#499: I Come With The Rain (Tran Anh Hung, 2009)

I think this is a bad film to start off from someone who has yet to see Scent of Green Papaya. I Come With The Rain was partly shot in Diwalwal, Compostela Valley province in Mindanao, Philippines – roughly around 4-5 hours (with the terrain in Diwalwal) from the city where I live. Everyone I know was excited to see this when news exploded that Josh Hartnett was flying here on to Diwalwal - a gold mine area - to shoot. But so far the film has ended in bootleg havens of the city, with the mass of Josh fanatics even unaware of its existence.

It was painful to sit through it. I think it was trying to be too serious with its battered protagonist and this psychological thriller that the entire mood can’t even get close too. Josh Hartnett trots across Asia (also visits Hong Kong) to track down a millionaire’s son only to find he is some sort of “messiah” or something to that extent, while he gets over his personal demons (and such creepy demonic recollections). There are some visual highlights but the pseudo-Christian symbolisms smacks right at you in the face I’m actually considering taking off that pseudo prefix. It does refer to Christian symbolisms clumsily. Hartnett, in exploring this character, reaches for something there, but I think it’s really a mess, that he ends up groping in the dark.

The 500 Film Challenge: Another Year (Mike Leigh, 2010)

I assure you that the film to start off the challenge wasn’t deliberately chosen at all, unintentional really. But to make pure coincidence interesting in this whole challenge, Mike Leigh’s ode to old age and aging, Another Year, is a gunshot that signals another year of film watching. Hope I can make it to another year of… 500 films?!?

On one hand, Another Year is slightly related to his Happy-go-Lucky. I can only speculate the Poppy would grow into Mary. While we peer into the lonely souls that visit and temporarily seek shelter into Tom and Gerri’s (yeah, how comically named right?) companionship – the openly unapologetic Ken and the subtly imposing but kindhearted Mary – we can only sigh in what might have been their revelries of youth. (I think it’s even hinted in the unappreciated, and I should say pretty much of the film is underappreciated, musical score.) Again, Leigh’s acute observation of the nuances of daily lives exudes in the words that come out of somewhat uninteresting, commonplace characters, in quick sharp stabs and quiet mumbles. Much has been said of the terrific Lesley Manville as Mary, holding her own till the end refusing to break down, but literally the closing shot, lingers on her face and we are also weighed down with this inescapable melancholy, whether it be the thought of aging, dying alone or the terrifying thought that we are unloved and uncared for.

I am ready for my close-up.

And I am ready for this challenge. I am up for it, I think I am. It's possible, but the odds are somewhat insurmountable. But I would like to be unassuming. Dahil malay mo, I might actually clinch this. That would be the greatest. This is what I call the height of cinephilia. Responding to the challenge is not much daunting as it is exciting; not really with the possibility of finishing it, but being in the moment, being in the zone, with a bunch of people who're also up for it. I've been thinking about this idea since probably after graduation when I got the chance to watch as many films as possible due the "advent of technology" coupled with the ever-burgeoning cost of commodities - ano na lang ang luxury, di ba? A former colleague who I have almost the same wavelength with in film, said he's willing to spend 2,000 pesos for ordering the Lou Ye's Summer Palace DVD in Amazon because damn if he doesn't get it. But I don't call it luxury, I call it a staple, just like Filipinos cannot live without rice.

In fact, I'm so gung-ho at that moment when I responded to the challenge, that I asked Ad if I can just put my own introductory photo. If this is going to be the only film challenge I'm ever gonna embark on, Antoine Doinel should be up there staring aimlessly and mercilessly, reminding me every time why I am in this whole ambitiousness in the first place.

So here it is. 500 films. One year. Versus 500 persistent preoccupations. Game on.

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As a requirement to the challenge I'm posting the rules below (copied from The 500 Film Challenge): (Heads up as well the one who first dared, Princess.)

1 | Accept the dare by making a comment on this post or you can email me: adrian.lessegers@gmail.com. Anyone with a blog is eligible.

2 | Make an introductory post using the beautiful Anna Karina picture above explaining the project. Link all the participants of the project in the post as shown below (scroll down).

3 | Start watching 500 films and write about each one of them. Short films, feature films and extra-long films are accepted. Miniseries are allowed i.e. Carlos (2010), The Decalogue (1988) but major series are not. As long as you watched them after you accepted the dare its okay. So you cannot include films you watched before you have officially accepted the dare.

4 | You cannot repeat a film. Of course, duh!

5 | The first one to finish the project will have a special prize (to be announced before the year ends).

PARTICIPANTS:

1.) Princess Kinoc (http://underthefiretree24.wordpress.com)
2.) Jay-R Trinidad (http://pinoyfilmzealot.wordpress.com)
3.) Adrian Mendizabal (http://adrianmendizabal.blogspot.com)
4.) Epoy Deyto (http://kawtskamote.blogspot.com)
5.) Dodo Dayao (http://pelikula.blogspot.com)
6.) Clem Malubay (http://whatclemsaid.livejournal.com)
7.) Carl Joseph Papa (http://whatevercarl.tumblr.com)
8.) Nilhenwen (http://nilhenwen.livejournal.com)
9.) Etchie Pingol (http://etchieblog.wordpress.com)
10.) Sani Ajero (http://sanriel.wordpress.com)
11.) Paolo Barazon (http://titopao.com)
12.) Niña Domingo (http://ninsydipsy.tumblr.com)
13.) Jay Rosas (http://jayclopsz.blogspot.com)
14.) Minamic (http://casualcontrary.blogspot.com)
15.) Katie Yockey (http://mbandm.wordpress.com)
16.) Vince Dawes (http://shaved-ape.livejournal.com)
17.) Whammy Alcazaren (http://softcorecatalogue.wordpress.com)

2009 IN FILM

Because I've delayed this list for the longest time and because it's virtually impossible to stuff all the remaining films to see in one day. Anyway, this list might change as I painstakingly go through the unwatched heap. (At na-inspire akong mag-layout dahil madali lang pa lang pagandahin ng konti using a photo application.)

Runners-up:

Hell hath no fury like a geek scorned.

Jay | is finding it hard to find a decent copy (Torrent) of The Social Network online. (3 days ago)

Jay | saw The Social Network on his favorite bootleg haven! Jesse Eisenberg, with a precocious-looking smirk, dons the poorly laid-out cover with pictures of the cast during of the gala premiere which is totally unrelated to the film. (18 hours ago via Mobile Web)

View all 4 comments
Rey | Jay, I saw it already. The pirated copy has been around for days!
Jay | You should have texted me.
John | I saw it na. Naka-download ako. Pero halata sa sinehan kinunan. It’s so talkish. I don’t like it. So boring
(Write comment here)

Jay | is slurping ice float at McDonalds and seeing from afar a poster of The Social Network in the Coming Soon portion of the cinema. Can’t wait to get home! (16 hours ago via Mobile Web)

Jay | is watching The Social Network now. (hyperlink) The Social Network HQ trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?=mygtlkjsfd (10 hours ago)

Jay | just finished watching The Social Network and feels like it’s still growing in him. (8 hours ago)

Jay | “Hell hath no fury like a geek scorned.” Haha. (an hour ago)

Jay | is fighting the impulse to talk, in feverish jolts, like Jesse Eisenberg.
Rey Perandos likes this.
Jay | I guess that’s the way he really speaks. I liked Jesse way back The Squid and the Whale. And his precocious way of talking really works astoundingly in this film. It’s like don’t talk to me if you aren’t able to catch up.

Recent Activity
Jay likes Jesse Eisenberg (actor).
Jay likes Andrew Garfield (actor).
Jay changed his Profile Picture.

Jay | “You’re not an asshole Mark. You’re just trying so hard to be one.” ~ The Social Network. It’s kind of funny, that no matter how Mark maybe trying so hard to be an asshole, or an asshole, if you’re on Eduardo Saverin’s side, that you don’t entirely loathe him. Somehow, you still root for this guy. It’s like, if you hate him, you hate yourself too. (35 minutes ago)

Rey Perandos, Ever Abasolo and 2 others like this.

Jay| “Sorry! My Prada’s in the cleaners, along with my hoodie and my fuck-you flip flops, you pretentious duschebag! …You better lawyer-up asshole, ‘coz I’m not coming back for 30 percent. I’m coming back for everything.” ~ The Social Network. Love this line. But the reaction shots shifts confusingly from Justin to Jesse that it looks as if the “duschebag” was intended for Mark. Eduardo is Brazilian, but Andrew’s version has no trace of the accent. (30 minutes ago)

Rey | Jay, Saverin is a Harvard student.
Jay | Ganun ba yun? You know, Eduardo is tanga. He’s an Economics major, and he got busted out because of a very obvious legal lack.
Rey| He believed that he was facing their (including Mark’s) lawyers.

Jay | “You’re going to be successful and rich. But you’re going to go through life thinking that girls don’t like you because you’re a tech geek. I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that won’t be true: It’ll be because you’re an asshole.” ~ The Social Network (20 minutes ago)

Ever Abasolo, Rey Perandos and 2 others like this.
View all comments
Rey | Jay, we only see Rooney Mara’s character twice, but it’s really a pivotal character. She basically started it all! Mark shouldn’t have messed with her name. You know, Albright to Albrecht and then call her a bitch.
Jay | I think what really pissed her off is when she referred to her bra size. “She’s a 34 B. As in barely anything there.”
Rey | Hahahaha
Ever | Hehehe. The best talaga si David Fincher.
Jay | @Rey. But really, Erica is important because she embodies what Mark cannot get and will not get, his failure to connect. Ironic, noh? You are like this bazillionaire inventor of a technological revolution that supposedly connects people, but you fail at this basic human relationship tremendously. Btw, Trent Reznor really does an awesome job with the music. (1 person likes this)
@Ever: I think Fincher has put his stamp on it, his attention to details, etc. But he worked on a very brilliant script by Aaron Sorkin. It plays out like a Greek tragedy even.

Jay | Review of The Social Network (2010)
“In the last scene of The Social Network, Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg is refreshing the page of the “girl who got away” every 5 seconds or so to check if she has responded to his “friend request”. It’s an indelible scene, not because it encapsulates what the film is trying to say about his character (creator meets creation), but because we saw ourselves in Mark, endlessly glued to the monitor and trying so hard to “make friends” with everybody, trying to connect the threads of relationships that were never there in the first place. The Social Network is terrific entertainment. You think you wouldn’t get more than technogeek-speak out of these Harvard-bred wisecracks, but the story (never mind if its fact-based or not) speaks to a plenty of contemporary social realities than say your current FB shoutout or relationship status.
See more…
5 minutes go via LivingSocial: Movies | Comment | Like | Rate and Review

Recent activity
Jay likes The Social Network.

Jay | is watching The Social Network for the second time tonight. (a few moments ago)

This is a repost from here. I won a shirt, so sue me. Haha

Oscar 2010 roundup

Last year, it was a couple of hours before I did my usual Oscar roundup. I dunno, it’s the usual cramming, gets me on my nerves. Jolt energy to my fingers. And apparently, I seem to still give a shit about this prognostication. Anyway, let’s get this done and over with. The 2010 Oscars offers a huge format change. The Academy will choose a Best Picture from 10 nominees, something that has not been done since the 30s or 40s. We have to expect something new each year, which began last year, all in the name of ratings. People don’t gather around their boob tubes to watch stupid award shows anymore unless they see someone or something familiar. Everybody’s a sucker for Brangelina. It’s what ups the ratings.

Coming up with 10 seems to make matters complicated and difficult for the AMPAS, but with this year’s race, it actually isn’t. Make it 20, it wouldn’t matter too, because it’s always been the pimpin’. Let’s start with the three likelihoods. I threw in Inglorious Basterds for the big smackdown between Avatar and The Hurt Locker, because it has its precursor, namely the SAG. There are a lot of actors in the Academy, and the Basterds won ensemble. That’s still a lot to consider. Numerically though, it’s The Hurt Locker’s to lose, gunning down, PGA, DGA and the rest of the major precursors. Avatar, well, because it’s the biggest in whatever. Talk about grandiosity, Mr. Cameron. The Globes also gave it a boost. You have hubby and ex-wife battling it out for director. So that’s a big marketing pitch already. I would like to give it to Tarantino, deservedly so, but I wouldn’t hurt if its Kathryn Bigelow. Shaming the opposite in a male-dominated genre is big enough a feat. Plus The Hurt Locker is really intense. Wonderfully lensed and acted as well, so you’ve got Jeremy Renner there. Saw it early last year so I didn’t wonder.

I still wish it would be Carey. For toppling Emma Thompson in that unforgettable scene, I’d give it to her. But it looks like Sandra written all over. Meryl should not have been nominated to save her from this horrendous crime, should Sandra win. Sandra definitely has the ace. She made history by becoming the only actress to really score big at the box office. That could clinch the gold. It’s not even the acting, she was much better in Crash.

It’s also Jeff’s to lose. It would really hurt if it’s given to say Colin Firth who does some really fine acting from among the crop this year. But Jeff in Crazy Heart is so strong, such an affecting performance, which I saw only yesterday and glad that I did. Chrissakes, let’s give it to the dude.

The supports are pretty much cut out to Mo’Nique and Christoph Waltz. Man, I can’t get over that amusing Nazi, and that opening scene, and the “bingo” scene, and every scene he inhabits. And I was terrified by Mo’Nique’s perferformance, the last scene was way up the top of the league. The supports have been inclined much towards the villainous recently, with Javier Bardem the other year.

I’m really interested in seeing the foreign film noms, which are so inaccessibly hard in the “popular” market. I can’t make a prediction, but it looks intense, base on the trailers alone. The techs are pretty much The Hurt Locker’s or Avatar’s, having at least 9 noms. Up in the Air, which was a frontrunner way back when, would I guess settle for an adapted, though I’d really, really want Nick Hornby’s adaptation of An Education to win. If Quentin’s not gonna go up for the Director nod, I’m sure he’ll be up there for the original screenplay. It better be or I’ll smash some Nazi heads, or carve them ala-Aldo Raine.

von trier and genital clipping

I have to admit that I haven't seen Dancer in the Dark, or Dogville, perhaps two of Lars Von Trier's famous films. Though I have The Idiots, I haven't really seen it in full, just jumping from one scene to next, most of which are graphic copulation of retards. I'm looking forward to Antichrist though. No, Brillante Mendoza's Kinatay failed to really make a hoopla over at Cannes last May, encompassed by the flesh-boring, genital-clipping, ball-crushing craziness that is Antichrist. I'd prolly jump in glee when I see it in bootleg, then people would dart fearsome stares at me when they know it's over a bootleg copy of the film. A friend of mine, who saw in Copenhagen, said that she really didn't cringe at the supposed controversial scenes. It won't be shown here, that I'm sure, or else it won't be flesh-boring, genital-clipping, ball-crushing anymore.

Got this photo via the film's site. Conjures up images from NIN's The Perfect Drug music video. Creepily good, isn't it?

I had a chat with Anne Hathaway.

With the shock, surprise, disappointment, or the entire opposite of all three, of whatever it is that has been caused by the recent Oscar nominations announcement, way past everybody now (or at least to those who give a shit about it), with looking forward or not as the only thing that has been left to do, here's a piece from Newsweek which I thoroughly enjoyed. It came in late though with the noms already out.

Been following the Newsweek's Oscar Roundtable for three years, and I've gotta say this was much more fun and loose and informal. And fun. They changed the entire mechanics this year and I love the cameras hovering outside the circle. I love how the actors get to talk and ask each other a lot. Their questions and the depth of their answers really speak a lot about their dedication to their craft and all that talk of creative process somehow speaks of the level of artistry and appreciation. Tell it to our actors, uh, stars, here and see if we score a grain of salt.

This year's line-up: Mickey Rourke, Brad Pitt, Frank Langella, Sally Hawkins, Anne Hathaway and Robert Downey Jr.

Also, here are video clips of interviews of critics David Denby from The New Yorker and A.O. Scott of The New York Times and their thoughts on the nominations.

Pissants

I told myself not to be surprised and I think I've gotten a little over that, but I don't think I will ever get to tell myself to stop getting pissed. Following the Oscars for a few years, I have to remind myself that these are stuck-up, sore (old?) people who will vote who and what they want.

This year, despite acknowledging small triumphant wins (Hunt, Leo, Shannon and Jenkins and In Bruges), they really sucked big time when they refused to let The Dark Knight score a best picture nod. And by omitting Chris Nolan in the directors list, it was already double jeopardy. It really stinks, especially if you feel really strongly about the film. As Awards Daily guru, Sasha Stone puts it, despite how great it was, it was still about a batboy. And that sucks.

Further, Sally Hawkins, who I think delivered one of the best, most sincere and most unforgettable performances of the year in Happy Go Lucky, and who clinched a lot of Critics group accolades, got booted out. Bruce Springsteen, who wrote one of the best songs for a motion picture, for The Wrestler, which I think sorely missed out also, was snubbed. AD really got it in the gut: the trick is not minding. Here is the list of 2009 Oscar nominations.

Fangs, adaptations etc.

Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian is exasperatingly long. A month for all the 700 plus pages of a cross between The Da Vinci Code and some other vampire novel, because frankly I can't remember reading a vampire novel. Yes, even Bram Stoker's Dracula or any Anne Rice even. When vampires are brought to discussion, there's always this pervasive image of a young Kirsten Dunst pronouncing her bloodthirst ("I want some more") and her slashing of poor Lestat's throat.

The Historian has its own twists and that surge brought by the familiar search for something larger-than-life, like Dan Brown's infamous novel, but it feels more scholarly, maybe because of Kostova's background at Yale or something - even the two lead characters are academicians. You feel like reading a lengthy research paper on Vlad Dracula, who by the way, is a real medieval ruler famous for impaling people. The book is not gory though despite the notoriety of its subject matter focusing more on the search which can become tiresome at parts. The characters globe-trot to ancient European cities and Istanbul, an ingredient which could likely make film producers consider adapting it into the big screen.

Speaking of adaptations, David Fincher's visually dazzling The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, would likely go down as one of the memorable last year. I like it that this is unlike anything he's done before though it matched Zodiac's length of almost three hours. The story of course you know is based from an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story, but actually, borrowing more of its premise than what actually happens in the story. I've been looking for Richard Yates' 1950s novel Revolutionary Road now that I saw Sam Mendes' version. So if anybody of you have it, I really need to read it.

Last weekend, the 20-peso booksale was back in one of the malls here. I saw Stanislaw Lem's science-fiction novel Solaris, the basis of both films of the same title by Andrei Tarkovsky and Steven Soderbergh. I saw the Russian film by Tarkovsky but not yet Soderbergh's. Also, there was Gordon (?) Williams' The Siege of Trenchers Farm which was made into a great film by Sam Peckinpah called Straw Dogs and starred a young Dustin Hoffman.

Jayclops' top 10 of 2007.

Update: Top 10 films with few notes via jayclopsiswatching.com.

1. Control dir. by Anton Corbijn
2. I'm Not There dir. Todd Haynes
3. Once dir. by John Carney
4. 4 months, 3 weeks, 2 days dir. by Christian Mungiu
5. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly dir. by Julian Schnabel
6. The Bourne Ultimatum dir. by Paul Greengrass
7. No Country for Old Men dir. by Joel and Ethan Coen
8. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford dir. by Andrew Dominik
9. There Will Be Blood dir. by Paul Thomas Anderson
10. Margot at the Wedding dir. by Noah Baumbach

In the running would be: In The Valley of Elah dir. by Paul Haggis, Juno dir. by Jason Reitman, We Own The Night dir. by James Gray, Knocked Up dir. by Judd Apatow, Away From Her dir. by Sarah Polley, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead dir. by Sidney Lumet, Into the Wild dir. by Sean Penn, Zodiac dir. by David Fincher and The Savages dir. by Tamara Jenkins.

I've got to hand the best performance, or better yet, performances, of the year to Philip Seymour Hoffman. Not content on winning for Capote, he proves he's a no-bullshit actor by appearing in 3 films: as a political adviser in Charlie Wilson's War, Ethan Hawke's embattled brother in Before the Devil Knows You're Dead and Laura Linney's self-absorbed brother in The Savages.

dark, menacing times

I want to say that The Dark Knight is one of the best films this year. I don’t care if it gets overlooked in the award foray but the second installment of Christopher Nolan's reinvention of the caped crusader is also one of the best things to have happened in comic book hero adaptations. But then, it would be difficult to shrug off a film that is now the second highest grossing film of all time, wouldn’t it?

I watched it four times in the theatre, with one outing a treat. And immense wonder and disbelief fills me every time. The Dark Knight in jayclopsiswatching.

why so serious?

See the little koala bear underneath holding a boomerang? See the transparent skeleton of my office CPU with my 2 favorite films of 2007 I'm Not There and Control on top? See those post-its, loose change, dismantled books, pen holder and other crap? Closer anatomy of a cluttered desk.

Wait, that's not really it, I'm sure you know I'm diverting you of the obvious. If you look closely at Batman, the decapitated arm is unintentional. It's been there for many months and I just can't locate Bruce's left arm. Just so you know, I'm not aiming for something metaphorical or thematic in the contrast. But if you've seen the film, it may offer a glimpse of depth. If not, prepare for it.

Ok, so here goes. Oh my God, The Dark Knight is fucking brilliant. Chris Nolan is a friggin' genius. Heath Ledger is the creepiest, most terrifying villain EVER. And I hate Nolan, who might prolly have a hand at the thesp's untimely death because of how amazingly he immersed himself into the role, he prolly messed up. Oh my god, everything is just so fucking awesome.

The Dark Knight is unsettling and unforgettable. I hope I can muster the courage to even write my take on how moved I am of the experience.

We sing, we dance, we steal things in Bruges.

Been listening heavily to Jason Mraz’s new album (or at least his new songs via mp3) We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things which will pique you by the title. If it’s any indication on waywardness, Mraz’s new outing is diverse and multi-dimensional, thus I think even more mature than his previous. The explorations on jazzy, funky tunes and ballads like If It Kills Me are all worth it plus the usual entrancing melancholy of his guitar and his own brand of wordplay that has endeared his following. The lyrics are introspective and meditative and these are evident in songs like Details in the Fabric, Live High, and Love for a Child, which are my favorites. While listening to the first one (Details) I was jolted when I thought I heard James Morrison. Turns out, it was really him (he’s featured). The catchy collaboration with Colbie Callait in Lucky will undoubtedly produce another hit. A revitalized version of I’m Yours (by now excessively played on radio and downloaded) is included in the tracks, which is better than the purely acoustic one. The newer version is way cooler too. To paraphrase Randy Jackson’s comment, “it’s like being in a luau”, you’re in a hammock in a beach sipping buko juice listening to ukeleles and Hawaiian beats (which Jason actually did).

Speaking of nice (jeez, what an overused understated word in this context) getaways, I just saw playwright Martin McDonagh’s debut feature In Bruges with Brendan Gleeson, Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes. As its title would hint, it’s set in Bruges (apparently pronounced as Broozh), a well-kept medieval city in Belgium (which I didn’t know existed) constantly alluded to in the film as a dreamland or fairy-tale like. What transpires in the film is otherwise.

After we learn enough that Ken (Gleeson) and Ray (Farrell) are two assassins sent to Bruges to wait for their next assignment from their boss Harry (Fiennes) and just as we begin to wallow in the tranquility of the place, bullets are shot close-range and blood is spilled in gorrific fashion. By the time Fiennes appears in the third act, we sense that things are beginning to get nasty. In a fit of a lifetime, Fiennes smashes the phone to smithereens. Wife enters from sala, sees the scene, points to the phone: “It’s a fucking inanimate object!” Harry, in killing mode: “You’re a fucking inanimate object!” Just classic.

Gleeson by the way is Hagrid in Harry Potter. Fiennes, of course is Voldemort. Farrell’s sexual interest Chloe is Clemence Poesy who did a cameo as Fleur Delacouer in Goblet of Fire. When I mistook Ciaran Hinds as Alan Rickman, I thought it suddenly became Harry Potter in Bruges.

Bruges, despite the reputation we’re made to believe, becomes the playground where actions and decisions are weighed and consequences are faced, some to greater bloodier extent. We are offered glimpses into these introspections but the whole moral pie is as ambiguous as the fog that hovered over the city as the last scenes closed in. There’s some slight allusion to purgatory (the two con men visit an art gallery and ogle at a Boschian painting, Judgment Day). Like The Lookout in 2007 (also a debut from writer Scott Frank), In Bruges is an ode to the good ole genre of crime thriller with a twist of black comedy, always great way to welcome 2008 in film.

Fung Ku Fanda

Kung Fu Panda was cute and hilarious. Its skillful use of animation and slapstick delivers a whopping kung fu punch. Simply put, the story of a big fat kung fu-obsessed panda tells us to believe in ourselves, build on our own strengths and work on what we’ve got whether it is a humongous belly or a fat ass.

I think the last time I was laughing and giggling inside a cinema that I ended up clapping and thrown off my seat was Knocked Up or Horton (yes, the elephant). The fact that Po’s popop is a noodle-magnate goose is a comic relief in itself. Jack Black can get through the industry by playing a panda alone. Po was so cute the Beijing Olympics might just be given a boost. The fat panda may well be the official mascot.

I immediately felt the impact of the movie when one of the teens in the row in front of me started doing a Bruce Lee and whacking her friend. I thought the girl was possessed because she repeated her kung fu moves long enough to piss everybody near her. I swear she was momentarily possessed by the spirit of the Dragon Warrior or the malevolent Tai Lung.

The gang of chair-kicking big time assholes attacked again and ruined part of my viewing. Good thing I wasn’t the destined Dragon Warrior or I could’ve kicked their sorry asses to China.

The 61st Cannes

After 24 years, Philippines got into the prestigious Cannes IFF with Serbis directed by Brillante Mendoza whose Foster Child was featured in Director’s Fortnight selection last year. It was the late Lino Brocka (was it Orapronobis or Bayan Ko: Kapit sa Patalim?) who was the last Filipino director to enter into competition which can also mean that the Filipino film has been in a quandary for 24 years unlike its other Asian counterparts like the Koreans and Thais who have been consistently greatly raved globally.

The 61st Cannes IFF offers some serious formidable contenders: the Eastwoods, the Soderberghs, the Kaufmans, the Salleses, the Dardennes, the Egoyans, the Wenderses, the Meirelleses. An important trivia: the Brocka film was in competition with director Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas who won the Palm d’Or that year and Wim Wenders’ Palermo Shooting is also in this year’s lineup.

I’m particularly excited about Fernando Meirelles’ Blindness despite the so-so raves of very few critics. I’ve been a fan since City of God and The Constant Gardener. Looking good is Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York which will feature another powerhouse performance from Philip Seymour Hoffman. This man can’t be stopped.

Contrary to its title, Mendoza’s film is not entirely that of being “serviced” neither does it really talk about the “industry” that is oft-depicted in most Filipino films that enters into international film competitions. Serbis is about a family who operates a rundown theatre which screens boldie flicks and the events that will unfold after a bigamy case will finally be decided. I hope it gets some attention (an Actress trophy perhaps for Gina Pareño?), but as it is, man, 24 years is no joke - it’s already a feat.

Last May 19, also the day Indy 4 was screened, the cast walked the red carpet during the director’s call. You can look up the photos as well as the Official Selection in the Cannes official website.

The winners will be announced May 25. The chairman of the jury is actor-director Sean Penn with some of the jury members including actresses Alexandra Maria Lara and Natalie Portman, directors Alfonso Cuaron and Marjane Satrapi and Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul. The Cannes jury is known to pick low-key films for Palm D’Or as in last year – the Romanian abortion drama 4 months, 3 weeks, 2 days by Christian Mungiu.

The official poster is photographed by director David Lynch. It reminds me of Patricia Arquette in Lynch's Lost Highway.

By the way, Serbis is not the only Filipino film in the screening lineup. Raya Martin’s Now Showing will be screened in the Director’s Fortnight and in the short film list is TV personality Joaqui Valdes’ Bulong. How’s that for a Pinoy French invasion.

Update: Serbis has been lashed out by critics who recently saw the film's premiere last Sunday. Despite a couple of few good raves, critics say it's "rambunctious and noisy", "c'est chaotique", too much explicit sex which may have diminished its social value, and a "head scratcher". A French chart shows Serbis scores the lowest among the films just shown. Uh-oh. But great raves for Gina Pareño though. But it should be noted, as Jessica Zafra said, the critics are not ignoring it.

2007: In film

In a nutshell, the films of 2007. Or most of it. 2007 was a great year at the movies, or in my case, it was a year at the bootleg stalls. You really think you can get these films anywhere else? I found it hard to keep up writing in my film blog because of the increasing frequency by which I purchase and watch the pirated DVD copies. I plan to write about my faves soon, since there are still a handful I haven't seen yet.

The Oscars will be tomorrow and since the previous week's slew of events did not permit me to write a decent entry about it much less have time to actually ponder on my bets (which I did last year), I want you to see this video clip made by one of the AwardsDaily forum members. Do click. If you've seen most of the 2007 offerings, you'll fell in love with the montage. Though it missed Control, a movie that will fall on my 2007 Top 5, the editing was great job.

(Oh fuck this. Been trying to embed the fucking thing for 30 mins. Please just click the poster.)

There will be blood

There Will Be Blood, the new film from Paul Thomas Anderson which stars the accolade-reaping Daniel Day Lewis, is touted as one of the greatest cinematic achievements of 2007, or even of the last decade, as critics would like to point out.

And while I have yet to see actual bloodshed from the film, which I believe would not reach theatres this side of the world, save for the usually reliable bootleg copies, I would have to wallow on the current gorefest courtesy of the new Tim Burton's throat-slashing anti-hero Sweeney Todd which turned out to be not really icky and deplorable but actually wickedly funny and immensely enjoyable.

I haven't heard any of Stephen Sondheim's songs and boy must I admit that it is better than most of the famous well-loved musicals we are familiar with. I particularly liked No Place like London and Not While I'm Around. Johnny Depp is no Phantom of the Opera but I guess you won't need such a sweeping voice when you're obsessed with revenge to the extent of bleeding the life out of your victims. Helena Bonham Carter is brilliant as the obsessed Mrs. Lovett and watch out for Sascha Baron Cohen's Mr. Pirelli. With Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall, the dark and gloomy London streets feel like Diagon Alley.

Tim Burton has achieved another level of creepiness with this one, though I can barely remember what it was like seeing Edward Scissorhands or Beetlejuice. Collaborating for the longest time with Johnny Depp I think has really served both right. I think this is the first time Burton is directing a stage musical adaptation but it's so devilishly good I want to slash the throat of everybody inside the theatre, which is barely full. There was this girl behind me who doesn't know any expression except ewww, even if its grossly inappropriate. And since the movie is replete with that kind of stimulus, you can just imagine how furious I became. There was this obnoxious guy who was singing so loudly everybody was like staring at him. I was tempted to throw the softdrink cup to the asshole to shut him up.

When I walked out of the cinemahouse, I realized that barbers are now one of those people you'd definitely wouldn't want to piss off.

Heath Ledger dies (and post-Oscar nom thoughts)

I logged on to one of my favorite sites first thing yesterday to check on the 80th Academy Award nominations. But the first post made me forgot about the usual glee and excitement upon reading the nominees. Heath Ledger died. NYTimes reported yesterday it could be suicide or overdose of prescription medication. This morning the former would likely to be ruled out.

The next posts were semi-tributes to Heath citing his promising performance as Joker in the upcoming Batman sequel, and, as one of the actors (alongside Gere, Blanchett and Bale) playing Bob Dylan in Todd Haynes’ I’m Not There. Without a doubt, his Joker would resonate for years to come but his broken Dylan was quite a heartbreaking and memorable portrayal as well.

While most would definitely remember him as that rough guy singing “I love you baby” in the stadium to Julia Stiles in 10 Things I Hate About You, it was his Ennis del Mar that etched him as one of the most gifted thespians of his generation. His transformation and immersion as a forlorn gay cowboy in the conservative era in Brokeback Mountain will resonate forever as one of cinema’s tragic characters.

While awards-season backlash still looms with the ongoing writers’ strike, it will be as well difficult to applaud this year’s cinematic triumphs without being saddened by the loss of a true talent.

So there.

As I said the noms for the 80th Oscar were out yesterday. I started predicting last year. This time, I got all of the 5 BP nominees. You'd probably scoff at it, but something as remotely mathematical like predicting nominees has largely been influenced by statistics and probability. So aside from usual gut instinct, I have to rely on stats. If you'll look at the guilds and award-giving bodies, you'd basically come up with a statistically-based roster, but believe me, it pays to actually see them.

I saw all BP nominees except There Will be Blood, but the chances of hacking it off from the list, even though I haven't seen it yet, would be similar to trivializing the raves for No Country for Old Men, which is its co-contender as far as nominations are concerned. This year, I think, is tough to call. Juno, Michael Clayton and Atonement -- were also great.

As for directing, I think it is important to note that they're all first-time nominees, if you consider that the Coens are being nominated as a team. Jason Reitman, who helmed Thank You for Smoking in 2006, was a surprise nod for Juno. I hope to see too The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the vehicle which snagged director Julian Schnabel the Globe win.

I got 4 correct names each for acting nods, from lead to supporting. The challenge does not really lie on the number of correct names you predict, which will most likely come out strongly, but that one tricky surprise you won't know its coming.

This year’s rich in strong performances, the kind that wallops you and won’t let go. There’s Julie Christie as a wife drifting away with Alzheimers in Away From Her, Marion Cotillard’s deeply immersed Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose, and the splash of ice-cold water that is Ellen Page in Juno.

And I’d say hats off to Mr. George Clooney as a messed-up fixer in Michael Clayton. How did he ever get this good. Forget Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman as an acerbic smart-ass sweeps off everybody, hell, even Julia Roberts, in Charlie Wilson’s War. But the king/queen of them all I’d say is the iconic Cate Blanchett, no, not for playing Queen Elizabeth but Bob Dylan in Todd Haynes' I'm Not There. Yes, Bob Dylan, and she nailed it. So creepily that it makes your skin crawl at how amazing this actress truly is.

Though from my standpoint, there have been some misses, still it was a tough year to call. And for chrissakes, this is the Oscars, you can’t really take it that seriously. So get back to work, you freaking slob.

Direct me if I'm wrong.

Participating in a film directing workshop (The Mindanao Film Directing Workshop) with the enfant terrible of the Philippine independent cinema Nick Deocampo, will probably be one of the most important highlights of my self-absorbed cinephilia. He called me to give a brief background of Stephen Frears' The Queen (I raised my hand when he asked who saw the film thinking that a lot would have seen it. I was the only one who showed hand) and told me to analyze the dialectics of the poster. I felt my knees weaken.

This was already last month, and since the outpouring of events that ensued after it was so overwhelming, here it is.

I still don't have words, though. Mr. Deocampo is amazing. And his Nora Aunor histrionics are beyond compare. Perhaps I can film it. Soon.

Mr. Nick and his tummy. That tiebox hanging in the middle is a makeshift frame constructed to stage a scene.

Ibang leveling na photography ni Mark Limbaga (hehehe). Thanks sa photos, Mark. Nick is supposed to be playing Cherie Gil here and that iced tea should be splattered in her famous one-liner.