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Bob Mann (459 KP) rated The Dig (2021) in Movies
Jan 31, 2021
Acting from Fiennes and Mulligan - top notch (1 more)
Cinematography is gorgeous
Why make it so "man heavy" when history was otherwise? (1 more)
Found the asynchronous editing irritating
Archaeology with no fedora required
It’s 1939, and as World War 2 approaches, widower Edith Pretty (Carey Mulligan) hires rough and ready excavator Basil Brown (Ralph Fiennes) to dig into one of the ancient earth mounds on her property at the site that will become famous as Sutton Hoo in Suffolk. Requesting the help of her cousin Rory Lomax (Johnny Flynn) to photograph the effort, the site slowly gives up its Anglo-Saxon treasures attracting the attention of first the Ipswich museum and then the pompous Charles Phillips (Ken Stott) of the British Museum. A battle is on for both the control of the site and the resting place for the treasures found.
Against this backdrop there is a critical illness emerging, a son (Archie Barnes) and his attachment to the father figure of Brown and a potential romance between Rory and archaeologist Peggy Piggott, trapped in a loveless marriage.
Talent:
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Johnny Flynn, Lily James, Archie Barnes, Ken Stott, Monica Donlan.
Directed by: Simon Stone.
Written by: Moira Buffini (from the novel by John Preston).
Bullet points of my thoughts:
+ Superb acting by Mulligan and Fiennes – Oscar noms for both?
+ Young Archie Barnes impresses as the son Robert
+ Cinematography by Mike Eley shows the open Suffolk skies at their best
+ Based on fact, a fascinating historical record of the real excitement of uncovering the past
o The script deftly melds the archeology with the love story subplot: but was the latter really necessary?
– Curious “man heavy” script, replacing some of the historical female characters with men and making Peggy Piggott (Lily James) a bit of a klutz
– Asynchronous editing decision I found to be distracting and unnecessary.
For my full review, please see the video at https://youtu.be/m8Ad8B8dkSY .
Against this backdrop there is a critical illness emerging, a son (Archie Barnes) and his attachment to the father figure of Brown and a potential romance between Rory and archaeologist Peggy Piggott, trapped in a loveless marriage.
Talent:
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Johnny Flynn, Lily James, Archie Barnes, Ken Stott, Monica Donlan.
Directed by: Simon Stone.
Written by: Moira Buffini (from the novel by John Preston).
Bullet points of my thoughts:
+ Superb acting by Mulligan and Fiennes – Oscar noms for both?
+ Young Archie Barnes impresses as the son Robert
+ Cinematography by Mike Eley shows the open Suffolk skies at their best
+ Based on fact, a fascinating historical record of the real excitement of uncovering the past
o The script deftly melds the archeology with the love story subplot: but was the latter really necessary?
– Curious “man heavy” script, replacing some of the historical female characters with men and making Peggy Piggott (Lily James) a bit of a klutz
– Asynchronous editing decision I found to be distracting and unnecessary.
For my full review, please see the video at https://youtu.be/m8Ad8B8dkSY .
JT (287 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Mar 5, 2020 (Updated Mar 10, 2020)
Godzilla rises from the deep once again, this time to stand side by side with part of the human race to fend off monsters summoned by the crypto-zoological agency Monarch. Monarch has been able to devise a way to control the giant creatures using a sonar device called the Orca, in the hope that they will be able to live together in perfect harmony.
“Sometimes… the only way to heal our wounds is to make peace with the demons who created them,” says Ken Watanabe‘s Dr Ishiro Serizawa. That theory is short-lived when eco-terrorist Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) threatens to unleash hell, all for the greater good.
It’s one big mess. I don’t know how else to describe it other than that. I lost interest halfway through and only raised an eyebrow when Godzilla arrived on-screen to pummel the shit out of the three-headed Ghidorah and Rodan. In 2014 Godzilla was rarely seen, albeit for the odd glimpse of a whipping tail. Here that is rectified and he’s placed front and centre as he smashes everything to smithereens.
The human element is just as bad. With a cast that boasted the likes of Vera Farmiga, Kyle Chandler, Charles Dance and Strangers Things starlet Millie Bobby Brown I would have expected more from the experienced group. I blame the script which falls by the wayside. Loud, thundering action set pieces do offer a little bit of satisfaction but it’s not enough to carry the film home. Plenty of scenes could have been cut which might have made it bearable.
There are suggestions that we could be getting a Kong Vs Godzilla film at some point which would loosely tie into a Kaiju styled universe but after this load of tripe, they will have their work cut out.
“Sometimes… the only way to heal our wounds is to make peace with the demons who created them,” says Ken Watanabe‘s Dr Ishiro Serizawa. That theory is short-lived when eco-terrorist Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) threatens to unleash hell, all for the greater good.
It’s one big mess. I don’t know how else to describe it other than that. I lost interest halfway through and only raised an eyebrow when Godzilla arrived on-screen to pummel the shit out of the three-headed Ghidorah and Rodan. In 2014 Godzilla was rarely seen, albeit for the odd glimpse of a whipping tail. Here that is rectified and he’s placed front and centre as he smashes everything to smithereens.
The human element is just as bad. With a cast that boasted the likes of Vera Farmiga, Kyle Chandler, Charles Dance and Strangers Things starlet Millie Bobby Brown I would have expected more from the experienced group. I blame the script which falls by the wayside. Loud, thundering action set pieces do offer a little bit of satisfaction but it’s not enough to carry the film home. Plenty of scenes could have been cut which might have made it bearable.
There are suggestions that we could be getting a Kong Vs Godzilla film at some point which would loosely tie into a Kaiju styled universe but after this load of tripe, they will have their work cut out.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
Hail To The King Baby
Godzilla: King of The Monsters is a 2019 monster movie directed by Michael Dougherty and written by Dougherty, Zach Shields, and Max Borenstein. It was produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film was dedicated to the original Godzilla suit performer Haruo Nakajima and executive producer Yoshimitsu Banno. The movie stars Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown, Ken Watanabe and Zhang Ziyi.
Working to track down and study Titans (giant-God like monsters) for the organization Monarch, Paleobiologist Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga) and her daughter Madison (Millie Bobby Brown) witness the birth of a giant larva monster named Mothra. The monster is hostile until Emma uses a device called "Orca", which only Titans can hear, to calm it down until eco-terrorists attack, led by Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) and kidnap both her and her daughter. Monarch scientists and soldiers approach Mark (Kyle Chandler), Emma's ex-husband, to track them down and soon they are headed towards Antarctica, where Jonah intends to free a Titan encased in ice called "Monster Zero".
This movie had classic Godzilla flick written all over it and it did not disappoint. The visual effects were awesome, from the way the monsters looked, to the blasts they utilized and even things like explosions were all top notch. The music was also outstanding, as many classic Godzilla themes made a comeback including Mothra's theme. The action sequences far exceeded those of it's predecessor Godzilla 2014, There was plenty of monster battles to make this a fan favorite for years to come. Now I do have to agree with some of the critics and say that the storyline was a little thin and predictable but that didn't stop the film from being enjoyable. And some critics complained about underdeveloped human characters, but in all honesty, the human characters are not why the fans are going to see this movie. I thought the main cast of characters had enough development, it's just that compared to a normal Godzilla film or even the last one, there were a lot of secondary characters or supporting cast. Which to me personally, made the film feel more full. This movie checked a lot of my boxes for what I've come to expect in a Godzilla/giant monster movie and made me happy when I watched it in theaters. It had its down time in certain parts and slow building scenes or moments where it seemed the audience in consensus chose to use that time to run to the restroom and back. But other than that and some predictable plot points and character actions this movie was great.
Working to track down and study Titans (giant-God like monsters) for the organization Monarch, Paleobiologist Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga) and her daughter Madison (Millie Bobby Brown) witness the birth of a giant larva monster named Mothra. The monster is hostile until Emma uses a device called "Orca", which only Titans can hear, to calm it down until eco-terrorists attack, led by Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) and kidnap both her and her daughter. Monarch scientists and soldiers approach Mark (Kyle Chandler), Emma's ex-husband, to track them down and soon they are headed towards Antarctica, where Jonah intends to free a Titan encased in ice called "Monster Zero".
This movie had classic Godzilla flick written all over it and it did not disappoint. The visual effects were awesome, from the way the monsters looked, to the blasts they utilized and even things like explosions were all top notch. The music was also outstanding, as many classic Godzilla themes made a comeback including Mothra's theme. The action sequences far exceeded those of it's predecessor Godzilla 2014, There was plenty of monster battles to make this a fan favorite for years to come. Now I do have to agree with some of the critics and say that the storyline was a little thin and predictable but that didn't stop the film from being enjoyable. And some critics complained about underdeveloped human characters, but in all honesty, the human characters are not why the fans are going to see this movie. I thought the main cast of characters had enough development, it's just that compared to a normal Godzilla film or even the last one, there were a lot of secondary characters or supporting cast. Which to me personally, made the film feel more full. This movie checked a lot of my boxes for what I've come to expect in a Godzilla/giant monster movie and made me happy when I watched it in theaters. It had its down time in certain parts and slow building scenes or moments where it seemed the audience in consensus chose to use that time to run to the restroom and back. But other than that and some predictable plot points and character actions this movie was great.
Ryan Hill (152 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Jun 29, 2019
"We opened Pandora's box. And there's no closing it now."
With Godzilla (2014) Legendary Pictures was the first American studio to get it right. No idiotic US edits of the latest Japanese films. No remakes that went out of it's way to be anything but Godzilla. It was GODZILLA! Now from what I understand from an interview with Shinji Higuchi is that Legendary only has the rights to Godzilla until 2020. So what do you do in that case? Well since you only have time to make one more Godzilla film before Godzilla vs. Kong, you do the obvious; You remake Destroy All Monsters!
There is some Michael Bay level stupidity going on in some moments of this film, but I don't care. I loved it. Some of the great Toho Godzilla films have goofy science combined with forgettable human characters. This one isn't even close to being the greatest offender of this in the franchise. Besides, when it comes to Vera Farmiga and Kyle Chandler I'm going to care about their characters at least a little no matter how they're written.
The film makers really went out of their way with tons of references from Godzilla's history. They even find a way to do a subtle nod to the Shobijin which I didn't think they'd ever touch with a 10 foot pole. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's just things that are used in the film that aren't part of American pop culture like the character itself of Godzilla. There's a lot of shit that only people who have seen the original films will pick up on.
The score is great, but even greater is that they actually used Gozilla's theme which is god damn iconic and shockingly even Mothra's theme. How can you not love that? I dunno. Maybe I'm just a geek, but seeing Ghidorah, Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla in a big budget Hollywood movie just blows my mind. I loved it. It's basically the American remake of Destroy All Monsters. Don't bother telling me how dumb the movie is either. I fully realize how dumb it is.
There is some Michael Bay level stupidity going on in some moments of this film, but I don't care. I loved it. Some of the great Toho Godzilla films have goofy science combined with forgettable human characters. This one isn't even close to being the greatest offender of this in the franchise. Besides, when it comes to Vera Farmiga and Kyle Chandler I'm going to care about their characters at least a little no matter how they're written.
The film makers really went out of their way with tons of references from Godzilla's history. They even find a way to do a subtle nod to the Shobijin which I didn't think they'd ever touch with a 10 foot pole. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's just things that are used in the film that aren't part of American pop culture like the character itself of Godzilla. There's a lot of shit that only people who have seen the original films will pick up on.
The score is great, but even greater is that they actually used Gozilla's theme which is god damn iconic and shockingly even Mothra's theme. How can you not love that? I dunno. Maybe I'm just a geek, but seeing Ghidorah, Mothra, Rodan and Godzilla in a big budget Hollywood movie just blows my mind. I loved it. It's basically the American remake of Destroy All Monsters. Don't bother telling me how dumb the movie is either. I fully realize how dumb it is.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Altered States (1980) in Movies
Oct 26, 2019
Dr. Eddie Jessup is conducting some interesting research using a deprivation chamber. His goal is to better understand the human mind and maybe the psychology of schizophrenia or how the deep unconscious works. He meets a smart female mind and the two have a whirlwind romance which distracts from his research a bit.
He does manage to make a trip to Mexico where he hears about a tribe using a hallucinatory drug which causes some of the same effects he experienced while submerged in his isolation tank back home so he decides to try it. He has massive hallucinations, loses control of his actions and even gives in to his more primal instincts and devours a sheep. When he wakes he only remember bits and pieces of his actions, but is convinced this is the correct road for his research.
Back in the US, he decides to combine both elements of his research including use of the drug and the chamber at the same time to see the results. The results of the combination are not only dangerous to Eddie's psyche and soul, but to his physical human body as well. He performs an unsupervised deprivation experience on his own and experiences an evolution regression back to a primitive homo sapien state which is now loose in the basement of his lab and has to be stopped.
Eddie ultimately has to decide if his estranged family or his research is more important to him and if now it is too late to have them both.
Famed, provocative British director Ken Russell takes on the task of bringing this interesting, colorful and wild film to life. He already had a reputation of helming controversial films like The Devils and Tommy, so maybe this film was a step down from those.
The psychedelic hallucination sequences Eddie experiences while on the drug or in the chamber were so unique, shocking and visceral they were intense but hard to look away from. Images were being edited at such a pace your mind races as you watch them. Eddie's personal journey as a doctor and student of the human mind are fascinating to watch as he struggles with his relationship with his wife and kids at the same time. As he continues his research, he wants to understand what is happening to him, but doesn't want to be inhibited but others' desires.
William Hurt and Blair Brown have good chemistry when together onscreen and you feel her concern as she feels she is losing the man she loves to something she doesn't understand. They both field infidelity in their marriage as he tries to fill the empty space of commitment and she tries in vain to replace with others the man she truly loves.
He does manage to make a trip to Mexico where he hears about a tribe using a hallucinatory drug which causes some of the same effects he experienced while submerged in his isolation tank back home so he decides to try it. He has massive hallucinations, loses control of his actions and even gives in to his more primal instincts and devours a sheep. When he wakes he only remember bits and pieces of his actions, but is convinced this is the correct road for his research.
Back in the US, he decides to combine both elements of his research including use of the drug and the chamber at the same time to see the results. The results of the combination are not only dangerous to Eddie's psyche and soul, but to his physical human body as well. He performs an unsupervised deprivation experience on his own and experiences an evolution regression back to a primitive homo sapien state which is now loose in the basement of his lab and has to be stopped.
Eddie ultimately has to decide if his estranged family or his research is more important to him and if now it is too late to have them both.
Famed, provocative British director Ken Russell takes on the task of bringing this interesting, colorful and wild film to life. He already had a reputation of helming controversial films like The Devils and Tommy, so maybe this film was a step down from those.
The psychedelic hallucination sequences Eddie experiences while on the drug or in the chamber were so unique, shocking and visceral they were intense but hard to look away from. Images were being edited at such a pace your mind races as you watch them. Eddie's personal journey as a doctor and student of the human mind are fascinating to watch as he struggles with his relationship with his wife and kids at the same time. As he continues his research, he wants to understand what is happening to him, but doesn't want to be inhibited but others' desires.
William Hurt and Blair Brown have good chemistry when together onscreen and you feel her concern as she feels she is losing the man she loves to something she doesn't understand. They both field infidelity in their marriage as he tries to fill the empty space of commitment and she tries in vain to replace with others the man she truly loves.
Hadley (567 KP) rated Stranger Things: Suspicious Minds in Books
Jun 10, 2019
The first novel adapted from the Netflix series hit 'Stranger Things' is an astonishing work of art. Viewers of the show may be familiar with Eleven's mother, Terry Ives, which this book surrounds. Along for the ride are a few important characters that weren't mentioned in the series: Alice, Gloria and Ken - a self proclaimed psychic - all of which meet because they signed up for a human experiment at Hawkins National Laboratory, where each are given doses of LSD every week. This quickly tells readers that the book is not recommended for anyone under the age of 14.
Although the series has more than one book, and no end in sight, Bond was only chosen to do this novel. 'Suspicious Minds' is categorized under Young Adult books, but with the heavy Vietnam content, it's not considered that many young adults today can actually relate with this story or even understand the devastating effects of a looming draft hanging over the heads of young men throughout America in the 1960's. But Bond does a wonderful job in relating the emotional state of this era through our main character, Terry. Another subject that Bond does a fantastic job of explaining in 'Suspicious Minds' is the taboo of being a pregnant, unwed mother in this era, something that seems to be making headlines again in the States nearly 60 years later.
Bond shows us a young Dr. Martin Brenner, with neatly styled brown hair and an almost unlined face, as well as a more lively Terry Ives (which only season 2 has shown a very short flashback sequence of Terry being mobile before her dreaded consequence from being associated with the human experiments). We find out that the reason Terry volunteered for the experiment is due to her father's service in WWII, and wanting to make the world a better place. Bond brings in the other important characters, who also volunteered for the experiments, quickly bonding the four as friends for life.
As far as characters go, these four are written very well. Although Terry is the main character of 'Suspicious Minds,' we get to see from the viewpoints of all people, including Brenner. Bond gives the reader a short background on what LSD is and where it came from when the time comes for the experiments to begin. Brenner doesn't really explain why he gives LSD to the volunteers, but only that it is part of a secret experiment. Even when Terry is placed in a sensory deprivation tank, he doesn't reveal anything to her, and Bond does a great job of keeping the characters enough in the grey area of knowing that it's believable. Even at one point, when Terry begins to suspect something strange from the experiments, she keeps the belief that whatever is going on at Hawkins Laboratory must be important: " 'But you can't see it's important?' Terry leaned in close, and they kept their voices down as other students walked past. 'They just called up the school and told them to give me Thursdays off and I'm getting credit for it? They're tying our grades to doing this. And no one asked any questions. They just agreed. I have to keep going.' " Bond eloquently keeps the mystery going.
This mystery is even interesting to those who know what happens in the end. In 'Stranger Things,' Terry is introduced as a comatose woman in a rocking chair- who happens to be Eleven's mother. We have never met Gloria, Alice or Ken. The three become very close to Terry, and they all somehow escape from Brenner's grasp, but they also end up joining in Terry's pursuit of getting Eleven/Jane back to her mother. Fans of the show might be left asking what happened to these three enjoyable characters? I haven't seen any plans for a part two of this story, so we may be left not knowing what happened or if the three are even still alive today (in the Stranger Things' era). Even more enjoyable is the random use of J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings,' where in one scene, Alice and Terry decide to name their small group 'The Fellowship of the Lab.' Any veteran reader will be happy to see a classic brought up in a newer book of today.
And also of interest, fans will recognize a little girl who is frequent throughout the story: Eight a.k.a. Kali. We never get to see through Kali's perspective, but the reader does get to see the multitude of her abilities. For instance, Kali is able to scare personnel in the lab by causing the hallucination of tidal waves inside the building, only to stop when Brenner (or Papa to her) gives her her favorite sweet: Hostess cakes. Other than that, Kali is like any child; she throws tantrums and rebels from her Papa, sometimes to the laughter of the reader.
One point, Terry even meets with Kali in her LSD induced state: " Terry shook her head. 'There can be. He's just a man. He can't know everything.' She paused. 'Does he hurt you? Papa?' Kali frowned, but she didn't answer. 'If he does... I can help you.' Terry had to make her understand. The little girl shook her head. 'I don't think so. I might be able to help you, though.' A field of yellow sunflowers grew up around them. A rainbow arcing over the golden tops." Terry, understandably, begins to scheme about how they can help Kali to escape the lab.
Bond does a great job of transitioning between Terry's point of view to the other characters' viewpoints. We get a young woman named Gloria, who has a secret obsession with comic books (especially X-Men). A hippie-looking man named Ken, who claims he is psychic, but just happens to have a lot of hunches that come true. And last, but not least, another young woman named Alice, who shows up in grease covered overalls and curly black hair, explaining that she works for her uncle's garage and that she loves machines. These three are delightful to read about, and the story would be boring without them.
This book was the perfect novel to answer questions fans may have had about Eleven's mother. Bond writes smoothly and easily enough that you may find yourself wanting to read just one more page before setting the book down for the evening. She drags you into the world of the 1960's and helps young readers to feel the emotional time that it was for women like Terry. But with only a few inconsistencies here and there, 'Suspicious Minds' leaves us wanting more. If you are a fan of 'Stranger Things,' I say that this is a must-read! Highly recommend!
Although the series has more than one book, and no end in sight, Bond was only chosen to do this novel. 'Suspicious Minds' is categorized under Young Adult books, but with the heavy Vietnam content, it's not considered that many young adults today can actually relate with this story or even understand the devastating effects of a looming draft hanging over the heads of young men throughout America in the 1960's. But Bond does a wonderful job in relating the emotional state of this era through our main character, Terry. Another subject that Bond does a fantastic job of explaining in 'Suspicious Minds' is the taboo of being a pregnant, unwed mother in this era, something that seems to be making headlines again in the States nearly 60 years later.
Bond shows us a young Dr. Martin Brenner, with neatly styled brown hair and an almost unlined face, as well as a more lively Terry Ives (which only season 2 has shown a very short flashback sequence of Terry being mobile before her dreaded consequence from being associated with the human experiments). We find out that the reason Terry volunteered for the experiment is due to her father's service in WWII, and wanting to make the world a better place. Bond brings in the other important characters, who also volunteered for the experiments, quickly bonding the four as friends for life.
As far as characters go, these four are written very well. Although Terry is the main character of 'Suspicious Minds,' we get to see from the viewpoints of all people, including Brenner. Bond gives the reader a short background on what LSD is and where it came from when the time comes for the experiments to begin. Brenner doesn't really explain why he gives LSD to the volunteers, but only that it is part of a secret experiment. Even when Terry is placed in a sensory deprivation tank, he doesn't reveal anything to her, and Bond does a great job of keeping the characters enough in the grey area of knowing that it's believable. Even at one point, when Terry begins to suspect something strange from the experiments, she keeps the belief that whatever is going on at Hawkins Laboratory must be important: " 'But you can't see it's important?' Terry leaned in close, and they kept their voices down as other students walked past. 'They just called up the school and told them to give me Thursdays off and I'm getting credit for it? They're tying our grades to doing this. And no one asked any questions. They just agreed. I have to keep going.' " Bond eloquently keeps the mystery going.
This mystery is even interesting to those who know what happens in the end. In 'Stranger Things,' Terry is introduced as a comatose woman in a rocking chair- who happens to be Eleven's mother. We have never met Gloria, Alice or Ken. The three become very close to Terry, and they all somehow escape from Brenner's grasp, but they also end up joining in Terry's pursuit of getting Eleven/Jane back to her mother. Fans of the show might be left asking what happened to these three enjoyable characters? I haven't seen any plans for a part two of this story, so we may be left not knowing what happened or if the three are even still alive today (in the Stranger Things' era). Even more enjoyable is the random use of J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings,' where in one scene, Alice and Terry decide to name their small group 'The Fellowship of the Lab.' Any veteran reader will be happy to see a classic brought up in a newer book of today.
And also of interest, fans will recognize a little girl who is frequent throughout the story: Eight a.k.a. Kali. We never get to see through Kali's perspective, but the reader does get to see the multitude of her abilities. For instance, Kali is able to scare personnel in the lab by causing the hallucination of tidal waves inside the building, only to stop when Brenner (or Papa to her) gives her her favorite sweet: Hostess cakes. Other than that, Kali is like any child; she throws tantrums and rebels from her Papa, sometimes to the laughter of the reader.
One point, Terry even meets with Kali in her LSD induced state: " Terry shook her head. 'There can be. He's just a man. He can't know everything.' She paused. 'Does he hurt you? Papa?' Kali frowned, but she didn't answer. 'If he does... I can help you.' Terry had to make her understand. The little girl shook her head. 'I don't think so. I might be able to help you, though.' A field of yellow sunflowers grew up around them. A rainbow arcing over the golden tops." Terry, understandably, begins to scheme about how they can help Kali to escape the lab.
Bond does a great job of transitioning between Terry's point of view to the other characters' viewpoints. We get a young woman named Gloria, who has a secret obsession with comic books (especially X-Men). A hippie-looking man named Ken, who claims he is psychic, but just happens to have a lot of hunches that come true. And last, but not least, another young woman named Alice, who shows up in grease covered overalls and curly black hair, explaining that she works for her uncle's garage and that she loves machines. These three are delightful to read about, and the story would be boring without them.
This book was the perfect novel to answer questions fans may have had about Eleven's mother. Bond writes smoothly and easily enough that you may find yourself wanting to read just one more page before setting the book down for the evening. She drags you into the world of the 1960's and helps young readers to feel the emotional time that it was for women like Terry. But with only a few inconsistencies here and there, 'Suspicious Minds' leaves us wanting more. If you are a fan of 'Stranger Things,' I say that this is a must-read! Highly recommend!
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019 (Updated Jun 10, 2019)
All hail the Titans
2014’s Godzilla was a thrilling and somewhat underrated return to form for the king of the kaiju. Directed by visionary film-maker Gareth Edwards, Godzilla’s return to the big screen was beautifully filmed with some of the best set pieces ever seen on celluloid. It certainly made up for the Roland Emmerich monstrosity that shall remain nameless here.
Little did we know 5 years ago that Edwards’ mega movie would be the start of a franchise culminating in a battle of the ages: Godzilla vs Kong. Follow-up film Kong: Skull Island was again, beautifully filmed, feeling like a movie from a completely different era. Now the follow-up to the follow-up is here. Still with us? Good.
Members of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species-thought to be mere myths-rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.
Taking over from Gareth Edwards after he chose not to return to the franchise is director Michael Dougherty. If the name rings a bell, it’s because he co-wrote X2 and directed the fantastic horror comedy, Krampus. Used to much-lower budgets than this $200million behemoth, Dougherty crafts a film that throws everything including the kitchen sink at the audience, but lacks the lightness of touch that made its predecessors such popcorn-munching fun.
With a cast that includes Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown, Vera Farmiga, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe, Charles Dance and Kyle Chandler, you’d be forgiven that everything from a characterisation point of view would be spot on. Unfortunately, that just isn’t the case. The story and screenplay, penned by Dougherty himself is really lacklustre with poor, cringeworthy dialogue and some wooden performances by actors who should really know better. The attempts at Marvel-esque humour fall completely flat and this is a real shame.
Making her feature film debut, Mille Bobby Brown salvages what she can from the script and performs very well but when the screenplay doesn’t know what to do with individual characters, they’re tossed aside as Ghidorah fodder and completely forgotten about. Not only is this frustrating for the audience, but it certainly isn’t script-writing best practice.
Thankfully, things start to turn around when it comes to the cinematography. Lawrence Sher, who has worked on Paul, The Hangover and the upcoming Joker movie picks some outstanding shots that make you feel very much part of this almost apocalyptic universe the Titans are roaming. While stopping short of beautiful, many of the sequences are too messy for that, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a very attractive film indeed and the colours used are ethereal in their nature and require the biggest screen possible to get the most from them.
Godzilla is beautifully rendered and while the look is less successful on King Ghidorah, it’s not enough to detract from the exceptional visual effects work
The special effects too make a lasting impression. This was not a cheap film to make and thankfully this shows on screen. Whilst naturally heavy on CGI, Dougherty has stated that practical effects had been used wherever possible. Perhaps the biggest compliment here is that it’s impossible to tell where practical meets CG.
Godzilla is beautifully rendered and while the look is less successful on King Ghidorah, it’s not enough to detract from the exceptional visual effects work that has gone into making Godzilla 2. Mothra in particular is a sight to behold.
Bear McCreary’s score too is very good. After working on relatively low-budget films until now, his orchestral and vocal compositions work beautifully with what’s being shown on screen and the music has an operatic vibe that feels truly fitting of a film of this magnitude.
Nevertheless, Godzilla: King of the Monster’s downfall is in that shoddy script. None of the actors bring their a-game here and moments that should have emotional poignancy don’t hit home because they’re not allowed to. Within 10 minutes of the film’s opening, we’re smack bang in the middle of an action sequence with it rarely letting up until the thrilling finale 2 hours later.
Overall, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a perfectly adequate outing for the king of the kaiju but one that comes with a dash of disappointment. The bar was set incredibly high by Gareth Edwards and while the special effects and action scenes are impressive, that’s not enough to mask poor storytelling and thinly drawn characters.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2019/05/29/godzilla-king-of-the-monsters-review-all-hail-the-titans/
Little did we know 5 years ago that Edwards’ mega movie would be the start of a franchise culminating in a battle of the ages: Godzilla vs Kong. Follow-up film Kong: Skull Island was again, beautifully filmed, feeling like a movie from a completely different era. Now the follow-up to the follow-up is here. Still with us? Good.
Members of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species-thought to be mere myths-rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.
Taking over from Gareth Edwards after he chose not to return to the franchise is director Michael Dougherty. If the name rings a bell, it’s because he co-wrote X2 and directed the fantastic horror comedy, Krampus. Used to much-lower budgets than this $200million behemoth, Dougherty crafts a film that throws everything including the kitchen sink at the audience, but lacks the lightness of touch that made its predecessors such popcorn-munching fun.
With a cast that includes Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown, Vera Farmiga, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe, Charles Dance and Kyle Chandler, you’d be forgiven that everything from a characterisation point of view would be spot on. Unfortunately, that just isn’t the case. The story and screenplay, penned by Dougherty himself is really lacklustre with poor, cringeworthy dialogue and some wooden performances by actors who should really know better. The attempts at Marvel-esque humour fall completely flat and this is a real shame.
Making her feature film debut, Mille Bobby Brown salvages what she can from the script and performs very well but when the screenplay doesn’t know what to do with individual characters, they’re tossed aside as Ghidorah fodder and completely forgotten about. Not only is this frustrating for the audience, but it certainly isn’t script-writing best practice.
Thankfully, things start to turn around when it comes to the cinematography. Lawrence Sher, who has worked on Paul, The Hangover and the upcoming Joker movie picks some outstanding shots that make you feel very much part of this almost apocalyptic universe the Titans are roaming. While stopping short of beautiful, many of the sequences are too messy for that, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a very attractive film indeed and the colours used are ethereal in their nature and require the biggest screen possible to get the most from them.
Godzilla is beautifully rendered and while the look is less successful on King Ghidorah, it’s not enough to detract from the exceptional visual effects work
The special effects too make a lasting impression. This was not a cheap film to make and thankfully this shows on screen. Whilst naturally heavy on CGI, Dougherty has stated that practical effects had been used wherever possible. Perhaps the biggest compliment here is that it’s impossible to tell where practical meets CG.
Godzilla is beautifully rendered and while the look is less successful on King Ghidorah, it’s not enough to detract from the exceptional visual effects work that has gone into making Godzilla 2. Mothra in particular is a sight to behold.
Bear McCreary’s score too is very good. After working on relatively low-budget films until now, his orchestral and vocal compositions work beautifully with what’s being shown on screen and the music has an operatic vibe that feels truly fitting of a film of this magnitude.
Nevertheless, Godzilla: King of the Monster’s downfall is in that shoddy script. None of the actors bring their a-game here and moments that should have emotional poignancy don’t hit home because they’re not allowed to. Within 10 minutes of the film’s opening, we’re smack bang in the middle of an action sequence with it rarely letting up until the thrilling finale 2 hours later.
Overall, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a perfectly adequate outing for the king of the kaiju but one that comes with a dash of disappointment. The bar was set incredibly high by Gareth Edwards and while the special effects and action scenes are impressive, that’s not enough to mask poor storytelling and thinly drawn characters.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2019/05/29/godzilla-king-of-the-monsters-review-all-hail-the-titans/
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Jun 5, 2019
Good Enough - Monsters Fighting Each Other
I grew up in the 1960's watching old monster movies on Saturday afternoons on an old black and white TV in the home I grew up in. A staple of these Saturday afternoon movies was the Godzilla monster movies from Japan, featuring such great monsters as Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan and Ghidorah. So, imagine my excitement when I realized that they all would be in the same film.
And...that film...GODZILLA - KING OF THE MONSTERS...delivers the goods just fine. Sometimes you go to the movie theater looking for laughs, sometimes you are looking to cry, sometimes you are looking to have your mind stimulated with interesting thoughts and ideas and sometimes you just want to watch giant monsters battling it out over the remnants of Fenway Park in Boston.
The 3rd in the "Monarch Series" of films from Warner Brothers (following the surprisingly good 2014 GODZILLA film and the fun KONG: SKULL ISLAND movie of 2017), GODZILLA - KING OF THE MONSTERS follows Monarch as they find (and in some instances, re-awaken) giant monsters - TITANS as they are called - the Titans attempt to take over the planet from the humans (there's a "save the planet" message that is being used as the excuse)...but here comes good ol' Godzilla to save the day.
Besides the monsters, there are quite a few humans along for the ride...Kyle Chandler and Vera Famiga as a dysfunctional couple (who also happen to be experts in Monsters) who are trying to keep in check their daughter, Millie Bobbie Brown (STRANGER THINGS). Ken Watanbe, Sally Hawkins and Jason Strahairn reprise their roles as members of MONARCH from the 2014 GODZILLA film, 2 veritable "that person" actors, Thomas Middleditch & Aisha Hinds as other members of Monarch along with Ziya Zhang and O'Shea Jackson, Jr. - all of these actors are "serviceable" to the plot and machinations, reacting appropriately to the green screen carnage and monsters that they are pretending to react to. Only Bradley Whitford (as a Monarch Scientist) rises above things with a goofy, "almost too over the top" performance that captures the spirit of the proceedings. Add into this good ol' Tywin Lannister himself (Charles Dance) as a shadowy, non-feeling bad guy that seems to have an inexhaustible supply of men and material - kind of like Tywinn Lannister - and the "human side" of this movie is fun...enough.
But, make no mistake about it, this film - and the reason I came to see it - is to watch giant monsters fighting each other and destroying everything in their wake and this film delivers the goods. Director Micheal Dougherty ( KRAMPUS) does a "serviceable" job keeping the action moving and coherent while avoiding (for the most part) the headache-inducing "quick-cut" editing sequence. There's nothing much new or innovative in his approach to showing us monsters fighting and creating massive destruction, but he doesn't take away from the spectacle of the action on the screen so that's a good thing..
There are 2 more Godzilla films currently "on the books" to be produced - including next year's KONG vs. GODZILLA - which will keep me coming back to the IMAX in the multiplex for years to come...and that's just fine with me.
Letter Grade: a solid B
7 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
And...that film...GODZILLA - KING OF THE MONSTERS...delivers the goods just fine. Sometimes you go to the movie theater looking for laughs, sometimes you are looking to cry, sometimes you are looking to have your mind stimulated with interesting thoughts and ideas and sometimes you just want to watch giant monsters battling it out over the remnants of Fenway Park in Boston.
The 3rd in the "Monarch Series" of films from Warner Brothers (following the surprisingly good 2014 GODZILLA film and the fun KONG: SKULL ISLAND movie of 2017), GODZILLA - KING OF THE MONSTERS follows Monarch as they find (and in some instances, re-awaken) giant monsters - TITANS as they are called - the Titans attempt to take over the planet from the humans (there's a "save the planet" message that is being used as the excuse)...but here comes good ol' Godzilla to save the day.
Besides the monsters, there are quite a few humans along for the ride...Kyle Chandler and Vera Famiga as a dysfunctional couple (who also happen to be experts in Monsters) who are trying to keep in check their daughter, Millie Bobbie Brown (STRANGER THINGS). Ken Watanbe, Sally Hawkins and Jason Strahairn reprise their roles as members of MONARCH from the 2014 GODZILLA film, 2 veritable "that person" actors, Thomas Middleditch & Aisha Hinds as other members of Monarch along with Ziya Zhang and O'Shea Jackson, Jr. - all of these actors are "serviceable" to the plot and machinations, reacting appropriately to the green screen carnage and monsters that they are pretending to react to. Only Bradley Whitford (as a Monarch Scientist) rises above things with a goofy, "almost too over the top" performance that captures the spirit of the proceedings. Add into this good ol' Tywin Lannister himself (Charles Dance) as a shadowy, non-feeling bad guy that seems to have an inexhaustible supply of men and material - kind of like Tywinn Lannister - and the "human side" of this movie is fun...enough.
But, make no mistake about it, this film - and the reason I came to see it - is to watch giant monsters fighting each other and destroying everything in their wake and this film delivers the goods. Director Micheal Dougherty ( KRAMPUS) does a "serviceable" job keeping the action moving and coherent while avoiding (for the most part) the headache-inducing "quick-cut" editing sequence. There's nothing much new or innovative in his approach to showing us monsters fighting and creating massive destruction, but he doesn't take away from the spectacle of the action on the screen so that's a good thing..
There are 2 more Godzilla films currently "on the books" to be produced - including next year's KONG vs. GODZILLA - which will keep me coming back to the IMAX in the multiplex for years to come...and that's just fine with me.
Letter Grade: a solid B
7 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)