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Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Synchronic (2019) in Movies
Nov 7, 2019 (Updated Nov 10, 2019)
Contains spoilers, click to show
I'm not sure quite what I expected from the synopsis, it didn't sound like it was going to be very sci-fi, and it wasn't... but it was. I know I'm not making sense. It felt much more like a crime drama than something with sci-fi in it. The sci-fi action blended well with everything around it that you almost don't notice it happening. If there was a fence I'd be sitting on the fence.
Anthony Mackie is only someone I've come across in Marvel movies ready so it was nice to have him in something a little different. His role of Steve has a lot of emotions behind it and I thought he managed to capture them really well. There are a lot of hints to something in his story and the balance between what he shows and his reality helped to sell Steve's reaction. This really makes me look forward to seeing him in more films.
Jamie Dornan has only really been on the periphery of my film watching, I certainly wouldn't have been able to tell you any films he's been in, as an introduction to him as an actor I was impressed. Again, there's a lot of emotion as his daughter goes missing and the tensions between Dennis and those around him were just right.
The two together made a great mix as friends, the bond felt like brothers and was an accurate depiction of the relationship and tension that comes with the horrible truth of illness and the burden that holds.
I liked how Mackie's story unfolded. Half the battle with illness is finding a focus and the mystery in this gives him that. He almost appears to be better while deteriorating in other ways. His purpose is a race against time just like his illness and he is able to choose a more noble cause for what may be all the time he has left.
Whether the science behind Mackie's illness is accurate or not I don't know but they give you a plausible explanation to follow throughout. There is however a moment that breaks the idea of the story... I think. Taking the drug sends the young users back in time, when they come down they are brought back to their present. This means that each pill is a two way journey. When he gets stuck in the past because he moves too far away from his incoming destination he figures he needs to take another pill (that he luckily has on him) and travel back. Fine. He does that successfully but he doesn't then acknowledge the fact that in 7 minutes he should be popping back to where he came from, I'd have been up off my arse a going for a run so I didn't accidentally pop back again. The other issue is that in the present when you pop a pill you go back in time... yet when he takes a pill in the past he comes to the present... Oh hell, I've opened up a can of worms thinking about this now.
The way they've done the effects around the sci-fi bits is very good, but massively affecting as you're drawn into the transitions, especially the first time because you don't know what they're leading to. It almost seamlessly blends together and the stages it takes work so well, and as I said above it doesn't feel very sci-fi
Synchronic was a nice surprise of a film, an interesting mix of genres that managed to keep itself from getting too unbelievable.
Full review originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/11/synchronic-spoilers-movie-review.html
Anthony Mackie is only someone I've come across in Marvel movies ready so it was nice to have him in something a little different. His role of Steve has a lot of emotions behind it and I thought he managed to capture them really well. There are a lot of hints to something in his story and the balance between what he shows and his reality helped to sell Steve's reaction. This really makes me look forward to seeing him in more films.
Jamie Dornan has only really been on the periphery of my film watching, I certainly wouldn't have been able to tell you any films he's been in, as an introduction to him as an actor I was impressed. Again, there's a lot of emotion as his daughter goes missing and the tensions between Dennis and those around him were just right.
The two together made a great mix as friends, the bond felt like brothers and was an accurate depiction of the relationship and tension that comes with the horrible truth of illness and the burden that holds.
I liked how Mackie's story unfolded. Half the battle with illness is finding a focus and the mystery in this gives him that. He almost appears to be better while deteriorating in other ways. His purpose is a race against time just like his illness and he is able to choose a more noble cause for what may be all the time he has left.
Whether the science behind Mackie's illness is accurate or not I don't know but they give you a plausible explanation to follow throughout. There is however a moment that breaks the idea of the story... I think. Taking the drug sends the young users back in time, when they come down they are brought back to their present. This means that each pill is a two way journey. When he gets stuck in the past because he moves too far away from his incoming destination he figures he needs to take another pill (that he luckily has on him) and travel back. Fine. He does that successfully but he doesn't then acknowledge the fact that in 7 minutes he should be popping back to where he came from, I'd have been up off my arse a going for a run so I didn't accidentally pop back again. The other issue is that in the present when you pop a pill you go back in time... yet when he takes a pill in the past he comes to the present... Oh hell, I've opened up a can of worms thinking about this now.
The way they've done the effects around the sci-fi bits is very good, but massively affecting as you're drawn into the transitions, especially the first time because you don't know what they're leading to. It almost seamlessly blends together and the stages it takes work so well, and as I said above it doesn't feel very sci-fi
Synchronic was a nice surprise of a film, an interesting mix of genres that managed to keep itself from getting too unbelievable.
Full review originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/11/synchronic-spoilers-movie-review.html
QuietlyBookish (65 KP) rated Turtles All The Way Down in Books
Nov 2, 2017
Plot (5 more)
Characters
Dialogue
Fandom Representation
Use of Fanfiction
Honest Portrayal of Mental Health Issues
This book blew me away, I honestly wasn't sure what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised. The way John Green portrayed mental health was brutally honest. It was hard to read at some points but it was refreshing not to have a YA book romanticize mental illness but instead to show it from all sides: the way it affects familial relationships; the way it affects friendships; the way it affects romantic relationships and how easy and scary it is when your thoughts spiral out of control.
I loved reading about Aza and how she navigates through her friendships, new relationships and dealing with OCD. I have so much respect for John Green after reading this. It was very well done, and the Star Wars references were an added bonus!
I loved reading about Aza and how she navigates through her friendships, new relationships and dealing with OCD. I have so much respect for John Green after reading this. It was very well done, and the Star Wars references were an added bonus!
Mandi Brownfield (1 KP) rated The Darkest Minds in Books
Feb 3, 2019
Interesting!
Contains spoilers, click to show
The story starts out intriguing with the population of children in the world drastically decreasing due to some unknown illness killing most of them. The children who somehow survive develop powers, which is worrisome for the government. These kids are put in camps to keep track of them. The kids are separated by the type of power they have and they are color coded. The main character is an orange, which is one of the more dangerous powers, mind control. She touched her parents while they slept and accidentally erased their memory of her. She has to fake being a lower risk color as reds and oranges are killed. She eventually breaks out of the camp and finds other kids to bond with and together they try to find a safe place.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Brain on Fire (2016) in Movies
Jul 5, 2018 (Updated Jul 5, 2018)
Not very deep
This Netflix movie about a young woman who comes down with a mysterious brain disease was all right for me, but lacked much depth or details of the story. Her relationship with her boyfriend, divorced parents and her employer all become strained when her behavior starts to change.
It's not the story, which is of course compelling, I had a problem with. It was the screenplay which lacked any real depth and some of the acting. The actor playing her father, boyfriend, father and Tyler Perry as her boss I thought overacted and were not believable.
If I wanted to find out any details about the complexity of her illness, there weren't many to be found in this 88 minute film.
Do yourself a favor and watch Awakenings, Lorenzo's Oil or Something the Lord Made instead of this film.
It's not the story, which is of course compelling, I had a problem with. It was the screenplay which lacked any real depth and some of the acting. The actor playing her father, boyfriend, father and Tyler Perry as her boss I thought overacted and were not believable.
If I wanted to find out any details about the complexity of her illness, there weren't many to be found in this 88 minute film.
Do yourself a favor and watch Awakenings, Lorenzo's Oil or Something the Lord Made instead of this film.
ashezbookz (32 KP) rated Turtles All The Way Down in Books
Jul 5, 2018
This book was great - I love a good mental health illness book! I think that aspect of the book was interesting to read and the description toward the mid-end there was amazing in the description. I think the aspect of the, lets track down this missing person was a bit of a wildcard in the book - cool concept but very random. And was not a very "all there" part of the book.
I liked where the title of the book came in too, I was like, why the heck is this book called that? ohk now I get it hah. Overall a great read, but taking a 1 star away for the overall cohesiveness of the concept working together, and it was a bit slow in a few places especially the beginning, but then I powered through the last 186 pages pretty quickly!
I liked where the title of the book came in too, I was like, why the heck is this book called that? ohk now I get it hah. Overall a great read, but taking a 1 star away for the overall cohesiveness of the concept working together, and it was a bit slow in a few places especially the beginning, but then I powered through the last 186 pages pretty quickly!
MelanieTheresa (997 KP) rated Joker (2019) in Movies
Jan 10, 2020
I guess I just didn't get it.
I know I'm in the extreme minority here, but I was just not a fan of this movie. It was super bleak, and I grew bored fairly quickly. I know, it was supposedly a commentary on society & mental health/illness blah blah blah, and I'm not sure what this says about me, but it did absolutely nothing for me. Phoenix's performance, which everyone and his brother is applauding (and, apparently, awarding - see last week's Golden Globes), was just ok in my opinion. Then again, Phoenix as an actor in general is just ok in my opinion.
Gotham was super seedy, as Gotham should be, and the Wayne name was only invoked once or twice (both Bruce & Thomas) - and that's where any connection to the DCU ends. And that's really fine, since I have zero desire to see this Joker again.
Gotham was super seedy, as Gotham should be, and the Wayne name was only invoked once or twice (both Bruce & Thomas) - and that's where any connection to the DCU ends. And that's really fine, since I have zero desire to see this Joker again.
Kim Pook (101 KP) rated Midnight Sun (2018) in Movies
May 15, 2020
Tissues definitely needed
Contains spoilers, click to show
The story follows 17 year old Katie as she battles with a life threatening illness Xeroderma pigmentosum. XP means she can not be exposed to sunlight or it can be fatal.
Growing up, Katie falls in love with a boy called Charlie who would pass by her house every day and one day whilst playing a song at the train station they finally meet face to face and hit off straight away.
The story revolves around teenage love whilst battling this disease, but after staying out with Charlie until early hours in the morning and becoming exposed to the slightest bit of sunlight, Katie's health begins to deteriorate until she eventually passes away.
As a lover of romantic movies I really enjoyed this movie. Cried like a baby at the end though, so I definitely recommend being prepared with tissues at the ready.
Growing up, Katie falls in love with a boy called Charlie who would pass by her house every day and one day whilst playing a song at the train station they finally meet face to face and hit off straight away.
The story revolves around teenage love whilst battling this disease, but after staying out with Charlie until early hours in the morning and becoming exposed to the slightest bit of sunlight, Katie's health begins to deteriorate until she eventually passes away.
As a lover of romantic movies I really enjoyed this movie. Cried like a baby at the end though, so I definitely recommend being prepared with tissues at the ready.
QuietlyBookish (65 KP) rated Fangirl in Books
Jul 6, 2017
Characters (3 more)
Themes of Mental Illness
Plot
Dialogue
Must Read For Anyone Starting University!
I very much enjoyed this book. I read this book in one day. I loved Cath, I felt that she was easy to like and she was realistic, I think her thoughts, feelings and actions were easy to relate to.
This book is about finding yourself as you transition from teenager to adult and learn to live alone for the first time.
I can't recommend this enough, I think everyone can gain something from this story!
There are a lot of different editions of this book! I'd recommend looking them up if you're interested in fan art or author Q&A's! Also, there are two other books related to Fangirl, there is Carry On which is a full novel about the Simon and Baz fanfiction Cath writes in Fangirl. Also, Cath and Levi make an appearance in the author's adult novel Landline, if you're interested in that!
This book is about finding yourself as you transition from teenager to adult and learn to live alone for the first time.
I can't recommend this enough, I think everyone can gain something from this story!
There are a lot of different editions of this book! I'd recommend looking them up if you're interested in fan art or author Q&A's! Also, there are two other books related to Fangirl, there is Carry On which is a full novel about the Simon and Baz fanfiction Cath writes in Fangirl. Also, Cath and Levi make an appearance in the author's adult novel Landline, if you're interested in that!
Sean Farrell (9 KP) rated The Fault in Our Stars in Books
Mar 15, 2018
One of the most moving books I've ever read. The story of two teenagers falling in love is hardly anything new, but the fact that one has survived cancer (and lost a leg in the process) and the other is suffering from an almost certainly uncurable cancer adds a new, and heartbreaking wrinkle to the story. The characters all come off as very grounded in reality, and while capable of some witty dialogue, don't come off as unbelievably clever as say, the teens in "Juno". The illness itself is treated very realistically as well, with every bit of suffering arising throughout the book, while never being allowed to take over entirely. Due to the somewhat brief length of the book and also largely to how addictively well-written it is, I finished it in 2 sittings. One of the most beautiful love stories I've ever read, and one that will stick with me for a long time to come.
Jessica Erdas (463 KP) rated Brain on Fire (2016) in Movies
Jun 26, 2018
Based on a true story
Based on the life and book by the same name by Susannah Cahalan, this movie follows the events of a 21 year old girl who suddenly begins experiencing strange flu-like symptoms. She goes to a doctor who tells her that all of her tests came back clear and there's nothing wrong with her. As she continues to work through the strange symptoms, they become increasingly severe. She begins to have seizures, psychotic episodes of paranoia, and is diagnosed with one mental illness after another. None of which explain why Susannah was previously a perfectly healthy 21 year old girl or what brought on the strange symptoms. Her family pushes to find answers where the team of doctors believe she belongs in a psychiatric facility. The movie is a little slow paced but I believe it was necessary to really encompass the severity and impact of the situation that Susannah and her family experienced. Definitely worth a watch.