Monday, May 31, 2010

The Movie Junkie - The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time


Hong Kong's been having very lousy weather lately, but then again, when was the weather here not lousy anyway. And because of that the plan to spend time at Inspiration Lake then dinner at Modern Toilet with the family got changed to 4 tickets to see The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

I was looking forward to watching this after finding out that Jake Gyllenhaal was playing Dastan, all the more when I found out he had to wear a British accent. I was very much intrigued I have to say. I'm not a huge fan of Jake Gyllenhaal but I have something to thank him for; his performance in The Day After Tomorrow changed my perspective of movies. He lit the spark that set the fireworks off for my love for film.

If you're looking for a movie that's action-packed with abso-freakin'-lutely FANTABULOUS cinematography, but quite loose on the the plot. This is the one for you. The minute young Dastan scaled the rooftops of medieval Persia, I was gobsmacked, GOBSMACKED I tell you. Fast-paced with impressive camera skills, I'm thankful that it didn't give me a headache like Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen did. The aerial shots of desert Morocco made me want to visit the beautiful country again. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the use of a green screen - or is it blue now - during some pan shots, such as the sand dunes.
 If you're looking for a substatial plot worth retelling to a friend who hasn't watched it yet so you can spoil their fun, forget it! I didn't like how the storyline clung too tightly on the dagger that could turn back time yet too loosely on the depth of the characters and the bond between the three princes. "They left out some parts." Glenn, my brother who happens to be a fan of the videogame, would whisper in my ear in the middle of a dialogue. I was afraid he'd say that, because that colon is threatening to release another title. A sequel is not welcome! Princess Tamina is alive plainly because the damned dagger can turn back time - so there I was a little disgruntled cause I didn't get a tragic ending. Another reason for me to fear that colon. Fortunately, Jake Gyllenhaal and Sir Ben Kingsley, wonderful actors as they are, brought at least - not enough though - some life into the characters. The other characters were rather flat and I blame the plotline.
On a brighter note, there was adequate comical relief amidst the sword-fighting, scaling rooftops and cascading down walls with notable quotes such as, "Did you know ostriches have suicidal tendencies?" and "You better get up there before I take your place" or something like that. You see, I've already forgotten the lines because the plot was so loosly written. I did like how the script was filled with sharp dialogue and doesn't drag.
I'll end with Jake's accent. It's not perfect, terrible in the beginning to be honest, but let's just say I hope he won't be wearing a British accent in his next project.
 Story: C+
Acting: B-
Direction: B-
Visuals: A+
Average: B
- Messer Girl

Friday, May 28, 2010

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

As promised, here's the recipe Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting


This was all I could muster with Quinn's 2.0 megapixel camera, because the digital camera is with my dad who won't be back til tomorrow night, but it looks, nonetheless, delightful.

Banana Cake

Ingredients

125 g unsalted butter, softened
115 g granulated sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
125 mL milk
250g All-Purpose flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  1. Preheat oven: 180oC (350oF) and lightly grease an 8" square tin.
  2. Cream butter and sugar together until light and creamy.
  3. Add the egg gradualy, beating thoroughly after each addition.
  4. Add the vanilla and banana and beat until combined.

    Set aside

  5. Sift the flour together with the baking powder and ground cinnamon.
  6. Dissolve the baking soda in the milk.
  7. Fold the flour mixture alternately with the milk into the banana mixture.
  8. Stir until all ingredients are combined.

    Spoon into tin and smooth surface. Bake for 45 mins to an hour, or until a cake skewer comes out clean. Leave in cake tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
My best friends bake too, but the difference with me is I can never forget to 'mise en place' because I've made mistakes before and ingredients don't come cheap so everytime before I bake, the ingredients are not only measured, but placed in the order they are added - from left to right.

Although the creaming method is just about the most time-consuming cake-mixing method, I like it. I leave out the butter for about an hour and it softens enough to cream even without an electric beater. I end up getting one hell of an arm workout though.

Eggs, love 'em, hate 'em, need 'em. Eggs can disappear in my house like "Poof!". Being me, I don't just bake simply for the joy of it. I research on why I gotta do this, why I gotta do that and what-not, and I've learned that adding eggs gradually to the batter helps to incorporate the eggs into the batter better. A strike of realization hit me, because I used to always complain why the batter looked so soggy when I first started. Meanwhile, I have yet to master cracking eggs with one hand - I still do it with a fork and split the shell with both hands.

On to the milk, I rarely use milk, primarily because my mother complains that her stomach hurts when she drinks milk. Then I accuse her of being lactose intolerant, while my brother wonders why she doesn't get stomach aches when she eats ice cream, "Ice cream has milk, doesn't it?" he says. This recipe calls for dissolving baking soda in milk, so my scientific mind starts to race, "What the heck happens when you add sodium bi-carbonate to lactose?" I thought. So I researched on it and found out that baking soda prevents milk from going bad - plus about 75 other uses for baking soda. Whaddup!

For the addition of flour and milk, I like beginning with flour and ending with flour.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

60g unsalted butter, softened
125g cream cheese, softened
185g icing sugar
1-2 tsp lemon juice

  1. Beat butter and cream cheese together using electric beaters until smooth.
  2. Gradually add the icing sugar alternately with the lemon juice.
  3. Beat until think and creamy.
This was a first for me. A few years ago I was ready to give up because I couldn't make icing. It was runny, extremely sweet and rather unappetizing, but when I tasted this is was simply heavenly. Cream cheese frosting is FOOLPROOF! So, ice as you please.

Meanwhile, I shall go appreciate a few slices to try mending my now shattered heart, while I worry about the Messers.

- Messer Girl

Thursday, May 27, 2010

The Movie Junkie - The Last Song

Before I begin, I'd just like to say I am hanging onto life by a very, very thin, fragile thread right now - alright, I'm exaggerating, but The CSI: New York Finale is eating at me as we speak. 3 months is a very long time. I don't think I'll be able to take it if Danny or Lucy Messer dies. Without Danny, I'm not Messer Girl. And Lucy...oh Lucy, so young, so innocent, so adorable. Oh my heart.

So on to the review, I'll try my best not to get sidetracked.

If she plays her cards right, this won't be Miley Cyrus' last song. The girl's got talent, but it's still needs work. I'll give her an unbiased thumbs-up for giving her best to portray an angry, rebellious 17-year-old, but there's room for improvement in the 'Drama' department. Knowing Nicholas Sparks, I had already predicted, although not having read the book yet, that her father was going to die. There were certain moments that should've moved me to tears but it just wasn't enough. Her character was much more complex than what she had portrayed her to be, but all in all, she didn't do too bad. She hid her Southern accent fairly well too.
 Her leading man, meanwhile, stood not-so bad looking himself. Not drop-dead-oh-my-fruity-goodness gorgeous, but not bad, not bad. His acting didn't have much of an impact on me either. Put it this way, if he were a cup of coffee, he'd be very bland. On a lighter note, I can definitely see why Cyrus couldn't resist dating him. This boy can kiss! I could feel all that passion when he swooped down and kissed her.
As for the plotline, as with any movie adaptation of a novel, the novel will always be better. I was just disappointed that it was all to easy to predict. I like to be surprised when it comes to tragic endings - which I am a huge fan of when it comes to MOVIES - TV series are a completely different story.
Broken family, a terrible relationship with Dad, fall in love, relationship with Dad mends, Dad gets cancer, dies.
The good part of it, is that the scenes didn't drag on too long and they used music to piece the whole thing together. I may be hopeless on the piano but I know well to appreciate a good piece and the movie score was simply beautiful.
Story: B-
Acting: C+
Direction: B-
Visuals: C
Average: C+

- Messer Girl

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

I have my room all to myself again


I've never seen the train this empty at 6:30AM. I'm used to the cramped environment that greeted me every morning at 7:31AM on my way to school. I like looking at the back of the train when it hits a rather sharp turn, seeing the way the tail weaves left and right like a caterpillar, then you see the actual butt of the train.

The train was so empty that sitting across the car from my uncle and I was nobody else but this lone, abandonned newspaper. And when you didn't sleep through the night just to make sure you get up early enough, like myself, you may start hearing things. I almost thought the newspaper was talking to me. Turns out I was talking to myself. XD
So after I helped my uncle through check-in - we managed to avoid getting caught up in line at check-in - I saw him through to departures hall then I roamed around for a bit, pretending I was actually going to go into departures hall myself. I stumbled upon a bookstore to find Seventeen magazine on the racks for $40.00. I start talking to myself again. $40?! I thought these cost at most twice of that. But then again, the last time I bought magazines was around 5 years ago, back when the posters inside Bop! Magazine were of Simple Plan, Good Charlotte and New Found Glory, so how would I know.
My brother's moving back to his room. YES!!
It may have been possible for the two of us to share a twin bed 2 years ago but not anymore. WE BARELY FIT! We fight over pillows, over the blanket, over space, you name it. So I got my room back. *chants* Waddup?
 I stocked up on what I need for Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting - I sense Kristine Sage getting excited already. I'll probably put up the recipe.
 I watched half of The Last Song last night. Half because I was sidetracked to CSI: Miami, which I almost forgot to watch because I was dreading the finale of CSI: New York too much so I guess I'll watch the remaining half tonight and maybe do a review on it. It's not too shabby, I can tell you that, but I'll tap into that a little later.
 Speaking of CSI: New York. Excuse me while I succumb into fits of giggles and squeal like an obsessed fangirl....I always say that if cliffhangers could kill, I would've been dead a long time ago, but I think this one might just do the job. I watch previews, unlike Kristine Sage, because I'm impatient like that. I just gotta say. Lucy Messer is so adorable. Her father's dreamy....Mmmm. If I survive the finale, you get a movie review plus a recipe, so wish me luck.
- Messer Girl

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Gran! Have you seen my Ralph Lauren jeans?

You know those moments when you're already rushing to get ready but you can't find the one pair of jeans to go with the new green blouse you got just two days ago? Then you spend the next 30 minutes searching high and low, desperate to find them that you practically turn your closet upsidedown. You eventually find them, only to realize you're already 10 minutes late for your appointment.

I've cried out, one time too many on a saturday as I get ready for church, "Nay, nakita mo ba yung maong ko? (Gran, have you seen my jeans?). And where do I find them? In my mother's closet!

So this is what half my closet looks like after spending two hours trying to arrange them in a much more orderly manner - trying being the keyword there. This looks relatively neater, I would say

In those two hours I counted at least 7 tees that I don't wear anymore, one skirt with a broken zipper and a PINK scarf - heaven knows how that got there! Worse, it's got Hello Kitty on it.

I also found out that I can't fold a T-shirt, no matter how many times I try.

The good part of those two hours, was I now know where all my clothes are though give it about a few days to a week, it'll all be out of place once again.

- Messer Girl

Monday, May 24, 2010

Hello Blogger

I will be officially moved to Blogger in just a few minutes. Unfortunately, it's not possible to import a Wordpress blog to Blogger, and I'm too lazy to go through over 60 posts to pick out which ones I'd like to repost, but never you mind, you and I are gonna be just fine. Maybe I'll do that some other day. I'll just finetune some bits and pieces, starting with the bits, then we're good to go.

- Messer Girl

Productive Shopping

It's funny how a majority of movies and TV series have stereotyped women to shop in packs. I don't think it applies to all women, such as myself - for example.

Before we get on the wrong foot, I do love shopping with my girls. But ever only so when I am not looking for anything in particular and have money found tucked, neatly-folded, in the back pocket of my jeans - those were my jeans...right?

When I shop with my girls, our eyes are in three diffrent directions. And since all 3 of us have a mild case of ADD, you can only imagine what happens when 3 different things catch our eyes at the same time, which -
don't get me wrong - is pretty amusing once you get over it and laugh about the idiocracy of it all.

However, when I shop alone, I am more meticulous and tend to cover more ground. This happens when I'm looking for something specific, like shoes to wear to a formal dinner, say maybe peep-toed pumps or 4-inch heeled MaryJanes, white denim skinny jeans (which aren't distressed yet) - these are surprisingly difficult to find in Hong Kong. If a store doesn't have what I want, I'm outta there faster than they can say "Welcome" in cantonese, at least what I assume they say. If they do - this is funny - I can take ages in that store, talking to myself so much so that some people start looking at me like I'm schizophrenic.

That's just how I am, I come home with more shopping when I go on my own. What about you - that feels so weird to say, by the way - are you more productive when you shop with your friends or on your own.

P.S. Shopping with your parents doesn't count. Cause that can go both ways. If you shop with my mother: non-productive. My dad on the other hand...8D

Meanwhile, I ended up buying the Peep-toed pumps over the MaryJanes

Plus these, cause I just couldn't put them down.


Meanwhile, I massacred my toenails last night. I haven't worn nail polish for four years until last night. I didn't do too bad a job, did I?

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Filipino television directors should go back to film school

I love watching TV Series but the difference between your average TV Junkie and myself is I watch a serial for everything, i.e. the plotline, the acting, the script, continuity, character depth, camera angles, originality.
To add, as much as I am a TV Junkie, there are some that I love and others that I don't. The last Filipino TV Drama that I loved was the Encantadia trilogy. Then after Marky Cielo died 2 years ago, I turned my back on filipino television.

However, living with my grandparents who are very weak in English, catching 10 minutes of filipino TV every night is inevitable, but more often than not, I return to my room wearing a frown and I find myself complaining left, right and dead centre about various factors so I'm gonna lay it all out here.
  1. The Script

    You know those movies that you've watched one time too many that you end up subconciously reciting the lines. That happens to me all the time. The thing is, it's not for the same show. I can predict the lines down to the last word.

    What's more, dialogues run forever, sometimes the lines begin repeating themselves in one form or another.

    -1 Script

    -1 Originality

  2.  The plotline

    With a memory as powerful as mine - very humble Vhie XD - I remember almost every movie and TV series that I've watched. I hate it when I watch something that resembles another. Taking recent series such as The Last Prince and Diva. They've taken plotlines from the Sister Act, various Disney plots, they even threw in some werewolves and vampires, much to my disbelief.

    -1 Plotline

    -1 Originality

  3. Character depth

    Ok, I won't be too mean. I'll give 'em points for building up different characters and sticking to it.

    +1 Character depth

  4. Cinematography

    Filipino series have very very very poor cinematography. They use the same camera angles. Every. Single. Time. They don't make enough use of the obstacles around them. Take a dialogue between two people for example. 90% of the time the camera shifts from one person to the other, and that's it. There are over 30 camera techniques. Why don't they try it sometime, huh?

    Transitions are very blunt, by that, I mean, they NEVER use any other form of transition.

    They can say they don't have the most advanced technology, but you know even that won't be their saving grace. Some of my friends, including myself, have made short films and music videos with various freeware from the Internet, so please stop, at least gimme a believable excuse.

    I'm not even gonna grade that.
Honestly, if you happen to be a filipino director/know one/plan to be one, PLEASE do philippine television some JUSTICE!!