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Darren (1599 KP) rated Alpha (2018) in Movies

Jun 20, 2019  
Alpha (2018)
Alpha (2018)
2018 | Action, Drama, Thriller
Story: Alpha starts as we meet Keda (Smit-McPhee) a young man and member of a prehistoric tribe, this is his chance to go on the hunt with the chief and his father Tau (Johannesson) to complete his path to manhood in the tribe, along with the other recruits, the week doesn’t end well for the young man when he becomes separated from his tribe.

Keda must find his tribe while dealing with the perils of the wilderness including the wolves, one of which he rescues making an unlikely friendship in the harsh world he is travelling through.

 

Thoughts on Alpha

 

Characters – Keda is the young man, the son of the chief of his tribe, he must go on his first hunt which only leaves him alone in the world. he must earn fast how to survive this environment with his caring nature showing with a wounded wolf that he nurses back to help. Alpha is the wolf that was hunting Keda, only to get wounded, she sticks around after being nursed back to health which brings her a new connection, one with a human. The two remain loyal to each other through the bitter winter which will test both of them. Tau is the chief of the tribe and father to Keda, he wants his son to follow in his footsteps showing strength to the rest of the tribe and wisdom to his son.

Performances – Kodi Smit-McPhee is fantastic in the leading role, he has to go through such a physical performance while balancing the emotion impact of believing he could be alone in the world. he does have to deal with most of the work in this film and the connect he has with the wolf. The supporting cast is good with what they need to do without having to do as much as Kodi.

Story – The story follows one young man that gets separated from his tribe and must figure out how to get home, making a new friend along the way, a wolf. This does follow the survival story very clearly and the bond between man and animal starts coming through during the film. even with the formulaic storyline you are kept on edge through out as we want to see if Keda and Alpha can make it home. The connection between the two makes us see how humans and wolfs became one together. The simple story is what keeps us happy.

Adventure/Family – The adventure takes Keda who is part of the tribe through the prehistoric world with threats that a solo man would be struggling to survive through. This does have moments that would be slightly too dark for the younger family audience.

Settings – The world created is beautiful, we have the open plains to the snow filled background each condition becomes more difficult as we go on the adventure.

Special Effects – The effects are strong for the most part, we do have moments that are not good but for the scale of the film should be applauded for the world we see.


Scene of the Movie – The tiger attack.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not understanding the bison hunt.

Final Thoughts – This is a visual treat for the audience with a connection between man and dog that is fantastic to see, the story might be generic but it works well.

 

Overall: Entertaining adventure

https://moviesreview101.com/2018/12/13/alpha-2018/
  
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Hazel (1853 KP) rated Taken in Books

Dec 17, 2018  
T
Taken
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
<i>I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.</i>

Rosie Lewis, presumably a penname, has been a professional foster carer for over seven years. During this time, she has dealt with children and teenagers from all sorts of backgrounds who are usually facing some form of crisis or difficulty. In latter years, Rosie has begun to combine her love of writing with her fostering experiences by writing story-like memoirs. <i>Taken</i> is Rosie’s latest publication, which reveals how emotionally challenging fostering can be.

Rosie first met Megan when she was only a few days old, struggling with the effects of neonatal abstinence syndrome and a cleft plate. Removed from her mother’s care – a drug addict – Megan needs a temporary home to go to. Rosie is more than happy to take care of Megan until her “forever home” can be found.

As time goes on, Rosie and her children become attached to the little girl and include her as part of the family. Megan’s salient recovery turns her into an energetic, slightly precocious toddler who absolutely adores Rosie’s family as much as they love her. But Rosie knows she will eventually have to say goodbye, no matter what her feelings.

Rosie explains to the reader how difficult it is to function properly as a foster carer once strong emotions have got involved. She dreams of being able to keep Megan forever, but when a couple are found who desperately want a child, Rosie has no choice but to say goodbye.

It is heartbreaking to see the effects of the separation on Rosie as well as on Megan, who, despite Rosie’s attempts to elucidate the situation, does not fully comprehend what is going on. Guiltily hoping that Megan’s irascible behaviour, or a cataclysmic event, puts the new parents off adoption, Rosie says goodbye to the little girl she loves with all her heart. However, her hopes are raised when it becomes clear the adoption is not sitting as well with the new parents as much as they originally hoped. Perhaps Rosie has a chance to become Megan’s “forever mummy” after all?

Told from Rosie’s professional perspective, readers are taken on a journey from a child’s unstable beginning, to a time when they are at peace with the world. It is impossible to be unaffected by the events in Megan’s life, or experience versions of Rosie’s own emotions.

Many foster carers, social workers and nurses have put their experiences onto paper to share with the world. Most are good storytellers and are able to create a tale that could almost be fiction, with good use of vocabulary and imagery. At times, it felt like Rosie was attempting to tell a story, but instead ended up with a formal account of events. As the book progressed, however, the reader becomes so invested in Megan’s wellbeing that this issue becomes unnoticeable.

Unlike stories about older children in care, Megan’s life is easier to read about since, being fostered as a new born baby, she has no demoralizing past to overcome. Taken is by far the happier story within its genre, not least because of its satisfying ending, but from the joy Megan brings to the lives of everyone around her, too. Those new to this style of book may find <i>Taken</i> a good way of easing themselves into the genre, rather than jumping in with a story about a child with a background full of unspeakable things.
  
You&#039;re Not You (2014)
You're Not You (2014)
2014 | Drama
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Story: You’re Not You starts on Kate’s (Swank) 35th birthday, a classic pianist that notice something isn’t right with her body, 18 months later Kate is in need of care, even with her husband Evan (Duhamel) needing to work, while finding a new carer to help with ALS care.

That new carer is college student Bec (Rossum) who parties every night and doesn’t come with an off switch. Bec is the only person Kate want to care for her as she is the only one that treats her like a person not a patient and after Kate learns Evan has been having an affair, it leaves Kate and Bec together to handle the caring and living the remaining time with the disease.

 

Thoughts on You’re Not You

 

Characters – Kate was a successful pianist, happily married and wonderful party host, she soon starts to get the first symptoms of ALS which comes on strong, she now needs constant caring, but is tired of the nurses that treat her like a patient, she chooses Bec who offers her friendship, while also offering Bec life advice in a time where she could be going with no direction. Bec is a directionless brash college student who gets given a chance to care of Kate, she becomes the biggest challenge of her life, teaching her responsibility and helping guide her in the right direction. Evan is the husband of Kate, he has tried to care for her the best he can, but can’t give up his job which has put a distance between the two, causing him to have had an affair.

Performances – Hilary Swank has two Oscars to her name, this performance here shows the talent she has once again, she is fantastic as the victim of the ALS disease. Emmy Rossum has made a name for herself on television, but here you feel she should have broken out because her performance is great to. Josh Duhamel is good as the character we want to hate through the film.

Story – The story throws the spotlight on ALS, we follow one person suffering from the disease who knows the sacrifices people will have to make to care for her, we see how people who are sick do want to be treated like people rather than just patients and giving them, this treatment will make their remaining time worthwhile. We do have a story about how the older (but not old) woman helps give the lost student a direction for her life. This is a story about the battle against a disease which is taking people everyday, how the people around them need there for them to make the remain time in their lives positive.

Settings – The settings in this film show the different lives both Kate and Bec have come from, how they are joined together in the same battle to support each other. I feel the settings help us understand the disease making made by the characters in the film.


Scene of the Movie – Enjoying a drink or two together.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The only thing I feel we would have liked more of would be the medical side of what could have been done to try and help as we have plenty of talks about experimental treatments.

Final Thoughts – This is a very good drama, we get to see how one person’s suffering could impact many people and how helpless they will feel while fighting it.

 
Overall: Powerful, heart-breaking and inspiring.


https://moviesreview101.com/2019/06/21/youre-not-you-2014/
  
Alpha (2018)
Alpha (2018)
2018 | Action, Drama, Thriller
Columbia Pictures new release Alpha stars Kodi Smit-McPhee as Keda, and
Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson) as Tau, his father.

Tau is the tribe leader, and must determine whether the young male tribe
members are ready for the annual hunt. He tests all the spear points
crafted by the boys, and passes or fails them based on the craftsmanship
of the arrowheads.

Keda is one of the only two young men that pass the test, and in spite
of his mothers (and his own) reservations, joins the hunt.

Keda isn’t a strong figure, like his father Tau, and the movie shows
some of the tension and strife this causes the father and son. Tau is
trying to teach Keda to be a leader, and Keda seems too soft-hearted to
be able to bear the task. Keda has a hard time with the killing of
animals, even though it is needed to sustain the tribe.

The annual hunt consists of tracking down a herd of bison over a span of
days, and then creeping up on them on their grazing grounds and spooking
them into headlong flight over the edge of a high cliff. The hunters
must keep the herd from turning back to the open plain by throwing their
spears and running full-tilt at the bison. The run to push the bison
over the cliffs edge starts off well, and then takes a tragic turn when
one of the bison turns towards the hunters and charges at Keda. Kedas
confidence breaks and he turns tail to run, with the bison chasing him
down. When the bison lowers his head to charge at Keda, the bisons horn
catches in Kedas clothing and the bison turns towards the cliff face and
dump Keda over the edge.
Keda miraculously lands on a rock outcropping about half way down the
cliff face, but it is still too far for Tau to reach him. Keda is
unconscious, and does not respond to his fathers calls.

Tau is convinced that he must leave his son for dead and head towards
home in order to be able to provide for the tribe.

A day later, Keda wakes and finds himself alone, with broken bones, and
no way to get off the cliff face.

What follows is a story of coming of age and determination. Keda must
find his way off the cliff face, and using the tools given to him by his
father on the way to the bison hunting grounds, find his way home. He
finds unlikely companionship in a wolf that he injured while the wolf
pack was hunting him down to try to eat him, which he nurses back to
health. He names the wolf “Alpha”, but in truth, it is Keda who is
learning to become the alpha, or leader of the pack.

The scenery in the movie is breathtaking, and the movie really comes to
life with the 3D option. I can only imagine that it would be even better
in IMAX.

There were pieces of the film that were entirely un-realistic, but they
were rather quickly covered up by the fast-paced nature of the film.

The only part I really groaned at was the very end scene, but I will let
you draw your own conclusions on that so that I don’t ruin it for you!

My son just turned 10 and he liked it a lot, but did mention that a few
parts were not 100% “kid-friendly” due to the scare-factor. He was
specifically referring to one scene that made us both literally jump in
our seats. He said over all the movie was great and that he enjoyed it
immensely.

I would give this movie 3.5 out of 5 stars, and recommend that you see
it in IMAX 3D if you are able!
  
Red Sparrow (2018)
Red Sparrow (2018)
2018 | Mystery, Thriller
In Red Sparrow, Jennifer Lawrence (of Hunger Games fame) portrays Russian ballet dancer Dominika who is grievously injured at the peak of her career. Without the ability to continue dancing, she is at risk of losing not only her home, but the medical care that her sickly mother so desperately needs. In a final act of desperation, she reaches out to her uncle (masterfully portrayed by Matthias Schoenaerts), who is not only family, but also the deputy director of Russia’s intelligence agency, the SVR. He offers the means to not only keep them housed, but also to ensure that her mother continues to get the very best treatment and care from her private nurses. With no other option but to agree, she reluctantly takes an assignment to “entertain” a powerful Russian figure with the intent to swap out his cell phone, with another provided by her uncle. In an emotionally intense scene she witnesses a heinous act of murder and is forced to make a decision, join those who carried out the murder and become a Red Sparrow or die.

Dominika is then sent to the training school where all Red Sparrows learn their craft. They are taught manipulation by any means necessary, identifying what their target desires and utilizing this desire to get what they want. It’s brutal training that few succeed at, where each pupil uses their body and their minds to get information from their subjects. Dominika’s personal strength of both will and body are tested, until a call comes in from the SVR that they are in need of her newly acquired talents. She is given an opportunity to prove her worth to the state by traveling to Budapest, to get close to a C.I.A. agent, and convince him to give up the name of a mole who has been providing secrets to the Americans. This is where the dangerous game of cat and mouse starts between her and her C.I.A. target Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton).

Jennifer Lawrence in her portrayal of a strong, yet desperate Russian woman is both believable and saddening. She mastered her Russian accent and it comes across naturally. The audience sees the constant struggle between what she must do to protect her mother and the lengths that she must go to, to acquire the information the SVR needs to rout out the mole. Her character goes through numerous physical, emotional and psychological tortures as she grows closer to her end game. For a Red Sparrow failure is not an option, as failure means death.

As a spy movie, it regularly keeps you guessing up until the very end. You keep asking yourself whether Nate will be able to turn Dominika against her country and become an operative for the C.I.A., or is she simply playing the part as the sparrow and using his trust against him? As an audience member you never truly know who to trust or which side Dominika is on, and that’s what keeps the movie so intriguing throughout.

“Red Sparrow” is one of those rare films that keeps you on the edge of your seat through the entire film. As soon as you think you know where it’s going you are suddenly turned in another direction. You think you know the answers, only to be wrong the next minute…or are you? Red Sparrow is by far one of the best spy movies that I have seen in a long time. Even though there isn’t a lot of action it provides the intrigue of an intense chess game, planning multiple moves ahead to arrive at checkmate in the very end, and to that end it succeeds brilliantly.