Study and Movie

Went out with my mum in the morning to my relative's house and studied in NUS after that from 2.45 pm to 9 pm.

Went to watch Dreamgirls with Derrick at Causeway Point at 9.55 pm. The show is definitely above my expectations as i wasn't really that keen to watch the show in the first place (probably because of the cheesy movie title). Watched it mainly due to good reviews and i'm glad i did. I was shaking my leg for more than half the length of the movie as the songs in the movie are really good. The fact that there are professional singers in the show (Beyoncé Knowles & Jennifer Hudson) definitely helped. Jennifer Hudson showcased her powerhouse vocals while Beyoncé exuded her womanly charms through her sultry vocals.

The visuals are astounding as well; the lights are dazzling and the costumes are any woman's dream. The film editing is brisk and we get many different angles and shots of the singers performing on stage. The dance choreography is slick, sensual and well coordinated. Kudos to Bill Condon for being a first time musical director and doing such a good job at it. Frankly, i think everything about this movie is better than the winner of 2002 Oscar Best Motion Picture, Chicago.

The musical is about a trio of black singers who went from virtually unknowns to major sensations in United States after a music producer discovered their singing talents. Effie who used to be the lead singer was relegated to become the background singer as her voice was deemed too hefty and her roly poly figure didn't help at all. Feelings were hurt and turmoil among the group members ensued. The film also touched on the lack of copyright laws in the past which led to plagiarism of music and lyrics.

Jennifer Hudson (winner of Oscar Best Supporting Actress) brought the house down with not only her voice but her natural acting abilities as well. Beyoncé looks absolutely stunning after her superstar transformation and she, plus the rest of the cast, are a dynamic force to be reckoned with. A fabulous and energetic musical indeed.
****

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Letters From Iwo Jima

Went to Xingnan Pri Sch opposite NTU to meet my coursemates as we were supposed to conduct a survey for our tech comm project there. However, due to some communication problems between the admin clerk and the principal in the primary school, we were rejected to conduct the survey there even though the clerk had told us to come to the school.

We then headed back to NTU to find our tech comm professor who was not in her office. Sent an email requesting her to forward an email to the primary school so that we can conduct the survey.

We then headed to Orchard Cineleisure to watch Letters from Iwo Jima. It is without a doubt one of the best war films i have ever seen. Flags of our Fathers is the American twin while Letters from Iwo Jima is shot from the Japanese perspective. This Japanese film is definitely superior in terms of emotional resonance and storytelling. A fantastic achievement for Clint Eastwood for helming this entirely Japanese film and making it as authentic as possible in terms of their culture and the history.

World War II, 1945. United States invaded the Japanese island of Iwo Jima so that they can use the small island as a base to attack the main island of Japan. The Japanese who were assigned to defend the small island were cut off from reinforcements and supplies as the bulk of the military force were retreated to defend the main island. Fight until they die were the last orders from the Japanese Imperial Army.

Splattered blood, gunshot wounds, dismembered limbs, and burnt carcasses are rampant after the war started. We are reminded that war inherently is evil, the soldiers are mostly unwilling parties dragged into the action. Behind every dead soldier, every mother, every wife and every child will be weeping for them. What we feel is the terrible loss of lives that war causes; the innocent people who perish under the gunfire, the artillery bombing and the grenade attacks. The acting by Ken Watanabe is incredible while the rest of the cast does a fine job with depicting their increasing desperation, their waning determination, and their unspeakable sorrow for their fallen friends.

Letters from Iwo Jima is a wonderfully made, incredibly emotional, violent, and ultimately honourable film, saluting their Japanese counterparts who perished in the war that few people know about.
****1/2

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Complete List of Winners for 79th Academy Awards

Complete list of winners at the 79th annual
Academy Awards, presented Sunday night at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles:

Best Motion Picture: "The Departed"

Lead Actor: Forest Whitaker, "The Last King of Scotland"

Lead Actress: Helen Mirren, "The Queen"

Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin, "Little Miss Sunshine"

Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson, "Dreamgirls"

Directing: Martin Scorsese, "The Departed"

Foreign Language Film: "The Lives of Others," Germany

Adapted Screenplay: William Monahan, "The Departed"

Original Screenplay: Michael Arndt, "Little Miss Sunshine"

Animated Feature Film: "Happy Feet"

Art Direction: "Pan's Labyrinth"

Cinematography: "Pan's Labyrinth"

Sound Mixing: "Dreamgirls"

Sound Editing: "Letters From Iwo Jima"

Original Score: "Babel," Gustavo Santaolalla

Original Song: "I Need to Wake Up" from "An Inconvenient Truth," Melissa Etheridge

Costume: "Marie Antoinette"

Documentary Feature: "An Inconvenient Truth"

Documentary Short Subject: "The Blood of Yingzhou District"

Film Editing: "The Departed"

Makeup: "Pan's Labyrinth"

Animated Short Film: "The Danish Poet"

Live Action Short Film: "West Bank Story"

Visual Effects: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"

Jean Hersholt Award (Oscar statuette): Sherry Lansing

Honorary Academy Award (Oscar statuette): Ennio Morricone

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Photo Session & Movie

Went to Orchard to watch Protégé at Cineleisure with Daryl and the 3.15 pm show was sold out. We settled for a later timing at 5.30 pm instead. Headed to Marina City Park to shoot some photos in the meantime. I was keen to take photos of the legendary Chinese sculptures supposedly located there but upon arrival, they were nowhere to be found.

Took some photos here and there while being attacked by several ants and mosquitoes. Headed back to City Hall area for some quick snapshots before heading back to cine for the movie.

Protégé is an anti-drug movie that ironically shows us the process of preparing drugs; from mixing the ingredients, to heating and packaging the small slabs of 'US dollars'. There is even on site location shoot at a Thai opium field that shows us the harvesting process of opium. Don't be mistaken as the show is not a documentary.

The story is about a drug lord (Andy Lau) who controls much of the import and distribution of heroin in Hong Kong. His ailing health forces him into early retirement and he intends to pass the extensive underground drug business to his protégé Nick (Daniel Wu). Nick in fact is an undercover cop and he has been waiting for the chance to nab the drug lord for 7 years.

The pace of the movie is efficient and we get an inner glimpse of the drug dealing business as well as the individual characteristics of the leads. The director humanises the drug addicts, but yet condemns their actions, chastising them for having a choice but perpetually choosing the wrong one. Ultimately, the consequences are disastrous for addicts as well as the traffickers.

The acting is quite good with Daniel Wu as the smart and charismatic undercover cop who has a very kind heart, as well as Andy Lau who morphs into a daunting presence at work but becomes a loving father at home. Protégé is a very well-intentioned movie for anyone to watch. It is an entertaining movie with moral values to boost.
***1/2

Went City Hall area again to take some night photography after the movie and set up my tripod along Esplanade Drive to capture some fireworks shots for the Chinese New Year. It was a tiring shoot as i had to bend down to see through the camera viewfinder (the tripod not high enough) and shoot for a few minutes.

Some shots of fireworks using my digicam


People from Chinese Orchestra performing at Esplanade

A very tiring day as i had walked quite a lot lugging my heavy film camera, my bag and my tripod the entire day.

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More photos

Took some photos at Kranji War Memorial last Friday as many of us skipped the last 2 lectures. Developed some photos today after my lessons today. Feel that my new batch of photos is slightly off the mark. Gotta improve for my next few rolls.

I Will Remember You


Their Name Liveth For Evermore


Stairway of Light

1 more day before recess week!!! Yay, time to 'pia' most of the projects during the break.

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2nd Day of CNY

Slept at around 5 am yesterday and woke up at 12 noon today. Accompanied my sister to her boss's house to 'bai nian'. The house is rather big with a swimming pool at the back. We had buffet lunch and waited for a while for the lion dance troupe to arrive.

Arrival of the lion dance troupe


Entering the house

They performed their usual movements around the house before crouching down to peel oranges, spray confetti and throw vegetables out from the lion costume's head. We left soon after and headed back home to meet up with my parents.

Went to some of my relatives' houses next. Settled at my aunty's house for buffet dinner and the mahjong tiles and poker cards automatically appeared after consuming our food. Played mahjong for some time with my cousins and we all tried to teach Yl the basic techniques of mahjong.

A candid shot of my second cousin

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Chinese New Year

It's the first day of Chinese New Year and i have the important task of entertaining my younger cousins by letting them use my computer and laptop to play computer games. I do enjoy mingling with my younger cousins coz they are a fun loving bunch of children.

My father's side of my extended family mostly came in the afternoon and most of them either played mahjong, watched tv or played poker cards.

Mahjong'ing'


Blackjack'ing' (using chocolates as chips)

My mother's side of my extended family came in the evening and we had ordered buffet catering for everyone. We had quite a lot of food as my mum cooked some of her specialty dishes as well.

Me and my young cousins


My sister, my super cute second cousin and me


My cousins playing the confetti poppers

It is definitely a stress-free and joyful day for all of us. PS: The tagboard was vandalised by one of my cousins.

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Time to finally relax

An outing finally....... Went out with Edwin and Derrick for dinner at Ding Tai Fung at Wisma. It has been some time since i last went to an expensive restaurant.

Ed and i accompanied Derrick for his last minute CNY shopping but there wasn't sufficient time and the shops started closing after 9.30 pm. We settled down at lido 5th level and chatted all the way until 1.30 am.

Ahh........ Vented some of my frustration and stress in school.

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