Movie Mondays

verabear Movies/Music/TV 1 Comment

Monday was again a day for watching movies.  It started with a Filipino film entitled Bagong Buwan (New Moon).  I blogged about the movie two years ago, specifically about their exchange about the one-legged soldier.  Here’s an excerpt of what I said then, which is very much still true for how I feel:

Got me to thinking, is that really what it has to come to? That everyone has to die from war, before it ends? I don’t really know what the situation in Mindanao is at this time. I know it isn’t as chaotic as when there was an all-out war declared six to seven years ago. But the rift between Filipino Muslims and Christians is still there. And the wounds of war still have not healed.

Naisip ko yung mga bata na namulat sa pagtakbo, silang mga nabubuhay sa palagiang panganib. Bawat araw naghahanap ng katahimikan. Naisip ko rin ang mga batang araw araw ay nadadagdag sa hanay ng mga rebelde. Sumasanib upang makasama ang mga magulang na rebelde rin. O di kaya’y sumusuway sa bilin ng magulang para sundin ang tawag ng pagtatanggol sa kanilang lahi.

No. No child should ever have to join a rebellion. For all children deserve a chance for a peaceful life. They should not have to give up their childhood in exchange for armaments.

But I know that the world isn’t hard-wired to always give children what they need. Many kids grow up deprived of the simplest of things. Many children lose their parents to the war. Many see the injustice around them, and it pushes them to take to arms. What can we do for them?

What can I do?

The next three movies are courtesy of Star Movies.  First up was one I hadn’t seen before. It stars Mandy Moore, Diane Keaton, Tom Everett Scott, Lauren Graham and others.  It’s called Because I Said So.  It was a bit predictable, but it got me hooked. 🙂   

I liked seeing the dynamics between the mother and her daughters.  My mom and I are just not like that, and it’s okay 🙂  As for the whole dating dilemma, I’ve never had to go through that phase and it was interesting to watch too.  I love that Milly was a caterer, and that she loves baking – something I would love to do for a living, hehe.  I didn’t care much about Jason – I knew for sure it was Johnny who’d win. 

Next up was Dark Matter starring Meryl Streep, Liu Ye, and Aidan Quinn.

It tackles school politics and how it affects a bright and passionate young scientist, whose chances of getting his PhD and even possibly the Nobel prize was snatched away from him. All because his dissertation puts to shame his mentor/advisor.  I’m sure these things happen in real life too, I hope though never to hear of such a case happening in our own universities.  It had such a violent ending. What a waste of talent. 

This last movie caused me Monday’s episode of Boys Over Flowers: It’s a Boy Girl Thing.  To be honest, I didn’t find it to be a particularly good movie, also quite predictable, and the acting wasn’t really all there.  I am known to keep on watching movies that I’ve already seen before, but this one would be an exception.

Woody and Nel are next-door neighbors but it’s like they’re from different worlds. They don’t get along at all.  I like the fact though that they didn’t center on the differences between genders, but rather on the invisible social lines between them – this is probably the single redeeming value of the film.

What movies have you watched lately?