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David Hyde Pierce recommended Dracula (1958) in Movies (curated)
Sarah Betts (103 KP) rated Zoey Fools Around (Making Out, #1) in Books
Dec 31, 2019
These books were originally called Boyfriend/Girlfriends.
Zoey has grown up on a small Maine island and is feeling a bit restless. Then, Lucas, the guy who went to jail for killing her boyfriend's older brother in a drunk driving accident comes back to the island.
Zoey is with Jake
Jake hates Lucas
Lucas used to be with Claire
Claire used to go out with Lucas, is now dating Benjamin, and teams up with Jake to try and get rid of Lucas
Benjamin is Zoey's brother
Nina is Claire's sister and has a crush on Benjamin
Aisha is relatively new to the island and is frantically trying NOT to be pursued by the determined Christopher.
Zoey has grown up on a small Maine island and is feeling a bit restless. Then, Lucas, the guy who went to jail for killing her boyfriend's older brother in a drunk driving accident comes back to the island.
Zoey is with Jake
Jake hates Lucas
Lucas used to be with Claire
Claire used to go out with Lucas, is now dating Benjamin, and teams up with Jake to try and get rid of Lucas
Benjamin is Zoey's brother
Nina is Claire's sister and has a crush on Benjamin
Aisha is relatively new to the island and is frantically trying NOT to be pursued by the determined Christopher.
The Chocolate Lady (94 KP) rated The Dark Lady's Mask in Books
Oct 5, 2020
With all due respect for Sharratt's really nicely written prose, I was unable to finish reading this book. I have a great love of historical fiction, and am willing to accept no small amounts of literary license when it comes to adjusting some facts to fit the story - for example, it is possible that William Shakespeare could have been bi-sexual. However, I was unable to overcome the blatant rewriting of history to suspend belief when, in this novel, William Shakespeare is still an impoverished poet AFTER the death of Christopher Marlowe. This is really too bad, because I had such high hopes for this book. My sincere apologies, and I'm sure other readers will be more forgiving.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Dracula Has Risen From the Grave (1968) in Movies
Feb 19, 2018
Grave Errors
Hammer's third Dracula movie is arguably inaccurately titled, but then 'Dracula Has Thawed Out of a Moat' wouldn't look good on the poster. Busybody monsignor finds lingering legends of Dracula affecting church attendance, decides to exorcise Castle Dracula, ends up resurrecting Dracula himself, wins Counter-productive Stupid Idea Award for 1906.
What follows is a fairly routine gothic melodrama without much to distinguish it; Christopher Lee goes through the motions manfully. Chief wrinkle in the story is the fact that the juvenile male lead (who has an unfortunate resemblance to a young Hugh Grant) is an atheist, which is a problem when it comes to vampire hunting (he can't wave a crucifix with sufficient conviction, apparently). Not-bad climax doesn't really compensate for lack of good ideas in the rest of the film.
What follows is a fairly routine gothic melodrama without much to distinguish it; Christopher Lee goes through the motions manfully. Chief wrinkle in the story is the fact that the juvenile male lead (who has an unfortunate resemblance to a young Hugh Grant) is an atheist, which is a problem when it comes to vampire hunting (he can't wave a crucifix with sufficient conviction, apparently). Not-bad climax doesn't really compensate for lack of good ideas in the rest of the film.
Erika (17788 KP) rated Christopher Robin (2018) in Movies
Aug 11, 2018
I'm probably very bias when it comes to this movie, because I am a huge Winnie-the-Pooh fan, so I probably would have liked it no matter what. Basically, this movie was very much like Hook, only with Pooh bear.
I actually really liked the renders of Pooh and his friends, and how they looked more like the original drawings by Ernest Shepherd, rather than the Disney-fied version. Disney did not decide to go with modeling Christopher Robin on A.A. Milne's son, which, I was kind of ok with.
I thought all of the actors did a really good job. I'm a huge Hayley Atwell fan, and I was sad that she didn't get more screen time. Ewan MacGregor did very well, and his interactions with Pooh and his friends were pitch-perfect.
I actually really liked the renders of Pooh and his friends, and how they looked more like the original drawings by Ernest Shepherd, rather than the Disney-fied version. Disney did not decide to go with modeling Christopher Robin on A.A. Milne's son, which, I was kind of ok with.
I thought all of the actors did a really good job. I'm a huge Hayley Atwell fan, and I was sad that she didn't get more screen time. Ewan MacGregor did very well, and his interactions with Pooh and his friends were pitch-perfect.
Justin Taylor (59 KP) rated Christopher Robin (2018) in Movies
Nov 7, 2018
The nostalgia hits hard here so prepare to cry....a lot! (2 more)
The original voice of Tigger and Pooh comes back to play them in this movie which is a plus
Ewan mgregor is exceptional here...Obi Wan's still got it
It's super slow until you see pooh (1 more)
If you have seen the Robin Williams classic Hook, you'll probably predict the plot of this movie
Christopher Robin is a great Disney film
Contains spoilers, click to show
This movie is a tear-jerker but it's also a love letter for long time Pooh fans but it is slow movie and a predictable plot too but it doesn't hurt the movie also minor spoilers but in the true spirit of Pooh there are songs in this movie including one by Richard Sherman a Disney song writer staple
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Gorgon (1964) in Movies
Feb 10, 2018 (Updated Feb 10, 2018)
Every Day a Bad Hair Day
Hammer horror from the studio's imperial phase, with the period setting and star names (Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing) that might lead one to expect something quite distinguished. However, the premise is such an odd one - a monster from Greek mythology is lurking in German-occupied Europe, petrifying the unwary - that the film-makers really struggle to know what to do with it, settling in the end for a story structure partly knocked off from the less interesting kind of werewolf movie.
Well-directed in parts, with some good imagery and set piece scenes, but the movie struggles to give the cast the material they deserve and the meandering and repetitive storyline can only charitably be described as a plot. All a bit bleak and cheerless; inevitably comes across as slightly misogynistic too.
Well-directed in parts, with some good imagery and set piece scenes, but the movie struggles to give the cast the material they deserve and the meandering and repetitive storyline can only charitably be described as a plot. All a bit bleak and cheerless; inevitably comes across as slightly misogynistic too.
David McK (3233 KP) rated Superman: Birthright in Books
Jan 30, 2019
It's funny, but while - like, I'm sure, most people out there - I may know (of) the origin of the Man of Steel, I've never actually seeing it written down anywhere.
Thinking about it, I think that knowledge comes from the Christopher Reeve Superman films, and the more recent TV series Smallville.
That TV series was still running when this graphic novel series was released.
This goes back to Superman's earliest days in Metropolis, with a brief flash-back to his high school Smallville days, to present a new take on the origin of the character - Jimmy Olsen? Check. Ma and Pa Kent? Check. Perry White? Check. Lois Lane? Check. Lex Luthor? Also check!
As such, I found this an interesting take on the character, with some dynamic action sequences and some stand-out visuals (Clark Kent soaring over a herd of stampeding Zebra's, for instance).
Thinking about it, I think that knowledge comes from the Christopher Reeve Superman films, and the more recent TV series Smallville.
That TV series was still running when this graphic novel series was released.
This goes back to Superman's earliest days in Metropolis, with a brief flash-back to his high school Smallville days, to present a new take on the origin of the character - Jimmy Olsen? Check. Ma and Pa Kent? Check. Perry White? Check. Lois Lane? Check. Lex Luthor? Also check!
As such, I found this an interesting take on the character, with some dynamic action sequences and some stand-out visuals (Clark Kent soaring over a herd of stampeding Zebra's, for instance).
David McK (3233 KP) rated Man of Steel (2013) in Movies
Sep 26, 2021
"KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!"
Oh, wait, wrong version of that character!
This is Zack Snyders reboot of the Superman story; basically an origin story for The Man of Steel and setting out is stall pretty early with the absolutely bonkers scene where Russell Crowe's Jor-El rides a dragon as the planet Krypton (a very different take on said planet than in the Christopher Reeve films) begins to die.
It also ends with the massive destruction in Metropolis - to be fair, a consequence of which is shown in the following DC film Batman Vs Superman - and with a shocking scene where this version of Superman commits an action it is almost impossible to imagine his Silver Age counterpoint to do.
Michael Shannon's Zod comes across as less campy than Terence Stamps, while - in this version, at least - the reason Lois Lane is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist *is* actually shown.
Oh, wait, wrong version of that character!
This is Zack Snyders reboot of the Superman story; basically an origin story for The Man of Steel and setting out is stall pretty early with the absolutely bonkers scene where Russell Crowe's Jor-El rides a dragon as the planet Krypton (a very different take on said planet than in the Christopher Reeve films) begins to die.
It also ends with the massive destruction in Metropolis - to be fair, a consequence of which is shown in the following DC film Batman Vs Superman - and with a shocking scene where this version of Superman commits an action it is almost impossible to imagine his Silver Age counterpoint to do.
Michael Shannon's Zod comes across as less campy than Terence Stamps, while - in this version, at least - the reason Lois Lane is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist *is* actually shown.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Possessor (2020) in Movies
Dec 4, 2020
From the mind of Brandon Cronenberg comes his second feature length, Possessor, and the best way I could sum it up is that it's a subtle assault on the senses. Although it occasionally throws unsettling imagery at the screen now and again, these moments are seldom and fleeting. The main assault comes from the constant sense of dread that is present from it's visually striking and bloody opening, straight through to it's pretty insane climax. I just felt on edge consistently, thanks to the minimal but forboding score, top notch editing on display, and some quite brilliant performances.
Andrea Riseborough is great, as she was in Mandy, and her presence in modern horror is a welcome one. Her character is the overarching glue that holds all the emotional strains of the plot together with a cold core.
Christopher Abbott is wonderful, as he essentially plays two seperate characters, and sells his descent into madness perfectly.
The supporting cast include the likes of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tuppence Middleton, and Sean Bean, and it's honestly just a pretty solid cast all around.
The plot is intriguing in a dystopian sci-fi kind of way, and has enough horror elements to really get under the skin. The scene that the already recognisable poster image is taken from is one of the most recoil inducing and uncomfortable scenes I've seen in a while. This premise played out with a decent screenplay, accompanied by sudden bursts of extreme violence, give Possessor an identity of it's own, and make it a modern horror entry that can stand shoulder to shoulder with the big boys.
One of the films of the year for me!
Andrea Riseborough is great, as she was in Mandy, and her presence in modern horror is a welcome one. Her character is the overarching glue that holds all the emotional strains of the plot together with a cold core.
Christopher Abbott is wonderful, as he essentially plays two seperate characters, and sells his descent into madness perfectly.
The supporting cast include the likes of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tuppence Middleton, and Sean Bean, and it's honestly just a pretty solid cast all around.
The plot is intriguing in a dystopian sci-fi kind of way, and has enough horror elements to really get under the skin. The scene that the already recognisable poster image is taken from is one of the most recoil inducing and uncomfortable scenes I've seen in a while. This premise played out with a decent screenplay, accompanied by sudden bursts of extreme violence, give Possessor an identity of it's own, and make it a modern horror entry that can stand shoulder to shoulder with the big boys.
One of the films of the year for me!