Film Review: Blood Diamond (2006)

As with everything popular, i approached this film with cautions. This film was relatively popular, that even some of the casual viewer started to notice Leonardo DiCaprio's acting capability. Dude, where were you when Gangs of New York hit the silver screen? I hadn't read any single negative reviews from the casual viewers (ie, those who went to theatres with their 'love' ones, mostly). Therefore, my cautious manner in approaching this film.

Edward Zwick was no stranger to direct epic films, his last film was The Last Samurai which earned a nod to Ken Watanabe in Oscar. This film however, recognized two of the cast to get nominated. Leo and Djimon Hounsou, both of whose pictures i used in the banner. The film was, in my opinion, rather overlong. But my, that ending alone was heart-breaking, and no doubt that you teenage girls would love Leo as a man not a boyish cute-face anymore after this film.

Danny Archer (DiCaprio) was a soldier of fortune, smuggling illegal diamond in and out of conflict area around Africa. His last smuggling effort was failed of course, and his life was now on the line. Solomon Vandy (Hounsou) was a regular fisherman who loved his family beyond anything. During the first scenes of the film, he got separated from his family during the rebel's raid in Sierra Leone. It was brutal, and terrifying scenes that made you at least very thankful to live in Indonesia. Anyway, Solo was sent to the diamond-mining site under the rebel's pointing gun in order to finance their movement against the government. There, he found 100-karat pink diamond and buried it. To make things short, Danny and Solo met, Danny wants Solo's diamond to save his life, and Solo only wanted to see his family again. With the help from Maddy (Jennifer Connelly), a dedicated journalist willing to uncover the truth behind illegal diamond smuggling, Danny and Solo run amok among the raging civil war.

The plot above was generally an over-simplification. During the length of the film, the mood swings from dense action sequence to political babble narative that required little more attention. But in general, the film wasn't felt that long despite its length. Just probably because i dont like Jennifer Connelly that i felt the film was going slower whenever she was on screen.

There were three key characters in this film. Danny, Solo, and Maddy. Two of these were well-developed with Danny who has the most complete arc. It's a solid performance from Leo. Danny never falter from his "the diamond is mine!" thankfully, but right at the end, we understand on how his decisions were made. Damn, that ending scene. Solo, however, only passionate to find his family. Most, if not all, step on the gas that this film has, were largely to Solo's needs and passions. Maddy however, has never stepped up more than a character needed to mention in plot. She was almost entirely forgettable, especially during the final acts, which is alright with me.

All in all, Blood Diamond wouldn't be my choice to be one of the best film in 2006. It's too mixed between mood-drenching drama and hard-boiled actions. But, it was a much entertaining film, that is if you could stand watching the uncompromising way Zwick depicted the conflict in Sierra Leone (mass slaughter, child soldier, open tortures), and nice well-developed characters to study.. er... did i say study? Nevermind.

Film Review: Raise the Red Lantern (1991)

Lagi rajin

One sure thing about Zhang Yimou's films was color. Remember Hero? that particular scene of sword-fighting between Maggie Cheung and Zhang Zi Yi amidst the orange falling leaves, was so colorful that it was enough to pull an awe. Now, many film-geeks out there hailed this film as his magnum opus. And how am i glad to finally had my hands (and eyes) on this film. And for the record, of 4 films from Zhang Yimou that i had already seen, this was indeed, the most engaging drama from him.

The problem with Chinese film is, that i hardly able to remember who is who. So i'd go with their real names instead.

Gong Li was the fourth wife (or mistress) of a whealthy old cocker (the marriage was suggestly infavorable to Gong Li's char.). This old cocker had many customs, one of which, every afternoon, prior bed time, all the wives would be standing in front of their respective quarters. Moment later, the master's servant would came in and bring a huge red lantern and placed it in front of one of the wive to indicate that the said wive would be the one who slept with the master that night. Afterwards, the chosen quarter would be lit by red lantern. This custom was also applicable even if somehow the master had to move quarter during the night. The servants would blow-off the red lanterns from one quarter and lit the red lanterns in another quarter where the master spent the night.

A simple story, yet i love the power struggle between the wives to had the red lantern raised in their own quarters. As Gong Li came for the first time as the forth mistress, she was greeted with different enthusiasm from the other three. The first mistress was indifferent (she was too old to compete for the red lantern anyway), the second mistress was friendly (was it sincere?), and the third mistress was seemingly eager to start the competition with forth mistress for the love and luxurious live of a chosen concubine right at the day one.

The forth Mistress soon gradually learned about the red lantern customs and pitted at constant competition among the mistresses. This film was initially banned in China for fear that the story in the film was a veiled allegory against the Chinese communist authoritarianism. And as with other Yimou's films (at least ones that i had already seen) featuring many beautiful and sumptuously photographed drama.

However, i wasn't prepared for the ending. It's sad, tragic, and yet beautiful. The very last scene was sooo cold and sad that it made me want to weep (if i wasn't so sleepy, i knew i'm going to cry). And oh, it changed my entire perspective to Gong Li. Prior viewing this film, i've seen her only as a beautiful actress with small acting capability. This is her best performance that i've seen.

Film Review: Children of Men (2006)

Ha! Ha! Ha! Begini ini kalo lagi kurang kerjaan.

One of the article at Variety stated, questioned the fact that the Academy members had overlooked Children of Men. Especially the innovative technique deployed by its director, a Mexican director, Alfonso Cuaron.

Now, i dont know anything about this innovativeness. But i had suspected that it has something to do with those long shots. This film had many long shots. Examples are, including but not limited to. During the opening scene, the bombing of a Cafe where our hero, Theo (Clive Owen) had previously bought a cup of coffee from. Midway through the film, a scene where the car used by our heroes to escape got ambushed. But ultimately, the last long shot, a nine-minute seemingly one-take shot of a battle scene right at the climax. It was a great shot, and the result of a great achievement by director Alfonso Cuaron and his long-time cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki. And when the Academy announced its Oscar nominees, people start to wonder where was the acknowledgement that has been due to both Children of Men and Alfonso Cuaron. I mean, this film has received many rave positive reviews around the globe, and scored an astonishing 91% positive reviews at RottenTomatoes (as a pale comparison, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest only scored around 50%). I loved this film by the way, loved its particularly dark atmosphere, its grim ending, and its overall structure. Surely it deserves a better acknowledgement.

Well, enough with crap, on with the review.

In 2027, the world had lost its hope. Nuclear war had destroyed many civilizations around the world, pollution had grew so dense, that most of the surface of the world become inhabitable, but more prominently, since 2009, the female had suffered infertility that prohibited human being to regenerate, thus facing with the possibility of extinction. The film begin with the global mourning over "Baby" Diego, the very last human to born. As in 2027, he was 18 years old.

Theo Faron (Clive Owen) was an everyday working man in a grim Great Britain, who had turned into a now-Iraq. And just like everybody else, he has lost the hope to live (evident by his indifference when the bombing of the cafe he just walked in not 3 minutes ago took place). A suicide pill, Quietus, were sold for free (with catchy tagline - 'you decide when') and further proofed the loss of hope human being had suffered in that time.

In Great Britain, the last state still in some sort of 'order', the everlasting bickering between the government and the rebels left the state in such dis-order and constant firing (and bombing). The leader of this rebels, who actually only wished to support the equal-right for the immigrants trying to enter the Great Britain, Julian Taylor (Julianne Moore) wished Theo to escort a young immigrant girl, Kee (Claire Hope-Ashitey) through the immigration checkpoints, through the battlezone, and finally through the border where some sort of scientists called themselves "The Human Project" wait to extract the young Kee. Kee was probably the one and only pregnant woman at the time.

I've heard many of the comments regarding this film that questioned the 'plot-holes' in this film. Such as, how come the female infertility ever happened? what happened to those other country beside Great Britain? why does the rebels meant to keep Kee's baby to themselves? why does the bickering between the army and the rebels rage on? who and what was "The Human Project"? I'd say that the answer to those questions were irrelevant. This film doesn't deal with the cause and effect of the dystopian future. This film was about Theo's journey. And that's it. It begins with Theo, and it ends with Theo. None other things mattered.

Being a semi sci-fi film, however, this film dealt with the (dystopian) future in a relatively relaxed manner. Even with a heavy issue regarding the human extinction, this film never falls itself to a self-important socially politically preaching drama. Like i said, it's a simple personal journey, and add that with deft actions and neat directing.

This year has seen all three Mexican directors with all three beautiful movies. Alejandro Gonzales Innaritu with his Babel, Alfonso Cuaron with his Children of Men, and of course, my #1 film of the year 2006, Guillermo del Toro with his Pan's Labyrinth. If i want to dream, when would i could say the same thing about Indonesian filmmakers?

The Snubbed Departed

I just had time to really contemplate about the Oscar noms. It's lunch hour anyway. So, how come there's no nod for best actor to The Departed? As i've stated earlier in my previous posts, The Departed was one of the best, if not the best, actor ensemble during the year. Literally, every actor in this film deserved a nod or a standing ovation. Especially, the guy whose picture floating above this post (man, does he looked really pissed?), and Jack Nicholson. I mean, how come?

Well, thankfully, Dreamgirls doesn't get nominated. I was afraid when they won Best Picture at the Golden Glove. Afraid that the incident with Chicago, another musical broadway brought to the silver screen, would repeat once again. And uh, i just read that in Best Costume award, the nominees includes Marie Antoinette and The Queen. Interesting. Well, i want The Queen to win. I want it to win by a mile. As i hate Sofia Coppola, and Marie Antoinette (the film) was incomparable to The Queen in quality. But, even though that the film (Marie Antoinette) has received bad mixed reviews, one thing that generally agreed upon of this film that the costumes were outstanding. So, yeah, i labeled the fight between these two queens as 'interesting'. And of course, once again, my vote goes to Queen Elizabeth II.

Fun Oscar Facts

Should i remind you again that i love and adore Kate Winslet? Well, here's more about her, regarding Oscar. I just learned the fact that Kate Winslet, at 31, and 19 movies, had received her 5th nominations. She was the youngest actress to do so. Way to go, dear.

Those 5 nominations were, Sense and Sensibility (can't remember it. I should check it sometime), Titanic (huh), Iris (never seen it), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (i was truly madly deeply in love with her character in this film, and i've seen the film for 3 times already), and Little Children (a really heavy and slow film, but worth every cent, as the climax scene was really punch you in the face).

And oh, she was also born on October, which made her a mere 6 years, 5 days older than me. Yeah, dream on, boy, dream on...

79th Annual Academy Awards

Even though that the Oscar nominations and winners often went at odds with my taste, it always fun to predict which one of the nominees snag the golden statue. Here's the truncated (not full) nominations, by the way:

Performance by an actor in a leading role

• Leonardo DiCaprio in “Blood Diamond” (Warner Bros.)
  
• Ryan Gosling in “Half Nelson” (THINKFilm)
  
• Peter O’Toole in “Venus” (Miramax, Filmfour and UK Council)
  
• Will Smith in “The Pursuit of Happyness” (Sony Pictures Releasing)
  
• Forest Whitaker in “The Last King of Scotland” (Fox Searchlight)
  

Comment: Interesting, but Forest Whitaker had all the buffs, and he has also won the Golden Globe Awards, so yeah, the golden statue shall go to Mr. Forest. Of all the five nominees, i'ven't seen Half Nelson and Venus. If i was in Academy, my vote would go to Leo.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role

• Alan Arkin in “Little Miss Sunshine” (Fox Searchlight)
  
• Jackie Earle Haley in “Little Children” (New Line)
  
• Djimon Hounsou in “Blood Diamond” (Warner Bros.)
  
• Eddie Murphy in “Dreamgirls” (DreamWorks and Paramount)
  
• Mark Wahlberg in “The Departed” (Warner Bros.)
  

Comment: Wooohooo, I love Djimon Honsou. He's one of the few 'mainstream' guy i loved to watch on big screen. Jason Statham was one of the other few. The Departed was represented by Mark Wahlberg. Where's Jack Nicholson? or Leonardo DiCaprio? (he was considered as a supporting role in The Departed). That being said, i'ven't seen Dreamgirls yet. My vote however will go to Jackie Earle Haley in Little Children. He's soooo creepy in that film.

Performance by an actress in a leading role

• Penélope Cruz in “Volver” (Sony Pictures Classics)
  
• Judi Dench in “Notes on a Scandal” (Fox Searchlight)
  
• Helen Mirren in “The Queen” (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
  
• Meryl Streep in “The Devil Wears Prada” (20th Century Fox)
  
• Kate Winslet in “Little Children” (New Line)
  

Comment: How many times do i have to tell you that i love Kate Winslet. And in my earlier post (October), i have correctly predicted that Ms. Winslet would be nominated. But i have to be fair. I've seen all the films listed above, and my vote was definetly go for Helen Mirren.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role

• Adriana Barraza in “Babel” (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
  
• Cate Blanchett in “Notes on a Scandal” (Fox Searchlight)
  
• Abigail Breslin in “Little Miss Sunshine” (Fox Searchlight)
  
• Jennifer Hudson in “Dreamgirls” (DreamWorks and Paramount)
  
• Rinko Kikuchi in “Babel” (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
  

Comment: Little note on Abigail Breslin, judging by her role in Little Miss
Sunshine alone, she was a better little actress than Dakota Fanning. This nominations should be entitled as "the dream role". Because, Adriana Barazza was relatively unknown Mexican actress and much more fluent in Spanish than in English, Jennifer Hudson was an American Idol grads., and Rinko Kikuchi made a huge leap from a Japan TV dorama to Oscar nominee actress. My vote goes for Rinko Kikuchi. By default.

Best animated feature film of the year

• “Cars” (Buena Vista) John Lasseter
  
• “Happy Feet” (Warner Bros.) George Miller
  
• “Monster House” (Sony Pictures Releasing) Gil Kenan
  

Comment: I grew tired of Pixar. Really. I couldn't care about their products anymore. Happy Feet, penguins, boring. My vote goes for Monster House. A form of entertainment light enough for children but also offered something new to adult audiences (beside talking animals and cars, that is).

Achievement in directing

• “Babel” (Paramount and Paramount Vantage) Alejandro González Iñárritu
  
• “The Departed” (Warner Bros.) Martin Scorsese
  
• “Letters from Iwo Jima” (Warner Bros.) Clint Eastwood
  
• “The Queen” (Miramax, Pathé and Granada) Stephen Frears
  
• “United 93” (Universal and StudioCanal) Paul Greengrass
  

Comment: Unexpected, surprising nomination from Paul Greengrass. My vote? Martin Scorcese. Obviously.

Best foreign language film of the year

• “After the Wedding” A Zentropa Entertainments 16 Production Denmark
  
• “Days of Glory (Indigènes)” A Tessalit Production Algeria
  
• “The Lives of Others” A Wiedemann & Berg Production Germany
  
• “Pan’s Labyrinth” A Tequila Gang/Esperanto Filmoj/Estudios Picasso Production Mexico
  
• “Water” A Hamilton-Mehta Production Canada
  

Comment: Thanks to Jiffest, of all the 5 films nominated above, i've only haven't seen Days of Glory. And without Letters from Iwo Jima (who wrongfully nominated as a best foreign language film at the Golden Globe), i'm sure that Pan's Labyrinth will win. Hey, it's MY #1 film of the year.

Best motion picture of the year

• “Babel” (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
  An Anonymous Content/Zeta Film/Central Films Production
  Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jon Kilik and Steve Golin, Producers
  
• “The Departed” (Warner Bros.)
  A Warner Bros. Pictures Production
  Nominees to be determined
  
• “Letters from Iwo Jima” (Warner Bros.)
  A DreamWorks Pictures/Warner Bros. Pictures Production
  Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg and Robert Lorenz, Producers
  
• “Little Miss Sunshine” (Fox Searchlight)
  A Big Beach/Bona Fide Production
  Nominees to be determined
  
• “The Queen” (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
  A Granada Production
  Andy Harries, Christine Langan and Tracey Seaward, Producers
  

Comment: For the first time in years, i had no objection with the nominations. All 5 films had their own strengths, and weaknesses. Babel was rather unbalanced but steady enough for a full ride. The Departed was of course, one of the best from Martin Scorcese, though overshadowed by its original conception, Infernal Affairs. Letters from Iwo Jima was cinematographically beautiful, but you know, war films never interest me. Little Miss Sunshine was the best comedy in years, but comedy wasn't a huge friend with Academy. The Queen was too short, but very very delightful. It was a tough choice. But i had to pick Little Miss Sunshine. It was after all the best comedy in YEARS. If you haven't seen the film, come on, what are you waiting for? If anything, it was a great remedy after a hard-day's work.

Sarah McLachlan

I quote her, not by her exact words per se, but it's more or less goes like this, "I was lucky, that i'm not like Britney or Alanis. To had those instant success at 19, it must've been very hard. My first album was sold for 50,000 copies, it's not a small number, but in current business, it's nothing, it's failure. But, it's a start. I played in a club for 150 people, then 200, then 400. Now, after ten years, i had this brief of a success, but i had it little by little, just enough to keep my head above the water. And i'm not considering my self as a Sarah McLachlan, the entertainer, i'm just still the old Sarah, or you could say, Sarah from the block." This last comment was greeted by laugh from the audiences.

In my humblest opinion, it's almost impossible to not love an artist, an entertainer with such attitude.

"All Bikers Are Brothers"

Jargon yg gw daulat sebagai judul di atas diambil dari komentar salah satu teman yg tak bosan-bosannya menggagas inspirasi agar kami, para pengguna sepeda motor mengambil aksi nyata terhadap ketidak-adilan yg kami terima akhir-akhir ini.

Buat yg suka nonton Metro Hari Ini (gw contohnya, yg pertama kali dilakukan pas masuk kamar, setelah membuka sepatu, atau kalau jam setengah enam sudah sampai, Liputan Enam), tentu tahu dengan peraturan lampu motor untuk nyala di siang hari, dan jalan di jalur kiri, DAN kemungkinan motor dilarang masuk jalan protokol. I personally, ga perduli dengan aturan2 tersebut. Pendeknya, apapun yg pak Sutiyoso dan kru-nya canangkan untuk kami, pengguna motor, akan saya patuhi. Daripada capek-capek buang energi 'melakukan aksi nyata' tanpa hasil, mending waktunya buat baca buku atau nonton film. Lebih bisa mendapat informasi baru.

Anyway, i won't berate about the rules, but more to the jargon which i quote above, "All Bikers are Brothers". Was it? Well, hari ini ada kejadian yg berkaitan dengannya.

Gw menempuh perjalanan selama +/- 40 menit sehari-harinya untuk pergi atau pulang dari kantor. Empat puluh menit dan rute yg sama (kecuali kalo gw lagi pengen mampir ke Kinokuniya buat beli buku, atau ke Blok M Plaza buat nonton film, which is sebenernya ga terlalu mengubah rute), bosen nggak sih? tentu saja. Tapi akhir2 ini ada aja kejadian baru yg more or less memberi variasi.

Hari Jum'at, gw tes bahasa Inggris di salah satu bank nasional. Paginya, gw kecelakaan. Gw sih merasanya karena terlalu kencang, ngerem di jalan berpasir, oleng, dan jatuh menggelinding. Tapi, kata abang2 penjaga warung rokok yg menolong, gw diserempet mobil, bahkan nih, ada satu pengendara yg menawarkan jasa untuk mengejar mobil tersebut (dan kelihatannya sangat bersemangat). Jujur sih, gw ga ngerasa diserempet. Karena begitu bangun, satu2nya hal yg menjadi pikiran di benak gw adalah, "How the hell am i going to attend the test?". Tapi toh, akhirnya gw dateng juga buat tes. Mbak2 HRD-nya menawarkan untuk switch hari, karena gw datengnya pas tes dimulai. Gw ga mau, dan ikut tes hari itu juga, tentu saja dengan celana robek di kedua lutut, dan berdarah-darah (walaupun udah dikasih Betadin sama mbak-mbak HRD-nya). Malemnya gw iseng ke Rumah Sakit untuk dapet proper treatment. FYI, gw cuman lecet. Tapi ongkos berobat-nya mahal banget ya? Another lesson learned.

Hari Senin, gw tes psikologi di tempat yg sama. Paginya, mungkin aftermath dari kecelakaan gw kemaren, ban belakang gw bocor, bukan bocor ya, tapi ada satu masalah sama -apa-itu-namanya-tempat-nyolokin-selang-angin- yg terkuak. Alhasil ganti ban, untungnya bapak2 yg ngebenerin motor gw, tau betul gw lagi buru-buru dan bener2 cepet dalam menyelesaikan kerjaannya hari itu. Gw dateng terlambat kira-kira 11 menit, untungnya, ditungguin. Gw ditelpon sama bank tadi sesaat sebelum gw nyampe di gedung walikota Jaksel (which is 10 minutes from the location). But, alas, after all that troubles, i think i blew my chance by making a huge stupid-mistake during the interview. A mistake soooo stupid, that even if i'm the one who interviewed myself, i wouldn't hesitate to eliminate myself from the race. Yes, it was that stupid. And i just knew that it was stupid, when i re-enacted my interview experience with my girlfriend. Well, i've learned my lesson, anyway.

Hari ini, Rabu, ya, gw terlibat pertengkaran. Well, bukan pertengakaran sih, gw (mencoba) menengahi sebuah pertengkaran. You see, ada satu pertigaan berlampu yg hanya ramai dari dua arah di suatu waktu. Pertigaan ini mengarah ke Kemang, Buncit, dan Fatmawati. Kalau pagi, gw dateng dari Buncit ke arah Kemang. Dari Kemang hampir selalu sepi kalau pagi. Kalau sore, kebalikannya, dari Buncit hampir selalu sepi. Seperti biasa, kan, kalau lagi sepi, kita-kita para pengguna motor selalu dengan pede-nya menerobos lampu merah. Gw? gw ga pernah. Eh, beneran, gw udah cukup kenyang sama tilang. Udah tiga kali gw ditilang. Satu gara-gara nerobos jalur cepat di Semanggi, satu gara-gara temen gw ga pake helm waktu di Margonda, satu lagi gara-gara gw (bener-bener) lupa ga make jalur kiri sebelum Bundaran HI. Yah, pokoknya, gw paling sebel kalo ngeliat ada pengendara yg ga pake helm, atau nerobos lampu merah. I often give a finger to those who did. Ada saksinya yg cukup sering melihat gw melakukan hal ini.

Back to the topic, di pertigaan itu lagi lampu merah pas gw dateng, sebagai pengendara yg baik, gw berhenti dong, namun ada satu orang nih, mungkin gara-gara keasikan ngobrol sama pacarnya, dia nyelonong ke tengah. Nah, dari arah Kemang ada dua orang pengendara yg hendak belok ke Fatmawati. Mau dilihat dari manapun, si orang yg sedang ngobrol sama pacarnya ini yg salah. Nah, karena memang di desain supaya kita-kita yg dari Buncit berhenti agar mereka yg dari Kemang bisa belok ke Fatmawati, si orang yg sedang ngobrol sama pacarnya ini nyaris bertubrukan dengan mas-mas yg ternyata Marinir ini. Begonya, si orang yg sedang ngobrol sama pacarnya ini berhenti. Mungin dikiranya, "ah, gw kan pake Honda Tiger, dia kan cuman pake Yamaha, gw lebih jantan lah!". Nah, mas-mas Yamaha ga terima, akhirnya adu mulut tak terhindarkan. Si Honda akhirnya sadar kalo ternyata situasinya ga menguntungkan buat dia, dengan bijak, yg tentu saja beberapa puluh detik terlambat, dia minta maaf. Mas-mas Yamaha makin merasa di atas angin - mungkin karena dia baru lulus dari pendidikan Marinir jadinya cepet panas tapi lambat dingin, anyway, mohon diingat, ini cuman kesimpulan pribadi gw - dia turun dari motornya, dan berteriak sama si Honda, "Turun, Lo!", "Turun!". Wah, pokoknya seru, si Honda tentunya makin jiper. Pacarnya juga makin beringsut di balik mas-nya. Sementara itu, by the way, lampu dari arah Buncit udah hijau, dan jika kamu sering berkendara di Jakarta pasti tau betul kalo aturannya, begitu lampu hijau di perempatan atau pertigaan padat harus segera pencet klakson. Dan karena insiden Honda vs Yamaha ini terjadi di tengah-tengah pertigaan, arus dari Buncit ga bisa maju dong, makin keraslah tu bunyi klakson.

Gw, dengan pedenya, mungkin karena jargon "All Bikers are Brothers" itu tanpa kusadari ternyata secara tak sadar sudah merasuki alam bawah sadar gw, berhenti untuk menonton melerai. Well, pada akhirnya gw cuman menonton sih, soalnya banyak juga pengendara lain yg ikut-ikutan menonton melerai. Alhasil, pertigaan kecil itu jadi rame banget di tengah-tengah. Gw nonton ga sampai selesai by the way, bahkan ga sampai matiin mesin terus turun.. yah, pokoknya, dapet pelajaran lagi hari ini. 1) Jangan pernah berurusan dengan marinir muda yg kelihatannya lagi marah-marah, 2) Lampu merah bukan aksesoris jalanan, 3) Pacaran sama mengendara motor itu ga bisa dilakukan bersamaan, 4) All bikers are brothers, tapi bahkan brothers juga kadang-kadang bisa cekcok.

PS: Gw udah mulai bosan naik motor Depok - Blok M. Seandainya ada jalur busway Depok - Blok M, gw akan dengan sangat senang hati menngunakan jasanya meskipun misalnya gw harus membayar 10rb rupiah sekali jalan (20rb pp). FYI, ongkos gw naik motor Depok - Blok M itu 15rb buat tiga hari kerja.

Golden Globe 2007

So, the 64th Golden Globe Awards was live on Star World today, and i only managed to watch it from the Best Director award announcement. And yes, Martin Scorcese had won for the Best Director. Anyways, here's the winner lists from the award (excluding awards for TV series).

Best Screenplay - Motion Picture:
Peter Morgan - The Queen
My Pick: The Queen, obviously. The simple idea of the film had turned into a great enjoyable experience, and ultimately become one of the best films i've seen in 2006.

Best Director - Motion Picture:
Martin Scorcese - The Departed
My Pick: Need i say more?

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture:
Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls
My Pick: Rinko Kikuchi (Babel). Well, i haven't seen Dreamgirls just yet so my comment would be unjustified at this moment. But, i highly doubted that my comment would be changed afterall.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture:
Eddie Murphy - Dreamgirls
My Pick: Jack Nicholson (The Departed). Again, i haven't seen Dreamgirls just yet, but, seeing how many buzzes Eddie had generated over the year had really piqued my interest. But for now, Mr. Nicholson's performance in The Departed was still the best in my very own eyes.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy:
Merryl Streep - The Devil Wears Prada
My Pick: Merryl Streep, hands down.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy:
Sacha Baron Cohen - Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
My Pick: I would personally go with Jhonny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest), but Sacha Baron Cohen with his Borat was also a great success in terms of comedy.

Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy:
Dreamgirls
My Pick: Little Miss Sunshine all the way. Now, i had a really disturbing hunch. Remember Chicago (2002) which had won Academy Awards for Best Picture? I had a pretty good hunch that Dreamgirls would again, be another musical film which would again, victorious at the next Academy Awards

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama:
Helen Mirren - The Queen
My Pick: Helen Mirren. Need i say more?, this was her night. She also won an award for a best performance by an actress in a mini-series for her performance as Queen Elizabeth I. She was indeed a true Queen.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama:
Forest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland
My Pick: Forest Whitaker. As much as i want Leonardo DiCaprio to win, Forest Whitaker had all the buzz, and his portrayal of Idi Amin was both terrifying and sympathetic.

Best Motion Picture - Drama:
Babel
My Pick: Between Babel and The Departed. Though i would personally inclined to the latter. But, of course, i wouldn't mind at all for its win.

Top 10 Films of 2006

From the top of my head, top 10 of 2006 (which i've already seen of course):


1. Pan's Labyrinth (Guillermo Del Toro)
Ofelia was just 11 years old. She lived in a constant nightmare, trapped between the raging civil war, a sadistic step-father, and a possibility to lose her only sanctuary, her mother due to terminal pregnancy. In all that, she found Pan's Labyrinth that led her to the netherworld, a world of fantasy, fairies, faun, and a pale man. Sounds like a children's book story eh? Not. The film was rated R (restricted), i had told you about a sadistic step-father and i mean it, sadistic, with a clear display of surprisingly graphic violence. But for those of you who seek for an entertaining story with great story-telling from a wickedly genius storyteller, this one's for you. And i particularly love the ending. Further, since you won't be seeing it in a theater nearby, i suggest go get the DVD. I've seen the film both at the Jiffest and on DVD, and i savored the taste earnestly in both experiences.

2. The Departed (Martin Scorcese)
I was able to judge the film entirely independent from it's original (Infernal Affairs). Many guys i know, always seem to compare this flick with Infernal Affairs. Well, i say, i feel sorry for them. I love everything from this film, it's score, it's magnificent cast (Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, even Marky Mark!), it's execution, and so forth. However, i refused to juxtapose this film with Infernal Affairs. For it won't be fair, since i've been and always be Martin Scorcese's fan.

3. Babel (Alejandro Gonzales Innaritu)
Though the Japan story-arc out-weighed the other story-arcs, the film stands above most with its non-linear story, subtle message, and the sense of discovery at the end of the film.

4. The Queen (Stephen Frears)
I expected a yawn, and i ended up wanting more. As much as i love Kate Winslet, Helen Mirren would walk away with her Oscar.

5. Children of Men (Alfonso Cuaron)
Dystopian future always fascinated me. The year was 2027, and the current headline news was, "the death of the youngest person on Earth". He was 18 years old. If these words doesn't piqued your interest at all, don't bother to watch this film.

6. Little Miss Sunshine (Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris)
The best comedy of the year. Heck, the best comedy in YEARS.

7. Casino Royale (Martin Campbell)
There were several reasons of why i put Casino Royale on #7 of my list. One, it was simply the best Bond film, like, ever. Two, it gave me the sense of winning to those who had opposed Mr. Daniel Craig as the new James Bond. And three, well, duh, it's double-o-seven.

8. Miami Vice (Michael Mann)
Say what you will, i loved this film, and nothing you say would change my opinion.

9. Vovler (Pedro Almodovar)
A surprise hit at the Jiffest. I expected to see a lame drama about women, but it turns out to be one hell of a ride with dark humor, strong sense of love without over-exposing it, and (surprisingly) complex mystery that unraveled gradually as the movie unveiled. If you're a strong supporter of feminism, you should see this film. And Penelope Cruz has actually become a formidable opponent at the next Academy Awards.

10. Little Children (Todd Field)
A slow suburban drama which could easily be spanned into a full season (24-episodes) of Desperate Housewives would surely bore the impatient audiences. But, the slow paced didn't go to waste, since the escalating tension at the end of the film surely blows my mind. And that's because the slow paced drama were needed to develop each character (which played beautifully by their respective actors) into a full stature. And it worked. The only problem (at least for me) was, the narrator of the film insists that Kate Winslet was less attractive than Jennifer Connelly. Heh, surely, you expected ME to believe such nonsense?

The rest of the best: Inside Man, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, The Host, The Hills Have Eyes, The Devil Wears Prada, The Descent, The Prestige.

The list were made from the top of my head, with distinction of the #1 and #2 (Pan's Labyrinth and The Departed, respectively), the list were populated randomly. If you've seen a film that you seem worthy enough to replace any of my list, it's simply because: 1. I haven't seen the film, 2. I forgot about its existence, and 3 (and most likely). Your taste of choice didn't agreed with mine.

Upnext, my top 10 of great disappointment of 2006.

PS: This year - 2006 - was especially had seen many great performances from actress. Kate Winslet (Little Children), Helen Mirren (The Queen), Penelope Cruz (Volver), Cate Blanchett (Notes on a Scandal, Babel), Judi Dench (Notes on a Scandal, Casino Royale), Rinko Kikuchi (Babel), Merryl Streep (The Devil Wears Prada) even - though i hate to admit - Lindsay Lohan (A Prairie Home Companion), and Beyonce Knowles (Dreamgirls).

Nasib (Festival) Film Indonesia

Ada berita yang cukup menarik hari ini, beberapa insan perfilman Indonesia yang cukup terkenal kemaren berkumpul di Teater Utan Kayu dan lantas mengambil sikap negatif terhadap kemenangan Ekskul di Festival Film Indonesia 2006 beberapa hari yang lalu. Sikap ini ditandai dengan pengembalian sejumlah Piala Citra oleh para selebriti tersebut (selengkapnya, baca detik.com). Masalah ini buat saya, bukan hanya masalah dari Festival Film Indonesia itu sendiri, tapi seluruh Dunia Film Indonesia secara keseluruhan. Kok bisa-bisanya sampai terjadi Civil War? Saya juga sama sekali tidak setuju dengan Ekskul sebagai pemenang Citra tahun ini, tapi sumpah, saya tidak menyangka mereka yang dinyatakan kalah bisa bertindak sejauh ini. Academy Awards 2006 yang menobatkan Crash untuk menang juga menuai banyak kontroversi (saya sendiri meludah di atas film Crash), tapi tidak lantas membuat hegemoni Academy Awards menjadi remeh. Memang sih, Academy Awards punya history yang lebih panjang daripada Festival Film Indonesia. Tapi kalau sampai mereka mengembalikan piala Citra yang sudah diperoleh, itu berarti keberadaan Festival Film Indonesia sudah tidak lagi diakui, dan ini bisa jadi merupakan awal yang baik untuk masa depan Film Indonesia (atau lebih buruk). Oh, tapi saya terutama setuju sama pendapat salah seorang selebriti yang hadir di Teater Utan Kayu kemaren (Mira Lesmana, kayanya), kalo komite juri Festival Film Indonesia perlu diganti dengan "orang-orang yang menghidupkan kembali film Indonesia".

Ngomong2 soal Film Indonesia, untuk pertama kalinya saya tertarik nonton film horor Indonesia di bioskop. Film tersebut adalah Pocong 2. Seperti anak Indonesia lainnya, Pocong sudah menjadi bagian dari budaya hantu yang ide mengenai keberadaannya jauh lebih menyeramkan daripada Drakula, Poltergeist, atau hantu-hantu model Sadako. Dan sampai saat ini, Pocong 2 diterima dengan lumayan hangat oleh penggemar film yang juga mengikuti perkembangan film Indonesia. Pengen nonton bener, deh, cuman kayanya sampai sekarang, antrian untuk film tersebut masih sangat panjang.

More of Less, First Post on a Hopefully Better New Year

As some of you already familiar - and probably had bored with it, i had a dream of writing a book, and since my favourite books were belong to a fantasy-genre, i plan to write one along that theme. A genre that usually revolves around a tale of good and evil,an evil that long dormant and wait for a time to be risen and once again put the world into his shadows. This evil usually doesn'thave a physical form manifestation such as the great evil (which i forgot his name) from the Fionavar Tapestry series, Melkor from the Silmarillion during the great war of jewels, Morgoth, Melkor's sergeant in the Lord of the Rings series, Ba'alzamon from the Wheel of Time series, or Voldermort on the early editions of Harry Potter series. This genre also observes the use of magic, an army with gleaming steel armors, swords, and bows, and exotic creatures, more prominently the likes of immortal and beautiful human-like creatures, Elf or the lizard like, fire breathing, flying serpent creature, Dragons. Well, you got my point, a fantasy genre was easily identified.

Thus, for years already i had this theme buried inside my mind, developing it consciously, albeit without any physical evidence that such thing has ever happened. Here's the short brief of what i had in mind. I've always hated weakling hero characters such as Frodo Baggins or Harry Potter. And so, what i had in mind was the sort of characters that were similar to those deployed by the George RR Martin in his Song of Ice and Fire series, whose neither good nor bad, but simply played to their instincts and dreams and achieving it with ways they considered to be the right ones. In short, human characters that's more human. The evil entities were ones that i had deliberately took from the Demonology's 108 names of evil. I, myself, had adopted the name Vassago as one of my nickname over the internet. You could easily do more thorough research on these 108 names which included Baal, Diablo, and so forth at Wikipedia.

The real problem came when i started to write about it. I've tried to write it in Indonesian at first, but when i proof-read it, i was so dismayed by the quality of it. Take this for an instance, in a scene i had imagined, there was this High Priestess who look to the East from the height of her ivory tower to had a glimpse of a bleak and dready future as the 108 devils began to rise. Whe ni heard the word High Priestress, my mind was quickly jumped to the Galadriel as portrayed by Cate Blanchett, majestic, beautiful, seems taller than she supposed to be, with eyes so deep with knowledge that belies her true age, and all those nifty tid-bits that often described Queens of old-age. When i had tried to write it in Bahasa, i had an immediate trouble in converting the word 'High Priestess'. The closest word in meaning that i had able to come up with was 'Pendeta Agung'. But of course, if you heard the word 'Pendeta Agung', most likely, instead of Galadriel-like picture that would sprang into your mind, it would be the image of Pope, old man and uninteresting.

Then of course, i tried to keep writing it in English, also to my dismay, that i found myself often fell into a writer's block when i had tried to describe something with words that had more quality than those you used on daily conversation only to find that th edescription was tediously boring. Well, i guess, that's why not everybody could become a writer. There's this little thing called talent that plays into the game, and i had to admit, i had none.

The dream still alive of course, who knows, maybe someday you see my name on the cover of one of those books on the shelf, but i'm not quite seeing it happened in a near-future. Gotta do more readings.