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Micah Ulibarri (79 KP) rated A Quiet Place (2018) in Movies
Apr 18, 2018
I hate horror movies. And yet, from the first trailer, I couldn't wait to see this film.
I'm a huge John Krasinski and Emily Blunt fan, so that was the first part, but to know that he also had a part in the writing and direction, my interest was piqued.
I was blown away by it. It is the first time I have ever enjoyed myself in a horror film. Ever. I did get scared. There was definitely a psychological weight. Most importantly, I got choked up where I was supposed to.
It was a marvelously written and acted film and had a theme that I think will stand the test of time. A theme where to some extent... The monster... Isn't really the monster.
I'm a huge John Krasinski and Emily Blunt fan, so that was the first part, but to know that he also had a part in the writing and direction, my interest was piqued.
I was blown away by it. It is the first time I have ever enjoyed myself in a horror film. Ever. I did get scared. There was definitely a psychological weight. Most importantly, I got choked up where I was supposed to.
It was a marvelously written and acted film and had a theme that I think will stand the test of time. A theme where to some extent... The monster... Isn't really the monster.
Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated The Woman in the Window in Books
Mar 2, 2018
Interesting but familiar
While there were familiar elements to this psychological thriller with the unreliable narrator and presence of male violence, there were some good twists to make it equally listenable.
Following the story of psychologist Dr Anna Fox, it shows how agoraphobia has taken over her life, not before she witnesses something horrific in pure Hitchcock fashion. Her new neighbours, the Russells, appear to be hiding a secret which she catches while spying with her camera from across the window.
With that said, there are some classic thrillers built into the book such as Vertigo, Rear Window, and Wait Until Dark. And the main character happens to be a fan of these films as well. Good, but nothing completely new.
Following the story of psychologist Dr Anna Fox, it shows how agoraphobia has taken over her life, not before she witnesses something horrific in pure Hitchcock fashion. Her new neighbours, the Russells, appear to be hiding a secret which she catches while spying with her camera from across the window.
With that said, there are some classic thrillers built into the book such as Vertigo, Rear Window, and Wait Until Dark. And the main character happens to be a fan of these films as well. Good, but nothing completely new.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957) in Movies
Mar 14, 2018
The Jack Arnold SF B-movie that was always critically acceptable eschews schlocky thrills, mostly, for a more psychologically resonant drama. Plot sounds daft - businessman gets caught in radioactive cloud, starts to have trouble with his shoe size - but the treatment is absolutely serious.
Film manages to make trying to avoid being eaten by your cat or a passing spider seem like a genuinely deadly struggle, but it is just as much about the psychological effects of the main character's transformation as he struggles to maintain his sense of self-worth (size matters, if you know what I mean). The actual ending is somewhat obscure transcendental bibble-bobble, but this is a typically solid Arnold movie which is unusually open about its serious subtext.
Film manages to make trying to avoid being eaten by your cat or a passing spider seem like a genuinely deadly struggle, but it is just as much about the psychological effects of the main character's transformation as he struggles to maintain his sense of self-worth (size matters, if you know what I mean). The actual ending is somewhat obscure transcendental bibble-bobble, but this is a typically solid Arnold movie which is unusually open about its serious subtext.
Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Tangerine: A Novel in Books
Apr 1, 2018
Plain cruel
Call me a wimp, but I don't tend to enjoy books where terrible things happen to the protagonist without any proper resolution.
Alice Shipley, a rather meek woman, lives with her cocky husband in Tangiers, when one day a face from the past comes back to haunt her. Lucy Mason, her former roommate turns up at her doorstep with hidden motives.
This book has been described as similar to The Talented Mr Ripley, and in some ways, we can see how they converge. It is a psychological thriller including aspects of whether Alice can trust her mind, and if Lucy is just a bunny boiler - bringing together all the usual plots. I personally didn't relish this, because the conclusion fizzled out.
Alice Shipley, a rather meek woman, lives with her cocky husband in Tangiers, when one day a face from the past comes back to haunt her. Lucy Mason, her former roommate turns up at her doorstep with hidden motives.
This book has been described as similar to The Talented Mr Ripley, and in some ways, we can see how they converge. It is a psychological thriller including aspects of whether Alice can trust her mind, and if Lucy is just a bunny boiler - bringing together all the usual plots. I personally didn't relish this, because the conclusion fizzled out.
Milleen (47 KP) rated The Wife Between Us in Books
Nov 14, 2018
A young woman about to marry her lover, an ex-wife obsessed by her successor, or is everything not quite as it seems? The blurb does warn readers not to make assumptions and it also does a clever job of not giving anything away. This collaboration has produced a taught psychological thriller that has already seen the film rights being snapped up by Steven Spielberg. It’s a slow, absorbing read for the first part but then it turns like a tornado. You will get drawn into a marriage, the compromises, the cover ups and the condescension that can evolve over time. Don’t try to assume anything. Just read and enjoy this (in your own head) before you see the movie.
Sara Cox (1845 KP) rated She Was The Quiet One in Books
Jun 20, 2019
I really like a psychological thriller. And I am drawn to books like this. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The pace is just perfect and it holds your attention throughout. I loved most of the characters, although I felt at times that the wife's personality was a bit clouded - she seems like she should be an intelligent women, but then there are moments where that seems to fail her. I was very surprised at the end when it turns out that Heath was actually seeing more than one pupil - that I did not expect and loved that little twist. There were points when I actually wasn't sure who killed the sister - Cody, Heath, Mrs Darcy, the list goes on.
Milleen (47 KP) rated Our Little Lies in Books
Jan 14, 2019
This is a very dramatic departure from the usual sugar dusted, bakery inspired novels Watson is so famous for. It’s a psychological, dark, domestic thriller that explores a seemingly perfect marriage, exposing what goes on behind closed doors. Marianne has everything, a handsome surgeon husband, a beautiful home and three children she adores. A perfect life. Then her husband says another woman’s name and her spiral descent begins. Is it paranoia or does she have reason to believe that this is another woman? This is a tense novel, using dramatic irony to pull you along Marianne’s journey. The characters are a little cliched, but I won’t spoil your reading by revealing too much. If you enjoy this genre then it is ‘unputdownable’.
rebeccareadsyt (8 KP) rated Genuine Fraud in Books
Jan 18, 2019
Quick to read
I read this on holiday, in two sittings. Only because I had to get up from my first sitting to get a drink before burning up.
I felt that this was one of those YA novels that is very typical. We have the main character, someone who wants everything they can't have. We have the boyfriend of the friend, who she wants and who wants her, but neither can have.
But then, then we have the dead girl.
I don't know how I truly felt about this one, it definitely plays with your mind. It's a good start to psychological thrillers if that's a genre you want to explore more, but for me, it felt like a meh book.
I felt that this was one of those YA novels that is very typical. We have the main character, someone who wants everything they can't have. We have the boyfriend of the friend, who she wants and who wants her, but neither can have.
But then, then we have the dead girl.
I don't know how I truly felt about this one, it definitely plays with your mind. It's a good start to psychological thrillers if that's a genre you want to explore more, but for me, it felt like a meh book.
Chayu (810 KP) rated Joker (2019) in Movies
Nov 26, 2019
Not my Joker, but still a great one
Not my Joker, but still a great one none the less. I am a fan of a Ledger Joker and that story. This movie was more disturbing and scary than the Friday 13th, and there wasn't even any gore or much killing. Music, scenery, scary clown make-up and laughter...all of it made me feel disgusted. City (Gotham) filled with trash, people hating and willing to beat up everyone just for fun, psychological problems of our main character with no one to help him, humiliation. There is so much going on in this movie, and all of it is dark. Worth watching if you need a little darkness in your life.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Hunting Monsters: Cryptozoology and the Reality Behind the Myths in Books
Mar 10, 2020
Thoughtful and generous look at the so-called science of cryptozoology and some of its most famous subjects. Unlike (for example) Abominable Science!, which largely focused on demolishing the literalist approach to cryptids, Naish's book is more interested in why people keep thinking that they're seeing monsters, identifying a number of cultural and psychological factors.
That said, the book does include a fairly comprehensive overview of the big-name cryptids (bigfoot, Nessie, sea monsters, etc), although as book is written from a scientific perspective the conclusions should come as no great surprise. Accessibly readable and notably positive; makes a coherent case that cryptozoology as a discipline has genuine scientific value even if all the best-known topics of it are bunkum.
That said, the book does include a fairly comprehensive overview of the big-name cryptids (bigfoot, Nessie, sea monsters, etc), although as book is written from a scientific perspective the conclusions should come as no great surprise. Accessibly readable and notably positive; makes a coherent case that cryptozoology as a discipline has genuine scientific value even if all the best-known topics of it are bunkum.