The Tin Man Needs a Heart

Tin Man is a three-part T.V. series that I was looking forward to because the publicity had played it up very well. The twist in the traditional Wizard of Oz intrigued me and the rather well-known cast line-up impressed me. So, of course, I watched it a few hours ago and neither were disappointing... Except for Dorothy, or DG as she is referred to in the series, because she simply cannot act.

Casting Zooey Deschanel was a bad idea. And Alan Cumming and Neal McDonagh are too good for this... For her, rather.

This is all really disappointing because I really do like what (little) I saw of the story. I tuned out after an hour and decided to watch Brothers & Sisters instead; however, I will probably watch it again next week with a bit of hope...

From Hors d'Oeuvours to Beowulf

I just returned from a small social gathering with amazing hors d'oeuvours held across the hall. Originally, a friend and I thought about going to watch 'Love in the Time of Cholera' (because of me!) after a brief stint at the social mixer but we ended up staying for most of it and I do not mind at all.

From what I have heard (and read on Rotten Tomatoes), 'Love in the Time of Cholera' was not that great anyway. That is rather disappointing to hear but I still plan on seeing the movie simply because I loved the book. I do not know when I will be able to see it but I certainly hope it is soon.

What I know that I will watch soon is Beowulf. Tomorrow, or, later today (it is 1:05am right now). I have read the book (all of it and not some abridged version, mind you) and liked it as well but... I do not know... The trailer was not all that appealing to me.

Oh well. I will soon find out what the movies are like!

Love in the Time of Cholera

How long would you wait for love?


I am sure that at one point or another I have alluded to my love for Gabriel Garcia Marquez on this blog. I may have not read all his novels but I make it a point to read one whenever time is kind, and this summer I read Love in the Time of Cholera. Shortly after reading the novel I found out that a movie based on the novel was in the works and is set to be released this week.

Well, I, for one, am looking forward to seeing it and have plans of manipulating the boyfriend into seeing it with me. I adored the novel so I hope the movie will not disappoint.


Fifty-one years, nine months, and four days.
That is how long I have loved you.

Watch the trailer here.

Epic Walking

I awoke rather early for a Saturday morning and immediately started contemplating whether or not I should go run on the treadmill downstairs. It did not take me long to willingly get up out of bed to go running. I just felt compelled--moreso obligated--to work out because this past week my eating habits turned horrendously unhealthy that I just felt disgusted by what I had consumed and by my apparent lack of willpower to refrain from consuming what is obviously healthy for me. Needless to say, that great run an hour ago was very much needed.

Inbetween waiting for one of my roommates to finish showering and trying to wake up my boyfriend, I thought I would write something because the past few stressful and tumoultuous weeks have left my blog neglected. So, now, I ramble... About the highlights of this past week?

Okay, then.

The boyfriend and I watched the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy... extended edition. Yes, it was long. Very. Long. I do not really mind though, in fact, I actually enjoyed it because I have never seen any of the three movies in its entirety; just bits and pieces here and there. However, it did contribute to my lethargic state and condemnable eating habits (although for the last movie I did opt for "healthier" snacks).

On Peter Jackson, director of the 'Lord of the Rings trilogy, all I have to say is that he is the master of epic walking.

I have also started volunteering for an organization that focuses on the state's Cambodian American. It is a tight-knit and welcoming community with wonderful members, many of whom I was fortunate enough to meet after Loung Ung's lecture. Right now I am working on writing grant proposals but I do hope to get to do more with and for the community in the near future.

Anyway, a roomie is out of the shower and I need to shower so I can make myself a heart and healthy brunch. Haha. Unfortunately, the boyfriend is still fast asleep so I will make one last attempt (and maybe throw in a threat) before I hop into the shower.

It Was Beauty That Killed The Beast

I just saw the 2005 re-make of King Kong for the first time and I liked it. (It does not take a lot for me to say that I liked a movie; however, it does takes a lot for me to say that I absolutely loved a movie.) Anyway, of all the movies and animations made of this illustrious creature, this is the first full-length King Kong anything that I have ever seen.

Now that I understand what King Kong is about I can conclude that it is more or less a love story between a pretty blonde and a larger-than-life primate that simply was not meant to be. They were just smitten with the beauty that the other possessed--the type of beauty that surpasses the externalities. Of course, there is more to it than that but that is some of it. Right?

Okay, there is one other thing that I would like to gossip about that is irrelevant to King Kong so I shall move on.

Now an ex-boyfriend and I do not get along despite efforts on my part to mend the situation and salvage whatever friendship we had left. Our sour relationship is the result of how he thought/thinks that I had cheated on him and even though (time and time again) I told him other wise he still refused to believe me. After one chat I finally gave up on trying to fix things because I no longer saw the point and I was perfectly happy with my life and I did nothing wrong. Its been two years already!

And then a week ago I receive a text message asking if I wanted to meet up. The number did not register on my cellphone so I sent a text asking who it was and turns out it was him. Then I asked who was going and when because I was getting pretty busy with preparing to leave. All of a sudden he responds with, "WHY? What if I said it was just me? I bet you won't come if it was just me." I was taken aback by that accusatory statement so I decided not to respond.

Fast forward to yesterday, I receive another text while I was out with my family asking if I could go meet him at a particular mall that very moment. I decline saying I was busy hanging out with my family and that we had no intentions heading over to where he was later on the evening. But of course, it would not be a funny story if that actually happened.

My family ended up going to that mall several hours later because it had something we wanted. As we were walking into the mall I hear someone screaming, "MADS! MADS! MADS!" Immediately, I mutter to myself, 'Oh you have got to be kidding me.' I ignore it but it only gets louder. I turn around and, yes, it was him. We wave to each other before the car he was in drives off. He sends me another text and I was just, *Rolls eyes.*

I have no doubt that he thought he 'won' whatever there was to be won and that he was the better person because I was "avoiding" him and I say this because you expect it from him given his personality. I was indeed avoiding him though, but for two good reasons: 1. I was honestly busy with running errands and spending the last few days with my family, and 2. I have just grown tired of having to deal with him.

Anyway, I laugh all by my lonesome when recalling all this :). I will admit it was pretty amusing.

Bonbons Pour Tes Yeux

I am going to apologize now because I simply could not resist after I saw the photos of Victoria and David Beckham for W magazine. They're a good looking couple to photograph and seem to elude to having a great relationship so it would only seem natural for them to be photographed like this.

As an artist and avid fan of art, I adore aesthically pleasing, sensual, and black-and-white photographs.

As a typical human being, I do enjoy seeing celebrity photos.

Procastination... Then a Harry Potter Spoiler!

Am I a lazy and unmotivated person who will never accomplish anything of significance? Or am I suffering from the incurable disease of 'procastination'? Or are they both more or less the same? I currently have a plethora of things I must finish... soon, but I simply can't bring myself to do so. Not a good thing at all considering what I need to do are actually somewhat important.

It's not that I'm not aware of what needs to be done. Quite the opposite, actually. Everything is plastered in my memory, written (neatly) in my trusty planner, and included in detail on my daily, weekly, and even monthly to-do lists. However, once everything is dutifully noted and I know what to do (by when and at times even where) sometimes I'm just too tired to follow-through. It's horrible and I despise it. This is something I must work on during Fall semester.

Help?

On a different note, I haven't been doing much lately (surprise, surprise!) but I have seen 'Transformers' and 'Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix.' I enjoyed 'Transformers' even though it was rather long, contained a rather dry first-hour, and filled with lots of explosions. As for 'Harry Potter,' I've never been fan of the series but the movie was amusing (I am an easily amused person). The only negative comment I can think of right now is that the actors look much too old for the characters they're portraying. Oh, and Sirius Black dies... But you would already know that if you read the books.

More Movies

I watched 'Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer' this afternoon and although it wasn't the most fantastic sequel it was a pretty decent movie both on its own and in comparison to the first one. I'll probably post my reviews and some spoilers of 'Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer' tomorrow. We'll see. One thing's for sure though--the Silver Surfer doesn't have that large of a role in the movie.

I've been watching a lot of movies lately. It's probably because so many come out during the summer but it makes up for rarely going out to watch new movies when I'm busy pursuing a degree in higher education. Haha. Anyway, I rented three movies--'Dream Girls,' 'Because I Said So,' and 'The Pursuit of Happyness'--from the store to try and catch up on all the movies I missed out on.

I only discovered the wonderful joys of NetFlix during Spring Break, and I'll definitely be renewing my NetFlix subscription come fall semester. Maybe. I just hope it doesn't negatively affect my GPA because I know all the drinking and partying will. Oh boy.

Spoiler Galore

Not really. I'm just going to share what I thought about the two movies I just watched.

Meet the Robinsons

A sibling and I were arguing over which movie to watch--Ocean's Thirteen or Mr. Bean--all the way to the ticket line. Fortunately for my mom's sanity, I suggested Meet the Robinsons, a suggestion both siblings immediately said yes to. I don't know why I even suggested the movie especially when I didn't even know what the movie was about nor had I even seen the trailer for it. Perhaps it was because I knew I was going to get my way with Ocean's Thirteen and I didn't want to be the bitchy sister... again. Oh well. I'm glad I had a momentary change of heart because I actually liked the movie!

The graphics were great. I've never been a fan of animation produced by Pixar, even the ones released by Disney, for some inexplicable reason but I'm glad with what Disney produced. The computer-generated images were just a wonderful blend of realism and... plasticism. They were just so captivating and eye-popping!

Disney definitely took a massive leap with this movie because of the technological advancement in its animation and the futuristic story-plot. However, Disney fans (like yours truly) won't be disappointed because it still has the whole distinct Disney feel to it--the happy ending, the moral of the story, and the fuzzy feeling it gives you inside!

Ocean's Thirteen

Delicious looking men? Mmm. An eye candy movie indeed!

Danny Ocean's team of (mostly) hot men execute another well-planned heist without a hitch. They steal $500 million from one of the newest, hottest, and most obnoxious casinos on the Vegas strip on its opening night. All for Reuben.

The plot is easy to follow and actually provoked a bit of laughter out of me. Although you don't really expect any of the three Ocean installments to make you laugh, you only expect them to dazzle you with its smooth and witty plans. Well, I was dazzled so my expections were met.

I was rather disappointed with the irrelevant nose Matt Damon gave himself. It wasn't very funny and, unfortunately, just compounded to his n00b role. I like Matt Damon. He's a lot "fresher" than Brad Pitt and George Clooney.

Although Ocean's Eleven elaborate grand heist is still my favourite, Thirteen is a lot better than Twelve.

Watch them both!

Vulnerability

I watched 'Ocean's Thirteen' tonight (before its official release date in the US, mind you) and 'Meet the Robinsons,' both of which I enjoyed it. However, I won't go into much details about either movies tonight because I am beyond tired and I'm doing some research and write-ups for my internship but failing miserably. Perhaps I will tomorrow.

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So I thought I was doing fine but this evening I realized that I'm actually not okay. The one person who I want to talk to about how I feel is the very person I can't talk to about how I feel. Although there are others who have offered their kindness and expressed their eagerness to help me through this I can't bring myself to talk to them because I don't want to open up to anyone anymore.

I want to tell him that I'm not okay, I want him to be able to relate to how I feel, and I want him to care. Unfortunately, you can't always have what you want. He won't care the way he used to, he won't relate to how I feel because I know he's happier without me, nor will he know that I'm not okay since I already feel so vulnerable because of him.

I'm not someone who opens up very easily. Therefore, when I do open up it means I'm comfortable with the level our relationship has progressed to but then I close up again once our relationship changes. (It doesn't matter what type of relationship it was to begin with). It's not that I no longer trust the person; I'm just overcome with the paralyzing feeling of vulnerability.

Sigh.

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My reviews on 'Ocean's Thirteen' and 'Meet the Robinsons' tomorrow!

Arr?

ARR!
SPOILER (and gushing) ALERT!

I finally saw Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and I absolutely loved it even though it wasn't well-received by critics. I heard negative reviews about the movie but I didn't abandon hope like the Commodore's men abandoned ship. I really liked the first two so I was obviously to like this one.

The movie was definitely more action packed than the Dead Man's Chest, which I thought had too much action but I guess I jumped the gun, but it was worth it. All the action was intertwined with comedy and drama--I mean, a marriage proposal and then an impromtu wedding ceremony during a massive pirates showdown only to have Turner's heart stabbed and removed at the end of it?!

As action-heavy as it was it was plot-heavy as well. Moreso than the other two but that's expected because they introduce several new characters and thoroughly developed them along with the old characters while answering many questions.

This installment had great special effects but the set scenes and costumes were even more impressive. It was evident that it was a (well-spent) big budget film.

I'm a big fan of surreal films so I was pleased to see a scene that had a hint of surrealism in it. The scene I'm talking about is the one with Sparrow and the rocks that turn into crabs. It was also interesting to see so many Sparrows to represent his multi-faceted and crazy personality. Bi-polar disorder anyone?

If you haven't seen it, then I suggest you do regardless of what those silly critics say. Unless you didn't like the last two of course.

Anyway, I spent a good portion of the film drooling over...

CAPTAIN WILLIAM TURNER! Orlando Bloom is undeniably irresistable. I was just smitten, I tell you. Smitten! I was extremely jealous of Ms. Elizabeth Swann.

The nauseatingly romantic in me was really glad that the amourous relationship between Turner and Swann was developed even more. They did and didn't end up together; they knew they were in love with one another and were married by Captain Barbosa but Turner became the next Davy Jones so he only surfaces for a day every ten years.

Oh, love! Okay. I'm done with the gushing.

Fantastic movie, everyone.

Summer Movies

It's finally summer!

Sipping cold (alcoholic) drinks, tanning, and shedding multiple layers of clothing--these are a few of my favourite things during the summer. Watching all the sequels, trilogies, etc. of movies is another.

Anyway, I finally saw Spiderman 3 and I was rather disappointed considering it's currently the highest grossing film of the summer. I would say that I hope I don't watch anymore disappointing movies but I can't because it simply cannot be avoided.

Here are some of the movies that I'll be watching this summer.

Fantastic Four

So I'll probably watch this not because I liked the first movie (I hated it) but because I really enjoyed the cartoons as a child. I'm also a bleeding-heart optimist; maybe this one will be a better--and the last--installment.

Pirates of the Caribbean

Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum? Who needs rum when you have Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom?!

I loved the first two so I'll definitely be watching this one. Besides, the cliffhanger at the end of the last one really sets you up to watch this one.

Harry Potter

I still refuse to read the Harry Potter series, and I doubt I ever will. I'll admit that I did find some of the movies just a little bit amusing, but the only reason I'll be watching this is because I'm going to get forced by my family who loves Harry Potter.

Ocean's Thirteen

*Shrugs* I guess I liked Ocean's Eleven and Ocean's Twelve... So I guess I'll watch Ocean's Thirteen.