HKFA 2008

For the longest time, I had given up on watching the Hong Kong Film Awards ceremonies. You often hear people give their reasons for disliking the show (fixed results, always the same people nominated/awarded, boring) but to me the biggest reason for not watching is the simple fact that it's hard to respect a program that doesn't respect itself.

For example, my biggest beef with the show is the way the Nominee Clips are so randomly cut. These clips are supposed to demonstrate why the nominee deserves to win, which means that they represent the best performance in the entire movie. Yet year after year, the most arbitrary cuts are shown. I remember one year, the category was for Best Supporting Actress and the clip that was played for one nominee featured a scene where she was being embraced by another actress. That alone wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that the nominee's back faced the camera for the entire clip, and all the lines were given by the other actress. I mean, do you really think that scene showcases the nominee's talent? Similar clips involving close-up shots of performers' faces for Best Costume Design were laughably irrelevant.

And then there's the horrible writing for the award presenters. Traditionally, the banter between the presenters wasn't just awkward, it was painful to watch. I always thought to myself, If this is the best that professional writers can come up with, then no wonder the film industry is doing so poorly.

So as I said earlier, it's a matter of respect. How can you expect me to respect the awards show when those responsible for it didn't respect themselves?

Anyways, during dinner last night the restaurant I was at televised this year's awards ceremony so I got to glimpse at bits and pieces. The banter was still insanely painful to watch but I did notice some improvements in the quality of the Nominee Clips. Many of the Acting categories still featured the occasional random cut but other categories like Art Direction and Costume showed rather meaningful clips (BTW, why is Best Costume and Make-up lumped into 1 category? Shouldn't it be broken up into 2? Guess it just shows the lack of importance placed on these 2 aspects; it's all about the performers).

Also, it was nice to see 5 separate nominees in each category. I understand that the HK film industry is very small so it's a bit difficult to have non-repeating nominees, but in the past it was just plain silly to have 1 actor nominated for 3 out of the 5 spots in the same category (although I have to admit that I found it rather funny one year when one of such nominee lost; losing when you have a 1/5 chance is nothing to be ashamed of, but to hold 60% of spots and still lose is pretty embarrassing).

So after 27 years, I guess the-powers-that-be have finally gotten off these asses and have begun to make some changes. It's way overdue, but better late than never.

Make the time

We live such busy lives today and it seems like there aren't enough hours in a day to do everything we'd like to do. But if something's important enough, you make the time for it.

Y'all know that I'm an exercise freak. I used to exercise 6 times a week (3 days of weights and 3 days of running) but ever since switching jobs, I've had to cut down to 2 days of weight training and the occassional jog. The problem is that leaving work late means that there's no time to go running before dinner, and running afer meals isn't the best of ideas. Luckily, my workplace has a nice little gym complete with treadmills, steps and weight machines. My application was finally approved last week and I did my first session today during lunch. Seems that nobody uses the place so I had it all to myself. Ditto the changing room and showers.

It actually felt pretty refreshing to work out in the middle of the day. Getting the blood pumping, taking a shower and having a light lunch really woke me up for the rest of the afternoon (instead of the usual drowsy feeling after an hour-long lunch).

Who says that longer working hours = no time to stay in shape?

Cheung Po Tsai

Saturday was bright and sunny so I decided to visit Cheung Chau for a quiet getaway. Normally it gets quite crowded but since this was a long weekend and also Ching Ming festival, most people were either away on trips or paying their respects at cemetaries.

The US Navy is in town so I got a few good glimpses at their ships.

Too bad the USS Nimitz was docked far away and in the fog. It would have been nice to see this supercarrier more clearly


The main objective of this trip was to see Cheung Po Tsai Cave. I've been to Cheung Chau many times but I never got around to venturing to that part of the island. FYI, Cheung Po Tsai was a famous 19th century pirate who eventually became a captain in the imperial navy. The Cave is supposedly one of the places where he hid his loot.

The cove where the cave is located:


A quick history lesson:



This is the entrance to the cave. Really just a gap in the rocks; definitely impossible to find without the all signs and maps.


Once (or if) you manage to squeeze through the small entrance, there's a small ladder that leads down into the cave. Word of advice: bring a strong flashlight with you, because it's pitch black inside. There's a guy who rents flashlights for $5 or $15 for a guided tour. If it's your first time visiting, it's best to go for the tour since it's pretty dark and cramped in there and it's really helpful to have someone point out where all the steps and ladders are.


Here's a photo to show how dark it is even with the flashlight on. Always be mindful of bumping your head against the low ceiling.


Just to give you an idea of how narrow some of the passages are:



Finally, the Exit.

A wider shot of the exit. As you can see from the person exiting, it's quite a small opening.


BTW, you can either walk to the caves from the main ferry dock (takes about 35~40 minutes) or you can take a small ferry called a "kai to":





I'd recommend taking the kai to. It's only $3 and for a 7 minute ride to the cave docks (10 minutes from the cave). Might as well save your strength for all the climbing and squatting needed for visiting the caves.

Afterwards, just walked around to kill time before dinner. Doesn't this look like the head and snout of a pig?


A local fisherman with his crop of kelp


A view from one of the many rock formations:


Don't see many sunsets like this in the city anymore

Will the real Scary please raise her hand?

You know, I was never a fan of the Spice Girls but I always thought that David Beckham married Posh, aka the pretty one? But considering the Spice Girls reunion and looking at Victoria now, I'm wondering if she should adopt the mantle of Scary Spice?

Exhibit A:


The first time I saw this ad was on the side of a building and it scared the bejeebers out of me. I mean, look at her! I know she's pretending to be a doll but she looks more like a malnourished-zombie-robot-tranny. The harsh lighting and awful make-up don't help but ultimately it's the art direction that makes this photo look so, so wrong.

Actually, I just did a quick Google Image search and came up with the pics below. I think Marc Jacobs must have some sort of issue with Victoria, considering the entire look of the campaign:





My only question is: Did Victoria get to look at the proofs before they were printed? Coz it's hard to believe that anyone would let such grotesque photos of themselves go into a globalwide campaign.