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Frank Delaney's Re: Joyce
Podcast
ReJOYCE! To commemorate James Joyce's mighty novel, Ulysses, we're launching a podcast. Every week...
David McK (3816 KP) rated The Suicide Squad (2021) in Movies
May 27, 2023
Hmmm ... not Suicide Squad, but 'The Suicide Squad'.
Like Aliens and not Alien.
A sort-of sequel to the earlier movie (here, Suicide Squad), with some of the same characters - most noticeably, Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn - although it is by no means necessary to have watched that earlier movie.
This is also a fair bit bloodier/messier than I remember said earlier movie being, and has absolutely no mention of either Batman or the Joker (unless you count Quinn's aversion to personalised number plates? See The Jokers car ...) to distract from the plot here, which sees the group of super-villains (all with a tracker and bomb implanted in their head) all sent on a mission to the island of Corto Maltese to destroy a Nazi-era prison and laboratory.
Of the 2 movies, I think this is the better.
It's definitely a James Gunn film through and through!
Like Aliens and not Alien.
A sort-of sequel to the earlier movie (here, Suicide Squad), with some of the same characters - most noticeably, Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn - although it is by no means necessary to have watched that earlier movie.
This is also a fair bit bloodier/messier than I remember said earlier movie being, and has absolutely no mention of either Batman or the Joker (unless you count Quinn's aversion to personalised number plates? See The Jokers car ...) to distract from the plot here, which sees the group of super-villains (all with a tracker and bomb implanted in their head) all sent on a mission to the island of Corto Maltese to destroy a Nazi-era prison and laboratory.
Of the 2 movies, I think this is the better.
It's definitely a James Gunn film through and through!
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated The Invisible Man (2020) in Movies
Mar 8, 2020
When the trailers for this landed I knew I needed to see it, despite a large reservation it looked good and I was excited to see what they'd done with the story.
Cecilia has made the break from her abusive boyfriend and is trying to retake her life. It isn't easy when she's worried he'll be waiting for her or following the people she knows. That all changes when her sister tells her that he's been found dead, she can finally come out of hiding.
It's liberating, but she soon feels like his death might not have been as final as everyone thought. The creak of a floorboard, a noise in the next room, she's not alone. As terrible things start to befall her can she prove there's something to her claims or will everyone just think she's lost her mind?
I was not disappointed by this film, it really was a thrilling watch. It amazed me that you can achieve things like this on a (relatively) teeny tiny budget. I haven't seen or gone looking for details on how they did the invisible bits of the Invisible Man yet but my first instinct would be a morph suit and some wires (if you know please do let me know in the comments)... I'm guessing that inventing a real invisible suit was definitely out of their budget.
The effects never looked bad, there was one moment where it didn't entirely look real but that was during the very first physical interaction with him and I'm inclined to put it down to my surprise. I do want to go and see this again though so we'll see how it fairs then. I'm going to skip to another topic that crosses with this one...
The scares... normally I find horror films with obvious jump scares easier to deal with, it's a classic, and mainly predictable, device. There were a lot of times I was scared during the screening, but not in the way I expected. Those jump scares were there and I was feeling rather confident I'd do fine... I didn't do fine. They managed to scare me in a way I've never quite experienced before. Even the moment we see in the trailer where Cecilia is peering out of the attic got me. The build up to all these moments and the anticipation made them so much more than simple jumps and that really impressed me. The moments where he's revealed from behind his invisibility blend in really well with everything despite the fact your brain is telling you it isn't possible... or is it?!
I loved the camerawork. You'd pan out to an empty space and wonder if it was really empty, a doorway, an empty corridor... the way we zoom out to view the whole room with the realisation that he could be anywhere is an excellent way to make the audience as paranoid as she is.
When Cecilia makes her escape from Adrian she is taken in by James and his daughter Sydney, played by Aldis Hodge and Storm Reid. The dynamic the three of them have together is great, James is such a strong person when it comes to trying to help Cecilia get back to a normal life. That was a great thing to see and Hodge plays it perfectly. I'm also relieved that in the whole film we're never made to see a romance between the two, it's friendship and survival, nothing more.
Elisabeth Moss in the lead role had been my initial hesitation, I'm not really a fan. She was good, if she hadn't been I wouldn't have enjoyed the movie so much, but I felt like she managed to make Cecilia a little too manic at times. Occasionally that worked, and since I saw the film I've been wondering what sort of difference it would have made had she not been that way.
I liked that there were nods to things throughout the film, those little references were fun to look for but I wish they'd kept it out of the trailers. The bandaged man had no context in the trailer apart from a little flag for people who know previous versions. I can see trying to appeal to them with it but I'm not convinced the rest of the trailer would have anyway so what was the point?
The Invisible Man was much more that I had hoped for, it created so much suspense out of an empty room and some clever angles that I was just ever so slightly paranoid by the time I got home.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-invisible-man-movie-review.html
Cecilia has made the break from her abusive boyfriend and is trying to retake her life. It isn't easy when she's worried he'll be waiting for her or following the people she knows. That all changes when her sister tells her that he's been found dead, she can finally come out of hiding.
It's liberating, but she soon feels like his death might not have been as final as everyone thought. The creak of a floorboard, a noise in the next room, she's not alone. As terrible things start to befall her can she prove there's something to her claims or will everyone just think she's lost her mind?
I was not disappointed by this film, it really was a thrilling watch. It amazed me that you can achieve things like this on a (relatively) teeny tiny budget. I haven't seen or gone looking for details on how they did the invisible bits of the Invisible Man yet but my first instinct would be a morph suit and some wires (if you know please do let me know in the comments)... I'm guessing that inventing a real invisible suit was definitely out of their budget.
The effects never looked bad, there was one moment where it didn't entirely look real but that was during the very first physical interaction with him and I'm inclined to put it down to my surprise. I do want to go and see this again though so we'll see how it fairs then. I'm going to skip to another topic that crosses with this one...
The scares... normally I find horror films with obvious jump scares easier to deal with, it's a classic, and mainly predictable, device. There were a lot of times I was scared during the screening, but not in the way I expected. Those jump scares were there and I was feeling rather confident I'd do fine... I didn't do fine. They managed to scare me in a way I've never quite experienced before. Even the moment we see in the trailer where Cecilia is peering out of the attic got me. The build up to all these moments and the anticipation made them so much more than simple jumps and that really impressed me. The moments where he's revealed from behind his invisibility blend in really well with everything despite the fact your brain is telling you it isn't possible... or is it?!
I loved the camerawork. You'd pan out to an empty space and wonder if it was really empty, a doorway, an empty corridor... the way we zoom out to view the whole room with the realisation that he could be anywhere is an excellent way to make the audience as paranoid as she is.
When Cecilia makes her escape from Adrian she is taken in by James and his daughter Sydney, played by Aldis Hodge and Storm Reid. The dynamic the three of them have together is great, James is such a strong person when it comes to trying to help Cecilia get back to a normal life. That was a great thing to see and Hodge plays it perfectly. I'm also relieved that in the whole film we're never made to see a romance between the two, it's friendship and survival, nothing more.
Elisabeth Moss in the lead role had been my initial hesitation, I'm not really a fan. She was good, if she hadn't been I wouldn't have enjoyed the movie so much, but I felt like she managed to make Cecilia a little too manic at times. Occasionally that worked, and since I saw the film I've been wondering what sort of difference it would have made had she not been that way.
I liked that there were nods to things throughout the film, those little references were fun to look for but I wish they'd kept it out of the trailers. The bandaged man had no context in the trailer apart from a little flag for people who know previous versions. I can see trying to appeal to them with it but I'm not convinced the rest of the trailer would have anyway so what was the point?
The Invisible Man was much more that I had hoped for, it created so much suspense out of an empty room and some clever angles that I was just ever so slightly paranoid by the time I got home.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-invisible-man-movie-review.html
Claridge's: The Cookbook
Martyn Nail and Meredith Erickson
Book
"...not that I intend to die, but when I do, I don't want to go to heaven, I want to go to...
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Nowhere To Run in Books
Oct 24, 2021 (Updated Oct 24, 2021)
This is the third instalment in the Constance Fairchild series and yet another that doesn't disappoint. You don't have to have read any of the other 2 books but I would suggest you do because it gives insight into Constance's story and you won't regret it. Nowhere to Run provides some of the back story and history but it can only touch upon it otherwise it would be a tome!
I think I can safely say that I'm a fan of James Oswald's work and I particularly like his character DC Constance Fairchild, otherwise known as Con. She is one tough cookie and this is shown in all its glory here.
It starts off pretty sedately with Con recuperating in an isolated cottage in Wales but, as is the case with Con, trouble seems to find her regardless of whether she is in the centre of London or in the middle of nowhere! Here she is getting embroiled in a smuggling operation on the Welsh coastline - you just know from the very beginning that things aren't going to go well for Con but little do we know just how bad.
Once again, Mr Oswald creates fantastic characters even ones of the four legged variety; I absolutely loved Gelert the deerhound who embodies the phrase "[wo]man's best friend" and I guarantee you will want a Gelert in your life albeit without the flatulence!
With action from the start, numerous scenes of peril and suspense all wrapped up perfectly in a plot which mixes contemporary themes with Welsh folklore and a touch of the unexplained, this is a book that I have no hesitation in recommending.
Thank you Headline and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
I think I can safely say that I'm a fan of James Oswald's work and I particularly like his character DC Constance Fairchild, otherwise known as Con. She is one tough cookie and this is shown in all its glory here.
It starts off pretty sedately with Con recuperating in an isolated cottage in Wales but, as is the case with Con, trouble seems to find her regardless of whether she is in the centre of London or in the middle of nowhere! Here she is getting embroiled in a smuggling operation on the Welsh coastline - you just know from the very beginning that things aren't going to go well for Con but little do we know just how bad.
Once again, Mr Oswald creates fantastic characters even ones of the four legged variety; I absolutely loved Gelert the deerhound who embodies the phrase "[wo]man's best friend" and I guarantee you will want a Gelert in your life albeit without the flatulence!
With action from the start, numerous scenes of peril and suspense all wrapped up perfectly in a plot which mixes contemporary themes with Welsh folklore and a touch of the unexplained, this is a book that I have no hesitation in recommending.
Thank you Headline and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Merissa (14046 KP) rated The Beginning in Books
Dec 17, 2018
For a prequel novella, this book packs in a lot of information in a relatively short amount of time. Cecily is a 'royal' Witch but she is royally fed up with her life. She wants to live like a human but is being hassled to be the one who gives birth the one long awaited, the one who will save the witches. Unfortunately, this means that she has suffered through nine miscarriages. I don't mean one or nine relationships though. She is there as a brood mare, along with the other royal witches, until the Tenth is born.
She meets up with her friend, only to find out that the meeting was just a ruse to try and get her to continue. Hurt by the betrayal, she leaves and finds her way to a bar where the music tempts her inside.
Like I said, there is a lot of information in here that will delight and tempt you, and definitely leave you wanting to know more - about Cecily, about James, about the situation they find themselves in, about their world in general.
With no spelling or grammatical errors that I found, this was an enjoyable and quick read, perfectly leading on to the next book in the series - A Late Summer Bloom. Definitely recommended.
* I received this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
She meets up with her friend, only to find out that the meeting was just a ruse to try and get her to continue. Hurt by the betrayal, she leaves and finds her way to a bar where the music tempts her inside.
Like I said, there is a lot of information in here that will delight and tempt you, and definitely leave you wanting to know more - about Cecily, about James, about the situation they find themselves in, about their world in general.
With no spelling or grammatical errors that I found, this was an enjoyable and quick read, perfectly leading on to the next book in the series - A Late Summer Bloom. Definitely recommended.
* I received this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
David McK (3816 KP) rated The Folded World in Books
Jan 28, 2019
Christmas 2014/early 2015.
There was a gift pack available in Easons, with said sealed pack including 2 sci-fi film magazines, and one of six Star Trek novels. As the pack was sealed, there was obviously no way of knowing which novel is in which pack.
When I purchased said pack, this is the novel that was in mine - if I'm honest, it's probably not one that I would have picked up in a bookstore, nor was it the novel I was hoping would be included.
Set during The Original Series era (i.e the original TV series) of Star Trek, this obviously therefore includes all the central character of said TV show: Captain James T Kirk, Scotty, Spock, Dr 'Bones' McCoy, etc. That is, the 'original' of those characters, rather than those in the more-recent J.J. Abrams reboot.
The plot has to do with Captain Kirk and co receiving a distress call while en-route to a diplomatic mission, and boarding a spaceship unlike any they have ever seen before, where (once again) the usual rules of time and space do not apply.
While readable enough, I have to say, it's also pretty forgettable, with nothing to really convince me to pick up other books by this author, or (while I admit it may be somewhat unfair to base my perception of the whole on this alone) to go looking for other Star Trek books unless they come highly recommended.
There was a gift pack available in Easons, with said sealed pack including 2 sci-fi film magazines, and one of six Star Trek novels. As the pack was sealed, there was obviously no way of knowing which novel is in which pack.
When I purchased said pack, this is the novel that was in mine - if I'm honest, it's probably not one that I would have picked up in a bookstore, nor was it the novel I was hoping would be included.
Set during The Original Series era (i.e the original TV series) of Star Trek, this obviously therefore includes all the central character of said TV show: Captain James T Kirk, Scotty, Spock, Dr 'Bones' McCoy, etc. That is, the 'original' of those characters, rather than those in the more-recent J.J. Abrams reboot.
The plot has to do with Captain Kirk and co receiving a distress call while en-route to a diplomatic mission, and boarding a spaceship unlike any they have ever seen before, where (once again) the usual rules of time and space do not apply.
While readable enough, I have to say, it's also pretty forgettable, with nothing to really convince me to pick up other books by this author, or (while I admit it may be somewhat unfair to base my perception of the whole on this alone) to go looking for other Star Trek books unless they come highly recommended.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) in Movies
Dec 22, 2019
A timeless classic
I can safely say that there is truly nothing I dislike about The Nightmare Before Christmas.
It's straight to the point, fantastically animated, full of unique characters, and still holds up all these years later.
Director Henry Selick obviously has a keen eye for stop-animation (he would go on to direct James & The Giant Peach, and Coraline, both great animated films in their own right), and his work with the combined animation, visual effects, and art departments create a visually striking adventure that quickly and understandably became iconic.
Tim Burton's story is easy to grasp (great for children as well as adults), and the characters he has created for this story are equal parts creepy and fun.
Jack Skellington and Sally are both tragic and sympathetic characters that are easy to care about. Oogie Boogie is suitably evil (scared the sh*t out of me when I was little), and the rest of the town of Halloween are filled but bizarre and quirky characters that create a weird but warm back drop to the leads.
Danny Elfman is at his very best here. All of the songs contained within are memorable, and pretty epic at points. The lyrics are quick and clever, and do a lot to advance our understanding of the characters.
I can't praise The Nightmare Before Christmas enough. It's simply wonderful and a film I will happily watch time and time again.
It's straight to the point, fantastically animated, full of unique characters, and still holds up all these years later.
Director Henry Selick obviously has a keen eye for stop-animation (he would go on to direct James & The Giant Peach, and Coraline, both great animated films in their own right), and his work with the combined animation, visual effects, and art departments create a visually striking adventure that quickly and understandably became iconic.
Tim Burton's story is easy to grasp (great for children as well as adults), and the characters he has created for this story are equal parts creepy and fun.
Jack Skellington and Sally are both tragic and sympathetic characters that are easy to care about. Oogie Boogie is suitably evil (scared the sh*t out of me when I was little), and the rest of the town of Halloween are filled but bizarre and quirky characters that create a weird but warm back drop to the leads.
Danny Elfman is at his very best here. All of the songs contained within are memorable, and pretty epic at points. The lyrics are quick and clever, and do a lot to advance our understanding of the characters.
I can't praise The Nightmare Before Christmas enough. It's simply wonderful and a film I will happily watch time and time again.
ClareR (6250 KP) rated Nothing to Hide (DC Constance Fairchild #2) in Books
Jul 27, 2019
Nothing to Hide is the second book in a series about DC Constance (Con) Fairchild. I haven’t read the first book - but I will be reading it. Not having read the first book didn’t cause me any problems with understanding and enjoying this one.
It’s a police procedural of sorts: Con is suspended because of something that happened in the previous book, and trouble seems to follow her. First the tabloids won’t leave her alone and are camped outside her flat, and then she finds the barely alive body of a young black man in her bins. He has had his tongue and testicles removed.
Even though she is suspended, Con finds herself involved in the investigation of this case. She travels up to Edinburgh where the boys mother lives, via a visit to her estranged mother. There she meets the enigmatic Reverend Dr Edward Masters, the leader of the Church of the Coming Light.
I couldn’t (or didn’t want to) stop reading this - it was fast paced, exciting and completely engrossing. The supporting characters were great to read too (a bit of other-worldly guidance from two very well written characters).
I can’t wait for the next in the series, and I shall be definitely looking for a copy of the first book!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for another excellent read, and to the author, James Oswald, for reading along with us!
It’s a police procedural of sorts: Con is suspended because of something that happened in the previous book, and trouble seems to follow her. First the tabloids won’t leave her alone and are camped outside her flat, and then she finds the barely alive body of a young black man in her bins. He has had his tongue and testicles removed.
Even though she is suspended, Con finds herself involved in the investigation of this case. She travels up to Edinburgh where the boys mother lives, via a visit to her estranged mother. There she meets the enigmatic Reverend Dr Edward Masters, the leader of the Church of the Coming Light.
I couldn’t (or didn’t want to) stop reading this - it was fast paced, exciting and completely engrossing. The supporting characters were great to read too (a bit of other-worldly guidance from two very well written characters).
I can’t wait for the next in the series, and I shall be definitely looking for a copy of the first book!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for another excellent read, and to the author, James Oswald, for reading along with us!
Reckless Heart by Joanne Shaw Taylor
Album Watch
Having famous fans such as Joe Bonnamassaand Glen Hughes and being described by Jools Holland as a...