Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Caught the news the other day that China launched a ballistic missile into space to shoot down an aging weather satellite. Apparently, the missile managed to travelled up to 850 km and stirke the satellite precisely. After news of this test got out, the USA and others predictably issued statements about how they are against space militarilism and their fears of how an arms race to develop such weapons could be escalted. The Chinese replied that The funny thing is that before China launched the missile, the USA and the former Soviet Union were the only powers that had the capability to launch anti-satellite weapons. Now that the Cold War is over, the United States are, arugably, the only super power to have the capacity to release such weapons. Furthermore, the Space Preservation Act, which is essentially a bill to prohibit space weapons from being developed and launched into space, was introduced to the United States House of Representative 4 times, but each time, the bill died down and was not able to be implemented. So I feel that it is really quite ironic and frankly pathetic that Uncle Sam is makng a big fuss about China shooting down an aging satellite when the US itself has these weapons.
Japan and India issuing protests is quite understandable, considering the past and the ecnomic competition between them. However, I feel that this shouldn't really be an issue to them, because firstly, the most important issues facing China are domestic situations such as an overheating economy, an increasing income disparity and the development of the rural areas to catch up to he coastal cities. Furthermore, the Communist Party is also quite concerned on weeding out corruption (although that will be very hard to achieve in the foreseeable future). Environmental problems are also high on a list of concerns of the Chinese government, partly due to the coming Olympics and the high costs that come with the damage of the environment. In terms of foreign affairs, the Chinese government would be more concerned with developments in Taiwan and North Korea, and there's no reason to antagonise the Western world. An increasingly protentionist Congress, which is making an issue of the wideing trade deficit with China and pretty pissed about it, is another reason why China will not want to ruffle feathers with the USA unnecessary.
Thus, although the laest missile test by the Chinese is a sign of its military powress, it shouldn't be a major concern, as China has far more pressing issues to contend with.
Japan and India issuing protests is quite understandable, considering the past and the ecnomic competition between them. However, I feel that this shouldn't really be an issue to them, because firstly, the most important issues facing China are domestic situations such as an overheating economy, an increasing income disparity and the development of the rural areas to catch up to he coastal cities. Furthermore, the Communist Party is also quite concerned on weeding out corruption (although that will be very hard to achieve in the foreseeable future). Environmental problems are also high on a list of concerns of the Chinese government, partly due to the coming Olympics and the high costs that come with the damage of the environment. In terms of foreign affairs, the Chinese government would be more concerned with developments in Taiwan and North Korea, and there's no reason to antagonise the Western world. An increasingly protentionist Congress, which is making an issue of the wideing trade deficit with China and pretty pissed about it, is another reason why China will not want to ruffle feathers with the USA unnecessary.
Thus, although the laest missile test by the Chinese is a sign of its military powress, it shouldn't be a major concern, as China has far more pressing issues to contend with.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Thursday, January 04, 2007
i guess.... this is it....
the ending of the end...
the ending of the end...
will i regret it... maybe...
will i think about it... probably...
will it be my loss.... possibly...
but...
the coming of a new year ushers in a new start...
a new start for ya, a new start for me....
i hope that everything will turn out well in your path...
...all the time...
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Went to watch 2 movies last week. One of them was Confession of Pain, while the other was Curse of the Golden Flower.
Confession of Pain
Actually wanted to catch Night at the Museum with Roy but tickets were sold out. Since we were already there, we decided to catch this show instead., and luckily, we did not regret it.
This show is a crime thriller, starring Takeshi Kaneshiro and Tony Leung. Takeshi Kaneshiro is an alcoholic private detective, who is still coming to terms with the suicide of his wife some years back, while Tony Leung plays a police officer with the homicide department, who is married to a rich man’s daughter.
The movie starts with Takeshi Kaneshiro returning home after arresting a serial rapist with Tony Leung, only to find that his wife had committed suicide. To make things worse, it was found out that his wife actually had an abortion earlier. Devastated, Takeshi Kaneshiro turned to alcohol (he hated alcohol before) to drown his sorrows. Some years later, Tony Leung (his best friend) got married to a rich man’s daughter. However, the rich man was murdered shortly later and the daughter hired Takeshi to find out the actual cause of the murder, and this is where the movie really kicks off.
It is actually revealed early in the movie that Tong Leung is the killer. What this movie really explores is the motive behind the murders and how Takeshi goes on to solve them. It is a bit weird to see Tong Leung acting as a villain, but he does a really good job. There is a particular scene where he turned scary with murderous intent when Takeshi hinted indirectly that he might be involved in the case. Takeshi, as an alcoholic detective, can always be depended on turning in a good performance. In any case, one can’t really criticise his performance since he always look good in the movies he acts.
This movie explores the theme of revenge and if it really brings satisfaction to those seeking it. With the sad turn of events in the film, it appears that sometimes, it’s better to forgive and forget.
I find that this movie is really good, as both the lead actors are really in their elements here. The supporting cast also puts in a credible performance, especially Chapman To, who can always be counted on draw out the laughers. There is this particular line in the movie that I like personally: "知道为什么酒好喝吗？因为它很难喝…"
Curse of the Golden Flower
Caught this film at Vivo City with Joseph after accompanying him for his TV shopping trip.
Starring Chow Yun Fatt, Gong Li and Jay Chou, this movie is set in the Later Tang Dynasty, during the chaotic 5 Dynasties, 10 Kingdoms period in ancient China. The movie is adapted from Cao Yu’s famous play Thunderstorm (雷雨). All I can say is that the royal family is the most dysfunctional family that I have seen. Chow Yun Fatt, who plays the strict and manipulative emperor, is absolutely superb. Gong Li as the long suffering empress is also quite sick somewhat considering that she had an affair with her stepson, who is the emperor’s first born child by another woman. The Crown Prince, being disgusted by the affair with his step mum, finds true love with the Imperial Doctor’s daughter, who incidentally is the daughter of the Emperor’s first wife, who didn’t die after being put in prison by the Emperor in his pursuit of power, but was saved by the Imperial doctor and married him, which means, the Crown Prince and the daughter are step siblings!! Whew.. that was a mouthful…
Anyway, as this is a Zhang Yimou movie, strong colours are always expected to play a strong part in the movie, and it didn’t disappoint in this aspect. The settings are marvellous and the costumes are a marvel to look at (although the amount of breasts power in the film was a little too much to stomach, even for a normal man like me).
I left the theatre feeling quite sad, as the movie is quite tragic and the ending music is also quite touching. This is a really really good film and an absolute must-see for anyone out there.
It is quite rare for me to be seeing 2 Chinese movies within a short period of time, but I am glad that I’ve managed to catch these 2 good movies!
Confession of Pain
Actually wanted to catch Night at the Museum with Roy but tickets were sold out. Since we were already there, we decided to catch this show instead., and luckily, we did not regret it.
This show is a crime thriller, starring Takeshi Kaneshiro and Tony Leung. Takeshi Kaneshiro is an alcoholic private detective, who is still coming to terms with the suicide of his wife some years back, while Tony Leung plays a police officer with the homicide department, who is married to a rich man’s daughter.
The movie starts with Takeshi Kaneshiro returning home after arresting a serial rapist with Tony Leung, only to find that his wife had committed suicide. To make things worse, it was found out that his wife actually had an abortion earlier. Devastated, Takeshi Kaneshiro turned to alcohol (he hated alcohol before) to drown his sorrows. Some years later, Tony Leung (his best friend) got married to a rich man’s daughter. However, the rich man was murdered shortly later and the daughter hired Takeshi to find out the actual cause of the murder, and this is where the movie really kicks off.
It is actually revealed early in the movie that Tong Leung is the killer. What this movie really explores is the motive behind the murders and how Takeshi goes on to solve them. It is a bit weird to see Tong Leung acting as a villain, but he does a really good job. There is a particular scene where he turned scary with murderous intent when Takeshi hinted indirectly that he might be involved in the case. Takeshi, as an alcoholic detective, can always be depended on turning in a good performance. In any case, one can’t really criticise his performance since he always look good in the movies he acts.
This movie explores the theme of revenge and if it really brings satisfaction to those seeking it. With the sad turn of events in the film, it appears that sometimes, it’s better to forgive and forget.
I find that this movie is really good, as both the lead actors are really in their elements here. The supporting cast also puts in a credible performance, especially Chapman To, who can always be counted on draw out the laughers. There is this particular line in the movie that I like personally: "知道为什么酒好喝吗？因为它很难喝…"
Curse of the Golden Flower
Caught this film at Vivo City with Joseph after accompanying him for his TV shopping trip.
Starring Chow Yun Fatt, Gong Li and Jay Chou, this movie is set in the Later Tang Dynasty, during the chaotic 5 Dynasties, 10 Kingdoms period in ancient China. The movie is adapted from Cao Yu’s famous play Thunderstorm (雷雨). All I can say is that the royal family is the most dysfunctional family that I have seen. Chow Yun Fatt, who plays the strict and manipulative emperor, is absolutely superb. Gong Li as the long suffering empress is also quite sick somewhat considering that she had an affair with her stepson, who is the emperor’s first born child by another woman. The Crown Prince, being disgusted by the affair with his step mum, finds true love with the Imperial Doctor’s daughter, who incidentally is the daughter of the Emperor’s first wife, who didn’t die after being put in prison by the Emperor in his pursuit of power, but was saved by the Imperial doctor and married him, which means, the Crown Prince and the daughter are step siblings!! Whew.. that was a mouthful…
Anyway, as this is a Zhang Yimou movie, strong colours are always expected to play a strong part in the movie, and it didn’t disappoint in this aspect. The settings are marvellous and the costumes are a marvel to look at (although the amount of breasts power in the film was a little too much to stomach, even for a normal man like me).
I left the theatre feeling quite sad, as the movie is quite tragic and the ending music is also quite touching. This is a really really good film and an absolute must-see for anyone out there.
It is quite rare for me to be seeing 2 Chinese movies within a short period of time, but I am glad that I’ve managed to catch these 2 good movies!
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