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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated I Feel Pretty (2018) in Movies
Jul 8, 2019
Renee (Amy Schumer), a later, twenty something who lives in New York City. She works in a small division Lily LeClaire, a high end beauty product company. From a tiny ramshackle office, she dreams and one day working at the glamorous HQ in downtown Manhattan. She finds out that there is a position available, but she does not think that she is good enough to get the job.
In her quest to look better and feel better, she enrolls in Soul Cycle class at her neighborhood gym. Within minutes, she had injured herself and her pride. Smarting from the injury, we see her looking into the mirror with disdain and self loathing. Schumer conveys the discomfort, embarrassment and self-doubt that every one of us have felt at some point in our lives.
Renee does not give up, going to class the second day. In her enthusiasm, she forgets to tighten a bolt and is taken down by the bike. The event immediately changes how she looks at herself, immediately seeing her visage as everything she would want. The film highlights the all human issue of self-confidence, struggles of imperfection with our bodies and our overall self image, how our own perceptions are our own mental constructs than reality.
Schumer is able to convey the negative thoughts we all have felt about ourselves when we don’t like how we look. However, externally, the self negativity is not noticed.. We can be own worst critic and take down our own self esteem without the help of bullies. Even though Renee’s self image is altered by an accident, her humor, intelligence doesn’t change, her extraverted confidence shines the light directly on her attitude.
There were some moments where I expected a makeover montage. Cause, good 80’s alternative soundtrack and it’s a film about a woman’s lack of self esteem. Surprisingly, it was devoid of any fancy changing room quick changes. The movie addressed how we all have moments where our levels of self confidence and self esteem are reduced due to our own ideas because we all can be our own worst critic.
The story had its moments where I would have liked to see more depth and connection in Renee’s relationships with her best friends Vivian (Aidy Bryant) and Jane (Busy Phillips). These are friends that have known each other for years and I would have like to see a little of the psychic shorthand friends develop over years of knowing each other. I did like how Vivian and Jane didn’t let Renee get away with behaving as an ass. They are not mean in their rejection which is more true to honest friendships.
Amy Schumer’s humor at times can make us a bit uncomfortable because she holds the mirror up to us to teach us how to laugh at ourselves and to show that we are not alone in all these feelings. I enjoyed the movie, even though it would have been good to see more depth in the relationships. It is a perfect Girls Night Out film
In her quest to look better and feel better, she enrolls in Soul Cycle class at her neighborhood gym. Within minutes, she had injured herself and her pride. Smarting from the injury, we see her looking into the mirror with disdain and self loathing. Schumer conveys the discomfort, embarrassment and self-doubt that every one of us have felt at some point in our lives.
Renee does not give up, going to class the second day. In her enthusiasm, she forgets to tighten a bolt and is taken down by the bike. The event immediately changes how she looks at herself, immediately seeing her visage as everything she would want. The film highlights the all human issue of self-confidence, struggles of imperfection with our bodies and our overall self image, how our own perceptions are our own mental constructs than reality.
Schumer is able to convey the negative thoughts we all have felt about ourselves when we don’t like how we look. However, externally, the self negativity is not noticed.. We can be own worst critic and take down our own self esteem without the help of bullies. Even though Renee’s self image is altered by an accident, her humor, intelligence doesn’t change, her extraverted confidence shines the light directly on her attitude.
There were some moments where I expected a makeover montage. Cause, good 80’s alternative soundtrack and it’s a film about a woman’s lack of self esteem. Surprisingly, it was devoid of any fancy changing room quick changes. The movie addressed how we all have moments where our levels of self confidence and self esteem are reduced due to our own ideas because we all can be our own worst critic.
The story had its moments where I would have liked to see more depth and connection in Renee’s relationships with her best friends Vivian (Aidy Bryant) and Jane (Busy Phillips). These are friends that have known each other for years and I would have like to see a little of the psychic shorthand friends develop over years of knowing each other. I did like how Vivian and Jane didn’t let Renee get away with behaving as an ass. They are not mean in their rejection which is more true to honest friendships.
Amy Schumer’s humor at times can make us a bit uncomfortable because she holds the mirror up to us to teach us how to laugh at ourselves and to show that we are not alone in all these feelings. I enjoyed the movie, even though it would have been good to see more depth in the relationships. It is a perfect Girls Night Out film
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Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Beasts Made of Night in Books
Apr 19, 2018
Terrible characters (3 more)
Lack of explanation of terms
Stupid cliffhanger
Confusing geography
So this Nigerian-influenced fantasy made enough of a splash when it was released in October that I JUST got it in my hands from the library. That long wait....was not actually justified, sadly. The cover is GORGEOUS and the concept is really, really cool - the execution is lacking. I can tell that the author had the world pretty fleshed out in his mind, from the geography to the vocabulary - but he didn't actually pass that knowledge on to the reader. Kos is a walled city, but I'm not sure whether the Palace is within the walls or not? In one scene our protagonist LEAPS out of the castle and runs back the city - but in another scene he mentions that looking out the castle wall, Kos fits behind his fingernail. Kos is made up of several neighborhood plus a market - it's not small. So either his fingernail is HUGE or Kos is a pretty decent distance away. But it's written as if it only takes him about ten minutes to run there? Not to mention that he cracked a rib in the room that he leaped from (which is never mentioned again).
Oh and he winds up landing in an ivy maze out of nowhere - he couldn't see it from the palace? Let's see....the King regularly bombards neighborhoods with catapults in what's called a "baptism" but the people haven't revolted against this, for some reason. They talk about something called a "kanselo" but never define it. I -think- it's like an organized group or coalition, but I'm really not entirely sure.
The male protagonist treats every woman his age as a potential love interest, debating whether to give them his heart-stone, or whether people will think he's already given one girl or another his heart-stone - but never stops to ask if the girls are interested in HIM that way. Because of COURSE they would be, right? He's the Sky-Fist! The Lightbringer! The one whose tattoos never fade! (Eating sin-beasts causes a black tattoo to appear on your skin - on most sin-eaters these fade eventually.) Also he's just DUMB. He recalls that the sin-eater who ate his mother's sin had a certain tattoo, and when he runs across her years later, it takes him three or four encounters before realizing it's the same sin-eater. (The tattoo is a spider. Covering her FACE. It hasn't faded.) He makes stupid decisions - after nightmares of one love-interest being attacked by sin-beasts, he LEAVES HER SURROUNDED BY THEM to go run out into the city. He has at least FIVE love interests in this book. And only ONE of them seems interested in him in return.
I really wanted to like this book. The concept of sin-eating is great. But the main character and all the one-dimensional characters that surrounded him, along with the confusing geography, just turned me off. And I'm not even getting into the "ending." Yeah. Definitely throwing quotes on that because that was not an ending. The book just stops.
Skip this. It was a terrible book wrapped in a deceptively pretty package.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Oh and he winds up landing in an ivy maze out of nowhere - he couldn't see it from the palace? Let's see....the King regularly bombards neighborhoods with catapults in what's called a "baptism" but the people haven't revolted against this, for some reason. They talk about something called a "kanselo" but never define it. I -think- it's like an organized group or coalition, but I'm really not entirely sure.
The male protagonist treats every woman his age as a potential love interest, debating whether to give them his heart-stone, or whether people will think he's already given one girl or another his heart-stone - but never stops to ask if the girls are interested in HIM that way. Because of COURSE they would be, right? He's the Sky-Fist! The Lightbringer! The one whose tattoos never fade! (Eating sin-beasts causes a black tattoo to appear on your skin - on most sin-eaters these fade eventually.) Also he's just DUMB. He recalls that the sin-eater who ate his mother's sin had a certain tattoo, and when he runs across her years later, it takes him three or four encounters before realizing it's the same sin-eater. (The tattoo is a spider. Covering her FACE. It hasn't faded.) He makes stupid decisions - after nightmares of one love-interest being attacked by sin-beasts, he LEAVES HER SURROUNDED BY THEM to go run out into the city. He has at least FIVE love interests in this book. And only ONE of them seems interested in him in return.
I really wanted to like this book. The concept of sin-eating is great. But the main character and all the one-dimensional characters that surrounded him, along with the confusing geography, just turned me off. And I'm not even getting into the "ending." Yeah. Definitely throwing quotes on that because that was not an ending. The book just stops.
Skip this. It was a terrible book wrapped in a deceptively pretty package.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Welcome To... in Tabletop Games
Jun 12, 2019
Are there still city planners? They go by a different name nowadays right? Civil engineers? Am I thinking of the wrong thing? In any case, you get to be one of those people in Welcome To…, which has one of the strangest titles for a game, especially when you look at that box cover. Are you gonna go all in on pools? Parks? Bisses (ooh I’m not too sure about this one)? Plan out your best three-street neighborhood in this light and fun roll cardflip-and-write game.
Here is a quick overview of game play without going through the whole rule book. Divide the shuffled card deck into three equal piles. Flip over the top card of each pile. You now have setup the game and revealed the first three combinations of cards you can use on your turn (see play pic at end of this post). Do you like that 3 and Pool combo? Cool. Write a 3 on the roof of a house on any of the streets on your sheet and mark a pool there too. FLIP all the cards again. Wanna take that 9 and Park? Okay. Mark a 9 on a house, Graffitimaster, and beautify your hood with an upgraded park. FLIP. Repeat. There are other cards that will be revealed as the game goes on, but I am simplifying two turns for you.
That’s the game. Everyone takes turns at the same time using the three card combinations presented to try to get the most points for having the best barrio. There are bonus goal cards that can be achieved too, but they are completely optional (akin to building the Wonders in 7 Wonders). Have I won this game yet in all my plays? Yes, once. But it’s not really about winning or losing. You are essentially playing against yourself and just trying to get the best score you can. It’s just that the other players are doing the same thing and you have to compare scores at the end.
Okay, the good and bad. Bad first – the pencils. The game comes with several golf pencils that just don’t cut it on the papers provided. Grab a good pen or marker to see your marks. The other components in the game are great. The game play is quick, as long as you don’t suffer from AP and have to carefully plan out every possibility for every possible combination presented. That can really slow the game down. Luckily, I don’t suffer from that and most of the time I probably need to do a more thorough job thinking through my turns, but that’s my burden to bear.
Aside from those items, the game is really good. I don’t own a large number of roll-and-writes somehow (and I WAS alive during 2018), so this was a great pickup for me as a variation in the genre. Okay fine, I also Kickstarted the expansion with the different themed pages, so I’m also looking forward to that fulfillment. All in all the game is very solid, and different enough to all my other games that I will be keeping it and trying to outscore my last play every time. We at Purple Phoenix Games give this a well-planned 19 / 24.
https://purplephoenixgames.wordpress.com/2019/02/04/welcome-to-review/
Here is a quick overview of game play without going through the whole rule book. Divide the shuffled card deck into three equal piles. Flip over the top card of each pile. You now have setup the game and revealed the first three combinations of cards you can use on your turn (see play pic at end of this post). Do you like that 3 and Pool combo? Cool. Write a 3 on the roof of a house on any of the streets on your sheet and mark a pool there too. FLIP all the cards again. Wanna take that 9 and Park? Okay. Mark a 9 on a house, Graffitimaster, and beautify your hood with an upgraded park. FLIP. Repeat. There are other cards that will be revealed as the game goes on, but I am simplifying two turns for you.
That’s the game. Everyone takes turns at the same time using the three card combinations presented to try to get the most points for having the best barrio. There are bonus goal cards that can be achieved too, but they are completely optional (akin to building the Wonders in 7 Wonders). Have I won this game yet in all my plays? Yes, once. But it’s not really about winning or losing. You are essentially playing against yourself and just trying to get the best score you can. It’s just that the other players are doing the same thing and you have to compare scores at the end.
Okay, the good and bad. Bad first – the pencils. The game comes with several golf pencils that just don’t cut it on the papers provided. Grab a good pen or marker to see your marks. The other components in the game are great. The game play is quick, as long as you don’t suffer from AP and have to carefully plan out every possibility for every possible combination presented. That can really slow the game down. Luckily, I don’t suffer from that and most of the time I probably need to do a more thorough job thinking through my turns, but that’s my burden to bear.
Aside from those items, the game is really good. I don’t own a large number of roll-and-writes somehow (and I WAS alive during 2018), so this was a great pickup for me as a variation in the genre. Okay fine, I also Kickstarted the expansion with the different themed pages, so I’m also looking forward to that fulfillment. All in all the game is very solid, and different enough to all my other games that I will be keeping it and trying to outscore my last play every time. We at Purple Phoenix Games give this a well-planned 19 / 24.
https://purplephoenixgames.wordpress.com/2019/02/04/welcome-to-review/
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated I Let You Go in Books
Feb 1, 2018
One rainy evening, an accident occurs on a quiet neighborhood street. Walking home from school with his mother, young Jacob is hit by a car, and killed. Even worse, the car quickly backs up and drives away, leaving Jacob's mother shattered and Detective Inspector Ray Stevens and his team, particularly eager young DC Kate, to seek out answers.
With her world ruined by the accident, Jenna Gray seeks refuge by the coast. She finds a small cottage, gets a dog, and tries to escape the nightmares of the accident that haunt both her dreams and waking hours. Meanwhile, Ray and Kate are forced to close Jacob's case, no closer to the suspect than when they started. But the two remain undaunted, working on the case in their off hours, and an anniversary plea one year after the accident turns up some potential leads. What exactly happened that rainy night? Will justice ever come for Jacob--and peace for Jenna?
This was an excellent thriller-- a real surprise, honestly. The beginning of the novel started out slow, and was so horrendously sad, what with Jacob's accident and his mother's terrible grief. It was one of several book's I'd read lately involving the death of a child, and I was so saddened that I almost set it aside. I'm glad I didn't though, because while the book is gut-wrenchingly sad, it's excellent, tense, and suspenseful. Divided into several parts, things pick up immensely at the end of the first part, when Mackintosh throws in an excellent plot twist (I shan't say anymore so as not to ruin it).
Mackintosh is excellent at conveying Jenna's anguish and the sadness that the accident causes. We also have a side-plot of Ray and his feelings toward his subordinate, Kate. Ray's home life is unbalanced: he's dealing with issues with his son, Tom, and his wife. These are a bit distracting at times, but serve to humanize him as well. The police subplot (watching them try to piece things together) is interesting, also. In fact, the book alternates in perspectives: we hear from Ray, Jenna, and one more character. In part 2, we go back in time for some of the characters, but remain in the present with Ray and Kate as they (much like us, the readers) try to solve this crime. It's an interesting technique and works surprisingly well. Jenna is a complicated character, but a well-drawn one.
Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. I won't spoil anything, but I will say that there is definitely a trigger for domestic abuse/violence, so please be forewarned for that. There's a character in the novel who reminds me of the husband in that creepy Julia Roberts' film "Sleeping with the Enemy" (I'm totally dating myself here). As such I was up late reading one night, completely creeped out. However, that's the sign of an excellent thriller in my opinion. I raced through the last 2/3 of the book and really wasn't disappointed. There are several more twists, but they actually are pretty believable, not outlandish like in many thrillers. Definitely recommend this one (with the abuse caveat thrown in). A unique psychological thriller that's worth your time, for sure.
I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley - thank you! The U.S. edition is available everywhere on 5/3/16. You can find a review of this book and many more at my <a href="http://justacatandabookatherside.blogspot.com/">blog</a>;.
With her world ruined by the accident, Jenna Gray seeks refuge by the coast. She finds a small cottage, gets a dog, and tries to escape the nightmares of the accident that haunt both her dreams and waking hours. Meanwhile, Ray and Kate are forced to close Jacob's case, no closer to the suspect than when they started. But the two remain undaunted, working on the case in their off hours, and an anniversary plea one year after the accident turns up some potential leads. What exactly happened that rainy night? Will justice ever come for Jacob--and peace for Jenna?
This was an excellent thriller-- a real surprise, honestly. The beginning of the novel started out slow, and was so horrendously sad, what with Jacob's accident and his mother's terrible grief. It was one of several book's I'd read lately involving the death of a child, and I was so saddened that I almost set it aside. I'm glad I didn't though, because while the book is gut-wrenchingly sad, it's excellent, tense, and suspenseful. Divided into several parts, things pick up immensely at the end of the first part, when Mackintosh throws in an excellent plot twist (I shan't say anymore so as not to ruin it).
Mackintosh is excellent at conveying Jenna's anguish and the sadness that the accident causes. We also have a side-plot of Ray and his feelings toward his subordinate, Kate. Ray's home life is unbalanced: he's dealing with issues with his son, Tom, and his wife. These are a bit distracting at times, but serve to humanize him as well. The police subplot (watching them try to piece things together) is interesting, also. In fact, the book alternates in perspectives: we hear from Ray, Jenna, and one more character. In part 2, we go back in time for some of the characters, but remain in the present with Ray and Kate as they (much like us, the readers) try to solve this crime. It's an interesting technique and works surprisingly well. Jenna is a complicated character, but a well-drawn one.
Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. I won't spoil anything, but I will say that there is definitely a trigger for domestic abuse/violence, so please be forewarned for that. There's a character in the novel who reminds me of the husband in that creepy Julia Roberts' film "Sleeping with the Enemy" (I'm totally dating myself here). As such I was up late reading one night, completely creeped out. However, that's the sign of an excellent thriller in my opinion. I raced through the last 2/3 of the book and really wasn't disappointed. There are several more twists, but they actually are pretty believable, not outlandish like in many thrillers. Definitely recommend this one (with the abuse caveat thrown in). A unique psychological thriller that's worth your time, for sure.
I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley - thank you! The U.S. edition is available everywhere on 5/3/16. You can find a review of this book and many more at my <a href="http://justacatandabookatherside.blogspot.com/">blog</a>;.