Meet the Princesses of Shrek 3

'Shrek The Third' will be coming our way in Summer 2007, and this time he's got a bevy of beauties to help him.

When his new father-in-law, King Harold (John Cleese) falls ill, Shrek (Mike Myers) is looked at as the heir to the land of Far, Far Away. Not one to give up his beloved swamp, Shrek recruits his friends Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) to recruit the rebellious Artie (Justin Timberlake) as the new king. Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz), however, rallies a band of royal girlfriends to fends off a coup d'etat by the jilted Prince Charming (Rupert Everett).

"Amy Poehler is Snow White, the alpha dog of the group," director Chris Miller says. "She's a real pit bull." Maya Rudolph lends what the director calls "her quiet coolness" to Rapunzel. Cheri Oteri is Sleeping Beauty, "a narcoleptic princess." And Amy Sedaris (Strangers With Candy) steps into the shoes of Cinderella, an obsessive-compulsive cleaner who can throw a mean high-heeled pump if need be.

Royal Rumble: (L to R) Cinderella, Snow White, Fiona, Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty.

By the way, the box-office is going to rock next Summer 2007 with Shrek 3, Pirates 3, Spiderman 3 and not to mention Harry Potter 4 and Oceans 13.

'Exiled' banned in Malaysia

Release from Associated Press last Friday 20 Oct 2006:

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Malaysia has banned Hong Kong director Johnnie To's new triad movie, "Exiled" citing excessive violence, a news report said Friday.

The movie, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival last month, was originally scheduled for release in cinemas here Thursday, but failed to get the nod from the censorship board as it was deemed to contain excessive violence, The Star newspaper said.

The report didn't give details. No one at the censorship board could be immediately reached for comment.

The movie is set in Macau -- a Chinese gambling haven near Hong Kong -- in 1998, and focuses on two hit men from Hong Kong sent to take out a renegade gang member who's trying to change from a life of crime.

Movies screened in Malaysia must abide by a censorship code that forbids sex, excessive violence and provocative handling of topics such as race and religion.

Banned films have included Steven Spielberg's Holocaust film "Schindler's List" and "The Prince of Egypt," a 1998 animated epic about Moses.

The movie stars Simon Yam, Anthony Wong, Richie Jen and Francis Ng.

'City of Joy' is a joy to watch

I first saw 'City of Joy' when it was first released in 1992. Recently I bought the DVD from ebay. Watching it again, I enjoyed the movie tremendously as much as I did the first time. (By the way, don't let the name of Patrick Swayze discourage you from watching this movie....Swayze is actually pretty good here.)

Based on the bestselling book by Dominique Lapierre, the story tells of an American doctor, Max Lowe who gets disheartened after losing one of his patients on the operating table. Max travels to India in the hope of "finding himself". Not long after he arrives in Calcutta, Max is attacked loses his money and passport. However, a man named Hasari, played by Om Puri, comes to Max's rescue. Despite their poverty, Hasari and his family take Max in and bring him to a medical clinic in the City of Joy, one of the poorest slums in the city. The clinic is run by Joan Bethel (Pauline Collins), an Irish-American nun who urges Max to use his skills to help the people of Calcutta who so desperately need it. Max signs on, and he finds that the experience changes his life.

The movie is very uplifting and enlightening as it shows the strength of the human spirit, no matter how poor. The scenes in the slum area were very realistically filmed. Om Puri is excellent and memorable as the father who wants a better life for his family. The conclusion of the film is very touching and meaningful.

For those who have not seen this movie, I urge you to get hold of this. Excellent movie!!

Watch out for 'Heroes'

Following in the same vein as 'The 4400', 'Lost' and probably even 'X-Men', NBC has produced a new series which has been predicted to be this year's hit series. The premiere episode of 'Heroes' which was broadcasted on 25th Sept attracted 14.3 million viewers overall and received the highest rating for any NBC drama premiere in five years.

The synopsis is as follows:

Heroes is a serial saga about people all over the world discovering that they have superpowers and trying to deal with how this change affects their lives. The relatable superheroes include Peter Petrelli, a 30-year-old male nurse who believes he can fly; Diego Medina, a 28-year-old junkie who has the ability to paint images of the future when he is high; Niki Sanders, a 33-year-old Las Vegas showgirl who can do incredible things with mirrors; Hiro Makamura, a 24-year-old Japanese comic-book geek who literally makes time stand still; D.L. Hawkins, a 31-year-old inmate who can transport himself through walls; Matt Parkman, a beat cop who can hears other people's thoughts; and Claire Bennet, 17-year-old cheerleader who defies death at every turn. Not only are they discovering what having superpowers means to them but also the larger picture of where their superpowers come from. Eventually their superpowers draw them together when they try to evade the series' antagonist who wants to harness their super-DNA for himself. Their ultimate destiny is nothing less than saving the world.

The series will star Greg Grunberg (Alias), Leonard Roberts (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Milo Ventimiglia (Gilmore Girls), and Hayden Panettiere (Ally McBeal). The series is created by Tim Kring (Crossing Jordan, Chicago Hope).

It's no doubt that this is NBC trying to hit back at ABC's huge hit 'Lost'. From the reviews that I've read so far, NBC has succeeded. Some people has even said that it's better than 'Lost'. Anyway it's too soon to tell since only 3 episodes have only been aired so far.

Zombies on a Plane!!

After the success of 'Snakes on a Plane', everybody wants to do a horror movie on a plane, the latest being 'Plane Dead'. Apparently George A. Romero was asked to direct the film but he turned it down because the budget wasn't enough.

The film revolves around an international flight from LA to Paris on which a renegade scientist, on the run from the CIA, has smuggled a secret coffin containing a body infected with a genetically engineered virus. When the plane encounters two large storms, the extreme turbulence causes the flesh-eating body to escape from the plane’s hold. A life-and-death battle then ensues as the virus turns the passengers into the undead.

The terrified uninfected passengers try to survive the flight. No government will allow the 'infected' flight to land. Stranded in the air, the passengers have no place to hide from theirravenous tormentors.....

'Sinking of Japan' coming soon

Already a blockbuster in it's own country, Japan disaster pic 'The Sinking of Japan' recently opened at No. 1 in South Korea with $3.2 million in its first four days. Haul ranks as the second-highest opening for a Japanese film in Korea, trailing animated feature 'Howl's Moving Castle' which opened with $4.8 million on 233 prints in early 2005.

Made with a budget of over 2 billion yen, the movie is a disaster epic which tells of what happens to Japan when it's hit by tsunami, earthquake and volcano eruptions all at the same time, resulting in the total obliteration of the country.

UIP is distributing this movie locally in Malaysia and will open in Dcember 2006.

Hello Darth Kitty

Oh my God!!! What will the Japanese think of next?!!

Lead actor chosen to play 'Iron Man'

Well, it's official. Looks like Robert Downey Jr is going to be Iron Man. Read the latest from Reuters:

Robert Downey, Jr. is suiting up to star in "Iron Man," a superhero movie based on the Marvel Comics character.

Jon Favreau is directing the Paramount Pictures release. Filming is slated to begin in February in Los Angeles.

Downey will portray Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor who is kidnapped and forced to build a devastating weapon. Using his intelligence and ingenuity, Stark instead builds a high-tech suit of armor and escapes captivity. Upon his return to the U.S., he uncovers a plot with global implications and must don his armor and protect the world.

The comic debuted in the 1960s, and Iron Man's origin involved Stark being a prisoner of the Viet Cong. The movie version will be set in today's geopolitical climate.

Budgeted at more than $100 million, it marks the first feature film to be produced independently by Marvel Entertainment, which previously licensed its characters, such as "Spider-Man" and "X-Men," to other studios.

Marvel president of production Kevin Feige said the filmmakers looked for the best
actor to embody the character.

"The Marvel characters are not just about how high they jump or how fast they fly, they're about their character flaws," Feige said. "They're about their inner demons. They're about the struggles that they go through between being a man and being a hero."

Downey, who has battled his fair share of inner demons, worked hard to get the role, getting in shape and even growing a goatee like the one Stark sports in the comic books.

"In every casting announcement we've done, people in their mind's eye have their own view of it and let us know about it. We're used to it," Feige said. "The point is, we looked at everybody, and we found the best person for the role. It's as confident a casting move as we've ever done. The proof will be in the pudding, but he is Tony Stark."

Downey returns to theaters on November 10 in the Diane Arbus bipic "Fur" opposite Nicole Kidman.

'Hard Candy' - not for everybody

'Hard Candy' is not for everybody. First of all, there are only 2 actors in the whole movie. Then of course there's the taboo subject of paedophile and the dangers of meeting people through the internet.

32-year old photographer Jeff has been chatting online with 14-year old Haley for three weeks. They decide to meet up at a cafe. Then Jeff takes Haley back to his house. But soon the twist of the story explodes and Haley turns the table on Jeff as she informs him that she knows he's a paedophile and intends to punish him. She drugs him and ties him to a chair. Jeff is forced to undergo intensive questioning from Haley, including being set up for castration. The tension mounts to a peak as the two characters uncover aspects of each other.

As I mentioned, the movie is not for everybody, especially those expecting to see an action-packed thriller like Saw. It will probably work better as a play rather than a movie. Some parts gets really dry as the conversations between the two characters drag on. The twist at the end was not really compelling either.

The two actors are pretty good though, especially 19-year old Ellen Page who plays the 14-year old Haley. She really creeps me out in her role!

I guess one of the things that you learn from this movie is to be careful meeting people over the internet. Guys beware! You never know the chick that you are chatting with might be a serial killer!

One of the best monster movie...

I wrote about the Korean movie 'The Host' a few months ago. Since reading about its release, I was very much looking forward to watching it. However there was no news of its immediate release in our local cinemas. I was in Bangkok last week and was so excited when I found out that it was showing there.


The synopsis is as follows:

Hee-bong is the owner of a small food stand in the Han River Citizen's Park. Gang-du is one of his three children, a man who seems a bit slow mentally and whose one motivating strength is a devotion to his schoolage daughter Hyun-seo. Rounding out the family is Nam-joo, an amateur competitive archer and her brother Nam-il (Park Hae-il), who is unemployed and always gets drunk.

When the creature snatches the young Hyun-seo away, the family stands together fight the monster and rescue her before she becomes fish food.

If this movie had been produced in Hollywood, you would probably get a team of military guys fighting the monster. However the director goes beyond stereotypes and plays out the monster story in a totally new and unique way focusing on the strength of the family. The story combines a little bit of comedy, drama and thriller. And I tell you there are definitely some scenes which will make you jump out of your seat!

The monster effect is one of the best I've seen, even from Hollywood. The movement of the creature is very nicely done, especially when it swings from the bridge with its tail.


I find some parts of the movie too draggy. I wish they would show more of the monster. Even then, this is one of the best monster movies I've seen. For your info, in just over a month of its release, this movie has set a new record in Korean box office with viewers over 12.4 millions.

DOA - lots of action and hot babes

I went to the premier of 'DOA: Dead or Alive' last night without really knowing anything about the movie, except that it's got some hot babes. I understand that it's based on a video game, but I've never played it before. I was quite dissapointed with the outcome because it's just a rehash of the Mortal Kombat/Street Fighter genre. At least the plot in Mortal Kombat was interesting.

It's all about a group of people who are invited to an island to fight each other, and the ultimate winner gets $10 mil.

One of the users in IMDB.com wrote 'Teenage boys are going to love it'. I think not only teenage boys, but boys of all ages will watch this movie if only for the sexy kick-ass babes...and director Cory Yuen probably wanted it that way because there's lots of close-up shots of the ladies' boobs, bottoms and legs.

The fight sequences are OK but it's nothing we haven't seen before in countless chinese movies like Hero, Fearless, House of Flying Dagger etc etc.

At the end I thought it was just a silly, cheesy movie with lots of action and hot babes and nothing much else. Anyway, if I want to watch a kick-ass chick flick, I'd rather watch a rerun of Charlie's Angels.

First pics of Suri

After much anticipation, the pics of baby Suri Cruise are finally out.

Borat - so damn funny

Borat is a fictitious Kazakstani reporter created by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. In this hilariously offensive movie, Borat travels from his primitive home in Kazakhstan to the US to make a documentary. On his cross-country road-trip, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences.

The following is an interview conducted by with Borat himself:

What are some of your personal favorite movies?
My favourites movies is Robot Cop. Womanman Doubtfire, Little Lord Fontelroy, Transsibierskiy Ekspress 2, Gerald McGuire and sex comedy The Accused.

Who are your favorite male and female movie stars and why?
I very much like Kazakh film hero Viktor Hotelier (you probably know him from blockbusters movie Almaty Summer). I also very much like the new James Bond, Roger Moore. I like female cartoon Kazakh superbhero by name ''Astounding Woman.'' She have amazing strength that she use to pull a full-sized plough for up to 42 hours without food or water.

As a TV journalist, which American TV journalists do you admire most and why?
I like very much Barbara Walters. She is unlike any Kazakh woman I have seen, she have no hair on her face or chest, and her teeth grow only on inside of her mouth.

What is the biggest difference between working with a major Hollywood movie studio like Fox and working in the film and TV industry in Kazakhstan?
Kazakh films is more realistics. In Hollywood movie The Gladiator, it obvious the tigers was not actual eat those criminal, whereas in Kazakh movie Angry Snakes on a Gypsy Boat, over 85,000 extras was actually attacked and finished by the pythons. I think Hollywoods can learn from this and be prepare to spend extra money for make movies look real.

Also rating system of two countries is a slight different. In my country you must be at least 18-year-old for watch scenes containing uncaged women, and for view explicit sexytime you must be at least 3.
What do you think the people back home in Kazakhstan will think of the movie?
This movie have already been release in Kazakhstan and was blockbusterings! It open simultaneous on all seven of our country's screens and take top spot from Hollywood movie King Kong — which had been number one film in Kazakhstan ever since it was release in 1933.

What would Americans be most surprised to learn about life in Kazakhstan?
That it actual very modern country that have many things similar to U.S. and A. For examples, we have event exact the same as your Super Bowls — only slight difference is, instead of 80,000 sportfans who gather in arena, it is 100,000 shepherds who come down from the Tinshein Hills and gather in field and when they get there instead of look on footballs game, they drink fermented horse urine and then dig a big hole and fill it with dogs and Uzbekis and then throw potatoes on them for two days. Then they eat a soup made from spicy vegetables and then return to the hills.

We also have daytime game shows very like your Jeopardys — our most popular one have name ''Gypsy Bingo'' where we put numbers on back of 20 gypsies. Contestant have to bet on which number will manage to reach other side of minefield.
I would like invite people who read this to come visit Kazakhstan. It now democratic, free nation, with cleanest prostitutes in all of Central Asia (except of course for Turkmenistan's). Also it have world-class shopping at new supermall ''Almaty Shop City,'' which is actual built on three levels! They connected by Central Asia's first electric staircase (which did NOT swallow and grind those two schoolchildrens).

How do you think being a movie star will change your life? Are your friends and family afraid you'll ''go Hollywood''?
I do not think this a problem as I already number four most famous person in Kazakhstan behind our glorious leader, Premier Nazarbayev, pop star Billy Sexcrime, ex-Olympic gymnast Lily Utmarkan (she now work in Kazakh State Circus, where she famous for putting one foot in mouth while other is in her [CENSORED BY KAZAKHSTAN BUREAU OF COMMUNICATION AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS]) — and acting chimpanzee ''Jonny the Monkey'' (he dress like Humphrey Bogarts and smoke cigarette, but very sadly he recent die making monkey Evel Knievel movie. He was intend to jump swimming pool on motorcycle, but he crash in water and drown because his hands had been glued too strong on handlebars. Goodbye, Jonny — we miss you).

If you could bring one thing from the U.S. back to Kazakhstan, what would it be and why?
I would like bring back all the best friends I make on my travels. I like you very much. Please call me in Kazakhstan and we will make chitchat on telephones. My number is Kazakhstan 142. Chenquieh.

If you think this is funny, check out the following websites. They are just simply hilarious.

http://www.boratonline.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/borat
http://stopborat.com/

Poking fun at Orlando Bloom

Very funny. Click to see full size.

Exclusive monster pic from new horror movie

'Feast' is a new monster pic from Dimension Films and will be opening in US on September 22nd I got the following exclusive pic from bloodydisgusting.com. The movie is basically about a group of strangers who gather in a bar where they're attacked and systematically killed by monsters.


The film was a product of "Project Greenlight", the program created by Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Chris Moore to showcase new talent.

The winners of the 58th Primetime Emmy Awards

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
MEGAN MULLALLY (Will & Grace)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
ALAN ALDA (The West Wing)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
BLYTHE DANNER (Huff)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
JEREMY PIVEN (Entourage)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE
KELLY MACDONALD (The Girl In The Café)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE
JEREMY IRONS (Elizabeth I)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE
ANDRE BRAUGHER (Thief)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
TONY SHALHOUB (Monk)

OUTSTANDING MADE FOR TELEVISION MOVIE
THE GIRL IN THE CAFÉ

OUTSTANDING REALITY/COMPETITION PROGRAM
THE AMAZING RACE

OUTSTANDING MINISERIES
ELIZABETH I

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE
HELEN MIRREN (Elizabeth I )

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
MARISKA HARGITAY (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS (The New Adventures of Old Christine)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
KIEFER SUTHERLAND (24)

OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES
THE OFFICE

OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES
24

My new blog

I have always been fascinated by the unknown and the unexplained. Probably that's why I love scary movies. When people talk of the unexplained, the TV series 'X-Files' immediately comes to mind. Recently our cable TV has been showing the series 'Supernatural' which is about 2 brothers going from town to town solving mysteries of the unexplainable. Whether you are a believer or a sceptic, all of us desire the truth....and as the saying goes 'The Truth is out there'.

I have started a new blog which basically lists stories of this nature. I call my blog 40ana (pronounced as Forteana). Forteana is a term which is used to refer to all strange and anomalous phenomena. The word comes from Charles Fort (1874 - 1932) who is like the father of paranormal investigations. For over thirty years, Fort sat in the libraries of New York and London, assiduously reading scientific journals, newspapers, and magazines, collecting notes on phenomena that lay outside the accepted theories and beliefs of the time.

To make it more interesting, I hope my friends and readers will share their experiences as well.

'Snakes on a Plane' review

I attended the premiere of 'Snakes on a Plane' (SoaP) on Wednesday night courtesy of GSC. As you all know, there's a big hype on the internet about this movie. GSC, the local distributor of the movie, also jumped on the bandwagon by creating a big affair during the premier by having getting some snake performers at the cineplex.

I have always enjoyed creature features. From snakes and bugs to mutant creatures and dinosaurs, I always enjoy those B-grade movies they show on cable TV. So naturally I was very excited to watch SoaP.

Well, overall this movie was entertaining (but, I still think Anaconda is one of the best snake movies ever). The movie has been written specifically with the idea of creating a B-grade movie...and it works. The cheesy dialogues are funny, and the action is both entertaining and gory. Unfortunately the swearing parts have been deleted by our dear consors....or else it would be even funnier. Samuel Jackson is great as the kick-ass detective. When Jackson declares that he wants these motherf---ing snakes off this motherf---ing plane, you can't help but cheer. (Of course, in our local cinemas, you can only 'imagine' Samuel Jackson saying it!!)

This is one of those fun movies you want to watch with a group of your buddies so that you can talk and laugh about it later at the mamak store.

Lost Season 3 promo poster

ABC has just revealed the new promo poster for the third season of the popular series 'Lost', which begins in US on October 4. The show will air the first six episodes, then will take a break for 13 weeks, and finally return sometime in the first quarter of 2007 (likely February) for the remaining 16 episodes.

Some news on 'Indiana Jones 4'

Here's some latest news on 'Indiana Jones 4' which I got from the net. Not sure how much of these are true though. Anyway, the film has been scheduled for a summer 2008 release.

• George Lucas and Steven Spielberg have gone over the new Jeff Nathanson script and given it their approval. Harrison Ford is also pleased with the draft.
• The Movie is set 10-12 years after the events of the old movies, it'll be in the 50's.
• Naturally Harrison Ford will return as Indie, and he will also have a younger sidekick.
• The movie will be shot in early 2007 likely in Australia and U.S. Steven Spielberg has been spotted location hunting in Queensland, Australia and Japan.
• George Lucas has confirmed he has written a role in the movie for Sean Connery in the hope he will sign on.
• Rumor has it that Steven Spielberg paid Michelle Yeoh a visit on the set of 'Memoirs of a Geisha' to ask her to star in Indy 4!
• Model Laura Dutta is the first person to be officially signed on, the model has never acted before but has landed a small role involving some dialogue.
• Kate Capshaws character Willie Scott looks set to return, with the possibility of a cameo role from one of Indie's other love interests.
• Steven Spielberg also has his eye on Scarlett Johansson for a role in the movie.
• John Rhys-Davies says he hopes his character 'Sallah' will return but says he has had no contact with George Lucas or Steven Spielberg.