Yanawaraba

A favorite of mine. :) Love their voices.

Testing.

I'm (maybe) moving!

I've been posting on Wordpress for awhile now under a different name and title. I'm trying it out to see if I like Blogger or Wordpress better. For now, this blog will probably die off, but will remain a portal for randomness whenever I find interesting tid-bits. If you read this blog and are interested (even if you never comment) follow along. I've already posted a few new reviews. :)

http://daydreaminglotus.wordpress.com

How it all started. Part II -

As a young woman, I fell victim to the most common anime-fan (otaku, if I may) cliche's: Hello Kitty, Kerropi, and other Sanrio characters now adorned my school supplies and and I spent time searching for places to buy them. Indeed, I found a small store very close by that sold a variety of character goods and to my delight, they sold CD's as well. A few anime soundtracks (it's where I picked up my Cowboy Bebop complete collection CD set!) were always available, but also a section of cd's with cute Asian boys and girls all smiling and dancing across the brightly colored covers. I experimented and bought a few that simply LOOKED good. I ended up buying Lee Jung-Hyun's Magic to Go To My Star, BoA's ID; Peace B, and Baby V.O.X.'s Why. Thus, my true introduction to Asian pop music was launched. From there, I began to expand my fan base and buy other albums to experiment with and see if I liked the music and it's grown to gigantic proportions today. I have so many artists that I listen on a regular basis it takes several hard drives to contain them. I remember buying the Lee Jung-Hyun album most, probably because of the distinct packaging। I was a little creeped out by the doll, and a bit taken aback by the sound of the album too. Her voice was so high, and I really don't think I was expecting such a techno-heavy album after the bubblegum pop of BoA and Baby V.O.X. For the longest time I didn't really know what she looked like, because none of her early albums didn't have pictures, and I guess I didn't think to look up Lee Jung-Hyun on the internet. There was no Google image search at that time, and it was just something I didn't know how to do. I quietly enjoyed my Korean and Japanese pop. I also started to find some common Japanese artists too, Koda Kumi, Utada Hikaru, Maaya Sakamoto and others who were somehow related to the anime industry.
In order to get to where I am now, there was a step that I had to take and it came about the time I was leaving my first college to move to Florida. I was still quite obsessed with anime, but I was beginning to get my toes wet in the waters of Asian cinema. It was a good thing that ADV and other anime distributors were putting out a few Japanese and Korean movies here and there, because with out easy access I might not have discovered the whole new world I did. Princess Blade was one of the first live-action Japanese movies I remember actually sitting down and watching. Then came the miracle of Netflix. If you live far away from any really good Asian communities it is hard to find places to get or watch Asian movies. I joined Netflix in order to save money, up until that point I had been buying everything that I wanted to watch out of necessity. No one else I knew was really that into the same things as me, so it wasn't possilbe to borrow anything. Netflix opened up a giant door for me and allowed me to easily expand my repertoire of movies. I started out renting The Returner, starring Takeshi Kaneshiro. It was a great action movie starring Anne Suzuki. I liked her too, so I added the only other movie she was in to my queue: Moon Child. And to my Gackt-obsessed delight it was the only movie HE was in too. I won't describe the process of each movie, it would be obnoxiously long and boring. But, this is how I tend to find new artists (musicians & actors.) I like someone, watch a lot of their work, and then find someone else in one of their movies that interests me and watch their work and the process repeats over and over again. The lucky thing for me is that I love music as much as I love movies. So, when I find a double or triple threat it's very exciting and usually leads to a larger discovery. (Double threats are singers/actors and triple threats are singers/actors/dancers - not everyone can dance. ::cough::Gackt::cough::) I find it interesting however, that I will still be drawn to the same actor or actress without knowing it. I am currently watching a series called Room of King, starring a new favorite of mine; Mizushima Hiro. All I really knew about it while downloading the fan-sub was that he was in it. I watched the first episode and lo and behold, Anne Suzuki shows up. It's not uncommon, but it still seems odd that I should gravitate towards the same people without knowing it.

A couple of years ago, I discovered IRC and that there were scanlators; people who scan Japanese, Korean and Chinese manga raws and then work tirelessly and for free to translate and create English language versions for fans. I have since left the IRC world, but it lead me in a new direction through a friend I met there. He suggested that I watch a movie called Bride and Prejudice. Bride and Prejudice is a culturally different take on Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice, created by a Desi director from London. While not an actual Bollywood movie, it was my first introduction to Indian related cinema and my first time seeing the beautiful Aishwarya Rai. I immediately loved the colorful traditional outfits, the catchy and fun bangara music. Immediately following this I rented Monsoon Wedding and decidedly loved that movie too. ((It is odd that at this time my mp3 player picked the Punjabi Wedding Song from the B&P soundtrack to play out of over 7500 songs on it...))Sadly, at the time I was very caught up in a Chinese movie kick and left Bollywood hanging. I think that my introduction to Indian culture through Gurinder Chadha's films Bride & Prejudice and Bend It Like Beckham was essential. If, perhaps I had chosen another path into Bollywood and just watched something random, I might not have liked it or understood anything. As it stands today, I'm sure that I don't quite understand a lot of what is going on in the films, but that will take time. I have surely addapted to and learned about Korean, Japanese and Chinese culture by watching more and more of their movies and television shows, it is easy to assume that I will learn just as much about India and all it has to offer if I watch more of their entertainment too.

Looking back, it's been a very kinetic experience, one thing leads to another and then to another snowballing into a giant ball of actors, singers, movies, and music that I adore and wouldn't trade for anything. I am fortunate enough to have the drive and passion to follow all that I do and I just hope to share that passion with anyone who will listen (or read as the case may be here.) Today I am an international person, no longer simply "white," as my friend says - I'm just as much Asian as she is. I think that if other people in the world could be half as open-minded as I am, then we would be a lot better of. If you got this far - thanks for reading! Feel free to leave comments or questions here or on any other posts!
Thanks:
JenAnime. (A name that I use in many places online, it should change to JenAsian now probably, but it still suits me.)

How it all started. Part I (In case you were wondering.)

and even if you weren't I'm going to tell you.

I have been thinking about my interest in Asian culture a lot lately and thought I might take a few minutes to jot down the story of my growing and insatiable thirst for knowledge in all things Asian.
It all started in about 8th grade, when I discovered Pokemon. Ahhh...I remember scheduling my life around Pokemon. I would make sure that I made it home in time to catch the afternon episodes and if I was going to miss it, I set the VCR to tape it. Some days I even paused the tapes and drew the characters while they were frozen on screen. I researched them on the Internet and eventually learned that my favorite show was called an "Anime." I temporarily became obsessed. I still have drawings from those days tucked away in an old sketch book. This was my first taste of true Asian culture, even if it was watered down and Americanized.
Fast forward a few years and to my Junior year of high-school, while still struggling with teenage angst, establishing self-worth and figuring out what to do with my future I became mildly obsessed with anime and borrowed as much as possible from my friends and even friends of my older brother. The next thing I acutely remember about anime was going to visit my brother on his college campus and seeing posters and post-cards advertising the release of Princess Mononoke (Mononoke Hime as I now refer to most of the time.) He told me that it was an anime and that it was one of the first to really be promoted in the United States. He said his friend Bryan was more into it butt he thought it was pretty cool himself. My first few experiences with anime also included series such as Martian Successor Nadesico, Dual!, Photon: Idiot Adventures, Trigun, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and my favorite even to this day: Cowboy Bebop. I was so into my new world, that I bought chopsticks, and sat down to many a piping bowl of Ramen noodles while staring at my small bedroom television watching Nadesico and the like. I started an anime journal. Where I would write the lyrics to songs, small reviews and episode summaries to my favorites. I loved the karaoke subtitles of the opening and closing credit songs. I started to try and find the songs online and would spend hours on end, into the early morning looking for them.

I continued this way into my first year of college, where I was lucky enough to go to Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Not only did they have an anime club, once a year they had a workshop called Schoolgirls and Mobilesuts where you could EARN CREDITS FOR WATCHING ANIME!!!! Oh man, was I excited. I think it was the highest grade I got while at that school actually. MCAD was able to get in contact with Disney that year and talked them into giving us a subtitled copy of Spirited Away for our own private screening just before it's official release in theaters around the United States. I remember sitting in the Minneapolis Institute for Art theater wondering how I had arrived there, and just being thrilled to be a part of something so wonderful. I was also blessed to have been able to listen to Susan Napier speak as well. As author of Anime from Akira to Princess Mononoke, Napier was able to give thought provoking insite into the literal and deeper side of anime that I hadn't really opened up to before. (It is now a revised version taking the reader through the time in Hayao Miyazaki's career up to How's Moving Castle) I began to practically inhale manga at this time. I read everything I could get my hands on, from Sailor Moon to Battle Royale. I still have my old favorites and regularly read many new titles. I think the local book stores and comic shops ran out of manga because of me. I currently own over 1,000 graphic novels, although I'm liquidating my collection to less than half that (It's hard to move them all!) On the outskirts of my vision there were starting to be other things other than just Japanese anime and manga. I realized that several of the titles I was reading had non-Japanese names and the style of art were slightly different as well. At the time, Demon Diary was one of my favorites and I was somewhat surprised to find out that it was actually a "mangwha;" Korean in origin, unlike the majority of my other books. So, another one of my great loves was finding it's way into my life.

Singer, Dancer, Actor. . .Designer?

Rain has spread himself out to many corners of the entertainment world and is now going to expand it with a design company headed by himself. He is going to be one of the creative heads of the line called Six to Five. The first of many designs is being auctioned off to benefit a campaign against breast cancer. The winning bid will receive this:
,
What an interesting shirt, it definitely looks like it's something he would wear, so I suppose that is the idea behind having one's own line of clothing - is it not?

Taiwanese Drama Review: Fated to Love You (命中注定我愛你)

Starring:
Chen Qiao En (陳喬恩) as Chen Xin Yi Ethan Ruan (阮經天) as Ji Cun Xi Baron Chen (陳楚河) as Dylan/Dai Jian Ren
Bianca Bai (白歆惠) as Shi Anna
Tan Ai Zhen (譚艾珍) as Ji Wang Zhen Zhu (Nini)






Chen Xin Yi is the most common name in China. It's also the name of our heroine for this series. Boorish, dumpy and ready to please, Xin Yi thinks only of others and takes nothing for herself. In a failed attempt to capture the attention and love of her boyfriend she mistakingly goes into the wrong room with a different man and they end up making love and only realizing they were with the wrong partner after all is said and done. Ji Cun Xi is the man she stumbled into bed with and they immediately have some chemistry, but neither one is aware of it at first. After a few weeks Xin Yi comes to find that she is pregnant. Through coincidence and happenstance Ji Cun Xi finds out and his grandmother and Xin Yi's family coerce them both into marriage. Ji Cun Xi is happily in a relationship with a ballerina however and swears to keep his relationship with Anna despite his marriage and the child on the way. With so much against them, it is hard to imagine how they can really be fated to love eathother.


After painstakingly searching and downloading the subtitled version of this drama I was not disapointed. I had a feeling that they weren't going to disappoint me when there were such high ratings (the highest ever in Taiwan!) for this show and people I already liked were in it. (Chen Qiao En and Tan Ai Zhen) I am also now a fan of Baron Chen and Ethan Ruan as well. They were both very charming and I loved them very much in this series. If you are looking for a serious drama, this is not it. I found it to be overly silly at times, but as I've learned over the years about my taste - I just love some cheese! The story line was very steady until episode 11 when there was a major dramatic event and the story shifted completely (to a different city even!) The main characters were able to grow and change, but still have a lot of their original charm, and I think that was hard for the actors. The crew even packed up and headed to Shanghai for filming, with is original, since they usually stick around Taiwan for most of the dramas I can find. I was really quite impressed by some of the scenes as well. I can't pick an absolute favorite part, but the most memorable one was episode 11 and this scene:

Usually for Asian drama's they tend to look really fake and unbelievable, I think they did a great job here. The idea of a "sticky note girl" is also interesting. I wonder how many women are such type of person, who tends to try and please everyone else first and not ever think of themselves. I bet the general population of China was able to identify with Chen Xin Yi because she is dutiful and never steps out of bounds. I find myself being that person at times, but I would never put up with what she does from Ji Cun Xi.

Ethan Ruan was a newcomer for me, and he really proved himself in this series. I always beleived him as Ji Cun Xi, whether he was angry, sad, or just being silly I was completely drawn him by his expressions and his ability to portray each emotion with honesty.

Baron Chen wasn't as new, I had seen him in Kung-Fu Dunk, but he was not that memorable for me since I didn't even recognize him! But, here in Fated to Love You, I often found myself unsure of who I should cheer for, Ji Chun Xi or Dylan. He has a great smile and a kind of goofy charm that I adored.

(Baron Chen looking positvely vulnerable - hao ke-aiyo!)

Qiao En was delightful. I can tell that she has matured since Prince Turns to Frog. I remember one of the behind the scenes from this series and she started to cry happily because the director told her their ratings and she was told by Ethan that she successfully made her comeback. If this is any indicatino Qiao En is going to stay on top for awhile.

And what can I say about Tan Ai Zhen? She is a lovely woman who gets to play the meddling NiNi that we all love. I hated her silly wig though, that was one of the things that drove me crazy about the show, it was obvious she had on a wig, but no one noticed and it never changed. (Here she is in her natural state - very charming.)

If you can stand some real silliness (Qiao En dancing around in a giant chicken suit, or Ethan pretending to be hurt by gangsters and getting shoved into a giant barrel and rolling down a hill.) in order to get to a great story, I highly recommend this series if you can find it.

It's a sweep!

Slumdog Millionaire swept the Golden Globes tonight! I was so excited and a little proud (for the country of India and all that it meant for their culture.) while I was watching. I also loved that King Khan introduced the clip for Slumdog Millionaire. It was a lot of fun and I giggled like a school girl. They won each of their nominations, Best Motion Picture- Drama, Best Original Score, Best Director - Motion Picture, Best Screenplay. I think my favorite part was when Anil jumped up and cheered, it was funny. Congratulations!
Sorry I didn't have a better picture! I don't have a way to capture from my tv to my computer. :(

Japanese Drama Review: Anmitsu Hime (Special #1)

Starring: Inoue Mao as Anmitsu Hime
Koide Keisuke as Sembe
Yuki Imai as Amagurino Suke "Amaguri"
Masaki Kyomoto as Kitsubanu Ryu
Morisako Ei as Ohagi-chan

This manga-turned-drama-special is about a young princess in a made up land of Japan that laments her status and the necessity for an arranged marriage. She decides to "escape" out into the streets and explore live and find love. Along the way she meets a group of street kids who help her see the real world and to understand that life isn't just black and white.

I adored this "special." They only ran an hour and half "made for tv movie" of Anmitsu Hime, but it was a very fun and charming show. I have been a fan of Inoue Mao for a long time, so she was what really drew me into the show. Her acting is getting better and better and this role of a "tomboy princess" suited her just fine. I also liked Koide Keisuke in his role as Sembe. I saw him before in Nodame Cantabile and he was hilarious, it was nice to see him in a more serious role. In general this is a comedy and I had a lot of laughs watching it. The names of the characters alone (Anmitsu Hime means "Syrup covered bean jam princess") were enough to send me into a fit of giggles. It's hard to keep a straight face when the characters are named after different foods - kind of like Sorcerer Hunters where the main character is named Carrot. The silliest of shows can sometimes become my favorites. I think that Yuki Imai and Ei Morisato stole the show though. They were charming and amazing as their respective roles. I think that acting at such a young age is amazing and to do it well is quite a challenge. I guess I am a sucker for a pretty man as well because I loved Masaki Kyomoto's character of the playboy "secret guardian." I hope that you can find the time to watch this short gem that SARS-fansubs has distributed kindly. You can always find great things at their website.

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy New Year to everyone! My New Year's Eve was quiet and enjoyable. I received a few lovely gifts that will bring me good luck in 2009. I hope that you all have had a great start to this year and that you have many blessings. So, here is to a new year filled with gossip, random tid-bits, lovely movies, fun music and random oddities from all over Asia. May you enjoy each and every day that you are given.

Movie Review: Slumdog Millionaire

Starring:
Dev Patel: (Older) Jamal Malik
Anil Kapoor: Prem Kumar
Madhur Mittal: (Older) Salim
Freida Pinto: (Older) Latika
Ayush Mahesh Khedekar: Young Jamal
Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail: Young Salim
And a longer list of great cast members.



I had the pleasure of seeing Slumdog Millionaire in the movie theater the other night. It is most unusual because the movie theaters here where I live rarely show independent or artsy films, so I ran to see it before they took it out of the theater.

Slumdog Millionaire is the story of a young man who goes on the Indian version of Who Want's to be a Millionaire? and makes it to the second to last question all in one night. After the show wraps he is whisked away by Indian authorities under suspicion for cheating., how could a young man from the streets of Mumbai know all the questions so easily? Through Jamal's answers to the detectives' questions we learn of his hard life and his connection to the woman of his dreams - Latika, a fellow "slumdog" whom he has lost in the chaos of the Mumbai underground. The main question of the movie is can Jamal convince everone that he isn't cheating and reunite himself with his lost love?

I loved this movie. I laughed and cried and probably annoyed people by my silly giggles at times that I noticed things they probably didn't because of my new-found familiarity to some of Indian pop-culture. The scene in which young Jamal runs to get Amitab Bachchan's autograph had me rolling in a fit of giggles. The story brings to light the darker side of Mumbai, the side that most Bollywood movies ignore. I am glad that they decided to use such a great ensemble cast and as Dev said on the Today show a few weeks ago "they couldn't get a Bollywood actor that looked as Geeky as me" (I'm para-phrasing beause I don't remember the exact words.) I tried to imagine this movie with Salman Khan, Shahrukh or anyone else, even John Abraham, would have seemed to not really fit this role. Dev Patel was wonderful, I feel that he deserves all the fan-fare and awards that he has been getting already. I hope that they do well at the Golden Globes - the movie is nominated for four of them. I know this isn't a Bollywood movie, but it is about India and i tseems to tell the story of real India, instead of the fanciful one portrayed so much more often. It's like our movies here, they usually show the bright side of things, and it takes quiet, independent films to show the real parts of our society that everyday citizens face. It's a great movie, and if you get a chance to see it I recommend going to see it in theaters.

India Movie Review: Koi...Mil Gaya (I Found Someone)

Starring:
Hrithik Roshan: Rohit Mehra
Preity Zinta: Nisha
Rekha: Sonia Mehra

The basic story of Koi...Mil Gaya is the tale of Rohit Mehra, a young man who was born with a mind that would never progress past the age of a young boy. While in the process of trying to grow and overcome his disability he meets Nisha, who sees his naiive mischivetey as bad manners and ill-natured jokes. After correcting the mis-understanding Nisha and Rohit become friends and she agrees to teach him how to use a computer. Rohit digs out an old computer belonging to his late father and un-knowingly contacts extra-terrestrials. They land in the small town, but leave a one of their own behind. Eventually Rohit finds and befriends this strange creature and names him "Jadoo." Along with his 6 friends and Nisha, Rohit changes with the magic of Jadoo and becomes an adult, but can the magic last?

I originally rented this movie in order to see Preity Zinta in it. And through my viewing of it became enamored with Hrithik Roshan. He is a delightful actor and when he smiles, it's a genuine smile that makes me happier for simply having seen it. Don't even get me started about his eyes! They are stunning! Back to my impression of the movie. :) I thought at first that it was going to be awkward to watch someone act as a developmnetally disabled person and then switch to a "normal" person and then fall in love. I also was concerned with how well it would be handled in a Bollywood movie. I obviously have nothing against them, I just think that they are traditionally melodramatic and that this particular role is a hard one to act. (On a side note the best role of a mentally disabled person was played by Kang Hye-Jeong in Herb - her acting was superb and emotionally touching.) I was worrying over nothing though, Hrithik was believable and charming as Rohit, either way that he played him as an adult-minded or under-developed version. Preity was also lovely, and it was believable that her love for him was genuine as a friend and then again as a lover later on in the film. It was fresh change for a Bollywood film too, since it had a science fiction feel to it versus the simple love, love lost, love found combination that most of them tend to have. (I love them either way!) Sadly, during three of the picturizations the disc I rented was scratched so I missed out on a lot of the songs. (I had shoes just like Preity that were black back in my high school days!)

That's all right though, since I will probably buy this one as it is a full five star rating. It's one of the movies that right after I see it I'm not sure how much I liked it, then after a few days or even weeks I find myself thinking about it more and more. The longer I think about a movie, the more I enjoy it. In all, a lovely movie and I will gladly watch it again.

Adventures of a Bollywood Newbie.

I'm going to take some time and pay tribute to my new and current obsession: Bollywood film. I've been inhaling them as quickly as possible, even increasing my Netflix to three a month again because I finally have enough to fill it. So, I've been barreling through as much as I can. I've seen some ho-hum ones and some that have pushed their way into the top 10 of my all-time favorite movies (Om Shanti Om) (regardless of genre or country of origin.) In the last few months I managed to watch over 30 Bollywood films. (A select few are not made in Mumbai, and are actually British or American films, but they are related to the genre.) Here's the full list of my initial foray into Bollywood: (with my star rating, out of five) Asoka (4), Baabul (4), Bombay to Bangkok (4), Chak De! India (5), Chalte Chalte (4), Chori Chori (3), Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke (4), Dhoom (3.5), Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (4), Jab We Met (3), Jhoom Barabar Jhoom (5), Jodhaa Akbar (4), Kal Ho Naa Ho (4.5), Koi...Mil Gaya(4.5), Krrish (4), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (4.5), Lakshya (4.5), Lucky: No Time for Love (4), Maine Hoon Na (5), Maine Prem Ki Diwani Hoon (4.5), Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya (4), Maine Pyar Kiya (3.5), Monsoon Wedding (3), Na Tum Jaano Na Hum (4), Om Shanti Om (5), Paheli (4), Phir Milenge (4), Provoked (3.5), Rangeela (4), Salaam-E-Ishq (4), Swades (4), The Hero (3), Veer-Zaara (4.5), Baadshah (2.5), Ladies Taylor (2), Boothnath (4), Namastey London (4), The Namesake (4). I want to eventually review and type synopses for many of these, but at the moment I don't have the time! I've watched some in the presence of my mom, who tries to watch, but gets a headache from watching the sub-titles. I love that she has already started referring to Shahrukh as "our guy." So, it's spreading. Not that I really needed another language and culture to overtake my life. I already have my head stuffed full of Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Spanish and obviously English. Now I'm squishing little bits of hindi in there. Matlab? Hehe.

Here is one to start:
Lucky: No Time for Love. I wasn't sure what to think about this movie and tried to keep an open mind while watching it. I know that a lot of people took issue with the age difference between Salman Khan and Sneha Ullal. It was a little strange for the main love interests to have a 22 year age difference (in real life), but I was able to move past it. She was charming, if a little over-dramatic (even for Bollywood) at times. I think she did well for her first movie. Salman Khan is starting to grow on me; I wasn't instantly drawn to him like Shahrukh. He was actually heart warming in certain scenes of this movie. I know that the style of Bollywood is to ...hm over-act or be over-dramatic is wrong, but they tend to play their roles with excess emotion a lot of the time, or heightened emotion I suppose is a better way of saying it, so I keep that in mind when judging the acting.
There will be lots more to come, but I'm out of time for the moment. Stay tuned!

Just in Time!

One of my favorite Japanese artists just released a Christmas mini-album. Bonnie Pink is a Japanese singer who has made a name for herself by being original and having a jazz influenced sound to her music. She also writes her own music; which is pretty rare for mainstream Japanese musicians. I am a sucker for Christmas music and am the leader in a few forum threads for Asian Christmas music. So, I have already reviewed this album despite it being released on the 26th. The title track, Chain, is a lovely song and easily the strongest song on the album. The rest of the tracks are traditional Christmas song with the typical Bonnie jazz/pop twist to them. Check this little gem out if you have a chance. At least her English pronunciation doesn't drive me up the wall like others!

Track Listing:
1: Chain
2: Wonderful Christmastime
3: I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause
4: Let It Snow
5: CHAIN 乣The Birth Cry乣
6: The Christmas Song

...

I couldn't think of a title for this entry. I am very saddened and humbled by the news of the attacks on Mumbai today. A group of militants have attacked locations all through out the major city of India, for unknown reasons (at this time.) They have specifically targeted places around Mumbai that are tourist favorites and purposefully gathered foreigners using their passports as identification. The group attacked a train station, two high-end hotels and a restaurant that is a well known tourist destination. They rounded up Americans and Britains and held them hostage in different areas of the city. News is still breaking about the situation so I don't know all the details. The number of people wounded and killed are still rising so I don't know what to say there, it's in the hundreds already. I find it disheartening that this is still going on, but I realize the nature of society and that this is a part of life. It is unfortunate, and sad, but there can only be peace if everyone in the world is willing, and that is a hard concept to get everyone to agree on. I am going to keep myself informed on the situation, and I will keep the people of India, and the visitors involved in my thoughts. I know they will never read this, but I would like to say that I respect the police officers and officials of Mumbai for dealing with this as best that they could. I hope that in the future they will have the ability to stop things like this from happening in the first place. For more up-to-the-minute coverage do what I do and check out msnbc.com.

A welcome change.

The Korean Fair Trade Commission just issued an ultimatum to several Korean entertainment companies: change or be changed. The so-called "slavery contracts" that many Korean entertainers are bound to. I've always felt that the companies have too much control over the people that they are in charge of. I think they forget they aren't just money makers and are living, breathing beings who have feelings, lives, families and ideas that are different than that of the company. Among the companies involved are SME, JYPE, and M.net. A large portion of the biggest acts are under these labels. I hope that these new rules reduce the invasion of privacy that the entertainers are subjected to. I also hope it allows them to have a little freedom, and even a little less stress. I give big kudos to the Korean Fair Trade Commission for this.

Another one bites the dust...

I have a feeling I will hate this one. Gore Verbinski is going to produce the remake of The Host. It is actually in my top...40? 30? I've seen SO many movies, but it's really one of my favorite Korean movies and I try to show it to people when I can. My friend Sheri thought it was sad, but I felt the acting was superb and the story line was very believable and fairly reasonable for a horror movie. It will be pretty low on my check list.

BoA is coming! BoA is coming!

BoA is a powerhouse of Korean entertainment. I saw her CD; ID; Peace B forever ago at a small Korean Hello Kitty store in Minnesota and bought it out of curiosity and I have been a fan of hers ever since. I've backed off the intensity for awhile, but I've always gotten her albums and listen to her when I'm feeling stressed or particularly nostalgic. She is in the middle of her American release. Her single has done well on the digital music charts and is in the process of adding a cd single release with re-mixes and a guest appearance by Flo Rida. The full-length album is slated for release in early 2009 with the name Look Who's Talking. I wish her the best, and I will do what I can to support her efforts. Just like I do with any artist who tries to come over to the other side. Haha. I hear that Utada is trying again after her flop a couple years ago. If they both stay true to their current style and fan base, I feel they can be very successful.



Watch BoA - Eat You Up (Korea Version) in Music Videos | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Re-Make Update:

The Korean movie "Addicted" has been renamed Possession and is staring Sarah Michelle Gellar and Lee Pace (star of Pushing Daisies.) The American re-make is slated for a January 23rd release. The actors are pretty decent, so the movie might not be too bad. I'll have to wait and see. I know that the version of My Sassy Girl has been released on DVD - I saw it at Blockbuster awhile back and ran the other direction. I don't like re-makes, they lose the original flavor of the movie. I might see it sometime though. And, the re-make of my favorite Korean horror movie A Tale of Two Sisters has had a name change as well, it's now being called "The Uninvited." Which, coincidentally is the name of another Korean horror movie. I doubt it can hold up to my favorite that has Moon Geun-Young. I love her and she just has a great innocence about her and her acting is superb. I also wrote about Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, but there is no other news on it at all. If you know of a re-make that I missed, comment and let me know. I'll keep updated as I learn about more.

On a similar note, I have plans to watch God Tussi Great Ho, a Bollywood re-envisioning/re-make of Bruce Almighty. I say re-envisioning because it has some differences and they also have traditional Bollywood musical numbers in it too. But, in the end, it's just a re-make. I'm curious to see it though. I'm pretty sure that Morgan Freeman does a better job at playing God than Amitabh Bachchan, but I will report on that later in a review.

Gackt's New Single!

I was very excited to find that Gackt had a new single coming out. The title of it is "Jesus" and it is basically a man praying for help from Jesus to overcome his challenge. I love the return to rock, he has been leaning towards his acoustic side lately. I've uploaded it to Veoh, hopefully the link will work. If I get permission from the person's lyrics I read to use them, I will add them here. Otherwise, enjoy some fun Gackt action.


Watch Gackt - Jesus in Music Videos | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Here are the lyrics: (I didn't translate them, Keesaiox from YouTube did.. Thanks to her!)

傷ついた抜け殻をただ抱きしめていた
降り注ぐ雨は静かな 君の涙

Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
この夢から
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
教えてくれMaria!!!

「殺して」と微笑みながら頬に触れた
見えない目に涙を溜めて消えて行く
Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
この夢から
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
答えてくれ JESUS!!!

God said when you die,
Your life will pass before your own eyes.
If you want to feel it right now，
Just do it, do it, do it!

Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
この夢から
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
教えてくれ

Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
この夢から
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
答えてくれ JESUS!!!


==================================


kizutsuita nukegara wo tada dakishimeteita
furisosogu ame wa shizuka na kimi no namida
Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
kono yume kara
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Oshietekure Maria!!!!


「koroshite...」 to hohoemi nagara hoho ni fureta
mienai me ni namida wo tamete kieteyuku
Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
kono yume kara
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Kotaetekure JESUS!!!

God said when you die,
Your life will pass before your own eyes.
If you want to feel it right now,
Just do it, do it, do it!

Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
kono yume kara
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Oshietekure

Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
kono yume kara
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Kotaetekure JESUS!!!



===========================

Please note my Japanese is poor and this is MY interpretation of the song. It may be right, it may be wrong. Depends on how you want to read into the lyrics I guess ;_;


Tightly embracing only the empty broken shell
The pouring rain is your silent tears
Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
from this dream
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Please tell me, Maria!!!!


Smiling, I touched your cheeks and said "kill me..."
Tears gathered in my blinded eyes, and then disappeared
Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
from this dream
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Answer me, JESUS!!!

God said when you die,
Your life will pass before your own eyes.
If you want to feel it right now,
Just do it, do it, do it!

Wake me up
Wake me up
Wake me up
from this dream
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Please tell me

Take me Out
Take me Out
Take me Out
from this dream
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Real or dream?
Answer me, JESUS!!!