Olivier Dahan’s La Vie en Rose is a biopic of the queen of French pop, Édith Piaf, who was blessed with a sensational voice and cursed with a life full of dramas. In the chopped-up sequence, we get to see Piaf belting out her voice on the street of Paris in her teen, collapsing on stage in her late life, living in the whorehouse in her youth, drinking like a fish throughout her life and shooting up drugs as much as ten times a day after her lover died. In other words, the sequence of the film is as chaotic as her life.

Marion Cotillard as Piaf gave a remarkable performance in both the young and old characters. While drug could corrupt her health and appearance—she looked as if she was in her 70s when she was only in her 40s—it could not take away voice. In fact, what makes her music powerful was that she not just sang but lived the songs. From “La Vie en Rose” to “Milord” to “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” she expressed these ballads with the response of her personal tragedies, and in doing so, she was able to reach the world with her soulful voice.

Even if La Vie en Rose isn’t one of the best musical biopics ever filmed (it isn’t as well done as Ray), it is still worth watching. The life and music of Piaf is too marvelous to pass on, and Cotillard has done the justice of portraying the incredible singer.

Damn! Even the a boring old fart like Duy Quang could scoop up a young girl like that. Respect!

In the conclusion of his conversation with President Bush, Nguyen Minh Triet mentioned the Vietnamese-American community:

And on this occasion, I also would like to extend my warmest greetings to my fellowman living in the United States. And Vietnamese Americans are part and parcel of the Vietnamese nation. And it is my desire to see them succeed, and hope they will continue to serve as a bridge of friendship between our two countries.

Did he mean for his fellowmen to continue to pour dollars into Viet Nam? Quite a clever guy.

Check out the Clockblock and Industrious Clock from Yugop. Cool huh?

Here is another Uniqlock with hot beats and cute Asian chicks.

T.I’s “Watch What You Say” featuring Jay-Z
Common’s “The People” video

From “Queer in the Crib” by Julia Reischel in The Village Voice:

Even with the recent push for gay marriage, we still tend to define gayness in terms of having sex—a framework that necessarily excludes kids. But pay attention to the childhood memories of gay adults and you’ll hear plenty of talk about wanting to keep house with a playmate of the same gender, or to marry a same-gender friend—just as straight adults remember wanting to marry a playmate of the opposite gender. Gay or straight, these kids aren’t trying to sex each other up. They’re just imagining future families, or describing their current friendships.

A piece from The New Yorker shows how napping at work is good for you. Whenever mama stayed here, I would take my lunch at home plus a quick nap. Mama would wake me up when it was time the time to get back to work. Damn, it felt so good.

A better organized and more streamlined revision of CNN.

Listening to Thuy Tien’s third record, Giac Mo Tuyet Trang, I can’t help but feel bad for a young talent who’s turning into mediocrity. Gone is the eccentric chick with some rockability. After the opening track, an impressive rock tune she has written entitled “Anh Sang,” the album cuts straight to the pop and hip-hop flavor. On the remake of “Lang Nghe Mua Xuan Ve,” she turns Duong Thu’s slow, sentimental piece into a dance-floor workout. By the time the little rap puppet takes over, I have to hit the skip button. It’s a damn shame.

Ella Fitzgerald’s profile on NPR:

Ella’s rare combination of confidence and innocence reflected the spirit of mid-20th century America. Despite her popularity, she never deviated from her commitment to jazz as an art form. She could improvise right next to saxophonists like Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins or Lester Young, then turn around and perform a classic American ballad while infusing it with her natural swing.