Search
Search results
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (2019) in Movies
May 26, 2019
I'm a 36 year old man child and I dont care!!!!
I normally post complete reviews where I take into account all aspects of cinema - acting, script, cinematography, tone etc. This review contains none of that as this film is scored on how it made me feel. I'm a pokemon fan and have been since I was a child. This film perfectly shows a world where pokemon live and co exist with people - a better world for sure. That said I'm not giving it a 10 score purely for nostalgia. The acting is good and story is also good with enough twists along the way to keep non poke fans interested. Visually it's great with the pokemon blending into the world perfectly. The star of the show is Ryan Reynolds though as Pikachu. Reynolds has made a career of just being himself onscreen and he does it again here. Yes the language from say Deadpool, Waiting, Van Wilder or Blade Trinity is toned down but the same brand of humour is on display giving adults something to laugh at as well as kids. Others probably wud give this a 7 or 8 - I give it 10 because I'm a man child who loves pokemon and Ryan Reynolds....so there!!!
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated In the Mouth of the Wolf in Books
Jun 5, 2019
In this short book, “In the Mouth of the Wolf” , we’re privy to fascinating insights into the life of children’s fiction author Michael Morpurgo’s Uncle Francis who narrates in the first person at the age of ninety years, reminiscing about his life. It is a heartfelt TRUE story (hence the reason why this has made into my non-fiction category over at Goodreads) and one that is aimed at kids and young adults, but adults will get plenty from this, too.
The artwork within is tremendously well-done by award-winning artist Barroux, and set against a backdrop of World War Two. You’ll find it packs an emotion punch, whilst being a fast-paced read filled with outstanding wartime courage and love. Brotherly love, too.
What a treat this was to discover, since it reads like an fictional story, yet has some intriguing, real people pictures at the back of the book, so you can meet the real characters of these true events. It’s no wonder Morpurgo is such a talented storyteller if he’s heard family stories like this.
In fact, this is such a lovely story, it brought tears to my eyes on more than on occasion. Damn you, Micheal Morpurgo and your wonderfully tear-inducing story-telling skills!
The artwork within is tremendously well-done by award-winning artist Barroux, and set against a backdrop of World War Two. You’ll find it packs an emotion punch, whilst being a fast-paced read filled with outstanding wartime courage and love. Brotherly love, too.
What a treat this was to discover, since it reads like an fictional story, yet has some intriguing, real people pictures at the back of the book, so you can meet the real characters of these true events. It’s no wonder Morpurgo is such a talented storyteller if he’s heard family stories like this.
In fact, this is such a lovely story, it brought tears to my eyes on more than on occasion. Damn you, Micheal Morpurgo and your wonderfully tear-inducing story-telling skills!
ArecRain (8 KP) rated The Handy Men in Books
Jan 18, 2018
I love erotica and ménage a trois is my current drug of choice. However, a lot can go wrong with said topic. And I am not just talking story line. Many authors are prone to write threesomes that are just flat out unrealistic and laughable to say that least.
That being said, I quite enjoyed Schmidts The Handy Men. It not only brought the delicious sex scenes and love that comes with a mutual ménage, but it also brought the ugly and the awkward. Humans are unapologetically complicated, awkward, and over dramatic. We as readers may think well they are ridiculous and this is overdramatic. But lets be honest, we dont always act/respond the way we think we would especially since we are disconnected from what we are reading about (a.k.a. its not happening to us.)
While I have to agree that The Handy Men does seem a bit dramatic at times, I appreciate that it brought more to table than just try to get the female to be onboard with a threesome. The characters had depth and personality not always seen in erotica much the ménages. And to say their relationship is anything less that sexy would be a lie.
That being said, I quite enjoyed Schmidts The Handy Men. It not only brought the delicious sex scenes and love that comes with a mutual ménage, but it also brought the ugly and the awkward. Humans are unapologetically complicated, awkward, and over dramatic. We as readers may think well they are ridiculous and this is overdramatic. But lets be honest, we dont always act/respond the way we think we would especially since we are disconnected from what we are reading about (a.k.a. its not happening to us.)
While I have to agree that The Handy Men does seem a bit dramatic at times, I appreciate that it brought more to table than just try to get the female to be onboard with a threesome. The characters had depth and personality not always seen in erotica much the ménages. And to say their relationship is anything less that sexy would be a lie.
Mark Halpern (153 KP) rated Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2018) in Movies
Feb 9, 2018
fighting for others but fighting for yourself
Roman (Washington) is a defense attorney who is basically kept behind the scenes more as an advisory position partner who he has worked with for 20 plus years dies of an heart attack and the practice is being dissolved. George (Farrllel) is a head partner at the firm that has acquired Roman'f firms cases and is offered an position because of his knowledge of the law and his caring for his clients. He has abides by the law his whole life but a life changing event happens and he sees an opportunity to do something for him even if it is against his morals and the law. How does he live with himself afterwards and what becomes him only the story can tell you.
Lots of lawyer movies you see these days involve the lawyer to get involved in some type of action sequence. This movie brings us to a great story, a good plot and a great cast. The only problem with it is that it is a little slow and at times and makes you kind of not interested but, then it picks back up again. This is a must for any Denzel Washington fan. Colin Farrell is very good as well
Lots of lawyer movies you see these days involve the lawyer to get involved in some type of action sequence. This movie brings us to a great story, a good plot and a great cast. The only problem with it is that it is a little slow and at times and makes you kind of not interested but, then it picks back up again. This is a must for any Denzel Washington fan. Colin Farrell is very good as well
Ross (3284 KP) rated The Mummy (2017) in Movies
Mar 6, 2018 (Updated Mar 6, 2018)
I never fall asleep during films. I fell asleep.
The script and overall plot of this movie did not warrant big name actors like Cruise and Crowe. If anything, I think they played their parts badly and stopped a mediocre script from achieving the levels of mediocrity as a film. Cruise no longer has the charisma to play the cheeky, loveable rogue that this film needed (someone like hmmm Brendan Fraser) - that's not just saying what was needed to make it a decent remake of the "original", but what was needed for this script.
The plot relied on a number of stupid, illogical decisions by the main characters, and a lot of special effects. The aspects of the plot and the Mummy's mission which differed from the Fraser version were not well enough developed or explained to fully embed them in the plot - really, she just fancied Cruise?!
And the plot relied on too many coincidences, the discovery of the crusaders' tomb and the Mummy's tomb being almost exactly at the same time?! Really?!
And finally, the notion that there could be an area of London that is as-yet undiscovered and not covered in graffiti, human faeces and broken bottles is frankly ludicrous.
The plot relied on a number of stupid, illogical decisions by the main characters, and a lot of special effects. The aspects of the plot and the Mummy's mission which differed from the Fraser version were not well enough developed or explained to fully embed them in the plot - really, she just fancied Cruise?!
And the plot relied on too many coincidences, the discovery of the crusaders' tomb and the Mummy's tomb being almost exactly at the same time?! Really?!
And finally, the notion that there could be an area of London that is as-yet undiscovered and not covered in graffiti, human faeces and broken bottles is frankly ludicrous.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Red Sparrow (2018) in Movies
Mar 21, 2018
Quite a good adaptation
I've read a lot of negative reviews of this film, so i was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be quite good.
As an adaptation of the book, it sticks fairly faithfully to the original plot although choose to condense a few plot points to fit it into an already overly long running time. The ending for me was the biggest and best surprise, as it differs from the book and I thought actually made for a much better ending. They also managed to turn a very slow burning plot into something still very intriguing.
Jennifer Lawrence does okay, although her accent seems patchy at times and her fake hair is a little irritating. Joel Edgerton sadly isn't given much to go on as his character is very underdeveloped, however Jeremy Irons does well as per usual.
The main problem is that this is taken from a very detailed book which sadly can't be included completely in the film. This ended up with a few matters not being explained or elaborated on properly and it felt a like it was missing something. Not too bad for readers of the book like me, but my other half was left a tad confused!
As an adaptation of the book, it sticks fairly faithfully to the original plot although choose to condense a few plot points to fit it into an already overly long running time. The ending for me was the biggest and best surprise, as it differs from the book and I thought actually made for a much better ending. They also managed to turn a very slow burning plot into something still very intriguing.
Jennifer Lawrence does okay, although her accent seems patchy at times and her fake hair is a little irritating. Joel Edgerton sadly isn't given much to go on as his character is very underdeveloped, however Jeremy Irons does well as per usual.
The main problem is that this is taken from a very detailed book which sadly can't be included completely in the film. This ended up with a few matters not being explained or elaborated on properly and it felt a like it was missing something. Not too bad for readers of the book like me, but my other half was left a tad confused!
Dana (24 KP) rated The Assassin's Blade: The Throne of Glass Novellas in Books
Mar 23, 2018
Oh my god. I really liked being able to see where Celaena came from in these five short stories.
I loved how all of the stories were connected. This was basically another novel in the series, so that got me all excited.
I had to read this before I got Queen of Shadows because I felt like I needed to be able to better understand Celaena's character even more than I did with reading the other three books.
Like always, Sarah J Maas's plot and character development were on point. There weren't very many slow parts in the plot line. The characters were very well fleshed out. I absolutely adored getting to learn about how Celaena and Arobbyn interacted. I think that was one of my favorite parts of the novellas.
The story does end about a year before the actual series begins, so it was really fun to be able to go back and see everything that had happened before knowing exactly what was going to happen later in the series.
I recommend this to anyone who has been enjoying the Throne of Glass series. Those of you who haven't started the series, do it. I don't think you will regret it. :)
I loved how all of the stories were connected. This was basically another novel in the series, so that got me all excited.
I had to read this before I got Queen of Shadows because I felt like I needed to be able to better understand Celaena's character even more than I did with reading the other three books.
Like always, Sarah J Maas's plot and character development were on point. There weren't very many slow parts in the plot line. The characters were very well fleshed out. I absolutely adored getting to learn about how Celaena and Arobbyn interacted. I think that was one of my favorite parts of the novellas.
The story does end about a year before the actual series begins, so it was really fun to be able to go back and see everything that had happened before knowing exactly what was going to happen later in the series.
I recommend this to anyone who has been enjoying the Throne of Glass series. Those of you who haven't started the series, do it. I don't think you will regret it. :)
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Invaders in TV
Mar 15, 2018 (Updated Mar 15, 2018)
One of the classic TV alien invasion shows; the theme tune and the various visual gimmicks (aliens with crooked little fingers who incinerate when killed) are quite well-remembered, along with (possibly) the fact that many of the episodes aren't actually any good.
Larry Cohen's original concept - a paranoid thriller with few overt SF elements - was rapidly abandoned, and Cohen himself had little involvement. The programme is really a victim of the time it was made: episodic storytelling means that the aliens come up with bizarrely different schemes on a weekly basis (weather control, infiltrating industry, man-eating butterflies), and there are nagging problems with the format - it is required that the aliens never just kill Vincent, and that he never manages to get evidence of their activity, either. Some would say that Roy Thinnes' intensely dour performance is not exactly what a show like this needs.
Still, there are some good individual episodes, and the iconography of the show does hang around in your head (it's clearly one of the shows that was a major influence on The X Files). It's a shame this kind of story has since been done to death as you could easily imagine a contemporary Invaders remake being really good (even though the 90s mini-series really wasn't).
Larry Cohen's original concept - a paranoid thriller with few overt SF elements - was rapidly abandoned, and Cohen himself had little involvement. The programme is really a victim of the time it was made: episodic storytelling means that the aliens come up with bizarrely different schemes on a weekly basis (weather control, infiltrating industry, man-eating butterflies), and there are nagging problems with the format - it is required that the aliens never just kill Vincent, and that he never manages to get evidence of their activity, either. Some would say that Roy Thinnes' intensely dour performance is not exactly what a show like this needs.
Still, there are some good individual episodes, and the iconography of the show does hang around in your head (it's clearly one of the shows that was a major influence on The X Files). It's a shame this kind of story has since been done to death as you could easily imagine a contemporary Invaders remake being really good (even though the 90s mini-series really wasn't).
A much better sequel
Me Before You was such an unexpectedly good, sweet and heartwarming read. Sadly the sequel, After You, was a massive let down and I'd been expecting more of the same with Still Me. But fortunately, Still Me does fairly well in being the sequel we really should have had to begin with.
Louisa is a loveable character, although her chattiness and ineptitude sometimes comes across as either vexing or almost cringeworthy, and the same can be said of some of the predicaments she gets herself in. That's not to say I can't relate to parts of her life and emotions, and it's these parts that really drew me into this book. It was also nice to see Louisa finally doing what Will had wanted her to do. And I'd be lying if I said I didn't shed a tear or two towards the end.
The main problem with this book is it's completely unnecessary. There was really no need for one sequel, let alone two, and despite the fact that this is a much better sequel, you get the feeling reading it that we would have been much better off leaving Louisa as she was at the end of Me Before You.
Louisa is a loveable character, although her chattiness and ineptitude sometimes comes across as either vexing or almost cringeworthy, and the same can be said of some of the predicaments she gets herself in. That's not to say I can't relate to parts of her life and emotions, and it's these parts that really drew me into this book. It was also nice to see Louisa finally doing what Will had wanted her to do. And I'd be lying if I said I didn't shed a tear or two towards the end.
The main problem with this book is it's completely unnecessary. There was really no need for one sequel, let alone two, and despite the fact that this is a much better sequel, you get the feeling reading it that we would have been much better off leaving Louisa as she was at the end of Me Before You.
Andy K (10823 KP) rated The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017) in Movies
Mar 31, 2018
Unique and wonderful
Certainly not for everyone, The Killing of a Sacred Deer tells the story of a cardiologist and his family who befriend a teenage boy only to discover he has secrets to tell. His involvement with the family becomes more profound having grim consequences once his true motives are revealed. The doctor has to make some extremely difficult choices, not only to clear his conscience, but to save his family as well.
The screenplay for the film was remarkable in many ways mostly using awkward conversations and unique and interesting situations to move along the plot. The deadpan acting choices by the actors and "The Lobster" director Yorgos Lanthimoskeep you from being bored as the story moves through as you don't know where the twists and turns are going.
I would equate somewhat to the recent films, "Mother!" or maybe "Under the Skin" as in reactions to this film will tend to be extreme in loving it or hating it. Having seen so many films throughout my life, I am at the point now where anything interesting and unusual stands out.
I enjoy the occasional CGI explosionfest as much as anyone, but usually strive for something more interesting.
The screenplay for the film was remarkable in many ways mostly using awkward conversations and unique and interesting situations to move along the plot. The deadpan acting choices by the actors and "The Lobster" director Yorgos Lanthimoskeep you from being bored as the story moves through as you don't know where the twists and turns are going.
I would equate somewhat to the recent films, "Mother!" or maybe "Under the Skin" as in reactions to this film will tend to be extreme in loving it or hating it. Having seen so many films throughout my life, I am at the point now where anything interesting and unusual stands out.
I enjoy the occasional CGI explosionfest as much as anyone, but usually strive for something more interesting.