Search
Search results
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated The Tomorrow War (2021) in Movies
Aug 1, 2021
A rather impulsive watch on this one, other than one of those pre-Prime adverts I hadn't seen anything about it. But it looked intriguing.
The future arrives in the present in an event that's never been seen before, but it brings news of a war raging 30 years in the future.
Tomorrow War has an interesting idea behind it, but I decided early on that I would stop trying to think about the ramifications of everything happening. We watch the events unfold along with the characters, I found that annoying at the beginning as I was keen to get into the nitty gritty and it was taking its sweet time.
I felt that some of the interactions took shortcuts. A character will ask a question, get refused, but instantly be told the answer after a second half arsed enquiry. Yes it moves the story along, but not in a very satisfying way. At the same time, it throws in a selection of completely unnecessary interactions like it doesn't know exactly what it wants to achieve.
I would like to say that there was some acting that helped redeem the rollercoaster of Tomorrow War's story, but everything is "they were working with what they got". There wasn't always a lot.
Despite the opportunity for Chris Pratt to be a strong action lead, the set up doesn't really allow for it. Initially we get presented with him being a scientist, when the action begins we're given the soldier angle. I'm not saying people can't have to sides to them, but it felt very strange to swap it up. It seemed entirely based off the need to have a scientific element later in the story, but with so many characters, it felt odd to have those elements in one person when there was plenty of scope to have two different people, one for each role.
With all these characters it's hard to differentiate between them... but don't worry, the costume department have a solution to that... I don't want to ruin the surprise, but it's truly ridiculous. There's very little sense to it, and I can't fathom how anyone signed it off.
The effects didn't really bother me, it all seemed to work, nothing stood out for negative reasons. With so many other questionable things happening, that was a bit of a relief really. The creatures were kind of familiar and just creepy enough to work, their movement helped with that, but overall there really didn't feel like enough of them in the film to warrant the effort.
I liked the idea behind Tomorrow War, but while I tried to switch my brain off, I came out with questions... so many questions. They just popped in there. And if it wasn't questions, it was predictions that were often right. With all of this I haven't even dealt with the ending. Everything before the conclusion wasn't bad, the ending was rushed and didn't fit with what had come before. The balance was definitely off, and I think with some changes this could really have knocked it out of the park.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-tomorrow-war-movie-review.html
The future arrives in the present in an event that's never been seen before, but it brings news of a war raging 30 years in the future.
Tomorrow War has an interesting idea behind it, but I decided early on that I would stop trying to think about the ramifications of everything happening. We watch the events unfold along with the characters, I found that annoying at the beginning as I was keen to get into the nitty gritty and it was taking its sweet time.
I felt that some of the interactions took shortcuts. A character will ask a question, get refused, but instantly be told the answer after a second half arsed enquiry. Yes it moves the story along, but not in a very satisfying way. At the same time, it throws in a selection of completely unnecessary interactions like it doesn't know exactly what it wants to achieve.
I would like to say that there was some acting that helped redeem the rollercoaster of Tomorrow War's story, but everything is "they were working with what they got". There wasn't always a lot.
Despite the opportunity for Chris Pratt to be a strong action lead, the set up doesn't really allow for it. Initially we get presented with him being a scientist, when the action begins we're given the soldier angle. I'm not saying people can't have to sides to them, but it felt very strange to swap it up. It seemed entirely based off the need to have a scientific element later in the story, but with so many characters, it felt odd to have those elements in one person when there was plenty of scope to have two different people, one for each role.
With all these characters it's hard to differentiate between them... but don't worry, the costume department have a solution to that... I don't want to ruin the surprise, but it's truly ridiculous. There's very little sense to it, and I can't fathom how anyone signed it off.
The effects didn't really bother me, it all seemed to work, nothing stood out for negative reasons. With so many other questionable things happening, that was a bit of a relief really. The creatures were kind of familiar and just creepy enough to work, their movement helped with that, but overall there really didn't feel like enough of them in the film to warrant the effort.
I liked the idea behind Tomorrow War, but while I tried to switch my brain off, I came out with questions... so many questions. They just popped in there. And if it wasn't questions, it was predictions that were often right. With all of this I haven't even dealt with the ending. Everything before the conclusion wasn't bad, the ending was rushed and didn't fit with what had come before. The balance was definitely off, and I think with some changes this could really have knocked it out of the park.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-tomorrow-war-movie-review.html
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated Shantallow in Books
Aug 31, 2019
Supernatural horror is one of my favorite genres. Through the blogging universe, I came across Shantallow by Cara Martin. After reading the synopsis, I was hooked. When the opportunity arose to review Shantallow, I couldn't turn it down. Luckily, I enjoyed it!
I felt like the plot of Shantallow was a little confused to begin with. It started out as a teen love story between to high school kids gone wrong thanks to jealousy. However, after about thirty percent through the book, it quickly became a supernatural horror story about an evil haunted house. I thought this would focus on the nightmare that the main character, Misha, has about Tanvi. The nightmare, to me, only seems brushed upon. This didn't take away my enjoyment from the story though. I will admit that the whole love story in the beginning was a bit slow, and I did find myself wondering if I should continue. I'm really glad I persevered because after the love story, this book really takes off. It was as if Shantallow sank it's teeth into my attention span and didn't let go. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next in the evil house known as Shantallow. The creepy factor was definitely there throughout!
The ending of Shantallow felt a little as if the author didn't know how to end the book. It seemed rushed and too quick to end without being explained. Although Shantallow didn't end in any cliffhangers, I was still left with unanswered questions. Perhaps Shantallow will end up being a series, and my questions about the house will be answered.
The diversity of characters in Shantallow was done fantastically. I also enjoyed each of the characters once this book got going. Tanvi was an interesting character throughout the book. Although I could picture all the characters in my mind, Tanvi was the easiest one to bring alive in my head. She felt so realistic and like she could be someone I know. Misha comes across as really selfish, jealous, and controlling to being with. However, he redeems himself during his time in the Shantallow house with how protective he is over everyone. Lauren was my favorite character. I loved scenes that she was in. She seemed like such a sweet innocent kid.
Trigger warnings for Shantallow include violence, jealousy, murder, death, attempted murder, profanity, sex between teens (although not graphic), evil spirits, and underage drinking.
Despite the hurried ending, Shantallow really is a good read. It's got a very spooky plot and great characters once you get past the love story. I would recommend Shantallow by Cara Martin to older teens and adults aged 17+. If you love scary stories that will keep you up late at night reading with the lights on, Shantallow is the book for you! It definitely made my nights scarier (but I enjoy being scared)!
--
(A special thank you to Xpresso Book Tours for providing me with an eBook of Shantallow by Cara Martin in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.)
I felt like the plot of Shantallow was a little confused to begin with. It started out as a teen love story between to high school kids gone wrong thanks to jealousy. However, after about thirty percent through the book, it quickly became a supernatural horror story about an evil haunted house. I thought this would focus on the nightmare that the main character, Misha, has about Tanvi. The nightmare, to me, only seems brushed upon. This didn't take away my enjoyment from the story though. I will admit that the whole love story in the beginning was a bit slow, and I did find myself wondering if I should continue. I'm really glad I persevered because after the love story, this book really takes off. It was as if Shantallow sank it's teeth into my attention span and didn't let go. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next in the evil house known as Shantallow. The creepy factor was definitely there throughout!
The ending of Shantallow felt a little as if the author didn't know how to end the book. It seemed rushed and too quick to end without being explained. Although Shantallow didn't end in any cliffhangers, I was still left with unanswered questions. Perhaps Shantallow will end up being a series, and my questions about the house will be answered.
The diversity of characters in Shantallow was done fantastically. I also enjoyed each of the characters once this book got going. Tanvi was an interesting character throughout the book. Although I could picture all the characters in my mind, Tanvi was the easiest one to bring alive in my head. She felt so realistic and like she could be someone I know. Misha comes across as really selfish, jealous, and controlling to being with. However, he redeems himself during his time in the Shantallow house with how protective he is over everyone. Lauren was my favorite character. I loved scenes that she was in. She seemed like such a sweet innocent kid.
Trigger warnings for Shantallow include violence, jealousy, murder, death, attempted murder, profanity, sex between teens (although not graphic), evil spirits, and underage drinking.
Despite the hurried ending, Shantallow really is a good read. It's got a very spooky plot and great characters once you get past the love story. I would recommend Shantallow by Cara Martin to older teens and adults aged 17+. If you love scary stories that will keep you up late at night reading with the lights on, Shantallow is the book for you! It definitely made my nights scarier (but I enjoy being scared)!
--
(A special thank you to Xpresso Book Tours for providing me with an eBook of Shantallow by Cara Martin in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.)
Darren (1599 KP) rated Investigation 13 (2019) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
Characters – Layla Parrish is the owner of the asylum, she will welcome the guests in to investigate, give the warnings and the history to the building. Melanie is the leader of the team, she has put in the requests for the investigation, brings the team together and is the one trying to prove the most for her class. Jerod is the other lead on front of the cameras in the investigation and like the rest of the team, we are getting Ernie and Nate who are the generic cameraman, while Terry is the one operating the remote cameras.
Performances – Stephanie Hernandez in the leading role of the investigation team is fine, which is going to be said for the whole cast, nobody does anything standout and most just struggle to make the true impact needed to make us understand the fear they are going through. Meg Foster does give us the creepy landlady performance, which is mostly explaining what has happened before in the asylum.
Story – The story here follows a group of paranormal investigators that are looking into an abandon asylum in an attempt to redeem their own reputation after the last investigation went wrong. Well, where do we start with this one, for the most part this is everything we have seen in any and all paranormal investigation in an asylum movie, we get next to nothing original in this story, mainly because it is a location and story that has been done way too much before. We get the routine, set up the cameras, walk around a lot, watch the cameras, hear noises, before something big happens after one of the team goes missing. While this story does have an element which does come off original, it is the fact we have to get through the usual material to get here. We do get animation used to fill the back story, which is strange to watch at times, though it does give us the unsettling feeling the live action side lacks.
Horror – The horror side of this film does rely on how you react to people trying to investigate an abandon asylum, it isn’t something we haven’t seen before when it comes to the horror though.
Settings – The film is set in the asylum which is filled with the rooms we would expect to see, it does only have one way in and out, which does leave us wondering why they would agree to investigate a place without knowing the escape.
Special Effects – The effects are limited, we don’t need to many, with a lot of the scene that do involve the animation, which covers up any effects needed.
Scene of the Movie – The animation spices up the generic story.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – We don’t get much new for the paranormal investigation side of the film.
Final Thoughts – This is a by the book paranormal investigation in an asylum movie, with the exception of the animation filling in the history of the asylum, we are given nothing new to type of movie.
Overall: By the book paranormal investigation movie.
Performances – Stephanie Hernandez in the leading role of the investigation team is fine, which is going to be said for the whole cast, nobody does anything standout and most just struggle to make the true impact needed to make us understand the fear they are going through. Meg Foster does give us the creepy landlady performance, which is mostly explaining what has happened before in the asylum.
Story – The story here follows a group of paranormal investigators that are looking into an abandon asylum in an attempt to redeem their own reputation after the last investigation went wrong. Well, where do we start with this one, for the most part this is everything we have seen in any and all paranormal investigation in an asylum movie, we get next to nothing original in this story, mainly because it is a location and story that has been done way too much before. We get the routine, set up the cameras, walk around a lot, watch the cameras, hear noises, before something big happens after one of the team goes missing. While this story does have an element which does come off original, it is the fact we have to get through the usual material to get here. We do get animation used to fill the back story, which is strange to watch at times, though it does give us the unsettling feeling the live action side lacks.
Horror – The horror side of this film does rely on how you react to people trying to investigate an abandon asylum, it isn’t something we haven’t seen before when it comes to the horror though.
Settings – The film is set in the asylum which is filled with the rooms we would expect to see, it does only have one way in and out, which does leave us wondering why they would agree to investigate a place without knowing the escape.
Special Effects – The effects are limited, we don’t need to many, with a lot of the scene that do involve the animation, which covers up any effects needed.
Scene of the Movie – The animation spices up the generic story.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – We don’t get much new for the paranormal investigation side of the film.
Final Thoughts – This is a by the book paranormal investigation in an asylum movie, with the exception of the animation filling in the history of the asylum, we are given nothing new to type of movie.
Overall: By the book paranormal investigation movie.
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Little Comfort in Books
Oct 14, 2019
Hester Thursby is a Harvard research librarian with a knack for finding things. She's good at research, so when Lila Blaine comes to her, asking for help finding her long-lost brother, Sam, Hester figures it will be another easy job in what has become a side-business for her. Hester has some extra time, as she's on leave from her job as she and her partner, Morgan, try to navigate life with his niece, Kate, whom they are caring for since her own mom has disappeared. But finding Sam--who may have left with his friend Gabe, a foster kid, isn't as easy as it seems. Sam has no wish to be found. He's now a con man who cozies up to the rich and his latest mark, Wendy Richards, a Boston socialite, has the ability to give him all he's ever dreamed of: wealth, status, security, and more. When Hester's investigation threatens this, there's no limit to what Sam and Gabe may do.
This was an intriguing mystery that definitely held my interest. Somehow it was darker and grittier than I expected (sorry, I probably wasn't giving librarians enough credit here), but that certainly didn't diminish my interest at all. The opposite really. Hester is a fascinating character, to say the least. A lot of toughness, smarts, and dedication wrapped into a tiny package (she's 4'9"). She's dealing with a lot, taking on care of three-year-old Kate and a leave of absence, but that doesn't stop her from tracking down subjects and tangling with whomever she meets. She, Kate, and their basset hound, Waffles, are on the case.
The book is told from multiple POV, so we hear from a whole host of characters, including Gabe and Sam. Hill is a wonderful storyteller, and really puts you in the shoes of his characters. And boy, are some of these folks creepy. Terrible things happen in this story, and some of these people are downright despicable. Yet, he still captures the intense longing of Gabe, a foster child, and shows how Hester, who also had a tough childhood, can identify with him. Each character is an individual with their own voice. It's incredibly easy to get caught up in the tale of Gabe, Sam, and Lila and their past at Little Comfort, a lake house, plus Hester, Morgan, and Kate (oh sweet little Kate). I read the second half of the book in one determined setting, fascinated to find out what was going to happen. It's not edge-of-your-seat suspense, per se, but it's wonderful characterization and dark, mesmerizing plotting. So many secrets, so many lies to unravel.
Overall, while this one was more complicated and edgier than I was planning going into it, that was fine with me. Hester is a great character, and I'm really excited that this is a series. Hill is an excellent writer, who knows how to hold my interest with a well-paced thriller. I'm quite looking forward to seeing what Hester is up to next.
This was an intriguing mystery that definitely held my interest. Somehow it was darker and grittier than I expected (sorry, I probably wasn't giving librarians enough credit here), but that certainly didn't diminish my interest at all. The opposite really. Hester is a fascinating character, to say the least. A lot of toughness, smarts, and dedication wrapped into a tiny package (she's 4'9"). She's dealing with a lot, taking on care of three-year-old Kate and a leave of absence, but that doesn't stop her from tracking down subjects and tangling with whomever she meets. She, Kate, and their basset hound, Waffles, are on the case.
The book is told from multiple POV, so we hear from a whole host of characters, including Gabe and Sam. Hill is a wonderful storyteller, and really puts you in the shoes of his characters. And boy, are some of these folks creepy. Terrible things happen in this story, and some of these people are downright despicable. Yet, he still captures the intense longing of Gabe, a foster child, and shows how Hester, who also had a tough childhood, can identify with him. Each character is an individual with their own voice. It's incredibly easy to get caught up in the tale of Gabe, Sam, and Lila and their past at Little Comfort, a lake house, plus Hester, Morgan, and Kate (oh sweet little Kate). I read the second half of the book in one determined setting, fascinated to find out what was going to happen. It's not edge-of-your-seat suspense, per se, but it's wonderful characterization and dark, mesmerizing plotting. So many secrets, so many lies to unravel.
Overall, while this one was more complicated and edgier than I was planning going into it, that was fine with me. Hester is a great character, and I'm really excited that this is a series. Hill is an excellent writer, who knows how to hold my interest with a well-paced thriller. I'm quite looking forward to seeing what Hester is up to next.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) in Movies
Aug 8, 2022
Phase four of the MCU has been interesting so far to say the least. Some projects have been great, some have been a little uninspired, but in its attempts to set up multiple overarching story threads, it feels a little wayward, especially in comparison to the recently concluded Infinity Saga. Thor: Love & Thunder has unfortunately arrived right in the middle of this new era of uncertainty, and is a film that ultimately feels a little directionless itself. It adapts a hugely beloved comic arc, an arc that could have potentially used two movies to flesh everything out properly. In this arc, Gorr the God Butcher is a big deal, he feels threatening, menacing, dangerous. In the film, Christian Bale is giving it his all, and there are moments when Gorr is genuinely creepy as hell, but the stakes never feel particularly high, resulting in a villain that feels like a shadow of his comic counterpart. Chris Hemsworth has proven by now that he is a perfect fit for Thor himself, but by this fourth entry, it genuinely feels that he is a straight up dumbass, and is miles away from his character growth in the first Thor. Herein lies the main issue I had with Love & Thunder. Ragnarok was a well balanced MCU film in terms of tone. It provided a much needed shakeup after the disappointment of The Dark World, and Taika Waititi was an inspired choice to bring the quirk. The comedy is tight, lands more often than not, whilst boasting some memorable set pieces. L&T takes the comedy aspect, and doubles down hard. It's joke after joke, to a point where a lot of it falls flat. It reminded me of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 in that respect. It's not terrible by any means, but it's balance feels completely off. There are some great set pieces to be fair. An early scene that involves an attack on New Asgard is a highlight, and almost feels like a horror film at times. It's also where we meet Jane Fosters Thor, who looks comic accurate, and is a genuinely great addition to the movie overall. There's another scene later on that takes place in the shadow realm that provides another highlight. It's mostly in black and white, and it feels unique to the MCU. It's one of a few inspired moments that prevent L&T from becoming a complete misfire.
Any other gripes from me would require stepping into spoiler territory so I'll leave it there. Love & Thunder is frequently dumb, but equally fun, colourful and loud, despite being a bit of a mess. The more Marvel Studios venture into Phase Four, the more sporadic and shaky it feels. I have no doubt that everything will plateau into a solid narrative again, I just hope that moment comes sooner, rather than later.
On a final note, the person I watched this with leaned over to me around the halfway point, and said that Thor just sounds like Boris Johnson when he talks, and now I can't unhear it. If I have to suffer, then you do to.
Any other gripes from me would require stepping into spoiler territory so I'll leave it there. Love & Thunder is frequently dumb, but equally fun, colourful and loud, despite being a bit of a mess. The more Marvel Studios venture into Phase Four, the more sporadic and shaky it feels. I have no doubt that everything will plateau into a solid narrative again, I just hope that moment comes sooner, rather than later.
On a final note, the person I watched this with leaned over to me around the halfway point, and said that Thor just sounds like Boris Johnson when he talks, and now I can't unhear it. If I have to suffer, then you do to.
Lottie disney bookworm (1056 KP) rated A Whole New World in Books
Aug 16, 2019
Review by Disney Bookworm
“What if Aladdin had never found the lamp?”
OK so I am going to start off this review with a really pedantic comment and I know I am being petty and that this will almost definitely end in a rant but… he does find the lamp! Of course he does! Aladdin is the diamond in the rough! He is literally the only one who can find the lamp. If he didn’t find the lamp nothing would happen: Jasmine would probably grow old with her tiger; Jafar would carry on hypnotising the Sultan; Aladdin would probably wind up arrested and this would be the shortest twisted tale in history.
*Ahem*
So, Aladdin finds the lamp. Let’s move past it, because if you have read my other reviews, you will know I love Liz Braswell: her twisted tales always wind up being my favourites as she always brings something completely unexpected to the novels. In the circumstances, I can forgive the tagline.
This review of “A Whole New World” comes at a time where Aladdin is everywhere: the live action movie was released in the UK just over a month ago and, I for one, loved it! With this in mind, I just had to re-read this twisted tale and shout about the wholly different Agrabah that it presents to the reader.
Braswell’s Agrabah is a raw, dirty, troubled cousin of the Agrabah we all know and love. I struggle to comprehend exactly how the movies did it, because both showed starving children, but we found ourselves simultaneously accepting and glossing over the poverty of the street rats. We have no such option in “A Whole New World”.
From starving infants; old men shovelling camel dung for coins; to Aladdin’s own mother dying of a wasting disease: this novel takes no prisoners in the Quarter of the Street Rats. However, those in the Palace remain blind to the struggles of the poor, with the Sultan playing with his golden toys whilst some of his citizens have no food or clean water.
The plight of the Agrabah people creates an undercurrent of resentment that runs all the way through Aladdin and Jasmine’s story. It is also a clear indicator of the identity of this novel: Braswell has taken all the romanticism of the familiar story and buried it in her own cave of wonders, leaving behind a highly political but incredibly powerful story.
The twisted tale starts off on a similar vein to both movies, boy meets girl, boy rescues girl from hand severing businessman, boy winds up arrested and transported to a creepy cave where he finds an old lamp, boy’s monkey can’t keep his hands to himself and boy is left clinging on for his life at the entrance to said creepy cave. However, in this version, when Jafar steps on Aladdin’s fingers to prevent his escape, Abu doesn’t grab the lamp! How will Aladdin escape now?
As is to be expected from Braswell’s novels, the characters are phenomenal. Aladdin is the proud, eternal optimist that we recognise but with a strong ethical viewpoint that is introduced by the inclusion of his mother as a character.
Creating a new character, particularly Aladdin’s mother, could simply be a tactic to give some history to the charming thief. However, Braswell uses the matriarch to add depth to Aladdin: she tells him “don’t let how poor you are, decide who you are…you can choose to be something more”.
This is ultimately the lesson the genie would teach Aladdin if they were to meet and so I think it is very clever of Braswell to keep this element of Aladdin’s character. It allows us to witness Aladdin’s pride and strength through these instilled virtues: he has even lost friends over his views of when he considers it acceptable to be a thief.
Although I wouldn’t consider the genie a main character in this tale (he doesn’t get as much airtime as in the films): he remains a funny and flippant sidekick for the most part. However, in keeping with the tone of “A Whole New World”, he does use this humour to provoke our thoughts. The genie and Braswell divulge that there was once a whole race of djinn who have since died out. The genie has lost his home, his wife and his freedom and so, he rightly asks, who would stay sane under those conditions?
Jafar; Mr dark and twisty himself, is a whole other level of evil in this twisted tale. He does present some of the characteristics of the movie villain: power mad, desperate for everyone to love him and all that jazz; however, he also tortures the genie and plans to break the laws of magic in order to create an army of the dead. It’s all very game of thrones all of a sudden!
I know what you’re thinking: what about Jasmine? Surely, she isn’t all dark and twisty as well? The girl looks good in turquoise baggy trousers for goodness sakes!
Jasmine begins her journey as the typical naïve, sheltered princess she is always portrayed as: possessing no knowledge of the price of food or the struggles of her own people. However, Braswell manages to make even the live-action Jasmine appear over-dramatic and petty: she isn’t resisting marriage just because she doesn’t fancy random foreign prince number 3; she is resisting becoming a “baby making machine” and signing herself up to an early grave.
“A princess among men”, Jasmine and the reader soon realise that she has to step forward and become the hero of this tale. This is no small ask for someone who has never led an army or witnessed death before. Nonetheless, Jasmine is clearly up to the task: this is no weak princess trapped in an hourglass of sand, waiting to be rescued by a man. This is a Sultana!
The story of Aladdin typically conjures up images of love, magic carpets and romantic duets. Liz Braswell’s story of Agrabah does orbit around love, how could it not? However, “A Whole New World” explores the shades of grey in life: Street rats are not always bad, Princesses are not always good and magic is not always the solution. This is not a tale of love; it is a tale of finding strength in unlikely places; it is a tale that teaches us you don’t need magic to have a happy ending.
OK so I am going to start off this review with a really pedantic comment and I know I am being petty and that this will almost definitely end in a rant but… he does find the lamp! Of course he does! Aladdin is the diamond in the rough! He is literally the only one who can find the lamp. If he didn’t find the lamp nothing would happen: Jasmine would probably grow old with her tiger; Jafar would carry on hypnotising the Sultan; Aladdin would probably wind up arrested and this would be the shortest twisted tale in history.
*Ahem*
So, Aladdin finds the lamp. Let’s move past it, because if you have read my other reviews, you will know I love Liz Braswell: her twisted tales always wind up being my favourites as she always brings something completely unexpected to the novels. In the circumstances, I can forgive the tagline.
This review of “A Whole New World” comes at a time where Aladdin is everywhere: the live action movie was released in the UK just over a month ago and, I for one, loved it! With this in mind, I just had to re-read this twisted tale and shout about the wholly different Agrabah that it presents to the reader.
Braswell’s Agrabah is a raw, dirty, troubled cousin of the Agrabah we all know and love. I struggle to comprehend exactly how the movies did it, because both showed starving children, but we found ourselves simultaneously accepting and glossing over the poverty of the street rats. We have no such option in “A Whole New World”.
From starving infants; old men shovelling camel dung for coins; to Aladdin’s own mother dying of a wasting disease: this novel takes no prisoners in the Quarter of the Street Rats. However, those in the Palace remain blind to the struggles of the poor, with the Sultan playing with his golden toys whilst some of his citizens have no food or clean water.
The plight of the Agrabah people creates an undercurrent of resentment that runs all the way through Aladdin and Jasmine’s story. It is also a clear indicator of the identity of this novel: Braswell has taken all the romanticism of the familiar story and buried it in her own cave of wonders, leaving behind a highly political but incredibly powerful story.
The twisted tale starts off on a similar vein to both movies, boy meets girl, boy rescues girl from hand severing businessman, boy winds up arrested and transported to a creepy cave where he finds an old lamp, boy’s monkey can’t keep his hands to himself and boy is left clinging on for his life at the entrance to said creepy cave. However, in this version, when Jafar steps on Aladdin’s fingers to prevent his escape, Abu doesn’t grab the lamp! How will Aladdin escape now?
As is to be expected from Braswell’s novels, the characters are phenomenal. Aladdin is the proud, eternal optimist that we recognise but with a strong ethical viewpoint that is introduced by the inclusion of his mother as a character.
Creating a new character, particularly Aladdin’s mother, could simply be a tactic to give some history to the charming thief. However, Braswell uses the matriarch to add depth to Aladdin: she tells him “don’t let how poor you are, decide who you are…you can choose to be something more”.
This is ultimately the lesson the genie would teach Aladdin if they were to meet and so I think it is very clever of Braswell to keep this element of Aladdin’s character. It allows us to witness Aladdin’s pride and strength through these instilled virtues: he has even lost friends over his views of when he considers it acceptable to be a thief.
Although I wouldn’t consider the genie a main character in this tale (he doesn’t get as much airtime as in the films): he remains a funny and flippant sidekick for the most part. However, in keeping with the tone of “A Whole New World”, he does use this humour to provoke our thoughts. The genie and Braswell divulge that there was once a whole race of djinn who have since died out. The genie has lost his home, his wife and his freedom and so, he rightly asks, who would stay sane under those conditions?
Jafar; Mr dark and twisty himself, is a whole other level of evil in this twisted tale. He does present some of the characteristics of the movie villain: power mad, desperate for everyone to love him and all that jazz; however, he also tortures the genie and plans to break the laws of magic in order to create an army of the dead. It’s all very game of thrones all of a sudden!
I know what you’re thinking: what about Jasmine? Surely, she isn’t all dark and twisty as well? The girl looks good in turquoise baggy trousers for goodness sakes!
Jasmine begins her journey as the typical naïve, sheltered princess she is always portrayed as: possessing no knowledge of the price of food or the struggles of her own people. However, Braswell manages to make even the live-action Jasmine appear over-dramatic and petty: she isn’t resisting marriage just because she doesn’t fancy random foreign prince number 3; she is resisting becoming a “baby making machine” and signing herself up to an early grave.
“A princess among men”, Jasmine and the reader soon realise that she has to step forward and become the hero of this tale. This is no small ask for someone who has never led an army or witnessed death before. Nonetheless, Jasmine is clearly up to the task: this is no weak princess trapped in an hourglass of sand, waiting to be rescued by a man. This is a Sultana!
The story of Aladdin typically conjures up images of love, magic carpets and romantic duets. Liz Braswell’s story of Agrabah does orbit around love, how could it not? However, “A Whole New World” explores the shades of grey in life: Street rats are not always bad, Princesses are not always good and magic is not always the solution. This is not a tale of love; it is a tale of finding strength in unlikely places; it is a tale that teaches us you don’t need magic to have a happy ending.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated The Seals of Cthulhu in Tabletop Games
Jun 9, 2021
I don’t really know the origins/history of Cthulhu, but it has always been a theme that draws me in when I see it. Just the concept of these Elder Gods is creepy, yet exciting, and rarely will I turn down the chance to play a Cthulhu-esque game. That being said, when I stumbled upon The Seals of Cthulhu on Kickstarter, and checked out the page, I knew I had to back. Did my unfaltering fascination with the Cthulhu theme lead me astray, or did this game enhance my existing opinions?
The Seals of Cthulhu is a 2-player game of bluffing and betting in which players are trying to amass the most Control points at the end of 5 rounds. To setup for a game, each player decides which role they will take on: Cultist or Investigator. Each player will receive the 4 Influence markers and 5 Artifact cards corresponding to their chosen role for the game. Players decide on which of the 7 Elder Gods they would like to play with, and takes that card into their hand as well. Select a starting player, who will receive the Active Player Marker, and the game is ready to begin!
On your turn, you will select 1 card from your hand and place it face-down between yourself and your opponent. After selecting a card, you will place a number of Influence markers that you control next to the card, serving as your bid for control of this card. Once you have made your initial bid, your opponent has two choices: accept your bid (taking the Influence markers for themselves) and allowing you to gain control of the card, or they may make their own bid with Influence markers in their control. When bidding against your opponent, you must always bid at least 1 more Influence than what was just bid. This bidding war continues back and forth until one player decides to take the entire Influence bid, letting the other player gain the card. Once a bid has been accepted, the card in question is placed face-up in front of the winning bidder.
Here’s the neat part – each Artifact card is broken in half. At the start of the game, each player each has only half of each Artifact card in hand. So in the bidding process, you may be able to acquire the other half, and thus complete an Artifact. Each Artifact has a special ability that can only be used when completed. Having only half of the Journal isn’t doing you any good! Each special ability may only be used once per game, so choose your opportunities wisely. The game continues in this fashion, with players taking turns bidding and gathering artifacts, until each player has taken 5 turns. Players will then add up the total Control value of their face-up cards, and the player with the highest Control value is the winner!
At its core, the physical gameplay of The Seals of Cthulhu is pretty simple and straightforward. Pick a card, and bid on it. That’s where the simplicity ends, though, and strategy takes over. Both players start with the exact same cards in hand, but how and when you decide to play those cards is what drives the strategy of this game. If you seem too eager when making a bid, perhaps your opponent will vastly outbid you to keep you from getting that card. You can even start the bidding at zero, at the risk of letting your opponent control your bidding round. Are you able to balance the risk/reward of the bidding process in order to maximize your tableau?
And, as stated above, each complete artifact has a special ability that can be used to either benefit you or hinder your opponent. The game also comes with Cultist/Investigator cards that you may choose to use in a game. Both players select one of the characters to become for the game, and each character provides a special ability during the game. At the end of the game, the only cards that are scored from your tableau are the ones that are face-up. Certain abilities, from both Artifacts and characters, allow you to flip cards face-down, thus depriving the player of those end-game points. Another neat thing about this game is that even if a player runs out of Influence tokens, they can bid with cards they already control in their tableau. Every card has a certain Influence value, and can be added to bids. If your opponent chooses to accept the bid, however, you have to give up that card! It’s important to keep an eye on the cards your opponent already controls, so you don’t just accidentally help them complete an Artifact. The strategic options of this game are vast and variable, and keep both players actively engaged the entire game. The only downside of this game for me is that I wish there were more cards/Artifact options for each play. Perhaps, like the Elder Gods cards, sets that can be interchanged between games as long as both players agree on the cards. Just a little something that can change every game in small ways.
Components. Probably the first thing that drew me to this game on Kickstarter was the color scheme and art style. It looked spooky and vibrant, and it really adds to the immersion in the game. The cards themselves are all large and sturdy, and are clear to read. I did go for the custom sleeve add-on, and those are some high quality sleeves as well. The Cultist and Investigator tokens are shaped and screen printed, and just plain fun to have in hand, as well as the Active Player Marker. The game box itself is designed to look like a creepy old book, and closes magnetically on the side – all of which just makes the theme come more alive!
In general, I am not a fan of bluffing games, but to me, The Seals of Cthulhu feels more like a bidding game than bluffing. Is it my favorite 2-player game? No, but it’s one that I am happy to have in my collection. The gameplay itself feels fresh but fast, and the strategy can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. The inclusion of optional character roles adds to the variability of the gameplay, and the requirement to have both halves of an Artifact in order to use its ability adds an extra layer to your strategy. The color scheme and artwork is what originally drew me in to the Kickstarter campaign for this game, but the gameplay is what keeps me coming back. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a ritualistic 8 / 12. Check it out if you’re on the lookout for more 2-player games!
The Seals of Cthulhu is a 2-player game of bluffing and betting in which players are trying to amass the most Control points at the end of 5 rounds. To setup for a game, each player decides which role they will take on: Cultist or Investigator. Each player will receive the 4 Influence markers and 5 Artifact cards corresponding to their chosen role for the game. Players decide on which of the 7 Elder Gods they would like to play with, and takes that card into their hand as well. Select a starting player, who will receive the Active Player Marker, and the game is ready to begin!
On your turn, you will select 1 card from your hand and place it face-down between yourself and your opponent. After selecting a card, you will place a number of Influence markers that you control next to the card, serving as your bid for control of this card. Once you have made your initial bid, your opponent has two choices: accept your bid (taking the Influence markers for themselves) and allowing you to gain control of the card, or they may make their own bid with Influence markers in their control. When bidding against your opponent, you must always bid at least 1 more Influence than what was just bid. This bidding war continues back and forth until one player decides to take the entire Influence bid, letting the other player gain the card. Once a bid has been accepted, the card in question is placed face-up in front of the winning bidder.
Here’s the neat part – each Artifact card is broken in half. At the start of the game, each player each has only half of each Artifact card in hand. So in the bidding process, you may be able to acquire the other half, and thus complete an Artifact. Each Artifact has a special ability that can only be used when completed. Having only half of the Journal isn’t doing you any good! Each special ability may only be used once per game, so choose your opportunities wisely. The game continues in this fashion, with players taking turns bidding and gathering artifacts, until each player has taken 5 turns. Players will then add up the total Control value of their face-up cards, and the player with the highest Control value is the winner!
At its core, the physical gameplay of The Seals of Cthulhu is pretty simple and straightforward. Pick a card, and bid on it. That’s where the simplicity ends, though, and strategy takes over. Both players start with the exact same cards in hand, but how and when you decide to play those cards is what drives the strategy of this game. If you seem too eager when making a bid, perhaps your opponent will vastly outbid you to keep you from getting that card. You can even start the bidding at zero, at the risk of letting your opponent control your bidding round. Are you able to balance the risk/reward of the bidding process in order to maximize your tableau?
And, as stated above, each complete artifact has a special ability that can be used to either benefit you or hinder your opponent. The game also comes with Cultist/Investigator cards that you may choose to use in a game. Both players select one of the characters to become for the game, and each character provides a special ability during the game. At the end of the game, the only cards that are scored from your tableau are the ones that are face-up. Certain abilities, from both Artifacts and characters, allow you to flip cards face-down, thus depriving the player of those end-game points. Another neat thing about this game is that even if a player runs out of Influence tokens, they can bid with cards they already control in their tableau. Every card has a certain Influence value, and can be added to bids. If your opponent chooses to accept the bid, however, you have to give up that card! It’s important to keep an eye on the cards your opponent already controls, so you don’t just accidentally help them complete an Artifact. The strategic options of this game are vast and variable, and keep both players actively engaged the entire game. The only downside of this game for me is that I wish there were more cards/Artifact options for each play. Perhaps, like the Elder Gods cards, sets that can be interchanged between games as long as both players agree on the cards. Just a little something that can change every game in small ways.
Components. Probably the first thing that drew me to this game on Kickstarter was the color scheme and art style. It looked spooky and vibrant, and it really adds to the immersion in the game. The cards themselves are all large and sturdy, and are clear to read. I did go for the custom sleeve add-on, and those are some high quality sleeves as well. The Cultist and Investigator tokens are shaped and screen printed, and just plain fun to have in hand, as well as the Active Player Marker. The game box itself is designed to look like a creepy old book, and closes magnetically on the side – all of which just makes the theme come more alive!
In general, I am not a fan of bluffing games, but to me, The Seals of Cthulhu feels more like a bidding game than bluffing. Is it my favorite 2-player game? No, but it’s one that I am happy to have in my collection. The gameplay itself feels fresh but fast, and the strategy can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. The inclusion of optional character roles adds to the variability of the gameplay, and the requirement to have both halves of an Artifact in order to use its ability adds an extra layer to your strategy. The color scheme and artwork is what originally drew me in to the Kickstarter campaign for this game, but the gameplay is what keeps me coming back. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a ritualistic 8 / 12. Check it out if you’re on the lookout for more 2-player games!
Gareth von Kallenbach (977 KP) rated It: Chapter Two (2019) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
I’ve always been a fan of Stephen King movies, even some of those that were not particularly good or well received. For someone who is a fan you think that would inspire me to pick up at least one of his books to get a feel for what the author truly intended over the stripped down,
“Hollywood-ised” versions. I can’t put my finger on why I haven’t, it’s not because the size of many of his novels are daunting, it’s more that as a reader I’m just not a horror book fan. So when it comes to sitting in on a Stephen king movie I have to rely on the story by it’s modified merits then to compare and contrast what IT does well (or not).
Like many before me, my first movie experience of IT was the classic mini-series featuring an incredibly creepy (and non-CGI’d version) of Pennywise portrayed by the extremely talented Tim Curry.
I even went out and purchased the mini-series before I went to see the first chapter of the remake of IT, just to see how those two compared. IT: Chapter One introduced us in great depth to the teens of the original losers club. A group of misfits, who went on their own personal crusade to attack and kill the nefarious clown while saving one of their own. A strong pact was formed and an oath sworn that if IT ever returned to Derry that the group would once again join together to put a stop to IT for good.
IT: Chapter Two picks up 27 years later, the group has moved on with their lives, all except Mike (Isaiah Mustafa as an adult and Chosen Jacobs as a younger version) who has felt a sense of responsibility to watch over the town and research how to kill IT if IT were to ever return. A horrific killing of an adult at the fair and subsequent disappearances of children alert Mike that the plague that has befallen Derry for generations has returned to feed. Mike reaches out to each of the losers reminding them that something they have all feared has come to pass.
Each when notified experience a fear that is indescribable yet for some reason the groups memories of the past have become clouded.
The now adult losers (with several flashbacks featuring the original cast) come together to remind themselves of the past, and the pact they made to protect the future. Featuring a star studded cast, Mike, Bill (James McAvoy/Jaeden Martell), Beverly (Jessica Chastain/Sophia Lillis), Ben (Jay Ryan/Jeremy Ray Taylor), Richie (Bill Hader/Finn Wolfhard), Eddie (James Ransone/Jack Dylan Grazer) and Stanley (Andy Bean/Wyatt Oleff), must battle their lost memories, their fears and the very real danger if they are to save Derry and themselves.
IT: Chapter 2 continues the incredible character building that Chapter 1 began. Where each of the young actors were perfectly cast as their book counterparts, their adult versions could easily be mistaken for the grown-up versions. This is the area where IT shines the most, the story of the losers who have grown and moved away, yet still share the unescapable bond of friendship. While an older Bill struggles (much like Stephen King himself) to come up with good endings to his stories it’s what he writes at the end of IT: Chapter 2 that really sums up the movie as a whole. To summarize, there are no good friends or bad friends, there are only friends, and chapter 2 is an example of how you take a band of misfits and turn them into heroes.
Sadly, for all the things IT does from a character side, it tends to drag on and over CGI its monster side. Pennywise the clown (portrayed brilliantly by Bill Skarsgård) brings with him all the creepiness and fear that the movie needs, even posters of his maniacal self is promoting lawsuits in other countries due to his ability to scare small children. So, it seems a bit disheartening that the studio felt it was necessary to go overboard with their CGI budgets. Many scenes go from being creepy and scary to simply being silly when our favorite clown is turned into a giant naked hag like figure. This is where I felt the mini-series did a far better job, due to its limited budget and shorter time requirements it allowed for the viewers to imagine the evil and not see it thrown out for the world to see.
IT: Chapter 2 also drags out far longer than it needed to. Make sure you get your bathroom breaks in, because the film, not counting previews, is just about 10 minutes shy of being three hours. I’m normally not one to complain about the length of a movie, as I’d rather they tell the story they want instead of trying to compress it into a shorter run time. However, in this case, it seemed entirely wasted on an overabundance of clown mutations and an extremely drawn out final battle. It’s unfortunate, because one of the most unused (and potentially interesting characters) Henry Bowers (Teach Grant/Nicholas Hamilton) is given only a few minutes of screen time and ultimately adds nothing to the movie as a whole. As I stated earlier, I haven’t read the novel, but I have to assume that he played a far bigger role in the book.
As it stands in the movie, his character is both unnecessary and completely ineffective at whatever he was attempting to do. I think some of the time taken away from the battle scenes to flesh out his (or other supporting characters) would have be time better spent.
IT: Chapter 2 is a good movie, that with some reduced special effects and better time management is just shy of being a great movie. The story of the kids, now grown up, is one of forgiveness, bravery and love. It shows how true friendship can overcome distance and time and that those things never truly vanish, even if the particulars of what separated you in the first place is a bit fuzzy. Horror movies with outrageous budgets tend to lose the spirit of what makes a true horror movie scary…it’s rarely about the effects, and more about the imagination.
That’s what makes the books typically so much better than the movies, after all, each one of us imagines our own version of what truly scares us (although clowns tend to be scary regardless of how they are portrayed). IT: Chapter 2 provides a satisfying ending to a story that began a few years ago, it suffers a bit from its budget and its use of CGI effects, but it’s still a story of what all of us losers can accomplish if we band together.
“Hollywood-ised” versions. I can’t put my finger on why I haven’t, it’s not because the size of many of his novels are daunting, it’s more that as a reader I’m just not a horror book fan. So when it comes to sitting in on a Stephen king movie I have to rely on the story by it’s modified merits then to compare and contrast what IT does well (or not).
Like many before me, my first movie experience of IT was the classic mini-series featuring an incredibly creepy (and non-CGI’d version) of Pennywise portrayed by the extremely talented Tim Curry.
I even went out and purchased the mini-series before I went to see the first chapter of the remake of IT, just to see how those two compared. IT: Chapter One introduced us in great depth to the teens of the original losers club. A group of misfits, who went on their own personal crusade to attack and kill the nefarious clown while saving one of their own. A strong pact was formed and an oath sworn that if IT ever returned to Derry that the group would once again join together to put a stop to IT for good.
IT: Chapter Two picks up 27 years later, the group has moved on with their lives, all except Mike (Isaiah Mustafa as an adult and Chosen Jacobs as a younger version) who has felt a sense of responsibility to watch over the town and research how to kill IT if IT were to ever return. A horrific killing of an adult at the fair and subsequent disappearances of children alert Mike that the plague that has befallen Derry for generations has returned to feed. Mike reaches out to each of the losers reminding them that something they have all feared has come to pass.
Each when notified experience a fear that is indescribable yet for some reason the groups memories of the past have become clouded.
The now adult losers (with several flashbacks featuring the original cast) come together to remind themselves of the past, and the pact they made to protect the future. Featuring a star studded cast, Mike, Bill (James McAvoy/Jaeden Martell), Beverly (Jessica Chastain/Sophia Lillis), Ben (Jay Ryan/Jeremy Ray Taylor), Richie (Bill Hader/Finn Wolfhard), Eddie (James Ransone/Jack Dylan Grazer) and Stanley (Andy Bean/Wyatt Oleff), must battle their lost memories, their fears and the very real danger if they are to save Derry and themselves.
IT: Chapter 2 continues the incredible character building that Chapter 1 began. Where each of the young actors were perfectly cast as their book counterparts, their adult versions could easily be mistaken for the grown-up versions. This is the area where IT shines the most, the story of the losers who have grown and moved away, yet still share the unescapable bond of friendship. While an older Bill struggles (much like Stephen King himself) to come up with good endings to his stories it’s what he writes at the end of IT: Chapter 2 that really sums up the movie as a whole. To summarize, there are no good friends or bad friends, there are only friends, and chapter 2 is an example of how you take a band of misfits and turn them into heroes.
Sadly, for all the things IT does from a character side, it tends to drag on and over CGI its monster side. Pennywise the clown (portrayed brilliantly by Bill Skarsgård) brings with him all the creepiness and fear that the movie needs, even posters of his maniacal self is promoting lawsuits in other countries due to his ability to scare small children. So, it seems a bit disheartening that the studio felt it was necessary to go overboard with their CGI budgets. Many scenes go from being creepy and scary to simply being silly when our favorite clown is turned into a giant naked hag like figure. This is where I felt the mini-series did a far better job, due to its limited budget and shorter time requirements it allowed for the viewers to imagine the evil and not see it thrown out for the world to see.
IT: Chapter 2 also drags out far longer than it needed to. Make sure you get your bathroom breaks in, because the film, not counting previews, is just about 10 minutes shy of being three hours. I’m normally not one to complain about the length of a movie, as I’d rather they tell the story they want instead of trying to compress it into a shorter run time. However, in this case, it seemed entirely wasted on an overabundance of clown mutations and an extremely drawn out final battle. It’s unfortunate, because one of the most unused (and potentially interesting characters) Henry Bowers (Teach Grant/Nicholas Hamilton) is given only a few minutes of screen time and ultimately adds nothing to the movie as a whole. As I stated earlier, I haven’t read the novel, but I have to assume that he played a far bigger role in the book.
As it stands in the movie, his character is both unnecessary and completely ineffective at whatever he was attempting to do. I think some of the time taken away from the battle scenes to flesh out his (or other supporting characters) would have be time better spent.
IT: Chapter 2 is a good movie, that with some reduced special effects and better time management is just shy of being a great movie. The story of the kids, now grown up, is one of forgiveness, bravery and love. It shows how true friendship can overcome distance and time and that those things never truly vanish, even if the particulars of what separated you in the first place is a bit fuzzy. Horror movies with outrageous budgets tend to lose the spirit of what makes a true horror movie scary…it’s rarely about the effects, and more about the imagination.
That’s what makes the books typically so much better than the movies, after all, each one of us imagines our own version of what truly scares us (although clowns tend to be scary regardless of how they are portrayed). IT: Chapter 2 provides a satisfying ending to a story that began a few years ago, it suffers a bit from its budget and its use of CGI effects, but it’s still a story of what all of us losers can accomplish if we band together.
Lee (2222 KP) rated A Series of Unfortunate Events - Season 1 in TV
Jul 26, 2017
The latest adaptation of the thirteen books comprising ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’ makes its way onto Netflix, the last being the 2004 film starring Jim Carrey. I haven’t read any of the books, or seen the movie. However my daughter has, and she loves them (the books, not so much the movie). So, we sat down together to watch season 1, which covers the first four books in the series, with two episodes devoted to each book.
The unfortunate events all involve three children – Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire, whose parents are killed in a fire at the beginning of the story. They inherit a vast fortune, which will not come into their possession until Violet comes of age, and are placed in the care of Count Olaf, supposedly their only living relative. Olaf is only concerned with getting his hands on the Baudelaire fortune though and the story covers his hilarious attempts to do so, quite often involving ridiculous disguises and usually involving further unfortunate unpleasantness for the children. The children initially escape Olaf, moving between a succession of guardians and locations for each book, only for him to catch up with them once more.
Quite simply, the show is excellent. I have to admit that the first episode took me a little while to settle into but from the opening credits, urging you to ‘look away’, through to the big budget Burtonesque sets and vibrant colours, the attention to detail is simply incredible. Partick Warburton is Lemony Snickett, our narrator, wryly and brilliantly interjecting at various points to explain details and guide us through the story. Neil Patrick Harris is Count Olaf, in full on pantomime villain mode, and I absolutely loved the humour he brought to every single scene he’s in, whether he’s as himself or disguised as a scientist/sailor/woman! My only gripe is that he’s never quite villainous or evil enough, more along the lines of a harmless Dick Dastardly as each desperately elaborate scheme is so easily foiled. He’s aided along the way by a group of oddball goons, who are all part of his theatre group – more creepy than scary – but it doesn’t detract from the shows overall enjoyment, and I guess this is a family show after all! There are also a few good cameos along the way – Don Johnson as owner of the Miserable Mill, and Rhys Darby as his downtrodden partner, for example. All of the supporting cast are all brilliant, however the main stars of the show are the children. Superb young actors, right down to little baby Sunny who cutely talks in baby speak (subtitled for us to understand!), gnawing her way through anything she can get her hands on and surviving all manner of unfortunate events the children find themselves in.
Things get a little formulaic after a while – the children settle in with a new guardian, Count Olaf appears in a new guise and with a new plot, the children foil his plan and move on again. However, things change slightly for the final few episodes and throughout the season we gradually discover a deep background of secrets and conspiracies, which I’m sure will help keep the story moving for the remainder of the seasons to come. And there are a few twists and turns along the way too. Overall I was hugely impressed with the show, as was my daughter. It appears to be a very faithful adaptation of what is a hugely popular series of books, and I’m very much looking forward to what’s to come next.
The unfortunate events all involve three children – Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire, whose parents are killed in a fire at the beginning of the story. They inherit a vast fortune, which will not come into their possession until Violet comes of age, and are placed in the care of Count Olaf, supposedly their only living relative. Olaf is only concerned with getting his hands on the Baudelaire fortune though and the story covers his hilarious attempts to do so, quite often involving ridiculous disguises and usually involving further unfortunate unpleasantness for the children. The children initially escape Olaf, moving between a succession of guardians and locations for each book, only for him to catch up with them once more.
Quite simply, the show is excellent. I have to admit that the first episode took me a little while to settle into but from the opening credits, urging you to ‘look away’, through to the big budget Burtonesque sets and vibrant colours, the attention to detail is simply incredible. Partick Warburton is Lemony Snickett, our narrator, wryly and brilliantly interjecting at various points to explain details and guide us through the story. Neil Patrick Harris is Count Olaf, in full on pantomime villain mode, and I absolutely loved the humour he brought to every single scene he’s in, whether he’s as himself or disguised as a scientist/sailor/woman! My only gripe is that he’s never quite villainous or evil enough, more along the lines of a harmless Dick Dastardly as each desperately elaborate scheme is so easily foiled. He’s aided along the way by a group of oddball goons, who are all part of his theatre group – more creepy than scary – but it doesn’t detract from the shows overall enjoyment, and I guess this is a family show after all! There are also a few good cameos along the way – Don Johnson as owner of the Miserable Mill, and Rhys Darby as his downtrodden partner, for example. All of the supporting cast are all brilliant, however the main stars of the show are the children. Superb young actors, right down to little baby Sunny who cutely talks in baby speak (subtitled for us to understand!), gnawing her way through anything she can get her hands on and surviving all manner of unfortunate events the children find themselves in.
Things get a little formulaic after a while – the children settle in with a new guardian, Count Olaf appears in a new guise and with a new plot, the children foil his plan and move on again. However, things change slightly for the final few episodes and throughout the season we gradually discover a deep background of secrets and conspiracies, which I’m sure will help keep the story moving for the remainder of the seasons to come. And there are a few twists and turns along the way too. Overall I was hugely impressed with the show, as was my daughter. It appears to be a very faithful adaptation of what is a hugely popular series of books, and I’m very much looking forward to what’s to come next.
graveyardgremlin (7194 KP) rated Slide (Slide, #1) in Books
Feb 15, 2019
<b>2.5 stars
Slide</b> features an intriguing idea though the results left me with mixed feelings. The concept is awesome, but the execution? Yeah, not so much. The writing is serviceable, neither bad nor great and it didn't draw me into the story straightaway. Both the way it is written and the storyline reminds me of some of the books I read as a pre-teen/teen way back during the Pleistocene epoch, otherwise known as the 1990s, with authors like Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, Diane Hoh, Lois Duncan, Richie Tankersley Cusick, among others. It especially seems to fall right in between Pike and Stine. While the writing is more mature than Stine's, it's not quite as sophisticated as Pike's. The mystery is weak, and by the end, seems pointless as it's totally anti-climactic, over in a flash, like it was written just to finish the book up, and absurdly contrived. The whole ending is totally ludicrous and unbelievable. The clues leading up to it are obvious and not incorporated into the story well at all. These clues were so glaring they all but had a flashing sign pointing to them in cartoon-like fashion whenever they fell into the main character's path. Sylvia a.k.a. Vee wasn't written as a dummy, at first, but boy she was an absolute idiot about those clues and putting two and two together, or really much of anything until it slapped her in the face. While Vee is sympathetic, I can't say I felt much of anything for her, and even less for anyone else in book because of their lack of depth. No one is explained in any detail, either personality or looks, motivations, or whatever. Just a brief shallow summary if lucky. Speaking of.... What has happened in books today where there are no descriptions of how anybody looks, except "I have pink hair," "his blonde hair," or some other toss away adjective? I've seen it over and over again and all I'm left with is the visualization that these people have no faces, much like that episode of Doctor Who (The Idiot's Lantern). Frankly it's all rather creepy.
I feel like this could have been a great book if it was longer (the copy I read is only 250 pages of at least 1.5 spaced lines) and had much more depth. Add in a couple more suspects, motivations, etc., and maybe a little more information on Vee's "sliding" powers. Unfortunately it's only an "okay" read that's easy and moves at a rapid pace. I didn't hate the book by any means, it's just not one that'll stick in my head for more than a few days. On the plus side I love the cover composition and colors, so kudos to the artist(s). This works fine as a standalone, but is now part of a series, for some unfathomable reason. Frankly, I'm getting sick of every book that comes out, most usually in the YA genre, becoming a series. It's ridiculous how few standalone books there are anymore. Still, even with all my grumbling about the numerous series and everything else, I think I will check out [b:Impostor|13423265|Impostor (Slide, #2)|Jill Hathaway|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1341084724s/13423265.jpg|18870053], the second book in the <i>Slide</i> series, as it sounds interesting. Who knows, this might have just been the stepping stone to bigger and better things. Although if Vee is as stupid as she was in this one, I'm outta there.
Originally Reviewed: October 16, 2012
Received: Amazon Vine
Slide</b> features an intriguing idea though the results left me with mixed feelings. The concept is awesome, but the execution? Yeah, not so much. The writing is serviceable, neither bad nor great and it didn't draw me into the story straightaway. Both the way it is written and the storyline reminds me of some of the books I read as a pre-teen/teen way back during the Pleistocene epoch, otherwise known as the 1990s, with authors like Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, Diane Hoh, Lois Duncan, Richie Tankersley Cusick, among others. It especially seems to fall right in between Pike and Stine. While the writing is more mature than Stine's, it's not quite as sophisticated as Pike's. The mystery is weak, and by the end, seems pointless as it's totally anti-climactic, over in a flash, like it was written just to finish the book up, and absurdly contrived. The whole ending is totally ludicrous and unbelievable. The clues leading up to it are obvious and not incorporated into the story well at all. These clues were so glaring they all but had a flashing sign pointing to them in cartoon-like fashion whenever they fell into the main character's path. Sylvia a.k.a. Vee wasn't written as a dummy, at first, but boy she was an absolute idiot about those clues and putting two and two together, or really much of anything until it slapped her in the face. While Vee is sympathetic, I can't say I felt much of anything for her, and even less for anyone else in book because of their lack of depth. No one is explained in any detail, either personality or looks, motivations, or whatever. Just a brief shallow summary if lucky. Speaking of.... What has happened in books today where there are no descriptions of how anybody looks, except "I have pink hair," "his blonde hair," or some other toss away adjective? I've seen it over and over again and all I'm left with is the visualization that these people have no faces, much like that episode of Doctor Who (The Idiot's Lantern). Frankly it's all rather creepy.
I feel like this could have been a great book if it was longer (the copy I read is only 250 pages of at least 1.5 spaced lines) and had much more depth. Add in a couple more suspects, motivations, etc., and maybe a little more information on Vee's "sliding" powers. Unfortunately it's only an "okay" read that's easy and moves at a rapid pace. I didn't hate the book by any means, it's just not one that'll stick in my head for more than a few days. On the plus side I love the cover composition and colors, so kudos to the artist(s). This works fine as a standalone, but is now part of a series, for some unfathomable reason. Frankly, I'm getting sick of every book that comes out, most usually in the YA genre, becoming a series. It's ridiculous how few standalone books there are anymore. Still, even with all my grumbling about the numerous series and everything else, I think I will check out [b:Impostor|13423265|Impostor (Slide, #2)|Jill Hathaway|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1341084724s/13423265.jpg|18870053], the second book in the <i>Slide</i> series, as it sounds interesting. Who knows, this might have just been the stepping stone to bigger and better things. Although if Vee is as stupid as she was in this one, I'm outta there.
Originally Reviewed: October 16, 2012
Received: Amazon Vine