Disney Princesses

It kind of bothers me how pictures of the Disney Princesses almost always shows just Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White and Belle. We're lucky if Ariel's there; we're even luckier if Jasmine's remembered.

But what about Mulan or Pocahontas or Anastasia. Heck, there's Megara and even Nala! Yes, I'm ranting and I'm well aware that these four princesses on the picture are the original Disney Princesses.

My favorite Disney movies are Mulan, Pocahontas, The Lion King and Hercules. It's mostly the story plus the different approach to the artwork that drew me in. The other Disney Princesses movies all have the same plot: a girl meeting her prince charming. Quite boring, actually.

What about you guys? Your favorite Disney Princess?

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

A new Underworld movie is on the way. Titled Rise of the Lycans, the third Underworld movie will focus on the werewolves this time.

It's a prequel, so I don't think we'll be getting any Kate Beckinsale this time around. However, the movie will give the fans a background and will enlighten them as to how the feud between the Lycans and the Vampires started.

The movie follows Lucian as he rises up to the top-most rank in the Lycans' clan. He arranges a revolt against their former masters, the Vampires, led by Viktor, the Lycans' enslaver. Together with his lover, Sonja, Lucian will battle against the very formidable bloodsucking armies of Viktor.

Sounds interesting? Sounds like a flop? Well after the second Underworld movie, Underworld Evolution, I kinda got turned off with the story. If I'm going to watch the third Underworld movie, I'll probably catch it when it's featured on TV and not waste my time and money watching it on the big screen.

But who knows right?

Is anyone looking forward to Underworld: Rise of the Lycans?

New Mummy 3 Fight Scene Image!!

Here you have it! A picture from the upcoming Mummy 3 movie, Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, with Jet Li playing the Chinese emperor.

I'm betting that this has really great fight scenes, considering the fact that Jet Li's in the movie. (Yes, I love Jet Li. Deal with it.)

Source

Some Legacies Must End

"His father taught him to hate. His friends taught him rage. His enemies gave him hope."

American History X -- This has got to be one of my favorite movies of all time. Maybe it's because of it's uniqueness as a movie, the plot, the dialogue...then again, it could just be Edward Norton. (He's a very good actor and you can't deny that.)

American History X is a movie about Neo-Nazism. It's a movie about racism. It's a movie about hatred. It's a movie about enlightenment. It's a movie about self-acceptance. It's a movie about reformation. American History X is a movie about all these aspects of a person's life that are interwoven into one intricate story about one family's life.

Meet Derek Vinyard. He's the leader of a Neo-Nazi group who are against everyone who aren't white Protestants. He goes to jail for manslaughter and gets released after serving only three years of his sentence. He's a changed man because of the multitude of experiences he had inside prison. Experiences that I probably wouldn't be able to handle if they happened to me.

Anyway, upon his return, he tries to renew his family's strained relationship and to fix every mistake that he's done before serving his jail-time. But then his younger brother, Danny, has become Derek's replacement within the Neo-Nazi group. Derek tries hard to change his brother and lead him away from the path of neo-Nazism before Danny ends his life tragically.

American History X explores the effects of Neo-Nazism through the lives of those involved in it, those who were involved with it, those who are close to them and to those who are terrorized by it. It's a scary ideology that looks down upon other people just because they belong to a race outside white Protestants. I love this movie because it explores something provoking in a way that people can relate to.

Derek's flashbacks help greatly in explaining the theme and the storyline. They are all essential in building up the story and in understanding the mentality of the people involved. Edward Norton really makes you feel Derek's character. When I watched American History X, I could really feel Derek's anger and pain, as well as reformation and his slow acceptance of the things that happened to him before he fully understood that what he did was wrong. Derek's life in prison was especially painful to watch -- and it's up to you to find out what was painful about it. Do note that I'm not only referring to his pains literally, but it's more on the figurative side.

I highly recommend American History X for those who want something new and thought-provoking. You won't regret watching it.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon -- Probably one of the saddest martial arts films I've ever seen, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon just brings in something new to movies of this genre.

One thing that immediately makes this movie a great one is the cast. We have Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Chang Chen and Zhang Zi Yi, plus, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is directed by the great Ang Lee himself.

The story revolves around these four warriors you see on the picture. Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh plays two seasoned warriors named Li Mu-bai and Yu Shu-lien respectively. The plot begins when Mu-bai tells Shu-lien that he wishes to surrender the Green Destiny - a sword he has been taking care of for a long time. Shu-lien agrees to deliver it to a friend of Mu-bai, a certain master, for safekeeping.

There, she meets the daughter of the governor, Jen (Zhang Zi Yi), who tells Shu-lien that the is to be married despite her not loving the man. That night, the Green Destiny is stolen by a masked thief whose trail leads to the governor's place, pointing out that Mu-bai's long-time enemy, the Jade Fox, is hiding under the guise of Jen's governess.

Jen and the Jade Fox tries to escape but Jen is to be stopped by a man called Lo (Chang Chen), a desert bandit whom Jen had a relationship with years before Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's storyline. I'd actually want to tell you more, but that would just spoil everything, especially if you haven't seen the movie yet.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is about discipline, honor, self-sacrifice and courage that a warrior has to learn in order for them to fully understand what it means to live. It is a movie of reflection and realization as well as acceptance for the past and present.

Don't get me wrong. It's not all story. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon has one of the best fight scenes I've ever seen. There are a series of fight scenes all throughout the movie, so it's kind of interchanging: talk-fight-talk-fight-etc. You get the point, right?

If you're a fan of martial arts movies, philosophical movies, action movies, or you're someone who just wants to watch a good movie, I'd recommend Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Is Beek Out of the Creek?!

Dawson's Creek -- I remember watching Dawson's Creek back in 1998 when it was first aired. I couldn't understand the adult themes back then but I still liked watching it. Until it sucked. They put in too many characters and twisted the story so bad, I stopped watching the adventures of Dawson, Pacey, Jen and Joey.

I still think that Dawson is butt-ugly. But that's my opinion.

There's not much to the story except that it centers around the four friends and their teenage life in a fictional town called Capeside. Adulthood and the things related to it are mostly what the episodes are about, plus the teenage perspective of growing-up of course. It picked up where Beverly Hills, 90210 left off, and now, Dawson's Creek is considered a basis for teenage-angst-related TV shows like The OC and Gilmore Girls.

As I said, I was kinda hooked to watching Dawson's Creek when I was a kid. Well, fine. I was waiting for it every Friday night at our local station. Ever since I started watching it, I resented the fact that someone like James Van derBeek is a lead character. I don't like how he looks. After the first season, or two, I don't really remember when, I lost interest and stopped watching. It was like their lives are getting more complicated when it isn't supposed to be complicated in the first place. Too much drama. But what the hell...we're talking about teenagers here. Of course their lives are all drama! I was like that too, 4 years ago.

Did anyone watch Dawson's Creek?

Cute Dinosaurs!

Land Before Time -- A 1988 animated movie directed by Don Bluth, Land Before Time is a movie about 5 baby dinosaurs who were on a journey to find the Great Valley after their home was destroyed by an earthquake.

The five dinosaurs are:
Littlefoot - Apatosaurus
Cera - Tricerotops
Ducky - Parasaurolophus
Petrie - Pteranodon
Spike - Stegosaurus

Littlefoot is the main character in the Land Before Time, the rest are his friends who help him go through any ordeal he encounters. The story basically revolves around Littlefoot...and for a dinosaur as young as he is, Littlefoot sure went through a whole lot.

Oh the antagonist here is a Tyrannosaurus Rex, otherwise known as Sharptooth. Well I guess it's pretty obvious by now that the names of the characters in Land Before Time describe, or at least is associated with the type of dinosaurs who own the name.

Land Before Time made me cry - both as a kid and as a 20-something kid-at-heart. The story is simple, but how they portrayed it moves a viewer to tears. It really does. I guess it's because anyone can relate to Littlefoot and his four friends. There's also a moral to the story, and it doesn't take an adult to explain it to a kid for the kid to understand it. Just by watching the movie, the kid would be able to understand what the movie is trying to teach.

Also, since the first movie was quite popular (my parents bought me a VHS copy when I was young and I actually memorized their lines from start to finish), so they made a sequel. Plus several other sequels after that. To date, there are around 12 Land Before Time movies and a television spin-off. I wasn't particularly fond of the TV spin-off, but the movies are quite amusing. They're more light-hearted as compared to the first Land Before Time movie, but nonetheless entertaining.

Get to know your Kingdom Vertebrata

Wild Chronicles -- This is one of my favorite National Geographic documentary series. The reason is pretty obvious too: learning about animals is cool. Well at least I think it's cool.

NatGeo's Wild Chronicles offers the viewers a different look at man's co-inhabitants on planet Earth. Viewers will get to learn more about the animals in a way that they rarely get to read in books. Besides, watching animals eat, run, sleep and do whatever they do best is better being watched than read, right?

National Geographic describes Wild Chronicles as a look...

"...at the human relationship with nature, highlighting breakthrough science that offers real hope for the future."

Isn't that intriguing? You get to learn about the animals and at the same time, you get to learn how to protect them. It's a universal fact that we need animals, so before anyone launches an all-out protest against conglomerates and other people who harm animals, better learn what you're protecting first. That pretty much makes sense, right?

It's really amazing how much we've all seen these animals in zoos and books and other media, but Wild Chronicles sheds a whole new light on them, giving the viewers information about different species that I don't think we'll ever know in our lifetimes (if you're not some nature buff or anything).

A Tale of Two Sisters

A Tale of Two Sisters -- I admit that I'm a fan of Asian horror movies because I find them more interesting, creative and unique than their Western counterparts. One of the Asian horror movies that I enjoyed watching, aside from Ringu and Ju-on, is A Tale of Two Sisters.

A Tale of Two Sisters is basically a psychological horror movie that centers on...two sisters. You didn't see that coming, did you? Don't worry, I won't give spoilers. Just a brief note on what the movie is about.

The movie starts with the two sisters moving into their new home in the countryside where there father grew up. Their step-mother greeted them warmly (their mother just died) but the sisters dislike their new mother. The house started to resemble a prison for the girls because of the cold atmosphere brought by their step-mother. Soon, their step-mother changes horribly, and with her, the house changes too - giving way to sinister and horrific incidents that drive the sisters to the brink of insanity.

That's just something to minutely describe A Tale of Two Sisters. For one, it messed up my mind the first time I saw it. Secondly, it scared me...and I like getting scared. The picture above is kinda creepy, no? I don't really want to give away the climactic parts of the story, so you should just watch it. It might seem confusing at first, but by the time the movie ends, you'll see how it all fits in together.

The Pagemaster

Pagemaster -- I remember watching Pagemaster when I was around 9 years old (this was released on 1994, btw). I loved the whole live-action and animation combination throughout the movie. Well, it wasn't so much of a combination as compared to Who Framed Roger Rabbit? or Space Jam since the movie switches between live-action and animation, plus majority of the story is animated.

For those of you who haven't heard of the Pagemaster yet, it's a movie that stars Macaulay Culkin as Richard. He was a timid boy who was fearful of a lot of things. His father decided to make a tree house for him but he's too scared to climb up and help his dad. So one day, his dad runs out of nails and asks Richard to buy some for him. On the way home, rain starts to pour heavily and Richard is forced to seek shelter at the library.

There he meets the librarian, played by Christopher Lloyd, who quickly assumes that Richard is looking for a fiction book and sends Richard off to find one. He slips on the floor at the center of the building and as he wakes up, and suddenly a huge wave of color engulfs him, turning him into a cartoon character.

He then meets three books, Adventure, Fantasy and Horror, in their respective sections. They encounter the Pagemaster who tells them that they have to find the exit, and thus begins an adventure for Richard.

It's a great movie for both kids and adults. I mean, a lot of the grown-ups would recognize literature references all throughout the movie more than the kids would do. Well there's a moral too, just a simple lesson for Richard to face his fears. It was a lot of trouble for that one piece of advice, but at least, he was able to learn how to do just that.

On the X-Men movies...

X-Men -- Just a quick poll, everyone! I think everyone already knows that a new X-Men movie (though I'm not really sure if it's the Wolverine one or not) is on it's way to our movie screens soon. I just want to find out how many of you liked...
- X-Men 1
- X-Men 2
- X-Men 3
- All three movies
- None of them

Well... It's possible to like all three and to not like any right? For me, the best one was...uhm... I LIKE ALL THREE. And I can't wait for the fourth one, for that matter. I've always been a big fan of the X-Men, especially Wolverine. Oh and I despise Cyclops.

So... I want your thoughts everyone! Which X-Men movie did you like and what are your thoughts on the upcoming X-Men movie??

Oh and tell everyone who your favorite X-Men character is!

Highlander: The Source

Highlander -- So has anyone seen the trailer for the new Highlander movie? Does anyone even know that there's a new Highlander movie? Well it's slated for release this year and it's the fifth Highlander movie to date.

I read somewhere that it was already shown in America, aired by the Sci-Fi Channel, but when I watched Resident Evil the other day, I saw the trailer for Highlander: The Source, so I'm guessing that it will be shown here in our local cinemas.

I can't wait for this one. If you've read my earlier post on the Highlander series, you'll get an idea of how much I like Highlander. Added to that, Adrian Paul, the original Duncan MacLeod, is the one starring in the movie. So that's double the "I can't wait for this one."

Oh yeah, the plot. It's basically just a quest to find the Holy Grail so that the immortals can unlock the secrets of "The Source". Ah but this time, as they race to find the secrets, the world of the near-future is on its path to destruction.

So, is anyone going to watch this? Do you think it will be a good one?

John Tucker Must Die?

John Tucker Must Die -- Have you actually ever heard of this movie? Well, yeah, if you're a movie buff or someone who's watching the lives of celebrities, you probably have. But for someone not so interested in movies, I have to admit that I've never heard of John Tucker Must Die until my sister came home with a DVD copy of it.

I thought it was some kind of suspense thriller given the title. I thought wrong. Dead wrong.

It was another chick flick. I'm not a fan of chick flicks. I still watched in nonetheless and wasted like an hour and a half of my life watching girls get revenge from a guy who played them. Ah, don't take me wrong though. Just because I implied that it wasn't any good, my sister liked it. So buy the DVD (I made it easy for you and placed a link there.) and just see for yourself.

Oh but there were some parts that made me laugh. Like laugh, laugh... Not "laugh" because the whole movie is pointless. Did you just get that? I kinda confused myself there.

Anyway, the plot of John Tucker Must Die:

Meet John Tucker, a jock and the most popular guy in school. Everyone wants a piece of him and he wants a piece of every girl. So he just does that. He commits himself to three different girls at the same time (and from the same school) and tells them not to tell anyone because his parents are strict and doesn't want him to be in a relationship yet. Right.

So meet Kate, the invisible girl in school. No, not like the Fantastic 4 character, it's just that nobody knows her nor notices her. Anyway, when the three girlfriends find each other out, Kate "helps" them to get even with John Tucker. The three girls use Kate to make John Tucker fall in love and get his heart broken.

Okay, that isn't the rest of the story but I wouldn't wanna spoil it all for you, my dear readers. It gets pretty predictable, but that's just me. I tend to predict every event in these kinds of movies. So there. John Tucker Must Die isn't a mind-boggling movie. It's pretty simple and as I said, predictable, but the antics that these girls come up with are funny...especially during the early stages of their "John Tucker Must Die Plan".

It's really up to you if you want to watch it. I suggest that if you do want to watch, don't expect anything...if you're not into these chick flicks. If you are...then Happy Viewing!

Let's All Take A Trip To...

The Magic School Bus -- Does anyone actually remember this show? It's been aired so long ago that I doubt kids these days remember it at all. I watch Magic School Bus when I was a kid and I learned a lot about science. Just the basic, kid stuff.

(Looking back, I realize that the Magic School Bus creators must be high at that time.)

Anyway, as I mentioned, the Magic School Bus is a kids' show that featured different science concepts with each episode. The multi-cultural children and their teacher, Ms. Frizzle, all go on a field trip every time to learn the concepts presented during class. They board the Magic School bus and then the fun begins.

The Magic School Bus can be anything: a space ship, submarine, shrinking machine... Anything that the class needs for them to learn the lesson. How COOL is that, right? Right? RIGHT?

It's actually a good way to teach your kids science before the internet was easily accessible to anyone.. But then, who wants to read long articles with graphs and charts right? I'm sure very little 8-year-olds would want to do that. So here is another option: Magic School Bus! It's not boring, it doesn't force kids to eat veggies (that discourages them from watching, trust me) and the best part is... Magic School Bus is a cartoon series! How COOL is that, right?!

Okay, so here's a list of episodes for all 4 seasons...just try to make out what each episode is about. Enjoy!

Season 1

• The Magic School Bus Gets Lost in Space
• The Magic School Bus For Lunch
• The Magic School Bus Inside Ralphie
• The Magic School Bus Gets Eaten
• The Magic School Bus Hops Home
• The Magic School Bus Meets the Rot Squad
• The Magic School Bus All Dried Up
• The Magic School Bus in the Haunted House
• The Magic School Bus Gets Ready, Set, Dough
• The Magic School Bus Plays Ball
• The Magic School Bus Goes to Seed
• The Magic School Bus Gets Ants in Its Pants
• The Magic School Bus Kicks Up a Storm

Season 2

• The Magic School Bus Blows
  
• The Magic School Bus Flexes Its Muscles
• The Magic School Bus: The Busasaurus
• The Magic School Bus Going Batty
• The Magic School Bus: Butterfly And The Bog Beast
• The Magic School Bus Wet All Over
• The Magic School Bus in a Pickle
• The Magic School Bus Revving Up
• The Magic School Bus Taking Flight
• The Magic School Bus Getting Energized
• The Magic School Bus Out of this World
• The Magic School Bus Gets Cold Feet
• The Magic School Bus: Ups and Downs

Season 3

• The Magic School Bus In A Beehive
• The Magic School Bus In The Arctic
  
• The Magic School Bus Spins A Web
• The Magic School Bus Under Construction
• The Magic School Bus Gets A Bright Idea
• The Magic School Bus Makes A Rainbow
• The Magic School Bus Goes Upstream
• The Magic School Bus Works Out
• The Magic School Bus Gets Planted
• The Magic School Bus In The Rainforest
• The Magic School Bus Rocks And Rolls
• The Magic School Bus Holiday Special

Season 4

• The Magic School Bus Meets Molly Cule
• The Magic School Bus Cracks A Yolk
• The Magic School Bus Goes To Mussel Beach
• The Magic School Bus Goes On Air
• The Magic School Bus Gets Swamped
• The Magic School Bus Goes Cellular
• The Magic School Bus Sees Stars
• The Magic School Bus Gains Weight
• The Magic School Bus Makes A Stink
• The Magic School Bus Gets Charged
• The Magic School Bus Gets Programmed
• The Magic School Bus In The City
• The Magic School Bus Takes A Dive

Enjoy ;)