The Enterprise is Recruiting ....

Star Trek to me was the ultimate badge of geekdom. I have my Star Wars and LOTR moments, but Star Trek was a higher level of nerdhood that I was not prepared to go.

I do not follow the show. Though, I am aware of the story and the characters - I mean who could miss Spock while channel flipping. I did try watching it one time, but I found it too "talky" and I couldn't understand what the heck they were talking about 'cuz I never started the series.

Anyway, some of my friends told me that it was one movie that I should check out. They even advised me to watch it on IMAX. After much prodding, I finally dragged a willing victim of my tyranny to the nearest cinema.

In an interview director J.J. Abrams (also known for Mission Impossible), said that this Star Trek movie promises to be entertaining not only to Trekkies but to non-Trekkies as well. The cast includes Chris Pine as Capt. James T. Kirk, Zachary Quinto (of TV show "Heroes") as Spock, Zoe Aldana as Nyota Uhura, Karl Urban (of LOTR) as Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, John Cho (of Harold and Kumar) as Hikaru Sulu, and Eric Bana as the Romulin nemesis, Nero. There is also the appearance of the original Spock, Leonard Nimoy.

The movie storyline is basically a prequel to the Star Trek that we know. It focused on the roots of important USS Enterprise members, specially Kirk and Spock.

The newly built USS Enterprise is called into action when the planet Vulcan sends a distress call to the Federation. Through Dr. Bones McCoy, troublemaker James T. Kirk gets dragged into the fray while under academic suspension. Meanwhile, Spock comes to terms of his biracial genealogy as his past and the series of events unfold before him. The inexperienced USS Enterprise crew engages into battle with Nero, who blames Spock and the Federation for the destruction of his planet, Romulus. The Romulins were defeated in the end with James T. Kirk earning his rank as captain of the USS Enterprise.

The movie is action-packed from start to finish. There is no dull moment which I find very surprising - and refreshing. It's like riding a high-tech roller coaster ride and enjoying every minute of it. Funny moments were provided, mostly by Bones McCoy and James Kirk. Chris Pine's character really took a beating in this flick from start to finish compared to the Zachary Quinto's Spock. Eric Bana was unrecognizable as the vengeful Nero. The story is interesting - an alternate reality with the entry of Spock Prime (Nimoy) providing the explanations. The CGI, effects, and yes, even the costumes were thankfully upgraded to a more tasteful change. The movie looks way better than the old one of course, and it was fun looking at the gadget upgrades. There's also the inclusion of memorable lines ... specially Scotty's, which generated snickers here and there. If you listen carefully (try not to be overwhelmed by the visuals), the film score is also very well-orchestrated. Overall, J.J. Abrams did a good job.

I thoroughly enjoyed this so much I had to watch it twice. The second I watched on IMAX - which is better.

This is one movie even a non-Trekkie should not miss.

Shiver Me Timbers

I could enumerate characters I love.

Gandalf, Eowyn, Frodo, Legolas (hehehe),Amelie, Neo, Trinity, Constantine, Loki & Bartleby .... etc.

But then nobody compares to Capt. Jack Sparrow.

I am dying in anticipation right now waiting for Pirates of the Carribean: At The World's End to see Capt. Jack and crew again. I absolutely hated what Elizabeth did to the pirate in Dead Man's Chest. But then, there should be a crisis somewhere where the third (and final?) installment can kick off. I've seen movie stills, and it looks really good. Specially with the comeback of Capt. Barbosa and the addition of Chow Yun Fat, who looks like a soldier of Genghis Khan. Then of course, Keith Richards is said to be in the movie too. (as Jack's Dad)

What makes Jack Sparrow interesting:
1. He's a pirate. I mean how cool would it be to fill out some bio data form and put "pirate" as profession? :-D
2. He wears mascara better than the ladies. Robert Smith would be proud.
3. The grog-intoxicated swagger. (Only Johnny Depp could pull such).
4. He can talk himself out of anything (except from fellow pirates).
5. He is actually a good pirate (.... if there is such).

I look forward to see my alter ego grace before the screen for one last time.

Here is the synopsis of the movie taken from IMDB:

"After Elizabeth (Keira Knightly), Will (Orlando Bloom), and Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) rescue Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) from the clutches of the Kraken, they must face their foes, Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) and Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander). Beckett, now with control of Jones' heart, forms a dark alliance with him in order to rule the seas and wipe out the last of the Pirates. Now, Jack, Barbossa, Will, Elizabeth, Tia Delma, and crew must call the Pirate Lords from the four corners of the globe, including the infamous Sao Feng (Chow-Yun Fat), to a gathering that will make their final stand against Beckett, Jones, Norrington, the Flying Dutchman, and the entire East India Trading Company. Written by J. Curcio"

Pretty pretty interesting!

In Search for The Hobbit's Director

For those who are absolute fans of Peter Jackson's version of LOTR, the news that The Hobbit might happen is something that would cause nose bleeds of excitement in our little mortal lives.

I've lost touch with the Tolkien site I've frequented to in the past. And obviously I've been too busy to even log on to read e-mails.

Anyway, one hot sleepy morning, right off from work (I work nights), I turned on the TV and caught one of them gossip entertainment channels. They were talking about The Hobbit.

What shook me to wakefulness was this news that Peter Jackson and the production company were not agreeing about certain things which made Jackson back out of the project. This caused a little bit of sadness because let's face it, Jackson's the only director fit to make this movie. I mean, the whole planet wouldn't know LOTR if not for the efforts of this New Zealander. And besides that, that would mean there wouldn't be a reunion of the New Zealand crew, which I am also a fan of (check out the crazy things they had to go through in the making of LOTR - it's in the Extended Version DVD). The crew and Jackson, for all I can deduce, are package deal.

Aside from this, the production company still wants to make a go for this project and there are rumours that Spiderman director Sam Raimi might be hired to make the prequel. Sam Raimi's reaction to this is that he will only direct the movie if he gets Peter Jackson's blessing.

I had mixed emotions to this. As much as I would like to see The Hobbit in the silver screen, I wouldn't want it to be rushed into being made for the sake that it has been made. Sam Raimi's a great director. He revived the Spiderman franchise. But I can't imagine him doing a Middle Earth movie. If he ends up taking the helm though, I hope to God he's not going to destroy what Jackson's team built for almost 10 years of their lives.

In light of this, if there is a final decision that Peter Jackson will not direct The Hobbit, I thought of directors who could possibly direct the movie.
Some of the nominees are really so far out, but I think they are worth into consideration.

Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth)
- Let's face it. The reason Peter Jackson was so succesful was that he made ample use of his imagination as far as he could (I think the horror flicks he made earlier fueled this). Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth recently won the Oscar's Best in Art Direction, Best in Cinematography, and Best in Make Up. Guillermo del Toro was nominated for Best in Original Screenplay and the movie's music was also nominated. I've seen the movie and I totally agree with the nominations and awards that this movie took. And if ever Peter passes the directorial seat to del Toro, I think this guy can do it.

Gore Verbinski (Pirates of the Caribbean)
- I absolutely love what Gore did to this franchise. Disney was even surprised with the success of it. The original plan was to make only 1 movie. But because of the 1st movie's overwhelming success, Deadman's Chest and At World's End were made. Ok let's not discount the Johnny Depp or the Orlando Bloom factor, but if you look closer at the sets, the visual effects, costumes .. you know the director took pains in making sure of the details. I am confident he could fit in Peter's boots (Useless Trivia: Peter loved walking barefoot while shooting LOTR.)

Any director from the series CARNIVALE
- This series was shown in HBO and was created by Daniel Knauff. There were numerous directors that shot this series but the constant thing was that the cinematography and effects were really impressive. I think this series did win a lot of Emmy's in that department including screenplay ... which I had to say is very very well-written. It's a huge leap from TV to movie screen, but then sometimes talent comes from places you will never imagine. And besides, Carnivale being a good VS evil story to the core, LOTR will be familiar territory.

Tim Burton
- Everybody knows who Tim Burton is and what movies he directed. He would be any Gothic's director of choice due to his wonderful DARK renditions in everything he directed (Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, Big Fish, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, Planet of the Apes, Mars Attacks, Beetlejuice, Sleepy Hollow). He is WEIRD to the core and I know some eyebrows would be raised for this preposterous nomination but please do consider that the flicks mentioned above, no matter how weird or dark they were, were very well-made. And wouldn't it be interesting how his version will look like? I mean those elves, beatific as they looked in Peter's LOTR, will definitely be rendered with Tim Burton's little subconscious dark touch (I'm starting to imagine My Chemical Romance's "I Don't Love You" video). And the beauty of this is that it's 100% sure that those orcs and the creatures of Mordor will be badder and nastier ... this realm of Middle Earth falls in Tim's backyard of freaks, and I'm sure he'll make it a mission to add more black evil to these characters.

Alfonso Cuaron (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkhaban)
- Yes, I am also a fan of Harry Potter and I have read and watched the movies. My favorite book would be Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince. But as for the movies, Alfonso Cuaron's version of Prisoner of Azkhaban was the best. There is something about the movie's direction that is subconsciously dark and compelling and so far away from the kid's coloring book movies. That's why I'm praying real hard that the producers will recruit him again for The Half Blood Prince. I daresay anyone who can make a real good Harry Potter flick can do an LOTR flick.

Other far-out mentionables:

Stephen Sommers (The Mummy)
- I immensely enjoyed the Mummy. The Mummy Returns was kinda stretched though. I guess they ran out of ideas making the second movie. But looking at the set and direction, I was thinking Stephen can do LOTR. He's no stranger to visual effects.

Jean Pierre Jeunet (Amelie, A Very Long Engagement)
- This has to be my most far-out nominee. But do consider, these two flicks have EXCELLENT and SUPERB cinematography. The digital grading of the movies is also wonderful ... like straight out of a dream. Very vivid. But it would be strange to hear Gandalf speak French (as if understanding Quenya is bad enough)and what character would Audrey Tautou play, I wonder?

George Lucas
- Yeah, yeah. He can direct The Hobbit. After all, Star Wars was created because he was not able to make LOTR in the first place. And I also know he helped Peter in some of the areas that Peter could not attend to due to time constraints. But then, he already made history with Star Wars, so I'm thinking that it's better to give other directors out there a chance to shine. Besides, the idea that Jar Jar Binks might do a cameo is just a nightmare.

Out of the Loop

As usual, writing an entry on this blog these days is a leisure.  Today happens to be one of THAT days that I have extra time to do something aside from work.I've missed a lot of movies lately and only rely on other people's opinions about these movies I've  failed to catch:1. 3002. The Holiday
3. Pathfinder

Aside from movies, I don't know what's going on with Gil Grissom and Dr. Gregory House since I've ignored the boob tube for quite some time in favor of SLEEP.The only thing updated in my life is my precious I-Pod ... which I think is not that updated too.  Current songs on repeat are:
1. Hideaway - The Delays2. Diary of Jane - Breaking Benjamin (actually this is quite old, but I love it)3. This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race - Fall Out Boy4. Look After You - The Fray5. Just Say A Word - Josh KelleyOne pal is dying to upload Relient K songs, but I haven't seen him for a month either.
The only update I have is this:
For 103.5 K-Lite TheBlade fans (you know who you are) ... he's back on the air.  He's DJ-ing on jazz music these days (hehehe). You can check him out at Dream FM 106.7.  Don't have his on-board schedule, but I will get it from a very reliable source (A die-harder fan - I'm just a die hard fan, hehehe, she's THAT worse).