Movie: Little Fockers

Image from Lovanh Family

As a sequel of Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers, Little Fockers is one of the movies I have been anticipating for a long long while. The first reason is that I am a big fan of Ben Stiller's comedy, the second reason is that I knew there will be some classic gags for some good laughs, and I am right about them!

For me, Little Fockers was really fun to watch. I had great laughs at the "God-Focker" gag, pleased to see Kevin (Owen Wilson) superior quality over Greg and thus making Greg feel small and jealous in front of Pam. Jack (Robert De Niro) seemed to have accepted Greg a lot more but the fun begins when he started suspecting Greg having an affair with Andi (Jessica Alba). Well, for a married man, this plot is kind of expected, but with Jessica Alba, there are always surprises!

It is pity that the kids didn't play bigger roles in this movie, which was totally unexpected because of the name Little Fockers. If more gags originate from the misbehaviour of the kids, I am sure this movie can draw a lot more laughs throughout. However, the kids were really well-behaved and that was disappointing.

Image from leedsdentsoc.com

Image from hollywoodmomblog.com

Inevitably, when one is watching a sequel, they will compare with the prequels, and the comparisons can be really detailed and even harsh sometimes. All the good jokes from the past just seem to reappear before you eyes, and if the new ones don't make you laugh harder than before, you will hate the movie.

Meet the Fockers

But let's give Little Fockers some sympathy, for that Greg (Ben Stiller) and Pam (Teri Polo) are already married and have 2 kids, you can't expect Greg to redo all those storylines like pursuing Pam and teaching the kids the gesture of "I'll be watching You!" all over again! Neither can you repeat milking a cat nor playing too much with the family name "Focker" again. So, making Little Fockers is a tough job.

If you can put aside the old jokes, I'm sure you will enjoy watching this movie as well!

Vocabulary:
sequel -- (n) [C] a book, film or play which continues the story of a previous book, etc.
inevitably -- (adv) in a way that cannot be avoided
prequel -- (n) [C usually singular] a film, book or play which develops the story of an earlier film, etc. by telling you what happened before the events in the first film, etc
harsh -- (adj) unpleasant, unkind, cruel or unnecessarily severe
sympathy -- (n) [U] (an expression of) understanding and care for someone else's suffering

Resources:

Meet the Parents @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0212338/

Meet the Fockers @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0290002/

Littel Fockers @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0970866/

Meet the Parents Trailer @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/v/yZPnCWmo1Xs&hl

Meet the Fockers Trailer @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KovDEIah2M

Little Fockers Trailer @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y27IueXA8-E&feature=fvw

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sequel
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/inevitably
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/prequel
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/harsh_1
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/sympathy_1

Movie: Tangled

Image from onlinemovieshut.com

I watched two movies in the cinema this Chinese New Year holiday. The best one is of course this one I am writing about now, Disney's Tangled.

Originally from the German fairy tale of Rapunzel, Tangled becomes Disney's latest happy-ending "transformation production". I say it is a "transformation production"  for two reasons -- one, the plot is very much rewritten and two, it has been "3D-ised" (3-Dimensionalised).

Image from Disney Etc.

Of course, the term "3D" has already attracted a lot of attention, but if you simply want 3D and nothing else, you can watch "The Green Hornet" instead. Those who went to watch Tangled will agree that the movie is absolutely an enjoyable journey to the land of wonder!

The movie comes with lots of adventure elements -- exploding dam, raging water, sword fights and horse chases; romance elements -- songs and singing, floating lanterns, unconditional giving and self-sacrifice; 

Image from gawkerassets

and the unbreakable friendships between human beings and animals.

Image from netkushi.com

As for computer graphics, I'm most impressed by Rapunzel's blonde hair movement! It is stunning! Every hair movement is calculated with such great details that it is almost like real! I would say this is a huge breakthrough for Disney and it has to be one of the best animations in the history of 3D movies!

So don't you miss it!


Resources:
Tangled @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0398286/

Rapunzel @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapunzel

My Tangled Review @ Disney, Etc.
http://disneyetc.blogspot.com/2010/11/my-tangled-review.html

Tangled Trailer @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip_0CFKTO9E

Economics: 2011 Hong Kong Housing Market Forecast?

Image from overseaspropertymall.com

What interests me these days is how the feng shui masters and investment firms predicts the stock market and housing market in the Year of the Rabbit.

Image from The Star

An article from the Standard reports that Credit Suisse Securities predicts "The Hong Kong benchmark may jump as much as 23 percent to hit 28,900 this year, fueled by the banking and property sectors." Another article from Forbes says that Credit Suisse also predicts that "Hong Kong’s surging property market could jump by another 30% this year."

Now, when looking at the numbers, they all sound great to the investors and terrible for the non-investors, but if we look at the English language perspective, words such as "may" and "could" tell us that these are just possibilities and so it "may or may not happen" and "could or may not happen". (<= Focus on the pairs of modal verbs.)

The basis of the argument has been the same for years, saying that the market has

1. excessive liquidity (meaning too much hot money) due to ...
2. excessively low interests rates,
3. a weak US dollar that is ...
4. being pegged by the Hong Kong dollars

Some analysts will add that ...

Centa-City Leading Index
Image from CentaData

1. Hong Kong government's intervention in the residential properties is ineffective,
2. The government will not and cannot bear the consequences of a hard landing of any kind,
3. The supply of new properties is far less than the huge demand,
4. It is reasonable for the Centa-City Index CCI and the Centa-City Leading Index CCL to overtake the peak set in July 1997 due to ...
5. the depreciation of the Hong Kong dollars and all the reasons listed above.

Image from seigniorage.de

Some analysts may be confident that the current high price situation will persist, and the supporting reasons will remain supportive, but I took a closer look at any one of these reasons and asked myself,

1. Aren't all these reasons linked together as one? Just what is the chance for all these reasons to remain unchanged in the following year or two?
2. Is there any one of these reasons political? If just one is political, then there is a good chance it will be affected by public voices because ultimately, the main role of the government is to serve its citizens and governments do that in exchange for political stability and prosperity. With Hong Kong's housing topping the world (according to Savills), surely this financial topic is becoming more and more political.

George Soros
Image from Wikipedia

So when will this housing bubble burst? I have no prediction of my own, but there is always a different reason, and it is usually one that no one can foresee......

1997 : Asian financial crisis, arguably led by the Quantum Fund owned by George Soros
2003 :  SARS, Severe acute respiratory syndrome
2009 : Financial Tsunami hits Hong Kong
2015: ??????????

What will this time be in 2015? Fruit for thoughts!

My guess is when the hot money leaves Hong Kong. Why will the money leave Hong Kong? This article might give some enlightenment.

Vocabulary:
hard landing -- (n) [C] A term used to describe an economy going into recession as the government attempts to slow down inflation.
depreciation -- (n) [U] when something loses value

Resources:
Mainland Chinese Spur Hong Kong Property Boom @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SgXvlvDT6Q

Benchmark seen soaring to 28,900 @ The Standard
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=1&art_id=107709&sid=31137746&con_type=3

Hong Kong’s Red Hot Property Market Set To Soar Even Higher @ Forbes
http://blogs.forbes.com/robertolsen/2011/02/01/hong-kongs-red-hot-property-market-set-to-soar-even-higher/

Centa-City Index CCI and the Centa-City Leading Index CCL
http://www.centadata.com/cci/cci_e.htm

Hong Kong housing world's most expensive - Savills @ Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/28/hongkong-property-idUSTOE70R06D20110128

Asian Financial Crisis  @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_Asian_financial_crisis

Quantum Fund @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_Fund

George Soros @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Soros

SARS @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SARS

Financial Crisis @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_crisis_(2007%E2%80%93present)

China’s Wen pledges to curb property speculation, add more low-cost homes @ China Business News
http://cnbusinessnews.com/chinas-wen-pledges-to-curb-property-speculation-add-more-low-cost-homes/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+chinabusinessweek+(China+business+news)

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/hardlanding.asp
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/depreciation

Message: Overindulged in Football Manager 2011

I'm terribly sorry for that I missed out the Wednesday entry because the Nian Gao / year cakes, turnip cakes, taro cakes and my favourite osmanthus water chestnut cakes have preoccupied my mind these days.

The world around me seems to have come to a halt as well, with shut-doors everywhere. Not much of a fun to be out, so I mainly spend my time catching up with my Football Manager 2011 game.

There seems to be a magic charm to this game. Once I start, I can't really take my eyes off it. I have talked about this game in the pass and recommended it to those who would like to learn football terms and commentary and slang.

Watch from 6:32 for the juice of the game (If you are not a football or game fan, you can skip the next video)

Well, spending too much time on a game isn't all that good, so it is time to start doing some work.

So, what's our topic today? Please read the next article.

Resources:

Food: Festive Puddings @ Locky's English Playground

http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2010/02/food-festive-puddings.html

Football Manager 2011 official trailer @ YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7NWffZDjUA

Football Manager 2011 announcement Trailer @ YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr85WrMmyX0&feature=related

Sport: Common Terms in Football @ Locky's English Playground

http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2009/05/sport-common-terms-in-football.html

Slang: Football Commentary and Slangs @ Locky's English Playground

http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2010/05/slang-football-commentary-and-slangs.html

Message: Happy Chinese New Year 2011!

The English Playground wishes all English players a superb prosperous and fruitful Chinese New Year!

Image from freecomputerdesktopwallpaper.com

Image from thesunsfinancialdiary.com

And don't forget, don't eat shark fins!! It is unlucky!

Image from WWF

PS: I owe you Wednesday's article, will make it up soon!

Song: You Belong With Me -- Taylor Swift

Didn't realise that I have become a fan of Taylor Swift. Why do I say that? Because I have already recommended 2 songs from her, and here comes the third!

Image from Wikipedia

You Belong With Me is found once again in the album Fearless (So Fearless sounds like a really good album to get since it also comes with Love Story and Jump Then Fall). Wikipedia states that,

"Swift was inspired to write "You Belong with Me" after overhearing a male friend of hers arguing with his girlfriend through a phone call; she continued to develop a story line afterward. The song contains many pop music elements and its lyrics have Swift desiring an out-of-reach love interest."

"Out-of-reach love" is a nice description of this song's main theme, but not good enough to appreciate the plot of story.

The song talks about an unspectacular girl (Taylor Swift) being in love with a boy she is closed to, but he has already got a trendy cheerleader girlfriend. Taylor often makes comparisons with his cheerleader girlfriend, admitting that she is not as attractive but she understands the boy much better than his girlfriend does. Taylor repeatedly expresses her wish that the boy will one day realise she is his Miss Right.

What is really interesting is that the boy's cheerleader girlfriend and the nerdy girl are both acted by Taylor Swift herself!

Hope you like this song!

Lyrics:

You're on the phone with your girlfriend, She's upset

She's going off about something that you said

She doesn't get your humour like I do

I'm in the room, its a typical Tuesday night

I'm listening to the kind of music she doesnt like

And she'll never know your story like I do

But she wears short skirts, I wear t-shirts

She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers

Dreaming about the day when you wake up and find

That what you're looking for has been here the whole time

If you could see that I'm the one who understands you

Been here all along so why can't you see?

You belong with me

You belong with me

Walkin the streets with you in your worn out jeans

I can't help thinking this is how it ought to be

Laughing on the park bench thinking to myself

Hey isnt this easy?

And you've got a smile that could light up this whole town

I haven't seen it in awhile, since she brought you down

You say you find I know you better than that

Hey, Whatcha doing with a girl like that?

She wears high heels, I wear sneakers

She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers

Dreaming about the day when you wake up and find

That what you're looking for has been here the whole time

If you could see that I'm the one who understands you

Been here all along so why can't you see? 

You belong with me

Standin by waiting at your back door

All this time how could you not know that?

You belong with me

You belong with me

Oh I remember you driving to my house in the middle of the night

I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're about to cry

I know your favorite songs and you tell me about your dreams

I think I know where you belong. I think I know it's with me.

Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you?

Been here all along so why can't you see?

You belong with me

Standing by waiting at your back door

All this time how could you not know baby

You belong with me

You belong with me

Have you ever thought just maybe

You belong with me

You belong with me

Vocabulary:

go off -- phrasal verb If a bomb goes off, it explodes. Metaphorical use in this context.

bleachers -- (plural noun) a sloping area of seats at a sports ground which are not covered and are therefore not expensive to sit in

wear out -- phrasal verb [M]
to use something so much that it is damaged and cannot be used any more, or to become damaged in this way
bring sb down -- US phrasal verb [M] 

to cause someone to lose power

sneakers -- (n) [C] US

a type of light comfortable shoe that is suitable for playing sports

Resources:

You Belong with Me @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Belong_with_Me

Song: Jump Then Fall -- Taylor Swift @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2010/04/song-jump-then-fall-taylor-swift.html

Song: Love Story -- Taylor Swift @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2010/03/song-love-story-taylor-swift.html

Lyrics @ Lyricsmania
http://www.lyricsmania.com/you_belong_with_me_lyrics_taylor_swift.html

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/go-off_2#go-off_2__2
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/bleachers
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/wear-sth-out#wear-sth-out__2
http://dictionaries.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=bring*10+0&dict=A