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Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing with Jason Hartman
Podcast
Survive and thrive in today's economy. With over 600 episodes produced, business and investment guru...
Yamashita's Ghost: War Crimes, Macarthur's Justice, and Command Accountability
Book
"I don't blame my executioners. I will pray God bless them. " So said General Tomoyuki Yamashita,...
Mel Rodriguez recommended Scarface (1983) in Movies (curated)
Fear: A Novel
Book
“Fear shifts our moral codes. It makes us accessories to murder. A great achievement.” —Herman...
Thriller
The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, the FBI, the Media, and Richard Jewell, the Man Caught in the Middle
Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen
8.0
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Book
The masterful true-crime account of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing that captured the...
Podbean Podcast App & Player
News and Entertainment
7.0
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App
Podbean Podcast App is top trending podcast apps of global best 2016 in iTunes Store and also...
Sin City (2005)
7.5
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Movie Watch
Sin City (also known as Frank Miller's Sin City)[3] is a 2005 American neo-noir crime anthology film...
Sin City Frank Miller Robert Rodriguez Comic book
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Snowden (2016) in Movies
Jul 15, 2019
As with every Oliver Stone movie, you have to consider context while watching it. Snowden is a persuasive essay attempting to turn the focus from the crime committed by Edward Snowden to the mass surveillance practices of the US government during the Bush and Obama administration. This story was huge when the leaks began hitting the internet and so I was very familiar with the story through the media coverage ensued. Through that coverage it was made to seem as though Snowden, a low level contractor, stole data and was putting it on the internet to spite the American government.
Later more information came forth that he wasn’t as low level as we were led to believe and that Snowden was claiming that he performed the illegal act out of love for his country, not out of spite to harm it. But for a large portion of the country the original story has already been burned into their brain and nothing short of Ronald Reagan descending from heaven to tell them otherwise will change that. A few months ago Donald Trump even called for Snowden’s execution, if that helps paint a picture of the mindset of a portion of the US population about Edward Snowden.
This movie was made to convince you otherwise, that Snowden was and still is a brave American hero. It tells the story beginning with his Special Forces training and takes you all the way through the incident and up to present day, with the actual infamous Edward Snowden closing out the movie. I won’t go into too much detail here because I hate when reviews ruin a movie but I will say that it covers the whole story right down to the Ocean Eleven’s esque way that he got the files out of secured US spy facility.
This movie surprisingly also weaves a love story in and out of the technical background of the data release and while I enjoyed that aspect of the movie, some of it made me question its authenticity… it wasn’t realistic at times how the two reacted to different problems that arose in their relationship.
I left the movie thinking how strange it was that the espionage was the most believable part of the movie and the love story seemed contrived.
Joseph Gorden-Levitt was awesome. I’ve watched enough Snowden videos to know that he nailed it. The love interest was cute and likeable, but the primary antagonist was a bit over the top for a movie based on reality. But I guess that’s what this movie was trying to tell me… that there are some seriously evil people working for our government.
The pacing was good, acting was great, subject matter was insanely interesting and the love story humanized the hacker/criminal/hero. Go see it with an open mind, consider the context with which the film was created and come to your own conclusion. Snowden… hero or villain?
Later more information came forth that he wasn’t as low level as we were led to believe and that Snowden was claiming that he performed the illegal act out of love for his country, not out of spite to harm it. But for a large portion of the country the original story has already been burned into their brain and nothing short of Ronald Reagan descending from heaven to tell them otherwise will change that. A few months ago Donald Trump even called for Snowden’s execution, if that helps paint a picture of the mindset of a portion of the US population about Edward Snowden.
This movie was made to convince you otherwise, that Snowden was and still is a brave American hero. It tells the story beginning with his Special Forces training and takes you all the way through the incident and up to present day, with the actual infamous Edward Snowden closing out the movie. I won’t go into too much detail here because I hate when reviews ruin a movie but I will say that it covers the whole story right down to the Ocean Eleven’s esque way that he got the files out of secured US spy facility.
This movie surprisingly also weaves a love story in and out of the technical background of the data release and while I enjoyed that aspect of the movie, some of it made me question its authenticity… it wasn’t realistic at times how the two reacted to different problems that arose in their relationship.
I left the movie thinking how strange it was that the espionage was the most believable part of the movie and the love story seemed contrived.
Joseph Gorden-Levitt was awesome. I’ve watched enough Snowden videos to know that he nailed it. The love interest was cute and likeable, but the primary antagonist was a bit over the top for a movie based on reality. But I guess that’s what this movie was trying to tell me… that there are some seriously evil people working for our government.
The pacing was good, acting was great, subject matter was insanely interesting and the love story humanized the hacker/criminal/hero. Go see it with an open mind, consider the context with which the film was created and come to your own conclusion. Snowden… hero or villain?
Darren (1599 KP) rated Knives Out (2019) in Movies
Nov 26, 2019
Verdict: Pure Fun
Story: Knives Out starts with the apparent suicide of Harlan Thrombey (Plummer) on his 85th birthday, the family Linda (Curtis), Walt (Shannon), Richard (Johnson), Joni (Collette) Meg (Langford), Jacob (Martell) and Ransom (Evans) were all in attendance along with Harlan’s nurse Marta (Armas).
Lieutenant Elliott (Stanfield) lets private investigator Benoit Blanc (Craig) look at the events of the night after he gets an anonymous request to investigate the death believing it was murder, with the whole family have cause to potentially murder.
Thoughts on Knives Out
Characters – Benoit Blanc is a private investigator that has a connection to the family and has been given an anonymous letter to investigate the death, he has his way which unlike the normal police will push the family for the truth, knowing most are lying when they talk to him. Marta Cabrera is the nurse to Harlan, she has the closest relationship to him, knowing most of the family secrets, while just working to make sure her family is secure. Harlan is the self-made millionaire author that has started to get disappointed by the behaviour of his own children. Linda is the eldest daughter who has her own real estate business that she is proud of her work, believing she has done better than the other siblings. Walt is the youngest son who runs the publication of the books, which has always seen him try to push his father into selling the rights to entertainment sources. Richard is the husband to Linda that has been caught by Harlan being forced into telling the truth or being exposed. Joni is the daughter in the law of the deceased son that is an influencer and has been getting an allowance since her husband’s death. Ransom is the black sheep of the family, son of Linda and Richard, he has always lived the life of luxury never having to work on anything himself. Meg is the daughter of Joni that is the closest of any of the younger family members to Marta, she has seen herself be put through school but Harlan. LT Elliott is leading the investigation to the death, he is happy to put it down as suicide, but will let Benoit lead his own investigate.
Performances – The performances here are a pure joy, Daniel Craig gives us a career best, Ana De Armas continues to rise up the Hollywood name list, proving herself with a sweet innocent figure, Chris Evans brings to light a character complete against the type we are used to seeing form him. Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson and Toni Collette are wonderful too showing they can become anybody like we know from them. Everybody in this film is wonderful to watch.
Story – The story here follows a private investigator who decides to investigate an apparent suicide where he will dig up the family secrets to learn there might have been foul play. This story is a who-dun-it where everybody could be a suspect as nobody wants to tell the truth and everybody is hiding the truth too. There is a unique way of telling the story that will surprise you and turn the usual flow on its head, almost pointing out just how predictable certain TV shows involving a murder are. We do have plenty to unpack through the story, though there is a slight drag through the middle of the film.
Comedy/Crime/Mystery – The comedy comes from the colourful characters we get to meet and their actions, while the crime mystery mix together to keep us guessing to the complete truth of what happened, we get plenty of references to other crime stories too.
Settings – The film is mostly set on the grounds of the death, we have the luxury mansion, when we stay in this location everything does feel like ‘Clue’ but whether we leave it does take a little bit away from the quirky style.
Scene of the Movie – Ambulance arrives.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – We never learn where Marta is from, with the on running joke she is South American, each character claims she is from a different country.
Final Thoughts – This is a quirky joyful comedy that leaves you guessing to the truth with performances that shine throughout the film.
Overall: Entertaining Mystery.
Story: Knives Out starts with the apparent suicide of Harlan Thrombey (Plummer) on his 85th birthday, the family Linda (Curtis), Walt (Shannon), Richard (Johnson), Joni (Collette) Meg (Langford), Jacob (Martell) and Ransom (Evans) were all in attendance along with Harlan’s nurse Marta (Armas).
Lieutenant Elliott (Stanfield) lets private investigator Benoit Blanc (Craig) look at the events of the night after he gets an anonymous request to investigate the death believing it was murder, with the whole family have cause to potentially murder.
Thoughts on Knives Out
Characters – Benoit Blanc is a private investigator that has a connection to the family and has been given an anonymous letter to investigate the death, he has his way which unlike the normal police will push the family for the truth, knowing most are lying when they talk to him. Marta Cabrera is the nurse to Harlan, she has the closest relationship to him, knowing most of the family secrets, while just working to make sure her family is secure. Harlan is the self-made millionaire author that has started to get disappointed by the behaviour of his own children. Linda is the eldest daughter who has her own real estate business that she is proud of her work, believing she has done better than the other siblings. Walt is the youngest son who runs the publication of the books, which has always seen him try to push his father into selling the rights to entertainment sources. Richard is the husband to Linda that has been caught by Harlan being forced into telling the truth or being exposed. Joni is the daughter in the law of the deceased son that is an influencer and has been getting an allowance since her husband’s death. Ransom is the black sheep of the family, son of Linda and Richard, he has always lived the life of luxury never having to work on anything himself. Meg is the daughter of Joni that is the closest of any of the younger family members to Marta, she has seen herself be put through school but Harlan. LT Elliott is leading the investigation to the death, he is happy to put it down as suicide, but will let Benoit lead his own investigate.
Performances – The performances here are a pure joy, Daniel Craig gives us a career best, Ana De Armas continues to rise up the Hollywood name list, proving herself with a sweet innocent figure, Chris Evans brings to light a character complete against the type we are used to seeing form him. Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson and Toni Collette are wonderful too showing they can become anybody like we know from them. Everybody in this film is wonderful to watch.
Story – The story here follows a private investigator who decides to investigate an apparent suicide where he will dig up the family secrets to learn there might have been foul play. This story is a who-dun-it where everybody could be a suspect as nobody wants to tell the truth and everybody is hiding the truth too. There is a unique way of telling the story that will surprise you and turn the usual flow on its head, almost pointing out just how predictable certain TV shows involving a murder are. We do have plenty to unpack through the story, though there is a slight drag through the middle of the film.
Comedy/Crime/Mystery – The comedy comes from the colourful characters we get to meet and their actions, while the crime mystery mix together to keep us guessing to the complete truth of what happened, we get plenty of references to other crime stories too.
Settings – The film is mostly set on the grounds of the death, we have the luxury mansion, when we stay in this location everything does feel like ‘Clue’ but whether we leave it does take a little bit away from the quirky style.
Scene of the Movie – Ambulance arrives.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – We never learn where Marta is from, with the on running joke she is South American, each character claims she is from a different country.
Final Thoughts – This is a quirky joyful comedy that leaves you guessing to the truth with performances that shine throughout the film.
Overall: Entertaining Mystery.
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Timmy Failure: The Cat Stole My Pants in Books
Sep 12, 2017
Amusing ... If you are a child
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
For fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Kinney, 2004) is a juvenile series by American author, Stephan Pastis, about a young boy who believes he is the world’s greatest detective. A series that is continually growing, the sixth Timmy Failure story is now available for fans and new readers. Subtitled The Cat Stole My Pants, Timmy Failure embarks on an adventure of mystery and crime solving whilst getting himself into all sorts of mischief.
Emulating both real and fictional detectives, Timmy has established his own agency, Failure, Inc., of which he is the sole employee after the flight of his (imaginary) ex-business partner, Total the polar bear, who is currently seeking political asylum in Cuba. Unfortunately, Timmy has been forced to join his mother and Doorman Dave on their honeymoon in Key West, Florida, along with Doorman Dave’s nephew, Emilio.
“Crime doesn’t take a holiday. Neither does greatness.” Determined to continue solving crimes, Timmy hires Emilio as an unpaid intern and sets off searching for crimes, greatly over exaggerating every little piece of “evidence” he finds. However, it soon appears that someone is out to get Timmy and he, along with Emilio, is determined to find out whom.
Timmy is a melodramatic, unconventional child with a large ego and is constantly getting told off. From annoying adults to having his pants stolen by a polydactyl cat – or so he claims – there is no end to the hilarious situations he causes.
The cat that stole Timmy’s pants only makes a brief appearance in the book, therefore the subtitle is more to attract the attention of young readers with its silliness rather than be suggestive of a certain storyline.
Despite his grand claims, Timmy is not a very good detective and a lot of his unsolved crimes have been invented by his overactive imagination. This adds to the humour because, although he seems like an intelligent child, his ideas are completely silly.
Adorned with childish drawings and diagrams, Timmy Failure narrates the story from his subjective point of view, inflating his successes and blaming any failure on poor Emilio. No one takes Timmy seriously, which is something many of the target readers may appreciate, although they should also understand how futile Timmy’s attempts are at being a detective.
The storyline is not particularly clear until the final chapters of the book. Up until that moment, the book is full of disastrous, imaginary detective endeavours that prove Timmy to be nothing more than an annoying, inventive boy.
Some of the language may be above children’s reading capabilities, however, the humour is directly on their level. Whereas an adult may not find the idea of a cat stealing someone’s pants amusing, a child would find that hysterical.
There is no reason to read the Timmy Failure books in order, so if you, like me, read book six first, there is no problem. The stories are particularly aimed at young boys and will hopefully encourage the demographic to start reading more. Whilst it may not be a great feat of literature, it is a good enough introduction to the world of books.
For fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Kinney, 2004) is a juvenile series by American author, Stephan Pastis, about a young boy who believes he is the world’s greatest detective. A series that is continually growing, the sixth Timmy Failure story is now available for fans and new readers. Subtitled The Cat Stole My Pants, Timmy Failure embarks on an adventure of mystery and crime solving whilst getting himself into all sorts of mischief.
Emulating both real and fictional detectives, Timmy has established his own agency, Failure, Inc., of which he is the sole employee after the flight of his (imaginary) ex-business partner, Total the polar bear, who is currently seeking political asylum in Cuba. Unfortunately, Timmy has been forced to join his mother and Doorman Dave on their honeymoon in Key West, Florida, along with Doorman Dave’s nephew, Emilio.
“Crime doesn’t take a holiday. Neither does greatness.” Determined to continue solving crimes, Timmy hires Emilio as an unpaid intern and sets off searching for crimes, greatly over exaggerating every little piece of “evidence” he finds. However, it soon appears that someone is out to get Timmy and he, along with Emilio, is determined to find out whom.
Timmy is a melodramatic, unconventional child with a large ego and is constantly getting told off. From annoying adults to having his pants stolen by a polydactyl cat – or so he claims – there is no end to the hilarious situations he causes.
The cat that stole Timmy’s pants only makes a brief appearance in the book, therefore the subtitle is more to attract the attention of young readers with its silliness rather than be suggestive of a certain storyline.
Despite his grand claims, Timmy is not a very good detective and a lot of his unsolved crimes have been invented by his overactive imagination. This adds to the humour because, although he seems like an intelligent child, his ideas are completely silly.
Adorned with childish drawings and diagrams, Timmy Failure narrates the story from his subjective point of view, inflating his successes and blaming any failure on poor Emilio. No one takes Timmy seriously, which is something many of the target readers may appreciate, although they should also understand how futile Timmy’s attempts are at being a detective.
The storyline is not particularly clear until the final chapters of the book. Up until that moment, the book is full of disastrous, imaginary detective endeavours that prove Timmy to be nothing more than an annoying, inventive boy.
Some of the language may be above children’s reading capabilities, however, the humour is directly on their level. Whereas an adult may not find the idea of a cat stealing someone’s pants amusing, a child would find that hysterical.
There is no reason to read the Timmy Failure books in order, so if you, like me, read book six first, there is no problem. The stories are particularly aimed at young boys and will hopefully encourage the demographic to start reading more. Whilst it may not be a great feat of literature, it is a good enough introduction to the world of books.