‘Something in the Rain’ isn’t your usual K-drama
Thursday, August 2, 2018
Showing posts with label Pop Culture. Show all posts
Disney princess in training
Sunday, July 22, 2018
It’s no surprise that my generation grew up watching everything Disney, and it remains to be a huge factor that not only anchors us to our childhood, but it gives us a sense of the very values that make us thrive in adulthood: Courage, identity, and the endless pursuit of wonder.
There’s simply no growing up from Disney, because, firstly, there is no need to.
Its animated and live-action films have always introduced such curious yet awe-inspiring characters, with timeless plots that revolve about friendship, family, and culture—sometimes more deeply than how we remember them to be.
I’ve religiously kept up with almost all the Disney films all throughout the 90s til early 2000s, but it was only until my sister, Zoee, came into the picture that I started searching my memories for movie titles and rewatching the very films I saw at her young age.
Having a baby, now a toddler, in the household is by far the most exciting and joyous experience. And I must say this little munchkin has bonded us together as a family more than anything, making me appreciate the kind of dynamic we have always shared even more.
So let me tell you a little bit about her: Zoee’s got quite a personality—she’s effortlessly kooky, obsessive, and witty. There’s this certain brilliance in her, and this goes with a certain sense of responsibility to hone her mind, interests, and behavior as early as we can.
My approach? Turning her into a Disney baby.
The incredible family is back
Saturday, June 23, 2018
You know that the sequel earned its right to be raved about when it makes us laugh twice as much and twice as hard, and puts on scenes that make us hold our breaths a little bit longer.
Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” is worth the 14-year wait—only it doesn’t make you feel like you did a ton of waiting. The retro-futuristic animated film, once again written and directed by Brad Bird, picks up right where the first had cut off.
Easter eggs, spoilers, and the top moments from ‘Black Panther’
Thursday, February 22, 2018
It’s just one great film after another.
When Marvel Studios promised to bring their characters to life in the big screen, no one imagined it to be this grand and breathtaking. Its newest addition to its film roster, Black Panther, immerses its viewers in an action-filled tension, never failing to add slivers of humor and ultimately tell an empowering narrative.
Every scene is better than the last, immersing you into a curious and otherworldly heritage. Each second of the movie thrives with gripping intensity, forcing you to hold your breath in their every move. Here’s a rundown of everything that makes us say WAKANDA FOREVER:
Fun, funky, crazy and makes you wanna DNCE
Monday, February 19, 2018
If you ever plan to crash a DNCE band rehearsal, here’s a short list of what you need to bring: adult beverages, local snacks, and a game-for-anything attitude.
The funk-rock band reveals it’s always like a 10-year-old’s birthday party whenever they get together. And yes, that includes all the fun, noise, and maybe even some uncontrollable chaos, as any kid’s party goes.
“We’re just sitting around and there’s always snacks, soda, in front of us. We make fun of each other and then get around with playing a little bit of music,” bass guitarist Cole Whittle shares.
“But all our attention spans are short so we end up goofing around and leaving to go somewhere cool,” he adds.
10 Hulk-smashing movie moments from ‘Thor: Ragnarok’
Forget Thor as you know him.
The unremarkable Asgardian arc has been spared as Director Taika Waititi makes the film straddle comedy and action in the same way that Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man have in the past. The latest Marvel film also has new characters every moviegoer will go crazy for—Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie, Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster, and Cate Blanchett’s goddess of death, Hela.
Thor: Ragnarok has embarked on a more kooky, nonsensical tone, but also introduces a self-contained plot with a vision of setting more Norse origins into play. It’s truly a film that lives up to every Marvel fan’s Hulk-size expectations, and here are 10 things we loved about it:
Thor: Ragnarok has embarked on a more kooky, nonsensical tone, but also introduces a self-contained plot with a vision of setting more Norse origins into play. It’s truly a film that lives up to every Marvel fan’s Hulk-size expectations, and here are 10 things we loved about it:
I geeked out with webcrawlers at the Marvel Creative Day Out
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
How do we know firsthand that the Marvel Universe is indeed made of interconnected story lines? Well, we got to see three Spider-Man superheroes right in front of our eyes in the same place, at the same time.
At the Marvel Creative Day Out, friends Zack Tolosa, GP Manalo and Joyce Dizon all swung by the art and design-focused event to share their love for Spider-Man and all things Marvel. They didn’t just wear a shirt with the face of their favorite character—they actually brought him to life.
“Why is Spider-Man my favorite? I mean, why not?” Joyce, dressed as parody character Spider-Ham, said.
‘Geostorm’ is all effects and solely saved by Gerard Butler
Friday, October 20, 2017
Treason, hacking into Federal secrets, kidnapping the president—what crimes are you willing to commit to save the world?
In Dean Devlin’s “Geostorm,” Max Lawson (Jim Sturgess) is guilty of breaking the law, and would commit every felony there is to find out the truth. The United States assistant secretary of state was tasked to remedy the malfunctioning Dutch Boy, a satellite stationed in outer space controlling the weather in 17 of the world’s most powerful and influential nations.
The very invention that was made to stabilize the weather for earth to continue being a habitable planet was suddenly creating unnatural and deadly disasters. First it hit Afghanistan, then Hong Kong. Could it be a technical malfunction? A self-produced digital virus? What exactly was wrong with Dutch Boy?
These were the questions the International Climate Space Station and US president’s cabinet were bothered with, two weeks before the scientific breakthrough was to be turned over to international forces from its US management.
‘Blade Runner’s’ legacy continues to run
By combining the genre of science fiction and film noir, Ridley Scott’s 1982 “Blade Runner” established itself as a cinematic breakthrough and revered classic in Hollywood history.
While the Dennis Villeneuve-directed remake, shown and cinematically set three decades after the original, bathes itself in bleakness, walking its viewers into a future that is heavily inspired of the past.
In “Blade Runner 2049,” Villeneuve orchestrates tension in each frame, and every harsh atmosphere he builds is as real for his audience as it is for his characters.
The film is defined by a great balance of storytelling, intimate emotions and action—particularly in that order—in its sequences. And like most neo-noir films before it, it banks on the fear of its audience for an imminent dysfunctional future.
Matthew Vaughn’s ‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle’ is a test of empathy
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Sequels are a tough act to make. Matthew Vaughn’s “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” tried its best to create a follow-up movie that would remain as original and engaging as the first.
The “Kingsman: The Secret Service” introduced a different breed of spies, gentlemen in their signature tailor-fit suits who work for an independent international intelligence agency which, in discretion, keeps the world safe.
It was in 2014 when director Vaughn first released an inventive and trope-challenging movie. Now its sequel still has the old-school spy thrills that were met with some rogue cowboy Americana.
The movie begins with an acrobatic, gravity-defying fight scene in a moving vehicle, introducing Eggsy Unwin (Taron Egerton) as the new Agent Galahad. He may no longer be the Kingsmen’s new recruit, but he still wasn’t as polished as Harry Hart (Colin Firth).
Reviving the forgotten art of postcards
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
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| Photo from ban.do |
On its pink-colored front was a scribble of a girl with curly hair, paired with free-hand calligraphy in the same style of the drawing that said “planet curls.” In her letter, my friend revealed that the postcard she sent me was purchased from a biannual arts bazaar called 10a Alabama Arts and Crafts Fair.
“I got this card from a girl who sold woodcrafts. I was actually very amazed that I was able to take home some cards considering that no one really sells postcards nowadays,” she wrote. Flash forward a few years later, and the interest in the art of creating and sending postcards are slowly being revived.
Guy Ritchie’s ‘King Arthur’ has no soul
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Will it still be called a legend without the telling of a hero’s adventure?
In the beginning, “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” shows promise. With familiar elements from the insurmountable film series “Lord of the Rings,” the scenes of Camelot’s war convinces the audience that, maybe, there is still much to tell about the tale.
Why Leonardo DiCaprio should (finally) win an Oscar
Leonardo DiCaprio’s acting is top-notch, good enough for him to finally win an Oscar. The recent masterpiece by director Alejandro G. Iñárritu may be DiCaprio’s best chance yet.
Sure, his toughest competition may be Eddie Redmayne of “The Danish Girl,” in what may be the most exquisite and sensual role of his career, in which he makes the audience experience the fear and passion that comes with the dynamic change within his character.
Zedd takes control of Road to Ultra: PH music fest
Monday, September 25, 2017
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| Photo by Rio Deluvio |
Sure you hear his tracks on the radio everyday and Spotify may be your best friend when it comes to tracking his past hits, but Zedd sounds entirely different when he’s manning the deck live.
At the Philippine leg of the Ultra Music Festival last Sept. 15 staged at the Mall of Asia Arena, Zedd’s transitions were as kinetic as his beats—never playing one song for too long, or if you ask me, never enough. But the multiawarded DJ knew just how to hook his audience without dropping the bass too early.
His first song was “Beautiful Now.” Zedd made a simple entrance by playing the stripped version of this mix, which put prime focus on Jon Bellion’s vocals at the bridge of the song. It didn’t take long for Zedd to play around, he quickly shuffled to “Starving” and “All the Way Up” to pump up the crowd in his third live set in Manila.
Getting into Yokohama’s Pikachu madness
Saturday, August 5, 2017
YOKOHAMA, JAPAN—Tokyo is a quiet city.
Besides the sounds of trains on railway tracks, the pedestrians stomping on street crossings, employees shouting their oishi menu promos, and even the noise of crickets at night, the city of 13 million people generally lives in serene silence.
But that silence can easily be broken by seven syllables, said by a familiar voice that goes: “Pika-Pika-Pikachuuu!”
You’ve probably seen viral Facebook videos of Pikachu mascots in droves dressed in different costumes. In their yellow tubby form, with an ever-smiling face and thunder-shaped tail, we see them walking in sync, waving hello and dancing—making them cuter than they already are.
You’ve probably seen viral Facebook videos of Pikachu mascots in droves dressed in different costumes. In their yellow tubby form, with an ever-smiling face and thunder-shaped tail, we see them walking in sync, waving hello and dancing—making them cuter than they already are.
Outside of your screens, these Pikachus can be seen in the city of Yokohama every day of the week starting Wednesday, Aug. 9. The Pikachu shows run until Aug. 15 this year.
Confessions of a K-drama stan
One last episode, I swear.
This is possibly the most common lie K-drama fans tell themselves; and before we even realize it, we’ve finished one whole series in a single night.
If we could only list binge-watching a drama as a skill on our resumés, we would have done so—a long time ago.
Filipino K-drama “stans” (obsessive fans) all have that one show that made them ride the Hallyu—Korean Wave—along with the rest of the world. In the early 2000s, our local TV networks would dub high-rating East Asian dramas in Tagalog and these easily became part of our daily afternoon and primetime routines.
A bulk of them came from Korea. Who could forget about “Full House,” “Coffee Prince,” “Lovers in Paris,” “Princess Hours,” “Playful Kiss,” “Boys Over Flowers” and how much kilig these made us feel?
These were the shows we looked forward to in the latter part of our days—and are also the topic of our conversations come the next morning.
The DΞΔN’s list
Wednesday, June 14, 2017
At Greenplugged Seoul, DEAN is a headliner—and hours before he even occupied the music festival’s Sky stage, the crowd on the standing zone begins to thicken, waiting for him to take the reins from his fellow hip-hop and rap artists. As DEAN begins his sound check, fans start cheering, while some are even close to crying.
The sun usually sets late in Korea, and as it melts on the horizon with hued streaks of orange and pink, the stage’s screen replicates the psychedelic colors, cueing the alternative R&B artist to start serenading the hyped crowd as the hour finally enters the night. The clock turns to 7 o’clock, and DEAN’s music begins to play.
Greenplugged Seoul is the next big international music festival
It is the beginning of summer in Seoul. On a weekend, people from the city flock to Nanji Hangang Park, a perfect space to seek shade under the trees as the spring breeze still lingers, with scenery that breaks the concrete horizon.
Tents were set up all over the park’s grounds, and its green carpets of grass were replaced with colorful mats and rugs. People brought their bikes, scooters and skateboards, while others carried picnic baskets.
On the weekend of May 21, the park was host to the city’s version of Coachella, and we discovered every Korean musicophile’s top secret: the Greenplugged Seoul Music Festival.
It was a celebration of (and testament to) Korea’s massive local and independent music scene. It was an epic experience with four major stages and three minor sets located all over Nanji Hangang Park. On its eight straight year, the two-day Greenplugged festival featured a total of 65 artists in an all-local lineup.
Park Hae-jin in ‘Man to Man’ isn’t the man to fall for
Sunday, June 4, 2017
Love is merely a tactic of deception. For a secret agent, it is said to be the most powerful shield.
JTBC’s “Man to Man” creates a lead character that isn’t hard to fall for—and that is exactly what makes him more dangerous.
Ghost K (Park Hae-jin) is a secret agent for South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS). His missions are never simple, and being a spy limits him to no geographical location. For the government, ghost agents like him are neither dead nor alive.
This ghost agent can lie on impulse without detection. He does not have a name he can call his own, and knows he fights battles in the shadows no one will never know about. He’ll never be the type of hero the public will see on the front page of a newspaper, but there is always a possibility that whenever it is threatened, he has kept the nation’s peace and order in place for one more day.
10 things I loved about ‘Logan’
Thursday, March 2, 2017
CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEAD
**
There’s no doubt that Wolverine is the world’s most famous mutant, but in the fan-favorite hero’s third film feature—and may I add, the best X-Men film I’ve seen—Logan is a stranger to the audience.
Sure we still see his scruff and arrogant exterior, but complex themes are explored in the film—with impermanence, purpose, legacy, and family, among them—making Logan more human than he is mutant.
The film is intensely intimate and primal compared to the numerous X-Men films that came before it. Even with the thrills and excitement over grotesque scenes, the emotional magnitude that surface from the character relationships are neither diluted nor overshadowed by the superhero action.
Here are 10 things I loved about 20th Century Fox’s “Logan”:
IT’S FUCKING R-16
It’s about damn time we stop censoring who Wolverine is and what he is fully capable of doing. “Logan” is unapologetically brutal with an equally unapologetically amused audience.
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