quotes: Sebastian Stark

Your job is to win.
Justice is God's problem.

-sebastian stark (shark)-

australia

Bertekad nonton dari semenjak film ini dibuat, akhirnya Jum’at lalu tercapailah cita-cita untuk menikmati keindahan salah satu ciptaan Tuhan, that is the Sexiest Man Alive on Earth himself (:D).

DOWN & UNDER?

Menyaksikan film ini saya banyak mengernyitkan dahi. Bukan karena bingung atau gak ngerti jalan ceritanya, tapi karena berpikir, “Hah?? Begitu doang??”. Film ini gampang ketebak, istilah saya, ‘gak challenge’.. Kalau tujuannya film roman, saya setuju sama teman saya, Roman Picisan! Ada beberapa kenalan yang menyamakan film ini dengan Gone With The Wind. Well, bagi insan perfilman jaman dahulu kala memang Gone With The Wind adalah superb! Tapi haree geneee??

Kalaupun tujuannya mengangkat tema ‘penindasan’ suku Aborigin juga tidak terlalu signifikan. Serba tanggung.

Film ini terlalu panjang, sekitar 2.5 jam lebih. Ada beberapa moment di mana saya berdo’a di salam hati, “please, just finish it!” (jadi agak-agak teringat waktu nonton TDK..:P). Bukan karena bosan (yang sepertinya gak akan bosan, karena ada mas-mas Wolverine di film ini), tapi karena ceritanya makin dibuat-buat (sinetron banget deh rasanya), bahkan ada beberapa scene yang rasanya kok, India banget! Saya sama sekali tidak merasakan emosi di film ini, di saat ada yang mati, ada yang berpisah, atau pertemuan kembali, semuanya datar.

Casting para pemeran juga semuanya S-T-D. Nicole Kidman, S-T-D, tidak memberikan kualitas akting yang excellent. Saya juga terganggu oleh aktingnya si Brandon Walters as Nullah. And last but not least, Hugh Jackman himself.. well, I have to be very objective about this, he is also.. in his average, but he’s the funniest of all, :P.

Yang patut dipuji adalah cinematography dari film ini. IMHO, I think this is the main purpose yang mau ditunjukkan oleh Baz Luhrmann. Kaya’nya Cuma cinematography-nya aja deh yang bagus di film ini. Lainnya, saya cukup menikmati chemistry Nicole Kidman dengan Hugh Jackman. Apalagi di saat awal-awal mereka masih cela-cela’an.

Ada moment-moment yang bikin saya dan teman-teman terbahak-bahak, moment roman picisan, moment India, moment keluar dari asap dan Hugh Jackman himself. Bukan karena dia lucu’, tapi kami baru menyadari, kalau di setiap scene-nya, Jackman seperti otomatis berpose bak model, dari mulai gaya berdiri, mengendarai kuda, duduk, banyak deh.. (sampe sekarang gue masih ketawa sendiri ngebayanginnya, :D). Apalagi waktu adegan mandi, di saat nyiram air dari ember, hyahahahaha!! As Jackman himself said, “it’s too dramatic”. (Di acara Jimmy Kimmel, dia ngaku kalau dia awalnya gak mau, tapi akhirnya seluruh crew pria ngedukung dia dengan membuka baju mereka, biar Jackman lebih pede..:P beneran gak penting)

OK. There are 2 things for additional. King George the Aboriginese, mengingatkan saya kepada dukun di Lion King (Cuma kata teman, dukun babon di Lion King lebih berguna, hyahahaha). Terakhir, there’s nothing special about the movie itself. Saya yakin, total penjualan tiket film ini didominasi oleh wanita-wanita pecinta Hugh Jackman. (Ladies, please pay good attention when he’s riding a horse and whisper to a horse, -sigh- Dear God!!)

Satisfaction Rate: 50% (15% adalah karena keberadaan Hugh Jackman)

righteous kill

Terus terang, ini adalah film yang paling sulit saya buat review-nya. Hampir sebulan yang lalu saya nonton ini film. Baru sekarang saya bisa mengutarakan segala isi hati dan pikiran tentang film yang cukup saya nanti kedatangannya ini (wow.. how I love those 2 guys..)

Rooster dan Turk adalah duo senior NYPD. Mereka sedang menghadapi kasus pembunuhan berantai. Secara tidak langsung mereka dibantu oleh 2 anggota NYPD lainnya yang mencurigai kalau pelakunya adalah anggota kepolisian.

GOOD COP BAD COP

Ide cerita bisa dibilang cukup menarik. Penyampaian cerita juga cukup smart, back and forth, back and forth, namun tidak terlalu rumit. Sayangnya, twist di film ini agak mudah ditebak. Juga kurangnya klimaks jadi kelemahan di sini.

Hal yang paling ditunggu adalah kedua bintang besar, Al Pacino dan Robert De Niro. Setelah 2 film sebelumnya tidak pernah digabungkan dalam satu shoot (rumornya karena feng shui or energy nya terlalu hebat bila disatukan), akhirnya film ini mencetak sejarah.

But guess what??

Nothing special. Mereka sepertinya santai-santai saja, tidak terlalu optimal, atau bahkan terasa kurang serius. Saya kok gak dapet chemistry yang pas ya, antara mereka berdua. Walaupun harus saya akui, tidak optimalnya mereka juga sudah merupakan acting yang bagus. Their average performance is above average for other actors… :D

Jadi, saya bisa menyimpulkan… Those 2 living legends are way too big for this kind of film. Jon Avnet (88 Minutes) fail big time in using those highly potential talents.

Satisfaction Rate: 65% (the ¾ is for Pacino and De Niro)

a bit more about LOEWY

Ini hanya sedikit tambahan yang sempat kelupaan..

Satu hal yang lumayan bikin saya ternganga. Di resto sekelas Loewy, masa' tatakan gelasnya dari tissue sih?? Tissue lengkap dengan catatan nomor telpon Loewy yang DITULIS! Yup! Ditulis dengan tinta pulpen warna merah..

Where does all those money go? Gak ada budget buat beli tatakan gelas beneran??

LOEWY : a sucky place for dine-in

Year-end dinner adalah acara favorit saya dan teman-teman satu divisi di kantor. Selain karena pastinya ditraktir sama sang manager, kami juga rutin melakukan acara tukar kado. Setelah sempat pusing searching for the right restaurant, akhirnya atas dasar usul seorang teman, terpilihlah LOEWY di Oakwood Mega Kuningan, sebuah resto yang ‘katanya’ terkenal karena steak dan wine-nya (walaupun tidak ada di antara kami yang minum wine).

OK, we arrived at 6pm. Resto masih terisi hanya segelintir orang. Kebanyakan hanya minum dan laptop-an. Kedatangan kami diserbu oleh beberapa waiters dengan kostum hitam-hitam. Hmm..cukup ramah sih kelihatannya.

Ketika tiba saat taking order, hal pertama yang mengganggu saya adalah, saya ditolak! What the..??!!

(Setelah selesai taking order seorang teman)

“Mas, saya mau order dong”, saya sampai mengacungkan tangan.
Dijawab, “Nanti dulu mba’”

What the h*ll was that suppose to mean??!! Gak habis pikir saya. Ternyata si mas ini maunya taking order dengan teratur, which was clock wise! DUH! Saya sampai speechless..Apa itu peraturan di sana? That is SUCK No. 1.

Di saat kami sedang menikmati makanan, yang mana rasanya standar abis, kami sangat terganggu dengan waiters (lebih dari 3 orang) mondar-mandir mengelilingi meja kami, dan mulai mengangkat piring-piring dan gelas-gelas yang kosong dan juga yang MASIH SEPARUH ISI!!!! Yup! You got that right, people.. ¼ piring saya masih penuh dengan French Fries, tiba-tiba ada waiter yang dengan sigap mau mengangkat piring saya, “Sudah selesai, mba’?” Ya, spontan saya protes, “Belom dong, Mas..Ini kan masih ada makanannya!” It is called SUCK No. 2.

Don’t ever think that is it..

Bertubi-tubi kami dilayani oleh pelayanan buruk LOEWY. Seorang teman pesan Equil dari awal makanan datang, sampai dia selesai makan, itu Equil masih tetap belum tiba. Bahkan beberapa teman yang pesan belakangan, sudah bisa menikmati Equil mereka lebih dulu. Apa sebuah Equil harus diolah terlebih dahulu??!! SUCK No. 3.

Ada lagi teman saya yang minta dibawakan black vinegar. Yang kemudian seorang waiter datang dengan vinegar beneran, alias CUKA!! Are they even understand??! So lame..! SUCK No. 4.

O ya, mas waiter yang took our order juga saya nilai sangat tidak professional, dan kampungan (sayangnya saya gak perhatiin namanya). Bukannya berdiri dengan baik dan benar sebagai waiter, tapi dia malah menyandarkan tangannya di senderan bangku 2 orang teman saya. Bayangkannya seperti ini, seperti kita duduk di bangku belakang mobil, dan kita mencondongkan badan kita sambil menyandarkan tangan ke senderan 2 bangku depan untuk ngobrol dengan penumpang di depan. Ya seperti itulah dia itu kemarin. Maksudnya mungkin biar asik, tapi ya gak bangetlah!!!! Gak sopan! SUCK No. 5.

Ada seorang teman yang makanannya tidak sesuai dengan apa yang dipesan. Is it really hard to take notes or even READ the notes??!! SUCK No. 6.

And..about the food.. if they think they have good quality and tasty food, they have to start buying mirrors for themselves. The food is so standard!! With that price.. we surely will chose Hard Rock Café. No brainer for this decision making.

Masih ada beberapa bad services yang mereka berikan kemarin itu. Saya tidak bisa mengingatnya lagi.

But, the ultimate one is….

Ketika Bill sudah dibayar at 19.30, para waiters itu banyak yang berdiri di belakang kami, terkesan seperti ingin ‘mengusir secara halus’. Kami masih santai karena masih mau ngobrol, masih ada beberapa yang menunggu jemputan, dan masih mau foto-foto. Tiba-tiba…

“Maaf mba’, apa sudah selesai? Karena masih banyak yang antri mau makan..”

WHAT WAS THAT???!!

Sampai teman saya sempat nyeletuk, “Kok diusir sih Mas? Oooo..jadi habis manis sepah dibuang nih?!” Si waiter hanya tersenyum kecut, “Iya mba’, banyak yang antri..”

OK! That is SUCK No. 3 millions.

Oya, sampai depan resto.. tidak ada tuh orang-orang yang antri.

Saya adalah penggemar resto dan dine-in activity. Yang paling saya perhatikan adalah service dari resto tersebut. Saya akan sangat appreciate sebuah resto yang walaupun makannya tidak enak, tapi masih bisa melayani customer dengan sangat baik.

Sampai detik ini, belum pernah saya makan di suatu resto, mahal or murah, dan ‘diusir’ seperti itu. Bahkan makan di warteg juga saya belum pernah tuh diusir. Sebuah resto yang katanya kelas atas, tapi mengusir customernya yang BAYAR. Saya makan di Pizza Hut berjam-jam, di Pisa Café sampai pantat pegal, gak pernah tuh ‘digusur’.

Apakah mereka berpikir, harus mendahulukan customer expatriates? Apakah karena kami mengenakan ‘bright color’ clothes instead of black, brown, grey and white like the other customers? Or is it because we’re too loud?? (catatan: ada yang sama loud-nya dengan rombongan kami). What?? You tell me, LOEWY??

Ada satu cerita dari seorang bekas korban LOEWY, beliau ini ‘digusur’ dan diminta pindah tempat duduk karena meja sudah di reserved, padahal tidak ada tanda ‘reserved’ at all!

OK, LOEWY.. kalau kalian berpikir kalian adalah resto kelas atas dengan executive customers..well, think again! Executive customers butuh dilayani oleh high class professional waiters, which is so not you.

Satisfaction Rate: 15% (this number is for the Fresh Orange Juice only!)

please

my best U2 song ever!!

nice ending of 2008

More good news in the end of the year..

Hugh Jackman will be the next Academy Award 2009 Host. It’ll be held on February 22, 2009. Yeah, baby..!

…and one more…

Enough with the disappointment of the delayed Soloist until next March, Robert Downey Junior is nominated for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in Tropic Thunder for Golden Globe Award 2009. He’s baaaack!

cerita kurang gope'

Kemarin sore sepertinya, alhamdulillah, kemudahan mengalir ke saya. Lagi puasa, mau buka di rumah, sekalian ngejar jadwal The Guardian di tivi.. itu rencana saya. Kemudahan itu datang berupa bus 213 yang murah dan cepat tiba-tiba tersedia dengan beberapa bangku yang masih kosong (hmmm… what a rare thing!). Langsung saya loncat masuk.

Tidak lama masuklah seorang wanita berjilbab dengan seorang laki-laki tinggi besar, dan mereka duduk berjauhan. Sepertinya bukan pasangan sih, karena perempuannya menolak untuk dibayarkan. Kelihatannya seperti mba’-mba’ pekerja yang cukup hidupnya, jilbabnya putih bersih rapi, pakai kemeja dan blazer hitam, celana panjang dan tas hitam.

Duduk tepat di belakang saya…

Ketika kenek bus menagih ongkos, wanita itu menolak dibayarkan oleh si laki-laki. Tapi ada sesuatu yang bikin saya agak mengernyitkan dahi..

“Kurang gope' nih mba’”
“Kurang? Ah, bukannya solar udah turun, bang?”

...........????

Hellooooooooowwwww!!

Mba’ jilbab rapi itu, kenapa ya begitu? Cuma 2500 perak! Itu adalah tariff termurah dari suatu bus di Jakarta. Gak harus bayar 6000 perak kaya’ kalau naik bus AC. Mbok ya, kalo mau protes jangan ke kenek, secara mereka kan juga ngikutin peraturan pemerintah.

Aneh-aneh aja.. kok gak bersyukur itu loh..

Captain Abu Raed

Walaupun bukan penggemar film-film festival, tapi karena dapat undangan dari Cipto, gue pastikan dateng, with honor. Baru sekali juga nonton di Blitz (banyak yang ternganga dengan pernyataan saya yang satu ini, :P).

Film yang bersetting di Jordania ini bercerita tantang seorang janitor tua, Abu Raed, yang menemukan topi pilot di tempat sampah. Karena topi itu, ia disangka sebagai pilot oleh anak-anak di lingkungan tempat tinggalnya. Abu Raed kemudian menjalin persahabatan dengan anak-anak tersebut.

Saya nonton film ini tanpa ekspektasi apapun. Alur cerita agak sedikit lambat, tapi, walaupun minim, saya suka cinematografinya. Ciri khas rumah kotak-kotak dengan banyak anak tangga, dan puing-puing bekas bangunan yang banyak didominasi oleh warna putih dan beige.

Pesan yang saya tangkap sangat sederhana, mengenai kasih sayang antar sahabat, yang pastinya tidak melihat usia. Hal yang paling memorable bagi saya adalah senyumnya Abu Raed, played quite well by Nadim Sawalha.

Agak kurang sreg sama ending-nya. But, that’s fine.. Yang agak ganggu adalah di saat Murad dan keluarganya mau pergi, agak dilama-lama’in, kaya sinetron. Tapi, still.. this is far better than our so-called sinetron, :P

Nonton film ini saya berasa refreshing dari film-film hebatnya Hollywood. It’s relaxing!

Satisfaction Rate: 70%

BOLT

Nonton Bolt jadi otomatis comparing sama Beverly Hills Chihuahua. Why? Karena temanya anjing (walaupun Bolt jauh lebih cute dibanding seekor Chihuahua) dan juga karena overall, ceritanya kurang lebih sama, anjing yang ‘nyasar’ dan mencoba kembali ke ‘rumah’.

A SHINY LITTLE BOLT??

Well, not really, I guess.. Awal film memang keren. Full action. Apalagi kalo yang nonton 3D, pasti puas. Tapi makin ke tengah, udah lumayan lemah, karena IMHO, mulai agak boring, dan too many conversations. Konflik di akhir cerita juga agak kurang greget (adegan kebakaran kurang tegang). Satu-satunya memorable scene yang paling lucu adalah di saat Bolt harus acting untuk minta makanan ke para manusia, dan puncaknya di saat Mittens ikutan memelas. That’s hilarious!!

Dari segi casting, still comparing, kalau Chihuahua, kebanyakan dari dubbers-nya sukses membangun karakter masing-masing tokoh. Kalau Bolt ini, John Travolta sebagai Bolt sangat tidak terdengar istimewa, seperti tidak bisa membangkitkan karakter Bolt..quite forgettable. Miley Cyrus juga biasa aja. Standar suara mba’-mba’ remaja gitu. Nothing special.

Yang strikingly interesting are that Psycho Rhino the Hamster yang sukses disuarakan oleh Mark Walton (I even never heard of him before) and Mittens the Cat (Susie Essman) yang berhasil membuat saya terbahak dengan gaya bicaranya dan celetukannya.

Overall, it’s not the best Disney’s for sure, but it is quite entertaining.

Satisfaction Rate: 57%

Burn After Reading

George Clooney is back! A must see!! Ini yang pertama kali terbesit di kepala setelah baca sinopsisnya di Cinemags. Apalagi bareng Brad Pitt. Their chemistry udah gak perlu dipertanyakan lagi deh. Nunggu di bioskop bakalan gak jelas kapan, secara butleg ori udah mendarat di rumah. So excited!

Inti cerita beneran kurang penting. Sekeping CD yang ditemukan di sebuah gym dijadikan Linda dan Chad untuk memeras mantan analis CIA. Hanya karena ambisi mau dapat uang yang gak seberapa dan obsesi untuk plastic surgery, semuanya jadi kacau.

BURN AFTER WATCHING??

Hmmm… hampir sih. Mungkin film ini diperuntukkan untuk menjadi lucu. Tapi gak berhasil bikin saya tertawa. Cuma bangkunya Harry Pfarer (George Clooney) aja yang bikin saya kaget dan ketawa.

Ide cerita sih lumayan kreatif. Model film dengan banyak plot dan akhirnya nyambung di penghabisan. Peristiwa demi peristiwa sangat wajar dan beneran bisa kejadian dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Tapi kenapa, IMHO, agak boring ya?

Castingnya memang yang paling menarik. George Clooney, Brad Pitt, John Malkovich, Richard Jenkins, Frances McDormand, dan Tilda Swinton. Semua aktingnya standar. Yang paling menghibur adalah Brad Pitt, gayanya agak lebay dan norak.

Satu yang patut saya puji adalah endingnya. Cukup mengejutkan.

Satisfaction rate: 65%

Traitor

Bukan tipe film favorit saya. Bahkan ketika ada beberapa teman bilang, The Kingdom adalah film yang cukup bagus, saya masih belum bisa setuju. Temanya sensitif, not my style. Terlalu penindasan agama Islam dan pembenaran semua aksinya Amerika.

Awalnya hanya tertarik sama Don Cheadle. Jadilah saya nonton…

Tema film masih kurang lebih sama dengan film-film sejenisnya. Teroris, FBI, bom bunuh diri, dll. Yang membedakan, di sini memperlihatkan kedua sisi, tidak hanya Amerika, tapi juga sisi para so-called teroris ini. Bagaimana terjadinya, apa motivasi dan seperti apa gerakan mereka. Tidak hanya tembak-tembakan dan bom sana sini.

A very smart story for a very sensitive theme. Saya hanya bisa bengong ketika baca nama Steve Martin di deretan credit title as writer. Is it really that Steve Martin? Awesome!!

Don Cheadle, seperti biasa, bermain dengan baik. Guy Pearce juga lumayan (saya lebih suka lihat dia di sini daripada di Death Defying Acts). Tapi yang paling menarik adalah Said Taghmaoui sebagai Omar. He’s good.

WHO’S THE TRAITOR, REALLY?

Ini yang paling bagus dari film Traitor menurut saya. Dipaparkan di akhir cerita, siapa sebenarnya yang pantas disebut sebagai Traitor.

A really good explanation for the world about what Islam truly is.

Satisfaction rate: 80%

Flashbacks of A Fool

Penasaran mau nonton film ini dari bulan lalu. Secara saya juga masih dalam rangka euphoria sama Daniel Craig. Jadilah beli dvd-nya. Jadi senyum-senyum sendiri kalau ingat saya tau film ini dari E! News yang heboh dengan menayangkan adegan bugil Craig, sampai seorang teman katanya spontan berteriak, “Woooooiiii..aurat!” (hahaha… emang pengaruh ya buat dia?)

FLASHBACKS OF…

Joe Scott, aktor asal Inggris, sedang mengalami penurunan yang sebagian besar disebabkan oleh kelakuannya yang kurang menyenangkan. Frustrasi karena “dipecat” oleh agennya sendiri plus berita kematian sahabat masa kecilnya membuat Joe mengingat kembali ke masa lalunya, masa remajanya, sampai sebuah konflik yang menyebabkan ia meninggalkan kampung halamannya.

Belum pernah baca sinopsisnya, murni hanya karena penasaran sama aktornya, saya sama sekali tidak menyangka kalau film ini punya kualitas cerita yang cukup tinggi. Walaupun jalan cerita memang termasuk lamban, tapi semua berhasil dikemas dengan cukup rapi dan menarik untuk diikuti. Seingat saya tidak ada satupun scene yang membosankan. Penggambaran hubungan Joe dengan sahabat, teman dan keluarga terasa jelas, tidak ada yang timpang. Konflik yang diangkat sederhana sekaligus tragis. Peristiwa yang menjadi penyebab Joe minggat dari kampung halamannya sempat membuat saya ternganga. Wow!

Film ini memang terbilang full drama, humor hanya disisipkan sedikit saja. Sikap menyebalkan Joe Scott dewasa juga cukup menghibur. Craig plays it well.

NOT A FOOL…

Setelah menetapkan hati kalau Mr. Craig lekat dengan image James Bond, saya jadi dibuat penasaran, bagaimana dia setelah Bond movies, terlebih lagi di genre drama seperti ini. Ternyata! Daniel Craig berhasil membawakan sosok Joe Scott dengan baik. Ada sih, sedikit gaya “terlalu cool-nya” James Bond, tapi mungkin itu memang gaya bawaannya, atau memang karena tuntutan peran dia sebagai aktor. Walaupun muncul hanya sekitar 25% di sini, tapi overall, he’s good. I can somehow feel his emotion.

Flashbacks of A Fool bagi saya merupakan salah satu dari sangat sedikit film drama humanis tahun ini. Namun bagi yang berharap melihat sosok Daniel Craig di sepanjang film pasti akan kecewa, karena film ini dimonopoli dengan setting-an flashbacks –nya Joe. Kalau saya sih, gak terlalu kecewa, karena walaupun tidak banyak, Daniel Craig tetap tampil sexy with those suit, shirts, and nothing.. (huehehehe..)

A well recommended movie this year.

Satisfaction rate: 80%

quotes: Joe Scott

"I thought being brave meant that you had to take action. That to have a dream or get forward in life, you needed courage. But the only thing you need courage for is for standing still"

- joe scott (flashbacks of a fool) -

kisah tante kikir

Seperti biasa, mikrolet di sore hari memang rata-rata selalu penuh. Sore itu saya kebetuan dapat tumpangan mikrolet baru, bukan Kijang, tapi Daihatsu Grand Max. Jauh lebih luas.

Duduk di deretan bangku 4 orang yang memang hanya tinggal untuk 1 orang, saya terpaksa berdempetan. Setelah saya lihat lagi, ternyata ‘tante’ di sebelah saya menolak untuk bergeser dan merapat ke mas-mas di sebalahnya.

Duh..

Well, berkat U2 dan Robbie Williams yang selalu menemani di HP Walkman saya, jadi gak terlalu saya hiraukan si ‘tante’ itu. Tapi gak lama saya duduk, saya perhatikan…

Di depan saya. Ada ‘tante’ lain. Rambut panjang coklat pirang, agak gemuk lengkap dengan expresi jutek. Duduk di pojok belakang. Ketika ada mba’-mba’ baru masuk dan mencoba duduk, si ‘tante’ ini sama sekali gak mau bergeser! (what’s up with those ‘tante-tante’ by the way?!).

Dia duduk seenaknya, dengan posisi agak miring dan, kalau menurut saya, masih bisa muat untuk 1 orang lagi. Ketika diminta bergeser, dengan jelas dia bilang, “Sempit!! Gasar-geser!!” (ngedumel). Keukeuh, dia tetap gak mau geser.

Wow!! I mean, wow!!! Sombongnyaaa….

Fasilitas umum aja manusia gak mau berbagi, apalagi milik pribadi.

Manusia.. suka lupa. Kalau harta dan kuasa bukanlah miliknya.

Sexiest Man Alive 2008

He's a triple threat: a star who can sing, dance, and wield a weapon.

At 6 ft. 2 in., all scruff and biceps, Hugh Jackman looms large in the epic "Australia", which he says kept him "dirty 95 percent of the time" and left people stammering, "Oh ... my ... God," according to costar Nicole Kidman, who adds, "Women's jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room."

Jackman's wife of 12 years, Deborra-Lee Furness, calls his perfect form "the Body of Doom -- but I like what's inside": a romantic who sings ballads at home and makes pancakes for Oscar, 8, and Ava, 3. A hard body with a soft center -- 2008's Sexiest Man Alive sat down with PEOPLE to reveal most of his secrets.

(source: OMGNews)

One more great news this year. I mean, this is really the best year. I think I could cry!

cerdas/pintar

Percakapan sore hari:

“Gue heran deh dua orang itu, sama banget! Kenapa sih kalo dikasih masukan or dibilangin malah ngeyel terus. Kaya’ yang tau semuanya aja. Belom apa-apa udah jawab duluan”

“Ya elah, kaya’ baru kenal aje!”

“Iya sih, tapi kenapa sih begitu? Kan cape’ bedebat terus. Ato menghindar terus. Dibilang cerewetlah, bawel. Emang ngebilangin dia tiap hari? Sering juga kaga!”

“Yah..emang begitu pada”

“Maksud gue, kalo dikasih masukan sama orang, mau itu dinasihatin, dikasih saran ato bahkan diomelin, ya udah.. diem aja gitu. Diem.. iya aja. Kan beres tuh! Gak perlu cape’-cape’ bedebat. Diem aja. Kan kita gak perlu jalanin or terima semuanya. Ambil aja yang kira-kira cocok sama kita, yang gak…ya buang aja.”

“Iya.. pernah denger kan lo, istilah jangan liat siapa yang ngomong, tapi liat apa yang diomongin?”

“Iya.. bener. Walopun kadang sih emang masih susah buat jadi objektif..hehehe.. Kalo gue sih cape’ banget ngelawan sama argument, kecuali kalo emang omongan dia plek-plek salah. Tapi begitu juga paling gue tinggal aja orangnya”

“Ya itulah.. orang kaya’ mereka tuh yang dibilang orang pinter. Tau gak lo, orang pinter akademis. Kebanyakan ilmu pengetahuan di kepalanya. Jadi berasa tau semuanya”

“Iya, bener banget lo”

“Beda sama orang cerdas. Kalo cerdas, dia gak bakal langsung meng-argumentasikan apa yang diterima. Bakal diserap dulu”

“Iya, bener! Cerdas itu lebih bisa menghadapi macem-macem karakter orang. Ambil apa yang bagus, buang apa yang jelek. Bukan mutlak nolak apa yang masuk.”

“Nah, ya itulah… makanya gue pikir, mendingan jadi orang cerdas, daripada orang pinter”

(ada benernya juga pemikiran adik saya itu)

robbie's other update

British pop singer Robbie Williams is working on a new album, his manager said.

Tim Clark earlier this year was quoted as saying the singer wouldn't deliver a new CD to his record label EMI because he was uncertain how the company's new owners would market the album.

However, Clark has since told the BBC a new CD could be released as early as next year.

It will be Williams' first since "Rudebox" dropped in 2006.

"I would certainly hope that a new album will be coming next year. There are never any guarantees but that's what we would hope," Clark told the BBC. "He's been writing and we heard some wonderful stuff. I was with Robbie last week. He was at home and he was writing songs and he played some of them to us. He's in very fine spirits, in very fine form and I think what he's doing sounds really wonderful."

(source: upi.com)

This is like the best news I heard all year long!! (well, besides the the Downey news..)

robbie's update

33-year-old, Robbie Williams, has admitted himself in to a US rehab clinic. A brief statement was released reporting that, "Robbie Williams has...been admitted into a treatment centre in America for his dependency on prescription drugs."

The singer of such hits as Angels, Rudebox and Come Undone has reportedley developed an addiction to anti-depressants since giving up drinking and cocaine over five years ago.

(source: webwombat)

Wow! He really needs to go back to sing and perform and entertain! 'Cos I think that's what his soul is fulfilled with.. get well, rob!

entertainer of the year 2008 - part 5

It's a testament to Iron Man's success that Holmes is not being played by somebody like Daniel Radcliffe or Shia LaBeouf or even Michael Cera (although Jonah Hill would have made a pretty good Watson). When director Guy Ritchie first came aboard, right after finishing RocknRolla, he was thinking of a much younger Holmes. ''Guy wanted to do more of an origin story, which would have made me age-inappropriate,'' says Downey. But Iron Man's box office demonstrated with inescapable Holmesian logic that a middle-aged movie star could indeed fill theater seats. Well, this middle-aged one anyway.

Not that there won't be plenty of other reasons to see Sherlock Holmes when it opens in November 2009 — Jude Law's turn as Dr. Watson, Rachel McAdams as Holmes' feisty love interest — but Downey will undoubtedly be the main draw for most moviegoers. It's an even safer bet that they'll line up for Iron Man 2, which the actor starts shooting this March for an April 2010 release. After that, he'll play Stark again, this time in The Avengers, a synergistic superhero ensemble project Marvel Comics has in the pipeline for summer 2011. At one point, Downey was even thinking of squeezing in a memoir — ''I banged out a couple of things, which I found cathartic'' — but ultimately he decided not to go there, or anywhere else that might be deemed self-indulgent. ''Beware the passion project,'' he says, talking about the peculiar movies stars often make when they get a little clout. ''It's so predictable: 'Now that I have a hit, I can tell that story about the transsexual horse whisperer!'''

At the rate he's racking them up, Downey could probably get away with a transsexual-horse-whisperer trilogy. Just now, though, he's got his hands full with Mr. Holmes. ''We still haven't figured out what sort of hat he should wear,'' he says. ''Guy Ritchie was hell-bent on me wearing a bowler, but it was more Chaplin than Sherlock Holmes.'' Downey is still teasing out the character, feeling for his shape, and perfecting the accent. ''There's a lot of pressure because of the kudos I got for my voice in Tropic Thunder,'' he says (indeed, there's even talk of a possible long-shot Oscar nomination for his supporting role). He also had to whip himself into shape for the part — Holmes needed to be ripped and buff for today's topless boxing exhibition — while keeping up with his regular holistic regimen of natural tonics and potions. Even here, on the set of Sherlock Holmes, he manages a constant dosage. An assistant holding a black box full of bottles and baggies is always hovering nearby, like a Secret Service agent with the nuclear-code briefcase.

''Oh, they work,'' Downey insists, popping another supplement. ''They definitely work. I'm alive, aren't I? What more proof could you want?''

(source: Entertainment Weekly, by Benjamin Svetkey)

entertainer of the year 2008 - part 4

Downey, though, saw Tropic Thunder as a blissful getaway. ''Ben Stiller saved me from the ghastly fate of a crash after shooting Iron Man,'' he says. ''The waiting around, the expectations, the not knowing how it was going to come out.'' There were other distractions as well. While shooting in Hawaii, Downey got a visit from British filmmaker Joe Wright, who pitched him the part of Steve Lopez, the newspaper columnist who tries to help a homeless Juilliard dropout. ''Joe shows up in Kauai, in the middle of the jungle, wearing a trilby hat,'' Downey recalls, ''and he tells me this story about friendship and faith. All of a sudden I start feeling all my old theater heartstrings being pulled. Before Joe left the island, I knew I'd be doing The Soloist.'' Downey started work on the film in early 2008, after he returned from making Tropic Thunderin Hawaii.

As it turned out, Downey didn't have to worry about Iron Man at all. Its $98.6 million May 2 opening weekend made it the biggest superhero franchise launch since Spider-Man. Downey grins when he remembers the night his numbers came in. ''It's Friday evening, and we're all in a side room at a restaurant in Santa Monica,'' he says. ''And every few minutes the estimates go up. 'The estimate is now 77! The estimate is now 87! The estimate is now 100!' And I'm going crazy because I've had 25 Cokes and three cappuccinos. I'm like, 'Come on, give me another lucky seven! Give me money!''' The euphoria didn't end there. ''About 10 days later, Jon Favreau and I were invited to this dinner with [Paramount CEO] Brad Grey and all these assorted heavyweights,'' Downey continues. ''Jon and I give each other a look, like we were made men or something. Iron Man hadput us in the game.''

IT'S A NIPPY SUNDAY morning at an old shipyard-turned-museum about an hour outside London. An ancient torch-lit tavern has been outfitted with a 19th-century boxing ring, where Downey has been shooting a scene in which he shows off Sherlock Holmes' pugilistic expertise. Judging from the footage playing on the monitor — the shirtless star trading slo-mo blows with a hulking brute twice his size — Downey's version of the detective won't be spending much time puffing a pipe or examining stuff with a magnifying glass. No, this Sherlock has kung fu moves. ''In Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, there are references to the fact that Holmes practiced martial arts,'' notes Downey, wincing while watching the action on the monitor. ''In the books, there's a physical side to the character. So we're just extrapolating from the original material.''

entertainer of the year 2008 - part 3

Sitting down for a conversation with Downey is a little like that scene in Iron Man when Tony Stark slips into his jet-powered boots for the first time. It zooms wildly all over the place, veering from a discussion about whether he should have grown a mustache for Sherlock HolmesIron Man comic books (''If you ask me, Tony Stark looked like Schneider from One Day at a Time''). It can be a bumpy, if thrilling, ride. (''I tried, but everyone thought I looked like Super Mario'') to his first impressions of the Iron Man comic books (''If you ask me, Tony Stark looked like Schneider from One Day at a Time''). It can be a bumpy, if thrilling, ride.

When the talk lands on his career, he reveals that he had hoped for an earlier comeback, with Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, a savvy, twisty 2005 crime caper costarring Val Kilmer that never found an audience. ''It was going to be my coming-out party, my emergence into 21st-century cinema,'' Downey says, laughing. ''When it tanked, I was heartbroken.'' On the bright side, it did get noticed by director Jon Favreau, who happened to be looking for an actor to play a certain weapons-manufacturing magnate with a thing for Black Sabbath. Downey wanted Iron Man so badly he spent three weeks compulsively rehearsing every conceivable line reading for his audition. ''I had amendments and ancillaries and pop-ups for every part of the scene — if it went off in one direction I could add A, B, or C. It was madness,'' he says, ''but also the most positively reinforced ritual I've ever performed. If Aleister Crowley had a younger brother — it was that type of s---.''

Nabbing the part of the heavy metal fellow was only the beginning of Downey's karmic turnaround. Just before he started shooting Iron Man in March 2007, Stiller — who says he was looking for a ''real actor'' for the part, not a ''comedy guy'' — offered him the role in Tropic Thunder of Kirk Lazarus, an Australian Method actor who undergoes pigment alteration so that he can play an African-American soldier in a big Hollywood blockbuster about Vietnam (''I'm the dude playing the dude disguised as another dude,'' Downey says, quoting a line from the film). The part was so loopy and potentially tasteless — blackface remains the third rail of American comedy — he couldn't resist; he flew to Hawaii to start shooting it in July 2007, two weeks after finishing production on Iron Man. ''It took a lot of courage,'' Stiller says of Downey's dedication to the role. ''I mean, think about it. He had to come to the set every day in full black makeup and play this over-the-top character. Most of the crew hadn't read the script. Nobody knew what was going on. And here comes this white guy in blackface doing the Jeffersons theme song.''

entertainer of the year 2008 - part 2

Let's just say the '90s weren't Robert Downey Jr.'s decade. He drove naked down Sunset Boulevard, throwing imaginary rats out his car window. He got arrested for trespassing when he mistakenly wandered into a neighbor's house and passed out in the kid's bedroom. He served nearly a year in a California state prison for drug possession, and then did eight months on Ally McBeal, until he got booted from the show after he got busted a couple more times, once in a hotel room in Palm Springs with cocaine and a Wonder Woman costume.

Yet here he is today, on this drizzly October afternoon, padding around a Mayfair mansion so fancy it's got a swimming pool — no joke — in the kitchen. ''Nice, huh?'' Downey says, pausing at the architectural oddity during a tour of his digs. ''I could put a couple of folding cots in here and I'd be all set. That's all I'd need. I could live in the kitchen.'' He's lived in worse. But since court-ordered drug treatment in 2001 — and his marriage to producer Susan Levin in 2005 — Downey has kept ''the bad dog,'' as he refers to his darker side, on a short leash. ''It's not about placating the bad dog — it's about feeding the good dog,'' he says of the struggle. ''You still have to feed the bad dog, but only enough so that the ASPCA doesn't bring you up on charges.''

These days, Downey's drug use is limited to nicotine, along with the brain boosters and other macrobiotic concoctions cluttering his coffee table. But you can still see Downey unleash all his canine energy — not to mention puppy-dog charm — on the screen, even when playing the sorts of roles that don't normally require more from an actor than looking fine in a crime-fighting costume. ''Why did people go see Iron Man?'' asks Downey's Soloist costar Jamie Foxx. ''They went to see Iron Man because Robert Downey Jr. was in it. That's why I went. I saw it at a screening in Beverly Hills. I was sitting next to Warren Beatty, and Warren leaned over and said, 'I've known Downey since he was a kid.' People in this town are really rooting for this guy. Not just because they like him, but because he's great as an actor.''

entertainer of the year 2008 - part 1

There are enough organic potions and natural remedies on Robert Downey Jr.'s coffee table to stock an aisle at Whole Foods. Shriveled, rooty-looking things in Ziploc bags. Jars filled with herbal pills as big as bullets. He's sitting cross-legged on the floor next to all of these unusual items in the living room of the London townhouse he's been renting while shooting his latest movie, an elementary detective story called Sherlock Holmes. It's 2 o'clock in the afternoon, but with his hair in full bedhead bloom, Downey looks like he could use a pick-me-up. He reaches for a bottle and shakes a dozen gelcaps into his palm, then stuffs them into his mouth. ''Brain formula,'' he mumbles as he gulps them down.

They must be working. This year, thanks to a series of clever choices, Downey has pulled off one of the smartest second acts in recent showbiz history. After doing just about everything humanly possible to destroy a once-promising career — including spending the better part of a decade in courtrooms and even jail cells — he's finally fulfilling his potential. He's become a movie star. At 43. For starters, he's at the red-hot center of a humongous new action franchise, Iron Man, which has grossed more than half a billion dollars worldwide since opening last May. He followed that in August by doing something few actors have dared since Jolson — blackface — in the Ben Stiller comedy Tropic Thunder, which grossed $110 million. Next spring, he'll be costarring with Jamie Foxx in The Soloist, Atonement director Joe Wright's drama about a journalist who befriends a homeless musical genius he finds pushing a shopping cart around L.A. (Downey's performance was starting to generate Oscar buzz — the most since his nomination for Chaplin in 1993 — but then The Soloist was moved from its November release date to next April.) And now, here in London, there's Warner Bros.' latest franchise launch Sherlock Holmes Guy getting divorced from Madonna — which Downey just started shooting two weeks ago. — directed by that

''Why am I having this year?'' he ponders, chasing down the formula with a swig of mineral water. ''To tell you the truth, I haven't fully digested what's happened to me before, during, and after Iron Man. Tropic Thunder seems like it happened 25 minutes ago. Time is not entirely linear. It's all so associative. If Ben Stiller called me today and said we needed to shoot more scenes, I'd get my jacket and go. But I do know that I don't want to waste any more time. That's why I'm putting my nose to the grindstone. That's why I'm cranking them out.''

The Quantum continuous

After the re-watch of Quantum of Solace, I’ve learned that:

- This is the coolest action movie of 2008
- The original soundtrack “another way to die” is also cool
- Is that bald old man with newspaper in the hotel really Sean Connery??
- The coolest part is the Quantum meeting in the Tosca Opera
- Daniel Craig’s tailor, Tom Ford, should definitely get an award!!
- No spoiler picture after credit title, only a direct sentence: “James Bond Will Return" (well, that's obvious)

Beverly Hills Chihuahua

Bela-belain pagi-pagi cabut ke Senci untuk memenuhi undangan nonton. Gak biasanya saya mau nonton film dengan model seperti ini. Hanya karena penasaran, it’s Andy Garcia as a… dog.

CHIHUAHUA!!

Chloe adalah seekor anjing Chihuahua produksi Beverly Hills (baca: lahir di sana, diadopsi oleh orang kaya di sana, selalu dilengkapi dengan fashion style). Selama kepergian pemiliknya, Vivian, Chloe dititipkan ke Rachel, keponakan Vivian, yang kemudian memboyong Chloe ke Mexico dalam rangka berlibur. Di Negara inilah Chloe menghilang dan sempat diculik oleh sebuah komplotan yang bertujuan untuk mengadu anjing. Dibantu oleh Delgado, Chloe melarikan diri dan mengalami berbagai petualangan di Mexico.

WOOF!!

Bukan pertama kalinya Disney memproduksi film dengan tema binatang yang bisa berbicara. Kali ini Disney mengagkat tema anjing Chihuahua, yang memang sangat booming di Hollywood nun jauh di sana. Hollywood stars carrying their small dogs, it’s so typical, right? Remind us of Paris Hilton dan kawan-kawannya yang sejenis gak sih?

Dari segi humor, bolehlah.. Saya sempat terbahak di beberapa scene. Lucu juga, karena saya membayangkan si Andy Garcia-nya sendiri, yang biasanya sok-sok jadi mafia or gangster or apalah yang cool, sekarang diminta menyuarai Delgado, seekor German Shepherd senior mantan K9 yang udah mulai ogah-ogahan.

George Lopez juga berhasil mebawakan sosok Papi, seekor anjing jantan Chihuahua yang cinta mati sama Chloe. Drew Barrymore as Chloe, biasa aja.. suara-suara sok manja gitu deh.

Cerita standar, nothing special. Memang tujuan utama adalah nilai persahabatan, dan yang penting happy ending. Well, it’s Disney.

Satisfaction Rate: 60%

Ps: nonton di Senci theatre 4, GAK OK! Gambar gak focus kadang bikin pusing..!
Juga thanks buat Mr. Palus Liem.