Search
Search results
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Your Name (2016) in Movies
Sep 22, 2021
PHOTO EXHIBITION: NOSTALGIA
What would your life be like if you were born somewhere else, *someone* else? How much of our lives is predetermined exclusively on such random variables beyond our control, things that we've all imagined changing at one point or another? Just to be upfront, one of my absolute least favorite plots in movies is switching bodies - the plot tends to just halt entirely to provide such rote "lol person does thing they don't usually do lol" or "uh oh... I'm another gender!" jokes before it actually decides to do anything. But between this and 2020's Freaky I'm glad to see they've finally started putting some nuance into these things. Honestly one of the greatest movies I've ever seen - probably the most bracingly beautiful animated movie ever conceived and it's just as impactful narratively. Tackles layers of regressive gender roles, the cruel indiscriminate randomness within human existence, the tumultuousness of adolescence, and along with Shyamalan's ššÆš£š³š¦š¢š¬š¢š£šš¦ handles the concept of fate/destiny better than any other film I've seen. That and it's also just so damn hilarious. I initially thought the conclusion was maybe about 10 minutes too long, but afterwards I thought perhaps that was the point - in further distancing it from its preceding events, giving legitimacy to its setting. After a string of disappointments made me remember why I even love movies in the first place.
What would your life be like if you were born somewhere else, *someone* else? How much of our lives is predetermined exclusively on such random variables beyond our control, things that we've all imagined changing at one point or another? Just to be upfront, one of my absolute least favorite plots in movies is switching bodies - the plot tends to just halt entirely to provide such rote "lol person does thing they don't usually do lol" or "uh oh... I'm another gender!" jokes before it actually decides to do anything. But between this and 2020's Freaky I'm glad to see they've finally started putting some nuance into these things. Honestly one of the greatest movies I've ever seen - probably the most bracingly beautiful animated movie ever conceived and it's just as impactful narratively. Tackles layers of regressive gender roles, the cruel indiscriminate randomness within human existence, the tumultuousness of adolescence, and along with Shyamalan's ššÆš£š³š¦š¢š¬š¢š£šš¦ handles the concept of fate/destiny better than any other film I've seen. That and it's also just so damn hilarious. I initially thought the conclusion was maybe about 10 minutes too long, but afterwards I thought perhaps that was the point - in further distancing it from its preceding events, giving legitimacy to its setting. After a string of disappointments made me remember why I even love movies in the first place.
Edge (Immortals of Indriel #1.5)
10.0
Rate It
Book
They claim he will be a great leader. They say he is the most powerful Immortal of his...
Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Over the Emerald Valley (Immortal Jewels) by Lee Colgin
8.0
Rate It
Book
Life as a concubine to the devious Viceroy Abasi isnāt so bad. Temaj has food, shelter, and every...
MM Paranormal Fantasy Romance
Merissa (11958 KP) rated King of Blades (Two Thrones #4) in Books
Nov 12, 2020 (Updated Aug 14, 2023)
King of Blades is the fourth book in the Two Thrones series and we return to Matthias and Danaƫ. She is well into her pregnancy with twins and has her own concerns which she hides from Matthias. He brings friends along with him on his 'Royal Visit' but doesn't stop to think how Danaƫ is feeling. Add to that Darius and Lars are reconciling but have their own issues going on too.
As always, this was excellently written with Danaƫ's worries being perfect for a first-time mother, especially with twins. There were no unnecessary dramatics or hysterics. It's a wonder she was even walking and talking with everything that was going on. Talk about stress!
I loved Darius' story and the whys and wherefores of what was happening. Bless him. He picked the wrong person, that's for sure. I hope we see more of him and Lars in future books. Plus the fact, I want to meet Giles!
I am loving this series and this book is no exception. A brilliant story and one highly recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Nov 12, 2020
As always, this was excellently written with Danaƫ's worries being perfect for a first-time mother, especially with twins. There were no unnecessary dramatics or hysterics. It's a wonder she was even walking and talking with everything that was going on. Talk about stress!
I loved Darius' story and the whys and wherefores of what was happening. Bless him. He picked the wrong person, that's for sure. I hope we see more of him and Lars in future books. Plus the fact, I want to meet Giles!
I am loving this series and this book is no exception. A brilliant story and one highly recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Nov 12, 2020
Harshini (25 KP) rated Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013) in Movies
Jan 4, 2018 (Updated Jan 13, 2018)
Annabeth's hair and eye colour matched the books (1 more)
"Stop walking on my roof"
Some scenes that should have been in were cut (4 more)
Some scenes were in that shouldn't have been
Some scenes were in that weren't even a part of the book they were producing
The author of the books hates the movies
The initial scene is of something that is never mentioned in the books - and I'm still kind of confused as to what the actors' characters are meant to be doing
Big Fan of the Books, Not So Much of the Movies
Contains spoilers, click to show
I had a huge issue with the first movie as is, so this may end up being a rant.
I have been a massive fan of the books for about 9 years now and can say with a fair amount of certainty that this movie does not echo its book source. Yes, they had the same characters (for the most part), but the characters being from the book does not mean that it is the movie of the book. It means that the book gave inspiration. Sure, some events that were in the book were in the movie - such as Tyson's slip with the winds, or Tyson's story at all - but some fairly important scenes were not to be seen in the movie - such as (what should have been the initial scene) the dodgeball game that reveals Tyson's immunity to fire, Siren Bay, or Circe. Not to mention the events that were changed in the movie - such as the fact that Polyphemus' island became a fairground instead of a lush paradisal island with man-eating sheep, or that the ship Clarisse is commandeering doesn't end up in Charybdis' stomach and that they avoid the two monsters all together. I'm not even counting the scenes that the director placed in this movie that should have come much later - like Percy's fight with Kronos, which shouldn't have taken place until the absolute last movie. When I saw the first movie, I said something about the way it was made, and I'll say it again: it's like the director hired someone to read the book and tell him what happened, the person read all the books and then decided to pick and choose their favourite parts and create an absolute mess of the books. I mean, it's a sign if the author of said books is the person who hates the movies the most.
That being said, I can attest to there being some good things about the movie. Alexandra Daddario (who plays Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena) did end up changing her hair and eye colour in the movie to the described blonde hair and grey eyes (though the eyes do look very fake). I am not sure whether or not this was just because so many fans were offended by her brown hair and eyes in the first movie (which was also terrible), but I am glad that it got changed to be more in-tune with the source material. Above all, I can say that there are about five seconds of this movie that I love - and that I will stomach the surrounding minute for - and that is when Luke Castellan tells Percy to 'stop walking on [his] roof'. It is by far the funniest part of the entire movie. However, I won't lie and say I'm not glad that the series isn't going to continue to be shown on the silver screen.
I have been a massive fan of the books for about 9 years now and can say with a fair amount of certainty that this movie does not echo its book source. Yes, they had the same characters (for the most part), but the characters being from the book does not mean that it is the movie of the book. It means that the book gave inspiration. Sure, some events that were in the book were in the movie - such as Tyson's slip with the winds, or Tyson's story at all - but some fairly important scenes were not to be seen in the movie - such as (what should have been the initial scene) the dodgeball game that reveals Tyson's immunity to fire, Siren Bay, or Circe. Not to mention the events that were changed in the movie - such as the fact that Polyphemus' island became a fairground instead of a lush paradisal island with man-eating sheep, or that the ship Clarisse is commandeering doesn't end up in Charybdis' stomach and that they avoid the two monsters all together. I'm not even counting the scenes that the director placed in this movie that should have come much later - like Percy's fight with Kronos, which shouldn't have taken place until the absolute last movie. When I saw the first movie, I said something about the way it was made, and I'll say it again: it's like the director hired someone to read the book and tell him what happened, the person read all the books and then decided to pick and choose their favourite parts and create an absolute mess of the books. I mean, it's a sign if the author of said books is the person who hates the movies the most.
That being said, I can attest to there being some good things about the movie. Alexandra Daddario (who plays Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena) did end up changing her hair and eye colour in the movie to the described blonde hair and grey eyes (though the eyes do look very fake). I am not sure whether or not this was just because so many fans were offended by her brown hair and eyes in the first movie (which was also terrible), but I am glad that it got changed to be more in-tune with the source material. Above all, I can say that there are about five seconds of this movie that I love - and that I will stomach the surrounding minute for - and that is when Luke Castellan tells Percy to 'stop walking on [his] roof'. It is by far the funniest part of the entire movie. However, I won't lie and say I'm not glad that the series isn't going to continue to be shown on the silver screen.
Success Principles by Jack Canfield- Audiobook Meditations A Business and Life Learning Program from Hero Universe
Book and Lifestyle
4.0
Rate It
App
BONUS - FREE ebook with download! NEW! Groundbreaking Audio Meditation App uses text to speech...
Becs (244 KP) rated Stars Like Fate in Books
Oct 2, 2019
Highlights: I loved the cover design, it helped give an idea of what Nyole looked like. I wish there were pictures of the other characters, like as a gallery at the back of the book. It was nice of the author to put a character list and their pronunciation at the beginning of the book. It helped tremendously!!
Style: Casual to light
Point of View: Third person
Difficulty reading: First couple of chapters were difficult to get into but after the fifth chapter, I couldnāt put the book down! It has itās fast-paced moments that has you flipping through pages and it has its slower moments that take a bit more effort to get into. A very fun read!
Promise: The book promised a fantasy, adventure packed book and it delivered it on a silver platter. The characters are mythical, the countries are mythical, and magic is involved ā leading to the fantasy aspect of things. Nyole and Saphryis both go on a long and heartbreaking journey to gain Saphryis her memories and power back ā leading to the adventure aspect of things.
Quality: An all-around great book. If you like World of Warcraft, youāll like this book. It touches on the mythical creatures in a way that resembles characters in World of Warcraft.
Insights: I loved the fact that it was a fantasy young adult book. These types of books are one of my favorite genres. When I first got the book, I read the synopsis and instantly thought of World of Warcraft. Reading, I had a difficult time with the first five chapters. It wasnāt that they were bad, it was more along the lines of they lacked in the background and the flow seemed like it was all over the place. Once I hit chapter six though, I couldnāt put the book down. The background and plot leveled out so it was a much easier read. As I was coming down to the last couple of chapters, I realized I didnāt want it to end. I wanted it to continue on into an everlasting void of Stars Like Fate because fate is simply ineffable.
Ah-Ha Moment: When Nyole finally realized that he was related to King Aryon. I would also become furious if I was related to someone as cruel as King Aryon the murderer.
Favorite Quote: āFate is unexplainable, Fate is unfair, but Fate will always happen.ā ā Nyole realizes that if he never would have met Saphryis, then he would have never known what was coming in the future. But with meeting her, he realizes what is coming and has a faint idea what Saphryis will mean to him.
ā āI need you to live, Saphryis. I need you around,ā Nyole murmured before adding a selfish wish. āI want you beside me.ā ā ā I feel this is the moment that Nyole falls just a bit in love with Saphryis. Which is good, because I ship them 110%.
What will you gain: A love for a new and upcoming author with an imaginative world that you can just step right into. Plus an awesome book worth a re-read!
Aesthetics: Cover design was really nice, character list was great, nice size book ā not too heavy and not to thin, font and size was good ā didnāt strain the eyes, there were a few grammatical errors ā but are barely noticeable, third-person point of view, a riveting action fantasy book that will keep you on your toes.
āFate is simply ineffable.ā
Style: Casual to light
Point of View: Third person
Difficulty reading: First couple of chapters were difficult to get into but after the fifth chapter, I couldnāt put the book down! It has itās fast-paced moments that has you flipping through pages and it has its slower moments that take a bit more effort to get into. A very fun read!
Promise: The book promised a fantasy, adventure packed book and it delivered it on a silver platter. The characters are mythical, the countries are mythical, and magic is involved ā leading to the fantasy aspect of things. Nyole and Saphryis both go on a long and heartbreaking journey to gain Saphryis her memories and power back ā leading to the adventure aspect of things.
Quality: An all-around great book. If you like World of Warcraft, youāll like this book. It touches on the mythical creatures in a way that resembles characters in World of Warcraft.
Insights: I loved the fact that it was a fantasy young adult book. These types of books are one of my favorite genres. When I first got the book, I read the synopsis and instantly thought of World of Warcraft. Reading, I had a difficult time with the first five chapters. It wasnāt that they were bad, it was more along the lines of they lacked in the background and the flow seemed like it was all over the place. Once I hit chapter six though, I couldnāt put the book down. The background and plot leveled out so it was a much easier read. As I was coming down to the last couple of chapters, I realized I didnāt want it to end. I wanted it to continue on into an everlasting void of Stars Like Fate because fate is simply ineffable.
Ah-Ha Moment: When Nyole finally realized that he was related to King Aryon. I would also become furious if I was related to someone as cruel as King Aryon the murderer.
Favorite Quote: āFate is unexplainable, Fate is unfair, but Fate will always happen.ā ā Nyole realizes that if he never would have met Saphryis, then he would have never known what was coming in the future. But with meeting her, he realizes what is coming and has a faint idea what Saphryis will mean to him.
ā āI need you to live, Saphryis. I need you around,ā Nyole murmured before adding a selfish wish. āI want you beside me.ā ā ā I feel this is the moment that Nyole falls just a bit in love with Saphryis. Which is good, because I ship them 110%.
What will you gain: A love for a new and upcoming author with an imaginative world that you can just step right into. Plus an awesome book worth a re-read!
Aesthetics: Cover design was really nice, character list was great, nice size book ā not too heavy and not to thin, font and size was good ā didnāt strain the eyes, there were a few grammatical errors ā but are barely noticeable, third-person point of view, a riveting action fantasy book that will keep you on your toes.
āFate is simply ineffable.ā
JasonKeenan (9 KP) rated Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017) in Movies
Sep 20, 2017
100% worth the watch
And this movie deserved every point
I loved the first Kingsman, it has brought a new style to the spy gadget movies, most of the characters are amazing, some not so much, but still enjoyable
Right, so, the movie carries on from the first film, I'd say about a year or so has past, Eggsy 'Taron Edgerton' is a full member of 'The Kingsman' and has taken over the roll of his mentor, Harry (Colin Firth), and even taken harry's codename 'Galahad' , he is living with his girlfriend and moving forward with his life, when all of a sudden the Kingsman's headquarters were attack and destroyed.
With the world being held hostage by 'The Golden Circule' led by Poppy (Julian Moore), who is head of a drug cartel, and with a scheme to add poision into all her drugs and will only give the cure to the infected people of the world is if all the worlds leader comply with her demands,
So Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong) have to jump the pond to ask for help from there American cusins, 'The Statesmen', who is led by Champ 'Jeff Bridges', there cover is an organisation posing as a Bourbon whiskey distillery in Kentucky, and together they have to try and stop Poppy (Jillian Moore) from completing her evil schemes
I have to say this movie is realllllly good, the fight sequences are amazing, and the music fits the film perfectly, Taron Edgertons screen presents is just top class, and working off Colin Firth and Mark Strong, just an amazing cast, with a sneaky addition to the cast from a well known person ?, which was surprisingly nicely done, there are a few little changes I would have made, but still as a whole still amazing
If you like the Kingsman, you will absolutely love the Kingsman: The Golden Circule, I recommend you looking for the next showing and watching it now......why are you still reading this GO!
I loved the first Kingsman, it has brought a new style to the spy gadget movies, most of the characters are amazing, some not so much, but still enjoyable
Right, so, the movie carries on from the first film, I'd say about a year or so has past, Eggsy 'Taron Edgerton' is a full member of 'The Kingsman' and has taken over the roll of his mentor, Harry (Colin Firth), and even taken harry's codename 'Galahad' , he is living with his girlfriend and moving forward with his life, when all of a sudden the Kingsman's headquarters were attack and destroyed.
With the world being held hostage by 'The Golden Circule' led by Poppy (Julian Moore), who is head of a drug cartel, and with a scheme to add poision into all her drugs and will only give the cure to the infected people of the world is if all the worlds leader comply with her demands,
So Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong) have to jump the pond to ask for help from there American cusins, 'The Statesmen', who is led by Champ 'Jeff Bridges', there cover is an organisation posing as a Bourbon whiskey distillery in Kentucky, and together they have to try and stop Poppy (Jillian Moore) from completing her evil schemes
I have to say this movie is realllllly good, the fight sequences are amazing, and the music fits the film perfectly, Taron Edgertons screen presents is just top class, and working off Colin Firth and Mark Strong, just an amazing cast, with a sneaky addition to the cast from a well known person ?, which was surprisingly nicely done, there are a few little changes I would have made, but still as a whole still amazing
If you like the Kingsman, you will absolutely love the Kingsman: The Golden Circule, I recommend you looking for the next showing and watching it now......why are you still reading this GO!
Destiny (8 KP) rated Some Lucky Woman in Books
Jan 5, 2018
Where did I find this book: I picked this book out from Bookbub based on its synopsis. Iām in this odd time after college where I relate to these stories of being unsure of the next steps to take in life.
How itās written: Itās told in first person by Jana. She tells the tale of losing her husband, becoming a book reviewer and a book writer, and finding what makes her truly happy in life. Itās light, fun, and to the point with 360 pages and a very easy nature to it that makes it hard to put the book down.
What I like about the book: I loved that not everything happened for her in a month. There are credible time lapses between events instead of a whirlwind of change all at once. I really liked that she doesnāt wallow in self-pity for long. Jana moves on from her ex and looks for things that bring her joy. She does things for herself and doesnāt care about what others thinkā¦except Adrian.
Final Thoughts: This book was amazing! Truly entertaining read from beginning to end. Janaās story from getting a divorce to finding herself is empowering and intriguing.
Honestly I probably should have posted this book as my first book review. I already had the idea of posting book reviews but this book was a huge catalyst for me. It helped me realize that I just needed to start. It didnāt have to be perfect and I didnāt have to have it all figured out. I just needed to get things started and I could change things up later if I wanted to.
So if youāre in a part of your life where you feel like you need a change, you want to try something new, you need to do something for yourself, I would suggest reading this book.
How itās written: Itās told in first person by Jana. She tells the tale of losing her husband, becoming a book reviewer and a book writer, and finding what makes her truly happy in life. Itās light, fun, and to the point with 360 pages and a very easy nature to it that makes it hard to put the book down.
What I like about the book: I loved that not everything happened for her in a month. There are credible time lapses between events instead of a whirlwind of change all at once. I really liked that she doesnāt wallow in self-pity for long. Jana moves on from her ex and looks for things that bring her joy. She does things for herself and doesnāt care about what others thinkā¦except Adrian.
Final Thoughts: This book was amazing! Truly entertaining read from beginning to end. Janaās story from getting a divorce to finding herself is empowering and intriguing.
Honestly I probably should have posted this book as my first book review. I already had the idea of posting book reviews but this book was a huge catalyst for me. It helped me realize that I just needed to start. It didnāt have to be perfect and I didnāt have to have it all figured out. I just needed to get things started and I could change things up later if I wanted to.
So if youāre in a part of your life where you feel like you need a change, you want to try something new, you need to do something for yourself, I would suggest reading this book.