Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Lori Nuic

Like beautiful girls with beautiful voices? Forget American Idol! Check out this amazing singer: Lori Nuic. I had the pleasure of seeing her live a few years ago. Her debut CD is hitting stores on February 27th. It is simply fabulous!! For more information, her website is below.



Monday, February 26, 2007

Click Here For Free Beer (Dan's Site)


Dan has moved to Singapore for 6 months! He's been there three weeks so far. From what I can tell, it's crazy and fabulous. He's got some great pictures up on his space. I'm so super jealous. I know he's having a great time, even though he's there for work... I wish my work would send me to a fabulous, exotic country and pay my way... Too bad he's missing the beach party, though... [I know, I look so drunk in that picture.]


Sunday, February 25, 2007

Robots

From the makers of Ice Age(Blue Sky Studios) comes Robots! Well, I wouldn’t spread the word on that too much. It was bad. I found myself falling asleep. My husband left after an hour. It was torturous.

I expected so much more. The animation itself is stunning. The characters, their movements, the backgrounds are so clean and crisp. It looks so real and flawless. The cast is all-star: Robin Williams, Ewan McGregor and Halle Berry just to name a few. These are talented, A-list actors. I only wish the story was worthy of their talents.

It was so utterly predictable. Small town boy moves to big city to live out his dreams (and his father’s vicariously). But, oh no!! There’s an evil villain in charge of the big corporation. He fights for his dreams, for the poor and gets the girl in the end. Even the things the characters say are so predictable. “Believe in yourself.” “You can do it!” Blah, blah, blah.

Honest recommendation: don’t watch it. I’m never getting that hour and a half back. I don’t want anyone else to loose that time too.

If you’re interested, here is the website for the movie and for Blue Sky Studios.

http://www.robotsmovie.com/

http://www.blueskystudios.com/content/index.php

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Casino Royale

I finally got around to seeing the new James Bond. What a great movie! Admittedly, I was a little hesitant about seeing it. It seems that “prequels” are all the rage. The second Star Wars Trilogy, Enterprise, Hannibal Rising, Batman Begins and others; just too many to name them all. Not that I don’t like prequels, in general. I thought Batman Begins was fantastic; it shot new life into the Batman franchise.

Lucky for me, I discovered that Casino Royale and Daniel Craig were great, definitely giving a boost to the James Bond legacy. The movie was full of excitement, power and beautiful people. Not just the women either. Daniel Craig might be the hottest James Bond ever. I’ve read that some critics have said that he’s not attractive enough. I’m sorry, did they seem him come out of the water and walk up the beach? He’s got a rugged appeal that the other Bonds did not. He might not be as refined as his predecessors, but that is part of the process. It’s a “prequel” right? He has to evolve into the James Bond we’re all familiar with. It really is his evolution. At first he’s cold-hearted and emotionally detached. We see him learn to connect with his emotions. We get to see him learn how to wear “a proper dinner jacket” and ask for a vodka martini. By the end of the movie, he does become more refined. Future films, I think, will see him growing into the legendary and more familiar James Bond.

I have a theory about James Bond and 007. In Casino Royale, M is the same M that was in charge all through Pierce Brosnan’s run as James Bond. I think time passes normally and that when an agent is promoted to 007, he also takes on the name “James Bond”. When M asks James in Casino Royale if the dead woman had known his real name, he answers, no. However, you hear her call him James while they’re kissing. So maybe it’s not his “real” name. Of course, how could all these different Bonds be fond of the same drink and exhibit the same personality traits? Unless, of course, it’s part of being promoted to 007, pretending to be this person you’re not. I’m just speculating.

One final note. If you haven’t seen Casino Royale, go see it. You won’t be disappointed.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Heroes

I love Heroes! If you don’t know what I’m talking about, it’s NBC’s new show on Monday nights. I think it’s fantastic. I love the characters, even the bad guys. Though, to me, the real villian is Syler. He’s killing people to steal their powers. You can’t get more bad than that. There is also the mysterious Mr. Linderman. After last night’s episode, it looks like we’re coming closer to meeting him in person. We know he was a “friend” of Peter and Nathan’s father. He’s also blackmailed Nathan and it looks like he’s going to have Jessica/Niki kill him too. Linderman seems to be the key to Hiro’s “destiny” as well. Who is he? Where does his power come from?

Even though Mr. Bennet seems like a bad kind of guy, he does have a real redeeming quality. He loves his family. Though it seems that his efforts to protect them as ended up hurting his wife. His love for Claire is real and apparent. I felt for him with Claire announced that he wasn’t her real father. As much as he’s done bad things, his priority really does seem to be protecting her.

I also think it’s fabulous that Peter is Claire’s uncle! I think these two are my favourite characters. I have a soft spot for Peter Petrelli. He’s just so wonderfully idealistic. He wants to save the world. He could have died saving Claire, but it didn’t matter. He risked his life for a girl he didn’t know. All he knew was that he had to ‘save the cheerleader’. Even though he saw Simone with Isaac, it didn’t shake his faith in the mission. I think Peter might be the hero of Heroes.


Offical Homepage: http://www.nbc.com/Heroes/

Saturday, February 10, 2007

The Historian


The Historian is one of the most elegantly written works I’ve ever read. You can sense the classical influences, like Henry James. The narrative was fluid, transition between sections beautifully. I loved the different narrators, though it was all relayed through one person. Each voice was distinct and filled with the emotion of the specific character. I can completely see myself reading this again in the future.


It’s Dracula through history. I appreciated that the novel did not start out believing in Dracula or vampires or some kind of demon hunt. It started with the search of a daughter for her father, which became a search through history. Only through history is a belief in Vlad Dracula’s existence reached. It is gradual, not forced. I also enjoyed the Dracula-enriched historical perspective of the relationship between east and west.

When I first read what I thought was the end of their quest, I said to the book, you’re kidding! That’s how it ends? But after that violent family reunion, there is more than just tales of truth and apologies. There is a shock for us and the narrator. Now adult, she receives a calling for her own quest.

I want to know what happened with the narrator and Barley. Yes, they are both young when the story occurs, but she said that she loved him. After the final confrontation, he is accepted, in a way, into her family. Paul looks at him with fondness and shakes his hand. As an adult, she doesn’t mention him as being a part of her present life. I wonder if they ever tried to date, to be a “normal” couple. Of course, we’ll never know. Unless, Elizabeth Kostova decides to write a sequel. It seems to be a possibility, with certain aspects of the ending left open. We’ll just have to wait and see what new tale this writer creates.

We’ll also have to wait and see the movie! Sony bought the rights, so it’s in the works. I believe the producer is the same person who made Memoirs of a Geisha (which I adored). For updated information, check out The Historian fansite: http://the-historian.net/ Let’s hope it’s as fantastic as the book.