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Awix (3310 KP) rated Aladdin (2019) in Movies

Jun 12, 2019  
Aladdin (2019)
Aladdin (2019)
2019 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Eye-searingly garish, largely redundant auto-cash-in on the 1992 cartoon (which, full disclosure, I've never seen) - if you don't know the plot, well, what's wrong with your parents, did they never take you to a pantomime when you were young? Cave, lamp, genie, princess - I note that Widow Twankey has been ruthlessly scythed from the story.

After a slow start it does generate some energy and entertainment value, mainly because of Will Smith's turn as the genie (Will Smith in good movie role choice shocker!), and for anyone looking for something of substance to contemplate, there is an interesting subtext about the nature of power in traditional hierarchical societies. In the end, though, it manages to take panto plotting, Broadway show tunes, MOR power-ballads, blockbuster CGI, and Bollywood dancing and produce something which still feels essentially lifeless and calculated.
  
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
1968 | Action, Drama, Western
Harmonica, and the orchestra of sounds (3 more)
The strength of a woman in this time period
a lesson in cinematography
Action has a lot of suspense before it, very thought out.
An epic opera of a western and an amazing feat of cinematography as well.
I adore this movie, it's my favorite western of all time, and the acting is top notch, it's visually stunning, it's a symphony of sounds to the ears. just the scene of the welcoming committee waiting on the train is an amazing piece of cinema. I could go on an on. I love how strong the women are in the film in unexpected ways. I love the traditional good guy as a bad guy. It's just plain amazing. It can be slow by modern standards, but isn't that also part of it's beauty, measured time.
  
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Andy K (10826 KP) Mar 23, 2018

One of my faves!

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Dean (6927 KP) rated Last Christmas (2019) in Movies

Dec 28, 2019 (Updated Jan 5, 2020)  
Last Christmas (2019)
Last Christmas (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Romance
Great soundtrack (2 more)
Emilia Clarke
Not a traditional Rom-Com
Heart Warming festive film
I'm not particularly a fan of festive films but I'd seen most other stuff out so gave this a whirl with an open mind. It was a pleasant surprise a mix of Bridget Jones diary type humour to start with and a few good laughs throughout. The romance side is OK and Emilia Clarke is on form as a helpless Londoner down on her luck and feeling sorry for herself. Until she meets Tom who improves her outlook on life.
I figured out what was going on before the big reveal, which is why I think some people probably didn't like it. Overall I found it a heartwarming film that was fun and festive without being overly cheesey. So check it out even if you normally avoid Christmas films.
  
Captain Ingram's Inheritance follows on from the two previous stories in this trilogy, Miss Jacobson's Journey and Lord Roworth's Reward. They are Regency romances in the traditional vein, but a bit more tongue in cheek than someone like Georgette Heyer. The best comparison would probably be with some of the Regency stories written by MC Beaton - if you like them, you'll love these.

English readers may know Carola Dunn from her Daisy Dalrymple books, but she is originally English and has written a fair number of regencies. It looks like most have only been published in the US, although they are available on Amazon as Kindle editions.

The three books are very much related and should be read in order to give you the bigger picture; this book and the previous volume very much cross over, almost like one story.