SQ Movie Marathon

What do you do when you're strapped onto your seat for 8 hours with no mobile, no laptop, and no PDA? Watch movies, of course! As usual, KrisWorld has quite a good selection of regular Hollywood fare, art films, and a mix of HK/Korean/Japanese/Bollywood movies. I was feeling adventurous, so I went for Hollywood.

Madagascar
Liked the jokes and the banter, but this is not a movie you're likely to watch again. The animation is good enough, but nothing groundbreaking. The voice talents are great, except that they are so distinctive, I'm actually "seeing" Ben Stiller and Chris Rock and Jada Pinkett-Smith when their characters talk. The plot's a bit thin - makes you feel like it's really a half-hour TV episode peppered with jokes and situational comedy to make it a full-length film.

I especially liked the penguins. They still walk funny and flap their wings. Who would've thought they break out of zoos, know karate, commandeer ships, etc? And the lemurs dancing to "Move It" are so funny.

Hitch
Now this is the romantic comedy for me. Aside from the few interracial stereotypes and contrived ending, I quite liked the film.

Story is about this anonymous Date Doctor called Hitch who advises shy geeks on how to win the girl of their dreams. Hitch will be your personal trainer for the first three dates, where he'll teach you everything you need to know to make a good impression on your target. From then on, you're on your own. So Hitch gets this fat tax accountant called Albert as his client, who has his eyes on celebrity socialite Allegra Cole. It's almost certainly mission impossible, but Hitch probably feels it's a challenge. Hitch walks Albert through the tricks of the love trade - from playing hard-to-get to dancing to kissing. Everything's coming up roses, but little does Hitch know that his new love interest Sara, who's a gossip reporter for a tabloid, is on to him. In a way, she felt Hitch was playing "the game" with her, so she makes an expose - and all hell breaks lose. Now every woman in New York who has met her husband in highly coincidental ways wants to know if Hitch is somehow involved.

This being Hollywood, all loose ends are quickly and happily tied up. Taking a cue from Albert, Hitch makes a big fool of himself in front of Sara, and that's how he won her affections back.

Some choice quotes from the movie:

• You cannot use what you don't have. She wants the real you. It's your job not to mess it up. Listen to what she's saying and respond.
• 8 out of 10 women believe that the first kiss will tell them everything they need to know about a relationship.
• Life is not how many breaths you take, it's the moments that take your breath away.
• Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away.
• Basic Principles - no matter what, no matter when, no matter who... any man has a chance to sweep any woman off her feet; he just needs the right broom.
• Relationships are for people who are waiting for something better to come along.
• Basic Principles - no woman wakes up saying "God, I hope I don't get swept off my feet today!" Now, she might say "This is a really bad time for me," or something like "I just need some space," or my personal favorite "I'm really into my career right now." You believe that? Neither does she. You know why? 'Cause she's lying to you, that's why. You understand me? Lying! It's not a bad time for her. She doesn't need any space. And she may be into her career, but what she's really saying is "Uh, get away from me now," or possibly "Try harder, stupid," but which one is it? 60% of all human communication is nonverbal, body language; 30% is your tone, so that means 90% of what you're saying ain't coming out of your mouth. Of course she's going to lie to you! She's a nice person! She doesn't want to hurt your feelings! What else she going to say? She doesn't even know you... yet. Luckily, the fact is that just like the rest of us, even a beautiful woman doesn't know what she wants until she sees it, and that's where I come in. My job is to open her eyes. Basic Principles - no matter what, no matter when, no matter who... any man has a chance to sweep any woman off her feet; he just needs the right broom.
• So how does it happen, great love? Nobody knows... but what I can tell you is that it happens in the blink of an eye. One moment you're enjoying your life, and the next you're wondering how you ever lived without them.

Gosh, it's movies like this that gives hope to ageing bachelors everywhere.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith
This movie is probably for people who'd like to see for themselves if there is really something going on between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Well, I've been a bit behind my gossip columns and women's magazines, so I decided to go for this one. Big mistake. That's another two hours wasted from my lifespan. This movie is just incredible. Not incredible as in "Wow! Great!", but incredible as in, "Who would even think of making this movie?!" What's even more incredible is that this movie made a killing at the box-office. Figure that out.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith spent the first part of the movie ignoring each other - exchanging pleasantries and enjoying home-cooked dinners over a very long table. You would've thought that two married people will be more interested in what their spouses are doing; especially when assassins are supposed to be inquisitive and paranoid by nature. I mean, living in the same house with your spouse for 5 (or was it 6) years, and not having any hint that he/she kills people for a living?! And that scene where Mr. Smith intentionally let a wine bottle slip, and Mrs. Smith caught it in mid-air without even looking. It's crystal clear to everyone then that their covers are blown, but noooo, Mrs. Smith simply dropped the bottle onto the carpet, and the two hypocrites rushed off to get the towel when in fact they were off to get their favorite weapon. Why the pretense when after that incident they spent a good part of the movie hunting each other down?

Ok, so later husband and wife join forces to take down their employers. (How's that for employee loyalty?) This is the part where their on-screen chemistry should start to kick in, but all we get is bickering, bickering, and more bickering. The car chase scene is quite good, but marred by their incessant chit-chat and one-upmanship. And that big showdown at the department store - Mr. and Mrs. Smith were being bombed at and shot at by scores and scores of professional killers, but they still managed to kill off everyone without getting hurt. Jeez, I guess love conquers all.

Spanglish
The flight's not long enough for me to finish this movie, but I like it. When I saw Adam Sandler in the cast, I went, "Oh no, not again." Surprisingly, Mr. Sandler toned down his OA antics. Acting by the Mexican housekeeper and her daughter is natural and made the film feel authentic. The chubby daughter in the movie is quite cute - especially when the breaks into her toothy smile complete with shiny braces.

Movie 2005.09.18 - Mystic River

Haven't watched a lot of Clint Eastwood films before, but must say I liked this one. The plot is nothing special, but Clint Eastwood as a director brings a certain bleak, brooding, depressing mood/atmosphere to the movie.

Mystic River is about three boys (Jimmy, Sean, and Dave), whose lives are forever changed when Dave was abducted by pedophiles posing as police officers. Dave managed to escape, but he never recovered psychologically from the trauma. The friends drifted apart - Jimmy became a petty thief, Sean became a homicide detective, while Dave simply bummed around. All this time, they wonder, what if, what if. One day, Jimmy's daughter was found murdered. Sean was assigned to the case. Dave is the prime suspect because he came home late that night all bloodied up and muttering about having killed a mugger. His wife had her doubts because nothing was ever mentioned about that incident in the papers. She later spilled the beans to Jimmy. Unable to wait for Sean's investigation to produce the murderer, he took matters into his own hands and together with the Savage Brothers, forced a confession out of Dave. Dazed and drunk and confused, Dave confessed and was promptly knifed and shot to death.

The day after, Sean tells Jimmy that they've found the culprit. Dave did kill somebody that night, but it was a pedophile he caught raping a young boy, not Katie. But it was all too late. If only Dave's wife had more faith in him. A lost childhood and an aborted adulthood. Such a tragedy.

Peter vs. the Wolf

This is another presentation by the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra as part of the Spring Festival celebrations. Note that the title is Peter vs. the Wolf and NOT Peter and the Wolf. An Australian premiere based on Justin Locke's sequel to Prokofiev's musical, and produced together with actors from the Phoenix Theater Productions.

The story continues from where the original left off. The Wolf breaks out from the zoo and ends up in the concert hall. He tells the audience he was framed and proceeds to tell his side of the story. In the courtroom, the Wolf defends himself against charges of first-degree "duckicide" by Peter and the DA. The Willoughby Symphony Orchestra is on hand to provide live accompaniment with different sections of the orchestra representing the cat, the duck, the bird, the wolf, Peter, his Grandfather, etc. During the cross-examination, some orchestra members were even called to the stand to "testify" with their instruments. Educational and entertaining!

Art on Wheels

Joined the Art on Wheels bus tour being run by the Willoughby Council. The minibus drives around the neighborhood with specific stops where everyone gets off the bus, and the tour guide explains the history of the place, or the significance of a particular artwork or sculpture. A great way to discover new places and lots of photo opportunities.

We dropped by the Civic Center to check out the 14 Willoughby Bicentennial Banners draped on two sides of the auditorium. About a thousand residents worked for four years o the appliqued and embroidered panels, which shows a pictorial history of Willoughby. In front of the Pacific Place residential block is a bronze sculpture called Shadow Play by Daniel Tobin. The work, which looks like a sail, is constructed in faceted bronze with glass shards throughout. At night, the sculpture is lighted from within, and a warm glow emits from the glass shards.

We also visited Daphne (by Gaye Porter) at the Willoughby Park, the tiled fountain at Marshman Park, and the sandstone-carved animals at Hallstrom Park.

Movie 2005.09.16 - Half the Rent (Halbe Miete)

The plot is fresh and original. The movie is filmed using digital media (I think), so it has that documentary feel. Story is about this hacker who is about to close a big deal. His paranoid girlfriend thinks the authorities are after them and nags him to drop everything and run. He knows she's on medication, so he ignores her. Later, he finds her drowned in the bathtub. He flees to Cologne where he was accidentally run over. So on top of working out the details on the meeting to sell he hacked data, he needs to find a place to rest and recuperate.

That plot thread sort of takes the back seat, as the movie focuses more on how he slips into people's houses (while they are away), and how he interacts with them. He leaves behind small things to communicate with them, so the tenants actually know there's an intruder. Surprisingly, they leave him be and sometimes actually welcomes his intrusion, to the point that he becomes part of their lives. The last scene is quite endearing. He was sort of flirting with this girl, whose apartment he's been "visiting" quite often. He would leave messages, highlight some passages in books, a CD here, a pointer there, etc. The girl responds back by leaving behind her own messages. So our hacker talks to one of his "hosts" about this, and his buddy suggests he go for it. He visits the girl's apartment one night. The girl is inside watching TV. He tries the door, but it is locked. As he was leaving, the girl somehow sensed he was there, so she rushes to the door, undid the chain, and runs back to her room and continued watching TV. Our hacker comes back, opens the door, and goes straight to the kitchen to put away the groceries he brought along. Meanwhile, the girl continues to watch her TV.

Movie 2005.09.14 - Dog Days (Hundstage)

This movie is hard to describe because I can't make out what it's trying to say. There is absolutely no central plot. It follows the lives of six parties in suburban Vienna during a long, hot summer weekend. There's the teacher who is attached to her abusive, good-for-nothing partner. The guy's drinking buddy is smitten with her and comes around the next day, and forces her to torture her partner under knifepoint. In the end, she still stood by her man. There's a couple with serious marital problems. We follow a demented lady as she hitchhikes her way to nowhere and nags the driver to no end with all her nonsensical questions and useless trivia. One of the people who picked her up is a private investigator who is supposed to catch a group of car vandals. Under pressure to deliver, he locks up his crazy passenger in a room, and tells his clients that she's the vandal they're after. They all take turns beating her up; some even sexually abusing her.

The going is very slow, and it feels like you're a voyeur watching people go about their daily lives. And it's not a pretty picture. By the end of the movie, you wonder if it's a total waste of time.

Cabramatta Moon Festival

The Moon Festival is celebrated across Asia during early September. The actual date varies every year as it is determined by the equinox - when day and night are equal in length. It is also on this day when the moon is at its brightest and roundest. Families have reunions and eat mooncakes and gaze at the moon.

We got to Cabramatta around 4pm, and things are really swinging by then. The town centre of Cabramatta was closed off to vehicular traffic and packed with stalls selling food, toys, food, clothes, food, trinkets, food, lantern displays, and more food. The residents and visitors are out in full force, and everyone was having fun. There were carnival rides and jumping castles for the kids; breakdancing competitions and dance workshops for the young ones; even a karaoke-style concert for the oldies. On the center stage, we have skits, song and dance numbers, acrobatic acts, martial arts displays, lion dances, and the lantern parade.

Chatswood Spring Festival

Also known as the Willoughby Spring Festival, this is one of the more popular community festivals. We got to Chatswood a bit late already, but there's still lots to see. The city centre is divided into zones, each with its own theme. One zone is called Green Street with environmental demonstrations, bush gardens, rainwater stands, and info kiosks. The main street is where most of the stalls are - crafts, arts, Chinese trinkets, gourmet food, etc. The Civic Centre houses the Willoughby Art Prize and the Spring Flower Show - mostly orchids. Right in front of the Civic Centre is the Kidzone. There are kiddie shows, circus acts, and hands-on juggling tutorials. Used to know a number of juggling tricks, but I seem to have forgotten most of them.

Swatch Labirinto

How often does one get to come across a Swatch AutoQuarz? Go in any Swatch Shop and you'll find the Originals, the Skins, the Chronos, the flik-flaks, the Beats, the Ironys, etc. but an AutoQuarz? I reckon it's as rare as a Swatch Solar. So when I saw the Labirinto (STK404) on sale, I just have to buy it.

Had a pretty nasty experience with Swatch's plastic battery compartment breaking off, that's why I'm using an Irony. I'm sure it's not gonna happen to the AutoQuarz because there is no battery! As the name implies, it's an automatic but it uses a normal quartz movement. Like an automatic, it uses a rotating weighted half-disc to generate energy (when you move your hands). But instead of storing this energy in a mainspring, it is used to power a micro-generator, which charges a capacitor, which in turn powers the integrated circuit, which makes the quartz crystal oscillate, which controls the timing of the stepper motor, which drives the gear train, which ultimately moves the hour, minute, and second hands.

The Labirinto's back cover is transparent, so you can actually see the rotating weight and a portion of the circuit board and the gears. I also noticed a silver disc which looks very much like a button battery. Hope it lasts as long as the watch.