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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Summer of 84 (2018) in Movies
Sep 26, 2020 (Updated Sep 26, 2020)
Contains spoilers, click to show
I have mixed feelings about Summer of 84, another 80s love letter following in the wake of the cataclysmic popularity of Stranger Things. Probably easier to break this one down into bullet points.
- The four main characters are pretty hit and miss. The actors are all fine, but some of the dialogue and pop culture references seem very forced. They provide the movie with some funny moments for sure, but their characters are fairly cliché and the chemistry goes through some flat moments.
- The story is pretty straightforward and decent, and provides an entertaining mystery, but some of the plot points are odd and a lot of the characters are just insufferably stupid.
- The ending is conflicting as well. Considering the majority of the film is quite comedic and seems intended towards a family audience, the ending is pretty bleak. My initial thoughts were "fair enough, quite ballsy" but now I can't decide whether it was in fact just plain mean spirited. Either way, it left a nasty taste in my mouth, and I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.
- A couple of positives - I really enjoyed the music score, and the cinematography. The film has a lovely aesthetic to it.
- Not sure how the babysitter character was supposed to be portrayed, but she seemed a bit too old for a love interest to the 15 year old protagonist. Made me feel uncomfortable...
Summer of 84 is an entertaining enough psuedo-slasher thriller, but it suffers from pacing issues amongst other things that stops it being as good is it could have been.
- The four main characters are pretty hit and miss. The actors are all fine, but some of the dialogue and pop culture references seem very forced. They provide the movie with some funny moments for sure, but their characters are fairly cliché and the chemistry goes through some flat moments.
- The story is pretty straightforward and decent, and provides an entertaining mystery, but some of the plot points are odd and a lot of the characters are just insufferably stupid.
- The ending is conflicting as well. Considering the majority of the film is quite comedic and seems intended towards a family audience, the ending is pretty bleak. My initial thoughts were "fair enough, quite ballsy" but now I can't decide whether it was in fact just plain mean spirited. Either way, it left a nasty taste in my mouth, and I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.
- A couple of positives - I really enjoyed the music score, and the cinematography. The film has a lovely aesthetic to it.
- Not sure how the babysitter character was supposed to be portrayed, but she seemed a bit too old for a love interest to the 15 year old protagonist. Made me feel uncomfortable...
Summer of 84 is an entertaining enough psuedo-slasher thriller, but it suffers from pacing issues amongst other things that stops it being as good is it could have been.
ClareR (6054 KP) rated Untrue till Death in Books
Sep 6, 2020
Master Mercurius is back with, unfortunately for him, another murder. It’s 1674 in Leiden, and after solving the mystery and murders of the young girls in Delft, he has made something of a reputation for his abilities as an investigator. William of Orange wants to employ Mercurius to rout out any plotters against him, and just as he starts his investigation, one of his colleagues at the University of Leiden is killed. When one of William of Orange’s men is murdered, it looks as though they are linked. Mercurius is called on to solve the murders therefore safeguarding William.
I don’t know whether it’s just me, but I never manage to work these things out, but the big reveal always seems to be completely rational. The whole story is delivered with a bit of tongue in cheek - I really do appreciate the humour in all of Brack’s stories, his main characters are immensely likeable, and that mixed with the historical details makes for a very enjoyable read.
Mercurius is an ordained Catholic priest masquerading as a Protestant cleric, and he’s surprisingly adaptable. He seems to be very open minded for someone living in this period, and we see his thoughts on a variety of topics - this time whether it’s right to condemn someone to death for accidentally killing someone else. Perhaps there were people who thought like this - I like to think so.
Many thanks to Sapere Books for sending me a copy of this to read and review (even though I had preordered it after reading the first one!🤦🏼♀️). It was my absolute pleasure!
I don’t know whether it’s just me, but I never manage to work these things out, but the big reveal always seems to be completely rational. The whole story is delivered with a bit of tongue in cheek - I really do appreciate the humour in all of Brack’s stories, his main characters are immensely likeable, and that mixed with the historical details makes for a very enjoyable read.
Mercurius is an ordained Catholic priest masquerading as a Protestant cleric, and he’s surprisingly adaptable. He seems to be very open minded for someone living in this period, and we see his thoughts on a variety of topics - this time whether it’s right to condemn someone to death for accidentally killing someone else. Perhaps there were people who thought like this - I like to think so.
Many thanks to Sapere Books for sending me a copy of this to read and review (even though I had preordered it after reading the first one!🤦🏼♀️). It was my absolute pleasure!
Kristina (502 KP) rated Ten Below Zero in Books
Dec 7, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
I'm going to be brutally honest. Throughout the first several chapters of this book, I was only mildly interested. Parker is so negative and closed off, I almost quit reading - I've had experience with that before and reading her thoughts were just too much for me. But I stuck with it, even if hearing about Everett's problem almost made me bow out. I felt like things finally picked up around the time both Everett and Parker left for their trip. Considering how well they get along, all I could do was imagine how entertaining things would be; I was not disappointed! It's crazy, because even though I enjoyed the story and became marginally more interested when they traveled together, I can only describe my interest as casual, at best. A lot of that, I do believe, had to do with how I assumed the book would end. I've gotten used to seeing heartache from chapters away, so perhaps I was trying to cushion the blow. Unfortunately, it didn't work for me. Now, I didn't ugly cry. But I did shed some tears and felt the emotions deep within my bones. I yearned right along with Parker. Wished and hoped, even though I kept telling myself it was probably futile. Reading the Divergent series, the Bright Side, and Me Before You has hardened my heart a bit. I don't regret the tears that spilled while reading Ten Below Zero. It made my heart hurt and burst at the same time. I'm equally ecstatic that Whitney releases bonus scenes every few months - I look forward to signing up and reading more, especially from Everett's point of view.
Lindsay (1779 KP) rated The Naughty List in Books
Dec 9, 2020
My thoughts seem to be hitting the mark on with is one. A really good book for the season. It is also good for everyone that wants to read it. It will tell the history of Christmas and how it differs for each person and Santa Claus.
It is for young adults and adults. I do not believe it is limited to them; it could go to children and teens as well. You will go on an adventure and a journey. There seem to be a group of kids that end up on a mission to rescue Santa. You will be surprised at each turn of the page.
There are surprises as to what the author puts into this story. I was surprised to learn about the history of Santa Claus and Christmas. This is told through the eyes of the children. They are from around the world. Christmas seems like it got a different meaning and Santa Claus has different names. You may learn something.
Did you know that Christmas has been around for many years? There seem to be different versions of it. We learn about the different Christmas traditions that happen around the world through the children and their families. We also learn about the meaning of Christmas and Santa Claus.
There are some actions and battles. Will good beat Evil? I was not expecting what I learned through this book but what a happy surprise and twist. There is plenty of action and adventure in this book. There a modern take on our favorite Christmas traditions. Everyone will love this book.
It is for young adults and adults. I do not believe it is limited to them; it could go to children and teens as well. You will go on an adventure and a journey. There seem to be a group of kids that end up on a mission to rescue Santa. You will be surprised at each turn of the page.
There are surprises as to what the author puts into this story. I was surprised to learn about the history of Santa Claus and Christmas. This is told through the eyes of the children. They are from around the world. Christmas seems like it got a different meaning and Santa Claus has different names. You may learn something.
Did you know that Christmas has been around for many years? There seem to be different versions of it. We learn about the different Christmas traditions that happen around the world through the children and their families. We also learn about the meaning of Christmas and Santa Claus.
There are some actions and battles. Will good beat Evil? I was not expecting what I learned through this book but what a happy surprise and twist. There is plenty of action and adventure in this book. There a modern take on our favorite Christmas traditions. Everyone will love this book.
James P. Sumner (65 KP) rated What Men Want (2019) in Movies
Jul 10, 2019
What men want... but is it what moviegoers want?
In keeping with the growing trend of gender-swapping reboots, What Men Want is a re-envisioning of the classic rom-com, What Women Want, with Mel Gibson replaced with the charismatic Taraji P. Henson, and a toaster in the bathtub replaced by a drug-dealing psychic.
Yeah...
The premise remains the same: fate intervenes and gives a headstrong, intimidating woman who thinks she's doing a good job of making it in a man's world the power to hear men's thoughts... which quickly shows her she knows nothing at all.
This R-rated comedy has a few laughs, but falls into cringe territory more often than it needs to. It's predictable, which was to be expected, really, given the genre. However, I confess to being pleasantly surprised by it. Certainly not the best comedy I've seen by a long way, but on a par with the Baywatch remake in terms of the level of humour and the assumed target audience.
Taraji P. Henson is great in the lead role, with the supporting cast all doing a solid, if not a little routine job of backing her up. It's the kind of film you go into understanding what you're getting - a few laughs, a few cringes, a lot of inappropriate and suggestive themes and, ultimately, something that makes you forget the real world for a couple of hours. Nothing more, nothing less.
Overall, it's not bad, but it's far from great. This is something you watch on a Friday night when you've had a hard week and your brain needs a rest.
Yeah...
The premise remains the same: fate intervenes and gives a headstrong, intimidating woman who thinks she's doing a good job of making it in a man's world the power to hear men's thoughts... which quickly shows her she knows nothing at all.
This R-rated comedy has a few laughs, but falls into cringe territory more often than it needs to. It's predictable, which was to be expected, really, given the genre. However, I confess to being pleasantly surprised by it. Certainly not the best comedy I've seen by a long way, but on a par with the Baywatch remake in terms of the level of humour and the assumed target audience.
Taraji P. Henson is great in the lead role, with the supporting cast all doing a solid, if not a little routine job of backing her up. It's the kind of film you go into understanding what you're getting - a few laughs, a few cringes, a lot of inappropriate and suggestive themes and, ultimately, something that makes you forget the real world for a couple of hours. Nothing more, nothing less.
Overall, it's not bad, but it's far from great. This is something you watch on a Friday night when you've had a hard week and your brain needs a rest.
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