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David McK (3425 KP) rated Excalibur (1981) in Movies
Aug 4, 2020
John Boorman's utterly mad retelling/adaptation of the Arthurian legends (specifically Malory's The Morte d'Arthur), hitting all the key points of the tales:
Arthurs parentage via Uther and Ygraine
The whole 'Sword in the Stone' business
Merlin
Guinevere
Arthur's marriage
Lancelot
The Lady of the Lake (Listen, just 'cos some watery tart chucked a sword at you ...)
Guinevere And Lancelot's, ummm, dalliance
Morgana
The Search for the Holy Grail ("there's some lovely mud over here ...")
Mordred
Arthurs death
Avalon
(I'm not sure I've got all those in the right order)
Also starring some then up-and-coming but now well-known faces in Patrick Stewart and Liam Neeson, this is also surprisingly brutal, with some full-on nudity scenes, with the entire film acting as a counterpart (of sorts) to the Monty Python version - parts of which I've quoted above.
Arthurs parentage via Uther and Ygraine
The whole 'Sword in the Stone' business
Merlin
Guinevere
Arthur's marriage
Lancelot
The Lady of the Lake (Listen, just 'cos some watery tart chucked a sword at you ...)
Guinevere And Lancelot's, ummm, dalliance
Morgana
The Search for the Holy Grail ("there's some lovely mud over here ...")
Mordred
Arthurs death
Avalon
(I'm not sure I've got all those in the right order)
Also starring some then up-and-coming but now well-known faces in Patrick Stewart and Liam Neeson, this is also surprisingly brutal, with some full-on nudity scenes, with the entire film acting as a counterpart (of sorts) to the Monty Python version - parts of which I've quoted above.
Bostonian916 (449 KP) rated The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air in TV
Aug 20, 2020
I was thankfully able to pick up a digital version of this entire series recently. I watched the show when it originally aired and absolutely loved just about everything about it. From "The Carlton" to James Avery's marvelous adaptation of Uncle Phil. There really isn't much anyone could complain about here.
One of the things that kind of set this show apart when it was being filmed was the inclusion of some very relevant musicians and actors. Some of which were getting their due credit at the time, and some of whom were given the boost they needed to achieve the stardom they deserved.
I am currently in the process of watching the entire series with my own kids, who are about the age that I was when the show was originally on the air. We are having a great time doing so.
One of the things that kind of set this show apart when it was being filmed was the inclusion of some very relevant musicians and actors. Some of which were getting their due credit at the time, and some of whom were given the boost they needed to achieve the stardom they deserved.
I am currently in the process of watching the entire series with my own kids, who are about the age that I was when the show was originally on the air. We are having a great time doing so.
Gaslight (1940)
8.0
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Movie
Gaslight is a 1940 British film directed by Thorold Dickinson which stars Anton Walbrook and Diana...
Star Wars Legends Epic Collection: The Original Marvel Years, Vol. 1
Roy Thomas, Howard Chaykin and Archie Goodwin
8.0
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Book
May the Force be with you, in the mighty Marvel manner! The classic original Star Wars comic-book...
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated The Umbrella Academy in TV
Jul 5, 2020
A Gamble That Pays Off - 8/10
The Umbrella Academy is a 2019 dark comedy sci-fi/drama superhero tv show developed by Steve Blackman and Jeremy Slater for Netflix. It's an adaptation of the comic book series created by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba and published by Dark Horse Comics. The series was produced by Borderline Entertainment, Dark Horse Entertainment, and Universal Cable Productions. Starring Ellen Page, Tom Hopper, David Castaneda, and Kate Walsh.
On October 1st, 1989, 43 women around the world give birth although none of them were pregnant that morning. Eccentric billionaire Sir Reginald Hargreeves (Colman Feore) adopts 7 of the children and turns them into a superhero team called, "The Umbrella Academy. The children are given numbers instead of names and even though 6 of them fight crime, 1 of them, Vanya/#7 (Ellen Page) is kept apart for not having any powers. Present day, the estranged siblings reunite when they learn their father has died. At the funeral, #5 (Aidan Gallagher), which has been missing for over a decade, reappears from the future out of a blue portal and reveals to the others, that the world will end in a matter of days.
This show is stellar. It's a ride that you shouldn't miss. It's good to see a comic book series adaptation that is not from Marvel or DC and you can feel that it's a fresh take and different. I think the writers for the show did a good job on making it very three-dimensional. It's rated TV-14 so it's for teenagers and adults but also for comic book fans and sci-fi fans. That being said it does get pretty weird and far out there, so might not be for everybody but it's definitely better than what the critics are saying. Yes it does have some issues; like the dialogue might not be the best, there being some plot holes possibly, and some complaints of other comic book shows or movies having done that before. But it does have plenty of pluses; the soundtrack is phenomenal, the CGI is on par with that of big-budget movies, and the casting is very good. They were able to pull off the whole dysfunctional family vibe very well. I wanted to give it a point higher but I did understand some of the other points that other critics made about it. I give it a 8/10 but I also give it my "Must See" seal of approval. So if you haven't seen it yet what are you waiting for.
On October 1st, 1989, 43 women around the world give birth although none of them were pregnant that morning. Eccentric billionaire Sir Reginald Hargreeves (Colman Feore) adopts 7 of the children and turns them into a superhero team called, "The Umbrella Academy. The children are given numbers instead of names and even though 6 of them fight crime, 1 of them, Vanya/#7 (Ellen Page) is kept apart for not having any powers. Present day, the estranged siblings reunite when they learn their father has died. At the funeral, #5 (Aidan Gallagher), which has been missing for over a decade, reappears from the future out of a blue portal and reveals to the others, that the world will end in a matter of days.
This show is stellar. It's a ride that you shouldn't miss. It's good to see a comic book series adaptation that is not from Marvel or DC and you can feel that it's a fresh take and different. I think the writers for the show did a good job on making it very three-dimensional. It's rated TV-14 so it's for teenagers and adults but also for comic book fans and sci-fi fans. That being said it does get pretty weird and far out there, so might not be for everybody but it's definitely better than what the critics are saying. Yes it does have some issues; like the dialogue might not be the best, there being some plot holes possibly, and some complaints of other comic book shows or movies having done that before. But it does have plenty of pluses; the soundtrack is phenomenal, the CGI is on par with that of big-budget movies, and the casting is very good. They were able to pull off the whole dysfunctional family vibe very well. I wanted to give it a point higher but I did understand some of the other points that other critics made about it. I give it a 8/10 but I also give it my "Must See" seal of approval. So if you haven't seen it yet what are you waiting for.
Erika (17788 KP) rated The Seven Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle in Books
Feb 9, 2019
In the USA, this book had to be published as 'The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle', due to it being too close to a book released a few months previously. I actually think the US title is more accurate than the original title.
I found it hard to get my bearing when I began reading this, trying to figure out exactly what was happening. I found the fixation on Anna was very strange, and slightly unnecessary in my mind. I just got tired of her. It is slightly convoluted, and it probably could have been cut down by at least 100 pages.
While I figured out the answer around 1/4th into the book, I did end up liking it for the most part. This would make a really good 10 episode series, and I hope a company has bought the rights so an adaptation can occur.
I found it hard to get my bearing when I began reading this, trying to figure out exactly what was happening. I found the fixation on Anna was very strange, and slightly unnecessary in my mind. I just got tired of her. It is slightly convoluted, and it probably could have been cut down by at least 100 pages.
While I figured out the answer around 1/4th into the book, I did end up liking it for the most part. This would make a really good 10 episode series, and I hope a company has bought the rights so an adaptation can occur.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Boys from Brazil (1978) in Movies
Apr 21, 2019 (Updated Apr 21, 2019)
Another adaptation of one of Levin's pulpy-but-effective thrillers, this one riffing on The Omen a bit (Gregory Peck, paedophobia, etc). Laurence Olivier discovers that Nazi mad scientist Gregory Peck is plotting the death of nearly a hundred 65-year-old men around the world, but why? Could the targets' identical sons have something to do with it?
The material is pure schlock, lifted by the presence of distinguished actors and fairly lavish production values. You could argue that the film also attempts to explore issues of nature and nature in a relatively more sophisticated fashion than most films about (spoiler alert) cloning, but the whole thing retains an air of feverish preposterousness throughout, to say nothing of the fact it is arguably in very dubious taste. That said, it's highly watchable from start to finish; definitely qualifies as a guilty pleasure, though.
The material is pure schlock, lifted by the presence of distinguished actors and fairly lavish production values. You could argue that the film also attempts to explore issues of nature and nature in a relatively more sophisticated fashion than most films about (spoiler alert) cloning, but the whole thing retains an air of feverish preposterousness throughout, to say nothing of the fact it is arguably in very dubious taste. That said, it's highly watchable from start to finish; definitely qualifies as a guilty pleasure, though.
Charlotte (209 KP) rated The Green Mile (1999) in Movies
Mar 6, 2018
fantastic and convincing performances from the whole cast (3 more)
intriguing and engaging plot despite the film totalling a 3 hour running time: every single time i watch the film, despite knowing the whole storyline, i never feel that the movie is dragging
range of likeable and incredibly despicable characters along with solid character development
incredibly memorable, heartwarming & heartbreaking in equal measures
my GOODNESS it's so harrowing (the only complaints i've received from those i've recommended it to was the number of tears it made them shed) (1 more)
absence of female characters :(
one of my favourite films of all time
i've only just bought the book & i'm slightly nervous to read it (i do usually tend to read the book first) as i'm worried it'll ruin my opinion of the film as a direct adaptation of the book but this means this review is entirely based upon the film independently!!
Boogie Man: The Adventures of John Lee Hooker in the American Twentieth Century
Book
'You the funkiest man alive.' Miles Davis' accolade was the perfect expression of John Lee Hooker's...
The Origin of Species
7.8
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Book
The publication of Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species in 1859 marked a dramatic turning point in...