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Awix (3310 KP) rated Witness (1985) in Movies

Feb 21, 2021  
Witness (1985)
Witness (1985)
1985 | Crime, Thriller
Very classy romantic drama-thriller. When a young Amish boy witnesses a brutal murder, it leads to detective John Book uncovering widespread corruption in his own department. He is forced to hide out amongst the Amish, and finds he is drawn to their way of life almost despite himself.

This is a classic movie, but also one of those films which looks deceptively simple and straightforward: there are no staggering plot twists, no big set pieces (except for the one where some people build a barn) - it's one of those very brave films with the confidence to take its time and let the characters and story grow and breathe. The contrast between the ugliness of the big city and the quiet consolations of the Amish lifestyle is carefully achieved; Harrison Ford seizes the chance to lead the movie and give a proper acting performance (this got him his Oscar nomination). A great film; didn't quite make me want to go and live on a farm, but a close thing.
  
Taken (2009)
Taken (2009)
2009 | Action, Mystery
8
7.9 (35 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Liam Neeson (1 more)
The Best One
He Will Find You and Kill You
Taken- is a excellent action packed thriller. Liam Neeson is excellent in this.

The plot: Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson), a former government operative, is trying to reconnect with his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace). Then his worst fears become real when sex slavers abduct Kim and her friend shortly after they arrive in Paris for vacation. With just four days until Kim will be auctioned off, Bryan must call on every skill he learned in black ops to rescue her.

Its the best one out of the trilogy, should of there been 2 more sequels, no. But $$$.

Intresting fact: Jeff Bridges was first cast as Bryan Mills, but after he dropped out of the project, Liam Neeson accepted the part, desiring to play a more physically demanding role than he was used to. Neeson at first thought the film to be no more than a "little side road" for his career, expecting it to be released directly to video.

Only watch this one.
  
This Unruly Mess I've Made by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
This Unruly Mess I've Made by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
2016 | Rhythm And Blues
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"My favourite video of all time is actually for James Blake’s A Case Of You, the one that has Rebecca Hall in it – I can’t watch it without my entire body shaking. But, for what a video really, really should be, for pure Thriller-like entertainment value, you can’t get much better than the video by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis for Downtown. The dancing! The marching! The mopeds! The chariots! You have to give in to that video – how ridiculous it is. It played a lot with hip-hop culture – and I love hip-hop culture, I love the bigness, the grandness, the showing-off-ness of it, I appreciate it and I revel in it. But there’s something about these guys mocking the extravagance of it that I really responded to. It really made me laugh – I was in tears watching it. And actually I think you can see Macklemore pissing himself laughing at the end… Ryan Lewis, who produces the records, produced and directed the video. Epic."

Source
  
The Devil's Advocate (Eddie Flynn #6)
The Devil's Advocate (Eddie Flynn #6)
Steve Cavanagh | 2021 | Crime, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Yet again, Mr Cavanagh has written a belter ... definitely one of my reads of 2021 so far and one I can't recommend highly enough and even though this is number 6 in the series, don't let that put you off because you can absolutely read and enjoy this delight as a standalone.

I am a fan of Mr Cavanagh's incarnation of Eddie Flynn having read a couple of his previous outings but, I have to say, this is the best one I have read so far - an absolute peach of a story that had me on tenterhooks and devouring the pages as quick as my little eyes could manage.

With excellent characters, fantastic plot and side plots, perfect setting and pace, the right amount of twists and thrills, I have no hesitation in recommending this to anyone who loves a great thriller.

What are you waiting for? Go get it!

Many thanks to The Orion Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
  
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Hazel (2934 KP) rated Hostage in Books

Jun 27, 2021  
Hostage
Hostage
Clare Mackintosh | 2021 | Crime, Thriller
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
You know sometimes when there is so much hype around a book and then you read it and it's a bit of a disappointment ... well, let me tell you that this is not one of them!

Oh my word. What an absolutely corker of a read this is. I know it's a clichΓ©, but this really is page-turning and difficult to put down. It starts quite serenely but the sense of dread creeps up on you just as it does to Mina.

There aren't enough superlatives to describe this book, just know that it's everything you would want in a thriller. Excellent characters, relentless pacing, claustrophobic, nail-biting, gripping, tense, thrilling and that's just what's happening on the flight; I won't even start to go into what's going on at home!

As you have probably guessed, I thoroughly enjoyed this and would recommend to anyone who .... well anyone really!

Thanks must be given to Little, Brown Book Group and NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased and unedited review.
  
The Invisible Man (2020)
The Invisible Man (2020)
2020 | Horror, Sci-Fi
There are three things that are certain in life:

1. Death
2. Taxes
3. Leigh Whannell is the fucking *man*.

Just fantastic. Obviously very few films could ever hope to match the rampant badassery of Whannell's previous masterwork, 𝘜𝘱𝘨𝘳𝘒π˜₯𝘦 - but this is about as stellar as a follow-up as one could hope for. A constant guessing game with your eyes, something could be hiding in just about every corner - never stop looking, you could miss it right in plain sight. Melds horror, thriller, drama, and action in a way that is simply euphoric - especially after the decade-worst slump of movies we experienced in 2019. Does Jordan Peele better than Jordan Peele in every aspect except image-making, which only falls behind by a tad. Moss is - naturally - amazing, probably her best film performance in a career chock full of first-rate ones. And the themes are loud and clear without ever having to spoon feed or turn into a rote, mawkish Hallmark movie with the material. Starts small, methodically grows, then ends with a bang. A riot.
  
The Stranger (Jude Lyon)
The Stranger (Jude Lyon)
Simon Conway | 2020 | Crime, Thriller
7
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Complex, tense and gripping
I was lucky enough to be invited to read "The Stranger" by Hodder & Stoughton after having read and reviewed other books from their catalogue in the past. I haven't read anything by Simon Conway despite this being his fifth book and, if I'm honest, I hadn't heard of him before either but he is definitely on my radar now.

This is a complex tail involving terrorists, spies, lies and subterfuge within the murky world of MI6. I admit that it took me a while to get into it but once I did, I couldn't put it down. The characters are believable and interesting and the plot is complex, tense and gripping and, unfortunately, not beyond the realms of reality.

This is a very well written and researched spy thriller and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased and unedited review and for introducing me to yet another great author.
  
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LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Luce (2019) in Movies

Sep 20, 2020 (Updated Nov 20, 2020)  
Luce (2019)
Luce (2019)
2019 | Drama
Incendiary, confrontational filmmaking that doesn't pull a single punch but also has the foresight to not offer a single easy answer to its repertoire of timely themes and obscured ideologies. All that and it also manages to be one hell of a pulse-pounding thriller that almost solely consists of sprawling, uncomfortable dialogue exchanges fired one right after the other with minimal diversions. Feels like a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment. Every character is definable and every performance therein is fearless - that's all to say that this is undoubtedly the freshest take on small-minded suburbia we've had in seemingly forever; if ever there were a film for this current volatile period in American history where countless amounts of its long-standing racial injustices are being very justifiably put into question - this would be one them. On a personal preference, this also just happens to be just how I like my dramas: talky, deeply character-driven, morally ambiguous, gradually explosive, and very glossy aesthetic-wise. One of the best movies I've ever seen.