Star Warsy stuff, Episode I

Star Wars is an institute in movies. Not only has the Maker George Lucas made a fortune with the movie saga and the spin-off tv-series, but also with all the merchandise around the movies, Extended Universe of novels and comic books, action figures, toys, collectibles... you name it, uncle George has it.

Since the release of the first ever Star Wars in 1977 have many movie makers used the theme in their creations and included references to the space fantasy in their work. I, as a Star Wars fan, find it extremely entertaining when I notice the beloved adventure featured in other movies.

Last weekend I saw X-Men Origins: Wolverine and the ending scene (can't explain in detail so that I won't spoil the story) reminded me very much of a certain scene in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, the one when the evil Darth Maul is defeated by young jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi. The scene in Episode I is haunting and the same atmosphere has been captured in Wolverine as well.


A much lighter reference was seen in the recent hit-comedy 17 Again starring Zac Efron. Efron's character's best friend is an adult "fanboy" who has decorated his home with all kinds of fancy merchandise from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and the type. Even his bed is the shape of Luke Skywalker's landspeeder from A New Hope.

When Efron's character and his friend have a fight, they settle it with one blue and one red Force FX lightsaber (even though the box of the lightsaber says it is a collectible item and not a toy - I know I have two of those myself) - Darth Vader vs Luke Skywalker -style. The scene is so very cute.

References to Star Wars can be seen literally everywhere. These movies that came out this spring are just two most recent examples. The story continues...

81st Annual Oscar Gala

Yesterday evening the Oscars were given for the 81st time, in Kodak Theather, Hollywood.

It was a great evening with shining stars and perhaps a couple of suprises.

It was also a nice and welcomed change to see Hugh Jackman as the presenter at the Gala and he sure opened a new chapter in: How to do the Oscars. As he said in Barbara Walter's interview earlier: It doesn't always need to be all about business, but more of a show and having fun!

And it sure worked! He went through the nominated films with Broadway style and pulled Anne Hathaway from the audience, proving that this young lady is not only talented actor, but could also have a bright future as a singer. And soon after Hugh Jackman and this amazingly talented crew did a spectacular number with names like Beyonce and many other young, talented actors. But even though Hugh Jackman was amazing the most interesting part was yet to come.

The Oscars!

What a night! So many touching speeches, so many unforgettable moments and so many talented people gathered inside the Kodak Theathe.

The most talked about films of the evening were The Curious Case of Benjamin Button nominated in 13 different categories, winning three. But the real winner of the evening was Slumdog Millionaire being nominated in ten different categories and winning eight. After seeing the Golden Globe winnings this victory was not a big suprise, though.

And here they are, all the winning Oscars in different categories.

* Best Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Actor in a Leading Role: Sean Penn, Milk
* Best Actress in a Leading Role: Kate Winslet, The Reader
* Best Directing: Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Foreign Language Film: Departures (Japan)
* Best Original Score: Slumdog Millionaire, A.R. Rahman
* Best Original Song: ''Jai Ho,'' Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Editing: Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Sound Mixing: Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Sound Editing: The Dark Knight
* Best Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Best Documentary Short: Smile Pinki
* Best Documentary Feature: Man on Wire
* Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
* Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
* Best Live Action Short: Spielzeugland (Toyland)
* Best Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire
* Best Makeup: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Best Costume Design: The Duchess
* Best Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Best Animated Short: La Maison en Petits Cubes * Best Animated Feature: WALL-E
* Best Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire, Simon Beaufoy
* Best Original Screenplay: Milk, Dustin Lance Black

And for the brightest stars of the evening...

They were of course Kate Winslet in The Reader (my absolute favorite in this category) winning the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Pénelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona (the best choice in this one too, I would say) winning the Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.

As well as Sean Penn in Milk (a little suprise in this category I would say, since many of us were hoping for Mickey Rourke to receive this one) winning the Best Actor in a Leading Role and Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight (supposedly everyone's guess in this category) winning the Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Heath Ledger's family, his father, mother and sister all gave a little speech and it was very emotional moment for them as for all the viewers.

I was also one of those hoping that the Oscar for the best Actor in a Leading Role would've gone to Mickey Rourke in film The Wrestler, but well, I haven't even seen Milk yet, so who am I to judge here? But still, I have to say, Randy The Ram was such an unforgettable and touching role I can't but wonder why the Oscar didn't go to Rourke.

One shining star was also the Best Director Oscar Winner Danny Boyle with his work in the movie Slumdog Millionaire. I have not yet seen this film, but I sure am going to after all these eight wins this film achieved yesterday evening. And all the other wins in Golden Globes, SAG Awards etc.

And of course the movie itself, Slumdog Millionaire. Winning the Oscar for Best Picture. A low-budget film that almost didn't make it to the movie theaters is now a multi-Oscar Winner! Wow!


And last but not least. Best Animated Feature Oscar winner, WALL-E.

Our family's number one movie at the moment and as I already revealed in my other blog my daughter's guess for the winner in this category.

-------------------------------------

What a great night!

And let's not forget all the other Oscars from last evening either. Given for Best Documentary, Cinematography, Visual Effects, Sound Mixing and so many more important parts in the art of making movies.

I know that some of you have been awake the whole night watching this show and I really hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did!

And it doesn't take too long, when we can start guessing which are the nomimees for next years Oscar Gala...

Eye candy for ladies

Often men are criticised for being shallow and getting visual satisfaction of the pretty girls on film. However, based on my experience I suppose men and women are the same in this: both love to watch beautiful people, and get good vibrations of the opposite sex specimens on film they personally consider sexy and attractive.

I do like to watch beautiful women like Angelina Jolie and Keira Knightley, but as a heterosexual female, it's the men that make my heart beat a few times more with their muscular upper body, piercing dark eyes, hairy face and deep voice... Think about Australia - without bearded Hugh Jackman and his shirtless appearance the movie would have been much boring (eye candy-wise)!

I have noticed that a good looking man can make otherwise miserably bad movie watchable, and sometimes I even choose to see a movie just because some of my favourite sex symbols is in it.

Only very few remain as the favourites for many years, but there are a few. I do have a soft spot for tall, dark and handsome men. Johnny Depp and Keanu Reeves have been my guilty pleasures for about 20 years now, and I still melt in front of those beautiful eyes.

Few years ago Colin Farrell made his way to my top of sexiest men. And I just utterly adore his freshly rebel and still somehow shy performances on screen. Being a good looking man, and a great actor is a fantastic combination, and Farrell, Depp, George Clooney with his now already aging charisma and the Mexican heart-melter Gael Garcia Bernal are examples of this.

No matter how much Reeves's acting skills are being criticised, he still draws my attention to his movies. They may not be masterpieces (except for the first Matrix), but they are pleasing to watch because of the chocolate eyed heartthrob.

Sometimes it is not just the looks that count. My heart can beat a few more times also when I hear a sexy voice. This is what happened with Vin Diesel. In my books he was not that great looking, but when I heard him speak for the first time (it was actually in xXx), I changed my mind - his voice made also his looks so damn sexy it took me some time to recover.

It's not always even the voice, but the way of talking. Farrell is a perfect example of this: when he opens his mouth and starts talking, I'm done for. And a brilliant young Scottish actor James McAvoy - I just love to listen to his native accent!

I am aging along with my beautiful stars, and my taste in men has also grown up. I don't think the gray hairs in Clooney's head are at all less sexy. He still has that boyish look in his eyes. 20 years ago I couldn't have thought a gray haired man was sexy!

Even though the men of (around) my own age have appealed to me, I have found it is very cute to see some new rising star, a new young face that has enormous potential on becoming the new "George Clooney".

I did not like the movie Narnia 2 (nor did I like the first one, though), but there was something that caught my eye. A young, fresh and extremely beautiful face of Ben Barnes, whose career I'm definitely going to follow more closely from now on.

Although the dark haired, dark eyed men are the ones that on screen make this blonde drool, I'm not excluding the blondes totally. Brad Pitt was definitely eye candy when I was young (and he was young), but nowadays, oh how masculine that once baby-faced actor now is, when over 40!

And last but not least, the late Heath Ledger... RIP. The brilliant actor just died too young.

Paivi's movies seen in 2009

Paivi's Movies (first time views) seen in 2009, latest on top:

MAY:
72. Flash of Genius (2008) (dvd 4/5) - ***
71. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) (cinema 2/5) - *** - read Babblings review in here

APRIL:
70. Transsiberian (2008) (dvd 30/4) - ***
69. Bolt 3D (2008) (cinema 29/4) - **** - read Babblings review in here
68. Filth & wisdom (2008) (dvd) - **
67. Ned Kelly (2003) (dvd) - ***
66. 17 again (2009) (cinema) - *** - read Babblings review in here
65. Katyn (2007) (blu-ray) - ****
64. Taken (2008) (dvd) - ****
63. Rachel getting married (2008) (dvd) - **** - read Babblings review in here
62. Mimmi Lehmä ja Varis (Mamma Mu och Kråkan) (2008) (blu-ray) - ***
61. The Wrestler (2008) (dvd) - ****
60. Ten Inch Hero (2007) (dvd) - **
59. The day the Earth stood still (2008) (dvd) - **
58. Body of lies (2008) (blu-ray) - ***
57. The Duchess (2008) (dvd) - **
56. Yes man (2008) (dvd) - ** - read Babblings review in here
55. Monsters vs. Aliens (2009) (iMax cinema) - ***
54. Fast & Furious (2009) (cinema) - *** - read Babblings review in here
53. Hannah Montana the movie (2009) (cinema) - ** - read Babblings review in here

MARCH:
52. Whisper of the heart (Mimi wo sumaseba) (1995) (dvd) - ***
51. Nim's Island (2008) (blu-ray) - ***
50. Standard Operating Procedure (2008) (blu-ray) - ****
49. The Escapist (2008) (blu-ray) - **
48. Traitor (2008) (dvd) - ***
47. He's just not that into you (2009) (cinema) - *** - read Babblings review in here
46. Easy Virtue (2008) (cinema) - **
45. 12 Rounds (2009) (cinema) - * - read Babblings review in here
44. Die Hard: with a Vengeance (1995) (blu-ray) - ****
43. Pineapple Express (2008) (blu-ray) - ****
42. Mammoth (2009) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
41. Last Chance Harvey (2008) (cinema) - **
40. Inkheart (2008) (cinema) - ** - read Babblings review in here
39. Tale of Desperaux (2008) (cinema) - ** - read Babblings review in here
38. Neverwas (2005) (dvd) - ***
37. Journey to the center of the Earth (2008) (dvd) - *
36. Lars and the Real Girl (2007) (dvd) - ****
35. Son of Rambow (2007) (dvd) - ****
34. Raging Bull (1980) (blu-ray) - ****
33. Blindness (2008) (dvd) - ***
32. Slumdog Millionaire (2008) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here

FEBRUARY:
31. Watchmen (2009) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
30. Curious case of Benjamin Button (2008) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
29. The Vanishing Point (Ce que mes yeux ont vu) (2007) (dvd) - **
28. Max Payne (2008) (dvd) - **
27. The Rocker (2008) (dvd) - ***
26. Mad Money (2008) (blu-ray) - **
25. The sisterhood of traveling pants 2 (2008) (blu-ray) - ****
24. Open season 2 (2008) (blu-ray) - *
23. Idiots and Angels (2008) (dvd) - ***
22. First Blood (1982) (dvd) - ***
21. Revolutionary Road (2008) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
20. Coffee and cigarettes (2003) (dvd) - ****
19. MirrorMask (2005) (blu-ray) - ***

JANUARY:
18. Expired (2007) (dvd) - **
17. The Memory Keeper's Daughter (2008) (dvd) - ***
16. Life before her eyes (2007) (blu-ray) - ***
15. Just Buried (2007) (dvd) - *
14. Broken Flowers (2005) (dvd) - **
13. Batman returns (1992) (blu-ray) - ****
12. Driving Miss Daisy (1989) (dvd) - ****
11. Twilight (2008) (cinema) - ** - read Babblings review in here
10. Changeling (2008) (cinema) - *** - read Babblings review in here
9. Let the right one in (Låt den rätta komma in) (2008) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
8. Knocked Up (2007) (dvd) - ***
7. Henry Poole is here (2008) (dvd) - **
6. Freaks (1932) (dvd) - ****
5. RocknRolla (2008) (cinema) - ***
4. Niko and the way to the stars (Niko lentäjän poika) (2008) (cinema) - ****
3. Australia (2008) (cinema) - **** - read Babblings review in here
2. American Gangster (2007) (dvd) - ****
1. Zodiac (2007) (dvd) - ****

Note: the rating in Movie Babblings reviews may differ from this list because the actual review may be written by someone else than Paivi