Baguio: Through My Camera's Lenses

Must-See Films Before 2007 Ends

There’s roughly three months to go before we bid 2007 adieu but a line up several highly anticipated films are yet to be released. A quick look at Wikipedia reveals the films that are set to premiere later this year. Here are my picks of must-see films before 2007 ends, in random order.

Beowulf – Anyone who passed through English Lit in high school or college will be familiar with Beowulf, the great Anglo-Saxon heroic epic poem. There have been previous movie adaptations of Beowulf’s story but this new film promises to be special because its screenplay is co-written by Neil Gaiman and will be directed by Robert Zemeckis (of Forrest Gump). Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of Grendel’s mother is also highly anticipated.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age – I’m a bit of a sucker for historical flicks and I really liked the first ‘Elizabeth’ film. It’s no wonder I’m looking forward to its sequel, ‘The Golden Age’. The new movie follows the Queen as she struggles to crush her enemies, secure her position and defend her empire from invasion while controlling her heart’s wills in the name of duty.

I think Cate Blanchett is perfectly cast as Elizabeth I. This early, she is already being tipped for another Academy Award nomination and a possible win, an honor that should have been given to her back in 1998. With the original cast, crew and director still intact, ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age' might prove to be a winner as well.

His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass – I have yet to read Philip Pullman’s ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy but I intend to do so before this movie adaptation of the first novel, The Golden Compass, is released. Earlier big screen adaptations of well-known fantasy novels such as ‘The Lord of the Rings’, the ‘Harry Potter’ series and the first ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ film have set quite a high standard for fantasy epic films.

I'd like to see how this film will fare given that it was made with a budget of $205M. ‘The Golden Compass’ stars Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and newcomer, Dakota Blue Richards in the lead as Lyra Belacqua.

Alvin and the Chipmunks – Alvin, Simon and Theodore, the three lovable chipmunks are set to make their big screen debut in the new Alvin and the Chipmunks film. The film will be released just in time for Christmas, so this is perfect for kids and kids-at-heart.

I can already hear the three chipmunks' cute Christmas songs. Hehe. The poster implies that Alvin and his gang will go hip-hop this time around. That should be interesting.


Hitman – I used to play ‘Hitman’ so I was pleasantly surprised to see that a movie adaptation of it is slated to premiere later this year. Vin Diesel would have been ideal as Agent 47 but he backed out. Timothy Olyphant will play the role instead.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets – I thoroughly enjoyed the first National Treasure film’s Indiana Jones-esque style so I’d like to see what they will offer in the new sequel. The film is subtitled ‘Book of Secrets’, referring to an alleged document that holds all the nation’s secrets, for the President’s eyes only. I think the idea of the president of the most powerful country in the world keeping all his secrets in a ‘book’ is a bit far-fetched, but we’ll just wait and see if the film can pull it off.

The Other Boleyn Girl – Another semi-historical film, ‘Boleyn Girl’ tells a romanticized account of the life of Lady Mary Boleyn, rumored to be a one-time mistress of King Henry VIII who eventually married Mary’s sister, Anne. We already know what happened to Anne Boleyn and to her daughter, the future Elizabeth I. This film will throw light on the life of the Boleyns, although it is based on a controversial and semi-fictional historical novel. Mary and Anne will be portrayed by Hollywood babes Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman, respectively. That’s two more reasons to watch out for this film.

Sweeney Todd – I am not familiar with the award-winning musical on which this movie is based. But as this is the sixth collaboration between director Tim Burton and Johnny Depp, I expect the same magic that ignited their previous films such as Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Also in the cast is Helena Bonham Carter, who is always memorable in her roles (last seen as Bellatrix Lestrange in HP5), and Alan Rickman, more famous for portraying Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series. I am quite sure atomicgirl can't wait to see this one. hehe

These are just some of the films that stood out from the Wiki list, in my opinion. Of course, some of these films might turn out as duds after all. There's still quite a lot of big-name movies just waiting for the premiere date. Meanwhile, there may be a gem of a film in that list which, although hidden behind an unfamiliar title, cast and crew, may prove to be a hit when released.

Bob Ong's Macarthur

I’ve just finished reading Bob Ong’s sixth opus, the poignant ‘Macarthur’. This is the first book by Bob Ong I’ve read, so I can’t review it within the context of his other books, although it certainly made me want to explore his earlier and more popular works.

Macarthur is a novella – Ong’s first stab at fiction, if my research is correct. It tells the story of four friends, their lost youth, and their struggles amidst the shocking world of poverty and corruption they are born into. As a work of gritty realism, Ong doesn’t mince words describing the filth and squalor of his characters' environment and the situations they find themselves in. The language is vulgar as vulgar can be, though peppered liberally with humor.

In case you don’t know, ‘macarthur’ is a street slang term that refers to feces that keeps bubbling up no matter how many times it is flushed, as if defiantly saying ‘I shall return’.

Macarthur unflinchingly reveals the ugly and sordid details of the ills of our society: poverty, drugs, corruption and abuse – and how these ills have polluted our youth. But the book also provides an intimate glimpse into the hearts and souls of the characters through the use of both humorous and tragic situations. And one can't help but empathize with them, vicariously feeling their laughter, pain, sadness, terror, remorse and hope.

No matter how society has seemingly hardened them outwardly, deep inside they are not unlike any other youth: weak, consumed with fear and uncertainty, desperately longing for anyone to care. And yet no matter how the ills of society has defiled and polluted them and molded them into 'monsters', there is still a faint glimmer of hope. Just like the proverbial ‘macarthur’, even the dregs of society can defiantly refuse to succumb to the cesspool they have been condemned into by the same society that corrupted and wasted them.

If only we start to care and try to correct our collective mistakes as a society. This seems to be a daunting task and it may be a long way before we can succeed. But like all journeys, everything begins with one small step. If we start with ourselves, with our families, with our immediate community, maybe little by little we can eventually change our society for the better. For the youth, there are a few lines in the book that underscores the importance of education. For the rest of us, the entire book reminds us of the realities that many of us choose to ignore.

Read Bob Ong's Macarthur. :-)

Photo credits: Ron Ryan Aviles and Sidney Snoeck
Thanks to my colleague Yona for lending me her copy

Getting the Good Vibes on Netvibes

I've heard a lot of good reviews about Netvibes before but I didn't really care about using it. Until I read Time Magazine's '50 Best Websites of 2007'. Netvibes is currently #8 on the list, and is one of the Top 3 Web Services Sites this year. To the uninformed, Netvibes lets you create your own customized homepage where you can have everything you need in neat little boxes that you can easily rearrange via drag and drop. You can display email, top news stories, bookmarks, search boxes, Flickr photos, calendar, to-do list, and RSS feeds of your favorite blogs all in one page.

Netvibes is also very easy to customize, with hundreds of widgets and modules available, as well as themes and wallpapers. You can also add various games, utilities, and applications to your personal page. There are also Twitter and Facebook modules available.

So far, I'm getting the hang of using Netvibes as my personalized 'centralized' home page. Now, I don't need to open a new tab on Firefox just to view my email, get the latest news or read my favorite blogs. I don’t need to download and install an RSS reader, either. They're all in one page. However, I can't access Yahoo! Mail because my account needs to be POP3-enabled for me to be able to do so. Unfortunately, POP3 on Yahoo! isn't free. Gmail works fine though.

I think I will be using Netvibes from now on. After all, it pays to be a bit more organized. Hehe. Here's a screenshot of my Netvibes page.

I wish I knew how to...

There are several things I wish I knew how to do, talents and skills I wish I had. Often, when I see other people do stuff that just blows me away, I get stirred up not only with admiration but also with a teensy-weensy bit of envy (ok, maybe a lot actually hehe). Here’s a skill or talent I look up to in other people. I wish I knew how to...

...play the piano, guitar or the violin. If I can I have my way, I’d love to learn how to play any of these three instruments. I guess it might be too late because my fingers are already as stiff as crowbars. Haha. Good pianists, guitarists and violinists start young right? I tried to learn playing guitar but wasn’t really committed to learning, which is a shame because my two older brothers are adept at playing guitar. If I only I put my heart into it, I might have learned.

Meanwhile, if I only knew piano or the violin, I would have loved to play Pachelbel’s Canon in D or maybe a nocturne by Chopin. Too bad…guess I'd have to satisfy myself just by humming along to the music.

Anyway, the only musical instrument I ever learned to play with a respectable degree of skill is… the bamboo flute. Yes, those ubiquitous flutes you can find in almost every mall. It was a pasalubong from my Mom. I actually mastered most of the songs on the booklet that came with the flute. Even if it has been years since I last played a tune on a flute, I think I can still do it.

It's cool but the only problem is that I can never ever, even if I try with all my heart and soul, sing along while playing the flute. Can I? Haha. So, to anyone who can play the piano, the violin or the guitar well, you’re lucky. It’s cool. :-)

Apple’s new iPod Touch

Apple has just launched its newest iPod model: the iPod Touch. It is essentially an iPhone minus the phone. The new iPod features the same multi-touch technology and revolutionary interface introduced in the iPhone that lets users glide through tracks and albums as well as zoom in on photos with just a flick of a finger on a touchscreen. The iPod Touch also features WiFi connectivity, comes with a built-in Safari web browser and a cool application that lets you watch YouTube videos without a Flash player. A brilliant 3.5 inch widescreen display is perfect for watching videos or flipping through photo albums. However, the iPod Touch will be available only in 8gb and 16gb models.

I apologize if this post sounds like a news item. But since it's only eleventy-one (111) days ‘til Christmas, I think it is my duty to inform all of you and ease your confusion and indecision as to what perfect present you can give to yours truly.

You have four months to save up for this drool-worthy gadget. I have been a good boy, I can assure you that. If you can't find an iPod Touch by then, the new iPod Nano (see photo at left) will do. Thank you very much. Hehe

New Layout for September

As a way to usher in the month of September, the beginning of the so-called '-ber' months, I have updated the look of my blog's layout. It's still the same basic theme - Rounders 3 by Douglas Bowman - but modified as a 3-column layout by Hoctro.

I ditched Snap and FineTune because they could be slowing down the blog's page load time. Anyway, the page is still kinda cluttered, which mirrors my cluttered state of mind. hehe. I have also added a new header image, courtesy of Vladstudio again. I hope you like it. :-)

That's it. I'm half-asleep already. Off to bed. G'night.