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Showing posts from January, 2014

wall street on an endless hallucinogenic trip

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finally, leonardo dicaprio found the material that suits his oftentimes hyperbolic moves, moods and mannerisms on the big screen. in his fifth collaboration with martin scorsese -- one of the greatest living directors in hollywood (the others are the genius francis ford coppola, the dreamer christopher nolan and the non-compromising richard linklater ) -- wolf of wall street succeeded in awakening and heating up leonardo's sleeping and frozen acting chops. leonardo pretty much keeps you hypnotized for three hours or more. a triumph, indeed, for someone who has been giving us nothing but mediocre performances in the past several years. the story of an ambitious wall street trader, broker and then one of its richest and most successful market makers, leonardo embodies and owns the film from start to finish, particularly his funny scenes with jonah hill and even with kyle chandler. i have mentioned it several times (as if! feeling important) that leonardo should find a light m

of books and boredom

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"give me a book and i live a hundred lives," mahatma gandah. in between job hunting online, job interviews, bouts of insomnia, meeting friends over coffee or beer, watching movies, updating my wardrobe and cruising in the river styx, i find time to read books, i mean novels. a lot. i have never read this much for as long as i can remember. so far i have finished these (oh please, no bragging rights intended): (i can totally relate to mr. orwell. my version would be, down and out in makati and malate.) (my third time to read this murakami masterpiece. i am still looking for the dvd of its film adaptation. sigh!) (a favourite. i always read it every time i feel down and out just like mr. orwell.) (set in an italian villa in the late 60s, when the young ones engaged in free luv, dope and endless sex. i was born too late, darn!) (my second time to read this. i read it four years ago when i was stranded at a singapore airport. sadl

kindness, whether undeserved or not

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i got a call and then text and email messages today. unexpectedly. they warmed my cold, cold heart mainly caused by the weather and the departure of a dear one back to where he is working. one was from a glamourous artiste whom i have interviewed centuries ago in my past incarnation as a lifestyle writer. he called just to check on me, you know, if i have found a job already and if so, he hoped it's the one i have been wishing for. when i told him not yet, he immediately gave me the phone number of his editor friend, whom, he said could help me out. i was touched. like totally. "i thought about you this morning," he said on the other line, his cheerful voice pervading my a bit dreary room. "i just want to know how you are doing." a few seconds later, he sent me the number of his editor friend. then he texted again: "please call him now na. just mention my name." i was smiling as i texted him back: "will do. asap."

tough oscar choices ahead

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forget amy adams and jennifer lawrenc e, golden globe's best actress and supporting actress winners, respectively. while both actresses are really good in american hustle ( christian bale , though snubbed by the foreign press association's award giving body, is a standout in that film), their performances paled in comparison to meryl streep and cate blanchett (oscar best actress nominees along with amy) and julia roberts and the phenomenal  lupita nyong'o (best supporting actress nominees along with jennifer). &&&&&&&&&&& relentless, brutal and bloody --  august: osange county is not for the fainthearted. a story about a family grieving over the death of the head of the family - a successful poet - it is bloody, brutal and relentless in its dramatic moments, like a summer blockbuster action porn where explosions after explosions bolstered by multi-million dollar special effects and accompanied by eardrum-wrecki

working hard for the money

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(this post will be entirely in filipino, with splashes of english and gay lingo. again, for my non-filipino and straight speaking readers, please either buy a balarila or get in touch with me for translation. chos!) *********** kakatuwa rin pala maghanap ng trabaho. kahit medyo masakit sa ulo at minsan sa ego na rin dahil siyempre pag hindi ka nila type, wis ka nila hire. kahit anong confidence mo sa sarili, minsan talaga mapapa-tanong ka sa self mo nang " what is wrong with me?" ( sabay tulo ng luha sa isang pisngi )  kapag lagi ka na lang rejected. masakit, pero ganun talaga. sabi nga ni mani pakyaw: payt lang ng payt! kahet masaket pa. ang iniisip ko na lang (pambobola sa sarili) eh baka hindi talaga para sa akin ang trabahong yon, kahit bagay sa aking pagiging glamorosa. may mga ganito pa nga akong litanya: paano kung nandun na ako at biglang magsara yong kumpanya. o kaya biglang lumindol

the perils of dating gorgeous men

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“ i do not pick the wrong guys. they pick me.” ― c andace bushnell , s ex and the city how do i loathe thee? let me count the ways.... there was a time, of course, when i was shallow (age has nothing to do with it, by the way, just so you know), stupid and attractive (i have a thirty-inch waistline, a perpetual tan, glowing skin even if i haven't slept for days, thick, black hair, and a quick wit that i honed from a finishing school in switzerland) and "dated" a number of really gorgeous guys. when i say gorgeous, they really are. you'll know why later. chos! but dating gorgeous guys, while it has its benefits (the biggest of course is what it does to your self-confidence and ego), is not always a good thing. it also has its downside. they usually bring out both the best and the worst in me . let me change that. most of the time, they bring out the monster in me. like the following. read and learn. ((((((((((((((((((((( the green-eyed monster

finally, paulo (again)

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after being missed from the limelight for several months last year, gorgeous young actor paulo avelino is back with a big bang! even before his latest soap opera at his home studio, abs-cbn,  honesto wraps up, he is set to start a new one with one of today's hottest young actresses, bea alonzo . in my book, this will be a perfect pairing. not only are they both talented actors, paulo and bea also possess the most beautiful faces in philippine cinema today. their pairing reminds me of the young christopher de leon and hilda koronel --  both ravishing, sexy and great actors -- in kung mangarap ka't magising made in nineteen seventy seven and shot in the romantic baguio city. from the blogsphere (including this one ), i gathered that paulo and bea will star in sana bukas pa ang kahapon.  i am guessing, based on the title, that this will be a love drama story. maybe it will be another love triangle with a good looking man or woman thrown in to spice up the first ever