The new and improved (?) American Idol is halfway through the competition this year and its doing great, Simon Cowell is busy bringing X-Factor to the US (Antonio “L.A.” Reid already signed up to be one of the judges) and now another singing competition? So why watch ‘The Voice’, huh? Upon hearing the mechanics of the show maybe, just maybe, you’ll think twice.
The new NBC show hired 4 judges to coach the hopefuls: Christina Aguilera, Adam Levine, Cee-Lo Green, Blake Shelton and will be hosted by Carson Daly. This is an interesting batch of people I have to admit (not only because of Xtina). These mentors will judge the contestants based only on their voice, literally, since their backs will be turned on the contestants therefore giving them a more “objective” approach in determining who gets in. “It’s not about breaking these people down but more about building them up”, Christina said in an interview. In order to get the contestant on his/her team, they will have to hit the “red button” first. After that the judges will mentor these contestants in their performances which will then be judged by America.
Sounds like a good idea, right? Still, I don’t know if the show will keep me glued to my screen. I might check out it’s premiere to see how it plays out. But until then, I can’t decide. How ’bout you? What do you think?
At long last, Christina’s acting début via the musical Burlesque is already screening in Manila. And I enjoyed it – the music was great, the acting was not Oscar-worthy but who cares, the writing though cliché in parts is fun and engaging. But I guess that’s what the movie is aiming for: to entertain and they succeeded. Obviously, the next step is to compare and I understood why the critics were harsh. We have all these hit musicals like Moulin Rouge, Chicago and Dreamgirls and we also have the ‘singers-trying-to-act’ type of films that were hardly anything good. Since Burlesque falls on both categories, it’s like double jeopardy. I have to say, I think Burlesque fades in comparison to the musicals mentioned in context of depth and relevance, the movie is quite simple. Small-town girl with incredible talent pursues her career in the land of dreams aka L.A. and ends up on an intriguing burlesque lounge. Add the charming, not to mention attractive, bartender and we have an instant love story. But for the 2nd category, Burlesque shines. Christina delivers a believable performance and you know what she really looks good on screen. She appears younger and thinner as compared to when you see her lately. The production value is incredible and the music is enticing and feel-good, I want to buy the soundtrack! It doesn’t suck at all which is saying something. And can I just say, I never heard singing like that in a long time, her vocals are at its peak. For the rest of the cast, surprisingly I was not bothered much by Cher (sorry I don’t get her), Kristen Bell and Julianne Hough were great additions to the performers, Stanley Tucci always impresses me and Cam Gigandet, your body is to die for – I love you already. I want to give a huge shout out to your perfect ass, by the way.
