Movies I really wanted to see.... And my quick reviews

1. ARGO - I really liked it. I think it's really well done and the standouts are John Goodman and Alan Arkin. I think Ben Affleck as the director did a great job with the authenticity of the look and feel and also the suspense and tension. Certain parts did feel kind of forced and manipulative, but it's a really good movie.

2. SKYFALL - I think it's one of the best Bond films I've seen, and this one I can actually understand the plot and remember it! Javier Bardem is a great villain and Daniel Craig has never been better. The plot does get a bit too sentimental at the end and I kind of find it implausible (a bit of Home Alone there) but over all, an awesome Bond film. Oh, the Bond girls are hot.

3. LES MIS - more on it tomorrow after the screening!

4. CLOUD ATLAS - I was intrigued by the trailers and the premise. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking and to some extent they succeeded. But by using the same famous actors to play different roles using make up, they end up distracting more than engaging... it becomes a "look, look, who is play what?" Parts of the story are flat or uninteresting. I don't find it confusing, but I can how it can be. Very uneven.

5. SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK - Feel good movie of the year. Everything is in place. Cooper, Lawrence, De Niro and Weaver are all excellent. Chris Tucker, however, seems misplaced -- his role can be cut out with no loss to the story. I also find the ballroom dancing and thus the ending somewhat contrived.  I really, really like the movie, just not as much as just about everyone else.

6. THE SESSIONS - What  I thought was as funny, adult comedy about a man with polio who hires a sex surrogate... turns out to be a heart-warming drama. John Hawkes and Helen Hunt are both amazing. Love it.

7. THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER -- the nostalgia factor makes it a must-see for me. Like Adventureland a few years ago, this one reminds me of my time in Pittsburgh in the late 80s. The story and the acting are superb. 

8. ANNA KARENINA - ever since Pride & Prejudice, I have been a Joe Wright fan, and ever since the Pirate of the Caribbean films, I really enjoyed Keira Knightely. So I was expecting a lot from Anna Karenina, and was ultimately disappointed. The movie is gorgeous, and the production is great... I just think Joe Wright took a big risk by setting the film on the stage, and it didn't pay off. It felt distant -- I couldn't connect with it emotionally. Anna isn't really very likable either, so it makes it harder for me to like the film. I think Joe Wright should stick with period drama in naturalistic settings -- he did it so well with P&P and Atonement.

Two posts in a Year?

I just realized I've posted exactly five times since this time last year. What gives? I suppose the past year has been more troublesome to me than I truly realized. I got distracted. It's not like I had nothing to say; in fact I had plenty to say, but blogging was the last thing on my mind.

I hope to get better at this blogging thing this coming year as I once again focus more on my career and less on my personal life. The sad fact is, people come and go in our lives, and there's nothing we can do about it. The only thing we can control is -- well, the things we can control, such as our work, our efforts, our hopes and dreams. It's time to embrace a new phase of my life.

I'm still Alive

A lot has changed in the past few months, pretty much since I last wrote in... what, November?

Anyway, I am not ready to divulge yet, but I have lots of news, lots of changes to report and I am still in the process of processing them. The biggest change is what is going on inside my head and heart... I guess you can say I was going through some significant growing pain. But the good thing is, I am growing (as a person, not literally growing -- I was done with that at puberty!)

To save time, I'll repost something I wrote to a friend of mine. We are both going through some tough times in our respective lives. Through our correspondences and encouragement to each other, I seem to find a voice that is more neutral and objective:

Life has its ebb and flow -- sometimes we're in a rut and it's just up to us to get out of it... eventually, but at the same time, there's no need to rush. Sometimes we do need that down time to evaluate things, to think, to catch up with our thoughts and feelings.  As you know I've been going through a lot of internal changes and introspection lately. I've shut down FB again, this time maybe for good. We'll see.  I figure I am leaving doors open (text msg, email, etc.) for those who truly care and want to keep in touch.  All the others, they can just go and do whatever they please.

Life's too short to hold on to those who don't want to engage or don't care.

The thing is, everyone is self-centered. We have our own shit to deal with. We are just a blip on someone else's radar.  I'm fine with that.

Friendship comes and goes... that's just life. I have a close friend in high school....  we kept in touch for almost 30 years even though we live in two different continents now, but even that friendship has waned... we barely speak or write each other, maybe only on our respective birthdays and usually it's just "how are you?"  that's all.  It's kind of sad but as our lives diverge that's just how things are. I am okay with that.

I'm sorry I'm kind of out of touch too. Not that I don't care or don't think of you. Just that like I said, everyone has their own shit to deal with, and I've been dealing with mine and am in a very isolated mood and withdrawal... Don't want to divulge but that's just something I need to go through. Hopefully I will be getting out of that soon.

Funny thing is just when I didn't think anyone cared, this week's been weird... a bunch of people I haven't heard from for months just started to text or email or call me. Out of the blue. It's as if there's a cosmic power to tell them all: "hey, it's time to touch base with Ray."  It's weird.

I'm really sorry that you guys drifted apart. Like you said, sometimes people change, things change, friendship change... just keep in touch.  They and I actually drifted apart for a while, too, but then we got in touch again. It's all about emotional honesty and being there, and being true... eventually, if the friendship is built on rock and not sand, it will come back.  In the mean time, keep yourself busy, and keep meeting new people, etc.

I think that's it... we just need time and space. I know it sounds boring, that you're in a rut.  But sometimes we need to be in a rut so we can figure out how to dig out of it, and what needs to change within ourselves. It's part of the pain of growing.  I've grown so much in the past 6 months it's unbelievable.

Take care buddy and chin up. Things will get better. Just be patient.

Random Musing... About Life and Such

I'm trying to avoid everything Christmas... LOL I'm such a Grinch.  But while chatting with my best friend about the holidays, I stumbled upon an interesting topic...

It's funny that my best friend should mention time and friendship/relationships. While it's true that some friends just fell by the wayside (and possibly they weren't really good friends to begin with -- or they have their own things going on...), it's also true that some friends remain the same after years and years. I mean, sometimes you haven't seen someone for 20 years and you see them again, and it's as if no time had passed. Like my best friend and me... sometimes we have a hard time remembering when we saw/talked to each other last! Was it a year ago? Two years ago? I mean, we've known each other for almost 25 years and it doesn't seem like that long.

Maybe time really isn't a factor when you really connect with someone. Otherwise, it's not meant to be and is superficial anyway.

I think we're always just wrapped up with the "now," or that we feel if we don't hold on to something or someone, they will be gone forever. It's human nature. It's hard to let go of attachments. It's all about fear -- the fear of rejection; the fear of loss; the fear of not measuring up; the fear of being exposed or the pain of separation or not having something (now). Fear of losing control, or a future beyond our control. The more we're attached to something, the more we want to hold on to it, not understanding that if something is meant to be, time doesn't matter. We're a culture of "now" -- instant gratification. When we say "we want to take things slow, get to know each other better" what we mean is "let's get married in 3 months." Either we're lovers now or never! The same goes with other endeavors such as a writing career, money, fame, etc.

But remember, legacies are not built overnight. In fact, most "legacies" are built over a lifetime.

And then you hear stories about people in love with each other for decades before they had a chance to get together... you wonder, wow! How does that work? (Have you read the book or seen the movie One Day? It made me sob like a little girl) In a way, that's what my current novel is about: the undying love that lasts a lifetime even after a decades-long separation....

Interesting how life imitates fiction sometimes.

Book Number Three

Book #3 has finally started -- I think... I hope.

Actually, I did start another book #3 last November when I was *trying* to do NaNoWriMo but I quit after the first 8000+ words because it turned out not to be the book I wanted to write. And since then, I've been working on editing on Book #2 and figuring out what to do with Book #3. I narrowed it down to between two ideas.

Eventually, I decided that I wanted to write something lighter, with lots of humor and fun observation. It's not necessarily a comedy, but definitely nothing as thick and heavy as Book #2 and the other idea for Book #3.

Also, once I switched to first person, the words just flowed. I absolutely love writing in first person, and I feel that after all these months of pondering, I got to know the characters pretty well and I was able to tell the story with their voices. Let's see how that goes. One of the main character is going to be so much fun to write!

Also, since I've now started on it, I want to resume my 500-word-a-day challenge. Hopefully I'd be able to get the first draft done by next Spring. Let's see how that goes.

So excited!