lebron james

it's been almost half a year since lebron had his horrible PR move: the decision. cleveland fans and other basketball fans (not in miami) were outraged by lebron's decision to leave cleveland for miami to team up with dwayne wade and chris bosh. since then, every little thing lebron has said or done has been criticized by non-miami fans and he rose to the top rank of sports villains.

personally for me, i wasn't angry with lebron's decision to play in miami. i mean, whenever i go play ball, i want to be on the same team with my friends and play with talented players so i can be on a winning team. i also wasn't angry with all the hype surrounding his signing. i was just as interested in seeing where he would sign (i thought he'd go to chicago). but what he did poorly was the way he went about telling the nation about where he was going to sign. his show/interview was initially a good idea (doing it to raise money for charity), but it became too self-centered and he came off as an attention whore who was using charity as an excuse to do a show about himself.

anyway, again, it's been almost 6 months since his decision and we can see why there was all the hype around where he would sign. the lebron-less cavaliers are the worst team in the league and miami is one of the best. last night we also saw just how good lebron was. even when i was still a lakers fan, i always said that i'd rather have lebron on my team over kobe. kobe is probably more skilled than lebron, but lebron is more talented, athletic, younger, and has a higher upside than kobe. and he has mad skills too. out of all the players in the league today, i'd still draft lebron 1st and build a team around him.

and this is just pretty amazing with how he started the game vs orlando last night. 11 for 11. oh, and i like how there's no announcers. it's like being at the game itself :D

oscar picks (updated version)

the oscar nominations for this year came out last week and recently, i've been able to watch 6 of the 10 best picture nominations. so, here is my updated picks (in bold) for this years main category awards:


Best Supporting Actress

• Amy Adams, The Fighter
• Helena Bonham Carter, The King's Speech
• Melissa Leo, The Fighter
• Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
• Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom


even though melissa leo won the sag award for this category (and did do a good job as the overbearing mom in the figher), i still think hailee steinfeld did a better job. i guess i was wrong to say "she's a lock," but i'd still give her the nod. she was basically the lead actress in the film, but was in a supporting role (i guess). like i said in my review, i felt like she held her own co-starring with jeff bridges and matt damon. *note: i haven't seen animal kingdom.*


Best Supporting Actor
• Christian Bale, The Fighter
• John Hawkes, Winter's Bone
• Jeremy Renner, The Town
• Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
• Geoffrey Rush, The King's Speech


 while i really like geoffrey rush in the king's speech, i thought christian bale did an excellent job in the fighter as dicky eklund. it also helped that at the end of the film, we saw the real person he was portraying and to see how accurate he was in picking up the mannerisms. *note: i haven't seen winter's bone and the kinds are all right.*


Best Actress
• Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right 
• Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
• Jennifer Lawrence, Winter's Bone
• Natalie Portman, Black Swan
• Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine


this is a complete shot in the dark because i haven't seen any of these movies. but, going with the hype, i'll choose natalie portman. from what i hear, she is a runaway to win this category as well. i'd also choose her because i like her the best out of all the other actresses. haha. *note: like i said, i haven't seen any of these movies.*

Best Actor
• Javier Bardem, Biutiful
• Jeff Bridges, True Grit
• Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
• Colin Firth, The King's Speech
• James Franco, 127 Hours


colin firth was excellent playing the stammering king george vi in the king's speech. he made his speech impediment sound natural and played his role perfectly. james franco also did an amazing job as aron ralston. the majority of the movie was basically him, so he needed to be solid and that he was. i also really liked jeff bridges in true grit. and from what i've heard, javier bardem was really good too. so, a solid group of actors, but i still give it too colin firth. *note: i have not seen biutiful and the social network.*

Best Original Screenplay
• Another Year 
• The Fighter
• Inception
• The King's Speech
• The Kids Are All Right



i think most "experts" are picking the king's speech to win, and it was really well written, but i just enjoyed inception that much more. sure, it was probably more of how things were filmed that stood out more than the story, but i thought it was more creative than the rest. the ideas of dreams within a dream within a dream and inception was just well put together. sure, a little bit confusing, but that's the point, ya? *note: i have not seen another year and the kids are all right.*

Best Adapted Screenplay
• 127 Hours
•  The Social Network
•  Toy Story 3
•  True Grit
•  Winter's Bone


i haven't seen the social network, and from what i've read, it'll probably win this category. i originally choose true grit to win because i liked it more than toy story 3 (although i did really enjoyed both those movies), but now that i've seen 127 hours, i am changing my pick to that. i just thought the story was better told than the other two. *note: i haven't seen the social network and winter's bone.*

Best Director
• Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
• Joel and Ethan Coen, True Grit
• David Fincher, The Social Network
• Tom Hooper, The King's Speech
• David O. Russell, The Fighter


probably the biggest surprise to not see christopher nolan here for inception, so i'll go with the king's speech as tom hooper did a wonderful job telling this story. it was well paced, well filmed, and well acted. true grit was also a slower pace and beautifully shot and the fighter was a little too amped up for me, but that was the point of the movie. anyway, my pick goes to the king's speech. *note: i haven't seen black swan and the social network.*


Best Picture

• Black Swan
• The Fighter
• Inception
• The Kids Are All Right
• The King's Speech
• 127 Hours
• The Social Network
• Toy Story 3
• True Grit
• Winter's Bone


originally, i chose the king's speech for winning because i think this is what the academy will choose. i more serious movie with very good acting and a very good story that's inspiring, but after thinking about it more, i personally would choose inception so that is what i would vote for. i thought it was the most original idea and visually stunning and just well put together. sure, it may have some holes in the story and people didn't like the ambiguous ending, but it's a movie that i would choose to watch again and again. that is the reason why my pick is inception for best picture of the year. *note: i haven't seen black swan, the kids are all right, the social network, and winter's bone.*


and one more for free :D ... toy story 3 will win best animated film, but that was a no brainer.  how to train a dragon was also really well done and it has a more personally significant meaning for me (i watched it on my 2nd date as i was courting my now gf :D), but from a film standpoint, toy story 3 easily takes the cake.


and those are my picks for this years oscars.

king's speech

i briefly wrote about the king's speech in my oscar's pick post, but here's a little more of a full review on the movie.

the pace of the movie was much slower than the fighter and 127 hours. those two movies had jerky camera movements and a lot of quick cuts. this one, like true grit, were slower. this is not to say that the movie lagged or was boring (in fact i thought it was well paced), but it focused more on the dialogue than visuals... and that is what really carried the story. i really liked the chemistry between colin firth and geoffrey rush and they both did wonderful jobs in their roles. it was also funny and just well-written overall.

it was also cool that this was based on a true story. i know that many films are doing that more and i really don't know how much is embellished or changed or what, but it does add something to the story knowing that it really happened. similar to 127 hours, it's a triumph story, but in a different way. it's a cool friendship story as well and i think what i like about it is that you leave feeling good after watching the movie.

i still haven't seen black swan, and honestly, i don't really want to. however, many people do say it is really well done and acted and all, but it just seems a little too weird for me. i wasn't too interested in social network either, but now with all the hype, maybe it is something to check out as well. i know my gf is interested in watching it, so that helps too. haha.

127 hours

i saw 127 hours this past weekend and wow, that was an intense movie. i thought it was really well done too (like king's speech, true grit, and the fighter). i now see why these movies were all nominated for best picture. i liked how boyle filmed it. very artsy. cool point-of-view perspectives. i think the way it was filmed helped tell the story better. and james franco did a great job.

it was interesting to see what the thoughts that went through his mind as he was stuck and it made me think about what i would think about if i was in his situation. i would probably think of triumphs and regrets in my life. i would want to tell my family and friends how much i loved them. i'd probably start talking to myself too (in weird accents no less). but man, i dunno if i'd survive. i'd probably pass out from shock and then wake up and faint again and then just cry. okay, i'd probably try to chip my way out too, but i don't know if i could do what he did.

anyway, it was an intense movie, but i enjoyed it.