s or t?? ah! wht a dilemma!!

Evanston updates

• The place has taught me how to greet ‘Hi’ to one and all without any awkwardness. I’ve always felt sort of ill at ease when people greet me on roads, more so if I’m not too familiar with the person. Indeed, my most hated moment in flights is when a beautiful, well made-up stewardess greets me with an uncomfortable cheerfulness. I’m the sort of person who would look at the person from a distance and silently hope that he/she is looking down or away from me so that I can pretend I didn’t notice him/her either. Having spent some time over here has, however, done wonders to my greeting skills. Everyone does a “How are you doing?” to everyone and everyone replies with a “Fine. How about you?” It has been a revelation. I have mastered the art of greeting everyone. Now I only hope someone doesn’t snub me and my new-found talent with that cold, are-you-freakin’-mad look when I get home.
• More often than not, as I look left and right before crossing the road, a car comes and stops in front of me, waiting for me to cross the road. This, to say the least, is freaking embarrassing for me. I have never enjoyed such respect on any road I have crossed in my life, and it has come as a shock to me. I have even tried to politely decline their offer, indicating with my hand to make them pass first, but they are adamant. I can now finally extend my arms, and feel like a ‘king-of-the-road’.
• I’ve never seen snow before my trip here and had a fairly romantic notion about it. However, it has proved to be more of a nuisance than magnificence. Perhaps it is the cold I’m actually scared of, and I can fall in love with snow again soon enough.
• If I miss anything of the food over here, it is going to be Swiss Miss and the 'Suicide' wings from Buffalo Joe's. The Swiss Miss saved me from the cold i was suffering from and the Joe's wings have become an addiction. (I was surprised my manager had noticed that!) Otherwise, food has been pretty ordinary, in spite of the numerous restaurants that you can find in the small area.
  

The Bird People in China

(this review is posted simultaneously at reelsuave. thanks to the editor, john, for his effort. visit reelsuave to discover some extraordinary cinema.)

“And again I slept thousands of times, but I have never seen a dream of myself flying.”

It is one of those movies you are scared of writing about lest you might end up robbing the reader of the joy of discovering the movie by himself. I strongly suggest that you go ahead and watch the movie in case you haven’t, before reading this.

The movie doesn’t fit into any genre. It almost seems like a fantasy but it is so real in parts; it is humorous indeed with genuine laugh-out-loud moments, and yet takes a look at life that leaves the viewer thinking a long time after the movie is over. Above all, it is a movie about the triumph of human belief. Buoyed by touches of exquisite humor, fantasy, love, innocence, hope and magic, the movie ushers in a new wave of cinematic experience. And to think that the director is mostly known for his mastery in depicting exaggerated violence, horror and bizarre sexual perversions, as in movies like “Ichi the killer”, and in the segment “Box” in “Three.. Extremes”, it is indeed a treat from director Takashi Miike.

The movie is about a Japanese businessman and a yakuza who end up in a small village in the depths of Yun Nan province of China, untouched by human civilization. While the first part of the movie details the journey of the two, the second shows the transformation underwent by the two after they reach the magical village. And magical it is, as the director succeeds in depicting – seemingly impossible incidents, but filled with such belief and innocence that you cannot but believe it yourself.

The movie is accompanied by enchanting visuals and a haunting soundtrack that weaves in seamlessly into the fabric of the movie. It helps in enduring the pleasant, magical aura of the entire movie. The actors are genuine and don’t make a single mistake that would otherwise distract the enraptured viewer. Before one realizes, the transformation of the characters is already complete. The end of the movie leaves the viewer unmovable, and yet reeling under an unfathomable force, floating with feet firmly on ground!

Make this journey and you will have reached a place you have never been to before!