Batman Begins

Opening night. IMAX. Two hours and change of a story well told.
I must say that this Batman will lean more towards the animated series in terms of character and content than the previous four/five Batman films. Christian Bale is slightly above Michael Keaton as the best Batman I've ever seen. Director Chris Nolan does an excellent job of making Batman as real as possible. I'll admit that for the first time, I actually cared about Bruce Wayne's past. For the first time, they found a better replacement for both the Wayne and Alfre [played by Michael Caine], as they traded light yet important jabs between each other. And most important, for the first time, the bad guy can actually get away! These are huge upgrades from the Batman flicks that I was used to seeing.
Liam Neeson and Tom Wilkinson were off the hook as Ducard and Falcone, respectively. My brother and I got into this argument over whether Neeson was carrying on the mission of Ra's Ah Gul, whether Neeson was actually Ra's Ah Gul, or whether he was later reincarnated as Ra's Ah Gul. My only gripe in the film was Ms. Dawson-Cruise, err, Katie Holmes, who was more like Bruce's nanny/mom/afterschool friend than a love interest. I can't say that they actually had a relationship, a statement which places blame on both people. But, I guess without her corny goody-good lines, Bruce's metamorphosis wouldn't be complete.
On a side note, after seeing this film, as I did with The Punisher, it made me appreciate the 80's version made by Tim Burton. The emphasis there was in the evolution of the bad guys, particularly Jack Nicholson's Joker. That was THE coolest bad guy. Ever. How Chris Nolan intends to replace him, I'll never know. But in my opinion, he's one kat that doesn't need replacing. In the 1989 Batman, Michael Keaton was a more relaxed, and two sided Bruce Wayne. And at that point in Wayne's life, it was understandable. Bale's Batman was just beginning; so we saw the WYSIWYG Bruce Wayne. I appreciate them both. But I do not appreciate Batman's Hummer, or what he doesn't call the Batmobile...
Come to think of it, he never really called it the Batmobile. Perhaps we might get something better in the coming years...

Essentially, if you hadn't seen it yet, do yourself a favor. Join the millions of us, just to see what the hubub is all about.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Courtesy of Tavie & Erin:
Go watch this. Immediately. It's best if you have fast internet, and if you skip to about 1:42, you will understand why I do not like getting into politics. Think about it: lives and justice hang in the hands of people like James Sensenbrenner. And...
I'm getting pissed again.
If you wanna read about that day, ABC News has a good article on it. Changing the subject...

Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Unlike Batman Begins, this film is shorter; this film is lighter; and I wasn't waiting for friends or family to see it.
I hearken this film to an action packed Ocean's Twelve, with Angelina Jolie and some recognisable faces. Same kind of humor, wit, and foreplay. And it all works.
Big-ups to Kerry Washington (Save The Last Dance, Ray), who did a good job here. With a little more lines, I would've gotten into her character a tad bit more...
Vince Vaughn was a very hilarious element here. After seeing Smith, I'm thinking about The Wedding Crashers, that's how good he was...
As I said: Brad is cool. Angelina is cool. Brad & Angelina: very kewl.
9 out of 10

War of the Worlds tomorrow!! Review sometime in the week's end...

Courtesy of Nedra:
"If it had been Celine Dion or Britney Spears or Barbra Streisand, there is no way they would not be let in that store," a friend of Winfrey's told the Daily News.

There is a part of me that doesn't symphathise with her. That part of me is content because Winfrey just remembered she is black. (You see, after years and years of popularity, people tend to forget where they come from, IMO.) In any case, so I get the story straight, she arrives in a Hermes store in Paris, France, after it closes. God knows why she needed to be in a luxury store in Paris, but she deems it discrimination when she can't get in. If this were anyone of us normal people getting rejected after hours, it's called losing the race against the clock. It's not a black thing, a white thing, or a color thing; it's an I WANNA GO HOME thing. The store is closed, the reps wanna go home, or they have some special event or something, fine. There is always tomorrow. BUT, because she is Oprah Winfrey, when she is turned away, it's discrimination. And these are the people want to be considered "normal human beings, who don't need to be watched 24/7." Right.
When our bank closes at six, and someone like her strolls in at 6:25, looking for service, what are we gonna do, call our back office, say to boot our branch back up because she's Oprah Winfrey, and she's at our branch?! What do I gain by such a service?! Okay, I'm hating on her. But think of it, you have an event, or you are closing, ready to go home. How does she, or anyone in her predicament, expect to be acommodated with the best customer service the same way a normal customer coming in DURING NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS would? What, because she is a multi-millionaire with a HUGE syndicated series, she gets to disrupt my social life?!

Yeah yeah. I'm seriously hating, and need to stop.
There is that other part of me that says she was racially profiled. All the way in Paris. Really. There is.

But that part of me which can't relate to her is fully justified. People of her kind need to realise that not everyone shares their opinions of popularity and accomodating those who command such popularity.
Or maybe the people of France really don't know Oprah Winfrey.
Or maybe, just maybe, without all the mascara, weaves, and makeup, Celine Dion or Britney Spears or Barbra Streisand are more popular than Oprah Winfrey.
OK, I am going to stop hating. Now.
I mean, I don't know the entire circumstances. I haven't heard both sides. It's not like I was actually there, so I can judge for myself. I really can't.
Go boycott, Oprah, go boycott!

On a side note, I feel for Nedra. Right now, I'm working on my new layout for this site, and it's not coming out. On the other side, I just went to her page, and all I'm seeing are her words. No pictures, no moody-patoodie. Just words. Hope she doesn't kill LJ for their troubles...

As always, there is something I'm missing here. In any event, I hope to remember when July rolls around. Lata...