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Jason Williamson recommended Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) by Wu-Tang Clan in Music (curated)
Double Dragon Trilogy
Games
App
A groundbreaking, uber-popular game upon its arcade debut in 1987, Double Dragon is the undisputed...
Art of Fighting (2006)
Movie
Song Byungtae is an outcast at his school, whose daily routine consists of being pounded around the...
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Seven: The Number for Happiness, Love, and Success in Books
Apr 27, 2018
Seven by Jacqueline Leo
Rating: 3/5
Seven is an intriguing book about the phenomenon of the number seven, the appeal we feel for it, the psychology behind the appeal, and so on. Unlike some non-fiction, Seven is very readable and interesting, and is written in a way that doesn’t make it funny or witty, but doesn’t make it dry either. There is the perfect balance of information and interest to make it quite enjoyable.
Seven is filled with interesting stories, ranging from Tiger Woods’ religion to Josh Waitzkin’s martial arts experience to robot’s facial expressions. Seven has many lists of sevens that make a lot of sense—seven reasons why people still smoke, seven strategies for a successful start-up in a company, comparing the seven media items in 1956 to the thirty-five (at least) in 2008, and so on.
Seven is a thought provoking book that will hopefully give its readers insight into the psychological attraction to numbers, and also some valuable advice for day to day life.
Recommendation: Ages 12+. I would recommend reading a chapter here and there on a lonely boring rainy day (hey, it worked for me!) with a cup of hot tea at your side. Leave plenty of time for musing and meditation while you read this one, and be prepared to entertained by this read!
**Thank you to Anna from Hachette for providing my review copy!**
Rating: 3/5
Seven is an intriguing book about the phenomenon of the number seven, the appeal we feel for it, the psychology behind the appeal, and so on. Unlike some non-fiction, Seven is very readable and interesting, and is written in a way that doesn’t make it funny or witty, but doesn’t make it dry either. There is the perfect balance of information and interest to make it quite enjoyable.
Seven is filled with interesting stories, ranging from Tiger Woods’ religion to Josh Waitzkin’s martial arts experience to robot’s facial expressions. Seven has many lists of sevens that make a lot of sense—seven reasons why people still smoke, seven strategies for a successful start-up in a company, comparing the seven media items in 1956 to the thirty-five (at least) in 2008, and so on.
Seven is a thought provoking book that will hopefully give its readers insight into the psychological attraction to numbers, and also some valuable advice for day to day life.
Recommendation: Ages 12+. I would recommend reading a chapter here and there on a lonely boring rainy day (hey, it worked for me!) with a cup of hot tea at your side. Leave plenty of time for musing and meditation while you read this one, and be prepared to entertained by this read!
**Thank you to Anna from Hachette for providing my review copy!**
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated The Raid (2011) in Movies
Nov 22, 2018 (Updated Nov 22, 2018)
Mindblowing choreography (2 more)
Some of the best stunts I have ever seen in any film
Beautifully grim cinematography
Possibly The Greatest Action Movie Ever Made
What do you get when you take a Welsh director, a bunch of Indonesian stuntmen and a block of high rise flats and put them together? One of the greatest action movies ever committed to film apparently.I love a great action movie and I love tight, clever fight choreography and the Raid delivers this in spades. There is an extravagant display of martial arts on display here all shown with a realistic sense of brutality and grit that is a joy to watch onscreen.
Although the fight sequences and intense action are the star attraction in The Raid, Gareth Evans uses his actors and his camera work to make the audience feel an unfaltering sense of tension when necessary to balance the sheer, white-knuckle excitement of other scenes. I have watched this movie a ton and I have seen the subtitled version, the dubbed version and the original Indonesian version without subtitles. Even in the latter, when none of the characters are speaking any English, you can still easily follow what is going on, due to the expressive performances given by the cast.
Overall, if you are an action fan, you can't do much better than the Raid. It is an intense story told so well by a bunch of extremely talented people.
Although the fight sequences and intense action are the star attraction in The Raid, Gareth Evans uses his actors and his camera work to make the audience feel an unfaltering sense of tension when necessary to balance the sheer, white-knuckle excitement of other scenes. I have watched this movie a ton and I have seen the subtitled version, the dubbed version and the original Indonesian version without subtitles. Even in the latter, when none of the characters are speaking any English, you can still easily follow what is going on, due to the expressive performances given by the cast.
Overall, if you are an action fan, you can't do much better than the Raid. It is an intense story told so well by a bunch of extremely talented people.
The Laws of the Ring
Book
Thanks to a combination of physical prowess, indomitable will, and sharp and unconventional powers...
Dawn of the Dreadfuls
Jane Austen and Steve Hockensmith
7.3
Rate It
Book
At the opening of the international bestseller "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies", Elizabeth Bennet...
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Fearless (2006) in Movies
Sep 21, 2020
*Director's cut*
If this really is Jet Li's final wushu martial arts epic, it ain't too shabby of a one to end on. Sprawling, a bit messy, classical (often to a fault) - but Li is such a masterful performer that he virtually negates the abundance of flaws this movie does have. He encapsulates both extremes of this character's life with such a mesmerizing grace - he literally actualizes the transition from cocky little shit to anguished, sage older gentleman right before our eyes; when it's revealed that he killed his last adversary, and Li reacts as if he's been socked in the chest with a blunt object. A lot of pretty generic story elements in here (how many times have we seen the 'guy who becomes so obsessed with something that he alienates his family and friends' arc) but it's kind of nice to see an action epic that is more focused on interpersonality and doesn't turn into countless dry battles where the fighters are reduced to indiscernible specs on the screen a la 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯. But the fights are out of this *world* holy hell, the pretty much magic choreography alone makes this worthwhile. Still don't think this leans into the bombast *quite* enough, and the (forgivably) melodramatic middle section cuts from scene to scene far too often - but this whole thing is Jet Li's dancefloor, and we are merely privileged enough to be able to witness it.
If this really is Jet Li's final wushu martial arts epic, it ain't too shabby of a one to end on. Sprawling, a bit messy, classical (often to a fault) - but Li is such a masterful performer that he virtually negates the abundance of flaws this movie does have. He encapsulates both extremes of this character's life with such a mesmerizing grace - he literally actualizes the transition from cocky little shit to anguished, sage older gentleman right before our eyes; when it's revealed that he killed his last adversary, and Li reacts as if he's been socked in the chest with a blunt object. A lot of pretty generic story elements in here (how many times have we seen the 'guy who becomes so obsessed with something that he alienates his family and friends' arc) but it's kind of nice to see an action epic that is more focused on interpersonality and doesn't turn into countless dry battles where the fighters are reduced to indiscernible specs on the screen a la 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯. But the fights are out of this *world* holy hell, the pretty much magic choreography alone makes this worthwhile. Still don't think this leans into the bombast *quite* enough, and the (forgivably) melodramatic middle section cuts from scene to scene far too often - but this whole thing is Jet Li's dancefloor, and we are merely privileged enough to be able to witness it.