nateniale's travels

Spent the weekend working, and realised how empty the streets are in the central business district on weekends. However, I was able to have a slow breakfast outdoor with the cool rainy breeze. Enjoyed eating local breakfast while watching many tourists having traditional local breakfast. Saw a family of Caucasians who ordered the breakfast set but wanted to eat it the western way - with salt and pepper. Of course, the uncle tried to explain the local way of eating with soya sauce and pepper, but they don't seem convinced. Wonder if that is how I am when I travel! Queued for around an hour and a half to have dim sum in the Michelin starred Tim Ho Wan in Singapore. The wait is still shorter than the original tiny shop with 20 seats in Hong Kong. While I am not usually one to queue for food, I have to say that I do not mind queuing up again! Watched the movie Rush with the amazing Chris Hemsworth (who looks so much older than he actually is). It is amazing how much zea...

the amazing spider-man

a movie with robert downey jr and jude law should not go wrong it was funny, but i wasn't sure if sherlock holmes was a man of action?

{ Movie : In Time } Love this movie poster. It has a great message. A great face (of Justin Timberlake, of course!). And easily summarises the movie.  { Click here for a list of movies I've watched  and other posts on movies  }

{ Upcoming Movie: The Muppets } Why are there so many songs about rainbows  and what's on the other side?  Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,  and rainbows have nothing to hide.  So we've been told and some choose to believe it.  I know they're wrong, wait and see.  Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.  The lovers, the dreamers and me. If the lyrics sound familiar, that is probably because you have heard the song before (one time, or the other). The song is called Rainbow Connection, and it is sang by my favourite muppet, Kermit the Frog. I mean, just look at that face! And, don't you just love the simplicity of the lyrics and the froggy dreamy voice of his? I just found out that the song actually received an Oscar nomination in 1980. Well, Kermit the Frog will be singing the song again in the upcoming movie The Muppets. Apart from all the Muppets that we have come to love, the movie will also star Jason S...

{ Movie Preview: Immortals } Eons after the Gods won their mythic struggle against the Titans, a new evil threatens the land. Mad with power, King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) has declared war against humanity. Amassing a bloodthirsty army of soldiers disfigured by his own hand, Hyperion has scorched Greece in search of the legendary Epirus Bow, a weapon of unimaginable power forged in the heavens by Ares. Only he who possesses this bow can unleash the Titans, who have been imprisoned deep within the walls of Mount Tartaros since the dawn of time and thirst for revenge. In the king’s hands, the bow would rain destruction upon mankind and annihilate the Gods. But ancient law dictates the Gods must not intervene in man’s conflict. They remain powerless to stop Hyperion, until a peasant named Theseus (Henry Cavill) comes forth as their only hope. Secretly chosen by Zeus, Theseus must save his people from Hyperion and his hordes. Rallying a band of fellow outsiders—including visionary ...

Ever wished for someone else's life?  The movie title and this tag line, basically sums up the movie. Two best friends with extremely different kind of lifestyles, found themselves in each other's body. Mitch (Ryan Reynolds) is a single, quasi-employed man-child who has never met a responsibility he liked. Dave (Jason Bateman) is an overworked lawyer, husband and a father of three. They envy each other's lives, and due to a freak of nature, they get what they wished for when they wake up in each other's body. The premise of body-swapping is nothing new, and I did not really expect much from the movie. I enjoyed watching Ryan Reynolds in his other movies - The Proposal, Definitely, Maybe, and Wolverine - and I have just seen Jason Bateman in The Horrible Bosses. There is the beautiful Olivia Wilde from the TV series House, as well. I thought that even if the movie is not out to change the art of movie-making, it would be an enjoyable comedy. Well, there are some fu...

Real Steel is an upcoming movie starring Hugh Jackman as a washed-up boxer in the near future. He lost his chance to become a boxing champion when human beings were replaced by steel robots for boxing tournament. He started building robots from scrap metals to survive, and when he hits rock bottom, he reluctantly teams up his estranged 10-year old son to build and train a robot for one last shot at a comeback. Now, if I were to build a robot, I would probably not build one for boxing. It would be one to help me in my daily tasks so that I have more hours in a day to do everything that I want! To work in the office less, to cook more, to plan more travels and of course, to do lots of travelling! Oh, here's an idea - my robot would work and earn money on my behalf while I take a year off to travel around the world! Ah, maybe that's just wishful thinking... Oh well, I am sure that the robots in the movie would be action-packed, and the movie sounded like one that would be sui...

While I enjoyed watching Mr Bean when I was younger, I had never been able to appreciate that kind of comedy. So, there are very few movies by the likes of Rowan Atkinson, Steve Carell or Jim Carrey that I truly enjoyed. Well, except the occasional ones that surprises me, like The Truman Show (with Jim Carrey). So, when I was given a chance to receive a pair of free tickets to watch the sneak preview of Johnny English Reborn - the spy movie featuring none other than Rowan Atkinson - I had my reservations. Would I find it funny? Would I enjoy myself? Would I be able to write an unbiased review? Well, I did watch, and I laughed and enjoyed myself. However, I have passed on the task of writing the review... Review by Q Disgraced spy on a mission to set things straight, cool gadgets complete with voice-commanded Rolls-Royce, intelligence agency with a no-nonsense chief (portrayed by a British-sounding Gillian Anderson), a pretty and intellectual love interest, and a few action and c...

Imagine asking people from all around the world to capture a part of their lives in one single day. The day was 24 July 2010. 4,500 hours were captured and edited into a 90-minute film.  Just watching the trailer reminds me of the reasons I love to travel - watching the lives of people in other parts of the world, experiencing their culture, feeling their love and sharing their happiness.  Can't wait to catch this movie!

I first saw Ashton Kutcher playing the "dude" guy in "Dude, Where's My Car?" I hated the movie and stopped watching after a few minutes. However, I was pretty impressed when I watched him in "The Butterfly Effect". He continued to have a pretty good career, but not so much for his acting skill. Natalie Portman is an amazing actress. She has been winning awards after awards and is even expected to win the Oscars for her role in "Black Swan". With Star Wars, Closer, V for Vendetta and many others under her belt, she will continue to have a stellar career as an actress. I would never have imagined these 2 actors in the same movie together, so I was pretty surprised when I learnt that both of them would be starring in a romantic comedy "No Strings Attached". After watching the trailer , I was looking forward to catch the movie. The movie is about two friends who decided to have one of those "friends with benefits" kind o...

Welcome. Ladies and Gentlemen, you are about to see a story of murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery, and treachery - all those things we all hold near and dear to our hearts. Thank you. That was the overture to Chicago: the Musical. It summarised the story nicely, but it was all that and more - there were amazing dances, great jazz music and powerful vocals. I first watched the movie when it came out in 2002. I was transported to another time and was in awe of the performances of Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renée Zellweger and Richard Gere. The movie went on to receive countless nominations and won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. I bought the soundtrack and kept listening to the songs over and over again. Since then, I have watched the movie many times! When I was in New York in 2008 for a few days, I couldn't resist watching Chicago on Broadway . It was shown in the Ambassador Theater . Though tired after a day of walking around New York, I thorou...

The poster of the movie showed a blond Sandra Bullock leading a huge black guy in football gear down a football field. The tagline above said "Based on the extraordinary true story". With such a poster, you knew that you would be in for an emotional movie. We caught a special Oscars 2010 showcase in the cinema this weekend for The Blind Side . The role in this movie earned Sandra Bullock her first Academy Awards nomination and win for the Best Actress award. The movie was based on the book The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game by Michael Lewis. There were two parts in the book - one on the evolution of the offensive football strategy, and the second on the true story of Michael Oher and Leigh Anne Touhy . The movie was based on the second part. I found an adaptation from the book on the NY Times website . It was definitely an inspirational story. It was about Michael Oher, a black kid who was accepted to a mostly white private Christian school, and was living in the couc...

I simply love Kate Hudson's Cinema Italiano from the latest movie by Rob Marshal, Nine ! I didn't know that Kate Hudson can sing and dance!

I have to admit that I do not know much about Greek mythology. I had a brief encounter during my holiday in Antalya, Turkey when I learnt a little about it, which I briefly noted about it here . While I know that the whole mythology was regarded as a myth, I wonder if there are any elements of truth in it. Regardless of whether it was all a myth or it evolved from something real, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief was quite an entertaining movie. It reminded me of the Harry Potter movie series but to tell you the truth, I am not sure if it would become as big as the Harry Potter franchise. One main thing I noted about the movie was how unashamedly American the movie was. For examples: Why would so many gods, demigods and other Greek monsters be located in America? Why is Camp Half-Blood, a training camp for demigods, be situated in America? Why would the entrance to the underworld be in Hollywood? Why would the entrance to Olympus be on top of the Empire State Building? F...

I decided to buy and read this book after I saw the trailer of the movie based on the book. The movie starred Cameron Diaz and Abigail Breslin. I was initially reluctant to read the book as I read one of Jodi Picoult's book called The Tenth Circle and I remembered that I didn't like it all that much. However, after watching the trailer and loving the story line, and hearing good reviews about the movie, I decided to read it. The books which movies are based on are usually much better than the movies themselves, aren't they? The book is about a 13-year-old Anna who sues her parents for medical emancipation - for the right to decide what she wants to do with her body medically. You see, she is conceived and born to be the perfect genetic match to her older sister Kate, who has life-threatening leukemia. Considering the topic, it is not surprising that I ended up crying while reading the book. I also like the way the book is written. The story is told from the various vi...