Persepolis Rising (The Expanse, #7)
Book
In the thousand-sun network of humanity's expansion, new colony worlds are struggling to find their...
Science fiction
No Country for Old Men
6.8
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Book
In his blistering new novel, Cormac McCarthy returns to the Texas-Mexico border, setting of his...
Don't Drink the Pink
8.0
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Book
Madeline adores her Grandpa Gilderberry – she always has. To everyone else he might seem a bit...
picture book family rhymes rhyming
Deadly Director’s Cut
9.0
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Book
Daring resort manager Elizabeth Grady will need to think fast to bring a killer into the limelight...
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Run All Night (2015) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
Neeson, Joel Kinnaman and Ed Harris.
Liam Neeson plays Jimmy Conlon, an aging hit man who seems to be trying
to come to terms (and failing) with the bad things that he has done in
his life for Irish Mob boss Shawn Maguire(Ed Harris). Jimmy and his son
Mike (Joel Kinnamen) have no relationship, and Jimmy is alone in the
world except for Shawn.
In a convoluted story line, Shawns son Danny (Boyd Holbrook) tries to
“prove himself” to his father by arranging a deal with some drug running
Albanians, but since Shawn has taken his business away from dealing with
anything to do with drugs because of the people he has lost over that
sort of business, Shawn refuses the deal.
Things quickly head south, and in an even more convoluted story line,
Danny ends up dead, by Jimmys’ hand.
Shawn vows to get even, and the remainder of the movie is spent in car
chases, shoot outs, burning buildings, near escapes, and deaths.
I was pulled into the movie, and found myself caring what happened to
the main characters.
It was rather predictable, in the way that all “Mob” movies are
predictable, with the shooting and car chases etc.
What wasn’t so predictable was the amount of “caring” that Neeson was
able to project and portray and how invested he was able to make me as
an audience member. He played the part of an aging, emotionally and
physically beat down guy, with regrets about his relationship with his
son, trying against all odds to “make it right” this one last time, to
protect his family, at any cost to himself. I was pulling for him to be
able to get it done.
The one part of the movie that i didn’t like was the “swooping” with the
camera angles, when jumping (literally) from one scene or location to
the next in the movie. I found it to be dizzying and I had to close my
eyes until those parts were done.
RəX Regent (349 KP) rated Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941) in Movies
Feb 19, 2019 (Updated Feb 19, 2019)
…and by now, this Tarzan series has become a simplistic, cynical cash cow. Delivering yet another formulaic adventure, almost beat for beat what has come before, we now find that Cheeta, the never aging chimp, has become the star of the show. No longer just a bit of comic relief, entire scenes are handed over to her and “Boy”, Tarzan and Jane’s adopted son, in favour of appealing to the child market no doubt.
This has become unabashed family entertainment, no longer speaking to its audience as it once did. No longer discussing the differences of a simple life versus a civilized one, nor tackling the constraints of civilization on things such a sexuality or freedom of expression.
Her the jungle is funny and safe, only threatened by primitive tribes and greedy westerners, all of whom will be stopped by Tarzan and his Elephants in the end. Though the action is good and the finale it one of the best so far, so cynical or not, it still works.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated The Old Man and the Gun (2018) in Movies
Apr 7, 2019
Hard to argue with watching Redford be Redford with his charm and grace portray a real sort of true true about an aging bank robber who can never seem to get enough wanting more and more, just addicted to the thrill of the caper.
Casey Affleck, Sissy Spacek and Danny Glover are also along for the ride and turn in memorable performances.
I liked th beginning and ending more than the middle. At just over 90 minutes, it seemed as if there were some extra scenes included just t increase the running time to a 90 minute minimum rather than to further the story, but this is a minor complaint.
Here's to hoping I can write reviews for more Redford greats for the next 20+ years!
Andy K (10821 KP) rated The Shootist (1976) in Movies
May 4, 2019
An notorious aging gunslinger learns he has inoperable cancer and decides to try and live out his final days in peace. Unfortunately, not to be as elements from his past come back to haunt him or just won't let him enjoy his final moments. He befriends a widow and her son as he rents a room from them. He wants to tie up some loose ends in his life before his time on Earth ends.
Still being a John Wayne novice, I thought his performance here was miraculous. He showed his usual toughness and charisma, but also real heart and vulnerability at times. You could see he felt remorse for some of his past actions and wanted to atone for them; however, life had other obstacles for him to overcome and to draw his relationships to their conclusion.
Very pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed it.
Will's Red Coat: The Story of One Old Dog Who Chose to Live Again
10.0
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Book
Tom Ryan touched the hearts of thousands when he wrote about his intrepid little dog Atticus and...
The Quantified Body
Podcast
The data revolution has begun. The knowledge you will gain over your body, your health, your...