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RZA recommended American Gangster (2007) in Movies (curated)

 
American Gangster (2007)
American Gangster (2007)
2007 | Drama

"And the last movie I want to recommend is a movie that I’m a part of and it’s called American Gangster. I started to say Man with the Iron Fists. [laughs] Man with the Iron Fists because of the power of dreams, to show that a kid who watched movies and loved movies could one day grow and work with his favorite actors, and bring a movie to life. But that’d be number six, alright? Number five would be American Gangster, because not only is it a film that I’m a part of, but the reason I’m so invested into this movie is because Hollywood invested over $100 million into a black man’s story. This doesn’t happen a lot. It’s a story that captured a time in Harlem when drugs were rampant, music was growing, this whole culture was building up. And even though it shows a negative black man, it still showed the same thing The Godfather showed: the power of family. He did it for family. And it also showed the genius of the black criminal mind when it comes to being an entrepreneur and branding. He had a brand. And being a guy that started a brand like Wu-Tang Clan, when I heard how he made his brand Blue Magic and how he tried to protect his brand, and how he had to fight against others who were infringing upon his brand, it really resonated with me. Denzel Washington gave a great performance, Russell Crowe did as well, and that was a big breakout role for me as well, that movie."

Source
  
White Hot Kiss
White Hot Kiss
Jennifer L. Armentrout | 2019 | Young Adult (YA)
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received this ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This will be my third book by the author, fourth if we class her writing as J. Lynn, and I've liked all of them so the chance to read anything by her is a big YES PLEASE!

After reading both this and Covenant, I've noticed that she likes to write love triangles into her stories. I don't have a problem with them and gladly cheer on for whichever guy I want the heroine to be with. In this I was Team Roth from early on. Zayne might have been the guy Layla'd been dreaming of for years but he never really seemed to want her in that way (or he was just very good at hiding it) and treated her a lot like a close friend or little sister. Roth on the other hand always seemed to be there when she needed him and he teased and flirted and could kick arse, being what he was: Upper Level Demon.

I feel I have to mention Bambi, too. She was cool! Who wouldn't her watching over you?

I also feel like I have to mention Petr. I'm glad about what happened to him, he wasn't a nice guy so he deserved everything he got.

As for the story, I get Layla's feelings of not really belonging to either side. Being born half demon and half warden, Layla struggles in her attempts to fit in with the people--Warden's--who've raised her. Half the Warden's don't like her presence and want her gone while the other half treat her like family. As for being half demon, she's been tagging them for the past God knows how many years and feels more of a Warden and keeps being told she's a Warden. But as the story progresses, she begins to question everything she's ever known and the people around her.

The more I read of the book, the more I fell in love with Roth. He was amazing and just for that last 10% or so this is getting five stars from me. I cried; tears silently falling down my cheeks more or less continuously for the time it took me to finish the story. Crikey!

I need to read the next in the series to figure out what happens next with these guys.

If you're a fan of the author then this shouldn't be missed. If you haven't read anything by Jennifer L. Armentrout and like YA paranormal romances then you should really pick up one of her books, they're really good.
  
99 Homes (2015)
99 Homes (2015)
2015 | Drama, Mystery
9
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Story: 99 Homes starts with hard working young man Dennis Nash (Garfield) trying to keep his family home from being reclaimed by the bank, but he is unsuccessful as real estate broker Rick Carver (Shannon) evicts him from his home with his mother Lynn (Dern) and son Connor.

Desperate for money Dennis turns to Rick who offers him a job involving his construction skills, with this job Dennis starts to learn the trade rising the ranks to become the very person he despised in Rick when he was losing his home.

 

Thoughts on 99 Homes

 

Characters – Dennis Nash is the hard-working construction worker, he works to keep the roof over his family home but when he loses his home he goes to all ends to get a job to regain his home. This means Dennis works for the man who evicts him where he learns the trade to make sure he can his home back become the man he once hated. Rick Carver is a real estate broker, he has been evicting for the bank for years now, he doesn’t believe he is doing anything wrong, but he is following the law. He has made a lot of money in this world and takes Dennis under his wing to follow in his footsteps.


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Performances – Andrew Garfield is fantastic in this leading role, this guy is constantly giving us performances that we are left seeing just how talented this guy it. Michael Shannon is the always brilliant star of most movies, he is calm through every single scene which could have himself getting pushed to the limits. Laura Dern is good too in the supporting role as Dennis mother that questions his work.

Story – The story here shows one man’s struggle to keep his family home but needing to turn to the enemy to make the money. We see how far he must go just to make a difference, but can he cope with becoming the man he hates. The story gives us hard to watch scenes as we see people losing their homes showing us a darker side to real estate in America. This is one story that is a good watch, he can be hard at times, but the story is rewarding.

Settings – The settings show us the housing market and how people can be a community when supporting someone’s miss fortune.


Scene of the Movie – Seeing Dennis question his decision.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – We get a lot of law discussion, but a lot can go over your head.

Final Thoughts – This is a powerful drama that shows how difficult life could be for the people who lose their homes to the people looking just to make the money by taking them.

 

Overall: Strong, powerful drama.

https://moviesreview101.com/2018/08/03/99-homes-2014/
  
The Flight Attendant
The Flight Attendant
Chris Bohjalian | 2018 | Contemporary, Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Cassie Bowden is a flight attendant who works international flights out of JFK airport in New York City. On a flight to Dubai, Cassie meets, Alex Sokolov, a finance guy who is in town on business. They decide to have dinner after they are both settled in the city and that leads to much more. Cassie ends up spending the night with Alex, there's only one problem. She wakes up in the morning and he does not. Laying in a pool of his blood, Cassie doesn't know whether she is responsible or not. She is known for her drunken escapades, but has never encountered anything like this. Instead of telling anyone, she returns to the U.S. She will grapple back and forth with herself, her friends, family, attorney, and FBI about what really happened that night in Dubai and who is Alex Sokolov.

I have loved Chris Bohjalian's books from the first one I read, Midwives.

There was a time in my life when I wanted to be a flight attendant. I'm not sure what happened that I didn't go through with it. I would have loved to travel the world seeing different places no matter how briefly. Although I here the flight attendant life isn't as glamorous as it may seem.

This book really grabbed me from the start. Cassie liked to get drunk and make bad decisions. This time she thought she found a nice guy, but who would want him dead. The FBI thinks she may have been in on it, but she's nothing but a flight attendant, not a spy. Will she continue her wild behavior, or will this incident be a wake up call for her?

Travel with Cassie all over the world as she tries to figure out her life and where it all went wrong. Will she make it out of this situation or will she spend the rest of her life somewhere she doesn't belong?