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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Jan 12, 2021
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Sorry to Bother You (2018) in Movies
Sep 25, 2019
I... well, that took a turn.
Where to start? This felt like I was watching an episode of Dimension 404/Electric Dreams/Black Mirror... take your pick, and that's kind of my first problem with it. There are a lot of things that don't need to be there for it to work. It could easily have been an episode of something and had more of an impact (for a good reason).
Credit where credit is due though, I have never seen anything quite like this before. I'd like to say I hope I never do again but with my cinema policy of seeing nearly everything that comes out it's bound to happen. I just can't really work out how to sum it up. It starts with a little humour and an intriguing idea and then it takes such a bizarre turn that I lost any enjoyment I'd had for the rest of the film.
Cassius making calls and then being physically put into the life of that person was a triumph for the film. It was funny and worked with the off the wall nature of the entire production. Watching his rise at the company is actually an uplifting sequence of events. From his very first interview through to power caller there's a certain amount of joy watching him succeed. How I wish that feeling hadn't ended.
When we go to the party with Cassius and Mr ___ my enjoyment started to slide. It was an awkward kind of humour that I really don't like. Most of the elements seemed to be unnecessary and by the end we'd just reached gratuitous. Then of course we get the biggest twist of the film. That's when I really lost it.
I just can't think of anything else I want to say about this film.
What you should do
Lots of people seem to like it... but I'm not one of them. Just watch some of the TV shows listed above instead.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I don't want anything from this film apart from the two hours of my life it took.
Where to start? This felt like I was watching an episode of Dimension 404/Electric Dreams/Black Mirror... take your pick, and that's kind of my first problem with it. There are a lot of things that don't need to be there for it to work. It could easily have been an episode of something and had more of an impact (for a good reason).
Credit where credit is due though, I have never seen anything quite like this before. I'd like to say I hope I never do again but with my cinema policy of seeing nearly everything that comes out it's bound to happen. I just can't really work out how to sum it up. It starts with a little humour and an intriguing idea and then it takes such a bizarre turn that I lost any enjoyment I'd had for the rest of the film.
Cassius making calls and then being physically put into the life of that person was a triumph for the film. It was funny and worked with the off the wall nature of the entire production. Watching his rise at the company is actually an uplifting sequence of events. From his very first interview through to power caller there's a certain amount of joy watching him succeed. How I wish that feeling hadn't ended.
When we go to the party with Cassius and Mr ___ my enjoyment started to slide. It was an awkward kind of humour that I really don't like. Most of the elements seemed to be unnecessary and by the end we'd just reached gratuitous. Then of course we get the biggest twist of the film. That's when I really lost it.
I just can't think of anything else I want to say about this film.
What you should do
Lots of people seem to like it... but I'm not one of them. Just watch some of the TV shows listed above instead.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I don't want anything from this film apart from the two hours of my life it took.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated The Brood (1979) in Movies
Sep 22, 2019
An R rated version of Inside Out?
Frank Carveth is just a father with some problems. His wife is currently enrolled in an intense, secluded, mysterious form of psychotherapy being conducted by an unusual doctor. His eccentric mother-in-law, has just been murdered through unusual circumstances and his young daughter is showing signs of physical abuse at the hands of his institutionalized wife that he must now investigate.
After the murder, his father-in-law also arrives, the situation worsens as he attempts to visit his daughter while in therapy without success. Still grief stricken, he wants to confront the doctor or at least understand what is happening.
Here is where the story becomes very unusual. The brutality being dispatched to various individuals is being administered by disfigured "dwarves" or misshapen children which makes no sense to Frank or the police which asks more questions.
After learning additional details, Frank returns to his wife's benefactor for a final confrontation with her and the doctor to ensure the release of his kidnapped daughter.
Cronenberg's early body horror films still stand as some of the most provocative of the gene and this film is certainly no exception. The deformed assailants provide immediate unique intrigue in the film representing something you have never seen previously and it only gets worse.
The total brutality they complete upon their victims is worsened by the fact some of it is even performed in front of children who would obviously be scarred for years to come.
The final reveal of "The Brood" is so intense, bizarre and graphic it will still turn off, repulse or offend almost anyone who watches it. Only true fans of the macabre, strange and totally extreme will find this palpable.
The great Oliver Reed is especially intense in his performance as the unconventional doctor performing his ritualistic treatments which include offbeat role plays where he has conversations with his patents pretending to be other people.
I can only imagine the reaction this film had upon its release in 1979.
After the murder, his father-in-law also arrives, the situation worsens as he attempts to visit his daughter while in therapy without success. Still grief stricken, he wants to confront the doctor or at least understand what is happening.
Here is where the story becomes very unusual. The brutality being dispatched to various individuals is being administered by disfigured "dwarves" or misshapen children which makes no sense to Frank or the police which asks more questions.
After learning additional details, Frank returns to his wife's benefactor for a final confrontation with her and the doctor to ensure the release of his kidnapped daughter.
Cronenberg's early body horror films still stand as some of the most provocative of the gene and this film is certainly no exception. The deformed assailants provide immediate unique intrigue in the film representing something you have never seen previously and it only gets worse.
The total brutality they complete upon their victims is worsened by the fact some of it is even performed in front of children who would obviously be scarred for years to come.
The final reveal of "The Brood" is so intense, bizarre and graphic it will still turn off, repulse or offend almost anyone who watches it. Only true fans of the macabre, strange and totally extreme will find this palpable.
The great Oliver Reed is especially intense in his performance as the unconventional doctor performing his ritualistic treatments which include offbeat role plays where he has conversations with his patents pretending to be other people.
I can only imagine the reaction this film had upon its release in 1979.
Ronyell (38 KP) rated James and the Giant Peach (1996) in Movies
Aug 4, 2020 (Updated Aug 4, 2020)
A Boy and His Giant Sized Bugs
Now, I was practically introduced to "James and the Giant Peach" through Roald Dahl's original book and I instantly fell in love with this story! So, I was definitely excited to see Roald Dahl's classic novel come to life in animation and I must say that I practically enjoyed this bizarre yet creative version of the classic children's story. I absolutely loved all of the characters, with my favorite characters being Miss Spider and the Centipede. I loved Miss Spider because she was quite an unusual character as she is considered frightening by the other bugs due to her literally eating other bugs, but I loved the fact that she cares so much for James and was willing to help him out no matter how horrifying the situation is. The Centipede was a truly fun character as he might be a little rude and annoying to the other bugs, but I loved his courageous nature and the fact that he is also willing to help James out of his situation. The voice acting was fantastic, especially Susan Sarandon as the quiet and serious Miss Spider and Richard Dreyfuss as the fun loving Centipede, as they fit the characters extremely well and they bring so much life to the characters. The story was truly creative, especially about the idea of a group of friends (giant insects in this case) coming together inside a giant peach and traveling around the world with it! I found that idea to be a bit strange yet creative at the same time and even though I have an intense fear of bugs, I definitely would have loved to be friends with giant bugs!
The major problem I had with this movie was that there seemed to be so many plot holes within this film that there were times that I did not understand what was going on in this film. Like for example, how did Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker drive their car through the ocean and how can a mechanical shark appear out of nowhere in the ocean?
Overall, "James and the Giant Peach" is definitely one treat that fans of Roald Dahl's works and fans of surreal animation should definitely check out!
The major problem I had with this movie was that there seemed to be so many plot holes within this film that there were times that I did not understand what was going on in this film. Like for example, how did Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker drive their car through the ocean and how can a mechanical shark appear out of nowhere in the ocean?
Overall, "James and the Giant Peach" is definitely one treat that fans of Roald Dahl's works and fans of surreal animation should definitely check out!
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Searching For A Soul To Love (Manx Cat Guardians #4)
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Greg has lived an ordinary life until one fateful morning when all that changes. Greg has no clue...
Thy Killer's Keeper
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John Salton is everything that a country police can expect of its agent. He has brilliant analytical...
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Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Her Body and Other Parties: Stories in Books
Nov 22, 2017 (Updated Nov 22, 2017)
Good writing but fairly disappointing
Her Body and Other Parties is like most short story collections I have read in that some of the stories worked for me far more than others.
Carmen Maria Machado mingles fabulism, body horror, erotica and 'feminist' commentary in her debut novel. The thrust of this book is perhaps best encapsulated by the second story in the book, 'Inventory'. It starts with the narrator cataloguing everyone she's slept with, taking on that now-near-compulsory clinical tone, that Muumuu House type of thing of talking endlessly about sex but doing so in an affectless style that doesn't communicate any passion or joy or pleasure. It suddenly becomes more interesting when a hidden narrative emerges: as the narrator progresses through her later conquests, she talks of a pervasive virus, family members lost, a quarantine zone, evacuations and refugees. It's an unexpected approach to the dystopian theme and a pleasing subversion of first impressions, yet the story as a whole remains unsatisfying.
Among the weaker stories is 'Especially Heinous', which reimagines plot summaries of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes through a surrealist lens, playing on the ubiquity of violence against women in such shows. Except it was far too long, going through an entire seven series, becoming increasingly bizarre.
My favourite was 'The Resident'. While the subject matter is slightly more staid than some of the others – presumably semi-autobiographical in its portrait of a writer unravelling during a retreat – it's a relief that it isn't told at a cold, impersonal remove. It actually has heart and a personality, unlike so many of the others, and contains one of the few truly rousing scenes in the book, when the narrator lashes out at a patronising acquaintance and defends her right to write about 'crazy' heroines and madwomen in attics.
Nevertheless, there's something I find so depressing about the kind of writing that's ostensibly feminist but seems to focus incessantly on the negatives of being a woman. In fiction such as this, the approach is often paired with candid-yet-detached writing about sex that I also find off-putting (not to mention extremely unsexy). The stories are well-crafted and (when they don't feel workshopped to death) spark with strong ideas and entertaining metafictional touches, but Her Body and Other Parties didn't work for me the way I hoped it would.
Carmen Maria Machado mingles fabulism, body horror, erotica and 'feminist' commentary in her debut novel. The thrust of this book is perhaps best encapsulated by the second story in the book, 'Inventory'. It starts with the narrator cataloguing everyone she's slept with, taking on that now-near-compulsory clinical tone, that Muumuu House type of thing of talking endlessly about sex but doing so in an affectless style that doesn't communicate any passion or joy or pleasure. It suddenly becomes more interesting when a hidden narrative emerges: as the narrator progresses through her later conquests, she talks of a pervasive virus, family members lost, a quarantine zone, evacuations and refugees. It's an unexpected approach to the dystopian theme and a pleasing subversion of first impressions, yet the story as a whole remains unsatisfying.
Among the weaker stories is 'Especially Heinous', which reimagines plot summaries of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes through a surrealist lens, playing on the ubiquity of violence against women in such shows. Except it was far too long, going through an entire seven series, becoming increasingly bizarre.
My favourite was 'The Resident'. While the subject matter is slightly more staid than some of the others – presumably semi-autobiographical in its portrait of a writer unravelling during a retreat – it's a relief that it isn't told at a cold, impersonal remove. It actually has heart and a personality, unlike so many of the others, and contains one of the few truly rousing scenes in the book, when the narrator lashes out at a patronising acquaintance and defends her right to write about 'crazy' heroines and madwomen in attics.
Nevertheless, there's something I find so depressing about the kind of writing that's ostensibly feminist but seems to focus incessantly on the negatives of being a woman. In fiction such as this, the approach is often paired with candid-yet-detached writing about sex that I also find off-putting (not to mention extremely unsexy). The stories are well-crafted and (when they don't feel workshopped to death) spark with strong ideas and entertaining metafictional touches, but Her Body and Other Parties didn't work for me the way I hoped it would.
Dr Dystopian (526 KP) rated Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017) in Movies
Jan 9, 2018 (Updated Jan 9, 2018)
Interactions between Rey and Kylo (2 more)
The special effects
The lightsaber battle against the praetorian guard
Poor storyline (2 more)
Completely irrelevant side story with Finn and Rose
Wasted main villain
Disappointing entry after a promising previous film
What hasn't been said about this film already?!
Having had high hopes for this based on a solid entry in episode VII this film simply didn't live up to the high expectations.
The special effects were, as normal, fantastic with the ship collision at light speed a major highlight. The interactions between Rey and Kylo and subsequent character development of the 2 is both interesting and welcomed and provides hope for episode IX. The scene with the 2 fighting side by side against the praetorian guard was also great to watch.
Aside from those parts the film felt like it lacked any real direction and the storyline is simply poor. With the film opening on a massive battle where the first order, once again, are made out to be utterly inept and farcically incompetent it seems as if the film wants to substitute substance for style.
Almost the entire film consists of the first order chasing the rebellion at sub light speed waiting for them to run out of fuel whilst we are given an utterly pointless side mission for Finn and newcomer Rose which does nothing to develop either character or the actual main storyline.
Luke, meanwhile, has become a hermit and whilst that in itself isn't an issue (after all so was Yoda) it is a disappointing change to the legends Luke who would have been a lot more interesting.
The princess leia bridge explosion scene was also very shortly done. Whilst it was a great development to show her with significant force abilities the special effects made it crying worthy and completely ruined it.
Then there is the bizarre decision to simply kill off Snoke in the most pathetic of ways. All the build up of what appears to be an exceptionally strong Darkside user and he is cut down far too easily. It will be interesting to see how episode IX addresses this as it was a very disappointing ending to the character.
All in all there were just too many awful decisions and I left the cinema feeling massively underwhelmed. Perhaps in time, especially after its sequel, maybe this will be a film looked back on as a perfect midfilm in the trilogy.
Having had high hopes for this based on a solid entry in episode VII this film simply didn't live up to the high expectations.
The special effects were, as normal, fantastic with the ship collision at light speed a major highlight. The interactions between Rey and Kylo and subsequent character development of the 2 is both interesting and welcomed and provides hope for episode IX. The scene with the 2 fighting side by side against the praetorian guard was also great to watch.
Aside from those parts the film felt like it lacked any real direction and the storyline is simply poor. With the film opening on a massive battle where the first order, once again, are made out to be utterly inept and farcically incompetent it seems as if the film wants to substitute substance for style.
Almost the entire film consists of the first order chasing the rebellion at sub light speed waiting for them to run out of fuel whilst we are given an utterly pointless side mission for Finn and newcomer Rose which does nothing to develop either character or the actual main storyline.
Luke, meanwhile, has become a hermit and whilst that in itself isn't an issue (after all so was Yoda) it is a disappointing change to the legends Luke who would have been a lot more interesting.
The princess leia bridge explosion scene was also very shortly done. Whilst it was a great development to show her with significant force abilities the special effects made it crying worthy and completely ruined it.
Then there is the bizarre decision to simply kill off Snoke in the most pathetic of ways. All the build up of what appears to be an exceptionally strong Darkside user and he is cut down far too easily. It will be interesting to see how episode IX addresses this as it was a very disappointing ending to the character.
All in all there were just too many awful decisions and I left the cinema feeling massively underwhelmed. Perhaps in time, especially after its sequel, maybe this will be a film looked back on as a perfect midfilm in the trilogy.
Quinn Blackburn (3 KP) rated Unwind (Unwind, #1) in Books
May 14, 2018
Render Unto Cesar
Shusterman takes dystopian futures a step above the ordinary in this dark coming of age tale. In the not too distant future a war was fought in the U.S. over abortion, the 2nd Civil War. To appease all sides an unthinkable accord was reached. Instead of abortion, between the ages of 13 and 18 you can choose to send your child to a Harvest camp to be unwound, taken apart and all their body parts donated to others. We are given three characters with differing perspectives through which we see the workings of this world.
One angry young man always in fights whose parents have given up reaching him. One orphan, a Stork, left on someone's doorstep years ago who doesn't make the necessary grades to keep her off the Harvest camp bus. And Lev, who was conceived and raised by his devoutly religious parents as a Tithe, someone specifically born to be unwound in the church's name. This unlikely trio meet on their way to be unwound and all three are at a loss as to what to do when a resistance movement effort frees them from the bus.
What about Lev's glorious destiny to be unwound for God; is he still chosen, still a willing sacrifice? Where do you go when society says you no longer have the right to live? Who will help you survive in secret until you are too old to be unwound? How can you avoid the bounty hunters who live to capture escapees? What happens to the soul of an Unwound? Do they live on, a second conscience, a wisp of memories, within the body of their new host? Does anyone have the right to decide who in society has the right to live and who would be more useful unwound?
The writer immerses us completely in this bizarre yet oh so familiar society giving us plenty of perspectives from every level. He even included tv and radio commercials to help us understand how normal it has become to consider unwinding another human being. The creep factor is high and sustains itself through all three books in this set. Unwind introduces us to the world of the unwound in a well told thought provoking tale that may have you questioning everything you thought you ever knew about yourself.
One angry young man always in fights whose parents have given up reaching him. One orphan, a Stork, left on someone's doorstep years ago who doesn't make the necessary grades to keep her off the Harvest camp bus. And Lev, who was conceived and raised by his devoutly religious parents as a Tithe, someone specifically born to be unwound in the church's name. This unlikely trio meet on their way to be unwound and all three are at a loss as to what to do when a resistance movement effort frees them from the bus.
What about Lev's glorious destiny to be unwound for God; is he still chosen, still a willing sacrifice? Where do you go when society says you no longer have the right to live? Who will help you survive in secret until you are too old to be unwound? How can you avoid the bounty hunters who live to capture escapees? What happens to the soul of an Unwound? Do they live on, a second conscience, a wisp of memories, within the body of their new host? Does anyone have the right to decide who in society has the right to live and who would be more useful unwound?
The writer immerses us completely in this bizarre yet oh so familiar society giving us plenty of perspectives from every level. He even included tv and radio commercials to help us understand how normal it has become to consider unwinding another human being. The creep factor is high and sustains itself through all three books in this set. Unwind introduces us to the world of the unwound in a well told thought provoking tale that may have you questioning everything you thought you ever knew about yourself.