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Sarah (7798 KP) rated Chocolat (Chocolat #1) in Books
Jun 16, 2019
Sweet and satisfying
I need to be honest; I’ve never seen the film that is based on this book and never really been particularly interested in watching it either. However having now read the book, I could be tempted as the book is rather wonderful.
This is a rather strange novel - a character based drama set in a mysterious small French village with some very small magical undertones. It sounds weird, but it actually really works. All of the characters, from Vianne herself to the rest of the villagers are likeable or at the very least relatable with all of their various personalities. The fact that this is based around a chocolate shop makes it a charming and rather tempting setting and the story has a fair number of outcomes that you wouldn’t expect although there are still some that are rather predictable. Overall this is just a rather charming and sweet character driven story.
This is a rather strange novel - a character based drama set in a mysterious small French village with some very small magical undertones. It sounds weird, but it actually really works. All of the characters, from Vianne herself to the rest of the villagers are likeable or at the very least relatable with all of their various personalities. The fact that this is based around a chocolate shop makes it a charming and rather tempting setting and the story has a fair number of outcomes that you wouldn’t expect although there are still some that are rather predictable. Overall this is just a rather charming and sweet character driven story.
AJaneClark (3962 KP) rated The Sinner (Rizzoli & Isles, #3) in Books
Sep 2, 2019
Rizzoli & Isles are Back
A murder investigation based on the the death of a nun, and one in a critical condition, inside the walls of their convent. The nuns were brutally and savagely attacked, and Rizzoli & Isles were called to the scene to figure things out.
In this well written novel you can expect some twists and turns, some surprising moments and an in depth view behind the facades of these two strong females.
The third in the series did not disappoint.
In this well written novel you can expect some twists and turns, some surprising moments and an in depth view behind the facades of these two strong females.
The third in the series did not disappoint.
David McK (3204 KP) rated I Am Legend (2007) in Movies
Apr 4, 2021
Messing with nature is never a good idea
Will Smith as Robert Neville
The sole survivor of the Zombie Apocalypse in New York City.
This is actually the third movie to be based on the classic Richard Matheson novel, taking liberties (like the previous two both do as well) with that source material - there is a very different ending here (even in the alternate cut!) than that novel originally had.
It also, for large parts, an acting masterclass by the former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, as he is onscreen alone for large swathes of the movie - only really sharing the screen in the flashback portions to the pre-pandemic time (hmm .... sound familiar? I'm writing this in 2021), when scientists believe they have found a genetic cure for cancer.
But, oh Sam ...
(I'll deliberately leave that obscure)
The sole survivor of the Zombie Apocalypse in New York City.
This is actually the third movie to be based on the classic Richard Matheson novel, taking liberties (like the previous two both do as well) with that source material - there is a very different ending here (even in the alternate cut!) than that novel originally had.
It also, for large parts, an acting masterclass by the former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, as he is onscreen alone for large swathes of the movie - only really sharing the screen in the flashback portions to the pre-pandemic time (hmm .... sound familiar? I'm writing this in 2021), when scientists believe they have found a genetic cure for cancer.
But, oh Sam ...
(I'll deliberately leave that obscure)
David McK (3204 KP) rated Battlefront II: Inferno Squad (Star Wars) in Books
Jan 30, 2019
The second 'Battlefront' tie-in novel (based on a series of games themselves based on a series of novels) which, I have to say, I found to be far more enjoyable than the previous ([b:Twilight Company|25455901|Twilight Company (Star Wars Battlefront, #1)|Alexander Freed|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440781979s/25455901.jpg|45222133]).
I don't know whether that because, this time around, the source online shooter game actually (and finally!) has a single-player campaign, meaning the author can actually concentrate on proper chatacters instead of the expendable cannon-fodder of the previous, or if it's because this time aroudn it's told from the point of view of the 'bad guys': that is, from the PoV from dyed-in-the-wool Imperials.
This picks up towards the end of the first Star Wars film (Episode IV, retroactively entitled 'A New Hope'),w ith the attack on the Death Star occuring in the opening pages of the novel and with the central character of Iden Versio actively participating in the defense of the Space Station, before crash-landing on the planet of Yavin IV and making her way back to Imperial Space (that bit told in passing).
This also ties into Rogue One, with an offshoot of Saw Garrera's violent Partisan group - naming themselves The Dreamers - providing the antagonists rather than The Rebellion, allowing the story and the characters to go undercover into that group without breaking with the commonly-held lore - lets face it, since Inferno Squad is meant to be the best of the best it would be hard to place them in Leia / Han's / Luke's path without somehow having to wave the explanation away!
I don't know whether that because, this time around, the source online shooter game actually (and finally!) has a single-player campaign, meaning the author can actually concentrate on proper chatacters instead of the expendable cannon-fodder of the previous, or if it's because this time aroudn it's told from the point of view of the 'bad guys': that is, from the PoV from dyed-in-the-wool Imperials.
This picks up towards the end of the first Star Wars film (Episode IV, retroactively entitled 'A New Hope'),w ith the attack on the Death Star occuring in the opening pages of the novel and with the central character of Iden Versio actively participating in the defense of the Space Station, before crash-landing on the planet of Yavin IV and making her way back to Imperial Space (that bit told in passing).
This also ties into Rogue One, with an offshoot of Saw Garrera's violent Partisan group - naming themselves The Dreamers - providing the antagonists rather than The Rebellion, allowing the story and the characters to go undercover into that group without breaking with the commonly-held lore - lets face it, since Inferno Squad is meant to be the best of the best it would be hard to place them in Leia / Han's / Luke's path without somehow having to wave the explanation away!
Vegas (725 KP) rated Airport (1970) in Movies
Dec 17, 2018
Suspenseful (1 more)
Action
Classic disaster movie
A 70s classic disaster movie. A strong cast acts out the action based on a best selling novel.. It follows the action both in the plane and out and also adds the right amount of back story and information about the major players that actually makes you care what happens to them, and also helps balances out the suspense and action so you are not overwhelmed, which many modern action films haven't quite got quite right...
I First saw this many years ago and re watching it, unlike some things, I wasn't disappointed.
I First saw this many years ago and re watching it, unlike some things, I wasn't disappointed.
David McK (3204 KP) rated Wanted (2008) in Movies
Nov 20, 2019
Based on the graphic novel of the same name, I think the main draw of this for me (and, I'm sure, many others) is Angelina Jolie's character of Fox, with lowly frustrated office worker Wesley (a pre X-Men James McAvoy) discovering he is the son of a famous assassin, and that he shares his fathers almost superhuman killing ability.
There's a fair point to the criticism that this is almost a Matrix rip-off, but I have to say: this is far nastier (doesn't shy away from the guts and gore aspect) and filthier (language wise) than that earlier movie.
There's a fair point to the criticism that this is almost a Matrix rip-off, but I have to say: this is far nastier (doesn't shy away from the guts and gore aspect) and filthier (language wise) than that earlier movie.
David McK (3204 KP) rated Artemis Fowl (Artemis Fowl, #1) in Books
Jun 9, 2020
Hearing recently that, due to the Covid-19 situation that has swept the world and (as of 2020) has caused the majority of affected countries to go into full-on Lockdown mode, the planned cinema release of Kenneth Branagh's film of the same name would instead be released on their streaming platform Disney+, I thought I would go back and re-read the novel for the first time in about a decade or so.
And, I have to say, while it's enjoyable enough, it's also pretty forgettable, which might explain why I never read any of the sequels. I'd be interested, however, in how this translates to a different medium and - if, as planned - there are any other films based on those sequels, I may hunt them out.
And, I have to say, while it's enjoyable enough, it's also pretty forgettable, which might explain why I never read any of the sequels. I'd be interested, however, in how this translates to a different medium and - if, as planned - there are any other films based on those sequels, I may hunt them out.
David McK (3204 KP) rated Moonraker (James Bond, #3) in Books
Jan 30, 2019
I know I've seen it, but I don't really remember all the much about the 1979 Moonraker film (incidentally, the year I was born), other than that it starred Roger Moore (in his fourth role as James Bond), and that James Bond went into space.
James Bond does not go into space.
At least, not in the novel on which that film is (very loosely) based - or, more accurately, from which they took the title.
Instead, we have a Cold-War era spy thriller, with the Moonraker of the title really more of an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (an IBM) rather than the Space Shuttle of the movie. Nor is there CIA involvement, nor a battle-in-space, nor a madman setting out to wipe out all life on Earth ... you get the picture.
There are, however, elements of the novel that make it into future Bond movies, in particular the facial reconstructive surgery of 'Die Another Day' clearly picking up it's cue from the background given to the central antagonist of Drax, and just what happened to him during the war.
James Bond does not go into space.
At least, not in the novel on which that film is (very loosely) based - or, more accurately, from which they took the title.
Instead, we have a Cold-War era spy thriller, with the Moonraker of the title really more of an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (an IBM) rather than the Space Shuttle of the movie. Nor is there CIA involvement, nor a battle-in-space, nor a madman setting out to wipe out all life on Earth ... you get the picture.
There are, however, elements of the novel that make it into future Bond movies, in particular the facial reconstructive surgery of 'Die Another Day' clearly picking up it's cue from the background given to the central antagonist of Drax, and just what happened to him during the war.
Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Moonglow in Books
Nov 9, 2017
Beautifully written
This biography of Michael Chabon's 'grandfather' is a stunning piece of whimsy, the tale of a cranky, old genius that grips and surprises throughout. It is a long, meandering novel masquerading as a memoir, flitting around time and place so that the chapters don't follow consecutively and it's only gradually that we build up a picture of the narrator's family history via the stories told to him by his grandfather.
Despite the fragmented narrative and some aspects considered to be fictional truth, there's real heart and soul here which lifts this novel beyond merely the clever construction, giving it a haunting, poignant undertone.
For me the book is less about the grandfather, but the beautiful, damaged woman with whom he falls in love with. Profoundly affected by her experiences during the Second World War, the narrator's grandmother tells stories to shore up her own sense of self and to hold herself together in the wake of trauma.
While at times it can seem tedious, the author's writing carries it through, moving effortlessly from rambunctious humour to distressing scenes. It is a meditation on families and what constitutes a family when it's not based on blood, histories and accurate memories. A big-hearted and beautifully-written novel.
Despite the fragmented narrative and some aspects considered to be fictional truth, there's real heart and soul here which lifts this novel beyond merely the clever construction, giving it a haunting, poignant undertone.
For me the book is less about the grandfather, but the beautiful, damaged woman with whom he falls in love with. Profoundly affected by her experiences during the Second World War, the narrator's grandmother tells stories to shore up her own sense of self and to hold herself together in the wake of trauma.
While at times it can seem tedious, the author's writing carries it through, moving effortlessly from rambunctious humour to distressing scenes. It is a meditation on families and what constitutes a family when it's not based on blood, histories and accurate memories. A big-hearted and beautifully-written novel.
Dean (6921 KP) rated Gone Baby Gone (2007) in Movies
Jan 22, 2018
An impressive directorial debut from Ben Affleck, I really like The Town as well which he directed and starred in. Based on a novel by Dennis Lehane he also wrote @Mystic River (2003) which was a great entertaining if gritty and harsh film. This has many similar themes running through it. The cast is an amazing line up and all give good performances. It's the harshness, grim reality in terms of the setting, characters and subject matter that make the film intriguing as well as compelling viewing. A very interesting film, go and see it and Mystic River!
ClareR (5577 KP) Jun 17, 2019