Oscars 2022: CODA won best picture but Will Smith’s slap is the highlight of the year’s Academy Awards.

The 94th Academy Awards took place yesterday (this morning here in Singapore) with CODA, a movie about a child who is the only hearing person in her deaf family winning best picture (the film also win in the other two other categories it was nominated in; best supporting actor and best adapted screenplay). ‘Dune’, the epic sci-fi film last year is the biggest winner of the night with 6 wins (all in technical categories).

The biggest highlight of the awards ceremony is not from any of the above. It was ‘the slap’. Chris Rock who was making a disrespectful joke against Will Smith’s wife (Pinkett Smith) on stage was then given a violent slap by Will Smith. Will then returned to his seat, swear and yelled at him twice to stop talking about his wife. Some sided with Chris for his professionalism especially after facing such physical assault on live television and he continued to carry on with his presentation. Some thinks that it is a violence that is uncalled for by Will. However, some supported Will’s action to protect his wife and that Chris’ joke went overboard. Will Smith did went to the stage again for winning best actor for his performance in ‘King Richard’ and he took the opportunity to apologize to the Academy for what he did earlier.

Out of the 10 movies nominated in best picture this year, I have only watched three of them; ‘Don’t Look Up’, ‘West Side Story’ and ‘Nightmare Alley’. I have also not watched most of the other movies nominated in rest of the categories this year. Hence, I didn’t really put much attention to this year’s film awards season unlike in the previous years. For now, perhaps I will find a time to watch ‘CODA’ after it had won the best picture. Anyway, below is the full list of winners for the recently concluded 94th Academy Awards (Oscars 2022) along with my comments in some of the categories;

Best Picture

• “CODA” — Winner
• “Belfast”
• “Don’t Look Up”
• “Drive My Car”
• “Dune”
• “King Richard”
• “Licorice Pizza”
• “Nightmare Alley”
• “The Power of the Dog”
• “West Side Story”

Comment: Many general audiences would not have even heard of these nominated movies. It is better for the Academy to include more mainstream films rather than giving all the 10 slots to arthouse films. General audiences are getting more detached from these awards because of the industry’s dominant preference to small drama films. My personal pick is ‘Don’t Look Up’ but I knew it has zero chance of winning.

Actor in a Leading Role

• Will Smith, “King Richard” — Winner
• Javier Bardem, “Being the Ricardos”
• Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Power of the Dog”
• Andrew Garfield, “tick, tick…BOOM!”
• Denzel Washington, “The Tragedy of Macbeth”‘

Will Smith in ‘King Richard’.

Opinion: It is Will Smith’s year. No one else is strong enough to take that best actor win from him. I’m hoping for more great projects for Benedict Cumberbatch and Andrew Garfield so that they both can win some day. They are both great actors too and are certainly not only good in portraying superhero characters but also in everything else.

Actress in a Leading Role

• Jessica Chastain, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” — Winner
• Olivia Colman, “The Lost Daughter”
• Penélope Cruz, “Parallel Mothers”
• Nicole Kidman, “Being the Ricardos”
• Kristen Stewart, “Spencer”

Opinion: Congratz to Jessica Chastain! Didn’t watch her movie but have heard of all the good reviews to her performance in that movie. Well, she has been nominated twice in the past so third time is really a charm for her this year!

Animated Feature Film

• “Encanto” — Winner
• “Flee”
• “Luca”
• “The Mitchells vs. the Machines”
• “Raya and the Last Dragon”

Opinion: Disney wins again for animated feature film. ‘Encanto’ is yet another solid Disney film with all the ‘promised to be successful’ similar formulas. Hmm…but I have seen enough of these formulas and start to get tired of it after watching ‘Encanto’. My own preference is ‘Ron’s Gone Wrong’ but this film cannot even make it into the top 5 nominees.

Cinematography

• “Dune,” Greig Fraser — Winner
• “Nightmare Alley,” Dan Laustsen
• “The Power of the Dog,” Ari Wegner
• “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” Bruno Delbonnel
• “West Side Story,” Janusz Kaminski

Directing

• Jane Campion,  “The Power of the Dog” — Winner
• Paul Thomas Anderson, “Licorice Pizza”
• Kenneth Branagh, “Belfast”
• Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, “Drive My Car”
• Steven Spielberg, “West Side Story”

Documentary Feature

• “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)” — Winner
• “Ascension”
• “Attica”
• “Flee”
• “Writing with Fire”

Documentary Short Subject

• “The Queen of Basketball” — Winner
• “Audible”
• “Lead Me Home”
• “Three Songs for Benazir”
• “When We Were Bullies”

International Feature Film

• “Drive My Car” (Japan) — Winner
• “Flee” (Denmark)
• “The Hand of God” (Italy)
• “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom” (Bhutan)
• “The Worst Person in the World” (Norway)

Opinion: Very much expected since ‘Drive My Car’ is the only non-English film which is able to make it into top 10 best picture nominees.

Original Song

• “No Time To Die” from “No Time to Die,” music and lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell — Winner
• “Be Alive” from “King Richard,” music and lyric by DIXSON and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
• “Dos Oruguitas” from “Encanto,” music and lyric by Lin-Manuel Miranda
• “Down To Joy” from “Belfast,” music and lyric by Van Morrison
• “Somehow You Do” from “Four Good Days,” music and lyric by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell 

Production Design

• “Dune,” Production Design: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Zsuzsanna Sipos — Winner
• “Nightmare Alley,” Production Design: Tamara Deverell; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau
• “The Power of the Dog,” Production Design: Grant Major; Set Decoration: Amber Richards
• “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” Production Design: Stefan Dechant; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh
• “West Side Story,” Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Rena DeAngelo

Visual Effects

• “Dune,” Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Brian Connor and Gerd Nefzer — Winner
• “Free Guy,” Swen Gillberg, Bryan Grill, Nikos Kalaitzidis and Dan Sudick
• “No Time to Die,” Charlie Noble, Joel Green, Jonathan Fawkner and Chris Corbould
• “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” Charlie Noble, Joel Green, Jonathan Fawkner and Chris Corbould
• “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” Kelly Port, Chris Waegner, Scott Edelstein and Dan Sudick

Makeup and Hairstyling

• “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram and Justin Raleigh — Winner
• “Coming 2 America,” Mike Marino, Stacey Morris and Carla Farmer
• “Cruella,” Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne and Julia Vernon
• “Dune,” Donald Mowat, Love Larson and Eva von Bahr
• “House of Gucci,” Göran Lundström, Anna Carin Lock and Frederic Aspiras

Film Editing

• “Dune,” Joe Walker — Winner
• “Don’t Look Up,” Hank Corwin
• “King Richard,” Pamela Martin
• “The Power of the Dog,” Peter Sciberras
• “tick, tick…BOOM!” Myron Kerstein and Andrew Weisblum

Opinion: Wow…’Dune’ is sweeping in almost all the technical categories, leaving no place for other movies to snatch trophies.

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Troy Kotsur, “CODA” — Winner
• Ciarán Hinds, “Belfast”
• Jesse Plemons, “The Power of the Dog”
• J.K. Simmons, “Being the Ricardos”
• Kodi Smit-McPhee, “The Power of the Dog”

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Ariana DeBose, “West Side Story” — Winner
• Jessie Buckley, “The Lost Daughter”
• Judi Dench, “Belfast”
• Kirsten Dunst, “The Power of the Dog”
• Aunjanue Ellis, “King Richard”

Live Action Short Film

• “The Long Goodbye” — Winner
• “Ala Kachuu – Take and Run”
• “The Dress”
• “On My Mind”
• “Please Hold”

Animated Short Film

• “The Windshield Wiper” — Winner
• “Affairs of the Art”
• “Bestia”
• “Boxballet”
• “Robin Robin”

Original Screenplay

• “Belfast” (Kenneth Branagh) — Winner
• “Don’t Look Up” (Screenplay by Adam McKay and story by Adam McKay and David Sirota)
• “King Richard” (Zach Baylin)
• “Licorice Pizza” (Paul Thomas Anderson)
• “The Worst Person in the World” (Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier)

Adapted Screenplay

• Siân Heder, “CODA” — Winner
• Jane Campion, “The Power of the Dog”
• Maggie Gyllenhaal, “The Lost Daughter”
• Ryûsuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe, “Drive My Car”
• Eric Roth, Jon Spaihts and Denis Villeneuve, “Dune”

Original Score

• “Dune,” Hans Zimmer — Winner
• “Don’t Look Up,” Nicholas Britell
• “Encanto,” Germaine Franco
• “Parallel Mothers,” Alberto Iglesias
• “The Power of the Dog,” Jonny Greenwood

Sound

• “Dune,” Mac Ruth, Mark Mangini, Theo Green, Doug Hemphill and Ron Bartlett — Winner
• “Belfast,” Denise Yarde, Simon Chase, James Mather and Niv Adiri
• “No Time to Die,” Simon Hayes, Oliver Tarney, James Harrison, Paul Massey and Mark Taylor
• “The Power of the Dog,” Richard Flynn, Robert Mackenzie and Tara Webb
• “West Side Story,” Tod A. Maitland, Gary Rydstrom, Brian Chumney, Andy Nelson and Shawn Murphy

Costume Design

• “Cruella,” Jenny Beavan — Winner
• “Cyrano,” Massimo Cantini Parrini and Jacqueline Durran
• “Dune,” Jacqueline West and Robert Morgan
• “Nightmare Alley,” Luis Sequeira
• “West Side Story,” Paul Tazewell

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

Shaun Tam and Rosina Lam won TV King and Queen at TVB Anniversary Awards 2021 while ‘Battle of the Seven Sisters’ surprisingly snags best TV series.

TVB Anniversary Awards 2021 took place a moment ago to recognize the best from TVB series and programmes aired last year. Although there is no live online streaming of the event on Youtube (unlike last year), but I was still able to watch it from TVB Anywhere app via my mobile phone fortunately (but have to be patient with the unstable streaming).

This is the first time I’m not seeing Carol Cheng hosting the awards presentation ceremony. I wonder why. I’m surprised also at more number of heavyweight guests that are able to be invited to present awards this evening. I think mostly due to Eric Tsang’s (he is general manager of TVB now) many close ties in the industry. Here below are the results along with my opinions (only series related awards are shown. All non-series related awards are excluded as those are not of my interest):

Lifetime Achievement Award – David Chiang

Opinion: Very deserved win for David Chiang. He is a very solid veteran actor who has acted in TV series from 1980s all the way to the present. He had also acted in over 100 films to date. Even my father who doesn’t really remember names of popular actors of his generation also does know his name.

Best Supporting Actor – Brian Chu (Take Two)

Opinion: Disappointed with this result. Brian Chu’s performance in that drama is only average. Cheung Wing-hong or Him Law displayed much better performances last year.

Most Improved TV Female Artiste – Lesley Chiang

Opinion: Didn’t watch any of her works last year and so couldn’t comment much. I also have no particular preference for this category.

Most Improved TV Male Artiste – Joey Law, Karl Ting

Opinion: Happy for both of them winning. Both of them put a lot of effort and deserved recognition. Karl is very energetic on his works in non-series programmes and he is also very good and natural in ‘Battle of the Seven Sister’. Didn’t see any Joey Law’s works last year though.

Best Dressed TV Female Artiste – Jeannie Chan

Best Dressed TV Male Artiste – Shaun Tam

Malaysia’s Most Favourite Leading Actress – Linda Chung (Kids’ Lives Matter)

Opinion: She is my second choice. I prefer Ali but I’m not too disappointed with Linda winning. However, she had won this award (Malaysia) before. Ali has not if I’m not mistaken.

Malaysia’s Most Favourite Leading Actor – Shaun Tam (Take Two)

Opinion: Yes. He is my pick. The competition is very weak last year for lead actor categories. Out of the nominees, the ones who have not win before is Owen and Shaun. Out of these two, Shaun has the edge. His acting still has huge room of improvement but is certainly much better than Owen’s stiff acting in ‘The Ringmaster’.

Malaysia’s Most Favourite TV Series – Kids’ Lives Matter

Opinion: Disagreed with this outcome. This series is so boring. My choice is ‘AI Romantic’ which is more fun and interesting.

Best Supporting Actress – Yoyo Chen (Plan B)

Opinion: Quite a well deserved win. She had been in the industry for over 17 years but had been always sidelined to minor roles. She finally had a breakthrough year in 2021 with her winning a voice-acting contest show and a great performance in ‘Plan B’ as a fierce mother.

Most Popular TV Partnership – Mandy Lam & Jack Hui (Come Home Love: Lo and Behold)

Opinion: Didn’t watch this long running sitcom so nothing to comment for this category. The top 5 lists are also not of my interest.

Most Popular TV Male Character – Kenneth Ma (Kids’ Lives Matter)

Opinion: Wow…this is his 4th time winning this award. He is really super popular. I would prefer Billy Luk from ‘AI Romantic’ to win instead. Kenneth Ma won too many times. He doesn’t feel anything already after this 4th win which he himself find very surprising too.

Best Leading Actor – Shaun Tam (Take Two)

Opinion: Luckily is not Owen. Like I said earlier, if between Shaun and Owen, my choice is Shaun. Although his performance is not really exceptional but is good enough in 2021. Owen delivered a very bland performance in ‘The Ringmaster’. Shaun’s character in ‘Take Two’ is more interesting and he quite succeeded in it. Looking forward to see him further improving on his acting in future works.

Most Popular TV Female Character – Ali Lee (Beauty and the Boss)

Opinion: Didn’t watch her performance in ‘Beauty and the Boss’ but I do really like her in ‘AI Romantic’. I’m still glad she win though. She never win this before despite winning best actress few years ago. A very solid young actress.

Best Leading Actress – Rosina Lam (Battle of the Seven Sisters)

Opinion: I am almost 100% certain that Linda will take this. I’m very shocked now. She is robbed. I didn’t expect Rosina Lam to win. Her performance in ‘Battle of the Seven Sisters’ is indeed better than in ‘Sinister Beings’ (both were aired last year). But I still felt it is not her time yet. Her emotional scenes were still quite unnatural and felt forced. Perhaps it is TVB’s way to keep Rosina to continue filming for the station while Linda is now staying mostly at Canada already. This is supposed to be Linda’s year. Her emotional scenes in ‘Kids’ Lives Matter’ were great and many were already picking her.

Best TV Series – Battle of the Seven Sisters

Opinion: Disagreed with this series winning best series. Nothing spectacular or outstanding about this series. Out of the top 5, my choice is ‘Sinister Beings’. Disappointed that ‘AI Romantic’ does not even make it into top 5. It was my personal favourite in 2021.

Ok. That wraps up TVB report card for 2021. Time for new TVB series to watch this year soon.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

TVB Anniversary Awards 2021’s nomination list is out and my movie review for ‘Anita’.

It’s almost end of November. One more month left before we say goodbye to 2021! It is yet another full year of Covid-19. That’s unfortunate. More on the recap of this past one year will be detailed out soon in one of my posts near end of December as usual. And by the way, my 30th birthday is just around the corner; it will falls on this coming Saturday! Steady…steady…

Okay..let’s get back to the two main topics of this post. TVB had recently released its nomination list for their annual TVB Anniversary Awards for the year. As usual, everyone is nominated as long as you are involved in anything in this whole year. TVB should really cut down the nominees to like top 5 or top 10 rather than nominating everyone. There are also several new categories introduced this year (they are breaking down hosting award to male and female categories, etc). The awards presentation will be held on 2nd January 2022.

My choice for best drama would be ‘AI Romantic’ but I think TVB will give this to ‘Kids’ Lives Matter’. My choice for best lead actor would be Shaun Tam from ‘Take Two’ (Vincent Wong did very good in ‘Murder Diary’ but that series is a flop). No particular choice for ‘Most Popular TV Male Character’. Maybe Billy Luk from ‘AI Romantic’ but his chance of winning is very slim. My choice for best lead actress would be Linda Chung from ‘Kids’ Lives Matter’ (Kara is excellent in ‘Murder Diary’ but as mentioned earlier, the drama is bad). Ali Lee will most likely take home ‘Most Popular TV Female Character’ instead since she had won best actress before while Linda has not win any. ‘Murder Diary’ is a very complicated but boring drama (not up to majority’s taste and with very low TV rating) but we can’t ignore that the series showcased excellent performances by the two leads, Kara and Vincent. However, they both won before and so their chances are close to zero of winning again this soon.

The late Anita Mui was one of the most beloved Hong Kong artistes who tragically died from cervical cancer at the age of 40 in December 2003. Famously known as ‘daughter of Hong Kong’ and Cantopop diva, she excelled in both her singing and acting careers. Although she is in the era earlier than my generation but I do like some of her iconic songs and movies (especially her comedy films). There is a new biopic film titled ‘Anita’ that tells her story from being a kid performer to her death in 2003. I watched the film yesterday. It is quite a moving film (especially near the end) with excellent performance by Louise Wong who portrayed the late Anita Mui. The film also boasts great cinematography and production design.

The only downside of the film are the draggy plot involving her futile love life and the exaggeration of her loneliness, sadness and perhaps depression from small causes (that may seems to be not the actual case) in this film. Anyway it is still a very beautiful and touching film that brought us back to the golden years of Hong Kong from 70s to 90s. Out of 10 points, I rate ‘Anita’ a total of 8.1. I do really admire Anita Mui’s unmatched dedication especially from her decision to hold her farewell concert just 45 days before her passing. She is truly a legend and it is very understandable why she is so beloved even until today, 18 years after her death.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

93rd Academy Awards: Surprises in lead acting categories while ‘Nomadland’ took best picture and director as expected.

The 93rd Academy Awards (aka the Oscars) concluded a moment ago and I am glad that I was able to find an online platform to watch the live broadcast of the whole ceremony that ran a little over 3 hours. ‘Nomadland’ took the top honor by winning the best picture. The movie which I find mediocre also won for best director and best actress. Here are the full list of winners along with my opinions for several categories (the winners are in bold):

Best Picture
The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Opinion: Expected. ‘Nomadland’ have had a clean sweep in the major precursor awards in this category. I don’t get the hype of this movie and I also do not enjoy it thoroughly (I find it dull). I would have prefer ‘The Father’ or ‘Minari’.

Best Actor
Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari

Opinion: Wow…I’m actually very happy for Anthony Hopkins. His performance in ‘The Father’ is fantastic and I’m glad that he won it which may came as a shock to many people. First, he won it before. Secondly, many felt that this should be awarded to Chadwick Boseman posthumously. Fortunately, most Academy members didn’t think that way (same goes to me). Hopkins delivered the best performance out of the five.

Best Actress
Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Andra Day, The United States vs. Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Opinion: Looks like BAFTA is a good indicator for the outcome of lead acting categories at the Oscars. Anthony Hopkins and Frances McDormand both won at the BAFTA and the result repeated itself at the Oscars. It is still quite a shock here since many are predicting Carey Mulligan to win (including myself). Frances is good but I don’t think she deserved to win three best actress Oscars for her performances which look more or less the same. Even the legendary Meryl Streep only had won two before (and one supporting). I felt it was too much for Frances.

Best Director
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
David Fincher, Mank
Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland

Opinion: Good. More Asian filmmakers should be recognized (and not just Black or woman or LGBT). Without Chloe’s direction, ‘Nomadland’ would not even be in the spotlight in this awards season.

Best Supporting Actress
Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Colman, The Father
Amanda Seyfried, Mank
Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari

Opinion: Very happy for Yuh-Jung Youn. She deserved it. She also gave the best (and most hilarious) speech for the evening despite not being well versed in English. Such a lovely person. I would want her to become my grandma…haha. Poor Glenn Close…lost again at the Oscars. She needs to get into a brilliant film and win best actress soon.

Best Supporting Actor
Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah
Leslie Odom Jr., One Night in Miami
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
Lakeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah

Best International Feature
Another Round
Better Days
Collective 
The Man Who Sold His Skin
Quo Vadis, Aida?

Best Animated Feature
Onward
Over the Moon
Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon 
Soul
Wolfwalkers

Opinion: No surprise here. ‘Soul’ had a clean sweep just like ‘Nomadland’ in this awards season. A simple yet thought-provoking film, ‘Soul’ captivated me and is no doubt the best animated film in 2020.

Best Documentary Feature
Collective
Crip Camp
The Mole Agent
My Octopus Teacher
Time

Best Original Score
Da 5 Bloods
Mank
Minari
News of the World
Soul

Opinion: ‘Soul’ winning score is expected. As soon as the movie started, I already knew this score is going to get some trophies. The score is simply amazing.

Best Original Song
“Fight for You,” Judas and the Black Messiah
“Hear My Voice,” The Trial of the Chicago 7
“Husavik,” Eurovision Song Contest
“Io Si (Seen),” The Life Ahead
“Speak Now,” One Night in Miami

Best Original Screenplay
Judas and the Black Messiah
Minari
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Opinion: Didn’t watch ‘Promising Young Woman’ but I have heard of the many positive words for the daring debut of the writer of this film (who is also the film’s director) with her unconventionally wild and fresh script.

Best Adapted Screenplay
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
The Father
Nomadland
One Night in Miami
The White Tiger

Opinion: Some predicted ‘Nomadland’ to win in this category too but I’m rooting for ‘The Father’. Looks like most Academy members had the same opinion as mine. The screenplay for this film is beautiful!

Best Cinematography
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
News of the World
Nomadland
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Opinion: Most predicted ‘Nomadland’ too but ‘Mank’ prevailed in the end. Well, I agree too as I believe there are a lot more works on black-and-white film in terms of capturing the light to complement and enhance the film. On the other hand, lighting work from ‘Nomadland’ mostly comes from the nature itself only (the beautiful backdrop sceneries) and doesn’t require much effort.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Emma
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank
Pinocchio

Best Costume Design
Emma
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank
Mulan
Pinocchio

Best Film Editing
The Father
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Opinion: Would have prefer ‘The Father’ but ‘Sound of Metal’ is fine for me too.

Best Sound
Greyhound
Mank
News of the World
Soul
Sound of Metal

Opinion: It is so obvious that the movie centered on sound (and even part of its title is called ‘sound’) will win this.

Best Live-Action Short
Feeling Through
The Letter Room
The Present
Two Distant Strangers
White Eye

Best Animated Short
Burrow
Genius Loci
If Anything Happens I Love You
Opera
Yes-People

Best Documentary Short
Colette
A Concerto is a Conversation
Do Not Split
Hunger Ward
A Love Song for Latasha

Best Visual Effects
Love and Monsters
The Midnight Sky
Mulan
The One and Only Ivan
Tenet

Opinion: Expected. The visual effects of ‘Tenet’ are splendid especially on its extensive use of backward shots which are critical to the story of the film (which also got the audiences confused too..haha).

Best Production Design
The Father 
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank
News of the World
Tenet

Opinion: Not much to comment but I have read many positive words on the production values in ‘Mank’ which delivered successfully to match the look and feel of the old Hollywood era intended in the film.

That’s all; the conclusion of the awards season for Hollywood films in 2020. Congratulations to all the winners! Most of the results are very much predictable while there are still some surprises especially in the lead acting categories as mentioned earlier. I find it weird that the Academy decided to announce best picture winner first before the best actor and actress categories. The arrangement felt weird.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

The 93rd Oscars is now only a week away.

By now, we have known the result of the Golden Globes, Critics Choice, SAG and BAFTA honoring the best of films in 2020. These are 4 of the 5 major annual Hollywood film awards which ends with the most prestigious Academy Awards, or famously known as the Oscars. The 93rd Academy Awards will be held on 25th April 2021 and is now only a week away.

The race in certain categories remain wide open (particularly best actress category) despite the conclusion of 4 major precursor awards and that will make up for an interesting night at the Oscars. There is not a single clear frontrunner for best actress winner this year. The five nominees in this category are Viola Davis from ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’, Andra Day from ‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’, Vanessa Kirby from ‘Pieces of a Woman’, Frances McDormand from ‘Nomadland’, and Carey Mulligan from ‘Promising Young Woman’.

I have only watched ‘Nomadland’ and hence couldn’t really choose my pick. Viola Davis won the SAG, Andra Day won the Golden Globes, Frances McDormand won the BAFTA and Carey Mulligan won the Critics’ Choice. Vanessa Kirby is the only one left out, but she did won at Venice Film Festival. Now, everyone is cracking their head. It is very rare that all the 4 major precursor awards picked different person for the win. No frontrunner at all. If Frances wins it again, she would have won a total of 3 times which is a bit too much. Andra and Vanessa are a bit too new to the scene and Viola had won best supporting actress before. I would place my bet on Carey Mulligan then.

As for best actor, I’m actually rooting for Anthony Hopkins. His performance in ‘The Father’ is fantastic. Many people felt that the award should be given to Chadwick Boseman out of respect (he passed away not long ago) and that he performed well in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Although I didn’t watch that film, but I had this feeling that Hopkins acted the best out of the five nominees (the other nominees are Riz Ahmed from ‘Sound of Metal’, Gary Oldman from ‘Mank’ and Steven Yeun from ‘Minari’). There is hardly any more chance for Hopkins to be nominated again in the future too (and win) since he is now already 83 years old. Hopkins did won at the BAFTA, perhaps due to the home advantage. Can’t we have two winners on the Oscar’s night?

Not much comment on best supporting actor and actress categories. Daniel Kaluuya is expected to take supporting actor from ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’ (he won all the 4 precursor awards) and Yuh-jung Youn from ‘Minari’ is the frontrunner now for supporting actress (after winning at SAG and BAFTA). The film ‘Soul’ is 100% certain to take home the best animated film and best original score (and I agree). Best director is going to be handed to Chloe Zhao from ‘Nomadland’ since she won all the 4 precursor awards too in this category. Her film ‘Nomadland’ is expected to win the coveted best picture too although I find the movie boring (has beautiful scenery but lacks drama). My personal choice would be ‘The Father’; a simple yet astounding and heartbreaking film. But I’m sure it won’t win. Films need momentum and publicity to win awards, and not depend solely on the quality of the film itself. That’s the sad truth in Hollywood.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

‘Nomadland’ dominating the Hollywood awards season so far for this year.

I seem to have not discuss much on the major Hollywood awards season for this year which is happening right now. It is most probably because I didn’t watch most of the films that are getting various nominations. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the awards season has been pushed back to allow more entries of films that are only released very recently. Besides that, all of the awards ceremonies have to be switched to virtual/online format with very little to no live audiences to prevent outbreak of the coronavirus.

The Golden Globes took place two weeks ago with ‘Nomadland’ winning best motion picture-drama and its director, Chloe Zhao winning best director. The late Chadwick Boseman, won best actor in motion picture-drama for his performance in ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ while Andra Day surprisingly won best actress in motion picture-drama from her role in ‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’ over the favourite, Carey Mulligan from ‘Promising Young Woman’. ‘Soul’ won best animated film and best score (very much deserved) while ‘Minari’ won best foreign language film.

The Critics Choice took place last weekend with very similar result except that Carey Mulligan do pull off the best actress win here. However, things got a bit shocking when the nomination list for the BAFTA is recently announced and she is not even nominated at all for best actress category. It’s going to be an interesting race for this category all the way to the Oscars. The other categories mostly appear consistent with the same set of winners. The SAG and BAFTA will take place on early next month and finally, the Oscars will happen on 26th April 2021.

‘Nomadland’ is dominating the season so far this year with some major wins already. It stars Frances McDormand as a woman who leaves home to travel around the American West. The film currently holds 94% score at both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. It made me wanted to try to watch it and see how good it is. And I just did. It’s an unappealing film for me. This isn’t just my type of film.

Critics praised it for being unassuming yet powerful but I find it being a bit too modest, quiet and boring. But I have to admit that the movie delivers strong character study and that Frances McDormand portrays it very well. Out of 10 points, I would have rated it 7.0 only. It is merely a depiction of a life of a woman down the road slightly elevated by solid acting, cinematography and direction. But its core story still remains dull to me.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

Thoughts on the winner list of TVB Anniversary Awards 2020.

The ceremony for the TVB Anniversary Awards 2020 (萬千星輝頒獎典禮2020) had just concluded a moment ago with 18 prizes presented out to honour the best of their series and programmes for the past year. Several nominated popular artists did not turn up and there is no special or heavyweight guest presenters at all; they are signs that this awards ceremony is losing its status as one of the most anticipated and star-studded ceremonies in Hong Kong entertainment industry. What we end up seeing are TVB actors/actresses presenting gifts to their peers, even for the best actor and actress categories.

Here are the list of winners for the TVB Anniversary Awards 2020 alongside my personal opinions:

Lifetime Achievement: Whole team of ‘Come Home Love’ series

Opinion: This award is presented to honour veteran actor/actress every year who have contributed immensely to Hong Kong entertainment industry for many decades. However, for this year, TVB decided to do something different (and also very weird) by awarding this to the whole cast and crew of ‘Come Home Love’. It’s more like a consolation prize to this series that is not able to win the best series award later on. It’s a very strange and poor act by TVB; they should really stick to the format and reserve it to recognize a particularly deserving veteran actor/actress each year. They just want to honour this long running series (that is still running now with over 1100 episodes to date) in a way by hook and by crook. Not a fan of this move.

Most Improved TV Female Artist: Angel Chiang (Al Cappuccino, Hong Kong Love Stories)

Opinion: The nominees in this category this year are quite weak and the other true competitor I see besides Angel Chiang is Moon Lau. Moon Lau is more deserving but she only has one series this year while Angel has two. Angel also impressed many with her character as a stern female triad senior in ‘Al Cappuccino’.

Most Improved TV Male Artist: Brian Chu (Airport Security, Al Cappuccino, Go!Go!Go! Operation C9)

Opinion: Besides than Owen Cheung, I saw Brian Chu the most in the TV series I watched in 2020. He kept on appearing everywhere with different characters. Although he portrayed mostly minor or supporting characters, but he did good in each of them. Well-built, good looking and can act (so far), so why not?

Best Supporting Actress: Winki Lai (Al Cappuccino)

Opinion: This is one of the categories that I most agreed on for the night. Winki Lai nailed the role as the eldest sister in ‘Al Cappuccino’. I would have prefer Susan Tse from ‘The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter’ or Vivien Yeo from ‘Brutally Young’ to win though because they both delivered much more memorable performances but they are both not even nominated. TVB is weird.

Best Supporting Actor: Jason Pai (Hong Kong Love Stories)

Opinion: I didn’t expect Jason Pai will win although I do hear good words on his role in ‘Hong Kong Love Stories (I didn’t watch this series). After seeing the nomination list, my pick would actually be Tsui Wing from his insane yet funny character in ‘Al Cappuccino’. I guess TVB don’t want ‘Al Cappuccino’ to win too many awards and dominate the whole night. Paul Chun should have been nominated too (and maybe even should win too) from his performance in ‘Legal Mavericks 2020’.

Most Favourite TV Theme Song: ‘Mortals Do Not Understand Love’ by Hubert Wu (The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter)

Opinion: Yes. That is what I predicted and what I hoped for too. This song stood out among the rest in 2020. The only win for ‘The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter’.

Malaysia’s Most Favourite TVB Leading Actress: Katy Kung (Death By Zero)

Opinion: I am in quite a shock hearing Katy’s name called as the winner. Her performance in ‘Death By Zero’ is just average and is not worthy of award. Unnecessary heavy make-up and absurd clothing choice didn’t do any help to that character too. She didn’t deliver enough depth to that role and yet she is crowned Malaysia’s best actress…No!

Malaysia’s Most Favourite TVB Leading Actor: Vincent Wong (Legal Mavericks 2020)

Opinion: I don’t have much objection to this because Vincent didn’t get to win this several years ago in ‘Legal Mavericks’ on Malaysia’s side. And he is as usual, solid in this role as the blind lawyer in this sequel.

Malaysia’s Most Favourite TVB series: Al Cappuccino

Opinion: While I do like the premise of this series, but I don’t find it deserving of major win like this because I felt it didn’t quite manage to pull it off with lackluster performance by some cast members and a plot that is not engaging. Why people do not appreciate better series like ‘Brutally Young’ or even ‘Line Walker 3’? I am particularly terrified that ‘Brutally Young’ is totally ignored and snubbed in this ceremony despite it being my best series in 2020.

Most Favourite On-Screen Partnership: Vincent Wong, Owen Cheung and Brian Chu (Al Cappuccino)

Opinion: I’m fine with this group winning as they are very compatible with each other in ‘Al Cappuccino’. Previously, people were already praising the chemistry between Vincent Wong and Owen Cheung in their previous collaborations. Now, with Brian Chu added in in this drama, things even get better.

Most Popular TV Female Character: Katy Kung (Hong Kong Love Stories)

Opinion: Don’t have much comment on this because I didn’t watch ‘Hong Kong Love Stories’. My personal pick would be Ali Lee from ‘Death By Zero’ or Sisley Choi from ‘Line Walker 3’. Looks like TVB is now seriously pushing Katy Kung to be next leading actress we are going to see a lot in following years. You can’t just push it too hard. I still cannot see her as leading actress material yet.

Most Popular TV Male Character: Owen Cheung (Al Cappuccino)

Opinion: I am expecting Vincent Wong to win from the same series, but it is Owen Cheung that crosses the finish line in this category surprisingly. Both are equally popular and had almost similar screen time in ‘Al Cappuccino’ but I felt Vincent should get it because he has not win this one before although he had won best actor in the past already. His character is also nicely executed and portrayed too. Another way by TVB to heavily promote Owen Cheung to leading actor status.

Best Leading Actress: Sisley Choi (Legal Mavericks 2020)

Opinion: I have to say that she really improved a lot in her acting over the years. From the same role few years ago, she had already won ‘Most Favourite TV Female Character’. Now her character matured and so does her performance as well. However, I don’t find her time has come yet for this coveted prize. I felt she needed another two years. Anyway, the competition for this category this year is very weak and I would rather see her winning than Mandy Wong (another hot favourite) because Mandy’s performance is mediocre only in ‘Line Walker 3’. Ali Lee should have won but due to political reason recently, she won’t be winning unfortunately. But in terms of performance last year, Ali should have won.

Best Leading Actor: Vincent Wong (Legal Mavericks 2020)

Opinion: I pitied Raymond Lam. Lost again. Out of the final 5, he is the only one who has not win best actor before and I do see that he gave solid performance in ‘Line Walker 3’. However, once he didn’t turn up at the ceremony, I knew his chance is very slim. Some people just don’t have luck for awards. Vincent Wong won again for second time from the same role (he last won this award based on this role too in the first series). Wow…both the main lead actor and actress for ‘Legal Mavericks 2020’ are crowned best actor and actress respectively. And Vincent Wong won the most awards for the night, at 3.

Most Popular Mini-Series: Hong Kong Love Stories

Opinion: TVB purposely created this new award at the very last minute to award to the only one series eligible under this mini-series category; Hong Kong Love Stories. TVB is getting very funny. After hearing very recent positive feedback on this series, TVB decided to present yet another consolation to another series that is not going to take the best series prize (after ‘Come Home Love’). What’s the point when you decide to award almost everyone and then ignore really good quality drama like ‘Brutally Young’.

Best Series: Al Cappuccino

Opinion: Again…where is ‘Brutally Young’? I really cannot understand the taste and judgement of Hong Kong audiences. ‘Al Cappuccino’ has quite a refreshing story but it does comes with several notable poorly done aspects as well. ‘Brutally Young’ easily comes out on top for me due to the impressive acting and suspenseful plot it has. ‘Al Cappuccino’ ended up becoming the biggest winner of the night with 5+2 wins.

No comment for the other two remaining categories; ‘Best TV Host’ and ‘5 Best Variety Programmes’. For this year’s winner list, I do agree to half of the list but not the other half. Sometimes, I am really surprised and dumbfounded by TVB decision in some of the categories as explained above. It happens almost every year (such as awarding consolation prizes obviously, presenting to least deserving winners, etc).

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

My selection of the best for TVB series in 2020.

The TVB Anniversary Awards 2020 set to be held on 10th January 2021 will honour the best of TVB series released this year. Before that ceremony takes place, I’m here to publish my choices, similarly to what I have been doing for the past years. Hence, the result of the awards two weeks later will not affect or influence my judgement and this list is entirely based on my personal view and is also restricted to those series that I have watched (series that I didn’t watch will be left out).

For this year, I have watched a total of 11 dramas. They are:

• Forensic Heroes 4.
• Airport Strikers.
• Brutally Young.
• The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter.
• Flying Tiger 2.
• Death By Zero.
• Al Cappuccino.
• Go!Go!Go! Operation C9.
• Line Walker 3: Bull Fight.
• Legal Mavericks 2020.
• The Witness.

Here comes my top 5 picks for each of the following 15 categories and the one in bold for each categories are my selected winners:

OUTSTANDING CAST ENSEMBLE

• Legal Mavericks 2020
• The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter
• Flying Tiger 2
• Death By Zero
• Line Walker 3: Bull Fight

OUTSTANDING TV VETERAN ARTIST

• Susan Tse (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• David Chiang (Al Cappuccino)
• Lee Shing Cheong (Death By Zero, Al Cappuccino, Line Walker 3: Bull Fight, Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Paul Chun (Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Lau Kong (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter, The Witness)

BEST TECHNICAL DESIGNS (VISUAL EFFECTS, SCORES, EDITING. COSTUME, MAKE-UP, PRODUCTION)

• Forensic Heroes 4
• Brutally Young
• The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter
• Flying Tiger 2
• Line Walker 3: Bull Fight

MOST FAVOURITE TV VILLAIN

• Jack Hui (Airport Strikers)
• Joel Chan (Flying Tiger 2)
• Kenneth Ma (Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)
• David Chiang (Al Cappuccino)
• Tsui Wing (The Witness)

MOST FAVOURITE ON-SCREEN COUPLE

• Joel Chan & Vivien Yeo (Brutally Young)
• Vincent Wong & Sisley Choi (Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Kenneth Ma & Mandy Wong (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Moses Chan & Ali Lee (Death By Zero)
• Owen Cheung & Sisley Choi (Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)

MOST FAVOURITE DRAMA THEME SONG

• ‘I Need You Every Minute’ by Joey Thye – ending theme song for ‘Brutally Young’
•  ‘Confession’ by Fred Cheng – opening theme song for ‘Brutally Young’
• ‘Mortals Do Not Understand Love’ by Hubert Wu – ending theme song for ‘The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter’
• ‘Feels Like Heaven’ by Raymond Lam & Hana Kuk – ending theme song for ‘Line Walker 3: Bull Fight’
• ‘If You Understand’ by Hana Kuk – ending theme song for ‘Airport Strikers’

MOST IMPROVED TV FEMALE ARTIST

• Vivien Yeo (Brutally Young)
• Roxanne Tong (Forensic Heroes 4, Airport Strikers)
• Gloria Tang (Airport Strikers, The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter, Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Kelly Cheung (Forensic Heroes 4, Legal Mavericks 2020, The Witness)
• Winki Lai (Al Cappuccino)

MOST IMPROVED TV MALE ARTIST

• Anthony Ho (Brutally Young, The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter, Death By Zero, Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)
• Owen Cheung (Airport Strikers, Al Cappuccino, Line Walker 3: Bull Fight, Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Hugo Wong (Airport Strikers, The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter, Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Hubert Wu (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Tsui Wing (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter, Al Cappuccino, Legal Mavericks 2020, The Witness)

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

• Vivien Yeo (Brutally Young)
• Susan Tse (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Moon Lau (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Roxanne Tong (Forensic Heroes 4)
• Elena Kong (Death By Zero)

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

• Willie Wai (The Witness)
• Dominic Lam (Brutally Young)
• Tsui Wing (Al Cappuccino)
• Hubert Wu (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Owen Cheung (Al Cappuccino)

MOST FAVOURITE TV FEMALE CHARACTER

• Mandy Wong (Brutally Young)
• Selena Li (Forensic Heroes 4)
• Ali Lee (Death By Zero)
• Sisley Choi (Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)
• Samantha Ko (Go!Go!Go! Operation C9)

MOST FAVOURITE TV MALE CHARACTER

• Kenneth Ma (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Vincent Wong (Al Cappuccino)
• Raymond Lam (Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)
• Bosco Wong (Flying Tiger 2)
• Moses Chan (Death By Zero)

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

• Mandy Wong (Brutally Young)
• Ali Lee (Death By Zero)
• Sisley Choi (Legal Mavericks 2020)
• Selena Li (Forensic Heroes 4)
• Samantha Ko (Go!Go!Go! Operation C9)

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

• Raymond Lam (Line Walker 3: Bull Fight)
• Shaun Tam (Brutally Young)
• Kenneth Ma (The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter)
• Wayne Lai (Death By Zero)
• Vincent Wong (Legal Mavericks 2020)

BEST SERIES

• Brutally Young
• The Exorcist’s 2^nd Meter
• Flying Tiger 2
• Legal Mavericks 2020
• Line Walker 3: Bull Fight

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

TVB Anniversary Awards 2020 nomination list is out.

The nomination list for the TVB Anniversary Awards 2020 is finally out today. TVB hold a press conference this afternoon (broadcast live through social medias) to announce the nomination list for their annual awards presentation. The presentation ceremony will be held on the evening of 10th January 2021 and there will be a total of 17 awards to be presented including 3 new awards that represents votes from Malaysia for favourite drama, leading actor and leading actress.

I won’t list down the full nomination list (because it is very long, and basically if you have acted in a TVB series released this year, you are basically nominated…hence there is not much of a high value of being nominated actually). This year, we see a lot of very young, inexperienced and unfamiliar faces getting not even one but multiple nominations (well, that’s actually what we see in these recent years too). Most of the popular artistes have left the station unfortunately.

I have watched a total of 11 TVB series this year. My top 5 pick for best actor would be Shaun Tam (Brutally Young), Raymond Lam (Line Walker 3), Wayne Lai (Death By Zero), Vincent Wong (Legal Mavericks 2020) and Kenneth Ma (Line Walker 3). Out of the 5, only Shaun and Raymond have not win it before and in terms of experience, I would give it to Raymond since Line Walker 3 is also his comeback drama after many years. He is nevertheless doing good in the series too and he is considered overdue as well.

My top 3 pick for best actress would be Selena Li (Forensic Heroes 4), Ali Lee (Death By Zero) and Sisley Choi (Legal Mavericks 2020). Why only top 3 pick for actress? Well, the category for leading actress is very weak this year. I can’t choose anymore from the list to fill in to 5 slots. Also in my opinion, I felt Samantha Ko should be nominated for Go!Go!Go! Operation C9 instead of Al Cappuccino and Mandy Wong for Brutally Young instead of Line Walker 3 (would have higher chance for that but still won’t be able to win).

My top 5 pick for best drama would be Brutally Young, Legal Mavericks 2020, Line Walker 3, The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter and Flying Tiger 2. Out of these 5, my pick would be Line Walker 3. I’m not mad if Brutally Young win too (my second pick). My second runner-up would be Legal Mavericks 2020. Not much comment on supporting actor and actresses, and other categories.

Brief review to TVB drama ‘The Witness’, and looking forward to the nomination list for their anniversary awards this year.

I have recently completed yet another TVB drama called ‘The Witness’. It is the 11th TVB drama I have watched this year and since there is more than a month to go before 2020 ends, there are still time for me to watch one or two more this year. ‘The Witness’ is a 20-episode drama that revolves on a sergeant getting into a close friendship with a witness he is protecting, and in the meantime falling in love with his younger sister. He then learns that there is a link connecting them to the death of his father years ago.

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The series starred Him Law, Kelly Cheung, Willie Wai, Pinky Cheung, Tsui Wing, Lau Kong, etc. This is mostly a light-hearted drama. There is quite a lot of funny scenes in the beginning especially coming from Willie’s character but it all dies down quickly as soon the series reached the middle. It gets boring all the way before the very last episode. Him Law and Kelly Cheung couldn’t lead the series well (still don’t find them fit to take on first lead roles). Willie Wai saved the drama a bit but I felt that it was Tsui Wing that impresses more especially near the end of the series. Out of 10 points, I rate ‘The Witness’ a total of 6.0.

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TVB had just celebrated its 53rd anniversary last week in a usual evening gala show that saw attendance of over 100 artistes led by the two usual ‘big sisters’; Liza Wang and Carol Cheng. The only interesting part of the show is the singing segment by Miriam Yeung (the only popular celebrity of the night). Even the comedic parts of the show felt lame and not hilarious. I’m looking forward more to the upcoming TVB Anniversary Awards for the year. I think the nomination list will be out very soon.

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Looks like the hot contenders for best actor this year would be Raymond Lam (Line Walker 3), Kenneth Ma (The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter), Vincent Wong (Legal Mavericks 2020), Shaun Tam (Brutally Young), and Wayne Lai (Death by Zero). Competition for best actress is very weak this year. So far I can only think of these five; Mandy Wong (Brutally Young), Sisley Choi (Legal Mavericks 2020), Ali Lee (Death By Zero), Selena Li (Forensic Heroes 4) and Samantha Ko (Go!Go!Go! Operation C9). My top 5 series so far would be Legal Mavericks 2020, Line Walker 3:Bull Fight, Brutally Young, The Exorcist’s 2nd Meter and Flying Tiger 2.

That’s it for my post today. One more week and we will be welcoming the last month of the year and I will be turning 29 in 10 more days. It’s all about Covid-19 in 2020. I’m glad that there is no community cases here in Singapore for 14 consecutive days already, but at the same time, I’m worried over the increasing number of cases back in Malaysia (reaching new record high of over 2000 cases today!). If this continues, how can I return to KL for the Chinese New Year celebration in the coming February?!

(Images in this post are from various online sources)