Endearments

in relationship, we often find word or words to describe our feelings. we do create names which we believe best fit to what we have to one another. when we talk about family relationship, we use to call our parents as, Papa,Pop,Erpat,Tatay,Itay,Daddy and etc. - for our father, and Mama,Nanay,Inay,Ermat,Mommy,Momsy for our mother, we use to call our siblings as Kuya,Ate,Bunso, or what ever you wish to call them. but would mind if i ask you, what is the reason behind those words? i guess, it wont be harmful for us.. let me share with you some of my favorite endearments, which i have for my friends and constituents... hahaha

ter- it started with sharmagne (my colleague in college), shes often time use the word " ter " without a basic reason "ter" comes from Sister. eventually, we gladly accepted it and started to create a circle of friends. a lot of stories had been embodied with the " ter " words. many use it and meaninglessly use it but for us, we belong to it, deal with a great respect and with sacredness. for we believe, we not just found a friends to mingle with but with a family to hold on with. i do considers them as my family. ter members: sharmagne,dhing,jkay,polay,mixel,mira,felix,jareth.

bordz- more than usual, " bordz" represents brotherhood or sisterhood. though, we came across genders yet united as one, as one family. one family to describe, we've live in one boarding house, we were united by the same fate and culture. as i am living alone in the city, i always find rest and comfort. i had been into many boarding houses, i had been mingled with different people. but i found myself living in a house which i always intend to be with. it was so easy for me to adjust and fit myself in my new environment. since, most of them are my classmates and friends. we stayed in one house for a simple reason, we want family away from our families. and, we succeeded! my bordz are: dhay jean, pibi, rai2, mye2, lyt2, mam cha, baby josh, toto jeff..
friend

bro- my brothers in blood(hehe). i cant fully remembered when, why and where its started. but somehow i have the idea of the reason behind it. it is only exclusive for four of us. boys will be boys(jeje). i love calling them bro and so they are to me, even tough sounds funny for me and awkward to hear but i love calling them with sincerity, maybe i miss my older brother and older cousins. and my bro' are: daryl, elven, macjoe

maninay- indeed for a special people. when i was in elementary days, i kept asking my parent why do i have a pair of god-parent?. they just ignored me and continue doing their choirs. but then, i was so envy to my siblings they have losts of god-parents, lots of gifts during holidays, lots of gifts during their birthday. and worst, i came to realization and conclusion that my parents didn't love me at all. as years goes by, i continue the saga of knowing the reason behind the unfavorable life that i have.. hehe, so my mother spontaneously begging off but i never retrieved. and to the last resort, she answered me and so sad to hear because, i was born prematured and they don't have much time to settle things for my christening, so sad but life goes on. anyway, my god-mother died because of cancer when i as in grade six so i have only my god-father which until this day i haven't seen across. but my story doesnt stop there, in Gods glory, i found a "Maninay" (god-mother), hehehe, shes my classmate in high school, my best buddy from since then until now, shes definitely the angel which savored goodness and good fate in my life. and her name is Rhea, my since then and until forever best buddy.. she is the answer to all my prayers,.. we did a lot of crazy things and we've learned together. she is always there for as i am to her..

i know.... you too have much stories to tell... and im just right here.. willing to listen till my eardrums broken..

tribute to parents

Sometimes you just want to quit a battle when things start to hurt. You want to stop and leave everything as it is before the pain gets worse. Times like this, remember that when you’ve prayed and claimed for it even before you’ve stepped in the battlefield, you can be assured that it’s definitely worth going this far.

its been a month since i walked down the aisle and standing in the stage facing the crowd while receiving the evidence of my education's success! it was indeed my most awaited moment in my life. wearing toga, holding a diploma. wow what a day! it is quite late now to say how i feel during my graduation day, hence, it doesn't matter anyway for i am saving and savoring always the moment.

i came from a family of educators, teaching is in our blood. our family believes in education as significant as unloaded to our life. i was raised with the mentally of education must come first! in my elementary years, i was enrolled in a public elementary school which is near to our house, adding the fact that my mother is our school principal. i would say my life is ordinary during my elementary years aside from being a son of the school principal. i enjoyed all the privileges which normally entails being a son of the school principal(hehe). i can come to school late(not always), i can take food from the canteen and charge to my mother's name, i am not oblige to do the common school tasks(cleaning), and most of all, i am a crowd favorite. i also on the list of honor students(hehehe), well i guess i deserve then. my elementary years is purely an immersion stage for me. i don't have to think for tomorrow, i have my father to take care of my assignments, to cook food for me and to prepare me for school. when i am in school, i have my mother to take care of me.

when i reached High School, i was enrolled in a Catholic School, for my parents are both alumnus of the school and its the only private-catholic school in our town. its a little bit hard somehow, for i need to wake up early to leave for school since we are living far from the town proper. but then, as i said a while ago, i have my father to take care all the things for me. i dont have to worry for the food, clothes etc. during my high school days, its a tough and rugged. hell, i have to fit with the environment

Partly installed.... please see the continuation..ü

we will defy the odds, succes is in our goal! a positive thought of an optimistic person

smile for a sad man

In physiology, a smile is a facial expression formed by flexing those muscles most notably near both ends of the mouth. The smile can also be found around the eyes (See 'Duchenne smile' below). Among humans, it is customarily an expression denoting pleasure, happiness, or amusement, but can also be an involuntary expression of anxiety, in which case it can be known as a grimace. There is much evidence that smiling is a normal reaction to certain stimuli as it occurs regardless of culture. Happiness is most often the motivating cause of a smile. Among animals, the exposure of teeth, which may bear a resemblance to a smile, is often used as a threat or warning display - known as a snarl - or a sign of submission. In chimpanzees, it can also be a sign of fear.

how i wish i was that lucky guy to smile all tru while, i wish i have the best smile in the world, i wish i am a smile for every individuals whose in dim light right now. in a day, how many times do you smile? i guess, so many than often.. smile is an everlasting expression of humans happiness and gratitude. maybe there are those people who are lucky to grab the sweetest smile, or someone is living with the life of smiling. but sooner or later, they will need a time to rest, a time to keep their smiles, a time to be in silent. yet smile is so powerful which they cant ignore it, even their eyes is flooding in tears, smiling while their hearts are in pain and bleeding. smile is an expression of happiness but the sad truth behind it, its only a defense mechanism of keeping the wounded soul of the sad man..

public service

As a Student Leader, I devoted myself fulfilling all my duties and obligations. Since I handled an extra curricular then I focused on the community services. Some community activities which I initiated and participated are:(1) Computer Literacy Programs which aims to educate pupils who are living in the flung areas such as Tamban in Saranggani Provine and Mabuhay in General Santos City. The activity provides the opportunity to the pupils to be acquainted with the trend of the technology such as computers. Since the activity was conducted in the NDDU campus then it allows also the pupils to have an idea on what is life in NDDU and what is life outside their community.(2) Batang Skolar Programs which aims to give privileged to the poor yet deserving students to pursue their education.(3) School to School Campaign, the activity is being initiated by the Guidance and Testing Center which intend to promote Education.

this page is under construction(sorry for the inconvenience). please watch out.

for the last time...

"When I first saw you, I was afraid to talk to you. When I first talked to you, I was afraid to like you. When I first liked you, I was afraid to love you. Now that I love you, I'm afraid to lose you"

have you ever been in love? i guess so, all of us had been in love, have been in love and in love right now. no man is an island, they say and its true. every individual has its own counterpart, a partner and a lover. each and everyone of us has a distinct characteristic which suits for any other. we may be say, i am all alone now but for sure you will find yourself being with somebody. in reality, we may act we dont care if we were alone, who cares? i can live without them. some of us keep believing in the truth of sadness which may come every now and then.

for love is all about living and loving, maybe yes! loving is a part of living and living maybe a sacred part of loving.

Moving on, a simple way of saying Good bye..

the laughters, spreads the good news of new company and friendship were established. the taught, waving in saying that "i am happy because i am with people who really love and care for me". the smile, creates the moment of shared triumphs and failures. the hugs, relates different individuals with different belief in life.
yes! indeed, we came a long in different perspectives in life. we have our own dazzling journey, we may came across because of co incidence. i am therefore, pledge that i am one of their co incidence as they're mine to hold. for such, i have taking wisdom of how i learned life because i was given the opportunity to experience true friendship. in my life, i longed for a true commitment, a loyalty and cruelty aside. a quest for freedom and co existence. i live my life so ordinary, as simple as define by human standards. i continue journeying beyond definition, i conquered problems which entails my human desire. however, there are reasons in which i may deprive my self of having of, there are boundary to which i owe my liberty, and there are situation which i cannot continue my quest. all i have know, freedom has its own limitation. people tend to go beyond limit because they believe, only they can define their limitations. only they, have the power to say what is good and what is best. yet, does it make sense at all? for the fact, even when they're unborn, they have a limitation. yes! when they are inside their mother's womb, they have already limitation. a limitation set by God. why am i saying freedom, limitations, and friendship? how does it relates to saying good bye? well, freedom to choose our friends is definitely divine, for we are given the opportunity to enjoy life with co existence and harmony. we have the power to change each others lives. we have the innate desire to feel comfortable, acceptance, loyalty and love. a taste of friendship! however, friendship is also limited, for friendship doesn't goes beyond reason and boundaries contrary to what others mean about it. friendship is not absolute, so many limitations entrusts in it. but though it is not absolute yet so divine, in sense of, it doesn't requires commitment still it goes through, limited yet continually aspiring.
damn it! i really hate it! i really hate to have so many friends yet few remains. i don't know what's the problem or who had the problem? well i guess, its me. nobody will accept it anyway so i put on the blame on me. i am the problem. i have a problem. so better the problem comes to worst, its better for me to say good bye to friends that i have. to save them from cruelty and enormous destruction of my life. i am a friend but i am not a warrior. i can be their friend forever but hell, i cannot protect them for the rest of their lives. i, and i will remain loyal to them but in fate still, i am no longer with them. for destiny i desire, i will sacrifice them to gain my self and restore the wounded soul of dying soldier! i will leave them but they will remain in my heart. i am letting go but i still hold on to the promise of reuniting once again.
for the reason that i will leave, it is not important anymore. i will take just for my self alone. somehow they have already the idea, but for sure they wouldn't understand it so why i explain. i hope they still holding on while i am moving on..

blanket for the weary

what a weary life! haha! non sense to talk about, who cares? duh! don't read it if you cant relate to this,.. what a heek! why do i write this article, and for what does it make sense? blanket? so ordinary, a piece of clothing which covers us every time when we feel cold, a piece of cloth which intends to protect. blanket make sounds important, but how bout if the blanket needs to warm itself? is there any blanket to cover him? well, non sense at all. a blanket for a blanket? who will dare? why they cover you if they alone cant cover themselves.

The Demon's Angel

Angel-are usually viewed as emanations of a supreme divine being, sent to do the tasks of that human being. Traditions vary as to whether angels have free will or are merely extensions of the supreme being's will. While the appearance of angels also varies, many views of angels give them a human shape. as human being trying to escape from their sinfulness, they create an extension for themselves to create a masks which covers their long horn and wiggling tails..haha. call me bitch, call me what you want, but angels had their own horns! angels, can hold a sword to kill and die for to protect its master(human). angels therefore manifests their wings to fly their masters sinful soul, wearing white cloth to wipe their masters arms full of blood, angels are divine for they are created to save their masters from weariness and darkness. i have my own angel, and thats make me excuse from my sinfulness. nobody sees my wings, nobody appreciate wearing white cloth but all of them sees my horns.. they screamed : a demon's angel has come to re birth the earth...

Alone in the Dark

when people say, i am with you no matter what! when they fooled you with the words of; through thick and thin, we were together until the end, i am always at your side.. thus, believing to it is graciously fooling yourself and accepting the fact... you are surely a loser by cause. for the truth is, you are starving

alone in the dark, ..saddest moment in our life yet conveyancing factual and happening. there are times which people encounters the saddest event in their life, some are fortunate enough to divert their loneliness to things which may trigger satisfaction and fulfillment, but for some, they continue to travel in wilderness and solitary. certain things and events may come into our lives that make us feel we are in the midst of darkness, i may say, i am alone now, i am in the midst of darkness, i may be a lost my soul. but, do i really experiencing that?? well, for i know, only my mind is struggling! my mind is the hell struggle for a reason of uncertainty. no wonder why, i am only and selflessly enjoying the wound and gasps of starving soul.. they say, i am strong, a warrior, with a brilliant mind, but hell, warriors do bleed, strong buildings collapse, brilliant mind died in silence.. where i am now?? who i am now?.. am i a warrior or just holding the sword reaping for somebody to grab the sword and die for me..

Year 2008: Big Blast for Movies

What movies will you be seeing in 2008? It’s a pretty simple question, but a very complex answer. Most consumers don’t plan their movie viewing habits that far in advance, but that doesn’t stop us from trying. You might think that the title of this article is a bit deceptive, because who really sees 55 movies in a year anyway. But according to Video Business, the average American watches almost seven movies a month (sure, the majority of these films are viewed on DVD or television). But you are right, you must not see all these movies, these are just the films we’re excited about in 2008.

This list includes the big films, the important films, the movies that you will be hearing about in the next year. The majority of the films on this list consist of Hollywood English-language films, which are, for a large part, adaptations or sequels. Some of the movies have advance buzz due to the writers, directors or stars attached. But there aren’t many big surprises. We won’t know what the next Little Miss Sunshine or Juno might be until it plays at Sundance in January.

Cloverfield/1-18-08

Release Date: January 18th 2008
Director: Matt Reeves (The Pallbearer, Felicity)
Writer: Drew Goddard (Lost, Alias, Angel, Buffy)
Cast: Mike Vogel, Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, T.J. Miller, and Michael Stahl-David
The Buzz: If anything else, the top secret JJ Abrams produced monster movie had one of the best teaser trailers of all time. Will the movie be even half as good? We have no idea. The film follows a group of friends in New York City during one January night (January 18th) when some kind of monster attacks. The whole film is shot from the perspective of a consumer video camera that the college-age group bring along for the adventure.
Trivia: Why is it nicknamed Cloverfield?

Fanboys

Release Date: January 18th 2008
Director: Kyle Newman
Writer: Adam F. Goldberg (The Jetsons, Night of the Living Dorks)
Cast: Sam Huntington, Kristen Bell, Dan Fogler, Jay Baruchel, Seth Rogen, Danny Trejo, William Shatner, Carrie Fisher, Jaime King, Christopher McDonald, Billy Dee Williams and more.
The Buzz: A road trip comedy about a group of “Star Wars” fans who travel to Skywalker Ranch to steal an early copy of “Episode I: The Phantom Menace” for their dying friend. I’ve heard nothing but good things about this film.

Be Kind Rewind

Release Date: January 23rd 2008
Writer/Director: Michel Gondy (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Science of Sleep)
Cast: Jack Black, Mos Def, Danny Glover, Melonie Diaz, Mia Farrow
The Buzz: Michel Gondry’s twisted comic tale of the magic of filmmaking. Jack Black plays Jerry, a junkyard worker who inadvertently causes his brain to become magnetized, leading to the unintentional destruction of all the movies in his friend’s (Mos Def) video rental store. In order to keep the store’s one loyal customer, an elderly lady with a tenuous grasp on reality, the pair re-create a long line of films, putting themselves and their townspeople into it. They become the biggest stars in their neighborhood. Rewind was originally scheduled for release in December 2007, but was pushed back to January. It is likely that the film was pushed back so that it can premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Gondry’s Science of Sleep and Human Nature also premiered at Sundance in 2002 and 2006 respectfully.

Jumper

Release Date: February 15th 2008
Director: Doug Liman (Go, The Bourne Identity)
Writer: David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, Blade, Dark City)
Cast: Hayden Christensen, Samuel L Jackson, Diane Lane, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson
The Buzz: A feature film adaptation of the Steven Gould series of novels about a genetic anomaly that allows a young man to teleport himself anywhere. He discovers this gift has existed for centuries and finds himself in a war that has been raging for thousands of years between “Jumpers” and those who have sworn to kill them. The film has been delayed, which is usually a bad sign, but the extensive mythology behind the story has held my interest.
Trivia: The Mythology Behind the Story

The Spiderwick Chronicles

Release Date: February 15th 2008
Director: Mark Waters (Mean Girls, Freaky Friday, Just Like Heaven)
Cast: Sarah Bolger, Freddie Highmore, Seth Rogen, Mary-Louise Parker
The Buzz: This is another film which I had very little little interest in until I saw some of the FX footage shown at Comic Con 2007. Based on the popular book series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, Spiderwick tells the story of a mother, twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, along with their sister Mallory,who find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of faeries and other creatures after moving into the run-down Spiderwick Estate. Is this the next Harry Potter? Probably not. But what is now-a-days?

Synecdoche, New York

Release Date: Early 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Charlie Kaufman
Cast: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Samantha Morton
The Buzz: The feature film debut from the highly acclaimed screenwriter of Being John Malkovich, Human Nature, Adaptation., Confessions of a Dangerous Mind and Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind. Hoffman plays Caden, a theater director who ambitiously attempts to put on a play by creating a life-size replica of New York inside a warehouse. Caden finds out there is something wrong with him after a trip to the dentist. The movie goes into themes such as the nature of family, of home, and of male-female relationships. Anything from the mind of Kaufman is worth at least a trip to the multiplex. At least.
Trivia: A “synecdoche,” aside from being a clever play on “Schenectady”, where some of the film takes place, is a figure of speech in which a part is used to describe the whole or the whole is used to describe a part. Confused? Me too. One person used the example of what “threads” do for clothes.

The Other Boleyn Girl

Release Date: February 29th 2008
Cast: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Kristen Scott Thomas
The Buzz: Based on the Philippa Gregory novel which follows the story of two beautiful sisters, Anne ( Portman) and Mary (Johansson) Boleyn, who driven by their family’s blind ambition, compete for the love of the handsome and passionate King Henry VIII (Bana). Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson and Kristin Scott Thomas in one movie? I don’t care if it’s one of those stuffy period dramas, count me in. Oh yeah, Eric Bana and Across the Universe star Jim Sturgess are also featured.
Trivia: Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson are Hot

10,000 BC

Release Date: March 7th 2008
Writer/Director: Roland Emmerich (The Day After Tomorrow, Godzilla, Independence Day)
Cast: Camilla Belle, Steven Strait, Cliff Strait, Cliff Curtis
The Buzz: A prehistoric epic that follows a young mammoth hunter’s journey through uncharted territory to secure the future of his tribe. Let’s hope this is more Independence Day than Godzilla.

Horton Hears a Who!

Release Date: March 14th 2008
Directors: Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino
Voice Cast: Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Dane Cook, Jaime Pressly, Isla Fisher, Will Arnett, Selena Gomez, Amy Poehler, Dan Fogler
The Buzz: Could this be the first great Dr. Suess inspired film since Chuck Jones’ The Grinch who Stole Christmas? Jim Carrey voices Horton the Elephant, who one day hears a cry from help coming from a speck of dust. Even though he can’t see anyone on the speck, he decides to help it. As it turns out, the speck of dust is home to the Whos, who live in their city of Whoville. Horton agrees to help protect the Whos and their home, but this gives him nothing but torment from his neighbors, who refuse to believe that anything could survive on the speck. Still, Horton stands by the motto that, “After all, a person is a person, no matter how small.” The computer generated animation looks top notch (almost Pixar quality even). Director Jimmy Hayward started as an animator at Pixar, working on Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc, and Finding Nemo.

21

Release Date: March 21st 2008
Director: Robert Luketic (Monster-in-Law, Legally Blonde)
Writer: Peter Steinfeld (Analyze That, Be Cool)
Cast: Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Laurence Fishburne, Aaron Yoo
The Buzz: Based on the book Bringing Down the House, 21 is the fact-based story about six MIT students who were trained to become experts in card counting and subsequently took Vegas casinos for millions in winnings. I read the book a few years back, and this is a fascinating story which should play well on the big screen.
Trivia: Much of this movie was actually shot across the river from MIT at Boston University because MIT would not allow them to film on campus.

Wanted

Release Date: March 28th 2008
Director: Timur Bekmambetov (Nightwatch, Daywatch)
Writer: Michael Brandt (3:10 to Yuma, Catch That Kid)
Cast: Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, Terence Stamp, Common
The Buzz: Based on the Mark Millar graphic novel about a young man (McAvoy) finds out his long lost father is an assassin. And when his father is murdered, the son is recruited into his father’s old organization and trained by a man named Sloan (Freeman) to follow in his dad’s footsteps.
Trivia: Many of the major characters within Wanted appear to be clear analogues of DC super-villains and super-heroes. The two major characters are: The Killer, based on either Deathstroke, Deadshot, or Bullseye and The Fox, based on Catwoman

The Ruins

Release Date: April 4th 2008
Director: Carter Smith
Cast: Jena Malone, Joe Anderson, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, Jonathan Tucker
The Buzz: Scott B. Smith was the author of A Simple Plan, which was adapted into a great film by a pre-Spider-man Sam Raimi. Smith also wrote The Ruins, which photographer and commercial director Carter Smith is directing. The horror/thriller follows a group of friends whose leisurely Mexican holiday takes a turn for the worse when they, along with a fellow tourist embark on a remote archaeological dig in the jungle, where something evil lives among the ruins.
Trivia: Ben Stiller produced this movie.

Harold & Kumar 2

Release Date: April 4th
Directors: Jon Hurwitz & Hayden Schlossberg (Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle)
Cast: John Cho, Kal Penn, Roger Bart, Richard Christy, Rob Corddry, Neil Patrick Harris, Eddie Kaye Thomas
The Buzz: This stoner sequel follows the cross-country adventures of the pot-smoking duo as they try to outrun authorities who suspect them of being terrorists when they try to sneak a bong on board their flight to Amsterdam.
Trivia: While in production, it’s first actual title was ‘Harold and Kumar go to Amsterdam’, which was probably changed because they never actually go to Amsterdam.

Repo! The Genetic Opera!

Release Date: April 25th 2008
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw II, III, IV)
Cast: Paris Hilton, Alexa Vega, Anthony Head, Bill Moseley, Paul Sorvino
The Buzz: Music video turned filmmaker Darren Lynn Bousman’s horror musical. A worldwide epidemic encourages a biotech company to launch an organ-financing program similar in nature to a standard car loan. The repossession clause is a killer, however. Sure, Paris Hilton is in the film, but hopefully she won’t ruin everything.
Trivia: A 10-minute trailer was made by Darren Lynn Bousman to pitch the idea to movie companies, which starred Shawnee Smith.

Iron Man

Release Date: May 2nd 2008
Director: Jon Favreau (Elf, Made)
Cast: Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, Terrance Howard, Leslie Bibb, Shaun Toub
The Buzz: Jon Favreau’s big screen adaptation of the popular Marvel comic book character. Robert Downey Jr. plays Weapons designer Tony Stark, who is injured by shrapnel in his heart while in Afghanistan to introduce his new missile design. His captors order him to assemble a missile for them, giving him access to a workshop. He puts his creativity to use by assembling a bulletproof set of power armor, complete with pacemaker and flamethrowers, and uses it to free himself. Back at home, he becomes Iron Man, developing a flying suit with the red and gold scheme and advanced weapon capabilities.

Speed Racer

Release Date: May 9th 2008
Director: The Wachowski Brothers
Cast: Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, John Goodman, Scott Porter
The Buzz: Based on the classic 1960’s Japanese animated series, The Wachowski Brothers (Matrix) direct the story of a young race car driver as he attempts to obtain glory, with the help of his family and the Mach 5, the advanced car created by his father. Emile Hirsch stars as Speed, Christina Ricci as Trixie, and Mathew Fox as Racer X. Even if you weren’t a fan of the tv series, all indications so far point to this being unlike anything ever seen before on the big screen.
Trivia: Director Alfonso Cuarón was once attached to direct with Johnny Depp starring.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Release Date: May 16th 2008
Director: Andrew Adamson (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)
Cast: Liam Neeson (voice), Ben Barnes, Warwick Davis, William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Peter Dinklage
The Buzz: Okay, so the first film lacked action, but Disney has promised to up the ante with Prince Caspian. And if the footage shown at Comic Con was any indication, this could be the film to jump-start the Summer.
Trivia: Warwick Davis (Nikabrik) played the characters Reepicheep and Glimfeather in the BBC productions of Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Release Date: May 22nd 2008
Director: Steven Spielberg (Raiders, Jaws, Every great movie from your childhood)
The Buzz: Steven Spielberg directs the fourth installment of the Indiana Jones series. Harrison Ford is back, and so is Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood. New to the production is Cate Blanchett as the bad girl, John Hurt as ??? and Shia LaBeouf as Indy’s greaser sidekick. Not much can be said about the storyline, as it is being kept tightly under wraps. George Lucas has said that Crystal Skull is more in tone with Raiders than any other film in the series. This makes us excited. If it’s on par with The Last Crusade, than I’ll be happy.
Trivia: Sean Connery was asked to reprise his role as Henry Jones, Sr. but turned it down because he did not want to come out of retirement.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Release Date: May 30th 2008
Director: Nicholas Stoller (Undeclared writer)
Cast: Apatow regulars Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd and Bill Hader and Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Jason Segel, Kristen Wiig
The Buzz: Another Judd Apatow comedy which is sure to please. Jason Segel plays Peter Bretter, who takes a Hawaii vacation in order to deal with recent break-up with his TV star girlfriend, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell). Little does he know Sarah’s traveling to the same resort as her ex … and she’s bringing along her new boyfriend.
Trivia: Supposedly the screenplay was inspired by Jason Segel’s experience at the end of a long relationship with Linda Cardellini, his co-star in Freaks and Geeks.

Righteous Kill

Release Date: Summer 2008
Director: Jon Avnet (Fried Green Tomatoes)
Writer: Russell Gewirtz (Inside Man)
Cast: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Carla Gugino, Donnie Wahlberg, John Leguizamo, 50 Cent, Brian Dennehy
The Buzz: Two Veteran New York City Detectives hunt a vigilante who may be one of their own. After 8 collaborations, Martin Scorsese hasn’t worked with De Niro since Casino back in 1995. Who would have thought that their next live-action big screen collaboration would be in front of the camera. And Pacino and De Niro are appearing on screen together for the second time in history. The legendary talent being brought together for this film screams for attention. Could this be the next Heat or Departed?
Trivia: $60 million is a pretty big budget for an independent production.

Choke

Release Date: Summer 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Clark Gregg
Cast: Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston, Kelly Macdonald
The Buzz: Chuck Palahniuk is one of my favorite authors. You might know him as the author of Fight Club, which was brilliantly made for the screen by David Fincher. Choke is probably my third favorite book from Palahniuk. My favorite, Survivor likely won’t ever be made because the plot involves a terrorist and an airplane. In Choke, Victor Mancini (Rockwell) is a sex addict who works as a reenactor of the Revolutionary War. To support his hospitalized mother (Huston), Victor cons others by pretending to choke at restaurants to get money from his rescuers. Actor Clark Gregg pursued Choke for his directorial debut, after the project was dropped by Universal.
Trivia: Choke was shot in 25 days with a budget of $3.4 million

The Lovely Bones

Release Date: Summer 2008
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Susan Sarandon, Rachel Weisz, Stanley Tucci
The Buzz: Peter Jackson’s big screen adaptation of the Alice Sebold novel. Bones tells the story of a 14-year-old girl from suburban Pennsylvania who is murdered by her neighbor. She tells the story from Heaven, showing the lives of the people around her and how they have changed all while attempting to get someone to find her lost body. Gosling will play the girl’s father and Weisz will play the girl’s mother. The film has a great cast, highly acclaimed source material, and a great director.
Trivia: Film4 was originally scheduled to make this film at a budget of $15 million. Peter Jackson sought a beginning $65 million budget for the adaptation.

The Happening

Release Date: June 13th 2008
Writer/Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel, John Leguizamo
The Buzz: Say what you will about M. Night Shyamalan, but many of his detractors have admitted that The Happening is his best script since The Sixth Sense. A paranoid thriller about a family on the run from a natural crisis that presents a large-scale threat to humanity. The Happening will be released purposely on Friday the 13th.
Trivia: Night’s spec script was originally titled The Green Effect.

The Incredible Hulk

Release Date: June 13th 2008
Director: Louis Leterrier (Transporter, Unleashed)
Writer: Edward Norton
Cast: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt, Tim Blake Nelson
The Buzz: Edward Norton stars as Bruce Banner, in a non-sequel sequel to Ang Lee’s The Hulk. The Incredible Hulk is on the run, and the action is more intense in Edward Norton’s screenplay (that’s right, Norton also wrote the screenplay).
Trivia: Norton will provide motion capture for the character.

Get Smart

Release Date: June 20th 2008
Writer: Peter Segal (Tommy Boy, The Longest Yard, 50 First Dates)
Cast: Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, The Rock, Alan Arkin, Terence Stamp, Masi Oka
The Buzz: Steve Carell stars as Maxwell Smart in the big screen adaptation of the classic Mel Brooks comic spy television series. Anne Hathaway plays Agent 99, Dwayne Johnson plays Agent 23, and Alan Arkin is the Chief. Tommy Boy helmer Peter Segal directs. We’ll try to forget that he once made Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult. I saw abunh of footage from Get Smart at Comic Con, and was pleasantly surprised. I think this could be the next Austin Powers if done right.
Trivia: A made-for-DVD sequel focusing on minor characters will be released 10 days later.

The Love Guru

Release Date: June 20th 2008
Cast: Jessica Alba, Mike Myers, Justin Timberlake, Ben Kingsley, Meagan Good
I’m not a huge fan of Mike Myers, but one of my friends who has read the script said it’s laugh out loud hilarious. The movie follows Pitka (Meyers) an American raised outside of his country by gurus, returns to the States in order to break into the self-help business. His first challenge: To settle the romantic troubles and subsequent professional skid of a star hockey player (Romany Malco) whose wife left him for a rival athlete (Justin Timberlake). Jessic Alba and Ben Kingsley also star.
Trivia: This is Marco Schnabel’s feature film debut, after working second unit on Meet The Parents, Austin Powers: Goldmember, and Meet the Fockers.

Wall-E

Release Date: June 27th 2008
Director: Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo)
The Buzz: Wall-E is the film I’m most looking forward to in 2008. Yes, even over Indy 4 and Dark Knight. Andrew Stanton developed WALL-E before Toy Story was made: the original idea was, “What if mankind evacuated Earth and forgot to turn off the last remaining robot?” After hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was built for, WALL•E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in life (besides collecting knick-knacks) when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL•E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet’s future, and races back to space to report her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe to return home). Meanwhile, WALL-E chases EVE across the galaxy and sets into motion one of the most exciting and imaginative comedy adventures ever brought to the big screen. Joining WALL-E on his fantastic journey across a universe of never-before-imagined visions of the future, is a hilarious cast of characters including a pet cockroach, and a heroic team of malfunctioning misfit robots.
Trivia: There is little traditional dialogue in the film; Stanton has joked, “I’m basically making R2-D2: The Movie”, referring to Ben Burtt (Star Wars), who is doing the film’s sound design. Jeff Garlin is voicing a Captain, who is the only character who speaks. Stanton has also confirmed that there is a live action element in the film, but “not like Happy Feet”.

Valkyrie

Release Date: June 27th 2008
Director: Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects, Superman Returns, X2)
Writer: Christopher McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects, The Way of the Gun)
Cast: Tom Cruise, Kevin McNally, Eddie Izzard, Christian Berkel, Bill Nighy, Terence Stamp, Stephen Fry, Tom Wilkinson, David Schofield and Kenneth Branagh
The Buzz: Tom Cruise plays Count Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg in his plan to kill Adolph Hitler. The people on this production tell me that this movie will be one to watch in Summer 2008. It’s an interesting historical tale, too bad it obviously doesn’t end well. I would say Stauffenberg’s eventual fate may keep some people from seeing this film, but Titanic is the biggest grossing film of all time, and everyone knew how that one ended.
Trivia: In June 2007, prior to production, Germany’s Defense Ministry spokesperson Harald Kammerbauer said that filming of Valkyrie would not be allowed to take place on the country’s military sites because the protagonist Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg was portrayed by Tom Cruise, a follower of Scientology, considered a fake religion by Germany.

Hancock

Release Date: July 2nd 2008
Director: Peter Berg (The Kingdom, The Rundown, Friday Night Lights)
Cast: Will Smith, Jason Bateman, Charlize Theron, Johnny Galecki
The Buzz: Will Smith portrays an alcoholic superhero despised by everyone. A publicist (Bateman) helps rehabilitate him, and the superhero eventually begins an affair with the publicist’s wife (Theron).
Trivia: Vincent Ngo’s 1996 spect script originally titled “Tonight, He Comes” has been in development in Hollywood for some time with various directors attached, including Tony Scott, Michael Mann, Jonathan Mostow, and Gabriele Muccino.

Hellboy 2: The Golden Army

Release Date: July 11th 2008
Director: Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth)
Cast: Ron Pearlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Jeffrey Tambor, Luke Goss
The Buzz: Guillermo del Toro returns with the second chapter in the big screen adaptation of the popular Dark Horse comic book hero. The story revolves around a mythical world that starts a rebellion against humanity in order to rule the Earth, so Hellboy and his team must save the world from the rebellious creatures.
Trivia: del Toro has said that this is the second film in a Hellboy trilogy.

The Dark Knight

Release Date: July 18th 2008
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: David S. Goyer (Blade, Batman Begins) and Jonathan Nolan (Memento, The Prestige)
Cast: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine, Anthony Michael Hall, Aaron Eckhart
The Buzz: Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to the highly acclaimed Batman Begins. Batman (Bale) raises the stakes in his war on crime with the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Eckhart). Batman sets out to dismantle the remaining criminal organizations that plague the city streets. The partnership proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a reign of chaos unleashed by a rising criminal mastermind known to the terrified citizens of Gotham as The Joker (Ledger). Can not wait.
Trivia: As a joke, one bat suit was made with nipples. It was presented to Christian Bale as the real bat suit, but he knew instantly it was a joke, having seen a few design pictures during preproduction. He did pose for some publicity photos in the “nipple” suit.

Pineapple Express

Release Date: August 8th 2008
Director: David Gordon Green (George Washington, All the Real Girls, Snow Angels)
Writer: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (SuperBad)
Cast: Seth Rogen, James Franco, Bill Hader, James Remar, Gary Cole, Rosie Perez
The Buzz: Yes, another Judd Apatow produced comedy. Superbad co-writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg return with an action comedy about a stoner (Rogen) and his dealer (Franco) who are forced to go on the run from the police after the pothead witnesses a cop commit a murder.
Trivia: Green directs his first feature comedy.

The International

Release Date: August 15th 2008
Director: Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run, Perfume)
Cast: Clive Owen, Naomi Watts
The Buzz: An Interpol agent (Owen) attempts to expose a high-profile financial institution’s role in an international arms dealing ring. Tykwer’s films are always very visually unique.

Trailer Trash

Release Date: August 22nd 2008
Director: Eli Roth
Cast: Unannounced
The Buzz: An R-Rated feature film full of connected faux horror movie trailers. Eli Roth says he wants to make a film like “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” which he considers “to be the greatest achievement in the history of cinema.” I, like many, really enjoyed the fake movie trailers which were attached to Grindhouse. And I’ve always been a fan of the short form film (ie short film) because if you don’t like it, just wait a few minutes and it will be over and another one will begin. Plus as Roth notes, you can make a trailer full of tentpole moments without all the exposition and connected story in between. Oh, and Roth’s Thanksgiving trailer was hilarious.
Trivia: Roth has said that the film will include another trailer for Thanksgiving, and a trailer for “The Leap Year Killer”, a killer who only kills one day every few years.

Where the Wild Things Are

Release Date: October 3rd 2008
Director: Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation)
Cast: Forest Whitaker, Michelle Williams, Catherine Keener, James Gandolfini, Paul Dano, Catherine O’Hare
The Buzz: Every kid has read the classic illustrated Maurice Sendak book, about Max, a mischievous little boy, creates his own world - a forest in habited by fabulous wild creatures who crown Max as their ruler. Music Video turned filmmaker Spike Jonze has always created some visual and conceptual masterpieces. This is also Spike’s first feature film not written by Charlie Kaufman.
Trivia: Dave Eggers, who adapted the book for the screen has been hailed as “the J.D. Salinger of Generation X”.

How to Lose Friends & Alienate People

Release Date: October 3rd 2008
Director: Robert B. Weide (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Cast: Megan Fox, Kristen Dunst, Simon Pegg, Jeff Bridges, Gillian Anderson
The Buzz: Based on the bestselling memoir by Toby Young, How to Lose Friends & Alienate People follows a disillusioned intellectual named Sidney Young (Pegg) who both adores and despises the world of celebrity, fame and glamour. His alternative magazine, Post Modern Review, pokes fun at the media obsessed stars and bucks trends, and so when Young is offered a job at the diametrically opposed conservative New York based Sharps magazine its something of a shock! It seems Sharps editor Clayton Harding is amused by Young’s disruption of a post-BAFTA party with a pig posing as Babe. Thus begins Sidney’s descent into success - his gradual move from derided outsider to confidante of starlet Sophie Maes (Fox) - and a love affair with colleague Alison Olsen (Dunst), that will either make him or break him. Film also stars Jeff Bridges and Gillian Anderson.
Trivia: The title of the book is a parody of Dale Carnegie’s bestseller, How to Win Friends and Influence People.

Eagle Eye

Release Date: October 10th 2008
Director: D.J. Caruso (Disturbia)
Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Rosario Dawson, Michelle Monaghan
The Buzz: Disturbia helmer D.J. Caruso reunites with Shia LaBeouf for a dramatic thriller about a young slacker whose overachieving twin brother has died mysteriously. Based on a story by Steven Spielberg (yes, that Steven), when the young man returns home, both he and a single mother find they have been framed as terrorists. Forced to become members of a cell that has plans to carry out a political assassination, they must work together to extricate themselves.
Trivia: When Eagle Eye was fast tracked into production due to the 2008 strike, Rosario Dawson had to decline the role of Miri in Zack and Miri Make a Porno, which was personally written for her by writer/director Kevin Smith

The Time Traveler’s Wife

Release Date: November 2008 (estimated)
Director: Robert Schwentke (Flightplan)
Cast: Rachel McAdams, Eric Bana, Ron Livingston
The Buzz: Based on the novel by Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler’s Wife is a romantic drama about a Chicago librarian (Bana) with a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, and the complications it creates for his marriage. I’m always game for any time travel movie, although this sounds a bit like the new television show Journeyman.
Trivia: Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt made headlines when they bought the film rights to Niffenegger’s novel before it was released to the public.

James Bond 22

Release Date: November 7th 2008
Director: Marc Forster (Stranger Than Fiction, Finding Neverland, The Kite Runner)
Writer: Robert Wade and Paul Haggis (Casino Royale)
Cast: Daniel Craig, Goran Visnjic, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Jesper Christensen
It’s Bond, what more can you say? Daniel Craig returns as agent 007. Not much is known about this film as of yet. All we do know is that this movie is going to be the first ever direct sequel to another official James Bond film (Casino Royale)
Trivia: Pre-production work for this film began before Casino Royale started filming.

The Changeling

Release Date: November 7th 2008
Director: Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River)
Writer: J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5, World War Z)
Cast: Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, Riki Lindhome, Amy Ryan
The Buzz: Jolie plays a woman whose son is abducted but retrieved; she suspects, however, that the returned child is not hers. The woman must then confront corruption in the LAPD. The story is based on true events in 1920s Los Angeles. The film is being produced by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer.
Trivia: Ron Howard was originally attached to direct.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Release Date: November 21st 2008
Director: David Yates (Order of the Phoenix)
Writer: Steve Kloves (Wonder Boys, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone)
Cast: Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Jim Broadbent, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton
The Buzz: As Harry Potter begins his 6th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he discovers an old book marked mysteriously “This book is the property of the Half-Blood Prince” and begins to learn more about Lord Voldemort’s dark past.
Trivia: Director Guillermo del Toro turned down the chance to direct this film.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Release Date: November 26th 2008
Director: David Fincher (Fight Club, Se7en, Zodiac)
Writer: Eric Roth (Forrest Gump, Munich)
Cast: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton, Elle Fanning, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas
The Buzz: Based on the 1922 short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Benjamin Button (Pitt) is born as a feeble old man, and ages in reverse until he becomes a baby at the end of his life. This causes complications when he falls in love with a 30-year-old woman (Blanchett). Fitzgerald has noted that “This story was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain’s to the effect that it was a pity that the best part of life came at the beginning and the worst part at the end.” The film has a $150 million budget, and was shot back to back with Zodiac. Love him or hate him, Fincher always delivers an interesting film.
Trivia: The project has been in development since 1994 with numerous directors including Ron Howard, Spike Jonze, and Gary Ross. In the late 90’s, John Travolta was in line to star in the film.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Release Date: December 12th 2008
Director: Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Hellraiser: Inferno)
Writer: David Scarpa (The Last Castle)
Cast: Keanu Reeves (Matrix)
The Buzz: A remake of the classic 1951 sci-fi action film by Robert Wise, which is considered one of the best Science Fiction films of all time (#7 on Arthur C Clarke’s List) and was debated for it’s religious symbolism and many interpretations. Bernard Herrmann score is also notable, partly because of its use of two theremins. The film is currently ranked #187 of all time on IMDb, with a 8.1 rating. Reeves will play Klaatu, an alien who arrives on Earth accompanied by a large humanoid robot named Gort, with a warning to world leaders that their continued aggression will lead to annihilation by species watching from afar.
Trivia: Klaatu is famous in part due to the phrase “Klaatu barada nikto!” used in the film and its re-use in the Bruce Campbell cult film Army of Darkness.

Angels & Demons

Release Date: December 19th 2008
Director: Ron Howard
Writer: Akiva Goldsman (A Beautiful Mind, The Da Vinci Code)
Cast: Tom Hanks
The Buzz: The Da Vinci Code is overrated. I’ve always found the prequel Angels & Demons to be the far better and more interesting story. It’s a classic race against time to find a hidden bomb in the Vatican and hunt down a serial killer in Rome. The reason why this story is more interesting to me is the multi-layered debate about which is to be trusted - science or religion.

Star Trek

Release Date: December 25th 2008
Director: JJ Abrams
The Buzz: JJ Abrams restarts the Trek series at the beginning. Not much is known about the film other than it will feature a young Kirk and Spock in the early days of the Enterprise. Casting of young and comedic actors has worried long time fans, but producers have stated since the beginning that they are trying to attract a new audience to the series. Zachary Quinto (Heroes) as Spock, Eric Bana as the villain Nero, Zoe Saldana (Drumline) as Uhura, Anton Yelchin (Charlie Bartlett) as Chekov, John Cho as Sulu and possibly Chris Pine (Just My Luck) as Kirk.
Trivia: Matt Damon called J.J. Abrams when he heard rumors that he was being considered for the role of Captain Kirk. The response from Abrams was a very polite “No”, stating that Damon was “too old” for the role.

And the following films are in production or being rushed into production before the strike, and couple possibly be released in Fall 2008, although there are no guarantees.

Adventureland

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Greg Mottola (SuperBad)
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Kristen Stewart, Jesse Eisenberg, Martin Starr
The Buzz: A comedy loosely based on Mottola’s teenage experiences. Set in the summer of 1987, Adventureland centers around a recent college grad (Eisenberg) who takes a nowhere job at his local amusement park, only to find it’s the perfect course to get him prepared for the real world.
Trivia: While Adventureland is a real Long Island amusement park, the film is actually being shot at Kennywood Park in Pennsylvania.

Australia

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Baz Luhrmann (Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge!)
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, David Wenham, Bryan Brown
The Buzz: Luhrmann’s film is set in northern Australia prior to World War II and centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country’s most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.
Trivia: Russell Crowe was originally attached as the lead during pre-production. 20th Century Fox executives wanted to reduce Crowe’s salary considerably, which compelled him to ultimately leave the project. Heath Ledger was also set to star in this film, but dropped out to play The Joker in The Dark Knight.

The Box

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko, Southland Tales)
Cast: Sean William Scott, Cameron Diaz
The Buzz: I, like many others, LOVED Kelly’s feature film debut Donnie Darko. I have yet to see his follow-up, Southland Tales, which has garnered far less acclaim. Based on the story “Button, Button” written by Richard Matheson (I Am Legend), the film surrounds a troubled married couple who find a small wooden box on their doorstep, which brings with it unforeseen fortune. Their good luck, however, comes at a price.
Trivia: The horror/thriller has a $30 million-plus budget.

Brüno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt

Release Date: 2008??
Director: Dan Mazer (Borat)
Cast: Sacha Baron Cohen
The Buzz: The follow-up to Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, follows Cohen’s third Da Ali G Show character Brüno, a gay Austrian TV reporter who interviews unsuspecting guests about topics such as fashion, entertainment, celebrities and homosexuality, with an emphasis on the latter as each interview progresses.
Trivia: After the huge break-out success of Borat, negotiations to Cohen’s follow-up were intense, with Universal Pictures acquiring the worldwide rights to the film for a reported $42.5 million dollars.

The Fighter

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Director: Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, Pi, The Fountain)
Writer: Paul Attanasio (The Quiz Show, Donnie Brasco)
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Brad Pitt
The Buzz: Based on a true story, this drama follows boxer “Irish” Micky Ward’s unlikely road to the world light welterweight title. His Rocky-like rise was shepherded by half-brother Dicky, a boxer-turned-trainer who rebounded in life after nearly being KO’d by drugs and crime. Aronofky knows how to handle drugs on the big screen, and this should be a tale where he can really show off his style.
Trivia: Matt Damon had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts and was replaced by Brad Pitt. Interestingly enough, Scorsese originally was going to cast Pitt in the role of Colin Sullivan in The Departed. However, Pitt dropped out to film Babel and Damon got the role.

Frost/Nixon

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Director: Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, The Da Vinci Code)
Cast: Kevin Bacon, Frank Langella, Michael Sheen, Matthew Macfadyen, Sam Rockwell
The Buzz: Based on the popular stage play, Frost/Nixon is a dramatic retelling of the post-Watergate television interviews between British talk-show host David Frost and former president Richard Nixon.
Trivia: Frank Langella won a Tony Award in 2007 for playing Richard Nixon in the original stage production.

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Director: Peter Sollett (Raising Victor Vargas)
Cast: Michael Cera (Superbad, Juno), Kat Dennings (40 Year Old Virgin)
The Buzz: Based on the novel by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, It all starts when Nick asks Norah to be his girlfriend for five minutes, to avoid his ex-girlfriend, who’s just walked in to his band’s show. And then, with one kiss, Nick and Norah are off on an adventure set against the backdrop of New York City-and smack in the middle of all the joy, anxiety, confusion, and excitement of a first date. This is the story about one date over one very long night, with two teenagers, both recovering from broken hearts, who are just trying to figure out who they want to be-and where the next great band is playing.
Trivia: You can read chapter one of the book for FREE at this link.

RocknRolla

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Guy Ritchie (Snatch)
Cast: Gerard Butler, Jeremy Piven, Thandie Newton, Tom Wilkinson
The Buzz: London’s criminal underworld takes notice of a Russian mobster’s shady land deal, a scam that puts millions of dollars up for grabs. Ritche makes his return to the Gangster film. Thank god because I for one can’t take another Swept Away.
Trivia: Thandie Newton claims to have signed on for two sequels.

Shantaram

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Director: Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake)
Writer: Eric Roth (Forrest Gump, Munich)
Cast: Johnny Depp
The Buzz: Based on the novel by Gregory David Roberts, Shantaram follows a heroin addict incarcerated for a robbery escapes prison and reinvents himself as a doctor in the slums of Bombay; his ties to the crime underworld there lead him to Afghanistan, where he partners with a mob boss locked in a battle with Russian criminals.
Trivia: Russell Crowe wanted to play the lead in this film, but he found out that Johnny Depp had already acquired the rights to the book.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Release Date: Fall 2008 (estimated)
Writer/Director: Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy)
Cast: ???, ???, Jason Mewes
The Buzz: Two friends, both in their late 20s and feeling various strains of adulthood, decide to launch an amateur porn studio — a knockout story for their upcoming high school reunion. I’m a huge fan of Kevin Smith’s work, and this sounds like a step back towards Chasing Amy, which is probably Smith’s best film to date.
Trivia: The Weinstein Company greenlit the project based solely on the title.

so, see you in theaters!

Meet Ning-Ning

Rain Wendy Lubrico, born July 09, 2007. she is 1 year old now. she is a daughter of my cousin "dodong". she is my favorite "pamangkin". i have so many "pamangkins" from my cousins yet i really like "ning ning". in our family, she have many nick names some are, Luningning(named after a famous female dancer of wowowee), chloe(named after a famous girl of deal or no deal), Clong-clong(because of her curly hair), but for me, i prefer to call her " Ning Ning" (a light, a star, a blessing). she is so cute and adorable. despite of her age, she easily adopt the gesture of an older. she really love to sing though you can only hear whisper and tickles. when i am at home, i am always the one who took care of her since her parents are busy earning for their living. she loves to play with me more than i am. i cant take to end up a day without seeing her. she is also a crowd favorite, aside from being so jolly, she have a nice and very smooth skin. hay... i really miss my angel, i really miss her smile and laughters. its been a while since the last time i saw her. what a! but, life's change and life's move on. for sure, she have her new playmate now, she enjoys playing with other people. and the saddest thing, she will forget me, she definitely cant remember me.
sooner or later, we will see each other. but i am afraid of saying "hello" to her and she wouldn't answer even a simple "hi".

Philippine's Finest

RP's Sexiest Women

1. Marian Rivera
2. Megan Fox
3. Katrina Halili
4. Angel Locsin
5. Diana Zubiri
6. Ehra Madrigal
7. Iwa Moto
8. Cristine Reyes
9. Anne Curtis
10. Angelica Panganiban


RP's Sexiest Men

1. Piolo Pascual
2. Gerald Anderson
3. Will Devaughn
4. Sam Milby
5. Aljur Abrenica
6. Jericho Rosales
7. Jon Avila
8. Derek Ramsay
9. Zanjoe Marudo
10. Jake Cuenca

Ben Barnes: Prince Caspian

In February 2007, it was announced Barnes would play the role of Caspian in the film adaption of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, directed by Andrew Adamson. Adamson said “Caspian is a coming of age and, to some degree, a loss of innocence story, with Caspian starting out quite naïve, then craving revenge and finally letting go of the vengeance.” While many readers interpret Caspian as a child, a passage in the novel mentions his age to be near that of Peter’s, so an older actor was sought to match William Moseley. Barnes had read the novel as a child, and was cast in two-and-a-half weeks after meeting with the filmmakers. He spent two months in New Zealand horse riding and stunt training to prepare for shooting. Barnes modelled his Spanish accent on Mandy Patinkin’s performance as Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride. Adamson did not expect to cast a British actor as Caspian, and said Barnes fitted well into the surrogate family of Adamson and the four actors playing the Pevensies. When cast, Barnes was set to tour with the National Theatre’s production of The History Boys: producer Mark Johnson joked Barnes “probably isn’t the National [Theatre]’s favorite actor right now”. Barnes left England without telling the Theatre.

Batman: The Dark Knight

Batman began three summers ago - now it's time for him to finish what he started. Bruce Wayne and his alter ego Batman hover on the verge of victory over Gotham City's corruption, thanks to the help of the stalwart Lieutenant Gordon and the capable D.A. Harvey Dent. But then a grinning, horrific specter rises up out of nowhere to thwart Batman at every turn... a devious anarchist who calls himself The Joker. In order to defeat him, Batman will have to explore the darker side of justice and risk becoming more villain than hero himself.

Three Good Reasons

• 1Batman Begins proved to audiences that "a great superhero movie" could rise above the genre and become simply "a great movie." This sequel promises to live up to that standard, boasting the same director and exceptional lead actors.
• 2While the film is packed with Oscar-worthy talents, it doesn't skimp on the high-octane thrills. Action junkies will get to see car crashes and explosions made the dangerous, old-fashioned way -- with hard metal and hot, hot fire!
• 3 No one will want to miss the extraordinary performance of Heath Ledger as The Joker, a chilling interpretation that was creating buzz even before the young actor's tragic death.