dear valentine

Though Valentine's day is not a real big thing in Australia as in USA, still people celebrate it, every where in the shops they have those pink and red love heart themes, and also here comes the romantic comedy Valentine's Day the movie to hit cinemas started yesterday.  I know it's not even Valentine's Day yet:p

I went to see the movie last night with bunch of girlfriends, it's soo...romantic, isn't it...:) Well  it's really a chick-flick romantic comedy, unless you are just boyfriends + girfriends, newly weds, or just a new comer to the relationship, or you're gay.... but I don't think any male species especially the ones who like to think that they are a 'real man' or 'macho' would like to spend 124 minutes watching McDreamy, McSteamy, and Bradley Cooper strut their charm in this romcom.

Yes, the movie has a crazy star studded cast list containing Patrick Dempsey aka McDreamy and Eric Dane aka McSteamy in Grey's Anatomy series, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Alba, Julia Roberts, Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Biel, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Anne Hathaway, Taylor Lautner, Shirley Maclane.

Valentine's Day is more less a bit the same movie as Love Actually, only this one takes place on valentine's day instead of Christmas.  I like the movie, not because it has Bradley Cooper and Patrick Dempsey, oh...and Eric Dane but I think it's refreshing and funny enough.

The movie begins with Ashton Kucher who owns a flower shop in LA asked his girlfriend Jessica Alba to marry him on Valentine's Day.  She said yes but later return the ring as she loves her high career more than him ( damn her! I would like to swap place with her, if I was still single :p ) Meanwhile, Jennifer Garner is up set because her heart surgery Patrick Dempsey boyfriend has to fly to San Fransisco on Valentine's Day but he actually just goes back to his wife who lives in LA too.  And Anne Hathaway has to juggle between secretary/receptionist job and telephone sex work.  I think Anne is very funny in this  movie.

Okay  I'm not going to elaborate every details of the movie here.  Grab your girlfriends or drag your man and go hit the cinema!

As from me I would like to say happy valentine's day everyone!  Hope you will be filled with chocolates and strawberries and a bubbly and the most important thing that you are surrounded with your love ones.

twilight fever

Even if you haven't read the book or seen the first film, even if you're not a teenage girl, even if you're not even female, it's pretty impossible not to be aware of this vampire franchise. It's everywhere. I'm probably the only one who don't have any interest in this vampire thing, but since all my girlfriends are talking about Edward and Bella so my curiosity is increased by an inch and I have started to read articles or any reviews about the movie.

As the movie New Moon premieres all over the world and Twi-fans go mental with excitement, there was an interesting article published about how Bella is a crappy role model for all the teenage girls and grown women who are obsessed with Twilight.

I saw my niece who has read all the books and seen the first film and I asked her if she thought this was true.

She said: "Oh totally, Bella spends thousands of pages of the book whining "Oh Edward, you're too gorgeous and why would you want a girl like me and my life isn't worth living without you and blah blah blah. She's never happy and she's chronically insecure and needy."

Sounds like fairly typical teenage girly, victimy angst. Young girls have a way of over-dramatizing things, don't they?

Giving up your soul for a man? Dude. That does not sound very cool. In fact, it sounds a lot like those bloody Disney Princesses (don't get me started...oh wait, I'm already started).

Is Bella a modern Disney character? Is she just like Cinderella and Snow White and Sleeping Beauty? Sad, lonely, victimy damsels-in distress who need to be 'saved' by a handsome prince? Is Edward just the handsome prince except that instead of the white horse, he has fangs and some super powers?

I'm not a fan of being saved by love. Or rescued by a man. Never have been. What an awful and unrealistic pressure to put on men and what a powerless position for any woman to put herself in the idea that your life is crap and not worth living without a man.

I think love (in all its forms) is a wonderful thing. An amazing thing. Something to be sought, nurtured and treasured. A life without it would be sad. But is romantic love the answer to all life's problems?

Is that a pop culture message that can be absorbed by girls and teens subconsciously so that as adults, they keep waiting for Prince Charming Edward The Perfect Guy to show up and 'save' them?

What is also fascinating is how many grown women are being influenced by the Bella/Edward relationship.

My girlfriend told me (half) jokingly complained that author Stephanie Meyer "..very nearly ruined my marriage before it had barely begun. Honestly, Twilight should come with a warning label: May Cause Unforeseen Disappointment with One’s Love Life."

Is Twilight the modern Mills and Boon? And is Bella a crappy role model or should everyone take a breath and chill and relax because it's just a character?