Orange

There are many movies out there that depict the lives of suicidal people, but for me, not many of them can come close to this one. This movie has a way of making me feel more in depth and understand deeper about how life looks like for these individuals, and more importantly, how the main character of this movie, Kakeru, experienced what made him guilty enough to think about ending his own life.

This movie emphasises a lot on how friendship and support from people in a person's life can help them to put off the idea of suicide and think about continue to live and having a purpose to live. In this movie, the friendship between Naho, Kakeru, Suwa, Takako, Hagita and Azusa is very admirable and strong. Kakeru, in the hardest moments in his life, was truly blessed to have met the other five people that helped him change his life and thinking. Never have I ever watched a movie that reflects on the lives of high schoolers at such an interesting angle, and this movie truly did it.

All of the pictures above are screenshots taken by me from the movie clip.

Crazy Rich Asians

I was brought to a cinema to watch Crazy Rich Asians, and it was better than I expected. I didn't hear of it until I heard my friend was talking about it. At first, I was thinking to myself that this movie will just be another non-realistic view of the life of a rich Asian, a life that is too good to be true and too costly for one to bear. However, my opinions changed after I watched this movie. All I can say is that everyone has problems; even rich people have them, but different of course.

I think this movie is quite good, nice to watch with friends, and it has a good touch on Asians' funny moments. I gotta say, I used to enjoy watching movies in cinemas, but after some mishaps and bad experiences, I refrain myself from watching movies in cinemas. I wouldn't have watched this movie if it wasn't for my friend; he absolutely loves watching movies, so I was taken along, and I didn't regret going to the cinema to watch this film, because it's really nice.

Lolita (1997)

Lolita... Funny that it's categorised as a literature novel, but as it's the second literature work made into movies or films that I ever came across (with the first being The Signature of All Things), it seems to me that the literature novels are capable of being more erotic than the series of Fifty Shades of Grey. My God, Lolita's too much for me, yet I can totally relate to it.

It hurts to know you're the second or the third in the eyes of someone you love; if you're to be ranked along with the other two for something. The pedophile and protagonist of this movie, Humbert, happens to be the second or third in Dolores' eyes, who was his victim and his very favourite person. Dolores was Lolita, and he gave her the name Lolita.

I didn't read the novel so I might not accurately interpret and give the best analysis about the story, but I could only interpret the story based on the movie made in 1997. Lolita got pregnant towards the end in the movie at such a young age as she constantly let her fate lie in the hands of those who are untrustworthy like Humbert - who, in his selfish ways, did not let Lolita enjoy her adolescent life and I daresay he was mostly responsible for what had happened to Lolita. But then again, if Lolita did not subject herself into a life that made her commit sins such as incest, manipulation of the minds of men and using her femininity to get what she wants, she would had been safe and rid herself from all this trouble.

I could still say that Lolita is rather unlucky to have met Humbert, as she filled a void in his life that was created ever since he was a teenager. Everyone of us has our own downfalls in life, and we all have things which could drive us from our true purposes in life. But we can never run away from our own fates; just like Humbert who was, in a way, traumatised by the death of his first love, and he had to live in the shadows of those traumatic moments in his life as his dreams were crushed. He developed into being hebephilic and he created his own fate; by having attraction towards young girls and experienced problems in his life because of that. Eventually, he had of course felt remorse for what he had done to Lolita and failed to provide her with the freedom and love that she deserves even though she's not perfect as a person; as we could at least let someone we love be happy.

I think it's a great movie which invoked many different kinds of feelings in me. The ending's too sad to bear, and I feel that even though they're not perfect for each other; Humbert truly loved Lolita, and Lolita truly loved him in her own ways. It's a beautiful movie and I recommend everyone to watch it. But be warned; the movie is not for everyone haha.

When a Stranger Calls

Photo taken and edited by me on 17th of November, 2014.

Finals are coming soon, and after spending so much time studying and making notes, I've got to let myself relax and enjoy a little reward, right? Right?

That was when I found myself watching the movie When a Stranger Calls again.

I watched the one made in 2006, which starred Camilla Belle, who was gorgeous in that movie. When I first watched the movie, which was like eight years ago, I fell in love with it ever since then. I'm pretty sure it's quite underrated, but it was really, really good.

There's so many things I love about the movie. One thing being the thrilling storyline which I cannot get away from. The story becomes more intense as time flows by, as the identity of the antagonist comes to light towards the end of the film. And although I do not know what were the intentions of the antagonist, I do know that he played his role very well.

And God, the settings in the movie are absolutely amazing, and I said this mainly due to the house at where the main character, Jill (played by Camilla Belle), did her babysitting. Yes, the Mandrakis' house, or should I call mansion, is too beautiful to be described in words - although it may seem too good to be true. But I guess some people are just that wealthy. It's a house I could ever wish for (lol).

Though the story started going very slow in the beginning, it did fasten up its pace and developed into a very horrifying ending with Jill ended up on a hospital bed and traumatised from what she went through during the night of babysitting the Mandrakis' kids. And I really love the way the movie showcased the life of high schoolers in USA, which may be rather typical yet amusing, especially for someone like me who never went to a bonfire before.

Sunny [써니] and A Letter to Momo

Hey all! I'm back again with two movies to share with all of you.

So these past two days I have watched two movies per day. The first one I watched on Sunday is called Sunny, which is a South-Korean film made in 2011. I normally do not watch Korean films and this is one of the first few that I ever watched. It was suggested to me online and I just happened to click the link and then I watched the whole movie. I have to say it was great and super good :)

It feels good to watch a movie about a clique of seven girls at a Korean high school, who were rather materialistic, fashionable (in my opinion) and having a wide range of personalities from one teenage girl to another. The film partially played back in time as the main character called Na-mi reminisced on her high school life at a new school which she transferred to, and how she started to get together with a group of girls to highlight her high school life with awesome memories with the group of people. Watching this movie just made me sad about my high school life, because mine is quite dull and not happy as hers :( haha oh well...

Now on to the next movie called A Letter to Momo; which I am quite excited to share here with you all. This movie features the main character called Momo, who moved to a small town with her mother and left Tokyo, where she and her family used to live at. Her father passed away before she came to the town. She arrived the town called Seto Inland Sea by ferry, and while riding on the sea, she had an incomplete letter which was addressed to her by her father. She had an argument with her dad before he passed away, and in his drawer is where she found the unfinished letter written "Dear Momo".

She has wondered what her father actually wanted to tell her in the letter. Her life at the small town became a little more interesting as three goblins from the sky fell onto her as droplets and that was how she can see them while the others can't (except for a boy's younger sister) since they accidentally touched her when they fell from the sky. As she interacted with them later on and still adapting to her new life at the town, she faced some situations which made her closer to the goblins, her mother as well as the boy named Yota who has a younger sister.

Though the movie might not intend to be a tear-inducing one, I actually became really emotional towards the end of the movie as she became closer to her mother and they learned to cope with the loss of a husband and a father together, which to me is really powerful. And what I really love about this movie, apart from its touching, stand alone  storyline and beautiful animation and sceneries, is its individuality and uniqueness; it's not to say that any other Japanese movies like Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away are not, but this movie simply has a very unique touch to it which I really adore up close to my heart.

To finish up this blog, I have included five pictures from the movie which are very picturesque and artistic in my opinion, all of which come from the movie. 

All of the pictures above are screenshots from the movie A Letter to Momo, which were taken by me.

V for Vendetta

I love watching V for Vendetta as much as I love watching Requiem for a Dream. V for Vendetta was more poetical and descriptive whereas Requiem for a Dream was more expressive and sad compared to one another.

V for Vendetta, unlike Requiem for a Dream, has a lot of back stories which acted like snowballs to affect V and his decision. Evey, the "young and attractive woman" as stated by a few men throughout the movie, had met V and would have no idea that V was about to help her to become a stronger person, and to fall in love once again or for the first time ever.

The need for freedom has been the major driving force that unites the people inside a country in the movie to fight for what should have been fought for. "I am me" will always remain to be one of those few things from the movies that I shall keep with me. And Valerie, the one who said that phrase, together with her story, shall be kept in my memory for eternal life because they are unusually beautiful and meaningful.

Again, I am going to recommend this movie to everyone and hopefully, you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

All the screenshots above are taken by me.

Requiem for a Dream

This movie was simply an eye-opener for me of the dark side of reality; where nobody can help you but yourself, where rationality plays an important part in our lives, and where all the skills we've learned before are being tested at. As nobody can live without money, but can we make the right choice for us to earn the money we need so much? Are you going to do drugs or silly things just for money?

The film has already proved to me that every human is dependent; nobody can live alone, especially when they are having some problems in their lives. We need people to give opinions, and most of the time we would be guided by the wrong ones because nobody can truly see what's the best for the other. We wanted to help, but we helped in the wrong ways. We were so influenced by what our friends think of us and their suggestions that we could not really decide which path is the best for ourselves. Nobody will tell you what to do and what not to do, nobody is there to guide you; we want what other people has so, so much that we thought it is the right one for us as well. And all these are what this movie is all about.

Hence, I strongly recommend this movie to everyone BUT bear in mind that this movie ought to be rated PG for some of its disturbing scenes.

All the screenshots above are taken by me.

Emotional

I have been listening to this track for quite some time already. I hope you enjoy it the way I do.

Girl, Interrupted is simply an amazing film. In life, there will always be those times when things don't seem to be needing so much of our attention, and everybody is just taking things easy for themselves and you think you should do the same too. But below that serene surface was where the intensity actually increased a whole lot more, and nothing seems to be working out the way people wanted. I personally think that this film speaks out this truth; when people in general are seemingly incapable of dealing with problems they face throughout their lives, and they would rather slack and let the others suffer, due to their inability to reach out to those that needed help because they themselves are always scared of trying out something new, or at least trying to step out of their comfort zones for those that are literally screaming for help from the inside.

Watching A Fall from Grace/Last Hours in Suburbia, on the other hand, truly got me emotional. I was so attentive, catching up on what has been going on inside the movie non-stop and all I could feel was a mixture of anger, hopelessness and sadness; angry, as though I could feel Grace's pain and her anger towards her best friend, Jennifer; hopelessness, as I was unable to help Grace relieve her burden, and ultimately saddened by how her life turned out to be. And if there's anyone that reminded me of Grace, it'll be Hannah Baker from Thirteen Reasons Why. Both of them have made a huge impact on other people's lives, and people would think that they are basically just some troubled youths that needed help and attention. Looking at them, listening to stories of their lives, parents and adults would tell the youngsters things like "See, this is what happens if you don't listen to adults!"

But are the adults and parents right about saying this? Who are we to judge people based on how their lives turned out to be, and based on the decisions they have made? I'll leave these for you to think about during your spare time.

Compilation of Important Subjects

Picture of a woman named Tess, who was the protagonist's, Joel's girlfriend in The Last of Us. Picture from PlayStation.blog. I was rather upset to realise how she was like at first, but my respect for her grows bigger and bigger in time, and it was deeply troublesome to accept the fact that she died. She's a true fighter, brave and tough; probably my favourite female fictional character.

After watching a YouTuber playing The Last of Us, I could almost fall in love with the game. Since the time set for the zombie apocalypse in the game itself was apparently in the same era and actually really close to where we are now, it leads me to being able to relate the dilemma faced by the world during the two specific times. But I have one criticism about the game though, and it's that when Ellie was held as hostage by David and his crew, things just seem really weird to me. But maybe it was because I watched the plot first instead of watching that part of the game, which have always made me feel more expectant and demanding.

It's a Boy Girl Thing was definitely a reminiscent of Freaky Friday, basically due to the same concept. I laughed my head off from the beginning till the end, and it helped me to look at things in different ways such as the relationship of any kind can exist between a girl and a boy. This movie got me thinking more seriously about the ideas I have or had and the benefits of expanding them.

I also watched The Nanny Diaries. I do appreciate the way the movie express its idea, and how it helped me to look at things in a different matter. I was referring to the X family, which is one family that makes me feel sad to watch them. I've always wondered why would people, even adults, do such things to themselves and to those who are important to them? This movie made it clear to me, that we as human beings can always make the wrong decisions and mistakes at any time. And the only reason why we continue doing them is because we never really think about it, how it can affect the future. We are born of flesh and bone, and with the ability to think about anything. What we don't have, or what most of us don't have, is the will or sense of purpose in our lives. It's a fact that we are not prepared to become one of the living things in this world, we are really afraid. We are usually not born with a life that we want, hence we fall because we couldn't live up to pace.

The First Time

I love this movie. Aubrey and Dave's conversation practically speaks out for my thoughts, something that I should have done a long time ago. Damn, really need to cherish any moments to speak up.
I really like how Aubrey and Dave's thoughts can generate a new connection between them and their ideas developed so nicely and vastly till the end of the film. Relationships and personal justifications need to be enhanced from listening and analysing other people's opinions which is what this film is dedicated for - to make me ponder over relationship and personal identity issues.

Movie poster above is sourced from Britt Robertson's Official Site.

Dead Man Down: Review

Twas' a couple of weeks ago when I watched it in the cinema. The plot was nice. I love the background scenes, as if they had been edited for alluring purposes. Otherwise, the killing concepts, the meeting of two revenge seekers who fell in love with each other, the vulgar languages they used in the film, and the tension in Victor when he killed someone that I thought I can understand, are more than I could ask for.

Too much of horror to be Taken in

I've watched 2 movies last Friday; yeah it has been a week already till I post about it now as I was extremely busy and life is trying to crush me with all the hectic and problems. And as I was saying, the movies are: Taken 2 and Sinister.

I have spent the whole day at the mall from noon until seven thirty at night, and I must say I did have a blast in the theatres. Taken 2 impresses me with the thoughts of having Bryan to introduce very unique but using the most classical ways to figure things out even in the toughest situation he could possibly get into, and with those survival tips. It's just goddamn awesome.

And as for Sinister, it sure is hell of a movie to show those gruesome sights and techniques to murder people. Sinister has to be the first horror movie that truly scare the living hell out of me. I remembered watching it with such fright that I closed my eyes when I have a feeling that the next sight is going to be horrific and gross. I didn't even bother listening to the sounds. I guess I was too scared, and reminding myself about the scenes is like torturing myself. Otherwise, I find Ethan Hawke is extremely hot.

Howl's Moving Castle, the movie

Howl's Moving Castle is an extremely interesting movie that makes me rather curious about some of the things appeared or happening in the movie. Even so, the animators deserve all the praises from its viewers for being able to create such beautiful sceneries and graphics for the movie.

The movie talks about the journey an eighteen year old girl named Sophie who was apparently cursed by a witch and thus, she became very old as the effect of the curse. Then she met Howl again (after she bumped into him on her way to visit her sister), a beautiful and talented wizard who she shared all kinds of adventures and experiences with, along with Calcifer, the fire demon and Markl, a young wizard.

Japanese anime films have always succeeded in capturing its viewer's attention with their mythical legends and dreamy tales which bring wonders to people's thoughts. But How'ls Moving Castle is just extraordinary.

Images source from zerochan and listal.

So Good

I don't usually spend my time watching anime now, that was so three years ago. I literally lost the interest in catching up with those brand new Japanese anime, and if you ask me, the old ones are much more better. But when i do it now, when i did watch anime again, that's only because i was recommended by many of my friends and family to watch that movie or series, or i just switched the channels and found myself watching one. I must say, i didn't waste my time on them, i ENJOYED the movies. And if you're wondering what anime films i have been talking about, it's the best known Spirited Away, The Cat Returns and Ghost in the Shell series and films.

First thing you need to know about the movies is that they are ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT. And seriously, they worth the time.

Spirited Away and The Cat Returns are more of fantasy movies that feature dream-like sceneries, talking animals as characters and bizarre story lines but otherwise, i find them interesting. Ghost in the Shell talks about an era in the future that is ruled by cyborgs and advanced technology, and it's the film that i love the most cause i always love watching Major Kusanagi and Section 9 in action.

Images source from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

just another memory to be remembered

Have you watched Brave? I still can remember how intense I felt when I was watching it with my friends.

I literally felt so emotional when I came to know that Merida couldn't save her mother. My tears started to roll down my face involuntarily and we all admitted that we did cry =\ Other times we all laughed out loud in the theaters looking at the awkward and funny moments of Merida's mother as a bear. Merida (the red-haired girl on the poster above), for some reason, reminded me of Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games =X

Oh, and last night I had Spanish dinner for the first time in my entire life! Caesar Salad and Virgin Mojito. It's a drink, a mocktail drink. It was absolutely delicious =9 and I wouldn't mind having it everyday~ Frankly, that was the best dinner I ever had.

Yesterday was a just lovely and wonderful day for me =)

Atonement

I watched the movie before. It has the most interesting story line I have ever known. It was about the repercussions of an action based on a young girl's false beliefs and memories, and the repercussions are that the dream of a pair of lovers living together and share a happy life can only be the figment of their imagination, and they failed to see each other again even during the last moments when they were still alive.

All movie screenshots are sourced from Screenmusings.

What happened?

Wow, it's been a long time since I write in here. I'm sorry for doing so as I was trapped in camp for the past two and a half months, getting busy with training and roll calls. Thank god it finally ended. But I'm not going to waste my time talking about this, I'm going to update you and this blog with the latest movie that I just watched - The Hunger Games.

I went to watch that movie yesterday. It was good. Super-thrilling and exciting. My friend introduced me to this movie at first, and I thought I might find it interesting.

The film at first features the life of a family and the people that live in poverty. Then there comes the selection of two representatives from each district in Panem that will take part in the Hunger Games. The following are the parts in the film that I find intriguing:

one - Katniss replaced her younger sister, Primrose, in taking part in the Hunger Games. I guess that's what every elder sister would have done for their younger sisters. I shall respect Katniss for that.

two - So everyone thought Peeta Mellark was weak and that he won't survive in the game, and the other competitors look at him as if he was the prey. But their impression towards him changed as soon as they witnessed him lifting the heavy weight and threw it without any obstruction, to everybody's surprise.

three - Katniss shot an arrow at Seneca Crane's apple just to get the judges' attention, as she was pissed that they were not paying attention when she was taking the test. Again, kudos to Katniss!

four - The competitors killed each other, fighting; men were killing women with the most cruel methods just to obtain the weapons and surviving kits, in order to defend themselves so they can remain alive. Similarly, people nowadays betray and cheat one another, without shame, just for money and their own benefits.

and five - Rue was Katniss' alliance, and they have developed a closer relationship after some time, as if they are no longer enemies to each other but a pair of biological sisters. Rue was then killed by Marvel, and her death strongly affected Katniss.

The Hunger Games are like those reality competition that broadcasted in televisions (like The Amazing Race, Wipeout, The American Idol etc.). But the difference is that the lives of the competitors that participated in the Hunger Games are not spared and they were not shown mercy by the creator of the game. Instead, they are to fight among themselves, kill if they have to, until the very end. Consequently, they are either dead or alive.

Pink Floyd: The Wall

"When you mess with one part of a person's life, you're messing with their entire life."

-Hannah Baker, Thirteen Reasons Why

if you never watched this movie, you better do it now. This is not a threat, but merely a suggestion.

The movie mainly revolves around the story of a boy's life, who grew up haunted by fears and losses. This movie mentions how a person's life can be strongly affected by so many things; from an overprotective mother to unsuccessful marriage; from the loss of a father figure to harsh treatments at school. Basically, I find the film unique and meaningful and the illustrations are one-of-a-kind, not to mention ingenious.

Photos credits to Renate and Safaa eek. The collaboration between a complicated photo of "Sky and Hell" and a simple photo of the sky; how these two photos can express the lives we live in, whether it's hard or easy.