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Darren (1599 KP) rated Dracula (1958) in Movies

Oct 31, 2019  
Dracula (1958)
Dracula (1958)
1958 | Horror
6
7.8 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Characters – Doctor Van Helsing has been trying to hunt down Dracula for years now, his latest attempt sees him anger the vampire, forcing him to defend his loved ones before he starts his own attack on the vampire. Count Dracula has lived a life where his presence has struck fear in the locals, he is a vampire with his age seemingly unknown, after his bride is taken from him, he goes after the people that took her, in search of finding his new bride. Arthur is one of the people working with Van Helsing, it is his family that has becomes the target of Dracula, with Mina being the wife of Arthur that is one of the women Dracula wants to make his brides.

Performances – Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee are the icons on the 50’s horrors, this film shows they are just wonderful in the horror performances both sides of the good and evil scale. When it comes to the supporting roles, it appears that the rest of the cast are meant to just let the lead two stars take the spotlight.

Story – The story here is the basic Dracula story, where after one of his brides is killed, Dracula targets the family that took his bride to get his own new bride and revenge. The Dracula story has been told so many times, it does become slightly boring to watch a story that doesn’t offer anything new to the tried and tested formula. If you do know the basic story, you will know everything that happens in this film which just ends up being nothing refreshing.

Horror – The horror comes the ideas of vampires with Dracula lurking in the darkness, most doesn’t come off scary though which is disappointing.

Settings – The film uses the couple of main locations, we have the castle of course which we don’t spend enough time around, the English house that shows how the family will try to hide from Dracula.

Special Effects – The effects are practical which do bring one of the most memorable scenes in the film.


Scene of the Movie – final showdown.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – It isn’t anything new.

Final Thoughts – This is a hammer horror version of Dracula, it works well enough for the basic idea, only it doesn’t reach too much new to the story idea.

 

Overall: Hammer Horror Dracula.
  
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JT (287 KP) rated The Oxford Murders (2010) in Movies

Mar 10, 2020  
The Oxford Murders (2010)
The Oxford Murders (2010)
2010 | International, Drama, Horror
4
4.8 (4 Ratings)
Movie Rating
From the first couple of scenes you’d half expect to see Inspector Morse and Lewis step out from behind one of the great pillars that surround Oxford University – sadly that is not going to be the case here. The story itself could have been taken right out of an Agatha Christie novel but the subsequent plot gets mixed up like the mathematical equation it is trying to lay out.

John Hurt plays Arthur Seldom a university professor whose life revolves around mathematical equations and whether or not we can prove truth and probability. Martin (Elijah Wood) is a graduate over from America looking at using Seldom to help him with his thesis.

The pair get mixed up in an altogether different set of circumstances when they must work together to solve a series of murders based around mathematical symbols. The Oxford Murders falls some way short of delivering on any tension or drama, which is a real shame. The script is over complicated and there is no real time to develop the characters before we are thrown head first into the first murder.

All in all it seemed rushed together. More strangely was the choice of director; Spanish born Álex de la Iglesia who also wrote the screenplay. A background largely based around foreign film I find it odd that he should have any idea about the true reflections of historic Oxford. Maybe that is where amongst other things The Oxford Murders falls down. In the hands of a more traditional English director we may have had a better outcome.
  
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ClareR (5885 KP) rated The Queens Lady in Books

Dec 8, 2022  
The Queens Lady
The Queens Lady
Joanna Hickson | 2022 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Queens Lady is the second in the Queens of the Tower series, and picks up the Joan Vaux story where it left off in the last book. She’s now Lady Joan Guildford, and is Lady in Waiting to Queen Elizabeth, the wife of Henry VII. It’s a privileged position and means that Joan is at Court when Prince Arthur dies and Prince Henry is named as heir. Joan acts as something of a go between with the King and Queen, but King Henry is a serious, dour man - and this isn’t improved when the Queen dies shortly after her son.

Joan no longer has a place at court, and her husband falls out of favour when his enemies gain considerable influence with the King.

It was really interesting to learn about the inner workings of the English court and the precarious line that courtiers had to tread. Joan also gave some insight into some significant historical events: the Field of the Cloth of Gold in France, Princess Margaret’s marriage to King James, the arrival of Catherine of Aragon, and accompanying Princess Mary to Paris when she marries King Louis.

I’m an absolute sucker for historical fiction, and I loved the details and the very human, realistic style this book was written in. And I really liked Joan.

The ravens are a constant - after all, Joan is the Lady of the Ravens. Bu they’re not as central to the storyline this time.

I don’t know whether this will just be a duology, or if there’s more to come, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Highly recommended.