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Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Targets (1968) in Movies
Jun 18, 2020
Targeting Frankenstein: A Horror Icon
Targets- is a very suspenseful film that stars a old boris Karloff. His performance in this film is different. Usually he is type-cast in a horror movie. Targets is not the cast, its a more serious role for Karloff and I liked it alot. He is dramatic in Targets. It was Karloff's last appearance in a marjor american film, before he passed away in 1968.
The plot: After unhinged Vietnam vet Bobby Thompson (Tim O'Kelly) kills his wife and mother, he goes on a brutal shooting spree. Starting at an oil refinery, he evades the police and continues his murderous outing at a drive-in movie theater, where Byron Orlock (Boris Karloff), a retiring horror film icon, is making a promotional appearance. Before long, Orlock, a symbol of fantastical old-fashioned scares, faces off against Thompson, a remorseless psychopath rooted in a harsh modern reality.
Even Karloff's charcter is a retired horror film actor, so he can never get away from the horror genre/type-casting.
In the film's finale at a drive-in theater, Orlok – the old-fashioned, traditional screen monster who always obeyed the rules – confronts the new, realistic, nihilistic late-1960s "monster" in the shape of a clean-cut, unassuming multiple murderer.
Bogdanovich got the chance to make Targets because Boris Karloff owed studio head Roger Corman two days' work. Corman told Bogdanovich he could make any film he liked provided he used Karloff and stayed under budget. In addition, Bogdanovich had to use clips from Corman's Napoleonic-era thriller The Terror in the movie. The clips from The Terror feature Jack Nicholson and Boris Karloff. A brief clip of Howard Hawks' 1931 film The Criminal Code featuring Karloff was also used.
American International Pictures offered to release, but Bogdanovich wanted to try to see if the film could get a deal with a major studio. It was seen by Robert Evans of Paramount who bought it for $150,000, giving Corman an instant profit on the movie before it was even released.
Although the film was written and production photography completed in late 1967, it was released after the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy in early 1968 and thus had some topical relevance to then-current events. Nevertheless, it was not very successful at the box office.
Quentin Tarantino later called it "the most political movie Corman ever made since The Intruder. And forty years later it’s still one of the strongest cries for gun control in American cinema. The film isn’t a thriller with a social commentary buried inside of it (the normal Corman model), it’s a social commentary with a thriller buried inside of it... It was one of the most powerful films of 1968 and one of the greatest directorial debuts of all time. And I believe the best film ever produced by Roger Corman.
Its a excellent mystery suspenseful thrilling starring Boris Karloff, last appearance in a marjor american film, before he passed away in 1968. A great film to end your career on.
The plot: After unhinged Vietnam vet Bobby Thompson (Tim O'Kelly) kills his wife and mother, he goes on a brutal shooting spree. Starting at an oil refinery, he evades the police and continues his murderous outing at a drive-in movie theater, where Byron Orlock (Boris Karloff), a retiring horror film icon, is making a promotional appearance. Before long, Orlock, a symbol of fantastical old-fashioned scares, faces off against Thompson, a remorseless psychopath rooted in a harsh modern reality.
Even Karloff's charcter is a retired horror film actor, so he can never get away from the horror genre/type-casting.
In the film's finale at a drive-in theater, Orlok – the old-fashioned, traditional screen monster who always obeyed the rules – confronts the new, realistic, nihilistic late-1960s "monster" in the shape of a clean-cut, unassuming multiple murderer.
Bogdanovich got the chance to make Targets because Boris Karloff owed studio head Roger Corman two days' work. Corman told Bogdanovich he could make any film he liked provided he used Karloff and stayed under budget. In addition, Bogdanovich had to use clips from Corman's Napoleonic-era thriller The Terror in the movie. The clips from The Terror feature Jack Nicholson and Boris Karloff. A brief clip of Howard Hawks' 1931 film The Criminal Code featuring Karloff was also used.
American International Pictures offered to release, but Bogdanovich wanted to try to see if the film could get a deal with a major studio. It was seen by Robert Evans of Paramount who bought it for $150,000, giving Corman an instant profit on the movie before it was even released.
Although the film was written and production photography completed in late 1967, it was released after the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy in early 1968 and thus had some topical relevance to then-current events. Nevertheless, it was not very successful at the box office.
Quentin Tarantino later called it "the most political movie Corman ever made since The Intruder. And forty years later it’s still one of the strongest cries for gun control in American cinema. The film isn’t a thriller with a social commentary buried inside of it (the normal Corman model), it’s a social commentary with a thriller buried inside of it... It was one of the most powerful films of 1968 and one of the greatest directorial debuts of all time. And I believe the best film ever produced by Roger Corman.
Its a excellent mystery suspenseful thrilling starring Boris Karloff, last appearance in a marjor american film, before he passed away in 1968. A great film to end your career on.
Debbiereadsbook (1166 KP) rated A War of Daisies (The Four Horsewomen of the Apocalypse #1) in Books
Jan 5, 2021
a book that takes you out of your usual comfort zone, and it does it in such a way, you do NOT see it coming!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
There comes along, once in a rare while, a book that takes you out of your usual comfort zone, and it does it in such a way, you do NOT see it coming! This is such a book!
I read the blurb, it sounded interesting, but I really wasn't expecting to be blown away, and so much so, I was reading this book at 3.30am, cos I coulnd't put it down!
All four women have a say, and for their time, they have a LOT to say. They are all are feeling repressed and held down, for one reason or other, and it takes time for those reasons to fully become clear. Once all four are together in one place, a freak weather storm leaves them with powers, and those powers will get them what they what: freedom.
Freedom, however, comes at a price. And its that price, that TWIST that I did not see coming! I love being puddled along, you know? Taking my time, enjoying what I'm reading, a few questions lurking, but not really seeing where this is going, or that it'll be a 5 star read. And then BAM, right near the end, things become clear, many questions are answered, and then many MORE pop up. The four womens lives are drawn into a tighter circle, and their roles become a bit more solid, but still I'm not sure where this is gonna go!
Some things happened here that I did not see coming, and I loved being proven wrong about things, even if the reality on the page is far worse than I thought.
There is, apart from that bit I just mentioned, no romance in this book, but there is violence. The women are, afterall, War, Pestilence, Famine and Death. But it's not graphic, at all,but written in such a way that you don't see it coming at ya, not at first. When things become a little clearer, then you do see it coming, but again, written in such a great way!
It's been a long time since I tried to write a gushing review without giving anything away, but I think I managed it here. Had I gone into too much detail, I think the womens secrets would have been told, and you need to discover them in the pages of the book, I think, for you to fully appreciate them.
Written with all the words and customs and attitudes of the time (1894, United States) it throws up some *AH* moments and some *NOOOOOOOOOOO? really? they did that?* moments and some *oh my gosh, they did NOT!* moments, and I loved them all!
In case you didn't get it, I loved this book! I hope I can get my grubby mitts on the next one!
5 full and shiny stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
There comes along, once in a rare while, a book that takes you out of your usual comfort zone, and it does it in such a way, you do NOT see it coming! This is such a book!
I read the blurb, it sounded interesting, but I really wasn't expecting to be blown away, and so much so, I was reading this book at 3.30am, cos I coulnd't put it down!
All four women have a say, and for their time, they have a LOT to say. They are all are feeling repressed and held down, for one reason or other, and it takes time for those reasons to fully become clear. Once all four are together in one place, a freak weather storm leaves them with powers, and those powers will get them what they what: freedom.
Freedom, however, comes at a price. And its that price, that TWIST that I did not see coming! I love being puddled along, you know? Taking my time, enjoying what I'm reading, a few questions lurking, but not really seeing where this is going, or that it'll be a 5 star read. And then BAM, right near the end, things become clear, many questions are answered, and then many MORE pop up. The four womens lives are drawn into a tighter circle, and their roles become a bit more solid, but still I'm not sure where this is gonna go!
Some things happened here that I did not see coming, and I loved being proven wrong about things, even if the reality on the page is far worse than I thought.
There is, apart from that bit I just mentioned, no romance in this book, but there is violence. The women are, afterall, War, Pestilence, Famine and Death. But it's not graphic, at all,but written in such a way that you don't see it coming at ya, not at first. When things become a little clearer, then you do see it coming, but again, written in such a great way!
It's been a long time since I tried to write a gushing review without giving anything away, but I think I managed it here. Had I gone into too much detail, I think the womens secrets would have been told, and you need to discover them in the pages of the book, I think, for you to fully appreciate them.
Written with all the words and customs and attitudes of the time (1894, United States) it throws up some *AH* moments and some *NOOOOOOOOOOO? really? they did that?* moments and some *oh my gosh, they did NOT!* moments, and I loved them all!
In case you didn't get it, I loved this book! I hope I can get my grubby mitts on the next one!
5 full and shiny stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated Made You Up in Books
Jun 22, 2021
I'm big into books that deal with mental illnesses. When I heard about Made You Up by Francesca Zappia, I knew it was a book that was right up my alley. I was not left feeling disappointed.
The plot and world building felt very realistic although I'm not Schizophrenic nor do I know anyone who is. I could not tell what was real and what was a delusion by Alex. Kudos to Zappia for giving us a brief glimpse into how a Schizophrenic would feel. I kept second guessing myself throughout Made You Up. Sometimes it would be obvious that Alex was hallucinating, but there were many times everything felt too real to be a hallucination. I would be wrong, and something realistic would be a hallucination. As you can imagine, there were many plot twists throughout this book. There was one major plot twist which I had predicted towards the beginning which turned out to be true thanks to subtle hints the author would throw in, so be sure to be attention to every word on the page to try to grasp what is Alex's reality and what is not. I did feel like the main storyline of Made You Up was whether or not Miles, the boy Alex met briefly when she was a young child, was actually real or not since she meets him again her senior year of high school. It was fun trying to guess if Miles was real or not and if he was the same boy Alex met as a child.
All of the characters in Made You Up had a lot of depth to them. They were all easy for me to imagine as real people instead of characters in a book. I enjoyed reading about Alex and her thought process and what all she had to go through all the time due to her Schizophrenia. Alex, like all the characters in this book, was a very likable character. Miles was interesting. I didn't really know what to make of him throughout the book (mainly because I was trying to figure out if he was real or imaginary). I did enjoy him, and I was definitely intrigued by his back story. It was great learning about him. I loved little Charlie and how much she seemed to love her big sister, Alex. Alex loved Charlie so much as well, and I loved reading about the tight sisterly bond between them.
Trigger warnings for Made You Up include some profanity, some violence, death, minor gore, some child abuse, mental illness, a minor sexual situation, bullying, references to Nazis, attempted murder, and death.
All in all, Made You Up is a very interesting read with a fantastic plot and well developed characters. It's obvious the author did her homework before writing this novel. I would definitely recommend Made You Up by Francesca Zappia to those aged 16+ who are seeking a book full of twists and turns. Just be warned that this book will have you second guessing almost everything (which isn't a bad thing).
The plot and world building felt very realistic although I'm not Schizophrenic nor do I know anyone who is. I could not tell what was real and what was a delusion by Alex. Kudos to Zappia for giving us a brief glimpse into how a Schizophrenic would feel. I kept second guessing myself throughout Made You Up. Sometimes it would be obvious that Alex was hallucinating, but there were many times everything felt too real to be a hallucination. I would be wrong, and something realistic would be a hallucination. As you can imagine, there were many plot twists throughout this book. There was one major plot twist which I had predicted towards the beginning which turned out to be true thanks to subtle hints the author would throw in, so be sure to be attention to every word on the page to try to grasp what is Alex's reality and what is not. I did feel like the main storyline of Made You Up was whether or not Miles, the boy Alex met briefly when she was a young child, was actually real or not since she meets him again her senior year of high school. It was fun trying to guess if Miles was real or not and if he was the same boy Alex met as a child.
All of the characters in Made You Up had a lot of depth to them. They were all easy for me to imagine as real people instead of characters in a book. I enjoyed reading about Alex and her thought process and what all she had to go through all the time due to her Schizophrenia. Alex, like all the characters in this book, was a very likable character. Miles was interesting. I didn't really know what to make of him throughout the book (mainly because I was trying to figure out if he was real or imaginary). I did enjoy him, and I was definitely intrigued by his back story. It was great learning about him. I loved little Charlie and how much she seemed to love her big sister, Alex. Alex loved Charlie so much as well, and I loved reading about the tight sisterly bond between them.
Trigger warnings for Made You Up include some profanity, some violence, death, minor gore, some child abuse, mental illness, a minor sexual situation, bullying, references to Nazis, attempted murder, and death.
All in all, Made You Up is a very interesting read with a fantastic plot and well developed characters. It's obvious the author did her homework before writing this novel. I would definitely recommend Made You Up by Francesca Zappia to those aged 16+ who are seeking a book full of twists and turns. Just be warned that this book will have you second guessing almost everything (which isn't a bad thing).
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard (2021) in Movies
Jun 22, 2021
No tension in the thriller elements (1 more)
Some shoddy special effects.
A movie that’s a pain in the A-double-dollar sign.
Struck-off bodyguard Michael Bryce (Ryan Reynolds) is plagued with nightmares about his failures, brought about by his nemesis Darius Kincaid (Samuel L Jackson) and his potty-mouthed wife Sonia (Salma Hayek). On doctor’s orders, he ‘retires’ from the business. But when Europe’s infrastructure is threatened by Greek megalomaniac Aristotle Papdopolous (Antonio Banderas) he is rudely dragged away from his briefly peaceful life and pitched back into utter mayhem.
Positives:
- As a comedy thriller, it does pass the '6 laughs test' in terms of the 'comedy' element. Some of these are minor chuckles. A few are really good belly laughs.
- Among these are some of the outrageous tirades of Salma Hayek: her accent makes some of the dialogue unintelligible, but given its X-rated nature, that's not necessarily a bad thing! As a mid-50's actress (Oh God - - don't tell her I mentioned her age!), Ms Hayek indeed has an arrestingly attractive form.
- Seeing Antonio Banderas and Morgan Freeman on the screen is never anything other than a positive. (Although Banderas is like Sean Connery in failing to tailor his natural accent to any role he's ever in!)
Negatives:
- A general problem I have with 'comedy thrillers' is that the comedy nearly always negates any of the thrills. Ryan Reynolds is not playing Deadpool in this one, although he might as well be doing so based on the number of times he is hit by cars and other solid objects. The result is that although it has the trappings of a Bond or a Bourne - exotic locations (here, mostly Italian ones) ; exotic woman; car chases; heavily-armed henchmen; huge explosions - it delivers none of the tension or excitement. When matched with some rather dodgy post-shoot special effects, the effect is generally underwhelming.
- If there was an award for the clumsiest movie title of 2021, we may already have a winner.
Summary Thoughts on "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard": Sequels are very occasionally better. Often they are much worse. This one, I have to say, delivers very much "more of the same". Given that the writer/director team of Tom O'Connor and Patrick Hughes are in the driving seat, that's not much of a surprise. The shtick is mildly diverting, occasionally downright funny, but quickly outstays its welcome. The 100 minute run time felt, for me, much longer.
Looking back at my 2017 review of the first film, I think I was being over-kind giving it 6/10. I think this is neither better nor worse. So if you want to average the two and give each 5/10, I wouldn't object! But, again, it's one I will struggle to remember much about in a few month's time.
(For the full graphical review, please check out the One Mann's Movies review here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/06/22/the-hitmans-wifes-bodyguard-a-movie-thats-a-pain-in-the-a-double-dollar-sign/. Thanks).
Positives:
- As a comedy thriller, it does pass the '6 laughs test' in terms of the 'comedy' element. Some of these are minor chuckles. A few are really good belly laughs.
- Among these are some of the outrageous tirades of Salma Hayek: her accent makes some of the dialogue unintelligible, but given its X-rated nature, that's not necessarily a bad thing! As a mid-50's actress (Oh God - - don't tell her I mentioned her age!), Ms Hayek indeed has an arrestingly attractive form.
- Seeing Antonio Banderas and Morgan Freeman on the screen is never anything other than a positive. (Although Banderas is like Sean Connery in failing to tailor his natural accent to any role he's ever in!)
Negatives:
- A general problem I have with 'comedy thrillers' is that the comedy nearly always negates any of the thrills. Ryan Reynolds is not playing Deadpool in this one, although he might as well be doing so based on the number of times he is hit by cars and other solid objects. The result is that although it has the trappings of a Bond or a Bourne - exotic locations (here, mostly Italian ones) ; exotic woman; car chases; heavily-armed henchmen; huge explosions - it delivers none of the tension or excitement. When matched with some rather dodgy post-shoot special effects, the effect is generally underwhelming.
- If there was an award for the clumsiest movie title of 2021, we may already have a winner.
Summary Thoughts on "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard": Sequels are very occasionally better. Often they are much worse. This one, I have to say, delivers very much "more of the same". Given that the writer/director team of Tom O'Connor and Patrick Hughes are in the driving seat, that's not much of a surprise. The shtick is mildly diverting, occasionally downright funny, but quickly outstays its welcome. The 100 minute run time felt, for me, much longer.
Looking back at my 2017 review of the first film, I think I was being over-kind giving it 6/10. I think this is neither better nor worse. So if you want to average the two and give each 5/10, I wouldn't object! But, again, it's one I will struggle to remember much about in a few month's time.
(For the full graphical review, please check out the One Mann's Movies review here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/06/22/the-hitmans-wifes-bodyguard-a-movie-thats-a-pain-in-the-a-double-dollar-sign/. Thanks).
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated The Girls Are All So Nice Here in Books
Jun 30, 2021
I love a good psychological thriller. In fact, that's one of my favorite genres. When I read the synopsis of The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, I knew it was a book I had to read. It was giving me Pretty Little Liars vibes in a way. I ended up really liking this book.
I really enjoyed the plot of The Girls Are All So Nice Here, and the pacing was perfect. To say I devoured this book is an understatement. I had to know more. I had to know more about Amb, Sully, and Flora. I was totally invested in this story. I will say that most of the book is predictable with a few unpredictable plot twists. It's quite obvious, for the most part, how the story will end and who the guilty party is. However, the execution was done very well that knowing what was going to happen didn't put me off reading the book. I wanted more backstory for my theories, and the author did not disappoint. I enjoyed that the story alternated between Amb in college and Amb in the present time. One thing I didn't predict was what happened to Sully and Amb at the end of the book. I will say the ending was a tad rushed and a bit unbelievable with how easy it was for one such character to get away with what they did. However, this book does try to convey the lesson of be careful how you treat people.
I found the characters in The Girls Are All So Nice Here to be fleshed out enough to feel more like real people instead of just some random characters in a book. I really, really did not like Sully and Amb, not because they weren't written very well (which they are written amazingly), but because they were just so mean and selfish. They were the total mean girls at college. I think everyone knew at least one mean girl at some point in their life. I enjoyed reading about Sully and Amb then and now. It was fun to learn how much they had (or hadn't in some cases) matured. I really loved Flora and how much she genuinely seemed to care about everyone even those she never met. I wanted to be friends with Flora, and when I read about how mean Amb and Sully were to her, it broke my heart. Flora did not deserve any hate.
Trigger warnings for The Girls Are All So Nice Here include profanity, promiscuity, many sex references though not super graphic, rape, murder, mentions of suicide, underage drinking, drugs, and gaslighting.
Overall, The Girls Are So Nice Here is an intriguing read that will pull its readers in from the very first page. With characters the reader will love to hate and a story line that sucks you in, this is one novel that you won't soon forget. I would definitely recommend The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn to those aged 18+ who are after a well developed story that will leave you gasping by the last page.
I really enjoyed the plot of The Girls Are All So Nice Here, and the pacing was perfect. To say I devoured this book is an understatement. I had to know more. I had to know more about Amb, Sully, and Flora. I was totally invested in this story. I will say that most of the book is predictable with a few unpredictable plot twists. It's quite obvious, for the most part, how the story will end and who the guilty party is. However, the execution was done very well that knowing what was going to happen didn't put me off reading the book. I wanted more backstory for my theories, and the author did not disappoint. I enjoyed that the story alternated between Amb in college and Amb in the present time. One thing I didn't predict was what happened to Sully and Amb at the end of the book. I will say the ending was a tad rushed and a bit unbelievable with how easy it was for one such character to get away with what they did. However, this book does try to convey the lesson of be careful how you treat people.
I found the characters in The Girls Are All So Nice Here to be fleshed out enough to feel more like real people instead of just some random characters in a book. I really, really did not like Sully and Amb, not because they weren't written very well (which they are written amazingly), but because they were just so mean and selfish. They were the total mean girls at college. I think everyone knew at least one mean girl at some point in their life. I enjoyed reading about Sully and Amb then and now. It was fun to learn how much they had (or hadn't in some cases) matured. I really loved Flora and how much she genuinely seemed to care about everyone even those she never met. I wanted to be friends with Flora, and when I read about how mean Amb and Sully were to her, it broke my heart. Flora did not deserve any hate.
Trigger warnings for The Girls Are All So Nice Here include profanity, promiscuity, many sex references though not super graphic, rape, murder, mentions of suicide, underage drinking, drugs, and gaslighting.
Overall, The Girls Are So Nice Here is an intriguing read that will pull its readers in from the very first page. With characters the reader will love to hate and a story line that sucks you in, this is one novel that you won't soon forget. I would definitely recommend The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn to those aged 18+ who are after a well developed story that will leave you gasping by the last page.