» Entertainment

“Aiyoh Auntie, reverse lar!”

Due-East — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 17:56:08 +0000

Check out this awesomely entertaining video of a guy in Malaysia (I think…) as he waits not-so-patiently for a woman to back her Lexus up into a parking space!

Best news in a long time…

Due-East — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:11:57 +0000

The news is depressing lately. Well, it’s actually pretty much always depressing. But I just got some great news to offset some of the doom and gloom! After almost 4 years, InLove is finally releasing a new album in July! The singer, Lu, kindly stopped by the site to leave a message about it. Here are her comments (in part) below:

。。。inLove的新專輯將會於七月中推出, 到時會有發佈演出, 場地是香港藝術中心的一個小型演奏廳。

我們都很興奮, 因為已經接近四年沒有推出專輯, 所以今次有點緊張, 但也會盡力做好。希望也能得到Chris你的支持。^－^

最後想說的是, H1N1病情似乎愈來愈嚴重, 敬請大家都要保重身體, 也一起祈禱, 希望病者早日康復, 以及全球病情盡快得到控制。。。

Lu

I’m really excited about this because their first album was awesome. Every song on it had a certain warmth that kept me wanting to listen again and again. If this were the 80s, when all we had were records or cassette tapes, I’d probably be on my 4th or 5th copy of it because I would’ve worn out several copies already from listening so much. Check out the video below for a taste of their sound:

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

The Chinese version of ‘Ugly Betty’

Due-East — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:23:07 +0000

I’ve been a bit busy recently and haven’t had time to keep up with any Chinese news of any sort (and probably won’t have that kind of time from now on, so this blog will end up being pretty stagnant), but RedKemp found a short but interesting story about the Chinese version of Ugly Betty, which is coming out soon. The verdict: She’s totally cute! I totally agree with Redkemp that all those “very-cute-woman-with-glasses-and-braces = ugly” movies and TV shows out there are stupid. If Charlene Choi, Halle Berry, or some other very pretty woman had black-rimmed glasses and some ill-fitting braces, I’d be the first guy there to comfort them in their ugliness. Apparently Chinese audiences agree that she’s too cute to be called ugly. This article brings out that “Audiences hold the view that the “ugly girl” is beautiful, with a normal figure, big eyes and long hair, aside from the deliberate ugly costuming.” For once, I’d like to see someone truly unattractive cast in one of these roles; maybe if there were more “ugly” people on TV and in movies, the world in general would get used to it and wouldn’t be so obsessed with looks. Yeah, that’s not gonna happen, is it?

Check out Neocha.com for Chinese indie music

Due-East — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 03:46:44 +0000

Are you tired of Chinese popular music? I am. Over all, it stinks. I mean, I’m a huge Jay Chou fan, and I like almost everything Sun Yan Zi and Wang Li Hong put out. But for the most part, Chinese pop music – like pop music everywhere – all sounds the same, and it’s all pretty mediocre. No creativity, no individuality. I really appreciate the traditional Chinese value of putting the group over the individual and not rocking the proverbial boat, but sometimes it just doesn’t work. It absolutely fails when it comes to music. Music is supposed to be creative, so just following along with the crowd definitely doesn’t cut it. Thankfully, in every culture there are always those independent people who like to experiment with new sounds and ideas and create something fresh. (Really, if you haven’t checked out InLove, do it. Yes, Lu, I’m always advertising your music!). I recently came across a post at Lost Laowai reviewing a great site called Neocha (aka “new tea”). I won’t go into what the review says since that would be totally redundant. Just check it out for yourself or head on over to neocha.com to get connected with great (and of course some not-so-great) Chinese indie music.

Chinese video sites: an obnoxiously long list

Due-East — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:20:44 +0000




I was looking up Chinese video sharing sites after my buddy teople introduced me to a few, and I came across a great post on Danwei.org with an overly-lengthy-in-a-good-way list of them. Careful not to overdose, Chinese junkies. And if you’re interested in seeing a good comparison of the sites, check out this post on China Web2.0 Review.

Nobody concentrates harder than old Chinese ladies

Due-East — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:57:38 +0000


I found the video below on blog.howma.com and had to post about it because of how awesome it is. Yeah, it’s pretty cool how well the guy in the video dances, but the real story is the old lady on the couch behind him…

If you had a guy in your living room wearing a suit coat with no shirt, pajama bottoms, and slippers, and he was dancing all up in ya face like MC Hammer, you’d probably laugh hysterically, right? Or you’d glance up once in a while to watch for a few seconds, right? At the very least, you’d giggle or something. I think most Westerners would. But not old Chinese ladies! The one in the video just keeps on knitting/sewing/doing-whatever-she’s-doing and pays absolutely no attention to the guy whatsoever. It’s like the he isn’t even in the room! I don’t think it’s possible to concentrate any harder than that. And that’s why if I ever find myself in a tag-team Operation competition, I’m taking an old Chinese lady as my partner.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Hey, Jealousy

Due-East — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 15:52:03 +0000

You know how when you were a kid you’d have these highly implausible fantasies about totally awesome things happening to you, and no matter how unlikely it actually was that those things would ever happen, somewhere deep down inside you thought they might some day? My fantasy when I was a kid was that I would be at my favorite band’s concert and then for whatever reason my thirteen-year-old mind could come up with, I would get invited up on stage to sing along with or instead of the singer of the band. I used to lie in bed at night and drift off to sleep imagining that kind of thing happening. But in the words of Noel Gallagher of Oasis, “While we’re living, the dreams we have as children fade away.” Reality eventually set in, and I realized that kind of thing doesn’t happen…unless you’re a Sammi Cheng fan in Singapore. Check out the video below:

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

Well, it’s pretty close to the fantasy, anyway. My Cantonese is horrible (read: all but nonexistent), but someone in the comments section on Youtube said something about Sammi making fun of the girl for being fat or not sexy (but in a good-natured way?!). Being called fat in front of thousands of people? That’d sting a bit, but it’s a small price to pay for being given the chance to live out a fantasy like that. The next time I’m at a Jay Chou concert (probably never), I’m bringing a poster that says, “Let me on stage to make a fool of myself in front of thousands!” or maybe just “Can I have Landy Wen‘s phone number?”

No matter how cool you think your ballet is, it’s not as cool as China’s

Due-East — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 20:21:57 +0000

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

How did China get the monopoly on cool acrobatics? I have no idea, but I’ve never seen another country come up with acrobats even remotely as talented as China’s. Check out the video above, and I’m sure you’ll agree that China just needs to go ahead and send out a letter to the rest of the world:

The state of 科幻 (SciFi) in China

Due-East — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:50:03 +0000

I’m a big fan of SciFi. And I’m a big fan of Chinese. So logically, I’ve always wondered about Chinese SciFi, how much of it existed, what it was like, etc…but I’ve never really taken the time to look anything up about it for whatever reason. Thanks to this post on RedKemp.com, I don’t have to. It’s pretty well laid out for me.

According to RedKemp, SciFi all but went away when the Communist Party took over, but it’s had a revival as of late, and some people are even saying China’s in the midst of a “golden age” of SciFi. That’s pretty exciting news to me. It’s always interesting to see other cultures’ takes on popular SciFi themes in general, so anything combining SciFi and the culture that I find the most fascinating is a winner to me. RedKemp does a pretty good job of rounding up info on SciFi in China, so I won’t comment any further. I’ll just link to some of the same things they link to for the lazy readers, including myself.

Twelve Hours Later – A blog about “Literature from the other side of the globe – Chinese SF, fantasy, and mainstream fiction”
http://www.sfw-cd.com – The official site of China’s Science Fiction World magazine, which is apparently a really popular magazine in China. If only I could read more Chinese…
Some guy’s research project on Chinese SciFi
Lavie Tidhar‘s article on “Science Fiction, Globalization, and the People’s Republic of China”.

‘splosions ‘n’ bulletproof glass

Due-East — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:45:45 +0000

Have you ever wondered if bulletproof glass could withstand an attack from a rocket propelled grenade? Believe it or not, I have. But I don’t exactly have the budget to buy those things for testing purposes, so I’m glad someone tested for me. Here’s a video from a Japanese TV show showing the results of said test. I’m not sure what language the army guys are speaking in the video (it sounds like Vietnamese or maybe Thai?), but I’m curious. If you happen to know, leave a comment. Regardless, my curiosity has been satisfied.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]