Search
Search results
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Saving Private Ryan (1998) in Movies
Apr 13, 2020
One of the GOATS
At the time of this writing, Saving Private Ryan is sitting at fourteen on my all-time list. It is one of those once-in-a-lifetime movies that doesn’t come along too often. The story revolves around an army captain in WWII taking his men on a suicide mission to rescue a private before he is killed in action. Private Ryan’s three brothers have already been killed in action and the military wants to get the remaining Ryan home so his mother won’t have lost all of her children in one war.
Acting: 10
Where do I start? With Tom Hanks and his brilliant performance as Captain John Miller? Vin Diesel in probably one of his best roles as Private Caparzo. Tom Sizemore…Matt Damon…There are so many amazing performances that contributed to the greatness of this movie. You usually see it in glimpses as each character doesn’t get much in the way of their own screen time. The movie is packed with so many of those glimpse moments from these stellar actors, it’s hard to forget each of their roles.
Beginning: 10
Boasts one of the best opening twenty minutes in movie history. It’s violent, touching, and sucks you right in to the meat of the movie. There is so much intensity here, from the raucous sounds to the visceral feel of everything, that it’s hard to catch your breath afterwards.
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Conflict: 10
If you want knock-your-socks-off action from beginning to end, Saving Private Ryan is absolutely the movie for you. The battles are amazing giving you a front row seat to World War II. Steven Spielberg relies on a number of different camera angles to give you the full effect. Every scene is heartstopping as you realize the stakes and understand that no one is safe in this ultimate battle to stay alive. This movie has more action in the first twenty minutes than most films do through their entirety.
Entertainment Value: 10
Memorability: 10
Pace: 10
Plot: 10
For the most part, the story is pretty linear. There is a mission. Go and complete the mission. The end. However, there are two existing twists within the movie that definitely make things more interesting and entertaining. Those small tweaks were enough to satisfy my craving for originality.
Resolution: 10
Overall: 100
There is a scene on the beach where the camera shoots from underwater then repeatedly rises and falls in the water showing the grit of everything happening. This is one of a number of shots that makes Saving Private Ryan one of the all-time movies to ever exist in cinema. This movie is flat out amazing.
Acting: 10
Where do I start? With Tom Hanks and his brilliant performance as Captain John Miller? Vin Diesel in probably one of his best roles as Private Caparzo. Tom Sizemore…Matt Damon…There are so many amazing performances that contributed to the greatness of this movie. You usually see it in glimpses as each character doesn’t get much in the way of their own screen time. The movie is packed with so many of those glimpse moments from these stellar actors, it’s hard to forget each of their roles.
Beginning: 10
Boasts one of the best opening twenty minutes in movie history. It’s violent, touching, and sucks you right in to the meat of the movie. There is so much intensity here, from the raucous sounds to the visceral feel of everything, that it’s hard to catch your breath afterwards.
Characters: 10
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Conflict: 10
If you want knock-your-socks-off action from beginning to end, Saving Private Ryan is absolutely the movie for you. The battles are amazing giving you a front row seat to World War II. Steven Spielberg relies on a number of different camera angles to give you the full effect. Every scene is heartstopping as you realize the stakes and understand that no one is safe in this ultimate battle to stay alive. This movie has more action in the first twenty minutes than most films do through their entirety.
Entertainment Value: 10
Memorability: 10
Pace: 10
Plot: 10
For the most part, the story is pretty linear. There is a mission. Go and complete the mission. The end. However, there are two existing twists within the movie that definitely make things more interesting and entertaining. Those small tweaks were enough to satisfy my craving for originality.
Resolution: 10
Overall: 100
There is a scene on the beach where the camera shoots from underwater then repeatedly rises and falls in the water showing the grit of everything happening. This is one of a number of shots that makes Saving Private Ryan one of the all-time movies to ever exist in cinema. This movie is flat out amazing.
palmEM: Emergency Medicine Essentials & Urgent Care Quick Reference Pocket Guide
Medical and Health & Fitness
App
The top emergency medicine quick reference! The number 1 medical app in 75 countries. iTunes...
What am I Still Doing Here?: My Life as Me
Book
'Unremittingly glorious. I and the world demand more and we shall thump our tin mugs on the table...
Beware of Pity
Anthea Bell, Stefan Zweig and David Pearson
Book
Stefan's Zweig's Beware of Pity is an almost unbearably tense and powerful tale of unrequited love...
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Mother Daughter Widow Wife in Books
Jul 2, 2020
Wendy Doe is found in Philadelphia without an ID and no memory of who she is. She becomes a patient at Dr. Benjamin Strauss' Meadowlark Institute--basically her only alternative for being cast out on the streets. Dr. Strauss and his young student, Lizzie, study Wendy, fascinated by her fugue diagnosis. Meanwhile, years later, Wendy's daughter Alice is looking for her mother, who has disappeared again. Wondering if her mother's past disappearance--which she never knew about--could be tied to the current one--Alice searches out Benjamin Strauss and Lizzie. She discovers Lizzie is now a young widow and begins a journey into both her mother's past, and Lizzie's.
"Every daughter became a mother, every mistress a wife--every wife a widow."
This is a hard book for me to rate, even several weeks after finishing it. Is it a brilliant work examining womanhood and love or a frustrating tale that leaves you feeling unresolved? This is certainly a complex book that features complex science, emotions, and feelings. Wasserman has done her research, and there are pages and pages devoted to the science of dissociative fugue, amnesia, and more. I won't lie: it's a lot. There were times I found myself just skimming those sections, because it was a bit much for me.
I didn't care much for the character of Alice, and I'm not entirely sure why, because her mother is missing (presumed dead by suicide by everyone except Alice), and she's worried. But there's something about Alice that just didn't make her particularly sympathetic to me. As for Lizzie, even though she didn't make the best of choices, I liked her more. Maybe I identified better with her. We get to see Lizzie in the past and present, and Wasserman does a good job of capturing the yearning of loving someone who doesn't deserve you and the idea of becoming someone else for love. Even Wendy is hard to care about sometimes, because she just doesn't seem care herself. To her, her memory is a thing she's lost, but because she can't remember, she doesn't seem too concerned.
"'You don't get it: I don't not want it back, and I don't want it back. There is no it. You can't miss what never happened.'"
What was so hard with this book is that there were just so many words. Oh the words. Words about science, words about feelings, words, words, words. It just felt long. I wasn't entirely invested in the story, but I did want to find Alice's mother, but then everything just felt sort of eh and unresolved, and yeah. I don't know. So much thinking, not much happening. I think this novel probably presents some brilliant ideas and representations, but they went over my head. 2.75 stars, rounded to 3 here.
"Every daughter became a mother, every mistress a wife--every wife a widow."
This is a hard book for me to rate, even several weeks after finishing it. Is it a brilliant work examining womanhood and love or a frustrating tale that leaves you feeling unresolved? This is certainly a complex book that features complex science, emotions, and feelings. Wasserman has done her research, and there are pages and pages devoted to the science of dissociative fugue, amnesia, and more. I won't lie: it's a lot. There were times I found myself just skimming those sections, because it was a bit much for me.
I didn't care much for the character of Alice, and I'm not entirely sure why, because her mother is missing (presumed dead by suicide by everyone except Alice), and she's worried. But there's something about Alice that just didn't make her particularly sympathetic to me. As for Lizzie, even though she didn't make the best of choices, I liked her more. Maybe I identified better with her. We get to see Lizzie in the past and present, and Wasserman does a good job of capturing the yearning of loving someone who doesn't deserve you and the idea of becoming someone else for love. Even Wendy is hard to care about sometimes, because she just doesn't seem care herself. To her, her memory is a thing she's lost, but because she can't remember, she doesn't seem too concerned.
"'You don't get it: I don't not want it back, and I don't want it back. There is no it. You can't miss what never happened.'"
What was so hard with this book is that there were just so many words. Oh the words. Words about science, words about feelings, words, words, words. It just felt long. I wasn't entirely invested in the story, but I did want to find Alice's mother, but then everything just felt sort of eh and unresolved, and yeah. I don't know. So much thinking, not much happening. I think this novel probably presents some brilliant ideas and representations, but they went over my head. 2.75 stars, rounded to 3 here.
Charlotte (184 KP) rated The Mistake in Books
Mar 20, 2021
Although this is a review it will also serve as a letter to Mandy and any other person who has been in this or similar position.
Also this is trigger central with physical and emotional abuse, rape, bereavement, suicide attempts and self harm. If ANY of this affects you please seek help.
Let's start at the beginning.....yes maybe it was a mistake BUT remember you were being MANIPULATED. At the point you made that first 'mistake' he had already done the ground work, he'd slowly started controlling you and your environment......you didn't have a real choice.
He was a master of manipulation and deception, he already knew what words and phrases to use to get compliance........he had experience of it, he relished it. The guy had plausibility and knew how to create a good story....a believable one, well, multiple stories. The story to fool authorities, the story to fool family and friends, the story that became the script of your life.....this is NOT your fault! Whether due to generally being a trusting person or (for Mandy) being vulnerable from a previous bad relationship, you were taken advantage of.
Hope is a make or break feeling, meeting number 4 full of hope for things to get better was bittersweet. I don't have children but can only imagine what emotional trauma was caused from the very first moment of fear for the children. I take my hat off to all the survivors who steeled themselves and did what was necessary to protect their babies. Mandy did what was needed, not for her but her babies.....that's selflessness right there.
MB passing, for goodness sake! It's fluffing heartbreaking. Not going to lie I cried, for MB, for someone that deserved happiness but yet again was dealt a crap hand in life.
Totally unimpressed with flakey bake, I won't say anything else as I'll just swear a lot.
I've actually met Mandy a few times. She came across as outspoken, independent and strong in person, as well as fun (She's serious about the changing hair colours).
Having read this I have no doubt of the strength of this amazing woman. Followed for years by many demons yet still able to stand up and carry on, able to put into words, write a book, about things that most people wouldn't be capable of imagining let alone have touch their lives. A true inspiration.
I know how depression can creep up on you, stalk you, cloak itself so self doubt sets in......I also know how hard it is to ask for help but please ask, it's a lifesaver.
A story of freedom, survival, heartbreak, despair, hope and love as well as so much more.
This is a tissues and chocolate read from start to finish.
Also this is trigger central with physical and emotional abuse, rape, bereavement, suicide attempts and self harm. If ANY of this affects you please seek help.
Let's start at the beginning.....yes maybe it was a mistake BUT remember you were being MANIPULATED. At the point you made that first 'mistake' he had already done the ground work, he'd slowly started controlling you and your environment......you didn't have a real choice.
He was a master of manipulation and deception, he already knew what words and phrases to use to get compliance........he had experience of it, he relished it. The guy had plausibility and knew how to create a good story....a believable one, well, multiple stories. The story to fool authorities, the story to fool family and friends, the story that became the script of your life.....this is NOT your fault! Whether due to generally being a trusting person or (for Mandy) being vulnerable from a previous bad relationship, you were taken advantage of.
Hope is a make or break feeling, meeting number 4 full of hope for things to get better was bittersweet. I don't have children but can only imagine what emotional trauma was caused from the very first moment of fear for the children. I take my hat off to all the survivors who steeled themselves and did what was necessary to protect their babies. Mandy did what was needed, not for her but her babies.....that's selflessness right there.
MB passing, for goodness sake! It's fluffing heartbreaking. Not going to lie I cried, for MB, for someone that deserved happiness but yet again was dealt a crap hand in life.
Totally unimpressed with flakey bake, I won't say anything else as I'll just swear a lot.
I've actually met Mandy a few times. She came across as outspoken, independent and strong in person, as well as fun (She's serious about the changing hair colours).
Having read this I have no doubt of the strength of this amazing woman. Followed for years by many demons yet still able to stand up and carry on, able to put into words, write a book, about things that most people wouldn't be capable of imagining let alone have touch their lives. A true inspiration.
I know how depression can creep up on you, stalk you, cloak itself so self doubt sets in......I also know how hard it is to ask for help but please ask, it's a lifesaver.
A story of freedom, survival, heartbreak, despair, hope and love as well as so much more.
This is a tissues and chocolate read from start to finish.
BookInspector (124 KP) rated Madam in Books
Jul 1, 2021
The protagonist in this novel is Rose, and this story is told from her perspective. Rose is a very well educated Latin teacher that comes to a new, well-known school, but being a child of a very active feminist, stuck in a school that has very old and very strange traditions drives her “crazy”. I could not connect to Rose, I respected her thoughts, but she had no idea what she got herself into, and that made her look stupid. I missed student’s perspectives in this book. I think a student protagonist would have made this book way more interesting and absorbing, they definitely have a lot to tell.
I found the narrative of this book mysterious and very enjoyable. Rose is trying to find out more about the events happening in this school, but everything is so secretive, she gets only bits of information. I am not surprised she feels so frustrated. All of that creates a perfect mystery and suspense because I was so keen to find out, what was actually happening there. This book has plenty of issues to be discussed. It portrays only Rose’s perspective, she is from a lower class and has no idea how rich and influential people operate. So what seems outrageous to her, might seem very normal to rich people. I really enjoyed the ancient mythology that was in this novel, I loved the stories of powerful women from the past. The topics discussed in this book are arranged marriages, suicide, mental health issues, ignorance, friendships, homosexuality, teenage manipulations, lack of feminism, various secrets, and many, many more. This novel really highlights a very wide variety of topics.
The whole story is set in 1993, so it does show the struggles people had during those days, especially when it comes to technologies and communication. I enjoyed the writing style of this book, it was very atmospheric and dark. I really can see this novel as a film, it would be brilliant! The chapters of this book have medium length and it had me very engrossed in this story. I don’t really know what I think of the ending, it rounds up the story nicely, but for some reason, it didn’t really leave me satisfied.
So, to conclude, it is a very gloomy and dark novel, filled with unique characters and a plot filled with secrets and mystery. This book is perfect for discussions, it has a very wide variety of topics. I think it would be great for reading groups or readalongs. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys gothic novels, or books set in strange boarding schools.
I found the narrative of this book mysterious and very enjoyable. Rose is trying to find out more about the events happening in this school, but everything is so secretive, she gets only bits of information. I am not surprised she feels so frustrated. All of that creates a perfect mystery and suspense because I was so keen to find out, what was actually happening there. This book has plenty of issues to be discussed. It portrays only Rose’s perspective, she is from a lower class and has no idea how rich and influential people operate. So what seems outrageous to her, might seem very normal to rich people. I really enjoyed the ancient mythology that was in this novel, I loved the stories of powerful women from the past. The topics discussed in this book are arranged marriages, suicide, mental health issues, ignorance, friendships, homosexuality, teenage manipulations, lack of feminism, various secrets, and many, many more. This novel really highlights a very wide variety of topics.
The whole story is set in 1993, so it does show the struggles people had during those days, especially when it comes to technologies and communication. I enjoyed the writing style of this book, it was very atmospheric and dark. I really can see this novel as a film, it would be brilliant! The chapters of this book have medium length and it had me very engrossed in this story. I don’t really know what I think of the ending, it rounds up the story nicely, but for some reason, it didn’t really leave me satisfied.
So, to conclude, it is a very gloomy and dark novel, filled with unique characters and a plot filled with secrets and mystery. This book is perfect for discussions, it has a very wide variety of topics. I think it would be great for reading groups or readalongs. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys gothic novels, or books set in strange boarding schools.
Kristina (502 KP) rated The Silent Patient in Books
Dec 7, 2020
This is Michaelides' first book. I'm always a little suspicious when I try a new author, but I was extra suspicious because he is literally brand new. He. Did. Not. Disappoint. I was hooked from the very first page: a woman is found with her wrists slit in an apparent suicide attempt after, presumably, shooting her husband in the face 5 times. I mean, how's that for reeling the reader in? Reading from Alicia's diary was probably my favorite part, though Theo's point of view was far from lacking. I love books with an unreliable narrator because throughout the entire story your mind keeps bouncing back and forth between: is this character telling the truth or lying to me? In this case, I couldn't determine if Alicia was actually mentally unstable or if she was the victim of an unbelievable and unfortunate misunderstanding.
Alex is good with his suspense, too. There was an actual moment when I jumped just a little in my seat in anticipation of an attack, when it was just Theo being paranoid. However...
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
Perhaps a more intelligent person may have connected the dots long before I did. Fortunately (yes, fortunately), I'm a bit dimwitted, so things that are obvious to others ahead of time are not so obvious to me, which makes the surprise all the more unbelievable. So it didn't take me until Theo was standing outside Kathy's lover's house, watching his wife, that I got a crazy sense of de ja vu and LITERAL chills up and down my spine! This has never happened to me before, so kudos to Michaelides, and that's no joke.
However, even then (remember, dimwit) I couldn't fully understand why I was feeling that way, just that he was suddenly starting to sound like, if it were possible, he was the mystery man Alicia kept talking about in her diary. But that's impossible, right, because he only met her when he chose to work at the Grove in order to help heal her after hearing the story on the news. Then it all came crashing down on me and I suddenly realized, with an almost exaggerated physical response, what was really happening. Surprise!
I gave 'The Silent Patient' 4 stars instead of 5 because something felt off about the ending. It wasn't necessarily disappointing, because pretty much everything was answered and we know Theo is busted for all his wrongdoings. But there was something missing. I felt bereft, I suppose. Other than that, which I wish I could explain better, I was blown away by this book and was in kept in suspense the entire time - and the twist at the end was, indeed, an unbelievable twist. I'm quite certain I'll grab Alex's next release!
Alex is good with his suspense, too. There was an actual moment when I jumped just a little in my seat in anticipation of an attack, when it was just Theo being paranoid. However...
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
Perhaps a more intelligent person may have connected the dots long before I did. Fortunately (yes, fortunately), I'm a bit dimwitted, so things that are obvious to others ahead of time are not so obvious to me, which makes the surprise all the more unbelievable. So it didn't take me until Theo was standing outside Kathy's lover's house, watching his wife, that I got a crazy sense of de ja vu and LITERAL chills up and down my spine! This has never happened to me before, so kudos to Michaelides, and that's no joke.
However, even then (remember, dimwit) I couldn't fully understand why I was feeling that way, just that he was suddenly starting to sound like, if it were possible, he was the mystery man Alicia kept talking about in her diary. But that's impossible, right, because he only met her when he chose to work at the Grove in order to help heal her after hearing the story on the news. Then it all came crashing down on me and I suddenly realized, with an almost exaggerated physical response, what was really happening. Surprise!
I gave 'The Silent Patient' 4 stars instead of 5 because something felt off about the ending. It wasn't necessarily disappointing, because pretty much everything was answered and we know Theo is busted for all his wrongdoings. But there was something missing. I felt bereft, I suppose. Other than that, which I wish I could explain better, I was blown away by this book and was in kept in suspense the entire time - and the twist at the end was, indeed, an unbelievable twist. I'm quite certain I'll grab Alex's next release!
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Wonder Woman (2017) in Movies
Jul 11, 2019
The extent of my knowledge of Wonder Woman comes from vague memories of the TV show with Lynda Carter in the 70s and the Super Friends cartoon in the early 80s. So I knew she was an Amazon princess from Paradise Island who flew an invisible plane. I may have been Wonder Woman for Halloween back when you stuck your arms through a plastic sheet with Wonder Woman’s torso painted on it, that tied at the neck like a cheap, hospital gown, with a mask with eyes cutout and a mouth you really couldn’t breathe through. So really, I knew OF her, but I never really actually knew much about Wonder Woman.
Fast forward some 40 years later and I’m in a theater learning Diana is the fiercely spirited daughter of Queen Hippolyta who sculpted her from clay and was brought to life by Zeus. Wait. What? Tell me more! She’s raised on the secluded island of Themyscira where, thanks to her aunt Antiope’s training, Diana develops extraordinary skill in combat.
Those skills come in handy when Steve Trevor somehow crashes through the protective barrier surrounding Themyscira, while trying to escape from the Germans. Suddenly made aware of an outside world, Diana decides to leave Themyscira with Trevor for war-torn Europe believing she must help stop the great war.
Gal Gadot portrays Wonder Woman as a strong-willed, worldly but still naïve force to reckon with. Chris Pine plays a wiley American spy who isn’t immune to Diana’s beauty but remains respectful of the innocence he can see behind her conviction. Together they team up with a motley crew of unlikely heroes to bring down a horrific German, whom Diana believes is Ares, the God of War, reborn.
I wasn’t sure what kept me more riveted, the storyline, the chemistry between Gadot and Pine,or Wonder Woman’s physical beauty and prowess. I can tell you that I never heard a screener audience cheer for Batman or Superman like they did for Wonder Woman, just at the sight of the determined superhero slowly walking towards battle, prompted in part by the pounding opening wails of Wonder Woman’s theme music.
Wonder Woman is an origin story well-told, something I really can’t say for the previous Justice League movies. Where Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad have left me “meh” for future DC movies, Wonder Woman left me hopeful for Justice League and future DC Extended Universe movies. I hope the directors of DCEU movies take some lessons from Wonder Woman’s director, Patty Jenkins. Simply put, we want to root for a multi-dimensional superhero with a story we can easily follow and get behind. In other words, be like Wonder Woman.
Fast forward some 40 years later and I’m in a theater learning Diana is the fiercely spirited daughter of Queen Hippolyta who sculpted her from clay and was brought to life by Zeus. Wait. What? Tell me more! She’s raised on the secluded island of Themyscira where, thanks to her aunt Antiope’s training, Diana develops extraordinary skill in combat.
Those skills come in handy when Steve Trevor somehow crashes through the protective barrier surrounding Themyscira, while trying to escape from the Germans. Suddenly made aware of an outside world, Diana decides to leave Themyscira with Trevor for war-torn Europe believing she must help stop the great war.
Gal Gadot portrays Wonder Woman as a strong-willed, worldly but still naïve force to reckon with. Chris Pine plays a wiley American spy who isn’t immune to Diana’s beauty but remains respectful of the innocence he can see behind her conviction. Together they team up with a motley crew of unlikely heroes to bring down a horrific German, whom Diana believes is Ares, the God of War, reborn.
I wasn’t sure what kept me more riveted, the storyline, the chemistry between Gadot and Pine,or Wonder Woman’s physical beauty and prowess. I can tell you that I never heard a screener audience cheer for Batman or Superman like they did for Wonder Woman, just at the sight of the determined superhero slowly walking towards battle, prompted in part by the pounding opening wails of Wonder Woman’s theme music.
Wonder Woman is an origin story well-told, something I really can’t say for the previous Justice League movies. Where Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad have left me “meh” for future DC movies, Wonder Woman left me hopeful for Justice League and future DC Extended Universe movies. I hope the directors of DCEU movies take some lessons from Wonder Woman’s director, Patty Jenkins. Simply put, we want to root for a multi-dimensional superhero with a story we can easily follow and get behind. In other words, be like Wonder Woman.
Defiance (Rise of the Iliri #3)
9.0
Rate It
Book
HER ONLY CHOICE IS TO CHANGE HER WORLD… Salryc Luxx came to the Black Blades as ignorant of her...