Archived entries for

The winners


 I can die happy right now. Best. Grand Slam. Ever.
No words to describe how proud I am of these two. Amelie and Roger, congratulations for being such examplary, wonderful winners. Have always been rooting for you (well, more or less, but that was my crazy biased self) and always will.
Picture credit : ATP website, Yahoo!Sports

I saw the Chronicles of Narnia for the fifth time today. Fifth time. That’s a lot of screenings. Last time I’ve seen a movie so many times was Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring. Not that the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is as good as the Rings trilogy. But I just love how I feel while watching the movie -like a kid in a bubble.
Picture credit : Narniaweb

Ang Lee won the Directors’ Guild Award for Brokeback yesterday, and no one deserved it more. Nominations for the Academy Awards are a few days away (on the 31st). The Screen Actors Guild Awards are on tonight, and I’m crossing my fingers very tightly for Jake, who’s up for Best Supporting Actor.
Picture credit : Oscarwatch

The cast of Brokeback -that is : Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway, all appeared on Oprah last Friday. It’s a very funny and awkward interview for some, er, obvious reasons…
Picture credit : Oprah’s official website
You can download the entire video here (curtesy of the excellent fans at IHJ). JACK NASTY LOVES YOU! Heh.

Munich and Melbourne

Just saw Steven Spielberg’s latest movie, Munich, so I thought I dropped a word or two on it. I loved it, although it was quite long. There are some flaws here and there, but overall, it’s a shockingly realistic take on what happened back then, and is still happening now. That’s the saddest part of it all -the violence and horror is still not over. The movie tackles these issues through the personal story of Avner, brillantly portrayed by Eric Bana, and it is a sensitive, smart, personal reflection on this infernal situation. Above all, it calls out for peace -that’s what the movie is all about, and that’s why I liked it.
There were a few suprises; John Williams’ score was barely audible, and the film has a gritty look I’ve never seen in a Spielberg movie (then again, I haven’t seen that many, just ten or so). It also takes the viewer to all these different places in Europe -and that comes as a sort of surprise from Spielberg, but it doesn’t mean that his fluid, efficient directing has disappeared. It is a thousand miles from War of the Worlds, but it still works.
The editing destabilized me, the pace was sort of irregular -that’s also something you don’t find in other Spielberg movies, but it wasn’t that bad or messy.


I’ve also seen Taxi Driver last night. For the first time (yeah, I know, shame on me, but I have loads of classics to catch up). And I loved it very much. Fucking brillant. Robert DeNiro’s performance is jaw-dropping. I couldn’t write an entire and long review, because there’s so many things to say about it, but I absolutely loved it. Travis Bickle is such an unforgettable character, and so is DeNiro’s performance. And in the movie, New York reminded me of Paris. Sounds like such an unlikely thing to say, but it’s true.

We had a conversation this morning with my sister about The Constant Gardener, and we were both ranting about how much we loved it, and how it was one of the best movies last/this year (depending on when you saw it). I have to say, I think I underestimated it a lot. I wasn’t the only one though, I reckon it didn’t had the success it deserved here in France, so there’s only one thing I can add : go and see it if you can, because you won’t regret it. Seriously. It’s a movie for everyone who loves to think. It mixes all these genres, and does so brillantly. So, go, go !

Meanwhile, in Melbourne, Amelie made it to through the semifinals, so she’d better win the goddamn tournament. She’s playing against Kim Clijsters next, and I’m really dreading that match, because Kim has been playing so well lately (*sadly waves goodbye to Martina Hingis*). Justine Henin-Hardenne is playing against Maria Sharapova in the other semifinal, so that means one of them will not be in final. Heh.

The men’s semifinals will see Roger Federer taking down… um, I mean, playing against Nicolas Kiefer (who I honestly despise), and David Nalbandian vs. Marcos Baghdatis (in the most unexpected semifinal ever). Will be rooting for young Cyprus guy as I hate Nalbandian’s guts.

Oh, and Brokeback Mountain made it to the no.5 spot at the US box-office this weekend. That’s just the greatest news ever. Means tons of people are actually going to see it ! Hope the Academy Awards will boost the movie, but it’s already such a good thing that it was able to find its audience. I’m so really glad for the film, and the cast and crew. Can’t wait to see Heath, Michelle, Jake and Anne’s appearances on Oprah. I’m sure it’s the first time both Heath and Jake will be actually standing in the same room since the shooting of the movie (kidding, folks) -and I can feel the awkwardness from here, heh.

I’m eagerly anticipating Walk the Line right now. It is released on February, 15th. That’s three weeks from now (*cries*). Dunno why, but I know I will like it a lot. Might have something to do with Joaquin Phoenix being the main character, though. But I’m not biased or anything (noooo, really ?), I just want to see if it’s as good as Ray. Plus, can it really beat Brokeback for the Oscar race ? I don’t think so, but I still want to check it out.

And I got the Garden State DVD for my birthday *squee*. I love this movie, I really do. Also got this gorgeous book on Tim Burton (my fav director ever, obviously), and it has all these interesting details about his life and his movies. Nicolai also made me a gorgeous thingy (a piece of art, if you wanna know).
Anyway, as you may or may have not noticed, nothing too exciting is happening in my life. Meh. And yeah, before you ask, I’m having loads of fun putting all the pretty pictures trying to make this post interesting.

Australian Open 2006

Still not over Brokeback but life is movin’ on, especially in Melbourne…
It was a very tough weekend for my nerves, and it started like a nightmare. On Saturday, Andy Roddick, Thomas Johansson and Tommy Robredo all fell to players I really don’t like; respectively Marcos Baghdatis, Ivan Ljubicic and David Nalbandian. Actually, I kind of like young Baghdatis, he’s pretty talented, but I’m still upset to see Andy leaving the tournament so early on.
And I definitely loathe Ljubitch for defeating Thomas *pouts*.
There was also Maria Sharapova vs. Daniela Hantuchova that day, aka the match between the two best looking women in tennis ever. I kinda like Hantuchova best (have been rooting for her since the beginning of her career), so obviously, Sharapova won. But I like Maria okay, even though she’s no Kim Clijsters or Amelie Mauresmo.
Speaking of which, I really hope she wins this year. She really needs to win a Grand Slam, even if that means defeating Kim or Lindsay, I don’t care. Please, Amelie ?
Sunday fared much better, although Roger had loads of trouble getting rid of Tommy Haas -who looked stunningly good with his new clean-cut hairstyle (not that it matters or anything). Seb Grosjean defeated Paulo, but it’s clearly a bittersweet victory, because Paulo was doing so well. Of course, the only Frenchmen in the draws just had to meet in the fourth round. *le sigh*

But, hang on… There is another one, actually; Fabrice Santoro qualified for the quarterfinals, upsetting seeded player David Ferrer. What a pleasant surprise !
Anyway, I love the Australian Open. For some reason, journalists are always asking silly questions during the press conferences (more than usual, I mean). It’s always so funny to see how players respond to it. For exemple …
Q. You seem to have moved through the draw without a lot of attention from the tournament. Where do you feel you’re placed in terms of the whole tournament now?
Sebastien Grosjean : In quarters (smiling).
Bwhahahahahahaa ! What a great answer ! Heh.
Will stop ranting about tennis now.
I went to see Jarhead for the third time yesterday. Can I say how much I love Thomas Newman ? I just love his style, he’s such a talented composer. And of course, Jake and Peter Sarsgaard are beyond great in the movie, and I really loved Lucas Black’s character too, and God do I love this movie. Thank you, Mr. Mendes.
The Bafta nominations were announced (see the complete list of nominations here), and I was very pleased to see Ralph Fiennes and Jake getting recognized for their amazing work. Very pleased indeed, and hoping very much to see Brokeback sweeping the ceremony.
In other non-interesting news, I’m staying at my sister’s house for a couple of weeks because members of my family from the US have invaded home. Not dramatizing here, but I’m on holidays, and all that noise at 8 am is more than I can bear.
Oh, and GUH. New photoshoots featuring Jake. Guh. Guh… Guuuuuhhhh. He’s holding a cigarette in the first picture. Just a detail, but makes it a thousand times hotter for some weird reason. Re-guh.

Golden Globes and other stuff

Loads of stuff happening = longest post I’m ever going to do in my entire life. First of all, my Brokeback Mountain review. I meant to post it earlier, but did not really had the time to. I saw the movie on Monday.
Where to begin ? I feel like it’s a whole part of my life coming to an end. A bittersweet sensation very much similar to what happened when Return of the King and Revenge of the Sith were released.
Trying to review without any spoilers. Ang Lee’s movie is (as I predicted) a delicate and gorgeous masterpiece. It’s possibly one of the most emotionally engaging film I’ve ever seen, and such a heavy drama -watching it is an experience challenging your heart and soul, as you see the lovers’ affair span over the course of 20 long, painful years. The movie is set in Wyoming and begins in 1963, when Ennis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) are both hired to herd sheep, up on Brokeback Mountain. The scenery there is astonishingly gorgeous. It takes quite a while before Ennis and Jack get to know each other better -as in every relationship, beginnings are always awkward. You don’t see them fall in love with each other though -it is never clearly shown, nor explained. All you can feel from both the characters is an urgent desire, and a need to be with each other. When they part at the end of the summer, another part of the movie begins. Ennis marries his childhood sweetheart Alma (Michelle Williams), while Jack meets Laureen (Anne Hathaway). Both women are incredibly well-portrayed, even though their screentime is restricted. The scene where Jack and Ennis meet again -and all the scenes onwards, when they are together, are quite intense. They are kept apart from each other for so long that, when they reunite, sparkles inevitably fly all over the place. It’s not obvious, but it’s there, in their gestures and looks. Time is an awfully important factor in the movie -every shot is weighted with the passing of years, and each character grow more and more bitter as their delusions finally catch up with them. This is especially true for Jack. Never in my life, have I seen a character literally falling apart, from not getting what he wanted. That’s one of the most tragic element of the story, among many others. Ennis, on the other hand, is still quite the same person throughout the movie, and this is also tragic. The only person in the entire world he can open up to is Jack, but because he witnessed a particularly unpleasant event when he was a kid, and because Southern America was (and still is) a homophobic environement in which he grew up, he knows that their love can never be as freely expressed as it was that summer, back on the mountain. As you may have understood, the characters are very rich and their complex behavior is very well rendered by the four main actors. Ennis ans Jack are just so much more than “gay cowboys”, and Lureen and Alma are far beyond the average “suffering and ignorant housewife”. In any case, all the praises are justified here. Not only is this movie trating its subject in a realistic, objective and smart point of view but it is also a story anyone can identify to. Anyone who’s ever been in love at least once in their lives… I think the movie stirs and calls to something rooting very deep inside all of us, and that is why it is so touching and effective.I’m waiting for all your positive reactions to the movie (because they cannot not be).
Continue reading…

Not too many fascinatings things happening lately …

Not too many fascinatings things happening lately -my exams are finally ending this week, and then three weeks of well-deserved rest. Yes, we have our winter break way earlier than everyone else, which is kinda bad because no else except me will be on holidays, but hey, I won’t complain.

I just found this interesting thing I thought I’d share :

You are Jack Twist. Energetic, creative, and clever, you use your ideas and enthusiasm in life yet remain a slave to your passions.

HASH(0x8b59008)

What Brokeback Mountain Character Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

There’s only 5 questions in there, but I was still pretty happy to have gotten that result.
And I’ve just learned that Brokeback is released in New Zealand on the 23rd of February and in Germany on the… 9th of March ! Guess they really are unlucky, it totally sucks. I surely couldn’t wait that long. I mean, thank God Jarhead is released in 2 days, because somehow, it makes the wait for Brokeback a little bit more bearable.


Anyways, I felt compelled to write a top 10 of my favorite characters in literature and movies. I mean, I know I haven’t read all the French, grand books, haven’t seen all the cult, classic movies and everything. I have loads of catch-up to do, but the idea somehow popped up in my head, so here it is. First one is literary characters, the other one movie characters.
  1. Holden Caulfield - The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger

  2. Heathcliff – Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte

  3. Laura Wingfield – The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams

  4. Dorian Gray – The Portrait of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde

  5. Tom Marvolo Riddle – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling

  6. Violet Baudelaire – A Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket

  7. Ennis Del Mar – Brokeback Mountain, Annie Proulx

  8. Lyra Belacqua – His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman

  9. Elinor Dashwood – Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen

  10. Nick Carraway – The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald

  1. Luke Skywalker – the Star Wars saga, George Lucas
    Han Solo – the Star Wars saga, George Lucas

  2. Leonard Shelby – Memento, Christopher Nolan

  3. Donnie Darko – Donnie Darko, Richard Kelly

  4. Maximus – Gladiator, Ridley Scott

  5. Indiana Jones – the Indiana Jones trilogy, Steven Spielberg

  6. Tyler Durden – Fight Club, David Fincher

  7. Edward Scissorhands – Edward Scissorhands, Tim Burton

  8. Marge Gunderson – Fargo, Joel and Ethan Coen

  9. Amelie Poulain – Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amelie Poulain, Jean-Pierre Jeunet

  10. Vincent, Jules, Butch or Mia – Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino

You can tell I grew up in the 90′s, can’t you ? I’m still pretty young, so yeah that’s why there isn’t any great, classic old characters.
Anyways, a few explanations about my choices. First of all, I’m pretty sure all of you guys think I put Ennis up there because the movie and Heath Ledger and blah blah blah. While I do admit having read the novella because the movie was made, it doesn’t change a single thing to the fact that he’s one of the most amazing and complex character I’ve ever had the opportunity to read about. He’s this multi-layered, incredibly sad, rough character I’ve grown very fond of.
Then, Laura and Violet… Let’s put it that way; they’re very special to me in the sense that these are two girls I really identify myself with. Not that I’m anything like them at all (I wish!)… but they’re sort of my role models or whatever. Same for Elinor; out of the two Dashwoods sisters, I’m very much like Marianne, but I look up to Elinor and admire her, a lot.
Let’s see, what else? Heathcliff. Don’t even start asking me why he’s ranked so high. I don’t know why, I just love him. I totally fell for him while reading the book. I totally heart him.
Now, the movie characters. Yes, I know, I couldn’t choose between Luke and Han because I just totally couldn’t. I can see why most of you would go for Han -I mean, I would too, but then again, Luke is, y’know, a Jedi… Anyway, asking me to choose between both of them is like asking me to choose between my two sisters; there’s no human answer possible here.
The same goes for Pulp Fiction, I couldn’t bring myself to choosing between these awesome characters; plus their stories are just so intertwined with one another, I couldn’t picture one without the other. My point being that Pulp Fiction has the best cast of characters in the entire history of movies.
Another “surprising” entry, if I might say so, is Marge from Fargo. Yes, she only appears during the second half of the movie, but the thing is… I adore Marge because of her simplicity, and the genuineness of her personality. Su
ch a normal, kind-hearted character -and that’s very refreshing. Plus, her accent is adorkable.

And for the 2 people reading this, let me know which BBM character you are, because I’m curious about it. And I wanna find my Ennis. Even though I perfectly know that Jake is mine. My Ennis, I mean. And it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense anymore, so I’m going to stop here.

version 4

New year, new month, new layout :)
Hope you guys like it, I made the pic myself because no one is smart enough on the Web to design a Brokeback Mountain layout. Shame on y’all, Web designers.

Just a quick word to say that I’m currently under a lot of stress because my exams are happening right now, and I’m so not totally prepared for it, because the Christmas break kinda ruined the whole I’m-working-like-a-geek attitude.

Also wanted to say that I’ve finished Aviel Sivan, Nicolai’s gorgeous book. I’m not saying this because he’s my friend -although I do admit I only read it because of that. Anyway, my point is… It was a great book, telling a kinda cute story but in a very cynical way. Yes, the overall tone of the book is ambiguous, hence the surprise and thrill while reading it. And there’s this huuuuuge plot twist at the end of the book, I was utterly shocked ! Couldn’t believe it, I swear. I had to read the sentences several times. Heh. A very pleasant read, if you ask me :)

Jarhead is released in a week. 7 days. 7 fuckin’ days. I saw this poster on a bus station and I actually screamed out of surprise, in the middle of the street. Insane, I know !
And Brokeback Mountain is the week after Jarhead. There’s no words to express how fuckin’ unbelievable this is.
Oh, and my birthday’s coming up as well, on the seventeenth. Not too excited, though, ’cause the only thing I keep thinking about is Brokeback.