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Bret Easton Ellis recommended Barry Lyndon (1975) in Movies (curated)

 
Barry Lyndon (1975)
Barry Lyndon (1975)
1975 | Drama, History, War
8.0 (8 Ratings)
Movie Favorite Watch

"I think [Barry Lyndon is] the ultimate movie for men. I think it’s a classic story of how you go through life, and also, for me, it’s Kubrick’s most emotional film. I know everyone accused him of being very cold, but the last movement of that movie is, I think, piercing and just beautifully told. There’s kind of this inevitability of incident that starts happening at about an hour before Barry Lyndon ends. It’s breathtaking in terms of the narrative control along with the visual control of that movie. Even though it’s very different from the [William Makepeace] Thackeray novel it’s based on — the Thackeray book is actually funnier and kinda faster, [while] Kubrick makes it a little more glacial and stately — but it still is a phenomenally beautiful movie made at the height of the great American studio era. It’s really a pinnacle of 1970s American moviemaking. And I think Ryan O’Neal was incredibly poignant in that film. And the music? The sensory experience of seeing Barry Lyndon, you can’t really make those movies anymore. It’s not even in our DNA anymore. I don’t think the sensibility even exists to build movies like Barry Lyndon. And that’s just a huge loss."

Source
  
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David McK (3227 KP) rated Blue Moon Rising (Forest Kingdom #1) in Books

Jun 24, 2022  
Blue Moon Rising (Forest Kingdom #1)
Blue Moon Rising (Forest Kingdom #1)
Simon R. Green | 1989 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Once upon a time ...

this was my favourite book.

That was back in the early 90s, back when I was in my tweens and back before I had discovered the likes of Terry Pratchett or Bernard Cornwell.

I then lost track of the author for a good two decades or so, only recently re-discovering him when I happened to chance across the 'GraphicAudio' version of the novel on Audible.

I did wonder what a GraphicAudio meant: simply that it was fully dramatized with a full cast, background music, sound effects etc etc - basically, everything but the actual visual aspect! - instead of only one, maybe two, no more than a handful of people reading the story.

As for that story? Firmly in the fantasy genre - Princes, dragons, unicorns, Princesses, magic, royal politics et al - however I do remember when I first read it all those years ago thinking that I had never come across anything quite like it before. That still holds true to this day: yes, it does have all those familiar elements of a classic Good vs Evil story, but the real delight is in the subverting of expectations, and in the story of Rupert and Julia and the DarkWood / Blue Moon.
  
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Kate Grimes (10 KP) rated The Great Gatsby (2013) in Movies

Jun 17, 2019  
The Great Gatsby (2013)
The Great Gatsby (2013)
2013 | Drama, Romance
9
6.6 (14 Ratings)
Movie Rating Watch
Soundtrack (2 more)
Attention to detail in line with novel
Attention to wardrobe
A visual treat and solid adaption of F Scott Fitzgerald classic
As an avid fan of F Scott Fitzgerald I was really impressed with the screen adaption Luhrman gave it. Initially I was worried that he would go over board with the glitz of the roaring 20's. However, I felt there was a balance throughout the film and how the use of archived dresses from designer houses and the very same tailoring company F Scott used provided the suits gave a genuine depth to film. Not at all full of flapper gimmicks. I loved the camera work and the layering of text over scenes throughout was great. Some people disliked Mulligan as Daisy feeling she was too timid and squeaky, but I think this bettered the pain and anger the viewer feels about her betrayal to Gatsby with her and Tom's reckless abandon of others. I just adored the film and soundtrack. Lana Del Rey created such a mesmerizing track for the film which again epitomised the dream of being forever loved once age settles in. It all just wove together beautifully. The further addition of modern music within the film I feel helped to mirror the changing world The Great Gatsby was set within as Wall Street boomed and Prohibition ended. A tireless classic to hopefully spur you into discovering more of F Scott Fitzgerald litaerary offerings.
  
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Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated Baby Teeth in Books

Jan 31, 2019  
Baby Teeth
Baby Teeth
Zoje Stage | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
2
7.7 (21 Ratings)
Book Rating Watch
For all the hype that Zoje Stage’s debut novel, Baby Teeth has garnered, I expected this to be a delightful, bone-chilling read. After all, the idea of homicidal children is, on its own, creepy. Unfortunately, it fell disgustingly flat, repetitive and, for the most part, bored me. This is not a novel of horror; it is barely even a thriller. If anything, it’s the story of how a selfish mother, oblivious father, and attention-seeking child live their day-to-day lives.

One of the things that drew me in initially with this book is the fact that the mother, Suzette, suffers from Crohn’s disease. Stage does an amazing job at describing life for someone who suffers from IBD – all the way down to the medications (which I knew by their descriptions exactly what they were from experience). This is great, especially since more attention needs to be drawn to Crohn’s and colitis. However, Suzette’s personality, innermost thoughts, and general disdain give a poor, almost stereotypical visual of the character. Stage makes it seem like Suzette simply doesn’t want to do things, rather than can’t which, as a sufferer of ulcerative colitis, really irks me. In fact, Suzette is utterly unlikable.

Hanna, on the other hand, is a child that acts out horridly in order to garner her father’s attention. Sure, it’s pretty messed up–the things she does to her mother–but overall, she seems more like an undisciplined brat with a hint of something worse wrong with her. And the father? God forbid he man up and play his role as he should; rather, he coddles and feeds into Hanna’s bad behavior. Seriously, there’s nothing to like about the characters here.

Moving on to the plot, Baby Teeth is an absolute snoozefest. Girl attacks mom, mom gets upset, dad doesn’t listen, rinse and repeat for three hundred or so pages. Seriously, the only good thing it has is that things escalate, but even that is extremely slow.

Overall, I’m utterly disappointed in this book. It’s extremely tame (though there is a brief, unnecessary sex scene). I’d like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a copy of this book for the purpose of an unbiased review.