Movie Review - The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Director: Guy Ritchie
Genre: Action/ Comedy
Runtime: 120 minutes
Year: 2024
Starring: Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfer, Eiza Gonzalez, Cary Elwes, Henry Golding, Babs Olusanmokun, Til Schweiger, Rory Kinnear, Freddie Fox, Hero Fiennes Tiffin
 
Description: The British military recruits a small group of highly skilled soldiers to strike against German forces behind enemy lines during World War II.

Review: Gus March-Phillips is the man commissioned by Winston Churchill to assemble a team that will eventually take part in a dangerous mission off the West African coast. March-Phillips has one demand: his buddy Geoffrey Appleyard must lead the gang of unguided missiles. Small problem: Appleyard has been arrested by the Gestapo and is stuck on the Spanish Island of Palma. But March-Phillips and his team have little trouble taking out an entire battalion.

The first movie that comes to mind when watching “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” is Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglorious Basterds”. It has several similarities, but Guy Ritchie’s action film never reaches the same level. It’s a little more lighthearted and frivolous, but still very entertaining, apt, funny, action-packed, has some fun one-liners, a great movie score and a solid cast. And it has a clever, subtle nod to James Bond. I enjoyed it, but “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” is not the most memorable film. 

 
Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Brick

Director: Rian Johnson
Genre: Crime
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2000
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Lukas Haas, Emile de Ravin, Meagan Good, Nora Zehetner, Noah Fleiss, Mat O’Leary, Noah Segan

Description: A teenage loner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) pushes his way into the underwold of a high school crime ring to investigate the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2024 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 30: A CRIME OR DETECTIVE FILM
 
Review: We meet Brendan, a loner, who just broke up with his girlfriend. He has a feeling she is in trouble. When she goes missing, Brendan decides to investigate himself. Getting himself into a dangerous crime ring and a web of lies.

It’s Rian Johnson’s directorial debut, who we now know for films like “Looper” and “Knives Out”. “Brick” is a low-budget film and it’s cool to see what Johnson managed to do with it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is so good in his role as Brendan and the film has some clever twists.

A really strong crime film, I don’t think known to many.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

Movie Review - Young Woman and the Sea

Director: Joachim Rønning
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 2024
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Stephen Graham, Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Sian Clifford, Christopher Eccleston, Kim Bodnia, Jeanette Hain
 
Description: The story of competitive swimmer Trudy Ederle (Daisly Ridley), who, in 1926, was the first woman to ever swim across the English Channel.

Review: Imagine having to swim the English Channel. But now imagine not wearing a hydrodynamic wetsuit, no energy bars or vitamin drinks, and having to rely on the escort of one dastardly steamer. Kust hours and hours of swimming, without fuss, but with jellyfish. That is exactly the challenge that Trudy Ederle took on in 1926, as the first woman ever to.

We meet young Trudy Ederle, who wants to learn how to swim together with her sister Meg. In the roaring 20s, no such thing was for girls. When the sisters get older, the join an all woman’s swim team. With Meg being the most promising, it’s Trudy with the talent. They both start entering competitions, and Trudy wins every time. Even when Trudy is selected to go the Olympics, her Father is not convinced and feels like this is no place for a woman.

After the Olympics, where the woman’s teams was not so successful, because the never get the chance to properly train, Trudy is about to quit and live the life her father wishes for her. Until she sees a film about Bill Burgess, who swam the English Channel. No woman has ever tried this and it becomes Trudy’s number one goal.

Trudy will stop at nothing and she is determine to swim the English Channel. Proving everyone wrong for telling that a woman will never be fit for such a thing. Daisy Ridley is amazing as Trudy, she is the heart of the film. And she proves she can easily carry one. She is accompanied by Stephen Graham, who has a smaller role then I expected which was a shame. I wanted more screentime for him, I always want more screentime for Graham. He is such an overlooked and underrated actor. I really liked his rol in “Young Woman and the Sea”.

“Young Woman and the Sea” is an inspiring sports film about a champion for women’s rights and recognition. Based on a true story, as amazed as I was for what Trudy Ederle did, you should also watch the film “Nyad” with a similar theme and also a true tale. Even more amazing actually. “Nyad” is probably the stronger film of the two, but I also absolutely loved “Young Woman and the Sea”.

Rating: 4/ 5

Book Review - Number One Fan by Meg Elison

Title: Number One Fan
Author: Meg Elison
Genre: Thriller
Published: 2022
 
Description: On her way to a speaking engagement, bestselling novelist Eli Grey gets into a cab and accepts a drink from the driver, trusting that everything is fine. She wakes up chained in the stranger’s basement. With no close family or friends expecting her to check in, Eli knows she needs to save herself. She soon realizes that her abduction wasn’t random, and though she things she might recognize the captor, she cant figure out what he wants. Her only clues are that he’s very familiar with her books and deeply invested in the fantastical world she creates. What follows is a test of wills as Eli pits herself against a man who believes she owes him everything – and is determined to take it from her.
 
Review: The first thing that came to mind, when reading the synopsis, was “Misery” by Stephen King. In this book, Annie Wilkes, number one fan of author Paul Sheldon, keeps her favorite writer hostage in her house and is obsessed with his work and its main character. In “Number One Fan”, the genders are swapped, but the set-up is similar.
 
Eli Grey is the author of fantasy novels and is kept chained in a basement of a man who is a fan of her work. This captor remains unnamed at first, but we soon learn who he is. But we are still left in the dark about his motives. The story is very different from “Misery” aside from the premise, but it’s clear this book was an inspiration for Meg Elison.
 
The book is pretty disturbing and gruesome, in what the captor does to Eli and the circumstances he lets her live in. The story is told from the third person and that works well. This way we get to know things that the other characters don’t know yet.
 
WARNING!!! THE NEXT PART MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!!!
 
Towards the end, we are in the courtroom. I did not like this part of the book and it ruined my overall experience of the book. I would’ve been more interested in Eli’s state of mind after the fact and how she would be dealing with everything. We get a small glimpse of it, but Elison could have explored this more.
 
“Number One Fan” is a disturbing thriller novel, that is well-written but didn’t quite stick the landing in the end. I found that last part a bit disappointing.
 
Rating: 3/ 5

80s Movie Review - The Elephant Man

Director: David Lynch
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 1980
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Freddie Jones, Hannah Gordon

Description: A Victortian surgeon (Anthony Hopkins) rescues a heavily disfigured man (John Hurt) who is mistreated while scraping a living as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of kindness, intelligence and sophistication.  

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2024 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 29: A FILM THAT’S A CULT CLASSIC
 
Review: While visiting a so-called freak show, surgeon Frederick Treves comes upon the trail of the severely deformed John Merrick. As he gets to know Merrick better, his scientific interest gives way to sympathy.

“The Elephant Man” was produced by none other than comedy icon Mel Brooks. Yet there is little to laugh in this biographical film about the hapless John Merrick. In his own way,  director David Lynch turns Victorian London into a nightmare; a tangle of dark alleys populated by figures all preying on the vulnerable Merrick.

The oppressive atmosphere is enhanced by repeating shots of the old-fashioned machines that launched the industrial revolution. In doing so, Lynch evokes the ideao that there is no room in an industrial process for deviant parts: a sentiment that resonates with the Victorian community. Due to his hideous appearance, Merrick is seen by most as a blemish on society; a defect that does not contribute to the progress of society.

It is understandable that an eccentric filmmaker like Lynch would be drawn to “The Elephant Man”. John Hurt plays Johnn Merrick and this role was a huge ordeal, even for such an experiences actors as Hurt. It took seven hours to apply the make-up and prostetics and another two to remove it. And it looks so realistic. Hurt is unrecognizable and he is excellent. And very well assisted by Anthony Hopkins. In his role as the empathic Frederic Treves he serves as the viewer surrogate. Through Treves, we begin to see John Merrick as a human being rather than a curiosity. When Merrick eventually garners a place in British high society, we share Treves’ sadness at the realization that Merrick will always be defined by his appearance, despite his sophisticated personality.

Filmed in black and white, “The Elephant Man” is an engaging tragedy. With the acting of John Hurt and Anthony Hopkins as highlights and the great direction of Dacid Lynch.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

Movie Review - A Quiet Place: Day One

Director: Michael Sarnoski
Genre: Horror/ Science Fiction/ Drama
Runtime: 99 minutes
Year: 2024
Starring: Lupita Nyong’o, Joseph Quinn, Alex Wolff, Djimon Hounsou
 
Description: A young woman name Sam (Lupita Nyong’o) finds herself trapped in new York City during the early stages of an invasion by alien creatures with ultra-sensitive hearing.

Review: Making a prequel to a successful film like “A Quiet Place’ is probably a curse rather than a blessing. The film not being director by John Krasinski (returned as a writer though), like the other two films, is also not working in its favor. But it worked and it pays off. 

The first two films were unique. The people dealing with the invasion had already adapted to the situation. They learned how to live in a world with these creatures in it, knew what attracts them and how to survive. It had a small town, country setting. In “A Quiet Place Part Two” we got a glimpse on that first day, with the characters we then knew, in that same setting. But in “A Quiet Place: Day One” we see how it started, switching the décor for New York, a place that is loud and alive 24/ 7. An interesting take for this universe to further explore it.

We follow Sam, a young woman dealing with a terminal illness. All she has is her cat Frodo. When she is visiting New York City, all hell breaks loose and creatures start attacking people. Quickly finding out that they can’t see and rely on super sensitive hearing, she tries to make her way through the city.

Lupita Nyong’o plays Sam and really carries this film. She is a cynical character, but manages to put down a remarkable engaging main character, for whom she is especially allowed to pull out all the stops non-verbally. She gets great counterplay from Joseph Quinn, who plays the anxious Eric.

“A Quiet Place: Day One” could easily be viewed without having seen the other two movies, but I would recommend to watch the others first. I highly enjoyed it, was spooked, on the edge of my seat. And loved Lupita Nyong’o, who proves again what a great actress she is. And can we also praise cat Schnitzel, who played Frodo. Constantly panicking where he was, when he wasn’t in frame. “A Quiet Place: Day One” is best views in theaters, just like its predecessors.

Rating: 4/ 5

Book Review - Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

Title: Part of Your World (Part of Your World # 1)
Author: Abby Jimenez
Genre: Romance/ Contemporary
Published: 2022
 
Description: After a wild bet, gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down. The cause: Daniel Grant, a ridiculously hot carpenter who’s ten years younger than her and as casual as they come – the complete opposite of sophisticated city-girl Alexis. And yet their chemistry is undeniable.
 
While her ultra-wealthy parents want her to carry on the family legacy of worl renowed surgeons, Alexis doesn’t need glory or fame. She’s fine with being a “mere” ER doctor. And every minute she spends with Daniel and the tight-knit town where he lives, she’s discovering just what’s really important. Yet letting their relationship become anything more than a short-term fling would mean turning her back on her family and giving up the opportunity to help thousands of people.
 
Bringing Daniel into her world is impossible, and yet she can’t just give up the joy she’s found with him either. With so many differences between them, how can Alexis possibly choose between her world and his?
 
Review: The praise that Abby Jimenez got for “Part of Your World” got me curious enough to check it out. I’m not a contemporary romance reader and was weirdly skeptical about it. But I was so surprised with how much I ended up loving this book. So much, that I really want to read more of her books.
 
I seriously can’t think of anything I didn’t like about “Part of Your World”. We meet Alexis, a successful doctor carrying on a legacy from a long line of talented doctors. She meets small-town carpenter Daniel when her car breaks down and eventually ends up at his house, spending the night together. He is ten years younger and their lives couldn’t be more different. But they can’t deny the chemistry that they have between them. It does not sound like anything new in the rom-com universe. But Jimenez somehow made it so heartfelt.
 
Most characters in contemporary romance stories are a bit superficial. I liked both Alexis and Daniel from the start and they have depth. Alexis has been dealing with a lot of pressure in her life. As coming from a family of successful doctors, who expect a lot from her, she feels constant pressure and a fear of failing. Her brother, who was actually the golden child of the family, has turned his back on the legacy by marrying the woman he loves. But a woman their parents, especially the father, does not approve of. Now all eyes are on Alexis. Her breaking up with long-time boyfriend Neil, doesn’t make it any better. Neil, who is also a successful doctor, is very loved by her parents. They still keep meeting up with him. Even though he cheated on Alexis and he was mentally abusive to her.
 
A man like Daniel is perfect. He lives in a small town, is a hardworking man, always thinking about others, putting himself second at all times. Daniel is kind, handsome and handy. But Alexis could not bring Daniel into her world, because he wouldn’t fit in. Not with her life as a doctor in a big city, but also with her family. Who would disapprove of him instantly, because he doesn’t come from money and hasn’t, in their eyes, accomplished anything noteworthy.
 
Even with Alexis and Daniel being so different, there is something in both characters that you can relate to. You can understand both. You get Daniel, for wanting to give up everything to be with her even though the little town of Wakan is where he belongs. And Alexis, who really thrives when she is with Daniel, but she is also scared of disappointing her parents. Especially since her brother did the same and her parents turned their back on him.
 
“Part of Your World” deals with light themes, but also manages to touch upon some heavier themes like abuse. It’s interwoven in the story and never gets too heavy, but it was beautifully done. This book made me laugh out loud, but also made me cry a couple of times. I’m a happy single, but I know I will never settle for anyone less than a man like Daniel. Thank you Abby Jimenez, for making me love this book so much as a non-romance reader.  
 
Rating: 5/ 5

Book Review - Everyone is Watching by Heather Gudenkauf

Title: Everyone is Watching
Author: Heather Gudenkauf
Genre: Thriller/ Mystery
Published: 2024
 
Description: The Best Friend. The Confidant. The Senator. The Boyfriend. The Executive.
 
Five contestants have been chosen to compete for then million dollars on the game show “One Lucky Winner”. The catch? None of them know what (or who) to expect, and it will be live streamed all over the world. Completely secluded in an estate in Northern California, with strict instructions not to leave the property and zero contact with the outside world, the competitors start to feel a little too isolated.
 
When long-kept secrets begin to rise the surface, the contestants realize this is no longer just a reality show – someone is out for blood. And the game can’t end until the world knows who the contestants really are…
 
Review: “Everyone is Watching” is a psychological thriller following five contestants in a reality game show, live streamed all over the world. The price: 10 million dollars. The contestants have been chosen at random, but that soon turns out not to be true, because some people have links. But who? And why were they chosen? Each one has a secret and they begin to surface as the game progresses.
 
We follow this story through several perspectives and it mostly takes place on the set of “One Lucky Winner’. Cat is the producer of the reality show and is sure it will become a hit. Her assistant Fern helps her out with the production. Fern has been loyal to Cat, even though she can be very mean. But Cat has once saved her from an abusive situation. Fern is one of the perspectives we follow.
 
The show has five contestants. Maire, referred to as The Best Friend, is a single mother dealing with one child that has health issues. She can’t pay for her treatments, so the show is her one way to eventually raise the money to take care of her sick daughter. Camille, known as The Confidant, is a therapist working in L.A. Richard, The Senator, is exactly what his title says, but why is taking part in a reality TV-show? Samuel is known as The Boyfriend. We don’t know much about him at the start. And finally The Executive, aka Ned, who is a successful CEO.
 
I was really interested in the premise, especially because you have no idea why these people were chosen. And at the start, you don’t know what the game really is all about. The games are challenging, both physically and mentally. It’s not always predictable.
 
The characters itself aren’t all that interesting, but their secrets are. And that’s exactly the reason why I couldn’t stop reading. I wanted to know what they were all hiding, who was linked to who and why they were the ones chosen to participate in this reality TV-show. We get flashbacks for these characters, slowly revealing what they are hiding.
 
Okay, the book is not completely credible. It played out a bit too perfect for my taste. But I did like how we were mislead a couple of times. They were not obvious red herrings. I didn’t expect some of the twists and reveals the story had. Definitely didn’t predict the person who eventually went home with the money. But that final chapter, although not a twist, was predictable.
 
Overall, “Everyone is Watching” is a fun read, I enjoyed my time with it. And I would recommend it for those who are interested in a good twisty game show trope.
 
Rating: 4/ 5

10s Movie Review - High Life

Director: Claire Denis
Genre: Drama/ Horror/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 113 minutes
Year: 2018
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, Mia Goth, Andre 3000, Agata Buzek, Lars Eidinger, Claire Tran, Ewan Mitchell, Gloria Obianyo
 
Description: A father (Robert Pattinson) and his daughter struggle to survive in deep space where they live in isolation.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2024 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 28: A FILM FROM THE 2010S
 
Review: Claire Denis’ science fiction film “High Life” is as exciting as a space journey to the nearest black hole. In other words, it sounds more exciting than it actually is and it takes a long time.

Monte and his baby daughter Willows traverse the universe alone. It’s just the two of them. But it hasn’t always been that way. He had fellow passengers and in flashbacks we learn what happened to them and how Willow ended up on the space craft.

Monte was part of a group of criminals who were given the choice between a death sentence and a space experiment. Their mission was to try harness the rotational energy of the nearest black hole for human use. And al sorts of weird experiments are happening on the space ship.

I don’t even know where to begin. The film feels very experimental and not in a good way. It’s weird, in a gross kind of way. And I was so bored. From the synopsis, you expect something completely different. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, either they don’t get fleshed out enough or they are highly unlikeable. I feel like director Claire Denis watched a lot of David Cronenberg films and wanted to do a genre experiment herself. But it didn’t quite work out the same.

Rating: 1,5/ 5

Movie Review - Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F

Director: Mark Molloy
Genre: Action/ Comedy/ Crime
Runtime: 118 minutes
Year: 2024
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Paul Reiser, Kevin Bacon, Judge Reinhold, Taylour Paige, John Aston, Bronson Pinchot
 
Description: Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) returns to Beverly Hills after his daughter’s (Taylour Paige) life is threatened, and works with old pals John Taggert (John Aston) and Billy Rosewood) (Judge Reinhold) to uncover a conspiracy.

Review: It has been thirty years since Eddie Murphy last took on the role of Axel Foley in “Beverly Hills Cop 3”(1994) (secretly my favorite 😉). Netfix is reviving the cop with “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F”.

The film opens the way you’d want it: Axel gets behind the wheel of a snow plow and immediately turns the streets of Detroit upside down, hoping to catch a bunch of thugs. It gets completely out of hand, obviously, and before you know it Axel is back in Beverly Hills to help his daughter Jane, who is being threatened. She is a lawyer and is assisting a client falsely accused of killing a cop.

Martin Brest, Tony Scott and John Landis directed the three previous installment of the franchise and debut director Mark Molloy is taking over. He has looked closely at his predecessors and manages to deliver a more than entertaining film. He takes into account the many fans of the previous films (me), but manages to attract a whole new audience as well. Axel Foley is still the foul-mouthed and rule-breaking Detroit cop turning Beverly Hills upside down. It’s not different this time. And other characters we know from these film are returning as well. All though, I was a bit disappointed there. The screentime Axel has with his buddies Billy and Taggert is very limited. And I missed Eddie Murphy’s signature laugh.

The only new element in this film is the father-daughter relationship. For the most part, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” is not an innovative film. But a fun addition to the series and an entertaining action comedy. Great that “Akwel” is back, we’ve waited long enough.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

20s Movie Review - The Courier

Director: Dominic Cooke
Genre: Drama/ Mystery
Runtime: 112 minutes
Year: 2020
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel Brosnahan, Jessie Buckley

Description: Businessman Greville Wynne (Benedict Cumberbatch) is asked by a Russian source to try help put an and to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2024 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 27: A FILM ABOUT A HISTORICAL EVENT
 
Review: Soviet Colonel Oleg Penkovsky is a true nationalist. But when he sees the plans of party leader Khruschev, he can no longer remain silent. Penkovsky manages to smuggle a message into the American embassy: he wants to defect. In cooperation with the British secret service MI6, a plan is hatched to have a businessman contact his high-raking mole in Moscow. Completely inexperienced, Greville Wynne, is sent on a business mission. And before he knows it, he is smuggling secret information from Penkovsky to London on a regular basis.

The titulat courier Greville Wynne is portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch. Always a solid actor, and no different in “The Courier”. The film itself is also a rock-solid historical drama. The film never really excels, but there is certainly nothing bad about it. In fact, the story is incredibly compelling, and anyone with an interest in the Cold War cannot deny that this is a fine addition to the rich repertoire of spy stories about that era. Especially since Wynne is an amateur.

“The Courier” captivates from beginning to end and you learn something as well. It’s not earth-shattering, but a really good, solid film if you have any interest in this period in history.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

Book Review - Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

Title: Nine Lives
Author: Peter Swanson
Genre: Mystery/ Thriller
Published: 2022
 
Description: Nine strangers receive a list with their names on it in the mail. Nothing else, just a list of names on a single sheet of paper. None of the nine people know or have met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke – until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. First, a well-liked old man is drowned on a beach in the small town of Kennewick, Maine. Then, a father is shot in the back while running through his quiet neighborhood in suburban Massachusetts. A frightening pattern is emergin, but what dow these nine people have in common?
 
FBI agent Jessica Winslow, who is on the list herself, is determined to find out. Could there be some dark secret that binds them all together? Or is this the work of a murderous madman? As the mysterious sender stalks these nine strangers, they find themselves constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering who will be crossed off next…
 
Review: My experience with Peter Swanson’s books has been all over the place. I have loved, liked and hated some of his books. I’m sad to say that “Nine Lives” falls in the last category and it’s my least favorite Peter Swanson so far.
 
Nine people receive a list with 9 names on them, among those names is their own. Alison, who is meeting her married lover. Arthur, a nurse injured in a car accident that killed his husband. Ethan is an aspiring songwriter, Jessica an FBI-agent, Caroline is a professor, Jay an actor, Frank is the owner of a resort in Maine. There is Jack and finally Matthew, the father of three. Why did they receive this list? What do they have in common, because they don’t know each other?
 
Soon, people on the list start dying and FBI agent Jessica Winslow is determined to find out the truth behind these lists.
 
The book sounds interesting. It has “And Then There Were None” vibes, which is also being referred to a couple of times in the book. But I did not like this book.
 
First of all, the POV’s. I like books with multiple POV’s, don’t get me wrong. But the way it’s done in “Nine Lives” is very confusing. There are too many points of view, where it’s difficult to distinguish one character from the other. With that, while each chapter is from a different perspective, the chapters have numbers instead of the name of the character. I would have been much easier to follow if the character’s names were also the chapter’s names.
 
The book felt very repetitive. The first couple of chapters is every person finding the list, reading out the names, asking themselves the same questions. And the list is being repeated so many times.
 
The reveal of who the killer is, wasn’t shocking. Not obvious at all, because at this point everyone in the book could have been that person, but it didn't do anything for me. I found their motive very strange and didn’t really hold together for me. It just didn’t make sense, because there are certain people on or not on the list, that make no sense.
 
There were just too many illogical elements in the plot and I also found it very boring. Peter Swanson has officially become a hit-or-miss author for me. Some books I didn’t have any expectations for turned out amazing and the other way around. This is a book by Swanson I would not recommend.
 
Rating: 1,5/ 5

 

Book Review - My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones

Title: My Heart is a Chainsaw (Indian Like Trilogy # 1)
Author: Stephen Graham Jones
Genre: Horror
Published: 2021
 
Description: You won’t find a more hardcore eighties-slasher-film fan than Jade Daniels. And you won’t find a place less supportive of girls who wear torn T-shirts and too much eyeliner than Proofrock, nestled eight thousand feet up a mountain in Idaho, alongside Indian Lake, home to both Camp Blood – site of a massacre fifty years ago -  and, as of this summer, Terra Nova, a second-home celebrity Camelot being carved out of a national forest.
 
That’s not the only thing that’s getting carved up, though – this Jade knows, is the start of a slasher. But what kind? Who’s wearing the mask? Jade’s got an encyclopedia recall of every horror movie on the shelf, but… will that help her survive? Can she get a final girl trained enough to stop all this from happening. Does she even want to?
 
Isn’t a slasher exactly what her hometown deserves?
 
Review: Jade Daniels is an angry, half-Indian outcast with a violent father and an absent mother. And her town wants to have nothing to do with her. She lives in her own world, a world where her safe space is a little unconventional: horror films, preferably the slasher. And Jade tells the quirky history of Proofrock like it is such a film. But when actual bloodshed starts happening in the waters of Indian Lake, Jade uses her knowledge of the genre to unfold how the plot will develop.
 
Stephen Graham Jones is a fantastic writer, no denying there. It’s very clear he is a horror fan and an avid watcher of the slasher genre. Aside from the story he’s telling with Jade as the main character, we also get some chapters that are called “Slasher 101”, which is basically Jade’s know-how on the slasher film. I especially loved these chapters. As a film fan myself I could appreciate reading about a fellow nerd and the book itself was filled with pop culture references.
 
Jade is not particularly a very likeable person. There is a reason that most people in Proofrock try to avoid her or want nothing to do with her. But somehow Jones managed to write her in such a way that you are on her side. I believe I could have endless conversations with Jade.
 
This book is a very slow burn, the pacing is very slow. And as a slower reader, I hated this. If I wasn’t so much into the thematic of the book, I would have DNF’ed it, for sure. But I still wanted to keep reading, never had the urge to DNF. It’s slow because, at first, I had to adjust to the writing style. And the plot developed really slowly too. One thing I always hate about books is long chapters. That makes a book slow sometimes too. Towards the end, it becomes a bit faster and those final two chapters were so action packed. I really enjoyed the ending.
 
I knew that “My Heart is a Chainsaw” would be somewhere in the middle for me even before starting it. I will continue reading Stephen Graham Jones’ novels, because his writing is so interesting. And I love his love for horror films. But “My Heart is a Chainsaw” didn’t hit me the way it should’ve.
 
Rating: 3/ 5

Movie Review - Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Director: Gil Kenan
Genre: Adventure/ Fantasy, Comedy
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2024
Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, McKenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, William Atherton
 
Description: When the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join to protect their home and save the world from a second ice age.

Review: Inside a mysterious object lurks a dark force that could unleash the ice age on the world once again. It is up to the Ghostbusters to stop this new evil.

“Ghostbusters” (1984) remains a classic that reflects the spirit of its time and has been and always will be one my all-time favorite films. When “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” was announced, I was not excited about it, at all. But it was a pleasant surprise and I actually loved that film. “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” really peaked my interest now. And although it’s a fun time, it’s not as good as its predecessor.
The opening scene, in which the new generation of Ghostbusters hunt a ghost, is immediately the highlight of the film. We see the characters work together, making sarcastic remarks and doing their tasks perfectly.

At the end of “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” it was a fun surprise to *SPOILER* see the old cast members showing up for the finale. Annie Potts, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson and especially Dan Ayrkroyd have a bigger role in this part. Even William Atherton returns for this sequel. Some new characters are introduced, with Kumail Nanjiani being the most prominent one. He was supposed the be the comic relief, but I found him a bit annoying. Patton Oswalt is in it as well and I would have loved to see his character in more scenes.

As for the returning cast, they are given little to do. It’s not as adventurous as you might expect and is trying to evoke nostalgia in the wrong way.

I would probably watch another installment with this cast, because I found “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” entertaining enough. But director Gil Kenan didn’t succeed into making it as amazing as Jason Reitman’s “Ghostbusters: Afterlife”.

Rating: 3/ 5

Book Review - Beach Read by Emily Henry

Title: Beach Read
Author: Emily Henry
Genre: Romace/ Contemporary
Published: 2020
 
Description: Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.
 
They are polar opposites.
 
In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block.
 
Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwood death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book an no-one will fall in love. Really.
 
Review: Let’s just start by saying I’m not a romance reader, I don’t like reading contemporary romance stories, just like I don’t (often) enjoy rom-com movies. I do like the classic love stories or historical romances. So it would be no surprise to you, that I have never read a Emily Henry book before. Since it’s summer, I decided to give “Beach Read” a go, and I didn’t hate it.
 
We meet January Andrews, the writer of romance books, chicklits. She’s had a rough year and she has a terrible writer’s block. January moves into the beach house that her dad left her, maybe to be inspired with a new novel. Next door we have Augustus Everett, also a writer. He writes literary fiction and is also dealing with writer’s block. And Augustus was January’s rival in school. But they decide to use each other’s writing qualities to get out of their slump, by challenging each other to write a book in the other’s preferred genre.
 
It's a fun premise and I also enjoy the enemies-to-lovers trope most in romance stories. Where they start out as enemies, become friends first and then romance happens (not a spoiler, come on, you know this). And both characters were very interesting to get to know. They are well-developed and I rooted for both. Both Augustus and January have an interesting backstory, they have substance. And I also loved the fact that they were both writers, I enjoy reading about authors.
 
The book was just fine for me. It’s a very easy read. But I never really fully believed the romance between January and Augustus. Even though they are both fairly likeable characters, there is never a moment where I thought: yes, they are made for each other.
 
The story is also very predictable, but aren’t most romantic contemporary books? The book didn’t really have any big surprises.
 
It was just a fun, summer read. Accessible, perfect for first-time romance readers and a good book to pick up on your summer holiday. But it never grabbed me.
 
Rating: 3/ 5