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Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated A Star Is Born (1954) in Movies
Jun 29, 2020
A Long Winding Road In Need of a Detour
An aspiring actress gets a her big break when discovered by an alcoholic film star.
Acting: 10
Apparently her first film since four years prior, Judy Garland makes the stage sizzle playing the main role of Vicki Lester. I loved her passion and charisma and the way she delivers her lines with a charm that just lights up the screen. There are a number of other shining roles as well, including a fun performance from James Brown playing the role of Glenn Wiliams.
Beginning: 3
Characters: 10
Although you don’t really get to fully see her development until two thirds of the way into the movie, Vicki Lester is definitely a character an audience can get behind. I rooted for her success in hopes that she would steer clear of the trap the movie was clearly setting for her. That’s the thing about movies, sometimes the audience can see from a mile away something it takes ages for the characters themselves to see. The movie would have been unbearable without solid characters to carry it through.
Cinematography/Visuals: 8
Conflict: 8
There were a lot of pitfalls Vicki had to deal with along the way, namely her alcoholic husband who continues to bring her down. Had they delved into her backstory a lot quicker, I would’ve given this category a perfect score as her upbringing provided another potential pitfall for her future. Overall, with everything going on in the film, it’s clear the winding road is only leading to one place.
Entertainment Value: 8
Memorability: 7
Pace: 4
This version is the longest of the four coming in at almost three hours. Seeing how the other three were able to tell the same story with considerably less time, there is no reason for this version to be so long. It gets boring in a few spots and had me longing for the conclusion. While there are a number of shining moments, a slow pace kept this to a one-watch movie for me.
Plot: 10
Resolution: 10
Overall: 78
A Star is Born is just unnecessarily long. I was expecting a legit reason for the length but, after watching the other three movies, I was at a loss. To hold an audience’s attention for almost three hours means you need plenty of meat for your story. The movie is good, but merely one-watch good. Unfortunately that’s not quite good enough.
Acting: 10
Apparently her first film since four years prior, Judy Garland makes the stage sizzle playing the main role of Vicki Lester. I loved her passion and charisma and the way she delivers her lines with a charm that just lights up the screen. There are a number of other shining roles as well, including a fun performance from James Brown playing the role of Glenn Wiliams.
Beginning: 3
Characters: 10
Although you don’t really get to fully see her development until two thirds of the way into the movie, Vicki Lester is definitely a character an audience can get behind. I rooted for her success in hopes that she would steer clear of the trap the movie was clearly setting for her. That’s the thing about movies, sometimes the audience can see from a mile away something it takes ages for the characters themselves to see. The movie would have been unbearable without solid characters to carry it through.
Cinematography/Visuals: 8
Conflict: 8
There were a lot of pitfalls Vicki had to deal with along the way, namely her alcoholic husband who continues to bring her down. Had they delved into her backstory a lot quicker, I would’ve given this category a perfect score as her upbringing provided another potential pitfall for her future. Overall, with everything going on in the film, it’s clear the winding road is only leading to one place.
Entertainment Value: 8
Memorability: 7
Pace: 4
This version is the longest of the four coming in at almost three hours. Seeing how the other three were able to tell the same story with considerably less time, there is no reason for this version to be so long. It gets boring in a few spots and had me longing for the conclusion. While there are a number of shining moments, a slow pace kept this to a one-watch movie for me.
Plot: 10
Resolution: 10
Overall: 78
A Star is Born is just unnecessarily long. I was expecting a legit reason for the length but, after watching the other three movies, I was at a loss. To hold an audience’s attention for almost three hours means you need plenty of meat for your story. The movie is good, but merely one-watch good. Unfortunately that’s not quite good enough.
Scott Tostik (389 KP) rated Charlie's Farm (2014) in Movies
Jun 18, 2017
Imaginative kills (2 more)
Great special effects
Another cool slasher icob
A head smashing fun romp
Poor Charlie, orpaned at age 9 when his cannibalizing parents were lynched by the locals for murdering and eating the transient workers they hired on their desolate pig farm.
Fast forward 25 years and Tara Reid and her friends are roaming the Australian land in search of urban legend Charlie and his farm. What they find will definitely satisfy the veiwer once they locate the farm and all hell breaks loose.
A good script, excellent effects, and a beast of a killer played with absolute disdain for the trespassing adults by a mountain of a man named Nathan Jones who portrays Charlie with an almost childlike innocence even though he's slaughters his victims he seems to be playing with them, like a kid with a magnifying glass who enjoys burning ants. Jones has played beasts before in films like Troy. And a few years after the release of this he was the monster of a man in Mad Max:Fury Road.
Jones kills(pardon the pun) this role.
I recommend this film for people who enjoy a good slasher flick. Charlie's Farm gives the watcher what they're looking for, and leaves you yearning for one more kill.
Fast forward 25 years and Tara Reid and her friends are roaming the Australian land in search of urban legend Charlie and his farm. What they find will definitely satisfy the veiwer once they locate the farm and all hell breaks loose.
A good script, excellent effects, and a beast of a killer played with absolute disdain for the trespassing adults by a mountain of a man named Nathan Jones who portrays Charlie with an almost childlike innocence even though he's slaughters his victims he seems to be playing with them, like a kid with a magnifying glass who enjoys burning ants. Jones has played beasts before in films like Troy. And a few years after the release of this he was the monster of a man in Mad Max:Fury Road.
Jones kills(pardon the pun) this role.
I recommend this film for people who enjoy a good slasher flick. Charlie's Farm gives the watcher what they're looking for, and leaves you yearning for one more kill.
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated 12 Years a Slave (2013) in Movies
Sep 6, 2017
Cast and acting is spectacular (1 more)
Fantastic direction by Steve McQueen
Harrowing, disturbing beyond belief
It's taken me four years to watch this film out of fear I'd be seriously disturbed by the end of it. And no doubt it is disturbing.
The story of Solomon Northrup entails a free black man in America being kidnapped and then sold into slavery. He is gifted and educated, on top of having led a free life with his wife and children, hence in many ways it can be seen as even more traumatic knowing what is already out there.
What's interesting is the complicity of others involved, including other African Americans who have had to turn the other cheek in order to survive. The white men are despicable in this film, the brutality is truly horrifying.
It goes without saying Chiwetel Ejiofor is fantastic as Solomon, he's understated which makes his acting all the more moving. Michael Fassbender is particularly gratuitous in his role as a slave owner. Lupita Nyong'o is absolutely outstanding, playing a woman brutalized by the master for his own disgusting needs. The women go through a particular hell in this horrid period of history. You'll need a strong countenance to watch this.
The story of Solomon Northrup entails a free black man in America being kidnapped and then sold into slavery. He is gifted and educated, on top of having led a free life with his wife and children, hence in many ways it can be seen as even more traumatic knowing what is already out there.
What's interesting is the complicity of others involved, including other African Americans who have had to turn the other cheek in order to survive. The white men are despicable in this film, the brutality is truly horrifying.
It goes without saying Chiwetel Ejiofor is fantastic as Solomon, he's understated which makes his acting all the more moving. Michael Fassbender is particularly gratuitous in his role as a slave owner. Lupita Nyong'o is absolutely outstanding, playing a woman brutalized by the master for his own disgusting needs. The women go through a particular hell in this horrid period of history. You'll need a strong countenance to watch this.
TacomaSquall (3 KP) rated Mass Effect: Andromeda in Video Games
Aug 11, 2018
A flawed launch...
When I started playing this fourth installment in the Mass Effect franchise, I was struck by some of the daring departures from the original trilogy's gameplay. The ability to choose your hero(ine)'s role based on situation. The hub system for worlds that was more reminiscent of Dragon Age: Inquisition than ME. The departure from the truly galactic scale of Commander Shepard's battle against the Reapers to focus on a seemingly weaker adversary.
I was fortunate to avoid most of the initial bugs in the animation, but was disappointed in the limited exploration available. While I liked the Angara, they couldn't get me to care about them as much as the original games caused me to care about the Quarians and Krogan.
I was tickled by the interactions between the members of the cast, which were dynamic and as detailed as the crew of the Normandy's had been. In the end, it was the team supporting the Pathfinder that sold me on the game, and kept me going to the madcap pell-mell race to the ending.
Yes, it was rushed. Yes, it felt incomplete. But a mediocre installment in the Mass Effect universe still is better than the majority of RPGs out there.
I was fortunate to avoid most of the initial bugs in the animation, but was disappointed in the limited exploration available. While I liked the Angara, they couldn't get me to care about them as much as the original games caused me to care about the Quarians and Krogan.
I was tickled by the interactions between the members of the cast, which were dynamic and as detailed as the crew of the Normandy's had been. In the end, it was the team supporting the Pathfinder that sold me on the game, and kept me going to the madcap pell-mell race to the ending.
Yes, it was rushed. Yes, it felt incomplete. But a mediocre installment in the Mass Effect universe still is better than the majority of RPGs out there.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Star Wars: Gadgets and Gear in Tabletop Games
Nov 8, 2019
There was a time when pretty much the only place where new information about the Star Wars galaxy was appearing was in sourcebooks for the original WEG d6 role-playing game. Things have obviously changed since then and this is a much more focused, game-oriented product; basically a collection of statlines for weapons, armour, and other personal equipment for the FFG RPG lines.
The downside of this is that the book is probably of rather less interest to the non-gaming Star Wars fan, but it is a boon for those of us who don't want to risk a hernia carrying around the 20 or so books where this information originally appeared. Some interesting new stuff, too, especially the 'iconic equipment' entries, although these are oddly phrased - many references to 'the wearer of Darth Vader's armour' rather than just 'Darth Vader', as if anyone's going to steal that suit. Most bonkers new addition is 'Lando Calrissian's Cape Armoire', a post-Solo invention which allows you to randomly generate what cape he's wearing and its special properties. Disappointingly, this isn't completely comprehensive, and the lack of summary tables for easy comparison and reference is also a shame. But still pretty much an essential purchase for anyone who actually plays this game.
The downside of this is that the book is probably of rather less interest to the non-gaming Star Wars fan, but it is a boon for those of us who don't want to risk a hernia carrying around the 20 or so books where this information originally appeared. Some interesting new stuff, too, especially the 'iconic equipment' entries, although these are oddly phrased - many references to 'the wearer of Darth Vader's armour' rather than just 'Darth Vader', as if anyone's going to steal that suit. Most bonkers new addition is 'Lando Calrissian's Cape Armoire', a post-Solo invention which allows you to randomly generate what cape he's wearing and its special properties. Disappointingly, this isn't completely comprehensive, and the lack of summary tables for easy comparison and reference is also a shame. But still pretty much an essential purchase for anyone who actually plays this game.
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