MOVIE REVIEW: FINAL DESTINATION 5

Horror/suspense films tend to always drag as the years go by and this can be said of the Final Destination series. The first one was good bu the next installments were just plain boring or sometimes uninteresting. But the fifth offering has somehow got out of that sad fate.

Final Destination 5 also gets a 3D treatment to add to its commercial appeal. So how did the film fare? Again we know the premise of Final Destination wherein a group of individuals seem to have escaped death but death comes striking back and haunt them. What makes this edition different is the feel. There is somehow a feel of sophistication and a bit of heightened gore with the scenes. The cinematography and editing were commendable and really something that has vastly improved from the past films.

The cast are relatively unknowns but did great in their task of being convincing while being killed. Although some of the scenes were more akin to Saw than FD, it was all worth the scare. Tony Todd is back again for his role, which is sort of creepy and scary at the same time. Overall, it did give me scare but not super!

3.5 out of 5 popcorns

MY TOP 10 BACHELORS AT THE 2011 BACHELOR BASH

There were lots of hot guys and familiar faces in the Cosmo Bachelor bash. Apologies for not mentioning some of the big names but I am counting my top 10 hottest during that day - the bachelors that really grabbed attention and tickled many fantasies. Here they are:

1. Enrique Gil

2. Jay Gonzaga

3. Jake Cuenca

4. Paulo Avelino

5. Alex Hidalgo

6. Ahron Villena

7. Mike Elhag

8. Abs Abdelkader

9. Enzo Pineda

10. Tylor Perry

Photo Credits: Cosmo.ph, Mark Alvarez Photography

I SO LOVE MY NEW FB TIMELINE

While most of the people have negative reactions on the new timeline for Facebook, I think I like it so much. It has a certain personal feel making Facebook a nice site to really showcase one person. The big picture in one's profile is really nice showing that this is really a personal page. The activities, friends and likes were all put i a way one could easily connect with their friends.

Here's a peek of my timeline - Whether this would stay or not, I am enjoying every single bit of it.

BLUECLOUD'S MUSIC CHARTS SEPTEMBER 5-11, 2011

I have had a lot of things going on in the past few weeks and one of which is the malfunctioning of my router. So I have had some posts that I was not able to show. Here is the chart action for the week ending September 11, 2011. Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera reclaims the top spot. Apologies for not being able to do a video for this chart. I need to catch up with my posts.

MOVIE REVIEW: CARS 2

Pixar takes us to another sequel to one of their animated features with the release of Cars. While the franchise and merchandise campaign of Cars have been widely successful with toys, shirts, shoes and a whole lot more from candies, fans, mats and the like, the movie is not something to really rave about.

I loved the first Cars because of the fish-out-of-water type of adventure and the endearing personalities of Mater and Lightning McQueen. But Cars 2 is somewhat different perhaps trying to attack the film's more mature audience. Suddenly it becomes an action packed toon that is more akin to James Bond or those spy related films. The film's language is somehow more adult as well with use of some words that may not be as good to hear for kids. The intent to make Cars to appeal more to a global audience was evident as the film's setting were actually from different parts of the globe including Tokyo, London and Paris.

The film still has good points including the subtle message about friendship and the self-belief. Other than that which is sort of an automatic for cartoon based films, the movie lacked punch and keeps people just wondering if the idea of a sequel to the original Cars is really worth it. Not much to rave about. 3.5 out of 5 popcorns

SHAMCEY WINS 3RD RUNNER-UP AT MISS UNIVERSE

Our very own Shamcey Supsup made the whole nation proud by winning 3rd runner-up in the recently concluded Miss Universe 2011 at Sao Paolo, Brazil. Never mind if we felt that she was robbed of the crown and that some of the finalists were not really stand-outs. Miss Angola is bright and beautiful as well and equally deserves the crown.

But let us focus more on Shamcey. During the pre-pageant, she started on a relatively average note with her answers on the pre-pageant questions. But her"tsunami walk" in the presentation show for evening gown really wowed the judges, the critics and the viewers who were all amazed by her swan-like confident walk that made her stand out above the rest. She also displayed same level of femininity in her swimwear walk.

That was her key to the Top 15 and even to the Top 10. She consistently ranked on the Top 2 favorites on the pageant night's fan voting for both the Evening Gown and the Swimwear. And on the Top 5, she was just amazing as she answered a very delicate question in the best possible way she can. I applaud her for her strong belief in GOD and she has made sure that was she said are actually heartfelt and real.

Vivica Fox was the judge chosen to ask her the final question: “Would you change your religious beliefs to marry the person that you love? Why or why not?”  Shamcey answers: “If I would have to change my religious belief, I would not marry the person that I love because the first person that I love is God who created me.” “I have my faith and my principles, and this is what makes me who I am. If the person loves me, he’ll love my God too,” she added.

Congratulations once more Shamcey.

BLUECLOUD'S MUSIC CHARTS AUGUST 29 - SEPTEMBER 4

This post may be a bit late but pardon me for not writing the past weeks. As of September 4, here was the hot music charts action with new entries from Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Jason DeRulo and local artist Anne Curtis. Yup, you've got that right. So enjoy!

MOVIE REVIEW: CRAZY STUPID LOVE

Crazy, Stupid, Love is one of the wonderful films I have watched this past months. This dramedy may not be as crazy as the title suggests but what is appealing to this film is its overly talented ensemble cast led by the ever funny Steve Carrell, the talented Julianne Moore, the young yet spunky Emma Stone and the sexy yet talented Ryan Gosling, who has gone way up in the hot-ometer if you're gonna compare him with his Young Hercules days.

The movie is touching and funny at the same time. We dive into the life of Cal Weaver (Steve Carrell) which was seemingly perfect - a good career, nice house, a picture-perfect family with a beautiful wife and wonderful kids. But then the "bomb" came when he learns that his wife (Julianne Moore) wants a divorce after she revealed to have cheated him. And so the dream turned into a nightmare. He turns into somber mode and then meets a dashing player bachelor Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling). The family man meets the player and just when you thought it was the family man who gets to have his eyes opened to the world, the player gets to taste the realities of love and falling for it.

This film has all the makings of a feel-good movie. It makes us remember to get back to the roots of why we love a certain person. It makes us realize that loving is never an obligation but a feeling we share. We sometimes see the value of one person when we already lose them. It tells us to save the relationship if we really love the person.

Crazy, Stupid, Love is a carefully crafted movie and should be applauded for such. The storylines may look familiar but the delivery was done in a fresh and updated way making it easy to relate to nowadays. With a majestic cast on hand, the movie did not make much of wrongs making it really watchable and relateable.
This one's a 4 out of 5 popcorns!

I'M BACK

The past two weeks have been totally roller coaster for me - career, personal, family and friendship. It was one of the more challenging times of this year and I am slowly climbing up the hole once more. That is the reason why I was not able to post for any thing in the past weeks.

But now I am back, less stress hopefully, fewer expectations and a bit more positive vibes.

Keep on reading guys!

DON'T BE GONE FOR SO LONG....

My heart crumbles each time you're not around

My mind collapses for every moment you're amiss

My eyes can't help but let go of the tears

My smiles slowly fade each time I think of it

You told me things that are so wonderful

You brought me joy beyond compare

You made me feel ever so valuable

You took me way above my happiness

But where you are right now is a puzzle

More so as I am boggled by what we truly have

You told that things will never change

And yet I feel so slowly you're drifting away

It's okay to be be away for me to miss you

So that the next meeting is gonna be sweeter

But please don't be gone for so long

I might forget I am waiting for you to come home...

MOVIE REVIEW: CONAN THE BARBARIAN

The reincarnation of "Conan, The Barbarian" comes to the cinemas with former Baywatch hottie Jason Momoa taking on the lead role. Dark and murky are some of the words I could tell on this film. The film is bounded on the dark side which is quite interesting but the whole storyline was plain murky and blurred.

The film takes us to the journey of Conan across the continent of Hyboria on his quest for revenge. He is looking to avenge the murder of his father and the slaughter of his entire village. There were few mismatches for the film. First is the casting of Conan himself. Conan as portrayed in the books is someone that is a towering figure and a huge physique. Jason is sexy and all but not really to the muscular standards of the barbarian. I also did not like the cinematography as most scenes tend to be dark and not really pleasing to the eyes. The 3D effect made it worse making the scenes too dark to become watchable. The battle scenes of Conan and his enemies were somehow good but aside from that nothing is new and great. The overall story is predictable so much with the scenes where Conan and Tamara became trapped. It was like knowing you'll die and just waiting for it.

Overall, this film can be one of those direct to DVD format or much more just a made for TV movie. Nothing much to rave about. This is a 2.5 out 5 popcorns.

MY MISS UNIVERSE 2011 BETS

The Miss Universe pageant is happening soon in Brazil and we all have high hopes that our very own contender gets to take home the crown. But how does Shamcey Supsup fare with all the rest of the contestants? I still put her on top. But here are the beauties that has captured my attention the past few weeks. Good luck Shamcey!

1. Philippines - Shamcey Supsup

2. France - Laury Thilleman

3. Venezuela-Vanessa Goncalves

4. Aruba-Gillain Berry

5. Peru -Natalie Vertiz

6. Canada - Chelsae Durocher

7. USA-Alyssa Campanella

8. Thailand - Chanyasorn Sakorchan

9. Korea- Sora Chong

10.  Japan-Maria Kamiyama

BLUECLOUD'S MUSIC CHARTS AUGUST 22-28

This week has some big movements from some songs but who will take the crown? Will it still be Maroon 5
 and Christina Aguilera? Or will Bruno Mars and Bad Meets Evil take the top spot? Or maybe Bieber and Brown has something to say about that! In the OPM side, Pawiin becomes only the 4th OPM song to land in the Top 10 making it 3 local songs for this week on the top.

 

MOVIE REVIEW: A SPECIAL SYMPHONY

Simfoni Luar Biasa (A Special Symphony) is an Indonesian film starring our very own premier balladeer Christian Bautista. In here, he plays struggling singer Jayden who is at a lost for his purpose and having difficulty  looking for his happiness. But even as he is the prime star of this movie, shining even brighter are the kids who are in this film.

Aside from Jayden's struggles the film focuses on the current situation of kids with special needs. It addresses how each one is unique and how we should be treating them. It was also a great showcase of the kids talents and I was just in awe listening to them sing. The movie is not the picture perfect one you would expect but it was a heartwarming experience. The plot was good enough to make you feel the emotions. Christian Bautista's acting chops are highly commendable as you can feel how he relates with the kids. The musicality and the sound were also something nice. I only felt a bit detached with the initial scenes of the movie which I believe could have been done better. But I super like the final scenes where Christian showed to us that he has improved way beyond his acting skills.

The movie sets a message and it sends them right. We should value how we treat people whatever situation they are. Like the kids of "The Special Symphony", we should see life as one great picture. 4.5 out of 5 popcorns.

REPOST: BENEATH THE CLOUDS ARE STARS

What keeps everyone in the dark is not the fact that darkness looms but the reality that it is they, themselves that succumb to the absence of light. Not all see what life truly has to offer. Only those that believe and hope witness the true beauty of life. Sometimes we are shrouded by the dark mists of clouds cast upon us and it is but normal to be afraid. It is human to feel fear and it is but manly to accept that you do fear some things.


Even in the darkest days of our lives we should never give up. We should always look up to those dark clouds but not just look at them but look beneath and behind those big lumps of darkness. Because in there - hidden are the stars. And for the stars we breathe hope and when we hope and we believe, we survive. Always remember that stars are just beneath the clouds…..


Even when you don't see them, they are always there...

F&H: NEIL ETHERIDGE VIDEO SHOOT

Warning: This is hot!



Just as the entire country is going gaga over the recent underwear wars, F&H once again signalled it is ready to go to battle. They recently release a video of Neil Etheridge for their underwear line. Of all the current underwear models, my votes with Neil. This video is extremely hot.

Video Courtesy of Folded & Hung Official Facebook Page
http://www.facebook.com/foldedandhungofficial
No copyright infringement intended

MOVIE REVIEW: THE SMURFS

At first I was kinda hesitant to watch this film as I have loved the old Smurfs cartoons and my fear is that the new movie will just ruin the very cuteness of the original one. Plus I am not really fond of movies with CGI characters having to share same world as the humans do (Chipmunks, Cats& Dogs etc...). But still I gave it a shot. After all the two films I finished watching that week was the ho-hum "Cowboys Vs. Aliens" and intriguingly nice "Rise of The Planet of The Apes".

The "Smurfs" did not actually disappoint. It is nice to relive the days when these creatures were the toast of every kid and that everyone was laughing with their antics on TV. The main challenge the film has is to reinvent the story and try to befit it with the current scenario. It somehow did well on that one and that was worth to take note of. The CGIs were impressive and the smurfs did actually seem like they are actually part of the real world. The cast were pretty much okay but praise must be given to Hank Azaria who plays the arch-nemesis Gargamel. He combines funny, evil and nerdy effortlessly making his portrayal commendable. The voice talents were also greatly casted with special mentions to Jonathan Winters (Papa Smurf), Anton Yelkin (Clumsy Smurf) and Katy Perry (Smurfette).

The overall story is a bit bland with the usual bad comes out to take out everything scenario but for sure kids will be enjoying this film. The adulst who might be accompanying their children won't feel as bad as there were conscious efforts for the film to reach to the older audience by injecting some adult humor and witty lines. Overall, it was good and something to spare your time to. As for a sequel, I think I'd pass on that one. Still, 4 out 5 popcorns!

MALE HOTTIE: ALY BORROMEO

Just as the Philippine Volcanoes were doing rampage with the underwear battles. Two Azkals have braved the heat and have accepted the challenge. Game on! Weeks ago, I have featured Neil Ethridge who was smoldering hot for Folded & Hung. And this time around, it's the Azkals Team Captain Aly Borromeo in the spotlight and he is scorching as well.

Born in 1983, he has been representing the country since 2000 in the AFC Youth Championship qualifiers. Back then, soccer was not that popular yet with Filipinos but with the outburst of celebrity players like the Younghusband brothers, the popularity of the team soon blossomed and each individual player got their own taste of limelight - some more like Aly currently has.

I am sure loads of people are again lining up in Bench stores and trying to see the undies worn by Aly. Is he hot? Well, it's for you to judge!

Photos: Bench website

CHRISTMAS STARTS IN SEPTEMBER

I guess it's a pretty unique Filipino "thing" to actually anticipate Christmas this early but I guess that just goes to show how much we value the celebration of Christ's birthday!

And yes, we do celebrate Christmas when September comes in much to what we call the "Ber" months. This early, you can hear some Christmas jingles and songs playing in radios and televisions. There is also the usual Christmas countdown which we see from all corners of the metro - from TV, billboards, malls and even at the office.

It's a nice thing to really feel the warmth of the Holiday season setting in. This early, I am wishing everyone a Happy Christmas season for 2011.

Photo: 2010 Christmas at Mall of Asia