House of Happiness 一家亲亲过好年: Poor Start with a Heart Warming Ending

988 radio station had been accompanying me for years. Despite their lack of experience in movie making, I listed their CNY effort, House of Happiness  (一家亲亲过好年) as one of my CNY movie binge. Richard Ng and Chu Mimi both spearhead the cast with their vast acting experience from Hong Kong and it shows greatly. They basically hold the movie together with each screen they were on.


The story is expected from any local CNY effort. Uncle Shui suffers from dementia, and had forgotten his family. He treats his wife as a maid and his son as the maid's son. The first half follows the story of how a vixen took advantage to tried to break their marriage while running away from a fail pyramid scheme. The second half follow as Shui tried to win back his wife, and later struggle with his loss due to dementia.

I would not even touch on casting as the 2 main lead is just perfect. Their veteran experience really shines among the amateur. The main problem is probably the script and the editing. The first half of the movie felt unsatisfying. If it is because of the main lead, it felt like an extended youtube video. The editing is poor, sometimes, the whole transition between scenes felt disjointed. The whole first half serve nearly nothing to the flow of the story and I felt they could just do it in less than half of the time. You can feel that many characters were so purposely written so that each DJ can have their moments on the silver screen. And talk about product placement..... it could be done more subtlety. The jokes felt flat many times as it felt forced.

However, if you manage to stay awake until the second half, this is where the movie shines. This is when the movie pick up, free from its own burden of showcasing the DJ and pushing products. Richard Ng manages to tug the heart with his struggle with his own memory loss. I can personally feel how Chan Fong's character son agony as he watch his father struggle with his dignity and his love for his family.

The movie could be done so many ways better, but the last scene on the father and son, .....that is just perfect, although cliche. Although there are many CNY offerings from HK and China, but I believe this is one of the more memorable ones this year.

ratings: 3 poink~!
comments: Sometimes, it could be a cut from the authority that disjointed the story telling. This is my guess how the story of the son running away from home was not told properly.

Black Panther: Over rated Lion King experience

Rotten Tomatoes review was so impressive that I had high expectation of Black Panther. The trailer left me thinking the Marvel had score another goal. After finishing the movie, I had other thoughts. The movie is just average.

Black Panther follows the story of T Challa as he ascended the throne of Wakanda after the former king was killed in Civil War. Being a highly advance country built on the world reserve of the powerful mineral vibranium. Wakanda has been practicing close door policy and hiding the fact regarding their technology, portraying themselves as a poor third world African country. Beside inheriting the throne, he inherit the role of Black Panther as well, a protecting role of the country with access to heart shaped flower which imbue whoever ingest them with superhuman strength, speed and power. The rest of the movie follows the new king as he journey on his new role, torn between his own values and tradition. As a new threat to the throne appears, his beliefs and value are restored and finally emerge as the rightly new king. That sounds so Lion King.


The details are amazing. Colorful, vibrant and natural. Minus the fact that most of the Wakandan speaks English more than native African. I would not be sure whether the details are authentic, but it is as impressive as ever. Casting is spot on, even with many comments that  MCU took lots of changes on screen. The action sequence is bit of expected though. For most of us who got used to MCU big fights with laser and explosion, Black Panther fights with fists and knives were just OK. The main problem with all MCU movies is under develop villain. Although the script tried to form a revenge backstory for Kilmonger, but he was poorly written, came out stereotyped. Nothing beats the Joker yet.


Do not get me wrong, MCU still make good movies. Black Panther is still enjoyable. However, with so many gems under MCU label, more can be done for Black Panther, especially it is just one movie away from the finale Infinity War, the closing chapter for 10 years MCU plan.

ratings: 3 poink~!
comments: would not miss much even miss out this movie. Looking forward for Thanos with his infinity gauntlet....

The Mount: Comfortable Dining for the Patient Ones

On one of the rare days, me and Lyn decided to eat out. Being near CNY, Ipoh is packed with cars. So much so that we abandoned our idea to go to Kinta City area half way and turn back towards somewhere near our house. I recalled that on my way back from work, I saw this nicely decorated restaurant near Symphony Suite Hotel.

The Mount could be easily missed out, since it is part of Merton Hotel. The exterior design is modern, living up its expectation of being a boutique hotel/ restaurant. Though parking is a challenge, with a few Chinese restaurant along the row always busy with patrons; as long as we did not mind parking slightly further, parking space should not be a deterrent. To easily spot the restaurant, just look for the row of shop along Symphony Suite and Kedai 1 Malaysia.

The restaurant is decorated very nicely. with all the seats comfortably seated spaciously. It felt like dining in a fine dining setup in Ipoh. Probably this place is still relatively new, therefore not as full as other diners. The waiter here is attentive, but being the only one that night, he is always busy taking orders, serving and making drinks.

Then comes the menu. Surprise, although I would expect the worse, the western offering here cost generally affordable. Average dishes ranging around RM20 would not burn a hole in the pocket. The Mexican BBQ Chicken (RM19) which I chose was rather a nice surprise, though tasted more oriental than salsa. The BBQ sauce was not over empowering which a lot of other restaurant would tend to over-do. Lyn's white mushroom chicken (RM19) was nice, but lack the wow factor. To me, it tasted bit like cabonara sauce with a dash of mushroom. Probably the impression would be better with bit more herbs and mushroom. Freshly extracted juices costs only RM8.50 completed the meal. However, even with limited guests, the chef took his own time to prepare each dishes, and it is a long wait for the hungry. Luckily the place is very comfortable to relax and chat, but for me who did not take a proper lunch that day, each second waiting for dinner is excruciating.

 The Mount left a good impression to me, partly due to the affordable price despite a fine dining setup. For those who do not mind waiting patiently for their food, they will be rewarded with a amazing dining experience here. For people who eat fast, there is always the fried noodle around in the area.

rating: 3 poink~!
comments: the food is good, though far from impressionable, but the comfort of dining here is exceptional.

Along with Gods: the Two Worlds: Good Korean effort

As Lyn pointed out, we could not recall the last Korean movie which we actually paid to watch. To be fair, we first knew about Along With Gods when we were bombarded with the trailer during our trip to Taiwan last year. So naturally it piqued our interest when the movie reach our shore here in Malaysia, garnering fair review from all the medias. Then again, I’ve learnt not to trust so much the reviews in the mass media as they tend to be as diplomatic as possible. 

How should I start this… Along with Gods based on a popular webtoons in Korea. Not manga, not even manhwa, but more like a comic strip. Too bad I could not find the translated version, all I could locate was the original ones in Naver Comics. It largely follows the death of a self sacrificing fireman. Being a noble person, he gets priority to be reincarnated as fast as possible, which is 49 days. To do that, he had to go through 7 different hells which deal with different sins and wrongdoing while being assisted by 3 grim reapers. Although there are some actions especially involving a certain vengeful spirit, many would agree the central theme of the show would be filial piety and wonders of familial love. Yup, I can actually hear many people sobbing while in the cinema. 

Does it work? Mediocre at best. The story is compelling enough for Asian, but for many people who do not understand the basis of Buddhism may find the story too far fetch. A lot of effort is put into designing each hell, and it is very innovative. Acting is top notch, and each play their character well. The action, on the other hand, looks real but not crisp enough. I can vaguely see the creatures from hell during the introduction of the vengeful spirit. The touching moment is reserved at the end of the movie, but like how a radio review put it, the bulk of the movie is focus on other matters, introducing different hells, so when the time it is for sobbing, the impact is much reduced. 

It is definitely one of the better movies from Korea, however, I do find a common problem with Korean movies is many lack common direction, trying to do too much at a time and dragging a movie too long. Except Korean horrors, which exclude the Revenge Trilogy. Train to Busan is one of those who manage to break the mold. Too bad Along with Gods fall back to the mold. 

Ratings: 3 half poink~!

Comments: Entertaining, but minus all the negatives I pointed out, Korean can really do touching moments, like Japanese movies. At least Korean movies has faster pace than Japanese counterpart.

Taichung: Laid-back leisure travel

Zhongxiao Road night Market

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all. Expecting a super busy year in 2018 so in anticipation of non stop working days, me and Lyn decided to charge our batteries fully before embarking on a new year.

There are many ways of travelling in Taiwan, not limited to organized tour. The main tips on travel DIY: consider which aspect is the most important:
Budget: every cents counts.
Interest: travel at own pace, only to places that interest, skipping the rest
Coverage: maximize the time spent there to cover the most number of places
If budget is the most concern, just plan own tour with public transport. Just remember to download google map before going and we got ourselves a free map. Adding RM5 for data roaming/ day make it possible for me to use bus tracking app for our Taichung leg of tour. If interest is of utmost concern, book a driver or just Uber (Uber exist in Taiwan but less common in smaller towns). If covering the most number of places is the main focus, just go for tour, either from Malaysia or local tour.

cingjing

Getting the choices of travel right, we decided, as always to go budget. We did not want to hire our own driver, as it is rather costly for 2. Group of 3-4 would be kinder to the pocket. Parking our car in Salak Tinggi Park and Ride (new cost: RM8/day), we took KLIA transit to KLIA2. For 2 persons, driving down would not be cheaper as the toll and petrol would push the cost to the same price as bus, but we wanted the flexibility (plus, we went to Big Bad Wolf sale at 3am before flight).

We choose to land in Kaohsiung, which is cheaper compare to Taipei, even after adding the high speed rail to Taichung. Arriving in Taichung, we took the local train from Xinwuri HSR station to the main Taichung train station. Chance Hotel, where we stay, is just directly the train station. Although many would suggest staying near Fengchia night market which is in the newer part of town, I discover staying near the train station instead is more convenient for travelling around to other place.

sunrise at Hehuanshan

Night 1:
Zhongxiao Road night market: walk-able distance from train station, this night market is just about food. Situated along Zhongxiao road, one has to be careful as cars and scooters ride along the road despite busy stalls. There is less variety of food, and the few stalls we visited is comparatively pricier. Can consider skipping this is lack of time and visit Yizhong instead.
Miyahara 宮原眼科: used to be an ophthalmology clinic/ hospital, it is renovated to be dessert shop. The ice cream here is suppose to be famous, at least for the long list of choice. I agree on the varieties of choics can be amazing, especially the different chocolate ice cream, but some flavor tasted more sorbet than creamy ice cream. Good for a short visit.

Day2: cingjing 清境農場          

misty morn at sun moon lake

Base in train station made it easier to make way to Gancheng bus station, which is just a road with many bus companies shop, not a main bus station building. We took Nantou bus to Cingjing farm, and checked into Yunwu B&B. Yunwu, despite not on the main road, is rather convenient to walk to the main eateries but the path is all dark at night. Plus, Yunwu's pet dog welcome us and send us off everytime we walk out from the hotel.

Cingjing farm青青草原: : remember to take public transport up to the topmost entrance and walk down. While walking the whole journey is absolutely fine, but most would use the bus at least the uphill part. Expect huge piece of grassland with lots of sheep. The horse show was nice finale to the whole visit.
Swiss garden: looking at the garden from outside, it did not look impressive for the entrance fees. Perphaps those who visited would give a celare picture.
Mist plaza: the main visitor building with ample food choices, MOS burger and a visitor booth.

brunch at second market

Day 3:Hehuanshan to Sun Moon Lake
Hehuanshan sunrise tour: not advisable for DIY, the local tour can be arranged via all hotels, and the view was absolutely amazing. The sea of clouds are breathtaking, and worth waking up early for.

We made our way to Sun Moon Lake, despite what the taxi driver keep on insisting, the public transport is very convenient. The only bus that require planning ahead for the schedule is Cingjing-Puli bus, once reach Puli, there are ample bus to Sun Moon Lake. We stayed at Meijen house which is very homely and near the bus stop. After reaching, we bought the round the lake bus ticket to move around. We did not buy the ship as the lake or the ropeway as we decided we may not have enough time for everything.
Delight mall: a small plaza housing MOS burger and Carton King.
Wenwu temple文武廟: very colorful temple and well kept.
Ita Thao pier伊達邵: a short 2 street stall.
We did not visit the cultural village as it may require a longer time and theme park is not our cup of tea. We skip Ci-en pagoda as not all the bus would reach there, only one bus in an hour.

Day 4: Sun Moon Lake 日月潭
woke up for nice sunrise walk with our host from Meijen house, and it is free!
taking Nantou bus back to Taichung, it is time to activate our data roaming for the bus trackign app, which is a absolute necessity for own travel in Taichung. Even local use similar apps.
Checking in back in Chance Hotel, we took a leisurely approach to the rest of the day

sunset at Gaomei

Rainbow village彩虹眷村: a cluster of beautifully painted houses. worth the visit despite very, very fast visit. It is only a few houses, not a whole village.
We skip Luce Chapel as although it is not far away, there will be few bus changes to reach there, and we prefer to spend more time at the night market.
Fengjia night market: despite advertise as the main tourist attraction, this market is smaller than what I expected. And it is definitely unfair to compare to Shilin at Taipei. Mainly food, games and clothing, a visit here is very fast. Fengjia is very well organize though, even with public toilet and also plenty of rubbish dumpster. I would prefer Yizhong though.
Chun sui tang春水堂: Inventor of bubble tea, we went to the first shop in Siwei street (no harm to visit the originator shop since bus are free)

Freedom street自由路: walk along for plenty of Sun Biscuit shop. Kindly be reminded sun biscuit (taiyang bing) is not as cheap as the other dessert, it cost at least TWD150 for a small box.

sunset at Gaomei

Day 5: Taichung
We started off the day with at least a visit \to the nearby mall,
Taroko Mall大魯閣新時代: not fully occupied, it make a nice stroll
Jiguang street電子街: supposedly for electronic good shopping. Forget this, as this really pale compare to AKB.
Second market第二市場: a small complex for daily marketting and also food. Good for brunch, and just nice since the bus stop is just nearby.
Gaomei wetland高美濕地: We nearly miss this as everyone say it is far. With the new 309 bus, the whole bus ride just took us slightly more than an hour to reach. The sunset view is amazing! Very very windy though, but the walk out on planks leading out to the wetland is an amazing experience.
Yizhong street night market一中街夜市: while still small compare to bigger cousins in Taipei, the night market here is more livelier and nicer to stroll. Food choices aplenty so do come with an empty tummy.

Day 6: Kaohsiung
taking high speed rail to Kaohsiung, we checked in to Longsiang hotel, which is one of the cheapest in the whole journey. The free breakfast here is amazing, with one of the best pork and chicken dish.
Pier 2 art center: this place is much bigger than what i expected. Initially I though this would be similar to the red houses in Hakodate but there are much more art installation here and so much photo opportunity.
Lotus pond: a bit out of the way, was too tired to appreciate by the time walked here.
Ruifeng night market: so many food choices, it is surprising to see so many foreigners opening food stall here.

Day 7: fly back to home~!

Ratings: 4 poink~!
comments: easier to plan compare to other countries, Taiwan make a good choice for impromptu vacation. Beside Taipei, there are so many other places to explore.