You Don't Know Jack!!

Jack the Giant Slayer comes out March 1st and I will be one of the first in line to watch Nicholas Hoult grace the silver screen again, and this time...we get to hear his native British accent! Yay!

We also get to see Stanley Tucci be a glorious villain and our favorite Jedi, Ewan McGregor, lead Jack up the famed beanstalk from one of our favorite fairy tales! Review coming soon!

Countdown to Iron Man 3 w/ Pepper Potts!

New poster for Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts! In theaters May 3rd!

Ben Kingsley is The Mandarin! Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 comes out this summer and Ben Kingsley is playing the frightening villain, The Mandarin, whose reach has no bounds and proves to be Tony Starks greatest foe. Ben Kingsley is remarkable and I am sure he will be wonderful to watch. Iron Man will surely be tested in this latest rendition, and we cannot wait to see how his hero's journey unfolds!

I am also excited to see the lovely, Rebecca Hall play Maya Hansen, a genetic re-programmer. Gemma Artenton, Diane Krueger, and Isla Fisher were considered for the part, but it was the stunning, Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) who was offered the role! i would have loved to see her in Iron Man, but alas, there were scheduling conflicts!

Catch Iron Man 3 in theaters May 3rd 2013!

Who is excited?!

Warm Bodies

Who knew zombies could be so charming? Well, Nicholas Hault is not your typical zombie. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, there are two types of corpse, normal, shuffling around groaning types and bonies.

I really enjoyed this movie! Warm Bodies had the perfect combination of creepy and hilarious. Now, whenever I see Rob Cordry (Hot Tub Time Machine) I know I can depend on him to make me laugh...even as a zombie! He was fantastic and very likable.

Of course Nicholas, or R, is naturally attractive, even under all of the zombie makeup and dirty scratches clothes...even as he chews raw human brains, he is a great character and I found myself rooting for him! He basically starts the movie as a not-so-mindless zombie who has an awareness of his surroundings that you wouldn't expect.

R spends his day shuffling around an airport and collecting random keepsakes. His life...err...death changes when he catches sight of the beautiful Teresa Palmer. She ignites something within him that causes him to feel again. This starts a journey towards reclaiming his humanity as he rescues and protects her from the other zombies. His interaction with a living person and their odd attraction to one another begins a revolution amongst the other zombies who want to be normal again as well!

Warm Bodies is a surprising delight and I enjoyed every minute of it! John Malkovich is his usual self...playing a complex character...you don't know if he'll be a villain or a ally, and I love that!

Analeigh Tipton (Crazy, Stupid, Love) is a fresh face that I also love! She is hilarious, and if you were a teenage girl in the 2000's you might remember her from America's Next Top Model!

Catch it in theaters now!

Beautiful Creatures

This past Sunday I invited ten of my girls to join me for a night of dark fantasy! Alas, Beautiful Creatures, based on the novel by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, delights us all.

Cast:

Emma Thompson, Viola Davis, Jeremy Irons, Emmy Rossum and newcomers Alice Englert and Alden Ehrenreich.

Synopsis:

Ethan, a high school junior, longs to escape his small town life and crosses paths within a beautiful new girl with a mysterious past and an even more mysterious family. Everyone suspects that her family, the Ravenwoods/founders of the town, have dark and mystical powers. They are correct.

Lena actually has powers and the approach of her sixteenth birthday means the choice between the light and the dark. Can their love survive?

Review:

I actually enjoyed the movie and felt good after I watched it! I am ready for the sequel!

• Pros: the acting was very good! The British alums were superb and the young newcomers were also pretty convincing. Emma Thompson was so much fun to watch! Emmy Rossum did her job and was practically dripping with sex appeal. The story was pretty generic but the effects and the over the top family made it worth it!

• Cons: the cliches, the southern stereotypes, the confusing part in the end where Lena did something with her hands and nothing happened, yet Emmy Rossum was frightened.

She actually said, "No one can do that!"

I was like, "Huh? What did she do?" Nothing happened... Anyway, I must have missed something. The dialogue was cringeworthy in some parts. I also didn't enjoy hearing the evil ex/mean girl talk. She was way too typical!

Overall, the movie was entertaining, the costumes were bright and colorful and a the sets were a visual masterpiece! I love how the outside of the Ravenwood mansion looks all dilapidated and creepy, but immaculate, clean, and modern on the inside! The use of magic was interesting as well. These casters pretty much act like gods.

Enjoy a dark twist on a classic fairy tale of forbidden love? Catch Beautiful Creatures in theaters today!

If you've already seen it...what did you think? Comment!

Guy Pearce is Aldrich Killian, brilliant geneticist!

Iron Man returns to the big screen this summer! Starring, Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley and the lovely Rebecca Hall!. Are you ready for Iron Man 3? In theaters May 3rd 2013

Miyazaki Does It Again!

From Up On Poppy Hill!

This is a Miyazaki film (Spirited Away, Ponyo, Howl's Moving Castle) so we know it will be beautiful! It actually released in Japan in 2011 but the U.S. will finally get a chance to view it on the big screen this March!

Synopsis:

Set in Japan of the 1960s, the film tells the story of Umi Matsuzaki, a high school girl living in a boarding house. When Umi meets Shun Kazama, a member of the school's newspaper club, they decide to clean up the school's clubhouse.

However, Tokumaru, the chairman of the local high school and a businessman, intends to demolish the building for redevelopment and Umi and Shun, along with Shirō Mizunuma, must persuade him to reconsider.

It is the story of young love and there is an interesting mystery about the high school couple's birth. Catch it March 15th 2013 in select theaters!

Happy Valentines Day!

Top Health and Fitness Apps!

Here is a list of my favorite health and fitness apps. Such apps help you stay on track so that you can meet your goals in 2013! You can find these apps on both iOS and Android devices.

1. My Fitness Pal
•Want to lose weight fast? Download this app! It helps you track your calorie intake and exercise. Once you know how much each meal is going to cost you as far as calorie allowance, you become much more aware about what you choose to eat!

2. Gympact
•Earn money just by keeping your weekly pact of going to the gym! Lose money of you skip your workouts!

3. Run Keeper
•Stay motivated and beat your best times each week. This GPS device tracks your walks or speed, distance, and pace while running. This is especially good if you have Gym Pact, it allows you to count your walk or run towards your pact instead of checking in at a gym.

4. Spark Recipes
•Delicious low calorie recipes from people like you!

5. Jillian Michael's
•Motivational check ins from one of the top trainers in the U.S.A! Workout videos and a list of moves you can do to target your trouble areas.

6. Denise Austin
•Another world renown trainer who gives excellent daily tips, meal ideas and workout videos!

7. Ease Into 5k
•Go from walking to running a 5k in just weeks! This excellent app does the pacing for you. Run a little, walk a little, until you can complete a run without breaks!

8. The Eatery
•This app is just fun! Take a photo of your meal or snack and post it to The Eatery. Users all over the world rate how healthy your choices are, and you get to do the same!

What are some of your favorite health and fitness apps? Comment!

Happy Chinese New Year!!

A few friends and I celebrated Chinese New Years at AZN Azian Cuizine and it was absolutely remarkable. The food was great and bountiful as well as the entertainment.

There was an excellent noodle making show as well as an energetic dragon dance. A few friends got their fortunes told and the feast we shared was a delightful way to end the evening. I must say, the owners were incredibly personable and a treat to get to know and the serving staff get top marks!

Here are a few pictures of the festivities! The dragon dance video and noodle making show will be posted as well!

Guest Spots!

Hello everyone! I am full of inspiration and enthusiasm this month and I want to showcase some of your creativity as well!

So, if anyone would like to write a guest post on my blog and cross promote, then lets do it!

I know some of you have blogs of your own and what better way to get exposure than to show your talents to a fellow bloggers audience!

Just email me and we can make arrangements!

Knlee@thechroniclesofkoa.com

Ready to Write!

So, as some of you know, I just got over a month long recovery from a concussion. I feel normal again and cannot wait to put my pen to paper and write something exciting and beautiful!

My editor should be done editing the first book of my fantasy trilogy, Rise of the Flame, next week! I am incredibly excited and cannot wait to share Lilae's journey with the world.

On another note, I know I promised to have The Chronicles of Koa ready for sale last month, but due to my injury I was unable to get any writing done on my computer. So I hope to have that ready for editing soon! Have no fear! The time is almost here!

I would like to thank everyone for helping me on this journey! Especially my writing panel who have read (and re-read) my manuscript and gave me all of their incredible feedback! Jacqueline Pfahl, Victoria Duncan, Carlos DeJesus, Sonali Shah, David Sean Manners and my male twin, Kenichi Kamihara! You all will be in my acknowledgement! Thank you to everyone else for all of your incredible support! I am ready to bring wonderful stories to you!

Academy Awards 2013!!

Best Picture:

• Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln could return from the grave and tell me he is Abraham Lincoln and I would say... "No you're not Daniel Day Lewis is..." Absolutely perfect portrayal)

• Beasts of the Southern Wild (It captures your attention and holds it every minute of the movie. At times you are perplexed, while at others you are captivated, and then, you'll succumb to the disturbing emotional aspects and feel a heaviness in your heart, which in turn leads to an understanding of the complexity of the film.)

• Argo (Edge of your seat suspenseful! Ben Affleck did a great job with this true story and kept the audience holding their breath while we rooted for the characters to make it home safely!)

• Life of Pi (made me cry!)

• Silver Linings Playbook (Surprisingly good! It's both emotional and funny. These characters have layers that you wouldn't initially expect.)

• Zero Dark Thirty (An intense suspense thriller.)

• Armour (It's French and its awesome. Very powerful and the performances are quite poignant)

• Django Unchained (Tarantino does it again!)

• Les Miserables (Musical theater meets the big screen. Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman are wonderful)

Prediction: They all deserve it! I would love to see Amour win, but I am fairly certain it will go to Lincoln. We shall see! Who do you think will win?

Les Miserables

Lincoln

Life of Pi

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Django Unchained

Amour

Zero Dark Thirty

Silver Linings Playbook

Charlize Theron May Star in Dark Places!

Gillian Flynn's novel, Dark Places, is being adapted into a film by the director of Sarah's Key, Gilles Paquet-Brenner and it is said that Charlize Theron may play the title character.

First it was rumored that Amy Adams would play the role of a woman traumatized by the brutal massacre of her family as a child by her older brother, but it seems as though Theron is ready to accept this complex role.

We sure hope the beautiful South African born actress is officially chosen and can't wait to see if Reese Witherspoon will play the lead character in Gillian Flynn's, Gone Girl!

                                                       

Top Asian Costume Dramas!

Top Asian Costume Dramas!

The British had their turn last week. Now lets show that Asians have amazing period piece films as well! Some of these are original screenplays while others are based on classic literature, yet all of them are fantastic.

1. Raise the Red Lantern

•Starring Gong Li. Set in 1920's China, Songlian is forced to become the fourth wife of a powerful lord. This film is a very beautiful and powerful story and Gong Li proves that she is a star!

2. Farewell My Concubine

•Another movie featuring the stunning Gong Li, along with Leslie Cheung and Fenyi Zhang. It is the story of two men who met as apprentices in the Peking Opera and remained friends for 50 years. This movie has great sets, costumes, and impeccable acting.

3. Memoirs of a Geisha

•Starring Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, and guess who... Gong Li! This is one that I could watch over and over again and never get tired of. It tells the story on how a little girl from a fishing village was forced to leave her family and immerse herself into the life of a geisha.

4. The Joy Luck Club

•Starring Kieu Chinh, Tsai Chin, and Ming-na Wen. Although not completely set in another time period, this movie takes us on a journey through the memories of four incredible mothers as they try to teach their daughters valuable lessons about life, love, and family.

5. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

•Starring Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, and Ziyi Zhang. It is a story about the search for a famed sword and what surprises the two warriors encounter on their quest. Ziyi Zhang gets to show off her incredible martial arts skills as well as her emotional range.

6. Lust, Caution

•Starring Tony Leung and Wen Tang. This is a surprisingly sexy espionage thriller that just might make you blush. Check it out and you'll see why. It stars a beautiful newcomer, Wen Tang, as a charming young girl who sets off on a mission to stop a powerful political figure.

7. House of Flying Daggers

*Zhang Ziyi, Andy Lau. A romantic police captain breaks a beautiful member of a rebel group out of prison to help her rejoin her fellows, but things are not what they seem.

Share your favorites in the comments section!