My report: now this was a realistic movie. I’ll just spoil the end and say that everyone dies at the end. None of that heroic crap on this one. The whole movie was in black and white and I just hope there isn’t a game out there like the one they showed on this movie.

Rating:

About it: An aimless 20-year-old with a penchant for following the rules receives a mysterious set of instructions that lead him down a path from which he may never return in director Géla Babluani’s tense tale of death and chance. Sébastien has come into possession of a train ticket and a mysterious set of instructions. Though he is unsure of exactly what fate awaits him when he arrives at his destination, one thing is certain: these items were most certainly not meant for him. Bored by his uneventful existence and hungering for something new, Sébastien boards the outbound train and takes his first bold steps into an unknown future. But the world can be a cruel and unforgiving place filled with unfeeling men to whom human life means little more than a lost wager, and if Sébastien is to make it through his harrowing journey alive he must keep his wits about him and pray that luck is on his side. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

My report: what can I say, another good Asian fighting film. I like the martial arts and the women in these films. Always elegant and graceful. I consider myself so ignorant of the Asian culture that it is something I admire very much. Many things are different about that other Orient, and I like paying attention to the details in the movies. Things like the clothes the people are wearing, the way they look and salute each other, the music, etc.

Rating:

About it: A Wuxia adventure out of South Korea, The Legend of the Shadowless Sword is a handsome martial arts epic by Kim Yung-jun (Flying Warriors). The film’s simple story allows for exceptionally creative action sequences about every three to four minutes, while simultaneously building a noble tale full of faith, love, and sacrifice. A beautiful female warrior named Yeonsoha (Yoon So-yi) goes in search of the last, living prince of the Balhae dynasty and its kingdom, overrun years before by the Geordan empire. The prince, Jeong Hyeon (Seo Jin Lee), has been in hiding 14 years as a black market trader, concerned primarily for his own safety and deeply cynical about any thought of going back to retrieve his family’s throne. Yeonsoha, however, proves persuasive, especially in light of the many attempts on Jeong’s life by a gang of assassins. The shady killers are led by a vengeance-seeking Kun (Hyeong Jun-Shin) and his assistant, (Ki-Yong Lee), another sword-wielding babe who gets into plenty of wild skirmishes with Yeonsoha.

The story essentially follows Jeong and Yeonsoha’s efforts to get back to a waiting army of Balhae exiles awaiting a king’s leadership. As the hours and days pass, Jeong gets in touch with the man he once was, a fearless warrior whose exploits on the battlefield are well-known to Yeonsoha, whose connection to the prince seems mysteriously personal. The film’s numerous fight scenes are never redundant, employing all manner of props and ideas for exciting fights. But it’s the performances that really hold everything together, the deep if understated emotions and the excitement of watching two mismatched lead characters slowly realize how important they are to one another. –Tom Keogh

It is amazing to me how people can kneel down and pray to someone who was as human as they are. Maybe it is because I was never of the Catholic faith, but I think should start thinking more what they are doing instead of worshiping statues and figurines and looking for the image of anything they pray to on trees and toasts.

One of the images here shows the Virgin Mary. Most of the pictures of her out there are of a white, blue-eyed woman who’s many times blond also. It is no secret that Catholicism was forced on to the Indians when the Spanish conquerors settled in what is known today as Latin America. They were made to abandon their religion and praise the images of white people like Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary. Hundreds of years later the descendants of the Indians, who are mostly a mix of Spaniards and Indians, have completely abandoned the customs of the Indians and continue to look up to the white man. They are not being told to anymore, it’s simply what they are used to.

Last week I asked a Chilean friend of mine what he considered himself to be, he said he’s white… to me he’s clearly mixed with Indian, in fact, looks more Indian than anything else, but recognizing his heritage would be an insult to him, and so it is to many mestizos in Latin America. Ask around if you ever have a chance, they will probably say they are descendants of Spanish people and proudly say they are Roman Catholics.

Same shit has happened in history with the blacks, but that’s another story.

This is part of the project I’m working on right now for my Marketing class. It’s on ethics:

Company X has been barred from entering the market in a large Asian country by collusive efforts of the local bicycle manufacturers. The company could expect to net $5 million per year from sales if it could penetrate the market. Last week a businessman from the country contacted the management of Company X and stated that he could smooth the way for the company to sell in his country for a price of $500,000. If you were responsible, what are the chances that you would pay the price?

Just by reading this summary it seems Company X has more to gain than to lose from paying the businessman and selling in the foreign country. However, if this was a real life situation, I would need more information before I could make a decision:

1- What does the $5 million represent to the overall profit of the company worldwide? It could be that the company is neting over $100 million a year. If that’s the case then risking being on the bad side of the foreign country is not worth it. Bigger investment opportunities in the future with the country could be lost.

2- Who is this businessman? Is he reliable? What kind of contacts does he have? What happens if this man decides to double-cross the company? Could the company end up paying him more money? And what does “smooth the way” really mean? Will the company be able to enter the market or just be a step closer? I definitely need to know more about this person.

3- How much would Company X have to invest to enter the market? Are we looking to import or set a division in the country? I need to know what the company will be left with after all expenses are paid.

To me this is a numbers decision and not an ethical one. Be ethical to whom? If Company X is entering the market then it means local customers can expect to get same price as before or better. The government will continue to charge their taxes so they don’t have anything to worry about. If anyone is being unethical it would be the local businesses for not allowing a free market to prosper and the local people to get better prices at a greater quality. Company X would be creating new job opportunities, we are the good guys. As for the businessman, if he checks out to be trustworthy, then it’s 100k now and the rest when the job is done. Money.

Antonio Bullen

Dave Smith is developing an advertisement for a new housing development his firm is about to start. The development is located in a low area which has flooded in the past. The company has recently done some work to reduce the danger of flooding in the future. In the preliminary advertisement, Smith has included a statement indicating that the firm has solved the flooding problem. The fact is that if a flood occurs, the homes are still likely to be flooded with up to five feet of water. If you were Smith, what are the chances that you would include the statement in the advertisement?

Stop! What is Smith thinking? He has got to think about the long term image of the company. My number one rule is “everything is possible,” and in this case what is possible is not good at all. Sooner or later  the development is going to flood. What does he think is going to happen next? Let’s assume for a second the homes never gets flooded, he still has to live with the possibility that it could and the company could be in big trouble then. Unless he 100% solves the flooding problem, he shouldn’t say the problem is solved. Better yet, he shouldn’t say the problem is solved, period! Well… not unless people already know of the problem. Why tell people they would be buying houses in an area that could have been flooded? Smith is suicidal, he needs medical attention, STAT!

The chances that I would include the statement on my advertisement are zero. The chances that I would stop investing in homes on that property are very good, at least until the flooding problem is completely solved. This should have been taken into consideration before buying the land. This is not so much an ethical problem, but one of stupidity. What bank lent money to Smith? This is exactly why we are on a recession.

Antonio Bullen

Joan Brown is vice president of marketing for Tangy Spices, a large spice manufacturer. Brown recently joined in a private business venture with Tangy’s director of purchasing to import black pepper from India. Brown’s private venture is about to sign a five-year contract with Tangy to supply its black pepper needs, but the contract is set at a price three cents per pound above contracts available from other spice importers that provide comparable service and quality. If you were Brown, what are the chances that you would sign the contract?

First of all, there wasn’t a non-compete clause set by Tangy Spices? That was a big mistake. I was a little confused as to the roles Brown and Tangy are playing. If Brown is going to be importing and then supplying the black pepper to Tangy, then he’s got nothing to worry about. On the other hand, if Tangy is the one supplying to Brown, then he should never sign that contract. It doesn’t matter that he works for the company. Whomever is on the receiving end of the deal is going to lose and should not sign. The price is higher yet the quality and service are lower than the competition? That’s a no-brainer.

Ethics… where does it play on this one…? Well, buying low and selling high is not unethical, it’s business. Given that this is B2B, ethics are even less important. Businessmen should know better. Eventually somebody has to go out of business even if it is by getting duped. The party supplying the black pepper has everything to win, but it could also damage the relationship on the long term. Luckily they will have five years to come up with a solution.

Antonio Bullen
John Garcia is working in product development for an auto parts contractor. Garcia’s firm received a large contract last summer to manufacture transaxles for use in a new line of front wheel drive cars. The contract is very important to Garcia’s firm because prior to obtaining it, half of the firm’s employees, including Garcia, had been scheduled for an indefinite lay off. Final testing of the assemblies ended last Friday and the first shipments are scheduled for three weeks from today. As Garcia was examining the test reports, he discovered that the transaxle tended to fail when loaded at more than 120% of rated capacity and subjected to strong torsion forces. Such a condiditon could occur with a heavily loaded car braking hard for a curve down a mountain road. While the driver would not lose control of the car, the resulting damage to the car would cost several thousand dollars to repair. The manufacturer’s specifications call for the transaxle to carry 130% of its rated capacity without failing. Garcia showed the results to his supervisor and the company president both of whom indicated that they were aware of the report. If they did not deliver the assemblies on time, they would lose the contract. If you were Garcia, what are the chances that you would notify the auto manufacturer of the defect?

What’s that smell? Smells like something burning… Oh I know! That’s the rubber burning after my Bridgestone tires exploded! Sounds familiar? This is a simple case: Garcia’s company shook hands on 130% not 120%, they need to live up to their word if they plan to stay in business over the long term.

What the company needs to be doing is figuring out how much time it will take them to fix the problem and deliver the parts as contracted. Can’t deliver on time? Fine, setup a call with the auto manufacturer and let them know before the due date comes around, but not before having at least one solution for the problem on hand. After all, Garcia’s company has some leverage on this situation: they could argue that it would take them less time to fix the problem than it would take another company to start from scratch. They can even use this opportunity to build a better relationship with the auto manufacturer by reducing the price, of course, offer only if it came down to it.

Since the question was about Garcia, I would say he doesn’t need to notify the auto manufacturer. That is not his job. Ultimately it is not his responsibility, but that of his supervisor and the president of the company. What Garcia needs to do is make sure his ass is covered and find a new job. With contract or not, the company is already in bad shape. This Titanic is sinking, grab a life vest while you can and jump! Sooner or later this thing is going to “explode”, and Garcia needs to make sure he has prove he notified his superiors.

Antonio Bullen

My report: It was a different story. It wasn’t about the concentration camps, but the story of a rich Jewish girl who ends up becoming a spy. It was an interesting story. I don’t really know what else to say about it. It wasn’t predictable, but it also didn’t catch my total attention. Maybe because it was in another language…

Rating:

About it: Filmmaker Paul Verhoeven returned to the Netherlands after more than twenty years of success in Hollywood to direct this epic-scale war drama based on a true story. Rachel Steinn (Carice van Houten) is a beautiful Jewish woman living in German-occupied Holland during late 1944. Her family members - who have been falsely promised safe passage to Belgium (their names recorded in the ‘black book’ of the title) are instead robbed and slaughtered by the Germans on a premeditated basis; Rachel herself manages to escape by diving into the water and swimming away. She narrowly avoids capture, then joins the local resistance movement. With her hair dyed blonde, Rachel can easily pass for Aryan, and when the leader of the Dutch resistance movement learns his son has been captured by Axis forces, Rachel is asked to use her feminine charms to persuade a German commander to arrange for the boy’s release. Rachel soon finds herself caught up in a dangerous double life as she becomes a sexual plaything for the Nazis while attempting to bring down their evil empire as a spy. Zwartboek was written by Verhoeven and Gerard Soeteman, who collaborated on the 1977 international success Soldier of Orange. Zwartboek received its world premier at the 2006 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

My report: Diddy can’t act that good, but I can tell he tried hard and I’m sure he’ll get better at it. It made me wonder how I would approach an acting career if I was already famous in another industry. Probably take very small roles so I can get used to it and grow from there… I wish the movie would have been more about succeeding in a business and becoming a doctor rather than just getting a house. I would have extended the story to include those successes and change the buying of the house to just a big defeat. Then the movie would have been about been knocked down and getting up again, and not becoming a raisin in the sun.

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About it: Sean Combs, Phylicia Rashad, Audra McDonald, Sanaa Lathan, and John Stamos all return to reprise the roles they originally played on Broadway in this made for television take on Lorraine Hansbury’s timeless play about a 1950s-era Chicago family longing for a better life. Walter Lee has died, and now his widow Lena Younger (Rashad) is about to receive a $10,000 check from her late-husband’s insurance company. Everyone in the family dreams about the ways their lives will be changed with the arrival of the money, family matriarch Lena - who longs to retire from her job as a domestic servant for a wealthy white family - in particular. Having lived in a one room tenement apartment ever since she and her late husband originally married, Lena is eager to purchase a house of her own and provide her family with a real home. Lena’s son Walter Lee, Jr. (Combs), currently employed as a chauffer, and has recently become taken with the idea of purchasing a liquor store as a means of solving his family’s financial woes. Like her mother-in-law, Walter’s wife Ruth (McDonald) is also a domestic servant for a white family, and dreams of the day she can walk away from her job. While Walter’s sister Beneatha (Lathan) strives to become a medical professional, tuition is expensive and she is currently being pursued by two men - wealthy but superficial George Murchison (Sean Patrick Thomas) and intellectual classmate Joseph Asagai (David Oyelowo). Much to everyone’s surprise, Lena uses the lion’s share of the money to purchase a home in the all-white residential neighborhood of Cllaybourne, splitting the remainder between Walter (for his entrepreneurial endeavor) and Beneatha (for tuition). Around the same time Walter loses his share of the inheritance to a smooth talking con man who claimed he could help finance the liquor store, the Claybourne “home improvement” association makes the discovery that the Youngers are black and sends emissary Mr. Lindner (John Stamos) to try prevent their neighborhood from becoming integrated by buying the house back. Now faced with the prospect of losing it all, Walter considers making a deal with Mr. Lindner in order to recover his losses. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The past, present and future of human existence are just as dark as they were thousands of years ago before we learned about science, evolution and came to think of ourselves as the supreme beings on Earth. We all are born, we live and we die. That’s about as sure as we know things are. Science says we came from monkeys and before that from a big bang… it’s a theory…. Some religions say we came from a guy named Adam and his female partner Eve, who were both part of God’s seven day creation of this world… that’s another theory…

Truth is, we don’t know. Now that we consider ourselves supreme beings on the face of the Earth we want to think we’ve got it all figure it. Hell, we are even sure of the spiritual things like we’ve got souls and, in effect, we do go somewhere after death because… well we will live forever damn it! We are the human species and there is nothing better and more capable than us in this world. Now, I know of ego-centrism and ethnocentrism, but what do we call the centric views of a whole species?

I know I’ve come out sounding like a know-it-all sometimes, but life experiences have humbled me and made me recognize that even if I was to become the smartest person in the world it wouldn’t do any good without the help of others. And so I’ve also came to recognize that when I don’t know something it is better to say “I don’t know” than to pretend I do. Prove me wrong and I look like a fool. Say “I don’t know” and I’ll learn something new. Isn’t that better? I mean, do we really have to go around pretending like we know what comes after death as if we went there and came back? Can anyone in this world guarantee that when the physical dies I will still remain in the form of a spirit? A soul? Can anyone guarantee that when I die I just won’t stop existing?

Stop the bullshit! People feeding each other crap they believe by pure faith, but never actually experienced. Thanks for sharing your message, I’ve heard it, now let me make my own decisions. Talk to me about what’s happening here, now! Show me that you can leave in peace with what we have here, now!! Look at us… we’ve got so many subdivisions we can’t even describe ourselves in one word. Before Christians, Muslims, Americans and Japanese, Asians and Africans, Blacks and Indians, Aryans, Latin Americans, Chinese, Haitians, Buddhists and every other group we’ve made we are Humans. Bound together by micro organisms organized in a way that allow us to create more of us. These same micro organisms are part of every living thing and we use it to survive. Show that you care before we self destruct…

My report: I don’t know about this one. It may be because I’m a man, but I do understand that the main character was beaten by her husband consistently before she ever took it upon her to do something. However, is it justifiable that she killed another person because of it? She suffered, he died. Neither one is correct and both should be punishable. If anything, there should be a lesser punishment when there is evidence that demonstrates the accused had no other alternative, but a woman that decides to burn her husband could have also decided to tell the authorities. The only thing is the law needs to be strict about evidence brought against abusive spouses. The people being abused need to feel confident about their protection by the law. Otherwise this whole thing doesn’t work. The story was too much on one side, even if it is true.

Rating:

About it: “Provoked” is the true story of a battered wife who fought back, first against her husband and then against the system. Full of optimism and affection, newlywed Kiranjit Ahluwalia (Aishwarya Rai) arrives at the doorstep of her new home and life with husband Deepak (Naveen Andrews). She would continue her law studies as her family had promised and the couple would start a family. The future offered only pain.The drunken Deepak beats her for the first time and shows remorse. He beats her again. It gets easier. After 10 years of violence, a dazed Kiranjit can take no more. She resorts to a desperate act that kills Deepak. She is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Incarceration tests the outwardly meek Kiranjit’s toughness at every turn, but the mother of two has suffered worse at home. She develops an ally in the mischievous Ronnie (Miranda Richardson), who also doled out the ultimate retribution to her abusive spouse. While Kiranjit acclimates to life behind bars, Radha (Nandita Das), an activist with the Southall Black Sisters, glimpses a tabloid headline about her case and springs into action. A barrister (Rebecca Pidgeon) with limited resources cannot make any headway, igniting greater determination in Radha, who rallies public opinion. Ronnie is denied parole but she has a secret weapon on the outside to help Kiranjit: Ronnie’s estranged brother-in-law Lord Foster (Robbie Coltrane), an influential legal eagle. Kiranjit’s appeal gains momentum when Radha persuades a cop to change his knowingly false testimony that Kiranjit was in her right mind the night of the killing.Arguing passionately before the high court, Lord Foster moves the judge to change the fate of many battered women forever. The court rules that a prolonged period of beatings could cause the victim’s loss of reason in a delayed act of self-defense. The concept of “provocation” is redefined and is now a primary defense for the severely abused if a claim of self-defense is not valid. The judge reduces Kiranjit’s crime to manslaughter and orders her released for the 3 years and 4 months she already served. Claiming she felt liberated in prison, Kiranjit is free again. This time, without walls.

My report: this was a great story. Proof that you don’t need to say much to get points across. I would have never watched this movie if it wasn’t for the 2007 Best Actor Academy Award. Before I knew about the award I kept looking at this movie rental store and thinking I’d like to see someday, but didn’t want to take my chances just yet. The cover was weird enough to call my attention, but not to rent it. The best thing is how the entire movie is wrapped around what people would do for money, anything from deceiving families, to accepting or denying Jesus.

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About it: Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson steps outside his contemporary world of dysfunctional Angelenos to explore a very different dysfunctional man — an oil pioneer whose trailblazing spirit is equaled only by his murderous ambition. There Will Be Blood is Anderson’s loose adaptation of the novel Oil! by Upton Sinclair, and it focuses its attentions on Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), a failed silver miner who happens upon black gold during a disastrous excavation that ends in a broken leg. Pulling himself up from the bowels of the earth, both literally and metaphorically, Plainview embarks on a systematic and steadfast approach to mastering the oil business. Using plain-spoken and straightforward language, and accompanied by his young son, H.W. (Dillon Freasier), Plainview launches a campaign to convince small-town property owners they should let him drill their land. Without him, they won’t have the equipment to access the profit beneath their feet. He builds an empire this way — and gradually becomes obsessed with the intrinsic value of power, growing increasingly irascible and paranoid in the process. Plainview meets his match in Eli Sunday (Paul Dano), a teenage preacher in the small California town of Little Boston, whose brother tipped Plainview off to the town’s plentiful supply of untapped oil. To fully reap the benefits of the land, Plainview must suffer the opposing whims of this “prophet,” whose legitimacy is questionable at best. And it’s unclear either man is prepared to pay the humiliating price the other wants to exact. There Will Be Blood features an anachronistic percussive soundtrack by Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, and it was shot in the same town where the James Dean epic Giant was filmed. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide

My report: It was alright. The whole story was predictable from beginning to end, but it got me thinking about how careful we all need to be. In my HIV class last semester we talked about how women were rapidly getting infected with the disease because of men that go behind the backs of their girlfriends/wives and sleep with other men. This is not just a homosexual disease, it’s an everybody disease. Men and women need to always use protection. I won’t deny I’ve done some stupid shit in the past. I’ve been lucky and I’m not jeopardising my life again.

Rating:

About it: At the time of its release, Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia was the first big-budget Hollywood film to tackle the medical, political, and social issues of AIDS. Tom Hanks, in his first Academy Award-winning performance, plays Andrew Beckett, a talented lawyer at a stodgy Philadelphia law firm. The homosexual Andrew has contracted AIDS but fears informing his firm about the disease. The firm’s senior partner, Charles Wheeler (Jason Robards), assigns Andrew a case involving their most important client. Andrew begins diligently working on the case, but soon the lesions associated with AIDS are visible on his face. Wheeler abruptly removes Andrew from the case and fires him from the firm. Andrew believes he has been fired because of his illness and plans to fight the firm in court. But because of the firm’s reputation, no lawyer in Philadelphia will risk handling his case. In desperation, Andrew hires Joe Miller (Denzel Washington), a black lawyer who advertises on television, mainly handling personal injury cases. Miller dislikes homosexuals but agrees to take the case for the money and exposure. As Miller prepares for the courtroom battle against one of the law firm’s key litigators, Belinda Conine (Mary Steenburgen), Miller begins to realize the discrimination practiced against Andrew is no different from the discrimination Miller himself has to battle against. The cast also includes Antonio Banderas as Andrew’s partner, Joanne Woodward as Andrew’s mother, and Stephanie Roth as Joe’s wife. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Saturday was the day that me and Tracy had planned to go to El Valle. I was more exited about the idea of being away from home than going on a trip with her. I really didn’t think of her in a sexual way. I guess it was my innocence.

Somehow we ended up meeting a Native American girl from Saskatchewan, Canada, Louise was her name I believe. Ha… I just remembered having the hardest time trying to say her name right. My English then was not as good as it is now. but anyways, on the way to El Valle we exchanged a lot of interesting stories and got to know each other a lot better. This is, by the way, one of the coolest things about traveling: getting to meet people from other cultures and learning from them. I love that. There we were, a white girl from California, a Native American girl from Canada and a black guy from Panama, all speaking in our own accents and getting along just fine. I would really like for everyone in this world to get the opportunity to experience other cultures and countries.

I had been to El Valle many times before, so I took them to the zoo and we had a nice walk around town also. I remember being worried the whole time because I hadn’t told my parents where I was going. I knew that if I would have asked, they would have given me the usual answer: no. So I had stopped asking for permission on many things for a while now. I would just go places behind their back and hope that I could make it on time for my parents not to find out what I had done.

Tracy, Louise and I were having a good time and before we knew it, I had to catch the last bus home. The two girls were thinking about spending the night and they enjoyed my company and wanted me to stay, which I did. They had already paid for a room at a cabaña, which is like a hostel but you get your own private room with a shower and bathroom. The owner of the cabaña had charged the two girls about $20 for the night. She had said that if I was staying there would be an additional $5 charge. I was trying to stay in without having to pay, but when the last bus back to the city had already left and she saw me there, she didn’t miss the beat and charged me. I mention this because at the time it seemed like a lot of money to me. I had taken that trip with about $11. It always amazed me how people would come to Panama and spend money quite freely, especially if they were from the U.S.. Now I know why.

That night the girls had the big idea of going salsa dancing. I wasn’t into that idea because I was the only guy. If one or both of them got drunk or whatever, it’s all on me. But I wanted them to have a good time, so we went down to this local bar and hung out for a good while. I just kept looking everywhere and watching their drinks. The whole bar was full of guys and a few were brave enough to come talk to us. They would try talking to me in English first to try to figure out which one I was dating. As soon as I replied to them in Spanish they would feel more comfortable and had a few more friends join the conversation. The girls didn’t really get what they wanted ’cause it wasn’t really the kind of bar you go to salsa dance. I was actually glad. We bounced from there, the girls bought a cheap bottle of wine and we headed back to the room…