Valentine's

Kick Ass New Trailer

Kick Ass is not a typical Super Heroes comic books. Mainly because it’s setted in “our world” a world where super heroes only exist in comic books, at least until someone decides to wear a costume and get out to kick some asses.

Here is the new trailer of the movie adaptation. And as it shows, Kick Ass is such a funny story, but also it is critical, violent and brutal. Just see this cover…

And remember that it’s written by Mark Miller. Who got famous for Wanted (for the most of the people, off course I know The Authority was before) , that is much more violent, brutal and less moral than it's film adaptation. 

So, here is the trailer.

Oscars Predictions

Here are my predictions for the Academy Awards nominations of 2010. Nothing but guesses based on other awards and my own taste. My main doubts are about the absence of A Serious Man in Best Picture, and A Single Man in some categories. Also I marked my favourites candidates (not necessary the ones I think will win) with a “+”. So, here it is.

Best Picture
1. An Education
2. Avatar
3. Inglorious Basterds
4. Invictus
5. The Last Station
6. Nine
7. Precious
8. The Hurt Locker
9. Up
10. Up in the Air +

Best Director
1. James Cameron – Avatar
2. Jason Reitman – Up in the Air
3. Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
4. Lee Daniels – Precious
5. Quentin Tarantino – Inglorious Basterds +

Best Actor in a Leading Role
1. Colin Firth – A Single Man
2. George Clooney – Up in The Air +
3. Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
4. Morgan Freeman – Invictus
5. Viggo Mortensen – The Road

Best Actress in a Leading Role
1. Carey Mulligan – An Education +
2. Gabourey Sidibe - Precious
3. Helen Mirren – The Last Station
4. Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia
5. Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
1. Christoph Waltz – Inglorious Basterds +
2. Christopher Plummer – The Last Station
3. Matt Damon – Invictus
4. Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones
5. Woody Harrelson – The Messenger

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
1. Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air
2. Mo’Nique – Precious
3. Penelope Cruz – Nine
4. Samantha Morton – The Messenger
5. Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air +

Best Original Screenplay
1. (500) Days of Summer
2. A Serious Man
3. Inglorious Basterds +
4. The Hurt Locker
5. Up

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. An Education
2. District 9
3. Fantastic Mr. Fox
4. Precious
5. Up in the Air +

Best Animated Feature
1. Coraline +
2. Fantastic Mr. Fox
3. Up

Best Cinematography
1. Barry Ackroyd - The Hurt Locker
2. Dion Beebe - Nine
3. Mauro Fiore - Avatar
4. Robert Richardson - Inglorious Basterds +
5. Roger Deakins - A Serious Man

Best Art Direction
1. David Wasco - Inglorious Basterds
2. Jess Gonchor - A Serious Man
3. Rick Carter, Robert Stromberg – Avatar +
4. Sarah Greenwood - Sherlock Holmes
5. Scott Chamblis - Star Trek

Best Visual Effects
1. Avatar +
2. District 9
3. Star Trek

What I want for Christmas (A little bit late)

Around the world children receive gifts from Santa. Here in Mexico the tradition is to receive them from the Three Wise Kings (who we call The Wizard Kings, isn’t that cool?). In the January 5^th’s evening we left a list of the presents we want in a shoe beneath the Christmas tree.  And although I’m a little bit old for receiving presents from them, here is my list.

 

Santa Jack & Sleigh

 

4.5” PVC figure, of the pumicing king dressed like Santa. Besides the sleigh it includes three skeleton reindeers (that glows in the dark!), Zero and Sally. Just amazing!

Price: $79.99

Link: http://www.sideshowtoy.com/?page_id=4489&sku=900757&utm_source=listing-900757&utm_campaign=listing&utm_source=online

 

Twilight Zone: The Complete Definitive Collection

Twilight Zone, the original series, complete. 156 episodes. That’s all.

Price: $151.99

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Twilight-Zone-Complete-Definitive-Collection/dp/B000H5U5EE

 

Dharma Swan Logo T-Shirt

Does it need any explanation? Actually I don’t know why I don’t have one of those yet. The Swan is my favourite Dharma station and looks like the most important one.

Price: $24.95

Link: http://abctvstore.seenon.com/detail.php?p=100778&v=abctvstore_lost

 

The Beatles Stereo Box Set

The best band of all the time. Their 13 studio albums. Remasterised.

Price: $175.49

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Beatles-Stereo-Box-Set/dp/B002BSHWUU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1262760036&sr=8-1-catcorr

 

The Samaritan Replica

I doubted between this and the Big Boy. I choose the Samaritan not only because it’s the original Hellboy’s gun, but also because the amazing detail it has. Its chamber could be opened and the bullets removed. Nice.

Price: $339.99

Link: https://www.sideshowtoy.com/?page_id=4489&sku=8931

 

Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? Delux Edition

The best comic of the year, and the best way to finish the story of Batman. An extraordinary requiem for the Dark Knight written by one of the greatest writers of our days.

Price: $16.49

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Batman-Whatever-Happened-Crusader-Deluxe/dp/1401223036/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262759605&sr=1-1

 

True Blood

Ok, I’m far to be a fan of the series, nevertheless who could resist the opportunity to drink the artificial blood that made the vampires capable to live among us. Well, it’s only a orange soda, but the bottle is cool.

Price: $16.00 (4 – pack)

Link: https://securestore.hbo.com/cart.php?p=105736&ecid=PRF-TV2-800761&PA=PRF-TV2-800761

 

Futurama Mini Figures

I really love the kind of figures Kid Robot made; vinyl, simple and round shaped. And Futurama is just one of the most amazing cartoons that have ever existed. Every figure is so nice, but Bender is my favourite one, because… well because Bender is amazing, haha.

Price: $8.95

Link: http://www.kidrobot.com/Toys/MiniFigures/FuturamaMiniFigures3Inch.html

 

Who Killed Amanda Palmer: A Collection of Photographic Evidence

Who Killed Amanda Palmer is my favourite disc of the year. This books collects photographs that shows Amanda dead in many ways, in some way related with her songs, and also a small story written by Neil Gaiman.

Price: $40.00

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Who-Killed-Amanda-Palmer-Photographic/dp/B002KQPQGK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262759233&sr=8-1-catcorr

Coraline Doll Replica

Hennry Selick did well giving his adaptation of Gaiman’s book a dark and weird visual aspect. This 10 inch doll has that weird look. The clothes looks just great and the button eyes, well nothing to else to said.

Price: $24.99

Link: http://www.entertainmentearth.com/prodinfo.asp?number=NC49501

Well maybe none of those will be down my tree tomorrow morning, but wishing doesn’t cost anything.

 

10 Years, 100 Movies

I’m not so pretentious (well, I’m not being right now) to tell those are the best movies of the decade, but at least they are my favourite ones from each year of this finishing decade. I’m pretty sure it’s eclectic enough to make everyone agree with some movies and hate many others. But, what can I said, I’m an eclectic guy. 

 

 

2000

1. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
   
2. Requiem for a Dream
   
3. Dancer in the Dark
   
4. Billy Elliot
   
5. Chicken Run
   
6. Shadow of the Vampire
   
7. X-Men
   
8. Gladiator
   
9. Unbreakable
   
10. Wonder Boys
    

 

2001

1. The Royal Tenenbaums
   
2. Mullholland Drive
   
3. El Espinazo del Diablo
   
4. The Lord Of The Rings
   
5. Amelie
   
6. Waking Life
   
7. Memento
   
8. Moulin Rouge
   
9. Ghost World
   
10. The Others
    

 

2002

1. Punch Drunk Love
   
2. LOTR 2
   
3. Spirited away
   
4. 28 Days Later
   
5. The Hours
   
6. Gangs of New York
   
7. The Bourne Identity
   
8. Cidade de Deus
   
9. Adaptation
   
10. Nueve Reinas
    

 

2003

1. Big Fish
   
2. Lost in Translation
   
3. Kill Bill Vol. 1
   
4. The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King
   
5. 21 Grams
   
6. Mystic River
   
7. Love Actually
   
8. Spider
   
9. Finding Nemo
   
10. The Triplets of Belleville
    

 

2004

1. Hellboy
   
2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
   
3. The Incredibles
   
4. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
   
5. Dogville
   
6. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
   
7. Lemony Snicket’s a Series of Unfortunate Events
   
8. Shaun of the Dead
   
9. Garden State
   
10. Good Bye, Lenin!
    

 

2005

1. Corpse Bride
   
2. Sin City
   
3. Match Point
   
4. Crimen Ferpecto
   
5. Broken Flowers
   
6. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
   
7. Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith
   
8. Palindromes
   
9. Howl’s Moving Castle
   
10. The Squid and the Whale
    

 

2006

1. Pan’s Labyrinth
   
2. The Fountain
   
3. Stranger than Fiction
   
4. Little Miss Sunshine
   
5. The Life of the Others
   
6. Casino Royale
   
7. Children of Man
   
8. Flushed Away
   
9. The Departed
   
10. V for Vendetta 

2007

1. Ratatouille
   
2. There Will be Blood
   
3. Sweeney Todd
   
4. No Country for Old Man
   
5. Juno
   
6. Grindhouse
   
7. The Darjeeling Limited
   
8. Hot Fuzz
   
9. Eastern Promises
   
10. Away From Her
    

 

2008

1. Let the Right One In
   
2. The Dark Knight
   
3. In Bruges
   
4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
   
5. The Wrestler
   
6. Hellboy II; The Golden Army
   
7. Burn After Reading
   
8. Vicky, Christina, Barcelona
   
9. Wall-E
   
10. The Reader
    

 

2009 (so far)

 

1. Inglorious Basterds
   
2. 500 Days of Summer
   
3. Drag me to Hell
   
4. Moon
   
5. Coraline
   
6. Up
   
7. District 9
   
8. The Informant
   
9. Star Trek
   
10. Zombieland
    

 

 

2009 that I haven’t seen and could become part of the top 10

 

• The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
  
• Fantastic Mr. Fox
  
• Lovely Bones
  
• Up in the Air
  
• The Princess and the Frog
  
• Nine
  
• Avatar
  
• The Road
  
• Thirst
  
• Invictus
  

 

A Serious Man

I believe the passivity is the worst sin. There are people that never live, that just stay wile the life pass trough them. And Michel Stuhlbarg is that kind of person, doing nothing, no maters he crash into life he avoids it, he runs away from every opportunity to do something, to enjoy, to get angry, to request a title respect, to live. He lives in an eternal stay of just because, that he tries to understand, and off course can’t do it. He stays still, freeze by the fear, and only escapes to an active life I his dreams but even those always ends with fatal endings that deters him to do something in once awaken.  At the end his real life ends, as his dreams, with the promise of a fatal ending, but without the refreshing vital acts he dare to perform in dreams. Life ends no matter what, that’s a fact, so while we stay here is better to really use it. For me that’s A Serious Man about, and despite that’s one of my favourite themes, I really can’t stand the movie, it make me feel even physically bad, my wish that Michel reacted, and did something drove into a horrible frustration that made the movie really irritating and annoying for me. Nevertheless for anybody who can don’t feel empathy for the main character and let, and even enjoy, him getting destroyed by his passivity it could be a really good movie. 

(500) Days of Summer

There are many--too many--movies about people finding their soul mates, about how they fall in love in the first instant they met, and how they get through a bunch of fun troubles to finally get together and live happily ever after. Luckily (500) Days of Summer is not one of those movies.
Tom and Summer are not soul mates, they are not destined to be together, and they won’t, despites Tom’s efforts. He is a hopeless romantic that believes in the romantic ideas he writes in greeting cards. He wants to fall in love and the new girl in the office, Summer, has everything to fall in love with her.
Summer is intelligent, beautiful, funny, nice and many other qualities that captivate Tom. A coincidence in music tastes is enough for him to believe she could be his soul mate, and a kiss next to the copy machine ratifies it. But before we start sharing Tom’s opinion the movie remembers us that it won’t finish with them together happy forever.
After the promising start on the firsts days we jump to the last days when Tom is cracked by the finish of the relationship (what remembers me Jim Carrey in the credits sequence of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind). And we will continue the ride across those 500 days jumping from the exciting beginning to the nostalgic later days to the happy but ephemeral middle. This fragmented not chronological order makes us see these 500 days as a whole.
The moments we witness are small and could look ordinary, but first of all they are honest, like the kind of events you remember when recall a relationship, and as a part of the whole they become meaningful.
But that fragmented chronology is not the only formal cinematography recourse that enrich the movie, actually it is full of recourses that maybe are only possible thanks to the background in video clips the director have. He builds with freedom the movie, using so different things that goes form a Disney’s like musical to reinterpretations to Bergman’s most famous scenes, passing by a wonderful use of split screen, that shows the difference between reality and expectation.
And maybe that is the main issue in the movie, that difference, the expectation created by Tom about Summer, and the painful acceptance of the fact that sometimes love is not as we want. And that’s something we all has passed trough.