WRATH OF THE TITANS in 3-D, R ( 1 hr & 39 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Friday, March 30th, 2012
show:  12:01 a.m.
costs:  $14.00 Ticket + $1.00 3.1 oz Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites ( bought at the 99 Cent Only Store earlier in the evening and smuggled-in ) + $4.00 20 oz Orange Fanta Soda = $19.00
auditorium:  14
seat:  5th row, 5th column


synopsis/overview:  When Humanity loses its faith in, and devotion to, the Gods, the Gods weaken and gradually lose their ability to keep everything in order. This allows the imprisoned immortals, the Titans, to gain strength and to break free of their captivity; and they waste no time in dealing death and in wreaking havoc and chaos everywhere they go. It is up to Zeus's ( Liam Neeson ) half-human son, Perseus ( Sam Worthington ), to save the day.


noteworthy scenes: 1.) Strong-willed; 2.) "There is a calamity coming"; 3.) Nightmare; 4.) Tartarus; 5.) Betrayal; 6.) Village attack; 7.) "If you have power, you also have duty"; 8.) Temple; 9.) "You used to be better at this"; 10.) The liar and thief; 11.) Trap; 12.) Cyclops; 13.) "Kronos is draining Zeus's power"; 14.)  "There are many useless demi-gods"; 15.) Shortcut; 16.) "It's oblivion"; 17.) "We are brothers but are not equals"; 18.) "That way ... or this way"; 19.) "Use the power inside you"; 20.) "Fight for your son";" 21.) Challenge; 22.) Brother against brother; 23.) "You look 10,000 years younger"; 24.) The spear; 25.) "Your boy gave you strength, as did mine"; 26.) "All my powers are spent. Who knows, I might be better without it"; and 27.) "I've read that you're a great disappointment."


audience reaction:  The audience liked it. Some women clapped their hands when the two gods joined forces to fight a common enemy. And the audience--probably just the same women--gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  It's a good enough Action Movie. Of course, that is not the main reason why I went to see this movie: I just wanted to ogle at Andromeda ( Rosamund Pike )! I think that the first one is a better movie than this, though. See it anyway, if you liked the first one.


spoiler alert!  Why didn't Perseus just tell all the soldiers to recite a devotional prayer and/or sing a devotional hymn to the Gods to strengthen them? Okay, if Faith and Devotion make the Gods strong, then the Titans--relegated to obscurity--would just weaken away since only a few devotees ( if at all ) would be putting their faith in the lesser known/less popular Titans. That's usually how the Rule of Majority works! Here's yet another movie wherein the Bow and Arrow was not put into good use! I mean, what happened to all of those archers when their battlefield defenses were overrun by the "Siamese swordsmen"? That Kronos god sure was retarded-looking and acted like so!

fyi:  Many ancient civilizations believed that the Gods had sex with humans and had children with them, it's even mentioned in The Old Testament's Book of Genesis in The Bible. It makes one wonder why such a "common thread" was interwoven into the fabric of ancient myths which were all separated by time and space. Hmm ....

Another ancient belief is that God's Attributes are each 10-to-the-power-of-X beyond human comprehension.  For example, King Solomon was the wisest man in the whole world but God would be 10X or 100X or 1,000X or 10,000X or more wiser than him, in comparison.

word of advice:  "You are gods; you are all children of the Most High." Old Testament of The Bible's Psalm 82:6

Old Gods never die, they just fade away. ( To paraphrase a quote made famous by General Douglas MacArthur )

tidbits: I have a co-worker who also likes to go to the movies, especially midnight shows. I decided to go see this movie with him, even though I have to be at work about nine hours after the show's end. It was a bad idea: He liked to text while watching the movie!!! 'Too distracting for me; I'll go by myself next time!

*

JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME, R ( 1 hr & 23 min )

The time stamped is wrong. I forgot to set it one hour ahead to account for Daylight Savings Time.

where:  UA EMERY  BAY STADIUM 10 in Emeryville, CA
when:  Tuesday, March 27th, 2012
show:  9:40 p.m. ( $5.00 All Day Tuesday and $2.00 small Popcorn with a Regal Movie Watcher Rewards Card Tuesday )
costs:  $5.00 Ticket + $2.00 small Popcorn w/ Butter + $4.75 small 30 oz Zero Sprite + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll = $16.75
auditorium:  6
seat:  6th row, 9th seat


synopsis/overview:  The Glue That Binds

Jeff ( Jason Segel ) gets a call from his mom to go to the store to buy some wood glue and fix a louvered door. Obsessing over the name of Kevin and searching for a meaning to anything and everything, he experiences some unexpected turns of events along the way which culminate in his meeting-up with his family on a bridge where they all--in a day's work--figuratively "bridge the gap."


noteworthy scenes:  1.) 'Phone call; 2.) Surprise; 3.) Basketball; 4.) "I like weed"; 5.) Mugged; 6.) "Fake it for a little bit"; 7.) Porsche; 8.) "You remind me of my grandson"; 9.) Spying on his wife; 10.) "Wait for a sign"; 11.) Dumpster bin; 12.) Breakroom; 13.) The Dream; 14.) Delivery truck; 15.) Hampton Inn and Suites;16.) "Thank you so much"; 17.) Handjob; 18.) "It's just semantic bullsh-t"; 19.) Water cooler; 20.) Bathtub; 21.) Tattoo; 22.) "At this point in my life, it doesn't matter"; 23.) Fire sprinklers; 24.) Bridge; 25.) River; 26.) "I'm hungry"; and 27.) TV news.

audience reaction:  There were about a dozen or so people in the audience with me. And they seemed to enjoy this mild Comedy Movie.

recommendation:  This is a weird movie that will appeal to those of you out there with a preference for Indie/Art-House Comedy movies. I liked it, even though it was kinda weird.

spoiler alert! Nobody that I know of these days throws credit card information in the trash without shredding it first. You can't hitch a ride for long in the back of a truck driving on city streets in broad daylight without drawing someone's attention and having a cop cite you for reckless behavior.

fyi:  I had a weird dream this morning in which my brother, my two sisters and I were all living in our late mom's house here in Vallejo's New Glen Cove community.

In the dream, I heard a crowd's noise coming from the garage one morning.  I opened-up the garage door only to find out that a bevy of beautiful, hot and sexy Playboy Playmates dressed in skimpy cheerleader outfits were standing in the driveway, to either side, impatiently waiting for me to go with them to Mexico in the Playboy tour bus parked nearby. Why Mexico, I don't know ....

My brother eagerly got in his black Nissan Pathfinder pick-up truck parked in the garage and told me that we should both go with the Playmates. ( Note: My brother is on his second marriage even as I write this. Therefore, I don't know what the symbolism is in his involvement in my dream. And I won't go so far as to venture a guess or offer up some wild speculation. It's just a weird dream, after all. )

Now, back to the story ....

I told my brother that I wasn't gonna go along looking like the way I did. I had just gotten out of bed and I simply looked very disheveled and I sported a "5-o'clock shadow", to boot. I told my brother that I'd go shave and shower first.

On my way to the upstairs bathroom, I passed by the kitchen and realized that it wasn't my late mom's house's kitchen but my condo's kitchen, looking sparkly-clean and very tidy.

When I got to the upstairs bathroom, I noticed that it, too, looked strangely different--like it was somebody else's.  And my eldest sister's white towel and white bathrobe were both shoved down the toilet!  Weird ....

I pulled the items out of the white porcelain toilet bowl and told my sister about it, who was with my other sister in one of the four bedrooms.

Then I noticed that my bedroom door was ajar. ( I had, in real life, installed a locking doorknob on my bedroom door to keep my mom's Maltese dog from entering my bedroom and "marking" my personal items. ) I stepped into my bedroom only to discover that it was now an expansive room with a kitchen, bathroom, living room, dining room, family room and bedroom all rolled into one with no partitioning walls to demarcate each area. And there were miniature figurines and knick-knacks crowded everywhere on the counter tops and curio tables.

It was as if my late mom's house got a complete, major architectural make-over!

Then, my sisters and I walked the perimeter of the beige-colored house which now resembled a huge city block building. And it was already dark out--and my brother was probably well on his way to Mexico with the Playboy Playmates by then! As we walked down the cement pathway on the left side of the house/building, toward the front, we took notice of the assorted plants, with flowers in full bloom, planted alongside the house/building. And in between the flowering plants, a Gnome would emerge halfway out of the ground and serenade us with a lovely song as we walked by. Delightfully, I greeted and thanked each one of them in turn for their melodious hospitality. And one Gnome confided in me that they liked me more than they liked my sisters because I had the ability to communicate with them.

That's pretty much the extent of my dream. If anyone of you out there is very gifted in Dream Interpretation, please post your comment above in the Reader Comment Section. Thank you.

word of advice:  Things happen for a reason.

tidbits:  I went to the post office first thing in the morning today to pick-up a package. Then, I went to Postal Annex to see if the item which I ordered on-line had already arrived. It wasn't there yet.

After doing a little bit of grocery shopping, I went to Oakland, CA, to visit Hector and his family. I brought the seven XL t-shirts ( mostly blue ones ) with me. They were a perfect fit for Hector, his wife, and one of his sons. The shirts were too small, though, for the "Baby Huey" one.

'Notice the too small and too tight blue shirt that Baby Huey is wearing?

Bad News: Hector's cat, Tiger, has been missing for about three weeks now. We fear the worst for him, especially after Hector's wife told me that she recently saw a family of foxes by the creek behind their back fence. That worried me because foxes will eat cats, given the opportunity. But I'm hoping that I'm wrong and that some kindhearted eccentric took him in and gave him a better home.

For dinner, I baked a loaf of bread with the mix that I bought at the 99 Cent Only Store on Springs Road in Vallejo, CA, earlier in the day. The bread mix is Larry, The Cable Guy's Beer Bread--just add 12 oz of Beer and three Tablespoons of Butter, as the package says. And I cooked some Macaroni and White Cheddar Cheese with chopped Vienna Sausages. The bread and the mac and cheese w/ vienna sausages both tasted good, in a junk-food sort of way.

After dinner, we watched a TV show, Chef Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.

This particular episode is about the Chiarella's Ristorante in Philadelphia, PA. It was fascinating for us to catch a glimpse of the tension, drama and denial that went on behind the kitchen door. In the end, it was a "Feel Good" show. I wish Chiarella's the best of luck!

Then, it was time for me to leave. I headed straight for my former place of employment to say, Hi! to everyone I know. David, my Chinese friend, wasn't there, though. I'll just e-mail him before he leaves for China.


*

THE HUNGER GAMES, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 22 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Friday, March 23rd, 2012
show:  11:40 a.m. ( Extra Dollar Off First Show Matinee )
costs:  $7.50 Ticket + $4.75 Pretzel Bites + $4.00 20 oz Orange Fanta soda = $16.25
auditorium:  2
seat:  3rd row, 1st column


synopsis/overview:  In Panem, a post-Apocalyptic America, the government forces each of the 12 remaining districts to offer-up a boy and girl tribute each year to fight to the death with only one expected to survive and win, as a punishment for an unsuccessful uprising many years before. Everyone between the ages of 12 and 18 is compelled to enter his/her name in the selection process called, The Reaping. When Katniss's ( Jennifer Lawrence ) young sister is selected, she volunteers to take her place. And the boy selected, Peeta ( Josh Hutcherson ), is someone who has a crush on Katniss. As the fight for survival begins, Katniss's sense of Humanity and Peeta's feeling of Love serve as major life-threatening obstacles for them both.


noteworthy scenes:  1.) Forty-two; 2.) Mockingjay pin; 3.) The Reaping; 4.) Mentor; 5.) "That is Mahogany"; 6.) "You have to make people like you"; 7.) Chariot of Fire; 8.) "Arrogance can be a big problem"; 9.) "She wasn't talking about me"; 10.) "Make sure they remember you"; 11.) Roasted pig; 12.) Scores; 13.) Hope; 14.) Separate training; 15.) Show; 16.) "Nice dress"; 17.) "That's bad luck"; 18.) Manners; 19.) "Can't sleep"; 20.) Trackers; 21.) Bloodbath; 22.) "Boom of a cannon"; 23.) Camera; 24.) Campfire; 25.) Alliance; 26.) Fireballs; 27.) Chase; 28.) Ointment; 29.) Tracker Jacker nest; 30.) Leaves; 31.) Two days; 32.) Signal; 33.) Pile of goodies; 34.) "You have to win"; 35.) Riot; 36.) "Give them something to root for"; 37.) Suspension; 38.) Camouflage; 39.) "You call that a kiss"; 40.) "You fed me once"; 41.) Generous hosts; 42.) "Just this time, 12, for Rue ( Amandla Stenberg )"; 43.) "Maybe Cato ( Alexander Ludwig ) likes berries, too"; 44.) Finale; 45.) Genetically-engineered beasts; 46.) Fight; 47.) Revoked; 48.) "Trust me"; 49.) "I'm not happy with you"; 50.) Bowl of berries; 51.) Interview; and 52.) "I don't want to forget."

audience reaction:  The audience liked this.  But it didn't get a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  I found this to be just an "Okay" movie. I fell for the advertising hype, to be sure. It is definitely a Chick Flick Action Movie for those of you who are into such movies.

spoiler alert!  The blood was not drawn in a sterile manner. Whichever cameraman did the "Hand-Held Camera" scenes did a very poor job of it, like he had Parkinson's Disease or something--it took away from the pleasure of watching the scenes unfold! Oh, sure, pit a 12-year old against an 18-year old .... Ah, shouldn't this movie have been rated "R" for bloodbath involving kids? Why form an alliance when you're supposed to kill each other anyway? Why didn't the cameras show scenes of the tributes in their most--Ahem!--"private moments". When a girl and a spear-thrower died, no boom could be heard to announce their demise.

This movie is not really in keeping with the book that it was based on.

fyi:  I really didn't know that this movie was based on a novel until I looked it up on the Internet after watching this movie.  So, I spent over an hour's time reading-up on the movie plot and on its chapter summaries.

The Mockingjays in this movie are supposed to be hybrids resulting from a cross between female Mockingbirds and genetically-engineered male Jabberjays, which were released into the wild by the totalitarian Capitol Government. But, from what I learned in College Biology, birds from different species cannot interbreed even if they are genetically compatible because each species has its own distinctive set of courtship and mating rituals. In other words, they will not be able to understand each other's "language of love". The only way that a Mockingbird and a Jabberjay could ever mate, then, was if they were both hatched and raised in captivity and confined together in close quarters. In other words, forced into Inter-Species Sex! A process of UNnatural Selection. ( Those kinky scientists, I swear .... )

District 12 reminded me of pictures that I saw in my high school American History textbook of the coal-mining towns of the late 1800s . It simply had that Look and Feel to it.

word of advice:  Leave it to Cupid to shoot an arrow into someone's heart.

Don't fall for the hype.

tidbits:  After the movie, I headed straight for the Safeway grocery store on Admiral Callaghan Lane here in Vallejo, CA, to pick-up my prescription. On the corner of Admiral Callaghan Lane and Turner Parkway, there stood a homeless man on the center "island" holding a cardboard sign which read that he was homeless and hungry. I was on the outer left-turn lane; no cars were on the inner left-turn lane, as though everyone just wanted to avoid him. I felt bad for him, and especially more so because I was doing my Zhunti Mantra all the while that I was waiting for the traffic light to turn green. I usually don't give beggars money because they might just use the money they collected to buy alcohol, cigarettes and/or drugs. But how would my Yogi feel if he found out that I was being uncharitable toward a less-fortunate soul while I was reciting an enlightenment mantra, I asked myself. Okay, then, I need to come back here anyway to buy some stuff at the Dollar Tree Store in the Target Shopping Center; I'll  be sure to get something for him to eat and drink, I said to myself.

After I got my prescription, I went to the Dollar Tree Store to buy a 3-litre Orange Soda, a jar of Applesauce and a can of Evaporated Milk. But I couldn't think of anything good to get for the beggar. In resignation, I just decided that I would just give him a dollar bill, instead.

I spent a long time waiting in line for my turn to get rung-up by the cashier because there was only one cashier at that store at that time. When I finally got back to the street corner, the beggar wasn't there anymore. Maybe, next time ....

Watching THE HUNGER GAMES got me hungry.  So, I headed-on to the Selecta Pilipino Buffet on Springs Road. As I ate my lunch, I watched a Pilipino TV soap opera, the show was a continuation from yesterday's. And as with yesterday's episode, there was too much crying going on in today's episode. I told the proprietor, Ray P., about it. He said, "Yes, there is too much crying. It's so depressing to watch. Especially at night before going to bed." Ha, ha, ha.

Next, I went next door to the 99 Cent Only Store to buy a 24 oz bottle of Lemon-Lime soda, a bag of Granny Goose Corn Chips, a bag of Caramel Swirl Marshmallows, 3 bags of Trail Mixes to munch-on at work and 4 blue T-Shirts in XL size: One for me and the rest for Hector and one of his two sons living with him--the other one ( the "Baby Huey" one ) is just too big, an XXXL size is what he'd need which the store didn't have.

I had some of the Granny Goose Corn Chips earlier tonight. But I had to throw most of it away because IT WAS JUST TOO DAMN SALTY FOR ME! I think that I just bought a bad batch.

Newsflash:


Remember in my last blog, six days ago, I mentioned that six cop cars converged in front of a local school, Cooper Elementary School? Well, it turned out that somebody in the neighborhood called 911 about seeing six men wearing masks and carrying guns on school grounds. The men turned-out to be teenagers playing a game of "war" using air-soft rifles with the orange tips removed.

They would have looked like this:

No Orange Tips on these ones, either.

And armed with weapons similar to these:

Orange Tip removed and looking very real!

Anyway, the cops caught some of them who were then given a good "Talking-to" before being released into the custody of their parents. Could you just imagine what would have happened had the cops shot those stupid idiots ...? I guess the teens were just playing THE DUMBER GAMES! LOL

Special Announcement:  I would like to take this time to say, Thank You and Welcome, to my readers in ...


Swaziland


Thank you, once again.  Please keep on reading my weekly updates.  And don't forget to tell all of your friends, and everyone else who you know, about my movie review blogsite.


*

21 JUMP STREET, R ( 1 hr & 50 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Saturday, March 17th, 2012
show:  5:00 p.m.
costs:  $9.75 Ticket + $4.00 20 oz Fanta Strawberry Soda = $13.75
auditorium:  8
seat:  5th row, 7th column


synopsis/overview:  A new drug makes the rounds at a high school.  And it's up to the police department's "You're some Justin Bieber 'n' Miley Cyrus-lookin' Mother-F-ckers!" special crimes unit to put a stop to it.

noteworthy scenes:  1.) "I don't know how to put this nicely"; 2.) F; 3.) Trash can; 4.) "You want to be friends"; 5.) Police Academy graduates; 6.) Frisbee; 7.) Cop bicycles; 8.) First arrest; 9.) Miranda Rights; 10.) "I'd prefer not to"; 11.) Aroma of Christ Church; 12.) Rules; 13.) Korean Jesus;  14.) Baby pictures; 15.) Shaving; 16.) "Three keys to coolness"; 17.) Kick-ass car; 18.) School parking lot; 19.) Drama class; 20.) Chemistry class; 21.) Narcs; 22.) Fingers; 23.) Tripping; 24.) Report; 25.) Chem class study group; 26.) Mom on the party line; 27.) Rumors; 28.) Party preparations; 29.) "Really gross three-way"; 30.) "When did I get stabbed"; 31.) Angry mom; 32.) Shoe store; 33.) "We can hear how the other half lives"; 34.) "Put it there, man"; 35.) Pinata; 36.) Driver's Ed car; 37.) Car chase; 38.) "That one exploded"; 39.) "You're way in too deep"; 40.) Show; 41.) "It rhymes with grape"; 42.) "It's time we get our jobs back"; 43.) Chore time; 44.) Doves; 45.) Senior Prom; 46.) Supplier; 47.) Friendship bracelet; 48.) Stand-off; 49.) Cameo; 50.) "The only approval I ever needed"; 51.) Vomit; 52.) Limousine chase; 53.) "What's this, Tequila" 54.) "You got this"; 55.) "I shot him in the d-ck"; 56.) The appendage; 57.) "I'll come back later"; 58.) The new assignment and 59.) Bonus Scene during the Ending Credits.


favorite scene:  I liked the Detached Appendage scene.


audience reaction:  The audience really liked this Buddy-Cop Action Comedy Movie. But it didn't get a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  I liked this movie, too.  Go see it if you're into Action Comedy Movies.

spoiler alert!  Even a civilian would know that shooting-off a gun like that within city limits is both illegal and dangerous. Why did their boss asked, "Did you say that you have the right to be an attorney?" When, clearly, that was not what Jenko ( Channing Tatum ) said.  Isn't buying drugs and alcohol for minors considered illegal? As in, you could go to jail for it. You'd think the cops would know! You wouldn't be able to move your arm around like that if you suffered from such a stab wound. If I were that lady who got pushed down, you'd hear more than just one word from me! When the DEA agents made themselves known, why didn't the cops use that opportunity to pick-up their guns?

fyi:  The "Korean Jesus" nailed down a point: They make images of Jesus ( and Buddha ) resemble the indigenous worshipers of a particular place to make Him more "approachable" to such people. For centuries, people assumed that Jesus Christ was blond and blue-eyed simply because that was how He was depicted in Europe to make Him more "approachable" to the Europeans.

Truth be known though, the historical Jesus Christ had olive skin, dark hair and dark eyes because He was born into an Asiatic tribe in Asia and preached in Asia about an Asian God.  In other words, He was a ...

Sacred Asian Man

A Holy Man led a life of Danger.

To every one He met, He was a Preacher.

Each Miracle that He'd make, another chance He'd take.

Odds were He wouldn't live to see the morrow.

Sacred Asian Man, Sacred Asian Man.

They'd given Him a "number" and censored-out His name.

Aware that the old Temple which He'd find

was a place wherein gathered evil men ....

"Oh, be careful what You say. Or You'll give Your self away.

Odds are You'll just live a life of sorrow."

Sacred Asian Man, Sacred Asian Man.

They'd given Him a "number" and censored-out His name.

Sacred Asian Man, Sacred Asian Man.

They'd given Him a "number" and censored-out His name.

Preaching to His Apostles Thursday,

and then laying in a tomb Friday to Sunday.

"Judas, you'll let the wrong man die--kissed Him with persuasive lips.

The odds are He won't live to see tomorrow."

Sacred Asian Man, Sacred Asian Man.

They'd given Him a "number" and censored-out His name.

Sacred Asian Man.

( sing the above to, Secret Agent Man )

word of advice:  Don't give-in to peer pressure.

tidbits:  I left my condo at around 9:00 a.m. today to get $10.00 worth of gas at the nearby Chevron Gas Station on Redwood and Couch streets.  Then, I went to a local thrift store to drop-off some donations. And I went to the bakery outlet nearby to buy a jar of creamy peanut butter, which they didn't have in stock at all.  So, I just went to the grocery store to buy some cake-baking ingredients.

Today, March 17th,  is St. Patrick's Day. "Erin Go Bragh!" ( Ireland Forever! ) I made my special chocolate cake--you could O. D. on chocolate just by eating it--for a close relative today, since it, too, is his birthday. And he wouldn't settle for just some Corned Beef and Cabbage, instead. And who can give him a hard time about it?  After all, he ain't even an Irish.

I baked the special chocolate cake at around 11:30 a.m. today, after having shopped for its ingredients--I spent 20 buck$, exactly 20 buck$--at the Admiral Callaghan Lane Safeway.  I let it cool on a rack before I frosted it.  Then, I called my close relative on his cellphone at a little after 2:00 p.m. to let him know that the cake was done and that I was ready to take it to his place. But he was in Santa Rosa, CA, attending the birthday party of our three-year old niece. So, I asked him when he would be back home so that I could just go over and drop-off his birthday cake.  He said that he'd be leaving for home after 9:00 p.m.

As I pulled out of my carport, it started to rain hail stones.  And a few blocks from my place, on Tuolumne  Street, between Del Mar Avenue and Sereno Drive, cop cars began converging in front of the elementary school at around 3:45 p.m. in all that rain. There were six cop cars on that section of the street. I can't wait to read tomorrow's paper to find out what it was all about.

I went to Selecta Pilipino Buffet on Springs Road on a hunch that they might have some Corned Beef and Cabbage because it's St. Patrick's Day. I was right: They did have some--emphasis on SOME! As in, three small slices of corned beef , two yellow potatoes and two tiny slivers of cabbage left in a serving tray.

After I finished eating lunch, I asked the proprietor if he had read the reviews about his buffet restaurant on-line. He wasn't even aware of it. So, I asked to borrow his laptop so that I could look it up for him.  I typed-in, "Selecta Pilipino Buffet in Vallejo, CA."  And, there it was on www.yelp.com. The reviews were mostly 4- and 5-star reviews. So, I was pretty sure that he was pleased about it.

And it was getting close to 5 o'clock. So, I told the proprietor that I had to leave because I have to be somewhere by 5:00 p.m. I made it to the theatre with about ten minutes to spare.

Oh! about the Special Chocolate Cake ....

After the movie, I went back home to start this blog. And I called my relative at around 9:25 p.m. to find out if he was already home. He was still on the road when he answered my call. I told him that I'll be at his place around 10 o'clock or so.

I got to my relative's place at 10:25 p.m. And I left for home at 11:10 p.m. after he served me some Pilipino Spaghetti ( sweet-flavored version ), Ginata-an ( Pilipino dessert soup made out of Rice with Jack-Fruit and Corn in Coconut Milk ), Durian Cake and a glass of Iced Tea with Lemonade; and after his family and I watched a girls' gymnastics Pacific Rim Competition in which the USA won.

*

CASA DE MI PADRE, R ( 1 hr & 24 min )

Quickie Review:  Armando Alvarez ( Will Ferrell ) has lived and worked on his father's ranch in Mexico all of his life.  A ranch that is undergoing some financial problems.  When Armando's brother, Raul ( Diego Luna ), returns to the ranch a very rich man and engaged to be married to a very beautiful girl, Sonia ( Genesis Rodriguez ), it seems that everything will work-out just fine.  But Raul's financial wealth is not so legit.  And Raul's presence only puts him and his family at odds with the most powerful drug lord in the area, Onza ( Gael Garcia Bernal ).

Some people in the audience liked it. It didn't get a "Hands Clapper" ending, though.

I really don't know what the makers of this movie were aiming for. Whether or not it is meant as a farce or as an insult to the Mexican Movie Industry is anyone's guess. But I didn't like this movie that much. It will probably appeal only to those of you with an unrefined taste in comedy. Wait for it to come out as a rental.

I liked the scene where Sonia tried to get up on a horse. And I liked the scene where Raul turned-off the radio when Armando stepped into the room.

There is a Bonus Scene during the Ending Credits and afterwards.

Here are the things that I found wrong in this movie: The dead man dragged behind the truck was so obviously a dummy. The horses that Armando and Sonia rode in the Close Shot were fake. I don't know why they used a mannequin butler, a mannequin wedding guest and a mannequin sex partner. A road scene leading to the bar and another scene leading to an encounter with the police and DEA agents were both one and the same, with an RV going in the opposite direction. What's with that wedding guest who just sat there smoking a cigarette? There was a Bad Edit sometime after the scene where the police officer and the DEA agent talked on the 'phone. This movie has many cheap props and SFX. Some of the scenes were actually done on a stage with obvious backdrops. How and why did the dead man end-up in the fountain ...?

*

SILENT HOUSE, R ( 1 hr & 28 min )

Quickie Review:  A girl, her father and her uncle go to their boarded-up lake house to fix it up before they sell it. With no electricity and with no cellphone reception, they are cut-off from the outside world in the confines of their darkened house as ominous events crescendo to a climactic end.

There were two couples in the auditorium with me.  The couple seated in the fifth row got up and left halfway through the movie.  I guess that they didn't like this movie at all. The couple seated in the back row was silent throughout the movie.

By the way, I was seated in the 7th row, 6th column, of auditorium 13, for the 4:45 p.m. show at the Century 14 Vallejo in Vallejo, CA, today, Wednesday, March 14th, 2012.

I didn't like this movie.  It wasn't scary at all. It's not a Horror movie in its true sense. The Bathroom scene is what gives the clue away. And the "silence" in the house refers to an altogether "something-else-entirely". Although the principal character in this movie acted well, I'd still wait for it to come out as a rental, if I were you.

Here are the things that I found wrong about this movie:  This movie is "shot in one take" ( Yeah, right .... There were scenes that would disprove this claim. ). Therefore, I couldn't do a noteworthy scenes on it--noteworthy shots or moments, perhaps ...? And I couldn't do a spoiler alert! because early on in the movie you'd kind of guess where it would lead to--add to it the Bathroom scene and there'd be your answer, right there and then; and I couldn't mention any more spoilers because doing so would just have me ruin the ending for those of you who would still want to go see this movie on the Big Screen!

*

A THOUSAND WORDS, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 31 min )

Silence is Golden. Duct Tape is Silver.

Quickie Review:  A book agent, Jack McCall ( Eddie Murphy ), will say anything to close a deal.  But he messes with the wrong guy when he talks a Spiritual Guru into signing on the dotted line. Because a Bodhi Tree magically appears in his backyard and teaches him a very important lesson about the consequence of using words for granted.

The audience was really entertained by this "Feel Good" Comedy movie.

I liked this movie, too.  It is a good Date Movie for couples to go see.


*

JOHN CARTER in I-MAX 3-D, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 12 min )

where:  EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when:  Friday, March 9th, 2012
show:  12:01 a.m.
costs:  $17.50 Ticket + $4.75 Zero Sprite = $22.25
auditorium:  12
seat:  5th row, 6th column


2nd time

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Saturday, March 10, 2012
show:  11:45 a.m. ( Extra Dollar Off First Show Matinee )
costs:  $10.00 Ticket + $4.75 junior Popcorn + $4.00 small 16 oz Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's Root Beer & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $18.75
auditorium:  2
seat:  4th row, 8ht column

synopsis/overview:  A Civil War veteran, John Carter ( Taylor Kitsch ), finds himself transported to Mars ( Barsoom ). Where he encounters a green, "double decker" torsoed race, the Tharks. And later comes across humanoids who are at war with each other. As the fate of Barsoom hangs in the balance, John Carter must decide whether or not to lend a helping hand.

noteworthy scenes:  1.) Predator city; 2.) Sandstorm; 3.) The chosen; 4.) "Sad tidings"; 5.) "Always looking for something"; 6.) "Thing opens only from the inside"; 7.) Last will and testament; 8.) Private journal; 9.) Arrest; 10.) Chase; 11.) The cave; 12.) Low gravity; 13.) "What the hell"; 14.) Introduction; 15.) Jump; 16.) "Leave nothing for the white apes"; 17.) "The 9th ray"; 18.) "It is your will"; 19.) Infiltrator; 20.) "It is called, 'Virginia'"; 21.) Hatchlings' nursery; 22.) "I understood you"; 23.) Fliers; 24.) Rescue; 25.) "I surrender. You may take me captive"; 26.) Hero; 27.) "Our ships sail the seas"; 28.) "You said, 'Planet'"; 29.) Mars; 30.) "That brought me here"; 31.) Tharks' temple; 32.) "Shake it"; 33.) "She's your daughter, isn't she"; 34.) "He betrayed us"; 35.) Watering hole; 36.) "I like this plan better"; 37.) "This is real"; 38.) "I'm already there"; 39.) "Duty to your father"; 40.) "Your feet"; 41.) Medallion; 42.) "Ninth Ray Isolates; 43.) Diagram; 44.) Copy; 45.) One man army; 46.) Rescue; 47.) Conscience; 48.) "Take me hostage"; 49.) "Hello, ladies"; 50.) Deciphered; 51.) "Yes, I am alone"; 52.) "We have plenty of time to talk"; 53.) Eliminated; 54.) "What is your cause"; 55.) Manage the death of a planet; 56.) Flight; 57.) A sign; 58.) "Your spirit annoys me"; 59.) Arena; 60.) Challenge; 61.) "They're at the wedding"; 62.) Fight; 63.) "It is good to fly"; 64.) Salute; 65.) "I'll explain later"; 66.) Proposal; 67.) Tricked; 68.) Search; 69.) Followed; 70.) Explanation; 71.) "I am the key"; 72.) NED; 73.) "I was just bait"; 74.) Reunited; and 75.) Dedication to Steve Jobs during the Ending Credits.

favorite scenes:  I liked the first two "Virginia" scenes. ( Then, it got "old" after that. )

I liked the one wherein John Carter was badly outnumbered but he held his ground anyway against a "double-decker" torsoed Thark army.

I liked the scene where they raided the wrong city and John Carter/Virginia got slapped upside the head for the mistake.

I liked the Tear-Eyed Thark scene, too.

audience reaction:  The audience liked it but didn't give it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

2nd audience reaction:  This "more wide-awake" crowd was more appreciative of the movie and one or two persons in the audience gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  I liked it.  Go see this if you're into Action/Adventure movies.

spoiler alert!  He had a good head start on his pursuers as he escaped from jail. Yet, somehow, the Union soldiers gained ground on him. That matchstick was sure slow to burn up. Mars's gravity is just over one-third compared to that of Earth's. Therefore, John Carter of Virginia ( ha, ha, ha ) should only have been able to jump a little over three times higher than how high he could jump on Earth. I still will not believe that you can cut a thick chain with a sword! That Sola ( Samantha Morton ) either had a kinky fetish involving the use of a branding iron or she was just too dumb to learn from her mistakes! Since the Martian humanoids had blue blood, Deja Thoris ( Lynn Collins ) should have believed in John Carter right away as soon as she noticed that he had red blood! In the Tharks's temple, John Carter put his right armpit close to Deja Thoris's face yet, somehow, she didn't notice the armpit smell of someone who just worked-up a great sweat in the heat of battle! The "humans" on Mars have nostrils but the "double-decker" torsoed creatures, the Tharks, don't; so, how do such creatures breathe? And since the Tharks don't have nostrils, their voices shouldn't sound "normal" at all. The Tharks's voices should sound like the way you'd sound like if you pinched your nostrils shut then talked. The Tharks's three-toed feet were anatomically incorrect. Their feet were structured in such a way that the Big Toe was in the middle. For ambulation to take place properly, the toes on either side of the Big Toe should have been set farther away from the center for stability. The two "moons" of Mars were always shown in approximately the same orientation to each other, with the small one to the left of the big one.  But ... the bigger "moon", Phobos, actually orbits around Mars more than three times per Martian day while the smaller "moon", Deimos ( which is farther away from the surface of Mars), takes about 30 hours to orbit around the Red Planet. Therefore, the two "moons" should not have been shown repeatedly in the same approximate orientation in the Martian sky! Duh ....  By the way, a Martian day is almost exactly the same length as an Earth day. About those big, fiery explosions ... not happenin' in real life!  Ditto for the other flames shown. Why? Because there is practically no oxygen in the Martian atmosphere for such explosions/flames to occur. Which begs another question: How was John Carter able to breathe the predominantly Carbon Dioxide "air" on Mars? That piece of rock was probably three times--or more--John Carter's body weight; so, he shouldn't have been able to swing it around like that. After a Martian sandstorm, dust particles would stay in atmospheric suspension for a considerably longer time owing to the fact that Mars's gravitational field is not strong enough to have the dust settle sooner. Why were all the Martians scantily-clad even though Mars is much colder than Earth? Why were there no guards posted at the wedding? In the wedding fight scene, Deja's evil double had her sword at her neck with the sharp edge pointed away but, in the next shot, the sharp edge of the sword was pressed against her neck. What's the point in being "Eternal" if you can get shot to death? What happened to the body of the Thern who was killed in the cave? If your objective is the total annihilation of your enemy, why would you offer the losing side a "marriage truce"? The Heliumites and the Tharks won the war. But for what? It was a dying planet after all. Why was their own Goddess Hell-bent on their own destruction? Why didn't the Therns just wait for John Carter to fall asleep so that they could attack him?  I mean, I'm pretty sure that John Carter had many occasions to fall asleep during his relentless search for the medallion!

If only Disney hired my services as Cine-Man, Technical/Science Consultant, this movie would make more sense and would be more appealing to all the Smart People out there!

fyi:  For those of you who don't know it yet, the Edgar Rice Burroughs character in this movie is a fictional representation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs who was more well-known for his stories on Tarzan of the Apes.

Let's see if I got this straight:

Earth = Blue planet; red-blooded creatures--check!
Mars = Red planet; blue-blooded creatures--check!

So, when John Carter and the Princess have kids, they'll all have purple blood ...?

Is this Purple Prince one of their kids?

word of advice:  Take up a worthy cause.

tidbits:  When the midnight show started ... IT WAS THE WRONG MOVIE!  What came on was an I-Max 3-D version of  DOCTOR SEUSS'S THE LORAX.  Some people in the audience went and notified the theatre staff; I was about to, also.  The JOHN CARTER movie finally started at 12:24 a.m.

This creature can only be none other than The Pitbull Frog-dog.

As a few of us sat through the Ending Credits, somebody rudely turned-off the movie projector at 2:30 a.m. because the janitor was scheduled to start vacuuming the auditorium at that time.

2nd tidbits:  I bought a pair of old-style 3-D glasses a few days ago at the Target Shopping Center's Dollar Tree Store here in Vallejo, CA.  It's the kind with a blue lens and a red lens.  I thought I'd try it for this John Carter 3-D movie.  It didn't work at all.  I guess that there are four kinds--at least--of 3-D technology glasses that are exclusively proprietary and are not interchangeable with each other because they are not compatible in their Optics utilization.

I have a spare modem.  Actually, it was the original modem sent to me by my ISP. The one which I had been using all this time and which I accidentally "fried" was the modem that Hector's son, Isma, gave to me when I had trouble connecting to the Internet with my original modem.  I called my ISP tonight because I wanted them to send me a replacement.  But, on a hunch, I decided to try my original modem.  I connected it to my computer then I called my ISP for technical help.  I was put on hold for about 15 minutes but it was on their dime, so I didn't mind waiting. The tech support guy, I forget his name ( it's in Hindu ), was very patient with me and walked me through the steps to have my modem connect me to the Internet.  My original modem worked just fine!  It's 11:40 p.m. as of this moment--O Lord, it's gonna be Daylight Savings Time in a couple of hours, so I'll be losing one hour's worth of sleep! Maybe, I should go to bed now .... Nah!

F-ck sleep--Yeah!  I'll just show-up for work an hour late. LOL

Anyway ....

I'm just glad that I can get on the Internet once again without having to resort to using Wi-Fi.  I don't want to have to go to a MacDonald's Restaurant every day just to blog about movies because I might end-up like the SUPER SIZE ME ( 2004 ) documentary filmmaker, Morgan Spurlock!

*

PROJECT X, R ( 1 hr 28 min )

where:  UA EMERY BAY STADIUM 10 in Emeryville, CA
when:  Tuesday, March 6th, 2012
show:  8:00 p.m. ( Five Dollar All Day + Two Dollar Small Popcorn with a Movie Watcher Rewards Card Tuesday )
costs:  $5.00 Ticket + $2.00 small Popcorn + $4.75 small 30 oz Zero Sprite + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll = $16.75
auditorium:  7th
seat:  4th row, 10th column


synopsis/overview:  The Party You'd Only Have Nightmares About, As A Parent

A trio of high school outsiders throw  a birthday party for one of them in the hope that it will make them more popular at school and have them get lucky with the hot chicks who normally wouldn't even give them the time of day.  But things get out of hand.

noteworthy scenes:  1.) Kitchen; 2.) Shower; 3.) Dad's instructions; 4.) "Not Mr. Popular"; 5.) Anniversary; 6.) Minivan; 7.) School locker; 8.) Boner; 9.) "There's the point"; 10.) "Mass marketing"; 11.) "Don't trip"; 12.) Invites; 13.) Supermarket; 14.) "Finger banging"; 15.) "This is wholesale, niggah"; 16.) "Technically a homosexual act"; 17.) Mascot; 18.) Chase; 19.) Security; 20.) Party decors; 21.) Treadmill; 22.) Poor little dog; 23.) Bouncy Castle; 24.) Balloons; 25.) More party people; 26.) Indoor incursion; 27.) Tazer; 28.) "Read the sign"; 29.) Beer; 30.) Diabetes; 31.) Dildo; 32.) 'Phonecall; 33.) Beer pong; 34.) "In their house"; 35.) "Standing down for now"; 36.) "Everybody's a f-cking attorney"; 37.) Double finger; 38.) Ecstasy; 39.) Craigslist; 40.) "This is my favorite song, guys"; 41.) Angry midget; 42.) "Tonight's about changing the game"; 43.) Birthday boy's room; 44.) "Look at what we did.  Epic"; 45.) News helicopter; 46.) "You're way too fat"; 47.) "We're clearly outnumbered"; 48.) Dog hump; 49.) The Mercedes Benz and the midget; 50.) "I don't know how to fix this"; 51.) Flame thrower guy; 52.) Fire; 53.) The tackle; 54.) "What about our money"; 55.) "We heard that Kanye made an appearance"; 56.) "I just didn't think you had this in you"; 57.) One thousand five hundred to 2,000; 58.)Punishment; 59.) Dubious recognition among his peers; and 60.) TV news.

audience reaction:  The audience liked it a lot.  And there may have been one or two "Hand Clappers" in the audience at the end.

recommendation:  But I didn't like it at all.  Even if I were invited to such a party in real life, I'd walk out of there are soon as I'd begin to notice the way that it was spinning out of control.  Because I don't hang out with such an unruly, immature, selfish, irresponsible, disrespectful and inconsiderate crowd.  You may or may not want to see this, depending on your level of maturity and/or your sense of societal/moral responsibility.

spoiler alert!  In the bathroom scene at the start of the movie, on the lavatory counter, one could readily see a bottle of the store brand CVS Fresh Mint Mouthwash; and, in the kitchen in a later scene, one could readily see on the kitchen counter a cheap knife block and cutlery set that was probably bought at Big Lots! ( I would know because that was were I bought my same, identical knife block and cutlery set )--and they live in a big, fancy house with a swimming pool and a Mercedes Benz in a carport?!?!?!  Huh ...? Maybe the parents were just a couple of tightwads. And speaking of carport, why was there no garage for the Mercedes Benz?  Why didn't the parents just take the Mercedes Benz with them to the airport and just park it at a long-term parking garage?  I mean, that's what I'd always do whenever I'd go visit my sister in Michigan:  I'd take my car to a long-term airport parking garage, and disconnect the battery to keep it from draining.  There is a Curfew Law in this country which says no loud noise between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.  And this Curfew Law is enforced especially in affluent neighborhoods like the one where the irresponsible brat teens lived in this movie. In other words, the cops should have told them to have their guests pack up and leave since it was after 11:00 p.m. when they ( the cops ) came knocking at the door. I think blowing cigarette smoke in the face of that dog, attaching it to balloons and subjecting it to loud music--they have a much better sense of hearing than humans-- all constitute animal abuse. Why didn't the neighbors call his parents a.s.a.p.? How did the midget get easily shoved into the oven when--normally--racks would be in place to make that not so readily possible? How did the Fire Helicopter get to the scene so fast--was the pilot a psychic? Why were the security guys still wearing their jackets the day after the wild, out-of-control party when the police were out looking for them? Okay, if we assign 5 party-goers for each car, that would total-up to 400 hundred cars at the party.  And even if we assign 10 party-goers per car, that would still be 200 cars parked all over the neighborhood.  Clearly, that's not possible.  There were not that many cars parked at the curb and on the street itself; otherwise, the cops would have had people ticketed for it and the neighbors would have had trespassing cars towed away. I'm all for punishing the bratty teen, but that form of punishment used would probably just put his parents in trouble with the law for forcing him to be in such an unsafe situation.


fyi:  You've heard of the expression, "Go wash your mouth with soap and water," I'm sure.  But there are actually people out there who take that advice literally and/or seriously.  I know, because I was one of them.  For the last year and a half, I brushed my teeth, tongue and gums with a bar soap.  I used Doctor Bronner's Magic Soap, sold on the Internet and at Health Food Stores.  The reason I did so was because I had advanced Periodontal Disease, and bar soap was the only thing that cleaned my teeth, tongue and gums really well.  But ... using bar soap to clean your teeth has two undesirable side effects:  Your teeth get so clean that they get stained easily; and your whole mouth gets so clean that you end up with a very Dry Mouth!

Well, last month, I was browsing around at the 99 Cent Only Store on Springs Road here in Vallejo, CA, when I found myself in front of the store's selection of toothpastes.  I looked at each one's list of ingredients.  By chance, they have made-in-England Aquafresh Toothpaste in  3.5 oz tubes.  What's so special about this particular one, you ask?  It doesn't have Sodium Fluoride and it doesn't have Glycerin.

Sodium Fluoride is a "Mind Control" drug in the same way that Sodium Pentothal is a "Truth Serum".  Supposedly, the Nazis used Sodium Fluoride to fluoridate their drinking water supply in order to "sedate" and control the minds of the German populace.  And, nowadays, Sodium Fluoride is a banned substance in Europe--again, supposedly.

Glycerin coats each tooth and keeps it from Remineralizing itself!  Ironically, though, it is added to toothpastes, especially the kind meant for people with sensitive teeth.  But, if you avoid using toothpastes and mouthwashes with Glycerin in them, your teeth's sensitivity will lessen within a month's time.  AND I KNOW THIS FOR A FACT!!!

And, yes, the Doctor Bronner's Magic Bar Soap which I used to brush my teeth with neither had Sodium Fluoride nor Glycerin in it.  Here's a tip:  If you want to try brushing your teeth with Doctor Bronner's  Magic Bar Soap, rinse your mouth with a sweet-tasting mouthwash first; otherwise, the soap's flavor might be just a little--or a whole lot--unappealing for your taste!

But, if you want to stick with toothpastes, use the kinds that have as the active ingredient Sodium MonoFluorophosphate and that have NO Glycerin in them.  The made-in-England Aquafresh Toothpaste is the only one that I know of so far which fits this description to a "T".


word of advice:  Don't listen to someone's bad advice, even if--and especially if--that someone is a "friend".

Don't leave your birthday teen at home all alone!


tidbits:  Today, I went to Hector's place in Oakland, CA, mainly because I had a big ham bone to give to his son, Tito's, pit-bull, Mercedes.  It took me practically a month and-a-half just to eat-up all that ham!  Now, I know exactly how the Israelites felt when they had to eat nothing but Manna for forty long years during their Exodus from Egypt in the time of Moses, their prophet. Of course, I have no way of knowing whether or not Manna tastes like ham! Ha, ha, ha.

Tiger, the cat, was nowhere to be found.  He went outside to explore and never showed up to greet me.

Across the street from Hector's place, in somebody else's driveway, was a stolen and abandoned silver Honda four-door sedan.  Hector's house is at the end of a Cul-de-Sac where stolen cars get routinely abandoned.  You'd think that the Oakland cops would have already gotten wise to it by now.  And Hector's son, Tito, told me that it was some kids over on the next block who stole the car and abandoned it across their house.

Elsa, Hector's wife, needed to be taken to the Native American Health Center to re-enroll because she could no longer afford to be with Kaiser Permanente. The health center is just about a mile away from Hector's place. Hector, Elsa, Tito and I drove to the center with Tito at the wheel.

As we were on our way, Tito mentioned that he also goes to the health center because they have community activities.  And he signed-up to join a drum group. I quipped that maybe he should do a Rain Dance drum session for us ( so the pollen covering my car will get washed-off ).

I found this image of the Native American Health Center on the Internet 

When we got to the corner of 29th Street and International  Boulevard, just a block away from the health center, I spotted a very beautiful and slender young Hispanic girl wearing denim shorts, a golden jacket, stockings and high heels just standing there and waiting for a "customer".  I said, Ooh, she's waiting for me.

Tito looked at her and said, "I feel sorry for girls like that.  They don't think highly of themselves."

I don't know whether Tito meant that he felt sorry for such beautiful girls with low self-esteem who prostitute themselves OR whether he meant that any girl who'd take a liking to me is nothing but a desperate loser! But I didn't ask him to elaborate.

The Native American Health Center is directly across the street from a Goodwill's Discount Store.  That was where we parked.  And we jaywalked it across to the health center.

I really don't know why they call the place "Native American Health Center" because people of different nationalities were in there.  And I don't know if it was just by sheer coincidence or not but the pamphlets and leaflets that were racked most prominently were those on family planning, contraception, STDs, and infant/toddler care.

Before we left, Hector noticed a familiar face.  Hector took his wife to re-introduce themselves to the lady receptionist.  And to let her know that they have re-enrolled in the health and wellness program. As they were leaving, I walked-up to Hector and told him that I overheard the lady say, "Thanks for the warning!" They both laughed.

When we got back to Hector's place, I decided to buff-out the bad oxidation on my Hyundai Accent's headlight lenses.  The stuff that I used this time, Fast Brite Lens Restore,  really works as claimed.  It's one of those "As Seen On TV"-type of products.  As I was buffing-out the oxidation, the "car thieves" came over and wanted to borrow a pair of pliers from Tito, who was rebuilding a lawnmower nearby, because they wanted to get the battery out from the stolen car.  Tito didn't have any on hand so he asked me if I had one in my car.  I said, No, I don't have one.  Soon, four friends of the two "car thieves" came over as a show of force; they were all either Asians or Hispanics--I really didn't take a good long look because I was busy buffing my car's headlights. Presently, Hector's other son, Isma, who's way bigger than Tito, stepped out, as our own show of force.  Isma stood there very imposingly on the front porch as he stared at the low-life punks. Isma is big; I don't refer to him as "Baby Huey" for nothing.  Now, if you know who the cartoon character, Baby Huey, is then you have a pretty good idea just how big Isma is!  Of course, Hector' oldest son, Marcus, is the biggest in the bunch, like a heavyweight Sumo Wrestler--but he wasn't there with us today. Isma, Tito and I were bigger and stronger--'not to mention, older--that those six low-life punks! And the lowlifes must have noticed me doing my "Mr. Miyagi's Karate Kid doing Wax-On, Wax-Off" because they eventually walked away. They were smart after all.

After I was done buffing-out my car's headlights, I cleaned the wheels.

Then, I went into the kitchen and cooked Spaghetti for everyone.  I almost always cook Spaghetti or Arroz Con Gandules whenever I visit Hector and his family because these are the only two dishes that I cook that Isma would eat since he is such a very picky eater.

After a while, I showed Hector some videos on YouTube. I showed him the one about Buddhist monks in Thailand who care for orphaned Tigers; I showed him the one on The Lion Whisperer; and I showed him the one about the Big Hole in the North Pole.  Note on this last one: If it's for real, the hole is probably the size of either a big island or a small continent!

Before seeing this movie, I swung by my former place of employment to say, Hi, to some of my former co-workers.  And because I thought that it was the last week that the place would be open for business.  But, as it turned out, the lease was given an extention so that the place would remain in business 'til January of next year.

But one of my friends there told me that he's just gonna retire and go back to China where he has a house.  Now, I have an excuse to go to China and pig-out at some Real Chinese Buffets!  Yum, yum. But Don't Expect Me To Eat any Cat meat, Dog meat, Snake meat, Monkey meat, Frog meat, etc.!!!

I wondered why the parking lot was full when I arrived at the theatre.  Then, it hit me:  Tuesday is "$5.00 All Day" plus "$2.00 small Popcorn with a Regal Movie Watcher Rewards Card" at this theatre.  If only they have this kind of a promotion at the sister theatre complex in Fairfield, CA, the Edwards Fairfield Stadium 16 & I-Max, I would be very happy about it.


***********************************

On Wednesday night, I installed a Memeo Instant Back-Up for my Seagate 2TB Expansion External Drive and a System Mechanic for my computer's registry.  It practically took me all night to do both.

Thursday morning, at around 9:00 a.m., I decided to have a "celebratory toast" to myself for a job well-done.  I made myself a cup of Hot Cocoa to drink while I worked on this blog.  But I accidentally spilled Hot Cocoa on my computer's Modem and "fried" it! I took it apart, cleaned it and resetted it.  But it was of no use. That was the bad news.

The good news was that on Thursday night, I went to the MacDonald's Restaurant at the Target Shopping Center here in Vallejo, CA, and tried Wi-Fi for the very first time. But this MacDonald's is only open 'til 10:00 p.m.

So, I went to the Wal-Mart Super Center in American Canyon, CA, because their in-store MacDonald's is open 'til midnight. But ... they don't have Wi-Fi at this one. That was the bad news.

The good news was that I hit on the idea to write my blog on my computer's Notepad and just "Copy and Paste" it later. So, I wrote down my blog on my Notepad as I sipped on some Strawberry Lemonade.  I stayed there 'til it was almost midnight.  And I wasn't even done yet.  And the "Copying and Pasting" will also have to wait 'til tomorrow.

And that was exactly what I did after I got out of work on Friday night.  I went to the MacDonald's Restaurant in Benicia, CA, for the "Copy and Paste", which worked-out perfect, I might add.  But, since I had to work 46 minutes overtime and this particular MacDonald's is only open 'til 10:00 p.m., I didn't get to finish this blog.  I will have to finish it tomorrow.

Well, here I am at the MacDonald's Restaurant at the Target Shopping Center today, Saturday, March 10th, at 3:25 p.m., finishing this blog, after having just finished my Two Cheeseburgers and Fries Meal.  Well, actually, I just ate one cheeseburger.  I'll finish the other one at work tonight.

Special Announcement:  I would like to take this time to say, Thank You and Welcome, to my readers in ...

The Palestinian Territories

Thank you, once again.  Please keep on reading my blogs.  And don't forget to tell your friends, and everyone else who you know, about my movie review blogsite.


*

DR. SEUSS'S THE LORAX in 3-D, PG ( 1 hr & 26 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Friday, March 2nd, 2012
show:  1:40 p.m. ( Extra Dollar Off First Show Matinee )
costs:  $10.00 Ticket + $1.65 bulk Chocolate Candy + $4.00 20 oz Fanta Strawberry Soda = $15.65
auditorium:  14
seat:  5th row, 7th column


synopsis/overview:  A boy who lives in a town completely made out of plastic will do anything to win the heart of the girl that he has a major crush on, including finding a real live tree.  To do it, he must go in search of the one man who can tell him about a magical being, the Lorax, the guardian of the forest trees.


noteworthy scenes:  1.) Backyard; 2.) "Don't play with your food"; 3.) Disco; 4.) TV ad; 5.) Security video; 6.) The Lorax's story; 7.) Birthday party; 8.) A threat to business; 9.) "About a girl"; 10.) River; 11.) Static; 12.) Sleep mates; 13.) New product; 14.) Customers; 15.) Painted-over mural; 16.) "It was all downhill from there"; 17.) "Big plans"; 18.) "Be careful which way you lean"; 19.) "Sir"; 20.) "How bad can this possibly be"; 21.) "The last tree"; 22.) "The next invention"; 23.) Evacuation; 24.) "Unless"; 25.) Unexpected/unwanted guest; 26.) "Little baby man"; 27.) "We have a little time"; 28.) Chase; 29.) "Let it grow/let it die"; 30.) "You've done good"; and 31.) Bonus scenes and illustrations during the Ending Credits.

audience reaction:  The audience enjoyed it.  But it didn't get a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  I liked it enough, especially about the bottled air. It's a good movie to take your little brats to.

spoiler alert!  The "Song-and-Dance" opener was good but the other ones after it were not so good; in other words ... if you've seen one, you've seen them all.  How did the townsfolk get themselves confined in a totally-enclosed town when some of the residents were old enough to know better?  With all that plastic, that town must get really hot--and toxic!--in the summer time. Those were just too many marshmallows, more than what the two bags contained.  This movie gives a new extreme meaning to the expression, "A fish out of water," since the fish in this movie spend more time on dry land than they do in water. No ax can make such a clean cut when it's used to chop down a tree.  A completely denuded forest but no flash floods? Come on! It would take quite a while before that lone tree can produce seeds to start repopulating the forest.

fyi:  When my family lived at the apartment building in Matina, Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, years ago, we had neighbors who lived two doors down from us who had bought all of the Dr. Seuss books for their kids.  I read a few but found the rhymes nonsensical and uninteresting.

Back then, I was more of a Reader's Digest Magazine reader kind-of-kid.

About three years ago, I walked down Shattuck Avenue in Downtown Berkeley on my way to see a movie.  Out on the street in the company of two boys was this beautiful redhead.  And the midday sun just highlighted her hair in a fiery red/orange color! It was such a lovely sight to behold.  The redheaded Audrey character in this movie reminded me of that girl.

word of advice:  Save the trees.

tidbits:  Before the movie, I went to the nearby Postal Annex to make some copies of a report that I want to give to my brother and to one of my sisters.  I hope that they will find the information useful.

After the Ending Credits, a woman behind me said to another woman, "I liked the part about which way the tree falls."

This is the second time in a row ( the first time was for the movie, GONE ) that I bought the same weight of bulk chocolate candies at this theatre for $1.65.

And last month, also at this theatre, I bought the same weight of bulk chocolate candies for $1.77 twice in a row when I came here to see THE VOW and THIS MEANS WAR. ( Unfortunately, I just did a quickie review for THIS MEANS WAR. But, I can assure you that what I said about the candy purchase is true! )

How cool is that?  I mean, what are the chances that someone else would get the same amount of candy two times in a row twice?

Now, if only this would translate into Lottery Wins, it would even be more cooler! Heck, it would be stupendously awesome!  Since I'd be able to devote more time to my Cine-Man blogs from that point on.


*

GONE, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 35 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Wednesday, February 29th, 2012
show:  10:00 p.m.
costs:  $9.75 Ticket + $1.65 bulk Chocolate Candy + $4.00 20 oz Fanta Orange Soda + $6.32 # 2 Quarter Pounder w/ Cheese Meal @ the MacDonald's Restaurant in the Target Shopping Center before the movie = $21.72
auditorium:  13
seat:  5th row, 7th column


synopsis/overview:  Jill ( Amanda Seyfried ) comes home from work one day and discovers that her sister is missing.  Having been the victim of a kidnapping the year before and believing that her sister is kidnapped, she gets hysterical when nobody, including the cops, takes her seriously.  In desperation, she takes matters into her own hands as she hunts for the serial rapist/killer.

noteworthy scenes:  1.) Forest park map; 2.) Martial Arts gym; 3.) Diner; 4.) Missing sister; 5.) Police department; 6.) New detective; 7.) Jill's history; 8.) Pajamas; 9.) Neighbor; 10.) Locksmith; 11.) Gun; 12.) Hardware store; 13.) Dorm room; 14.) Bus; 15.) "Rapey eyes"; 16.) Matchbook; 17.) Rented car; 18.) "I can't believe they involved you in this"; 19.) Co-worker's house; 20.) 'Phone call; 21.) Back at the Forest Park; 22.) No cellphone service; 23.) Tent; 24.) "Where's Jill"; 25.) The pit; 26.) "I lied"; and 27.) Evidence.

audience reaction:  There was a small family in the auditorium with me which was seated in one of the back rows.  But I didn't hear any reaction from them throughout the movie.

recommendation:  This Psychological Thriller is good enough to pass the time away.  But, for its subject matter, they should have made this movie into an R-rated one.  Because, as it is, it has a "Made for TV" type of "feel" to it.

spoiler alert!  Here we go again with yet another bathroom where a shower curtain doesn't have a curtain liner. Enough with the "nude" tease already, Gosh Dang It! That was one heck of an insomniac neighbor! "Rapey eyes"? What the heck is that? There's no such word as, "Rapey". Leering eyes, maybe. Dry cat food for his victims--really? I guess that the serial rapist/killer was clueless about the slang word, Pussy! When she got out of that pit the first time around, she should have pulled up the canvas ladder. Because of the nature of the stab wound, serious infection should have most likely set in. Even with your mouth duct-taped, you can still make a fairly loud enough sound to attract someone's attention. Wow, I didn't know that waitresses at some "greasy spoon" restaurants in Portland, Oregon, can afford to own a house, raise kids, and buy an SUV on the minimum wage and tips that they earn at work!  I'm in the wrong service industry, and/or I'm living in the wrong state! Usually, when cops patrol a dark area where a suspect might be hiding, the cops will use their spotlights on any and every occupied vehicle that they come across. The cops could easily subpoena the cellphone company to look at the record of Jill's phone calls and text messages.  Today's wireless 'phone technology has increased the chances that a person's cellphone conversations are actually being recorded so that anything the person says on his/her cellphone can be used against him/her in a court of law, especially with the Patriot Act in place. Cellphones have GPS trackers built-in in case of an emergency.  And a mental hospital patient armed with a gun and speeding around town while desperately looking for someone would be considered an "emergency situation." And the cops had her cellphone number all that time and she was on the 'phone for over a minute on more than one occasion so that they could have easily put a tracer/tracker on her calls. What! she drove around while she talked on her cellphone ...?  That's against the law!  The cops should have arrested her for driving while talking on her cellphone. Ha, ha, ha. Usually, when a girl gets raped, her clothes are torn-off, not left intact and still on her person! That was quite a fall she took when she was pulled into the pit but she got up okay. Kerosene is not highly flammable so that it could not have ignited that quickly and could not have shot-out flames from that deep of a pit! ( I should know about Kerosene since kids in the Philippines use it quite a lot around The Holidays for their Bamboo Cannons. )

fyi:  My brother was robbed at gunpoint last November.  The two bad guys took his bag and his money, but they threw away his cellphone because it had a built-in GPS tracker.

word of advice:  Treat each individual case individually.

tidbits:  There was too much B.S. at work tonight.  So, I decided to see this movie after I got off work just so I could unwind.

And ...

Since my Hyundai Accent was covered in pollen--it looked like its blue paint had a yellow haze to it--I hoped that it would rain hard ( free car-wash ) while I was watching this movie, since it rained practically all night last night when my car was parked in its carport.  But, when I got out of the theatre, I noticed that it hadn't rained at all.

Oh, well, it will rain eventually one of these days when my car will be parked away from its carport.  A free car-wash is a free car-wash.   And I sure as heck am lookin' forward to it!

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