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Andy K (10823 KP) rated Glass (2019) in Movies
Aug 10, 2019
The Anti-Avengers!
Funny how director M. Night Shyamalan's career has gone. His first major hit blows everyone's minds with one of the most mind-bending plot twists ever captured on film (do you remember being mad at yourself you didn't figure it out).
Then he makes Unbreakable, a thinking man's superhero film which is just as good as The Sixth Sense, but does only modest box office. Then Sign and The Village (both decent, but a step down for sure) and then over 10 years of crap including Lady in the Water and The Happening.
In a strange move, he decides to write and direct a "sequel"? or another film in the same universe with Split which dos well with critics and audiences enough to warrant the 3rd film in the trilogy, Glass.
Train wreck survivor David Dunn is still the one man vigilante "Dark Knight" who lends a hand to the unfortunate when he comes across "The Horde". The two men end up being captured and incarcerated in a mental institution with Elijah Price, another man and David's former nemesis who is currently catatonic. The doctor in change says she has been given only 3 days to diagnose and treat the men before they are sentenced to life in an institution.
One of the men has an agenda which involves all three of them he wants to see played out and will go to any length to ensure its success. The lives of the men are intertwined in certain ways they themselves may not even be aware of.
I was worried when I started watching since I thought the first hour was VERY SLOW to develop with mostly just talking and plotting. Once thing finally get going and the men start interacting with each other it becomes way more interesting.
Good to see Bruce Willis back in a film which actually ran theatrically. He is showing signs of age, but still gives a great performance along with Samuel L. Jackson and James McAvoy.
The ending may not sit well with everyone since it may be considered atypical, but I thought it was fitting and didn't see it coming.
Here's to hoping a revitalized career for the film's interesting and entertaining filmmaker.
Then he makes Unbreakable, a thinking man's superhero film which is just as good as The Sixth Sense, but does only modest box office. Then Sign and The Village (both decent, but a step down for sure) and then over 10 years of crap including Lady in the Water and The Happening.
In a strange move, he decides to write and direct a "sequel"? or another film in the same universe with Split which dos well with critics and audiences enough to warrant the 3rd film in the trilogy, Glass.
Train wreck survivor David Dunn is still the one man vigilante "Dark Knight" who lends a hand to the unfortunate when he comes across "The Horde". The two men end up being captured and incarcerated in a mental institution with Elijah Price, another man and David's former nemesis who is currently catatonic. The doctor in change says she has been given only 3 days to diagnose and treat the men before they are sentenced to life in an institution.
One of the men has an agenda which involves all three of them he wants to see played out and will go to any length to ensure its success. The lives of the men are intertwined in certain ways they themselves may not even be aware of.
I was worried when I started watching since I thought the first hour was VERY SLOW to develop with mostly just talking and plotting. Once thing finally get going and the men start interacting with each other it becomes way more interesting.
Good to see Bruce Willis back in a film which actually ran theatrically. He is showing signs of age, but still gives a great performance along with Samuel L. Jackson and James McAvoy.
The ending may not sit well with everyone since it may be considered atypical, but I thought it was fitting and didn't see it coming.
Here's to hoping a revitalized career for the film's interesting and entertaining filmmaker.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019) in Movies
Jan 29, 2020
Hard Cake
The personal history of david copperfield really disappointed me especially after such a cracking trailer and while no means a bad film it just really wasnt a film I enjoyed. What I was expecting was a sharply written, quirky yet dry and playful adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel something similar to a yorgos lanthimos film like the favorite for instance but sadly I found this movie to be extreamly dull, uninteresting and severely lacking overall. I wouldnt say its necessarily bad however it all just felt very flat to me. Characters didnt feel believable, humour seemed forced and while david patel burts at the seemes constantly with energy the film around him didnt seem to follow along the same. Very interesting ideas are present here and the emphases is on life almost being like a stage play with people we meet being the characters in it. See everyone in life is unique and has their own distinctive traits/interesting stories and no matter what happenes in our lives neither one is no less meaningless or important than the other. This does come across brilliantly and shows the bad traits of human nature, see everyone is on the path to happiness its just what they do and who they exploit or how much they choose to lie to get there and achieve sucess is diffrent from person to person. Then on a positive side it also shows how we should all realise where we have come from, to be greatful for what we have, to let our creativity flow and to appreciate these characters that enter our lives and inspire/care for us. So heres where I feel conflicted as much as I like these great ideas I feel they they just aren't integrated well enough with the dull story or the forced comedy and sure the film is well made but to watch its just not exciting or that engaging and the characters all became forgettable once off screen just like when watching a sketch show. Failing to keep my intrest constantly made the runtime feel a drag too and by the time I left I struggled to remember much of what had just happened infront of me wishing I'd of just stayed home and watched Perfume or The Favorite instead in the warm. No doubt some will enjoy this but will they be talking about it in a month? I highly doubt it.
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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated BlacKkKlansman (2018) in Movies
Sep 9, 2020
BlacKkKlansman just ticked all the right boxes for me. Spike Lee has created a piece that is moving, hilarious, horrific, poignant and something truly important.
John David Washington and Adam Driver are a winning leading pair, portraying Ron Stallworth and Flip Zimmerman respectively, two police officers from Colorado Springs who manage to infiltrate a local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, in an attempt to foil a potentially fatal and racially charged attack, and it's all based on a quite incredible true story.
Washington and Driver are both fantastic, providing this movie with most of it's heart, humour and emotion.
Topher Grace is great as well, as David Duke, a top brass member of the KKK. He's so smarmy, and easy to dislike, much like his real life counter part. This applies to all the racist pieces of shit in this story actualy. The characters are all horrible, but the cast bring them to life in a disturbingly believable way.
The screenplay is nothing but tight from start to finish. It's very funny in places, and heart wrenching in others. A particular highlight is a speech spoken early on by black rights speaker Kwame Ture. It's a lengthy monologue that is so damn powerful. There are multiple scenes that strike hard throughout the runtime - another standout moment is the truly uncomfortable visuals of Ron Stallworth looking on in quiet despair as KKK members cheer loudly whilst watching The Birth of a Nation. Humanity can be extremely ugly, and although BlacKkKlansman veers towards comedy at times, Lee is sure to never stray too far from that fact.
Some of the criticism I've read of this movie are along the lines of "it has an agenda" and "it's being forced down the audiences throat". Well, yeah if course it has an agenda. It's dealing with a topic that shouldn't even exist in the first place, but it's certainly not being force fed. No one is forcing anybody to watch it, but I highly recommend that EVERYONE does watch it.
The inclusion of real life footage of protests in 2017 is a strong statement, it's a director publicly taking a stand for something he believes in. In 2020, these topics feel more important than ever.
BlacKkKlansman is an incredible movie, and nothing can change my mind about that.
John David Washington and Adam Driver are a winning leading pair, portraying Ron Stallworth and Flip Zimmerman respectively, two police officers from Colorado Springs who manage to infiltrate a local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, in an attempt to foil a potentially fatal and racially charged attack, and it's all based on a quite incredible true story.
Washington and Driver are both fantastic, providing this movie with most of it's heart, humour and emotion.
Topher Grace is great as well, as David Duke, a top brass member of the KKK. He's so smarmy, and easy to dislike, much like his real life counter part. This applies to all the racist pieces of shit in this story actualy. The characters are all horrible, but the cast bring them to life in a disturbingly believable way.
The screenplay is nothing but tight from start to finish. It's very funny in places, and heart wrenching in others. A particular highlight is a speech spoken early on by black rights speaker Kwame Ture. It's a lengthy monologue that is so damn powerful. There are multiple scenes that strike hard throughout the runtime - another standout moment is the truly uncomfortable visuals of Ron Stallworth looking on in quiet despair as KKK members cheer loudly whilst watching The Birth of a Nation. Humanity can be extremely ugly, and although BlacKkKlansman veers towards comedy at times, Lee is sure to never stray too far from that fact.
Some of the criticism I've read of this movie are along the lines of "it has an agenda" and "it's being forced down the audiences throat". Well, yeah if course it has an agenda. It's dealing with a topic that shouldn't even exist in the first place, but it's certainly not being force fed. No one is forcing anybody to watch it, but I highly recommend that EVERYONE does watch it.
The inclusion of real life footage of protests in 2017 is a strong statement, it's a director publicly taking a stand for something he believes in. In 2020, these topics feel more important than ever.
BlacKkKlansman is an incredible movie, and nothing can change my mind about that.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated The Thing (2011) in Movies
Jan 10, 2021
This one is pretty straightforward - The Thing (2011) is an ok film that is completely dwarfed by The Thing (1982) - honestly, fuck knows why it doesn't have a different title.
This prequel to the iconic John Carpenter movie does have some decent aspects to it - it has a mostly agreeable cast and a good screenplay that's engaging, although a vast majority of the characters are hugely forgettable, and not a patch on the crew of protagonists from the 82 film. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is a perfectly likable leading lady, but everyone else is just kind of there. Even Joel Edgerton blends in with the furniture.
I also think it has good pacing for the most part - the opening third builds things up nicely, and when things finally kick off, it feels earned.
The attention to detail is admirable as well, with various objects and hints of past chaos found by Kurt Russell and co in the 82 film being placed perfectly.
Unfortunately, the end project suffers from a couple of things. Most infamously, the CGI is ropey, and is an ill advised addition considering the 82 film boasts some of the best practical effects in cinema history. This is made even worse by the fact that practical effects and animatronics were initially used before being smothered in digital effects to the point where it actively makes the whole movie less enjoyable. The narrative also apes the Carpenter classic a little too often for my taste, and serves more of a reminder of that film, rather than feeling like a homage.
The final act is just silly as well. After a strong build up, the climax snowballs into uninteresting bad-Predator-sequel-esque nonsense, and even saves the most laughable digital effects for last, just for good measure.
I did like the very last scene though, which genuinely ties nicely into the start of the 82 film.
Messing with such an iconic horror heavyweight comes with huge risks, and ultimately, The Thing (still really hate that they didn't use a different title) isn't the car crash that it easily could have been, but it does fall flat on really important aspects, resulting in a film that is average to the casual movie goer, and is thoroughly underwhelming for fans of its far superior predecessor.
This prequel to the iconic John Carpenter movie does have some decent aspects to it - it has a mostly agreeable cast and a good screenplay that's engaging, although a vast majority of the characters are hugely forgettable, and not a patch on the crew of protagonists from the 82 film. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is a perfectly likable leading lady, but everyone else is just kind of there. Even Joel Edgerton blends in with the furniture.
I also think it has good pacing for the most part - the opening third builds things up nicely, and when things finally kick off, it feels earned.
The attention to detail is admirable as well, with various objects and hints of past chaos found by Kurt Russell and co in the 82 film being placed perfectly.
Unfortunately, the end project suffers from a couple of things. Most infamously, the CGI is ropey, and is an ill advised addition considering the 82 film boasts some of the best practical effects in cinema history. This is made even worse by the fact that practical effects and animatronics were initially used before being smothered in digital effects to the point where it actively makes the whole movie less enjoyable. The narrative also apes the Carpenter classic a little too often for my taste, and serves more of a reminder of that film, rather than feeling like a homage.
The final act is just silly as well. After a strong build up, the climax snowballs into uninteresting bad-Predator-sequel-esque nonsense, and even saves the most laughable digital effects for last, just for good measure.
I did like the very last scene though, which genuinely ties nicely into the start of the 82 film.
Messing with such an iconic horror heavyweight comes with huge risks, and ultimately, The Thing (still really hate that they didn't use a different title) isn't the car crash that it easily could have been, but it does fall flat on really important aspects, resulting in a film that is average to the casual movie goer, and is thoroughly underwhelming for fans of its far superior predecessor.
Lindsay (1760 KP) rated The Peacemaker (Mifflin County Mystery #2) in Books
May 16, 2025
We are welcome back to the Big Valley. Where we left off, we see Rosa's best friend's point of view. In this book, we get to follow Ada and Ephraim some more. Will we find out what happened to Rosa? Is she still alive, or is she gone? Norman and Salina, how are they doing as well? Will we finally see Norman and Salina get married?
We are also still following the Rosa Family; the community is still grieving, and suspicion is still going around. So, we are still suspecting or taking action on Ephraim of Rosa's disappearance. But is there more to the community than dividing the community apart?
Will Ada and Ephraim get together, or will it fall apart? Is there love between Ada and Ephraim? There is so much confusion and pain surrounding Rosa's disappearance that it is hard for anyone to know for sure. But what will happen? Will there be love between a peacemaker and a suspect? Will it last, or will it be too late for the two of them?
Well, Ephraim will return to Lancaster County, where his grandma lives. Will Ephraim and his grandma stay there? But does the Lord have plans?
Ephraim is pondering whether to start looking or make some friends in Lancaster in case he ends up staying.
He seems to ponder this when he finds Blue in the barn. Eventually, he finds a missing pup and starts looking for its owner. He meets Anna.
Back with Ada, she seems to be going about her dad as a greenhouse but appears to be fighting her feelings for Ephraim, though she doesn't know if it's a good thing or not when she knows Rosa broke the relationship up with Ephraim.
Ada hears about Susan through her mother and her friend's mother. She hears Susan lying about not being at a young people's gathering and being out with Ben.
Though Ephraim's father seems to have suffered a major injury that has put him in the hospital and made him and his grandmother hurry to Lewistown, is there a way to pray for them to stay in the Big Valley for good? Or will his grandmother want to return to Lancaster and have her eldest grandchildren go with her?
We are also still following the Rosa Family; the community is still grieving, and suspicion is still going around. So, we are still suspecting or taking action on Ephraim of Rosa's disappearance. But is there more to the community than dividing the community apart?
Will Ada and Ephraim get together, or will it fall apart? Is there love between Ada and Ephraim? There is so much confusion and pain surrounding Rosa's disappearance that it is hard for anyone to know for sure. But what will happen? Will there be love between a peacemaker and a suspect? Will it last, or will it be too late for the two of them?
Well, Ephraim will return to Lancaster County, where his grandma lives. Will Ephraim and his grandma stay there? But does the Lord have plans?
Ephraim is pondering whether to start looking or make some friends in Lancaster in case he ends up staying.
He seems to ponder this when he finds Blue in the barn. Eventually, he finds a missing pup and starts looking for its owner. He meets Anna.
Back with Ada, she seems to be going about her dad as a greenhouse but appears to be fighting her feelings for Ephraim, though she doesn't know if it's a good thing or not when she knows Rosa broke the relationship up with Ephraim.
Ada hears about Susan through her mother and her friend's mother. She hears Susan lying about not being at a young people's gathering and being out with Ben.
Though Ephraim's father seems to have suffered a major injury that has put him in the hospital and made him and his grandmother hurry to Lewistown, is there a way to pray for them to stay in the Big Valley for good? Or will his grandmother want to return to Lancaster and have her eldest grandchildren go with her?
Steven Sklansky (231 KP) rated The Circle (2017) in Movies
Jan 28, 2018
This movie really shows us where we are headed with technology. It seems like privacy is going to end if we don't do something quick. Having a camera on everyone all the time without permission is such a hard choice to make. The majority of the time there is always a camera watching when we are not in our homes. It comes down to who and how the data is being used.
In this movie The Circle, it show what happens when a non-government company gets involved in make the choice to watch are every move. They make is seem like you have a choice to join them, which most people do. They feel like if they do not they are on the outside looking in and are looked down upon for not being part of the community. It is weird in our society that we care that much what people are doing all the time. I myself have a Facebook account but don't use it all to often. Now I do look at daily to see what other people are up to and see if I missed anything news worthy. But a lot of time it is just people complaining about their life to the masses. Every once in awhile I do see a cute animal video.
This company in this movie takes it one step farther. They want to follow your every move and know your health stats, who your talking to, if you voted or plan to and combining your life in to one program. As much as it seem like it would make your life easier, do you want one company knowing everything about you. I say no. Even the government in this movie was torn on whether or not to take down this company.
This was a well casted movie and a very good script, but I think the timeline of the movie could have been better and there could have been better character development. I would have like to have seen the story of Ty and where he fit in more. Mae's character could have had more plot with the take down of the company.
If you are freaked out at where we are headed with social media or even being watched all the time, you should totally watch this movie. It will probably change your mind about a few things. Enjoy the show.
In this movie The Circle, it show what happens when a non-government company gets involved in make the choice to watch are every move. They make is seem like you have a choice to join them, which most people do. They feel like if they do not they are on the outside looking in and are looked down upon for not being part of the community. It is weird in our society that we care that much what people are doing all the time. I myself have a Facebook account but don't use it all to often. Now I do look at daily to see what other people are up to and see if I missed anything news worthy. But a lot of time it is just people complaining about their life to the masses. Every once in awhile I do see a cute animal video.
This company in this movie takes it one step farther. They want to follow your every move and know your health stats, who your talking to, if you voted or plan to and combining your life in to one program. As much as it seem like it would make your life easier, do you want one company knowing everything about you. I say no. Even the government in this movie was torn on whether or not to take down this company.
This was a well casted movie and a very good script, but I think the timeline of the movie could have been better and there could have been better character development. I would have like to have seen the story of Ty and where he fit in more. Mae's character could have had more plot with the take down of the company.
If you are freaked out at where we are headed with social media or even being watched all the time, you should totally watch this movie. It will probably change your mind about a few things. Enjoy the show.
