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Awix (3310 KP) rated Cold Pursuit (2019) in Movies
Feb 28, 2019
Latest Hollywood remake of a film with the gall not to be in English (the horror!) is a better-not-call-it-black comedy thriller about a snowplough driver whose rampage of vengeance gets out of control. Liam Neeson drives a plough, murders a bunch of drug dealers, and doesn't think enough about what he says on the publicity tour; the quality of the film kind of vanishes into the backdrop as a result.
After a horribly choppy opening - is it a serious drama about grieving parents or another thickheaded Neeson revenge melodrama? - the film settles down to feel like a pastiche of the sort of thing the McDonagh brothers make, with genre elements drolly deconstructed with offbeat humour and a knowing provocativeness. It's just not quite quirky, funny, or intelligent enough; Neeson underplays it too much and film doesn't seem to have any real point to make. Some good jokes and it passes the time, but it would have slipped into obscurity fairly quickly if only Liam had kept his mouth shut on the junket.
After a horribly choppy opening - is it a serious drama about grieving parents or another thickheaded Neeson revenge melodrama? - the film settles down to feel like a pastiche of the sort of thing the McDonagh brothers make, with genre elements drolly deconstructed with offbeat humour and a knowing provocativeness. It's just not quite quirky, funny, or intelligent enough; Neeson underplays it too much and film doesn't seem to have any real point to make. Some good jokes and it passes the time, but it would have slipped into obscurity fairly quickly if only Liam had kept his mouth shut on the junket.
Beckie Shelton (40 KP) rated Saving Grace (Hearthfire Romance, #1) in Books
Feb 8, 2018
Grace Thatcher is the granddaughter of the duke of Salisbury and due to his death and an issue with her and her siblings inheritance is strong armed by her waste of space gambler father, into acquiring, or at least pretending to a husband.Grace feels better her than her younger shy timid sister. What follows is series of events that puts the three main characters of the story in the spotlight. We have Grace, sweet caring and totally unspoiled by her unfortunate upbringing which was untill later life a background of poverty. mr Samuel Preston a kind charming gentleman still grieving for his dead wife Elizabeth but determined to live his life as she would have wanted and lastly Nicholas Sutherland Elizabeth brother a dark bitter gruff man who blames Samuel for the death of his sister and his bent on revenge. Saving Grace is a clean sweet romance which shows the characters evolving through their interaction, i breezed through very quickly and loved seeing the way everyone changed for the better a must read for all historical romance fans..
Kay Bee (1 KP) rated John Wick (2014) in Movies
Jan 28, 2018
Best Movie Surprise I've Ever Had
I generally like Keanu Reeves even though he can be wooden at times action films have become his Forte. My husband and I both love action movies so we went to see it when it came out in the theater and hadn't really heard any Buzz about it. I was absolutely blown away and it was my favorite movie of the year, so much so that we were in line opening night to see John Wick 2 (and were not disappointed in that one either but that's another review). It really is just an all-around great movie if you like action films, revenge thrillers, or Keanu Reeves; you really can't go wrong. The score is so great I bought and downloaded it immediately after we left the theater. The club scene is perfection.
Sean Farrell (9 KP) rated The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August in Books
Mar 15, 2018
What an amazing book! I was intrigued by the rather minimal plot synopsis on the jacket and so had to check this book out, and I am very glad I did. I found the principal character of Harry August to be engaging and interesting and quite enjoyed all the ancillary characters as well, but it was the plot that really hooked me on this one. Without giving anything away I'll just say that it involves reincarnation, time travel, quantum physics, espionage, world history, revenge, and in its own weird way, love. It is somewhat unfair to pigeonhole the book into the science fiction category, as it is really somewhat more of a cat-and-mouse suspense story, although seeing as the plot spans several decades, repeatedly, it does seem as though sci-fi could be the best fit. No matter where you would categorize though, this is easily my favorite read of the year so far, and quite possibly one of my favorite books of all time. Absolutely brilliant.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2206 KP) rated G is for Gumshoe (Kinsey Millhone #7) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
At the beginning of May, PI Kinsey Millhone is hired by a woman named Irene to track down her mother. The two usually talk one a month, but it’s been several months since they last talked. Before Kinsey can head out to the Salton Sea area, she gets words that a dangerous criminal is vowing revenge on the people who put him away, and one of those people is Kinsey. She does take the threat seriously. Should she? Will it complicate her search for the missing woman?
I was hoping with two parallel plots that they would build off each other. That doesn’t happen quite as well as I would have liked. In fact, the book begins to drag in the middle, although it certainly picks up near the end. We get to know another supporting character pretty well here, which in turn lets us get to know Kinsey better, which I love.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/04/book-review-g-is-for-gumshoe-by-sue.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
I was hoping with two parallel plots that they would build off each other. That doesn’t happen quite as well as I would have liked. In fact, the book begins to drag in the middle, although it certainly picks up near the end. We get to know another supporting character pretty well here, which in turn lets us get to know Kinsey better, which I love.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/04/book-review-g-is-for-gumshoe-by-sue.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) in Movies
Feb 13, 2018 (Updated Feb 13, 2018)
A Mid-life Crisis, but Not as We Know It
Easily the best of the Trek movies. Made with half-an-eye to concluding the franchise, it ended up revitalising the series for another quarter century.
Old enemy from the TV show is rediscovered, vows revenge on Kirk; many rousing space battles and well-handled character moments ensue. Ricardo Montalban really goes for it as Khan; William Shatner gives a proper movie leading man performance. Relatively low budget is artfully concealed.
Benefits considerably from being willing to acknowledge that everyone has aged since the original TV show; Kirk has to confront the consequences of choices he made as a young man (later movies disregarded the fact the crew were becoming increasingly geriatric). The essential Trek philosophy of optimistic liberal humanism somehow gets a bit lost along the way, but you really don't care as the rest of it is so much fun. Almost unreasonably well-written when you consider the script was done in less than a fortnight.
Old enemy from the TV show is rediscovered, vows revenge on Kirk; many rousing space battles and well-handled character moments ensue. Ricardo Montalban really goes for it as Khan; William Shatner gives a proper movie leading man performance. Relatively low budget is artfully concealed.
Benefits considerably from being willing to acknowledge that everyone has aged since the original TV show; Kirk has to confront the consequences of choices he made as a young man (later movies disregarded the fact the crew were becoming increasingly geriatric). The essential Trek philosophy of optimistic liberal humanism somehow gets a bit lost along the way, but you really don't care as the rest of it is so much fun. Almost unreasonably well-written when you consider the script was done in less than a fortnight.
Brian Kapfer (2 KP) created a post
May 26, 2018
Loz Hughes (80 KP) rated Big Hero 6 (2014) in Movies
Jul 14, 2018
The storyline (3 more)
The setting
The characters felt solid and real in their personalities (the brothers(
Baymax ofc
Made me cry.
Contains spoilers, click to show
Loved this film, real solid family animation. I can see it being a firm favourite still in years to come.
The loss of his brother in the fire was quite visceral and I teared up bad (im a sucker for a good storyline and emotion), it was almost on par with the loss of mufasa from the Lion king, (still gets me).
I like the portrayal of a slightly different angle where intelligence is actually promoted and displayed- the university and college scenes, rather than the usual hero plot.
The only niggle I had with the film was that the villian storyline seemed a bit off, it was great until you learnt it was all a plot to get revenge for his daughter that then turned into a rescue mission and they are reunited at the end, just appeared a bit lacklustre but then I have to remember its a kids film and not be so critical!
The loss of his brother in the fire was quite visceral and I teared up bad (im a sucker for a good storyline and emotion), it was almost on par with the loss of mufasa from the Lion king, (still gets me).
I like the portrayal of a slightly different angle where intelligence is actually promoted and displayed- the university and college scenes, rather than the usual hero plot.
The only niggle I had with the film was that the villian storyline seemed a bit off, it was great until you learnt it was all a plot to get revenge for his daughter that then turned into a rescue mission and they are reunited at the end, just appeared a bit lacklustre but then I have to remember its a kids film and not be so critical!
Cori June (3033 KP) rated The Thief's Gamble (The Tales of Einarinn #1) in Books
Dec 3, 2018
Revenge isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, that’s what Livark is learning. Blackmailed she turns thief for a wizard and lands herself in a plot that threatens the existence of the known world.
Livark is a gambler basically a grifter. She is the main character and her story is told in 1st person pov. There are other povs involved that are third person? Which include but are not limited to Casuel a wizard that is so easy to hate. That sorry sycophant. And Planir the Black Archmage.
You also meet Shiv another wizard that partners with Livark (blackmails really) he is also the first character that I had ever read that was openly gay. Or how did he put it. “Doesn’t cross the dance floor to find his partner.” Maybe not a direct quote but close. Also, Darni and Rashad warriors as well as a few other characters. If you want excitement danger and magic, this is a book for you. Edited: It is also very violent, blunt, and graphic in its content.
Livark is a gambler basically a grifter. She is the main character and her story is told in 1st person pov. There are other povs involved that are third person? Which include but are not limited to Casuel a wizard that is so easy to hate. That sorry sycophant. And Planir the Black Archmage.
You also meet Shiv another wizard that partners with Livark (blackmails really) he is also the first character that I had ever read that was openly gay. Or how did he put it. “Doesn’t cross the dance floor to find his partner.” Maybe not a direct quote but close. Also, Darni and Rashad warriors as well as a few other characters. If you want excitement danger and magic, this is a book for you. Edited: It is also very violent, blunt, and graphic in its content.
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Let Me In (2010) in Movies
Jul 3, 2019
Let Her in
Contains spoilers, click to show
Let me in- is a remake of the 2008 swedish film called - let the right one in.
The story is about- Bullied at school, neglected at home and incredibly lonely, 12-year-old Owen spends his days plotting revenge on his tormentors and spends his nights spying on other residents of the apartment complex. His sole friend is Abby, a strange girl who comes out only at nighttime. Both outcasts, the two form a strong bond. When Abby's caretaker disappears amid a series of gruesome murders, Owen begins to suspect that she is hiding a terrible secret.
The cast was really good, chloe grace mortz, kodi smit-mcphee, richard jenkins and dylan minnette were all really great.
Matt reeves who directed "cloverfield", 2 years before directed this film. He went on to direct "dawn and war of the planet of the apes" and hes going to direct the upcoming "the batman" film in 2021.
Overall "let me in", is scary, haunted, sad, romantic and overall very good.
The story is about- Bullied at school, neglected at home and incredibly lonely, 12-year-old Owen spends his days plotting revenge on his tormentors and spends his nights spying on other residents of the apartment complex. His sole friend is Abby, a strange girl who comes out only at nighttime. Both outcasts, the two form a strong bond. When Abby's caretaker disappears amid a series of gruesome murders, Owen begins to suspect that she is hiding a terrible secret.
The cast was really good, chloe grace mortz, kodi smit-mcphee, richard jenkins and dylan minnette were all really great.
Matt reeves who directed "cloverfield", 2 years before directed this film. He went on to direct "dawn and war of the planet of the apes" and hes going to direct the upcoming "the batman" film in 2021.
Overall "let me in", is scary, haunted, sad, romantic and overall very good.