I always liked Angel Locsin, especially when I see her in her Darna suit (*Sigh* The good old legal-public-show-it-all days). Though, I really feel she never really gained levels when it comes to acting (she looks flat on her emotional scenes), I guess nobody can’t love her by just the way she looks.

You may be thinking why am I posting such nonsense? Well, for starters, I’m a huge Angel Locsin fan (*giggles*). Second, I can’t stand her ex-home network doing this to her, sending off gazillions of bad publicity against her, and they call this transfer some “no big deal” event. Tell that to Dennis Trillo, Nadine Samonte, Robin Padilla, Marian Rivera, even people whom most people didn’t know, but became famous because of this rift happening in the normal boob tube scene.

If I were Angel’s manager (hopefully more than that ), why would I transfer her to ABS-CBN? Hmm… let me think.

First… ABS-CBN’s handling of its talents might be better than on the other side of the fence. Why? I just commented on the other blog post about the huge difference between Magpakailanman and Maalaala mo Kaya. Acting is at par in ABS-CBN compared to GMA. Not to mention Channel 2 hosts the best young actors and actresses who has won an award (Jericho Rosales, Judy Ann Santos, Claudine Barretto, Piolo Pascual, Carlo Aquino, and even Serena Dalrymple), not to mention the fact that GMA just transfers good actors from ABS, and wave their flags of victory for acquiring their bests (errr… like Jolina Magdangal?). Even nip-slipper Eda Nolan really looks good and believable on-cam.

Second. On the “Hearty” network, Angel’s image has been very mature compared to, IMO, what she really is. She was named sexiest woman. This should be really great. But great went to worst especially during her Darna days, when she was made to tumble and roll, while trying to prevent a nip slip. Some of my college friends back then were scared her bustier might fall of after a super stunt. Recent reports have also stated about her rift with her stunt coordinators. For Pete’s sake, she’s a budding woman, and she’s too beautiful to do Cynthia Rothrock! It just made her seem too cheap, winning the masses’ hearts not because of acting, but because of the opposing images of beauty and brawn. Well, I should say she should credit GMA 7 for her fame now, but most college people really think she shouldn’t be pushing herself to the audience that way. She was watchable back then during the “Click” times.

Third. The “Hearty” network has also mentioned about them pushing contracts to her for the past few months. They were somehow promising that their loyalty is to the network. Suddenly, a big buzz erupted somewhere (I dunno, maybe Phil. Entertainment Portal, which is a GMA partner, BTW) that Angel was climbing fences without letting the higher ups know what is going on. The buzz became an item, then a big item, and if you’re subscribed to GMANews.tv’s Entertainment RSS, you’ll find that most articles there refer to Angel and the “no big deal” treatment of GMA 7 over the issue (yeah, it’s not that bitter, right?). If I were the actor, and stuff like this gets thrown at me by my own company / home studio, wouldn’t you be disheartened, hurt? Disturbed, maybe?

Well, this bad-mouthing and ass-wiping won’t stop (e.g. “Loyalty and Gratitude are not co-terminus with a contract. Sa puso nanggagaling ‘yan. {It comes from the heart}”), and Angel, though may be ingrate and airheaded, if I may say, must be understood by the public, for she just demands better treatment, greener bucks (if I may say), and a fitting environment. If your work place isn’t compatible for you anymore, why bother staying? Yuppies, we all know this. So, stop making it a big issue and watch out for her, cross your fingers, hope and pray she’ll be a better actress than she was before.

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One of our comment people mentioned about Kyle being shown on Studio 23, on August 8, around 8:30 PM. If this was true, then it should be premiering here in the Philippines next week.

Right at this very moment, I’m visiting Studio 23’s official website. Right now, it’s kinda f*d up. Good thing there’s always Google’s cache and we could take a peek on the previous state of the site. According to Studio 23’s cached text:

KYLE XY

This August, a brand new series arrives on Studio 23.

Kyle XY follows the surprising journey of a 16-year-old teenage savant who emerges mysteriously from the woods one day with no apparent memory of who he is or where has been. In a youth detention center, Kyle, as he comes to be called, falls under the care of a psychologist who quickly realizes that the boy needs more special attention, and so takes him home to live temporarily with her family. Soon they all begin to understand that Kyle has some very unique and uncanny abilities.

Catch KYLE XY beginning August 8 at 8:30 pm following Totally Outrageous Behavior.

So that’s all folks, and enjoy “Kyle” on Studio 23. You may also want to show this to your mom or your dad, and tell them, “I want that kind of mommy / daddy!” Just don’t blame me if ever shards of glass will come flying inside your house.

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“On The Lot”, I guess, describes the place where these directors shoot their films, or where they are housed, probably Universal Studios. It’s a reality show ala-”American Idol” which, on the first part, invites some 50 talented directors over 16,000 from different countries. So yeah, you guys might think it’s a big production of some sort. In some ways, yeah, because the amount of production they had for the first few episodes were gigantic. As of now, they still do, but later in this post, you’ll see there’s a “lot” of boo-boos here, which is a pity for Executive Producer Steven Spielberg (yeah, the Steven Spielberg).

The pilot and second shows were actually good, but made me scratch my balding head (not recommended by dermatologists) when the third episode came in. Where did the 1-hour-in-the-making films have gone? That was really frustrating. To top it all, they had lousy judges. They should’ve thrown out sappy shorts and kept in those with promise of style. Yeah, a director should be a good storyteller, but not much of a good writer. They messed up with the idea that the director really takes the responsibility for everything movie-making. Carrie Fisher even demanded writing dialogue for, I dunno, Phil, and I said to myself, what the hell?!? He’s a director not a screenplay writer!

And like the American Idol, the biggest booboo for “On The Lot” is the bitching sponsors. They really have to have as much airtime as possible, even if it risks the directors’ short’s artistic value. I mean, imagine an action scene filled with “specs” of an SUV, and the best director, IMO, was sent to the brink of elimination because of making a flashy SFX-y “ride” of a Ford car! I don’t think Steven Spielberg would ever consider these guys if they direct stuff like that.

On a positive note, “On the Lot” really has showcased a bunch of talents. Zach Lipovsky, the one I was mentioning being the best director, was pretty versatile. He was known at the very start being CG-guy, pertaining to the shorts he has done with flashy special effects and Computer-Generated Imagery, or CGI. This one is a clip from his best film, IMO, “Die Hardly Working”, which never utilized CGI, but made extensive use of sound effects and really engaging score:

And here’s a clip from good ol’ YouTube.com:

This short is about workers killing boredom by having their own style of action movies. It was really funny and he has really driven the actors to good, believable executions, which just proves his creativity and genius. I think he’s really the Dreamworks kind of guy. Though there’s also Adam, who has made a musical out of bakeries and unemployment, and Jason who had a controversial start with “Getta Rhoom”, but redeemed himself with doing horror and action films. Kenny was the worst because obviously, he doesn’t know what he is doing. He admits not going to film school and tries hard to inspire audiences that you don’t need to go to film school just to be a good director. Surely, it also doesn’t take arrogance to be the greatest.What I enjoy most with the show is seeing a lot of shorts, and it kinda made me interested with how these directors pack such content within two or three minutes. I sometimes gasp (“Sunshine Girl” by Zach and “Broken Pipes and Dreams” by Sam) on how they make a normal idea into a breathtaking cinematic experience.

I also watch this show because of the fact that Steven Spielberg co-executive produces this (So I’m a biased bloke, I mean, who doesn’t love Spielberg).

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Like what I said in another blogpost (which is having a lot of feedbacks and hits from viewers) me and Jolo went to UP to catch some scenes to be captured inside our cameras. Knowing that Jolo is the better photographer between the two of us, I always take guidelines and tips from him. He’s the hardcore photography guy, and he only used film for the photos I’m going to show you here.

I figured you guys might also be interested with his photos, and the following will surely catch you attention, for they were tinted by cross-processing. With his permission, here are some of the best photos he had during the UP visit. His album can be seen on his Multiply account:

The best pic I’ve seen from him so far: Ann (Ross’ wife and my dentist) with her pet, Griffin

Far view of the UP Main Library

A grumpy cat from Manong Fishball’s cart

More trees from the Lagoon Park

Myself, down the Math Building stairs (*Sigh*… Those old loner days)

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This post is pretty late, but better late than never.

Two Fridays ago, I had this extraordinary experience of meeting up my old pals from UP EEE’s Software Application Laboratory, and I have to say, I really missed them, especially Gabby and Mosh for I haven’t seen them for two and a half years. Though we still communicate through YM, the meetup was so precious I’m really craving for more meetups.

Anyway, here are my friends’ pictures. Hope you guys won’t kill me for this:

Gabby, Mosh, and Gabby’s friend, LaBelle (did I spell it right?)

Alvin, the sunniest of them

Eating Jollibee food inside McDonald’s is an accidental tripping

Thanks to Gabby for catching my biggest smile that night! Thus the “Maluwalhati” icon

This is Gabby, I guess the one whom I can talk to with with so much trust and comfort

More in my Picasa Album.

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(A review of the number one movie of the year, for now: Ratatouille)

Rottentometoes.com is one of the most reliable sources of user reviews for movies. Just recently, I found out that Ratatouille is the number one movie of the first half of the year. Considering that for the past few months we had big blockbusters and head-turners like Spiderman 3, Pirates of the Carribean: At World’s End, Shrek 3, Transformers, and Disturbia (being the head-turner). Spiderman 3 was weirdly hilarious (as opposed to the ever-loved second installment), this year’s Jack Sparrow adventure was still dull compared to the original, and Transformers was simply eye-candy. Just last night, we watched Ratatouille in Greenbelt and I really had high expectations of the movie, and I’m pretty scared I might just think badly about the movie since I already saw previews of it and, yeah, I raised the bar so unfairly it might even be hard for the Pixar film get my nod.And when the film ended, I WAS ALMOST IN TEARS! Knowing that I’m the ultimate non-tearjerky for movies, I was even upset because I can’t cry! I wanna cry! IT WAS SOOOO DAMN GOOD!

Anyway, as for those out there who haven’t seen the movie yet, don’t worry because there’s not much spoiler in here. Just go frickin watch the movie! You’ll lose the greatest cinematic experience for this year, to date.

Cinematics / Visuals – No doubt Pixar is on a different league compared to other animations out there, even the eye-popping Transformers won’t stand a chance with the way visuals is blended in the entire movie. Remy, being the lead character rat in the movie, is a lot more cuddlier with very good fur renderring, life-like kinetics (in other words, he moves like a mouse), sumptuous artistry on food and extraordinary detail with how they pictured Paris, that even if they showed rust and rots on buildings, the Pixar team made it so good you would want to climb up those walls.

Music – Music is very authentic French, and the score fits pretty much like “Flight of the Bumblebee” by Rimsky-Korsakov for “bees”. The romance ballad, however, made The Critique’s (sort-of antagonist of the film) monologue push me to almost dropping a tear, but if you didn’t feel your hair raise on that sequence, I dunno… you might just be watching for the eye-candy.

Dialogue – The good thing about Pixar films is they don’t need to put lots of dialogue into their scenes. In this special case, the gestures, facial expressions, and the camera movement and angles filled up for dialogue. But even the slightest dialogue is slapsticky, and manages to stay away from the stereotypical-cartoonish scripts that most animated films have. But the shining moment of the film is The Critique’s monologue, where everything summed up what Ratatouille is all about: Pushing beyond the limits of your identity, of where you came from and the capabilities you possess. That part was so lovely and nostalgic, I even found a way to relate to the entire message, reason why most critiques think that this year’s Pixar offering caters more to the adults and young adults, rather than the usual young audience.

All in all, Ratatouille gets my 10 out of 10 for making me gasp, whine, laugh, and almost cry inside the theater, I looked satisfyingly silly.

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I usually am the “voluntary” nanny in the family. Being the eldest may have some perks (like having the most grand first birthday among the siblings, and being granny’s favorite), but surely, taking care of my younger siblings isn’t that big a perk. I’m not saying I hate it, it’s just that it’s tiring and all. Though I must say, when they were babies, I was happy mixing up milk formulas in their bottles, and I was relishing each moment while I change their diapers. Little bundles of joy they were (not that they’re not right now). I still can hear them laugh and giggle every time I do gurgling sounds.

I always had this impression that men has this allergy of having babies at an early age. Well, obviously it’s not convenient to have one while you’re in college, but right now, I have this sense of longing for those tiny giggles, and from the joy of seeing them learn the basics.

I dunno. Will I be a good father? Is it bad to have children just to enjoy them making progress under my guidance? Will I be expecting to much from them? I should say, I may not be ready to be one, but I want to be one.

Videos in youtube also got me hooked, seeing dads talk about cereals to their young, take their kids to carnival rides, and bring their childhood back with them through racecars and action figures. Having kids may make you seem old. But what I really am looking forward to being a parent is to be a kid again. Selfish (and childish) as it seems, it may sound like making babies just to legally have someone to play with, or someone to talk to when you’re tired of being a grown-up.

Of course I know about the responsibilities of providing to my kids. But being your kids’ older playmate… Is that being a good parent?

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Lots have been published in the entire web about PotterMania, and this one was so hyped, I even feel the silence, this weekend, amongst my friends who reads the books. I have to say, I was so happy I was in my old, regular speed in reading the last Potter book as I had back in college (one and a half days including  hours of sleep) but I guess this last one was my record speed (I slept around 10 hours because I was so tired from the UP photoshoots, and when I came back, I buried my eyes reading it).

I remember seeing this article in Slashdot:
NewsFactor Network | Bezos: Amazon Won’t Profit from Next ‘Harry Potter’

With all the discounts flying around (at the day of the UP shoot, I saw an org selling Potter Books 6 and 7 for the retail price of 1450 pesos), there’s some hint of truth there. But honestly, I don’t really believe that fully.

Anyway, I just finished reading the last Potter book, entitled “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. At first, I thought Rowling spelled it wrong, because I remember a mention about “Godric’s Hollows” in the previous books. Right now, while I’m writing this post, I have this difficulty of reading because my eyes grew so tired I’m seeing doubles even with my glasses. So forgive me if ever I encounter errors with my post right now. They will be edited at the end of the day.

Okay, first off, don’t worry, I won’t give spoilers in this post, for I myself detest those who put in essential details about the book on the web. I even spotted an article in my newsfeeds about Potter’s fate, as if it’s some news or whatever. Though Wikipedia is expected to do this, they too put in the summary of the entire story.

Rantings aside, I guess the book is the best read I had for the entire series. It was full of adventures and misadventures, a lot of details that the movie shouldn’t miss, and a revolving plot similar to “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”. There were revelations that, even though I already expected them from previous books, the way Rowling told the story made me feel still surprised, shocked at times. There was a chapter dedicated to foreshadowing Harry’s fate, and that really satisfied my theories even before Book 5 was published.

But then again, the biased and hard-to-convince critic in me still says the story wasn’t enough for me. Between artistic and responsible conclusions, Rowling did the “responsible” move. I mean what can I say, kids made Rowling a billionaire.

Anyway, as nonsense this post may seem, I still believe guys out there who totally depended on the movies to catch up with Harry’s story should read the books because nothing will give you good content other than getting it yourself from the horse’s mouth.

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This morning, though I didn’t have plans of going out or something, me and Jolo went taking pictures inside my could’ve-been alma-mater, UP Diliman. I knew back then that the sights in the Lagoon Park were breathtaking, but never they were captured this way.

Surely, UP is one of the best places to study. Peaceful, quiet, lots of room to do whatever you want to do (even You-Know-What), and I started reminiscing as we walked the streets that I used to endure even at high noon. I might be coming back soon, this way again.

All of my pictures can be seen under my Picasa Album. Here are some of the shots:

Lagoon Park Shot

The “Dramatic Shot”

A stylized “Batibot”

Good ol’ Palma Hall Entrance

Math Building

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Supersonic: World’s Fastest Residential Internet Connection – Gizmodo

Like OMG! I’d kill for that speed!

Well, other than having an iPhone and a car, or my own company…

And a nice macbook pro 64-bit dual core…

And a plane ticket around the world…

(And the list goes on and on)

Don’t you feel like it’s so unfair that granny gigabit’s using her connection just for browsing news sites? (Cry harder)

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