Search
Search results
David McK (3180 KP) rated Around the World in 80 Days (2004) in Movies
Jan 19, 2021
2004 reimagining of the classic Jules Verne novel, and I do mean reimagining: sure, the basic premise is the same (a bet is made during Victorian times that a man can travel around the world in 80 days), but the particulars are quite different in this than in the source.
This stars Steve Coogan and Jackie Chan, both playing exactly the type of roles you would expect from each, with plenty of cameos (including Arnie Schwarzenegger!) sprinkled throughout. It's an OK film, but I did find myself zoning out at several points.
This stars Steve Coogan and Jackie Chan, both playing exactly the type of roles you would expect from each, with plenty of cameos (including Arnie Schwarzenegger!) sprinkled throughout. It's an OK film, but I did find myself zoning out at several points.
HyruleBalverine (16 KP) rated Journey to the Centre of the Earth in Books
Feb 19, 2018
A classic tale that's written from a scientist's point of view
Contains spoilers, click to show
I'm not sure if it's the writing style of Jules Verne, how the book was translated, or just how the book was written (since the main character / narrator is supposed to be a scientist), but this story reads much like a text book to me. I don't mind so much that the story is slow (not much really happens until the half way point or later, and what does happen is fairly tame), but this writing style make it difficult for me to get into. The main characters don't really get to anything of real interest until nearly the end of the story, which they run away from rather than investigating, and then get an "ex machina" return to the surface.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) in Movies
Mar 3, 2019
Dated but still a fun ride
The Jules Verne classic novel of adventure and mayhem comes to life on the big screen in glorious CinemaScope!
Follow a scientist, his assistant, a beautiful widow and others as they decent into the depths of the Earth itself to see what lies beneath. They encounter all sorts of pitfalls including treacherous caves, salt mines and giant lizards along the way.
Will they make it out alive?
Unfortunately, there is the 1950s version of the views of the female race on display which I was not a fan of. If you can get past that, the acting and story are interesting enough as you watch the posse go along their way.
The sets, music and art direction are well done considering this film's age, and if you can look past some of the cheesy elements it really is quite the adventure ride of a film.
Follow a scientist, his assistant, a beautiful widow and others as they decent into the depths of the Earth itself to see what lies beneath. They encounter all sorts of pitfalls including treacherous caves, salt mines and giant lizards along the way.
Will they make it out alive?
Unfortunately, there is the 1950s version of the views of the female race on display which I was not a fan of. If you can get past that, the acting and story are interesting enough as you watch the posse go along their way.
The sets, music and art direction are well done considering this film's age, and if you can look past some of the cheesy elements it really is quite the adventure ride of a film.
Tom Turner (388 KP) rated Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz in Books
Apr 30, 2021
This was my least favourite Oz book so far. As with the previous book, it took a long time - almost the whole book in this case! - to actually read Oz, and so the only character (other than Dorothy) we know from before to feature significantly was the Wizard. Who is arguably the fullest of all characters, as anyone else familiar with the original Wizard of Oz understands.
From doing some research, the reason for this is because Baum has resigned himself to writing the series, so he was trying to have his cake and eat it by writing a Oz book without actually writing an Oz book. It's a shame he felt this way, because the moment we got into Oz all the magic for me returned. Sure there were some good ideas in the lead up, but I would have much preferred them to hammer occurred in Oz abs not this subterranean world. It felt more Jules Verne than Baum. Let's just hope this is the low point.
From doing some research, the reason for this is because Baum has resigned himself to writing the series, so he was trying to have his cake and eat it by writing a Oz book without actually writing an Oz book. It's a shame he felt this way, because the moment we got into Oz all the magic for me returned. Sure there were some good ideas in the lead up, but I would have much preferred them to hammer occurred in Oz abs not this subterranean world. It felt more Jules Verne than Baum. Let's just hope this is the low point.
Awix (3310 KP) rated War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches in Books
Feb 3, 2020
Diverse collection of short stories all revisiting the Martian invasion of 1898 (as originally detailed by H.G. Wells). Most (but not all) of the stories are narrated by notables from the period, most (but not all) of these are famous writers: Henry James, Samuel Clemens, Rudyard Kipling, and so on. The collection kind of overlooks the implication that the Martians only actually invade southern England in Wells' novel, but then most adaptations do the same thing, and the stories here aren't even consistent with each other (the fate of Paris varies significantly in the Jules Verne and Pablo Picasso entries).
A bit of a mixed bag, to be honest: some of the stories just restage elements of Wells with a different backdrop, others treat the Martians as a backdrop for more introspective tales, still others indulge in literary pastiche. Unlikely juxtapositions and in-jokes abound - Rudyard Kipling meets Gandhi, Tolstoy meets Stalin, Samuel Clemens (d. 1910) makes reference to John Christopher (b. 1922). The best stories are mostly the ones which recognise the political/satirical subtext powering the Wells novel and attempt to do something similar - so Barbara Hambly's story concerns British imperialism in India, and the effect of the Martians on the situation there, while another looks at the consequences for pre-revolutionary Russia. That said, Connie Willis' Hugo-winning contribution sends the whole conceit of the novel up with a predictable mixture of tongue-in-cheek drollery and sheer absurd silliness, as the unlikely effect of a Martian encounter on the poetry of Emily Dickinson is revealed (especially considering Dickinson died twelve years before the coming of the Martians). The good stories are very good indeed, the less good ones merely a bit tedious. A worthy and worthwhile tribute to the original novel.
A bit of a mixed bag, to be honest: some of the stories just restage elements of Wells with a different backdrop, others treat the Martians as a backdrop for more introspective tales, still others indulge in literary pastiche. Unlikely juxtapositions and in-jokes abound - Rudyard Kipling meets Gandhi, Tolstoy meets Stalin, Samuel Clemens (d. 1910) makes reference to John Christopher (b. 1922). The best stories are mostly the ones which recognise the political/satirical subtext powering the Wells novel and attempt to do something similar - so Barbara Hambly's story concerns British imperialism in India, and the effect of the Martians on the situation there, while another looks at the consequences for pre-revolutionary Russia. That said, Connie Willis' Hugo-winning contribution sends the whole conceit of the novel up with a predictable mixture of tongue-in-cheek drollery and sheer absurd silliness, as the unlikely effect of a Martian encounter on the poetry of Emily Dickinson is revealed (especially considering Dickinson died twelve years before the coming of the Martians). The good stories are very good indeed, the less good ones merely a bit tedious. A worthy and worthwhile tribute to the original novel.
Paul Kellett (118 KP) rated The 7th Continent in Tabletop Games
Jun 9, 2019
Great art, map looks brilliant as it builds up as you explore (2 more)
Massive amount of gameplay
Great open world adventure
Roguelike - could be frustrating to have to restart especially on the longer curses (1 more)
A lot of cards, sorting them after a game is a bit of a faff
A Cool Adventure Survival game
7th Continent is an amazing and ambitious adventure / exploration game that is a lot more challenging than it appears.
On the surface, it looks like a card version of a choose your own adventure book, exploring and revealing a whole island as you find clues to lift a curse.
When you start playing however, you reveal a very tight card management and action optimization game that can be very unforgiving. This is both a great thing or a frustrating one depending on your view.
If you just want a light exploration game more like a CYOA book, or struggle finding card combos and optimal actions, this game might not be for you.
However, if you want a deeper game that rewards careful planning and finding the synergy between cards, 7th Continent is a rewarding experience.
The premise is simple - explore the island and try to find the right clues to lift a curse, one of several to choose from.
You start with an action deck of 35+ cards which also functions as your party's health. Everything you do requires you to discard cards from the deck. There is a big push your luck element here as every action requires a certain number of stars in order to succeed and every action card contains a varying number of stars. Do you play safe and draw more cards to minimise risk but drain more health or do you draw less and hope you succeed.
Every time you draw action cards, you can choose one to keep in your hand. These can be skills to help you control the deck or items you can build to make exploration and encounters easier.
You will find hunting spots along the way where you might find food to eat and replenish your action deck by returning cards from the discard pile but be warned, hunting also has it's own risks.
The action deck also contains 6 curse cards. These do nothing initially except reduce the chance of succeeding an encounter but, once all your action cards are discarded, you shuffle the discard pile and start drawing from that. If you ever draw a curse card from the discard, it's game over.
This is where the meat of the game is. You need to balance drawing cards and exploring the island with finding beneficial combos and cunning tricks to replenish the action deck. You won't be able to investigate every nook and cranny on the island in one game but, because of the roguelike nature, while you don't carry over any items between games, you can use your knowledge of the island to make your progress quicker. The more you play, the more familiar you get with the island and you know where to go to hunt, what things are worth looking at and what you should avoid.
The curses themselves are varied and play anywhere from 3 to 30 hours! This is great as it means there is a ton of play time but also a point of frustration as having to restart from the beginning after getting 10 hours into a curse can really put people off.
On the whole, I love it. 7th Continent really captures the feel of Jules Verne, HG Wells and that era of fiction. The way the map cards align seamlessly to reveal a complete landscape looks fantastic on the table and I enjoy the old school option of drawing maps and taking notes as I play.
I certainly recommend giving this game a try if you can.
On the surface, it looks like a card version of a choose your own adventure book, exploring and revealing a whole island as you find clues to lift a curse.
When you start playing however, you reveal a very tight card management and action optimization game that can be very unforgiving. This is both a great thing or a frustrating one depending on your view.
If you just want a light exploration game more like a CYOA book, or struggle finding card combos and optimal actions, this game might not be for you.
However, if you want a deeper game that rewards careful planning and finding the synergy between cards, 7th Continent is a rewarding experience.
The premise is simple - explore the island and try to find the right clues to lift a curse, one of several to choose from.
You start with an action deck of 35+ cards which also functions as your party's health. Everything you do requires you to discard cards from the deck. There is a big push your luck element here as every action requires a certain number of stars in order to succeed and every action card contains a varying number of stars. Do you play safe and draw more cards to minimise risk but drain more health or do you draw less and hope you succeed.
Every time you draw action cards, you can choose one to keep in your hand. These can be skills to help you control the deck or items you can build to make exploration and encounters easier.
You will find hunting spots along the way where you might find food to eat and replenish your action deck by returning cards from the discard pile but be warned, hunting also has it's own risks.
The action deck also contains 6 curse cards. These do nothing initially except reduce the chance of succeeding an encounter but, once all your action cards are discarded, you shuffle the discard pile and start drawing from that. If you ever draw a curse card from the discard, it's game over.
This is where the meat of the game is. You need to balance drawing cards and exploring the island with finding beneficial combos and cunning tricks to replenish the action deck. You won't be able to investigate every nook and cranny on the island in one game but, because of the roguelike nature, while you don't carry over any items between games, you can use your knowledge of the island to make your progress quicker. The more you play, the more familiar you get with the island and you know where to go to hunt, what things are worth looking at and what you should avoid.
The curses themselves are varied and play anywhere from 3 to 30 hours! This is great as it means there is a ton of play time but also a point of frustration as having to restart from the beginning after getting 10 hours into a curse can really put people off.
On the whole, I love it. 7th Continent really captures the feel of Jules Verne, HG Wells and that era of fiction. The way the map cards align seamlessly to reveal a complete landscape looks fantastic on the table and I enjoy the old school option of drawing maps and taking notes as I play.
I certainly recommend giving this game a try if you can.