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Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Swamp Thing, Vol. 4: A Murder of Crows in Books
Nov 30, 2020
Earlier this year I had finished Vol. 3 and was ready to start on Vol. 4, but I just wasn't feeling it. The timing just wasn't right. So, I put off my re-visitation of Alan Moore's <b>EFFING BRILLIANT</b> SWAMP THING run...until the other night, when the "timing" returned and I devoured it two nights! Now, with that out of the way, onto my review...
In my reviews for the first three volumes, I mentioned that this was a re-visitation of sorts. It was always something I had intended, returning to a series I had not read since it first came out in the 80s, but it wasn't until going the digital route that I felt the time was due.
This is the volume that introduces that ol' bastard John Constantine, and for that alone, this volume is worth the price of admission! However, it was the path that Constantine sets Swampy on, and the tense and unforgettable finale that culminates in Issue 50, the last part of this volume! For that turns it all the way up to Eleven! Yeah, no Spoilers, despite it's age, but it is intense as a comic could be and then some!
Moore has become, in my eyes, some of a pain in the ass over the last few years. However, with SWAMP THING, as well as WATCHMEN and THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, he was totally on his game! There was not one issue in this volume that had me thinking, <i>"Yeah, this was good, but that one story was just absolute rubbish!"</i>. It was pure gold!
Now let it be said that I think the artwork of Jock is about as good as it gets as far as stirring horror images that stay with you long after the story is finished! However, after seeing the art of Stephen R. Bissette and John Tottleben, I was reminded of being scared reading this the first time out, and even now, on the re-read! Man, what I wouldn't give to seem them do another Swampy run, maybe even a guest spot on JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK! Oh, I am excited just imagining how frikkin' <b>AWESOME</b> that would be!
Look, there are a ton of great reviews out there, wherein the writer takes and analyzes everything of importance in this volume. And a number of those great reviews are right here on Goodreads! But, I can't add much to what has already been said! All I can add is this: You soooooo need to read this series! That's all I'm gonna say!
In my reviews for the first three volumes, I mentioned that this was a re-visitation of sorts. It was always something I had intended, returning to a series I had not read since it first came out in the 80s, but it wasn't until going the digital route that I felt the time was due.
This is the volume that introduces that ol' bastard John Constantine, and for that alone, this volume is worth the price of admission! However, it was the path that Constantine sets Swampy on, and the tense and unforgettable finale that culminates in Issue 50, the last part of this volume! For that turns it all the way up to Eleven! Yeah, no Spoilers, despite it's age, but it is intense as a comic could be and then some!
Moore has become, in my eyes, some of a pain in the ass over the last few years. However, with SWAMP THING, as well as WATCHMEN and THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, he was totally on his game! There was not one issue in this volume that had me thinking, <i>"Yeah, this was good, but that one story was just absolute rubbish!"</i>. It was pure gold!
Now let it be said that I think the artwork of Jock is about as good as it gets as far as stirring horror images that stay with you long after the story is finished! However, after seeing the art of Stephen R. Bissette and John Tottleben, I was reminded of being scared reading this the first time out, and even now, on the re-read! Man, what I wouldn't give to seem them do another Swampy run, maybe even a guest spot on JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK! Oh, I am excited just imagining how frikkin' <b>AWESOME</b> that would be!
Look, there are a ton of great reviews out there, wherein the writer takes and analyzes everything of importance in this volume. And a number of those great reviews are right here on Goodreads! But, I can't add much to what has already been said! All I can add is this: You soooooo need to read this series! That's all I'm gonna say!
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Downton Abbey (2019) in Movies
Sep 28, 2019
Firstly, and slightly off topic, I wanted to mention the actual event of this being released. The sheer volume of screenings was amazing and I would be really interested in knowing how many people attended at my cinema. The other thing that amused me was what I would consider to be really stereotypical advertising. Most of the audience when I went were younger than me so I'm not sure that Cunnard and health related advertising was really their sort of thing (I did appreciate the back pain tip though.)
Despite having never seen a full episode of Downton I still enjoyed the film, they did (what felt like) an incredibly good job of filling in the blanks in the backstory. I'm sure there were still bits missing but I was certainly handed enough to understand everything that what going on.
The other thing that was a great benefit to the film was the fact that everyone had been acting these parts, and with each other, for years. The interactions were great and the ensemble made for a brilliant production. I'm not going to go into the individual main actors, it seems a little redundant considering how well established the Downton world is. All the actors brought a great feeling of history to their roles and I can't argue with their success.
All this praise can't go on forever though, I did have some issues with the storyline. The main arc seemed to work well but some of the smaller threads left me shrugging. We have Tom who is sought out by a gentleman played by Stephen Campbell Moore. This part was rather fleeting, and that perplexed me. Trying to avoid spoilers... if I told someone this part of the story out of context combined with the description of the film I would expect them to think it was a major part of the film, and not just something that goes as quickly as it arrived. Then we have Barrow (I really hope I've got that character name right), he has his own little story that plays alongside the main one as we see him put out during the tensions at Downton. I don't object to this storyline, but I don't see that it made any impact on the rest of the film, there was certainly nothing in it that couldn't have been achieved in the main setting. All it really did was give him somewhere to go that wasn't the house.
I was very aware throughout that this "film" felt like a Christmas special. There were a lot of bits to it that were left open and didn't tie together at the end... which is exactly how you'd expect a series to end to lead into another. I came out wondering if I'd missed something about a new series. I probably would have been happier having seen this as a TV special... although I obviously wouldn't have seen it had it been on TV because I don't watch the series. The whole thing has a very homely feel to it which I just don't think works in a cinema setting. That being said, I did enjoy myself and I'm sure that fans of the series would have enjoyed it more than I did.
Read the full review extras here: http://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/09/downton-abbey-movie-review.html
Despite having never seen a full episode of Downton I still enjoyed the film, they did (what felt like) an incredibly good job of filling in the blanks in the backstory. I'm sure there were still bits missing but I was certainly handed enough to understand everything that what going on.
The other thing that was a great benefit to the film was the fact that everyone had been acting these parts, and with each other, for years. The interactions were great and the ensemble made for a brilliant production. I'm not going to go into the individual main actors, it seems a little redundant considering how well established the Downton world is. All the actors brought a great feeling of history to their roles and I can't argue with their success.
All this praise can't go on forever though, I did have some issues with the storyline. The main arc seemed to work well but some of the smaller threads left me shrugging. We have Tom who is sought out by a gentleman played by Stephen Campbell Moore. This part was rather fleeting, and that perplexed me. Trying to avoid spoilers... if I told someone this part of the story out of context combined with the description of the film I would expect them to think it was a major part of the film, and not just something that goes as quickly as it arrived. Then we have Barrow (I really hope I've got that character name right), he has his own little story that plays alongside the main one as we see him put out during the tensions at Downton. I don't object to this storyline, but I don't see that it made any impact on the rest of the film, there was certainly nothing in it that couldn't have been achieved in the main setting. All it really did was give him somewhere to go that wasn't the house.
I was very aware throughout that this "film" felt like a Christmas special. There were a lot of bits to it that were left open and didn't tie together at the end... which is exactly how you'd expect a series to end to lead into another. I came out wondering if I'd missed something about a new series. I probably would have been happier having seen this as a TV special... although I obviously wouldn't have seen it had it been on TV because I don't watch the series. The whole thing has a very homely feel to it which I just don't think works in a cinema setting. That being said, I did enjoy myself and I'm sure that fans of the series would have enjoyed it more than I did.
Read the full review extras here: http://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/09/downton-abbey-movie-review.html
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Love, Simon (2018) in Movies
Sep 29, 2021
Time to Exhale.
I saw this as a Cineworld “Secret Unlimited Screening” event (for non-UK readers, Cineworld is one of the main movie-theater chains), so went in – like the majority of the audience I suspect – predicting early sight of Lara Croft in skin tight shorts! This was a bit different! A secret screening is an interesting concept, and really tests the metal of a film in engaging its audience early. This one failed to some degree, with seven people (I was counting) walking out in the first 10 minutes. (To be fair on those seven, the film’s first 20 minutes are rather laborious; and to be fair on the film, this was a pretty full auditorium so as a percentage drop out it was low).
Teen heartthrob Nick Robinson (the older brother from “Jurassic World“) plays the eponymous hero who has a well-buried secret: he’s gay. Growing up in Pleasantville (I almost expected someone to yell “Cat!” and the fire brigade turn up) he feels unable to come out to either his high-school friends or his loving family (“Apple pie cooling on the window-sill anyone?”). But striking up an email relationship with another closeted male from the same high school – nicknamed “Blue” – allows him to explore his feelings about his sexuality and fall in love all at the same time. But neither coming out or love run terribly smoothly for Simon…
Happy families. From left, Nick Robinson, Talitha Bateman, Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel.
I am forty years adrift from being able to directly relate to the stresses and strains of modern high-school life (though I AM still 17 on the inside people!) But even to me, this film doesn’t feel like it should be set in the present day. While it needs to be for its tweeting and blogging story-line, surely there are few backwaters in either America or Western Europe where gay people have to stay so silent? An 80’s or early 90’s setting would, I think, have worked so much better. (Ironically, its not his gay-ness or otherwise that his friends get upset by, but something far more fundamental in the human condition).
Definitely set in the present day.
That aside, this is a sweet and ultimately quite engaging film that I’m sure will be a big hit with a teenage audience. While for me it didn’t come close to ticking all of the coming-of-age boxes that the inestimable “Lady Bird” did, it does cover old ground in a new and refreshing way, and I’m sure it WILL be very helpful for many gay people in getting the courage to come out. Times are different today, but I still can imagine few things requiring more bravery than declaring you are gay to your parents and closest friends (even though, deep down, they surely already suspect).
So, it’s sweet, but also for me (although far from its target audience) rather flat. As a comedy drama, the moments of comedy are few and far between, with only one or two of the lines making me chuckle rather than smile. A quiet auditorium is not a good sign for a film with “Comedy” in its imdb description. It does however occasionally break through with something memorable: a full on college “La La Land” scene (“Not that gay” – LoL) is a case in point. And all of the scenes featuring comedy actress Natasha Rothwell as drama teacher Ms Allbright add much needed energy and humour to the film.
Someone should tell him… regardless of gender preference, sex is never going to work like this.
Of the teen actors, Robinson is fine but it is Katherine Langford as Simon’s friend Leah who stood out for me. Talitha Eliana Bateman (“The 5th Wave“; looking a whole lot younger than her 16 years!) is also impressive as Simon’s culinary sister Nora. Simon’s parents are played by Jennifer Garner (“Dallas Buyers Club“) and Josh Duhamel (a new one on me… he’s been in the “Transformers” films apparently).
Simon says walk this way. From left, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Nich Robinson, Alexandra Shipp and Katherine Langford.
The screenplay is by movie virgins Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker, and is a slightly patchy affair. There are scenes that worked well (a cringe inducing sports stadium scene for example) but other times where it seems to be trying too hard for T-shirt captions…. a line from Ethan (Clark Moore) about hate crime was a “Ye-what?” moment.
Some of the characters really don’t quite work either: Tony Hale (so memorable as the useless PA in “Veep”) plays almost a school-ified version of Stephen Stucker’s Johnny from “Airplane”. Perhaps that would work as some sort of whacky hall monitor guy… but it transpires that he is the headmaster. No, I don’t think so.
A bit OTT. Veep’s Tony Hale as the principal with a surfeit of bonhomie.
So, in summary, after a bit of a bumpy start, its a pleasant watch that culminates in a feel-good ending. Feel good, that is, providing you have liberal views: I can’t see it pleasing many Trump supporters. I also can’t see it getting a cinema release in Gambia or Nigeria, though God only knows they could use one. If I could give half stars I would give this one an extra half as I applaud both the theme its trying to promote and for bringing something fresh to the screen…
Teen heartthrob Nick Robinson (the older brother from “Jurassic World“) plays the eponymous hero who has a well-buried secret: he’s gay. Growing up in Pleasantville (I almost expected someone to yell “Cat!” and the fire brigade turn up) he feels unable to come out to either his high-school friends or his loving family (“Apple pie cooling on the window-sill anyone?”). But striking up an email relationship with another closeted male from the same high school – nicknamed “Blue” – allows him to explore his feelings about his sexuality and fall in love all at the same time. But neither coming out or love run terribly smoothly for Simon…
Happy families. From left, Nick Robinson, Talitha Bateman, Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel.
I am forty years adrift from being able to directly relate to the stresses and strains of modern high-school life (though I AM still 17 on the inside people!) But even to me, this film doesn’t feel like it should be set in the present day. While it needs to be for its tweeting and blogging story-line, surely there are few backwaters in either America or Western Europe where gay people have to stay so silent? An 80’s or early 90’s setting would, I think, have worked so much better. (Ironically, its not his gay-ness or otherwise that his friends get upset by, but something far more fundamental in the human condition).
Definitely set in the present day.
That aside, this is a sweet and ultimately quite engaging film that I’m sure will be a big hit with a teenage audience. While for me it didn’t come close to ticking all of the coming-of-age boxes that the inestimable “Lady Bird” did, it does cover old ground in a new and refreshing way, and I’m sure it WILL be very helpful for many gay people in getting the courage to come out. Times are different today, but I still can imagine few things requiring more bravery than declaring you are gay to your parents and closest friends (even though, deep down, they surely already suspect).
So, it’s sweet, but also for me (although far from its target audience) rather flat. As a comedy drama, the moments of comedy are few and far between, with only one or two of the lines making me chuckle rather than smile. A quiet auditorium is not a good sign for a film with “Comedy” in its imdb description. It does however occasionally break through with something memorable: a full on college “La La Land” scene (“Not that gay” – LoL) is a case in point. And all of the scenes featuring comedy actress Natasha Rothwell as drama teacher Ms Allbright add much needed energy and humour to the film.
Someone should tell him… regardless of gender preference, sex is never going to work like this.
Of the teen actors, Robinson is fine but it is Katherine Langford as Simon’s friend Leah who stood out for me. Talitha Eliana Bateman (“The 5th Wave“; looking a whole lot younger than her 16 years!) is also impressive as Simon’s culinary sister Nora. Simon’s parents are played by Jennifer Garner (“Dallas Buyers Club“) and Josh Duhamel (a new one on me… he’s been in the “Transformers” films apparently).
Simon says walk this way. From left, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Nich Robinson, Alexandra Shipp and Katherine Langford.
The screenplay is by movie virgins Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker, and is a slightly patchy affair. There are scenes that worked well (a cringe inducing sports stadium scene for example) but other times where it seems to be trying too hard for T-shirt captions…. a line from Ethan (Clark Moore) about hate crime was a “Ye-what?” moment.
Some of the characters really don’t quite work either: Tony Hale (so memorable as the useless PA in “Veep”) plays almost a school-ified version of Stephen Stucker’s Johnny from “Airplane”. Perhaps that would work as some sort of whacky hall monitor guy… but it transpires that he is the headmaster. No, I don’t think so.
A bit OTT. Veep’s Tony Hale as the principal with a surfeit of bonhomie.
So, in summary, after a bit of a bumpy start, its a pleasant watch that culminates in a feel-good ending. Feel good, that is, providing you have liberal views: I can’t see it pleasing many Trump supporters. I also can’t see it getting a cinema release in Gambia or Nigeria, though God only knows they could use one. If I could give half stars I would give this one an extra half as I applaud both the theme its trying to promote and for bringing something fresh to the screen…