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Wishmaster (1997)
Wishmaster (1997)
1997 | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
6
6.8 (9 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Robert Kurtzman, Wes Craven, and Greg Nicotero - a match made in heaven surely? Not quite it turns out, but almost. For all it's cheesiness and cheap jump scares, Wishmaster is still a load of fun, with some fantastic practical effects and a handful of big name horror cameos.

The effects are what stand out the most - there are some shitty CGI moments spread about but the majority of the gory moments are practical and rightly disgusting. A mere two minutes in, some poor fuckers skeleton becomes sentient and rips out from his body. It's glorious. Other than that, Wishmaster coasts along on the strength of its villain, The Djinn, played by Andrew Divoff. He's suitably creepy both in human form and in full make up, and gives the film a whole heap of credit, even if the way he pronounces stuff becomes a little grating after a while.
Having Wes Craven as a producer clearly pays off, as multiple horror stalwarts pop up throughout the runtime - Robert Englund, Tony Todd, Kane Hodder, Ted Raimi - some top tier cameos for sure. Even Angus Scrimm pops up to do a bit of narrating!

Everything else is a little lackluster. The premise is ok, but full of holes, and the ending feels like a bit of a cop out, and lead actress Tammy Lauren just seems like she's in the wrong film for the most part.

Wishmaster unfortunately never manages to excel above it's ridiculous opening scene, and is pretty mediocre overall, but it still has a lot to offer to horror fans, and I can't help but enjoy it.
  
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    PBA® Bowling Challenge

    Games and Entertainment

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Alien: Covenant (2017)
Alien: Covenant (2017)
2017 | Horror, Sci-Fi
Michael Fassbender (1 more)
Better than Prometheus
The plot in general (0 more)
Well at least it's better than Prometheus...
Contains spoilers, click to show
I'll be honest, I hated Prometheus. It had potential, but was completely ruined by nonsense and plot holes. Alien: Covenant is the film Prometheus should've been, but it still isn't anything to shout about.

There are still plot holes, although nowhere near as many as Prometheus, and some very dodgy action choices from supposedly expert characters. For example, going out onto an unknown planet without any sort of protective suit?! Advise anyone to hit up YouTube for more plot holes and stupidity if you didn't spot these yourself.


Character development was lacking. The CGI was surprisingly bad in parts. The first and last parts of the films were very similar to Alien and Aliens, which may not necessarily be bad. However there's a fine line between being an homage and being a carbon copy, and I don't think this film quite pulls it off.


Finally, the whole nonsense about David being the creator of the Xenomorphs? Utter nonsense. Personally I hate the idea of a homicidal android having created the Xenomorphs and I hate that Ridley Scott has gone down this route.


I also can't stand that Ridley has said there will be 2 more prequels before the events of these films link up to the events of Alien - is that really necessary?
  
The First Secret (Hidden Portals Trilogy #2)
The First Secret (Hidden Portals Trilogy #2)
Maya Daniels | 2019 | Paranormal, Romance
10
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The First Secret (Hidden Portals Trilogy #2) by Maya Daniels
The First Secret is the second book in the Hidden Portals Trilogy, and there is no second-book-slump with this little beauty.

This is Fern and Iris' story, and we are able to catch up with Raphael and Artemis too. I love Iris, and have done from book one. She is sassy, has an attitude, and isn't afraid to stand up for herself against 'others'. Fern fights his attraction to Iris, fearing her to be the same as Lazarus. It takes a while, and some 'advice' from others, plus a near death experience before he realises he is an ass. And don't we all love it when that happens?!

Once again, this story is complete by itself, but it does lead you nicely to the next book. As with all Maya Daniels books, there were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading. I love her world-building, and the characters are just amazing. I am loving this series, and have no hesitation in recommending both the book and the series.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Black Panther (2018)
Black Panther (2018)
2018 | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
African culture (3 more)
Feminist
Story/plot
Actors
Everything I wanted
Contains spoilers, click to show
This movie is so important, in the nerd culture community and in the societal human community at large especially for America. An entire movie about African life and culture, celebrating and showing and teaching those things unapologetically. An entire movie that is not specifically for teaching anecdotally about African culture but was a movie for something else that saw that there was the opportunity to take it and force it to also be so importantly about the culture behind the superhero.

On top of the wonderful culture, we get amazingly Badass feminist Black women. They take care of themselves, they fight, they run the science department for the entire country, they save themselves, they go out and save the world, they stand up against stupid decisions. Just absolutely amazing.


You also, of course, get all of the amazing superhero moments. Action-packed for the right amount, the plot makes sense and is followable. A twist that is amazing and once you see it you see all of the lead up to it, which is so absolutely wonderful, it doesn't just appear out of nowhere.


I walked out wanting to immediately buy the dvd and watch it again and that was over a week ago. Absolutely stunning and everyone should go see it and fully absorb it and the message it gives.
  
Bumblebee (2018)
Bumblebee (2018)
2018 | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Heartwarming (1 more)
Action was phenomenal
Sweet action!
Contains spoilers, click to show
Went to see this film last night and I have a confession to make... I haven't seen a transformer film before. My boyfriend wanted to go so I went with him not sure what to expect. I walked out that cinema completely blown away. The effects were incredible throughout and the story line was sweet and you could really relate to the characters. Bumblebee completely won me over and I couldn't help but feel for him when he lost his speaker box. One of the best parts about this film was that when there were action scenes, you could still see what was going on and who was getting the upper hand on who. Some action film's struggle with this and you don't see much of the fight scenes because it's a bit of a blur. However, this film done it well! The only negative thing I'd say is that after the initial opening fight scene, the story was a bit slow for a while so you was given a really dramatic start and then moved into a slow build up but this soon picked up again when Charlie found bumblebee. I really do recommend this to anyone whether you have seen the transformer film's or not, it is a stand alone film to a certain extent. Loved it!
  
The Perfect Mother
The Perfect Mother
Caroline Mitchell | 2020 | Thriller
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
‏I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

Caroline Mitchell has done it again. Her latest thriller, The Perfect Mother, is a stand-alone novel and not part of the DI Amy Winter series I enjoy.

In The Perfect Mother, Caroline Mitchell introduces us to Roz, a single, pregnant woman from Ireland who is not ready to be a mother. She is determined to do the right thing for her baby and joins an expensive, elite adoption service. She is thrilled when a secretive power couple is interested in raising her baby as their own. What starts as a dream come true quickly turns into a nightmare.

Once again, while reading a book by Caroline Mitchell, I stayed up way too late because I could not find a place to stop reading. I kept reading until the end. I was exhausted at work the next day but the book was worth it.

It started off as a slow burn but quickly picked up speed and went flying. It is a tense book that made me cheer and feel for the main character and her unborn child. Once Roz moves to NY the story does not twist and turn but is a solid line of suspense until the very end.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 2/2/20.