Welcome to Smellyland☆～

Thursday, July 31, 2008 , 2:16 PM

Why so serious?

Yeppers finally caught The Dark Knight last night. And I've gotta say can anyone ever triumph Heath Ledger as the Joker? Honestly, I cannot lie, Heath Ledger's sudden death shortly after filming TDK gave me that extra push to catch the movie. I mean it always works the same right, take Vincent Van Gogh (and many other great artists/artistes/authors/musicians/composers) for instance, his works only came into the limelight in the final 2 years of his life during which he so notoriously cut off his left ear and eventually his suicide. Human curiosity can be quite twisted, eh?

The funny thing's when I first got wind of Heath Ledger's abrupt death (allegedly an accidental overdose of prescription drugs, I think it was most prolly drugs to help him sleep since he confided that he had some trouble sleeping after TDK), I just felt a little sympathetic. I know he was banded into the "sexiest men list" along with Jude Law and Johnny Depp. I was prolly too drawn to Johnny Depp after watching the movie "From Hell" to notice Heath Ledger then and boy oh boy, I so regret it now! Well, better late than never. :) Now that I watched TDK, I truly think Ledger's death is a waste, and without a doubt a huge blow to the film industry.

I've watched the 1989 version Batman with Jack Nicholson as the Joker, but comparing the two Jokers (the 2 films along with it), Heath Ledger and TDK pwns. Jack Nicholson is a brilliant actor especially with his signature dark and psychotic roles, but I felt that Heath Ledger's version was a lot less Hollywoody (less commercialised), more artistic, darker with a slight tinge of sadness (I felt sad for the Joker when I watched TDK), and oh you gotta love his twisted humor. He captured the essence of the Joker really, really well, the subtle details like how he licks the corner of his lips (there's something eerily twisted about it), and his deliberate melted makeup, his laughter, his sick, twisted and cheeky voice, just listen to that subtle change in tone of voice in different situations! I am all for a posthumous Oscar award, for me his acting triumphs his untimely and sensationalised death.

With Heath Ledger's passing, Johnny Depp's my ONLY candidate for the next Joker. And I'd be absolutely thrilled if there'll be a Harley Quinn (or as I like to call her, the Jester Girl aka Joker's partner in crime who's also in love with him) in the next Batman film. I have an actress in mind for portraying the perfect Jester Girl, and it's none other than Helena Bonham Carter, yep the very same actress who played Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd, Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Charlie's mum in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory among many others. The Joker and Harley Quinn are 2 of my favorite characters (after watching the Batman cartoon as a kid) so it'll be a dream come true if Harley Quinn's introduced in the next Batman film!!!

The perfect Harley Quinn

I love the Batman's voice too, super low=super sexy. Haha I do not have a voice fetish mind you. :D I can't help but gush over how hot he is (yeah Bimbo moment~) when he's riding on his Batpod/motorcycle with his cape flying along with the wind, HAWT HAWT HAWT! I love it when Lt James Gordon says "Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now...and so we'll hunt him, because he can take it. Because he's not a hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector...a dark knight" as Batman rides away on his Batmotor through Gotham's dark alley after saving Gordon's son and deciding to take the rap for all the deaths and covering up for Harvey Dent (aka the White Knight).

I like the title "White Knight", plays very well on the idea that the White Knight is scarier than the Dark Knight in the sense that the good has the potential to be corrupted, to turn bad, and that was just what happened to Harvey Dent in his maniac attempt to avenge Rachel's death.

I kinda like the idea of Harvey Dent aka the White Knight aka Twoface and the coin (chance) too! And how he thinks nothing except chance is fair, and he took it to a whole new level after Rachel's death where he decided the fate of his victims by flipping his coin.

There's this scene in the movie which really hit me, the Joker did a "social experiment" where there were 2 ferries, one was loaded with civilians and the other was loaded with criminals and he gave each of the ferry a remote control detonator, so each of them will have to decide who's gonna live, with a short amount of time to make the decision. If the civilians choose to detonate the bomb then the criminal ship will die and vice versa. And trust me I was awaiting with bated breath as one of the criminals stepped up to a police officer and told him something along the lines of "Give me the detonator and I'll do it for you, you don't know how to kill people, just give me the remote and I'll do it" in a low and calm voice (amplifying the tension even better), then he took it from the police officer and actually threw it out the window! How freaking noble!!! There was one guy on the civilian ferry and he also volunteered to do the dirty job as time was running out, but he can't put himself to it eventually and both ferries survived it. So sweet right! I guess there's humanity left in Gotham afterall.

Kudos to the Joker, the "agent of chaos" has such creative ways to bring chaos and destruction to Gotham City, love how he doesn't do it for money (my heart was aching when he burnt that literally, mountain of money la!), he really is one up against the ordinary criminals, heck he even make them look like saints man. You gotta give credit to the actors and definitely to the scriptwriters, the dialogue's simply loaded with wit, dark humor and all sadistic and twisted goodness that is the Joker. It truly is an amazingly clever script, there was so much more depth in TDK than Tim Burton's 1989 Batman. Love, love, love it! I gotta get the DVD once it's out. And I'm giving it 4.5 popcorns, if only I could see Harley Quinn in the movie then it'll be simply perfect, ha ha ha *joker style*.

Here're some of my favorite quotes in The Dark Knight, enjoy~

The Joker: Come here. Hey! Look at me. So I had a wife, beautiful, like you, who tells me I worry too much. Who tells me I ought to smile more. Who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks... look at me! One day, they carve her face. And we have no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again, hmm? I just want her to know that I don't care about the scars. So... I stick a razor in my mouth and do this... [mimics slicing his mouth open with his tongue]
The Joker: ...to myself. And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves. Now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling! [Rachel knees the Joker in the groin; he meerly laughs it off]
...........................................................................

The Joker: [to police officer] Do you wanna know why I use a knife? Guns are too quick. You can't savor all the...little..emotions. And..you see..in their last moments...people show you who they really are. So, in a way, I know your friends better than you ever did. Would you like to know which of them were cowards?
...........................................................................

The Joker: I took Gotham's white knight, and brought him down to our level. It wasn't hard. Y'see, madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little...push. [laughs] ...........................................................................

The Joker: The only sensible way to live in this world is without rules! ...........................................................................

The Joker: [holding a knife inside Gambol's mouth] Wanna know how I got these scars? My father was....a drinker. And a fiend. And one night he goes off crazier than usual. Mommy gets the kitchen knife to defend herself. He doesn't like that. Not. One. Bit. So, me watching, he takes the knife to her, laughing while he does it. Turns to me and he says "Why so serious?" Comes at me with the knife,"Why so serious?" He sticks the blade in my mouth. "Let’s put a smile on that face!" And..... Why so serious? ...........................................................................

The Joker: You see, nobody panics when things go according to plan. Even if the plan is horrifying. If I told people that a gangbanger was going to get shot, or a busload of soldiers was going to get blown up, nobody would panic. Because it's all part of the plan. But tell people that one tiny little mayor is going to die and everyone loses their minds! ...........................................................................

The Joker: If you're good at something, never do it for free.
...........................................................................
The Joker: You just couldn't let me go could you? This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. You truly are incorruptible aren't you? You won't kill me out of some misplaced sense of self-righteousness, and I won't kill you, because you're just too much fun. I think you and I are destined to do this forever. ...........................................................................
Harvey Dent: You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. ...........................................................................

Alfred Pennyworth: When I was in Burma, a long time ago, my friends and I were working for the local Government. They were trying to buy the loyalty of tribal leaders, bribing them with precious stones. But their caravans were being raided in a forest north of Rangoon by a bandit. We were asked to take care of the problem, so we started looking for the stones. But after six months, we couldn't find anyone who had traded with him. One day I found a child playing with a ruby as big as a tangerine. The bandit had been throwing the stones away.
Bruce Wayne: Then why steal them?
Alfred Pennyworth: Because he thought it was good sport. Because some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.
...........................................................................

[Batman has just fought off Scarecrow and a group of Batman wannabes]
Batman: Don't let me find you out here again.
Brian: We're trying to help you!
Batman: I don't need help.
Brian: What gives you the right? What's the difference between you and me?
[Batman lowers himself into the Batmobile]
Batman: I'm not wearing hockey pads!
LOL!
...........................................................................

Two-Face: You thought we could be decent men at indecent times. But you were wrong; the world is cruel, and the only morality in a cruel world is chance. [holds up his coin] Two-Face: Unbiased. [looks at Gordon] Two-Face: Unprejudiced. Fair.

Sorry to burst your bubble but if you've learnt probability then you'd know even a coin isn't fair. =x ...........................................................................

And my favorite quote in TDK!!! the last line before the movie ends:
Lt. James Gordon: Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now...and so we'll hunt him, because he can take it. Because he's not a hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector...a dark knight.

I swore I teared when he narrated that lol. Awesome movie!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008 , 12:21 AM

Football: Brazilian Olympic football team to play friendly against Singapore

SINGAPORE: Brazil's star-studded football team will be in Singapore for a friendly match against Singapore's national team.

The Lions will face some of the world's best players such as Ronaldinho and Robinho in the match on July 28.

Singapore is the first of two acclimatisation stops before the Brazil team heads to Beijing for the Olympics.

The match will take place at the National Stadium.

Tickets range from $60 to $120.

The team will fly to Vietnam for the second game on July 29.

Singapore's efficiency and safety plus the country being in the same time zone as Beijing helped woo one of the world's most popular teams to its shores.

Winston Lee, general secretary of Football Association of Singapore, said: "We started negotiations with the agent in May and we had to contend with a few big countries in Asia and Europe. We are happy, of course, today to announce we have secured Brazil to play in Singapore on July 28."

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sportsnews/view/361546/1/.html

OMG! OMG! O EM EFF GEE!!! No you're not dreaming it's true the Brazilian Olympics team will be slated to play HERE IN SINGAPORE in a friendly on 28th July!!! I am going crazy! The excitement! Everything! Well, okay now that I mentioned it there's only one thing I'm not so crazy about - The ticket pricing. Tickets are going at $60 for gallery seating (adults), $120 for grandstand (adults and students). Student gallery tickets (under-16) are going for $15, but here's the catch: only 2000 tickets will be available.

Imagine seeing football superstars like RONALDINHO, ROBINHO, DIEGO, ANDERSON, ALEXANDRE PATO AND LIVERPOOL'S LUCAS LEIVA IN THE FLESH!!! 123 SCREAM!!! Ultimate madness right!!! Boy oh boy pardon the excessive '!' !!!

Here's some vital info, they'll be arriving on the sunny shores of Singapore on 23rd July and will be putting up at a hotel in the City Hall and Marina Bay area (wink wink* you know where eh? ;D). They are scheduled to having training sessions at least once a day at the National Stadium (yeah I know all of us kena cheated by the 'last' kallang roar u_u"), Bishan stadium is another alternative. So switch on stalker mode all you footie fanatics out there!!!

Man, if Justin Timberlake's responsible for bringing sexy back to the world of music, then the Brazilians are the main men bringing sexy back to the glorious world of footie. So mark these dates on your calender NOW!!! I SO WANT TO GET RONALDINHO's autograph laaaa!!!

And and and if just one piece of good news isn't enough to make your day then I've got 1 more in store! Jam Hsiao Jing Teng will be in town for his debut album's autograph session come 10th August at Suntec City Fountain of Wealth at 1.30pm!!! Finally!!! I've been waiting for this day to come since last year!!! Hahaha now I truly believe good things come in pairs!

Oh yeah and Smelly will be learning French next sem. French wine and cuisine here I come!!! Haha! Mum'll be flying off to China on an 8-day trip come 7th Aug, no homecooked meals for 8 days T_T. Fast food HERE WE COME!!! Hahaha. =x

Will be catching "The Dark Knight" this Wed/Thurs! Can't wait! XD There's this movie "Journey to the Centre of the Earth" coming out on 7th Aug! La dee da~ Wanted to watch Hancock but after that dirty joke about the movie title U_U" ahem... and with "The Dark Knight" looming, shall drop it. Heh. ;)