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Rocketman (2019)
Rocketman (2019)
2019 | Biography, Drama
I knew before watching this that it wasn’t your average biopic but that still didn’t prepare me for how truly wacky and wonderful it was. But then when you think of Elton John, would you really expect anything less flamboyant?

This is more like an Elton John musical complete with rather strange fantasy elements, and I have to admit that the fantasy is mostly the bit I didn’t like. Singing with younger versions of himself were fine, but the rest I just found a little too odd and ill fitting. However despite this, it’s still a rather good musical. All of the songs that you’d expect are in here and it was a struggle not to sing along. I do think that the general sound on the music in this didn’t seem quite as good as Bohemian Rhapsody, it didn’t feel quite as immersive and concert like and it was in the same screen!

Taron Egerton does a wonderful job, I’ve said before that he’s a marvellous actor and he proves it yet again here. Whilst he doesn’t look exactly like Elton John i can’t imagine anyone else playing this role and there were some moments later on in the film that I had to do a double take as he looked so like him! There are other great performances too, namely Richard Madden as the smarmy John Reid and Jamie Bell as Bernie Taupin. There are some scenes with Bernie and Elton that almost have me in tears. I know fairly little about Elton’s earlier life so for me this was rather an informative and fascinating film too, and I was beyond glad at the end to hear that Bernie is still going. I couldn’t have coped if he wasn’t!

This film isn’t faultless and I felt like it was rather drawn out, but it’s still a rather good musical biopic and definitely one I’d like to see again and sing along too. Indeed, wouldn’t this be marvellous as a musical stage show?
  
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Lee (2222 KP) May 29, 2019

Yeah I didn't feel this was really a sing along kind of movie, in the way Bohemian Rhapsody was

Impractical Jokers
Impractical Jokers
2011 | Comedy, Reality-TV
It's harmless fun (2 more)
It's silly in a serious world
The guys actually seem like really nice guys.
They keep it fresh
So I've played the game snog marry avoid using these guys and I genuinely couldn't avoid any so for fun I have included what I said in the game lol.I've seen every episode atleast 3 times yet I am still so entertained.
Sal - he's the looker, the sassy dude. He gets some hilarious punishments because he just wears his heart on his sleeve.
I would love to be mates with Sal, feel like he'd be fun to date too, but I Couldn't marry him, his quirks would be so annoying long term lol.
Joe - he is just fearless. He will embrace any punishment and rarely refuse. He also seems like a really great dad and husband. He also actively encourages people to rescue dogs instead of buying them and you get to meet his adoreable dogs on the show.
I couldn't say I'd want to marry him as he seems just so in love with his beautiful wife but I'd love a husband like him.
Murr - He takes so much stick bless him but doesn't stop him being so funny. Especially when he annoys Sal. He just seems like someone you'd want in your life, someone that doesn't take things to heart and can laugh at themselves.
I'd want him as a brother, not my type in the slightest but he's so lovely I'd want to help find him someone lol.
Q - Now. Right, Q can be fearless, goofy and hilarious but one thing for me stands out. He has aged WELL. To my knowledge he is the oldest of the group and he kind of used to make me cringe with his long hair and baby face.
Then, he shaved his head and grew a beard, he just became so fit to me lol I'd definitely marry him.
  
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle
Neil Blackmore | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle rather intoxicated me, if I’m honest. It’s one of those witty yet heart-rending books that I didn’t want to stop listening to.
Ben Aldridge, the narrator, did his part so well. I believed that he was each of the separate characters - he made each of them sound so different, and he especially made Lavelle sound just how I would have imagined him to.
Two brothers, Benjamin and Edgar are on what is probably the most exciting and daunting trip of their young lives - a Grand Tour of Europe. It was what all the well-heeled young men and women would do at the time, in the hope that they’d make good business and, you never know, romantic connections. However, it quickly becomes apparent that the Bowen brothers are looked down on as being of the mercantile class. This horrified me as a modern day reader. Firstly, that two sheltered, innocent boys should be sent out to travel across Europe alone (must be the ‘Mother of Sons’ in me), secondly, that the upper classes were so bloody rude! They had the power to destroy someone with just a word. I could have scooped these boys up and taken them home, just to remove them from these horrendous people.
This is also the story of Benjamin’s self discovery. He meets and falls in love with Horace Lavelle at a time when men could be hanged as a ‘sodomite’. The author is upfront at the start that he had taken some liberties with this book. Homosexuality was illegal. No-one would take a chance of showing that they were gay. And there is that element of danger, of being found out, in this book despite those liberties.
But it’s such a lovely book - I wanted Benjamin to be happy, and I could see the potential for a train wreck ahead. And that’s all I’ll say! What I will say, is that this is a novel well worth your time!
  
    HymnBook

    HymnBook

    Music and Book

    2.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    This App contains melody line and words for 50 of your favourite Hymns. Unlike other similar...

Overlord (2018)
Overlord (2018)
2018 | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi
You say zombie and I'm sold. No matter how serious they are they're still pretty funny, usually unintentionally. I'm not sure what it says about me when I laugh at someone fighting a zombie to the death/re-death but I can't help it... it's too daft not to!

I thought the trailer for Overlord was very good. Specifically the point where Boyce looks into that hole in the wall. We all knew there was something freaky in there and yet they didn't try and scare us with it. It certainly left me intrigued, but my main hope for this was that it would be better than Red-Con 1.

I enjoyed the retro feel opening sequence with the voice over. It really did go a long way to making the time period of the movie come across. But my joy was short lived because of the sheer volume of what came next. I could feel it in my stomach. Technically it was quite effective as I imagine it resembles the feeling of being in the plane quite well, but my god did it make me feel queasy. What then developed in this scene was incredibly difficult to watch, again, on point for what was happening but not ideal for the viewer. Almost everything happening on screen was rendered obsolete by the chaos.

This is then followed by a mid-air sequence that basically feels like audience participation. Boyce is in freefall. It's strange and fake... yes, I know it IS fake, but I've seen enough films do that sort of airborn story line to know it can produce great results.

Despite those issues his eventual arrival on solid ground rounds out the beginning of the film nicely.

Overlord does show one of my favourite movie character faux pas. Never have dreams. Bad things will happen to you. If you're in a life threatening situation give up on every hope you have for your future and just focus on making it through the next 2 hours of your life.

The supernatural side of the film presents you with two very different types of zombies. Chloe's aunt is a classic wheezing zombie, mooching around just being a little creepy, and the ones we encounter in the bunker are much more rage filled. Being that they are mostly born of experiments it makes me wonder if calling this a zombie movie is entirely accurate.

There is what I would call a classic take from a B-movie hidden within the German bunker. Part of me hopes that somewhere within the magic of movie timelines that this is actually the pre-cursor to Fiend Without A Face. But to be making any suggestions that this itself is a B-movie would be entirely misplaced.

The effects are generally well done. We see a transformation brought about by the German's serum which is the first time the characters have witnessed it. The only thing that let the scene down for me was the change of the character's actual character. That felt more unnatural than what happened to them.

Where there's good, there's also bad. The effect's are tainted by Two-Face. He makes a very creepy inclusion but because of the extent of the damage it looks a tad ridiculous in the action sequences. There were ways around it, they could have given him a different injury or a mask, but the latter would have possibly taken you into Captain America and Wonder Woman territory.

One thing I seriously think about this film is that they should make a second one. Not a sequel. Make this a second film. Keep Overlord as it is but also make a war film. Everything up until the creepy bits was a really solid start. It would only need a few tweaks to the bunker scenes to make them less sci-fi and the whole thing would make a great 15 certificate production.

What you should do

It's not a bad watch, probably more of a lad's night out sort of thing. (I'm not trying to be sexist there, it was literally me and 14 blokes watching it.) It certainly doesn't feel like you completely wasted your time seeing it, so give it a go sometime.

Movie thing you wish you could take home

When it comes to zombies I'd much rather have Ed from Shaun Of The Dead than any of these ones, so if it's possible to get that serum concoction for super strength without the creepy side effects then I'll go for that please.
  
When the Men Were Gone
When the Men Were Gone
Marjorie Herrera Lewis | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics, Sport & Leisure
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
There was something about the synopsis of When the Men Were Gone by Marjorie Herrera Lewis that really reeled me in. Perhaps it's because this story takes place in Brownwood, Texas which is a place I've visited and loved. Perhaps it was because it was based on a true story and about a woman rising up to a challenge to take on a man's role back in the day when things like that were unheard of. Either way, I must say that I really enjoyed this book.

Tylene Wilson loves football. In fact, football is all she's ever really known since she was a very little girl thanks to her father. When both male football coaches for the high school she works at go off to war in the Autumn of 1944, she desperately tries to find another male coach to take the job. If she doesn't, the Brownwood Lions football season will be over before it even began, and all the senior boys will more than likely end up enlisted fighting in World War II. After struggling to find a suitable coach, Tylene decides to coach the football team herself. When word gets out that a woman will be coaching a football team, people in and around Brownwood let it be known that they are very opposed to the idea. Even Tylene's close friends snub their nose at the idea. People try to get the Brownood Lions' football season cancelled, but Tylene will not let that happen if she can help it. Will Tylene be able to convince everyone that a woman can coach football just as good as a man?

I found the plot for When the Men Were Gone to be solid. As I've stated previously, this book is based on a true story. I had never heard of Tylene Wilson until I read Marjorie Herrera Lewis' book. I found it extremely interesting to have a glimpse into what Tylene Wilson may have had to go through. Lewis does a fantastic job at imagining what Tylene's life was like and what life in the small town of Brownwood would have been like around 1944. I could not find any fault with the story telling. In fact, I felt like I was transported into the book and was amidst all the action watching the story unfold. I will admit that I did not understand most of the football jargon though, but that didn't really take too much away from the story. As with most historical fiction novels, there were no major plot twists, but all my questions were answered. There was not cliffhanger ending.

I enjoyed the character of Tylene. Lewis did an amazing job at making me feel as if I knew Tylene. At times, I felt like I was Tylene. I could feel how stressed she was at times and how much her students and football meant to her. Tylene was such a strong female character. I just loved her and her determination! Moose was another character I loved. I admired his loyalty even though he was aware of the backlash. Jimmy was another interesting character to read about. I was intrigued to read about his struggles to play football for a "lady coach." On one hand, he admired Tylene and knew that she knew her stuff when it came to football. On the other hand, he was still a teenage boy open to peer pressure living in a time when woman were doing the traditional roles.

The pacing for When the Men Were Gone starts out a bit slow. There were a bunch of character names thrown out in the first few chapters which left me feeling confused about who was who. However, I quickly caught on, and the pacing picked up decently.

Trigger warnings for When the Men Were Gone include sexism, bigotry, misogyny, drunkenness, and some war violence.

All in all, When the Men Were Gone is a short read that packs a huge punch! Based on a true story, this novel has a fantastically strong female lead and plenty of drama that will definitely keep its reader hooked. I would definitely recommend When the Men Were Gone by Marjorie Herrera Lewis to those aged 15+ who enjoy football and love a story with a very strong female lead. I would give this book a 4 out of 5.
--
(Thanks to the Marjorie Herrera Lewis for providing me with a paperback of When the Men Were Gone in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.)
  
Eat Yourself Healthy: An easy-to digest guide to health and happiness from the inside out
Eat Yourself Healthy: An easy-to digest guide to health and happiness from the inside out
Megan Rossi | 2019 | Food & Drink, Science & Mathematics
6
3.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I chose this book because I have a keen interest in healthy eating. I’m not a major healthy eater (I’m the wrong size and shape for that) but I try to make good food choices, I like cooking from scratch, and i’m interested in the science of food. ‘Eat yourself healthy’ also appealed to me as it didn’t come across as a standard diet and weight loss book, this seemed to just be focusing more on the whole health of your body.

This is a really informative book, Megan Rossi knows her stuff and relays that information in a straight forward and understandable way. The book is also interactive, as you can follow links (if you have the e-book version, hardcopy readers will just have to do it the old fashioned way and type in the web address) to take different types of self assessments. So you can learn where you are within mind and body at the moment of reading, and take re-assessments along the way to track your journey.

Of course this wouldn’t be a complete healthy eating book if it didn’t contain some recipes, so of course it does. There are some ‘interesting’ recipes within, not all to my taste, and some contain ingredients way beyond my standard shopping list but they could be worth a try. (The sautéed Brussel sprouts and tenderstem broccoli with pesto and wild rice sounds tempting)

My top take away from ‘Eat yourself healthy’ is the suggestion for gut goodness bowls. Rossi provides you with various ingredients divided into columns like ‘Fibre Base’ ‘Fermented Flavours’ ‘Healthy fats’ and ‘Dress and Coat’. You then essentially mix and match ingredients from these columns to create your own gut goodness bowl. I think its a great idea, you know you’re making healthy choices, and with just a few ingredients you can create a whole variety of different choices.

On the whole ‘Eat Yourself Healthy’ is a useful and informative book, not exactly ground-breaking in the science and diet department but still a great source of information.
  
The Birds (1963)
The Birds (1963)
1963 | Classics, Horror, Mystery
Amazing Film
Before disaster strikes, The Birds lures you into a false sense of comfort with beautiful scenic shots from a drop-top driving up the side of a mountain pass to a small boat pacing its way through the vast Pacific. If you're smart or pay any attention to movie history at all, you know what's coming next. I can only help but imagine how original audiences must have felt seeing all this serenity before being hit with a rude awakening. The word "jarred" comes to mind.

When Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) shows up in a sleepy, California coastal town, her visit turns sour when the town's birds start to randomly attack the population. The film is a thrill ride from beginning to end, relying on the tension of the unsettling and unusual to rattle your mind. Seagulls are attacking randomly. The chickens aren't eating. The next thing you know, a man is found in his bedroom with his eyes pecked out (very memorable shot) and it's off to the races.

Because of the tension from one moment to the next, every scene then becomes memorable. I'll never forget the scene where Melanie and Mitch (Rod Taylor) are walking past watching crows on their way to pick up Cathy (Veronica Cartwright). You know those birds can strike at anytime which had me waiting on the edge of my seat.

And this is where the genius of Hitchcock comes in. To be able to take something that sounds so minor on paper and make it a major deal in your mind is not an easy thing to do. He makes it look effortless. I give the film a 98.
  
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Andy K (10823 KP) Mar 6, 2018

Love this movie too!

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Andy K (10823 KP) rated Zoo (2018) in Movies

Oct 19, 2019  
Zoo (2018)
Zoo (2018)
2018 | Comedy, Drama, Horror
Saving your marriage or zombie apocalypse?
I have to admit being new to the world of British cinema (since I live in the US) so those extreme British accents are still a struggle for me at times (especially when you guys talk so fast!). I have to admit to even putting subtitles on a few times so I could get all the words.

Interesting premise of this film and the recommendation from a friend to watch.

How would you feel if a zombie infestation began right while your marriage was on the rocks? Which would be your priority to correct?

This young couple grapples with this exact issue and it is relatively successful. They spend time disagreeing with each other and moping about in their flat since they cannot go outside without having to deal with infected hoards trying to devour them. They begin having meaningful dialogue and then they get a knock at their door. A random couple ask if they can come and hide within to remove themselves from danger and are obliged. They immediately become a nuisance asking for provisions which are already in short supply and to "borrow a toothbrush"? I thought that was funny.

Their stay at the apartment is short, but long enough to have the couple start to unite themselves against their new house guests. After their departure, the couple becomes more intimate and work on their relationship before even more unwanted guests arrive.

The dialogue was a bit corny at times, but worked overall. I enjoyed the fresh take on the zombie genre. If romantic comedy zombie horror is a new sub genre I'm all in.