I met Danny Boyle a few years back, when he came to screen "Millions" in Atlanta. I was nervous to meet him. I've met a few directors and it's just so strange how ordinary they are. If you watch their films and then meet them, it's hard to believe that they are the vessels of such great work. He was eerily humble and he was even shocked when this guy asked him to sign his Trainspotting dvd.

Slumdog Millionaire is such an amazing story. I know it's based on a book, but, WoW! what a story. It follows these young street orphan brothers through life and shows all the downsides of being muslim homeless orphans growing up in the slums of Mumbai.
Jamal somehow ends up on "Who wants to be a Millionaire" and has actually made it all the way to the end to the very last question. The fact that he knows all the answers doesn't astonish people, but offends them. They automatically assume that a kid from gully can't possible know anything. so he's interrogated instead of celebrated. The movies follows his life story framed around each question that he correctly answered. The set up itself is just great, who could ever think of that?

It asks the audience, how do you think he knew the answers?

• A. He Cheated.
  
• B. He's Lucky
  
• C. He's a Genious
• D. It is written.

You have to see it to find out.

I always see movies and rant and rave about them and then later i'll read reviews and they usually get ok or bad reviews (i.e. Australia and Miracle at Saint Anna) and then after reading what they say i think to myself, "hey, that's true" but this movie is great and was reviewed great. I can safely say that it is my absolute favorite movie.

Cinematically, this was definitely a Danny Boyle movie. There was the backward shot, the enormous zoom out to aerial shot, the impoverished or challenged characters. These aesthetics create a great film visually. Everything was so poor, yet colors were so rich. Danny Boyle has a working class background and he tends to stay true to that and because of that he's able to capture their life without coming off as preachy or as unrealistic due to not knowing. Acting was great, Jamal's love interest was hispanic, but that's cool, she looked beautifully Indian.

I just loved this movie.... please go see it. I know Atlanta represented for this Indie. There was such a long line at Tara Cinema. It was so nice being in a huge auditorium watching a quality film and not some dribble. The indian kids all came out, there were a lot of old white people there, and me. lol.... M.I.A. provided some songs to soundtrack. I'm just blown away.

Labels: Cam Goes to The Movies, interesting people, my favorite things

Saw Cadillac Records tonight. I love the blues, my grandfather played blues guitar, blues is what made me start my record collection. When I heard this movie was gonna be based on Chess Records, I was excited! I'm always skeptical of historic re-enactments cuz writers always hand pick events that they find "filmic." It's been a long time since I've seen a popular movie that was in a huge stadium (maybe it was the last Lord of the Rings) but it was fun, even the idiot behind me made it fun.

Jeffrey Wright did a good job as Muddy Waters, whom is a dear fav of mine. It was nice to see behind the music and see what kind of people they were, but at the end of the day, all I care about is the track I listen to on my record player. Adrien Brody did okay, he had a generic "i'm upset" acting tantrum (i hate those) but it was good. Beyonce, whom everyone was looking out for, did okay. Not to be a hater, but the easiest role for "us" to play is a sassy black woman, cuz that's what we are. She did favor Etta and her renditions of Etta's best songs were just that, renditions. In a biopic, I'd like her to act and sound like Etta, not Beyonce. But the songs were a dream.

I'm glad they make these films, school the children on our history. I searched for these things, but I'm glad they've pushed it into mainstream. People need to know where they come from. Most musicians that make our music that we listen to already know this music. Hopefully someone will go out and you tube their music.

Muddy Waters, "Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had" (ain't it the truth?)

Labels: Cam Goes to The Movies, interesting people, my favorite things

In new relationships, I'm very wary of my man's platonic girl friends. Partly, because I know that every guy i have as a friend became my friends because we didn't work out romantically, with that said, i just don't like the idea of them being around. Since, they were around before me, I don't try to end the friendship but I do assert myself in making my position clear. This movie showed 2 platonic friends who've never slept with each other and never got the idea, until they were dirt poor, and even then they wanted to make sure they weren't going to ruin their friendship. Now, I've been blessed by never been in that position to be that broke, but i have
slept with a friend before and it not get wierd.

My particular friend was just such a sweet guy, he was always there for me whenever i needed (i returned the same favor) and he is very ambitious. I don't know why i'm speaking of him in past tense, we're still friends, lol. Anyway, the night I spent the night with him was a beautiful loving night, he made love to me like a husband on a honeymoon or anniversary. We held hands and it was very tender, the next morning, i got in my car and I was gone and we were back to our regular friendship, never to overstep that boundary again.

Zack and Miri

Filmically, it was ok. In the eyes of movie watcher, it was great! Hilarious and sweet. It was nice to see Kevin Smith back into his realm as a director, I thought I had lost him with Jersey Girl. If there was ever a story built around a porno, it could never beat this one. It handled the subject matter beautifully (if that's possible, haha). The characters were understandable and wasn't over reaching. I will say the ending was awful and openended. I always stick around to see the credits, but i did notice everyone else sticking around because, like me, they too thought there was going to be more. But, as a writer, I know how it can be difficult to end things, even when it seems to write itself.

The cast was just great and they all had their own niche in the film. Jason Mewes (Jay from Jay and Silent Bob) was back and looking kinda hot as an older man. Craig Robinson is growing on me, I believe I will have a crush soon. Funny guys kill me! Seth Rogan fits in the bucket too. He's so funny and reminds me of guys i went to high school with. I don't check for women too much and i don't know what she's been in before, but Elizabeth Banks is cute without being too beautiful or too plain.

The porn scenes were exactly like my parent's porn that I used to sneak and watch. If you're seasoned porn watcher (i'm not but i've seen my share) then you'll laugh to yourself at the little porn-isms included throughout the pic (even the font it's written in, hilarious!).

If you like these kind of movies, you should check it out. For it's genre, I'd give it a "B"

Labels: Cam Goes to The Movies, interesting people, love, my favorite things

I'm speechless and overjoyed.

Labels: dream, my favorite things

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

With Divah on my lap, I watched Sunset Boulevard tonight. I can't tell you how great this story is. The dialogue, storyline, the... everything. I couldn't even quote a few lines from the movie because there are so many great lines. Its like eye butter.

The story is about an aging star from yesteryear. She has been tucked away in her mansion away from the public, which prefers younger women on screen. She has cooked up an awful grandiose script about a young Salome, of course she'll play the younger role. She wishes to get Cecil B. DeMille to direct it, but it needs some work.

In comes, Joe Gilles, a 30 something hack screenwriter, he agrees to ghostwrite the script for her, even tho he knows it sucks. She eventually falls in love with him and he keeps him hostage in her arms as a kept man.

The story is such a good movie, I know it's hard for some of us to watch black and white films, but the stories are so much better. I don't know how that's possible and as a screenwriter, I can't tell you how I aim to bring back that quality, as I guess it's too hard, once you think about it. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was excellent, the whole thing was filmed mostly in one house, in one room, and it was a great study of acting and technical execution.

I will probably begin to post some great classic films as I think, they will help people watch the crap made now with more discretion.

Labels: my favorite things

I started playing tennis in spring of this year. And I must say I'm hooked. I go to tennis classes on Mondays and Wednesdays and I play a set or two every 2 weeks. I'm not great but for a beginner, I'm pretty good. It's something that drives me, much like writing. I just thought "hey I should start playing tennis" and from then on I've been super passionate. It just sucks that I don't have anyone to play with on a regular basis. Today, I stopped by the tennis courts and these little girls came and hit the ball to me, so I was able to get some fast paced practice in.

I feel the dramatic changes in my body. I get wrist pains, but I'm also getting some pretty toned guns and my thighs are getting firmer too (the better to wrap around you,my dear). I used to say that Serena was my "booty role model" because we're both well endowed but, I've since changed. Serena is too ripped for me, I wanna keep a soft feminine look and feel. So, i don't know how i'll keep my arms from getting super swole.

Here's Rafa Nadal, my favorite player. He's super cute and dreamy... oh, and he'll kick your ass on clay court. lol

Labels: improvement, my favorite things, sport

Man... the premiere I've been waiting a whole year for came on and boy did it blow.... It sucked. I was completely underwhelmed. I need the writers to improve. I can feel changes on their writing staff. Characters seem very plain and flat and I find it hard to believe that all that has happened, happened in a month. No way. Why did they rush the story? It didn't have to be in a month. What's the rush?

Also, Lindsey Lohan's cameo role was dumb and unrealistic. why did they want her on there anyway... ::frownies:: Get it together, Ugly Betty. :-( I know the emmy committee, i will confiscate those awards, imegently...



Shout out to http://www.bronxstateofmind.blogspot.com ! Boo hoo tee!!! lol..

Labels: my favorite things, tv