In Mary's world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth. But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future—between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death?
I had such high hopes for this book. Everyone said it was gonna be a good read and I wouldn't be wasting my time. I was lied to.
I mean zombies really aren't my thing, but I thought hey, why not? I learned my lesson.
Mary is the main character and she is a few fries short of a Happy Meal, if you know what I mean. But you don't know this from the beginning. You think she's normal and dealing with living in a caged-in village. So her whining is understandable...for a while.
The village she lives in is completely surrounded by chain-linked fencing which apparently is enough to keep out the Unconsecrated (zombies). I don't understand how that's possible, but that's not really the part that bugs me.
Anyway, Mary's mom gets too close to the fence one day while pining for her husband, who was infected (bitten) a while ago and gets herself infected. She elects to be released into the Forest of Hands and Teeth to hopefully find her lost love and create a new spin on Twilight.
Mary and her older brother Jed are sad, but Jed has his own wife to tend to so Mary is left an orphan. The Sisterhood (group of nuns that run the village) agree to take her in as long as she becomes one of them (because no man wants to marry her). While living with the Sisters in the Cathedral she falls in love with a childhood friend, Travis, and meets an outsider, Gabrielle. To Mary this is proof of life somewhere else and she has a sudden quest to find the ocean her mom used to tell her stories about.
This is where she starts to lose me and the book took a turn for the worst. Because up until this point, I was good with the village people and their crazy antics and the world building; it was all really interesting. The minute Mary wanted to find the ocean I should have stopped reading.
So to keep the book moving the zombies break through and everyone freaks out.
Okay so I did kind of like this part but only because the villagers didn't even try to fight the zombies. They're all apparently trained in weaponry but how do they fight back? They make tall platforms and climb onto them so the zombies won't eat them. REALLY? That's the best solution you could come up with? Make really tall platforms and hope the zombies go away? The thought of so many people on giant wooden decks really entertains me for some reason :)
Anyway...
The only ones that make it past the fences alive are the characters we know: Mary, Travis, Cass (Mary's best friend and Travis's fiance), Harry (Travis's brother and Mary's fiance), Jed and his wife, but she dies after being infected. Oh! Jacob and a puppy make it out okay also. Jacob is a random little boy that we meet during the breach.
And if you didn't already notice the love triangle happening I'm taking this moment to point it out. Harry and Travis both love Mary. Mary only loves Travis, but since he has already promised to marry Cass she can't have him (and in my opinion that's the only reason she likes him). Because as soon as she has him...later on...she only wants the ocean and misses Harry. WTF Mary!?!?! Make up your mind girl!
So this nonsense goes on and on until they find an abandoned village and make it to safety. This doesn't last long and soon they are back on the other side of the fences. By this point Mary is full-on crazy and thinks she found a code of numbers to follow. She then finds a gate to the forest (coincidentally) and goes to find the ocean. Jed runs after her and I assume dies because he's never heard from again.
Mary finds the ocean and another little village. She cries because she's so happy. I cried because there's a sequel.
I'm mad because the author could have really went somewhere with the beginning of this book but didn't and made Mary crazier than I thought anyone could be. If she didn't HAVE to find the ocean she could have saved Travis, Jed, Jed's wife, her mother, Sister Tabitha (but I'm glad she died, she was getting on my nerves) and countless other no-named people. But no, she had to find the stupid ocean and risk everyone's lives for nothing. NOTHING!!!
This book doesn't have a reward at the end. She finds the ocean then that's it. End of story. No answers about the zombies or anything about anything. She doesn't even try to find her friends she left to die in the forest. Mary says she loves her friends and family so much and doesn't even try to save them? She didn't deserve to see the ocean.
Overall, 3 stars. This book wasn't terrible but I didn't like it either. I will NOT be reading the rest of the series because I can't take any more of this madness.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
A young FBI cadet must confide in an incarcerated and manipulative killer to receive his help on catching another serial killer who skins his victims.
This movie was awesome! After I watched it for my Soc. class I decided I should review it here.
So although Hannibal Lecter is totally fictional he is still freakishly scary. That actor was truly amazing and I believed for every minute of the 118 I was watching him that he really was a serial killer. Buffalo Bill not so much, but then again, he was a little too crazy for my taste. I'm guessing that's the way the director wanted to portray Bill so the actor was probably just doing what he was told...fair enough. At least he was consistent.
Clarice was very relatable and I don't even like Jodie Foster. When she was scared so was I, when she figured something out I realized what it was. The way the movie was paced was also really good. I could keep up with what was happening. It wasn't too procedural, like a bad episode of Law & Order.
I could also personally relate to Clarice because I am female and you could really see how she struggled to fit into the FBI, which was mostly dominated by men.
I'm not going to give a synopsis of the film because I know I'll give too much away. Every moment is either interesting, thrilling or earth shattering and everyone should have the opportunity to feel that themselves. I don't want to ruin anything!
So in summary...SEE THIS MOVIE!!!
Overall 4 stars. It's not worth 5 because once you know the ending the rest is ruined. You can never watch it again.
This movie was awesome! After I watched it for my Soc. class I decided I should review it here.
So although Hannibal Lecter is totally fictional he is still freakishly scary. That actor was truly amazing and I believed for every minute of the 118 I was watching him that he really was a serial killer. Buffalo Bill not so much, but then again, he was a little too crazy for my taste. I'm guessing that's the way the director wanted to portray Bill so the actor was probably just doing what he was told...fair enough. At least he was consistent.
Clarice was very relatable and I don't even like Jodie Foster. When she was scared so was I, when she figured something out I realized what it was. The way the movie was paced was also really good. I could keep up with what was happening. It wasn't too procedural, like a bad episode of Law & Order.
I could also personally relate to Clarice because I am female and you could really see how she struggled to fit into the FBI, which was mostly dominated by men.
I'm not going to give a synopsis of the film because I know I'll give too much away. Every moment is either interesting, thrilling or earth shattering and everyone should have the opportunity to feel that themselves. I don't want to ruin anything!
So in summary...SEE THIS MOVIE!!!
Overall 4 stars. It's not worth 5 because once you know the ending the rest is ruined. You can never watch it again.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
A video game villain wants to be a hero and sets out to fulfill his dream, but his quest brings havoc to the whole arcade where he lives.
So this was obviously a kids movie, but it was still cute and witty enough for me to enjoy. Since finals week is quickly approaching I needed to get some fun into my system and this was exactly the movie to see.
Ralph is the cute and lovable bad guy and is underappreciated in his video game, Fix It Felix. He leaves to prove himself (by earning a medal) and so when he returns his fellow game characters will finally accept him and he won't have to live alone at the dump anymore.
Ralph getting the medal was actually the easy part. This kind of threw me for a loop. In these kinds of movies the hero always spends more than half of the movie searching for whatever and then the rest of the way he is just trying to return home.
Ralph did it backwards. He got the medal in about 5 minutes. Impressive right? But then he accidentally gets sucked into another game similar to Mario Kart on crack and loses his medal. He makes friends with another outcast and they help to save the game from evil cyber-bugs.
Ralph goes home and everyone appreciates him. The end.
Not an impressive plot, but I'll give Disney the thumbs up for twisting it around a little. Going into this movie I didn't have high hopes. Honestly I was hoping to get a 90 minute nap out of it. But because of voices like Sarah Silverman and Jane Lynch I actually found myself laughing pretty hard.
All in all the graphics were really good. It was cool to see how they mimicked other older games, like Pac Man and Mario Bros., you could really see the change in animation and technique.
Also the colors in Sugar Rush (the made up game that most of the movie takes place in) made me want to eat candy. So now I'm eating gummy bears as I write this review :)
Overall I'm not sure if I would see it again, but I would give Wreck-It Ralph 3 stars. I was entertained and I don't have too much criticism for the movie at all. I don't want to give it more stars because I feel like once you know what happens that's the end of it. The wonder of new worlds is lost and you don't have the same curiosity you did as the first time you saw it. You know all the characters and how they will react.
But if my little cousins REALLY wanna see it I might reconsider.
So this was obviously a kids movie, but it was still cute and witty enough for me to enjoy. Since finals week is quickly approaching I needed to get some fun into my system and this was exactly the movie to see.
Ralph is the cute and lovable bad guy and is underappreciated in his video game, Fix It Felix. He leaves to prove himself (by earning a medal) and so when he returns his fellow game characters will finally accept him and he won't have to live alone at the dump anymore.
Ralph getting the medal was actually the easy part. This kind of threw me for a loop. In these kinds of movies the hero always spends more than half of the movie searching for whatever and then the rest of the way he is just trying to return home.
Ralph did it backwards. He got the medal in about 5 minutes. Impressive right? But then he accidentally gets sucked into another game similar to Mario Kart on crack and loses his medal. He makes friends with another outcast and they help to save the game from evil cyber-bugs.
Ralph goes home and everyone appreciates him. The end.
Not an impressive plot, but I'll give Disney the thumbs up for twisting it around a little. Going into this movie I didn't have high hopes. Honestly I was hoping to get a 90 minute nap out of it. But because of voices like Sarah Silverman and Jane Lynch I actually found myself laughing pretty hard.
All in all the graphics were really good. It was cool to see how they mimicked other older games, like Pac Man and Mario Bros., you could really see the change in animation and technique.
Also the colors in Sugar Rush (the made up game that most of the movie takes place in) made me want to eat candy. So now I'm eating gummy bears as I write this review :)
Overall I'm not sure if I would see it again, but I would give Wreck-It Ralph 3 stars. I was entertained and I don't have too much criticism for the movie at all. I don't want to give it more stars because I feel like once you know what happens that's the end of it. The wonder of new worlds is lost and you don't have the same curiosity you did as the first time you saw it. You know all the characters and how they will react.
But if my little cousins REALLY wanna see it I might reconsider.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Sherlock (2010-present)
A modern update finds the famous sleuth and his doctor partner solving crime in 21st century London.
This is officially the best show in existence. I cannot rave about this show enough. The actors are so committed and the script is just so amazing! THIS IS WHY I LOVE BRITISH PEOPLE!!
So everyone knows the famous story/character Sherlock Holmes and his 'bromantic' partner, Dr. John Watson. This reincarnation of the old stories is so true to the original and is like no other remake out there. Arthur Conan Doyle would be proud.
Except for when things have to be brought into this century, like using cell phones or the incorporation of genetic testing, most everything else is extremely accurate. (Take this with a grain of salt because I have not yet read the book series, but a close friend of mine has and I am trusting her opinion.)
I don't really have any major problems with the show except that there are NOT enough episodes. BBC only provides us with 3 episodes per season and each episode is about 90 minutes...which of course is just enough to leave me wanting more.
The man who plays Sherlock however does bother me from time to time. Not because he doesn't play the part right (he actually fits it to a 'T') but his face reminds me of a dog. Or a deer in headlights. But that's nothing against him, it's not like he can do anything to make me feel less OCD about it. He is still a great actor and I see why he was cast in the show. AND he and Watson have great chemistry. Lots of eye sex ;)
I'll admit, the pilot needed the humor. The characters didn't have the likability yet and I couldn't connect with them on an emotional level...yet. Also it's very hard to sit down for 90 minutes without being tempted to do or watch something else. So the only two things that kept me watching were the facts that I loved Sherlock Holmes and every line of dialogue for the first 30 minutes was sarcastic and HILARIOUS. I'm a sucker for sarcasm.
I don't want to give away any plot lines or any spoilers because this show really is amazing. It was classic Sherlock Holmes: he was always one step ahead of the villain and two steps ahead of the audience. Now I watch a lot of crime shows and read a lot of mysteries but I couldn't figure out who did it 5 out of 6 times. (I did manage to guess the villain one time but I'm not sure that it counts because it was a repeat offense...nevermind, I still give myself props.)
Overall, 5 stars. If I could give more I would.
*Side note: if any of this post sounds too formal or strange it's probably because everything I've said recently has been in a British accent...apologies :) It should fade in a couple days, if I'm lucky.
This is officially the best show in existence. I cannot rave about this show enough. The actors are so committed and the script is just so amazing! THIS IS WHY I LOVE BRITISH PEOPLE!!
So everyone knows the famous story/character Sherlock Holmes and his 'bromantic' partner, Dr. John Watson. This reincarnation of the old stories is so true to the original and is like no other remake out there. Arthur Conan Doyle would be proud.
Except for when things have to be brought into this century, like using cell phones or the incorporation of genetic testing, most everything else is extremely accurate. (Take this with a grain of salt because I have not yet read the book series, but a close friend of mine has and I am trusting her opinion.)
I don't really have any major problems with the show except that there are NOT enough episodes. BBC only provides us with 3 episodes per season and each episode is about 90 minutes...which of course is just enough to leave me wanting more.
The man who plays Sherlock however does bother me from time to time. Not because he doesn't play the part right (he actually fits it to a 'T') but his face reminds me of a dog. Or a deer in headlights. But that's nothing against him, it's not like he can do anything to make me feel less OCD about it. He is still a great actor and I see why he was cast in the show. AND he and Watson have great chemistry. Lots of eye sex ;)
I just started watching this series yesterday and now I'm already done with it. But after watching all the available episodes I would have to say that the first episode, A Study In Pink, would have to be my favorite. It's when you first meet Sherlock and Watson and find out how they get to be roomies. You are also introduced to Anderson, who doesn't have much of a role in the series except getting chastised repeatedly by Holmes. This kept me the most entertained.
I'll admit, the pilot needed the humor. The characters didn't have the likability yet and I couldn't connect with them on an emotional level...yet. Also it's very hard to sit down for 90 minutes without being tempted to do or watch something else. So the only two things that kept me watching were the facts that I loved Sherlock Holmes and every line of dialogue for the first 30 minutes was sarcastic and HILARIOUS. I'm a sucker for sarcasm.
I don't want to give away any plot lines or any spoilers because this show really is amazing. It was classic Sherlock Holmes: he was always one step ahead of the villain and two steps ahead of the audience. Now I watch a lot of crime shows and read a lot of mysteries but I couldn't figure out who did it 5 out of 6 times. (I did manage to guess the villain one time but I'm not sure that it counts because it was a repeat offense...nevermind, I still give myself props.)
Overall, 5 stars. If I could give more I would.
*Side note: if any of this post sounds too formal or strange it's probably because everything I've said recently has been in a British accent...apologies :) It should fade in a couple days, if I'm lucky.
Friday, November 30, 2012
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
*THIS REVIEW DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS*
Upon arriving at a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients to take on the oppressive Nurse Ratched, a woman more dictator than nurse.
Great movie. Hands down, best film I've seen in a while. I've seen a lot of movies set in mental hospitals but this one takes the cake.
All the characters are awesome (but Chief is my absolute favorite!) and the acting was amazing! I really believed I was witnessing a crazy house and an underdog story but the ending threw me totally for a loop. I wanted to scream, cry and pass out all at the same time.
I was totally moved by this movie. I will continue my raving after a mini summary:
RP was doing some time in prison but acted out so they thought he was crazy. He ends up in a mental institution so they can diagnose whether or not he actually needs medical attention or if he's just faking.
Once there, RP starts to stir things up. He messes with the crazy nurse and gets the patients to embrace themselves again. You could say they all live vicariously through him. He even gets the deaf mute Chief to play basketball (the guy barely moves to begin with so this is a HUGE improvement).
Long story short, RP finds out that he can't just leave the hospital when his sentence is over. He's there until he 'gets better'. Since he pretty much made enemies of all the staff he doesn't see how this is possible and plans to escape with Chief.
While planning to leave he gets really close with the guys and misses his window of opportunity. The nurses decide to punish him accordingly and we find out later this means they give him a lobotomy. Chief is assumed a deaf mute (even though he's just faking) so he gets off easy. In the end, Chief kills RP because he was too good a man to live life as a vegetable, and escapes the way that he and RP always planned to. He smashes a window and runs for the forest...the end.
So my summary doesn't give this movie justice but you have to see it. You just have to. I was so glued to my seat in awe that when class was over I was upset that I couldn't just keep watching the movie (yes this was another Soc class film).
Overall 5 stars! I can't wait to rewatch this movie when I'm studying for the exam. This movie deserves every award it has won/been nominated for and all the praise it has been given. NOW GO WATCH IT!!!
Upon arriving at a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients to take on the oppressive Nurse Ratched, a woman more dictator than nurse.
Great movie. Hands down, best film I've seen in a while. I've seen a lot of movies set in mental hospitals but this one takes the cake.
All the characters are awesome (but Chief is my absolute favorite!) and the acting was amazing! I really believed I was witnessing a crazy house and an underdog story but the ending threw me totally for a loop. I wanted to scream, cry and pass out all at the same time.
I was totally moved by this movie. I will continue my raving after a mini summary:
RP was doing some time in prison but acted out so they thought he was crazy. He ends up in a mental institution so they can diagnose whether or not he actually needs medical attention or if he's just faking.
Once there, RP starts to stir things up. He messes with the crazy nurse and gets the patients to embrace themselves again. You could say they all live vicariously through him. He even gets the deaf mute Chief to play basketball (the guy barely moves to begin with so this is a HUGE improvement).
Long story short, RP finds out that he can't just leave the hospital when his sentence is over. He's there until he 'gets better'. Since he pretty much made enemies of all the staff he doesn't see how this is possible and plans to escape with Chief.
While planning to leave he gets really close with the guys and misses his window of opportunity. The nurses decide to punish him accordingly and we find out later this means they give him a lobotomy. Chief is assumed a deaf mute (even though he's just faking) so he gets off easy. In the end, Chief kills RP because he was too good a man to live life as a vegetable, and escapes the way that he and RP always planned to. He smashes a window and runs for the forest...the end.
So my summary doesn't give this movie justice but you have to see it. You just have to. I was so glued to my seat in awe that when class was over I was upset that I couldn't just keep watching the movie (yes this was another Soc class film).
Overall 5 stars! I can't wait to rewatch this movie when I'm studying for the exam. This movie deserves every award it has won/been nominated for and all the praise it has been given. NOW GO WATCH IT!!!
Winx Club (2004-present)
In a magical universe, witches and warriors begin fighting in the name of good vs. evil! At a magic school, five teenage girls are selected to defend the universe with their magic.
So this was pretty much my favorite Saturday morning tv show when I was younger. It was like the pre-teen version of Charmed (my fav show of ALL time) which is probably why I liked it so much.
But anyway, after finally hunting down all the episodes on youtube and rewatching them all I see what a pre-teen me would see in this show. It's funny, corny, exciting and knows when to insert an appropriate cliffhanger...at the end of EVERY SINGLE EPISODE!!!
I was just as hooked on this show a month ago as I was years ago when I watched it on tv. Season 1 was amazing (for a kid's show) and it progressed nicely with the power of friendship, bunnies and how good always wins over evil.
But there was always that little twist in the plot that I never saw coming, even in my adult years. I feel like I should be insulted, but really I was totally shocked. So since I don't want to talk about every season individually I figured I would just over simplify the first one so you get the idea:
Bloom is the main character and she lives in a flower town called Gardenia on Earth. A fairy from another realm travels there to fight a monster and Bloom oversees this at the public park. Bloom sees that Stella (the fairy) is in danger and unleashes powers on this monster to destroy it. The catch? She didn't know she had powers. So instead of the whole secrecy thing where Bloom tries to hide her new abilities from her parents she just outright tells them when she brings Stella home that night. And on top of all this? Her parents are totally on board with everything! Stella shows them her powers and about 10 minutes later they agree to send Bloom to a magic boarding school. Just like that!
So Bloom makes life-long friends her first day at school (of course...it's ONLY high school) and she finds out eventually that she's the most powerful fairy left in all the realms. Insert corny plot where she has to go through some major self-discovery and life lessons...skipping to the good part...there is a trio of evil witches at another magic boarding school nearby and they want Bloom's power to rule the world.
These villains are actually pretty convincing for a kid's show. The leader doesn't take anything from anybody and her sidekicks are evil and stupid so they follow whatever she says. And amazingly this plot works and kept me extremely entertained. It was very similar to the trio of witches from Hocus Pocus*.
*Side note: if you haven't seen this movie then stop right now and go watch it. Just be sure to come back later :)
A lot more character development and cliffhangers later Bloom and the evil witches have their final battle. Guess who wins? Yeah Bloom does because she's super duper powerful and it's a kid's show.
End of season 1.
The rest of the seasons are not worth mentioning because short of a few really good episodes, they were long, drawn out and boring. The show also switched networks half way into the series so some of the voices and animation changed which made it really confusing because no one sounded like they did before. They didn't even really try to match the old stuff which was very disappointing.
Did I mention that this show is still going??? It's surprising but I guess people still watch it even after it changed hands so many times. It is set to air through 2015. (so this show has been on the air for about 10 years!!) Of course not regularly, but near enough! I haven't watched up through the 5th season and I'm not really planning to. I got my fix and if I need to re-live my childhood I will rewatch season 1 repeatedly. It really was the best.
If I was just rating season 1 then 4 stars...yeah it was THAT good. But since I watched most of the series, I can really only give it 2 stars. One for the villains and one for bringing back childhood memories.
So this was pretty much my favorite Saturday morning tv show when I was younger. It was like the pre-teen version of Charmed (my fav show of ALL time) which is probably why I liked it so much.
But anyway, after finally hunting down all the episodes on youtube and rewatching them all I see what a pre-teen me would see in this show. It's funny, corny, exciting and knows when to insert an appropriate cliffhanger...at the end of EVERY SINGLE EPISODE!!!
I was just as hooked on this show a month ago as I was years ago when I watched it on tv. Season 1 was amazing (for a kid's show) and it progressed nicely with the power of friendship, bunnies and how good always wins over evil.
But there was always that little twist in the plot that I never saw coming, even in my adult years. I feel like I should be insulted, but really I was totally shocked. So since I don't want to talk about every season individually I figured I would just over simplify the first one so you get the idea:
Bloom is the main character and she lives in a flower town called Gardenia on Earth. A fairy from another realm travels there to fight a monster and Bloom oversees this at the public park. Bloom sees that Stella (the fairy) is in danger and unleashes powers on this monster to destroy it. The catch? She didn't know she had powers. So instead of the whole secrecy thing where Bloom tries to hide her new abilities from her parents she just outright tells them when she brings Stella home that night. And on top of all this? Her parents are totally on board with everything! Stella shows them her powers and about 10 minutes later they agree to send Bloom to a magic boarding school. Just like that!
So Bloom makes life-long friends her first day at school (of course...it's ONLY high school) and she finds out eventually that she's the most powerful fairy left in all the realms. Insert corny plot where she has to go through some major self-discovery and life lessons...skipping to the good part...there is a trio of evil witches at another magic boarding school nearby and they want Bloom's power to rule the world.
These villains are actually pretty convincing for a kid's show. The leader doesn't take anything from anybody and her sidekicks are evil and stupid so they follow whatever she says. And amazingly this plot works and kept me extremely entertained. It was very similar to the trio of witches from Hocus Pocus*.
*Side note: if you haven't seen this movie then stop right now and go watch it. Just be sure to come back later :)
A lot more character development and cliffhangers later Bloom and the evil witches have their final battle. Guess who wins? Yeah Bloom does because she's super duper powerful and it's a kid's show.
End of season 1.
The rest of the seasons are not worth mentioning because short of a few really good episodes, they were long, drawn out and boring. The show also switched networks half way into the series so some of the voices and animation changed which made it really confusing because no one sounded like they did before. They didn't even really try to match the old stuff which was very disappointing.
Did I mention that this show is still going??? It's surprising but I guess people still watch it even after it changed hands so many times. It is set to air through 2015. (so this show has been on the air for about 10 years!!) Of course not regularly, but near enough! I haven't watched up through the 5th season and I'm not really planning to. I got my fix and if I need to re-live my childhood I will rewatch season 1 repeatedly. It really was the best.
If I was just rating season 1 then 4 stars...yeah it was THAT good. But since I watched most of the series, I can really only give it 2 stars. One for the villains and one for bringing back childhood memories.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
L.A. Confidential (1997)
As corruption grows in 1950s LA, three policemen - the straight-laced, the brutal, and the sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.
LAME.
That's my entire review of this movie. The plot was lame, the characters were lame and the ending was...you guessed it, LAME!!!
The majority of the movie focused on the new guy to the police force, Ed. He's the classic nerd with glasses and wants to be a cop because that's what his daddy did. Awwww Eddie...*tear*
But he wants to be the big guy on campus and throws a bunch of cops under the bus, so the rest of the station hates him. This is until he 'solves' the latest murder in town which happens to be one where a cop got shot. Suddenly he's the guy to be...but something doesn't sit right with Ed so he keeps investigating.
Meanwhile we are introduced to Jack, the famous cop. He's a part of the narcotics division and makes deals with the local magazine editor to get the best stories (and a little payoff on the side). His life is good until Ed asks him why he became a cop in the first place and Jack can't remember. This sparks some kind of 'good samaritan' mission in him.
While all this is happening, Bud is another established cop on the force. He's really fond of women. If they are attacked or threatened in any way he goes all crazy monkey on the attacker and trust me, you DON'T wanna be that guy.
Bud doesn't actually like Ed for the longest time because he got his partner fired and later slept with his lady-friend. But as he's about to kill Ed he's convinced that he's a good guy and decides to help him out. Ed definitely has a way with words.
So Ed and Jack team up first to find the real killers in the 'solved' case. Turns out some things are shady with the captain of the station so Jack goes to talk to him: man to man. The captain, Dudley, thinks Jack knows something and shoots him. He later moves the body and says the murder of his friend is a heinous act and the killer must be found.
Ed finds out that Dudley killed Jack and freaks out. He knows he's next. Enter Bud attempting to kill Ed with every piece of office furniture possible (why he didn't just pull his gun out and shoot the guy I'll never know).
Once Ed and Bud are on the same side they realize they're being hunted by Dudley and his men so they run off to an abandoned warehouse (I kid you not) and prepare for battle. After a long, drawn out shoot out Ed shoots Dudley in the back (wow symbolism!!) and he and Bud make it out alive. Ed gets a medal for his valor and is the new head person at the station.
Oh and in between all this crap is a stupid love story between a whore and some cops.
Literally that was the whole movie. I got bored just writing this. None of the characters made you care about them at all and I was happy when some of them started getting shot. The coolest dude was Dudley because he wasn't afraid to tie up loose ends. Ed was just the lonely nerd who tried to beat the bully but ended up telling the teacher on him instead.
Keep in mind this movie is over two hours long. How I sat and watched this in one sitting is impressive. I should get an award for doing that alone!
So overall, thanks to Sociology, I again had to sit and pull myself through another disaster movie. I don't even know if this movie deserves 1 star. I'm at that point where maybe if I fall asleep right now I can pretend this movie doesn't exist and it was all just a bad dream...
GOOD NIGHT!
LAME.
That's my entire review of this movie. The plot was lame, the characters were lame and the ending was...you guessed it, LAME!!!
The majority of the movie focused on the new guy to the police force, Ed. He's the classic nerd with glasses and wants to be a cop because that's what his daddy did. Awwww Eddie...*tear*
But he wants to be the big guy on campus and throws a bunch of cops under the bus, so the rest of the station hates him. This is until he 'solves' the latest murder in town which happens to be one where a cop got shot. Suddenly he's the guy to be...but something doesn't sit right with Ed so he keeps investigating.
Meanwhile we are introduced to Jack, the famous cop. He's a part of the narcotics division and makes deals with the local magazine editor to get the best stories (and a little payoff on the side). His life is good until Ed asks him why he became a cop in the first place and Jack can't remember. This sparks some kind of 'good samaritan' mission in him.
While all this is happening, Bud is another established cop on the force. He's really fond of women. If they are attacked or threatened in any way he goes all crazy monkey on the attacker and trust me, you DON'T wanna be that guy.
Bud doesn't actually like Ed for the longest time because he got his partner fired and later slept with his lady-friend. But as he's about to kill Ed he's convinced that he's a good guy and decides to help him out. Ed definitely has a way with words.
So Ed and Jack team up first to find the real killers in the 'solved' case. Turns out some things are shady with the captain of the station so Jack goes to talk to him: man to man. The captain, Dudley, thinks Jack knows something and shoots him. He later moves the body and says the murder of his friend is a heinous act and the killer must be found.
Ed finds out that Dudley killed Jack and freaks out. He knows he's next. Enter Bud attempting to kill Ed with every piece of office furniture possible (why he didn't just pull his gun out and shoot the guy I'll never know).
Once Ed and Bud are on the same side they realize they're being hunted by Dudley and his men so they run off to an abandoned warehouse (I kid you not) and prepare for battle. After a long, drawn out shoot out Ed shoots Dudley in the back (wow symbolism!!) and he and Bud make it out alive. Ed gets a medal for his valor and is the new head person at the station.
Oh and in between all this crap is a stupid love story between a whore and some cops.
Literally that was the whole movie. I got bored just writing this. None of the characters made you care about them at all and I was happy when some of them started getting shot. The coolest dude was Dudley because he wasn't afraid to tie up loose ends. Ed was just the lonely nerd who tried to beat the bully but ended up telling the teacher on him instead.
Keep in mind this movie is over two hours long. How I sat and watched this in one sitting is impressive. I should get an award for doing that alone!
So overall, thanks to Sociology, I again had to sit and pull myself through another disaster movie. I don't even know if this movie deserves 1 star. I'm at that point where maybe if I fall asleep right now I can pretend this movie doesn't exist and it was all just a bad dream...
GOOD NIGHT!
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Dawson's Creek (1998-2003)
Four friends in a small coastal town help each other cope with adolescence.
So apparently this tv show was 'all the rage' on the WB when it first came out. Honestly, I don't know why. This show is just a bunch of teens awkwardly talking about sex, then they debate about having it (with each other no less) and then actually do it.
First of all, I think it's great that all these people find comfort in each other and stay close as a group but they didn't need to take it to the next level. Jen moves to Capeside, MA from NYC to live with her grandmother because her parents sent her away. At first you feel bad for the girl because you want to pity the kid that gets no love from her parents but then you find out why she moved...she was having sex, doing drugs and pretty much an alcoholic at the age of 15. As sad as that is, she made those choices and I understand why her parents threw her out.
So back to my original point, thank god Jen didn't get any kind of STD because she could have started a mini epidemic in Capeside. She kissed/dated/slept with the whole town! First it was Jen and Dawson, then Jen and Abby, then Jen and Dru...the list goes on and on. Keep it in your pants woman!
But to backtrack a bit...the show starts off with three best friends: Dawson, the movie-freak, Pacey, the side-kick and Joey, the girl who wants out. Joey has been climbing into Dawson's room just about every night for years. They watch movies and sleep in the same bed. No one thinks anything of this by the way...
Pacey mostly keeps to himself. He is the main underdog of the series because he can't do anything right. He gets a girlfriend...turns out it's his new English teacher at school. He gets a good grade...it's undermined by his family's general dislike of him. Poor guy can't catch a break. Until he starts dating Joey.
Little Joey Potter (as she's referred to countless times, even by herself!) lives down the creek and thinks she's in love with Dawson. He's to slow to act on any feelings so she dates Pacey (after dating Jack the gay kid for a brief period). This flip flop from Dawson to Pacey to random guy and back again is what keeps the series going.
Granted, there are a few episodes that I did like, but mostly it is just teen angst on top of more teen angst. There isn't any substance to this show. They ask the general "What is love?" and "Should I have sex?" questions over and over again until the answer is beaten into the viewer's brain.
Season 1 was pretty straight forward, it set up the conflict between Joey, Dawson, Pacey and Jen. Season 2 introduced Andi and Jack into the mix, but after that nothing really happens. Season 3 was almost unbearable until you get to season 4. Then you wish you were watching season 3...and the show just went downhill from there.
Finally the series finale. THAT was good. So those 6 seasons of loyal fandomship was finally worth it? I would say yes. For all the ragging I just did on this show it was watchable (not really my taste, but I made it through). The last episode takes place 5 years after the end of season 6, so all the characters are out in the real world living their dreams. Joey is an editor, Dawson is the director of a tv show called 'The Creek' (really creative writers there) and Pacey is the chef and owner of a restaurant. But the absolute best part of this ending was that Jen was a nobody and already had a kid. SEX HAS CONSEQUENCES PEOPLE!!!
Everytime the characters had sex on this show (which was a lot) whether or not they had a condom, or if anyone was on the pill, no one ever got an STD or pregnant. Ever.
So when Jen ended up with a kid I smiled so big I thought my lips would fall off my face. Then you find out...*SPOILER ALERT*
Jen has a terminal illness. C'mon man! The greatest moment as a viewer of this show and you had to ruin it ten minutes later because Jen's gonna die?
Now I successfully feel awful about being happy she has a kid and is going nowhere fast. Everyone cries about Jen but she wants her hospital visit to be a happy one so everyone has to put on a fake face when they see her. It was one of the most awkward scenes in the whole series (and that's saying something when you watch Katie Holmes act for 6 straight seasons).
As you might have guessed, Jen dies and gives her baby to Jack because who better to raise your daughter than a gay BFF? Good job Jen!
Overall this tv show was a disaster and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone I liked. Or even disliked. No one should have to watch this pathetically long and redundant turn of events of their own free will. All the great ratings it got set me up to really appreciate this show but it failed miserably.
So Little Joey Potter and her final lover, Pacey (she really does pick him in the end...WHY?!?!?!) can go ride off into the sunset and frankly I don't give a damn. 1 star.
Update: this show is now regularly airing on ABC Family during the ever-popular lunch hour time slot. I try to save money by eating lunch at home (being a broke college student and all that) so I have been re-watching the early seasons and to be honest, they're not as bad as I remember them. Yes the drama is still overbearing and the characters have a very strong sense of right and wrong, it's almost ridiculous, but the overall season arc is not horrible...for season 1 at least. I do standby my earlier statements that as the series progresses the seasons get more and more bogged down with needless relationship drama. But I will revise my earlier review by saying season 1 is a lovable teen angsty drama that will at the very least be nostalgic to 90's kids. And for the first time in my tv-watching experience commercials are wonderful things. Looking back, I really didn't like this show because I watched it online, commercial free, all in a row. Watching 6 years worth of tv in a matter of weeks was too much drama for me to take. It was for shows like this that they invented tv hiatuses. I can see why this show got such high ratings for its time but I can really only recommend this show for those who have a pathological need to understand every tv reference out there. If this does not apply to you, then I would skip it.
So apparently this tv show was 'all the rage' on the WB when it first came out. Honestly, I don't know why. This show is just a bunch of teens awkwardly talking about sex, then they debate about having it (with each other no less) and then actually do it.
First of all, I think it's great that all these people find comfort in each other and stay close as a group but they didn't need to take it to the next level. Jen moves to Capeside, MA from NYC to live with her grandmother because her parents sent her away. At first you feel bad for the girl because you want to pity the kid that gets no love from her parents but then you find out why she moved...she was having sex, doing drugs and pretty much an alcoholic at the age of 15. As sad as that is, she made those choices and I understand why her parents threw her out.
So back to my original point, thank god Jen didn't get any kind of STD because she could have started a mini epidemic in Capeside. She kissed/dated/slept with the whole town! First it was Jen and Dawson, then Jen and Abby, then Jen and Dru...the list goes on and on. Keep it in your pants woman!
But to backtrack a bit...the show starts off with three best friends: Dawson, the movie-freak, Pacey, the side-kick and Joey, the girl who wants out. Joey has been climbing into Dawson's room just about every night for years. They watch movies and sleep in the same bed. No one thinks anything of this by the way...
Pacey mostly keeps to himself. He is the main underdog of the series because he can't do anything right. He gets a girlfriend...turns out it's his new English teacher at school. He gets a good grade...it's undermined by his family's general dislike of him. Poor guy can't catch a break. Until he starts dating Joey.
Little Joey Potter (as she's referred to countless times, even by herself!) lives down the creek and thinks she's in love with Dawson. He's to slow to act on any feelings so she dates Pacey (after dating Jack the gay kid for a brief period). This flip flop from Dawson to Pacey to random guy and back again is what keeps the series going.
Granted, there are a few episodes that I did like, but mostly it is just teen angst on top of more teen angst. There isn't any substance to this show. They ask the general "What is love?" and "Should I have sex?" questions over and over again until the answer is beaten into the viewer's brain.
Season 1 was pretty straight forward, it set up the conflict between Joey, Dawson, Pacey and Jen. Season 2 introduced Andi and Jack into the mix, but after that nothing really happens. Season 3 was almost unbearable until you get to season 4. Then you wish you were watching season 3...and the show just went downhill from there.
Finally the series finale. THAT was good. So those 6 seasons of loyal fandomship was finally worth it? I would say yes. For all the ragging I just did on this show it was watchable (not really my taste, but I made it through). The last episode takes place 5 years after the end of season 6, so all the characters are out in the real world living their dreams. Joey is an editor, Dawson is the director of a tv show called 'The Creek' (really creative writers there) and Pacey is the chef and owner of a restaurant. But the absolute best part of this ending was that Jen was a nobody and already had a kid. SEX HAS CONSEQUENCES PEOPLE!!!
Everytime the characters had sex on this show (which was a lot) whether or not they had a condom, or if anyone was on the pill, no one ever got an STD or pregnant. Ever.
So when Jen ended up with a kid I smiled so big I thought my lips would fall off my face. Then you find out...*SPOILER ALERT*
Jen has a terminal illness. C'mon man! The greatest moment as a viewer of this show and you had to ruin it ten minutes later because Jen's gonna die?
Now I successfully feel awful about being happy she has a kid and is going nowhere fast. Everyone cries about Jen but she wants her hospital visit to be a happy one so everyone has to put on a fake face when they see her. It was one of the most awkward scenes in the whole series (and that's saying something when you watch Katie Holmes act for 6 straight seasons).
As you might have guessed, Jen dies and gives her baby to Jack because who better to raise your daughter than a gay BFF? Good job Jen!
Overall this tv show was a disaster and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone I liked. Or even disliked. No one should have to watch this pathetically long and redundant turn of events of their own free will. All the great ratings it got set me up to really appreciate this show but it failed miserably.
So Little Joey Potter and her final lover, Pacey (she really does pick him in the end...WHY?!?!?!) can go ride off into the sunset and frankly I don't give a damn. 1 star.
Update: this show is now regularly airing on ABC Family during the ever-popular lunch hour time slot. I try to save money by eating lunch at home (being a broke college student and all that) so I have been re-watching the early seasons and to be honest, they're not as bad as I remember them. Yes the drama is still overbearing and the characters have a very strong sense of right and wrong, it's almost ridiculous, but the overall season arc is not horrible...for season 1 at least. I do standby my earlier statements that as the series progresses the seasons get more and more bogged down with needless relationship drama. But I will revise my earlier review by saying season 1 is a lovable teen angsty drama that will at the very least be nostalgic to 90's kids. And for the first time in my tv-watching experience commercials are wonderful things. Looking back, I really didn't like this show because I watched it online, commercial free, all in a row. Watching 6 years worth of tv in a matter of weeks was too much drama for me to take. It was for shows like this that they invented tv hiatuses. I can see why this show got such high ratings for its time but I can really only recommend this show for those who have a pathological need to understand every tv reference out there. If this does not apply to you, then I would skip it.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
A rebellious young man with a troubled past comes to a new town, finding friends and enemies.
Another super descriptive summary from IMDb but whatcha gonna do?
This movie I also watched for my Soc class but I liked this one soooo much better. Granted it wasn't a movie I'm dying to see again but compared to Boyz this was actually watchable.
The rebel is James Dean and he moves to a new town because he keeps getting into trouble and his parents think if they take him away from all that then he will improve as a person. But he doesn't because he's James Dean :)
He meets the local cool kids and tries to fit into their gang. A knife fight ensues and is stopped by a local police officer. Because their dispute couldn't be settled the group decides to do a "chickee run" later that night. For those who missed out on the 50s a chickee run is when two guys steal two cars and race them off the cliff. The last one to jump out of their car and not die wins! I can't wait to get a group of people and do this next weekend!!! WHOOOOOO!!! (I'm totally kidding by the way...this is the stupidest way to prove a man has balls)
So there's a complication and the guy that challenged James Dean drives off the cliff and dies, so of course his girlfriend (well now ex-girlfriend) starts to fall in love with Jimmy D and they run off together to an abandoned mansion. There they bump into the local wannabe kid. You know the kid that no one really hangs out with but he's always there just in case they change their mind?
Well he apparently frequents this same mansion and the three of them decide to play house. James and his new arm candy are the parents while Plato (the wannabe kid) is their son.
Later on, the police find the group and Plato gets scared and starts shooting them when he pulls out his gun (for protection of course!). They chase him to the planetarium, this movie has some WEIRD settings, and Jimmy gets him to come out unarmed. The police don't know he's unarmed so when he does come out they shoot him and he dies. Sorry guys, but the lonely underdog doesn't make it :(
Jimmy and his girl go home all sad and the movie ends.
Did I mention that this whole movie takes place in ONE day??? How cool is that?! Just because of some of the choices everyone made people died and there was a huge shootout and all this conflict came out of Jimmy's first day of school?
That just baffles my mind! But anyway this is a good movie but not super attention-keeping. I tended to daydream during the lame lovey-dovey parts and there wasn't enough action to keep me totally entertained.
But I guess I still give it 3 stars, it was better than Boyz and I was slightly more interested in the characters than I thought I would be. Yay James Dean!!
Another super descriptive summary from IMDb but whatcha gonna do?
This movie I also watched for my Soc class but I liked this one soooo much better. Granted it wasn't a movie I'm dying to see again but compared to Boyz this was actually watchable.
The rebel is James Dean and he moves to a new town because he keeps getting into trouble and his parents think if they take him away from all that then he will improve as a person. But he doesn't because he's James Dean :)
He meets the local cool kids and tries to fit into their gang. A knife fight ensues and is stopped by a local police officer. Because their dispute couldn't be settled the group decides to do a "chickee run" later that night. For those who missed out on the 50s a chickee run is when two guys steal two cars and race them off the cliff. The last one to jump out of their car and not die wins! I can't wait to get a group of people and do this next weekend!!! WHOOOOOO!!! (I'm totally kidding by the way...this is the stupidest way to prove a man has balls)
So there's a complication and the guy that challenged James Dean drives off the cliff and dies, so of course his girlfriend (well now ex-girlfriend) starts to fall in love with Jimmy D and they run off together to an abandoned mansion. There they bump into the local wannabe kid. You know the kid that no one really hangs out with but he's always there just in case they change their mind?
Well he apparently frequents this same mansion and the three of them decide to play house. James and his new arm candy are the parents while Plato (the wannabe kid) is their son.
Later on, the police find the group and Plato gets scared and starts shooting them when he pulls out his gun (for protection of course!). They chase him to the planetarium, this movie has some WEIRD settings, and Jimmy gets him to come out unarmed. The police don't know he's unarmed so when he does come out they shoot him and he dies. Sorry guys, but the lonely underdog doesn't make it :(
Jimmy and his girl go home all sad and the movie ends.
Did I mention that this whole movie takes place in ONE day??? How cool is that?! Just because of some of the choices everyone made people died and there was a huge shootout and all this conflict came out of Jimmy's first day of school?
That just baffles my mind! But anyway this is a good movie but not super attention-keeping. I tended to daydream during the lame lovey-dovey parts and there wasn't enough action to keep me totally entertained.
But I guess I still give it 3 stars, it was better than Boyz and I was slightly more interested in the characters than I thought I would be. Yay James Dean!!
Boyz in the Hood (1991)
Saga of a group of childhood friends growing up in a Los Angeles ghetto.
Yep that's the whole summary courtesy of IMDb. But honestly I think that pretty much covers it. I actually watched this movie a while ago but due to the stress of exams and papers and presentations I haven't had time to actually blog about anything. But now I'm back and trying to catch up on everything I've watched over the past month. Starting with Boyz...
This movie was very true to its genre: drama. Drama was leaking off the screen evertime I watched this movie (which was all of 3 times...I would like to go back and re-claim those six hours of my life please!) and all the characters were classic poor, lower class minorities.
Keeping in mind I didn't watch this movie of my own free will (it was for that Sociology class I keep mentioning) so I wasn't too open to it from the beginning. I don't usually find these types of movies too interesting or thought-provoking so I tend to avoid them.
Boyz was the same until the end. It starts off with the main character, Tre, who moves across town to live in the ghetto with his dad so his mom can go back to school. There he meets Ricky, the kid who is obsessed with football, and Doughboy...Ricky's brother. Doughboy doesn't do much of anything so it's hard to characterize him simply.
Anyway, these crazy kids get into some trouble and end up on the wrong side of a drive by shooting. Someone dies and this hits the whole neighborhood really hard. Everyone is sad and then shortly after the movie ends.
To give you guys a hint, Dough doesn't die...well not immediately. He gives a really nice 'last speech' about the person that did die in the shooting and this was the only part of the movie I really liked. To sum up he said something along the lines of, 'people don't know what's happening here in the ghetto because no one shows it. We are never gonna get any respect or help from anyone because they don't know we're here.'
Powerful, right? Well maybe not my rendition of it but you should find the clip on youtube and watch it. You don't have to understand the rest of the *cough* awful *cough* movie to feel the emotion from this guy. And all this coming from a nobody who wastes his life drinking and having sex? Wow, that's really impressive. Then just when you think he's gonna pick up his life and do something he dies.
Harsh, but predictable. Even so his speech is definitely worth checking out so here's the video, I know the quality is terrible but ignore it...you're welcome :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt9PYuC1RZs
Overall, 2 stars. If this last scene didn't exist then this movie would only be worth 1 star, but that's how much I was affected by it.
Yep that's the whole summary courtesy of IMDb. But honestly I think that pretty much covers it. I actually watched this movie a while ago but due to the stress of exams and papers and presentations I haven't had time to actually blog about anything. But now I'm back and trying to catch up on everything I've watched over the past month. Starting with Boyz...
This movie was very true to its genre: drama. Drama was leaking off the screen evertime I watched this movie (which was all of 3 times...I would like to go back and re-claim those six hours of my life please!) and all the characters were classic poor, lower class minorities.
Keeping in mind I didn't watch this movie of my own free will (it was for that Sociology class I keep mentioning) so I wasn't too open to it from the beginning. I don't usually find these types of movies too interesting or thought-provoking so I tend to avoid them.
Boyz was the same until the end. It starts off with the main character, Tre, who moves across town to live in the ghetto with his dad so his mom can go back to school. There he meets Ricky, the kid who is obsessed with football, and Doughboy...Ricky's brother. Doughboy doesn't do much of anything so it's hard to characterize him simply.
Anyway, these crazy kids get into some trouble and end up on the wrong side of a drive by shooting. Someone dies and this hits the whole neighborhood really hard. Everyone is sad and then shortly after the movie ends.
To give you guys a hint, Dough doesn't die...well not immediately. He gives a really nice 'last speech' about the person that did die in the shooting and this was the only part of the movie I really liked. To sum up he said something along the lines of, 'people don't know what's happening here in the ghetto because no one shows it. We are never gonna get any respect or help from anyone because they don't know we're here.'
Powerful, right? Well maybe not my rendition of it but you should find the clip on youtube and watch it. You don't have to understand the rest of the *cough* awful *cough* movie to feel the emotion from this guy. And all this coming from a nobody who wastes his life drinking and having sex? Wow, that's really impressive. Then just when you think he's gonna pick up his life and do something he dies.
Harsh, but predictable. Even so his speech is definitely worth checking out so here's the video, I know the quality is terrible but ignore it...you're welcome :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt9PYuC1RZs
Overall, 2 stars. If this last scene didn't exist then this movie would only be worth 1 star, but that's how much I was affected by it.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Serenity (2005)
The crew of the ship Serenity tries to evade an assassin sent to recapture one of their number who is telepathic.
Can I just express my gratitude that I watched this way after all the hype? I would have cried if I had to wait 2 years to see the ending of the Firefly series.
The summary for this movie is not exactly descriptive but I think that's mostly because if you wanted to see Serenity then you had already watched Firefly and so you don't need a whole lot to go on. The fact that the ending was turned into a whole movie was just freaking awesome...enough said.
Serenity is the sister film to the tv series Firefly (if you didn't already get that). This movie was action packed and let me just mention they were NOT afraid to kill off characters. Granted it was more towards the end of the movie, but this one was not exactly a happy wrap up.
River, the telepathic one, is being chased by the central government because they fear she knows too much (they experimented on her brain for years). The Firefly crew finds out this knowledge and has to overcome some serious obstacles before saving the world. Of course.
That's it. That's all I'm saying because like every review of this movie has ever said this is a cult classic. You can't just pick this one out of a line up and say, "I'm gonna watch that!"
If you haven't seen Firefly you're not going to watch this and if you have seen Firefly there's no way you'll skip it.
Overall 5 stars. I would give more if I could. It was THAT awesome!
Can I just express my gratitude that I watched this way after all the hype? I would have cried if I had to wait 2 years to see the ending of the Firefly series.
The summary for this movie is not exactly descriptive but I think that's mostly because if you wanted to see Serenity then you had already watched Firefly and so you don't need a whole lot to go on. The fact that the ending was turned into a whole movie was just freaking awesome...enough said.
Serenity is the sister film to the tv series Firefly (if you didn't already get that). This movie was action packed and let me just mention they were NOT afraid to kill off characters. Granted it was more towards the end of the movie, but this one was not exactly a happy wrap up.
River, the telepathic one, is being chased by the central government because they fear she knows too much (they experimented on her brain for years). The Firefly crew finds out this knowledge and has to overcome some serious obstacles before saving the world. Of course.
That's it. That's all I'm saying because like every review of this movie has ever said this is a cult classic. You can't just pick this one out of a line up and say, "I'm gonna watch that!"
If you haven't seen Firefly you're not going to watch this and if you have seen Firefly there's no way you'll skip it.
Overall 5 stars. I would give more if I could. It was THAT awesome!
Firefly (2002-2003)
Five hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.
Everyone said I would like this show. Netflix kept telling me to watch it, messages kept begging me to sit down and get sucked in. Well I finally did watch Firefly and it was actually really really good.
Firefly is one of those recommendations that I would see after I rated pretty much every movie or tv show that I watched. I thought it was just a glitch in the system, but evenutally I gave it a try and wow was I surprised.
The pilot, to be completely honest, was not that engaging. I had no idea what was happening or who the characters were. I knew there was a war going on...and that was about it. This show doesn't actually give you any background until the beginning of episode 2 (which is technically episode 3 because the pilot was 2 hours long. I can't believe I actually watched the whole thing)
But AFTER the pilot everything started getting good. Interesting was flying at your face from every direction. I was excited, scared and freaking out all at the same time.
The premise of the show is this: in the future, Earth gets used up so everyone moves to another galaxy to live. In this galaxy people inhabit new planets and moons, each one looks different because each one has different resources. The Firefly crew (Firefly is the brand of spaceship they travel in) takes smuggling jobs between planets to make their money. Essentially they live off the grid because the central government doesn't like them.
If you can imagine it, this show is a mix between a sci-fi and a western. Kinda trippy, but it actually works.
This show only had one season, but they also made a movie, Serenity, to explain the abrupt ending of the tv series. I can honestly say that if I watched this show while it was aired on tv I would have been yelling at the screen when the 'last' episode finished. There wasn't really a cliffhanger...it was just another episode. There essentially was NO ending!
Thank god the writers had the sense to fix this because the movie gave the series an awesome ending...at least it went out with a bang. Literally :)
Overall 5 stars. If you can get past the pilot this show is awesome. Each character brings their own personality to the table and the show didn't last long enough to screw up. Totally worth watching!!
Everyone said I would like this show. Netflix kept telling me to watch it, messages kept begging me to sit down and get sucked in. Well I finally did watch Firefly and it was actually really really good.
Firefly is one of those recommendations that I would see after I rated pretty much every movie or tv show that I watched. I thought it was just a glitch in the system, but evenutally I gave it a try and wow was I surprised.
The pilot, to be completely honest, was not that engaging. I had no idea what was happening or who the characters were. I knew there was a war going on...and that was about it. This show doesn't actually give you any background until the beginning of episode 2 (which is technically episode 3 because the pilot was 2 hours long. I can't believe I actually watched the whole thing)
But AFTER the pilot everything started getting good. Interesting was flying at your face from every direction. I was excited, scared and freaking out all at the same time.
The premise of the show is this: in the future, Earth gets used up so everyone moves to another galaxy to live. In this galaxy people inhabit new planets and moons, each one looks different because each one has different resources. The Firefly crew (Firefly is the brand of spaceship they travel in) takes smuggling jobs between planets to make their money. Essentially they live off the grid because the central government doesn't like them.
If you can imagine it, this show is a mix between a sci-fi and a western. Kinda trippy, but it actually works.
This show only had one season, but they also made a movie, Serenity, to explain the abrupt ending of the tv series. I can honestly say that if I watched this show while it was aired on tv I would have been yelling at the screen when the 'last' episode finished. There wasn't really a cliffhanger...it was just another episode. There essentially was NO ending!
Thank god the writers had the sense to fix this because the movie gave the series an awesome ending...at least it went out with a bang. Literally :)
Overall 5 stars. If you can get past the pilot this show is awesome. Each character brings their own personality to the table and the show didn't last long enough to screw up. Totally worth watching!!
Roswell (1999-2002)
Living among the citizens of the infamous New Mexico city of Roswell are some who are not there by choice. They are there to follow a destiny given to them by the members of their dying race, a race that they are someday destined to save.
I don't know why I love supernatural tv shows so much but I do. It's clearly an obsession and Roswell is no exception. And it was on the WB which was in my opinion the best tv network of the 90s-2000s.
So Roswell is an ironic teen drama about aliens living in Rosewell, New Mexico...for those of you who don't know, that's where the infamous 'alien crash' took place in the 1940s. The main character Liz Parker is a normal teenager until she gets shot in her parents' diner: The Crashdown Cafe (see the irony? it only gets better...)
As she's on her deathbed a classmate, Max Evans, jumps to the rescue by placing his hand on her wound and healing her. Liz is obviously confused by this and confronts him. He confesses that he (and his friend and sister) are all aliens. Liz takes this surprisingly well, as most female leads in supernatural media tend to. Take for example Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, any other book involving ghosts or demons or vampires...you get the idea.
As the seasons go on, more people are taken into the circle and let in on the secret until finally the whole gang gets confronted by the government and stuff goes down. Big time.
This show is honestly worth watching so I won't spoil the details. Once I start spilling I can't seem to stop so I'll leave this post extremely vague.
But for all the good things I have to say about this show, out of all 3 seasons only season 1 and the series finale were really worth watching. I'll admit the writers set this show up really well because season 1 had all the complicated romance and mystery solving that a supernatural drama should have. The characters don't get too mushy but there is obvious sexual tension. When this gets boring to watch, there's a break in the case and the teens are off chasing something alien related. Everything overall was paced to make an exciting but oddly relatable tv show. Yes the aliens make it slightly harder to relate to, but somehow that's overcome...like I said the writing was brilliant!
Season 2 was just a huge flop. A dud. LAME. I read that the producers wanted the show to appeal to more people, not just love-struck teens, so they turned to a more sci-fi storyline. The love story went out the window as the gang chased down signs from home and tried to fulfill their destinies.
Well I lied. The love story didn't totally get thrown out the window, it was just put on the backburner for a while until they ran out of sci-fi material. Insert predictable love triangle here. Another alien is discovered in season 1 and she falls in love with Max. Liz feels awkward and tries to break up with Max by sleeping with her ex-boyfriend. It works so well that Max gets his new lover pregnant. Oops. Explain that to your 'soul mate' Max!
He tries but Liz can't forgive him...enter season 3. More sci-fi crap here and don't forget the Max/Liz drama. Other relationships have drama, but it's not as annoying. This season also introduced a LOT of new characters that were more irritating that anything else. Suddenly there's a new love between an alien and a human but I think this was just a new spin on the whole 'we have to protect our secret' thing.
Like I mentioned before the government does some stuff and the series ends. For all the pain and suffering through seasons 2 and 3 the finale was pretty satisfying. It ended the way it should have, happy...for the most part.
Overall I give this series 4 stars. Watch it when you have the time, especially the first season. But you've been warned...it's SERIOUSLY ADDICTING!!!
I don't know why I love supernatural tv shows so much but I do. It's clearly an obsession and Roswell is no exception. And it was on the WB which was in my opinion the best tv network of the 90s-2000s.
So Roswell is an ironic teen drama about aliens living in Rosewell, New Mexico...for those of you who don't know, that's where the infamous 'alien crash' took place in the 1940s. The main character Liz Parker is a normal teenager until she gets shot in her parents' diner: The Crashdown Cafe (see the irony? it only gets better...)
As she's on her deathbed a classmate, Max Evans, jumps to the rescue by placing his hand on her wound and healing her. Liz is obviously confused by this and confronts him. He confesses that he (and his friend and sister) are all aliens. Liz takes this surprisingly well, as most female leads in supernatural media tend to. Take for example Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, any other book involving ghosts or demons or vampires...you get the idea.
As the seasons go on, more people are taken into the circle and let in on the secret until finally the whole gang gets confronted by the government and stuff goes down. Big time.
This show is honestly worth watching so I won't spoil the details. Once I start spilling I can't seem to stop so I'll leave this post extremely vague.
But for all the good things I have to say about this show, out of all 3 seasons only season 1 and the series finale were really worth watching. I'll admit the writers set this show up really well because season 1 had all the complicated romance and mystery solving that a supernatural drama should have. The characters don't get too mushy but there is obvious sexual tension. When this gets boring to watch, there's a break in the case and the teens are off chasing something alien related. Everything overall was paced to make an exciting but oddly relatable tv show. Yes the aliens make it slightly harder to relate to, but somehow that's overcome...like I said the writing was brilliant!
Season 2 was just a huge flop. A dud. LAME. I read that the producers wanted the show to appeal to more people, not just love-struck teens, so they turned to a more sci-fi storyline. The love story went out the window as the gang chased down signs from home and tried to fulfill their destinies.
Well I lied. The love story didn't totally get thrown out the window, it was just put on the backburner for a while until they ran out of sci-fi material. Insert predictable love triangle here. Another alien is discovered in season 1 and she falls in love with Max. Liz feels awkward and tries to break up with Max by sleeping with her ex-boyfriend. It works so well that Max gets his new lover pregnant. Oops. Explain that to your 'soul mate' Max!
He tries but Liz can't forgive him...enter season 3. More sci-fi crap here and don't forget the Max/Liz drama. Other relationships have drama, but it's not as annoying. This season also introduced a LOT of new characters that were more irritating that anything else. Suddenly there's a new love between an alien and a human but I think this was just a new spin on the whole 'we have to protect our secret' thing.
Like I mentioned before the government does some stuff and the series ends. For all the pain and suffering through seasons 2 and 3 the finale was pretty satisfying. It ended the way it should have, happy...for the most part.
Overall I give this series 4 stars. Watch it when you have the time, especially the first season. But you've been warned...it's SERIOUSLY ADDICTING!!!
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Wall Street (1987)
A young and impatient stockbroker is willing to do anything to get to the top, including trading on illegal inside information taken through a ruthless and greedy corporate raider who takes the youth under his wing.
So apparently this movie is a classic and was rated pretty high on IMDb and everything, but I just didn't like it. Maybe it was the whole 'finance' theme or the fact that I know absolutely NOTHING when it comes to stocks and stockbrokers and this movie didn't take the time to explain it to me.
Again I watched this movie for a class I'm taking, I don't think I would have ever ever ever watched this on my own time.
The main character is Bud Fox and he's played by Charlie Sheen (I'm not really a big fan of him either so this movie was destined for disaster in my opinion) who wants to be a big time stockbroker in the 80s. His father is all about hard work, but Bud just wants money. Lots and lots of money.
This leads to him meeting with the obnoxiously rich Michael Douglas who plays Gordon Gekko. Although I love the character name (the alliteration, the harsh reptilian vibe, etc.) I didn't love the character. Not to say the acting was bad at all, just I wasn't a huge fan of the script.
Actually the acting was a big part in why I could actually stand to watch this movie. Everyone in this movie really showed off their skills--even Charlie Sheen. It was very refreshing to see him in a serious role for a change...although there was still a heavy emphasis on the sex scenes.
Long story short, Gordon convinces Bud to do some shady things and keeps rewarding him when he does everything without getting caught. Then he gets caught. Some legal stuff occurs but then Gordon also gets caught and it's assumed he's arrested and blah, blah, blah. Bud goes to jail and that's the end of the movie.
For such a simple plot, this movie was forever long. It was 126 minutes which was wayyyy longer than it needed to be. For me the slowest parts were when Bud was actually working with stocks and money management. Like I said earlier, I know nothing about this kind of thing and no one took the time to explain it to me. I understood what Bud was doing was wrong, illegal and generally frowned upon by everyone he works with, but that's about all I got from those scenes. Which I guess in hindsight those scenes were pretty important and not understanding them definitely affected my understanding of and reaction to the movie.
Maybe someone with more interest in 80s finance would find this movie entertaining. But I will never watch this movie again of my own free will. Ever.
2 stars, for the awesome acting.
So apparently this movie is a classic and was rated pretty high on IMDb and everything, but I just didn't like it. Maybe it was the whole 'finance' theme or the fact that I know absolutely NOTHING when it comes to stocks and stockbrokers and this movie didn't take the time to explain it to me.
Again I watched this movie for a class I'm taking, I don't think I would have ever ever ever watched this on my own time.
The main character is Bud Fox and he's played by Charlie Sheen (I'm not really a big fan of him either so this movie was destined for disaster in my opinion) who wants to be a big time stockbroker in the 80s. His father is all about hard work, but Bud just wants money. Lots and lots of money.
This leads to him meeting with the obnoxiously rich Michael Douglas who plays Gordon Gekko. Although I love the character name (the alliteration, the harsh reptilian vibe, etc.) I didn't love the character. Not to say the acting was bad at all, just I wasn't a huge fan of the script.
Actually the acting was a big part in why I could actually stand to watch this movie. Everyone in this movie really showed off their skills--even Charlie Sheen. It was very refreshing to see him in a serious role for a change...although there was still a heavy emphasis on the sex scenes.
Long story short, Gordon convinces Bud to do some shady things and keeps rewarding him when he does everything without getting caught. Then he gets caught. Some legal stuff occurs but then Gordon also gets caught and it's assumed he's arrested and blah, blah, blah. Bud goes to jail and that's the end of the movie.
For such a simple plot, this movie was forever long. It was 126 minutes which was wayyyy longer than it needed to be. For me the slowest parts were when Bud was actually working with stocks and money management. Like I said earlier, I know nothing about this kind of thing and no one took the time to explain it to me. I understood what Bud was doing was wrong, illegal and generally frowned upon by everyone he works with, but that's about all I got from those scenes. Which I guess in hindsight those scenes were pretty important and not understanding them definitely affected my understanding of and reaction to the movie.
Maybe someone with more interest in 80s finance would find this movie entertaining. But I will never watch this movie again of my own free will. Ever.
2 stars, for the awesome acting.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging (2008)
The story centers on a 14-year-old girl who keeps a diary about the ups and downs of being a teenager, including the things she learns about kissing.
This movie is really cute. Granted, if you're not a 14-year-old girl then you have to be in the mood to watch one throw tantrums and have classic family issues.
The main character, Georgia, wants to have her first kiss, her first boyfriend and in short...get a life.
So she and her friend, Jas, see two new 'sex gods' on campus and decide to try to get them to like them. Very teen movie 101.
Their efforts don't go unnoticed and Jas gets one of the gods to ask her out. They start dating and Georgia gets pissed. She tries really hard to win over the other god, but turns out, he already has a girlfriend. I think her name was Lindsey. If it wasn't obvious, this movie was filmed overseas and the entire cast has British accents. For the most part the language wasn't too hard to follow but every once in a while they would use slang and talk so fast it just went right over my head.
But that stuff wasn't crucial to the story or anything so it doesn't really matter.
Anyway, Lindsey is really mean to Georgia, which offends the sex god because he kind of likes Georgia. Georgia tries to make him jealous by making out with a 'ladies man' and the sex god's closest friend. This just makes a mess of everything and no one ends up happy.
Then after some moping, everybody gets what they want. The end.
Now I said this movie was cute, not anything I haven't seen before or anything that I will be re-watching. There was just one HUGE part I didn't understand about the whole thing. Georgia complains that she's ugly, no one will ever like her, she's a loser...etc. Classic girl self-hatred.
Then she kisses one boy and he suddenly falls for her. She doesn't like him and tries to make that clear, but he chases her anyway. Then to make sex god jealous she goes out with his best friend who thought she was into him, but she wasn't so that was awkward. He's upset too and makes sex god upset.
I mean not to undermine this girl or anything (she really is pretty for a 14-year-old and there's generally nothing bad about her) but WHY ARE ALL THESE GUYS CHASING HER???
She just complains about herself all the time (except when she's with sex god) and didn't really do anything except talk to these guys to lead them on.
If I went up to a guy and we started talking and I happened to say you're funny, I don't think he would interpret it as a date. But all these guys did and maybe it's just because they're really young?
And one more thing. Georgia's friend Jas has the biggest mouth ever. Georgia confides in her A LOT and then Jas turns around and tells the people they're talking about everything Georgia said, which just makes everyone more angry. I don't know if Jas means to be so blabber-mouthy but she should really work on what she tells people. Just because she's going out with someone, doesn't mean she has to share everything she talks about with Georgia.
One good thing about Jas is that she's not afraid to tell Georgia's mom the stuff that she should know about Georgia. That was the one good thing that came out of all her blabbing.
Anyway, I think 3 stars is sufficient for this movie. Not bad, not great...but solid good.
This movie is really cute. Granted, if you're not a 14-year-old girl then you have to be in the mood to watch one throw tantrums and have classic family issues.
The main character, Georgia, wants to have her first kiss, her first boyfriend and in short...get a life.
So she and her friend, Jas, see two new 'sex gods' on campus and decide to try to get them to like them. Very teen movie 101.
Their efforts don't go unnoticed and Jas gets one of the gods to ask her out. They start dating and Georgia gets pissed. She tries really hard to win over the other god, but turns out, he already has a girlfriend. I think her name was Lindsey. If it wasn't obvious, this movie was filmed overseas and the entire cast has British accents. For the most part the language wasn't too hard to follow but every once in a while they would use slang and talk so fast it just went right over my head.
But that stuff wasn't crucial to the story or anything so it doesn't really matter.
Anyway, Lindsey is really mean to Georgia, which offends the sex god because he kind of likes Georgia. Georgia tries to make him jealous by making out with a 'ladies man' and the sex god's closest friend. This just makes a mess of everything and no one ends up happy.
Then after some moping, everybody gets what they want. The end.
Now I said this movie was cute, not anything I haven't seen before or anything that I will be re-watching. There was just one HUGE part I didn't understand about the whole thing. Georgia complains that she's ugly, no one will ever like her, she's a loser...etc. Classic girl self-hatred.
Then she kisses one boy and he suddenly falls for her. She doesn't like him and tries to make that clear, but he chases her anyway. Then to make sex god jealous she goes out with his best friend who thought she was into him, but she wasn't so that was awkward. He's upset too and makes sex god upset.
I mean not to undermine this girl or anything (she really is pretty for a 14-year-old and there's generally nothing bad about her) but WHY ARE ALL THESE GUYS CHASING HER???
She just complains about herself all the time (except when she's with sex god) and didn't really do anything except talk to these guys to lead them on.
If I went up to a guy and we started talking and I happened to say you're funny, I don't think he would interpret it as a date. But all these guys did and maybe it's just because they're really young?
And one more thing. Georgia's friend Jas has the biggest mouth ever. Georgia confides in her A LOT and then Jas turns around and tells the people they're talking about everything Georgia said, which just makes everyone more angry. I don't know if Jas means to be so blabber-mouthy but she should really work on what she tells people. Just because she's going out with someone, doesn't mean she has to share everything she talks about with Georgia.
One good thing about Jas is that she's not afraid to tell Georgia's mom the stuff that she should know about Georgia. That was the one good thing that came out of all her blabbing.
Anyway, I think 3 stars is sufficient for this movie. Not bad, not great...but solid good.
Friday, September 7, 2012
LOL (2012)
As a new year at school begins, Lola's heart is broken by her boyfriend, though soon she's surprised by her best friend, promising musician Kyle, who reveals his feelings for her.
This movie was terrible. The plotline was boring, the characters were predictable and the ending was lame. It was an after school special drawn out into a feature film.
Lola (Miley Cyrus) starts off the school year on a bad note. Her boyfriend cheated on her over the summer so they break up. Her male BFF Kyle is starting to seem like something more but they take it slow. Slower than molasses slow. I wasn't sure anything between them was happening until about 45 minutes into the movie.
So they officially couple up, then Kyle cheats on her with some slut in the bathroom. Lola breaks up with him and is miserable for a while. She gets in trouble in school, gets grounded and becomes a frequent party-goer.
Turns out Kyle didn't cheat on Lola, her female BFF has the same bag as the school slut and she was in the bathroom with the school loser (hence her lying about it). Lola tells Kyle it was all a big misunderstanding and they get back together. Just in time for the school trip to Paris.
In Paris, romance ensues and Lola and Kyle hook up. It's also kind of implied that Lola and her female BFF do some 'questionable things'. This is all revealed when Lola's mom finds and reads her diary.
Lola throws a tantrum when her mother admits to the accidental-diary-reading and goes to live with her father for a while (her parents are divorced). Both mother and daughter think about how they have done things wrong and make up. Lola comes to live at home and everything is resolved.
This is just the main story. There are also some side stories about all Lola's friends, but those were unclear so I just stuck to the main plot.
Anyway, this movie was boring as hell. The dialogue was weird and the way the movie was edited didn't make sense to me at all. One scene would be with Lola and her mom. The next scene would be about the math teacher tutoring a student. I got so lost in the weird character details that the main story started to get fuzzy. Maybe if I was a beligerent teen who hated her mother off and on I could relate more to this movie. But because everything seemed so completely random I couldn't really invest myself in any of the characters at all. And if I can't do that, then what's the point of watching the movie in the first place?
I really liked Miley in The Last Song, so this was really disappointing. I guess there's a reason no one ever heard of this movie before it went on DVD...because it was a waste of time and effort from everyone involved. I will never watch this movie again. Ever.
1 star. Because I'm feeling generous.
This movie was terrible. The plotline was boring, the characters were predictable and the ending was lame. It was an after school special drawn out into a feature film.
Lola (Miley Cyrus) starts off the school year on a bad note. Her boyfriend cheated on her over the summer so they break up. Her male BFF Kyle is starting to seem like something more but they take it slow. Slower than molasses slow. I wasn't sure anything between them was happening until about 45 minutes into the movie.
So they officially couple up, then Kyle cheats on her with some slut in the bathroom. Lola breaks up with him and is miserable for a while. She gets in trouble in school, gets grounded and becomes a frequent party-goer.
Turns out Kyle didn't cheat on Lola, her female BFF has the same bag as the school slut and she was in the bathroom with the school loser (hence her lying about it). Lola tells Kyle it was all a big misunderstanding and they get back together. Just in time for the school trip to Paris.
In Paris, romance ensues and Lola and Kyle hook up. It's also kind of implied that Lola and her female BFF do some 'questionable things'. This is all revealed when Lola's mom finds and reads her diary.
Lola throws a tantrum when her mother admits to the accidental-diary-reading and goes to live with her father for a while (her parents are divorced). Both mother and daughter think about how they have done things wrong and make up. Lola comes to live at home and everything is resolved.
This is just the main story. There are also some side stories about all Lola's friends, but those were unclear so I just stuck to the main plot.
Anyway, this movie was boring as hell. The dialogue was weird and the way the movie was edited didn't make sense to me at all. One scene would be with Lola and her mom. The next scene would be about the math teacher tutoring a student. I got so lost in the weird character details that the main story started to get fuzzy. Maybe if I was a beligerent teen who hated her mother off and on I could relate more to this movie. But because everything seemed so completely random I couldn't really invest myself in any of the characters at all. And if I can't do that, then what's the point of watching the movie in the first place?
I really liked Miley in The Last Song, so this was really disappointing. I guess there's a reason no one ever heard of this movie before it went on DVD...because it was a waste of time and effort from everyone involved. I will never watch this movie again. Ever.
1 star. Because I'm feeling generous.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting
Sixteen-year-old Violet has the unusual ability to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. She locates them by the echoes they leave behind...and the imprints they leave on their killers. Violet has never considered her strange ability to be a gift—more like a very disturbing nuisance.
But when a serial killer begins terrorizing her small town, and more and more local girls go missing and later turn up dead, Violet realizes she may be the only person who can stop him. Violet's best friend since childhood, Jay, is reluctantly helping her—and Violet is beginning to realize that what she feels for Jay is much more than just friendship. But even as she and Jay fall in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering the killer and becoming his prey herself.
Wow this book was intense. It was like a really good episode of Bones, except you had to read it. Which was the annoying part.
Violet was a decent main character, she seemed grounded enough (not one of those prissy girls who only wants to fall in love while the world is ending behind her) but when her and Jay did start to 'explore' each other the book started to fall into that PNR trap. That is the only reason this book took me forever to read. I got the e-book, took it everywhere with me, but it still took me over 2 weeks to finish it. Kinda pathetic I know, but the premise kept me coming back for more.
Violet senses dead bodies and happens to come across a serial killer in the process. Said serial killer finds out she's on his trail and chaos ensues.
I'm not going to give details because that was the best part of the book.
But there were also these entries from the serial killer's point of view that I liked. They reminded me of the scenes in Criminal Minds where you see who the killer is and what he's doing while the police are trying to find him. Another point of view that's written well and has a distinct voice is ALWAYS an asset to a story. Especially a murder mystery novel!
Ok, so I'm done raving now, and I'm going to mention the stuff I didn't like so much about The Body Finder.
First, the Jay-Violet love story. We all knew it was gonna happen, the author didn't exactly write a curveball in that department. It starts off with Violet coming back to school from summer vacation seeing her BFF as something more. It develops into her pining over him for what seems like ever, until he kisses her. Then they are happy love birds and the story finally moves on.
Granted the e-book was only around 250 pages, but this sappy love tale lasted for at least 100 of them. Everytime something about the killer was mentioned, Violet and Jay spent the next 30 pages 'doing homework'...if you know what I mean. *winky face*
Second, the idea that since Violet senses imprints of the dead, if she walked around public places long enough, she was bound to bump into the killer. What the hell kind of stupid idea is that?!?!
She's going to randomly walk around to find the guy kidnaping and killing a bunch of girls her age? She was with Jay the whole time, but still two teenagers against an experienced killer isn't much of a match. I don't care how buff Jay thinks he is.
And lastly, I hated the ending. Again, I'm going to cut the details because it was worth reading just to get the point of the book, but still it bothered me. I fully believe that some characters should die. Some books end better that way. They just do.
Overall, 4 stars for effort and a compelling murder case. Cut out the stupid lovesick puppy story and it would have been 5 stars no problem.
But when a serial killer begins terrorizing her small town, and more and more local girls go missing and later turn up dead, Violet realizes she may be the only person who can stop him. Violet's best friend since childhood, Jay, is reluctantly helping her—and Violet is beginning to realize that what she feels for Jay is much more than just friendship. But even as she and Jay fall in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering the killer and becoming his prey herself.
Wow this book was intense. It was like a really good episode of Bones, except you had to read it. Which was the annoying part.
Violet was a decent main character, she seemed grounded enough (not one of those prissy girls who only wants to fall in love while the world is ending behind her) but when her and Jay did start to 'explore' each other the book started to fall into that PNR trap. That is the only reason this book took me forever to read. I got the e-book, took it everywhere with me, but it still took me over 2 weeks to finish it. Kinda pathetic I know, but the premise kept me coming back for more.
Violet senses dead bodies and happens to come across a serial killer in the process. Said serial killer finds out she's on his trail and chaos ensues.
I'm not going to give details because that was the best part of the book.
But there were also these entries from the serial killer's point of view that I liked. They reminded me of the scenes in Criminal Minds where you see who the killer is and what he's doing while the police are trying to find him. Another point of view that's written well and has a distinct voice is ALWAYS an asset to a story. Especially a murder mystery novel!
Ok, so I'm done raving now, and I'm going to mention the stuff I didn't like so much about The Body Finder.
First, the Jay-Violet love story. We all knew it was gonna happen, the author didn't exactly write a curveball in that department. It starts off with Violet coming back to school from summer vacation seeing her BFF as something more. It develops into her pining over him for what seems like ever, until he kisses her. Then they are happy love birds and the story finally moves on.
Granted the e-book was only around 250 pages, but this sappy love tale lasted for at least 100 of them. Everytime something about the killer was mentioned, Violet and Jay spent the next 30 pages 'doing homework'...if you know what I mean. *winky face*
Second, the idea that since Violet senses imprints of the dead, if she walked around public places long enough, she was bound to bump into the killer. What the hell kind of stupid idea is that?!?!
She's going to randomly walk around to find the guy kidnaping and killing a bunch of girls her age? She was with Jay the whole time, but still two teenagers against an experienced killer isn't much of a match. I don't care how buff Jay thinks he is.
And lastly, I hated the ending. Again, I'm going to cut the details because it was worth reading just to get the point of the book, but still it bothered me. I fully believe that some characters should die. Some books end better that way. They just do.
Overall, 4 stars for effort and a compelling murder case. Cut out the stupid lovesick puppy story and it would have been 5 stars no problem.
Monday, September 3, 2012
Joan of Arcadia (2003-2005)
Joan of Arcadia is an American television fantasy/family drama telling the story of teenager Joan Girardi who sees and speaks with God and performs tasks she is given.
This show is awesome. No wonder they cancelled it.
A lot of people have different perspectives about God and this show included that. They had athiests, priests, nuns (and ex-nuns)...and then there's Joan.
Living in Arcadia (haha the play on Joan of Arc) she thinks she's going crazy because God appears to her in different forms of people. There's old lady God, goth kid God, kindergartener God, etc. It's actually really cool.
Each week, God appears and tells Joan to do something. Nothing really hard or out of the blue but ordinary things like: sign up for an advanced class, study for this next history test, or help your mom out with laundry. None of these tasks are too far-fetched, but as the episode goes on Joan gets to see the outcome of her actions. (which again, was super awesome and mind-blowing!)
Because she signed up for an advanced class, she found new friends in serious need of help. Because she studied for a history test, she gave her teacher a reason to believe in himself again and not retire pre-maturely. Because she helped her mom with laundry, she appreciated all her mom does around the house and on top of that still holds down a full time job.
I understand that a lot of people won't even give this show a chance because it involves God. Which is sad and probably why it eventually got cancelled. TV today just doesn't mean anything anymore. There are few shows out there that are strictly about family values and a general person's moral compass.
So at the end of the series Joan finds out that she will be tested in some way and to believe everything that happened over the past two years to be true. And that's it. That's the end.
I'm not sure if the writers knew they were being cancelled or not, but they left a serious gap in the story. Some new guy comes into the weekly plot and everyone likes him except Joan and she doesn't know why. He gives her a weird look and that's about all we get. No explanation of who he is, what he wants or why he came to Arcadia. It was a disappointing ending to a great series.
But overall, your religious views aside, you should totally give this show a chance. Some episodes were better than others (like all tv shows) but most of them give the viewer something to think about.
I totally miss old tv :(
This show is awesome. No wonder they cancelled it.
A lot of people have different perspectives about God and this show included that. They had athiests, priests, nuns (and ex-nuns)...and then there's Joan.
Living in Arcadia (haha the play on Joan of Arc) she thinks she's going crazy because God appears to her in different forms of people. There's old lady God, goth kid God, kindergartener God, etc. It's actually really cool.
Each week, God appears and tells Joan to do something. Nothing really hard or out of the blue but ordinary things like: sign up for an advanced class, study for this next history test, or help your mom out with laundry. None of these tasks are too far-fetched, but as the episode goes on Joan gets to see the outcome of her actions. (which again, was super awesome and mind-blowing!)
Because she signed up for an advanced class, she found new friends in serious need of help. Because she studied for a history test, she gave her teacher a reason to believe in himself again and not retire pre-maturely. Because she helped her mom with laundry, she appreciated all her mom does around the house and on top of that still holds down a full time job.
I understand that a lot of people won't even give this show a chance because it involves God. Which is sad and probably why it eventually got cancelled. TV today just doesn't mean anything anymore. There are few shows out there that are strictly about family values and a general person's moral compass.
So at the end of the series Joan finds out that she will be tested in some way and to believe everything that happened over the past two years to be true. And that's it. That's the end.
I'm not sure if the writers knew they were being cancelled or not, but they left a serious gap in the story. Some new guy comes into the weekly plot and everyone likes him except Joan and she doesn't know why. He gives her a weird look and that's about all we get. No explanation of who he is, what he wants or why he came to Arcadia. It was a disappointing ending to a great series.
But overall, your religious views aside, you should totally give this show a chance. Some episodes were better than others (like all tv shows) but most of them give the viewer something to think about.
I totally miss old tv :(
So This Is Even MORE Awkward.
Since I seriously have a lack of attention span lately, I have been watching tv shows instead of the movies that I thought I would be watching. Forty minutes (or so) is much less of a time committment than at least an hour and a half.
So I will be adding tv show reviews to this blog also. Sometimes one episode at a time, sometimes a whole series at a time, because I really seem to like cancelled tv shows for some reason...
Anyway, in the direction this blog is heading I'll probably end up reviewing nail polish colors by next month. But I'll try to stick to books/movies/tv shows for now. I hope.
So I will be adding tv show reviews to this blog also. Sometimes one episode at a time, sometimes a whole series at a time, because I really seem to like cancelled tv shows for some reason...
Anyway, in the direction this blog is heading I'll probably end up reviewing nail polish colors by next month. But I'll try to stick to books/movies/tv shows for now. I hope.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Chocolat (2000)
A woman and her daughter open a chocolate shop in a small French village that shakes up the rigid morality of the community.
So as 'descriptive' as the summary above is, I understand why it couldn't be much longer. Chocolat is one of the most interesting movies I have seen in a while but it is one of those movies that has so much subtext that you have to keep your brain ON while you watch it.
That being said, this one is not for all movie-goers if you're just looking for a 2 hour distraction from everyday life. But if you feel like using your thinking muscles then it's a pretty good investment.
It opens with Vianne and her daughter Anouk coming to a small town in Frace with SUPER DUPER strict unwritten rules. Everyone goes to church, everyone listens to the mayor, and everyone ignores the general flaws of the townspeople to keep the peace.
Vianne and Anouk don't go to church, Vianne was never married (so Anouk is not exactly welcomed into the town either...), and they open a chocolate shop in the middle of Lent--a time of fasting.
As scandalous rumors spread about the mother and daughter a group of so-called pirates sail into town. They are solely embraced by Vianne and Anouk, but the rest of the town is trying to 'boycott immorality' and ignores them hoping they'll leave of their own accord. The leader of the River Rats (as the mayor calls them) is played by Johnny Depp and he falls in love with Vianne, making them both even more hated by the town.
As tensions mount, the townspeople make some serious judgement calls and the ending is pretty surprising. It wasn't quite a happily ever after...but it was kinda close.
I really liked the idea of this movie, the social prinicples involved and how the townspeople were awakened near the end of the movie were awe inspiring. The filming was captivating, interesting and kept me on the edge of my seat...well it kept me awake in my sociology class so THAT is impressive!
Overall 4 stars. I don't know if I would rush to see it again but I would definitely re-watch it in the future.
So as 'descriptive' as the summary above is, I understand why it couldn't be much longer. Chocolat is one of the most interesting movies I have seen in a while but it is one of those movies that has so much subtext that you have to keep your brain ON while you watch it.
That being said, this one is not for all movie-goers if you're just looking for a 2 hour distraction from everyday life. But if you feel like using your thinking muscles then it's a pretty good investment.
It opens with Vianne and her daughter Anouk coming to a small town in Frace with SUPER DUPER strict unwritten rules. Everyone goes to church, everyone listens to the mayor, and everyone ignores the general flaws of the townspeople to keep the peace.
Vianne and Anouk don't go to church, Vianne was never married (so Anouk is not exactly welcomed into the town either...), and they open a chocolate shop in the middle of Lent--a time of fasting.
As scandalous rumors spread about the mother and daughter a group of so-called pirates sail into town. They are solely embraced by Vianne and Anouk, but the rest of the town is trying to 'boycott immorality' and ignores them hoping they'll leave of their own accord. The leader of the River Rats (as the mayor calls them) is played by Johnny Depp and he falls in love with Vianne, making them both even more hated by the town.
As tensions mount, the townspeople make some serious judgement calls and the ending is pretty surprising. It wasn't quite a happily ever after...but it was kinda close.
I really liked the idea of this movie, the social prinicples involved and how the townspeople were awakened near the end of the movie were awe inspiring. The filming was captivating, interesting and kept me on the edge of my seat...well it kept me awake in my sociology class so THAT is impressive!
Overall 4 stars. I don't know if I would rush to see it again but I would definitely re-watch it in the future.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.
But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.
This book had so much promise, but fell short of every expectation. When I first read the summary this book sounded cool and different, but low and behold, it was just another dystopian love story. *sigh*
Lena's family history is slathered with the love disease "deliria". Her parents were actually in love (which never happens anymore because all couples are paired based on favorite colors, income, etc) and this caused her mother to contract the disease and go crazy once her father died. Her mother killed herself so Lena goes to live with her aunt and cousins, most of which have been cured.
This book is one of the dystopians that assume you know everything about the made-up world. I HATE that. It may be the near future, but still I wish the author would have taken some time for world building. The whole book takes place in Portland, but since I have never been there I can't imagine what it looks like, and the author never takes a second to describe it. Pages are spent on how Lena feels about running, her mom, school, her best friend but never on the setting itself. It was frustrating.
Of course Lena is too eager to be cured so she meets a guy. She falls in love like the summary mentions and they try to escape together into the Wilds (which again, I know nothing about this place because it was never explained to me).
I also noticed that authors of dystopians like to capitalize EVERYTHING. I don't read dystopians too often because of their horribly predictable plots, so it took me a while to notice. I mean, it might be important but that doesn't mean every other word needs to be a proper noun. You could just tell me it was important and I would be satisfied.
Examples from this book:
the Invalids
the Wilds
the Governor
the sympathizers (which ok that's not capitalized, but it was ALWAYS in italics...wtf??)
the Crypts
the Dumpsters (I really hope that's a typo)
And those are just off the top of my head. If it wasn't a library book, then I would have gone through and hilighted all the capital words that don't make any sense. How important could dumpsters be anyway?
So continuing on with the story...Lena and her lover try to escape but kinda fail. Which wasn't that surprising because both of these characters are so self-sacrificing it's ridiculous. I bet Lena would kill herself to prevent her hubby from getting food poisoning or something.
It ends with Lena making a huge self-discovery that the reader made halfway through the book. I can't believe there are more of this series, but then again...*smacks forehead*...people eat up this crap.
This book reminded me of the Uglies series. To anyone that read and liked those, I would recommend this book and possibly the rest of the Delirium series as well. Both plots are surrounded by forbidden love which is so overused at this point. Can't a girl just save the world and be single-and-ready-to-mingle?
I would consider reading the second installment of Lena and her lovesick puppy BF, but only if I was desperate for a quick read. It wasn't interesting or boring, my only motivation to finish was to find out the ending and finish the book. Overall 3 stars.
But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.
This book had so much promise, but fell short of every expectation. When I first read the summary this book sounded cool and different, but low and behold, it was just another dystopian love story. *sigh*
Lena's family history is slathered with the love disease "deliria". Her parents were actually in love (which never happens anymore because all couples are paired based on favorite colors, income, etc) and this caused her mother to contract the disease and go crazy once her father died. Her mother killed herself so Lena goes to live with her aunt and cousins, most of which have been cured.
This book is one of the dystopians that assume you know everything about the made-up world. I HATE that. It may be the near future, but still I wish the author would have taken some time for world building. The whole book takes place in Portland, but since I have never been there I can't imagine what it looks like, and the author never takes a second to describe it. Pages are spent on how Lena feels about running, her mom, school, her best friend but never on the setting itself. It was frustrating.
Of course Lena is too eager to be cured so she meets a guy. She falls in love like the summary mentions and they try to escape together into the Wilds (which again, I know nothing about this place because it was never explained to me).
I also noticed that authors of dystopians like to capitalize EVERYTHING. I don't read dystopians too often because of their horribly predictable plots, so it took me a while to notice. I mean, it might be important but that doesn't mean every other word needs to be a proper noun. You could just tell me it was important and I would be satisfied.
Examples from this book:
the Invalids
the Wilds
the Governor
the sympathizers (which ok that's not capitalized, but it was ALWAYS in italics...wtf??)
the Crypts
the Dumpsters (I really hope that's a typo)
And those are just off the top of my head. If it wasn't a library book, then I would have gone through and hilighted all the capital words that don't make any sense. How important could dumpsters be anyway?
So continuing on with the story...Lena and her lover try to escape but kinda fail. Which wasn't that surprising because both of these characters are so self-sacrificing it's ridiculous. I bet Lena would kill herself to prevent her hubby from getting food poisoning or something.
It ends with Lena making a huge self-discovery that the reader made halfway through the book. I can't believe there are more of this series, but then again...*smacks forehead*...people eat up this crap.
This book reminded me of the Uglies series. To anyone that read and liked those, I would recommend this book and possibly the rest of the Delirium series as well. Both plots are surrounded by forbidden love which is so overused at this point. Can't a girl just save the world and be single-and-ready-to-mingle?
I would consider reading the second installment of Lena and her lovesick puppy BF, but only if I was desperate for a quick read. It wasn't interesting or boring, my only motivation to finish was to find out the ending and finish the book. Overall 3 stars.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins
Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.
Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?
Wow. That's all I got for this one. It was intense, cliched and probably the equivalent of a soap opera in a book series. I liked all of the Hex Hall trilogy, but this one takes the cake.
Sophie is pretty much useless at the start of the book, and can't stop complaining about it. That was ANNOYING AS HELL. The whole 'I miss everyone who maybe died, but I'm not sure if they really did or not' thing was killing me, but since I enjoyed the other books so much I kept going. It was sooooo worth it!
The love triangle was shattered (thank god) and the whole series was tied up in a nice ending...which I did and didn't like. This book had an ounce of realism but the rest was so totally convienient that it turned me off. I was hoping that the ending could be at least somewhat realistic. Sophie happened to have this, or did that or met this person who knew this other guy who helped them out in the end.
The writing was nowhere near 5-star quality, but overlooking that, I could feel Sophie's predicaments and relate to them easily enough. There was no 'Sophie is sad'; the author made you feel sad in a way without directly saying that. Yay!! And on top of that, the world that the Prodigium live in is expanded which was really interesting. There was also a how-demons-came-to-be history lesson in there which I totally enjoyed.
Of course, like any cliche, the bad guys aren't that bad--they're just doing what they think is right. Because daddy told them too. *yawn*
Lastly the main thing that bugged me is listed below, it's a spoiler so ignore it if you haven't yet read this book. This might sound like a negative review overall but that's only because I didn't want to give away the good parts, because I think people should still read this book. It's a good completion to a good series. Every book's got its issues but if those are overlooked you can thoroughly enjoy Spell Bound. 5 stars :)
*****SPOILER*****
Ok, so when Soph and her friends walk into hell. Someone should have died or whatever, because I know she's freaking powerful but the point was to make her go alone. Then they went all scooby-gang on her and friends til the end apparently seemed like a good idea. That is totally going against the whole plot line. I get that the author was trying to make a mushy moment, but in my opinion it failed miserably. The stupid school kids should have been punished for their mistakes, not live through going to hell because they're friends with a demon. LAME...but then it got better ;)
Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?
Wow. That's all I got for this one. It was intense, cliched and probably the equivalent of a soap opera in a book series. I liked all of the Hex Hall trilogy, but this one takes the cake.
Sophie is pretty much useless at the start of the book, and can't stop complaining about it. That was ANNOYING AS HELL. The whole 'I miss everyone who maybe died, but I'm not sure if they really did or not' thing was killing me, but since I enjoyed the other books so much I kept going. It was sooooo worth it!
The love triangle was shattered (thank god) and the whole series was tied up in a nice ending...which I did and didn't like. This book had an ounce of realism but the rest was so totally convienient that it turned me off. I was hoping that the ending could be at least somewhat realistic. Sophie happened to have this, or did that or met this person who knew this other guy who helped them out in the end.
The writing was nowhere near 5-star quality, but overlooking that, I could feel Sophie's predicaments and relate to them easily enough. There was no 'Sophie is sad'; the author made you feel sad in a way without directly saying that. Yay!! And on top of that, the world that the Prodigium live in is expanded which was really interesting. There was also a how-demons-came-to-be history lesson in there which I totally enjoyed.
Of course, like any cliche, the bad guys aren't that bad--they're just doing what they think is right. Because daddy told them too. *yawn*
Lastly the main thing that bugged me is listed below, it's a spoiler so ignore it if you haven't yet read this book. This might sound like a negative review overall but that's only because I didn't want to give away the good parts, because I think people should still read this book. It's a good completion to a good series. Every book's got its issues but if those are overlooked you can thoroughly enjoy Spell Bound. 5 stars :)
*****SPOILER*****
Ok, so when Soph and her friends walk into hell. Someone should have died or whatever, because I know she's freaking powerful but the point was to make her go alone. Then they went all scooby-gang on her and friends til the end apparently seemed like a good idea. That is totally going against the whole plot line. I get that the author was trying to make a mushy moment, but in my opinion it failed miserably. The stupid school kids should have been punished for their mistakes, not live through going to hell because they're friends with a demon. LAME...but then it got better ;)
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.
That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the Earth.
Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.
But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?
So this is the second installment of the Hex Hall trilogy. And it was almost as good as the first. I would have rated it better if not for the obvious love triangle that kept popping up to distract you from the action.
Sophie is in love with Archer, who's supposed to kill her, but is engaged to Cal thanks to an arranged marriage. Of course she wants to call off the engagement with Cal because he says they're just friends and that what she thinks too, but of course it's NEVER like that. Archer is forced to flee back to his group of assassins known as 'the Eye' and leave Sophie wanting for more. This is where he should have been written out as a character because when he comes back everything gets complicated and confusing.
In the meantime, Sophie finds out that people are raising demons to fight the Eye which is frowned upon because they are dangerous killing machines and cannot be controlled easily.
Jenna, the BFF from book 1, pops up every now and again. I think there might be some missed storyline between Jenna and Sophie...they could definitely be a couple (especially with Jenna being gay already). I mean there's gotta be some reason she sticks around. Maybe it's just me but if I was being ignored by my bestie for days at a time I would seriously start re-thinking some things, like WHY WE WERE STILL FRIENDS...unless I wanted something more ;) ya know?
But other than the awkward love triangle/square this book was pretty engaging. I liked the introduction of Sophie's dad and how he played a role in everything. There were definitely some shocking moments with some major characters. Betrayal, backstabbing and mysterious deaths--heavy stuff.
Overall, 4 stars for action. Not 5 stars because of the annoying love triangle, but still worth reading!
That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the Earth.
Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.
But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?
So this is the second installment of the Hex Hall trilogy. And it was almost as good as the first. I would have rated it better if not for the obvious love triangle that kept popping up to distract you from the action.
Sophie is in love with Archer, who's supposed to kill her, but is engaged to Cal thanks to an arranged marriage. Of course she wants to call off the engagement with Cal because he says they're just friends and that what she thinks too, but of course it's NEVER like that. Archer is forced to flee back to his group of assassins known as 'the Eye' and leave Sophie wanting for more. This is where he should have been written out as a character because when he comes back everything gets complicated and confusing.
In the meantime, Sophie finds out that people are raising demons to fight the Eye which is frowned upon because they are dangerous killing machines and cannot be controlled easily.
Jenna, the BFF from book 1, pops up every now and again. I think there might be some missed storyline between Jenna and Sophie...they could definitely be a couple (especially with Jenna being gay already). I mean there's gotta be some reason she sticks around. Maybe it's just me but if I was being ignored by my bestie for days at a time I would seriously start re-thinking some things, like WHY WE WERE STILL FRIENDS...unless I wanted something more ;) ya know?
But other than the awkward love triangle/square this book was pretty engaging. I liked the introduction of Sophie's dad and how he played a role in everything. There were definitely some shocking moments with some major characters. Betrayal, backstabbing and mysterious deaths--heavy stuff.
Overall, 4 stars for action. Not 5 stars because of the annoying love triangle, but still worth reading!
Monday, July 30, 2012
Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.
By the end of her first day among fellow frek-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.
As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.
So I loved this book. LOVED the sarcasm that seeped from the pages and LOVED the fast-paced storyline. The main character was not so much dopey love girl as she was a modern day Nancy Drew (but of course there were some dopey love parts...gotta keep the romantics interested). But what makes this book different from most other PNRs is that there is a bigger picture. The mysterious, sexy boy isn't the whole story (yay!!).
Sure the book had flaws. Half of the characters weren't used to any advantage--they had a couple lines and weren't important anymore. And the setting wasn't described at all. Aside from the weather Georgia was a mystery to me. But I just loved the main character and her narration so much that I could overlook any background flaws.
Sophie is a witch who has lived all over the country, moving from place to place because she keeps using her powers in front of humans. Finally she gets sent to Hex Hall, a school where she has to bide her time until she can be released into the world again.
I've slept on my decision to rave about this book and decided it IS worth the praise. The questions posed had answers and the ending was satisfying--enough to make me think this was a stand-alone book (even though it's not, it's one of a trilogy).
Sophie is similar to Rose from Vampire Academy. They are sassy, confident girls (not quite women...) who don't take no for an answer. This bad-assness is what made me love this book.
I'm trying to stay vague because everyone who has ever heard of this book should read it.
So keepin' it short...READ THIS BOOK! [5 stars for sure :)]
By the end of her first day among fellow frek-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.
As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.
So I loved this book. LOVED the sarcasm that seeped from the pages and LOVED the fast-paced storyline. The main character was not so much dopey love girl as she was a modern day Nancy Drew (but of course there were some dopey love parts...gotta keep the romantics interested). But what makes this book different from most other PNRs is that there is a bigger picture. The mysterious, sexy boy isn't the whole story (yay!!).
Sure the book had flaws. Half of the characters weren't used to any advantage--they had a couple lines and weren't important anymore. And the setting wasn't described at all. Aside from the weather Georgia was a mystery to me. But I just loved the main character and her narration so much that I could overlook any background flaws.
Sophie is a witch who has lived all over the country, moving from place to place because she keeps using her powers in front of humans. Finally she gets sent to Hex Hall, a school where she has to bide her time until she can be released into the world again.
I've slept on my decision to rave about this book and decided it IS worth the praise. The questions posed had answers and the ending was satisfying--enough to make me think this was a stand-alone book (even though it's not, it's one of a trilogy).
Sophie is similar to Rose from Vampire Academy. They are sassy, confident girls (not quite women...) who don't take no for an answer. This bad-assness is what made me love this book.
I'm trying to stay vague because everyone who has ever heard of this book should read it.
So keepin' it short...READ THIS BOOK! [5 stars for sure :)]
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen
Ruby, where is your mother?
Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months she's been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return.
That's how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn't seen in ten years, and Cora's husband, Jamie whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, a private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future; it's a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give?
Best-selling author Sarah Dessen explores the heart of a gutsy, complex girl dealing with unforeseen circumstances and learning to trust again.
So, another Sarah Dessen book. This is the second book I've read by her and I wasn't impressed. The storyline was ok, the characters were ok and even the cover was just ok. Everything in the book portrayed real situations but it felt fake--just like a lifetime movie. You're watching a girl lose everything just to gain even more back in the end, but you could care less. You don't know why you didn't change the channel earlier.
That's how I felt after finishing this book. Lock and Key was just so average, I don't know what everyone else is raving about. I grew to like Ruby and Nate and Cora and Jamie but I'm not sure why. The story was just so long and drawn out that by the time I got to the highpoint in the book I was just reading to finish.
Not to mention the obvious metaphors Ms. Dessen likes to use: Ruby's key necklace, Jamie's UMe site (like facebook), and family. Oh my god did she over-analyze family.
Ruby had to do a school project on what family means to her and those around her. This is obviously a touchy subject because her mom, sister and father all left her at some point in her life, leaving her guarded and untrusting of everything. Through the book she asks people about their views on family which leads her to the realization that she has the best family ever...blah blah etc.
I felt like I was watching a kids show where all the loose ends are tied up all nice and neat. No one is left hanging and I wasn't hungry for more. I might have to take a break from Ms. Dessen for a while and read something thrilling or creepy. But there is one more of her books on my list that got such high ratings so I might give that a try as well.
Lock and Key doesn't give me much to complain about, just that a book should keep you guessing the whole time you're reading it. So far both Dessen books I've read have the same formulaic plot: girl has bad experience but won't talk about it until halfway through the book; girl meets boy who somehow bonds with girl; boy or girl causes some relationship trouble and they separate for a while; they reconcile and the book ends.
I'm hoping this only happens in Lock and Key and Just Listen because otherwise I have no reason to keep reading Dessen books. If they're all the same, why waste my time?
But overall, a solid 3 stars for this book.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Crossed by Ally Condie
Rules Are Different Outside The Society...
Chasing down an uncertain future, Cassia makes her way to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky--taken by the Society to his sure death--only to find that he has escaped into the majestic, but treacherous, canyons. On this wild frontier are glimmers of a different life and the enthralling promise of a rebellion. But even as Cassia sacrifices everything to reunite with Ky, ingenious surprises from Xander may change the game once again.
Narrated from both Cassia's and Ky's point of view, this hotly anticipated sequel to Matched will take them both to the edge of Society, where nothing is as expected and crosses and double crosses make their path more twisted than ever.
I hated this book. The first one was ok, but this was just literary torture. From bad poetry to repetition of the obvious this book lacked everything a dystopian novel should have to keep the reader interested.
I'll start with things I liked so this review doesn't turn into a rant. The cover was pretty, who doesn't like blue? And the backround characters...well just Indie really. She seemed the most real out of all of them but even that was a stretch. I just admired her I'm-leaving-with-or-without-you attitude. She was the only one with survival on the brain, and ultimately the reason the book kept going. She kept them all alive.
Now for the things that I was not a fan of: the plot, the main characters and the poetry.
Plot: There wasn't one and yet it still managed to be slow. It was like the author tried to free-write and figured a story would just appear and she could work with that. Ky and Cassia have to find each other, then the Rising. That's it. They meet some people along the way and read some bad poetry. But essentially no one is chasing them. They keep mentioning how Society is going to find them through tracking devices and such, but no one ever comes. So there's no rush. No reason to keep the story moving. No one told Ms. Condie that a threat isn't a threat if it's not enforced.
Characters: I wasn't a fan of Cassia in the first book, but Xander and Ky were alright. I take it back now...Ky is made into a sissy in this book because Ms. Condie decided to do a double POV. Ky, Cassia, Ky, Cassia--it was too much and they had the same voice anyway so I don't understand the need for the change ups. They love each other, we get it. MOVE ON.
And lastly,
Poetry: I don't like poetry to begin with but I have respect for it. I hesitate to call the crap in this book poetry. People that can express themselves through only metaphors and rhymes would probably love this book because it doesn't go much deeper than that. I would put an example here to illustrate my point but that would mean opening up and re-reading this terrible book. I just can't do it.
I read this book 2 months ago and I was wondering how I forgot to review it...then I remembered how awful it was. I warn all of you who enjoyed Matched...this is not even close to that level of futuristic intrigue. It is a step back into the stone ages. So unless you enjoy reading a dystopian book that could have happened at anytime in REAL history don't pick this up. Seriously...don't.
***SPOILER***
Cassia and Ky find the Rising and they just send Cassia right back into Society!! So essentially this entire book was POINTLESS. They found each other just to be separated again. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!?!
Chasing down an uncertain future, Cassia makes her way to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky--taken by the Society to his sure death--only to find that he has escaped into the majestic, but treacherous, canyons. On this wild frontier are glimmers of a different life and the enthralling promise of a rebellion. But even as Cassia sacrifices everything to reunite with Ky, ingenious surprises from Xander may change the game once again.
Narrated from both Cassia's and Ky's point of view, this hotly anticipated sequel to Matched will take them both to the edge of Society, where nothing is as expected and crosses and double crosses make their path more twisted than ever.
I hated this book. The first one was ok, but this was just literary torture. From bad poetry to repetition of the obvious this book lacked everything a dystopian novel should have to keep the reader interested.
I'll start with things I liked so this review doesn't turn into a rant. The cover was pretty, who doesn't like blue? And the backround characters...well just Indie really. She seemed the most real out of all of them but even that was a stretch. I just admired her I'm-leaving-with-or-without-you attitude. She was the only one with survival on the brain, and ultimately the reason the book kept going. She kept them all alive.
Now for the things that I was not a fan of: the plot, the main characters and the poetry.
Plot: There wasn't one and yet it still managed to be slow. It was like the author tried to free-write and figured a story would just appear and she could work with that. Ky and Cassia have to find each other, then the Rising. That's it. They meet some people along the way and read some bad poetry. But essentially no one is chasing them. They keep mentioning how Society is going to find them through tracking devices and such, but no one ever comes. So there's no rush. No reason to keep the story moving. No one told Ms. Condie that a threat isn't a threat if it's not enforced.
Characters: I wasn't a fan of Cassia in the first book, but Xander and Ky were alright. I take it back now...Ky is made into a sissy in this book because Ms. Condie decided to do a double POV. Ky, Cassia, Ky, Cassia--it was too much and they had the same voice anyway so I don't understand the need for the change ups. They love each other, we get it. MOVE ON.
And lastly,
Poetry: I don't like poetry to begin with but I have respect for it. I hesitate to call the crap in this book poetry. People that can express themselves through only metaphors and rhymes would probably love this book because it doesn't go much deeper than that. I would put an example here to illustrate my point but that would mean opening up and re-reading this terrible book. I just can't do it.
I read this book 2 months ago and I was wondering how I forgot to review it...then I remembered how awful it was. I warn all of you who enjoyed Matched...this is not even close to that level of futuristic intrigue. It is a step back into the stone ages. So unless you enjoy reading a dystopian book that could have happened at anytime in REAL history don't pick this up. Seriously...don't.
***SPOILER***
Cassia and Ky find the Rising and they just send Cassia right back into Society!! So essentially this entire book was POINTLESS. They found each other just to be separated again. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!?!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)