History In The Making: Rurouni Kenshin Manila Red Carpet Premiere

I'm proud to say that yesterday we were part of history, as we were among the hundreds of fans who attended the Rurouni Kenshin Red Carpet Procession at the Event Center at SM Megamall. 

Whether they were event pass holders (thank you SM Cinema for not capitalizing on the event) corralled in barricades or fans who waited for hours behind barricades to greet their Idols, or the hundreds more who we're looking on from the floors above-there was a lot of love and enthusiasm for the franchise. 

It was also interesting to note that there was no specific profile for the Rurouni Kenshin fan. The event was not filled with screaming adolescent girls but was instead filled with different people from different ages and from different walks of life-and they were all fans! They were not just curious onlookers pretending to be fans just to see what was going on. 

One thing I failed to include in My Rurouni Kenshin Journey was that I got to meet different generations of Rurouni Kenshin fans. 

The realization dawned on me during the Rurouni Kenshin DVD Launch which was also organized by Sato Takeru Philippines and Amuse Philippines. I got to chat with the fans during the event and discovered that (Gasp!) these guys were still in College and were a good 5-10 years younger than me! 

I found out that they were of course fans of Sato Takeru who was playing Kenshin Himura, while I on the other hand have been a fan of the late 90s anime, which was a good 13 years ago more or less before getting to know (and become a fan of) Takeru Sato. 

It is overwhelming to think how the franchise continues to live on, gathering fans from different generations, allowing Himura's legacy to live on.

 The essence of that legacy manifested itself in that event, so much so that it was palpable and tangible in the air. 

We arrived at the Event Center at 3:30 in the afternoon, due to having had to do errands in the morning. At this time Paul and I haven't had any sleep yet and it was way beyond our sleeping time since we work the night shift. 

The line was already pretty long by the time we arrived and I was pretty bummed out that we weren't going to get good spots but Lady Luck was on our side when one of the members of the Production Team told us we could already enter the event through a side entrance that had no lines! 

So we did get the spot we wanted but the PRESS were actually stationed in front of us and that meant having our view blocked by big a** video cameras and when I say Press this was the PRESS with local stations like ABS-CBN, GMA 7, TV5, there, as well as Rappler, MYX and even HERO TV. So imagine trying to enjoy the program with their humongous video cameras in front of you! 

Paul was telling himself that next time we attend and event like this without PRESS/MEDIA Passes - he was bringing a step ladder!

Once inside the enclosed area for Event Pass holders we pretty much had to wait for more than hour or maybe it was two hours before the program started. 

We were wondering amongst ourselves whether the program would start on time (Japanese time) or start late (Filipino Time) - it ended up being the latter. 

So when the program finally started, our very own Rurouni Kenshin Live Action Cosplay Group awed and impressed the crowd with their costumes and how they acted out their characters. I even saw a post that the Japanese Staff were very impressed as well. I for one was very impressed how they stood for so long during the program. Kudos!

Special shout out to Jin Joson who cosplayed Kenshin! (^^x 

Tickets to the special screening of Kyoto Inferno were given to fans who were able to answer trivia questions from the series. Unfortunately our position was not accessible to the host - so we lucked out of that. I have to admit though that I was impressed that the crowd knew the answers to the questions, it's good to know that there were real fans out there. 

By this time, I had already accepted that we weren't groin to be able to watch the screening of Kyoto Inferno after the event and for those of you who got to read My Rurouni Kenshin Journey blog post you'd know that I tried oh so hard to get passes, even having my heart broken in the process. 

I'm a very optimistic person and I always try my best to look at the bright side of things. 

So even if we weren't able to catch the screening of Kyoto Inferno last night, I just told myself that we weren't in the best physical condition to enjoy the movie since we were about 24 hours awake by that time. It maybe a coping mechanism but at least it helps me get through right? 

Will definitely jump at any chance or opportunity to catch the earliest screening of the movie possible. 

Going back to the event, when the guests of honor finally arrived, it was such a big production of having each of them alight from vans being greeted at the door and of course all hell broke loose ad they walked across the red carpet and met fans, signing Rurouni Kenshin memento, pieces of paper or anything that could be signed. 

I'm pretty much torn coz I have a whole lot of Rurouni Kenshin stuff I could have had signed but chose to leave home because of the guidelines that were released for the event; (no selfies, no asking for autographs, etc) so yeah -pretty much torn. 

When the director and cast finally reached the stage (it took some time since they really went out of their way to greet fans and sign autographs. It was so nice to see their own personalities and how they interacted with the audience. 

Director Keishi Otomo was so nice - he even mentioned getting friend requests on Facebook just introduce yourself- he says - are you sure you want to open that can of worms? :P

He encouraged the fans to come and see the film and enjoy. 

And Munetaka Aoiki was just hilarious in person, as he really is Sanosuke Sagara. He got the  crowd cheering: Sano! Sano! And it was just so cute how he was doing his best to speak in English <3 And of course they all spoke some Tagalog words which always brings out cheers from us Pinoys.

Emi Takei was so beautiful and kind, she really went out of her way to sign autographs. It was so cute to know she shared that this was her first time attending a movie premiere outside of Japan and how overwhelmed she was with the response of the people. 

All Is Lost Movie Review

All is definitely not lost when it comes to the nominations, awards and praise for this movie which is another award winning movie in the American Survivor genre along with Castaway and 72 Hours. 

All Is Lost showcases man's perseverance for survival amidst the impossible forces of both nature and circumstance. The movie begins with Robert Redford's nameless character loosing hope and apologizing, saying goodbye to an unknown loved one. Then we are brought back eight days ago, to where it all began. 

Robert Redford (we never know the name of his character throughout the film) wakes up with a start as a floating shipment container hits his ship the Virginia Jean and water starts coming in his boat (think of Titanic beginning when they hit the ice burg) and this of course is the beginning of his insurmountable ordeals. 

The movie has no dialogue which gives more power to Redford's acting and why he deserved all those Best Actor Nominations and his win (in that category) from the New York Critics Circle. 
   
Most movies even get awards for the script and the screen play but All Is Lost had no dialogue but Redford was still able to deliver a powerful performance which really resonates throughout the film, even without words you know what he's going through and all this just through his great acting!  

Right after the movie. Two thumbs up - just holding a cup of soda from the Director's Club Cinema at the New SM Fashion Hall in SM Megamall. 

Redford gets through one challenge after the next displaying a seaman and a survivor's strength and resiliance. I thought that he was a different kind of "action star" on a league of his own (a different kind  of action star) from his contemporary Liam Neeson's gun wielding, bone breaking, threatening-over-the-phone Taken character. 

Redford's sea-savy character definitely walked the walk as he knew the different sailor knots and even knew how to navigate the seas using a sextant (and I actually had to Google that since I had no idea what it was!) and he seemed to know all the equipment inside his boat. I guess if you would be sailing in the middle of the ocean you would know a thing or two (preferably a lot) about sailing. 

One thing that I really don't get about American Survivor films is - why would you do -anything potentially dangerous and life threatening?! (sailing, rock climbing, biking etc) alone?! 

I really can't comprehend taking up anything that could be remotely dangerous (if not life threatening) as a hobby. Can you tell with all the movies/tv series that I watch, the books that I read and the music that I listen to that I am a home buddy?). Although I have friends who have taken up mountain climbing as a hobby I would not be joining them any time soon. 

The whole sail around the world alone or travelling in an RV or on a boat as an idea of a good time or even retirement is a concept that is very foreign to us Filipinos (so let's just keep our limbs and leave it to the foreign films). 

Our grand parents or retired parents are mostly home buddies who are happy taking care of their grand children.  

Okay enough with the personal thoughts on the dangerous side of things and on with the movie review. Well can I just interject that I'm so glad that I was in the comfort of the La-Z-y boy I was sitting on in the new Director's Club Cinema at the new Fashion Hall (blog post here) because I would surely not want to be where Robert Redford was. I would not last a minute there! 

Aside from the great acting, the musical score of the movie was also amazing and I couldn't blame the producers for wanting to focus on the musical score of the movie which was done so well it really does move you and tugs at your heart which is probably by the movie won for Best Musical Score in a Motion Picture during the Golden Globes and it's also up for the same nomination for the Oscars. 

Brand New Director's Club at the SM Fashion Hall!

A panoramic shot of the new SM Director's Club.

There were two things that I was excited about with the special screening of All Is Lost and these were: 

1) The movie itself which has garnered raves and nomination nods from different respected award giving bodies (more on that in the movie review) and second reason was that --

2) the screening was in the spanking-brand new Director's Club at the new SM Fashion Hall in SM Megamall! ^___^ 

Paul and I have been lucky enough to experience the Director's Club in the Mall of Asia during the Naruto: Road to Ninja special advanced screening. You can read on that here. While we were in awe of the Director's Club here the new one at the SM Fashion Hall (right across the IMAX and right in front of the Skating Rink) really was a whole new level - it's even BIGGER and BETTER! 

There were more seats in the new Director's Club but it still maintains the private and exclusive feel which the Director's Club offers and which is just one of the things that makes the Director's Club experience so unique. 

Right outside the Director's Club! :) 

Of course any movie experience is not complete without something to munch on and the Director's Club even has it's own food and drink counter which sells various foods and drinks (at reasonable prices) that would definitely go well with the movie you're watching. 

The La-Z-boys are super comfortable and can be adjusted to your preferred angle (with a foot rest too!) with a touch of the button, speaking of buttons, there was also a button per table which you can press to get assistance from the very friendly staff at SM Director's Club! Wait-what? There's a table? Let me back up just a bit, for each pair of La-Z-boys there is a table in between where you can put your food and drinks, there are even cup holders! Which I appreciate so much since it is challenging to juggle popcorn and food while watching movies.   

Two thumbs up for All is Lost - movie review in another blog post :) 

  

Paul was just so happy that there was a place where you can store your bags underneath the table. If you know us for some time now, you would bear witness to the huge bags that we bring with us everywhere, every day. 

And of course the Director's Club had it's own comfort room inside! ^_^

Each La-Z-boy had a 'head cover' of sorts like the one you see on top :) 

More to see at the brand new SM Fashion Hall! 

Of course there was the great big screen, the booming surround system completing that great cinematic experience! Make sure to check out the brand new Director's Club at the new SM Fashion Hall in SM Megamall! If you have a movie that you have been looking forward to see then watch it here-it will definitely elevate that movie experience and make it more memorable! ^_^ 

30 Seconds to Mars Album Buyout

The Echelon family with their Cds and their prizes 

This was our third time to cover an album buy out from Odyssey (the first one was for Paramore and the second one was for Fallout Boy) and you know what they say - the third time is the charm. 

This most recent album buy out was for Thirty Seconds to Mars' Love Lust Faith + Dreams album. 

Like always - fan support was awesome! We got to see Echelon Philippines have a lot of fun with the games, the band performances and the great prizes from the sponsors! :) 

Game winners with their prizes :) 

Some of the games included a lot of singing and when you are a true fangirl/fanboy or for this case a true Echelon there was no need to convince anyone to go up to the front to sing - people just went on their own accord - no need to force them. Th and tere was even a wacky dance off with Thirty Seconds to Mars' 'Up in the air'. 

Diachroma

Aside from covering Thirty Seconds to Mars songs, local bands: Diachroma, Yuko and Progeny also performed impressive original songs. 

Movie Premiere: Now You See Me

So earlier was the Movie Premiere of 'Now You See Me' at SM Megamall and we were once again fortunate enough to be invited by Pioneer Films (Movie Punch) to catch the premiere screening. 

We immediately noticed that we would be sharing this movie experience with 106.7 Energy FM which was the Media Partner for the event. It was also sponsored by Pizza Hut :) 

There were some games before the movie started and I really, really wanted to win that Palm Card! Hello! Pizza Hut! Palm Card (ahem, ahem) I just suck big time when it comes to draw lots. (I never win!) 

So after the games and obligatory photos were done, we settled right in to start the movie, I must say though I really liked the new video for the National Anthem, it featured modern day heroes, like a fireman rescuing a baby (instead of 'Chicago Fire' it could have easily been 'Tondo Fire'), OFW's, a doctor in the barrio etc. I personally liked it more than the spot the actor/playing the National Hero video. Kudos to GMA 7 for the production. 

It was a good thing I was able to catch the trailers - because I love trailers and the trailers that were previewed were all upcoming movies from Movie Punch. 

Click on the links below to check out the trailers. Excited for each one :) 

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Mortal Instruments: The City of Bones

Red 2 

Do Yuou see what I see? 

Like I always, I have a separate movie review from the movie premiere post, so I will (try to) save most of what I thought of the film but I will definitely say that it was amazing! I know I said in an earlier blog post that it was a cross between Ocean's 13 and The Prestige but now that I have seen it I would want to add another movie in the mix and this is one of my favorite movies I might add- The Italian Job.