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Caffeinated Fae (464 KP) rated James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra in Books

May 13, 2019 (Updated May 13, 2019)  
James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra
James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra
Colm McElwain | 2012 | Children, Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Adventurous but lacked any good female character
I picked up this book as part of #IndieApril, and I was excited to give it a chance. The description sounded like something right up my alley, and I’ve been reading so many romances that I figured it was time to take a break and jump into a good fantasy. James Clyde & the Diamonds of Orchestra is a mid-grade novel that grabs you from the start. Though it kept me entertained, I have to say I never felt a connection to any of the characters.

James Clyde was an interesting character, but I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at how “perfect” he was. He is an 11-year-old boy that bested a “master” swordsman. His two friends, Ben and Mary, were not memorable though at times James would have benefitted from listening to them. Many times he solely thought of himself and never took his friends and their thoughts and opinions into consideration. His version of compromise was him stating that he was doing something and that he needed their support. At no time did he think of anyone but himself.

The biggest thing that stood out in this book was that I was not the target demographic. The target demographic for this book was boys. This makes it hard for me to recommend it to my nieces because there were no outstanding female characters. It seemed that the only characters who were three dimensional were the males. I would have loved to see more interaction with the female characters and see more depth.


Though there were some significant faults with this book, I did enjoy part of it. The world that Colm McElwain built was exciting and had great potential. I enjoyed the fast-paced nature of the book, and I was entertained for the most part. Unfortunately, I wanted so much more out of it. When it comes to books, I read them for the characters and the plot and the characters were lacking to me.
  
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Robert Englund recommended Anatomy of a Murder (1959) in Movies (curated)

 
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
1959 | Classics, Drama, Mystery
6.3 (3 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"My number two movie is Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of Murder starring Jimmy Stewart — one of my favorite James Stewart performances. He’s the country lawyer, so all those folksy tricks that Jimmy Stewart uses just really come into play here– ’cause he’s also so bright, you know? He’s the brilliant, folksy country lawyer. And Lee Remick is in it, in the flower of her youth. Bra-less and in Ray-Bans — you know, who doesn’t want [to see] that? And gosh, Ben Gazzara in a really neurotic, strange performance. I think it’s the screen debut of George C. Scott as the young lawyer from Lansing, MI, who takes on this case; and he’s — it’s just brilliant courtroom stuff. Murray Hamilton — who plays the mayor in Steven Spielberg’s Jaws — he’s the bartender, and he’s wonderful; it’s a great turn. And the music: Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald, so it’s a great jazz score. The Jimmy Stewart character tinkles on the ivories and he plays a little bit of jazz sometimes as a kind of hobby, so that justifies the score. But that’s a great film — black and white, beautifully shot, underrated. Almost a perfect film."

Source
  
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Darren (1599 KP) rated It: Chapter Two (2019) in Movies

Sep 13, 2019  
It: Chapter Two (2019)
It: Chapter Two (2019)
2019 | Horror, Thriller
7
7.5 (55 Ratings)
Movie Rating Watch
Characters – Bill was always considered the leader of the gang, he went onto write books and coming back he must face the fear about his brother’s death. Beverly has married an abusive rich man that she wants to escape from, which sees her return to Derry, where she could recapture her own love interest from childhood. Richie is a stand up comedian that is just how you would imagine him to grow up to be like, he gets plenty of laughs through the film. Mike never left Derry, he has been studying how to defeat Pennywise once and for all, he calls everybody back to the town. Ben was the fat kid, he transformed himself and became an architect with great success, he will see this return as a chance to tell Beverly how he feels. Eddie is reluctant to return though it does get him away from his wife, that is just like his mother, he will need to overcome the fears which have held him back before. Stanley is one of the group that doesn’t return, he has his reasons and it poses the reality of what will come with returning. Pennywise is the evil figure, who mostly looks like a clown, though he can become anything he wants to play into the fears. It is strange that we just don’t get that invested in the adult versions of the characters.

Performances – Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy are the two biggest names in the film, they are both fine, because nobody is a true main character, the two could do more and McAvoy is difficult to watch because his choice of accent reminds me about the 10-year-old he plays in Split. Bill Hader and James Ransone are the stars of the returning characters, they still have great chemistry. Isaiah Mustafa and Jay Ryan are both solid enough, though the characters seem to have swapped around.

Story – The story is the second part of the massive book, it follows the adult versions of the losers club that must return to fight Pennywise once again. This is a very long story, it is just under 3 hours long, which does feel like it drags along at times, once problem comes with more flashbacks with hauntings, there is no peril here, because we know the adult versions live. One of the strengths in the film is the idea of being reunited after years away with friends, it does feel natural and just how you would imagine it being. One of the issues I found in the first film was that Ben was the one that spent time learning the history of the town, while Mike did barely anything, it confused me because I always remembered it being Mike that understood the history, here it is Mike and Ben doesn’t seem to care anymore, add in the weird love triangle and you will feel like we have more that didn’t need to be here too.

Horror – The horror side of the film follows the hauntings that both the kids and adults go through, it is more just separate characters getting haunting throughout. Nothing feels as scarier as the first one was.

Settings – The film takes us back to Derry, we do get flashbacks with other moments that make sense and return to the old places where the scares happen.

Special Effects – The effects are brilliant in places, though it does feel certain CGI moments just don’t work.


Scene of the Movie – Richie’s memory.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – James McAvoy’s accent.

Final Thoughts – This is a bogged down horror that just is way too long to get the best out of the scares, just like the mini series, it fizzles out.

Overall: Disappointing sequel.