I passed on to my best friend the news/rumor that her boyfriend since birth, Leonardo di Caprio, is the hottest bet (if not the surest) for the role of Jay Gatsby in Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of The Great Gatsby which will come out in the big screen on 2012 (sigh, let time fly please!).
My best friend was excited over the prospect of another Leo movie and asked me what The Great Gatsby was all about. I led her to my other blog where I wrote about the book (as a summer reading suggestion, together with Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood). At her request, I didn't give spoilers of Leo's future film, but I did spill the magic beans on Norwegian Wood.
After ending my paraphrased version of Murakami's "most erotic" novel which ended in the hero's love interest's suicide, my best friend frowned: "What kind of a story is that? I'd take the cliches of happy endings anytime. Where did I read it? I guess from Wayne Dyer it was, saying that we mustn't read or watch the news (with all its negativity) - it'll only bring us down." Sigh of relief. Right she is.
After pondering the mysteries and miseries of life, I'm ready for a happy ending, no matter how cheesy the story line... Goodbye for now, Murakami, Fitzgerald and Wei Hui. I'm going to Disneyland and switch back to my sappy Asian dramas.
Showing posts with label entertainment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label entertainment. Show all posts
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
R.I.P. Liz Taylor
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="318" caption="Elizabeth Taylor 1932-2011"]
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I didn't know Liz Taylor died last March 23, 2011 until I read the last line of Paulo Coelho's Character of the Week. No wonder she was on the news which was our background noise during a friend's daughter's graduation party last night.
It's amazing how a spectator such as myself had taken for granted the mortality of this legendary lady's life.
I mostly remember reading about her in National Enquirer tabloids back in the early '90's and spraying my mom's Elizabeth Taylor Passion perfume in the same era. In 1991, she hogged the headlines with her controversial 9th marriage to Larry Fortensky, a construction worker, whom she met at the Betty Ford Clinic (a rehab center for alcoholics). Elizabeth signed an agreement to award Fortensky $1 Million if their marriage lasted 5 years. They divorced in 1996. She is also one of Michael Jackson's well known best friends.
Although I have only read about Liz Taylor in the later years of her life, what I most remember reading about was her struggle between proving her acting abilities that were overshadowed by her exquisite beauty. Eventually, she became the highest paid celebrity by the time she filmed Cleopatra in 1960.
Among the many things written about the extraordinary violet eyed beauty, what has stuck me most is her highly publicized love life. Sadly, her story is proof that physical beauty doesn't necessarily assure one of a romantic happily ever after.
Elizabeth's most significant contribution to society, though overlooked by many (including myself), was cofounding the American for AIDS Research in 1985, following the AIDS related death of her friend, Rock Hudson.
Goodbye, Liz. I wish you a peaceful and blessed happily ever after with the One Who gave you the beautiful face and colorful life that has entertained millions the world through your decades in the Silver Screen.
[/caption]I didn't know Liz Taylor died last March 23, 2011 until I read the last line of Paulo Coelho's Character of the Week. No wonder she was on the news which was our background noise during a friend's daughter's graduation party last night.
It's amazing how a spectator such as myself had taken for granted the mortality of this legendary lady's life.
I mostly remember reading about her in National Enquirer tabloids back in the early '90's and spraying my mom's Elizabeth Taylor Passion perfume in the same era. In 1991, she hogged the headlines with her controversial 9th marriage to Larry Fortensky, a construction worker, whom she met at the Betty Ford Clinic (a rehab center for alcoholics). Elizabeth signed an agreement to award Fortensky $1 Million if their marriage lasted 5 years. They divorced in 1996. She is also one of Michael Jackson's well known best friends.
Although I have only read about Liz Taylor in the later years of her life, what I most remember reading about was her struggle between proving her acting abilities that were overshadowed by her exquisite beauty. Eventually, she became the highest paid celebrity by the time she filmed Cleopatra in 1960.
Among the many things written about the extraordinary violet eyed beauty, what has stuck me most is her highly publicized love life. Sadly, her story is proof that physical beauty doesn't necessarily assure one of a romantic happily ever after.
Elizabeth's most significant contribution to society, though overlooked by many (including myself), was cofounding the American for AIDS Research in 1985, following the AIDS related death of her friend, Rock Hudson.
Goodbye, Liz. I wish you a peaceful and blessed happily ever after with the One Who gave you the beautiful face and colorful life that has entertained millions the world through your decades in the Silver Screen.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wonder Women: Lynda, Adrianne and Me
[caption id="attachment_183" align="aligncenter" width="213" caption="Adrianne & Lynda"]
[/caption]
Image Source: Eonline
(The first time I saw the new Wonder Woman was in my friend Marie's blog. Thanks, Marie!!!)
I've always dreamed of being Wonder Woman. I attended a costume party in our neighborhood back when I was around 8 years old and drooled with envy over the celebrant's costume: she was Wonder Woman, only she wore black stockings for whatever reason her mother had.
These days, I content myself by referring to my efforts as Wonder Woman by virtue of being a full time day-job employee, a full time single mother (who does the laundry, cooking and cleaning after work; not to mention tutoring my son when he comes home from school!) and an aspiring blogger. But sadly, I still don't have a Wonder Woman costume.
But guess who gets a new one?
Finally, after many years and remakes of Superman, Batman and even The Green Hornet, Wonder Woman gets a new face in the hot and sultry Adrianne Palicki. Wonder Woman even gets a "new" flavor to her sexy costume. She's wearing gorgeous tights instead of Lynda's hotpants and now has electric blue boots instead of the '70's red number.
I love how Lynda Carter turned over the golden crown/band to Adrianne Palicki. Read here for the full interview. True to being a worthy member (not only muse) of the Justice League, it's truly magnanimous and gracious of Lynda to welcome Adrianne into the sisterhood of Wonder Woman with wonderful and encouraging words.
Now that I still dream of wearing that gold band over my head (while doing my real life Wonder Woman tasks), I now have the choice between Lynda's '70's style or Adrianne's updated costume.
[/caption]Image Source: Eonline
(The first time I saw the new Wonder Woman was in my friend Marie's blog. Thanks, Marie!!!)
I've always dreamed of being Wonder Woman. I attended a costume party in our neighborhood back when I was around 8 years old and drooled with envy over the celebrant's costume: she was Wonder Woman, only she wore black stockings for whatever reason her mother had.
These days, I content myself by referring to my efforts as Wonder Woman by virtue of being a full time day-job employee, a full time single mother (who does the laundry, cooking and cleaning after work; not to mention tutoring my son when he comes home from school!) and an aspiring blogger. But sadly, I still don't have a Wonder Woman costume.
But guess who gets a new one?
Finally, after many years and remakes of Superman, Batman and even The Green Hornet, Wonder Woman gets a new face in the hot and sultry Adrianne Palicki. Wonder Woman even gets a "new" flavor to her sexy costume. She's wearing gorgeous tights instead of Lynda's hotpants and now has electric blue boots instead of the '70's red number.
I love how Lynda Carter turned over the golden crown/band to Adrianne Palicki. Read here for the full interview. True to being a worthy member (not only muse) of the Justice League, it's truly magnanimous and gracious of Lynda to welcome Adrianne into the sisterhood of Wonder Woman with wonderful and encouraging words.
Now that I still dream of wearing that gold band over my head (while doing my real life Wonder Woman tasks), I now have the choice between Lynda's '70's style or Adrianne's updated costume.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
我的秘密: Inspired by Jay
I am absolutely crushing on Jay Chou Chieh-lun right now. Ever since I watched The Green Hornet on the week of its premier, I've been smitten. So here's what I got from my research (Thaaaank you, Google!).
Way before he wowed the world with his mysterious and dreamier version of Kato (albeit just as strong as Bruce Lee's), long before his astronomic star power hit Asia (and then the world), Jay Chou was an average student who made his teachers worry that he was dumb due to his flat affect. In a Time Magazine article that featured this hunk, Jay's highschool teacher, Ms. Ellen Hsu remarked: "He had very few facial expressions; I thought he was dumb."
In fact, what confounds me more than anything is that in the same article in Time Magazine it says that "Idolmakers thought he was ugly". That is just atrocious!!! But then again, minus the stylists' magic, Jay Chou would just be another boy from around the corner. And I have to concede that in the Asian standard of male beauty, Jay Chou before the stylists' magic wands would stop at average.
But wait, beauty is only skin deep.
What makes Jay Chou win over Jerry Yan (according to me, that is) is his stellar talent. Though Jay Chou was touted by his teachers as "stupid" (Yu tsun, still according to Time Magazine), and though his physical attributes were a diamond in the rough for Taiwan's showbiz scene, Jay's stellar prowess comes from something that cannot be fixed by plastic surgery or years and years in the academe. His creativity is sheer genius.
This is what put Jerry Yan second place and Jay Chou first in my fan heart.
His mother, Yeh Hui-mei (also made famous by Jay, through his song "Listen to Mama's Words"), observed how Jay as an infant responded to pop music. From this keen inspection, Yeh enrolled her four year old son in piano lessons. Jay has often remarked that his mother has been strict with his music lessons, such that he envied how other children had the chance to play while he was stuck playing piano.
But all the hardwork (perhaps the ten 10,000 hours that contribute to one's success, to quote Malcolm Gladwell's thesis in Outliers) has paid off and proven WRONG! everybody who thought Jay Chou was retarded and ugly -
But first, Lady Luck:
A girl from Jay's high school (someone he barely knew, again according to Time), signed him up for Taiwan's version of American Idol. Jay, who is reputedly shy, was reportedly adamant against performing alone, agreed instead to accompany a singer (who sadly got sacked). But Jay's musical score bewitched Taiwan's entertainment godfather Jacky Wu. Jacky Wu's instinct in hiring Jay was right on the mark; but it was apparently Jacky Wu who doubted that Jay Chou's looks would make him a pin-up boy.
Jay released his eponymous debut album in 2000, collaborated with Vincent Fang (articles have called Vincent Jay's twin star lyricist), made music videos that are actually watchable (and re-watchable) mini-movies (that are not about sex and drugs, but about fantasies, family, fans and forever). He also directed his first film entitled "Secret 不能說的秘密 (The Secret That Cannot Be Told)" which garnered several accolades in Hong Kong's and Taiwan's award giving bodies. Then, Hollywood embraced him and his talent (even making his Kato a piano playing hero) and the rest is history.
Now, tell me, what stroke of fortune made this boy, who was doubted for his looks and "intellect," too significant to be ignored? His star shines not only to please the eye, but to inspire. Way to go, Jay Chou!
Sample Jay's music/MV:
<a href="">
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Linkin Park: New Divide (Lyrics and My Personal Thoughts)
My son, who will be turning 12 this year, is a music lover. He loves different kinds of music, from the Billy Joel's Uptown Girl to Bruno Mars' Grenade, from anime soundtracks to songs from the TV series "Glee", from The Beatles' music and now to Linkin Park's "New Divide". (Click on the songs for music video links).
After hearing the song over and over again, my son said, "Ma, this song is actually emo." His own opinion didn't deter him from playing the song over and over again.
I googled the lyrics and it is actually intense. Oh well, this is one of the adventures of being a music lover's mom. I get to hear different kinds of music. As much as alternative metal isn't really my delicate cup of tea, I think the song is pretty cool.
Here are the lyrics from this site:
New Divide (Linkin Park)
I remembered black skies, the lightning all around me
I remembered each flash as time began to blur
Like a startling sign that fate had finally found me
And your voice was all I heard that I get what I deserve
So give me reason to prove me wrong, to wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross the distance in your eyes
Give me reason to fill this hole, connect the space between
Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies across this new divide
There was nothing in sight but memories left abandoned
There was nowhere to hide, the ashes fell like snow
And the ground caved in between where we were standing
And your voice was all I heard that I get what I deserve
So give me reason to prove me wrong, to wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross the distance in your eyes across this new divide
In every loss, in every lie, in every truth that you'd deny
And each regret and each goodbye was a mistake too great to hide
And your voice was all I heard that I get what I deserve
So give me reason to prove me wrong, to wash this memory clean
Let the floods cross the distance in your eyes
Give me reason to fill this hole, connect the space between
Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies across this new divide
Across this new divide, across this new divide
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Secret That Cannot be Told (Discussion and Spoilers) – Read only after you’ve seen the movie
[caption id="attachment_88" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="My Secret"]
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Ever since I got my copy of Jay Chou’s movie Secret (2007) via Yesasia, I have watched it four times and still hunger for more. I have invited the preteen audience (my son and my cousin), a young adult (my sister), my best friend (an up and coming lawyer) and my mom.
The younger viewers highly enjoyed it. My sister said “’twas okay.” My best friend thought it was good with some forgivable loopholes. And my mom, that’s another story.
If anything, the movie Secret is too significant to be ignored. The movie launched an animated discussion on the movie as most movies on time travel do. Jay Chou’s obra maestra was deftly crafted that it had two twists that were indeed surprising.
My mom watched it after I had seen the movie four times. She was attracted to the idea that the characters, Jay and Rain, attended a music school. I excitedly awaited her verdict.
After watching she said in her typical lecturing fashion, that the major flaw of the movie was that the seed was not planted in the begining of the movie. By seed, she means the idea that the story is about time travel. She said that the scene sequences leading to suspense of Rain’s character broke the train of thought from cheesy, cutesy to suspense to eventually the real frame of the movie’s thought (which is time travel). She further said that in the movie making business (and I surmise, in the novel writing as well), the formula of such art should be that a premise must be given in the beginning. But she did end our conversation saying that Jay Chou’s piano scenes were very good (which was an unanimous vote).
In my head, I argued against my mom’s point of view thinking that the twists and turns of the movie were what made me fall in love with the movie. To rebut my mom’s argument that a premise should have been made, the premise was the title itself.
My best friend and I had a mini-discussion on it as well. Our conversation revolved around the process of Rain’s and Jay’s time travel. One question she posed stuck: “If Jay was the only one who was able to see Rain when she went to the future, would Rain be the only one who would see Jay in the past?”
Good question.
As for my sister, she keeps mum about how my love for Asian dramas is overboard.
Click here for a comprehensive discussion on Secret.
All in all, Secret That Cannot be Told is indeed a masterpiece – too significant to be ignored.
It is a worthy addition to my other time travel favorites: Somewhere In Time, Lake House, and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.
[/caption]Ever since I got my copy of Jay Chou’s movie Secret (2007) via Yesasia, I have watched it four times and still hunger for more. I have invited the preteen audience (my son and my cousin), a young adult (my sister), my best friend (an up and coming lawyer) and my mom.
The younger viewers highly enjoyed it. My sister said “’twas okay.” My best friend thought it was good with some forgivable loopholes. And my mom, that’s another story.
If anything, the movie Secret is too significant to be ignored. The movie launched an animated discussion on the movie as most movies on time travel do. Jay Chou’s obra maestra was deftly crafted that it had two twists that were indeed surprising.
My mom watched it after I had seen the movie four times. She was attracted to the idea that the characters, Jay and Rain, attended a music school. I excitedly awaited her verdict.
After watching she said in her typical lecturing fashion, that the major flaw of the movie was that the seed was not planted in the begining of the movie. By seed, she means the idea that the story is about time travel. She said that the scene sequences leading to suspense of Rain’s character broke the train of thought from cheesy, cutesy to suspense to eventually the real frame of the movie’s thought (which is time travel). She further said that in the movie making business (and I surmise, in the novel writing as well), the formula of such art should be that a premise must be given in the beginning. But she did end our conversation saying that Jay Chou’s piano scenes were very good (which was an unanimous vote).
In my head, I argued against my mom’s point of view thinking that the twists and turns of the movie were what made me fall in love with the movie. To rebut my mom’s argument that a premise should have been made, the premise was the title itself.
My best friend and I had a mini-discussion on it as well. Our conversation revolved around the process of Rain’s and Jay’s time travel. One question she posed stuck: “If Jay was the only one who was able to see Rain when she went to the future, would Rain be the only one who would see Jay in the past?”
Good question.
As for my sister, she keeps mum about how my love for Asian dramas is overboard.
Click here for a comprehensive discussion on Secret.
All in all, Secret That Cannot be Told is indeed a masterpiece – too significant to be ignored.
It is a worthy addition to my other time travel favorites: Somewhere In Time, Lake House, and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
God Loves Vanness Wu (and Jerry Yan... and Ken Zhu and Vic Zhou)
I'm a big fan of Taiwan's mega famous F4, now known as JVKV, such that when I opened my Twitter Account, I followed Jerry Yan and Vanness Wu (JVKV/F4 doesn't seem to have an official Twitter Page).
I went through each idol's timelines and apparently, Jerry's Twitter is just the shortened version of his official Facebook page. But still I liked following him on my Twitter.
Then when I went to Vanness' page, I wasn't surprised to see casual Tweets, since English is his native language (being born Stateside). What bowled me over was his Tweets on his feelings towards God. Here's an example (I hope he doesn't mind). " I'm excited... Haven't felt like this in awhile~ God is good... I don't know why me, but I am grateful to Thee for deeming me worthy. Amen*" It was very refreshing to read this from a famous guy. It's like I'm admiring someone who's on the same page as me (in the God department that is). And if that's not enough, his Tweets are very witty and fun to read too!
It's a nice change to see Vanness, whom I've always associated with MeiZuo, in another light! (A halo over his head perhaps?!) Merry Christmas, Vanness! And please send my greetings to the rest of your posse!
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