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Amy Curtis (49 KP) rated Gnome Alone (2018) in Movies
Dec 14, 2018 (Updated Dec 14, 2018)
Funny (1 more)
Easy to watch
Good light-hearted film
Contains spoilers, click to show
I stumbled across this film on Netflix and after seeing Gnomeo and Juliet and being impressed with that I decided to give it a go. I was expecting it to be a remake of the Christmas film Home Alone. I believe that was the original intention. Instead, the protagonist Chloe has recently moved into a new home with her mum and after travelling around and moving schools finds it difficult to make friends and keep them. She discovers a necklace in a secret room in the house and removed it. Later she discovers that the gnomes left in her house are alive and they need the necklace back. With the help of her nerd friend Liam, they combat both high school popular girls and aliens and save the world. Whilst the film does have some comedy in parts, it wasn't as humourous as I was expecting. It is a children's film however and there is an underlying message of 'dont judge a book by it's chsracter', 'be friends with who you want to be friends with' and the ultimate one 'be kind'. I also liked the fact that Chloe was glued to her iPhone and then when push come to shove she had to part with it. I think it gave a good message to modern society today of how absorbed we become with technology (she says writing this review on her smart phone). Anyway, it was a very good film and I thoroughly enjoyed it but it wasn't what I expected in the slightest.
B (62 KP) rated The Lovely Bones in Books
Oct 14, 2018
I agree with many that this book is slow. There were parts that I really liked and it even made me tear up when the dog died (not really a spoiler since the novel spans some 15 years). For the most part though I just wanted it to be over. I'd be interested to know however why Sebold chose to have the intial events take place in the 70s rather than in the 21st century as it did not appear to add anything specific to the plot or narrative. I'll also be curious to see how the film compares and if it's able to breathe some life into a relatively uneventful book, no pun intended.
The latest Metalman superhero film is being filmed in Half Moon Bay, and DeMarco’s aunt is a producer. However, the set visit she arranges for Nick, Tesla, DeMarco, and Silas leads the four friends to believe someone is trying to sabotage the film. Can they figure out who?
This is a fun mystery with great clues and red herrings. The characters could be a tad better, but the middle grade audience certainly won’t care. I didn’t at that age. There are also instructions for projects to build later, including zombie make up. What more could kids want?
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/05/book-review-nick-and-teslas-special.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
This is a fun mystery with great clues and red herrings. The characters could be a tad better, but the middle grade audience certainly won’t care. I didn’t at that age. There are also instructions for projects to build later, including zombie make up. What more could kids want?
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/05/book-review-nick-and-teslas-special.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018) in Movies
Jan 4, 2019
A little dull and lacking
I didn’t particularly think much of the book for this, it was a little too sickly sweet. The film however appears to ignore most of the sickly sweet fluffiness and at least embraces the serious side of the story about the war. However that doesn’t mean it’s any better. Instead it comes across as rather dull and the plot itself is entirely predictable. It has a great cast, with Lily James, Michiel Huisman and Matthew Goode notably standing out, so at least they make it watchable. It’s just a shame that the story has had most of the detail and heart taken out of it - it seems like a very long film yet isn’t particularly detailed. Another one to add to the ‘read the book instead’ pile.
The Documentary Art of Filmmaker Michael Rubbo
Book
Michael Rubbo's ground-breaking work has had a deep and enduring impact on documentary filmmaking...
Sam (74 KP) rated Pretty Little Liars (Pretty Little Liars, #1) in Books
Mar 27, 2019
I was really excited to start this because it is a universally known fact that the book is always better than the film or TV adaptation. I don’t think that rule applies to Pretty Little Liars.
I definitely feel that the series is much better than the books. The series is always gripping, gives plenty of time for the plot to develop, and has likeable characters. I was addicted to it for a year of binging.
I had a few issues with the book.
If I had read the book before watching the series, I wouldn’t have gone onto Netflix and binged on it. I feel like the book was too small and the plot was too condensed. This made the characters very two-dimensional.
The characters in the book are also all unlikable. They are all really bratty and spoiled and they really annoyed me. The creators of the series completely changed them for the good.
It is still getting two stars because I did manage to finish the book. I was just really disappointed that it wasn’t any better.
I definitely feel that the series is much better than the books. The series is always gripping, gives plenty of time for the plot to develop, and has likeable characters. I was addicted to it for a year of binging.
I had a few issues with the book.
If I had read the book before watching the series, I wouldn’t have gone onto Netflix and binged on it. I feel like the book was too small and the plot was too condensed. This made the characters very two-dimensional.
The characters in the book are also all unlikable. They are all really bratty and spoiled and they really annoyed me. The creators of the series completely changed them for the good.
It is still getting two stars because I did manage to finish the book. I was just really disappointed that it wasn’t any better.
Dawn Mue (1 KP) rated Ready Player One (2018) in Movies
Aug 23, 2018
Garbage
After reading the book and finding out the writer was involved with the screen play, I was excited to see this film. I regretted purchasing a ticket for this movie after the first 15 minutes. Both the book and movie follow a teen named Wade. They both take place in a dystopian style story. However the movie portrays Wade as a one dimensional character, giving his best thoughts, words, and feelings to other characters. Wade in the book was a well rounded character who was smart, witty, and at times sarcastic. Reading the book you can believe that Wade has the ability to beat the game he’s playing for control of the oasis. In the movie he is girl obsessed and just not the character I followed through the oasis to win the game. If you haven’t read the book, or only want to check out the graphics, then this movie is for you. If you loved the book, as I did, just keep the story in your imagination and skip the movie.
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Denial (2016) in Movies
Aug 18, 2017
Story is vital especially after recent events
A very important film given the spate of holocaust denial in recent days. This is about the renowned libel case brought by the Holocaust denier and self- proclaimed historian David Irving against American academic Deborah Lipstadt. Lipstadt referred to Irving as such in a book and was subsequently sued and taken to court in the UK. It's a powerful account of how such bogus offensive claims about the Holocaust are allowed to be published without any accountability. Having visited Auschwitz and Birkenau, watching this film was emotional enough for me let alone the survivors which I can't even compare or imagine. So it's great that a film can counteract such ludicrous claims in this day and age. Fabulous acting all round.
Algerian National Cinema
Book
This topical and innovative study is the first book on Algerian cinema to be published in English...
Films That Sell: Moving Pictures and Advertising: 2017
Patrick Vonderau, Bo Florin and Nico de Klerk
Book
While moving image advertising has been around us, everywhere, for at least a century, the topic has...