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Javier Bardem recommended Welcome Mr. Marshall (1953) in Movies (curated)
The Chocolate Lady (94 KP) rated The First Emma in Books
Oct 7, 2020
4.5/5 stars
If you've never heard of Emma Koehler, then you know nothing about the beer industry in San Antonio Texas. But even if that subject matter doesn't interest you, Emma should, because she had both a fascinating and tragic life. Camille Di Maio does a lovely job of taking little to no information about this real-life personality and turning it into a biographical, historical, women's fiction novel. Read more about it in my #bookreview here https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2020/05/08/lady-bastion-of-beer/
If you've never heard of Emma Koehler, then you know nothing about the beer industry in San Antonio Texas. But even if that subject matter doesn't interest you, Emma should, because she had both a fascinating and tragic life. Camille Di Maio does a lovely job of taking little to no information about this real-life personality and turning it into a biographical, historical, women's fiction novel. Read more about it in my #bookreview here https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2020/05/08/lady-bastion-of-beer/
Debbiereadsbook (1069 KP) rated Diablo (The Gifted Ones #2) in Books
Apr 11, 2019
Far darker a read, but brilliant!
FREE, March 2019
We met the legend of Diablo in book one, Frostbite, but you don’t need to have read THAT book for this one to make sense. It would benefit you to, though. You need to know about this pack and how it works and how they look after their own.
Years ago, Antonio, a jaguar shifter and mage, made an angry decision, and it cost him. Now unable to channel his anger into anything other than fire, he is the legend Diablo, a far more dangerous one than Frostbite would ever be. But a single glance all those years ago also cost him. It cost him the price of his soul, because a gaze into the eyes of a child made Diablo see, SEE what he has become and how he does NOT want to be. That child was Trace, a wolf shifter, and Diablo had just slaughtered his whole village. Trace and his brother Casey managed to escape. But now, their past has come back, not as the devil, but as an angel who keeps saving Trace, who Trace now knows as his mate. Can the pack accept Antonio, even if Trace will have him? Can Antonio keep his anger at bay, or will he be consumed by his own flames?
I love a bad boy turned good, I really do, and Antonio is the epitome of the bad boy turned good! I loved this one!
A far DARKER read than Frostbite, this one. Here’s why. While Frostbite KNEW what he was doing when he killed, he did it in self-defence. Diablo, however, does NOT know why he did what he did. He blacks out, coming to only when his fire has died out, and his anger gone. He doesn’t remember killing all those people, and the poor cat carries a LOT of souls on his shoulders that he has no recollection of.
But he’s trying, he really is. Not only for Trace, but for him own soul. He does not want to be like this anymore, he wants to be free of the all consuming rage, and fire that has been his life for four hundred years. Forces are working against him though, and it takes a visit from a psychic, Remy, to dig deep into Antonio’s mind, and for TRACE to visit deep into Antonio’s mind, for Antonio to finally be free.
There is a lot of other stuff happening here too. Cyrus has his baby. A friend from Cyrus’ past causes . . problems . . (for want of a better word!) for Tobias and Bruno, the pack Beta. Those two have their work cut out for them with Tim, they really do. Their 3 way book is next. We also get just what Tobias is, and what that means for the pack, for Tim and his child and any future children there might be with Tobias. Typing this up, I’m also questioning who might be paired with Remy now he’s decided to stay with the pack. Todd also gets a book. OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Maybe I’m putting two and two together and getting five, but who cares!
Will there be an earth and air type mage/shifter? I dunno, don’t really mind who or what comes next, but I WILL be reading them!
5 stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
We met the legend of Diablo in book one, Frostbite, but you don’t need to have read THAT book for this one to make sense. It would benefit you to, though. You need to know about this pack and how it works and how they look after their own.
Years ago, Antonio, a jaguar shifter and mage, made an angry decision, and it cost him. Now unable to channel his anger into anything other than fire, he is the legend Diablo, a far more dangerous one than Frostbite would ever be. But a single glance all those years ago also cost him. It cost him the price of his soul, because a gaze into the eyes of a child made Diablo see, SEE what he has become and how he does NOT want to be. That child was Trace, a wolf shifter, and Diablo had just slaughtered his whole village. Trace and his brother Casey managed to escape. But now, their past has come back, not as the devil, but as an angel who keeps saving Trace, who Trace now knows as his mate. Can the pack accept Antonio, even if Trace will have him? Can Antonio keep his anger at bay, or will he be consumed by his own flames?
I love a bad boy turned good, I really do, and Antonio is the epitome of the bad boy turned good! I loved this one!
A far DARKER read than Frostbite, this one. Here’s why. While Frostbite KNEW what he was doing when he killed, he did it in self-defence. Diablo, however, does NOT know why he did what he did. He blacks out, coming to only when his fire has died out, and his anger gone. He doesn’t remember killing all those people, and the poor cat carries a LOT of souls on his shoulders that he has no recollection of.
But he’s trying, he really is. Not only for Trace, but for him own soul. He does not want to be like this anymore, he wants to be free of the all consuming rage, and fire that has been his life for four hundred years. Forces are working against him though, and it takes a visit from a psychic, Remy, to dig deep into Antonio’s mind, and for TRACE to visit deep into Antonio’s mind, for Antonio to finally be free.
There is a lot of other stuff happening here too. Cyrus has his baby. A friend from Cyrus’ past causes . . problems . . (for want of a better word!) for Tobias and Bruno, the pack Beta. Those two have their work cut out for them with Tim, they really do. Their 3 way book is next. We also get just what Tobias is, and what that means for the pack, for Tim and his child and any future children there might be with Tobias. Typing this up, I’m also questioning who might be paired with Remy now he’s decided to stay with the pack. Todd also gets a book. OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Maybe I’m putting two and two together and getting five, but who cares!
Will there be an earth and air type mage/shifter? I dunno, don’t really mind who or what comes next, but I WILL be reading them!
5 stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
Awix (3310 KP) rated La Ley del Deseo (Law of Desire) (1987) in Movies
Apr 2, 2020 (Updated Apr 2, 2020)
Almodovar's sixth movie is the one that brought him properly to international attention, but it's clear that his distinctive style was already well-developed by this point: there is the same skilful combination of suspense-movie tropes with sometimes-outrageous melodrama, and a sense of narrative playfulness.
Very strong performances from Antonio Banderas and Carmen Maura in particular, although the script seems to lack some of the deftness and confidence Almodovar would show in later movies - the shift from relationship drama to thriller isn't quite as well handled as one could hope for, and some elements of the story really do strain credibility. Nevertheless, an accomplished and engaging movie.
Very strong performances from Antonio Banderas and Carmen Maura in particular, although the script seems to lack some of the deftness and confidence Almodovar would show in later movies - the shift from relationship drama to thriller isn't quite as well handled as one could hope for, and some elements of the story really do strain credibility. Nevertheless, an accomplished and engaging movie.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Pain and Glory (2019) in Movies
Sep 8, 2019
A glorious cinematic treat.
Almodovar's latest, this is a film REALLY worth seeing if you can find it in cinemas. A really thought-provoking tale of a man coming to terms with the state of his life in older age.
If you loved Alfonso Cuarón‘s “Roma“, I think you’ll also love this. This is a movie that has stuck with me since I saw it. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed… but if you are, please comment!
For my full review, please check out One Mann's Movies here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2019/08/16/one-manns-movies-film-review-dolor-y-gloria-pain-and-glory-2019/
If you loved Alfonso Cuarón‘s “Roma“, I think you’ll also love this. This is a movie that has stuck with me since I saw it. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed… but if you are, please comment!
For my full review, please check out One Mann's Movies here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2019/08/16/one-manns-movies-film-review-dolor-y-gloria-pain-and-glory-2019/
David McK (3185 KP) rated The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard (2021) in Movies
Jan 30, 2022
Sequel to 2017s 'The Hitman's Bodyguard', in which Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L Jackson and Salma Hayek all reprise their roles from that earlier film as the Bodyguard Michael Bryce, the assassin Darius Kincaid and that assassin's wife Sonia Kincaid.
This picks up relatively soon after The Hitman's Bodyguard (in which time around Bryce had to protect and deliver Kincaid to the International Criminal Court where he was to testify), with Bryce on vacation until that rest is interrupted by Sonia.
Cue a quick (and foul mouthed) tour of Italy as the trio race to stop a Greek millionaire (played by the Spanish actor Antonio Banderas) from bringing the EU to its knees by crippling it's communications.
Forgettable dross, really.
This picks up relatively soon after The Hitman's Bodyguard (in which time around Bryce had to protect and deliver Kincaid to the International Criminal Court where he was to testify), with Bryce on vacation until that rest is interrupted by Sonia.
Cue a quick (and foul mouthed) tour of Italy as the trio race to stop a Greek millionaire (played by the Spanish actor Antonio Banderas) from bringing the EU to its knees by crippling it's communications.
Forgettable dross, really.
Russ Troutt (291 KP) rated The Devil All the Time (2020) in Movies
Sep 23, 2020
Brothers and sisters, let me preach to ya for just a moment, and give praise to The Devil All The Time. I haven't read the good book, that the screenplay is based off of, but I can tell you the movie is great; one of my favorites I have been able to bear witness to this year. Amazing perfromances from the killer cast of Tom Holland, Bill Skarsgard, Haley Bennett, Kristin Griffith, Jason Clarke, Riley Keough, Robert Pattinson, Sebastian Stan, and many more. There may be a lot of no-good sons of bitches out there in this world, but I can tell you who's not not one of them and that's Antonio Campos, the director of The Devil All The Time. He photographed one helluva movie and I cannot wait to see more of his work.
David McK (3185 KP) rated The Princess Bride (1987) in Movies
Sep 5, 2019
'Hello. My name is Inigo Montaya. You killed my father. Prepare to die'
'Inconceivable!'
'Why do you keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means'
'You fell prey to one of the great mistakes. There are two: one is never get involved in a land war in Asia ...' (I'm paraphrasing the intro there)
'Rodents of unusual size? I don't think they exist' (cue getting attacked by just that ...)
One of those perfectly cast movies, framed as been told by an elderly grandfather to his sick grandson, this is a 1980s classic and - quite obviously, in retrospect - almost perfectly provided the template for Antonio Bandera's Zorro (or Puss in Boots) in the character of Inigo Montaya, as portrayed here by Mandy Patinkin (who also, trivia fans, has the film's sole swear word: 'I want my father back, you son of a ...')
'Inconceivable!'
'Why do you keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means'
'You fell prey to one of the great mistakes. There are two: one is never get involved in a land war in Asia ...' (I'm paraphrasing the intro there)
'Rodents of unusual size? I don't think they exist' (cue getting attacked by just that ...)
One of those perfectly cast movies, framed as been told by an elderly grandfather to his sick grandson, this is a 1980s classic and - quite obviously, in retrospect - almost perfectly provided the template for Antonio Bandera's Zorro (or Puss in Boots) in the character of Inigo Montaya, as portrayed here by Mandy Patinkin (who also, trivia fans, has the film's sole swear word: 'I want my father back, you son of a ...')
Merissa (11646 KP) rated Abroad in the Stars (Galaxia Pirates #1) in Books
Jan 18, 2018
Abroad in the Stars (Galaxia Pirates #1) by A.M. Halford
Abroad in the Stars is the first book in the Galaxia Pirates series, and we get a very thorough look at just what being a Galaxia pirate involves. Tony is their navigator, and has done a magnificent job of it so far, earning his place among the crew. Only a select few know of his 'real' identity of Antonio Santiago. Personally, I would say that Tony is more real than Antonio, but there you go. When the Captain's brother returns to the ship, sparks fly between him and Tony. Actually it was more than sparks that flew when they first met in a dark alley, but you'll read that bit for yourself. When Tony's parents decide they want him back, the crew of the Galaxia will do all they can to get their crewman back. And Craig will stop at nothing until he gets his lover back.
This is a brilliant story, HOWEVER if you are looking for rainbows and unicorns, then you're probably going to be disappointed! Personally, I loved the rough and tumble of it. Tony wanted exactly what Craig wanted to give. Both of them understood each other with no miscommunication. The steamy scenes are intense and brilliantly written. The world-building is mostly about the ship and Tony's family, but really, that is all you need for this story. You get an exceedingly good idea of the troubles the pirates face, and how much being a crew member means to them, and just what they will do if one of them is in danger.
Well written, with no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt my reading flow, this story grabbed me from the beginning. Fantastic start to the series, fantastic story, can't wait for more. Absolutely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
This is a brilliant story, HOWEVER if you are looking for rainbows and unicorns, then you're probably going to be disappointed! Personally, I loved the rough and tumble of it. Tony wanted exactly what Craig wanted to give. Both of them understood each other with no miscommunication. The steamy scenes are intense and brilliantly written. The world-building is mostly about the ship and Tony's family, but really, that is all you need for this story. You get an exceedingly good idea of the troubles the pirates face, and how much being a crew member means to them, and just what they will do if one of them is in danger.
Well written, with no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt my reading flow, this story grabbed me from the beginning. Fantastic start to the series, fantastic story, can't wait for more. Absolutely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!