After Earth Hour

And yes, a continuation of my previous post about advocating Earth Hour.
sorry this post is a little overdued as i've been swarmed with work :( so yup here's my after thoughts about the Earth Hour..

Sadly, i was quite disappointed. Maybe my expectations were too high. Well, i went down to esplanade and sat by the bay counting down to Earth Hour with my McSpicy meal. On my right there was Fullerton, on my left was the construction of the integrated resort.




Cheers from the crowd were heard when some of the lights around Esplanade, as well as the distinctive lights of the Maybank building, were switched off. Fullerton was a little delayed in switching their lights off. haha. Well, my friend took some photos, you can do your comparison from the one above!

Other than that, the area was still relatively bright. i had really expected the CBD area to be pitch black. but well, i guess not every Singaporean bothers to take part. There were still quite a number of offices within the buildings lighted up. And i guess the construction of integrated resort totally spoilt it for me. The lights were GLARING. :( totally didnt feel like energy conservation. haha!

On the other hand, hotels cashed in and guests rejoiced. Earth Hour has proved to be lucrative for some hotels that took part in the initiative to help spread the message of energy conservation. Restaurants and bars are packed with customers who either embraced the idea of saving energy or enticed by the promotional discounts and free beer.

For instance, Marriott Hotel's Cross-roads Cafe gave a free half-pint of beer for every pint ordered during Earthe Hour and it enjoyed a full house of patrons who wined and dined in the candlelight. Even the Swensen's and Park Hotel outlet wore a glwoing lightstick while serving their guest.

Singapore is one of 88 countries around the world that took part this year, second year for Singapore. This year, more than 10.000 people took part and more than 450 businesses switched off or dimmed their lights for that 60 minutes.

oh well, honestly i think Earth Hour in Singapore can be improved. Hopefully more people will be enthusiastic about taking part in it, not only big corporations but individual Singaporeans as well! It has proven that despite energy conservation being the main focus here, businesses still find ways to make it lucrative. I think businesses crave for such event so that they can tie in any promotions they can think of and yet earn. This is Singapore for you.

Looking forward to Earth Hour 2010!

Movie Review: Hotel for Dogs

When 16 years old Andi and her younger brother, Bruce find themselves in a foster home with a strict no pets policy, Andi has to use her quick wit to help find a new home for their dog Friday. Despite warnings to stay out of trouble from their sympathetic social worker Bernie, the kids stumble upon a abandoned hotel and begin transforming it into the perfect home for Friday and all the strays in the city running the risk of being separated if they're caught. In no time, the kids have transformed the old hotel into something truly magical: a home for both the dogs and for themselves.

"Hotel for Dogs" stars Emma Roberts, Jake T. Austins, Kyla Pratt with Lisa Kudrow, Kevin Dillon and Don Cheadle in a smart, funny comedy adventure that shows how far love and imagination can take you.

I first spotted Johnny Simmons (extreme right) in "Evan Almighty". Thought he was cute then, it was a surprise to see him in this show. Johnny Simmons is set to become one of the most sought-after young actors in Hollywood. Hailing from Texas, it did not take him long to get his first role in "Evan Almighty". For as much as I know, he currently resides in Los Angeles. Let's hope he don't grow up and turn into some ugly person like alot of child actor gone bad.

And this is the main star of the show i would say. How can anyone resist this movie? especially the dog lovers. Of many difficult movies to film, I would say one of the hardest is one with animals as the stars. It take really trained dogs to do those cute litte movements or actions we want them to do. As a non-dog lover, I will recommend anyone to go watch this. The dogs in the show are really cute and I love the idea of a Hotel for Dogs.

A light-hearted movie of fun and laughter, with moving tears as well. Watch it for a good laugh. Definitely leave the cinema smiling.

Food place: Thai Accent - thai nudle cafe

Situated at Vivocity is thai Accent, thai nudle cafe. The crave for sourish stuff made me choose thai food over many other great cusine at Vivo.

Nice to seat right beside the glass where we can have a view of outside directly. With the Star cruise docking at the waters and Sentosa within view, plus many buldings for us to see.

This is the interior of the resturant. I particularly like the red walls and pop art. Gives it a very thai feel. That's what i always feel about thai restaurants that paint their walls red.

This is their homemade thai fish cakes. 4 pieces at 9.90. The fishcake is quite thick and juicy. I usually thought this would be accompanied by thai chilli sauce, those sweet and spicy kind. But in thai accent, it came with some sourish thing for us to dip in. There's chilli, cucumber annd onion to go with it as well. As a personal opinion, i like it. Go with rice would be nice as well.

Clear tom yam prawn soup. One bowl like this cost 9.90. True, they have very fresh prawns and i really like the soup but still, i think it's a tad expensive. When we ordered, the waitress actually asked us if we want it less spicy. Of course not! I told her to serve it to us just the way it is. Spicy and sourish. I like it. But for people who don't really like sourish stuff, maybe this is not your type of soup.

Pineapple fried rice with prawns which cost $10.90. Quite worth it and the portion is quite big. It's nice and trust me when i say that, cos i've really eaten not too good or fantastic pineapple rice before.

Lastly this is the Phad Thai Noodle with Prawns. When the plate came, i was like woah. It's really huge and I didn't even finish it. It cost $12.90 so quite worth it i guess. Just that maybe cos they used too much noodles, the noodles ended up a little sticky. All stuck to each other.

Overall, I would think the resturant is not too bad. Just that when we go there, we gotta order carefully and choose the nice stuff that are worth the value. After the meal, I was a little overdosed of prawns. Nice but too many. I wouldn't mind going there another time to try their green curry. For ladies out there, maybe can share one pineapple rice and then order more dishes.

1 Habourfront Walk, Vivocity #02-145/146

Play Review: The Importance of Being Earnest

Oscar Wilde's THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST is one of the world's most enduringly popular comedies, boasting some of the funniest lines of the English language.

This time, Wild Rice presents a provocative spin on this comic masterpiece by casting an ALL-MALE ensemble in smart suits, revealing new insights into Wilde's comedy about courtship, hidden identities and the foibles of high society.

The play is directed by Glen Goei. The cast include Ivan Heng, Hossan Leong, Chua Enlai, Gavin Yap, Crispian Chan and international talent Daniel York from London, as well as Brendon Fernandez and Zahim Albakri from KL. There was also live musical accompaniment by T'ang Quartet. They appeared on stage to perform at the start, during the interval and at the end. Thought it was a refreshing addition to a play.

Not sure if you have read/heard about the story before. I'm not very well-read so i definitely didn't know the story prior to the play. I happily decided to go for the play purely for a good laugh. The twist at the end was indeed very surprising for me! I liked the play =)

There was a post-show dialogue session with the director and the cast which i stayed back for! Glen shared that he wanted to keep the spirit of Oscar Wilde in this play and that was also why he decided to use an all-male cast. However, the intention was nothing gay. Personally, i really didn't feel anything gay about the play despite some of the actors having to be in drag and pecks on the cheeks. I also agree that the NC-16 rating was not necessary.

I noticed the use of only black and white for the sets and the costumes and this was brought up during the dialogue session. Glen explained the reason for using such a colour scheme was because the story itself was already so colourful so he didn't want bright stage colours to mask the vibrancy of the story.

It was good to watch 2 productions within the short span of less than a week. and both were very different! i enjoyed the importance of being earnest but i guess i preferred kumar more. haha. nonetheless, i look forward to more productions! like what Glen says, it's good to pamper yourself with artistic indulgence. and yes, i agree! but i wish i had more money to support my indulgence =)

The Importance of Being Earnest is still showing till 11 Apr. Can go get tickets at http://www.sistic.com.sg/

Movie: X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Coming soon!!!! For x-men fans and for people who love wolverine in particular. This is something to catch.

Hugh Jackman reprises the role that made him a superstar - as the fierce fighting machine who possesses amazing healing powers, retractable claws and a primal fury. Leading up to the events of X-MEN, X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE tells the story of Wolverines epically violent and romantic past, his complex relationship with Victor Creed, and the ominous Weapon X program. Along the way, Wolverine encounters many mutants, both familiar and new, including surprise appearances by several legends of the X-Men universe whose appearances in the film series have long been anticipated.

Movie Review: Confessions of a Shopaholic

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer ("Pirates of the Caribbean" trilogy, "National Treasure", "National Treasure: Book of Secrets").

In the glamorous world of New York City, Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher) is a fun-loving girl who is really good at shoppinga little too good, perhaps. She dreams of working for her favorite fashion magazine, but can't quite get her foot in the dooruntil ironically, she snags a job as an advice columnist for a financial magazine published by the same company. As her dreams are finally coming true, she goes to ever more hilarious and extreme efforts to keep her past from ruining her future.

A movie based on the best selling novel by Sophia Kinsella. Apparently, the novel has been around since ages and i'm sure alot of girls out there have read it. some people think that the movie was a tad disappointing. The movie changed alot of details from the book and people who have read the book might get a totally different feel about the story.

Well, if we watched it with an open mind and for people like me who has never read the book before, this movie is pretty hilarious. A film dedicated to all female, especially the shopaholics. Lots of fashion, lots of brands from gucci to Vera Wang. It's definitely a must catch chick flick and be dazzled by the galmourous New York City and the mannequins with lovely clothes!

Recipe: Claypot Rice

Seriously, if you guys are looking for professional recipes here, I have to admit, I'm not up to that kind of standard yet. What I try to do here is come up with very easy things to cook, so that despite our busy schedules, we can always have a taste of home-cooked food. Not to mention, quickly cooked food as well. So here goes my claypot rice:

Ingredient:

• Meat (chicken or pork, some people like pork belly, of course health wise, you guys should know which to choose)
• 6 shitake mushrooms (soak in hot water for 30 minutes and cut into halves)
• Cabbage
• 1 stalk scallion (chopped) - optional (for garnishing)
• 2 Chinese sausage (sliced) - optional

Instructions:

1. Cut the cabbage into pieces or strips, depending on preference
2. Cut the mushroom
3. Cut the meat and season it with pepper, light soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce
4. After washing the rice, with the correct amount of water in it, add in 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark sauce, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and half a teaspoon of salt.
5. Put the rice into rice cooker to cook
6. At the same time, heat up the wok with a little oil and fry the meat and shitake mushrooms.
7. Add in the cabbage and continue to stir fry
8. Quickly stir-fry the chicken until half-cooked
9. Add the chicken and mushrooms into the rice cooker when the rice is almost dry and continue to cook till rice is completely cooked.
10. After the rice is cooked, keep warm for 15 mins before serving.

and yes, we used the rice cooker to cook this claypot rice, for convenient purpose. If you prefer claypot version, simply transfer your rice into the claypot and continue cooking it over low heat. Must be low heat to prevent overcooking. and if u used scallion, simply slice it and throw into the rice when it's cooked. letting the scallion stay in the rice while it's being warmed.

and if u choose to cook with chinese sausage, cook it at the same time with the meat.

quite easy right?

Earthhour: Vote Earth!

I'm sure by now most of you would have heard about Earth Hour with its aggressive advertising in the various media like radio and the bus shelters. So yah, i'm here to encourage you all to take part in Earth Hour!

Earth Hour is an annual international event by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). This year, it will held on 28 March 2009 at 8.30pm local time. It aims to reach out to one billion people in 1000 cities in the world. During this allocated one hour, people take part by switching off their lights. The concept is really cool where it works like a global election.

Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you’re from, but instead, what planet you’re from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community.

Personally, i've always been very passionate about environmental causes and saving Mother Earth! ok, that sounds very cliche. but really. Like how i always advocate my friends to take the public transport instead of driving, taking part in our neighbourhood recycling collection etc. Thats why when i knew about Earth Hour, i was really excited about it! though its just for that one hour, i'm sure it is a baby step to create awareness of the importance of conservation to save our earth.

I've signed up for Earth Hour. Please go take part too!!
www.earthhour.org/singapore

Food: Fish Beehoon

I wonder have u ever noticed? that close to 75% of the customers of fish beehoon stalls, especially if it's all soupy ones, are all female. So this "Long Ji XO Yu Tou Mi Fen" is one of our favourite place and the most essential to all our cravings. I would think students around that area or people who knows bugis really well, would know of this place and if u are a lady, you might like it too.

Don't be mistaken. It's not the oil you see, it's sesame oil. It's different, ok! It simply adds to the fragrance of the soup. Actually, for a fish beenhoon lover, so as long as the basics are met, I would like it already. Soup must be tasty, beehoon not too soggy, must be tangy and fish must be well fried. That's not alot of criterias, ain't it?

We usually eat with thick beehoon, but they have it with thin beehoon, kuay teow, ee mee or simple soup and rice. Actually, they should be famous for their XO fishhead been hoon, but we never thought of trying it. Maybe we would one day, just to see how it will taste like. They have fried fish soup, sliced fish (the white one), fish head, mixed fish and tom yum too!

Situated right beside St. Joseph church, opposite Bras Basah Complex, along Victoria Street. You won't miss the hawker centre there.

143 Victoria Street

Kumar: Stripped Bare & Standing Up

A new stand up comedy presenting to you by Dream Academy. Featured the the queen of Singapore comedy. And no, he did not strip down to his birthday suit. Instead Kumar comes clean on the highs and lows of what it’s like to be Singapore’s Drag Diva.

After 17 years in the biz, Kumar turns his "no-holds-barred" wicked sense of humour on himself!
We laughed our heads off as Kumar gives you a heads up on what it's really like to be Singapore's Drag Diva.

With his signature wit and long, lighting-quick tongue, Kumar exposes the naked truth about his life in drag. Whether talking about his life in secondary mixed school. wearing his first dress, buying his first pair of size-11 Malono Blahnik stilettos, or his stint at Basic Military Training, Kumar always manages to raise an eyebrow and roll out a barrel of laughs.

Like Eddie Murphy taking on Radio City Music Hall, or Ellen Degeneres at the Royal Albert Hall or Jerry Seinfeld at Carnegie Hall, our very own KUMAR will bring down the Hallowed Halls of the Esplanade Theatre.

It felt good supporting a local act! This is the second time both of us watch a production together. The first time was also by Dream Academy, Dim Sum Dollies, last year. Both experiences were equally good! Very entertaining. And of course, not forgetting the many crude jokes cracked.

At one point of the act, Kumar was asking for suggestions for a show name. Well, i've a few suggestions. Marz. Kuvi the Diva. hahaha. ok i dont know. i think the names all fail. he (oops or should we address as she?) should just stick to kumar. =)

At the end of the show, a video montage of Kumar was showed. thought it was quite touching. showed us a more subdued side of Kumar that was slightly different from the persona we see onstage. Hearing his family members and close friends talked about him affectionately was very endearing. Kumar has come a long way, with the support of his friends and family.

i love the glamourous red and white gown he wore! though we were seated very very far from the stage (yes we bought the 2nd cheapest tickets. at least a little more than the 18bucks one which got much ridicule from kumar himself. haha), we could tell that kumar has a very slender figure, much to the envy of many ladies i'm sure. i like the blue and white sari he changed to for the indian dance even more!! very pretty, the sari im referring to that is. ha!

stage set up and lighting were simple but glamourous. i particularly like the 'Kumar' light up. I'm sure kumar likes that too as he couldnt stop raving about it. simple yet grand. very broadway-ish. haha!

overall, thought the standup comedy was definitely worth the money! would definitely go for another kumar show anytime! =) oh! apparently dream academy is going to stage a musical in july / august. something to do with money. and if you went for the kumar show, u can use the ticket stub and get a 20% off! good deal =)

Kiss from a rose.

my friend D introed me to this version of kiss from a rose. and its awesome!! one of the nicest versions i've ever heard. we are both totally mesmerised by it! =)

enjoy!


There used to be a greying tower alone on the sea.
You became the light on the dark side of me.
Love remained a drug that's the high and not the pill.

But did you know,
That when it snows,
My eyes become large and,
The light that you shine can be seen.

Baby,
I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the grey.
Ooh,
The more I get of you
Ooh
Stranger it feels, yeah.

And now that your rose is is in bloom.
A light hits the gloom on the grey.

There is so much a man can tell you,
So much he can say.
there's so much inside.
You remain,you.......

My power, my pleasure, my pain, baby
To me you're like a growing addiction that I can't deny.. yeah.
Won't you tell me is that healthy, baby?

But did you know,
That when it snows,
My eyes become large and the light that you shine can be seen.

A light hits the gloom on the grey,
I've been kissed by a rose on the grey,
I've been kissed by a rose
And if I should fall, at all
I've been kissed by a rose.

My power, my pleasure, my pain.

Book Review: Lucky

by Alice Sebold

A real story of the author's. Alice Sebold reveals how her life was utterly transformed when, as an eighteen-year-old college freshman, she was brutally raped and beaten in a park near her campus.

What propels Alice's recovery is her indomitable spirit, how she struggles to get understanding from close ones like family to friends. we see how her family and friends struggle to accept her, to make her feel comforted and supported, even though she was never the same again. And finally, she triumphs, managing through grit and confidence to help secure her attacker's arrest and conviction.

For a long while, I don't recall in reading too much of non-fiction books. But when I started this one, it was very compelling and hard to put down. As a woman myself, rape was a issue that merely passed through my mind, without giving much thought. and i'm sure, like me, lots of woman out there, we always think we won't be that "lucky" one to get it. It was a totally different era when the tragic happened to her.

That period of time when this happened to the author, there were girls who suffered from rape yet choose not to press charges, because all they thought was to get it out of their system, forget it and start anew. To be able to stick through, to press charges, sit through trials with cross examintaions from denfense conusel, the hardship and mental torture that she has to go through. To finally be able to move on and even write a book years after, i'm really impressed.

Towards the end of the book, there was a little unexpected twist. I felt that there was no way one could escape such a past, no matter what she does. It's painful, moving and it encourages woman to stand up for themselves.

Truly, inspirational. Alice Sebold illuminates the experience of a trauma victims even as she imparts wisdom profoundly hard won:

'You save yourself or you remain unsaved.'

Food place: Shillawon

its my dad's bday today! happy bday daddy! =)

my sis and i treated dad to a bday dinner. headed to suntec and wanted to go kushinbo. but the dinner buffet was a tad expensive and there was a long queue. so we decided to try Shillawon, which was a few shops down. Shillawon is a korean buffet + steamboat restaurant. my family usually go for japanese, chinese or western cuisine. so i thought korean cuisine would be a nice change..

since we were there before 6pm, we managed to have the dinner buffet for $13.90++ each (u.p: $15.90++). the shop was very empty. besides my family, there were only 3 other people eating there.. halfway thru dinner, my mum actually talked to one of the waitress and commented that business looks bad. so she was saying business during weekdays is usually slower..

anyway, what made me really excited about eating at a korean restaurant was actually the cutlery! =p i really like the long metal chopsticks and spoon! its like korean drama come to live! HAHAH! the long metal chopsticks looked nice, but my sis and i had quite abit of difficulty controlling it. it got tiring after awhile cos the chopsticks were pretty heavy. ha.

ok back to the food. hmm well, i would say the food wasn't fantastic.. in fact, my sister was complaining throughout the meal that she would never want to come here again. the choices were rather limited. and some of the dishes on the menu were only available on weekends.
alrights, but other than the food on the menu, there was also a Shilla Corner, where you can help yourself to cooked food, like fried prawns fritters, cream soup, vegetables and glass noodles. The glass noodles was yummy! but i wouldnt say the same for the rest of the food. Oh, there were also 3 types of sauces to choose from: peanut sauce, bean sauce and some other chilli+vinegar sauce (can't remember the name.. sorry). the different sauces go well with the marinated meat =)

so anyway we ordered almost everything that was available on the menu. well, the cooked food on the menu wasn't to our liking. didn't like the egg pancakes, sweet and sour pork and mackerel fish. the fishy taste from the fish was alittle too overwhelming..

we ordered their salmon sashimi too. the salmon is not part of the buffet menu, so you'll have to pay an extra $3.90 for it. well, i would advise you to save that $3.90. though the serving was generous, the salmon was not fresh. my sis finished that up since she was craving for sashimi. she wanted to order one more portion, but my mum stopped her as she felt it was not worth it.

ok enough of all the negative stuff, theres still some saving grace!

i liked their kimchi fried rice! i actually ordered 3 portions of it, of which i finished 2 of it! HAHA! but it wasnt well received by my family members =( i had to force my sister and dad to finish the last portion! we ordered 2 of their soups too, the kimchi one and the bean tofu one. (sorry forgot the exact names again =/ i promise i'll do a better job next time!). i liked the soups too =) thought it was very tasty! and i dont think its because of MSG, because surprisingly, even though i drank alot of soup, i don't feel thirsty now. ha.

and i thought their meat was their highlight =) they were well marinated and very tender! especially the beef! im not exactly a fan of beef (well, i prefer chicken anytime!), but yah i enjoyed the beef more than chicken. maybe cos its a korean restaurant, and if im not wrong, beef is quite an essential in korean cuisine.

oh and not forgetting! you must definitely pay that extra $1 for their free flow of drinks cos its soooo good! they have free flow of tangerine juice, lime juice and green tea. the $1 is definitely WORTH IT! i especially LOVEEEEEEEE the tangerine juice!! very fresh and sweet! you can even taste the pulps. my sister liked the tangerine juice alot too! lucky for the nice juice to pacify her, if not i'll have to deal with one grouchy dining companion. haha. both of us had countless cups of the tangerine juice! kept refilling =p i didnt try the lime juice, but my dad enjoyed it! so i guess it's as good =) i tried the green tea too, it was nice and refreshing! drank a cup after the heavy meal.

after the extras, GST and service charge, we paid a total of $74.70 for the four of us. can't say it was totally worth it. my dad's appetite wasn't that good today. my sister felt like it was a torture having that meal (haha!). my mum and i were the only ones eating to make our money worth. haha. perhaps cos my family isn't quite used to korean cuisines. i doubt we'll be going back to Shillawon again.

Shillawon

Suntec City Mall #03-010/012

Tel: 6339 3313

Recipe: Mui Fan

I always encourage people to cook at home, even if it's just for one. I feel that only by this way, we can control what we eat, how much salt, MSG or anything else for that matters.

So this is just a simple meal to cook. If you don't like rice, u can always do Hor Fun with Kway teow. Very flexible.

Ingredient:

• Eggs
• Cornstarch
• Garlic
• Veggie, best is Cai Xin
• Meat or seafood, whatever you want. If use chicken or pork, best to use lean pork or chicken fillet/breast
• Chicken Stock

Instructions:

1. Cook rice
2. If use pork or chicken, marinate them with one tablespoon of light sauce, sesame oil and a dash of pepper.
3. Put one cube of Chicken Stock (Preferably the one with No Added MSG) in a pot of water and boil. Don't add too much water, or else you will dilute the taste. If you want, can do tasting after boil, to see if too salty.
4. Cut the garlic cloves, not too much, maybe 2 cloves.
5. Fry the garlic, in a wok, with one table spoon of olive oil (oilve oil for healthy living) until it turn golden brown
6. Add the chicken stock into the wok
7. Slowly add in the ingredients, put vegetables last
8. Add in cornstarch, must keep stirring to prevent lumps. Alternatively, can add corn starch into a separate bowl of water. slowly stir then add into the wok.
9. As a chef, we must always test our food and make necessary adjustments as deem fit. If it's slightly diluted, then salt is permitter. Remember, we don't want too much salt!
10. Crack an egg into a bowl, beat it and slowlt add in the work, stirring it constantly.
11. Get the rice from the cooker and pour this gravy onto of the rice and we have what the picture showed above!

I used chicken, fish, caixin and oyster mushroom (surprise myself) for the above creation. Time taken was less than 30 mins. Simple and easy!

If you like Hor fun instead, just buy kway teow, washed it, drained it of all the oil. Fry some garlic with olive oil in a wok then throw in the kway teow. Add in dark soy sauce and fry to even out the dark soy sauce. then put the kway teow one side before we start the gravy. Hor Fun is cooked then.

Movie Review: Race to Witch Mountain

A picture from Walt Disney which apparently is another version of their beloved Witch Mountain franchise. A newer version from the original one. This film is released in Singapore on 13 March 2009. Dwayne Johnson ('The Rock') stars as a taxi driver, Jack Bruno, who picked up two teenagers (Anna Sophia Robb and Alexander Ludwig) without knowing who they are initially. Jack Bruno then finds himself starting an adventure that he cannot explain. Not only does the brother and sister possess supernatural powers, but they're also trying desperately to escape their enemy who will only stop if the pair dies. Or if they destroy him first. Working together, Jack and his young passengers discover that the only chance to save the world lies in unraveling the secrets of Witch Mountain, and the race begins.

The film is based on the book "Escape to Witch Mountain" by Alexander Key. It is a modern day re-imagining of Key's book which was made into the 1975 Disney classics "Escape to Witch Moutain" and whose character inspired the 1978 film sequel, "Return from Witch Mountain." The two movies were popular science-fiction adventures that became warmly recalled touchstones of youth as audiences grew from children to adult.

So, not having being born in the seventies, i didn't catch the original one of course. this film could be better, could be worse but for many adults out there, it could bring back memories. Thus, I would say it's a film enjoyable by the young and old. The young will love the science-fiction, that i am sure.

The movie has its flaws and its strengths. Lots of action, with a touch of humour in it. Though i felt the humour was kind of known to all who actually caught the trailer. Maybe the storyline is so-so to alot of pple who was born in the eighties like me. and who is a young female adult, not knowing how to appreciate science fiction. But the cast is good, that i have to admit. The Rock is fantastic in this role and i appreciate him more in such movies, rather than the serious violent types. If I wanted violence, I would have chosen WWE. That's better.

Well, it's a family-friendly movie. Whoever reads this, you can decide if you want to watch it. Personally, I feel I won't get weekend tickets for this. Or not at all. Just another action with humour in it.

Film Review: iSalud! and some Reel Rev Shorts

went to The Substation today for a free screening of iSalud! This is part of the programme by Substation, Moving Images.

Alittle about the film fest. It is the 3rd Singapore Indie Doc Fest (which is from 8-16 March this yr) where the Substation is some of the thought-provoking and resonating independent documentaries from around the world. For more details about the Indie Doc fest, can refer their website: http://www.substation.org/3SIDF/

Back to the films..

started of with the Reel Rev shorts. Of the 5 shorts, i liked Trouncing Terrorism: A Guide to Saving yourself and the Nation best. Thought it was really funny and entertaining! haha! i think the audience enjoyed it too cos there were hearty laughters.

Something unexpected happened for My Singapore, My Home. As in, there was live singing of the song 'My Singapore, my home' during the screening of the film. The film itself was actually total silence. So i'm still wondering if there PA system broke down at that time or the filmmaker intentionally made it this way and there should be live singing of the song during the screening. hmmm.

And i thought the message for Pay/Repay was powerful. it was a simple film, technical wise. but the impact was strong. and yes its something close to my heart. being the environmentally conscious citizen =) haha!

as for the main film, iSalud! well, it's a film set in South African, about the healthcare system in that country. thought it was a rather thought-provoking film and make us realise the issue of the worldwide healthcare crisis.

somehow, the film inspired me. i did wish that i was a medical student so that i could volunteer myself there. the problem they face there is the lack of proper healthcare due to limited resources. and those trained in medical usually leave their country for greener pastures in the developed country. so its really sad. many die from not being able to receive basic medical help.

but yah the documentary was alittle long for me, who has a short attention span. so towards the end, i was quite restless.. oops. haha.

alrights, this is my first film review. hope i did decently. =p

First post!

woots. this is gonna be our baby! all those talk about starting a blog together, we've finally did it! =)

here's to more adventures, trying out new makan places, visiting exotic places, experimenting with more new stuff =)

and a toast to our 13th year of friendship!!

loves.