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Awix (3310 KP) rated Lion (2016) in Movies
May 14, 2019
Based-on-a-true-story drama transcends the fact it looks rather like a big long advert for Google Earth and becomes something genuinely moving. A five year old child gets on the wrong train one night in India, and finds himself in a strange city hundreds of miles away, unable to speak the local language. After various hair-raising experiences he is adopted by a nice couple from Tasmania. Many years later, and apparently settled in his new life, he finds the urge to find his home still lingers...
Definitely a film of two halves, with the second one being a bit more internal and short on actual incident - nevertheless, strong performances from the cast keep this very involving and watchable. Covers a lot of the same ground as Slumdog Millionaire, but puts its own spin on it; the climax is honestly rather affecting. Probably won't rock your world but still a well-made movie.
Definitely a film of two halves, with the second one being a bit more internal and short on actual incident - nevertheless, strong performances from the cast keep this very involving and watchable. Covers a lot of the same ground as Slumdog Millionaire, but puts its own spin on it; the climax is honestly rather affecting. Probably won't rock your world but still a well-made movie.
Prieblanda (25 KP) rated The Tattooist of Auschwitz in Books
May 17, 2019
Could be darker
The novel takes us back to the WW2 times, the times when concentration camps were running full capacity. And it lets us to get in a life of one of the prisoners at the biggest camps - the Auschwitz. Starting to read, you know beforehand what lies in path of the main character - Lale. Though the story itself happens in dark times (times I consider to be closest to dystopia humanity ever got to), Lale doesn't lose his optimism and it makes the whole story a bit more lighthearted. We don't really get much insight on some more gruesome things.
Summing up, there were some parts that I liked and there were a few that I didn't. But knowing it is based on a true story makes it a forgivable. I just wish the author put a bit more of work in her prose, to paint the images more vividly
Summing up, there were some parts that I liked and there were a few that I didn't. But knowing it is based on a true story makes it a forgivable. I just wish the author put a bit more of work in her prose, to paint the images more vividly
Awix (3310 KP) rated Eddie The Eagle (2016) in Movies
Feb 17, 2018 (Updated Feb 17, 2018)
Rather baffling sports comedy bio-pic from the producers of the Kingsman series; shares several key personnel and obsession with reverse snobbery. Working class lad dreams of becoming Olympian, is cruelly rejected by posh sports authorities, battles adversity to come a heroic last at the Olympics.
Theoretically based on a true story, but the actual facts of Michael Edwards' life are almost entirely discarded: the most interesting character in the film is his trainer (Jackman), who isn't even a real person. The film seems more concerned with endlessly banging on about how awful the upper classes are and presenting Edwards as a loveable clown; it's not as if this actually helps the film, because it's not really very funny. Deploys various sports movie clichés reasonably effectively; the fact that the climax is presented not as 'can he win?' but 'can he avoid killing himself?' is implicitly amusing, I suppose. Potentially an interesting topic for a film; not in this version, though.
Theoretically based on a true story, but the actual facts of Michael Edwards' life are almost entirely discarded: the most interesting character in the film is his trainer (Jackman), who isn't even a real person. The film seems more concerned with endlessly banging on about how awful the upper classes are and presenting Edwards as a loveable clown; it's not as if this actually helps the film, because it's not really very funny. Deploys various sports movie clichés reasonably effectively; the fact that the climax is presented not as 'can he win?' but 'can he avoid killing himself?' is implicitly amusing, I suppose. Potentially an interesting topic for a film; not in this version, though.
Nicole Hadley (380 KP) rated Kid Artists: True Tales of Childhood from Creative Legends in Books
Jun 18, 2018
<a href="https://awindowintobooks.wordpress.com">Full Review</a>
Kid Artist: True Tales of Childhood from Creative Legends by David Stabler is a fun nonfiction book! It's perfect for middle school age, but can be enjoyable to older readers. The book shares childhood stories of famous artists.
The book is divided into three sections and within each section the artists have similarities. I loved the illustrations by Doogie Horner, it really brought the stories to life. I knew about most of the featured artists, but I was not aware of all. I enjoyed learning about the artists childhood. The facts are all very intriguing This is a great book to learn about these amazing artists. It shows how other people went about learning to paint, draw, sculpt, and more and it could really inspire kids to try their hand at what they are interested in!
I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Kid Artist: True Tales of Childhood from Creative Legends by David Stabler is a fun nonfiction book! It's perfect for middle school age, but can be enjoyable to older readers. The book shares childhood stories of famous artists.
The book is divided into three sections and within each section the artists have similarities. I loved the illustrations by Doogie Horner, it really brought the stories to life. I knew about most of the featured artists, but I was not aware of all. I enjoyed learning about the artists childhood. The facts are all very intriguing This is a great book to learn about these amazing artists. It shows how other people went about learning to paint, draw, sculpt, and more and it could really inspire kids to try their hand at what they are interested in!
I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Jessica Erdas (463 KP) rated Brain on Fire (2016) in Movies
Jun 26, 2018
Based on a true story
Based on the life and book by the same name by Susannah Cahalan, this movie follows the events of a 21 year old girl who suddenly begins experiencing strange flu-like symptoms. She goes to a doctor who tells her that all of her tests came back clear and there's nothing wrong with her. As she continues to work through the strange symptoms, they become increasingly severe. She begins to have seizures, psychotic episodes of paranoia, and is diagnosed with one mental illness after another. None of which explain why Susannah was previously a perfectly healthy 21 year old girl or what brought on the strange symptoms. Her family pushes to find answers where the team of doctors believe she belongs in a psychiatric facility. The movie is a little slow paced but I believe it was necessary to really encompass the severity and impact of the situation that Susannah and her family experienced. Definitely worth a watch.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017) in Movies
Oct 18, 2018
An interesting true story
Like many I know the stories of Winnie the Pooh, but until now I've never known the story behind the writing of the books and the real Christopher Robin.
This is a fascinating, if not slightly disturbing, tale of the creation of Winnie the Pooh and a large part of the life of A.A Milne. It's disturbing mainly for how badly Christopher Robin was treated and used by his parents, and I found this a little difficult to watch and at such a contrast with the happier scenes around the creation of the characters. Domnhall Gleeson is very good and convincing as the very prim and proper author, but I think my only issue is that this film takes the British stiff upper lip much too far. Whilst I don't doubt that this is how people were during this period of time, the stiff English accents really got on my nerves - especially Margot Robbie's, which was a little too proper and English.
This is a fascinating, if not slightly disturbing, tale of the creation of Winnie the Pooh and a large part of the life of A.A Milne. It's disturbing mainly for how badly Christopher Robin was treated and used by his parents, and I found this a little difficult to watch and at such a contrast with the happier scenes around the creation of the characters. Domnhall Gleeson is very good and convincing as the very prim and proper author, but I think my only issue is that this film takes the British stiff upper lip much too far. Whilst I don't doubt that this is how people were during this period of time, the stiff English accents really got on my nerves - especially Margot Robbie's, which was a little too proper and English.
Bubba Gee (147 KP) rated Because We are Bad: OCD and a Girl Lost in Thought in Books
Jul 7, 2019
A true Journey of the mind
Wow, what a tale of loss, love, and everything in between leading to ultimate redemption and recovery.
This will make you laugh, make you cry, you will feel sadness, empathy, sympathy and laugther all at the same time.
I would say this is majorly helpful to anyone suffering with ocd as it made me feel glad, almost like huh it's not just me, it was so relatable and you can get a very real sense of the author's pain and turmoil dealing with the rigors of daily life with ocd on her back.
From her days at school to uni to working and all the times between this has indeed been a roller-coaster ride of emotion especially considering the author is still in her 20s.
Hopefully she opens up again in future and shares more of her journey.
I am personally thankful lily Bailey shared this with us.
This will make you laugh, make you cry, you will feel sadness, empathy, sympathy and laugther all at the same time.
I would say this is majorly helpful to anyone suffering with ocd as it made me feel glad, almost like huh it's not just me, it was so relatable and you can get a very real sense of the author's pain and turmoil dealing with the rigors of daily life with ocd on her back.
From her days at school to uni to working and all the times between this has indeed been a roller-coaster ride of emotion especially considering the author is still in her 20s.
Hopefully she opens up again in future and shares more of her journey.
I am personally thankful lily Bailey shared this with us.
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated The Fandom of the Operator in Books
Nov 13, 2019
I like Rankin's work a lot. Some of his works are just amazingly inventive, incredibly humorous and reliably off-the-wall.
Unfortunately this really isn't quite up to his normal standards, although the plot has all his usual hallmarks - essentially someone discovers it is possible to phone the dead, which ends up with potentially terrible consequences for the living.
This sounds like quite a slight premise to hang a whole book of of, and I think that is the heart of the problem here. Some of the writing and twists are amongst the very best. We follow the main character through his life and although we know he's pretty unpleasant, the shock when he is asked how many people he has murdered, and is response, is pure Rankin cleverness.
Unfortunately such moments are too few and the plot too slow moving for this to be counted as a good Rankin novel. One for the completists but certainly not one that demonstrates his true ability.
Unfortunately this really isn't quite up to his normal standards, although the plot has all his usual hallmarks - essentially someone discovers it is possible to phone the dead, which ends up with potentially terrible consequences for the living.
This sounds like quite a slight premise to hang a whole book of of, and I think that is the heart of the problem here. Some of the writing and twists are amongst the very best. We follow the main character through his life and although we know he's pretty unpleasant, the shock when he is asked how many people he has murdered, and is response, is pure Rankin cleverness.
Unfortunately such moments are too few and the plot too slow moving for this to be counted as a good Rankin novel. One for the completists but certainly not one that demonstrates his true ability.
AJaneClark (3975 KP) rated Forever Pucked (Pucked #4) in Books
Jan 18, 2020
Happy Ever Afters
Book 4 in the series brings us back round to the original characters. Alex “MC” Waters and his beautiful fiancée Violet Hall!
Alex ends up spectacularly getting injured out of the NHL when he has a run in with another team, whilst Violet gets a promotion at work.
After the scare that Alex’s injuries caused, they have both reassessed what they want in life and Violet finally agrees to set a date for the wedding. But in true typical Violet style, things will have to change... much like Alex’s mums hair!
We see again all the other characters we have been introduced to in the series, and it’s so nice to be able to follow the progression of the relationships, and how they all interlink and interact with one another.
The series continues to be well written and doesn’t disappoint when it comes to the ongoing humour and individual character styles. Helena is nothing if not consistent! I look forward to finishing the series!
Alex ends up spectacularly getting injured out of the NHL when he has a run in with another team, whilst Violet gets a promotion at work.
After the scare that Alex’s injuries caused, they have both reassessed what they want in life and Violet finally agrees to set a date for the wedding. But in true typical Violet style, things will have to change... much like Alex’s mums hair!
We see again all the other characters we have been introduced to in the series, and it’s so nice to be able to follow the progression of the relationships, and how they all interlink and interact with one another.
The series continues to be well written and doesn’t disappoint when it comes to the ongoing humour and individual character styles. Helena is nothing if not consistent! I look forward to finishing the series!
Erika (17788 KP) rated The Assistant (2020) in Movies
Feb 29, 2020
The Assistant is a thinly-veiled Harvey Weinstein inspired film... Funny how it didn't get as much attention or promotion as Bombshell.
This film was quiet, and follows an assistant of a film producer, who is never shown on screen. She performs monotonous tasks, attempts to eat (though, she always ends up throwing out the food - if you're a lowly assistant low on money, you don't pitch food), and gets lectured by her coworkers and boss. She sees indications that her boss is a dirt bag, but when she attempts to report these concerns to Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), they're not really taken seriously.
The theater was about a quarter of the way through, and I was probably the youngest person there. One of the elderly gentlemen said in a loud voice, "That's it?" It was definitely a frustrating ending, but that was very much true to life, so I thought it was fitting.
This film was quiet, and follows an assistant of a film producer, who is never shown on screen. She performs monotonous tasks, attempts to eat (though, she always ends up throwing out the food - if you're a lowly assistant low on money, you don't pitch food), and gets lectured by her coworkers and boss. She sees indications that her boss is a dirt bag, but when she attempts to report these concerns to Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), they're not really taken seriously.
The theater was about a quarter of the way through, and I was probably the youngest person there. One of the elderly gentlemen said in a loud voice, "That's it?" It was definitely a frustrating ending, but that was very much true to life, so I thought it was fitting.