ArecRain (8 KP) rated Pleasure Dome in Books
Jan 18, 2018
It wasnt just her either. I felt that the author introduced the male lead with a very specific demeanor and personality as well, but did not stick with it. As soon as they had sex, he became a completely different character than originally described.
It’s a spooky story about the young girl Coraline, she’s a likeable character with plenty of sass. When she discovers a door to a secret world where she has another Mother and Father who seem more loving and attentive then her own, it seems like a good place to spend some time despite their odd black button eyes. Coraline is rapidly pulled into a game of high stakes with her other Mother.
The sinister nature of the button eyed creatures was rather ruined for me because I had previously seen a bit of a Simpsons Halloween episode based on this. I did keep having flashes of Marge with button eyes which spoiled the atmosphere. The spooky rats singing on the audio version did send chills through me and along with Gaiman’s narration I would recommend the audio version.
Nick Beaty (70 KP) rated The Grinch (2018) in Movies
Dec 8, 2019 (Updated Dec 8, 2019)
From the get go the narration from Pharrell Williams was very poor and don't get me started on the music. Every time I felt like I could get into this movie the next awful track came on and ruined the moment.
There were very few likeable Characters, with the exception of Max the dog and a screaming goat that had my 3 year old laughing, I believe this is very much their target audience though.
It is very hard not to compare it to Jim Carrey's version or even the 1966 original short which are much darker, creepier and grumpier, all of the things you would expect from The Grinch. This version looks too clean cut, the voice of Benedict Cumberbatch is too friendly in my opinion and the whole thing just feels like a sugar coated version aimed at very young children.
I personally believe there was no real need for this movie to have ever been made other than to cash in on a brilliant Christmas story, that has already been told in much better ways than this.
Awix (3310 KP) rated 1917 (2020) in Movies
Jan 13, 2020
It's obvious from early on that this is not actually a movie shot in one or two takes (to paraphrase Eric and Ernie, you can see the joins) but the important thing is not whether it was made in one take, but whether it has the same kind of immersive effect as a one-take movie. And mostly it succeeds: after a while you almost forget the virtuoso display of camera control and focus on the characters and their story. There are no very new ideas here about the war in the trenches - brave Tommies are led by officers of questionable effectiveness and intelligence in a futile meatgrinder war - but the quality of the sensory experience draws you in and makes you understand and care about what happened. A technically brilliant, very fine film.
JT (287 KP) rated Knowing (2009) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
Knowing is a film of two halves. The first half is a well thought out disaster thriller, the second is quite simply a shambles and totally ruined it. Why you ask? SPOILER ALERT: Aliens, the ending was all linked back to beings from another planet. Why they felt the need to go down this route is beyond me? But I lost any respect for director Alex Proyas .
It’s a real shame as there were some spectacular disaster sequences that ramped up the tension. Cage was accomplished in his role and was edgy enough to win the audience over. However, that all fell away in the later stages as his acting became desperate, as he tried to clutch at emotional straws.
The film’s ending has a very ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’ feel about it. I felt like snapping the DVD in half and mailing in personally to screen writers Ryne Douglas Pearson and Juliet Snowden. I would only recommend this for the special effects and not at all for the weak script or storyline.
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