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Big Data: Surviving the Information Revolution

Brian Clegg

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Book

Is the Brexit vote successful big data politics or the end of democracy? Why do airlines overbook,...

Silver Lining

Sandi Toksvig

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How unbelievably dull my life was. I did everything I was supposed to. I was such a good girl. I...

Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Edge of Darkness (2010) in Movies

Jul 24, 2020

Edge of Darkness (2010)

2010 | Drama, Mystery, Thriller

6.0

(11 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Whatever It Takes

Edge of Darkness- was a decent action thriller. The problem it was slow and didnt have alot of action. It had good drama, suspense and thrills.

The plot: When the only daughter of a Boston homicide detective, Thomas Craven (Mel Gibson), is shot on his doorstep, everyone assumes that he was the intended target. Then evidence suggests otherwise, and Craven sets out to find her killer and, in the process, uncovers her secret life, corporate coverups, government collusion, and murder.

It was based on the 1985 BBC television series of the same name, which was likewise directed by Campbell.

Additionally, Gibson and his crew set up shop for filming in western Massachusetts, with 180 staff staying in Northampton hotels. They shot in various locations in the Pioneer Valley, including Tully O'Reilly's Pub, the Northampton Athletic Club, and an older part of the Hampshire County Courthouse, all in Northampton. Also, Sugarloaf Mountain was shut down for a few days while they rented it out. They also filmed at the Notch Visitor Center, Rt. 116, Amherst.

Like I said before a decent action film.

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated Interview with the Vampire (1994) in Movies

Aug 8, 2020

Lavish adaptation of the best-selling novel resembles a cross between an existential bitch-fest and a hair care products commercial. Have you wondered what the ageless and immortal vampire does with all those endless nights? Well, he sits around and broods about it, if he's Brad Pitt, or shamelessly camps it up in search of an Oscar nomination if he's Tom Cruise. The film documents two centuries in the life of the undead: most of it is people sitting around in extravagantly-decorated rooms complaining about either their lives or each other.

Just a bit too artfully amoral and self-indulgent for my tastes; the gay subtext is undeniably present but you can tell Pitt and Cruise are doing their best to stamp it into the carpet (I mentioned this in a review of the novel once and someone said 'This book isn't about gay people! It's about vampires!', which I thought was rather sweet). Looks good and has some decent performances, but makes being a vampire look very boring. On the other hand, very clearly the chief inspiration for What We Do In the Shadows (both movie and TV show), although not nearly as entertaining.

Kudos

ClareR (5950 KP) rated Humankind in Books

Jun 9, 2020

Humankind

Rutger Bregman | 2020 | Essays, Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences, Science & Mathematics

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Humankind sets out to prove that human beings are essentially nice people who want to help other people. Except over the centuries, philosophers, politicians and other influential people have told us the complete opposite - to the point that we believe it. I think Bregman is successful at this as well. Help does come in the most unexpected places, as we’ve seen recently in towns and cities across the UK during the coronavirus pandemic. Yes, there are those who take advantage of others, but I’d like to believe that they’re in the minority.

This is a really engaging, easy to read book, with some great examples. Bregman looks at studies and experiments that all types of scientists have done, and also looks at some real life examples.

This book left me feeling very positive about the state of humanity, and I hope that the good people in our societies will always outnumber the bad.

I really do highly recommend this if you’re prevaricating over whether to read it or not. It’s a great read.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and Rutger Bregman for reading along!