Dragonball Evolution

One of the greatest Manga franchises ever created, Dragonball has had an Anime TV series daptation (and sequels) and several movie adaptations. It has also been translated into many languages and is extremely popular around the world.

Unlike the North American adaptation and the Anime, there was never a Dragonball Z Manga. The events of the Dragonball Z TV series follow the events of the Manga as of aproximately volume 17 (Dragonball GT and the movies are original stories that do not follow the Manga). The North American Serialization of "Dragon Ball Z" in the US version of Shonen Jump started in the middle of the series, at the Cyborg Saga.

(source: animenewsnetwork)

Plot: Bulma is a girl in search of the seven mystical Dragonballs who is told that that, when brought together, can grant any wish. Son Goku is a strange boy with a tail who lives in the woods and is the owner of one of the Dragonballs. The two cross paths and a grand adventure begins, on the way meeting a cast of characters such as a desert bandit, Yamucha; the transforming pig, Oolong; and the great martial master of Kame-Sennin, Muten Roshi. The story starts off based on the traditional Chinese folktale 'Journey to the West.' This series also includes what is known in the United States as 'Dragonball Z.'

more about dragonball

More info: On December 4, 2002 Shueisha and Bird Studios commenced the release of the first two volumes of Dragon Ball "Kanzenban". A re-release of the series which would feature new cover art by Akira Toriyama, more chapters per volume (resulting in only 34 volumes as opposed to the original 42), and a new ending by Akira Toriyama.
ps: this is one of my teens time favorite manga (japanese comic book). I still remembered that I have to fight with my brothers in order to read it first :)

The Movie
Starring: Justin Chatwin, Chow Yun Fat, Emmy Rossum
Release Date: April 8th, 2009 (wide)

Preview for you guys

Revolutionary Road

Director Sam Mendes reunites Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet based on Richard Yates's 1961 novel Revolutionary Road

Frank and April, a married couple in the 1950s, have always seen themselves as special, different, ready and willing to live their lives based on higher ideals. So, as soon as they move into their new house on Revolutionary Road, they proudly declare their independence from the suburban inertia that surrounds them and determine never to be trapped by the social confines of their era. Yet for all their charm, beauty and irreverence, the Wheelers find themselves becoming exactly what they didn't expect: a good man with a routine job whose nerve has gone missing; a less-than-happy homemaker starving for fulfilment and passion

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Movie Rating

(source: yahoo movies)

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Based on the novel by John Boyne, THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS is a wrenching Holocaust story about a young German boy and his forbidden friendship with a Jewish child.

PLOT: Eight year-old Bruno (Asa Butterfield) is the sheltered son of a Nazi officer (David Thewlis) whose promotion takes the family from their comfortable home in Berlin to a desolate area where the lonely boy finds nothing to do and no-one to play with. Crushed by boredom and compelled by curiosity, Bruno ignores his mother’s (Vera Farmiga) repeated instructions not to explore the back garden and heads for the ‘farm’ he has seen in the near distance. There he meets Shmuel (Jack Scanlon), a boy his own age who lives a parallel, alien existence on the other side of a barbed wire fence. Bruno's encounter with the boy in the striped pyjamas leads him from innocence to a dawning awareness of the adult world around them as his meetings with Shmuel develop into a friendship with devastating consequences. Farmiga and Thewlis put in excellent performances, while Scanlon and Butterfield, are equally impressive, doing a fine job of carrying the weight of such a heavy film. The BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS is a deeply moving and--it must be said--disturbing movie. But it is a remarkable story, told with masterly intelligence and grace

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A powerful story - not a history lesson



Movie Rating:

A harrowing, unforgettable film. I highly recommend it.


Won

1. British Independent Film Award: Best Actress - Vera Farmiga
2. Chicago International Film Festival: Audience Choice Award - Mark Herman
3. Premio Goya: Best European Film

Nominated for British Independent Film Award:

1. Best Director - Mark Herman
2. Most Promising Newcomer - Asa Butterfield

He's Just Not That Into You

The Book
He's Just Not That Into You: The No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys (Paperback)
* the six little words that changed dating forever



Based on a popular episode of Sex and the City, He's Just Not That Into You educates otherwise smart women on how to tell when a guy just doesn't like them enough, so they can stop wasting time making excuses for a dead-end relationship

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The Movie:

The Baltimore-set movie consists of interconnecting story arcs that deal with the challenges of reading or misreading human behavior, especially involving relationships

The film boasts an all-star cast, including Academy Award® winner Ben Affleck (Good Will Hunting, Hollywoodland) as Neil; Jennifer Aniston (Marley & Me) as Beth; Drew Barrymore (Music and Lyrics) as Mary; Academy Award® winner Jennifer Connelly (A Beautiful Mind, The Day the Earth Stood Still) as Janine; Kevin Connolly (HBO's Entourage) as Conor; Bradley Cooper (Yes Man) as Ben; Ginnifer Goodwin (Walk the Line, HBO's Big Love) as Gigi; Scarlett Johansson (Vicky Cristina Barcelona) as Anna; Kris Kristofferson (Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story) as Ken; and Justin Long (Live Free or Die Hard) as Alex

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Slumdog Millionaire

Book Review

A poor, uneducated waiter, Ram is arrested after the final episode of the popular quiz show, Who Will Win a Billion? in the belief that he must have cheated. In jail he shares his hardscrabble life with his lawyer: his abandonment at birth in a used clothing bin, the church orphanage where he was dubbed an "idiot orphan boy," the foster home where children were purposely crippled and forced to beg, the estate of an Australian diplomat who was really a spy, the home of an aging Bollywood actress, and his meager waiter job. Each chapter in Ram's life provided him with a correct answer on the show, as a la Forrest Gump, he has been in the right place at the right time. Ram's funny and poignant odyssey explores the causes of good and evil and illustrates how, with a little luck, the best man sometimes wins



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"Vikas Swarup weaves a delightful yarn. With an easy style, Q & A is sweet, sorrowful and funny. An enchanting tale." -- The Sunday Tribune, India

"This page-turning novel reels from farce to melodrama to fairy tale." -- You Magazine, London

"A very clever story told very cleverly and at a relentless pace." -- The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia

"Swarup is an accomplished storyteller, and Q & A has all the immediacy and impact of an oral account." -- Daily Mail, London

Movie Review

Many plot elements of Ram/Dev's life story are entirely different in the film vs the book. Essentially the film is a very simplified version and hinges on the romance with Latika, which is not the case in the book. For me, the film works brilliantly, but it is not a slavish adaptation. This book is more "the book that inspired the film" rather than "the book of the film.

Synopsis: The story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India's "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost.

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Angels and Demons

Coming Soon in cinema
Release Date: May 15th, 2009 (wide)

Tom Hanks and Ron Howard unite for their fourth pairing with this follow-up to THE DA VINCI CODE. Hanks returns to the role of Robert Langdon in this film based on ANGELS & DEMONS, Brown's first novel to feature the now-famous symbiologist

Personally for Dan Brown's book, Angel and Demons are far better than Da Vinci Code, so let's see how the movie turn out.



The Book

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is shocked to find proof that the legendary secret society, the Illuminati--dedicated since the time of Galileo to promoting the interests of science and condemning the blind faith of Catholicism--is alive, well, and murderously active. Brilliant physicist Leonardo Vetra has been murdered, his eyes plucked out, and the society's ancient symbol branded upon his chest. His final discovery, antimatter, the most powerful and dangerous energy source known to man, has disappeared--only to be hidden somewhere beneath Vatican City on the eve of the election of a new pope. Langdon and Vittoria, Vetra's daughter and colleague, embark on a frantic hunt through the streets, churches, and catacombs of Rome, following a 400-year-old trail to the lair of the Illuminati, to prevent the incineration of civilization.

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Confessions of Shopaholic

The Book




Amazon.com Review

If you've ever paid off one credit card with another, thrown out a bill before opening it, or convinced yourself that buying at a two-for-one sale is like making money, then this silly, appealing novel is for you.

In the opening pages of Confessions of a Shopaholic, recent college graduate Rebecca Bloomwood is offered a hefty line of credit by a London bank. Within a few months, Sophie Kinsella's heroine has exceeded the limits of this generous offer, and begins furtively to scan her credit-card bills at work, certain that she couldn't have spent the reported sums.

In theory anyway, the world of finance shouldn't be a mystery to Rebecca, since she writes for a magazine called Successful Saving. Struggling with her spendthrift impulses, she tries to heed the advice of an expert and appreciate life's cheaper pleasures: parks, museums, and so forth. Yet her first Saturday at the Victoria and Albert Museum strikes her as a waste. Why? There's not a price tag in sight.

Eventually, Rebecca's uncontrollable shopping and her "imaginative" solutions to her debt attract the attention not only of her bank manager but of handsome Luke Brandon--a multimillionaire PR representative for a finance group frequently covered in Successful Saving.

Book Rating


More sophie kinsella books

Movie review:
Though the movie was funny (especially Isla's outrageous dance moves) and in parts accurate, the movie as a whole was absolutely nothing like the novels. While it is an excellent choice in casting Isla Fisher as Becky, the rest of castings are not like the characterd S. Kinsella described

Marley and Me

Updated: 19 Feb 09

John Grogan's bestselling book about his Labrador retriever bounds onto the screen with MARLEY AND ME. Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston star as a couple who adopts the badly behaved but much-loved dog.

Storyline:

John and Jenny were young and in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of a puppy—and their life would never be the same.

Marley quickly grew into a barreling, ninety-seven-pound steamroller of a Labrador retriever who crashed through screen doors, flung drool on guests, stole women's undergarments, devoured couches and fine jewelry, and was expelled from obedience school. Yet Marley's heart was pure, and he remained a steadfast model of love and devotion for a growing family through pregnancy, birth, heartbreak, and joy, right to the inevitable goodbye.

Book Review:

Movie Review

The reader

The Movie

THE READER opens in post-WWII Germany when teenager Michael Berg becomes ill and is helped home by Hanna, a stranger twice his age. Michael recovers from scarlet fever and seeks out Hanna to thank her. The two are quickly drawn into a passionate but secretive affair.

Michael discovers that Hanna loves being read to and their physical relationship deepens. Hanna is enthralled as Michael reads to her from The Odyssey, Huck Finn, and The Lady with the Little Dog. Despite their intense bond, Hanna mysteriously disappears one day and Michael is left confused and heartbroken. Eight years later, while Michael is a law student observing the Nazi war crime trials, he is stunned to find Hanna back in his life this time as a defendant in the courtroom. As Hannas past is revealed, Michael uncovers a deep secret that will impact both of their lives.

THE READER is a haunting story about truth and reconciliation, about how one generation comes to terms with the crimes of another. (source: gv.com)

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The Book

Oprah Book Club® Selection, February 1999: Originally published in Switzerland, and gracefully translated into English by Carol Brown Janeway,

The Reader is a brief tale about sex, love, reading, and shame in postwar Germany. Michael Berg is 15 when he begins a long, obsessive affair with Hanna, an enigmatic older woman. He never learns very much about her, and when she disappears one day, he expects never to see her again. But, to his horror, he does. Hanna is a defendant in a trial related to Germany's Nazi past, and it soon becomes clear that she is guilty of an unspeakable crime. As Michael follows the trial, he struggles with an overwhelming question: What should his generation do with its knowledge of the Holocaust? "We should not believe we can comprehend the incomprehensible, we may not compare the incomparable.... Should we only fall silent in revulsion, shame, and guilt? To what purpose?"

The Reader, which won the Boston Book Review's Fisk Fiction Prize, wrestles with many more demons in its few, remarkably lucid pages. What does it mean to love those people--parents, grandparents, even lovers--who committed the worst atrocities the world has ever known? And is any atonement possible through literature? Schlink's prose is clean and pared down, stripped of unnecessary imagery, dialogue, and excess in any form. What remains is an austerely beautiful narrative of the attempt to breach the gap between Germany's pre- and postwar generations, between the guilty and the innocent, and between words and silence

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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

The Movie

"I was born under unusual circumstances." And so begins "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," adapted from the 1920s story by F. Scott Fitzgerald about a man who is born in his eighties and ages backwards: a man, like any of us, who is unable to stop time.

We follow his story, set in New Orleans from the end of World War I in 1918, into the 21st century, following his journey that is as unusual as any man's life can be. Directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett with Taraji P. Henson, Tilda Swinton, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas and Julia Ormond, "Benjamin Button," is a grand tale of a not-so-ordinary man and the people and places he discovers along the way, the loves he finds, the joys of life and the sadness of death, and what lasts beyond time. source: gv.com
Movie Rating

The Book

IN THE TITLE STORY, a baby born in 1860 begins life as an old man and proceeds to age backward. F. Scott Fizgerald hinted at this kind of inversion when he called his era “a generation grown up to find all Gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in man shaken.” Perhaps nowhere in American fiction has this “Lost Generation” been more vividly preserved than in Fitzgerald’s short fiction. Spanning the early twentieth-century American landscape, this original collection captures, with Fitzgerald’s signature blend of enchantment and disillusionment, America during the Jazz Age.
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