Archive for February, 2009

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And the Oscar Goes To…

February 22nd, 2009 by Manda | 9 Comments | Filed in Entertainment, Question of the Week

Tonight is the night of the 81st annual Academy Awards. Every year, there are always lots of buzz and hype surrounding the biggest awards show of the year, and this year is no exception. From a phony list of winners being released to endless speculation over what surprises will be present at the Oscars, this year’s Oscars will hopefully as exciting and eventful as it is promised to be.

Hugh Jackman is hosting the Oscars this year, and I am very, very excited about this. He’s possibly my most favorite actor, and he never disappoints. Hugh has promised that he won’t hold back in regards to going off the script and playing pranks on the guests at the star-studded event. And rumor has it that the opening number at the Oscars will be a song and dance event involving Jackman as well as some other surprise participants, all coordinated by Baz Luhrman. That number is sure not to disappoint – I mean, it’s Baz and Hugh! Think Moulin Rouge, think The Boy from Oz! ;)

Even though I haven’t seen all of the movies that were nominated for an Oscar, I do have some Oscar hopes for some of the films that I have seen, mainly for Heath Ledger in Best Supporting Actor as The Joker in The Dark Knight, Wall-E as Best Animated Feature, and every category that Slumdog Millionaire was nominated in. If The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Revolutionary Road (Kate Winslet in particular) win awards I would be happy with that too, but I’ve heard that some of the other nominated films are more awards-worthy than those two films.

I’m also excited for the red carpet event too; some of the gowns the actresses wear to the Oscars are phenomenal in both the positive and negative way. Michelle Williams looked stunning at the 2006 Oscars, yet Tilda Swinton’s gown at the 2008 Oscars was definitely one that should not have been worn at the Oscars, or anywhere else for that matter. Most of the actors usually look the same in their suits and tuxedos, so all the spotlight is on the ladies and their choice of haute couture for the night.

Question of the Week: What’s your favorite part of the Oscars? Is it the red carpet, the opening sequence, the awards ceremony, or something else?

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Dollhouse: 1×01 Ghost (2009)

February 21st, 2009 by Manda | 2 Comments | Filed in Reviews

“They can be anyone you want…”

Dollhouse

Dollhouse

Dollhouse, a Joss Whedon creation, is a show about an organization that implants false memories and skills into mind-wiped, DNA-altered humans. These humans, the “Dolls,” are then sent out on various missions (or “engagements”) they were specifically chosen to handle, equipped by their implanted memories and skills. Echo is one of the various Dolls that live within the Dollhouse, and the show chronicles Echo’s missions and the dawning realization that life is not what it seems to be for her. Meanwhile, an outsider is trying to prove the existence of the Dollhouse and bring down the organization, but what he might not realize is that a Doll could be the person he least expects.

I first found out about Dollhouse the day it premiered (February 13) because of all the tweets I received on Twitter and the many excited posts I read on my LiveJournal friends list. I hadn’t heard of it before then, but that’s not a surprise as I don’t watch any FOX shows, so I never see FOX commercials. Anyway, I wasn’t really interested. I don’t really have a care for most of Joss Whedon’s work, although that’s not to say I wouldn’t like it if I actually sat down and watched some of his shows1. But since all the reviews seemed to be pretty good, I decided to give the pilot episode a try.

I was a little confused in the beginning, but that’s understandable, because I am always confused at the beginning of pilot episodes. As the episode continued though, I found myself surprisingly enjoying the show. It wasn’t that I thought I wasn’t going to like it; I just didn’t think it was my type of show prior to watching it. Plus, I’m not the biggest Eliza Dushku fan, so I was skeptical if my liking of the show would be enough to detract from the fact that I don’t like the lead actress. And it actually was2!

I do have a question, though. Is FOX trying to kill the show before it even starts by placing it in the Friday 9/8c timeslot? Because seriously, I can’t remember the last time a good show was aired on Fridays; I thought Friday nights were basically designated for reruns and movies. I would like to tune into Dollhouse every week, but realistically, that’s just not going to happen since I usually go out on Friday nights. Is there a reason FOX is airing Dollhouse on Fridays, or is FOX just being FOX about the situation?

The rest of this post is my opinion about the Dollhouse pilot episode (Ghost) and contains spoilers.

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  1. I’ve never seen a Joss Whedon show in my life – at least I don’t remember watching any, not even an episode. I vaguely remember seeing something Buffy-related on TV once, but I didn’t really get into it. [↩]
  2. I’m still not an Eliza Dushku fan, though. [↩]

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I Wish I Could Tell You

February 20th, 2009 by Manda | 5 Comments | Filed in Friends, Relationships

I try my best to be honest with all the people around me, both online and offline, regardless of what relationship I have with the person. I don’t like pretending to be nice to someone when I dislike them, nor do I like to withhold the truth from my friends1. Even so, there are some things I want to tell people in my life but I know I never could.

There are several reasons why, such as not wanting to deal with potential drama that comes with the truth2 or knowing that the right time to bring up something someone doesn’t want to hear will never come, but mostly, it has to do with fear. Fear of what changes will result from the truth, fear of putting myself out there without holding back, and fear of voicing thoughts I’ve had reason to keep to myself for a long, long time. That’s not to say I wouldn’t say what I thought if I was asked point-blank, but I’m not going to go out of my way to address some of them due to fear. This fear is something I would like to overcome, but till then, here are some things I would like to say to some people I know, even though I know I never could.

  • The Person Who Won’t Grow Up
    You’re a bitch through and through. You were nice at first, but man, your true colors came out fast. If you being a bitch was the only thing wrong with you, then I wouldn’t care; who am I to call out others for being bitchy when I know I can be the bitchiest of them all at times? No, what irritates me the most about you is the fact that you’re a foolish, needy hypocrite. You are overly sensitive, yet incredibly inconsiderate. You’re not interested in other people’s stories, but you make sure that everyone’s heard the ones you have to tell several hundred times. You are constantly needy and clingy, but you always have to be the dominant one no matter what the situation is. It got really old, really fast a long time ago, and I doubt you’ll ever grow up.
  • The Person Who Changed My Life
    You are one of the strongest people I know, and I don’t think you’re even old enough to understand that. I am so thankful every day that you reached the five year recovery mark for cancer, and now you can live out your childhood just like any normal kid. Your determination and zest for life is contagious; I wish I was half as enthusiastic about everything as you were. You are just fantastic, and you redefine the term “survivor.” Maybe I’ll tell you this when you are older when you can understand, but for now, I am content watching you live every day to the fullest.
  • The Person Who Always Gets Cast Aside
    I wish you could see what they were doing to you. How they always lead you on, promising that this time, they’ve actually made plans and won’t let you down. You wait for them, and you wait, and you wait… and it never happens. Time and time again you’ve put aside your own plans for them, only for them to never appear and confess that they “forgot” about it the next day. It’s not forgivable if it happens more than once, and it’s happened more times than I can count. You’re a fantastic person, and you deserve better. You and I both know this so me bringing this subject up again will do nothing, but I wish that you would act on what you know, rather than just know.
  • The Person Who Takes Advantage
    Yeah, I was willing to help you out the first couple times. But by the time it got to the point where you were letting me know you were taking my stuff as you were taking it, without even asking me, it was getting ridiculous. Especially because the one and only time I’ve ever asked you for a favor, you made up some crappy excuse that was an obvious lie. I’m over this. I tried explaining it to you, and you had the gall to react by borrowing more of my stuff. I mean, really.
  • The Person Who Carries A Piece of My Heart
    You will always carry a piece of my heart with you wherever you go. You were the one who taught me how to love and be loved, and I wish every day our circumstances would work for us rather than work against us. We have been through so much together, and the bond between us is unbreakable. Even if we lose touch and never speak again as we follow our different paths in life, that bond will always be there. I would walk to the ends of the earth for you, and I will love you until my dying day. You are so incredibly special to me.
  1. If one of my friends asks me for an honest opinion about whether or not someone likes them, for instance, I’m not going to lie about it to make them feel better. That doesn’t mean I’m going to make them feel like an awful person, but I don’t see the point in lying. [↩]
  2. The quote “You can’t handle the truth!” from A Few Good Men is very, very true for some. [↩]

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