Search
The Pope of Palm Beach
7.0
Rate It
Book
From Florida's king of mayhem--"compulsively irreverent and shockingly funny" (Boston Globe) New...
mystery comedy
Louise (64 KP) rated Surviving Execution in Books
Jun 28, 2018
First off thank you to readers first for a copy of this book.
Surviving execution is the true story of Richard Glossip, a man who is on death row for a crime he never committed. Richard Glossip’s story is told by Ian Woods a UK Sky news reporter, Ian wanted to bring this to the UK’s attention of the miscarriage of justice and how capital punishment is not always as straight forward as it’s made out to be.
Richard Glossip was arrested for the murder of his boss and motel owner Barry Von Treese, however Richard was not the person that killed him but was implicated by Justin Sneed and the police who interviewed him. For this the man who actually murdered Barry Von Treese got life without parole whilst Richard gets the death penalty for being the supposed mastermind.
Richards Glossip didn’t start off well with a bad lawyer that was under qualified for this type of case and failure to bringing certain evidence to light was going to cost Richard his life. With multiple trials, appeals and stays you would hope this man would get some sort of break, however that’s not the case and shows how corrupt the police and the law can be.
Also this book tells us a bit about the history of Capital Punishment, the methods, the countries and also the abolitionists. Although this is non fiction it is really easy to digest and very much the page turner. It makes you question so many things and whether this should really still be carried out.
We also get an insight in to what Ian Woods is thinking as he is helping this mans case and whether he would or could witness the death of a man that he has come to know and call a friend. Ian tries to remain unbiased especially when asked if he thinks Richard is guilty which infuriates others helping with the case. This case got some high coverage as Richard Branson, Susan Sarandon, Sister Helen Prejean and even the Pope got involved.
I would really recommend reading this book if you are interested in true crime and capital punishment. Maybe just read this book so you can decide if the state of Oklahoma was correct in giving this man the death penalty.
Surviving execution is the true story of Richard Glossip, a man who is on death row for a crime he never committed. Richard Glossip’s story is told by Ian Woods a UK Sky news reporter, Ian wanted to bring this to the UK’s attention of the miscarriage of justice and how capital punishment is not always as straight forward as it’s made out to be.
Richard Glossip was arrested for the murder of his boss and motel owner Barry Von Treese, however Richard was not the person that killed him but was implicated by Justin Sneed and the police who interviewed him. For this the man who actually murdered Barry Von Treese got life without parole whilst Richard gets the death penalty for being the supposed mastermind.
Richards Glossip didn’t start off well with a bad lawyer that was under qualified for this type of case and failure to bringing certain evidence to light was going to cost Richard his life. With multiple trials, appeals and stays you would hope this man would get some sort of break, however that’s not the case and shows how corrupt the police and the law can be.
Also this book tells us a bit about the history of Capital Punishment, the methods, the countries and also the abolitionists. Although this is non fiction it is really easy to digest and very much the page turner. It makes you question so many things and whether this should really still be carried out.
We also get an insight in to what Ian Woods is thinking as he is helping this mans case and whether he would or could witness the death of a man that he has come to know and call a friend. Ian tries to remain unbiased especially when asked if he thinks Richard is guilty which infuriates others helping with the case. This case got some high coverage as Richard Branson, Susan Sarandon, Sister Helen Prejean and even the Pope got involved.
I would really recommend reading this book if you are interested in true crime and capital punishment. Maybe just read this book so you can decide if the state of Oklahoma was correct in giving this man the death penalty.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest opinion*
I have read the majority of Sarah Crossan’s work so picking this up was a ‘no brainer’.
Edward Moon was forced to sign a confession to a crime he never committed. Moonrise is told from Joseph Moon’s perspective some 10 years later as his brother has had his date set for his execution.
Edward, Angela and Joseph didn’t have the best upbringing when they were kids, their mother was an alcoholic and neglected them. It was down to their aunt Karen to take the up the role of the parent but as a christian had very strict rules. When Edward was seventeen he left home, unable to tolerate the his aunts strict demands. His moment of freedom was short-lived as he gets incarcerated for the murder of a local policeman. 10 years on and Joseph is to make the journey to Texas to find out what really happened and to say his goodbyes as Edwards execution has been scheduled. Joseph moves in to a decrepit motel room and gets by doing chores for the local diner. His month-long stay in Texas is to get to know his brother again only to say goodbye.
This book was just OK, it deals with a topic that is not widely written about in YA books but I did prefer ‘One’ and ‘The weight of water’. In true Sarah Crossan fashion this book is written entirely in verse, it can be read as individual poems or as a story whatever your preference. This book was not as thought-provoking as her other books and whilst the topic is something that intrigues me, I felt it could have been more emotional and had more character development, the emotional side of things just wasn’t captured well in the writing and I think that’s what let it down for me. It’s probably my own fault, as I tend to go into these book with high expectations. I feel like capital punishment could have been addressed more and given the audience more awareness of executions.
Even though I thought this was only OK, I would still recommend trying it for several reasons, 1. the topic, 2. it’s written in verse. 3. Everyone else seemed to love it.
I rated this 3 out of 5 stars.
I have read the majority of Sarah Crossan’s work so picking this up was a ‘no brainer’.
Edward Moon was forced to sign a confession to a crime he never committed. Moonrise is told from Joseph Moon’s perspective some 10 years later as his brother has had his date set for his execution.
Edward, Angela and Joseph didn’t have the best upbringing when they were kids, their mother was an alcoholic and neglected them. It was down to their aunt Karen to take the up the role of the parent but as a christian had very strict rules. When Edward was seventeen he left home, unable to tolerate the his aunts strict demands. His moment of freedom was short-lived as he gets incarcerated for the murder of a local policeman. 10 years on and Joseph is to make the journey to Texas to find out what really happened and to say his goodbyes as Edwards execution has been scheduled. Joseph moves in to a decrepit motel room and gets by doing chores for the local diner. His month-long stay in Texas is to get to know his brother again only to say goodbye.
This book was just OK, it deals with a topic that is not widely written about in YA books but I did prefer ‘One’ and ‘The weight of water’. In true Sarah Crossan fashion this book is written entirely in verse, it can be read as individual poems or as a story whatever your preference. This book was not as thought-provoking as her other books and whilst the topic is something that intrigues me, I felt it could have been more emotional and had more character development, the emotional side of things just wasn’t captured well in the writing and I think that’s what let it down for me. It’s probably my own fault, as I tend to go into these book with high expectations. I feel like capital punishment could have been addressed more and given the audience more awareness of executions.
Even though I thought this was only OK, I would still recommend trying it for several reasons, 1. the topic, 2. it’s written in verse. 3. Everyone else seemed to love it.
I rated this 3 out of 5 stars.
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex in Books
Sep 15, 2018
Hysterically funny (1 more)
Laugh-out-loud footnotes
It's not often a nonfiction book has me laughing out loud, but this one did it. This is the first of Roach's books I've read, but her voice makes me want to read everything she's ever written! Bonk is the story of sexual research - how scientists have made discoveries about a topic that is awkward at best, and taboo or even criminal at worst. Roach takes research seriously, volunteering as a research subject more than once (and convincing her husband to help, in at least one case!) Her wordplay is clever and her footnotes are HILARIOUS - this was a nonfiction book I kept having to pause and read to my husband between snickers.
Even her chapter titles are giggle-inducing - with titles like "The Princess and Her Pea - The Woman Who Moved Her Clitoris, and Other Ruminations on Intercourse Orgasms" and "Re-member Me - Transplants, Implants, and Other Penises Of Last Resort."
Roach writes about some truly awkward sexual encounters in the name of science:
On the bed are a man and a woman. They are making the familiar movements made by millions of other couples on a bed that night, yet they look nothing like those couples. They have EKG wires leading from their thighs and arms, like a pair of lustful marionettes who managed to escape the puppet show and check into a cheap motel. Their mouths are covered by snorkel-type mouthpieces with valves. Trailing from each mouthpiece is a length of flexible tubing that runs through the wall to the room next door, where Bartlett is measuring their breathing rate. To ensure that they don't breathe through their noses, the noses have been "lightly clamped."
Another passage mentions two gymnasts who have sex in an MRI tube. (For science!) I'm impressed these people can perform under these conditions at all!
There's only one passage that squicked me out a little bit - there's a few paragraphs describing a urologist performing surgery on a penis and it's...a little disturbing. That aside, though, this is a delightful book on an uncommon topic. It's an easy read, which I don't say about much nonfiction. It might be awkward to explain why you're snickering over this book, though!
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com
Even her chapter titles are giggle-inducing - with titles like "The Princess and Her Pea - The Woman Who Moved Her Clitoris, and Other Ruminations on Intercourse Orgasms" and "Re-member Me - Transplants, Implants, and Other Penises Of Last Resort."
Roach writes about some truly awkward sexual encounters in the name of science:
On the bed are a man and a woman. They are making the familiar movements made by millions of other couples on a bed that night, yet they look nothing like those couples. They have EKG wires leading from their thighs and arms, like a pair of lustful marionettes who managed to escape the puppet show and check into a cheap motel. Their mouths are covered by snorkel-type mouthpieces with valves. Trailing from each mouthpiece is a length of flexible tubing that runs through the wall to the room next door, where Bartlett is measuring their breathing rate. To ensure that they don't breathe through their noses, the noses have been "lightly clamped."
Another passage mentions two gymnasts who have sex in an MRI tube. (For science!) I'm impressed these people can perform under these conditions at all!
There's only one passage that squicked me out a little bit - there's a few paragraphs describing a urologist performing surgery on a penis and it's...a little disturbing. That aside, though, this is a delightful book on an uncommon topic. It's an easy read, which I don't say about much nonfiction. It might be awkward to explain why you're snickering over this book, though!
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com
Darren (1599 KP) rated Out of the Shadows (2017) in Movies
Oct 24, 2019
Story: Out of the Shadows starts as we follow a paranormal investigation team looking to recruit the only known survivor Carter (Kellogg) to join them as they search the answers about what happened on his famous activity tape.
With the team in place the teams sets up the cameras around the asylum with team member Cynthia (Morrison) getting the first does of activity in a communication from her father, whom went missing in asylum with Carter’s team. Using her as bait the team record her time inside the asylum as they look to explain the unexplainable.
Thoughts on Out of the Shadows
Characters – Carter is the lone survivor from a previous encounter inside the asylum, he goes back but could have his own motivation for this. Cynthia is searching for her father who went missing but the rest of the characters are just another mix of the crew you would expect on a paranormal investigation team.
Performances – The performances across the board are not the best, the crew does feel like it could be a real documentary crew at times but then other times its just a group of actors trying to overreact to everything going on.
Story – The story does have a good twist, which is the only interesting part of the story, it is nearly 90 minutes investigating the shadows with too many characters to follow, it gets difficult to follow the characters in the dark for the most part and as for the reasoning behind everything well, it doesn’t seem to have one.
Horror – The horror is a lot of jumping at the camera or activity happening behind the camera, it isn’t scary but will give you a forced jump.
Settings – The film could easily have only had one setting, the asylum but going back to the motel makes it feel like the evil could escape which does try to make it stand out from just a haunted asylum movie.
Special Effects – The effects are what you would expect for a found footage film, they work without being ground breaking.
Scene of the Movie – Welcome to the Devil’s Toy Box.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The scares were too random.
Final Thoughts –This is a disappointing and mostly dull horror movie, the jumps are too random, the characters don’t make smart decisions and found footage only works in places.
Overall: Horror film to skip by the end.
With the team in place the teams sets up the cameras around the asylum with team member Cynthia (Morrison) getting the first does of activity in a communication from her father, whom went missing in asylum with Carter’s team. Using her as bait the team record her time inside the asylum as they look to explain the unexplainable.
Thoughts on Out of the Shadows
Characters – Carter is the lone survivor from a previous encounter inside the asylum, he goes back but could have his own motivation for this. Cynthia is searching for her father who went missing but the rest of the characters are just another mix of the crew you would expect on a paranormal investigation team.
Performances – The performances across the board are not the best, the crew does feel like it could be a real documentary crew at times but then other times its just a group of actors trying to overreact to everything going on.
Story – The story does have a good twist, which is the only interesting part of the story, it is nearly 90 minutes investigating the shadows with too many characters to follow, it gets difficult to follow the characters in the dark for the most part and as for the reasoning behind everything well, it doesn’t seem to have one.
Horror – The horror is a lot of jumping at the camera or activity happening behind the camera, it isn’t scary but will give you a forced jump.
Settings – The film could easily have only had one setting, the asylum but going back to the motel makes it feel like the evil could escape which does try to make it stand out from just a haunted asylum movie.
Special Effects – The effects are what you would expect for a found footage film, they work without being ground breaking.
Scene of the Movie – Welcome to the Devil’s Toy Box.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The scares were too random.
Final Thoughts –This is a disappointing and mostly dull horror movie, the jumps are too random, the characters don’t make smart decisions and found footage only works in places.
Overall: Horror film to skip by the end.
Richard Hell recommended Kiss Me Deadly (2008) in Movies (curated)
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated Desperation Road in Books
Mar 15, 2018
Read my review here: https://bookbumzuky.wordpress.com/2017/02/16/review-desperation-road-by-michael-farris-smith/
<b><i>Now they loved different lives, different from what any of them probably imagined. How could you imagine the complexities of what might come?</b></i>
One night, eleven years ago, Russell did something stupid, made a terrible mistake - he drank and drove and ended up killing someone. Now hes done his time in prison and he just wants to settle down into a normal life. On the same day as Russells release, troubled Maben, and her daughter, are trudging through the grass along the interstate. That night they end up in a motel with no money left and Maben decides theres something shes got to do to get them some cash. The night ends, instead, with a dead deputy and Maben pulling her daughter off running. The next day, Russell and Maben cross paths and Russell has to decide if it's his life, or theirs, that hes going to save.
This is a story about revenge, redemption and acceptance. Quite a different novel to what Im used to but I do like to step outside my comfort zone every once in awhile. I ended up really enjoying this book, even though, as the title suggests, its a little bit dark and depressing at times.
What I loved the most about this book was how realistic it was. There are millions of mystery thrillers out there, that I read on the daily, that are based around normal people;s lives but we know, could never be real. This story, on the other hand, is perfectly plausible to imagine in a bit of a down-and-out town. With inherently flawed but morally conscious people and others who are driven to madness and evil by their deep rooted emotions, this is the kind of novel that can really hit home.
Russell, although flawed in many ways, is one of the most likeable characters Ive ever come across. He means no harm to anyone and does everything out of the good of his heart.
My only issue with this novel was the ending, that I felt could have been grown upon. It felt a bit dead-ended and cut off, but other than that, this was a beautiful story.
<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.</i>
<b><i>Now they loved different lives, different from what any of them probably imagined. How could you imagine the complexities of what might come?</b></i>
One night, eleven years ago, Russell did something stupid, made a terrible mistake - he drank and drove and ended up killing someone. Now hes done his time in prison and he just wants to settle down into a normal life. On the same day as Russells release, troubled Maben, and her daughter, are trudging through the grass along the interstate. That night they end up in a motel with no money left and Maben decides theres something shes got to do to get them some cash. The night ends, instead, with a dead deputy and Maben pulling her daughter off running. The next day, Russell and Maben cross paths and Russell has to decide if it's his life, or theirs, that hes going to save.
This is a story about revenge, redemption and acceptance. Quite a different novel to what Im used to but I do like to step outside my comfort zone every once in awhile. I ended up really enjoying this book, even though, as the title suggests, its a little bit dark and depressing at times.
What I loved the most about this book was how realistic it was. There are millions of mystery thrillers out there, that I read on the daily, that are based around normal people;s lives but we know, could never be real. This story, on the other hand, is perfectly plausible to imagine in a bit of a down-and-out town. With inherently flawed but morally conscious people and others who are driven to madness and evil by their deep rooted emotions, this is the kind of novel that can really hit home.
Russell, although flawed in many ways, is one of the most likeable characters Ive ever come across. He means no harm to anyone and does everything out of the good of his heart.
My only issue with this novel was the ending, that I felt could have been grown upon. It felt a bit dead-ended and cut off, but other than that, this was a beautiful story.
<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.</i>
JT (287 KP) rated The Little Things (2021) in Movies
Feb 6, 2021
The opening of The Little Things promises a lot but ultimately the tension that is driven during the first ten minutes is nowhere to be seen for the rest of the run time.
With three Oscar-winning actors and a genre that I absolutely love I couldn’t have been more excited, but that excitement started to take a nosedive when ‘The Little Things‘ started to get a ‘little dull’. Joe ‘Deke’ Deacon (Denzel Washington) is former Los Angeles cop turned local county sheriff, whose content with chasing small-time criminals. When he is asked to go back to the city to pick up some evidence for another case he crosses paths with Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) who is on the hunt for a sadistic serial killer.
Baxter realising that he is in the presence of greatness asks Deacon to accompany him to a crime scene, at which point Deke’s instincts point to someone potentially far more dangerous. Set in the 90s this is raw police work and the use of technology is limited, this is about assessing a crime scene in-depth, or in this case why the killer posed his victims in specific ways or returned to the crime scene later to move them.
Director John Lee Hancock wrote the script 30 years ago which is where it has remained until now. At one point Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood were rumoured to direct. The film bears resemblance to such thrillers as Se7en and Zodiac, however, The Little Things might be 30 years too late. The atmosphere and ambience is a neo-noir, at one point Deke is lying on a bed in a run-down motel room starring at polaroid photos of past victims on the wall. An obsession burning inside to catch the killer, which during flashbacks, he has encountered before.
And then there is Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) the prime suspect, or is he? Such is the film’s ambiguity that the third act will leave you scratching your head, trying to piece the evidence together yourself in a bid to catch the killer. Sparma has all the tendencies of a serial killer, he certainly has the look and demeanour. But he may also be a self-obsessed crime buff, with a morbid fascination for death and crime scenes.
All three actors give a solid account of themselves, with Leto making the biggest impression. He’s creepy in a way that will get under your skin. The film is bursting with ideas and places to ramp up the tension but it falls short which is such a shame. As someone who is very fond of a good psychological thriller, this was definitely a missed opportunity.
With three Oscar-winning actors and a genre that I absolutely love I couldn’t have been more excited, but that excitement started to take a nosedive when ‘The Little Things‘ started to get a ‘little dull’. Joe ‘Deke’ Deacon (Denzel Washington) is former Los Angeles cop turned local county sheriff, whose content with chasing small-time criminals. When he is asked to go back to the city to pick up some evidence for another case he crosses paths with Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) who is on the hunt for a sadistic serial killer.
Baxter realising that he is in the presence of greatness asks Deacon to accompany him to a crime scene, at which point Deke’s instincts point to someone potentially far more dangerous. Set in the 90s this is raw police work and the use of technology is limited, this is about assessing a crime scene in-depth, or in this case why the killer posed his victims in specific ways or returned to the crime scene later to move them.
Director John Lee Hancock wrote the script 30 years ago which is where it has remained until now. At one point Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood were rumoured to direct. The film bears resemblance to such thrillers as Se7en and Zodiac, however, The Little Things might be 30 years too late. The atmosphere and ambience is a neo-noir, at one point Deke is lying on a bed in a run-down motel room starring at polaroid photos of past victims on the wall. An obsession burning inside to catch the killer, which during flashbacks, he has encountered before.
And then there is Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) the prime suspect, or is he? Such is the film’s ambiguity that the third act will leave you scratching your head, trying to piece the evidence together yourself in a bid to catch the killer. Sparma has all the tendencies of a serial killer, he certainly has the look and demeanour. But he may also be a self-obsessed crime buff, with a morbid fascination for death and crime scenes.
All three actors give a solid account of themselves, with Leto making the biggest impression. He’s creepy in a way that will get under your skin. The film is bursting with ideas and places to ramp up the tension but it falls short which is such a shame. As someone who is very fond of a good psychological thriller, this was definitely a missed opportunity.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Hillbilly Elegy (2020) in Movies
Apr 22, 2021
General Shoutiness and a glowering Glenn Close
I missed Ron Howard's "Hillbilly Elegy" when it came out at the end of last year, but principally wanted to catch up on it to see Glenn Close's Oscar nominated performance before Sunday's Oscars.
Positives:
- When this film started, I suspected that the Glenn Close nomination might be another 'Judi Dench in Shakespeare in Love' - - where her acceptance speech is longer than the time spent on screen! But no. Because of the flashback format deployed in the film, she actually gets a good amount of air time. And it's a really solid and impressive performance.
- The supporting cast is also good. Amy Adams is given a lot to do with a challenging role, and (just about) pulls it off. And young Owen Asztalos as the younger J. D. particularly impressed me.
Negatives:
- Although it's based on J. D. Vance's true life story, I really struggled to get very invested in the story. The choppy nature of the narrative - hopping repeatedly between 'the present' and multiple flashback timelines - really doesn't help with this.
- The whole J. D. / Usha romance element almost felt like it belonged in a different film. In fact, I found it frustrating that I found the elements with J. D.'s struggles at college, with the emerging love and guidance of Usha, as a more compelling narrative than the druggie mother lead story. Perhaps the movie was just trying to be too ambitious?
- Apart from one 'personal decision' scene in a motel bedroom, there's not much of an "up-side" to the story for the viewer to take away. It's not a movie that I found a positive experience.
Viewer Advisory;
If you've had any history of life in a dysfunctional family, there is a lot of shouting, slapping and general tension in this movie which you might find disturbing.
Summary Thoughts:
So, I came to this to see the performance of Glenn Close, and it's very good. I would personally be surprised if she takes the Oscar for this. However, having been nominated eight times before and never won, the 'sympathy vote' may play here.
But one of my bellweathers for a movie is to think whether I'll remember it in six months time. I'm afraid this one is unlikely to pass the test. If you say "Hillbilly Elegy" to me in October, I'll probably recall a whole lot of shouty people and Glenn Close glowering at me from the screen. That's not a wholly great recommendation for a movie. Sorry Mr Howard, but this one's a 'miss' for me.
(For the full graphical review, please see the One Mann's Movies review here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/04/21/hillbilly-elegy-review/ ).
Positives:
- When this film started, I suspected that the Glenn Close nomination might be another 'Judi Dench in Shakespeare in Love' - - where her acceptance speech is longer than the time spent on screen! But no. Because of the flashback format deployed in the film, she actually gets a good amount of air time. And it's a really solid and impressive performance.
- The supporting cast is also good. Amy Adams is given a lot to do with a challenging role, and (just about) pulls it off. And young Owen Asztalos as the younger J. D. particularly impressed me.
Negatives:
- Although it's based on J. D. Vance's true life story, I really struggled to get very invested in the story. The choppy nature of the narrative - hopping repeatedly between 'the present' and multiple flashback timelines - really doesn't help with this.
- The whole J. D. / Usha romance element almost felt like it belonged in a different film. In fact, I found it frustrating that I found the elements with J. D.'s struggles at college, with the emerging love and guidance of Usha, as a more compelling narrative than the druggie mother lead story. Perhaps the movie was just trying to be too ambitious?
- Apart from one 'personal decision' scene in a motel bedroom, there's not much of an "up-side" to the story for the viewer to take away. It's not a movie that I found a positive experience.
Viewer Advisory;
If you've had any history of life in a dysfunctional family, there is a lot of shouting, slapping and general tension in this movie which you might find disturbing.
Summary Thoughts:
So, I came to this to see the performance of Glenn Close, and it's very good. I would personally be surprised if she takes the Oscar for this. However, having been nominated eight times before and never won, the 'sympathy vote' may play here.
But one of my bellweathers for a movie is to think whether I'll remember it in six months time. I'm afraid this one is unlikely to pass the test. If you say "Hillbilly Elegy" to me in October, I'll probably recall a whole lot of shouty people and Glenn Close glowering at me from the screen. That's not a wholly great recommendation for a movie. Sorry Mr Howard, but this one's a 'miss' for me.
(For the full graphical review, please see the One Mann's Movies review here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/04/21/hillbilly-elegy-review/ ).
Lee (2222 KP) rated The Incredibles 2 (2018) in Movies
Jul 16, 2018 (Updated Jul 17, 2018)
Worthy sequel, although a bit patchy in places
Contains spoilers, click to show
It's hard to believe that the original Incredibles movie is now 14 years old. It was, and still is, a fun, original and highly enjoyable superhero movie that was always deserving of a sequel. I re-watched it recently with my daughter who had never seen it, and despite it's age, and the fact that we've now had a decade of non-stop Marvel superhero movies since it was made, it still holds up 'incredibly' well.
The sequel picks up right where the original finished off, with The Incredibles battling supervillain The Underminer. It's the first of many impressive battle sequence, and does a good job of reminding us of the skills and abilities of each individual family member, not to mention how well they all work together as a team. The advances in animation quality over the last 14 years are obvious, while still managing to retain the unique look and feel of the original.
Unfortunately, the Parr's attempts to save the city don't quite go to plan, leading once again to their helpfulness being questioned by the US Government. They find themselves in a motel, contemplating their futures, until they are approached by Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk). He claims that the public have only seen the negative side of superheroes that is portrayed by the government, and wants to provide microscopic cameras embedded within the superhero costumes so that they can capture what they see. By showing the hero's side of the story, Winston plans to generate enough good publicity to start winning over the general public once again and hopefully reverse the law that makes superheroes illegal. Elastigirl is chosen to kick things off, largely due to the minimal government damage she's likely to cause in comparison to her husband! As a result, Mr Incredible is left at home to care for the kids, while Elastigirl is out having fun and saving the world.
The domestic comedy with Mr Incredible stuck at home is just brilliant. Not only does he have to try and get to grips with 'New Math' homework for son Dash, but also with daughter Violet and her boyfriend trouble. Not to mention the discovery that baby Jack-Jack has a set of impressive and highly unpredictable superpowers of his own. Meanwhile, the plan involving Elastigirl is working so well, that plans to make superheroes legal again get underway. But then mysterious new villain Screenslaver begins causing hypnotic chaos around town, and the family must band together once again in order to save the day.
Aside from the impressive action, and the hilarious scenes involving Jack-Jack, the rest of the movie in comparison does feel a little flat in places. In my opinion it falls slightly short of matching the original, although still a highly enjoyable and worthy sequel.
The sequel picks up right where the original finished off, with The Incredibles battling supervillain The Underminer. It's the first of many impressive battle sequence, and does a good job of reminding us of the skills and abilities of each individual family member, not to mention how well they all work together as a team. The advances in animation quality over the last 14 years are obvious, while still managing to retain the unique look and feel of the original.
Unfortunately, the Parr's attempts to save the city don't quite go to plan, leading once again to their helpfulness being questioned by the US Government. They find themselves in a motel, contemplating their futures, until they are approached by Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk). He claims that the public have only seen the negative side of superheroes that is portrayed by the government, and wants to provide microscopic cameras embedded within the superhero costumes so that they can capture what they see. By showing the hero's side of the story, Winston plans to generate enough good publicity to start winning over the general public once again and hopefully reverse the law that makes superheroes illegal. Elastigirl is chosen to kick things off, largely due to the minimal government damage she's likely to cause in comparison to her husband! As a result, Mr Incredible is left at home to care for the kids, while Elastigirl is out having fun and saving the world.
The domestic comedy with Mr Incredible stuck at home is just brilliant. Not only does he have to try and get to grips with 'New Math' homework for son Dash, but also with daughter Violet and her boyfriend trouble. Not to mention the discovery that baby Jack-Jack has a set of impressive and highly unpredictable superpowers of his own. Meanwhile, the plan involving Elastigirl is working so well, that plans to make superheroes legal again get underway. But then mysterious new villain Screenslaver begins causing hypnotic chaos around town, and the family must band together once again in order to save the day.
Aside from the impressive action, and the hilarious scenes involving Jack-Jack, the rest of the movie in comparison does feel a little flat in places. In my opinion it falls slightly short of matching the original, although still a highly enjoyable and worthy sequel.