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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Happy Death Day (2017) in Movies
Jul 11, 2019
Using familiar themes can be a risk. What we have seen in previous films that define a style, becomes cliché and bores the audience. Then there are times when movies turn the trope on its head and gives us a clever take on the familiar. Christopher Landon (Scout’s Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse) has directed a fun romp in suspense and horror. Yes, there is the blatant reference to Groundhog Day, but this film is definitely a homage to John Carpenter, the master of the genre.
We know from the trailer that this is a horror/suspense loop and there are expectations set in this type of film. The young, attractive, woman, stalked by an unknown, masked assailant with a penchant for cutlery. As we know, Tree (Jessica Rothe) gets killed repeatedly on her birthday. We know it’s a slasher flick, expecting to see lots of blood and gore. Putting the main character in a time loop is definitely a twist in the storytelling.
Using repetition in film can be a tricky, stalling the momentum of the film. There was a moment during where I wondered when the loop would end, creating the feeling of hopelessness. It is at that time where Tree’s through process shifts and we travel with her in this never ending day. It takes a few times in the loop for Tree’s character to become enlightened She does figure out that each return is a do-over, an opportunity to make different choices.
The film also tips it’s hat to the college/high school, mean girl movies and definitely a nod to John Hughes Sixteen Candles. It had humor, wit and clever character development, I certainly did not expect to enjoy the film as much as I did. I would definitely watch it again to catch all of the references.
We know from the trailer that this is a horror/suspense loop and there are expectations set in this type of film. The young, attractive, woman, stalked by an unknown, masked assailant with a penchant for cutlery. As we know, Tree (Jessica Rothe) gets killed repeatedly on her birthday. We know it’s a slasher flick, expecting to see lots of blood and gore. Putting the main character in a time loop is definitely a twist in the storytelling.
Using repetition in film can be a tricky, stalling the momentum of the film. There was a moment during where I wondered when the loop would end, creating the feeling of hopelessness. It is at that time where Tree’s through process shifts and we travel with her in this never ending day. It takes a few times in the loop for Tree’s character to become enlightened She does figure out that each return is a do-over, an opportunity to make different choices.
The film also tips it’s hat to the college/high school, mean girl movies and definitely a nod to John Hughes Sixteen Candles. It had humor, wit and clever character development, I certainly did not expect to enjoy the film as much as I did. I would definitely watch it again to catch all of the references.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Wish Upon (2017) in Movies
Jul 11, 2019
We often wonder what wishes we would cast if given the opportunity. We think of the riches, second chances, and various selfish or generous choices we would make. In Wish Upon, we bear witness to how this plays out for one teenage girl.
Wish Upon stars Ryan Phillippe as a widowed father to a teen daughter, Clare, played by Joey King (Ramona and Beezus). Working as a salvager, he comes across an antique Chinese Box that he gives to her for her birthday. Clare quickly understands that the box has the ability to grant wishes, but her limited understanding of Chinese prevents her from being able to decipher all of the characters on it which reveal an all important disclaimer: each wish will result in the death of someone you know.
The film is ambitious with its premise yet falls flat in its execution. What seemed to be a promising mix of The Box and Final Destination, resulted in an uninspiring teen thriller that, at times, seemed more slapstick than a film that would grab your attention and fill its viewers with anxiety and tension. Wish Upon checks off many of the cliché boxes with respect to their storytelling and interactions between characters and provides little originality.
Wish Upon misses the mark in not finding an identity. It jumps from being a slasher, to being a teen comedy, to being a romance. This would not be problematic if it incorporated all of these facets into creating a film that takes advantage of these aspects, but it does little to allow for the story to seem as one that would be memorable. Wish Upon will leave audiences wishing they had made a different choice at the box office.
Wish Upon stars Ryan Phillippe as a widowed father to a teen daughter, Clare, played by Joey King (Ramona and Beezus). Working as a salvager, he comes across an antique Chinese Box that he gives to her for her birthday. Clare quickly understands that the box has the ability to grant wishes, but her limited understanding of Chinese prevents her from being able to decipher all of the characters on it which reveal an all important disclaimer: each wish will result in the death of someone you know.
The film is ambitious with its premise yet falls flat in its execution. What seemed to be a promising mix of The Box and Final Destination, resulted in an uninspiring teen thriller that, at times, seemed more slapstick than a film that would grab your attention and fill its viewers with anxiety and tension. Wish Upon checks off many of the cliché boxes with respect to their storytelling and interactions between characters and provides little originality.
Wish Upon misses the mark in not finding an identity. It jumps from being a slasher, to being a teen comedy, to being a romance. This would not be problematic if it incorporated all of these facets into creating a film that takes advantage of these aspects, but it does little to allow for the story to seem as one that would be memorable. Wish Upon will leave audiences wishing they had made a different choice at the box office.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Angel Has Fallen (2019) in Movies
Aug 21, 2019
My attention span has fallen
Angel Has Fallen is a dumb, exhausting, joyless & over long experience that proves old isn't always bold. When this first started I won't lie I felt engaged, it felt like the team behind this series had finally matured/evolved past the blatant racism, painful dialog, woeful storytelling & overall silliness of the last movies. Essssh was I wrong. First thing on this downward spiral was Gerard Buttler not only is his accent always halfway between Scottish & American but theres something distracting about his face & how he constantly seems like he's chewing on something he's not enjoying most of the film (maybe the apauling script). Second they seemed to blow all the budget on these big slow motion action scenes at the start as my god do the production values take a complete nose dive half way in. Green screen & cgi go from quite cool/believable to worse than sharknado quality, its ghastly, distracting & im shocked this film got a cinema release looking how it does. I get the film is going for 90s nostalgia but honestly it fails on almost every level ending on such a cliched boss fight that is so unexciting & half arsed its plain embarrassing (I mean who wants to watch two old men fumble around on a boring roof looking more like they are about kiss than stab each other to death). One big brain dead mess & its stupidity/constant Trump praising became tiresome very quickly. Not even so good its bad its just plain lazy film making at its best & it only caters to people that need their movie plots spelt out in spaghetti shapes for them. Pure childish crap that rips parts from all the great action movies of the 90s & destroys your good memories of them. Avoid at all costs.
Portafolio - Design a Portfolio & Photo Albums
Photo & Video and Productivity
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DESIGN YOUR STORY A beautiful and flexible way to showcase your work. Build and share your own...
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Productivity and Education
8.0
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Prezi Viewer - Practice, watch, and present prezis anywhere. Got a presentation but no time to...
Frozen: Storybook Deluxe - Now with Frozen Fever!
Entertainment and Book
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**Now featuring the "Frozen Fever" story, the next chapter in the story of FROZEN! Reunite with your...
PhotoShake! for iPad
Photo & Video and Entertainment
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With PhotoShake, you can easily combine one or more photos to make exciting and fun new images....
Lions in the Balance: Man-Eaters,Manes and Men with Guns
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Ronyell (38 KP) rated Rabbit Ears: The Fool and the Flying Ship in TV
Aug 4, 2020
Honestly, this is my most favorite story from the Rabbit Ears series because it has everything that you would want to see happen in a fairy tale: comedy, fantasy and creative storytelling! Robin Williams was brilliant in narrating this story as he gave each character a distinctive voice and brought so much life to this story! I really enjoyed the creative tone of this story as the idea about having a flying ship that can take you anywhere in the world and having friends who have special abilities that can help you in a tight situation was really amusing to me! I also loved the characters in this story, with my favorite characters being the Runner and the Fool as they were extremely hilarious and interesting to look at. I also loved the focus on humor in this story as it made the situation and the characters much more memorable and lovable. Henrik Drescher's artwork is what truly made this story worth watching as the illustrations are bizarre yet hilarious to look at and I always loved the artwork of all the characters, especially of the Fool (who almost looks like Pinocchio), the Runner who has antlers in his head and the Puffer who looks like He-Man when he transforms into his muscular self.
The only problem with this story is that Henrik Drescher's illustrations might be an acquired taste for many people. Some people might like Henrik Drescher's illustrations for its creativity and its bizarre style while others might hate the artwork for being too ugly or too bizarre.
Overall, "The Fool and the Flying Ship" is a fun and creative video to watch and I am sure that many viewers will enjoy this story for its surreal humor and creative tone!
The only problem with this story is that Henrik Drescher's illustrations might be an acquired taste for many people. Some people might like Henrik Drescher's illustrations for its creativity and its bizarre style while others might hate the artwork for being too ugly or too bizarre.
Overall, "The Fool and the Flying Ship" is a fun and creative video to watch and I am sure that many viewers will enjoy this story for its surreal humor and creative tone!
Broken Sword 1 - Shadow of the Templars: Director's Cut
Games and Entertainment
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Paris in the Fall… a brutal murder at the Palais Royale. When Nico Collard is invited to interview...