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Other Products of Interest

• The Wedding Planner
• Sweet Home Alabama
• How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (Widescreen Edition)
• My Best Friend's Wedding (Special Edition)
• The Wedding Singer

1.)  someone playing wii sports with such zeal that he knocks over a growler full of locally brewed beer, which he had been drinking through a straw all night (although in this picture he's just straight turnin' it up.)

2.)  a wii game breaking into a full contact wresting match.
3.)  watching “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” with an actual Greek.

Thanks Liollio!
Happy Birthday!

- Jessa Decker Smith

Jessa met Liollio for the first time in Morrison, CO on June 27, 2008. Jessa and her two roommates were letting Alex and his roommates stay at their house for a couple of nights before they headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park.

Okay, I'm not quite that bad. But today when I picked up a prescription, I asked the pharmacist why it was only 4 weeks supply and not 6 weeks. She explained that when initially starting up on this medicine (it's KILLING ME to not disclose what it is) they only do one month at a time until they figure out the right level. And I interjected, "Or they're not quite sure what's wrong and they're still figuring it out." The pharmacist just stopped and looked at me for a second. And in that second I knew she hears about people's hemorrhoids and yeast infections all day long. She didn't want any overshare from me.

And I know when I'm oversharing, but I can't manage to stop myself. I have oversharing tourette's syndrome. Diarrhea of the mouth. Oh god, I'm remembering a scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. This is totally me.

I

must

stop

now.

Oh well, at least I don't talk about my bowel movements and digestion, or admit to doing either. Ever.

Shew!

The story, in brief, is as follows:

1.) I get to LAX after a badass weekend (flew in Friday night, intended to leave early Sunday afternoon) of bonding with my new professional partner in media wackiness, Brian.

[caption id="attachment_216" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="I ironed Brian\'s shirt so that he could go out on a date and not disgust the poor girl. He changed the shirt."][/caption]

2.) I check in and get my boarding pass.

3.) I get in line for baggage check-in. After about 10 minutes, I ask an attendant if I should perhaps move to the front of the line, as it is 12:20 and my flight is at 1:15. She says no, I'll make it in time.

4.) After 35 more minutes, it becomes apparent that no, actually, I am not going to make it in time. A wee hardworking man of foreign origin in a sassy American Airlines uniform tries to check me in, and then gets all surprised like, "Oh, no! We've already closed baggage for your flight!" Oh, really? Like I brought up to some dumb lady awhile ago? Now that I've spent 45 FUCKING MINUTES IN LINE, you tell me this? Excellent.

5.) I then spend another 45 minutes in line to get on standby for the next flight. It is now 1:20. My new flight is supposed to take off at 4:00 PM. I inform various profefssional and personal cohorts of this exciting new development.

6.) Then I wait in line at Chili's Too for what I am told will be "like 10, 15 minutes."

7.) After 35 minutes waiting for Chili's Too, I get out of line and go to board my plane. Whoops! Scratch that! It's been delayed 2.5 hours. Oh, and BTdubs, it's overbooked, and I'm #20 on the standby list. So, there's that. A flight attendant named Ember (like the burning stuff) tells me that I probably won't get on a flight until midnight, since they're all way oversold.

8.) I actually like Ember. She and I agree that I should treat myself to a $50 day pass to the Admirals Club. Good call, Me and Ember. But first, back to Chili's Too to wait in line again!

9.) After about 15 minutes, I am awarded a coveted seat. I order a margarita, an iced tea, chips, salsa, and a muthafuckin' fajita. None of it tastes particularly good, but I expect nothing more (or less) from Chili's. Especially not from Chili's Too.

10.) Slightly tipsy, I amble my plebian ass on over to the elitist Admirals Club. Holy shit, is this place fancytown. They've got a Quiet Area, where I spot the very same Greek-American celebrity wife/actress who my cab driver to JFK had told me all about at the BEGINNING of this trip! Rita Wilson, you bring my life full circle. This weekend, anyway.

11.) So I've never spent enough time at LAX before to notice this, but people constantly look at other people to see if they are famous people. The actual famous people (not Rita Wilson, she seemed to do her own thing) look at other people to see if those other people are noticing that they are in the midst of famous people.

12.) Some cute dad just smiled at me. At least I think he's a dad. I think he brought some kids in here. He looked kind of like Anna Chlumsky's (sp?!) teacher in "My Girl," but this guy is actually attractive. Perhaps he's searching for his future second wife.

13.) Earlier this weekend, I thought, "Hell, I'd live in L.A." Now I think, "No. No, I wouldn't. Because that would mean leaving L.A. through LAX, and attempting to return to L.A. through LAX." Like I can handle LAX for business, but if I'm going to call anyplace "my" airport, it's Newark, which fucking rules.

14.) I just ordered the crab bisque (probably a terrible choice, even in this fancy lounge), a glass of red wine, and something called "traveler's chocolate." I don't know what that entails, except that a small cup is involved and the waitress says it's REALLY good.

I will continue this stirring narrative at a later point in time. Am going to work on blog post for MTV and edit some video as long as I'm here for the next five to six hours.

7:05 PM: Eating dark chocolate, drinking red wine, blogging as the sun sets through the giant windows...man, I'm having a really nice time on this 11-hour delay. I'm never NOT buying a day pass to the Admirals Lounge at LAX after this!

7:13 PM: Talking with Moms.

7:34 PM: This is weird. I'm having a really nice time. At some point whenever I go to L.A. I always have some moment in which I decide that I'm glad that I'm alive and not, you know, dead (or, like, stuck in some fucked-up nether region that is neither Here nor Beyond!) L.A. always weirdly relaxes me at some point in my trip...I think it's just so different from NYC in many ways that it inevitably has some odd soothing effect at some point, even if stressful things occur while I'm there.

7:35 PM: Maybe I have Stockholm Syndrome and LAX is just fucking with what remains of my mind. What am I thinking, L.A. is soothing? Their traffic is out of control! And the smog, feh. You can have it. (But I can visit it. I do like to visit.)

7:50 PM: Um, I should probably go look at the departures/arrivals board thing to see if I'm ever leaving California and returning to New York, like, not in a bodybag or something.

8:45 PM: Oh, awesome! Now my flight isn't leaving 'til 1:00 a.m. ... 11 hours and 45 minutes after I was supposed to get out of here. YEAH DAWGZ! It's darker and quieter now in the Admirals Club Lounge, or whatever it's actually called, and I'm editing video me and Brian shot when we were goofing around on Saturday.

[caption id="attachment_228" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Large headphones make me feel like I\'m better at editing and life than I actually am."][/caption]

8:47 PM: I thought I saw Paul Rudd and some sort of family member (perhaps a lovely wife?) sitting in the noisier, more social part of the Admirals Lounge, but actually I think it was just some guy who wasn't Paul Rudd. And probably still isn't Paul Rudd, actually.

9:38 PM: I just got weirdly emotional, like I was going to cry. I think it's the red wine settling in. Granted, I finished drinking ONE GLASS an hour ago, but for me, that's amazing, considering I had like half a margarita a few hours earlier at Chili's Too. Big drinking day for me!

9:39 PM: This little fucking girl just goes, "WOULDN'T IT BE SCARY IF YOUR PLANE CRASHED HEAD-DOWN INTO THE GROUND? THAT WOULD BE SCARY!" Yes, little Madison, it would be. But what's scarier than all that is the way I'm going to grind your heart into tiny bits using a fork.

9:40 PM: I have figured out that I am going to hopefully get into JFK at 10:00 a.m. and get home for like 12:00 p.m., sleep for four hours, and then go into the office at 5:00 p.m. for my first night at work (this weekend was my first few days at work, but this will be at the actual building where I'll usually be working).

12:02 AM: Dude, do NOT fuck with a Qantas Airline flight attendant. I almost typed "stewardess," but you KNOW she would sense that shit with her Aussie extra-sensory perception, which she probably gained on a walkabout with Russell Crowe and that band of his. I totally didn't try to eff with her, but she was getting pissed all on her own about the fact that the flight she was working hadn't yet started boarding. She kept wandering around bitching to another Qantas gal, going, "WHAT IS GOING ON?" And it was so weirdly assuring, in a slightly alarming fashion, to see a pissed-off flight attendant, that I instantly felt fondness for her.

Also, there are Chasidim using the automatic massage chairs. And some blond starlet with super-fake extensions is prancing around looking lovely but manufactured.

12:05 AM: In closing, I'd like to wrap by questioning why the night time anchor dude on Bloomberg News looks so much like Jimmy Kimmel. Also, why does Mayor Bloomberg own everything, and why does it not freak us out more that his reach is global? Also, do we think he's gay like we think Ed Koch is gay? And if so, does that change our perception of him?

I'd also like to say that I hope this flight doesn't suck ballz.

In addition: I got upgraded to first class. OH SNAP YES I DID YES I DID! Big shout-out to the folks working the reception/customer service desk at the Admirals Club at the American Airlines Terminal at LAX. These folks have been so attentive and overall in good cheer over the past 12 hours that it's made a world of difference in what my mood might have otherwise been. DAMN, this place is nice. Do we have anything like this in NYC? If so, somebody tell me about it in the comments, cause I gotta buy into this fancy scheme. I didn't even use the massage chairs and I had a nice time! (Turns out you had to pay, which is why I didn't.) I got to edit the first of a series of YouTube videos I'm going to put up chronicling this California adventure; I read some Hitchens; I ate some snacks; I drank some wine; I even caught a woman in the bathroom pulling what I like to call a Self-Reflexive Mary Magdalene: washing her own feet.

They're cleaning our plane now and we're supposed to get on it soon!

12:43 AM: Aaaand I'm out (of this lounge, anyway.) Time to join the rest of my people down at the gate. Hope we get out of here soon. Thanks for reading along. And hey, if you've got any flight horror/joy stories, feel free to leave 'em down below. Or horror/joy flight stories. I'm tired, guys. I'm sorry I said that mean thing about Madison earlier. About grinding her heart into tiny bits with a fork? I actually really like kids a lot. Except when they say neurosis-inducing shit at the airport.

And on those neuroses...I've managed to avoid a topic that I'd like to write about, mainly why this multi-hour lounge fest (and, in fact, this cross continental flight) represents something more to me than just the usual travel stuff. I think some people might relate, especially if they've ever been afraid to leave their own bedroom. I'd like to send a virtual high-five to all my former/current agoraphobes and panic attack sufferers and let you know that if someone as troubled as I am/used to be can survive a 14-hour stay in an airport and a cross-continental flight (at least one way--I'm not making any bets on the upcoming one, but I do hope I'll sleep through most of it and not flip out, but you know, it could happen, so I'm just saying, I'm not like CURED or something), then I know you can, too.

(And jeez, I take meds, and it's fine if you do, too! Don't buy into the shit that you can just think it all away. It's rad if you can, but if not...well, we'll get into that later.)

Homeward bound!

So much for gender stereotypes. 

We watched the movie.  Guess who laughed more?  He did.  Eventually, I loosened up enough and enjoyed it too.  Frankly, I ended up liking it a lot.  My favorite part was at the end where the father, who loves to explain how everything, especially words, has a Greek origin, speaks at the reception.  To show his acceptance of his non-Greek son-in-law, the father toasts the couple and explains, in a slightly convoluted way, how the groom's last name is originally Greek and means "apple."  It's quite a stretch.  Then he compares it to his family name which means "orange."  In the end, he concludes that we are all different, but we're all fruit!

My dear one and I are different.  I like intense TV shows and he is more fond of relational programs.  He fixes things and understands all the technical details and I can't explain how I got from point A to point C, but I got there.  Probably an intuitive leap, which drives him crazy.  He can plot a course in an airplane and get where he's going, but I'm the one with the directional sense on the ground.  I like to curl up with a good book and just relax, while he's the one still working to get the job done.  He can do math and I, well, I married him because he can do the math. 

In the end, differences can drive us apart, drive us crazy, or drive us to where we need to be.  But, they are always an invitation to change.  Yourself, not the other guy.  Last night's lesson for me was simple.  I need to lighten up a bit.  We did watch the cop show later and it was intense.  I think I liked the movie better.  It was just fun and sweet.  I don't always want to slow down to that pace. 

So, which direction are you going to let the differences drive you?  Where you need to change is always the best choice.  No GPS necessary.  And remember, we're all fruit!

Proverbs 27:17

Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

"This plein air piece was painted at Sharon's family garden. There is so many beautiful sites to paint in that garden, I could spent many happy hours painting there. Every time I paint outside especially in a beautiful garden, I think of my compatriot Monet who spent his days in the French countryside. Actually the light in the south of France where he painted, is very similar to our beautiful California light. This particular painting is going to be in a new movie by Nia Vardalos ("My Big Fat Greek Wedding") called 'I Hate Valentine Day'."
-Dominique Armendola

After all the ancillary markets, it will break even, at least, but there's more. Toys, games, flame throwers, all that stuff . My wife has a Speed Racer T-shirt. Plus, Warner Brothers owns the original cartoon. The movie is at the center of a marketing blitz to push those DVDs on both nostalgic baby boomers and ironic hipsters alike.

This is what people are missing when they talk about huge indie movies, like My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It cost $5 million, and made nearly $370 million, world wide. That's a 7400% profit. Compare with Spider-Man, which had a mere 490% profit.

The thing is, you can't take profit to the bank. Wedding netted $363 million, while Spider-Man netted $682 million. If you were the head of the studio, which would you prefer? (Not withstanding the fact that one stars a screeching harpy, and the other stars freaking Spider-Man.)

And don't go thinking the Wedding's success is scalable. You can't make twenty-eight romantic comedies about foreigners and their funny accents, and expect them all to produce quadruple digit profits.

People love to point out failures like Speed Racer, but they forget that the reason these films are notable is that they're rare. Dozens of $5 million movies are released every year, and very few make back their money. Dozens more produced, but never even released. (I know because I've worked on most of them.)  Blockbusters are just a safer bet.

the times with didi have gone since a long time, but we continue our fights and debates over phonecalls and internet now.

the time with Gagan, I'm trying to make the most of it right now. our fights and talks i know will continue. Hoping that in 2 years he would come live with me in London :)

And i will also miss my entire extended 'my big fat greek wedding' sorta family and the discussion days that we hold for every small decision/announcement that is there

I was just booking my ticket to London and realized that leaving on 14th September 2008 and being back by christmas 2009 is quite a long time away from a life i have known in this city all throughout
I love to travel and I travel quite a lot, but I haven't been away from home for more than a month and have not lived on my own
I'm definitely looking forward to the experience at LSE and I know I will love it
I'm perhaps just feeling a bit emotional at the people who have become a habit for me
and in the recent days I've been trying hard not to have them as so much of a habit so that it doesn't bother me too much later (ya i kinda escape from a few emotions, or rather choose to)
But I know trying to do away with such a habit would not be such a great idea, coz at the end of the day....
I love these people, all of 'em
I hope technology ;) can take care of keeping us close still

The American President. Starring Michael Douglas as President Andrew Shepherd and Annette Benning as lobbyist Syndey Ellen Wade. One of my favorite parts of the movie is when Shepherd tries to buy flowers for Syndey. He is amazed that the most powerful man in the world can't do something as simple as buy flowers for his girl.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding. I love the transformation of Toula Portokalos from a shy and dumpy girl to a beautiful and confident young woman. Toula is 30 something, single and working in her family's Greek resturant. Her dad Gus just wants her to marry a nice Greek boy. After convining her dad to let her take some college classes the transformation begins. Toula meets and begins dating Ian Miller, a non-greek. Nia Vardalos wrote and stars in the movie. It is loosly based on her life. Vardalos's husband Ian Gomez plays Ian Miller's best friend Mike. Also, several of her family members appear as extras in the movie.

Sweet Home Alabama. Reese Witherspoon plays Melanie Carmichael from a small town in Alabama who has traded her humble beginnings for the big city. She has become a successful fashion designer in New York City. She becomes engaged to the mayor's (Candice Bergen) son (Patrick Dempsey) but there is one catch. She is still married to Jake (Josh Lucas) who is back home in Alabama and has refused to sign the divorice papers.

More Ideas for Valentine's Day

• A Not So Top 10: Ideas for Valentine's Day
• Top 10: Date Night Ideas

This chick is so Ride or Die! "There is nothing rational about politics." That is how she started an interview she had with Soledad O' Brien (who has really cute kids, btw). I have heard her speak a few times and she is phenomenal. "But you can't vote for her!" Yes, yes. But haven't you ever seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding? "The man may be the head, but the woman is the neck." And the neck can turn that head any way it wants... For serious. I know. I have done it. >:D Keep cracking that whip, Michelle! I know that a lot of that brilliance belongs to you! You too, Hillary! :]

Back to me. I have been surprisingly diligent of late, thanks to The Martini Method. I wonder how long it will last. Probably until I run out of money to buy luxury items, such as fruit snacks. I'll give it another 2 weeks or so then. Maybe I can borrow some after I run out and thus fuel my productivity until the end of the month. Speaking of borrowed food, have you guys seen Episode 11 of The Boondocks? "Can a n*gga borrow a french fry? How is a n*gga gonna borrow a fry?? Is a n*gga gon give it back?!?!?" HAHAHHAHAHHA! Oh em gee! I was dying! It was too funny. Go watch it here. Immediately. I found out later that this episode was based on a true story, which was even more hilarious. I would so run away and get eloped to Aaron McGruder at this very moment. I'm sure he is already taken, but a girl can dream. :) Maybe I can be his concubine/protégé... That is my kind of multi-tasking. >:D

When talking about family, as in "i spent summer vacations with my family" or "met this very nice family who lives down the block" etc. etc., we generally mean the Webster's definition of family as "a group of individuals living under one roof and usually under one head",

When speaking about an Indian Family, its more like a family as in "My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding" or Webster-wise, "a group of persons of common ancestry" at its simplest, to "a people or group of peoples regarded as deriving from a common stock" to "a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation" to "a group of things related by common characteristics as a closely related series of elements or chemical compounds" or "a set of curves or surfaces whose equations differ only in parameters" and so on and so forth, depending on your imagination...and it will go on to encompass the spirit embodied by the age-old Sanskrit phrase of vasudev kutumbakam which means the universe is family....

I might add here, as my friend L has reminded me, a quote by Richard Bach in his Illusions- the adventures of a reluctant messiah, "members of the same family seldom live under the same roof"...i have pondered over that quote more often than not...thanks L :)

Ever since i can remember, having a 'family' get-together meant having lots of people around...as an infant, i would find myself lost in a bumbling swarm of 'uncles', 'aunts', cousins-first, second, third and so on...all imaginable sizes and ages (one of my cousins is three years older to my mom!), grand- parents, their siblings, family priests (for all auspicious occasions) et al...For a not just a family gathering, one can expect parents' friends, their families, family friends of uncles and aunts at large, neighbours, members of the community and so on and so forth à la vasudev kutumbakam...

Any average marriage ceremony will have not less than a few hundred guests...the more, the merrier...a barometer of social success and networking...just like everywhere else...fair enough, does not hurt anyone as long as there are enough green bucks to feed everyone, give return-gifts (yes, that too...) and to shower on the marriage- procession, the baraat (yes, considered auspicious and a prized 'social status' symbol, especially in the trading vaish community, where i come from)...

While good-will hunting is good, if you happen to be placed comfortably on the 'social ladder', you will not dare to invite the wrath by not inviting even remotely related people from the village your grandfather comes from or someone who you were introduced to at your third cousin's wedding...there are always some fragile egos, that you would not want to miss out on, on your guest list...in an Indian family context, in particular, and the society, at large, the sense of self is very fragile...a direct derivative of how much respect you are publicly conferred, which includes, being invited in person, no less...India may be the backyard for the silicon valley companies outsourcing softwares, but should you want to 'pinch' some pennies, oops rupees, by sending mail invites to your friends, chances are you that will find yourself celebrating alone...

that's (not) all folks! Will share more on the subject one of these days....

The following is a list of movies which were created with the intend of tickling the funny bone, and as far as I am concerned, the creators have been more than successful. It will be ruthless to give a numerical order of preference, hence the movies are arranged alphabetically. And yes, this is "my" list and not THE list which every earthling has to follow.

A fish called wanda (1988)

Four thieves, a lawyer, his wife, an old lady and her three dogs form the central characters in this movie which ranks 21 in the "100 funniest movies of all time" list of the American Film Institute. Jamie Lee Curtis plays Wanda with Kevin Kline playing the hitman Otto. The movie boast of some of the most comical sequences of all times from which my personal favourite is the one in which jealous Otto interrupts Wanda's meeting with Archie (the lawyer) and then dangles Archie out of the window and asks him to apologise for calling him stupid. Deja Vu??

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

As good as it gets (1997)

The movie got Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt their much deserved Oscars. It tells the story of a writer Melvin Udall who is suffering from Obsessive Compulsive disorder and who falls in love with a waitress at a restaurant he visits for his breakfast. Watching the lead actors in this movie is a sheer delight. There are so many scenes like the "elephant girl", the "over a dog" and the "did you had sex with him" scene which make me laugh every-time I see them.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Baby's day out (1994)

The most surprising fact about this movie is that the role of the baby Bink was played by twins and nobody was able to guess. This is an all time favourite and I guess everyone knows the most funny scene. It is the one in which the baby flames the trousers of Eddie before escaping yet again, and the way Norby and Veeko put out the fire. Ouch!!!

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Cheaper by the dozen (2003)

Tom(Steve Martin) and Kate Baker live in a small town with their 12 children. The family is uprooted and have to move to another place when Tom is offered his dream job of a coach at a University. Kate's book is about to be published and she has to move to New-York for the promotions leaving Tom and the 12 kids in the new house. This end to end comedy has some hilarious scenes like the family breakfast in the beginning and the way the kids treat their elder sister's boyfriend. Must watch for a hearty laugh.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Four weddings and a funeral (1994)

This is the highest grossing British Romantic comedy of all times. The movie tells the story of a close knit group of friends. Charles (Huge Grant) who is a part of that group is madly attracted towards an American girl Carrie (Andie MacDowell) whom he repeatedly meets at four weddings and a funeral. The most hilarious scene in the movie comes in the second wedding where the inexperienced priest played by Rowan Atkinson( of Mr. Bean fame) says "holy goat" instead of "holy ghost" and "awfully wedded wife" in place of "lawfully wedded wife".

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Home alone (1990)

The movie was the top grosser of 1990 and remained at number one slot for more than 10 weeks. The rest as they say is history. I don't think there will be anyone who would not have seen this rip-roaring roller coaster ride of a movie. It is one of the very few movies which will make you laugh even if you have just buried your pet dog. An all time favourite.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Moonstruck (1987)

I was in love with Cher by the time the movie ended. The movie got her the Oscar for her portrayal of the 37 years old Loretta who is engaged to be married to Johnny but falls in love with his younger brother Ronny, played by Nicholas Cage. The ending scene in the movie had me in splits where Loretta asks Ronny for a ring before he could propose her. The movie has a feel good quality and it leaves a smile on your face for hours after it has ended.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

My big fat greek wedding (2002)

The movie revolves around Toula (Nia Vardalos) who is nearing her 30s and still not able to find a suitable Greek boy for her. She eventually falls in love with a non Greek American named Ian, thus begins her trials to make her family accept her boyfriend. Yes, the movie is too hilarious, specially in the scenes where Toula's father keeps on explaining people that all English words are derived from greek and when the "family" realise that Ian is a vegetarian. Another feel good movie.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Naked gun (1988)

A movie which will make you laugh out really loud. The movie stars Leslie Nielsen as Frank Drebin, an Officer in the Police squad who is attempting to foil an assassination attempt on Queen Elizabeth II. Don't miss the scene in which Frank lands up on the Queen on a table while saving her and the scene where he hangs from a statue.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Pink panther (2006)

Steve martin appears again in the list, this time as inspector Jacques Clouseau who is solving the mystery of the disappearance of the Pink Panther diamond. Jacques is considered as an incompetent Inspector in France and is assigned this case for some reasons. What follows is a riveting comedy which will keep your laughs intact till the end.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Scary movie (2000)

If you like a light parody of all time hits, then this is the movie just for you. Make sure you have seen Scream, The sixth sense, I know what you did last summer and The Matrix or you will miss half the fun. The movie was a huge hit in 2000 and if you feel that you can digest this "take-a-dig-at-blockbusters" movie, then go ahead. It is a safe bet.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Shrek (2001)

The Oscars for Best Animated Film was introduced in 2001 and Shrek was the first movie to win it. The movie had some memorable characters out of whom the donkey wins hands on. Its hard to imagine donkey without Eddie Murphy's voice. There are many outstanding comic sequences like the dragon falling in love with the donkey and the climax where the dragon burps out the crown after eating Lord Farquaad.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

Some like it hot (1959)

If you have seen Rafuchakkar ( the Rishi Kapoor, Neetu Singn starrer), then Some like it hot is the movie from where it took "inspiration". The movie stars Mariyln Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. Tony and Jack play two struggling musicians who witness a mass murder carried out by a Chicago gang. To escape the gang members who are after their lives, they disguise as women and join an all girl band, thus starting the hilarious chain of events. Mariyln Monroe is completely ravishing and a good number of laughs are guaranteed.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

The gods must be crazy (1980)

This movie had a unique theme. The story begins in a small tribe in the Kalahari desert where bushmen dwell and who are completely unaware of the world outside their sphere. One day an airplane passes by and someone throws a cocacola bottle from the plane and the tribe comes in contact with the "evil" thing from the outer world. The central character Xi then sets on a journey to return the bottle back to the outer world. The movie had other parallel stories also which merge as the movie progress. The movie is a classic in its own league and is highly recommended.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

When harry met sally (1989)

Yes, this is the movie which lead to "Hum Tum", but if you see this movie you will realize that how unlikely dissimilar the two movies are. For starters, the famous restaurant scene which ends with "I'll have what she is having" cannot be imagined in a Hindi movie. The film raised the quintessential question - Can men and women just be friends? Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal are in top form and the movie is considered as the Best comedies of all times.

To know more about the movie, you can click here.

p.s.: The list does not contain some classic comedies like Tootsie, Airplane, Mrs. Doubtfire etc for the simple reason that I have not seen them yet. :)

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Flanked by US actor Richard Dreyfuss on one side and Greek heartthrob Alexis Georgoulis on the other, writer and actress Nia Vardalos glowed as she addressed the press early this month. In town for the shooting of her new film My Life in Ruins, the star of My Big Fat Greek Wedding looked leaner and more glamorous than she did when she played the ugly duckling role for which she's best known.

"I'm just a girl from Winnipeg," said the Greek-Canadian actress, who still sounds a little shocked at her quick fame. "It's a dream to be here," she added, before confessing: "I get a little choked up to see the word 'Coppertone' in Greek."

Vardalos co-wrote with Mike Reiss and stars in the romantic comedy My Life in Ruins. The film went into production in Spain earlier this summer before shooting throughout Greece from October 9 to 16. Some of the film was shot at the Acropolis on October 13. Though Greek films often depict the Acropolis, it is a rare thing for a foreign production to obtain permission to film there. Vardalos underlined this fact, and Dreyfuss joked about Francis Ford Coppola's lack of such a permit for filming scenes from New York Stories there in 1989.

"The biggest challenge we have," noted the film's director, Donald Petrie [Mystic Pizza, How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days], "is that these sites, Olympia, Delphi and the Acropolis, are almost too big to capture on film." He pointed out: "They are more than just places, they have an aura, a mystery. You walk into these places and it takes your breath away... I almost needed IMAX."

The filmmaker revealed that he moved the Acropolis scene from the beginning of the film to the end as he felt "the journey ends at the Acropolis". Petrie indicated that he wasn't sure if the production will have to digitally recreate the green areas around charred Olympia. Petrie emphasised the fact that the film's production didn't interfere with the sites. "If it says 'Do Not Touch', obviously, we are not planting a light on top of it," he explained. "If the script had paintball war in Ancient Olympia, they would have said, 'No.'"

Upon reviewing the script for approval, the Greek government provided some help by pointing out historical inaccuracies. The film certainly promotes Greek tourism. Petrie explained that Vardalos plays a tour guide who has "lost her passion" for her job. But, while leading around a group, including a man named Herb, "she is almost taught to re-find her passion". When the film comes out next year, Petrie hopes it will make viewers laugh, as well as cry.

Herb is played by Dreyfuss, who said he came out of retirement to play the part, he teaches civics. "I've always wanted to shoot in Greece," Dreyfuss repeated more than once at the press conference. When asked the actor why Herb is the one who makes a difference in the tour group, he replied: "He woke up every day for 20 years smiling because he was in love with his wife and she with him."

The actor enthused about Greece's mythological, artistic and ethical contributions to the world. Dreyfuss said that "film is about magic and the mysterious", but noted: "Film has created a cynicism and a shallowness in the world that is huge." He said that he hopes My Life in Ruins will provide a message instead about "the ever-present possibility of love".

My Life in Ruins is one of the first projects to be assisted by the new Hellenic Film Commission, which opened in 2007 with the purpose of facilitating productions shot in Greece. The office is affiliated with the Greek Film Centre, which funds and produces most local films. The film is the second one, after Mamma Mia!, to be shot in Greece this fall with Tom Hanks' name in the production credits.

By no means an unreasonable request - after all, how can I post quotes day after day without pointing out my own favorites?

So, here they are, the many, many quotes I know and love and quote incessantly to my friends (Eventually, that's gotta make them love them too, right?... Right?). No "Rosebud" or "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" here, this is a list of personal favorites, ones that caught me for some inexplicable reason and somehow stayed among the various other miscellanies I seem to collect. They're not necessarily classy, or even profound in any way (at all). But I just can't get enough of 'em. They're my guilty pleasure quotes, if you'd like.

This is personal, so be gentle - but not too gentle, of course. What do you think? Anything I missed? What quotes are your guilty pleasures?

Superman II

Oh, I've been, uh... working out.
[Clark Kent pumps his arms up and down a bit.]

The Incredibles

Edna Mode...
[a gun appears out of the ceiling immediately and aims at Helen]
... and guest.

- Everyone's special, Dash.
- Which is another way of saying no one is.

Monty Python

I'm not dead!... I'm getting better!

Blue. No yel - aaaahhhhh!

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

He's got a two day head start on you, which is more than he needs. Brody's got friends in every town and village from here to the Sudan. He speaks a dozen languages, knows every local custom. He'll blend in, disappear, you'll never see him again. With any luck, he's got the Grail already.

[later on in the film]

- But you said he had a two day head start. That he would blend in, disappear.
- Are you kidding? I made all that up. You know Marcus. He once got lost in his own museum.

Young Frankenstein
(Yep, this was the inspiration for the Aerosmith song.)

Walk this way. No...
[Igor hunches his back even more, shambling along]
...this way.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie
(pretty much anything I put in my post on the film, but here are some of my favorites)

Into the weenie mobile. Weenie man awaaaay!

Leaves only the fresh scent of pine.

- Are you boys cooking up there?
- No.
- Are you building an interocitor?
- No.

Caddyshack

So I got that goin' for me, which is nice.

Clueless

Daddy, some people lost all their belongings, don't you think that includes athletic equipment?

Well, uh, I thought they declared peace in the Middle East.
[said over a shot of the TV news featuring turmoil in Bosnia]

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

I put some Windex on it.

Oh, that's okay. That's okay. I make lamb.

Star Wars trilogy
(the first one - or rather, episodes 4-6)

- No time to discuss this as a committee.
- I am NOT a committee!

And now, young Skywalker... you will die.

(Okay, I admit that might sound a bit disturbing as a favorite quote, but you just have to hear the way the Emperor says it. Classic.)

Ever After

Some people read because they cannot think for themselves. [wicked stepmother, of course]

- She is mute, my lord.
- Really? She spoke quite forcefully.
- Well, it comes and goes...

The Third Man
(you knew I had to throw a classic in there somewhere - couldn't help myself!)

Hello, old man, how are you?

In Switzerland they had brotherly love, 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Do these attentions proceed from the impulse of the moment, or are they the result of previous study?

Fight Club

The first rule of fight club is - you do not talk about fight club. The second rule of fight club is - you do not talk about fight club!

Galaxy Quest

By Grabthar's hammer!

The ship is breaking apart and all that. Just FYI.

Roman Holiday

May I say, speaking for my own press service, we believe your Highness's faith will not be unjustified.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

Wait for the opportune moment.

The Mummy

- Well, if it ain't my little buddy Beni. I think I'll kill you.
- Think of my children.
- You don't have any children
- Someday I might.

Aladdin
(You're probably thinking - these? They're even more random than the rest! Well, point taken, but, probably much to the dismay of my friends and family, these somehow pop up quite often in conversation.)

- Patience, Iago, patience. Gazeem was obviously less than worthy.
- Oh, there's a big surprise.

Calm yourself, Iago.

PHENOMENAL COSMIC POWERS! Itty bitty living space.

The Princess Bride
(Saving the first for last - besides Aladdin, these are some of the first quotes I remember reciting.)

Well, it just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead.

Inconceivable!

(and, of course...)

Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, prepare to die.

  Nia Vardalos standing in front of the Erechtheion temple during the shooting of ‘My Life in Ruins.’ Scheduled for release in 2008, the film is produced by Tom Hanks. 

Nia Vardalos, the star of «My Big Fat Greek Wedding,» stood under a big reflector on Saturday, filming a new romantic comedy among the dramatic ruins on the Acropolis. The scene will appear in «My Life in Ruins,» also starring Richard Dreyfuss, and follows a decision by Greek authorities to relax a longstanding ban on any commercial use of ancient sites. Authorities vetted the film script for historical accuracy and convened a panel of senior archaeologists to give final approval.

«Imagine how I feel being here shooting a movie... I can't believe things like this can happen to me,» Vardalos said late Friday before the Acropolis shoot. Released in 2002, «My Big Fat Greek Wedding» was a surprise international hit and earned Vardalos an Oscar nomination for its script.

On Saturday, dozens of tourists gathered round a tiny set to take pictures of Vardalos. The 45-year-old Canadian actress plays a tour guide and has already been filmed at Delphi and Ancient Olympia.

«I'm just a girl from Winnipeg. I write these ideas and somehow they happen,» said Vardalos, who co-wrote the new movie. «I have cousins from America, from Australia and we all met up here. I have so many memories of being here.»

Director Donald Petrie denied suggestions the script had been watered down to secure access to ancient sites. «If the script had had a paintball war in Ancient Olympia, I think they would have said no,» he said. «The only major restriction for us is that we treat the sites as they are. We don't bring in fake Roman columns,» he said, smiling.

«The story revolves around the character that Vardalos plays who has actually somewhat lost her passion. She has led so many tours with so many tourists who don't care... and it's depressed her beyond belief,» Petrie said. «Through one group of tourists... she is almost taught to rediscover her passion.» The love interest for the film was found in Alexis Georgoulis, an actor popular in Greece.

«It's a romantic comedy, and we wanted a Greek actor who was experienced but not necessarily well known internationally,» Vardalos said. «We found Alexis Georgoulis. He's a great kisser, a great actor and a great guy.» Dreyfuss said he had always wanted to come to Greece and was enjoying his time here. «This movie is about the ever-present possibility of love,» Dreyfuss said.

«My Life in Ruins» is the first major project helped by the Hellenic Film Commission, recently created by Greece's Culture Ministry to try and lure international filmmakers to Greece. «Even small African countries had film commissions. But not Greece,» said the Commission's Markos Holevas. «This is our first effort,» he said. «We will get organized and provide tax breaks and do what everyone else does.» «My Life in Ruins» is due for release next year.

Vardalos and her indie romantic comedy "My Life in Ruins" shoot at the ancient Greek temple, marking perhaps the only time a Hollywood production has even been allowed to shoot at the venerable site. "Ruins" has already shot at the Oracle at Delphi and Ancient Olympia, the site of the first Olympic Games.

"No one has ever been granted permission to shoot at the ancient sites," Vardalos said, currently in Greece. "This is huge."

The movie, about a beleaguered Greek tour guide, also stars Richard Dreyfuss, Rachel Dratch, Harland Williams and Greek actor Alexis Georgoulis. Donald Petrie is directing. Filming in Greece started last week.

Getting there, though, was not without its challenges. Securing permission began several years ago, when Vardalos contacted then-Minister of Tourism Fanny Palli-Petralia, who asked her to carry the Olympic torch during the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. Once Vardalos made her case, Palli-Petralia and the Minister of Culture at the time, George Voulgarakis, began the long process of working the request through many levels of government.

"It was a lot of dinners and hand shaking, a lot of requesting permission and really assuring them that we would leave the ruins exactly as we found them," Vardalos said.

When an election saw the ruling party voted out, the producers thought all their efforts were for naught. But the incoming Ministers of Tourism and Culture picked up the "Ruins" cause, persuading the right people that the shoot would be beneficial for the country and the sites would remain unharmed. They were given the greenlight to shoot at the Acropolis, for one day.

"One of the most important factors was that Nia is beloved in Greece. She is a daughter of Greece and represents a positive representation of what being Greek is," said Michelle Chydzik, a producer on the film.

Permission to shoot came with strings attached, some obvious, some more cultural. No hanging lights off columns, for example, and no food or drinks on the site. Also, the production had to assure the Greek government that it would not fake any of the sites, even with a fake background or column.

"You can't call something Delphi if you are not in Delphi," Chydzik said. "If you are standing at the Temple of the Oracle, you have to say it is the Temple of the Oracle. You can't cheat it even in the location. You can't walk 50 feet away and say that that's the temple."

The government, having read the script, requested minor changes, including red-flagging a running gag in which two men on a tour bus are always drinking beer. Because drinking alcohol is not permitted on the sites, the scenes were rewritten. And because tourism is perhaps the country's biggest industry, the government stipulated that no site or road could be closed or access restricted, something almost impossible to imagine happening in Los Angeles.

"There are more visitors coming to the country than the amount of people living there," Chydzik said. "They won't do anything to interfere with tourism. They do not want a situation where you show up and you're told, 'Sorry, the Acropolis is closed today.'"

So the production has had to deal with European, Canadian and Chinese travellers who fortunately have been very well behaved. "People take pictures, and we have signed some autographs, but there is a really cool quiet that comes over tourists when they come to these sites," Vardalos said.

For the filmmakers, shooting in Greece was necessary for the sake of authenticity, a feeling Vardalos has been reminded of every day. "You can really feel the vibe, the mysticism, the history, the culture, it's everywhere," she said. "We walked through the grounds today, and it occurred to me over and over: We're not on a set. It's a field completely strewn with ruins. It's real. It's all very real."

Actress Nia Vardalos talked to reporters about the upcoming romantic comedy 'My Life in Ruins' at the Acropolis Sacred Hill in Athens, on Saturday, October 13, 2007. The Canadian-born star of 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' was granted a rare permission by Greek authorities to film on the Acropolis and other ancient sites in Greece. Vardalos has already filmed at Delphi and Ancient Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games.

  Nia Vardalos, star of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," stood under a big reflector on Saturday, filming a new romantic comedy among the dramatic ruins on the Acropolis.

The scene will appear in "My Life in Ruins," also starring Richard Dreyfuss, and follows a decision by Greek authorities to relax their ban on any commercial use of ancient sites. Authorities vetted the script for historical accuracy and convened a panel of senior archaeologists to give final approval.

"Imagine how I feel being here shooting a movie ... I can't believe things like this can happen to me," Vardalos said late Friday before the Acropolis shoot.

Released in 2002, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" was a surprise international hit and earned Vardalos an Oscar writing nomination.

  On Saturday, dozens of tourists gathered round a tiny set to take pictures of Vardalos. The 45-year-old Canadian actress plays a tour guide and has already been filmed at Delphi and Ancient Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games, a big deal for a girl brought up Greek.

Director Donald Petrie denied suggestions the script was watered down to secure access to ancient sites, saying restrictions to protect monuments were obvious. "If the script had had a paintball war in ancient Olympia, I think they would have said no," he said. "The only major restriction for us is that we treat the sites as they are. We don't bring in fake Roman columns," he said, smiling.

The love interest for the film is Alexis Georgoulis, an actor in a local television series. "It's a romantic comedy, and we wanted a Greek actor who was experienced but not necessarily well known internationally," Vardalos said. "We found Alexis Georgoulis. He's a great kisser, a great actor and a great guy."

Dreyfuss said he had always wanted to come to Greece and was enjoying his time here. "This movie is about the ever present possibility of love," Dreyfuss said.

"My Life in Ruins" is the first major project helped by the Hellenic Film Commission, recently created by Greece's Culture Ministry to lure international filmmakers to Greece. "My Life in Ruins," was co-written by Nia Vardalos and is due for release next year.

Related Links > Hellenic Film Commission > http://www.hfco.gr

While this is definitely unfortunate, how can we leave the big cities of Chicago and New York out of this hatefest? Herewith, some of the dishonorable mentions:

• Angel Eyes: The movie takes place in Chicago, but early on you can see Toronto's CN Tower in the background.
• Spiderman 2: A raised subway in the middle of midtown Manhattan? See The Gothamist's thoughts on it.
• Spiderman 3: Like Gotham City and Metropolis, Spiderman's New York is clearly another New York that isn't. Yes, that's right, although Spiderman 3 is set in New York, some scenes were shot in Cleveland for, I believe, financial reasons (ahem, I mean, because the two cities look so much alike...) and it shows in the film. According to IMDB.com: "A part of the movie features the Cleveland Trust Rotunda in the background where one can easily read "Cleveland Trust" inscribed on the Romanesque structure, although the movie is supposed to be set in New York city. Two other unique Cleveland landmarks are also briefly visible - Terminal Tower, and the marquee entrance to Playhouse Square Center."
• Independence Day: In an important scene, it looks as if the Empire State Building lines up with the center of a major street. This is impossible. The Empire State Building is at the corner of Fifth Ave and 34th street, there is no street that dead ends into it.
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding: According to IMDB.com, the Toronto skyline, along with its mail trucks and restaurants, can be seen in certain scenes. Unfortunately, the movie is set in Chicago. Ah, Toronto, the new Chicago.

If you're a New Yorker already irate at some of the mistakes above, and want more reasons to yell at movie studios, go here. It's a quite impressively long list of geographical mistakes in movies that take place in New York.

For general movie goofs at IMDB.com, go here.