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The Game of Our Lives: The Meaning and Making of English Football
Book
WINNER of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2015 In the last two decades football in...
The Streets
Book
From the author of "Half of the Human Race" (Channel 4 "TV Book Club") comes an intricate and...
The Dead Hand: Reagan, Gorbachev and the Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race
Book
This book is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction 2010. The first full account...
David McK (3364 KP) rated Dragonheart (1996) in Movies
Feb 28, 2021
I've just spotted the release year of this film (1996).
I feel old.
I actually remember going to see this in the cinema when it first came out, and remember the buzz over the Special Effects created for the dragon (voiced by Sean Connery) in the wake of Jurassic Park: if I remember right, I think it may even have got an Academy nomination for the same.
Anyway, this is light family fantasy fare, with Connery (as previously mentioned) voicing the last Dragon alive, and with Dennis Quaid portraying a disillusioned knight who has vowed to wipe out all dragons, blaming the same for corrupting (or so he initially thinks) the son of a tyrant who grew up to be a tyrant himself (as portrayed by David Thewlis).
Also starring a - very young, pre Starship Troopers - Dina Meyers and Pete Postlethwaite, this is an enjoyable enough romp if nothing special!
I feel old.
I actually remember going to see this in the cinema when it first came out, and remember the buzz over the Special Effects created for the dragon (voiced by Sean Connery) in the wake of Jurassic Park: if I remember right, I think it may even have got an Academy nomination for the same.
Anyway, this is light family fantasy fare, with Connery (as previously mentioned) voicing the last Dragon alive, and with Dennis Quaid portraying a disillusioned knight who has vowed to wipe out all dragons, blaming the same for corrupting (or so he initially thinks) the son of a tyrant who grew up to be a tyrant himself (as portrayed by David Thewlis).
Also starring a - very young, pre Starship Troopers - Dina Meyers and Pete Postlethwaite, this is an enjoyable enough romp if nothing special!
The Minds of Billy Milligan
8.0
Rate It
Book
Billy Milligan was a man tormented by twenty-four distinct personalities battling for supremacy - a...
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated 2084 in Books
Nov 8, 2019
Set in an a future that in many ways is all too plausible, David Churchill is about to take the test that determines his future life like everyone else his age. Everybody's present and future is controlled by the all powerful Ministries to the betterment of all mankind. Or so everyone is told.
Following his selection for work in one of the Ministries David very soon finds out the truth. The wider populace are controlled by fear, propaganda and lies. The workers in the Ministry are controlled by greed, power and lust. He soon learns that the whole system is corrupt, rotten to the core, despite the all-powerful and dispassionate AIs that are supposed to only benefit mankind. But as one man there is little he can do, and certainly nobody he can trust. But there are plenty who want to use him as a weapon is their political infighting and power battles.
Clearly a more technological update on 1984, Hogan tackles this grim subject matter from the human perspectives of David and his childhood friend Juli, who is also pulled into the dark world of the power and corruption. Like peeling a rotten onion, layer after layer is removed, finally revealing the rotten heart. Along the way there are some huge plot twists, shocking events and reveals that completely change how the reader understands this future vision. The ending, which it comes, is certainly cataclysmic.
As with the best science fiction, this casts a light on the world we live in with certain current events clearly used as a basis for how Hogan constructed his dystopia. Sometimes the subtext isn't as subtle as it could be, but there is no denying the chilling warning it delivers.
Note: This book contains multiple scenes and themes of a sexual nature
Following his selection for work in one of the Ministries David very soon finds out the truth. The wider populace are controlled by fear, propaganda and lies. The workers in the Ministry are controlled by greed, power and lust. He soon learns that the whole system is corrupt, rotten to the core, despite the all-powerful and dispassionate AIs that are supposed to only benefit mankind. But as one man there is little he can do, and certainly nobody he can trust. But there are plenty who want to use him as a weapon is their political infighting and power battles.
Clearly a more technological update on 1984, Hogan tackles this grim subject matter from the human perspectives of David and his childhood friend Juli, who is also pulled into the dark world of the power and corruption. Like peeling a rotten onion, layer after layer is removed, finally revealing the rotten heart. Along the way there are some huge plot twists, shocking events and reveals that completely change how the reader understands this future vision. The ending, which it comes, is certainly cataclysmic.
As with the best science fiction, this casts a light on the world we live in with certain current events clearly used as a basis for how Hogan constructed his dystopia. Sometimes the subtext isn't as subtle as it could be, but there is no denying the chilling warning it delivers.
Note: This book contains multiple scenes and themes of a sexual nature
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated A Poison Tree in Books
Nov 8, 2019
David Braddock has a happy home life and a successful business he enjoys running. When he runs into occasional acquaintance Jim Fosse in a bar, things begin to change. Jim makes him a surprising offer: kill my wife and I'll kill yours. David has no reason to kill his wife and is appalled at the offer. But then his life begins to slowly fall apart both at home and at work. Perhaps Jim Fosse's suggestion wasn't as outlandish as it first appeared?
As his life spirals out of any of his control, David struggles to come to terms with the reality of his situation. But what is real and what is just a figment of his imagination, grown from a malicious poisonous seed?
This is a fantastic read, if at times pretty bleak. It shows how what appears on the surface to be a stable lifestyle is only held up by the slimmest of supports and these can easily be removed. Throughout all of the main plot following David's fall, some of it from external factors, some of it very much of his own making, there are several twists which take the story in a new directions, some of which are like emotional hammer blows, others are reveals that are obvious in hindsight.
Despite the dark tone of the story Dolan's light touch keeps things moving along preventing the flow from getting anywhere near being described as 'harrowing'. Characters and dialogue are very well handled and there is a natural pace that draws the reader on, even if they are unsure if they want to find out what happens next.
An interesting read and a recommended one for anyone who appreciates realistic characters and plotting.
As his life spirals out of any of his control, David struggles to come to terms with the reality of his situation. But what is real and what is just a figment of his imagination, grown from a malicious poisonous seed?
This is a fantastic read, if at times pretty bleak. It shows how what appears on the surface to be a stable lifestyle is only held up by the slimmest of supports and these can easily be removed. Throughout all of the main plot following David's fall, some of it from external factors, some of it very much of his own making, there are several twists which take the story in a new directions, some of which are like emotional hammer blows, others are reveals that are obvious in hindsight.
Despite the dark tone of the story Dolan's light touch keeps things moving along preventing the flow from getting anywhere near being described as 'harrowing'. Characters and dialogue are very well handled and there is a natural pace that draws the reader on, even if they are unsure if they want to find out what happens next.
An interesting read and a recommended one for anyone who appreciates realistic characters and plotting.
The Pale King
Book
The Pale King is David Foster Wallace's final novel - a testament to his enduring brilliance The...
