Initially, Bruges’ idyllic environment frustrates Ray, as he’s wracked with guilt over killing the young boy. Ken embraces the town and its historic medieval buildings. It is important to note that the job was Ray’s first assignment whereas Ken, almost a father figure to Ray, has been a hitman for years, and indebted to their boss Harry Waters, wonderfully played by Ralph Fiennes, for something which happened in the past. Ken is sympathetic to Ray, which comes in conflict with the instructions Harry gives later in the movie.

Colin Farrell was enjoyable to watch in this movie, as a man trying to deal with a guilt that haunts him and with the morality of his job. A quirky character with some demons. His Golden Globe this year was well deserved. Brendan Gleeson also did well as an old-timer who is caring but knows that a job is a job.

The dark mixture of emotions and contemplations of these three men juxtaposed with the beautiful idyllic scenery of Bruges made this a pleasant movie to watch.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Lisa Edelstein

Demi Moore

Laura Linney

Kate Beckinsale

Tina Fey

My Top 3 Picks: Eva Longoria Parker, Mary-Louise Parker, Jennifer Morrison

I was very happy for Slumdog Millionaire, winning all of their categories! A surprise winner for me was Colin Farrell. Haven’t really heard that much from him lately, so I’m quite happy for him as well. He’s looking pretty spiffy again too; he really looks like he’s cleaned up himself.

Double congratulations to Kate Winslet! Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture AND Best Actress in a Motion Picture! Has that ever been done before? Well either way, really happy for her! She’s a great actress and I think the only reason I picked Anne Hathaway to win Best Actress is because she was the one creating buzz, and also there was that ‘typo’  asterisk next to her name on the Golden Globes site. That’s not to say she’s not a worthy actress; I mean, she’s gotten better since her Princess Diaries days.

Best Supporting Actor is no surprise - Heath Ledger, of course. I feel a bit sorry for those actors who are going to be nominated alongside Ledger for the Oscar (oh you know he’ll definitely be nominated! It was a great performance!) since it’s almost guaranteed that it’ll go to Heath.

Sally Hawkins won Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, for Happy Go Lucky, which I will have to rent as soon as it comes out on DVD. Masterpiecers might know her from the recent adaptation of Persuasion. Quite worried about her though. I don’t really criticize actresses for the smallest things but Sally looked like she might be experiencing anorexia; she was just so alarmingly thin!

So with GG down, I’m very much looking forward to the Oscar nominations announcement on January 22, 2009! Oh, and I’m oh so glad the lovely Hugh Jackman will be hosting this year’s Oscar Awards! I still can’t believe I met him and stood right in front of me *sighs*

Slumdog Millionaire has everything that I like in movies I prefer to watch. It’s got a rags to riches story, a romantic couple and their journey, a great use of the locations, characters that tug at your heart, and a fabulous soundtrack! With a fitting Bollywood-like number to boot

The movie is about Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), an orphan from the Mumbai slums who lands himself in the Indian version of the game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? He is one question away from being the first to win 20 million rupees when the show runs out of time for the night and breaks until the next day. At this time, he is arrested on suspicion of cheating because how can a slumdog kid possibly know the answers when professors, lawyers, etc. haven’t even made it as far in the show as Jamal?

As he is tortured and questioned in the police station, he shares his life story and tells us how chapters in his life gave him the answers to the questions given to him on the show. The chapters in his life include his life in the slums with his older brother Salim, how they come to be orphans, their experiences with gangs and how they struggled to survive, and Latika (Freida Pinto), an orphaned girl from his childhood that he’s never forgotten.

Dev Patel and Freida Pinto

Jamal  didn’t go on the show though to win millions of rupees, but rather in the hope that Latika would be watching him. Not for money but for love. Even with his orphan background, having lived in poverty and in danger, his main impetus is his love for a girl. Latika has always been his driving force to not go down the same road as his brother, though the latter does redeem himself in the end.

I’ve been hearing great reviews of this movie for a couple of months now and I can see why. As I watched the movie, I felt like I was in the show audience and a citizen of India, falling in love and rooting for Jamal, not just to win the 20 million rupees but to be with Latika as well. I guess you can say that for this temporary moment in time, he becomes like his adored actor Amitabh Bachchan, who he says is “the most famous man in India.”

I thought Dev Patel did pretty well for his first time out in a movie. I’ve only seen him once or twice in a few episodes of Skins but seeing the movie gives me another reason to watch Skins now. He’s getting quite a lot of awards lately and though a bit pathetic of me, I’m really rooting for him to do well, just like I rooted for Jamal in the movie.

I absolutely loved the music in the movie as well. Glad to hear M.I.A all over the place lately (about damn time if you ask me); I quite liked the version of “Paper Planes” in the movie. I thought I’d be tired of this song already after it was constantly aired on the radio due to Pineapple Express, but nope! A.R. Rahman, awesome job!

At the end of it all, I guess the message is that love is better than money. Money is not worth having if you don’t have love. Money is temporary but your love for someone always stays with you. Even if that love, in the long run, doesn’t work out, you’ll always have the memory of its existence. Things are going to happen the way they’re supposed to happen. It is already written. That’s my final answer.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Since I was too late for the Critics Choice Awards, I will be starting with the next big awards event, which is this Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards. The following is a list of the nominees and my picks and predictions besides the choices. Then after the awards are over I’ll go back to indicate the actual winners. So exciting!

* - my pick  *g - prediction  G - winner

Best Motion Picture - Drama
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire * *g G

Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Burn After Reading
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges *g
Mamma Mia! *
Vicky Cristina Barcelona G

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
Leonardo DiCaprio (Revolutionary Road)
Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon)
Sean Penn (Milk)
Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) *
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) *g G

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama
Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) * *g
Angelina Jolie (Changeling)
Meryl Streep (Doubt)
Kristin Scott Thomas (I’ve Loved You For So Long)
Kate Winslet (Revolutionary Road) G

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Javier Bardem (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Colin Farrell (In Bruges) G
James Franco (Pineapple Express) * *g
Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges)
Dustin Hoffman (Last Chance Harvey)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Rebecca Hall (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky) * G
Frances McDormand (Burn After Reading)
Meryl Streep (Mamma Mia!)
Emma Thompson (Last Chance Harvey) *g

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Tom Cruise (Tropic Thunder)
Robert Downey Jr. (Tropic Thunder)
Ralph Fiennes (The Duchess)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt)
Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight) * *g G

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Amy Adams (Doubt) *
Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
Viola Davis (Doubt)
Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler)
Kate Winslet (The Reader) *g G

Best Director - Motion Picture
Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) * *g G
Stephen Daldry (The Reader)
David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)
Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon)
Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road)

Best Screenplay - Motion Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Eric Roth, Robin Swicord)
Doubt (John Patrick Shanley) *g
Frost/Nixon (Peter Morgan)
The Reader (David Hare)
Slumdog Millionaire (Simon Beaufoy) * G

Best Original Song - Motion Picture
Bolt (“I Thought I Lost You”)
Cadillac Records (“Once in a Lifetime”)
Gran Torino (“Gran Torino”)
WALL-E (“Down to Earth”)
The Wrestler (“The Wrestler”) * *g G

Best Original Score - Motion Picture
Changeling (Clint Eastwood)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Alexandre Desplat)
Defiance (James Newton Howard)
Frost/Nixon (Hans Zimmer)
Slumdog Millionaire (A.R. Rahman) * *g G

Best Animated Film
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E * *g G

Best Foreign Language Film
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex
Maria Larssons eviga ogonblick
Gomorra
Il y a longtemps que je t’aime
Waltz with Bashir * *g G

Best Television Series - Drama
Dexter
House M.D. *
In Treatment
Mad Men *g G
True Blood

Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy
Californication
Entourage
The Office
30 Rock * *g G
Weeds

Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Bernard and Doris
Cranford
John Adams *g G
A Raisin in the Sun *
Recount

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television
Ralph Fiennes (Bernard and Doris)
Paul Giamatti (“John Adams”) *g G
Kevin Spacey (Recount) *
Kiefer Sutherland (24: Redemption)
Tom Wilkinson (Recount)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television
Judi Dench (“Cranford”)
Catherine Keener (An American Crime)
Laura Linney (“John Adams”) * G
Shirley MacLaine (Coco Chanel) *g
Susan Sarandon (Bernard and Doris)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy
Alec Baldwin (“30 Rock”)  *g G
Steve Carell (“The Office”) *
Kevin Connolly (“Entourage”)
David Duchovny (“Californication”)
Tony Shalhoub (“Monk”)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy
Christina Applegate (“Samantha Who”) *
America Ferrera (“Ugly Betty”)
Tina Fey (“30 Rock”) *g G
Debra Messing (“The Starter Wife”)
Mary-Louise Parker (“Weeds”)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama
Gabriel Byrne (“In Treatment”) G
Michael C. Hall (“Dexter”)
Jon Hamm (“Mad Men”)
Hugh Laurie (“House M.D.”) * *g
Jonathan Rhys Meyers (“The Tudors”)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama
Sally Field (“Brothers & Sisters”)
Mariska Hargitay (“Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”)
January Jones (“Mad Men”)
Anna Paquin (“True Blood”) * G
Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”) *g

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Neil Patrick Harris (“How I Met Your Mother”) *
Denis Leary (Recount)
Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”) *g
Blair Underwood (“In Treatment”)
Tom Wilkinson (“John Adams”) G

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Eileen Atkins (“Cranford”) * *g
Laura Dern (Recount) G
Melissa George (“In Treatment”)
Rachel Griffiths (“Brothers & Sisters”)
Dianne Wiest (“In Treatment”)

Walter and Tarek start to form a friendship after Tarek slowly teaches Walter the djembe drum. Tarek’s lessons encourages Walter to loosen up and come out of his depression.

In a subway station after a day out together, Tarek is arrested by the police for mistakenly going through the turnstile. When he’s not able to show proper ID, he is transferred to a detention center for illegal immigrants. Walter does his best to help Tarek get out of the detention center, even paying for an immigration attorney, which is ultimately futile.

As Walter gets to know Tarek’s mother, who came from Michigan after worrying about her son, his learning of the treatment of detained immigrants and his friendship with Tarek influences Walter to come out of his shell even more, to start feeling  and caring about something again.

The Visitor is a movie about Walter’s renewed identity and the influence that people who come into your life have over you. To me, it is also a movie about understanding, tolerance, and giving people a chance before judging them, before acqueiscing with society’s judgments and going along with their stereotypes.

The movie also shows a contrast between the citizen, Walter, and the foreigner, Tarek. Walter, who has no immigration problems, but is understandably depressed over his wife’s death, is just leading a life of routines that has no meaning anymore. Tarek, on the other hand, in the country with a denied political asylum immigration petition, lives life to the fullest, as best as he can with the help of music, all the while in fear of being caught. In color, culture, and beliefs, it might seem that the two are completely different. But underneath it all, Walter and Tarek are both good people with good hearts, drumming to the beat of the djembe.

I think Richard Jenkins’ performance is understated elegance, worthy of the Critics Choice Award and SAG Award for Best Male Actor nominations which he received. Haaz Sleiman’s performance is infectious and though it’s been a few weeks already since I’ve seen this movie, the character of Tarek is still fresh in my mind. He’s not bad looking either

Though a bit of a tearjerker, I absolutely loved this movie. Two thumbs up!

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

John goes missing and Dean visits Sam, who is now pursuing  an academic career and ‘normal’ life, to ask him for help in finding their father. On their quest to find their father, they battle demons and various supernatural creatures and legends in different towns.

Sam starts to have visions of people dying before they have yet died and the visions seem to be connected to the certain demon which killed his mother. John finds his sons and they set out to find a special gun that has the ability to kill all supernatural beings, which was stolen by a group of vampires. They run into Meg, a woman possessed by a demon, who also wants the Colt gun.

The season ends with the Winchester family in a terrible crash, leaving us to wonder whether they’re alive or dead.

I find this series scary, entertaining, funny, and, dare I say it, co-starred by quite the hotties - Jensen Ackles (Dean) and Jared Padalecki (Sam). The storyline is pretty interesting and keeps you on your toes. I like the close relationship between Dean and Sam, especially Dean’s older brother protectiveness towards Sam. The brothers also have different relationships with their father. Dean follows John’s commands and directions with no questions, assuming that “Dad knows what he’s doing, so we gotta do what he says.” Whereas Sam is more of the rebellious one, always questioning and rationalizing before they go through with a decision.

Supernatural is definitely one of the few shows on the CW actually worth watching.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

One day he happens to bump into Lila, portrayed by Malin Akerman, whose purse has just been snatched. At the goading of his father and married best friend, Eddie pursues a relationship with Lila and a few weeks afterwards, marries her so she doesn’t have to leave for Europe on an ecological research job. Married persons are not mandated to go on these trips because of their status, so single people are the ones sent. Not wanting Lila to be away, he marries her, even though he does have some reservations.

However, on their honeymoon, Eddie soon realizes that Lila is not the one he should’ve married. He discovers things about Lila that she didn’t mention beforehand and traits and behaviors that disgust and turn him off. And in some instances, scare him. He also meets another woman at the resort they are staying in, with whom he is much more compatible.

This movie was just okay for me. There were some laughs but overall, it wasn’t that great. If you get anything from this movie though, it is to not get married after only a few weeks of knowing your significant other because chances are you don’t really know them

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

I Am Legend is a film that takes place in a hauntingly deserted New York City in the very near future. Will Smith portrays the character of Robert Neville, a government virologist who is the only immune person left in NYC. It is 2012 and three years prior, a man-made virus was created which successfully cured cancer. However, this virus produced a mutant strain which degenerated humans into aggressive and primal creatures. Neville is the only immune human left and is alone in the City That Never Sleeps, with the exception of his dog, Sam.

The creatures are super sensitive to sunlight and UV radiation, so they stay inside dark buildings and such during the day and feed at night. Neville still routinely works in his lab in the basement to find the cure for this mutant strain. Every day he drives to South Street Seaport, in the hopes that other surviving immunes listened to his daily radio request to meet him there.

I quite liked this movie and I respect Will Smith as an actor even more now. For more than half the film, it’s pretty much just him and NYC. Total isolation from human interaction. Though the mutants were scary (I admit, I screamed a couple of times), I was more worried about Neville’s state of mind. Being alone in a huge city, and possibly the world, it’s gotta affect your mental status at some point. I’m sure he realized this point when he made the decision to place mannequins in the video store he visits daily and interacts with them. But still, humans need someone that can talk back to them.

Overall, good movie with good acting. More happens than what I’ve described obviously, but I’m not gonna spoil it for you. This film is a good one to rent or catch on television. I hear they’re making a sequel to this, so we’ll see what happens post-2012.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars