Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

Book Divas (227 KP) rated Beneath in Books

Apr 9, 2018  
Beneath
Beneath
Maureen Miller | 2018 | Young Adult (YA)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Highly Recommended
I will begin by saying that if you had to pick just three books to read then this is definitely one that you need to add to the list as it was so amazing that I read it in one sitting. The author takes us into the deep and murky ocean and keeps you underwater until the bitter end with a well-written story line that is breathtaking and unique. The characters are strong and well-developed and the twists, turns and revelations keep you on your toes. I look forward to what comes next and reading more of this author's books and I highly recommend this read to one and all. -YA/NA Book Divas

{I requested a copy for reviewing purposes and made no guarantee of a favorable review. The opinions expressed here are unbiased and my own.}
  
Jaws (1975)
Jaws (1975)
1975 | Thriller
EPIC
Best Shark Movie Ever

Aminity Island which is a small island getaway is approching it's speak visitor month which is july get visited by a Great White Shark that starts picking off swimmers one by one. The chief enlists the help of a Marine Biologist and gets the local Top fish killer involved in going to take out the shark. They end up on a wild boat ride trying to kill one of the earth longest living eating machines that is not willing to just roll over and die.


Roy Schider, Richard Dryfus and Robert Shaw give an amazing performance in this suspenseful ocean tale.


One great piece of movie history from this movie is that the line "You're gonna need a bigger boat" was improvised and done on the first take. It is part of AFI's 100 greatest quotes.
  
Waves (2019)
Waves (2019)
2019 | Drama
Like the waters in the ocean, life comes at us in waves. There's the anxiety and excitement of running into it at first, so refreshing. Then, when you aren't looking, they'll be a wave that crashes and wipes you out and it's all you can do to keep your head above water and breath. Now, caught up in the tides, a crucial choice is made. You must dig down deep and find the willpower to swim back to shore and plant your feet back in the sand or float out to sea.

I cannot remember the last movie, if any, had me as anxious as the first act of Waves. And if you're lucky enough to have tge opportunity to do so, after the emotional final act you will find yourself giving your closest loved ones a long hug.
  
40x40

Nicky Wire recommended Ocean Rain by Echo & The Bunnymen in Music (curated)

 
Ocean Rain by Echo & The Bunnymen
Ocean Rain by Echo & The Bunnymen
2008 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"It might seem a bit predictable, but a really good test for me for an album is if, when I put it on, I can sing along virtually every word, and whenever ‘Ocean Rain’ comes on or ‘Silver’ comes on… [he starts to sing] “Swung from a chandelier/ My planet sweet on a silver salver/ Bailed out my worst fears/ 'Cause man has to be his own saviour/ Blind sailors/ Imprisoned jailers/ God tame us/ No one to blame us.” I can do that for the whole album, that line “Screaming from beneath the waves”, just that desperation, I think it’s Mac at his finest. No-one’s ever taken the piss better than him, he was my kind of role model. ‘My Kingdom’ is such an underrated classic, the title track, ‘Killing Moon’ obviously, it’s a classic."

Source
  
Ocean’s 8 (2018)
Ocean’s 8 (2018)
2018 | Comedy, Crime
Sandra Bullock stars as Debbie Ocean, sister of Danny Ocean (George Clooney) from the previous Oceans movies. She begins the movie in jail, being released on parole and promising to go straight. She has 45 dollars in her pocket and manages to get to New York, scam herself some free makeup and a hotel room, and pretty much everything else she needs. She's clearly just like her brother, able to con her way to getting whatever she wants.

After that it's all a bit of an incoherent blur for a while. She's got a plan, she knows people who can help, they know people that can help, so they all start joining forces and forming some kind of plan, starting with an old accomplice, Lou (Cate Blanchett). The sloppy plot building is papered over with cool music, witty dialogue and snappy editing techniques similar to those in the far superior Ocean's 11. It's a frustrating and dull start to the movie.

Once the team of girls are all together though and they begin working through their plan, things loosen up a bit and are a bit more enjoyable. The heist they're planning is to steal a very expensive Cartier necklace from the neck of movie star Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) while she attends New York's Met Gala, and under the watchful gaze of a team of security guys. With the help of a hacker (Rihanna), a fashion designer (Helena Bonham Carter), a pickpocket (Awkwafina), a jeweller (Mindy Kaling) and another old con partner (Sarah Paulson), the details of the heist are slowly refined - security cameras hacked, the necklace analysed and recreated via 3D printing. When it comes to the heist itself, it all plays enjoyably enough, but everything goes far too smoothly, with no real tension or suspense or any suggestion that they might not pull it off. Once again, it just feels inferior compared to Ocean's 11.

Sandra Bullock is the only one here displaying real screen presence, which is a real shame when you consider the talent involved. Cate Blanchett feels underused and Anne Hathaway is the only other actress making any real impact. Everyone else just feels wasted, too restricted to the roles they need to carry out in order to get the job done, with not much else going on.

We didn't really need another Ocean's movie. The quality of the previous series diminished with each one anyway and although I'm all up for the refreshing change of an all female heist movie, I felt this would have been much better overall without the whole 'Ocean' connection and the need to live up to the previous movies.
  
47 Meters Down (2017)
47 Meters Down (2017)
2017 | Horror
Story: 47 Meters Down starts as two sisters Lisa (Moore) and Kate (Holt) are holidaying in Mexico with Lisa trying to get over her ex, the two look to have a good time. Two locals Benjamin (Segura), Louis (Gellman) talk the girls into joining Captain Taylor (Modine) on the Sea Esta to swim with sharks.

When the dream experience for the girls turns into a nightmare when the cable holding the cage snaps, sending them both trapped in the cage 47 metres to the bottoms of the ocean, the two must stay calm and wait for rescue but do they have the air to wait that long?

 

Thoughts on 47 Meters Down

 

Characters/Performance – Lisa is the stable one of the two sisters, she doesn’t take the risks her sister does and finds herself using this holiday to follow her sisters lead. Kate is the free spirited of the two sisters that enjoys taking risk and will not be saying no to an adventure. We do have a captain and his crew too but we barely see them.

Performance wise, Holt and Moore are fine, you don’t actually believe them to be sisters and the peril they find themselves in doesn’t seem to be anything overly fresh in performance eyes.

Story – The story does offer us something fresh when it comes to the shark attack genre, the film takes place underwater instead of on the surface as the girls are trapped at the bottom of the ocean. The problem using this situation is that the near death moments just don’t come off, for example we have a good 5 minutes sequence with one of the girls trying to drag an oxygen tank closer, now this happens too early in the film for us to believe that she might die. On the surface this is a good idea and does work but puts together the maybes too far apart.

Adventure/Horror – The adventure would be about what the two girls could be experiencing with the horror being how this adventure could go horribly wrong with shark attack happening.

Settings – The bottom of the ocean in a shark cage, well this is a new and brilliant setting for the movie and is easily the highlight of everything.

Special Effects – The effects are used to create the shark attack sequences which are all filled with terror.

Final Thoughts – This is a fresh approach to the shark attack movie, it is smartly created but does lack in the idea of peril which the surface has on the higher levels.

 

Overall: Shark attack movie with new breath but less teeth.

https://moviesreview101.com/2017/07/03/47-meters-down-2017/
  
The Meg (2018)
The Meg (2018)
2018 | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
Crikey Mate Thats A Huge Shark
The Meg- is a great movie, i dont why people dont like it. I liked it alot. It reminded me of "Jaws", "Jurassic Park" and "Deep Blue Seas". All, yes all great movies. You have Jason Statham vs. a shark, what better can you get. Jason fucking Staham vs. A fucking shark, i mean a Meg. Its what we all been waiting for. I watched this movie, for the first time last year and like it said i really liked it. The action, the shark, some of the plot, and of course Jason Statham.

The plot: Follows a group of scientists who encounter a 75-foot-long (23 m) megalodon shark while on a rescue mission at the floor of the Pacific Ocean.

If you havent seen this movie, than see it. A good popcorn movie to watch. You will have fun watching it.
  
H(
Hannah (Daughters of the Sea, #1)
6
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was both mysterious and sweet, as Hannah very slowly discovers what she is and where she truly comes from. Even though I found the whole process of discovery rather drawn out, I didn't mind the slow pace because of the age of the girl and setting that she lived in, at a time in which women were never even given the opportunity to go to college and the wage of a few dollars was considered good income. How the orphans were handled, some even being "adopted" into households in the midwest, had me wondering just how common this practice was at the time and how it played into geneologies. The intricacies of how the household is run that Hannah works in is enlightening, as I had no idea there was such a heirarchy among the servant class of that time period.
Hannah is only 14 when she goes through these changes to become a mermaid, but if that had happened to me at that age, I don't think I would have had the courage to abandon what security I could find for the great unknown of the vast ocean. What I found greatly disappointing was how her budding romance with the painter was just left hanging, with no resolution or explanation of what he was and why he left the ocean. I can only assume that since this is the first of three books, that his character will be further explored in future books. I also worried for the household that Hannah had been working in and what happened to them in the impending storm, but that loose end was not resolved either. The nuances of Hannah's revelation that give me clues as to what she is are interesting, such as the changing nature of Hannah's hair, her ability with the harp, and the way she sheds salt and scales. I always love when the author gives such attention to details. I look forward to reading about Hannah's two long-lost sisters and their own revelations.
  
40x40

Devin (3 KP) rated Moana (2016) in Movies

May 15, 2017  
Moana (2016)
Moana (2016)
2016 | Adventure, Animation, Comedy
Fun and engaging adventure story (3 more)
Great characters
Memorable music
Loads of humor
A new Disney hit that delivers in all ways
I was smiling from ear to ear throughout the entire journey of Moana. I may have a bit of bias, considering my own Polynesian roots, but this film was full of moments that gave me chills. It was fun, exciting, and humorous, the way Disney knows how to do best. The animation was some of the best I've seen in a while, from the details of the hair, ocean, clothing, etc., to the amazing colorful island scenes. Everything was just wonderful. The music is some of the better music I've heard from Disney, as it was unconventional and fresh from what they tend to churn out. My only complaint - I wish we got to see more of Pua! He was such a cute character, my wife and I loved every scene he was in! Solid film that I will go back to repeatedly.
  
40x40

tapestry100 (306 KP) rated Ghosts in Books

Aug 2, 2017  
Ghosts
Ghosts
Raina Telgemeier | 2016 | Children, Comics & Graphic Novels, Fiction & Poetry
7
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A cute and somewhat touching story about the bonds between sisters, told with the backdrop of Dia de los Muertos. Catrina and her family has moved to the northern coast of California so that her sister Maya, who has cystic fibrosis, has a better time breathing with the cool salty air off the ocean. Catrina does not like having to have moved away from her friends, but has done so begrudgingly for her sister. When she and Maya discover that there are ghosts in their new town, they are taught about some of the history of Dia de los Muertos and also learn a little about respecting those that have passed. I sometimes think that the explanations around Dia de los Muertos seemed maybe a little too simplistic, but that may just be me. If nothing else, it has made me want to learn a little more about the history and traditions surrounding the day.