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Kin (2018)
Kin (2018)
2018 | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
A sci-fi thriller that attempts to focus on character and not spectacle. (0 more)
Only achieved surface level development. (0 more)
Underrated
Contains spoilers, click to show
Kin is a modern twist on a story that feels very familiar.
Our hero is a boy that we assume was sent back in time to live in relative safety until his time to do something pivotal in a future war comes about.
The biggest issue is the ending. Audiences are unforgiving of sequel bait endings and this isn't subtle either.
Franco is a cookie cutter bad guy that just about reaches entertaining.
The relationship between our three main characters is thin and underdeveloped.
The beginning catalyst of the father dying suffers from an underdeveloped relationship between him and his sons as well as the father figure being largely unlikable.
All this being said, as an entire piece of work there is plenty to enjoy and that's what you will need to do with this film.
A mild recommendation
  
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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Pretty Baby in Books

Feb 8, 2018  
PB
Pretty Baby
8
9.2 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
Heidi lives a busy life, trying to keep up with a busy job in public service, her role as a mom to her distant 12-year-old daughter Zoe, and juggling marriage to her husband Chris, a corporate lawyer. One day on the way to work, Heidi spots a young teen holding a baby-- the two are waiting for the train in the pouring rain. Heidi is haunted by the image and when she spots them again, she reaches out and makes contact with the teen, Willow. Eventually, Heidi's life becomes embroiled with that of Willow's and the baby, Ruby.

This book certainly lives up to its psychological thriller billing. It's a page-turner, even as it gets slightly more bizarre as the plot thickens. It captivated my attention and has enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. The plot is definitely a little "out there," and I'd probably rate it as 3.5 stars overall, but still a fun and intriguing read.
  
Hanna (2011)
Hanna (2011)
2011 | Action, Mystery
Saoirse Ronan (0 more)
Did you know that "Lady Bird" star Saoirse Ronan and "Darkest Hour" director, Joe Wright, teamed up for this fantastic action/thriller in 2011?

Within the wilderness of Finland, A teenage girl is raised by her CIA father to be the perfect assassin. She is then sent on a killing spree across Europe while pursued by other agents and Cate Blanchett.


The intensity of the action scenes and the cat-and-mouse aspects of the chases are really top notch. As I get to know the work of Saoirse Ronan, I love her more and more. Especially her ability with foreign accents (she is really very Irish)


I have to also mention the camera work and structure of much of the film is unique. You do not feel like you have seen this type of film before.


Give it a chance. You will not be disappointed!


  
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Andy K (10821 KP) Feb 2, 2018

For sure!

DL
Don't Look Back
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Eve Hardaway takes a trip to the jungles of southern Mexico in order to rediscover herself. Instead, she discovers something truly horrifying, a mad man bent on killing her and everyone else at the remote camp where she is staying. With the weather conspiring against them, will they be able to get out to safety?

The book took a little while to set up the story, introducing us to the characters and the landscape we’d spend the rest of the book in. But once it gets going, this is another page turner from a talented thriller author. The villain was a bit over the top early on, but he became more human as the book progressed – not that I ever liked him. The rest of the characters are interesting to watch as they rise to the challenge or cave under the pressure.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/01/book-review-dont-look-back-by-gregg.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
When four hikers go missing on a mountain on Thanksgiving Day, Gracie Kinkaid is one of the only people to respond. She and her search partner quickly find one of the hikers, famous actor Rob Christian, but he’s injured. While they wait for help, a snow storm is coming in. What they don’t know is that someone is hunting for them on the mountain – to kill them.

Despite being published by Berkley Prime Crime, this is more a thriller than a cozy, with language and violence to go along with that. The pacing of the plot was uneven, with parts there were page turning and passages that were slow and even predictable. The characters were also not as complex as I would have liked. It wasn’t a bad book, but it also could have been better.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2015/01/book-review-zero-degree-murder-by-m-l.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
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Awix (3310 KP) rated Doomwatch (1972) in Movies

Feb 26, 2018  
Doomwatch (1972)
Doomwatch (1972)
1972 | Classics, Horror, Mystery
6
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Big screen adaptation of then-popular BBC TV SF-thriller show looks much more like a horror story than the telly version normally was. Scientist (Bannen) discovers something nasty afflicting the inhabitants of a remote island; can anything be done to help them?

Competently done; resembles the TV show in its tone and concerns much of the time. However, the general tone and subject matter (investigator on remote island discovers conspiracy of silence amongst locals, including disappearing corpses) would almost make you suspect a Wicker Man rip-off, except this was made first (by a matter of months). Not that it matters much these days, but the actual stars of the TV show barely appear in the movie; they may have been busy actually making it at the time the movie was in production. Worth seeing if you're familiar with the TV show, probably a bit too low-octane if you're not.
  
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Awix (3310 KP) rated Haywire (2012) in Movies

Feb 20, 2018 (Updated Feb 20, 2018)  
Haywire (2012)
Haywire (2012)
2012 | Action, Drama, Mystery
8
5.4 (7 Ratings)
Movie Rating
'You should not think of her as a woman. That would be a mistake.'
Rousing action thriller looks on paper like another Besson movie, is actually typically classy Steven Soderbergh genre pastiche. Basically a vehicle for delicate flower of women's MMA Gina Carano to batter the living daylights out of an array of A-list leading men, which she does with aplomb and charisma.

The script is sympathetically structured so Carano doesn't have to do more than the minimal amount of actual acting, but the plot is competently twisty-turny and Soderbergh puts an impressive cast around his star. Some first-class fight sequences and chases, as you would expect. At the time I had my fingers crossed for a new subgenre of pro-celebrity martial arts movies with Carano proceeding to kick in Jude Law, Orlando Bloom, Ryan Reynolds, etc, in subsequent outings, but it never happened. Shame; notable careers have been built on considerably less potential than Carano showed in this film.
  
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Awix (3310 KP) rated The Commuter (2018) in Movies

Feb 11, 2018 (Updated Feb 11, 2018)  
The Commuter (2018)
The Commuter (2018)
2018 | Crime, Drama, Mystery
One-way Ticket to Barking
Another of those films in which Liam Neeson plays a bus-pass bad-ass, in this case an ageing rugged ex-cop turned insurance salesman who finds himself sucked into a murderous conspiracy on the train home one night.

Well, you kind of know from the start how this is going to play out, but the script is inventive in keeping it going and Neeson is assisted by a good supporting cast. Initially it looks like this is going to be another film about middle-aged rage in the wake of the financial crisis, but this sadly proves to be a red herring - it is just another very daft transport-based thriller.

Not a film that exactly stays with you, obviously, but it's wildly implausible rather than actually stupid, and the direction is not too bad, all things considered. Obviously I'd rather Liam Neeson did more films with a little more substance, but this kind of thing isn't actually hurting anyone.
  
Racer and the Jailbird (2017)
Racer and the Jailbird (2017)
2017 | Crime, Drama, International
Very much game-of-two-halves coming together of French and Belgian talent. Charismatic gangster begins passionate affair with beautiful young racing driver, but can their love survive the stress placed on it by his career choices? Starts off looking like a slick and very commercial thriller with more than a splash of romance; second half turns into a rather glum, somewhat preposterous drama about how love can be the worst prison of all - either of these films would have been okay, but together it's two great tastes that just don't mix.

Still, fine acting from the two leads, and the first half is really, really good - does that make the way the film falls over as it gets closer to the end more or less of a disappointment? Not sure. The first half on its own would rate about an 8, the second probably a 5; probably still worth watching, though. (Racer and the Jailbird is a terrible choice of title, by the way.)
  
The Last Time I Lied
The Last Time I Lied
Riley Sager | 2018 | Thriller
9
8.7 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
Not a summer camp that I'd be frequenting...
Emma Davis an artist, returns to the summer camp (Camp Nightingale) that she went to as a girl. During her last (and only) stay, the three other girls in her cabin went missing with no trace, never to be found again. Emma's artwork reflects her inability to forget what happened.
When Camp Nightingale reopens after 15 years, the owner, Frances (Franny) Harris-White, invites her along to be an art instructor. Emma goes along to try and lay her ghosts to rest.
This had a real air of menace throughout. It felt like there was a possible abductor around every corner. A great thriller, and I very much enjoyed it. I have to admit to not liking any of the characters though. I didn't even feel sorry for Emma, and believe me, she has plenty for people to feel sorry for. This story is such dark and compulsive reading though. Great stuff!