Search

Search only in certain items:

Spotlight (2015)
Spotlight (2015)
2015 | Drama, Mystery
The story is amazing (2 more)
Heartfelt writing
The best ensemble cast in years
Wow. Just wow
Michael fucking Keaton!!!!
Holy shit!!!!
Although he will always be Beetlejuice to me, he keeps proving to me time and time again that he is one of the finest dramatic actors of our time. Id even go as far to say of anytime.
This movie follows the Boston Globe's Spotlight team in the early 2000's as they break a scandal involving the Catholic Church's involvement in a priest molestation case.
Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams and Leiv Shriver (spelling incorrect I know) also star, as well as a few other familiar faces.
This is not my typical movie, but when something stars Keaton, I check it out. And it didn't disappoint.
It's long, drawn out, and sometimes boring. But in this reviewers opinion, totally worth a watch.
The number 87 will forever stick out in my mind as something that reminds me of that wretched feeling you get in your stomach before you vomit.
Based on true events that transpired over an almost 55 year period, if not longer.
  
Children of Time
Children of Time
Adrian Tchaikovsky | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Unique (4 more)
Clever
Interesting
Ending was on point
You'll be relating to spiders
Ok, so this was my first audio book listening.
My god I'm so glad i found this book, I probably would never have picked it up as I'm not really into space themed stories. but 1 free book on audible free trial, so i thought why not?

Holy cow, this book had my heart racing throughout and towards the end the tears flowing.
One lonely green world left as earth has become nothing, a somewhat failed experiment (what have you done to my monkeys!) and a whole bunch of amazing spiders and over 2000 years of the last humans looking for a home.
As a person who loves evolution and genetics and all the jazz, this book was genius.
I didnt know who i wanted to win, humans? spiders?

This book is so intelligently written, yet easy to grasp. The ending was amazing, beautifully finished. A wealth of interesting characters that who cant help but feel for (never thought i could love and relate to spiders) and its so amazingly unique in its story.
Please read this book.
  
40x40

Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Memento (2000) in Movies

Jul 26, 2019 (Updated Jul 26, 2019)  
Memento (2000)
Memento (2000)
2000 | Mystery, Thriller
Dont Trust Ink
Contains spoilers, click to show
Memento- is a fantasic, phenomal film. It has twist, turns, suspense, mystery, drama, romance, you name it memento has.

Memento came out in 2000 and was christohper nolan's second film he directed. This film really put nolan on the map of best directors.

The plot: Leonard (Guy Pearce) is tracking down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The difficulty, however, of locating his wife's killer is compounded by the fact that he suffers from a rare, untreatable form of memory loss. Although he can recall details of life before his accident, Leonard cannot remember what happened fifteen minutes ago, where he's going, or why.

The 90% of the movie is backwards. Meaning the end is the beginning and the beginning is the end. Their are scenes where its in black and white, i think those sences are in the present. You will be confused the first time and probley the second time you watch it. But after the threed or fourth time you understand, but still have questions.

This is one of my all time favorite movies. Its in my top ten best movies of all time.

Memento is a must see film.
  
Show all 3 comments.
40x40

Kaz (232 KP) Jul 28, 2019

This is a fantastic film. I have an option to watch this in chronological order, but I don't think it has as much impact as watching it in the order intended.

40x40

Sarah (7798 KP) Jul 28, 2019

One of my faves too. Such a great film.

40x40

Britt Daniel recommended track Bring It to Jerome by Bo Diddley in His Best by Bo Diddley in Music (curated)

 
His Best by Bo Diddley
His Best by Bo Diddley
1997 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I first heard this one in 2000, or maybe 2001. My girlfriend at the time, Eleanor, had a Bo Diddley compilation that I think she got from her brother. I was grown by then so it wasn’t like I was listening to Bo in the crib, you know? But I came around to it. ""For a long time, I wasn’t a fan of the blues, because my limited understanding of it was cover bands on Sixth Street here in Austin - that version of the genre was just white guys trying to imitate Stevie Ray Vaughan. I think Bo transcended blues though. There’s so much more going on; there’s pop elements, there’s pure rock and roll elements. ""What I love about him the most is that he’s all about the maracas. That’s something that I’ve snagged, for sure, they’re the coolest percussion instrument. He went on The Ed Sullivan Show with a four-piece band, and one of them was just there to play maracas - that’s how essential it was to the sound. On this song, Jerome himself is the maraca player and he’s singing the response vocal - singing his own name. I love that."

Source
  
Death Race (2008)
Death Race (2008)
2008 | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi
6
7.1 (12 Ratings)
Movie Rating
In Death Race, a loose remake (sort of prequel?) to 1975's Death Race 2000, our lord and saviour Paul W.S. Anderson takes all of the things that made his Resident Evil films so mind numbingly shit, and applies them to a car racing movie. You know the drill - seizure inducing quick edits, with a liberal smattering of slow-mo for good measure, plenty of quippy douchebags, and the odd explosion of invasive "cool" guitar riffs.
However - it actually kind of works with the plot template and Death Race is easily one of Anderson's better films.
Jason Statham being in the driver's seat is always going to be a plus. He's being so very Statham as per, but if it ain't broke and all that. I can always appreciate the likes of Joan Allen and Ian McShane, and the action and story is well paced to ensure that it's entertaining as hell from start to finish.

Death Race is the epitome of fast food cinema. It's hot trash, but it's a pretty good time all things considered. A solid 6 angry Stathams out of 10.
  
Godzilla (2014)
Godzilla (2014)
2014 | Mystery, Sci-Fi
The cinematics and creature design in this movie is what really sells it. (0 more)
The fact that it is a Godzilla movie with little to no actual Godzilla. (0 more)
Godzilla (2014) Review
Contains spoilers, click to show
Godzilla (2014) was a really good movie, it had a lot action and a lot suspense. However it didn't really contain too many scenes with Godzilla, it had a lot of facial expressions from Aaron Taylor Johnson, and by a lot I mean the same expression. ? <- That one.
The whole movie, I believe was definitely a set up for Godzilla: King of the Monsters due out in 2019, though it could have used a little bit more "monster" in it. I liked it though, but it's missing some key elements to make it Godzilla, but once you get passed the obvious problems with it, it proves to be a really great film. The roar they created for this new take on Godzilla is by far my favorite aside from the 1999 Toho film. America has finally done Godzilla justice however, especially compared to the Matthew Broderick starring Godzilla in the early 2000's whom is now labeled as simply "Zilla." Great film to watch, get caught up before Godzilla: King of the Monsters hits theaters on May 31, 2019.
  
40x40

Andy K (10821 KP) rated The Exorcist (1973) in Movies

Oct 14, 2018 (Updated Oct 15, 2018)  
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist (1973)
1973 | Horror
The best ever!
I remember when I was a kid sneaking into the living room and watching 10 minutes of The Exorcist from behind my mother's recliner when I was like 8. Even that 10 minutes messed me up for a long time as a kid. I would have dreams of my bed shaking and wake up sweaty and exhausted.

Not until I was an adult in my 30s did I truly appreciate the perfection masterpiece craft of the film.

Simple, slow burn storytelling. Not the scariest or goriest film ever made. More the idea of the film, how it transforms a young innocent girl into a satanic, cruel, vulgar monster which is the most visceral.

When it was released in 2000 with the "Version you've never seen" I happened to be working as a projectionist at the local theatre when I lived in Oregon. I always used to go into the theatre itself or turn the volume up while in the projector room so I could listen to it while I was doing other work.

It truly is one of my favorite films and is a tradition now I watch it every single October 31st.


  
Rise of the Superheroes (2018)
Rise of the Superheroes (2018)
2018 | Documentary, Fantasy
6
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Rise of the Superheroes is a "good enough" look into the history of comic book movies if you have a couple of hours to kill.

It covers a lot of ground from the 40s Batman serial series, all the way up to 2018s Black Panther, and has some notable comic book alumni amongst the interviewers, including the likes of Chris Claremont, Chuck Dixon, Scott Beauty, and Neal Adams.

The problem is however, a genre as big as comic book movies needs a big budget documentary to go with it. It would be nice to see some of the actors involved in the interviews, it would benefit from flashier graphics, it would benefit from a longer run time or even a series to properly explore the ever growing number of properties making the jump from page to screen.
The boom of comic movies from X-Men (2000) onwards is all crammed into the last 30 minutes as the feature rushes to wrap up, and as a result, Rise of the Superheroes doesn't feel that comprehensive, and offers nothing new to an audience who will likely already know what is talked about here.

It's an easy and casual watch if you have an interest in the subject, but nothing more.
  
40x40

Hazel (1853 KP) rated Bring Me Home in Books

Dec 14, 2018  
BM
Bring Me Home
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
<i>I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.</i>

To tell the truth, despite knowing that Alan Titchmarsh is a celebrity gardener and TV presenter, I was unaware that he was also a novelist; so I honestly had no idea what to expect. <i>Bring Me Home</i>, Titchmarsh’s latest piece of fiction, is located in the Scottish Highlands and tells the life story of Charlie Stuart who lives in Castle Sodhail.

The opening chapter is set in the year 2000 at the end of a summer party hosted by Charlie in the castle grounds. We find out that Charlie needs to tell his children about something he has done and he is worried about their reactions. I immediately assumed this would be something along the lines of financial difficulties: someone who owns a castle must be in need of a vast amount of money. This assumption, however, was way off the mark.

The subsequent chapters tell of Charlie’s past, beginning in 1960, when he was ten years old, and progressing chronologically until 2000 where we, once again, meet with the familiar opening scene. Throughout these sections we read of Egglestone Academy in Inverness, which he attended with his friend, Gordon Mackenzie; we learn of his mother’s death and how he copes with his new, typically not very nice, stepmother. He marries a childhood friend, Eleanor – this happened a bit too suddenly in my view – and this is where things begin to transpire; events which could be what Charlie wants to speak to his children about.

To be frank, I sometimes found the narrative a little boring, particularly throughout the first half in which, I felt, nothing particularly significant occurred. The latter half was better with more events taking place, which made me wonder how things would be resolved. There was one part of the storyline which, although keeps Gordon in the book as an important character, felt rather pointless particularly as it had nothing to do with the final few chapters.

One thing I did like about this book was that Titchmarsh and included relevant quotes from various sources at the beginning of each chapter. These always related in some way to what that particular chapter was about. As I have not read any other books by the author, I do not know if this was a one off idea or whether he always does this, but it reminded me of the character Gordon Mackenzie who has a literary quote for every occasion.

Overall I did not think much of this novel but it was not terrible. The writing style was easy to read and understand but I personally thought the storyline needed to be stronger.
  
40x40

Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated House on Haunted Hill (1999) in Movies

Jul 17, 2019 (Updated Jul 17, 2019)  
House on Haunted Hill (1999)
House on Haunted Hill (1999)
1999 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
1
6.8 (26 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Sweet Dreams
So this movie excist, house on haunted hill should of never been remade or touching in the first place, the oringal is a classic with vincent price introducing the movie and also starring in it.

Who stars in this one ohh fanke janssen, geoffrey rush who is a good actor but wasted in this movie, Taye diggs i never heard of him since the early 2000's, and ali larter who was only good in heroes. So not a good start.

The plot: A millionaire with theatrical tendencies, Stephen Price (Geoffrey Rush) invites a number of people to stay in a vast creepy building that used to be an insane asylum. Stephen, accompanied by his bitter wife, Evelyn (Famke Janssen), offers a million dollars to anyone who can stay the whole night without leaving out of fear. When Stephen and Evelyn become trapped with their guests, they quickly realize that the house really is haunted -- and the spirits dwelling within are very angry.

This movie is not scary, not oringal, not celver, not haunted, its not good.

Also for no pair of reason sweams by marlyon manson plays for no pair of reason, not once but twice. Once when the guess are driving to hill house and once at the end cridits.

Dont watch this movie it is a waste of your time, just watch the oringal movie.