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Mike Wilder (20 KP) rated Road House (1989) in Movies
May 30, 2018
Very underrated
Contains spoilers, click to show
So what kind of film do you get when you have great one liners, bar fights, guns, knives, egos, strippers, blues music, a polar bear and a monster truck? You get one of the most enjoyable and entertaining films of the late 80's, Road House. The film follows James Dalton (Patrick Swayze) a cooler (bouncer) and the best in the business, as he takes employment with Frank Tilghman (Kevin Tighe) the owner of the Double Deuce in Jasper, Missouri. The bar is the roughest in town and he needs Dalton to clean it up. However corrupt business man and crime boss Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara) stands in his way. After the classic "chick flick" Dirty Dancing, Patrick Swayze was Hollywood gold. Women loved him and men wanted to be him. The film was full of romance. Then along came Road House, a complete opposite to Dirty Dancing, a little romance and loads of action. The film has a great cast including Patrick Swayze, Kevin Tighe, Ben Gazzara, Kelly Lynch, Marshall R. Teague, Red West, Kathleen Wilhoite, John William Young, John Doe, Kurt James Stefka, Keith David & Terry Funk. The cast works well together and it is full of great performances. Naturally Patrick Swayze at the height of his career stands miles apart from the rest of the cast as Dalton. A character that can hurt you with his words just as much as his fists. Tragically, 20 years later Swayze had his life cut short by cancer. His death is still a major loss to the entertainment industry, but his legacy will live on in the great performances and memorable characters he played. The film also a features a great performance by the late great blues guitarist Jeff Healey as Cody. It's the music in the film that goes a long way to achieving the right feel for the film. Everything works well from the characters, the music to the setting. Set in a rural area the scenery is breath-taking and it is used to great effect. But it's the fight choreography that stands out from many other films. Great bar fights are pretty much a thing of the past, but here they are full of action and humour just like the classic westerns. The one on one fights are brutal, mainly for the realism they portray. The script is awesome and full of classic lines mainly from Dalton and although many are cheesy, when he says it, it feels right. The director surprisingly hasn't made many films but the ones I have seen of his I really like and I know I am in the minority. See my review of Gladiator (1992) for more by this director. This is truly a great film, although very underrated. It is also one of my personal all-time favourites. There are a couple of versions of this so ensure that you see the USA or UK version released after 2002 as these are the uncut editions. So grab a few beers and a few friends, but this on a big screen and turn the sound way up for a really great movie experience.
Darren (1599 KP) rated The Ides of March (2011) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019 (Updated Sep 13, 2019)
Characters – Stephen Meyers is the ambitious campaign manager who is wildly considered one of the best in the business with his ability to handle the media and remain calm through any situation. His life is turned upside when he becomes a pawn in the dirty tactics involved in an election race and he will need to roll his sleeves up to fight back. Governor Mike Morris is the man Stephen is working for, he is the underdog in the race and seems like the perfect candidate, only he has secrets which could ruin his campaign. Paul is Stephen’s boss, the man who took a chance on Stephen, he values loyalty over anything else and doesn’t always trust the people around him. Tom Duffy is the campaign manager on the opposite side, he does like the ideas Stephen is playing and wants him on his team, he is the first one to play him into his own game. Molly is the intern on the staff that could bring down the whole campaign with her secret. Ida is a journalist that will do anything for a story which will get her on the front page.
Performances – In the performances we have a list of all-star actors that show us just how an ensembled cast can make a movie so enjoyable. We have Ryan Gosling taking centre stage, George Clooney playing a role her is perfect for and Hoffman and Giamatti that are just acting masters with these roles showing just how talented they are.
Story – The story here follows a younger political man o the verge of his biggest campaign victory, when he gets shown the darker side of politics. Now this is an interesting story as we see how the innocent man must get dirty to survive the game and how the seasoned veterans of the game know every trick that will come their way. The mix of this keeps us on the edge of our seat through the film, the weakness in the film comes from the non-Americans struggle to keep up with who is one which Republican or Democratic side of the discussion and what level this is for the presidential candidate races. Unless you know the American political system you might fall short knowing everything going on here.
Thriller – This film does keep us on edge through the events of the campaign, this is what we want and the twists in the darker side of the political system become clear by the end.
Settings – The film throws us into every potential political arena you can think of, we get plenty of discussions some in secret others in an open forum to just what goes on behind the scenes of a campaign race.
Scene of the Movie – This will be my campaign.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not understand the American political system.
Final Thoughts – This is a good political thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish, it has a brilliant cast that all shine too.
Overall: Keeps you guessing from start to finish.
Performances – In the performances we have a list of all-star actors that show us just how an ensembled cast can make a movie so enjoyable. We have Ryan Gosling taking centre stage, George Clooney playing a role her is perfect for and Hoffman and Giamatti that are just acting masters with these roles showing just how talented they are.
Story – The story here follows a younger political man o the verge of his biggest campaign victory, when he gets shown the darker side of politics. Now this is an interesting story as we see how the innocent man must get dirty to survive the game and how the seasoned veterans of the game know every trick that will come their way. The mix of this keeps us on the edge of our seat through the film, the weakness in the film comes from the non-Americans struggle to keep up with who is one which Republican or Democratic side of the discussion and what level this is for the presidential candidate races. Unless you know the American political system you might fall short knowing everything going on here.
Thriller – This film does keep us on edge through the events of the campaign, this is what we want and the twists in the darker side of the political system become clear by the end.
Settings – The film throws us into every potential political arena you can think of, we get plenty of discussions some in secret others in an open forum to just what goes on behind the scenes of a campaign race.
Scene of the Movie – This will be my campaign.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not understand the American political system.
Final Thoughts – This is a good political thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish, it has a brilliant cast that all shine too.
Overall: Keeps you guessing from start to finish.
Darren (1599 KP) rated The Village in the Woods (2019) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
Characters – Stephen Meyers is the ambitious campaign manager who is wildly considered one of the best in the business with his ability to handle the media and remain calm through any situation. His life is turned upside when he becomes a pawn in the dirty tactics involved in an election race and he will need to roll his sleeves up to fight back. Governor Mike Morris is the man Stephen is working for, he is the underdog in the race and seems like the perfect candidate, only he has secrets which could ruin his campaign. Paul is Stephen’s boss, the man who took a chance on Stephen, he values loyalty over anything else and doesn’t always trust the people around him. Tom Duffy is the campaign manager on the opposite side, he does like the ideas Stephen is playing and wants him on his team, he is the first one to play him into his own game. Molly is the intern on the staff that could bring down the whole campaign with her secret. Ida is a journalist that will do anything for a story which will get her on the front page.
Performances – In the performances we have a list of all-star actors that show us just how an ensembled cast can make a movie so enjoyable. We have Ryan Gosling taking centre stage, George Clooney playing a role her is perfect for and Hoffman and Giamatti that are just acting masters with these roles showing just how talented they are.
Story – The story here follows a younger political man o the verge of his biggest campaign victory, when he gets shown the darker side of politics. Now this is an interesting story as we see how the innocent man must get dirty to survive the game and how the seasoned veterans of the game know every trick that will come their way. The mix of this keeps us on the edge of our seat through the film, the weakness in the film comes from the non-Americans struggle to keep up with who is one which Republican or Democratic side of the discussion and what level this is for the presidential candidate races. Unless you know the American political system you might fall short knowing everything going on here.
Thriller – This film does keep us on edge through the events of the campaign, this is what we want and the twists in the darker side of the political system become clear by the end.
Settings – The film throws us into every potential political arena you can think of, we get plenty of discussions some in secret others in an open forum to just what goes on behind the scenes of a campaign race.
Scene of the Movie – This will be my campaign.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not understand the American political system.
Final Thoughts – This is a good political thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish, it has a brilliant cast that all shine too.
Overall: Keeps you guessing from start to finish.
Performances – In the performances we have a list of all-star actors that show us just how an ensembled cast can make a movie so enjoyable. We have Ryan Gosling taking centre stage, George Clooney playing a role her is perfect for and Hoffman and Giamatti that are just acting masters with these roles showing just how talented they are.
Story – The story here follows a younger political man o the verge of his biggest campaign victory, when he gets shown the darker side of politics. Now this is an interesting story as we see how the innocent man must get dirty to survive the game and how the seasoned veterans of the game know every trick that will come their way. The mix of this keeps us on the edge of our seat through the film, the weakness in the film comes from the non-Americans struggle to keep up with who is one which Republican or Democratic side of the discussion and what level this is for the presidential candidate races. Unless you know the American political system you might fall short knowing everything going on here.
Thriller – This film does keep us on edge through the events of the campaign, this is what we want and the twists in the darker side of the political system become clear by the end.
Settings – The film throws us into every potential political arena you can think of, we get plenty of discussions some in secret others in an open forum to just what goes on behind the scenes of a campaign race.
Scene of the Movie – This will be my campaign.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not understand the American political system.
Final Thoughts – This is a good political thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish, it has a brilliant cast that all shine too.
Overall: Keeps you guessing from start to finish.
Nicole Hadley (380 KP) rated The Girl Who Saved Christmas in Books
Jun 14, 2018
The Girl Who Saved Christmas by Matt Haig is a very charming story that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. It is the story of Amelia Wishart, who is the first child ever to receive a gift from Father Christmas. She never loses hope throughout the misery she encounters in her very young life and however much she would like to stop believing in magic and goodness, she never fully does. Her hope made that first visit possible, and, just a couple of years later, her hope might just save Christmas itself.
The story takes place in two locations that couldn't be more different: Elfhelm, where it is clean and only ever gets as cold as you want it to be, and in 1841 London, where it is dirty, cold and unfriendly place to orphans.
The characters in the story are quite fun. Amelia and Father Christmas both have strong personalities with a firm determination to get things done. Mr. Creeper is just as his name predicts, he is creepy and not a nice man at all. The guest appearances of a ruling head of state and a famous author are perfect. One passage was hilarious and it took me several minutes to sop laughing before I could continue reading. I was amused.
I recommend this book for read-a-loud's to children and for middle grade readers.
I received this book from NetGalley via Random House Children's Knopf Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.
The story takes place in two locations that couldn't be more different: Elfhelm, where it is clean and only ever gets as cold as you want it to be, and in 1841 London, where it is dirty, cold and unfriendly place to orphans.
The characters in the story are quite fun. Amelia and Father Christmas both have strong personalities with a firm determination to get things done. Mr. Creeper is just as his name predicts, he is creepy and not a nice man at all. The guest appearances of a ruling head of state and a famous author are perfect. One passage was hilarious and it took me several minutes to sop laughing before I could continue reading. I was amused.
I recommend this book for read-a-loud's to children and for middle grade readers.
I received this book from NetGalley via Random House Children's Knopf Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.
Lesley (60 KP) rated Lying in Wait in Books
Aug 11, 2018
Twisty, fun read!
Oh boy. Strap yourself in for this one.
I kept seeing this book everywhere, and couldn't WAIT to read it. So when it landed on a Kindle sale for $3.99, I snapped it right up. The first night I started reading it, it kept me up until around 2 AM. I couldn't stop.
I don't like to write book reviews that include any sort of synopsis. Not only because I personally prefer to go in blind, or semi-blind, but it's easy enough to glance at the description on the Goodreads, Amazon, or whatever page and I feel it to be quite redundant. So I will just say that, like most books I read, this is a murder story that doesn't really go the way you think it will. It's not a MYSTERY, because the opening detail reveals what happened and who did it. The interesting part of this story is how things spiral out of control from there, and how many peoples lives this very huge mistake shapes and changes.
I finished the book this morning and I feel...weird. Disturbed. Dirty. What a great book. There is some serious creepy Oedipal vibes happening between Lydia and her son, Laurence. I got kind of a V.C. Andrews sense from the writing style. I am haunted - the subject matter could have been spun very badly. It could have been trite, or oversexed, or cliche. Instead, Liz Nugent has struck a perfect macabre balance and woven a tale that will make you feel unsettled, fascinated, and shaken.
I kept seeing this book everywhere, and couldn't WAIT to read it. So when it landed on a Kindle sale for $3.99, I snapped it right up. The first night I started reading it, it kept me up until around 2 AM. I couldn't stop.
I don't like to write book reviews that include any sort of synopsis. Not only because I personally prefer to go in blind, or semi-blind, but it's easy enough to glance at the description on the Goodreads, Amazon, or whatever page and I feel it to be quite redundant. So I will just say that, like most books I read, this is a murder story that doesn't really go the way you think it will. It's not a MYSTERY, because the opening detail reveals what happened and who did it. The interesting part of this story is how things spiral out of control from there, and how many peoples lives this very huge mistake shapes and changes.
I finished the book this morning and I feel...weird. Disturbed. Dirty. What a great book. There is some serious creepy Oedipal vibes happening between Lydia and her son, Laurence. I got kind of a V.C. Andrews sense from the writing style. I am haunted - the subject matter could have been spun very badly. It could have been trite, or oversexed, or cliche. Instead, Liz Nugent has struck a perfect macabre balance and woven a tale that will make you feel unsettled, fascinated, and shaken.
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