Words fail me as I think about Claire today, her birthday.  As I pathetically attempt to try and find a way to convey how much she means to me, I give you, the immortal words of Cole Porter.

Happy Birthday Babe

Do I love you, do I?
Doesn't one and one make two?
Do I love you, do I?
Does July need a sky of blue?

Would I miss you, would I?
If you ever should go away?
If the sun should desert the day,
What would life be?

Will I leave you?  Never.
Could the ocean leave the shore?
Will I worship you forever?
Isn't heaven forever more?

Do I love you, do I?
Oh my dear it's so easy to see.
Don't you know I do?
Don't I show you I do,
Just as you love me.

One of my very favorite directors and actors is gone.  Sydney Pollack, a man who directed and acted in such literate and intelligent ways, was a throwback to times where stories and characters mattered most in movie making.  His Academy Award winning film Out Of Africa touched me deeply because it reminded me so much of my mother and father and the love that they shared.  Even in films where he wasn't as successful (e.g. The Interpreter), the themes and narratives which he conveyed were always smart, rich with detail, and involving.

For generations, the people of the City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights - underground. But Ember's once powerful generator is failing... and the great lamps that illuminate the city are starting to flicker. Now, in a race against time, the citizens must search Ember for clues that will unlock the ancient mystery of the city's existence, and escape before the lights go out forever.

Gil Kenan (dir.)
Bill Murray
Tim Robbins
Martin Landau
Toby Jones
Saoirse Ronan

Michel Fournier, a 64 year old French ex-army officer, will tomorrow attempt he what calls, The Great Leap, a jump to be taken literally in the upper stratosphere (approximately 130,000 ft. or 25 miles up), where one can see the separation between the blue sky, and the darkness of space.  He will take a two hour trip to this altitude on a helium balloon, for a 15-minute fall back down.  In doing so he aims to set 4 world records, and break the sound barrier.

This is no mere parachute leap (which are usually done between 10,000 and 20,000 feet high), as the stunt is fraught with multiple perils.  This outline from the New York Times illustrates the magnitude of what Fournier will try to do.

See this picture?  What you see is what's left of the Xinjian Primary School in Dujiangyan, China, in the aftermath of the Sichuan Earthquake.  Notice how a kindergarden building, at left, along with a hotel in the background, are barely damaged  The question of why so many schools crumbled during the recent Sichuan earthquake, is coming to the fore.

From the article:

"This is not a natural disaster," said Ren Yongchang, whose 9-year-old son died inside the destroyed school. His hands were covered in plaster dust as he stood beside the rubble, shouting and weeping as he grabbed the exposed steel rebar of a broken concrete column. "This is not good steel. It doesn't meet standards. They stole our children."

The Philippine Inquirer's Conrado Banal III confirmed in his column two days ago what most Pinoys in-the-know have known all along: Napocor has been swindling Philippine consumers.  It's been speculated that the government's crusade against Meralco is all about going after their owners, the Lopezes, who happen to own ABS-CBN, the media conglomerate instrumental in televising much of the ZTE scandal, one of the latest in many scandals that has put President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in a bad light (to say the least).

Incredulous.  Pinoys know her as a ranting lunatic; a knee-jerk implusive blowhard; a shameless act-first think-later opportunist; the very archetype of the word "pikon".  Yet this is who our administration is pushing to join what is probably the most prestigious law body in the world.  How can our government keep on finding endless ways of embarrassing itself?

This horror story written by Susan Antepuesto regarding her dispute with Bank of Commerce (whose slogan is "Looking After You"), if true, shows that we really are the mercy of banks when it comes to real estate investment.  Be warned.

When Harmonix released Rock Band last year, I was dying to get it.  It was the next step that the Guitar Hero franchise which pretty much dominated the rhythm game segment of the gaming industry when it came out.  I had introduced my friends to Guitar Hero two Christmases ago, and despite all of the great games that had been coming out, GH was always the one we would come back to.  It's fun, it's challenging, but more importantly, it's one of the most team involving activities one could ask for.  Once you hit those notes in unison with your best buddy, to a virtual audience of thousands, there can be few experiences that are as satisfying.

I don't know about you, but I can't take another Star Wars movie/spin-off/video game/TV series.  Can't we just give it closure?  Inner voice: Of course not.  Give another decade, and you'll have another trilogy.

As if we haven't had enough of George Lucas's bombardment, there'll be another film (mercifully just CGI this time, but is that any comfort?) this August entitled Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Wait a sec, didn't Cartoon Network air that as a series of cartoon shorts a few years ago?  Yes it did, and it was actually quite good in its simple animated form.  No unnecessary exposition.  It was merely filler between Star Wars Prequel-Films.  Between which ones I don't care to recall.

A lot of us are aware of the dangers of exposing our personal lives over the web.  But there are many users who feel the instinctive, almost redemptive need to share this very information.  Some do it for selfish reasons, others do it as a form of therapy. 

It's true that many blogs are of little value to the average internet user, but nowadays, I'm disinclined to judge the motives or desires of bloggers because I myself have been tempted many many times to reveal personal details.  Knowing that your digitized thoughts are of interest to even just a few people is a very seductive and empowering feeling (many columnists won't tell you this, but this is what drives them).  But for me, anonymity is a warm blanket.  It's cowardly to keep complete anonymity, but foolhardy to expose yourself completely.

Emily Gould, who used to be co-editor at Gawker.com, has just written an account of her personal crises in having her life shared so publicly over several blogs and websites, both openly and anonymously.  It's not the usual stories one hears about, like being taken advantage of by scammers, or petty images being photoshopped.  Emily is an experienced blogger who was well aware of such amateurish escapades.  What she does detail is the psychological toll it takes on people who thrive on or need such attention.

A lot of the commentary that has been directed at her piece has been negative, but whether her reasons are trivial or not, she has painted a rich picture of what many bloggers secretly or openly crave for.  And the very commentary that she has elicited indicates that even those who don't like her writing or her actions, seek to satisfy their own desires to be heard.  In the end we're all a little like Emily Gould.  This is a long, but worthwhile piece.

Now before I begin, I just want to make clear that I despise Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's presidency just like any level headed Filipino who knows the score.  But what follows is breathtakingly hilarious in it's stupidity.

The Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) has accused the Arroyo Administration for Representative Crispin Beltran's poor health, which may have led to his death.  "There is no forgiveness for what Arroyo has done to Ka Bel," said KMU spokesman Elmer "Ka Bong" Labog.

FOR CHRIST SAKE!  THE MAN WAS 75 YEARS OLD AND FELL OFF A ROOF!

This is like accusing a butterfly for causing a hurricane to develop on the other side of the planet.  To quote geekdom, this is an EPIC FAIL.

"This too shall pass." - Hebrew Proverb

Wise words indeed when dealing with government bureaucracy.  With patience and persistence we finally made it.  Today, our maid's visa was approved, and will last one year to this day.  It wasn't so straightforward in receiving it though.

From the article:

"The burger, created by chef and co-owner Kevin O'Connell, seeks to justify its price with a Kobe beef patty, lots of black truffles, seared foie gras, aged Gruyere cheese, wild mushrooms and flecks of gold leaf on a brioche bun."

Of course!  I've always been looking for good ol' gold in my burger!

A lot has been said about how much darker Prince Caspian is over its predecessor (The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe), and that it is.  But what gets lost within this observation is how much more assured and polished this outing is as well.  As if released from the burden of fitting this material for children, Andrew Adamson has crafted what is essentially a Jacobean fairy tale, managed with clever writing and a few lighthearted moments, and methodically punctuated with a marvelous climax.

A romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II, AUSTRALIA centers on an English aristocrat who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver to drive 2000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.

Baz Luhrmann (dir.)
Nicole Kidman
Hugh Jackman
David Wenham
Jack Thompson
Bryan Brown

Hi Roger,

It's unusual that you've decided to review a movie that hasn't been released (as I believe it is your policy not to review those at film festivals, e.g. Cannes), just as it is unusual that I'm promoting it, virtually undercutting my future one.  But reading your review of Indy 4 shows that you've given in to your enthusiasm, being an admirer of Spielberg work (just as I am of yours and his).  Your stamp of approval is greatly reassuring.

All the best with your recovery.  If only we could receive those film reels at home the way you must have.

An incredible story (taken from the article):

"SHIFANG, China -- At the moment of greatest despair, Wang Zhijun tried to kill himself by twisting his neck against the debris.

Breathing had become harder as day turned to night. The chunks of brick and concrete that had buried him and his wife were pressing tighter by the hour, crushing them. Their bodies had gone numb.

Then there was the rain, sharp and cold, lashing at them through the cracks.

"I don't think I can make it," he told his wife, Li Wanzhi, his face just inches from hers, their arms wrapped around each other.

She sensed he was giving up. "If God wants to kill us, he would have killed us right away," she said. "But since we're still alive, we must be fated to live."

And they lived. They were pulled from the rubble of their collapsed six-story workers' dormitory 28 hours after last Monday's earthquake, spared the end met by at least 32,000 others."

According to Slashfilm.com, Disney/Pixar has developed a mobile animatronic version of Wall-E to roam the Disney amusement parks.  Here's a video of Wall-E inaction in Los Angeles.

It's been a horrific month for China and Myanmar, as the human toll from each of their disasters has reached biblical proportions.  For many Chinese parents who lived through the ordeal in Sichuan province, their suffering is especially cruel, as many of the victims of this week's quake were children.  Some reports have stated that the toll could be as high as 900 children, and that figure is expected to climb.

What makes this so heartbreaking is that most families in China are only allowed to have a single child.  As a new parent myself, empathizing with them, it's just too earth-shattering to live through.

The New York Times reports that despite China's unusual openness having this disaster reported on, some details have been covered up with regards to accounting for child deaths.  Parents have even been kept away from affected areas, for as long as two days for suspicious reasons.  Some believe that bodies were taken away and accusations are beginning to mount with regards to the quality of school buildings.

One mother's account made me cry.  She found her daughter's body, without bruises or injury, but with fingernails missing.  She believes her daughter suffocated to death trying to claw out of the rubble.  There are other accounts that'll just make you weep.

The rage and despair these mothers and fathers are going through must not go unnoticed.  And if human negligence assisted in human loss, those responsible should be sought after and dealt with.  But whatever you believe in, keep these families in your hearts and prayers, and hug your children just a little bit tighter.

What on Earth were the Wachowski brothers smoking?  That's pretty much all I could think about after seeing Speed Racer, a film that blows its wad over CGI (the film's budget was $120 million), and yet feels so spectacularly cheap.  Despite its dazzling visual assault and actors' brave (but thankless) performances, the movie is essentially a two hour Hot Wheels commercial.

Though this may interest no one but myself, I found a remarkable explanation for just this very question.  The following is a reader response (to another reader's comment) on why the samurai depicted in The Seven Samurai appear to be overacting (taken from the reader mail section of Roger Ebert's website:

"... American and European film acting is heavily influenced by the realist movement of the 19th century as exemplified in theater by the plays of Anton Chekov. The realists wanted their work to portray slices of real life (hence the name) and in theater pushed their actors to act as naturally as possible and still be performing a piece of theater.

Japanese films are heavily influenced by Kabuki theater. Kabuki theater as it developed in Edo (modern Tokyo) is known for its stylized dramatic forms, exaggerated make up, and over-the-top performance of characters based on broadly drawn archetypes or stereotypes. It is worth noting that Tokyo based Shochiku, Company, Limited the oldest continually operating film studio in Japan and Akira Kurosawa's employer began in 1895 as a Kabuki theater. So the actors in "Seven Samurai" aren't over acting they are simply acting in the style with which they were most familiar."

- Frank B. Chavez III, Hayward, CA

One would normally associate this type of story with third-world nationals trying to find work illegally in the U.S.  But an Italian law graduate with American ties, being detained for 10 days, refused entry AND prevented from returning to Rome? 

Italy is one of 27 "visa waiver" countries, whose citizens are permitted to enter the U.S. for 90 days without a visa.  Their admission is subject to Customs and Border Protection personnel.  According to the article such detentions are rare (less than 0.05% if you do the math), but the point is is that it can happen to anybody.

It is with sad disbelief that I find the best and hardest working woman in tennis, Justine Henin, is retiring.  Despite her rather small physical stature, she outworked, outsmarted, and outhustled her more powerful counterparts (e.g. Sharapova, the Williams sisters).  How I'll miss her.

In this wonderful article about Robert Downey Jr.'s road back to supreme success, David Carr writes about an inside joke about Burger King and Mr. Downey's (and Tony Stark's) life-changing moment:

"On or around Independence Day in 2003, he stopped at a Burger King on the Pacific Coast Highway and threw all his drugs in the ocean. And while he was sitting there chewing on a burger, he decided he was done. This being America, five years later you can walk into that Burger King, and if you order a Kids Meal you can get your own Robert Downey Jr. action figure, wrapped up in gadget ware. (And what does Tony Stark want when he escapes his kidnappers? A good old American cheeseburger -- from Burger King, natch.)"

The nightmare isn't over.  Though we were told last week by Malaysian Immigration that we needed POEA clearance for them to give our maid a significant extension, my wife and I decided to take our chances and proceed to the Philippine embassy to appeal (beg) for consideration.  The fates smiled as the labor attache agreed to give us clearance.

The End.  I wish.

I wanna give this guy a hug.  God bless him.

Probably not the best phrase to use.  Just reading the report is more wincing than seeing James Bond's torture scene in Casino Royale.

All the more reason why I should thank mom for putting up with me.  Happy Mother's Day ma (and no this is not the only gift I sent you)!

If any of you have played GEARS OF WAR, then you'll understand that it's a tremendous shooting game (lots of other game review websites can explain its exellence better than I can).  But this new gameplay video of its sequel (thank you Orson), has just left me dumbstruck in awe.  As a gamer, I can't describe how I feel right now (amazed and giddy in anticipation is the best I can do).  I'll let the video speak for itself.

Both gazillionaires talk about their similarties, differences, and the upcoming 2008 Summer movie season.  Absolutely hilarious.

It was a surreal moment for me and my wife today at the Malaysian Immigration office.  Our maid came into the country a few weeks ago to help take care of our baby as both of us are working.  Rather than have her exit the country and come back in again through Singapore, a practice which I find rather abusive and shameful, we tried to have her applied under a special visa for maids under expatriates.

The Malaysian government has recently introduced guidelines allowing Visa on Arrival facilities to dependents of expatriates, which according to their website, can include immediately family members and maids.  When we found out about this measure, we were ecstatic, as the red tape in the Philippines regarding the processing of househelp can be downright silly.

If you're looking for a crucial e-mail that's buried in that digital avalanche you call Outlook, an app called Xobni (Inbox in reverse!  Give these guys a medal!) will surely be a godsend.  It indexes your emails and returns pertinent information at your fingertips.

Stanley Fish, a prominent literary theorist who occasionally writes for the New York Times, recently blogged about a trio of Avis Car commercials all about "the other car".  Each ad shows a car voicing it's (male) thoughts, voicing its feelings of betrayal and depression over its owner's alleged preference for another.  It's funnier than it sounds.  Check them out:

A lot of you have heard by now of the extra scene that plays out after the Iron Man end credits (read no further if you don't want to find out), where Tony Stark comes home to find Nick Fury (played by Samuel L. Jackson, as envisioned in the picture to the left) mentioning the "Avengers Initiative".

Rest assured that comic book fans (especially fanboys) had their hearts leap at that moment, for the promise that movies have held for so long, to breath life into superhero adventures long trapped on the page, might finally come to pass.

Iron Man is Marvel's answer to Batman.  Both are gazillionaires who pour their immense fortune (obtained from weaponry) to fund their personal crusades.  Both wield no "super powers".  Both are haunted by loss and are driven by such trauma to save humanity from itself.  But whereas Bruce Wayne's life-mission is to exact vengeance on wrongdoers, Tony Stark aims to have sinful fun while saving the world.  He's not as focused, but he makes up for it with his technological genius.