for my escapism

I always find myself dreaming of a place that smells like freshly cut grass and a sun that speaks of spring all year round. A place where I can sit and watch chickens feed on kernels as horses chew on hay. Where the sunrise and the sunset is separated by eternity and the streets are stretched by a mile. I always find myself dreaming of a place that is surrounded by roses, with a clothesline full of linens in everlasting white. Where there is no one I should be, no one to please, no one to disagree with, no one but me. Where the roads are wide meadows and moonlight sifts through oak trees every night. Where there is no tomorrow, only later, and daily conversations are of Proust, Austen and Monet. Where I could read and walk and read and walk and read. All day, all day, all day.

*poof*...there goes January ;-)

The Dreamers

What? I'm not going out to party on a friday? Yeah, well you're in the wrong blog. I'm pretty much reclusive and would rather spend my night alone in my room, reading Franny and Zooey in the memory of JD Salinger and giving in to my inner Francophile by watching french films.

1. The Dreamers (2008) because I live vicariously through Eva Green in this movie. I think I can convincingly say that twins Theo and Isabelle have surpassed the almighty powers of Julio and Julia, ang kambal ng tadhana. (Hahaha. What the fuck?!) They are smart, sensual and very, very, very disturbing. I love Isabelle's two personas, the quotes she blurts out of the blue and her sensuality that follows her from the fresh morning to the lusty velvet night skies. I won't blog about Michael Pitt except for the fact that he's a sub-par version of lovely Leonardo DiCaprio. Then again, casting the original choice would mean taking the spotlight away from the brooding, mysterious, enchanting Louis Garrel--who is the real gem of this movie.
2. The Dead Poets Society (1989) because I have a thing for expansive (and expensive) education. Movies like this make me wish I wasn't born in the third world and had a chance to attend an expensive prep school. The kind that has Archery in the middle of the woods on a Wednesday, the kind whose students form relationships with boys from the only prep school 300 miles in the vicinity. I love Professor Keating, there are so many pockets of wisdom I can pick on in this movie. Yes, that includes cliches. Just like my writing. Just like myself.

Class (1983)

I'm trying to watch all the eighties films that starred the Brat Pack so when I read from an online source that Class was Andrew McCarthy, John Cusack and Rob Lowe's first forray into acting, I didn't hesitate. Obviously, just like any McCarthy/Cusack movie, I fell in love with it as they wrote the definition of charming. I tried to cap the entire movie but I ended up so engrossed (even if it wasn't my first time to watch it) that I was only able to cap a chosen few. What can I say? I think Class beats National Lampoon and American Pie movies but I don't think they belong to the same genre. Class switches from drama to comedy without any segue while the latter set played with only comedy and sex, without any other sub-plots. This movie is so full of cliches but that's precisely why we love and buy all plots about coming-of-age, isn't it? If you liked The Graduate (1967), you'll love The Class (1983) too.

When You Are Engulfed In Flames

I don't really blog about my books much. I think I should. My books tell better stories than I do, and the characters I read about and eventually fall in and out of love with have richer tapestries than the blanket I call life.

So for tonight, I'll tell you about the book I'm currently reading called "When You Are Engulfed In Flames" by David Sedaris.

I thought since it is a compilation of stories about life, mortality, aging and death, it would make me feel better about my pragmatism. I cannot say that it did but I do admit that the stories are interesting and at times, too hilarious for words. The book is an homage to the saying "Never take life seriously, no one gets out of it alive". I love it and I'm (in a totally silly way) trying to read slowly so that I don't finish the book in my usual time frame. I'd recommend this book for anyone who's going through the pains of permanent separation. The book doesn't necessarily direct the reader to a spiritual epiphany but it does highlight the humorous side of life and death. It's a good read, not a great read, but good nonethless. David Sedaris is widely popular in American literary circles for his sharp tack, witty dialogue and powerful short essays. I can't say this book is his best book but it is at par with Dress Up Your Family In Corduroy and Denim and Me Talk Pretty One Day. Naked, well that's another story.. :)

Blankets

Finally got my hands on my own copy of Blankets by Craig Thompson. My mom's best friend ordered a few painting books by Jerry Yarnell through my Tita E's friend from the Bronx. I figured I could ask her to buy me Blankets too so that I can get it when she arrives here in Manila. She did last January 12 and I got the book a few days after! Yay! This book is so hard to find, especially if you're from the South like I am! I also got it for a fraction of the price ($17.00 as opposed to 1500++ here in Manila) so I am happy as a clam! I can't wait to start reading it. The last graphic novel that I read was Trese by Budjette Tan and it was amusing but I want something a little bit more. I've been wanting to read this on paper ever since I was sixteen and have gone to great lengths just to stop myself from searching an online version. I'm excited! The book is kind of thick but it looks like it's easy to read. The illustrations are especially wonderful. If I can get through this, maybe I can get through Persopolis 1 & 2 next. Suh-weet!:)

The Handmaid's Tale

I finished reading Margaret Atwood's A Handmaid's Tale. It is one of those books that make you feel like you're reading it for the first time even if you're actually reading it for the fiftieth. I cannot get over the story of this book. I've grown so attached to Offred and the Commander's story that I found myself romantacizing about them whenever I think of love stories in fiction. I've always had a fondness for men like the Commander--Strong, stern and in control on the outside, broken on the inside. Just like the Republic of Gilead. It only looks right but it isn't.

One thing I learned from this book is that no matter how much we try to put things in order (or at least in the way we'd like them to be), anarchy will always exist. Revolts and rebellion will always be the delicious side dishes to an entree called "states". Dystopia is both unfathomable yet fascinating. Thoughts about gender bias and sexual repression stirs the tigress in me but I always find myself getting caught up in the trance that is Margaret Atwood's prose. She has a way with reconstruction, I tell you. A reconstruction that is surprisingly swift, smooth and fluid throughout a fragile book. One wrong sequence and everything goes for a nosedive. It is brilliant, really.

Now, I'm ecstatic because I found out there IS a film adaptation of this movie! The Handmaid's Tale, The Film (Volker Schlöndorff, 1990). I am over the moon! This! Is! Excellent! I've always wondered how Gilead looks like. In my mind, it's a cross between Germany during the Cold War, Cuba during the Kennedy years and American suburbs after the ostentatious flapper era. I don't know if the movie will prove me wrong but I can't wait.

Mrs. Robinson

Today, I will try my best to get through The Graduate even if Dustin Hoffman's height bothers me to a great deal.

St. Elmo's Fire

Today is all about old movies. If I had been born in the seventies, I would have been the greatest Brat Pack fan girl. Have some wonderful, wonderful, wonderful Andrew McCarthy.