perdonnez-moi, messieurs et mesdames. i haven't updated the site for so long you'd think i've fallen onto a ditch and never got recovered... nah! (anyhoo, you got my childhood true story flogging your computer screen for eight days and you can't wait to click "refresh" ... the bullsh*t's just intolerable) well, that's me self-defecating self-deprecating again! boohoo.

the days that led to the weekend left me feeling pretty spaced out. there were many things that happened in succession that i just couldn't keep track! i've never had so much frenzied emotions swirling about! :~

MY LONGEST POST EVER!!!

so, this would be a crazy day's entries (part 1) you'll unearth down there for today... just read on, read on, read on. my part of the bargain! =)

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may 18 was a very pumped-up day for me as i hurdle through tv finales, a getaway, and more tv 'finales'. let me start with the "getaway" as it (more plausibly than not) brings the most thrill i've had this entire vacation.

watching "the da vinci code" was the long-standing appointment i have yet to tick off in my mental datebook, and finally i got to do so last thursday with the company of beloved friends -- des and peach. i've been wanting to see this book's big-screen adaptation, and it never occurred to me that i could do so without the clutches of parents or the droll of a bootleg dvd. but the opportunity came from a phone call two weeks ago, and through the powers of technologies like this, our once-in-a-lifetime plan pushed through.

we threesome are a silly bunch, and come hell or high water we wouldn't want the day to pass in vain. we bonded like old times, despite the fact we don't often keep in touch with each other anymore (will resolve that)... and amidst all the hassles we underwent to keep the day right, it ended safe and sound. before i attack the film -- thanks, gals, for sharing thursday with me. *tears of joy*

so this would mark the first time i remember watching a movie on its opening day ... i think the one before that was "titanic", but i wasn't sure (all i knew was that my dad & i caught the first screening of the day). the fact that it has a lengthy 149-minute running time prompted us to catch the earliest screening right after lunch, so we'd have the rest of the day in its hands yet still manage to come home early. we were so enthusiastic about TDVC we overlooked the fact that it was "Rated R" by the censors -- after all, we are legally 18 and above -- that the 'holes from the ticket booth inanely mistook us for spoiled underaged brats. blame it on our youth... youthful faces that is! *hmph*

we got in just right for the show (even got a glimpse of the new 007 movie "Casino Royale"... i want pierce back! :| ) ... tense anticipation evaporated as i sank my eyes around it (how graphic). i savored everything like a child during the course of the film... what's the verdict?

for me, it was middle of the road. not as bombastic / explosive / thrilling as i initially thought, but an engaging one just the same. being partial to source material than film versions, i think TDVC (as some critics say) is "better off read" -- the novel delivers more adrenaline, and it has more wit & substance compared to the movie which reasonably gives TDVC's characteristic 'spunk' only in small doses. (i reread the book -- as i usually do with such -- and still found it exciting.) i just wonder if i'd like the movie if i never read the book.

(mainly offtopic: the Cannes people are really high-nosed snobs... and speaking of which, this pic of tom & audrey was taken at the french island premiere -- audrey is sooo pretty! she looks way cuter here than in the film... pixie cut! =D )

but considering the length & breadth of the novel, of course the film had to scratch out several scenes and sacrifice pivotal moments for changes... TDVC is pretty costly to film, with the locations and props and the casting. so maybe it's tolerable enough. honestly though, i love it that they were able to shoot inside the Louvre, that Chateau Villette was filmed on an actual chateau, and that the Temple Church is real. authenticity is good. ;)

what about everything else? [SPOILERS AHEAD!!! *lol*]



the film in general: yes, with all the cuts & changes i wasn't so happy that some of my favorite scenes were done in a rush, like the cryptology they used to solve sauniere's message... sophie's talent was underutilized, the revelation about her being the central of the story was anticlimactic it left me hanging... as well as the identity of the teacher (the telephone voice was pretty obvious, if you ask me)... langdon could've done more symbology (that's what i like best about him... nerd!) and not just quick decoding ... that they only solved one cryptex... and so on. the dialogues, to the TDVC-uninitiated, may be winding at times. i'm not complaining though. on the other hand, i loved the smartcar chase scene, the airplane & the getaway scene, and also the CGI flashbacks. the ending about robert's solitary discovery of the "holy grail" was done fashionably to wrap up the show -- it was a bit unclear (to me, darn it) in the book. i can say that the transition in TDVC is fine enough i'm going to sit still and be complacent. =)

the cast: oh, come on, i've been waiting to tackle this! hahaha... *wink, wink*
+++ Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon -- despite being able to portray different personas in his many-varied films, tom couldn't nudge me enough to love the movie langdon. he was quite stuffy, and the knowledge robert's supposed to enrapture the audience was toned to a squeaky mininum, which obviously left me a little disappointed. but being impartial (haha), i think it was supposed to be that way (?!). and tom is still my fave actor, even with a subdued performance and a hairstyle / special effect that rivals La Joconde's smoldering gaze... ;p

+++ Audrey Tautou as Sophie Neveu -- beautiful female lead to begin with. (notice my images? i'm having a girly crush -- noooo!!!) a part of me thinks she & tom are miscast physically, since i think langdon should be played by someone handsome and neveu as someone quite thirtyish (simply looking old). but anyways, that's just me. audrey's cute & frail-looking it seems, but she's got power! as i said earlier, her role may be 'underutilized', but her facial expressions (and physicality, i admit) make up for it. in a bit, she is intense and made me feel so serious about her that i almost never laughed in her comical "walking in water" scene (i should laugh now, a very late reaction) ...

+++ Sir Ian McKellen as Sir Leigh Teabing -- leigh was characterized so wonderfully in the novel i wonder if the film gave him equal treatment... he (nearly) did! i was such a happy wart when ian bounced onto the screen -- in an intercom, that is -- with the arrival of the duo in his chateau. he embraced the grail seeker's mischievousness it was delightful. he delivers the best quips, and acts most convincingly among the leads (the pivotal hostage scene and there on, was exactly what i want to see). no wonder he gets the hottest roles -- gandalf, magneto, even touted as a possible dumbledore back then... ian's brilliant!

+++ Paul Bettany as Silas -- of course, if i talk about leigh then silas should be a close second! *lol* paul is hotttt even with the murderous appearance (i started to lurve this guy in "master & commander"), and his silas does enough justice. self-flagellation aside, silas' got a cute albino butt! ok, i'm getting shameless. (hem, hem) ... but really, he makes the movie compelling with the suspense he offers. he makes his own scenes stand out! but a tiny qualm of mine is that they didn't amp up the melodrama when he died slowly beside bishop aringarosa... it was perhaps the only sequence in the book that made me sniff. (shameless, i really am!) **little tidbit: i caught paul on "the tonight show w/ jay leno" and he told jay that he held tom hanks in such high esteem that he couldn't really hurt him in the chateau break-in take, so they re-took the scene and when he was finally in his element, tom just let out a loud FART in between the shoot! *LOL*

+++ other noteworthy performances would be Jean Reno's Capitaine Bezu Fache... his emotions are very transparent ("A scar on the face of Paris." pretty neat to hear him say that XD ), the character was given importance in the film with the fillings-in of his personality & the gravity of his task. Bishop Manuel Aringarosa (Alfred Molina) is basically different from the one in the book... he comes off quite sketchy as the Opus Dei head, and i found the scene with the Vatican people confusing... he was in one word, tough. some other characters i'd like to point out too would be Jerome Collet (always imagined he'd be younger than fache, olivier martinez always pops in my mind... *ahhhh*) though he's okay anyway, Andre Vernet (a favorite minor character -- like to think he's refined and suave and all) is passably entertaining with his "rolex" stunt, and last but not the least Remy Legaludec (girls, i researched and found out he's played by Jean-Yves Berteloot -- just call him Lootie for me *haha*) is my eye candy for TDVC... he may only be leigh's manservant/butler, but he looks like royalty! curly-haired, tanned, blue-eyed, young -- nothing at all from what i envisioned earlier! am i the only one who found him hot?!? that's impossible! =D

my eyes are tiring out from typing this lengthy critique, and so are yours from reading it, but this is (i guess) everything i could say about TDVC the movie. nothing so scandalous as to ban it from showing, nothing so wildly fantastic as to make people blindly believe -- it's all in the name of pure Hollywood escapism, and i enjoyed the ride. one of the words that the french characters utter in subtitle numerous times is "merde" (wouldn't tell you what that means unless you've seen the film), and in that sense i don't think this movie is one. in true popcornhead fashion, 3 1/2 stars out of a possible 5. =)

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may 18 doesn't get any more hectic. you've read my post above, so here's the other half of what made my day "all shook up": finales.

as i prepared going out, there was the season finale of The Amazing Race 9. three teams slugging it out. i was so into wishing BJ & Tyler would win... i mean, after eating a big bowl of crispy/soggy crickets and still having fun, aren't they sport? and mega karma-lucky too! Eric & Jeremy are just as f'd-up as they can get, only with eric lying low and jeremy in the front and center of almost every action -- frat girls! Ray & Yolanda are really swell with how they've achieved so far... i was happy when they placed first 2 weeks ago (the benz price), just goes to show they're a great team if only they've got the energy and team spirit. nevertheless...

THE AWAITED JAPAN LEG!!! woohoohoo i was finally going to see magnificent japan in AR! (pickled as their most expensive destination ever..) and phil in heavy winter clothes! *mwah* ... this was probably (no, definitely) the place the Hippies always wanted... advantageous to them too, since tyler could speak japanese to know how stuff goes! which leaves the other two teams in a slight rut. but there always are mistakes and surprises...

i'm not going to post the events in detail, so lemme just tell you what i thought was fun: #1) the whole japan leg, of course. #2) the "messenger" detour with the hippies riding on portable bicycle w/ bells & whistles... #3) Fujikyu Highland and the rides -- save for the inconvenience that the challengers can't enjoy everything because they have to search for a giant board... #4) the old man at the toll gate copping Ray's butt... it was totally uncalled for, and i always get off-guard by that "moment" -- i mean getting surprised three times (seeing 2 reruns already... *wha-pakk*) ... #5) the Swan Boats! it was crazily exciting to see them 'mobilize' it...

so there went your tokyo hijinks... it's time for the serious buckeroos! :)

the teams have to fly back to the states (as AR finales usually do) so they can get closer to the whiff of $1M... where else, but in snowy, frostbitten Alaska. just when japan wasn't cold enough. the hippies & the frats racing neck-to-neck, while rayYo lagged behind as a result of getting 'lost in translation'. the tasks, save for the drilling, weren't that strenuous in this final leg. (tyler: "where could those chalets be?" grandma moment. *hee*)

as they head back to chilly colorado, the DECIDING task was a ROADBLOCK. as much as it was similar to last season's judgment point (alex linz & wally bransen with the 51-state jigsaw puzzle), this time 1 person out of the duo must put up the flags (from a big field of nation-banners) of the countries they've visited to, in correct order, for a foot race to the finish. they've got a placard guide on how the leg flags were supposed to look like, but obviously you can't trust it with your life. and my heart was thumping with excitement...

as the boys (hmm) sprinted back and forth among the flags, the 'lost' guys were nowhere -- were they actually able to do this final task? i wonder. eric (back from the dead) almost got it right -- but all of a sudden went awry, and bj flustered about the russian flag (2nd in order) which made their seemingly correct line-up invalid. i'm not making suspense sense, yeah. but it was exactly a competition between them as to see who's got it first!

and guess who won... BJ & TYLER!!!!! TTOW! TTOW! TTOW!

it was a most fulfilling moment. seeing phil and the other (eliminated) teams just grinning and everything... couldn't blame the hippies for tearing up (tyler was crying! :D)... wow, a cool million dollars! i love it that they won! (they're "my team", they're "my team", blah la la...) i like what they said about "giving people their adventure energy"... with their enthusiasm for things, they're deserving. stay hippies will you? =D

things turned wounded when eric & jeremy came... placing second was very sad of them ("we're this close to winning!", i can hear them seethe), and i gotta hand it to them for being consistent in their game and being very competitive. and ray & yolanda may turn up last, but who knows what they could've done without japan? they've got a trip to sydney anyway. so at least these teams all have something to look forward to after the race, having had placed first at least once in former legs (and some bonuses). everybody needs to have some cheer :)

... and before i wrap my season 9 baby up, the bj/tyler scene in the mat was giving me goosebumps... when phil announced they won, the two guys just stared into each other's eyes and gave a big bear hug... and after that they were just... tender! eric & jeremy were skulking with nary a contact, while on the flower power side i could (unmistakably) SMELL LOVE! whatta finale. ;p

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(i'm late in my post, they're probably singing now, but who cares?!?)

catching up late thursday night last week, i knew one inevitable thing would happen on American Idol results ep among taylor, elliot, and katharine. the final 2 were to be named while one of them gets the boot.

when ryan was talking about "how close the voting percentages were", i was anxious but at the same time accepting of the verdict. i *somehow* knew it...

ELLIOT YAMIN scored lowest for the week. sorry, dear. i'd like to think you did well with the three songs you dished out, but i guess with the weariness of your trip back home, maybe you really just worn out -- and maybe you knew what was to come too. i think you've accepted the decision -- you weren't shocked, unlike chris. it was a tough road to travel alongside "mr. showman" and "ms. prettykins", and you were undeniably the "underdog". but you made it so far to show everyone that you've got talent and you've got what it takes. some may bash you for not being good-looking, for not having 'personality' or that streak of confidence, but in a way you developed these attributes along the way -- positively, while not losing what's in your heart and soul. damn, american idol's a popularity contest anyway. YOU CAN DO BETTER. a part of me thinks this was a better send-off than what will be in the finale, when the eventual winner gets crowned and the runner-up might've felt a little shame in front of millions. chill, get into a good record deal, and promise me you'll be doing what you've started that made us yaminions proud. :)

(now that i'm done soliloquizing in elliot's aura...)

when i heard his name called for the exit, emotions simply sprung up. i was so sad he wouldn't be able to perform in the final 2, i was glad he can be relieved of a more horrible exit for next week, i was pissed at kat for silently rejoicing, i was angry at the the powers that be for making elliot such a fluff compared to the other two the night before, and so forth. i was already crying when elliot's AI journey clip rolled on, with the acoustic "bad day" playing (i never appreciated the song... only this once), when he sang "a song for you" in his audition so well, when he was "the king of richmond", when he was saying he's so proud of his mom, and how blessed he is... i sniffed so badly. never have i been so emotional in any AI send-off -- i mean, i favored elliot for only three weeks, and there i am wailing like he's my boyfriend. (ha ha) but that's how he made me feel.

d'ya know why I KNEW this would eventually happen? I DREAMED ABOUT IT!!!

(true story -- not making it up) it was two sundays ago, three days before the top 3 performance. back at the time i was heavily rooting for elliot since his "elvis" performance. in my dream, there was a giant white outdoor stage, cameras and crowd and everything. in my REM mind i was scanning for elliot's whereabouts, when taylor strutted on the stage, performing. where IS he??? like an aerial view cam i searched far and wide, and then i saw katharine in a dress, singing like there's no tomorrow. where is elliot?? the crowds were wild. then poof.

only in my waking state did i realize what my dream meant. it was like a preempted "finale". sad as it was, i'll be wishing elliot (or ephraim?) luck in his career. i wonder if i'm going to watch the final 2 performances tonight (not rooting for anyone), but i'm sure i'm watching the finale tomorrow since elliot and the others are showing up to sing too. :)

P.S. even in the moment of farewells, elliot never failed to show his sweet honesty. "I Believe to My Soul" was glorious... ("my name is elliot yamin"... "and i believe you're trying to make a fool out of me". nice!)

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weather news: rainy days are here again! woohoo! no more hot hot heat! =)

and so for my rainy day post, i'm opting for something 'cutesy' :

~~ childhood memories!!! ~~
let's talk about something for a change, can we?

i've always thought of myself as some kind of 'writer' ever since i was a young kiddo. i started with poetry (wrote my first uniformly-metered poem at age 7, and i still have a folder of 'em poems i've written during that era). i dabbled into story writing (more like pocketbook-writing, as i was influenced by the Sweet Valley books i was reading) but it ended as quickly as it came. i never continued writing after the fourth 'page'. so i guess even in that naive stage in life i knew i wasn't adept at descriptions. i then thought writing 'opinion stuff', or essays, would be my ground. i gave it a go, and where have i gotten so far? =p

the first essay i could remember writing was at the end of fifth grade (typed it in dad's laptop, labeled it as a 'short story' then), entitled "The Grade Five Blues". i recounted the highlights of that year, especially with my experience with the first-ever 'terror teacher' in my life, Aggie. no, wait. i ACTUALLY have a 'BOOK' of my entire grade five life, followed soon after by a special graduation year edition for grade six. there were probably about 50+ entries in each, written on separate notebooks, complete with rave reviews (by my parents, of course). it was like a blog back then... only i scribbled my sometimes-neat handwriting. i still have them.

BUT, in essence, as i dug up my old things, was another notebook that opened up a treasure trove of memories, of writings i barely remembered. the cover was my drawing of two parrots in a rainforest. this was written way back 1997 -- i must be 9 and in grade three -- and my REAL FIRST ESSAYS were chronicled there!

guess what they were about -- ANGELS! =p

ellie, known as the bitch from hell, wrote about cherubims and God's love?!?!?
i'm suffocating with laughter and nausea. *ha, ha, hack*
no, really. i was still a good girl back then! (rebel me: still am!)

but i couldn't believe i wrote this. was i as religious as a bible-thumping evangelist (or a nunnery candidate) nearly a decade ago? well, i was still innocent then. =p

the 'book' was titled "24 Ways to Bring You to Heaven". (whoa.) i'll post the two completed 'chapters' (there were only three - the third was a illustration of a rather fat guardian angel). unedited as they are, lest you accuse me of unbelievably perfect grammar, do tell me whether i still have a spot in heaven after all these years.

Chapter 1 : "Going to the other world"

We almost all believe in God. As we live, we change ourselves. It is because that we are growing up or it is like changing your old clothes to new. Sometimes we ask ourselves, "Why am I a bad boy? Why am I like this?" But sometimes we thought that it is going to be the end of the world. "Is it true?" "Are we only predicting?" after hearing a news. We say that we all die because it is going to be the end of our lives. There are many reasons when someone dies. It might be an accident, a burning house, hard attack or a stroke. We believe that there are angels. Sometimes, I dream that I am on the skies, talking to an angel. We laughed, we played and we enjoyed. It was a nice dream. Is it true that there are angels? I asked myself. You and I want to be an angel, but when we die, we go to another world. When sometimes, we believe that there are heaven and hell. We believe that we felt strange when someone died in our family. But when you are with God, He will comfort you. So love God always!

*to comment: the "hard attack" there is actually heart attack. i always hear old people pronounce it as that when i was young. (but aren't heart attacks hard attacks? =D) at least i had good spelling. next:

Chapter 2 : "Helped by an Angel"

Almost everyday in life something happens. It may be good or bad, but sometimes, one thing helps us. It is our Guardian Angels or simply Angels. I knew something about that and I'll tell you: 1. One incident at school, my teacher (science) tell our class that she was helped by an angel because when she was going down at the stairs, her heels was in the tip of the stair bar and she was going to fall down but it was balanced and she was able to hold her body and could walk again. 2. Incident at home: It was a Thursday evening, when my parents were fighting, I just prayed very hard and hope that they will be *illustration of a handshake* again. Then after that day, I asked my father, "Are you angry with Mommy?" Then he said "No". I thought to myself: Thank God they are *illustration of a handshake* again. God, I thank You that your angels are very helpful to us in Earth. And thank You for I begged for peace and You answered me. So I know that we would like to have Guardian Angels. But just have faith in God and he will give you one.

*to comment: i still remember that teacher -- she was one of my favorites. and however incoherent my sentences were, you could tell i had a very strong faith.

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doesn't it feel good??? made me feel so warm and fuzzy inside.

i'm gonna keep this for my descendants to read so they'll feel pround that their momma was once the sweetest little girl in the world. (aw, shucks!) have an awesome 'rediscovering your childhood' week everybody!

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i officially declare this layout version as "5.5". as you've noticed over the weeks, i've tinkered around with the background pic, the title borders, the date (it's french, and now right-aligned) little by little. i thought i should change the main pic as well, and now it's LEGS LEGS LEGS. =p ... so i guess this whole revamp merits a mention in my timeline of schizoesque layout altercations, as i haven't exactly changed everything, just sparing servings. (like a little shake & tremor instead of an all-out earthquake). take a look at what we've become:



... and we've only just begun! i love, love, love my blog -- my lifeforce! *kisses*

i know i don't update regularly anymore (laziness stinging me?), and my entries suck delve too much into nonsense generally superficial issues. what have i to say?

i don't give a hoot. it's MY space and i can write whatever i want. my philosophy about blogs is that it gives a chance to escape from the so-called "harsh realities of life" (in case you haven't read this, it's one of my on-site plugs). grossly put, leave the sh*t in the toilet. i mean what i write -- it COMES FROM THE HEART. and whatsoever i fancy the most is simultaneously loved in real time.

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breaking away from the dramatic monologue, let me divulge (hmm, all-out) who i'm rooting for to win in the 2 hottest reality shows:

The Amazing Race 9 -- BJ & Tyler
i've said this already in a previous post, but really, i want these guys to win badly! they're lucky enough to have survived not one but TWO non-elimination legs (phil loves them eh? xp) that left my heart in a thump-thump-thump. they seem to be having the most fun, while being a tough competition. last week's ep finally woke my senses from an otherwise dull season -- it was a real race to the finish! (three teams slugging it out for the mat! whoopee!) .. muddy MoJos (want them out)* and brokebacks aside, i believe with the coordination and strength (plus advantage) and a little luck, i think the hippies are gonna win... either it's them or RayYo for the $1M... no one else! ;p

*on edit: the MoJo team is out... and it's up to the hippies (1st because of the bug-eating FF), the frats (2nd), and RayYo (3rd) for the finish line next week! they're heading out to japan, which is the climax of this season... and down to alaska where it all ends. the preview was so exciting i can't wait to see the real thing!

Season Finale : May 18

American Idol -- Elliot Yamin
late as i am in jumping on to the AI bandwagon (started watching only mid-april), i'm not ending this show without a cherry pick. for me, elliot is a great contender for the title... he has a very mellow voice, he can adapt to different genres, he's obviously got talent, but the best part of all is that he is genuine. he sings with much passion and earnest. you can see it in his performances. he's humble, caring, and takes the judges' comments as a building block for improvement. from what i've learned, he's basically half-deaf and has diabetes. pity, yes, but he's willing to fight these odds every single week on AI to prove himself to the world. he may not have the looks or the height or whatever physical aspect, but being himself compensates for everything. he deserves to win this.

*on edit: from what i've heard (i always want to be *spoiled*), chris daughtry is out! and i thought it was kat since chris was like, 'the anointed one' or something... that leaves taylor, elliot (saved!) and katharine in the top 3... fun!

Season Finale : May 25

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mercredi, mai 03, 2006 Y 7:21 PM

... blockbusters and then some

ahhh, may! the absolute start of happy days when it comes to movies... as the resident popcorn flick buff, i'm grossly (emphasize on the "gross") excited about watching some of the biggest hollywood offerings, namely (in order of release) :

Mission: Impossible III (May 3)

Poseidon (May 10)

The Da Vinci Code (May 18)

X-Men III: The Last Stand (May 26*)

Superman Returns (June 30*)

Pirates of the Carribean II: Dead Man's Chest (July 7*)

but for space's sake, i'll just zero in on two particular movies (very predictable):

1) M:i-3 -- ok, we're not going to blab about tom cruise although it's his movie... all the hullabaloo over the you-know-what since last year has fried my brain cells already. if this is going to be some sort of redemption for him, let it be. but he is NOT the reason why i'm gaga about this film... there are plenty of other reasons: lame excuse #1 this is directed by J.J. Abrams of "Lost" and "Alias" fame (he created and produced these 2)... i expect really great things from this man... action, plot twists, fun! if he can turn me from a regular "Lost" viewer to a mega-addict wacko "Lost" viewer, what else? lame excuse #2 Philip Seymour Hoffman stars in it. this is his first major foray into big budget films. again, expectations are high since his Best Actor win in "Capote" -- which i watched, loved and even read the entire screenplay! (i swear!) i bet he'll make a great villain. (rumor's ripe that he's gonna play the Penguin in the next Batman installment. *shakes head*) lame excuse #3 other stars like Michelle Monaghan, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Maggie Q..... Michelle's really purty. i remember her from "Mr. & Mrs. Smith"... and Maggie, she's beautiful (Polish-Irish / Vietnamese) ... and Jonathan is kinda cute (non-Elvis-wise, ok?) sad that his "Match Point" costar Scarlett Johansson didn't sign on to the role currently played by Keri Russell. i do my research! lame excuse #4 the new MI3 theme by Kanye West. i'm intrigued 'coz i heard the tailend of the theme which was a totally sexy take. hearing Kanye's music (as i'm still on a lapse from "Gold Digger"), it's bound to be a smash. i wanna hear it! lame excuse #5 the locations, the effects, the surprises, and... all right, all right (can't help it)... tom cruise. he spent his money on this! =p

2) The Da Vinci Code -- would you mind if i rehash all the buzz i've generated for this movie (from my september post)? this topbills my favorite actor of all time, Tom Hanks, in a role i couldn't imagine he would play. i really thought Harrison Ford would be a nice choice, but anyways, director Ron Howard calls the shots... and what's with the crazy hair? but i'll brush aside all my misgivings and doubts he'd play the perfect Robert Langdon by simply watching... maybe he can pull it off! Audrey Tautou (from "Amelie") and Jean Reno (the quintessential Frenchman in most American movies) play Sophie and Bezu respectively... i have high hopes in both. but what gains most momentum to me in watching DVC would be my other favorite actors (Sir) Ian McKellen and Paul Bettany, playing my favorite characters (Sir) Leigh Teabing & Silas. when i found they'd do these roles, my anticipation rose and i couldn't have been more excited to watch! but honestly, i found their physiques quite different from the one in the book. (i always read the book -- if i own one -- weeks before its film version arrives, just to rediscover and therefore compare) leigh is described as someone fat and jovial (his sly humor made me love him), and i couldn't find them in ian (ha, ha... it's the dark side that counts... *oops, spoiled!*) ... nor the big ugly brute in paul's silas (i think otherwise)... but anyhoo, what's the fuss with all the controversy about banning / boycotting the movie just because it 'destroys Christian beliefs', promotes violence, sexuality (?!), defames the Catholic Church, Opus Dei, and so on? "The Da Vinci Code"'s a freaking work of fiction! i've read the book a second time and found nothing so scandalous about the revelations, clever as it was intricated in the novel. any learned person can distinguish the fact from fiction -- it's up to him, whether he takes Dan Brown's work as gospel truth or not. surely i won't (i don't know anyone who did), but it makes for good reading and conversation topic (promotes religious dialogue, as Brown suggests). somewhere on the back of my mind i think the whole "only human" thing's plausible...

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