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Showing posts from August, 2018

Downsizing (film review)

Film: Downsizing Year: 2017 Genre: Drama, Sci-fi Directed By: Alexander Payne Starring: Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau About:  A social satire in which a man realizes he would have a better life if he were to shrink himself to five inches tall, allowing him to live in wealth and splendor. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCrBICYM0yM My Review: Having seen the trailer I wanted to see this in the cinema when it first came out however unable to do so I finally managed to see it and although it was nothing like what I was expecting I did enjoy it. The film is about how a man decides to be small and move to a better life with his wife, however when he gets there he ends up alone and having to make friends and learning to love again and finding out who he really is and what really matters to him. I thought that the trailer for this movie was really misleading and made me have another idea for this film than what it really was. I thought having the idea of bei

Meet The Blacks (film review)

Film: Meet the Blacks Year: 2016 Genre: Comedy, Horror Directed By: Deon Taylor Starring: Mike Epps, Zulay Henao, Alex Henderson About:  As Carl Black gets the opportunity to move his family out of Chicago in hope of a better life, their arrival in Beverly Hills is timed with that city's annual purge, where all crime is legal for twelve hours. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivqhlpUCnZY My Review: Having seen this come up on Netflix and that it was a comedy version of The Purge I couldn't resist giving this a watch and seeing if it was any good. Although this was a good watch it wasn't amazing. Meet the Blacks is about a family who move to Beverly Hills from Chicago after having gained a lot of money and how at the Purge for the next twelve hours people from their past in Chicago are after them and so are the people from the new neighbourhood in which they just moved to. I thought that this film had some realistic qualities of how people would be w

Jurassic World (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Jurassic World Year: 2015 Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi Directed By: Colin Trevorrow Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins About:  A new theme park, built on the original site of Jurassic Park, creates a genetically modified hybrid dinosaur, which escapes containment and goes on a killing spree. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FJD7jZqZEk My Review: Having never seen any of the Jurassic movies before I thought that I would start with Jurassic World . I was really surprised by this film and just how much I ended up enjoying it. Jurassic World is about a genetically designed dinosaur and decides to go killing all the dinosaurs and people within the island. However, when they are not able to capture the dinosaur easily will they be able to capture it or destroy it before it destroys the island. I loved that from the very beginning of the movie it was all set for what was going to be happening throughout the film due to seeing the dinosa

Ant-Man and the Wasp (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Ant-man and the Wasp Year: 2018 Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-fi Directed By: Peyton Reed Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Pena About:  As Scott Lang balances being both a Super Hero and a father, Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym present an urgent new mission that finds the Ant-Man fighting alongside The Wasp to uncover secrets from their past. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUkn-enk2RU My Review: Having seen Marvel bring out another movie to the MCU I just needed to see this film and got around to seeing it at the weekend. Although hearing a lot of mixed reactions I did like this film wasn't really impressed with it either. The movie is about how Scott is under house arrest and has a dream about Hope's mother and them trying to bring her back from the quantum realm however there is a woman called Eva who is able to phase and want's the power that Hope's mother would have in order to get her life back to normal. I thought tha

Primer (film review)

Film: Primer Year: 2004 Genre: Drama, Sci-fi, Thriller Directed By: Shane Carruth Starring: Shane Carruth, David Sullivan, Casey Gooden About:  Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nj5MMURCm8 My Review: Having been requested to watch Primer for my blog I gave it a watch and after seeing what the film was about I was rather interested in this movie. However, felt that this film did not meet my expectations at all. The film is about two men who are friends and make a machine which seems a little like Schrodinger's cat and will the person survive within the box until it is opened? However, as it leads to time travel the men's relationship becomes strained. I thought that this film had a brilliant premise and wondered what would happen within the experiment. As it was

The Final Empire (book review) *contains spoilers*

Book: The Final Empire Author: Brandon Sanderson Genre: Fantasy, Fiction Published By: Tor Books Published Year: 2006 My Review: Having been requested to read The Final Empire by a friend of mine I was worried that this book would not be something I would like however, I was completely wrong about that. Having read the book in a week with the help of two readahons #24in48 and #reversereadathon I was completely drawn into this book and couldn't put it down. The book is about a man called Kelsier who is rebelling against the Lord Ruler who is said to be an immortal being with a crew of thieves who have powers. As the crew all do their parts and a girl called Vin joins their party to get access from information from the inside might the crew just succeed in bringing down the Lord Ruler? The book put into five different parts, a prologue and an epilogue as well, putting it into sections easier to read and keeping the reader constantly excited about what was going to be com

Can't Handly Wait (film review)

Film: Can't Hardly Wait Year: 1998 Genre: Comedy, Romance Directed By: Harry Elfont, Deborah Kaplan Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ethan Embry, Charlie Korsmo About:  Multicharacter teenage comedy about high school graduates with different agenda of life on graduation night. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67dfnrTJlUE My Review: Wanting to see a movie in which I am familiar with and enjoy I decided to watch Can't Hardly Wait which still has me entertained from the beginning to the end. The movie follows teenagers at a graduation party and how they spend the last day before heading to college; a guy who has had a crush on a girl for years and trying to get her to notice him, the high school jock who is excited for college so dumps his girlfriend and realises it's a mistake, the cheerleader who has just been dumped, the nerd who wants payback, and a guy trying too hard to be liked and trying to lose his virginity. I find this film really entertainin

Pete's Dragon (film review)

Film: Pete's Dragon Year: 2016 Genre: Action, Adventure, Family Directed By: David Lowery Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Oakes Fegley About: The adventures of an orphaned boy named Pete and his best friend Elliot, who just so happens to be a dragon. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPOamb6d_20 My Rating: Having never seen the original version of Pete's Dragon or the remake this was a film I felt I needed to see and was glad to see that it was on Netflix. The movie is about a boy called Pete who after the death of his parents is saved by a dragon and lives in the forest with him for six years before being found out by a ranger. By doing so Pete tells them about his dragon Elliot and start to believe him after hunters try to capture him. I found this film amazing and couldn't look away from the screen with a lot of emotion into the movie to make the audience love the dragon and hate the hunters who are coming for Elliot this film was a

To All The Boys I've Loved Before (film review)

Film: To All The Boys I've Loved Before Year: 2018 Genre: Drama, Romance Directed By: Susan Johnson Starring: Lana Condor, Noah Centineo, Janel Parrish About:  A teenage girl's secret love letters are exposed and wreak havoc on her love life. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTLc_RzqaJc My Review: Having not read the book for this but having seen a lot of people talk about it I decided to give it a watch and was really glad I did. This film is about a girl who writes love letters to the five boys in which she has ever loved and when they get out she makes an agreement with one of the boys to fake being in a relationship so that her best friend doesn't look too much into his letter. However, when she starts to develop feelings for the fake boyfriend will she have her happily ever after. I thought that this film was brilliant and that with the main character having been a bookworm and someone that was shy that she was rather relateable to me and ho

Dance Academy: The Comeback (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Dance Academy: The Comeback Year: 2017 Genre: Drama Directed By: Jeffrey Walker Starring: Xenia Goodwin, Mackenzie Fearnley, Ines English About:  This 2017 movie follows the original dance academy TV show and tracks where the characters are in their lives now. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OliPYUNs70o My Review: Having been a fan of the series Dance Academy I was really looking forward to this movie however was scared about if it would live up to my expectations due to it being years since the series had come out but I was really happy with this. This film is about Tara who after she broke her back dancing when at the academy decides to try to dance again as she still wants to live her dream. Being rejected from the agency she decides to go to New York and try at other dance companies however when this doesn't work will she still be able to get her dream of being a dancer. I personally was really proud of this movie and I believe you would need to

The Package (film review)

Film: The Package Year: 2018 Genre: Comedy Directed By: Jake Szymanski Starring: Daniel Doheny, Geraldine Viswanathan, Sadie Calvano About:  When a group of teenage friends go on a spring break camping trip, an unfortunate accident sets off a race against time to save their friend's most prized possession. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNe1BEULzsk My Review: Having seen that Netflix brought out a new comedy movie this week I thought I would give it a watch and it actually surprised me with how good it was. The movie is about a group of teenagers who decide to go camping and one of their friends ends up cutting his dick off and it is up to his friends to deliver it to the hospital before he ends up in surgery and losing it forever. I liked this film and it did make me laugh thoughout as it had the same style of humour as which is in American Pie. I also thought that having the teenagers rather useless and the situations in which they end up in over trying

Nuestros Amantes (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Nuestros Amantes Year: 2016 Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance Directed By: Miguel Angel Lamata Starring: Eduardo Noriega, Michelle Jenner, Fele Martinez About:  One man, one woman, one rule: not fall in love Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSaeOL7nc2Q My Review: Having had this on my to watch list on Netflix for a while I thought it was time to give this a watch. Knowing that this had subtitles as well did delay me for a while on watching it due to not being a huge fan of subtitled movies. This was also called Our Lovers, on Netflix for those who look for it. The movie is about a girl who approaches a man in a bar and they start speaking and decide to play a game like when they were younger and there is only rules of not getting to know each other personally and that there is to be no names between them and no phone numbers or internet to know more about each other. While also not allowing to fall in love with each other. I found that this film was rather cut

The Week Of (film review)

Film: The Week Of Year: 2018 Genre: Comedy Directed By: Robert Smigel Starring: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Steve Buscemi About:  Two fathers with opposing personalities come together to celebrate the wedding of their children. They are forced to spend the longest week of their lives together, and the big day cannot come soon enough. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc0fb3xhFHY My Review: Being a fan of Adam Sandler and Chris Rock this film was something in which I just had to see however wasn't really that impressed with unfortunately. The Week Of is about a father who tries to make his daughter's wedding perfect however with barely any money and everything going wrong will the day be able to still go ahead? I liked that this film showed which day it was before the wedding so that the audience could fully see the timeline up to the wedding itself and how the father's don't particularly get on and feel that the wedding should be better due to the m

Lunatics and Luck - Marcus Sedgwick (book review)

Book: Lunatics and Luck Author: Marcus Sedgwick Genre: Children's, fantasy, mystery Published By: Orion Children's Books Published Year: 2010 My Review: Having previously read the second book of the Raven Mysteries "Ghosts and Gadgets" I couldn't help myself but read the third book named Lunatics and Luck . This book is about the castle Otherhand and how things start going a little strange within the castle. Not only this but the children are made to start school with a teacher they feel could have more to him than meets the eye! I found this book really fun to read and couldn't put it down once I had started reading it. Loving that this is such a relaxing read as well as kept me guessing about why the strange things were going on within the castle. I did enjoy that the children were trying to get rid of a teacher in which they didn't like as I feel that a lot of children can relate to wanting to try anything to get rid of bad teachers who the

Self/less (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Self/less Year: 2015 Genre: Action, Mystery, Sci-fi Directed By: Tarsem Singh Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Ben Kingsley, Natalie Martinez, Matthew Goode About:  A dying real estate mogul transfers his consciousness into a healthy young body, but soon finds that neither the procedure nor the company that performed it are quite what they seem. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3agaVwt0tb8 My Review: Wanting a movie I have seen before and always enjoy I decided to go for the Ryan Reynolds movie Self/less  which I always really enjoy no matter how many times I have seen it. The movie is about a man who is dying and decides to put his mind into another body which is younger and a lot healthier however he is no longer able to talk or see anyone from his previous life and they are not to know he is still alive. When he by accident misses a dose of his medication he starts to see memories which he discovers do not belong to him but to the person who's body he is now

Ghosts and Gadgets - Marcus Sedgwick (book review) *contains spoilers*

Book: Ghosts and Gadgets Author: Marcus Sedwick Genre: Children's, Fantasy, Gothic Published By: Orion Published Year: 2009 My Review: Having had the third book in this series of Raven Mysteries I decided to have a look at my local library for the first two books, unfortunately I couldn't see the first one but I did come across the second one which was Ghosts and Gadgets . This is a great book in which is about servants who are working at the castle are dying due to seeing ghosts and although the family are running out of money they make a machine which will detect gold in order to try and find the hidden treasure within the castle. However, are the ghosts everything that they seem to be? I loved that this book was told from the raven's point of view of the story and although the characters within the story were not able to understand him he was a valuable part of the story. I thought that the twist at the end of the story with the ghosts having had been accomp

The Vvitch (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: The Vvitch Year: 2015 Genre: Horror, Mystery Directed By: Robert Eggers Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie About:  A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQXmlf3Sefg My Review: Having heard a lot of good things about this movie I saw that it was on Netflix and thought I would give it a watch, however I ended up disappointed by this movie. The Vvitch is about a family who moves out of England and has their baby stolen by the woods, as tensions grow the family starts to think that maybe it is the daughter who is a witch and the family is slowly being torn apart by black magic. I found that this film was not enjoyable to watch and it made me rather bored from near the beginning. Hoping that it was just a slow movie to get into I continued watching but only the last ten minutes was really all that enjoyable to me. The film had no characters in which

The Giver (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: The Giver Year: 2014 Genre: Drama, Romance, Sci-fi Directed By: Phillip Noyce Starring: Brenton Thwaites, Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep About:  In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvp6FnYWRZU My Review: Letting my mother choose the film for us to watch she decided to choose the movie The Giver which is something I had not seen before. The movie is about a boy called Jonas who is given the job of being the keeper of memories and discovers about a world with emotions and what is outside of his community which he had never experienced before. I like that this film was in black and white to show the emotionless ways of the community and how they had to get rid of their emotions and they didn't know about the past. However, when Jonas starts to learn more about emo

Don't Breathe (film review) *contains spoilers*

Film: Don't Breathe Year: 2016 Genre: Crime, Horror, Thriller Directed By: Fede Alvarez Starring: Stephen Lang, Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette About:  Hoping to walk away with a massive fortune, a trio of thieves break into the house of a blind man who isn't as helpless as he seems. Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76yBTNDB6vU My Review: Having heard a lot of mixed reviews about this movie so had to give it a watch and make my own views on it. The film is about three people who decide to rob a man who was known as being rich however he is blind. Thinking that he would be an easy target. However, the man is ex-army and is doing his own terrible deeds and locks the people in his house and tries to kill them. I loved that this horror had the villain as a blind guy which made this very different from other home invasion movies. Also with the man's home who they broke into being from the army and traps them in and takes their lives into their hands it was a go