it feels weird going to see a movie one week after doing the same. but hey, having promised myself not to let the big movies slip away this year, the feeling was more obligatory than weird. i was supposed to watch MI:3 with a friend, but she backed out at the last minute. with tickets already reserved the week before, i frantically searched for a replacement. i texted my other friends who i thought were free on that day as well ('twas a thursday evening screening), but came up with nothing. even my sister, who was supposed to be my backup moviedate also backed out. so i had no other choice but to cancel the reservations and made a new one–just for one. anyhow, the move was very, very good, if not better than the second installment of the MI series. it showed a more human side of ethan hunt and how the "mission" is not always the be-all and end-all that runs his life. action scenes were superb and wonderfully shot. and nothing comes close to seeing it on a thx theater with the explosions and sounds of gunfire coming to life. worth waiting for its dvd release like the previous movie i saw, "silent hill."

i'm having second thoughts of going to see "poseidon" next week when it's released here. basic plot: a cruise ship gets in the way of a large tsunami-like phenomenon on it's voyage. well, i have seen "titanic" on numerous occasions, so what's there to topple the most successful ship-tragedy movie ever made? yet the setting of titanic was in the early 1900's and poseidon was set somewhere near present times, and both were true stories–yet again, at least titanic was. could be a no-brainer if you ask me, but then again, pre-release reviews peg it as a good one.

speaking of no-brainers, the movie "da vinci code" is threatened not to be released here. at least that's as far as what i have heard. why? because the self-proclaimed, all-powerful mtrcb says it shows or promotes anti-christ or anti-christian elements, if not changes the traditional, age-old beliefs of christianity. WTF? i mean W-T-F? what's important is what your personal belief. so what if the movie shows that christ did have a child with mary magdalene? does that movie alone have the capacity to convert catholics to non-believers overnight after seeing it? i mean, i have seen the "gospel of judas" on NGC and the channel's successive programs on secret bible week and i found them only interesting at the most. but that didn't change my christian and catholic beliefs. yes, it did cross my mind that "what if that were true?" but yet i didn't come running to my parish church and hold a placard saying "tell us the truth!" i mean, why would i base a life-changing decision of denouncing my beliefs on a program that only shows what is based on fact against how my parents and my school raised me to be? it's a stupid decision for the mtrcb to give that movie an X rating as they are threatening to do. this movie is released for entertainment, pure and simple. let the church decide on its content and moral values, and even if it does denounce the movie, which i think they won't, nothing will stop the public from seeing it anyway. let the theaters reel in big money for this sure-fire hit movie and in the end, everybody's happy. am i right, or am i right?

veering away from the subject, a lot of blog readers have asked me, either through the comments link or in person, about what happened to my brother's introduction of his first girlfriend to the family. honestly, it actually went very well. she is a nice and sweet person, and i'm proud of my brother for choosing such a woman to be his girlfriend. the family had lunch together and we all got to know her better. as far as the extended family goes (my cousins and aunt and uncles), they're now putting the pressure on me and when i'll be introducing someone to the family. all i can say is, been there, done that last year. though things didn't come out as expected. and quite frankly, i don't feel any pressure. and why should i? i have my own plans of adopting by next year should i not get married. which reminds me that i'll be turning the big three-oh in a couple of weeks time. no plans of how to celebrate it yet, but it'll be most likely the same as last year. though the only difference this year is that i'll be going to work on the day itself, unlike the previous years that i didn't even think of working on my birthday. now that's a sign that i'm really gettin' old… *sigh*