The Carver's House

My uninformed prediction for the win in itals... Best Picture Avatar The Blind Side District 9 An Education The Hurt Locker Inglourious Basterds Precious A Serious Man Up Up in the Air Directing James Cameron - Avatar Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker Quentin Tarantino - Inglorious Basterds Lee Daniels - Precious Jason Reitman - Up In The Air Actress Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side Helen Mirren - The Last Station Carey Mulligan - An Education Gabby Sidibe - Precious Meryl Streep - Julia & Julia Actor Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart George Clooney - Up In The Air Colin Firth - A Single Man Morgan Freeman - Invictus Jeremy Renner - The Hurt Locker Supporting Actress Penelope Cruz - Nine Vera Farmiga - Up In The Air Maggie Gyllenhaal - Crazy Heart Anna Kendrick - Up In The Air Mo’Nique - Precious Supporting Actor Matt Damon - Invictus Woody Harrelson - The Messenger Christopher Plummer - The Last Station Stanley Tucci - The Lovely Bones Christoph Waltz - Inglorious Basterds Animated Feat...

I loved him in I Am Sam , Carlito's Way , The Assassination of Richard Nixon , Mystic River , and Dead Man Walking , because there's always something new and fresh in his performances. Already with two Oscar noms plus one win, Penn's been my hands-down favorite Hollywood actor. Now Sean Penn has taken another Oscar-worthy role in Milk, directed by Gus van Sant. Penn portrays Harvey Milk , who in the 1970s became the first openly gay man elected to a major political post. To be released later this month in the US, Milk couldn't be any more timely with the recent passing of Proposition 8, which effectively limits the California constitution's definition of marriage as exclusive to heterosexuals, thus voiding thousands of already existing gay marriages in the state. Do watch the trailer of Milk.

When I appeared in Angels In America over a decade ago (my debut in professional theater), the reviews about my performance weren't very encouraging, so much so that I cried, nearly bawling my eyes out. I only got one glowing review--from the Manila Chronicle--which likened my performance to William Holden on Sunset Boulevard. While that piece of positive feedback did elevate my spirits, it wasn't enough to convince me that my performance was worth something in the entirety of Tony Kushner's opus. I only resolved to do my best in the remaining performances, and accept the truth that I was the "professional newbie" who didn't have years of hard theater acting experience compared to my fellow cast members. And there have been no regrets--1995 was still the best year of my life. (The image below was lifted from The Bachelor Girl . That's me on the top left--yes, I had hair. Also in the picture (clockwise, from top left): Tami Monsod, Lorna Lopez, Ebong Joson...

Last July 2007, the New Seven Wonders of the World were determined and declared by popular vote, a campaign spearheaded by The New7Wonders Foundation established by Canadian Bernard Weber. The new Seven Wonders are all man-made structures. Now the foundation is calling for votes for the New Seven Wonders of Nature, putting the spotlight on natural formations. As things stand as of this writing, the Philippines' Tubbataha Reef (in the Sulu Sea) sits in the Top 30. Our other nominees are the Chocolate Hills (in Bohol) and Mayon Volcano (in Albay). Let's do a "Miss Universe" and vote like crazy for our natural wonders. Register and vote here. And do pass the word around.

After what seemed like forever, the Film Academy of the Philippines released its official list of nominations for the 25th Luna Awards. The Luna Awards is the Philippine equivalent to the Oscars, wherein industry practitioners call the shots. For this year's race, Star Cinema's Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo earned top nods with eight nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress. In close second is Unitel Pictures' Inang Yaya with six noms, including Best Picture, though director duo Veronica Velasco and Pablo Biglang-Awa weren't cited. The three other Best Picture contenders are Centerstage Productions' Kaleldo , Star Cinema's Sukob , and MLR Films' Kubrador . These three films earned four nominations each. A total of 26 films bagged nominations, with both commercial and indie films represented. To me, the oddity of the lot is Sukob . Apart from Picture and Director nods, the horror hit's other two nominations are for Supporting Actor a...