Sunday, February 05, 2006

THE MOVIE OR THE NOVEL?


Adik : Along, dah nengok Memoirs of a Geisha?
Aku : Belum lagi
Adik : Nak tengok? Ni dvd nya
Aku : Ok tenkiu

'Tiinngg... tonnggg... teng teng teng....' (muzik Jepun la)

Belek-belek cover dvd.

Aku : Hah??? Geisha zaman Perang Dunia Kedua dulu, ada pakai g-string?????

Padan muka aku, tengok dvd pirate hahaha entah gambar amoi mana yang di kopipes kat cover dvd tuh.

Much publicity has been given to this movie, dan aku admire sungguh the details that went into the sets & costumes, rasa macam betul-betul berada di Jepun. Pemandangan indah, especially kat taman masa sakura kembang tu, peehhhh romantiknya!

But somehow, watching this movie.... bagi aku kurang ummph la. Aku tak tahu tang mana yang kureng, tapi rasa macam 'kosong'. Aku tak dapat rasa emotional attachment dengan mana-mana karektor. Nak kata bersejarah, takde la apa sangat kejadian sejarah. Nak kata romantik sangat, idak juga {Jie, kau yang dah jaded ke? Ohh tidaaakkk....}. So last Thursday, I went out and bought the book.

Entah la, personally aku selalunya lebih puas membaca novel dari menonton filemnya, walaupun filem dalam masa 2 minit boleh dapat cerita 20 mukasurat. Maybe sebab dalam pembikinan filem, tak mungkin dapat serapkan 100% daripada cerita yang terkandung dalam novel. Ataupun jika membaca novel, kita bisa buat interpretasi dan visualisasi sendiri? Seingat aku, ada satu je yang aku much prefer the movie over the novel, "It" by Stephen King, sebab berminggu-minggu aku pening baca bukunya yang tiga inci tebal tu still tak paham. Bila nengok movienya, baru le "ooohhh.... gitu rupanya". Stoopid crazy clown, that one.

Oh yeah, out of curiosity I also bought another book by a local writer, Yvonne Lee, entitled "The Sky Is Crazy : Tales From A Trolley Dolly", about the writer's experiences as a stewardess. This makes for some nice light reading, ala-ala style Lydia Teh gitu, macam-macam kerenah ada. Have to admit, aku selalunya tak angkat pot sangat dengan steward/stewardess sebab they sort of become a fixture in the plane. But now I think I'm going to give them more attention next time I fly :-)
"Chicken or beef? Chicken or beef?" Seratus kali sebut ni, mau jadik hilang sabar gak hehehe

Hey just a thought. A stewardess is not unlike a geisha. She's pretty, well-groomed, pleasant mannered. She sees to your needs for the duration of your stay, provides comfort and sometimes even keep you entertained. {Amboi Jie, sesuka hati kau je nak kaitkan geisha dengan stewardess ye? Gasak! *borrow this word from Suhaimi Sulaiman's blog hehehe*}

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Jie,

Tunggu the "Da Vinci Code". The book is good. I don't know if the movie will be. Kena tunggu la bulan May nanti.

But if you like historical (I do) movies...see "Good Night, And Good Luck" staring Clooney, Downey Jnr dan lain-lain. Story about the 50's in America and the communist witch hunt. Okay gak.

JIE said...

Hi Sam,

I love that novel! So much so, that I went and bought ALL the three other novels by that author. Big Mistake. Coz the other novels are like 'sepesen' je dengan DVC hehehe. I guess the author used the same formula, walaupun sedap baca tapi dah tak thrill la. I haven't seen the movie you mentioned, but I'll be sure to ask my nyonya dvd pasar malam about it, vely cheap ten doler oni mah :-)

Count Byron said...

Thanks Jie. So I will not go rush buy DVD or book either.
Just wait.. if there's spare time.. would there be?
normally, tough luck

Lily G said...

Jie,
Stewardesses are only geishas to mat sallehs and businessman in business class. Kalau setakat kita ni, hampeh.

Saw the pirated DVD tapi susah nak faham lah england dia.Dahlah subtitle pun hancus. Borrowed the book and am reading it now.

JIE said...

Hi Count,

Read the book, it's more satisfying. Methinks hardly 20% of the book contents made it into the movie :-(

No spare time? Maybe can snatch a few minutes a day.. like before bedtime, or when you're on the 'throne'... hehehe

JIE said...

Hi Lily,

Ain't that the truth! I dunno what's with this gwailo-worship thing among some of us, effect of past colonization or just for the novelty of saying 'I met a matsaleh today'? That pakcik kopiah or apek pakai seluar katok could be one of the top ten richest man in the country.

btw tu kira OK la the main actors were chinese & m'sian, if real japanese actors, lagi teruk england depa :-)