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Lou Grande (148 KP) rated Upgrade (2018) in Movies
Jun 15, 2018
The best William Gibson movie not written by William Gibson
My boyfriend and I saw this the other day, and I can't believe how poorly it's doing at the box office! This was a great movie. The feel of it was very cyberpunky, but not so in-your-face as the very awful Ghost in the Shell adaptation. Leigh Whannell directed and produced, so it has some of the same Saw graphic violence, which I think sits well with the cyberpunk genre. The entire concept is based around human and machine adaptation, and where the line should be drawn--or rather, the dangers of letting it go too far.
The atmosphere is really well developed: we see the poor parts of the city being grungy and dangerous, while the upper crust benefits from the best technology. Almost all humans have been modified in some way, except for our protagonist. In the beginning, anyway. Anyone who has watched the trailers knows that he becomes paralyzed, and then his spinal cord is "reattached" using Stem, a "widget" that allows his brain to communicate with his limbs. It also makes him a ninja.
But that's not really the core of the story. At its heart, Upgrade is a mystery wrapped in a cautionary tale. I'll take this over Johnny Mnemonic any day.
The atmosphere is really well developed: we see the poor parts of the city being grungy and dangerous, while the upper crust benefits from the best technology. Almost all humans have been modified in some way, except for our protagonist. In the beginning, anyway. Anyone who has watched the trailers knows that he becomes paralyzed, and then his spinal cord is "reattached" using Stem, a "widget" that allows his brain to communicate with his limbs. It also makes him a ninja.
But that's not really the core of the story. At its heart, Upgrade is a mystery wrapped in a cautionary tale. I'll take this over Johnny Mnemonic any day.
Low-Carbon Smart Cities: Tools for Climate Resilience Planning
Book
This book aims to integrate climate mitigation and adaptation tools into conventional urban...
Playing God: The Bible on the Broadway Stage
Book
Whether we regard it as the collected inscriptions of an earlier oral tradition or as the divinely...
David McK (3425 KP) rated Sharpe's Rifles in TV
Jul 11, 2021
The first of the Sharpe adaptations from the early-to mid '90s, based on what was then the earlies set novel in Bernard Cornwell's long-running series set during the Napoleonic Wars.
I say what-was-then, because - since the culmination of the various TV movies, and even right up to date (the most recent to be released in a few months time, in late 2021), Cornwell has released plenty more such novels, quite a few of which are set even before the start of the Napoleonic Wars, never mind those set 'in-between' the core set of novels; said set of which provided the basis for the TV adaptations.
And that is what these are: an adaptation, rather than a straight re-telling. Sharpe, for instance, is supposed to be a dark haired Londoner rather than fair-haired Cockney (although Sean Bean's portrayal would win over Cornwell, who would later 'retrofit' his character to be closer to Sean Bean). That is probably for the better: literature and film, after all, are two distinct mediums: what works in one may not work in another.
To this day, though, I would still love to see a proper big-screen adaptation, with the budget to match, of one of these stories ...
I say what-was-then, because - since the culmination of the various TV movies, and even right up to date (the most recent to be released in a few months time, in late 2021), Cornwell has released plenty more such novels, quite a few of which are set even before the start of the Napoleonic Wars, never mind those set 'in-between' the core set of novels; said set of which provided the basis for the TV adaptations.
And that is what these are: an adaptation, rather than a straight re-telling. Sharpe, for instance, is supposed to be a dark haired Londoner rather than fair-haired Cockney (although Sean Bean's portrayal would win over Cornwell, who would later 'retrofit' his character to be closer to Sean Bean). That is probably for the better: literature and film, after all, are two distinct mediums: what works in one may not work in another.
To this day, though, I would still love to see a proper big-screen adaptation, with the budget to match, of one of these stories ...
Logan Eccles (135 KP) rated Five Feet Apart (2019) in Movies
Oct 1, 2020 (Updated Oct 2, 2020)
Spot on Adaptation to the Book
It took me a while to watch this movie but I was really looking forward to watching it because I read the book and enjoyed it. It is actually funny I only read the book because my mother bought it for her, my sister, and my niece to read it so they could go see the movie. None of them read it though only I did. After finally watching the movie I was very pleased by it almost every scene and line were straight from the novel and each actor did a good job portraying their respective characters. The only things that were missing were narrative type things so I didn't have a big issue with them being left out. However, I would've liked to see more of Wills's friends Jason and Hope because they weren't very important in the movie but in the book essential to the chapters about Will the same can be said about his mother too her story is way more important in the book. But I get why they weren't essential to the movie since it focuses purely on Stella instead of the back and forth between Stella and Will in the novel. All in all, this was a good adaptation of the book and a sweet romance flick. I recommend it.
Miguel Covarrubias (143 KP) rated The Gone World: A Novel in Books
Apr 30, 2019
I'm very much enjoying how Sweterlitsch combines Sci-Fi and mystery in very engaging thought provoking ways. I've read, watched, and consumed a lot of time travel stories. There are tons of bad ones, but this is an excellent take and surprisingly takes care of a few plot hole problems inherent in time travel stories. As someone who has been trying to write a time travel story for over 8 years, I really appreciate good stories that help to revive my passion for the genre.
I'm really excited to find out what they do with the movie adaptation, and I'm really enjoying Sweterlitsch's work. I look forward to his future projects.
I'm really excited to find out what they do with the movie adaptation, and I'm really enjoying Sweterlitsch's work. I look forward to his future projects.
David McK (3425 KP) rated The War of the Worlds in Books
Jun 16, 2019
HG Wells seminal tale of alien invasion, that has laid the template for many an alien invasion movie afterwards (and I'm paraphrasing here):
"There's no war between us and them, any more than there is between us and ants"
Victorian set, and told mainly through the eyes of a journalist who witnesses all the events, from the arrival of the Martians through to their attack and eventual defeat (I'll give nothing away here how, except to say that the movie Independence Day tried an updated version of the same solution), this is also - or so legend says - responsible for mass panic in the States when the radio adaptation was first broadcast.
"There's no war between us and them, any more than there is between us and ants"
Victorian set, and told mainly through the eyes of a journalist who witnesses all the events, from the arrival of the Martians through to their attack and eventual defeat (I'll give nothing away here how, except to say that the movie Independence Day tried an updated version of the same solution), this is also - or so legend says - responsible for mass panic in the States when the radio adaptation was first broadcast.
Kevin Wilson (2 KP) rated Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) in Movies
Jun 1, 2018
Cast (2 more)
Plot
Comedy
A Wild & Fun Adventure For The Whole Family!
This a very creative adaptation of the Jumanji series. This time around, the characters are transported inside the game. The writers did an excellent job of portraying the film as though the characters were actually in a video game universe.
The film is packed full of humor. Especially Jack Black's portrayal of a modern teenage girl trapped in the body of a middle-aged man. There are even some jokes designed for the older audience to get a chuckle, making it not only a good film for the family, but fun for adults as well.
The film is packed full of humor. Especially Jack Black's portrayal of a modern teenage girl trapped in the body of a middle-aged man. There are even some jokes designed for the older audience to get a chuckle, making it not only a good film for the family, but fun for adults as well.
Booksnthreads (19 KP) rated Dune (1984) in Movies
Jun 2, 2018
You know, there’s a lot to criticize about this interpretation of Dune, but it had such a huge impact on my young mind that it will always be a favorite.
As an avid reader, I’m often looking for movie interpretations to be faithful, more than anything else. This film adaptation really can’t be called faithful in any sense of the word, but it gave me an appreciation for artistic license that isn’t just laziness in disguise or pandering to the mindless masses of movie-goers. It’s just a great story, in its own right, even if it really only pays lip service to the source material.
As an avid reader, I’m often looking for movie interpretations to be faithful, more than anything else. This film adaptation really can’t be called faithful in any sense of the word, but it gave me an appreciation for artistic license that isn’t just laziness in disguise or pandering to the mindless masses of movie-goers. It’s just a great story, in its own right, even if it really only pays lip service to the source material.
Melanie D (1 KP) rated The Handmaid's Tale - Season 1 in TV
Jul 22, 2018
Phenomenally good adaptation
It's worth remembering, every time you're tempted to think "this could never happen", that Margaret Atwood didn't include anything in her book that hadn't already happened somewhere in the world. So yes, it can and did happen somewhere, and could and may happen again if we don't learn the lessons of history.
The book has been superbly dramatised and features a strong cast who bring the story to its full, horrific life. There are few things I would ever characterise as a must-watch, but this is definitely one of them. Either the series or the book should be compulsory texts for 16 year olds.
The book has been superbly dramatised and features a strong cast who bring the story to its full, horrific life. There are few things I would ever characterise as a must-watch, but this is definitely one of them. Either the series or the book should be compulsory texts for 16 year olds.