Alice In Wonderland

Tim Burton's new movie seems to be very promising. I like the dark mood his movies tend to have, but specially I like the fact that many of them casts Johnny Depp, of whom I'm a big fan. His wife, Helena Bonham Carter, seems to form with those two the perfect trio. Here goes a synopsis of the movie, by IMDb (which, by the way, is a great website to visit if you want a lot of information about movies): http://www.imdb.com

"Tim Burton (Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice) attempts to work his gothic magic over one of the best loved stories of all time... Lewis Carroll's 'Alice In Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There', which first told the story of a young girl, who after following a rabbit down a hole, is transported to a strange world. Whilst the disney version of the tale relied on sweetness and light to delight the audience, Burton fans can be sure to look out for the same cartoon traits as earlier masterpiece 'The Nightmare Before Christmas'.

The traditional tale has been freshened with a blast of girl power, courtesy of writer Linda Woolverton (Beauty and the Beast). Alice, 17, attends a party at a Victorian estate only to find she is about to be proposed to in front of hundreds of snooty society types. Off she runs, following a white rabbit into a hole and ending up in Wonderland, a place she visited 10 years before yet doesn't remember.

Among those who welcome her back is the Mad Hatter, a part tailor-made for Johnny Depp as he collaborates with Burton for the seventh time. "This character is off his rocker," Zanuck says.

Aussie actress Mia Wasikowska, 19, best known for HBO's In Treatment, has the coveted title role. "There is something real, honest and sincere about her," Zanuck says. "She's not a typical Hollywood starlet."

There is the usual Burton-esque ghoulishness (Helena Bonham Carter's Red Queen, whose favorite retort is "Off with their heads," has a moat filled with bobbing noggins), but Zanuck assures most kids can handle it. "The book itself is pretty dark," he notes. "This is for little people and people who read it when they were little 50 years ago."

I actually never liked Disney's Alice In Wonderland cartoon, usually I fall asleep while watching "^^ This story is the tipical case about which I say: "it must be genious, but I don't get it, this is why I find it boring". If someone could ever explain Alice to me (what those crazy things mean), maybe I would like it. My aunt said that the geniously of it lies in the fact that it was a crazy story written as the usual was to write possible ones, and not insane worlds like Wonderland. Well, it might be that, but I still find the scene where she is crying in the forest very boring.
I'll probably like the movie, though, since the story is slightly different and I'll be watching Depp perform hahaha!
To the curious ones, here's the trailer:
http://cinema.uol.com.br/ultnot/multi/2009/07/22/0402326CD8918346.jhtm?trailer-do-filme-alice-no-pais-das-maravilhas-0402326CD8918346
Bye bye!

Harry Potter on the internet

Yo!

I'll write a little more about Harry Potter, in fact, I'll put here some cool stuff you can find on the internet about The Half Bloof Prince. Harry Potter fans, check the sites below! =]

Firefox
http://getpersonas.com/harrypotter
By downloading these so called "Personas", your firefox browser will get those Harry Potter images. Pretty cool.

Muggle Hub
http://www.mugglehub.com/index.php
This one is in Portuguese. It has vedeos, screensavers, pictures, templates, banners, posters, etc. Since most of the words are the same as in English (except for "screensavers", which is "Papéis de parede" in Portuguese), I believe everyone is able to download stuff from this website.

The Daily Prophet
http://dailyprophet.harrypotter.com/br/
Only the ones who can read Portuguese will be able to enjoy this one. Click "Skip intro" on the top of the movie screen and you'll be able to put your photo or video on The Daily Prophet, like I did.

Wizard Pairings
http://harrypotter.warnerbros.co.uk/wizardpairings/swf/br/

Also for the ones who read Portuguese. In this funny website, you enter two names and see which Harry Potter relationship matches with the one of these two people you entered. Doesn't really work: it said that my relationship with my best friend is like the one between Harry and Draco, which obviously doesn't make any sense. It's worth to play with, though.

iTunes Store
http://ax.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/browserRedirect?url=itms%253A%252F%252Fax.itunes.apple.com%252FWebObjects%252FMZStore.woa%252Fwa%252FviewSoftware%253Fid%253D320793908%2526mt%253D8
Harry Potter stuff for your iPod. Since I don't have one, I can't say if the website is good or not, so go and try it yourself XD

Facebook Official Community
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Harry-Potter-e-o-Enigma-do-Principe-Pagina-Oficial/93989767154
In Portuguese. With videos and cool links.

So, Harry Potter fans, this is it for today.
See ya!

Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince

Hey guys!

Today I'm gonna write about another thing I'm crazy about: Harry Potter. I'm not actually a big fan of the movies, they tend to annoy me because they never explain all they should, but since there is no new book to be published and the new movie is coming out tomorrow, that's what I'll write about.

The unique opportunity
"But you said yourself that the movie hasn't come out yet, so how are you going to write about it if you didn't watch it?" I know, I know. The thing is that my godfather works as a journalist (he is the editor of the magazine of the Ministry of Culture), and he gets invitations to watch movies before they're released, and sometimes, he is allowed to take a guest. So, this is why I had the pleasure to watch the movie today. =] And here I am to share my opinion about it with you!

About the movie (no spoiler, don't worry!)
Generally, I liked it. I think it was a good adaptation from the book, and that means something, since I already told you how usually I walk out of the cinema pissed because they screwed the story in the movie. Of course there are things that are different: for example, there is an attack to the Weasley's house that doesn't exist in the book. But it is explainable: at that point of the movie, it was lacking some action, and that attack didn't change anything important about the story, so I was okay with it. And of course there are many things that didn't appear in the movie, but we all expect that, otherwise it would be 12 hours long. The thing is: this time, I don't think they left something absurdly important behind, like they did for example in The Prisioner of Azkaban (I will never forgive them for not explaining who did the Marauder's Map).
There is something interesting about this movie: it changes from very "soft" scenes, in which they show Ron's dating, Herminone's jelously and stuff, to very dramatic ones. I won't tell what's the big drama in the movie, because I don't want this to be a spoiler post, but the ones who read the book probably know what I'm talking about.

IMAX
There was also something different about the experience I had today (besides watching the movie before everyone else): it was displayed on IMAX. This is a special kind of theater: the screen is huuuuge! And the beggining of the film was in 3D! It was very cool - you'll notice that as the Death Eaters are flying in London, they do it in a way so that it would be interestingly seen in 3D. It seemed to me that IMAX 3D movies are better than the usual ones: this time, I really had the feeling things were coming out the screen, instead of just being slightly off the background. The price I had to pay for that? Well, IMAX tickets costs R$30, but since it was this special display for journalists, it was free - or ALMOUST free. I had to pay the "price" of watching the movie in portuguese, because all 3D movies have to be translated (there's no way to put subtitles!). And I HATE translated movies. Now, let me explain something to my german friends, who read this blog: I know in German it is very common that all movies in theaters are translated to german, but that's not like that in Brazil. Here, adult movies are usually displayed in their original languages, with subtitles. So not only am I used to listen to the original voices of the actors, but the translations to portuguese tend to suck: the voices are always annoying, and what they're saying doesn't match with their voices very well. That's the reason why I was very upset when the movie started with Belatrix Lestranges' ridiculous brasilian voice, saying "I killed Sirius Black" in portuguese. Well. Therefore I could watch the movie today, in IMAX, for free. So I guess I shouldn't be complaining. I'm planning to go with my parents and brother tomorrow see the movie in English in a regular theater, though.

Well, that's what I had to say. The movie is nice, go watch it = b IMAX is cool, so if you can afford it, I recommend watching a movie there (but only do it with Harry Potter if you don't mind the movie being in portuguese!). =]
Bye bye!

"Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines...

...or How I Flew From London To Paris In 25 hours and 11 Minutes" is a movie that I watched this weekend, as I went to Extrema (a small city in Minas Gerais), to the ranch of my boyfriend's family. It's very nice (both the ranch and the movie haha)! Here's a description by Amazon.com:
"An air race from London to Paris provides the premise for this marvelous comedy, which features thrilling aerial photography and some stupefying stunt flying. It's set in 1910, when the (lovingly re-created) airplanes of the period were likelier to sputter and crash than they were to go in a straight line. The international contest requires an international cast, including Stuart Whitman as a cowboy American interested in the ladylove (Sarah Miles) of an English ace (James Fox). Alberto Sordi and Gert Frobe represent the Italian and German nations; Terry-Thomas plans frightful sabotage for race day. From the jaunty opening song and the great opening-credits drawings by Gerald Searle onward, the movie has a pleasingly breezy tone that sits well with the meticulous flying sequences. This is a delightful example of a certain kind of internationally flavored film of the period, somewhat similar to The Great Race, released the same year (1965)."

To the ones who enjoy soft commedies with funny stereotypes, I recommend this movie. It's particularly interesting the fact that they really had to build (and crash) all the airplanes shown in it: it wouldn't be so much fun if it had been made nowadays, with all the technology available.

"Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines.
They Go Up, Tiddly, Up, Up.
They Go Down, Tiddly, Down, Down.
They Enchant All The Ladies And Steal All The Scenes
With their Up, Tiddly, Up, Up
And They're Down, Diddy, Down, Down.

Up! Down! Flying Around.
Looping The Loop And Defying The Ground.
They're All, Rightfully, Kings!
Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines.

They Can Fly Upside Down With Their Feet In The Air.
They Don't Think Of Danger. They Really Don't Care.
Newton Would Think He Had Made A Mistake.
To See Those Young Men And The Chances They Take.

Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines.
They Go Up, Tiddly, Up, Up.
They Go Down, Tiddly, Down, Down.
They Enchant All The Ladies And Steal All The Scenes
With their Up, Tiddly, Up, Up
And They're Down, Diddy, Down, Down.

Up! Down! Flying Around.
Looping The Loop And Defying The Ground.
They're All, Rightfully, Kings!
Those Magnificent Men, Those Magnificent Men,
Those Magnificent Men In Their…Fly…ing…
Ma-chines…."