I Love Paris

This blog is not meant solely for movie reviews, but by sheer coincidence this post is also about a movie. However, the film I’m about to talk about could not be more different from the one I reviewed previously.

It all started with The Da Vinci Code coming out a few months ago. Like countless others, I watched it. The movie was OK, not horrible but not excellent either. Tom Hanks, one of my favourite actors, sadly didn’t show the kind of acting brilliance he displayed in previous films such as Forrest Gump. I was, however, quite impressed by Audrey Tautou’s performance. She played a strong character and was the emotional core of the storyline. I vaguely recalled that her breakout role was in a French movie called Amélie. Her acting talent intrigued me so I sought to get a copy of the film. When I finally obtained and watched Amélie a few nights ago, what I saw blew me away.

Amélie is a shy young woman who works as a waitress in a café in Paris. She’s quirky and curious and revels in life’s simple pleasures, like skipping stones across a river. She also had a tragic childhood that makes her a bit of a loner. One fateful day, she sees a news report about Princess Diana’s death. This leads to a chain of events that convince her to become a regular do-gooder, going out of her way to help others and make people happy. Her adventures and escapades are highly entertaining yet touching to watch.

The supporting characters that surround Amélie are a truly colourful bunch. From the staff and regular customers at the café, to the landlady and tenants of her apartment building, to the neighbourhood grocer and his assistant, these people all play a part in Amélie’s life. They factor into highly amusing subplots and provide us with the film’s lighter moments.

Of course, no movie would be complete without a good love story, and the one in this film definitely does not disappoint. During one of her outings, Amélie meets a guy who’s as queer and lonely as she is, and she’s instantly smitten. His eccentricity is obvious through his hobby of collecting and piecing together photos that are torn up and discarded by their owners at instant photo booths. Amélie feels a connection with him, yet has not the courage to go up and speak to him face to face. Instead she chooses to love him from afar, and plays elaborate games with him to let him know her feelings without discovering who she is. Their relationship is genuinely romantic and funny and sweet without being sappy. This love story is one of the best I’ve ever seen, and it gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling inside that made me wish I were in love too.

The cast of this movie display superb acting skills. Audrey Tautou absolutely shines in her portrayal of the mischievous and charming Amélie with her expressive eyes and infectious smile. There’s no doubt Tautou has serious talent. However the acting and storyline aren’t the only things that make this film great. The cinematography is excellent and the music delightful. The movie also takes us to various beautiful locations around Paris. Amélie is truly an art film.

To be fair, this movie contains scenes that aren’t commonly seen by us Asians, who are (arguably) more conservative. The film features topless women and a sex shop and a hilarious example of why “banging” is a term for sex =D Nudity isn’t taboo in Europe, so a certain degree of open-mindedness is required on our part. But I’m sure that’s not a problem, especially for the guys who’d take this as an extra incentive to watch Amélie =P

I cannot stress how glad I am that I found this gem of a movie. After an overdose of American films, Amélie is a breath of fresh air. The multi-million dollar budgets, explosive action, dazzling special effects, predictable, recycled storylines and disproportionately beautiful people that are a Hollywood staple are not present in this film. Hearing the characters speak in a language I didn’t understand and having to rely fully on subtitles was strange, but only at first. Once I got caught up in the story, I completely forgot I was even watching a French film. All in all, this is one of the best films I’ve seen.

The tagline for this film is “She’ll change your life”. Watch Amélie, and trust me, she will.

P/s: If anyone is interested in watching this movie but can’t find a copy, let me know and I’ll lend mine to you =)

He's A Pirate

It's been over 6 hours since I exited GSC 1Utama after watching Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, and I'm still floating around in post-Pirates euphoria. I really shouldn't be this high over a movie, but I am. So sue me =P

When the movie first came out, I couldn't wait to see it, I adored the first one so much. But my hopes were somewhat dampened after reading reviews from Rotten Tomatoes, one of my favourite sites. The critics are quite harsh, but give a fairly accurate view of how good a movie is. The general consensus is that PotC2 is all style and no substance. Christopher, who'd seen the movie before me, didn't help much when he said it wasn't great but just OK. So my expectations were lowered, but only slightly. Luckily, I'm not too critical when it comes to movies. I LOVED it.

The tagline for the movie is "Captain Jack is back". Boy, am I glad he's back! Guys think girls like him because Johnny Depp is hot. Truth is, Jack isn't handsome at all, hell he looks slightly demented. But he's CHARMING. And friggin' HILARIOUS. And he's got that roguish, scoundrelly bad boy thing going on. And really, that's reason enough for the ladies to swoon. Ya gotta love Jack Sparrow. I know I do =D

Ah, but let's not forget William Turner. Now he's cute =P Pity his character is somewhat two-dimensional. But still, he's really sweet and devoted, and would do anything to protect his girl (why can't I get a guy like that?). He deserves better than that two-timing Elizabeth Swann (I won't spoil it for people who haven't seen the movie, so if you're curious go watch it). He deserves someone like me =D

Davy Jones. Now there's a villain for you. Octopus head, peg leg, and heartless, literally. The makeup and overall look of him and his crew is disgusting but cool. And the best part is Jones isn't really evil, he's just bitter over a long-lost love, which gives his character depth and makes him vulnerable. He isn't as fun as the scenery-chomping Barbossa from PotC1 though. But he does have a super cool "pet", the Kraken. Oh, and much to my amusement, one of his crew members speaks Cantonese =D

One of the things I love most about this movie is the fact that EVERYONE is back. Not just Jack, Will and Elizabeth, but even the supporting characters from the first movie. Non-human ones as well =D People you thought couldn't possibly show up do exactly that. So for those who haven't seen it, brace youselves =)

I think I've raved enough about PotC2. But here are some of my favourite quotes and one-liners from this awesome film. Enjoy =)

Will: What about Jack? I can't leave without him!
[sees Jack getting chased by dozens of cannibals]
Will: Never mind, let's go!

***

Tia Dalma: You know I require payment.
Jack Sparrow: I brought payment. Look.
[shoots the monkey]
Jack Sparrow: An undead monkey! Top that!
Tia Dalma: The payment is fair...

***

Davy Jones: Can you live with yourself Jack? Can you live with condemning an innocent man - a friend - to a life of solitude?
Jack Sparrow: Yep, I'm good with it.

***

Elizabeth: There will come a time when you have a chance to do the right thing.
Jack: I love those moments. I like to wave at them as they pass by.

***

Pintel (the fat bald pirate) is rowing the boat while Ragetti (the skinny one with the wooden eye) is reading a book upside down.
Pintel: You don't even know how to read!
Ragetti: It's the Bible, you get credit for trying!

***

Guard the boat, mind the tide...don't touch my dirt. - Jack to Pintel and Ragetti

***

My incredibly intuitive sense of the female creature tells me you're troubled. - Jack to Elizabeth

***

You know, these clothes do not flatter you at all. It should be a dress or nothing. I happen to have no dress in my cabin. - Jack to Elizabeth

***

I can't wait for Pirates 3! =)

The Scientist

A few days ago, I cleared out the massive post-nuclear junkyard that is my book cupboard. A-Levels is over, and university beckons, so I wanted to chuck out my old stuff to make way for what lies ahead. Thus I began sorting out what I wanted to keep for future reference from what could be sold off or sent for recycling. For some, the action of throwing books out is a joyful one. I can just imagine the more creative ones dousing their books in kerosene and torching the lot. But while this task was definitely liberating, to my surprise it also got me quite emotional. Those who have spoken to me recently know that I've decided to pursue a degree in accounting and finance, so obviously I wouldn't be needing my science books and notes anymore. Yet, I didn't have the heart to throw them away. It stirred something in me and made me think.

I realised how much I'll miss studying science. I'll miss the facts and laws and theories that explain why the world is the way it is. I'll miss the mind-blowing physics formulas and the tongue-twisting chemical names (think 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine).

I'll probably miss the practicals the most. I still remember my delight upon finding out that in college each student gets a lockerful of their own things and will perform experiments individually, as opposed to high school where we either worked in groups or only watched as the teacher demonstrated. I'll miss wearing my white labcoat, now stained with chemical splotches, that made me look like a doctor/mad scientist. I'll miss going into the laboratory each week and tinkering around with an array of extremely expensive and cool-looking apparatus. I'll miss the feeling of apprehension and anticipation I felt before starting each of the many challenging and crazy experiments thrown at us.

I'll miss the terribly fragile glassware that my class was so prone to breaking. I'll miss the rack of test tubes filled with solutions and precipitates so vibrantly colourful, a friend once compared them to an eyeshadow palette. I'll miss the ridiculous electrical circuits with their wires and minute components that caused us so much grief because they never seemed to work, the multimeters that rarely gave us the readings we needed. I'll even miss the repetitive measurement and timing experiments that required steady hands, sharp eyes and limitless patience, which I lacked. I'll miss using scientific lingo like "fractional distillation" and "electromagnetic induction". I'll miss the sense of accomplishment I felt everytime my experiment was successful, the jubilation whenever I got the right results. And believe it or not, I'll miss my Chemistry lecturer, Mr Yeap, who'd give a loud exaggerated sigh whenever we broke something and laughed in our faces whenever an experiment bombed because we didn't listen to him.

Many friends of mine are also leaving pure science behind to pursue social science degrees like economics. I don't know if they feel the same way. For me, there will be times when I take out that good ol' labcoat and put it on for memories' sake. But right now, I have to focus on my future, on this new unfamiliar path, and excel at my chosen field.

So, at long last, I bid farewell to the scientist in me.