Upon arriving in HK the other night, the AliveNotDead guys hooked it up with a ticket to go to the red carpet premiere of the new Jackie Chan and Wang Lee Hom flick, Little Big Soldier. Well, I had no plans, so why not?
My movie mates! The gorgeous Grace Huang and Etchy.
Lin Peng, Director Ding Sheng, and Steve Yoo (aka Yoo Seung-Jun):
The crowd was a lil’ bit too crazy. I don’t know why there was an ambulance. Maybe cuz’ somebody had a heart attack upon hearing Wang Lee Hom was in the house (actually, I don’t know if he was there or not, but there were some WLH fanatics in the house for sure).
How was the movie? I thought it was OK. Jackie Chan is always entertaining and I thought it was cool that he wrote the story, but overall, I thought it dragged a bit, became very predictable at times, and didn’t have much of a payoff. The character development wasn’t totally there, cuz’ by the end, I wasn’t invested enough in the characters to care about their transformations. Despite that, I did laugh a fair amount here and there (although I happened to laugh at things that nobody else laughed at… I guess my sense of humor is totally different from the HK audience).
Review
Feb 10
Little Big Soldier
Feb 10
艋舺 / MONGA
So this is the hottest flick in Taiwan right now… MONGA. I’d been hearing about it from my relatives and from watching TV, and then a friend who knows the director wanted to go see it… so we watched it last night! And it was quite good. I have to honestly say I wasn’t really expecting too much based on Taiwanese films I’d seen before (which actually isn’t very much), but this one was was very well made, has a great story, and the actors are pretty hot. Puahaha. Takeshi Kaneshiro, watch out!
Random tidbits: The whole entire time, I kept thinking that one of the main characters, “Monk” (Ethan Ruan) looked so much like Kev Nish from FM! And then “Mosquito” (Mark Chao) kinda looked like Bruce Lee… haha.
I don’t know too much about the back story of this film and right now there’s no IMDB page for it either… hmm. Well, in short, it’s about a place called Monga, which according to my uncle, baaack in the day was a port where many mainlanders entered Taiwan from. Ok, if you don’t like spoilers, well here’s your SPOILER ALERT… In this film, the story takes place in the ’70s and ’80s and is about a group of friends, part of the Temple Front gang. The narrator of the story, Mosquito, is invited to be a part of the gang after a silly fight with members of another gang, the Back Alley. Mosquito has grown up without a father and has never had any real friends, so after Monk and the others take him under their wing, he fully embraces the new lifestyle and there’s no turning back. The story has a number of heart-wrenching twists and while it is a drama, there’s also a lot of humor which I loved. In the end, it all comes down to the characters trying to balance the harsh realities of a violent gangster life with the honor of friendship and brotherhood.
I have no idea when the film will be hitting the U.S., but I hope it will! Here’s the website, but it’s all in Chinese: mongathemovie.com
Jan 10
Ramenbox.com
With every New Year comes NEW ideas! I’d like to introduce Ramenbox.com to y’all. “The world’s first customizable box of ramen.” I have a feeling this is going to be quite popular with college students and well, people like me who don’t always have the time to cook or don’t know how to cook. Haha.
You can pick from over 50 choices of premium instant noodles and have it all packed and shipped to you in one box!
My dear friend, Becky Wu, and her friend, Howard, came up with this awesome idea. The site launched on New Year’s Day and I had to order myself a box! I am very pleased to say that the shipment came via FedEx within 5 days and was definitely packed with care (and love!).
I should be angry that they spilled coffee on my packing slip.
But it’s ok… Becky hooked it up with some extras! 
My general thoughts of Ramenbox.com: The site is really easy to use! The price ain’t bad for what you get. The shipment came within 5 days and was packed nicely. And well, what else is there to say? Besides that I think it’s a great idea!
Here’s what they have to say about themselves: Because of its unique idea, a lot of people ask us how Ramenbox.com® came to be. We can only say it was born from hunger. Hungry for the world to finally discover they had more options than just plain old Top Ramen® and Cup O’Noodles®, and hungry for….well, for amazing instant ramen. We thought, instead of driving to three different supermarkets to grab all of our favorite instant noodles (you know you have your favorites too), we thought wouldn’t it be great if one place had them all? So we let the idea stew in our heads for oh, 3 minutes and presto, Ramenbox.com® was cooked and ready. The worlds first, customizable Ramenbox.
P.S. – I will be sure to submit my review of each package of noodles I try! I ordered a variety of them! So far I know the Green Tea Chlorella one is good (even though it might not sound good~ haha)! 
Nov 09
Some Drama Fo’ Yo Mama!
First of all, I’m still in Taiwan (wait, did I even mention before that I was gonna be in Asia for 3 weeks? haha). Well, anyway, I’ve been outta the loop this whole time cuz’ I haven’t had time or haven’t had Internet connection for the majority of my trip.
So right now, I have a lil’ chill time and I’ve been doing some catching up with emails and Facebook… and OMG… the entries for KoreAm’s “Drama Fo’ Yo Mama” contest are hilarious! I haven’t even been able to watch them all yet (mostly cuz’ my Internet connection at my grandma’s is sooo slow)… but so far the ones I’ve seen are pretty awesome. “Gochu” is freakin’ hilarious (and pretty gross, too). It’s well casted with Jun Kim, David Lee Kane (formerly David Lee McGinnis), and the very funny Shane Yoon. It’s also up there in terms of production quality. “Summer Sonata” is great with Randall Park, Vivian Bang, and Hahn Cho. I love the dialogue vs. the subtitles. And I pretty much love everything Randall Park does (video posted below). “Phones Before Flowers”… OMG, PK… that hair and the freakin’ “Verizon”~ haha! The moment between Janet Choi and Roy Choi… CUTE. Puahaha (inside scoop: the two are married in real life). Then there’s freakin’ Charles Kim in the “Omma Dearest” series. LOL. Lovin’ it. I especially loved the argument in part 2 between “Omma” and Lanny Joon’s character. And then part 3?! Haha, omg.
Now I’m kinda bummed I wasn’t around to partake in the contest, but all good. After watching some Taiwanese dramas over here (the ones in Taiwanese not Mandarin)… I’m almost tempted to make a spoof of one of those. The acting is sooo sooo overdramatic (at least from what I’ve seen) and I’ve never heard Taiwanese spoken the way it’s spoken in these dramas… I’d need to learn some Taiwanese first though, haha.
Anyway, you can check out all the entries here and vote for your fave!
http://iamkoream.com/the-koream-drama-fo-yo-mama-contest/
Jun 09
Summer Flicks
Normally, I don’t go out to theaters very much, but so far, this summer, I’ve been able to see a few movies, and so far so good.
Last night I watched UP in 3-D… such a touching film! I cried within the first 10 minutes! And honestly, I don’t even think you really need to watch the film in 3-D… the glasses are annoying at times. Pixar is definitely consistent with good storytelling here. I definitely want to see this one again.
STAR TREK. Who hasn’t seen it yet? Well, it’s def had a lot of buzz around it for awhile during this time of the J.J. Abrams reign. And for those who haven’t seen it yet, it’s def worth checking out in theaters. I’m no Trekkie, but they setup the story so well from the get go, that you don’t need to have any prior Star Trek knowledge. I also cried within the first 10 minutes… maybe even 5 minutes… haha. John Cho plays a very lovable Sulu and Zachary Quinto is hot as Spock… great casting.
I saw ANGELS & DEMONS via an advanced screening… I actually enjoyed it a lot. I’m not sure what readers of the books or viewers of the previous DA VINCI CODE movie thought, but I went into the film with no knowledge of the story, so everything was really fresh for me. A part of me thinks I might’ve liked it a tad more than Star Trek, just cuz’ of the subject matter (I tend to like psych thrillers… and even though this may not have been one, it did play mind tricks with me!).
So those are the flicks I’ve seen as of late and that might be it for me for the summer. Today I had a lunch meeting with a buncha film buffs and for the fall, it sounds like PRECIOUS is going to be really good.
Mar 09
All You Need is Love
So I’d been wanting to see Across the Universe since I saw the movie posters for it back when it was out in theaters. I finally watched it and I can’t get it out of my head! 33 Beatles songs! Anyway, I think it was a pretty awesome film with so many stylistically different musical scenes. Some of them were pretty bizarre and like “wth” am I tripping on drugs, too? Haha. I liked it.
Speaking of musicals, I must be in musical mode. I watched Sweeney Todd last night. Very, very interesting. I’m not so sure I liked it although the cinematography, costumes, makeup, etc. were amazing.
Now, if only I could sing!!! I would LOVE to be in a musical. SIGH.
Flashback to high school: I used to go see the school musical every year. A lot of my friends were part of the production and so I went to support ‘em. At the same time, I secretly desired to be a part of the musical… but… the one time I attempted to go to an audition, I totally chickened out!
Flashback to elementary school: Back then, we were forced to all participate in the school musical. I played a mermaid one time for our version of Peter Pan. I’m pretty sure I had a lot of fun doing it…
So what happened? Grr. Why did I get all chicken in high school?
Oh wait, I know. I think it was hammered into my brain that I needed to focus on studying. Plus, I was never allowed out of the house besides going to school and school-related things. SIGH. I’m sure there are many of you fellow 2nd-generation Asian American peeps who can relate.
What the. Didn’t realize this was going to become a rant about my upbringing. Haha.
I’ll just leave it at that. I guess fast forward to now: I am def at a different place (although it is very unlikely I will ever sing in a musical). But, I am super thankful for where I’m at now! Definitely feelin’ the love from above!
P.S. – I recently signed up for Netflix, thus the sudden viewing of movies, haha. It’s pretty awesome. Lovin’ the online streaming!
May 08
Option 3… and Breaking the Cycle.
So I watched OPTION 3 at the film fest last night and it was quite good for what it was. Director Richard Wong actually gave us a bit of a disclaimer prior to the screening, saying that this film would not do what films try to do. Rather, it would reflect the state of his mind during a time of depression following a bad ending to a relationship. Well, it was quite a journey trying to follow what was going on, but I think that’s exactly what it was all about as puzzle pieces here and there were presented to us and the main character, Ken. It’s kinda like you get into Ken’s head and start going crazy, too. Anyway, as serious and intense as the film got, it also got pretty silly at times… and dude, how could it NOT have a musical number? (COLMA?)
Anyway, the film caused me to remember a short film I had made in college… inspired by my experiences with relationships, etc.
So here it is… it’s nothing fancy, but it’ll give you a glimpse of what was in my head about 4 years ago…
Oct 05
My New Favorite…
Film: THE MOTEL
Starring Jeffrey Chyau, Sung Kang, Jade Wu
Directed by Michael Kang (Mike2Cents of Xangaland!)
This is a story about a chubby and awkward Chinese American kid who lives and works at a family-owned motel in what seems to be the middle of nowhere. He hates his life: his mother has him under a hawk’s eye, he is constantly bullied, he lusts for an older girl, and he’s thirteen–he has yet to get through puberty. Everyday is routine until one day a stranger enters his life and begins to reshape the molds.
Anyway, I’m not going to try to hype this movie up, cuz’ well, you should just see it when it comes out. It definitely surpassed my expectations. You can find out more info at themotel-film.com
CD: Ken Oak Band’s “Symposium”
I’m loving this “cello rock” (as Ken and co. call it) I especially like track #2, “Masquerade.” It’s actually the song that has been streaming on my Myspace for awhile now. Anyway, you can now purchase the new Symposium for $14.99 (includes tax + shipping) online. The first 100 CDs will be signed by Ken, Chris Ramos, and Ed Gorski. For a sampling of the songs, check out their Myspace band page: myspace.com/kenoak
Dec 04
Review: House of Flying Daggers
Zhang Yimou once again proves himself as an awesome visual storyteller. As for the narrative structure of the film…eh, I think it could’ve been organized better. For example, I was frustrated with some of the plot twists. The way or time those were introduced could have been rethought. Something that also bothered me was how Andy Lau’s character wasn’t developed enough for the purpose of the narrative. Finally, the last chunk of the film, although beautiful, could have been omitted.
In short, it was gorgeous, BUT the story had problems…especially the ending!
Apr 03
Better Luck Tomorrow
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Watched Better Luck Tomorrow last night (finally!). Theater was sold out. Good movie. Interesting story & plot. Questionable ending. Talented actors. Excellent directing. Definitely a new beginning for Asian Americans in the film/entertainment industry. Just becuz’ this “review” isn’t as long as you all thought it would be (I bet you thought I’d be going on & on about the movie)…don’t get me wrong. I liked the movie & I highly recommend checking it out. It’s funny. It’s eye-opening. It’s controversial. The characters are very real. & although, I did think the ending was kinda o_O (I read somewhere that MTV changed it…not sure if this is true)…it still left the audience w/ something to think about. Finally. I especially liked Virgil. He’s damn funny. Virgil (Jason Tobin) & Han (Sung Kang). For those of you interested in reading some actual reviews of this movie, go here (thanx to Simon Lo for suggesting the link): |
