![Rent: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical](/uploads/profile_image/dac/a9f38521-1592-4f1a-b867-1ab2adcbadac.jpg?m=1554685423)
Rent: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical
Book
Set on the Lower East Side of New York City, Rent is the story of young bohemians Mark, Roger,...
![Stirling to Essen: The Godmanchester Stirling: A Bomber Command Story of Courage and Tragedy](/uploads/profile_image/b52/52ecb54a-b193-4c88-9d07-591d2aaf7b52.jpg?m=1522339291)
Stirling to Essen: The Godmanchester Stirling: A Bomber Command Story of Courage and Tragedy
Book
On 11 April 1942, a stricken Short Stirling Royal Air Force bomber crashes into fields to the east...
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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated The Black Phone (2022) in Movies
Jul 19, 2022
Wisely set in a time before cell phones (like both Stranger Things and It), THE BLACK PHONE tells the tale of a small town in Colorado that suddenly falls victim to “THE GRABBER” - an individual who grabs young teenage boys and kills them.
Smartly Directed by Scott Derrickson (the first DOCTOR STRANGE film), THE BLACK PHONE is effective for it focuses on the isolation of being in captivity, the anxiety of not knowing when someone is going to come through the door of the cell and the relationships of the young teens caught in “The Grabber’s” web. Credit for this, of course, goes to Derrickson who dropped out of Directing DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (over “creative differences”) and chose this passion project as his salve - and the passion shows. It must also be pointed out that Derrickson, wisely, opts to up the tension of this film, rather than the gore, so this movie becomes a suspense flick and not torture-porn.
Derrickson also draws very good performances from the young actors playing the main roles of this film - Mason Thames (Finney), Madeleine McGraw (Gwen), Tristan Pravong (Bruce), Jacob Moran (Billy) and Miguel Cazarez Mora (Robin). All are believable in their well written roles bringing more than just one-dimension to their characters.
These kids are more than ably joined by adult actors like James Ransone (IT: CHAPTER TWO), Jeremy Davies (TV’s LOST) and E. Roger Mitchell (OUTER BANKS). All of these folks bring gravitas and reality to a story that does drift into the un-reality at times.
And then there is the performance of the always good Ethan Hawke as the villain of this piece - THE GRABBER. It is a masterful performance by Hawke who brings humanity to this monster. Almost every actor that plays a villain say that they try to see the film from the villain’s point of view and Hawke brings that to this character in spades and (almost) makes one want to root for him. It is one of the better villains realized on film in the last few years.
One quibble with The Black Phone, is that it does have a tendency to sag a bit (especially in the middle). It is in the middle of the film that one can tell that this movie was based on a SHORT story and so, by necessity, there is some padding.
But that is picking a nit in what is a smart and tense film, one that will have you on the edge of your seat until the end.
Letter Grade: A-
8 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
![Jim Shooter: Conversations](/uploads/profile_image/f08/90bd75aa-c9bc-48ca-b0d5-6ee096012f08.jpg?m=1522353587)
Jim Shooter: Conversations
Jason Sacks, Eric Hoffman and Dominick Grace
Book
As an American comic book writer, editor, and businessman, Jim Shooter (b. 1952) remains among the...
![Catalonia: A Cultural History](/uploads/profile_image/8a0/25bea322-94cb-4146-bbb8-0c489f2db8a0.jpg?m=1522357623)
Catalonia: A Cultural History
Book
Squeezed between more powerful France and Spain, Catalonia has endured a violent history. Its...
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I Explore Digging for Dinosaurs
Kate Daubney and Mike Goldsmith
Book
A collectible board book series with a non-fiction twist: toddlers have mini adventures and explore...
![Orlando: A Biography](/uploads/profile_image/bb8/a2c8eb8f-0777-4b95-af7f-905a35d40bb8.jpg?m=1522341946)
Orlando: A Biography
Virginia Woolf, Sandra M. Gilbert and Brenda Lyons
Book
Once described as the 'longest and most charming love-letter in literature', the Virginia Woolf's...
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Butch Vig recommended track My Generation by The Who in Who Sings My Generation by The Who in Music (curated)
![Loud Hailer by Jeff Beck](/uploads/profile_image/6ce/bf8b5a6c-1e25-451a-8e45-0ecda68be6ce.jpg?m=1522358682)
Loud Hailer by Jeff Beck
Album Watch
On Jeff Beck’s first album in six years, the legendary guitarist combines fluid fretwork with...
rock
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Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated The Rampart Guards (The Adventures of Jason Lex, #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
<p style="text-align: left;"><i>The Rampart Guards</i> basically made me realize that I'm definitely growing out of middle grade books and I should move on. This is an extremely scary thought, because what if I get tired of young adult books next?! That probably won't happen for a good while, and I've yet to actually read an adult novel that isn't from the cause of required reading.
<p style="text-align: left;">The first book in the <i>Chronicles of Jason Lex</i> starts out extremely slow, but picks up pace as the story progresses. Jason's mom suddenly goes missing, and Jason (along with his family) suddenly gets forced to move to a small town with their grandmother to get away from the painful memories of their mom. And to top it off, Jason sees weird blue electricity-like wisps coming out from his hands and eels in the sky later revealed as Skyfish. He's also a little whiny at the beginning of the novel, but eventually drops it as he realizes, "Oh, hey. Cryptids are real. Someone is hoping to expose these creatures and kill millions in the process, and if I don't get my act together, I might lose everything as well."
Wendy Terrien's debut novel is right up my alley in regards to concept <i>The Rampart Guards</i> is about cryptozoology, the study of creatures that may or may not exist. It's not everyday Big Foot, Loch Ness, and other creatures play a critical role in the plot of a novel, and it's the primary reason why <i>The Rampart Guards</i> caught my eye the moment the book was pitched to me.
I adored learning about all kinds of different creatures I've never heard of until I read this book, and if I do decide to continue on with the series, learning more about the cryptids and how this entire world works is going to be one thing I'll be extremely excited for.
Even though I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would, <i>The Rampart Guards</i> will be a fantastic read for younger audiences.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-the-rampart-guards-by-wendy-terrien/" target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>