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Drive: Journeys Through Film, Cities, and Landscapes
Book
This book explores the experience of driving cars as a way of encountering landscapes and cities...
Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated Aquaman (2018) in Movies
Jan 22, 2021
There is a group of comic book fans that like this film, and defend its virtues. I could never be true friends with any of those people. One look at James Wan’s directing CV and I should have known it wouldn’t be for me. Several of the most generic “horror” movies of the last few decades, plus a pop at the diabolical Fast & Furious franchise. Oh, dear god, no! I went in with an open mind, but 30 minutes of frantic chaos (and the editing of a six year old left to punch the computer with a toy truck) later and I was completely exasperated by it all. It was all I could do to force myself to finish it, and it took three sessions to do so. The wonderful Willem Dafoe and the often glorious Nicole Kidman try hard, but look embarrassed to be involved in the main. Whereas Patrick Wilson comes across as… just weird! Jason Mamoa should have a future in either films starring The Rock or films that want to be films starring The Rock. After this travesty of cinema and wasted money it’ll take a lot to make me remotely interested. Avoid at all costs.
The Secret (2018)
3.0
Rate It
Movie
Drawing from The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, The Secret film aims to craft a story around the core...
Thriller
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Logan (2017) in Movies
Sep 20, 2019 (Updated Sep 20, 2019)
The crown jewel in Fox's X-Men saga
Logan is easily one of the best comic book movies out there.
This is the third solo outing for Wolverine (following one garbage pile attempt, and one annoyingly average attempt), James Mangold really pulled it out of the bag for this one.
The characters are great - Hugh Jackman at the top of his game for his final performance as Logan. He's a grizzled and pain ridden man, in this bleak, mutantless future.
Patrick Stewart is also at his best here as Charles Xavier. The two of them are the beating heart of this movie.
We're introduced to Dafne Keen (playing a young X-23) who rounds out the small cast nicely.
As Logan fights a shadowy organization to keep her safe, the stakes have never been higher, and no one feels safe at any point - something that has never really been explored in the X-Men franchise.
Logan is a hard film to watch, it's bleak, its gritty, it's not particularly colourful (especially if you opt for the brilliant Noir version), and it's brutally violent in parts.
The set pieces are nasty in places, and sometimes pretty shocking, but it all aids the narrative here - the narrative that Wolverine is an ailing old man, who is struggling against all odds to do one last good deed, and protect the few people that still mean something to him.
It's an emotional and powerful film, that deserves all the praise bestowed upon it - amazing work from everyone involved .
This is the third solo outing for Wolverine (following one garbage pile attempt, and one annoyingly average attempt), James Mangold really pulled it out of the bag for this one.
The characters are great - Hugh Jackman at the top of his game for his final performance as Logan. He's a grizzled and pain ridden man, in this bleak, mutantless future.
Patrick Stewart is also at his best here as Charles Xavier. The two of them are the beating heart of this movie.
We're introduced to Dafne Keen (playing a young X-23) who rounds out the small cast nicely.
As Logan fights a shadowy organization to keep her safe, the stakes have never been higher, and no one feels safe at any point - something that has never really been explored in the X-Men franchise.
Logan is a hard film to watch, it's bleak, its gritty, it's not particularly colourful (especially if you opt for the brilliant Noir version), and it's brutally violent in parts.
The set pieces are nasty in places, and sometimes pretty shocking, but it all aids the narrative here - the narrative that Wolverine is an ailing old man, who is struggling against all odds to do one last good deed, and protect the few people that still mean something to him.
It's an emotional and powerful film, that deserves all the praise bestowed upon it - amazing work from everyone involved .
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated It (2017) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
Make sure you take a pillow
Horror buffs and Stephen King fans everywhere have been waiting for this moment since 2009. It is of course, a modern adaptation of the author’s novel, IT.
Plagued with production problems from the get-go, I see a pattern emerging here, IT has been in the hands of multiple directors with numerous actors in the running to play that iconic clown. I am of course, talking about Pennywise.
Fast forward to 2017, and with Mama Andy Muschietti taking over directorial duties and Bill Skarsgård hopping into that tight-fitting suit we finally have a finished product. But what is it like?Seven young outcasts in Derry, Maine, are about to face their worst nightmare — an ancient, shape-shifting evil that emerges from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town’s children. Banding together over the course of one horrifying summer, the friends must overcome their own personal fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise.
Let’s start off by saying this is much, much better than last month’s The Dark Tower. Stephen King adaptations can go one of two ways and it was feared that IT would follow in the aforementioned film’s footsteps. Thankfully, this isn’t the case.
IT is frankly, an incredible interpretation of King’s iconic novel filled with exceptional performances, stunning cinematography and an emotional heart not normally seen in the genre. It’s unlike anything you will have seen before.
Now, let’s talk about the elephant in the room, Pennywise. Tim Curry played the hell out of that character in the 1990 miniseries and it would be senseless for 27-year-old Bill Skarsgård to follow too closely in his footsteps. At 6ft 3”, Skarsgård is certainly an imposing presence and his Pennywise is much more menacing than Curry’s, but to compare them too much would be unfair to each.
Elsewhere, all the members of the Losers’ Club are brilliant. I have never seen this calibre of acting from such a young group. Jaeden Lieberher as Bill in particular is astonishing. The scenes in which they all work together without the threat of Pennywise are a treat and give the film an uncharacteristically poignant style.
Moreover, the shot choices that Muschietti uses are striking. He rightly stays away from confining the horror to dimly lit corridors and alleyways and whilst this does feature more towards the finale, Derry makes a fine location bathed for the most part in gorgeous sunlight.
Whilst not being completely faithful to King’s novel, Muschietti’s film features all of the iconic scenes that you would expect. The opening sequence from the book in which little Georgie is confronted by Pennywise in the storm drain is shockingly brutal and sets up the tone for the rest of the picture.
This is a truly frightening film, speckled with just enough gore to keep it realistic and whilst it’s true there are one-too-many jump scares, the brilliant source material stops them from feeling too cheap. In the back of your mind, you’re well aware that this is very similar to the book indeed.
Overall, IT is better than anyone could have hoped. It’s scary, deeply emotional, funny and beautifully filmed with an exquisite score by Benjamin Wallfisch. If you’re a horror fan you must watch. If you’re a film fan, you must watch – just take a pillow with you, for protection purposes of course.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2017/09/09/it-review-make-sure-you-take-a-pillow/
Plagued with production problems from the get-go, I see a pattern emerging here, IT has been in the hands of multiple directors with numerous actors in the running to play that iconic clown. I am of course, talking about Pennywise.
Fast forward to 2017, and with Mama Andy Muschietti taking over directorial duties and Bill Skarsgård hopping into that tight-fitting suit we finally have a finished product. But what is it like?Seven young outcasts in Derry, Maine, are about to face their worst nightmare — an ancient, shape-shifting evil that emerges from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town’s children. Banding together over the course of one horrifying summer, the friends must overcome their own personal fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise.
Let’s start off by saying this is much, much better than last month’s The Dark Tower. Stephen King adaptations can go one of two ways and it was feared that IT would follow in the aforementioned film’s footsteps. Thankfully, this isn’t the case.
IT is frankly, an incredible interpretation of King’s iconic novel filled with exceptional performances, stunning cinematography and an emotional heart not normally seen in the genre. It’s unlike anything you will have seen before.
Now, let’s talk about the elephant in the room, Pennywise. Tim Curry played the hell out of that character in the 1990 miniseries and it would be senseless for 27-year-old Bill Skarsgård to follow too closely in his footsteps. At 6ft 3”, Skarsgård is certainly an imposing presence and his Pennywise is much more menacing than Curry’s, but to compare them too much would be unfair to each.
Elsewhere, all the members of the Losers’ Club are brilliant. I have never seen this calibre of acting from such a young group. Jaeden Lieberher as Bill in particular is astonishing. The scenes in which they all work together without the threat of Pennywise are a treat and give the film an uncharacteristically poignant style.
Moreover, the shot choices that Muschietti uses are striking. He rightly stays away from confining the horror to dimly lit corridors and alleyways and whilst this does feature more towards the finale, Derry makes a fine location bathed for the most part in gorgeous sunlight.
Whilst not being completely faithful to King’s novel, Muschietti’s film features all of the iconic scenes that you would expect. The opening sequence from the book in which little Georgie is confronted by Pennywise in the storm drain is shockingly brutal and sets up the tone for the rest of the picture.
This is a truly frightening film, speckled with just enough gore to keep it realistic and whilst it’s true there are one-too-many jump scares, the brilliant source material stops them from feeling too cheap. In the back of your mind, you’re well aware that this is very similar to the book indeed.
Overall, IT is better than anyone could have hoped. It’s scary, deeply emotional, funny and beautifully filmed with an exquisite score by Benjamin Wallfisch. If you’re a horror fan you must watch. If you’re a film fan, you must watch – just take a pillow with you, for protection purposes of course.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2017/09/09/it-review-make-sure-you-take-a-pillow/
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated My Best Friend's Exorcism in Books
May 16, 2018
I have a new guilty pleasure and it’s name is Grady Hendrix. After finishing My Best Friend’s Exorcism, I find myself hungering for more of Hendrix’s work. Fortunately, the audiobook was not read by the same narrator as Horrorstör. Instead, this 80s style book is read by Emily WooZeller – the woman that narrated Shallow Graves.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism reads exactly like a cliché. If you’ve seen any horror film from the 80s, you probably know exactly what I mean. All the way down to the dog. Normally this would put me off, but instead I found it oddly comforting. Totaling only ten hours, it’s not a terribly long read either.
I really wish I had more to say, but honestly with that last description I’ve pretty much said everything. Just take your average 80s horror flick elements and apply them!
My Best Friend’s Exorcism reads exactly like a cliché. If you’ve seen any horror film from the 80s, you probably know exactly what I mean. All the way down to the dog. Normally this would put me off, but instead I found it oddly comforting. Totaling only ten hours, it’s not a terribly long read either.
I really wish I had more to say, but honestly with that last description I’ve pretty much said everything. Just take your average 80s horror flick elements and apply them!
Where's Zayn?: Which Direction?
Book
In the great tradition of 'Where's Bin Laden?', 'Where's Michael?' and 'Where's Elvis?' comes...
Al Pacino: In Films and on Stage
8.0
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Book
One of our most passionate and gifted actors, Al Pacino has been riveting audiences for decades with...
Tom Turner (388 KP) rated Planet Of The Apes in Books
Apr 29, 2021
When the Tim Burton remake of the 1969 movie was released there was an uproar, essentially because they had changed the twist ending. True, the twist the Burton film came up with was awful, but there is an irony in that uproar. You see, that classic twist from the original movie is not the twist in this book! I'm not going to say what that twist is, but thankfully it is on a part with the one we all know and live.
I love this novel, and really wish more people were aware it existed. I wouldn't be surprised if some people avoided it believing it to be a novelization of the movie, but no, this was published six years before the original movie! I think this is a must read for any science fiction fan, and movie historian.
I love this novel, and really wish more people were aware it existed. I wouldn't be surprised if some people avoided it believing it to be a novelization of the movie, but no, this was published six years before the original movie! I think this is a must read for any science fiction fan, and movie historian.
Erika (17788 KP) rated Interview with the Vampire (1994) in Movies
Jul 26, 2020 (Updated Jul 26, 2020)
I re-watched this film the other day, and I forgot how much I loved it. I won't compare it to the book, since Anne Rice was responsible for the script and helped with production.
The cast in this was strong, and did alright with the characters. I actually liked pre-couch-jumping Tom Cruise in it, though I will not mind when Lestat is taken over by someone else for the newly announced Vampire Chronicles/Mayfair Witches AMC project. The accents are kind of whack, but you can easily ignore that part.
The DVD I have shows a little pre-movie interview with some of the actors, the director, and Rice herself, and talks about how you're fixin to watch a movie about the most depressing vampires you've ever heard of. That made me laugh.
This is definitely a classic vampire movie.
The cast in this was strong, and did alright with the characters. I actually liked pre-couch-jumping Tom Cruise in it, though I will not mind when Lestat is taken over by someone else for the newly announced Vampire Chronicles/Mayfair Witches AMC project. The accents are kind of whack, but you can easily ignore that part.
The DVD I have shows a little pre-movie interview with some of the actors, the director, and Rice herself, and talks about how you're fixin to watch a movie about the most depressing vampires you've ever heard of. That made me laugh.
This is definitely a classic vampire movie.