A Long Time Ago, On a Sea, Far, Far Away....

Weekend of 26th & 27th May

Saturday

This weekend I witnessed in full THX glory one of the grandest movie to come onto the cinema screen this year: “Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World’s End”. Many droplets of sweat in anticipation of whether cinema tickets are available were emanated; and countless clicks on my pitiful mouse trying desperately to book online tickets finally endowed me the chance to witness this finale to one of my favorite trilogies to hit my senses in my short lifetime. So what is my End judgment of this Pirate World from the Caribbean? Is it Dead and tinted in Black, or a Treasure Chest filled with Pearls of wonder?

Running at nearly 3 hours, my first impression of the film was: “Huh?” Never have I witnessed a film with a running time of 3 hours gave so much confusion and perplexity as this film. Usually movies with long running lengths wrap up the plots and characters nicely with appropriate conclusions. But this movie was a jumbled up mess of over-ambition and a cacophony of plots trying too hard to impress: an opera it is not, a family movie it is thought. But how wrong my thought was. This was my first impression, and after going back home scouring through my pirated “Pirates 2: Dead Man’s Chest” DVD (yes it was a pirated copy, so hang me already) and going though a second session of “Pirates 3: At World’s End” (yes, guilty as charged, I saw it a second time at the Cineplex), my impression has changed dramatically…

After going through Pirates 1, 2 & 3, I started to realize how my first impressions were deadly inaccurate. Putting together the movies in order, a sense of awe and marvel started to tingle throughout my mind as how the screenwriters of this series, Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, have painted a dizzyingly large canvas of distinctive characters and a fascinatingly dense world of mythology, a world in which people double-cross everyone around them as frequently as most of us draw breath. It’s also a world where the supernatural is almost commonplace, where bizarre creatures sail the seas alongside soldiers and pirates and no one blinks an eye about it. It’s a world I can honestly feel unique, and that’s a rare thing these days.

The first scene of Pirates 3 sets the mood perfectly throughout the movie: row after row of pirates hanged and disrespected by the East Indian Company. A boy, not over 10 years old, took his turn, and at this point you would think that this being a Disney film, a pirate hero would jump out from nowhere to help this helpless boy with just a flick of a blunted sword. Alas, the boy is duly hanged. Witnessing scenes like this, you will start to wonder just where this movie will take you: into realms outside of your comfort zone and into worlds of darkness where pirates are eradicated like plagues of death. This eradication is causing their world to end, and their fight for survival is at hand throughout the high seven seas…

The story unfolds in dramatic fashion throughout the movie, and at the end, the movie is a colossal spectacle of special effects, action, humor and closure for all the major characters. What I really want to make note after watching this movie are:

1.) Special Effects – the company appointed for this is ILM (Industrial Light & Magic) and they have elevated special effects achievements to another level once more. The character of Davy Jones remains as the most convincing CGI character in existence at the moment; every movement, every tentacle, every breath and every spoken word is alive and full of personality. The scene where Davy Jones sheds a tear during one of his broken-hearted recitals on his organ piece is one great example. The scene perfectly illustrates his emotions through CGI as he solemnly wipes away from his forlorn face a tear drop which lonesomely droops from his tenticle touch, is a pinnacle of special effects magnificence. Many more spectacular scenes litter the sea of the cinema screen: a scrap boat sailing through an ice cave, a limbo that looks like a desert done by David Lynch and filled with multiple Jack Sparrows, a pirate cove made entirely of shipwrecks, the visuals are often really striking. They have created a mystical world so vivid, imaginative and in such rich detail, it has brought true believability to the world of the pirates.

2.) The Director, Gore Verbinski – What I admire about Verbinski is that even though this movie is overloaded with characters with varied backgrounds, Verbinski never failed to give each character proper screen time, and each screen time is not wasted as every character had their impact moments. This implies not only to the characters but to every other area of the movie. In action sequences, the viewer will hardly tend to be confused on what is unfolding on screen, as each frame is masterfully planned and edited to give the maximum possible impact. Verbinski’s camera lens is never dull, always filled with electricity and eccentricity, and at times, visuals of a haunting nature. Same of the battle sequences are truly handcrafted masterworks of action art, such as the battle between two ships in a whirlpool, washed together with so much digital wizardry it makes the viewer in complete wonderment and astonishment.

3.) The Humor – What was seriously lacking and missing in this third installment was the humor and cheeky wit that was the signature of the previous two movies. There was no all-out laughter; it was only the occasional slight smile throughout the movie which I mustered, quite honestly, with some effort involved. The jokes seemed forced, and some jokes were even re-cycled from other movies. What made the first movie an instant classic and the second movie a good companion to the original are now devoid here in this third installment.

There are so many things I want to mention about this movie, but if I do, the blog will go ballistic and become a novel. From the frozen toe scene, the crazy Pirate Lords, Keith Richards as Jack’s father and to Chow Yuen Fatt’s near rape scene of Kiera Knightley (and this is a Disney movie. See what happens when people see big bucks? All morals go out the bloody window), there are so many facets yet to be explore and admired.

Looking back in a few years time, in my most honest opinion, only the first Pirates movie however will be remembered with any affection. Debates will rage about the two sequels, some preferring one over the other, but everyone pretty much agreeing that despite their moments of entertainment - neither is a shade on the original. Debates will further rage about which trilogy is better: Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, Star Wars & Spider-Man, all will be remembered for their moments of true originality and their flaws of re-productivity to tap the flowing tide of profit from these movies. But at the end, it was definitely a trilogy worth remembering for most of the right reasons.

A Weekend of Zombies

Weekend of 19th May ~ 20th May

Saturday


Yes, I promised SL a birthday present, and it wasn’t physically a present. This is because I ‘bought’ her a re-do and re-styling of her beautiful frock of hair!! There were treatments, straitening, cuts, blows (not the kinds that I like) and a whole load of whacky stuff saloons come up with nowadays. All in all, it cost me around RM 300 bucks. Sigh~~~~~

But all is not doom and gloom. As a thank-you gesture, SL treated me to a very nice Japanese dinner at ‘Matsuba’, Sri Hartamas. I ordered the Sashimi set and it was gorgeous and delicious. It’s not the best I’ve tasted (Ozeki & Rakuzen in KL would be tops) but the fish is fresh and tender. THANK YOU SL!!!!!

After dinner, we initially wanted to meet up with a bunch of friends at The Curve’s ‘Laundry’ for the FA Cup Final (Man Utd V Chelsea), but at 8:30pm the roads were all jammed up and road rage was spreading faster than AIDS in Africa so we re-routed to a place currently called ‘MyHome’, previously called ‘Christo’s’ or ‘Bristo’s’ or ‘My Toes’. Take your pick lah. But anyway, Me, SL, later TK, V, P, and his girlfriend S joined up and watched the FA Cup final to my dismay of the final result. Overall Man Utd was playing slightly better and didn’t deserve to lose the game in such an un-fair fashion. Oh well, football is never fair and it seems Drogba agrees to this statement and conveniently toe-poked the goal that won Chelsea the cup. So:

i.) Premier League - Man Utd
ii.) FA Cup – Chelsea
iii.) Champion’s League – AC Milan (too bad Liverpool)

Looks like all is fair for the big clubs in England as every team got a Cup and for Liverpool’s case, nearly got the cup. Pity the Arsenal fans though hehe ~~~~

After the match, we went mamaking and tok-koking around Sri Hartamas area until the wee hours of Sunday morning and duly departed for dreamland back home.


Sunday


Went to ‘Cineleisure’ the Curve to watch ’28 Weeks Later’ and I must say it is the best zombie flick I’ve seen in my life. To compare other great zombie movies already out there, i.e. the George A. Romero’s zombie movies, they are a pale reflection to this wonderfully orchestrated celluloid marvel. There are scenes in here that will forever leave imprints in my mind, it got me thinking & talking with friends and will made me impersonate a zombie just to scare the living daylights out of people. AARrrGGHhhhhGGGHH!!!! Ok, ok, ’28 Weeks Later’:

The Good:

1.) Zombies – They are absolutely terrifying and they hunt in packs, just like the lethal dinosaur species of Velociraptors, they are deadly in numbers and will not stop until they taste bloody ripped flesh from bones of unsuspecting terrified humans. Upon the sight of zombie packs running amok down a hillside, smelling fresh flesh that is you, not stopping for breath or rest but only blood-shot red eyes seeking out your blood to gratify their hunger for death, this will bring shudders of fear crawling up your spine in your cinema seat. These zombies are the most fearsome creations of any twisted-minded movie directors can possibly conceive, and they are the most vicious zombies you can ever possibly see. And see it you must, for it will change your perception of zombies forever.

2.) Director, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo – I believe Mr. Fresnadillo achieved what the first movie and other zombie movies failed to achieve: the on-screen representation of the insane rage, violence and cannibalistic mania of zombies that helped this film to complete a visceral, thrilling, scary and very nihilist horror movie perfect for our times. Fresnadillo captures the same urgent, frantic horror Boyle did (the director of the 1st movie, ‘28 Days Later’) by the use of effective set design, this time aided by some great CGI of a deserted, trashed London. The grimy digital stock feels filthy, like a virus crawling over you, and the handheld war-zone style cinematography terrifyingly captures the chaos, desperation and insanity of a Zombie-led London.

3.) As a sequel to ’28 Days Later’, the first movie – The transition from the first movie to this sequel, and from Danny Boyle, the first director, to Fresnadillo was seamless and no major plot holes were obviously apparent. Bearing in mind that Boyle served as Executive Producer for this 2nd movie, I believe a guiding hand was offered and aided this seamlessness. It is very rare that a sequel can equal or out-do the original first movie, but ’28 Weeks Later’ has proven this wrong. It's full of the action, violence and horror any of you can hope for from the zombie genre, and in being as good as ‘28 Days Later’, it joins the canon of some of the best horror movies ever.


The Bad:


1.) The Plot - A teenage girl takes up a specialist military sniper rifle and makes a perfect shot of it with no training, improper handling and in very low visibility. A helicopter flies - nose down - close enough to the ground to clear a path by slicing its attackers into a bloody shower of body parts. A victim who could carry the antibody to the virus that wiped out a whole population is left alone behind minimal security in a medical centre. These are the massive flaws in the plot of ‘28 Weeks Later’ and they'd ruin many lesser movies that take themselves seriously. But if you can overcome these problems while watching this film, be prepared for a claustrophobic cocoon of thrills and terror from the very opening minute…

After the movie and seeing all the gory and flesh that is laid bear in front of the cinema screen, we skipped our chance to eat at The Curve (we ate only noodles at late afternoon) and just yamca only. After that, we adjourned for the weekend.

Happy Birthday ~~~

May 15th, 2007

Tuesday

It is a special day as it is SL’s birthday day!!!! WoooHooooo!!!! Let loose the balloons, bring forth the cakes and let the presents run rampant all around!!!!!! Actually, I just gave her dinner and 2 slices of birthday cake hehe…not so terror like the picture over there. Don’t worry, the big present is on the weekend and a bigger better dinner to come ;) In the meantime, HAPPY BIRTHDAY SL!!!!!!!!!

The Hamsap Ghost

Weekend of 12th May ~ 13th May

Saturday

A super slow weekend as SL went to Chengmai and most friends disappeared without a trace. Spent the day sleeping, playing PS2 and chitchatting on MSN. At night, went out with V, LE & A for a free movie at 1 Utama. Watched a Thai movie called ‘Spirit of the Victim’, which is just as long winded as Spider-Man 3. Good god, spare me already, what have I done to deserve this? *sob*

In this movie, The ghost just would not go away, it just keeps bugging everyone again and again, I think really, this ghost is a pesky ghost, or a ‘pat por’ ghost that just likes to sneak up on a person, to see what this person is going, where is he/she is going, and until this ghost gets bored with this person, then only it starts killing this person. This ghost really knows how to torture people. Because of this, I started wondering: there’s so many ghost, for example scary ghost, killing ghost, ghost that makes a lot of noise etc. I was thinking, how come there’s no hamsap ghost? Why can’t there be a ghost that hamsap a person before killing that person? Or a hamsap ghost that visits a person every day and night, maybe because the ghost is lonely? Honestly, I wouldn’t mind seeing a ghost like that hahaha…then I would be very tired and no power to work at office...but nevermind, since this hamsap ghost choose me, then have to follow, right anot? So have to obey lor…hamsap ghost hamsap ghost….


Sunday


Woke up at 12:30pm, took a shower, lunched with family and waited for SL to touch down at KL-LCT back from Chengmai. She took the bus to Subang Parade instead (so good of her!) and I picked her up there. We makan-makan with V at ‘Kiwi Express’ near Taipan 2, and it had the most mouth-watering Cordon Blue burger I’ve ever tasted. Sinful, delightful and packed with evilness, I wouldn’t mind going to hell for this….*yummmm* After dinner, sent SL back to her place and it ended at that.

It's just a Spider, man...

Weekend of 5th May ~ 6th May

Saturday

After the Pulau Ketam long weekend, I cooled down the activities by chillin’ and bummin’ at home. Bummed around the house playing PS2, chatting on MSN, running around naked (without anyone at home of course) & continued reading “The Golden Compass” (the last time I stopped, it was 4 months ago. Continuing it now, I had absolutely NO CLUE on what the heck this book’s about. Sighh ~~~). And by the way, reading a book with no clothes on is absolutely exhilarating, the book is so much more exciting and enthralling because….well, because….i’m naked and scared people suddenly come back haha. Anyway….

Spider-Man 3

Saturday night I headed off to KLCC with SL, V and TK to watch the biggest summer movie of the entire….weekend. Yes, no doubt, it had to be Spider-Man 3. I entered the cinema with great expectations and anticipation, considering what I think will be last celluloid affair from the threesome greatsome of Sam Raimi, Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, their last foray with the Spidey Universe. In summary, my feeling towards the movie was like SEX. Yes, SEX. Just imagine you are with your partner; hugging, kissing and caressing each other accompanied by no one else except each other, with gentle serenades of love songs hovering in the sizzling hot air, driving each other to do more. With hands all over each other, clothes amok on the floor all over, both naked, burning for THAT touch, we get ever so closer, the smell of her tenderness blending so well with the warmth of her skin, almost there….almost there….AND THEN SHE LEAVES THE FREAKIN’ BEDROOM & SLAMS THE DOOR HARD SHUT. (Note my use of the word ‘hard’ is only used in this part).

And this is how I felt towards Spider-Man 3. It promised so greatly, gave so much for the viewer to see, it was so vivid with characterization…and in the end it was just a slap in the face. Let me tell you why:

1.) Venom/Eddie Brock – Why is this character included in this movie in the first place? This character is so detached from the main plotlines of Spidey 3 and serves no purpose in the movie at all except to give Spidey another bad guy to fight and bash-up. This character is shown in such a flat manner that it doesn’t give Venom any edge of evilness whatsoever. I did not care weather he came from Mars or Uranus, weather even it will come back in Spidey 4 or even he possesses Samy Velu and starts to threaten all KL motorists with a 500% toll hike (help Spider-man, help). He serves no purposes except to give producers the excuse to milk the cash cows until dry from marketing, merchandising and hype. Venom is a cool character in the comics, cool to the point of cult status, and this movie cannibalized everything the comic books took decades to assemble. Shame.

2.) Sam Raimi, Director – His style of directing is getting too old and too monotonous after 3 helms at the pilot seat. The action sequences are nothing new as we saw the bulk of the special effects already from Spidey 1 & 2. The cinematography look tiresome & unexciting, which in my opinion made the movie look cheap and shoddy. The editing is however, up to his usual interesting standards (just think of the Evil Dead movies). The only highlight is the transformation of William Baker to Sandman, as we see each speck of sand slowly move & manifest themselves into a humanoid being. The sequence shows wonderfully the efforts and motivations it took to become Sandman (for the love of his daughter), all played out in exceptional self-drama. And the best part is, all this is shown without a single word is uttered. Pictures do speak a thousand words….

3.) Green Goblin II/Harry Osborne – Seeing him in 3 spidey movies is enough for me to turn-off my excitement levels right away. Although we see more of Harry in this movie than the Green Goblin, but enough is enough, the less said about him the better. A serious mistake from the start.

4.) Spider-Man/Peter Parker – Selfish and ignorant, even with the help of the super-badass black suit, Parker was portrayed as the way he really is and will always be: A DORK. Yes, a dork, as even he is possessed by the black suit, he can only muster a few dorky lame dance moves all over town which could have embarrassed him to a level not even a normal Peter Parker can manage to achieve. Way to go, superhero.

5.) Mary Jane – Insecure and demoralized from life, she is portrayed as a “lady in distress” and wants to be rescued so badly not from Spider-Man, but by Peter Parker. She wonders why she is not the spotlight in Parker’s eyes, and longs for attention from him. At any time Peter is not giving his full attention to her, she goes into an epilepsy of jealousy and uncertainty, uncertain for her love towards Peter. Her feelings can be easily understood, as Peter, her boyfriend, doesn’t give her the full attention that she deserves as Peter swings around town being Superhero. All she wants is a normal boyfriend, and not Spider-man. But in the end, her problems are not really resolved, so I must put up this question: why show all her problems to us if her character has no closure? Opps, I forgot, SPIDER-MAN 4….

6.) Overall Spider-Man Universe – All in all, the time is ripe for this universe to be passed on to another director with an alternative vision to expand this creation onto another dimension. One comes to mind is definitely Peter Jackson. He handles drama, action and special effects so effortlessly, and these aspects are the core demands of the Spider-Man universe. So what are you waiting for, Sony Pictures? Give this guy the contract and a $10 billion bucks paycheck already….

In the end, I come out of the cinema with a sore back from the long windedness of the movie, and an unexpected disappointment not towards the movie in general, but towards Sam Raimi, the director, which in my opinion, can do a hell lot more. So, can’t wait for Spider-Man 4? Heck no, I definitely CAN wait. Until that time comes, BRING ON TRANSFORMERS!!!!!! WOOHOOO!!!!!!

Chronicles from the Island of Crabs

Long Weekend of 28th April ~ 2nd May

YES, it’s the long weekend everyone’s been looking forward to and IT HAS ARRIVED. Big plans were afoot for every person from all walks of life, plans ranging from traveling, eating, bumming, balik kampong, fishing, plant vegetables and take that occasional bath.

I’m a traveling kinda guy, I like to roam the earth on land, sea or air as long as it’s a good place to go, affordable and has loads of places to stuff my face with food. And roam with lotsa good friends. So, it’s a long weekend, and I like to travel. So where the heck I’m going?? Other people booked there AirAsia flights to Langkawi, Bali, Phuket and all that. Me? I took the bold option, the best option, actually THE ONLY option considering how broke I am. I took the greatest option to travel to a place not many people call paradise: it’s a voyage to the island of PULAU KETAM, KLANG. Yes, ladies & gentlemen, it’s not a weekend of crystal clear waters of Pulau Redang, or the Chow Kuey Teow of Penang, and not even the scrumptious food & comfort of my kampong.

This is Pulau Ketam, Klang!!! And so it unfolded:

Day 1

Day one was free and easy, the day was simple and stress free. Mind you, we booked a hotel room in the middle of Klang for just RM 22 (Prescott Hotel, not those Press-cock Motels ok!) The gang consisted of V, TK, and SL and we checked in at approx 4:30pm. At 1st impression of hotel, it was bordering on OK, not great but it has the basic facilities like bed, Astro, toilet and swimming pool. Hence, no problems at all. After stripping off our luggage, we stripped off our clothes for an evening of swimming pool salsa……

Night approached and we were hungry, hungry for what Klang has to offer. We already planned for a night of seafood, and we are not gonna deviate from that plan. But seafood restaurants in Klang are as numerous as ants in an open sugar jar. Which one to choose?? Well, I always have a saying that the best solution is the simplest one. So, why not we go to this restaurant called Restaurant Seafood Klang?? I mean, we went seafood right, and we ARE in Klang right, so put 1 + 1 together, and you will get 2 good to refuse!!

At the restaurant, it was seafood heaven. The Glass Noodles with Lala was a great starter, then came the stream fish with noodles, and of course, crabs. We tried the sweet and sour crabs, which were too sweet for my taste but what the heck, it was still very good. This place has loads of varieties to crabs, I mean u name it, they will prepare it. Heck, mention Crabs with KFC and they will wrap the crunchy KFC around the crabs for you …..

But anyway, after stuffing ourselves silly, we walked off our extra luggage at a pasar malam, then proceeded to Halo Café for a chill-out at Bukit Tinggi and later went back to our hotel for some Blackjack bwwhahahaaha.

Day 2

Day 2 was the main event as this is the day we ride to Pulau Ketam. But before that, we had to check out from our hotel and for brunch we had Bak Kut T eh (at 12pm mind you, with so much meat this early in the day it’s tough to swallow. But it was so tasty, heck, the meat just melted right in my mouth). Later, off to the jetty for a boat ride to the Land of the Crabs!!

The boat ride was boring, but steady without any roller coaster rides through the waters of Klang. That’s because the area is well protected by mini-islands, swamps and coves that if even a tsunami hits the area, the waves will most probably break apart by these protections. So, if you fear any tsunamis, go get your new address at Klang right away!!

Upon arrival, we were greeted with a massive shock of heat as it was a boiling hot day. The Sun was fierce as probably the Moon gave him a bad night last night. Wearing my comfy white singlet, I was worried for my skin being burnt to human toast. It was so hot, we were walking for a mere 5 minutes and we already had to stop for a cold drink and rest. Being this the excuse, we just had to try out the local ‘O-chein’ or Oyster Omelet. It was good, but Penang’s version is better haha.

We drifted around the island for 1 hour or so, bought numerous sea-related foodstuffs and had another round of rest, with another round of ‘O-chein’, but this time it’s substituted with Lala instead of Oysters. Still same great taste though…..

During my coasting through the grounds of the island, I was wondering what the local residents do for entertainment. I didn’t notice any Astro dishes on their roofs and I don’t think they have Internet access either. Don’t tell me they chat about fish, prawns and crabs all day, everyday? HHmmmm, makes me wonder.

But anyway, the day was at its dusk and it was time to depart this island with memories of their joyous food, the sights of fishermen, the setting of bicycles wandering through slender lanes and the colors of dwellings that riot across the island. The boat was waiting, the engine running, people boarding, the time approached for the return to mainland.

At the night of Day 2, TK went his separate way while me, V and SL went out for a eat-out at a nice diner called “Wendy’s Bistro” at Sunway to give this weekend a good closure for what it turned out to be a gastronomic delight infused with the setting of a unique island that is called Pulau Ketam.

And this brings forth the conclusion of the weekend to the Island of Crabs…..

The 988fm Concert @ Sunway Lagoon

Weekend of 7th April & 8th April

Saturday

The 988fm concert was held on this weekend & I had tickets. MANY tickets. Actually one person is entitled to only 4 tickets, but I got hold of almost 20 tickets haha. So I gave them to my friends. Each ticket also entitled a 50% discount for Sunway Lagoon water/theme parks; hence me and SL took this advantage and stripped for our swimsuits to soak yourselves in waist-deep waters overlooked by a welcoming sun. We enjoyed the sun and waters until the concert started, enjoyed some more until the concert ended.

There were loads of people already near the stage to get good views even before the gates opened. This is because those that bought the 50% discount on the theme park tickets can get into Lagoon early to enjoy the water park and stayed there without queuing outside!!! Luckily I was these smart people (*ahem*) and got good views of the entire concert. But because it was hard for us to get back our clothes from the lockers (some lockers were blocked by stage security, some lockers had to charge money to re-lock etc), a lot of people (not me though) were in their swim suits: guys were shirtless and gals were sexy!! This fits the concert so nicely as it was a BEACH CONCERT. Needless to say, the scenery, music and backdrop of Sunway Hotel was spectacular for a fantastic night of enjoyment and entertainment ~~~~

The concert was entertaining with loads of Local and Taiwan starts performing: Gary, Janice, Ah Niu, and Danny to name a few. Each artist sang 2 songs initially, and for the encore EVERY artist gave a song. So the encore part was so long until no mood already haha. But it ended nicely and everyone left happily.


Sunday

Me and SL (actually me only la) were all excited for this day as I got free F1 tickets!!! Although it cheapo tickets (RM 50) I thought it would be fun to just go there and get some pictures and leave early since it’s free. Alas, if only I can foresee the future. Everything was set perfectly: the camera fully charged, I got the hats and umbrellas in case it rains, I even got a mini mobile fan in case the heat gets unbearable! So the journey to F1 was problem-free until at a turning to Sepang, we were met with a gargantuan traffic jam that stretched like the River Nile in Egypt. I tried my patience to overcome this jam, however, after 2 hours in the jam and moving slower than a 100-year-old turtle with backside problems, I did a Michael Schumacher U-turn and drove to my pit-stop (i.e. my home).

Bringing Hom the Music: Lee Hom Concert @ Bukit Jalil

Weekend of 3rd & 4th March


The day has arrived for arguably the concert of the year: Wang Lee Hom’s World Tour at Bukit Jalil!!!! Many discussions were held conversing about this day, many nights were spend dreaming of this moment, & of course many cash were spent for those small pieces of paper with weird words on it called ‘concert tickets’. Yes, it is this day, and he has arrived for maestro Lee Hom to swagger his flair for entertainment and charm his way into the many fluttering hearts of love-laden girls (and some guys. *Ahem*).

Sourcing Wikipedia:

“Lee Hom is a Taiwanese American singer-songwriter, actor, and commercial model who has achieved highly recognized success in Taiwan, Mainland China, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia. As of 1995, the beginning of his musical career, Lee Hom has contributed in over 25 albums, totalling to nearly 13,000,000 original sales. In addition to his album sales, he also set a new attendance record at the Taipei Arena for his Heroes of Earth 2006 Concert on March 2006 as the concert had broken over six national records. He was also the most earned celebrity endorser as of 2006, defeating other hot competants like Jolin Tsai, S.H.E, and Jay Chou, who was the top earner in the last three years. He also participated in several films, his latest role in ‘Lust, Caution’ directed by Oscar-winning director Ang Lee (which has scenes filmed in Malaysia), gaining the most attention. He has albums in Mandarin & Japanese, and had a duet with Kenny G in Malay (The One and Only).”

Needless to say, he is multi-talented, multi-lingual and a multi-award-winning artist that has over-powered the Chinese music industry with his revolutionary infusion of Chinese and Traditional music, Rap, R&B and Rock. Arguably no individual has achieved what he has achieved, and no individual has left such a landmark in the industry like Lee Hom.


"Lee Hom: Heroes of Earth" World Tour - Malaysian Stop.


After suffering 1 hour in traffic jams and scouring all terrains for a car-park (finally managed to get one near Carrefour), the concert opened just as I was about to sit down. Although me and SL were separated at first (before I went looking for car-park, SL left my car to look for good seats), no moment was missed as the concert started with immense energy and verve. This energy was maintained well into the night; his dance moves were intense and his back-up dancers were in-line with his good intentions to give the reportedly 11,000 crowd a spectacular show. Even when he was belting out his ballads of love songs, his voice and force was unrelenting. Mixing this with his ability to mesmerize his audiences by abundantly performing ‘live’ on prominent music instruments (violin, piano, violin, guitar, drums, etc), he truly is a talented individual endowed with exceptional musical abilities rare to most men and women.

Another individual capable of challenging him musically is definitely his special guest artist for this evening: JJ Lin. Originated from Singapore, JJ Lin challenged & faced up to Lee Hom on stage; JJ Lin performing Lee Hom’s ‘Ni Bu Zai’ and Lee Hom reversely performed JJ’s ‘Jiang Nan’. Both complementing the ballads on piano, the two were outstanding winners in the end as both performances complimented each other superbly. It was a unique union of talent and a rare collaboration that no doubt gave the audience the highlight of night.

As an act of unification, both Lee Hom and JJ Lin performed together, singing ‘That’s What Friends Are For’ as a celebration for their friendship and partnership, and may this collaboration continue for many years to come.

The songs, dance and fireworks rained on the audience continuously throughout the 2-hour-plus show, many landmark favorites and unique compositions of Lee Hom were presented with satisfying effort. It was a great night for Lee Hom fans, and generally a great night for music fans overall, as everyone enjoyed and celebrated the revolution and evolution that Lee Hom has crafted throughout his musical journey with satisfying aplomb.

The Night of the Mexicans

Weekend of 17th & 18th March

This weekend we chose to forget the Bak kut Tehs, Chow Kuey Teows and Seafood for something that is more foreign and distinctive: Mexican food!!!! The decision was made by V and joined by SL, LE & A to dine at Nikko Hotel’s promo for Mexican cuisine prepared by very talented cooks that can even sing for their customers!!! Not only that, they even took the liberty to dress up in big bad hats and serenaded their Mexican songs complemented by their adorable guitars!!! Talk about value for money!!! The food was okay, but in the end it was fun and was something unique to spend the weekend away….

Gambling Gastronomy

Sorry for long absence, been busy and all that. Just got back from my Mars trip to visit my uncle Ah Siau. Anyway, back to my blogging…..

To make up the big bad gap in my blog, I’m just going to post up weekends that are worth highlighting. So here ya go:

Weekend of 17th & 18th Feb

On that Friday night me and my office pals opened shop, doing the business of gambling (yes, gambling, so arrest me la Pak Cop!! Why scared? I taiko maahh!!) We created a wide selection of tempting offers on the menu:

Ala Carte:

1.) Mahjong for 3 to 4 persons
2.) Blackjack buffet
3.) ‘Gin’ & tonic
4.) ‘Tai De’ gong (Viet dish)

Well, those were the popular choices and we indulged in gambling gastronomy until the wee hours of the morning. Actually, it was a bit of a disgrace as we planned to end at 7am the next morning, but we ended at 4am instead. Gowd, we must be older than we think we are!!! I think it’s time to whip out that ‘Alien Workshop’ baggy pants along with my old ultra-large Quiksilver t-shirt and stroll at my nearest mall. FUYOH!!!!