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Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Gemini Man (2019) in Movies

Oct 16, 2019

Gemini Man (2019)

2019 | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi

5.8

(33 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Exposition Man

Gemini Man is a pure bore, a tedious bombardment of utter crap that's so oversimplified you would think it was made for children. Personaly I admire Ang Lee as a director hes got this quirky kinda way of shooting films & hes always brave enough to try new filming techniques/strange camera angles that you dont really see in other movies. Id liken him to Luc Besson tbh but sadly just like him after making some absolute cinematic masterpieces they both then seem to be content with just churning out utter dross & while at the heart all these movies have great ideas/cool action its the excecution they fail on every time. Gemini man is no diffrerent infact id say its even worse than Lucy or Billy Lynn as its just so dull to the point where I was questioning if i should use the time catch up on sleep instead. Nothing of any intrest happens in this movie and im not kidding when i say all we get 90% of the time is characters repeating the extreamly basic plot to us over & over again which comes across as patronising making the movie exteamly monotonous & exhausting to watch. Acting isnt much better either its all very one tone/basic with characters clearly only there as checklist reminder of whats about to happen. But what about the action? well for a 2hour movie #action scenes only equate to about 15 minutes total & even when we do get finally get an action scene (bar the motorbike chase from the trailer) theres really nothing memorable or thrilling at all. One thing I will say its a looker for sure & at times my god does it look fantastic with a visual clarity that almost feels like your on set but problem is again its not pushed enough & theres not really any enviroments or action that makes good use of the techniques used to film it which is a big shame (it almost got a 2 because of visuals but I got annoyed I wasted 2hours of my only day off watching it). So irritating, boring, generic, predictable, shallow, basic, overlong & inteligence insulting I warn you now do not go to see Gemini Man it deserves no ones precious time or #money its just a pointless mess thats nothing but an absolutle chore to sit through.

Kudos

Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated A Blade So Black in Books

Jan 23, 2020

A Blade So Black

L.L. McKinney | 2018 | Young Adult (YA)

5.5

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

<b><i>I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.</i></b>
<h2><strong>When I first heard of <em>A Blade So Black</em>, I got excited.</strong></h2>
And I mean super excited! Here we have a book that features a black protagonist (we need more POC retellings!) who kicks butt like Buffy the vampire slayer and a retelling of <em>Alice in Wonderland</em> (which I should I get to one day but probably won't happen).

<h2><strong>But L.L. McKinney's debut novel turned out to be a big bummer.</strong></h2>
I didn't hate it, but I very much could not get past 40% of the book - in fact, I suffered more than I should because I <em>hoped</em> the book would get a lot better later. But it didn't get any better.

<h3>The writing style didn't suit me.</h3>
I think this is another "it's not you, it's me," but omg the writing made me want to sleep more than continuing the book. I found watching the 2018 reboot of "Meteor Garden" more interesting and probably watched an episode or two for every chapter that bored me to tears.

<h3>The concept is amazing.</h3>
Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets in Alice in Wonderland in a modern day setting? Hellooooo, please sign me up. This book spells dark and ominous and I definitely got that vibe while reading what I did.

<h3>But it was just <em>sooo</em> boring.</h3>
I checked out of the book by Chapter Four (but I <em>tried</em> to stay with the rest of the book, I swear!). Wonderland is full of action, but it was the same thing over and over again and got repetitive. Alice is juggling being a Dreamwalker, who can destroy the Nightmares that come from Wonderland, while being an ordinary student with a life, but it was all the same thing over and over again. It never really picked up.

<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/a-blade-so-black-by-l-l-mckinney-the-disappointment-is-so-real/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>

Kudos

Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Poltergeist (2015) in Movies

Aug 6, 2019

Poltergeist (2015)

2015 | Horror, Thriller

5.2

(20 Ratings)

Movie Rating

I struggle with my view of this film. Mostly because I want to compare it to the 1982 horror classic it is a remake of. But rather than pick apart how it does or does not compare to the original I realize I must judge this film on its own merit. As such, I feel this film is just…ok. Not bad, not great, just ok.

That isn’t to say this film is not a good time. In fact, It is quite fun. I feel there are more laughs in this film than scares. Fun times indeed. Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt play good spirited parents trying to make the best of their financial burden while moving into a new home. The three kids are the typical modern type. The older teenager concerned with her cell phone, the tech savvy son, Griffin, who seems to be sacred of everything and the “gifted” little daughter, Madison, who is innocent. The film starts lighthearted enough with jokes and everyday family squabbles. But that quickly changes as Madison starts to have conversations with her closet and the television. Yet, the only one who sees these freak events are scardy-cat Griffin, who won’t sleep in his room when there is a squirrel but doesn’t scream for his parents when he notices the electricity doing things it shouldn’t. But I digress.

And here is where the problems of this film arrive. Rather than create its own memorable scenes that sets it apart from the original, it is in such a hurry to give its own take on the classic scenes from the first film. As such, there is no real sense of rhythm to the pacing of this film that is a staple of good horror films with drawn out sense of suspense the help heighten the sense of dread. And so we are left without any real worry for our characters or us as the audience. We have a few jump scares before a long conclusion that feels more like “Classic” made for TV than big budget film.

In the end, we are left with a “popcorn” horror film that is fun but forgettable at best. Fans of the original will be disappointed. Parents who want to take their young teenage kids to their first horror film will appreciate the wholesome family feel.