Hopscotch

The story is about an ex-CIA employee trying to write a memoir while staying one step ahead of the people who wants to stop him.

Liked how the protagonist managed to outsmart his ex-colleagues! Great action and comedy without too much violence!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On

This is a documentary about a Japanese war veteran's search for the truth behind the execution of two soldiers in New Guinea shortly after the second World War.

Liked the protagonist's determination to uncover the truth to console the dead! At the beginning of the film, I thought he was just an obnoxious old man but I slowly began to understand his actions as the film progressed.

Internet Movie Database Link

Von Trier's 100 Eyes

This is a short documentary about the making of "Dancer in the Dark" by the Danish director, Lars Von Trier.

Liked the in-depth interviews with the director and the simple children's story of "Golden Heart"!

Internet Movie Database Link

Railroad of Hope

This is a documentary about peasants taking the train from Sichuan to Xinjiang to earn more money by harvesting cotton.

Liked the interviews with the train passengers where they talked about their hopes and dreams! Quite amazed at how the train can pack so many people and luggages!

Internet Movie Database Link

Teddy Bear

The story is about a shy bodybuilder who lived with his oppressive mother looking for love in Thailand.

Liked how the director managed to paint a convincing image of a shy bodybuilder as I have always imagined them to be fierce and tough! Great acting by the bodybuilder and his mother!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Dedicated Life

This is a documentary about a famous Japanese novelist.

Liked the interesting reconstructed flashbacks to the novelist's childhood days!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Makes

This is a pseudo documentary about an interview with a French critic about an Italian film director's work in Japan.

Liked how the director used photographs and speech to tell a story! I could then use my imagination to visualize how wonderful these films were!

Dream Work

The film tries to capture how the dream of a girl might look like.

Liked the special visual effects that created the dreamlike atmosphere!

Internet Movie Database Link

Sic

The story is about a girl working in a Japanese bookshop as a censor of photo-books by scratching bits of images away.

Liked how the protagonist brushed the book with a giant feather in the end as it looked elegant!

Internet Movie Database Link

Following Diana

The story is about an Indonesian couple slowly drifting apart after the husband announced his intention to marry a second wife.

Liked the quiet moments that featured the interaction between mother and son! Took me quite a while to realize what the husband was showing to his wife on his computer screen as I thought they were just a bunch of mind maps.

Internet Movie Database Link

Immoral Tales

The film consists of five short stories set in reverse chronological order: "The Tide", "Therese Philosophe", "The Beast", "Erzsebet Bathory" and "Lucrezia Borgia".

Quite surprised that the last two films were based on actual historical figures! The beast looked scary in "The Beast"!

Internet Movie Database Link

It Happened Tomorrow

The story is about the adventures of a reporter when he realized that he had information on the next day's news.

Liked the interesting plot and how everything fell into place in the end! Wonder if "Back to the Future II" was inspired by this film?

Internet Movie Database Link

Junun

This is a documentary about a group of musicians from different countries collaborating to make music in an Indian palace.

Liked the nice music played from exotic looking musical instruments! The aerial view of the palace and the street views looked interesting too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Parade

The story is about how the performers prepared for a circus performance and the audience's reaction to it.

Liked the amazing juggling performance, the nice songs and how engaged the audience was to the show!

Internet Movie Database Link

Minions

The story is about how a group of small yellow cylindrical shaped creatures called Minions searched for an evil master.

Liked the cheerful attitude of the Minions! They could always find something positive out of the worst situations!

Internet Movie Database Link

Trafic

The story is about how a camping car company tried unsuccessfully to travel from France to a big car show exhibition in Amsterdam.

Liked the interesting encounters during their journey! The car was an amazing invention, full of gadgets! I also liked the scene where they simulated the movements of the astronauts!

Internet Movie Database Link

Execution in Autumn

The story is about the transformation of a man who became a murderer because his grandmother spoilt him from young.

Liked the interesting plot and characters in the film! I learnt that discipline is a key parenting skill!

Internet Movie Database Link

Where The Seagull Flies

The story is about the love hate relationship of a couple.

Liked the scenes of Singapore in the 70s and the pretty actress in the film! Great plot with lots of twists and turns!

Internet Movie Database Link

Beautiful Duckling

The story is about the father daughter relationship of a family who raised ducks for a living.

Liked the cute little ducklings and the kampong spirit shown by the people in the film! The ending was very well done too as I was surprised by what happened!

Internet Movie Database Link

Jour de Fete

The story is about how a French postman became inspired to shorten his delivery time after watching a documentary about American postmen at a village fair.

Liked the interesting stunts in the film! The bicycle seemed to have a life of its own at one point in time!

Internet Movie Database Link

Morning for the Osone Family

This is the last film of the Kinoshita and World War II collection. The story is about what happened to the Osone family towards the end of World War II.

Liked how the director helped us understand the hardships that the ordinary Japanese people faced through one family! I could tell he was very unhappy with the Army from his portrayal of the uncle!

Internet Movie Database Link

Army

This is the fourth film of the Kinoshita and World War II collection. The story is about how a Japanese family with military background raised their eldest child to join the Army and fight in the front line during the second World War.

Liked how the director encouraged patriotism through his characters! Great acting by Tanaka Kinuyo, the actress who acted as the son's mother! I was surprised by how stern she could be when her son accidentally stepped on his textbook!

Internet Movie Database Link

No Woman, No Cry

This is a documentary on the healthcare services for pregnant women in four different countries: Tanzania, Bangladesh, Guatemala and the United States.

Liked how the director weaved the statistics with the personal stories of these women and her commentary at the end of the film!

Internet Movie Database Link

Jubilation Street

This is the third film of the Kinoshita and World War II collection. The story is about how a group of people living in Tokyo gradually moved out from the city to live in the countryside in preparation for American airstrike during the second world war.

Liked the interesting people who lived in the neighborhood! A pity we didn't get to see more of the pretty mail lady!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Living Magoroku

This is the second film of the Kinoshita and World War II collection. The story is about how a group of villagers decided to break old traditions to plow a piece of sacred land passed down from their ancestors.

Liked the two pretty actresses in the film!

Internet Movie Database Link

Port of Flowers

This is the first film of the Kinoshita and World War II collection. The story is about two con artists trying to cheat a group of people staying in an island of their money by getting them to build a ship but gave themselves up in the end.

Liked the interesting plot and how the film portrayed that con artists could also be patriotic!

Internet Movie Database Link

Little People Big Dreams

This is a documentary about dwarves in China who are either current or past employees of a theme park called Dwarves Empire.

Liked how the director helped us to peek into the lives of these little people! I was quite impressed by one of them who even knew how to drive despite being so small!

Internet Movie Database Link

Shaun the Sheep Movie

The story is about how a dog and a group of sheep saved the day when their shepherd ended up in a big city with memory loss.

Liked the nice animation and the funny moments! Reminded me a bit of the Wallace and Gromit films!

Internet Movie Database Link

I love Hong Kong 2013

The story is about a restaurant owner who is being forced to sell his restaurant when his ex-employee ran away without paying his debt.

Liked the inspiring story about a hardworking man who was willing to help his friends at his own expense!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Iron Lady

The story is about the life of Margaret Thatcher who is a former Prime Minister of Britain.

Liked how the film showed the ordinary citizen side of Margaret Thacher through her interactions with her dead husband and the hardworking career woman side of her through a series of flashbacks! Great acting by Meryl Streep!

Internet Movie Database Link

Midnight in Paris

The story is about a writer travelling back in time to meet famous writers in Paris during midnight on his vacation trip with his rich fiancee.

Liked the interesting idea but I wished that the director could give some brief introduction to the famous writers as I was not familiar with most of them.

Internet Movie Database Link

Life Is Beautiful

The story is about how a Jew fell in love with a pretty Italian woman during World War II and how the whole family was sent to a concentration camp till the end of the war.

Liked how the father was able to look at the bright side of things in difficult situations and the nice soundtrack!

Internet Movie Database Link

Big Hero 6

The story is about a group of nerds and a big huggable robot became superheros by accident when they were trying to solve a mystery.

Liked the nice friendship between Hiro and the big huggable robot! The gadgets were pretty cool too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Revivre

The story is about how a middle aged executive coped with the stresses at work and taking care of his wife at the hospital at the same time.

Liked how the protagonist quietly went about his work but was quite puzzled why he would want to avoid meeting his pretty ex-employee in the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

Leave it for tomorrow for night has fallen

The film consists of four short stories in Philippines when Marcos was a dictator there.

The stories were pretty abstract and hard to understand but I liked the antique sound effects of firing guns!

Internet Movie Database Link

Leviathan

The story is about the consequence of one man trying to battle against the authorities for his rights to stay in his own home.

Liked the nice cinematography of the small Russian town and the depiction of human psychology!

Internet Movie Database Link

Stage Sisters

The story is about how two stage actresses remained good friends despite some misunderstandings over the years.

Liked the interesting plot and the pretty stage costumes! I thought the political propaganda message was quite well conveyed through this film!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga

This is a documentary about how people lived near a forest in Russia that inspired a children's story with a witch called Baba Yaga.

Liked the interesting animated children's story! I was quite surprised to see such gigantic mushrooms in the forest!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Two Escobars

This is a documentary about two famous people named Escobars in Columbia during the 1990s: Pablo Escobar who was a powerful drug dealer and Andre Escobar who was the captain of the Columbian National team.

Learnt quite a bit of Columbian history from this film! Didn't realize how soccer can literally change the fate of a nation!

Internet Movie Database Link

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

The story is about a young wizard, Harry Potter's battle against a powerful evil wizard called Voldermort who killed his parents.

Liked the interesting plot about the dark magic used by Voldermort and how Harry Potter tried to fight against it together with his teacher Dumbledore! Think Ginny and Hermione have both grown much prettier since the first Harry Potter movie!

Internet Movie Database Link

A Necklace for My Beloved

The story is about how a young man searched for a present for his prospective bride. She has several suitors and the elders in the village would help to select the groom by checking who had the best present.

Liked the interesting adventures of the young man, especially the one with the goddesses!

Internet Movie Database Link

Dispersed Clouds

The story is about how a young girl from Tokyo fell in love with a doctor in the countryside when she fainted there while travelling with her classmates.

Liked the nice scenery in the countryside! Could not really understand why the young girl was moody at times though.

Internet Movie Database Link

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

The story is about a young wizard called Harry Potter training his classmates to fight against an evil wizard.

Liked the training sessions conducted by Harry Potter! I could see how his friends gained more confidence after mastering new skills!

Internet Movie Database Link

Magdana's Donkey

The story is about how a donkey temporarily gave hope to a poor young mother called Magdana when her son helped to nurse it back to life.

Liked the cute fat donkey! The children acted very well too!

Internet Movie Database Link

An Inn At Osaka

The story is about the encounters of a business executive after he transferred to Osaka and stayed at an inn.

Liked the interesting lives of the different characters!

Internet Movie Database Link

Trances

This is part of the Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Project DVD box set which included five other films: The Housemaid, Dry Summer, Redes, Touki Bouki and A River Called Titas. Bought the DVD box set as I saw the first two films online at mubi.com and was impressed by them!

The story is about a famous band in Morocco named Nass El Ghiwane.

Liked the nice songs and music in the film! The lyrics of the songs seemed quite meaningful too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Scrabble Nationals (Day Two)

Game 9: vs Valli
Day two starts off in the same round robin sequence as day one but the person who starts first will now reply. Close game as we each had a bingo each. I had AERIEST(71) while she had STAINED(73).

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: AEREIEST(71) Opp Bingos: STAINED(73)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: KIP(32), UNDIES(30), LOX(40) Opp High Moves: JEERS(40), NOISY(32), FAE(30), TOZE(39)
L 372-402, -30. 3W 6L (Accum spread -18).

Game 10: vs Nicholas
I think this was my worst game in the tournament. I had one bingo with DELEGATE(78) but lost as I played several silly phonies such as AHAH* and PSSTS*.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: DELEGATE(78) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: AHAH*, PSSTS* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: OXO(32) Opp High Moves: UH(30), SIZE(51), PSST(37)
L 350-387, -37. 3W 7L (Accum spread -55).

Game 11: vs Shantikumar
Shantikumar was leading initially after he bingoed with LOUVRED(81) but I caught up with TASTIEST(68) and my SEZ(49) back hooking to an existing SO on the board gave me a win despite leaving the X and V unplayed in the end. Could have played ZEX for more points but I forgot if SOX was good, so did not want to risk a loss.

New words learnt: LOUVRED
My Bingos: TASTIEST(68) Opp Bingos: LOUVRED(81)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: BARK(46), SEZ(49) Opp High Moves: QIS(38)
W 376-352, +24. 4W 7L (Accum spread -31).

Game 12: vs Kumraj
I played Kumraj again just before lunch. He bingoed first with DUETING(78) and I replied with DETAINED(64). Had another opportunity to bingo with a ELORSST rack but did not know the correct anagram and phonied with RESLOTS* in the end. Lost badly to him again.

I went to lunch with Valli at the Orchard Cineleisure food court. This time I ordered more dishes than the previous day in the hope of playing better after lunch.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: DETAINED(64) Opp Bingos: DUETING(78)
My Phoneys: RESLOTS* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: GAY(34), KAT(35) Opp High Moves: JOLLY(39), HORSE(34), ZIN(30), QIN(31)
L 340-423, -83. 4W 8L (Accum spread -114).

Game 13: vs Shahrul
I was leading by about 60 points until Shahrul played two bingos consecutively: EMAILER(70) and OUTPUTS(70). Might have won if I had blocked his bingo lines.

New words learnt: ETEN
My Bingos: Opp Bingos: EMAILER(70), OUTPUTS(70)
My Phoneys: Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: YEA(30), LEZ(36) Opp High Moves: FIST(39)
L 368-400, -32. 4W 9L (Accum spread -146).

Game 14: vs Ameen
This is my third time playing against Ameen. Had very good tiles and bingoed twice with ROOTING(62), ENLISTS(73) and SOARING(62) to win despite my opponent having a nine-timer with LITERATE(113).

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: ROOTING(62), ENLISTS(73), SOARING(62) Opp Bingos: LITERATE(113)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: DJINI*
My High Moves: XI(36), JOT(36), CREPT(30) Opp High Moves: COZ(34), QI(44), EF(30)
W 505-394, +111. 5W 9L (Accum spread -35).

Game 15: vs Shukra
Shukra was playing against Valli before our game. She complained about a level in Candy Crush that she was unable to pass and asked him to help out. He ended up playing Candy Crush on her phone while playing with me at the same time. Think I would not be able to multi-task if I were in his place. Lost narrowly as I did not block his SEIZE(47) down the triple word score line.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: DARLINGS(71) Opp Bingos:
My Phoneys: NEXIS* Opp Phoneys: OUTLIST*
My High Moves: INSECT(33), VAINER(39) Opp High Moves: WEIGH(33), DAILY(30), RITZ(46), SEIZE(47)
L 348-362, -14. 5W 10L (Accum spread -49).

Game 16: vs Valli
My last game was with Valli again. I had one bingo with MEATIES(70) but she had a lot more high scoring moves to win in the end.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: MEATIES(70) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: QUIRER* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: HUI(34), BIDS(31), NEF(30) Opp High Moves: YIP(31), COZIER(39), QUIRE(47), JEWED(40), GAS(32)
L 385-430, -45. 5W 11L (Accum spread -94).

Finished the tournament with 5 wins and 7th position. A little bit disappointed by my poor performance but thought it was great fun nevertheless. Hope to do better next year!

Scrabble Nationals (Day One)

This year's Nationals is held at SCAPE. I was early and helped to arrange the tables with Shahrul, Leon and Li Wei before the actual registration. There were 16 players in division A and 8 players in division B. I saw a mix of familiar and unfamiliar faces in division B.

Game 1: vs Valli
My previous encounter with Valli was at the 2011 Nationals which I lost. This time round, my bingos of HUNTERS(83) and NASTIER(73) against her LUSTIEST(75) plus a couple of high scoring moves helped me to beat her by close to 200 points.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: HUNTERS(83), NASTIER(73) Opp Bingos: LUSTIEST(75)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: WAW(38), AY(39), QUIN(33) Opp High Moves: -
W 493-318, +175. 1W 0L (Accum spread +175).

Game 2: vs Nicholas
My next opponent was a young boy from Maris Stella. We had one bingo each, I had STAINER(75) and he had TENAILS(62). Defeated him by about 100 points with my other high scoring moves.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: STAINER(75) Opp Bingos: TENAILS(62)
My Phoneys: Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: JINGO(42), QUEST(45), DOTED(44), ZO(35), FIRE(31) Opp High Moves: KAE(31), COURS(30)
W 427-324, +103. 2W 0L (Accum spread +278).

Game 3: vs Shantikumar
My previous encounter with Shantikumar was at the Dec 2013 WYSC Benefits tournament which I won. Had a shaky start as I phonied twice with PoDIEST* and PaSTIED* but finally got a bingo down with PoSITED(74). I had two other bingos later with LITTERS(69) and AUNTIES(62) against his MANDATES(74) and beat him easily.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: POSITED(74), LITTERS(69), AUNTIES(62) Opp Bingos: MANDATES(74)
My Phoneys: PODIEST*, PASTIED* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: JA(52), FELONS(35), BRIG(38), KEY(34) Opp High Moves: SHUNT(48), LUX(36), QAT(37)
W 504-379, +125. 3W 0L (Accum spread +403).

Game 4: vs Kumraj
Kumraj is a young man from Nepal who works in MHA. Was defeated soundly by him as he had three bingos: INDORSE(84), GLANDERS(88) and UNITING(77) against my WRESTING(63).

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: WRESTING(63) Opp Bingos: INDORSE(84), GLANDERS(88), UNITING(77)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: CHIEF(34), QIS(37), VIVE(30) Opp High Moves: FEZ(44), AHEAD(31), WE(30)
L 357-475, -118. 3W 1L (Accum spread +285).

I went to lunch with Kumraj and his friend Shukra at the Orchard Cineleisure food court. Saw a few division A players eating there too.

Game 5: vs Shahrul
My previous encounter with Shahrul was at the 2012 Oktobertile fest where we won one game each. This was a close game where we had one bingo each. I had SARDINES(70) and he had BROMATES(74). Lost narrowly despite getting away with a phoney TRINK*.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: SARDINES(70) Opp Bingos: BROMATES(74)
My Phoneys: TRINK* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: JARL(34), TRINK*(58) Opp High Moves: REZ(43), OXO(41)
L 362-390, -28. 3W 2L (Accum spread +257).

Game 6: vs Ameen
My next opponent was a humorous Indian guy. Lost as I phonied twice with FINERIE* and TRIT* while he bingoed twice with ADVICES(83) and STUNNED(76).

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: Opp Bingos: ADVICES(83), STUNNED(76)
My Phoneys: FINERIE*, TRIT* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: JIVED(48), CRAWL(33), LARKS(34), YETI(34) Opp High Moves: EX(36), SOZ(30)
L 353-436, -83. 3W 3L (Accum spread +174).

Game 7: vs Shukra
My last opponent in our first round robin was Kumraj's friend. Lost as I phonied with BERIEST* while he bingoed with SETTING(79).

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: SETTING(79)
My Phoneys: BERIEST* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: NOX(44), LOY(30), QUAI(31) Opp High Moves: JOBE(40) GAZE(37)
L 319-410, -91. 3W 4L (Accum spread +83).

Game 8: vs Ameen
I played with Ameen again for our first king of the hill game. I bingoed with APPLIED(73) while he had SHAKIER(76) and SMUTTIER(83). Could have another bingo for a win with a ADEERRS rack that needed the S to be in the 4th to 6th position but just could not think of the anagram. Phonied with REARSED* in the end and lost.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: APPLIED(73) Opp Bingos: SHAKIER(76), SMUTTIER(83)
My Phoneys: REARSED* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: WOE(32), HEW(32), VIA(33), READS(30) Opp High Moves: XI(30)
L 360-431, -71. 3W 5L (Accum spread +12).

Finished day 1 with 3 wins and 5 losses.

The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness

This is a documentary about Miyazaki Hayao, a famous Japanese animation director in the process of making his final film.

This film reminded me of "Jiro Dreams of Sushi". Both films are about old men who are disciplined and very good at their work and who expects high standards from others. Nice way to end the Japanese film festival!

Internet Movie Database Link

A River Called Titas

This is part of the Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Project DVD box set which included five other films: The Housemaid, Dry Summer, Redes, Touki Bouki and Trances. Bought the DVD box set as I saw the first two films online at mubi.com and was impressed by them!

The story is about the lives of the villagers staying near the Titas river.

Liked the nice music, the beautiful black and white cinematography and the great acting by the actresses!

Internet Movie Database Link

Touki Bouki

This is part of the Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Project DVD box set which included five other films: The Housemaid, Dry Summer, Redes, A River Called Titas and Trances. Bought the DVD box set as I saw the first two films online at mubi.com and was impressed by them!

The story is about how a young couple from Senegal dreamed of going to Paris.

Liked how the director showed both the traditional way of life and the modern way of life side by side for the viewer to compare!

Internet Movie Database Link

Harry Potter and the Globet of Fire

The story is about a young wizard called Harry Potter taking part in an inter-school wizard competition.

Liked the special effects and the pretty girls from the all girls school!

Internet Movie Database Link

McDull The Pork of Music

The story is about how a group of kids helped their kindergarten raise money by forming a choir and taking part in commercial performances.

Liked the interesting plot and the lovely voices of the kids!

Internet Movie Database Link

Redes

This is part of the Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Project DVD box set which included five other films: The Housemaid, Dry Summer, Touki Bouki, A River Called Titas and Trances. Bought the DVD box set as I saw the first two films online at mubi.com and was impressed by them!

The story is about a group of fishermen fighting for better wages against their employers.

Liked the teamwork displayed by the fishermen when they were fishing!

Internet Movie Database Link

Punishment Room

The story is about how a university student who played "games" as he is bored with his life got punished in the end.

Liked how the director described the meaningless life that the protagonist led and the pretty lead actress!

Internet Movie Database Link

Aniki Bobo

The story is about the adventures of a group of children in Portugal.

Liked the interesting plot and the nice music!

Internet Movie Database Link

I Feel Sleepy

The story is about how a single middle aged man found romance in a gummies sales woman and got involved in a series of crimes because of her.

Liked the special effects and the funny moments in the film but felt a bit sad for the man.

Internet Movie Database Link

Fireworks Wednesday

The story is about how a part time maid got involved in the family disputes of her employer's household.

Liked how the director provided many puzzle parts for the viewer to piece into a big picture while watching the film!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Private Life of Mr and Mrs M

The story is about how a couple started to have more conflicts when the wife became busier with work.

Didn't really like the film too much. I thought the director could have explained a bit more why the wife had to conceal her secret towards the end.

Internet Movie Database Link

Kiki's Delivery Service

The story is about how an apprentice witch trained to be a real witch in a new city.

Liked the cute actress who acted as the apprentice witch!

Internet Movie Database Link

Gravity

The story is about how an astronaut coped after losing contact with the rest of her colleagues in space.

Liked the excellent special effects! Sandra Bullock looked pretty fit in this film!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Homesman

The story is about how two people embarked on a journey to escort three mentally ill women from Nebraska to Iowa.

Not really a fan of Westerns but decided to watch this as it was the only English film showing at the Avignon Utopia cinema. Was amazed at the resourcefulness of Tommy Lee Jones!

Internet Movie Database Link

Her

The story is about how a single man developed a relationship with his newly purchased operating system.

Liked how the man systematically taught the operating system about his world and the voice of Scarlett Johansson!

Internet Movie Database Link

Like Father Like Son

The story examines what it means to be a father when two couples discovered that their sons had been switched several years ago and attempt to switch back.

Liked how the director showed that there was no fixed formula for family life as both families have different philosophies in coping with issues!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Wind Rises

This is a biography of a famous Japanese plane designer who helped to advance Japan's air defence industry during the second World War.

An inspiring story about an engineer who was passionate about his work! Wished there could be more of such films!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Lego Movie

The story is about how an ordinary person helped to stop an evil tyrant from destroying their world.

Liked the amazing set that was constructed completely from lego bricks and the nice soundtrack!

Internet Movie Database Link

Scenes from a Marriage

The story is about the marriage life of a Swedish couple who had been married for ten years with two daughters at the start of the film.

Liked the intense psychological study of the characters! Great acting by the both of them!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Soong Sisters

The story is about the life of the Soong family where each of the three daughters married someone famous.

Learnt quite a bit of Chinese history from this film! Maggie Cheung looked pretty young in this film!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Inheritance

This is the last film of the "Masaki Kobayashi Against the System series". Skipped the third film, "Black River", as I saw it before already. The story is about how a rich dying man tasked his subordinates to find his three illegitimate children in order to split his inheritance.

Sort of knew how things would turn out in the end as the movie was narrated as a flashback but I was still pretty impressed by the ingenuity of the person who managed to outwit and outsmart everyone else in the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

Marriage Blue

The story is about four pairs of couples in Korea. Some are newly married while others have known each other for a long time but they each encounter a road block in their way that they have to overcome.

Liked the pretty actresses in the film! Nice scenery at Jeju Island too!

Internet Movie Database Link

I Will Buy You

This is the second film of the "Masaki Kobayashi Against the System series". The story is about how several businesses competed to get a young rising baseball star to sign a contract with them.

Not much baseball action and don't really understand the logic of the politics behind the competition as I thought a closed bid system would solve everything at once.

Internet Movie Database Link

The Flower Girl

The story is about how a young girl had to sell flowers to support her family as North Korea was not liberated by the communists yet.

Liked the nice songs and the great acting by the actress!

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Ilo Ilo

The story is about how a family went through the Asian Financial crisis in the late 1990s together with their maid.

Liked how the family remained united despite going through all sorts of difficulties! Great acting by the actors!

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The Thick-Walled Room

This is the first film of the "Masaki Kobayashi Against the System series". The story is about life in a prison camp for Japanese war criminals shortly after the second world war.

Liked the interesting stories of each of the prisoners! The former interpreter, Yokota, reminds me a little of the protagonist in the director's "Human Condition" trilogy.

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Summer with Monika

The story is about how a young couple resigned from their low paying jobs and escaped to an island for a while before returning back to face reality.

Great acting by the actress who played Monika! I also liked the nice black and white cinematography!

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Pieta

The story is about how a mother sought revenge in her own unique way from a loan shark!

Liked how everything tied together nicely in the end!

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Mandala

The story is about how two monks searched for the meaning of life in the countryside and in the city.

Nice cinematography! The film reminds me of the director's 1993 film Sopyonje.

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Preparation for the Festival

The story is about life in a rural countryside with many eccentric characters, focusing on a young man who intends to leave his hometown and go to Tokyo.

Liked the interesting plot and the pretty actresses in the film: the demure choir girl, the submissive gangster's wife and the nymphet who has lost her memory!

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Sisters of Nishijin

The story is about the decline of the kimono making industry in Japan during the early 1950s.

Liked how the family tried hard to keep their dreams alive despite the obstacles in their way!

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Disguise

The story is about Japan's geisha industry in the early 1950s.

Liked the detailed portrayal of the lives of geishas! Reminded me of "Streets of Shame" by Mizoguchi Kenji and "The Geisha House" by Fukasaku Kinji.

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The Ball at the Anjo House

I thought there will be a long queue for the free tickets but was surprised that not many people turned up. As I was early, I had a quick scan of the "Princely Treasures from the House of Liechtenstein" exhibition at the National Museum before the show.

The story is about a rich family becoming poor after the war and had to sell away the house.

Liked how the film portrayed the change in people's behavior when their social status change! Great acting by the ex-chauffeur and the maid!

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Rent a Cat

The story is about how a cat loving person started renting her cats to lonely people around her city.

Liked the nice leisurely pace of the film! The salesgirl at the car renting company looked quite cute with her hair clip!

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Gate of Hell

The story is about how a samurai tried to get the lady of his dreams even though she is married and wrecked the lives of many people in the process.

Liked the interesting plot and the colorful costumes! Great acting by Kyo Machiko!

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PSTAR Scrabble Games 2013

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 18th May 2013 from 10am to 5pm. A total of 31 teams took part. MINDEF had one team taking part this year.

Here's my match report.

Game 1: Singapore Sports Council
My first opponent was against Zaid Ismail from SSC. Had quite an easy game as I bingoed twice with MARrIED(82) and SAUNTER(71) while he made phoneys with SKIE* and GA*. Learnt a new word "SCONE" from the table next to me. Thought it could be a phoney until my friend explained to me that it was a common word for a type of cake.

Won 473-182. Our team lost 1-2.

Game 2: Singapore Powers
My second opponent was against Oi Leng from Singapore Powers. She was a pleasant old lady who kept her cool even though she was trailing. Had quite an easy game too as I had three bingos: ROISTED(73), SERAFIN(78) and DERIDEd(75). Learnt a new word "BURR" from her.

Won 503-289. Our team won 2-1.

Game 3: Singapore Sports Council
My third opponent was against Azmi from SSC. SSC had two guys and two girls in their team including a reserve, so I was a bit disappointed that I only got to play the guys in their team. This turned out to be an exciting close game as our scores were neck-in-neck until the final few turns. I was fishing a little bit at first before bingoing with ISATINE(71) but he scored big with ZA(44), SUQ(44) and BENCH(50). I think the turning point came when he tried to score big by hooking the Y of OY to an existing FEET on a triple letter score cell. Luckily FEETY* was a phoney and I challenged it off!

Won 387-364. Our team lost 1-2.

Game 4: Ministry of Social and Family Development
My last opponent was against Goh from MSF. Had a EEILMRT rack on my second turn and I tried MELTIER(70) which turned out to be valid when challenged! My RECURLED* a few turns later got challenged off though! I should have played RECULED or ULCERED instead! Learnt a new word "SKIM" from him.

Won 393-255. Our team won 2-1.

LTA, MOE, HDB and SSC were the top 4 teams. MHA received two consolation prizes for coming in first in both the second and third tier. The MINDEF teams did not win any prizes but we had a really fun time! Hope we could do better next year!

One Tree Three Lives

This is a documentary about a famous writer who has stayed in three different countries in her life: China, Taiwan and the Untied States.

Liked the screening of the old news clips and how the director pieced a fuller picture of the writer's life through interviews of her acquaintances! Thought she was a charismatic old lady!

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Pina

This a documentary about Pina Bausch who was a famous dance choreographer based in Germany. She died recently and this film is a tribute to her by her students.

Liked the full length dance pieces such as "Rite of Spring", "Cafe Muller" and "Kontakthof" as well as the impromptu pieces by the students! All of them show much creativity!

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Street Angel

The story is about a girl who was thrown into prison for trying to steal and solicit in the streets to pay for her mother's expenses. She escaped to work in a circus where she fell in love with an artist but was caught again just after he proposed to her. They reunited again after she had served her term.

Liked the nice music and the interesting storyline! Great acting by the beautiful leading actress!

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Patisserie Coin de rue

The story is about how a young girl accidentally became a professional baker and helped a small bakery survive through a crisis together with a group of friends.

I was expecting something similar to "Jiro Dreams of Sushi", so I was a bit disappointed as the film did not show much of the cooking process as well as the end product. Liked the carmaderie shown by the team though!

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Amour

The story is about how an old man took care of his wife at home with the help of a nurse after she had a stroke.

Liked how the film captured the little details of the couple's lives and the dream sequences!

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Old Romances

This is a sequel to "Old Places" and it is about old places in Singapore, some of which are not around any more.

Liked the nice voice over narration as well as the interesting people and places featured in the film! Might visit some of them when I have the time!

Catherine Listening to the Rain

The story is about the relationship between a mother and a daughter. Both had husbands who neglected them and both of them described their plights through fairy tales that they passed down to their daughters.

Liked the parallels drawn between the two generations and how Catherine managed to change the ending of the story in the end!

Child's Play

The story is about how an only child who lived with his step mother coped with his loneliness by playing with an imaginary friend.

Liked the suspense and the portrayal of the psychological impact of a broken family to a child in the film! Great acting by the step mother!

The Man in the Cupboard

The story is about how a couple met each other and got married but slowly drifted further apart. The man hid in a cupboard in an attempt to murder his wife.

Liked the interesting dating sequences and how the husband tried to cover his tracks! Nice quote from "Heart of Darkness"!

The Fiend of Athens

The story is about how the life of a bank clerk changed after he was mistaken for a wanted serial killer.

Liked the interesting story and the beautiful lead actress who sang well too! The actor looked a bit like Tom Hanks in my opinion.

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The Women from the Lake of Scented Souls

The story is about the sad fate of two women in a Chinese village who were married to men with some form of disability. One was crippled and the other was mentally retarded.

Liked the nice cinematography and the interesting drama!

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Oktobertilefest Scrabblemini 2012

This is my first time taking part in the inaugural Oktobertilefest Scrabblemini organised by Tony Sim at his clubhouse in Tanah Merah. A total of 18 people took part in this one day event. We played 10 games from 12pm to 10pm with 10 in div A and 8 in div B. The environment was quite nice as we could see people swimming and jogging while we play.

Game 1: vs Rajeev Batra
Had an easy first game as I was paired with a newcomer. Won by having a bingo and challenging off his phoney.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: ANTLIAE(87) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: BIDER*
My High Moves: BIKERS(37), POST(40), FUM(36) Opp High Moves: JOUST(66), ZEE(31)
W 397-298, +99. 1W 0L (Accum spread +99).

Game 2: vs Eden Choo Jing Yu
I was trailing most of the game until I decided to try SEQUOIA hooking the S to an existing FEW on the board. Didn't have hope that FEWS was good when Eden challenged but it happened to be good! Then I followed up with a high scoring ZO(64) and maintained my lead to the end of the game.

New words learnt: FEWS, RAWIN
My Bingos: VOICERS(81), SEQUOIA(112) Opp Bingos: ANNULETS(64), RECOPIES(68)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: ZO(64) Opp High Moves: JEU(39), FEW(30), RAWIN(36)
W 449-401, +48. 2W 0L (Accum spread +147).

Game 3: vs Dylan Sharma
Lost badly as Dylan had one bingo and made many high scoring moves.

New words learnt: DOONA, DISE
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: RECLINE(67)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: RECLININGS*
My High Moves: BRIBE(30) Opp High Moves: GANES(36), FIVE(38), ZESTY(70), FEWER(33), NEWT(31), JAR(35)
L 288-460, -172. 2W 1L (Accum spread -25).

Game 4: vs Quek Sim Ho
Lost badly as Quek had four bingos.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: RESEEDS(79), FOXIEST(125), REVUIST(89), CLONERS(81)
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: JOW(44), TAW(38), PAT(30), GYM(34), ZEK(32) Opp High Moves: SUQ(32)
L 274-589, -315. 2W 2L (Accum spread -340).

Game 5: vs Seow Kai Yuan
Lost as I had one bingo while Kai Yuan had three bingos.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: READINGS(74) Opp Bingos: IDEALIST(69), DEFINING(61), ESTRONE(71)
My Phoneys: RECUE* Opp Phoneys: BREADINGS*
My High Moves: JO(34), FORAY(44), CHIVE(51), WINGS(39) Opp High Moves: ZO(36), KAT(41), YEW(42)
L 396-468, -72. 2W 3L (Accum spread -412).

Game 6: vs Jethro Prudencio
Lost narrowly as Jethro scored well with SQUARE(48) towards the end and finished first. Would have won if I did not challenge BUTTY and RAIA.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: SINGLET(74) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: SNEDDERS*
My High Moves: NERTZ(36), GABY(30) Opp High Moves: MOCK(36), BUTTY(33), VEEPS(30), SQUARE(48)
L 336-345, -9. 2W 4L (Accum spread -421).

Game 7: vs Shahrul Kamal
Lost as we had one bingo each but Shahrul had many more high scoring moves.

New words learnt: BENI
My Bingos: RENDERS(75) Opp Bingos: HOTCAKES(83)
My Phoneys: RETINGED* Opp Phoneys: -
My High Moves: YAR(32) Opp High Moves: BENI(32), VITAE(35), MIZ(56), SCAW(31), MARES(35), BAPS(37), BENJ(36)
L 348-460, -112. 2W 5L (Accum spread -533).

After 7 games of round robin, we were divided into two sub-groups. The top half were Eden, Dylan, Quek and Sky. I was in the bottom half with Shahrul, Jethro and Rajeev.

Game 8: vs Shahrul Kamal
Had a rematch with Shahrul and I played better this time round. Won as I had two bingos against Shahrul's one bingo. It also helped that his attempt to try to find a bingo towards the end of the game was unsuccessful.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: HASTIER(67), DELATING(67) Opp Bingos: TROOLIE(66)
My Phoneys: BENJI* Opp Phoneys: TRAPMEN*, UNGRIPS*, SPRUNGS*
My High Moves: - Opp High Moves: RIZ(41), OX(36), QAID(34), MEAT(36)
W 429-332, +97. 3W 5L (Accum spread -436).

Game 9: vs Jethro Prudencio
Had a rematch with Jethro and I didn't give him any chances this time round as I beat him convincingly with two bingos to one and a series of high score moves.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: LINTIES(75), ANTIDOTE(66) Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: GAUNTERS*, REELIER*, TEH*, HIER*
My High Moves: GAUZE(34), FAX(60), OW(31), CHATTERS(44) Opp High Moves: FROWNS(40), VIRES(41), QI(33)
W 522-247, +275. 4W 5L (Accum spread -161).

Game 10: vs Rajeev Batra
Had a rematch with Rajeev and had a closer game this time round. Won due to my opponent's phonies and I was able to hit most of the triple word score cells with my S and blank.

New words learnt: -
My Bingos: - Opp Bingos: -
My Phoneys: - Opp Phoneys: TIB*, MIT*
My High Moves: JOBS(39), PIQUE(41), SOZ(46), REX(33) Opp High Moves: JIHAD(59), BROILS(45), NICE(31)
W 373-333, +40. 5W 5L (Accum spread -121).

Won half of games and had the rare opportunity to play with Masters players like Dylan and Quek. Had fun and I hope to do better if I take part next year!

Lourdes

The story is about how a wheelchair bound young woman visited Lourdes as part of a package tour in the hope of a miracle recovery.

Liked the interesting characters and the beautiful countryside scenery!

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Wolf Children

The story is about how a woman fell in love with a man who had wolf genes in his ancestry, had two children and raised them in a countryside after the father died.

Liked how the kids transformed into wolves in different situations! The music was nice too! The film reminds me a bit of "Only Yesterday" by Isao Takahata.

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Demons

The story is about how a samurai was robbed of his hard earned money and sought for revenge.

Liked the interesting plot and how the director described the psychology of each character!

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Jiro Dreams of Sushi

This is a documentary about Jiro who is a famous Sushi master chef in Japan.

Liked the interesting look into the sushi-making tradition and the interviews with the different people who contributed to the success of making a delicious sushi!

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