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Yoko Ono recommended Love Your Body in Books (curated)
Cruel Intentions (1999)
8.5
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Sarah Michelle Gellar (I Know What You Did Last Summer, Scream 2, TV's Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and...
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Bodyguard (2016) in Movies
Sep 20, 2020
Stately mixture of sentimental drama and bus-pass-bad-ass martial arts movie. Ding (Hung), a fat old man suffering from dementia, is befriended by the perky young daughter of a crook. When his various hi-jinks place her in danger from gangsters, Ding finds his award-winning kung fu skills are still there when he needs them.
The film may be a plea for consideration for dementia sufferers, but nobody watches it for that reason: people watch it for the sight of an obese man in his sixties battering the living daylights out of much younger stuntmen (much like every other recent Sammo Hung vehicle). However, the action sequences, though decent, are a long time coming, and most of the rest of the film is a slow-moving and sentimental melodrama which doesn't quite hit the spot despite decent performances from Sammo and Jacqueline Chan. (The tonal mismatch between all this and the bone-crunching, throat-slitting nature of the gangster scenes is considerable.) Fans of the big man may find this enjoyable enough to persevere with, but it's probably too slow and weird for everyone else.
The film may be a plea for consideration for dementia sufferers, but nobody watches it for that reason: people watch it for the sight of an obese man in his sixties battering the living daylights out of much younger stuntmen (much like every other recent Sammo Hung vehicle). However, the action sequences, though decent, are a long time coming, and most of the rest of the film is a slow-moving and sentimental melodrama which doesn't quite hit the spot despite decent performances from Sammo and Jacqueline Chan. (The tonal mismatch between all this and the bone-crunching, throat-slitting nature of the gangster scenes is considerable.) Fans of the big man may find this enjoyable enough to persevere with, but it's probably too slow and weird for everyone else.
Having previously read and enjoyed "Stalker" by Lisa Stone, I certainly wasn't going to pass the opportunity to read this one and I wasn't disappointed.
What we have in "Taken" is a complex and gripping story of the abduction of 8 year Leila whose life is far from perfect being the daughter of a mother (Kelsey) prostituting herself and fighting addiction who has already had her older children taken from her.
Told from multiple points of view, we get a real insight into all the main characters which is not as confusing as it sounds believe me ... it works really well and, I believe, it makes the characters more believable and memorable.
The pace is perfect, the plot is absorbing, despite it being a little unrealistic in parts, and I did get the twist fairly early on but it was such that I continued to question myself until it was revealed.
Overall, a thought-provoking and enjoyable read which deals with some difficult subjects that, sadly, are prevalent within today's society but without the usual gratuitous violence which made a refreshing change.
Thank you to HarperCollins UK / HarperFiction and NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased review.
What we have in "Taken" is a complex and gripping story of the abduction of 8 year Leila whose life is far from perfect being the daughter of a mother (Kelsey) prostituting herself and fighting addiction who has already had her older children taken from her.
Told from multiple points of view, we get a real insight into all the main characters which is not as confusing as it sounds believe me ... it works really well and, I believe, it makes the characters more believable and memorable.
The pace is perfect, the plot is absorbing, despite it being a little unrealistic in parts, and I did get the twist fairly early on but it was such that I continued to question myself until it was revealed.
Overall, a thought-provoking and enjoyable read which deals with some difficult subjects that, sadly, are prevalent within today's society but without the usual gratuitous violence which made a refreshing change.
Thank you to HarperCollins UK / HarperFiction and NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased review.
Judd Apatow recommended Terms of Endearment (1983) in Movies (curated)
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Farewell (2019) in Movies
Oct 2, 2019
Faintly oddball comedy-drama successfully pulls off that trick of looking like being about one thing but actually covering lots of ground. Chinese matriarch is found to have terminal cancer; in accordance with local tradition the family keep her in the dark about this but organise a fake wedding as an excuse to get together one last time. New York-based scion of the family Awkwafina, grand-daughter of the dying woman, is very doubtful of the ethicality of this.
You expect a film about grief, and to some extent this is one, although it's really a chronicle of grief foretold, as the characters anticipate a loss to come. It's also about cultural differences, family life, and the way in which people routinely tell lies to each other every single day simply in order to keep life livable. The film skates along over the top of all this and treats it all with a light and delicate touch. Not an absolute tear-jerker, I thought, but there are some very touching moments (then again, I may be emotionally atrophied, who knows). Not a huge amount actually happens but the film has clearly been made with intelligence and skill.
You expect a film about grief, and to some extent this is one, although it's really a chronicle of grief foretold, as the characters anticipate a loss to come. It's also about cultural differences, family life, and the way in which people routinely tell lies to each other every single day simply in order to keep life livable. The film skates along over the top of all this and treats it all with a light and delicate touch. Not an absolute tear-jerker, I thought, but there are some very touching moments (then again, I may be emotionally atrophied, who knows). Not a huge amount actually happens but the film has clearly been made with intelligence and skill.
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Jul 28, 2020
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Something She's Not Telling Us in Books
Jun 11, 2020
Charlotte is a doting mom who adores her five-year-old daughter, Daisy. She's also extremely overprotective and anxious, watching and worrying over Daisy's every move. Charlotte and her brother, Rocco, had a tough childhood. Rocco reacts by dating a variety of troubled women. But it seems like he's finally found someone special in his latest girlfriend, Ruth. Ruth really seems to love Rocco--and Daisy. But Charlotte rankles at how much Ruth likes Daisy and vice versa. Then Daisy is kidnapped from school, and Charlotte is convinced that Ruth took her. Is she right, or is it just Charlotte's fears rearing up again?
This was a twisty read that kept me guessing the entire time. It makes you work a bit to keep up, going back and forth between different perspectives and time periods, but it is interesting, dark, and compelling, with several good surprises thrown in. I was constantly switching my allegiances between Charlotte and Ruth, wondering which one (if either) I should trust. The ending felt a little abrupt and quick, but I would certainly read Bell's other work. 3.5 stars.
This was a twisty read that kept me guessing the entire time. It makes you work a bit to keep up, going back and forth between different perspectives and time periods, but it is interesting, dark, and compelling, with several good surprises thrown in. I was constantly switching my allegiances between Charlotte and Ruth, wondering which one (if either) I should trust. The ending felt a little abrupt and quick, but I would certainly read Bell's other work. 3.5 stars.
Jackjack (877 KP) rated The Final Girls (2015) in Movies
Apr 15, 2020
I love it
So me my sister and fiancé have been watching alot of films, I have seen this one a few times on Netflix and ordered it the other day, it finally came through and we all sat down to watch, my sister and fiancé said how shit they thought it was, me on the other hand loved it, everyone knows I love a budget comedy horror.
Sad opening when a mother is put down because she stared in a cheesy 80s slasher, now older and wiser she has a daughter max, you see there bond and relationship very fast and you see how it was taken away in one quick car crash, on the anniversary of Max's mums death she goes to the cinema to watch the film her mother was in, a fire breaks out and in a swift exit behind the screen a handful end up within the film. It's a comical fight to live and it pulls on plenty of heart strings as max is reunited with her late mother. I personally thought it was a brilliant cheesy, funny film and definitely worth the watch!!!
Sad opening when a mother is put down because she stared in a cheesy 80s slasher, now older and wiser she has a daughter max, you see there bond and relationship very fast and you see how it was taken away in one quick car crash, on the anniversary of Max's mums death she goes to the cinema to watch the film her mother was in, a fire breaks out and in a swift exit behind the screen a handful end up within the film. It's a comical fight to live and it pulls on plenty of heart strings as max is reunited with her late mother. I personally thought it was a brilliant cheesy, funny film and definitely worth the watch!!!
This Road We Traveled
10.0
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Drama, Adventure, and Family Struggles Abound as Three Generations Head West on the Oregon Trail ...
Historical > Historical Fiction Christian Fiction Historical Fiction Christian Adult