
Ryan Hill (152 KP) rated Thor: Ragnarok (2017) in Movies
May 11, 2019
There’s so many reasons why I enjoy Thor: Ragnarok, but it has to start with the direction and vision of Taika Waititi. He’s a genre changer in the comic book man movie universe. From his Kiwi sense of humor, to the choice in mood music, to the simply fun action sequences; Thor: Ragnarok is a two hour smile that would make it appear I had Botox injections, since my facial expression stayed happy.
Thor is one of my favorite characters in the MCU and I like the way the fat has been chewed off in his movies. Less memorable characters are disposed of, and screen time is given to the characters you want to see. Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster is a gift from God. Loki is Loki and who doesn’t love Loki? Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie has a lot of depth. Cate Blanchett’s Hela might be in the top 5 in baddest of bad MCU villains, and puts the D in dysfunctional families. Plus, Idris Elba’s Heimdall deserved his own movie, and perhaps the number one scene stealer, and one of the reasons why this movie is truly special is Taika Waititi’s Korg. Who knew a CGI rock could be so hilarious? His voice is infectious, and I want to see more of Korg.
Hulk and Banner are both used just right. The synth-pop score makes me want to dance a boogie groove. Thor’s flaw is there’s too many interesting storylines, which causes the film to jump some from character to character. Watching Chris Hemsworth ham it up as Thor is what these types of movies should be all about. Putting the F back in fun and having a helluva time in the process doing so.

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated The Good Neighbor in Books
Feb 13, 2018
I must confess, I almost gave up on this book in the beginning. It just seemed to start slowly for me. There is a lot of hand wringing from Izzy about her life and her blog. Eventually things take off and the plot gets more exciting. My biggest issue is that, in many ways, Izzy's fabrication of "Mac" doesn't really seem to be the huge deal that she makes it out to be. Sure, she shouldn't be lying to everyone, but really, her lie is going to supposedly bring down her friends' business, destroy all her friendships, and ruin Izzy's life? It is just a blog after all. Some of that just seems to be a stretch. Compare to the heartwarming and heartbreaking storyline with Mrs. Feldman -- it truly can't compare.
However, because I'm a total sucker, I kept imagining this movie as a romantic comedy or sitcom. I was sort of tense reading this novel, because you knew eventually the lie would be revealed, everything would get crazy, and all would be for naught... but you hoped like any "good" romantic comedy or sitcom, it would still tie up pretty neatly with a bow at the end, right? (And I won't lie, I sort of like that sometimes. There's enough uncertainty in real life.)
(Note: I received an advanced copy of this book via Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.)

JT (287 KP) rated Escape From L.A. (1996) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
I had a hard enough time to muster the energy to watch this, and even more to award it a one star rating. I have made my way through bad films over the years but this one really takes the title. After Carpenter’s engrossing and dark Escape from New York hit screens in 1981 a sequel was always going to be on the cards, but maybe they waited too long for it.
The plot is similar to the first, Plissken is yet again asked to save the day despite being injected with a virus that will kill him in within nine hours, although giving him ample time to save the day. This time he has to enter L.A. now separated from America after an earthquake and where the worst of the worst are sent, there he must retrieve a black box containing controls to a super weapon.
I had a hard enough time to muster the energy to watch this, and even more to award it a one star rating
What really wound me up about this film were the most shoddy special effects ever! When you take into consideration that this came out at a similar time to the very excellent Independence Day whose CGI effects were second to none for the time, there was no comparison.
You have to wonder what Carpenter’s budget of $50,000,0000 went towards, Plissken’s underwater entry into L.A. is hilarious and is even worth the watch just for that alone.
The addition of a few more well known characters do manage to brighten the proceedings, such as Steve Buscemi as Map to the Stars Eddie and Bruce Campbell as Surgeon General of Beverly Hills, but they do very little to save this from being a complete disaster.
Russell allegedly wrote the ending to this, and to be honest it shows. If you were a fan of the first then I would leave this one well alone!

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Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Justice League International, Vol. 5 in Books
Nov 30, 2020
When I think back to this point in the 80s, the fun times, laugh riot that was the JLA brings a great amount of joy to my collective consciousness. I can't even remember anything I didn't like about any of the stories in the run. Then, I started reading Vol. 5..
So, yeah, the characters were still great fun! I miss the fun Wally West/Flash! :( Giffen and DeMatteis continued to churn out some of the funniest JLA stories! The JLEurope ones weren't AS funny as the JLAmerica/JLI stories were, but still fun nonetheless.
Now, the art? OOF! That's a whole other thing! I don't recall disliking it when I first read the issues in the 80s. I can recall meeting Bart Sears at a comic shop signing around the time of the series debut, and I thought he was friendly and likeable.
However, after this re-visit, I am disappointed to say that I found Sears' art to be not as enjoyable. The characters, both male and female, looked distorted and, in some cases, wicked muscular. And the facial expressions? Um, NO! Yeah, the art was enough of a disappointment that I almost gave it 2 Stars.
The saving grace of this TPB was the last story, from JLI Annual #3, "Around the World with the Justice League". Not only was it the first appearance of the island of Kooeykooeykooey, but it also featured some knockout pencils from Mike McKone and even more stellar inks from Bruce D. Patterson! if memory serves, the team of McKone-Patterson continued to do the annuals for the remainder of the JLI/JLA run.
It's not a perfect TPB, but again, the writing was on target, and the art in the last part of the book was pretty solid. Overall, you can read it, but it won't wow ya! Jus' sayin'...

Lenard (726 KP) rated Blinded by the Light (2019) in Movies
Sep 2, 2019
Two things struck me about the film. The first is the costume for the father. With the exception of the wedding party which I will discuss in my second, the father is dressed in a dress shirt, tie, and slacks, sometimes a sportcoat. This is the traditional outfit of a 1st generation immigrant. Even though he works in a factory manufacturing cars, he still goes to work or out in public dressed like a successful businessman/financial advisor. There is a belief that in order to achieve success, you must dress as though you have already attained that success. The second is the connection to Bend It Like Beckham, Chadha's previous film, which had a lot more success in the US. There is the best friend's parent who accepts the protagonist quicker than their own. But I am talking about the wedding party scene. In both films, the family is having a wedding party and the protagonist has to leave because there is something urgent that they need to do (play in a soccer game, buy tickets to a Springsteen concert). Family members assist the protagonist to get away without the parents noticing and in each case conflict ensues that brings a feeling of abandonment from the immediate family.