Egoyan Has Done It Again!

Whether you still remember "Exotica", Atom Egoyan's new movie "Chloe" is a treat. No formal review here, just a quick sketch of first impression. It's not as complex as "Exotica", nor is it on par with "The Sweet Hereafter", but overall much better than "Where the Truth Lies".

The performance is great, but I don't have to mention it, you know that when you see Julianne Moore's name on board. But Amanda Seyfried is the real surprise*, I am glad she auditioned this role before "Mamma Mia" was out.

If you are those nerds who like to read reviews before going to movies (or read them afterward), here is a link to Ebert's review on "Chloe". Also, check out Ebert's interview with Egoyan on this movie (especially the "essence of cinema" one).

P.S. I do agree with this S.F. Chronicle review that "Chloe" would be more satisfying if it ends earlier (or have a different ending).

P.P.S. Photography buff will notice the two photos hanging on the wall during the final climax (or anti-climax depending on how you look at it) are by Edward Burtynsky. Burtynsky is a photographer I greatly admire. The red river in the photo is actually dross from Nickel processing.

* Interestingly, Amanda Seyfried ("Chloe") and Mia Kirshner ("Exotica") both have incredibly big eyes. Big-eyed girl, bordering on girlhood and womanhood, seems to be an important symbol in Egoyan's film, just like Hitchcock's blonde.

Highway Lookout

Tidal Pool

Health Care Reform Manifesto?

"Doctors are not healers, they are drug dealers. We must stop that."

No, this is not from me, but something I overheard in the bookstore. One of the customers seemed to have Tourette syndrome and couldn't stop bubbling out words. Most of her mumbo-jumbos were boring, but I found this one quite amusing.

Fighting Doldrums With Lady Gaga

Hard to believe a dinosaur like me would listen to pop music, let alone downloading it, but I was impressed with the MTV (saw it on "Sissy's News" in Taiwan) and so bored and depressed lately so I decided to listen to Lady Gaga for a change (my friends may be shocked to hear this). To my surprise, my boring work day suddenly got a jolt. It was like the real me moved to a different planet, while the working me on earth was just a dummy, so no matter what happened at work it would not hurt or affect the real me at all. All day long I was in this calm, relaxed state, smiling and answering all questions patiently (usually I hated the interruptions, but today I just felt amused). I dare say my coworkers probably thought I was high!

Last Light

I was going through my old Point Lobos photos and noticed this one (dated 10/13/2008, during my "break"). A magic moment I almost forgot.

Point Lobos

Yet another B/W photo, notice how this B/W version looks more vibrant and colorful than the colored version below.

Point Lobos (Pinnacle)

Most of Point Lobos photos from the masters (Ansel Adams, Edward Western, etc) are black and white and you can see the reason even from this very bad photo (this is after I had salvaged the under-exposure using photoshop). The texture of the rocks always remind me traditional Chinese painting. No wonder the legendary Chinese painter Chang Dai-cheng once lived nearby.

Point Lobos

It was quite clouded when I arrived at Point Lobos, so my original plan was just to photograph some rock patterns. To my surprise, the sun eventually appeared and it turned out to be a very beautiful day. Last time when I tried my D3X at Point Lobos, it was a total failure. It's greatly improved today but I have yet to do justice to this beautiful place.

Untitled

Alien-Like Mussel Colony

Finally, A Sunny Day

Finally, a sunny day on the beach, but it's freezing cold.

A Panorama View

A panorama view of three-photo stitch

More Photos From Sunday's Excursion

Miti Got A Pain In the Ass

Last weekend I noticed Miti kept licking her butt and saw a half inch cut below her ass. The area looked pink and swollen. Since she kept licking it, I was worried her wound would get infected so I brought her to the Vet. Turned out she had a "anal gland problem". (See here for an explanation.) The vet drained her anal grands and gave her a shot of antibiotics. Now I am administering antibiotic drops and applying ointment to her wound twice daily. (The cat antibiotics is actually banana flavored.) Since the condition may happen again, from now on I will have to pay attention to her ass and may have to do a draining myself! Wow, that's certainly a cat's definition of a "pain in the ass".

P.S. It seems high fiber food will alleviate the situation, so if you don't want your cat to have the anal gland problem, plant your cat grass diligently. Auntie Chinchih is feeling guilty now.

Cloudscape

Junction of HWY 92 and 280

Blue

Junction of HWY 92 and 280

Still recovering from my cold. Probably because of it, I feel quite depressed. To cheer myself up, I decided to go out taking photos. The weather turned out to be terribly bad on the coast, no hope for any decent photos (I was not in the mood to be "creative"). On my way back, I noticed the light was lovely on HWY 92 (near 280), so I parked my car and took out my camera. I was actually standing on the road side and could hear cars rushing by (very noisy). However, when I looked at the viewfinder, the world suddenly became quiet and peaceful; I felt whole and confident. I forget who said every photo should be a revelation (is it Diane Arbus). I don't think my photos can ever achieve that, but the moment of taking photos, sometimes really feels like a religious experience.