager named Takumi who delivers fresh tofu to the local shops of Akina for his father. The Trueno 86 is what we would know as Toyota's old Corolla and the 86 is the model of the engine which was sold in one of those generations. A two door hatch back sold in the mid eighties. Remember those old racing schools? Well thats what they used to teach beginners to race in at the old Westwood race track. In the story, Takumi must drive through the local mountain called Akagi starting five years before he is even allowed to drive by japanese law. His father doesn't seem to mind. Along with the shipment of fresh tofu, his father gives him a cup of water which is placed in the center cup holder. By doing this, Takumi is given a gauge to show how smooth or rough he is driving. His father, Bunta knows that his son will speed so this helps his son know if the tofu is being damaged. After almost five years of this, he has learned to drive through the snakelike roadways of the mountain at ridiculously high speeds. Drifting through the hairpin turns eventually keeping his shipment intact and preventing the water from spilling out of the cup. Bunta occasionally puts more water to help challenge his son to become a better driver. Truly gifted race car drivers know how to drive fast without being hard on their equipment. Car and all. Takumi learns to control the motion of the water through his control of the car, making the water rotate in a circular fashion instead of splashing side to side in a reckless and uncontrolled manner.
In every region, there is a group of young street racers who gather at their local mountains to race. And every region has their fastest driver(s). One day, a non-local street racer is practising at Akagi mountain when Takumi comes speeding up in his rear view mirror. They try to race but a quick cut to the inside of a double back sharp turn and Takumi is gone. The foreign racer is in disbelief. The legend of the Akina 86 starts as this street racer and many others find Takumi and continually challenge him to races at each ones respective home turf as well as Mt. Akagi. And with each opponent, he overcomes faster and more modern vehicles or obstacles which others only realize after studying and witnessing his stunning victories.
At the beginning, Takumi had no desire for anything but as he goes through the many races, he gradually learns of his true desire and abilities. Even after getting over his relationship difficulties in the past with someone whom he wanted to go out with, he finally puts it all behind him and learns to go out into the world on his own and try to experience what will be his first true calling. Maybe life itself.
When I watched this, I couldn't help but think of how it related to my own life. I drive a simple Toyota extracab truck but inside is something else. The engine model is a 22RE and I have minor modifications to the air intake for better 'pickup' and a 340 watt sound system. Three hundred of which going to the sub alone which is cleverly integrated in a large storage compartment. Every weekend I deliver grocery supplies to the family nursing home and to get there and back, I have to drive down a winding hill, over a bridge, and up a tiny hill. Usually speeding wherever possible. The hill nearest to my place of dwelling was recently upgraded allowing me to drive faster. Yesterday, I got a speeding ticket for doing 130 kph. Luckily, they didn't catch me on my usual route going anywhere between 140 and 160. It seems that every couple of years I get one really big speeding ticket. Nothing in between strangely enough. And I remember one time when I drove to the interior with some friends on a white water rafting trip, I raced against one guy in his beamer. I handily out drove him as when he caught up to me at a stop point, he said that I was crazy. It didn't occur to me at the time but my friend in the passenger seat was scared the whole time. I thought it was quite funny.
So I have been doing this job for quite a few years because it was my duty. It was what others wanted me to do and along the way, I have become aware of my skills, learned or inherited in my genes, even though having no real desire to pursue any of them in particular. Now it seems that I may be on the brink of going out on my own and trying what may be my true calling. Or maybe just life itself.
Last weekend it rained and when it rains, it is easier for the tires to lose grip. This makes it easier to test the break point of your tires when you speed through turns to perform a lateral drift. I occasionally try this on two hills near my house. One with a fairly large radius turn at around 115 kph and another one much slower under heavy braking due to a sharper roundabout at the bottom of a fast hill. If you haven't guessed by now, trying this on a snow covered road is even more fun. The 'D' in Initial D stands for drift which is a technique many racers use to maintain their speed through a turn. And like Takumi, maybe we have both been 'drifting' in life trying to figure out what it is that we really want to do.
I am Lei
I am the fastest on Mt. Akagi.
I am called the Akina 86.
Many discount me by appearance,
Until they awaken the monster within.
Many challenges have been made,
And many challenges have been beaten.
Now I must go out and challenge all those around me.
And beat them in any domain.