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Five for the Fifth: April 2013 Edition

fiveforthefifth

Hello folks, welcome to the 4th Five for the Fifth of the year!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here.

1. I had another topic in mind here but I can’t possibly NOT include at least a mini tribute for Roger Ebert... the first movie critic I knew by name and whose reviews I read more than any other critics. It’s a sad day for movie lovers everywhere as a legend has passed away…

RogerEbert

Mr. Ebert died today at the age of 70 after a decade of battling throat cancer. Though I don’t always agree with his reviews, I always enjoy reading them. It’s also fun watching talking and debating movies with his late partner Gene Siskel on the Siskel & Ebert show, as their Roman Gladiator-ial style of ‘thumbs up/thumbs down’ become iconic in popular culture. Every time I read his review, I admire Ebert’s amazing breath of knowledge about films and movie history… but more than that, appreciate his honesty in his reviews. Though he’s won the Pulitzer Prize—the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism back in 1975— he was as much a movie fan as he was a critic. As Allan Gregg said in his interview with Ebert I posted below, no matter how many thousands of movies he’s seen, he didn’t become jaded or crusty as other critics who seem to live to hate everything that opened.

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Though he’s had more than his share of health problems for some time, his death came as a shock to me when I read the news via twitter, as I had just read about his Tuesday article that he was going to take “a leave of presence” due to the recurrence of cancer. Even in painful times like that, Mr. Ebert didn’t sound gloomy or feeling sorry for himself, in fact, he made it sound like having to slow down was a good thing, “… I’ll be able at last to do what I’ve always fantasized about doing: reviewing only the movies I want to review” and announced plans to continue working on his website Rogerebert.com and Ebertfest, his film festival at his Alma mater, the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. Alas, he’s no longer with us now, but his rich legacy as a groundbreaking film critic will certainly live on.

Mr. Ebert’s love for movies and the way he popularized movie criticism has inspired me. He not only loves movies, but he also had genuine camaraderie with fellow film fans, perhaps the only major critic who took the time to correspond and encourage movie bloggers. He’ll be sorely missed in the film community, and I definitely would miss reading his reviews.

Thank you Mr. Ebert for your invaluable insights and inspiration. May you rest in peace.

What’s your fondest memory of Mr. Ebert?

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FindingDori2. I’m sure you’ve all heard it by now. Seems like Pixar’s creativity well is danger of drought as they seem to be recycling their old stuff. First there’s Monsters University, then the Cars spin-off Planes, and now another character is being spun-off from one of their most popular feature Finding Nemo. Now, I’m not dismissing Finding Dori, I’m sure it could still be a good film, after all Dori is one of my top 10 favorite Pixar characters, but really, I’d rather see Pixar do something entirely new.

Now, that said, it made me think of what of my beloved movie characters I’d love to see getting its own film. I don’t know how often this happens. The only one I could think of is Steve Carrell’s hilarious Evan Baxter from Bruce Almighty (though I actually haven’t seen Evan Almighty) and on the TV front, I LOVE Frasier Crane which was spun-off from Cheers.

Now, which character (either in a live action/animated feature) would you like to see getting a spin-off treatment?

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3. Hope you don’t mind me recycling my question that I posted on Reddit but I figure more of my blog friends/readers might not have seen it. It’s a question that I’ve often pondered in a while and I’d think it’d spark some interesting discussions amongst fellow movie fans.

WhatsAPerfectFilm

Every time I see in a review “[insert title here] is not a perfect movie but…” or “It’s far from perfect, but …,” it makes me wonder… just what exactly constitutes a PERFECT film for you?

There are 47 comments on Reddit so far, and these are some interesting answers I received:

The amount of personal connection with the movie dictates whether it’s a perfect or not, for you.

As with most things, I think there is no such thing as a perfect movie. Just like you cannot write a perfect essay, or a perfect novel. There is absolutely NO common basis to judge movies on, that’s what makes this impossible. In the end, it all comes down to personal preference.

A perfect movie would most likely be one where not a single second was wasted. Everything had a purpose and helped tell the story the director intended.

I’m curious to hear what you think. Feel free to include YOUR picks of films you consider to be *perfect*.

Remember, there’s really no right/wrong answer as films are so subjective :D

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ByzantiumPoster4. When I first saw the poster of BYZANTIUM, I really like its striking design. My pal Terrence suggested that I featured the trailer on this edition of Five for the Fifth, I was more than happy to oblige. Funny that a couple of editions ago, I featured another unconventional vampire movie, Only Lovers Left Alive, starring Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston.

This one comes from Neil Jordan, the director that brought us Interview with the Vampire (and of course, The Crying Game). Here’s the synopsis and trailer:

Residents of a coastal town learn, with deathly consequences, the secret shared by the two mysterious women who have sought shelter at a local resort.

The reviews from various film festival has been mixed, but I’m curious to check it out as it looks like a deconstruction of the vampire tale mythology, and after the abysmal teen vampire franchise that’s been dominating the box office, it’s nice to see a film that treads new grounds on that genre.

Byzantium_Arterton_Ronan

The mostly-British/Irish cast is certainly promising: Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Arterton, Jonny Lee Miller and Sam Riley. It’s supposed to be released in the US in late June, not sure if it’ll make it to my neck of the woods though.

What do you think of this project? Will you be seeing this one?

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5. Ok, last but not least, here’s a brand spankin’ new casting news that piqued my interest. Benedict Cumberbatch joins Guillermo Del Toro’s Crimson Peak. It’s apparently a haunted house thriller and though plot details are still under wrap, Del Toro described it as… “…very set-oriented, classical but at the same time modern take on the ghost story. It will allow me to play with the conventions of the genre I know and love, and at the same time subvert the old rules.”  [per Collider] Cumberbatch would join Emma Stone and Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) who’ve already been cast.

Benedict_CrimsonPeak

Though horror is not my cup of tea, I’m slightly curious about this project, though time will tell if it’s something I’d see on the big screen. I’m just glad the massively talented Brit is getting more and more roles in Hollywood. I can’t wait to see him in Star Trek Into Darkness next month, and looking forward to seeing his portrayal of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange in The Fifth Estate. He’s also filming the third season of BBC’s Sherlock, yay!

Well, now my last question to you is two-fold: Are you enthused about this project with this cast? And secondly, which TV-actor would you like to see get his/her big break on the big screen?

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For those with a Reddit account, would you be so kind as to submit this post?
I’d sincerely appreciate it folks! :D

That’s it for the APRIL 2013 edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. I’d love to hear your thoughts on any of these subjects.

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Five for the Fifth: End of the Year Edition

fiveforthefifth

Hello folks, welcome to the very last edition of 2012 Five for the Fifth!!

To those who’ve never missed a single FFtF post, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for making this my most popular blog series!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here.

1. Well, it’s only three weeks away to 2013. I think it’s been quite a year for movies, hasn’t it? I mean we’ve got major blockbusters for super lucrative franchises – The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, Skyfall AND The Hobbit all in the same year! Yes, it’s a big year for Twi-hards as well but for the rest of us, aren’t you glad the franchise is [almost] over? All together now: free at last!! :D

Thanks to TCFF though, I’ve also got a chance to view some awesome indie movies as well, which balance things out nicely. I will do my Top 10 of 2012 at the end of the month, but I think Argo, Skyfall and The Sapphires might make my list.

So my first question is: What’s YOUR top five favorite films of the year (so far)?

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2. Ok, 2012 is barely over and I’m already looking forward to June 14, 2013! Yep, that’s the US release date for Man of Steel. If you’re on Twitter on Monday, most likely you’ve seen it but just in case you haven’t. Behold…

ManOfSteelTeaserPoster2

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‘Oooh lookie here, sexy Henry in handcuffs!!’ ;) Ehm, sorry, now that we get that out of the way. Most people were baffled as to ‘why is Supes a villain?’ and just the general logic [or lack thereof] that you can’t technically confine Supes with all his mighty powers behind bars, that is unless the prison is made of kryptonite of course. But judging from the look of Supes’ expression, looks like it’s a voluntary decision on his part to be led by the military convoy. I kind of like the departure from tradition, in fact, Chris Nolan and Zack Snyder seems to be set on defying tradition even from the costume alone. As EMPIRE mag says, “…a little originality is good for the soul.”

So what do you think of the teaser poster, folks? Thoughts about this reboot so far?

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3. It’s been a while since I blog about Rufus Sewell, one of my favorite hunky Brits. But I want to let you know on his Sundance Channel two-part miniseries Restless he’s currently starring in, along with Hayley Atwell, Charlotte Rampling and Michael Gambon.

RestlessMovieStill

Adapted from William Boyd‘s spy novels that Boyd himself is adapting, it’s set during the early days of World War II and follows a Russian spy who tries to infiltrate the British Secret Service with the goal of influencing U.S. power brokers and swinging American public opinion in favor of fighting the Nazis.

SundanceRestless_Stills

Downton Abbey’s Michelle Dockery plays Ruth Gilmartin, who, in 1976, visits her mother Sally (Rampling), and is handed a diary recounting her colorful past. Turns out mom was actually born Eva Delectorskaya (Atwell), having emigrated from Russia to France. In the wake of her brother’s death in 1939, she’s recruited by British agent Lucas Romer (Sewell) to spy for the U.K. on the eve of World War II. (per Variety) Judging from the picture above, there’s likely some smoldering romance involved as well. Check out the awesome extended preview/featurette below with the ensemble cast:

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The premise sounds intriguing and I like the look of this miniseries. Plus the cast is excellent! Rufus and Hayley certainly look fabulous in period costumes.

The first part of the miniseries begins this Friday at 9P E/P on the Sundance Channel. Can’t wait to see this one when it’s available to rent!

Well, what do you think of the trailer? Would you watch this one if you have the Sundance Channel?
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4. Well, one of the biggest movie of 2012 has just come out in Blu-ray. Some of you might already pre-order The Dark Knight Rises and even seen it all over again a few times by now? :D Well I might get a copy too but not in a hurry to do so. One thing that I find amusing lately is the emergence of these Honest Trailers by the Screen Junkies (the trailers are made by Break Media digital company. You’ve likely seen their parodies of popular movies like Hunger Games, Prometheus, Avengers and my favorite of all, Twilight on YouTube. Well, Nolan’s final Batman trilogy no exception, check out their latest work below. As you probably guess, these honest trailers do have plot spoilers on them, but really, if you haven’t seen this movie by now, you probably aren’t that interested in Nolan’s Batman movies in the first place.

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These guys definitely don’t pull any punches on their parody, but y’know what, it addresses a lot of the questions I had with the movie I wrote in my review. No matter though, this movie is obviously flak-proof anyway as the Blu-rays are likely going off the shelves as we speak.

How many honest trailers have you seen and which one(s) do you like best?

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5. Ok, my last question is not exactly movie-related but you are free to make it so if you like. Well, I’ll be off to my two-week vacation on Friday. I don’t usually go on vacation during the holiday season but our schedule just works out that way this year. I haven’t been in any major vacation in over a year, but I’ve been blessed with a lot of memorable one in my lifetime. I think my favorite one is a tossup between the trip to Italy and the UK a few years back. I’m more of a city girl so I love exploring the enchanting cities like Rome, Florence and London that’s so full of history and full of life.

ILoveLondon

I still dream to go to Scotland, Australia and Eastern Europe (especially Prague), hopefully one of them would happen in the near future.

So my last question to you is, what’s your most memorable vacation you’ve ever had? I’d also love to hear about your dream vacation :D

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Well, that’s it for the last 2012 edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. There’ll be more coming next year for sure!

Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: November 2012 Edition

Hello folks, welcome to another 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?
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1. Well, despite the name, Wreck It Ralph certainly is no box office wreck. In fact, the opposite is true! The movie grossed nearly $50 mil in just three days! Seems like a lot of people affected by Hurricane Sandy were looking for some fun distraction and there were reports that many kids being out of school because of the storm also help with strong matinee business on the East Coast on Friday. Well I haven’t seen it yet but my friend Terrence gave it 4/5 stars and it does sound like a lot of fun!

According to Gold Derby, this movie is one of the 21 films that have officially been submitted for consideration for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards.

If you’ve seen it, what did you think? How does it rank amongst your favorite Disney movies?

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2. Y’all already know my undying love for Superman since a wee girl. So when my friend Michael tweeted a post by Flights, Tights and Movie Nights blog on this 11-min short called One on One, I was intrigued! I love it when filmmakers highlight the ‘human’ side of a superhero story, without making it too overly-sentimental. The subtle hints about the reporter’s identity is handled very well in this short, plus it’s so well-shot and well-acted all around.

Do check out Bubbawheat’s interview with Jake Thomas, the creator of the short film, on how he chose to focus more on a random Metropolis teenager and her interaction with Clark Kent, instead of the typical action/special effects/stunts style story.

Check it out below:

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I should thank my hubby who saw the tweet when I woke up this morning and we both watched it twice as we’re relaxing in bed enjoying the extra one hour from the end of Daylight Savings’ Time :)

Well, what do you think of the short film?

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3. November 5 is Tilda Swinton’s 52nd Birthday! Wow, I had no idea she was already in her 50s! I first noticed the Scottish actress in the first Chronicles of Narnia movie where she played the White Queen. She appeared in Danny Boyle’s The Beach but I didn’t realize who she was then. I’ve seen her in five other films since the two I mentioned, but I think my favorite role of hers is the one in Michael Clayton. It was a well-deserved Oscar win surely.

Some trivia about miss Swinton:

Her family is one of the oldest in Scotland, but her mother is Australian. Her father is Major-General Sir John Swinton, whose ancestral home has been within the family since the 9th century. She attended West Heath Girls’ School, with Princess Diana as one of her classmates, and later Fettes College. Gave birth to twins, a daughter named Honor Byrne and a son named Xavier Byrne, in November 1997. The father of her children, John Byrne, is a Scottish artist and writer.

I’m very curious about her next film Only Lovers Left Alive, about two vampires who have been in love for centuries, co-starring Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska and John Hurt.

What’s your favorite role of Tilda Swinton?
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4. Now, my fourth question is not exactly a new news. Tons of films have had advanced tickets selling weeks in advanced, so the fact that The Hobbit tickets are going to be on sale this Wednesday online and in theaters across North America, a month ahead of its December 14 release doesn’t exactly surprise me.

Just like Nolan’s Batman movies, there’s also a scheduled marathon screenings of Peter Jackson’s The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy in Extended Cut editions on Saturday, December 8th, and Sunday December 9th. Oh geez, I don’t know if I could handle seeing nine-hours worth of stuff on the big screen, though if I have the fortitude I might watch my already-purchased extended edition Blu-rays in the comfort of my own home.

Now, the only advanced screening tickets I bought about a week ahead of the film’s release was The Dark Knight Rises on IMAX.

Out of curiosity, what film(s) have you bought advanced tickets for and were they worth it?
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5. One of the things I like about Wes Anderson’s films are the stellar ensemble cast and he seems to be doing the same thing for his upcoming feature The Grand Budapest Hotel. So far the four major stars confirmed are Wes’ regulars Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman, and two British thespians Ralph Fiennes and Jude Law (and reportedly Jeff Goldblum is now confirmed to join the cast as well). Fiennes will be playing the lead role as Mr. Gustave, and the film will focus on the troubles and tribulations of the hotel’s perfectly composed concierge. Well, thanks to Julian who tweeted me the news, my favorite Irish young star Saoirse Ronan has now joined the cast as the female lead! Anderson will once again work with Scott Rudin and Steve Rales who produced Moonrise Kingdom.

I know the film hasn’t opened until December 2014 but I definitely will be on the lookout for it. Here are additional info about the movie according to Filmofilia:

The Grand Budapest Hotel takes place 85 years ago in a Hungarian hotel, and is partly inspired by the witty films of Billy Wilder and Ernst Lubitsch.

Oh, I like that premise already! And with this cast, it surely becomes one of my anticipated holiday movies of next year!

Well, my last question to you is: are you anticipating this one, too?
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Well, that’s it for the November edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: September 2012 Edition

Hello folks, it’s time for the September 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?
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1. With election just a couple months away, the political ads are getting more and more vicious. I’m not generally fond of political movies or documentaries, though at times I’m curious enough to check it out, like I did with 2016: Obama’s America.

I guess I don’t mind them if they have the right cast and that it’s not too much bashing going on from either parties, they just leave a bad taste in my mouth when the filmmakers get too nasty/vindictive about a certain politician. There are only a handful of political-themed movies I’ve enjoyed, among them are the light-hearted ones like The American President, Dave,  as well as well-made thrillers like Enemy of the State and State of Play.

Do you like political movies? If so, which one is your favorite?

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2. There are at least a dozen movies I’m anticipating until the end of the year, not sure I could get to all of them on the big screen but I certainly hope so! Now, just looking at September and October, here are five on my must-see list:

ARGO – October 12

As the Iranian revolution reaches a boiling point, a CIA ‘exfiltration’ specialist concocts a risky plan to free six Americans who have found shelter at the home of the Canadian ambassador.

I like the last two of Ben Affleck-directed films, and he seems to be much better in front of the camera when he’s also behind the camera. This trailer looks GRIPPING! Can’t wait to see this one!


The Master – Sept 14

A Naval veteran arrives home from war unsettled and uncertain of his future – until he is tantalized by The Cause and its charismatic leader.

Can’t wait to see Joaquin Phoenix’s return to the big screen, and the Scientology-like organization seems timely given what’s been happening with Tom Cruise! Eric from The Warning Sign puts this as his #1 movie of the year so far, and with Phoenix + Philip Seymour Hoffman, no doubt the performances are ace!
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Looper – Sept 28

In the year 2042, a man working for a group of killers called “Loopers” (they work for the mob and kill people who are sent blindfolded back in time from the year 2072 by their bosses) recognizes a victim as himself.

Despite the weird makeup on Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I do like this cast and this promises to be a time-travel thriller with a twist. So yeah, I’m game!

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Chasing Mavericks – October 26

When young Jay Moriarty discovers that the mythic Mavericks surf break, one of the biggest waves on Earth, exists just miles from his Santa Cruz home, he enlists the help of local legend Frosty Hesson to train him to survive it.

I’ve posted the first trailer here, but I like the second trailer better. Those waves look spectacular… and Gerry Butler in a wet suit? Yes please :D I still wish the kid playing Jay is more interesting, but hey, King Leonidas as surfing instructor? Sign me up!

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Cloud Atlas – October 26

An exploration of how the actions of individual lives impact one another in the past, present and future, as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero, and an act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution.

Ok, this could be a spectacular movie or a complete mess. But the trailer makes me curious enough to see it and there are a lot of my fave British/Aussie actors involved: Hugo Weaving, Ben Whishaw, Jim Sturgess, Jim Broadbent, etc., though Tom Hanks and Halle Berry might be the big draw for mainstream audiences. We’ll see if the Wachowskis deliver on this one.

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Honorable Mention: The Cold Light of Day – I LOVE Henry Cavill so I’ll definitely try to see this on the big screen, but not sure if this movie is actually getting a wide release.

Now your turn. What’s your five most anticipated movies in the next two months?

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3. After having seen Brandon Lee in The Crow and the Bruce Lee’s biopic Dragon: The Bruce Lee story, my hubby and I have become quite fascinated by the martial art icon.

My brother was very fond of martial arts stuff and so I probably have seen a few of his movies, it’s just not my cup of tea. But it’s no denying that Bruce Lee is not only the greatest and most influential martial artist of all time, but he’s quite a charismatic guy. He’s also quite articulate and philosophical in interviews, too bad there aren’t too many of them out there. Btw, did you know that Bruce Lee is part German? Apparently his mother is of Chinese/German descent and his father was a Chinese Opera singer.

It’s so tragic what happened to him and his equally-gifted son Brandon. Bruce died at a young age of 32, reportedly from an allergic reaction to a headache tablet, and Brandon was only 28 when he was fatally shot in a bizarre filming accident of his last movie, The Crow. Cursed or not, there’s definitely something peculiar about their cause of death. I highly recommend both films if you haven’t seen it, I’ll be reviewing them both at some point.

Thoughts on Bruce Lee and/or martial arts movies? Are you a big fan of that genre?
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4. Happy Birthday Michael Keaton! Last week I read on Castor’s blog that the 61 year-old actor has been cast in the Robocop reboot, replacing Hugh Laurie. I think that’s great news, though I wish Keaton had gotten more leading roles. I’ve always liked Keaton, he’s got screen charisma and he suits both dramatic and comedic roles pretty well.

Though people are split whether he makes a good Batman or not, I do think he’s a great, versatile actor. Whether playing a crazy ghost (Beetlejuice), an overwhelmed dad (Multiplicity, Mr. Mom) or a genius psychopath (Desperate Measures), Keaton is always a joy to watch. I do hope this underrated actor gets more roles, I think he still looks a lot younger than his age!

So, what’s YOUR favorite Michael Keaton role?
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5. One of the classic masterpieces that have eluded me for so long is Lawrence of Arabia. Not sure why that is as it sounds like the kind of epic story I’d enjoy and I know my mom used to have a big crush on Omar Sharif, ahah.

Well, it’s been announced that it’ll be re-released on the big screen on October 4th as part of its 50th anniversary celebration. My hubby and I are definitely going to catch that. Check out the restoration trailer below:

According to this article, Grover Crisp, the EVP at SONY Pictures who’s in charge of the restoration said they wanted to ‘return this film to as pristine a condition as possible’ for the anniversary celebration.

“The original negative was seriously damaged in a number of ways, some problems dating from the original release and some accumulated over the years… But, until now, we did not have the tools available to address these issues. We think fans of the film will be as amazed as we are at the detail and resolution in the imagery captured by cinematographer Freddie Young to compliment David Lean’s immaculate direction.”

Man, I can’t wait to see this in its 70mm glory on the big screen!

Are you a fan of this film? Who else are going to see the big screen release of this one?
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Well, that’s it for the September edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: August Edition

Hello folks, it’s time for the AUGUST 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?
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1. Well, last Friday I saw Total Recall, which a lot of people say is totally unnecessary. Well, be that as it may, I didn’t think it was horrible, but it’s not all that memorable either. You’ll see a double review of it on Monday from Ted and I, since he loves the original and remember it fondly, whilst I can’t um, recall hardly anything from it.

Speaking of remakes, I happened to see the original Sabrina (1954) with Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart and William Holden with my husband. Well, interestingly enough, both my hubby and I still like the 1995 remake better for many reasons. Somehow Julia Ormond just makes a more compelling character of Sabrina, and Harrison Ford and Greg Kinnear are both perfectly cast as Linus and David Larabee. In fact, about half way through the film we both are bored by this one. I might blog more about that one later, but for now I’d have to say that I prefer the remake than the original, and so I’m glad we owned the dvd of the Sydney Pollack version as might watch that one again after this.

So my first question to you is: which remake you think is better or at least on par with the original?

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2. Woo hoo! Skyfall‘s full trailer is here! Most of you probably have seen it already but hey, why not watch it again…

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Well, well, well, looks like there’s an interesting twist here about Bond pretending to be dead scenario. And for a Bond movie that was said to be more dramatic given Sam Mendes’ direction, there seems to be a good amount of exhilarating action in this trailer. I like this trailer and we finally get to see the Bond baddie Silva and the new, young & hip Q! But what is with that bleached blond look that Javier Bardem is sporting?? He looks like a Spanish Max Zorrin, I certainly hope Silva won’t end up in our future list of worst Bond villains!! Oh and Bond is tied up in a chair again, boy I hope there won’t be any ball-busting fiasco going on again, ahah.

So, what did you think of Javier Bardem as Silva and Ben Whishaw as Q?
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3. I was just reading about Liam Neeson in a British film magazine (can’t remember which it is) on his evolution from dramatic actor to bad-ass action hero.

From films like Schindler’s List, Kinsey, Michael Collins, Chloe and a bunch of other lesser-known films, seems like after playing Ducard, a.ka. Ra’s al Ghul in Batman Begins, the tall Irish thespian um, embarks on a whole new career as the go-to action hero. I LOVE this tweet from last week:

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Ahaha… soooo true!! I mean TAKEN’s Bryan Mills is even more bad ass than James Bond!! I do like Neeson though, and somehow, beneath all that bad-assery, there’s still a sensitive soul in there, that’s perhaps his appeal.

So, what’s your favorite Liam Neeson role and thoughts on his foray into action hero territory?

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4. I’m really loving these video journals from Peter Jackson. I love that we get a glimpse into behind the scenes of filming this hugely-anticipated film without having to wait for the DVD/Blu-ray is out. Now The HOBBIT video journal #8 is up, I definitely LOVE seeing Lee Pace on there and training to for his role as Thranduil the Elven King.

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Now, you probably have heard that The Hobbit will be made into a trilogy. Not surprisingly, it’s getting mixed reviews and I do think it’s perhaps a bit excessive. But then again, I have not read the books, so I’m not really sure how he could stretch the material, about 400 pages of them, into three films. This IGN article assess the pros and cons of doing The Hobbit as a trilogy. It seems that from Peter Jackson’s perspective, he seems to be motivated by his love for the subject matter, but the studio probably just wants to milk this lucrative franchise, just like what they did with Twilight, Harry Potter and The Hunger Games.

So what are YOUR thoughts about this Hobbit trilogy debate??

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5. Ok, for the last question, I’m going to open up the floor to you all… now that the Summer blockbuster months is over, there are still a lot of Fall movies we’re all hugely anticipating. Just in the next four months, here are four I might check out at the cinema in the next couple of months:

Now, there are others I’m interested in, but those might be more of a rental.

What about you? What are your top four movies you are most anticipating in the next couple of months?

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Well, that’s it for the August edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: July 2012 Edition

Hello folks, it’s time for the July 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?
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1. Well, since yesterday is American’s Independence Day, some of you might’ve been watching some war/military-themed movies.

There’s no shortage of US war films made in the past couple of decades, such as Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Dawn, Letters From Iwo Jima, The Thin Red Line, The Hurt Locker, etc. and no doubt the degree of performances certainly vary from film to film. Some even became career-making role, just ask Jeremy Renner.

So my first question to you is, who’s your favorite American soldier(s) in movies?

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2. Ok, it seems like every couple of months there’s a Tom Cruise movie! I find it ironic that his wife Katie Holmes filed for divorce whilst he’s filming his sci-fi actioner Oblivion. Ahah, obviously he’s um, oblivious of what’s coming to him?

In any case, yesterday we’ve got a first glimpse of Cruise’s crime drama Jack Reacher. Take a look at the trailer below:

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The film is based on a crime novel by British novelist Jim Grant (pen name Lee Child) and Cruise’s character is Jack Reacher, a former US Army Military Police Major who’s called in to solve the case of a sniper shooting that leaves five dead.

I personally think the trailer is a big giant meh. It doesn’t seem to offer anything fresh or intriguing and I’m already bored seeing Cruise in this role. And reading the character description on Wiki made me laugh:

Reacher is 6′ 5″ tall (1.96m) with a 50-inch chest, and weighing between 210 and 250 pounds (100–115 kg). He has ice-blue eyes and dirty blond hair.

Seriously? Tom Cruise… 6’5″?? What kind of camera magic would it require to create such a trick?? :D Y’know, as I read the description, I immediately think of Armie Hammer who recently played the Prince in Mirror, Mirror. I mean, the guy IS 6’5″ tall. Yeah, he probably doesn’t look tough enough, but I think he can manage.

So, did you read the Jack Reacher series? What are your thoughts of Cruise in this role?

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3. Well, half of the year has come and gone. I haven’t made my top five movies so far yet, as I still haven’t seen a bunch of good ones like Moonrise Kingdom. But from what I’ve seen so far (including those that have premiered last year outside of the US), these are my five favorites:

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Now, which five movies made your top five so far?

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4. This movie wasn’t even on my radar before. I haven’t seen the original classic, somehow it just never appealed to me. But this new poster of Oz: The Great and Powerful that my pal Castor posted on his blog did get me intrigued.

I had no idea they were making a prequel to the 1939 fantasy adventure The Wizard of Oz that tells how the Wizard arrived in Oz became the ruler. Sam Raimi is helming the flick, starring James Franco and a slew of great female cast: Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz. Hmmm, I’m curious now, but maybe I should watch the original first in order to enjoy this one?

What do you think folks? Any of you looking forward to this one?

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5. Ok, for the last question, I’m going to open up the floor to you all…

What movie/casting news you learned the past week that excites you the most? Do share link/photos/video, etc. in the comments.

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Well, that’s it for the July edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: JUNE edition

Hello folks, welcome to the June 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?

1. If you’ve read my Breaking Dawn and Snow White and the Huntsman reviews, you’ll know I don’t think very much of Kristen Stewart. But really I have my reasons. I know that it’s perhaps unfair to only judge her in those Twilight movies, I mean after all, R-Patz was quite good in other films so I was willing to give her a chance. But really, after seeing her as Snow White, I’m even more baffled as to why she is so in high demand.

K-Stew’s ‘signature’ expression

I mean this girl has NO range whatsoever. I mean if she has the same exact expression for every single emotion known to man. She’s not even THAT beautiful that guys would be all over themselves to go see what she’s going to do next. I’d think she’s not the prime reasons people go see Twilight nor this Snow White movie for that matter, so she’s not exactly box office gold. Or is she??

So my question is, what’s your thoughts on K-Stew? Am I the only one who thinks this way about her?

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2. Did you guys see this yet? I just LOVE Bill Murray and here he gives some sort of a tour to his next movie Moonrise Kingdom the only way he could.

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The movie is about a pair of young lovers who flee their New England town, which causes a local search party to fan out and find them. This is Murray’s fifth collaboration with Wes Anderson, so basically he has starred in most of his films as Anderson has only directed seven feature films so far. I have only seen The Royal Tenenbaums which I quite like, and one of my girlfriends pretty much swore by The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou so I’m curious to check that out soon.

How many Wes Anderson films have you seen and which one is your favorite?
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3. I just Coriolanus which is Ralph Fiennes’ directorial debut. I think he did a great job adapting a Shakespearean political play to the big screen and I’m curious to see if directing is something he’d do again in the near future.

There have been quite a few actor-turned-directors in Hollywood, and at times they could be better behind the camera than in front of it [I'm looking at you Ben Affleck]. Paste Magazine listed 15 greatest actor-directors and also mentioned two who have recently joined the actor/director club: Vera Farmiga and Paddy Considine who directed Higher Ground and Tyrannosaur, respectively.

So who is YOUR favorite actor-turned-director ever, and what’s your favorite film that he/she directed?
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4. My hubby Ivan did a triathlon this past weekend and he met a couple of fellow triathletes. At brunch afterwards, he told me that one of them is a dead ringer for Tom Cruise! He said the guy had a similar long-ish hair like the one he’s sporting in MI:4 and also of similar built and height. He had his sunglasses on when he first saw the guy, and he already resembled him then. But the second he took those off, Ivan actually paused for a minute and had to tell him how much he resembled the Cruister and how he could practically be his body double, to which he nonchalantly replied, ‘yeah I get that a lot.’

In any case, that same night we saw the Rock of the Ages trailer in the theater.

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As someone growing up in the 80s, I have to see this on the big screen for nostalgia sake. I mean, I used to be into hard rock bands like Warrant, Guns ‘n Roses, Skid Row, etc. and Warrant’s hit HEAVEN is one of my all time favorites! Cruise looks like a hoot as the shirtless, tattooed rock star Stacee Jaxx, I gotta give it to the man, even at 50 he’s still got it!

Any of you looking forward to this movie?

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5. My pal Terrence just pointed out in his Movie News Monday about some movie reshoots that cause their releases to be delayed. Some of them are Brad Pitt’s World War Z (which needs an additional seven weeks of reshoots, yikes!), Spielberg’s Robocalypse, Thor 2, etc.

Well, one movie I have been anticipating for some time is Playing The Field. It was actually on my most-anticipated list this year before it got pushed from March to December!! Below are a couple of on-set pics from the movie:

It stars my beloved Gerry Butler as a former soccer star with a wild past who tries to redeem himself by coaching his son’s soccer team. The cast looks pretty good, well apart from Jessica Biel who I hope only has a small part, there’s Catherine Zeta-Jones, Uma Thurman, Dennis Quaid and Judy Greer. Can’t wait for this one!

So my last question to you is, what movie you’re most anticipating that gets its release pushed back?

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Well, that’s it for the June edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all! :D

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Five for the Fifth: May 2012 Edition

Hello folks, welcome to the May 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?

1.  Happy Cinco de Mayo! Last year I chose to highlight a Mexican actor to celebrate Mexican heritage and pride , but this year why not talk about directors? There are quite a number of Mexican directors working in Hollywood today, and few are highly successful, i.e. Guillermo del Toro, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Alfonso Cuarón, and the celebrated Luis Buñuel.

Out of the list, I’m most familiar with Cuarón’s work (Great Expectations, a segment of Paris, je t’aime, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and one of my favorite dystopian sci-fi thriller Children of Men. I saw it on the big screen when it came out in 2006 and was quite affected by it. I think it’s one of Clive Owen’s best performances to date, IMO.

So my first question has two-parts: Who’s your favorite Mexican director and your favorite film from said director?

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2. Ok, since I just blogged about being hooked on Spooks, I had been reading a lot about the show and apparently a US remake is in the works [surprise, surprise]. According to Dark Horizon, ABC has acquired the American adaptation rights of the BAFTA-winning show, though no word yet whether it will remain set in the U.K. or shift its location and agency setting to the United States.

Heh, naturally I’m skeptical about such projects, most likely it just won’t be as good as the original. I read this soon after I heard news that The Help director Tate Taylor wants to make a movie version of 2002 BBC miniseries The Jury (starring a young Gerry Butler in one of my top five roles). It’s such a fantastic miniseries that explored how each juror’s life is affected by the case, not sure how that’d translate into a 2-hour feature film.

Now, I do welcome the idea of a Spooks movie however, after all there are dozens of TV series that have been made into films, I mean look at Serenity, Charlie’s Angels and of course the highly successful Mission: Impossible. I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing Spooks being made into a film franchise and with the right people that could be an awesome one.

Richard Armitage who played Lucas North is very keen on the idea, in this interview he said, “Every time I see the producers I’m saying, ‘Come on, Olympics 2012. Come on, do it. Make a film’ I think it would be fantastic. And it would be great to see — I mean one of the things Spooks has done brilliantly is put London visually on the screen and shoot London beautifully…” Hear, hear, Richard! Of course they should make it with Richard in the lead ;)

So those who’ve watched Spooks, what do you think of the idea? If you haven’t seen it, what’s your favorite TV series-turned-film?
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3. Ok, I wasn’t going to feature this trailer anywhere on my blog as I thought the first movie is such an abominable! If you’ve read my short review of it, you’ll know why. But I think the second movie promises even more ridiculously bombastic and preposterous high-octane action in massive proportion!

Not only do we have the original 80s action heroes like Sly, Ah-nuld, Bruce Willis, and Dolph Lundgren, we’ve also got Jason Statham and Jet Li returning, along with even MORE action heroes in the form of Jean-Claude Van Damme AND Chuck Norris!!  I have to admit I laughed out loud watching the trailer, and everyone practically cheered when good ‘ol Chuck strutting into the screen taking off his sunglasses, ahah. Hey like the trailer said… When the threat is this great… only a cast this verbose could do it!!

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So is Expendables 2 on your must-see list this Summer?
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4. Ok, since I just saw The Avengers last night, I have to have one Avengers-related question. I read on Friday on Deadline that apparently Samuel L. Jackson was furious that A.O. Scott gave The Avengers a negative review. Here’s what he tweeted:

This is what the NY Times reviewer wrote: “…while ‘The Avengers’ is hardly worth raging about, its failures are significant and dispiriting. The light, amusing bits cannot overcome the grinding, hectic emptiness, the bloated cynicism that is less a shortcoming of this particular film than a feature of the genre.”  

Now I disagree w/ Scott as I thought The Avengers was fun and definitely entertaining, but really is it really necessary for Jackson to be so bitter about just one bad review, especially when overall the critical reception has been positive? Proof that these superheroes certainly have super ego, ahah.

What do you think of Sam Jackson’s reaction? And if you have seen The Avengers, what did you think of his role as Nick Fury?

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5. Ok last question. Today is Henry Cavill‘s 29th Birthday. As you already know, I’m highly anticipating Man of Steel with him in the role.

Apart from some behind-the-scene footage of him and this photo, we haven’t seen ANY teaser trailer yet. I’m hoping that maybe we’ll see at least a teaser with The Dark Knight Rises? Now, you’ve probably read that this Zack Snyder adaptation might focus a bit more on Clark Kent as ‘young twenty-something journalist who feels alienated by powers beyond anyone’s imagination’ [per ComicBookMovie]

There have been some on-set pics that show Cavill as Kent without his trademark glasses. Now, we should expect that under Christopher Nolan/Zack Snyder collaboration, we may see a Superman reboot unlike anything we’ve seen before. I mean look at what Nolan did with the Batman franchise, he’s not afraid to give the classic hero a whole new level of realism and darker tone with the story. So does that mean perhaps that would include Clark Kent having a different set of disguise in Man of Steel?

What say you, folks? Where are you in the ‘glasses or no glasses for Clark Kent’ debate?

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Well, that’s it for the May edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all!

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Five for the Fifth: April 2012 Edition

Hello folks, welcome to the April 2012 edition of Five of the Fifth!

It’s a bit early this year because tomorrow we’ve got a very special tribute post planned ;) As is customary for this monthly feature, I get to post five random news item/observation/poster, etc. and then turn it over to you to share your take on that given topic. You can see the previous five-for-the-fifth posts here. So let’s get started, shall we?

1. When I was watching The Hunger Games a couple of weeks ago, I kept wondering just where has Wes Bentley been all these year? He played Seneca Crane, the Panem official who ran the games, y’know the one with the awesome looking beard.

I first saw Bentley in American Beauty, which was back in 1999, and nothing else since. He was 21 then and according to this Reuters article, the Juilliard dropout apparently struggled with his newfound fame with the success of that film, and became addicted to drugs and alcohol. The article said ‘he finally overcame his addictions in 2009 and is now happily married again.’  

Well, I’m glad to hear he found his way back, as I thought he’s a pretty good actor and he’s quite good looking, kind of a cross between Jake Gyllenhaal and Christian Bale.

Well, what are your thoughts on Wes Bentley? What movie(s) of his have you seen?

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2. Just a few days ago, I read a report that the inevitable movie adaptation of another DC superhero The Flash might be getting closer to production. With Batman and Superman being the two most bankable franchises, surely DC would want to add a third one after Green Lantern tanked. Now, almost two years ago I posted that I actually would love to see The Flash getting a proper feature film. At the time, the writers of Green Lantern were reportedly doing initial concepts for it. I was quite excited to hear that, I even listed my wish list as to who should don the red suit: Lee Pace, Adam Brody, Zachary Levi, Hugh Dancy and Matthew Goode. 

I do think Lee Pace would be awesome in the role. He’s tall, lanky, and has the charisma and comic timing to be able to pull off such a role. Plus, he’s not a household name yet, but a lot of cinephiles probably know who he is and average moviegoers will recognize him from the TV show Pushing Daisies.

What do you think of this particular superhero adaptation? Any thoughts on who should play The Flash?

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3. This past Monday, Whitney Houston’s last film Sparkle debuted its first trailer. I mentioned that film in my Houston’s memorial tribute last February.

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It’s a remake of the 1976 film by the same name, which centers on three Detroit sisters who form a successful Motown-era singing group, but quickly get swallowed up by drugs, abuse, and other pitfalls of celebrity. Houston, who’s also the film’s executive producer, plays the girls’ mother, a former singer who suffered the same plights. Given what’s happened to the real singer, to hear her say the line “Was my life not a cautionary tale for you?” is utterly heart-wrenching! Sounds like Houston’s part is actually quite small, and that the star is really Jordin Sparks, but surely

What do you think folks? Would you see this on the big screen this August?

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4. Ok, I just saw the Italian poster of Woody Allen’s latest, To Rome With Love at Impawards.

It’s a decent enough poster I suppose, but what I’m wondering is Woody’s preoccupation with ensemble casts set in European cities. It stars Alec Baldwin, Penélope Cruz, Roberto Benigni, Jesse Eisenberg, Judy Davis,  Greta Gerwig, Ellen Page and Alison Pill. Check out the premise:

A story about a number of people in Italy, some American, some Italian, some residents, some visitors, and the romances and adventures and predicaments they get into.

Now, I’m not as familiar with his earlier works but do you think he’s being overly indulgent of late? Or maybe he’s always been that way with his films, after all, he was obsessed with New York City as a setting for most of his earlier films, and now it’s European big cities like London, Paris and now Rome. It also marks his return to acting since Scoop in 2006.

Thoughts on Woody Allen’s latest? Are you looking forward to this film?

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5. Ok, last but not least… since tomorrow is Gregory Peck‘s birthday, I thought I’d throw in a GP-related question :D Well, I mentioned here that I have seen 28 of his work (out of a possible 57 if we’re counting TV and miniseries). Well, I think that’s a record from just one particular actor, and the time it took (just under 6 months) sets a whole new record in itself, ahah. Check out these DVD cases that this guy Paul Champagne made, apparently he made a ton of these for different actors and directors. I’m so tempted to order a few for my GP collection :)

Anyway, I started counting how many films of my other actors I have seen. It’s no surprise that Gerry Butler comes second with 25 films seen, followed by Tom Cruise – 22 (I guess the only explanation is that the guy is now 50 and I grew up watching a ton of his movies), then Russell Crowe – 20, and Christian Bale – 19 to round up the top five. As far as actresses go, I think Cate Blanchett is the one actress whose work I’ve seen the most of with 17.

So which actor/actress’ works have you seen the most of? Come on, fess up folks!
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Well, that’s it for the April edition of Five for the Fifth, folks. Now, please pick a question out of the five above or better yet, do ‘em all!

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7×7 Award

You like me, you really like me!

Ehm, pardon my heartfelt enthusiasm but I really am grateful for this award and pardon my tardiness in getting this post up. I share this award with my wonderful contributors, especially Ted S. and Jack Deth.

Firstly, let me say thank you so very much Michael, Diana, Ruth, Julian, Niels, Richard, Pete, Andina and Dan for tagging me. Now I gladly oblige to the rules that come with this award :)

The rules to the 7 x 7 Link Award are simple:

1: Tell everyone something about yourself that nobody else knows.

2: Link to a post I think fits the following categories: The Most Beautiful Piece, Most Helpful Piece, Most Popular Piece, Most Controversial Piece, Most Surprisingly Successful Piece, Most Underrated Piece, Most Pride-worthy Piece.

3: Pass this on to 7 fellow bloggers.

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As for a fact that nobody knows… Well, I think with the exception of a few close friends, most people don’t know that Gerry Butler inspired me to write a novel. An unusual inspiration I know, but when I had a massive crush on him after seeing Phantom of the Opera back in 2004, I actually started writing a novel a year later in which the protagonist is inspired by him. I even named the character Eric, a variation of ‘Erik’ which is the real name of the Phantom in the original Gaston Leroux’s novel. You can read an excerpt from an earlier draft of one of the chapters here. I’ve since put that post on the back burner since I started this blog, but I’m still hoping to pick that up again in the future.

The Most Beautiful Piece

Beauty is so subjective, but I think I’d have to go with the two part list of 15 favorite period drama heroes that I collaborated with my friend Paula. It took quite a bit of effort to do this and I must say, it’s filled with a lot of really beautiful men :D

The Most Helpful Piece

Hmmm, I don’t want to be presumptuous that people find any of my posts helpful, but I suppose for non-Bond fans or those who aren’t familiar with this franchise might find Our picks of Best & Worst Bond films from each decade handy when they want to get into Bond movies.

Most Popular Piece

To this day, no post has been able to beat this Actors who are (surprisingly) good singers post I did back in November 2009. Thanks to IMDb hitlist (which sadly is going away soon), this post got nearly 20,000 hits in one day and over 100 comments. I guess everyone has some strong opinions as to who they think are good singers… or not :)

Most Controversial Piece

No doubt this one is the most controversial so far – Tired of boys ruling Hollywood? Get these real men to the rescue. It’s another post that got picked up by IMDb in 2009 that generated quite a lot of angry responses! Some actually call me a racist for the lack of colored actors in the post. Geez, I’m not white myself but since when is it wrong to have a preference in actors?? People take these things way too seriously, ahah.

Most Surprisingly Successful Piece

Well, unlike the King of Blog Series that is Nostra, there’s barely any that I keep regularly here on FC. But the Five for the Fifth series prove to be quite successful ever since I launched it back in January of 2011. Thanks everyone for participating on these posts every month!

Most Underrated Piece

Well, I often mention Return to Me on this blog as one of my favorite rom-coms ever. I wrote a lengthy piece as to why it’s such a beautiful, poignant chick flick more people should check out, sadly I don’t think anyone’s read it.

Most Pride-Worthy Piece

I spent a ton of time on each of the fantasy movie pitches that Castor of Anomalous Material started, so those posts are very special to me. My favorite of all of them remains to be Hearts Want, a romantic thriller starring Timothy Dalton and Helen Mirren in the lead roles, directed by Ridley Scott. It’d be a dream come true to someday translate that into a real screenplay.

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Well, since I’m quite late into this meme, seems like everyone has done this already or been tagged by others. So I’d like to pass this award to those who hasn’t done this yet but whose blogs are one of my favorites. So here goes:


Thanks everyone for your support of this wee blog. Your readership and comments are always sincerely appreciated!