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What am I Still Doing Here?: My Life as Me
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'Unremittingly glorious. I and the world demand more and we shall thump our tin mugs on the table...
The Alex Crow
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From the critically acclaimed author of cult teen novel Grasshopper Jungle, Andrew Smith, comes a...
Lying in Wait
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Sunday Times Top 10 Bestseller! Featured in the Richard and Judy Spring 2017 Book Club 'Gone Girl...
Ronyell (38 KP) rated Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night (1987) in Movies
Jul 24, 2020
That Creepy Version of Pinocchio
This movie is basically a sequel to the original “Pinocchio” and the movie starts off with Gepetto giving Pinocchio a jewel box to take to the Mayor. As Pinocchio goes to town to deliver the jewel box, he meets up with Igor and Scalawag, two con artists who eventually convince Pinocchio to give them the jewel box, which ends up getting Pinocchio into trouble with Gepetto. Pinocchio was so upset about disappointing his father that he decided to run away and get the jewel box back. It was then that Pinocchio ended up getting into all kinds of strange and frightening situations such as meeting the frightening Puppetino at the circus and eventually meeting up with the Emperor of the Night!
Now, when I heard that Filmation was making a sequel to the famous Italian classic "Pinocchio," I was quite surprised and satisfied with the results! I loved the fact that there was a sequel to "Pinocchio" to begin with since I did wonder what Pinocchio's adventures would be like after he was transformed into a real boy and we managed to get one in this movie! I honestly like the dark and edgy feel of this film as it really grabbed my interest and some scenes (like the infamous puppet transformation scene) had really stayed with me ever since I was little! The voice acting was fantastic in this film as all the voice actors really gave everything they got for this film. Probably my favorite voice acting was from James Earl Jones as the Emperor of the Night as he made the character extremely scary and mysterious and I was really interested in the character! The animation is surprisingly better than what we usually get with Filmation as the characters move much fluidly and the action sequences were quite well done!
The only problem with this film was that it seemed like the plot was a rehash of the original Pinocchio story as we still get a storyline about Pinocchio trying to figure out what is right and wrong, having a conscience who would guide him and having two con artists scam him and get him into more trouble. The only thing that was actually different in this story was the Emperor of the Night as he proved to be scarier than the previous villains in "Pinocchio."
Overall, "Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night" is a great film for anyone who is a huge fan of Filmation's works and who wants to see how the story of "Pinocchio" would continue.
Originally posted on: http://surrealmoviesandtvblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/movie-review-pinocchio-and-emperor-of.html
Now, when I heard that Filmation was making a sequel to the famous Italian classic "Pinocchio," I was quite surprised and satisfied with the results! I loved the fact that there was a sequel to "Pinocchio" to begin with since I did wonder what Pinocchio's adventures would be like after he was transformed into a real boy and we managed to get one in this movie! I honestly like the dark and edgy feel of this film as it really grabbed my interest and some scenes (like the infamous puppet transformation scene) had really stayed with me ever since I was little! The voice acting was fantastic in this film as all the voice actors really gave everything they got for this film. Probably my favorite voice acting was from James Earl Jones as the Emperor of the Night as he made the character extremely scary and mysterious and I was really interested in the character! The animation is surprisingly better than what we usually get with Filmation as the characters move much fluidly and the action sequences were quite well done!
The only problem with this film was that it seemed like the plot was a rehash of the original Pinocchio story as we still get a storyline about Pinocchio trying to figure out what is right and wrong, having a conscience who would guide him and having two con artists scam him and get him into more trouble. The only thing that was actually different in this story was the Emperor of the Night as he proved to be scarier than the previous villains in "Pinocchio."
Overall, "Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night" is a great film for anyone who is a huge fan of Filmation's works and who wants to see how the story of "Pinocchio" would continue.
Originally posted on: http://surrealmoviesandtvblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/movie-review-pinocchio-and-emperor-of.html
BookInspector (124 KP) rated The Dark Net in Books
Sep 24, 2020
More reviews on https://bbookinspector.wordpress.com
After reading “Here and Gone” by Haylen Beck, I got very interested in the dark net, which is like a black market for everything, so, when I saw this book available for request, I did not hesitate. Another thing which intrigued me about this book, was its cover, I think it describes the mood of this book very accurately.
This novel has a wide variety of characters to choose from (see description), and every character had a story to tell, which made this book really rich and appealing to me. Lela was chosen as the main character of this novel. She was trying to uncover a secret enterprise, which does not leave any trace in the records, and is related to some nasty murders. I think that B. Percy chose her very wisely; she is very old fashion and hates technology, and only this kind of character can survive in this book. I really like when author allows more than one character to express themselves, and Percy didn’t disappoint me in this book with that.
The narrative of this techno-thriller was really dark and riveting, in some places really disturbing. I will admit that, like most of the people these days, I could not live a day without internet, but after reading this book, I started thinking that, this needs to change. Internet is way more powerful than we imagine, and that is kind of scary. This book has an interesting combination of genres; it is horror/sci-fi/thriller. It has real life problems mixed with fiction which makes it an interesting read, but some parts were over the top for me. Even though I love technology, I was slightly overwhelmed with all the terms used in this book, which sometimes felt like reading an IT textbook, and unfortunately my mind would just glide through that information.
This book is not for everyone, you need to know something about internet and have a strong stomach to enjoy it. It offers great action, plenty of twists and turns and is quite distressing. The chapters are quite short, so the reading experience is pleasant and the change of action and characters didn’t make me bored. I think that Percy done a great research for this book and I enjoyed the new things I got to learn about the dark net. The ending of this book was really interesting, and I think it rounded up the book really nicely. So, to conclude, I had an interesting reading experience, and if you like all things internet and are not scared of blood and murders, you might actually find this book really entertaining and enlightening.
Was given this book by publisher for honest review
After reading “Here and Gone” by Haylen Beck, I got very interested in the dark net, which is like a black market for everything, so, when I saw this book available for request, I did not hesitate. Another thing which intrigued me about this book, was its cover, I think it describes the mood of this book very accurately.
This novel has a wide variety of characters to choose from (see description), and every character had a story to tell, which made this book really rich and appealing to me. Lela was chosen as the main character of this novel. She was trying to uncover a secret enterprise, which does not leave any trace in the records, and is related to some nasty murders. I think that B. Percy chose her very wisely; she is very old fashion and hates technology, and only this kind of character can survive in this book. I really like when author allows more than one character to express themselves, and Percy didn’t disappoint me in this book with that.
The narrative of this techno-thriller was really dark and riveting, in some places really disturbing. I will admit that, like most of the people these days, I could not live a day without internet, but after reading this book, I started thinking that, this needs to change. Internet is way more powerful than we imagine, and that is kind of scary. This book has an interesting combination of genres; it is horror/sci-fi/thriller. It has real life problems mixed with fiction which makes it an interesting read, but some parts were over the top for me. Even though I love technology, I was slightly overwhelmed with all the terms used in this book, which sometimes felt like reading an IT textbook, and unfortunately my mind would just glide through that information.
This book is not for everyone, you need to know something about internet and have a strong stomach to enjoy it. It offers great action, plenty of twists and turns and is quite distressing. The chapters are quite short, so the reading experience is pleasant and the change of action and characters didn’t make me bored. I think that Percy done a great research for this book and I enjoyed the new things I got to learn about the dark net. The ending of this book was really interesting, and I think it rounded up the book really nicely. So, to conclude, I had an interesting reading experience, and if you like all things internet and are not scared of blood and murders, you might actually find this book really entertaining and enlightening.
Was given this book by publisher for honest review
Darren (1599 KP) rated One Cut of the Dead (Kamera o Tomeru na!) (2017) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
Characters – Director Higurashi is the man trying to make this movie work, he is getting tired of his performers not showing enough fear, he pushes them to the limits with real zombies, which soon give him his perfect picture. Chinatsu is the star of the movie being made, she struggles to show the fear to start with, until she finds herself in a real zombie film. Nao is the production assistant that teaches the actors about the rumours about the area and joins in the fight against the real zombies. Ko is the lead actor in the film being made, he is meant to be the reluctant hero when the zombie attack.
Performances – This is a movie that has performances that do give the actors a lot to do, with a lot of different angles to be seen, everything is wonderful from the cast, that truly makes sense by the end of the film.
Story – The story here follows the production of the low budget zombie movie until things take a turn, from fiction to reality. This is a story that is a breath of fresh air, because it goes in a direction you won’t see coming and does seem like something we needed for the zombie genre of film. The story does however start by feeling like something we have seen before, until we go in the different direction. We do get some wall breaking moments which adds everything to this story, which will make it one of the most original and smart ideas you will ever see.
Comedy/Horror – The comedy in the film comes from most of the second half of the film, which will be constant laughs, the horror in the film does seem like a routine zombie movie, until things change, it doesn’t get as scary as it could, but then it doesn’t need to be.
Settings – The film uses the settings perfectly to add to the film, we get to see so much from the abandoned warehouse setting, which only grows in the later parts of the film.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are everything you need for a low budget production, it is used to create and add extra comedy to the film too.
Scene of the Movie – The third act.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – There really isn’t one.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the most original and ingenious by turning everything you think you know, leaving you laughing with pure enjoyment of the events of the film.
Overall: Ingenious Zombie Movie.
One Cut for the Dead will get a one-night event in the US on the 17th September.
Performances – This is a movie that has performances that do give the actors a lot to do, with a lot of different angles to be seen, everything is wonderful from the cast, that truly makes sense by the end of the film.
Story – The story here follows the production of the low budget zombie movie until things take a turn, from fiction to reality. This is a story that is a breath of fresh air, because it goes in a direction you won’t see coming and does seem like something we needed for the zombie genre of film. The story does however start by feeling like something we have seen before, until we go in the different direction. We do get some wall breaking moments which adds everything to this story, which will make it one of the most original and smart ideas you will ever see.
Comedy/Horror – The comedy in the film comes from most of the second half of the film, which will be constant laughs, the horror in the film does seem like a routine zombie movie, until things change, it doesn’t get as scary as it could, but then it doesn’t need to be.
Settings – The film uses the settings perfectly to add to the film, we get to see so much from the abandoned warehouse setting, which only grows in the later parts of the film.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are everything you need for a low budget production, it is used to create and add extra comedy to the film too.
Scene of the Movie – The third act.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – There really isn’t one.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the most original and ingenious by turning everything you think you know, leaving you laughing with pure enjoyment of the events of the film.
Overall: Ingenious Zombie Movie.
One Cut for the Dead will get a one-night event in the US on the 17th September.
Darren (1599 KP) rated In the Tall Grass (2019) in Movies
Oct 14, 2019
Characters – Becky is the pregnant lady travelling across country to start a life with her baby, her maternal instincts take over when she hears a young boy calling for help in the grass, which sees her get trapped, she experiences different pregnancy problems while trying to find her way out. Cal is the protect brother, who couldn’t win a fight to save his life, he wants his sister to date somebody with a future and an education. Ross is the father of Tobin who has gone too far into the grass before, he knows what is happening making him a real threat to the rest. Tobin is the little boy that is calling out for help, he desperate cries for help lead to the events of the film as Becky and Cal go in search for the answer.
Performances – When it comes to the performances this is a hard one to hate or enjoy anybody in the film, nobody is bad, Laysla De Oliveira and Avery Whitted as the brother sister don’t have the best chemistry. Patrick Wilson does go full crazy for parts of the film and it is the best part to watch.
Story – The story here follows a group of people that lost in tall grass which seems to have a mind of itself which will see them needing to figure out how to make it out alive. This is a story that does do a lot of confusing things because we do try to capture the magic of ‘Triangle’ only for it to be way to confusing for the most part because we are going over and over through different points of view which just doesn’t give us enough to work with because a lot happens in pitch black too which doesn’t make it clear just what was happening. This is a story you could break down and figure out what happened, but it isn’t a causal watch when figuring out the loops.
Horror – The horror in the film is meant to come from the unknown in the grass and just what happens within the grass.
Settings – The film wants to use the tall grass for the settings, I guess this is an American thing for it to be scary.
Special Effects – The effects used in the film are mostly shock for gore, which are fine, but just don’t shock the way they want too.
Scene of the Movie – Ross finds a way in.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Too many attempts to create a reset.
Final Thoughts – This is a horror that just doesn’t get to any horror levels, if you have seen ‘Triangle’ you will have seen a much more interesting and better version of this story.
Overall: Just not Triangle.
Performances – When it comes to the performances this is a hard one to hate or enjoy anybody in the film, nobody is bad, Laysla De Oliveira and Avery Whitted as the brother sister don’t have the best chemistry. Patrick Wilson does go full crazy for parts of the film and it is the best part to watch.
Story – The story here follows a group of people that lost in tall grass which seems to have a mind of itself which will see them needing to figure out how to make it out alive. This is a story that does do a lot of confusing things because we do try to capture the magic of ‘Triangle’ only for it to be way to confusing for the most part because we are going over and over through different points of view which just doesn’t give us enough to work with because a lot happens in pitch black too which doesn’t make it clear just what was happening. This is a story you could break down and figure out what happened, but it isn’t a causal watch when figuring out the loops.
Horror – The horror in the film is meant to come from the unknown in the grass and just what happens within the grass.
Settings – The film wants to use the tall grass for the settings, I guess this is an American thing for it to be scary.
Special Effects – The effects used in the film are mostly shock for gore, which are fine, but just don’t shock the way they want too.
Scene of the Movie – Ross finds a way in.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Too many attempts to create a reset.
Final Thoughts – This is a horror that just doesn’t get to any horror levels, if you have seen ‘Triangle’ you will have seen a much more interesting and better version of this story.
Overall: Just not Triangle.
Defiance (Rise of the Iliri #3)
9.0
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HER ONLY CHOICE IS TO CHANGE HER WORLD… Salryc Luxx came to the Black Blades as ignorant of her...
Adventure Basic Math by 22learn
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iPad Version of this title was Ranked number 7 in Canada, 11 in the United States, 13 in the United...
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated The Night House (2020) in Movies
Aug 23, 2021
Rebecca Hall - outstanding (1 more)
Nicely vague script: leaves a lot to interpret
This one really creeped me out
Positives:
- Of the different movie genres, comedy and horror are probably the ones that polarise opinion the most. One person's meat is another's fowl. But I have to say that this movie officially creeped me out. I was extremely tense for just about the whole 107 minute running time. Much of this is down to Rebecca Hall, who is just SUPERB in this. She brilliantly portrays a woman on the edge, her impassive character breaking every so often into an "everything's fine" sarcastic smile. I know that the Academy tend not to nominate actors for Oscars for 'frivolous' films, but this genuinely, to me, felt like an Oscar-nomination-worthy performance.
- I've talked before in my blog about the overuse of 'jump scares' in horror films and the law of diminishing returns. This film doles them out very sparingly indeed. There are two notable ones (one spoiled by the trailer!) but - man - the first of these had me levitating off the seat!
- The script is very vague indeed about where you end up in this movie. (I've tried to do a synopsis of what I *think* happened in a "Sp0iler section" in my blog). The script deliciously muddies the waters between dreams and reality; sanity and madness; sobriety and drunkenness; with the real-life Madelyn (Stacy Martin) bringing you up short at times with an "oh - so that bit must by reality then"!
Negatives:
- The ending. I'm not sure how I wanted it to end. But it felt wholly anti-climactic.
Summary Thoughts on "The Night House": London-born Rebecca Hall seems to have a "leisurely" output as an actress, but she really deserves more prominence in the industry. (If you've not seen it yet, watch her outstanding performance in "Christine" as another proof point). Here she magnificently holds the movie together.
Effective horror films for me are those on the tense psychological side rather than the mindless slasher variety. This point was well made by Tom Shone in his review in "The Sunday Times", describing it as a "middle-aged kind of horror movie!". "The Night House" delivered those mental chills for me in spades. There is actually very little gore in this one. But it certainly had me thinking about it when I woke up in the middle of the night last night. Was that a noise downstairs??
If you like your scary films, then this one is highly recommended.
(For my full graphical review, please check out onemannsmovies on the web, Facebook and Tiktok. Thanks).
- Of the different movie genres, comedy and horror are probably the ones that polarise opinion the most. One person's meat is another's fowl. But I have to say that this movie officially creeped me out. I was extremely tense for just about the whole 107 minute running time. Much of this is down to Rebecca Hall, who is just SUPERB in this. She brilliantly portrays a woman on the edge, her impassive character breaking every so often into an "everything's fine" sarcastic smile. I know that the Academy tend not to nominate actors for Oscars for 'frivolous' films, but this genuinely, to me, felt like an Oscar-nomination-worthy performance.
- I've talked before in my blog about the overuse of 'jump scares' in horror films and the law of diminishing returns. This film doles them out very sparingly indeed. There are two notable ones (one spoiled by the trailer!) but - man - the first of these had me levitating off the seat!
- The script is very vague indeed about where you end up in this movie. (I've tried to do a synopsis of what I *think* happened in a "Sp0iler section" in my blog). The script deliciously muddies the waters between dreams and reality; sanity and madness; sobriety and drunkenness; with the real-life Madelyn (Stacy Martin) bringing you up short at times with an "oh - so that bit must by reality then"!
Negatives:
- The ending. I'm not sure how I wanted it to end. But it felt wholly anti-climactic.
Summary Thoughts on "The Night House": London-born Rebecca Hall seems to have a "leisurely" output as an actress, but she really deserves more prominence in the industry. (If you've not seen it yet, watch her outstanding performance in "Christine" as another proof point). Here she magnificently holds the movie together.
Effective horror films for me are those on the tense psychological side rather than the mindless slasher variety. This point was well made by Tom Shone in his review in "The Sunday Times", describing it as a "middle-aged kind of horror movie!". "The Night House" delivered those mental chills for me in spades. There is actually very little gore in this one. But it certainly had me thinking about it when I woke up in the middle of the night last night. Was that a noise downstairs??
If you like your scary films, then this one is highly recommended.
(For my full graphical review, please check out onemannsmovies on the web, Facebook and Tiktok. Thanks).
