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David McK (3557 KP) rated The Legion (Eagle, #10) in Books
Jan 30, 2019
The latest in Simon Scarrows Roman series of books (that initially all had the word 'Eagle' somewhere in the title), this follows on fromt he events of 'The Gladiator' and can be seen as concluding the plot line first began in 'Centurion'.
Unlike 'The Gladiator', however, I reckon it would be possible (maybe not advisable, but possible) to read this as stand-alone: although reference is made to previous events, they aren't quite as central to the story in this book as the events in 'Centurion' are to 'The Gladiator'. This particular novel is set in Egypt - Rome's bread-basket - and follows Cato (who, for the first time in the series as a whole, has more responsibility than Macro) and Macro's search to hunt down the renegade Gladiator Ajax, who escaped from Crete at the end of the previous novel. As before, when you pick up one of these books: you pretty much know what to expect - bloody battles, a little bit of suspense, and a few loose ends for the sequels ...
Unlike 'The Gladiator', however, I reckon it would be possible (maybe not advisable, but possible) to read this as stand-alone: although reference is made to previous events, they aren't quite as central to the story in this book as the events in 'Centurion' are to 'The Gladiator'. This particular novel is set in Egypt - Rome's bread-basket - and follows Cato (who, for the first time in the series as a whole, has more responsibility than Macro) and Macro's search to hunt down the renegade Gladiator Ajax, who escaped from Crete at the end of the previous novel. As before, when you pick up one of these books: you pretty much know what to expect - bloody battles, a little bit of suspense, and a few loose ends for the sequels ...
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Saw: The Final Chapter (2010) in Movies
Dec 22, 2018
They just get worse
I’ve always hated what they did to the Saw films. The first one was fantastic, the second one quite good and then the rest have gone downhill at an alarming rate.
This ‘final chapter’, which actually isn’t as they’ve started making Jigsaw films now, is the worst of the bunch. Not only are the traps actually quite dull and boring (they obviously outdid themselves with the traps in the first film), the special effects and gore look really bad too. Did nobody notice that the blood didn’t look even slightly real? In some scenes it was verging on fuschia. The plot itself is just convoluted as always and they’ve been trying to tie up loose ends with little success. They should’ve just left the original as a stand alone film instead of messing it up with all of Jigsaw’s accomplices in these 6 sequels. And the final twist reveal at the end? Come on, I predicted that from the second film onwards, and I’m sure many other people did too. Such a lame ending.
This ‘final chapter’, which actually isn’t as they’ve started making Jigsaw films now, is the worst of the bunch. Not only are the traps actually quite dull and boring (they obviously outdid themselves with the traps in the first film), the special effects and gore look really bad too. Did nobody notice that the blood didn’t look even slightly real? In some scenes it was verging on fuschia. The plot itself is just convoluted as always and they’ve been trying to tie up loose ends with little success. They should’ve just left the original as a stand alone film instead of messing it up with all of Jigsaw’s accomplices in these 6 sequels. And the final twist reveal at the end? Come on, I predicted that from the second film onwards, and I’m sure many other people did too. Such a lame ending.
Tim McGuire (301 KP) rated Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) in Movies
Apr 20, 2020
More of The Rock in a jungle.
412. Jumanji: The Next Level. There's actors out there that say they will never do sequels. And there's the ones that do nothing but. Dwayne Johnson, is back, again, in another sequel to Jumanji. This time around, one of the gang, Spencer is depressed and goes back home on school break and disappears into the game, when the rest of em all come looking for him, they get sucked into the game, but this time, there's old people!! Danny DeVito and 'I'm too old for this shit' Danny Glover play old people in this that also get sucked into the game. There's really no logic behind any of this. They become The Rock and Kevin Hart and they say all the old person in young body jokes that you've seen in the trailers, don't worry they are all there. They set off on a safe, family friendly adventure to find Spencer, which leads to a rather boring and predictable ending. Filmbufftim on FB
A Dog-Lover's Miscellany
Book
Schott's Original Miscellany was a publishing phenomenon. It sired a host of sequels and parodies....
Lethal Weapon (1987)
8.3
Rate It
Movie Watch
Box-office superstar and Academy Award-winner Mel Gibson and Danny Glover team up as L.A. cops in...
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Taken (2009) in Movies
Mar 10, 2021
Liam Neeson (1 more)
The Best One
He Will Find You and Kill You
Taken- is a excellent action packed thriller. Liam Neeson is excellent in this.
The plot: Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson), a former government operative, is trying to reconnect with his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace). Then his worst fears become real when sex slavers abduct Kim and her friend shortly after they arrive in Paris for vacation. With just four days until Kim will be auctioned off, Bryan must call on every skill he learned in black ops to rescue her.
Its the best one out of the trilogy, should of there been 2 more sequels, no. But $$$.
Intresting fact: Jeff Bridges was first cast as Bryan Mills, but after he dropped out of the project, Liam Neeson accepted the part, desiring to play a more physically demanding role than he was used to. Neeson at first thought the film to be no more than a "little side road" for his career, expecting it to be released directly to video.
Only watch this one.
The plot: Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson), a former government operative, is trying to reconnect with his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace). Then his worst fears become real when sex slavers abduct Kim and her friend shortly after they arrive in Paris for vacation. With just four days until Kim will be auctioned off, Bryan must call on every skill he learned in black ops to rescue her.
Its the best one out of the trilogy, should of there been 2 more sequels, no. But $$$.
Intresting fact: Jeff Bridges was first cast as Bryan Mills, but after he dropped out of the project, Liam Neeson accepted the part, desiring to play a more physically demanding role than he was used to. Neeson at first thought the film to be no more than a "little side road" for his career, expecting it to be released directly to video.
Only watch this one.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988) in Movies
Mar 15, 2021
Ignore the fact that Michael Myers' mask looks a bit silly in this one and there's a lot to love.
It's back-to-basics approach of Myers stalking his way though Haddonfield is a welcome one after the hospital setting of II, and the bonkers acid trip of III.
Danielle Harris displays a damn fine performance as lead kid character Jamie Lloyd, and Donald Pleasance returns again as Loomis (apparently not dead after the almost certainly fatal explosion he was right next to at the end of II), acting suitably crazy as is to be expected by now.
There are some great shots on display, once again, courtesy of the simple, striking, and terrifying look of Michael Myers (from far away this time though, seriously, the mask looks really silly close up) and the general production values are pretty decent.
It's of course not a patch on the original, but as far as sequels go, Halloween 4 is one of the better ones. Also, one character gets impaled with a shotgun, which is just ridiculous and fantastic at the same time.
It's back-to-basics approach of Myers stalking his way though Haddonfield is a welcome one after the hospital setting of II, and the bonkers acid trip of III.
Danielle Harris displays a damn fine performance as lead kid character Jamie Lloyd, and Donald Pleasance returns again as Loomis (apparently not dead after the almost certainly fatal explosion he was right next to at the end of II), acting suitably crazy as is to be expected by now.
There are some great shots on display, once again, courtesy of the simple, striking, and terrifying look of Michael Myers (from far away this time though, seriously, the mask looks really silly close up) and the general production values are pretty decent.
It's of course not a patch on the original, but as far as sequels go, Halloween 4 is one of the better ones. Also, one character gets impaled with a shotgun, which is just ridiculous and fantastic at the same time.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Predator (1987) in Movies
Sep 2, 2019 (Updated Oct 25, 2019)
Dug in like an Alabama Tic
Here we have a shining example of a crazy genre mash up that nails it first try.
Predator starts off as another 80s action fest, full of one liners, muscles, and explosions. It's ridiculous in all the right ways. (Dutch and Dillon's gratuitous muscles hand shake will always remain one of the most stupid-but-incredible shots committed to film)
As we all know, Predator takes a turn near the halfway mark into sci-fi-horror territory, introducing us to one of the most iconic on screen alien species ever.
The Predator design is badass, and the inevitable unmasking is pretty nasty.
As the movie draws to it's climax, the showdown between Dutch and The Predator is exciting and inventive, and cements Predator as one of the very best Arnold Schwarzenegger films.
Throw in a healthy amount of violence and some Little Richard and we have a hugely enjoyable action film to enjoy over and over.
It's a damn shame that none of the sequels have ever come close to the original and best. Maybe one day...
Predator starts off as another 80s action fest, full of one liners, muscles, and explosions. It's ridiculous in all the right ways. (Dutch and Dillon's gratuitous muscles hand shake will always remain one of the most stupid-but-incredible shots committed to film)
As we all know, Predator takes a turn near the halfway mark into sci-fi-horror territory, introducing us to one of the most iconic on screen alien species ever.
The Predator design is badass, and the inevitable unmasking is pretty nasty.
As the movie draws to it's climax, the showdown between Dutch and The Predator is exciting and inventive, and cements Predator as one of the very best Arnold Schwarzenegger films.
Throw in a healthy amount of violence and some Little Richard and we have a hugely enjoyable action film to enjoy over and over.
It's a damn shame that none of the sequels have ever come close to the original and best. Maybe one day...
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Final Destination 2 (2003) in Movies
Aug 22, 2019
This sequel to Final Destination is more of the same... No better or worse actually. It sticks to the same formula as it's predecessor (and all of the subsequent entries), and is pretty much where the semi decent FD sequels end.
The set up premonition is pretty good - Director David R. Ellis is better known for his extensive stunt directing, and it's shows in scenes like this.
The extra features included in the home release show that this scene was done almost entirely practically. I feel that this always makes a difference.
The extra features also reveal how a lot of the kills were achieved using practical effects, which again, is something I can truly respect and admire, even if they were polished off with the CGI.
The finished result is a film that isn't great by any means, but it is a fun ride, that follows on from the first film nicely.
The acting is hammy, but the cast are mostly fine, and even includes another cameo from Tony Todd 👍
The set up premonition is pretty good - Director David R. Ellis is better known for his extensive stunt directing, and it's shows in scenes like this.
The extra features included in the home release show that this scene was done almost entirely practically. I feel that this always makes a difference.
The extra features also reveal how a lot of the kills were achieved using practical effects, which again, is something I can truly respect and admire, even if they were polished off with the CGI.
The finished result is a film that isn't great by any means, but it is a fun ride, that follows on from the first film nicely.
The acting is hammy, but the cast are mostly fine, and even includes another cameo from Tony Todd 👍
I think I might have first read this in the mid to late 90s. Anyway, there or thereabouts. Definitely before the resurgence of 'classic' fantasy brought about by the Lord of the Rings (and The Hobbit) movies of the early 21st century.
I recently decided to give it a re-read (in 2020). What is now clear(er) to me than to the just-becoming-a-teenager I was on my first read is just how heavily indebted this is to JRR Tolkien, and just how much it reads like someone-decided-to-play-a-game-of-D&D-and-write-down-what-their-characters-did.
That latter probably shouldn't come as a surprise, given that one of the authors of this actually helped design that game.
Here, in the first of the 'core' Dragonlance novels, we have your standard archetypes: Halfling (Kender), Warrior, Knight, Elf, Half-Elf, Wizard, Barbarian all going off on what becomes various quests that (surprise surprise!) involve delving in dungeons and various sundry other enclosed spaces ...
I'll probably re-read the sequels, just because.
I recently decided to give it a re-read (in 2020). What is now clear(er) to me than to the just-becoming-a-teenager I was on my first read is just how heavily indebted this is to JRR Tolkien, and just how much it reads like someone-decided-to-play-a-game-of-D&D-and-write-down-what-their-characters-did.
That latter probably shouldn't come as a surprise, given that one of the authors of this actually helped design that game.
Here, in the first of the 'core' Dragonlance novels, we have your standard archetypes: Halfling (Kender), Warrior, Knight, Elf, Half-Elf, Wizard, Barbarian all going off on what becomes various quests that (surprise surprise!) involve delving in dungeons and various sundry other enclosed spaces ...
I'll probably re-read the sequels, just because.