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Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated The Girl With All the Gifts (2017) in Movies
Mar 22, 2018
Wanted it to be Better
In the midst of a zombie outbreak, a special military agency is studying a select group of kids who can manage to control when they "turn". When their base falls to zombies, a small group escapes, including a little girl zombie by the name of Melanie (Sennia Nanua). The group must rely on each other to survive the threats waiting for them at every turn.
The Girl With All the Gifts grabs you with intrigue right from the start as you ask yourself why the kids are guarded so heavily. You quickly come to find out the reason. The film is action-packed, loaded with excellent thrilling scenes that keep you engaged. The scenes can be extremely tense in moments like one scene where the group has to walk quietly through a herd of zombies without being detected. It's definitely an original spin on a zombie film as it centers around the little girl Melanie who's innocent, but also a monster of sorts.
So with all these positive things to say, why didn't I ultimately like the film? The ending absolutely killed it for me. Not only did I not see the value in the resolution, I thought it didn't really match Melanie's character. Based on everything we knew about her up to that point, why make that move? Wasn't on board, not by a long shot.
I thought The Girl With All the Gifts had great potential and achieved it in some spots, but feel just short of being what it should have been. I give it a 65.
The Girl With All the Gifts grabs you with intrigue right from the start as you ask yourself why the kids are guarded so heavily. You quickly come to find out the reason. The film is action-packed, loaded with excellent thrilling scenes that keep you engaged. The scenes can be extremely tense in moments like one scene where the group has to walk quietly through a herd of zombies without being detected. It's definitely an original spin on a zombie film as it centers around the little girl Melanie who's innocent, but also a monster of sorts.
So with all these positive things to say, why didn't I ultimately like the film? The ending absolutely killed it for me. Not only did I not see the value in the resolution, I thought it didn't really match Melanie's character. Based on everything we knew about her up to that point, why make that move? Wasn't on board, not by a long shot.
I thought The Girl With All the Gifts had great potential and achieved it in some spots, but feel just short of being what it should have been. I give it a 65.
Monster Park - Dino World
Education and Photo & Video
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Would you like to make a hilarious photo with dinosaurs, those who ruled the Earth long time ago? ...
Colin Newman recommended Deja Vu by Matty in Music (curated)
Burned (Fever, #7)
8.3
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It’s easy to walk away from lies. Power is another thing. MacKayla Lane would do anything to...
Merissa (12330 KP) rated The Stone God (Indulgence #1) in Books
May 26, 2021 (Updated Jul 26, 2023)
THE STONE GOD is the first book in the Indulgence series, where Gods walk the land and play their games, but cars, trains, machine guns, mobiles, and even condoms also live!
Terah has moved to the house she inherited so she can get her life back together again. Some peace sounds very good to her. Instead, a shrine is washed up (literally) and she is charged with taking care of it. Her life changes, in ways too many to mention. Although this is in the Romance genre, at this stage I honestly don't know who is the main male (although I have my own idea) - and I love that!
The pacing is fast and there is a lot that happens. Terah grows immeasurably in this story and still remains true to herself. She is prepared to help the Gods as long as they help her and had better not get in her way. If there were any editing or grammatical errors, I have to say I missed them, being engrossed in the story as I was.
There are pieces scattered all over the board by the end, and I honestly can't wait for book two to see where they will end up. A fantastic story that had me gripped from beginning to end. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
May 26, 2021
Terah has moved to the house she inherited so she can get her life back together again. Some peace sounds very good to her. Instead, a shrine is washed up (literally) and she is charged with taking care of it. Her life changes, in ways too many to mention. Although this is in the Romance genre, at this stage I honestly don't know who is the main male (although I have my own idea) - and I love that!
The pacing is fast and there is a lot that happens. Terah grows immeasurably in this story and still remains true to herself. She is prepared to help the Gods as long as they help her and had better not get in her way. If there were any editing or grammatical errors, I have to say I missed them, being engrossed in the story as I was.
There are pieces scattered all over the board by the end, and I honestly can't wait for book two to see where they will end up. A fantastic story that had me gripped from beginning to end. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
May 26, 2021
Quiet London
Book
Where can Londoners and visitors find quiet places to meet and talk? London is an exciting place to...
Fire and Heist
6.0
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"In Sky Hawkins's family, leading your first heist is a major milestone--even more so than learning...
Fire and Heist Sarah Beth Durst YA YA fantasy fairyloot wyverns
ClareR (5779 KP) rated The Winners in Books
Mar 8, 2023
I finished this book in absolute bits. Awkward on a dog walk. But how does Fredrik Backman do this?!
Over the course of this trilogy I have become involved in the lives of everyone in Beartown and Hed. I don’t watch Ice Hockey (my son plays field hockey, and I imagine that’s slightly less dangerous - although he’s had his share of black eyes and sprained ankles!).
This book is about the lives of the people of the two towns. How, despite their animosity towards one another, there is more that joins them together than drives them apart. They just have to learn that.
The novel starts with the storm of a generation: trees are blown over, houses and businesses damaged. In fact, this is something of a sign of things to come for these people.
Life isn’t necessarily easy for any of the characters in this. We read of the trials and tribulations of their lives, their successes and failures. The observations made by Backman are so full of insight , like he has really taken the time to understand these people.
Emotions run high between the towns, especially when it’s discovered that the council want to shut one of the rinks down. They’ve clearly not thought this one through and have no understanding of their constituents!
This novel contains all of the struggles of so many small towns today: addiction, violence, families in trouble, people in need, corruption, criminality, love and loss.
It’s a long book, but it flies by - and that’s all Backman’s writing (and the translator Neil Smith’s translating!). I’m so sorry to see this trilogy come to an end. It’s been quite the ride.
Over the course of this trilogy I have become involved in the lives of everyone in Beartown and Hed. I don’t watch Ice Hockey (my son plays field hockey, and I imagine that’s slightly less dangerous - although he’s had his share of black eyes and sprained ankles!).
This book is about the lives of the people of the two towns. How, despite their animosity towards one another, there is more that joins them together than drives them apart. They just have to learn that.
The novel starts with the storm of a generation: trees are blown over, houses and businesses damaged. In fact, this is something of a sign of things to come for these people.
Life isn’t necessarily easy for any of the characters in this. We read of the trials and tribulations of their lives, their successes and failures. The observations made by Backman are so full of insight , like he has really taken the time to understand these people.
Emotions run high between the towns, especially when it’s discovered that the council want to shut one of the rinks down. They’ve clearly not thought this one through and have no understanding of their constituents!
This novel contains all of the struggles of so many small towns today: addiction, violence, families in trouble, people in need, corruption, criminality, love and loss.
It’s a long book, but it flies by - and that’s all Backman’s writing (and the translator Neil Smith’s translating!). I’m so sorry to see this trilogy come to an end. It’s been quite the ride.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
A Walk Among the Tombstones stars Liam Neeson as former cop, and former alcoholic, Matthew Scudder in this adaptation of the tenth novel in Lawrence Block’s long-running series. Set in 1999, amid the Y2K scare, Scudder operates just outside of the law as an unlicensed private investigator. Approached by a fellow AA member, he is tasked with finding the men responsible for kidnapping and murdering the wife of a local drug trafficker. Along the way, he receives help from homeless teen T.J. (played, with admirable restraint in a role easy to overdo, by newcomer Brian ‘Astro’ Bradley) and discovers that the two men he is investigating have killed before, and will do so again.
This is exactly the type of movie that I find myself drawn to, a brooding, hard-edged film-noir, but what stops me from enjoying it more and rating it higher is that right from the opening frames, Tombstones, unlike last year’s Prisoners, which defied all my expectations, doesn’t strive to do anything more than to satisfy the requirements of its genre and lean heavily on the performance of its lead.
That being said, it is another fantastic performance from Neeson and, still sporting that questionable American accent, he brings real weight to the character of Scudder. Don’t expect to see a tour-de-force the likes of Denzel Washington battling alcoholism in Flight, but it is refreshing to see these types of characters humanized and played straight in roles that have previously been over-the-top and laughably romanticized.
Another highlight is the relationship between Scudder and T.J, something that from the outset seems a cliché and had the potential to detract from the plot, it is however surprisingly well-constructed. One scene in particular between them is a stand-out as we see Scudder’s reaction to finding out that T.J. has been carrying a presumably stolen firearm. I will refrain from ruining the punchline, but it is a rare piece of frank dialogue and is deservedly shocking in its delivery.
Where A Walk Among the Tombstones unfortunately falls short is in its lack of subtlety, through a heavy-handed score and, more importantly, a bloated running time. More times than I would have liked, I found myself asking, “Is this scene necessary, or relevant?” Less would have been so much more, especially in the case of the two antagonists, who are set up as being formidable psychopaths for our anti-hero, they are instantly deflated through a single moment that depicts the normality of what we assume is their morning routine. Though it’s not unheard of that the most violent of criminals lead ordinary lives, the tongue-in-cheek nature of the scene does nothing to intensify the fear and dread we are supposed to feel toward these men.
Fans of Liam Neeson should be pleased, but what we’re given here is a solid first act and dialogue that ranges from good to great, but ultimately a predictable, over-long, paint-by-numbers effort. Sure, it hits all the right notes atmospherically, but I can’t expect that it will be more or less memorable than any of the other recent thriller entries in Neeson’s oeuvre (anyone remember 2011’s Unknown?). Between this and knowing that a third Taken is on the way, I now find myself longing for another great dramatic turn from him along the lines of Five Minutes of Heaven, or Kinsey.
This is exactly the type of movie that I find myself drawn to, a brooding, hard-edged film-noir, but what stops me from enjoying it more and rating it higher is that right from the opening frames, Tombstones, unlike last year’s Prisoners, which defied all my expectations, doesn’t strive to do anything more than to satisfy the requirements of its genre and lean heavily on the performance of its lead.
That being said, it is another fantastic performance from Neeson and, still sporting that questionable American accent, he brings real weight to the character of Scudder. Don’t expect to see a tour-de-force the likes of Denzel Washington battling alcoholism in Flight, but it is refreshing to see these types of characters humanized and played straight in roles that have previously been over-the-top and laughably romanticized.
Another highlight is the relationship between Scudder and T.J, something that from the outset seems a cliché and had the potential to detract from the plot, it is however surprisingly well-constructed. One scene in particular between them is a stand-out as we see Scudder’s reaction to finding out that T.J. has been carrying a presumably stolen firearm. I will refrain from ruining the punchline, but it is a rare piece of frank dialogue and is deservedly shocking in its delivery.
Where A Walk Among the Tombstones unfortunately falls short is in its lack of subtlety, through a heavy-handed score and, more importantly, a bloated running time. More times than I would have liked, I found myself asking, “Is this scene necessary, or relevant?” Less would have been so much more, especially in the case of the two antagonists, who are set up as being formidable psychopaths for our anti-hero, they are instantly deflated through a single moment that depicts the normality of what we assume is their morning routine. Though it’s not unheard of that the most violent of criminals lead ordinary lives, the tongue-in-cheek nature of the scene does nothing to intensify the fear and dread we are supposed to feel toward these men.
Fans of Liam Neeson should be pleased, but what we’re given here is a solid first act and dialogue that ranges from good to great, but ultimately a predictable, over-long, paint-by-numbers effort. Sure, it hits all the right notes atmospherically, but I can’t expect that it will be more or less memorable than any of the other recent thriller entries in Neeson’s oeuvre (anyone remember 2011’s Unknown?). Between this and knowing that a third Taken is on the way, I now find myself longing for another great dramatic turn from him along the lines of Five Minutes of Heaven, or Kinsey.
Rachel King (13 KP) rated Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America in Books
Feb 11, 2019
I found this book fascinating from start to finish. While I have not eaten candy every single day of my life, it is not for a lack of trying. I am a true chocoholic, but I have my preferences and personal methods of taste-testing, just as Steve Almond does. He goes into great detail as to his personal candy-sampling habits, and his life-long history with candy all the while traveling the country and exploring some of the many small and struggling candy-making companies. It is easily any kid's dream to be able to walk into and eat so many of these delicious creations with the blessing of the company owners, but it was Steve Almond's genius that propelled him to turn it into a book almost good enough to eat.
While the descriptions of the variety of concoctions was delectable enough to keep me enthralled, Almond's tours through the different kinds of factories were both educating and enlightening. Some companies went through great trouble to get every detail exactly right, while others used out-dated methods and equipment, depending on the whim of the people operating it. Some owners cared passionately about their products, while others were ready to give in to the big candy companies and sell out. Still others found a comfortable compromise in sharing their beloved factory with other companies for the sake of continued production.
In an economy that can not truly afford the luxury of a non-essential product like candy, Steve Almond shows how such confections still provide the creature comforts that the struggling masses look for to fill the void.
While the descriptions of the variety of concoctions was delectable enough to keep me enthralled, Almond's tours through the different kinds of factories were both educating and enlightening. Some companies went through great trouble to get every detail exactly right, while others used out-dated methods and equipment, depending on the whim of the people operating it. Some owners cared passionately about their products, while others were ready to give in to the big candy companies and sell out. Still others found a comfortable compromise in sharing their beloved factory with other companies for the sake of continued production.
In an economy that can not truly afford the luxury of a non-essential product like candy, Steve Almond shows how such confections still provide the creature comforts that the struggling masses look for to fill the void.