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In Cold Blood: A True Account of a Multiple Murder and Its Consequences
8.3
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Book
The chilling true crime 'non-fiction novel' that made Truman Capote's name, In Cold Blood is a...
The Second Bank of the United States: Central Banker in an Era of Nation-Building, 1816-1836
Book
The year 2016 marks the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Second Bank of the United States...
SpotHero - Get Parking Nearby
Navigation and Travel
App
Park smarter with the SpotHero iPhone app. SpotHero helps you get everywhere, easier by making it...
Gareth von Kallenbach (971 KP) rated The Haunted Mansion (2003) in Movies
Jul 28, 2023
Welcome Foolish Mortals to the latest adaptation of the popular Disney attraction as Haunted Mansion has materialized for audiences to enjoy.
This time around the film follows a single mother named Gabbie (RosarioDawson), and her son Travis (Chase W. Dillon).
The family has moved into an abandoned mansion near New Orleans as they look to start over but find that their new abode is haunted.
Despite their best efforts to flee, the ghosts force them to return to the
mansion and they seek help in the form of a Priest named Father Kent (Owen Wilson), and Ben Matthias (LaKeith Stanfield) who has been reduced to doing Ghost Tours following a personal tragedy that saw his lofty skills and career vanish in the aftermath.
When the help finds themselves able to leave the mansion without an
otherworldly escort, they bring in a Medium named Harriet (Tiffany
Haddish) and in time the mysterious Madame Leota (Jamie Lee Curtis).
It is learned that a dangerous ghost is striking fear into the other 999
haunts that inhabit the locale and should he collect his 1000th soul, he
will unleash a new level of terror on the world.
Things become even more complicated with a local professor named Bruce (Danny DeVito) arrives and creates a new Wild Card to the situation.
The movie does a great job of capturing the look and tone of the
attraction as one of the great joys was seeing things ranging from the
pictures to stretching room and other factors big and small from the
attraction portrayed on the big screen.
The cast is great and works well with one another but the movie does take
some time getting ramped up and I did find it dragging in various places.
The audience laughed frequently but for me many of the jokes did not work which I attributed to the focus being on a a younger audience as I found them more amusing than funny.
The FX in the film are solid and Jared Leto’s character is so well done
you cannot recognize him as he has disappeared so deeply into the
character aided by some great visual work.
As a big fan of the attraction it was nice to see a much better take on
the source material than previous efforts.
In the end despite the flaws, there is enough happy nostalgia to keep fans
entertained and hopefully the audience will want to visit the mansion enough that a new franchise is on the way.
3 stars out of 5
This time around the film follows a single mother named Gabbie (RosarioDawson), and her son Travis (Chase W. Dillon).
The family has moved into an abandoned mansion near New Orleans as they look to start over but find that their new abode is haunted.
Despite their best efforts to flee, the ghosts force them to return to the
mansion and they seek help in the form of a Priest named Father Kent (Owen Wilson), and Ben Matthias (LaKeith Stanfield) who has been reduced to doing Ghost Tours following a personal tragedy that saw his lofty skills and career vanish in the aftermath.
When the help finds themselves able to leave the mansion without an
otherworldly escort, they bring in a Medium named Harriet (Tiffany
Haddish) and in time the mysterious Madame Leota (Jamie Lee Curtis).
It is learned that a dangerous ghost is striking fear into the other 999
haunts that inhabit the locale and should he collect his 1000th soul, he
will unleash a new level of terror on the world.
Things become even more complicated with a local professor named Bruce (Danny DeVito) arrives and creates a new Wild Card to the situation.
The movie does a great job of capturing the look and tone of the
attraction as one of the great joys was seeing things ranging from the
pictures to stretching room and other factors big and small from the
attraction portrayed on the big screen.
The cast is great and works well with one another but the movie does take
some time getting ramped up and I did find it dragging in various places.
The audience laughed frequently but for me many of the jokes did not work which I attributed to the focus being on a a younger audience as I found them more amusing than funny.
The FX in the film are solid and Jared Leto’s character is so well done
you cannot recognize him as he has disappeared so deeply into the
character aided by some great visual work.
As a big fan of the attraction it was nice to see a much better take on
the source material than previous efforts.
In the end despite the flaws, there is enough happy nostalgia to keep fans
entertained and hopefully the audience will want to visit the mansion enough that a new franchise is on the way.
3 stars out of 5
Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital
7.0
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In the tradition of the best writing on human behaviour and moral choices in the face of disaster,...
Tommy Wiseau recommended Sonny (2002) in Movies (curated)
Fatal Cajun Festival
10.0
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USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Ellen Byron cranks it up to eleven in the fifth fast...
Anne (15117 KP) rated The Beach Trees in Books
Mar 4, 2022
This was a book I received that was personally recommended by the foxedbox and they are amazing at what they do. They are one of the best at getting your information and recommending you some of the best books that are out there.
I loved this book more than I thought I would. It was about a young woman who finds herself suddenly as a guardian to a 5-year-old boy because her friend, his mother, dies from a weak heart/heart problems/defects and how she goes back to her friend's home to honor her friend's wishes.
Along the way, she meets and connects with her friend's family, finds peace with her own family/personal issues and finds some sweet romance too. It takes place in/around New Orleans and mentions some about Hurricane Katrina and rebuilding and what it takes to put roots down and to commit and rebuild after storms in life and such. There's an intriguing story and mystery woven throughout the story between the past and the present and I couldn't get enough of it - I felt as if I was transported there lost in the story sometimes and had a hard time putting it down until it was over.
Now that I'm done reading it, I want to read more - it was SO good!!!
I loved this book more than I thought I would. It was about a young woman who finds herself suddenly as a guardian to a 5-year-old boy because her friend, his mother, dies from a weak heart/heart problems/defects and how she goes back to her friend's home to honor her friend's wishes.
Along the way, she meets and connects with her friend's family, finds peace with her own family/personal issues and finds some sweet romance too. It takes place in/around New Orleans and mentions some about Hurricane Katrina and rebuilding and what it takes to put roots down and to commit and rebuild after storms in life and such. There's an intriguing story and mystery woven throughout the story between the past and the present and I couldn't get enough of it - I felt as if I was transported there lost in the story sometimes and had a hard time putting it down until it was over.
Now that I'm done reading it, I want to read more - it was SO good!!!
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Daring Provocation ( Shadow Veil Academy 3) in Books
Aug 5, 2023
101 of 235
Kindle
Daring Provocation ( Shadow Veil Academy 3)
By Heather Renee
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sometimes patience isn't a virtue.
Facing off with Malina didn't go quite how Raegan hoped, but she isn't one to give up easily. Now, she's back at school and more than eager to do whatever is necessary in order to protect those she loves most.
When a team is assembled and training begins in class, Raegan and Enzo grow closer than ever, but their happily-ever-after isn't within their grasp just yet. As one obstacle after another appears in their path, it will take ever bit of patience Raegan doesn't have in order to make it through.
With the final showdown drawing near, their team travels to New Orleans in hopes of keeping the battle away from school, but even then, the collateral damage might be more than any of them could have ever predicted. With more than one life at risk, Raegan will be forced to make choices she might never be able to recover from.
I do think this was the weakest of the 3 and didn’t really get me excited until the end. Although I did enjoy it I found most of it quite predictable. The series on a whole was really good especially for those that like dragon shifters which are a weakness of mine 😂
Kindle
Daring Provocation ( Shadow Veil Academy 3)
By Heather Renee
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sometimes patience isn't a virtue.
Facing off with Malina didn't go quite how Raegan hoped, but she isn't one to give up easily. Now, she's back at school and more than eager to do whatever is necessary in order to protect those she loves most.
When a team is assembled and training begins in class, Raegan and Enzo grow closer than ever, but their happily-ever-after isn't within their grasp just yet. As one obstacle after another appears in their path, it will take ever bit of patience Raegan doesn't have in order to make it through.
With the final showdown drawing near, their team travels to New Orleans in hopes of keeping the battle away from school, but even then, the collateral damage might be more than any of them could have ever predicted. With more than one life at risk, Raegan will be forced to make choices she might never be able to recover from.
I do think this was the weakest of the 3 and didn’t really get me excited until the end. Although I did enjoy it I found most of it quite predictable. The series on a whole was really good especially for those that like dragon shifters which are a weakness of mine 😂
Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated Duncan in Books
May 22, 2019
A cunning pederastic serial killer nicknamed Santa is making his way up the East Coast from New Orleans to Boston, leaving a trail of young bodies in his wake. Santa covers his tracks along the way by working as an itinerant bass player in a series of jazz combos. At the same time, the Driscoll family Mark, Julie and their nine-year-old son Nate who live in an upstate suburb of Syracuse, New York, struggle to come to grips with Moms quadriplegia following a horrific auto accident. The suspense builds to a fever pitch as these two plot strands approach each other for the inevitable confrontation. All this tension is heightened by the mystery of Duncan, Nates stuffed-toy gorilla, who is not only the boys beloved companion but becomes a kind of family totem, and, later on in the story, so much more.
Trigger warning for pedophilia, disability, murder, and so forth
This is a novel not only for readers addicted to thrill rides and maddening suspense, but also those who are curious about the abnormal psychology of the pedophiliac killer. The book gives food for thought as well as a kind of perverse satisfaction for the imagination and senses. It is a thinking readers thriller.
There are some graphic scenes that would make any normal human uncomfortable to say the least.
I loved how Mr. McCort portrays the heart-warming relationship dynamics within the Driscoll family. Oh I did love Duncan too!
The book also delivers on its' promise to the insight of the killers mind as well (the diabolical Santa).
Disturbing but excellent read.
Recommend reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Trigger warning for pedophilia, disability, murder, and so forth
This is a novel not only for readers addicted to thrill rides and maddening suspense, but also those who are curious about the abnormal psychology of the pedophiliac killer. The book gives food for thought as well as a kind of perverse satisfaction for the imagination and senses. It is a thinking readers thriller.
There are some graphic scenes that would make any normal human uncomfortable to say the least.
I loved how Mr. McCort portrays the heart-warming relationship dynamics within the Driscoll family. Oh I did love Duncan too!
The book also delivers on its' promise to the insight of the killers mind as well (the diabolical Santa).
Disturbing but excellent read.
Recommend reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Andrew Koltuniuk (753 KP) Aug 2, 2023