Current update - 30/12/05

Another year another number... What's in a number anyway... I don't feel any different.


The past year has been eventful, for me at least. I finished my degree, though I don't feel any smarter. I got a new job, though I'm not sure if it's for the better yet. Got a part time job though I haven't seen the first cheque yet. My cousin got married, my brother got married, gained a new nephew, and I think I lost few kilos though I never intend to lose them.

Don't know what else to say so here's the normal monthly update...

Read: The Dumas Club by Arturo Perez-Reverte, The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
Reading: Nicholas Nickelby by Charles Dickens
CD: None
Favorite song: Vehicle by Bo Bice
Playing: anything online
Watching: The Drew Carey Show

*No. of times asked if I have a boyfriend: 7
*No. of times asked when I will get married: 21 (approx)
*No. of times asked when I will have kids: 2
Note: * Since I started this blog of course. I've been getting these questions lots of times before but you can't honestly believe I would count them, right? I just thought of this lately. It's interesting to know the average number of times a single girl at a marriageable age get that million dollar question. I hope other single bloggers would do the same. Maybe we can write a thesis on it! I also change "ppl" to "times" since one person can ask all three questions.

Quesion no. 2 has turn into 'approx' because I lost count amidst the busyness of my brother's wedding. But man... can you imagine? 21 times a year? That's an average of almost 2 times per month. I wonder if it will increase when the age increases? Hmm... need more research.

I do have one conclusion though. Whenever I interact with a baby around a group of friends, the "Kau bila lagi?" [When's you turn?] question popped up. So I try to get as far away from a baby most of the time, especially when it's a friend's newborn baby. There are lots more people fussing over it anyway, I'm sure the baby can't stand one more.

Happy birthday to you too...

Eliza Dushku (Tru Calling, Buffy and one of my favorite movies, Bring It On)
Tiger Woods (Tiger who?)
Kristin Kreuk (Lana Lang from Smallvile)
Tracey Ullman (comedy actress)

and also to those who could have celebrated their birthday today but just didn't live to see the day...
Rudyard Kipling (author of The Jungle Book)
Davy Jones (of The Monkees)

And then there were three Part 2 - The Loot

Attending a wedding also mean acquiring certain items, which may or may not have any use, disguised as tokens of appreciation. And having a close relation with the one who held the wedding mean you get to have moreof these things that may or may not have any use.

Behold...
















From top then left to right...
1. (The green one) For those who 'renjis' [bless] the couple during majlis berinai which was held right after the akad nikah.
2. (The yellow one) For those who was seated at the main table during the wedding reception which was held the day after the akad.
3. For those who 'renjis' during the wedding reception.
4. Acquired from the 'hantaran' [gifts] from the bride to the groom.
5. One of the 'hantaran'. There was a bouquet of this.
6. For family members of the groom who came to the wedding reception.
7. I don't remember how we got this one .

I never really cared about these stuff unless it's something different or something that I can actually use. My mother would normally keep them until she got sick of the space they took and ended up throwing them away.

However, this time around yours truly decided that she will keep 2 of them i.e. nos. 4 and 6 because they are potpourri and they look kinda nice. And I loooove no. 3 (on the far left) because the flowers were made off pinang, kapur and gambir, something that I've never seen before. Very traditional. In this modern times I always love a touch of tradition. Here's a close-up and some guides if you don't know what I'm talking about.
I don't know their names in English but they do have a role in weddings, which I don't really know either. But we usually put them in the Tepak Sirih. They can be chewed together with sirih leaves kind of like tobacco. In the olden days the representative of the groom will bring the tepak filled with sirih, kapur, gambir and pinang to the girl's house. Both families would then discuss the wedding over a few sirih leaves. People don't chew sirih nowadays so I think it's just symbolic in Malay weddings.

For those who were not so closely related to the families involved would of course get something too. Guests who came to the bride's wedding reception still get their loot though not as many as I've showcased here. We, the groom's family members, would still get these in addition to those that I've shown earlier .

For the ladies...
Yes! A bag. I certainly can use that. But what's this? There's something inside...


















Sweets (already opened because I ate one at the ceremony) and.... drum rolls please....

a big slab of DODOL!
I could definitely use that!



There's something for the guys too, though it was not as big as the bag...

And there's something inside these too...






More DODOL!

Hehehe....

And they were very nice too...

And then there were three

Yesterday was the day that my brother officially ended his bachelor days. It has been so long since my family organized a wedding. The last one was my eldest brother's about 13 years ago.

This is my first experience of being closely a part of a wedding from the groom's side. During my first bro's wedding I was at boarding school. Though I was home when it was my family's turn to hold the wedding reception.

Overall, not so bad. Not as bad as the girl's side I must say. I think the most nerve-wrecking part about the whole thing was that small two-minute ceremony called the akad. So much so that some people had to do it twice... if you're lucky... like it was in my brother's case. Some had to do it a few times. Though two times is the most that I've witnessed so far.

After one hour of waiting, the most important man in the ceremony,
Tok Kadi, finally arrived.

Attending a wedding can be a nice experience unless you're holding a camera and would like to capture some significant moments for memory. You have to fight through these people first.

Eyes of the lense is on you kid

For each professional photographer and his crew there must have been 5 amateur photographers, including me. But I was so pissed off with my cousin when I tried to get a shot of this one important moment. She was so busy trying to capture the scene on her camera phone that when I finally asked her to give me a chance, all I got was this...

Supposed to be a picture of my brother kissing his father-in-law's hand.
Turned out to be a picture of my brother kow-towing to his father-in-law.

My new Sony DSC-T5's first night out was a bit bumpy. I'm still don't know how to adjust the setting to suit the surrounding. There was a lot of trial and error, and shots with people's backs. My shutter speed is pretty slow so my subjects still get to move after I press the button. A lot of blurry shots.

So I tried to minimize getting official group shots for anyone. I was afraid it would turn out ugly in the end and pisses everyone in the process. A lot of it were stolen shots like the time the couple took a picture with both parents. I mean you have to let the professionals do their job right? Why the hell we pay them for? So my job as the amateur photographer was to take snapshots from another point of view.

A train of people climbing towards the bilik pengantin.

This afternoon was the wedding reception and next Sunday is my family's turn to bear the headache. In the meantime My Sony (and me) will need more practice for its next day out on the scene.

See. Even a self portrait is blurry.

Hopefully after this I will update my photoblog more often .

Note: If anyone happen to recognize anybody, please feel free to keep it to yourself. Thank you

First Anniversary

Today Kampung Gal in the City is one year old!



Wow... can't believe it's been one year already. I remember how it all started. I used the PC at the office to start a blog. Those were the days when I can still dawdle at work. Now, no chance in hell. I should be so lucky if I get to sit down for more than one hour without the constant interruptions from customers with stupid questions.

It all started when a friend advertised her blog to our group. And her name is Along of Along's Blog at http://alongsj.blogspot.com (enough mentioning Along?). I've known what a blog is all about at that time but I wasn't sure that I would have enough drive to update it regularly. But so far so good.

I used to be known as Silent Dragon because even though I'm a dragon who is supposed to have an agressive nature, I'm not. But then I changed it to Kampung Gal because it's easier to have the same name as the blog name. And I think someone called me Kampung Gal once instead of Silent Dragon and I thought it sounds much nicer.

I was a bit reluctant when choosing the name Kampung Gal in the City because it seems like such a cliche. I'm sure there are other Tom, Dick, Harry, Peter and Jane in the City out there. But I love it because it's one way to describe who I am. Even though I was born and raised in the city, I feel so kampung sometimes. For the record I don't watch the show.

Looking back on my first post, I thought damn I still have nothing to show. Still living with parents, with no savings and no boyfriend (still debatable). I'm still working at a bookstore, though it's bigger with better pay. Blog-wise still talking about the same old thing. Well, I guess in my case you can't change much in 12 months.

Aiya... suddenly I'm feeling depressed.

But one thing I like about blogging is that I get to be a part of this small yet wide community that connects people without putting much effort. Since I don't go out much, I still get to 'meet' and get to know people like Eyeris, Dina, The Visitor, Desparil, Yasmin Ahmad, Afdlin Shauki and many others. Without this blog I don't think I will ever get to meet these people let alone having them respond to my comments. Blog is such a wonderful thing .

I also tend to talk to myself less since I started this blog, which is a very good thing. Sometimes my thoughts became too much that I just had to say it out. Believe me, having a blog and typing it out is so much better (and saner) than talking to yourself.

Here's to another year of Kampung Gal in the City!

Harry Potter 4 x 3

Book 4 has always been my favourite. It has more actions with a twinge of emotion in it. It also, for the first time, gave a glimpse to the readers of how big the wizardry world really is. Kids all over the world suddenly felt that the magic was not limited to the boundaries of the western world anymore. Oh, if you still don't get it, I do love the Harry Potter series and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

Style-wise, Rowling does not offer anything new or great that's worth being studied years from now. It's strength lies in the story. The idea that a lone kid suddenly discovered that he has hidden talents is nothing new. But the story and characters that unfolds around him are pretty interesting. What I like most about the series is how one small detail mentioned in earlier book would suddenly become significant in later books. Spells and potions are not made up just to get the plot going. The same spell would appear time and time again under different circumstances. Readers are taken a tour through Harry Potter's eyes who, like the readers, are oblivious to the amazing world of magic. When he learn new things, we learn new things, when he met a new creature, he was as surprised and excited as we are which I think is why the books appeal to kids so much.

I find it interesting that when HP was adapted to the big screen, most of the time the characters, creatures and plots didn't suffer much changes in the transition. Which shows that the story works both on the page and on the screen.

I managed to watch the movie on the second day of opening at GSC Berjaya Times Square. I'm not so important as to get hold tickets for previews like some people do so second day is fast enough for me. Anyway, one thing I have to say about GSC-BTS is that it's a pretty cool place to watch a movie. The seats are comfortable and the stadium arrangement is great. The distance from the screen to the first row is quite far so even if you only get third row seats it would still be comfortable enough, not like TGV. I remarked to ST that we should come here more often for movies. I still hate the building but GSC over there is great.

The movie started pretty much like the book as do the rest of the movie actually. No major changes in the plot which is a great thing about Rowling books, the movie maker don't really have to change anything, it's all in there. But some things are cut too short especially the Quidditch World Cup. I was so looking forward to watch how professional quidditch is played. If the matches in school was such a thrill, can you imagine what the professionals can do? The beginning I felt was a bit rushed. You don't get to let the excitement of one thing settles in before the next one was thrusted in your face but the pace slows down once they get into the Triwizard Tournament part.

Half hour into the movie I noticed that the movie is pretty dark. No I'm not talking about the tone but the overall look. There was no color. I thought it was the cinema but I experienced it again when I watched it for the second time at TGV.

The second viewing was still nice. I still get to enjoy it. I can't complain about lack of excitement, no element of surprise or that sort of thing because the chance of experiencing that is evitable even in the first viewing having read the book and all. I think it was also because in this one there are more things to see like the Quiddith World Cup, the Yule Ball, dragons, other schools (and their method of transportations), other creatures like the merpeople, more fleshing out of smaller characters like Neville and of course the tournament itself. After awhile I forgot the non-existence of any professional Quidditch playing.

I can go without the third viewing but I promised my sister I'll take her kids so I did. Third viewing was not that bad either. But I have to admit it was a bit too much for one movie. I only get to see LOTR on the big screen twice plus one at the Starlight Cinema but that don't really count. Can't believe this one beat the record.

All in all, below is a summary of my thoughts on the movie.

What I like
1) More Weasley twins
2) Moaning Myrtle
3) The small yet important stuff are in there like the pensieve, Neville's efficiency with botany and the story of his parents.
4) The movie shows that wizards and witches still love to rock, kind of pulling the story closer to present time. Viewer/readers didn't get the feeling that Hogwarts is in another place, in another time.
5) More complexity on the Ron-Harry relationship, which is even more developed in the book.
6) My favorite line, "Fraternizing with the enemy" is in there.

What I don't like
1) Hermione is too emotional in this one
2) Cedric is not good-looking enough
3) Krum is not ugly enough
4) Too little Snape
5) No Mrs Weasley
6) Too much built-up to the Quidditch World Cup, the tents, the amazing stadium, but alas no World Cup
7) Didn't show how the first three champions completed the first task. Well it was not described in the book also but they can improvise right?
8) No house elves
9) How come they didn't show Krum's mini dragon?
10) No Bill and Charlie Weasley
11) No Pigwidgeon
12) No annoying Percy Weasley

Some things you should know if you didn't read the book
1) Cho Chang is a year older than Harry
2) Cho and Cedric are from Ravenclaw.
3) The Horntail that Harry battled was the dragon that Hagrid acquired in the first book.
4) In the book, Malfoy's house elf was the one who conjured the dark mark at the World Cup not Barty Crouch Jr.
5) With the lost of Scabbers, Ron got a new animal, a small owl named Pigwidgeon. Answers to the call of 'Pig'.
6) If you're wondering why the kids went out with Hagrid in the woods when they found what they found, it was probably because Hagrid wanted to show them the maze.
7) Fluer is a veela, beautiful and seductive, something like sirens on land. If the movie expanded on the world cup they might mention the word veela.
8) Madame Maxime and Hagrid didn't get so mushy-mushy in the book. She got close to him just to get some early scoop on the tasks.
9) The was a monetary reward when Harry won the tournament. He felt guilty of winning with Cedric's death and all and because he has more money that he could count, he gave them to the Weasley twins which they used to set up their own business of selling magical candy in school. Maybe movie no. 5 won't mention anything about their business but I feel it's important because it led up to a quite significant event at the end of book 5.

*Warning: May contain some spoilers*
The final task in the movie was a bit of a disappointment. For a competition that brings eternal glory to the winner, it was such a breeze. You just need to find your way through the maze while dodging some greenery. However, the maze in the book was much more complicated than that. There were creatures and illusions that really puts the champions' knowledge of spells and incantations to the test. You can truly get the idea that no regular witch or wizard can go through it and understand how students could've die in previous tournaments.

The ending, with the happy farewells betweeen the three schools and the threesome's light-hearted pact to write to each other was still a bit too cheerful for me. The most evil wizard was just resurrected and Hermione was more concerned about getting letters from her friends? I don't think so.
*End warning*

I can't wait for the next movie. I want to see the Ministry of Magic and more characters with the introduction of The Order of Phoenix. You'll get to meet some aurors, some sort of wizard police. Finally, some real action from real wizards and not just some small magic from amateur students anymore.

Well, I guess Harry said it better himself, "I love magic."

Current update - 30/11/05

Why do I do this?

Read: Imajica, Abarat & Abarat 2 by Clive Barker
Reading: Nicholas Nickelby by Charles Dickens, The Dumas Club by Arturo Perez-Reverte
CD: None
Favorite song: Dare by Gorillaz
Playing: Luxor (MSN)
Watching: Desperate Housewives, Amazing Race: Family Edition, The Drew Carey Show, Monk

*No. of times asked if I have a boyfriend: 6
*No. of times asked when I will get married: 19
*No. of times asked when I will have kids: 2
Note: * Since I started this blog of course. I've been getting these questions lots of times before but you can't honestly believe I would count them, right? I just thought of this lately. It's interesting to know the average number of times a single girl at a marriageable age get that million dollar question. I hope other single bloggers would do the same. Maybe we can write a thesis on it! I also change "ppl" to "times" since one person can ask all three questions.

Other news:
1) Joined NaNoWriMo with no success
2) Started my part-time work as a tv show translator
3) Bought a digicam (more on this in later post)

Dah pancit dah

If eyeris stated this as the reason for him not finishing his Nano, my reason would be this...


I had to place an order for the bookstore to bring this in, I don't know why. It is such a precious book, nice story filled with illustrations done by the man himself. Great artworks in my opinion.

I've waited for one year for the book to come into paperback and when I finally got my hands on it I was in the midst of trying to write my own 'precious' book. After 2 weeks of trying, I couldn't resist the temptation. Why bend your back creating your own crap when you can read other people's gems right? I just had to pick it up and start reading it.

However, it was postponed because I realized that, apart from the fact that the main character came from Chickentown and ended up in Abarat, I couldn't remember anything else from the first book. So I read the first book again before jumping into this one. So there goes my Nano.

I'm still blown away by Clive Barker's great artistry. I just cannot comprehend how these could come out from one person's head.




I wanted to scan my favourite illustration out of the two books but I can't decide which one I like the most, I love them all. So I gave you the most beautiful and the most gruesome and something in between, which describe the range of subjects in his art.

I can't explain why I like his paintings. But then it's not like you can always explain why you like some things and not others. They just struck a chord in me, that's all I can say. I just want to look at it again and again. He himself may have sold his soul to the devil, I don't know but I'm sure enjoying his sacrifices.

So imagine my delight when I found out he recently put out a book showcasing more than 400 of his drawings and oil paintings.
I've placed an order for it last week. The price is a bit steep but like they say, it's a must-have for all fans and that's certainly what I am. Can't wait for it's arrival. Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War is the second book out of a quartet. I can't wait for those too.

Now, if only he would think of making a graphic novel with his own drawings. Those that are already in the market are done by other artists and they just don't quite cut it for me. They include his other novel for children, The Thief of Always, the Hellraiser series featuring short stories inspired by The Hellbound Heart, and Tapping the Vein, a visualization of some of the stories featured in his Books of Blood. I might consider getting this one because some of the stories are so unbelievable I have to see it to accept it. Especially for In the Hill, the Cities. You just have to read the story to understand me on this one.

Anyway, I just want to make it official that I've given up on trying to finish my Nano. No regrets. I finished 3 good books this month and in the middle of another great one, The Dumas Club.

Will I ever do it again? Sure why not. Recently I opened my Nano again, albeit reluctantly (I was just too ashamed to face my own substandard work ). The experience was not that bad. In fact I think I will work on it again whenever the mood comes, just for my own personal pleasure.

The flesh is not willing

Raya this time was uneventful like always. The only difference was instead of having nasi himpit and kuah kacang for breakfast, lunch and dinner, I didn't have any. I don't know why. Maybe I knew that this year's kuah kacang was tasteless. It turned out that the kacang tumbuk my mum bought to make things easier was spoiled. So there goes a pot of kuah kacang down the drain. Thankfully my sister brought some and the future in-laws gave us some as well. So I did get to eat nasi himpit and kuah kacang, just that one time. I prefer ketupat actually. But I compensate my breakfast lunch and dinner with lemang because this year my mum make rendang tok... very nice .

This year I also seem to have a hightened appetite for kuih raya. I didn't get to make any this year. I always make at least on type of kuih raya every year, except this one. I don't know why. Could be the new job or maybe it's because I'm blogging this year .

Kids coming over are a bit lesser. I don't know if it was because they've learn the value of being decorous or I wasn't around when they came. I went to work one fine Saturday morning, the third day of raya thank you very much . I don't know if it's just me, because I'm such an anti-social, but I find it annoying when kids from God-knows-where just knock on your door. I'm sure that they don't know who you are anyway and just came over for the money. I've even had some who came in with shabby clothes, sweating like a pig. I was wondering if they gathered for their normal playmeet and when they get tired they just thought,
"Wei, jom gi raya. Boleh makan lepas tu dapat duit lagi."
[Let's go visiting. Can eat and even get money after that]

So far I've only been to one house for raya, no open houses yet. But I'm sure the invitations will come any day now but then I probably would not be able to come because of the shift work. On the other hand, working here, I get to taste so many kuih raya ... even kuih Deepavali also got.

Other news...
To date I'm down to 11,446 word for my Nano... so far to go! And my spirit has suddenly dwindled. I felt like there's so many other stuff to do like finish the books that I started a long time ago, go out with friends with feeling guilty, watch more tv or take more naps. I kind of feel that no matter how hard I try, even if I write everyday, I won't be able to reach the target. But I also think that what if I got so close like getting to 45,000 words on the 29th? I know that I will bang my head for skipping a day of writing. If only they can extend the dateline ...

It's so hard to change your habit. All those years of doing academic writing has taught me to keep the sentences short and simple. That certainly will not work for Nano. My sentences don't make sense, my paragraphs are full of crap and discrepancies appear everywhere. Like would you talk a walk in the middle of the afternon summertime in New York?

Writing this post makes me realize.. I miss blogging.

Happy Holidays!

The house is relatively clean, the rendang and nasi himpit has been cooked, the cookies are laid out on the table. Clothes are ironed, the takbir has been heard, money packed into small green packets and my nano is shelved for the time being.

I just want to wish everyone who ever visited me at this little corner of cyberspace a Selamat Hari Raya or Eid Ul-Fitr. If I have ever said anything that might offend anybody, I sincerely apologize. A girl do need to vent out sometimes.

Jobot says Selamat Hari Raya!

A ghostly tribute

It's Halloween, my favorite day. If I was in US I'll be glued in front of the tv switching through channels, devouring whatever horror prgrams they're showing. Some of the channels would even have a Halloween marathon for 24 hours. Ahh.... a horror fan heaven...

Anyway, since this is the first Halloween that I have a blog, I would like to pay tribute to my favourite horror movies...

Night of the Living Dead (1968)
I saw this movie as part of a film course I took in US. I believe this is the first movie with the central plot of a group of people trapped with monsters or zombies or fog or birds or whatever it is that's threatening them gathered outside. They need to survive at least until the sun comes up. It's not enough that they have to face dangers outside their confinement, there's always a struggle within those protective walls. A very nice black and white horror film that started a whole new genre.


The Sixth Sense
I remember watching this movie alone because I was so bored and I haven't been to the movies for the longest time. The first half of the movie I was pretty bored and my mind even wandered off a little. But the story finally pulled me back in. The part that really got to me was when Cole peeked under the bed. Well, it was pretty obvious that he's going to see something there, but the girl looked creepy and sad. And that mixed display is something I cannot forget. I also love the part when Cole got locked inside the small hole by the stairs at the party. It wasn't as much as what happened to Cole inside that was scary but the fact that the mother outside couldn't do anything to protect him. Isn't that one of our worst fears, knowing that a loved one is suffering and there's nothing we can do about it.

Hellraiser
I love this one for its gore factor. It's a mystery how a man that looks like this

can create gruesome creatures like these...

Pinhead and Butterball

The Others
I liked this one because I didn't expect it will end like that. I liked it even more that they decided to stay and do whatever it is they were meant to do even though they were shocked with the nature of their existence.

Shadow of the Vampire
The story behind the filming of Nosferatu, the oldest vampire movie ever. Max Schreck the man who played Nosferatu was believed to be a real vampire and Willem Defoe played him perfectly. John Malkovich was also perfect as the eccentric director, Frank Murnau. My favorite part is when Max hang out with some of the crew one night and explained the sad existence of Dracula.

Dracula hasn't had servants in 400 years and then a man comes to his ancestral home, and he must convince him that he... that he is like the man. He has to feed him, when he himself hasn't eaten food in centuries. Can he even remember how to buy bread? How to select cheese and wine? And then he remembers the rest of it. How to prepare a meal, how to make a bed. He remembers his first glory, his armies, his retainers, and what he is reduced to. The loneliest part of the book comes... when the man accidentally sees Dracula setting his table.

And then he grabbed a bat out of the air and sucked its blood dry. Nice...

Amityville Horror
The ultimate haunted house movie. A classic.

Nightmare on Elm Street
Who wouldn't love good ole Freddy Kruger. Heck, even my mother knows who Freddy Kruger is. Being in a nightmare that never ends is pretty horrific to experience.

Poltergeist
A girl inside a tv, a sweet talking psychic, using the strong bond of family love to defeat evil, young actors die in untimely deaths. What more can I say.

Bram Stoker's Dracula
I like this movie more on the art rather than its horror factor. I love the book and I love movies that uses bright colors, and this one is a feast for the eyes. It has some great shots like the way Dracula's red amour contrasted very strongly with his wife's green dress in the flashback scene. In addition to its beautiful and lavish costumes, this movie is quite stunning indeed. I must admit that Keanu Reeves was particularly very bad that even I couldn't back him up this time. But fortunately Gary Oldman was there to level it out.


Ju-On
I've watched a lot of horror movies but nothing compared to this. I might be terrified by Freddy, forrified by Hellraiser and stupefied by The Sixth Sense but nothing compared to this. One simple reason, I couldn't sleep after watching this movie. I kept hearing the sound and seeing her face. I like to sleep under the covers and this movie covered that area as well. I considered chucking the blanket. But I'd rather have the blanket than leave my feet uncovered, so I kept the blanket and made sure that I don't peak under it.

It's 1:06 now and I don't even dare look for some stills for this movie.

So that's it. That's my list of movies that thrilled, chilled and scared the desire to sleep out of me, for a while. I'm not afraid to go to sleep now so goodbye and goodnight. I wish everyone a Happy Deepavali.

A pleasant doom

Another game to movie adaptation. Hollywood has proven time and time again that they really are running out of original ideas.

This movie is not one of those highly anticipated movie of the year like Harry Potter 4, King Kong and Sin City was. So I didn't know that this movie is coming out until they started to run the promos on tv. I saw this weird scene where you can only see the front of the gun and monsters getting blasted one by one in front of you and I thought, that looks very familiar....

Oh yeah... I've done that before. I've had my share behind the gun and shooting a significant amount of monsters back in the day. I played Doom before although for a very short time. I was in US and just got my very first computer. Of course I was very gung-ho to try all those cool games I was only able to watch other people play. One of the perks of being in the US is that they sometime sell old game titles really cheap and that's how I got my hands on Doom.

I guess it's true what they say, there's nothing more satisfying than blasting the heads off of some stupid, ugly monsters without the risk of hurting yourself. However, I did kind of hurt myself playing Doom. The interface was a bit confusing and moving around the maze while keeping your eye out for monsters and crazed scientists gave me a headache. This was my first first-person shooter type game. After a few rounds I called it quits and decided that this type of game is not for me (I'm more of a role-playing, strategist, Gabriel Knight, Civilization, Zeus type of gamer).

I was excited that someone wanted to adapt the game to the screen. Finally, something familiar for a change . And I was excited that they brought in the first-person shooter view into the movie. I was even more excited to learn that The Rock is going to be in it .

But the excitement didn't end there when I got another pleasant surprise a few minutes into the show. This guy was in the movie too.

Hehehe... Karl Urban... aka Eomer aka Ceaser from Xena the Warrior Princess
He was like icing on the cake .

What was I talking about? Oh, the movie... yes... ehemhem... focus Kampung Gal...

The plot was as unoriginal as the basis of the movie. I don't remember the story of Doom the game but the movie is nothing new compared to other sci-fi action movie. A group of soldiers were sent to some far-way place to answer a distress call. The whole team seems to carry personal baggages heavier than their guns and survival kit. We got a psycho, a nervous wreck, the guilt ridden and a horny toad to name a few. For an elite team they don't look pretty elite to me. I wouldn't trust these guys to exterminate the rodents in my house. I'm afraid they'll end up blowing the whole house and the tenants along with it. But don't worry, they don't last very long. The only different thing about this particular movie was that a black dude was not the first to die.

However, they saved the best for last. It was what we were all waiting for... the first-person shooter view that they've been promoting left and right for.
I have to admit, it was pretty cool. I even remembered shooting this little guy,

Pinky Demon

But it was too long for my comfort, I started to get dizzy and I recalled why I stopped playing the game in the first place. I think it would be better if they didn't focus all the first-view shots at this one sequence. They could have used it a few times throughout the movie with different characters and different weapons, then the audience would really get the feel of the game.

To conclude, let me just add one more good thing about this movie, this makes one hell of a cool group photo

Shoulder your weapon soldier!