Search

Search only in certain items:

    Galaxy Note8

    Galaxy Note8

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    Tech Watch

    The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 (marketed as Samsung Galaxy Note8) is an Android phablet smartphone...

The Giver (2014)
The Giver (2014)
2014 | Drama, Sci-Fi
7
7.8 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
A Striking visual translation
Over the last decade, cinema-going audiences have had the treat of numerous adaptations of popular young adult novels. Some of them have been particularly great – the Harry Potter series the highlight – whilst others have been less than stellar – Twilight, I’m looking at you.

However, with The Hunger Games on the edge of its tantalising conclusion, director Phillip Noyce introduces teens and adults alike to a whole new world in The Giver, but can it seduce audiences which have already had numerous fantasy worlds to enjoy?

For the most part, yes. Noyce directs this adaptation with extreme visual flair and commands some great performances from the veteran actors, even if the young thespians pale a little in comparison.The-Giver-Brenton-Thwaites-character-poster-691x1024

The Giver follows a community dealing with the aftermath of a brutal conflict. The Elders (people in charge) have been forced to eradicate all feelings, emotion, colour and memories from the past to ensure that this doesn’t happen again. Unfortunately, the plan isn’t fool-proof and one person each generation must be tasked with storing information from the past to ensure the progression of the future.

The book’s intriguing premise brings a striking visual translation. The majority of the picture is shot in black and white which adds to the emotionless atmosphere – just how The Elders want it.

Meryl Streep plays the Chief Elder and despite her limited screen time manages to command each scene she is a part of – though we have come to expect nothing less from the woman who played Margaret Thatcher so beautifully. Jeff Bridges is the title character – The Giver, who manages to impart wisdom to the one teenager each generation.

The teenage characters, despite their constant presence on screen, lack the magic and sparkle of their older counterparts. Brenton Thwaites stars as The Receiver Jonas and is probably the best of the younger stars, though a decent turn by True Blood’s Alexander Skarsgard helps alleviate the offerings somewhat, and there’s even a small role for Taylor Swift.

Despite it’s reasonably small budget of $25million compared to The Hunger Games $78million, the special effects are all of a decent standard. Of course there’s a few lapses here and there in areas were most people would probably never notice, and a few larger issues involving unrealistic space ships – but there isn’t too much to criticise as the striking cinematography is were the eyes are drawn.

Overall, it’s easy to feel sorry for The Giver, it’s come at an awkward time when audiences aren’t ready to get invested in another young adult movie and therefore I predict its box office success will fall short of the quality of the film itself.

The acting is on the whole very good and it’s nice to see Meryl Streep getting her teeth into the role of a villain in a style similar to her role in The Devil Wears Prada, but it all feels a little unsure of itself. Is it a sentimental rom-com or a utopian thriller? Who knows, but it’s definitely worth a watch for the striking visuals alone.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2014/09/24/a-striking-visual-translation-the-giver-review/
  
    Bible Reina Valera

    Bible Reina Valera

    Book and Lifestyle

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    Bible in Spanish RV (Reina Valera) Version: Reina Valera - Offline do not need an internet...

    NIV Bible+

    NIV Bible+

    Reference and Book

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    This app comes pre-loaded with an ENGLISH Bible, other languages are available for purchase within...

    Amplified Bible

    Amplified Bible

    Reference and Book

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    This app comes pre-loaded with an ENGLISH Bible, other languages are available for purchase within...

The Last Airbender (2010)
The Last Airbender (2010)
2010 | Action, Family, Sci-Fi
6
4.4 (20 Ratings)
Movie Rating
The four elemental nations once got along thanks to the help of the master of the elements, the Avatar. But that was in the past. Long ago the Avatar disappeared and the power hungry Fire Nation has since been destroying all other nations in an attempt to develop their natural element wielding skills. But the discovery of a mysteriously tattooed boy, Aang, found in the ice by a young waterbender, Katara, and her brother, Sokka, may mean there is a way to achieve peace and once again unite the elements.

The first Avatar movie very closely follows the story of the first season, called Book One, of the original television show. However the translation of the beloved Nickelodeon cartoon into film has taken some very serious criticism for changes made in the race of the actors who portray the lead characters.

To make fans further iffy about the film the plot moves so quickly that at times the lead characters directly state the story to one another, a distracting and very obvious plot device. Furthering the film’s strange execution is the poor over-acting that fills almost every “emotional” scene. While this strong form of drama is very accurate to the original cartoon, the impact is lost in the translation to the big screen.

Still some things about seeing “The Last Airbender” as a film are really fun. The costumes and environments are both true to the original story. Adding to the fun are clever real world adaptations of the original show’s details, such as Aang’s Airbender tattoos. But where the film really excels is in the elemental battles that define the frequent and large-scale action sequences. Part fantasy and part martial art inspired, these fight scenes help to define the characters while providing visual speed to the otherwise overly paced film.

Fans will enjoy seeing the ideas of “The Last Airbender” executed in live action, but there is no real need for 3D. The film does show some of the character developing talent M. Night Shyamalan is known for, but the rushed pace and forced drama is hard to ignore.
  
TC
The Casquette Girls
Alys Arden | 2013
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
What an interesting read! The Casquette Girls is centered shortly after Hurricane Katrina, and of course, New Orleans, where the unexplainable happens.

Part One is a bit slow, with Adele coming back from Paris, reconstruction in the city after the hurricane, and the occasional unexplainable situation happening (aka dead people on the rise, and I don't mean zombies) but Part Two is when things really pick up.

Part Two and a bit of Part Three actually goes back to the past as Adele is reading her ancestor's diary, trying to figure out what happened in the early 1700s after being lead to a completely shut – and by completely shut, I mean nailed in – attic of the local convent. Of course, she's not lead to the diary until she accidentally "breaks" open a shutter of said convent and unleashes a threat to her entire town.

(I was sort of disappointed when the end of the diary was reached. *sigh*)

What's really neat is said threat is confined within a specific part of the city based on a curse from centuries ago – it's usually either vampires or witches. If they are together, chances are there's a pack of werewolves running around or they're with others. Plus, everyone hates vampires by then, not that it isn't the case here.

The Casquette Girls was a neat read based on a hurricane, centering around vampires and witchcraft, although Alys really could have added in a translation of the many French words used (Italian was no problem for me). I wouldn't have felt as though I'm reading fragments by then, and I'm sure the translation guide would help other non-French speaking readers too!
<img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvEgVOM_JGs/U3FfeZceS7I/AAAAAAAADQc/Omh5mPoZ6Gc/s1600/Translation_Please_.jpg"; height="320" width="301">
----------------------
Review copy provided by the author via Xpresso Book Tours
Original Rating: 4.5
This review and more can be found over at <a href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/2014/06/review-the-casquette-girls-by-alys-arden.html">Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
<a href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Gi5Rk5yLloA/UtliaUbdL3I/AAAAAAAACbE/J27z92_qrYU/s1600/Official+Banner.png"; /></a>