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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Napoleon (2023) in Movies
Dec 6, 2023
Whole Does Not Equal The Sum of it's Parts
The new Epic Motion Picture NAPOLEON is the perfect example of the term “the whole does not equal the sum of the parts”. There are some very, very good items in this film, they just don’t combine to make a Motion Picture above the average.
Directed by Ridley Scott (GLADIATOR), NAPOLEON tells the tale of the titular Frenchman who rises to great power only to fall to great defeat. It is a story ripe for a fascinating film, this just isn’t that film.
There are many, many things that work in this movie, like the performance of Oscar Winner Joaquin Phoenix (THE JOKER) as Napoleon. He plays him as an enigmatic figure who is over-compensating for a lack of…something. Bravery? Self-Confidence? Height? That’s the problem, the film never delves into it, it just gives us a quirky character - strongly played by Phoenix - who is, obviously, using his power and skills as a General to cover up a flaw…whatever that is.
Vanessa Kirby (Oscar Nominated for PIECES OF A WOMAN a few years back) is equally strong and enigmatic as Napoleon’s Empress, Josephine. Kirby’s performance is, probably, the strongest in the film as she plays Josephine as strong and independent, living by her own rules and knowing that she has the powerful Napoleon at her beck-and-call. But, again, we never really find out the person behind the facade and her scenes with Phoenix/Napoleon fall flat for there never is any really love or passion between the 2 of them, just a “baby boy” fawning all over Josephine and a manipulative (we think) social climber using this “baby boy”.
4x Oscar Nominee (but never a winner) Ridley Scott (GLADIATOR) knows how to produce an EPIC and he puts together some EPIC Battle Scenes and Napoleon’s Emperor Inauguration scene is one to behold (which is why you should see this film on the largest screen possible) but these scenes seem isolated and separated from the rest of the film.
And, there, is where the problem of the film is. We have an interesting performance by Phoenix, a strong performance by Kirby and EPIC scenes from Scott, but they all seem isolated and in their own film and never quite gel together to build any emotional connection. All seem cold, flat and calculated. There is none of the passion that Napoleon says he has for France.
Go to marvel at the craft of the film, leave feeling unfulfilled, emotionally by NAPOLEON.
Letter Grade: B-
6 Stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
Directed by Ridley Scott (GLADIATOR), NAPOLEON tells the tale of the titular Frenchman who rises to great power only to fall to great defeat. It is a story ripe for a fascinating film, this just isn’t that film.
There are many, many things that work in this movie, like the performance of Oscar Winner Joaquin Phoenix (THE JOKER) as Napoleon. He plays him as an enigmatic figure who is over-compensating for a lack of…something. Bravery? Self-Confidence? Height? That’s the problem, the film never delves into it, it just gives us a quirky character - strongly played by Phoenix - who is, obviously, using his power and skills as a General to cover up a flaw…whatever that is.
Vanessa Kirby (Oscar Nominated for PIECES OF A WOMAN a few years back) is equally strong and enigmatic as Napoleon’s Empress, Josephine. Kirby’s performance is, probably, the strongest in the film as she plays Josephine as strong and independent, living by her own rules and knowing that she has the powerful Napoleon at her beck-and-call. But, again, we never really find out the person behind the facade and her scenes with Phoenix/Napoleon fall flat for there never is any really love or passion between the 2 of them, just a “baby boy” fawning all over Josephine and a manipulative (we think) social climber using this “baby boy”.
4x Oscar Nominee (but never a winner) Ridley Scott (GLADIATOR) knows how to produce an EPIC and he puts together some EPIC Battle Scenes and Napoleon’s Emperor Inauguration scene is one to behold (which is why you should see this film on the largest screen possible) but these scenes seem isolated and separated from the rest of the film.
And, there, is where the problem of the film is. We have an interesting performance by Phoenix, a strong performance by Kirby and EPIC scenes from Scott, but they all seem isolated and in their own film and never quite gel together to build any emotional connection. All seem cold, flat and calculated. There is none of the passion that Napoleon says he has for France.
Go to marvel at the craft of the film, leave feeling unfulfilled, emotionally by NAPOLEON.
Letter Grade: B-
6 Stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Wordslingers: The Story of Self-Publishing (2021) in Movies
Sep 28, 2021
They say that everyone has a book in them. I guess the key question is whether anyone else wants to read it. Such is the subject of this new documentary from A. Brooks Bennett. As a publisher says at one point “Writing a book is a creative act; publishing a book is a business”.
The democratization of publishing
The internet has brought many advantages to modern life, but perhaps one of the most interesting is the democratization of publishing. No longer is control in the hands of publishing houses, who might glance at and immediately dismiss new ideas in literature. It’s worth remembering that 12 publishing houses turned down J.K. Rowling’s draft for Harry Potter! Now anyone can be creative in writing and self-publish on the web. My own wife – Sue Mann – did just this, self-publishing the WW1 poems and reminiscences of two of her great-uncles. (It’s available from all good bookshops… oh, no…. actually just from here!) Are the poems artistically any good? I have no idea! Will it sell many copies? Clearly not! Was it a personal goal achieved in honouring their memory? Absolutely! Different people want different things from the medium.
Very ‘American’.
It’s probably down to the pioneer spirit, but as a generalisation Americans seem far more ambitious than Brits: or at least, more OPENLY ambitious. Whereas most Brits will quietly get on with building their careers, some Americans will go hell-for-leather towards their vision of “success” no matter the cost: no guts; no glory; and be noisy about it!
But for every J.K. Rowling or Bill Bryson there are several thousand writers who have ‘failed to launch’.
Here we follow two budding authors – one from California; the other from North Carolina – self-publishing their work and seeking sales.
One – Giles A (“Andy”) Anderson – has self-published a seemingly disturbing work called “Vidu” – the first of what he hopes will be a five-part series. He first talks from a ghoulish bookstore, speaking psycho-babble with the requisite hyperbole of an ‘artiste’. (It suggests how the books might read… but perhaps that’s misjudging). It comes then as a surprise when we find he doesn’t live alone in a coffin playing video games on his own, but has a lovely wife and two young and perfectly normal children. So his book is an “off the beaten track kinda book”, but the man seems well-grounded and following his dream in bite-size pieces.
Moral: Avoid the Travel Books
As is often the case though, the documentary homes in on, and spends most of its time with, the other author – Adam Shephard. Shephard is struggling to launch as an author and also – in parallel – wrestling with the Green Card process for his supportive and vivacious Croatian wife Ivana. The problem is that Shephard has written an extended travel blog: ten-a-penny on sites like WordPress.
I read a Forbes article last year that reported that – astonishingly – in a survey 11% of American respondents had never travelled outside of their home state and 40% had never left the country. For such a well-heeled country, the US is incredibly insular. So Shephard’s vision is to encourage youngsters to step outside of their comfort zone and jump on that plane to Guatemala. It’s a fine objective. But does anyone want to listen? And – crucially – is the book any good and commercial enough? As the famous ‘founder of self-publishing’, the late Dan Poynter (to who the film is dedicated) says “You can’t make any money off a travel book”.
The film never goes as far as having either of the featured books critically reviewed: that might have added some extra spice to the story (and possibly provoked some painful reactions). But the piles of unopened boxes in Adam’s clinically white storage facility rather speaks for itself. Since Shephard never seems to do anything by halves, the boxes are piled high and thus the fall from grace is hard, long…. and absolutely riveting. (Ivana’s support and love in such difficult circumstances is commendable: he is a truly blessed man).
Jaw-dropping Walmart scene
At least at the start of the film, Adam’s self-belief and confidence in himself is infectious. The peak of his bravado, and a jaw-dropping highpoint in the movie for me, was a scene filmed in Walmart. Shephard, in a case of “reverse shoplifting”, sneaks HIS books onto the bookshelves of Walmart. What happens when they then try to buy one? It’s a real eye-opener and worth watching the documentary for in its own right.
It’s an interesting legal position: if Walmart were to be upset about this scene, what on earth could they charge them with!? Littering?
Highs and lows.
Shephard seems to have talent as a speaker, and it struck me that he would be genuinely suited to a job in sales. In the movie we see him performing self-confidence-building pitches to young people (and, boy, could we sometimes use that in the UK post-Brexit). A few books sold. But another event barely breaking even. The pattern becomes familiar and, in a way, rather tragic.
There are unexpected highs and lows for Adam and Ivana along the way though, unrelated to the publishing story, and the filmmaker skillfully weaves them into the narrative to good effect.
Thought-provoking.
I watched this on a whim and thought I’d probably switch off after 10 minutes. Documentaries normally are not my thing! But no. It had me gripped to see how things would turn out – like watching a slow-motion car crash! The journey was well-worth the ride: a real page-turner you might say.
The democratization of publishing
The internet has brought many advantages to modern life, but perhaps one of the most interesting is the democratization of publishing. No longer is control in the hands of publishing houses, who might glance at and immediately dismiss new ideas in literature. It’s worth remembering that 12 publishing houses turned down J.K. Rowling’s draft for Harry Potter! Now anyone can be creative in writing and self-publish on the web. My own wife – Sue Mann – did just this, self-publishing the WW1 poems and reminiscences of two of her great-uncles. (It’s available from all good bookshops… oh, no…. actually just from here!) Are the poems artistically any good? I have no idea! Will it sell many copies? Clearly not! Was it a personal goal achieved in honouring their memory? Absolutely! Different people want different things from the medium.
Very ‘American’.
It’s probably down to the pioneer spirit, but as a generalisation Americans seem far more ambitious than Brits: or at least, more OPENLY ambitious. Whereas most Brits will quietly get on with building their careers, some Americans will go hell-for-leather towards their vision of “success” no matter the cost: no guts; no glory; and be noisy about it!
But for every J.K. Rowling or Bill Bryson there are several thousand writers who have ‘failed to launch’.
Here we follow two budding authors – one from California; the other from North Carolina – self-publishing their work and seeking sales.
One – Giles A (“Andy”) Anderson – has self-published a seemingly disturbing work called “Vidu” – the first of what he hopes will be a five-part series. He first talks from a ghoulish bookstore, speaking psycho-babble with the requisite hyperbole of an ‘artiste’. (It suggests how the books might read… but perhaps that’s misjudging). It comes then as a surprise when we find he doesn’t live alone in a coffin playing video games on his own, but has a lovely wife and two young and perfectly normal children. So his book is an “off the beaten track kinda book”, but the man seems well-grounded and following his dream in bite-size pieces.
Moral: Avoid the Travel Books
As is often the case though, the documentary homes in on, and spends most of its time with, the other author – Adam Shephard. Shephard is struggling to launch as an author and also – in parallel – wrestling with the Green Card process for his supportive and vivacious Croatian wife Ivana. The problem is that Shephard has written an extended travel blog: ten-a-penny on sites like WordPress.
I read a Forbes article last year that reported that – astonishingly – in a survey 11% of American respondents had never travelled outside of their home state and 40% had never left the country. For such a well-heeled country, the US is incredibly insular. So Shephard’s vision is to encourage youngsters to step outside of their comfort zone and jump on that plane to Guatemala. It’s a fine objective. But does anyone want to listen? And – crucially – is the book any good and commercial enough? As the famous ‘founder of self-publishing’, the late Dan Poynter (to who the film is dedicated) says “You can’t make any money off a travel book”.
The film never goes as far as having either of the featured books critically reviewed: that might have added some extra spice to the story (and possibly provoked some painful reactions). But the piles of unopened boxes in Adam’s clinically white storage facility rather speaks for itself. Since Shephard never seems to do anything by halves, the boxes are piled high and thus the fall from grace is hard, long…. and absolutely riveting. (Ivana’s support and love in such difficult circumstances is commendable: he is a truly blessed man).
Jaw-dropping Walmart scene
At least at the start of the film, Adam’s self-belief and confidence in himself is infectious. The peak of his bravado, and a jaw-dropping highpoint in the movie for me, was a scene filmed in Walmart. Shephard, in a case of “reverse shoplifting”, sneaks HIS books onto the bookshelves of Walmart. What happens when they then try to buy one? It’s a real eye-opener and worth watching the documentary for in its own right.
It’s an interesting legal position: if Walmart were to be upset about this scene, what on earth could they charge them with!? Littering?
Highs and lows.
Shephard seems to have talent as a speaker, and it struck me that he would be genuinely suited to a job in sales. In the movie we see him performing self-confidence-building pitches to young people (and, boy, could we sometimes use that in the UK post-Brexit). A few books sold. But another event barely breaking even. The pattern becomes familiar and, in a way, rather tragic.
There are unexpected highs and lows for Adam and Ivana along the way though, unrelated to the publishing story, and the filmmaker skillfully weaves them into the narrative to good effect.
Thought-provoking.
I watched this on a whim and thought I’d probably switch off after 10 minutes. Documentaries normally are not my thing! But no. It had me gripped to see how things would turn out – like watching a slow-motion car crash! The journey was well-worth the ride: a real page-turner you might say.
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Focus (2015) in Movies
Jun 11, 2019
Reasonably Accomplished
Will Smith desperately needed a film to catapult him back onto the silver screen A-list after M. Night Shyamalan’s critical and commercial disaster After Earth.
The Hollywood favourite recently spoke about how the movie bruised his ego and made him reassess his position as a serious actor. His latest film Focus, is the first after a brief hiatus, but does it mark a return to form?
Focus follows the story of Nicky Spurgeon (Smith), a seasoned con-man who becomes romantically involved with a young woman, played by Margot Robbie. Naturally, life manages to get in the way and years later Nicky is in Buenos Aires trying to carry out his biggest scam yet – but it doesn’t all run smoothly.
The story is reasonably accomplished but struggles to discern just what genre it is trying to be. There’s a tinge of romantic comedy, a drop of
hard-hitting drama and the occasional slice of Taken-esque thrills which all mix together and leave a rather sour taste in the mouth.
Focusing on one particular theme would have been a better prospect for directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, but it wasn’t meant to be and what the audience is left with is a mish-mash of genres which doesn’t quite gel like it was clearly intended.
The film relies heavily on the stunning locations of Buenos Aires and New Orleans, as well as the charisma and chemistry from its two leads rather than delving into character developments and this works well. Smith is a commanding presence and dominates every scene demonstrating just why we fell in love with him all those years ago.
Moreover, Robbie is a force to be reckoned with and comes up against the attitude of Smith’s character very well. Her steely, yet vulnerable persona is one of the main highlights in the film.
Focus starts off slowly with nothing of any real significance happening in the opening hour and this is disappointing given the film’s well-worn genre. Many similar films, Oceans Eleven as a prime example, wear their themes with much more confidence.
Apart from a few cleverly choreographed shots showing the con-artists in action during the first 20 minutes, Focus comes across as rather half-baked, almost dull.
However, fast-forward to the final third and it finally kicks into gear. As we follow Smith try and pull off a hugely risky scam, the audience is thrown numerous red herrings with the story never settling until the end credits roll.
Overall, Focus was a test of Will Smith’s prowess as an actor following on from After Earth’s failings and thankfully he shows how versatile he is. Margot Robbie is also engaging to watch and their on-screen chemistry is positively sizzling, but when a film has such an identity crisis, it’s hard to focus on anything else.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/03/01/reasonably-accomplished-focus-review/
The Hollywood favourite recently spoke about how the movie bruised his ego and made him reassess his position as a serious actor. His latest film Focus, is the first after a brief hiatus, but does it mark a return to form?
Focus follows the story of Nicky Spurgeon (Smith), a seasoned con-man who becomes romantically involved with a young woman, played by Margot Robbie. Naturally, life manages to get in the way and years later Nicky is in Buenos Aires trying to carry out his biggest scam yet – but it doesn’t all run smoothly.
The story is reasonably accomplished but struggles to discern just what genre it is trying to be. There’s a tinge of romantic comedy, a drop of
hard-hitting drama and the occasional slice of Taken-esque thrills which all mix together and leave a rather sour taste in the mouth.
Focusing on one particular theme would have been a better prospect for directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, but it wasn’t meant to be and what the audience is left with is a mish-mash of genres which doesn’t quite gel like it was clearly intended.
The film relies heavily on the stunning locations of Buenos Aires and New Orleans, as well as the charisma and chemistry from its two leads rather than delving into character developments and this works well. Smith is a commanding presence and dominates every scene demonstrating just why we fell in love with him all those years ago.
Moreover, Robbie is a force to be reckoned with and comes up against the attitude of Smith’s character very well. Her steely, yet vulnerable persona is one of the main highlights in the film.
Focus starts off slowly with nothing of any real significance happening in the opening hour and this is disappointing given the film’s well-worn genre. Many similar films, Oceans Eleven as a prime example, wear their themes with much more confidence.
Apart from a few cleverly choreographed shots showing the con-artists in action during the first 20 minutes, Focus comes across as rather half-baked, almost dull.
However, fast-forward to the final third and it finally kicks into gear. As we follow Smith try and pull off a hugely risky scam, the audience is thrown numerous red herrings with the story never settling until the end credits roll.
Overall, Focus was a test of Will Smith’s prowess as an actor following on from After Earth’s failings and thankfully he shows how versatile he is. Margot Robbie is also engaging to watch and their on-screen chemistry is positively sizzling, but when a film has such an identity crisis, it’s hard to focus on anything else.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/03/01/reasonably-accomplished-focus-review/
Beckie Shelton (40 KP) rated The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight in Books
Feb 8, 2018
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.beckiebookworm.com
<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/rosella1974/media/download_zpst8hof79o.png.html"; target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah5/rosella1974/download_zpst8hof79o.png~original"; border="0" alt=" photo download_zpst8hof79o.png"/></a>
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🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS
"The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" by Anna Klein
Well Well Well!!! What a little gem this was.
And It's not very often I read a completely clean, no hanky-panky romance and actually enjoy it.
But this one just really appealed to me so I thought I would give it a chance.
And I'm so not joking folks, this is clean with a capital "C" there was one little kiss at the end of the book and it wasn't even a passion filled snog, just a sweet couple second smooch and you know what, it made my girly romantic heart go pitter-patter.
So "The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" is a clean contemporary romance that features heavily around the Renaissance Faire.
Connie is a dressmaker in the week but come the weekend she is lady Constance,
Dominic is a software programmer in his day to day job, and in his leisure, he is Lord Justin competing in jousts and making his own armour.
After Dom saves Connie from a runaway vehicle he tracks her down to ask her out but lacking self-confidence he manages to get himself in a right muddle pretending to be his own best friend.
What follows is a very amusing tale full of twists, turns and even intrigue and it was such a delight to settle in and read.
Connie and Dominic are both such likeable characters.
Dom is so obviously completely smitten over Connie and Connie herself is so confused by her feelings for what she thinks is two men.
Also just have to mention Lucas the best friend, he was a hoot probably my favourite person in this story, he had all the best lines.
So "The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" is a romance of old, it has a lovely old world feel to it, it shows a proper courtship between two imperfect people, both with a bucket load of insecurities to boot.
I was charmed all the way as Connie and dom found there own sweet HEA.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the Author for providing me with an arc of this book, this is my own honest opinion.
<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/rosella1974/media/images%201_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg.html"; target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah5/rosella1974/images%201_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg~original"; border="0" alt=" photo images 1_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg"/></a>
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.beckiebookworm.com/
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
https://www.beckiebookworm.com
<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/rosella1974/media/download_zpst8hof79o.png.html"; target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah5/rosella1974/download_zpst8hof79o.png~original"; border="0" alt=" photo download_zpst8hof79o.png"/></a>
<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/rosella1974/media/images_zpsrd7m8hak.jpg.html"; target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah5/rosella1974/images_zpsrd7m8hak.jpg~original"; border="0" alt=" photo images_zpsrd7m8hak.jpg"/></a>
🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS
"The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" by Anna Klein
Well Well Well!!! What a little gem this was.
And It's not very often I read a completely clean, no hanky-panky romance and actually enjoy it.
But this one just really appealed to me so I thought I would give it a chance.
And I'm so not joking folks, this is clean with a capital "C" there was one little kiss at the end of the book and it wasn't even a passion filled snog, just a sweet couple second smooch and you know what, it made my girly romantic heart go pitter-patter.
So "The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" is a clean contemporary romance that features heavily around the Renaissance Faire.
Connie is a dressmaker in the week but come the weekend she is lady Constance,
Dominic is a software programmer in his day to day job, and in his leisure, he is Lord Justin competing in jousts and making his own armour.
After Dom saves Connie from a runaway vehicle he tracks her down to ask her out but lacking self-confidence he manages to get himself in a right muddle pretending to be his own best friend.
What follows is a very amusing tale full of twists, turns and even intrigue and it was such a delight to settle in and read.
Connie and Dominic are both such likeable characters.
Dom is so obviously completely smitten over Connie and Connie herself is so confused by her feelings for what she thinks is two men.
Also just have to mention Lucas the best friend, he was a hoot probably my favourite person in this story, he had all the best lines.
So "The Modern Woman's Guide to Finding a Knight" is a romance of old, it has a lovely old world feel to it, it shows a proper courtship between two imperfect people, both with a bucket load of insecurities to boot.
I was charmed all the way as Connie and dom found there own sweet HEA.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the Author for providing me with an arc of this book, this is my own honest opinion.
<a href="http://s1376.photobucket.com/user/rosella1974/media/images%201_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg.html"; target="_blank"><img src="http://i1376.photobucket.com/albums/ah5/rosella1974/images%201_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg~original"; border="0" alt=" photo images 1_zpsizg6zdjz.jpg"/></a>
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.beckiebookworm.com/
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
Gareth von Kallenbach (977 KP) rated Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017) in Movies
Jun 19, 2019
Eggsy (Taron Egerton) is back in action for the ultra-secret Kingsman in the new film “Kingsman: The Golden Cirlce”. The film opens with a fantastic action and chase sequence through the London streets and shows a franticly paced mix of action and humor.
The film then shifts into setup mode and the next hour or so is very light on action and instead focuses on Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong), dealing with a devastating attack on the Kingsman from a drug dealer called Poppy (Julianne Moore), who runs her empire with a ruthless and manic style from a 50s themed lair complete with robotic guards and a retro diner and theater.
Poppy runs an organization called The Golden Circle and she has unleashed a devastating plague on the world in an attempt to force the U.S. President to legalize all drugs which would allow her unlimited power and money to further her global agenda.
With their ranks depleted, Eggsy and Merlin head to the states to enlist the help if their U.S. counterparts, the Statesman who while at first reluctant, soon accept the two into their confidence and plan a mission to end the threat Poppy presents once and for all.
Of course complications arise for Eggsy such as his girlfriend and her parents as well as the revelation that Harry (Colin Firth) is alive but suffering amnesia and thus having no memory of his past life and skills in the service of the Kingsman.
One would think that with this setup and cast including the arrivals of Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, and Halle Berry, the film would be a slam dunk to surpass the original. Sadly this is not the case. Writer/Director Matthew Vaughn has opted for a film that has a very large gap of it related to setup and exposition. The film opens and concludes with a nice action sequence, but there is really not much in between to get the adrenaline rush going. The original film had the fantastic church sequence that became one of the most talked about moments of the film and sadly the sequel offers nothing nearly as memorable.
The other issue is that the villain is not nearly as memorable nor interesting as Samuel L. Jackson was to say nothing of his sword footed henchman from the original.
There are some amusing moments in the film but It seems that the new cast was not used to their full potential and that the large gaps of the film that lacked any action was a real setback especially with how well the film opened.
In the end the film is an enjoyable but flawed effort that fails to live up to the original but does manage to offer some decent entertainment for those who set realistic expectations.
http://sknr.net/2017/09/20/kingsman-golden-circle/
The film then shifts into setup mode and the next hour or so is very light on action and instead focuses on Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong), dealing with a devastating attack on the Kingsman from a drug dealer called Poppy (Julianne Moore), who runs her empire with a ruthless and manic style from a 50s themed lair complete with robotic guards and a retro diner and theater.
Poppy runs an organization called The Golden Circle and she has unleashed a devastating plague on the world in an attempt to force the U.S. President to legalize all drugs which would allow her unlimited power and money to further her global agenda.
With their ranks depleted, Eggsy and Merlin head to the states to enlist the help if their U.S. counterparts, the Statesman who while at first reluctant, soon accept the two into their confidence and plan a mission to end the threat Poppy presents once and for all.
Of course complications arise for Eggsy such as his girlfriend and her parents as well as the revelation that Harry (Colin Firth) is alive but suffering amnesia and thus having no memory of his past life and skills in the service of the Kingsman.
One would think that with this setup and cast including the arrivals of Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, and Halle Berry, the film would be a slam dunk to surpass the original. Sadly this is not the case. Writer/Director Matthew Vaughn has opted for a film that has a very large gap of it related to setup and exposition. The film opens and concludes with a nice action sequence, but there is really not much in between to get the adrenaline rush going. The original film had the fantastic church sequence that became one of the most talked about moments of the film and sadly the sequel offers nothing nearly as memorable.
The other issue is that the villain is not nearly as memorable nor interesting as Samuel L. Jackson was to say nothing of his sword footed henchman from the original.
There are some amusing moments in the film but It seems that the new cast was not used to their full potential and that the large gaps of the film that lacked any action was a real setback especially with how well the film opened.
In the end the film is an enjoyable but flawed effort that fails to live up to the original but does manage to offer some decent entertainment for those who set realistic expectations.
http://sknr.net/2017/09/20/kingsman-golden-circle/
Gareth von Kallenbach (977 KP) rated Bridget Jones's Baby (2016) in Movies
Jul 15, 2019
Fifteen years after she charmed the world with the Diary of Bridget Jones, Rene Zellweger is back and her love life is just as complicated as usual, making the audience to laugh nonstop.
At the beginning I didn’t know what to expect from this film because the first movie was great, the second not so much; but it has been 12 years since then, fortunately it was a very pleasant surprise.
In this third film British singleton Bridget has broken up with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) and turned her focus on advancing her career, she is now a top news producer who can’t help but worrying because she is a 43 yrs. old single woman, whose friends are in committed relationships and having kids.
In an attempt to cheer her up one of these fun friends Miranda (Sarah Solemani) take her to a music festival as a getaway weekend, where Bridget meets Jack (Patrick Dempsey), an American love guru with whom she has a one-night stand.
That encounter is followed by a Baptism a week later, where Mr. Darcy is the godparent, whom she shagged but then realized that He hasn’t change and still a workaholic, the reason why they broke up in the first place, so she decided to leave him in bed and try to move on.
But something happened and, like you can probably tell from the title, Bridget is pregnant. But she is not sure who the father is. It could be the confident and gorgeous Jack or the always elegant and perfect gentleman Mark.
Like in the first 2 films we have two very attractive men fighting for her love. But Bridget is less interested in whom she’ll end up with and instead is more concerned with who she’s hurting by giving them the news that one is the father and the other one isn’t. She decides to wait until after giving birth to get a DNA test for the baby, in the meantime both men decide to assist during the stages of her pregnancy creating some delightful charming old-fashioned comedy set ups.
Jones’s Baby really works and I can say with confidence it is one of the best sequels of the year, I think the big difference is that Jones is no longer the butt of jokes, and matter of fact there is not a single chubby joke, and yes Zellweger doesn’t look like the same Bridget (even my husband who loves chick flicks, thought it was a different actress) but hey! She shouldn’t look the same. It’s been 15 years; In fact, neither does Firth as Mr. Darcy or Dr. McDreammy. As a franchise, this Jones has done more than update from a pen to paper diary to an iPad, it’s embraced its characters to allow them to get involved in very funny situations and laid less emphasis on crying to the song “All By Myself”.
At the beginning I didn’t know what to expect from this film because the first movie was great, the second not so much; but it has been 12 years since then, fortunately it was a very pleasant surprise.
In this third film British singleton Bridget has broken up with Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) and turned her focus on advancing her career, she is now a top news producer who can’t help but worrying because she is a 43 yrs. old single woman, whose friends are in committed relationships and having kids.
In an attempt to cheer her up one of these fun friends Miranda (Sarah Solemani) take her to a music festival as a getaway weekend, where Bridget meets Jack (Patrick Dempsey), an American love guru with whom she has a one-night stand.
That encounter is followed by a Baptism a week later, where Mr. Darcy is the godparent, whom she shagged but then realized that He hasn’t change and still a workaholic, the reason why they broke up in the first place, so she decided to leave him in bed and try to move on.
But something happened and, like you can probably tell from the title, Bridget is pregnant. But she is not sure who the father is. It could be the confident and gorgeous Jack or the always elegant and perfect gentleman Mark.
Like in the first 2 films we have two very attractive men fighting for her love. But Bridget is less interested in whom she’ll end up with and instead is more concerned with who she’s hurting by giving them the news that one is the father and the other one isn’t. She decides to wait until after giving birth to get a DNA test for the baby, in the meantime both men decide to assist during the stages of her pregnancy creating some delightful charming old-fashioned comedy set ups.
Jones’s Baby really works and I can say with confidence it is one of the best sequels of the year, I think the big difference is that Jones is no longer the butt of jokes, and matter of fact there is not a single chubby joke, and yes Zellweger doesn’t look like the same Bridget (even my husband who loves chick flicks, thought it was a different actress) but hey! She shouldn’t look the same. It’s been 15 years; In fact, neither does Firth as Mr. Darcy or Dr. McDreammy. As a franchise, this Jones has done more than update from a pen to paper diary to an iPad, it’s embraced its characters to allow them to get involved in very funny situations and laid less emphasis on crying to the song “All By Myself”.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Richard Jewell (2019) in Movies
Mar 2, 2020
Richard longs to work in law enforcement, but his eagerness to make the best impression doesn't endear him to his employers or the people he's bound to protect.
As the Olympics come to Atlanta he manages to get a job working security, he's keen and overly vigilant but when he spots a suspicious package he acts without hesitation. He's the hero and his actions saved countless lives. Looking for any new angles to report the story a local paper identifies Jewell as the main suspect in the case and his life is suddenly turned upside down.
Looking at the state of the media today, films like this highlight just how long people have been suffering for the sake of a story. Innocent until proven guilty doesn't always matter in the court of public opinion when what we're fed is presented as fact. But that's a whole other story we could debate on for years.
This film was made by its actors. Paul Walter Hauser in the lead gave a stellar performance. The naivety and trust he managed to get across had a sincerity that really helped you connect with the film.
Inter-personal relationships also added so much to it overall. His back and forth with Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell) is amusing without breaking the seriousness of what's happening, this odd friendship borders on a brotherly bond and Rockwell's acting gets across the feat, exasperation and determination when we need to feel it.
Kathy Bates may well have been my favourite though. Bobi Jewell, the loving mother torn apart by the actions of the press and police, and literally having her dirty laundry aired in public. the journey of emotions she goes through is striking and again, it's such a genuine feeling that I was completely taken aback when she broke down.
There's also strong talent in the support cast. Olivia Wilde as Kathy Scruggs giving us a rollercoaster too. She shows us the determined journalist who's willing to stowaway in cars for the chance of an interview, to a more vulnerable and redemptive investigative journalist. Her confidence to doubt was well handled by Wilde and the moment she breaks is understated but touching.
The locations and wardrobe give the perfect setting for the film, to actually film in Centennial Park must have been a challenging but motivating opportunity.
Paul Walter Hauser gets a powerful moment near the end of the film that really brought Jewell out of the cocoon we saw in him throughout the film, it was a great end to a wonderfully acted piece of cinema.
While I've praised a lot here it's a film that feels a little heavy at times, the way that law enforcement pile on Jewell every time they interact makes it a tense watch, I don't think there was really any way to lighten that, and actually, I don't think I'd have wanted them to if there was.
Originally posted on: http://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/richard-jewell-movie-review.html
As the Olympics come to Atlanta he manages to get a job working security, he's keen and overly vigilant but when he spots a suspicious package he acts without hesitation. He's the hero and his actions saved countless lives. Looking for any new angles to report the story a local paper identifies Jewell as the main suspect in the case and his life is suddenly turned upside down.
Looking at the state of the media today, films like this highlight just how long people have been suffering for the sake of a story. Innocent until proven guilty doesn't always matter in the court of public opinion when what we're fed is presented as fact. But that's a whole other story we could debate on for years.
This film was made by its actors. Paul Walter Hauser in the lead gave a stellar performance. The naivety and trust he managed to get across had a sincerity that really helped you connect with the film.
Inter-personal relationships also added so much to it overall. His back and forth with Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell) is amusing without breaking the seriousness of what's happening, this odd friendship borders on a brotherly bond and Rockwell's acting gets across the feat, exasperation and determination when we need to feel it.
Kathy Bates may well have been my favourite though. Bobi Jewell, the loving mother torn apart by the actions of the press and police, and literally having her dirty laundry aired in public. the journey of emotions she goes through is striking and again, it's such a genuine feeling that I was completely taken aback when she broke down.
There's also strong talent in the support cast. Olivia Wilde as Kathy Scruggs giving us a rollercoaster too. She shows us the determined journalist who's willing to stowaway in cars for the chance of an interview, to a more vulnerable and redemptive investigative journalist. Her confidence to doubt was well handled by Wilde and the moment she breaks is understated but touching.
The locations and wardrobe give the perfect setting for the film, to actually film in Centennial Park must have been a challenging but motivating opportunity.
Paul Walter Hauser gets a powerful moment near the end of the film that really brought Jewell out of the cocoon we saw in him throughout the film, it was a great end to a wonderfully acted piece of cinema.
While I've praised a lot here it's a film that feels a little heavy at times, the way that law enforcement pile on Jewell every time they interact makes it a tense watch, I don't think there was really any way to lighten that, and actually, I don't think I'd have wanted them to if there was.
Originally posted on: http://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/richard-jewell-movie-review.html
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated The Call Of The Wild (2020) in Movies
Feb 22, 2020 (Updated Feb 23, 2020)
A Sheep In Wolf's Clothing
Call Of The Wild is such a lovely heartfelt movie that will leave everyone that goes to see it with that warm tingly feeling inside their chest and a nice big smile on thier face. Ive seen this film is getting a lot of hate because of its over reliance on cgi animals and while I will admit I found it very distracting to start with after 10 minutes I became accustom and think the movie is much better for using it. Why you ask? well the movie to me is obviously aimed at children and the over all feel of it to me was very much like a classic Disney animated cartoon. Let me explain, theres just something so lovely, peaceful and magical about the whole thing and the way its structured, how exaggerated the characters are, the world it builds and the story. See they all just all come together to give you those same feelings you had when you watched a fairytale like beauty and the beast for the first time. Having the dog be cgi lets him have more cartoonish/exaggerated animations and a way more expressive face really helps us to relate to him better, clearly see how hes feeling and to add to this constant sense of warmth/magic thats present throughout. Theres also a fantastic sense of adventure here and the film uses stunning locations to constantly wow us and keep us in this picturesque perfect dream or tranquil fantasy kind of state. Harrison ford is splendid here playing a lonely man whos almost given up hope of being truly happy until Buck comes along. His perfomance is so touching and you can clearly hear in his Blade Runner style narrations the sadness and pain in his heart which immediately helps you to feel sympathy towards him. Bucks story is equally as sad too, he longs to be part of a pack/family of his own and to one day become a leader answering to no one but himself. His motivations are shown in the form of a powerful and strong black wolf that keeps his confidence up and his determination strong and theres so many messages about never giving up, pushing forward and trusting in your destiny too that its hard not to become fully engrossed in his journey. It may be a simple tale but its an absolute joy to watch and its motivational themes are guaranteed to make anyone think positively about thier own life while watching. I also can not go without mentioning Dan Stevens, boy is this guy talented. His acting here is devilishly cartoonish, over the top wicked and had me grinning constantly in pure delight. Call Of The Wild is an all out beautiful, fun, adorable and exciting adventure for all the family to enjoy and I can not wait till it comes out to buy on 4k.
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