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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) in Movies
Jun 8, 2022
After having the film halted and its release delayed by the Pandemic, “Jurassic World: Dominion” has finally arrived and closes out the new trilogy in a spectacle of action and visual splendor.
Picking up a few years after the events of “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom”, the dinosaurs have escaped into the wild and now mingle with and at times endanger society.
A multi-national company has been leading the way with a reserve to study the animals and their quirky leader Lewis Dodgson (Campbell Scott), promises the goal is to discover medicines that will benefit all of society.
At the same time, various concerns have arisen such as gigantic Locust swarms that threaten the food supply and activist Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) is convinced that Dodgson and his company are behind it. Desperate to find answers, she seeks the help of Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Dr. Ian Malcom (Jeff Goldblum) to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), find their lives disrupted by the poaching of a unique dinosaur and a genetically unique young girl named Maisie (Isabella Sermon) and this puts them on a path to recover them both which takes them into the illegal world of dinosaur sales and on a collision course with Ellie and her team.
The old and new cast faces numerous dangers along the way before they unite for a rousing final act which effectively combines the original and new trilogy and cast very well.
Director Colin Trevorrow takes his time getting the story up to speed as the early part of the film is heavy on characters and set up before getting to the action but once it starts, there is an endless parade of dinosaurs old and new to endanger the cast and keep the tension moving.
While people may be able to find fault with elements of the plot, pacing, and dialogue, the cast is very effective and it is nice to see the cast from the original series being given a much larger role and how elements from the first film are addressed which have been a point of debate for fans.
The visuals are impressive and there is no end of snarling, biting, and deadly creatures mixed in with favorites old and new while people may want more depth or variation, the creatures are the focal point of the story and the film provides plenty of what fans have come to expect.
The formula of gathering the cast and endangering them with an array of dinosaurs does not change much aside from the locales and creatures involved but fans of the series know what they are getting and “Jurassic World: Dominion” gives fans what they expect and does it well.
DeWanda Wise and Mamoudou Athie are nice additions to the cast and Isabella Sermon appears to be a breakout star in the making. It will be interesting to see how long Universal waits before returning the franchise to cinemas as they have mentioned taking a break following this film, hopefully, it will not be as long as the break between “Jurassic Park 3”, and “Jurassic World” as it will be interesting to see what the next summer event film in the series will offer.
4 stars out of 5.
Picking up a few years after the events of “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom”, the dinosaurs have escaped into the wild and now mingle with and at times endanger society.
A multi-national company has been leading the way with a reserve to study the animals and their quirky leader Lewis Dodgson (Campbell Scott), promises the goal is to discover medicines that will benefit all of society.
At the same time, various concerns have arisen such as gigantic Locust swarms that threaten the food supply and activist Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) is convinced that Dodgson and his company are behind it. Desperate to find answers, she seeks the help of Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Dr. Ian Malcom (Jeff Goldblum) to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), find their lives disrupted by the poaching of a unique dinosaur and a genetically unique young girl named Maisie (Isabella Sermon) and this puts them on a path to recover them both which takes them into the illegal world of dinosaur sales and on a collision course with Ellie and her team.
The old and new cast faces numerous dangers along the way before they unite for a rousing final act which effectively combines the original and new trilogy and cast very well.
Director Colin Trevorrow takes his time getting the story up to speed as the early part of the film is heavy on characters and set up before getting to the action but once it starts, there is an endless parade of dinosaurs old and new to endanger the cast and keep the tension moving.
While people may be able to find fault with elements of the plot, pacing, and dialogue, the cast is very effective and it is nice to see the cast from the original series being given a much larger role and how elements from the first film are addressed which have been a point of debate for fans.
The visuals are impressive and there is no end of snarling, biting, and deadly creatures mixed in with favorites old and new while people may want more depth or variation, the creatures are the focal point of the story and the film provides plenty of what fans have come to expect.
The formula of gathering the cast and endangering them with an array of dinosaurs does not change much aside from the locales and creatures involved but fans of the series know what they are getting and “Jurassic World: Dominion” gives fans what they expect and does it well.
DeWanda Wise and Mamoudou Athie are nice additions to the cast and Isabella Sermon appears to be a breakout star in the making. It will be interesting to see how long Universal waits before returning the franchise to cinemas as they have mentioned taking a break following this film, hopefully, it will not be as long as the break between “Jurassic Park 3”, and “Jurassic World” as it will be interesting to see what the next summer event film in the series will offer.
4 stars out of 5.
Luke (12 KP) rated Castlevania in TV
Oct 2, 2017
Great Animation (2 more)
A-list voice cast.
Faithful to the lore of the video games
Really short (1 more)
Enemy design is a little boring
Castlevania (Netflix) is a 2017 animation series based on the video games of the same name. Based on Castlevania 3: Dracula's Curse, with some elements of Symphony of the Night included, the series follows Trevor Belmont, voiced by Richard Armitage, as he investigates the incident in Wallachia after the townsfolk murdered the wife of Dracula. It's very clear that the Belmont family has had a history with the local church and that Trevor is clearly an outcast in this sleepy little town. Normally with these types of shows, Dracula is usually seen as the villain. However, the first episode shows that he might have just a little bit of humanity left in him, as shown by the voice work done by Graham McTavish. The animation here is abosulutely beautiful. Some of the action scenes are really well done, especially one in particular in the fourth episode. If I had any gripes with this series, I would say that the design of the gargoyle like creatures is a little uninspired. And right now, the series is only four episodes long. But they are currently working on a second season which will be much longer, so that is definitely something to look forward to. Overall, I would say that Castlevania on Netflix is a great series for both fans of the games and of vampire fiction in general. And this might be the best video game adaptation to date. This is definitely a great night to have a curse.
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated T2 Trainspotting (2017) in Movies
Jul 19, 2017
Cast (3 more)
Script
Direction
Soundtrack
Here comes Johnny Yen again...
Choose nostalgia, choose sequels, choose another dose of high energy antics and following four reprobates as they show that although time rolls by, people don’t change. Choose betraying your mates and abandoning them for two decades until you are forced to return home and face your demons. Choose to buy the fact that Renton returns to Edinburgh the same week that Begbie decides to break out of prison after a twenty year stretch and try not to think too much about it. Choose facing the fact that we aren’t getting any younger and not everything works out the way we hope it will. Choose a killer soundtrack, a lighter tone, a witty script and phenomenal direction. Danny Boyle and the cast in this movie have came a long way in the last twenty years and this movie exhibits that awesomely, but doesn’t forget where they came from. This movie was never going to exceed the first movie but it instead functions as a companion piece to the original and actually makes the events of the first movie more meaningful. The film isn’t afraid to play on its legacy and the fact that a good amount of time has passed since the last time we saw these characters, it in fact relies on the time that has past since the original movie. This is one of the best Scottish films ever made and is right up there alongside the original and the two movies together tell a fantastic, gripping and engaging story over a significant period of time.
BobbiesDustyPages (1259 KP) rated The Night Circus in Books
Jul 23, 2017
the amount of detail (3 more)
plot
characters
world building
So real you could smell the popcorn
Read in 2013
Review
I saw this book being mentioned on another site and as soon as I saw the cover I knew I just had to read it but after the first page I almost gave up because I would usually never be able to finish a book that has both second person narration(don't worry it doesn't really happen often) an over description but to my surprise both elements really did help make the Le Cirque des Rêves feel like it was a living and breathing entity.
The plot is wonderful but just about everything kind of just falls onto the back burner compared to the circus there is just so much thought and explanation in every chapter I found myself forgetting that there were actually two people supposed to be dueling to the death.
The characters are wonderful and I feel like even though there is a good amount of them you do get to know and form some sort of opinion on each one of them. The only character I really had a problem with was Marco from his introduction to his very last page I just didn't trust the guy.
The only thing that I was disappointed in was from the summary I definitely thought there was going to be actual magic dueling happening so I kept just kind of waiting and waiting and waiting for it to actually happen but it never really did it is explained why near the end but just couldn't shake off the slight disappointment.
Review
I saw this book being mentioned on another site and as soon as I saw the cover I knew I just had to read it but after the first page I almost gave up because I would usually never be able to finish a book that has both second person narration(don't worry it doesn't really happen often) an over description but to my surprise both elements really did help make the Le Cirque des Rêves feel like it was a living and breathing entity.
The plot is wonderful but just about everything kind of just falls onto the back burner compared to the circus there is just so much thought and explanation in every chapter I found myself forgetting that there were actually two people supposed to be dueling to the death.
The characters are wonderful and I feel like even though there is a good amount of them you do get to know and form some sort of opinion on each one of them. The only character I really had a problem with was Marco from his introduction to his very last page I just didn't trust the guy.
The only thing that I was disappointed in was from the summary I definitely thought there was going to be actual magic dueling happening so I kept just kind of waiting and waiting and waiting for it to actually happen but it never really did it is explained why near the end but just couldn't shake off the slight disappointment.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Everybody's Golf in Video Games
Sep 19, 2017
Good & Promising but frustrating
You might be wondering why on earth I've even played this game. However my other half and I are into our golf, and are also on the look out for couch co-op games, so this seemed a no brainer. And in all fairness despite a few flaws, it's actually a good game.
Let's start with the negatives. The main flaw is the multiplayer mode, which is the main reason we bought this. To begin with, there is only 1 course available on multiplayer. You have to unlock the rest one single player mode, which takes forever (I'm still at it). Which is weird, as how you do in multiplayer has no effect on your single player rankings. The other issue with multiplayer is your can't create your own player in that mode. You can create one in single player & use it in multiplayer, but there's no direct creation in multiplayer. You also can't use multiple custom players if you're using numerous PSN accounts. The only other issue is that they've tried to throw rpg elements into the single player mode and it really isn't necessary. It's a golf game, after all.
Those criticisms aside, it's actually a very fun and quite accurate golf game. The courses are great looking and fairly challenging, and the different mode options are fairly fun too. The single player mode has lots to do and the character builder is very detailed.
If you're into golf and are looking for a fun game to play, I'd probably recommend this. As long as you can put up with the very Japanese style and the multiplayer niggles.
Let's start with the negatives. The main flaw is the multiplayer mode, which is the main reason we bought this. To begin with, there is only 1 course available on multiplayer. You have to unlock the rest one single player mode, which takes forever (I'm still at it). Which is weird, as how you do in multiplayer has no effect on your single player rankings. The other issue with multiplayer is your can't create your own player in that mode. You can create one in single player & use it in multiplayer, but there's no direct creation in multiplayer. You also can't use multiple custom players if you're using numerous PSN accounts. The only other issue is that they've tried to throw rpg elements into the single player mode and it really isn't necessary. It's a golf game, after all.
Those criticisms aside, it's actually a very fun and quite accurate golf game. The courses are great looking and fairly challenging, and the different mode options are fairly fun too. The single player mode has lots to do and the character builder is very detailed.
If you're into golf and are looking for a fun game to play, I'd probably recommend this. As long as you can put up with the very Japanese style and the multiplayer niggles.
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated Ghost Slayer in Books
May 15, 2018
It’s not very often that I encounter a book that perfectly fits the mould for young adult fiction, but Majanka Verstraete’s Ghost Slayer does just that. The book is a pleasant, quick read that kept me just interested enough for me to devour it in a few days. Also, I find that it would appropriate for teens, even though its main character is a twenty-one year old college student.
Kaelyn isn’t your average college ghost hunter. She’s a bit more of a Winchester sort, with less flash and more stab. Fortunately for her, she’s got a ghost to deal with in an old haunted house and the an old flame on her mind. As if that’s not enough, something’s wrong with her powers! It’s a pretty standard paranormal plot, largely feeding off cliché haunted house movie tropes – which I feel is a great beginning place for teenagers.
Character-wise, we see much of the same themes. I don’t want to go into spoilers, but we do encounter a damsel, or rather several, damsels in distress as well as a strong female lead character. So I guess there’s that. I feel that main character’s love interest could have been a little less stereotyped and a bit more fleshed out, too. He was a tad too generic.
Overall, I liked several elements of this book. I think it finished more strongly than it began and had a few excellent concepts at its closing. I look forward to possibly checking out the second book. A special thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy for the purpose of an unbiased review.
Kaelyn isn’t your average college ghost hunter. She’s a bit more of a Winchester sort, with less flash and more stab. Fortunately for her, she’s got a ghost to deal with in an old haunted house and the an old flame on her mind. As if that’s not enough, something’s wrong with her powers! It’s a pretty standard paranormal plot, largely feeding off cliché haunted house movie tropes – which I feel is a great beginning place for teenagers.
Character-wise, we see much of the same themes. I don’t want to go into spoilers, but we do encounter a damsel, or rather several, damsels in distress as well as a strong female lead character. So I guess there’s that. I feel that main character’s love interest could have been a little less stereotyped and a bit more fleshed out, too. He was a tad too generic.
Overall, I liked several elements of this book. I think it finished more strongly than it began and had a few excellent concepts at its closing. I look forward to possibly checking out the second book. A special thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy for the purpose of an unbiased review.
Ross (3284 KP) rated Abducted in Plain Sight (2017) in Movies
Mar 4, 2019
Such a bizarre story, sensitively told
The story of how the Broberg family sleepwalked into their eldest daughter being abducted is truly bizarre. I think a large part of their logical progression and how they didn't react to the red flag warnings stems from their being part of the church of latter-day saints and how the community aspect of the church would give them a false sense of security. I think this was played down quite a lot, possibly being sensitive not to criticise religious beliefs, but does tend to sensationalise the story a little.
The first half of this documentary brilliantly shows how a series of truly weird decisions by the family allowed a manipulative, charismatic man to gradually isolate their daughter from them and allow him to abduct her. There are some moments when you can't help but shout "WTF" (the full version) at the TV.
The second half continues this theme but I felt like I was past the point of disbelief and stupid decision upon stupid decision had left me numb to it.
The story is sensitively told, by the family themselves (and at times by "B", the abductor in his own words). While their actions are clearly stupid and irresponsible, their thought processes are clearly explained and they admit themselves how stupid they were. The family come across as a lovely, sensitive, emotional group that went through a terrible time in the mid-70s.
Some unpleasant sections when it gets into the detail of the abduction, which serve as a real wake-up after the somewhat comedic elements leading up to the abduction.
The first half of this documentary brilliantly shows how a series of truly weird decisions by the family allowed a manipulative, charismatic man to gradually isolate their daughter from them and allow him to abduct her. There are some moments when you can't help but shout "WTF" (the full version) at the TV.
The second half continues this theme but I felt like I was past the point of disbelief and stupid decision upon stupid decision had left me numb to it.
The story is sensitively told, by the family themselves (and at times by "B", the abductor in his own words). While their actions are clearly stupid and irresponsible, their thought processes are clearly explained and they admit themselves how stupid they were. The family come across as a lovely, sensitive, emotional group that went through a terrible time in the mid-70s.
Some unpleasant sections when it gets into the detail of the abduction, which serve as a real wake-up after the somewhat comedic elements leading up to the abduction.
Mickeydubz (4 KP) rated Dark Souls: The card game in Tabletop Games
Apr 29, 2019
Really captures the atmosphere of Dark Souls (3 more)
Forces players to work together if they want to survive
The deck building allows you to customise your play style
A fun and replayable solo mode
The rulebook is confusing to say the least (3 more)
The setup and take down of the game is time consuming
This is not a game for those with short attention spans
Boss fights feel anticlimactic
Great idea, bad execution
The Dark Souls card game is a deep card game that has good replay value and a customisable deck building system that really feels like it exists in the Souls universe. If you enjoy the video game series and deck building games, then you're going to love the Dark Souls board game.
If you are planning on playing it though, you're going to need a few hours free to clear a full game. Most of the games I've played have been 3 hours from setup to takedown, though I have had games as short as 2 hours and as long as 4, it really depends on the skill and experience of your play group. Fortunately, DS is a mostly skill based game with elements of luck that you'd expect from any card game. Build your deck right and play as a team and you shouldn't have too many problems though.
In short, this is a great way to spend an evening, but it's definitely not a game you'll want to play every week. Pick it up and bring it out when you fancy a challenge, you won't regret having it in your collection.
If you are planning on playing it though, you're going to need a few hours free to clear a full game. Most of the games I've played have been 3 hours from setup to takedown, though I have had games as short as 2 hours and as long as 4, it really depends on the skill and experience of your play group. Fortunately, DS is a mostly skill based game with elements of luck that you'd expect from any card game. Build your deck right and play as a team and you shouldn't have too many problems though.
In short, this is a great way to spend an evening, but it's definitely not a game you'll want to play every week. Pick it up and bring it out when you fancy a challenge, you won't regret having it in your collection.
Kaz (232 KP) rated An Unwanted Guest in Books
Jun 16, 2019
A fun 'Whodunnit'
This is the first book I had read by Shari Lapena and I was surprised to find out this was her third book, because it feels like a first novel.
I enjoyed the element of trying to work out who the killer was. However, I did have a problem with several elements within this book.
Firstly, the dialogue at the beginning, is awful. You could tell that Lapena was trying to introduce each character using dialogue, but what she succeeded in doing, was creating forced, unnatural conversation. This does improve throughout the book though.
Secondly for me, there were too many characters. At times, I got confused about who was who and had to keep referring to the beginning, to figure that out. I don't think that the characters were distinctive enough.
I also found some of the decisions of the characters to be implausible and, things which seemed obvious to do, took nearly 200 pages for the characters to figure out.
The ending for me was a bit weak. It felt like Shari Lapena wasn't exactly sure who the killer was herself. So as the book went on, the plot started to unravel. However, I did enjoy the little twist at the end.
Judging by all of the criticisms I have about this novel, you would think that I hated it. However, despite it's many flaws, I quite enjoyed it.
I might re-read 'An Unwanted Guest', but I have no intention of reading any more of Shari Lapena's books in the future.
I enjoyed the element of trying to work out who the killer was. However, I did have a problem with several elements within this book.
Firstly, the dialogue at the beginning, is awful. You could tell that Lapena was trying to introduce each character using dialogue, but what she succeeded in doing, was creating forced, unnatural conversation. This does improve throughout the book though.
Secondly for me, there were too many characters. At times, I got confused about who was who and had to keep referring to the beginning, to figure that out. I don't think that the characters were distinctive enough.
I also found some of the decisions of the characters to be implausible and, things which seemed obvious to do, took nearly 200 pages for the characters to figure out.
The ending for me was a bit weak. It felt like Shari Lapena wasn't exactly sure who the killer was herself. So as the book went on, the plot started to unravel. However, I did enjoy the little twist at the end.
Judging by all of the criticisms I have about this novel, you would think that I hated it. However, despite it's many flaws, I quite enjoyed it.
I might re-read 'An Unwanted Guest', but I have no intention of reading any more of Shari Lapena's books in the future.
Caffeinated Fae (464 KP) rated Marabel and the Book of Fate in Books
Jul 12, 2018
This was the first Tracy Barrett novel that I have read and I have to say I'm really impressed. This book has all of the elements I love mashed into one story. On this middle grade adventure book you get to explore the kingdom of Magikos. Magikos is a magic free kingdom. The only magic that is allowed are the "Evils" (AKA magical creatures) that are kept in Zoos, and stables. If you want to experience magic you have to go to the Barrens. The Barrens are where you'll find all sorts of fantastical creatures including but not limited to faeries, ogres, dragons, and giants.
The plot was well thought out and developed and it was fun to join Marabel on her journey through the Barrens. I could go into more depth but I fear that it might contain spoilers so I will just say, that I enjoyed the girl power nature of this book.
Something else that I liked were the characters. Many times an author will make the rightful heir hated and a jerk, what I liked is that Marco was lovable. He seemed to truly care about Marabel and was a good brother. I loved it. Marabel was lovable as well and though there were times where she could have been self pitting she never once stopped with her adventure. My only issue was that the characters didn't have much depth to them. I would have loved to see more growth in all of the characters.
All in all, I enjoyed this book. I'm giving it 4 stars because I loved the fast paced nature of the book but I also wanted a little more depth.
The plot was well thought out and developed and it was fun to join Marabel on her journey through the Barrens. I could go into more depth but I fear that it might contain spoilers so I will just say, that I enjoyed the girl power nature of this book.
Something else that I liked were the characters. Many times an author will make the rightful heir hated and a jerk, what I liked is that Marco was lovable. He seemed to truly care about Marabel and was a good brother. I loved it. Marabel was lovable as well and though there were times where she could have been self pitting she never once stopped with her adventure. My only issue was that the characters didn't have much depth to them. I would have loved to see more growth in all of the characters.
All in all, I enjoyed this book. I'm giving it 4 stars because I loved the fast paced nature of the book but I also wanted a little more depth.