Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

ClareR (5667 KP) rated Odette in Books

Jan 5, 2019  
Odette
Odette
Jessica Duchen | 2018 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A charming story
A lovely, magical book about a swan that crashes through Mitzi's flat window during a storm, and then at dusk turns into a young woman. This is a reworking of the Swan Princess/ Swan Lake, or rather a 'what would happen if her spell lasted for over 100 years'?
The Princess, Odette, is naive, even though she is over 100 years old (being a swan for half of your time and living in the woods on your own, will do that to a person, I suppose), and adjusting to life in the modern age is quite hard for her. She is adamant that she needs to find a man to love her to break the spell, and Mitzi just wants to protect her and help her where she can.
I really enjoyed this story, which is rich in magical realism. The contrast of old magic and modern British life, made it on the whole quite believable, really!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for the chance to read this story on their social platform!
  
40x40

David McK (3361 KP) rated Bird Box (2018) in Movies

Aug 23, 2020 (Updated Jan 17, 2023)  
Bird Box (2018)
Bird Box (2018)
2018 | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
2018 post apocalyptic horror film, that proved to be a big hit for Netflix when it was released on that streaming platform.

Starring Sandra Bullock, this was sold on the (strong) imagery of a blindfolded woman leading two equally blindfolded children through a river journey - the film, later, makes it clear that this is because a mysterious entity has decimated the population, driving whoever sees it (we don't) mad and causing them to commit suicide.

The film is actually told in both the 'now' of the journey and '5 year previously' (when this first started happening), with Sandra Bullock's character of Malorie heavily pregnant and trapped in a house with other survivors - we know, of course (they're not in the 'now'!) that they're all going to be bumped off one by one, but the suspense is in the how and when.

The ending also, apparently, is a lot less dark that the book on which it is based, and I still have little idea why the film is even called Bird Box!
  
40x40

LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Moon Knight in TV

May 5, 2022  
Moon Knight
Moon Knight
2022 | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
It's bloody wonderful that we're at a point where more obscure Marvel characters such as Moon Knight are getting their own projects.
This latest limited series does a fantastic job of introducing him, and his multiple personalities, in a unique and interesting way. It's definitely something different for the MCU and it's good that Disney+ is providing a platform to explore these quirkier and darker avenues.
Oscar Isaac deserves a whole bunch of credit for his portrayal of essentially two different characters. Both Stephen Grant and Mark Spector are characters that I cared about by the time the finale rolled around.
The overall pacing is the main detriment to Moon Knight. After an intriguing start, it does hit a major lull around the midway point that flirts with boredom on occasion, but a sharp left turn plotwise and a thoroughly entertaining finale save proceedings and then some.

Another enjoyable, if not perfect, series from Marvel Studios then, and a promising set up for Moon Knight to enter the movies as they start to explore some of the darker corners of their properties.
  
For Those About To Rock We Salute You by AC/DC
For Those About To Rock We Salute You by AC/DC
1981 | Metal, Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"Bands have their anthems, you know, 'You Shook Me All Night Long', all that for AC/DC sure. For Those About To Rock is the call to arms, it's the definitive anthemic album. Back In Black probably had better songs, but the band started to have a sense of itself because a band stands or should stand for something, like when you have a country you have a flag for that country. But when a flag stands for something, it takes on a meaning of its own, and then people realise that the flag doesn't just represent the country, but it represents what the country stands for. The platform - in our case, platform boots. So, For Those About To Rock We Salute You is what AC/DC is all about. The graphics and that cannon and the title - and it's why they always end their set with it - it's anthemic. 'You Shook Me All Night Long' is probably the best song they've written in my estimation, but it's not an anthem. It's because the lyrics aren't on that same level. They aren't big and bold. 'For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)' means something, it's a connection. It's like nationhood. Put your fist up in the air and say, 'Yeah! This is what I believe in!' 'You Shook Me' doesn't have that, it's just a rockin' great song. When the band realises its own meaning, when a band can see itself clearly, that's when it connects. It happened to us on Destroyer. That album cover had no guitars on it, no drums, no guitars, no stage, nothing. That's when we understood that we were bigger than the music we played. But you don't see that until someone points that out to you. When you start to see your face in parades and on walls and on tattoos and all that. And when you see that there just aren't any guitars or drums in there. People are attracted to the personas. The personas are bigger than the guitars. Whereas, it's hard to have an image of AC/DC without a guitar. Without a guitar, you would say, 'Who's that?' The same goes for Metallica or almost anybody. They're musicians. We are iconic images. That's fine for me. That's bigger. That's part of pop culture."

Source
  
40x40

ClareR (5667 KP) rated Love Will Tear Us Apart in Books

Jun 8, 2018 (Updated Aug 14, 2018)  
Love Will Tear Us Apart
Love Will Tear Us Apart
Holly Seddon | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
More communication needed!!
This book seems to be based around a couples inability to communicate with one another and the problems that goes on to cause. The couple are Kate and Paul, and they have been best friends since they were seven years old. This continues through their teenaged years and into adulthood. They have a pact at 15, that if they aren't married by 30, they'll marry each other. Kate is brought up pretty much by Paul's parents. Hers are too busy initially, and then Kate's mother dies. Her father is too busy and too detached from her by this point. She seems to live a lonely life and the only relief is Paul and his family. We meet them on holiday with their children in the lead up to their 10th wedding anniversary. They seem very distant from one another.
The story follows their childhood, teens, twenties and present day, all in the form of flashback chapters.
I really enjoyed this book: it's melancholy and just plain sad at times, but a well-written, thoughtful novel.
Many thanks to the author and The Pigeonhole (a social reading platform) for my copy of this book.
  
Wynonna Earp  - Season 1
Wynonna Earp - Season 1
2016 | Sci-Fi
10
8.9 (8 Ratings)
Storyline (4 more)
Acting
Characters Development
Reference to History
LGBTQIA+ Inclusion
Wynonna Earp - Season 1
Wynonna Earp - Season 1 is highly recommended ✔️

Throughout the first Season of Wynonna Earp, we are able to gain an extensive insight into the lives of Waverley and Wynonna Earp; sisters. They are cursed and teach us of the importance of family, but also of following yourself independently.

Emily Andras has beautifully captured a storyline that will follow Wynonna and Waverley for many more seasons. Despite being siblings, their upbringings and characteristics are vastly different which permit an addictive dynamic.

The LGBTQIA+ inclusion is a thing that is uncomparable to anything else that has been broadcasted on such a significant platform. We are able to follow Waverleys discovery of her own identity, and understand the significance of self acceptance.

In regards to the storyline itself, and the correspondence between Western History, Wynonna Earp references the lives of the notorious Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday.

To conclude, Wynonna Earp - Season 1 and its consequential seasons are highly recommended, the storyline, historical reference and chemistry between the cast makes this series unmissable.
  
Harriet Walsh 1: Peace Force
Harriet Walsh 1: Peace Force
Simon Haynes | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
6
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I first read any of [author:Simon Haynes|541847]' books during the summer of 2018, when I saw [book:Hal Spacejock 1: A robot named Clunk|12381591] on offer via (I believe) a popular social-media platform.

While I thought that tat particular story was all right, it wasn't enough to make me want to go buy any more of his works. Later that same year, I then saw another Kindle deal on the first three of his Hal Spacejock books and, as I was looking for something to read, thought I would pick those up. Of those three, I felt it was easy to see that they were getting better (with the second - [book:Hal Spacejock 2: Second Course|1096672] - being the best).

Fast forward to early 2019, and I was again looking for something new to read. And, again, I saw an offer on one of his other books: this time, on the first of the newer Harriet Walsh 'Peace Force' series. Which, I have to say, I found to be better than any of the Hal Spacejock books I've read so far - it is true what the say, after all, that practice makes perfect! Well, I wouldn't go so far as perfect, but - I felt - there is a definite upswing in quality here.
  
YouTube: Watch, Listen, Stream
YouTube: Watch, Listen, Stream
Entertainment, Photo & Video
8
8.3 (138 Ratings)
App Rating
I have a love-hate relationship with YouTube.

I love it for how useful it can be when you want to learn to do something as there's nearly always a walkthrough video from someone - handy for me when I'm trying to figure out a tricky stitch or section in a knitting or crochet pattern.

I hate how apparently addictive life hack videos, videos of other people playing games or "unboxing" videos are to kids, haha! While it can be helpful when I need to get something done urgently, I feel like I can recite some of these off by heart...

In all seriousness, it is a great app. As I don't use it so much myself, I sometimes feel like the UI could be a bit more intuitive (I seem to get stuck in a loop on my phone app sometimes), but it's clearly simple enough for kids to use, soooo....

It can be hard to restrict inappropriate content because it isn't always labelled as such, but this is an issue on any platform with user-generated content and just means that as parents/guardians/responsible adults we need to be more aware of what children are accessing and to limit it accordingly and which is, after all, our job!
  
The Platform (2019)
The Platform (2019)
2019 | Sci-Fi, Thriller
To be quite honest, this movie was nothing special. It follows a story where our main protagonist is in a prison, where the cells are vertically positioned, one above the other. The way this "society" works is that a platform full of food starts descending every day, starting from floor one, and moving to the lower floors. By the time the first 50 floors have eaten, the rest of the prisoners don't have anything to eat. But if the first 50 floors ate only what they needed, there would be food for all.

Every month, the prisoners wake up on a different floor, and try to survive this scheme. That is, until our hero, who voluntarily comes to the prison, tries to break the system.

The movie just shows the true colours of society, and how even though everyone knows what is happening below them, when they get to be at the top floors, they stop caring. An interesting message, and definitely a topic that will open up discussions, but it was very poorly executed.

The ending was terrible. There should've been closure. Any kind of closure. Wondering about what happens after a movie ends can be a really annoying experience for me personally.
  
Facebook
Facebook
Communication, Entertainment, Events, Social Networking
7
7.6 (436 Ratings)
App Rating
Wasting time (0 more)
Wasting too much time (1 more)
Can never seem to decide on exactly what it wants to be
Where everyone who never liked you in high school can be your friend.
For the most part I really only use Facebook for two things
 1. To waste time honestly you don't realize how much down time you have until you don't have your phone with you to scroll through Facebook.
2. Probably not the safest thing but I really want to use it so I can make it counts places without having to actually fill out the new user information.
 
 I can honestly say I've met a lot of really cool people using Facebook even some that I've met in person it is a really good platform to get to know people see their day-to-day life without actually having to communicate face-to-face I guess I'm not the most social person Facebook as a pretty good buffer for me having to actually interact with people but still getting to know new people.

I really just wish Facebook would decide what it wants to be instead of constantly updating itself to either beat Instagram or SnapChat just be its own thing stop changing crap around so often and figure out all its bugs just be Facebook don't be anything else.