Spiderman 3

So the movie. It’s funny, I never saw either Part 1 or 2 in their entireties, but this still worked because… it’s an action flick. It’s not like I was dying to watch the movie; I seriously thought from the bottom of my heart that my group of dear friends were dying to watch it so I should spend more time with them before I go to China. That was the only reason why I watched this show.

But looking at nerdy Peter Parker, I somehow see Homer Wells (also played by Tobey Maguire) from The Cider House Rules. Dang. Why are all the actors with nice blue eyes so short and … “chunky”? (Think Elijah Wood)

Anyway, so one of the critic in the papers wrote that the spiderman being leached on episode is like “Britney Spears meeting Paris Hilton” (BAD). As a non-Marvel reader/fan, I thought it was all right. This movie has its entertainment value.

Whiskey Lullaby - Brad Paisley

A friend let me listen to this song yesternight, and I was so affected by it. It’s just so raw and morbid and … I can’t even find the right word for it. It’s so strange isn’t it. For a person like me, who doesn’t know romantic love, to feel emotive by a song like that. Maybe it’s because I heard this song after having to go through a difficult conversation/confrontation I’ve been avoiding for years with this other friend. (But that’s another matter, and I’m sure it warrants another blog post by itself.)

Listen to it here.
Lyrics below:

Eternal Summer 盛夏光年

Official site 

Synopsis (by me): Essentially, boy likes boy but girl comes in between them. Liker remains agonized best friend to likee, and likee remains (somewhat) oblivious straight boyfriend to wretched girl. Liker becomes more convoluted when likee decided to sleep with him one night when likee was drunk. The three get caught in this mess, and finally, there is NO resolution.

My first R21 (movie rating that prohibits teenagers under 21 from watching) movie after officially turning 21. And really, I was quite disappointed by the very obvious massive censoring of this film. I mean, I saw the full version of a “particular scene” on Youtube and it isn’t that obscene at all! Come on, I thought our PM recently decided that homosexuality is something inborn so we should embrace it and not reject it. So by censoring this film it’s telling me the limit is rather low?

But I really like the cinematography. Especially the scene at the beach, as the actors are hit by the wave… it was just so beautiful for some reason. But I think this is a BAD plot. I can’t help it but that girl is such a bitch. I mean, she knows that liker likes likee, but she went ahead and seduced likee (after failed attempt at copulating with liker). And she hung on to likee as though her life depended on him. What’s wrong with her? She was even prepared to take him back even though he slept with liker. Sheesh. Such a bitch. And it seems to me there is such a big loophole in this plot. As in, if likee didn’t have romantic/erotic feelings (hey, whatever) for liker, why did he sleep with him on his own accord? So that means likee actually harbours some feelings for liker, but then at the lousy resolution, he kinda said they will always remain best friends. I mean, what a crappy ending. Pfft.

But having seen 2 Taiwanese gay films (this and Formula 17), all I can say is that they are two very different styles of presentation. Whilst I like the whole cinematography  and way of potrayal of Eternal Summer, I kinda like the plot of Formula 17, however cliche it is. Simply because Eternal has a lousy resolution. Then again maybe that’s how life is. Nothing is absolute, and nothing is neat. Yeah. But the strange thing is, even though Formula 17 is a funny show (with some stereotypical gays/fairies a la “Iron Ladies”), I actually cried at one scene (and I still remember that line in the dialogue fondly), but I only teared a little for Eternal, which has a more serious tone. Either there’s something wrong with me, or Eternal just didn’t touch me like it should have.

And ok, when I was exited the theatre (which really only had 5 people in the audience), I overheard this couple in their 50s say:

“Oh, it’s a movie about gays.”

I couldn’t roll my eyes further back (if not I’ll probably see my frontal lobe or something). I bet they just picked any R21 movie, thinking it’s some arty porno flick. Sheesh. The things people do. Well, at least they didn’t walk out halfway. At least they weren’t repulsed by this “movie about gays”.

Hell and High Water

I was recently listening to Black Stone Cherry’s Hell and High Water and I thought it’s pretty cute:

I know your hiding places
and I know your every move
cuz’ girl, I’ve been lonely too.
And I seen a million faces
been to a million places.
But, girl, there ain’t no one quite like you.

And I’m gone through Hell and High Water.
Washed away with the tide.
I can lose a damn war all by myself,
if you were on the other side.
So, in the morning when the rooster crows,
back your bags and get ready to go.
If you’re walkin’ through hell and high water, please don’t do it alone.

I know, you feel left down.
and I know, you been turned out.
I wish I’ve been there for you.
So when the night time comes around.
And you feel like an only child,
just know, I’ll be there for you.

No? I mean, it’s so horrible of me, but let’s consider this hypothetical situation: imagine you were fighting a war, for your faith your country your belief, whatever. And your The One happens to be on the other side. What would you do? Because really, in any war, the losers will die, either at your torture, or out of shame.
Then maybe you’d tell me, “my The One will be fighting alongside me.” True. But what if he/she isn’t? Like, the draw in him/her lies in the fact you two have something to argue about, to challenge each other all the time? Or he/she could be fighting against you out of spite. Then what happens?
So, isn’t it schweet if a guy claims that he can lose a whole war for you if you were on the other side?

Watch the video here (taken from the official website).

Theatre Idols 2007

 So I went to the Theatre Idols finals last night at the Esplanade Concert Hall. It was a face-off between the veteran, Ovidia Yu and the young upstart, Chong Tze Chien. Yu’s play is Hitting (on) Women, and Chong’s play is On Sundays the Kites Come Out to Play.

On Sundays is a comedy, a distinct change from Tze Chien’s usual angsty pieces. It was light, frothy and full of fun, but apart from that, it’s still only light. It is about this baby shower and friends having fun and how this gay friend of theirs suddenly admits that he’s been in love with the father of the baby for the longest time. I mean, em, the point is? Like what Dr. Seet had said, Chong is probably invoking these stereotypes about gay men and suspicious wives in order to subvert them. I can probably agree with that, but I really thought the ending was lame and crappy. That monologue was uncalled for; I know he wants to put the gay man as Central, but this ain’t working because the lines just didn’t work for me.

And you know my feelings about Hitting (on) Women. Somehow watching it a second time just feels … not as nice. This play works for a new audience, I suppose. And surprise, surprise, Hitting won by a 70% to 30% vote. I guess it’s because it’s really more well-formed and more … serious. It seems to me, most of the audience who went last night (or those that I recognized/saw) are theatre buffs. Theatre students, other playwrights (I spotted Desmond Sim) and actors and theatre-goers. So we weren’t really trying to entertain the commonday ignorant stupid non-theatre-buff audience of Singapore (who love rubbish like Phua Chu Kang Musical and the TV version). Get what I mean? That’s how you get to have 2 plays about homosexuality together and audience still laugh out heartily over it (Oh man I was shocked at the reaction of audience over the Tiger Balm bit). I don’t think your commonday prudish I-have-anals-legally-and-you-can’t heterosexual audience can appreciate this (or they laugh in utter glee when we joke about the penal code).

Oh did I mention? Mrs. Goh CT was sitting behind me and my friendS (oh my oh my when was the last time I watched a serious play with friends?!) the whole time and we didn’t realize? Fortunately I didn’t go too loud on my kacang puteh requests. (ahem)

Muar Chinese

I was watching this vid on Youtube and thought I might share it with you:

So in there somewhere he mentioned that “语言没有标准性， 只有地方性” (loosely translated as that language has no standardized features, only unique regional features). What load of rubbish.

Language standardization is the first step in building any community and country. I understand we still retain our regional features, but in order to get ahead we have to learn the indoctrined mandated standard variety. So yeah. That’s that.

Just go watch the video, it’s really funny.

Theatre Idols Semi-finals

 So, I went for Theatre Idols Semi-finals yesternight at Action Theatre’s place at Waterloo Street (ooh that place is pretty; shall drag people to go dine at Le Pont de Vie, which is a French restaurant housed in their building). Yesternight was the battle of the veterans, between Ovidia Yu and Desmond Sim - one whom I studied, and one whose play I acted - choices, choices.
So about this Theatre Idols thing - following the fad of American Idols and other “empower-the-audience-because-they-are-what’s-keeping-the-commercial-ad-fee-coming” shows, theatre idols is about plays being placed on the arena and audience voting their favourite through SMS. This year, the theme is veteran vs young upstarts, and as of semi-finals, it was Ovidia and Desmond as the veterans, Ng Yisheng and Chong Tzechien as the young upstarts. One from each category will go to the finals this coming Monday at the Esplanade theatre.
So yesternight’s plays were Hitting (on) Women by Ovidia Yu and The People in the Mirror by Desmond Sim.

(Spoilers ahead) 

Hitting is, in a nutshell, a lesbian play about a victim of domestic abuse coming to terms with herself and reminiscing of her past.
Man I love this play. I love the title! It’s got such language play - one of Ovidia’s trademark I guess. The play also reminds me of Eleanor Wong’s lesbian trilogy, so for a moment I was like “eh, did I remember the playwrights wrongly?” This play is good and has a lot of potential. I particularly like the line “maybe it’s the scars that’s making your skin stronger”.  So I voted for this play, and so did the other 60% of the audience who want this play to go into the finals. Yay. BUT, let me just say this once and for all, Singaporeans will not like it. Especially if the crowd is made up of people who are not theatre buffs (i.e. high chance they are homophobic - don’t make me reiterate the correlation between theatre and homosexuality). Oh well. We’ll see.

The People is a The Other-ish horror play about a boy who’s afraid of mirrors and tells the mother because there are people in the mirror but in actual fact he died in an accident and came back as a ghost and is afraid of NOT seeing his own reflection in the mirror.
Well, I don’t like this play because I totally saw it coming. Like, heck, no surprise. I was expecting something more profound, like, he’s afraid of the mirror because he’s afraid of seeing what others want him to be, and what others influenced him to be. But alas, they said at the beginning this was meant to be horror play, so like what one of the judge Parvati said, it’s good effort to try to put horror onstage.

And somehow… while waiting for the bus home after the show… I was hit by an idea. So I have another WIP if you check My Writings. It’s called The Birth of a New Death. Such a provocative title.

Oh yeah, I’m not at tonight’s semi-finals between the young upstarts because … I don’t like Chong Tzechien’s works. I mean, I might be biased against him because of that one play by him that I watched, but that’s me. And Ng Yisheng. Never watched his plays, never read his poems, don’t care generally. So, let the others go decide who else we shall meet at the Esplanade on Monday.

Hey Hey You You I Don’t Like Your Girlfriend

So. Girlfriend by Avril Lavigne. IS GOING TO BE RELEASED IN 8 LANGUAGES.
And this song is catchy! Watch the English video here:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid416542555/bctid564610566

And here’s the Japanese version (gah I don’t like it ‘cos I generally dislike Japanese):

(Links courtesy of Hossan Leong’s blog)

Ugly Betty

So I sat through 1 hour of this crappy show. It is funny, but in the utterly wrong sense. To me, it’s sort of like an outlet for the closet-fat/ugly-people-hater to laugh out loud and actually exclaim “she’s so ugly! she’s so fat!” Sure, it’s not a show to poke fun at fat and ugly people, in fact it’s trying to draw attention to the ugly side of the “beautiful people”, how they backstab and ridicule others. But I can’t help but harbour this bad feeling about how our local pathetic TV station might end up holding an Ugly Betty contest to look for the ugliest Betty in Singapore, and worse, pull out a street team to target some poor girl out there, and still having the cheek to say “oh come on it’s great fun! It’s only TV!” Get what I mean? (Yeah, yeah, me and my skepticism. But you can’t fault a Taurus for thinking that way).

And so apparently a premier was held at Cineleisure last week or so, for a bunch of people to catch this show before the rest of us (what for, I can’t fathom). And when they interviewed this particular person, she actually said “I love Betty ‘cos she’s so ugly!” I mean, what the fuck? You love her ‘cos you can laugh at her without feeling guilty? You love her because she’s ugly and that’s what makes you beautiful? Even if you love her for her tenacity and never-say-die-attitude you are seriously warped because everyday out there the not-so-undernourished and the not-so-beautiful people are doing what she does - stand up to this lousy fucked up society and bearing the brunt of the ridicule and prejudice. So if you can’t even open your eyes to see these people around you and their struggles, no TV show will change how you think (or unless one is so thick to begin with that they need a comedy to get it through to them).

So yeah. I don’t get what’s the hype. Or maybe I’m just too high-and-mighty (like what people think I am) to stoop myself to the level of laughing at such humour. My apparent self-righteousness is a chore to endure, I know, but at least I make a stand. I stand to be antiestablishment.

McDull (麥兜)

So I was watching a short film on this little cute pig on TV yesterday and thought it’s utterly funny and silly! I guess most of us have seen this following video from chain emails, about how McDull tries to order fishball noodles from the eatery:

And so I went to surf around for other McDull short films. This is about his mother. It’s so hilarious it’s brilliant. I love the mother! She’s so … unabashed. I can see where McDull gets his blatant lameness from.   

And this, good only if you understand Cantonese. This film is semi-sweet and Awww-some. Shows you that innocent side of McDull that is so cute.

So yeah. Just though I’d share some laughters with you.