WHEN IN ROME, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 31 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Friday, January 29th, 2010
show: 4:45 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $4.50 Glaceau Vitaminwater, Focus flavor in 20 oz. bottle = $11.75
auditorium: 7
seat: 5th row, 7th column

synopsis: A poker-chipped love affair. Or, when in Rome, do as the Americans do.

A workaholic New York hottie museum curator, Beth ( Kristen Bell ), who's disillusioned with romance, goes to her sister, Joan's ( Alexis Dziena ), wedding in Rome, only to get drunk and unwisely remove random coins from the fountain of love, setting-off a magical spell. Soon enough, she becomes the object of desire for a motley bunch of lovelorn men smitten by her. But how will she know which one of them is truly in love with her and is just not caught under some kind of love spell?

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Fontana de Amore; 2.) Party; 3.) Sister's news; 4.) Meeting; 5.) Nick's ( Josh Duhamel ) cell phone; 6.) Vase; 7.) Toast; 8.) Dance; 9.) Fountain; 10.) Card game; 11.) The painter ( Will Arnett ); 12.) The narcissistic model ( Dax Shepard ); 13.) The magician ( Jon Heder ); 14.) 'Phone call with the newly weds; 15.) Problem with the centerpiece; 16.) Sausage magnate ( Danny DeVito ); 17.) Breath spray; 18.) Underground service elevator; 19.) The "mummy"; 20.) Out on recon; 21.) Calling for a date; 22.) Black-out Restaurant; 23.) Night at the museum; 24.) Poker chips; 25.) Another spell-breaker; 26.) Unexpected guests; 27.) Vespa micro-mini car; 28.) Elevator; 29.) The Petrocelli; 30.) Returning the coins; 31.) Not under a crazy spell; 32.) Switched; 33.) Passion is in the risk; 34.) The priest; 35.) No idea; and 36.) Bonus scenes.

who: Is that Efren Ramirez ( of Napoleon Dynamite [ 2004 ] fame ) doing an uncredited cameo appearance as "camcorder guy" to Jon, Napoleon Dynamite, Heder's street magician character?

audience reaction: The females in the audience enjoyed this Rom-Com.

recommendation: This is definitely a "Chick Flick" that will appeal to those who are into such movies.

spoiler alert! The priest and the bridegroom both knew how to speak English but neither one volunteered to offer the right translation nor corrected the embarrassing mistranslation. It is mostly women and children who toss coins in a fountain to make a wish. If you look closely, most of the coins in the fountain are pennies, nickels, dimes and a few quarters--and this is suppose to be in Rome. How convenient that all the coins she picked-up at random once belonged to men who hail from her city, New York! Most male models are gay, supposedly, and the male model character in this movie is way over-compensating ( pay attention to the dialogue in the wedding scene near the end of the movie ). When Danny DeVito's character talked to Beth about "encased meat is my life's work", it seemed like he was insinuating that he practices safe sex all the time by always having condoms handy on his person! Beth's amorous stalkers had night vision goggles on, but not one of them saw her crawling away. The TV set turned on too quickly--instantly, in fact. The police officer in the patrol car didn't do anything about the crazy Italian-style driving. When the Vespa car swerved, Danny DeVito's character pounced on Beth as if to steal a kiss ( I wonder if he got lucky, the little horny old fart! ).

fyi: This movie was not shot in Rome because the ending credits show no such acknowledgement. I knew something was up when I noticed that most of the coins were American.

Speaking of American, the Italian cartographer, explorer and navigator, Amerigo Vespucci ( who latinized his name to Americus Vespucius ) is thought to be for whom the New World, America, is named after by the publisher, Martin Waldseemuller. But it could be navigator/explorer, John Cabot's ship's principal owner, Richard Ameryk, for whom it is so named. Cabot's exploration and Vespucci's supposed first voyage occurred in the same year of 1497 A.D. But Ameryk had already established a fishing business in Newfoundland 12 years before Columbus discovered the New World in 1492. And since the general rule of thumb for naming new countries is to name them using a person's surname ( unless the person is royalty, as in King Philip = Philippines ), then America is named after the Englishman, Ameryk, in all probability.

I have a friend, Bradley, whose father was a Roman Catholic Priest. He quit the priesthood because he couldn't handle the "vow of celibacy."

Roman Catholic priests are required to take a "vow of celibacy" to insure that their "vow of poverty" remains secure and free from claims of inheritance. Through the centuries, countless men bequeathed all their worldly possessions to the Roman Catholic Church when they entered the priesthood. The same can be said of women who became nuns. And all Roman Catholic nations surrendered their sovereignty, and pledged their allegiance, to Rome. Consequently, the tiny city-state of Rome owns/controls vast real estate holdings, lands, priceless gems and works of art, world currencies, a prodigious investment portfolio like no other, governments, international police and intelligence agencies, and a multi-national armed forces which is not to be taken lightly.

The way in which things are shaping-up, the near-future One World Government will be under the control of three city-states:

Rome = The religious arm.

London = The financial arm.

Washington, D.C. = The military arm.

By the way, Communism is on a fast decline as mainland Chinese are getting a sweet taste of Capitalism and Democracy to the point that over 62,000,000 of them ( almost 1/10th of their population )--and counting--have formally/officially declared their resignation from the Communist Party, according to The Epoch Times newspaper. And Democracy is marching slowly but ever so surely across all the Muslim States. Both of these are setting the stage for a One World Government!

You can read The Epoch Times newspaper on the Internet. Google it, then click on the China sub-head. A column of selected articles will be shown on the right-hand side. Scroll down until you see the articles "Quitting the Chinese Communist Party" and "China's Transition to Democracy" then click on them for an eye-opening read.

word of advice: Love will happen if it was meant to happen.

tidbits: On my blog for THE BOOK OF ELI, I added Further notice: to my FYI section for those of you who haven't read it yet or who would like to know a little more about war crimes committed in World War II.

On a lighter note:

Years ago, when there used to be a Smorgabob's All-You-Can-Eat Buffet Restaurant here in Vallejo and before Empire Chinese Buffet took away their business, I would frequent this place for dinner since I'm not the type to wait to be served food. One night, as I stood between the Salad counter and the Dessert counter, a beautiful Hispanic cook's assistant came over to replenish the selections at the aforementioned counters. She looked to be in her mid- to late- twenties. I was admiring her feminine figure, tracing her curves with my four eyes when, suddenly, the lights went out! It was completely dark in there and she couldn't have been further than 30 inches from me. OH, HOW I WANTED TO GRAB HER! But I had a salad plate in one hand and a soup mug in the other--and I didn't want to lose either one. Gee, I sure had my priorities straight!

EDGE OF DARKNESS, R ( 1 hr & 48 min )

where: EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when: Friday, January 29th, 2010
show: 1:25 p.m.
costs: $7.50 Ticket + $4.50 small Diet/Zero Coke + $8.98 lunch @ Hometown Buffet ( + $1.00 Tip ) = $21.98
auditorium: 8
seat: 3rd row, 15th column

synopsis: A Boston police detective, Thomas Craven ( Mel Gibson ), hunts down his daughter, Emma's ( Bojana Novakovic ) assassin and finds out about a corporate cover-up involving the government.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Moonlit lake; 2.) Bleeding and vomiting; 3.) Front porch; 4.) Lavatory; 5.) Rules don't apply; 6.) Morgue; 7.) Stake-out; 8.) Urn; 9.) Gun; 10.) Emma's boyfriend's ( Shawn Roberts ) apartment; 11.) Meter; 12.) Secret meeting; 13.) Northmoor; 14.) Darius Jedburgh ( Ray Winstone ) at Thomas' backyard; 15.) Activist; 16.) Night Flower; 17.) Illegal in Massachusetts; 18.) Tailed; 19.) Pull-over; 20.) Another assassination; 21.) Park bench; 22.) News reporter; 23.) Northmoor's attorney; 24.) Emma's lady friend; 25.) Discs; 26.) Debacle; 27.) Activist leader; 28.) Milk; 29,) Unsurvivable; 30.) Hallucinations; 31.) Senator Jim Pine's ( Damian Young ) home; 32.) Rear-ended; 33.) Need to abort; 34.) Shaving; 35.) Betrayal; 36.) Escape; 37.) Payback time; 38.) Got milk? 39.) Working on an alibi; 40.) By what standard? 41.) Newsroom; and 42.) Radioactive isolation.

audience reaction: The audience seemed to like this movie.

recommendation: Despite Mel's propensity for over-the-top violence in his movies and his anti-Semitic rantings, this crime drama is above-average and probably worth a look-see to some of you out there. I liked it.

spoiler alert! There is no way in the world that a shot-gun shot can push its target back with such force that it breaks a door open as the target flies backwards in the air--the shooter would end up with a dislocated shoulder, back and hip! The force exiting the muzzle is equal to the kick of the rifle butt with each shot. Thomas slapped-away the knife at the blade-part; and since his hand motion was semi-circular, the knife should have sliced-off his fingers. The activist leader could easily file a lawsuit based on police brutality. Thomas, after pulling-over Jack Bennett's ( Danny Huston ) car, swung his car door wide open and promptly stepped-out of his car without even glancing at the on-coming traffic! Even though a police officer is hired by a local government ( i.e. city/township ), since that local government is accountable to the state government, then, yes, a police officer is also a state employee and has jurisdiction over the entire state ( Mr. Lawyer-guy probably got this wrong in the Bar Exam ). How was the would-be assassin able to know when Emma's lady friend was about to exit the car so that he could floor the gas pedal--and where was he waiting to do his dastardly deed all that time ( 'had to be somewhere near )? Why did the cop shoot Jedburgh who was in the process of surrendering himself? Why didn't an alarm go-off when the monitor flat-lined?

fyi: I read of a state trooper once from the '60s or early '70s who would pursue a fleeing criminal across more than two state lines. And once the offender was caught, this officer would issue him a speeding ticket for each and every single city and township that he drove through in the process of trying to evade capture! Now, this is a cop that Hollywood should be making a movie about!

Here's what "The Long Arm of the Law" means: The local police has legal jurisdiction over a criminal who runs to and hides in any country where extradition laws apply!

word of advice: So, my dear readers ... Behave Yourselves!

tidbits: Before going to the movies, I took my Hyundai Accent to WheelWorks in Vallejo to have them replace the defective brakes that they installed in my car over 14 months ago. They tried to "fix" it three times with a silicone spray but it amounted to nothing more than a temporary fix that lasted about a week or less each time. The front brakes would make an embarrassing noise whenever I would turn the wheel and step on the brakes. It was especially bad during the summertime when I would pull up to a gas station where there would be beautiful and sexy girls pumping gas as I would go around looking for an available pump ( and checking-out the "scenery" ) to use and my brakes would make this god-awful noise that could be heard blocks away! And all I could do was slip down and try to hide, out of embarrassment! But WheelWorks fixed the problem--I think--free of charge 'though they didn't guarantee the labor ( 'must be why my brake pedal feels kinda soft ). I might have to take it back next Monday to have them adjust the brakes. As a side note, the burnt rubber/oil smell is gone which I suspected was caused by the defective brakes all along ( Gee, I wonder how much of this toxic fume did I inhale over the months as my car sat and idled at traffic lights whenever I had the fan on ). [ Just kidding. I had the presence of mind to turn-off the fan and roll down the driver's side window at traffic lights whenever the weather was hot enough--whenever the weather wasn't hot enough, I would keep my windows rolled-up so people would think that my car had air-conditioning! Appearance counts too, you know. ]

I went to HomeTown Buffet because I wanted to know how much I paid for my lunch last week when I was in Concord, CA to watch LEGION and THE TOOTH FAIRY so I could finish my blog's movie-watching COSTS section on LEGION. But, about twenty minutes into my lunch, I found out that I was at the wrong buffet! The one I went to last week was J. J. North's. Whoopsie! Okay, that's it! I'm just gonna have to give J. J. North's a call and ask them for the cost of their week-day lunch. Now, why didn't I think of this before ....

EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES, PG ( 1 hr & 46 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Wednesday, January 27th, 2010
show: 11:35 a.m. First Show Extra Dollar Off Matinee
costs: $6.25 Ticket + $4.25 junior Popcorn w/ Butter + $3.75 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $14.25
auditorium: 1
seat: 4th row, 8ht column

synopsis: A devoted father, John Crowley ( Brendan Fraser ), who has two children slowly dying of Pompe Disease must make a hard choice: Stay with a company that gives him a generous health and medical plan for "band-aid" treatments or go on his own and partner with a maverick doctor, Dr. Stonehill ( Harrison Ford ), in a race against time to find a cure.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) 8ht b-day; 2.) Reading-up on Pompe Disease; 3.) 'Phone call; 4.) Making out; 5.) ICU; 6.) Cautiously optimistic; 7.) U. of Nebraska Biochemistry Annex; 8.) Bar talk; 9.) Talk with wife, Aileen ( Keri Russell ); 10.) Foundation; 11.) Megan ( Meredith Droeger ) and Dr. Stonehill; 12.) Partnership deal; 13.) Chasing the wind; 14.) Venture capital meeting; 15.) Feeding the ducks; 16.) Proposal with Dr. Renzler ( David Clennon ); 17.) Priozyme time; 18.) Generator; 19.) Pink medicine; 20.) Deadline ultimatum; 21.) Acceptable loss; 22.) Deal with Zymogen; 23.) Uncashed check; 24.) New home; 25.) Part of the pill; 26.) Meeting with victims; 27.) Bad prognosis; 28.) Decision to make; 29.) Loud music; 30.) Overall good of the program; 31.) Bad news; 32.) Amusement park; 33.) Lab results; 34.) Infants only; 35.) Fetch drugs; 36.) Sibling study; 37.) Quack; 38.) Protocol; 39.) Fired; 40.) Good news; 41.) Portland Rose Hospital; 42.) Uncle Bobby; 43.) Sugar high; and 44.) Stonehill Biotech.

audience reaction: Although there were quite a number of people in the audience with me, I didn't hear any feedback from anyone of them.

recommendation: I liked this movie in the sense that it let me in on the behind-the-scenes issues, frustrations, concerns and arguments involving the research, the funding and the clinical testing that all go into the making of a pharmaceutical drug. It's a slow movie which, at times, pulls on the "heart strings" and can be best appreciated only by people who can relate to it in a personal way.

spoiler alert! John Crowley probably never heard of a pocket protector. At the meeting with the victims of the disease, nobody partook of the muffins and beverages laid out neatly on a table--'must be just movie props! I didn't notice any test done on animals and/or human organ cells. It gives the false impression that pharmaceutical companies can concoct a "magic bullet" to combat any and every disease known to man. This movie shows that only the people with money and the right connection can have first dibs on a cure. Drugs are a multi-billion dollar industry and pharmaceutical companies are only concerned with the bottom line. The only Portland Rose Hospital that I could find is a veterinary one.

fyi: In the real world, researchers generally drag on; otherwise, they lose their source of income ( think "finding a cure for cancer" ) and/or the means to pay-off their college loans. I met a lady who cures cancer using a 1930's era treatment. She even cured a chiropractor's wife who was diagnosed with advanced brain cancer and who was so debilitated by the disease that she couldn't even walk; yet, she was cured by this lady who doesn't even have a license to practice medicine and gets by only on donations.

If a doctor says that there is no cure, yet, for a disease, it could be a "white lie" because a cure is not considered a cure if the pharmaceutical industry cannot make a profit from it. So, such cures are dismissed as just a result of the "placebo effect". But when you think about it, any drug taken for a disease, to some extent, will have a "placebo effect" ( i.e. power of auto-suggestion ) if it proves efficacious.

If you want a second opinion about a medical condition, get it from a different type of doctor. Try alternative medicine. A real maverick doctor, Dr. Richard Schulze, N.D., M.H., trained by the late, great Dr. Christopher, has cured many patients who were given-up on by M.Ds. He had some serious run-ins with the FDA and the AMA because of his treatments' much greater rate of success! You can find out more on him, and others like him, on the Internet. ( I learned a few treatments from his master, Dr. Christopher, that really worked. )

word of advice: Money talks.

It's not what you know but who you know.

tidbits: I also smuggled-in a small bag of snack, a Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate/Almond Joy Pieces mix that I put in a zip-lock bag, so that I wouldn't have to buy the bulk chocolate candies at the concession stand--and because I have to get rid of my surplus candy, a.s.a.p., so I can start my New Year's diet.

THE TOOTH FAIRY, PG ( 1 hr & 42 min )

where: BRENDEN CONCORD 14 in Concord, CA
when: Friday, January 22nd, 2010
show: 6:50 p.m.
costs: $8.25 Ticket + $4.50 small White Cherry Icee + $4.00 Bridge Toll = $16.75
auditorium: 14
seat: 5th row, 10th column

synopsis: For "tooth money" call 1 ( TOO ) THF - AIRY.

Derek ( Dwayne, "The Rock", Johnson ) is summoned to Fairy Land to do community service as a tooth fairy for committing the crime of "Dissemination of Disbelief."

noteworthy scenes: 1.) First game; 2.) Locker room; 3.) Little fan; 4.) Card game; 5.) Tooth money; 6.) Summons; 7.) Tutu tooth fairies; 8.) Fairy godmother ( Julie Andrews ); 9.) Jerry ( Billy Crystal ); 10.) Deal; 11.) First case; 12. ) Behind the couch; 13.) Flushed with excitement; 14.) Second case; 15.) Wing envy; 16.) Amnesiac dog; 17.) Hanging out; 18.) Third case; 19.) Lack of funding; 20.) Jail time; 21.) My way; 22.) fourth case; 23.) Second game; 24.) Touche; 25.) Drills; 26.) Loss; 27.) Bad day; 28.) Own medicine; 29.) Surprise; 30.) Home; 31.) Dreams are good; 32.) Flight wings; 33.) Concert; 34.) Staples center; and 35.) Bonus scene.

audience reaction: The audience gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation: This movie will appeal to little greedy, spoiled brats who always want more candy, money, and toys ( you have been duly warned ).

spoiler alert! A molar, or bi-cuspid ( I forget ), went flying in the air--which didn't look like a real tooth, by the way--even though the tooth knocked out was an incisor in the upper-right quadrant. When he fell on his wings, he didn't say, "Ouch!" Everyone in Fairy Land, it seemed, was oblivious to his stench. He didn't use amnesia dust on most of the families that he visited. At the concert, Randy ( ? ) was easily accompanied by other players who never practiced with him.

fyi: Didn't we already see Dwayne, "The Rock", Johnson in a tutu in the movie, THE GAME PLAN ( 2007 )? If he's comfortable getting in touch with his "feminine" side for all the world to see, then he should do a comedy film about a "female" bodybuilder in a string bikini--have you seen how hideous such muscle-bound freaks look like? It's enough to give horndogs a nightmare! Hey, he could easily turn it into an horror film, seriously! With his luck, it will spawn sequels and merchandising tie-ins! His action-figure doll will easily kick Barbie's ass ... or whatever--ahem! And what will wimpy "man-bitch" Ken do about it, huh? Yeah, that's right, nothing! ( And, yes, Dwayne's butt will look big in a thong--Yuck! [ You have to see THE TOOTH FAIRY movie to know what I'm talking about here. ] )

I believe Arnold, "The Governator", Schwarzenegger started this trend about action heroes forced to deal with little brats with his movie, KINDERGARTEN COP ( 1990 ).

It's good to see that Dwayne finally got rid of his gynecomastia ( bitch's tits ) because, in his early movies as an action star walking around topless, it didn't fit well with our preconceived image of an he-man.

word of advice: Guys, if you want to keep your legs warm in the winter, wear pantyhose under your pants--just don't get into an accident in which they'll need to take you to emergency, or you just might die of embarrassment! ( I'm told that wearing pantyhose to keep your legs warm in winter really works. But I'm glad I live in sunny California. Hey, I have some in-laws in Michigan who might just be interested in knowing this. I won't even need to tell them because some of them already read my movie blog. Heh, heh, heh .... )

tidbits: As I waited outside near the box office of the theatre for this movie to start, I witnessed an argument across the side street. A middle-aged fat woman was at it with a skinny kid. As the kid turned to walk away, the woman grabbed his jacket. The jacket slipped-off as the kid just kept walking away. I guess the woman was too out-of-shape to chase after him. So, she dumped the jacket in the bushes but, later, changed her mind and took it with her as she walked in the opposite direction. That skinny kid probably ended-up suffering from the effects of hypothermia!

LEGION, R ( 1 hr & 40 min )

where: BRENDEN CONCORD 14 in Concord, CA
when: Friday, January 22nd, 2010
show: 4:00 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $4.25 small Diet Pepsi + $?.?? Buffet Lunch at J.J. North's ( + $1.00 tip ) =
auditorium: 1
seat: 7th row, 12th column

synopsis: Diner-geddon!

When Humanity loses faith in God, He sends His legion of angels to exterminate everyone here on Earth. But a few people trapped in a desert diner , Paradise Falls, fight back for survival in this arma-geddon, aided by the Archangel Michael ( Paul Bettany ).

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Psalm 34:11; 2.) December 23rd; 3.) The "front"; 4.) Diner; 5.) Old lady; 6.) Plague of flies; 7.) Firearms; 8.) Ice cream man; 9.) Evil convoy; 10.) Start talking; 11.) Start getting square; 12.) Reason for faith; 13.) Sacrificial lure; 14.) Your fault; 15.) Flame thrower; 16.) Chucky-wannabe toddler; 17.) Baby; 18.) Future's unwritten; 19.) Standstill crowd; 20.) The archangels; 21.) Out of business; 22.) Flare gun; 23.) Crash; 24.) Cliff; 25.) No mercy; and 26.) Driving off.

audience reaction: Lukewarm, at best.

recommendation: This should have been a "straight to video" movie. I know that there are those of you who would say that it is just a movie. But anyone with a knowledge of the Bible would be very disappointed by this "Operation Disinformation" put forth by Hollywood--or treat it like the comedy of errors that it is! This is strictly a rental.

spoiler alert! There is no such thing as an angel, especially an Archangel, sporting tattoos all over its body! All the servants of God, both Humans and Angels, are sealed on their forehead ( i.e., kept safe from Evil influence ) just as the followers of the Beast are sealed on their forehead ( i.e., kept away from Salvation ) and branded on their right hand ( i.e., powerless to resist Evil ). One angel can easily kill at least 185,000 heavily-armed soldiers ( 2nd Kings 19:35 ). Or God can just make them go blind ( 2nd Kings 6:18 ) so they can't fight against His Heavenly Host. Shouldn't the quoted verse instead be Psalm 34:16? Why does the Archangel Michael use a knife and an assault rifle against another immortal? ( Quick! somebody, go fetch his Flaming Sword. ) For someone who has been through the "Pearly Gates", Archangel Michael sure ain't got no "Pearly Whites"! Why do the angels have black wings and are dressed in black? Angels are beings of pure white light; anybody who has been meditating for many years and has had encounters with such entities will vouchsafe for my statement. If humans want to pick a fight with angels, they should pick on the Seraphim because they always cover their eyes and are, thus, easy targets! ( Yeah, right .... ) According to the Bible, an angel or some other spirit will appear when a person bleeds ( the reason for flagellation and human sacrifice ), so it would have been easy for the other angels to find out exactly where Michael was. I wanted to watch him finish doing the stitches on his back in that impossible-to-touch-by-one's-self area--of course, they didn't show it! Dogs would not bark at an angel. The cop driving the patrol car wasn't paying attention to the road. Demons ( the Bible calls them "lying spirits" ), not angels, willfully possess human bodies. Super-rapid head-shaking will, at the very least, make the person pass-out and, at the very most, rupture the person's brain! The blood dripping from the ceiling is not explained. Angels can easily discern a person's motives, i.e. they can read minds. Angels can move faster than a speeding bullet or freeze/reverse time itself. According to one tradition, the Archangel Gabriel is "female", jovial, and is the one seated at the left side of God. So, the wings are bullet-proof but they can be easily sliced-off with a knife--Okay .... What's up with the mace with a spinning head? If the future of humanity rests upon the shoulders of some gutter-mouthed fornicatress/trailer trash's bastard infant--born on Christmas Day, of all things-- such a future is quite dim, indeed! ( Now would be a good time to re-acquaint yourself with the movie's premise. ) If you hold an infant in your arms as the car that you're riding in is going over 100 mph then hits something that makes it flip over, first, your shoulders would possibly get dislocated and, second, that unsecured infant would turn into a nine-pound projectile that would smack everybody in the head and/or face!

fyi: God commanded the Israelites not to cut their flesh or put marks on their skin ( Leviticus 19:28 ) or shave their foreheads ( Deuteronomy 14:1 ) because these were what the pagan people all around them did to mourn their dead. The Israelites were supposed to make themselves holy unto their Lord, meaning: They were not to practice what the unbelievers practiced, which pretty much summed-up the TEN COMMANDMENTS!!! The human body is a temple of God ( 1st Corinthians 6:19-20 ); in as much as you don't vandalize and put graffiti on a holy temple ( unless you're suicidal and don't mind being beaten to death by an angry mob ) likewise, you should not vandalize ( flagellate, slash or put body piercings in ), or put graffiti ( tattoos ) on, or dump garbage ( drugs and junk food ) in the body temple dedicated as a Shekhinah of God's Glory--I'd better stop pigging-out at buffets. ( And in case you're wondering .... nope, I don't have tattoos and body piercings; and I don't smoke, drink or do drugs, either. )

The Christian Angelic Hierarchy has nine types of angels grouped together into three spheres. Here they are in descending stages:

FIRST SPHERE: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones ( closest to God )

SECOND SPHERE: Dominions, Virtues, Powers ( spread through-out God's Kingdom )

THIRD SPHERE: Principalities, Archangels, Angels ( closest to mankind )

Understand that they all possess the same level of capabilities, i.e. an angel is as powerful as a seraph, they are just assigned specific tasks by God.

In the Book of Enoch, the Seraphim are called Drakones ( the serpents ), of which Lucifer was the leader before he fell from Heaven. Not all serpent spirits are evil. They are worshipped in parts of at least five continents as bestowers of wisdom, healing, secret knowledge, immortality and magical powers ( Doesn't this sound like the Temptation in the Garden of Eden ?). They inhabit the waters. Understand, too, that "waters" is symbolic of humanity, since our bodies are mostly composed of H2O. So, the serpent is within us all. Any Hindu or Buddhist will tell you that a "cobra-like" snake called the Kundalini resides within each and every one of us, coiled-up at the base of our spine, waiting to uncoil and rise up through our spine and exit at the top of our head. One of four things can happen when this serpent uncoils and rises up: a person becomes sex-crazed, goes mad, dies, or becomes enlightened--be smart and choose enlightenment!

word of advice: Be smart and choose enlightenment!

If you haven't done so, please read one of my posts for last month, entitled: What Christmas?

tidbits: I had planned on going to the Thursday midnight show for this movie in Fairfield, CA. But I was preoccupied with the preliminary research and study that I did for this movie and consequently lost track of time. I'm glad that I didn't go to the midnight show because this movie proved to be not worth losing my sleep over!

I decided to see this movie in Concord, CA because I remembered that there is a J.J. North's Buffet Restaurant close to the theatre. And I haven't been to this particular one in many years! An elderly white foursome was seated at the table to the left of mine. And, throughout the meal, they were talking about the possible origin of the word, "Gringo," ( to the point of even asking an Hispanic waitress about its true meaning, making her nervous ) and gossiping about acquaintances and relatives who were homosexuals and lesbians or who were suspected of being such. What an interesting serendipitous lunch that turned out to be.

THE BOOK OF ELI, R ( 1 hr & 58 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Monday, January 18th, 2010
show: 12:00 p.m. Extra Dollar Off First Show Matinee
costs: $6.25 Ticket + $3.75 small Diet ( w/ Barq's flavor ) Coke = $10.00
auditorium: 14
seat: 3rd row, 5th column

synopsis: Go West, old man!

A mysterious man, Eli ( Denzel Washington ), following a voice in his head, encounters post-War people in what used to be the United States as he heads west, fighting-off murderous gangs/cannibals intent on taking his precious prized possession, a Bible.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Cat; 2.) Boots; 3.) Rat; 4.) Hijackers; 5.) Stay on path; 6.) Battery recharge; 7.) Books; 8.) Water; 9.) Bar fight; 10.) Solara ( Mila Kunis ); 11.) Saying "Grace"; 12.) "Amen"; 13.) Sign of the Cross; 14.) Shoot-out; 15.) Spring; 16.) "Weapon"; 17.) Deal; 18.) Arrows; 19.) Psalm 23; 20.) Reason for War; 21.) "Walk by Faith, not by sight"; 22.) Old couple; 23.) Out-gunned; 24.) TV?; 25.) Just a man; 26.) Going back to town; 27.) Return; 28.) Golden Rule; 29.) Golden Gate; 30.) Row boat; 31.) Alcatraz; 32.) Dictation; 33.) Holy book of Surprise; 34.) Feverish; 35.) Revolt; 36.) Giving Thanks; and 37.) New King James Version, Alcatraz Press.

audience reaction: The audience liked this movie.

recommendation: I liked it. It's a good action movie. Go see this movie.

spoiler alert! How was Eli able to sense things and their exact locations? Why didn't he retrieve the arrows? The shot to the crotch from the back would just have, at most, paralyzed the man from the waist down for the moment; he would have died later on. What happened to the woman who liked to kneel on the ground? They had enough time to shoot the Gatling Gun gunner. At his advance age, Carnegie ( Gary Oldman ), would have to, first, teach someone else to read, before he could preach on the Bible, to carry-on his legacy. Why didn't Carnegie have the hots for Solara? With all the hard alcoholic drinks in the bar, why didn't Carnegie have his "surgeon" soak his hands in alcohol and use it to sterilize the wound? It's not explained how Solara was able to drive a vehicle. A shot to the abdomen like that will result, in all probability, in a massive infection that will kill the victim in as little as one hour.

It would be impossible to round-up all of the bibles and burn them. Through the centuries, the Bible survived such extreme censorship. A case in point is the bible printed by Robert Barker in 1631 called "The Wicked Bible" ( a.k.a., Adulterous Bible and Sinners' Bible ). It was so named because in the book of Exodus, chapter 20 verse 14, it commands believers thus: "Thou shalt commit adultery." This bible was gathered-up and burned. But eleven original copies remain to this day. Carnegie should have coveted this bible above all the rest, being that he was not married to Claudia ( Jennifer Beals ), the mother of Solara! ( If you look at the sad state of Christianity today, you would think that everybody is in possession of , and possessed by, The Wicked Bible. )

fyi: Bible Time!

The Bible is THE NUMBER ONE most popular book in the whole world, printed in many languages and in print for hundreds of years!

I have 2 King James Version, 1 New King James Version, 1 New International Version, 1 New Century Version, 1 Scofield Study Bible ( Oxford ), 1 Catholic Bible, 1 Cross-Reference Bible, 2 Children's Bibles, 2 Gideon New Testament Pocket Bible, 1 New Testament Key Chain Bible, and 1 Old & New Testament Key Chain Bible, for a grand total of 14 Bibles. And I would like to have a Calvin Bible as soon as I can afford to buy one ( the "deluxe" edition is well over $100.oo ).

There are 774,746 words in a standard Bible.

The early scribes who wrote the books of the Bible had a very limited vocabulary. The Hebrew words that they used have multiple meanings. One such word is Ruha or Ru'a. This word means = 1.) Air; 2.) Wind; 3.) Breeze; 4.) Atmosphere; 5.) Breath; 6.) Soul; 7.) Ghost; 8.) Holy Spirit; 9.) Life Force; 10.) The sentient force which drives the Four Winds and which is at the beck and call of the Men of God; and it may have other meanings that I am presently not aware of. This limited vocabulary compounds the problem when it comes to interpreting the Word of God. For example, if you write down a two-word sentence using two Hebrew words, with each word having ten different meanings, then that two-word sentence can be interpreted in 100 different ways. Let's suppose you write down a 10-word sentence in Hebrew and, again, each word has ten different meanings, then your sentence can be interpreted in 10 Billion ( YES ) different ways! And there are practically 3/4ths of a Million words in a standard Bible! So, who has got the right interpretation?!?!?!

Because of this problem in interpretation, an early Bible called the Calvin Bible came with notes printed so that the Word of God could be properly understood. But the King James Version did away with all of that! Allow me to quote a source verbatim:

"THE MOST FEARED BIBLE

"In 1557, while in exile in Geneva, Switzerland, a then unknown Clergyman, John Calvin, assisted by a handful of Englishmen who had fled the persecution of Bloody Mary, undertook to translate the complete Bible. This made Calvin's Bible the first complete Bible to be translated into English from the original Hebrew and Greek texts. Calvin and his associates did far more than a translation. Their editions contained thousands of marginal notes. Because words and phrases quite often had several meanings the marginal explanations were meant to remove all doubt from the mind of the reader. Calvin's Bible, out of print since 1644, was the Bible of choice for Oliver Cromwell, John Milton, and the pilgrims who landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. William Shakespeare quoted Calvin's Bible more than 5,000 times in his plays. In 1644 Calvin's Bible was replaced by the King James version because the state needed a Bible that was more compliant to its agenda. James declared Calvin's Bible 'seditious' and made its possession a felony.

"King James I of England was a devout believer in the 'divine' rights of kings. Among his many other faults, he preferred young boys to adult women. James enjoyed killing animals. He called it 'hunting'. Once he killed an animal he would literally roll about in its blood. Some historians claim that he practiced bestiality while the animals lay dying. James was a sadist as well as a sodomite. He enjoyed torturing people. While King of Scotland he personally supervised the torture of poor wretches caught up in the witch-hunt trials, and even suggested new ways of torture to his henchmen. Knowing what King James was we can easily discern his motives. James ascended the English throne in 1603. He wasted no time in ordering a new edition of the Bible in order to deny the common people the marginal notes, and thus the real meaning of many Biblical accounts. The doctrines espoused in the marginal notes struck terror into the heart of kings and their servants of the church. So James edited his own version without marginal notes. The King James Bible was, and is for all practical purposes, a government publication.

"A limited number of copies of 'The Most Feared Bible' have now been printed for the first time in over 400 years. Prices start at about $50." ( Scoopified, Spring 2009, page 38 )

The first Bible that I started to read was a Gideon Bible on the night of my eldest sister's wedding in Reno, Nevada. It was in a nightstand of a motel we stayed at. I shared the room with my brother and my brother-in-law's older brother. When my sister entered the room, she saw me in bed on my stomach reading. She said, "Butch ( my nickname ) is reading the Bible." Since this was on the first week of the first month of the year, I made it my resolution to read the Bible through.

When we got back to Oakland, California, I wasted no time in going to the local drugstore to buy a copy of a fancy-looking "red letter edition" King James Version with a white hardcover. I read it through once in the span of a year. Then, I bought a New International Version and read it through in a few months. Now, I read passages from the Bible for research purposes.

When I studied Anthropology, I learned that Religion is behind all the wars in recorded history. And of all the religions in the world, the Christian religion is by far and away the most blood-stained. The last century is the bloodiest so far. It was so bloody that it was named the century of Hemoclysm ( Greek for "Blood Flood" ). Over 150 million people perished last century primarily because of religion. And the communists' prime targets for death were also those who practiced religion. Did you know that Hitler was a Roman Catholic and that Joseph Stalin was a Russian Orthodox? Or that the man responsible for starting World War One, a Bosnian Serb named Gavrilo Princip, was a Muslim? Did you know that President Truman, a Baptist, personally had up to 4 million German prisoners of war starved to death ( according to a newspaper article I read over a year ago )? So, Mao Zedong was evil because he killed millions, and Stalin was evil because he killed millions, and Hitler was evil because he killed millions, and Pol Pot was evil because he killed millions, but Truman was good because he killed millions. Tell me what's wrong with my previous sentence because I would very much like to know!

( Note: When Germany lost in WWII, many German soldiers surrendered to the Americans and the British because they feared, and rightfully so, Soviet reprisal. But the American and British camps were so overwhelmed that, perhaps, they shipped a number of prisoners over to the Russians. This is probably what the newspaper article on Truman alluded to. But the German POWs held here in the US and Canada fared better. Even so, up to 13.7 million Germans were killed by the Allies after WWII, according to a book by James Bacque, Crimes & Mercies. )

Further note: "Some 9 million Germans died as a result of Allied starvation and expulsion policies in the first 5 years after the Second World War. General Eisenhower ( a Jehovah's Witness at the time. Blogger's note ) alone-under the pretense of a food shortage-starved over 1.7 million German POWs to death in prison camps. German civilians were not allowed to take food to German POWs starving to death in American camps. Compassionate GIs, under threat of death penalty, were not even allowed to feed the dying men waste from the kitchen garbage. Eisenhower reclassified German POWs as 'Disarmed Enemy Forces' to circumvent the Geneva Convention accords. When General Patton released his German POWs after the war Eisenhower was infuriated and demanded that the POWs be transferred to him. Patton, however, ignored Eisenhower's request ( ' must be why the outspoken Patton died in December of 1945. Blogger's note ). 'Ike' was a war criminal of epic proportions who was never brought to justice. For more information do a web search for 'Eisenhower starving German POWs.'" Scoopified, Autumn 2008, "News You May Have Missed" section, page 3, paragraph 6

( Understand that Eisenhower was just following an order, an Executive Order, that is. )

If the last century was the "Hemoclysm Century", and history repeats itself, what does this new century have in store for Mankind?

"Christians" are in grave error when they think of Christianity as a religion. It is not a religion! True Christianity is a spiritual way of life. Study the teachings of Jesus Christ if you don't believe me.

In the Old Testament, the prophet Jeremiah said in chapter 28, verse 9, that if someone's prophecy comes true then that man is a Prophet of God. People, keep this in mind when someone comes to you preaching about the Bible and claiming to be in-dwelt by the Spirit of God. Put that person to the test. Ask that person for the winning lottery numbers if it's true that he can see the future because of his "divinely ordained" power to do so since the Holy Spirit is God and God is Omniscient. In Old Testament times, a prophet who was not 100% precise in his prophecies was dragged outside of town and stoned to death! Remember, one of the Ten Commandments says: "Thou shalt not take the name of God in vain." By simple logical extension, someone who claims to be in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit of God can perform miracles like restoring the limbs of amputees and raising back to life stinking corpses, and is conversant in any and every language and dialect known to man. Do you personally know anyone today who can do all of that? I didn't think so. If someone tries to proselytize you, you can be sure that that someone is not confident in his/her faith in God; otherwise, he/she will not go around looking for security in numbers! Yep, Religion is one big "numbers" game. Don't play it.

word of advice: Don't just read the Bible, research it!

Question authority.

Think for yourself. Don't follow a "herd mentality".

tidbits: Before the movie, I saw a white-haired old white man in the video game room "trying" his "skill" on the Dance, Dance Revolution Supernova while facing away from the screen and holding on to the hand rail. It sure was a funny sight to behold! I should at least have given him credit for trying.

This movie gives a literal meaning to "Eating pussy."

It has been 27 long years since the movie, FLASHDANCE, came out. And Jennifer Beals is still looking HOT!!!

Seated to the right of me were a couple of older black ladies who really enjoyed the movie ( Denzel Washington fans, perhaps ) and were very polite and courteous. I need more movie-goers like them watching a movie with me! It's nice to know that there are still people out there who know how to behave properly around others--and in Vallejo, of all places!

After the movie, I went to 99 Cent Only Store on Springs Road to buy a cheap umbrella, some rice and three cans of chili beans.

And, since I still had plenty of time before the 4:05 p.m. showing of LOVELY BONES, I decided to have lunch at Selecta Filipino Buffet next door. There, I met an old lady who also came from Cotabato, Mindanao, Philippines. And she lived in the town next to Pikit and probably had met with my relatives there. It's a small world, after all!

I also bought some lottery tickets while at the buffet. Where was a Man of God when I needed one?

THE SPY NEXT DOOR, PG ( 1 hr & 32 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Friday, January 15th, 2009
show: 4:25 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $4.75 Kid's Snack Pack + $7.13 large MacDonald's Black Angus Bacon Cheeseburger Value Meal ( # 13 ) before the movie = $19.13
auditorium: 2
seat: 4th row, 5th column

synopsis: A Chinese secret agent, Bob Ho ( Jackie Chan ), on-loan to the CIA, finishes-up what he thinks is his last mission. But, as he contemplates marriage, one of his girlfriend Gillian's ( Amber Valletta ) kids, Ian ( Will Shadley ) unsuspectingly downloads a secret file which makes a Russian mob hunt them down, exposing Bob's secret identity and putting innocent lives at stake.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Skirt; 2.) Far East Pen Industries; 3.) Manhole grate; 4.) Kids' opposition; 5.) News report; 6.) Farren's outburst; 7.) Pig & bacon; 8.) Volunteer baby-sitter; 9.) Stockholm, GBH; 10.) Fresh Prince of Belarus; 11.) Stink bomb; 12.) Bed-time; 13.) Breakfast; 14.) Wedgie; 15.) Princess Nora ( Alina Foley ); 16.) Principal's office; 17.) Mission accomplished; 18.) Tuxedo; 19.) Test; 20.) Smart; 21.) Sugar rush; 22.) Singing Nora to sleep; 23.) Spy gadgets; 24.) New and improved breakfast; 25.) Rooftop; 26.) Cowboy; 27.) Iggy Pop and David Bowie Concert in China CD; 28.) Break-in; 29.) Bad guys; 30.) Restaurant; 31.) The turtle; 32.) The watch; 33.) Hotel; 34.) 'Phone call; 35.) Ring and belt; 36.) Orphan; 37.) Break-up; 38.) Runaway; 39.) Download; 40.) Bike; 41.) It's Halloween; 42.) Taking candy from baby; 43.) The Russians are coming; 44.) Future cyborg; 45.) Good guys; 46.) "Mom"; 47.) "Bob"; and 48.) Out-takes.

audience reaction: The audience, especially the kids, enjoyed it.

recommendation: I liked it. It's good entertainment for a young family.

spoiler alert! Gillian didn't want her stepdaughter, Farren ( Madeline Carroll ), to wear short skirts but she did anyway without objection. When the manhole grate was cut-through, the bars didn't make a loud clanging sound when they hit the sewer floor. Nora was obviously wired to an harness in her stunt scenes, for insurance purposes. What happened to the cat and pig? Speaking of insurance, Jackie Chan said in an interview that he doesn't like doing action films in the US because of our prohibitive insurance policies. If you think that his stunt work ( with and without a body double ) in this movie are rather tame, it's only because Jackie Chan has insurance agents looking over his shoulder! Cut the guy some slack! Let's see how you do when you get to be his AARP card-carrying age--he'll be 56-years old this April 7th.

fyi: If you noticed in Jackie Chan's earlier movies, he almost always used Mitsubishi vehicles. But he uses an Hyundai Elantra in this one. One would think that this is quite a radical departure from the norm for Jackie Chan, until one realizes that the first Hyundais sold in this country, the Excel, was nothing more than a re-badged entry-level Mitsubishi--and I still see some of them driven around in the streets.

I love watching Jackie Chan movies because he doesn't rely much on wire-work and because he always makes use of ordinary objects as improvised weapons in his films. And, besides, he is an overall good guy.

word of advice: Emulate Jackie Chan and keep fit.

"What you call boring, I call dependable." Gillian

To an orphan, "Family is who you love and who loves you." Bob Ho

tidbits: When one of the on-screen characters made a reference to peeing in a bottle, a little girl behind me said, "Eeyew ...."

After the movie, I went to the CVS Drugstore on Sonoma Boulevard to see if they sell rice cookers. But they don't. They used to back when it was Longs Drugstore. I noticed that CVS has fewer selections than Longs had. If variety is the spice of ( retail ) life, then CVS's flavor leans towards the bland side.

Next, I went to the 99 Cent Only Store on Springs Road to buy a pair of work socks. And I found more health bars to buy! I also bought sliced mango in a can. Plus, I found two last pairs of boxer shorts in my exact size. What a deal!

Lastly, I went a few doors down to Island Pacific Grocery Store to look for a Philippine-made food flavoring mix, Maggi's Magic Sarap. But they don't sell it here--that's three Pilipino stores I'd been to that don't carry this mix anymore. I'll have to go to the Sea Food City Grocery Store in Concord, CA on Sunday after work to see if they have it. I ended-up just buying two cans of Spanish-style sardines ( oil & tomato sauce-packed ), Taho drink, and a Bibingka cake.

The Bibingka cake was a disappointment when I finally tasted it as soon as I got it home. It doesn't have that authentic taste of the original Philippine version.

Speaking of Bibingka, in Rob Schneider's DEUCE BIGALOW: MALE GIGOLO ( 1999 ), his father shows him a "Bibingka" in one particular scene--only thing was, it was a CUPCAKE! I, and all the other Pilipino-Americans in the audience, had a good laugh at that one! How could that Pinoy half-breed goof that one up? I hope his Pinay mother spanked him after the premiere of that movie!

THE LOVELY BONES, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 15 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Monday, January 18th, 2010
show: 4:05 p.m.
costs: $0.00 Ticket ( Free Movie Pass ) + $3.75 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $3.75
auditorium: 13
seat: 4th row, 6th column

synopsis: Every parent's worst nightmare!

On December 6th of 1973, a 14-year old girl, Susie Salmon ( Saoirse Ronan ), is raped and killed by a serial child molester/killer, George Harvey ( Stanley Tucci ). Her soul then restlessly wanders around in the "in-between" world as she tries to communicate with her family to avenge her death as they suffer through their grave loss and seek for some kind of closure.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Snow globe; 2.) Wildlife photographer; 3.) Hole in the ground; 4.) Emergency; 5.) School crush; 6.) Dollhouses and ships in bottles; 7.) Cornfield; 8.) 24 110-film cartridges; 9.) Suzie and Ray ( Reece Ritchie ); 10.) Artwork; 11.) Mr. Harvey; 12.) Missing; 13.) Bath tub; 14.) Search; 15.) Destroying evidence; 16.) Interview; 17.) Reality; 18.) Amber wave of grain; 19.) An hour of love; 20.) The note; 21.) Holly ( Nikki Soohoo ); 22.) Candle light; 23.) Perfect world; 24.) 24-month deal; 25.) Desperately-obsessed father ( Mark Wahlberg ); 26.) Grandma Lynn ( Susan Sarandon ) in charge; 27.) Dog; 28.) In-Between; 29.) Corn stalker; 30.) Run-away mom ( Rachel Weisz ); 31.) Lindsay ( Rose McIver ) in love; 32.) Ray and Ruth Conners ( Carolyn Dando ); 33.) Scrapbook; 34.) Last photo; 35.) The blind; 36.) The rose; 37.) Need evidence; 38.) Assault and battery; 39.) Victims; 40.) Break-in; 41.) Chase; 42.) Mom returns; 43.) The get-away; 44.) Flor Hernandez ( ? ); 45.) Safe dumping; 46.) "Lovely bones"; and 47.) The icicle.

audience reaction: The teenage girls ( seated behind me, to my right and in front of me ) gave the most reaction to the movie, so much so that one of them in the row behind mine started to give it a suppressed "Hands Clapper" ending. But, when she sensed that she was the only one doing so, she stopped.

recommendation: I was very disturbed by the subject matter of this movie! Don't see this movie if it will affect you in a personal way. Read my synopsis first then decide whether you want to see this movie or not.

spoiler alert! It should have taken Mr. Harvey quite some time to dig that big hole in someone else's cornfield. Where was the cornfield owner all that time? How did he dispose of all that dug-up dirt? The movie has no explanation for the absence of Mrs. Harvey. How come there is no bed in the In-Between world? If she knew all along that the In-Between world is not real and it's best to just move on, how come Holly was hanging around in that world all that time? How come the chain-smoking alcoholic Grandma Lynn doesn't know how to cook? How did she feed her own kids? When Lindsay ran back home with evidence in her hand, she sure wasn't all excited about it--to the point of not even telling her own parents who were standing right in front of her--boy! talk about bad acting. How did Mr. Harvey get the safe quickly loaded in the back of his SUV all by himself? How come he parked too far away from the dumping hole? This led me to believe that he would be caught red-handed! This movie ended with no closure at all because the body was never found. There was justice at the end but closure, no.

fyi: When I was a Grade 3 or Grade 4 pupil at Philippine Women's College, Elementary School Department, Matina, Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, one of my classmates told me that he ( there were a handful of us boys enrolled in the elementary dept. ) saw a girl schoolmate running down the corridor to the principal's office, crying and wearing nothing but her panties. The girl was playing on the campus lawn at lunch break when one of the groundskeepers grabbed her and took her into the bushes then proceeded to rape her. Our word for rapist is, Manyak ( i.e. Sex Maniac ). But, to us kids, a manyak ( maniac ) was a predatory monster of the type that lurked in the dark and in the shadows and one to be feared as though he was a ( daytime ) vampire, himself! Panic gripped the campus and I was scared to venture far from the safety of a crowd.

word of advice: Ask the local authorities to educate you and your child about child safety.

tidbits: I watched this movie first on Thursday, January 14th, on the Internet at MoviesPlanet.com, at approximately 1:30 a.m. I shall fill-in the Theatre and Audience Reaction sections in a few days after I will have seen this movie on the Big Screen because my movie reviews are dependent on audience reaction.

As much as I didn't want to see this movie again, I had to because it was the only way that I could fill-in the Theatre and Audience Reaction sections for this blog. And since today, Jan. 18th, is a holiday, there was a big turn-out at the theatre which gave me a better cross-section of movie-goers to observe.

When the girl in the snow-covered parking lot turned to face Mr. Harvey, some girls in the audience said, "Eeyew!" followed by laughter from some other people there with us for this show. ( Yep, girls can be cruel to each other in the "Looks" department. )

LEAP YEAR, PG ( 1 hr & 37 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Monday, January 11th, 2010
show: 4:35 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $3.75 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $11.00
auditorium: 1
seat: 4th row, 8ht column

synopsis: A young woman, Anna ( Amy Adams ), tired of waiting to be proposed to, goes to Dublin, Ireland, to propose to her boyfriend, Jeremy ( Adam Scott ), on February 29th when, according to local tradition, a woman can propose to a man. But fate has other plans.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Surprise eyes; 2.) Leap Year proposal; 3.) Diverted flight; 4.) Sarcastic Gaelic Air representatives; 5.) Boat; 6.) Garagh's Bar; 7.) The overnight room; 8.) Superstitious folks; 9.) Tradition; 10.) The van; 11.) Bar brawl; 12.) Bar brawl; 13.) The castle; 14.) Bed and Breakfast; 15.) The kiss; 16.) Sunday; 17.) Wedding dance; 18.) Park bench; 19.) The proposal; 20.) The reunion; 21.) The house warming party; 22.) The 60-second test; 23.) The chicken's dry; 24.) The plan to unplan; 25.) The ring; and 26.) The trip.

audience reaction: The audience ( i.e. the women ) liked this movie and gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation: This is a light Rom-Com that couples might enjoy seeing.

spoiler alert! Who's the Hollywood Idiot who scheduled this movie's release for this year, which is NOT A LEAP YEAR? The last Leap Year was 2008 and the next one is 2012! And 2016 is when February 29th falls closest to a Sunday since it will be on the following day, Monday. That old car sure runs whisper-quiet, and with no road noise and no wind noise on top of that! ( 'Must be a Lexus. Ha, ha, ha. ) Why did Declan ( Matthew Goode ) sleep in the shower when there was plenty of room on the bedroom floor?

fyi: An hour before the movie, as I sat and ate at Selecta Filipino Buffet here on Springs Road and watched the Philippine news on TV, I found out that in the Philippines, where there is no divorce but where annulment of marriage ( same difference, if you ask me ) is allowed, some activists are trying to pass a law in which an expiration date of 10 years will be affixed to a marriage contract. Are they saying that I can have a new hot and sexy wife every 10 years? Wow! talk about "New Lease on Life"--married life, that is. If and when this law passes, I'll pack my bags and go prospecting for a 10-year marriage ( I'd better stock-up on Viagra now ).

When an Irish greets you with, "Top of the morning to you," the proper response is, "And the rest of the day to you, too."

Oh, how I envy those who were born on the 29th of February since I'm not the type to celebrate anniversaries and holidays.

word of advice: A regular customer of mine, Mr. Babcock, said, "If you marry a woman, marry her because you love her."

tidbits: At around 12:30 p.m. today, just when I had a lot of customers in line, I had a bad nosebleed! I had to get out of my checkstand right-quick to go head straight for the men's room to stop the bleeding. They had to get somebody else to step-in for me and take care of all those customers. Luckily, I was able to stop it in under five minutes and was able to return to my checkstand fresh and blood-free. I never had it this bad at work before. And to think I swabbed my nostrils with petroleum jelly before I left for work today to keep them from going dry. I must have missed a spot in my left nostril!

After the movie, I decided to go to the nearby CVS Drugstore to buy Cold Relief caplets and Nighttime Cold & Flu Relief liquid. On my way, I drove by the Goodwill Thrift Store which just opened in the shopping center. You know the economy is bad when you see a thrift store relocated to an upscale part of town!

On another note, the heel pain in my left foot is somewhat subsiding now.

YOUTH IN REVOLT, R ( 1 hr & 30 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Friday, January 8ht, 2010
show: 7:25 p.m.
costs: $10.00 Ticket + $4.50 Fuze Peach/Mango = $14.50
auditorium: 13
seat: 5th row, 8ht column

synopsis: A sexually-frustrated teen, Nick Twisp ( Michael Cera ), meets the girl of his dreams when his mom, Estelle ( Jean Smart ), and her boyfriend, Jerry ( Zach Galifianakis ), take him to a trailer park in Clearlake, Ukiah. But Sheeni Saunders ( Portia Doubleday ) is already seeing someone. In order to win her over, Nick creates an alter ego, Francois Dillinger, throwing caution to the wind. As a result, a comedic coming-of-age ensues.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Nick's bedroom; 2.) Nick's mom; 3.) Nick's neighbor, Mr. Ferguson ( Fred Willard ); 4.) Nick's dad, George ( Steve Buscemi ); 5.) My Green Haven, the "cabin"; 6.) The girl next door; 7.) The beach; 8.) The hike; 9.) Mrs. Saunders ( Mary Kay Place ); 10.) Albert, the dog; 11.) Making out; 12.) Just a summer fling; 13.) Nova; 14.) Lefty's ( Erik Knudsen ) book; 15.) Alter ego; 16.) Mom's cop boyfriend. Lance ( Ray Liotta ); 17.) Hot shower; 18.) Berkeley "arsonist"; 19.) Whipped; 20.) Back to Ukiah; 21.) Bad influences; 22.) French prep school; 23.) Vijay ( Adhir Kalyan ); 24.) French letter; 25.) Campus; 26.) Girls' dorm; 27.) Solidarity; 28.) Paul Saunders ( Justin Long ); 29.) Letter to Bernice ( Jade Fusco ); 30.) Magic mushroom trip; 31.) Thanksgiving dinner; 32.) Trent ( Jonathan Bradford Wright ); 33.) The getaway; 34.) Hazel Park High School; 35. ) Carlota; 36.) The arrest; and 37.) Cartoon scenes during the ending credits.

audience reaction: The audience liked this Rom-Com.

recommendation: I liked this movie, too. Go see it.

spoiler alert! There's a reason why this Teen Movie is rated R: Too much drugs! The whole movie was filmed in Michigan. The multi-cultural flavor of Oakland, CA is conspicuously missing in the video store scene. Predominantly speaking, Downtown Oakland and North Oakland have whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians; West Oakland has blacks and whites; and East Oakland has blacks, Hispanics and Asians. Jerry shouldn't have been allowed to drive if he threw his back out! You can't park a car at the curb on campus and leave it unattended overnight. I haven't seen any enclosed phone booths in over twenty years here in California. Why would Francois/Nick need money to call the cops on a payphone? All he had to do was dial 9-1-1. Why would Nick take off his clothes to fake his own death? Doesn't he watch CSI? The Ukiah doughnut-dunkin' cops waited for Nick to show up at Hazel Park High School, only problem is that this school is not in Ukiah but in Hazel Park, Michigan ( about 20 miles north of Detroit )! Why didn't anybody notice Nick conspicuously walking around town wearing nothing but his boxer shorts?

fyi: Michael Cera seems comfortable typecasting himself as a good geeky boy who gets the girl.

I used to write poetry years ago but a friend of mine told me that girls don't like nice, sensitive guys. Oh, well, it was just a creative phase anyway. Now, I don't even care what girls think of me. I am too engrossed in my meditation and spiritual cultivation to allow anyone "special" to just casually enter into my insular world to upend it.

word of advice: Maintain a modicum of self-dignity when courting a girl, i.e. don't make a fool of yourself.

tidbits: I wanted to see LEAP YEAR, too, after watching DAYBREAKERS and YOUTH IN REVOLT. But, then, I remembered that this is a "Chick Flick." And I usually hold-off on watching a "Chick Flick" 'til later on in the week. So, I just went home. Besides, I needed to go on the Internet to search and download Vera Icona portraits as future reference for a work I have in mind to do later on.

DAYBREAKERS, R ( 1 hr & 38 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Friday, January 8ht, 2010
show: 5:05 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $3.75 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $11.00
auditorium: 14
seat: 4th row, 7th column

synopsis: Capitalism: A Blood Story

Ten years after a global vampire plague turned most of the human population into vampires, a human blood shortage forces enterprising vampires into capturing and "milking" humans in processing facilities while at the same time trying to perfect a synthetic blood substitute as the exploited remnant of the human population fast approaches extinction and as the prospect of turning into powerful, 'though mindless, winged cannibals ( the subsiders ) draws ever nearer.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Bat; 2.) Little girl; 3.) Hobo assault; 4.) Subway; 5.) Charles Bromley ( Sam Neill ) and Edward Dalton ( Ethan Hawke ); 6.) The volunteer; 7.) The accident; 8.) At home; 9.) Subwalk; 10.) I find/you farm; 11.) Subsiders; 12.) Second security alert; 13.) Cater to all markets; 14.) Tree; 15.) Frankie Dalton ( Michael Dorman ); 16.) Accidental discovery; 17.) Have a cup; 18.) Villa; 19.) Coffee riot; 20.) Convoy; 21.) Self-experiment; 22.) Welcome back; 23.) Senator's cabin; 24.) Betrayal; 25.) Elvis Cormac's ( William Dafoe ) garage; 26.) Back to Bromley's building; 27.) Repeat business; 28.) Special delivery; 29.) Surrounded; and 30.) Blood orgy!

audience reaction: Not much positive feedback from the mostly teenage group.

recommendation: Although I liked the concept, the movie was not that entertaining to me. This movie might prove to be a downer for you, as well.

spoiler alert! About the only frightening scene in this movie is the one in which a bat appeared for the first time. If vampires cast no reflection in a mirror, how do the females put on their make-up and how do the males shave their faces? In the first scene with Charles and Edward, Edward's left contact lens is off-centered. Why didn't the chase scene involve a helicopter? How come they don't show the winged vampire cannibals flying around? One would think that they've already cloned human blood by then! When Alison Bromley ( Isabel Lucas ) tried to run away from her father, she got struck in the face by a rifle butt but it left no cut, bruise or swollen spot at all. Alison mutated fast, but Edward Dalton--who abstained from having human blood for many days ( Weeks? Months? Lord knows how long )--didn't mutate. If a vampire doesn't need to breathe and doesn't need to have a heartbeat, then the heart and the lungs would atrophy to the point where, even if the experiment were to work, long-time vampires would not survive the procedure! How did Edward and Audrey Bennett ( Claudia Karvan ) get past the Bromley Building's security staff and the security cameras to have access to the elevator with a bound and gagged Charles to drag along?

fyi: Winged humanoid creatures have been witnessed in parts of Asia like the Philippines and Vietnam. A Vietnamese co-worker of mine told me that coconut trees are a favored predatory perch for such creatures so villagers avoid being near such trees at night.

When I was a nine or ten year old boy in Matina, Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, I saw one such creature in a vacant lot adjacent to our apartment building around 8 o'clock in the evening when I and a couple of my neighborhood friends chased after three huge rats that ran down the dirt road and into the lot. This creature flapped its wings furiously as it was stuck in a branch on top of a mango tree which was next to a coconut tree! I yelled, "Aswang!" ( Filipino word for, Vampire ) as I ran towards our apartment as fast as my fat little legs could run. Boy, talk about close encounter! Needless to say, I've had some nightmares of that creature a number of times.

Speaking of Filipino, if you're ever invited to a Filipino home for lunch or dinner and they serve you a "chocolate" meat dish called Dinuguan, you can be sure that there's no chocolate in it because it is actually Pig's Blood Stew--and they love trying to get unsuspecting Muslims and Jews to have a bite of it! I inform you of this as a friendly warning. Although I love eating this dish, I would never pull this kind of a prank on a Muslim, Jew, or Whatever.

word of advice: This world sucks!

tidbits: Before leaving my place to go see this movie, I had a heavy meal of half a Safeway's 5-Dollar Friday Rotisserie Chicken with half a pot of steamed rice and six big cloves of fresh, raw garlic ( pressed into a small bowl with rice vinegar, ketchup and black pepper ). Uhm, uhm, good and yummy! I'd pity the vampire fool who'd pounce on me 'cause nobody eats raw garlic like I do.

To any of you girls out there considering having me as a potential lover ... Love Me, Love My Garlic Breath! That's all I gotta say. Thank you ....

NINE, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 50 min )

where: CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when: Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
show: 4:10 p.m.
costs: $7.25 Ticket + $3.75 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke + $1.00 dark chocolate Cookie Dough ( bought at Dollar Tree & smuggled-in ) = $12.00
auditorium: 3
seat: 3rd row, 7th column

synopsis: A famous Italian director of movie musicals, Guido Contini ( Daniel Day-Lewis ), in the '60s is staging a big comeback, only to have demands placed upon him by his producer, the press, and the various women in his life. As his adoring public waits with 'bated breath, will his muse consent to inspire him?

noteworthy scenes: 1.) The women of his life; 2.) News conference; 3.) Bellavista Hotel; 4.) Open wide; 5.) Lovers' game; 6.) Production set; 7.) Folle brassiere; 8.) Imagination, God's garden; 9.) Flashback; 10.) Luisa Contini's ( Marion Cotillard ) song; 11.) Absurdity of being you; 12.) Cinema Italiano; 13.) Not bound by morality; 14.) Guido and Carla's husband; 15.) Costume shoot; 16.) The fountain; 17.) Screen test; 18.) Burlesque dance; 19.) No movie; 20.) Walk in the park; 21.) Nine; and 22.) Ending credits.

audience reaction: A couple of girls in the audience ( there were only about a half dozen of us in the auditorium ) laughed at some of the quips.

recommendation: This movie is strictly for those who are into musicals. It's also for those horndogs out there who are into watching scantily-clad beauties dance in a sexually provocative manner.

spoiler alert! This really is not a musical in its strictest sense. It is, rather, a behind-the-scenes look at the making of a musical, i.e. the conflict of interests, the clash of egos, the high expectations, the time constraints, the sundry pressures--and pleasures, etc. The ending was rather vague in the sense that the women returned into his life as if to let the audience know that it will be "the same old story" all over again, that he'll never make a big comeback. Guido didn't go around pinching girls' butts even though Italian men are famous for it!

fyi: I believe that the movie title, NINE, refers to the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the muses named: Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia and Urania.

I cringed at the scenes where Guido was driving around in a convertible which had no head rests and no roll bars because I'm deathly scared of riding in such things.

Carla's ( Penelope Cruz ) solo act is the stand-out best Song and Dance scene in this movie--horndog approved!

I wanted to make this the last movie that I saw in 2009. But I didn't go to the 10:00 p.m. show on December 31st because I was sick with a cold and fever.

word of advice: Don't lie/cheat your way into someone's heart.

Get everything down on paper, first.

tidbits: Before going to see this movie, I went to CSAA to pay on my membership. As I waited in line, a woman came in and stood directly behind another woman that was being served at the counter by the second of two clerks. I was next in line so I waited to see if she would cut in front of me because I was getting ready to rain down curses, swear words, and insults at her should she be foolish enough to think that I would just let her cut in front of me. After all, if they believe in equal rights then they had better put in their equal share of waiting in line. Luckily for her, another clerk--who probably noticed what was happening--took me to her counter. But, all that time that I was being served, I would on occasion cast glares at the woman from clear across the room in a way that you could have cut the air with a ( misogynistic ) knife.

After the movie, I went to 99 Cent Only Store to buy-up all of their stock ( 33 pieces at 3 for 99 cents ) on a health bar by MLO Products: chocolate mint flavored Xtreme Bar. Now I'm set for the next two or three months for my lunch break at work--sweet!

THE YOUNG VICTORIA, PG ( 1 hr & 44 min )

where: CINE ARTS @ PLEASANT HILL in Pleasant Hill, CA
when: Sunday, January 3rd, 2010
show: 4:50 p.m.
costs: $10.00 Ticket + $3.75 small Diet Coke + $13.37 lunch at China Wall Buffet ( + $2.63 Tip ) + $4.00 Bridge Toll = $33.75
auditorium: 5
seat: 5th row, 10th column

synopsis: A love story based on Victoria's ( secret ) diaries.

In the midst of court intrigues and political machinations, an 18-year old Victoria ( Emily Blunt ) ascends to the English throne when King William IV ( Jim Broadbent ) dies in 1837. And her long distance love affair with her first cousin, Prince Albert ( Rupert Friend ) of Belgium, leads to marriage which would witness the rise of the British Empire in an age of industrial revolution and social reforms that would come to be known as the Victorian Age.

noteworthy scenes: 1.) Preparing for courtship; 2.) Chaperoned "chess pieces"; 3.) King William's birthday reception; 4.) Long Live The Queen; 5.) Buckingham's first royal; 6.) Courting; 7.) Played the game and lost; 8.) "You may nots"; 9.) The Waltz; 10.) Uncle Leopold's (Thomas Kretschmann ) ideas; 11.) Lord Melbourne's ( Paul Bettany ) influence; 12.) Demonstration; 13.) Albert's counsel; 14.) Marriage; 15.) "Fine" weather; 16.) "For all three days"; 17.) Re-organization; 18.) General account of finances; 19.) Prince Albert and Lord Melbourne; 20.) Sir Robert Peel's ( Michael Maloney ) new government; 21.) Lovers' quarrel; 22.) First assassination attempt; and 23.) Melbourne's good advice.

audience reaction: Although quite a number of patrons turned up for this particular show, I didn't hear any positive feedback after the movie ended. But they did laugh at some of the scenes--the funny ones, that is.

recommendation: I like this movie. It's a good love story. This is definitely a couple's flick.

spoiler alert! Queen Victoria gained the title of "Queen Dowager" after the love of her life, Prince Albert, died of typhoid at the age of 42. From which point on, the "Widow of Windsor" took to wearing only black clothing to symbolize her loss as she spent the next nineteen years of her reign in almost total seclusion. But since she was the reigning sovereign monarch and Prince Albert never became king, then the proper title for her should have been, "Queen Regnant."

It's true that the setting for this movie was well before the electric light bulb was invented, but did they have to make a lot of the scenes look so dim and out of focus?

I was disappointed in the King's banquet scene because I was denied even a fleeting glimpse of a British "Spotted Dick"--why? was it too small ...? I don't think I'd want to swallow whole something with spots all over it in the first place so I guess that I'll just pass on this one.

fyi: Prime Minister Lord Melbourne, a widower who also had lost his only child, became an overly-protective surrogate father to the young and naive Queen Victoria, almost to the detriment of her early rule.

Queen Victoria was buried beside her beloved Prince Albert in the Frogmore Royal Mausoleum at Windsor ( built to her specifications--a British Taj Mahal, if I may be so bold as to draw upon the similarity in concept ). The inscription above the door are the words of Queen Victoria herself: "farewell best beloved, here at last I shall rest with thee, with thee in Christ I shall rise again." But ... ( here's the big BUT ) ... in her coffin were placed a lock of hair of, a picture of, and a wedding ring of John Brown, the queen's manservant at Balmoral---shouldn't this be Bad Moral---Castle in Scotland. At the Resurrection, I, Cine-Man, want to have a front-row seat when Queen Victoria and John Brown rise up and The Lord Christ lets Prince Albert out of the can! Ha, ha, ha. Popcorn, anyone ...?

word of advice: Judge for yourself.

Beware of Cine-man for he drives around with a pen and paper handy all the time!

tidbits: I think that there is a gastronomic conspiracy afoot that's preventing me from having an Indian Buffet meal! For the third time in a row, I was denied such a pleasure because the Indian buffet restaurant, Namaste, was closed until 5:00 p.m. for that's when their weekend dinner buffet starts. And to think, I wanted to have an Indian buffet meal in honor of Queen Victoria, Empress of India and Lordess of Bombay Sapphire Gin! Oh, well .... Next time, maybe.

Hungry, I just went into the China Wall Buffet next door. As I was loading-up my plate with dessert, an Hispanic little brat was repeatedly sticking his right index finger into the frozen yogurt spout and licking it. I could see the sushi chef, holding his ginzu knife, staring at the brat and probably wishing to sushi-fy him right there and then! Where are the f--king parents? If not for the comic possibilities, I would never set foot at this place ever again!

I missed the first few minutes of the movie because I had to perform my usual before-seeing-a-movie ritual: empty my bladder first so that I don't go on a trip in the middle of the movie and miss an important scene--I already miss some good scenes each and every time because of my note-taking in the dark, as it is!

I wanted, at first, to sit in the sixth row but a lady in the seventh row had her feet up on the back of a seat and I didn't want to sit in such proximity to where scrutinizing eyes may cast a disapproving glance at my ungrateful and ungracious repugnance at the lady's seemingly permeative malodorous bipedal display! My courteousness has its sensory limits after all. ( Did I just channel British English? Well, I'll be darned! )

After the movie, I went to the Dollar Tree Store adjacent to the cinema. I purchased six glass tankards, as a gift ( Yup, I'm Mr. Cheapskate ) for my friend, Hector , and two bags of two-pound long grain rice.

On my way out of the shopping center at 7:25 p.m., I stopped at a stop sign in front of Kohl's and motioned for a young lady to cross. That bitch didn't even acknowledge my courtesy with a simple "thank you" gesture. I wasn't even checking her out! That plain-looking, pock-marked face bitch who's only beautiful in her own delusional imagination! Sheesh, wake up and give me a break!

And when I got to the corner of Monument Boulevard, this white Ford ( I think ) pick-up truck, with Texas license: AB8 6638, which I followed from the shopping center, motioned to make a right turn but occupied both the right lane AND my lane, too! What's with rednecks who drive big pick-up trucks and can't park right and can't drive within a lane? Are they overcompensating for a deficiency in their manhood or what ...?