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Ross (3284 KP) rated How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019) in Movies
Feb 25, 2019
Fitting conclusion
The conclusion to the trilogy sees the dragon population under threat from poachers, and their use of a female "light fury" to lure toothless and all the dragons who follow him to their capture.
The plot sees Hiccup struggling to accept his inevitable marriage to Astrid, at the same time as Toothless seems besotted with his new female acquaintance. Toothless's reluctance to leave Hiccup behind is won over by his desire to get to know the female; whereas with Hiccup his head wins out and he doesn't seem ready to focus on anything other than leading the clan.
The visuals are excellent, with some scenes that rival Coco for beautiful other-worldly colours.
The story is enough to keep all entertained, and this might have been my 4 year old son's first real emotional film (at the end he turned to me with wet eyes and said "its ok sometimes to cry when a happy thing happens instead of a sad one").
The plot sees Hiccup struggling to accept his inevitable marriage to Astrid, at the same time as Toothless seems besotted with his new female acquaintance. Toothless's reluctance to leave Hiccup behind is won over by his desire to get to know the female; whereas with Hiccup his head wins out and he doesn't seem ready to focus on anything other than leading the clan.
The visuals are excellent, with some scenes that rival Coco for beautiful other-worldly colours.
The story is enough to keep all entertained, and this might have been my 4 year old son's first real emotional film (at the end he turned to me with wet eyes and said "its ok sometimes to cry when a happy thing happens instead of a sad one").
MaryAnn (14 KP) rated Love Where You Live: How to Live Sent in the Place You Call Home in Books
Mar 5, 2019
Synopsis: See your surroundings with fresh eyes and renewed energy. Through her personal experience and stories of God's redemptive work in communities and neighborhoods, Shauna Pilgreen gives readers the skills and guidance they need to live out the gospel in the places they call home.
My Thoughts: This book is a good reminder that we all need to get out of our comfort zones. The author reminds us that when we do get too comfortable we sometimes tend to get dissatisfied with life, and we tend to stop thinking about others. We also lose our focus on what God has for us.
In "Loving Where You Live" the author teaches us to step out of that comfort zone, learn your neighborhood and your neighbors. In doing this you will learn that where you are is a great place to be; that there is a purpose and a reason to be where you are.
This was an interesting book that the reader can learn from.
My Thoughts: This book is a good reminder that we all need to get out of our comfort zones. The author reminds us that when we do get too comfortable we sometimes tend to get dissatisfied with life, and we tend to stop thinking about others. We also lose our focus on what God has for us.
In "Loving Where You Live" the author teaches us to step out of that comfort zone, learn your neighborhood and your neighbors. In doing this you will learn that where you are is a great place to be; that there is a purpose and a reason to be where you are.
This was an interesting book that the reader can learn from.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Truth or Dare (2018) in Movies
May 22, 2019 (Updated May 22, 2019)
A sometimes fun, mainly mediocre teen horror
I didn't expect much going into Truth or Dare, and I got what I expected.
The concept is kind of cool, although it's a very slight variant and knock off of Final Destination.
It's low on scares (it's one of these more recent PG-13 horrors, to appeal to a wider audience after all), and as a result, shies away from any impactful violence or shocks.
The script is pretty laughable and the ending is dumb for sure, to the point that I kind of found myself accidentally enjoying it at times.
The acting is pretty sub par from most of the cast, as well as the characters being (mostly) selfish and unlikable, it's hard to care when they slowly get picked off.
I'd say it's maybe worth a one off watch, it's not the worst way to spend part of your day, but it's a by the numbers teen horror, with stabilisers firmly in place
The concept is kind of cool, although it's a very slight variant and knock off of Final Destination.
It's low on scares (it's one of these more recent PG-13 horrors, to appeal to a wider audience after all), and as a result, shies away from any impactful violence or shocks.
The script is pretty laughable and the ending is dumb for sure, to the point that I kind of found myself accidentally enjoying it at times.
The acting is pretty sub par from most of the cast, as well as the characters being (mostly) selfish and unlikable, it's hard to care when they slowly get picked off.
I'd say it's maybe worth a one off watch, it's not the worst way to spend part of your day, but it's a by the numbers teen horror, with stabilisers firmly in place
TacoDave (3970 KP) rated Lord of the Flies in Books
May 23, 2019
Engaging (2 more)
Good pace
Believable characters and plot
A brutal classic
"Lord of the Flies" is a classic for a reason. It is the story of a bunch of boys who survive a plane crash and are stranded on an island together. They get along well at first, but soon the pressures of their situation cause cracks in their 'society' and they form into two groups that clash with each other, sometimes violently.
The idea that human civilization is fragile is examined, but not through exposition, rather through the actions of the characters in the story. Are humans inherently violent? Is peaceful society an illusion, one tragedy away from breakdown?
If you've never read this book - or seen one of the movie versions - be aware that it gets brutal at times. There is violence and bloodshed and not everyone escapes unharmed. But it is a fascinating story of civility and civilization and what it means to be a human in a stable society.
The idea that human civilization is fragile is examined, but not through exposition, rather through the actions of the characters in the story. Are humans inherently violent? Is peaceful society an illusion, one tragedy away from breakdown?
If you've never read this book - or seen one of the movie versions - be aware that it gets brutal at times. There is violence and bloodshed and not everyone escapes unharmed. But it is a fascinating story of civility and civilization and what it means to be a human in a stable society.
Ruth Angharad (2 KP) rated Instagram in Apps
May 24, 2019
When its good, its very good but when its bad, its horrid.
I have been using instagram for about 7 years now and when it first came out I wasn't too sure if I liked the idea of it ... its basically facebook but with photos which is fine. I use instagram now as one of my most used apps and I enjoy watching peoples stories, connecting with people easily and I can watch the search page for hours sometimes.
However when there are problems with instagram they can be horrendous! It can log you out, freeze your phone completely and there are areas of instagram that are so dark and mentally quite disturbing that it could cause real distress. This would be something I would watch and manage carefully especially with children but it is overall an amazing platform.
However when there are problems with instagram they can be horrendous! It can log you out, freeze your phone completely and there are areas of instagram that are so dark and mentally quite disturbing that it could cause real distress. This would be something I would watch and manage carefully especially with children but it is overall an amazing platform.
Peter Shephard (2822 KP) rated The Quacks of Quedlinburg in Tabletop Games
May 24, 2019
Really fun, challenging risk-taking game
A pinch of mandrake, a few berry bombs, and a cricket. The ingredients for a perfect potion - or is it? Depending on how powerful the ingredients are, the same blend could make you a profit, or could blow up in your face!
An interesting drawing mechanism (identical shaped components in individual players bags) means you never know what you will pull out next. Playing at the same time as all the other players is mixed - sometimes a player can have a fun of luck, and get to a high scoring potion before you have even got to the teens, but the next round they might explode in the first few ingredients!
Very variable game, very fun, and very, very replayable. A game for everyones"gaming circle"!
An interesting drawing mechanism (identical shaped components in individual players bags) means you never know what you will pull out next. Playing at the same time as all the other players is mixed - sometimes a player can have a fun of luck, and get to a high scoring potion before you have even got to the teens, but the next round they might explode in the first few ingredients!
Very variable game, very fun, and very, very replayable. A game for everyones"gaming circle"!
Peter Shephard (2822 KP) rated Terraforming Mars: Prelude in Tabletop Games
May 25, 2019
Excellent expansion
Out of all of the expansions for TM so far, this is probably the easiest to incorporate, but the most game-changing. With each corporation having additional variables from how they were funded, it is possible to get some really, really specialised resource synchronisation, butnequally it is possible to turn a corporation which excels at one resource into a much more generalist, and gain boosts to several.
For some of the Prelude cards, they appear to be are a bit of a "dud", but sometimes getting a boost of a few Titanium right at the start can be a massive advantage, whereas others having an increase in Tree production can be a game winner. I have found that the main factor in success is still the Corporatation, but the Prelude cards certainly turn some of the "easy" Corps up a few notches, and can turn some of the "advanced" ones up to 11!
For some of the Prelude cards, they appear to be are a bit of a "dud", but sometimes getting a boost of a few Titanium right at the start can be a massive advantage, whereas others having an increase in Tree production can be a game winner. I have found that the main factor in success is still the Corporatation, but the Prelude cards certainly turn some of the "easy" Corps up a few notches, and can turn some of the "advanced" ones up to 11!
Erika (17789 KP) rated Popstar Never Stop Never Stopping (2016) in Movies
May 25, 2019
Ever since I was born, I was dope.
After watching @The Lonely Island Presents: The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience (2019) , I was in the mood to re-watch one of my favorite movies. I was also aghast that I hadn't reviewed this yet.
I've loved The Lonely Island since Lazy Sunday, and I'm on a Boat was basically the anthem for my senior year of college (university). This is one of my favorite mockumentaries out of all of them. The songs are hilarious, and any movie that starts out with the line, 'Ever since I was born, I was dope', is going to be completely absurd. The crude nature of the songs always makes me laugh out loud, and I have the CD in my car. My favorites are 'Karate Guy', and 'Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song)', and they still make me snort-laugh whenever I hear them.
The humor isn't for everyone, most songs are explicit, with sometimes cringe-worthy detail, but it makes it funnier to me.
I've loved The Lonely Island since Lazy Sunday, and I'm on a Boat was basically the anthem for my senior year of college (university). This is one of my favorite mockumentaries out of all of them. The songs are hilarious, and any movie that starts out with the line, 'Ever since I was born, I was dope', is going to be completely absurd. The crude nature of the songs always makes me laugh out loud, and I have the CD in my car. My favorites are 'Karate Guy', and 'Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song)', and they still make me snort-laugh whenever I hear them.
The humor isn't for everyone, most songs are explicit, with sometimes cringe-worthy detail, but it makes it funnier to me.
Peter Shephard (2822 KP) rated Brooklyn Nine-Nine - Season 5 in TV
Jun 3, 2019
So far, so very good!
So far, we (my wife and i) are about to finish Season 3. We have been semi-binge-watching for about a month, but with the episodes only being 20 minutes, its refreshingly easy to get a few episodes in each night, which really helps to keep the laughs!
The characters are great, if (slightly) lacking development - although Peralta is still the wisecracking clown in S3, he has matured just a tiny bit. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but some slightly bigger changes would be good - yes Diaz is able to express some emotions, briefly; Holt is more human etc and they feel organic, but sometimes it is a bit forced.
I have really enjoyed the show, so far, and I look forward to seeing any further development - or not! - for the remaining episodes.
Well worth a watch, as a bit of lightweight humour
The characters are great, if (slightly) lacking development - although Peralta is still the wisecracking clown in S3, he has matured just a tiny bit. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but some slightly bigger changes would be good - yes Diaz is able to express some emotions, briefly; Holt is more human etc and they feel organic, but sometimes it is a bit forced.
I have really enjoyed the show, so far, and I look forward to seeing any further development - or not! - for the remaining episodes.
Well worth a watch, as a bit of lightweight humour
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated Entangled Lives in Books
Jun 5, 2019
In Entangled Lives by Imran Omer we meet orphan Raza, and his pregnant girlfriend who are forced apart when Raza is sent to Afghanistan to join the Taliban. Growing up his life was hard, and it seems it’s not getting any easier with age. As the story unfolds, reporter Rachel Brown gets first hand experience of the horrors of war, and through her point of view were are given her part of the story, and what happens when their paths cross, not just once, but twice.
My heart went out to Raza, as we see the extreme extent of the cause; a poor and vulnerable Pakistani boy fighting not only western society and their prejudices, but a tragic fate that’s controlled by money and power.
I enjoyed reading this, sometimes harrowing, tale that’s realistic and very topical for the current climate. The stark contrast between Raza’s life, and the entitled American reporter, Rachel, is portrayed well, and reveals the depth of this story with compassion and humanity.
My heart went out to Raza, as we see the extreme extent of the cause; a poor and vulnerable Pakistani boy fighting not only western society and their prejudices, but a tragic fate that’s controlled by money and power.
I enjoyed reading this, sometimes harrowing, tale that’s realistic and very topical for the current climate. The stark contrast between Raza’s life, and the entitled American reporter, Rachel, is portrayed well, and reveals the depth of this story with compassion and humanity.