Film | Avatar

By now mostly everyone has seen or heard of Avatar, the ground-breaking, epic multimillion 3D film by James Cameron. It opened just before Christmas, which was a very busy period for me that I couldn't even set aside some time to see it. Christmas came and went, and we were besieged by an annual local film festival, which meant that all cinemas here were showing crappy local movies that I could care less about, LOL

Except for a couple of theaters--the two IMAX cinemas here were still showing Avatar, so today, on the very last day of the year, I set out to watch it. I managed to arrive just as the SM City North Edsa mall opened, and headed fast for the IMAX cinema. The seats for the first showing were almost full, but there were a couple of unreserved seats right near the center area, which assured me of a good seat. Unlike regular film showings, IMAX movies are at least twice more expensive, but it was understandable given the huge screen, 3D and digital technology involved, and I was really looking forward to this film since this was my very first IMAX movie.

From beginning to end, Avatar was a spectacular visual treat--I know that most of it is CGI, but seeing the lush greenery and breathtaking landscapes of Pandora in full 3D is a sight to behold. I can't help but use that "it's almost like being there" cliche, as the crisp 3D images projected on the huge IMAX screen draws you in the movie, offering a unique movie experience unlike any other film I've ever watched. Simply put, it was pure awesomeness.

Reading interviews with James Cameron, he mentioned that he had to wait almost a decade for technology to catch up with his vision for Avatar, and I think everyone was glad he waited, as the technology involved in the film is topnotch, and will be the gauge for future movies to come. The way the film integrates human actors with the CGI elements is practically seamless, and those same visual effects combined with the story, plot and pacing resulted in an overall, magnificent end product that's so engrossing, its almost 3-hour running time was hardly noticeable.

Avatar's plot isn't really that original; we've seen this before, in movies like Dances With Wolves and A Man Called Horse, but it's the way the movie executes it is what makes all the difference. It's fitting for me that this is the last movie I've seen on the last day of 2009, as this is without a doubt, the best movie of the year.

Music | The Cast - Auld Lang Syne

Auld Lang Syne is probably the most iconic song heard during New Year's Eve celebrations everywhere, but very few are aware that the song originated from a poem written in 1788 by the famous Scottish poet, Robert Burns, and set to a traditional folk song. While the song wasn't specifically written for the New Year, singing it during New Year's Eve became a Scots tradition that spread to many countries worldwide.


This version of Auld Lang Syne by the Scottish duo called The Cast is probably the most awesome version of the song that I've heard so far; The Cast is a Scottish husband and wife duo composed of vocalist Mairi Campbell and guitarist Dave Francis, and their version of Auld Lang Syne was included in their 1993 debut album, The Winnowing, and was recently given prominence when it was featured in the soundtrack of the Sex and the City movie in 2008.

What makes The Cast's version of Auld Lang Syne truly unique is the melody; they've given it an original treatment that evokes a more Celtic feel, with haunting vocals and beautiful string arrangements. The result is a classic that makes one pause in serene reflection at the events of the old year and at the same time is filled with hope at the coming year--a truly perfect song for the New Year.

There's no actual music video for this song, so just listen to it and be enthralled.

Design | Pepsi Logo

Been seeing the new Pepsi logo on a series of billboards everywhere. Didn't know that they changed their logo, and this new design is a departure from the old Pepsi Globe that we've been used to.


For one thing, the new font they used is in lowercase, light, and rounded--it's a bit understated as compared to the old logo, which was bold and used all uppercase letters. I kinda like it though, since it looks clean and minimalist, with the wavy line in the "e" as a nice touch.

As for the globe itself, it's still there, but the wavy lines were shifted somewhat to look like a smile. All that's missing is an eye and we'll have a Pepsi smiley, LOL.

While I like the new logo, I don't like the marketing scheme they're using to promote it, which are basically bland one-liners in Tagalog, like "sarap magbago" and the worse of them all, "todo todo todo"--wtf?

One thing I find annoying about advertising here is how Western brands are being adapted to fit in local culture, making it appear like they've been part of our culture since forever. So we get to see English commercials with Tagalog catchphrases and all that crap. I'm sorry, but it doesn't work; all it does is make the brand look like it's trying too hard.

Despite this, I still like the new logo, so it's Pepsi logo - win, Pepsi ad campaign - fail.

TV | French Food At Home

The first time I saw previews of French Food at Home, I knew I had to watch it. First off, it seemed beautifully filmed, and second, host Laura Calder looks hot, and any other female chef that can join Nigella Lawson on my roster of hot TV chefs is a welcome addition any day, hehe.

It turns out that the show was everything I expected, and more. Prior to watching this, I'd never heard of Laura Calder before; she's Canadian, born in New Brunswick and honed her cooking skills in Burgundy, France for about 10 years before returning to her native homeland in Toronto. She's one lovely lady, and I really like the way she hosts, with lots of humor and perkiness. Her French is excellent, and next to an English accent, nothing evokes sexiness for me than a woman with a French accent. And the fact that Laura wears a lot of those clingy dresses that highlight her figure also helps in making the show enjoyable, LOL.

All kidding aside, Laura's one fine cook, and you can sense her passion for cooking in the way she introduces and describes each dish she makes, along with some tips or interesting tales about it garnered from her vast experience. And judging by the way Laura expertly chops and slices, the lady can use those knives with skill, much better than any other TV chef that I've seen so far.


Laura in her French Food at Home TV kitchen
One dish I really liked was this potato omelette from a recipe she got from an ex-boyfriend; it looked really hearty and yummy, and by the time the show was over, I was craving for some omelette myself. Another favorite of mine was when she made "frenchified" popcorn; it was just plain kettle-cooked popcorn, but seasoned with Herbes de Provence and Fleur de sel.

French Food at Home uses high production values, capturing every color and detail perfectly on what appears to be high-definition film, similar to Nigella Lawson's earlier shows, but the images in Laura's show are much sharper and clearer. Even the music fits the show well, making you think of a lazy summer in the French countryside whenever you hear it.

Laura's kitchen is also more homey than Nigella's West London kitchen, but it looks really good and lived-in; you can easily tell that it's a house, and not a studio set--it's definitely one kitchen that I wouldn't mind eating in. Here's hoping that French Food at Home lasts a long time.

Gaming | 15th Anniversary of PlayStation

15 years ago, on December 3, 1994, the original PlayStation was released in Japan, and the gaming world was never the same again. Sony eventually grabbed the market share from gaming veterans Nintendo and Sega, and remains a competitive force in gaming today.

In honor of their 15th anniversary, Sony created a special logo incorporating most of the PlayStation stuff, from the PS consoles to the PSP handhelds.

In terms of design, I thought this logo was awesome, particularly the way they've managed to include all the major hardware and accessories, including the DualShock controllers, the memory cards, the memory sticks, PocketStations, UMDs, EyeToys, and even the newer accessories like the SingStar microphones and Buzz! buzzers.

I remember getting a PlayStation in 1997, along with games like Final Fantasy VII, Wild Arms, and Suikoden, and since that time I can't count the thousands of hours spent playing those games and more. I was a PC gamer back then, and saw the PlayStation as a solution to the frustration of always having to upgrade PC hardware to play the latest games, not to mention I was getting sick and tired of playing games on a desk using a mouse. Needless to say, the PlayStation rescued me from PC gaming, and I haven't looked back since.

To this date I've owned a PlayStation, PS2, PS3, and PSP, and every single one of those consoles was played through and through--except maybe for the PS3, since it's just new, heh. Happy Anniversary, PlayStation!