Only A Mother
Book
ONLY A MOTHER . . . Erica Wright hasn't needed to scrub 'MURDERER' off her house in over a year....
Countdown (2011)
Movie
Debt collector Tae Gun-ho, who lost his son five years ago, finds out he has liver cancer. The only...
David McK (3372 KP) rated The Royalist (William Falkland #1) in Books
Apr 18, 2022
Reading very much like a ECW version of a whodunnit, with the author - in the afterword - not at all shy to point out the influences of the hard-boiled detective hero/film noir of the 40s (think Dashiell Hammett or Raymond Chandler) on this work.
Babel: An Arcane History
Book
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. Oxford, 1836. The...
Alternative History Colonialism Historical Fiction Oxford England
My Husband’s Murder
Book
Everyone says Graham Catton was the perfect husband, professor and father. Why would someone...
Darren (1599 KP) rated Paddington 2 (2017) in Movies
Nov 26, 2019
Story: Paddington 2 starts as Paddington is a welcome member of the Brown family, the neighbours are always willing to accept his help and now Paddington sees a gift for his Aunt Lucy in Mr Gruber (Broadbent) antique shop and decides to get a job to pay for it.
Just about to buy the present, Paddington catches a thief breaking into the store and goes in chase, only to find himself captured and thrown in prison. Paddington soon makes friends with the prisoners including the feared Knuckles (Gleeson), while the Brown family Henry (Bonneville) and Mary (Hawkins) try to free Paddington, learning that the once famous actor Phoenix Buchanan (Grant) is behind the crime.
Thoughts on Paddington 2
Characters – Paddington is the kind-hearted marmalade loving bear living in London, he has made countless friends both human and animal, he wants to get a present for his Aunt which sees him trying to get a job. He does try to do the right thing by helping with a robbery only to be found guilty. Paddington always the people bear makes friends, while believing that everybody has good about them. Henry, Mary Brown and Mrs Bird treat Paddington like their third child and will do everything to help get him out of prison. Phoenix Buchanan is the once famous actor that has moved in next door to the Browns, he is very eccentric and trying to rebuild his fortune which sees him stealing the book and learning about the clues in the book, always trying to stay ahead of the people trying to capture him, using his different costumes from his career. Knuckles McGinty is the prison chef, he is feared by the other inmates, but Paddington breaks down those barriers showing him to be a good man inside, one that could bring the prisoners together.
Performances – When we go into the performances, the original cast are all wonderfully, but it is the addition members of the cast that truly shine, Hugh Grant practically steals every scene, while Brendan Gleeson proves that he can be the funniest man on camera, these two are outstanding in every single scene they are in.
Story – The story here follows Paddington’s next adventure as he tries to give his Aunt a present of seeing London only for him to get framed and thrown in prison, while the Brown family try to figure out who really committed the crime. This is a coming together story, it shows how somebody’s good nature can change everything in life and without them around you will notice the change in life. The idea that Paddington is facing off against an evil washed up actor is entertaining too, though it would have been nice to see more of the treasure hunt side of the story. While most of the story is largely predictable it does have a huge heart behind it and shows that good people will rub off on others to show kindness can be a change to life for the better.
Adventure/Comedy – The adventure side of the film seems to be focused more on the villains adventure, more than seeing what Paddington must get up to, the comedy comes from seeing just what Paddington gets himself into and the trouble he causes with his innocent nature.
Settings – We keep London as the main backdrop for the film, while we do have Paddington in a prison and the major landmarks being used as clues to a treasure, most places are locations we are expecting to see in any London based movie.
Special Effects – The effects are brilliant putting Paddington in every scene like he is really there, it never looks out of place which shows just how far this technology has come.
Scene of the Movie – Lets make marmalade.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Surely, Mr Gruber would be the one who decides whether to press charges against Paddington?
Final Thoughts – This is a entertaining, big hearted movie that could be enjoyed by the whole family and would leave a smile on everybody’s face.
Overall: Big Heart Movie.
Jessi Bone (48 KP) rated Raging Falcon in Books
Mar 21, 2019
Unruly: The Highs and Lows of Becoming a Man
Book
Ja Rule, actor, singer, songwriter, and one of the most multi-dimensional rap artists of his time,...
BP Blowout: Inside the Gulf Oil Disaster
Book
The inside story of the worst environmental disaster in American history BP Blowout is the first...
Sarah (7798 KP) rated The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society in Books
May 2, 2018
It takes serious topics and although parts of the book do highlight the serious and disturbing topics of the war, it sandwiches them in between massive sections of saccharine sweet fluffy happiness. Its a bit much. Juliet and her friends are fairly endearing characters for the most part (except for the aforementioned fluffiness), and I did enjoy the way the book is written entirely in letters. Its just a shame it doesn't concentrate more on taking the story a little more seriously.
Although I haven't seen the film yet, I'd be surprised if it isn't slightly better than the book. And it's not often I say this!