WEBLOG:
If I was in the States, I’d definitely go see this once-in-a-lifetime concert, featuring Yellow Magic Orchestra, Cibo Matto, Buffalo Daughter, DJ Towa Tei, traditional taiko and Kabuki.
Sunday, June 26, 2011, 7:00PM
Hollywood Bowl (Map/Directions)
2301 North Highland Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90068
323.850.2000
I’m a huge fan of YMO, and have been following the careers of its members since I was a teenager (especially Sakamoto Ryuichi, who I feel is one of the most talented and interesting composers of his generation). I feel really torn; part of me wants to fly back to the States just to see this concert, but part of me is so tired of international flights and jet lags.
…
I’ve been playing Dragon Age 2, and just made it into the Deep Roads. So far, the game’s been mostly disappointing compared to the first game as there’s no sense of epic adventure whatsoever, and most of the quests and characters are not as interesting as the first game. I’ll probably finish it anyway, since even a bad Bioware game tend to be better than most other games.
Quickie TV and Movie reviews:
Red Cliff / 赤 å£ – I’m sure I’m not the only person who has noticed that John Woo‘s Chinese films are always far better than his American films. In fact, I would say that his American films are pretty much a waste of my time overall, as they are all disposable popcorn flicks that don’t have nearly the depth of his Chinese films. I had high expectations when he first went to Hollywood, I thought maybe he’d turn into an intelligent action/thriller filmmaker in a similar vein as Michael Mann, but he became Hollywood’s lapdog–a yes man. So needless to say, I’m glad he’s making Chinese films again.
Red Cliff was in general quite enjoyable. It is certainly over-the-top, but then again, there’s so much myth and legend mixed in with the history that most directors would likely depict the heroes as super-humans, and considering it’s John Woo, it’s totally expected. The military strategies and combat scenes were a lot of fun, although the over-the-top martial arts stuff gets a bit cartoony, especially when it seems like all the armor the soldiers worn seemed to be made of butter, because weapons went through them so easily, without exception. Makes you wonder why they even bothered to wear armor when it’s completely useless.
I hope John Woo stays in the east and does not return to Hollywood, because I really don’t think he’ll ever make a decent film while in Hollywood.
Knight & Day – Over-the-top and meant to be shamelessly entertaining, like most other Hollywood blockbusters that borders on being cartoony in their impossible action sequences. If you don’t mind that sort of highly commercialized and mainstream movies, then you’ll likely enjoy this one. Personally, I like to balance out the serious arthouse films with popcorn flicks like this one.
Battle: Los Angeles – For a visceral action flick, it was a lot of fun. Although it’s very derivative, with some clichéd and overly sentimental scenes, it was at least better than Skyline.
Love & Other Drugs – A disappointing film that doesn’t quite know what it wants to be. It’s one-third a lighthearted slapstick satire on the medical industry, one-third a romantic comedy, and one-third of clever dialogues used to convey a tender love story, and the director did not strike a good balance between the three, as many scenes fall completely into one genre or the other, and thus the whole felt schizophrenic instead of a seamless hybrid. This is something Charlie Kaufman could probably pull off, but not many others could. Well, at least Anne Hathaway got a chance to show off her luscious body again. Good for her that she’s not shy about such things.
Cold Comfort Farm – I had never seen the earlier films that Kate Beckinsale starred in, and I don’t remember how this one came across my way. Somebody must’ve recommended it at one point and I put it on my “to watch” list. It was basically a parody of the Jane Austin style of storytelling, and while not a bad film, it also lacked a certain level of finesse that I felt would’ve given the film more charm. In this film, Kate is nothing like how she is in the later roles she played, and in fact, I would say that most people back then probably could not have predicted that she’d become a sex symbol one day, since she really wasn’t much to look at back then.
Blades of Glory – The only reason I watched this was because of Jenna Fischer, since I’m a big fan of The Office and think Pam is adorable. Personally, I find low-brow crass comedies like this usually embarrassing and idiotic, but for Jenna, I was willing to suffer through it.
Rabbit Hole – Nicole Kidman was very good in this drama about recovering from a tragedy. She’s aged a lot since I last saw her in a film (The Invasion), and I think that gave her the extra vulnerability she needed to convey the grief of the character. Miles Teller, who played the teenager that accidentally killed her son while driving, was also surprisingly good.
