Its the night of the Singapore International Film Festival, where three girls decided to be part of set and show up in similar outfits.

Excitement ran high as the three stepped into the Hard Rock Cafe. The staff, were very amused. Singaporeans at large, were oblivious. Not many double takes or sniggers. Sigh. In evil response, the triplets decided to take as many annoying shots as possible. All over the place. Check out the photos in the Flickr link :p

Hilarity aside, it took nothing away from the night's movie, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Adapted from the best-selling novel of the same name, I have to say that the critics got this Swedish movie right on the money. Although the movie started slow, the moment it kicked into gear, it grips the audience and hardly lets up, right up till the end.

Its only April, but thus far, this movie has the most complete and succinct storyline and pacing I've seen in a long time. The pauses are few but when the shocks and violence comes, it wallops you in the gut. At the end of the movie, we walked out feeling like we've been on a really intense roller coaster ride, nerves jumping all over the place. But why just hear it from me? Go catch it and be your own judge.

Although not many people have seen this movie, Velvet Goldmine is one of my all time favorites and has a soundtrack to die for. Surprisingly enough, I caught this many years back at the Singapore International Film Festival. And if you know the story, the fact that it was passed almost entirely intact (and in Singapore) was amazing. Music-wise, you can't possibly go wrong with the likes of Grant Lee Buffalo, Bryan Ferry and Thom Yorke (Yes, I do make exceptions sometimes).

Back from the hols and feeling lots perkier. Bali is a gorgeous place but is probably not somewhere I'd want to retire in. Thailand still has that vote.

What was great about the holidays was keeping up with old friends and making new ones too. How knew that deep down we all share the same cam-whorishness?

Still, the trip was a good break for all and the photos, awesome!

After waiting for an eternity, through Paul Greengrass, Darren Aronofsky et al, screenwriters, casting choices, the bloody court case and of course, salivating over the trailer of the 10 billionth time, DC, me and a whole bunch of geeks plus some innocent bystanders got to watch the preview of Watchmen.

And and and, you urge…

Well, well, well, I say…directed by 300’s Zack Synder, Watchmen a faithful adaptation of the classic graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Down to how each scene is blocked. The sets are sumptuous and each detail lovingly etched. For the fan boy, there is trivia by the fistful. Whether you get the reference to Snyder’s previous movie or hear Tears for Fears in the background, each scene works. The characters are still relevant today but what makes Watchmen a classic story is not simply a straightforward case of good versus evil. It looks at the superhero psyche and then dissects it with an unflinching knife. Who are these masked men? Are they really heroes? Do heroes even exist today, given the wars, the circumstance, the decisions that they have to make? Or superhero/vigilante – where is the line?

The movie on its entirety though, will probably take some getting used to, especially if you are watching it for the very first time. While the graphic novel cuts much closer to the bone in examining its issues and providing a fuller picture to the interweaving storylines, the movie works well on an action and intellectual level. It’s not just a campy superhero action movie with no depth. If you are looking for something chop socky and quick, look elsewhere for this is a movie that takes time to breathe and tell its story.

The cast is near perfect, turning in performances that make you wince, yet feel for them at the same time. Even the ever blue Dr Manhattan. Most of the classic lines are intact and hearing them said for the first time, really blew me away. The violence is fast and hard-hitting, bringing to mind the fighting in 300 but on a more brutal level, bearing in mind, these guys are superheros.

If there was one thing that was a disappointment…it was the soundtrack. What happened to the music in the graphic novel? Why are we now stuck with the 99 Red Balloons song? The only song that remains from the novel is Bob Dylan’s The Times They Are A-Changin' which is powerful, yet oh so relevant.

The other concern that I had was – how will this fit with the people who have not read the graphic novel? DC was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information that was tossed out. While fanboys may delight in the details and mull over one part of the story which was dropped, even I felt that what came up onscreen was the best they could do.The rest, I say, should be saved for the DVD.

Overall rating: 4 out of 5

Movie musicals are often a hard nut to crack. While there were box-office winners like Chicago and Moulin Rouge. Some, like the highly acclaimed Rent and the cult favourite Hedwig and the Angry Inch, barely made headlines and money at the box-office despite their iconic songs, storylines and well-loved cast.

All that said, the one movie musical that seriously impressed me at the start of this year was Across the Universe.

If your're a movie nut like me and have watched any of Julie Taymore's previous work like the Oscar-winning Frida or the super chilling Titus, you know that you're be in for something different.

The storyline's pretty straightforward but what made the movie brilliant was it's excellent use of music (in this case, a whole lot of great Beatles songs) and visuals that are weaved almost seamlessly into the story. The director's choice of using mostly new or indie actors is great as the audience then focuses more on the story rather then on how well they sang.

Soundtrack-wise, the deluxe edition is brilliant (*hint, hint*). For the aficionados, the deluxe edition comes with all the songs in the movie. The songs are sung by the cast which gives the them a fresh, new appeal and will probably change the way you listen to these tunes now.

Verdict: You'll either love the movie or hate it. But you'll definately remember the songes long after the movie's done.

Well smack me silly and paint me blue...

The powers-that-be have cast Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man...Iron Man!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, it sure beats the heck out of seeing Tom-bloody-Cruise or Nicholas-I-wanna-show-the-world-I'm-a-comic-geek-Cage trying to play Tony Stark ;o)

Although, I must say - both the character and the new leading man do share some of the same qualities... Oh and before I forget, for the people who've been wondering who the fuck Iron Man is...well, Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark is a Marvel Comics superhero. Created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck and Jack Kirby, he made his first appearence in Tales of Suspense #39 (March 1963). Enough of the history lesson, go read a comic, people!

If you are expecting a superhero in the relm of the X-Men, Spidey or Superman, you are heading for a major disappointment. Why? Well, Iron Man is human and cast almost the same mould as Batman. A multi-million dollar indsutrialist who has issues. What's a superhero without issues?

Well at the end of the day, I'm still thrilled that this movie is finally going to see the light of day. One can only hope that it'll be as good as Spiderman :o)