Pepe Le Moko

The story is about a notorious French gangster who stayed in the Casbah of Algeria to escape the police but began to miss home after befriending a beautiful French lady.

Liked the unique urban landscape of the Casbah and the battle of wits between Pepe Le Moko and Inspector Slimane!

Internet Movie Database Link

Picture Me

This is a documentary about the fashion industry seen through the eyes of the models, fashion designers and the agencies.

Felt a bit dizzy at the start as it looked like a home video filmed using a hand held camera but got used to it after a while. Liked the scrap book animation and the in-depth interviews with the models! It would be interesting if they included interviews with middle aged photographers to show the other side of the story!

Internet Movie Database Link

Claire's Knee

The story is about a middle aged man's obsession over a young girl's knee after he met his old lover at a mountain resort who was staying at a single mother's family with two teenage daughters.

Liked the nice scenery and the interesting conversations between the middle aged man and the women at the resort!

Internet Movie Database Link

Death of a Cyclist

The story is about what happened after a professor and his lover killed a cyclist in an automobile accident.

Liked the psychological study of the protagonists and how the director made use of the sly art critic and the idealistic female student to shed more light on their characters! Learnt a bit on Spanish history in the process too!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Girlfriends

The story is about how a fashion designer from Rome became friends with a group of rich women in Turin during her business trip.

Liked how the director illustrated the different approaches that these women took to balance both love and career! Great acting by all the actresses!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Last Letter

The story is about a Jewish mother who lived in Russia during World War II writing the last letter to her son before her execution by the Germans.

Great acting by the actress who played the Jewish mother! The shadow and lighting effect was interesting too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Trees WIthout Leaves

The story is about how a family fell apart seen through the eyes of a little boy. He became a writer when he grew up and came back to his hometown to reminisce about the past.

Liked the close relationship between the boy and his mother! The director also described the little incidents in his childhood really well!

Internet Movie Database Link

Sandcastle

The story is about a young man enquiring about his father's past after his grandfather died and just when he was about to enter National Service. His father was involved in the Chinese Student protest in 1956 and was exiled to Johor Bahru before he died of cancer.

Liked the nice National songs but still preferred Kit Chan's version of "Home"! Thought the film would provide some kind of documentary insight into the Chinese Student protest, so I was a little bit disappointed when it did not.

Internet Movie Database Link

Eros Plus Massacre

The story is about a famous anarchist who was murdered by the military police along with his second lover and nephew shortly after the Great Kanto earthquake in 1923. The film focused on his relationship with his wife and two lovers and provides a contrast with modern life in 1969 through a reporter and her two lovers.

Liked the interesting study into human psychology and how the characters from the past made their journey into the present! Noe Ito looked quite cute in her pretty kimono and gigantic ribbon on her head!

Internet Movie Database Link

Mime-mime

The story is about a young girl finding her purpose in life with the help of a childhood friend.

Liked the small little things that the young girl and her childhood friend did together! She looked quite cute with rosy cheeks and interesting hair clips!

Internet Movie Database Link

Good Bye, George Adamski

This is one of the five films in New Directions in Japanese Cinema (NDJC) 2007 that consisted of "The Bus to Heaven", "Good Bye, George Admaski". "Seismic Girl", "Babin" and "Restaurant UFO".

The story is about how a guy bumped into his best friend who had been obsessed with aliens and UFOs since young and how they went on a journey to unravel the mystery behind them.

Liked the flashback sequences about the two guy's childhood!

The Bus to Heaven

This is one of the five films in New Directions in Japanese Cinema (NDJC) 2007 that consisted of "The Bus to Heaven", "Good Bye, George Admaski". "Seismic Girl", "Babin" and "Restaurant UFO".

The story is about how a guy went on a bus trip that was arranged by his friend to celebrate his birthday and how he made up with his girlfriend in the process.

Liked the interesting discussion about the definition of good acting using Kinji Fukasaku's "The Fall Guy" and Michael Bay's "Armageddon" as examples! Made me want to check out "The Fall Guy" given the chance!

Lala Pipo: A Lot of People

This is a sex comedy about a few people staying in Tokyo who are somehow related to each other. These include a nerdy freelance writer, a charming pimp, a karaoke bar assistant who imagines that he is a superhero and three porn actresses: a beautiful young lady, a middle aged woman and a chubby lady.

Thought the theme was very similar to that in "Air Doll" with a more in-depth study of the characters! The comedy is a little bit crude but the fantasy sequences were very well done!

Internet Movie Database Link

Red Angel

The story is about the encounters of a nurse during World War II when Japan fought in China. She took care of the soldiers and fell in love with the doctor.

Liked the voice over narration and the contrast between the nurse's loving care towards her patients and the graphic depiction of the horrors of war!

Internet Movie Database Link

Diary of a Shinjuku Thief

The story is about how a couple met at the Kinokuniya book shop in Shinjuku and fell in love. Birdtop was stealing books but he was caught by Umeko who posed as an employee of the book shop.

Liked the part where Umeko piled all the different books on the Kinokuniya shop floor with simultaneous voice over commentary describing the contents! The director's use of text and color on the screen as well as the political focus reminded me of Godard.

Internet Movie Database Link

Air Doll

The story is based on a manga series about how an inflatable doll came to life one day and explored the world around her.

Special effects was great and the performance by Bae Doo-Na was excellent but his "Maborosi" and "Still Walking" had a bigger emotional impact on me! I have also seen his "After Life" and "Nobody Knows" and I thought this was one of his weakest works so far. "Still Walking" is available to watch for free at the Japan Creative Center.

Internet Movie Database Link

Bloody Thirsty

The story is about a man who shot to fame after a failed suicide attempt to save his colleagues from being laid off. He became an insurance company's spokesman through a brilliant public relations campaign.

Liked the incisive look into the media and public relations industry! Quite amazed to see how an ordinary person could shoot to fame over night and how he reacts to such a situation!

Internet Movie Database Link

Sing a Song of Sex

The story is about the adventures of a group of students after their exams during the sixties in Japan. The teacher taught them that the poor had been oppressed by the people in power and they had created songs about sex to express their discontent and escape into fantasy.

Liked the catchy folk songs, the imaginative dream sequences and the informative lecture on Korea and Japan history! The apathy among Japanese youth and how the voice of the minority could be drowned by the majority were also well illustrated!

Internet Movie Database Link

Black River

The story revolves around a poor neighborhood slum. The local gangster made a deal with the landlady to evict them and used under-handed means to get a young waitress who was interested in a student living in the slum to be his girl.

Liked the realistic depiction of the life in the slums and the ending climax!

Internet Movie Database Link

Bullfighter and the Lady

The story is about an American who trained to be a bullfighter so that he can impress a Mexican lady.

Liked the informative introduction to the art of bullfighting that showed off its elegance! Thought their training method was really interesting!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Million

The story is about a poor artist who won the lottery grand prize but misplaced his ticket. He left it in his old jacket which was given to a stranger by his girlfriend and subsequently sold to an opera singer!

Liked the interesting plot and the nice songs in this musical comedy! Thought the simulated rugby game scene was pretty innovative!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Hypothesis of the Stolen Painting

The story is about a collector making a hypothesis that a painting could be missing and stolen from an art collection.

It was interesting to see actors posing to recreate the different paintings and to understand their background! I was especially intrigued by the story of the Marquise and her family! Ending was nicely done too with all the characters reappearing in the room!

Internet Movie Database Link

Kisses

The story is about how two young people whose fathers are locked up in jail met and fell in love with each other.

Liked the fast paced action and the actress looked very pretty in her dress! Thought it was funny at times and heart breaking at other times. Was really worried for the guy who was trying to figure out where the girl lived towards the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Seedling

The story is about how a newly married rich man's son took charge of a farm after graduation. He was selfish, ignored traditions and was stone hearted towards the poor. He fell in love with his maid after her husband suddenly disappeared. Things changed after his wife came to live with him.

Great acting by the maid and the plot was interesting! Liked the ending too that summarized the whole film!

Internet Movie Database Link

Liebelei

The story is about how a soldier who was the Baroness's lover fell in love with another girl. He broke up with the Baroness but the Baron found out about their past relationship and requested to have a duel with him.

Liked the storyline and the happy moments of the couple! The girl looked pretty and had a nice voice! I agreed with the soldier's friend who thought that the tradition of having a duel was cruel and illogical!

Internet Movie Database Link

Wife, Be Like A Rose!

The story is about a young lady, Kimiko, trying to get her estranged parents together again. She is getting married and had to get her father who had been living with a mistress for many years to come back home for a few days to help with the wedding negotiations.

Liked the warm reunion scene between Kimiko and her father as well as the numerous conversations between the young lady and her father's mistress! I was also impressed by the depiction of how a preconceived idea could change with more thorough investigation! The ending was very well done too!

Internet Movie Database Link

My Childhood

This is the first part of a trilogy that is based on the director's childhood during the mid forties in a little Scottish town. A little boy lived with his half brother and grandmother. He also made friends with a German worker who treated him like a son.

Liked the nice scenery of the Scottish town! The fight between the two siblings reminded me of "Kes" by Ken Loach. Would like to catch the second and third part of the trilogy if I have the chance!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

The story is about how a sorcerer found an apprentice with the potential to defeat an evil witch after searching around the world for many years. The film title came from a poem by Goethe and Walt Disney first adapted it into an animated film called Fantasia in 1940.

Not as exciting as "National Treasure" or enchanting as "Fantasia" but the special effects were pretty good. Wished that the apprentice had learnt more tricks rather than using his ring like a remote control though. I thought that the evil witch should have implemented redundancy into her system rather than assuming everything works properly.

Internet Movie Database Link

Scrabble Nationals 2010 (Day Two)

Game 5: vs Peter Yu
Thought I would have an easy time for my first game on the second day as Peter was a retiree but I was mistaken! Both of us had one bingo each, I had SERMONS(66) while he had STARKED(76) but he maintained a healthy lead throughout the game. I tried twice to bingo with a DEEMNT? rack by back hooking the E to an existing UP on the board, first with EMaNTED* and next with SEDiMENT but they were challenged off as Peter also challenged UPE* at the same time!

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: SERMONS(66) Opp Bingos: STARKED(76)
My Phoneys: UPE*, EMaNTED* Opp Phoneys: BAHS*
My High Moves: VINER(34) Opp High Moves: HOO(33), JAR(35)
L 341-421, -80. 2W 3L (Accum spread -213).

Game 6: vs Lai How Fatt
I faced another retiree in my next game. Had wanted to show off the last word played in the scrabble competition in "Akeelah and the Bee" but I remembered the word wrongly and phoneyed instead! He had two bingos with TOUrIST(66) and DIVERSE(68) but also played many phoneys. Thought he could have won if he just aggressively played out all his tiles during the end game instead of still being too conservative about opening up the board.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: TOUrIST(66), DIVERSE(68)
My Phoneys: LINM*, PAG* Opp Phoneys: TIF*, HAI*
My High Moves: ZO(62), ATTAIN(37), DOL(39), QI(33) Opp High Moves: -
W 407-390, +17. 3W 3L (Accum spread -196).

Game 7: vs Jeeva Kumar
Jeeva was a big Indian guy from the Home Team. I used HENRY to hook to an existing MAR on the board to form HENRY and MARY simultaneously early in the game. Wonder if anybody had done a HARRY met SALLY in a competition before? Later, both of us had a lot of bingos in this game. I had WIGLESS(87), TEMPTING(76) and GAUDIER(81) while he had TINKLER(65) and OUTLEAP(66). I managed to outscore him in the end.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: WIGLESS(87), TMEPTING(76), GAUDIER(81) Opp Bingos: TINKLER(65), OUTLEAP(66)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: EMAS*
My High Moves: HENRY(31), DAISY(45), JOT(33), AIN(30) Opp High Moves: ZINE(37), FINS(35), EF(30), QADI(31)
W 496-403, +93. 4W 3L (Accum spread -103).

Game 8: vs Catherine Tong
Catherine was my second lady opponent of the game and she proved that girls were really better at multi-tasking than guys as she was able to read her Chinese storybook during the game itself! Thought there was no front hook for LITE and ignored that particular spot until Catherine plonked down RETIMED(96) down the TWS lane, front hooking LITE with an E. I had a AEPRSST rack late in the game. I tried STAPERS* and RAPTESS* unsuccessfully in quick succession and even went overtime by 3 minutes in the process. My worst game of the day! Hope my luck will change after lunch!

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: RETIMED(96)
My Phoneys: KOT*, STAPERS*, RAPTESS* RAJAR* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: HEX(37) Opp High Moves: VERY(38), QAT(32)
L 296-384, -88. 4W 4L (Accum spread -191).

The restaurant within the community centre itself was really crowded and I went to the nearby hawker center together with Bee Tiang, How Fatt, Catherine and Siew Chin for lunch.

Game 9: vs Low Bee Tiang
My opponent after lunch was my lunch buddy and whom I have played many times before! We had one bingo each, I had fLATTED(77) while he had PROVING(74). I also had most of the big tiles and scored heavily on them while he made a few phoneys that were challenged off. The result was a winning spread of almost 200 points, my biggest win of the day!

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: fLATTED(77) Opp Bingos: PROVING(74)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: CUG*, ECIG*
My High Moves: JEON(44), ZELS(69), SQUIZ(51) Opp High Moves: -
W 515-327, +188. 5W 4L (Accum spread -3).

Game 10: vs Catherine Tong
Had a chance to revenge myself against Catherine as the last three games were king-of-the-hill with repeats. This time round, I was very lucky with my tiles and scored two bingos, PIETIES(84) and UNWIRES(87) to win easily.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: PIETIES(84), UNWIRES(87) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: MIN* Opp Phoneys: UNJOLTED*
My High Moves: - Opp High Moves: STROVE(31)
W 415-316, +99. 6W 4L (Accum spread +96).

Game 11: vs Kao Zi Chong
I had two bingos COTTONS(74) and BEARINGS(70) while he had SUNNIEST(59) but our scores were very close until he played JIRL* across the TWS lane. It was challenged off and I played JARL(33) on my turn! Didn't play the end game well as I was frustrated with vowels on a closed board and I just any how opened up for my opponent to score. Luckily he did not have a bingo and he ended up with a single V that could not be played while I slowly played off all my vowels to win!

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: COTTONS(74), BEARINGS(70) Opp Bingos: SUNNIEST(59)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: JIRL*
My High Moves: FAX(34), JARL(33) Opp High Moves: HOTTY(32), QUITE(48), JETE(38), ZA(33), SPRAIN(40)
W 436-372, +64. 7W 4L (Accum spread +160).

Game 12: vs Ismail
Had quite an easy time as I had three bingos with TERRANE(67), TRIGGERS(65) and WAITING(79) while my opponent had none. I also got away with a TERP*(34) phoney. Wonder if it was because the ink on the tile was a little bit faded and he saw TERF instead. On my last move, I was deciding between MOWS(36) down the TWS lane or OMS(36) across the TWS lane with WAITING on top of it. Both scored the same points with exactly the same leave, so I wasn't sure which one to pick. Randomly picked OMS(36) in the end and was very surprised that my opponent challenged it! The 5 points from this challenge also enabled me to jump from 5th to 4th position!

New words learnt: KINDA
My Bingos: TERRANE(67), TRIGGERS(65), WAITING(79) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: TERP*(38) Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: ZIN(32), OH(30), AXED(37), TERP*(38), JINN(36), OMS(41) Opp High Moves: KINDA(35), MERE(32), LEAD(33), YAH(33), WASh(47)
W 495-367, +128. 8W 4L (Accum spread +288).

Finished the tournament with 8 wins and 4th position. Hope to do better next year!

Scrabble Nationals 2010 (Day One)

This year's Nationals is once again held at Toa Payoh West CC. I had wanted to meet up with old friends without playing as I thought it would be tiring playing twelve full games but decided to take part when Valli told me that division B needed one more person to make it even number of participants.

Game 1: vs Aloysious
Aloysious had such a big lead after scoring a bingo with CAMPERS(76) that he could even afford to ignore my phoney with VINCE*. I was thinking of putting either EVINCE or VINCE* but decided on VINCE* in the end as I thought it looked more valid.

New words learnt: EVINCE
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: CAMPERS(76)
My Phoneys: VINCE*(36) Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: COVES(35), WEB(34), SILK(30), VINCE*(36) Opp High Moves: AX(36), JOB(33), ZIP(45)
L 296-433, -137. 0W 1L (Accum spread -137).

Game 2: vs Yong Jian Rong
I bingoed first with RETINAE(66) but Jian Rong bingoed with ANNOTATES(85) a few turns later through an existing NO and back hooking the E with a SUP on the board! Pretty impressive for a primary school kid! I was stuck with the J and the Q late in the game with a very narrow lead but managed to clear them off for a win!

New words learnt: SUPE
My Bingos: RETINAE(66) Opp Bingos: ANNOTATES(85)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: ROP*, WAH*, TEAF*(21)
My High Moves: KIT(34), ZO(64), BAD(32), QIS(30) Opp High Moves: ORS(40), WHAM(36), CUIF(41)
W 428-412, +16. 1W 1L (Accum spread -121).

Game 3: vs Ganapathy
Had a comfortable lead when I bingoed twice with BlUNTED(76) and YEARNERS(74) while he had one bingo with sHARING(83). Think Ganapathy was not too familiar with the new Collins words as he tried to challenge off my REO and KOIS.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: BlUNTED(76), YEARNERS(74) Opp Bingos: sHARING(83)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: BEWIG(36), CUZ(40), JOT(30) Opp High Moves: -
W 431-377, +54. 2W 1L (Accum spread -67).

Game 4: vs Tan Mun Ri
I missed my opponent's REY*(29) phoney early in the game as I thought I played it often in online games before. Maybe I forgot that it was often challenged off too! Think my vocabulary definitely needs to be improved as I could not see bingos with both EIORSTW and AEMPRST racks!

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: TEdIEST(73) Opp Bingos: ROARING(72)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: REY*(29), ESNY*
My High Moves: FIVER(39) Opp High Moves: JOE(35), QUOD(37)
L 330-396, -66. 2W 2L (Accum spread -133).

Finished day 1 with 2 wins and 2 losses.

Heat Haze Theatre

The story is about the strange things that happened after a playwright encountered a rich man's wife at a hospital.

Very confusing but I liked the play by the children towards the end! The special effects in the tub was pretty well done too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Farewell to the Ark

The story is adapted from a novel called "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It is about a small village in the jungle with enchanting creatures like the forest fairy and where the passage of time speeds up or slows down according to people's mood.

Didn't think it was possible to do a movie adaptation of the novel due to the complex plot and the number of characters but the director did a reasonable job to capture the magical atmosphere in the forest!

Internet Movie Database Link

Not Reconciled

The story is about how the German people had to come to terms with themselves after the war told through the eyes of one German family. The grandfather built a church that was destroyed by the father during the war and it was rebuilt by the grandson after the war. A few of their friends were politically persecuted and the mother became insane.

The film was very difficult to understand as there was no clear indication of whether a scene happened in the past or the present. I think that was part of the director's intention as it meant that the German people were still not reconciled with their past.

Internet Movie Database Link

A Confucian Confusion

The story is about how the lives of a group of friends were inter-connected and how hard it was to live your own life without being influenced by others. The Chinese title "Duli Shidai" literally means an era of independence.

This film reminds me of “Pauline at the Beach” by Rohmer except that there were more characters and the setting is in a regular working environment rather than the beach. Liked Qiqi’s cute hairstyle and how things worked out well for Birdy’s long suffering female assistant!

Internet Movie Database Link

Harlan County, USA

This is a documentary about how a group of coal miners in Harlan County organised a strike during the early seventies.

Liked the nice songs and how the camera captured the intimate details of people's lives! Reminded me of a Chinese film "Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks" by Wang Bing that also showed the lives of blue collar workers.

Internet Movie Database Link

Repulsion

The story is about how a young woman slowly became crazy at her apartment in London when her sister went on a holiday.

The special effects were pretty good! The weird sounds and strange camera angles helped to make the film more scary!

Internet Movie Database Link

Remember Chek Jawa

This is a documentary about how a group of people came together to do a nature survey of Chek Jawa in Pulau Ubin during 2001 so as to appeal against the government's plan to reclaim the area.

Liked the interviews with the people involved and the wonderful animals and plants found in Chek Jawa! The teamwork to do something that one believed in was very commendable!

Internet Movie Database Link

Silent Light

The story is about how a religious man suffered over his feelings towards both his wife and another woman.

Pace of the film was really slow but I liked the beautiful Mexican scenery and the nice relationship that the father had with his children! Was quite puzzled by the ending though!

Internet Movie Database Link

Marketa Lazarova

The story is set during the dark ages when there was a shift from Paganism to Christianity. The fate of the two rivals, the Kozlik and the Lazar families became intertwined when Mikolas Kozlik abducted Marketa Lazar to be his wife just when she was about to join the convent.

Liked the nice vocal music and the beautiful scenery! The lead nun looked cool, Alexandra the witch looked wild and Marketa looked sweet!

Internet Movie Database Link

Pauline at the Beach

The story is about how Pauline and Marion who were cousins spent their holidays at the beach. They met Pierre who was Marion's ex-boyfriend and befriended two other guys Henri and Sylvain.

Liked the interesting dialogues that helped to explain different people's attitudes towards relationships! Thought the director was quite clever to think up a situation that would cause a misunderstanding among the five characters towards the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

Reconstruction

The story is about how two young men were brought by a prosecutor, a policeman and a teacher to a restaurant to re-enact their drunken brawl there and have it filmed to show the effects of alcoholism.

Liked the catchy song and the cheerful bikini girl! Thought the director was subtly criticizing the communist society through the small details in the film.

Internet Movie Database Link

Shoah

This is a documentary about the Holocaust told through interviews with the eye witnesses. The film title is the Hebrew word for this historical event.

Liked the scenes of the strange looking stones scattered in the camp as they looked beautiful! The analysis by the historian was insightful and I was particularly struck by Filip Muller's moving account of how helpless he felt when he had to help the Germans to send his fellow countrymen to their death!

Internet Movie Database Link

Children of Hiroshima

The story is about how the people in Hiroshima coped with their lives after the atomic bombing on 6 August 1945.

Liked the use of flashbacks to contrast life before and after the atomic bombing! The short sequence that depicted the historic event was very well done too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Children in the Wind

The story is about how children lived in dysfunctional families. The father of a family was locked up in the police station for suspect fraud, forcing the mother to look for a job and to send her younger son away to a friend's place.

Liked the nice depiction of Japanese life in the thirties! The children seemed to enjoy themselves very much during play and respected their parents at home!

Internet Movie Database Link

Peppermint Candy

The story is about a Korean man's life told in reverse from the late nineties to the late seventies. It explains the impact of the Kwangju massacre in May 1980 on his life.

Liked how the story was broken down into episodes and told in reverse chronological order! This made me want to find out more the reason why the man wanted to go back to the past so badly. Quite sad to see how he became such an unlikable character. The female protagonists that appeared in the film all looked not bad though!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Tale of the Wind

The story is about an old film director trying to film the wind in China.

Thought it was a little bit abstract but I liked the scene on the moon and the finale that showed an old lady summoning the wind in the desert!

Internet Movie Database Link

Bigger Than Life

The story is about a teacher who became more conceited and full of himself when he got addicted to his prescribed drugs to solve a chronic pain. His behavior changed in school and at home with his wife and son.

Liked the nice fifties style costumes worn by the wife and the suspenseful mood! The monologue speeches were interesting and the use of shadows was great!

Internet Movie Database Link

No Day Off

The story is about how an Indonesian girl started training to be a maid in Batam and worked with three Singapore families for a few years before returning home to her child.

Liked how the story was told through the point of view of the maid! Thought it should be more balanced though as it showed mostly of how mean the employers were except for the last family. Great acting by the lead actress!

Io Island

The story is about life on an island that was inhabited by many women divers seen through a series of flashbacks.

Liked the nice scenery on the island, the hypnotic drum beat and the strange customs of the people! The flashbacks were particularly effective in fleshing out the character of the protagonist!

Internet Movie Database Link

Distant Thunder

The film describes the 1943 famine in Bengal India through a Brahmin family living in a village.

Liked the interesting storyline and the psychological study into human behavior under extreme circumstances! Great acting by the actresses!

Internet Movie Database Link

Peter and the Wolf

The story is about a young boy called Peter who lived with his grandfather and had a cat, a bird and a duck as pets. A wolf tried to eat his duck and was caught by him. He released the wolf later when he saw how the local hunters made fun of it.

Liked the nice animation film that was without any dialogue and the live music accompaniment! The cat looked really fat and furry!

Internet Movie Database Link

PSTAR Scrabble Games 2010

The PSTAR Scrabble games is an annual event for organisations in the civil service to take part in a friendly game of Scrabble. It was held at the Civil Service Club (Bukit Batok) on 22nd May 2010 from 10am to 5pm. A total of 30 teams took part. MINDEF had one team taking part this year.

Here's my match report, with quizzes marked with [number] and the answers given at the end of the report.

Our first pairing was against Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) team 1.

Game 1: MEWR 1
My first game was against a friendly Malay guy called Samsul. Had pretty good tiles and I led comfortably after I bingoed twice with LOADErS(73) and dRAINED(81). Learnt a new word "COMP" from my opponent. He invited me to challenge the word as he said he was not sure of it too.

Won 455-230. Our team won 3-0.

Next game was against Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) team 1.

Game 2: CAAS 1
My second game was against a petite lady called Karen. I scored well with QAT(31) and JEAN(42). I also bingoed with a ERSSTV? rack while she scored with ZA(34), XI(38) and TREKS(30). There are 5 anagrams with the ERSSTV? rack that begins with "S", two of which are common words.[1]

Won 416-314. Our team won 3-0.

Had free lunch catered for us after our second game. The dishes were not too bad!.

Our third game was against Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) 1.

Game 3: MAS 1
I was paired against Ben who had played in national Scrabble tournaments before. He bingoed twice with RETRACT(78) and OUSTERS(87) while I had one bingo with RETAiNs(68). I had too many vowels in this game and I scored very low points trying to play them off. Lost badly and only reduced a bit of spread difference by my opponent's overtiming by 5 minutes.

Lost 328-458. Our team won 2-1.

Our final game is against Ministry of Education (MOE) 1.

Game 4: MOE 1
I played against Elizabeth who contrasted with Karen from CAAS in terms of size. She looked like she could be a Judo teacher! She had an opening bingo with a EEEPRSW rack[2] while I made many mistakes in this game! I spelled LARVAE as LAVAE* and it was challenged off. I had a DENOR?? rack and I played a phoney REbONDs*(69) which was fortunately not challenged off. I also opened up the triple word score lane late in the game thinking that my opponent may not have the "S" even though there were still two left in the bag. She scored promptly with DISRATE(88) and widened the spread!

Lost 287-499. Our team lost narrowly with 1-2.

In the end, MINDEF 1 came in 4th placing. MOE 1, MOE 2 and NP 1 were the top 3 teams. Had fun seeing so many familiar faces! Hope we could do even better next year!

Quiz answers (highlight to see clearly)

[1] STaRVES, STeRVES, STiVERS, SToVERS, STRiVES
[2] SWEEPER

Only Yesterday

The story is about a girl reminiscing about the past while going to the countryside for a farming holiday.

Liked the interesting childhood anecdotes and the story shown during the ending credits! The illustrations of the background scenery and the references to Haiku reminded me of his later work, "My Neighbors the Yamadas", which I saw a few years back.

Internet Movie Database Link

Very Short International Film Festival

Saw "International Selection 1", "International Selection 2", "International Selection 3" and "Local Selection" at the "Very Short International Film Festival". Most of the short films were pretty interesting despite their short length of less than 3 minutes!

I voted for the following films:
International Selection 1: "Bob" and "Great expectations".
International Selection 2: "Stromsparen".
International Selection 3: "The sick boy and the tree", "Telefono" and "Sutphin blvd".
Local Selection favorites: "Emma".

La Strada

The story is about how a young girl, Gelsomina, trained to be the assistant to a performer, Zampano, and they traveled to many different places in his motorcycle van.

Great acting by Giuletta Masina! Liked the surprising twist towards the end as I thought it was particularly touching!

Internet Movie Database Link

Intervista

The story is about the daily life at the Italian cinema studio that Fellini worked in. The film title means "Interview" in English and the whole film is conducted in an interview format. Japanese reporters interviewed Fellini and his crew, the actor who acted as a young Fellini interviewed a beautiful actress.

Liked the beautiful sets and the pretty costumes worn by the actresses! The screening of "La Dolce Vita" in Anita Ekberg's home was interesting as the actors and actresses reminisced about their past!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Steel Helmet

The story is about a group of American soldiers fighting in the Korean war.

Liked the innovative opening scene and the friendship between the little Korean boy and the veteran Sergeant! It was also interesting to watch how the various personalities among the soldiers interacted!

Internet Movie Database Link

Dear Doctor

The story is about how a doctor made an impact on the lives of the villagers in a small town.

Liked how the doctor could treat all his patients as his friend as he had worked there for many years unlike in big hospitals! Everybody had a good impression of him! The plot is interesting with an unexpected twist in the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

La Danse: The Paris Opera Ballet

This is a documentary about the Paris Opera Ballet. It shows the dancers practicing and at rehearsals, the administrative work and the various support staff working to make the performances a success.

I realized that there is a lot of hard work done by many people behind each successful performance! Liked both the classical ballet pieces as well as the more abstract contemporary ones! The ballet dancers' costumes looked prettier in the classical ballet pieces but the concept and dance movement is more innovative in the contemporary pieces!

Internet Movie Database Link

Singapore Short Film Competition: Finalists

The finalists consists of 7 films: "Que Sera Sera", "Contained", "Sunrise", "Life with Ummu", "Promises in December", "The 25th of Laura" and "Mu Dan".

Liked the autobiographical "Que Sera Sera", the social commentary in "Promises in December" and the philosophical "The 25th of Laura" the best! The stop-motion animation in "Contained", the documentary in "Life with Ummu" and the country-side scenery in "Sunrise" are interesting! Didn't quite understand the story in "Mu Dan" but the visual effects look good!

Mammoth

The story is about how the consumerism culture in America contrasted with the living conditions in Third World countries. This is seen through the relationship of the Filipino maid with a rich American family that she works for, the impact to her family in Philippines and the encounters of the husband in Thailand.

Great acting by Michelle Williams! Liked the nice soundtrack and the beautiful outdoor scenery! I thought both the wife and the husband learnt a lot more about themselves during the period when they were apart.

Internet Movie Database Link

Don't Look into the Mirror

The story is about how an artist reacted when he discovered that he could only see other people's images inside the mirror instead of his own.

Had wanted to catch "German Shorts" but I mistakenly remembered that it was screened at Arts House instead of Sinema. This is one of the strangest films that I have watched and it reminded me of another Armenian film, "Colors of Pomegranates", as both films had heavy religious overtones and great visual effects!

Last Train Home

This is a documentary about migrant workers in China focusing on one family.

Was amazed at the huge number of people present at the train station! Liked how the director captured the fragile relationships within the family!

Internet Movie Database Link

His and Hers

This is a documentary consisting of interviews with 70 female characters arranged chronologically at their homes.

Thought the concept was pretty interesting as it gives the audience a broad overview of a typical Irish girl/woman and her relationship with her father/husband/children! Got a little bit lost on the thick Irish accent at some instances but I liked the nice soundtrack and the beautiful outdoor and indoor scenery!

Internet Movie Database Link

Tears

The story is about a retiring policeman with a dark secret solving a murder mystery of a drug addict.

The costumes worn by Xiao Wen looked very nice and she looked pretty too! Realized the significance of the film title after seeing several characters crying. Each of them was trying to suppress their emotions until it is no longer possible to do so and tears flowed out of their eyes.

Internet Movie Database Link

Sex Volunteer

This is shot in part documentary style that described the sexual needs of disabled people and how they can be fulfilled by volunteers.

Liked the provocative discussion of the social issues and the realistic portrayal of the daily life of the disabled people!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Baron of Arizona

The story is about a legendary swindler, James Reavis, who spent many years plotting a scheme to take control of the whole of Arizona. He took in a little girl who was an orphan and painstakingly invented a baron ancestry for her by forging documents in various parts of the world.

I was amazed by the effort put in by James to achieve his objectives! I also liked the strong loving relationship between him and his wife!

Internet Movie Database Link

The White Sheik

The story is about one day of a couple's honeymoon when everything went wrong. The wife secretly sneaked out to see her idol, an actor who acted as "The White Sheik", but was sent to the acting set very far away by mistake. The husband had to investigate what happened to her and pretend that everything is alright to his relatives.

Thought the script was excellently written by Antonioni! Liked the nice little comedy that was witty and did not rely too much on slap stick!

Internet Movie Database Link

My Flesh My Blood

This is a love story between a boxer who is about to die and a Vietnamese illegal immigrant.

Great acting by the boxer! The Vietnamese song sounded quite nice too! Didn't quite agree with the last bit of the boxer's arrangements before his death though.

Internet Movie Database Link

I Shot Jesse James

The film is a psychological study of a man called Bob Ford who killed his wanted friend Jesse James in the hope of settling down with his sweet-heart.

Liked the nice song that summarized the whole story and the quick pacing!

Internet Movie Database Link

Love Conquers All

The story is about what happened when a girl fell in love with a bad boy while staying with her relatives in the city.

The bespectacled little girl looked quite cute! Thought her story was more interesting than the main storyline! Understood the Malaysian way of life slightly better after watching the film!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Single Man

The story is about a day in the life of an English professor when he plans to commit suicide after work as his lover died eight months ago.

Liked the soundtrack and the flashbacks that gradually revealed the professor's past! The slow motion sequences were pretty interesting too! The film also made me want to check out Huxley's "After Many a Summer Dies the Swan", Kafka's "Metamorphosis" and Capote's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" one day.

Internet Movie Database Link

The Sun's Burial

The story is about life in the slums of postwar Osaka. People have to rely on their street smart skills to survive as they do not have proper jobs.

Liked the nice song by Takeshi but was quite confused about the complex schemes thought up by Hanoko and the rest of the gang members to make money! Among the few films about postwar Japan that I have seen, I think I enjoyed "Pigs and Battleships" by Imamura and "Gate of Flesh" by Seijun Suzuki better.

Internet Movie Database Link

Treeless Mountain

The story is about two sisters who had to cope with their mother's absence when she left home in search of their father. They were first sent to their aunt's place then to their grandparent's place.

Great acting by the two young actresses! Liked the simple story and how the director fleshed out the film with little details! I wonder how tasty the fried grasshoppers were!

Internet Movie Database Link

Walkabout

The story is about the adventures of a teenage girl and her younger brother in the Australian Outback when they got lost and met a local aboriginal boy.

I liked the nice scenery of the Australian Outback and the psychological tension among the three people! I found quite a lot of similarities with "Alice in Wonderland". The teenage girl was like Alice in "Alice in Wonderland" walking around in a land filled with strange creatures, the aboriginal boy was like the Mad Hatter who guided her across the land and performed a special dance towards the end. I also liked the poem recitation in both films!

Internet Movie Database Link

Alice in Wonderland

The story is adapted from Lewis Carrol's novel "Alice in Wonderland" and "Alice Through the Looking Glass".

Liked how elegant the Cheshire Cat floated and flipped around in the air! The plot was not particularly exciting and the ending was a bit awkward in my opinion but there is an interesting analysis that explains the mathematical background of the story!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Class

The story is about school life in France focusing on the interactions between a French teacher and his students who come from a diverse background.

Liked the realistic depiction of the camaraderie among the teachers and the lively discussions in class!

Internet Movie Database Link

Color of Pomegranates

The story is about the life of an Armenian poet called Sayat Nova.

Liked the visual aesthetics in the form of colorful costumes and nice props! The plot is near to non-existent but the inter-titles helped me understand what was going on.

Internet Movie Database Link

Syndromes and a Century

The film compares the working conditions of doctors working in a rural hospital and those working in a city hospital. The rural hospital is closer to nature and the doctors had a closer relationship with their patients.

A little bit abstract for me as there is not much of a plot. Thought the interview questions were pretty interesting and the songs were nice!

Internet Movie Database Link

Up the Yangtze

This is a documentary about people living along the Yangtze river who had to move as the construction of the Three Gorge dam neared completion.

Liked how the director focused his story on one family and contrasted their life with their daughter's life who quit school to work on board of the cruise ship! Nice scenery of the Yangtze river and the dam looks huge, perhaps even bigger than the Marina Barrage!

Internet Movie Database Link

72 Tenants of Prosperity

The story is about how the tenants on a street in Hong Kong helped each other in times of crisis.

A little bit messy as the director tried to fit as many big name actors and actresses into the film as possible into the plot but I liked the marketing strategies of the two mobile phone shops! They were pretty innovative!

Internet Movie Database Link

Through the Olive Trees

The story is about the process of making a film and describes the actual story of the actor and actress who were victims of an earthquake.

Loved the off-screen speeches by the lead actor, the beautiful Z-shaped path that was carved into the mountain and the final scenes! Don’t really understand why there was a need for so many NG scenes though.

Internet Movie Database Link

Memories of Murder

The story is about how the police tried to track down a serial rapist in a small town.

I liked this better than "Mother" as the plot was more focused on making sense of the clues rather than on other miscellaneous sub-plot! Great acting by Song Kang-Ho who was also the lead actor in "The Host"! The final scene expressed what he felt over the whole incident very well!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Mad Fox

The story is about how an astrologer became mad and his encounters with a fox.

Liked the interesting plot, nice music and amazing special effects! Really impressed by their set design!

Internet Movie Database Link

Germany, Pale Mother

The story is about the life of a German family before, during and after the second World War, narrated by the daughter who was born during an air raid.

Liked the mix of documentary footage and the film as well as the exploration on the effects of war on the human psychology! I thought the hairstyle of the mother looked quite similar to that of Princess Leia from "Star Wars". Wonder if it was a coincidence or a direct influence.

Internet Movie Database Link

Burying Old Alive

The story is about life in Korea many years ago when famine was common and there was a custom that required old people to be carried to the top of the mountain to die once they reached seventy years old. People were also more superstitious then and relied heavily on the advice of the shaman.

Liked the interesting storyline and the anti-shaman message! There were several scenes that were completely black except for the subtitles. The audio output was not disrupted though, so it was like watching a radio play. Thought it was a very unique experience!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Page of Madness

The story is about a woman who is a patient at psychiatric clinic. Her husband works as a janitor at the clinic and their daughter is getting married.

Liked the interesting special effects and the nice soundtrack! It is a pity that the condition of the film is not too good.

Internet Movie Database Link

Boy

The story is about a boy and his dysfunctional family that consisted of him, his father, his step mother and his younger brother.

Liked the weird music in the background and how the boy's introspective character was shaped by his environment! Learnt a little bit more about Japan's society at that time through this film too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Le Franc

The story is about a poor musician who is about to be thrown out from his home for not paying his rent but decided to buy a lottery ticket to change his luck.

Liked how the real and fantasy sequences gelled together! The characters were pretty interesting too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Always: Sunset on Third Street 2

The story is about life in a small neighborhood in Tokyo during the late fifties.

It was a little bit difficult to identify the characters at first without prior knowledge of the original film but I was able to slowly deduce their relationships along the way. Liked the little stories of the different characters! The young girl who worked at Suzuki Auto looked quite cute with her two ponytails!

Internet Movie Database Link

Do the Right Thing

The story is about how a small incident sparked a racial riot in a black neighborhood.

Liked the plot and the interesting characters in the film! Could tell that the director was telling a story close to his heart although I was lost on some of the real life references.

Internet Movie Database Link

Mother

The story is about a mother investigating a murder mystery that allegedly was committed by her dim-witted son.

Great acting by the mother! Liked the twists and turns in the murder mystery! Was really taken aback when they revealed who the real killer was!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Summer at Grandpa's

The story is about how a young boy and his sister spent their summer holidays at their grandpa's place as their mother was sick in the hospital.

Liked the leisurely countryside life depicted and the interesting characters encountered in the film! Great acting by the two kids!

Internet Movie Database Link

Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks - Part 2: Remnants

This is the second part of a trilogy that documents people living in the city of Shenyang before and after their houses were torn down.

Liked how the inhabitants were able to act naturally in front of the camera and spoke freely about what they thought! The songs that they listened to were very nice and the snowy landscape was pretty! Felt that the ending was a bit abrupt though.

Internet Movie Database Link

Koko, a Talking Gorilla

This is a documentary about a gorilla who was trained to use sign language to communicate with her trainer.

Liked the philosophical questions raised by the interviewees and watching the everyday life of the gorilla with her trainer! Was impressed by how smart she was!

Internet Movie Database Link

The White Balloon

The story is about a young girl who wanted to buy a goldfish for new year but had to ask other people for help when she lost the 500 tomans that her mother gave her.

Liked the interesting storyline and the resourcefulness of the little girl! Quite amazed by how the director managed to inject so much drama in a simple story!

Internet Movie Database Link

Not Without You

The story is about a father who brought up his daughter single handedly only to face a series of red tape when he tried to register her for school.

Liked the beautiful black and white cinematography and the cool dream sequence! The ending was nicely executed too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Donkey in a Brahmin Village

The story is about what happened when a professor brought a stray donkey home and asked a mute girl in the village to take care of it.

It was interesting to see how the presence of the donkey affected life in the village! Nice satire that showed how the Brahmins were superstitious and intolerant of others!

Internet Movie Database Link

Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks - Part 1: Rust

This is the first part of a trilogy that documents the lives of workers in the city of Shenyang before and after they were laid off as the factory went bankrupt.

Liked how the workers were able to act naturally in front of the camera and spoke freely about what they thought! Learnt a bit more about the situation in China through this great documentary! I am already looking forward to the next two parts of the trilogy!

Internet Movie Database Link

Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Brussels

The story is about three days in the life of a widowed housewife named Jeanne Dielman who stayed with her son.

Liked the rhythmic sound of the protagonist opening and closing the doors as well as switching on and off the lights! I was impressed by how organised and neat she was! The dishes that she made on screen looked delicious too!

Internet Movie Database Link