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Amy Christmas (171 KP) rated The Tattooist of Auschwitz in Books
Jan 16, 2018
It's compelling at times (2 more)
The chapters are short
It's all to the point and not fluffy
Not compelling most of the time (2 more)
Writing can become very bland
It didn't feel real at times
I wouldn't say 'unputdownable'
This book is good, not great but alright.
You follow Lale a Slovakian Jew and in 1942 each family is required to gove over a worker for Labour camps. In hopes to keep his family safe Lale goes to Prague where he's put in a cattle car and shipped to birkaneau.
The story is sad and hopeful and shows the raw need for survival but also that in times like that we can all pull together.
While the story was good and lovely to read about the writing was bland and off-putting at times. I struggled to get through the entire book and put it down for ages at a time because I just wasn't enamoured by the writing as others were.
If you can't look past bad writing and appreciate the story this book is ok for you, but there are better accounts of that period of history waiting to be read.
You follow Lale a Slovakian Jew and in 1942 each family is required to gove over a worker for Labour camps. In hopes to keep his family safe Lale goes to Prague where he's put in a cattle car and shipped to birkaneau.
The story is sad and hopeful and shows the raw need for survival but also that in times like that we can all pull together.
While the story was good and lovely to read about the writing was bland and off-putting at times. I struggled to get through the entire book and put it down for ages at a time because I just wasn't enamoured by the writing as others were.
If you can't look past bad writing and appreciate the story this book is ok for you, but there are better accounts of that period of history waiting to be read.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Ticket to Ride: USA 1910 in Tabletop Games
Aug 11, 2021
In the expansion review series, we take a look at a game expansion to discuss whether it is a necessary purchase/addition to one’s collection.
This breakdown is for the classic entry-level train game Ticket to Ride‘s expansion USA 1910.
This expansion fixes a giant problem that original Ticket to Ride suffered: the cards were all too small! The larger-sized cards can be seen below alongside the original tiny cards. In addition to larger train cards and destination cards, included are new destination cards and a special Globetrotter card to be earned at the end of the game. A minor rule adjustment is suggested in the USA 1910 rulebook, and a new variation of destination card mode can also be found in these rules.
I really have nothing to say here except I simply WILL NOT play Ticket to Ride without using the USA 1910 expansion. I am a big-handed man and having larger cards to handle are an absolute must for me. The new destination cards are also nice, but icing for me.
Official recommendation: Absolutely add this expansion to your game. No matter the cost.
This breakdown is for the classic entry-level train game Ticket to Ride‘s expansion USA 1910.
This expansion fixes a giant problem that original Ticket to Ride suffered: the cards were all too small! The larger-sized cards can be seen below alongside the original tiny cards. In addition to larger train cards and destination cards, included are new destination cards and a special Globetrotter card to be earned at the end of the game. A minor rule adjustment is suggested in the USA 1910 rulebook, and a new variation of destination card mode can also be found in these rules.
I really have nothing to say here except I simply WILL NOT play Ticket to Ride without using the USA 1910 expansion. I am a big-handed man and having larger cards to handle are an absolute must for me. The new destination cards are also nice, but icing for me.
Official recommendation: Absolutely add this expansion to your game. No matter the cost.
Josh Napper (40 KP) rated Here Comes the Boom (2012) in Movies
Sep 27, 2019
HEADLINE:
here comes the boom
plot
A high school biology teacher looks to become a successful mixed-martial arts fighter in an effort to raise money to prevent extra-curricular activities from being axed at his cash-strapped school.
What lessons did you learn from this story (theme/moral)? What do you think others will learn from it?
A teacher can do more for his students than help them in the class room. One man struggles in no match for the mans achievements. Regular people can transform into heroes. Anything is possible when you believe in yourself.
What group of people would like this movie? Who would you recommend it to? Who would you not recommend it to?
i would recommend it to anyone that likes a good overcoming movie, and a movie where a teacher does the unbelievable for their students.
What is your final word on the film: Is it good or bad?
i would say the movie called here comes the boom is a good movie.
RATING SYSTEM:
crap
poor
decent
even
Good
Great
perfect
I give the movie here comes the boom a movie rating of 5.
here comes the boom
plot
A high school biology teacher looks to become a successful mixed-martial arts fighter in an effort to raise money to prevent extra-curricular activities from being axed at his cash-strapped school.
What lessons did you learn from this story (theme/moral)? What do you think others will learn from it?
A teacher can do more for his students than help them in the class room. One man struggles in no match for the mans achievements. Regular people can transform into heroes. Anything is possible when you believe in yourself.
What group of people would like this movie? Who would you recommend it to? Who would you not recommend it to?
i would recommend it to anyone that likes a good overcoming movie, and a movie where a teacher does the unbelievable for their students.
What is your final word on the film: Is it good or bad?
i would say the movie called here comes the boom is a good movie.
RATING SYSTEM:
crap
poor
decent
even
Good
Great
perfect
I give the movie here comes the boom a movie rating of 5.
Kim Pook (101 KP) rated Polaroid (2017) in Movies
Jun 5, 2020
As a lover of goosebumps as a teen I was instantly drawn to this as soon as I saw the trailer for it. It has a very similar storyline to the episode say cheese and die but obviously as this is more for adults it's more scary. For those who have seen that episode of goosebumps my job is done, for those who haven't the movie is about a cursed camera, anyone who has their photo taken is killed by a supernatural creature. An antiques dealer named Bird is given an old camera by a friend, she starts taking photos of people with it but it isn't until the second person dies that she realises their deaths are because of the camera. It is then a race against time to find out the origins of the camera and how they can stop this supernatural being from killing her and all of her friends. Can she stop it in time? You'll have to watch to find.
A few jump scares in the movie but nothing too scary and lots of twists and turns, the ending I would have never guessed but it was very well done. Highly recommended.
A few jump scares in the movie but nothing too scary and lots of twists and turns, the ending I would have never guessed but it was very well done. Highly recommended.
WO
Web of Lies (Elemental Assassin, #2)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Curiosity is definitely going to get me dead one of these days. Probably real soon. I'm Gin...
David McK (3734 KP) rated Infinite (2021) in Movies
Mar 11, 2023
I'm not sure this ever got a theatrical release - at least, it flew beneath my radar if so - with me only seeing it when it was shown on channel 4 relatively recently.
I have to say that - while the bigger screen of the cinema may have helped somewhat - I don't really feel that I missed all that much.
The plot revolves around Mark Wahlberg's character of Evan McCauley, who learns that the hallucinations he has been having throughout his lifetime are actually glimpses of past lives he has lived (and of which he retains the muscle memory) and that there are actually others like him throughout the world: the Nihilists (who want to bring about Armageddon so they can finally die) and the Faithful (out to stop them).
Despite the somewhat intriguing premise, It's not the best of movies, I'm afraid, with some of the action scenes looking somewhat ludicrous even on the small screen and with plot holes big enough to drive a truck through (if the bad guy has a gun that can trap those being reincarnated in limbo and just wants to die, why not just use it on himself?).
I have to say that - while the bigger screen of the cinema may have helped somewhat - I don't really feel that I missed all that much.
The plot revolves around Mark Wahlberg's character of Evan McCauley, who learns that the hallucinations he has been having throughout his lifetime are actually glimpses of past lives he has lived (and of which he retains the muscle memory) and that there are actually others like him throughout the world: the Nihilists (who want to bring about Armageddon so they can finally die) and the Faithful (out to stop them).
Despite the somewhat intriguing premise, It's not the best of movies, I'm afraid, with some of the action scenes looking somewhat ludicrous even on the small screen and with plot holes big enough to drive a truck through (if the bad guy has a gun that can trap those being reincarnated in limbo and just wants to die, why not just use it on himself?).
Shayde (75 KP) rated Cards Against Humanity in Tabletop Games
Jun 18, 2018 (Updated Jun 19, 2018)
Hilarious game (4 more)
Great in large groups
You can play for hours
Expansion Packs
Easy to set up & play
What's written on the cards (1 more)
Need at least 4 people really
Wild
I love this game. It's just a simple, black and white card game, but it is one of the best games out there. It's dirty, it's wild, it's weird, and it's sometimes just plain wrong, but it is a hilarious party game from start to finish. It really works well when all your friends have the same horrid sense of humor, and it's best when you get just the right card at just the right time. Maybe not the best to play with your family (mostly parents and much younger siblings), and I say that as someone who does occasionally.
Charley Chatty and the Wiggly Worry Worm: A Story About Insecurity and Attention-Seeking
Sarah Naish, Rosie Jefferies and Amy Farrell
Book
Charley Chatty likes to talk. Charley talks so much that her mouth gets dry but there's just so much...
Tony (1076 KP) rated Snowpiercer in TV
Aug 10, 2020
Decent acting (1 more)
Realistic special effects
Interesting enough series
First point I haven't seen the film so can't say how it compares to that. Overall I enjoyed this it was an entertaining enough series to watch over a few evenings. The casting and acting is decent and the premise interesting. There are quite a few plot holes that require you to suspend disbelief but if you can look past these it is an decent enough series. The season finale was a little bit disappointing it is obviously setting up for a second series but it did feel a bit predictable and didn't really deliver the suspense it was trying to which was a shame as the 2 episodes before were much more exciting so felt a bit of an anticlimax.
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Cold War (2018) in Movies
Feb 15, 2019
A meditation on love
There are some movies that I can bang the review out the moment I leave the theater (for example, ANY movie starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson). There are other films that I need to sit with for a few days and sort out my feelings and thoughts about them. Such is the case with the Polish film COLD WAR.
I am an "Oscar completist" and, thus, needed to see this film, not because I am a big fan of foreign films or because I am culturally literate, but because the Director of this film, Pawel Pawlikowski, was nominated for an Oscar for Best Director.
And I'm glad I saw this film, for COLD WAR is a rich, thoughtful, meditation on love and sacrifice that is full of mood and emotion. This film was conceived, written and directed by Pawlikowski and it shows on the screen. There is much heart on display here. It is said that Pawlikowski patterned the two lead characters after the tumultuous relationship of his parents (he even gave them his parents name), so I gotta think there is some knowledge and depth to these characters and their situations that resonate.
I walked into this film not knowing much about the plot or characters and this actually worked in the favor of the film, so I won't say much about it now except to say that this film follows the characters Zula (Joanna Kulig) and Wiktor (Tomasz Kot) as they experience life and love in Poland in the years just following WWII, the "Cold War" years.
As far as the acting goes, both Kulig and Kot are strong and they share a rich chemistry with each other. The film crackled when these two personalities were on the screen together and didn't crackle when they weren't together, so that must say something for their performances. Anyone else on the screen is "fine" (read: forgettable) in service of the plot and the two leads.
But, make no mistake, this film is a Director's film and Pawlikowski deserves the Academy Award nomination he received. The scenes are lush, and very "European" (lots of shots of still objects with a single viola playing in the background). The film was shot in black and white and this really helps the "behind the Iron Curtain" feel of things.
This film was also nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, and I think it has a good shot for that award (Pawlikowski is, I feel, a long shot for his award). Which makes this film worth seeing, just know you are getting a Polish language film, centered on two characters, with lots of long, lingering "beauty" shots setting up environment and feel. Don't expect fast pacing and action.
Letter Grade: B+
7 1/2 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
I am an "Oscar completist" and, thus, needed to see this film, not because I am a big fan of foreign films or because I am culturally literate, but because the Director of this film, Pawel Pawlikowski, was nominated for an Oscar for Best Director.
And I'm glad I saw this film, for COLD WAR is a rich, thoughtful, meditation on love and sacrifice that is full of mood and emotion. This film was conceived, written and directed by Pawlikowski and it shows on the screen. There is much heart on display here. It is said that Pawlikowski patterned the two lead characters after the tumultuous relationship of his parents (he even gave them his parents name), so I gotta think there is some knowledge and depth to these characters and their situations that resonate.
I walked into this film not knowing much about the plot or characters and this actually worked in the favor of the film, so I won't say much about it now except to say that this film follows the characters Zula (Joanna Kulig) and Wiktor (Tomasz Kot) as they experience life and love in Poland in the years just following WWII, the "Cold War" years.
As far as the acting goes, both Kulig and Kot are strong and they share a rich chemistry with each other. The film crackled when these two personalities were on the screen together and didn't crackle when they weren't together, so that must say something for their performances. Anyone else on the screen is "fine" (read: forgettable) in service of the plot and the two leads.
But, make no mistake, this film is a Director's film and Pawlikowski deserves the Academy Award nomination he received. The scenes are lush, and very "European" (lots of shots of still objects with a single viola playing in the background). The film was shot in black and white and this really helps the "behind the Iron Curtain" feel of things.
This film was also nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, and I think it has a good shot for that award (Pawlikowski is, I feel, a long shot for his award). Which makes this film worth seeing, just know you are getting a Polish language film, centered on two characters, with lots of long, lingering "beauty" shots setting up environment and feel. Don't expect fast pacing and action.
Letter Grade: B+
7 1/2 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
Amy Christmas (171 KP) Jan 15, 2019
Kat Carroll (0 KP) Jan 2, 2020