Blistering barnacles!- The Adventures of Tintin (Secret of the Unicorns)

Billions of bilious blue blistering barnacles! and Ten thousand thundering typhoons!- An Absolute Must Watch.  The Unicorn really comes to life in this awesome movie by Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson.

This is the first time in my life that I have see a movie on the first day- first show and is probably the best movie I have ever seen in my life.  The movie really brings the comic characters into a 3-dimension life form.  For Tamil movie lovers, this is "Michael Madan Kama Rajan" in English with finesse and Crazy Mohan replaced by Herge'. It feels like I am turning the pages of the book and can see it come to life.  The story line was kept along the same order and speed of the book.  The action packed scenes kept moving at a super-fast pace.  I could not bend to get my drink, lest I missed an important scene.  Spielberg had done a great job into weaving animation into the storyline, especially in places at sea.

The cinematographer has made full use of the 3-D by making it realistic, as opposed to scary.  This movie is not appropriate for kids below the age of 10, as the pace might frighten them.  The costumes and the makeup were really outstanding, especially for the Thom(p)son and Captain Haddock.  The 3-D made their nose standout and, of course, showed Tintin's hair in the natural flair.  The speeding away car, the innocent detective work by the Thom(p)sons and the bottle on the head with stars were nicely brought forth.  A melodious music of John Williams really produces the effect at major points at sea and in the final chase down to the sea coast.

Capt. Haddock does a great job in both the drunken state and in the motivating Tintin to go forward, especially where he explains that realism is a euphemism for defeat.  Snowy was probably the weakest link, though the scene where the huge dog became a puppy in front of him was a really nice touch.  The 3-D made Snowy look much bigger than he should actually be.  Also, Tintin takes less interest in him and displays less emotions relative to the book.  I am not sure whether this was a adaptation need for a movie.

All in all,  a fantastic movie and a must see.  For those with 3-D TV's make sure you get a original copy for your collection.  All those that have read the "Last of the Unicorn" in their childhood should look forward to it.  I am already waiting for the remaining two movies in the trilogy.

For those of you that have never heard of Tintin or the movie, here is a link to the trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW6TkX1YOK8.   For the adventurous one's, the link to the book on Amazon is http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Unicorn-Tintin-Herge/dp/1405206225/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321036549&sr=8-1-fkmr1.  To learn more about Tintin, go to Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Tintin. A video game on the same theme has been released.

I would like to thank my mother-in-law for getting prime tickets to a sold-out first day show! The crowd really enjoyed the movie. 

Sathyam Theatres Chennai takes movie watching to another level.  The whole auditorium shook with the ship and the pirate cannons could be felt with every Boom.  The theatre has done a fine job in making every aspect of the experience very pleasant, right from the concierge to the parking attendant.  A note to my friends in the Bay Area- tickets for 3-D movies in India are Rs. 120 + Rs. 20 (for glasses), a grand total of $2.75.

Tuscana at Chamiers, A Italian restaurant on Chennai

4* Restaurant/ Average about Rs 500 per entree /Nice decor and Ambiance /2 Thumbs Up.

One of our favorite outings are visits to new restaurants.  Our goal is to never repeat a restaurant, unless we find one we like so much.  Then we end up going there every week.  Since we have traveled widely, we tend to realize which restaurant is authentic and true to their heritage.

Yesterday was Navaratri celebrations.  More on that in a separate Gollu subject.  Tired after a long day of working around the house and the job of entertaining guest, we decided to drop off the daughter downstairs.  Off we went to the new restaurant on Chamiers Road, across from Hotel Park Sheration in the Boat Club Area of Chennai (Madras) India.  It was past 9:30 when we got there but the staff was still wide awake.  The location is a old home that has been slightly remodeled. The interior seems to have been maintained, just painted with occasional paintings. This looks similar to Cornucopia/ Crimson Chakra.

The valet instantly opened the door for both of us.  They waited until we firmly got out of the car, before presenting the token.  I hate it when the valet is just rushing to get you out of the car.  Similarly on the return, he had the car nicely positioned for us to get in.

As we had no reservation, they took us to a quiet table.  Funny that it was the same table that my wife had the last time she was there.  This was my first visit.  They brought the menu and stayed away until we called them. 

Before the food, they brought the bread, sticks and toast.  It was all fresh.  They center tray was really tasty and colorful.  It has a hummus-like spread, chopped olives in a olive oil/vinegar sauce and tomato bits.

My wife ordered the gnocchi in marinara sauce while I order Kritiko Boureki, from their Middle-Easter Menu.  The gnocchi were soft and seemed fresh, as opposed to store-bought.  Now, I wonder where you could buy it in Chennai.  We still have our stock from the US.   Mine had a nice pastry covering for my potato and zucchini pie.  I could actually taste the zucchini.  But stunner was the salad.  The leaves were bright and strong.  The dressing ting to it that make the salad just roll in your mouth.  I did not want to sallow it at all.

I had a Fresh Lime soda with salt.  The drink was strong and felt good after a long days work.

The menu is huge and is split nicely between vegetarian and meat dishes. There quite a few desserts and there is a ice cream shop on the Ground Floor (They also sell high-quality beef). The only negative is that music is too loud and the noise from one table runs through too all the nearby tables.