Search

Search only in certain items:

World Without End
World Without End
Ken Follett | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Contains spoilers, click to show
World Without End takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge, two centuries after the townspeople finished building the exquisite Gothic cathedral that was at the heart of The Pillars of the Earth. The cathedral and the priory are again at the center of a web of love and hate, greed and pride, ambition and revenge, but this sequel stands on its own. This time the men and women of an extraordinary cast of characters find themselves at a crossroads of new ideas—about medicine, commerce, architecture, and justice. In a world where proponents of the old ways fiercely battle those with progressive minds, the intrigue and tension quickly reach a boiling point against the devastating backdrop of the greatest natural disaster ever to strike the human race—the Black Death.

Back to Kingsbridge., Following the lives of the children from pillars of the earth. I loved this book so much even more than the first! Ken Follett has a way of dragging you into this world and just making you believe it's now and you seeing it all unfold. Caris is inspirational watching her fight her way through to be exactly who he wants be and letting noone stand in her way despite what they try and do! Gwenda has fought for absolutely everything in her life, her man , her work her children. Ralph is just absolutely vile never have I read about a character I despise more! Well philmore comes bloody close. So many lives to follow and lose yourself in. Highly recommended these books are just brilliant!!
Kingsbridge survives the plague so what's next??

The cathedral is still the centre of it all
  
40x40

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated American Horror Story - Season 8 in TV

Apr 29, 2020 (Updated Sep 10, 2020)  
American Horror Story - Season 8
American Horror Story - Season 8
2018 | Horror
Season 8 of AHS is one that I honestly struggled with.
Subtitled "Apocalypse", the show deals with the end of the world and endeavours to bring the antichrist, a now grown Michael Langdon (born at the end of season 1) face to face with the coven of witches from season 3.
I can't fault the ambition on display. I really like when different seasons reference each other so this first fully fledged crossover is enticing.
The execution is just a bit boring unfortunately.

I didn't really like any of the new characters. I like both Evan Peters and Sarah Paulson very much, but the characters written for them are so over the top. AHS had always had a hammy side, but this was just a little too much. The comedy aspect just didn't stick this time around. Even Kathy Bates get a pretty uninspired story arc, really nothing too different from her "right hand man" relegation in Freak Show and Hotel.
As I've said before, I'm also not a huge fan of Coven, so when they eventually turn up, I surprisingly felt relieved.
Michael Langdon is an exception. Cody Fern plays him with a genuine sense of evil, and was the highlight for me.
It's not all bad however, the return to Murder House was a great touch and it was great to see Jessica Lange and other season 1 characters return, even if it was all too brief.

It's hard to hate on it too much, as AHS always has it's tongue firmly in cheek, but Apocalypse just felt like a misfire - a great idea, but fumbled in practice.
  
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
2019 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Contains spoilers, click to show
I love the Conjuring series. I find it fascinating. I'm a little obsessed with Ed and Lorraine Warren so I watch anything to do with the universe. After the second Conjuring film, this is my favourite. It takes a lot for a horror to scare me and though it wasn't terrifying it made me jump a lot! That feeling like you're on a rollercoaster dipping down! I love it!!!!

It's set after the Conjuring (or inbetween depending on your source) after the Warren's have the doll secured in their occult museum. Mary Ellen is babysitting Judy, the Warren's daughter (who we learnt in the Conjuring shares her mothers gift) and her friend Danielle, distraught from the death of her father, pays a visit. The events after are pretty much all her fault. I kind of hate her for it despite understanding her reasoning. While the other films focus mainly on the demon Valek or the Annabelle doll demon (with the exception of the many spirits in the first conjuring) this film has a lot of the other never before mentioned spirits that the real Ed and Lorraine have written about. The White Lady, the Samurai, the Black Shuck. I was actually concerned for how they would portray the Werewolf after such disasters as teen wold or an American Werewolf in London but was happily suprised that they made it work quite well. Of course there is a semi happy ending and all is well, Judy gets her birthday and some friends and Danielle has closure but I'm very much looking forward to the third Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Released this year hopefully!!!!!
  
See No Evil (2006)
See No Evil (2006)
2006 | Horror, Mystery
4
5.0 (8 Ratings)
Movie Rating
See No Evil is a whole big mixed bag of average. The first 20-25 minutes are abhorrently terrible. It manages to tick every mid-00s horror cliché in its opening scene. It introduces all of its eye rollingly awful characters with edgy freeze frames and name cards.
Beyond the opening third, the whole film is riddled with seizure inducing quick zoom edits, and music video quality effects, and the whole runtime is draped in a durgy shit-shaded sepia tone. The characters never become remotely likable and suffer through the cringey dialogue without any sort of reprieve, and the worst one of the bunch even survives to the end credits, which is deeply upsetting.

Despite all of this however, I don't completely hate it. The gore for one is pretty solid, and looks mostly practical which is a huge bonus considering the era (and if you completely ignore the gratuitous spaffing of atrocious CGI during the final sequence). Glenn Jacobs, better known as WWE's Kane, cuts an imposing figure as the brutal as fuck villain, and I enjoyed the plots obvious homage to Friday the 13th. It's also mercifully clocks in just shy of 90 minutes, which makes it ideal for a quick dose of bloody horror if that's what you're after.

There are a huge amount of piss poor elements to See No Evil but it's certainly not the worst slasher out there. It's very typical of it's time, so it delivers exactly what you would expect and is definitely the best WWE produced film I've seen - the other being Leprechaun Origins, so not exactly a huge feat, but hey, let's take the wins where we can...