She’s got a smile that it seems to me
Reminds me of childhood memories
Where everything
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky
Now and then when I see her face
She takes me away to that special place
And if I’d stare too long
I’d probably break down and cry
– Sweet Child O’ Mine, Guns N’ Roses

Martyrs (2008) *****
- I’ve been hearing a lot about the new wave of French horror right now (just as Japanese horror films were the “cool” thing just a few years ago.) I have heard a lot about things like High Tension, Frontier(s), Inside) and how prolific they are and I’d been wanting to see Martyrs for some time after hearing a lot of positives reviews and talk. I finally got to see the movie the other day and am still in a state of dismay over what I have just witnessed. I have only seen High Tension of the before mentioned films (but I assure you I’m making efforts to see the others now, thanks to a lot getting wider releases), but Martyrs is one of the most deeply profound, disturbing, poetic, tragic movies I’ve ever seen.

The movie bloodsooked, but It’s no tongue-in-cheek, exploitation flick. It supersedes the popular coined phrase “toture porn” because it actually has emotional conviction and doesn’t rely on sycophantic and ambitious themes. The carnage is brutal, brave, haunting and down right terrifying at times. In fact it’s so severe I easily found my self feeling uneasy or even bad for watching. The movie gives you an extreme feeling, as if you could be right there with the protagonist. Not for the faint of heart.

The film immediately pulled me in from start to finish. I was glued and the pacing was exceptional, the later half of the movie takes a dramatic shift into territory you almost wished it hadn’t. The two female leads, Morjana Alaoui (Anna) and Mylène Jampanoï (Lucie) are remarkable in their roles. Their performances are riveting and traumatic, so heartbreaking. And Mylène Jampanoï’s eyes are so intense, often the only thing peering back under a ton of blood and hair and you feel every single emotion. Easily some of the finest performances ever to grace material like this. The score and cinematography are also equally beautiful. I was really moved by this movie, thanks to it’s harrowing emotional gravity.

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“Never compromise. Not even in the face of Armageddon.”
– Watchmen

I saw Watchmen on Thursday night. I really loved it and am wanting to see it again. It was so visually amazing in the beginning. The opening scene, credits and the funeral were just gorgeous. It did get weaker towards the last half of the film I will admit, but I greatly loved the whole story overall. Featured some amazing music and really cool characters and performances. I truly didn’t think it was possible to make Jeffrey Dean Morgan vile and despicable! Jackie Earle Hayley was exceptional as Rorschach. And Carla Guigino was a vision in her 40s attire and played pretty pin-up well. I wish we’d of seen more of her in fact! Biggest complaint about the movie is the man dong. Honestly didn’t need to see all that, haha. Okay, I suppose it IS a stretch to think The Incredible Hulk’s pants always resize with him, but still. Now I see why because no one wants to see his green willy flopping around, so why not go the same route for a blue one, lol. There were a lot of funny intentional moments and some not so much (dick snickering #1, Patrick Wilson as Nite Owl etc) but overall Zac Snyder still impresses me and I am super excited for his next movie Sucker Punch which looks to feature Abbie Cornish, Amanda Seyfried and Evan Rachel Wood – wow!

After I got back from the movies I got a little inspired to make some graphics. So I made a few layouts trying out some new and old things the past few days and since I don’t really have use of them, I was wondering if anyone liked them and wanted to use. (more…)

“I felt sorry for the shop assistant – she had a lazy eye.”
– Confessions of a Shopaholic

So yesterday we went to the movies and to eat and man was it packed! We immediately regretted our decision once we were there but already drove 30 minutes so there was no use to turn around. Really like I said we forgot yesterday, but we thought about it all day long so we really didn’t want to change plans. But we both underestimated just how packed the mall would be. First off the exit off the highway was bumper to bumper for miles, due to like 30 restaurants all around. (Damn you know the waiters were hating life!). But we did finally get there and had only 30 minutes to walk around (we’d left two hours early but with traffic it crimped our plans). But once there we quickly grabbed our tickets, did a few minutes of time killing and finally made our way in.

First off Confessions of a Shopaholic (more…)