The Fall Guy

Posted by cat2002116 on June 8, 2024
Posted in: Comedy, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I don’t always watch comedy/action movies, but considering I did enjoy Ryan Gosling in the Barbie movie…and I wanted to see a film at the cinema…I decided I’d give this one a try.

I really did enjoy this movie, I have to say. Yes, it did require quite a lot of suspension of disbelief…but I liked the way Colt narrated his life and relationship with Jody at the beginning. It was a fairly cliched start to the movie, to see everything good that was happening in Colt’s life and then see how it all went wrong, but cliches are that because they work. And I have to say that it did work here.

Despite needing to use my suspension of disbelief a lot, I found Colt to be a really likable character, and I truly cared about what happened to him. Unfortunately, I can’t say I really felt the same way about Jody. Her whole speech about the alien and the cowboy and relating their relationship in the movie to her own relationship with Colt felt really cringeworthy…and honestly, I felt like she was being pretty petty and vindictive for a lot of the initial scenes, where she forced Colt to keep going through the same stunt again and again. Plus, didn’t she know that the failed stunt at the beginning had severely injured him and what she kept forcing him through had the potential to make those injuries worse? (For some reason, I have it in my head that he broke his back, but I’m not actually sure that was what happened to him).

Regarding Tom and Gail, I have to say that they both felt very much like caricatures/over the top versions of the famous Hollywood actor and the producer who’d do anything for him. I can’t say that was a bad thing, though. The whole movie didn’t take itself very seriously at all, and that was really obvious when it came to the characters of Tom and Gail.

I will say that, although the movie within the movie was a pretty cliched science fiction romance, I found the clips shown from it intriguing enough that it would be a good film on its own merits. And I really thought that the trailer at the end, with Jason Momoa playing the hero, was a really nice touch. I also especially liked the scene where Jody and Colt have a conversation on the phone and Jody talks about including a splitscreen phone conversation in her movie…and that proceeds to be shown with her and Colt. That was pretty fun too.

All told, this was actually a pretty good movie that didn’t take itself too seriously. If you like comedy/action movies that aren’t too steeped in reality, I would definitely recommend giving this one a try.

The Reappearance of Rachel Price

Posted by cat2002116 on May 27, 2024
Posted in: Books, Mystery, Reviews, Thriller. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

After reading the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, Holly Jackson quickly became one of my favourite authors. So my sister and oldest nibling didn’t need to encourage me too much to buy this book and read it.

I will be honest that I wasn’t really that fond of Bel as a character for a lot of the book. I thought she was kind of mean, especially to Ash. I did like Ash as a character, so I felt a bit protective of him when Bel wasn’t really treating him very well.

From the book’s title, it was obvious that Rachel Price was going to appear after having been missing for so long. Having said that, I appreciated the fact that there was a buildup to her appearing again. By that, I mean Rachel didn’t just show up right at the start of the book. I had the chance to get to know Bel, and Bel’s relationship with her father, before Rachel came back into their lives and turned everything upside down.

While I wasn’t particularly fond of Bel as a character, at least to start with, I did enjoy seeing her relationship with Carter. I felt that was one of the strongest parts of the book, and Carter was a really well-rounded character. I did not like Sherry very much at all, considering that it felt like she was trying to be really controlling over Carter, and I felt like she didn’t really care about her daughter at all. Bel comments about a mother fighting for her daughter much later in the book, and I have to agree with her thoughts about Sherry fighting for Carter.

Throughout most of the book, I was trying to figure out what had happened to Rachel; why she’d disappeared, and why she suddenly returned. I had a mental list of theories that ranged from the extreme and unlikely (Rachel had been dead and dug herself out of her own grave, which was why she looked so bad when Bel initially saw her) to something that might have actually been possible, if it hadn’t been debunked by DNA testing (someone pretending to be Rachel in order to get fame/money). I can safely say that by the end of the book, I hadn’t even considered what had really happened, so Holly Jackson did a really good job of seeding the clues through the book without making it obvious what had really happened.

Outside of all that, I did feel that Bel reacted fairly realistically to having her mother suddenly show up after all those years, and I could easily relate to her need to find out what had really happened and what the truth was.

All in all, I really found this book engaging and easy to read. I had to find out what was going to happen next. If you enjoyed A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, I would definitely recommend reading this book.

Tarot

Posted by cat2002116 on May 27, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews, Supernatural. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I didn’t expect a lot out of this movie when I saw it advertised. It seemed to be a fairly straightforward horror movie, with a group of young people doing something dangerous and foolish. In this instance, dangerous and foolish is taking an unknown set of Tarot cards and using them, plus astrology, to read their fortunes. And the person in the group who has experience with Tarot cards warns them against using another person’s deck…but goes ahead and does the readings anyway. There’s not really much of an explanation of how the reading actually works, and I would have liked to see a bit more detail about how using astrology/star signs worked with the Tarot cards.

Unsurprisingly, after the readings occur, it doesn’t take long before one of the group members dies, right after seeing a 3D version of her central card in the reading. I will say that I thought the physical appearance of the monsters were done really well, with the cards brought to life really well.

The buildup to the actual deaths was done fairly well, although I really would have liked to see a bit more attention paid to the actual readings. After Madeline is killed, the other characters talk about how her death fits the reading that Haley did for her. However, none of them think to consider that her readings would have served as warnings, which was a bit disappointing to see. I guess I can’t really talk about realism in a horror movie, but if I was in that situation, you can bet that I’d be trying to remember everything about my own reading so that I could not only have an idea about what might be coming, but also how to beat it.

I will say that I watched the movie Stay Alive, which pretty much used the same trope that appeared in this movie. A character is cornered by the supernatural threat, but their death isn’t actually shown…and they turn up miraculously alive later on. It was pretty obvious that when a movie shows all character deaths bar one, the one that it doesn’t show is the character who is revealed to still be alive by the end.

On the whole, I can’t really say that there was much that truly stood out to me about this movie. The characters made a poor decision at the beginning that ultimately ended with most of them getting killed. I do think this movie could have been better…which is a shame, considering that the Tarot card monsters had such great appearances. There were a couple of friends who saw the movie as well, though, and one of them really liked the movie, so…obviously, like all art, movies are subjective. If you enjoy horror movies, it’s probably still worth watching.

Dead Boy Detectives

Posted by cat2002116 on May 26, 2024
Posted in: Fantasy, Reviews, Supernatural, Television. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment


Dead Boy Detectives was one of the series that came up while I had the Netflix home screen on. I didn’t realise at that point that it was set in the same universe as The Sandman, but I was definitely intrigued by the initial clip that I saw.

I definitely enjoyed the interactions between Charles and Edwin throughout this series. Right from the start, it was obvious they were close friends; and I particularly enjoyed the whole concept of two dead teenagers solving cases involving spirits and curses and the like.

The first episode was particularly engaging, with Edwin and Charles having taken on a case involving a ghost attached to a gas mask. I thought the episode worked really well as an introduction to the main characters and their abilities. I also got to see Death appear in the same incarnation as The Sandman…which was awesome, because I really like that version of Death.

This episode also worked as a good introduction to Crystal Palace, who quickly becomes an integral part of the Dead Boy Detective Agency. I was a little confused by the ghost of the little girl who claimed to be such good friends with Crystal…but disappeared for the rest of the series. I would have liked a bit more information about who she was and what her connection to Crystal was.

I really liked learning more about Charles’ past, even though it was traumatising and made me sad to learn how he’d ultimately died. I really thought that the interactions between him and Edwin in the past, before he actually died, were really moving and sad.

I loved Ruth Connell’s role as the Night Nurse in this series. She came across as a fairly typical antagonist, but after she was trapped inside the anglerfish, I felt she went through quite a bit of character development. However, I still didn’t like the whole purpose of her job. Effectively, she said that she needed to make sure dead children stayed where they were. Considering Edwin was dragged to Hell (and tortured) on a technicality, I thought that forcing the spirits to stay where they’d been placed was actually pretty cruel. But it meant that their insistence on staying together and not being separated made a lot of sense, given their afterlifes would probably be different.

I thought that the Dandelion Sprites who were possessing/attacking Niko were a pretty nice touch, although given that they were immortal beings, their choice of language was kind of…well, they were definitely foul-mouthed little immortal beings. But they were a lot of fun.

I also really liked Jenny as a character, though I couldn’t help but feel bad for her. She was cleary trying to be a good landlord, but ended up getting pulled into the whole supernatural…and unlike Niko, I really thought that her reaction towards the end of season one, where she finds out everything, was actually pretty realistic. Of course, Niko came across as being more open-minded in general, given her very calm reaction to Crystal telling her about her friends (Charles and Edwin). I did really like that Niko developed the ability to see them, but it did seem like an awful lot of people in the series had that ability.

Okay, so let’s talk about the cats. Anyone who knows me knows that I love cats. They’re pretty much my favourite animals (although dogs are a very close second). I loved that cats played a big part in the series…though I have to admit, I wasn’t that keen on the Cat King as a character at first. He gave off very trickster-like vibes, and I thought he was going to be a more evil character than he actually was. I definitely would have liked to see more interactions between the Cat King and Edwin.

Esther was an interesting antaganist, although she came across a little over the top. I found it a bit hard to take her seriously at times and while there was a bit more of her background explored in the final episode, it wasn’t really enough to make her one of the ‘good’ vilains (i.e., someone I can identify with/understand).

Another crossover character with the Sandman was Despair, who appeared briefly with her sibling, Desire, in the Sandman. I liked being able to see her in Hell…or at least a dimension that allowed her to see into Hell. I was intrigued by her interaction with Edwin, and would like to see a bit more of the two of them interacting with each other in the next season.

All told, I really did enjoy watching this series. I binge-watched it over a weekend and was completely drawn in. I loved Edwin and Charles as characters and I really liked most of the supporting characters. The mystery about Crystal’s missing memories was engaging, and I really liked the fact that her abilities didn’t just mean that the cases were easy to solve. They all still had to work on it…especially with the case involving the groundhog day style murders. That was traumatising to see as a viewer, let alone to actively be there watching it.

If you watched and enjoyed the Sandman, then I think you’ll enjoy watching this. And if you haven’t seen the Sandman, then you don’t really need to have in order to enjoy this series. I highly recommend it!

Godzilla X Kong: The Fallen Empire

Posted by cat2002116 on May 19, 2024
Posted in: Movies, Reviews, Science Fiction. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I’ve seen the previous movies in this franchise, though they were quite a long time ago, so I can’t really say I remember a whole lot about them. However, it was enough that I was familiar with both Godzilla and Kong, even if I didn’t necessarily remember most of the human characters.

The whole concept of Hollow Ear h as an unexplored territory where Kong lives, so that he and Godzilla don’t run afoul of each other, is a really good one. I particularly enjoyed being able to see the contrast of Hollow Earth with the rest of the world above, and I thought the visuals of the movie worked really well. When it came to Hollow Earth especially, I felt like I was actually experiencing it for the first time myself. I definitely felt that the visuals of this movie were really beautiful as well, especially when it came to the untouched-by-humanity (or much of it) Hollow Earth.

I mentioned that it’s been a while since I watched the previous movies in this franchise, so I didn’t really remember much about Jia and Ilene’s relationship. However, I did really like their relationship in this movie…and I especially felt able to connect with Jia as a character, considering she felt like an outsider and that she didn’t really belong. I also related really well with Ilene’s worry about what was going on with Jia.

I really liked both Bernie and Trapper as characters, although Trapper was a bit of an enigma. I did find him a bit hard to take seriously as a person, even though he was clearly very knowledgeable and able to recognise danger. Plus, I loved the scene when he showed up leading a whole flock of warbats to help out.

I really liked the fact that Jia was able to meet more of her people, even though they were living in Hollow Earth. It was nice to see how the Iwi had been able to survive down in Hollow Earth, and I especially enjoyed seeing how their culture and community worked. I would have liked to see a bit more of their telepathich communication, as they seemed to be able to talk with people who weren’t Iwi (Bernie), but it wasn’t exactly made clear how.

I also really liked being able to learn more about the Titans and how Godzilla initially fought and trapped Scar King. It was also great to see Kong find other apes…although I really disliked Suko for attacking Kong to begin with. I also really loved being able to see Mothra, as I truly loved her design in the movie.

On the whole, this movie was a really fun one to watch, and I really liked seeing Kong and Godzilla again. I would have liked to see more of the human characters from the Godzilla movies, but on the whole, I think this is definitely a good addition to the franchise with some great moments in it and nice character interactions.

Abigail

Posted by cat2002116 on May 4, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Yeah, so it goes without saying that I like horror movies…and when I saw this advertised, I was immediately intrigued by the idea. Vampires do tend to be overused in pop culture, but since there was no indication of it being a romance between a vampire and a teenage girl, I figured it would be interesting to watch.

This movie does follow a lot of the same rules as slasher movies, with the introduction of a group of young(ish) people the trailer makes very clear are going to die. I will say that I was a little bit disappointed that the trailer made it clear who the vampire was right from the start. I feel like the movie would have been better if the identity of the vampire had been kept concealed from the viewers.

While I did like Joey as a character and the bond she seemed to form with Abigail (that might have actually been manipulation on Abigail’s part), I was a bit confused about why she seemed able to read people so well, given what was actually revealed about her history and past job.

I do kind of feel like Kathryn Newton brings a very similar energy to each character she portrays. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I really didn’t feel able to connect with Sammy as a character. She just kind of gave off ditzy rich girl vibes, which was disappointing, considering she was supposed to be a really skilled hacker.

This movie definitely didn’t stint on the gore, and it felt very over the top at times, but it wasn’t very hard to suspend my disbelief. It was also good to see the characters discussing how best to kill a vampire based on the legends/stories surrounding vampires. Of course, they probably could have done a much better job other than splitting up the group, which was also fairly typical for slasher movies.

I did think there were a couple of good elements of foreshadowing in this movie, but far too much was given away in the trailer (like Abigail being able to fly, for instance). Plus, I mentioned that I didn’t really care much for Sammy’s character…and sadly, that was true for most of the characters in this movie. Really, they didn’t feel like people with lives outside of the events of the movie, and their connections to Abigail’s father felt kind of forced/shoehorned in.

On the whole, I think this movie could have been improved by holding back a bit more mystery. Really, if you watch the trailer, you know everything that will happen in the movie…or at least the major plot points. But it’s a movie that doesn’t require too much thought, so on that basis, it’s an easy watch. Just don’t expect anything too deep or heavy from this.

The Haunting of Hill House

Posted by cat2002116 on May 4, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Reviews, Television. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment


I watched The Haunting of Bly Manor on Netflix a few years ago, and since The Hauting of Hill House was made by the same people, and had a lot of the same actors, I figured I’d watch this as well…and managed to do so in about two days.

I really liked the shifting between the past and the present, as it gave me a deeper insight into the background of the characters and their family history. It allowed me to understand why Luke had turned to taking heroin, given the trauma he’d gone through as a child. It was very obvious that all of the Crain children were deeply traumatised by what had happened to them in Hill House, though Luke and Nell were clearly the ones most affected by it.

I really did like both Luke and Nell. They were probably my favourite characters in this series, as I found their bond to be portrayed really well. I did now, however, particularly like Steven. Well, I didn’t like him much as an adult, at least. I enjoyed his interactions with his younger siblings when they were all children.

It was good to see the flashbacks between the past and the present. However, I felt that the present day was a little rushed. A very short amount of time passed between them finding out Nell was dead, and returning to the house…at least, that’s what it felt like to me. I did feel that there was a lot that was glossed over by the time they all reached Hill House, so I felt like the finale was somewhat rushed…which was a shame, considering the whole buildup through the series.

I particularly liked the way each of the Crain children had an episode devoted to them, as it enabled me to get to know each of them on a more personal level. I would have liked a bit more exploration of the ‘sensitivity’ that was mentioned by Olivia about her daughters. It seemed like all of the Crain children were sensitive to some extent, given how they reacted when Nell ‘went into the red room’.

Episode six, Two Storms, was a particular emotional rollercoaster. The dual storms, one in the past and one in the present, were both quite harrowing, although in very different ways. And although it was obvious that child Nell would eventually be found, or at least make a reappearance, it was still hard to watch the whole family searching for her. And the ending of the episode, where Nell’s unseen ghost was standing next to her casket, while child Nell’s voice echoes about how none of them could see or hear her, was extremely emotional and haunting.

I really liked seeing Olivia’s gradual descent into madness, as Hill House took its toll on her sanity. I still think she should have been able to resist what was happening, given that she told Theo about her abilities. She seemed to fall prey to what was in the house very quickly, in comparison to the others.

I did find it interesting to learn bits and pieces about the history and previous occupants of the house, and I would have liked to learn a bit more about them. For instance, there’s the spirit of a clock repair man who randomly appears, and it’s not clear just why he’s stuck in the house, as there’s nothing indicating how and when he might have died there.

I found the concept of the red room to be a really intriguing one, especially with the idea of it changing to suit what each member of the Crain family wanted. I was a bit confused about why Shirley and Nell were trying to get into the red room in one of the early episodes, as there was then no further attempt to get inside and it was only mentioned later by Hugh. Once they all had their specific rooms, it seemed like the whole idea of getting into the room was discarded until the plot called for it again (when Hugh said it was the only place the water could be coming from).

The horror parts of this series were actually a bit more subtle, even though the series did have its fair share of cheap jump scares. But I did really appreciate that there was more of an understanding of ‘less is more’ than I usually see in horror movies.

On the whole, I did really enjoy watching this series. I liked the characters, at least for the most part, and I really enjoyed the contrasts between the present and the past. While the series did come to a good ending, I think it would be good to see more of the characters, even if the genre isn’t necessarily a horror or supernatural one.

And Then There Were None

Posted by cat2002116 on April 30, 2024
Posted in: Mystery, Plays, Reviews, Thriller. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

I enjoy a lot of things based on Agatha Christie’s work, to be honest. There’s Poirot, with David Suchet (who is the only Poirot, because he just portrays the character so very well), but there are other films/TV series based on her books that I’ve enjoyed as well.

And Then There Were None was not a book I was familiar with, whether under its original name or one of the changed titles, so I had no real idea what to expect when I was going into the play. I think that was good, as I didn’t go into the play with any expectations of what I was about to see.

I have to say that the monologues at the beginning were a little bit boring. My attention unfortunately did wander a little bit as the characters introduced all of the reasons why they’d gone to Soldier Island…although that might have also been due to other factors, such as not realising the play started half an hour earlier than I’d assumed and trying to quietly eat food after giving myself insulin right before the house lights went down!

Anyway, once the play actually started in earnest, I found it really engaging. There was some mystery surrounding each of the characters as they interacted with each other and it became clear that none of them had actually met their host(s) in person…and then, when the phonograph recording was played, there was a rapid rise of tension. I’d originally thought that maybe all ten of the people had been responsible for the same murder(s), but the recording made it very clear that each person, or ‘soldier’, was responsible for a different crime.

The play felt very much like a slasher movie, with each of the characters being picked off by an unknown assailant in ways that matched the ten little soldier boys rhyme. It was interesting that there seemed to be a vaguely supernatural element to the play, as the spirits of some of the victims seemed to linger, staring at the spot where their body lay, There was also a really bizarre scene towards the end of the play where four of the characters start playing music and dancing. This gave such a different, weird vibe to the play as a whole, and I honestly thought that there was going to be an ending similar to that of Murder on the Orient Express.

On the whole, despite some slightly more weird moments in the play that made me think it was going for a subtly different genre, I did find this play to be engaging and filled with tension, despite the slow start. I’m definitely glad I got the chance to go and see this.

The First Omen

Posted by cat2002116 on April 20, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment


So, about two weeks before watching this movie…I watched Immaculate. And the friend I saw this film with turned round to me and said, ‘It feels like I just watched Immaculate again!’ and…I had to agree with that.

I saw something that mentioned this movie would be the scariest horror movie of 2024, but I have to say that I didn’t see that. During the initial opening scene, I did think this movie would have been better visually in 3D. There was a shot of falling glass in slow motion that looked like it was made purely for a 3D movie.

I did find it quite hard to connect with Margaret as a character in this movie. She didn’t really seem to want to be in Rome, but even though she looked like she didn’t really want to be there (based on her expressions after meeting Cardinal Lawrence), I couldn’t really figure out what she did want to do. There were hints that she’d had a bad childhood, which didn’t make much sense with what was revealed later, but I felt like she only had that to give her a reason to connect to Carlita.

Speaking of Carlita, I found her to be an interesting character, but I felt that her original appearance was at odds with how she acted later on. I thought she wasn’t able to speak when she initially appeared, but later on, she came across as less of the wild child it seemed the movie was going for. Having said that, I did like the interactions between Margaret and Carlita and the friendship that formed between them.

I mentioned that this movie was advertised as being the scariest movie of the year, but the elements of horror were really quite disappointing. Once again, there was a lack of subtlety or an understanding of ‘less is more’ that seems to be so prevalent in the current horror movies.

I guess this movie works as a good tie-in for the original Omen series. I haven’t actually seen any of the Omen movies, but I’m aware enough of them to connect the dots. However, the problem with making a prequel that is obviously left open for a second movie is that, inevitably, it’s either going to completely contradict the original movie(s), or can really end in one way, so a lot of the tension of not knowing what’s going to happen is removed. After all, there was no mystery in how the Star Wars prequel trilogy was going to end, or who the main bad guy was going to be.

On the whole, this movie was fairly typical for modern day horror movies. Another disappointment, really. I’m still searching for the good horror movies.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Posted by cat2002116 on April 14, 2024
Posted in: Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Movies, Reviews, Science Fiction. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I watched the previous movie in the new Ghostbusters franchise, and since I did enjoy it, I decided to go to the cinema to see the next one.

The initial opening scene, with a whole room of people frozen with apparently no obvious source, was a really good way of setting the tone of the rest of the movie and building tension.

I found Phoebe to be a really relatable character in the first movie, and that wasn’t any different in this movie. I can definitely relate to Phoebe needing the Ghostbusters in her life…and how frustrated and upset she was about having that taken away from her. Being told to just be a normal teenager, while the rest of the family continued to capture ghosts, was clearly really hard on her.

I will say that I was disappointed with how things were handled between Phoebe and Melody. If the characters had been a guy and a girl, there would have been a deeper exploration of their feelings and there would have been a Romeo and Juliet slant to the movie. For what it’s worth, I really don’t see Romeo and Juliet as some great love story. However, I know that comparison would have been drawn if the genders were different.

I did like the interactions between the whole family, including Gary, were really good. It was obvious that there were some tensions in the family with Gary dating Callie, including with Gary not really knowing if he could take an active part in dealing with Phoebe or not. I thought the tension between the family worked really well…although Phoebe snapping at her mother was a bit sad to see. On the other hand, I really didn’t like the fact that Callie told Trevor, ‘You’re an adult, aren’t you?’ when he asked her for help with the ghost in the attic. Like turning 18 magically means a parent shouldn’t help their child anymore? That made Callie drop a bit in my estimation, to be honest.

My favourite character in this movie, apart from Phoebe, had to be Nadeem. I always like the concept of a character who has abilities, but isn’t aware of them and then has to learn how to use those…and I really liked the way he was introduced. To be fair, the actor who plays him is one I’ve liked in a lot of things (like the Eternals).

On the whole, despite being disappointed in how Phoebe and Melody’s relationship was handled, I did enjoy this movie. It was a good sequel to Afterlife, and I particularly liked seeing the original surviving Ghostbusters appear in this movie. I will say that if you enjoyed the original Ghostbusters, I think this one and its predecessor are both worth watching.