Please watch this while it's still in theaters!

"Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit" is another great animated movie that appeals to people of any age. Differentiating themselves from most modern animated films that rely on computer animation, "Wallace & Gromit" sticks to the painstaking stop-motion animation process, and the end result is a true work of art.

Like the Pixar movies (e.g. "The Incredibles", "Finding Nemo", etc.), "Wallace & Gromit" is marketed as a kid's movie, but chances are it will be the adults who watch the film who will get the most mileage from it. In a nutshell, think of "Wallace & Gromit" as having the spirit of fun of a Pixar movie mixed with British humor by Monty Python (or "Fierce Creatures" or "A Fish Called Wanda" if you don't know the Monty Python group).

So who are our intrepid heroes? Wallace is a genius inventor with a huge heart and a hankering for cheese, who makes clever (thought not necessarily practical) devices. Gromit is his loyal dog and best friend, who never says a word (but his expressions say it all), and enjoys reading the daily newspaper and knitting, and is actually the real brains of the duo.

In their latest adventure, Wallace & Gromit run a pest control company that is tasked to deal with a rabbit infestation that is plaguing a typical English town. The rabbits, while terribly cute & cuddly, have an appetite for fresh vegetables. Which is a huge problem for the townfolk, as they are about to celebrate a giant vegetable festival -- a 500-year old tradition that the townfolk cannot live without!

Yes, it's a silly premise. But that just adds to the fun of it. :)

"Walace & Gromit" was created by Aardman Animations, who over the years have released 3 "Wallace & Gromit" short films -- the first getting an Oscar nomination, the other two winning the Oscar. Aardman Animations also created critically-acclaimed "Chicken Run" that came out a few years ago. By its pedigree alone, you should watch this film! While relatively unknown in the Philippines and USA, the "Wallace & Gromit" series has gathered fans from around the world, due to its ageless humor, dynamic action scenes (you have to see them to believe it), and heartwarming characters.

I've loved these characters for many years, ever since Jj introduced me to them. There was something about Gromit that just appealed to me, despite him never uttering a word. I can't really place it, but I guess he appeals to me the same way Polgas of "Pugad Baboy" does -- loyal, slightly sarcastic, multi-talented, intelligent, comfortable with complex machinery... a true Renaissance Dog. Or maybe he's just cute as hell, I dunno. :)

But he's just one of many memorable characters in the "Wallace & Gromit" series that bring this world to life (as absurd as it may seem) -- and that just draws you in and makes you care for and root for these characters. Each "Wallace & Gromit" adventure would come out with heroes that were more plucky, or villains that were more dastardly (just look out for the Penguin in "The Wrong Trousers").

"Curse of the Were-Rabbit" is no different, and even raises the stakes. Even the secondary characters are given their due, and contribute to the humor and heart of the film.

So what are you waiting for? Go watch this! I'm pretty sure you'll like it better than "Deuce Bigalow 2". ;)

Links:
Walace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit movie website
Aardman Animations website

To those born in the 70's (or earlier), this is not the same show we watched when we were growing up. Gone are the laser blasts, chrome Cylons, and stock footage used for each and every episode.

Today's Battlestar Galactica is a remake done by guys who grew up watching the show and loving it, but putting a 21st Century flavor to it. While the original show was made to capitalize on the Star Wars phenomenon and thus made for kids, the show now is targeted for a more adult audience.

I found myself addicted to this show, which came out as a 2-part mini-series in December 2003. It was later picked up as a series, and the 1st season came out in 2004, and now the 2nd season is about to start in the States. Can't wait for it to start!

When I first heard about this show, I really wondered how it would turn out. To be honest, the original show really was for kids. Out of the original 22 or 24 episode run back in the late 70's, only around 6 were good, the rest were crap! But the new Battlestar Galactica had great production values, and a concept and story strong enough to attract Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell to the project!

The premise -- humanity did not originate from Earth, but from a civilization somewhere across the galaxy. That advanced human society invented the Cylons, a race of robots, which were created to serve humanity. However, the Cylon's intelligence evolved, and eventually rebelled against their creators. A bloody war followed, but an armistice ended the conflict. The Cylons set out for another world to call home.

As the show starts, it's 40 years later after the armistice. The Cylons have not been heard from the entire time, but suddenly return and destroy most of humanity. Only a few humans remain on a motley group of starships, being led and protected by the Battlestar Galactica, the only surviving warship.

The new series depicts the struggle of humanity to flee from pursuit, and just survive and hopefully get another chance to rebuild their civilization. Each episode is a study of how people react to impossible situations. And unlike the original show, with their clean-cut, infallible heroes, the heroes on Battlestar Galactica are flawed -- they make mistakes, they don't have perfect relationships with each other, most of them are lost and just trying to make it through the disaster they've just experienced.

The new Battlestar Galactica is greatly influenced by events like 911, where people have to pick up the pieces after a horrific tragedy. With the focus on human reactions and emotions, there are little touches that try to keep the series grounded in reality, despite being a sci-fi show. For example, there is minimum technobabble (those conversations about fantastic technologies that most people don't get or even care about); the armed forces don't use lasers, but projectile weapons, missles, and nuclear devices; and the military and civilian government argue and debate, just like in real life. Watching the space battles is like watching a live tv broadcast, or at least watching "Black Hawk Down" in space (so it can get lungkot, but exciting, from time to time).

Any sci-fi or action fan has to watch this show. But I think the show has strong enough merits to attract people who aren't really into this genre. So I hope those of you who have never seen it give it a chance! :)

I just found out that Cinemax is gonna start showing it every Sunday. Part 1 of the mini-series starts Saturday night (July 2) at 9pm, with Part 2 showing on Sunday (July 3), then the regular series every Sunday after that. Check out the schedule on their website.

Links:
www.scifi.com/battlestar -- official series website
www.cinemaxasia.com -- for schedules in Asia
www.gateworld.net/galactica -- fansite with a lot of info and news about the series

So I finally got around to watching the final 2 episodes of "Joan of Arcadia". Not too many people know that I'm a fan of this show. I discovered the show a couple of years ago when my brother borrowed some tapes from our video shop. I'll admit, I wasn't too sure how good this show would end up, because of its concept and its potential to become sappy. Luckily, I ended up loving this show!

Anyway, for those of you who have never watched this show, the premise is Joan is a typical teenager, dealing with daily issues of family, friends, school, and life in general. However, one day, God starts talking to her face-to-face. And God appears to her in many guises, like some guy on a bus, or the cleaning lady, or a little girl. He starts asking Joan to do certain tasks -- nothing earth-shattering, but relatively simple tasks. Things like get a part-time job, or pass her exam, or play chess. Joan does these tasks mostly out of curiosity at first, but soon she realizes that these simple tasks that God sets her out to do affects the people around her in a positive way.

One of the things I loved about this show is that it avoided the cheesy trappings of shows like "Highway to Heaven" or "Touched by an Angel" or "7th Heaven" (that last one thrown in for you young 'uns reading this) by being preachy. Joan of Arcadia dealt with questions about life, faith, religion, ethics, etc. in a very human setting. Joan, her family, and her friends were very relatable, had problems that were real, and they voiced out questions that a lot of us had (or still do), and channeled the angst we all feel. The characters of the show didn't love God outright -- in fact, some of them were quite angry at God. Joan herself was quite skeptic. The show was really about her spiritual journey as she discovered her faith. This was definitely a feel-good show.

Because of the show focusing on being human, I've always felt that it was a great launchpad for discussions. You can easily start a discussion about the morals ethics, situations, human nature or matters of faith presented in the show. The show isn't meant to give answers, but it can definitely make you think about things. I hope that teachers can use this in school. (Or maybe as possible talk topics for Luke 18/Antioch/SYA? )

Joan of Arcadia was a ratings and critical success in it's 1st season, and was one of the hit shows of CBS in its 2003-2004 season. But for some weird reason, the ratings dropped during the 2nd season (not because of any drop in quality, mind you), and CBS decided last May 2005 to not renew it for a 3rd season.

Why was it canceled? Despite Joan of Arcadia being targeted at young viewers (it had all the aesthetics of an "in" show -- a very good soundtrack for each episode, trendy clothes, teenage angst), quality writing and performances, and developing a loyal fan base, CBS decided that it needed shows with more edge and supernatural settings (they basically wanted to capitalize on the trend of new hit shows like "Lost" and "Medium").

Personally, I think Joan of Arcadia also had to fight the stigma of it being another preachy & sappy show, despite evidence to the contrary. (Again, blame "Highway to Heaven", "Touched by an Angel" and "7th Heaven".) I mean, I can understand it's hard having to check out a "show about God" when you can watch "The O.C." or "Desperate Housewives" that are full of tsismis.

Well, the decision has been made, but I do hope people will still be discovering Joan of Arcadia in the near future and giving it a chance. I've introduced this show to a bunch of people, and they've all given positive feedback about it. I'm glad that ETC was actually able to pick up the show, and I hope that people have been tuning in. And if you don't catch it on tv, see if they have it on dvd.

So here's to Joan of Arcadia! You were a nice little show. Would've been cool if you stuck around longer!

Ok, to end this lengthy post, I just wanna quote one of my favorite lines from the show:

"Do you know what innocence is, Joan? It's more than just the absence of guilt. It's having faith that there's goodness in the face of cruelty and pain. Someplace, you still feel that way. And that's me." -- God


Links:
www.cbs.com/primetime/joan_of_arcadia -- official site, but dunno how long this will be there
www.joanofarcadia.com -- fan site with a lot of info about the show