Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (1597)

Content

Little Builders - Trucks, Cranes & Digger for Kids

Education and Book

(0 Ratings) Rate It

App

Little Builders - construction site fun for 2-6 year old children! 2 new scenes added. Drive the...

Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Moonglow in Books

Nov 9, 2017

Moonglow

Michael Chabon | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry

8.0

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

Beautifully written

This biography of Michael Chabon's 'grandfather' is a stunning piece of whimsy, the tale of a cranky, old genius that grips and surprises throughout. It is a long, meandering novel masquerading as a memoir, flitting around time and place so that the chapters don't follow consecutively and it's only gradually that we build up a picture of the narrator's family history via the stories told to him by his grandfather.

Despite the fragmented narrative and some aspects considered to be fictional truth, there's real heart and soul here which lifts this novel beyond merely the clever construction, giving it a haunting, poignant undertone.

For me the book is less about the grandfather, but the beautiful, damaged woman with whom he falls in love with. Profoundly affected by her experiences during the Second World War, the narrator's grandmother tells stories to shore up her own sense of self and to hold herself together in the wake of trauma.

While at times it can seem tedious, the author's writing carries it through, moving effortlessly from rambunctious humour to distressing scenes. It is a meditation on families and what constitutes a family when it's not based on blood, histories and accurate memories. A big-hearted and beautifully-written novel.

Kudos

Benedick Lewis (3001 KP) rated Total Recall (1990) in Movies

Aug 15, 2018

Total Recall (1990)

1990 | Action, Sci-Fi

7.6

(71 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Arnold is great in it (2 more)

Sharon Stone looks great

Great are they or aren’t they plot

Bit dated now (0 more)

One of Arnie’s best

By 1990 Schwarzenegger was in full stride and could do no wrong. He even tried his hand in comedy (Twins) with Danny De Vito and won audiences. Futuristic sci fi is where Schwarzenegger’s real strength is (The Running Man, Terminator Franchise, Eraser, Predator..) and the perfect example of this (other than Terminator 2) is Total Recall. It has everything from very quotable lines to an intriguing story which raises the bar on previous Schwarzenegger entries (originally a Philip K Dick story). The basic story line is a construction worker call Doug Quaid dreams of going to Mars but when he finally gets the chance things might not all be what they seem. Is he a secret agent? Is he on Mars? Did he get a divorce? And will those people get air? Sure it looks dated now but this was considered one of the most expensive movies made at the time and the dated graphics can be sidelined for seeing what happens to Schwarzenegger’s Quaid. If you buy the special edition dvd, you’re in for a treat also as Schwarzenegger provides his take on what a commentary is. Check it out.

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated Bad Boys for Life (2020) in Movies

Jan 23, 2020

Bad Boys for Life (2020)

2020 | Action, Comedy, Crime

7.5

(42 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Creaky buddy-cop sequel does feel a bit like a prison sentence. Any film calling itself 'Bad Boys' which opens with one of the 'boys' rushing to the birth of their grandchild likely has serious self-awareness issues, and it proves to be the case here. The same kind of schtick as in the other two films - Smith and Lawrence squabble a lot, shoot people, quietly actually really love each other, etc, etc. Though it has to be said that this film does favour Smith fairly blatantly (one wonders how the salaries of the two stars compare).

Putting a film this dumb, vacuous and mechanical out in January really does throw the weaknesses in its construction into sharp relief: it basically goes comedy bit, action bit, sentimental character bit, comedy bit (and so on) for two hours and then stops. Easy on the eye, but makes one of the Lethal Weapon sequels look like a classy piece of work. I would say at least it's not a Michael Bay movie, but the Prince of Darkness turns up in a cameo acting role. Scrapes an extra star for the odd vaguely funny line and one genuinely startling plot development, but the rest of it is deeply crass and equally predictable.