I watched this movie quite a long time ago, but given the opportunity to watch it again, I found it entertaining and engaging.
I did feel the movie was a little low budget, though that did work with the atmosphere and the setting. It was also nice to see something of the main characters and their personalities before they ended up trapped in the elevator.
I thought the movie did a good job of showing the atmosphere in the elevator with the group stuck together. It was easy to identify with the fear and panic experienced by the characters as they were stuck longer and longer in the elevator.
I thought it was good to learn about the different characters as the movie went on. While that was mostly true of those people trapped in the elevator, I especially liked Detective Bowden and I felt he had a lot of depth to him. It was good to see how he cared about the safety of the other characters… even though he had his own issues to deal with.
The lights going out in the elevator was particularly scary; more so because of the visions that were interspersed in that darkness. It was an interesting idea to have them able to hear those on the outside while in the elevator, but not be able to communicate back. However, I did feel that there were ways they could have got messages out… considering at least one of the characters might have some knowledge of signals; and at least a few of them had phones.
Although there were a lot of gruesome scenes in this, I thought the scenes that didn’t show as much worked much better… even if it was fairly obvious what had happened. And I really liked the ending of the movie and the way the stories fit in with the whole theme, even if it was in a similar vein to previous films from the same director.
This is a movie I’ve seen before and enjoyed on each subsequent viewing. I would probably willingly watch it again in the future.
A rare occurrence brings the planets into alignment, causing the seals that separate the universes to break. Lost souls search for home while two hearts that were shattered try to find their missing pieces.
When Alyxandria Duvall meets Micah, sparks fly, and their hearts burst into flames. They welcome their daughter not long after; then Micah goes missing under mysterious circumstances, leaving a path of heartache, death, and destruction in his wake. Still, Fate has more in store for them.
Galactic anomalies are propelling their lives toward their destinies. Light years separate them, but their souls gravitate toward one another. Can love overpower the universe’s boundaries?
Tia Silverthorne Bach has been married to her college sweetheart for twenty years, has three beautiful girls, and adores living in the breathtaking state of Colorado. Her daughters were born in Chicago, San Diego, and Baltimore; and she feels fortunate to have called many places home. She believes in fairy tales and happy endings and is an avid reader and rabid grammar hound.
She is an award-winning, multi-genre author and an Editor for Indie Books Gone Wild. From an early age, she escaped into books and believes they can be the source of healing and strength. If she’s not writing, you can find her on the tennis court, at the movies, reading a good book, or spooning Jif peanut butter right out of the jar.
Eliyana has always recoiled from her own reflection in the mirror. But what
if that were only one Reflection —
one world? What if another world existed
where her blemish could become her strength?
Eliyana is used to the shadows. With a hideous birthmark covering half her
face, she just hopes to graduate high school unscathed. That is, until Joshua
hops a fence and changes her perspective. No one, aside from her mother, has ever treated her as normal. Maybe even beautiful. Because of Joshua, Eliyana finally begins to believe she could be loved.
But one night her mother doesn’t come home, and that’s when everything gets
weird.
Now Joshua is her new, and rather reluctant, legal Guardian. Add a hooded
stalker and a Central Park battle to the mix and you’ve gone from weird to
otherworldly.
Eliyana soon finds herself in a world much larger and more complicated than
she’s ever known. A world enslaved by a powerful and vile man. And
Eliyana holds the answer to defeating him. How can an ordinary girl, a
blemished girl, become a savior when she can’t even save herself?
My Review
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I found this book to be a really engaging read. Even though a lot of young adult books can be a bit hit and miss with me, I thought this book definitely fell in the former category.
El’s character was one I could easily empathise with, though I felt there was a little too much telling rather than showing when it came to her history with characters like Quinn and Joshua. I found her interactions with Ky came across as far more sincere.
I thought that the book started at a good point, but it meant I didn’t really have an opportunity to see the people El knew before she lost her mother.
I did think it was intriguing to see the Reflections, but I would have liked to learn a bit more about the relationships between the worlds. Even by the end of the book, I was left with quite a bit of confusion in regards to how the worlds all fit together.
I would have liked the opportunity to get to know the other characters in the other world. Robyn and Wren were two examples of that. It was implied that the two sisters were different, but the only differences came from how they treated and viewed El. I would have liked to see more of both of them.
It was interesting to learn about the relationship between the Verity and the Void, but I found myself getting a bit lost at times. I did feel a lot of sympathy for Ky… but I would have liked some more background with Jasyn. It was interesting to read some of the diary entries from El’s mother, but they didn’t really provide very much insight into the bad guys.
I did think there were some good elements of foreshadowing in this book and I really liked learning about the different kinds of abilities, although I did think there were some elements of information dumping there.
I would have liked it if this book had been longer and I could have learned more about the background of the worlds and how the characters knew each other. I would read more books by this author in the future, though… and I would like to see more of the characters and the world in future books.
I haven’t read the book this movie is based on, so I can’t really say how true the movie was. At the same time, though, I did find this movie a good one to watch… even though it was one I wouldn’t jump to watch again.
I thought it was interesting to see how Rachel made up stories about the seemingly perfect couple she saw every time she was on the train. Even more so, it was intriguing to learn more about Rachel as the movie went on… and what her own personality and history was like.
It was good to see how the lives of the three women interlocked, but also how each of them had other things going on as well. I found it interesting to see how Megan viewed herself, but I couldn’t have said I liked her as a character. I felt her scenes showed her to be quite selfish and by the end of the movie, I had very little sympathy for her.
I really wasn’t sure what to make of Scott, but I thought Rachel came across as really quite realistic, especially with the way she struggled with her blackouts. I liked Cathy, but I would have liked a bit more detail about their history. There wasn’t really much information about whether Rachel had any family or friends outside of Cathy and her ex-husband.
I didn’t really like Anna for a lot of the movie, but she did start to grow on me towards the end. It was good to see the conflicts and tensions between Anna and Rachel throughout.
There was a lot of tension throughout the movie, but I did feel the Detective didn’t come across as all that good at her job. It was good to see the connections formed and the different tensions that existed not only in the main storyline, but also between the characters.
This film was very intense to watch. I couldn’t have said I enjoyed it, but it kept me on the edge of my seat for the majority of it.
I liked the opportunity to see bits and pieces of some of the crew’s family life and superstitions before they moved to the oil rig. It was interesting to get something of an idea of how the oil rig actually worked… but my knowledge is virtually non-existent, so I have no idea how much of that was true to reality.
It was also interesting to see the way the company cut corners when it came to safety… at least in the movie. Once everything started going wrong, though, it was really difficult to differentiate between the characters… and a lot of the film was spent with me trying to figure out who, of the people I got to know, was doing what.
The atmosphere of this movie was a really intense one and although I didn’t know how true to the reality the movie stayed (with the injuries, for instance), I found myself wincing along with the characters. I felt engaged with the movie from the start… helped by things like seeing Mike with his wife and daughter and Andrea with her car.
A lot of the movie did seem to focus more on setting it up for the explosion. I did find my attention dragging a little at times and I wasn’t sure about the roles everyone had.
It was good to see those on the outside, such as the coastguard and Mike’s family. It was also interesting to see the outside of the oil rig and what the explosion looked like from the different angles.
I’m not sure I’d watch this movie again. It was very intense to watch the first time through, though, and I felt it was portrayed and acted well.
I’ve seen bits and pieces of previous Bridget Jones movies, but I found myself really engaged with this one. Bridget was really easy to empathise with… even though I did find myself cringing at a lot of the things that happened with her.
It was good to see Bridget had chemistry with both Mark and Jack. I could understand how she got caught up with not sure who was the father… and being unwilling to tell either of them the truth. I liked the fact that there was a lot of conflict there; and there were some very amusing scenes with the three of them.
I also liked seeing Bridget’s relationship with the other characters, even though I didn’t recognise all of the connections between them. I did really like her friendship with Miranda… though I wasn’t sure how it had formed. Even so, I found myself laughing outright during one of their first scenes together.
There were some occasions when I felt the time moved very quickly and I thought a bit more could have been shown, even though I understand it would have made the movie a lot longer.
I didn’t really know what to make of Alice. I wasn’t sure if she was ruthless and didn’t care… or if she was just trying to do her job, which meant she had to be ruthless.
I did like seeing Emma Thompson’s cameo and I did find those scenes to be quite amusing. I did feel quite sympathetic towards Bridget from the start and it was good to see how she developed the protective instincts towards her baby.
I also liked seeing Bridget’s relationship with her parents and how supportive her father was… though I didn’t really like her mother much until towards the end of the movie.
I did find this movie entertaining and amusing to watch and I really liked the ending. I do think it’s necessary to know the background before watching this movie, though.
While I didn’t think this movie was quite as funny as I was anticipating… I did still find it really entertaining to watch. It was interesting to see the way the different moms dealt with their lives and having to be part of the organisation, too.
I enjoyed seeing the friendship that formed between Amy, Carla and Kiki… though Carla was definitely not someone I’d feel comfortable around in real life.
I did like seeing Amy’s relationships with her children, but I would have liked to see the same with Carla and Kiki… and potentially even the other moms.
I liked seeing that the three main characters had lives outside of them, even though Carla in particular didn’t seem that concerned with her responsibilities. I did feel a lot of sympathy for Kiki and I really didn’t like her husband.
It was nice to see Jane and Dylan had their own personalities, though I really did think Jane was a bit neurotic. And I really didn’t like Amy’s husband, even if he did make an effort at times. He seemed very much like an overgrown child.
It was nice to see that even the moms who weren’t very nice still seemed to have a lot of depth to them… though I did feel that Vicky was only there to provide comic relief.
I did like seeing Amy and Jessie form a relationship and it was interesting to see how Jane viewed their relationship. I did think the bake sale was really over the top… but at the same time, it made a lot of sense, considering the amount of ingredients people have to be careful about, due to food intolerances.
There were some sweet moments in this movie, in particular towards the end. And although I probably wouldn’t watch this movie again in the near future, I did find it amusing to watch the first time through.
It’s Boston, 1919, and the Cast Iron club is packed. On stage, hemopaths whose “afflicted” blood gives them the ability to create illusions through art captivate their audience. Corinne and Ada have been best friends ever since infamous gangster Johnny Dervish recruited them into his circle. By night they perform for Johnny’s crowds, and by day they con Boston’s elite. When a job goes wrong and Ada is imprisoned, they realize how precarious their position is. After she escapes, two of the Cast Iron’s hires are shot, and Johnny disappears. With the law closing in, Corinne and Ada are forced to hunt for answers, even as betrayal faces them at every turn.
My Review
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I found this book to be quite an entertaining, enjoyable read, even though I felt like I was missing a lot of background and there were times I forgot what the setting was supposed to be, due to too modern language being used at times.
I really liked seeing the friendship between Ada and Corinne. While the very first scene was a bit confusing at first, it quickly made sense and I liked seeing how resourceful the two girls were.
While I did think there was a bit too much in the way of information dumping, I did like learning about Ada’s and Corinne’s pasts and their relationships with their respective families. I also really liked seeing the different kinds of abilities the hemopaths had… and it was difficult to see them mistreated by society. I would, however, have liked to see more of the interactions between Corinne and her family… especially considering there were references made to tensions between her and her brother that weren’t actually shown.
I found Saint an interesting character, but I was disappointed not to see more conflicts generated by his relationship with James, considering the time period they were in. I did find both Madeleine and James to have more depth to them than it first appeared, though, and it was good to see that they really cared about each other, despite the fact their marriage was more one of convenience.
I did like both Charlie and Gabriel as characters, though I didn’t really like the romance between Charlie and Ada, as it wasn’t clear how things started between them or why they were attracted to each other. I felt Gabriel and Corinne were better written when it came to the romance, but even with them, I felt it took over the story quite a bit.
I would have liked to see more detail about the secondary characters, in particular Eva and her husband… and also the politics between the different clubs. This was an interesting world… but one which I felt needed more background shown. Even so, I would like to see more of the characters and world in the future.
When I first saw the trailer for this movie, it made me think of X-Men for children. But I was intrigued by the plot and knew I wanted to see it from the start.
I found Luke a character who was easy to relate to. I liked seeing his relationship with his grandfather and it was interesting to see the actor who played his father in a different, more serious role.
I particularly liked being able to see the different abilities (or peculiarities) the children had, though I would have liked some detail about why they had the particular abilities they did.
I did find Miss. Peregrine an intriguing character, but there were times I felt she came across as a bit fake. I also thought that the whole idea behind the children living in a time loop was a strange one, as it seemed they were kept in a perpetual childhood and it would mean there needed to be a lot more of Miss. Peregrine’s kind, considering the peculiar children would probably keep being born.
While the romances weren’t really irritating to watch, I didn’t really feel like they added a lot to the storyline. I would have liked to see more of a bond grow between Luke and the other children he met… especially since Enoch in particular had a lot of depth to him.
I didn’t really like Luke’s mother that much. I had the feeling she didn’t care about her husband or her son… but to be honest, Luke didn’t seem close to either of his parents.
The Hollows were really creepy, though I found it interesting to learn about their origins and would have liked to see a bit more depth to them.
There was quite a lot of tension in this movie and I found myself on the edge of my seat for quite a bit of it. I felt that a lot of the characters showed strength and although there were some moments of humour, I felt those added to the storyline, rather than drawing away from the serious aspects.
This was definitely a movie I enjoyed watching and I would be interested in watching it again in the future.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I’d probably give this book 3.5 stars out of 5. I was intrigued by the plot of the book… and the very first scene served to draw me into the storyline really well. It was easy to care about what happened to Michael… in particular given the fact he experienced a form of bullying.
It was good to see something of the relationship between Samantha and Michael, though I would have liked to see a bit more of their history together. I felt there was a bit too much in the way of information dumping about their history and the myriad of foster homes Michael had been moved between.
Although the first scene did do a good job of drawing me into the storyline, I actually felt like it didn’t add very much to the storyline. I thought there was a lot of potential that wasn’t really followed through on.
While I did feel there were a few too many point of view characters, I did like seeing Tessa and Michael interact with each other. I felt a lot of sympathy for Tessa’s situation with her father, but there were times I felt his character was a bit of a caricature. Since I was only seeing him from Tessa’s perspective and very rarely from the perspective of other characters, it was hard to see him as having much depth.
It was interesting to see the origins of Michael’s visions and I felt they were really well-written, especially with the very first one. I also found it believable that his attempts to warn people about what was going to happen fell flat.
There was a lot of good tension, but I felt there were too many characters used for POV. There were a few nice elements of foreshadowing, but there were as many areas where backstory was summarised in the narration and I found my attention dragging.
I did like how the book ended and it was good to see how things came together. I would have liked a bit more explanation about Michael’s ability, but I cared about the characters and I would be interested in reading more books by this author in the future.
Ink of Blood 