umm....

Lots in my head. The DJ project "Featuring the Lights and Sounds..." is doing great and picking up momentum as more people 'get' what we are doing. Next week we kick off our East LA DJ PM Panels, which will be panels of DJs and promoters that were a part of the past, present and future of the DJ scene from the Eastside. The opening night was muy cool.

Enjoyed the concerts I listed below. Sean Kuti was the best, such a great LA night full of color and funk; my homegirl Nina Lares jazzed it smooth in the Pasadena sun, got there in time to hear the house classic 'Days Like This' by Sean Escoffrey; of course Very Be Careful was the bomb, but dancing barefoot in the grass with my girl made it even more especial; The Hollywood Bowl always delivers a great show, Los Amigos Invisibles are my favorite live band. They play music like DJs would, non stop beats, breaks, samples of classics and back into a groove.

Hanging with bloggers at the monthly meeting has made me a little... ummm... more cautious of what I write, and I don't like it. When I started this I wasn't a big blog reader. I didn't know all the players and the rules. I just wanted to spit out my spew not caring or knowing if anyone was even going to read it. Sure I invite my friends to read, but since learning more about blogztlan I now know that I am muy revealing! Many bloggers work hard to keep their anonymity so they can say more, or so they don't say less. My homie R... oooopps Kualyque wrote this very cool blog about what he writes about and included some stuff about anonymity. It made me think more about what I write.

-Whine? YES I do. I need to let it out somehow/somewhere. Didn't Sienfeld make millions just whining?

-'Boo hoo' about my bike's flat tire? YES I did! It sucked!!! Although I saw the karmic connection and learned from it, I think.

-Tell you where to go get this or that? YES! But I don't tell all my secret spots, the lines are long enough.

One thing I know I can improve is having more pics. I don't have a camera other than the one in my phone. The ones above are copies from my girl's camera.

Here is a pic from my phone of what I ate today:

It's left overs from Dim Sum on Sunday morning. I won't tell you where I went, but it is peanut chicken, Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce, home made steamed rice (from last week) and some lime juice. Making my mouth water!

I added a new blog to my 'Sites to Visit' at the bottom of this, it's my homie's Raul Campos' blog. Pinche cool interview with Moby. Check it.

I'm sticking to sticking my neck out and saying what's in my head not caring what others may think. If that's not cool, well I guess I'm a nerd, but I can't be a nerd cuz nerds are now the cool kids and I can't be cool if I take a stand, can I?

Fuck it. It's my world. You are just visiting Pachucoville. You don't like it? Me vale. Sal te guey. Larrrrrgate.

As if...

Guest Bloggin'

I have been asked by my cyber homeboy El Chavo to contribute to a new collective blog called L.A. Eastside.

The purpose of this blog is to 'be a place for Eastside voices, Latino or not...'

I like that!

I posted my first one called 'L.A. Rights,' it is based on a conversation I had with a homeboy about who has the right to claim L.A.

(My usual opinionated self)

Pachucoville/Oscar predictions...

Why not?
I love movies. Tis' the season to be critical.

BEST PICTURE:

"Little Miss Sunshine" come on this is a freaking comedy! Does the academy like giving Oscar noms and awards to films that show how fucked up families can be? Think "American Beauty." "Borat" should be nominated since LMS got in. Both show how screwed up Americans are. Cute yes, laugh out loud ofcourse, best pic? Por Favor, no.

"Babel" good but not all that. Inarritu has done this formula in his past, now he had more money and a bigger cast. Simple story (for me at least), somewhat touching, relevant, ok acting (it was all in the editing) BUT a film basically about American media overreaction, human links, and a Japanese girl's chonch shot should not make a Best Picture. In that case a movie tracking a Fed Ex package from New York to LA to Kyoto to Bejing, to Athens, to Paris could do the same. Let's do it!

"Letters From Iwo Jima" Mr. Eastwood is the man. This was great film making. Is is a best pic? Sure. Is there better stuff? Read on...

"The Queen" only people who give a crap about the Queen of England, give a fuck about the Queen of England. Who cares? Why should I? Pobrecita had a media issue? ay ay ay. Fuck it. This should have never made out of the TV movie it should have been.

BEST PICTURE WINNER IN PACHUCOVILLE: "Children of Men" or "Pan's Labrynth"

Children of Men: Ofcourse it is not nominated! It scares the shit out of people. This actually says something that "Babel" tried, and "The Queen" thought it did. The acting, action, cinematography, story, everything rocked. Clive Owen, sure he is becoming too much like hound dog Harrison Ford, but he can play moral ambiguity like the best of them.

Pan's Labrynth: A perfect mix of two very different film genres made to seem like they always belonged together. You care about the peeps real and not, the story, the colors, I felt like licking the screen it looked and played so good.


BEST DIRECTOR:

Clint Eastwood, I love this man's eye, his pacing, his subtle touch, the way you forget you are watching a grand film. He is Scorsese's worst nightmare.

Stephen Frears, come on homeboy, you got so lucky with this. Your lead actress has played this role how many times? Can she play any other role? What did you do other than turn on the camera and let her go off on replay?

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu deserved an Oscar for "Amores Perros." It was new, gritty, exciting, hot, took you places most have never been, brought issues up that were commonly uncomfortable, but for "Babel?" No. "Amores Perros" changed film making in many circles, "Babel" shows he is running in circles. Adelante hombre! You are a bad ass. Stop being comfortable.

Paul Greengrass, his name is very cool, Greengrass, love it. Love it a lot. What film did he make?

Martin Scorsese is the man. He should have won for "Raging Bull," "Good Fellas," and yes "Gangs of New York." Dicaprio fucked that up for him though. "Departed," like many are saying, is warmed over Scorsese, just like I'm saying "Babel" is warmed over Inarritu. Marty has been there and done that. Does he deserve the Oscar, ofcourse, will he win? I would think so, but....


Best Director in Pachucoville: TIE!!!! Alfonso Cuarron and Guillermo Del Toro

Cuaron made a vision without losing the dirt, the blood, the gut twisting decisions humans in extreme situations must make. "Children of Men" will be one of those films that we look at many years from now and hopefully go "Dang we are so lucky we missed all those bullets."

Del Toro made a film that parents love and I bet would love their kids to see, if not for the crazy beat downs and torture. He brought two worlds together and blended them seamlessly without cheap or played out tricks. His story moved you on every level: As a revolutionary, as a parent, as a believer in the unperceiveable, as a lover of beauty.


BEST ACTOR

Leonardo Dicaprio needs to step up to his directors or handlers and tell them to let him get dirty, let his hair get messy, let his fingernails get broken. Please, the accent was ok but nothing else made you think this fool could be a bad ass in black Africa.

Will Smith got jiggy with his little film. So did Sacha Cohen in "Borat." It ain't fair. Smith makes his peeps money already, so they don't have to give him an Oscar til waaayyyy later.

Peter O'Toole, one word : TOOL

Ryan Gosling, now here we are hitting some carne. Crack head teacher, sure. Lot's of them. Great job.

Forrest Whittaker, THE WINNER here in Pachucoville and on Oscar night.
This vato, in my book, can do no wrong. Give it to him for all his work, give it to him for becoming Idi Amin. Whatever, he is far and above all the other guys in this race.


BEST ACTRESS

Penelope Cruz, eye candy that can act when her creator, the amazing Pedro Almodovar, is pulling her strings. Otherwise, you get nada out of this European Espa~ola who has been working the Raza angle.

Judi Dench as a pissy lesbian hustling it. Was this role written for her or what? Was there any acting involved? Overall the Academy seems to always need some English accents around during Oscar time, whether or not the acting is great.

Helen Mirren as the Queen of England. Like I said she can't play any other role and how many times has she played the Queen? No acting required. No Oscar should go to her for this.

Merly Streep played a character/archtype/one dimensional over the top fun to watch wreck. Could she have shown us that she is a human under all the Prada, she should have.

Kate Winslet, THE WINNER here in Pachucoville, but unfortunately will be losing to Mirren on Oscar night. She played all those little emotions we hide beneath the surface when we are playing our roles and when we play the roles on top of the roles we play in life. Simple, tense, deserving.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN PACHUCOVILLE

EDDIE MURPHY, "Dreamgirls"

I love Eddie Murphy, I hate his career choices. He is a true acting genius that needs an Almodovar, a Scorsese, or some other great director to help him make better choices than "Norbit." In "Dreamgirls" he simply rocked. You could almost feel the slime on him when he worked that girl in the bus, you could feel his heart beating out of his chest when he was high and you were just as dizzy, pissed off and confused when he crashes on stage. One day we will look back and realize that Eddie Murphy is a true bad ass. I really, really hope he wins Oscar night and drops a phat ass speech.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN PACHUCOVILLE

RINKO KIKUCHI, "Babel"

Sure she was naked and showing off her kuchi but it was not her naked body (parts) that kept you hoping some one would finally give her what she needed. It was her pain, her lonliness and her little girl innocence she pulled out of her 23 or 26 yr old mind. Her silence made more noise than all of Pitt's screaming and yelling.



These are my two cents on this year's flickas. We'll see what happens. Any Oscar party invites you want to throw my way, I promise to keep my opinions to these pages, but the beer I will bring will be for all.