The Dark Knight - Character Discussion

Four days later and I'm still hung up with The Dark Knight. It really is a GREAT MOVIE. If you still haven't seen it, slap yourself and go to the cinemas. Immediately.

With that, I felt the urge of writing a character discussion. Of course, only my own interpretation of the movie's characters. I'm so stressed with Thesis and transcribing right now that I felt I have to dish it out. LOL!


S P O I L E R S


Batman/Bruce Wayne
The cape crusader is back to take down the psychotic criminal called the Joker. This time around, Batman is THE Batman that we all know-- the reputed hero. He has come full circle since the first movie where his development of Wayne into Batman was depicted.

In The Dark Knight, Batman/Bruce Wayne's main dillemmas were:

1. Is it possible to give up being Batman?
Bruce Wayne is eaten up by the question of 'Is it possible to give up Batman?' When the new DA Harvey Dent showed up, Wayne's hope has brighten. He was convinced that Dent is his hope. Dent could do what he couldn't: fight criminals without a mask on.

Along with this hope was her love for her childhood friend Rachel Dawes, who is now in a relationship with Dent. Wayne is still holding on to Dawes' promise that they can be together when his tenure as Batman is over.

2. Should he still continue being Batman, along with the question being 'Is it right or wrong'?
Bruce Wayne's primary reason in creating Batman is to promote good. He fights off crime to change a once so corrupted Gotham City which was ran by crime lords and corrupt police men. And he did made a difference. Crimes went low with the criminals thinking twice now before attempting crimes out of fear of the cape crusader.

But when the Joker comes along, Batman becomes disillusioned. Aside from inspiring good, the Joker is the living proof that Batman also inspired mad men. Hiding behind a mask and taking the law to his own hands, Batman inspired the Joker to become what he is-- an anti-thesis of Batman, also hiding under a mask and taking the law to his own hands by committing heinous crimes.

Along with these self conflicts, Batman is pushed to the brink: should he give it up?

In the end, Batman has come to a realization. With Harvey Dent's death, he was convinced that Batman will stay. Batman should stay.

If Dent's true fate is to be revealed to the public, it will cause a mass outcry-- and the Joker would've won. Batman convinced Commissioner Gordon to put all the blame on him to keep Harvey Dent's reputation clean-- all just to keep the people's hopes alive.

With it, Batman's mission continues. If Batman has to be a scapegoat, then so be it. Wayne has now fully embraced the title of Batman... now a complete vigilante placed on a manhunt by the police.


Harvey Dent
For me, Harvey Dent is probably the most conflicted man in this movie. His descent from an incorruptible district attorney to a raging mad man taking the law to his own hands, although tragic, is amazing.

He was a brave and noble man. He does what other men are scared to do: fight crime. Through it, he never found a need to hide under a mask. He was successful-- he convicted hundreds of criminal without an ounce of fear. Even Batman himself saw Dent as the symbol of Gotham's hope, and in a way, his own of hope of finally giving up the life of vigilance and passing on the torch to Dent as the new hero of Gotham City.

Likewise, Dent also respected Batman. He knew how important the dark knight is for the cause of fighting crime. When Batman decided to give up and reveal his identity, Dent instead covers up for him by owning up as Batman. Endangering his life just to protect the vigilante's identity.

Dent is bent on his mission of clearing up crime. He has no fear for his own life. But there is one person he will give it all up for, Rachel Dawes. Unfortunately, the Joker knew this. Actually, the Joker also knew how Batman also cared for Dawes, and he tried to hit two birds with one stone. Luckily for Batman, Alfred saved the day for him (see Alfred section).

Eventually, the Joker managed to corrupt the once heroic Harvey Dent with the elaborate plan of killing off the person that Dent cared for, Rachel Dawes. With his face half scarred, Harvey Dent now used the alias 'Two Face', running around the city and going after the criminals and people whom he thinks were responsible for Rachel's death. He began using his double sided coin to decided each person's fate: clean side=live, burned side=kill.

As the Joker have said, Harvey is his 'ace' in case everything else fails. With Dent's corruption and descent to madness, the people of Gotham City will lose all hope to see that their hero has fallen. Along that, hundreds of criminals that Dent has convicted would be set free.


Jim Gordon
One of the few policemen who are uncorrupted. He reluctantly worked with Batman and Harvey Dent to form a triumvirate to bring down the mafia. At first, they were successful. And then the Joker came along.

He was left frustrated that the Joker is always one step ahead of them. Much like Dent, he was unafraid to lose his own life... but his weakness is his loved ones. He faked his own death at one time just so he can plan the capture of the Joker, and sway the attention away from his family.

Eventually, he becomes disillusioned. He began losing confidence with his own abilities, with the Joker always having his way. Plus, learning that some of his own policemen were mafia informers, he began having trust issues. Even near the end, he was reluctant of trusting Batman himself when the latter proposed a plan of capturing the Joker. He was a complete mess when he learned that Dent has abducted his family.

All part of the Joker's elaborate plan, of course.

Thankfully for Gordon, Batman came in time to save his family.

Who knows what would've happened. If Dent succeeded in killing Gordon's son, would he have walk the same path that Harvey Dent did? Would he go mad as well? As Dent have said, criticize him only if he experienced the same thing that Dent went through: losing a loved one.

In this case, Gordon survived the Joker's plan thanks to Batman. At the end, he understood what he had to do. With Dent's death, Batman convinced him to place all the blame on the dark knight himself. He understood that this will be for the greater good: place all the blame on a masked vigilante to protect Harvey Dent's reputation-- and eventually the interest of a thousand.


The Joker
The man himself. Everything revolves around the Joker. And seeing how deranged the Joker is, it is surprising to see that out of all the main characters (Batman, Dent, and Gordon), he is the only one who is not conflicted. He knows what he is, and he knows what he wants. He has no doubts with himself.

He only wanted one thing: anarchy.

He never wanted money. He robbed banks just to prove a point. And at the end, he burned his 'share' of the mafia money just to state his power. All the Joker wanted is to cause anarchy out of the system.

With it, he targeted the triumvirate of Batman, Gordon, and Dent. He wanted to prove that nobody is incorruptible... even Batman himself. Thus, the Joker proceeds by plotting multiple elaborately crafted anarchy.

He starts off by mocking Batman, killing innocent people-- threatening them that if Batman will not reveal his true identity, that more innocent people will die. With Batman's initial inability to capture the Joker, he starts doubting himself, wondering if he should just give up being Batman, yielding to the Joker's command just to be able to avoid more innocent blood.

As it turned out, Batman was not the only target. So is Harvey Dent and Jim Gordon.

Gordon was disillusioned by the Joker by simply showing Gordon that no matter how he tried, people are corruptible, and that he (Gordon) couldn't trust anybody, not even his own men. The Joker proved this by letting himself capture by Gordon. And as easy as his capture was his escape. All with the assistance of corrupt police officers who are under the mafia's (the Joker's benefactor) payroll.

The worst of all the victims is no doubt Harvey Dent. Heroic and vagrant, Dent was left broken and mad after all was said and done. He was the people's hope. He was the 'white knight', fighting crime without hiding under a mask. Even Batman placed his hope on this man, and the Joker knew that if he breaks this man, everything-- the people's hope, all the good that Dent has stood for-- would be for nothing.

With the death of Rachel Dawes, came the death of Dent's own sanity. It was too much for him to take. And with the Joker's constant ribbing, he came full circle... he became Two-Face. He became a mad man who went after the people whom he thinks are responsible for his ordeal, deciding their fate with a toss of a coin.

All of it, the Joker's master plan. It's ingenious actually. Small things at a time, and when placed together, sums up to what the Joker was planning right at the beginning.

The 'final' plan of the Joker would've been ingenious. The people, now scared for their lives and convinced that they are really at the mercy of the Joker, are panicking. The Joker asked them to come aboard a ship if they wish not to be involved any longer. In another demand to the police, the Joker asked for a whole slew of convicts to be placed on another separate ship.

It turns out, the Joker placed bombs on both separate ships: the civilians and the convicts. The detonators, he gave to the leaders of each ships. The deal is, each one have a chance to blow up the other ship to save theirs. Blow up the other ship, or they blow you up. Only one ship will survive: either the convicts' or the civilians'.

And if they don't, the Joker will blow both ships come 12am.

All part of the Joker's experiment. He wanted to prove that people are selfish. That nobody wants to die, and that they'd rather kill another if only to save themselves.

Much to the Joker's surprise (and disappointment), time passed the deadline and nobody tried to blow each other up. Batman eventually caught up with him, and here, Joker picked his supposedly last straw: to force Batman to kill him, thus proving that nobody is incorruptible.

As he forced Batman to the brink, the cape crusader pushed the Joker to his apparent death much to the Joker's delight-- since this proves his theory that even the noblest of men will resort to killing if forced to the brink. Unfortunately for him, Batman still saved him-- making him come to the conclusion that Batman truly is incorruptible.

Joker admits defeat, but right then, he reveals to Batman that he has an 'ace'. The ace was Harvey Dent who has now turned into a mad man, currently holding Gordon's family hostage.

The Joker will seem to have the last laugh. He was able to corrupt the once noble Harvey Dent, after all. But then again, Batman owed up all of Dent's crime to retain Dent's clean image. The purpose is to keep the people's hope alive-- that their white knight died as a hero instead of a psychotic mad man. This was enough to ultimately beat the Joker's ultimate plan, as a whole.

+++

Alfred Pennyworth
Bruce Wayne's faithful confidante has probably done the most help for Batman in this movie. He didn't show Bruce Wayne the final letter that Rachel Dawes wrote.

The letter contains Rachel telling Bruce that she can no longer hold on to their promise that they can be together when Batman's job is over. It says that Rachel has decided to marry Harvey Dent, and he is bidding Bruce goodbye.

And as the film depicted, Bruce Wayne was hoping to drop the mantle of Batman if only for the thought of being together with Rachel. If Wayne has indeed read the letter, his spirit would've been broken-- with his only hope destroyed. The Joker would've won over him.

The Joker knew Batman cared about Rachel Dawes judging on how he reacted when he (the Joker) threw Dawes out of the window. With this, he knew he can hit two birds with one stone. By eliminating Rachel Dawes, he can break both Dent and Batman.

Alfred was wise enough not to show Bruce Wayne the letter. Ultimately, he protected Wayne from possibly breaking down.


Rachel Dawes
Her character is torn between Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent. It is because of Wayne that she still can't accept Dent's proposal for marriage. In a way, she was still holding on to the promise that she and Wayne can be together after Batman's job is over.

Eventually, she came to the conclusion that Batman can, or should, NEVER give up as the hero. She knew that the people will always need a Batman. It was time for her to let go of Bruce. She decided to go with Harvey Dent.

Unfortunately for her, the Joker knew her importance to both Dent and Batman.
Dent went mad upon her death, while Batman was ultimately protected by Alfred by not showing him Dawes' last letter, which would've probably break Batman/Wayne's character.


Lucius Fox
Not much an arc for Lucius Fox in this movie. He was a straight forward character. Now the top executive working for Wayne Enterprises, he obviously knows the secret of Bruce Wayne's vigilante identity as he himself invents the gadgets Batman is using. He began assisting Wayne both in business and in the field work.

He still remains an honorable character. When Batman modified his cellphone-sonar invention, he deemed it too powerful to control and threatened Wayne that if this powerful tool is to remain, he will quit the company. Batman assured him that it is only for one time use, and that the tool will be destroyed after the mission.

New side job: Transcribing

I got a new side job, transcribing.

Basically, I listen to tapes then write/type the conversation as I listen to it.

I thought it was easy at first. And the pay is sorta big for something this simple (listen then write = transcribing).

Imagine my surprise when I started the first tape! An Aussie guy was talking and I could barely understand his accent!! As in sumakit ang ulo ko!

Then towards the end, the speaker was from Thailand. And I quickly remembered that mostly everyone there doesn't speak English... so goodluck sa akin transcribing the Thai speaker who's speaking with her own version of 'English'. Nyaaaay! ;p

Anyways, endure. Side money din ito para sa Singapore trip. I could hardly wait to visit Ed in Singapore, together with Dale. I miss my friend, and the three of us will gonna have a blast there. :)

The Dark Knight

Here it is! The movie I was anticipating for so long now. And I'm so happy to say that it lived up to the expectations!!! It actually surpassed all the hype! And yes, Heath Ledger's Joker is a new milestone for on screen villains!

But that's jumping ahead. Let me do this review the usual way, in the tradition of this blog! ;p

Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman.
Directed by: Christopher Nolan

The movie starts where the first one left off. There's a new menace in town, a criminal who's only known by his alias, The Joker. Obviously, Batman is tasked to capture him. With Batman's reputation, the crime rate in Gotham City has lowered with criminals thinking twice before doing a crime out of fear that they might face the dark knight. Along with it comes a brave, honorable, and charismatic Harvey Dent, Gotham City's new district attorney who is not afraid to cross the powerful crime bosses. In fact, he has already convicted hundreds of Gotham's criminals. To complete the triumvirate of good is Jim Gordon, one of the few uncorrupted officials in the city. Together, the three banded together to bring down a large crime organization. Frustrated, the crime bosses plots together, and out of desperation, reluctantly hires a deranged criminal mastermind masquerading as a clown, The Joker. What follows is The Joker's elaborate plan of breaking the trio of Batman, Dent, and Gordon.

I must say that this is THE BEST MOVIE SO FAR THIS YEAR (hey.. I already said that on my last post, right?). This movie is not just a superhero movie. It's more like a crime movie, coupled with suspense inspired by Seven and Silence of the Lambs. It also reminded me of the crime drama, The Untouchables.

One thing is for sure, this is not your typical superhero movie. This is something much more. Much, much more.

To be honest, I was actually worried for this sequel. I mean, the first one was really good. Great acting, great plot, and had great character development (Wayne's transformation to Batman). I thought to myself, can Christopher Nolan at least make the sequel as good as the first one?

Imagine my surprise when I finally watched The Dark Knight! It is TEN TIMES BETTER THAN THE FIRST ONE! Nolan has done it again! And he's probably my favorite director for this generation (aside from Batman films, he also did Memento and The Prestige which I absolutely love!). The pacing was great! The action scenes, superb. Simply put, Christopher Nolan is a genius.

The acting is probably the best part of the whole movie. This time, the late Heath Ledger steals the spotlight! Ever since he was announced to play the part of The Joker, people were skeptical whether he could fill in the shoes of Jack Nicholson's iconic portrayal of the the character.

Well, he did more than that! He made it his own! Heath Ledger managed to create a different Joker, altogether. Something more sinister, more sadistic. Gone is the campy Joker portrayal that George Romero and Jack Nicholson portrayed. Ledger's Joker is grim! The only time you will laugh at him is when he does something funny created by his own psychotic behavior.

And all through out the movie, I was trying to "find" Heath Ledger whom I've watched in A Knight's Tale and 10 Things I Hate About You (I love this movie, by the way! ;p). I couldn't find any sign of Heath Ledger. He has simply disappeared in his role as The Joker! In my opinion, no one will recognize Heath Ledger if nobody said he was gonna play the part! And THAT is great acting!

As early as now, there are talks that Heath Ledger might actually get a posthumous nod from the Oscars Academy. Well, he do deserves to win in my opinion. This is not one of those, "Uy patay na si Heath Ledger, kawawa naman, bigyan natin ng award..." Nooo.. if you watch Ledger as The Joker, you'll see how great he was. Hindi ito awa-- ang galing niya talaga dito! :)

Aside from Ledger's Joker, my second favorite character would be Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent! He probably have the greatest character arc in the movie. I never knew Eckhart before but I became a fan after seeing him in this movie. Aargh, I want to watch it again! Hehehe!

Then there's Christian Bale reprising his role as Batman. Aside from Batman's own conflicts within himself, there's nothing much happening to Batman in this movie. The first movie was all about him-- on how he made the transition to Batman and all, and it showed how great Bale showed the conflict within Bruce Wayne. In the Dark Knight, Bale still delivers a great performance. It's just that the material isn't solely concentrated on Batman, but more so on Harvey Dent and The Joker. Still, its a great performance by Christian Bale.

The cast was so good. It's actually an all-star cast with Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, and Michael Caine... all Academy Award recognized actors-- and the weakest link from the first movie, Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes, is replaced by Maggie Gyllenhaal which is a better actress altogether. Only thing is, I never find Gyllenhaal attractive! Kahit saang anggulo ko tignan! LOL!

The effects for the action scenes are spectacular, but that's already a given. This is, after all, a high-budget movie.

Overall, this film never felt like a superhero movie at least for me. It was more like a crime saga. Like a detective story, with the protagonists trying to track down the criminal who's always seem to be 2 steps ahead of them. Plus, the Joker's plots/crimes reminded me of Seven, where when each crime is placed together, it shows a bigger picture-- and that every moves he makes is made for a reason. The character development was also superb with Batman's self-doubts, to Dent's conversion. Great acting by a superb cast, highlighted by the late Heath Ledger. Simply put, everything in this movie is great!

Everybody, Batman fans or not, should watch this movie. With Nolan making this masterpiece, I don't think it's possible for him to be able to surpass this-- but then again, that's what I thought about the first Batman movie he made. Who knows, maybe he'll surprise us again. But one thing is for sure-- its gonna be hard. And I think they should kill the Joker character if they ever make a third movie-- the role that Heath Ledger filled is monumental that I don't think anybody can replicate or surpass. Score: 10/10

Wanted

Starring: James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, and Angelina Jolie
Directed by: Timur Bekmambetov

The film opens with a man visiting a ballistic expert with hopes of trying to trace the enemy's whereabouts by knowing the origin of the bullet. Out of nowhere, snipers began shooting through the room, killing the ballistic expert. The man then proceeds to run along the hallway and (inhumanly) jumps off the window and into the other building while killing the snipers in mid-air! Then the man picks up the phone, speaking to someone he simply refers to as Cross. Cross tells the man that the snipers were merely decoys before firing a bullet through the man's head! The story then picks up with the protagonist, Wesley Gibson. One night, he meets a mysterious lady who claims that she knew Wesley's father, that he was murdered the day before on a rooftop, and that the man who murdered him, Cross, is right at his behind his back! What followed is a car chase that eventually led to Wesley meeting The Fraternity, a secret organization of assassins. He learns that he has inherited his father's abilities-- and given the training, the chance to avenge his murdered father.

I must say that this movie actually surprised me! I remember when Pilep and Oninz told me that we should watch Wanted, I said that I think it will be corny with bullets changing directions and such. When I saw the trailer for it, I was actually turned off by the prospect of bullets "curving" from their direction. Akala ko talaga corny. And with Angelina Jolie in the cast, I was like: "Yuck, Tomb Raider with corny twisting bullets!!!"

I actually ate my words!

Now, I'm thankful that I actually gave it a chance and watched it!

The movie accomplished what it was trying to do. It was a pop corn movie as a whole, but in a way, had a lot of substance. The premise is great: an ordinary 9 to 5 employee who sucks in life learning that he has hidden capabilities, hence turning into a killing machine with the right training!

Plus, the concept of The Fraternity was amazing. Imagine a group of lethal killers who accepts target from a LOOM MACHINE (which they call 'The Loom of Fate'). The Loom of Fate was said to give off binary codes, that when decoded, will reveal who the next target of the organization should be. These targets are said to be dangerous and must be eliminated in order to avoid a more destructive future. 'Kill one man, and maybe, save a thousand', according to The Fraternity.

The cast was amazing. James McAvoy filled that 'zero to hero' role perfectly. He was the nerd guy turned killing machine-- and he was actually entertaining to watch. He was never irritating like Shiela LeBeouf (Indy 4, Transformers), a guy who never fails to irritate the shit out of me every time I watch him! Angelina Jolie was also great as the assassin/mentor, Fox. Sex and killer appeal just mixed right, I love it! And nothing much to say about Morgan Freeman, an actor I've long admired. He always gives off great performances whatever movie he's in.

The presentation was also superb. It was over the top, yes, but it accomplished what the director is trying to do. As I've said, when I saw the trailer, I thought the concept of the "curving bullets" were corny-- it was actually pretty good. I was actually enjoying those scenes with all those bullet curves (and don't miss that bullet curve Jolie does near the end of the film... that one is my favorite scene aside from the rooftop scene at the beginning).

All in all, this movie is a must see. The trailer does not do this movie justice. An over the top popcorn movie with great special effects and an interesting plot. Full of attitude and adrenaline, packed with stylized scenes. I love it! ;p Score: 9/10

week overview

Unlike Ade, I'm actually gonna do a day by day account of events! Hahaha! ;p


Tuesday
I started going back to the gym. I lost 10-15 lbs already due to stress, so I thought this would be the right time to build up again. I don't eat much kasi, and my metabolism is a little bit fast. And as a high school kid before, I was really thin. Only solution I found for gaining weight is by going to the gym and lifting. It amps my appetite forcing me to eat much, eventually making up for my metabolism.

So yun. Even na tinatamad ako, I was forced to go and lift weights again. I can't even lift a damn thing anymore. After a few lifts, I find myself resting longer than exercising! Hahaha! Di bale, I can recover from this... I did it before. :)


Wednesday
Probably my best day of this week. I went to UST to talk to Ma'am Cha, my thesis adviser. And the meeting went pretty well. More like, 'pretty good'.

I was expecting to be shunned by her for being too irresponsible for having my thesis to wait this long. Thank god she welcomed me with warm regards! Haha! Yeah, she was surprised when she saw me. Her face expression was something like: "Oi, nabuhay ka!" Hahaha!

And it was great talking to her. She invited me to the faculty room so we can talk better. In there, she explained to me what else I needed to do. She told me that the DOCU is as good as finished! All I need is to just add what she was asking, then it's time to defend the thesis na! :)

I was also able to share about our group's thesis woes. It was so stress relieving to me in a way, being able to tell your own thesis adviser your problem. It should have been this way.

Dati kasi, our misconception is that the thesis adviser is one of your "enemy", along with the panel. You have to 'misdirect' her or else, she will deny your thesis proposal and revisions. THAT IS WRONG. The job of the adviser is to HELP you with your thesis. Di bale nang masabon ka sa umpisa, or laitin niya yung gawa mo... she is only making sure that your thesis is foolproof! You should actually connive with her so you could get past the panel!

So the realization: The thesis adviser IS your main ally.

And unfortunately, it took me two fucking years before I understood it. Better late than never, I guess. :)

Also, my mom asked me and my sister if we wanted to watch a movie that night. The answer is a resounding 'YES'! So we went on and watch 'Wanted'. To tell you the truth, I was the film surprised me. It was actually good, I love it! I'm gonna write a review later. :)


Thursday
My mom's hand rehab has started. She was complaining for the past months that two of her fingers on her right hand were not acting right. So she went on and had it checked up by the doctor. She was given 13 days of rehab as ordered by the doctor. With that, they placed a cast on her two fingers so basically, she can't use it for 13 days (to be able to rest it).

The repercussion for me is that I was relegated to be her driver. With those casts, she cannot drive on her own. Oh well.


Friday
I was driving my mom all over the place: hospital, office, meetings on different places. By the end of the day, I was so tired!

There was also supposed to be a Bakal gimik. It was already being planned since last week. The initial plan was to watch the Dark Knight, then go to Jem's house for a booze session/PS3 hangout.

Observing the e-groups, akala ko hindi na matutuloy. Dale was asking for a Friday para makasama si Ade, while Pilep is asking for a Saturday because he have work on Friday nights.

Imagine my surprise when they texted me na tuloy nga! Haha! Pilep decided to file a 'sick leave'.

And as fate would have it, ako naman ang hindi pwede. I was too busy driving my mom around. And I took another side job, TRANSCRIBING.

So yun, I was busy the whole day. Dale and Jem kept texting me the whole day, but I never found a time to go with them. Yung last meeting kasi ni mama was in Trinoma. 8:30PM na natapos. Eh nagyaya pa siya ng dinner, so mga 9:30 na that time. If I were to go to Jem, I had to bring my mom home.. take a bath.. then I have to take public transpo towards Jem's house (yes, sira pa rin yung Toyota). Sobrang late na, and add the fact that I was so tired na din.

My mom felt sorry for me, and as gratitude, she took me to watch the Dark Knight right after dinner! So, last full show for us. And there is only one thing I could only say about the movie: BEST MOVIE SO FAR THIS YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rest assured I'm gonna post a review for it later! ;p

So there, the week has passed. Today is Saturday, and I'm busy transcribing tapes. Sideline so I could get a little moolah! ;)

funny "Shaquille O'Neal" video! LOL

This kinda made my morning! Haha!

It features a supposed "Shaquille O'Neal" on how he is better than Kobe by winning 4 championships (as opposed to Kobe's 3), and by jumping over an incoming Escalade (an SUV as opposed to Kobe's Aston Martin sports car!) LOL! Make sure to watch 'til the end for a surprise twist! ;p

*And yeah, it was funny because the characters look or sound like who they're playing as! LOL! Plus, the script is ingenious! Turn up the volume! ;p


SHAQ jumps Escalade



"MVP, bitch! Caaan you diiggg it!!!" ;p

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earlier this day

Around lunch time, my dad came out of the room. He was trying to show me something, and he was quite worried. He kept pointing to his left eye!

Being me, I panicked. For all I know, he was feeling very ill, and worse, might suffer an attack or something. Remember that my dad couldn't speak ever since he had his stroke 8 years ago. So all conversations with him is relegated to sign language. It's like a game of 'charade', actually. We tell him something (he could hear/understand pretty well, but CAN'T speak) then he acts out if what we're asking (or telling) is "it".

Being that, it didn't help the way he's reacting: panicking and pointing to his left eye.

And there I am, super stressed with all these Thesis fiasco... then this happens. And what got me the most is that my older sister was just sitting there, cutting something from the newspaper. Yeah, sometimes she can be pretty inconsiderate!

Alert, alert.. it's Fil reaching boiling point again!!

It took a while before I figured out that my dad is complaining about an irritation in his eye. So I ask the people here: "May Eye-Mo ba tayo?"

No one even answered. My sister was still there, minding her own stupid business. And the maid was still wrapping her really awful tasting lumpia.

I repeated my question again, now on a higher, much agitated tone.

"Wala", sabi ng katulong.

So kailangan lumabas at bumili ng Eye-mo. And up until this point, ako lang ang kumikilos! My sister is still cutting something from the papers, and the maid was still wrapping lumpias.

Boiling point. Reached.

"Putang Inaaa!!! Baka gusto niyong buksan yung gate ng garahe!!!", I shouted with full might!

And as soon as the gate opened, I slammed on the gas and left a huge 'tire burn' mark on the ground! I was so frustrated! My head was hotter than the car's overheating radiator!

When I finally found and bought an Eye-mo, I hurried back home.

I went to my father's room, and gave him a dose of the eye dropper.

And this what quenched my stress and anger: my dad was so happy.

When I looked at his face, I can see his appreciation of what I have done for him. He looked so relieved to have his own eye dropper. An eye dropper that I myself provided for him.

With it, my anger and stress died down. I knew I was appreciated. That was enough for me, if only for that very moment.

I guess being appreciated by someone, or anyone, is a big thing.

Che's Birthday

It's been a while since I last posted an entry. I've been busy, under stressed, and under nourished (lost 10 lbs!).

So what happened these past weeks? Well, there's the goddamn thesis, uncooperative group mates, me losing my cool... majority of which is negative. The only bright spots were Che's birthday celebrations. ;p


Che's Inuman at Mark's house


Mark organized a "surprise party" for Che in his house. Haha! Funny because Mark posted the plan (intentionally) for the surprise party on our e-groups where Che is also a member! lol

So the party was slated last last Saturday. I didn't want to bring a car because the radiator is still acting up and I don't want to experience another overheat. But when I was about to go, the rain poured, leaving me no choice but to take the car.

And true enough, I had an overheat! I made a wrong turn (in short, naligaw) near Mark's house na. I entered a narrow street which turned out to be a one way road (and I'm on the opposing direction). The woman I asked for directions told me it was the way towards Union Sibika (Mark's street). Imagine my surprise when an Adventure came straight at my way!

I had no choice but to go back in reverse... just imagine how annoying it was with all those cars who double parked making the road much much narrower.

What's more annoying were the tambays who kept chanting: "Yan kasi, one way, papasok pasok... atras.. atras!"

It made me wanna say: "Eh kung hindi dahil sa pinagtanungan kong kababayan niyo na isa't kalahating tanga, hindi sana ako napasok dito!"

Because of that, the radiator acted up again. Dapat kasi recta ka para mas mababa yung chance ng overheat... so kung mabagal yung drive mo tapos traffic pa, expect the worst.

Luckily, I was very near Mark's house when it was getting worst. I managed to park near Mark and put water on the radiator.

Now, on to the party ;p

When I arrived, the rest were already there: Mark, Donna, Drey, Jem, Oninz, Pilep, and the birthday girl herself, Che.

I was soaking wet because of the rain so Maki lent me a shirt.

So the night went on and my stress got a lot lesser because of these people. I enjoyed the booze, the jokes, and the advice my friends gave me.

And also, Ed was with us that night! Webcam on Donna's laptop! lol! High tech na... webcam na instead of a print out pic! ;p

Drey also brought along his Canon SLR camera! And I got to try it! Ganda! It's definitely on my wish list! ;p

Another highlight was the announcement of Diablo 3. Everyone, except the girls, were so excited! lol

After finishing up the booze, the rest of us decided to rest a bit before leaving. Donna and Jem left earlier, so it was just Drey, Pilep, Oninz, Che, and me left in Maki's house. I gave Oninz, Pilep and Che a ride while Drey went drove home na.


Che's Fiamma Celebration


I was actually gonna text Che that night that I couldn't come because I'm not feeling so well... eh si Jem ang kuuuuulittttt!!! Text ng text: "Fil, ano na? Sabay ka kay Drey!", "Fil, sama na! PS3 muna tayo bago pumunta kina Che!", "Fil, PS3 lang sagot ng sakit ng katawan mo!"

Hahahaha! So I couldn't say no. ;p

But this time around, I didn't bring a car. I don't want to be hassled with another overheat. I hitched a ride with Drey nalang this time. ;p

On our way to Jem nga pala, Drey and I saw a road altercation. A jeep cut a car on the road. Eh bumaba ung driver ng car, tinakbuhan siya ng jeep... grabe, biglang bumunot ng baril yung driver ng car! Harurot kaagad kami ni Drey! Baka tamaan kami ng ligaw na bala eh! Haha!

At Jem's house, ROCK BAND!!!! Hahahaha! It was fun watching Jem's siblings play! Rock Band is a party game where a group of three can act as a band by playing three roles: drummer, singer, and guitarist! ;p

I tried the drummer! ;p

After a while, we proceeded to Fiamma. So as Che's guests, in our group there's: Pilep, Mark, Donna, Drey, Jem, Myk, Dale, and me.

Oninz had overtime work (daw!), and Dom was busy.

I actually enjoyed the night even though my body was aching. The Bacardi that Che ordered is nice! Four shots and I'm a bit tipsy. Haha!

Another thing, Che already have an SLR camera!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Inggiit akoooooo!!! Hehehehe! Too bad we weren't able to try it that night.. ;p

Around 1am, Drey and Jem left. The rest of us left around 4am. This time, I hitched a ride with Pilep until Araneta Ave. where I got a taxi. Thanks Fifi! :)

And after 10 minutes, I was already home! Yes, 10 freaking minutes: from Araneta ave. to Batasan. That taxi drove so fuckin' fast. ;p

So there, those were the 'gimmiks' these past weeks. Thanks to Che for her multiple celebrations! Once again, being with these people is great. :)