TV Show Review - The Killing (Season 4)

Season: 4
Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Thriller/ Mystery
Number of episodes: 6
Year: 2014
Starring: Mireille Enos, Joel Kinnaman, Gregg Henry, Tyler Ross, Joan Allen

Description: While covering up a secret, Linden (Mireille Enos) and Holder (Joel Kinnaman) are assigned a new case: a brutal case of a family with ties to a military academy.

Review: Season four begins after the terrible events of the final episode of season three. From then on, Holder and Linden must pull out at all stops to keep their lives as normal as possible. Above all, no suspicion must fall on them, and a small mistake lurks.

WARING! THIS REVIEW MIGHT CONTAIN SPOILERS I YOU HAVEN”T WATCHED THE PREVIOUS SEASON

Linden is struggling with the betrayal and loss of her lover. Consequently, her feelings are double in the face of his death. This very well portrayed by Mireille Enos. Her relationship with Holder is severely strained and a new gruesome case helps for a while.

Holder takes over the lead for a while and it works. He tells Linden what she should and should not so and emphasizes their position. Holder would, in this case, do everything for Linden. But he is also processing events, and as a former addict, that does not come easily to him. Both deal with a hard time at work, but also in their private lives. The new case weighs heavily on their shoulders.

The case they are dealing with is the family Stansbury, who is brutally murdered. Only the son, Kyle, manages to survive. He is a student at a military academy, and this is now his safe haven. The ice-cold head of this military school, Colonel Margaret Rayne, is one Holder and Linden have to deal with. Rayne does everything to keep Kyle safe.

This season only has six episodes, so not a lot of time to develop the same atmosphere and mystery as in the previous seasons. But still the case was interesting enough. It sadly never reaches the same level as the other seasons, but it has a very satisfying ending for Holder and Linden.

90s Movie Review - A Bug's Life

Director: John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton
Genre: Animation/ Family/ Comedy/ Adventure
Runtime: 96 minutes
Year: 1998
Starring: Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, Hayden Panettiere, Phyllis Diller, Richard Kind, David Hyde Pierce, Joe Ranft, Denis Leary, Jonathan Harris, Madeline Kahn, Bonnie Hunt, Michael McShane, John Ratzenberger, Brad Garrett, Roddy McDowall, Edie McClurg, Alex Rocco, David Ossman, David L. Lander

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2023 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 15: A MOVIE SET IN SPRING

Description: A misfit ant, looking for "warriors" to save his colony from greedy grasshoppers, recruits a group of bugs that turn out to be an inept circus troupe.

Review: After Disney Pixar brought us the first fully computer animated film “Toy Story” in 1995, everyone was waiting for the next project. In 1998 they came with “A Bug’s Life”, an animation about the insect world.

“A Bug’s Life” tells the story of an ant colony that is terrorized by a group of grasshoppers. Every year the ants have to give the grasshoppers a large amount of their food in exchange for protection. This year something goes wrong, because of ant Flik. He has to get help, but no one think’s he will succeed.

This clumsy ant, who thinks beyond the ‘ant tradition’, manages to find other insects to help them in their war against the grasshoppers. Flik thinks he is dealing with strong and brave insects, but they are actually a touring group of circus artists.

Like in “Toy Story” the audience is presented a colorful and diverse group of characters, with lots of quirks. The show is stolen by the macho ladybug, a fat caterpillar, a cynical praying mantis and a stick-insect. But also the ant queen. All get wise lessons: believe in yourself. This is brought to us the Pixar way, without any false sentiment.

Although the story is pretty predictable, the style is breathtaking. It has some great action scenes. And the story is filled with visual and textual jokes, that will make children and adults laugh.
“A Bug’s Life” is probably one of the lesser popular Pixar films, but to me a joy to watch and totally worth your time!

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Dark Places

Director: Gilles Paquet-Brenner
Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Mystery
Runtime: 113 minutes
Year: 2015
Starring: Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Chloë Grace Moretz, Christina Hendricks, Corey Stoll, Drea De Matteo, Tye Sheridan

Description: Libby Day (Charlize Theron) was only eight years old when her family was brutally murdered in their rural Kansas farmhouse. Almost thirty years later, she reluctantly agrees to revisit the crime and uncovers the wrenching truths that led up to that tragic night.

Review: In 1985, 8-year-old Libby Day witnesses the murder of her mother and sisters. Her brother Ben is identified as the culprit and disappears behind bars. 30 years later, an amateur investigator convinces Libby to delve once again into the evens of that horrific night.

Charlize Theron plays Libby as an unmotivated loner. This makes it very difficult to feel sympathy for her in the first half of the film. Fortunately, Libby as a character begins to come alive more as she confronts her past.

The film uses flashbacks to portray the perspectives of Libby, her mother and her brother. Because of Tye Sheridan’s strong acting, ben’s flashbacks stand out. The transitions are sometimes too abrupt, so the film often jumps into one timeline quickly.

“Dark Places” is based on the book by Gillian Flynn, whose “Gone Girl” was also adapted for film. That film was more successful, both as a book and as a movie. I believe the storytelling in the Flynn’s book works, but in the movie adaptation it is a bit lost.

I believe that “Gone Girl” was mostly more successful because of the director. David Fincher's "Gone Girl" is extremely stylish and atmospheric. That does not mean “Dark Places” is not an entertaining film, and it’s by no means bad. I enjoyed it, it just felt flat at times.

Rating: 3/ 5

Book Review - The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

Title: The Family Upstairs
Series: The Family Upstairs # 1
Author: Lisa Jewell
 
Description: Soon after her twenty-fifth birthday, Libby Jones returns home from work to find the letter she’s been waiting for her entire life. She rips it open with one driving thought: I am finally going to know who I am.

She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them.

Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.
She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them.
Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.
 
Review: In a large house in London’s Chelsea, a baby lies awake in her crib. Fed and cared for, she waits happily for someone to pick her up. In the kitchen lie three bodies. They have been dead for several days. Who took care of the baby in the meantime? And where has this person gone?
 
Adopted Libby Jones receives a letter: she inherits a luxury mansion in Chelsea. It should have gone to her biological brother and sister, but they never claimed it. Libby, born Serenity Lamb, is the baby that was found 25 years ago. The mysterious deaths were claimed to be part of a suicide pact, but is that the whole truth? Libby wants to know what happened back then and with the help of an investigative journalist she is determined to uncover the truth.
 
The synopsis got me interested, it’s a popular book and author and I was curious if I would agree. And “The Family Upstairs” had many elements I like in a thriller: multiple timelines, different POV’s, a family mystery, someone looking into their past. Unfortunately, I can’t say that I enjoyed this book as much as most people did.
 
Don’t get me wrong: “The Family Upstairs” is a very creative thriller. You’re left in the dark for a very long time. But I wasn’t invested in the characters and found it dull at times. It is mysterious, but it’s not an exciting thriller. I felt no tension and I was not on the edge of my seat. And somehow, parts of the ending felt implausible and unrealistic.
 
I took me a while before I could truly say that I didn’t really enjoy this book, I always find this very difficult when it’s a book that a wide range of people love so much. And by no means is this a bad book, I just didn’t like it. There is a second book, which I’m not interested in. I do want to dive into more Lisa Jewell books, because I enjoyed her writing style.
 
I’m really sad about not liking this book, I really expected I would.
 
Rating: 2/ 5

Movie Review - Murder Mystery 2

Director: Jeremy Garelick
Genre: Comedy/ Adventure/ Mystery/ Action
Runtime: 90 minutes
Year: 2023
Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, Melanie Laurent, Mark Strong
 
Description: Full-time detectives Nick (Adam Sandler) and Audrey (Jennifer Aniston) are struggling to get their private eye agency off the ground. They find themselves at the center of international abduction when their friend is kidnapped at his own wedding.

Review: In “Murder Mystery” (2019) Nick and Audrey accidentally ended up in a murder mystery. In the sequel, “Murder Mystery 2”, they are working as private investigators, but aren’t very successful. When a rich friend invites them to a wedding on his private island, they decide to take some time off to enjoy a vacation. But their friend goes missing, meaning Nick and Audrey have to investigate again.

I really enjoyed the first film. It wasn’t great, but it was funny and surprisingly entertaining. I had a good time watching it and I loved the concept of the murder mystery. A lot is wrong with the second installment. For starters, the mystery itself. The movie is called “Murder Mystery 2”and while there are people being murdered in this movie, the actual mystery is a kidnapping, the murders are just collateral damage and the characters don’t seem to care about these people.

Second, the film isn’t that funny and both Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler act like this is a routine job. The movie feels uninspired. Literally so much can be done with murder mystery in your film title, and then they are using a kidnapping as your main plot. And I love Aniston and Sandler, also as a duo. But this movie is not it. I barely remember any details, and I watched it yesterday. A waste of time, talent and concept.

Rating: 2/ 5

TV Show Review - The Killing (Season 3)

Season: 3

Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Thriller/ Mystery

Number of episodes: 13

Year: 2011

Starring: Mireille Enos, Joel Kinnaman, Elias Koteas, Peter Sarsgaard, Hugh Dillon, Amy Seimetz, Gregg Henry

Description: Detective Holder (Joel Kinnaman) and his new partner (Gregg Henry) investigate the murder of a 16 year-old hooker who was stabbed and had her throat slit. Holder notices a similarity between this death and one that Sarah Linden (Mireille Enos) investigated a few year before. In that case, Ray Seward (Peter Sarsgaard) was convicted of killing his wife and is now on death row awaiting execution.

Review: Season 2 finally solved the case of Rosie Larsen’s murder, time for a new mystery. In the third season, Holder has a new partner and Linden has moved to a quitter place away from her detective job. When Holder is working a case of a young hooker who was murdered, he sees similarities in the way she was killer, to a case Linden worked on years ago. In that case, Ray Seward was convicted of murdering his wife and is now awaiting execution. Holder and Linden get together again to solve the mystery.

This season starts slow, but eventually becomes interesting. I wasn’t as invested in this season as I was in the first two, but again it was intriguing and exciting enough for me to enjoy it. We see a different side of both Holder and Linden and I love their dynamic as a duo, on and off the job.

Peter Sarsgaard has a very important role in this season, as the convict on death row, Ray Seward. What a performance. Very impressive, especially when you learn the truth of his case and the cases Holder and Linden are working on now.

Unlike the case of Rosie Larsen, this case was primarily solved in one season, but that ending will be taken in to the final fourth season. I’m curious how they are going to deal with that.

Book Review - The Appeal by Janice Hallett

Title: The Appeal
Series: -
Author: Janice Hallett
 
Description: The Fairway Players, a local theatre group, is in the midst of rehearsals when tragedy strikes the family of director Martin Hayward and his wife Helen, the play’s star. Their young granddaughter has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and with an experimental treatment costing a tremendous sum, their castmates rally to raise the money to give her a chance at survival. But not everybody is convinced of the experimental treatment’s efficacy—or of the good intentions of those involved. As tension grows within the community, things come to a shocking head at the explosive dress rehearsal. The next day, a dead body is found, and soon, an arrest is made. In the run-up to the trial, two young lawyers sift through the material—emails, messages, letters—with a growing suspicion that the killer may be hiding in plain sight. The evidence is all there, between the lines, waiting to be uncovered.
 
Review: “The Appeal” got my attention, because of its unique concept: a book consisting of e-mail conversation, letters and text messages, where you have to piece the puzzle together of who killed who.
 
We follow a local theater group, The Fairway Players, in the midst of rehearsals when tragedy strikes the family of director Martin Hayward and his wife Helen, the play’s star. Their granddaughter is diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and with an experimental treatment, the theater group is trying to raise a big sum of money to help the Hayward family. The appeal for this treatment is shady and not everyone is convinced. Two young lawyers have to go through e-mails, letters and text messages between these people, to figure out a murder that happened among them.
 
“The Appeal” is the debut novel of Janice Hallett and is stunningly clever. It’s a modern Agatha Christie type story and an ingenious puzzle thriller. You are trying to piece the puzzle together with the two lawyers. It’s not your regular storytelling, because it’s all mixed media, and I’ve come to love this type of storytelling.
 
There is one murder, but at the start of the book you don’t know who died. Fifteen suspects and it could go in every direction. You know exactly as much as the lawyers who are trying to solve the mystery, but more then the people involved in this murder mystery, because of the e-mail conversations. And it was surprisingly easy to read. Even with that many characters in it. But Hallett added a list of characters at the beginning of the book, as a cast list of the play, so you know who is who.  
 
If you don’t manage to guess who the killer is at the end, there is no shame in that. It’s not at all obvious and I don’t think anyone would have guessed it. It’s quite surprising. I think this book would be fun to read together with someone, so you can share theories and details with each other, just like the two lawyers are in the book.
 
If you like to solve puzzles or play detective, “The Appeal” is just the book for you. It’s such a cleverly written murder mystery. I’m curious to read Hallett’s other work and I want to know how her brain works, because a lot of work went into this plot. I really enjoyed every second of reading this book.
 
Rating: 5/ 5