Smashbomb

A stand alone book. As a fan of Tad Williams I have put this book off from reading (it had been on my TBR list for over a decade) because of a previous stand alone book, I was afraid I won't like this one. Luckily, because of a TBR reading challenge I finally picked it up, and was pleasantly surprised at the intricate worlds that have been built.
The book is set up in five parts and has a couple of POVs most being that of Theo (the main character) who goes from California to the world of Faerie. A very different Faerie then expected. A very unique take on it.
Theo is thrown into a world he doesn't understand and has an extremely difficult time with well... don't want to give any spoilers. Although I will say the author isn't afraid to put Theo through hell, from the get.
While I did figure out quite a lot of the book along the way I was more pleased then annoyed when I was right in my assumptions.
The descriptions are very realistic and graphic in places (the author's note at the beginning is warranted) making this book quite long as are most of his books. A good long read that may not be for everyone.

Kudos

Michael Phillips recommended The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) in Movies (curated)

The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

1928 | Biography, Drama, History

8.4

(5 Ratings)

Movie Favorite

"It is the most vexing challenge because I just find that, depending… I’m not so psychotic that my mind changes constantly on that subject, but it really depends on where you are in your life. You sort of have a rolling list of a few dozen that you cherish for different reasons. All you try to do is avoid interviews like this so you don’t get pinned down. [laughs] No, I always have trouble pinning anything to a fixed list. Why is it hard? Is it easy for you? You start thinking about the directors you leave off the list and your heart starts breaking. In chronological order, The Passion of Joan of Arc. The last time I saw that film, it struck as me as if it was an artifact from the period itself that it’s depicting. It was like a medium unto itself, and [Maria] Falconetti’s performance, it really cannot be compared to anything else. It’s beyond naturalism, it’s beyond melodrama, it’s beyond everything. It’s just coming straight out of her soul. But mainly, the last time I saw it I just had this weird time slip kind of experience where I felt like I was really seeing a mad visionary from the time who somehow invented the movie camera. [laughs] Putting on this intense pageant on this subject of intense religious devotion. I find that film a knockout. You can’t watch it lightly, but that’s all right."

Source

Kudos

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Pulse (2006) in Movies

Sep 20, 2020

Pulse (2006)

2006 | Horror, Mystery

6.0

(5 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Offensively awful, legitimately reprehensible filmmaking. I challenge anyone to find a worse American remake of Japanese horror than this. Not at all shocking how mercilessly they unceremoniously gutted the original of any sense of breadth, nuance, emotion, horror, intelligence, memorability, you know - all of that stuff that actually makes a half-decent horror film because apparently us dumb Yanks just couldn't handle any ounce of it... but by God did it have to look like moldy garbage too? This may be the worst looking film I've ever seen, whoever color-coded this to look like a chemical reaction between bleach and rotting flesh better have been blacklisted from working in the film industry since. I had to stop somewhere around the halfway point (which still felt like a goddamn century even though this barely touches 90 minutes with credits) because I felt physically ill from stomaching these shit visuals for that long. Of course it's ineptly acted, too. Is this what they thought the original meant? Some doltish technophobic lecture about how cell phones are as evil as murderous demons which also doesn't have a single milliliter of character to its name? The kind of stuff that could feasibly be used in torture chambers to get information out of people. So ironic that it kept the name, because it honestly doesn't have any pulse to speak of. Needed a trigger warning for pure stupidity.

Kudos

Eleanor Luhar (47 KP) rated Code: (Virals 3) in Books

Jun 24, 2019

This is the third book in Kathy Reichs' Virals series. Code follows the familiar gang of kids on yet another wild adventure - one far more sinister that it first seems. Do they have what it takes to complete each challenge they are faced with, before the countdown ends? Only time will tell.

Tory is stuck in the middle of Ben and Jason, close friends of hers between which tensions are boiling high. They'd never got on, but things are getting serious. Tory is determined to discover the link between them, the reason for their hateful words and behaviour towards each other.

Along with this and the pressing issue of codes and puzzles yet to be solved, Tory must prepare herself for her débutante ball. She wasn't looking forward to it in the first place, but it turns out to be far more eventful than any of the kids anticipated...

And to top it all off, the Virals are this close to discovering what could be the last remaining piece of information on their bizarre situation. What secrets were being held, so close yet so far?

There are tons of side-stories and plot-twists in this book, just as there was in the first couple of books. A very exciting series, with numerous links and discoveries to be made throughout. I'm definitely looking forward to the next book! 4 stars for this one.