Search
Gardens of the Italian Lakes
Marianne Majerus and Steven Desmond
Book
The gardens of the Italian Lakes are a favourite destination for garden lovers and groups. The...
Le Trésor de Rackham le Rouge (Red Rackham's Treasure) (Tintin #12)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Herge's classic comic book creation Tintin is one of the most iconic characters in children's books....
Spilt Milk
6.0
Rate It
Book
The new novel from the author of 22 Britannia Road, Amanda Hodgkinson. 'Hogkinson's second novel is...
The Boat Runner: A Novel
Book
In the tradition of All The Light We Cannot See and The Nightingale, comes an incandescent debut...
Journey to the Centre of the Earth: The Remarkable Voyage of Scientific Discovery into the Heart of Our World
Book
The journey to the centre of the earth is a voyage like no other we can imagine. Over 3000 km below...
Paradise Bay
Games
App
Welcome to Paradise! Build your tropical island, discover new lands, and trade with friends,...
Regret (Under My Skin #1)
8.0
Rate It
Book
When Brian “Brin” Schubert’s condo floods, he takes his co-worker up on the offer to stay on...
M_M Contemporary Romance
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Dogma (1999) in Movies
Jul 28, 2018
Funny and Deep
Talk about off the beaten path. Dogma is at weird as it comes. Offensive to some, hilarious to others, if you can take it for what it is and not get overly deep about it, you'll find yourself watching a quality comedy. The plot? A little complicated to explain without using more words than I would like. I will say that it involves two fallen angels who are looking for a way back into heaven.
Acting: 10
Beginning: 8
Characters: 10
You want characters? This film has them by the boatload. Outside of the fallen angels, you will meet the likes of a woman who is the savior of humanity, a messenger from heaven, and an apostle holding a grudge just to name a few. Dogma is a melting pot of personalities and temperament which is a huge part of what makes the film such a good one. You are going to love Jay the Prophet. He is just plain hilarious. And Alan Rickman's dry sarcasm always makes for a good laugh.
Cinematography/Visuals: 8
Conflict: 8
There are never any real lulls where the film gets boring. There is a lot of dialogue but the progression of the conflict keeps the film moving at a solid speed. I did dock a couple of point for a brief dead spot about an hour in, but there is pretty solid action and comedy throughout for the most part.
Genre: 7
There is a special scene where the characters are discussing a John Hughes movie. The dialogue builds and, before you know it, you're cracking up at every word they're saying. It's scenes like these that contribute to making the film a pretty solid comedy. If the strip club scene doesn't make you laugh, I don't know what will!
Memorability: 10
The originality of the plot and the messaging help the film stand out in my mind among a sea of other movies I've seen. I appreciated the interesting introspection of faith and life. The Belief Vs. Ideas convo was another solid moment. Dogma is funny, but it gives you some things to digest as well.
Pace: 8
Plot: 5
While the plot is certainly intriguing, it was also a bit of a hindrance for me as it got confusing as all get out in certain spots. The struggle to find a short plot description above was real. Not sure what they could have done differently here, but there were certain spots where my experience was dampened by all the crazy stuff happening.
Resolution: 8
Overall: 82
With a solid cast (Ben Afleck and Matt Damon always work well together) and a number of memorable moments, Dogma is definitely worth a watch. Glad I can check this one off the list and add it to my favorites.
Acting: 10
Beginning: 8
Characters: 10
You want characters? This film has them by the boatload. Outside of the fallen angels, you will meet the likes of a woman who is the savior of humanity, a messenger from heaven, and an apostle holding a grudge just to name a few. Dogma is a melting pot of personalities and temperament which is a huge part of what makes the film such a good one. You are going to love Jay the Prophet. He is just plain hilarious. And Alan Rickman's dry sarcasm always makes for a good laugh.
Cinematography/Visuals: 8
Conflict: 8
There are never any real lulls where the film gets boring. There is a lot of dialogue but the progression of the conflict keeps the film moving at a solid speed. I did dock a couple of point for a brief dead spot about an hour in, but there is pretty solid action and comedy throughout for the most part.
Genre: 7
There is a special scene where the characters are discussing a John Hughes movie. The dialogue builds and, before you know it, you're cracking up at every word they're saying. It's scenes like these that contribute to making the film a pretty solid comedy. If the strip club scene doesn't make you laugh, I don't know what will!
Memorability: 10
The originality of the plot and the messaging help the film stand out in my mind among a sea of other movies I've seen. I appreciated the interesting introspection of faith and life. The Belief Vs. Ideas convo was another solid moment. Dogma is funny, but it gives you some things to digest as well.
Pace: 8
Plot: 5
While the plot is certainly intriguing, it was also a bit of a hindrance for me as it got confusing as all get out in certain spots. The struggle to find a short plot description above was real. Not sure what they could have done differently here, but there were certain spots where my experience was dampened by all the crazy stuff happening.
Resolution: 8
Overall: 82
With a solid cast (Ben Afleck and Matt Damon always work well together) and a number of memorable moments, Dogma is definitely worth a watch. Glad I can check this one off the list and add it to my favorites.
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Deep Blue (Waterfire Saga, #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
<i>Deep Blue</i> could have been amazing. Donnelly had a pretty good concept going: the world was unique, completely different, and it's obvious lots of planning went into the building – there's <b>a lot of imagery to clearly depict the underwater of the merpeople, the merpeople had their own distinct languages and cultures</b>. The writing, especially the chant during the waterfire and throughout the book by the witches, was <b>poetic and rhythmic.</b>
The execution, however, was poor.
Serafina and her friend, Neela, were <b>faced against formidable odds after Miromara is attacked that could have been really interesting to see them play out</b>. Instead, the two of them run. Throughout the book, they're chased by a person named Traho, who apparently wants them alive for some unknown reason (currently unknown, that is). The two are rescued by the Praedatori, who are apparently a band of protectors who protect the sea from "terragoggs."
Yet, they are attacked. Again. So they run and get intercepted by Rorrim Drol, the lord of the mirror realm who feeds on fears. And...
Wait for it...
They run again.
<table class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center;"><img style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="http://bookwyrmingthoughts.bookblog.io/wp-content/uploads/sites/317/2015/05/Patrick-running-funny-gif-comics-celbrities-picture.gif"; width="320" height="183" border="0" /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I had to use this.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>
<b>Obviously by that point (when it's almost sixty percent of the book), when they've been attacked and they run or something of the similar sort, and the cycle is repeated quite a few times...</b>
<b style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Even the most patient readers become impatient by that point</b><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">. Either </span>that<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> or I'm not exactly as patient as some people have said about me (you lovelies are sorrily wrong). Where are the other five? Why have we only found three (okay, one, because two are "found" at the very beginning </span>anyway<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">) by this point? Are we still looking for the mermaids involved by the next book as well? If that's the case, I'm not interested. If it's an entirely different case, then what's the probability that the other mermaids are found quickly and swiftly in the midst of attacking and running? There's really only 40% of the book left to do all of that.</span>
The world, no matter how unique or different it is, or how there's a variety of imagery, won't account with how<b> there's a bunch of made-up language that would have been extremely hard for me to figure out without the audiobook to help me (no thanks to the accent</b> – accents are NOT fun when the bus is chugging down roads and highways). I did, however, love the songspell (Open Your Eyes by Bea Miller) that accompanies the book.
<i>Deep Blue</i> is definitely different from Donnelly's other books, but with all the running from the attacks and rarely anything being accomplished by the majority of the book, I simply didn't have the patience. If anything, I probably <i>shouldn't</i> have lasted as long as I did.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/dnf-audiobook-review-deep-blue-by-jennifer-donnelly/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
The execution, however, was poor.
Serafina and her friend, Neela, were <b>faced against formidable odds after Miromara is attacked that could have been really interesting to see them play out</b>. Instead, the two of them run. Throughout the book, they're chased by a person named Traho, who apparently wants them alive for some unknown reason (currently unknown, that is). The two are rescued by the Praedatori, who are apparently a band of protectors who protect the sea from "terragoggs."
Yet, they are attacked. Again. So they run and get intercepted by Rorrim Drol, the lord of the mirror realm who feeds on fears. And...
Wait for it...
They run again.
<table class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center;"><img style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="http://bookwyrmingthoughts.bookblog.io/wp-content/uploads/sites/317/2015/05/Patrick-running-funny-gif-comics-celbrities-picture.gif"; width="320" height="183" border="0" /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I had to use this.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>
<b>Obviously by that point (when it's almost sixty percent of the book), when they've been attacked and they run or something of the similar sort, and the cycle is repeated quite a few times...</b>
<b style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Even the most patient readers become impatient by that point</b><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">. Either </span>that<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> or I'm not exactly as patient as some people have said about me (you lovelies are sorrily wrong). Where are the other five? Why have we only found three (okay, one, because two are "found" at the very beginning </span>anyway<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">) by this point? Are we still looking for the mermaids involved by the next book as well? If that's the case, I'm not interested. If it's an entirely different case, then what's the probability that the other mermaids are found quickly and swiftly in the midst of attacking and running? There's really only 40% of the book left to do all of that.</span>
The world, no matter how unique or different it is, or how there's a variety of imagery, won't account with how<b> there's a bunch of made-up language that would have been extremely hard for me to figure out without the audiobook to help me (no thanks to the accent</b> – accents are NOT fun when the bus is chugging down roads and highways). I did, however, love the songspell (Open Your Eyes by Bea Miller) that accompanies the book.
<i>Deep Blue</i> is definitely different from Donnelly's other books, but with all the running from the attacks and rarely anything being accomplished by the majority of the book, I simply didn't have the patience. If anything, I probably <i>shouldn't</i> have lasted as long as I did.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/dnf-audiobook-review-deep-blue-by-jennifer-donnelly/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
Lee (2222 KP) rated The Meg (2018) in Movies
Aug 14, 2018
The acting is awful - from everyone (1 more)
The script is terrible
Fun action movie
If you've seen any of the posters or trailers for The Meg, you know exactly what you're in for. It's basically Jason Statham versus a big ass prehistoric shark, and that's pretty much all you need to know. If you're expecting a decent script, without any clichés, or any kind of decent acting for that matter, then you're likely to be disappointed. This movie pretty much does what it says on the tin.
Jason Statham stars as Jonas Taylor, currently retired from deep sea diving hero work and living a chilled life in Thailand, beer permanently in his hand. Five years earlier, Jonas was involved in an underwater operation which ended badly - a mysterious sea creature put a huge dent in the side of a submersible and Jonas had to make the painful decision to leave some men behind in order to save the rest. But when a hi-tech marine research station sends a crew down more than 10,000 metres into the ocean, beyond an icy barrier of hydrogen sulphide and into unexplored waters, they encounter a 70ft megalodon and find themselves trapped. Time for Jonas, the only man capable of rescuing them, to be lured out out of retirement. Unfortunately though, as the submersibles return to the surface, they unknowingly create a thermal pathway through the icy cold layer, and the meg follows them back up.
By this point we're nearly half way through the movie, and we've so far only caught a couple of glimpses of the meg and the kind of damage it can cause. The rest of the time up until now has been filled with introducing us to a large number of dull characters, both on the research station and the submersible. To be fair though, the script is terrible - full of clichés and failed attempts at humour and one-liners, but even then the delivery from literally everyone involved is pretty awful, the acting on show here is shocking. When things do kick off with the shark though, it's less talk more action, and that's when the film is at its most enjoyable.
Many of the action scenes are, as you'd expect, ridiculous, over the top and wildly enjoyable. Jonas tries 'sneaking up' on the meg in order to fire it with a tracking dart, only for the meg to give chase as Jonas is rapidly winched back in, swerving to avoid the huge jaws. Later on, the meg finds its way to a densely populated beach. Hundreds of nicely arranged bathers in their rubber rings, men rolling around in zorbs, people on jet skis - the perfect scenario for mass panic and carnage.
Overall, this is a good fun action movie which really should have focused a little more on a tighter script. Still worth a watch though.
Jason Statham stars as Jonas Taylor, currently retired from deep sea diving hero work and living a chilled life in Thailand, beer permanently in his hand. Five years earlier, Jonas was involved in an underwater operation which ended badly - a mysterious sea creature put a huge dent in the side of a submersible and Jonas had to make the painful decision to leave some men behind in order to save the rest. But when a hi-tech marine research station sends a crew down more than 10,000 metres into the ocean, beyond an icy barrier of hydrogen sulphide and into unexplored waters, they encounter a 70ft megalodon and find themselves trapped. Time for Jonas, the only man capable of rescuing them, to be lured out out of retirement. Unfortunately though, as the submersibles return to the surface, they unknowingly create a thermal pathway through the icy cold layer, and the meg follows them back up.
By this point we're nearly half way through the movie, and we've so far only caught a couple of glimpses of the meg and the kind of damage it can cause. The rest of the time up until now has been filled with introducing us to a large number of dull characters, both on the research station and the submersible. To be fair though, the script is terrible - full of clichés and failed attempts at humour and one-liners, but even then the delivery from literally everyone involved is pretty awful, the acting on show here is shocking. When things do kick off with the shark though, it's less talk more action, and that's when the film is at its most enjoyable.
Many of the action scenes are, as you'd expect, ridiculous, over the top and wildly enjoyable. Jonas tries 'sneaking up' on the meg in order to fire it with a tracking dart, only for the meg to give chase as Jonas is rapidly winched back in, swerving to avoid the huge jaws. Later on, the meg finds its way to a densely populated beach. Hundreds of nicely arranged bathers in their rubber rings, men rolling around in zorbs, people on jet skis - the perfect scenario for mass panic and carnage.
Overall, this is a good fun action movie which really should have focused a little more on a tighter script. Still worth a watch though.