Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Giveaway time!!

Yeah yeah I know I said I wouldn't do any more posts this year but couldn't help posting this one. :P
Kiran of  Cherry Lane is celebrating her 10 followers with her first international giveaway. Little different from the other giveaways, the gifts that can be won is not fixed!! The more the followers by the end of Jan 2012,more the number of gifts to be won.

Here are the prizes to be won-
1)A big tub of The Body Shop Wild Cherry Body Scrub(10 followers)

2) ELF Nail Polish in Twinkle(15 followers)

3)Original Source Special Winter Edition Almond and Black Cherry Shower Gel(20 followers)



4)Cupcake Bath Fizzers(25 followers )


5)Bourjois So Laque Nail Polish in Rouge Casino(30 followers)


6)A Sachet of Cherry Cool Aid(35 followers)
7) A pretty Black stud pair(40 followers)
8)MUA lipstick in shade 11-a warm brown color(45 followers)


9)MUA Blusher in shade 5
More goodies get added to the list,one extra for every 5 new follower.


So go check it out here and participate :) Giveaway closes on 31st Jan GMT,so hurry up!!
Hope all of you have a great year ahead.


love
Swarnali

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Goodbye 2011

This is my last post for this year, will have to go back to books from tomorrow. Exams marching their way at the very beginning of the new year,such a bad start to a bright new year ... :(
Lets forget that for sometime,
Coming to the happier thoughts,a good movie is a perfect solution to everything in my life.
Sad?? Watch a Comedy
Happy?? Watch a War-time documentary (and cry at the miseries of people)
Depressed?? Watch a Romance (and again cry,happy tears this time)
Confused?? Watch a Sci-fi
Bored?? Watch an Animated movie


Those were not the perfect solutions I agree but somehow watching a movie makes me feel better or to say makes me feel me (no idea how).


Of my experience of watching World Movies (which is quite limited) I believe that the French make the best Romances and the Iranians are best at movies which make you laugh and cry out with their sheer innocence.


Here is a list of my 5 Favorite (of the ones that I have seen)  French Movies (in no particular order)-


1) Amelie (original title- Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain)-


Amelie is the tale of young impish but naive Amelie Poulain,who lives in Paris (physically in Paris, but prefers to live in a world of her own,created by her incredibly fertile imagination). She sets out to help people in her own mysterious ways and finds love accidentally. One of the best romances I have seen,this is Audrey Tautou at her best.

Snippet from the movie: "Narrator: Nino is late. Amelie can only see two explanations. 1 - he didn't get the photo. 2 - before he could assemble it, a gang of bank robbers took him hostage. The cops gave chase. They got away... but he caused a crash. When he came to, he'd lost his memory. An ex-con picked him up, mistook him for a fugitive, and shipped him to Istanbul. There he met some Afghan raiders who too him to steal some Russian warheads. But their truck hit a mine in Tajikistan. He survived, took to the hills, and became a Mujaheddin. Amelie refuses to get upset for a guy who'll eat borscht all his life in a hat like a tea cozy. "


2) The Double Life of Veronique (original title- La double vie de Véronique) -


Strictly not a French movie since the director is Polish but half of the dialogues of this movie are in French,so am counting it here. The tale of two young women Veronika and Veronique,one lives in France and the other in Poland. These two women not only share the same name but a lot more. Won't give out the details,watch it to know more.


3) Paris,I love You (original title- Paris, je t'aime) -


This is a collection of 20 short films by 20 different directors all carefully fused one after another with a common thread running through,the love for the city and its inhabitants.  Paris, the city of love is buzzing with love,love is found, lost, revealed, hidden, awakened...
New York,I love you is a Hollywood inspiration of this movie.

Snippet from the movie :
"Hassan: I just got stung by a lousy mosquito. These neighborhoods are dangerous. Lagos is safer. What' your name? 
Sophie: Sophie. 
Hassan: I'd give you my card but I have none left. Too bad! Sophie, fancy a cup of coffee? Go on! Can I massage your feet? 
Sophie: Why would I let you? 
Hassan: Because they hurt. 
Sophie: They do? 
Hassan: You were running in my dreams all night... Please have coffee with me. "


4) Persepolis-

The animated film version of Marjane Satrapi's graphic novel by the same novel,Persepolis is the poignant tale of a bold and outspoken Iranian girl, Marjane during the Islamic revolution.

Snippet from the movie :Marjane's grandmother: Listen. I don't like to preach, but here's some advice. You'll meet a lot of jerks in life. If they hurt you, remember it's because they're stupid. Don't react to their cruelty. There's nothing worse than bitterness and revenge. Keep your dignity and be true to yourself. "

5) Three Colors:Blue (original title- Trois couleurs: Bleu) -

The first of the three movies of the trilogy Three Colors: Blue, White and Red which are based on France's national motto,Liberty ,Equality and Fraternity. Blue,representing Liberty,is the tale of Julie Vignon, who loses her famous composer husband and daughter in a car accident. The movie shows how she tries everything to come out of her past and start anew a life which she wants and how she is drawn back to old memories and how music brings her back to the world of the living by healing her wounds.
Most people I know liked Red more but I somehow liked Blue more than the other two. It is necessary to see them in the correct order to have a complete understanding of  Krzysztof Kieslowski's motive. Must watches,all three.

Snippet from the movie: Julie Vignon: Now I have only one thing left to do: nothing. I don't want any belongings, any memories. No friends, no love. Those are all traps."

Have you seen any of these?? Which one do you like the most?? Have you seen others which you liked more?? Tell me in the comments section :)

Back to my not-so-dear-books-in-syllabus, catch you all up after am done with my battle (a.k.a exams).
Hope you all have a great new year ahead.

Love,
Swarnali


P.S.-Image and info courtesy IMDB

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Season's Greetings

Am lovin' Bieber's Mistletoe (not that am a fan of his). Humming these lines for the past few days...
"It's the most beautiful time of the year,
Lights fill the streets spreading so much cheer...."

Merry Christmas everyone :D

Friday, December 23, 2011

Girl With A Pearl Earring

Saw this painting years back in an encyclopedia and fell in love with it. The GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING (Dutch: Het Meisje met de Parel ) is the best known work of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. Take a  look at the painting-
image and information courtesy: en.wikipedia.org

Today kept in the Mauritshuis gallery in the Hague. It is sometimes referred to as "the Mona Lisa of the North" or "the Dutch Mona Lisa". Understandably, the central focal point of the painting is the pearl earring.


Dear Opal of Girl With a Pearl Earring has named her blog after this famous painting,very apt title,I would say :D


There was a film made in 2003 by the same name.
image courtesy : www.imdb.com

 I had to see this film for 2 reasons-
1) The name is what made me see it in the first place
2) It has 2 of my very favorite actors- Scarlett Johansson as the maid girl in the painting and Colin Firth as painter Johannes Vermeer.
There is a very beautiful scene in this film,the part when Firth uses a needle to pierce Johansson's ear. What I loved about the scene is how the director and the actors have unitedly proved that you don't need nudity or vulgarity to bring sensuality to any scene. 


Take a look at how Scarlett Johansson looked when posing for the painting as Griet,the maid servant who is the model for the painting-

Did you see the painting before or did you see the movie and did you like it??
Would love to know from you :)


Till next
Love
Swarnali