Fradam

Last night, Kellie and I experienced Guy once more.. and whoa. The guy does not disappoint. He’s still the same kinda Guy he always was - ready to intersperse random chatter about his boots, jeans falling off and what not, in between his songs. This was a rather unique concert; he played a few songs that are unreleased at this point, i.e. we got to hear the makings of his next album. There was a rather different sound, as there was a violinist on stage. Something that has always impressed me is just that Guy has sung with a variety of things behind him - just a guitar, a full rock band, an orchestra, a marching band, a combination of the above, or sometimes nothing at all.. and has always sounded brilliant.

So some of the new music has a different sort of groove to it, there was one song in particular I really liked, which was a duet.. definitely looking forward to hearing more of that. I don’t think there was a definitive set list for the rest of the night. The night was marketed as a “Guy, live by request” night, and he had asked the Internet for it’s wishes.

Obviously, the band and he had prepared for certain combinations of songs and knew from the online polling, what sort of songs were generally going to be most requested, so at many points, he simply turned to the audience and asked us what we wanted to hear - and not just his own music either! At one point, he sung a bit of Umbrella, and in true Guy fashion, integrated some of his own lyrics in.. “Chris Brown is lucky… I wasn’t there.. “. His ability to improvise and spin lyrics out that actually fit the the tune never ceases to amaze me. One fan had got in contact with Guy and persuaded him to sing Sweetest berry as a dedication to his wife who was in the audience and happened to be celebrating her 50th birthday that evening. In the seat to my right. So she was integrated into the song too, and had an experience she’ll probably never forget.

There was a trip down memory lane, as Guy did a medley of songs from his Idol days, which I much enjoyed.. although, two that I really enjoy; Hello and The way you look tonight weren’t part of it. He also did a few songs from his first album, which brought back a lot of thoughts for me, as that was around when I first was introduced to Guy and began digging his groove. Still one of my favourites, My beautiful friend was dedicated to a sick girl in hospital that was listening via a phone link up. He tailored it especially for her and it was quite stirring. On that note, we were privileged to hear Perfection, a song he wrote for his wife, Jules, and sang to her on their wedding day. That was simply amazing; it basically was about the idea that God had got the angels together and decided to make a perfect woman, and went on to describe some of his characteristics, and how the angels wanted to keep her but someone on earth needed her.. ahh beautiful. Some of the final lines “When she was 21, she changed someone’s life… when she was 28, she became his wife.” She was in the audience too, I cannot imagine how she felt.. I was trying to picture it, to know that you’ve moved someone that much, to mean so much to someone. Just wow.

The night ended really well too - a massive encore, where he went and played the drums for a while and encouraged his drummer and bass guitarist to take the mic and the limelight for a few songs. I love that he pushes his band up whenever he gets the chance. He finished with a series of soul songs, mostly from his Memphis album, which was some good grooving! I realised afterwards, the entire set was 3+ hours - probably the most Guy I’ve got to experience in a single session, woo! Thanks to Kellie for an awesome night

And it was alright! Josh and Binh’s wedding … phenomenal. First of all, I have never seen so many people gathered in one spot at 6 am. The fact that so many people were willing to do so, some travelling from other parts of the country, and some from other parts of the world.. wow. The location was the Coast Gold Course, in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, the aim was to have the sun rising between the two of them, surrounded by amazing greenery, sand and waves not far off at all. There was a minor hiccup with rain deciding to spit in our general direction right around the time we were due to setup outside, but as evidenced by Elisha’s (thanks!) photo above, it had long subsided by the time the action started.

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: I love weddings. Someone asked me the other day if I got tired of them. What?! In all honesty, I have only been to a few and feel compelled to talk incessantly about them. Sure, there are similarities between them - I mean, one of my favourite parts are the vows, which tend to feature in a lot of weddings. That doesn’t in anyway diminish from them though. Hearing people declare their love is such a beautiful act.. I don’t think I’ll tire of it. I can’t wait to be writing my own one day!
So aside from starting at 6am, this union also carried cultural bearing — the bridal party was garbed in traditional Vietnamese fare, which was certainly something new for me to witness. I guess I’m used to the groomsmen obsessing over the groom’s hair in the lead up to a wedding (particularly where my brother is involved). Between Josh’s head-full of long luxurious locks and the traditional headpiece he wore, there was a sense of participating in something long steeped in tradition (of which Western weddings naturally do too), but something just a little bigger.

For example, there was a part of the ceremony in which the couple served their parents tea. A simple gesture, but laden with great respect. I recognise that often, the reception speeches acknowledge and thank parents for the immense role they played in an individuals life, but I found this little part of the ceremony really resonated with me.

The rest of the morning passed quite smoothly - a bit of singing, dancing, someone almost getting knocked out by a golf ball, music and the speeches which as always are a delight to enjoy.The bridal party eventually left to take photos on their bridal (golf) cart, and suddenly, the entire hall needed to be cleaned and shaken up in half an hour. The Golf Club were opening for business that morning and we had to leave no trace of ourselves in their facilities. This was probably one of the most amazing parts of the morning: seeing literally everyone that was able, stepping up, lending a hand and working hard to return things to the state were in. I was so encouraged by that

Huzzah for weddings!

It was their first visit to Australia, and my first time seeing a big time Christian band live… and let me just say, wow. I’m so happy I got to be there with Jamie and simply experience it. I do not know what I had in the way of expectations - I’d heard a number of their songs on the radio, and had been listening to a few at work in the days leading up to it, so I knew there would be a lot of music I didn’t recognise. But you know what? It didn’t matter - the songs had subtitles on the big screen! I found this incredibly handy as it meant I could actually think about the words in these songs a lot more, rather than their meaning disappearing into the ether of a concert. In conjunction with the explanations for some of their songs… it made me quite appreciate songs that I had previously just listened and seat-danced at work to. Mind you, I’ll still seat-dance at work to them, but they’ve got more in the way of meaning now. Strongest memory is still of If we are the body.. so good.
Some random things that stood out:

- The opening act (Parachute Band), I’d never heard of them before, but they were pretty good! Very passionate, and a good choice to get the crowd all amped up for the main act
- Some of the guys from 103.2 HopeFM got up before they played and had a few prizes to give out to people who could sing a few lines from a Casting Crowns song - one of the guys who got up there and sang was incredible! I sometimes am amazed there aren’t more bands out there.. people can be really talented.
- The lead singer of Casting Crowns, Mark Hall, has a great life story of how he ended up building this band, despite having both ADHD and dyslexia - things that severely held him down during his youth. It was encouraging to see someone overcome obstacles and find fulfillment in what they did.
- We didn’t get yanked into our seats for standing up. In fact, Jamie and I at one point, stayed standing as he began to talk about something - thinking it was just a brief little intro to a song, commented on the Mexican wave of people sitting down… and then realised we were the last people standing up in the entire audience. Even the diehards in the front row were sitting down! The talk proceeded to go for another 10 minutes.. and because the next song was a bit slower, nobody else really felt like standing up either. Oh well, it was fun!
- He led a prayer.. not once, not twice, but three times! I’ve never prayed with that many people before. Although, one of the prayers, I wasn’t quite sure where it stopped, because his language morphed into addressing us (the crowd).. and it was really subtle, because my brain became aware he was talking to us and I was thinking “Hang on.. he can’t pray to us…”. Having not prayed with that many people before though was definitely an experience.
- Mark had a big push to get involved in a charitable work, and talked about how he and his son had been supporting a child in Africa who had the same birthday as his son. It was quite moving, hearing about the bond that formed between the son and his friend in Africa. The giving became a personal connection, and so much more than simply sending money off to a distant country.. his son had a friend that he cared for, prayed for, wrote to, thought about… it was beautiful and has given me a few ideas about something too.
- I’d have been pretty happy if Mark was the only guy who spoke about the work in Africa. Another guy (you can see he left a memorable impression on me) - I think he was involved with the Parachutes  - spoke about it too. I recognise it can be hard to talk about charitable work you do sometimes without sounding a bit .. yeah .. but calling the number of kids his family supported a whole ‘tribe’? I didn’t really feel that gave them much respect. Something about the way he spoke made it sound more like a numbers game and I didn’t find myself that encouraged to get involved from his talk. I know his intentions are in the right spot; he wants more people to become aware of how easy it is to sponsor a child, which is a wonderful thing, so I applaud for him for that.. but to me, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have to take care about how he refers to them all. His call to action was to go to the foyer in the break, look at the pictures of the kids there, and “see if there was one there that you liked”.. it almost made the entire process feel like one was shopping in a supermarket for a new brand of shampoo.
- He did however talk about the Parachute Festival, which is this massive 3-day concert over in New Zealand, which they are hoping to bring across to Australia and tour around the country. Daniel later told us that it really is the biggest thing on the NZ calendar, and is quite comparable to Big Day Out..! It attracts more people in total due to it being 3 days long, but whoa. That will be amazing if they get it over here in Australia. He offered free CDs to those
- Mark didn’t really give any special attention to the hosts (Hillsong), but asked everyone to yell out the congregation they worshipped at, and then encouraged those who wanted a place to go, to go where their neighbours went (provided they yelled out!). They also handed out free Bibles after the concert to anyone who wanted one. No pressure at all on it, but it was nice to see it on offer.
- I had called Koorong (they organised a lot of the concert) earlier in the evening to find out if there were any special buses or anything running to/from the event.. the guy on the phone was so disappointed to have to give me bad news (no dice), even going as far as “I don’t even have a car I can lend you…”.. awww! People can be so NICE!

What an amazing evening, so happy! I am grateful for Sammie giving me that opportunity - thankyou!

It was a scorching morning. The mercury exceeded 40 in some parts of Sydney, and the prospect of a beach wedding in the afternoon seemed quite appealing providing there’d be a swim involved. I contemplated bringing an umbrella along to shield me from the sun. However, soaring temperatures are generally chased by storms, and yesterday’s wild weather was no different…

A memorable wedding. That is what David and Ula’s wedding will forever remain to me. It wasn’t that it rained. It was how it rained. The first drops landed as Ula first came into sight of the ceremony. A thunderclap signaled her first step onto the aisle. By the time she took her place, the little ceremony was awash with water. Words were indistinct from that point onward; Hannah, Tara, Claire and I huddled under a tiny umbrella and deduced the order of the ceremony by watching where the microphone went. It was possibly the shortest ceremony in history - topped only by Spaceball’s “short short version”; the celebrant was somewhat aware that the crowd was getting soaked. The key words did ring out however - “I now pronounce you..”. I wish I got to hear their vows though.. sniff.

Hannah, Claire and I went back to Claire’s place to dry off a little before the reception. Apparently the rain cloud had been centralised to the ceremony; two suburbs over was reasonably dry. Almost like Claire for the reception: she had a whole new outfit! Hannah blow-dried a lot of herself off. I tipped out the puddles that had formed in my shoes, and proceeded to blow-dry my socks and shoes for the next 20 minutes. After watching this process, Claire suggested borrowing a pair of her dad’s socks. Hannah followed this up by suggesting putting them in the dryer for a while. Sigh, why do all the best ideas come after my patient blow-dryer efforts! Thanks to Hannah for the photo:

The reception was close to home; North Curl Curl SLSC. Many memories of that beach.. and it was all round an awesome night. The speeches hit interesting notes - the father of the bride at one point questioning if the couple had done the right thing in deciding to get married, David speaking Polish and of course, a reference to that infamous party at Lena’s. So incredible seeing how far we’ve all come as people who were once little people.

All in all, a wonderful evening was had. I truly love weddings, and the fact that it rained in this one only served to highlight it in my memory of great moments of life. Yey for love!

Billy Joel. It’s near 24 hours later, and I am still reeling from the performance; I know not what I expected, but whatever it was, it certainly was not what I got. The word ‘Entertainer’ is more than simply the title of one of his songs — that is simply what he is. A year shy of 60 had nary an effect on any part of the concert (aside from a few more wrinkles on the face than I imagined, but it happens) - he was not glued to the seat, and carried himself with a verve that would make someone half his age jealous.

What sets Billy Joel apart from others is that in a career spanning decades, he knows exactly how to put a smile on the face of his audience. Experience borne from the time playing as a piano man probably plays a large part in that - and I suspect the crowd at Acer Arena was overall easier to please than those who were sharing a drink called loneliness. He certainly had us forgetting about life for a while!

Thanks to Sammie for the photo!

The lighting technicians looked like they were having the time of their life in the concert - even if some of their work was brought into question. The first thing Billy did at the concert was remind everyone in his New Yorker drawl that everyone was equal in the concert - in that at some point, or in some way, we all had bad seats… but that was okay, since he needed money from the sale of even those nosebleed seats. Even those who shelled out $349 for the front section had cause for alarm since there was a veiled reference to the sheer number of lighting rigs that lay directly above their heads. Hello sword of Damocles!

Here are some random thoughts from the concert:

- Billy is highly skilled with a microphone stand: he could throw, catch and spin it with any combination of limbs. He can also accidentally throw the stand into the audience. Oooops. The $349 tickets never seemed so worthwhile.
 - Just the way you are.. I love that song so much. Mmmm He also explained the back story to the song. I need one of those memory-wiping devices from Men in Black now.
- Jamie and Burnsie standing up for River of Dreams, only to get literally pulled right back into their seats by the lady behind them! How rude. Especially considering she was assaulting Jamie with her knees for the duration of the concert.
- Billy introduced a song as “a song you may have heard in church”. The opening guitar riff immediately identified it - Highway to Hell. That’s right. Most unexpected song, ever. Billy played guitar for it, and one of his guitar roadies of 30 years sang - and to his credit, I thought the guy did a pretty fine job at it too.
- Burnsie knowing all the words to We didn’t start the fire. JFK blown away what else do I have to say! So so impressed.
 - She’s always a woman to me. Just wow. I think even Billy was surprised with the amount of the audience that sang along with him; he drew away from the microphone temporarily just to sway and listen to the sound of it all.
 - Christmas in Fallujah. I’d not heard this before the concert, but learnt it was released last year. If you’ve not heard it, have a listen / look. Quite a powerful song..
- How do you get a lot of Australians to sing a song together? Waltzing Matilda began the second encore - he didn’t sing, but just played and listened.
 - Piano Man - the song of his life and one of my favourites .. just a magical way to finish the concert off; especially wonderful to share it with friends that love it too!

So, I’m still on quite the high (and was for most of the day at work..), and that has been only fuelled further with the news of the Face to Face concerts starting up again. That’s right, Billy Joel and Elton John together once more. Apparently it will be late 2009/2010 till they get Down Under.. but I am so there. If anyone else is keen, please say so!

Whilst not American, I tried to celebrate Thanksgiving Day today. Thanks to Jamie and Sammie who brought me up to speed on what thanksgiving is about: eating, games, eating, football, eating, and of course, being thankful. Does anyone realise that they get a public holiday for this?! Amazing.. they definitely need one here in Australia. Or the world. I’m good with either really.

So I did all of the above, minus the football, which for someone down under, isn’t too bad. Earlier in the night, Rob asked us each to name one thing we were thankful of; hard when I’ve been spending the whole day thinking of things. I thought I might share a few of the things that were on my mind today.

I’m thankful for being alive, in great health and the enjoyment of life.

I’m thankful for there being rain, sun and all the other things in the sky that make this earth live.

I’m thankful for the safety of where I live; the freedom of my country, the wealth that I’ve been blessed with.

I’m thankful for friends who are steadfast, loyal and true, and that even when I can be terribly neglectful and busy in my own world, still they remain.

I’m thankful for friends who continue to help shape my life and guide me in my walk.

I’m thankful for my brother who exudes a brilliance that compels and inspires.

I’m thankful for my brother who has helped me demonstrate grace in my life.

I’m thankful for my parents who brought me up in this world and made incredible sacrifices all through their life to give me more opportunities.

I’m thankful for love and the incredible power it has.

I’m thankful for God, without whom none of the above would even exist.

I am thankful.

So, summer has finally drawn to a close: I refused to wear more than a t-shirt yesterday as my own little element of defiance against the elements. Apparently La Nina is to blame for:

- the wettest summer in over 5 years
- the coolest summer on average in over 10 years
- the least amount of daily sunshine in over 15 years
- not a single day over 31 degrees (first time in over 50 years)

Well… and the destruction of many a roof in many parts of Sydney. On the plus side, the dams are up over 65%, which is incredible too, and we’re finally off El Nino’s back.

Somehow in the midst of all this rain, I went to 3 big concerts. Rather than come on here and gush after each concert “THIS WAS THE BEST CONCERT EVER!!”, I decided to wait till I had seen them all, and then at least I could compare between them.

So, first up was Lionel Richie - 7th December 2007 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.

Charlotte and I got to the Entertainment Centre in time to catch half of Marcia Hines opening for him. She was incredible; I’d not heard her sing before, and I’m a big believer that judges of talent reality shows should still be able to do what they judge… she certainly did. It mostly consisted of covers, but her voice did not disappoint. She was an appropriate opening act, being a contemporary who sang in the same style and passion - acknowledged by the crowd of 7146 with much support.

There was a roar when Lionel took the stage. He’s not quite 60, but could easily pass for 30. I mean, he really did look good. Stylish, slick, and moved so well too!

His rapport with the crowd was amazing - I think he was surprised that there were this many fans here in Sydney! But he gave us all quite the show. He received an ovation after nearly every song, and welcomed it with what I’ve now discovered is a signature hand flourish (ask me to demonstrate the next time you see me). I sometimes forget just how… smooth he is. In singing Endless Love (a song traditionally done with Diana Ross.. I secretly hoped he’d bring Marcia back on for it), he serenaded the mostly female audience and had most of the crowd swooning. Afterwards, he consolidated his position with the male minority - “Guys… you know.. I’m not fighting with you guys - I’m just warming them up for you. You’re the one taking them home!”, which naturally elicited much mirth.

Of special note was a Commodores medley he performed in the middle Three Times a Lady, Easy and a few others - and as a special treat, it turned out that one of the other original Commodores was in the stadium! So Lionel got him up on stage - I think it was Ronald La Pread - and they played a few songs together. So unexpected!

Most of the songs were cast in the same style as their album counterparts - so on a pure sound level, the songs were mostly the same. Having said that, feeling his passion exude from the stage definitely made a difference in the songs - the emotion of some of the particularly stirring songs like Hello for example, was quite moving.

The concert closed with his biggest hit, All Night Long, and it was on that note did we leave the Entertainment Centre, heading to Manly for a birthday night out and proceeded to party all night long, wearing our Lionel shirts, and proudly basking in the afterglow of the experience that was Lionel.

Wednesday morning began quietly, as most tense films begin. After an excellent Moroccan lamb (thanks Adrian) the night before, I was exceedingly keen about both lunch and a visit to the bank later that day (oh, and work ofcourse.. *cough*).
In hindsight, much like the films, the innocuous nature of a certain chain of events in the morning did not illuminate their disastrous nature until they were crystallised in an untimely demise later on.

It started with some paperwork for the bank - I have a file folder, and had the option of placing my notes inside the plastic sleeve. Decided not to, as I figured between the tight nature of the file folder and my work bag, there wasn’t much worry. Then there was transporting my lunch using my usual plastic takeway style containers. No different to normal, except I had neglected to cook any rice to go with it, so was carrying a full container of Moroccan lamb in to work. I was feeling particularly environmentally conscious, and figured it wouldn’t be neccessary to double bag the container, especially as I’d be wrapping the bag tightly around the container and wedging it in my bag against the file folder and a few other things in there.

The pieces were now in place.

Upon arrival at work, the transportation process of lunch from bag to fridge began. Icky. The inside of my bag was covered in the gravy from the Moroccan lamb. The top of the plastic had snapped, and pierced right through the tight-fitting plastic bag, allowing it to seep out whilst I was getting to work. Due to the tightly packed nature of the bag, nothing really escaped attention. The file folder in particular, was inundated with it… and somewhat more worrying were the files within which had gained some new framing. Excavating the container from the bag resulted in the bag tipping - from chair to ground, and spilling contents on the floor too.

Concluding that the microwave was destined to explode if I heated the remaining contents up later… I had a yoghurt for lunch. Tasty, healthy, and less chance of disaster.

The eagerly anticipated wedding of Megan & Josh took place a short while back (yes, this is the Josh of paintball fame) in the beautiful Chinese Gardens of Friendship in Darling Harbour.

The weather of the past week reminded me of the weather in the days leading up the wedding: it was quite wet. Not quite as wet as losing-parts-of-the-road, but it was pretty wet. Amazingly, the Saturday turned out spectacular:

This is the first Western wedding I’ve been at where I’ve been rather conscious of what was going on around me, and details were being soaked up at every turn. From the first step to the first dance, it seemed like the entire day was just one event to the next.

The bridal party looked gorgeous with Megan leading the way. Josh betrayed none of the warfare from the previous week in his tuxedo, looking very smart. Apparently he had spent the morning preparing for the wedding by watching Terminator 2 (!)… However, he was a figure of calm repose there that afternoon. Along with the others in the party, it was quite the good looking group of people.

The ceremony was beautiful. Ted Paull of Macquarie led, and chose some very relevant verses to speak upon. What was perhaps even more compelling was what Megan and Josh had to say — both in terms of the verses they had selected which they personally found touched their wedding, and the vows they had written. Quite the teary affair :’(

Josephine had tied ribbons to go around little bottles of bubbly champagne bottles, and as the ceremony was sealed with a kiss (although when that was meant to occur, appeared to be a cause for some confusion), the air was littered with bubbles floating everywhere! Definitely added to the somewhat magical atmosphere, and was complemented nicely by the three-piece string trio who had been working the crowd earlier in the afternoon.

All in all, it was quite the splendid wedding — and this was only added to by the experience of being able to serve as an usher too! Woohoo for some responsibility.

It didn’t stop there either, as I was given the privilege of serving in the reception as the MC (!). Whoa It was a little overwhelming at first, but such an awesome honour to have — to be the second person in the world (after Ted), to officially announce them as Mr and Mrs Josh and Megan Storer.

The reception seemed to vanish in a blur; between the meal and speeches and dancing… I don’t know where it all went! I know I was talking at one point, and that I heard some touching speeches at others. Dave, the best man, possibly had one of the funniest stories to share — which could make you question whether Josh should be marrying Megan or Dave Josh made the right choice though, and I couldn’t be happier for either of them!

Congratulations to you both

So, the day of reckoning finally arrived, and the third, but possibly not final installment of Pirates. In case it wasn’t clear, these tickets were obtained as a result of winning a Mix106.5 competition, and resulted in Kellie and I seeing Pirates 3 quite early! Seeing the movie before most people saw it has its advantages — nobody else can ruin the story for you. But, writing about it becomes problematic as nobody else has seen it! ;o

For that reason, I have opted for a no spoilers policy. Except ofcourse, to say that Neo died. The general premise of the film is established by the cliffhanger finish of the second film — apparently Jack Sparrow, sorry, Captain Jack Sparrow, is retrievable from whence he lies. A great deal of the film is simply following through on that plot line, whilst attempting to develop, or undevelop, the myriad of other interwoven plot lines. In fact, at one point, it was decidely unclear just who was on what side, and for what purpose. With nearly 3 hours to play with, they certainly kept it in the air

Needless to say, a question asked in the film - “Is it planned or does he make it up as he goes along?”, seems well applied to the film itself, so convuluted it can be at times. Eventually, many threads do get resolved (well, more than a season of Lost anyways), albeit, in a generally good humoured way. On that note, the comedy at times did seem a bit belaboured, almost contrived, not dissimilar to the way it was in the second film, but still elicited many laughs from the audience… I know I was laughing a lot! With all the plot and comedy, there was certainly less action in this film, but to be honest, I did not even realise until now and I’m reflecting upon what I witnessed.

The casting was well-received, with familliar faces returning in old roles. Keith Richards, a cameo appearance as Sparrow’s father, was a natural. Watching him move, it was clear where Johnny Depp had drawn some inspiration for his portrayal of Jack Sparrow. Oh! Another major pro for this film: there is an excessive amount of Johnny Depp in some scenes — more than you can normally believe. Perhaps that is a noteworthy observation: in a similar vein to the second film, the concept of ‘excess’ is void. There is no boundary that cannot be crossed, no limitation that cannot be ignored. The indulgence in this practice is perhaps what garners some of the ‘wonder’ of Pirates… this belief that almost anything is possible.

What allowed this was at times the technology. The CGI in this film was top-notch - the effects were almost surreal, and drew the audience right into it. I know I was believing what I was seeing! Some of the scenery that was generated (or even, some of the on-location shots), were just magnificent, and set a vividly rich backdrop for the film to proceed with.

So, is it worth it? I definitely believe so. Anyone who enjoyed what the second film had to offer, and want answers, will agree. Be warned, with quite a lengthy, plot-driven film as this, you’ll need your wits about you — this is not a movie to watch when you’re half-asleep. Having said that, Pirates 3 delivers plenty of laughs, intensely life-like effects, heart-throbbing romance and ofcourse, some swordplay and explosions.