Chinese Class - Courteney Cox planning another baby

ENTERTAINMENT / Gossip






Courteney Cox planning another baby

(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-06-07 20:24



Former Friends star Courteney Cox is planning to add another little one
to her brood.

The actress recently revealed that she is planning to have IVF treatment
again so she can have another baby.

Cox and her husband David Arquette conceived daughter Coco after IVF in
2004 and Courteney has already had more blood tests to begin the process
all over.

But the actress also clarified that she is not prepared for it
immediately, as she is too busy with her new TV show Dirt. "I'm not
really ready right this second, but I'll probably do it one more time,"
Contactmusic quoted her, as saying.

"I used to want to have, like, eight kids. It was such a fantasy when I
was younger because my mother, who was an only child, had four kids. Now,
looking back, I don't understand how she did it," she added.







Related Stories



� Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox hit the beach
===========================================================================
� Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston to kiss in 'Dirt' finale
===========================================================================
� Dirty, pretty, Courteney Cox
===========================================================================










Top Entertaiment News




� Morrison to play Princess Diana in Lifetime drama

� Spike Lee eyes film on U.S. black soldiers in WW2

� Richie frets about maybe going to jail

� Tom Sizemore handcuffed at LA court

� Jolie: `We have family sleep on Sundays'





Today's Top News




� China, Costa Rica set up diplomatic ties

� North Korea fires missiles off coast

� President in Germany for G8 meet

� Gaokao pioneers: Don't make a fuss

� HK Basic Law 'guarantees democracy'





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese language - Carrey back to comedy films as a jailed homosexual

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Carrey back to comedy films as a jailed homosexual

(AFP)
Updated: 2007-06-05 09:46





Jim Carrey

Comedy superstar Jim Carrey will return to his funny roots as a jailed
homosexual bent on breaking out in "I Love You Phillip Morris," possibly
produced by French director Luc Besson, Variety reported Monday.

Inspired by a true story, the film deals with his character's attempts to
rejoin his former cell mate and lover outside the prison and is presented
as Steven Spielberg's "Catch Me If You Can" meets "Brokeback Mountain."

The 45-year-old Canada-born actor broke the mega-fame barrier in 1996
when his rubber-faced "The Mask" character turned him into the first
Hollywood star to pass the 20-million-dollars-per-movie barrier.

His latest movie "The Number 23," however, grossed a meager 35 million
dollars at the North American box office, a far cry from the 240 million
his top earner "Bruce Almighty" made in 2003.









Related Stories



� Virginia Madsen in spirit of "Haunting"
===========================================================================
� Carrey relieved his fame was pre-YouTube
===========================================================================
� The Number 23
===========================================================================
� No marriage plans for Jim Carrey and Jenny
===========================================================================
� Diaz,Carrey scrap remake of French comedy
===========================================================================
� Jim Carrey hires new agent after Hollywood frenzy
===========================================================================










Top Entertaiment News




� Italian film industry rebukes Tarantino

� Hilton completes first night in LA jail

� Starbucks' music label releases first CD

� Carrey back to comedy films as a jailed homosexual

� Johnny Depp wins at MTV Movie Awards





Today's Top News




� Action plan aims to cut gas emissions

� Asia-Pacific defense talks 'helpful'

� Posh buildings target of probe

� Al-Qaida: Captured US troops killed

� Most stocks will be traded normally





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese Mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese language - Female action pics need heroes of their own

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Female action pics need heroes of their own

(Reuters)
Updated: 2007-06-01 09:11



When Robert Rodriguez signed on last week to direct Universal's
"Barbarella," it marked a rare instance of a female-led action film
getting off the ground.

Rodriguez is dipping his laser gun into a subgenre where Hollywood has
been traditionally gun-shy. Recent history has left a graveyard of
tombstones reading such names as "Elektra," "Catwoman" and "Aeon Flux,"
while mausoleums house "Tank Girl" and "Barb Wire." There are exceptions,
of course, such as the "Tomb Raider" and "Underworld" movies, but their
sequels failed to capitalize on any goodwill created by the first movies.



U.S. actress Angelina Jolie poses for photographers prior to the premiere
of the film, 'Lara Croft and the Cradle of Life:Tomb Raider 2,' in Tokyo
September 2, 2003 file photo.[Reuters]

One manager says it doesn't take X-ray vision to see studio sexism as
part of the trouble. Female-oriented action movies, he reasons, take a
hit when one fails, whereas a male-oriented action movie that misfires
bounces off a studio's back like a bullet off Superman.

"The studio translates those failures into, 'It doesn't matter if those
were bad movies, female-led superhero movies don't work," says one
manager, who has clients wanting to write those movies but says "studios
won't touch them with a 10-foot pole."

But television is another story.

On the small screen, female-starring genre stories become buzzworthy cult
hits, such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Alias" and (the just-canceled)
"Veronica Mars." The fall season will see a new crop of heroes in the
form of a new "Bionic Woman" on NBC and Fox's "The Sarah Connor
Chronicles," a spinoff of the "Terminator" movie series.

"Going back to 'Police Woman' in 1974, it's been far more accepted for a
woman to carry a show than it was for a woman to carry a movie," says DC
Comics senior vp Gregory Noveck, who is developing titles for both the
big and small screen.

Part of the problem is that most actresses dip one foot into the action
genre and then move on, especially after a flop, as Jennifer Garner did
post-"Elektra." But their male counterparts keep coming back again and
again.

The other problem, according to many writers and executives, is that
there hasn't been that knockout feature script starring a female action
hero. If "Buffy" creator Joss Whedon is let go for not being able to nail
a "Wonder Woman" script, what hope do lesser mortals have?

The issue is the writing, says David Eick, a writer-executive producer on
"Battlestar Galactica" and also a showrunner on "Bionic Woman." Feature
film screenwriters tend to allow gender to cloud character and plot
development, he says, whereas TV avoids that trap.

"The best female action stories in my opinion are the ones in which the
role isn't written for a girl, it's written for a hero," says Eick,
adding that heroes shouldn't be written any different whether male or
female. "In the television medium, the best female action characters are
written as heroes first, and female second."

Noveck isn't ready to give up on what he sees as a genre still in its
infancy. To him, studios are willing to put up with such failures as
"Hulk" and "Remo Williams" to find such genre-defining hits as "Die Hard"
and "Superman," whereas female action film aren't given enough chances.

Says Noveck, "When you only take four or five shots, you better take a
whole bunch more shots before you write off a whole genre."



















Top Entertaiment News




� Harry Potter' film to open 2 days early

� Paris Hilton's jail time countdown is on

� Film producers seek to accommodate Lohan's rehab

� Jolie applauds US increase for orphans funding

� Lohan's dad: Lindsay hooked on OxyContin





Today's Top News




� China: Panama importer 'to blame for deaths'

� China: Japan puts relations at risk

� Putin: US imperialism causes arms race

� China hit by brain drain, report says

� Smoking deaths to double without action - WHO





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese language, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

HSK - Britney's knickers 'degrading' - watchdog

ENTERTAINMENT / Music/Theater






Britney's knickers 'degrading' - watchdog

(NZPA)
Updated: 2007-05-29 16:47



Seven complaints over a billboard featuring Britney Spears climbing out
of a car with her private parts covered by large blue knickers has been
upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority.

The billboard for Sky TV carried the headline: Something Everyone Wants
To See.



Britney Spears [Reuters]

One of the complainants, A. Harper, said the billboard was offensive with
"a huge picture of Britney Spears with her legs spread eagled, the camera
angle looking up her skirt, and a drawing of underwear covering her
private parts."

The complainant said the picture was crude and represented women as sex
objects.

The chairman of the authority ruled the complaints fell under the
principle that advertisements should not use sex appeal in a manner
exploitative and degrading to sell products.

Lawyers for Sky and its advertising agency DDB New Zealand said it
appeared the seven complainants were unaware Spears had been pictured in
Hollywood last year getting out of a car wearing a miniskirt and no
knickers.

The picture caused a frenzy and "there is little doubt Ms Spears did all
this deliberately �C she is a person who does outlandish things for
publicity.

The object of the billboard, the lawyers said, was to use the picture to
"say people wouldn't want to see `Britney's bits' (hence the knicker
coverup) but there was something they would want to see on Sky."

The lawyers said the billboard was not outside the rules governing such
advertising.

"There will always be advertisements which offend some people and it is
accepted that each of the seven complainants has been offended.

"However, there will be many people in Auckland who have seen the
billboard and have known the background and are not offended."

The board said the billboard on a railway bridge at the intersection of
Parnell Rise and Stanley St in Auckland would be visible to a
wide-ranging audience.

The majority of the board said the use of large cartoon-type knickers to
"censor" the actual photo used imagery with "sexual overtones in a manner
which exploited and degraded women."














Top Entertaiment News




� Miss Universe to crown world beauty

� Chan's "Phoenix" arises in Hollywood

� Jolie set for cameo in 'Confessions of an Action Star'

� Lohan loses vodka sponsors for 21st birthday

� Gritty Romanian film wins Palme d'Or in Cannes





Today's Top News




� China's former drug head sentenced to death

� Wen: Give 'left-behind' kids more love

� China targets campus porn sites

� US, Iran end 27-year diplomatic freeze

� War against porn websites successful





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese School, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Speak Chinese - Gritty Romanian film wins Palme d'Or in Cannes

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Gritty Romanian film wins Palme d'Or in Cannes

(Reuters)
Updated: 2007-05-28 08:51





Romanian director Cristian Mungiu holds the Palme d'Or award for his film
'4 Luni, 3 Saptamini Si 2 Zile' ('4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days') during a
photocall at the 60th Cannes Film Festival May 27, 2007.[AP]

A hard-hitting Romanian movie set toward the end of the Communist era won
the Cannes Film Festival's top honor on Sunday.

"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days," directed by Cristian Mungiu, was the
critics' favorite to win the Palme d'Or in the buildup to a glittering
red-carpet ceremony that ended the 12-day movie marathon on the French
Riviera.

The film tells the grim story of young student friends Otilia and Gabita,
who are ruthlessly exploited when one seeks an illegal abortion.

But despite being set in the pitiless and colorless landscape of
socialist Romania, the story underlines the lengths to which friends go
to save each other.

Mungiu welcomed the international attention the award would bring to his
and other small-scale productions.

"I ... hope that this award that I am getting tonight is going to be good
news for small filmmakers from small countries because it looks like you
don't necessarily need a big budget and a lot of stars," he said.

"4 Months" was one of 22 films in competition, and beat a series of
highly acclaimed pictures for the top prize as the world's biggest film
festival celebrated its 60th birthday.

They included "Alexandra," by Russian art-house director Alexander
Sokurov, and three U.S. entries -- "No Country For Old Men" by the Coen
Brothers, "Zodiac" by David Fincher and Gus Van Sant's "Paranoid Park."

VINTAGE CANNES

Critics praised the Cannes selectors for a competition lineup they said
was one of the strongest in recent years. There were few outright duds,
and, while many stories were dark, if not depressing, they also portrayed
great humanity.

The nine-member jury awarded the runner-up Grand Prix prize to "The
Mourning Forest," a lyrical Japanese movie about grief directed by Naomi
Kawase.

Best director was Julian Schnabel for "The Diving Bell and the
Butterfly," based on the true story of French journalist Jean-Dominique
Bauby, who suffered a stroke and was paralyzed yet managed to write a
book using one eyelid to communicate.

"I didn't see it as depressing," Schnabel told a news conference. "I
think Jean-Dominique Bauby was saying to all of us: 'I was dead when I
had my body. I was blind. It took the harsh light of disaster to show me
my true nature."'

The prize for best screenplay was awarded to German-Turkish director and
writer Fatih Akin for "The Edge of Heaven," a cross-border story of love
and reconciliation.

Best actor was Konstantin Lavronenko, who played the male lead in Russian
filmmaker Andrei Zvyagintsev's "The Banishment," another gloomy film that
features an abortion.

Best actress was Jeon Do-yeon for South Korean competition entry "Secret
Sunshine," an emotional drama about a woman overwhelmed by loss.

The Camera d'Or for first film went to "Jellyfish," an Israeli-French
production by Etgar Keret and Shira Geffen.

As ever, the limelight was frequently stolen by films and stars outside
the main competition.

Angelina Jolie was praised for her role in "A Mighty Heart," about the
kidnapping and beheading of reporter Daniel Pearl by Islamic militants,
and Michael Moore, winner of the Palme d'Or in 2004, brought his
provocative "Sicko" documentary to town.

George Clooney and Brad Pitt were on the red carpet to promote
blockbuster "Ocean's 13," Irish rockers U2 performed for a large crowd
while Kylie Minogue, Elton John, Sharon Stone and Naomi Campbell worked
the nonstop party circuit.













Top Entertaiment News




� Gritty Romanian film wins Palme d'Or in Cannes

� Lindsay Lohan booked on suspicion of DUI

� Sparks, Lewis look to post-'Idol' life

� Croc Hunter's daughter launches TV show

� BlackBerry enters sponsorship arena with Mayer tour





Today's Top News




� Pentagon report clouds facts, says analyst

� Wen pledges to stablize pork prices

� Beijing calls for extradition treaties

� Troop cut expected after Iraq report

� China discovers 3.8 tln cubic meters gas reserves





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese Online Class, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

HSK - 'Star Wars' fans get marathon screening

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






'Star Wars' fans get marathon screening

(AP)
Updated: 2007-05-24 16:28


LOS ANGELES - Seventeen hours in a darkened theater not so far away?
Welcome to the "Star Wars" marathon.

A free showing of all six "Star Wars" movies began Wednesday morning at
the Los Angeles Convention Center and was expected to end at 2 a.m.
Thursday.

The event kicked off a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the release
of the original film.

Several thousand people showed up for the screening, which included brief
intermissions.

"Because the saga spans 30 years, it spans multiple generations of fans
as well," event spokesman Jonathan Zaleski said. "There are people in
costume, families. It's an interesting mix."

"You get the usual assortment of Storm Troopers running around," he
added. "I imagine it's pretty uncomfortable to sit for 17 hours encased
in plastic."

Lucasfilm Ltd. supplied the digital prints for the movies and is involved
in "Star Wars Celebration IV" at the Convention Center. That event, open
to fan club members Thursday and to the paying public Friday through
Monday, was to include costume contests, exhibitions of movie props,
autograph opportunities from "Star Wars" celebrities and even a Storm
Trooper "Olympics."










Top Entertaiment News




� Cannes world cinema puts spotlight on India, Lebanon .. and more

� Chow Yun-Fat wants to take the lead in U.S. films

� Jolie says kids keep her grounded

� Jordin Sparks crowned as 'American Idol'

� China's Zhang Yimou to chair Venice film fest jury





Today's Top News




� Chinese investors may be not too crazy after all

� Wu: Strategic talks a complete success

� Gov't probes 'tainted toothpaste' case

� Lightning kills 7 kids in Chongqing

� 9 US warships enter Gulf for training





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese online, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

HSK Exam - Jolie, Pitt get emotional unveiling Daniel Pearl film

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Jolie, Pitt get emotional unveiling Daniel Pearl film

(AFP)
Updated: 2007-05-22 16:51



Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt spoke emotionally about love and family as
they premiered their new film Monday about the murder of US reporter
Daniel Pearl by Islamic extremists.
"A Mighty Heart" starring Jolie, produced by Pitt and directed by
Britain's Michael Winterbottom, was warmly applauded at a packed
screening, with some critics saying it was the actress's best work since
her 2000 Oscar for "Girl, Interrupted".

Hollywood's golden couple was joined at the Cannes film festival by
Pearl's widow Mariane, whose book on her husband's murder while
researching terrorist networks in Pakistan in 2002 is the basis of the
movie.

The 31-year-old actress said she was at about the same point in her
pregnancy with Pitt's child when she began filming that Pearl had reached
when she confronted her husband's kidnapping and subsequent beheading.

"I remember being six months pregnant and thinking 'I can't imagine at
this time not having the father with me and being concerned about his
life and trying to eat and trying to remember to get some sleep'," she
said.

"So as a woman it just made me so much more connected to (Mariane) and
aware of her and also knowing that carrying that life inside, that little
boy that's half Danny that is so so amazing and her love -- I'm sure
there couldn't also have been a greater gift at that time to help pull
her through something like that."

Pitt, 43, said starting a family with Jolie, a goodwill ambassador for
the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, had pushed him to pursue work that
mattered.

"As a father, too, I look at my kids and realise that they will inherit
this world, and I know this is true for Mariane as well and we want to do
everything we can to throw our weight in and make it a little bit
better," he said.

Pitt, who is also in Cannes for the premiere of the all-star caper
"Ocean's Thirteen" on Thursday, said he had been inspired by Mariane's
courage and empathy for other terror victims.

"The strength of Mariane through this situation -- for me it was an
epiphany. As Angie said, she had every reason to come out of this
embittered and angry and full of hatred and instead has shown us another
way," he said.

"It lights the way for me."

Jolie, who underwent a complete makeover to play Pearl, a Frenchwoman of
Cuban and Dutch origin, said the film had also made her and Pitt
reconsider the role of the media and the hounding they face daily by
celebrity photographers.

"There were the scenes where there were paparazzi and I felt sorry for
her (Mariane), thinking 'My god, what this must be like for somebody in
that situation, that I really can't imagine -- going through that, having
that kind of media coverage for something as difficult as that and for
somebody who is not used to it...'"

The A-list couple also gently teased each other during the press
conference.

When Pitt was asked to follow up on Jolie's remarks about religious
conflict and reconciliation, the distracted actor apologised with a
laugh: "I was wafting in the words of...what's her name."

Pearl said she had developed a friendship with Jolie and Pitt and was
very pleased with the film.

"We've grown quite close," Pearl said. "I think of my son who will one
day see this film -- it was a great moment of pain but it is addressed
(in the film) by someone who loves me and that means a lot to me."

The film, which is screening out of competition at Cannes, recreates a
scene in the book in which Pearl sharply attacks a CNN reporter who had
asked at the time whether she had seen the video of her husband's
beheading.

In a poignant exchange, the journalist appeared at the Cannes press
conference to ask Pearl: "Could you forgive me now if you haven't yet?"

Pearl replied: "I accept your apologies."

Winterbottom said he saw the film as a continuation of themes covered in
his 2006 feature "Road to Guantanamo," a docu-drama about three British
citizens held at the US lockup in Cuba for several months without charge.

But he dismissed a reporter's question about whether his sympathy for the
former Guantanamo inmates meant he empathised with Pearl's killers.

"They were in a sense caught up in the sort of post-9/11 conflict in the
same way that Danny and Mariane were I think," he said. "Of course it's
completely wrong...but it is part of the same situation."












Top Entertaiment News




� 'Heroes' first season ends with boom

� Amy Winehouse marries in U.S.

� Julia Roberts to star in drama about murdered conservationist

� Angelina Jolie plays slain reporter's wife

� Sly fined for importing restricted drugs





Today's Top News




� Blackstone deal aims for better returns

� Optimism high at second trade talks

� Audit body vows closer scrutiny

� Iraq makes plans for quick US pullout

� Iraq makes plans for quick US pullout





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese language, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Free Chinese Lesson - Campion laments lack of female directors

ENTERTAINMENT / Latest News






Campion laments lack of female directors

(AP)
Updated: 2007-05-21 08:35





From left, Canadian director Atom Egoyan, New Zealand director Jane
Campion and American director Michael Cimino arrive for the screening of
the film 'Chacun Son Cinema' ('To Each His Own Cinema'), at the 60th
International film festival in Cannes, southern France, on Sunday, May
20, 2007. [AP]

CANNES, France - When Jane Campion was honored onstage at the Cannes Film
Festival with about 30 other major directors Sunday, she was the lone
woman of the bunch. And she's still not used to how strange that feels.


The New Zealander is the only woman filmmaker to have won Cannes' top
prize, for "The Piano" in 1993. This year, she showed a fantasy short
film about a ladybug �� a woman dressed up in an insect costume �� who
gets stomped on in a movie theater. She said it was a metaphor for women
in the film world.

"I just think this is the way the world is, that men control the money,
and they decide who they're going to give it to," Campion said in
explaining why so few women get movies made.

Cannes, like the film world in general, is short on female directors. Of
the 22 movies in the running for the top prize this year at Cannes, only
three were made by women.

Cartoonist Marjane Satrapi co-directed the screen adaptation of her
graphic novel "Persepolis," a memoir of growing up in Iran after the 1979
Islamic revolution; Japan's Naomi Kawase made a road trip film called
"Mogari No Mori" ("The Mourning Forest"); and France's Catherine Breillat
directed "Une Vieille Maitresse" ("An Old Mistress"), a period piece
about the ups and downs of arranging a marriage between a libertine and a
virtuous young aristocrat.

Women have made some high-profile appearances here lately. Last year,
Sofia Coppola took "Marie Antoinette" to Cannes, and in 2005, American
director Miranda July won an award for best first-time filmmaker for "Me
and You and Everyone We Know."

But parity is a long way off at Cannes and across the Atlantic in
Hollywood.

A survey released last year said U.S. female directors made only 7
percent of the 250 highest-grossing films in 2005. Martha M. Lauzen, the
San Diego State University professor who conducted the study, called her
report "The Celluloid Ceiling."

Campion, 53, is one of only three women ever to be nominated for an
Academy Award for best director, along with Coppola ("Lost in
Translation") in 2003 and Lina Wertmuller ("Seven Beauties") in 1976.
Campion was nominated for "The Piano," her account of adultery set in New
Zealand in the 1850s.

Campion was one of 35 directors invited to make a film short for Cannes'
60th anniversary this year. When the group went onstage together Sunday,
Campion was the lone women in a sea of male directors that included Roman
Polanski ("The Pianist"), Gus Van Sant ("Elephant"), Wong Kar-wai ("In
The Mood for Love"), Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu ("Babel") and Atom
Egoyan ("The Sweet Hereafter").

Egoyan told Campion afterward that he admired the female vantage point in
her movies' sex scenes �� especially the steamy scenes from the Meg Ryan
thriller "In the Cut," which he called "some of the most erotic material
I've ever seen."

But Campion said some men are "shocked" by that female perspective. "They
see that women have a different way of seeing the world altogether," she
said.

Campion's next picture is the story of poet John Keats' romance with his
young neighbor Fanny Brawne, a love story that was cut short when he died
at age 25. Campion plans to tell the story from Brawne's point of view.

"When I think of what's fantastic about women, it's their generosity,
their intuitiveness, their capacity to trust emotions, to be emotional,
to nurture, to promote peace, to care about the planet's environment so
their children can inherit it," she said. "Those qualities aren't sexy
for guys, but (they're) quite natural in women."












Top Entertaiment News




� Dancer, actor Carl Wright dies at 75

� Hilton gives up appeal of jail sentence

� Jessica Simpson says she's 'Very Happy' post-split

� Paris Not "Too Distraught" to Party?

� Paparazzi boo Pamela Anderson at Cannes





Today's Top News




� Overseas stock exchanges get green light for offices

� China to launch lunar probe this year

� Pollution makes cancer the top killer

� 39 killed in Lebanese violence

� Beijing to cut coal output by two-thirds by 2010





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Free Chinese Lesson, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese Pinyin - Jessica Biel: 'I'm too hot for Hollywood'

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Jessica Biel: 'I'm too hot for Hollywood'

(WENN)
Updated: 2007-05-17 10:10





Jessica Biel

Actress Jessica Biel fears she isn't taken seriously by Hollywood
studios, because she is too "hot".

The sexy star - who recently topped a magazine poll of the Sexiest Women
in the World - claims her good looks have held her back. But Biel -
currently dating pop star Justin Timberlake - hopes the five films she
will appear in in 2007 will help change people's minds.

The 26-year-old actress tells GQ, "I hope all my new work will help
producers in getting past my hotness.

"I try not to make the headlines. I'm self-conscious about this. I try to
not make my presence known. I have my own fashion style and do not try to
fit in. I don't have my breasts under my chin, I'm not showing butt
cheeks, nor much legs. I don't go for the trendiest look."







Related Stories



� Justin invites gorgeous Jessica on Manchester date
===========================================================================
� Jessica Biel may become a "Street Fighter"
===========================================================================
� Jessica Biel wants respect as an actress
===========================================================================
� Jessica Biel in The Next
===========================================================================
� Johansson laughs off Timberlake romance
===========================================================================
� Jessica Biel Beats Johansson in Sexiest Women Poll
===========================================================================










Top Entertaiment News




� Cannes' glittering 60th edition opens

� Hilton's jail term cut to about 23 days

� Bloom beats Pitt to top hottest hunks list

� Spears thanks fans for their prayers

� Bo Diddley hospitalized after stroke





Today's Top News




� Chinese premier pledges currency reforms

� Substantive help urged for Africa

� Blair warns against US isolation

� Fixed asset investment accelerates

� US: Private trade talks can be more fruitful





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Free Chinese Lesson, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese Pinyin - Innovative weddings go this far

CITYLIFE / Hip & New






Innovative weddings go this far

(Chinanews.cn)
Updated: 2007-05-10 09:43


"Are you a freshman, too? What's your field of study?" said a young man
to a young women, but the scene did not happen on campus. Instead, it was
in the hall of a wedding ceremony, when the young couple, Miss Zhao and
Mr. Wang, performed their romantic first meeting in college in the form
of a stage comedy.

Zhao and Wang's was a typical innovative wedding ceremony, which is very
fashionable in Shanghai nowadays, as they wish to make their weddings
unique and unforgettable. ����Though Zhao and Wang were classmates. Wang
said that he had fallen in love with Zhao at first sight. However, not
until graduation, was he "brave" enough to propose to her.

"This is our romance, our sweet memory, which belongs to no others," said
Wang.

Sometimes, newlyweds in China are asked to tell their love story at their
wedding ceremonies. Thus Wang and Zhao decided to tell their romance in a
particular way, a stage comedy.

In fact, innovative weddings are innovative because their themes always
change. For example, a large number of butterflies were often released to
create a rosy and romantic scene at weddings last year, but not many
people will choose this in 2007.

Earlier this year, when the new episode of "007" movies, Casino Royale,
was released in China, two newlywed couples chose to perform a "007 show"
at their weddings. First, the bride hid behind a white screen, and a
spotlight was used to imitate the opening scene of the movie. Then
suddenly, the bride jumped out, and "shot" the bridegroom with a "gun"
made of a bunch of flower. The bridegroom fell at the "bang", signifying
that he was shot by a bullet of love.











Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Enjoy a comfortable life in an economical way

� From office worker to superman

� Stay at home to have fun!

� Shopping heaven for "Piglets"

� Smart buy, just go!





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Breath of fresh air
Bars&Cafes: Small but fabulous
Weekend&Holiday: Follow your dream
Shopping:
An arts eye-opener
What's on: Midsummer Night's Dream







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: When you feel homesick
Bars&Cafes: Voluptuous elite nightspot
Weekend&Holiday: Brain Failure hits Shanghai
Shopping: White hot
What's on: Taboo Voo Doo





Learn Chinese, Learn Mandarin online, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Free Chinese Lesson - New way to spend May Day

CITYLIFE / Hip & New






New way to spend May Day

(Chinanews.cn)
Updated: 2007-04-30 10:49


The 7-day May Day holiday will arrive very soon, and many office people
in Beijing have decided to stay here to enjoy themselves at "home
parties", instead of exhausting travels.

Susan, a freelancer, plans to invite her friends to see movies, sing
karaoke together or even host a photo exhibition in her
apartment."Everywhere else will be overcrowded during the holiday, " said
Susan. "At home, I'll treat my friends to homemade dishes, for I myself
have been eating too much fast food recently."

Unlike "home parties" in the past, which were the last option of
entertainment for many people, many office people nowadays enjoy such
parties because they appreciate the simple and calm lifestyle, having
felt tired of the bustle and hustle of urban life.

"I feel very comfortable at home parties, for every one else around are
my good friends, and I can eat and drink to my heart's content," said
Jing.

"Maybe we will host a brain dumping first to collect good ideas to host
innovative home parties," said Joey, who works for an advertising agency.
Joey believes "home parties" will help him extend his interpersonal
relations, while he can relax thoroughly.

Many young people will host such parties by turns with friends in the
forthcoming 7-day holiday.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Smart buy, just go!

� Top ten backpackers' favorite hotels in China

� Play hide and seek with summer sunshine

� 36 hours in Shanghai

� Solo travel, why not?





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Steak Exchange
Bars&Cafes: Nectar comes
Weekend&Holiday: Double dose of retro
Shopping: Little-known trade center
What's on: Main Stage







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: Elegance that never recedes
Bars&Cafes: On savvy partygoing
Weekend&Holiday: One more suburban resort
Shopping: Always France
What's on: Jazzy Shanghai





Learn Chinese, Learn mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Learn Chinese online - Beating those boxing peddlers to the punch

ENTERTAINMENT / Hot Pot Column






Beating those boxing peddlers to the punch

By Erik Nilsson
Updated: 2007-04-25 13:36


Suddenly, this strange little lady started slapping me around. And the
harder I bargained, the harder this vicious vendor whacked me.

It was all in good fun, and part of the theatrics of the haggling game at
this open-air market behind Beijing's Wangfujing shopping street, but
despite being about one-third my size and weight, this peddler packed a
mighty punch.

I had taken my visiting family and friends on a shopping mission. For my
culture-shocked visitors, China's open-air markets seemed to be truly
bizarre bazaars, and they had some trouble getting used to flexible
pricing. But they soon found that a trip to a Chinese open-air market is
like playing Let's Make a Deal and The Price is Right simultaneously; and
sometimes, it can even be a bit like Nintendo's Mike Tyson's Punch Out!!

This spirited saleswoman was selling scrolls preferably, to
fresh-off-the-boat Westerners, such as my visiting friends Jenny and
Andrew. She had just about talked them into paying several hundred times
the value of these artworks, when I showed up and started driving a
harder bargain.

Her: "How much you give me?"

Me: "20."

Her: "Gasp! Gasp! Oh, my God! No!" (As if her stomach burst).

Me: "How much, then?"

Her: "300 yuan."

Me: "Gasp! Gasp! Oh, my God! No!"

Her: "No, really, 300. Good price!"

Me: "No, 20 is a good price. I know; I'm not a tourist. They're offering
30 over there."

Then, this sadistic saleswoman started clobbering me. After a half hour
taking blows from these fists of fury and having only knocked off 50
yuan, I decided to seek better deals elsewhere or at least refuge.

The next week, I came back with my parents to finagle with my friends
behind Wangfujing.

And one by one, my unwary family members wandered into her stall ready to
splash too much cash, and I would come to the rescue. I just hoped to
give them a fighting chance; the vendor just hoped for a chance to fight.

Every time that I'd offer a slightly lower-than-reasonable price, she'd
hit the ceiling then start hitting me.

It was very entertaining to my visitors to watch this sprightly
saleswoman throttling this oafish foreign galoot. But I would not be
beaten into submission or overpay for the scrolls.

And once all of my guests had independently stumbled into the stall of
Beijing's boxing businesswoman and we had no more shopping to do there,
the vendor began suddenly appearing wherever else I was in the market.
She'd deliver a few good cuffs then disappear back into the crowd.

The whole thing was particularly amusing to the mostly Chinese crowd,
especially when she burrowed another vendor's calligraphy brush to take
my corporal punishment up a few notches.

By the end of our third trip to the market, I left with an armful of
traditional trinkets and sore spots.

But kneading my freshly tenderized shoulders while walking toward a cab,
I reflected on this shopping experience that proved to be more than I'd
bargained for. And I realized: That's the price you sometimes pay when
bargaining in Beijing's bazaars.


(China Daily 04/25/2007 page20)










Top Entertaiment News




� Brando documentary examines the actor's actor

� Beyonce's special edition hits copyright snag

� Hugh Grant wins libel case

� Britney set for 'semi-secret' comeback gig

� 'X-Men' spin-offs 'Magneto' and 'Wolverine' planned





Today's Top News




� China to act on pollution, warming gases

� Yang a popular choice as FM

� Hu, Lien stress cross-Straits peace

� US captures senior Al-Qaida operative

� Yang Jiechi named new FM, replacing Li Zhaoxing





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Free Chinese Lesson, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Speak Chinese - Six steps to help you save money

CITYLIFE / Odds & Ends






Six steps to help you save money

(lady.qq.com)
Updated: 2007-04-16 10:31



You have a nice salary, but you still feel short of money. At the end of
each month, you often ask yourselves, "Where has all my money gone"? To
help you better manage your salary, here comes some money saving tips.
Following them your daily expense will be cut off easily, but still keep
the quality of your life.

First, you need to set ambitious goals to encourage you to save money.
For example, you plan to have a formal dress in one year, to own a car in
two years' time or to buy an apartment in five years.

Second, form money saving habits while stay away from those that waste
money. Learn to keep a diary of how much you spend and what it's for.
Think twice before using money on expensive skin care products. The best
ways to keep your skin in good condition is sufficient sleep.

Third, economize your daily expense. Change electric wares into energy
efficient ones and leave no more than one light open when you leave home.
Buy vegetables from a market not a supermarket where vegetables are less
expensive and more fresh. When going to a supermarket, take a notebook
with you. Write down what you wanna buy to avoid buying unnecessary
stuffs. For things like shampoo, soap or washing powder, buy the family
pack.

For girls, who always spend money on clothes, there are some rules
helping cut off the expense. Keep an eye on discounts information, you're
likely to buy good summer dress in winter in a reasonable price. Shopping
malls issue membership cards periodically. Go and get one if it's free,
it may give you special discounts.

Fifth, economize your social life. Package the leftovers for next day
when you have dinner in a restaurant. When it's your turn to offer a
meal, invite your friends to your home, cook the dinner yourself. If you
are to attend a wedding ceremony and an expensive present is needed, ask
several friends to go together to share a present. When separate from
your boyfriend, send the gifts he sent you to your friends instead of
throwing them away

While reducing expenditures, you need broaden your way earning money.
Find yourself a part-time job if you are energetic enough, which gives
you more working experience. Give birth to your money. If you are not
good at making investments, talk to a financial consultant and entrust
your savings with him.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Top ten backpackers' favorite hotels in China

� Play hide and seek with summer sunshine

� 36 hours in Shanghai

� Solo travel, why not?

� Make yourself an "S" plan!





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Save shroom for soup
Bars&Cafes: Hip and cute to boot
Weekend&Holiday: Best-kept holiday secrets
Shopping: Discounts & bargains
What's on: Double take







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: Culinary chameleon
Bars&Cafes: Rock and renovated
Weekend&Holiday: Have a chef at your home
Shopping: Always France
What's on: Portraits reflect real life





Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Pnyin - Rural-urban semantic divide

ENTERTAINMENT / Hot Pot Column






Rural-urban semantic divide

By Raymond Zhou (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-04-03 09:43



If you look up the words "urban", "suburban" or "rural" in English and
Chinese dictionaries, they list definitions that are essentially the
same. No, not that "urban" and "rural" mean the same, but "urban" and its
Chinese equivalent mean the Well, you get the point.

But mind you, these terms for clusters of population may conjure up
different images in each language. When you mention "suburban" in
English, it's an endless expanse of subdivisions with manicured lawns and
single-detached houses. In Chinese, it often refers to "urban villages"
with density so high that a fly has difficulty squeezing in between two
buildings, and neighborhoods that are so dirty they are sometimes
mistaken for junkyards.

On the other hand, "urban" denotes gleaming skyscrapers that house
well-paid suits in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. But a New Yorker or
Chicagoan may think of 'hoods and projects?

I can't imagine why government-subsidized housing complexes should take
on such featureless names. Why not "welfare houses for the poor"? We have
"welfare houses" for public servants here, which, if you ponder it hard
enough, is more descriptive and accurate. And we'll relocate urban poor
to the surrounding provinces, keeping our downtowns as postcard
picturesque as tourist sites.

"Small town" can be a misnomer when translated literally. A town like
Sausalito in San Francisco Bay Area has its quaint charm, with its
galleries on hillside and coffee houses by the bay. A typical small town
in China has streets that look like they haven't been swept in a decade
and a sewage system that is very 19th century, if it exists.

Things usually get worse when it grows into a small city. Now, city
officials will pour as much money as cement into building white
elephants, like the ubiquitous square. And they will install along the
thoroughfare lampposts so ornate they belong in a rococo palace. Each
post uses so many exquisitely shaped bulbs that, to save electricity,
they are turned on only when big shots come to visit.

Of course, we have enchanting little towns like Yunnan's Lijiang and
Zhejiang's Wuzhen. But some of them charge a hefty entrance fee. And once
you get there, stay put. If you venture outside, your eyes will be
polluted with row after row of white-tiled buildings and non-descript
shops that are the hallmark of the supercharged economic locomotive.

You'll be excused if you believe that China's urban planners have an
obsession with size. They all want to build their cities into
"international metropolises" and some have started by cloning the White
House, but much enlarged.

Taking over the task of putting together livable communities are
real-estate developers, whose projects are sometimes as far-flung and
inclusive as sizeable towns. So, how do you call these gated enclaves of
the nation's burgeoning middle class? "Suburban" would correspond to the
Western concept, but that would mix up the shantytowns that dot the
outskirts of downtowns.

Maybe anthropologists 1,000 years from now will write: It has the
gentility of days gone by and a laid-back charm. Let's make it a tourist
destination.

To comment or contribute,e-mail:hotpot@chinadaily.com.cn


(China Daily 04/03/2007 page20)










Top Entertaiment News




� Brando documentary examines the actor's actor

� Beyonce's special edition hits copyright snag

� Hugh Grant wins libel case

� Britney set for 'semi-secret' comeback gig

� 'X-Men' spin-offs 'Magneto' and 'Wolverine' planned





Today's Top News




� China to act on pollution, warming gases

� Yang a popular choice as FM

� Hu, Lien stress cross-Straits peace

� US captures senior Al-Qaida operative

� Yang Jiechi named new FM, replacing Li Zhaoxing





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Learning Mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Speak Chinese - 10 museums may be closed

CITYLIFE / Hip & New






10 museums may be closed

(CRI)
Updated: 2007-03-26 11:08


An official from the Cultural Relics Bureau of Beijing revealed during a
meeting on Friday that around 10 museums in the capital city are facing
closure after years of poor management.

According to the Beijing Daily, official Liu Chaoying made the remark
during an annual meeting on museum management. Liu said that these
museums hadn't updated the content of the exhibitions for years. They
were also unsuccessful at self-promotion and therefore were incapable in
making profits.

Most of the unqualified museums were established by enterprises
themselves. They were also separated from their builders since the system
reform of state-owned enterprises. Some of them had been closed to the
public for a long time. However, Liu Chaoying said that some of the
museums still have historical value and she called on society to make
efforts to help them stay.

According to the Measures for the Administration of Museums, which came
into effect last year, a registration of the city's museums will begin
soon. Liu Chaoying said they would not publicize the name of the 10-odd
museums until the registration work is done.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Time for barbecue

� Six outdoor activities for spring

� Chase flowers

� Spring dances on your tongue

� BBS helps to be more beautiful





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Sweet-tooths beware
Bars&Cafes: Nice and creamy
Weekend&Holiday: Get relaxed!
Shopping: Storing with style
What's on: About to rock







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: Hotel buffet spices things up
Bars&Cafes: Emancipate your soul
Weekend&Holiday: Torpedo barbs debuts
Shopping: Dress up like a princess
What's on: A new stage twist on 'Oliver Twist'





Learn Chinese, Learn mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Chinese Tutor - McFashion, malls and hypnotic sea monsters

ENTERTAINMENT / Hot Pot Column






McFashion, malls and hypnotic sea monsters

By Ben Davey (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-03-14 11:00


It was an ocean sparkling above me. No wait, it was an ocean replete with
sea monsters, squeezed together like they were queuing for Kenny G
tickets. I looked up in awe, my clothes completely dry and in the corner
of my right eye a Starbucks sign flickered, luring me with its promise of
bad coffee diluted with sweet creamy goodness. Yep, that's right peeps; I
was at a shopping mall.

But this was no ordinary shopping mall; hanging between two fake
sandstone buildings was a football field-sized screen. Like an IMAX
theater with a Muzak soundtrack.

Cryptically titled The Place, it looked like the hang-out venue-of-choice
for underage mallrats whose weekly allowance is equivalent to the average
annual working wage. Hagglers beware: I don't think you can bargain with
any of the shops and human hair is not an accepted currency. But the
barter ban didn't faze me as I had traveled there with my partner for a
specific purpose before the gigantic fish derailed my train of thought.

I had read (in the China Daily, of course) that Zara had just opened. For
those of you not familiar with the retail chain, just think of a company
who has applied the principle of a Lido handbag store to making clothes.
They basically see what the astronomically expensive catwalk designers
make and then mimic (i.e. rip-off) their ideas using cheaper materials.

But fortunately for irregularly shaped Australian schmucks like myself,
Zara makes shirts and trousers in sizes that don't force me to make
scheduled bathroom trips with a toothbrush between meals.

And boy, what a gratifying difference a non-skin tight pair of pants
makes. The shop was nice if you're a fan of minimalist chic and
gag-inducing Western R&B music but for mine, Christina Aguilera's
shrieking never helps when you're trying to figure out how your bottom
looks in checkered slacks. The prices were a pittance in comparison to
the ritzy toff-shops of the Oriental Plaza downtown but the pouts of the
peacocky clientele half white-collar Chinese, half Westerner were out in
force nonetheless. It was like rubbing shoulders with extras from
Zoolander.

But even a shop-full of chic sneers couldn't shake my mind off the big
screen outside. It got me thinking about one-upmanship, as in, what next?
Free hovercraft to get you from one shop window to the next?

In any case, if malls are the new architectural indicators of world
status, China's looking good. The Forbidden City? The Great Wall? Pffft!
Yesterday's news. Well-heeled punters are voting with their dough and
nothing I have seen anywhere on this planet comes close to The Place;
where you can buy lots of stuff and stand gobsmacked underneath a digital
aquarium. Now all they need is for the sea monsters to deliver
sub-conscious messages to shoppers.

SQUID: Hungry? Try the food court but don't be seen in the food court
wearing anything less than the latest fashions from Zara.

SHOPPER: Yes, thank you, oh wise giant squid, you are right, I am
famished and unfashionable


(China Daily 03/14/2007 page20)











Top Entertaiment News




� Paparazzi ordered away from DiCaprio in Israel

� Family says Jeni committed suicide

� Stallone charged with importing banned growth hormone

� Israeli police arrest bodyguards of star DiCaprio

� Mischa Barton finds modelling "incredibly easy"





Today's Top News




� China pledges no death to get back fugitive Lai

� Legislator: Make payments 'fairer'

� China approves $2.5b Intel chip plant

� Iran outraged by Hollywood war epic

� China's inflation hit 2.7% in February





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Learn Mandarin online - Get your discount before dinner

CITYLIFE / Odds & Ends






Get your discount before dinner

By Claire Zhang (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-03-05 09:14





If you haven't heard yet, there are some websites you can use to get a
discount on your dinner. Some of these websites are like membership
clubs. You register and join the website to get discounts or special
promotions at selected restaurants. Or you can just call the website,
tell them which restaurant you'll dine at and they'll help you order a
seat and then give you discounts.

You may see descriptions of restaurants on these websites, there maybe
other people's comments, which can help you choose the restaurant you'd
like to try. It all sounds too good to be true, but there really is no
hitch!



Fantongwang (www.fantong.com)

The website is one of those early birds to try the business. Now it's
very popular among office workers. Either call their free toll phone
number: 400-716-1717 or post your order sheet through the website.
Different restaurants have different discounts, and you can see all the
information before you make decision.

Chifanwang (www.chifanwang.com)

This website has an English version. Choose selected restaurants through
this website. Every restaurant has its own code. After you finish dining,
send an SMS to Chifanwang 139-1107-9702 and write "Restaurant
Code#Bill".Chifanwang will then send you an SMS back with the discount on
it. Show it to the waiter.

You need to purchase a RMB200 membership card, but you can get a free
trial. If you apply you'll receive no more than RMB100 discounts per
month.



Gudumami (www.gudumami.cn)

There are 8,846 Shanghai restaurants in Gudumami. Fill in their order
sheets, write down all your requirements, such as how much you'll spend,
what kind of cuisine you prefer and which area you'd like to go to and
they will help you find the most suitable restaurant. You can even get
coupons for the restaurant!

The website focuses on the Shanghai area and has a Chinese and Japanese
version.

Soeas (www.soeas.com)

Download their coupons. You can print them, or copy them. You can even
save them to your mobile phone.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Get your discount before dinner

� Traditional Lantern Festival celebrations

� Lantern festival events

� Use credit cards for more gifts and discounts

� Light up your life with red!





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Fish with a twist
Bars&Cafes: Cue those hazy student days
Weekend&Holiday: Fun things to do in March
Shopping: Trend-setting Soho
What's on: Art and Olympics







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: Laudatory lunches in triplicate
Bars&Cafes: Wall reading
Weekend&Holiday: Dynamic youth on view
Shopping: Spring pedals
What's on: Senior fan club comes





Learn Chinese, Learn mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Chinese Tutor - Fortune, luck and joy

CITYLIFE / Odds & Ends






Fortune, luck and joy

(Beijing Weekend)
Updated: 2007-02-19 10:16





Spring Festival, the most important holiday for the Chinese, marking the
start of the lunar new year, is built on tradition and an array of
centuries old customs.

The celebrations begin on new year's eve, which falls on February 17 this
year, and continues for two weeks until the Lantern Festival, on the 15th
day of the first lunar month, or March 4.

Just as people spend weeks, and sometimes months, preparing for
Christmas, the Chinese prepare for this family reunion festival a long
time in advance. They hit the shops, clean their homes and stock up on
everything from oil and rice to fruit, candies, nuts, new clothes and
shoes for the children and gifts for the elderly, friends and relatives.
People decorate their homes to create a festival atmosphere. Two things
that should never be forgotten are spring couplets (chunlian) and
firecrackers. In a typical Chinese home, you will see all the door panels
pasted with spring couplets, Chinese calligraphy on red paper, as well as
fireworks in bunches resting in the corner of the room. These are two
basic tools required to expel evil, especially the Nian monster.





Chinese use the term guonian (pass the year) to describe their happiness
at celebrating the year, as guo means "passing" and "survival". While
nian was originally the name of a beast who came to the village to prey
on humans on new year's eve.

Legend had it that the Nian had an enormous mouth that can swallow
hundreds of people with just one bite. Although a powerful monster, it
was afraid of two things the "magic" peach-wood charms hung on the gate
of each home and fireworks. When the firecrackers were lit, the monster
fled. At new year, people continue to celebrate this auspicious event.
Family members lay on a large spread for the new year banquet.
Traditional food is prepared for family and friends. Although food and
dishes vary according to where you are in China, dishes such as chicken
(ji), fish (yu) and tofu (doufu) are essential elements in any new year
feast as, in Chinese, these words sound like auspiciousness (ji),
abundance (yu), and rich blessings (duofu).

People in the north of China traditionally eat jiaozi, or dumplings, on
new year's eve.
The first five days of the lunar month are considered a good time for
relatives and friends to visit each other's homes, exchange greetings,
gifts and chat, as well as going out socializing, taking part in fun
activities like lion dances, lantern shows and temple fairs.


1 2 3










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Fortune, luck and joy

� Guidebook to 2007 Beijing temple fairs

� DIY dumplings

� Horoscopes help you find the special gifts

� Romantic Valentine's Day dinner





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Swinging at the place
Bars&Cafes: One night in Beijing
Weekend&Holiday: Blooming marvelous
Shopping: Transient discount
What's on: Ode to a Russian master







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: A Soupcon of luxury China
Bars&Cafes: Electro and grunge
Weekend&Holiday: Family plays 'Butterfly Lovers'
Shopping: Top 5 underground malls
What's on: Paper-cut in Vogue





Learn Chinese, Chinese Online Class, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese Tutor - It's time to save face and keep the magic

ENTERTAINMENT / Hot Pot Column






It's time to save face and keep the magic

By Ravi S. Narasimhan (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-02-07 10:06


I have a hotelier friend an accountant of all people who, though by no
means a Copperfield, is a brilliant magician in his own right and in
great demand at parties.

He can light a cigarette by blowing at it or light mine from a distance
without any lighter in sight, and make coins pop out of his ears at will
but never reveals how he does it.

I'm bound by the code, he says, and his perennial excuse is how boxing
legend Muhammad Ali was banished from an amateur magicians' circle for
revealing a trick to the public.

So it is with more than a little disappointment that I read on the China
Daily website on the weekend that someone was offering to sell the
secrets of bianlian, the Sichuan Opera technique of "changing faces", for
a measly 3,000 yuan ($380) on a popular auction website called taobao.com.

As if it were some consolation, the online vendor has some caveats: He
will teach the tricks only to Chinese citizens, and only to one person in
any city. And it comes with a catch: You would have to practise, of
course.

Fat consolation.

My fascination with face changing springs from at least two reasons:
convenience and cuisine. There is this wonderful restaurant near the
China Daily office where I can entertain foreign guests, have a nice meal
and not be late for work on the night shift. And the guy has far more
ways of changing his faces than Robin Williams has with his voice.

Face changing, to me, is the most accessible aspect of Chinese culture
you can fine dine as you appreciate it instead of being stuck in a
three-hour opera recital in an auditorium.

I don't want my comfort zone spread around; and totally agree with the
famous Sichuan Opera maestro Peng Denghuai, who said: "The art of face
changing is a national treasure, not magic. Selling the secret on the
Internet disrespects not only face changing but also our cultural
heritage."

Taobao.com can follow the example of eBay, which more than once has
withdrawn auction items for fear of a popular backlash.

A representative of the Chinese company, to its credit, was quoted as
saying that "we will pay close attention to it, and suspend the sale once
it violates any regulations".

Therein lies the rub: No one seems to know if it violates any
regulations. But Internet regulators in the country have a reputation for
efficiency. If they have managed to get rid of much "undesirable"
content, surely they can do so with this.

I have good reason for saving face: On three visits to California, I
resisted the temptation to go visit a film studio. I didn't want the
magic of the movies to be explained like how Bruce Willis stunts were
done, that the Titanic was a little model boat in an aquarium or Jurassic
Park dinosaurs were mechanized models.

Let's leave room for a little magic in our lives.


(China Daily 02/07/2007 page20)








Related Stories



� Andy Lau clears his name in Bianlian controversy
===========================================================================










Top Entertaiment News




� Aguilera, husband strip down on Sundays

� Charlize Theron sued by Swiss watchmaker

� Simpson says Lachey's dating was painful

� 'Little Miss Sunshine' charms way to Oscars

� Bond star Daniel Craig named best actor





Today's Top News




� Poll: Religious believers thrice the estimate

� Bank to control money, credit growth

� Hu, Mbeki pledge to boost cooperation

� Hackers attack Net traffic computers

� Economist: Drastic rise of yuan 'could spark crisis'





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese online, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Learning Chinese - Spider-Man 3

ENTERTAINMENT / Coming Soon






Spider-Man 3


Updated: 2007-01-26 11:13



Spider-Man 3

Your friendly neighborhood web-slinger is back, only this time his sunny
outlook has become partially overcast in the third chapter of director
Sam Raimi's Spider-Man saga. Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, and James
Franco return to reprise their roles from the previous two installments,
with Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, and Bryce Dallas Howard making
their first appearances in the series as Flint Marko (aka Sandman), Eddie
Brock (aka Venom), and Gwen Stacy, respectively. ~ Jason Buchanan, All
Movie Guide





Director
Sam Raimi Director

Cast
Tobey Maguire - Peter Parker/Spider-Man
Kirsten Dunst - Mary Jane Watson
Thomas Haden - Church Sandman
Topher Grace - Venom
James Franco - Harry Osborn
Dylan Baker - Dr. Curt Connors
Elizabeth Banks - Betty Brant
Bryce Dallas Howard - Gwen Stacy
Theresa Russell - Mrs. Marko
James Cromwell - Captain Stacy
Tim deZarn - Philip Watson
Rosemary Harris - Aunt May Parker
Mageina Tovah - Ursula
Cliff Robertson - Uncle Ben Parker

Production
Laura Ziskin - Producer
Avi Arad Executive - Producer
Stan Lee Executive - Producer
Grant Curtis - Producer
Joseph M Caracciolo - Jr Executive Producer
Kevin Feige - Executive Producer

Production Companies
Marvel Studios
Renaissance Pictures
Laura Ziskin Productions
Sony Pictures Imageworks, Inc.

Writer
Sam Raimi

Music
Christopher Young












Top Entertaiment News




� Kidman in crash during LA movie shoot

� Horse and Paris Hilton to star at Vienna Opera Ball

� Restaurant group objects to K-Fed ad

� Pitt admits DiCaprio envy

� Spears and Cohen still going strong





Today's Top News




� China's GDP grows 10.7% in 2006, fastest in 11 years

� Premier Wen to visit Japan in April

� Divorce rate half of what we thought

� PetroChina branch fined for pollution

� Young officials spotlight in succession





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Chinese School, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese Mandarin - Wedding fleets trouble road traffic

CITYLIFE / Hip & New






Wedding fleets trouble road traffic

(Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2007-01-18 09:58



Increasing numbers of slow-moving wedding cavalcades brought on by the
imminent Golden Pig year are causing accidents on elevated roads,
Shanghai traffic police said.

The coming Chinese New Year is deemed a lucky one to be born in, and
couples are flocking to the alter so their children can be Golden Pig
babies.

The extra weddings have meant extra wedding traffic, often fleets of
limousines and luxury cars to take brides, grooms and important guests to
wedding venues.

Many wedding fleets are hardly fleeting, however, and can be a nuisance
on elevated roads, where the minimum speed limit is 60 kilometers an
hour, traffic police said.

"It's a rule that cars must travel above a certain speed on elevated
roads and many wedding fleets, usually several luxury cars, are usually
driving at below 50kph," said a traffic police officer surnamed Guo.

Police also said wedding fleets slowed down to allow photographers hired
for the event to take pictures.

"Some wedding vehicles also turn on their hazard lights in order to warn
other vehicles to keep their distance," Guo said.

"However, hazard lights are usually only used as a warning sign in
emergencies, such as a car breakdown," he added.

Police said accidents involving wedding fleets were on the increase, but
were unable to provide details.

"So far no one has been injured in collisions involving wedding cars, but
drivers should obey the rules because no couple would like to get a
police ticket or have an accident on their big day," Guo said.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Horoscopes help you find the special gifts

� Romantic Valentine's Day dinner

� Jazz up your life

� Sports' dress codes

� The high price of love





Beijing Guide




Eating out: The Revolution lives on!
Bars&Cafes: VJ meets DJ at Centro
Weekend&Holiday: Summer Palace to hold "Royal carnival"
Shopping: Gift ideas for Valentine's Day
What's on: Love dance







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: Reignite the spark
Bars&Cafes: Cave-like club
Weekend&Holiday: Forefront of celebration
Shopping: The way to a girl's heart
What's on: Lovers of 'Era'





Learn Chinese, Learning Chinese, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Learn mandarin - James Brown's band plays before bout

ENTERTAINMENT / Music






James Brown's band plays before bout

(AP)
Updated: 2007-01-08 11:41



HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Members of James Brown's band performed Saturday night
before the heavyweight fight between James Toney and Samuel Peter as two
of their late front man's daughters watched from the center of the ring.

Boxing promoter Don King invited The Soul Generals and members of Brown's
family to the fight at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino, then brought some
of Brown's relatives into the ring for the prefight introductions.

Brown died of heart failure Christmas morning at age 73.











Top Entertaiment News




� Pitt's 'Babel' honored in Palm Springs

� Hundreds try out to be Beyonce dancers

� Man tried to blackmail Oprah, FBI says

� Oscar watchers narrow list of top film nominees

� DiCaprio, Mirren nominated by actors in Oscars indicator





Today's Top News




� Xinjiang Party head says Kadeer 'a separatist'

� Government to increase imports

� Review 'not a signal of lenience'

� Bias is a 'way of life in jobs'

� Chinese rescue group arrives in Nigeria





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese online, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet

Chinese Online Class - Tunnelling Begins

CITYLIFE / Hip & New






Tunnelling Begins

(CRIENGLISH.com)
Updated: 2006-12-28 10:58


Construction of China's second undersea tunnel has kicked off yesterday
in Qingdao City, east China's Shandong Province.

The Jiaozhou Bay Tunnel, linking the city's Tuandao in downtown to
Huangdao District, is expected to be completed in three to four years.

The tunnel, stretching about 7,800 meters, is expected to cost 3.18
billion yuan. The Xiang'an tunnel in Xiamen City, Fujian Province, which
is under construction, is the country's first undersea tunnel.










Feature




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks




� Fit for fat in Beijing

� Something other than Curse of Golden Flowers, please!

� Season of sales

� All I want for Christmas...

� Chill out in comfort this winter





Beijing Guide




Eating out: Festive afternoon tea
Bars&Cafes: Cheap and cheerful
Weekend&Holiday: Enjoy real mountain skiing
Shopping: To drive, or not to drive
What's on: Recent performances







Shanghai Guide


Eating out: New healthy provincial Chinese cuisine
Bars&Cafes: Amnesia Ibiza
Weekend&Holiday: Yoga theme releases power within
Shopping: Men's skin care in focus
What's on: Replicas of work by Rodin





Learn Chinese, Learn mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,

Chinese Online Class - Cate Blanchett evokes Hollywood era of old

ENTERTAINMENT / Movies






Cate Blanchett evokes Hollywood era of old

(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-12-13 10:29





Australian actress Cate Blanchett pauses during a news conference in
Sydney November 10, 2006.. Photo Credit: REUTERS/Tim Wimborne
By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK - Days after playing an alluring English art teacher, actress
Cate Blanchett adopted a German accent to transform herself into an
enigmatic Second World War prostitute in a performance some liken to
Marlene Dietrich.

Such transition is not unusual for the Australian actress hailed for her
work ethic, intellect and cool charm emblematic of leading figures of a
Hollywood era long gone.

Film professionals say Blanchett, 37, who won a best supporting actress
Academy Award two years ago portraying Katharine Hepburn in "The
Aviator," has a long career ahead similar to some of Hollywood's greats.

She has three new roles touted as Oscar contenders: the already released
"Babel" opposite Brad Pitt, "The Good German" co-starring George Clooney
out this week and "Notes on a Scandal," in which she plays an art teacher
opposite Judi Dench due on Dec. 27.

"She seems sort of other-worldly," said Steven Soderbergh, director of
"The Good German," noting Blanchett's short preparation time for the film
shot in black and white in a tribute to 1940s Hollywood films including
"Casablanca."

"It seemed to appear just out of nowhere," Soderbergh said of her
performance while in New York to promote the movie. "I have never seen
anything like that."

Clooney told reporters she was "Spencer Tracy-like" for her ability to
slip in and out of character on set. And Variety said Blanchett "summons
shades of Dietrich, to be sure."

But the blond Blanchett told Reuters, "I had to use my own resources and
invent my own version, because what was the point of imitating Marlene
Dietrich, she does it perfectly herself."

ENDURANCE

While Blanchett has yet to achieve the status of a Dietrich or Garbo,
Soderbergh said her desire to play different characters would ensure a
long reign in movies.

"We are eventually going to compare other people to her," Soderbergh said
in an interview with Reuters.

Blanchett said playing opposite Dench, 72, in "Notes on a Scandal" was a
career highlight.

Looking at the endurance of the respected British actress, Blanchett said
she would be satisfied "if I can have the diversity and length of her
career and half of her talent," but viewed her own career choices as
"erratic and random."

"I'd like to say I have a five-year plan but I am not that Stalin-esque,"
she said.

But just as Blanchett cemented a place opposite leading men such as Pitt
and Clooney, she recently announced she will take over running the Sydney
Theatre Company starting on a three-year basis with playwright husband
Andrew Upton in 2008.

Blanchett doesn't care to explain the move to those obsessed with making
big-budget Hollywood films. "Popcorn films and big paychecks are not
necessarily things I have done," she said, and called the move her
biggest opportunity so far.

"After the announcement people were talking about what some enormous
sacrifice we were making," said Blanchett. "I feel galvanized by it."

After her recent theater-directing debut with the company, she said will
continue to make films through a clause in her contract that allows her
to take a three month break per year.

The Melbourne-born mother of two said her return to Australia was a
natural calling -- "it is home" -- after living in England where "whilst
one can reference the culture, you are not culpable for it in the same
way."

As for any Oscar buzz, Blanchett doesn't feel entitled to win nor look at
her past performances. "I inevitably just see the holes," she said. "I
don't analyze it, I don't look backwards, I just move forwards."









Related Stories



� Cate Blanchett goes full circle
===========================================================================
� Blanchett returns to Sydney stage as director
===========================================================================
� Pitt, Blanchett in Cannes favourite
===========================================================================










Top Entertaiment News




� Jolie says has no plans to marry Pitt

� Lohan says she's attending AA meetings

� George Clooney campaigns in Egypt, China

� Paris defends Britney's partying

� Pitt, Jolie spend Thanksgiving in Vietnam





Today's Top News




� Ageing population tests social security

� China rejects US trade complaints

� Ample food reserves to feed market

� Fees waived for 150 million rural kids

� Steady food price rises prompt watch on inflation





Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours








Learn Chinese, Learn mandarin, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing,