Summer Movie Review 2008 # 2: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Yep. Indy’s back. 19 years after the last adventure, he’s back to deliver fun and thrills that we all missed from the previous trilogy. This time, we find our hero in the year 1957 being chased by a Russian sect wanting his help to find the Crystal Skull, a supposed magical artifact that could offer its finder power beyond all things.

First off, the acting. Everyone I thought was perfectly cast, along with Shia LeBeouf, which in my opinion is destined to be one of the biggest stars in the coming years. Harrison Ford is at its best, even at 65 years old, it’s good to know he can still handle kicks and punches like a pro. Karen Allen is great as always playing Marion, which incidentally is Indy’ first love interest. Cate Blanchett shines the movie’s prime villain. Her cool hairdo and fake Russian accent truly makes her a true actor capable of any role given to her. Supporting characters favored really well, though I felt John hurt’s character was a little underused.

For the story, it remains simple and straight. Though some of the narrative is pretty boring, the actions scenes are really fun. From the opening warehouse scene, which the Ark of the Covenant made its cameo from the Raiders of the Lost Ark to the jungle scenes, all the scenes reminded me of the old trilogy back when I was watching it as a child.

When director Steven Spielberg said that they wanted to stick to practical effects for the film, it felt that the CGI was too much. While it was impressive at parts, there seems to be something in the movies that felt really artificial. And without giving away spoilers, there was one scene in the jungles with Shia and the monkeys. I mean, what the hell was that? Sure there are some impossible things that were shown in the film, but I think they’ve gone too far.

While the main point of the story centers around the illusive Crystal Skulls, which technically has an origin that is out of this world (literally), it felt like something that not a typical Indiana Jones film. The movie sure had its moments, but overall it felt like a typical Hollywood film I’ve seen before – only that it IS Indiana Jones. People maybe rejoicing it’s comeback, but in the end I still miss the old days when movies don’t solely rely on special effects. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: 7/10

Most Awaited Movie of 2008: The Dark Knight

Being a lover of films, a friend of mine has asked me, "What's your most awaited movie this 2008?" Sure, I had lots to answer. Especially now it's the summer season, a lot of blockbusters are now releasing in theaters. A lot of films pop into my mind. Iron Man, which I had recently seen or Speed Racer, another special effects extravaganza from the creators of the Matrix trilogy. Or probably the return of Indiana Jones, 19 years after the last movie was shown. There’s Wanted, wherein we see Angelina Jolie going back to doing badass action movies. Hellboy II The Golden Army is another venture into the world of the unknown from the visionary director Guillermo Del Toro, or another superhero film in the form of the Incredible Hulk, another attempt to reboot the Marvel comic book franchise after the less than great adaptation from Ang Lee, which now stars Edward Norton as the mean green machine. Or even venture back to the world of Narnia this time with Prince Caspian. These are just a few of the films I’m dying to see. But when you say most awaited, I only wanted to see one: Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.

The premise of this sequel is simple. Set within a year after the events of Batman Begins, Batman, Lieutenant James Gordon, and new district attorney Harvey Dent successfully begin to round up the criminals that plague Gotham City until a mysterious criminal mastermind known only as the Joker appears in Gotham, creating a new wave of chaos. Batman's struggle against the Joker becomes deeply personal, forcing him to "confront everything he believes" and improve his technology to stop him. A love triangle develops between Bruce Wayne, Dent and Rachel Dawes.

What I liked about the first film is how the director tried to humanize the characters, and the results was a gritty and dark adaptation of the character. I remember watching the first film on movie theaters about three to four times. I even bought two copies of it on DVD. Even my friends were amazed, especially on how real it conveyed the characters’ emotions and realizations on the decisions they make.

With Heath Ledger creating much buzz when he was found dead on his NYC apartment, this film makes it more interesting to watch. Apparently, he was so in character during the shoot that even in between takes, he scared out some crew members. One welcome addition to this film is the recast of Rachel Dawes to Maggie Gyllenhal. I admit Katie Holmes is the only one that appeared too average in the last film. Definitely the first day it shows here, I will be there lining up to be one of the first one to see this.

Happy Mother's Day

I was browsing my friend's blog and realized that Mother's Day is coming up tomorrow. So I'm giving a heartfelt greeting to the two moms I had in my life. Victoria Ortiz, my mom, who I had little time to spend with since I never grew up with her. But everytime I come to see her she gives me the love that mother should give to her child. yes, I'm a certified mama's boy. Hehe. I miss her 'caldereta'.

For my lola, who has been my second mom ever since she took me under her arms. she took care of me, dressed me up when going to school, bought me those expensive toys that only spoiled brats get. Thank You and I Love You.

To my two moms, happy mother's day and all I am now is all because of you.

New stuff!

This day we went to my uncle's place in Sharjah (an emirate of the UAE) to celebrate my Aunt's birthday. The food was good and it's been a long time since I had good 'Pinoy' food. How I miss home when I was eating breakfast, lunch and dinner. Now just in a few months I get to savor some of my lolo's home made cooking. After that, I asked my Tita if we could go to City Centre afterwards, which is like the 'SM' here in Dubai. 'pang-masa' as they say. Part of me earning my own money is that I get to buy stuff that I really want. And finally I get to buy my own flashy watch I get to show everyone. It's a Fossil-branded watch, which I had been eyeing for a long time. I was surprised to know it's priced lower than what I expected. So no questions asked, I immediately told my Tita that I wanted the watch. Plus, it's been months since I last bought my last fragrance, Armani Attitude. Now that it's almost out, I also decided to buy Hugo Boss Energise. The scent was simple yet enticing... hmm. Enticing. Seems it's the first I used that word in as an adjective. Hehe. This is reaping my rewards. At least I get to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Hmm, so what's next? A new notebook perhaps? Let's see.

Dubai Trippin'

The last work week was kinda hectic. First of all, I think I had less sleep during the past so I'm doing all the sleeping I need this weekend. Last week I accompanied my friend Irish to look for a bedspace so we went strolling around the Bur Dubai area. The first shot on the left is from the walkway near Burjuman, one of the 'high-class' malls here. Irish treated me to this waffle place (damn I forgot the name), and the waffles were really good. I had this waffle with mocha ice cream placed in top of it, drizzled with caramel. It was simply superb. I still had the taste of the caramel waffle staying in the mouth even even when I arrived home. The following day I had to attend this press conference, or a forum perhaps, about the latest technologies that are introduced in the last year. Speakers from Panasonic, Nokia and other big known companies have their own takes speaking in the forum. The forum was held at Madinat Jumeirah, all the way in the Jumeirah area, near the Burj Al Arab. I took a picture of the Jumeirah Beach Hotel (Yeah I know everything seems to be named Jumeirah), that's next to the Burj Al Arab. I also passed by the huge UAE flag in the area, and I remember Irish and me walking past the old villas and new ones being built, and you can see the new Dubai taking shape. This is such a facinating place. It's no wonder a lot of people, from all races flock to come here. Opportunities are great, and enough hard work would definitely get you to the top.

Year One

Today, May 7th, 2008 marks my first year here in the UAE. What have I accomplished so far?! A LOT! I work in a magazine where everyone knows me. I just got promoted and got a salary increase. Now every press conference being held must bear my name in their invite list. Life has never been better. I have caring friends, good colleagues and a family that loves me. What more could I ask for? I never though one year ago I'd be in a position like this. Let's celebrate!

Summer Movie Review 2008 # 1: Iron Man

Iron Man is 2008's first movie in a long line of summer blockbusters slated to come out in the following months. Good thing the film comes out a day earlier here in the UAE compared to its premiere in the US. The theatre was packed, but surprisingly, most of them were adults. I guess I'm not the only superhero geek in this country. The narrative was good, and immediately you are placed in action scenes you'd only see in a comic book. Robert Downey Jr. was perfectly cast as billionaire and genius Tony Stark. He played the part convincingly, definitely showcasing that his talent has not faded away. Gwyneth Paltrow makes a surprising comeback in this film, playing Tony's personal secretary and psedo-love Pepper Potts. While she graves the screen as always with her films, I felt her character is a bit underused, but I guess Director Jon Favreau (who also has a small role in the film) didn't want to make her another damsel in distress. Terrence Howard was cast a military officer and good friend to Tony Stark and a welcome additon to the great cast. The villain, played by Jeff Bridges seems to look like a chiche with all other villians in films. The monolouging and self-praises sometimes gets too much. The action scenes were superb and visual effects looked so real it seemed it were happnening in real time. It's good to see a normal guy turn into a superhero without any help from a spider bite or even cosmic radiation - he turns into one becuase he just wants to. Seems to look like Bruce Wayne-ish to me, but that's another story. All in all, it was a fun and exciting ride. This is one of the better superhero films to come out this year (After the good yet too melodramatic Spider-Man 3 last year). They've definitely crafted a nice movie here and judging by the way the scene goes after the end credits, I guess we will see more of Iron Man in the future. Iron Man: 8/10