• Turn Left, Turn Right •

“Beauty is such a certainty, but uncertainty is more beautiful”

Turn Right Turn Left, a movie directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai.

I was intrigued as soon as I saw the title when it came up on the screen. I didn't know what to expect since I don't usually watch Asian rom-coms or any other genre in general. But as soon as we'd finished, I was happy, disappointed and relieved that I actually watched the film. It was, hands down, the most frustrating movie I have ever took the time to tune in to. 

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

It was frustrating to me because the antagonists were annoying and if only John (763092) and Eve (784533) had opened their eyes, then they could have been together (dating) from the very start. But of course, there wouldn't be any thrill or at this point: a movie, right? 

Their fate was written in the stars. It was clear: they were meant to be together. They were both at the same place at the same time but they just weren't looking. It was amazing. 

This movie made me believe that everyone was meant for a someone and all it takes is perfect timing. Also, it lead me to believe that there is somebody out there, patient enough to wait to get to know you, see you and have you. That in a world of 7,432,663,275 people, there still remain passionate and hopeful people existing. 

I was put off by the ending, though. It was open-ended and by that moment when the cameras focused on to their umbrellas, it was finished. We didn't find out whether John went to U.K. or if Eve went to Poland (or somewhere in Europe). Imagine, after all this time, they couldn't have been in each other's embrace if it weren't for the earthquake. What a fortunate hour for a calamity to occur. 

I have mixed emotions about the movie. 

I liked it.

I hated it. 

but

I enjoyed it.

• SEMINAR: Philippine Media and the Millenials •

02/09/2016. We were called early to the Auditorium for a seminar in GRAMCOMM. All the English Professors were there and we had our PUBSPE 1 there as well.

We were asked to take notes so we did. And that we should listen closely for there was an upcoming quiz about the content in said seminar so I listened.

Credits to the Photo-taker (I did not take this photo)

Our host for the day was a UP Los Banos graduate, a former executive Producer and Editor-in-Chief of subselfie.com. His name was Toni Tiemsin.

And he taught us about us, millenials, are living in the "Me, me, me generation". I could not deny as it is true. We did live in a self-centered society whose first impulse was to take photos in the most bad situations.




Person 1: OH, WHAT'S THAT?!?
Person 2: Where?
Person 1: THAT HOUSE IS BURNING!!!
Person 2: Hold on, let me take a selfie.*snaps*

Galaxy Quest (1999)
I feel your pain, Alan. 

Not only have we been vain but we are blinded by the lies the Media has been feeding us. 

The host used to work for a local TV Network (which was awesome) and so he knew what was going inside the concrete walls of the newsroom. He had told us that no matter how a story was important, so much so that the world needed to hear, if the big guy in the big chair says it doesn't go, it doesn't go. Instead, they put up stupid stories that were only good for a day and move on on the next day.

Anchorman (2004)

He, Toni Tiemsin, had a goal. And that was to make the world aware of what's really happening around us. And so that is why he and some colleagues had thought of making a blog site. And it's no ordinary blog site, too, it features the happening around the world, many of which were not aired on local news programs. Amazing, right? How up to this day we continue to listen to the countless lies covered by the media. All this time, many of us were unaware.

And so he taught us a thing or two, about how we can help:

-Be better Prosumers (Producer-Consumer, if you were wondering) of Media.

-Stay well-informed and well-rounded

-Be intelligent producer-consumers

-Stay relevant

-Maintain Sensitivity

and last but not the least,

Think of your kapwa.  

 At the end of the seminar, he had most of us thinking.

 "What can I contribute to the millenials?", this thought puzzled me. And so I said to myself, if I can share posts and photos of absolute nonsense, I sure as heck can share the world's stories. 

I refuse to be like the others, I do not want to be mindless and unaware. I want to be part of the sensible.   

• Reigning Victorious •

Relieved.

Victorious.

Happy. 

It all happened on a Friday, February 05, 2016. Our section was heating up for the contest. We were in uniform. Our pink custom-made shirts with our section printed in front, "ABMA 151". With bows on our heads and hope in our hearts. We proceeded to the 12th floor Auditorium at 8:00 am. Our hearts were pounding and we couldn't wait to get things over with.

We were the first section there.

We sat in front as we were the first section of ABMA. 

Waiting, relaxing and practising in our seats. 

We were hyped for the contest. It took a little while for the other sections to arrive but it was all right. 

They came and so did the judges. 

The advisers announced that we were to commence  the program at 9:00 am. And as for the wait and entertainment, Sir Nomer Yuzon, prepared a short presentation for us. 

Singing and a slideshow of his. 

The crowd cheered as he sang. For a while we forgot about the contest. The tension. The fear. But then, it was time. The show was about to start and all the nervousness came back. The M.C. started with the contest rules and criteria, the introduction to the panel of judges and then we were called. 

We performed. 

We did our best. 

We had fun. 

It was over. 

In a flash it was all over. We performed beautifully. Then the other sections performed and did what they did. 

Victors.

Dead air. 

Proud hearts. 

Everyone performed their best. But it was time to announce the winners. In the end there only had to be three victors and we were fortunate to be part of it. 

We won 2nd place. We could not contain our excitement. We shouted, cheered and screamed as we went up the stage and back down, again. Some even joked about not having the essay we were supposed to make for another subject. The crowd was silent. I could feel the tension again. Out of all 4 sections that performed from ABMA, we were the only one included in the three winners. 

Sir Nomer announced quickly that our triumph was won unanimously. And said our score in total. 

Why? Maybe we had the same score as the other section. But the judges voted for us, fortunately.

An abundance of 151 victors. 

ABMA 151      2nd Place

CPE      151      1st Place

ECE      151      Champion

Everybody did well. CPE 151 and ECE 151 deserved to win. We cheered and were happy for them.

The contest was short but we had a hell of a time. We exited the auditorium happy with the trophy in hand. Yet another victorious moment for the section. All the hard work paid off, we were finally at peace.

It was over. It was all over. And we won. 

• PARASYTE: The Hand with the Mind of Its Own •

I'm no fan of Anime brought to life movies or Anime in its usual fashion but this movie really got me.

It reeled me in.

Caught my attention.


"Parasyte is a science fiction horror manga series written and illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki, and published in Kodansha's Afternoon magazine from 1988 to 1995."  - Wikipedia


I didn't know what to expect really, all I know was.. Ms. Elisse had taken us to the AVR room to watch a movie.

 (Keep in mind, I am not used to Anime movies so bear with me) 

At first I was kind of bothered by how the first scene in Parasyte was already a crucial point of the movie but, the thrill was there. Seeing how an alien would be able to sliver up and penetrate human skin so easily, in the midst of the night and no longer being able to wake up the next morning for you're consumed by an entity unknown to man, is horrifying. 

The "Parasyte" reminded me of the shrimp-like creature in Andy and Lana Wachowski's The Matrix. Where Neo was pinned down to have the said parasite, enter his body. Talk about brutal..

The Matrix (1999)
Directed by: Andy & Lana Wachowski

The difference was, that the worm-like in Parasyte had a mind and personality of its own. Whereas the one that entered Neo's body was more of a virus.

Shinichi Izumi, was lucky enough to have noticed the creature in his bedroom. And once again, a pair of headphones have saved another life. If it weren't for those, he would have died like the rest of the parasites' hosts. But Shinichi was lucky. I still couldn't figure out why Migi (the parasite) only got control of his hand but it was adorable. The next morning, Shinichi woke up feeling funny and his hand had a mind of its own. Then followed their adventures together. 

Parasyte - Manga Series
Written and Illustrated by: Hitoshi Iwaaki

I couldn't help but admire how they got the animated version right with the real live action version. 

Although it seemed like the scenes were all the same: a parasite kills another human, it feeds and kills again. You get reeled in because of the conflict rising. Especially when Migi was not able to complete his mission, that is, taking full control of Shinichi's body, he is now sentenced to death by fellow parasites. He and Shinichi pose as a threat to the parasitic race as they are unlike them. And how they are actually working together and co-habiting was astonishing to them.

It was a Comedy-Action with a tad of  Drama to me. But I wouldn't want to give away the whole story. All I can say is.. 

Parasyte brought me to tears. 

It was an entertaining movie although not a movie of my type, but it's pretty decent for a Manga-adaptation.

I'd give it a 6.9/10 

• Click - Copy - Paste - Send •

"Plagiarism is the "wrongful appropriation" and "stealing and publication" of  another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions" and the representation of them as one's own original work."         

                                                                             -Wikipedia

Just by missing a few quotation marks here and there or maybe forgetting to  type in whose lines were these from would make me a Plagiarist. And trust me, nobody would want to be accused or even labelled for plagiarism. Plagiarism is a big no-no in the world of academia, literature and industry. It is offensive to so many authors who have worked, and thought long and hard for whatever it is they're trying to sell. Can you imagine? Your work being published, revealed or shared to the world as someone else's. After the long hours you've spent in the office thinking, thinking and thinking just to have another line to your story, the nights you've stayed up for and the amount of caffeine you've consumed just so your eyes wouldn't let you down, in one quick flash, everything you've done were wasted. Worst case scenario, your work would expose a plagiarist to the limelight, thus, making him millions of cash all because of something he stole. 

Plagiarism is a dishonest, pathetic and dense way to success. It is a fault in which you can no longer erase if things get out of hand. So many respectable people have been found out of committing plagiarism and they all ended the same. It all reflected in their image, they were labelled and they were mocked. For some of them, it cost them their careers. Of course nobody would want to publish another book of yours after rumours are confirmed that an allegation such as this is true. For some, it cost them their dignities as they showed lowness simply just by "borrowing" and taking credit. 

Just take Tito Sotto for example: 

http://www.rappler.com/nation/15858-kennedy-to-sotto-this-is-a-clear-case-of-plagiarism

In my opinion, people who just so think of committing Plagiarism should be arrested. Or plagiaristic maybe just the celebrities. It should be crime because it is stealing. Think of all the underdogs out there who, as much as possible, do their work with honesty and hope that they would someday be discovered for their original work. So many artists, so little recognition. 

That's why it's best to always have a copy of your original work if someday you happen to post something of yours, Online. Better yet, take full credit and let your voice be heard. An artist speaking out for what is his is worthy of appreciation and recognition for his "art". 

Plagiarism is NOT cool.