noble Soldier

Not long ago I had the chance to watch ‘Act of Valor’ on the big screen and I thought it was a pretty good film. If you don’t know what the movie’s about, the story revolves around a Navy SEAL team that are engaged in several conflicts across the globe in search of a kidnapped CIA agent that holds information vital to preventing a terrorist attack on the USA. The movie is acted out by active duty Navy SEALS (simply put, real soldier, still serving today), probably done to give the movie its realism. 

The film has been widely criticised for not being dramatic enough, with critics saying the directors should have trusted real working actors to perform instead. They also said it to be lacking emotional depth and nothing more than propaganda for the U.S army. I agree that there may be several people that feel that way, especially casual movie goers who may have been hoping for something a little like Saving Private Ryan or Black Hawk Down. Personally, I don’t agree with any of that at all, now here’s why.

Most, if not all of the time, we see soldiers through movies and games where there’re tonnes of epic explosions, unending machine gunfire and the like. Movies and games have an obligation to tell a story of conflict and perseverance, showing how the main character can survive and push his way through every gunfight until he kills the ‘boss’ that ends the story so the West can live another day. That’s what we’ve come to expect from any action movie, although in recent years we’ve become more critical of its realism. Its because we want such movies to feel more ‘personal’, not to mention attainable, that if we tried hard enough we could actually be a gun slinging hero.

The thing is, a lot like love, war doesn’t happen against the backdrop of orchestral heart-tugging music or unending drama. Its as straightforward as, if you get shot, that’s it. There’s no round two or re-spawning. When you’re downed, its lights out and your body will go home in a body bag (if you’re lucky that is).

Where Act of Valor shines is in showing the audience a taste of what its really like to be a soldier. One thing the film really does bring out that others don’t is the sense of professionalism you get from these people. We never really think of soldiers as people with professional jobs, we often think of them as just ‘soldiers’. In this film, you get a real feel of how serious they are about their work and how focused they are, not on killing everybody, but always pushing for the objective and strategising to make sure every team mate isn’t put in unnecessary danger. To an extent, it can look boring at times, but that’s how real life is isn’t it? Its not exciting all the time. 

The human side of soldier life is definitely on display throughout the film. There’s that moment when a wife says goodbye to her husband before he leaves for duty, closing the door afterwards and weeping because she can’t tell if he’s going to come back alive even if he’s the best of soldiers as an experienced veteran.It only takes one shot to take a life, anything can happen in a gunfight. There’s also the camaraderie among men in the same unit, the men who trust each other with their lives in every battle. It doesn’t play out much emotionally, but you can see the manly bond there, which is what it should be.

One thing you can see in Act of Valor, is that it pays its dues to real life and the practical aspects of being a man on the front lines. By the end of the movie, you don’t see an Armageddon like march after the heroes have come home. You see a man who has lost an eye, you see a man that has been reduced from a fit soldier to someone crippled and reduced to the mechanics of a wheelchair, you see a man who is buried, who never got to see his new-born child and lastly, you see a widow with a child that has lost her husband.

At the end of it all, it showed how much dedication and sacrifice it takes to be a true soldier. It even highlighted how difficult it can be for the people who love them, because in itself they are making a sacrifice loving someone they could lose at any moment.

I will take a moment to address and be fair to the critics who say soldiers aren’t really like that. You don’t need to remind me of the U.S marine who shot dead 16 civilians in Afghanistan and the Syrian army killing thousands of unarmed men and women, perhaps even children. Yes, there are the despicable men unworthy of their uniform, and they are a total disgrace. That said, it doesn’t fully reflect the character of the many soldiers who faithfully serve their countries across the globe.

In all of this, what remains true is that it’s hard to be a soldier. Sometimes we don’t give them enough credit or recognition because we don’t see what they do. The dedication and commitment people like those give for their country is nothing short of admirable and courageous.

At the end of the movie when the credits started rolling, nobody in the hall wanted to be the first to leave. Everybody just sat still, totally silent for at least five to ten seconds; as if leaving would be very disrespectful, even though NAVY SEALS have nothing to do with Malaysia. There was just that sense of respect within a sombre atmosphere. It seems everybody got the message and its left me with a real respect for those who choose to serve their country in this way, whether all the way in the USA or right here in Malaysia.

Now, that’s why I think this is a great movie.

song Writing

I think ever since I picked up the guitar in high school, or even before then, I’d daydream a lot about playing in a punk rock band in front of the whole school. I never got to do that, although I finally did when I got into university. The second thing I’d think about would be writing my own songs, something I could call my own. It’s always nice to cover your favourite song, but when you sing your own, its a whole different thing.

I still remember my first attempt. I had no idea what I was doing, randomly trying to sing out lyrics that would sound kind of good and then figure out what chords fit with them. Khye Shin came along and helped me with it. I think it was his first time too if I’m not mistaken, so the first song either of us wrote would be together.

Sadly, right now, I don’t even have a recording of it, let alone the lyrics or the chords although I remember it was a really low key and rather minor-ish. After that, I wouldn’t write again for a long time because I was probably busy fulfilling my teenage duties of schooling and playing computer games when I shouldn’t, hahahahaha!

It was a really long period between my first and second song writing endeavour, because the next try was after I got into university. I was still in secondary school the first time.

Thinking back, it was very impromptu, because I hadn’t made a conscious effort to write another song. I saw something on our cell’s blog that got me thinking, and I just thought it’d be really cool if I wrote a song about it and so I did.

The amazing thing was that, from the moment I started, lyrics just came and it all fit together pretty well (at least I think so, hahaha). From the verse, to the chorus, to the bridge, it all came so naturally, the chords, everything! And no, I did not require any substance abuse methods to make it work, hahah.

This was the result, the debut of the song I wrote for the guys and gals in Hearts United:

Hearts United – the debut in 2008

By the way, pardon the long hair, hahahaha! Like I said, I always imagined being in punk rock, so I played it, tried to look like it too. I wouldn’t mind going back to that, but there are many reasons not too, which is besides the point of everything else I’m writing anyhow.

Honestly, right up until today, it still is the favourite out of any of the songs I’ve written. It’s not that I have written a lot, if you ask me to play everything I’ve written, I can only remember three out of probably four or five.

The last one I wrote was probably last year, very punk-ish I’d say. I love that song too, but it still can’t beat my all time favourite that was written way before. I think I should take another crack at it, maybe there’s something even better waiting to be unearthed. Who knows eh?

island Return

Its been a while, a few years as a matter of fact, since I last stepped foot on Penang island. While still very much recognisable, I did see a few things that have changed in that time. For one thing, its a lot cleaner than it was, plus more and more properties seem to be coming up, not to mention a few places with modern facelifts.

Coming back to Penang this year was kind of nostalgic for me, especially since I haven’t been there for Chinese New Year in a long time. For one reason or another, I was a lot more keen to be there than I was previously, hoping to see most of the places I did as when I was a little boy.

Whether it was Campbell Street, Penang Road, Transfer Road, Gurney or wherever, I was just happy to be there. Mind you, Penang’s not my hometown, but it contains more than a few memories from my childhood. Of course, the most iconic place for me would be where I’d stay almost every time I went to Penang.



You know you’re in a different ‘class’ of building when you see switches like the one above, or the vintage Telekom logo on an ‘old school’ telephone too:



Of course, anywhere you go, the place doesn’t matter a tenth as much as the people you meet in them. That’s where the closest people to my family come into the picture. The Chinese side of my family probably isn’t the closest but my parents are more than familiar with my grandaunt and granduncle who we’ve been close to for many many years.

It was really great to visit them in Penang, especially since the last time was for my great grandmother’s funeral, a sad occasion of course. To me, they’ve hardly aged beyond the time I knew them, which I suppose means they’re in pretty good health. It was nice to hear their voice, and fun to listen to some of their witty remarks, hahah.

Food of course, was another thing I was there for, but its a little different with it being Chinese New Year of course. The only ‘Chinese’ hawker place I got to eat at was at New Lane, but it was more than enough.


Char Kuay Teow


Hokkien Char


Fried platter


Roasted chicken wings

Of course, there was Penang road as well, obviously for the cendol, it just has to be one of the best desserts in the world.

Probably, one of the clearest memories I have of Penang as a child is walking down Campbell street during school holidays. I was always there to get a new schoolbag, only my mother knows why. It was nice to walk down there, even if 90% of the shops were closed for the new year, hahaha.





More than the before-school shopping though, Hameediyah is another fond memory. Of course, back then being a kid (or any human being), I got hungry and I remember going into Hameediyah for the murtabak, which unfortunately is less awesome than it was (since nowadays everybody’s cheating by loading more egg than meat), but they still have good curries.




Kambing Mysore, a must try!

That aside, while in Penang I finally went to a place I haven’t been since I was in primary school! Penang’s botanical gardens are probably one of the better parks in Malaysia that I’ve been to and you’ve got to love those sections where its cool even on a blazing hot afternoon, thanks to the streams and thick foliage.



I got around to Straits Quay as well, definitely one of Penang’s new uppity places. If you don’t think so, the presence of the new Penang Performing Arts Centre and the many yachts should convince you, that is if you haven’t already seen the upcoming (probably multi-million ringgit) condos.

It’s a lovely place, right on the coast, whoever lives there will have a really nice view, and you’ll get to be on the view if you’re sailing a yacht. Any plans to be on a Penang postcard, anyone?



A few days into my stay, I was already posting up a few photos of Penang foods online when I got an anonymous text asking me, “Dude, Buat apa kat penang?”

I totally forgot that Syah’s from Penang and Farhan had followed him up for the weekend, en route to Hanif’s wedding which I’d have to miss. I tried to set a time to meet the guys, but timing wasn’t great, which is really too bad because I haven’t seen them since I left UTP.

Still, I got to meet my British friend of a Hokkien origin, hahah. I got a pretty neat souvenir out of it and an overdue face-to-face meet. Someone’s cheeks are getting rounder these days (safe to say since she probably won’t read), hahahaha!



That pretty much was the end of my time in Penang, taking a flight back to KL later the next day. I’ve got to give a lot of credit to my grandaunt and granduncle for their awesome hospitality (as it has always been since I can remember) and good company. Thank you very much aunty Sally and uncle Ong. =)

lunar Beginning

To everybody out there, happy Chinese New Year!



Have a great time with your families and some awesome food!

skippys Pizza

Back in December I was in KL for a while and my mother told me about this place for ribs and pizza, which is none other than today’s entry title. A lot of the time, you might hear about a place for pizza or pork ribs, but not both at the same place. Skippys is one such place where you can get both I suppose.

Unlike most eateries of its sort, it isn’t somewhere upscale or a shop lot that attracts a lot of foot traffic on weekends. Its in Phileo Damansara 1, an office district where you’ll find Eastin Hotel and The Star newspaper headquarters very close by. If you’re not sure how to get there, you can refer to this map: http://bit.ly/wERPNz



Its not the biggest of restaurants you’ll go to. There are a lot of other restaurants similar to Skippys is that have a larger seating capacity but it does add to a more homely atmosphere. I remember counting the seats the other day, and it can probably accommodate no more than 40 people at most. One plus point about Skippy’s is  it displays its menu with pricing outside, so you don’t have to stress over how much you think you’ll have to dish out for lunch over there.



Once you enter, you’ll understand what I mean by a homely atmosphere. Very minimalist decor and warm lights will make you feel you’re having your meal at six when it’s only one or three o’clock. The tables and chairs are very spacious so you won’t feel cramped up sitting side by side unlike some restaurants.

 
From the menu, its obvious Skippys thrives on its pizza offerings than anything else. It covers almost the entire page, so where’re the ribs? You’ll find the pork ribs and lasagna among others in the ‘side orders’ section. Funny how ribs fit into ‘side orders’, and french fries doesn’t make the cut, hahaha. 

Anyway, the weekday lunch specials seem a pretty decent deal for the sort of eatery it is. I didn’t have it that day, but I’ll probably head down for it sometime. Having your more than average sort of meat with rice and a drink probably isn’t too bad for RM 15.

The reason I didn’t try the lunch special was because I was there for something even more special. Like I said in the beginning, a place for pizza and ribs, which is exactly what I ordered.



I have to admit being a little gluttonous hearing that Skippy's was a place for meat, so I obviously went for the Meat Lovers pizza. According to the menu’s description, its toppings are a glorious combination of pork bacon, pork ham, pork pepperoni,  minced pork and barbeque sauce (someone please tell me the difference between ham and bacon)!



One of the other things to love about this pizza other than its generous toppings of all things piggy-like, was its crispy thin crust. I admit I am a rather big fan of thin-crust pizzas. Its suits this one anyway, you don’t need a thick crust when you’ve got a heavy topping. For all meats, a universal rule always applies, meaty and crispy go together like Brad and Angelina.

The ribs were next of course, and I was very curious how they’d be like. I’ve always had a liking for ribs, both in Western and Chinese styles, but I’ve been disappointed many a time, so I was hoping for a different experience this time around. It arrived in some sexy black sauce:



Apparently, these bad boys are dipped into 7 sauces. Which sauces they are, I have no idea, go ask the cook. Now, I have to be fair here. The ribs weren’t fantastic but still rather good. The sauce is a little thick and sweetish, but not too sweet. The ribs themselves have got enough meat and are rather long-ish.

I obviously had a very meaty affair at Skippys and it is a place I would love to visit again soon. You should definitely give it a try if you have the time. Even if you’re not the meat eater type, vegetarian pizzas are on the menu too. If you try the lunch set, let me know how it is. I’m curious to know if they’re as good as their a-la-carte offerings.

For menu prices, delivery services and more information, you can visit:
http://www.skippyspizza.com/

feeling Christmas

Christmas is over and we’re all looking to usher in 2012. While people may be reflecting on the year as of late, I’ve been thinking a lot more about how Christmas has been this year.

With it being an end of year celebration, how good Christmas feels tends to be dependant on how good a year its been. On a global scale it wasn’t great with numerous natural disasters, economic political problems in Europe, and uprisings in the middle east, which are still on going as it is. There wasn’t much to be joyful about, that’s for sure.

Malaysia hasn’t been lost out on troubles of its own, and for me even as November came about (the time Christmas rings a bell), I was actually quite indifferent about the 25th. While I knew it was coming, I couldn’t help thinking it would be just another day, and the weeks before simply a typical year end consumer fest.

I had decided to spend Christmas with my family, so I took my leave and got them a couple of presents. While shopping for gifts, I noticed the malls were decorated Christmas-like as always but it didn’t feel much more than ordinary. Christmas decorations were less than previous years and some shops were dressed for the lunar new year instead.

All this indifference, the seemingly non-existence of a Christmas ‘spirit’ got to me, and I resigned to expecting a casual holiday that wouldn’t bring much meaning. As I’m a Christian, I know perfectly well that Christmas is hardly about presents, friends, or even family for that matter. Its about the birth of Jesus Christ, but that failed to sink in somehow.

Christmas day finally arrived, and there wasn’t any sudden magic that made it all better. I woke up no different from any other Sunday, and went to church that morning. As I sat down before the service began, listening to Michael Buble renditions of Christmas tunes playing over the speakers, I hoped something would happen in church that would give me back that reason for the season.

The worship band led the church in a number of Christmas themed songs before presenting a special item. It was an inaudible sketch with the band playing a song in the background, much like a music video. Contrary to popular assumption, it had nothing to do with the nativity scene, the birth of Jesus and all that.

Details be spared, it was mainly about a person growing up, being taught in His ways at the beginning but distracted and caught up in so many other things afterwards. Eventually trapped and entangled by the situations of her own life, she cries out to God for mercy and He rescues her, paying the ransom for her sins.

Then, Pastor Paul came on the stage to deliver his sermon. He spoke, with reference to a few things from the sketch. As human beings, we all seek acceptance and contentment in life, albeit in different forms. Romances carry the passion of the heart, money buys a convenient lifestyle, while alcohol and cigarettes give freedom from the worries of living. Eventually, problems come when you crave for more and it is not enough to satisfy the soul or to overcome a time of trouble. If anything, anyone with common sense would agree that over indulgence in any of these things would lead to more problems.

As the pastor said, “Money can buy a good bed, but it cannot buy a good night’s sleep. Money can buy a great meal, but it cannot buy a good appetite.”

He went on to preach, pointing out that how our needs are more of a spiritual than a physical nature. He began to share several testimonies of how God has been good and taken care of the needs of those who love Him. He closed his sermon by asking those who wanted to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and saviour, who wanted to be free, who wanted to be healed to come towards the stage as a statement of faith, where people would come and pray for them.

Many people walked up to the front, many who probably had come to church for the first time or those who come only during Christmas time. I saw many people being prayed for at the front, and then Pastor Chew came on the stage to close the service, but before that, he shared something that happened while people were being prayed for.

He said, “You know, while I was down there, someone was telling me; you know pastor, I’ve been praying for my family for 10 years, and I’m so happy that all five of them are here in front with me today.”

Just then, everything clicked. That’s when I realised that Christmas isn’t merely a reminder of the birth of baby Jesus. Its actually a time to remember when real hope arrived for us on earth. It was because of this hope, that turned into blessing, then into a ransom for the sin of mankind that true freedom and peace is available to anyone if they just embrace it.

That’s what it’s really about, the freedom He’s given through His love for us. It’s no wonder when someone sees his or her family turn to Christ they become joyful. It’s because they’re finally free. I guess it’s not wrong to say Christmas is about presents, because it is about the best gift of all.

movie Tintin

Its been a pretty long while since I’ve blogged, but I’m a little out of ideas about what to write lately. Then, I remembered my most anticipated movie of the year ever since I knew it was coming out. I just couldn’t help it when I heard both Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg were working together on what would be my favourite comic to film adaptation, Tintin!

While probably unfortunately irrelevant to most kids and teenagers today, Tintin comics were certainly among the fond memories of my childhood and it just so happens that I have the entire collection! A young British reporter with an appetite for adventure gave a lot of room for Herge to write so many different stories in so many different places, both fictional and real.

I’d watched a 2D Tintin animated film (that followed the comic art to the letter) many years before, but up until now no one really made a big film on a global scale. After more than an entire decade of reading the comics, it has finally arrived.

It felt great to know that the movie would be based on my two favourites of the comic series, ‘The Secret of the Unicorn’ and ‘Red Rackham’s Treasure’! I remember reading them over and over so I couldn’t wait to see it on the big screen.

The opening credits reminded me a lot of the way that the last two James Bond movies have been opening with, except there was a lot more context to it and plenty of references to many of the different comics in the series, hinting at future sequels, which Steven Spielberg confirms there are already plans for one.

Anyway, the opening scene was excellent! They really unravelled Tintin bit by bit, a real treat to fans who were anticipating his look and voice on the big screen, not to mention the ever iconic Snowy as well.

Graphics in this movie were fantastic, a combination of realistic detail, combined with some cartoon type art that would remind you that you were watching an 3D Tintin cartoon, not a live action film. That’s exactly the way I would’ve wanted it to be.



The characters felt just the same as they did in the comics, Tintin being a smart, young and brave reporter with a curious head and Captain Haddock, the drunkard, hahaha! The Thompson brothers are a lot chubbier than they were in the comics, but just as clueless.

There was plenty of action to go around, gunfire, car chases, swordfights and the like. Excitement wasn’t lacking. You could say it got a little overboard even, when Captain Haddock got hold of a bazooka, not something you’ll find in any of the comics.

Still, one of the things I felt about the movie was that it tried to do too much. There were so many scenes and so many different characters, that it was too difficult to showcase all of them within the given time frame. In a way, the vast number of scenes made the movie look as if it was all over the place. In the end, the movie suffered from the lack of time given for the main characters to really shine. 

Nonetheless, I give it a three star rating for the debut of an adaptation of a classic comic. The nature of all the characters were well done and pay due respect to Tintin’s author. Its always great to see movies that stay true to their inspirations. A sequel to this first film would be well worth it. If Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg can avoid an overcomplicated storyboard on the next one, it’ll be well on its way to a five star rating.


Don’t you just love Snowy? Hope to see him again soon. =)


Photo Credits & Sources:
GeekTyrant