Sabtu, 31 Maret 2012

SPOTLIGHT ON 2012 FOREIGN FILMS: MEXICAN EPIC "FOR GREATER GLORY" WITH ANDY GARCIA, EVA LONGORIA, PETER O'TOOLE, SWEEPING KOREAN EPIC "MY WAY", GLORIOUS EPIC "WARRIORS OF THE RAINBOW"

In HOLLYWOOD SPY's spotlight this Sunday, we're focusing on some of the upcoming foreign films which are having their premier in the USA this year. Here we go:
FOR GREATER GLORY
I've mentioned this one more than a year ago, but it is finally ready to start its life in US cinemas this June. CRISTIADA or FOR GREATER GLORY, is a dramatic Mexican epic which features a stunning cast including Peter
O'Toole, Andy Garcia, Eva Longoria, Bruce Greenwood, Nestor Carbonell, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Oscar Isaac, Eduardo Verastegui... The story of this stunning and touching epic drama revolves around the Cristeros War from the 1920's which started after a rebellion over the Mexican government's 1917 attempt to remove the influence of the Catholic Church and secularize the country. The film is directed by Dean Wright (in his directorial debut, he is known as a visual effects expert who worked on LORD OF THE RINGS and CHRONICLES OF NARNIA) and the music is composed by the best among the best - James Horner (TITANIC, AVATAR)!

MY WAY
Premiering April 20th in USA is stunning Korean historical war film MY WAY: After emerging as bitter rivals and enemies as young marathon runners, Korean native Kim Jun-shik and Japanese aristocrat
Tatsuo Hasegawa both find themselves in the Japanese army, fighting the Chinese and Soviets in a bloody battle. Jun-shik is there under duress, while Tatsuo is a powerful colonel. After both are taken prisoner by the Soviets, their mutual hatred and mistrust boils over into a violence that is only stopped by the continuing horror of the war. Forced to fight for the Soviets, the two eventually rely on each other for survival, making it to Germany, where they are in turn separated and forced to fight for the Nazis. They meet again at Normandy Beach, both unlikely survivors, bonded together by history as they struggle to survive one more terrible battle as the Allies arrive on D-Day. The cast includes  Asian stars Dong-gun Jang, Jo Odagiri and Bingbing Fan.

WARRIORS OF RAINBOW
One of the Asian films ready to premier in USA April 27th is WARRIORS OF THE RAINBOW: SEEDIQ BALE. You can check out a deeply touching trailer bellow. Some eighty years ago, in the mountains of Taiwan
two races clashed in defense of their faiths. One race believed in rainbows, the other believed in the sun. Neither side realized that they both believed in the same sky. Wei Te-sheng's epic film "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale" reclaims an extraordinary episode from 20th-century history which is little-known even in Taiwan. Between 1895 and 1945, the island was a Japanese colony inhabited not only by the majority (Han Chinese Immigrants) but also by the remnants of the aboriginal tribes who first settled the mountainous land. In 1930 Mouna Rudo, the leader of the Seediq tribe settled on and around Mount Chilai, forged a coalition with other Seediq tribal leaders and plotted a rebellion against their Japanese colonial
masters. It was to begin at a sports day meeting where the assembled tribesmen were to attach and kill the Japanese officials and would then broaden to sieges on police stations and local government offices in the region. The initial uprising took the Japanese by surprise and was almost entirely successful. But the Japanese soon sent in their army to crush the rebellion, using aircraft and poison gas.
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Jumat, 30 Maret 2012

GERARD BUTLER JOINS "MOTOR CITY"! "TWINS" GET "TRIPLETS" SEQUEL WITH EDDIE MURPHY JOINING DANNY DEVITO & ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER! CHARACTER POSTERS FOR "DARK SHADOWS"

You know how sometimes there are those doomed projects which keep getting postponed or keep losing cast members. Today we've heard that Colin Farrell
has left ARTHUR & LANCELOT epic due to scheduling conflict, just when the film was supposed to get back on track, and now MOTOR CITY has been left without Jake Gyllenhaal, who before that replaced Dominic Cooper. But unlike the above mentioned epic this one at least has a solution for the lead role and a worthy one: according to "Variety" Scotland's favourite Gerard Butler will take the lead in MOTOR CITY, an ex-con who goes on a quest for vengeance against the men who framed him and sent him to prison. The cast will be also supported with Gary Oldman in the villain role and Amber Heard in the female lead. Although the plot doesn't sound overly interesting currently, the script was on the famous Black List back in 2009, the list of most promising and intriguing movie scripts.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
And here's something funny and positively cheerful :) You do remember that in the sea of upcoming remakes of the 80's classics (I'm not sure there's a single film from that decade that isn't getting a reboot), there was also TWINS, one of the biggest comedies from the past in which Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny Devito
played twins who looked like total opposites - one being a muscular hulk and another a little penguin. Now listen to this: "The Hollywood Report" writes today that the movie will reunite the two of them as brothers Julius and Vincent, conceived experimentally, who discover they have third sibling, who will be played by no other by Eddie Murphy! I'm not kidding. This is why TRIPLETS will be the title of the sequel.

And have you seen character posters for Tim Burton's movie adaptation of the famous classic TV show DARK SHADOWS in
which Johnny Depp plays Barnabas, rich, powerful and an inveterate playboy, who makes the grave mistake of breaking the heart of Angelique Bouchard. A witch, in every sense of the word, Angelique dooms him to a fate worse than death: turning him into a vampire, and then burying him alive. Two centuries later, Barnabas is inadvertently freed from his tomb and emerges into the very changed world of 1972. He returns to his Collinwood Manor to find that the once-grand estate has fallen into ruin. The dysfunctional remnants of the Collins family have fared little better, each harboring their own dark secrets. Matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer) has called
upon live-in psychiatrist, Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter), to help with her family troubles. Also residing in the manor is Elizabeth's ne'er-do-well brother, Roger Collins, (Jonny Lee Miller), her rebellious teenage daughter Carolyn Stoddard (Chloe Moretz),
and Roger's precocious 10-year-old son, David Collins (Gulliver McGrath). The mystery extends beyond the family, to caretaker Willie Loomis, played by Jackie Earle Haley, and David's new nanny, Victoria Winters, played by Bella Heathcote.Click on the posters to see them bigger.
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Kamis, 29 Maret 2012

Qrop it!

Advertorial

Look at this Vivi magazine I just bought!! I'm gonna be blogging today about one of the things on it, can you tell what?


 Pardon the ringlight overexposure...

Ok I'm sure most of you cannot read Japanese so can stop guessing now...

It's about the QR CODE!!


Here it is!!

I'm sure many of you have seen these complicated square pixelly bits and wondered what it is. Now you know it's called QR code, and it is especially popular in Japan!!

A QR code is simply like a bar code that you can scan with your phone and it will lead you to a website on your phone!! Don't try to scan this one, it's too blur wtf... Stupid camera.

Anyway, most of us are using smartphones nowadays. So QR codes are a superb idea to very quickly get more information on a brand, person, etc... when you are on the go!!

For example right... Let's just say I have a very complicated URL like 2737fhfc2847.blogspot.com.

You are reading this article halfway and you are late so you need to leave the house but you want to continue reading this on the phone and yet you don't want to write down my URL.

Lucky for you my website has a QR code!!

And here it is:


You whip out your phone... Scan this code, and totally fuss free and easy - you can continue right where you left off.

GOOD RIGHT??

Now we come to the HOW.


I keep saying "scan", but HOW to scan?

Introducing:


Qropit is a free app that's available on both iPhone and Android. Simply search for Qropit on the app store and you can download it... For free!!

Why should you get Qropit?

1) Why not? Free leh!!

2) Get with the times! Qr codes are everywhere now, so you need a QR code scanner anyway - Qropit is super cute and easy to use!! See how I do it!!



Ok I see this ad in the magazine and I really want to get that, erm... bra.

So I Qropit!!



Very simple... click on the app and immediately get scanning!!

I might add that scanning is super easy and fast and fun!! Like how people in supermarkets scan their produce lol. And Qropit even lets you customise a sound when successfully scanned! DING DING DING!!

(OK I know this is not the same page as the bra ad but it's just an example -_-)


This is how scanning looks like on the phone!

And tadah, once scanned, this loads:




A website of gibbery words I cannot understand but I guess it gave me info on where to get that bra? LOL


3) Not only does Qropit allow you to scan codes... You can also CREATE codes, called Qrops, which is just smashing!!

I already put my blog's QR code above, but weblinks are not the only things you can create!!

Just log on to Qropit's website and hit on CREATE A QROP.


And you will see this super cute image... Inviting you to create any of the above Qrops!!

It can be a photo, a video, anything you wish to share!!

The ones I found extra interesting are Coupon and Contact Card!!

For businesses you can now run a print ad, for example, on the MRT. Invite people to scan your code to be entitled to a discount, and when they are at the shop, they can show their coupon to redeem!!

For the rest of us, we sometimes need to give out namecards but namecards are so small! You simply can't put enough information on there, so why not put a Qrop on the namecard?

Or on the About me/Contact me page of your website?



Creating my contact card!!


And tadah! When scanned this is what pops up when viewed on a computer:



Awesome or what? With all my links etc and with a photo too! :D

And best of all? On the phone?






*BIG SHINY EYES*

It automatically asks if you want to store the Qrop as a CONTACT!!

Now you don't need to type everything in manually... It's just one click and everything is saved in the phone!! Super convenient wtf!! ♥♥♥ love it!!


4) Qropit has a Radar feature!!



You can view who scanned what nearby! So cool right? Don't worry, others cannot see what you scanned unless you linked it to your facebook and twitter specifically for sharing with others. The radar shows only scans but not tagged with their users' identity. :)

And you can see the "History" bit there? All your past scans are stored, so you can look at them again later if you want.


5) Qropit also provides analytics for Qrop owners.

You can track how much traffic you got from your Qrop.

You can see the gender of those who viewed your Qrops, their age, their countries, and even their types of phones. So cool!! And all this service is FREE!!



6) I don't think you need any more incentive to get Qropit but here is one more:

I did up a slideshow of a preview of the pictures I edited for my third Otaru blog entry with Cheesie!!!

You can also view a collection of my past Draw Something drawings!! Some are quite awesome if I saw so myself lol

You can only see it by scanning these codes...

SO QROPIT:



SCAN THE CODES TO VIEW ALL THE PICTURES!!



7) Ok the last incentive is the freaking best........

YOU CAN WIN AN IPAD 3!!!!!!!


Bitch please I didn't even know it came out already!!!

One 16gb iPad 3 will be given to a lucky reader who downloads, scans, and shares a QR code with Qropit by April 21st!!

Easiest peasiest contest EVER wtf. Remember to link your Qropit to your facebook or twitter! Only applicable for Singaporeans.


What are you waiting for??!!


Need a code to scan and share? How about this blog entry? :D










*************************************

Took part in the Scholl contest?

Winners for the Scholl compression stockings have been selected.

The winners are: Xue Ying, Feline Yo, Princess Shiyu, Grace Vencio and Char Siu Bao.

Do remember to check out your Facebook inbox and reply to the Scholl mail today!
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TRAILERS FOR "PEOPLE LIKE US" WITH CHRIS PINE, ELIZABETH BANKS, OLIVIA WILDE, MICHELLE PFEIFFER & "THINK LIKE A MAN" COMEDY! CALLAN MULVEY JOINS "300: BATTLE AT ARTEMISIA"

It's a very slow day today in the film news world, people, so I only have two trailers for smaller films to show you today. The first one is for DreamWorks
Pictures drama PEOPLE LIKE US (previously known as WELCOME TO THE PEOPLE), a story about family, inspired by true events, starring Chris Pine as Sam, a twenty-something, fast-talking salesman, whose latest deal collapses on the day he learns that his father has suddenly died. Against his wishes, Sam is called home, where he must put his father's estate in order and reconnect with his estranged family. In the course of fulfilling his father's last wishes, Sam uncovers a startling secret that turns his entire world upside down: He has a 30-year-old sister Frankie (Elizabeth Banks) whom he never knew about. As their relationship develops, Sam is forced to rethink everything he thought he knew about this family, and re-examine his own life choices in the process. The cast also includes Olivia Wilde and Michelle Pfeiffer and the film hits cinemas this June.
HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
You know that HOLLYWOOD SPY is excited about the 300 prequel 300: BATTLE OF ARTEMISIA which will go back ten years in the
past describing the rise of Persian king Xerxes and his battle against Greeks at Artemisia. As you know Australian hunk Sullivan Stapleton has been cast as the Greek general Themistocles, while Eva Green will probably take the role of the evil sorceress Artemisia who convinces Xerxes to go into battle. Rodrigo Santoro will probably return as Xerxes and the new addition to the cast is Australian hunk Callan Mulvey whom my readers from Down Under and a lot of those in Europe remember from our teen years when we watched him as Drazic in famous teen series HEARTBREAK HIGH (which unlike most US teen shows, wasn't crappy nor superficial, but it followed tough life and real problems of kids alienated in today's world).

The second trailer is for THINK LIKE A MAN, a delightful comedy based on Steve Harvey’s best-selling book "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man" in which
the story follows four interconnected and diverse men whose love lives are shaken up after the ladies they are pursuing buy Harvey’s book and start taking his advice to heart. When the band of brothers realize they have been betrayed by one of their own, they conspire using the book’s insider information to turn the tables and teach the women a lesson of their own. The cast stars Taraji P. Henson, Morris Chestnut, Arielle Kebbel and always delightful Chris Brown... but it is interesting that the soundtrack to the movie will gather all the biggest r'n'b stars from Ne Yo and Keri Hilson to Luther Vandross, Kelly Rowland, Jennifer Hudson and John Legend.
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Rabu, 28 Maret 2012

MINDBLOWING "RISE OF THE GUARDIANS" TRAILER WITH HUGH JACKMAN, JUDE LAW, CHRIS PINE! STUNNING CONCEPT ART FOR "SEVENTH SON" EPIC! JAMIE DORNAN & GILLIAN ANDERSON IN "THE FALL"

If you love the most popular TV show this season, ABC's fantasy spectacle ONCE UPON A TIME, I'm sure you were shocked when the Evil Queen took Sheriff's heart out thus kicking handsome Irish
hunk Jamie Dornan out of the show. The producers say that he might come back in the fantasy part of the show, since he was killed only in the reality part. But until that happens, actor and supermodel Jamie Dornan has another project: according to "Digital Spy" he will join BBC's five part thriller THE FALL, in which X-FILES Gillian Anderson will star as DSI Gibson, a detective in pursuit of a deadly serial killer, while Dornan will play her quarry Paul Sector, who stalks his victims in and around Belfast.

HOLLY WOOD SPY HEAD LINES
Check out the amazing concept art for next year's fantasy film SEVENTH SON which has just started shooting. If you click on the picture, you will be able to see the spectacular scope of the visuals and it seems it will be a huge film. Directed by Sergey Bodrov, the film is set in a time long past, where an evil is about to be unleashed reigniting the war between the forces of the supernatural and humankind once more. Master Gregory (Jeff Bridges) is a knight who had imprisoned the malevolently powerful witch, Mother Malkin (Julianne Moore), centuries ago. But now she has escaped and is seeking vengeance. Summoning her followers of every incarnation, Mother Malkin is
preparing to unleash her terrible wrath on an unsuspecting world. Only one thing stands in her way: Master Gregory. In a deadly reunion, Gregory comes face to face with the evil he always feared would someday return. Now he has only until the next full moon to do what usually takes years: train his new apprentice, Tom Ward (Ben Barnes) to fight a dark magic unlike any other. Man's only hope lies in the seventh son of a seventh son. The cast also includes GAME OF THRONES Kit Harington.

It was only yesterday that we've seen the trailer for HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA, and now here's the utterly spectacular and mesmerizing first trailer for another of this year's charming animated films - RISE OF THE GUARDIANS which hits cinemas this
November. The story brings an epic and magical adventure that tells the story of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, and Jack Frost - legendary characters with previously unknown extraordinary abilities. When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children everywhere. The uber cool voice cast includes Hugh Jackman (he's the Bunny, which he is, isn't he? :), Alex Baldwin (as North), Chris Pine (as Jack Frost), Jude Law, Isla Fisher (as Tooth Fairy)...
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Selasa, 27 Maret 2012

CHANNING TATUM & MILA KUNIS IN "JUPITER ASCENDING" SF EPIC? CHARMING TRAILER FOR "HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA"! RUPERT PENRY JONES HAS "THE LAST WEEKEND"! "GARLIC & SAPPHIRES" GETS A FILM

We haven't seen much from the Wachowski Bros. after THE MATRIX but it seems the brother and the sister directors are coming back to the sf genre. According to "Deadline" their next project could be a huge sf film JUPITER
ASCENDING which plot is still kept under wraps but according to the latest news Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis have been offered the lead roles in it. As you know, Channing Tatum is currently a hot good in Hollywood since he had two huge blockbusters back to back THE VOW and now 21 JUMP STREET. The Wachowski's have recently finished their current project CLOUD ATLAS the intricate and complex movie featuring six intertwining story lines set in a different times and places that become intricately related to each other, with actors playing roles in each time. The stories span from the 19th Century to a post apocalyptic 22nd Century.The cast of the film is rather big and filled with well known names from Tom Hanks, Hugo Weaving, Hugh Grant, Jim Sturgess and Ben Whishaw, to Susan Sarandon, James D'Arcy, Jim Broadbent, Halle Berry...

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
I'm not sure if this will be a romcom or some fun film, but I like the sound of it: according to "Deadline" BRIDESMAID's director Paul Feig
might helm the film adaptation of GARLIC AND SAPPHIRES Ruth Reichl’s "New York Times" best-selling book which recounts the “adventures in deception” as the NY Times’ restaurant critic goes undercover to the world’s finest culinary establishments. To go unrecognised, she assumes the persona of a nouveau riche widow. And one of our fave British gents Rupert Penry Jones, has a new project: according to "Digital Spy" he and Shaun Evans will star in THE LAST WEEKEND ITV's suspense thriller which follows two couples with a shared history on holiday in Suffolk over a bank holiday weekend. Evans plays a working class primary school teacher, who made friends with the sporty and privileged Ollie (Penry-Jones) at university. The men's competitive edge, a resurrected old bet and returning sexual tensions result in a horrendous and catastrophic outcome for both couples.

And here it finally is, the first trailer for what could be one of the most charming animated flicks this Autumn - HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA Dracula's (Adam Sandler)
lavish five-stake resort, where monsters and their families can live it up, free from meddling from the human world. But here's a little known fact about Dracula: he is not only the Prince of Darkness; he is also a dad. Over-protective of his teenage daughter, Mavis, Dracula fabricates tales of elaborate dangers to dissuade her adventurous spirit. As a haven for Mavis, he opens the Hotel Transylvania, where his daughter and some of the world's most famous monsters – Frankenstein and his bride, the Mummy, the Invisible Man, a family of werewolves, and more – can kick back in safety and peace.
For Drac, catering to all of these legendary monsters is no problem – but his world could come crashing down when one ordinary guy stumbles on the hotel and takes a shine to Mavis. Beside Sandler, the voice cast includes Fren Drescher, David Spade, Steve Buscemi, Selena Gomez, Cee-Lo...
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Senin, 26 Maret 2012

ED SPELEERS JOINS "DOWNTON ABBEY"! CATE BLANCHETT TO DIRECT HER 1ST FILM "THE TURNING"! MATTHEW MACFADYEN IN "RIPPER STREET"! FABULOUS TRAILER FOR SERBIAN BLOCKBUSTER "LOVELESS ZORITSA"

Here's a nice piece of news for all of you who love planetary megahit series DOWNTON ABBEY, and I know there's a lot of you out there :) According to "Deadline" super charming young actor Ed Speleers has signed on to join the
cast as a footman named Jimmy. You already know that Shirley MacLaine has signed on to join the third season of the show, which is currently in production, as mother to Elizabeth McGovern’s Cora Grantham and a foil for Maggie Smith’s irrepressible Dowager Countess. We remember Ed Speleers mostly for his brilliant role in ERAGON, but for some reason his rival in the film, Garrett Hedlund has scored a bigger success later on in Hollywood even though his role was clearly weaker in the epic fantasy movie from 2006. Speleers will appear this year in horror comedy LOVE BITE about a werewolf who prays only on virgins (I kid you not, that's the plot) alongside another stunner Luke Pasqualino (THE BORGIAS) who recently hid his pride and joy from us with a towel :)

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
Our beloved Cate Blanchett hasn't made any nice films for quite some times now, and the only thing to warm our souls is her appearance as Elven queen Galadriel in Peter Jackson's THE HOBBIT this winter, but it seems she will now take a director's chair too: alongside some other Australian stars like Mia Wasikowska and her colleague from LORD OF THE RINGS David Wenham, Blanchett will direct a segment in the film adaptation of THE TURNING, a collection of short stories by Tim Winton. Speaking of British TV series, one of the upcoming ones will be RIPPER STREET at BBC, an eight part series set in 1899 London, in the aftermath of the Jack The Ripper murders, and it will focus on H Division, the notorious police precinct charged with keeping order in Whitechapel. British star Matthew MacFadyen is taking the lead role alongside GAME OF THRONES Jerome Flynn and MyAnna Buring from the TWILIGHT crapfest :)PS A few days ago we saw the first horrid look of Hugh Jackman from the LES MISERABLES, and now you can click to see how Russell Crowe looks like in the film as Inspector Javert.

After brilliant and mindblowingly spectacular epic fantasy TEARS FOR SALE, touching WW1 saga SAINT GEORGE SHOOTS THE DRAGON, delightful soccer film MONTE VIDEO GOD BLESS,here's another
charming Serbian film for you. Currently showing in Serbian cinemas, LOVELESS ZORITSA is a delightful black comedy with fantasy elements following Zoritsa, a village girl who bears an extraordinary curse: Since her first love got mysteriously drawn in the river, men around her die in a strange way. The raged villagers name her "the kiss of death". The case is in the hands of Mane, the stubborn, young, newcomer cop from Belgrade, temporarily working in the "haunted village". Mane doesn't believe in such "mumbo-jumbo" stories.
Soon he will have to face the heavily armed villagers, and he'll also have to answer the crucial question: Is Zoritsa a serial killer or just a girl who yearns for love?
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Minggu, 25 Maret 2012

OSCAR ISAAC JOINS TOM FELTON & GLENN CLOSE IN "THERESE RAQUIN"! WARNER BROS. TO ADAPT SF SAGA "FOURTH REALM"! DEEPLY INSPIRING TRAILER FOR "MUSICAL CHAIRS"!

Beside Hugh Jackman's, Russell Crowe's, Anne Hathaway's LES MISERABLES, Helena Bonham Carter's and Ralph Fiennes' GREAT
EXPECTATIONS and Jude Law and Aaron Johnson's ANA KARENINA, one of the upcoming classic novel film adaptations is THERESE RAQUIN as well. As you know it is based on the famous novel by Emile Zola, in which Elizabeth Olsen plays the title character, who is trapped in a loveless marriage to her sickly first cousin, Camille (Tom Felton), and living with his mother (Glenn Close). She begins an illicit love affair with Camille’s friend Laurent, which leads to a tragic outcome for all three. Now, the latest update from "Deadline" is that Oscar Isaac (ROBIN HOOD, SUCKER PUNCH, AGORA) has won the role of Laurent. It is interesting that Kate Winslet was for a long time set to play the title role, and later on Jessica Biel was in plan together with Gerard Butler as Laurent.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
According to "Deadline" Warner Bros. has bought movie rights on FOURTH REALM trilogy. This fantasy dystopian saga has been written by John Twelve Hawks. The studio will start right away on
"The Traveler", the first book in the series. The novels are set in the near future, and reinterpret history as a battle between the forces of control. There is the Tabula, which manages society through constant observation, and the Travelers, a nearly extinct group of people who can project their spirit into other dimensions. The series continued with the novels "The Dark River" and "The Golden City". They’ve been published in 25 languages and sold more than 1.5 million books. The author is known for being extremely mysterious, nobody knows his real name nor identity and he communicates with publishers and media only by email or by untraceable satellite calls for which he uses a voice scrambler.

We've had a spotlight on delightful and inspiring film yesterday, but here's another deeply inspiring film, the one which can bring hope to your heart and warmth into your souls. Currently in cinemas, MUSICAL CHAIRS is set against the exciting backdrop of competitive ballroom dancing,
following Armando, a Bronx-bred Latino who aspires to be a dancer but whose only way in is as handyman at a Manhattan dance studio, and Mia, an Upper East Side princess who is the studio's star performer. Though worlds apart, their shared passion for dance promises to bring them together until a tragic accident changes Mia's life forever, and she finds herself wheelchair bound at a rehab facility, with her dreams of a dance career shattered. Fortunately, Armando has enough dreams for both of them and, when he hears about a wheelchair ballroom dance competition that will soon be held in NY, he sees a way to return something to Mia that she thinks is lost forever. At first she is reluctant, wheelchair dancing, though highly popular overseas, is something she never even knew existed. But, with the help of several other patients at the rehab center, Armando organizes an intense training program that will bring them all center stage and in the spotlight. The prize is irrelevant; what they really stand to win back is their zest for life.
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Sabtu, 24 Maret 2012

Askers vs Guessers - And a preview of Andara!

I'm on a roll with the wordy posts!! To balance it out I posted a photo of a group of girls in bikinis below.

When you ask people what sort of people they don't like, usually the same crappy answers come out: Hypocrites and backstabbers. Sometimes people say cheaters or liars etc.

Sure, I don't like those too... But what frustrates me the most, are when people are buay paiseh. 

If you are not Chinese or Singaporean, you may not be familiar to that word. It is commonly used to insult someone here in Singapore, and another variation of that phrase is 不自動. Buay paiseh means "UNABASHED" in english.

Rarely ever is "unabashed" used as an insult or lament about someone's character in English speaking countries. We don't hear people in movies or storybooks saying "I don't like her because she is unabashed".

Why? That's because we are all split into Askers and Guessers. Asians are often complaining about angmohs visiting their countries being "rude". That's because they have an Ask culture vs our Guess culture.

What does that mean? I came across this article some time ago discussing Askers and Guessers.

Let's determine which one you are.

Someone you are not very close to sends you an email, asking if he can stay at your place (let's assume you do have room) for a week... nay, let's make it worse, month-long vacation. You don't even like him.

Do you think this person is being rude?

If you think so, you are likely a Guesser.

Being an Asker means that you are brought up to believe you can ask for just about anything, and you expect people to say no if they want to. Simple.

Being a Guesser is a bit more complicated. Guessers don't like to be put in a situation where they have to reject someone. They resent having explain why the hell not when he feels you should have anticipated the answer and just not asked. Guessers feel it's impolite to say no, and might even agree to a request they don't really want to agree to just out of shock.

It seems that life is a little harder for the Guessers because afterall people all view things differently... how can you possibly anticipate someone's answer to everything? We should all be Askers, things would be so much simpler!

But alas, things aren't as black and white as that.

Afterall, if you are a man and you want to have sex with a lady on the street, you don't just go up to get and ask to see her vagina. Or if she rejects you, ask "How much?". She can say no, but you just made her very pissed off.

You'd think someone with my straightforward character is definitely an Asker, but I am Chinese and despite using vulgarities all the time I was brought up by a traditionally Chinese mom who is always preaching to me about manners. Never take the drumstick off the roast chicken (Asians usually value dark meat on chicken) on the table, offer it to the elders first. Never borrow money. Always offer to pay for everything.

Don't be mistaken. I am not a Guesser through and through. You don't have to be one or the other. In fact, I'm probably more of an Asker than most Singaporeans. The delicate art is not about whether or not you ask, it is HOW you ask.

This culture of anticipating someone's reaction to whatever it is you are doing extends OUTSIDE of just requests.

Sometimes, it is your actions that cause discomfort to others and you don't even have to open your mouth. Us Guessers don't know why we get so frustrated with the more aggressive Askers and we label them as "rude". No, the more concise term is "unabashed". Or as we Singaporeans like to say... NOT SHY!!

I'm gonna expound on the topic by ranting about one of my greatest pet peeves:

I HATE PEOPLE WHO ALWAYS DON'T HAVE CASH ON HAND.

I am not talking about poor people, but those who always choose to withdraw very little money out of the ATM, like $20 at a time, despite having money.

This is a very broad stroke because it's very normal for us to run out of money sometimes. I do too. The key word is ALWAYS, and also this is very important - how you handle the situation when you run out of cash on hand.

I'm sure all of you, like me, have friends who are always low on cash. So whenever there is a group dinner at a restaurant that doesn't take credit cards and they don't have enough cash to pay, you help them pay first. Or in shared cab rides, you have to fork out more. Or you invite them over for a game of poker/mahjong. They lose, no cash. Owe you first.

I find these people super irritating.

As a general rule, people who feel embarrassed about borrowing money will always try to get rid of that ashamed feeling by returning it fast. AND these people usually have cash, to prevent such a situation from happening in the first place, so it stands that that people who always don't have cash, usually will not bother to return money efficiently, or at all.

I am a very forgetful person. I don't remember it when people owe me money, and often I don't remember to remind them. But when I do actually remember, I RESENT having to open my mouth and ask for the money. It's embarrassing. And when I remind and the person STILL doesn't pay me back, I hate having to ask again. And worse of all, sometimes the amount is small, like $10 or $20. It would seem like I'm such an asshole to go ask for it back.

But it isn't about the money. It's about the person's incorrect thinking. It is not polite to borrow money from people, furthermore with such a cavalier attitude to it. I don't care that much about the $10, I care that you put me in this situation of discomfort and thus, I don't feel like giving that $10 to you.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a stingy, miserly person. If this occurs not infrequently, it's totally ok for me to fork out a bit more for my friend. But if out of 10 situations 8 times the person has no cash to pay for it, I'd start to be frustrated. 

If they don't have money to participate in whatever activity be it dinners or gambling, they shouldn't! How can they expect people to pay for them first, always?

If they have the money and they know they are going to be needing cash, isn't it just polite of them to go withdraw some before the activity starts? 

And after borrowing, sometimes I see them walk pass an ATM machine with me and I'm thinking "WTF? Why isn't he withdrawing to pay me back?? THE DINNER FREE AH?". I get it that sometimes people forget. But it's about not making it happen so often that slowly, people KNOW they always have to pay for you and would rather not meet you anymore.

There, that's the problem with Askers.

They think, "If you don't want to lend me money why don't you just say no? When I walk past that ATM and didn't notice it why didn't you just ask me to withdraw money for you? You needed the money back urgently meh?"

How do you say "no" to someone borrowing $10? It is extremely confrontational and making things awkward, and I get irritated that I am put in that situation where I have to reject you. I am doing you a favour by helping you pay, why do you have to make things difficult for me? Doesn't seem fair there.

And we come to the part where I am the most fucking pissed about. When asked about why they always don't have cash, these people always reply "Because when I have no cash I spend less."

Or some other variety of bullshit such as "I am trying to save money" or "I think using card I can have accounts of where my money went".

It makes me sooooooooooo fucking angry. You think the rest of us don't want to also spend less? Or that we don't wanna save money and have accounts of our spendings clearcut to us?

Yeah you successfully save money... Because people are fucking paying your shit for you! What bullshit about spending less when you don't have cash... You spent it didn't you? Just without your own money!! If you truly think that with less cash you'd spend less, then you shouldn't have participated in that activity that cost you money! Go dinner with the group but don't order anything or order within the money you DO have!

Irritating!!

In general I think working adults should always withdraw at least $200. When it goes low to about $50, it's time to withdraw again.

(I'd like to give a special mention to Kaykay who always have a lot of cash with her. I've known KK for like 6 years or something now... She never ONCE borrowed cash from me. I find that super commendable!)

Someone on formspring asked me for a specific example of buay paiseh behaviour. Some are more obvious, some are not so obvious. Here's a subtle one, but buay paiseh nonetheless.

3 guests were in my house playing mahjong. Including me, that would be 4 people. I bought 10 chicken wings that day and offered some to them.

I asked everyone how many they wanted out of my 10 wings, and a girl, the first person who answered, said "3".

If you do a bit of math, divided equally among 4 people, each person can only take 2.5 chicken wings. And then I think that it is normal politeness to leave more food for the host or her family (in this case I mean Mike), especially since I haven't told her how many I want for myself. I found it rude of her to ask for 3 wings from me. If the other 2 people were as unabashed as her, I'd be left with 1 wing for myself and I'd be fucking pissed off. Luckily, they weren't.

Let me make it clear. Eating 3 out of 10 wings isn't that bad. But first she could have said 1, or 2. After everyone is done with their eating and there were still leftovers, she could ask if she could have one more. I'd have been fine with that. But asking for 3 before she even knew how many I wanted to eat was rude.

Maybe Askers are thinking that I'm way too calculative and sensitive. If I didn't wanna give her 3 I could have just said so. But I wasn't close to her and saying so would have made the rest of the night awkward. Or perhaps I was baiting her by asking her how many she wanted out of 10 when the only answers I accepted was 1 or 2. I should have just said "Would you like 1 or 2 wings?". I would next time, but I just honestly didn't anticipate she would be so thickskinned!

Anyway, just now I was saying, it's not about what you ask, it's about HOW you ask.

Sometimes I want something and I just ask for it. You can be an unabashed Asker and still not make people angry... The key is to acknowledge you are being rude, and give the person the option to say no within the request.

For example the month-long stayover I mentioned at the start. Here's how I would have phrased it:

"Hi XXX... How are you doing? I'm going to your country this Wednesday and I have a request. If you have room for me and it's convenient for you, could I stay at your place for a duration of a month? I understand this is a demanding request but hotels are really expensive. I will of course try my best to not get in your hair and I am willing to pay you back for any expenses I incurred and a fee for your trouble. If this isn't convenient for you in any way, please feel free to tell me no. I have an aunt's place I can go to alternatively but she's rather naggy. :X Either way, I'd love to meet up with you for drinks when I come! :)"

Although asking to stay at someone's house for a whole month is still pretty unabashed, but offering to pay and telling them to feel guilt-free about a rejection at least makes it known to the person that you KNOW you are being rude, which makes them not so angry about your stupid request. 

The last sentence was added so it doesn't seem like you don't care about the person outside of him doing you favours.

Another method for Asking is to just go the complete opposite direction. I like to do this with my very close friends by just saying "I want xxx!" like a petulant child. Most of the time they just give in to me (because my friends are easy-going people wtf) but when they don't want to, it's very easy for them to say "GO AND DIE LAH" or "You can fight me for it bitch", which removes the awkwardness of a rejection.

Ok this concludes my blog entry about Askers and Guessers. Just as a matter of interest, how much do you guys withdraw out of the ATM each time? I judge people who say $20. (Unless you are a broke student and $20 is all you have, duh.)


**************************


Here's a preview of my awesome holiday at Andara Resort in Phuket!!

I already went there once before, so lucky to go again. :D

Had such a super fun time there with Mike and 10 of my friends: Shuyin and her sister Binbin, Qiu, Sophie, Alaric, Huiwen, Cheesie, Eekean, Gillian and Bryan!


AWESOME MUCH? Private beach section belonging to Andara... Loads of double beds on the sand, with lounge chairs, cold drinks served to guests... and best of all... THE BEACH HAD WIFI!!

And see there? The couple in the middle of the picture. The angmoh lady was topless! LOL


Put full makeup to the beach because I knew the other girls were gonna camwhore and I wanted to as well!! Cheesie and I look looking real Vivi or what? :D


Pool villa... Can you believe this 2 storeyed place is actually a villa?? It's so freaking humongous with 4 bedrooms!! 


Some of us girls lounging in the shallow bits of the infinity pool with a glorious sunset behind us. People were barbecuing food for us while we chat and chill!! Life CANNOT get better than this.


JELLY RIGHT? Don't be!!

Andara is now running a STAY MORE, SAVE MORE promotion from March - October 2012. This means you can get 20%-30% discount!!

Andara is really the most luxurious, romantic and beautiful resort I've stayed in before!! I feel so pampered!! It's really perfect for a honeymoon or even for a wedding. The pool villa is huge enough for an actual wedding reception wtf!! Or if you want to go with a big group of friends or family, it's also great coz there are a few bedrooms in one villa.

If you are referred from our blogs you even get a $50usd spa credit. :D

Find out more about their promotion HERE.

I am gonna be posting like a zillion other pictures from the holiday once I finish editing them. :)
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SPRING 2012 DELIGHTFUL FILMS: "HYSTERIA" WITH HUGH DANCY, MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL & RUPERT EVERETT, "NOW IS GOOD" WITH DAKOTA FANNING & JEREMY IRVINE

Since you know HOLLYWOOD SPY fights for positive and heart warming films instead of the dark and morbid ones we are bombarded with these days, today I present you with a spotlight on some of the most delightful films waiting to premier this spring: the ones which will brings us either laughs, tears or inspiration.
DELIGHTFUL HYSTERIA
One of the delightful films I've mentioned before will finally premier this May and it is HYSTERIA, set in 19th century London where Dr. Mortimer Granville (Hugh Dancy) is torn between the “proper” doctor’s staid and
static world of success and acceptance and a more progressive and fulfilling, but frowned upon, experience. Tossed out for his forward-thinking ideas by the medical establishment, Granville finds a position with Dr. Robert Dalrymple, a highly respected and successful doctor, with a very popular private practice specializing in treating women diagnosed with Hysteria. Indeed, the good doctor’s waiting room is never quiet. In his new position, Dalrymple finds Granville a proper suitor for his beloved daughter Emily, the epitome of “English virtue and womanliness,” with her lovely face, demure manner and artistic and intellectual accomplishments, but it is the elder daughter Charlotte (Maggie Gyllenhaal), a firebrand
social reformer, arguing passionately for women’s rights to be educated, vote, and live independent lives that secretly excites him. Although Granville is somewhat shocked by Charlotte’s lack of propriety, he feels kinship with her conviction to help those in need. They snipe at each other’s views, but he earns her grudging respect when he treats a poor settlement house woman with a broken ankle. This is a romantic comedy wrapped around the surprising story of the first electro-mechanical vibrator, invented by happen stance at a time when the very peak of Victorian prudishness coincided with the dawn of the electrical age. The cast also includes Rupert Everett, Jonathan Pryce, Felicity Jones... PS DO NOT MISS THE END OF THE TRAILER :)

CHARMING "NOW IS GOOD"
Ready to open up in cinemas May 25th is a heart warming drama NOW IS GOOD in which young Dakota Fanning plays Tessa who is seventeen and
passionate about life. Diagnosed with a terminal illness, she determines to use every moment, compiling a catalogue of what normal teenager would experience, including losing her virginity and taking drugs. With the help of her friend, she sets the list in motion. And while her parents and brother each deals with their fear of losing her in their own way, Tessa explores a whole new world, determined to live every day as intensely as possible. Falling in love with Adam (Jeremy Irvine), her new neighbor, wasn't on the list, but it proves to be the most exhilarating experience of them all.
DID YOU KNOW? Scoring huge role in Spielberg's WAR HORSE, young Jeremy Irvine will appear this year in  GREAT EXPECTATIONS and then next year in WW2 epic THE RAILWAY MAN next to Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman
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Jumat, 23 Maret 2012

TEASER FOR SAOIRSE RONAN'S SF FILM "THE HOST"! GAEL GARCIA BERNAL, USHER, AL PACINO IN "HANDS OF STONE"! HUGH DANCY IN NBC'S "HANNIBAL" TV SHOW

 All of you who liked SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and other films on Hannibal Lecter will probably watch HANNIBAL TV show which is being prepared over at NBC. Their television adaptation of RED DRAGON novel by Thomas Harris will have a story revolving around the budding relationship between FBI agent Will Graham and his mentor Dr. Hannibal Lecter. The new update is that always delightful Hugh Dancy has been now cast for the role of Will Graham, while Lecter is yet to be found. The show is being produced by Bryan Fuller most famous for PUSHING DAISIES. We've seen Dancy before in ELISABETH I, CONFESSIONS OF A SHOPAHOLIC, ELLA ENCHANTED, KING ARTHUR. He is also known as the husband of Claire Danes.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES
One of the upcoming films which has been getting quite an interesting cast is definitely HANDS OF STONE, set for 2013, a story which will follow the life of boxing legend Roberto Duran, who made his professional debut in 1968 as a 16-year-old and retired in 2002 at age 50 losing only a few fights in his whole career. In June 1980, he defeated Sugar Ray Leonard to capture the WBC welterweight title but shocked
the boxing world by returning to his corner in the November rematch, saying 'no mas' (no more). Their fight is considered one of the greatest mysteries in the boxing history. Now listen to this: Gael Garcia Bernal will play Duran, r'n'b star Usher is set to play Leonard, Al Pacino will play his trainer, while TRUE BLOOD star Ryan Kwanten will play one of Duran's English rivals in the ring.

Your trailer for today, my little freaks, is the first teaser for the movie adaptation of Stephenie Meyer's THE HOST.  Coming to cinemas
in a year (March 2013) the film brings a sf story in which our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed. When Melanie, one of the few remaining wild humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading soul who has been given Melanie's body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind. The lead roles are portrayed by Saoirse Ronan and Max Irons (who was shockingly horrid in RED RIDING HOOD) alongside Jake Abel, Diane Kruger, William Hurt.
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