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LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Pan (2015) in Movies
Sep 21, 2020
Huh? … what? H-how? Why..? I'm not even sure what like 80% of this crackpot, drug-fueled children's fever dream even was but I'm pretty sure I loved it. Everyone sings "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Blitzkrieg Bop" to hype up a grisly-looking, scenery chewing pirate Hugh Jackman for no reason at all. You're also able to witness a severely miscast Garrett Hedlund give one of the worst performances the screen has ever seen as Rooney Mara pulls an Emma Stone in 𝘈𝘭𝘰𝘩𝘢 and the fairies savagely murder an entire ship full of people one by one. In all seriousness, perhaps my allure bias for these cockamamie box office bombs is showing but this isn't even a quarter of the disasterpiece it has been dubbed. The visuals are lush, varied, and colorful with Wright's lifeful eye hard at work - and it has a lot of fun with its setpieces, while taking fine care of its effects. My biggest complaint is that this nutty curio has to be stuck within the confines of those obnoxious kids' films where the bland protagonist (here at least acted exceptionally by Miller) who obviously has some arbitrary, special talent spends the whole movie claiming they don't have said arbitrary, special talent only to find out completely unsurprisingly that they did have the aforementioned arbitrary, special talent all along. This would make an awesome PS2 game, if I didn't know any better you could have effortlessly convinced me Luc Besson directed this. Rushed through plot but who cares, it's mostly a blast.

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Ghost in the Shell (2017) in Movies
Sep 19, 2020
Dumb as fuck, sheds the vast majority of the source's intelligence - even speaking as someone with only a cursory knowledge of it - for something a lot more nonsensical, westernized, and generic. But it doesn't sacrifice even an ounce of its visual pizzazz - if we've learned anything about Rupert Sanders (non-cheating scandal related, that is) it's that he does not fuck around with his aesthetic. 110% magnetic, self-assured, and every bit as visually stupendous as 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘙𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 2049. I found most of the ending parts to be a disingenuous swing and a miss but who cares, did you *see* the way ScarJo beat the shit out of those people to synth music while she was invisible and the water was going all slo-mo and stuff? As a piece of seductive sci-fi junk food that's nice and heavy on the portent, it's nothing less than orgasmic - though it makes sense fans of the source would detest this, this is pretty much what I expected after all so I can't say my bar was mega high to begin with. I'm in the middle with Scarlett, it isn't too demanding of a performance but the unnatural cranes and dead gawks are right up her alley and do fit quite nicely here so eh I'll take it for now even if it feels like bootleg 𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘬𝘪𝘯. And it's always good to see Takeshi Kitano. Oh and also Juliette Binoche is at least twenty-five times better in this than every role she's ever been nominated for an Oscar for.

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Sharp Objects in TV
Nov 26, 2020
"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘥..."
Decay in all its forms, *very* HBO - right down to the opening credits sequences - in the best ways. If I have one complaint it's that I wish this were an episode longer to really settle into its final moments before the jaw-dropping rug-pull ending (and maybe I wish it was a little more physically gross when it calls for it) - but I digress, this is phenomenal television all the same. Flynn is as complex a writer as ever and Jean-Marc Vallée is at some of his most fully engrossing. As someone living in a tawdry small town just like this it does a bangup job at showing how those types of areas prey upon their little boys and girls, and bears witness to the differing ways their subsequent rage manifests between each gender. You know yourself much less than everyone else *thinks* they know you, if you aren't peering directly into their eyes you aren't safe from disparaging remarks even from your supposed closest allies - the moment in episode 5 where the camera keeps switching POVs while somebody glares at someone else, who then glares at someone else, who then glares at someone else, etc., etc. does a good job at exemplifying this. Adams, Messina, and particularly Clarkson, Scanlen, Perkins, and Czerny are sublime as these haunted enigmas of people. Gives away some of its themes a touch too on-the-nose later in the game but nonetheless a grim, fragmented, trancelike nightmare of hatred. Magnetic as hell.
Decay in all its forms, *very* HBO - right down to the opening credits sequences - in the best ways. If I have one complaint it's that I wish this were an episode longer to really settle into its final moments before the jaw-dropping rug-pull ending (and maybe I wish it was a little more physically gross when it calls for it) - but I digress, this is phenomenal television all the same. Flynn is as complex a writer as ever and Jean-Marc Vallée is at some of his most fully engrossing. As someone living in a tawdry small town just like this it does a bangup job at showing how those types of areas prey upon their little boys and girls, and bears witness to the differing ways their subsequent rage manifests between each gender. You know yourself much less than everyone else *thinks* they know you, if you aren't peering directly into their eyes you aren't safe from disparaging remarks even from your supposed closest allies - the moment in episode 5 where the camera keeps switching POVs while somebody glares at someone else, who then glares at someone else, who then glares at someone else, etc., etc. does a good job at exemplifying this. Adams, Messina, and particularly Clarkson, Scanlen, Perkins, and Czerny are sublime as these haunted enigmas of people. Gives away some of its themes a touch too on-the-nose later in the game but nonetheless a grim, fragmented, trancelike nightmare of hatred. Magnetic as hell.

Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Last Resort in Books
Nov 29, 2020
Hmmm ... this is a really difficult book to review for me because I am in two minds as to whether I really enjoyed it or not!
The premise is excellent and it started off really well and, I thought, this is going to be good but alas it soon became a tad boring and I gradually lost interest the further on I went. I was hoping for that "wow" ending that might redeem the book a little but, for me, it didn't really happen.
The characters aren't particularly likeable but that doesn't really matter in this book and I ended up looking forward to seeing what inventive ways were going to be employed if/when they were to die but it was all rather "meh" and anti-climatic.
What I did like was the setting of the remote island, the mystery surrounding why they were all there and how the advanced technology was used but I wanted more tension and excitement ... there are times throughout the book where it ramped up a little but they didn't last long enough and there were too many down-times and periods of inactivity for me.
I think there will be many, many people out there who will love this book particularly those who prefer a more slower paced mystery so please don't take my word for it and give it a go if you like the sound of the blurb.
Many thanks to SJI Holliday and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
The premise is excellent and it started off really well and, I thought, this is going to be good but alas it soon became a tad boring and I gradually lost interest the further on I went. I was hoping for that "wow" ending that might redeem the book a little but, for me, it didn't really happen.
The characters aren't particularly likeable but that doesn't really matter in this book and I ended up looking forward to seeing what inventive ways were going to be employed if/when they were to die but it was all rather "meh" and anti-climatic.
What I did like was the setting of the remote island, the mystery surrounding why they were all there and how the advanced technology was used but I wanted more tension and excitement ... there are times throughout the book where it ramped up a little but they didn't last long enough and there were too many down-times and periods of inactivity for me.
I think there will be many, many people out there who will love this book particularly those who prefer a more slower paced mystery so please don't take my word for it and give it a go if you like the sound of the blurb.
Many thanks to SJI Holliday and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.

Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Faction Paradox: The Book of the Enemy in Books
Nov 30, 2020
This is, for all intents and purposes, as close to identifying, or, at the very least, understanding who the Enemy is. The stories that make up the whole of this collection is as follows: Subjective
<b>"Interlock" and "The Annotated Autopsy of Agent A" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Cobweb and Ivory" Nate Bumber
"The Book of the Enemy" Andrew Hickey
T.memeticus: A Morphology" Philip Purser-Hallard
"The Short Briefing Sergeant's Tale" Simon Bucher-Jones
"A Bloody (And Public) Domaine" Jacob Black
"Life-Cycle" Grant Springford
"First Draft" Nick Wallace
"Eyes" Christian Read
"We are the Enemy" Lawrence Burton
"Timeshare" Helen Angove
"A Choice of Houses" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Houses of Cards" Lisa Sarah Good
"The Enemy - The Hole in Everything" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Enemy" Jay Eales
"No Enemy But Despair" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Map and the Spiders" Wilhelm Liebknecht</b>
I quite enjoyed the book as a whole, even though there was some weak pieces that did not really seem to fit, like Helen Angove's "Timeshare". Overall, it was a fitting collection for what it was intended to be. Of particular interest were Simon Bucher-Jones' interconnecting briefs that tie it all together. Quite brilliant, despite some of the weaker stories.
And, yes, as some people have remarked in their reviews, there were some noticeable punctuation and formatting errors. However, the stories are good enough to overlook and not focus on those shortcomings.
Recommended to all fans of Faction Paradox as a whole!!
<b>"Interlock" and "The Annotated Autopsy of Agent A" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Cobweb and Ivory" Nate Bumber
"The Book of the Enemy" Andrew Hickey
T.memeticus: A Morphology" Philip Purser-Hallard
"The Short Briefing Sergeant's Tale" Simon Bucher-Jones
"A Bloody (And Public) Domaine" Jacob Black
"Life-Cycle" Grant Springford
"First Draft" Nick Wallace
"Eyes" Christian Read
"We are the Enemy" Lawrence Burton
"Timeshare" Helen Angove
"A Choice of Houses" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Houses of Cards" Lisa Sarah Good
"The Enemy - The Hole in Everything" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Enemy" Jay Eales
"No Enemy But Despair" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Map and the Spiders" Wilhelm Liebknecht</b>
I quite enjoyed the book as a whole, even though there was some weak pieces that did not really seem to fit, like Helen Angove's "Timeshare". Overall, it was a fitting collection for what it was intended to be. Of particular interest were Simon Bucher-Jones' interconnecting briefs that tie it all together. Quite brilliant, despite some of the weaker stories.
And, yes, as some people have remarked in their reviews, there were some noticeable punctuation and formatting errors. However, the stories are good enough to overlook and not focus on those shortcomings.
Recommended to all fans of Faction Paradox as a whole!!
Contains spoilers, click to show
3.5
This was definitely new level of apocalypse! I've read a few Dystopians (The Hunger Games and Divergent, for example) but none were quite like this. The idea is intriguing - something is causing people to turn into violent maniacs who usually murder those surrounding them before bringing themselves to death. I'm many, many ways, the fact these characters cannot see - are not allowed to look - at what's causing so much chaos is the suspense, leaving you with questions such as: what are they, why do they exist and how do they exist, what is their purpose, what do they want? I never would have thought of it without Tom's insight, but I suppose he had a point - are these creatures consciously evil of the destruction they are causing? Either way, it makes for an interesting, albeit frustrating, concept. I chose to read this before watching the movie and I can understand how this could play out better on the big screen, but I feel like Josh did an excellent job at using the absence of sight with his words. I read Bird Box in one sitting, was curious about the nature of these creatures, interested in the possibility of a relationship between Tom and Malorie. The ending felt like it could have been final: Malorie and the kids and up at their destination and live happily ever after; but I'm fully aware there is at least one more novel, which I look forward to reading so I can hopefully get more answers about these deadly creatures.
This was definitely new level of apocalypse! I've read a few Dystopians (The Hunger Games and Divergent, for example) but none were quite like this. The idea is intriguing - something is causing people to turn into violent maniacs who usually murder those surrounding them before bringing themselves to death. I'm many, many ways, the fact these characters cannot see - are not allowed to look - at what's causing so much chaos is the suspense, leaving you with questions such as: what are they, why do they exist and how do they exist, what is their purpose, what do they want? I never would have thought of it without Tom's insight, but I suppose he had a point - are these creatures consciously evil of the destruction they are causing? Either way, it makes for an interesting, albeit frustrating, concept. I chose to read this before watching the movie and I can understand how this could play out better on the big screen, but I feel like Josh did an excellent job at using the absence of sight with his words. I read Bird Box in one sitting, was curious about the nature of these creatures, interested in the possibility of a relationship between Tom and Malorie. The ending felt like it could have been final: Malorie and the kids and up at their destination and live happily ever after; but I'm fully aware there is at least one more novel, which I look forward to reading so I can hopefully get more answers about these deadly creatures.

Sarah Paulson recommended Opening Night (1977) in Movies (curated)

Hades Miller (2 KP) rated Mulan (2020) in Movies
Dec 13, 2020
Acting (1 more)
Fight scenes
Plot (1 more)
Liu Yifei
More like...Meh-lan
I have to admit, I am one of those people who doesn't really get why they are remaking animated Disney movies and not just...animating them again. Live action is fine, but animation, especially American animation, is just much more expressive. Mulan falls victim to this problem. If they didn't try to follow the original somewhat, it wouldn't be true to the source material & if they didn't try something new, it would just be a rehash. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed quite a bit of this movie, but the finished product didn't really feel like it had a purpose.
My biggest issue is that every new idea they added never felt like it went anywhere. "Here's another woman who is a powerful fighter like Mulan...oh wait she let's gone." "Mulan has a sister! She adds nothing to the plot." Nothing new is ever followed through in an interesting way and just seems half-heartedly thrown in. This basically just leaves the rehashed parts of Mulan which, outside of more serious fight scenes...isn't all that interesting
Is it worth watching once? Sure. Is it something worth watching over and over again like the original Mulan, or heck, even the straight to DVD sequel? Well, that's obviously up to you, but I likely won't be watching this again anytime soon.
Also, replacing hard-work, dedication, and a good old fashioned dose of pig-headedness with chi is a lazy way to try and separate a remake from it's source.
My biggest issue is that every new idea they added never felt like it went anywhere. "Here's another woman who is a powerful fighter like Mulan...oh wait she let's gone." "Mulan has a sister! She adds nothing to the plot." Nothing new is ever followed through in an interesting way and just seems half-heartedly thrown in. This basically just leaves the rehashed parts of Mulan which, outside of more serious fight scenes...isn't all that interesting
Is it worth watching once? Sure. Is it something worth watching over and over again like the original Mulan, or heck, even the straight to DVD sequel? Well, that's obviously up to you, but I likely won't be watching this again anytime soon.
Also, replacing hard-work, dedication, and a good old fashioned dose of pig-headedness with chi is a lazy way to try and separate a remake from it's source.
A bit too drawn out children's fantasy.
I don’t read a lot of YA but if there's one thing that’s sure to get me to pick one up it’s…… bookclub pressure! I haven’t read a lot of fantasy recently so I did go into this looking forward to a change of pace and I certainly got that.
The premise for the book is interesting with the crossover of fictional characters into our world being enabled by those able to read them out. However the fact that this was something that was stated in the blurb but didn’t really get covered until well into the book I think speaks to the drawn out nature of this book. I really think it would of been better if it had been condensed. When a character gets captured for a second time I was all “oh no not this again” rather than feeling tension and excitement.
Perhaps a function of this being a translated work, I never really felt I got into the flow of this book. I didn’t like Meggie the 12 year old protagonist, although that may just be a dislike of stubborn annoying 12-year olds in general. I did however love the Elinor character (and not just for the solid name choice!) She’s a no nonsense full on book nerd. I did however find the books general and constant attitude of people that love books are far superior to everyone else to be a bit patronising.
I’m sure I would have enjoyed this a lot more when I was 12.
The premise for the book is interesting with the crossover of fictional characters into our world being enabled by those able to read them out. However the fact that this was something that was stated in the blurb but didn’t really get covered until well into the book I think speaks to the drawn out nature of this book. I really think it would of been better if it had been condensed. When a character gets captured for a second time I was all “oh no not this again” rather than feeling tension and excitement.
Perhaps a function of this being a translated work, I never really felt I got into the flow of this book. I didn’t like Meggie the 12 year old protagonist, although that may just be a dislike of stubborn annoying 12-year olds in general. I did however love the Elinor character (and not just for the solid name choice!) She’s a no nonsense full on book nerd. I did however find the books general and constant attitude of people that love books are far superior to everyone else to be a bit patronising.
I’m sure I would have enjoyed this a lot more when I was 12.

Defying Dystopia: Going on with the Human Journey After Technology Fails Us
Book
To most, the collapse of modern civilization is the stuff of fiction. Yet, science confirms that...