I can't. So thank goodness for DVDs! What would I do without them??

Anyway, some DVDs I have watched recently. Especially since my brother came back from the States, I'm in movie heaven now!

1) St. Elmo's Fire



It's quite an interesting concept about how a group of friends who graduate from college are finding life in the real world too hard to bear. Because of this, young people found themselves clinging on desperately to the freedom and romanticism of college life. I may not share that kind of exhilarating experiences these guys had in college, but who ever had an easy transition from school to work? The cast of young actors who included Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Demi Moore, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Mare Winningham was rather impressive, and they all shared excellent chemistry with one another. It was as if they really did know one another all through their college days. Unfortunately, Joel Shumacher wasn't able to do adequate justice to the material. The ending, particularly, was promising but turned out too commercialize which is unbefitting a movie with such material.

2) Pretty in Pink



The beautiful and talent Molly Ringwald shines as the lead character in the movie. She was only 17 years old then.

This movie has gone down in history as one of the classic teen movies that easily surpasses today's High School Musical in terms of plot, acting and depth of content. While the cast in High School Musical may only be remembered for their good looks, young actors of Pretty in Pink Molly Ringwald, Jon Cryer and Andrew McCarthy simply blew life into their characters. Might be a cliche story, but it is a charming one nevertheless.

3) Soldier's Girl



Nothing more that needs to be said apart from those already said in my review in the previous post.

4) Felicidades



An Argentinian Sundance selection that tells the stories of various people in various situations who somehow or rather had some connection with one another at different points in time. Complicated? Think Crash and you'll get the idea. However, this one is not as dramatic as Crash. Rather, Felicidades tells the mundane stories of ordinary people in ordinary situations - all on Christmas eve ("felicidades" literally means "congratulations" in Spanish and is used on Christmas as a greeting). Boring? I won't lie to you - it was really boring. But just before I got up and switched off the DVD, something caught my attention and by the end of the movie, I couldn't stop thinking about the meaning of it all.

I'll elaborate.

Because you see, I believe what this whole movie is gearing at is the fact that how all of our lives cannot be seperated from one another. Everything we do, however mundane it may be, is bound to affect someone, either directly or indirectly. It's like ripples that have the potential to travel far and wide. Unfortunately, however connected we may be, we are ultimately lonely individuals as we may never know who we have affected and exactly in what manner. Otherwise for most of the times, we simply refuse to know, or we simply don't care, all for the sake of self-preservation.

I don't think I can elaborate further at this point of time. But do watch it if you have the chance. Perhaps you can derive your own meaning to it as well.

Still, I wouldn't be too quick to give it a high rating. It is thought-provoking no doubt, but only for those who had the patience to sit through the whole movie till the end.

5) El Dia Que Me Amen



Adrián Suar and Leticia Brédice play childhood sweethearts in El Dia Que Me Amen (When Somebody Loves Me)

This one looked promising on paper but the outcome kind of disappointed me. I guess I expected a more indept look at childhood trauma and its effects in adulthood, and more insights into depression and other mental health conditions which could have resulted from the trauma, including the individual's journey towards recovery. It seemed like the director tried hard to include some serious message in the movie, but it just didn't deliver. Basically, the whole premise of how these individuals coped with some 'trauma' in their childhood seemed stretched at best, as though not enough research was done in the subject matter. So despite the commendable performances by the leads, this marred the credibility of the story. To be fair, it's a decent movie, but so much more could have been accomplished...

6) Monty Python's - Life of Brian



Two of the Monty Pythons, Eric Idle (left) and the late Graham Chapman (right) are bewildered as they listen to a near-inaudible religious sermon by You-know-who in Life of Brian.

I was told that this is one classic British comedy and it's not hard to see why - this absolute work of genius, from the wonderful comedian group Monty Python, was bold, shocking, tastefully crude and simply hilarious! No wonder Monty Python was considered the Beatles of comedy. Due to its supposed take on the Christian religion, Life of Brian was a controversial movie at the time of its release in 1979 sparking widespread debate, protests and even street demonstrations. But keep an open mind and you'll definitely appreciate the thoughtfulness that has gone into the script. It's a laugh-out funny satire that says a lot about the social psychology of people. All this is demonstrated in the life of "Brian", an ordinary Mummy's boy born at the same time near the manger where Jesus Christ was born, who at some really bizzare twist of events gets mistaken as a Messiah, eventually leading to his own cruxifiction by no fault of his. This movie was also where that iconic song written by Monty Python member Eric Idle, Always Look On The Bright Side of Life, made its debut.

One of my favourite bits in the movie, a wonderful jab at how we as humans really are...



All the Pythons are still going strong in the entertainment industry and are highly respected by many others till today. Sadly though, Graham Chapman, who played the lead role of Brian amongst other smaller roles (all the Pythons took on a variety of roles in all of their movies), passed away at the relatively young age of 48 after a tough battle with spinal and throat cancer. At the end of Chapman's memorial service, Eric Idle led the remaining Pythons and other friends on stage in singing "Always Look On The Bright Side of Life" as a final goodbye.

Interestingly, Chapman was a qualified medical doctor who graduated from Cambridge so he conveniently became the on-set doctor for the cast and crew as they endured injuries, fever and heatstroke while filming the movie in Tunisia. In fact, all the Pythons graduated either from Oxford or Cambridge!


The Monty Pythons during the filming of Life of Brian (left) and in the 1980s (right). In the more recent photo, the Pythons, from left to right, were Eric Idle, Terry Jones, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Graham Chapman and Terry Gilliam.

7) Pushing Daisies - Season One



The cast of Pushing Daisies pose inside The Pie Hole - Pie-Maker Ned's little pie eatery. From left to right in The Pie Hole, Ellen Greene, Swoosie Kurtz, Anna Friel, Lee Pace, Chi McBride and Kristin Chenoweth.

Ahhh... This is one series I don't mind watching over and over. Incredibility likeable characters, interesting and biazzare crime stories, a quirky sense of humor, witty dialogue and a beautiful, surreal backdrop. Of course, a talented cast and crew helps too. Can't wait for season 2 to come out in Singapore!