Viola, wanting to prove herself in soccer, disguises herself as her brother Sebastian and attends his school, where she meets (and falls for) her roommate Duke, who wants to date with their classmate Olivia, who develops a crush on Sebastian, who is actually Viola in disguise. Oh, joy.

Short review: BWAHAHA! I didn't think it was going to be this funny!

Long review:
Because Twelfth Night is my favorite Shakespearean play EVER, I had hesitations in watching this... Read full post... That's precisely why I skipped watching it back in 2006, mainly. I watched the other day, and let's just say it was hard to keep from laughing loudly. (It was almost midnight and everyone else was asleep.)

The plot closely follows the general direction of the play, but uses football to be Viola's motivation. 'Nuff said about the plot.

Amanda Bynes does an outstanding job as a girl in disguise! I mean... she's a gorgeous girl, but when she begins acting as Sebastian, I would be convinced that she's a guy. A rather awkward, desperate-for-attention one, but an amusing guy nonetheless. Kudos to Amanda!

Very good, hilarious script! And the actors did a very good job in the comedy, methinks.

My only problems with it would be:
(1) The ending. Not that the ending's bad, it's just... not executed well... sorta. But the climax was good! :)
(2) Duke. Okay, so he's hilarious as a shy hottie, but there were moments when I think he became a bit too dorky.

Hm... I think that's it! Nice movie, hilarious scenes. I like it! :)

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Thou mammering idle-headed ratsbane!

Just when I was thinking that I wanted to read Twelfth Night again —which I can't, not without buying the book again because a classmate in high school lost it for me— a friend of mine posts something on her blog, which somehow leads us to a discussion on Shakespeare. I won't explain how exactly that happened (her blog post was about IT work). And yes, I'm fully aware that my first sentence sounded totally geeky.

Anyway, the topic of discussion is the definition of "wherefore", one of the words in one of the lines in one of the most famous Shakespearean scenes —the balcony scene of Romeo and Juliet. "Wherefore", my friends, means "why". Not "where", but "why". Okay? "WHY".

Moving on.

That lead me to check what Shakespeare used for "where". The search at one point took me to the most exciting post ever —which, if I may say so, is also one of the funniest I read in a while, especially if you read the conversation that followed in the comments— and then to the Shakespearean dictionary, where I got where I needed. "Where" in Shakesperean is..."where". Surprise, surprise.

And then this little text link catches my attention, and brings me to the site that will most likely be one of my favorites from now on.

The Shakesperean Insult Generator

Okay, okay, so I don't really like insulting people (it just ruins my day), but the generated insults are just so hilarious! Add the Shakespeare graphic... Bwahahaha! Cheers to you, Master Shakespeare!

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Loving Will

As in William Shakespeare.

Miii wrote a blog post today about appreciating Shakespeare. As she's an English teacher and all, I wasn't really surprised that she wrote about Will. She ended the post with a question:

HOW can I appreciate Shakespeare?

Ahaha. I bet a hundred gazzillion students are asking that as I write.

I know I'll sound like a geek when I'll say this, but I love Shakespeare's work. I'm not as addicted to it now than I was before, but I'm still fond of Will's plays. (Of his sonnets, though, not so much...I never did get poems.)

There was a phase in grade school when I was so addicted to Romeo and Juliet. I had to type the infamous Act II Scene II (a.k.a. the balcony scene) for a school project then, and it so sparked my interest --- bookworm that I was -- that I read the whole play later. My love for Master Shakespeare's plays returned in high school, when (again) they became part of our subject matter. I was assigned to do a book report on The Tempest.

But, I digress.

Let's go back to the original question: How to appreciate Shakespeare?

My answer: Watch movies based on his plays.

Read full post...

I'm sure it's not THE answer, but that's what helped me. Yes, I was already interested, but what fanned my curiosity was the imagery I get from films and other adaptations.

To be honest, the first adaptation I stumbled upon (actually, Sara stumbled upon it and shared it with me) was MacHiei. It's a Yuu Yuu Hakusho fanfiction that dealt with how the characters of the anime will do if they act out MacBeth. It was hilarious, and went down in my personal history as the funniest fanfic ever.

After that, I tried to read the real MacBeth, but because I was too reminded of MacHiei (thus destroying the tragedy aspect of it all) I eventually paused and hunted for a movie adaptation. Atom lent me his copy of Men of Respect. It's a pretty good take on the play, setting it in the midst of mafia wars and such.

My favorite Shakespeare play, though, is Twelfth Night, Or What You Will. It's the only Shakespearean play that I read and enjoyed without the help of a movie. BUT when I watched the adaptation of the play in the mid-90s (with Helena Bonham Carter in it as Olivia), it helped even more! It's done SO well! It's set in the 19th century, but the treatment is sort of modern, so it doesn't come as stiff. As for a more recent adaptation, there's She's the Man starring Amanda Bynes.

There are a dozen more -- err...even hundreds, maybe? -- film adaptations of Will's plays, if ever you're interested. Here are the ones I've watched/plan to watch.

Shakespeare in Love is a really good movie, and I think it'll get you to appreciate him a bit more. It adds to his humanity, I guess, and removes that mushy-poetry-geek-in-poofy-pants mentality of him, and replaces it with a hanyaaaan-so-romantic-and-cool-bishie image. Still in poofy pants, yes, but, whatever.

10 Things I Hate About You is based on Taming of the Shrew. Same plot and similar developments, the setting is a high school in the States. Stars Julia Stiles, Larisa Oleynik, and Heath Ledger. Julia Stiles stars in another film based on a Shakespeare play: the 2000 adaptation of Hamlet, with Ethan Hawke this time.

Stage Beauty (Claire Danes, Billy Crudup) will make you appreciate Othello, methinks. (The shounen ai parts kind of creeped me out a bit, though.) It's not an adaptation, really, but the story revolves around theater actors, and the play of focus is Othello. There's a film adaptation of the same play starring Lawrence Fishburne as the noir, and it was hauntingly good.

Of course, I think most movie-goers know about Baz Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet, starring Leo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. There's a new anime currently running in Japan entitled RomeoxJuliet. It's loosely based on the play, and the plot's a bit different, but if it'll strike your interest in Shakespeare, then great.

Al Pacino acted in the 2004 film adaptation of The Merchant of Venice. I haven't watched it, though. But I'm sure Al Pacino does an awesome job, as he always does.

There's a Midsummer Night's Dream movie in 2000 (or was it '99?) with a pretty star-studded cast. Michelle Pfeiffer, Kevin Kline, Rupert Everett, Calista Flockhart, and Stanley Tucci, to name a few. Haven't watched that, either. Feh.

Speaking of star-studded casting, there's an adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing by Kenneth Branagh (with Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves, Kate Beckinsale, and...other people) . It's nothing super spectacular, but at least it gives you a bit of visuals for when you read the play. And there were moments that cracked me up, too. Emma Thompson does comedy well. (And I've always loved sparring couples. Haha!) Kate Beckinsale's Hero was...err... too whiny for me, though. Pretty, yes, but a bit of a crybaby.

Kenneth Branagh has done a LOT of Will's plays, taking part in the film as a director and as an actor. Love's Labour's Lost kinda sucked, though... Then again, the play itself wasn't spectacular, either. His adaptation of As You Like It (based in 19th centry Japan! Lol) got favorable reviews, but I have yet to watch it. Hmmm I wonder how Kevin Kleine does his Jacques. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." Mukya~!



In all honesty, even though I love Will's plays, I have yet to completely overcome the language barrier. I can manage, yes, but I still need movies and online summaries to help me for the first reading.

So, in summary: How to appreciate Will's work? Get some visualization down. Movies help. If movies aren't your thing, then go watch a play. If that's not your thing, either, then get someone to tell you the story before reading. And even if you don't actually read the play...

Well, at least you know Shakespeare. ^_^

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

bookworm

Got this from my Vox blog. (Yes, yes, I got myself yet another blog. I'm an addict. I know.) This was supposed to be posted in Dec 15, but... oh well.

qotd: What books did you love as a child?
Ha! Lessee...

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: (Dr. Seuss, 1957) It was Kuya Tim's book, actually. But we read it over and over even if it wasn't Christmas. I can still remember the illustrations! A classic book about how Christmas is not about presents, Christmas trees, or anything else materialistic, and about how Christmas can change the hardest (or the smallest) of hearts. (But, hey! let's not forget the real reason for Christmas: Jesus Christ!)

Benjamin Alexander Sheep: (Bob Friedman, 1974) God, I LOVE this book. Thank you for making Bob Friedman write it. Simple, easy to read, and absolutely beautiful. I read it over and over when I was small, and I enjoyed the illustrations. I read it again when I was a bit older, and I liked the plot. I read it again a few years later, and I liked the writing style. I read it again... and I LOVED the meanings behind it. A must-read, in my opinion.

The Chronicles of Narnia: (C.S. Lewis, 1949-1954) It was Kuya Jabes' collection, given to him when he turned 10. I wasn't even born yet at that time, but I read it when I was... Lessee... Eight... I think. I only got to read The Magician's Nephew, though. (Yes, I actually wanted to read it chronologically) I think Kuya brought the series to college, and... I never saw it again. I read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe a few years later in our school's library, and I watched the Trumpets plays of the same book several times, and, of course, I watched the movie, too... Sadly, though, I have yet to read the other books.

A Little Princess: (Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1888) How could I NOT read this, when the title is the meaning of my name? An enchanting book about a little girl who lives the life of a princess, yet is far from spoiled. She's very responsible, intelligent, and... well... nice. Too nice, actually, that some people take advantage of her. Her perfect life takes a turn for the bad when her father dies in another country, and is forced to work as a terribly-treated maid in the very school that she attended. A happy ending follows, of course, but not before we see how she bravely copes with emotional torture, stress, and exhaustion. A riches-to-rags-to-riches story, but with cute little twists.

Little Women: (Louisa May Alcott, 1868) A touching book about four sisters dealing with the excitement of growing up, the pains of sibling rivalry, tension of peer pressure, strangling protectiveness of siblings, coziness of domestic life, and other everyday issues. Obviously written from the heart, no matter how you look at it. The two books that followed didn't appeal to me as much as the first one, but I suppose the series as a whole is a good read. (Am I the only one in the world who thinks that Jo should have married Laurie?)

Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew: (The Stratemeyer Syndicate, 1927-1979/1950-1970) Wow, I can still remember this phase well. I was in second grade, and our classroom was right across the library. Ah, bliss!!! Every recess and lunch break (and even in between classes, when our teacher is late), I'd go to the library, asking my friends to call me when our teacher gets in. I started reading books randomly, but eventually, I got hooked on the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew books. And then, when the day is done, I'd borrow a book and take it home, reading until late into the night. My mom would scold me because it was already 10pm (WAY past my bedtime), and I was still reading. But, come on! It was so hard to put down a book in the middle of a chapter, and the chapter endings were always cliffhangers!!!

Anne of Green Gables: (Lucy Maud Montgomery, 1908) The life of an orphan girl who came to live with an elderly couple at Green Gables. Beautifully written. As I read this book, I could imagine what Anne was imagining, I could see what she was seeing, and I could feel what she was feeling. I actually felt very glad I had raven -- not just black, but RAVEN -- hair! Haha! I could SO relate to Anne. Although I'm not as much of a drama queen as she was, we were both walking disasters, especially at the time I was reading this book. As for the books the followed in the series, I read Anne of Avonlea right after reading the first one. Anne of the Island and the other books, I only read when I stepped into college.

The Diary of a Young Girl: (Anne Frank, 1947) A birthday gift to me when I turned 10. I think. This was what made me start writing a journal. I had wanted to keep a journal ever since I started school, but I decided against it thinking that my daily escapades weren't interesting to read, anyway. But after reading this book, I realized that mundane things today can speak volumes several years later. Not that I have any intention of letting other people read my private journal, though. That's for me and me alone. My blogs, on the other hand, are for other people to squeeze lessons from... if they get any at all.

The Tower of Geburah: (John White, 1978) Book 3 of The Archives of Anthropos series. Similar to The Chronicles of Narnia in the sense that it's a children's allegorical fantasy, but don't be deceived: this is not a mere copy of Narnia. Although that might be where it started (White's kids bugged him into writing something similar to the Narnia series), the books have an identity of their own. The story is unique, the adventures are gripping, and the characters are very convincing. I can see myself in the three children in different aspects, and I'm sure you can, too. If you liked Narnia, then you'll enjoy this book just as much.

Mandy: (Dame Julie Andrews Edwards, 1973) A cute little book about a girl and a secret house. For some reason, a distinct memory I have of this book was this one afternoon when I was with my family in the UP Diliman Amphitheater. My brothers were playing Frisbee, my dad was playing golf... and my mom was reading a magazine... I think. I had the beginnings of a migraine headache (though I didn't know that was what it was called, at that time), and I decided to start reading Mandy so I could get sleepy. Well, I didn't sleep as I was sucked into the world of the book (as it always happens when I read), and I managed to finish half the book before we went home. I couldn't eat dinner because my headache was awful by then, so I went to sleep, dreaming of flowers and secret pathways and of shells on walls.

Shakespeare: I bet not many kids read Shakespeare, but, yes. I did. And I loved it. The phase started when I had this project in fifth grade, about the forms of literature. Under plays, I put in an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet: the most famous "wherefore art thou Romeo?" balcony scene. After I finished my project, I went ahead and read the whole thing... And then moved on to the Twelfth Night (my favorite Shakespeare work EVER), then Midsummer Night's Dream... and a few other plays until I was well into high school.

------

I think the World Book Encyclopedia and Childcraft are worth mentioning, as well. I really really liked flipping through those glossy pages with my brothers, way back when I didn't know how to read yet. I just liked the pictures, and my brothers told me what the pictures meant. When I did learn how to read, I had so much fun out of those thick volumes. I still remember what my notebook looked like. And how big my handwriting was. Haha! I wonder why my handwriting didn't improve as much as my vocabulary did...

At some point in elementary school, I also got into the Sweet Valley series as most girls did. But the phase didn't last long, nor did it leave any lasting impression.

So I suppose it's pretty obvious that I like the classics, eh? I got into reading a few "recent" books during high school and college, though. There's Kitchen (Banana Yoshimoto, 1993), This Present Darkness (Frank Peretti, 1986), and Haroun and the Sea of Stories (Salman Rushdie, 1990), among others.

I'm sure there are still a lot of books I haven't mentioned, as I typed all this in from memory. Which means they're the ones that really stood out. Hehe. I think I should check my library when I get home.