(A) Awake Is The New Sleep. (2005, Ben Lee) Grade: B

For the Ben Lee fans: This Is Fake DIY

(M) The Grudge (2004, Takashi Shimizu) Grade: C
Hey Buffy... where were all the vampires? Alright so the other night Dorkus, Rancid, and myself all watched this movie. I can't speak for the two people curled up under a blanket but I thought the movie was okay I guess. However I was pretty much saying what the hell is going on every 10 minutes. So here is what I gathered, somebody goes crazy in a house and kills everyone... the rage of that person stays in the home and haunts and eventually if not instantly kills anyone who enters the home. They may die in the home or they may die away from the home but the rage posses these people or follows them and then kills them. Not all the ends of this story are wrapped up and not everything is explained which is probably why I sat there with a stupid look of confusion on my face (different than my normal everyday stupid look of confusion with life look). Anyway there are a lot of elements from The Ring in here also. The little kid in this movie is cool though.

(O) Misplacing your cd's (Dorkus, 2005) Grade: F
Upon hearing Sam Prekop's (of The Sea and Cake fame) song for the new Target commercial, I was reminded that I hadn't listened to my Sea and Cake albums in awhile. And of course, upon going through my cd cases and noticing that 2 out of the 4 cd's are actually missing, I cursed myself for not being more responsible about putting them back where they belong. Hooray for disorganization.

and for the fellas ... and actually the gals as well. :)

The series centers around the lives, loves, and longings of a group of typical fun-loving teenagers. The star, Larke, a beautiful blonde is dating Troy. Bianca is the brat who tries to take Troy from Larke. Chester shows off his genius by building crazy inventions. Bianca's servant, Wilshire, is in love with her, but she ignores him. Switchboard is the "babbling bimbo of gossip." Pierce is pompous and arrogant and never gets the girl. Tara is the Southern belle. Chanel is the beautiful African-American. Gig and Jett are rockers. They say they aren't together, but get really jealous when anyone hits on the other. They shopped and drove limos and had expensive adventures. Oh, the 80's.

Yes traffic is not fun in the rain and even worse when you get caught up in a flash flood . . .haha.

Here are my reviews for the past weekend:

(M) Million Dollar Baby. (2004, Clint Eastwood) Grade:A-/B+
I can see why this movie was nominated for so many academy awards. The acting is very geniune and the directing of the movie is awesome. I liked the use of shadows and lighting that really set the tone for the movie. The movie whizzes by pretty fast, and doesn't seem like its over 2 hours long, which is a good thing. Like the ending in Eastwood's last movie, "Mystic River" I was not completely satisfied with it, but at the end of the day thats the way things go.

(O) Game Night. (2004, Hugh's house) Grade:B+
Game night was fun for the most part, Cranium still reigns supreme as the best group party game around. You get everything with it, drawing, acting, word games, what more could you want. Smores were consumed and fun was had by all. Thanks Jamie and Hugh for the great night.

Short reviews:

(TV) There's Something About Marrying. (2005, The Simpsons) Grade:A+
Homer making out with himself was awesome.

(S) NBA AllStar Weekend. (2005, Sports) Grade:D+
It showed how the game has sunken in sportsmanship and as a team game. Too many selfish players.

(O) Brad and Mac's Helping Hand Service. (2005, Bradley and Mac) Grade:A++
If your car gets stuck in the water they are a simple call away, or if they happen to see you they will help out as well.

coming soon: review of tori amos "beekeeper" and my oscar picks.

when will it stop raining. oh my gosh. :( traffic will suck tomorrow. (sigh)

(M) Bialy (White) (1994, Krzysztof Kieslowski) Grade: B
Thoughts: Right before Julie Delpy was in Before Sunrise she starred in this film. Granted I have not seen the Before Sunrise/Sunset movies but I can tell she is great. The film is about a man name Karol (Zbigniew Zamachowski) whose wife Dominique (Julie Delpy) wants a divorce from him after 6 months of marriage. Karol, who is Polish, goes back to Poland to rebuild his life and in the process gets revenge on his wife. I have yet to see Red the last of the Trois Couleurs but I must say Blue was still much better.

(M) Wong Gok Hak Yau (One Night in Mongkok). (2004, Tung-Shing Yee) Grade: B
Thoughts: One of the nominees for best picture at the 24th Annual Hong Kong Film Awards (like the Oscars for them) and I think it was well deserved. A well done movie with a dark enough plot and enough human emotion to get me involved. The strongest part of the film had to be Officer Miao played by Alex Fong. He was just the disturbed angry character that you would believe in.

(M) Million Dollar Baby. (2004, Clint Eastwood) Grade: B
Thoughts: Anyone who says this isn't a boxing movie is wrong ... well not completely. I thought the movie would be entirely on boxing but towards the last 1/3 of the film it was about human emotion and relationship. Clint Eastwood plays Frankie Dunn a surly old boxing trainer/coach/manager who owns a gym with his long time friend Eddie Scrap-Iron Dupris played by Morgan Freeman. Enter Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) who changes Frankie's life forever. The film is 137 mins but it did not feel that long because of the involving storyline. About 2/3 of the movie is about Maggie's rise to fame and the last part is her fall/cruel fate. I don't think Clint or Morgan really stepped out of the typicla roles they play but I would like to see Morgan win best supporting just because I think he is a great actor. If Hilary Swank wills best actress again ... I think it would be well deserved.

(TV) Greatest American Hero. (1981, ABC) Grade: B-
Does anyone remember this early '80s TV show? It is entertaining in the sense that it is corny and extremely dated. But there are only so many times that one can laugh at Ralph Hinkley's inability to use his super suit. "Haha. He can't fly and fell on the floor." After the 10th time, not so funny. The lapses of logic definitely demand a high degree of suspension of disbelief (a la 24) and how did that theme song become a Top 40 hit? "Believe it or not ... I'm walking on air." This one is going to Aron's trade counter.

(A) Warnings/Promises. (2005, Idlewild) Grade: B-
One of my all-time favourite Scottish bands disappoints with their fourth album. Not released yet but you needn't hold your breath. Read my thoughts here: Ambitious Outsiders

On Kevin and Bean this morning, they interviewed this guy who handed out postcards to a bunch of people and asked them to each send him one secret anonymously. The submissions were on display at Artomatic, an art festival in Washington DC. Check out the postcards on this blogger page: http://www.postsecrets.com. Then later, Kevin and Bean had callers confess their secrets anonymously, and the worst one of all was a guy who said he was in a relationship with a woman and they have a three year old child together, but he's secretly been married for 16 years. !!

(M) Heavenly Creatures. (1994, Peter Jackson) Grade: A-
Thoughts: I would have given this film a B+ but the true story part really pushed it up. The story is about two girls Pauline Yvonne (Parker) Rieper (Melanie Lynskey) and Juliet Hulme (Kate Winslet) who are best friends/lovers. Well I use lovers lightly because I think in the beginning they start off as just best friends but form this huge obsessive, twisted relationship together which make them become lovers. In the film, Juliet finds out she will be moving and the two girls can't handle that so what do they do ... they kill. I won't say who so as not to spoil the film but it is so twisted ... I think more so because it was a true story. I loved Kate Winslet in the film, you could see a young budding actor coming out. Peter Jackson also did a great job directing and who knew he would move on to bigger and better things aka Lord of the Rings :).

(M) Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky In Our Times (2002,, John Junkerman) Grade: B
Though this "documentary" on a period of Noam Chomsky's speaking tours doesn't display the brilliance of this man, it definitely may let you know how intelligent this man may be and peek your interest in learning more about him. Often tagged as "Anti-American" he is simply a man who tells it like it is and hopes for an improving of the world we live in by turning the mirror on America and asking how can we set standards for what we expect from other people, religions, or countries if we don't live up to those standards ourselves. Trully a brilliant man.

I recently decided to cancel netflix and made sure I got this before I cancelled. I am cancelling to do something more productive like reading. Now of course after watching the documentary I am happy with my choice to read more but I feel almost embarrassed for reading for entertainment when you see the vast amount of knowledge you can obtain if you read more important things like worldwide newspapers and current and historical events. Anyway, it was an interesting DVD and is only an hour long.

(M) Talk To Her (2002, Pedro Almodovar) Grade: B
Though it took me 4 days to watch this movie, I did enjoy it quite a bit. In this film there are two men who have a similar story, they both love a woman (not the same woman) and both the women they love end up in coma's in the same hospital. One man has a personal and intimate relationship with the woman he loves, and the other man was an admirer of the woman he loves but never had any real relationship with her. While the women are in the coma's, one man (the admirer) teaches the other man how to care for the woman he loves even though she's in a coma and there can be no give and take from their relationship. It's quite an interesting and lovely film.

However, here is what really struck me as interesting and it may have little to do with the film, I don't know. First, there is a scene where a man becomes incredibly small and when the woman he loves is asleep he climbs over her breasts and then goes down between her legs and walks into her vagina (Charles Bukowski wrote a short story about this). I don't know if in the movie they're watching a movie where this happens or if it was a dream, I don't remember. Second was the fact that one of the men in the film (the admirer) has sex with the woman he is in love with while she's in a coma. I am curious on what a psycho-analysis of these two scenes would suggest. In both stories it's a man taking advantage of an unaware or unconscious woman. I guess since you never see the rape that the scene of the small man entering the unconscious woman is an artistic rendering of when the rape happens, and maybe he's saying only a small man would rape a woman or take advantage of her when she is unconscious, and I don't mean small in stature.

Anyway, anybody on here who has seen this movie and remembers what I am talking about I'd like your input or your take on it.

(A) Stay Where You Are. (2004, Ambulance LTD) Grade: B+

I wrote a single review for a British music site: This Is Fake DIY

(M) Fei Hap Siu Baak Lung (White Dragon). (2004, Wilson Yip) Grade: B
Thoughts: Martial arts, fight scenes, a love story ... no I'm not talking about crappy House of Flying Daggers. White Dragon stars Cecilia Cheung and Francis Ng. Francis Ng's character is a super kung fu fighter ... and bind, makes sense right. He goes around killing people who deserve to die for the bad deeds they have done. Cecilia Cheung, who is set to wed a handsome prince, leads the double lifestyle of being a fighter/rich pretty girl who goes after Francis Ng. You can tell where this is going ... romance all the way. The film was light and funny and sometimes silly but it worked overall.

(M) Yesterday Once More. (2004, Johnnie To) Grade: D-
Thoughts: You would think with the cast and director this movie had a flying chance of making it but alas nope. When the movie ended I went WTF?? Maybe I expected something .. too much considering this is same cast (Sammi Cheng and Andy Lau) and director (Johnnie To) who have done great films like Love on a Diet and Needing You (a personal favorite of mine). The characters were all hatable and you didn't care what happened to them, the story was boring, the ending was terrible with the main character dying. It had that Cruel Intentions feel to it ... rich people doing bad things with death minus Reese Witherspoon.

(M) Eulogy. (2004, Michael Clancy) Grade: B+

So I originally wanted to watch this movie b/c it had Hank Azaria in it. He's the actor who plays the character Huff in the Showtime original "Huff". Anyway, this movie was about a family who has to get together to attend a funeral. The whole family is dysfunctional and the only person that's sorta normal and actually cares about the funeral is the grandaughter. Overall, it's a pretty entertaining movie with memorable characters.

FORGET VALENTINES DAY, CELEBRATE LOVE DAY.....


I got sir hugs a lot this year.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY !!!

(A) Speak. (2004, Lindsay Lohan) Grade: C-

haha who's the dork now? ok ok before you guys make fun of me, 1. i did not buy it and 2. you all know i like pop(it gives me something to dance to so new wave and darth can give me quarters). ANYWAY, i can pretty much sum this album up in one word: GENERIC. Her songs sound like a mix of every popster out there except for Christina Aguillera cuz she can actually sing. But Britney, Beyonce(she can sing too but her beats are in there), Kelly Clarkson, Avril and yes, even Hilary Duff. i didn't give it a lower grade because maybe i'm a little biased cuz i'm a fan of hers...but even so, it's not a BAD album, it's just been done and we need a little originality nowadays. maybe i'm just too disconnected from the teenage psyche, but mmm i can't really relate. the beats are generic and her attempt at being the "bad, sexy, rocker chick who is sweet and innocent" i think is confusing her a bit...it's sure as hell confusing me! i love ya lindsay but stick to acting, scrape off some of that makeup, and for the love of all that is good and pure, stay away from the tanning booth!

(M) Born Into Brothels (2004, Zana Briski, Ross Kauffman) Grade: A++
Just saw this documentary and I love Love LOVED it! It flowed really well. I never got bored during the documentary, and the children were so wonderful and at moments it broke your heart to see what life is like in another area of the world. For those unfamiliar with the oscar nominated documentary (which BETTER win), here is a brief synopsis:
An american woman who is probably from India by heritage goes to the Calcutta Red Light District in India. Spending years there she becomes close to the residents and the children of the prostitutes and drug dealers. Every week she has a photography class where she teaches a group of the children how to take pictures. After being there for about 3 years she works on getting the children out of the environment they are growing up in so that the girls don't become prostitutes and the boys don't become drug dealers and users. However the government does not help children from these sorts of areas and so the woman does what she can to bring hope and a future into the lives of these children who are aged 10-12 years old.
It's trully a great documentary. It makes me really want to do more photography and really want to get out and see the world and you feel good for how lucky you, and it made me feel bad for all that I have and take for granted. I highly recommend the film.

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR !!!! GUNG HAY FAT CHOY!!!

forgot to mention this before but mark your calenders ... may 17th. i think this only applies to hedwig, dorkus and darth but if anyone else cares.

(M) Troll. (1986, John Carl Buechler) Grade: B

I watched this movie the other day as I was sick and the remote control had fallen on the side of my bed and i was to lazy to get it. I used to watch this movie all the time on Saturday afternoons on KCOP, its a "horror" movie in genre, but to be honest its a fun filled movie for the whole family. An evil Troll named Torok possesses a young girl and makes her go into people's apartments and turn them into plants and pods to grow more Trolls. Whats great is the random characters in the movie, the potters (and yes they are harry sr. and harry jr.), and the next door neighbor Rep. Sonny Bono. Yes it truly is a bizarre movie and a blast from my past. One of my favorite moments was when the little girl brings home a midget for dinner with her family, it was pretty random. Anyway if you are looking to kill some time I highly suggest watching this movie for a good laugh, and stupid special effects.

wow this film opened at 11 million and it was in less than 1,700 theatres. I'm impressed. I do like Debra Messing but this movie looks bad.

(M) Gegen die Wand (Head On). (2004, Fatih Akin) Grade: B+
Thoughts: The use of I Feel You by Depeche Mode was great and pretty much set up the whole feel of the film. Two people who were dead inside and basically helped each other live ... feel again. At times the movie got a bit overdramatic and a bit too naked for my taste ... ha ha but overall a very solid film. Birol Ünel who played Cahit Tomruk is so sexy ugly. He has that Benicio Del Toro thing going. I found Sibel Kekilli who played Sibel Güner very attractive and apparently that actress has a huge fan base.

(M) Shall We Dansu? (1996, Masayuki Suo) Grade: B
Thoughts: I must love all ballroom dancing movies, seriously. This is the Japanese film that was remade into the American version Shall We Dance with J.Lo. I'm sure the American version couldn't capture the charm and grace this film had. I would have given this movie a higher grade but I had a problem with the relationship between the husband and the wife ... it felt cold and even in the end when they reconcilated I didn't feel the passion or warmth. Then again it could just be Asian culture and the whole never showing emotion or feeling.

(M) Wong Fei-hung ji yi: Naam yi dong ji keung (Once Upon The Time In China 2). (1992, Hark Tsui) Grade: A
Thoughts: Great martial arts ... the fight scenes are amazing. Jet Li is great as Wong Fei-hung. I think he is my new favorite superhero. Hee Hee.

(M) River's Edge (1987, Tim Hunter) Grade: C-

I would have maybe given this a D, but I don't want two hours of my life back so I gave it a C-. I know this movie got tons of acclaim. I didn't care for it. I don't know if the acting was really really bad, or that the actors were playing their roles so very very well. The movie is based on the true story of a guy (in high school) who kills his girlfriend with no remorse. He then brags to all his friends about his crime and the question of how loyal do you stay to your friends arises. The thing that bugged me most is that this movie just shows the nature of true selfishness in humans. Mostly with a 12 year old kid who is a monster of a child and feels he has a right to do whatever he wants to people but when his brother gets mad at him the kid goes off to get a gun to kill his brother. I don't know... these are mentalities I've seen in life and it disturbs me. There is one part I really liked where a teacher says that people say they're sad and sorry about death but that people really aren't, at least not in the way they try to convince people they are. (I'm referring to murder, not natural death). He goes on to say why he thinks this and to some level I would have to agree with him. Anyway, I'm not sure why this movie was considered SO great, but it is disturbing in a way, I'll give 'em that.

i would like to formally welcome and introduce cup o noodles to the house. you better review or blog or i'll kick you out like the others. so welcome ... ha ha.

(M) Hannah and Her Sisters (1986, Woody Allen) Grade: B-
This follows mainly the lives of three sisters and one of the sister's ex-husbands (played by Woody Allen). Everyone in the family views Hannah as sort of the star child with everything to give and to want for nothing. The chaotic life of Hannah's two other sisters make them envious of Hannah as well as possessing a mutual disdain for her. The movie deals with relationships (family and marriage) as well as life and the meaning within' it. The film was up for Best Picture but lost to Platoon. Some view this to be Allen's best (even better than Annie Hall). Though it reaches outside of the relationship issue and tackles more topics, I preferred other movies by Allen such as Annie Hall and Manhattan. Love & Death was also a favorite. None the less I shall leave you with a few excerpts from the movie I found amusing:

"You can't do a skit about child molestation, it's a touchy subject with the affiliates."
"Read the papers, half the country's doing it."
"Yes, but you name names."
"We don't name names, we say, The Pope."

"If the test came back positive & I had a brain tumor I was gonna shoot myself with a rifle I bought last week. Then I realized how devastated my parents would be & so I'd have to shoot them first, & then my aunt and uncle, it was gonna be a bloodbath."

"If there is a God then why were there Nazi's?"
"How the hell should I know why there were Nazi's, I don't even know how the can opener works."

"To me Catholicism means die now, pay later."

Welcome to the blog page, Cup-O-Noodles. : )

you ever had one of those days where it starts out one way and end a TOTALLY different way. today was so one of those days. i had dinner with dorkus melorkus, cup o noodles and a good friend :) for my b-day ... good times. now the bad times ... while leaving the lot i hit a parked car :(. i know i'm a terrible driver but to be honest the guy should not have been parking there ... he pretty much made up his own parking space. anyways i could have driven off but i went in and informed the person and we exchanged info and HOPEFULLY the whole situation will be resolved easily but we'll see.

but that really wasn't the reason for my strange day (cure song). i think it was the phone call and then the meeting of an old friend that i didn't even think i would see for a long time. now that was strange and actually really fun. i had no idea ... no clue this friend was here and then bang i'm hanging out with them and having a grand old time.

freaking life is a trip.

(O) The Reproductive System Exam (2005, Castro)
Grade for the hours spent studying for this exam: D
Grade I want to get on this exam: A realistically B-
Grade I'm going to get on this exam: C-/D+

"Boys have a penis and girls have a vagina!"-Kindergarden Cop

I listed it under O for other as well as for orgasm haha. I give studying a D not an F b/c it didn't really "damage" my life; it's actually going to "help" my life b/c I need to learn it to become a Dr. However, I would like to have the ~9 hours i've spent studying today and the ~10-12 hours of my life i'm going to spend studying tomorrow back PLEASE. I went over 19 hours of lecture/lab material today....and i have oh, 20 more to go tomorrow. And NO i'm not cramming I studied on monday, wed and thurs.

While I enjoyed learning about the male/female orgasm and how to treat sexual dysfunction, I really don't appreciate looking at diseased hoo-has and wee-wees or more techinically vaginas and penises.

Look out for my upcoming review of Pap/Pelvic and Rectal exam day! People actually get paid to be mock patients for us---they better get paid alot!!

(M) Henry & June (1990, Philip Kaufman) Grade: B
Thoughts: If you are a fan of Henry Miller (Tropic of Cancer) or Anais Nin (Henry & June, House of Incest, Delta of Venus) than you may enjoy this film. The director (Philip Kaufman) also directed Quills, and The Unbearable Lightness Of Being. This is also the film the changed the MPAA rating system and introduced the rating of NC-17 which replaced X. The film Chronicles Anais' self-discovery of sexuality. The film is set in Paris. Being rather bored of her husband she meets Henry Miller and his wife June. She takes a fascination to June which opens the floodgates to her sexual exploration. When June leaves for New York Anais and Henry embark on a love affair but they are both tied to their haunting desire for June. During this time Anais discovers things about herself and her sexuality and the power of a woman. I enjoyed the movie, however I'm not quite sure why it got the NC-17 rating. The literature of Henry Miller and Anais Nin are both far more erotic than this film. Some great cinematography though. I graded it a B because it re-awoke my desire to read more Miller and Nin.

(M) In The Realms Of The Unreal (2004?, Jessica Yu) Grade: C
Thoughts: In seeing the preview for this documentary on Henry Darger I was intrigued by a reclusive artist who created for the sake of creating and not for fame and fortune. Upon his death all of his artwork and writings were found in his tiny apartment room. He spent his life as a blue collar worker, mainly living a solitary life and creating his own world through painting and writing. An intriguing figure, yes. However because he was such a recluse there was very little information to be provided about who Henry Darger was. The documentary mainly consisted of animating his pictures through computers and reading exerpts from his 15,000 page book to provide a story back-drop for his paintings as well as, tying in parts of his life that paralleled the story of his book. About an hour into the film I started to wonder when would it end, but then when it ended I was like, "It's over already?" I think the later reaction came from the fact that there is such little information given about Henry. Since nobody knew Henry and his art wasn't discovered until after his death, there's really nothing you can learn from or about him. I say it's a rental film more than a theater film.

(TV?) Ashlee Simpson, Video for Lala. Grade: F

Okay okay before you (all two of you who actually read this page) get on my case for watching this video, let me just explain that I was in New Orleans this past week and the rain and gloom forced me to hole up in my hotel room and watch hours of tv. The result: An even greater hatred for Mtv. I don't have cable, which is okay with me, but just watching Mtv for the past couple days reminds me I'm not missing anything. Also, I was curious to hear the song that Ashlee Simpson got booed for at the Orange Bowl.

A couple notes from watching this video:
1) Four minutes of my life I'll never get back.
2) Her "dance" moves are reminiscent of Elaine Benace or someone having a spasm. In fact, I'm not really even sure she was attempting to dance. Also, she does her weird dance moves in front of a convenience store while holding a soda cup in her hand. Wha?
3) She's singing dreamily and holding a joystick while the rest of her friends are having fun playing Xbox. Does this make any sense?
4) There's a line in the song that goes something like: "You make me want to Lala in the kitchen, on the floor..." After watching the video, I'm pretty sure "lala" means vomit.


(B) Bonjour Tristesse (Francoise Sagan, 1955). Grade: A
A short, bittersweet tale of a young girl's coming of age and how her actions create havoc and devastating results to the people in her life. Simple in nature, it's a story ahead of it's time. It's interesting to note that Sagan wrote this book when she was only 18.

A surreal moment yesterday: After my usual visit to Virgin (on Sunset), I decide to buy a cup of coffee at Buzz next door and who should be sitting outside enjoying his own cup (although it might have been tea) but Morrissey. I know he lives in Hollywood (on Sweetzer, I hear) but an everyday run-in with the man himself made me lose my senses. Omigosh, it's Moz only a few feet away. I became one of those senseless fans who gawk and act giddy and nervous and can't stop smiling. And who really does that? I decided not to bother him since he was chatting with a male companion. Oh, Los Angeles, you are too hot!

(M) Ray. (2004, Taylor Hackford) Grade: C+
Thoughts: A good movie but not a great one. I wish they developed more on some characters. I thought Jamie Foxx did a good job but not a great job ... I'm not sure why. I guess I expected a lot from this film or something. The music was excellent though which gave it the extra + rating.

ha ha best story ever ... so a few 24 eps back i say like two they had a phone number and it wasn't the typical 555 one. it was an actual number and i want to call it but decided nah. so then i went on the message board to read some stuff and people said the number was to the props dept and that if you call you could reach people. so i decided to do it right now since i'm on my lunch break and bored.

ha ha i got through and talked to some prop guy. he said they were getting kinda of tired of getting calls considering the ep aired i think 2 or 3 weeks ago. ha ha. i just asked if there would be any special people on the show ... he said it is 24 so you can expect anything.

am i a nerd now???