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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Thor: The Dark World (2013) in Movies
Jun 19, 2019
Marvel Studios has certainly been on a roll in recent years with a string of successful film adaptations of their popular comic book series. The recent overwhelming worldwide successes for “The Avengers”, and “Iron Man 3”, which topped $1 billion each globally has certainly raised the bar for their next cinematic offerings.
“Thor: The Dark World”, is poised to carry on the success of the Marvel film franchise as it successfully mixes action and character form the rare sequel that is better than the film that spawned it.
Chris Hemsworth once again stars as the title character who has been spending his time clearing up discord on the planets of the Nine Realms following his outing with The Avengers.
With peace at hand, his father Odin, (Sir Anthony Hopkins), believes the time is right for Thor to prepare for his reign as king of Asgard and protector of the realms.
Thor is not ready to embrace his destiny as his mind and heart are focused on Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), we has not seen since the events of the first film. His father warns him that a mortal is not suited to be his future queen and suggest that his fellow warrior Sif (Jaimie Alexander), would be far more suitable.
To further complicate matters Thor’s treacherous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), is seething at the prospect of spending eternity in captivity for his past crimes which only furthers his desire for power and revenge.
While all of this would be enough to keep Thor very busy, a new threat has arisen from the past that threatens to destroy the known universe. A powerful force known as the Aether which had been hidden by Thor’s grandfather has emerged and is drawn the attention of a Dark Elf named Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), who has been hiding away for centuries from those who believed him to be dead.
Malekith wants to take advantage of a pending convergence of the realms to use the supernatural power for his own purposes and in doing so destroy and subjugate all those who are before him. Fate intervenes and brings Jane and Thor together again just as the enemy forces arrived to ransack Asgard.
Faced with a battle against time not only to protect his beloved homeland but to save the known universe, Thor must work with his treacherous brother Loki in a race against time to save the day.
There are plenty of action sequences that follow and the visual effects are quite good even though the film is presented in converted 3-D after being shot in a standard format. The leads are fantastic and truly seem to have a grasp of their characters and the supporting work especially that of Kat Dennings much-needed comic relief is a very nice mix.
The only issue I had with the film other than the converted 3-D, was that the enemy while menacing did not seem to be one of the larger-than-life enemies that one has come to expect from a Marvel film. While certainly dangerous and menacing, there almost seemed to be an air of and confidence about the character as it was clear that he was simply biting off more than he could handle with the forces that were available to him.
That being said the film was extremely enjoyable as were the two bonus scenes that play during the middle of and the end of the credits.
While it may not went over box offices to the level of the two previous Marvel outings, Director Alan Taylor keeps things moving at a steady clip and the film nor the characters do not overstay their welcome.
With another Avengers movie on the horizon and a promise that Thor will return, fans can definitely enjoy this latest offering and look forward to the future for this promising series.
http://sknr.net/2013/11/08/thor-the-dark-world/
“Thor: The Dark World”, is poised to carry on the success of the Marvel film franchise as it successfully mixes action and character form the rare sequel that is better than the film that spawned it.
Chris Hemsworth once again stars as the title character who has been spending his time clearing up discord on the planets of the Nine Realms following his outing with The Avengers.
With peace at hand, his father Odin, (Sir Anthony Hopkins), believes the time is right for Thor to prepare for his reign as king of Asgard and protector of the realms.
Thor is not ready to embrace his destiny as his mind and heart are focused on Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), we has not seen since the events of the first film. His father warns him that a mortal is not suited to be his future queen and suggest that his fellow warrior Sif (Jaimie Alexander), would be far more suitable.
To further complicate matters Thor’s treacherous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), is seething at the prospect of spending eternity in captivity for his past crimes which only furthers his desire for power and revenge.
While all of this would be enough to keep Thor very busy, a new threat has arisen from the past that threatens to destroy the known universe. A powerful force known as the Aether which had been hidden by Thor’s grandfather has emerged and is drawn the attention of a Dark Elf named Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), who has been hiding away for centuries from those who believed him to be dead.
Malekith wants to take advantage of a pending convergence of the realms to use the supernatural power for his own purposes and in doing so destroy and subjugate all those who are before him. Fate intervenes and brings Jane and Thor together again just as the enemy forces arrived to ransack Asgard.
Faced with a battle against time not only to protect his beloved homeland but to save the known universe, Thor must work with his treacherous brother Loki in a race against time to save the day.
There are plenty of action sequences that follow and the visual effects are quite good even though the film is presented in converted 3-D after being shot in a standard format. The leads are fantastic and truly seem to have a grasp of their characters and the supporting work especially that of Kat Dennings much-needed comic relief is a very nice mix.
The only issue I had with the film other than the converted 3-D, was that the enemy while menacing did not seem to be one of the larger-than-life enemies that one has come to expect from a Marvel film. While certainly dangerous and menacing, there almost seemed to be an air of and confidence about the character as it was clear that he was simply biting off more than he could handle with the forces that were available to him.
That being said the film was extremely enjoyable as were the two bonus scenes that play during the middle of and the end of the credits.
While it may not went over box offices to the level of the two previous Marvel outings, Director Alan Taylor keeps things moving at a steady clip and the film nor the characters do not overstay their welcome.
With another Avengers movie on the horizon and a promise that Thor will return, fans can definitely enjoy this latest offering and look forward to the future for this promising series.
http://sknr.net/2013/11/08/thor-the-dark-world/
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Hazel (1853 KP) rated The Wolf Road in Books
Dec 14, 2018
3.5 Stars
<i>I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.</i>
“Any lie can turn into the truth if you believe it long enough.” <i>The Wolf Road</i> is the debut literary thriller by British author Beth Lewis. The post-apocalyptic world is not a very safe place to be, especially for a seven year old during a fierce and dangerous storm. Lost in the woods, a young girl comes across a man who, after naming her Elka, gives her a place to stay for the next ten years of her life. During this time he teaches her how to trap animals, use hunting knives and move silently between the trees – all the vital things needed to survive in the wild. For a long time Elka views this man as a father figure, but on discovering that her beloved Daddy is a serial killer, she realizes she has been living a life of lies.
Desperate to get away from the horrifying realization, Elka runs off deep into the forest with only a hunting knife and the clothes on her back. With nowhere to go, she decides to try and find her birth parents, but although she can easily survive in the wild, she is completely unprepared for the human world. With a childlike innocence, Elka finds herself in trouble on numerous occasions, only feeling at ease once she is back in the woods living the life of wolves. However she soon realizes that she will never be safe no matter how far she travels – not until that murderer is dead himself.
Once you get used to Elka’s colourful dialect, the gripping narrative pulls us into a world with danger around every corner. Elka’s revelation at the beginning of the book seems like a small issue compared with all the trouble she finds herself in later on. The reader will sympathize with Elka as she discovers the evils of man, and admire her strength as well as the development of a conscience after meeting and making her first ever friend. But whilst Elka learns how to walk amongst humans, there is a foreboding sense of doom as evilness keeps her within its sights.
<i>The Wolf Road</i> is a great post-apocalyptic story with a strong protagonist. At times it takes on a similar theme to a western novel, with guns, gold mining, and violence; but it is essentially a thriller built up of lies that are gradually unpicked. There is no psychological element to the book, thus nothing to try and work out for yourself. You simply need to read and discover what happens. As a result this book is the kind you will either love or hate. Some people may find it disturbing or gruesome, whereas others may find it exciting and enjoy reading about the unique main character.
Personally I think <i>The Wolf Road</i> is a great, original piece of work, and it only loses stars because I found a few parts a bit too grisly. Beth Lewis writes well and it cannot have been easy to keep the dialect up for the entire novel. This is an author who definitely has promise for the future.
<i>I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.</i>
“Any lie can turn into the truth if you believe it long enough.” <i>The Wolf Road</i> is the debut literary thriller by British author Beth Lewis. The post-apocalyptic world is not a very safe place to be, especially for a seven year old during a fierce and dangerous storm. Lost in the woods, a young girl comes across a man who, after naming her Elka, gives her a place to stay for the next ten years of her life. During this time he teaches her how to trap animals, use hunting knives and move silently between the trees – all the vital things needed to survive in the wild. For a long time Elka views this man as a father figure, but on discovering that her beloved Daddy is a serial killer, she realizes she has been living a life of lies.
Desperate to get away from the horrifying realization, Elka runs off deep into the forest with only a hunting knife and the clothes on her back. With nowhere to go, she decides to try and find her birth parents, but although she can easily survive in the wild, she is completely unprepared for the human world. With a childlike innocence, Elka finds herself in trouble on numerous occasions, only feeling at ease once she is back in the woods living the life of wolves. However she soon realizes that she will never be safe no matter how far she travels – not until that murderer is dead himself.
Once you get used to Elka’s colourful dialect, the gripping narrative pulls us into a world with danger around every corner. Elka’s revelation at the beginning of the book seems like a small issue compared with all the trouble she finds herself in later on. The reader will sympathize with Elka as she discovers the evils of man, and admire her strength as well as the development of a conscience after meeting and making her first ever friend. But whilst Elka learns how to walk amongst humans, there is a foreboding sense of doom as evilness keeps her within its sights.
<i>The Wolf Road</i> is a great post-apocalyptic story with a strong protagonist. At times it takes on a similar theme to a western novel, with guns, gold mining, and violence; but it is essentially a thriller built up of lies that are gradually unpicked. There is no psychological element to the book, thus nothing to try and work out for yourself. You simply need to read and discover what happens. As a result this book is the kind you will either love or hate. Some people may find it disturbing or gruesome, whereas others may find it exciting and enjoy reading about the unique main character.
Personally I think <i>The Wolf Road</i> is a great, original piece of work, and it only loses stars because I found a few parts a bit too grisly. Beth Lewis writes well and it cannot have been easy to keep the dialect up for the entire novel. This is an author who definitely has promise for the future.
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Scott Tostik (389 KP) rated Mom and Dad (2018) in Movies
Jan 27, 2018
Nicholas Cage (2 more)
Great idea
Superb dialogue
Some damn fine fun with Cage and Blair
Contains spoilers, click to show
Two people who you should be able to count on for your safety as a child are your Mother and Father. But that doesn' ring true in this amazing little film by writer/director Brian Taylor.
The film's opening sequence shows a woman in a minivan with a baby in the backseat. The radio plays some strange static and out of nowhere she looks back to the infant and exits the vehicle. Leaving the baby and the van to meet their demise via an oncoming train.
What follows is pure genius and insanity that is topped by Nick Cage doing what Nick Cage does best. Losing it onscreen with a fever that only my he can provide.
Selma Blair holds her own as Cafe's seemingly mild mannered wife who turns on a dime and joins him in the craziness with a certain flair comparable to Cages insane bravado.
The kids, played by Anne Winters and Zachary Arthur, fight their parents with some Home Alonish antics that prove to serve them well.
No one can fully say what it is that officially makes the parents around the world turn on their kids. But it has something to do with white noise and static on televisions and radios across the planet. Parents instinct to protect their young like a bear is replaced with the feeling off ultimate anger and insanity.
In one scene, Blair is at the hospital coaching her sister through birth. The the is born and handed to the mother and a monitor goes all static filled and noisy. The sister clutches the baby tightly, beginnng to cut off the airwaves and choking the child. Blair rips the newborn from her sister in an attempt to protect her. But something driving her sister forces her to stand upright and destroy the baby. She ultimately fails and is sedated.
The best performance in this film goes hands down to Nicholas Cage. Who freaks out like only Cage can. And even though his appeaance resembles a slightly bloated version of Marilyn Manson. His ability to use his expression and booming voice to command insanity is off the charts amazing.
I recall a scene where the kids are locked in the basement trying to escape their folks. And Blair and Cage are looking for a way to break down the door. Nicholas bangs on the door, shaking and screaming a line i will never forget "Your motherfucking Mother said to open this goddamn door, Motherfuckers!!!! Youre going to open this motherfucking door!!!!". Cage goes one way Blair goes another... she gets a reciprocating saw and brings it to the door. Her line, while simple, is unforgettable. "It's called a Saws all because it saws all,".
She begins hacking and at the door as Cage is upstairs looking for his gun... he hears shots and runs downstairs, finding Blair sitting on the floor nursing a fresh gunshot to the arm. He freaks out and explains the gun to his wife who quotes some stats about kids hurting themselves and others with handguns. Irony at its finest.
All in all, this movie never gets boring after the parents begin to try and kill their kids. It's only better when Cages character Brent's folks show up and attempt to kill him. Lance Henricksons performance as the father is extreme and awesome.
Watch this movie if you have a spare 90 minutes, i promise you it will motherfucking not disappoint, Motherfuckers:)
The film's opening sequence shows a woman in a minivan with a baby in the backseat. The radio plays some strange static and out of nowhere she looks back to the infant and exits the vehicle. Leaving the baby and the van to meet their demise via an oncoming train.
What follows is pure genius and insanity that is topped by Nick Cage doing what Nick Cage does best. Losing it onscreen with a fever that only my he can provide.
Selma Blair holds her own as Cafe's seemingly mild mannered wife who turns on a dime and joins him in the craziness with a certain flair comparable to Cages insane bravado.
The kids, played by Anne Winters and Zachary Arthur, fight their parents with some Home Alonish antics that prove to serve them well.
No one can fully say what it is that officially makes the parents around the world turn on their kids. But it has something to do with white noise and static on televisions and radios across the planet. Parents instinct to protect their young like a bear is replaced with the feeling off ultimate anger and insanity.
In one scene, Blair is at the hospital coaching her sister through birth. The the is born and handed to the mother and a monitor goes all static filled and noisy. The sister clutches the baby tightly, beginnng to cut off the airwaves and choking the child. Blair rips the newborn from her sister in an attempt to protect her. But something driving her sister forces her to stand upright and destroy the baby. She ultimately fails and is sedated.
The best performance in this film goes hands down to Nicholas Cage. Who freaks out like only Cage can. And even though his appeaance resembles a slightly bloated version of Marilyn Manson. His ability to use his expression and booming voice to command insanity is off the charts amazing.
I recall a scene where the kids are locked in the basement trying to escape their folks. And Blair and Cage are looking for a way to break down the door. Nicholas bangs on the door, shaking and screaming a line i will never forget "Your motherfucking Mother said to open this goddamn door, Motherfuckers!!!! Youre going to open this motherfucking door!!!!". Cage goes one way Blair goes another... she gets a reciprocating saw and brings it to the door. Her line, while simple, is unforgettable. "It's called a Saws all because it saws all,".
She begins hacking and at the door as Cage is upstairs looking for his gun... he hears shots and runs downstairs, finding Blair sitting on the floor nursing a fresh gunshot to the arm. He freaks out and explains the gun to his wife who quotes some stats about kids hurting themselves and others with handguns. Irony at its finest.
All in all, this movie never gets boring after the parents begin to try and kill their kids. It's only better when Cages character Brent's folks show up and attempt to kill him. Lance Henricksons performance as the father is extreme and awesome.
Watch this movie if you have a spare 90 minutes, i promise you it will motherfucking not disappoint, Motherfuckers:)
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Emma (2020) in Movies
Mar 1, 2020
Another classic novel that I have no knowledge of, I even own the BBC version on DVD, I'm really not sure how I haven't watched it.
In old English society what was a girl to do with her spare time to stay entertained? Read, learn the piano, paint... act as matchmaker to her friends. When Emma Woodhouse sees a flicker of promise or flirtation she jumps at the chance to fan the flames of romance between her friends and acquaintances, but when wires get crossed and misunderstandings occur, things begin to crack.
I always had the impression that Emma was a light comedy drama from hearing people talk about it, and while that did come across, I was surprised to come out feeling negatively towards my namesake. I had assumed that Emma was a delightful and whimsical character [as most Emmas are] and when I spent a lot of the film feeling like she was, frankly, a bit of a bitch, I wanted to banish her from the exclusive "Emma Club". Apart from besmirching the good name the attitude didn't seem to fit with the humour of the film.
Emma. is charming, but it didn't quite get me over the line. There seemed little reason for it to be over 2 hours long, while most of the film was engaging you could have taken out 15 minutes or so and tightened it up, I genuinely think that would have added a star to my rating.
Actually, hold off on that star for a moment, let's talk about the casting first.
Rupert Graves, yeeeeeeeeeeees. That's it for him, he's a delight, put him in everything.
Bill Night and Miranda Hart both gave great comedic performances, with Hart also getting an agonising scene that got me right in the feels. Their talent for humour added a great lightness to the film and was perfectly aligned to the period setting.
Johnny Flynn, or Mr Tasty Debrief for the Cineworld-goers out there. He was tastefully de-briefed, and the reason for the card warning: "Brief natural nudity". Flynn had some good moments, particularly around the picnic scene but for me this strong character becomes too sappy as we roll downhill to the ending.
Emma herself, Anya Taylor-Joy... I have already said that I found Emma to be a bit of a bitch, for the light-hearted nature of the film I really felt the time was off. I know there isn't a lot that would be different in this setting to modern day but I found the sly nature to feel far more modern than everything else. I think that is mainly down to the casting, Taylor-Joy's acting frequently has that vibe too it and it doesn't always endear me to her films, this makes me slightly nervous to see her in Radioactive and The New Mutants over the next couple of months.
The setting is of course as delightful as you would expect, grand houses and rolling hills. Paired with the costumes you have a wonderful overall feel of the era, though I would say that the costumes do have an almost modern touch to them that makes them very noticeable.
The charming base for Austen's novel has to battle with Emma's Mean Girl performance and the slightly overlong runtime, while it does give a mildly entertaining watch it's cowering in the shadow of Little Women and I don't think I'd need to see it again.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/emma-movie-review.html
In old English society what was a girl to do with her spare time to stay entertained? Read, learn the piano, paint... act as matchmaker to her friends. When Emma Woodhouse sees a flicker of promise or flirtation she jumps at the chance to fan the flames of romance between her friends and acquaintances, but when wires get crossed and misunderstandings occur, things begin to crack.
I always had the impression that Emma was a light comedy drama from hearing people talk about it, and while that did come across, I was surprised to come out feeling negatively towards my namesake. I had assumed that Emma was a delightful and whimsical character [as most Emmas are] and when I spent a lot of the film feeling like she was, frankly, a bit of a bitch, I wanted to banish her from the exclusive "Emma Club". Apart from besmirching the good name the attitude didn't seem to fit with the humour of the film.
Emma. is charming, but it didn't quite get me over the line. There seemed little reason for it to be over 2 hours long, while most of the film was engaging you could have taken out 15 minutes or so and tightened it up, I genuinely think that would have added a star to my rating.
Actually, hold off on that star for a moment, let's talk about the casting first.
Rupert Graves, yeeeeeeeeeeees. That's it for him, he's a delight, put him in everything.
Bill Night and Miranda Hart both gave great comedic performances, with Hart also getting an agonising scene that got me right in the feels. Their talent for humour added a great lightness to the film and was perfectly aligned to the period setting.
Johnny Flynn, or Mr Tasty Debrief for the Cineworld-goers out there. He was tastefully de-briefed, and the reason for the card warning: "Brief natural nudity". Flynn had some good moments, particularly around the picnic scene but for me this strong character becomes too sappy as we roll downhill to the ending.
Emma herself, Anya Taylor-Joy... I have already said that I found Emma to be a bit of a bitch, for the light-hearted nature of the film I really felt the time was off. I know there isn't a lot that would be different in this setting to modern day but I found the sly nature to feel far more modern than everything else. I think that is mainly down to the casting, Taylor-Joy's acting frequently has that vibe too it and it doesn't always endear me to her films, this makes me slightly nervous to see her in Radioactive and The New Mutants over the next couple of months.
The setting is of course as delightful as you would expect, grand houses and rolling hills. Paired with the costumes you have a wonderful overall feel of the era, though I would say that the costumes do have an almost modern touch to them that makes them very noticeable.
The charming base for Austen's novel has to battle with Emma's Mean Girl performance and the slightly overlong runtime, while it does give a mildly entertaining watch it's cowering in the shadow of Little Women and I don't think I'd need to see it again.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/emma-movie-review.html