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Lee (2222 KP) rated The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018) in Movies
Nov 12, 2018
It's Victorian London, Christmas time, and a family mourning the recent loss of their mother is preparing to go to a Christmas party. Their father hands out some gifts left to them by their mother and eldest daughter Clara (Mackenzie Foy) receives an egg shaped box, locked and with the keys whereabouts unknown. Disappointed, they head off to the lavish Christmas party hosted by Claras godfather (Morgan Freeman) and while there, Clara discovers a hidden world consisting of four realms. War is brewing and in the absence of her mother, who discovered this world and became its queen, it's up to Clara to bring everyone together once more.
First things first, this movie is just beautiful to look at. Such attention to detail, with vibrant sets and costumes throughout. Mackenzie Foy is wonderful as Clara, dealing with grief while coming to terms with trying to live up to her mothers legacy. Keira Knightley is good, if a little annoying at times, and Helen Mirren is also reliably interesting. And Morgan Freeman is just.... Morgan Freeman!
It's all very Alice in Wonderland or The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe. Despite their faults though, the Narnia movies always seemed to explore the vast world introduced to us, taking the time to meet many of it's inhabitants. While this movie introduces us briefly to the realms as part of a wonderful ballet sequence, only to not show any of it again for the rest of the movie. Instead, the plot all seems very contained and all over far too quickly. I liked what I saw, it just didn't really leave much of a lasting impression at all. Nor did it leave me feeling very magical or festive.
First things first, this movie is just beautiful to look at. Such attention to detail, with vibrant sets and costumes throughout. Mackenzie Foy is wonderful as Clara, dealing with grief while coming to terms with trying to live up to her mothers legacy. Keira Knightley is good, if a little annoying at times, and Helen Mirren is also reliably interesting. And Morgan Freeman is just.... Morgan Freeman!
It's all very Alice in Wonderland or The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe. Despite their faults though, the Narnia movies always seemed to explore the vast world introduced to us, taking the time to meet many of it's inhabitants. While this movie introduces us briefly to the realms as part of a wonderful ballet sequence, only to not show any of it again for the rest of the movie. Instead, the plot all seems very contained and all over far too quickly. I liked what I saw, it just didn't really leave much of a lasting impression at all. Nor did it leave me feeling very magical or festive.
Joining the Dots: A Woman In Her Time
Book
From Britain’s leading social historian, a lyrical look at the changes to women’s lives since...
history gender
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated After the Dark (2014) in Movies
Jan 13, 2018
Nope
Ever drank an open soda that's been sitting in the fridge too long? That's kind of like what happens to the premise of After the Dark. Due to its lack of reality (will expand on that in a moment), there are no real stakes and we all know what happens to Phillip McSween when he watches a film with no stakes. I turn green...
Despite a premise that falls flat, I can appreciate the message that the film was trying to get across. Everyone is important and has value. You can never understand that true value of a person or a thing until you give that person or a thing a try. The true value behind this message actually saved this film from getting a worse score.
I also give credit, as I did with I Declare War, for the film daring to try such an interesting premise. On paper it seems like it just might work and, perhaps with a bit more development, it could have. Or perhaps the film was just doomed from the start. One can never be sure.
I'll let you decide for yourself: On their last day of classes, a professor challenges a high school class to imagine different scenarios in which they would have to survive an apocalypse. While this is all happening inside of a classroom, the film takes us into the imaginary world of these different apocalyptic scenarios so what we're seeing is never actual reality, but the scenarios themselves. Ready to drop everything and watch yet?
With me watching 365 movies and having to randomly choose some from my list of all-time Rotten Tomato films, I expect some duds to slip through. Not only was the source material not enough to make me care, but the ending was so ridiculous that it destroyed any hopes of After the Dark being worth anyone's time. I give it a 61.
Despite a premise that falls flat, I can appreciate the message that the film was trying to get across. Everyone is important and has value. You can never understand that true value of a person or a thing until you give that person or a thing a try. The true value behind this message actually saved this film from getting a worse score.
I also give credit, as I did with I Declare War, for the film daring to try such an interesting premise. On paper it seems like it just might work and, perhaps with a bit more development, it could have. Or perhaps the film was just doomed from the start. One can never be sure.
I'll let you decide for yourself: On their last day of classes, a professor challenges a high school class to imagine different scenarios in which they would have to survive an apocalypse. While this is all happening inside of a classroom, the film takes us into the imaginary world of these different apocalyptic scenarios so what we're seeing is never actual reality, but the scenarios themselves. Ready to drop everything and watch yet?
With me watching 365 movies and having to randomly choose some from my list of all-time Rotten Tomato films, I expect some duds to slip through. Not only was the source material not enough to make me care, but the ending was so ridiculous that it destroyed any hopes of After the Dark being worth anyone's time. I give it a 61.
Merissa (12950 KP) rated A Sundered Moon (Legends of Elessia - Shadows Over Garm #3) in Books
Apr 7, 2023 (Updated Apr 10, 2023)
A SUNDERED MOON is the third book in the Legends of Elessia series and should be read in sequence as this one starts not long after the other finishes.
Lucius and Memphala are recovering from their battle with the Blood God. Oskar is looking for his crossbow. Hilda returns to Gotthilf. And Donata is helping heal the wounded, which just never ends.
Told from many perspectives (including a fruit fly!) you get a fully rounded picture of what is happening to all of the characters. I loved the interaction between Lucius and Memphala. The changes in both of them were brilliantly written. The rest of the characters, barring one, didn't change much, just continued to act as they had which was perfect.
Donata is the one character who changed the most and I was both thrilled and disappointed. Thrilled - because it showed that the Lady of the Pines wasn't uncaring about the war going on with her people. I loved the trials Donata went through and the strength her character had. Disappointed - because after everything, her story just fizzled out. I could understand her resentment towards both Lucius and the situation, but it became bitter. It seems even the Gods of Elessia can't overlook some things and get help from unusual quarters, even if their world is at risk.
A full-on action book that takes you from one crisis to another. I found this to be a wonderful addition to the series and loved the epilogue with Lucius, Memphala, and Silas. This definitely needs to be read as a series or you won't understand a single thing. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
April 7, 2023
Lucius and Memphala are recovering from their battle with the Blood God. Oskar is looking for his crossbow. Hilda returns to Gotthilf. And Donata is helping heal the wounded, which just never ends.
Told from many perspectives (including a fruit fly!) you get a fully rounded picture of what is happening to all of the characters. I loved the interaction between Lucius and Memphala. The changes in both of them were brilliantly written. The rest of the characters, barring one, didn't change much, just continued to act as they had which was perfect.
Donata is the one character who changed the most and I was both thrilled and disappointed. Thrilled - because it showed that the Lady of the Pines wasn't uncaring about the war going on with her people. I loved the trials Donata went through and the strength her character had. Disappointed - because after everything, her story just fizzled out. I could understand her resentment towards both Lucius and the situation, but it became bitter. It seems even the Gods of Elessia can't overlook some things and get help from unusual quarters, even if their world is at risk.
A full-on action book that takes you from one crisis to another. I found this to be a wonderful addition to the series and loved the epilogue with Lucius, Memphala, and Silas. This definitely needs to be read as a series or you won't understand a single thing. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
April 7, 2023
OFT in Danger': The Life and Campaigns of General Sir Anthony Farrar-Hockley
Book
This is the biography of the most distinguished field commander of modern times, who turned to...
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated American War in Books
Oct 3, 2017
Epic novel about the Second American Civil War
Throughout the entire time reading this, all I could think of is the fact that this would look amazing as a TV series. This dystopian novel explores how the north and south of the United States are divided in the latter half of the 21st century after fossil fuels are banned due to extreme flooding in Florida.
It is written in the perspective of a dying historian in the 22nd century, attempting to recollect the role of his aunt, who essentially was leading the insurgency against the north. She was as much a victim as aggressor in this novel, being groomed as a child soldier and being tortured in prison as a young adult. In the background, a rising Pan-Arab empire helps stoke the fires in the US.
It is slow but relentless, and rather fitting for what is currently happening all over the world. A fascinating read indeed.
It is written in the perspective of a dying historian in the 22nd century, attempting to recollect the role of his aunt, who essentially was leading the insurgency against the north. She was as much a victim as aggressor in this novel, being groomed as a child soldier and being tortured in prison as a young adult. In the background, a rising Pan-Arab empire helps stoke the fires in the US.
It is slow but relentless, and rather fitting for what is currently happening all over the world. A fascinating read indeed.
Chris Hooker (419 KP) rated Nora & Kettle (Paper Stars, #1) in Books
Jan 12, 2018
This book is set after World War II and broaches a subject that is not often talked about, The Japanese Internment. Kettle is a young refugee from the internment camps who takes care of a small group of children like him. He insist they earn it honestly so life is hard but they have each other.
Nora is the child of a famous lawyer fighting for the rights of the Japanese but he has a dark side that only his family knows. She is determined to protect her younger sister from the harm that can come within their own house.
The two main characters are well written and the perceptions they have of each other before meeting speaks truth. The time and place setting is very well developed, it puts you there. I love that Taylor used the Japanese Internment as a base of her story. Perhaps more will learn about this tragic time in America.
Nora is the child of a famous lawyer fighting for the rights of the Japanese but he has a dark side that only his family knows. She is determined to protect her younger sister from the harm that can come within their own house.
The two main characters are well written and the perceptions they have of each other before meeting speaks truth. The time and place setting is very well developed, it puts you there. I love that Taylor used the Japanese Internment as a base of her story. Perhaps more will learn about this tragic time in America.
Twelve Days of Terror: Inside the Shocking 1916 New Jersey Shark Attacks
Book
Upon the 100th anniversary of the most terrifying stretch of shark attacks in American history--a...
Lloyd George: Statesman or Scoundrel
Book
David Lloyd George left a profound political legacy, despite being described by the wife of his...
Export Empire: German Soft Power in Southeastern Europe, 1890-1945
Book
German imperialism in Europe evokes images of military aggression and ethnic cleansing. Yet, even...