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ClareR (6256 KP) rated Pan's Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun in Books

Nov 9, 2021

I loved the original film of this book (with the same name), so the thought of a book intrigued me, especially as it was written afterwards. And let’s face it, anything with fairytale connections is on to a winner where I’m concerned.

This book perfectly illustrates the cruelty and despair of the fascist regime under Franco. Ofelia tries to escape real life in her books, but this becomes increasingly difficult for her as her mother becomes more and more ill during her pregnancy. The brutality of her stepfather and his terrible methods of control is seen in the surrounding area and his own home: the lack of care for his wife, the plans to kill the anti-fascist fighters in the woods, and his methods of torture.

Ofelia escapes in to her imagination - or is Pan real? I loved this aspect and the tasks she was given to complete. I really enjoyed how the folktales were interwoven and alternated with real life (which had the harsher conclusions? Fairy tales don’t always have a happy ending), and gave an explanation to the origin of the Labyrinth.

The illustrations were beautiful too, and put faces to the characters - after all, it’s a long time since I saw the film. But this book stands so well on it’s own, and dare I say that you don’t need to have seen the film? Well, no, because I really enjoyed the film! So, read the book, and watch the film - you won’t regret it!

Kudos

Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated Retreat House in Books

Mar 15, 2019

THERES SOMEONE IN THE WOODS.
Holly leads her church's youth group, but many in the congregation believe she's too young to supervise the kids. When she finds out that shes pregnant, the pressure is on, and her secret love affair will start to show.
But thats the least of her troubles.
She organizes an overnight fellowship retreat on Pine Cliff Island off the coast of Maine, and six teenagers show up for a night of good clean fun. When the power abruptly goes out, no one notices until one of the teenagers returns with a knife wound.
Most of the resident island snowbirds have flown south, phone service is nonexistent, and a madman stalks the night. Holly is the only one who stands between terrified teens and a lurking maniac.
The race to survive long enough to escape may depend solely on teamwork and knowing who to trust.

This was an enjoyable read even though it had a few inconsistencies about it. The plot is a good premise and the characters are good.
I feel the tension in the plot but not sure the christian element was right for this or maybe a bit of fine tuning would have made this a fantastic read. All in all it is a good story and will look for more from the author.

I received this free from AXP books and this is my honest voluntary review.

Kudos

Nickg24 (492 KP) rated Little Monsters (2019) in Movies

Oct 15, 2019

Little Monsters (2019)

2019 | Comedy, Horror

7.8

(15 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Lupita NYong'o (1 more)

The School Kids

Saw a trailer for this a while back and didn't think it would amount to much but having watched it definitely makes my top 5 films of the year.

The film starts off showing us a guy going through the various stages of a break up with his GF.He then moves in with his sister and nephew,then he meets his nephews kindergarten teacher and offers to help her chaperone the kids on a trip to a petting zoo.All while this happens a zombie outbreak is going down at a secret military base,said zombies go on a killing spree (creating more in the process) and all escape and make their way to..the petting zoo.

Once both parties finally cross paths at the zoo,its a fight to get to safety for the adults and the kids to avoid going the same way as all the other visitors and before the army nukes the place.

This film was made and produced by the streaming company hulu and it's an absolute delight.Plenty of laughs to be had (especially from tv kids performer with a sex addiction who happens to be appearing at the zoo on that day) with one or two serious parts in between.

If the thought of a bunch of zombies singing and clapping along to some very recognisable kids songs while following a tractor makes you laugh then this is the film for you.