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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Gifted (2017) in Movies
Feb 8, 2019
A great surprise
I hadn't really expected very much from this film, but it was actually a brilliant and heartwarming surprise. It has a great cast and is wonderfully acted - McKenna Grace is exceptional for a child actor and I was even impressed with Chris Evans, it's been so long since I've seen him in something that isn't Marvel related and it's nice to see.
The film itself is a mixture of humour and a sometimes heartwrenching and emotional story about a gifted child. It has a fairly short runtime which is also refreshing, but I actually think it could have been a little longer. It's well shot and scripted and was just an all round delight to watch. And seeing Chris Evans with cats? Kinda hard to resist.
The film itself is a mixture of humour and a sometimes heartwrenching and emotional story about a gifted child. It has a fairly short runtime which is also refreshing, but I actually think it could have been a little longer. It's well shot and scripted and was just an all round delight to watch. And seeing Chris Evans with cats? Kinda hard to resist.
Dean (6927 KP) rated Streets of Rage II in Video Games
Feb 23, 2019
Great graphics (1 more)
Amazing soundtrack!
Epic Beat 'em up
This is a brilliant follow-up game to the first Streets of Rage title. It has improved on the original in every way. The graphics are great, bright and colourful. The characters are quite large on screen and have even more moves. The bosses are even better and varied. There are quite a lot of references to Streefighter 2 in terms of some of the moves and character design.
The soundtrack is awesome, even today it's probably considered one of the best games for its music. A great mix of dance, techno. Widely considered as one of the best beat 'em up games ever made. It runs Final Fight very close. Still available on the next gen consoles as a Sega classic game.
The soundtrack is awesome, even today it's probably considered one of the best games for its music. A great mix of dance, techno. Widely considered as one of the best beat 'em up games ever made. It runs Final Fight very close. Still available on the next gen consoles as a Sega classic game.
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Mr Mercedes in TV
Mar 10, 2019
A 'killer series' well worth a binge.
We were looking for a new season to binge through and discovered this and were not disappointed. Simple premise - retired grizzled cop cant forget that one unsolved case. Starts to look back into it and the killer starts to play games with him. What sets it apart from other similar series are the performances particularly the brilliant Brendan Gleeson as the old retired detective. All the characters are developed in a way that you feel there's something wrong with them but you still have some sympathy - even with the killer. From episode one there's some really nasty deaths as well. So we'll worth a watch and there's now a second season to continue you're enjoyment.
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Ghost in the Shell (2017) in Movies
Mar 24, 2019
Live action anime that's full of action
Potentially unpopular review starting in 3,2,1...I think this is a better watch than the anime. Now I love anime and I've seen the original but do I love it? No - it's good but not great. Now this live action version delivers on all fronts. Visually its stunning and all the action sequences are great. Now my review is not the place to get into the issue that is whitewashing. Scarlett Johansson does a brilliant job and gets all the mannerisms right - even her walk BUT could an Asian actress have done the job? Of course. Speaking of Asian actors Best Takeshi is awesome as usual and steals every scene he is in. Well worth a watch.
BTPBookclub (18 KP) rated Schoolgirl Missing in Books
May 11, 2019
Brilliant. I enjoyed it.
I have been wanting to read this book for a while and the cover definitely caught my attention. It is a story full of twists, turns and definitely unexpected, shocking outcomes. I would never have guessed at all. Very cruel and devious. Full of secrets, lies and deceit.
An easy to read, fast paced thriller and mystery. Kit and Neve are as bad as each other! I actually loved Jake and Lucies characters. Jake didn’t deserve what happened to him. A real page turner of a read… I found myself getting very angry towards the end and outcome I just don’t understand how someone could do that to Poppy for their own sake… Poor Poppy my heart was with her the whole time.
I would highly recommend.
An easy to read, fast paced thriller and mystery. Kit and Neve are as bad as each other! I actually loved Jake and Lucies characters. Jake didn’t deserve what happened to him. A real page turner of a read… I found myself getting very angry towards the end and outcome I just don’t understand how someone could do that to Poppy for their own sake… Poor Poppy my heart was with her the whole time.
I would highly recommend.
BTPBookclub (18 KP) rated The Last Thing I Saw in Books
May 14, 2019
A real page turner. Shocker.
Just give me a minute to pick my jaw up off the floor after that outcome and twist. Wow. Not expected at all and a true shocker! Wow. I devoured this book within a day and loved it!
I loved how the story was told through therapy sessions within the hospital… There is a lot of back and forth within this book but the author has made it clear when its changes so there is no confusion. A cleverly written, thrilling story you will not want to put down.
Can easily be finished in one sitting. It was brilliant. Would highly recommend this to you all. A well deserved five stars! A true shocker. Jaw dropping. Addictive. A real page turner. Loved reading every minute of this one.
I loved how the story was told through therapy sessions within the hospital… There is a lot of back and forth within this book but the author has made it clear when its changes so there is no confusion. A cleverly written, thrilling story you will not want to put down.
Can easily be finished in one sitting. It was brilliant. Would highly recommend this to you all. A well deserved five stars! A true shocker. Jaw dropping. Addictive. A real page turner. Loved reading every minute of this one.
Awix (3310 KP) rated King Kong (2005) in Movies
Feb 26, 2018 (Updated Feb 26, 2018)
Peter Jackson's labour of love takes itself awfully seriously for a film about a giant gorilla living on an island full of dinosaurs. Proof that even hugely successful, talented people occasionally need someone to tap them on the shoulder and say 'You need to think again about this.'
I mean, I love monster movies as much as the next person, but not when they last three hours and are stuffed with dead-wood character subplots like this one (what exactly is going on with Jamie Bell's character?). Attempting to make Kong wholly sympathetic throughout is also arguably a mistake. Movie looks great and has brilliant creature designs, but overall loses the sense of pulpy fun and excitement which the best Kong movies have; ends up feeling just a bit pompous.
I mean, I love monster movies as much as the next person, but not when they last three hours and are stuffed with dead-wood character subplots like this one (what exactly is going on with Jamie Bell's character?). Attempting to make Kong wholly sympathetic throughout is also arguably a mistake. Movie looks great and has brilliant creature designs, but overall loses the sense of pulpy fun and excitement which the best Kong movies have; ends up feeling just a bit pompous.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Terminator (1984) in Movies
Feb 18, 2018 (Updated Feb 18, 2018)
Undoubted leader of the pack when it comes to post-punk low-budget SF movies is, let's be honest, highly derivative, but makes up for this with sheer inventiveness and economical storytelling; unusually grim tone helps, too.
Future warriors from post-apocalyptic future arrive in 1984 Los Angeles; one is intent on killing hapless young waitress, the other seeks to protect her. Time travel plot is cleverly retooled as the basis of gritty action thriller; performances are much better than you might expect, too - you can't imagine anyone being more perfectly suited to their role than Arnold Schwarzenegger is here (and I don't say that very often). Every other film and TV series in this particular franchise ultimately does nothing but diffuse the impact of this brilliant movie.
Future warriors from post-apocalyptic future arrive in 1984 Los Angeles; one is intent on killing hapless young waitress, the other seeks to protect her. Time travel plot is cleverly retooled as the basis of gritty action thriller; performances are much better than you might expect, too - you can't imagine anyone being more perfectly suited to their role than Arnold Schwarzenegger is here (and I don't say that very often). Every other film and TV series in this particular franchise ultimately does nothing but diffuse the impact of this brilliant movie.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Shape of Water (2017) in Movies
Feb 19, 2018 (Updated Feb 19, 2018)
Guillermo del Toro's stunning fantasy film is either a radical reimagining of Creature from the Black Lagoon, or a grand amour as written by H.P. Lovecraft (or maybe both). Lonely cleaner discovers fish-man creature being mistreated in the installation where she works, bond develops between them.
Manages to work both as a 60s-set genre movie and more topical comment on issues of tolerance and diversity (just for a change). Quite charming and beautiful on the whole, though the strength of the sex and violence might be an issue for some people. The downtrodden-minorities-stick-it-to-The-Man subtext is a bit on the nose, perhaps, and I'm not sure the third act musical number really works, but on the whole this is a brilliant movie.
Manages to work both as a 60s-set genre movie and more topical comment on issues of tolerance and diversity (just for a change). Quite charming and beautiful on the whole, though the strength of the sex and violence might be an issue for some people. The downtrodden-minorities-stick-it-to-The-Man subtext is a bit on the nose, perhaps, and I'm not sure the third act musical number really works, but on the whole this is a brilliant movie.
Bethany Fletcher (17 KP) rated A Court of Wings and Ruin in Books
Jun 24, 2018
ACOWAR is a fantastic conclusion to Rhys and Feyre’s adventures. This book is more plot driven than ACOMAF and the characters really start to get stuff done.
The plot never lulls and there is always something happening to keep you wanting more. We meet more characters that we had only previously heard about and none of them are dull. Every character has a purpose for being there and all add something to the story. Previous characters story arcs wrap up nicely with some characters get nice, well rounded redemption plots.
Overall this is a brilliant fantasy novel and i personally have read it multiple times since release. Like with most Sarah J Maas bookend this is not for younger readers.
The plot never lulls and there is always something happening to keep you wanting more. We meet more characters that we had only previously heard about and none of them are dull. Every character has a purpose for being there and all add something to the story. Previous characters story arcs wrap up nicely with some characters get nice, well rounded redemption plots.
Overall this is a brilliant fantasy novel and i personally have read it multiple times since release. Like with most Sarah J Maas bookend this is not for younger readers.