Movies: Thor (2011)

By D. Caraccioli |

Saturday, April 30, 2011

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Making a little break of the last music posts, here I bring you the All Mighty Review of Thor!

.5 

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgård, Kat Dennings, Clark Gregg, and Idris Elba.

Release Date: 6 May 2011 (USA), 29 April 2011

Runtime: 114 minutes

Plot: The powerful but arrogant warrior Thor is cast out of the fantastic realm of Asgard and sent to live amongst humans on Earth, where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.

Epic Battles from Thor.

Well…I think that with this movie Blockbusters are back! If you’re not a Marvel fan but love mythology and Norse gods you’re going to love this movie. (Hey my mom liked it and she is not into action movies or marvel).

I gotta say that I didn’t expected much of this movie but I think that this one is easily one of the best CBMs (Comic Book Movies) ever and also one of the best movies of this year so far.

I don’t think I should do this review since I didn’t see the very first 10 minutes or less but it’s a good movie and I wanted you too now about this.

Asgard, beautiful for a non existing realm.

I’m not going to spoil it for anyone so I’m just going to say that Thor has some epic battles (although you don’t have to see it in 3D) and the scenery of Asgard is beautiful and has a very well written script with some funny parts and the cast is wonderful. 

I like he's eyes. Why am I attracted to bad boys?

Chris Hemsworth was spot on and I liked that they put him first as an arrogant almost king cause it sounds so Shakespearian and 

learns to be grateful for what he has. Tom 

Hiddleston was also spot on and I gotta say that seeing another actor on that role might have given us a different result that the one Hiddleston gave us. Natalie Portman (beautiful as always) is a great Jane Foster although her character is not as well big per 

 say but it’s very important and Chris and

Natalie’s chemistry was somewhat unexpected (for me at least) (Oh can we ship them already).And well it was Natalie’s wish to make Jane think outside of the box not like the very stereotypical scientist that was written for her part, very skeptical and dry. Everyone is great in this movie even Kat Dennings with her cheesy one liners, hey she was funny.

Again, can we ship them already?

Concerning the controversy of the casting of Idris Elba as Heimdall, just gotta say that the man did an incredible job and it really doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, yellow or a dinosaur we are all persons. And if you’re saying yes but isn’t he a Norse god? Well in the comics there have been Asgardians with East Asian features so the idea of one with black features isn't as outrageous, since it's only one of multiple races among humans and/or Asgardians.

And now I leave you with the Trailer of the All Mighty Movie Thor.

Music: Top 25 Legendary Male Singers Part 2

By D. Caraccioli |

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

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Hi, this is the second part of my top 25 (because they were too many of them I loved) of legendary male singers. I think that the last few positions revealed that I like Rock a lot...and what can I say most of the best male singers are rock singers so enough rambling, here is the second part of my top 25.

14. Axl Rose. What can I say, he is the one why we can sing so loud and bad and dont even care. WE sing bad but he doesn't sound bad when he sings.
      Recommendations: Ah, everyone wants me to say Sweet Child O'Mine but I like better November Rain or Welcome to the Jungle.

Elvis Presley

13. Elvis Presley. Yes I know he's the king of rock & roll and he deserves to be in a higher position but well being in this list is kinda really important...and also I haven't heard that much of him..sorry.
     Recommendations: That song I love from Lilo & Stitch, the one where Stitch is learning good things and then moves like The King...wait gonna find that out...Devil in Desguise, and many songs on that movie.

12. Sting. Now I've been a fan of The Police and Sting because of my dad. I have to say my influences come from both of them, and yes i like a lot of old music... Anyways Sting has been told as a great song writer and singer. 

Sting & The Police

      Recommendations: Sting's It's probably me with Elvis Costello, Englishman in New York (has a very jazzy beat and very good song), The Police's Every Little Thing She Does is Magic and many more. Oh and a very quiet song called Fragile by Sting.

11. Phil Collins. Im a fan of Mr. Collins since I was a little kid thanks to my mom. And then I became a fan of Genesis too...and the rest is history.
      Recommendations: Hmm...The Oscar winner You'll be in my heart...loved Tarzan! Many others like Against all odds, Two Hearts, Sussudio and many more.

10. Elton John. He's a rocket man! Pianist, singer song-writer, great performer! This is another influence of my mom's. 
      Recommendations: Well, Rocket Man, Your Song, Don't let the sun go down on me with George Michael, and I know another one I like but dont know how it's called..Im gonna check that later.

9. Bono.  Well you just couldn't have a top 25 without Bono right? Singer song-writer and humanitarian and pretty good looking Bono has a somehow recognizable voice and is one of the best front mans on band history. 

Bono with U2 Live Aid Wembley Stadium

    Recommendations: U2 has a lot of good songs and I can tell you that they still got it. So, With or without you, One, Where the streets have no name, Sunday Bloody Sunday LIve, hmm from the new ones I like I'll go crazy if I dont go crazy tonight and Magnificent. 

With this I finish my second part of top 25 legendary male singers. What do you think? Are these choices good or who else should be in here? Do you have a certain recommendation of these artists? As always appreciate critic on comments below.

Music: Top 25 Legendary Male Singers Part 1

By D. Caraccioli |

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

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Ultimately I've done posts about movies so I thought I could do a top 10 of Legendary Male Singers, which in here I refer about those really legen...wait for it...dary singers of great bands or solists that have amazing voices and probably most of them have distinct voices that are what they are known for. This Top 25 (because they were so much I loved) is in reverse so you get anxious to see who is number 1. And probably you know already who is. This is just my personal opinion and probably it would be shocking for some of you but I consider these people great singers not only for their voice but their presentation and way, and some of them are there because they really need to.

25.  Matthew Bellamy. If your a Muse fan then you would say why isn't he in a higher position, well basicly is becuase he's one of the only ones who is not a living legend yet...

Matt Bellamy

       Recommendations: You could listen to many Muse songs and this man is great in every single one of them but I want you to listen: Feeling Good live from Wembley Stadium. 

24. Chris Martin. If you know me you know Im a very big fan of Coldplay and yes I do know it sounds a little depressing but there's something in their music that makes me feel good.
      Recommendations: Fix You or The Scientist or anyone of their songs, you should see them live too!

23. Billie Joe Armstrong. For those who don't know who he is here's a ring-a-bell: Don't wanna be an American Idiot! Yes, front man of Green Day Billie Joe is a real singer.
      Reccomendations: Well, all the American Idiot album songs and others from the past and from the new ones 21 guns.

22. Lionel Richie. Whether its with The Commodores or as a solo artist, whether you like it or not this man has some great music. 
      Recommendations: Hello is one of my fave love songs and probably his best, his voice sounds so smooth that you want him to sing it to you.

21. Robbie Williams. Well I havent heard much of him on Take That (Back for Good is the only one I've heard), but he took the right choice becoming a solo artist. 

Robbie Williams

      Reccomendations: No regrets, feauturing the vocals of Pet Shop Boys' Neil Tennant, which Williams wrote about leaving Take That. You could also listen Supreme, Somethin' Stupid with Nicole Kidman and Better Man. 


20. Eminem. Marshall Mathers better known as Eminem is the best rapper I've ever seen. There are some great ones like Tupac, Biggie, Jay Z and Dr. Dre but Eminem delivers lyrics and beats like a disturbed man with some really serious problems.
     Recommendations: Stan ft. Dido...and the Academy Award winner Lose Yourself.


19. Jon Bon Jovi. OMG Scream if you love this man! Seriously handsome dude, specially in the 80s, is in one of 80s most popular bands ever, Bon Jovi. That's all I need to say.

Jon bon Jovi...with less hair than in the 80s

      Recommendations: You give love a bad name! Living on a Prayer! And very sentimental Always, its lovely Im telling you.


18. Steve Tyler. CRAZY Dude! With that big mouth he is one of the craziest front mans I've seen (Him and Mick Jagger). 
      Recommendations: Well everyone loves Aerosmith's I dont want to miss a thing. 

17. David Lee Roth. Singer of Van Halen and competing with Jon Bon Jovi for hansome dude of the 80s but Bon Jovi still got the looks and Lee Roth just looks old! But since Lee Roth is way more into crazy things he's a great front man.
     Recommendations: Hot for Teacher! For those who like rock!


16. Jim Morrison. I guess we're entering Rock World right? Hell, I also think this man is sexy! So sad he is not with us anymore. RIP. But he made the word Front man with his spectacles when singing. 

Jim Morrison...hot!

      Recommendations: My fave of The Doors, Light my fire.


15. Bob Marley. Oh and I think we're moving to Dead Awesome People Department... Again RIP... If you like reggae then you know why he's here with lots of rockers. At the end Marley just wanted a free world without fights and we can hear that from his lyrics. 
     Recommendations: No Woman no cry, Buffalo Soldier and One Love.


So I guess Im going to make this as a 3 part cause they're just so many of them! What do you think of the first choices? Do you know who will be in No. 1? Who do you hope will be in this list? If I forgot someone please tell me. As always I appreciate your comments!

Movies: 30 Day Film Challenge Part 3

By D. Caraccioli |

Monday, April 18, 2011

3 comments

So this is the end of a great experience through movies and let me tell you..it was a little bit hard but thoroughly joyful..enough rambling..here are my 10 last "days"


Day 21. Movie with your favorite actor. This one is as easy as it's difficult. Fave Actor, easy: Johnny Depp. Fave movie of him: hmmmmm....
This might sound childish but I love Charlie and the chocolate factory so much I can quote Depp in some occasions...Other faves are Finding Neverland, Public Enemies, Edward Scissorhands, The Corpse Bride, and Sleepy Hollow. It seems odd that 4 of them are from Tim Burton...don't judge me..

Day 22. Movie you wish you could live in. Its something that can never become but well it's one of the coolest trilogies ever!! Back to the future...oh man I wish I could live back in the 80s and meet Marty (Michael J. Fox)...it would probably be an awesome experience and a good story to tell to my grand kids...

Day 23. Movie that Inspires you. Forrest Gump.  One of Tom Hanks best movies...I remember watching it when I was a kid...again didn't understand cause I didn't have my now found love for cinema but its really inspiring and its one of my fave movies also.

Day 24. Movie with your favorite soundtrack. Hans Zimmer does a great job at this thing so he deserves recognition but also John Williams for the soundtrack of E.T, Jaws, Close Encounters of the third kind. And a special mention to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for The Social Network soundtrack. 

 

Day 25. Movie with the most beautiful scenery. That's kind of one thing that I've never paid attention to. So I gotta say something predictable The Lord of The Rings trilogy.

Day 26. Movie you're most embarrassed to say you like. This is not because I like it but because of how much I love it. Bewitched. Sincerely, I don't know why people don't like this movie or Will Ferrell, but I do love it and also quote Ferrell's lines sometimes.

Day 27. Movie with your favorite villain. The best villain on a CBM (Comic book movie) The Joker from The Dark Knight. Heath's portrayal was the best of the best and well he deserves all the recognition. 

Day 28. Movie with your favorite hero. Doesn't matter what actor is portraying him. Batman will always be the coolest and therefore my fave hero...and specially when it's portrayed by Christian Bale. 

Day 29. First movie you ever remember watching. The Lion King. I watched it on video cassette (remember those times?) with all my cousins and we were all 5 year olds and I don't remember quite well but I think several cried when Mufasa died. It is one of the best Disney movies and a lovely movie.

Day 30. Last movie you watched. Just got to watch Tangled on DVD right before doing this and I gotta say its a very lovely Disney movie and I'm not sure why I hadn't seen this yet.

  
So with this I end the whole 30 day film challenge. What do you think of my choices? Which would have been your choices? Please comment and thanks. For now see you later!

Movies: Rio (2011)

By D. Caraccioli |

Saturday, April 16, 2011

7 comments

I told myself I wouldn't review any film in here cause I'm not good reviewing but people need to know that this movie is great. I'm not a professional reviewer and this is just my personal opinion. So enjoy.

 


Directed by: Carlos Saldanha
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, George Lopez, Jamie Foxx, Will.I.Am and Jemaine Clement.
Runtime: 95 minutes
Plot: When Blu, a domesticated macaw from small-town Minnesota, meets the fiercely independent Jewel, he takes off on an adventure to Rio de Janeiro with this bird of his dreams.


Rio is a great, wonderful and colorful movie. Personally I could give this movie a 4 1/2 stars but to be reasonable I'll give it 4 stars. 
I wanted to see this movie since I saw the trailer, and no its not because of Jesse Eisenberg, but because it seemed like a fun and very colorful movie. And I read some reviews telling that is was good but not as good as I hoped it was. So I had normal hopes on this movie and it really surprised me that anyone didn't like it more cause sincerely this is just a lovely story that has a lot of fun adventure for all people. 

The theme can be a little bit more for grown kids but it goes good with the "I cant fly" plot which is sorta predictable but always great.

I cant comment on the casting since I didn't see it in English, but I think that by seeing the movie you could see that the birds are just bird versions of both Anne Hathaway and Jesse Eisenberg. Blu is such a cute and awkward bird that you just can't stop caring about him.

The visuals are great. Carlos Saldanha was spot on with the colorful city of Rio described in the movie and the description of the people in Rio too. This kinds of movies are the ones that make me want to study Animation and really just after this movie I've made my choice.

The Music
The music in the movie is just like the city, colorful and happy and well it's being produced by one of Brazil's greatest Sergio Mendes ("Mas que nada") and has its bit of hip-hop and pop by the vocals of Will.I.Am and Jamie Foxx. An it's fun and colorful just like this wonderful movie. 

This was my favorite song from the movie. It called "Real in Rio" by the Rio Singers, Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx and Will.I.Am.

If you haven't seen it go see Rio! I promise you you'll have a great time!

Movies: 30 day film Challenge Part 2

By D. Caraccioli |

Sunday, April 10, 2011

2 comments

Hello again! This is the second part of the 30 day film challenge. As always these are just personal opinions and you are welcome to say which movies you should have chosen instead of mines. So here it is: 

Day 11. Favorite kid's movie. OK since I love all of Disney films I just can choose one and it should probably be UP. I'm not sure why but I love it! And it has the coolest bird ever on a screen! Nowadays I don't watch movies with my family, unless if we're going to the theater together, but this might be a movie that I love to watch with them!

Day 12. Favorite love story. Since I'm not a big fan of romance, my faves are both with the same actress. Meg Ryan was America's Sweethearts back in the 90s and these are my two fave movies of her. One with Tom Hanks, the other with Nicolas Cage. Yes now you know, they are: Sleepless in Seattle, and City of Angels.

Day 13. Favorite chick flick. Its another Nicolas Cage movie! (He made good movies back then). I just love  Moonstruck and surprisingly I loved Cher in here too. I haven't seen more Cher movies (except for Burlesque which is a joke that they have Cher in that movie, she is too good for it) but this one is my favorite chick flick. Yes, I just love the part with "Snap out of it". (I think Cher gave Cage too many slaps and that's why he is a little bit crazy nowadays).

Day 14. Favorite Documentary. I haven't seen any so my choice is: An Inconvenient Truth. That's the only one I've seen, so far.

Day 15. Favorite play adaptation. In this I'm not good so I'm just going to say Romeo + Juliet. It is a great movie and has Leonardo DiCaprio!

Day 16. Favorite book adaptation. Again its biased. Big Fish! Again I just love Ewan McGregor in here and especially the moment where he meets his wife and everything stops. I haven't read the book but I think its the best movie adapted from a book.

Day 17. Least favorite book adaptation. If you are looking for a movie where you can sleep for more than 20 minutes and haven't missed anything Dear John is good for you! I hated this movie and my best friend made me watch it and I had never slept at a theater before (Well the time when I slept watching The Bourne Supremacy was just because it was late night and I was a kid, but that movie was good). This movie is not good, and it bored me all the way. I cant believe it was another Nicholas Sparks book, cause his books are particularly entertaining.

Day 18. Film that is your guilty pleasure. Probably the only good LIndsay Lohan movie (The parent trap doesn't count, it was when she was a nice girl). It was written by the most witty woman on the small and big screen, Tina Fey! I can sometimes quote everything that they say in the movie. Well, not everything but I always enjoy this movie. 

Day 19. Film that made you cry the hardest. I am weird! I don't cry with a movie! The only ones I've ever cried with are: City of Angels, Pay it Forward, and Marley & Me. (but I guess everyone who has a dog cried with this one).

Day 20. Movie with your favorite actress. My favorite actress: Meryl Streep. Fave movie of her: hmm...I loved Julie & Julia and It's Complicated made me laugh hard, and there are others of her so I'll just say Julie & Julia although I know there are better movies of her I loved her as Julia Child!! Loved her. 

 So this is the end of part 2. I'll post part 3 soon. So what do you think? Are these movies good choices or you could have done better? Post your answers on the comments. And au revoir!!

Movies: 30 Day Film Challenge Part 1

By D. Caraccioli |

Thursday, April 7, 2011

3 comments

You might have heard of this or maybe you haven't. These are basically some personal choices about movies. A special recognition to Nadine who told me about this thing. As always these are only personal choices. The days are going to be different here. I'll post them in 3 parts but not in days. You can also contribute and tell which movie you would have chosen instead of mines. 

Day 1. Favorite Film. OK this is a very difficult one and I won't be able to choose just one.
So I gotta say. Breakfast at Tiffany's. The Dark Knight. The Social Network. Toy Story. Inception. Casablanca.

  

Day 2. Least favorite film. This is an easy one. Twilight and Saw. I really don't know what people see on this two, specially on Saw since there have been just too many of them. When will it stop!

 

Day 3. Favorite Comedy. Here again I can't choose one. I love Comedies! These are the ones that come to mind: Zoolander, Arthur (1980), Ferris Bueller's Day Off,The Naked Gun, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (although its more of a science-fiction movie, I laughed a lot and I love Michael Cera!!) , Click.

 

Day 4. Favorite Drama. OK now its serious... I really have a lot of them but must say mostly these 2: Casablanca and The Social Network. 

 

Day 5. Favorite Action. You just can't beat John McClane and Bruce Willis might just be the ultimate awesome hero. A little mention to Willis' Hostage too.

 Day 6. Favorite Horror. This one is easy too. Zombieland might have been scary if I wasn't laughing all the way, but still it's considered horror. Those zombies are actually very real to be a movie but laughs are better than screams. Just look at Jesse's face and you'll be laughing very hard. This one should really be in my Comedies.

Day 7. Favorite Animated Feature. The one and only Toy Story. All of PIXAR's and Disney's actually. 

Day 8. Favorite Thriller. Since I haven't seen too many thrillers I really don't know but maybe I can put these 3, actually the only ones I've seen. Are these considered thrillers? I don't know. Rear Window, The Sixth Sense and When a Stranger calls. 

Day 9. Favorite Musical. I just love Ewan McGregor and my god he sings beautifully. My fave song of this musical might be El Tango de Roxanne, oh dear Ewan is so magnificent singing that song it give me chills always. 

 

Day 10. Favorite foreign film. I haven't seen a lot, but this one is just really incredible. I remember watching it when I was a kid, a little kid and actually I didn't understand it, but nowadays I think is a very inspiring and lovely movie. If you haven't seen La vita  è bella you should. 

And with this I finish part 1. I'll post part 2 as soon as I can. What films you would choose? Like these movies? Comments please!