Thumbs

You know how sometimes when you have great expectation for a movie, then it just plain sucks. You just feel cheated about how excited you were. Bride and Prejudice i can safely say it doesn't suck at all in fact it was so great it made me want to dance in the cinema I was in. I went into this movie with high expectations for two reasons. The first is that i LOVE Bend it like Beckham, the directors previous film. The second reason is i have a strange love for Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice, which inspired this movie.

Bride and Prejudice as i said before is based on Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice. The movie takes it's major plot twist from the book but the rest of the movie just has this bright and current interjection thats makes this retelling a must see.

This movie is a all singing and all dancing affair. I knew i would love this movie from the very beginning when Balraj Bingley (Naveen Andrews) hits the dance floor with some of the best moves i have ever seen. The reason this stuck me so much is that Naveen Andrews is one of the stars of my favourite show Lost. I came into this movie knowing that it would have a lot sining and dancing, but instead of dreading the next song i was at one stage wishing the next one would come quicker.

I love this movie. The cast although most I had never heard of were fantastic. The dance scenes just seemed to get bigger and better as the movie went on. The classic story that inspired it made it all the more fun to watch. I can't say enough that you should see this movie. If anyone needs someone to go with all they have to do is call.

Chris's Rating: 8.5/10

Well last night was Sunday and i got a SMS from my friend Wade telling me he wanted wanted to give me my birthday present. So when he came over i wasvery surprised to find that he had got me a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts. The special thing about this is that the only Krispy Kreme is in Sydney. When i tasted one of the origanl glaze well it was one of those experiences.

It's a good thing that there isnt any Krispy Kreme is Brisbane otherwise i think that is all i would eat. Anyway i think i need another one of those choclate glaze ones....bye bye.

Now as some of you might know i work in a newsagent. Now working here gives you some insight into the way people treat certain hoildays. My newsagent sells a lot gifts so i get an extra idea of how people act when it come to certain days of the year. For example Easter. On the Thursday before Good Friday we sell a LOT of choc. But eveyday before that not so much. This buying at the last minute happens oftens.

But what my gripe is that for Valentines Day you would, well i would that you wouldnt be buying things on the day. I can't imagine what it is like to get a happy Valentines from your partner in the morning then in the evening getting a present. i think this is just tacky. The persons knows that you bought it during the day.

If your one of those people that feel that better late then never well... i just dont think you have ever been really surprised. Come on, how hard is it to plan something special for one day a year????

Happy Valentines Day!!!!

Today i went to see House of Flying Daggers. Now first off this movie kicks ass. I just need to get this out now, because you should go see this movie. Now the name and the trailer have a slight slant. They make the film out to be a action packed ball busting ninja film. After seeing the movie you like a lot of other will walk out knowing that it is really a beatuiful love story that just happens to feature kick ass flying daggers.

House of Flying Daggers is a story of a young blind girl (Ziyi Zhang) who is a dancer in a brothel. Now this house of pleasure isn't really a brothel but more a gentlemens club of the past. Now this blind girl is tricked by a local police deputies because she is believe to be the lost daughter of the dead leader of the group the House of Flying Daggers. Mei the blind girl and Wind (Takeshi Kaneshiro) the police deputies that is in disguise leave on a journey to find the House of Flying Daggers but the adventure they have could not have been guessed by either of them.

My favourite thing about this movie is Mei who is played by the very excellent Ziyi Zhang. Not only is she very hot but she can act and fight even with no prior training. I have not been disapointed with any of her movies that i have seen. She was amazing in Hero and in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In this movie i must say that she plays an excellent blind girl.

House of Flying Daggers is the follow from the film Hero by the director Yimou Zhang. His fights scenes are just as perfect as they were in Hero. They just make me want to get up in the cinema and start a sword fight. This time the action is stepped up with the inclusion of the daggers which are something to behold. Along with the fight scenes Yimou Zhang is now famous for his stunning backdrops. He uses lots of strong colours and they make this film like Hero stand out from the rest of the current action films. Go see this movie!!!

Chris's Rating: 8/10

I have had my iPod Shuffle for about a month now. For the first time since i have owned any iPod i have been listening to my music on shuffle. Although i have been hearing song that are on my computer that i didn't even know i had, i still haven't really got why anyone would want to listen to songs in a shuffled manner. But today changed all that.

Brisbane has been going through a bit of a heat wave. It's been hot and humid all day and then into the night. With all this heat you know that there is going to be a lot of rain. So this afternoon on my way home it started to rain. When i got off the bus i got wet. Then when i got home and dried off i had to leave the house again to go to my other job, so i wasn't in a good mood.

So off i set on my walk to work it's raining and the only umbrella i have is half broken. I got off my bus and start walking again and it's still raining. So i think to my self surely this rain can't get any heavier. So then it starts raining harder. Then my shuffle moment... Suddenly my headphones go silent then it was like my iPod knew i needed a lift, one of my favourite song starts playing. So for the rest of the trip i'm dancing down the street singing.

The shuffle experience made my night fly by. I must amit i am now sold on Apple's "Life is Random" ad campaign.

Well today marks the end of my 21st year, well actully it's the start of my 22nd year. My birthday this year was pretty big. It fell of Chinese New Year and it is the start of a new luna cycle. I guess this can only mean im in for a good year.

My favourite part of birthdays is cake. I love cake. I was trying to remember all my favourite birthdays, and the only thing that stands out is when at the end of the party everyone is crowded around the cake. This week alone i have had ice cream cake, Shingle-In cake and pancakes.

Anyway my birthday usually rocks and this was no different. Thanks to everyone.

This is fantastic movie but it des have some pretty big flaws. Sky Captain is one of those movies that the project was i think more important then the substance of the movie. The reason i say this is that Sky Captain has two claims to fame but i only found out about the second one yesterday. The first is it claims to be the first movie to be one giant special effect and the other is one of the central character has been dead for awhile.

Sky Captain is about reporter Polly Perkins(Gwyneth Paltrow) following a story about 6 missing scientist. Then while following a lead New York is attacked by giant robots. To stop this attack they call in Sky Captain (Jude Law), an aviator that runs his own army. After the first robot attack Polly and Joe the real name of the Sky Captain find themselves working together again to solve the mystery of the attacks and the missing scientists. Polly and Joe have a past which is the main story when they are searching for the robots base. Also one of there pitstops is to refuel. They do this with a friend of Joes, this freind is Frankie played by Angelina Jolie, might i say that she is the only acting bright light in this movie.

The movies looks come from the early part of the 20th century and is done with the city in drab colours almost black and whites. But this is the true strenght of the films. The back grounds are just amazing and just shows how far the special effects have come since the days of the first Star Wars in the late 70's. A personal favourite is when they chase a lead into the moutains. These shots are just unbelievable and are worth the admission.

With the aesthetic of the movie being so fantastic i was upset to see the movie was let downby the acting. Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow have zero chemistry which is such a let down cause i haven't been upset with a Gwyneth Paltrow preforance for awhile. But the acting in this movie let the whole movie down in so many ways. Though as is aid before Angelina Jolie was great but there wasn't enough to make me think otherwise about the reat of the cast. There was also the preformance of Laurence Olivier. This was put together by archive footage which is a little strange but it does have it's wow factor. The wow factor was the only thing that stopped that part being corny.

Kerry Conran the wirter/director does have something to be very proud of but it does have some pretty big flaws. But the floors are not in the parts of the film that i bet he was most excited about getting done. That would have to go to the look of the film and that in my opinion is stunning.

Rating: 7.5/10

Today i was sent this music questionnaire by my sister kath. Now i guess you could say that i like music. But i think my favourite part of music is the way you get it around. I have had it all. A $30 walkman that i used till it broke. A discman that my sister brought me that i used till the lid broke off. Then i tried a Sony NetMD. This was one of my favourites because this is when i started make my own mixtapes. But September 2003 saw me buy a iPod of ebay. Best thing i ever did. Digital music is so great, you can play it on your computer, you can stream it to another room wirelessly and you can just take it places on your iPod. But after all this thought i guess i wouldn't have enjoyed all these toys without the music. So anyway on to my answers:

1.) Total amount of music files on your computer:

1611 on my iBook and 1800 on the Window Pc outside.

2.) The last CD you bought was:

2nd hand copy of Way Out West- Intensify

3.) What is the last song you listened to before reading this message:

Well i dont really know cause my life is random and my iPod Shuffle doesn't have a screen. But all i can remember is that it was a N*E*R*D song.

4.) Write down 5 songs you listen to often or that mean a lot to you:

1. Somebody Told Me- The Killers I don't what it is about this song but I love his voice in it.

2. Clocks- Coldplay Chris Martin! Enough said.

3.Forces of Gravity- BT Having the vocals from a member of N*sync this song rocked my world live. 6am in sydney at Homebush, there because my friends bought it for me for my birthday. From that moment on i haven't been able to stop listening to it.

4. She Wants to Move- N*E*R*D First single of the second album. I love the film clip and i love the song.

5. In a State- Unkle This is one of my favourite song in the whole world.

5.) Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why?

Ben, Lachlan and Alex. Three people that love music and know what type of music they love.

These are my friends answer:

Alex:

1) 5 GB approx ( Dont listen to half of it, but still, for reasons unknown, an iPod 40 GB seems like the right decision :S )

2) War of the worlds

3) Linus Loves - Stand back (MYLO mix) *clap clap*

4)
a) Alan Braxe & Fred Falke - Rubicon
b) Mike Oldfield - Moonlight shadow
c) Go West - We close our eyes
d) MYLO - Otto's Journey
e) Dire Straits - Latest trick

5)
a) Cam - Because I reckon he will answer, don't know bout forwarding it on, most likely citing inbox clutter and unnecessary download time as reasons
b) Rich - Because he has a different taste in music
c) Matt - Because he is all about music

Ahh Riverside News. My job away from job. A place where i do my best work. The place i sometimes like to call Rivercity News. This is the newsagent to buy all your paper needs. I mean anything. They have it all. All the big papers, and yes they even sell the Courier Mail. While your there you can also pick up the gift for that loved one you need that last minute gift for. They have the biggest range you have ever seen and dont forget to get a card with that. Maybe the best thing though is the confectionary, they have all the best candy bars you could wish for.

Now i'm surprised if you haven't run out already to get all your needs, but wait there is so much more to Riverside News. The most special part of riverside news is the staff and the excellent service you will receive. First off, my peers. These guys are all superstars. First of there is me and as you already know i am the king. I am a triple threat. I clean, AAA service and i can reach the PJ 20's without standing on my tippy toes. Next is Frina. What is there to say. She is charming and she doesn't look a bit over 23. She has so many special talents, to list them would take way to long. I will let you in on one special one. Frina has a knackfor dropping things or just makeing things fall of there ledge. Thats why last year she was awarded the first Breakage Award last year. The last in this crew is Mash. Now i haven;t know this lass for very long but what i do know is she is very kind. She loves to recycle and im trying very hard to teach all i know to make her a better netball player.

Now to management. This is a special group as well. The real brains behind the sales monster that is Riverside News. First up we have Joe. He is a business king. He knows all the peeps you gotta know to make it in this world. To give you an idea he is mates with Tony Wong. But dont read into this to much he is prone to turning into the Hulk, where only the strongest arms can withstand the flicks. I wincing now just thinking about the rage if he reads this. Next up we have Tony, the king of many facets of the newsagent business. To be honest i have never seen a fridge stay so full under his watch. The bottles just seem to never empty, i think out of fear but i dont think anyone will ever be able to figure it out. Now we come to the lynchpin of the business. They say there is a great women behind a sucessful newagent, and Helen is that lady. She has many skills that no one will ever have again in one single person. Helen has the ability to control small animals(louis). I have also never seen a lady multi-task like helen. She can walk from out the back with a hand full of mag returns in one hand, int he other a hand full of spearmint leaves, all this why telling me the number for GPO news for the 10 millionth time. and most amazing she does all this with the smellist poo i have ever seen sitting on her head.

Riverside News is the place to be. The best place to the work i have a feeling i will be there till im 30. Thank you come again.