Search
Search results
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women in Books
Apr 9, 2019
Kate Moore writes a compelling and heart wrenching story about a group of women from New Jersey and Illinois whose job it was to use radium paint to paint watch dials so they would illuminate at night. Little did they know, that every time they would put their brush in their mouth to get the point just right to paint the dial precisely, they were killing themselves. They were told that the paint was perfectly safe and there was no way that the paint could be causing all of their medical problems. But the companies knew that the radium was dangerous. Scientists and others in the radium plant used gloves and had lead aprons on, but the dial painters were not given that luxury.
Slowly the effects of the paint began to show on their bodies. Women who were in the prime of their life were losing their teeth, their jaw bones were falling out, it was difficult for them to walk, and no one could explain it. They went to several doctors and no one could find the reason they were getting sick. The radium companies refused to admit that they were at fault. For years and years, they fought for justice. Justice for women who were dying in their 20s. This book made your heart ache for these women.
While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was quite a slow read for me. I wanted to know if justice was going to be served, but it took a while to get to that point. This is quite an interesting story and this was the first that I had ever heard of it.
Slowly the effects of the paint began to show on their bodies. Women who were in the prime of their life were losing their teeth, their jaw bones were falling out, it was difficult for them to walk, and no one could explain it. They went to several doctors and no one could find the reason they were getting sick. The radium companies refused to admit that they were at fault. For years and years, they fought for justice. Justice for women who were dying in their 20s. This book made your heart ache for these women.
While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was quite a slow read for me. I wanted to know if justice was going to be served, but it took a while to get to that point. This is quite an interesting story and this was the first that I had ever heard of it.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) in Movies
Apr 20, 2019
Not bad, but nothing special
The first Ant-Man film was a pleasant surprise and much better than expected, but it was still lacking in some of the magic of the other Marvel films. Sadly Ant-Man and The Wasp suffers even more than the first.
I love Paul Rudd and I think he's the best thing about this film by far, his Scott Lang is nothing other than lovable. The second best things about this film are Michael Douglas who is surprisingly funny and of course Michael Pena, but sadly the rest of the cast fall flat. The bad guys aren't particularly threatening and the whole film lacks any real threat, tension or suspense. I'm also not a big fan of Hope. I have nothing against Evangeline Lilly but I find Hope a little dull and irritating and not endearing in the slightest.
The effects in this are good but after the first film there's nothing particularly remarkable. The plot just seems a bit generic and boring, and the film drags and it isn't even on for 2 hours. I just found the whole thing a bit meh, it's entertaining enough with just enough humour and nods to the other Marvel characters but it's nothing special. What I liked the most was the toy-like end credits sequence. Oh and the post credits scene is totally not worth it. This isn't a bad Marvel film, and certainly isn't anywhere near the likes of Iron Man 3, but it's just a good/average film lacking anything memorable. And that's not good enough when it has to follow something like Infinity War.
I love Paul Rudd and I think he's the best thing about this film by far, his Scott Lang is nothing other than lovable. The second best things about this film are Michael Douglas who is surprisingly funny and of course Michael Pena, but sadly the rest of the cast fall flat. The bad guys aren't particularly threatening and the whole film lacks any real threat, tension or suspense. I'm also not a big fan of Hope. I have nothing against Evangeline Lilly but I find Hope a little dull and irritating and not endearing in the slightest.
The effects in this are good but after the first film there's nothing particularly remarkable. The plot just seems a bit generic and boring, and the film drags and it isn't even on for 2 hours. I just found the whole thing a bit meh, it's entertaining enough with just enough humour and nods to the other Marvel characters but it's nothing special. What I liked the most was the toy-like end credits sequence. Oh and the post credits scene is totally not worth it. This isn't a bad Marvel film, and certainly isn't anywhere near the likes of Iron Man 3, but it's just a good/average film lacking anything memorable. And that's not good enough when it has to follow something like Infinity War.
Lilyn G - Sci-Fi & Scary (91 KP) rated The A-Team (2010) in Movies
Feb 7, 2018
Goofy fun!
Oh, good lord, this movie is just ridiculously fun. Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, and Quinton Jackson are pretty much the perfect cast for this movie. They were together so well, and watching them go in the midst of absolute chaos just had me laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes. The A-Team movie takes all the best parts of the original show (which I very vaguely remember), and ramps it up a notch with outrageous stunts and great special effects.
Quinton Jackson is a bit more baby-faced than the original Mr. T, but when he’s screaming in the helicopter and other places at Sharlto/Murdock? It’s enough to put an ear-to-ear smile on your face. He was probably my favorite person in the film. Liam Neeson – well, he plays a slightly more fun version of his normal characters, so there’s not much to say about him. Bradley Cooper was a treat – mainly when he was shirtless – playing Face. He’s not particularly memorable – except, again, when shirtless – but still did a great job. Sharlto? Sharlto was pure crazy in the best possible way.
In terms of the others, seeing a younger Patrick Wilson was a treat. His tantrum scene was great. Jessica Biel is, erm, a good straight shooter? Really, she was pretty unmemorable.
The action combined with the humor was perfect. I mean, I like Mission Impossible as much as the next adrelaline-driven female, but it takes itself too seriously. You need the giggles to be the icing on the cake. Hm, and a half-naked Bradley Cooper to be the cherry on top.
Quinton Jackson is a bit more baby-faced than the original Mr. T, but when he’s screaming in the helicopter and other places at Sharlto/Murdock? It’s enough to put an ear-to-ear smile on your face. He was probably my favorite person in the film. Liam Neeson – well, he plays a slightly more fun version of his normal characters, so there’s not much to say about him. Bradley Cooper was a treat – mainly when he was shirtless – playing Face. He’s not particularly memorable – except, again, when shirtless – but still did a great job. Sharlto? Sharlto was pure crazy in the best possible way.
In terms of the others, seeing a younger Patrick Wilson was a treat. His tantrum scene was great. Jessica Biel is, erm, a good straight shooter? Really, she was pretty unmemorable.
The action combined with the humor was perfect. I mean, I like Mission Impossible as much as the next adrelaline-driven female, but it takes itself too seriously. You need the giggles to be the icing on the cake. Hm, and a half-naked Bradley Cooper to be the cherry on top.
Kevin Wilson (179 KP) rated Back to the Future (1985) in Movies
Jul 23, 2018
Amazing plot (3 more)
Fantastic cast
Lovable characters
Interesting take on a time machine
1 of my favourite movies of all time!
This is a masterpiece and a classic.
The writing is spot on, the acting and cast are perfect and could never be replaced if there was ever talk of a remake (please dont)
The idea to have the time machine as a car was genius. I know the initial idea was a refrigerator which would have been weird so I'm happy they changed their mind. The effects of going up to 88 miles per hour and see the light flash in front of the delorian before it speeds through time was impressive. They got the look of the 50s spot on.
Michael j fox and Christopher lloyd give excellent performances. Their characters are lovable, fun and just perfect. Crispin Glover is as weird as ever but great as George while lea Thompson was also great Lorraine but not as believable as an older version of herself.Tom Wilson was perfect as the bully biff and was shocked not to see him in more stuff afterwards.
The plot is great. Go back in time, make sure your parents get together to make sure your born. This was great chance for many funny scenes involving Marty and his parents. But this is where the logic didn't make sense. He went through all this so why don't his parents remember him from when they were younger.
If you ain't seen this before, where have you been? It's a classic and a must see for anyone. It's funny, it's charming and it's geeky at times.
The writing is spot on, the acting and cast are perfect and could never be replaced if there was ever talk of a remake (please dont)
The idea to have the time machine as a car was genius. I know the initial idea was a refrigerator which would have been weird so I'm happy they changed their mind. The effects of going up to 88 miles per hour and see the light flash in front of the delorian before it speeds through time was impressive. They got the look of the 50s spot on.
Michael j fox and Christopher lloyd give excellent performances. Their characters are lovable, fun and just perfect. Crispin Glover is as weird as ever but great as George while lea Thompson was also great Lorraine but not as believable as an older version of herself.Tom Wilson was perfect as the bully biff and was shocked not to see him in more stuff afterwards.
The plot is great. Go back in time, make sure your parents get together to make sure your born. This was great chance for many funny scenes involving Marty and his parents. But this is where the logic didn't make sense. He went through all this so why don't his parents remember him from when they were younger.
If you ain't seen this before, where have you been? It's a classic and a must see for anyone. It's funny, it's charming and it's geeky at times.
Steve Fearon (84 KP) rated REC (2007) in Movies
Sep 5, 2018
28 Days Later in a stairwell
Possibly one of my favourite films, REC has everything that makes 28 days later such a monster of a movie, but it doubles down on claustrophobia and adds in the found footage aspect too, which makes the action just seem all the more immediate and in-your-face.
They do a great job of putting the viewer right there in the film, the performances feel genuine, and before long you are just along for the ride, the cameraman being your eyes and ears into a world when the infected become aggressive, murderous and frenetic, and the survivors are trapped inside an apartment building with no means of escape and no way to adequately defend themselves.
The film is paced marvelously, establishing its rules quickly, and without the need for huge amounts of clumsy exposition, and then begins an ebb and flow between periods of character recovery, followed by frantic action as the infected threaten to overwhelm the survivors.
There is just such a genuine and earnest feel to this film, reminiscent of Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the way that the glossy sheen common to well made movies is not present, and in its place is something which feels visceral, full of flawed but realistic characters.
If you like 28 days later or train to Busan, this is a must see.
They do a great job of putting the viewer right there in the film, the performances feel genuine, and before long you are just along for the ride, the cameraman being your eyes and ears into a world when the infected become aggressive, murderous and frenetic, and the survivors are trapped inside an apartment building with no means of escape and no way to adequately defend themselves.
The film is paced marvelously, establishing its rules quickly, and without the need for huge amounts of clumsy exposition, and then begins an ebb and flow between periods of character recovery, followed by frantic action as the infected threaten to overwhelm the survivors.
There is just such a genuine and earnest feel to this film, reminiscent of Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the way that the glossy sheen common to well made movies is not present, and in its place is something which feels visceral, full of flawed but realistic characters.
If you like 28 days later or train to Busan, this is a must see.
MelanieTheresa (997 KP) rated First Man (2018) in Movies
Oct 3, 2018
POV launch sequences (1 more)
Claire Foy
A bit slow (2 more)
A little long
Terrible sound mixing
I love a good space movie.
Everyone knows the story of the first moon landing - who, what, where, when, how - but this movie goes a bit deeper than the history books you've read. I'm not spoiling the ending by telling you they land on the moon; you already know this. What you may not know is what led up to that historical moment: the tests, the failures, the losses, the toll taken on the astronauts and their families during NASA's race to the moon. This movie does well in that respect. Claire Foy does an amazing job of making you feel with her and for her. The POV in the launch sequences is terrific. You almost feel like you're in the cockpit with Armstrong as he's launching into space. Really well done.
Now, the bad.
- It was slow, and probably too long.
- Ryan Gosling has exactly one facial expression throughout the entire movie. He goes through the proper emotions, but his face does not. Even when he's crying over the death of his daughter, the only thing that changes about his face is the added tears.
- The sound mixing was terrible. The effects were turned up far too high and the voices far too low, to the point where I sometimes couldn't hear what was being said, and as a result I definitely missed some partial conversations. This is one of my biggest movie pet peeves.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie, but it's not one I'd need to watch again down the road.
Now, the bad.
- It was slow, and probably too long.
- Ryan Gosling has exactly one facial expression throughout the entire movie. He goes through the proper emotions, but his face does not. Even when he's crying over the death of his daughter, the only thing that changes about his face is the added tears.
- The sound mixing was terrible. The effects were turned up far too high and the voices far too low, to the point where I sometimes couldn't hear what was being said, and as a result I definitely missed some partial conversations. This is one of my biggest movie pet peeves.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie, but it's not one I'd need to watch again down the road.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated The Walking Dead - Season 8 in TV
Dec 23, 2019
Season 8 of The Walking Dead is where the show completely lost me for a good while.
I slowly limped through the first half of it, and had to literally talk myself into watching the next episode.
The main reason for this is just how painfully boring it's all is.
The much anticipated 'All Out War' storyline from the comic series is in full swing, after being set up through season 7, and every episode feels like it's just uninspired gun fight after uninspired gun fight. Any episodes in the past seasons that featured this kind of action felt exciting and tense. It happened rarely so was impactful when they came along.
Here, it just feels a lot like dead weight.
I also felt the writers saw TWD as a much artier project than it actually is at this point - there only so much of main characters staring deeply into the horizon, or at the sun that I care to watch.
Even character deaths feel dragged out and testing and so many
of the gory practical effects have been replaced by sub par CGI now, that it just doesn't even warrant a reaction. It's a sad state of affairs.
It's not all bad, I guess? All of the acting talent are still stellar, they're just not being given much to do. Although the Negan storyline failed to light up the small screen for me, I still enjoy him as a character, and JDM as an actor. There are still some entertaining set pieces strewn throughout, but the overall experience is a shadow of it's former self.
I slowly limped through the first half of it, and had to literally talk myself into watching the next episode.
The main reason for this is just how painfully boring it's all is.
The much anticipated 'All Out War' storyline from the comic series is in full swing, after being set up through season 7, and every episode feels like it's just uninspired gun fight after uninspired gun fight. Any episodes in the past seasons that featured this kind of action felt exciting and tense. It happened rarely so was impactful when they came along.
Here, it just feels a lot like dead weight.
I also felt the writers saw TWD as a much artier project than it actually is at this point - there only so much of main characters staring deeply into the horizon, or at the sun that I care to watch.
Even character deaths feel dragged out and testing and so many
of the gory practical effects have been replaced by sub par CGI now, that it just doesn't even warrant a reaction. It's a sad state of affairs.
It's not all bad, I guess? All of the acting talent are still stellar, they're just not being given much to do. Although the Negan storyline failed to light up the small screen for me, I still enjoy him as a character, and JDM as an actor. There are still some entertaining set pieces strewn throughout, but the overall experience is a shadow of it's former self.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated The Witcher in TV
Dec 29, 2019
Better than expected
I know nothing about The Witcher books or games, so I went into this Netflix series with an open mind and overall I was pleasantly surprised at how this turned out.
Henry Cavill is a great choice as Geralt, charming and witty yet threatening, and let's just say I also wasnt complaining about the amount of time he spends with his top off. The effects in this are very good and the action and fight scenes are well choreographed and wonderfully gory and bloody. The whole show just looks great, from the costumes to the scenery. I did find the diverging timelines of the three main characters a little confusing to begin with and I had to really pay attention to figure out where everything was up to. The lives of Ciri and Yennefer are interesting and Yennefer especially is a wonderfully smart and intriguing character, however I did feel a little frustrated that we spend so much time across the episodes with both of them. Whilst they both tie into the main plot, for me Geralt was the most engaging thing about this show. His monster hunting and interactions with other characters, especially his rather funny relationship with Jaskier, were what really kept me entertained and I may have rated this a little higher had he featured a lot more.
Oh and the ending was just ridiculously frustrating and such an anticlimax. Overall though this is a surprisingly good watch and I'll be interested to watch the second series, I'm just sad this won't be for a few years yet!
Henry Cavill is a great choice as Geralt, charming and witty yet threatening, and let's just say I also wasnt complaining about the amount of time he spends with his top off. The effects in this are very good and the action and fight scenes are well choreographed and wonderfully gory and bloody. The whole show just looks great, from the costumes to the scenery. I did find the diverging timelines of the three main characters a little confusing to begin with and I had to really pay attention to figure out where everything was up to. The lives of Ciri and Yennefer are interesting and Yennefer especially is a wonderfully smart and intriguing character, however I did feel a little frustrated that we spend so much time across the episodes with both of them. Whilst they both tie into the main plot, for me Geralt was the most engaging thing about this show. His monster hunting and interactions with other characters, especially his rather funny relationship with Jaskier, were what really kept me entertained and I may have rated this a little higher had he featured a lot more.
Oh and the ending was just ridiculously frustrating and such an anticlimax. Overall though this is a surprisingly good watch and I'll be interested to watch the second series, I'm just sad this won't be for a few years yet!
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Kevin Hart: What Now? (2016) in Movies
Jul 15, 2019
Kevin Hart returns to theaters with his latest concert movie What Now The film features his concert held in Philadelphia, PA where over 50,000 adoring fans sold out Lincoln Financial Field.
Kevin Hart does more than answer the question as to “What Now?” He brings forth new material about his family, pop culture, relationships, and the quirky interaction that we all engage in during our daily lives. His routine offers fans and comedy lovers the opportunity to sit back and let the laughs take over.
Hart demonstrates with the turnout, material, and ability to keep a full house entertained that he is stand-up comedy’s rock star.
No one else is even close right now in being able to bring audiences of different cultures, races, lifestyles, professions, and backgrounds together in order to laugh at all of the things that make us uncomfortable or what we probably shouldn’t laugh at under normal circumstances. For Hart, nothing is out of bounds or considered safe.
Fans and newcomers will not be disappointed with Hart’s newest performance. The presentation of the act incorporates an interactive stage and special effects that allow the jokes to come to life.
At times, I found myself more interested in the technological aspects than the jokes. They were able to build off of each other and enhance the performance, even for the few jokes that miss the mark.
This film however, does not. There are more than enough quotes and lines that audiences will find themselves repeating or using in casual conversation. The performance is fresh and ensures that we will continue to see Kevin Hart for years to come.
Kevin Hart does more than answer the question as to “What Now?” He brings forth new material about his family, pop culture, relationships, and the quirky interaction that we all engage in during our daily lives. His routine offers fans and comedy lovers the opportunity to sit back and let the laughs take over.
Hart demonstrates with the turnout, material, and ability to keep a full house entertained that he is stand-up comedy’s rock star.
No one else is even close right now in being able to bring audiences of different cultures, races, lifestyles, professions, and backgrounds together in order to laugh at all of the things that make us uncomfortable or what we probably shouldn’t laugh at under normal circumstances. For Hart, nothing is out of bounds or considered safe.
Fans and newcomers will not be disappointed with Hart’s newest performance. The presentation of the act incorporates an interactive stage and special effects that allow the jokes to come to life.
At times, I found myself more interested in the technological aspects than the jokes. They were able to build off of each other and enhance the performance, even for the few jokes that miss the mark.
This film however, does not. There are more than enough quotes and lines that audiences will find themselves repeating or using in casual conversation. The performance is fresh and ensures that we will continue to see Kevin Hart for years to come.