Yesterday, the Roman Catholic Church commemorated the Epiphany of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The more common name used is the Feast of the Three Kings although this has been taught that those 3 men who paid homage to the Holy Child were not Kings but Magis or Wise Men from the East. Epiphany comes from a Greek word epiphaneia which means “manifestation”. In my own basic understanding of my faith, the visit of the 3 Magis to the newly born Jesus sends an unmistakable message that this Child was special and was in fact the fulfillment of God’s promise of salvation of mankind from sin as narrated and prophesized throughout salvation history. This child is no ordinary child. He is the Son of God, the Messiah, who will preach the Good News to all the peoples of the World and to bring salvation to all.
Yesterday also officially marked the end of the Christmas season of the Church and the new Church Luturgical calendar will begin counting Sundays of Ordinary time which will be interrupted by the Lenten season sometime in February or March during the commemoration of Ash Wednesday. To all readers out there, I hope 2007 Christmas celebration was a happy and meaningful one in your journey as a Christian Catholic pilgrim.
***
I set aside my blog entry for today on some lighter topics such as movies. I am one movie buff and I would like to take this opportunity to share with you, the best movies that I was able to watch in 2007. I mean I am going to have a little countdown here.
At No. 10. Pan’s Labyrinth. It was a Spanish fairy tale but its content was too deep and too haunting. I was really affected even days after I watch the movie. It was moving and powerful and that makes the movie unforgettable. The soundtrack was exceptional and melancholic.
At No. 9. A Good Year – A light romance starring Russel Crowe set in a vineyard. It’s a story of a stock seller who went to his late uncle’s estate in France to sell it only to be mesmerized by its beauty and mystery. The movie boasts of rich scenery and excellent cinematography and stars sensous women in Marion Cutilliard and Abbie Cornish (oh la la).
At. No. 8. Wild Hogs – It’s a comedy adventure of four middle aged men who embarked on a free wheeling journey to the West Coast with their Harley Davidson bikes. On the way, they encountered baddies and at the same discovered what matters most with their apparently loser lives. It featured the biggest names in Hollywood, Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence, William H. Macy, Marisa Tomei and Ray Liotta. It’s a wild ride, yeah!
At No. 7 Die Hard 4.0 Live Free Die Hard – The fourth and long delayed installment of the Die Hard franchise (the last one was in 1995). Bruce Willis again strut his unbreakable performance, (wounded and mauled yet no broken bones, c’mon you’re kidding me,) this time against the backdrop of modern electronic gadgets and sexy but butt kicking women like Maggie Q. Hiyaahh!
At No. 6 Spider Man 3 - The twist was unexpected. Toby Maguire delivers a superb performance. The stunts were great and the story line delivers the message loud and clear, “greater power comes greater responsibility,” qualities which my boss pitifully doesn’t have (wa, ha, ha, ha!). Actually, it looks like “Who is the Best Villain contest” with Toby Maguire, Topher Grace and James Franco all playing baddies at some point in time. My choice? Hmm, a hint. James Franco is too handsome to be a villain especially so when he dish out his devilish grin.
At No. 5 Transformers – Probably the best action film of 2007. I think its like I watched it 10 times or more. Its truly an entertaining movie. It’s a great date movie too. I am not shy though to admit that Megan Fox is one of the biggest reasons why I keep watching the movie all over again. My rocker in me was tickled by Linkin Park’s “What I’ve Done” soundtrack at the end of the movie.
At. No. 4 The Departed - Matt Damon and Leonardo Di Caprio play cat and mouse in this mob thriller directed by Martin Scorcese. Add Oscar Winner Jack Nicholson as the mob boss, Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen and Mark Wahlberg as law enforcers and you have a recipe for a great movie. Its another powerful and emotional movie for me. Before I forget, Vera Farmiga is hot and mysterious in this movie.
At. No. 3 American Gangster – Whats with the series of mob movies this year? Looks like it’s the trend in Hollywood. This time the movie is based on a true story of a Black Mob who was able to secure pure cocaine from Southeast Asia and transported it to the United States with the help of the United States military! Ha ha. It features an all star cast of Denzel Washington, Russel Crowe and Cuba Gooding Jr.
At. No 2. Zodiac – I got good scolding from my mom watching this movie late at night until the wee hours of the morning. What can I do? When I started watching it, it seems I couldn’t stop like I was part of the investigating team trying to unlock the puzzle of America’s most elusive and mysterious serial killer. It was worth it. The movie stars Jake Gylenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey Jr. among others. Its powerful, passionate and absolutely chilling.
At No. 1 The Bourne Ultimatum – Im in no mood to spend my viewing time for melodramatic and emotional movies nowadays. With all the problems we are dealing in real life, I guess the viewing public must be given a break and action movies like Bourne Ultimatum is just what’s needed to temporarily drown yourself in a make believe world and forget reality.
Okay, although the story is quite too good to be true, the entire movie has brought me at the edge of my seat. At one time, I show it in a bus and in no time my fellow passengers were hooked up into it that they become testy of their space especially so when someone blocked their view of the television. He he he. That’s how engaging this movie is. Lesser action but the story line is just disarming. The soundtrack was the best. Bourne Ultimatum stars Matt Damon and Julia Stiles.
Outside the loop are the gay movie Superbad, La Vie En Rose, the Edith Piaf biopic, Beowulf, No Country for Old Men and Sweeney Todd. I still have to see these movies except Superbad. Maybe I will include them for the countdown next year. I am particularly curious of No Country For Old Men which stars Julian Bardem as the serial killer. Julian Bardem plays a drug boss in the Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx thriller “Collateral” in 2004. Ratatouille was overrated for me. I watched the movie but I dont think it was really that good.
So there you go folks. I hope you enjoy this little piece of movie trivia. You can consider it as a movie review also. When you are intrigued and go out to rent or but these movies to see it for yourself, then I would say that I am quite successful in my review. Ciao!
