This year’s Xmas card is based on my comic, The Bike Messenger, and its two main protagonists against the beautiful backdrop of Caracas’ beloved mountain, El Avila. While I miss my hometown dearly during this season, I wish you all many blessings and happiness in this upcoming 2013, and may we enjoy next year, especially in the knowledge we survived yet another apocalypse.
I saw this last night and…OH MY GOD THIS WAS GOOD! Finally, an adaptation of a manga/anime into the big screen that doesn’t make you want to jump fof a bridge. Otomo Keishi, the director, did a brilliant job making sure the live action version of this beloved story stayed true to its original roots, but taking advantage of the technology of movies and the things you can do with it nowadays. The action scenes are superb – I was nervous about this particularly, as I couldn’t imagine how they could translate into live action the highly animated and sophisticated moves that Kenshin does in the anime, but Otomo nailed it, resulting in a masterpiece of swordfights that rival any kung fu movie ever made, in my humble opinion.
The actor who playes Kenshin, Takeru Satoh, really did the character justice, embodying very well his spirit and personality. He doesn’t look anything like the anime character, but I was happy about that. Clearly, talent was more important in the casting decision that whether or not he looked like Kenshin.
Kaoru was good as well (though a little less feisty than in the anime version), and the rest of the cast fit very well in the characters. They did change some things…such as the way the characters met and other details, but the changes were understandable and did not take away from the major plot, which was exactly like in the manga and anime. It’s truly an adaptation that Kenshin fans will love, because it highlights moments loved within the series, moments we all know and grew up with. My only criticism was the music…Kenshin has such an AMAZING soundtrack, why didn’t they use that? The music they created for the film didn’t seem to fit quite right, and it was placed in awkward moments. There would be a fight track playing while characters are talking or just standing. It made the scene seem strange and uncomfortable, but other than that, I give the whole film many thumbs up…finally a good movie made from a manga, to take away the bad taste Dragon Ball “Evolution” left in out mouths.
I leave you with the movie’s featured there, by Japanese Rockers One OKRock. Great theme for the ending!
A little late, but I made a manga portrait of Ze/Karakenio, editor of ZUPLEMENTO, a Venezuelan comics magazine, for his birthday recently. Feliz Cumple ZzZe
Seems I might be liking this webcomic thing…though I haven’t thought of a theme or schedule yet (I’m just drawing them as I think of an idea), but I’m enjoying it, so this might become a regular thing (hopefully!)
This entry is based on a childhood memory ~
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Parece que me esta gustando esto de hacer webcomics…aunque aún no he pensando en un tema o horario (por ahora, solo me entretiene el dibujar cuando se me ocurre una idea, pero espero que esto se vuelva algo regular).
Esta entrada esta basada en un recuerdo de mi niñez ~
Here are my pics for this year’s Hanami (flower watching), along my neighborhood, Tetsugaku no Michi (The Philosopher’s Path), in Kyoto, Japan. Please enjoy and drop me some comments!
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Aqui estan mis fotos del “Hanami” (observación de flores) de este año. Son tomadas en mi vencindario llamado “Tetsugaku no Michi” (El camino del filósofo) en Kioto, Japón. ¡Disfruren y comenten!
Via Flickr:
Hanami @ Tetsugaku no Michi (Philosopher’s Path) in Kyoto, Japan
I can see Guy Ritchie‘s hand all over this movie, and I LOVED that! The sudden slow-motion/speed up sequences, violent close-ups on thugs; faces, weapons and gritty surroundings…it was such a great way to tell the second stanza of Holmes and Watsons’s (who btw, were SO ADORABLE in this movie with their bromance!) new adventures that really hope there’s a 3rd part to this awesome experience. Also, LOVE that Noomi Rapace was in this, fierce as always.
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Puedo ver la mano de Guy Ritchie metida hasta el fondo en esta peli, y ¡me encanta! Las secuencias repentinas de cámara lenta/rápida, los close-ups violentos en las caras de los matones, armas y alrededores… una manera muy fresca y moderna de contar esta historia de época, y espero que exista una 3ra parte en las aventuras de Holmes y Watson (quienes, por cierto, estuvieron ADORABLES con su ¨bromance¨) por este mismo director. También amé que Noomi Rapace estuviera en la película, tan salvaje como siempre.
God this movie was annoying. I hated the kid. If he was going for insufferable, then he is a good actor. If he was trying to get me to symphasize with him, then he completely failed and I wish Sandra Bullock would have slapped his face off. This kid doesn’t have Asperger’s…he’s just fucking spoiled. Also, while it was a horrible thing that happened, what about the hundreds of people that have been dying in Irak 10 years since? Right…nobody cares so why make a movie about them?
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Mier…esta película fue una ladilla. Odié al niño. Si intentaba ser insoportable, entonces lo felicito porque lo logró y es buen actor. Pero si intentaba obtener mi lástima por lo que le pasó, entonces es un FAIL y Sandra Bullock debió haberle volteado la cara con una cachetada bien administrada. Y en cuanto a la temática, aunque bien es cierto que lo que sucedió ese día fue horrible e imperdonable, ¿que hay de los cientos de personas que han estado muriendo en Iraq 10 años después? Claaaro…a nadie le importa asi que ¿para qué hacerles una película?
Visually stunning and very heartfelt. It reminded me of classic English tales of tragic orphans ( a la Charles Dickens). I actually thought it was about a talking robot or something, but it turned out to be a beautiful homage to the world of movies. Again, great work by Scorcese!
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Visualmente hermosa y muy conmovedora. Me recordó a cuentos clásicos de huerfanos trágicos ( a la Charles Dickens). No sabía de que se trataba bien antes de ir a verla y pensaba que era sobre un robot que habla, pero resultó ser un homenaje hermoso al mundo del cine, en específico a las primeras películas del mundo. ¡Nuevamente un excelente trabajo de Scorcese!
More from my beloved playlist. Btw, anyone else sick of the stupid ads in almost every You Tube video? Totally ruins the whole experience…/ Más de mi amada lista músical. Por cierto, ¿soy la única a la quien le fastidia la publicidad que esta en casi todos los videos de You Tube recientemente? Arruina por completo la experiencia…
Arms and Sleepers – “Matador” (2012.03.12)
(Note: After a few songs, I became a fan and DL’d everything from them./ Después de varias canciones, me volví fan y me bajé TODO de ellos.)
RJD2- “True Confessions” (2012.04.08)
Red Snapper – “4 Dead Monks” (2012. 04. 08)
Up Bustle and Out – “Emerald Alley” (2012.04.08)
(Note: This gets extra points for the lovely sitar in the background / A esta le doy puntos extra por la hermosa sitar en el fondo)
Degiheugi – “Un jour de printempts” (2012.04.3)
21 Hertz – “Ocean” (2012.04.13)
(Note: Thank god there’s still trip-hop around // Que bueno que todavía se hace trip-hop)
The flow of the movie was strange, it went back and forth from present to the past, but not the real past, but the memories of Mrs. Thatcher, in her dementia-riddled mind. I get what the director was going for, but it made the flow very “choppy” and uncomfortable to follow. Truth is, the movie is not that good, but it’s Meryl Streep‘s acting that really blows your mind. What an incredible actress. She truly deserved that Oscar.
Note: Her husband (young version) is played by Harry Lloyd (Viserys Targaryen in “Game of Thrones“). I KNEW I’d seen that evil smirk somewhere!
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El ritmo de la película es extraño: salta una y otra vez del presente al pasado, pero no el verdadero pasado, sino el que existe en la mente frágil de la Sra. Thatcher. Entiendo lo que quiso hacer el director, pero lo único que logró es que el ritmo fuese “inestable” e incómodo de seguir. La verdad es que la película no es tan buena. Más bien, es la actuación de Meryl Streep lo que realmente hace que te quedes pegado a la pantalla. Que actriz tan increíble. Realmente merecía ese Oscar.
Nota: Su esposo (la versión joven) es interpretada por Harry Lloyd (Viserys Targaryen en “Juego de Tronos”). ¡Sabía que había visto esa sonrisa malévola en algún lugar!
