Month: February 2019

Movie Review: Capricorn One (1979)

Length: 2Hr 4Min
Rating: PG
About: Three astronauts (James Brolin, Sam Waterston, O.J. Simpson) are about to launch into space on the first mission to Mars. But when a mechanical failure surfaces that would kill the three men, NASA removes them from the Capricorn One capsule. To prevent a public outcry, NASA launches the capsule unmanned and requires the astronauts to film fake mission footage in a studio. However, the plan is compromised when an ambitious journalist (Elliott Gould) discovers the conspiracy.

The Good

Bloody hell, talk about a legacy cast. There’s nothing better than watching an old school film and recognising people you watch. Not only that, they’re 30 years younger. James Brolin, Elliot Gould and ? all bring their a-game to this chilling political conspiracy thriller. I’d have liked to have seen more from ?, as early parts of the film hint at a comedic side I’ve not seen in his most recent roles.

The film has this delightful slow build of a plot which you simply don’t see getting made in Hollywood nowadays. There’s no heavy pattern or formulaic action sequences. Elliot Gould may take top billing when it comes to the credits, but there’s no clear star driving this plot forward.

In an age where movies are catering for an over-stimulated audience, this is a nice change of pace; it’s atmospheric, chilling and emotive. I’m not ashamed to say, I jumped twice at events I wasn’t expecting. Actually, I yelped too at one and screamed at the other.

The Bad

As I said, there’s no star. Unfortunately while it’s a blessing, it’s also the film’s curse. As a result of no one person being followed, the plot feels overly choppy and, at times, hard to follow. It also gave the film an overall uneasy feeling and while I don’t personally like it, I can’t deny that it adds to the whole film.

The Ugly

why was the on-trend colour of the 70s all shades of brown? Literally everything in this film; from costumes to sets was brown. This is such a personal thing but picking a colour palate because it’s in fashion dates a film and it’s a shame because the theme and conspiracy at the heart of this movie has a timeless ‘fake news’ quality about it.

Love Han x

TV Review: Star Trek Discovery (S2 Ep3- Point of Light)

Another strong episode for the show that is finding a wonderful balance between episodes that work as a stand alone but also work towards a larger story. It’s so natural that there’s no need for the dreaded ‘To be continued…’ fans used to fear.

There’s a welcome return of Shazad Latif, Mary Chieffo and Michelle Yeoh for the first of three main plot threads in today’s episode. I do love the Viking and tribal or clan-like homages made while we spend time with the Klingons. It’s not something I would have normally liked, but this had my attention from the start.
I found Ash/Vok’s situation well acted from everyone involved and that brought so much emotion to the surface. I immediately wondered if this was Discovery creating an explanation for the appearance of TOS Klingons. It still might be and, if so, this show just keeps winning me over.
By the end of the episode, I can’t help but feel we’ve seen a back-door pilot of sorts and can’t wait for more news on Yeoh’s upcoming spin-off.

Michael Burnham spends the episode chasing leads as to where Spock may be. Unfortunately, it does seem by the end of the episode she’s further removed from more than just Spock. I am torn as to whether I am happy with how this story is playing out. The questions are starting to rack up and I feel a little Lost! No, I capitalise correctly, because I feel lost in more ways that one. I have this anxiety that the questions will topple long before I get an answer; much in the same way Lost did back in the day.
That said, I had my reservations about the pre- Kirk setting and I was very happy to be proved wrong by the end of series one. I really do hope we get some resolution soon. Or at least someone else sighting the red angel.

Finally, there’s Tilly and her little ghost stowaway. For the love of Roddenberry, it was heart breaking seeing Tilly so vulnerable. From the outburst on the bridge, to her tear ridden reveal to Michael I was feeling her pain. If Mary Wiseman isn’t at least nominated for an Emmy in the next awards season, I will eat my hat. (I don’t have a hat, nor do I understand awards and nominations, but guys she deserves all of them)
I loved that it was Stamet’s she needed and that it wasn’t as clear cut as I’d predicted last week. As always, Rapp is a delight to have on screen and this was no exception. With his help there was a resolution of sorts. It’s definitely not the last we’ll see of May, but at least Tilly is out of harms way.

Final Thoughts

If this show keeps going, this is going to very quickly replace Deep Space Nine as my favourite in the franchise. Something that I never thought I’d see.

Love Han x

Book Review: Song for a Whale by @LynneKelly @PiccadillyPress

Publisher: Piccadilly Press
Pages: 322
Release date: 5th February 2019
About: A stirring and heart-warming tale of a young deaf girl who is determined to make a difference, the perfect read for fans of Wonder.
Iris was born deaf, but she’s never let that define her; after all, it’s the only life she’s ever known. And until recently she wasn’t even very lonely, because her grandparents are both deaf, too. But Grandpa has just died and Grandma’s not the same without him. The only place Iris really feels at home anymore is in her electronics workshop where she loves taking apart antique radios.
Then, during a science lesson about sound waves, Iris finds out about a whale who is unable to communicate with other whales. The lonely whale awakens something in Iris. She’s determined to show him that someone in the world knows he’s there.
Iris works on a foolproof plan to help the whale but she soon realises that that is not enough: Iris wants to find the whale herself.
One stolen credit card, two cruise ship tickets, and the adventure of a lifetime later, Iris and the whale each break through isolation to help one another be truly heard in ways that neither had ever expected.

I don’t think i have ever related to a character so much in all my life. I felt every emotion Iris had along her journey. My heart ached at the beauty of the storytelling and the gratitude that this book exists for those who identify with Iris’ hearing issues. Not only is this book about to go out into the world and allow some people, like myself, to feel represented but it’s a book that will enlighten others on some of the physical and emotional problems faced by those with hearing difficulties.

The theme of isolation resonates with me quite strongly; I was diagnosed with serve hearing loss at the age of 15. However, I was showing signs of hearing loss as young as 6 or 7. My inability to answer people was put down to my dreamer nature with a bit of laziness thrown in.
School was a different matter. I suspect that in an environment where blanking someone was the highest crime. I was considered rude and stuck up. I felt like I spent much of high school in my own little prison cell of silence.
In short, I totally relate to Iris’ frustration and I would have been exactly like her and feeling the kinship with Blue-55. I might not have gone on the adventure she did, but curling up and reading this book I feel like I actually did.

The writing is breath-taking and compliments the heartfelt plot entirely. How ASL is relayed in the book is nothing short of perfection. There’s a distinction made between speech and ASL, and that in itself is wonderful. However, Lynne Kelly goes beyond that and gives some stunning descriptions of the hand movements to some words and phrases.

The plot moves at an engaging pace, intermingling what appear on the outset to be completely unrelated and independent plot threads. It means that you get to know all the characters that surround Iris in all parts of her life. I’d have personally loved to have seen more interaction between Iris and her brother, but it reminded me so much of the relationship I had with my brother and I just wanted to dive right in and stay a little longer.

This book will forever have a place in my heart, it has soothed my soul and I already predict a mid-year reread. Thank you, Lynne Kelly, from the bottom of my heart for allowing people like myself to be seen, heard and most importantly, understood.

Song for a Whale is out on 5th February 2019.

Love Han x

Movie Review: Overboard (2018)

“Can you get me a prettier nurse?”

Length: 1Hr 52
Rating: 12
About: Kate is a single, working-class mother of three who’s hired to clean a luxury yacht that belongs to Leonardo — a selfish, spoiled and wealthy Mexican playboy. After unjustly firing Kate, Leonardo falls off the boat and wakes up with no memory of who he is. To get payback, Kate shows up at the hospital and convinces the confused amnesiac that they’re married. As Leonardo tries to get used to manual labor and his new family, Kate starts to wonder how long she can keep fooling her fake husband.
Netflixhttps://www.netflix.com/title/80216281

The Good

The cast is brilliant. Eugenio Derbez for me was a curious casting choice, but once you see the film he will win you over. His privilege, charm and development of character is on point. Leo’s growing relationship with Kate’s three daughters was sincere, heartfelt and rather cute. A difficult thing to pull off without seeming seedy in the current climate.
Eva Longoria was just delightful in a supporting role as Kate’s best friend. She’s got the sass and the guts to get the plot rolling and I’m almost sorry she wasn’t given the role of Kate; she’d have nailed it.
Of course, that’s not to say Anna Faris was bad. Over the years she’s really come into her own and there are some sincere and emotional scenes that she owns that I don’t think she’d have pulled off a decade ago.

The Bad

It was rather slow and lacking any charm or humour. There were a *few* giggles to be had, but it was with old and tired jokes which means I already know this will not stand up to repeated viewings. The film takes up too much screen time establishing both Leo and Kate’s situations. I’m not sure if the creative team felt that more was needed here due to the gender bending of the premise, but it felt like it was trying too hard to justify Kate’s motivation to bring him into the family home.
It had a hard job, trying to live up to the original movie. It’s a classic Sunday afternoon, waiting for your roast dinner sort of film. Quite a brave film too, having it be a single dad and a yuppie woman. There really isn’t anything that can be added to it, and it is almost like the film knew that too.

The Ugly

No so much the fault of the film, but Netflix and its dodgy formatting. Make sure you go into the film with your subtitles on. It was about an hour in and three scenes in Spanish before I hit the subtitle button. The first scene I thought was meant to be like that as one woman slipped into English a few times. It meant that I was pulled out of the film. Okay, so it’s not like its a complicated plot, but it does show that those scenes don’t add anything either. It also meant that the subtitles had to be on for everything and not just the bits we needed translating. For me, parring down Leo’s family and using that screen time to work on Leo’s relationship with Kate would not have harmed at all.
In fact, I really needed more Leo and Kate. Their chemistry was brilliant and you really could see Kate’s feelings changing, but the falling in love part felt like a LOT of scenes went missing.

Final Thoughts

Overboard is worth a watch, but the most you’ll get out of it is a hankering to watch the original.

Love Han x

Marvelous Movie Reviews: Iron Man (2008)

“Let’s face it, this is not the worst thing you’ve caught me doing.”

Tony Stark

Release: 8 May 2008
Rating: 12
Length: 2Hr 6min
About: A billionaire industrialist and genius inventor, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), is conducting weapons tests overseas, but terrorists kidnap him to force him to build a devastating weapon. Instead, he builds an armored suit and upends his captors. Returning to America, Stark refines the suit and uses it to combat crime and terrorism.

First Thought

I was VERY hungover when I first ever watched this film. I missed a lot as I dipped in and out of sleep. Up until watching it to review the film for this new series, I considered it a rather disjointed mess of a film that I never wanted to see again. It didn’t help that each time I’ve watched it since has been because its been found on TV mid film.
I actually wasn’t looking forward to this watch and I’ve put it off all month.

The Good

  • While my poisoned brain did not appreciate the way this film opened, I loved it this viewing. Being thrown into the action can seem a little disorientating and certainly not something done often in cinema, but it’s a device used in many tv shows to great effect. Here it gives you a snap shot of who Tony Stark is, before finding out how he got himself into the situation.
  • It’s an economically told origin story. When I compare this to others, it would have been easy for the first 40 minutes to be stretched to the full 2 hours, leaving the remainder of the plot to a sequel movie. I’m so glad that didn’t happen.
  • The relationship between Stark and Yinsen is something I slept through the first time, and it’s the strength of the movie. It gives Stark his motivation to become ‘Iron Man’ and change the mission statement of Stark Industries. It’s sincere and emotive; I only wish there was a look back to him at some point. Perhaps there is and I missed it; this rewatch will answer that.
  • What a good bad guy. It’s the one thing I don’t think Marvel gets quite right in subsequent movies. No long-winded explanation as to why, no sob story to make him an anti-hero. Just pure greed. The moment in which Jeff Bridge’s Obadiah renders Stark vulnerable is really chilling and the most sinister scene of the whole franchise.

The Bad

  • It really bugs me that Yinsen lists off all the languages that The Ten Rings speak and the one they don’t, is English. Surly if your main aim is to hold a demographic to ransom, you learn to communicate with them. However, I do like the fact that the film gives us Yinsen to translate and eliminate the need for subtitles.
  • Not sure if it’s because I’m so used to his replacement, but I’m not a fan of Terrence Howard. He doesn’t seem to gel with the rest of the cast and his scenes with RDJnr fall a little flat for me.
  • While the CGI of the suit and its construction is some of the best in the franchise, I found the CGI during the ultimate showdown a little old and ropy.

The Ugly

  • Watching it now, it makes me realise that the franchise started on such a high. It set a tone and standard that I fear I am going to watch slowly degrade as I go through my re-watch.
  • There’s not enough Happy Hogan. I’m sure directing was time consuming and explains Jon Favreau’s presence being reduced to nothing more than a cameo, but I’m certainly looking forward to him having more screen time in later films.

Final Thoughts

I’m glad I gave the film a second chance. I’ve really been missing out with not giving this installment my full attention. Perhaps I would have been Team Stark outright when it came to Civil War had I really, properly, watched Stark’s humbling journey.

Next week in Phase One of the MCU rewatch is 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, which sees Edward Norton taking up the mantel of the Toxic Avenger.

Have a Marvelous week.
Love Han x

Han’s January Wrap Up

Now I’m no longer teaching and am on the road to officially being my father’s carer, I am hoping to up my game with my blog. There’s no goal in terms of followers or awards, I just want to be more organised and help more books to succeed.
One thing I’ve always wanted to do is show my gratitude for the books I receive and reflect on what I’ve achieved over the previous month. Hopefully, this will be the first of many Wrap Up posts in which I share with you my purchases, book post and Net Galley gains before implementing a TBR I hope to stick to.
As always, comment and follow.
Love Han x

The Books I Got

  • Slay on Tour by Kim Curran (Usborne book post)
  • Hotel Flamingo by Alex Milway (Piccadilly Press book post)
  • Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge (Hot Key book post)
  • The Anomaly by Michael Rutger (Zaffre book post)
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Crimes of Grindelwald by J. K. Rowling (Sphere/ Little Brown. Bought)
  • Evermore by Sara Holland (Harper Teen. Bought)
  • DC Icons Batman: Night Walker by Marie Lu (Random House YA. Replacement purchase)
  • Doctor Who: The Good Doctor by Juno Dawson (BBC books. Bought)
  • Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly (Piccadilly Press book post)
  • Monsters in the Mirror by A J Hartly (UCLAN publishing book post)
  • Devoted by Jennifer Mathieu (Hodder Children’s Press. From Wildest Dreams Book Box subscription)
  • Dark Blade by Steve Feasey (Bloomsbury YA book post)
  • Slayer by Keirsten White (Simon & Schuster Children’s UK. Net Galley)
  • Twisted by Steve Cavanagh (Orion Press. Net Galley)
  • The Go-Away Bird by Julia Donaldson (Macmillan Children’s Books. Net Galley)
  • Ever Alice by HJ Ramsay (Red Rogue Press. Net Galley)
  • Aries 181 by Tiana Warner (Rogue Cannon Publishing E-Copy)

The Books I Read

  • Slay on Tour by Kim Curran
  • Hotel Flamingo by Alex Milway
  • Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge
  • Slayer by Kiersten White
  • The Anomaly by Michael Rutger
  • Dr Ninth by Adam Hargreaves
  • Dr Tenth by Adam Hargreaves
  • Dr Eleventh by Adam Hargreaves
  • Dr Twelfth by Adam Hargreaves
  • Enchantee by Gita Trelease
  • Twisted by Steve Cavanagh
  • Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly
  • The Go-Away Bird by Julia Donaldson
  • Ever Alice by H.J Ramsay

So as it stands, I’m 14 books (18%) into my Goodread’s 80 book 2019 reading challenge. It also puts me a staggering 8 books ahead of schedule. I would love to keep this up, but I am also aware that 5 of my books are 5 minute reads.

The Books to Read in February

  • Monsters in the Mirror by A J Hartly
  • Dark Blade by Steve Feasey
  • Aries 181 by Tiana Warner
  • Time Traveller’s Guide to Modern Romance by Madeline J. Reynolds
  • Hunting Evil by Chris Carter
  • Extinction Trials: Rebel by S M Wilson
  • When We Collided by Emery Lord
  • Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
  • The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke
  • Doctor Who: The Good Doctor by Juno Dawson

Happy February geeks x

photo out-take