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Awix (3310 KP) rated The Stepford Wives (1975) in Movies
Mar 30, 2018
Bryan Forbes' SF-horror-satire has left a cultural impression out of all proportion to its original box-office success. Nice modern couple leave grimy New York for idyllic small town of Stepford, where everyone seems happy and the women are thoroughly domesticated. What on Earth can the secret of the place be...?
Subtle storytelling and fine performances do a good job of masking the fact that the premise of the story is basically a paranoid fever-dream; oddly, some people interpreted the film as being anti-feminist and actually misogynistic, when it is actually about male objectification of women and fears of the same (maybe also has stuff to say about consumerism too). Perhaps a bit overlong, but the slow aggregation of details adds a lot to a convincingly unsettling atmosphere. An entertaining horror fable.
Subtle storytelling and fine performances do a good job of masking the fact that the premise of the story is basically a paranoid fever-dream; oddly, some people interpreted the film as being anti-feminist and actually misogynistic, when it is actually about male objectification of women and fears of the same (maybe also has stuff to say about consumerism too). Perhaps a bit overlong, but the slow aggregation of details adds a lot to a convincingly unsettling atmosphere. An entertaining horror fable.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2488 KP) rated The Quick And The Dead (Jack Prester Mysteries #4) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Jack and Ev are sent to Great Smokey Mountains when the superintendent is poisoned. Then someone shoots at her replacement. What do these women have in common and why is someone out to kill them?
A couple of sub-plots take over a little bit in this one, but overall it’s a solid mystery. Things do come together at the end, which is nice. What I really love are Jack and Ev and how their relationship continues to grow and change. Ev’s journey especially continues here. And the thoughts on prayer woven through the book are great as well.
NOTE: This book was published in the 90’s as The Quick and the Dead and recently rereleased as the ebook Great Smokies.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/02/book-review-great-smokies-by-sandy.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
A couple of sub-plots take over a little bit in this one, but overall it’s a solid mystery. Things do come together at the end, which is nice. What I really love are Jack and Ev and how their relationship continues to grow and change. Ev’s journey especially continues here. And the thoughts on prayer woven through the book are great as well.
NOTE: This book was published in the 90’s as The Quick and the Dead and recently rereleased as the ebook Great Smokies.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/02/book-review-great-smokies-by-sandy.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2488 KP) rated Panda-monium (FunJungle, #4) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
FunJungle has been granted the right to add a panda to its zoo, and Teddy is on hand for the big day when Li Ping arrives. However, the truck she was traveling in is empty. The FBI quickly swoops in, but Teddy still gets drawn into the case. Can he figure out what happened to the panda?
Fans of this series are in for another fantastic read. A sub-plot involving the dolphins only add to the fun, and the pages fly by all too quickly. There is danger, red herrings, clues, and laughs before we reach the end and see how all the pieces fit perfectly. Plus it’s fun to see a different side to a couple of the characters here.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/04/book-review-panda-monium-by-stuart.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Fans of this series are in for another fantastic read. A sub-plot involving the dolphins only add to the fun, and the pages fly by all too quickly. There is danger, red herrings, clues, and laughs before we reach the end and see how all the pieces fit perfectly. Plus it’s fun to see a different side to a couple of the characters here.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/04/book-review-panda-monium-by-stuart.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Connie (244 KP) rated Super Powereds: Year 2 in Books
Jun 8, 2018
I love Drew Hayes' writing style, and it only gets better in book two. His characters continue to deepen and you begin to see the differences in the thoughts of the Melbrook crew. They develop very naturally in my opinion, and I loved the occasional shots of other people, staff and outsiders alike.
There were a couple of major events that really threw me for a loop, but it made me wonder how the students would overcome them. They aren't fictional anymore... They're real. It's rare that an author can immerse me that deeply. Well done!
I can't wait to see what happens in book 3 (thankfully it's already out, so that's a bonus) and where the crew goes next!
This book also cost me $4 and is about 850 pages long. Well worth the price!
There were a couple of major events that really threw me for a loop, but it made me wonder how the students would overcome them. They aren't fictional anymore... They're real. It's rare that an author can immerse me that deeply. Well done!
I can't wait to see what happens in book 3 (thankfully it's already out, so that's a bonus) and where the crew goes next!
This book also cost me $4 and is about 850 pages long. Well worth the price!
Anna Steele (111 KP) rated Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013) in Movies
Jun 1, 2018
Netflix and Chill
So I watched this movie for the first time a few weeks after being dumped by my first girlfriend, I was rebounding with this guy that I didn’t really like but he was hot and he wanted to make out with me so I was like, cool, let’s do that. So we go over to his place and he lets me pick the movie. I turn this baby on and we start making out after we get bored of reading the subtitles. After we’re done I go to the restroom and when I come back in the 11 minute long lesbian sex scene is happening before my eyes and I just sit down on the couch and take it in.
It’s iconic, highly recommended for any Netflix and Chill time regardless of the orientation of the couple/group.
It’s iconic, highly recommended for any Netflix and Chill time regardless of the orientation of the couple/group.
Dean (6927 KP) rated Fast & Furious (2009) in Movies
Jun 28, 2018
Original cast members (1 more)
Cool cars
Back on track
At last the majority of the original cast are back for a true sequel. It's great how some of the film relates back to what happened in the first and some of the locations are still the same. I heard mixed reviews of this but I thought it was great and the 2nd best in the series now after the first. Even Han from Tokyo drift makes a brief appearance at the start to tie things in a bit. There is plenty of action and cool cars and a great street race scene thats better than the 1/4 mile race of the first. There are rumours there could be a couple more yet, if they get the cast to stay together and a good story it could make for an even better film.
Ross (3284 KP) rated Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018) in Movies
Jul 31, 2018
More of the same as the cast of the Hotel decide to go on vacation (the family decide to take all their friends obviously), on a cruise ship.
The overall plot was OK, but quote obvious, but the humour was definitely turned down compared to previous films in the series.
And what is with the obligatory DJ battle scenes?! Does Sandler have a load of low quality dance tracks he has to shoe-horn into movies as part of his contract now?! Just a total nonsense ending.
Having said that, my kids loved it.
I think I have unconsciously removed a couple of marks simply because my kids insisted on replicating the finale's dance moves for the next three hours (this makes me sound like a monster but once you know what that involves you'll understand!).
The overall plot was OK, but quote obvious, but the humour was definitely turned down compared to previous films in the series.
And what is with the obligatory DJ battle scenes?! Does Sandler have a load of low quality dance tracks he has to shoe-horn into movies as part of his contract now?! Just a total nonsense ending.
Having said that, my kids loved it.
I think I have unconsciously removed a couple of marks simply because my kids insisted on replicating the finale's dance moves for the next three hours (this makes me sound like a monster but once you know what that involves you'll understand!).
Hazel (2934 KP) rated When You Have To Go There in Books
Sep 16, 2018
Detective Lipscomb is a very strong character. Finding herself the scapegoat of all that has gone wrong on a previous case, she ends up being right at the centre of another high profile serial murder case but this isn't your ordinary serial killer; the victims are Helen's colleagues and it will take all her police know-how to solve the case whilst being under the microscope of the top brass who are just waiting for an excuse to get rid of her.
Written at a perfect pace with a great story line and tense moments, this is a good read that I would recommend.
I was kindly sent a copy of this book by the author after having previously read and reviewed a couple of his previous books - The Group and The Litter - which I thoroughly enjoyed and this one was no different.
Written at a perfect pace with a great story line and tense moments, this is a good read that I would recommend.
I was kindly sent a copy of this book by the author after having previously read and reviewed a couple of his previous books - The Group and The Litter - which I thoroughly enjoyed and this one was no different.
Roxanne (13 KP) rated Thank You for Smoking in Books
Nov 14, 2018
This book was an ok read, it took me quite a while to get into it as the writing style is very different to what i'm used to. I found the story to be quite jumbled and sometimes I just had no idea which of the characters were speaking, I had to sometimes read a page a couple of times in order for it to sink in. Some of it a found quite funny but other bits I didn't really understand. The novel is very political, which probably explains why I kept losing interest (not to say it wasn't interesting at all- which is why I gave it 3 stars, I did like it, mainly because it was just different). The story had some good twists but I do believe that the ending was very unrealistic.
Cumberland (1142 KP) rated Perfectly Normal in Books
Nov 30, 2018
Loved it
* I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*
This was a great YA read, however I did have a couple of things I didn't like about it. It started off slow, and the teens were a little unrealistic at times.
Other than that the book was great. Things quickly took an unexpected turn making it impossible to put the book down. I also really liked that this book didn't focus on romance. The YA genre usually throws unnecessary teen romance around everywhere, so it was nice to read a book where the characters had other things going on.
I will warn future readers that this book does end in a cliff. I was still satisfied with the ending, but I'm definitely going to pick up the next book as soon as possible.
This was a great YA read, however I did have a couple of things I didn't like about it. It started off slow, and the teens were a little unrealistic at times.
Other than that the book was great. Things quickly took an unexpected turn making it impossible to put the book down. I also really liked that this book didn't focus on romance. The YA genre usually throws unnecessary teen romance around everywhere, so it was nice to read a book where the characters had other things going on.
I will warn future readers that this book does end in a cliff. I was still satisfied with the ending, but I'm definitely going to pick up the next book as soon as possible.