i've seen quite a few movies recently, and here's my opinion (again, opinion, not review):

MR & MRS SMITH: or more like mr and mrs rambo! it's your typical hollywood movie where the good guys go guns ablazing and send <insert really huge number here> bad guys to their body bags. doesn't matter how outnumbered they are. doesn't even matter that they're surrounded in every imaginable angle and corner. they're the good guys, they kill everyone on their path, they escape unscathed, period.

i have to hand it to them though: the automatic handguns really looked uber-cool. if you haven't seen the movie, think of kate beckinsale's gun in underworld. the chase scene looked great too. other than that, the movie has rambo written all over it.

MADAGASCAR: this is one movie i really looked forward in seeing since it looked so funny in trailers. and imagine the plot: spoiled zoo animals in central park who are used to being pampered and fed with a silver spoon gets stranded by themselves in the wild. it looked really promising. plus it was made by dreamworks (who also made shrek), so it has to be good. however...

it wasn't great as i anticipated. maybe i shouldn't have expected a lot. i don't know. the movie's not that bad, but it's no that good either. other than some light comical moments (b*tch-slapping penguins, for example) and some funny one-liners (marty the zebra wondering is he's a black zebra with white stripes, or a white zebra with black stripes is one), the story basically lacks substance, and gives you the feeling that something was missing. i think kids will like it though.

A LOT LIKE LOVE: it's not really common for me to be watching feel-good romantic comedies but hey, blame it on the girlfriend! i must admit though, that like madagascar, a lot like love had a funny trailer. ashton kutcher playing serenading amanda peet with a bon jovi, and amanda peet slamming head-first into a trasparent sliding door...it was worth the risk. however, it happens to be the kind of movie that when the credits finally roll, you end up asking yourself, "so, what exactly is the movie about?". it's a waste of precious time or money. i don't know. maybe people from planet mushy will like it.

ashton, oh ashton. what else is new...

MONSTER-IN-LAW: in contrary, this movie is a pleasant surprise and a welcoming change to the previously-mentioned sub-par (in my standards at least) flicks. i don't exactly like j-lo, but the movie is too darn funny for me to even notice her. it may be a meet-the-parents ripoff, but this one is definitely more hillarious. and it's better than guess who (yet another ashton movie), too. jane fonda was great, and so was wanda sykes. they make a great tandem.

it's baffling though why critics are bashing this film. it's the funniest thing since white chicks.

lastly, here are some movies that i'm really looking forward to: chronicles of narnia (i know it won't be as good as lotr, but what the hell) and brothers grimm (i have no idea though if it'll be shown in the philippines).

yes, i like fantasy a lot. kahit encantadia nga napapag-tiyagaan ko pa...

listening to: the clash - should i stay or should i go

fete pictures, as promised:

fete was a blast. it was worse than summer slam in some ways, but i'll get to that later.

and on to the novel...

my cousin and i stayed mostly at the alternative stage beside podium's car park, although we did peer at the more crowded rock stage at el pueblo from time to time.

SECURITY: being an outdoor event, there were no bag or body checks of any kind as it was impossible to do since it was held in an open space where there were no entry or exit points of any sort. one could practically join the crowd carrying excalibur and have no one apprehend him. a fan could be bleeding profusely after being stabbed with a pen in the eye and no one would be there to help. there were no bouncers at all. not even a security guard.

CROWD: there were women in clubbing attire at the alternative stage (now that's something summer slam was missing!) which isn't surprising since podium is an upscale place. other than that, it had it's fair share of half-naked masked guys (which i'll call orcs for easier reference) jumping around like there's no tomorrow (now that's something summer slam had a lot of). but wait, there's more...

the rock stage was worse, as expected. people blocked the road so much that it had to be closed. there were guys chugging huge bottles of red horse beer, and the street was loittered with broken glass.

an adjacent road was filled by the most unruly, barbaric rock crowd i've seen. think woodstock '99 (which i've only seen on tv) without the let's-burn-all-this-shit part. cars that could somehow sneak in received a warm, hearty reception: plastic bottles and junks of all sorts were thrown at them. people were also uprooting small plants along the road and were disposing them on roofs of cars, especially taxis. it was so wild that while walking along the road looking for a place to eat in, my cousin and i went the extra mile to advice cars whose windows were rolled down to roll it back up or suffer having foreign objects enter their vehicles. two yellow cab delivery guys on motorbikes were jeered at, as were all women who were simply walking by. there were also guys waving huge philippine flags in front of the windshields of cars stuck in traffic.

BANDS: we never got to see hale play as my cousin and i got back late from supper. by the time we returned, they were just about to finish their last song, and thinking instinctively, we snuck our way through the thick of the crowd to get closer to the stage. when the band headed for the exit, the realization that we were surrounded by "orcs"and the repulsive odor of people's collective body sweat repelled us. we left not one second late after realizing we were in the midst of such scary (and heavily-perspiring!) company, and we abandoned all thoughts of ever mixing in with the crowd.

we never got to see sugarfree too as they performed at the rock stage. and, as previously mentioned, rock stage=hell. ditto with mayonnaise. we only got to see barbie's cradle, stonefree, kitchie nadal, kiko machine, session road and spongecola.

they were all ok, but nothing beats KIKO @#$%^&* MACHINE. they weren't necessarily that great, but their energy and on-stage antics really cracked me up. they're a punk band (which explains the hyperactive nature) whose songs are about filipino icons and pop culture. they sang a song named val sotto, which is about the actor-turned-politician's moustache (which, although nonsensical, was absolutely funny as hell) and a song titled boldstar, which is pretty much self-explanatory. all members wore red jumpsuits, except for the bassist (who had me laughing the whole time), who wore a spiderman outfit. they sounded to me like a kamikazee-ripoff, but twice (or thrice) the energy.

we managed find a good spot, by the way. we stood at the left side of the stage, right in front of the stage entrance, which is just outside a coffee shop (forgot which one it is). we had a good view of the bands, and the people around us were civilized, well-demeanored folks. we got some good pictures too, which i'll upload when i find the time.

listening to: spongecola - lunes

or at least i hope so. it’s wishful thinking on my part, but i certainly do hope so.

i've been to a lot of gigs lately (summerslam, rj guitar festival, netopia cyberleague, sugarfree, spongecola & hale glorietta mall tour and dlsu-csb freshman orientation) which is good since prior to this year's summer slam, i've never set foot on a concert ground since leaving new york city (which was in late 2003). i've lost touch with rock music too, and have often found myself casually leaning towards the rap/r&b side, thanks to the influence of my girlfriend's musical taste. (i know. crucify me, brothers-in-faith).

but here's to getting reacquainted with a great genre. and here's to getting trashed at fete! yeah!

normal - 'nor-m&l'
Etymology: Latin normalis, from norma
noun
1: a form or state regarded as the norm
adjective
1 a : according with, constituting, or not deviating from a norm, rule, or principle b : conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern
2: occurring naturally

now, am i normal?!?

unlike most people, i never really developed a liking for reality tv shows. with the exception of fear factor, i don't ever recall liking any other reality shows, be it the popular american idol or the survivor.

what baffles is that a lot of people have grown to embrace reality shows to the extent that they religiously follow them every day, or every week, while i on the other hand have not seen a single episode. yes, you heard me right, not even one (commercials don't count, right?). and there's more:

filipino networks have also copied the concept (you see, we filipinos never come up with anything original) and have come up with their own reality shows. and surprisingly, the filipino audience have patronized them as well (and no, i don't watch these shows either).

now, with that in mind, i've come up with an idea for a reality show i know i'll tune in to: THE AMERICAN IDOL - FREAKSHOW.

it'll be the show where only deranged (former) stars compete. contestants will be the likes of michael jackson, boy george, marilyn manson and george michael. scandalous. fashionably-challenged. sexually-confused. mentally-disturbed. how is that for a nationally-televised tv show?

and why not? if mtv gave ozzy even-i-can't-understand-what-i'm-saying ozbourne a show, why not this? this will be the ultimate dysfunctional tv show. freaks of nature all in one place. and who knows, maybe ozzy can take simon's place as professional a-hole.

so, am i normal?

they just dealt with ford motors. who could be next? *enter alfred-hitchcock-like background music*

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8047423

what exactly do these guys do for a living? wake up on the wrong side of bed everyday? check out the list: carls jr, kraft, mary kay cosmetics, old navy, desperate housewives, nutrisystem, disney, wal-mart, crest, volkswagen, tide, clorox, pampers, mtv, abercrombie & fitch, k-mart, burger king, american airlines, etc. and oh, the teletubbies (although rightfully so) and spongebob squarepants too! so, who's next? gerber baby products? fisher price toys?

man, can these guys be any more retarded? and they consider themselves a christian group, of all things. they need to lock themselves up in a white room full of paddings, seriously. their hypocrisy makes me want to gag.

watch out sesame street, you're next in their hit-list! they'll cast your wicked souls into the depths of burning fire and brimstone. eternal damnation awaits you! run for your lives!

oh, the horror! *twilight zone background music fades in the background*

"The New York Post reports that it will cost employers $628880000 in lost productivity on the first two days of Star Wars Episode III - Return of the Sith due to employees calling in sick" -- the new york post

i remember having a return of jedi bedsheet when i was young, but that's the closest i have for a connection to star wars. i'm one of the minority (which made me wonder at first if i needed therapy) who despise (and note how i chose the word "despise" over "hate" or "dislike") the star wars movies. i just don't see anything special with the saga to deserve such a loyal fan-base, a following that's almost cult-like if you ask me. one doesn't need 20/20 vision to see that yoda is an eyesore. he looks like a smurf-clone-experiment-gone-awry. chewbacca is a walking bad hair day. and jar-jar...need i say more? i'll take the matrix over star wars anytime. and you know what? i don't like the matrix at all!

and why miss work? it's not the superbowl, or the world series...or britney flashing some racks. oh, maybe they were hypnotized...MAYBE IT'S THE JEDI MINDTRICK!

and oh yeah, those ewoks look like chuck norris, no?

first and foremost, i would just like to say that i don't listen rap music, and that i'm not a fan of the hip-hop culture. the whole "ghetto" motif is just a random, impromptu thing i came up with. i'm not a pimp either, for those who are wondering.