Movie List

I've seen kind of a lot of movies this semester, thanks mostly to my Film Symposium class. I'm gonna try and sum it up, but my memory is a little hazy on a lot of them.

Traitor:

A Muslim arms dealer in Yemen who used to live in the US becomes a terrorist... or does he?

Loved: Don Cheadle, the twisty turns, Omar.

Loathed: Things were over-pointed out, especially by the two white FBI guys. Their characters were also really over developed but not interesting.

Yes/No: If you are feeling like an action-thriller with a bit more brains and a pretty well-rounded view on Muslim-American issues. Pretty heavy stuff though.

Battle In Seattle:

Based on the true events of 1999s WTO conference in Seattle. Basically, an angry mob movie.

Loved: Charlize Theron, the man dressed as a turtle (aka Andre 2000 - heyaa!), how articulate Stuart Townsend was, feeling inspired.

Loathed: The melo-drama moments, especially revolving around Martin Henderson and Michelle Roderiguez, the bad flashbacks, and the kind of predictability of a lot of it.

Yes/No: Yes if you feel like feeling like saving the world. So really, yes to the neighbor boy. Adelle and Su may like parts of it too. Oh, yes if you think Channing Tatum is handsome. (How could you not?)

Towelhead:

A 13 year old is sent away from her crazy white mother's house to live with her crazy Lebanese father.

Loved: The cast, particularly the over joyed facial expressions of Eugene Jones III, the insanity. The awkwardness.

Loathed: Got a bit heavy on the messages there, and Toni Collette was kind of too good to be true. The awkwardness.

Yes/No: It's a really hilarious film, but also so awkward you could die, so really, watch it with close friends. Not parents, and probably not significant others.

Choke:

Based on the book by the Fight Club guy, it's about a sexaholic who tries to deal with how his mother, whom he loves dearly, made him crazy like her.

Loved: The cast, particularly Clark Gregg (because he came in to speak, and he is amazingly well-spoken), Sam and Angel, the chick who plays the milk maid (Bijoux Phillips?).

Loathed: Having to explain what anal beads are to 2 roommates.

Yes/No: Was really hilarious while being really sad, and had a great tone, but at some parts got a little... eh.

The Duchess:

Based on the true life of Georgiana someone or other, who is fab and trapped in a loveless marriage. Was good friends with Marie Antoinette, apparently, but no cameos by Kiki, sadly.

Loved: Ralph Fiennes, how could you not? Her costumes, but not to the point of obsession. The drinking.

Loathed: Her hair. I know it was true to the time but it looked disgusto. How impotent she was through the whole movie.

Yes/No: Basically a dramatic chick-flick. If it was done cheaper and in the present day, it would be on Hallmark. Yes to girls who want to hate some men?

Nick & Noran's Infinite Playlist:

Nick and his gay band play a gig, even though he's depressed, and he meets Norah, and the two kind of hit it off and spend the night running around NYC together.

Loved: Michael Cera and his merry men. The awkward lines. The music. When the ex-girlfriend kisses his car window and leaves a lip stick mark. The ex-girlfriend's shoes. The 'sex' scene.

Loathed: The over hint-drops about how Norah has a rich Dad. Um... some plot points that would ruin it to mention. The fact that they kept referring to him as emo when I really don't think he looked it. The fact that it was marketed as Juno part 2. The fact that Michael Cera never plays anyone but Michael Cera. The almost end seeming out of character for Norah.

Yes/No: First off, I'm convinced Kat Dennings is Bev's white twin. Yes to those who want to relive teen days, and who love music. Nick and NB, this one is for you.

The Grand Conclusion? I haven't HATED anything. I haven't even disliked anything. I've been fairly entertained by all of them. But I'm not head-over-heels, buy-me-the-DVD-now kind of in love with any of them. Maybe it was the lack of eye candy?

TV Update

Just caught up with the first Grey's episode. Gotta say, not impressed at all. Did that really need 2 hours? It had the excitement of a 1h ep. I hope it builds up, like GG did!

TV Time

All my shows are coming back. Here's my breakdown:

Monday:

The CW wins me over, for sure. Gossip Girl started a few weeks ago, and it was pretty good but not amazing, until this week. Serena finally stops acting nice and becomes Queen again? Yes please. Plus, I am still desperate to be Blair's best friend. Seriously, got a problem? Go to Blair.

One Tree Hill is... dramatic, but my love affair with it ended when they jumped 5 years into the future. Actually, it ended the year before that. It's like a bad soap that's been running too long, but at least the baby is cute.

Instead, I choose heroes. Although, to be honest, I wasn't that impressed with the opener. It seems that everyone now has the power not to die. And too much time travel is happening. And really, the world ending is still a viable threat? I'm really glad ol' Malc is back though.

Tuesday:

CW, you fail today. 90210 and Privilege are both bad knock-offs of GG, about rich kids being fab. Except these 2 shows aren't quite as fab, clothing wise, and the dialogue kills. But, Darcy from Degrassi is on 90210, that's pretty exciting.

We tried the Mentalist on CBS. Honestly, it's pretty cute. It's like House was young and met a detective show or something. Basically it's about a guy who used to pretend to be a psychic and now he solves crime and is a little neurotic. The story got a little predictable, but maybe Rona and I are just that good. Um, that chick from the Craft and Empire Records is in it.

Opportunity Knocks on ABC is also something I might want to experiment with. Reality game show about how well you know your family? Sounds like it could be fun.

Wednesday:

Hello, ABC. The facts were these: Pushing Daisies, I've missed you. Ned, you're a hottie. Private Practice, I really don't care for unless Adison decides to stop acting like Meredith and be her usual cutting self. Dirty Sexy Money is my guilty pleasure, I'm on the fence about whether I actually like it but I'm a little addicted. What can I say, it's these rich people in New York.

Thursday:

Ugly Betty and I have a strange relationship. I tend to only watch it in marathons in Singapore, but I'm still a little interested. Grey's? You had me at "Derick, I'm pregnant with your child."

And honestly, that's all I've really looked into. You might be able to tell that I'm not a huge sitcom fan, although How I Met Your Mother is really hilarious. I would watch the Office, but then I'd miss Grey's, so er, no thanks.

xoxo

Famous By Association!

CONGRATULATIONS ALEXANDRA KS HUI!

(Here is a picture of Alex on a gold lion when we were on our trip to Narnia. Actually, we were in France, but Singapore is the lion city so it's kind of relevant, right?)

Miss Sexy Lexie won the singtel grid girls shizz, so she is officially the first of our generation to make it big. Not physically, I won that contest many years ago. Anyway, read it here.

Lex - both my Dad and Aunty Olive are dead impressed that the moolah is going to your mother.

Also, while looking for an awesome awks picture, I was reminded how great our trip to France was, when we got to stay in awesome hotels and eat great food and shop and not spend any of our own money. Here are some highlights:

Alex and I fight crime.

Don't let the modelly-model face fool you, is actually just lusting after hot chocolate.

And the ultimate fav...

Bahahahahah.

Spread the News

It pains me to say this, but I really miss GP. You know, when we actually had to learn the news. I feel like these days I know nothing. I didn't find out about the big train crash until... 3 days later. I found out about the boy who got stabbed by campus from someone's facebook status.

Spencer Pratt said something on the Hills about him and LC (I think...) hating each other like Iran and Israel, and I was like, what a tool, I think he means Palestine. But today I read that he actually was right, Iran is having issues with Israel. Who would have thunk it? Anyway, my conclusion was that if I was more ignorant than Spencer Pratt, I am in dire straits.

Solution? I'm going to have to start reading the news. Look out for my daily facebook status of some kind of news update. Gotta keep peeps in the know.

I Made A Quiche! :)

It's midterm season, and you all know what that means: Procrastination time.

Inspired by Tastespotting (Courtesy of Ms Emily Knowles, I can now waste even more hours food-blog-browsing), I decided that it was about time I used my new pyrex pie pan.

I give you: Leek and Mushroom Quiche!

Yea... My food photog skills leave a little to be desired.

Anyway, the crust is amazing and super duper easy to make. It's perfectly crisp and flaky, and you don't even have to pre-bake it. The filling was okay, but I think I'm missing something, it was kind of like eating an omelet in a crust. Plus, I just dumped the cheese on top which was clearly not a good idea because it rose like a tent and then when I cut into it it went pffffft and flat.

The crust: (from various sites...)

1 + 1tbs flour
1 stick/ 1/2 cup of cold butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup cold water

Cut the butter up into little pieces and rub into flour/salt mixture. When it's all crumbly, squash it together to make a big ball of dough, adding a little water at a time to stick it. You might not need all the water. Anyway, once you have it in a big ball, flatten it a little on some cling film (and cover) and leave it for an hour.

... 1 hour later

The rest!

1 leek, sliced
Big handful of mushrooms, sliced
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar/Gruyere

Pre-heat oven to 475 F.

In a pan, sautee the leek until it's mostly cooked, then add the mushrooms for a minute or two.

Remember that dough? Roll it out and line your pie tin with it. Throw the leek/mushroom mix in, though you might want to reserve some mushrooms for decorating. I didn't. Mix the eggs, milk, cheese and seasonings, and pour over.

Bake for 25 minutes.

Delish. Mostly.

Working on the kinks on the innards guys, but it's pretty good. Let me know if you figure it out!

Duke's Cafe

Where: 8909 W Sunset Blvd, Right next to the Whiskey A Go-Go

What I had: Half sandwich (corned beef) half salad ($7 something with tax...)

Rave review: "Celebrity endorsements cover the walls, and tourists, musicians and actor/model regulars rub elbows at communal tables or the counter. The diner-staple menu features 60-odd sandwiches and burgers, plus meat loaf, salads and pork chops with applesauce. But it's breakfast that really sizzles: Omelettes come with multiculti fillings like kosher salami and chutney. Blintzes and corned beef hash are hefty and homemade, and health-conscious diners can opt for egg-white scrambles and fresh fruit." - City Search

Their rating: 9.1

My rating: 5

Why:

Okay, first of all, there were like 5 people in there and none of them looked like hung over movie stars to me. It was pretty dingy. And here's a question: why would you want to rub elbows with tourists, as advertised above?

Anyway, the corned beef itself was pretty good. Now let's discuss the bread. It is literally a slice of white bread. You know, like sliced bread, like Gardenia or Sunshine? Really not classy. And being only half a sandwich, it is 2 halves of a slice. This makes sandwich look pretty lame. There is also nothing in said sandwich other than the beef. No lettuce, no avocado, no tomato...

Then there's the side salad. It is a base of iceberg lettuce, my pet peeve, with some carrot slices, green pepper slices, and some gross red cabbage slices. And they threw a piece of cantaloupe in there for good measure, I guess, which I mistook for a cucumber.

PLUS, they use Styrofoam boxes, so they don't even get bonus points for being environmentally friendly or anything.

On the bright side, I love my internship. They give me a $10 stipend for lunch. Highest paid Hollywood job I've ever had, woot woot! Moving up in the world.

Lunch

I have just eaten what I fondly like to call a heart attack on toast. I would like to dedicate this to Adelle.

Here's how to make it:

Fry some bacon (I used 3 rashers but my bread is little. I think 4 slices for a standard slice? Or 5 to be really delish.) until it's crisp. Toast 2 slices of bread. Cut up some brie and put it on one slice of toast. Microwave for 20 seconds. Put bacon on brie, and other slice of bread on bacon.

Et, voila!

Death tastes sooo good.

Twilight Survey

But I wouldn't advise taking the quiz. It was long and painful, because after you answer the twilight questions they try and trick you into visiting a sponsor site/ signing up for a sponsor program about 600000 times.

the best thing since chicken dino nuggets

Meatloaf + M2M + Celine Dion Song + Phantom of the Opera music vid = Jesus Gold.

Star Struck

Watch this from about 5 min in... look who it is! My very own cousin, with shared blood and everything!

Sexy Lexie, I'm so proud of you, getting the most naked men in Orchard Road.

If you wanna see her grid blog, it's right hurr. She might get mad that I posted this. Don't worry, Lex, only you and Adelle read this anyhoo :)