"THE GODFATHER" of Comic Book Movies?

YES.

Heath Ledger's final performance
is already being compared to Al Pacino's
unforgettable Michael Corleone masterpiece.


It seems that Director Christopher Nolan
has used Batman and the Joker as hypnotic metaphors
for the essence of evil and the need for heroes
in our post-9/11 world,

and this resonates in the poster below,
a chilling allusion to the World Trade Center.



I am definitely watching this on IMAX
when it opens on July 17, 2008!!!

"The haunting and visionary Dark Knight
soars on the wings of untamed imagination.

It's full of surprises you don't see coming.
And just try to get it out of your dreams."
> Peter Travers, Rolling Stone



"A lesson in filmmaking if there ever was one...

there are moments in film history when everything is pushed aside
and performance exceeds genre.

We could call this THE GODFATHER of comic book movies."
> Brad Brevet, Ropes of Silicon



"Six sequences were filmed with IMAX cameras,
including the opening six minutes,
which represent bravura filmmaking.

This marks the first time ever that a major feature film
has been even partially shot using IMAX cameras,
in what is an intriguing integration of the two formats."
> www.Emanuel Levy.com

Pa-CHEESEBURGER Ka Naman? Don't Be RIDICULOUS!!!!

You can get this humongous cheeseburger
ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!

Provided, of course,
that you take the ridiculous carnivorous challenge
and finish the Triple Patty spectacular
in 5 Minutes or less...

or pay the usual price of P200 for the massive burger.



Fair Enough.

p.s.

Heimlich Maneuvers are complimentary!

DIANA ZUBIRI is back as FHM's Cover Girl!!!

WOOOHOOO!!!!

After almost half a decade,
my favorite Boticelli-esque beauty

is back on the cover of the magazine
that launched her showbiz career!!!

The controversial flyover picture
that started it all:

A look back at DZ's FHM covers:

To quote Perfect Stranger's Balki Bartokomous:
"Now we are so happy, we do the Dance of Joy!"

PacMan's BRUTAL DISSECTION

It was painful to watch;

a cold, objective dissection,
a show of calibrated precision,
almost Germanic in its efficiency.

From the 5th round onwards,
when David Diaz's white shorts
started turning pink because of the blood
from his face streaming down to his torso,

I was praying that either the referee,
the ring doctor, or Diaz's corner,
would call for a ceasefire.

Ultimately,
it was Manny Pacquiao who mercifully ended the beating,
in the only way he knew how...

and when the end came,
the final blow was so sudden, so fast,
that the millions watching almost didn't see
the lethal punch that made Diaz fall.


PacMan wanted to prove his critics wrong
after his unconvincing victory over Marquez.

I still believe that fight should have been called a draw,
but after today's show of dominance,
without a shadow of a doubt,

The Best Boxer in the World is a Filipino.





And if plans push through and circumstances allow,
a bloody good fight is in the offing early next year,
a timeless boxing war at par with Leonard vs. Duran,
Hagler vs. Hearns, Ali vs. Frazier, and Balboa vs. Creed:

MANNY PACQUIAO vs. RICKY HATTON!!!

PACQUIAO-DIAZ : The Real Reason for GMA and Company's "WORKING VISIT" in the United States

What bloody perfect timing for a U.S. visit!!!

I'm looking forward to playing "Where's Waldo"
as I watch the Solar Sports broadcast of
Pacman's quest to be the WBC's Lightweight Champion.

As far as I know, save for Red Cross Chairman Dick Gordon,
none of these government boxing fans cut short their "official trips"
to help out in the relief efforts for the swath of disasters
in Romblon, Iloilo, Capiz, and Aklan caused by Typhoon Frank.


59 CONGRESSMEN:
led by House Speaker Prospero Nograles,
Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo
and Camarines Sur Rep. Dato Arroyo.


10 CABINET OFFICIALS:
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo,
Finance Secretary Margarito Teves,
Trade Secretary Peter Favila,
Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro,
Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno,
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap,
Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya,
acting Labor Secretary Marianito Roque,
Press Secretary Jesus Dureza and
Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye.


2 SENATORS:
Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Richard Gordon


and


1 PRESIDENT:
yup, she's somewhere in the picture below;
click on it to find our missing-in-action GMA!!!

CARAMOAN, part two : Small Town Downtown

From the Guijalo Port,
it was a 15-minute bumpy ride to the main street
of (the very tiny) downtown of Caramoan.

SCOUT FUENTEBELLA,
one of the ill-fated Boy Scouts from the 11th Jamboree plane crash,
and now more well-known as one of the Quezon City "food streets",
is the most famous son of this small town.






On the way there,
we nicknamed our driver "FIRST GEAR",
since he seemed to manage the whole drive
without shifting to second!


Maybe he didn't dare to go faster
because just like in the movie "Speed",

there was a ticking time bomb in the vehicle:
the "jerry can" gas tank right next to the battery!!!





The two most popular hotels in town are
La Casa Roa and the Rex Tourist Inn.



LA CASA ROA is just off the main street,
an old house converted into a cozy hotel,
and is also the only source of ice cream here.
(mobile : 0917-5801850)

REX, owner of the inn that bears his name,
also owns the convenience store, hardware supply,
and the Caramoan Cable TV company.
(mobile : 0919-8821879)


Accomodations at The Rex
start at P300 for fan rooms,
P500 up for for A/C rooms with TV.


The rooms are quite clean and comfortable,
although there are only a few channels on cable:
BBC, HBO, MTV, ABS-CBN, and unfortunately, GMA-7.


Not that we wasted time watching TV anyway,
our downtime from the islands was spent bumming around
in the lobby, chatting up a group of Canadian tourists,
and the future manager of the inn, Rex's baby girl.







Caramoan shuts down very early;
by 7pm, not even tricycles ply the main street.

Dinners were always at CAMALIG GRILL,
(try their excellent pansit!!!)
and pre-beach breakfasts at LUTONG BAHAY .
(also owned by the entrepreneurial Rex!)


There's no nightlife to speak of,
although in the distance,

we heard some spurned lover wailing
The Calling's "Wherever You Will Go"

as fitting a song as any, our soundtrack
as we walked the empty streets of this sleepy town.

WARNING:

There are no ATMs in Caramoan;

factor in P300/day for meals,
P200/day for water and booze,
and P500/pax/day for boat rides,
and you ought to be fine!

CARAMOAN, part one : Getting There

Get ready for a long, rough trip,
it's almost 600 kilometers from Manila to Caramoan!!!

but every long minute you spend waiting
for your delayed flight to finally take off,

or every interminable second
of your 10-hour bus ride to finally end,

every uncomfortable moment in the ferry or pumpboat,

every hard bounce of the jeepney on the stone (not dirt!) roads,

will all dissipate the moment you take in your first view
of the islands of the Caramoan Peninsula!

We decided to use LEGASPI as our base
(rather than via the traditional route through Naga)
since it was much closer to Polangui, Albay;
hometown of our indefatigable tour guide
and host with the most, Dr. Elmo Isip.

Besides,
going to Caramoan via Naga
would have made us miss one of the "New 7 Wonders",
MAYON VOLCANO!!!






So we took the longer, but more scenic route;
from the Legaspi airport,
we proceeded to the town of TIWI,

home of the most famous Halo-Halo in Bicol,
DJC : the mix-mix with cheese and corn!!!






From a small beach where our bancas were anchored,
we took the almost 3-hour (!!!) ride in a small pumpboat,


crossing the vast Albay Gulf
with Daragang Magayon receding in the background,


as we drifted off slowly in the sparkling azure to
to the Port of Guijalo,


the access point to our final destination,
the Caramoan peninsula!!!!







Our first view of the Camarines Sur landscape
was a fitting preview of our dramatic destination...


...and then we finally hit land,
where frantic construction has begun on
a new and improved pier for the projected
massive influx of tourists over the next few years.

CARAMOAN : All That You Can't Leave Behind...

My friends and I didn't want to leave the islands behind,
and really, can you blame us?


And then Typhoon Frank ensured that
we were effectively stranded in CamSur anyway,
and we really couldn't leave Caramoan behind.

Well, we didn't really complain about it...


It really seemed that we were living the lyrics
of that great U2 song, WALK ON:

"You're packing a suitcase for a place none of us has been
A place that has to be believed to be seen..."


"...the only baggage you can bring
Is all that you can't leave behind."

coming up over the weekend:

Manila Boy's MEGA-POSTS on Caramoan!!!

How SHARAPOVA's Sharp TUXEDO Dulled her Wimbledon Play...

Maria's earliest Grand Slam exit since the '03 U.S. Open,
perhaps partly due to her ugliest All-England Championships outfit,
a too-manly, totally unsexy Tuxedo Shirt and Shorts combo.

She should have left the tux with that other legend from London,
BOND, James Bond.


See how gorgeous she was when she won Wimbledon in 2004,
in her super-hottie, simply sensual Skirt and Sando:

SPIDER Infestation at the Mall of Asia!!!

Much as I hate to use the word "cute"
in relation to The Amazing SPIDER-MAN,

there is just no other way to describe
this store's facade near the IMAX theater.



I want to fill my car and house with these spider-babies!!!

CUTE!!!

What's Your CAPTION?

a. "Lame Ducks. Emphasis on LAME."

b. "Birds of a Feather F*CK UP Together!"

c. "DUBIOUS and Dubya"

Proof that JOJO BINAY wants to run for President just like RUDY GIULIANI?

Arguably the last true oppositionist
in a field of too-obvious opportunists,

MetroManila's toughest, longest-serving, and most savvy Mayor
is a strong dark horse candidate for President in 2010.

Binay's parallels with Giuliani~

both were prominent lawyers
before becoming high-profile politicians,

both are proven leaders in times of severe crises,

only serve to give more weight to the argument that
Jejomar, like Rudolph,
deserves to run for the highest political office.



And Jojo, it seems, seeks to learn firsthand
from Rudy's own experiences...

SHAWARMA RICE!!!

why didn't anyone think of this before?

OMG.
This is SOOOO GOOOOD!!!


Prepared in the typical "rice-in-a-box" manner,
the rice is spiked with an anise-based seasoning powder,
showered with tasty Mediterranean flavorings,

and then the regular Shawarma fillings~
the white tahini sauce and the grilled beef bits,
are generously sprinkled on top of the fried rice.

It's the Shawarma sandwich adapted into
the classic Pinoy meal of hot rice and grilled meat.

I'm officially addicted.



Shawarma Rice:
only P50.00 at the Shawarma stand in Shopwise Makati!!!