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LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated The Adam Project (2022) in Movies
Mar 22, 2022
I really didn't get a lot of enjoyment out of The Adam Project, but in the interest of fairness, it's not without its merits. Most importantly, I can only imagine how much of a blast kids will have watching it. It's family friendly presentation, copious amounts of Ryan Reynolds, and it's main young protagonist make it a done deal in that respect. It's helped along by some snappy action moments, some good humoured dialogue, and some genuinely touching character beats.
Personally though, the jarring editing and conflicting tones are hard to look past. The comedy and seriousness aren't well balanced at all, and the often and sudden switching of on screen proceedings feel scrappy. It's comes across messy. Zoe Saldana crops up about halfway through and feels like she's walked in from a completely different movie. The CGI is hit and miss. Sometimes it's ok, sometimes it's ropey, and then there's poor Catherine Keener, who is subjected to possibly the worst bout of digital de-aging I can recall.
The Adam Project isn't a completely awful experience, it's just a very cookie cutter sci-fi action that feels instantly forgettable. As mentioned though, kids will undoubtedly love it, which can only be a positive.
Personally though, the jarring editing and conflicting tones are hard to look past. The comedy and seriousness aren't well balanced at all, and the often and sudden switching of on screen proceedings feel scrappy. It's comes across messy. Zoe Saldana crops up about halfway through and feels like she's walked in from a completely different movie. The CGI is hit and miss. Sometimes it's ok, sometimes it's ropey, and then there's poor Catherine Keener, who is subjected to possibly the worst bout of digital de-aging I can recall.
The Adam Project isn't a completely awful experience, it's just a very cookie cutter sci-fi action that feels instantly forgettable. As mentioned though, kids will undoubtedly love it, which can only be a positive.
GameCritics (290 KP) rated Rush: A Disney/Pixar Adventure in Video Games
Nov 9, 2017
Play levels based on six different Pixar film franchises. (2 more)
Two-player split-screen support makes this a great game to play with kids.
You can play with either physical or motion controls.
The hub world serves no purpose beyond level selection. (2 more)
Voice samples often become repetitive during gameplay.
Platforming feels a bit simplistic when using a controller.
Awkward movement controls always held the original game back, but now Rush plays great with a controller – and you can still use the Kinect if that's your thing.
Critic- Paul Acevedo
Original Score: 4 out of 5
Read Review: https://www.windowscentral.com/rush-disneypixar-adventure-review
Original Score: 4 out of 5
Read Review: https://www.windowscentral.com/rush-disneypixar-adventure-review
Shaun Collins (3 KP) rated The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 2: Dallas in Books
Jan 12, 2018
While not as insanely good as the first volume, Dallas is still full of great stuff. I think one of the downfalls of this installment is that despite their weirdness and flaws, the kids of the Umbrella Academy are likable. And likable together. Following the events of the first book, this one drives the wedge further between them, taking them off their A game (assuming they had one) and sending them reeling. The tragedies pile up against the back drop of stopping (or ensuring) that JFK is assassinated in Dallas. Cant wait for the next volume.
Dean (6926 KP) rated Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) in Movies
Jul 18, 2017
Darth Maul (1 more)
The Pod race
The script (1 more)
Jar jar binks
The weak link
The weakest of all the Star Wars films. Bar a couple of great scenes, the Darth Maul fight against 2 Jedi and the Pod Race, the film is disappointing. Why on earth we needed Jar jar binks character I have no idea. The dialogue is noticeable bad though, as if everything is simplified so kids under 10 could understand it. It's not Liam Neeson's finest performance by any stretch. Thankfully the 2 scenes mentioned do make up a fair bit for the rest of the film.
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated The Wishing Spell in Books
Jan 15, 2018
Okay so first of all I'm a nut for good quotations & I feel the need to say this book is FULL of them!! This is going to sound mean but I was pleasantly surprised with what a great author Chris Colfer is. He did a wonderful job putting a new spin on many of the classic fairy tales we all grew up with, without changing them completely. Alex & Conner are fascinating may layered characters. I can't wait to get this book into the hands of a few of the kids in my classroom, they are going to love it!
tapestry100 (306 KP) rated Naughty Mabel Sees It All in Books
Aug 2, 2017
Naughty Mabel makes her return with this second volume, which I found a huge improvement over her first story (Nathan Lane is such a comedy genius, and for him to resort to fart humor, regardless of how funny kids will find it, left me disappointed). This time out, Mabel is seeing things, which makes her inherent naughtiness even worse, and until her parents can figure out why she's seeing things, Mabel continues to wreak havoc. Dan Krall's illustrations are perfect once again, and I'm actually now hoping that we'll be seeing more of Mabel in the future.
Chelsea (449 KP) rated The Boy Who Drew Monsters in Books
Sep 7, 2017
This is a story about a 10 year old boy named Jack. Jack has Aspergers and is misunderstood by other kids and adults. To complicate things, he has a major fear of the outside and will not leave the house at all. Recently, he has been enthralled with drawing. Drawing monsters... Very eerie! I won't say horrifying, but it was definitely good and creepy. It starts off easy, and gradually it gets harder to put down. The ending was ALMOST abrupt, but all of a sudden was a perfect ending. Also, this one takes place in Maine!
Chelsea (449 KP) rated Neverwhere in Books
Sep 7, 2017
Gaiman wrote this book because he felt adults deserved a story similar to how Alice in Wonderland was written for kids. I love this explanation!
"Dear Diary, he began. On Friday I had a job, a fiancée, a home, and a life that made sense. (Well, as much as any life makes sense.) Then I found an injured girl bleeding on the pavement, and I tried to be a Good Samaritan. Now I’ve got no fiancée, no home, no job, and I’m walking around a couple of hundred feet under the streets of London with the projected life expectancy of a suicidal mayfly."
"Dear Diary, he began. On Friday I had a job, a fiancée, a home, and a life that made sense. (Well, as much as any life makes sense.) Then I found an injured girl bleeding on the pavement, and I tried to be a Good Samaritan. Now I’ve got no fiancée, no home, no job, and I’m walking around a couple of hundred feet under the streets of London with the projected life expectancy of a suicidal mayfly."
Lenard (726 KP) rated Dumbo (2019) in Movies
Apr 1, 2019
While in some ways a strange marriage, Dumbo has several Tim Burton elements: an evil rich guy, Michael Keaton/Danny DeVito/Eva Green, outsiders, people who don't get a lot of sun even though they live in a traveling circus. The most Tim Burton thing about it is when Dreamland is engulfed in smoke surrounded by dark clouds and Nightmare Island. The rest of the film is mostly live action Disney. Dumbo has Bambi-like doe eyes and except for the evil wannabe tycoon the humans are sentimental and protective of the kids.
starwarsluvr (236 KP) rated The Underground Princess (The Balderdash Saga, #1) in Books
Jan 30, 2018
I ended up reading this one to just myself. My girls aren't into zombies much yet and were more interested in playing, but I am planning to read it to them soon. So this review is my own :) I enjoyed this one, I wasn't sure because I'm not big on zombies and especially for kids. However, this was so well written that it wasn't scary and it was very interesting story. I enjoy how much she grew up through the story and became less annoying lol. It was a sweet read and I am glad I got to review it.