Rachel Getting Married

photo source: http://www.impawards.com/2008/rachel_getting_married.html 

I watched Rachel Getting Married while I took a break from an actual wedding celebration. The real-life wedding I attended was such a happy one, but I needed a break from taking so much photos and a lot of running around and standing too. While I recharged my internal batteries, I sat in bed and watched this intense film.

Here’s the trailer (actual movie trailer is only upto 2:39, the rest is a review of the trailer):


Anne Hathaway plays Kym. A young woman who has been in and out of rehab. She is out for the weekend to attend her sister Rachel’s wedding. The wedding takes place in the family home and oh what a fine wedding it is. All I can say to describe it, is that it’s so artsy. So creative. It is Indian-inspired and the wedding entourage, including the bride, are wearing Saris. Beautiful.

Everything really seems perfect about the wedding, and the union. Rachel is getting her PhD on Psychology. Sydney, her soon-to-be-husband, is a musician. Or at least that was my understanding (I was close, he’s a music producer). They had friends and family from all over come for the weekend, and oh what a party it was. They had lots of music, and all music from this film was recorded real-time. The music that the audience hears is what the actors were playing/hearing too.

The movie had this overall indie vibe. Everything just seemed genuine and non-commercial. Seriously. There were many scenes where they could have inserted sponsors or advertising but they didn’t.

So back to Kym. She has a very troubled past but it looks like she is on her way to finally healing. Not sure if it’s perfect timing, or the worst, that it happens on her sister’s wedding. On one hand I can see why Rachel feels like Kym is being selfish to draw attention to herself so much. After all, she’s the one getting married. This was her weekend. On the other hand, I felt like I wanted to scream at Kym and tell her to just lay low at the wedding if that would make the bride happy. Or to not attend at all. In the long run, it would be Rachel who would regret not having her sister there.

I also empathized with Kym, they were threshing out their issues and then Rachel goes out to announce another life-changing news to the family. And yes, that was unfair. She totally squirmed her way out of confronting her own issues that time.

But the real kicker? Kym’s confrontation scene with her mom. Her mom who left her in charge to babysit her baby brother when she was 16, and already doing drugs. Since the accident that killed her baby brother, Kym has had a tumultuous life. She hasn’t been able to forgive herself, when all the while, there was no accountability on her mother’s part. Why did she leave her in charge? There was no resolution here. Mom ends up slapping Kym, who also fights back. She leaves her house very agitated and emotional and runs her dad’s car onto a sign and then a big rock (or was it a tree?).

She is driven back to the house the next day with a big black eye. Rachel takes her in no questions asked and instead of focusing on getting herself ready for her big day, takes the time to give her sister a bath. They make peace, and the wedding goes on. Very happily in fact.

At the reception Mom is noticeably trying to avoid Kym. I wondered the whole time whether Dad or Rachel knew exactly what happened the night before.
The next day, Kym is picked up by her counselor from rehab. She doesn’t say goodbye to anyone, but Rachel sees her off and gives her a tight hug.
And life goes on.

Call Me Maybe

This video of Filipina celebrities having fun to the tune of “Call Me Maybe” has gone viral in just a few hours:

 

Fun video, no? And I can’t get over how they are all friends, all pretty and celebrity and how this is such a trip!

Nainggit ako. Envious much! Not because they’re all pretty and skinny and all. But that they have such a friendship. Time with girlfriends and hours of laughing and hanging out – that is seriously missing in my life. But I’m not saying I need it really. Would be nice though. Would be really nice.

And I know that having thoughts like this sparked by a fun video like that is a sign that I should reach out to friends. But then, who are my friends now? I just don’t have a relationship at this point, outside of what I have with the boyfriend, that is like that. It sounds sadder and a lot more pathetic in print. Really. My life is not bad, not sad, and not pathetic. Haha!

You know what else prompted my melancholy mood? Glee Season 3 Season Finale. I love the camaraderie they have, and how they find inspiration from and enable one another.

So who’s up for videoke night?

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

 

Have you seen The Sorcerer’s Apprentice? It starred Nicolas Cage as a great wizard who finds Jay Baruchel’s character Dave and takes him in as an apprentice. I think the movie came out at around the same time that Percy Jackson did, and so I didn’t get to see it in the cinemas. A few days ago, I got a chance to see the second half of the film on cable.

Image source

I didn’t have to see the entire movie to understand what happens, so I guess in a way it was a bit predictable. Also it means that the storyline could be so common that missing the beginning doesn’t have an impact to enjoying the rest of the film. But I do wonder how he was chosen? What did Balthazar see in his protégé?

I love Dave’s lab though. He’s got some cool stuff there. Not the kind of lab that has incubators and test tubes though. He’s got something a lot more cool! He was bouncing off light/sound waves and it really made good music.

I wish there was more conflict though or I was hoping that Morgana could do a little harm, but her efforts were foiled a little too soon. Oh well.

Ah, and I totally didn’t expect it was going to be funny.

Seen any movies lately?

What to do?

If the clock on my phone didn’t sound an alarm, I wouldn’t have believed that today is almost over. As I type it is now 4:09 PM on a Saturday. May 12th.

The boyfriend is out for a summer adventure with his teammates at work. My parents just stepped out for one of their regular bookstore/toystore/coffee shop rounds. And big old me, well, I am here. I’ve been thinking about where else I’d rather be right now and I couldn’t come up with anything. There are these random thoughts of

• visiting friends, or
• decluttering the closet, or
• making some iced coffee

But I won’t be doing any of those. Nah, not likely.

• Contacting friends and finding out if they’re available, coordinating schedules, by the time I’m done we’ll deep into the night
• I have no supplies – no boxes for stuff I’d need to get read of, no wire duct to organize the hundred and one wires we have in that tiny room…
• I’ve no coffee grounds

So what to do?

 

I ended up with this photo. I processed it. Printed it out on 4x6 photo paper. And then I gushed over it. And smiled. I miss you Amir, can’t wait to see you tomorrow and have you turn our world upside down again (the house is going to be one big mess when you leave!).

Circle of Friends (Movie Adaptation, 1995)

I don't know. Sometimes it seems like such a strange sort of thing to want to do. You know, ridiculous. Like someone putting their finger up your nose or something. – Benny Hogan

One time, Benny and her new guy friend Jack were talking and talking until they got to the subject of sex. That up there is what Benny had to say about it.

I read the book Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy back in 2008. It was among my travel essentials when we went on vacation to Bohol. Wow. That was almost four years ago.

When I blogged about the book, one of my readers mentioned having seen the movie version starring Minnie Driver and Chris O’Donnell. I knew about the movie because the tattered copy I got featured the two stars on the cover (they looked so young). Come to think of it, I think that cover was from the scene the quote was spoken. It was nice to hear from someone who actually got to see the movie.

Since then, I’d been on the lookout for DVDs or VCDs of the film. I couldn’t find any. I also didn’t find it online. Until last week.

Someone uploaded the film, in 7 parts, on Youtube. Thank you, someone.

 

Source: youtube.com via Vera on Pinterest

 

Yes I watched it. I watched it while I blogged about other things or read other blogs. I watched and watched and watched until it finished. Knockglen came to life. The girls and the gang, they were just as I imagined. Knockglen was a little different, but Eve’s cottage – love it. I think it was a bit more pretty in my head though, kinda like the tiny houses I’ve Pinned lately.

Now that Sean Walsh character, I don’t really remember him from the book although he must have been there. He was really annoying. For a bit there I imagined him with his cao cigars sitting in his matchbox of a room above Hogan’s and plotting his evil schemes. Lol!

The movie was true to the book, but it was very liberal about it too.

There was but one scene with the girls as kids. The big accident on the first day of school? Didn’t happen. Why Eve went to the big house and got her financial support? Wasn’t explained. But that’s okay.

I still love Benny, wished Eve was featured more. And I think Nan was real pretty. And just like book to film adaptations, I still love the book more.

Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy

Finished another book this weekend. Another one of Maeve Binchy's, Heart and Soul.

 

Familiar characters from previous books made an appearance again. Brenda and Tom Brennan of Quentins. Maud and Simon (now 17 years old, but still very much the same!), Muttie and Lizzie scarlet, Cathy and Tom Feather of Scarlet Feather.

This time around the story is all about the people that made up the warm and cozy community of the heart clinic. A specialty clinic attached to a main hospital, specifically setup for patients who may have suffered a heart attack, or are nearly having one.

The story opens with an introduction to Frank, the hospital's finance person – the natural enemy. Then of Dr. Clara Casey who built the center to the dynamic Community it has become. She picks the right mix of people to ever have to come to work together. There's just someone always at hand to handle whatever type of patient there is. Clara is quite the career woman. She has two daughters in their twenties. Their dad is currently in a relationship with a bimbo their age. As wonderful as Clara is, it was her misfortune to have had to hook up with a guy with too much testosterone (important information here on that topic, hehe). But after years and years of being legally separated and giving her ex a hard time getting a divorce, Clara finally moves on and starts on her own quest for the kind of love that would make her heart zing zing! No, she doesn’t just settle for the next man available. Being old doesn’t mean you have to settle.

For her colleagues, and perhaps to the cardiology community, Clara is a visionary, and she has much to contribute yet.

The center is indeed made up of a team of individuals who work together so well to provide the best care for their heart patients. Each one of them gets the spotlight at one point or another in the novel. Come to think of it, Lavander, the dietician and Tim the security guy had the least exposure of all of them. Does it mean they had less interesting lives? I'm intrigued now!

Lavander does demos that teach patients and their families how to prepare healthy food. How to plan it so that it doesn’t get too expensive, or don’t take too much of their time. She does a wonderful service! Tim, eventually finds love in the person of Lidia, the Polish Ania’s flatmate and school friend.

I think I would love to have worked in a place like that. Maybe as an Office manager, or receptionist. Or a case worker that does follow ups with the patients and home visits. It would be wonderful to have a clinic like that that people with high blood pressure and heart ailments can go to. Specially the part where they have exercise and cooking classes, I love that. I could imagine my grandparents probably frequenting such a place. And finding it a fun place to be at actually, rather than such a chore.

Now is there a weight loss clinic just like theirs? Everything you need is there and you visit a few times each week. And it doesn't cost much. And they teach you how to manage it all by yourself. I want that kind of clinic! Maybe someday when I have lots of money, or when I successfully lose weight and keep it off, I'll put up such a place. People would love to go and hangout. And not just fat people too. Skinny girls that need some plumping up will go too. Hehe :)

The hearts of the main characters were looked after too. They found love in the center! It's true what they say, sometimes you find love where you least expect it, or when you're not looking.

I love the story of Ania. I feel bad that she gets to be treated badly just because she's an immigrant. She is very hardworking, she can make more of herself than I can ever do for me. I think she punished herself too much for the mistake of her first love, but it did her well anyway. I thought there was some really big scandal and her mother disowned her but as it turned out it didn't even get blown out like that after all. Still, it propelled her to seek greener pastures, and to work harder. So it all worked out in the end for her. I wonder, will she go back to school? She can go to a secretarial school maybe, or a school for carers, or learn more about sewing and fashion. She has so much potential and she deserves her happy ending.

Again, Binchy successfully reeled me into this wonderful world of the Irish. But what has their stories taught me? We can't be too quick to judge. Some things aren’t what they seem. People can be better or worse than we think they are. All we can do is give them a chance. And we all can do much and be much, with the right motivation. Passion. We just need to find it first, or have it find us. Once unlocked, sky's the limit.

Wrath of the Titans (2012)

Clash of the Titans in 3D back in 2010 was quite disappointing. Not much action, and no 3D. I mean, if you pay premium to supposedly some 3D action, you want to get the bang for your buck right? Oh well. I’m not surprised that I didn’t even write about it. But the movie wasn’t all that bad, it just wasn’t all that good either.

But the sequel, well. Wrath of the Titans is better than its predecessor.  However, we didn’t try seeing this one in 3D but I can pretty much guess that some effects would have looked good on 3D.

There weren’t really any memorable lines. Not even from Zeus, or Hades, who turns out to have a redeeming factor. And Andromeda looked awkward in some scenes. She just wasn’t that believable as a Queen who really leads her army in battle. And I missed Io.

I wonder what happens to Hades next? He’s lost all of his godly power, so where does he go? Does he disintegrate too? Are the gods really just gone? Or do they just lose their bodies and would never have a human form again? I’m confused. Haha.

Here’s a look at Queen Andromeda. Okay, maybe I like her after all. And maybe it’s the lack of air brush makeup that I like for this character. All the blood splats on her face, hair, and clothes. Ugh. Do you know any other queen who has blood splats as an accessory?