Must-Watch: 'August' and 'Weekend'

Recently I saw two gay films I have been urging my friends to watch.

First there's August (2011), which tells the story of Troy who returns to LA in the hope of reviving his relationship with his ex-lover Jonathan. They had a summer affair that ended bitterly but Troy wants to give it a second chance. Jonathan, who is now involved with Raul, is at first resistant to Troy's moves but the temptation is a bit hard to resist.

One of the film's insights is that when lovers stray from their relationships, it's not always because they're inherently cheating pricks or that they mean to hurt their partners. Cheating may happen when a person allows things to spiral down from a series of whimsical decisions, sometimes just to quell a curiosity just like in Jonathan's case.



There's nothing ground-breaking about the film, but what's interesting is how some of the circumstances in the tangled relationships of the three main characters seem familiar to us through our friends or even through first-hand experiences.

It does not hurt of course that the actors in the movie are as hot as summer in August.

And then there's the much-hyped gay movie of 2011, Weekend. This is yet another familiar story of one-night stands among gay men. We've been all through that at one point or another.

What seemed like a single encounter flourished into a deeper connection between Russel and Glen as they explore their pasts and experiences as gay men. On the latter, they discuss a bit of the politics of being gay in modern Britain. In fact there's a lot of talking in the movie, which is why some people have called it the gay Before Sunset.

And just like in Before Sunset, Russel and Glen also grapple with the reality that their relationship is short-lived.  So there's a very subdued tension between them while they make the most of what little time they have.

The actors have exceptional chemistry, helped, ironically, by the contrasting personalities of their characters: Russel's pensiveness and Glen's detachment.

Again, there are no breakthroughs in this film, but it excels in treating a familiar subject with deeper sensitivity and complexity than most gay movies I've seen.



Good news is both films are now available for download.

Favorite Things of 2011

It's that time of the year again when I list down my favorite "things"... for lack of a better term.

I really don't have a proper criteria, just that these are personal favorites from the year that's just about to end. These are the things that I felt were highlights of 2011, the things that make 2011 more memorable. (These books and films for instance didn't have to be released in 2011, but I had access to them in only 2011.)

So let's start.

My favorite film is "Dogtooth" (2009). This Greek film blew me away for its unusual depiction of parenting. It resonated with me because often I question to what extent parents should influence the "reality" that their children are exposed to. This movie has some answers that made me squirm.

My favorite documentary is "Exit Through the Gift Shop" (2010). This is one hilarious and irreverent documentary about street art, its driving forces, and how it has crept into the mainstream art market.

My favorite album is absolutely Adele's "21". I mean, haler!!! Enough said. I'm almost tempted to name Lady Gaga's "Born this Way", but I based my choice on the number of times I listened to each album, and "21" has been on loop in my computer since it was released. 

Which makes my favorite song "Someone Like You". I'm sure I'm not alone in naming it their favorite song of the year, and it's easy to understand why.

My favorite novel is "Room" (2010) by Emma Donoghue. It's very difficult to read it at times because of the horrific experience of its main characters. But it ends with a positive note, somehow. I've been recommending this novel to all my friends.

My favorite non-fiction book is "The Case for God" (2009) by renowned scholar Karen Armstrong. The book traces the history of religion (mainly the Abrahamic ones), its philosophy, and practice, and asserts that religion is transcendental and best known through practice. 

My favorite website is Piratebay. How on earth would I survive the year without this website where I get my movies and music, aber? I looooooove Piratebay! My second favorite website is Google Reader where I now read all my favorite blogs.

And my favorite blog is still "The Sartorialist". Scott Schuman's blog has evolved to featuring profiles and interviews of his subjects. But he is still consistent in his taste for classic and often times quirky fashion on the streets.

Talk about fashion, my favorite model this year is the androgynous model Andrej Pejic. Now he is the quintessential model: a chameleon. He is as good as a "male" model and as a "female" model. Truly, he represents fashion today, one that is undefinable and fearless. 

My favorite clothing brand at the moment is Uniqlo, which opened in Bangkok a few months ago. I love its basics because I'm now on a "basics" phase. It's a big plus Uniqlo is soooo affordable.

Lastly, my favorite trip of the year was my ten days in Myanmar (blog posts here and here). It's a country I've long wanted to visit and it did not disappoint. I was completely enamored of the colonial architecture in Yangon and the serenity of the beaches of Ngwe Saung. I'm definitely going back to Myanmar in 2012.

Happy New Year, my dear ten readers and thanks for still following the blog.

Oscar Blues

Let me get this out of the way first... I LOVE TORRENTS. I mean, what is there not to love about it? I download everything these days such as America's Next Top Model, Project Runway, and The Amazing Race. And of course some of the latest albums as well.

I even use torrent as a verb now. Like, I torrented Regine Velasquez's Narito Ako album. Example lang, tse!

And thanks to torrents I have been able to catch up on the latest movies that haven't been shown in the cinemas yet.

So tomorrow the Oscar nominees will be announced and I thought I'd say my piece about those so-called Oscar "hopefuls". No, this is not my prediction, after all, I'm sooo not good at being a Madam Auring. Neither are these the best movies I've seen in 2010.

Let's just say I'm going to share my thoughts and impressions on those movies predicted to figure prominently (or already have) this awards season.

And yes, these are ranked, so let's start.

13) Social Network

Thin characters. The movies good, but I won't say it's spectacular... far from it, in fact. And wait, Justin Timberlake? Enough reason for me not to like this movie.

12) 127 Hours

Ugh. This movie is painful to watch for obvious reasons. I had to watch some sections of it as a thumbnail. I even put it on mute. The cinematography is good though, and what is there not to like about James Franco, aber? Other than that, this is just another hyper-stylized Danny Boyle movie.

11) Inception

The script, I think, is clever. And I like Marion Cotillard, Ken Watanabe, and Joseph Gordon Levitt. The music by Hans Zimmer is annoying, it just never stopped. Besides, I don't do action films. I tend to sleep through them, including this one.

10) Toy Story 3

I missed half of this film because I slept through it, too. By the time I woke up the credits were rolling. But from what I've seen of the first half, it was quite charming. I'm still thinking of watching this again. But maybe not because just like action movies I don't like animated ones either.

9) Black Swan

This scared the hell out of me, so in that sense the movie worked for me. Still, the reviews raised my expectations and ultimately I was disappointed. I think this movie is just too hysterical for my taste. I'm not even impressed with Natalie Portman. Well she danced her ass of, so what? Dancing is not acting, love. Her performance is basic. *shrugs shoulders*

8) Rabbit Hole

I'm a sucker for film adaptations of stage plays. The story is obviously touching, the characters are well-explored, and Diane West is stellar in it. But I was distracted by Nicole Kidman's lips. This role was not for her AT ALL. I can see fellow Aussie Naomi Watts doing it best, but not Nicole's over-bloated lips.

7) The Kids are All Right

This I love a lot! Julianne Moore and Annette Bening are perfect for the roles of the lesbian couple. It has a funny script too for such a seemingly sensitive topic. Things were kept very light-hearted while having a good grasp of "modern" and "un-traditional" families.

6) The Fighter

The acting in this film is its strongest asset. I would be damned if Melissa Leo and Christian Bale don't win the supporting actress and supporting actor trophies (duh, respectively). Even Amy Adams made a surprising tough girl act. The weakness of this film is its predictability, like, underdog wins big time, blah, blah, blah.

5) The King's Speech

This one also has a strong cast. While Colin Firth is fantastic in the role of King George VI, Geoffrey Rush stole my heart away. Too bad Christian Bale is going to win this year (well, Geoffrey Rush already has an Oscar anyway). The cinematography and production design also capture well the period. While the movie is a good character study of a leader in crisis, the way it's told, however, is conventional.

4) True Grit

Two words: Hailee Steinfeld. Who's that gurrrl? The first time she came on screen I was dumbfounded. And by the time the movie ended I wanted to bequeath to her my sticker collection from the 80s. She carried that movie and without her I would've just slept through it again. (I don't have an appetite for another drunk Jeff Bridges.)

3) Winter's Bone

Now this is how you do a triumphant combination of character study and unconventional story-telling. The plot is in fact simple, but there's so much texture in the characters and their motivations are clear, yet, not simplistic. And dear god, thank you for sending us Jennifer Lawrence! Please don't turn her into a Miley Cyrus.

2) Never Let Me Go

This is the movie I had been waiting for through 2010. I worship the book it was adapted from and the movie certainly did not disappoint. I'm rarely satisfied with film adaptations of books I love but this definitely did justice to the Kazuo Ishiguro masterpiece. OK, obviously I'm biased why I love the movie, but how can I help enthusing over it when it captures so well the chilling atmosphere of the novel? Love the acting of Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, and Keira Knightley as well.

1) Blue Valentine

I did not have high expectations from this film, after all the critics are not exactly having orgasms writing about it, although they heaped generous praises on it as well. Let's say it's not exactly the movie everybody's talking about. But for me, this is easily the one of most mesmerizing movies I've seen lately. Perhaps it's the heartfelt performances of Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams. Wait, I think they did a phenomenal job in the movie. Its strongest element, however, is the writing. The characters are so richly-explored and the pacing of the story (with the use of interwoven time frames) brings out the dilemmas and evolution of the husband and the wife very well. It is intimate and believable; and ultimately, without cliches, it tells us that nothing is quite simple in relationships.

Some Notable Films from Thailand

Thailand is celebrating Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives winning the Palme D'Or in Cannes a few weeks back. Apitchapong Weerasethakul certainly brought international acclaim to Thailand at a time when most of the recent news coming from the country had been negative. I couldn't wait to see the movie but some people doubt it would be shown in Thailand pretty soon.

Apitchapong's films have been labeled as inaccessible by local audiences, at least that's what I read in one blog. Many allege his movies are made for festival circuits instead wherein only the serious cineastes could understand his often times surreal films.

Thanks to torrent, I have seen Blissfully Yours (2002), which won Un Certain Regard in Cannes; Tropical Malady (2004), which won the Jury Prize in Cannes; and Syndromes and A Century (2006), which won the Golden Lion in Venice.

Despite all these accolades, I could not pretend I like any of his films. I find these movies' story lines rather vague... I don't even know where to begin in describing them. Their technical aspects, however, are very clean and unobtrusive, but other than that, I find his movies incomprehensible. But that's me.

While I haven't seen many Thai films yet, there are three standout Thai movies, however, that I come to mind.

The first is Citizen Dog (2004) by Wisit Sasanatieng. The movie tells the story of a country boy who goes to Bangkok and discovers its eccentricities, including a woman who is stuck with "reading" an Italian book, for whom he develops a fascination. It's a rather quirky movie: people sing in the bus, helmets fall from the sky, and a cute stuffed bear is addicted to cigarettes. The movie is surely going to put a smile on your face as it unravels a boy-meets-girl tale told in a non-conventional way.

Another Wisit Sasanatieng film is Tears of the Black Tiger (2000). Thailand's countryside is the backdrop of this pseudo-cowboy film shot in lush, saturated colors and employing over the top acting. Add to that the uber fashionable cowboys (pink scarf anyone?) as well as the hyper-realistic set, giving the film a good dose of exaggeration and fantasy. Ironically, the film's very gory, but you can forgive the director for that. The violence is a parody of sort, making it an element of the film that's funny rather than repulsive.

Lastly, I also admire Pan-Ek Ratanaruang's Moonrak Transistor (2001), which is a good-old love story between a country lass and a naive boy who adores her. While that part is cute and sweet, the hero is drafted into the army, which eventually led him on the run in the city, only to end up corrupted by it. Despite making a dark turn, the humor of the film saves it from becoming a cliche. The acting, cinematography, and solid pace makes this movie engaging, which makes it my favorite Thai film so far.

While I find notable the three films above, I'm still waiting, however, for a Thai film that just completely blows me away. I heard the documentary Agrarian Utopia is one of a kind, but I cannot get my hands on it and it has not been widely distributed here either. (But then, I haven't seen old Thai movies, and recommendations from the readers are welcome.)

With Uncle Boonmee's win in Cannes this year, I'm crossing my fingers Thai filmmakers would be encouraged to produce more meaningful works, especially in a country that has a rich culture and history that could be inspirations for the younger filmmakers.

Cut!

Thirteen years ago, I entered university. Months leading to commencing my studies, I was deliberating with my dad on what course I should take. My original intention was to take up Psychology, but my score in the entrance exam was not high enough (I'm even surprised I passed the exam!). Left to a limited list of degrees, I was inclined to enroll in Film and Audiovisual Communication as my first option and Theater Arts as an alternative.

My parents regarded those courses as somewhat impractical, my dad's point of view mainly. So in his hopes of me joining law school eventually, he chose my course: Public Administration.

I was of course just raring to head to Manila for university, despite joining a college someone else imposed on me. I was crossing my fingers then that eventually my dad would have a change of heart somewhere midway in my studies and allow me to shift to Film.

I tried my best to immerse my self in film while at the university (I honestly couldn't care less for my major subjects). The Film Center had regular screenings of films from Japan, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, etc., that I didn't have access to in Surigao. By watching some of the best works coming from the different parts of the world, I realized how many other ways a story could be told through the language of film-making, a far departure from the formulas of Hollywood that I was more exposed to previously.

Most importantly, my eyes were opened to the amazing heritage that was Filipino movies. Of course I've heard of Brocka and Bernal before that, but I haven't actually seen any of their masterpieces.

The university was generous in showcasing their works, among other movies by brilliant Pinoy film-makers who produced some of the best works of Philippine cinema, particularly those highlighting the political  radicalism of the 70s and early 80s. That period was touted as the second golden age of Philippine cinema. 

I was struck by the gritty realism of the films of Lino Brocka, such as Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang, Insiang, Bayan Ko Kapit sa Patalim, and Maynila sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag. Marilou Diaz-Abaya's Karnal still remains as one of my most unforgettable Filipino films.

Among the long list of remarkable films that came out in the 80s however, the one that stood out the most for me is Oro, Plata, Mata by Peque Gallaga, a nearly three-hour masterpiece I have seen three times to date. (I had a discussion with Miss Lyka Bergen about Oro, Plata, Mata yesterday, thus, prompting this post.)

Some of the best moments of my university days were spent inside the darkness of the theater. It helped that my dormitory was right across the university's cinema. I even skipped classes sometimes just to catch classics, well, such as the sexually explicit Scorpio Nights, which caused quite a big stir in campus when it was shown (our university had immunity from film censorship).My friends and I attended various film festivals the university regularly organized, such as those featuring films from Japan, which entranced us consistently.

Aside from watching films, I scoured the university libraries to read about cinema, which in the end I found too complicated, especially if one gets into the complex world of film criticism. I certainly felt juvenile in my understanding of what films are and how to relate them to a wider social context. For a time, however, I was satisfied to just sit on the sidelines as a film aficionado, but still hoping to study film eventually.

Not that I had a good idea what career I would have if I took Film. Back then, I just fancied a future in directing a porn film the great Filipino film or perhaps writing scripts. But looking at it now, my inclination was really film criticism.  

On my second year of coasting through university life and of being enrolled in a degree I was not particularly fond of, I finally dared to ask my dad if I could shift to film, to which he grudgingly agreed (I don't know how I convinced him, honestly).

I immediately applied to the College of Mass Communication, a very convoluted process in such a typically miserable state university, for the next term in the Film and Audiovisual department. By some strange turn of luck, I missed the interview schedule, thus, effectively cutting my chance in film school. I did not try again the next term, feeling guilty that doing so would extend my time in the university to the disappointment of my parents.

So I trudged on to finish Public Administration and tried to understand public policy and government instead (however, perhaps as an act of rebellion I refused to go to law school after university, as my dad originally intended).

With a botched career in film (or so I think), I kept my interest in movies, but never actually getting inside it nor comprehending its theories and process. I pretty much remain as an outsider, a dilettante if you may.

Must-watch: Thirst

There are definitely a lot of vampire movies around but I'm not exactly drawn to them all the time. I haven't seen Twilight. I liked Interview with a Vampire, but I was too young then when it was shown, I only remember Kirsten Dunst and her curls. The last vampire movie that really impressed me is Let the Right One In, which, unfortunately, I failed to write about in this blog.

I'm not going to pass again on reviewing a good vampire movie, that's why I'm telling you about Thirst (2009). The movie's directed by the very famous Korean director, Chan-wok Park, and won the Jury Prize in last year's Canne's film festival. I suppose because of that win, among other accolades, the film has been getting some good press and that's how I got intrigued by it.

Thirst tells the story of a vampire priest. If that's not intriguing enough, I don't know what else is. Add to that, he got involved in a passionate love affair with a married woman. Totally irreverent, is it not?

I love the moral dilemma of the priest, and the writers and director played it quite well during the first half of the movie, which I should say is the good half. Only, things got way too wacky in the second half, I was pretty much shaking my head on that part.

Despite ending with such a low note, I truly admire the camera-work and cinematography in this film. Also, the acting by the two leads, Kang-ho Song and Ok-bin Kim, especially on how they dealt with the transformation of their characters, keeps the movie engaging.

BTW, a Filipina actress, Mercedes Cabral (Kinatay, Serbis) has a small role in the film. But don't worry, at least she lived, unlike most of the other characters.

Check the trailer below.

Must-Watch: A Single Man

For months now I've been trying to find A Single Man (2009) on torrent but I was led to many false links over and over again. Finally I found one and just a few minutes ago I finished watching it and I thought I should blog about it right away.

Directed and financed by the designer Tom Ford, A Single Man is a mesmerizing look into the day of George, a gay man grieving the death of his lover of sixteen years. In that one particular day, he finds himself unable to find the motivation to live but a series of encounters and flashbacks brings him to question whether life is really worth ending.

Colin Firth was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of George, an award he deserved over that guy from Crazy Heart, I have to say. Juliane Moore, who plays his best friend, unfortunately, was missed a Best Supporting Actress nomination (I live for that day when Julian Moore wins a long-overdue Oscar).

Other than the these two actors, the most revealing performance came from Nicholas Hoult, who plays George's student at the university. The camera loves him, and over and over again I was drawn to his blue eyes as he (sort of) seduces George.

The other distraction - and an exquisite distraction it actually is - is the movie's cinematography. Every frame and shot was studied to achieve a perfect picture (think influences of In the Mood for Love). The movie plays with color saturation to highlight a moment's mood (although, in hindsight these "highlights" were pretty unnecessary).

The clothes are to die for of course! That sweater Nicholas Hoult wears throughout the movie is di-fucking-vine and the suits are impeccable.

With my long wait to watch this movie, however, I realized that despite it's many strengths I mentioned (which make the movie already worth-watching), there's a glossy veneer to it that fails to bring out a more fulfilling narrative. I don't know, I feel that it lacks sensitivity to its characters, making the experience of watching the movie somewhat lacking.

BTW, Spanish supermodel Jon Kortajarena (and a favorite of Tom Ford) and Brazilian model Aline Weber appear in the movie. Love that fashion moment there!

Film Notes: The 2010 Oscar's Best Foreign Language Film and Best Documentary

As mentioned in an earlier post, I've been frantically watching movies these past months (to the detriment of my reading though). I just wanted to catch up on the Oscar-nominated films this year and I still have a couple of films I've yet to watch even if the awards season has officially (sort of) closed last week.

It has been said that the competition for Best Foreign Language Film is oftentimes more interesting than the Oscar's Best Picture. Yesterday I watched the winner of this year's Best Foreign Language Film, The Secret in Their Eyes from Argentina. The strongest element of the film is its acting, especially that of Ricardo Darin, whom I thought was very familiar until I realized he is also in that excellent film XXY.

The Secret in Their Eyes was against Germany's The White Ribbon, which I also saw about a month ago. The White Ribbon was in fact the critics' favorite to win, as well as France's The Prophet. So I was surprised that The Secret in Their Eyes won. I think Germany's entry was stronger; it is far more nuanced and textured, albeit recondite at times as opposed to the accessibility of the film from Argentina.

At the moment I already have a copy of Peru's entry The Milk of Sorrow and in the coming days I shall look for the finalists from France and Israel to round up my Best Foreign Language Film selection.

I've always admired the power of documentaries in bringing to mainstream audiences some of the most critical issues of our time. Remember how An Inconvenient Truth managed to open our eyes to climate change?

Leading to the Oscars last week I squeezed into my schedule the Best Documentary Feature nominees. I have mentioned of course that I already watched Burma VJ several months ago in the Bangkok International Film Festival.

Thanks to torrent, I found Food Inc and The Cove. The latter eventually grabbed the prize on Oscar night.

My heart was of course leaning towards Burma VJ because it's a Southeast Asian film (well, sort of). But there was a controversy over the film as critics allege it's more of a docu-drama (as opposed to the strict definition of a documentary) because many of the scenes in the film were re-staged without the film-makers indicating these specific scenes as such.

Food Inc is an examination of food production in the US, particularly how a few corporations are controlling the industry, hence raising issues on farmers' rights, food safety, and a bevy of other related issues. This is definitely an eye-opening film, but with the sheer number of the issues it tackles the film is bogged down by its lack of focus.

The edge of the The Cove over Food Inc, therefore, is how the former kept its eye on the target, that of exposing the massive dolphin slaughter in one Japanese town. Watching this documentary is akin to watching a detective movie as a group of environmentalists use stealthy documentation to record the grisly carnage taking place in what is seemingly an idyllic location.

I still have a couple of documentaries to download, namely The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers and Which Way Home, so excuse me while I search for them on torrent.

and the Academy goes to...

Thanks to torrent I've watched all the Best Picture nominees for this year's Oscars (nominations list here). Well, except Avatar, which I still refuse to see mainly because it's made by James Cameron. But then I might change my mind and watch it on 3D tonight.

I did not see all the films through torrent though. The ones released much earlier in 2009 (District 9, Up, Inglorious Basterds) were shown in BKK theaters. But the rest were downloaded. I swear torrent has changed my life forever, but that would be another post.

Anyhoot, I'm absolutely NOT a film expert, I just enjoy watching them for some escape. Nonetheless, I'd be brave enough to say my piece about this year's nominees, just because.

It's interesting how they increased the number of Best Picture nominees this year. It takes a lot of effort to watch ten films ha. I understand Avatar is predicted to win, with The Hurt Locker coming in as the second strongest contender.

I did enjoy The Hurt Locker. It's a rather tense movie about a bomb disposal unit in I-raq, although it has shades of glorifying American heroism typical of war movies made in Hollywood. Ugh. Having said that, I don't think it has enough texture though, especially in terms of characterization and story. It's up-front and easy, that's what I mean.

Meanwhile Up in the Air is hilarious and intelligent, however, there's a familiarity to the storyline, which had been done gazillions of times, albeit not as accomplished as this movie. Precious, on the other hand, is very gritty and touching, and it is everything but formulaic.

What I find most triumphant, however, in this year's lot is surprisingly A Serious Man, by the Coen brothers. It's a hilarious story of a Jewish family man who is having marital problems. Put in a dash of religion and sub-urban neurosis, A Serious Man is irreverent and unpredictable. This is definitely my pick for Best Picture this year.

For the Best Actress award, I'm just glad Meryl Streep is nominated this year. I propose Meryl should have a slot in the Best Actress category every year, no? I saw Julie and Julia on the plane, so my opinion about her acting in this movie is not credible. (I haven't seen The Last Station in which the divine Helen Mirren is nominated.)

As such, let's move on to the ones that I actually had the chance to observe rather closely. Since I watched The Blind Side last night, let's start with Sandra Bullock, whose nomination raised eyebrows just because she is Sandra Bullock.

I love the woman (especially in 28 Days Later and of course Miss Congeniality), but after watching The Blind Side I don't think it's an Oscar-worthy performance. It's not really Sandra's fault coz the script is rather badly-written (which makes me wonder why it's nominated for Best Picture) and her character is a little bland.

Gabourey Sidibe in Precious is phenomenal. Her portrayal of a teenage girl who suffered abuse in the hands of her parents is so gut-wrenching and believable. I especially adore her restraint (think Nora Aunor) in tackling such a demanding role. And damn, it's pretty much her first movie, isn't it?

To be off-topic, I would absolutely DIE if Mo'Nique, who plays Precious' mother, is not going to win Best Supporting Actress. I don't know her but her performance in this film is absolutely breath-taking and even scene-stealing at times.

Now back to the Best Actress award... despite Gabourey's strong performance, I'd put my money on Carey Mulligan for her role as the precocious teenager in An Education. Her adorable and impish take on her character Jane who is seduced by an older guy is absolutely memorable.

Now for Best Actor. I only saw George Clooney in Up in the Air and Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker. Jeremy is very convincing as an American soldier in Iraq, although he can sometimes overplay the action hero character (blame it on the script perhaps?).

But between him and George, I'd go for the latter. I'm actually starting to become a George Clooney fan after Goodnight and Goodluck and Syriana. In Up in the Air, he uses his natural charm to portray the supposedly unlikeable Ryan Bingham who earns a living in firing people. Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart is touted to win Best Actor this year though, maybe even Colin Firth for A Single Man, so let's see.

For the Best Foreign Language Film, which is often more exciting than the Best Picture, I've only seen the haunting The White Ribbon (Germany). Currently I'm downloading The Milk of Sorrow (Peru) and The Secret in Their Eyes (Argentina), hence I shall reserve my take on those two films. A Prophet (France) is also a strong contender against the front-runner from Germany.

Lastly, for Best Screenplay, I would place my bet on Up in the Air for Adapted Screenplay and A Serious Man for Original Screenplay.

There, those are my favorites, but definitely not predictions. I can't believe the award season is nearly over! After this, I'd totally lose any point in living. Charooooot!

The Oscars is one of the two biggest days of my year (the other being the Miss Universe... like, haler???). So by next week I'd be totally glued in front of the TV to watch the show and of course observe the red carpet.

For the mean time, we have a long weekend coming up... yehey! And I'm off to see some ruins. Some photos when I come back.

Photo credit: www.oscar.go.com

Must-Watch: The September Issue and Valentino: The Last Emperor

In the past three months I feel lucky to have watched two of the most remarkable documentaries about fashion in 2009.

Fashion observers held their breaths in anticipation for The September Issue (2009), the documentary following the process of putting together the magazine's biggest (and heaviest) issue of the year.

Many people expected the documentary to reaffirm what they saw in The Devil Wears Prada, the movie and book based supposedly on Ana Wintour. However, this documentary is not just about Ana Wintour. Hogging the limelight instead is the rich, and often clashing, creative forces shaping Vogue magazine.

Set amidst the backdrop of loquacious and flamboyant personalities working in fashion is the hard work involved in producing fashion world's bible. One of the main creative forces of Vogue is Grace Coddington, who constantly pits against Wintour on which photos appear in the magazine's pages.

Their clashes aside, watching the documentary gave me a better appreciation of the visionaries setting fashion trends, and how Wintour and her colleagues at Vogue, along with fashion photographers, designers, models, artists, painstakingly capture the style zeitgeist.

While The September Issue shows the many collaborations involved in fashion, Valentino: The Last Emperor (2008) zooms in exclusively on Valentino Garavani, the legendary designer of Valentino.

Here he is portrayed as the inexhaustible genius that created some of fashion's most unforgettable dresses, as well as the luxuries he surrounds himself with (how about traveling with your pugs in your private jet?).

The documentary also gives due credit to Valentino's dedicated partner, Giancarlo Giametti. Giametti manages the business side of the brand and is Valentino's staunchest defender against the investors to whom the fashion house was sold.

The makers of the documentary successfully lifts the curtain of Valentino and Giametti's rather amusing relationship (constant bickering, tantrums galore, endearing moments of intimacy). It is also a portrait of a steely designer at a time when he's quickly losing control of his brand.

(I read somewhere that Valentino: The Last Emperor is long-listed in the Best Documentary category in this year's Academy Awards.)

Both The September Issue and Valentino: The Last Emperor successfully demystify fashion; that behind the glamor one sees on the runway or fashion magazines are modern artists who tirelessly pursue their interpretation of beauty. Parallel to their artistic pursuits is the increasing pressure for these modern-day arbiters of style to become relevant and marketable as fashion after all is also a business.

Top List, 2009 Edition

I swear I had this list in my head since September and I planned to come out with my annual "top list" (for lack of a better term) last December. Obviously I did not get to do that coz I was marooned in Surigao.

I contemplated whether I should still come out with the list, after all it's already January and by now most bloggers have already released their respective lists of whatever achuchu and eklavoo.

But then I thought I should still capture my mood for 2009 in some way or another and coming out with a "top list" partly does that.

It will be an abridged list though. Whereas I used to mention my top three of this and that, I'd just go directly to my top choice for each category coz damn I'm the laziest bitch on this bank of the Chao Phraya.

Gosh, enough of the preliminaries...

Top Model: Karlie Kloss

Top Book (non-fiction): The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order (1996)
by Samuel Huntington

Top Book (fiction): Never Let Me Go (2005)
by Kazuo Ishiguro

Top Film (documentary): Burma VJ

Top Film (feature): Revolutionary Road

Top Dance Track: Single Ladies by Beyonce
(sorry Laddy Gaga, but you're a close second anyway)

Top Album: 19 by Adele

Top Trip: Las Islas Filipinas (June 2009)

Top Inspiration: Bangkok (it still is!)

Must-Watch: 9 Songs and XXY

I had one major movie weekend and so I want to share two of the more remarkable films I saw the past two days.

9 Songs (2004) is one of those random movies I downloaded via torrent and it turned out to be surprisingly compelling.

It does not help of course that it is the most sexually explicit mainstream movies I've seen EVER (and that includes In the Realm of the Senses, which I also previewed this weekend). I'm talking about all the way sex here and the only thing that separates this film from real porno is that the former has beautiful cinematography and an intelligent story.

9 Songs is intimate, there's a poetry to their love-making. Watching the two lovers spend their time in bed feels very voyeuristic. Read more about the movie on its IMDB entry here.

Here's the trailer...

I also watched XXY (2007), an Argentinian movie about a 15-year old hermaphrodite, Alex, living in a secluded village in Uruguay. One day they get a visit from a doctor, who comes together with his wife and teenage son. The latter witnesses Alex as she discovers her sexuality and how her condition clashes with the people in the village.

The acting in the film is superb overall, but standing out is Ines Efron who portrays Alex.

The film could've been told in a more conventional manner, i.e. freak faces a harsh world. However, this is where the film excels because it chose to be very subtle, focusing instead on how Alex's family deals with her "disorder" (if I may call it as such).

This is definitely one of the best movies I've seen this year and I strongly encourage you to check it for your self.

To know more about the film, you may refer to its IMDB entry.

Time space warp, ngayon din!

When I was a kid growing up in faraway Surigao my family had a black and white TV. It had a dark wood casing and behind it was a brown wire that was connected to a spindly antennae propped on our roof. The TV was decked with knobs for the volume and other adjustments as well as buttons for changing the channels.

But then we only had one TV channel coz this was the age before cable TV. Instead, a company called Southern TV broadcasted movies and TV shows starting at six in the evening until about ten. Four hours a day is not bad at all.

My earliest memory of TV shows was of my mom crying in front of the TV set (why was it called a "set" anyway?) while watching the soap "Flor de Luna". I was only about four years old then and I could not understand Tagalog yet so I did not have any idea what the story line was. All I remember was a grainy close up of a girl in tears.

These were not direct airings from Manila though. Recordings of shows from Manila-based TV channels were flown in to Surigao. Southern TV then aired these shows, which were at least two weeks old, sometimes even a month old or perhaps much older.

I really could not care less about these TV shows mainly because there were no regular airings on TV. Sometimes there were months when nothing came out from the screen especially after a strong typhoon blew away the antennae, which was quite often.

One of our neighbors' mom worked in Saudi Arabia as a nurse, thus, they were blessed with a colored TV. They even had a Betamax player!

We would often hang out in their living room watching The Sound of Music, Annie, and Never Ending Story for the hundredth time. Occasionally we would watch The Ten Commandments, which was two tapes long. But that always made me sleep until Moses parts the sea in the second tape.

Much later on we'd have regular broadcasts of taped TV shows brought in from Manila, but still these were months delayed.

The ones I remember are Lovingly Yours, Helen and Eye to Eye. Again, I could not understand much of these shows coz they were in Tagalog. It was always fascinating though to watch some actresses having a cat-fight at the base of a grand staircase in some mansion or Inday Badiday interviewing the mother of a baby with hydrocephalus.

The shows that caught me and my friends' fancy was That's Entertainment, with those mestizo teen actors and actresses dancing to a Menudo song while wearing dresses with puffy sleeves.

I would always remember Romnick Sarmienta and Sherryl Cruz singing to some cheezy love song. Meanwhile, fans screamed at the foot of stage and a lucky few were allowed to scramble on the stage to hang garlands of sampaguita (jasmine) on their idols' necks.

On weekends we'd have GMA Supershow with German Moreno and his bejeweled suits. He was always surrounded with a cadre of female co-hosts encased in an armor of shoulder pads and topped with ginormous tsunami hairstyles set to perfection by hours of hair teasing and cans and cans of hair-spray.

The hideous fashion sense of GMA Supershow was perhaps the sole reason why I watched it... well aside from the Bellestar Dancers of course, di ba mga bading?

Oh, That's Entertainment and GMA Supershow should be a separate post altogether.

Meanwhile, the two shows that my friends and I did not ever want to miss were Shaider and Bioman, which were Japanese TV shows about alien-fighting superheroes.

The shows were dubbed in Tagalog but by then I still did not understand the dialogue. Instead I simply watched the action sequences that mostly involved the superheroes first transforming - just by shouting "Shaider!" or "Red One!" - from their jeans into their sleek and tight-fitting costumes. Of course they always wear a helmet to protect their identity.

And off they are fighting against reptile-looking monsters (in some mascoty costume) that just stomped through a cardboard building.

Gosh, wasn't Shaider a hottie? I believe he was my first man-crush. We did cheer for Shaider everytime that drag queen-looking villain shouted "Time space warp, ngayon din!".

And who could forget his assistant Annie who always wears a yellow miniskirt that shows her panties every time she kicks a monster with her boots? I've always fancied my self to be Annie and I'm like crazy over her bangs and pig tails!

Immediately after an episode of Shaider or Bioman my friends and I would rush out of our house fired up like our much-beloved superheroes ready to slash aliens with our Shaider Cutter.

Oh, if we were playing Bioman, I always INSISTED on being Yellow Four, which is a lady character armed with her Bio Arrow. Why not, aber?! With our black and white TV I would not even know who is Yellow Four if not for her Bio Arrow.

Aside from these two Japanese TV shows (that spawned a dozen copy-cat shows), we also watched occasional airings of Orang Engkantada and a few other shows. But none had the same impact on our imagination as Bioman and Shaider.

It was not until 1992 when Surigao finally had regular direct broadcasts from Manila. By then Shaider and Bioman had been eclipsed by... hmmm... I could not remember which. I just remember having our first taste of ABS-CBN, which kept us hooked on TV, primarily watching X-Men, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Baywatch and local shows such as Ang TV and Batibot.

Anyway, we still kept our black and white TV while the rest of the neighbors have moved on to colored TV. However, my parents decided to move it from the living room to their bedroom when they noticed my sister and I watching too much TV instead of studying.

Eventually, our TV started to get more grainy and grainy despite repeated trips to the repair shop. At one point a black line appeared in the middle of the screen and the pictures kept on moving up like it was on a loop. We tried adjusting the little knob at the back of the TV to keep the picture steady but it did not really fix the problem.

I could not remember the exact point of the TV totally not working anymore. But by then I've lost any interest in it coz I started watching TV of one of our neighbors. They even had cable!