i shall not stop writing.

A few weeks back I was a little disappointed when told that the class I wanted to enrol for Rohani Jelani cooking was full. But my spirits were lifted somewhat when a publisher I've been working with on some projects extended me 4 free tickets to watch Toy Story 3. It was like a blessing in disguise that the cooking class was full as I was then able to 'treat' my family to a movie session *wink* I was ecstatic even more than my eldest hehe... because I totally love Toy Story and have mentioned to the publisher a month back that I was looking forward to catch the movie when it reaches our shores.

Oh man... I think Toy Story 3 must have been the best of its trilogy. Seriously. You know how it is with movie producers trying to make the most bucks out of movie goers when their first instalment becomes successful... well, I think Toy Story must be one of the most successful animation yet because I totally enjoyed all of its previous 2 movies as they all invoke some real-life emotions even though it is an imaginative tale that you think would relate to a child-audience. Well, then again, everyone has a little child in them, right?

This third instalment was brilliant. I love everything about it... the strong script, hillarious scenes especially those with Barbie and Ken (and oh, that scene where Buzz was in Spanish mode!), the moving moments... and just when you thought things couldn't get any more touchy, you'd be so moved that something in you just want to breakdown into tears. Well, I did... and I cried buckets!

If you googled to find out the storyline (which I wouldn't rant so much in here to not spoil it for those who haven't watched it), every one of them movie reviewers would say the last 15 minutes of the film triggered some waterworks in them. Some were just close to tearing up but I was totally down to tears starting from the scene where the toys started to hold hands at the garbage incinerator. From there on, I just couldn't contain my emotions and I continued to cry til the end because the scenes were just so touching.

But don't let me get you on the emotional part... the movie was brilliant right from the start. It touches you on how amazing the producers were as this movie used up every imagination possible and kind of reminded me of my much younger days when I role play while acting as if I was in another world filled with my toys as life-like characters.

I think the best part about this movie is the attention to details - the clever planning of Andy's toys in order to escape, the beautiful bond they have with each other, their loyalty and how the writers emphasised each of the toys' characteristics that we all have identified with in the previous 2 Toy Story installations, ie. how Rex loves to play video games, and the quirks of Mr & Mrs Potato, etc. Here, their personalities are given an even stronger emphasis that I find myself suddenly becoming their big fan and went totally excited when I saw them being sold in children's departments of major shopping centres ;)

This was little jj's first movie experience. We weren't worried of her being afraid of the darkness of the cinema because I know for a fact that she could just sit inside our room or her abang's room when it's dark. We were only worried that she wouldn't want to sit through the entire movie because she wanted to leave after 45 minutes when we watched Disney On Ice months back. Then, I was also worried that she wouldn't be able to watch the movie properly because I was pretty sure she wouldn't want to put on the 3D glasses. And, since she has been pretty much sensitive to noises, I was afraid that she would find the loud speakers a bit bothersome.

Yup, she hated the 3D glasses but she totally enjoyed the first part of the movie where they screened a short film called, Day & Night. If you're familiar with Pixar's movies, you would expect an interesting short movie just before the actual movie starts.

I think she was the noisiest during this short screening. There were sheep and cows and other farm animals that she started to get excited and shouted out loud the sounds they make, like, "Baaa baaa" for sheep, and "Moo moo" for the cows. She went on and made other sounds like the cat and the dogs, and the audience just laughed listening to the cute sounds she made... out loud! hehe... I was glad though that the cinema was filled with kids and I guess the audience was more tolerant of the noises their kids made and no one expected total silence from this movie session :)

We were surprised though, that little jj fell asleep as soon as Toy Story 3 started haha... I guess the screen was blurry since she refused to let us put on the 3D glasses but I was so glad that she slept through the entire movie because that gave us all a chance to sit through the entire session. She was dead to the world even with the blaring sound of the speakers during some suspense moments nearing the end. In fact, she was sound asleep until the audience left the hall and all through mommy sniffing and snorting from that very emotional experience *blush*

And, I was happy that little jj managed to wear the Audrey-Hepburn-ish fleece jacket that I got from Next Baby when we were in the UK last year. It was only 10 pounds and although I knew that she may only be wearing it during the short trip, I couldn't resist getting it because it was so cute and cheap. I was glad that although the jacket is for a 12-month old baby, it fits a baby that weighs up to 11 kilos thus fitting little jj perfectly!

The little munchkin truly enjoyed this movie too since we allowed him to skip his taekwondo lesson just to take advantage of this session. I mean, if I weren't given free tickets, I wouldn't know when we'd decide to just go and bring little jj along. Furthermore, it was during the school holidays and his taekwondo lesson was somewhat more of a practise session rather than an actual lesson because many students were away during the break. Thus, I thought it was a fantastic opportunity.

If you haven't yet watched Toy Story 3, I do think you wouldn't go wrong with this selection. Even if you do not have kids and not sure if animation suit your soul, I don't think you'll be disappointed with this movie. And if you haven't cried in a long time, catch this movie for that great humour and you'll find yourself crying towards the end... and no one will penalise you for crying because many of them will. I think so la...

Through a publisher, I got invited to my first ever media preview of a Malay film, entitled, Kapoww!! Atoi the Ajaib Boy.

Now, my first impression of it when I got snippets of what the movie was all about, wasn't something favourable. But I gave it some benefit of the doubt after I saw its cast - it was a list of powerful actors who I believed wouldn't have given it much thought unless the storyline was strong. Well, the stuff that I was asked to do kinda require me to watch the movie anyway and there I was... my first ever experience in such an event.

Someone else from the publisher's side was supposed to attend as well but I guess she didn't want to work after hours and decided at the last minute to ditch the event. So, I was all alone, and felt so out of place. I mean mannn... I was used to seeing famous corporate figures when I was working in the corporate communications line back then and would know how to carry myself in front of them Tan Sri's, Puan Sri's, Datuk's and Datin's but last night, I felt totally L-O-S-T in front of those popular actors! Seriously...

We all gathered in a restaurant at the top floor of KLCC and I found a secluded table to sit, all alone haha... to avoid looking too awkward, I hid behind the press kits and read through the press release s-l-o-w-l-y. After less than 10 minutes, I heard a voice asking me if the seats on my table were taken and I couldn't have been more than happy. Seriously, I thought they would pull the stint on me like back then with my Malay coursemates in uni who used to avoid sitting next to me in the lecture hall as if I was a leper hehe. But I guess positive people attract positive character and I was glad that they came over to where I was seated.

So yes, I made 2 new friends, Safina and Nani, who came to review the movie. Both of them were so friendly and when they knew that it was my first time in such an event, they gave me some very helpful tips and didn't mind me tagging along from the start til the end. In fact, they even treated me like an old friend... seriously, with the experience I have in corporate, I quite like such an experience for a change. I mean, they didn't need to be nice to me since I have nothing to offer them anyway. So, I felt grateful to have met them at the event ;)

this photo i stole from Bernama TV's newscaster, Hilmy Ashley Buddy's FB page. seen here is moi menyelit at the back with him, Safina and Nani :)

We had a nice dinner and we all then walked out of the restaurant to do some random interview with the cast. I am glad that I was there only to watch the movie to understand its storyline more than doing a coverage for the preview. But I still felt a little intimidated looking at how much the entertainment journalists knew their stuff and how huge their cameras were... they knew everyone at the tip of their fingers and some bits of info that was not stated in the press release. The way they talked about a certain actor/producer/director were things that I would tell the one of a corporate personality or their spouse or their wives' favourite bags/shoes ;) I felt really small and so afraid to stand out when that was what's required in an event like this. Gosh... it was so new to me.

I digress. But then again, this is not really a movie review from me, but simply to share what I felt while attending this event.

The one had told me earlier to get Lisa Surihani's autograph while my little munchkin told me to ask for Awie's. Seriously, I had plenty of opportunities to come up to them but I was either glued to the chair or if I was standing up, my feet just froze. I seriously cannot imagine myself coming up to them to tell them so and so love them because that's so expected out of an ordinary person like me... it's like I will be feeding them more points for them to feel more superior. They are, after all, superstars. I just felt I didn't need to inject more fat to their egos ;P

So, no, I didn't say hi to any of them although I did smile to Lisa Surihani because she was just so friendly to everyone. The way she waved her 'hi' to me was as if it was a long time since she saw me. Hmmm... entah... rasa tak boleh masuk langsung in this pretentious arena. But then again, it could also be due to the fact that this was my first experience. I just have to learn it up, I guess.

Kapoww!! Atoi the Ajaib Boy is not like any other Malay movies I've seen. I would like to refrain from saying too many positive points about the movie because everyone's taste is different and I seriously do not want someone coming up to me to say that they watched the movie because of my review and was totally disappointed at what they saw.

But, I can't say anything negative about it either because I truly enjoyed it and not just because it was a free preview. I was in awe of the special effects in the film where it binds together the elements of a movie and comics. More importantly, the film was damn hillarious! I can get awfully put off by jokes that use words with double meaning especially those that connote 'dirty' meaning but in this movie, the jokes were clever, making fun of things around us.

Of course in a Malay movie, you would have some touchy scenes. However, unlike Cicak Man (I use this example because it was a superhero movie just like this one) where I was so put off by the romantic scenes in what's supposed to be a comedy, this one scores well because the touchy scenes didn't come from anything romantic. In fact, it was more of a scene quite like 'Si Tenggang' where the son disowns his own mother.

But, after a long-winded touchy-feely act, we were all brought back to laughing hard, and I totally applaud the smart efforts of the Director, Azizi 'Chunk' Adnan. You hardly find another Malay movie quite like this one and I felt that it just might become the best film of the year, as what was whispered here and there before the preview began. It is so different than the rest I've seen.

Azizi 'Chunk' not only wrote and directed this movie quite brilliantly, he had also injected several messages that I find absolutely scarce in many of our local movies and dramas. Although it took me awhile to get used to having well-thought messages and life's lesson in the movie (and felt that it may not augur well with the audience due to it being a little draggy), I nevertheless salute his efforts in including these elements. It's as if it is a 'community service' from him where these things totally lack in the industry, since entertainment, romance, subject of wealth and power seem to dominate an entire story.

Best of all, I was totally surprised at how well Zizan Raja Lawak acted, this being his first act as the main cast. As he had said during the interview, it is not only his first time acting as a hero of a movie but it is an even bigger role - a superhero named, Atoi, an ordinary kampung boy turned superhero after he was struck by lightning. He pulled off the character so well and having Awie, Afdlin, Lisa Surihani, Khir Rahman and many other famous cast by his side, made the movie an even more enjoyable experience.

I dunno... I may be biased because of the fact that I was totally taken in by the [almost] flawless special effects in a totally local production. But if that made someone like me, who never paid much attention to local movies except those of the late Yasmin, and who'd usually brush off any local movie that's said to be funny, since their jokes are usually distasteful, I guess Kapoww!! Atoi the Ajaib Boy probably contains the right formula to be successful.

In the mean time, I have plenty of things to figure out regarding this movie and wish me luck in my latest assignment, ok?