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Awix (3310 KP) rated The Darkest Hour (2011) in Movies
Jun 2, 2018 (Updated Jun 2, 2018)
Ferociously generic hot-young-things-are-chased-by-high-concept-monsters movie. (Winston Churchill does not appear, by the way.) Various American, Australian and Swedish characters bump into each other in a Moscow nightclub, hit it off (or not), then find the evening takes a bit of a turn when aliens made of invisible electricity arrive and start eating people. Lots of sneaking about and tension; it's not that difficult to guess who the aliens are going to chow down on before the end of the film, and in what order.
I suppose it looks okay, and many members of the cast have gone on to marginally better things (remakes of Judge Dredd and Robocop, plus TV work for Marvel), but the whole thing seems to be actively trying to be as forgettable as possible. The film's big innovation - the Moscow setting - ends up contributing nothing to the film, really; actual Russian characters are kept peripheral. Ultimately just a very, very bland film: Olivia Thirlby deserves some kind of mention for actually making you care slightly about her character. Apart from that this is the kind of SF film that brings science fiction into disrepute. And science. And quite probably fiction, come to that.
I suppose it looks okay, and many members of the cast have gone on to marginally better things (remakes of Judge Dredd and Robocop, plus TV work for Marvel), but the whole thing seems to be actively trying to be as forgettable as possible. The film's big innovation - the Moscow setting - ends up contributing nothing to the film, really; actual Russian characters are kept peripheral. Ultimately just a very, very bland film: Olivia Thirlby deserves some kind of mention for actually making you care slightly about her character. Apart from that this is the kind of SF film that brings science fiction into disrepute. And science. And quite probably fiction, come to that.
Lou Grande (148 KP) rated The Hunger in Books
Jun 28, 2018
Either narrow the focus or expand the scope
Contains spoilers, click to show
This book was so hyped. I was getting emails about it for months; Stephen King recommended it up and down. And it was good! Sort of.
As others have noted, Katsu does an excellent job of building atmosphere and tension in the first half of the book, but when things start to unravel for the Donner Party, so does the narrative. There are too many characters to keep track of interspersed with too many flashbacks. It weakens the impact of what happened up in those mountains. In fact, it barely mentions them at all.
Yes, there are supernatural elements woven into an historical event. But—you know, it wasn’t really necessary. I thought the idea of linking it (the hunger) to a disease was an interesting one that ultimately went nowhere. It all just got too convoluted. I continuously had to keep rechecking who each character was, because some would disappear between chapters. There is so much that is lost between pages, including the fates of (what the reader is led to believe are) key characters.
Do yourself a favor if you pick this one up, and read the Wikipedia article on the Donner Party first. At least then you can maybe keep track of the characters.
As others have noted, Katsu does an excellent job of building atmosphere and tension in the first half of the book, but when things start to unravel for the Donner Party, so does the narrative. There are too many characters to keep track of interspersed with too many flashbacks. It weakens the impact of what happened up in those mountains. In fact, it barely mentions them at all.
Yes, there are supernatural elements woven into an historical event. But—you know, it wasn’t really necessary. I thought the idea of linking it (the hunger) to a disease was an interesting one that ultimately went nowhere. It all just got too convoluted. I continuously had to keep rechecking who each character was, because some would disappear between chapters. There is so much that is lost between pages, including the fates of (what the reader is led to believe are) key characters.
Do yourself a favor if you pick this one up, and read the Wikipedia article on the Donner Party first. At least then you can maybe keep track of the characters.
Kristin (149 KP) rated Killer Rumors (Frank Rinelli, #1) in Books
Dec 7, 2018
Disclaimer: I received an e-copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Two priests are very publicly and horrifically murdered, their bodies left in front of their church bearing strange markings and objects. It's up to Frank Rinelli and his partner to solve the case before more bodies turn up, but that's easier said than done.
Honestly, I really liked the premise of this story. The action was there, and tension was included throughout as the reader learns more about the who/what/when/where/why of the murders before the police do. However, there were so many errors in grammar and proofreading that I just couldn't ignore them after the first few pages. A few examples: five sentences in a row with the word "scene"; five out of six in a row with the word "bodies"; direct quote -- "It connected unto Branchard's chest activity." There was so much redundancy and other issues in the writing that I found myself having to take a break from reading because it was making my head hurt. All-in-all, it's a pretty good book; it just definitely needs a thorough proofreading and editing before I'd give it a higher rating.
3 stars
Two priests are very publicly and horrifically murdered, their bodies left in front of their church bearing strange markings and objects. It's up to Frank Rinelli and his partner to solve the case before more bodies turn up, but that's easier said than done.
Honestly, I really liked the premise of this story. The action was there, and tension was included throughout as the reader learns more about the who/what/when/where/why of the murders before the police do. However, there were so many errors in grammar and proofreading that I just couldn't ignore them after the first few pages. A few examples: five sentences in a row with the word "scene"; five out of six in a row with the word "bodies"; direct quote -- "It connected unto Branchard's chest activity." There was so much redundancy and other issues in the writing that I found myself having to take a break from reading because it was making my head hurt. All-in-all, it's a pretty good book; it just definitely needs a thorough proofreading and editing before I'd give it a higher rating.
3 stars
Jackie (3 KP) rated Hunting Prince Dracula in Books
Sep 10, 2018
Contains spoilers, click to show
I absolutely adore Kerri’s writing in this one! I loved the folklore added into the story (I think I learned more in this one that I did in the first one) and that we got to explore Thomas’s family history and learn more about him.
I mentioned in my review for STJR that the ending had took me by surprise but that I could go back to add up the clues dropped throughout the book. The ending to this one, however, caught me completely off guard! I knew most of the suspects were red herrings but I hadn’t thought that this character would do what they did! Especially given their reasoning behind their actions.
I also loved that we were able to explore Cressworth some more in this book (the tension was killing me at certain moments) but given THAT part of the ending, I’m hoping we get even more of their romance in the third book. ?
The new characters added were some of my favorite side characters. I’m hoping they’ll pop up in any future books (if Kerri adds on after the third one she’s announced) for assistance for Audrey Rose and Thomas in a future case. These two really do remind me of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and I absolutely love it!
I mentioned in my review for STJR that the ending had took me by surprise but that I could go back to add up the clues dropped throughout the book. The ending to this one, however, caught me completely off guard! I knew most of the suspects were red herrings but I hadn’t thought that this character would do what they did! Especially given their reasoning behind their actions.
I also loved that we were able to explore Cressworth some more in this book (the tension was killing me at certain moments) but given THAT part of the ending, I’m hoping we get even more of their romance in the third book. ?
The new characters added were some of my favorite side characters. I’m hoping they’ll pop up in any future books (if Kerri adds on after the third one she’s announced) for assistance for Audrey Rose and Thomas in a future case. These two really do remind me of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and I absolutely love it!
Awix (3310 KP) rated King of Thieves (2018) in Movies
Oct 10, 2018
Michael Caine leads a crack team of crock crooks in robbing a safe deposit vault in London in this loosely-based-on-reality black comedy thriller. Quite apart from Caine, the film has an excellent cast (Jim Broadbent, Tom Courtenay, Ray Winstone, Paul Whitehouse, and Michael Gambon, plus Charlie Cox for the streaming generation), which will probably be what draws most people to it.
Initially this looks like it's going to be a slightly cosy comedy thriller about blokes who are too old be robbers any more, but - very pleasantly - it quite soon acquires some real heft and gravity to it, with the various members of the gang falling out and attempting to double-cross each other - most of these actors are well-known as comedians, but there is some proper meaty drama here and scenes with a definite tension to them.
Not quite as much Caine as you might hope for, but he is still the guv'nor as far as British film acting is concerned, and this is his best role for a while. Everyone else is good too. The film never quite gets the shifts between comedy and gangster thriller right, and the low budget keeps it from being very cinematic, but it's an engaging movie driven by great performances.
Initially this looks like it's going to be a slightly cosy comedy thriller about blokes who are too old be robbers any more, but - very pleasantly - it quite soon acquires some real heft and gravity to it, with the various members of the gang falling out and attempting to double-cross each other - most of these actors are well-known as comedians, but there is some proper meaty drama here and scenes with a definite tension to them.
Not quite as much Caine as you might hope for, but he is still the guv'nor as far as British film acting is concerned, and this is his best role for a while. Everyone else is good too. The film never quite gets the shifts between comedy and gangster thriller right, and the low budget keeps it from being very cinematic, but it's an engaging movie driven by great performances.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated First Man (2018) in Movies
Aug 16, 2019
Dull
I'm so glad I didn't watch this film at the cinema. I don't think I could've gotten through it without falling asleep, it's that dull and drawn out.
Visually this film looks brilliant, the space scenes especially look great. It also has a very good cast, although unsurprisingly most appear to have been sidelined in favour of Ryan Gosling who is pretty average at best. This film may have been slightly more enjoyable had they gotten someone a little more charismatic in the lead role. I'm just very thankful for Corey Stoll as Aldrin for putting a little life into this! The main problem though is that it is far too long, drawn out and melodramatic, and spends too much time on the earth scenes and build up. They could have easily cut a lot of this out, speed up the pace and knock half an hour off the runtime without any noticeable issues. It isn't really helped though by the fact that we all know how this story turns out (spoiler - he walks on the moon at the end), so there's little suspense or tension and makes for rather a dull film.
I think I found the informative videos made for tourists to watch at Kennedy Space Center more entertaining than this film.
Visually this film looks brilliant, the space scenes especially look great. It also has a very good cast, although unsurprisingly most appear to have been sidelined in favour of Ryan Gosling who is pretty average at best. This film may have been slightly more enjoyable had they gotten someone a little more charismatic in the lead role. I'm just very thankful for Corey Stoll as Aldrin for putting a little life into this! The main problem though is that it is far too long, drawn out and melodramatic, and spends too much time on the earth scenes and build up. They could have easily cut a lot of this out, speed up the pace and knock half an hour off the runtime without any noticeable issues. It isn't really helped though by the fact that we all know how this story turns out (spoiler - he walks on the moon at the end), so there's little suspense or tension and makes for rather a dull film.
I think I found the informative videos made for tourists to watch at Kennedy Space Center more entertaining than this film.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated The Silent Companions in Books
Oct 16, 2019
A gripping gothic horror
I decided to give this a go purely because I enjoyed Laura Purcell's second novel The Corset, and I'm so glad I did because I could not put this down. I stayed up far too late last might purely to get this finished as I couldn't bear the thought of waiting until tonight to read the ending. It's that good.
This is the first horror book I've ever read that has truly scared me and given me the creeps. The plot and idea behind the companions is a wonderfully creepy idea and the gothic setting works so well. The story is told in a great way too, flitting between the different times and viewpoints, to really build up the tension and intrigue to where you can't stop reading as you need to find out what happens next. The only real criticism I have is that Elsie is not the most amenable and endearing of protagonists, so even after the ending you don't necessarily feel sorry for her, but I personally was so gripped by the rest of the plot that whether I loved Elsie or not was irrelevant. The kind of book I'd love to see made into a film (done properly of course!).
This is the first horror book I've ever read that has truly scared me and given me the creeps. The plot and idea behind the companions is a wonderfully creepy idea and the gothic setting works so well. The story is told in a great way too, flitting between the different times and viewpoints, to really build up the tension and intrigue to where you can't stop reading as you need to find out what happens next. The only real criticism I have is that Elsie is not the most amenable and endearing of protagonists, so even after the ending you don't necessarily feel sorry for her, but I personally was so gripped by the rest of the plot that whether I loved Elsie or not was irrelevant. The kind of book I'd love to see made into a film (done properly of course!).
Lenard (726 KP) rated X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) in Movies
Jul 4, 2019
The producers behind the X-Men series once again rush to tell one of their best storylines from the comic series. Unfortunately, The Dark Phoenix Saga does not lend itself to a one-off movie. Once again, the people with the money are too afraid to gamble on breaking the story into two or three movies. Imagine It, The Lord of the Rings, or Infinity Gauntlet as just film. You can't because all of them were split up into two or three films and they all made huge profits. Dark Phoenix needed the same care and guidance. Jean Grey was not introduced in this timeline until Apocalypse. We the audience did not have time to get to know her and her backstory so we have no sympathy for her when she is taken over by an alien force or any understanding why she is able to battle within herself. There is no real tension in the relationship between Scott and Jean since they have only been together in our minds for 1 movie even if the movie was set ten years ago. We have not experienced those ten years along side them. Every detail is cobbled together in an effort to jam this story which lasted ten issues in the graphic serial.
Andrew Kennedy (199 KP) rated Halloween (1978) in Movies
Jul 8, 2019
The night HE came home
John Carpenter and Debra Hill created in just 30 days what some horror directors couldn't achieve in 30 months, a perfectly paced, well acted and truly tense slasher movie.
From the opening tracking shot to the final montage everything about this film is on point.
Donald Pleasance as Dr Sam Loomis delivers each of his warnings about Michael Myers with such gusto that you truly believe that Myers is the embodiment of evil.
Jamie Lee Curtis is brilliantly believable as the girl next door Laurie Strode, who Myers hunts down this Halloween night.
Nick Castle as Myers has such suttle movements and the now much copied head tilt.
The story of the young Michael Myers who viciously murders his sister Judith at age 6. Now 21 Myers escapes from Smith's Grove sanitarium and heads for his home town of Haddenfield.
Once there in one night Micheal will raise unholy hell and with Dr Loomis in pursuit trying to stop his escaped patient.
The music is iconic not just Carpenter's memorable theme but the music throughout helps to raise the tension. The camera work is amazing, one very famous scene in particular always delivers a chill.
This is truly a horror masterpiece.
From the opening tracking shot to the final montage everything about this film is on point.
Donald Pleasance as Dr Sam Loomis delivers each of his warnings about Michael Myers with such gusto that you truly believe that Myers is the embodiment of evil.
Jamie Lee Curtis is brilliantly believable as the girl next door Laurie Strode, who Myers hunts down this Halloween night.
Nick Castle as Myers has such suttle movements and the now much copied head tilt.
The story of the young Michael Myers who viciously murders his sister Judith at age 6. Now 21 Myers escapes from Smith's Grove sanitarium and heads for his home town of Haddenfield.
Once there in one night Micheal will raise unholy hell and with Dr Loomis in pursuit trying to stop his escaped patient.
The music is iconic not just Carpenter's memorable theme but the music throughout helps to raise the tension. The camera work is amazing, one very famous scene in particular always delivers a chill.
This is truly a horror masterpiece.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Freaks (1932) in Movies
Feb 29, 2020 (Updated Feb 29, 2020)
Tod Browning's notorious horror movie remains problematic and uncomfortable to watch nearly a century on from its release. The plot is much more the stuff of a melodrama than a traditional horror movie: a vain and greedy trapeze artist and her lover plot to murder a gullible man enamoured of her for his fortune. What makes the film so queasily memorable is the fact that many of the characters are sideshow 'freaks' of different kinds.
Severely hampered by the fact that many of the cast aren't professional actors, and it shows; also by the fact that several of them don't have English as a first language (some of the dialogue is so heavily accented to be unintelligible). The existing version of the film is fairly thin on plot, too. There is strange tension between the script, which takes pains to make clear that the deformed characters are people, not monsters, and the way that the camera voyeuristically dwells on their physical abnormalities - it's there again in the climax, where the trapeze artist clearly deserves some kind of retribution, but the sequence of the 'freaks' closing in on her is deeply disturbing. A uniquely unsettling movie, and perhaps that's for the best.
Severely hampered by the fact that many of the cast aren't professional actors, and it shows; also by the fact that several of them don't have English as a first language (some of the dialogue is so heavily accented to be unintelligible). The existing version of the film is fairly thin on plot, too. There is strange tension between the script, which takes pains to make clear that the deformed characters are people, not monsters, and the way that the camera voyeuristically dwells on their physical abnormalities - it's there again in the climax, where the trapeze artist clearly deserves some kind of retribution, but the sequence of the 'freaks' closing in on her is deeply disturbing. A uniquely unsettling movie, and perhaps that's for the best.