Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea 崖の上のポニョ - Hayao Miyazaki 宮崎 駿

The Incredible Hulk - Louis Leterrier

Finally. My friend, the director I worked with 3 films in a row, Louis Leterrier's newest film is coming soon.
Here is the teaser aired on MTV yesterday. And I can't wait to see how extraordinary he grow.

A list of films I like from Berlinale 2008 - Berlin Film Festival

The Song Of Sparrows

In competition:
Avaze Gonjeshk-ha | The Song Of Sparrows (Iran) Majid Majidi
There Will Be Blood (USA) Paul Thomas Anderson
Tropa de elite | The Elite Squad (Brazil) Jose Padilha
Lake Tahoe (Mexico) Fernando Eimbcke
Ballast (USA) Lance Hammer
Caos calmo | Quiet Chaos (Italy) Antonello Grimaldi

Off competition:
Be Kind Rewind (USA) Michel Gondry
Shine A Light (USA) Martin Scorsese

Restless' up rising talent - Ran Danker

Ran Danker - shavim

Just drop a quick note about this young man shined our Berlinale screening the last day, before I go on and on about the film festival.

The last film in Berlinale 2008's competition screening - "Restless" by Amos Kollek was a fresh link from Israel to NYC. A story about a runaway, selfish poet father living in New York fighting for the meaning of his life, and a long lost son he has never met traveled oversea to find him after lost of the mother and fired by his sniper job what he's good at.

The morning we just viewed a cruel story about an 8 years old girl in war, and all we wished to see next is something more cheerful. And "Restless" is another tough reality to watch. But when we were just put ourself in the mood of another depressive story. Ran Danker, 25 years old, US born Israeli super star appears and brights us all. We can't ignore his resemblance to Wentworth Miller but something about him, maybe is his brief guitar scene at the battle field and his sniper's cruelty character make him a little bit more human than Miller in Prison Break.

Enjoy his music video shows he's not just a good actor, also his talent of music.

to Heath

It has been a while I was planing to make a big come back on my blog after a long holiday laziness. I've thought to post a qout. about the masterpiece of Dunkirk scene from "The Atonement", and I've thought about to post a very touching scene with Zoe Hall's beautiful voice from "Medium". But till now. Heath Ledger's tragic death.

Honestly say. He's not the stereo type of actor will attract me into a movie theater. I watched his movies was simply because he was in many of good movies I enjoyed. Then on one December evening of year 2005. I was fortuned enough to join an actress friend to the premier of the famous Ang Lee's movie Brokeback Mountain at AMC Loews Lincoln Square theater in New York.

That evening. We've met the director first for a half an hour chat then we granted through the red carpet to the theater's lobby, surrounded by many well known faces and a human cyclone's center Heath and Michelle. The premier was separated in two rooms to satisfy all people invited. We were there waiting in the 2nd floor's lounge where girls and gays were lurking their eyes around to see if Jack is present, but I was secretly wishing to get to see Heath.

A moment later. I see a big boy in a soft trendy coat, goofly walks right to me with a big smile. My short sighter vision forced me to eyeing him for quit a while before I can actually recognize he is no one but Heath. I figured he must mistake me with someone else then when he was just few steps from me, I dramatically stepped away to let him pass by. But since he had such goofy way of walk. He was almost hit me with his shoulder.

Movie ended. We were shuttled to "Park", sat at director's table and behind me was Heath with sweet Michelle on his lap. They were totally cute and in love. Michelle seems very shy and Heath was really keen to her. The little sparkling dressed Anne Hathaway was there too and many other famous faces. Director introduces my friend to Heath, and this goofy guy again with a big warm smile mistake me. I had to flicked my eyes and discretely finger pointed to my friend's direction to save the situation.

I realized from that evening, how he was someone simply happy and very different than all his movie's characters. And all that were his perfection of a true talented artist. As he once said: “I feel like I’m wasting time if I repeat myself.” Here he's gone with countless unfinished business that ironically he might just need to repeat many other Groundhog Day lives. And cruelly left us to a nuance world where things are incomprehensible no matter how wise we grow. Things happened unwilling or pointless. No supernatural explanation nor fact reports can cease us wondering the reason.
- to Heath and his love ones with heart.

Medium S401 - My Favorite Things


Atonement - Dunkirk Scene

HBO new show - Voyeur (outdoor movie)

Not sure the show is any good but the outdoor movie at lower east side was some what amazing. It basically looping the same doll house like footage over and over again on a big parking lot's wall, characters fade in and do their everyday thing. Love story or drama or majority drama. 8 apartments 8 stories. Like "Seven" but 8 names by the voyeur. The selection of the soundtrack is beautifully composed by Clint Mansell, Dean & Britta, M83, Scott Hardkiss, Theodore Shapiro, Carlos D. Film director: Jake Scott.
Here you can see by yourself HBO Voyeur website

天堂口 Blood Brothers

Zodiac links

(The picture from Brad Brevet interview)
Few interesting links about The Zodiac Killer case.

Robert Graysmith interview - Brad Brevet
Crime Shadow File
Zodiac The Movie

Shu Qi - New FlowerByKenzo ad!!

Snow Patrol Homages Claude Lelouch

Snow Patrol's Open Your Eyes MV, UK version, 2007

Claude Lelouch's C'etait un Rendezvous, 1976

Snow Patrol chose Claude Lelouch's 1976 short film - C'etait un Rendezvous as "Open Your Eyes" MV. The short film was about 9 minutes, and The Snow Patrol version started after Place Concord.
Lelouch said it himself it was a Mercedes 450SEL 6,9.Those were rare and had a 6,9litre V8 with 286hp,in reality closer to 330hp,but rated conservatively by mercedes.Torque was 580Nm.Journalists who drove the 6,9 in 1975 said they managed 0-62mph (0-100kkm/h) in 6,5seconds and saw 148mph (238km/h) on the speedo.Some racing-drivers saw 155mph on the speedo.That Mercedes saloon was very FAST in the 70's. (info from YouTube)

Chewbacca MTV Award 1997

Met a dog looks like Chewbacca tonight, so we started a topic about Star Wars around the dessert table. And I just can't help to mention this very part of MTV award in 1997. Too bad the video footage I can find is not including Mike Myers' translation.

Death Of A President - Gabriel Range (2006)

Movie official website / exclusive interview

"Death Of A President" is a very interesting fiction about Mr. George W. Bush's death in October 19, 2007. Directed by Gabriel Range, a British filmmaker famous for his Political-mockumentary. The film won The International Critics' Award in Toronto International Film Festival 2006.

Aucun des intervenants n'a eu un droit de regard sur ce film.
Ce film est un fiction. Il se deroule dans le futur.

地海戰記 Tales From Earthsea - Goro Miyazaki

Biography (from imdb)
Graduated from Shinshu University, Faculty of Agriculture, Goro Miyazaki started his career as a construction consultant, and he designed parks or public institutions. Because his father, Hayao Miyazaki, is a world-famous filmmaker, he always had complex feeling towards his father. He decided not to work for anything related to animation, to avid to be compared with Hayao. However, the turning point came to his life in 1990s, which was the new project of construction of Studio Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo. He was in charge of the whole design of the museum, and became the first Managing Director. While Hayao was filming "Hauru no ugoku shiro", Toshio Suzuki, the producer, decided to let Goro direct the next Ghibli movie since he was impressed by Goro's talent of making decisions quickly and properly, and his ability to draw pictures. Therefore he directed "Gedo Senki", which is the first step of his career in the animated movie industry.
Written by: Ayumi Sasaki

去 White Castle 吃漢堡！

當美國的新鮮人，一天不小心看到電視上播 2004年的Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle。 已經很久不吃Fast Food的胃突然被激起想嚐嚐這電影中好吃得不得了的White Castle 白城堡漢堡。忍了好久，終於特別去小嚐一下。結果....mmm....好吃到不行！當然。一來久仰大名，二來實在很餓。當吃到沒壓力小尺寸的方形蒸烤漢堡時，馬上就被它鬆軟的蒸麵包，薄薄的漢堡肉片，清脆的甜酸黃瓜，香而不腥的洋蔥丁，醇而不膩的蒸肉汁給征服了。
在紐約曼哈頓唯一的餐廳，簡潔乾淨，但是可能因為是在火車站旁的第八大道上，所以什麼樣的客人都有。基本上漢堡種類有一般漢堡，Cheese 漢堡，雙層cheese漢堡，培根漢堡，墨西哥辣味漢堡，雞堡，魚堡；其他有浪形薯條，洋蔥圈，雞圈等。客人可以外帶一袋十個裝的或剩至買30個到100個裝的冷凍漢堡，Cheese漢堡回家自己蒸。
不過，這個1921年在Wichita出生，24小時營業的White Castle漢堡，因為老闆堅持品質，一直不讓其他廠商加盟的關係，餐廳只散佈在美國的12個州，並沒有像其他速食店一樣擁有國際市場。所以，看過電影，慕名而來的饕客們，只能利用到美國的時候，找一家連鎖店好好想用一番了。

Confession Of Pain 傷城

From the directors of "Infernal Affairs".
Starring Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Shu Qi.

Electric Dreams 神通情人夢

看這部電影

不知道為什麼有朋友超愛這部1984年的電影。
上網找過，只有零星的VHS, 黑膠唱片，舊海報在eBay上賣。已經有CD，但是DVD還沒有出版的日期。
所以... 點圖或點上面的連結看YouTube會員Solarstone的心血吧！（感謝！）
Bon film!

神通情人夢Wikipedia(英文資料)

Will Smith 新片中的青天白日滿地紅國旗

The Painted Veil

I was pretty close to work on this film, but it ended up against my just left Paris and moved into NYC timing.

Friend of mine a big romantic got this project for his new position in China, and advised me to get a copy of The Painted Veil by early 20th century English novelist W. Somerset Maugham. I read the book while I was in Paris packing alone and was very emotional in reading it. The writing was not perfect but was sure very fashionable at time. The story is not grand but the typical English timeless love is sorrow enough to keep a box of tissue handy.

The book has already been adapted once in 1934, but it was alter from the original story. Which make me very curious about this more faithful version. And even I love Edward Norton and think Naomi Watts is great cast, but since I was picturing Clive Owen as the lover, so it's very ambiguous for me now to get used to Liev Schreiber (he's excellent in Mixed Nuts).

Anyway. The film release date is Dec. 20 2006. And before you get to read the book. Here is the trailer:

Adrienne Shelly's death

News Article
Adrienne Shelly's Wikipedia
Hal Hartley's Wikipedia

Infernal Affairs vs. The Departed

Martin Scorsese is not a quality guarantee director, but he did marked the movie history with style such as Mean Streets(1973), Taxi Driver(1976), Raging Bull(1980) and The Aviator(2004) was a very remarkable film too with DiCaprio's great performance. From Robert De Niro to Leonardo DiCaprio, and for once he wants to union his lucky charms in the same film ... then Robert turned down the role and the unique and epic Jack Nicholson signed in with condition - More Jack in the story. He co-rewroted part of the script and put sex and drug in the film to make it more Hollywood like. Unfortunately. That might be the only big mistake they made, not to mention the shocking fake male genital on the huge wide screen. Which I think it's extremely uncomfortable for the female audiences, since almost all women and girls has pervert experiences of this kind in their unwanted memories.

Also one of the success reason of The Infernal Affairs was because the film was a real manly man story with slight touch of three wonderful actresses. Contrarily to The Departed, smart or not to concentrate the female roles in one and common shrink. And contrarily to Tony Leung, Andy Lau and Eric Tsen's excellent acting is the drama DiCaprio, the always Matt Damon's Matt Damon, and always Jack Nicholson's Jack. Anthony Wong was remarkable, Martin Sheen was o.k. plus some little fun touches with Alec Baldwin as captain and Mark Wahlberg's fast mouth. Which maybe saved the film from the total failure.

The Infernal Affairs has 1/3 of the budget (6,428,966 USD) gone for the talents which is big in HK, and I guess The Departed (90,000,000 USD) has only 1/3 of the budget left for the film with $20M for DiCaprio, $10M each for Damon, Nicholson, Wahlberg, $6M for Scorsese and that's already $56M of the $90M. (don't worry. They've already made 130M in US only since the opening, which Brad Pitt's production Plan B. and the distributor WB got what they need for the next decadent movie maybe The Infernal Affairs II & III remake? or Joli's next adoption.) The art direction in The Departed was poor, the lighting was dry and the picture was disturbing. Also they filmed partly in Boston where the story base and partly in NYC for the 15% tax credit. And maybe that was why the film missed the perspective landscape compare with HK's modern hi-rise buildings, tropical sky and harbor, clean office, fashionable bar and crowdy HK streets contrast, and of course the great photography by Christopher Doyle.

The score is below: Infernal Affairs(2002) - The Departed(2006)

Budget: 6,428,966 USD < 90,000,000 USD
Length: 101 mn. < 150 mn.
Director: Andrew Lau, Alan Mak > Martin Scorsese
Writer: Felix Chong, Alan Mak > Jack Nicholson's re-write
Undercover bad guy: Andy Lau > Matt Damon
Undercover police: Tony Leung > Leonardo DiCaprio
Special unit chef: Anthony Wong > Martin Sheen
Special unit sidekick: xxx < Mark Wahlberg
Captain: xxx < Alec Baldwin
Female role: 3 actresses > 1 shrink
Chief's death: Infernal Affairs > The Departed
Vilain's capture: Infernal Affair < The Departed

so it's 7 > 5 for Infernal Affairs !!

The Infernal Affairs' Wikipedia
The Departed's Wikipedia