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David McK (3649 KP) rated Fast & Furious 9 (2021) in Movies
Jan 6, 2025
I remember back when these films used to be relatively grounded.
If I say flying a jet-powered car in outer space happens in this, that will give you a clue how far the series has moved on since then.
The rest of the film? Completely ignores the laws of physics, with car chases, car crashes and shoot-out galore, yet with our heroes coming out of the same with nary a scratch on them.
Go for the stunts.
Leave your brain at home.
If I say flying a jet-powered car in outer space happens in this, that will give you a clue how far the series has moved on since then.
The rest of the film? Completely ignores the laws of physics, with car chases, car crashes and shoot-out galore, yet with our heroes coming out of the same with nary a scratch on them.
Go for the stunts.
Leave your brain at home.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019) in Movies
Aug 25, 2019 (Updated Aug 25, 2019)
Liar liar pants on fire
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark feels like if it had been released in the 90s then it probably would of been quite an entertaining/passable movie but as it stands now it brings nothing we haven't seen a million times already to the table & sadly not even nostalgia can save it from becoming tiresome after just 40minutes in. One thing I certainly can not fault here is its high production standards, its not only shot extremely well but sets & creatures are all interesting/creative & are show clear inspiration from classic horror movies & their tropes. A huge problem is tension, tone & pacing however. Tone is somwhere in between Goosebumps & a Conjuring movie on one side its far to goofy/tame to cater to adults then on the other its far too scary/disturbing for kids but it never seems to find the right balance between the two. Its creature also while they look good loose their menace & terror due to being shown far to much for extended periods of time leading to times where they would become laughable & taken less seriously by the audience. Plot & situations are also highly predictable & this the seems to make the already long run time sem like an eternity leading to scenes that are especially far to dialog heavy which killing the pacing because we already know what's coming next. Story is unnecessarily long winded in a need to try & make the film different but once it reaches its conclusion its hard to care because its really not an interesting tale at all. Themes of how the simple power of story telling, lies & made up tales can effect peoples lives in the most drastic of ways are very interesting but not particularly executed well instead becoming jumbled & contradicted when mixed into the long drawn out plot. Acting is so so but no one really stands out or expresses emotion that belivable making character connections hard. So sadly I cant recomend seeing this movie, while its fine & quite well made its just bland/uninteresting & everything thats good about it is spoiled/shown in the trailer (if you've seen trailer the film will be extremely predictable for you & offer no surprises). Save your money or go see crawl instead.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Overlord (2018) in Movies
May 13, 2019
Overbored
#overlord is overlong, #boring, repetitive dross with no #soul of its own.
I was looking forward to this #film walking in, it looked like a throw back to 2002 #action horror films like #DogSoldiers, #Deathwatch & #28dayslater but it couldnt be any further from any of them if it tried. When Overlord is a #war film its passable enough (mainly because it outright steals all the best bits from #savingprivateryan & #bandofbrothers) but its when it tries its hand at horror it becomes down right #embarrassing. We know whats lurking in the basement going into the film but for some reason it keeps it a mystery for far to long instead feeding us this dull recycled generic plot we've seen a million times before we get to 'what we came to see'. Once the horror hits its done extremely poorly, lacking in suspense, quality & grittiness. I get they were going for a kid of #grindhouse sort of style but it takes itself far to seriously losing the fun of such a film. Acting is as painful as the dialog which is delivered by most of the cast as if you gave a script to someone on the street & asked them to read it. Not one character is likable & they all seem to be un phased by wounds or the horrors they witness. #Creature design is unimaginative, cgi is #poor & set pieces are dull however there are some great tracking shots at times & a bit of nice imagery but its to few & far between. Its nice to see an 18 certificate film like this for a change but I found Overlord to be a huge let down & a big wasted opportunity. Pitty. #odeon #odeonlimitless #horror #gore #scary #natzi #war #worldwar #thursdaythoughts #filmbuff #filmcritic #ww2 #nasty #zombies #halloween #callofduty
I was looking forward to this #film walking in, it looked like a throw back to 2002 #action horror films like #DogSoldiers, #Deathwatch & #28dayslater but it couldnt be any further from any of them if it tried. When Overlord is a #war film its passable enough (mainly because it outright steals all the best bits from #savingprivateryan & #bandofbrothers) but its when it tries its hand at horror it becomes down right #embarrassing. We know whats lurking in the basement going into the film but for some reason it keeps it a mystery for far to long instead feeding us this dull recycled generic plot we've seen a million times before we get to 'what we came to see'. Once the horror hits its done extremely poorly, lacking in suspense, quality & grittiness. I get they were going for a kid of #grindhouse sort of style but it takes itself far to seriously losing the fun of such a film. Acting is as painful as the dialog which is delivered by most of the cast as if you gave a script to someone on the street & asked them to read it. Not one character is likable & they all seem to be un phased by wounds or the horrors they witness. #Creature design is unimaginative, cgi is #poor & set pieces are dull however there are some great tracking shots at times & a bit of nice imagery but its to few & far between. Its nice to see an 18 certificate film like this for a change but I found Overlord to be a huge let down & a big wasted opportunity. Pitty. #odeon #odeonlimitless #horror #gore #scary #natzi #war #worldwar #thursdaythoughts #filmbuff #filmcritic #ww2 #nasty #zombies #halloween #callofduty
Cynthia Armistead (17 KP) rated Walking Dead (Walker Papers, #4) in Books
Mar 1, 2018
I've enjoyed the other Walker Papers novels, but <i>Walking Dead</i> definitely showed more depth and maturity than the earlier volumes. Both the author and her lead character have grown very nicely. It's refreshing to read a series that does not fall into the all-too-familiar paranormal romance formula!
Another thing I enjoy about this series is that heroine Joanne has a supporting ensemble of friends and coworkers who have their own talents and foibles, including a delightful married couple, a sexy father figure (who isn't related to anyone we've met so far), and an even sexier boss. This time around we were treated to the return of a character Joanne rescued in an earlier volume who has grown into some of her own ass-kicking abilities.
Joanne is far from perfect, but she doesn't make the same mistakes over and over again, which is a pet peeve of mine and occurs all too often in some other authors works. (There's consistency, and then there's refusing to learn from mistakes to the extent that I have to believe that a character is too stupid to live.)
There is a thread that ties all of the Walker Papers together, but C.E. Murphy is keeping things fresh enough that I, at least, am not getting bored. I would, however, caution that this is a series that is best read completely and in order. I began reading one of the novels without realizing that there had been a novella published between it and the previous one, and found myself well and truly confused. Walking Dead definitely is not a good starting point for the series! While a new reader wouldn't necessarily be completely lost, she would miss far too much of the magic.
Another thing I enjoy about this series is that heroine Joanne has a supporting ensemble of friends and coworkers who have their own talents and foibles, including a delightful married couple, a sexy father figure (who isn't related to anyone we've met so far), and an even sexier boss. This time around we were treated to the return of a character Joanne rescued in an earlier volume who has grown into some of her own ass-kicking abilities.
Joanne is far from perfect, but she doesn't make the same mistakes over and over again, which is a pet peeve of mine and occurs all too often in some other authors works. (There's consistency, and then there's refusing to learn from mistakes to the extent that I have to believe that a character is too stupid to live.)
There is a thread that ties all of the Walker Papers together, but C.E. Murphy is keeping things fresh enough that I, at least, am not getting bored. I would, however, caution that this is a series that is best read completely and in order. I began reading one of the novels without realizing that there had been a novella published between it and the previous one, and found myself well and truly confused. Walking Dead definitely is not a good starting point for the series! While a new reader wouldn't necessarily be completely lost, she would miss far too much of the magic.
Deborah (162 KP) rated Richard III in Books
Dec 21, 2018
Baldwin has written extensively about this period, so I had high expectations of his latest offering. The illustrations in this volume are great and the portrait of Richard is one which I don't believe I've seen before. The author also makes some sensible comments. So far so good, but I do feel that it doesn't go quite far enough. It's not a long book and a very easy read, but Baldwin seems a bit too keen to been seen as objective to commit himself as having too much of an opinion either way. Most of what is presented is done in a factual way and without a lot of analysis, I felt. Most of the evidence I felt was on the positive side, or at least not damning.
Beyond saying he thinks it unlikely that Richard has his nephews murdered (even his detractors agree that he was not stupid), he doesn't really go into this a lot, or examine Elizabeth Woodville's reasons for letting her daughters out of sanctuary or her later reaction to the Simnel rebellion. I know he has written separate volumes on both Elizabeth Woodville and Richard of York, the younger of her sons, but the issue is almost completely sidestepped here which is interesting, as this is really the question lying at the heart of The Great Debate.
So, my overall opinion was this this was very readable, fantastically illustrated and good, as far as it went. It would make a good introduction to the subject. Personally, I would have liked it to have gone a bit further. I couldn't help but compare it to Paul Murray Kendall's book. It's some time since I read it, but I was left with an enormous feel for the period and a sense of colour and life and I didn't quite get that from Baldwin.
Beyond saying he thinks it unlikely that Richard has his nephews murdered (even his detractors agree that he was not stupid), he doesn't really go into this a lot, or examine Elizabeth Woodville's reasons for letting her daughters out of sanctuary or her later reaction to the Simnel rebellion. I know he has written separate volumes on both Elizabeth Woodville and Richard of York, the younger of her sons, but the issue is almost completely sidestepped here which is interesting, as this is really the question lying at the heart of The Great Debate.
So, my overall opinion was this this was very readable, fantastically illustrated and good, as far as it went. It would make a good introduction to the subject. Personally, I would have liked it to have gone a bit further. I couldn't help but compare it to Paul Murray Kendall's book. It's some time since I read it, but I was left with an enormous feel for the period and a sense of colour and life and I didn't quite get that from Baldwin.
Veronica Pena (690 KP) rated Darker (Fifty Shades as Told by Christian, #2) in Books
Jan 12, 2020
I far more enjoyed this novel than it's counterpart. Along the lines of my original review of its predecessor, I think that Christian is a far more interesting character than Ana. Ana's major character traits are that she's a virgin and kind of has mommy issues. I find his point of view, his thoughts, and his dreams, or nightmares rather, much more compelling than anything Ana really has to say. I think that he is a much stronger character and much more realistic than she is.
I originally rated this novel a 5/5 because I do truly love the story, I like the mystery, the thrill, the sex, I think it's great. I revised it, though, because as soon as I get into a good rhythm, reading 20 pages and feeling like it's been 5 minutes, I get pulled out of the story by something so small and seemingly irrelevant like a phrase or wording or the way they do something. It pulls me out of the story and forces me to remember that the writing isn't all that good. I've said previously about the dialogue and that always gets me - again, they sound English and they're not!!!! I'm not sure if E.L. James had an English editor either, but it seems like she could've because I think an American one would've caught those things.
Overall, I think that this is the best book of the 4 thus far - Fifty Shades of Grey, Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, and Darker. While I have enjoyed them all, somewhat of a guilty pleasure, I'm eager to read the final chapter of the trilogy and rage about how there isn't a Christian perspective. Stay tuned.
I originally rated this novel a 5/5 because I do truly love the story, I like the mystery, the thrill, the sex, I think it's great. I revised it, though, because as soon as I get into a good rhythm, reading 20 pages and feeling like it's been 5 minutes, I get pulled out of the story by something so small and seemingly irrelevant like a phrase or wording or the way they do something. It pulls me out of the story and forces me to remember that the writing isn't all that good. I've said previously about the dialogue and that always gets me - again, they sound English and they're not!!!! I'm not sure if E.L. James had an English editor either, but it seems like she could've because I think an American one would've caught those things.
Overall, I think that this is the best book of the 4 thus far - Fifty Shades of Grey, Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, and Darker. While I have enjoyed them all, somewhat of a guilty pleasure, I'm eager to read the final chapter of the trilogy and rage about how there isn't a Christian perspective. Stay tuned.
The Deeper Genome: Why There is More to the Human Genome Than Meets the Eye
Book
Over a decade ago, as the Human Genome Project completed its mapping of the entire human genome,...
TravelersWife4Life (31 KP) rated The Choice Is Yours: 52 Choices for Happier Lives in Books
Feb 24, 2021
I loved Barbra Dahlgren’s sense of humor and the light in her heart that shines throughout this devotional. The humor in this book reminds me of Chonda Pierce and Jen Hatmaker. Barbra Dahlgren encourages Christians to find laughter in every day and to make good choices in our lives. I have only read about half of the devotions so far, there are fifty-two of them (Barbra Dahlgren suggests reading them over the course of a year). The devotionals I have read so far are great, very encouraging and upbeat with verse references mostly instead of the actual verse. As Barbra encourages us to read and verify the word ourselves rather than just basing it off what she says in the book.
One of my favorite quotes from the book so far:
“Christians are a rare breed when it comes to laughter. Just the knowledge of Jesus Christ as our Savior should fill us will joy, but Christians can be some of the biggest fuddy-duddies around.” -pg.40
I truly like this devotional, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a new devotional to read. I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars for the way it drew me in and has kept me coming back day after day, for the sense of humor Barbra Dahlgren interwove into every chapter, and for the circle always coming back to what God said in the Bible. It is a book that I will continue to read until I reach the end, and then I will regift it to someone else who needs some smiles in their life.
*I received this book in return for my honest feedback. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.
One of my favorite quotes from the book so far:
“Christians are a rare breed when it comes to laughter. Just the knowledge of Jesus Christ as our Savior should fill us will joy, but Christians can be some of the biggest fuddy-duddies around.” -pg.40
I truly like this devotional, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a new devotional to read. I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars for the way it drew me in and has kept me coming back day after day, for the sense of humor Barbra Dahlgren interwove into every chapter, and for the circle always coming back to what God said in the Bible. It is a book that I will continue to read until I reach the end, and then I will regift it to someone else who needs some smiles in their life.
*I received this book in return for my honest feedback. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.
Debbiereadsbook (1611 KP) rated No Flag (After Everything #1) in Books
Aug 31, 2021
I enjoyed this book far more after Mike returns
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
I struggled a lot with this book, and I'm not entirely sure why, but I DID finish it, eventually, it just took far longer than a book in this genre would normally do, for me.
I love M/M books, and I love BDSM books, and while this book portrays a side order of BDSM, the Domestic Discipline lifestyle, it doesn't work, for ME. I stress this, for ME it doesn't work. I gather from some other reviews (I'm adding this sentence AFTER I've written mine!) that this is a book that you will love, or you won't: there is no in-between.
The chemistry between Mike and Will also fell flat. It was great that Mike made Will wait for it, but when it happens? I kinda spaced over that bit. I think this book would have been better had it come out CLEAN to be honest! The DD lifestyle was thrown at Will, and Mike made the contract with very little from Will, and I felt that was not right. Some of the things Mike had Will doing WERE very close to the edge, especially with Mike's OCD kicking in.
I DID enjoy this book far more after Mike returns. Maybe because the book focuses more on the emotional and physical support that Mike needs, rather than the DD lifestyle.
I still wasn't sure, even at the end, what the deal with Casey was though!
Both Mile and Will have a say, and I'm glad they did.
Not one for me, I'm afraid!
3 stars
same worded review will appear elsewhere
I struggled a lot with this book, and I'm not entirely sure why, but I DID finish it, eventually, it just took far longer than a book in this genre would normally do, for me.
I love M/M books, and I love BDSM books, and while this book portrays a side order of BDSM, the Domestic Discipline lifestyle, it doesn't work, for ME. I stress this, for ME it doesn't work. I gather from some other reviews (I'm adding this sentence AFTER I've written mine!) that this is a book that you will love, or you won't: there is no in-between.
The chemistry between Mike and Will also fell flat. It was great that Mike made Will wait for it, but when it happens? I kinda spaced over that bit. I think this book would have been better had it come out CLEAN to be honest! The DD lifestyle was thrown at Will, and Mike made the contract with very little from Will, and I felt that was not right. Some of the things Mike had Will doing WERE very close to the edge, especially with Mike's OCD kicking in.
I DID enjoy this book far more after Mike returns. Maybe because the book focuses more on the emotional and physical support that Mike needs, rather than the DD lifestyle.
I still wasn't sure, even at the end, what the deal with Casey was though!
Both Mile and Will have a say, and I'm glad they did.
Not one for me, I'm afraid!
3 stars
same worded review will appear elsewhere
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) in Movies
Apr 6, 2018
Good but completely unnecessary
We've had 3 versions of Spiderman and 6 films in the space of 15 years. That's not good. Despite the few years in between, it's beginning to feel like Spidey is rarely off our screens. And I'm getting a little Spiderman-ned out.
Which is a shame, as I actually think Tom Holland is the best Spiderman yet. A teenager in high school is by far the best portrayal and Holland does very well. There are some funny moments and it feels a little more lighthearted than some of the other recent Marvel films. My main issue is the constant need to promote and set up the other Marvel films, to the point where this film feels like entirely made for this purpose only. Did we really need another Spiderman film? No, not really and especially not one to act as a link between other films. Its far too long and really not needed.
This is the film they should've made instead of the ones with Andrew Garfield, back then it may have been more acceptable & not just a blatant Avengers plug.
Which is a shame, as I actually think Tom Holland is the best Spiderman yet. A teenager in high school is by far the best portrayal and Holland does very well. There are some funny moments and it feels a little more lighthearted than some of the other recent Marvel films. My main issue is the constant need to promote and set up the other Marvel films, to the point where this film feels like entirely made for this purpose only. Did we really need another Spiderman film? No, not really and especially not one to act as a link between other films. Its far too long and really not needed.
This is the film they should've made instead of the ones with Andrew Garfield, back then it may have been more acceptable & not just a blatant Avengers plug.
