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Christen (28 KP) rated Before He Kills in Books
Dec 13, 2020
Mystery (1 more)
Suspense
A body is found in the middle of a cornfield in Nebraska. Detective Mackenzie White is on the case. All the men are intimidated by her. She is pretty and young. She is good at thinking outside the box and most of the men are older and are stubborn with their old school police work. Not only does she not have the support of her department, but her family also is a mess and doesn't really have anything to do with her and her boyfriend is a man child that doesn't want to move forward with life or the relationship. She believes this a serial killer so the FBI is called to help. It was a good read. Nothing to write home about. It's a typical murder mystery. I would recommend it to someone who wants a short read or is new to thrillers and murder mysteries.
The Curator
9.5
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Tt's Christmas and a serial killer is leaving displayed body parts all over Cumbria. A strange...
At Large: The Strange Case of the World's Biggest Internet Invasion
6.0
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Hailed as "a chilling portrait" by The Boston Globe and "a crafty thriller" by Newsweek, this...
David McK (3425 KP) rated The Rock (1996) in Movies
Jul 12, 2023
There was a period during the late 90s, early 90s, where Nice Cage was in full action hero mode.
We're talking the likes of National Treasure, Con-Air, Face/Off. And this, his first entry in that mold from 1996.
Also starring Sean Connery in a Bind-in-all-but-name role, this sees Cage playing the part of an FBI chemical expert who has to accompany Connery and US Marines on a mission to infiltrate Alcatraz (Connery's role being as the only man to ever escape from said prison) after a group of disillusioned Marines - led by Ed Harris - seize control of the island and have chemical weapons pointing at San Francisco.
I think this may be the first Michael Bay film I ever saw; looking back on it now I can see that, even back then, it has all the hallmarks of one of his films!
We're talking the likes of National Treasure, Con-Air, Face/Off. And this, his first entry in that mold from 1996.
Also starring Sean Connery in a Bind-in-all-but-name role, this sees Cage playing the part of an FBI chemical expert who has to accompany Connery and US Marines on a mission to infiltrate Alcatraz (Connery's role being as the only man to ever escape from said prison) after a group of disillusioned Marines - led by Ed Harris - seize control of the island and have chemical weapons pointing at San Francisco.
I think this may be the first Michael Bay film I ever saw; looking back on it now I can see that, even back then, it has all the hallmarks of one of his films!
Darren (64 KP) rated Midnight Run (1988) in Movies
Oct 28, 2019
An under-rated Masterpiece
Midnight Run is an Action/Comedy masterpiece.
A modest hit at the box office way back in 1988, Midnight Run, Is the perfect buddy buddy movie. Robert De NIro stars as Jack Walsh, an ex Chicago cop turned bounty hunter, who is hire by his slimy bail bondsman Eddie Moscone (played by Joe Pantoliano) to bring in Jonathan Mardukas aka The Duke ~(fantastically played by Charles Grodin) a former mafia accountant who has jumped bail and is wanted by the FBI and the Mafia themselves.
Walsh succeeds in easily finding The Duke in New York which embarrasses the FBI. Walsh plans to bring back "The Duke" on a plane but, An incident on the plane leads Jack having just 5 days to travel cross country to bring in Mardukas from New York.
Moscone, not sure that Walsh can deliver Mardukas in 5 days, hires another bounty hunter Marvin Dorfler ( John Ashton) to take Mardukas from Walsh. Not only is Marvin trying to Mardukas for a payday but Walsh also has FBI agent Alonzo Mosely (Yaphet Kotto) on his tail so that they can bring him in.
On top of all of that, Mafia Boss Jimmy Serrano (The late great Dennis Farina) has his guys hunting Walsh and Mardukas so, they can have them dead before reaching LA as Mardukas was Jimmy's accountant and has damning evidence which can land Jimmy and his pals in prison for a very long time.
I really can't say enough good things about Midnight Run. Never at any point do you get bored or fed up of this film. In fact, at 2hrs and 6mins i wished it had gone on a little more.
How many films can you say that about?
De Niro and Grodin play off each other wonderfully. Their relationship goes from hunter and hunted to a nicely played out bromance of mutual respect.
John Ashton as Marvin, always thinking he's one step ahead of Walsh when he is actually one step behind. Joe Pantoliano is a fine character actor and here once again, As Eddie Moscone he plays slimy brilliantly. Yaphet Kotto never puts in a bad performance and finally, Dennis Farina as Jimmy Serrano has some of the best lines in the film.
Martin Brest delivers an absolute all time classic as director. It's a shame that after Gigli he decided to never direct again. Understandable i suppose because of the reviews but, Lets not forget he did bring us Beverley Hills Cop and Scent of A Woman and only ever directed 9 films in his career.
As for the 18 rating, That was down to the language! There are a lot of FUCKS in this film and it really isn't a violent film.
If you have not seen it, I implore you to take a chance! I promise you will not be disappointed.
A modest hit at the box office way back in 1988, Midnight Run, Is the perfect buddy buddy movie. Robert De NIro stars as Jack Walsh, an ex Chicago cop turned bounty hunter, who is hire by his slimy bail bondsman Eddie Moscone (played by Joe Pantoliano) to bring in Jonathan Mardukas aka The Duke ~(fantastically played by Charles Grodin) a former mafia accountant who has jumped bail and is wanted by the FBI and the Mafia themselves.
Walsh succeeds in easily finding The Duke in New York which embarrasses the FBI. Walsh plans to bring back "The Duke" on a plane but, An incident on the plane leads Jack having just 5 days to travel cross country to bring in Mardukas from New York.
Moscone, not sure that Walsh can deliver Mardukas in 5 days, hires another bounty hunter Marvin Dorfler ( John Ashton) to take Mardukas from Walsh. Not only is Marvin trying to Mardukas for a payday but Walsh also has FBI agent Alonzo Mosely (Yaphet Kotto) on his tail so that they can bring him in.
On top of all of that, Mafia Boss Jimmy Serrano (The late great Dennis Farina) has his guys hunting Walsh and Mardukas so, they can have them dead before reaching LA as Mardukas was Jimmy's accountant and has damning evidence which can land Jimmy and his pals in prison for a very long time.
I really can't say enough good things about Midnight Run. Never at any point do you get bored or fed up of this film. In fact, at 2hrs and 6mins i wished it had gone on a little more.
How many films can you say that about?
De Niro and Grodin play off each other wonderfully. Their relationship goes from hunter and hunted to a nicely played out bromance of mutual respect.
John Ashton as Marvin, always thinking he's one step ahead of Walsh when he is actually one step behind. Joe Pantoliano is a fine character actor and here once again, As Eddie Moscone he plays slimy brilliantly. Yaphet Kotto never puts in a bad performance and finally, Dennis Farina as Jimmy Serrano has some of the best lines in the film.
Martin Brest delivers an absolute all time classic as director. It's a shame that after Gigli he decided to never direct again. Understandable i suppose because of the reviews but, Lets not forget he did bring us Beverley Hills Cop and Scent of A Woman and only ever directed 9 films in his career.
As for the 18 rating, That was down to the language! There are a lot of FUCKS in this film and it really isn't a violent film.
If you have not seen it, I implore you to take a chance! I promise you will not be disappointed.
Darren (1599 KP) rated Taking Lives (2004) in Movies
Jul 25, 2019
Story: Taking Lives starts as we see a young man kill another young man to steal his identity, years later a body is discovered in Canada which leads to the local French-Canadian police to call in FBI profiler Illeana (Jolie) to help with the new mystery body. Things take a turn when a man Costa (Hawke) believes he interrupted the next attempted murder before the killer is finished dealing with the body.
When the police learn this killer has been killing and stealing identities the case takes a turn and now they must figure out who the latest victim is and who he has become.
Thoughts on Taking Lives
Characters – Illeane Scott is an FBI Profiler bought in to help with the case of a killer that is stealing identities of the people he is murdering, she gets the profile correct and wants to had home after starting to become interested in one of the key witnesses. Costa is a key witness who interrupts one of the murders before the killer can complete his plan, he gives the information to track the killer. Hart is a man that soon enters Costa’s life after the incident making him the prime suspect as the killer.
Performances – Angelina Jolie is solid enough in this leading role which disappoints because we know she can be a fantastic cop figure. Ethan Hawke struggles with his role too which is only really filled with disappointment as he never convinces in his witness role. Kiefer Sutherland disappoints because we know how good he can be and want to see him more often in a film.
Story – The story is a FBI agent needing to help track down a serial killer who steals identity, yeah these are usually entertaining to watch but this just doesn’t reach the levels of mystery it needs, this might be because this is a repeat viewing and I know the ending, but there are never really any hints or suspects to work with through the film. the film lacks the true tension needed in a film that is filled with twisted crimes going on.
Crime/Mystery – The crime is interesting for a killer to be acting the way they do, the weakest part is the mystery as we just don’t meet enough potential suspects.
Settings – The film is sent in a big city which plays into the idea that someone could steal and identity and kill someone without people noticing someone going missing.
Special Effects – The effects are good because we get to see practical effects when it comes to the kills and aftermath from them.
Scene of the Movie – The lift opening.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not enough suspects.
Final Thoughts – This is a crime thriller that lacks the punch to make it stand out from the crowded market, we always need a large group of suspects, but this didn’t give us enough, while it did create a great killer.
Overall: Lacklustre crime thriller
When the police learn this killer has been killing and stealing identities the case takes a turn and now they must figure out who the latest victim is and who he has become.
Thoughts on Taking Lives
Characters – Illeane Scott is an FBI Profiler bought in to help with the case of a killer that is stealing identities of the people he is murdering, she gets the profile correct and wants to had home after starting to become interested in one of the key witnesses. Costa is a key witness who interrupts one of the murders before the killer can complete his plan, he gives the information to track the killer. Hart is a man that soon enters Costa’s life after the incident making him the prime suspect as the killer.
Performances – Angelina Jolie is solid enough in this leading role which disappoints because we know she can be a fantastic cop figure. Ethan Hawke struggles with his role too which is only really filled with disappointment as he never convinces in his witness role. Kiefer Sutherland disappoints because we know how good he can be and want to see him more often in a film.
Story – The story is a FBI agent needing to help track down a serial killer who steals identity, yeah these are usually entertaining to watch but this just doesn’t reach the levels of mystery it needs, this might be because this is a repeat viewing and I know the ending, but there are never really any hints or suspects to work with through the film. the film lacks the true tension needed in a film that is filled with twisted crimes going on.
Crime/Mystery – The crime is interesting for a killer to be acting the way they do, the weakest part is the mystery as we just don’t meet enough potential suspects.
Settings – The film is sent in a big city which plays into the idea that someone could steal and identity and kill someone without people noticing someone going missing.
Special Effects – The effects are good because we get to see practical effects when it comes to the kills and aftermath from them.
Scene of the Movie – The lift opening.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not enough suspects.
Final Thoughts – This is a crime thriller that lacks the punch to make it stand out from the crowded market, we always need a large group of suspects, but this didn’t give us enough, while it did create a great killer.
Overall: Lacklustre crime thriller
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated Just One Bite in Books
Jun 21, 2019
Timothy Blake is waiting on the side of the road for someone to drop of a package to him. While he is waiting he decides to take a short walk through the woods and he stumbles upon a body. Being the man that he is, he takes the body and goes home since the person never arrives. He puts the body in his freezer for another time. Then he gets a call from his friend Thistle who is also an FBI agent. She needs his helps to solve the case of a missing person. Blake knows where the missing person is, but if he tells her this, he will be charged for the murder, which he didn't do. So he helps the FBI for just as much reason to keep himself clean as to find out what happened to this guy. Will they find the real killer before the body is found in his freezer?
Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the opportunity to read and review this book.
This is the first book I've read by Jack Heath. I'm very interested to find out what happened to Blake in the first book. I don't know if there will be more books in this series, but the way this one ended, there could be. I now have to go back and read book 1 which is called Hangman.
Just so you're not surprised if you decide to read this book, Timothy Blake is a cannibal. I didn't see that coming and I think I said out loud, "What the hell!" while I was reading and my family looked at me strange. So that is why he kept the body in the freezer, to have for dinner or a snack later.
One very interesting thing about this book is that there is a riddle at the beginning of each chapter. Some I was able to figure out, others not so much.
Here's one I couldn't figure out: What food has no beginning, end or middle?
Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the opportunity to read and review this book.
This is the first book I've read by Jack Heath. I'm very interested to find out what happened to Blake in the first book. I don't know if there will be more books in this series, but the way this one ended, there could be. I now have to go back and read book 1 which is called Hangman.
Just so you're not surprised if you decide to read this book, Timothy Blake is a cannibal. I didn't see that coming and I think I said out loud, "What the hell!" while I was reading and my family looked at me strange. So that is why he kept the body in the freezer, to have for dinner or a snack later.
One very interesting thing about this book is that there is a riddle at the beginning of each chapter. Some I was able to figure out, others not so much.
Here's one I couldn't figure out: What food has no beginning, end or middle?
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated The Flight Attendant in Books
Jun 21, 2019
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?
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?
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated The Flight Attendant in Books
Jul 22, 2019
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?
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?