Abu Dhabi Film Festival Day 2

Amazonia

This is a great film to take your children to.
No, not this Amazonia:

This one:

This film was about a monkey in the Arctic who gets high on mushrooms and falls in love with a seal.  Ok, not really, but close.  There was no dialogue in this movie, so I assumed it meant I was free to make up my own.  I could imagine the guys from Mystery Science Theater having a blast with this film.  It was a film about a monkey, though.  A very cute little monkey that has been raised in captivity as a pet and when his plane crash lands in the middle of the Amazon he is left to fend for himself in a jungle full of life and surprises.  Like Alice, he learns to be careful about what he eats.  His shroom trip was probably my favorite part of the movie-- I wasn't sure he'd make it through!  I wasn't too keen about the 3D, especially with the tarantulas and the crocodiles lurking about, but I have to admit this movie was visually stunning.  The director, who was in attendance, answered some questions after the film which is how I learned that he lived in the Amazon for 2 years filming.  All of the animals were wild, and he basically put together all the footage to form some sort of story.  The story was a bit weak, I have to admit, and cheesy at times.  I wasn't sure if I was watching a National Geographic special or Curious George.  And the monkey went from cute to annoying, with his shrill shrieks, very quickly.  Still, I do love a good love story... and after surviving crocodiles, anacondas, waterfalls, a harpy eagle, a jaguar, and magic mushrooms, the little capuchin monkey finds his true love and takes off his collar.  The End.

"AAAAAK, they are burning down the rain forest!  AAAAAAK, let's go steal some eggs!  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAK, kiss me you fool!"

"I think I'm having flashbacks."

Philomena

I just love Judi Dench.  She was absolutely fantastic in this movie, made by the same director as The Queen.  This film was great.  I highly recommend it, so I don't want to give too much away.  It is about an Irish woman who is searching for her biological son who was taken from her by evil nuns and adopted.  It made me laugh and cry.  Five stars.  Go see this movie.  So far, it is my favorite film from this festival.

The Abu Dhabi Film Festival, Day 1

Today I watched three very different movies. One was at the Marina Mall, while the second and third were at the Emirates Palace, complete with the red carpet and gold dusted french fries. Here are my reviews:

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)

What a treat to be able to watch the classic film, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, for the first time on a big screen. I had heard about the film since I can remember, but actually had no idea what it was about. I didn’t fall in love with the movie until the end. It was this quote that did it for me: “No matter where you run, you just end up running into yourself.” It made me think about my life, and a good movie does just that.


I soon forgave Holly Golightly for dumping her cat, Cat, in the rain and being a whiny, alcoholic, chain-smoking gold digger, but it was all thanks to Paul Varjak who put her in her place. I admit I got a little teary during the final scene when she gets out of the taxi to run after Paul, who has gone looking for the cat in the rain storm. As he watches her search for Cat, you can finally see what he has seen all along, and why he fell in love with her in the first place-- her innocence. I’m not a big cat person, but there was something so sweet about the embrace and kisses in the rain with the big drenched orange cat being squeezed in between them. 

As an independent, “free spirit,” I could relate to the character of Holly Golightly to the extent of which she tries so hard to find herself and to assert her independence. She believes that marrying a rich man will grant her even more independence, which is a lesson she learns the hard way. Luckily, I have never been one to seek out a mate for financial gains. But being afraid of falling in love and losing myself? Definitely. Sometimes I think I could use a lecture like this:

"You know what's wrong with you, Miss Whoever-You-Are? You're chicken, you've got no guts. You're afraid to stick out your chin and say, "Okay, life's a fact, people do fall in love, people do belong to each other, because that's the only chance anybody's got for real happiness." You call yourself a free spirit, a wild thing, and you're terrified somebody's going to stick you in a cage. Well, baby, you're already in that cage. You built it yourself. And it's not bounded in the west by Tulip, Texas, or in the east by Somaliland. It's wherever you go. Because no matter where you run, you just end up running into yourself. "

Djinn


I went to this film because it was the world premiere and the UAE’s first horror movie, directed by Texas Chainsaw Massacre legend Tobe Hooper. I was not prepared to be jumping out of my seat and clutching my scarf in terror every 5 seconds. This film gave the audience no rest from one scare to the next, and by the end I felt like I had gone on a 90 minute roller coaster ride through a haunted house. Thanks a lot, Djinn, for giving me a reason to be spooked by women wearing all black, face covered by a black veil, which isn’t exactly uncommon here! I might be sleeping with the lights on tonight. 

So the djinn are spiritual creatures mentioned in the Quran, along with humans and angels.  They can possess humans, they are made of fire and smoke, and can be good, evil or "neutrally benevolent" since they have free will.  In this movie, they were pure evil.  If you want to get a little creeped out, watch the trailer:  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2eRNgFZyNk

Belle

I loved this movie, which was made even more special by the attendance of the lead actors and director and the Q & A that followed the screening. I think I may have a new celebrity crush on the actor Sam Reid, who is not only handsome, but is also a passionate activist (on and off screen). *Swoon*

It was a movie based on a true story, that of Dido Elizabeth Belle, a mixed-race girl raised as an aristocratic lady in 18th century England.  Not only was it a love story, but it also included the first official antislavery actions. What an interesting character from history-- a mixed-race woman raised by a wealthy family (her aunts and uncle), growing up with her white cousin Elizabeth, and inheriting a fortune making her “free” in a sense from the pressures of marrying that women in that day had to do in order to become financially secure, yet still limited by her status as a black woman.  The movie was based on an actual painting made of Dido and her cousin Elizabeth.  

I found similarities between this movie and the message I got from Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and could probably write a whole essay comparing the two, but I won’t because it’s 1 AM and I should be asleep. I highly recommend this movie. Here is the trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wtdk6owFj2o

Eid Mubarak

After two of the busiest months of my life, I have finally gotten a break-- one whole blissful week off, with no plans.  I couldn’t wait to start my staycation by sleeping in as long as possible and staying in my pajamas all day.  Goal accomplished.  Thanks to the internet, I was able to finish the Dexter series, and work on finishing Breaking Bad.  Nothing like marathon t.v. watching to feel truly lazy.  

I stayed inside my apartment for 3 days until hunger forced me to make an exit.  I really didn’t want to leave my little cell, where Dexter and Walter White were keeping me company.  I realized that I was hiding from the outside, from a place that does not feel like home.  I didn’t even open my curtains, the constant sunshine being so unfamiliar and increasingly annoying.  I think I’m suffering from SAD (seasonal affective disorder) because there is no Fall here.  And the sun won’t stop shining!  

If I sound a little grumpy it's because I am already dreading the end of this week off.  In 4 days I return to work, and I am not exactly happy in my work.  I don’t want to get into it, because I want to enjoy 4 more days of not working (or talking about work).  Aside from hours of eye-bleeding t.v. watching, I have also done a lot of thinking this week.  It has been great to actually have the time to chat and talk to some of my friends and family back home.  At the same time, it makes me even more homesick, especially when I get sad news and want more than anything to be closer to my family and friends to offer hugs and support.  

This may not come as a surprise to some of you, but I might as well make it official:  I’m not going to stay here for 2 years.  I’m calling it quits.  I’ll be giving my notice at the end of next month, finishing out the school year, and moving on.  I am trying not to see this as a failure, but as a gift.  If I hadn’t come here, I would have never realized where I want to be-- where I belong, what is important to me, etc.  I admit, a part of my decision to come here was simply not knowing what I wanted to do.  Part of it was an escape.  And part of it was to open more doors and opportunities.  As a teacher, I am not happy at all in the school where I am teaching.  The only part of it I like is the kids, and I only get to spend 4 hours a day with them, which is not why I went into teaching.  Personally, I have also really struggled with the city life.  Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE cities, I just don’t think I was meant to live in one.  I never anticipated this aching feeling, physically and spiritually, for nature.  When I feel this way (which is every day) I close my eyes and imagine rain, the smell of pine and cedar, moss, I can feel cold wind on my cheeks and taste salty air, I hear birds of prey shrieking and water splashing, wind moving the branches, a distant howl.  I never realized that I NEED this to feel alive.  Here, I feel like I might as well be living on Mars.  I struggle to find hints of nature, but all I find are stray cats, pigeons, sand, and signs on the beach that say “Beware of jelly fish and sea snakes” (that’s as close as I’m getting to the water).  

I’m still here for 9 more months and I’m going to make the best of it of course.  I have planned 2 bucket list trips sure to nourish my spirit and provide a lifetime of memories to cherish, so this year won’t feel like a total waste.  In December I am going to Africa on a 2 ½ week camping safari through Kenya and Uganda.  I am going to sleep under the stars and marvel at all the animals.  I’m even going to trek mountain gorillas, which has been a dream of mine ever since I was a young girl.  Diane Fossey was one of my heroes.  In April, I am joining a team of women for a 14 day trek to Annapurna base camp in the Himalayas, Nepal.  

In the meantime, I will try to update the blog with more pictures.  However, I have just signed up for NanoWriMo http://nanowrimo.org/ National Novel Writing Month, and am committing to writing 1,000 words each day for the month of November.  This may inspire more blogging, or less, who knows.  

I’ve also just bought tickets to see 12 films at the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival http://www.abudhabifilmfestival.ae/en/ coming up in a couple of weeks.  I plan to post my reviews on this blog.  I’m very excited about the selections I made-- international films, documentaries, and a couple of classics.  I will also get to see a few of them at the Emirates Palace!  So stay tuned…

As always, I appreciate your letters and messages.  Peace out.  And Happy Eid.