December 2008 Archives

By Clarence Yu CLINT Eastwood proves that he is at the top of his game with his latest effort, Gran Torino. Revolving around the story of Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood), a retired Ford em ployee and decorated Korean War vet, the movie explores themes of loss, coming to terms, friendship, and ultimately, sacrifice and redemption. Here's a trailer of the movie: Set in the present day, the film begins with Walt burying his wife of many year s. His grown-up children have strained relations with him, and he sets to livin g out the rest of his years wandering about in his home, tinkering around in hi s garden, sitting on his porch drinking beer and taking care of his prized poss ession, a 1972 Ford Gran Torino. He refuses to fulfill his wifeâs dying wish, t o confess to a "27-year-old, over-educated, virgin priest." He is bitter about many things, mainly about how the world has changed from his viewpoint, and how his neighborhood has slowly been encroached upon by a group of Asians known as âHmongs.â He has a fast and dirty mouth, and isnât the type of guy who would waste a second of his remaining days on anything sentimental. The gangs that roam his neighborhood force Kowalski out of his self- imposed exile. In a twist of fate, the only piece of property that is valuable to him (his Gran Torino) sets the stage for a series of events that chip away a t Waltâs hard exterior, ultimately leading up to the most climactic ending that Iâve seen in recent years. Based on a story written by first-timer Nick Schenk, Eastwood makes the film wo rk mainly on the basis of his screen image. He summons shades of every major ch aracter he has played: the tough Man with No Name in A Fistful of Dollars; the jaded, disgruntled cop in Dirty Harry; the widowed avenger in The Outlaw Josey Wales; the terminally ill singer-drifter in Honkytonk Man; the avenging preache r in Pale Rider; the foul-mouthed drill sergeant Thomas Highway in Heartbreak R idge; and the retired assassin Will Munny called back into action one more time in Unforgiven. The only significant difference in Gran Torino is that the gun that he has held in his hand for so many years has been replaced by, among other things, a fing er and a lighter, which plays a major role in the heart-wrenching climax. Those who are not familiar with Eastwoodâs previous work may find this movie bl and and politically incorrect, as Walt Kowalski growls and grunts throughout th e film, calling out every available racial epithet one can think of. I would th en suggest going back and checking out his previous films to get in context wit h Torino. It is all at the same time dramatic, dark, suspenseful, and surprisin gly humorous. But without over-analyzing, the film is simply about one manâs in itial refusal to accept change; as he slowly yields, he finds his own redemptio n. There are moments in the film that are quite comical, mostly involving Kowalski âs âmentoringâ the young Thao (played by Bee Vang), but it is always balanced o ut mainly by the presence of the other essential characters: the young pragmati c priest (Christopher Carley) who continually hounds Kowalski to confess his si ns, and Thaoâs older sister Sue (Ahney Her), who introduces Walt to the Hmongs and eventually serves as Waltâs trigger to play out his final act. Much has been said about Gran Torino being Eastwoodâs last acting role. Having watched the film, I wish it isnât. At 78, he anchors the film with his larger than life presence, displaying blata nt machismo, shades of classic humor, and quiet sensitivity, in a role that dem ands Academy Award recognition. He plays it as he sees it, both as actor and di rector; you will not find over-the-top, method acting here. Essentially, it is Eastwood playing Eastwood directed by Eastwood, and, all thi ngs considered, it is probably one the finest acting jobs he has done thus far. Compared to todayâs fast-paced, effects-ridden contemporary films, this movie comes out of nowhere to remind of you of lifeâs basic mores and values by none other than the anti-hero himself. It is also difficult to find a role befitting a man of his age and stature, so much can be said about Eastwood's nose for th e good story by Schenk. Words like âmasterpieceâ or phrases like âtour de forceâ seem clichéd and misl eading, so it is hard to summon up a definitive word to describe the themes and feelings that Gran Torino evokes. But there is a piece of dialogue in the movi e that mentions the word âbittersweet.â It goes something like this: âItâs bitt er because of the pain, but sweet because youâre at peace.â Rest in peace, Clin t. But only for a while, because knowing the way you work, you wonât stop.

Trekky fans are sad to hear the death of Majel Barrett Roddenberry -- Star Trek 's "First Lady." According to the Roddenberry.com website, she passed away December 18, 2008 at 12:27 AM in her Bel A ir home. The website says "she died peacefully, in her sleep, and was surrounded by fami ly and loved ones." In a statement from son Eugene Roddenberry Jr., he says: "My mother truly ackno wledged and appreciated the fact that Star Trek fans played a vital role in kee ping the Roddenberry dream alive for the past 42 years. It was her love for the fans, and their love in return, that kept her going for so long after my fathe r passed away."

By Clarence Yu WHEN Clint Eastwood uttered the now famous lines, âDo you feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?â in the polarizing landmark 1971 cop drama Dirty Harry, he might as well have been talking to himself, minus punk, as he enters another interesting phase of his storied career. Gran Torino, which opens this December in limited release and wider in January, has been receiving mostly positive reviews as it makes its premiere rounds with the usual critics. The particular emphasis now i s on Eastwood the actor, in his first starring role since 2004âs Million Dollar Baby and also rumored to be his last thespian effort. Eastwoodâs acclaim owes much to his directorial efforts: Unforgiven (1992) and Million Dollar Baby (2004) won him two Oscar awards for Best Director and Best Picture and Mystic River (2005) and Letters From Iwo Jima (2006) garnered Best Picture and Director nominations as well. He is reputed never to shout or disru pt his actors when directing, keeps his set relatively calm and focused, and de livers his films under budget and with great speed. Being a lifelong fan of Eastwood, the actor, has been no easy task f or me, personally. The stereotype he virtually created -- laconic, lean, mean, mysterious and anonymous -- has been particularly hard to defend against nonsen sical accusations painting Eastwood as a lazy actor. I always argue that he act s in terms of gesture and economy of dialogue, but that is another story altoge ther. I have mixed feelings about why critics get to see a movie like this before I d o, but in large part due to Ben Stillerâs terrific Tropic Thunder, I can accept the logic easier now. The film is obviously up for the Academyâs consideration, and there is always t his drawn out process of taking out ads and lobbying for votes. Releasing two p ictures this year in the late fall has been the same strategy that Eastwood emp loyed in 2006 (Letters from Iwo Jima and Flags of Our Fathers), the other film being a directorial effort, The Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie. Nonetheless, I am absolutely frantic in anticipation of seeing Gran Torino. I l oved the trailer, and have heard the tear-jerking closing credits song (co-written an d sung by Eastwood himself in a duet with English jazz singer Jamie Cullum). Iâm reading all the reviews I can possibly find. Iâm being sucked in slowly but surely, the same way I was during Million Dollar Babyâs pre-Oscar rituals. My crazy theory is that he lost out for Best Actor in Unforgiven and Million Dolla r because of a stellar but overshadowing supporting cast (Torino's supporting c ast are unknowns) that garnered both Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman their supp orting actor trophies. One feels that, at 78, perhaps wanting to go out with th e biggest bang possible, Eastwood the actor wants to make sure that all bases a re checked and is relying less on luck to bring in his potential first acting O scar. Whatever the outcome will probably not diminish his status, but a win against S ean Penn (directed by Eastwood in Mystic) and Dustin Hoffman, amongst others, w ould surely be a fitting coda to Eastwoodâs distinguished career.

By Anna Valmero IF you only have 100 days left, what will you do to spend it? This is the bomb question that independent, successful career woman Joyce (play ed by Mylene Dizon) faced after being diagnosed twice with inoperable cancer an d that she has three months to live. Learning this, Joyce resigned from work and embarked on a mission to accomplish 100 things she has never done within the time left to her. Helping her in the mission is long-time pal Ruby (played by Eugene Domingo), while Joyce's mother (played by Tessie Tomas) added several tasks to the list in hopes of helping fi nd a cure and make her final days memorable. Some would say the plot of the Cinemalaya film â100â is similar to that of âThe Bucket Listâ starred by Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. At some point, yes, but the local film hits it closer to home and takes a youthful stance on how t o approach death. 100 takes on the simplicity of Filipino daily life and finds both humor and tra gedy in it. The movie shows how one can start prioritizing âmust-do'sâ postponed for hundreds of reasons until time is almost over. At the onset of her mission: Joyce prepared for her funeral by picking her fune ral dress, creating a song playlist for her wake and haggling for a white caske t that fitted her budget. She toured Hong Kong with Ruby and even visited Europ e and the Paris Louvre Museum in a very practical way. Ultimately, the biggest challenges for Joyce involved closures, confrontations and goodbyes with the persons dearest to her. As with breaking up, the hardest part of death is when your heart says no goodb yes but you must--to a friend who stood by you always, to a mom who loved you u nconditionally, to a lover and friend and to someone you carried the torch fore ver. The movie also tackles the question on life after death, which the movie tries to answer in the final scene where Joyce walks to her family and sees them go a bout life. The movie starts and ends with Joyce walking silently along the shore and the h ill overlooking Pinatubo -- a nice transition of moving from life to death. The movie was effective in taking a light approach to a matter as serious as de ath, but the director could have been pruned the Hong Kong tour. The movie also appears to be a high-budget film as the production was able to s hoot scenes on high-rise buildings in Makati and get support from several comme rcial establishments. As for the cast, Mylene and Eugene were able to play their roles with joy and s eriousness. Even Tessie did something different in the movie which I think is a first time. Indeed, movies like 100 shows that Filipinos can still watch quality local fil ms. Sadly, only a few people lined up to buy tickets and the cinema was barely a quarter-full when I saw it last weekend. In the end, the film manages to convey that people should take every opportunit y to live and make the most out of life -- you will never know when your time i s up.