STARGATE: THE ARK OF TRUTH (Movie, 2008)

Stargate trilogy....Hard to follow if not a fan of the show though. 

STARGATE: CONTINUUM (Movie, 2008)

The SG-1 series may be over, but new material keeps coming out. Stargate: Continuum is the second motion picture after the series finale. This is unlike Stargate SG-1 TV series, it is a little more self-contained and is easily accessible for me that I have never watched the series. Stargate and time travel, which are 2 fantastic concepts come together to form this motion picture. 

It's entertaining, for me as a non-SG-1 fan.

life Itself (Movie, 2018)

The rambling “Life Itself” is a multigenerational drama about the messiness of life, but the emotional impact of the movie gets lost in the messiness of its screenplay. It’s an ambitious film by Writer-director Dan Fogelman, but unfortunately, an unqualified misfire. It covers multiple generations, but all the stories (and art direction) seem thoroughly modern. 

The movie uses unreliable narration as a way to pass off poor storytelling as a feature. This movie was told in five chapters of mystifyingly uneven length. All of it leads to heartbreak, betrayal, and an entire sequence designed to make fun of a minor character who didn’t look both ways before crossing the street, and it’s all interconnected to everything that came before. 

This is a film so obsessed with death that it hasn’t bothered to give us any reason to care for the living.

Arrival (Movie, 2016)

It is more about grief, time, communication and compassion than it is warp speed, and it’s a film that asks questions. At its best, and largely through Amy Adams’ performance, the film proposes that we’ve all had those days in which communication breaks down and fear over the unknown sets in. 

Denis Villeneuve is without a doubt an upcoming director who had minimal use of computer generated images, and main focus on story, characters, acting and thrilling scenes. In Arrival there is no action, no explosions, just some amazing acting performances combined with good directing, editing and cinematography.

Happy Xmas with Mom

Red bean paste rice cake

Almond graham brittel

Xmas bouquet

This one is for Mom.

Festival of Lights, Mission Inn

https://photos.app.goo.gl/iVTZpQiJ6dEt9r5M8

A little less stress and a little more sparkle is what makes a great holiday season. That was why we decided to stay overnight at the Inn. From the 5 million lights and 200 characters, it surely got us in the holiday spirit. We even sat down at the courtyard to enjoy our dinner at the Inn with all amazing surrounding lights and figurines. This year they even had a little elf workshop in the display, adorable. 

We took the docent tour of the hotel and then visit the museum. The tour started through the exterior and had a lot of back story about the founder and the Spanish colonial impact on the architecture. The Mission Inn has a beautiful architectural design. The first wing (wood frame structure) includes the music hall, which was beautiful. Even the story about the "president's chair", that was made for President Taft, is hilarious. My group went to the Spanish Courtyard, the cathedral, the rotunda, a hotel corridor, the lobby, the plaza, and more. We even entered the wedding chapel which contains three stained glass windows from Mr. Tiffany (of Tiffany Co. fame). 

The only thing we missed was the world's largest mistletoe which was under repair. The Festival of Lights is a yearly tradition that never ceases to amaze! 

INCREDIBLES 2 (Movie, 2018)

It's impressive for a movie whose predecessor came out 14 long years ago. The new movie sees the Parr family little changed by the passing of the years, though much improved by technological advances. The family has barely aged, however, and the plot is basically the same. In the new film, superheroes are explicitly described as “illegal.”  But the Incredibles have their particular charms. These superheroes—Bob and Helen Parr, aka Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl, and their children Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack—are cast in the traditional mold of comic-book champions. 

In this second movie, the roles are reversed: Helen gets a chance to shine, while Bob tries and fails to keep the domestic machinery rolling. 

The Incredibles 2 is an undeniable triumph, but it is also so keenly aware that it becomes exhausting. 

Sony 65" 4k UHD Smart TV

Finally, it arrived! And we have a flat TV at last.

Shoka Shofutai